


Imagines and One-Shots

by earthtodanielle



Category: 5 Seconds of Summer (Band), Achievement Hunter, All Time Low (Band), Hot Chelle Rae, Marshall Traver, One Direction (Band), Rooster Teeth, Set It Off (Band), Waterparks (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Apocalypse, Alternate Universe - Blind, Alternate Universe - CEO, Alternate Universe - Childhood Friends, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Cowboy, Alternate Universe - Deaf, Alternate Universe - Fraternity, Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, Alternate Universe - Military, Alternate Universe - Neighbors, Alternate Universe - Nerd, Alternate Universe - Parents, Alternate Universe - Reality Show, Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Alternate Universe - Single Parent, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, F/M, Reader-Insert, alternate universe - bad boy, alternate universe - youtuber
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-11
Updated: 2019-09-12
Packaged: 2019-09-16 14:13:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 585
Words: 1,285,047
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16955589
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/earthtodanielle/pseuds/earthtodanielle
Summary: my life is a mess and so is my writingchapters with * in the title may be triggering





	1. Elementary Memories (Ian Keaggy)

"Come on! I have something to show you!" your best friend, Ian, exclaimed as he pulled you out of your house one Saturday afternoon.

"Ian, you're pulling me with you. I really don't think I have a choice," you giggled.

"But we have to go now so we can spend our best friend anniversary together!" he yelled happily.

_Flashback_

You and Ian had been best friends since kindergarten when he noticed you were sitting alone recess. You had never had any friends; Your only friend was your next door neighbor, but she was in middle school. You two never talked much anymore anyway. She always had her friends from school over and you never really hung out as often. So you were alone.

You were the typical loner kid – you didn't really like interacting with people because the other kids were usually mean to you, but it would make you feel better if someone at least  _tried_  to be your friend. No one liked you and you knew that. If it wasn't the stares or the whispering when you walked by, people would trip you and call you names, and to a 6-year-old, it hurt a lot.

You were sitting up against a tree, moving dirt around with a stick you found laying beside you. You felt someone walk up to you and stand in front of you, but you knew better than to look up. Something bad always happened when you did.

"Hi," you heard the kid, a boy, say. When you didn't say anything, he sat down on the ground beside you and continued, "Why are you sitting alone?" You simply shrugged as an answer to his question, so he asked, "Well, why aren't you playing with anybody?"

You shrugged again, but spoke softly, looking back down at the dirt, "No one likes me. What's the point?" You looked over at him and recognized him as the kid who sits next to you in class, Ian Keaggy.

"I like you," Ian said.

You continued to look at him, only now, you were slightly shocked, "You do?"

"Yeah," he smiled, "You're different and different is good."

"No, it's not," you mumbled, "Everyone laughs at me all the time."

"I don't. I think you're pretty cool."

You gave him another look before you heard the bell ring, signalling recess was over. Ian stood up and held his hand out to you. You stared at his hand for a moment before slowly reaching up and putting your hand in his. He pulled you up, but didn't let go of your hand as you two walked back inside the school.

_End flashback_

That was 16 years ago, and you still catch yourself smiling at the the memory of how you and Ian became friends from time to time.

"Why are you smiling?" Ian chuckled at you as he got onto his motorcycle.

"Just thinking about how we met," you giggled, climbing on behind him, wrapping your arms around his waist, "So where are we going?"

"It's a surprise," he smiled.

"I don't like surprises, Ian," you pouted.

"I know, but you'll love this one. Trust me." He started the engine and pulled out of your driveway. You were never really a motorcycle kind of person, but something about being with Ian always made you feel safe.

You couldn't figure out why, and you don't even know when, but at some point after middle school, you started developing a crush on your best friend. Of course, you never told him. You were afraid of ruining your friendship. He was the only friend you had aside from the friends Ian was in a band with, but you figured they only liked you because you were Ian's best friend. You still had your days when you felt like not even Ian really wanted to be your friend anymore. You had yourself convinced that he was only keeping you around because he felt bad for you, and although you were all smiles when you were with him, that thought always stayed in your mind.

~

About 10 minutes later, Ian cut off his bike's engine and you noticed you were at the elementary school you used to attend.

"What are we doing here?" you asked, letting go of his waist and climbing off of his bike.

"Well, we've been best friends for exactly 16 years. I thought it would be fun to come back and reminisce," he smiled, taking your hand in his and walking you to the tree you were sitting against all those years ago, noticing there was a picnic set up.

"It's still here," you laughed, looking up at the tree as you both sat down on the blanket. You two ate and talked for what seemed like forever about all the memories you shared with each other since the moment you met.

~

After you finished eating, you cleared off the blanket and laid next to each other in the shade, pointing out and laughing about the different shapes you found in the clouds.

"Hey," Ian said suddenly, "I'll be right back, okay? I have to go get something I forgot from my house."

You looked at him and nodded before he kissed your cheek and stood up, hopping back on his bike and taking off. You couldn't deny that your heart skipped a couple beats when he kissed your cheek. You two did this all the time, but you knew it didn't mean anything to Ian. You were only friends and that's the way it was always going to be.

~

After 10 minutes of waiting for Ian, you sat up and found a nearby stick, beginning to push some dirt around. You were so lost in your thoughts that you hadn't even noticed that Ian had returned, but you felt someone walk up and stop in front of you.

"Hi," you heard a guy say, "Why are you sitting alone?" You remained silent, so he sat down beside you and continued, "Why aren't you hanging out with anyone?"

You didn't even hesitate before you answered, "No one likes me. What's the point?"

"I like you," he said. You looked over and saw that Ian had sat back down beside you. He had the same look on his face as when he asked you those questions when you first met him.

You smiled slightly, "You do?"

"Yeah," he smiled back, "You're different and different is good."

"No, it's not," you said, shaking your head, "Everyone laughs at me."

"I don't. I think you're pretty cool." Ian paused before continuing, "Look, there's been something I've wanted to tell you for the past few years and I don't really know how to put it, so I'm just gonna say it."

 _Great_. Here comes the speech about how you're a nice person and he really does think you're cool, but he can't be friends with you anymore. You were prepared for it. Everyone that ever came into your life had always given you that same speech. You heard it over and over so many time, you honestly wouldn't be surprised if you knew it by heart. However, what you expected to hear is not what Ian told you.

"I love you," he said.

You looked at him, completely shocked, "You... You love me?"

"Yes," he sighed, "I have for about four years now."

You stared at the ground for a few seconds, which felt like hours to Ian, and when you looked back up, you couldn't stop yourself from blurting out, "I love you too."

"Really?" he asked, almost as shocked as you were.

"Yes... I have for a few years, but I didn't... I didn't want to ruin anything because I didn't think you'd feel the same. No one ever does," you mumbled, looking back toward the ground.

Ian looked at you for a moment before he pulled you onto his lap and took your face in his hands, making you look at him again, "Well, I do. I love you more than I've ever loved anyone, and between you and me, I love you more than I love motorcycles and photography."

You jokingly gasped, "That's a lot!"

"Yeah, it is!" he smiled, before becoming serious again, "I promise I will always be here for you and I will  _never_  leave you like everyone else has."

"How do you know that?" you whispered.

"Because I wouldn't stay with you for 16 years if I didn't plan on staying around for the rest of them," he replied, kissing your forehead. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box before looking back at you. "I want you to know I'm not lying when I say I'm never going to leave you." He opened the box and pulled out the most beautiful necklace with a small blue heart hanging off of the chain. "I was saving this for a while now, but I could never build up the courage to ask you," Ian said, "Will you be my girlfriend?"

You just stared at him. That was all you  _could_ do. You didn't think any of this was real. You just confessed your love to your best friend of 16 years and he wasn't running away. In fact, it was the complete opposite. He  _wanted_  to be with you; He  _wanted_  to be able to call you his girlfriend. Nothing had ever made you happier than this man did and you were going to hold onto him for as long as you could.

You realized you were still staring blankly at Ian and he was looking at you with a worried expression. A smile began slowly creeping it's way onto your face and you knew you wouldn't be able to speak, so you just nodded. He sighed in relief and reached over behind your neck, putting the necklace on and securing it. You looked down and held the heart in your fingers for a moment, smiling. When you looked back up at Ian, he gently rested his hand on your cheek and moved his face closer to yours.

Right before your lips touched, he stopped and whispered, "I love you."

"I love you too," you whispered back, leaning in the rest of the way and kissing him.

 


	2. Pick Up the Phone (Jamie Follese)

"I'd like to point out that if anything falls over, it's not my fault," you said as you, Ian, and Jamie were setting up the merch stand while Ryan and Nash were soundchecking their mid-set songs.

"So what if you go to pull a shirt off the stand and it falls over?" Ian laughed.

"Still not my fault," you shrugged, "Maybe you just need better stands."

Jamie chuckled and shook his head, "Yeah, that's definitely it, (nickname you don't like)."

"What have I told you about calling me that, Jaim?" you asked, resting your hand on your hip.

"To not to," he smiled innocently.

"Then why do you keep doing it?"

"Because it annoys you," he smirked lightly. You rolled your eyes and as you were pinning the last shirt up on the wall, Ryan and Nash walked over to the table.

"We're gonna go to the McDonald's down the street, do you guys want to come?" Ryan asked. Jamie and Ian nodded as you hopped of the chair you were standing on.

"I'm down," you said. You walked down the road, got your food, and sat in one of the booths that didn't have trash on the table.

~

You talked and goofed around for about an hour as you ate, then finished and went back to the venue.

As you were walking, you threw your arm across Jamie's shoulders, "Jamie, Jamie, Jamie."

"Y/N, Y/N, Y/N," he mocked, chuckling lightly.

"I think it's about time we found you a girlfriend."

"Why would you think that?"

You shrugged, "Just a thought. You're a great guy, Jamie. Any girl would be lucky to date you." You ruffled his hair a bit before skipping over to the merch table and getting ready for fans to start coming in.

~

A couple hours later, the concert ended and you were getting shirts for people who waited until after the concert to buy their merch. The band was at the table next to you, signing autographs and taking pictures. When everyone had left the venue and you packed up all the merch and loaded it onto the van, you decided to go help Jamie pack up his drum set.

"No one's helping you, huh?" you laughed as you walked over to him.

"Don't remind me," he sighed, then laughed along.

It took a little while to get his drums all packed up and ready to go to the next city, but it didn't take as long as it would have if no one had helped him.

~

"So," Jamie said as he put the last of his drum set in the van, "I've been thinking about what you said earlier, and you're right; I would like to have a girlfriend."

"Well, why couldn't you have said something earlier?! There were a lot of insanely beautiful girls at the show tonight! I'm sure you would have hit it off with one of them!" you exclaimed.

"That's the thing," he said, "I don't want to be with some random girl I meet at a show. I already have feelings for someone, but I don't know if she feels the same."

"Okay, well, I don't know why you didn't tell her before we left on this tour! You should call her and tell her how you feel!" He nodded and pulled out his phone. You wouldn't be the last to admit giving that advice did hurt a little, but you knew it was best for your friendship if you just kept my mouth shut about your feelings for him. As long as Jamie's happy, you're happy.

Suddenly, you felt your phone start vibrating, letting you know you had an incoming call. You pulled your phone out of your pocket and looked at Jamie's name lighting up the screen.

"This isn't funny, Jaim," you said, rolling your eyes, "You're supposed to be calling that girl you have feelings for."

"Right, sorry," he said, ending the call. Your phone started going off again and – big surprise– Jamie's name was on the screen.

"Jamie, seriously. Call her," you said.

"I'm trying, but she won't answer her phone," he said, looking at you.

You suddenly realized what he meant and began stumbling on your words, "Wha-What do you mean you have feelings for me?" He shoved his phone back into his pocket and walked the short distance over to you, grabbing your hands.

"Exactly that," he stated, "I know you probably don't feel the same way and this might make things weird between us, but I couldn't keep it in any longer. I had to tell you. I really don't want this to affect anything, but I understand if you don't feel the sa-" You took a chance and cut him off mid-sentence, grabbing his cheeks and smashing your lips against his.

You felt him smile just before you quickly pulled away, turning a light shade of red, "I am so sorry. I have no idea why I did that..,"

He laughed, wrapping his arms around you, "It's okay. I liked it. It saves me the trouble of having to ask if you feel the same way too."

"I do, Jamie," you mumbled into his chest, wrapping your arms around him as well, "More than you'll ever know."

"Come on, guys! We gotta get to the next city," Ian called out of the bus door.

You and Jamie looked at each other before you grinned evilly and yelled, "Don't even think about it, Follese!" You pushed him and made a break for the bus when you suddenly felt yourself being lifted off the ground. You let out a shriek and looked at Jamie, who was now carrying you onto the bus and trying to keep himself from laughing.

As Jamie put you back down on your own two feet, you heard Nash chuckle, "So, who won this time?"

"I did," you smiled victoriously, letting out a soft giggle.

"No," Jamie looked at you, then whispered, "I did."

He leaned in and gave you a quick kiss, pulling away when Ryan shouted, "Finally! I thought he'd never tell you how he felt!"

Jamie's face turned light red and you laughed, "Well, I'm gonna go to bed."

Jamie followed you and Ian called after you, "Try not to do anything too crazy! I'd like to get some sleep tonight!" You laughed loudly, climbing into Jamie's bunk. He gave you a look when you turned back to face him.

"What?" you asked, an innocent smile on your face.

"This is my bunk," he laughed.

"Haven't you ever heard of sharing?" you smirked slightly. He gave you a small smile and climbed in next to you, wrapping his arm around you as you cuddled up to him. You yawned and quietly said, "And for the record, I've always thought it was kind of cute when you call me (nickname)."

You felt him chuckle, "Goodnight, (nickname)."

"Goodnight, Jaim," you smiled before drifting off to sleep.


	3. Perfectly Worth It (Jamie Follese) *

Warning: Self-harm, abusive parent

~

Your POV

"This is not how I want to be spending the next three weeks," you groaned.

"You're such a drama queen," your best friend, Sydney, laughed.

"So you're telling me you're excited about this project?"

She shrugged, "Who knows? It might be fun."

You were sitting in our English class and had just found out you would be beginning to write to pen pals from a school on the other side of town tomorrow. It wasn't that you weren't interested – you'd always wanted a pen pal – but you weren't at all good with conversations, especially with people you didn't know. It may sound stupid because you would think it would be easier to have a conversation with someone that wasn't in person, but not with you. You couldn't complain too much though; If this project got you out of reading some boring novel, you were all for it.

~

The next day, you got the names of the people you'd be writing to. Your teacher, Mrs. Sanders, handed each member of the class a slip of paper and told you to start writing.

"Who did you get?" you asked Sydney.

"Um... Some kid named Ben," she answered, "You?"

You looked at the paper, "Some guy named Jamie."

"How do you know it's a guy?"

"Because he made sure to write it down beside his name," you giggled.

"Well, I guess that saves you the embarrassment of accidentally calling him a girl," she teased.

"Who's to say I'm not going to 'accidentally' call him a girl anyway?"

"Okay, but when he hates you, don't come crying to me!"

"I love you too, Syd," you smiled, starting to write you letter.

~

Jamie's POV

"What if they know who I am?" he asked worriedly.

"Bro," his friend, Ben, said, "Half the people here don't even know who you are. Calm down. It's not like they're ever going to find out anyway. Besides, what if you get a girl? You two could totally fall in love."

Jamie sighed, leaning back in his chair, "Yeah, like that will ever happen. Plus, if she does know who I am, she'll only brag about being my pen pal for three weeks."

"We didn't even give our last names, she would never know!"

He shrugged, "I guess you're right."

"Aren't I always?" Ben asked with a cocky grin.

"Remember that time we were at the mall and you started hitting on that guy because you thought he was a girl?" he smirked.

The grin disappeared and he said, "You swore you would never bring that up again, man."

"Just saying," Jamie chuckled.

~

Your POV

"Alright," you heard Mrs. Sanders say, "We have about 5 more minutes left in class, so wrap up your writing."

You finished by signing your name at the bottom and quickly read over what you had written for probably the 20th time. You felt happy with it, so you folded the letter and stuck it in the envelope, sealing it and sticking the stamp you got at the beginning of class on the top left corner before Mrs. Sanders went around to collect them.

"Now that wasn't so bad, was it?" Sydney asked, nudging your elbow.

You gave her a confused look, "What do you mean?"

"Well, you seem happy and I looked over at you a few times and noticed you had a blank look on your face."

You shrugged, "You know me. I never know what to say to people I don't know." The bell rung and you and Sydney picked up your things, walking out of the room.

"Have you ever thought that maybe you're writing to Jamie Follese?" Sydney asked randomly.

You started laughing, "Syd, I could never get that lucky."

"I'm just saying, Y/N. What would you do if you were?"

"I don't know," you shrugged, "I'd probably freak out. He's only the drummer of my favorite band ever."

"Yeah, I know. You talk about him all the time," she teased.

"It's not like we'll ever know anyway," you sighed, "We're never going to meet these people."

~

Jamie's POV

Jamie walked into his English class the next morning, tapping his foot as he impatiently waited for the bell to ring.

"What are you doing here before me?" Ben asked, walking into the room and taking his seat beside his best friend.

"I don't know," he answered honestly.

"You're nervous."

"No, I'm not."

"So you're telling me it's just a coincidence that you're early to class on the day we just so happen to get our letters from our pen pals?"

"Oh, was that today?"

Ben laughed, "Yeah, you're nervous."

"I'm not nervous! I'm just...curious to see who I got," Jamie replied.

He rolled his eyes, "Okay, man. Whatever you say." The bell rung and class started. Jamie's teacher, Mr. Williams, passed out their letters and told them they had all class period to write a letter back. Jamie opened the envelope, quickly unfolding the piece of paper and read it to himself.

Jamie:

Sorry, I don't like writing 'Dear'. It makes me feel too formal and I don't like that.

Anyway...

Hi, I'm Y/N! You probably already knew that though, or maybe you didn't. I don't know. But I'd like to start off by saying I'm absolutely awful with conversations, so I'm sorry in advance for how horrible of a pen pal I'm going to be for you.

I guess I'll just be like everyone else and ask a bunch of questions that I kind of care to know the answer to, but at the same time, I don't.

What's your favorite color? Do you play any sports? What's your favorite planet? How many M&Ms can you eat in one sitting? What's your favorite band?

Which reminds me, I like to talk about my favorite band a lot, so sorry in advance for that too.

Speaking of my favorite band, here's a pointless fact you probably don't care to know but I'm gonna tell you anyway: You have the same name as their drummer! :)

Well, that's all I have to say for now, I guess, so I'll talk to you in a couple days.

Y/N.

P.S. I don't like to use 'Sincerely' either.

"Dude, she totally knows me!" Jamie told Ben when he finished reading the letter.

"What are you talking about?" he asked, looking up from his paper. He showed him the part where she talked about her favorite band and he simply said, "She doesn't know it's you."

"How many drummers do you know named Jamie?"

"None, but that doesn't mean there aren't any. She just thinks you have the same name. Why don't you just ask her what he favorite band is?" he suggested.

"I guess," he mumbled, beginning to write his letter back to Y/N.

When he was done, he noticed he had 10 minutes left in class, so he decided to reread what he wrote before folding it, putting it in an envelope, turning it in, and waited for the bell to ring. When it did, he gathered all of his things and walked out of the room, heading to his next class.

~

Your POV; The next day

Mrs. Sanders almost immediately gave you your letters and you ripped it open as quickly as you could.

Y/N:

I've never liked writing 'Dear' either, so you're not alone.

Hi! I'm Jamie, but you definitely already knew that.

I guess we've hit a bit of a roadblock, because I'm pretty bad with conversations too.

My favorite color is green. I don't play sports, but I love hockey and soccer. My favorite planet is Pluto (It will always be a planet to me, I don't care what scientists say). I'm not sure about the M&Ms, but I've never actually counted. My favorite band would either be The Beatles or Queen (I can never decide between them).

It's a good thing you like to talk about music, because I do too! So, what is your favorite band? I figure if you're going to be talking about them all the time, I should know who they are, right? And that's not really that pointless of a fact. It's always interesting to know what band members have the same name as me. :)

Jamie.

P.S. I guess we have something else in common then.

You laughed lightly, writing your response. Mrs. Sanders had you hand in your letters a bit earlier today because she wanted to 'run something by you all'.

"Now I know this is only the second day, but the teacher of your pen pals' class and I had an idea," she started, "When these three weeks are up, we're going to go to the park and meet our pen pals. It will be on a Saturday, but it will also be mandatory, so if you don't come, you better have a very good excuse on the following Monday. The trip will cost $10 per person and we'll be taking a regular school bus." A chorus of groans echoed throughout the room at the mention of a bus and all you could think was 'Will my mom even let me go...?'

~

Jamie's POV

Jamie:

Thank you for being the only other person who still considers Pluto a planet! My heart almost broke when I found out it was being downgraded. Tragic, really.

Make sure you count for me sometime then! That's actually one of the only two questions I really cared about the answer to. ;)

My favorite band is Hot Chelle Rae. I don't know if you've heard of them. Not a lot of people from my school have. My best friend Sydney and I are the only ones I know of around here who listen to them. Which is strange, because they're from here. But oh well. More for us, I guess.

Sorry. I'm rambling on about them and you probably don't even care. I just owe them a lot, you know?

Y/N.

"Yeah, man," Jamie said when he finished reading, "She totally has no idea who I am." Ben took the letter off of his desk and read it.

"Okay, so she knows you. Who cares? Are you really going to let this make or break whatever relationship you could have with this girl?" he asked, shoving his shoulder lightly.

"But what if she's one of those crazy fans who only wants me to say she knows me?"

"Well, I guess that's a risk you're just going to have to take," he shrugged. After a few minutes, Ben looked back over at Jamie, "Hey, what did she say her friend's name was again?"

He looked back at your letter, scanning the page, "Um... Sydney. Why?"

"Unless there's another Sydney in her class, she's my pen pal," he smiled.

Jamie rolled his eyes and chuckled, "Don't get too excited. There's a very high chance we'll never meet these girls." When class was almost over, Mr. Williams went to the front of the room.

"Now the other teacher and I have been talking," he announced, "And it has been decided that we will be taking a little field trip to the park two weeks from Saturday to meet our pen pals. The trip will cost $10 each and it isn't optional."

"Great," Jamie groaned quietly as the bell rung, rushing out of the classroom.

~

Your POV

It was Friday night, the night before you would be meeting your pen pals. You had already turned in the money for the trip without your mom knowing; All you had to do now was come up with a good excuse to not be home all day.

You walked into the living room where she was watching TV and took a deep breath, "Can I stay at Syd's place for the weekend?"

You anxiously waited for a couple minutes before she finally answered you, "Sure, whatever."

You rushed back to your bedroom and grabbed your bag, a change of clothes, and everything else you needed before getting out of the house before she could ask any questions. You walked to Sydney's house, which was luckily right down the street, and knocked on her door.

Her mother answered and you smiled, "Hi, Mrs. Wilson."

"I've told you a thousand times, Y/N, call me Angela," she smiled, letting you inside the house.

"I'm sorry!" you laughed, "I can't help it! Thank you!" you called, trotting to Sydney's bedroom.

You knocked on her door and she yelled, "Come in!" You walked inside and she gave you a confused look, "What are you doing here?"

"I told you," you rolled your eyes, "Me staying over this weekend was the only way my mom wouldn't know about me going to the park tomorrow."

"You paid for that with your own money, why would she care?"

"She never lets me do anything remotely fun," you sighed, "If I ask, she yells at me."

"Then how were you able to come here?"

"She was watching TV," you shrugged, "Not really paying attention to what I was saying, I guess."

~

The next day

You and Sydney got ready and made it to the school just in time for the bus to leave. You climbed on and took a seat, obviously sitting together.

"Isn't Jamie Follese's best friend's name Ben?" Sydney asked randomly.

"Yeah, why?" you asked, looking over at her.

"Well, my pen pal's name is Ben and he's talked about a Jamie a couple times. I'm serious, Y/N! Your pen pal could be Jamie Follese!"

"Syd, let's be realistic here. Jamie Follese is not my pen pal."

"Why can't you be a little more optimistic about things? There's a very good chance Jamie is your pen pal and you two could totally hit it off today!"

"Okay, well, when that happens, you can scream it to the world that you told me so," you sighed, rolling you eyes. She stuck out her arm to you and you shook your head before taking her hand and shaking it.

~

Once you arrived at the park, you noticed another school bus already there. Your heart started beating faster and faster, wondering if maybe Sydney was right. What if Jamie Follese was your pen pal?

"No, Y/N," you whispered to yourself, "Don't get your hopes up. He would never think of you that way. You're just a fan and that's all you'll ever be to him." You got off the bus and the other group of kids looked over at you, beginning to make their way toward your class. Sydney suddenly shrieked, elbowing your side.

"Ow!" you yelled, glaring at her, "What was that for?!"

She stared wide-eyed as she moved her hand to your chin and made you look in the same direction she was and you swore your heart almost stopped. You let out a short squeal before slapping your hand over your mouth when you realized you were looking at none other than Jamie Follese himself.

"No. No, no. No, no, no, no, no," you kept repeating, starting to back away.

Sydney put her hands on your back and started pushing you toward Jamie, "You are not backing out of this, Y/N!"

"Yes, I am, Syd!" you squeaked, "I changed my mind! I want to go back home!"

"You want to go back home?" she asked, not believing it and still pushing you.

"Okay, maybe not home, but anywhere that's not here!"

Jamie's POV

Jamie looked around for anyone who looked like they could be a Y/N, but he stopped once he saw a girl pushing someone toward him.

"Hi, Jamie," the girl pushing the other one said.

"Hi... I'm sorry, who are you?" he asked.

"Oh, right. Silly me," she laughed, "I'm Sydney and this-" She pointed to the girl she had pushed over to him. "-is Y/N." Meanwhile, you just stood there, looking like you had seen a ghost and just stared at him.

"Um, is she gonna be okay?" he asked.

"Oh, she'll be fine. Once she gets over the shock, she'll talk your ear off. So enjoy this while you can," Sydney said, causing you to glare at her.

Jamie chuckled before offering his hand to you, "Shall we?"

You stared at his hand for a moment and Sydney nudged you a bit before you slowly put your hand in his. He pulled you to a bench pretty far away from everyone else, but still close enough to be able to see them.

"So," he started, "I guess I can skip asking how you felt when you saw it actually was me."

He saw you smile slightly before you groaned and put your face in your hands, mumbling, "This is so embarrassing."

"Why's that?"

"I talked about you and your band so much. You probably think I'm some crazy stalker..."

Jamie chuckled again, "Not a crazy stalker, just a very dedicated fan."

"Really?" you asked in disbelief, looking at him, "Because even I thought I seemed like some crazy stalker."

"A lot of the things you said were really sweet," he smiled, "My favorite letter was when you talked about how we saved your life."

You felt a smile start to pull at the corner of your mouth, "Really?"

"Yeah!" he chirped, "I love knowing that our music can get people through anything wrong in their lives, even if it's only for the amount of time a song is played." You smiled lightly again and looked down at your hands. Jamie looked at your hands as well and noticed a couple light red marks on your upper wrist.

"What's on your wrist?" he asked.

"N-Nothing," you rushed, pulling down your jacket sleeves.

"Y/N," he said a little more firmly, "Let me see your wrists." You shook your head rapidly and wouldn't look at him, so he grabbed your hand and rolled up your sleeve slightly to reveal red lines going across your wrists and lower forearm.

"Y/N-"

"I don't need your sympathy, Jamie," you mumbled, still not looking at him, "I get it enough from Syd already."

"Will you at least tell me why?"

"I don't have a good relationship with my mom and I don't really have many friends, okay? That's why.." You went to get up, but he pulled you back down, facing him.

"When was the last time you cut?" Jamie asked, barely able to speak.

You shrugged, a bit taken back by how much he actually seemed hurt by it, "A couple months ago, when I heard Forever Unstoppable."

"And you haven't done it since?" You shook her head and on impulse, Jamie wrapped his arms around you tightly. He could tell you froze for a moment before hugging him back. He pulled away and made you look him in the eyes, "Promise me you'll never hurt yourself again."

"Why do you care so much? I'm just another fan. You'll forget about me and move on after today," you muttered under your breath.

"And what if I don't want to forget about you and move on?" he asked, "Then what do I do?"

"What do you mean?" you gave him a confused look.

"I mean exactly what I said. I think you're a great person, Y/N. Sure, maybe you only told me all those things in our letters because you thought you'd never meet me, but you did, and I know those feelings of wanting to hurt yourself can come back, so I want to help you and I'm never going to leave. Do you know why?" You shook your head and he continued with a cheesy grin, "Because you're perfectly worth it."

You laughed, "Using your own songs on me, huh?"

"Is it working?"

"It might be."

"Then yes. Yes, I am," he smiled.

You smiled back at him as you heard your teachers yell, "Time to go!"

"I really would like to see you again, Y/N," Jamie said, helping you stand up and walking over to the buses with you.

"You would?" you asked, seemingly surprised.

"Well, yeah. Why wouldn't I?"

You shrugged, "I don't know. I guess I just though you never really wanted to hang out with fans..."

"Only the fans that are all over me," he chuckled.

"I would have been, but I was too busy having an actual conversation with you," you joked. You hugged each other before you got on her bus.

Jamie was hit with a random feeling to look behind him and when he did, he noticed something laying on the ground where you had just been walking back to the buses. He jogged over to pick it up and realized it was your phone. You had taken it out of you jeans pocket and put it in your jacket pocket because it kept turning itself on whenever you moved. Jamie sighed as he stuffed it into his own pocket and rushed onto the bus, knowing he wouldn't be able to find out where you lived until he got home.

~

After about 15 minutes of being on the bus and getting back to the school, Jamie hopped in his car and drove home. He went up to his bedroom and scrolled through your contacts until he found Sydney's name and hit call, hoping it was the right Sydney – there was only one in there, of course.

She answered on the third ring, "Hey, Y/N. What's up?"

"Hi, Sydney. This isn't Y/N, it's actually Jamie. Y/N dropped her phone in the park earlier and I was wondering if maybe you could give me her address so I could bring it back to her," Jamie said.

"Oh, hey, Jamie. Yeah, sure. No problem!" Sydney gave him your address and he thanked her before hanging up. He made his way back downstairs and found his mom and older brother sitting on the couch.

"Hey," he said, "I have to go take my friend's phone back to her, okay?"

"Sure, honey," Adrienne smiled, "Don't be out too late."

"Oh, a her," Ryan smirked.

"Yes, Ryan. A her. As in a girl," Jamie rolled his eyes.

"Do you have a thing for this girl?" he wiggled his eyebrows.

"Goodbye, Ryan," he said, walking out the door.

~

It took Jamie about 10 minutes to find your house, but when he pulled in the driveway and got out of his car, he heard screaming from inside and realized right away that it wasn't your voice. As he got closer to your front door, he heard a couple things break, a door slam, and saw a light turn on on the second floor. He took a breath and climbed up onto the roof, praying it was your room. When he got to her window, he realized it was open, so he just climbed in.

"Y/N?" Jamie whispered so whoever had been yelling at you wouldn't hear him. He heard the water running in the bathroom attached to your room, so he went over and opened the door. He found you sitting on the floor beside the bathtub with a razor in your hand.

You hadn't realized he was there because he could hear you cry quietly, "I'm so sorry, Jamie," moving the razor up to your wrist. He ran over to you, dropping to his knees beside you and taking the razor out of your hand, throwing it across the room before wrapping his arms tightly around you, pulling you onto his lap. "Jamie!" He could tell you were surprised. "What are you doing here?"

"You dropped your phone at the park so I called Sydney to give me your address so I could bring it back to you," he rushed, "What do you think you're doing?!"

"I was thinking I could make all the pain go away until you showed up and ruined everything," you said angrily, climbing out of his lap and leaning against the wall, wiping the tears off of your face.

"Y/N, you promised me you would never do this again!" Jamie nearly shouted.

"That's just something I tell people, Jamie!" you shouted back, "I want them to get off my back and leave me alone, so I tell them what they want to hear!"

"Why?" he choked, not entirely sure why he cared this much after having met you only 7 hours ago.

"I told you," you mumbled, "My mom and I don't have a good relationship. When I got home today, she found out I lied about something and she started yelling and throwing things at me."

"Did any of it hit you?" he asked softly.

You shrugged and he gave you look, causing you to sigh, "A piece of glass bounced off the wall and cut my arm a little." You showed him your right arm where there was a small cut just above your elbow. He looked at it then you for a moment before standing up and holding his hand out to you. "What are you doing?" you asked, taking his hand.

"I'm getting you out of here," he answered, pulling you up to your feet.

"No... No, you're not," you said jerking your hand back, "My mom would kill me."

"Y/N, look at you! It doesn't matter what you do, that's where it going to end up anyway! Please, just let me get you out! You shouldn't be living like this!" he begged.

"Where am I supposed to go, Jamie? Not even Sydney knows about what my mom does," you whispered, almost in tears.

"I don't know," he told you, walking over to you and wiping your cheeks with his thumbs, "But we're going to figure it out together, got it?"

You nodded, "But how are we supposed to get out? There's no way without her seeing us."

"We go out the way I came in," he said, pulling you to your window. He climbed down and successfully landed on his feet on the ground, looking back up at you, "Your turn."

"You're not seriously suggesting I jump off of my roof, are you?" you asked in shock. Suddenly, you heard someone banging on your bedroom door and you looked back down at Jamie in a panic.

"Yes, because right now, I really think it's the only choice you have," he said.

"What if I fall?" you asked quietly.

"I'll be here to catch you," he told you.

You started climbing out of your window and when you almost made it to the ground, there was another loud sound and it was clear your mom had gotten into your room. You jumped, letting out a short scream, and lost your footing. You luckily weren't too high up that Jamie fell when he caught you and put you back on your feet, grabbing your hand and running to his car.

"Thanks," you said.

"Don't thank me yet," Jamie said as you got into the car and drove off. He grabbed your phone from his pocket and held it out to you. You quietly thanked him as you took it from him. "You have to call the cops, Y/N," he said before you could put it back in your pocket, looking at you when he stopped at a red light.

"Jamie, I-"

"Y/N, you have to. If you don't, nothing will happen and your mother will make you go back to live in that house with her, do you understand me?"

"But I don't have anywhere else to go," you whispered.

"I told you; We'll figure it out later, but for right now, I need to know that no matter what happens, she will not be able to get to you." You bit your lip and gave in, calling the police. As you were talking to them, Jamie held your hand and right as you hung up, he pulled into his driveway.

"Wait, your family's home, aren't they?" you asked as you got out of the car and started walking to the front door.

"They're always home, why?"

"I look like shit."

"Is that really what you're worried about right now?"

"I'm a girl, Jamie," you giggled, "That's what I'm always worried about."

Jamie chuckled, shaking his head and wrapping his arm around your shoulder, "You look beautiful." You smiled slightly as you walked in the front door. You saw Adrienne and Ryan sitting on the couch watching TV, exactly how they were when Jamie left. They looked over at the two of you with a confused expression.

"Hey, guys. This is Y/N," Jamie said slowly, "You know, my pen pal?"

Adrienne looked at you and gasped suddenly, "What happened to your arm?!" She jumped up and rushed over to you. "Never mind. I'll clean it up for you," she said, taking you to the kitchen.

"So," Ryan said, "Why did you bring her here?"

"I don't really think it's my place to say. If she wants you to know, she'll tell you," Jamie answered, sitting down on the couch.

Your POV

"What happened to your arm, sweetie?" Adrienne asked as she grabbed a washcloth and put it under the running water in the sink, putting a little bit of soap on it.

"Nothing," you said quietly, gasping lightly when the soap touched the cut.

"Sorry," she smiled apologetically, "But you know, these things don't happen without a reason and by the looks of it, this isn't something that you forget the cause of."

"Do you promise not to tell?"

"Well, I can't promise that, but I will promise that you can trust me."

"My mom did it..."

The shock on her face was obvious, "Why would your mom do this to you?"

You sighed, "I knew that if I told her exactly what I was doing today, she wouldn't have let me go, so I told her I was staying at my best friend's house for the weekend and she somehow found out and then this happened," you nodded toward your arm.

"How did you get here?"

"Jamie came to give me back my phone and realized what was going on, so he made me call the police and brought me here." She nodded and finished cleaning your arm, wrapping a bandage around it, then sent you back to the living room. You walked slowly into the room and Jamie looked at you, patting the seat beside him on the couch. You went over and sat beside him, realizing Ryan was staring at you.

"Why are you here?" he asked randomly.

"Ryan!" Jamie yelled.

"You didn't tell him?" you looked at Jamie.

"No... I didn't think you would want me to." Suddenly, there was a knock at the door and Adrienne rushed to answer it.

When she opened the door, you heard someone ask, "Good evening, ma'am. Is there a Y/N here?" She looked over at you and motioned for you to come to the door, so you got up and stood beside her. "Y/N?" the officer asked. You nodded and he continued, "We have officers at your house, but unfortunately, we can do anything until you tell us exactly what happened." 

You nodded again and Adrienne invited him in. You walked over to the couch and retook your spot beside Jamie. He held your hand again as you explained everything that happened. 

"Thank you," the officer said when you were finished, "Now being that you're not 18, where will you be staying?"

You paused and Adrienne spoke up, "With us. At least until she can find a more permanent home." The officer nodded, thanked you, and walked back out of the house.

When the door closed, you said, "Mrs. Follese, I can't just intrude like that."

"Please, dear," she smiled, "Call me Adrienne. And you're not intruding. We're happy to help you in any way we can. Any friend of Jamie's is always welcome." You were about to protest again when she looked at her son, "Jamie, why don't you show Y/N to the guest room?" Jamie pulled you out of the living room and down the hall.

"Well, here we are," he said, opening a door.

You yawned and said, "You really don't have to do this. I can just stay at Syd's house."

He smiled at you, "We'll get that sorted out tomorrow, but for now, I think you need to go to bed." He lightly pushed you over to the bed and said, "I'll go get something for you to sleep in." You sat down and he came back a few minutes later with a t-shirt and basketball shorts. You went into the bathroom to change and came back out a couple minutes later. "You should be okay for the night, so I'll just let you go to sleep," he said, beginning to step out of the room.

"Jamie," you said. He looked back at you and you continued, "Will you...um...will you stay with me?"

"Why?" he asked.

You shrugged, "Well, you said you'd never leave me."

He smiled, "Not what I meant, but yes." You both climbed back onto the bed and you laid your head on his chest. After a couple minutes of silence, he randomly said, "283."

"What?" you asked, looking up at him.

"I can eat 283 M&Ms in one sitting," he said proudly.

You stared at him for a moment before giggling and laying back down, "Goodnight, Jamie."

"Goodnight, Y/N," he whispered, kissing the top of your head as you drifted off to sleep.


	4. Picnic Confessions (Jamie Follese)

You stood in the airport lobby, nervously playing with your fingers and looking over at the gate every five seconds, hoping to see your best friends walk through every time you looked up.

You let out a breath and looked behind you at the time board to make sure you weren't too early or too late when you heard a voice behind you yell, "Y/N!"

You spun around and screamed, "Jamie!" running over to him and jumping into his open arms.

"Thanks for the love, Y/N," Nash said sarcastically as you put your feet back down on the floor.

You smiled and hugged him, "You know I missed all of you, Nash." You gave Ryan and Ian a hug as well and we went out to your car, going to Ryan and Jamie's house.

~

When you walked in, Adrienne was coming out of the kitchen and smiled widely, "Welcome home, boys!" She gave all of the guys hugs and then smiled at you, "Thank you for bringing them back here, Y/N."

"Anything for you, Adrienne," you jokingly saluted.

"You guys hungry?" she asked.

"Starving," Ryan groaned.

"I hope you're asking because you already have something made," Nash whined.

"Seriously, Adrienne," Ian added, "If I have to hear him complain that he's hungry for the next five hours again, I might actually lose my mind."

Adrienne laughed, "No worries. I finished cooking just before you walked through the door." The guys cheered and rushed into the kitchen as you and Adrienne shook your heads and laughed before following them.

~

When you were done eating, you asked Ian and Nash, "Want me to drive you guys back to your places?"

"No, Y/N. We want to walk all the way back to our houses," Nash replied sarcastically.

You shrugged, "Alright. Just thought I'd offer."

"I would actually love a ride back to my place, Y/N," Ian chuckled.

"Either of you guys want to join us?" you asked Ryan and Jamie, standing up. Ryan declined, saying he wanted to take a nap.

"I'm down," Jamie answered, "I wouldn't want you to have to be alone when you drop Ian off."

"What about me?!" Nash exclaimed.

"Hey, man," Ryan laughed, "You said you didn't want a ride."

"Y/N, please," Nash begged.

"Come on, you big baby," you giggled, taking your keys out of your bag.

~

After you dropped Nash and Ian off, you were taking Jamie back to his house when he randomly said, "Let's go to the park."

"Why?" you asked, stopping at a red light and looking at him.

He shrugged, "No reason. I just haven't seen you for three months and I think we should catch up."

"Alright," you said as the light turned green.

You pulled into the park and drove until you got to yours and Jamie's spot and parked the car. You got out and raced over to the picnic table you always laid on.

"I win yet again!" you yelled, jumping on top of the table and doing a little dance.

"I'm gonna get you one of these days," Jamie chuckled as you jumped back down and you laid on the table side-by-side, "So what's been going on in your life the past three months?"

"Not much," you shrugged, "A couple guys keeps asking me out though."

"Who?" Jamie asked.

"Kyle and Zach."

"Kyle? You mean that guy from your homeroom you always complain about?"

"I don't complain about him," you corrected, "I just wish he'd stop hitting on me is all."

"Well, what about Zach? Do you like him?"

You shrugged again, "I mean, he's cute and funny, but I'm kind of already in love with someone else and I'm just waiting to see where things go with him, I guess."

Jamie was silent for a couple minutes before he asked, "So what do like about this other guy that's keeping you from dating Zach?"

You took a deep breath and let it out slowly, "Well, he's really funny. Like, he always makes me laugh even when I don't want to, but he's also willing to have serious conversation and help me with whatever is bothering me. He makes me feel better, even when we could be thousands of miles away from each other. I wake up to a good morning text every day, he calls me every night before I go to bed just to say goodnight, and he Skypes me almost every afternoon to ask me how my day at school was no matter what timezone he's in. He's just a great guy and I don't understand why he doesn't already have a girlfriend because she would be the luckiest girl in the world to be with him." You laid there nervously, realizing you had just gone on and on about the person laying right beside you.

"So who is it?" he asked simply.

You sighed, looking up at the sky, "Jamie, if you haven't put it together by now that I'm talking about you, I don't think you ever will."

You felt him stare at you as he quietly said, "Y/N..." You turned your head to look at him, but didn't have time to say anything before you felt his lips on yours. "I love you too," Jamie said as soon as he stopped kissing you.

You quickly sat up and turned to face him, "Seriously?"

"Yeah," he nodded, sitting up and facing you as well, "I have for a while, but I didn't want to say anything because I thought it would make things too awkward and I didn't want us to stop being best friends."

"I don't think we would've just stopped being best friends if we didn't feel the same way about each other."

"What makes you say that?"

"Well, I think it would obviously be a little awkward at first, but I mean, you're my best friend. You know everything about me. We have so many memories together even though we've only known each other for a couple years. You've seen me at my worst and still stuck around. Friendships like that can't just be thrown away simply because someone doesn't like you in the way that you like them."

"Look at you, going all inspiring motivational speaker on me," Jamie teased.

"I know. It's probably the most attractive thing about me," you said, sticking your tongue out at him.

"I know you didn't just stick your tongue out at me," he smirked.

"Nope!" you shouted before jumping off of the picnic table and running around the park with Jamie following close behind.

You slowed down to catch your breath when you thought you lost Jamie, but you were proven very wrong when you felt arms wrap around your waist from behind and spin you around. You let out a short scream and laughed as your feet returned to the ground and you turned toward Jamie. As soon as you looked at him, he leaned in and kissed you.

"What was that for?" you giggled when he pulled away.

He shrugged, "I've been wanting to kiss you for a while now and now that I know you feel the same way about me, I just really want to kiss you all the time."

You shook my head and smiled, giving him a quick kiss, "You're such a dork."

"But I'm your dork," he said with a goofy grin.

"Yes, you are," you smiled again, grabbing his hand and tangling your fingers together as you walked back to your car.


	5. Keep You with Me (Ryan Follese)

Catch my flight, 6am  
Gonna be gone till who knows when  
Here I go

You were standing in the airport terminal for what seemed like the 17th time this year, but couldn't have been because it was only February.

A woman's voice suddenly echoed throughout the airport, "Flight 187 to Sydney: Now boarding."

This never gets easier.

Squeeze you tight one last time  
Use my shirt to dry your eyes  
Gotta let go

"I'll be back before you can miss me," Ryan said, lifting the hem of his shirt up and wiping your tear-stained cheeks before pulling you into a hug.

You wrapped your arms around his waist and buried your face into his shirt, mumbling, "Too late."

"I would have thought you'd be used to this by now, Y/N," he chuckled, kissing the top of your head.

"You don't always go halfway across the world, Ryan."

"Last call for Flight 187 to Sydney," the woman's voice echoed once again.

"Let's go, Ryan! We can't miss our flight!" Jamie called from across the terminal.

"I better get going," Ryan sighed, releasing his grip on you.

You smiled, but he could tell you were forcing it, "I guess so."

"I'll see you in four months. They'll go by like that," he told you, snapping his fingers. He wiped your cheeks again, kissing your lips softly, pulling away and walking over to the gate. Before he walked down the hallway to the plane, he looked back and mouthed, "I love you, Y/N."

"I love you too, Ryan," you mouthed back, turning around and walking away with your head down.

When I'm gone  
All the nights are so long  
We've gotta hold on, on, on

"Hi, babe," Ryan smiled as soon as your face appeared on his computer screen.

"Hi, Ryan," you smiled back, giving him a small wave.

This is what you did every night before you went to bed. Even if it was 2am or one of you had a tough day, you would Skype no matter what mood you were in. Seeing your face instantly made him feel better and although he wanted nothing more than to hold you, just being able to see you got him through touring without you.

"How was your day?" he asked.

You shrugged, "It was alright, I guess. I didn't do anything too exciting. Just school. How about yours?"

"It was pretty good! I just got done playing a show though, so I'm exhausted," he admitted.

"You should get some sleep," you said.

"But I want to talk to you," he pouted.

You giggled, "I know you do, and so do I, but we both need sleep. You have some interviews tomorrow morning and I have a really big test tomorrow."

"Okay, I'll talk to you tomorrow night when you tell me you totally aced your test," he winked.

You laughed loudly, "Goodnight, Ryan. I love you."

"I love you too, Y/N," he smiled before logging off of Skype and closing his laptop, putting it on the desk beside his bed. He sighed, climbing under the covers and eventually drifting off to sleep.

Days go by  
And yeah, I've always got you on my mind  
Oh, cause I keep you with me  
I say your name  
And I can't touch you, but it feels the same  
Oh, I gotta keep you with me

I still smell like your perfume  
Damn, I wish you were in this room  
In my bed

Ryan laid in bed, staring at the ceiling in his hotel room, sighing.

"Ryan," he heard Nash say from the other side of the room, "Please go to sleep."

"Seriously," Ian added, "We know you miss Y/N, but you'll get to see her in two days."

"How could we forget, Ian? He's been counting down since the moment we got here," Jamie groaned sleepily.

"Sorry," Ryan muttered, turning over onto his side.

I toss and turn as I try to dream  
Our love plays out like a movie scene  
In my head  
Oh, yeah

Days go by  
And yeah, I've always got you on my mind  
Oh, cause I keep you with me  
I say your name  
And I can't touch you, but it feels the same  
Oh, I gotta keep you with me

When I'm gone  
All the nights are so long  
We've gotta hold on, on, on

"Come on! We've gotta go home!" Ryan exclaimed, walking out of the bathroom seeing the guys just sitting on their beds rubbing their eyes.

"Bro, the airport is 10 minutes away and our flight doesn't leave for an hour," Jamie yawned, "We'll be okay."

Catch my flight, 6am  
One last stop and I'm home again  
Here I go

This was it. They were finally sitting on the plane and Ryan was basically bouncing in his seat. Jamie looked over at his brother and raised his eyebrow before chuckling and shaking his head, going back to his conversation with Nash and Ian. They had to make a few stops and switch planes a few times, but as soon as they made it to Los Angeles, he knew that was the last stop before Nashville.

Oh, days go by  
And yeah, I've always got you on my mind  
Oh, cause I keep you with me  
I say your name  
And I can't touch you, but it feels the same  
Oh, I gotta keep you with me

Days go by  
And yeah, I've always got you on my mind  
Oh, cause I keep you with me  
I say your name  
And I can't touch you, but it feels the same  
Oh, I gotta keep you with me

Ryan walked – well, more like ran – into the airport terminal, immediately searching for you. When he didn't see you, he looked back at the guys. They shrugged, but he saw a smile pulling at the corners of their mouths.

He raised his eyebrows and just as he was about to ask what they were smiling about, he heard someone scream, "Ryan!" He spun around at the sound of your voice, just in time for him to catch you as you jumped into his arms, spinning you around.

"I missed you," you said quietly when you put your feet back down on the ground, smiling at him.

"I missed you more," Ryan grinned, kissing you.


	6. One Last Stop (Ryan Follese)

You woke up one morning at about 11:45 and rubbed your sleepy eyes, squinting to adjust to the sunlight peeking in through your curtains. You lazily stood up, getting dressed and brushing your teeth before walking out to your living room. You decided to watch some TV before starting your chores for the day. You flipped through the channels for a couple minutes until you saw four familiar faces on your TV screen. You smiled at the sight of your boyfriend, Ryan, along with Nash, Ian, and Jamie on your television. The boys weren't due home from tour for another two and a half weeks and although you Skyped with Ryan almost every night, it was nice to see him on a screen with much better quality than Skype allowed.

"I want to thank you guys for being on the show," the interviewer smiled.

"Thank you for having us," they smiled back.

"Before we let you go, we have one more fan question for you," she said, "Kaitlyn in North Carolina wants to know what special plans you have for when you return home?"

"Sleep," Nash laughed.

"Definitely," Ian agreed, "But it'll be refreshing to get to see our families somewhere other than our computer screens."

"I just miss my mom's cooking," Jamie chuckled.

"I'm most looking forward to just being able to hold my girlfriend again," Ryan answered with a grin, "I miss her more than anything." You smiled as Ryan looked at the camera and blew a kiss, although he didn't know whether or not you were watching.

"Well, there you have it, everyone," the host said in closing out the show, "Hot Chelle Rae's new single, Hung Up, is out now on iTunes. Thank you and have a wonderful afternoon."

You were instantly put in a good mood as you turned the television off and stood up. You walked into the kitchen and got a quick snack before you went about your chores.

~

About 20 minutes later, as you started drying dishes, you began singing Keep You With Me. Ryan had always told you to sing that song when you were missing him and it always seemed to help, even if it was just a little.

You were so wrapped up in what you were doing that you didn't even hear the front door open. You jumped slightly when you heard someone start singing the chorus with you the second time around, but when you turned to see who it was, you dropped the plate you were drying along with the towel on the counter.

"Ryan!" you screamed, running over to him as he opened his arms. You jumped up and wrapped your arms tightly around his neck as he did with your waist. "What are you doing here? I thought you were supposed to be gone for another two weeks!"

"I forgot to tell you, we had a surprise home show," he smiled into your neck.

You put your feet back down on the ground and pulled away from him only to bring your hand up and lightly hit his chest, laughing, "I can't believe you didn't tell me!"

"It must have slipped my mind," he smirked, "I'm sorry." You smiled, leaning toward him and kissing him.

"I love you," you whispered against his lips.

He smiled again, "I love you more."


	7. Never Again (Ryan Follese) *

Warning: Alcoholism, abuse

~

Ryan had come home last night more drunk than usual. It's not to say you didn't see it coming though. He and the guys – minus Jamie seeing as he was always claiming responsibility as designated driver – had been going out and getting drunk the past few nights ever since they got home from tour. You always waited up, worried sick about getting a call that one of the guys were in the hospital for whatever reason.

Last night, however, was the night you decided to confront Ryan about his drinking. Obviously, you should have waited until when he was sober because as soon as you mentioned that he should cut back, you didn't have time to react before his hand came into contact with your cheek, the ring on his finger cutting you. You almost immediately fell back and hit the floor, not fully aware of what had happened until you heard your bedroom door slam shut upstairs. You sat up, but stayed there in silence, not daring to make any sudden moves. You weren't sure what damage was done, but you could feel your face getting wet but knew that – for whatever reason – you weren't crying. You figured he was probably asleep by now, so you walked into the bathroom to check your face. You gasped quietly, letting a couple tears fall.

"He was just drunk, Y/N. He didn't mean it," you told yourself as you stared in the mirror, lightly poking the skin around the cut on your cheek.

You grabbed a small towel, ran it under the water, put some soap on it, and hissed as you began cleaning the cut. It wasn't a huge cut that required any medical attention, but it was definitely noticeable. You knew Ryan would ask about it when he saw you the next morning and as you threw the towel into the hamper and laid down on the couch, you debated on whether or not to tell him what actually happened.

~

The next morning, you woke up, jumping slightly when you saw Ryan sitting right in front of you on the floor, his head a bit tilted to the left with a look of confusion on his face.

"Jesus Christ, Ryan," you sighed, putting your hand on your chest over your heart, "Don't do that."

"What happened to your cheek?" he asked quietly, still staring intently at you. You looked at him and made the split second decision to make something up rather than tell him it was his fault. Ryan's a really sweet guy and it would break his heart knowing he hurt anyone.

"I tripped yesterday while you were out and cut myself. It's no big deal. Do you want anything to eat?" you asked, biting your lip and changing the subject as you got off the couch, walking toward the kitchen.

Ryan grabbed your arm and turned you to face him, "Why are you lying to me?"

"I'm not," you replied.

"Y/N, I know you well enough to know when you're lying to me. You always bite your lip when you're lying."

"Okay," you sighed, "So I didn't trip. But seriously. It's not a big deal. I don't want you to worry about it." You tried to walk away, but he just pulled you closer.

"Did someone hurt you?" he asked firmly. You didn't answer him, just nodded your head lightly, looking into his eyes. "Who?"

"It doesn't matter," you shook your head, moving back again, only to have Ryan pull you as close to him as he could without actually touching you.

"Y/N, who hurt you?" he asked slowly, yet sternly, looking directly into your eyes.

"You," you whispered.

His jaw dropped slightly and he quickly let go of you, backing away slowly, "What... What do you mean? I... I would never hurt you..."

"Ryan," you sighed again, running your hand through your hair, "You were drunk again last night. When you came home, I told you I thought you should cut back on your drinking and one thing led to another and now I have a cut on my face. It's okay."

He shook his head, "It...it's not okay! I... I hurt you!" You noticed his eyes starting to get watery, so you walked toward him, only to cause him to back away again.

"Ryan, stop," you said, grabbing his wrist and pulling him back to you, lifting your hands to wipe away his tears, "I wouldn't tell you it was okay if it wasn't okay. I know you're not you when you're drunk. You made a mistake. Mistakes happen. What's important is that I didn't get put in the hospital."

He carefully wrapped his arms around your waist, burying his face into your neck as you wrapped your arms around him as well, "I promise I'll never drink again."

You pushed back on his shoulders and looked at him with your eyebrows raised, "We both know that's a lie."

He smiled slightly, "Okay, but I promise I won't drink so much at once."

You smiled back at him, leaning forward, "I love you, Ryan."

"I love you more, Y/N," he replied, leaning in the rest of the way, pressing his lips against yours.


	8. Smile for the Camera (Ryan Follese)

Your POV

"Y/N, you're late," your boss said as you walked into the office, setting a drink carrier with three to-go cups of coffee in it on the front desk.

"I know, Amanda. I'm sorry, but I just thought I'd stop and get us some coffee before we started working today," you smiled before shouting toward the back of the office, "Danielle! Get out here!"

"What do you want?" she asked with a look of disgust on her face as she walked into the room.

"I want you to drink this coffee I spent so much time and effort into bringing you," you told her, handing her a cup.

She looked at the cup in her hand and laughed, "You went to Starbucks!"

"Yeah! And it took time to place the order and wait for it and effort to get it here!" you teased.

You work at a photography/fashion designing business. Amanda's the boss – she photographs and designs clothes. Danielle is more of the technical person – taking care of lighting and editing the photos, but she also photographs. You work mainly in the front of the office – paperwork, taking calls, showing clients around, and whatnot.

~

"I have to run some errands and won't be back until about 15 minutes after our clients get here," Amanda told you and Danielle after you had finished your coffees, "Will you girls be okay until I get back?"

"You can count on us!" Danielle saluted, "We got this!"

Amanda gave her a look and you laughed, "No worries. We'll be fine."

"Alright, I'll see you girls in an hour," she smiled walking out the door. As soon as the door closed, you and Danielle looked at each other and squealed.

"An entire 15 minutes alone with Hot Chelle Rae?! Seriously?!" she squeaked.

"Danielle!" you said, grabbing her shoulders, "Calm down! We don't want a repeat of the All Time Low incident!"

"And what was the All Time Low incident?" a voice that could only belong to Nash Overstreet asked. You spun around to see him along with Ian and Jamie standing in front of you. You looked over at Danielle, pushing her jaw up to close her mouth before looking over at the clock.

"You're an hour early?" you questioned, looking back at the guys.

"Yeah, sorry about that," Ian spoke up, "Ryan wanted to hang out with his girlfriend before our appointment and the rest of us didn't have anything else to do. I hope that's okay."

"Oh, that's fine! We can just get an earlier start!" you smiled, "I'm Y/N, by the way, and my speechless friend here is Danielle."

"Well, I'm guessing you already know who we are then," Ian laughed, shaking your hand. You shook Nash's hand as well before looking over at Jamie who was staring at his phone. "Jamie," Ian said, nudging his arm, "Don't be rude."

"What?" Jamie asked looking up. "Oh, sorry," he said shyly, shoving his phone into his pocket and shaking your hand.

"It's okay," you smiled again, then turned to the other boys, "So, what do you say Danielle and I give you a tour and then we can get started on picking the first outfit for your photoshoot?"

"Sounds fantastic!" Nash grinned.

You looked at Danielle and giggled upon seeing her still staring at the guys. You shook your head and grabbed her wrist as you started the tour. You finished pretty quickly seeing as there was only the front room, Amanda's office, the photoshoot room, the fitting/design room, and a bathroom. You led them into the fitting room and backed out of the doorway once everyone entered.

"If you'll excuse me, I have some other work and such to do, so Danielle will be taking care of everything at this point," you smiled, rushing out of the room.

"Y/N!" you heard Danielle shout behind you, making you laugh. You plopped down on your desk chair, grabbing a pen and beginning to fill out paperwork for new equipment and film replacements and such.

~

Once you were finished, you heard Danielle and the guys talking and laughing, so you took out your iPod and put your earbuds into your ears, closed your eyes, and turned up your music, only to have your earbuds taken out not even five minutes later.

"Danielle," you sighed, "You know I hate whe-" You looked up to see Ryan Follese standing in front of your desk, "Hello."

"Where's the rest of my band?" he asked in a seemingly annoyed tone.

"Uh, they're back there," you said, pointing toward the fitting room. He stormed back and you followed a good distance behind him just in time to watch Danielle stumble out of the fitting room and the door slam shut behind her.

"Well, okay," she mumbled, straightening herself out and fixing the bottom of her dress before looking at you, "I always thought he was nicer than that."

"Yeah, I thought so too," you sighed before shrugging, "Oh well. Let's go get the set ready." You threw your arm around her shoulders as you walked to the photography room.

~

Ryan's POV

"That was a little unnecessary, wouldn't you say, Ryan?" Ian asked after Ryan slammed the door behind him.

"Whatever," he muttered.

"What happened to you? You were in a good mood before you left to go see Morgan," Jamie said.

"I don't want to talk about it," he told them plainly.

"Well, you need to at least apologize to Danielle," Nash commented. Ryan gave him a questioning look and he raised his eyebrows, "You know? The girl you just shoved out of the room?"

"Oh," was all he said.

Nash rolled his eyes and walked over to the door, opening it and shouting, "Danielle!"

"Hold on!" they heard her yell back. About 30 seconds later, she came trotting into the room, "Yeah?"

"You still need to help Ryan choose his first outfit," Nash told her.

She looked at him carefully before quickly looking back at Nash and walking into the room, "Okay, sure."

Ryan groaned quietly and said, "Look, I-"

"Shush," she cut him off, tilting her head and chewing on her bottom lip, moving her eyes between him and the clothing rack a few feet away. "Oh! That's perfect!" she suddenly exclaimed running to the rack of clothes and pulling a few hangers off of it. She walked back over, handed him the clothes, and pointed to a sectioned off corner of the room, "Go put these on." Ryan shrugged, walking behind the curtain. When he came back out a few minutes later, you were already in the room. "Beautiful!" Danielle squeaked as he pulled the suspenders up onto his shoulders.

"You've got a serious talent," Nash smiled at her, making her blush.

"Don't encourage her," the other girl laughed, "Her main jobs here are lighting and photo editing."

"Look at him and tell me he does not look amazing, Y/N!" Danielle shouted, pointing at Ryan, "I could totally be a stylist if I wanted to!"

You stuck three of your fingers in the air at Danielle while sticking your tongue out and Ryan's heart dropped, realizing you two were fans and thinking about the way he treated you when he got here.

"I can make signs with my fingers too. Wanna see?" Danielle smirked.

"No, because I know you're only gonna use one finger!" you shot back.

"Guys, can we maybe get started at some point today?" Ian laughed, interrupting your fake argument.

"She started it!" Danielle exclaimed.

"Technically, Nash started it," Jamie chuckled.

"Thanks for throwing me under the bus there, man," Nash laughed, throwing his arm around Danielle's shoulder, making her blush again, and walking out of the room. Jamie and Ian followed closely behind them and as you were going to leave, Ryan lightly grabbed your hand.

"Hey, um, I just wanted to apologize for being a dick earlier," he said quietly.

You smiled, "It's okay. We all have our off moments. Come on, let's go take some pictures." You pulled him out of the room and as you were walking down the hallway, you said, "I never really properly introduced myself, did I? I'm Y/N."

"Ryan," he said, "But by that three in the air thing you did earlier, I'm guessing you already knew that."

You shrugged, "What can I say? You've got great music."

"Well, you've got a great face," he chuckled.

"And you've got jokes! I like it!" He was about to say something as you walked into the room where everyone else was but you exclaimed, "Alright! Let's get this party started!" He simply sighed and you went about with the photoshoot.

~

About 20 minutes later, Danielle randomly looked up from her camera, "It's too quiet in here. I can't work under these conditions, Y/N!"

"Oh, shut up," you laughed, "I'll turn on the radio."

"Thank you!" she smiled.

You turned the radio on and heard, "Here's Hot Chelle Rae with their newest single, Hung Up." You looked at each other and started laughing.

"You know you've got the band right here, right?" Ryan chuckled.

"Hey! This is my song! Be quiet!" Danielle shouted before she started singing along. You were standing behind her trying not to laugh as you shook your head and shrugged.

You kept going with the photoshoot and after the second outfit change, the guys were walking back into the room when Ryan's phone started ringing on the table. He walked over to it, seeing it was Morgan.

His breath caught in my throat as he looked at everyone, "Excuse me, I need to take this." He walked outside of the building and answered, "What do you want?"

"Rude much?" she snickered on the other line.

"Why are you calling me, Morgan?"

"I want to know why you walked out on me this morning."

"You know why," he told her, rolling his eyes.

"No, I don't," she said innocently.

"Really? Because you looked right at me when I walked into your apartment and found you kissing another guy."

"It's very rude to just walk into people's homes without knocking, you know," she said plainly.

Ryan sighed angrily, "Don't call me. Don't text me. Don't come visit me. Just stay out of my life from this point on because I'm done with you." He immediately hung up and stuffed his phone in his pocket, sitting down on the steps of the front porch and resting his head in his hands.

~

Your POV

"He's been gone a while... Do you think he's okay?" Danielle asked after Ryan was gone for about 10 minutes.

"I'll go check on him," you said, skipping back to the front of the office. You looked out the window and noticed Ryan sitting on the steps with his head in his hands, so you opened the door quietly, carefully walked outside.

"You okay, Ryan?" you asked softly, sitting beside him.

He looked up and you noticed his eyes were slightly red, "The reason I wasn't in a great mood this morning isn't because I was having an off day, it was because I went to Morgan's place to see her before I came here and I caught her k-kissing another guy..."

You facial expression dropped and you wrapped your arms around his shoulders, "I'm sorry, Ryan."

"It's okay," he said, his head resting against your neck.

"If you need to take a break from shooting, we'll totally understand."

He lifted his head and smiled, "It's okay. The shoot is actually what's helping me feel better."

You smiled back, "Well, we should get back to work then." You went to stand up, but he grabbed your hand and lightly pulled you back down.

You gave him a confused look and he asked, "Do you believe everything happens for a reason?"

"More or less, I suppose," you answered, "Why?"

"I can't help but keep feeling like maybe this was supposed to happen today. Like my relationship was meant to end this morning to make way for a better one."

You raised your eyebrows at him, "I don't understand what that has to do with me."

He bit his lip lightly and muttered, "I meant what I said earlier – about you having a great face." You felt your face getting hot as you glanced at his lips again as he leaned closer to you. After what seemed like forever – but was really more like two seconds – his lips crashed into yours.

He pulled away and you giggled, "Aren't you supposed to ask a girl out, take her on a date, and then kiss her?"

"How about I kiss you, take you on a date, then ask you out?" he smirked.

"A little different, but I think I'd be okay with that," you smirked back. He smiled and quickly kissed you again before standing up and offering his hand down to you. You took it and he pulled you up, lacing your fingers together as you walked back inside.


	9. Just Say You Love Me (Ryan Follese)

Five months earlier

"I don't understand why you're making such a big deal about this, Y/N!" your boyfriend shouted, "I'm just going out with the guys!"

"You don't understand?!" you yelled back in disbelief, "You've been home for a week and you've gone out every night with them! You leave again tomorrow, Ryan! Forgive me for wanting to spend a little time with my boyfriend before he leaves for another five months!"

"We saw each other last night!"

"We saw each other for five minutes before I fell asleep and you weren't even home when I woke up this morning!"

"But we still saw each other!" You rolled your eyes, putting your face in your hands and sighing before putting your hands back down. He just wasn't getting it.

"That's not the point, Ryan! The point is you've been home for a week and all you want to do is hang out with the guys you'll be on tour with for the next five months anyway! I'm sorry, Ryan," you told him, "I can't take this anymore. I'm done."

His expression immediately dropped and he stuttered, "Y-Y/N, please don't..."

You shook your head, not daring to look him directly in the eyes, "I love you, Ryan, but if you don't want to try to make it work anymore, neither do I." You quickly kissed his cheek and quietly said, "Goodbye, Ryan," before walking out the front door of your apartment.

~

It's been five months since that night and even though you left Ryan, you still lived in the apartment you shared. That may seem stupid to some people, but he's been gone for almost five months and you didn't want to have to move back in with your parents just yet. The band was coming home in two days, but they always celebrated the last day of touring by going out and staying at a hotel, so you knew you'd have a good amount of time to pack the rest of your things and make it to your parent's house before Ryan came home.

It may be dumb, but you decided to go to the last home show of the tour. Just because you and Ryan weren't dating anymore doesn't mean it would be right for you to stop supporting the band altogether. You still loved the band and the crew and you were excited to finally see them after five months of them being on tour.

~

Two days later

You arrived at the venue about three hours early in the hopes of seeing Nash, Ian, Jamie, or anybody to get you in early and avoid all the crazy fans. News got around pretty quickly after the breakup and a lot of girls weren't afraid of tweeting you to tell you they weren't happy about you breaking Ryan's heart. As soon as you stepped out of your car, you heard Jamie's voice.

"Y/N!" he shouted. You spun around and stared straight at the shocked 21-year-old.

"Hi, Jamie," you smiled lightly.

"What are you doing here?"

"Just thought I'd come to the last show of your tour. I'm still a fan, you know!"

He grinned, "That's great! Oh, hey! Come on in! I've seen the hate you get on Twitter and I don't want you getting attacked tonight."

"Thanks, Jamie," you giggled as he grabbed your hand and pulled you inside.

"Ryan's gonna be so happy you're here," he said to himself as you walked into the building.

You pulled your hand out of his, stopping immediately, "Ryan can't know I'm here, Jamie."

"Why not?" Jamie asked with a slight frown.

"I just don't want him to know. It would be best for everyone if I just disappeared from his life. Please promise me you won't tell him."

He sighed, "Fine, I won't tell him."

"Thank you," you said as he took you backstage.

"You're welcome," he told you before saying under his breath, "I don't understand how that's helping anybody though." Before you could ask what he meant, you were tackled by two people. When they let go, you came face-to-face with Nash and Ian for the first time since they got home from the last tour.

"Good to see you too," you said sarcastically, smiling.

"We haven't seen you in forever!" Nash exclaimed.

"How have you been?" Ian smiled.

"I've been getting by," you shrugged, "Listen, I don't know where Ryan is right now, but I'm gonna tell you the same thing I told Jamie: It would be best if Ryan didn't know I was here tonight, so please don't tell him I am." They both gave you a confused look, but nodded without putting up an argument.

~

10 minutes before the show was about to start, you said goodbye to Jamie, Nash, Ian, and the crew before heading out to find a spot to stand in the crowd. You thought it was a little weird that Ryan never came into the room you were all in, but you were relieved at the same time. You ended up being pretty close to the stage and lucky for you, the girls around you weren't holding the breakup against you.

Ryan's POV

"10 minutes, Ryan!" Zach called as he opened the bus door, closing it right after.

"Thanks," he said out loud even though he knew he couldn't hear him.

He was always be the first to admit when he make a stupid decision and this time was no different; He was an idiot.

One night.

One night was all you asked for and he didn't give it to you. You hadn't seen each other for two months before that and he barely spent any time with you the week he was home. He didn't know what part of him said to go out with the guys again and he didn't know why he listened to it. You were right. The most he spoke to you that entire week was probably two sentences if not less. He never even said 'I love you' that whole time, but he did. He loved you and missed you so much, it hurt.

He sighed, lifting himself off of the couch and walking off of the bus, into the venue for pre-show warm-up and prayer. The guys looked at him, giving him the same half-smile they have been since the breakup.

"Let's just get this over with," he mumbled, walking over to them.

~

Your POV

Almost an hour and a half later, the band finished their last song in the set and Ryan spoke into his microphone, "Thank you guys for making this such a wonderful welcome home!" The crowd screamed and he continued, "I'd like to end this show a little differently though, if that's okay with everyone." Nash, Ian, and Jamie already knew what he was doing, so they had walked off stage when he began talking. He paused and took a deep breath before going on, "A little over five months ago, I made a very stupid decision – which I'm sure most if not all of you already know about – and I've noticed a lot of people on Twitter tweeting horrible things about and to Y/N and I'd really like for all of that to stop. It wasn't her fault. Yes, she did break up with me, but my actions led her to do it and sending her all that hate for something I did is doing absolutely nothing but hurting people." Most of the crowd screamed in response before he went on, "This last song I want to sing tonight isn't one of ours, but it says everything better than what anything I could write ever will. I really doubt she's here tonight and I don't know if she'll ever hear this, but I want to dedicate this song to her. Sometimes, the person you're in love with will leave you and when you finally realize it was all your fault, you can't get that person back. You do all you can and hope that something will change that person's mind because all you want them to do is stay."

As soon as he was done talking and he went into the song, you could feel your heart beating in every part of your body.

I need some time, just deliver the things that I need for now  
Everything that I feel's like a warm, deep calm casting over me  
And it's taken me to somewhere new

If you believe that everything's alright  
You won't be all alone tonight  
And I'd be blessed by the light of your company  
Slowly lifting me to somewhere new

Oh, can you tell I haven't slept very well  
Since the last time that we spoke  
You said, "Please understand, if I see you again  
Don't even say hello."

Please

What a night it is when you live like this  
And you're comin' up beneath the clouds  
Don't let me down  
All the love's still there  
I just don't know what to do with it now

You know I still can't believe we both did some things  
I don't even wanna think about  
Just say you love me and I'll say I'm sorry  
I don't want anybody else to feel this way  
No, no, no

Oh, can you tell I haven't slept very well  
Since the last time that we spoke  
I said, "Please understand, I've been drinking again  
And all I do is hope."

Please stay  
Please stay

I'll admit I was wrong about everything  
Cause I'm high and I don't wanna come down  
All the fun that we had on your mother's couch  
I don't even wanna think about

I'm not strong enough for the both of us  
What was I supposed to do?  
You know I love you  
Whoa, oh, oh, oh

Please stay  
Stay  
Stay

Ryan ended the song and gave the crowd a smile and small wave, thanking them before heading off stage.

Five minutes later, as he was picking up a bottle of water, you ran backstage and called his name. He spun around and his eyes instantly widened. He dropped the water bottle just before you jumped into his arms, wrapping your own tightly around his neck. He held you as closely as he possibly could to be before you returned your feet back to the ground and pulled back to look at you, smiling.

"Y/N? What are you... What are you doing here?" he asked, still in shock.

"Well, I originally came here to keep showing my support for the band, but after that speech and the song, I figured it would be pretty rude of me not to say hello and apologize for overreacting," you said quietly, a couple tears falling from your eyes. Ryan brought his hands up to your face and wiped your cheeks with his thumbs, but keeping a firm grip on you afterwards.

"You didn't overreact and I know you know that," he said, "You reacted the same way anyone would have. What I did wasn't okay and I don't want you to blame yourself for anything you did or said that night, okay?" You nodded and he kissed your forehead, "Y/N, I really do love you more than anything and I would give anything for you to give me a second chance..."

You bit your lip lightly but smiled, "Just say you love me."

"I'm sorry," he gave you a cheesy grin, pressing his lips to yours.

~

Song used: "Stay" by Mayday Parade


	10. Forever Unstoppable (Jamie Follese)

"Jamie Christian," you sighed to yourself, walking into the apartment you shared with your boyfriend, finding his clothes thrown about the living room. "Babe?!" you called out as you set your grocery bags on the kitchen counter, falling silent in wait of some sort of response.

"In here!" you heard him yell from down the hallway. You walked down the hall and found yourself in front of your bedroom door, only to be greeted by one of Jamie's shirts landing on your face.

"Jamie," you sighed again, pulling his shirt off and picking up the clothes he's thrown all over the room, "What are you doing?"

"I can't find my green button-up!" he exclaimed, throwing himself onto your bed and burying his face in his pillow.

"You have a ton of other shirts. Why do you need to wear that one?" you asked, sitting down beside him.

"Because it's your favorite and I wanted to wear it for our date tonight," he mumbled into the pillow.

You giggled lightly, leaning back and kissing his cheek before standing up, "You're never going to find it. It's too dark in here to see anything." You went over to the light switch, flicking it on and turning back to face Jamie, who was now sitting up and facing you. You took one look at him and let out a loud laugh, instantly covering your mouth.

"What?" he asked, staring at you intently.

You smiled, "Was it dark when you got dressed this morning?"

"Kind of. Why?"

"Come here," you grinned, grabbing his hand and pulling him off the bed, taking him to the full length mirror on the other side of the room and standing behind him in front it, resting your chin on his shoulder, "Tell me what you see."

He gave you a confused glance before sighing and looking at himself in the mirror, his facial expression dropping as he slowly said, "Oh..." You couldn't help but smile at him as he realizes the shirt he was looking for is the one he's been wearing all day.

"You're aging too quickly, babe," you giggled again, kissing his cheek before walking back out to the kitchen.

"I've been hanging out with my dad too much. We visit them so often," he chuckled, following closely behind you.

"Hey, it's not my fault your family loves me," you winked at him before going to put the groceries away.

"Never as much as I love you," he said, wrapping his arms around your waist from behind as you reached up to put a box of cereal in the cabinet. You turned your head slightly, kissing his cheek and wiggling out of his arms to put the rest of the groceries away. "Do you have to do that now?" Jamie whined.

"Yes, Jamie. I'm not going back to the store to buy more milk because you couldn't wait three seconds for me to put it in the fridge," you smiled, sticking your tongue out at him. He gladly returned the gesture and trudged over to the counter, leaning against it. After you had finished with what you were doing, you looked at Jamie, "What time are we going on our date, Mr. I-can't-find-my-shirt?"

Before you could react, he grabbed your waist again and pulled you as close to him as he could, smirking, "As soon as you're ready. Now do you wanna repeat that?"

"No," you giggled, lightly kissing him and trotting to your bedroom, "I'm gonna go change and we can go!"

~

Around 10 minutes later, you walked into the living room to see Jamie absentmindedly messing with his phone.

You smiled to yourself and said, "Jamie."

He looked up and his jaw dropped slightly, "Y/N, you... You look beautiful." You blushed, as you always have when he compliments you, quietly thanking him before you two walked out of your apartment.

Jamie took you to your favorite restaurant and you both talked and laughed about anything that happened to come to your minds for the next hour or so. Afterwards, he drove to the park to the tree you always came to on random picnic dates ever since you started going out.

"Remember this spot?" he asked you as you got out of the car and he took your hand, pulling you to the base of the tree where you noticed a picnic blanket on the grass.

You let an awe slip out of your mouth, "This is where we met two years ago!" Jamie smiled at your sudden realization, your excitement causing butterflies to erupt in his stomach.

He took a deep breath, "I wanted it to have a bit more meaning tonight."

"What do you mean?" you asked, confused.

"Two years ago, I was walking along the road right there-" he pointed up the hill to a small road connecting to another on the other side of the grass, "-and I heard a loud noise coming from right here and do you know what that noise was?"

You giggled again, wrapping your arms around Jamie's waist and leaning against him, "Forever Unstoppable."

"And do you remember why you told me you were listening to it so loudly?"

"So maybe I would find someone to be forever unstoppable with," you said burying your face into his shoulder, still embarrassed you actually said it to Jamie of all people.

"I think it's time to return the favor," he told you.

You looked up at him, "What do you mean?"

"Y/N," he started, "The moment you said that, as weird as it may sound, I knew I had to get to know you better, I knew I had to make you my girlfriend, and I knew you were the girl I wanted to fall in love with." At this point, you had taken your arms away from Jamie and covered your mouth on the verge of tears as he continued, "I love you more than anything and I want to spend the rest of my life with you." He pulled a small box out of his pocket, getting down on one knee, and opening the box, revealing what was probably the most gorgeous ring you've ever seen. "Y/N," Jamie said, looking up at you, "Will you do me the honor of being forever unstoppable with me?"

You tried speaking a couple times, but nothing would come out. Once you realized you couldn't find your voice, you furiously nodded your head. Jamie slipped the ring onto your finger and you screamed, letting out the tears you had been holding in and wrapping your arms around his neck as tightly as you could without hurting him. He stood up, spinning you around. No amount of words could explain how happy he was that you had accepted, not that any words needed to be said for anyone to know how much he loved you. He set you back on your feet and finally let go of him to look him in the eyes. You had the biggest smile on your face when you saw how happy he looked.

"I love you so much, Jamie," you sniffled quietly, wiping a tear off your cheek.

"I love you so much more, Y/N," he whispered, taking your face in his hands and kissing you, excited to finally be able to call you his fiancee.


	11. If I Just Save You (Jamie Follese) *

Warning: Mention of attempted rape

~

You pulled your jacket tighter across your body as another gust of the cold December wind hit you while you walked down the sidewalk after a long day at work. You just wanted to get home, honestly, and it seemed like it was taking longer than it usually does. You had never felt unsafe walking home, although your boyfriend did always make sure he made it to the store you worked at just to walk with you. But today was different. The band was caught up at the studio, so Jamie told you not to wait up for him as it might be a while, but since the studio was fairly close to your work, you decided to just walk there instead. To say you were on edge was an understatement; You were a complete mess and every little sound startled you.

You took a breath and quietly spoke to yourself, "Nothing is going to happen. Calm down. The studio is right up the street. You can make it." and that made you feel slightly better. You breathed a quiet 'finally' when you could see the guys' car parked in front of the building. However, you spoke a little too soon. You were about 50 feet from the doors when you felt someone pull your arm and drag you into the alley. You squeaked, but it was immediately followed by a slap to the face.

"Shut up," you heard a deep voice command as the unknown person shoved you against the dumpster and started cutting your coat off with his knife. You kept hitting him and clawing at him. He wasn't wearing anything to cover his face and you knew deep down that once he was through with you, he was going to kill you so you wouldn't be able to identify him, so you fought back as hard as you could despite the fact he had a knife. You knew what would happen either way and you refused to go down without a fight.

~

As all of this was going on, Jamie and Ryan were walking outside to retrieve the notebook of lyrics that their guitarist had foolishly left in the front seat of the car.

"Seriously though," Ryan told his younger brother as he reached into the car and pulled the notebook out, "I think we should just duct tape this thing to Nash so he'll stop losing it."

"Please," the brown-haired boy laughed, "We all know he'd still find a way to lose it." Ryan simply chuckled along and began walking back inside before realizing his brother wasn't following.

"Is something wrong?" Ryan asked worriedly. Jamie held his hand up as a signal for Ryan to be quiet. After a few seconds of listening carefully, he turned back to Ryan.

"Do you hear that?" Jamie asked. Ryan listened more closely to the direction he was facing.

"Yeah," he nodded, "Now that you mention it, I do. Where's it coming from?" As soon as the words left his mouth, they heard a loud crash and instantly knew it was coming from the alley. Jamie started walking toward the alley when Ryan grabbed his arm to stop him, "We can't just go in there not knowing what's happening. We should call the cops or something."

Jamie removed himself from Ryan's grasp, "Someone might need help and they might not have that much time." They both quietly ran across the street to the opening of the alley and peeked in.

As soon as they saw what was happening and who it was happening to, Ryan ran back across the street to call the police and Jamie looked around frantically, picking up a piece of wood that just happened to be laying on the ground near his feet. The man had just gotten your coat and cardigan off of your torso and had you backed up against the wall. He was halfway through cutting your shirt when Jamie sneaked up behind him and slammed the two-by-four against the back of the guy's head as hard as he possibly could, knocking him out. He instantly dropped the wood and ran over to you.

"Y/N!" he exclaimed, taking off his jacket and helping you put it on. 

You couldn't speak, felt short of breath, and were genuinely surprised you were still standing, but the minute you realized it was all over and your boyfriend was standing in front of you, you broke down. With tears streaming down your face, you wrapped your arms around Jamie's neck tighter than you ever had before as he did the same with your waist. You buried your face into Jamie's neck as far as you could and he picked you up, taking you inside the studio.

~

"Oh my God!" Ian gasped as Jamie walked into the room with you in his arms, "What happened?!" Jamie sat down on the couch, still holding you closely and protectively although he knew the man wouldn't be able to get to you now.

"We went out to get the notebook and we heard crying and a loud noise in the alley across the street and we went to check it out and this guy was all over Y/N trying to rape her," he answered angrily.

"Well," Ryan said walking into the room, "Police just picked the guy up. He's still knocked out."

"Knocked out?" Nash asked, "How'd you manage that?"

"Snuck up behind him with a two-by-four," Jamie shrugged. You finally found your voice and mumbled quietly into Jamie's neck. "Hmm?" he asked, not quite catching what you said.

"It's hot in here," you repeated, finally sitting upright enough to take off Jamie's jacket. When you looked back at him, he was smiling at you.

"What?" you sniffled, wiping your cheeks to get rid of the dried up tears.

"Nothing," he answered, shaking his head, "I just love you so much."

You smiled back at him, whispering, "I love you too, Jamie. Thank you for saving me."

"I would do it again in a heartbeat," he told you, "But please don't need me to save you from something like that ever again."

"I'll try," you giggled lightly, leaning forward and kissing him.


	12. Please Don't Leave Me (Alex Gaskarth) *

Warning: Car accident, mention of self-harm/suicidal thoughts

~

He woke up, barely able to open his eyes due to the bright light filling up the room. He looked around, realizing this wasn't the bedroom he's lived in for the past two years with his girlfriend and not exactly sure what was going on either. He tried to sit up, only to be greeted by pain shooting through his right arm. He groaned quietly, causing you to jump up from the chair you were resting on a few feet away.

"Alex!" you squeaked, tears streaming down your face, "You're alive!"

Two weeks earlier

"Please come, Y/N?" the 26-year old whined for the seventh time that evening, following you into the kitchen of your apartment.

"You know I can't, Lex," you sighed, "I've got school work."

"But it's Friday night! You should be out having fun and getting drunk, not doing lousy homework!" You laughed lightly, shaking your head and opening the English textbook that had been sitting on the table.

"You go," you told Alex, "Have fun with the guys! Call me if you need anything." He pouted, knowing you wouldn't give in.

"Alright," he said, leaning down and giving you a kiss before walking back out of the room, "Don't work yourself too much. I love you."

"I love you too! Drive safe! Don't do anything illegal! Use protection!" you called after him, causing him to laugh.

~

It hadn't even been an hour before Alex left the apartment that you felt something wasn't right. You didn't want to bother Alex while he was out with his friends, but you knew it was better to be safe than sorry. As soon as you picked up your phone to dial Alex's number, it started going off. Jack's name appeared on the screen and you immediately answered.

"What's up?" you asked. He was jumbling his words together and talking so fast, you couldn't understand anything he was saying. "Jack, what's wrong?" you asked as calmly as you could. Deep down, you knew that the gut feeling you had was related to whatever caused Jack to get so worked up.

"Jack, give me the phone," you heard another voice say, "Y/N?"

"Rian? What's wrong with Jack? Why is he freaking out?"

"I'll explain in a while. Just get to the hospital."

"What happened?"

"Y/N-"

"What happened, Rian?!" you shouted. The next few seconds seemed like hours before he answered you.

"It's Alex," he swallowed. You immediately hung up and grabbed your car keys, shoving your phone in your pocket and rushing out the door. You shivered as you got into her car, which was understandable since it was the middle of January and you hadn't bothered to grab your coat. But you weren't thinking about whether or not you would freeze. The only thing you kept your mind on was Alex and why he would be at the hospital.

The 20 minute drive to the hospital was all a blur and the next thing you knew, you were running through the hospital doors.

The second you saw Rian, Zack, and Jack pacing around the waiting room, you shouted, "Where is he?!"

They all spun around, not really knowing what to say – not that would have been able to say it anyway. They were speechless. They were still trying to process what had happened themselves, but that never crossed your mind. You was getting angrier with every second that you didn't have an answer.

"Where's Alex?!" you screamed.

Rian was the first to speak, "Y/N, you might want to sit down."

"Just tell me what happened!" you cried.

He took a breath before continuing, "He was on his way to meet us at the bar when he got hit by a drunk driver. The paramedics said the driver ran the red light just as he was going through the intersection. He never saw it coming."

You stared in shock, "Is he okay?"

Zack looked at you, "They say he-" He took a shaky breath. "-that he isn't gonna make it."

You automatically started laughing, "Yes, he is. He's gonna be fine and everything's gonna be okay."

"Y/N," Jack said, walking over and looking down at you, putting his hands on your shoulders, "Alex... His right arm is shattered, he has four broken ribs, he had to have surgery to stop the bleeding in his lungs, and he's in a coma. They've done everything they can. They agreed to wait until you saw him before they...take him off life support." 

Your laughter died down when you saw how serious Jack's expression was. Jack was one of your best friends and for as long as you'd known him, he was rarely ever the type of person to be serious about anything.

As soon as Jack saw the tear fall down your cheek, he wrapped his arms around you, hugging you tightly as you broke down. Alex was your whole world. He'd saved your life countless times – although you'd never dare tell anyone that. He could just smile at you and it would make your entire day better no matter what had happened. But you knew Alex; You knew he was a fighter, and you knew he was going to make it.

"Y/N?" the doctor asked, walking into the room. You removed herself from Jack's arms and nodded lightly. "Follow me."

He led the group to a room down the hall and you all walked in slowly. The beeping from all the machines hooked up to Alex felt like they could be heard from a mile away. You let out a faint gasp, nearly choking on your tears as you held onto Jack's arm. Jack walked you over to Alex's bedside, slipping his arm out of your grasp and kissing the top of your head.

"We'll give you some time alone with him," he said into your hair, walking out of the room with Rian and Zack.

"He doesn't have a very high chance of making until tomorrow, but he may still be able to hear you. You have 10 minutes," the doctor said, walking out of the room before you had the chance to say anything. You sighed as you pulled the only chair in the room over to Alex's bedside, gently grabbing his hand as you sat down.

"Hey, Lex," you mumbled quietly, "I don't know if you can hear me – well, the doctor said you can, but... I wish I had more than 10 minutes with you, but that's all they gave me," you choked on her words, tears forming in your eyes again. "I want you to know that I love you so much. I'm sorry I've never told you this, but I just want to thank you for these past two years. You don't know how much you've helped me overcome and how many times you've saved my life without even knowing it. Please... Please wake up. You can't leave me. I don't know what I'd do without you..." you trailed off, resting your forehead on his arm until the doctor walked back into the room a few minutes later.

"I'm sorry, Y/N," he said sympathetically, "But time's up."

"Can you please just give him some time? He's gonna wake up! I know he is!" you begged as you looked up, choking back the tears that were threatening to escape. The doctor looked at you for what seemed like forever before nodding.

"We'll give him as long as we can," he answered.

"Thank you," you smiled as he walked back out. "Did you hear that, Lex?" you asked Alex excitedly, "They're gonna give you more time!" You leaned forward slightly, kissing his cheek.

~

You had been sleeping in the chair next to Alex's bedside for nearly two weeks and it was uncomfortable to say the least. Every day that passed, the doctor would tell you to go home and get some proper rest, but you refused to leave Alex. When he woke up, you wanted to be there. You had spent the entire time you weren't sleeping telling him stories about something stupid that Jack did or sharing memories you could only pray he would remember when he woke up.

Alex's band mates had to admit they admired your positive attitude throughout the whole thing because they were an absolute wreck and the only thing that kept them going was your assurance that he was going to make it. They never doubted anything your gut was telling you, especially when it had to do with your boyfriend because it was always right.

~

Present time

You had just walked out of the bathroom in Alex's hospital room and yawned, sitting back down in your chair. You closed your eyes for a few minutes before you heard a groan. Your eyes widened and your head shot up as you rushed over to the bed, barely able to speak.

"Alex!" you finally managed, "You're alive!"

"Of course I'm alive," he mustered a smirk, "You didn't think I'd leave you like that, did you?"

You giggled, "Never," leaning down and kissing him with everything you had.

"You should kiss me like that more often," he smiled as you pulled yourself up off of him, making you laugh again. You ran out of the room to get the doctor and when he came back in just a few moments later, he stared at Alex in shock.

"I can't describe this as anything other than a miracle," the doctor chuckled, "We really didn't think you were going to make it."

You bit your lip and smiled to yourself as you texted Jack, telling him to get Rian and Zack and get to the hospital as fast as they could. You put your phone back into your pocket and walked back over to Alex's side as the doctor left, sitting down, grabbing his hand, and lacing your fingers through his.

~

About 15 minutes later, Jack, Rian, and Zack ran through the door and stopped dead in their tracks when they saw you and Alex laughing together.

Alex looked over at them, "Stop staring at me, you idiots." Jack was the first to rush to him and hug his best friend as tightly as he possibly could without hurting him, closely followed by Rian and Zack. "I love you guys too," Alex laughed lightly.

"They said you weren't gonna make it!" Jack exclaimed, finally letting go.

"Well, either I made it or you all died..." Alex joked.

"Only you would almost die and live to joke about it," Rian chuckled.

Alex shrugged, "One of the many talents I've been blessed with, I suppose." You giggled lightly and the guys decided to give you and Alex more time alone now that he was finally awake.

"We're gonna go get something to drink, do you want anything?" Rian asked the both of you. You shook your heads and they walked out of the room, smiling ear-to-ear knowing Alex was okay.

"Did you really mean what you said when you first got here?" Alex asked you after a couple minutes of silently rubbing his thumb against the back of your hand.

"What?" you asked, already having a pretty good feeling about what he was referring to.

"Have I really saved your life?"

You sighed, resting your head against his cheek, "More than you'll ever know."

He smiled, kissing your hair and whispering, "I love you, Y/N."

You squeezed his hand tightly, "I love you more, Alex."


	13. Don't Hold Your Breath (Ian Keaggy)

Warning: Attempted kidnapping

~

You were doing dishes one afternoon when you heard your boyfriend walk into the room.

"Morning, sleepyhead," you smiled at him before turning back toward the sink. He simply grunted and leaned against the counter, causing you to put down the cup you were drying, wipe your hands, and walk the three steps over to him. "Something's wrong."

"Nothing's wrong," he told you.

"Ian, I know when you're lying to me."

He didn't say anything, he just pushed himself off of the counter and trudged over to the coffee pot, pouring himself a cup of coffee, then returning to where he was. You got to thinking and you realized that he'd seemed a bit angrier the past few weeks. At first, you figured it was because of jet lag from getting home from the band's world tour, but that was almost two months ago and it made you think: What if it's my fault he's mad?

You were immediately snapped out of your thoughts when you heard Ian ask, "Are you okay?" You nodded your head a little too eagerly and hopped up so you were sitting on top of the counter.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Can I ask you something?" you asked quietly.

"Sure, what is it?" Ian asked as he turned to face you, the concern in his voice very obvious.

You began playing with your fingers, refusing to make eye contact with him, "If I did or said something to make you mad at me, you would tell me, right?"

He seemed a bit taken back by your question, not one hundred percent certain why you were asking, "Of course I would. You know that. Where is this coming from?"

"You just seem angrier since you got home from tour and I thought I did something wrong," you replied quietly again, nervously scratching your cheek, trying your best to hold in a tear. Ian sighed, knowing you were trying not to cry. You always scratched your cheek when you were trying not to cry.

He put his hand on your left cheek, lifting your head so you were eye-level with him, "I didn't mean to make you feel like anything was your fault. I've just got a lot on my mind right now with working on our new album and doing promotions. You should have told me."

"I know," you mumbled, "But I thought if I did, it would make it worse."

"I love you, Y/N," he told you, kissing your forehead.

"I love you too, Ian," you replied slightly above a whisper, laying your head against his shoulder.

~

As the day went on, you could tell that something was still bothering Ian, but you didn't want to press it. He told you everything and you knew he would tell you about this when he was ready. You decided to go for a walk and invited Ian along, hoping it would help clear his mind. He happily agreed, grabbing the key to the apartment and shoving his phone into his pocket.

"You don't mind if I make a pit stop inside the music store, do you?" Ian asked after the two of you got ice cream at a local shop, "I just need to buy some new strings for my acoustic."

"Nah," you shrugged, "As long as you don't mind if I wait outside."

He chuckled, "Of course not." You reached the music store and stood against the wall beside the door, finishing up your ice cream and waiting for Ian.

"You don't deserve him," you heard a girl say as you were throwing away your napkin.

You turned around to see a guy and a girl standing in front of you, "I'm sorry?"

"He's too good for you," she scoffed.

You laughed sarcastically, "And who exactly are you two?"

"That's not important," the guy said, "What's important is I can show you a better time."

You raised your eyebrows, "Interesting... I'm gonna go... Lovely talking to you both." You turned back to walk into the music store to find Ian, but felt a hand tight grab your forearm. You grunted as quietly as you could, trying not to let the guy know he was hurting you.

"Maybe you didn't hear me," he threatened, "You're coming with me."

"Your little boyfriend will never even know you're gone," the girl smirked.

"I'm gonna give you three seconds to let go of her before I rip you apart," you heard someone say behind you. As the guy gripped your arm harder, you closed your eyes tightly and Ian could tell he was hurting you. "I don't think I made myself clear enough," Ian growled through clenched teeth, "Let her go or I'm going to knock every single one of your fucking teeth out." The guy glared at Ian for a few long seconds before releasing your arm. As soon as you felt him let go, you ran behind Ian. "Thank you," Ian smiled smugly as the guy and girl started angrily walking away, "And don't you ever tell anyone she doesn't deserve me!" Ian turned around, resting his hands on your shoulders, and started walking with you in front of him just in case.

"Uh, Ian, we need to go that way," you said, pointing in the opposite direction.

"We're just gonna take the long way," he told you, "I don't want to run into them again." Once you two were around the corner, he finally let go of your shoulders and let you walk beside him, holding your hand tightly.

"Ian."

"Yeah?" he asked, looking down at you.

"Too tight," you giggled.

"Sorry," he smiled shyly, loosening his grip. He looked down at your forearm and gasped quietly, "Holy shit." You looked down and saw that the guy had held your arm so tightly, it started to bruise.

"Ian," you repeated, taking him out of his thoughts, "You didn't do that to my arm. It's not your fault."

"But maybe if I didn't go to the music store or I had turned around sooner, you would've been fine and nothing would have happened to you," he muttered.

You sighed, "They would have gotten me at any point I was alone whether I was in the store or not and I know you know that. Shit happens, man." He smiled at your ability to joke around no matter the situation and you poked him, "Now there's that smile I fell in love with."

~

"I love you. You know that, right?" Ian asked randomly as the two of you were sitting on the couch watching TV that evening.

"Of course I do. Why?" you asked, slightly concerned as he knew you never doubted him when he told you he loved you.

"I just... I was just letting you know," he said, looking at you. After a few more seconds, he finally broke, "The reason I've been pretty moody the past few weeks is because I've been seeing a bunch of people saying rude things about and to you and it's just made me mad."

You smiled, "I know what people have been saying, silly."

"You do?" he seemed genuinely shocked.

You nodded, giggling, "Why do you think I haven't been tweeting much anymore?"

"You do seem happier than you did when we first started dating," he said, more to himself than to you.

"And don't get me wrong, I was happy when we first started dating too, but I've just decided to cut back on my internet use – Twitter especially. I know your fans are protective of you guys and sometimes they say things out of just wanting the best for you."

"Well, you're what's best for me and I hope one day, they realize that," he told you, wrapping his arms around you.

You laid your head on his shoulder for a few minutes before looking up at him and asking, "Did you ever get those strings for your guitar?"

He thought for a moment and groaned, "Damn it," causing you to both to start laughing.


	14. Meant to be Chased (Nash Overstreet)

"I'm just saying, Nash!" you exclaimed, your eyes starting to tear up.

He stared at you, "Yeah, I got that you're just saying you don't want to be with me, I just want to know why you're saying it!"

"It's not that I don't want to be with you! I want to be with you more than I've ever wanted anything!"

"Then why are you breaking up with me?" his voice cracked, which obviously broke your heart.

You cleared your throat quietly, trying to keep what little composure you had left, "I know I won't be able to handle you being away on tour for months at a time and I know you're going to want to go out with the guys after shows and I don't want you to feel like you have to hold back because you have a girlfriend."

"You mean you think I'm gonna cheat on you...?"

"No!" you accidentally shouted, "I mean I don't want you to be around other girls and feel like you can't have fun because you have some girl that no one even likes waiting for you back home."

He sighed, taking your face in his hands, "You're not some girl no one likes. You're my girlfriend and I love you way too much to even consider finding a new you."

"I know," you said quietly, kissing him before taking his hands off of your face, "Which is exactly why I have to do this."

He shook his head, "Y/N, please..."

"I'm sorry, Nash" you swallowed the lump in your throat, walking out of the apartment.

~

Three months later

You wish you could say you made the right choice, but you knew you didn't. You knew your reasoning for the break-up was stupid, but you had convinced yourself it was what was best for him even if you were completely miserable. You knew Nash and you knew he liked to go to parties and get drunk and hang out with girls. You didn't want to be the girlfriend that found out through magazines that her boyfriend got a little too drunk and took a girl home with him because you knew you wouldn't be able to handle it.

The fans absolutely hated you for what you did, but you honestly couldn't care less. They never liked you to begin with and they made sure you were aware of that. You couldn't even get on Twitter anymore without immediately seeing something hateful in your mentions about how much Nash had changed because of you or how badly they wanted the old Nash back, but you were managing to deal with it.

You still remained friends with Ian and Jamie, of course, but none of you were as close as you were with Ryan. He called you every day just to make sure you were doing okay and you were grateful for that. He kept you sane throughout the whole thing. Without him, you probably would have lost it. He asked you to Skype with him after their show and you were a bit nervous. You were always nervous when you Skyped with Ryan because you were afraid you'd see Nash and you knew you wouldn't be able to handle it.

Your thoughts were interrupted when "Call from Ryan Follese" lit up your computer screen. You instantly hit answer and it wasn't long before you saw Ryan with a huge smile on his face.

"Hello, beautiful!" he exclaimed.

You rolled your eyes, smiling, "Hey, Ry."

"How have you been holding up?"

You shrugged, "Same as always, I guess. How was the show?"

Ryan sighed, "Shows haven't been the same since the break-up, honestly."

"I'm sorry, Ryan," you said quietly.

"It's okay," he perked up, "So I don't have a lot of time to talk since we have to be leaving soon, but I wanted to ask you something."

"Go for it."

"I'm sure you know the show tomorrow is in Nashville and I was hoping maybe you would stop by a couple hours beforehand so we could hang out."

"I don't know, Ryan..."

"Please, Y/N!" he begged, pouting, "We really miss you!"

"You're only pouting because you know I can't say no when you do."

He smiled victoriously, "So does that mean you'll come?"

You sighed, "Fine, I'll come. But you better tell the guys that it took a lot of begging and you didn't pout once."

He clapped happily, "Deal!"

"I hate you, you know that?" you giggled.

"I love you too," he smirked, "Hey, I gotta go, but I'll see you tomorrow!"

"Bye, Ryan," you waved before he ended the call. You let out the breath you were holding and decided to go to bed early.

~

You woke up the next morning at 11:30, took a shower, got dressed, and fixed your hair and outfit to your liking, waiting around until you decided to head to the concert venue. To say you were nervous was putting it nicely. It wasn't so much as seeing Nash again as much as it was the thought of being confronted by fans. You calmed yourself down quickly, however, knowing the guys would do anything to keep you safe. Before you knew it, you were pulling into the venue parking lot. You parked your car in the closest spot to the door that you could and walked into the venue.

"Hey, Y/N!" John, the venue's security said, "It's been a while since I've seen you!"

"It's not my fault the only band whose show I can get into for free hasn't been here in three months," you joked, making him laugh, "Have you seen Ryan yet?"

"Yup!" John told you, "He just went out to the bus about 5 minutes ago!"

"Thank you, sir!" you saluted, laughing before walking through the building to the back door. You had just hit the middle of the concert hall when the door opened and Ryan came walking inside. "Ryan!" you yelled excitedly, running over to him. You jumped up and he caught you, giving you the biggest hug you'd ever gotten in your life.

"Y/N! I missed you!" Ryan exclaimed as your feet returned to the ground.

"What can I say? I'm just so miss-able."

"Ha, ha, ha," he laughed sarcastically, "You've gotten funnier since I last saw you."

"Naturally," you shrugged, "How have you been?"

"Really good, actually!" he smiled. Ian and Jamie walked into the room and you let out an unintentional squeal, running over to them and giving them hugs.

"Oh my God, you actually came!" Jamie chuckled, hugging you tightly.

"Well, of course I did! I've missed my favorite boys!" you giggled as you let go of him.

"How have you been doing?" Ian asked, obviously referring to the break up.

"I've been good," you sighed, "Just trying to get used to living alone."

As you were talking with the guys, you couldn't help but notice Nash was nowhere to be found. You thought about asking where he was, but you didn't want the other guys to know you were a mess without him.

"I have a confession," Ryan suddenly said.

"What kind of confession?" you asked.

"I didn't ask you to come here early so we could catch up."

"Then why did you ask me to come?"

"I can't exactly explain it. Just take this and you'll see what I mean in a few minutes," he told you, handing you an envelope that had your name written in messy handwriting. "Follow the underlined words," he informed you before he, Jamie, and Ian left the room.

"Okay..." you said slowly to yourself, opening the envelope. You unfolded the paper inside and read it to yourself.

Falling starts don't crash through your window. If you want it, go get it. It's meant to be chased.

You smiled slightly – Forever Unstoppable was your favorite song – but you were pretty confused as well as you looked around.

You could see into one of the back rooms through an open door and saw an envelope taped to the window. You raised your eyebrow, getting up and walking into the room, opening the second envelope.

All your scars won't heal 'til you let go. You're perfectly worth it, forget your mistakes.

You thought for a moment. Worth? What would mean worth? Then it hit you.

You rushed over to the owner of the venue's office. You noticed no one was inside the room, but you did see the lock box where he kept the money from ticket sales. You went in, grabbed the envelope sitting on top of the box, and left the room before opening it.

If you wanna fly, leave this world with me. We'll touch the sky, let's defy this gravity. Hold onto me tight when it all falls down.

World? Maybe a map?

You looked around, stumped at the clue before suddenly realizing there was a framed photograph of a boy and girl looking at a map of the United States in the entrance way. You walked the few feet to the front door and saw another envelope taped to the wall beside the photo.

You can take my heart if yours won't beat. We're forever unstoppable. If you're torn apart, I'll make you see that nothing's impossible.

The first place you thought to look was a trash can and the first one you found happened to have an envelope under it.

When you're broken and you're shattered, love will save you from disaster. You can take my heart if yours won't beat. We're forever, forever, forever unstoppable.

For whatever reason, your mind automatically thought to check a TV because that's where you always hear about disasters and such, but there were no TV's in the venue. You decided to try and find the next best thing: A newspaper. Sure enough, you found one on the table in a random room and there was an envelope sticking out from the middle.

Yeah, we've both been touched by the same flame. Don't worry, I've got you, I won't let you burn.

You thought of a stove or oven, but there was nothing of the sort in the venue. Maybe it was a light bulb? You searched around for a lamp or anything that was lit. It hit you that Chuck had to be around somewhere, so you went off to find the lighting booth. You finally found the room, as well as Chuck.

"Hey, Chuck," you said as you walked in, "There wouldn't happen to be an envelope or anything in here, would there?"

"Actually-" he smiled, picking one up off the table next to him, "-there would be."

"Thanks," you sighed, smiling back before you walked back out to the hallway to read the note.

You and I got played by the same game. We're in it together, for better or worse.

Board games? Something sports related? You thought for a moment before gasping quietly, "Guitars!" You ran back out to find the guitar tech. As soon as you saw him, you squeaked, "Cameron!"

He chuckled at you, "Yes, Y/N, I have your envelope right here."

"You're a mind reader, Cammy," you smiled before he went back to work.

There's a feeling inside you just dying to break though. Open up and set it free. We're on a horizon, just look in my eyes and you will see.

The first thing that came to your mind was a door, so you opted to go to the first one you came across which was the side door that led to the band's bus.

You poked your head outside and were in awe, completely stepping outside into the cold November air. The first place your eyes went to were the Christmas lights strung up on the side of the building and the second was to the man standing right in front of you, looking just as broken as he did the last time you saw him.

"Nash... You did all this for me?" you asked when you finally found the words.

He nodded, "I told you before and I'll tell you again: I love you too much to even think about finding a new you because you are the best girlfriend I've ever had and I can't let you go that easily."

You looked at him for what seemed like forever before cracking a smile and closing the gap between the two of you, hugging him tightly. He sighed, loving the feeling of you being back in his arms.

"I've missed this," he mumbled into your shoulder.

"I know," you whispered, "I'm sorry."

"You don't have to apologize," he told you, looking at you.

"Yeah, I kind of do though," you said, "I was being an idiot and not thinking clearly and my reasoning was just stupid. Not hearing you tell me you love me or taking care of me when I'm sick or talking about the new songs you're excited to let the fans hear or singing me to sleep every night even when you're on tour; I've been a wreck without you and, honestly, I don't know why you still love me." You took a breath, but before you could let it out, Nash's lips were on yours.

"I love you, okay?" he said as soon as he pulled back, "Nothing you think or say or do to convince yourself or anyone else otherwise is going to change that, got it?"

"Got it," you smiled, kissing him again.


	15. Taken (Ryan Follese) - Part 1 *

Warning: Kidnapping

~

Ryan's POV

365 days. 365 long, painful days since the last time he saw you. He didn't know where you were and it killed him knowing you didn't either. One minute, you were at the fair on your one year anniversary and the next minute, you were gone. For a split second, he thought that you had just walked off to look for something more interesting to do, but he knew you didn't. You would have said something; You would have answered the 17 phone calls.

It wasn't that he was a controlling boyfriend. 17 calls may sound like he was, but he was far from controlling. After you didn't answer the first call, he waited for almost half an hour, praying he was only paranoid, but he knew you well enough to know something was wrong. Of course, he called the police as soon as he got home that night, but they told him they couldn't do anything for another 24 hours since you were over 18. He was understandably mad, but he gave them all your information and hung up before leaving the apartment you two shared. He was determined to find you and if it meant doing it on his own, that's what he was going to do.

The whole world had heard about it not even two days after you was reported missing and many people offered condolences to the 26-year-old, but he couldn't even act like he appreciated them. None of their apologies would bring you back. The band had to cancel their upcoming headlining tour because they knew he wouldn't be able to handle it. The fans – while heartbroken there was no longer a tour – were very supportive of their decision. They loved you almost as much as he did. You were what made him happy and if he didn't have you there with him, he couldn't play his best. He had noticeably lost a lot of sleep and it was obvious to everyone that looked at him that he was losing weight.

"Ryan, you've got to stop doing this to yourself," his brother said softly, sitting down beside him on the front porch after Ryan had excused himself from yet another dinner with the family.

"I can't help it, Jamie," Ryan mumbled with his hands covering his face, "I've tried everything and I just can't find her." Jamie pulled Ryan into a hug. It killed him to see his older brother basically giving up on everything.

"Y/N wouldn't want you to do this, Ryan," Jamie told him, "She's a fighter and she's going to make it home. And when she does, you know she wouldn't want to see you like this."

Ryan looked up at Jamie and nodded slowly, "I know." The boys got up and walked back inside and, for the first time since you were taken, Ryan finally ate a normal meal.

~

Three weeks passed since the one year anniversary of your disappearance. He was running out of places to look for you, sometimes even looking in the most simple places such as the mall, hoping you would just randomly be there, but you never were.

That evening around 6pm, his phone began ringing. He looked at the caller ID and it was blocked number. He never typically answered blocked numbers as they were usually fans who had somehow gotten his number, but something about this made him answer.

As soon as he accepted the call, a girl on the other line said, "I hear you've been missing something." Ryan's heart started racing as he instantly recognized the voice as his ex-girlfriend.

"What the hell did you do to her, Kaitlyn?" he growled.

"That's not important. What's important is that I've got something you want and if you want to see her, come to the abandoned warehouse in Nashville. Bring your brother with you. No one else. Understand?"

"Why do I need my brother?"

"So he can take her home, of course," she laughed, "You didn't think I'd have you switch places with her and not give her a way to get home, did you?"

"What do you mean switch places?" Ryan asked, shocked.

"No one breaks up with me and gets away with it," she answered, immediately hanging up.

He stood there in the middle of the room trying to process what had just happened. He didn't want to switch places, he wanted everything to go back to the way it was. On the other hand, he wanted you to be safe and he knew the only way to do that was to comply with his ex's demands. It was then that the split second decision was made. Ryan yelled for Jamie and grabbed his car keys.

"What's wrong?" Jamie asked frantically, rushing into the room.

"We're gonna go get Y/N back," Ryan said as they walked out the front door and got into the car, driving toward the warehouse.

"What do you mean we're gonna get her back?"

"Kaitlyn has her," he answered simply.

"Your psycho ex took her?!" Jamie exclaimed, "And she's just going to let her go?!" Ryan didn't answer that time, he just kept driving.

~

15 minutes later, he pulled into the warehouse parking lot.

"I need you to understand what's going on, Jamie," Ryan said after he put the car in park, "Once I go into that building, I won't be coming back."

"What are you talking about, Ryan?"

"Kaitlyn told me that she would only let her go if I took her place."

"You can't do that, Ryan!" Jamie shouted.

"I don't have a choice, Jamie! It's the only way I can keep Y/N safe! You trust me, don't you?"

"You're my brother. Of course I trust you."

"I'm gonna see you again someday, okay? I don't know when and I don't know how, but I'm going to get out of this mess and everything is going to be the way it was a year ago. I just need you to promise me that you will keep Y/N safe and never let this happen to her again."

Jamie choked back tears, giving his brother a hug, "I promise." They got out of the car and started walking toward the warehouse when the door opened. You stumbled out of the building with Kaitlyn following close behind.

"Bitch," you mumbled under your breath before looking up and seeing someone you thought you'd never see again. "Ryan!" you screamed, immediately starting to cry as you ran to him, jumping into his open arms.

"I missed you, babe," he sobbed into your neck. He pulled back and took your face in his hands, looking into your eyes, "I need you to know that no matter what happens, I love you so much and I am so sorry it took me this long to get to you."

"What are you saying, Ryan?" you asked, confused. Ryan opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by Kaitlyn.

"I don't have all night, Ryan," she spat, "Let's go."

"I love you, Y/N," he said quietly, kissing you with everything he had bottled up within the past year, letting you go and walking toward Kaitlyn.

"Ry-Ryan, what are you doing?"

Hearing your voice crack through your cries was no doubt breaking his heart, but this was what he had to do. He was going to find a way out of it, but for now, you were safe and that was all that mattered.


	16. Taken (Ryan Follese) - Part 2 *

Warning: Kidnapping

~

You had been living with the Follese's because they knew you wouldn't be able to live alone in yours and Ryan's apartment. Ryan never told his parents or sister what was going on, so Jamie had to. He nervously walked into his house with you close behind him the night you came home. They were all sitting in their living room when the two of you walked in.

At first, they thought they were seeing things. Anna was the first to get up and walk over to you. Once she realized she wasn't dreaming, she threw her arms around you and hugged you as tightly as she could – you were almost as close as you were with Ryan. Adrienne and Keith immediately rushed over and hugged you as well.

"Where's Ryan?" Anna asked after they stopped hugging.

"With Kaitlyn," Jamie answered carefully.

"Kaitlyn as in his crazy ex-girlfriend?" He nodded slowly and Anna was obviously confused, "Why is he with her when Y/N's finally home?"

You kept her eyes on the ground, speaking in an almost inaudible tone, "He switched places."

"What do you mean he switched places?" Keith finally spoke.

"I guess Kaitlyn called and told him she had Y/N," Jamie continued, "But the only way she would let her come home was if Ryan went with her."

"He's...gone?" Adrienne asked quietly.

"For now."

~

It had been almost three months – 57 days to be exact. The Follese's noticed something in you that they had seen with Ryan: Determination. You were going to find Ryan even if it killed you. He'd done that for you; Why wouldn't you do the same for him? Although you differed from Ryan in that you ate normally, you ate as fast as you could, often times making yourself sick.

Everyone that looked at you could tell you blamed yourself. You barely slept because when you did, you were woken up not long after falling asleep because of the nightmares. You were falling apart and everyone around you could see it. The Follese's were pretty much the only people who kept you sane, but you couldn't help but feel like they blamed you.

"Y/N, what's wrong?" Adrienne asked after dinner that evening.

"Nothing," you answered quietly.

"Y/N, something's wrong," Keith said, "You didn't run off to your room like you always do when you've finished eating."

"I didn't feel like it this time, I guess." Everyone was silent as you continued, "I just think it would be best if I moved back to my apartment."

"What? Why?" Anna asked, her voice noticeably full of concern.

"I know you guys blame me for what happened to Ryan."

"Y/N-" Jamie started only to be cut off by you.

"I'm the reason he's not here anymore. Everyone is miserable without him. And I know the fans blame me too. There hasn't been a show or new music or anything in over a year because of me. I just feel like everyone would be happier if I-"

"Y/N, stop," Jamie said firmly, "No one blames you; They blame Kaitlyn because she is the reason this is happening – not you. I know you feel like it's your fault, but I promise you, it's not. Ryan would do anything to get you home, even if it meant never coming back himself, and that's exactly what he did. We know you're beating yourself up over this and I'm sorry I have to put it this way, but it's not going to help. You're a train wreck and you're not thinking logically anymore. If you just take a moment and realize how he wouldn't want you to be doing this to yourself, everything will be okay." You took a deep breath and hugged him.

"Thanks, Jamie," she said quietly.

~

About two hours later – at around 7pm – you were lying down in her bed, thinking about what Jamie said. He was right; You weren't thinking straight. You took a moment to really think about where Kaitlyn would take Ryan. Then it hit you. You hadn't thought about that place since you were a kid.

You jumped up off of the bed and yelled for Jamie to get his car keys as you put on your shoes.

"What's going on?!" Jamie asked, rushing into the room. You grabbed his free hand and pulled him outside to his car. "Would you mind telling me where I'm driving to?" he asked as he started his car.

"Do you remember the place you, me, and Ryan always went to when we were kids? The place where your dad helped us build that huge treehouse in the middle of the woods?" you asked quickly.

"He's there?!" Jamie shouted, driving off.

"He told me there was only one other person he told about that treehouse and guess who that person was."

"Kaitlyn!" he gasped.

"Exactly!" you exclaimed, "He said that Kaitlyn seemed like the only girl besides me that he could share that place with. That has to be where she took him!"

"He's been ten minutes away this whole time..." Jamie trailed off quietly, "What's the plan for when we get there?"

"You've got to distract her so I can sneak in from behind. I'm gonna call your phone, so make sure it's on as loud as it will go. All I know is that I'm gonna be putting some bruises on that face of hers."

"Got it," Jamie chuckled, "I'm not even going to try to stop you." As Jamie was driving, you were on the phone with police telling them you knew where Ryan was and where to go to find him.

Not long after you hung up with police, Jamie pulled up to the entrance of the woods. You were quietly walked through the trees, careful not to step on any fallen sticks. Although it was autumn, it had rained all afternoon, so the leaves were still wet and not too loud to walk on.

When you had almost reached the treehouse, you had to start hiding and peeking from behind trees so you wouldn't be seen. Once the treehouse was in view, you could see Ryan sitting against the tree and Kaitlyn hovering over him.

"Jamie," you whispered, "Keep your eyes on me, I'll give you a signal to be ready." He nodded and you sneaked into a position where you would be behind Kaitlyn when she heard Jamie's phone.

You gave Jamie a thumbs up as his signal to be ready and quietly dialed his number. You hit send and his ringtone went off so loudly, it even startled you.

Kaitlyn spun around toward Jamie's direction and you jumped out from her hiding spot and tackled her, sitting on her stomach and pinning her to the ground.

"Give me one good reason I shouldn't beat the shit out of you right here," you growled as Jamie rushed in to make sure Ryan was okay.

"Please," Kaitlyn laughed, still trying to break free, "You couldn't hurt a fly."

"You're right, but you're not a fly, are you?" You instantly started hitting Kaitlyn as hard as you could before you felt yourself being pulled off of her. "I'm not done, Jamie!" she yelled.

"I'm not Jamie, babe," you heard Ryan say. You spun around and jumped into Ryan's arms, hugging him as tightly as you did the day he found you. "I love you, Y/N," Ryan mumbled into your neck.

"I love you more, Ryan," you smiled, tears threatening to stream down your cheeks at any moment. Just then, two police officers came running into the woods to find Jamie sitting on top of Kaitlyn.

"Hello, officers," Jamie smiled up at them. They gave him a questioning look as he got up and brushed himself off, shrugging and putting Kaitlyn in handcuffs. 

One of the officers took her back to their car and one stayed behind to talk to your group. You answered some questions and were more than willing to testify against Kaitlyn in court. The officer smiled and let you go, telling you he'd call you if they needed anything else. You, Ryan, and Jamie then walked to Jamie's car and went home.

"You ready for this?" Jamie asked before he opened the front door.

"I've been ready for three months," Ryan smiled, squeezing your hand.

Jamie opened the door and you found everyone sitting in the living room, nervously waiting seeing as you and Jamie left without notice. You walked in, careful to make sure they couldn't see Ryan yet.

"Where have you been? We've been worried sick!" Adrienne exclaimed, jumping up from her seat.

"Yeah, we're really sorry for just leaving like that, but we brought home a surprise," Jamie smiled sheepishly.

"A surprise?" Keith asked, confused. You smiled and pulled Ryan inside the house.

"Hey, guys," Ryan smiled widely, "I'm home!"

"Ryan!" Anna screamed, running over to her brother and hugging him, immediately followed by Adrienne and Keith.

After they all let go of each other, you spent family time together before going to bed. You and Ryan decided it would be best if you stayed at his parents' house for a few days before going back to your apartment.

As you were laying in bed, Ryan smiled at you, "You know, it took you long enough to find me.

You looked at him for a moment before laughing, "Shut up," and kissing him.


	17. Don't Forget to Remember Me (Ryan Follese)

Warning: Car accident

~

"I just don't remember, okay?!" you shouted in frustration, throwing the photos in your hands onto the table in front of you.

"I know you're mad, babe, but you have to stop forcing yourself to remember," Ryan told you calmly.

"Please don't call me that," you mumbled.

"What?"

"Babe. It makes me feel weird."

"I always call you babe," he sighed. You could tell he was disappointed.

"I'm sorry. It's just... I don't remember you; I want to, but I can't. I just know what you've told me and I don't want you to be mad at my every time I ask you to stop."

"I understand, ba-" he cleared his throat, stopping himself, "Y/N."

Six months ago, you knew exactly who the man standing in front of you was. That was before the accident though. Before the accident, you two were inseparable.

You had known Ryan since middle school, but only started dating around a year and a half ago. He called you every night and every morning he was on tour to make sure you didn't go to sleep or wake up without an 'I love you' from him. You loved him as much as you'd ever loved anyone. But you wouldn't remember; You couldn't remember.

Flashback

The police said you never saw the car coming, but it wasn't your fault. The other driver was completely wasted and in absolutely no condition to walk, let alone drive. He ran the red light at 80 miles per hour and you just happened to be driving through the intersection. You were almost out of the way when he hit the bumper, causing you to spin and ultimately smash the passenger side into a telephone pole. Luckily though, you were the only one in the car.

You could tell Ryan blamed himself for your accident by the one thing he had only told you once; You were fighting about God knows what and instead of just continuing to argue, you simply left the apartment and drove off. He began to worry about half an hour after you left as you were never gone that long after an argument. Just as he was about to call you, his phone rang. The second he answered it was the second his world seemed like it was crashing down.

His brother rushed him to the hospital because he was shaking so badly, he could barely walk. As soon as he found out what room you were in, he ran straight to it. He was relieved to see you were awake and talking to the doctor. When the doctor asked him who he was, he told him that he was your boyfriend and you gave him a look of confusion.

"But I don't have a boyfriend," you said.

Ryan stared at you in shock before the doctor took him out to the hallway and told him that you had amnesia and it should last, at the most, about a year, but he didn't want to have to wait that long. The past six months, he had been showing you pictures and videos of you two together and would tell you every story he could think of, sometimes even telling them multiple times.

It had been understandably difficult for the both of you these past few months. It was somewhat awkward the first couple weeks once you returned home seeing as you two lived together and you didn't remember him. You had been trying and trying to do anything that might jog your memory, but nothing was working.

End flashback

"What do you say we go out tonight?" Ryan asked as you were watching TV together.

"I don't know," you replied quietly.

"Y/N, you've gotta leave the house sooner or later."

"What if it happens again?" He knew exactly what you were talking about.

He shook his head, "It won't."

"And how do you know that?" you asked, suddenly sitting up. Your voice had sounded harsher than you meant for it to and you just knew you were about to get into some sort of argument.

"I don't," he said calmly, "But I'm not gonna let anything happen to you."

"Yeah, just like you didn't six months ago," you muttered under your breath.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ryan asked, giving you the same tone, "It's not my fault you decided to walk out."

"And it's not my fault I don't remember anything, so if you would just stop with the pictures and the videos and the stories, that would be great!" you shouted, fighting back tears.

"Maybe if you had been paying attention, this wouldn't be happening!"

"Maybe if you hadn't have been yelling at me, I wouldn't have left! It's not like it was my fault! They said I never saw it coming, Ryan!"

"Maybe if you hadn't started that stupid fight-"

You cut him off, "I'm not dealing with this." You started to was toward the door as you felt Ryan stare at you.

"What do you think you're doing?" he asked.

"I think I'm leaving," you replied sarcastically.

"Uh, no you're not," he told you.

"What's the worst I could do, lose my memory?" you remarked, reaching for the door knob as Ryan grabbed your other arm, spun you around, and smashed his lips against yours.

And just like in all the movies, it seemed like everything came back to you at once. He pulled away and you hugged him tightly, smiling into his shoulder.

"I love you, Ryan," you said.

He put his hands on your shoulders so he could look at you, "You... You love me?"

You giggled, "Of course I love you. You're my boyfriend, silly."

"You remember me?" You nodded happily and he shouted, "You're back!"

"Where did I go?" you teased.

"Don't even start with me," he laughed, kissing you again.


	18. Already Gone (Alex Gaskarth) *

Warning: Death, mention of cancer

~

Y/N,

I'm sorry I wasn't brave enough to tell you this in person. I'm sure that made you hate me ten times more than how much you would have if I had just come out and said it, but I couldn't. You know how much I hate seeing you cry. In my defense, I never told the guys either, they just kind of found out. I made them swear not to tell you though.

Looking back on it now, I know I was wrong and I'm so sorry for putting you through all of this. If I could do anything differently, I wouldn't know what to start with.

Actually, that's a lie. I would know exactly what to start with.

I would tell you I love you more than anything. I would tell you that the best part of the past three years has been falling asleep next to you every night and waking up next to you every morning. That I've never completely understood why you wear makeup because you look absolutely stunning without it. That I'm not quite sure what to write here, but I know you're probably smiling by now and your smile is just another thing I love about you. That you never put yourself before others even when you know you may end up hurt. That I love the way you jump into my arms in the middle of the airport when I get home from tours. That the way you shamelessly sing my own songs as you dance around the house makes me happier than any amount of money I could ever make doing those things myself. That the way the moonlight makes your eyes sparkle when we're taking walks at three in the morning for no reason is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen.

But I can't and I'll never be able to again. I'll be on tour and one of the guys will have to tell you I'm gone and I'm not coming back home because even though I called you the night before to tell you I love you, I just couldn't make myself say goodbye. And I know it may take a little time for you to understand why I did it this way, but I also know that by the time my funeral comes around, you'll realize that you would have done the same thing if it were you.

I guess the real point of this letter wasn't really to say goodbye, but more to tell you that I don't want you to never find love again. I want you to be happy more than I've ever wanted anything. I know you won't want to. Maybe you'll feel like you'd be trying to forget about me, but we all know deep down that you never will.

I want you to find someone that will be okay with the fact that you will never be completely over me and you probably won't talk about me until ten years from now when you tell your 4-year-old the story of how you and their dad met or maybe you'll tell them when they're 13 after their first heartbreak.

I want you to find someone that will be okay with the photos and clothing you'll have tucked inside your closet and bring out every now and again to look at them. Someone that will be there to hold you as you blame yourself for everything even though you know there was nothing you could have done. Someone that will love you just as much as I do, and someone that is just as quirky and energetic as you are.

But most of all, I want you to find that person you can see yourself spending the rest of your life with and will do anything for you because you deserve the world or at least as close to it as you can get.

I love you with all my heart and I'll see you again someday totally cancer free,

Alex


	19. Just Give Me A Reason (Jamie Follese) *

Warning: Suicidal thoughts

~

Day One

Just jump. No one's going to miss you.

That's what you told yourself. You just wanted to end it all. You couldn't take it anymore. Everything sucked and people told you all the time that you should do it, so why not make them happy for once? You had your camera with you – no one's going to think someone periodically taking photos is going jump off of a bridge, but that's what you were planning.

You walked out onto the road a bit, looking to your right and left to make sure no cars or people were coming so no one would see you. You were relieved to see nothing and walked back to edge of the bridge. You lifted your right leg up over the side, then your left, and sat on the edge for a few seconds.

Right as you were about to push yourself off, you heard someone shout, "Hey!" You looked in the direction of the voice and saw some brown-haired guy running toward you.

"Where the hell did he come from?!" you whispered to yourself before he reached you.

"What are you doing?" he asked, catching his breath.

"Nothing," you answered quickly, "Just taking pictures."

"Why would you sit on the edge of of a bridge just to take pictures? You were doing pretty well on the ground."

"You've been watching me?" you asked, looking at him.

He smiled shyly, "Yeah... You looked kind of sad when I walked by earlier and you kept looking down at the water. I knew something was wrong and I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if I saw on the news that you drowned and I didn't at least try to help you, so I stuck around to make sure you didn't jump or anything."

"Why would you care? You don't even know me," you said, a little bit harsher than you meant to sound.

"I don't know," he said, "But I do know something's wrong and I just want to see if I can help."

You sighed, still sitting on the edge of the bridge, "Someone may as well know."

So you told him everything – everything from family and school problems to ex-boyfriends to all the rumors people spread about you.

"I just don't see a reason to be happy anymore, so that's why I'm doing it," you finished.

"And you're just set on your decision?" he asked.

You nodded, "Yeah, pretty much."

"What if I made you a deal?"

"What kind of deal?" you asked curiously.

"Give me one week to prove to you that there's a lot more to life than what you think there is and if you agree with me by the end of the week, then you can't kill yourself," he offered.

You looked at him skeptically, "And if I don't?"

He shrugged, "Then you can do whatever."

You narrowed your eyes at him for a few seconds before saying, "Deal." He put his left arm around your back and his right arm under your knees, lifting you off of the bridge.

"I'm Jamie, by the way," he said.

"Y/N," you replied as your feet returned to the ground.

~

"Who's this, Jamie?" a woman smiled as Jamie lead you into his house. You noticed three other people staring at you as well, but tried not to be bothered by it.

"Guys, this is Y/N. I met her yesterday on my way home," Jamie said, introducing you, "Y/N, this is my mom Adrienne, my dad Keith, my brother Ryan, and my sister Anna." You gave them a small wave and smaller smile, just wishing they'd stop staring at you. It was obvious Jamie could tell you were uncomfortable because he suddenly said, "Anyway, Reilly and I will be upstairs if you need anything." He grabbed your hand and pulled you up the stairs to a room you could only assume was his.

As you looked around his room, you saw posters, a box of drumsticks on his desk, and a few photos of him with his family and friends. You looked closer at a couple photos and realized you knew who he was.

"I knew I recognized you!" you exclaimed, quickly spinning around to look at him and noticing him watching you intently, "You're in Hot Chelle Rae!"

He gave you a small smile and nodded, "I am."

"Why didn't you say something earlier?"

"When I tell people I'm in a band, everything changes and they get really weird around me. I guess I thought that if I didn't say anything, that wouldn't happen with you because you didn't seem like you knew who I was... I'm sorry."

"No, it's okay. So do your drumsticks really have your signature on them or is that just a rumor?"

He laughed, "Why don't you just see for yourself?" He pulled a drumstick out of the box on his desk and tossed it to you. You caught it and let out a small laugh when you saw his handwriting. You went to throw it back to him, but he stopped you. "Keep it."

"What do you mean?"

"Keep it," he repeated, smiling, "I've got like, two more boxes of them in my closet. Giving you one won't break me."

"I will cherish it forever," you sighed dramatically, stuffing it in the back pocket of your shorts as far as it would go. "So, drummer boy, what are we doing today?"

"Well, I was thinking we could go to the park and hang out, maybe have a picnic."

"Sounds good to me."

And that's what you did.

You walked to the park, which was near his house, and talked aimlessly about nothing and everything all at the same time. Being with Jamie, even though you hadn't known each other for even 24 hours, just felt...right. He didn't judge you and you could be yourself around him, which wasn't something you could normally do.

~

Day 6

"I want you to know that I am in no way okay with this," you whined as Jamie dragged you to the Ferris wheel.

"I know," he laughed, "You've been saying that for the past 3 hours."

"I knew you could hear me!" you shouted, making him laugh again as you sat down.

"You'll be fine. I'm not gonna let anything happen to you," he told you, making you tear up slightly.

It wasn't the fact that you had started moving that made you tear up, it was the fact that he told you he wouldn't let anything happen to you. Sure, maybe you've only known him for five days, but you trusted Jamie. He wasn't the kind of person to tell you something he didn't mean and maybe that's why you were starting to like him as more than just a member of your favorite band.

"Y/N? Is something wrong?" Jamie asked, bringing you out of your thoughts.

You shook your head, "Well, I mean, other than being on this death trap, I'm great."

"Just wait until we get to the top," he smiled.

"It's not gonna stop, is it?" you groaned.

"Just trust me," he smirked.

When you got to the top – of course – the Ferris wheel stopped moving. You closed your eyes as tightly as you could and you could feel Jamie looking at you.

"Y/N!" he whined, "Open your eyes!" You shook your head, feeling him grab your hand, causing you to open your eyes.

"No fair," you pouted quietly before looking up. It was that time of day when the sun was just set enough that you could look directly at it and dark enough to where all the lights at the fair were turning on. "I've never seen anything this beautiful," you whispered, more to yourself than to Jamie.

"I have," he said. When you looked over at him, he was looking at you.

You smiled, rolling your eyes, "That's the cheesiest thing I've ever heard."

"Then why are you blushing?" he chuckled, looking back at the sunset, which only made you blush more.

~

Day 7

For the last day, you decided that you would take Jamie to the place you always went to when you needed to get away from everything. It was in this opening in the forest at the park completely surrounded by trees that you would never know was there unless you happened to find it – the only bad thing about it is that you found it with your ex-boyfriend. There was this random wooden picnic table off to the side, so you and Jamie sat down.

"So I guess I'll just come out and ask it: Have you found a reason to live yet?" Jamie asked after a couple minutes of comfortable silence.

You were about to answer him when you heard someone say loudly, "Well, well, well. Look what we have here." You looked over saw your ex-boyfriend standing at the edge of the opening about 10 feet away. "Who's this, Y/N?"

"No one that concerns you, Andrew," you told him, feeling confident enough to finally stand up for yourself.

"Any guy that hangs out with my girlfriend concerns me, actually."

"Ex-girlfriend," you corrected him, sensing Jamie became somewhat relieved.

"No relationship is over until I say it is."

"I'm sorry," you said sarcastically, "I was under the impression that you had ended the relationship when you called me a pathetic loser and told me to kill myself, but apparently, I was mistaken."

"And I can tell you didn't take that to heart either," Andrew scoffed.

Jamie stood up before you had time to react, "Don't talk to her like that."

"What are you going to do about it, pretty boy?" Jamie clenched his fist and took a step toward Andrew before you jumped up and grabbed his arm, starting to walk back out of the forest.

"Jamie, we should really get going. He's not worth it," you told him.

"He shouldn't have said that to you," he mumbled as you reached the park's playground and sat on the swings.

You shrugged, "It's not like I haven't heard it before. He's said worse."

"Nothing's worse than being told to kill yourself. You shouldn't have thought about listening to him. You're beautiful in every way and he's an idiot for not seeing that," he said, looking into your eyes.

"Jamie," you said quietly, "Thank you for staying behind at that bridge."

"Anything for you, Y/N," he grinned.

"Stop saying my name. It makes my stomach feel weird."

"Y/N, Y/N, Y/N," he smirked.

"Stop!" you laughed. Once your laughter died down, you asked Jamie, "Do you think everything happens for a reason?"

He shrugged, "Depends on the situation. Why?"

"I don't know. Maybe everything throughout the past week was supposed to happen or something..." you trailed off, lightly pushing the ground so you were swinging. You heard Jamie get off his swing and grab the chains to stop you before he walked in front of you.

"Are you saying you've found a reason to live?" he asked. You looked up at him and nodded so he continued speaking, "And what might that be?"

"I'm 110% positive you're my reason, Jamie," you muttered, beyond nervous he would just laugh at you.

"I'm honored to be your reason, Y/N," he smiled, leaning forward and kissing you.


	20. Crash (Josh Franceschi)

Your brother James and his best friend Josh have been best friends since they were six years old. You never really thought of Josh as anything more than a friend. To be honest, you never really thought he was that cute when you were younger. Now, however, is a completely different story.

Over summer vacation, something changed and now, he's probably one of the most gorgeous boys you've ever laid your eyes on, but you figure he'd never like you. At least not in the way that you like him. He hasn't had many girlfriends, but he's never shown any remote interest in you, so you just assumed he never liked you as anything more than his best friend's little sister.

He recently started going out with a girl named Samantha who's basically the most popular girl in school. Believe it or not, once upon a time, you two were actually best friends. That was, until she found out you were in love with Josh.

You knew she was only using him, but what could you do? Josh wouldn't believe you if you told him, you couldn't let your brother know you had feelings for his best friend, and you certainly weren't going to let your best friend know.

~

You were walking to your locker one morning when you got to school and – of course – Josh and Samantha were standing there. You groaned to yourself as you rolled your eyes. Once you reached your locker, you cleared your throat.

"Excuse me, Sam," you said politely. She turned and looked at you, then turned back to Josh. "Sam," you said a little louder.

"I'm sorry, I don't know who you're talking to," she replied.

"Look," you started, "I don't care what you want me to call you. Get the hell out of my way."

"Come on, Sammi," Josh said, "Just let her get to her locker." He stuck out his bottom lip and looked at Sam with puppy-dog eyes. You hated when he did that. Mostly because it worked on you every time. You rolled your eyes as Sam moved to the other side of Josh.

"Thank you," you mumbled. As you were putting in your combination, your best friend came trotting over.

"Good morning, beautiful!" she said happily.

"Honestly, Danielle. Could you not be a morning person for once in your life?"

"I'm so sorry my happiness displeases you!" she yelled sarcastically. You smiled lightly and turned back to your locker just as Josh and Sam were walking away.

"Later, bitch," you heard Sam say.

"Later, whore," you scoffed quietly so they wouldn't hear you.

"It's cute how in love you are with him," Danielle said, watching Sam grab Josh's hand.

You just stared at her, choking slightly on your words, "I-I am not in love with Josh."

She smirked, "Liar."

"I'm not! I have absolutely no feelings for that boy whatsoever!"

"Y/N," she said.

"Fine! I do! Who cares? He doesn't feel the same about me anyway..." you trailed off.

Danielle sighed as you closed your locker door, "Let's just go to class."

"Ah, yes," you replied, "History is always the brighter part of my day."

She smiled slightly at your sarcasm, "There you go! Gettin' happy! That's what I like to see!"

~

Blah, blah, blah. School was school and it was lame.

When you walked through your front door after school, you saw your brother and Josh sitting on the couch.

"Why so late, Y/N?" Josh asked, looking at the clock then back at you.

You sighed, "Danielle wanted to hang out after school just to talk to me about stuff."

"What kinda stuff?"

"Does it really matter?" you asked, getting irritated.

"Well... No, I was just-"

You cut him off, "Alrighty then. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a bunch of homework to do." You hurried off to your room because he could ask any more questions.

"What's up with her?" Josh turned back to your brother.

"She never told you, did she?" James asked.

"Told me what?"

"She knows about the band getting signed."

"You told her?!" Josh yelled quietly.

"No," James replied calmly, "Everyone at school is talking about it. It's kind of huge when people you go to school with get a recording contract, you know." Josh didn't say anything for a while, but a few minutes later when he did speak, it was almost like a whisper.

"I'll be back in a bit," he told your brother.

Meanwhile, you were sitting on your bed with your earbuds in and your iPod's volume was as loud as it would go. Josh knocked on your door and opened it. You took your headphones out of your ears and stared at him.

"Y/N, we need to talk," he told you, closing your door and sitting on the side of your bed, facing you, "I'm sorry I didn't tell you that we got signed."

"When were you going to tell me, the day before you left?" Your eyes were starting to get watery, but you held back.

"No," he replied, "Of course not. We don't leave for another two months. I was going to tell you today, but I couldn't find you after school. If it makes you feel any better, I haven't told Sam yet."

You looked at him and grinned, "Seriously?"

He smiled back, "Seriously."

"Why not?"

He looked at you for a moment and shrugged, "I don't know. You've been supporting this dream longer than she has, I guess. And between you and me, every CD we record, you're getting the first one for free."

"Are you even allowed to do that?" you laughed.

"Who cares? I – and I'm sure the rest of the guys – wouldn't want anyone else to be the first. Don't question it, just accept it."

He smiled at you and you smiled back, "Thank you, Josh." He stood up and kissed your forehead, then opened your door. "Oh, and Josh."

He turned, "Yes, beautiful?"

"I get free front row seats and backstage passes, right?" you smiled again.

"Of course you do, weirdo," he laughed as he walked out.

~

Those two months, however, came and went sooner than you wanted it to.

You and Josh had been spending a lot more time together since he talked to you that night. Every moment he wasn't with Sam, he was with you – which, you noticed, was almost all day, every day now.

"Josh," you said while sitting on a swing on the playground near your house, "Why don't you hang out with Sam as much anymore?" He didn't say anything for a while. "I'm sorry," you put your head down and kept swinging, "It's none of my business. I shouldn't have asked."

"She'd been cheating on me," he finally spoke, "I found out yesterday."

"She told you two days before you go on tour?"

"She didn't tell me. I found out when I went to her house."

"Oh, Josh," you paused, stood up and walked behind him, and wrapped your arms around his neck lightly, "I'm so sorry."

He smiled, "It's okay. I guess you could say I didn't really love her anyway."

"Then why did you date her for so long?"

"I was trying to make another girl jealous," he said, a little embarrassed now that he was really thinking about it.

"Oh," you replied, a little sadness in your voice, "Well, have fun on your tour." You walked away quickly before he had the chance to say anything. He sat there staring at you as you walked away.

After you were out of his sight, you started to run. You didn't know where you were running to, but you knew you couldn't stay with him. You made it to some random bench before you stopped running.

You laid down and before you knew what was going on, you opened your eyes and noticed you were being carried. You were about to freak out when you looked up at who was carrying you.

"Josh?" you questioned.

"Good morning, sleeping beauty," he smiled.

"What's going on?"

"Well, you're being carried and I'm carrying you."

"Thanks for that. You're a big help."

"Anytime."

"Seriously, Josh," you said, "Why are you carrying me?"

"Doesn't matter," he replied, "You have a tour to get ready for!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. What are you talking about?" you asked, your eyes getting wider.

"Yup."

You jumped out of Josh's arms, "Since when?!"

"Well," he started, "I was going to tell you earlier, but you ran off before I could ask you if you wanted to go. So do you?" You stared at him, unable to talk. "Y/N...?" You shrieked and jumped into his arms, wrapping your own arms around his neck. "So I'll take that as a yes?" he laughed.

"Of course!" you shouted.

"Good, because we leave at 4."

"Like, 4 in the morning?"

"Yes."

"Oh, I don't know. You know I'm not at all a morning person."

"Don't worry; If you still need sleep, your pillow's right here," Josh laughed lightly, patting his shoulder.

"Why, thank you," you giggled. You two finally made it back to your front door.

"Okay, well, you should go pack and get some sleep. We've got a long day tomorrow," Josh told you.

"Alright, you too."

Josh kissed your forehead, "Goodnight, love."

"Goodnight, Josh," you said quietly, giving him a hug before walking into your house. You went to your room to pack, set your alarm, and then went to bed.

~

At 3, your alarm went off, so you got up and took a shower, then finished any last minute things needing to be done.

Josh and the guys arrived at your house a little before 4.

"Hello, beautiful!" Josh sang when you opened your door, "You ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be at 4 in the morning," you replied, yawning. Josh grabbed your hand and pulled you onto the bus.

"You got a tour bus already?" you asked.

"They really like us, I guess," Josh joked.

"Y/N!"

"Max!" you yelled as the guitar player ran up and hugged you tightly. "Max," you choked, "I can't breathe."

"Oh, sorry. It's just been a while," he laughed.

"I just saw you yesterday!" you smiled.

"I know, but I missed you," he smiled sheepishly.

"Aw," you hugged him again, "I missed you too, Max." You felt him chuckle and you let go of each other.

"Oh, Y/N!" Josh said suddenly, "Come on, I want the rest of the guys to see you!"

"I seriously just saw them yesterday though!"

"Yes, but they don't know you're coming with us on tour." He grabbed your hand and pulled you to where Matt, Dan, and Chris were sitting and talking.

"Gentlemen and gentleman," Josh announced, "I have a surprise guest joining the tour with us."

"Oprah?!" Dan shouted.

"No, better than Oprah," Josh smiled.

"Who could possibly be better than Oprah?" Dan replied. Josh pulled on your hand and you jumped out from behind him.

All the guys yelled, "Y/N!" and attacked you with a group hug.

"Is this gonna be a thing every time I enter a room?" you laughed.

"Possibly," Matt smiled.

"I think I'm okay with that," you laughed again.

"Good," Chris chuckled, "Because it may be happening a lot for the first few weeks."

You smiled and looked at Dan, "Better than Oprah?"

He laughed, "It's debatable."

You laughed and put your hand over your heart and sighed dramatically, "Anyway, I think I'm gonna go back to sleep now. Where's the bed in this place?"

"You can take my bunk," Josh offered, pointing to it, "I'll sleep on the couch."

"Okay, thank you!" You trotted over to the Josh's bunk.

"Whoa, aren't you supposed to like, object first?" Josh laughed.

"Um, no. I'm tired and if I don't get sleep now, you're not gonna like me later," you joked as you climbed under the covers, "Night, boys." They all laughed and climbed into their own bunk as Josh got comfortable on the couch.

~

Three years later (oh wow sorry for skipping so much)

If it wasn't already obvious, the band has made it big within the last couple years. Their most recent album was released a couple months ago and you couldn't be more proud of them.

They were just about to go on stage when you stopped them, "I'm really happy for you guys."

"Thanks, Y/N," Max said.

"Yeah, we really couldn't have done this without you," Matt smiled.

"Now," you started, "I want you to go out there and give these people a show you've never given them before."

"Can we-"

"No, Daniel. You cannot take off your clothes."

"Okay," Dan drug his feet toward the stage.

You laughed, "Hey! Get back over here and give me a hug!" He turned around and smiled.

"You're crazy," he said, hugging you.

You let go and smiled, "And I take much pride in that fact. Thank you."

You gave Chris, Matt, and Max hugs as well and they left to get ready for the concert. You turned around and Josh immediately pulled you into a hug. You hesitated for a moment in surprise, then hugged back, burying your face into his neck.

After a couple minutes, he let go, looked at you, and walked on stage and you heard the crowd start screaming. You stood there completely confused, but shrugged it off and when to sit down.

But this night felt different to you for some reason. You couldn't put your finger on it, but you knew something was up.

~

The band had just played their second to last song and were moving on to their last song for the night.

"Alright, everyone," you heard Josh announce, "I'd like to dedicate this last song to someone special who's been by my side for as long as I can remember. I wrote this song a few months ago with her in mind. It's called Crash and it goes a little something like this..."

He looked at you as the music started playing and you knew instantly that it was about you. You were lost in thought staring at him when he started singing.

Wait, where you say you've been?  
Who you been with?  
Where you say you're going?  
Who you going with?

Keep me on my toes  
Keep me in the know

Wait, keep me in your skin  
Keep me in your chest  
I'll wait for it to start  
I'll wait for it to end

Keep me on my toes  
Keep me in the know

But when I looked at her, I thought of only you  
If only there was proof I could use to show it's true

We were young, we were in our teens  
It wasn't real love, spent it behind bars  
Oh, it's sad to think we just let it be  
Prisoners of love

It's so easy for it to be something you second guess  
Easy to read  
Don't let it become a meaningless routine  
It's meaningless to me

But when I looked at her, I thought of only you  
If only there was proof I could use to show it's true

Just crash, fall down  
I'll wrap my arms around you now  
Just crash, it's our time now  
To make this work second time around

We grew up, we worked and changed our ways  
Just like wildfire, we've been burning now for days  
Tearing down those walls, nothing's in our way  
I said nothing's in our way

And I know I've said this all before  
But opposites attract  
We try and run away, but end up running back  
And all I want to do, all I want to do is lie down

And crash, fall down  
I'll wrap my arms around you now  
Just crash, it's our time now  
To make this work second time around

Oh, crash, fall down  
Just crash, fall down  
Just crash, fall down  
Just crash, fall down

He sang through the rest of the song and when he was done and the instruments went silent, he said, "Thank you, guys! You were a great audience!" The crowd screamed and clapped and you just sat there, unable to move.

Max was the first to reach you, "Hey, Y/N? You okay?" You snapped out of your trance.

"Yeah, I'm fine," you nodded, "I'm just going to...um...go outside and get some air."

You rushed out before Josh had the chance to say anything. You pushed the door open and let it slam shut behind you, then leaned against the wall ready to cry. You weren't exactly sure why you wanted to cry; Josh telling you he liked you was all you'd ever wanted.

You had your face buried in your hands, but had a pretty good idea of who was there when you heard the door open. Josh walked over to you and pressed his hands against the wall on either side of you so you weren't able to escape.

"Surprise," he whispered into your ear.

"What was that about?" you asked, your voice barely above a whisper.

"What was what about?"

"You know what I'm talking about, Josh!" your voice got louder. He was a little shocked by the volume as you rarely shouted in that tone, especially at him.

"Y/N," he said, "I'm stupid for not telling you sooner. That girl I was telling you about the night I told you Sam cheated on me: it was you."

You looked up at him, "What do you mean?"

"I love you, Y/N," he told you and before you could react, you felt his lips hit yours and his hands move to your waist.

As all of the cliched description go, had it not been cold out, you would have sworn it was the 4th of July. There were so many fireworks ringing in your ears, you thought you'd go deaf. Josh was the first to pull away, but his hands never left your sides.

"Do you believe me now?" he whispered.

"I'm not sure. I might need more convincing," you smirked and pulled him in again. You felt him smile, making you smile as well.

You two stayed like that for a while – talking, laughing, and kissing each other every now and then.

"Come on, guys! We're gonna miss our flight if we don't leave now!" Matt poked his head out of the bus door.

Josh kissed you again, then grabbed your hand and pulled you onto the bus. Dan, Chris, Matt, and Max all stared at you two as you walked on. You could feel your cheeks starting to get hot, so you hid your face in Josh's back.

"Night, guys. See you in the morning," he hurried over to your bed and helped you into it, then climbed in himself.

"Josh!" you laughed, "What do you think you're doing? There's barely enough room in here for me."

"Whatever; We'll make it work," he chuckled – although it honestly didn't really matter anyway.

By the time you got somewhat comfortable, you were fast asleep. Josh ran his fingers through your hair and sang you a couple songs by the time he finally fell asleep as well.

~

The next morning

"They're so adorable," Max whispered, watching you guys sleep from the couch.

"Do you even realize how creepy that sounds?" Dan laughed.

"I know, but I don't wanna wake them up."

"Come on, Max. If you don't wake them up, we're going to miss our flight," Matt said.

"Okay, okay. I'm on it," Max stalked over to where you and Josh were sleeping and poked Josh until he woke up.

"May I help you?" Josh asked sleepily.

"Matt's worried that we're gonna miss our flight and he told me to wake you guys up."

"What time is it?"

"Um..." Max looked at the clock, "10."

"Matt!" Josh said louder, "Our flight leaves at noon!"

"I know that, but I also know you take forever to get ready, princess!" Matt called back.

"Ha, ha, ha. Very funny," Josh said sarcastically, getting out of the bunk and nudging you a few times.

"What?" you groaned, burying your face into the pillow.

"Love, we've only got 2 hours before our flight leaves."

"What?!" you shouted, "Two hours?! The world is ending! We'll never make it!"

"Oh, whatever, Y/N!" you heard Matt yell from the front of the bus.

You smiled and yelled back, "I love you too, Matt!" You lifted yourself up on your arms and looked at Josh.

"Your hair is a mess," he joked.

"Your face is a mess!" you stuck your tongue out at him.

"Well, that wasn't very nice," he stuck out his bottom lip.

You smiled, leaning over to kiss him and whispered, "I love you, Joshua."

He rested his forehead against yours, "I love you, Y/N."

~

Two years later (sooooo muuuuuuch skippiiiiiiiiing)

You've been on the road with the band for about five years now and you couldn't be happier. Sure, you and Josh had your fair share of fights, but it never tore you apart. That's what you loved about your relationship. But even when you two did fight, you always had someone to help you through it.

"You know he loves you more than he's ever loved anyone, right?" Max said, rubbing your back.

It was apparent to everyone that looked at you that you had been crying for a while now. You didn't normally cry after one of your fights, but then again, this wasn't a normal fight.

"I know," you said after calming down slightly, "But I can't help but feel like this fight was different. He's never yelled at me – especially not like that."

"Well, what were you arguing about?" Max asked.

"I don't even remember. All I remember is him saying he couldn't look at me anymore and then he left," you choked out.

"It'll be okay, Y/N. I promise," he told you, holding you tightly in his arms.

~

While Max was calming you down, Matt was looking for Josh. He hated seeing you so upset and knew he had to get answers. He finally found Josh sitting at a picnic table by a lake, running his hands through his hair.

"You wanna tell me what the hell that was all about?" Matt asked when he reached the table and sat down.

"I yelled at her..." Josh whispered, more to himself than Matt, "Oh my God, why did I yell at her?" 

"Well, it could be you brought up the fact that you were talking to Sam again," Matt said. Josh didn't say anything, so he continued, "You know how much she hates her, Josh."

"Why though? Why does she hate Sam so much?"

"She's had to have told you."

"Told me what?"

"She hates Sam because she broke the heart of the only guy she's ever truly loved," he explained, "I can see it on her face every time she looks at you. Even when she's in a bad mood, her eyes light up every single time you walk into the room she's in. Either she's seriously in love with you or she's a damn good actress." Matt paused again, but Josh didn't speak, so he kept going, "I can see the way you look at Y/N too, Josh; We all can. When we hear you guys talking – even about the most random things – we can hear it in your voice. The way you look at her, the way you hold her, the way you kiss her... I could go on and on. But if you ever yell at her like you did earlier, I can guarantee you she isn't going to stick around. I don't think you understand how much you hurt her today, Josh. She's been crying non-stop for the past two hours all because you don't understand why she hates your ex." Matt stood up and walked away without another word.

Josh sat there, unable to move. He started remembering all those times you would make an excuse to leave whenever he talked about Sam. He just assumed they were all unrelated, but now, he was putting it together.

He got up and started running back toward the bus. He jumped on and found your head in Max's lap while he was playing with your hair, your cheeks still stained with tears and you sleeping soundly.

"Please don't make a lot of noise," Max whispered quietly when he noticed Josh standing there, "I just got her to stop crying."

Josh stared at you for a moment and replied, "Thanks, Max. I got it from here." He picked you up and carried you off the bus away from everyone to where he was sitting, but instead of the picnic table, he laid you down on the grass, then laid with you.

He started singing Crash again, grinning when you cuddled closer to him. He could feel you stirring about halfway through the song and knew you were about to wake up, so he stopped and sat up, pulling you into him.

You opened your eyes and blinked a few times to see clearly. You noticed you were leaning up against someone, but you were too distracted by the sunset to really look at who it was.

"Beautiful..." you whispered yourself.

"I know you are," you heard Josh say quietly. Your eyes got slightly wider, and you tensed up a bit when you looked at him.

You looked down quickly and asked, "What?"

"I know you're beautiful."

"No, what are we doing here?"

"I just wanted to talk to you away from all the guys."

"Oh..." was all you managed to say.

"Y/N, I know you're mad at me – you have every right to be – but when I yelled at you this afternoon, I... I never should have done that. I really didn't mean to; I just... I never knew you'd be that mad about me talking to Sam again. I didn't know you hated her that much."

You laughed sarcastically, "Yeah, I'm sure you didn't."

"I really didn't, Y/N; Matt told me."

You sighed, "I told him not to tell anyone."

"You know that if he didn't, you'd probably still be crying."

"How... How did you know I was crying...?"

"Matt. And Max, but mainly Matt. And your cheeks are still kind of wet."

"Oh..." You started wiping off your face, but Josh grabbed your hands and set them in your lap before raising his other hand to wipe off the tear stains for you. When he was done, he didn't take his hand away from your face, he just spoke softly.

"I really am sorry, Y/N," he told you, "If I had known you hate her as much as you do, I never would have started talking to her again." You looked straight into his eyes and knew he meant every word.

You started to tear up again and said, "Please don't ever yell like that again, Josh."

He smiled lightly, leaned toward you and whispered, "I promise, babe," before attaching his lips with yours. When he pulled away, he pulled you into a hug, "I love you, Y/N; I always have, I always will."

"I love you too, Josh; Forever and ever."

You laid your head on his shoulder and were almost asleep again when you heard him say, "Oh! I almost forgot!"

"What?" you asked.

He stood up and helped you up as well, "Y/N, I know this has been a roller coaster of emotions for you, but the fact that you've stuck by me for basically your entire life even when you didn't have to just proves that there's nothing in the world I could do to show you how much I appreciate that. So, I'm just going to do the closest thing I possibly can to do to proving it." Josh pulled a ring from his pocket and got down on one knee, "Y/N, will you marry me?"

You covered your mouth, completely shocked. You were speechless, so you just nodded your head as fast as you could. Josh slid the ring on your finger and you practically tackled him when he stood back up.

You wrapped your arms around his neck as tightly as you could without choking him. He wrapped his arms around your waist and you two stayed like that until you heard clapping and cheering.

You let go of Josh and turned to see who was coming before you smiled at them, trying to act mad, "Okay, really? What's the camera for?"

"We're capturing your big moment!" Dan exclaimed.

"Yeah, this is going to go viral! I can feel it!" Chris laughed.

"Just think about it for a second," Max said, "Imagine how many hits a video of Josh Franceschi proposing is going to get!"

"Is that really all you care about right now?" Josh joked.

"Yeah, pretty much," Matt smiled.

"You know what? You guys will thank us later for this when you're 50 and have cute little grandchildren, showing them this and telling them all about your fairy tale ending," Dan said.

"You're all idiots," you giggled, "But I love you." You opened your arms and they all ran over for a group hug.

~

Two years later (again with the skipping oh my god)

You and Josh have been married for nearly two years now. You just found out you're pregnant and you couldn't wait to tell Josh. The band was performing that day, but you decided to wait until that evening to tell him.

After the concert, you two went back to your house after saying goodbye to all the guys. They had finally gotten a break from touring for the next few months, so you had all the time in the world to spend with Josh.

You were in bed, your head laying on his chest when you asked, "What do you think it would be like to have a kid?"

"Why?" he asked.

"Just wondering."

"Well, I think it would be fun, but I wouldn't want to leave you with a baby while I'm out on tour."

"What if I told you I was already pregnant and you really didn't have a choice?" You could feel his heart start beating faster, so you sat up and faced him. "Josh?"

"You're... You're pregnant?" You nodded your head slowly. He immediately smiled and grabbed your face, kissing you as long and he could.

When he pulled away, you said, "You're not just leading me on here, right? You really are happy?"

"Of course I'm happy! There's nothing in this world I could want more than to have a baby with you! I just didn't think it would happen this soon," he laughed.

You smiled back, "I love you, Josh."

"I love you too, Y/N," he replied before pulling you into another kiss.

~

Song used: "Crash" by You Me At Six


	21. If I Had You (Alex Gaskarth)

It was another day in another class which, of course, you had with Alex. You had every single class with Alex, clearly because the school had something against you. You didn't really hate him as much as you used to, but he was always so mean to you, so you just assumed he still hated you. You could never tell your best friend that you were starting to fall for him. You thought she'd make fun of you for it.

While you were sitting at your usual table at lunch, she walked up and noticed you were staring at Alex yet again.

She rolled her eyes, "Seriously, Y/N?"

"What? Oh, hey, Danielle," you said, knocked out of your daydream.

"Why didn't you tell me you're in love with Alex?"

"Um... Maybe because I'm not and you're completely insane for suggesting it?"

"Come on! It's not like you don't make it obvious! The way you always stare at the boy says it all for you!" she replied.

"I don't love him!" you yelled.

"Y/N."

"Okay, fine! Maybe I do. A little. Or a lot. Whatever. He hates me. Let's just move on," you said, looking at him. She laughed slightly. "What's so funny?" you asked, getting mad.

"Nothing. Nothing at all. I'll let you find out for yourself," she smiled and turned away. You looked at her for a few seconds and sighed.

~

After lunch, it was time for English. Your teacher was going on and on about Shakespeare...again. You weren't really paying attention, mostly because this completely bored you and all you wanted to do was get out.

"Okay," your teacher began, "We're going to be doing a project over Shakespearean plays."

"Shocking," you muttered to yourself.

"I'm going to put you with partners and if you refuse to work with each other, you'll fail the project. Alright, Maria and Jake: Hamlet." As she went on, you became increasingly nervous as your name, and Alex's, wasn't called. "Jack and Danielle: Julius Caesar." You and Danielle looked over at each other, knowing what two names were coming next. "And finally, Y/N and Alex: Romeo and Juliet."

You bit your tongue, knowing your teacher wouldn't change her mind about the partners, but you'd rather take an F than spend your day with Alex working on some stupid English project that probably wouldn't make a difference in your overall course grade anyway.

You groaned quietly, burying your face in your arms and laying your head on your desk. You didn't want to do anything else. Sure, you liked Alex, but he hated you and you really didn't think you could handle being called names while working on your project.

"Okay, now get with your partner and discuss how you might want to do your project. This is due two weeks from today, and it's free reign, so you can do whatever you want, but make sure it is school appropriate. We will start presenting these the Monday after they're due and we won't be working on them in class, so make sure to plan with your partners to meet after school sometime," your teacher finished, letting the class talk about their projects.

"Alright, whore. Let's get this moving," Alex said.

"I'm not a whore," you mumbled, your head still down on your desk.

"What was that?"

You picked yourself up, looking him straight in the eyes and repeating, "I am not a whore."

He stared at you and smirked, "Whatever you say, whore." You rolled your eyes and put your head back down on your desk.

"I would rather fail than work with you," you told him, wanting to cry. He looked a little hurt, which was weird, because he hated you. However, you wouldn't know since you weren't looking at him.

Just then, the bell rang.

You got up, grabbed your books, and ran out of the classroom as quickly as you could. Danielle looked over at Alex as he just stood there. He didn't move, he didn't speak, he didn't even breathe; He couldn't. He knew how important your grades were to you, so the fact that you would rather get an F than work with him honestly shocked him.

"If it means absolutely anything to you," Danielle said while walking past him, "She's tired of the fighting too." Alex looked up at her, suddenly realizing that, now that he looks back on it, you weren't arguing back as much as you used to.

"Danielle... I don't know what to do or how to fix it... I want to tell her I love her, but I can't. Did you see the look on her face when she told me she'd rather fail than work with me? She'll never believe me," he said, annoyed at himself.

"Alex, just tell her. She might surprise you," she said before walking out of the classroom.

Alex trudged into your last class of the day just before the bell rang. He looked at you and saw you had your head down on your desk again.

"Hey, Y/N... Um, do you want to go to the library tomorrow...to get started on our project...?"

"Whatever," you mumbled, not even bothering to look at him.

"Okay... I'll meet you there tomorrow at noon," he said as he sat down. You didn't say anything for the rest of the period.

~

When the bell rang, you ran out of class just as quickly as you did before. Alex sighed and walked off to his locker. You got everything you needed and started walking home. It wasn't that far from the school, but it wasn't too close either. You refused to ride the bus because – since the world obviously has something against you – Alex rode your bus as well.

Once you got home, you walked in the door and made your way to your room. You shut your door, turned on your music, and laid down. You didn't expect to fall asleep, but you did.

~

You woke up the next morning at about 11:30. You got out of bed and walked to the kitchen to find your mom making breakfast.

"Why are you up so early?" your mom asked when she saw you.

"Apparently I fell asleep when I got home yesterday. Besides, I have to go meet someone at the library at noon to work on some stupid project anyway," you replied unhappily.

"Really?" your mom started, "What's your project about?"

"Romeo and Juliet," you answered.

"Good play. Who are you working with? Danielle?"

"I wish," you sighed, "I have to work with Alex Gaskarth."

"I really don't see why you don't like him, Y/N – he's a nice boy."

"Yeah, to everyone else maybe, but he hates me."

"Why's that?"

"What is this, Mom, twenty questions? I don't know why, he just does! I'm just gonna go get ready and head out," you said, walking back to your room.

"Well, sorry! Have fun, I guess! Don't kill each other!" your mom called to you. You didn't say anything, just smiled to yourself a little.

You stared into your closet, looking for something to wear. You finally just decided to wear your favorite outfit, did your hair and makeup, and left at about 11:50, school bag in hand.

"Love you, Mom!" you called out while heading for the door.

"Love you too, sweetie!" your mom called back.

The library wasn't too far from your house, so you just decided to walk instead of having your mom waste gas even though it was January and there was about half an inch of snow on the ground – but didn't bother you seeing as you loved winter.

You did take your sweet time getting there though. You weren't exactly pleased with having to spend your Saturday with Alex and you were sure he wasn't pleased to be spending his with you either.

You opened the library doors and walked in at exactly noon. You didn't see Alex anywhere, so you assumed he wasn't going to show. Not that that bothered you either; You sort of figured you'd be working alone – especially since he was your partner for this project.

You grabbed some books and sat down at a table, starting to read and copy down some things you thought would be interesting for your presentation.

You were mesmerized by what you were reading – Romeo and Juliet was your favorite play by Shakespeare, after all – so you didn't notice when Alex walked in and stared at you. He took a deep breath and made his way to the table you were sitting at, pulling out the chair directly across from you and sitting down, clearing his throat. You tried to ignore it, but you looked up after he did it again more obnoxiously.

"May I help you?" you asked, mad he interrupted your reading.

"Hi, Y/N," he said, seemingly nervous.

You rolled your eyes and looked back down at the book, "Hi, Alex."

"So... Um... I was thinking-" he started, but you cut him off and looked up at him again.

"Listen, Gaskarth. This is how it's gonna work: I'm going to get notes from these books, you're going to start thinking about our presentation, and we are not going to communicate with each other at all. Got it?" you smiled sarcastically at him and looked back down to your book.

Alex just sat there, looking like he did when you ran out of your English class. He suddenly got angry, grabbed the book you were reading, and closed it.

"Hey! I was reading that!" you nearly shouted.

"Y/N, I know you hate me and I am sorry for what I said to you yesterday, but can you please stop being a bitch to me for the next two weeks so we can get this done?!" he whispered but yelled at the same time.

You stared at him and laughed a little, "Yeah. You. Sorry. That's a good one, Alex. How long did it take you to come up with that bullshit apology?" He looked at you, a little hurt, but gained his composure back before you noticed.

"Fine. I'm not really sorry I called you a whore! I fucking hate you!" he yelled, still whispering.

You looked down, picked up your stuff, and walked away mumbling, "I've never had sex..."

"What was that, whore?" he asked. And you'd finally had enough of his constant name-calling.

You turned around, yelling at him, "I said I've never had sex, asshole!" running out the door.

By this time, everyone was now staring at the both of you. Alex watched you from the window for a couple seconds, then ran out to find you. He knew you always went to the park when you were upset, so that was the first place he went to.

Sure enough, there you were, sitting on one of the swings and crying. He breathed in the cold January air and walked over to you, but you didn't look up. You had a feeling he would follow you – and secretly, you wanted him to – but you couldn't make yourself look at him.

"Y/N, I know you don't want to see me right now... I wouldn't want to either after what I said, but please look at me... You have to hear me out." You still sat on the swing, refusing to look at him. He sighed, "Fine." He sat down in front of you, took your face in his hands, and made you look at him. "Y/N," he started, "I really am sorry for everything I've ever said to you to make you feel like shit; I never meant any of it. You might not believe me, but I just want you to know I love you. And I will do anything to prove it to you."

You didn't say anything. You wanted to believe him, you wanted to hug him and know everything would be okay, but you couldn't. He had been so mean to you for eight years, why the sudden change in heart now? Nothing made sense to you at that moment, so you just shut your eyes and shook your head.

"I knew you weren't going to believe me," he sighed, then whispered to himself, but loud enough you could make out what he was saying, "Please don't hate me for this."

Suddenly, you felt his lips on yours. You heard fireworks going off, felt sparks going through you... Hell, you thought you were going to stop breathing at one point. Just as soon as he was kissing you, Alex pulled away. You opened your eyes, staring at him like you just saw a ghost, but you still didn't say anything.

"I stopped hating you two years ago," he informed you, "I was sick of all the fighting, but I couldn't let anyone know I fell in love with you, so I just kept arguing with you and trying to make you mad. I know it was wrong and I'm sorry. In all honesty, I think you're the most beautiful girl in the world and you have no idea how long I've been wanting to kiss you." He looked at you and lifted his hands back up, wiping the tears off your face. He got up, kissed your forehead, and turned around, starting to walk away.

Once he was about 10 feet away, you realized he meant everything he just told you and yelled after him, "Alex!" He turned around as you hopped off of your swing, ran up to him, and jumped into his arms, kissing him like there was no tomorrow. He wrapped his arms around your waist and smiled.

You pulled away and he set you back down on the ground, looked at you and smirked, "Yes?"

You smiled, wrapping your arms around his neck and resting your forehead against his, looking into his eyes, "I love you too." He smiled and kissed you again.

"That's a good thing," he said, "I didn't want to have to go home tonight and wonder why the girl of my dreams hated me."

"I have to confess something too..." you said.

"And what might that be?" he asked.

"I knew I stopped hating you two years ago, I knew I started liking you last year, but when you told me you loved me and you kissed me for the first time earlier, then started walking away... That's when I knew I was in love with you," you replied.

Alex didn't say anything for a few seconds – he just stared at you – so you looked down and started to loosen your grip on him. But once you did, he pulled you closer to him, lifted your head up, and kissed you as passionately as he could.

"Y/N, I have to ask one more thing..."

"What's that?"

"Will you be my girlfriend?"

You went to kiss him, but right before you did, you stopped, smiled, and whispered onto his lips, "Of course I will." Just then, it started snowing. You stopped kissing Alex and looked up, smiling.

"I heard you've always wanted to kiss someone while it was snowing," Alex smiled, looking at you.

"Yeah... But how did you know that?"

"Danielle told me; She told me a lot about you, actually. Like how you always come here when you're sad. How else did you think I knew to come here first?" he replied, putting his arm around you.

You leaned your head on his shoulder, closed your eyes, and smiled, "Remind me to thank her later."

He laughed, "You know, you're never going to get that dream kiss of yours if you don't stop trying to go to sleep."

You laughed, lifted your head, playfully pushed him and said, "Gotta catch me first," and started running away.

"Hey! That's totally unfair!" he yelled and started running after you.

You jumped over anything that could be jumped over, and almost fell a couple times, but you were able to outrun Alex for a good two minutes. He lost you for a few seconds and you took that opportunity to climb up into a tree and sit on one of the branches that wasn't too low or too high off the ground. Unfortunately for you, he looked over just as you pulled your leg onto the branch and ran over near the tree, but not close enough for you to realize he knew where you were.

You heard him walk away and you looked to your right to see where he was. When you didn't see him, you checked your left side, but that was when he jumped up and sat on the branch in front of you, making you jump.

"Surprise," he smirked.

"How did you find me?!" you laughed.

"I saw you pulling your leg up," he smiled.

"Well, damn. Give me a break. I don't climb trees that often!"

"It's okay. I'll let it slide for now, but next time, you better be on your A-game."

"I'll start practicing my tree climbing skills tomorrow, sir," you saluted and giggled. You leaned your back against the tree and closed your eyes again. "You know," you stated, "This is actually pretty comfy."

"You are such a dork," Alex laughed.

"I know, but you love me," you smiled.

"I do," he said, leaning toward you and kissing you again.

Once he pulled away, you said, "You're just so full of kisses, aren't you?"

"I told you I've been wanting to do it for a while. You have no idea how hard it was for me to see you in the hallway when you were with your friends and not grab you and kiss you," he replied, being completely serious now. You didn't know what to say, so you just hugged him for a couple minutes.

"Alex," you finally spoke, "Never run out of kisses for me."

"I wouldn't dream of it," he said, kissing you again.

"We should probably go back and work on the project now, shouldn't we?" you said.

"Way to kill a moment, Y/N," he laughed.

"I'm sorry, but I don't want to fail!" you smiled.

"Right," he chuckled and jumped down from the tree. "Jump," he told you.

"If you really think I'm gonna jump down from this tree, you've lost your damn mind," you replied nervously.

"Y/N, do you honestly think I would tell you to jump and then not catch you?" he said, looking up at you. You looked down at him, closed your eyes, bit your lip, and jumped – and, as promised, Alex caught you. "Told you so."

"Whatever, you can put me down now."

"I don't think so," he shook his head, "You're probably tired from all that running you did and princesses shouldn't have to walk everywhere."

You were basically in awe, to be honest. You've never met a guy that treated you like a princess before. You sighed and laid your head against him.

Once you reached the steps to the library, he set you down, kissed your cheek, and grabbed your hand. You smiled and looked down, walking into the doors again. Most of the people that were there to witness your fight earlier were still there and looked at you guys walking in, hand in hand.

You tried to walk quickly over to a table, but Alex pulled you into him and said, "Yeah, everything's cool. She's my girlfriend now. Sorry about earlier. I won't let it happen again." And with that, he pulled you over to the table you were sitting at before.

"You're such an idiot," you giggled quietly.

"But I'm your idiot," he smiled.

"That is very true," you nodded, "And let's keep it that way." Alex leaned over the table and kissed you again. You heard a few awes and smiled. Alex pulled away and opened the book you were reading earlier setting it in front of you. "Thanks," you giggled. You took out your notebook and pencil, getting right back to work.

Alex just stared at you as you turned to write on a new page. He wasn't paying attention to what you were writing, so you wrote him a note. You ripped the paper out of your notebook and set in front of him, not looking at him once. He looked down and read to himself, "We're not going to get much done if you keep staring at me like that." He smiled and opened a different book, taking a few notes of his own.

~

By the time you decided to be done for the day, it was already 6:30 and getting dark.

"Why in the world does it have to get dark so much earlier in the winter?" you wondered out loud.

Alex laughed at you as he drove you home, "You're so weird."

"I know I am. Thank you," you smiled. He pulled into your driveway and walked you to your door.

"I had a great time today, Y/N. Well, not the beginning, but you know what I mean."

"I know. I did too," you smiled.

"Well, I'll see you on Monday." he said, giving you a kiss goodnight.

"Bye," you smiled again, opening your door.

"I love you," Alex said before stepping off your porch.

"I love you too." You walked into your house, turned around and waved goodbye, then closed your door.

"How was today, sweetie?" your mom asked when she saw you.

"Good," you replied. You were smiling so big, you thought your face was going to stick.

"What happened?"

"I found out I'm in love with the most amazing guy ever. No big deal," you said as casually as you could, walking to your room.

"Who?" your mom asked.

"Again with the twenty questions! Alex, okay? I'm going to sleep now. Goodnight, Mom. I love you," you replied, hurrying to your room to avoid more questions.

Your mom sat back down on the couch and quietly said to herself, smiling, "I knew it."

~

Two weeks later

You and Alex worked yourselves to the breaking point trying to make this project as perfect as you could get it and you were happy when you got your grade back.

"Congratulations, you two. A+," your teacher smiled.

"Yes!" you exclaimed, hugging Alex.

"Good work, babe," he said, hugging you back.

"You too," you laughed.

~

Three years later

You and Alex have been together for about three years now and you love every minute you get to spend with him.

One cold day in January, Alex took you to the park and you suspected nothing of it; Just a simple date between two people who love each other.

After being there for about an hour, Alex took you over to the swing where you shared your first kiss and stood in front of you.

"Y/N," he began, "I know we've been through a lot together. From fighting with each other to falling in love, I don't think I could imagine my life without you."

You covered your mouth in awe as you started to tear up, having a pretty good feeling about what was coming next. Alex got down on one knee and pulled out the most gorgeous ring you've ever seen.

He looked up at you, "Y/N, will you marry me?"

You couldn't get your words out, so you just nodded frantically. Alex smiled, stood back up, and put the ring on your finger. You wrapped your arms tightly around him and kissed him with everything you had in you.

When you pulled away, you were finally able to say, "I love you, Alex."

He smiled and said, "I love you too, Y/N," and kissed you again.


	22. I'll Think of You Tonight (Ryan Follese)

His hair, his style, his looks, his personality: Everything about Ryan was absolutely perfect. At least, that was what you thought.

With both of you on different schedules because of summer jobs, it was hard for you two to find time for each other, even on the weekends. But you guys had been dating since freshman year – it's now the summer before your senior year – so you had no reason not to trust him.

It was your day off and you, being painfully bored, decided to go visit Ryan. After you were done getting ready, you got into your car and drove to where he worked. You had done this numerous times before and thought he'd be happy to see you, so you didn't call him beforehand because you wanted to surprise him.

He'd never seemed like the type of guy that would cheat on you – or any other girl for that matter – so you never expected to see him locking lips with the most popular – and stuck-up – cheerleader, Amber.

On this day, however, that was exactly what you saw.

You just stood there in horror – unable to move, speak, think, or even breathe. Once you had remembered you stopped taking in air, you let out a gasp and you could feel the tears coming.

Ryan's head shot up as he turned to stare at you, just about as shocked as you were. Before he could say anything, you ran back to your car and sped off, not wanting to listen to any excuses he may have for you.

You spent the rest of your summer break working and doing anything you possibly could to keep Ryan off of your mind, but it never worked.

~

You hadn't spoken to Ryan for about two months and you preferred to keep it that way. You completely shut him out of your life. You ignored his calls, his texts, his Facebook messages; You did everything you could to forget about him.

It was the first day of your senior year and when you woke up, you got out of bed and looked into your mirror. It was never any surprise that you never really liked what you saw seeing as you were painfully self-conscious, but you got dressed anyway, preparing yourself for nearly anything this day may throw at you.

Once you were ready, you rushed out of your room and headed out the door. You hopped in your car and drove to your best friend's house.

Once you were there, you honked the horn. She skipped out of her house with the biggest grin on her face. She was always excited about school, but you never could figure out why.

"Hey, Y/N!" she squealed as she climbed into the passenger seat.

"Hey, Danielle."

"Come on, please act a little excited! We're finally seniors!"

"I'm sorry," you sighed, "You just know I've got a lot on my mind."

"Y/N, you need to move on. Ryan is a total jerk-off and doesn't deserve someone as amazing and beautiful as you! Besides, if he tries anything today, I'll totally kick his ass."

You laughed at her comment, "You would never be able to kick anyone's ass, let alone his."

"I resent that! Have you seen him? He's like the size of a tree branch! I could take him out in less than three seconds!" she laughed along.

~

Once you had reached school, you parked your car and got out.

"Oh, look. Amber and boy toy number 57. I swear, it's like society is testing me by putting them everywhere I am at the exact same time."

"Y/N, it's school. Obviously, they're gonna be here," Danielle chuckled.

"I know, but at the same time we just happened to get here too?"

"I worry about you sometimes, Y/N."

"Thank you, Danielle. I really appreciate your concern."

"No problem!" she smiled, ignoring your sarcasm.

"Oh my God, it's walking this way," you muttered under your breath.

"Well, well, well. Don't you losers have something better to do than stand there staring at me and wish you could be as popular as I am?" Amber asked with most snotty attitude you could ever imagine in one person.

Believe it or not, you and Amber used to be good friends in elementary and middle school, but it's amazing how much becoming popular can change a person.

"Actually, we were wondering why your skirt's so short. I really don't think anyone even wants to see what you've got hidden under there... Well, except maybe him..." you shrugged, looking at Ryan.

Ryan just stared at you, wide-eyed. You'd never been one to stand up to her, so you even surprised yourself with your comment. Not that you regret saying it at all.

If looks could kill, Amber probably would have stabbed you 73 times after your remark. She didn't say anything, she just walked into the building, pulling Ryan along with her. He looked back at you, but you just rolled your eyes at him and turned to Danielle.

"What?" you asked her after noticing she was staring at you like she just saw a ghost.

"That was incredible! I didn't know you had it in you!" she shouted.

"Yeah, me neither... But it felt awesome!" You both laughed and then headed inside.

~

When lunch came around, you walked with Danielle to the cafeteria, got your food, and sat down.

"How's your day going, Y/N?" Danielle asked while stuffing her face with pizza.

"Alright. I'm just happy we have all our classes together!" you laughed.

Danielle laughed as well, "Yeah, that is pretty great, isn't it? I mean, why wouldn't you want to be in class with me? It makes it more bearable." You simply smiled, taking a french fry off your tray and throwing at her. 

~

A couple months later, things had pretty much gotten back into a schedule for you since the first day. You woke up, got ready, picked up Danielle, and went to school.

Things were going fairly well for both you and Danielle in both of your classes, other than the fact that Ryan and Amber were also in every one of them.

With it being fall time, everyone knew the homecoming dance was just around the corner. You kind of liked going to dances, but it normally wasn't really your thing. The homecoming committee decided that they thought it would be fun to have a masquerade themed dance this year. You did admit that the theme of a masquerade fascinated you; The thought of a mystery where someone didn't know who you were always made you think you would find the one. But in the end, you always believed that if someone's going to fall in love with you, they should know who you are. So even though the dance was a month away, you decided you weren't going to go. Danielle begged you about going for days, but she finally gave up because she knew how stubborn you were. When you set your mind to something, you did it.

~

About a week before the dance, you started finding little notes inside your locker. The one that stood out to you most was one asking you to the dance. You never believed anyone would really want to go with you, so you figured it was Danielle playing a joke on you. But when you confronted her about it, she had no clue what you meant.

When you showed her the note, she smiled, "You're going to go with him, right?!"

"Danielle, I have no clue who he is! What if he's some creeper who's going to kidnap me the first chance he gets?!"

"Come on, Y/N! Just take a chance! It's been over four months. You need to get back out there! This guy is taking his time to write you these notes; He's obviously crazy in love with you! You need to do this. He could very well be the one!"

"I don't know... Even if I did decide to go, how would I tell him?"

"Well, he's obviously got your combination. Why not just leave it in your locker?"

"Okay... I guess that makes sense, but-"

Danielle cut you off, "No buts! Just say yes!" You sighed, walking back to your locker. You grabbed a sticky note, stuck it to the inside of your locker door, grabbed your books, and headed to class.

After class – which seemed to take forever to you – you sprinted toward your locker, opened it, and saw was a piece of paper drop to the ground. You quickly picked it up and read it to yourself. 

Thank you, Y/N. Meet me in the middle of the dance floor at 9pm. I swear, you won't regret this!

All you could think about for the rest of the week was this mystery guy – and what you would wear to the dance, of course.

~

The night of the dance, it was almost 8:45 and you were still getting ready. It was never like you to go this slow, but you wanted to look as perfect as you possibly could.

"Y/N, hurry up! We're gonna be late!" you heard Danielle shout from the bottom of the stairs.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" you called from your room. You rushed out of your room and out the door to the limo waiting outside. "This is a little fancy for a homecoming dance, isn't it?" you suggested.

"Who cares? It's a limo and you're going to meet your true love tonight!" Danielle squealed.

"Why are you so excited about this?" you asked as you pulled up to the school.

"Why aren't you?!" she exclaimed.

"Because it's just a dance, he's just a guy, and we may not even get together. All he did was ask me to a high school dance. It's not that big of a deal."

"Y/N! If he hadn't planned on you two having even a little thing, he would have made himself known and he would not have left love notes in your locker!"

"Whatever, Danielle," you laughed, brushing it off.

~

Just before you walked in the doors, you pulled your mask over your eyes. You looked absolutely incredible – there was no denying that – but you felt as if you were going to throw up. You were beyond nervous and your fidgeting fingers made it obvious as you just stood there alone in the middle of the dance floor.

It was finally 10 o'clock and you were waiting for your mystery guy. After a couple minutes, you basically gave up and figured he wasn't coming so you turned to go find Danielle, keeping your eyes on the floor, but when you did, you ran into someone and nearly screamed.

"Oh my God, I am so sorry!" you said frantically, eyes still locked on the floor. By this time, you were as nervous as you had ever been in your life and it was very obvious by the way your voice sounded.

"It's okay, Y/N," the person said in the most beautiful voice you had ever heard.

You looked up and saw a guy, the colors in his outfit and mask seemed like they were an exact match to yours. You were staring at him; One, because he looked absolutely gorgeous and two, you could have sworn you've seen him before. You got lost in thought and you barely heard what he said next.

"Oh, what?" You asked, mentally slapping yourself for staring at him like a crazed maniac.

"Would you like to dance?" he laughed quietly. He could tell you were scared out of your mind and he knew you had a reason to be.

"Sure!" you nodded before he pulled you into him as you started dancing.

He took your left hand in his right hand, placed your right hand on his shoulder, and wrapped his left arm around your waist. You were tense for the first few seconds of the song, but once you got used to it, you set your chin on his right shoulder.

You two stayed like that for a couple of songs and when Vanilla Twilight by Owl City started playing, you awed out loud, "I love this song!"

You heard him laugh quietly before he started singing it to you and for that moment, you felt as if you two were the only people in the room. He could tell you loved it by the way you pulled yourself closer to him and you felt his grip on you get tighter, like he never wanted to let you go. When the song came to an end, you felt him let go of you and you pulled away.

He looked at you for a moment before asking, "Y/N... Will you come outside with me for a few minutes?" You could tell he was nervous, so all you did was nod. He grabbed your hand and gently pulled you out of the doors to the parking lot.

"What's wrong?" you asked him once you got outside.

"I want to tell you who I am, but I don't want you to hate me."

"What do you mean? You seem like a really great guy. I don't think I could ever hate you," you replied, getting nervous.

"But... You already do..." he said with a sad tone to his voice.

"I don't understand... I don't know who you are, how could I hate you?"

"Y/N, you know who I am. I just don't want to see your reaction when you find out..."

"I'm sure it's not as bad as you think it'll be," you answered, shaking your head.

"Y/N..." he said.

"May I?" you asked, looking at his mask.

"Just don't freak out... Please..." he begged.

"Pinky promise," you responded. You lifted the mask slowly off of his face and began choking back tears when you realized who was standing in front of you. "Ry-Ryan?" you stuttered, nearly on the verge of tears, "But... Why?"

"Y/N, please let me explain," he was getting choked up and as much as you hated him, it still killed you to see him like this.

"Okay," you told him carefully. You normally wouldn't let him explain anything to you, but something about the way he was acting made it seem like he had so much more to say than you thought he did. He pulled you over to the grass and you guys sat down, facing each other.

"Y/N, I know that there's nothing I can do to change all the pointless pain I've caused you, but I really do love you. When I saw you for the first time, I knew I had to have you, so I asked you out. I never thought you'd say yes, but when you did, I thought I felt my heart skip a beat. The way you always looked at me made me happy no matter what mood I was in and you always look absolutely beautiful no matter what you're wearing or how much you disagree. That day you came to visit me at work, I just got out on my lunch break and I was walking out to my car when Amber stopped me right before you showed up. She was asking me about seeing a movie that night, but before I had the chance to say no, she must have seen you coming because she just started kissing me. I went to push her off of me but then I heard you gasp and when I saw the look on your face, it felt someone ripped my heart out and threw it on the ground right in front of me. When you ran away, I knew you never wanted anything to do with me again, but I kept trying to get a hold of you. After a couple weeks, I just gave up because I know how stubborn you are and I knew you'd never let me explain myself. It's a surprise to me that you're even letting me now. Y/N, I love you and only you. Nothing and no one will ever change the way I feel about you." By now, he looked like he was going to completely break down and you could tell everything he told you was true.

"Ryan..." you trailed off quietly.

When he looked at you, you surprised both him and yourself when you grabbed his face and kissed him as passionately at you possibly could.

As you pulled away, you whispered, "I love you, Ry."

"I love you too, Y/N," he smiled, pulling you back.

You guys officially became a couple again that night and were even closer than you were before. The only person shocked by it was Amber and she was no where near as happy for you two as every one else was. Honestly though, it never mattered because you two had each other back and you were never letting go.


	23. It's All Become Real (Ian Keaggy)

"Y/N! Come on! We're gonna be late!" your best friend yelled from the bottom of the stairs.

"Coming!" you called back. This was going to be the first concert we'd ever been to and we were running late. "Okay, I'm ready. Let's go!" you said as you ran out to her car.

The concert was only across town, but you two wanted as close to front row as you could get. This was the first and potentially only time when your all time favorite solo artist, Ian Keaggy, would be in your city.

When you arrived, Danielle found a parking spot and you ran to buy your tickets before going into the concert hall to find a good spot.

"Danielle, enlighten me. If we were running late, why are we here and hour and a half early?!" you yelled.

"Y/N, you know just as well as I do that you take forever to get ready and this is your favorite musician, need I remind you. He's only here for one night! I wanted us to get a good spot," she replied.

"Well, thanks, I guess," you shrugged, staring at the floor as we were walking.

Your boyfriend of a year broke up with you last week, so you really didn't feel like being around a bunch of people, but you certainly weren't going to pass up the chance to meet the person you admired most in this world.

With you not paying attention, it wasn't really any surprise when you ran into someone. You looked up and stared in shock. Of course, standing there in front of you, was none other than Ian Keaggy. You knew you were either about to cry or faint. You've always dreamed of meeting him, but never like this.

Danielle looked over at you, looked at him, and said, "Hi. She's in love with you. You're her hero. Oh, I think I heard my name. Gotta go!" You watched her run off, then turned back to face Ian.

"Uh... Hello..." you trailed off. You were beyond nervous at that point and could barely even get your words out.

"So I hear you're in love with me," Ian said with a smirk.

"Oh, what she sai- Don't listen to her, she- Uh, she-," you sighed, "Yeah..."

"Well, there's this very gorgeous girl here tonight. She's standing in front of me, but I don't know her name." You couldn't believe it. Ian Sebastian Keaggy called you gorgeous. You knew your cheeks were turning red, so you turned away, pretended to look for Danielle, and told him your name.

"Um... Uh... Y/N! It's Y/N!" He chuckled at how nervous he made you.

"You know," he said, "I've made a lot of people nervous since I started singing, but I don't think I've made anyone as nervous as I make you."

You didn't know how to respond. You were pretty sure he was flirting with you, but why would he? He's a celebrity, you're just an ordinary girl. He's got enough money to last a life time, you've got enough just to get by. He's got millions of girls wanting to be with him, guys don't even think about you in that way. You looked around trying to find Danielle and Ian was staring at you the whole time.

"So, Y/N. I know we just met and everything, but would you be interested in going out with me after the show?" he asked.

"Like on a date...?" you asked in shock.

"Yeah, like a date," he smiled. You were so happy, you just nodded your head quickly. "Great!" he exclaimed, "I'll meet you after the show!"

~

When it was time for the concert to start, you finally found me and we went to our spot in the front row. A couple local bands played first, then Ian came on. He sang, you sang along.

Before the last song, he said, "Okay, for this last song, I'd like to dedicate it to someone I met tonight. Y/N, would you please come up here?" he smiled at you.

You looked at him wide-eyed and shook your head as fast as you could, but Danielle, being the wonderful best friend she is, pushed you toward the stage. You glared back at her and she just gave you a thumbs up as Ian grabbed your hands and helped you onto the stage. He pulled a chair over and had you sit down in front of everyone. You felt like you were going to throw up as every second that passed felt like an eternity. Caught up in your thoughts, you jumped a little when Ian started playing his guitar and begun singing.

I gave you more than I could give  
It started off bright, and burned till it turned dim  
No, I can never hurt again  
I've come from where I was before to where I am

Oh, I just wanna know how it feels to go from broken to healed  
Tell me we can make this dream become real

I just want to love you, I just want to give you all I have  
I just want to need you, I need you more than I can stand  
I just want to hold you like every minute is my last  
I just want to love you cause life goes by so fast

We're staring at the sky again  
It started to rain, but we're not going in  
We're dancing to the sound of that old juke box  
Singing through the windows from the house around the block

Oh, I had never felt how it feels to go from broken to healed  
But looking at you now, it's all become real

I just want to love you, I just want to give you all I have  
I just want to need you, I need you more than I can stand  
I just want to hold you like every minute is my last  
I just want to love you cause life goes by so fast

And as the minutes turn to hours and the sky lights up like fireworks  
Cause the whole world is surrounded by a flame  
When the world, it keeps on turning and the sky, it keeps on burning  
Cause the whole world is surrounded by a flame  
By a flame, a flame, a flame, a flame

I just want to love you, I just want to give you all I have  
I just want to need you, I need you more than I can stand  
I just want to hold you like every minute is my last  
I just want to love you, I just want to love you  
Cause life goes by so fast

Everyone started freaking out and you just sat there, looking down and blushing while smiling like a complete idiot. Ian never took his eyes off your face throughout the whole song. You felt like you were in heaven. Ian took your hand again, helped you stand up, and then kissed your cheek. Some girls were awing, some girls' mouths were hanging open, and some girls looking as if they wanted to kill you, but you didn't care. Ian, still holding your hand, took you backstage so you could get to know each other more.

"So, Y/N, are you from here?" he asked.

You nodded, "Yeah. I've lived here my whole life. It's pretty boring here, not gonna lie. Popular bands rarely come here. This is basically the first time I'm sure any band's ever considered this town." You realized you kept rambling, which you found funny considering how nervous you were earlier. "I'm sorry... You're probably tired of hearing me talk..."

"No, no! It's fine. I like it. It's a very nice transition from two hours ago," he smiled.

You laughed, "So how long are you going to be here?"

"Only one more day," he frowned, "I guess it was fine that I wasn't going to be here that long at first, but that was before I met someone. And now, I don't want to leave..."

"Ian, you know just as well as I do that I'd love for you to be here longer, but you can't disappoint your fans!"

"I know, which is why I'll come back. I don't how long it'll take, but I'll come back, Y/N," he said as he stood up. You smiled at him, but then frowned when you saw Danielle standing in the doorway because you knew you had to go home.

"Danielle! Come on! Do I have to?"

"Yes, Y/N. I promised your mom I'd get you home before 10. It's a 'school night'." she giggled, quoting your mom.

You sighed, turning back to Ian, "I'm really sorry we had to cut this short."

"It's okay," he replied, but you could hear the sadness in his voice, "I'll meet you when I come back, but for now, give me your phone." You gave him your phone, and he said, "Whenever you start to miss me, I'm only a text or call away." You smiled at him as he gave your phone back, slid it open, and sent him a text. "Y/N, you know what I meant," he laughed.

"I know," you jokingly winked at him. You guys could hear his name being called and looked to see his manager standing in the doorway saying he had to leave now if he wanted to make his flight.

He looked back at you, "Y/N, we only met three hours ago, but I just want to know if you'll be my girlfriend. I know long distance relationships are hard, but I feel like you and I could make it work."

You smiled at him, "Ian, I wouldn't want to be with anyone else." And with that, he kissed you.

"I'll be back before you know it," he said. You smiled faintly as he ran off to his tour bus.

~

Before you know it wasn't coming soon enough for you.

You texted and talked – and even squeezed in a few Skype sessions every now and then – with Ian every day, but it never seemed like enough. You wanted to be able to see him, hug him, and kiss him again.

You were sitting in class one day a few months later, dozing off. Mostly because you were in history and found it extremely difficult to pay attention. You were nearly asleep when a knock on the door woke you up. You heard mumbling, but you weren't really paying attention to what they were saying.

You were still out of it when your teacher smiled and told you there was someone here to see you. You thought it was odd, since you didn't know of anyone that would randomly come visit you at school, but you picked yourself up and started walking toward the door to the classroom.

When you were about halfway to the door, you looked up and saw who was standing there. You stopped walking and stared at him, just like you did the first time you met him.

"Ian!" you screamed, running over to him and jumping into his already open arms. He smiled as widely as could while he held you.

"Hey, gorgeous," he said, reminding you of that night a few months back. Everyone in the room was either awing, giving you death glares, or jokingly telling you guys to get a room. Ian looked at them and said, "Okay," as he picked you up and took you outside.

"What are you doing?" you laughed, "School's not over yet!"

"I know," he chuckled in response, "But I already told them that you would be out for the rest of the day."

You smiled at him, "You're crazy."

"Only for you, babe," he jokingly winked at you.

"So where are we going?!" you asked excitedly.

"I don't know, but I know you're gonna love it," he replied.

"If you don't know, how do you know I'm gonna love it?" you asked sarcastically.

He looked at you, "Don't you worry your pretty face about it."

"Okay!" you smiled. He kissed you, laughing at how happy you were. Actually, you were beyond happy.

Being able to kiss this boy, let alone be his girlfriend, made you feel like the luckiest girl in the world. He walked you onto his tour bus and had you sit down.

"Y/N, this is probably going to seem like the craziest idea you've ever heard, but I have to put it out there. I've already talked to your parents and they said it was alright if you went on the rest of my tour with me since school is almost over. You don't have to give me an answer right away! You can think about it for a while if you want!" he said, looking into your eyes.

You looked straight into his eyes, without even needing to think about it, smiled and said, "Ian, I would love to." He smiled as widely as he could again and kissed you with as much passion as you could imagine.

~

Word eventually got out that you were Ian's girlfriend and you would have been fine with everyone knowing about it if some of his fans hadn't gone a little too over the top. You've been pushed, scratched, kicked, and even bitten by crazy girls on the streets. Ian helped you through every single time it happened though, which only made you love him even more.

You were sitting on the couch in his tour bus reading the seventh letter you'd gotten in the past couple weeks that have threatened your life. You rolled your eyes and sighed as Ian sat down beside you.

"What's wrong, babe?" he asked, grabbing your hand and holding it in his lap.

"Your fans are insane, Ian," you replied, handing him the letter and laying your head on his shoulder.

"Seriously? Again?" he mumbled angrily, "Y/N, I really am sorry you have to go through this... If you don't want to deal with it anymore, I understand."

"Ian Sebastian Keaggy, you have officially lost your mind!" you exclaimed, looking at him, "Sure, the death threats are a little too much to handle sometimes, but they're not enough to get rid of me. If I was going to leave you because of them, I probably would have left after the first one."

"Y/N, this is why I love you," he sighed slightly. Your breath caught in your throat. This was the first time an 'I love you' had ever come out of his mouth during your relationship.

"I love you too, Ian," you whispered back, kissing him softly.

~

Right before the end of his concert that night, he asked everyone to get quiet.

"Alright, guys," he started, "It's come to my attention that I've got some fans that have been threatening my girlfriend's life."

You took deep breaths as you sat backstage listening. You knew he was going to do this because he asked you if it was alright before the show, but it still made you nervous. After the second death threat, Ian's manager started to realize how serious this was becoming and decided that you couldn't go out alone anymore.

Back on stage, Ian continued his speech, "To anyone who has done it, is doing it, or is thinking about it, I'm asking you nicely now: Please stop. Words cannot describe how amazing she is and how happy she makes me. If any of you take her away from me, I will never step onto a concert stage again. Thank you." He gave the crowd a small wave before running backstage.

Everyone in the room was silent. They couldn't believe it, you couldn't believe it, even his manager couldn't believe it. He was willing to give up everything he had worked so hard for, for you. You saw him running toward you and within a second, he had his arms around you, but you backed away.

"Ian Sebastian Keaggy, what the hell was that about?!" you shouted as everyone backstage was staring at the two of you.

"Y/N, I love you with all my heart and if they think they can take you away from me, I might as well take myself away from them," he said, looking straight into your eyes.

You didn't know what to say, honestly. You were shocked and a little angry, but extremely grateful you were able to call this caring guy yours. The only thing your body was telling you do at that moment was kiss him with everything you had inside of you and that's exactly what you did.

You grabbed him by the collar his shirt and kissed him. He wrapped his arms around your waist and smiled. And for that moment, everything was perfect, but then that moment ended.

You pulled away once you heard the loud screams of girls outside the stage's door. They obviously hadn't listened to Ian's warning and they certainly weren't happy about his announcement. Fear had overcome you at that point. You started tearing up as Ian looked at you, pulling you closer to him.

"I'm sorry, Y/N..." he whispered almost inaudibly as he grabbed your hand and you two made a run for the tour bus.

While you and Ian were talking, the crew members were already loading the bus up, so all you guys had to do was jump in and go; That's all you had time to do. His fans never thought about surrounding the tour bus, probably because they were already inside.

Everyone hopped on and the driver sped off. You sat down in shock. Barely anyone payed attention to you in your hometown, and now you were getting the kind of attention you never wanted. You buried your face in your hands and started crying.

Ian sat down beside you, feeling incredibly guilty, "Babe, I really am sorry. If I had known they were going to react like that... I just regret-"

"Ian," you cut him off, "I don't regret anything."

"But... How? After everything I've put you through, especially tonight... Why am I the one freaking out?" he asked, hanging his head and looking at his hands. You took both of his hands and he looked up at you.

"There are some things in this world we can't predict will happen. I'm not saying this is going to get better tomorrow, because it won't. They would have reacted that way whether you had said something about it or not. I never would have imagined my life would completely change the day I went to see your show. The truth is, I didn't want to go anywhere that day. My boyfriend at the time broke up with me the week before and I was still trying to get over him, but you were, and still are, my hero and I had to meet you. Every couple goes through tough times in their relationship. This is just life's way of testing whether or not we are right for each other. And I believe with everything I have in me that we are. It's just this way because you're a celebrity. I'm sure every girl in the world would love to be me right now because being able to wake up next to you every morning and see that smile on your face, knowing someone loves me just as much as I love them is a feeling I hope I only ever get to feel with you. I love you." Ian looked at you for a few seconds, let go of your hands, took your face in his hands, and kissed you like it was the last time he'd ever see you.

"I love you too, Y/N," he whispered onto your lips as you smiled.

~

Two years later

After that incident, Ian kept his promise not to set foot on a stage until the threatening stopped, which took about four months. The fans who weren't mad about you two dating were getting angry at the people who were because they couldn't see Ian in concert, so it made the issue of raging fans eventually die down.

After one of Ian's shows, he took you to the local park for a date. He did this after every performance, so you didn't think this time was any different. He laid down a blanket and you sat down as he put his guitar on his lap. He started playing and singing I Just Want to Love You for you, just like he did the first time he met you and just like he does at every one of his concerts as you sat there smiling. He finished the song, put down his guitar, and everything was quiet for a moment.

"Y/N," he said, breaking the silence, "I know this is like every other time we've done this, but I want this time to be different..." he paused, "We've been together for over two years now and those two years have been nothing short of amazing. You make me the happiest guy in the world and I honestly don't want to be with anyone but you. I want to wake up to your beautiful face every day for the rest of my life. Y/N, will you marry me?" You sat there, trying to get the words out, but couldn't, so you tackled him and kissed him as long as your lungs would let you. "I'll take that as a yes," Ian laughed when you pulled away for air.

"I wouldn't want to marry anyone else," you smiled, reminded of your response when he asked you to be his girlfriend.

~

Song used: "I Just Wanna Love You" by Ian Keaggy


	24. Right Now Could Last Forever (Alex Gaskarth)

"Please, mommy!" the almost 4-year-old begged in the middle of the candy aisle.

"One candy bar, Allison," you smiled, shaking your head. Your daughter squealed before running over to the little candy section at the end of the aisle, still within your sight.

You scanned the shelves, looking for the sugar for your daughter's birthday cake. You found it, bending down slightly to pick it up and put it in your cart. As you were standing back upright, someone bumped into you.

"Oh, shit. I'm so sorry," the man apologized, looking over at you and pausing before saying in amazement, "Y/N?"

"Hi, Alex," you said, smiling shyly.

"Oh my God, it's been forever since I've seen you!"

"That tends to happen when you break up with someone," you mumbled quietly.

"Yeah, about that..." he cleared his throat, "I'm sorry that was so unexpected. Honestly, I don't know what I was thinking."

"It's okay," you shrugged, "Not the most unexpected thing that's ever happened to me, I suppose."

"What do you mean?" Just as you were about to answer, Allison came running back to you.

"I got one!" she shouted happily.

You smiled at her excitement and pointed to the cart, "Put it in, babe." She put her candy bar in the basket before trotting back over to you and lifting her arms up. You swiftly picked her up and held her on your side as Alex watched.

"Who's this?" he asked, smiling.

"Tell him who you are," you told Allison.

"Allison Alexandria Y/L/N!" she giggled, hiding her face in your neck.

"It was nice to meet you, Allison! I'm Alex," he smiled again. You noticed he was looking at her intently and decided it was probably best you ended the conversation now.

"Listen, Alex, I don't mean to cut this reunion short, but we really need to get going," you told him.

"Oh, yeah, sure," he said quickly. You put Allison in the cart's seat and starting walking away when Alex stopped you, "Hey, um, Y/N... Would you maybe be interested in getting coffee sometimes? You know, so we can catch up?"

You looked at him for a moment before nodding slowly, "Sure, Alex."

He grinned, "Starbucks at noon tomorrow?"

"I'll see you there," you said, walking off to finish your shopping.

~

The next afternoon, your mother came over to watch Allison while you were at work.

On your lunch break, you drove to the coffee shop. You were about 5 minutes early and were actually very surprised to see Alex already sitting at a table when you walked in with two coffee cups sitting on the table.

"Hey!" he smiled when he saw you.

"Hi," you smiled back, sitting down across from him.

"What's been going on? What's it like having a kid?"

"Nothing really," you shrugged, "It's been fun – a huge change – but fun."

He paused, thinking about the wording of his next question, "So... Is her, uh... Is her dad around?"

"Nah," you sighed, "He left before I could tell him, but it was obvious he wouldn't have stuck around anyway."

"Good, you don't deserve someone who doesn't care about you," he told you, making you feel slightly uneasy about everything. You looked down at your watch.

"Shit," you mumbled, "I have to get back to work." You stood up and Alex followed suit, walking you to your car.

"Do you want to hang out again on Saturday?" he asked seemingly nervously.

"I can't on Saturday, Allison's birthday party is at 2," you answered before making a split second decision, "But you're welcome to drop by if you'd like."

"I'll see you on Saturday then," he smiled and nodded as you got into your car, "It was nice seeing you again, Y/N."

You looked up at him and gave him a genuine smile, "You too, Alex," and drove away.

~

When Saturday finally came around, Allison had just fallen asleep for her nap about three hours before her party. You were surprised when you heard a knock at the door and put down the mixer you were using to mix the cake batter. You wiped off your hands and trotted to the door, opening it to see Alex holding a present.

"You didn't have to bring anything, you know. What are you doing here so early?" you asked, motioning for him to come inside.

"I'm not going to come to a birthday party and not bring a present," he chuckled, "Just wanted to see if I could help with anything, I guess. I can come back later if you want."

"No," you shook your head, "It's okay. I was just making the cake." You led him to the kitchen where he sat on a bar stool across from you at the counter.

"Do you always make her cakes?" he asked.

You chuckled quietly, "I'm her mom. Isn't that what I'm supposed to do?"

He smiled, "I suppose. I never knew you could bake."

"I couldn't when I met you, but I figured since I have a daughter now, I didn't want to always have to take her to fast food places, so I learned to cook," you smiled proudly. Just as you put the cake batter in the pan, you heard a small voice coming from the end of the hallway.

"Mommy," Allison sniffled, holding her teddy bear tightly in her hand. You set the bowl back down on the counter, spinning around to look at her.

"What's wrong, baby?" you asked softly, picking her up and holding her closely.

"I had a bad dream," she mumbled into your neck.

"Mommy's still a little busy, but I'll come sing you back to sleep in a few minutes, okay?"

"I can do it," Alex offered, standing up.

"Are you sure?" you asked skeptically. He nodded and took Allison from your arms. Much to your surprise, she didn't argue or try to get down or hold onto you tighter – she just let him take her back to her room. "Second door on the left!" you called out so he knew which room to take her to. Alex sat on the rocking chair in Allison's bedroom, holding her in his lap.

"What does Mommy normally sing to you?" he asked her.

"Daydream," she answered sleepily.

"I'm not sure I know that one," he chuckled lightly, "How does it go?"

She shrugged, "She said Daddy wrote it for her before I was born, but she doesn't like to talk about it cause it makes her sad." Alex's breath caught in his throat.

He cleared his throat quietly, "Does it go 'I wish you could see your face right now cause you're grinning like a fool and we're sitting on your kitchen floor on a Tuesday afternoon'?" She smiled and nodded, laying her head on his shoulder. He grinned at her and finished the song. She was fast asleep by the time he was done, so he put her on her bed under the blanket and kissed her forehead before leaving the room.

As he was walking back to the kitchen, his thoughts were everywhere. Allison was his daughter and he knew it. He thought he could see the resemblance the first time he saw her, but he couldn't just come out and say it. She was a lot like him now that he thought about it; She was a bit reserved when meeting someone for the first time, but she became very comfortable around them not long after. She had his facial structure and his eyes – she even had the same dark brown colored hair that he did when he was a kid.

He walked into the kitchen and said, "Hey, Y/N...?"

"Yeah?" you responded, looking at him.

"Is Allison mine...?" he asked you with a look of confusion on his face. You paused, your eyes widening and he shouted, "She is mine! And you didn't think to tell me?! And you lied to me about it!" You quickly grabbed Alex's hand and took him outside to the front porch so you wouldn't wake Allison up.

"I tried to tell you, Alex!" you shot back, "But every time I did, you would just brush me off like I never even said anything!"

"Oh, so this is my fault?!"

"Don't you dare put words in my mouth, Alexander! I never said this was your fault!"

"Well, you're sure making it seem that way!"

"You know what? I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry I didn't tell you that I was pregnant, I'm sorry I went four years without telling you about her, and I'm sorry that this is how you found out! But she doesn't know and I'm not about to let you just come into her life after four years and pretend everything is going to be fine!"

"And how do you know it won't be, huh? How do you know she won't be happy?"

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize she would be completely fine with being told that her dad is all of a sudden here to be a part of her life! But I guess you know way more about her than I do, don't you?" Alex looked as if he'd just been punched in the face while you took a breath to calm yourself down before continuing in a softer tone, "I was wrong for not telling you, Alex, and I know that, but I couldn't let her be constantly put in the spotlight with your career. You're always on tour and I wanted her to have a stable family to grow up with whether that included her father or not."

"She's still my daughter, Y/N!" he exclaimed quietly, "I had a right to know!"

"I know you did and I'm sorry – really, I am – but I knew you would have given up your career and I couldn't let you do that."

"I know breaking up with you because of touring was bad, but not telling me I have a daughter was completely out of line, Y/N. I deserved to know about her."

"Well, what do you want me to do, Alex, go back in time and tell you I'm pregnant?" you asked sarcastically, walking back into the house.

He followed closely behind you and closed the door, "What I want you to do is take me back!"

You froze just before you reached the kitchen, "After all this? You're the one wanting me to take you back?"

"I love you, Y/N; I never stopped loving you and I never will," he said, now standing right in front of you. You stared at his eyes before glancing at his lips. He smiled and took your face in his hands, kissing you. He pulled away when you heard Allison again.

"Are you guys gonna get married?" the little girl asked curiously.

"Maybe someday," Alex smiled down at her.

"Does that mean I'm gonna have a daddy?" she looked up at you hopefully.

"Allison," you said carefully, "I think we need to have a talk."

You took her hand and walked to the couch in the living room, sitting her down beside you as Alex knelt down on the floor in front of her.

"Remember what I told you when you asked me why I always sing that song to you?"

She nodded, "You said Daddy wrote it."

You paused, not really sure what to say next, but decided to just say it, "Alex wrote that song for Mommy."

"So Alex is my daddy...?" she asked, scrunching her nose. You nodded and she looked at him, then back at you, "Is that why I look like him?"

You chuckled lightly, "Yes, that's why you look like him."

She looked at him with the most serious expression and said, "You must not be very good if you only have one song." You instantly let out a loud laugh, covering your mouth.

"You think that's funny?" he asked you, smirking. You shook your head, still smiling. He whispered something in Allison's ear and they both looked at you with mischievous grins.

"What are you-" was all you got out before they started tickling you. You let out a loud squeak and began laughing.

When everything had calmed down, what Allison did next amazed you. She looked at Alex for a moment before getting off the couch and hugging him.

"I love you, Daddy," you heard her whisper.

You bit your lip to keep yourself from crying as Alex smiled and whispered back, "I love you too, Allison."

~

Song mentioned: "A Daydream Away" by All Time Low


	25. Save Me From Myself (Nash Overstreet) *

Warning: Mention of eating disorder

~

"Get out," you whispered.

"I'm sorry? I didn't quite catch that. What did you say?" he challenged.

"Get. Out," you repeated slowly.

"No," he growled, "This is my apartment, too."

"Fine," you hissed, walking toward the door.

"Where the fuck do you think you're going?"

You didn't like fighting with Nash; Nash didn't like fighting with you. You both usually tried to steer clear of pointless arguments like the one you were having right now and, to be quite honest, you knew you were the one that picked the fight. It wasn't like you'd done so intentionally though. You had simply asked Nash to stop throwing his trash around the apartment and put it in the garbage can where it belonged. He made a silly remark back, not really meaning anything by it, but for whatever reason, it sent you over the edge.

However, let's get one thing perfectly clear: Nash wasn't completely innocent either. He knew everything about you and which buttons to push and he used that to his advantage, but he had never used anything against you that he knew would hurt you. He could always tell by the expressions you would give him that he was about to cross the line and he immediately stopped what he was saying, you both apologized for how childish you were acting, and you moved on as if nothing even happened. Although you fought more often than the two of you knew you should, whatever button he would push was never enough to make you consider leaving him, but something about tonight felt different to you.

"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm walking away," you replied sarcastically, rolling your eyes, "At least I know when enough is enough."

"Well, at least I can eat something without throwing it up right after," he muttered as you reached for the doorknob.

You turned around slowly, "Excuse you?"

"You heard me," he told you plainly. You couldn't believe he knew about it, let alone would use it against you. 

You did everything you could not to let the tears fall as you made the split second decision to slap him. Even if you didn't know he knew about your anorexia, you knew it wasn't like him to bring up anything of the sort in an argument. Your hand had almost reached his cheek when he grabbed your wrist, pulled you into him, and wrapped his arms as tightly as he could around you. It didn't need to be vocalized that he regretted what he said as soon as it came out of his mouth and you knew that as you wrapped your own arms around his waist.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled into your hair.

You sighed, "It's fine."

He let out a breath against your neck before pulling away to look at you, shaking his head, "Me being mad isn't an excuse this time. I haven't been that great of a boyfriend lately and I know that. I am so sorry I said what I did."

"It's fine," you repeated, not really knowing what else to say.

He sighed, running his hand through his hair and walking to the couch to sit down, "Stop saying it's fine when it's not."

"Sorry," you mumbled, still standing in the hallway. He looked at you for a moment before motioning for you to sit with him. You swallowed the lump in your throat and walked over to the couch to sit beside him, only to be pulled onto his lap.

He wrapped his arms around your waist and kissed your cheek, "Don't say you're sorry for something that wasn't your fault." You looked into his eyes and nodded slowly, lying your head on his shoulder.

"How did you know?" you asked after a few minutes of silence.

"I can hear you sometimes," he answered quietly, "I thought you had just eaten something your stomach didn't agree with the first few times, but when it happened again yesterday and I found those weight loss magazines in the bathroom drawer, I just knew you were doing it to yourself."

"So why didn't you tell me?"

"I don't know," he sighed, angry with himself, "I guess I convinced myself that if I told you I knew, you would hate me."

"I could never hate you, Nash. You know that," you told him, looking at him.

He smiled slightly, "I really don't deserve you." You quickly hit his chest, causing him to exclaim, "What was that for?!"

"Don't ever say that!" you nearly shouted, "Don't you ever say I don't deserve you!"

He looked at you, "I love you."

"I love you too," you replied, kissing him before lying your head back down on his shoulder.

"I'm gonna help you beat this," he said, but you could tell he was more thinking out loud than talking directly to you, "'Cause you don't deserve to feel like you're not beautiful."


	26. Destined to Explode (Alex Gaskarth) - Part 1

My best friend Briana and I were talking one day and we thought it would be funny if I wrote a one-shot based around The Voice, so that's what I did. Unlike my other imagines, this one isn't a reader-insert, but I hope you all still read it anyway ♡

~

Briana paced around, nervously waiting for her name to be called. This was it. The moment she'd been dreaming about ever since the show's first season. She, of course, was auditioning for The Voice. She had never really auditioned for anything before – unless you'd consider job interviews auditions – and honestly, she had no interest in doing so since the judges weren't particularly anyone she could see herself being coached by – although she loved them.

But this time was different.

The show had announced it would be adding two new coaches to work alongside Adam Levine and Blake Shelton this season: Alex Gaskarth and Miley Cyrus. While she wasn't particularly thrilled about Miley being on the show, the possibility of being coached by her favorite lead singer definitely convinced her to audition.

She held her breath as the producer came back out into the waiting area.

"Jordan Michaelson!" she called out. Briana breathed in deeply and released a sigh, plopping down in her chair.

Each time the producer called a name that wasn't hers, she grew more and more nervous. She knew that if her name wasn't called soon, she would end up backing out of auditioning altogether and that wasn't something she wanted to do.

"Nervous, huh?" she heard a girl giggle. She looked to her right and saw a girl with long brown hair smiling at her.

"A bit," she chuckled lightly, "Are you?"

The girl shrugged, "Kind of. I auditioned last season and didn't make it through, but the coaches gave me some really great advice and I'm hoping I'll get through this year."

"Are they really that tough?"

"Not at all! They're really only tougher when they get down to adding the last few people to their teams. Lucky for us, we're in the first group. I was just nervous and I'm sure that came off as I was singing. Oh! I'm Danielle, by the way," she smiled, holding out her hand.

She took her hand, shaking it, "Briana. So, Danielle, what are you singing?"

"Recklessly by Hot Chelle Rae," she smiled again, "You?"

"Therapy by All Time Low," Briana told her. She knew doing a coach's song was risky, but she knew that if she were to ever audition for a singing competition that she would do that song no matter what and she was confident in her song choice.

"Oh, a coach's song! You're a risk taker and I like that," Danielle giggled, "Love that song, by the way."

"You like All Time Low?" she asked, a little shocked. Not many people she knew liked them as much as she did or even at all.

"Like them? I love them!" she smiled, "Anyway, you're gonna kill it. I know it."

"Thanks," Briana smiled back.

Everyone in the room looked over as the producer came out again, "Danielle Myers!"

"Well, I guess I'm up!" Danielle smiled, but it was obvious she was nervous, "Good luck! I hope you make it through!"

"You too," Briana grinned as she walked away. There was a large TV in the waiting area, so those who hasn't been called yet were able to watch others audition. Everyone watched as Danielle walked onto the stage and it was clear that her hands were shaking. "You've got this," Briana whispered to herself as the music started. Danielle took a breath and started singing.

I'm so obsessed, don't care how dumb I look  
You must be bad cause you make me feel good  
The more I'm with you, the more I'm hooked  
Oh, yeah

Everyone stared at the television screen as all four coaches were listening intently.

Tonight, I've gotta confess the way you look in this light  
I can't catch my breath  
Feels like my world is on fire; It burns in my chest  
Tell me you feel it, too

We've got nothing to lose

Just touch me the way that I touch you  
Love me the way that I love you recklessly  
Give me everything, baby

Touch me the way that I touch you  
Love me the way that I love you recklessly  
Give me everything

All I want is you and me, I want you recklessly  
I need you next to me tonight  
All I want is you and me, I want you recklessly  
I need you next to me tonight

Need me the way that I need you  
Kiss me the way that I kiss you recklessly  
Give me everything, baby

She dropped to the floor as she held out the note and it was pretty much the selling point for everyone.

Adam was the first to push his button, immediately followed by the remaining three coaches. Danielle stood back up and had the biggest smile on her face as she finished off the rest of her song.

As soon as she finished, she was jumping up and down with excitement and holding her hand over her mouth.

"You!" Adam pointed at her and shouted once the audience was done screaming.

"Me!" she shrugged, laughing.

"You have gotten so much better since the last time you were on this stage!" Blake exclaimed.

"But I was still so pissed no one pushed their button for her last season!" Alex yelled, making her laugh again.

Adam held his hand up, "Yes, I made a mistake last season in not pushing, but as her coach-"

Blake interrupted, "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Who says she's gonna pick you?"

"Well, Shelton, I'd like to remind everyone who pushed their button first," he retorted, pointing to himself.

"After you didn't push last season," Miley laughed quietly.

"Ignore these idiots and just focus on who really wants you: Me!" Alex said.

"Oh, gladly," she joked, winking at him.

"No, damn it! Don't flirt with him!" Adam exclaimed.

"Who do you pick as your coach?" Miley laughed. All four coaches were pointing at themselves and Danielle smiled, putting her free hand on her forehead.

She sighed, "This is a lot harder than I thought it was gonna be... Adam, I love you-"

"Please don't break my heart!" he begged, reaching his arms to the front of his chair, looking at her.

"But I've gotta go with Team Alex," she smiled.

Alex threw his arms in the air and yelled, "Yeah!" He hopped out of his chair and ran up to Danielle, hugging her, "We are gonna kill this!"

"Damn right, we are," she giggled. She hugged Blake, Miley, and Adam, thanking them before walking off stage, throwing her first in the air The Breakfast Club style.

It was clear to Briana that everyone in room was amazed by what they just saw, but it was obvious they were all thinking the same thing – Danielle was definitely going to be a hard one to beat.

All thoughts were interrupted when the producer walked in again.

"Briana Weir!" she called out. Briana's eyes widened, realizing her name had just been called.

She stood up, following the producer to side-stage where she was given her microphone and waited for her cue to walk on. When she was given the go-ahead, she walked onto the stage more nervous than ever. The music started and the coaches looked over at Alex as he chuckled – but seemed very skeptical – at hearing his own song. Briana took a breath and began.

My ship went down in a sea of sound  
When I woke up alone, I had everything  
A handful of moments I wished I could change  
And a tongue like a nightmare that cut like a blade

In a city of fools, I was careful and cool  
But they tore me apart like a hurricane  
A handful of moments I wished I could change  
But I was carried away

Give me therapy, I'm a walking travesty  
But I'm smiling at everything  
Therapy, you were never a friend to me  
You can keep all your misery

Arrogant boy  
Love yourself so no one has to  
They're better off without you  
They're better off without you

Arrogant boy  
Cause a scene like you're supposed to  
They'll fall asleep without you  
You're lucky if your memory remains

Give me therapy, I'm a walking travesty  
But I'm smiling at everything  
Therapy, you were never a friend to me  
You can take back your misery

Give me therapy, I'm a walking travesty  
But I'm smiling at everything  
Therapy, you were never a friend to me  
And you can choke on your misery

Briana looked down as she saw no one turned their chair, but when she heard the last second button push, her head shot up. Although she saw Miley smiling back at her, she couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief knowing she was in the competition.

The rest of the chairs turned and Alex smiled, "And what might your name be?"

She let out a shaky breath and replied, "Briana."

"Were you nervous?" Adam asked to which she nodded and he continued, "Yeah, I could tell. I actually kind of regret not pushing now that I know you were just incredibly nervous."

"I would have to agree with Adam-" Blake started before he was cut off by Adam.

"Wait, could you repeat that?"

"Yeah, I agree with you, Adam. Now shut up and let me finish talking!" Adam smiled proudly and Blake went on, "For me, it's kind of about breathing and knowing when to take those breaths and I feel like I didn't really get that with you."

She nodded and Alex took his turn to talk, "I think for me, it was just being that it is my song, I was kind of looking for more technical things that I probably shouldn't have been because every singer is different, but you know, you're in great hands with Miley and I'm looking forward to hearing what you'll do next." Briana thanked the coaches, hugging Miley and thanking her again before walking off the stage, breathing another big sigh of relief.

~

Songs used:  
"Recklessly" by Hot Chelle Rae  
"Therapy" by All Time Low


	27. Destined to Explode (Alex Gaskarth) - Part 2

After the blind auditions were over two weeks later, the contestants were put into groups of four for the rooms at the hotel they would all stay at throughout the duration of their time on the show. Briana walked into her hotel room and looked around, seeing no one else had arrived yet. She set her bags on one of the beds near the window and sat down, taking the opportunity to call her family as they couldn't make it out to California to see her audition.

Her dad answered after three rings, "Hey! Hold on, let me put you on speaker... How did it go?"

She sighed slowly and heard her mom say, "Oh, honey-"

"I made it!" she yelled, laughing.

"Oh my God!" her sister shouted, "You did not!"

"Yes, I did!" she copied.

"Whose team are you on?"

"You'll see when the show airs," she smiled, "Hey, I think one of my roommates is coming, so I've gotta go. I'll talk to you guys later. Love you!" She heard a chorus of 'goodbye's and 'I love you's before she hung up just as someone opened the door.

"Briana!" Danielle squealed happily when she walked into the room.

"Hey, Danielle," Briana smiled, happy she would be rooming with someone she recognized.

Danielle plopped down on the bed across from Briana and sighed, "I'm beat."

"But hey: we're in the competition!"

"Good point," she laughed, "Do you know who else we're stuck with yet?"

Briana shook her head, "Nope, but they should be coming any minute now." Just as the words came out of her mouth, the door opened.

Two guys walked in and Danielle squealed again, "You're the guys that sang Fall Out Boy!"

"Guilty," one of them chuckled, "Hi, I'm Jack and this is Aiden."

"Danielle," she smiled, shaking their hands.

"Briana," she told them when they looked at her, shaking their hands as well.

"So what do you guys want to do?" Aiden asked.

"Well, I'm still hyped up from the auditions," Danielle giggled, bouncing slightly on her feet, "So I'm up for pretty much anything. Except jumping out of a plane. Or swimming with sharks. Or bungee jumping off of a 250 story building. Or climbing Mount Everest. Or-"

"We could go get something to eat and get to know each other?" Briana interrupted, laughing at Danielle.

"I'm down," they said in unison.

"Don't do that again, it's weird," Danielle said, scrunching up her nose.

"Sorry," they said again.

"You're lucky you're cute," she sighed, trotting out of the room. Both of them looked at Briana.

"Don't look at me; I just met the girl," she laughed, putting her hands in the air and they all followed Danielle.

~

(Skipping to battle rounds because it's my story and I can)

Briana walked into rehearsal with the contestant that she would be competing against in the battle rounds, Mariah. They were making small talk, both obviously nervous and worried they wouldn't advance to the next round. They finally reached the room and Briana almost stopped breathing when she saw Chris Daughtry sitting next to Miley. He was one of her biggest influences in music and a major reason she even wanted a career with it, so she was understandably in shock.

She started coughing loudly, trying to catch her breath, earning a chuckle from those who were in the room. Her and Mariah shook Chris's hand and they got to work.

"I've decided to give you two I Knew You Were Trouble by Taylor Swift," Miley told them, smiling, "I think that your voices will work really, really well together and you'll make this performance a lot of fun."

~

"Holy shit," Danielle gasped as she walked into rehearsals with her opponent, Anthony. Everyone in the room smiled, already knowing what had her so speechless.

"Hi!" Ryan Follese, the lead singer of Hot Chelle Rae smiled, "I saw your blind audition and I was excited to find out I would get the chance to meet you! You were incredible!" She was at a loss for words for a moment before she was able to speak.

"Thank you so much," she sighed, "You have no idea how much it means to me to hear that coming from you." Ryan smiled again, giving Danielle a hug and shaking Anthony's hand before they all began rehearsing.

"I am so stoked to get to be able to work with the both of you," Alex beamed at the pair standing in front of him, "I've thought really hard about this song choice and since you both seem to have kind of like a rock-ish thing going, I really believe you two will blow everyone away with a Fall Out Boy song and I think The Phoenix will be perfect."

~

This was it: this was the day of battle rounds. The nerves were high as everyone scrambled to get dressed and warm-up.

Briana was staring at herself in the mirror as she was doing her warm-ups and fixing her hair when she jumped as someone walked up to her and said her name.

"Sorry," Danielle giggled, "I just wanted to say good luck and I hope you make it through. I'm really happy we became friends."

Briana smiled at her, "Thank you. I hope you make it too. It would be pretty rough not having any friends in the competition, but I'm glad I found at least one. Although, I know you'll make it anyway. Your voice is phenomenal."

"Thank you! Yours is too, you know! I loved the emotion you performed with at the blinds."

"Danielle!" the producer called, "You and Anthony are up!"

"I better go before they come back and carry me to the stage," she laughed, "Good luck again!"

"You too!" Briana chuckled as she trotted away.

The producer handed Danielle a microphone and she waited until Carson said her name before walking out to the stage. The audience was cheering as Carson talked to the camera before introducing the song. The lights went down and the track began playing.

Put on your war paint

You are a brick tied to me that's dragging me down  
Strike a match and I'll burn you to the ground  
We are the Jack-o-lanterns in July setting fire to the sky  
Here, here comes this rising tide

So come on  
Put on your war paint  
Cross walks and crossed hearts and hope-to-dies  
Silver clouds with grey lining

So we can take the world back from the heart-attacked  
One maniac at a time, we will take it back  
You know time crawls on when you're waiting for the song to start  
So dance alone to the beat of your heart

Hey, young blood  
Doesn't it feel like our time is running out  
I'm gonna change you like a remix  
Then I'll raise you like a phoenix

Wearin' our vintage misery  
No, I think it looked a little better on me  
I'm gonna change you like a remix  
Then I'll raise you like a phoenix

Bring home the boys and scrap, scrap metal the tanks  
Get hitched, make a career out of robbing banks  
Because the world is just a teller and we are wearing black masks  
"You broke our spirit," says the note we pass

So we can take the world back from the heart-attacked  
One maniac at a time, we will take it back  
You know time crawls on when you're waiting for the song to start  
So dance alone to the beat of your heart

Hey, young blood  
Doesn't it feel like our time is running out  
I'm gonna change you like a remix  
Then I'll raise you like a phoenix

Wearin' our vintage misery  
No, I think it looked a little better on me  
I'm gonna change you like a remix  
Then I'll raise you like a phoenix

Put on your war paint

The war is won before it's begun  
Release the doves, surrender love  
The war is won before it's begun  
Release the doves, surrender love

The war is won before it's begun  
Release the doves, surrender love  
The war is won before it's begun  
Release the doves, surrender love

Hey, young blood  
Doesn't it feel like our time is running out  
I'm gonna change you like a remix  
Then I'll raise you like a phoenix

Wearin' our vintage misery  
No, I think it looked a little better on me  
I'm gonna change you like a remix  
Then I'll raise you like a phoenix

Hey, young blood  
Doesn't it feel like our time is running out  
I'm gonna change you like a remix  
Then I'll raise you like a phoenix

Put on your war paint

Carson ran back onto the stage, standing between Danielle and Anthony.

"Coaches, your thoughts?" He asked when the screams died down. Blake was the first to speak.

"I can't believe I didn't see your potential last season," he told Danielle, making her smile, "I know you've got like a rocker vibe to you, but I think you could do pretty much any song and make it sound like that was the way it was meant to be sung and that's why I think you were the winner of this battle."

"Thank you!" she smiled again.

"I can already tell Alex is going to rub it in all he can that you picked him and not any of us," Adam said, making Alex smirk. "It's only been a few months since we last saw you and your breath control has gotten so much better!"

"Honestly," Miley said, "I think Anthony was the winner for me." She earned a couple boos from various people in the audience, making her laugh lightly, "Now, now. We all agree that Danielle's performance of this was phenomenal, yes, but we also can't overlook how far Anthony has come in such a short amount of time." She looked at him, "You're a lot better with controlling your breathing, your pitching was on point this week, and your stage presence is something that I've loved about you from the beginning. I think Anthony is the winner for me," she shrugged.

"Alex, who do you pick?" Carson asked him.

"My gut is telling me the same thing it did during the blind auditions," Alex answered, "Which is why I have to continue in the competition with Danielle." She let out the breath she was holding and rushed off of the stage, hugging Alex.

"Thank you so much," she sighed quietly.

"You're not leaving that easily," he smiled, making her laugh as she excitedly walked backstage.

~

Briana took a deep breath when Carson announced her name and ran out into the room of screaming audience members. It was such a surreal moment that she had almost forgot she was being filmed. She had dreamed about performing her entire life and she was finally getting to do it. She and Mariah took their marks and smiled at each other before the song started.

Once upon a time, a few mistakes ago  
I was in your sights, you got me alone  
You found me, you found me, you found me  
I guess you didn't care and I guess I liked that  
And when I fell hard, you took a step back  
Without me, without me, without me

And he's long gone  
When he's next to me  
And I realize, the blame is on me

Cause I knew you were trouble when you walked in  
So shame on me now, flew me to places I'd never been  
Till you put me down

Oh, I knew you were trouble when you walked in  
So shame on me now, flew me to places I'd never been  
Now I'm lying on the cold, hard ground  
Oh, oh, trouble, trouble, trouble  
Oh, oh, trouble, trouble, trouble

No apologies, he'll never see you cry  
Pretends he doesn't know that he's the reason why  
You're drowning, you're drowning, you're drowning

And I heard you moved on from whispers on the street  
A new notch in your belt is all I'll ever be  
And now I see, now I see, now I see

He was long gone  
When he met me  
And I realize, the joke is on me

I knew you were trouble when you walked in  
So shame on me now, flew me to places I'd never been  
Till you put me down

Oh, I knew you were trouble when you walked in  
So shame on me now, flew me to places I'd never been  
Now I'm lying on the cold, hard ground  
Oh, oh, trouble, trouble, trouble  
Oh, oh, trouble, trouble, trouble

And the saddest fear comes creeping in  
That you never loved me or her or anyone or anything  
Yeah

I knew you were trouble when you walked in  
So shame on me now, flew me to places I'd never been  
Till you put me down

Oh, I knew you were trouble when you walked in  
So shame on me now, flew me to places I'd never been  
Now I'm lying on the cold, hard ground  
Oh, oh, trouble, trouble, trouble  
Oh, oh, trouble, trouble, trouble

I knew you were trouble when you walked in  
Trouble, trouble, trouble  
I knew you were trouble when you walked in  
Trouble, trouble, trouble

"Coaches, what did you think?" Carson smiled while walking back to center stage, "Adam, we'll start with you."

"I'm glad I'm not the one that has to make this decision!" Adam chuckled mockingly, "It's an even split for me, man. I don't even know. Both of you girls were amazing! It's like you're totally different people than the ones we heard in your blind auditions!"

"Are you sure you didn't switch these girls for other ones?" Alex asked Miley, "Because they are way more confident than they were in their auditions!" Briana smiled at the sight of Alex liking her performance. It was a dream come true!

"Miley," Carson said, "It's decision time. Who is the winner of this battle?"

Miley groaned, "Oh, my God. I don't know! They both did so well!" She paused before nodding her head lightly as if she was telling herself that she had chosen, "I saw something in this girl that the boys didn't see in the blinds and I can't let her go just yet, which is why the winner of this battle is...Briana."

Briana let out a huge sigh of relief and covered her mouth with her hand. She felt tears roll down her cheeks and she raced to give Miley a hug, but she didn't care. All that mattered was that she was still in the competition and she was going to give it all she had to stay.

~

Songs used:  
"The Phoenix" by Fall Out Boy  
"I Knew You Were Trouble" by Taylor Swift


	28. Destined to Explode (Alex Gaskarth) - Part 3

It was the night of the final round of knock-outs and Briana couldn't have been more nervous. She'd never considered herself a good singer, but having four of the most influential people in the music business tell her she was? It was like she was living one of those dreams you didn't want to wake up from. All nervousness aside, she had actually made some pretty good friends. Jack, Aiden, and Danielle were all still in the competition and were probably her closest friends here. They would be inseparable apart from rehearsals and things like filming confessionals.

After one such rehearsal with Miley, she was feeling really confident about tonight's show. She had picked a song that she absolutely loved in ways no one would understand. But before the show, the contestants and coaches had to film their first confessionals of the season. Briana met up with Danielle, Jack, and Aiden after their rehearsals were over and they set off for confessional.

~

(fast forward i guess because i don't know how else to write this part)  
The night the show aired, the four friends gathered around the TV in their hotel room, laptops on and ready to live tweet with everyone on Twitter. Clips from last week's show began playing with voice overs of the coaches talking about their teams before the show went right into the confessionals.

"Something about me that no one else knows?" Briana thought for a moment.

"I don't know if America is ready for this," Danielle laughed.

"I don't know if this really counts, but I'm pretty good at the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air rap." Briana laughed when they asked her to do it, "Alright." She cleared her throat and started, desperately trying not to laugh, but unable to keep it in as soon as she finished.

@AMoonlitMemory: It wasn't as easy as it looked, okay? They didn't even let me practice! #Knockouts

Danielle came onto the screen after a few other contestants' confessionals and laughed, "I've seen some rumors floating around that I write fan fiction and I'd like to clear them up by saying that they are absolutely true, but good luck finding them." She jokingly winked at the camera.

@MissDanielle137: And the answer to your question is no, I will not tell you where you can find them ;) #Knockouts

Blake came up next, saying as he walked out of frame, "Yeah, no. I'm done. I can't believe y'all made me do that."

(back to present time during the actual knockouts. i hope that made sense)

~

"Alright, Alex," Carson told him, "Who's up next?"

"I'm going to pair up Danielle and Jess," he said confidently, not even wasting a second.

The girls tried to make intimidating faces at each other as the others went back to their seats, but they couldn't hold in their laughter as Jess took her place in the center to sing first.

When she was done and the coaches bickered about how they were jealous Alex got her and they didn't, it was Danielle's turn.

I know your insides are feeling so hollow  
And it's a hard pill for you to swallow  
But if I fall for you, I'll never recover  
If I fall for you, I'll never be the same

I really wanna love somebody  
I really wanna dance the night away  
I know we're only halfway there  
But you can take me all the way  
Take me all the way

I really wanna touch somebody  
I think about you every single day  
I know we're only halfway there  
But you can take me all the way  
Take me all the way

You're such a hard act for me to follow  
Love me today, don't leave me tomorrow  
But if I fall for you, I'll never recover  
If I fall for you, I'll never be the same

I really wanna love somebody  
I really wanna dance the night away  
I know we're only halfway there   
But you can take me all the way  
Take me all the way

I really wanna touch somebody  
I think about you every single day  
I know we're only halfway there  
But you can take me all the way  
Take me all the way

Whoa whoa whoa oh oh oh  
Whoa whoa whoa oh oh oh

I don't know where to start, I'm just a little lost  
I wanna feel like we're never gonna ever stop  
I don't know what to do, I'm right in front of you  
Asking you to stay, you should stay, stay with me tonight  
Yeah

I really wanna love somebody  
I really wanna dance the night away  
I know we're only halfway there  
But you can take me all the way  
Take me all the way

I really wanna touch somebody  
I think about you every single day  
I know we're only halfway there  
But you can take me all the way  
Take me all the way

Whoa whoa whoa oh oh oh  
Whoa whoa, take me all the way  
Take me all the way, yeah

Adam groaned as Carson walked over to stand with Danielle, "Stop rubbing it in, Gaskarth!"

Alex smirked, "I don't know what you're talking about."

"I can only imagine the emotional pain you're feeling right now, Adam," Blake snickered, "I would be feeling it if she sang one of my songs too."

"One day, Blake," Danielle joked.

"I look forward to when you'll sing one of my songs, actually," Miley laughed.

"Alright, alright," Carson chuckled, "Alex, who are you keeping in this competition?"

"This is really hard," Alex whined, "They're both so amazing! Okay, I'm going to pick this girl because I want to continue to help her get to where she deserves to be in music and also because I don't want Adam to have her, so I have to keep moving forward with Danielle."

"Damn it!" Adam shouted as Danielle squealed happily, making everyone laugh. She quickly ran to hug him before looking at Adam and gesturing for a hug. He rolled his eyes jokingly, hugging her.

~

"Miley," Carson said, "Who are you going to pair up for knockouts?" Briana was terrified that Miley would pair her up with someone 100 times better than her. Equally as nerve-racking, there was only one coach that still had a steal left: Alex.

She thought for a moment, "Kirsten and Briana." The two girls looked at each other as everyone else made their way to their seats and they stayed on the stage.

Kirsten went first, basically blowing everyone away and Briana knew she didn't have a chance, but she still gave it her all in her own performance. It was a softer song than the one Kirsten had performed, but Briana was hoping she could convince Miley to keep her in the competition with the passion she sang with.

Say something, I'm giving up on you  
I'll be the one if you want me to  
Anywhere I would've followed you  
Say something, I'm giving up on you

And I am feeling so small  
It was over my head  
I know nothing at all

And I will stumble and fall  
I'm still learning to love  
Just starting to crawl

Say something, I'm giving up on you  
I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you  
Anywhere I would've followed you  
Say something, I'm giving up on you

And I will swallow my pride  
You're the one that I love  
And I'm saying goodbye

Say something, I'm giving up on you  
And I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you  
And anywhere I would've followed you  
Say something, I'm giving up on you

Say something, I'm giving up on you  
Say something

The entire room erupted into cheers as Briana finished, surprising her. Kirsten's performance was beyond amazing and to get the same kind of reaction for hers? It was crazy!

Carson walked back onto the stage and asked the coaches what they thought.

Miley smiled, "You keep improving each time I see you and I'm so proud of you!"

"I'm sure I've said this before," Adam said, "But I honestly really regret not seeing your potential in the blinds."

"Man," Alex sighed, "I just love you. I don't know what else to say!" He laughed, making Briana smile.

"Miley," Carson said as Kirsten took her spot on the other side of him, "Who do you choose?"

Miley bit her inner cheek, "This is such a hard decision. Both of you girls are amazing and I wish I could keep you both, but... I have to go with Kirsten."

Although Briana's heart dropped, she understood. Kirsten's performance was one of the best that night and she didn't blame Miley for wanting to keep her. Kirsten smiled apologetically at her and hugged her, Briana congratulating her before she went to hug Miley.

"Any last words to your coach?" Carson asked, putting his arm on her shoulders.

"I don't even know where to start," Briana laughed through her tears, "Thank you so much for this opportunity. I've never really had the confidence to do anything like this before, but I'm so glad I do now."

"You know what?" Alex interrupted with a little smirk on his face, "You're not going anywhere." He hit his button, stealing her.

Briana nearly screamed, crying even harder simply knowing she was going to the live rounds.

~

Songs used:  
"Love Somebody" by Maroon 5  
"Say Something" by A Great Big World


	29. Destined to Explode (Alex Gaskarth) - Part 4

"Welcome to Team Alex!" Danielle screamed, nearly knocking Briana down as she gave her a hug when got offstage.

"Whoa!" she laughed, catching her footing before she fell, "Thank you! I seriously thought I was gonna throw up."

"Well, do I have bad news for you..." she trailed off.

"What?" her eyes widened.

"Being on Team Alex is like being in a constant state of feeling like you're going to throw up," she said seriously, "Especially if you've only ever dreamed of meeting him for the past six years."

Briana gasped, "How have you survived?"

"I haven't, Bri," she sighed dramatically, "I've been dead for almost a month. I'm merely the figment of your imagination you created during auditions so you didn't feel like a nervous breakdown waiting to happen."

"Really?" she asked, trying desperately to hold in her laugh.

"No," Danielle stated, "But that would make a great Lifetime movie. This idea could make me famous!"

"I think you're already pretty famous. With a voice like that, I think people would be stupid to just pass you by."

She let out a quiet laugh, "Tell that to all the record labels that shot me down."

"Seriously?" Briana asked, wide-eyed.

"Yeah," Danielle nodded slowly, "But I guess we really don't know much about each others stories, do we?"

"How about we discuss stories with Jack and Aiden over dinner?" she suggested.

"And by dinner, you mean..."

"McDonald's in the hotel room," she chuckled.

"Perfect!" she smiled, clapping quietly.

~

A couple hours later – after finally being able to change out of their performance outfits – the pair met up with Jack and Aiden, made a quick stop at McDonald's, and headed back to their room.

"Now," Briana announced, taking a sip of her Coke, "I like to think we're all friends here-"

Jack cut her off, laughing, "Oh, man. It's about to get personal."

Aiden shook his head, grabbing the remote, "TV's definitely going to have to go off for this."

"It has come to my attention that our dear friend Danielle has been rejected by multiple record labels."

"Wait," the guys said in unison, looking at Danielle in shock, "Are you serious?"

"What did I say about doing that?!" she squeaked, rolling her eyes at Briana's sudden outburst, "But yeah. It's not anything to get worked up about though. They all just told me I wasn't what they were looking for and sent me on my way."

"How can you not be what they're looking for?!" Jack exclaimed, "You bring it with every song Alex gives you and I would kill for talent like that!"

She laughed, shaking her head, "Thank you, but surprisingly enough, I wasn't always this amazing."

"No!" Briana shouted, throwing herself against the foot of the bed.

"Yes!" she grinned before shrugging, "After my audition last season, I took what the coaches said to heart and started taking vocal lessons and my teacher taught me how to make it seem like I'm not so nervous on stage and I like to think it worked."

"If I were those record labels," Briana said, throwing a french fry into her mouth, "I would really hate myself right about now."

She giggled quietly, "Now that we've got my story out of the way, let's hear yours." 

"There's not much to it," she shrugged, "I've put some covers up on YouTube before, but nothing good ever really came from it. I gave up on that for a while because it made me feel like I wasn't good enough, but I quickly realized that the life I had wasn't the life I wanted. I've been watching this show from season one and I always wanted to audition, but I didn't have the money to fly myself out here until now."

"I'm bummed you gave up," Danielle pouted, "But I'm glad you're back at it!"

"Me too," Briana smiled, grateful that she met a group of such supportive people.

~

The next week was filled with rehearsals and confessionals and it just felt like there was barely any time to rest. Briana was thankful when she was finally ushered to hair and makeup, knowing she would finally be able to sit down before the live shows.

"How are you today?" the makeup artist, Chloe, asked her as she sat down.

"Nervous," Briana let out a shaky laugh.

"Well, I'm not going to tell you that it'll be okay because I've never had to go on stage," Chloe smiled, "But I will tell you that I've seen your performances and I know you're going to rock it."

"Thank you," she sighed in relief. Hearing those words from someone that had never sang in front of so many people comforted her in a way.

"What song are you doing tonight?" she asked after applying the foundation and powder.

"Time-Bomb by All Time Low."

"Alex gave you one of his songs?" she laughed, picking up the eye shadow pallet and beginning her work.

Briana couldn't help but laugh as well, "He says he thinks I do better with upbeat songs, but I think it's just shameless self-promoting."

"I don't doubt that," she shook her head, "And I can't wait to hear your take on it tonight."

~

Halfway through the show, it was finally time for her performance. She was scared about forgetting the words, although she'd listened to this song hundreds of times before and knew for a fact that she wouldn't.

This night was more than just fighting to stay in the competition. This night was seeing how many people actually thought she had a chance and wanted to keep her on the show as long as they possibly could. The contestants weren't singing for the coaches anymore. They were singing for the viewers. And that was something that made Briana feel an incredible amount of both nerves and excitement.

"And now," Carson said to the camera, bringing Briana out of her thoughts as she stood on the dark stage, "Here is Briana Weir with Time-Bomb." The lights came on and the music started and Briana gave it everything she had.

From the get-go, I knew this was hard to hold  
Like a crash, the whole thing spun out of control  
Oh, on a wire, we were dancing  
Two kids, no consequences  
Pull the trigger without thinking  
There's only one way down this road

It was like a time-bomb set into motion  
We knew that we were destined to explode  
And if I had to pull you out of the wreckage  
You know I'm never gonna let you go

We're like a time-bomb  
Gonna lose it, let's diffuse it  
Baby, we're like a time-bomb  
But I need it  
Wouldn't have it any other way

Well, there's no way out of this, so let's stay in  
Every storm that comes also comes to an end  
Oh, resistance is useless  
Just two kids, stupid and fearless  
Like a bullet shooting the love-sick  
There's only one way down this road

It was like a time-bomb set into motion  
We knew that we were destined to explode  
And if I had to pull you out of the wreckage  
You know I'm never gonna let you go

We're like a time-bomb  
Gonna lose it, let's diffuse it  
Baby, we're like a time-bomb  
But I need it  
Wouldn't have it any other way

Got my heart in your hands like a time-bomb ticking  
It goes off, we start again  
When it breaks, we fix it  
Got your heart in my hands like a time-bomb ticking  
We should know better   
But we won't let go

It was like a time-bomb set into motion  
We knew that we were destined to explode  
And if I had to pull you out of the wreckage  
You know I'm never gonna let you let me go

Like a time-bomb  
Gonna lose it, let's diffuse it  
Baby, we're like a time-bomb  
But I need it  
Wouldn't have it any other way

The crowd was going absolutely crazy and when she looked at Alex, Briana felt like she was going to cry. She had never had someone look at her the way he was, and knowing it was a look of pride – and even a little cockiness from having stolen her from Miley – made it that much better.

"That was amazing!" Carson beamed, walking over to her and giving her a hug. She thanked him excitedly and they turned toward the coaches. "Alex, I would ask how she did, but I think it's very clear from the look on your face."

Alex was grinning from ear to ear, bouncing in his chair, "I am so proud of you! You brought this crowd to their feet the moment you started singing and I don't know if you even noticed because you were so into the song!"

"I knew you were going to deliver," Adam told her, "But I didn't know you were going to do it better than Alex."

"Miley, Alex stole Briana from you in the knockouts, what are your thoughts?"

"I think that I'm mad," Miley chuckled, "I don't regret my decision at all, I just wish there was a way I could have kept both of them. Briana, you were amazing and as sad as I was to let you go, I am so happy you're still in this." Briana mouthed a 'thank you' to her as Carson went on with voting rules and the number to call and such before he let Briana leave the stage.

~

"And for our last performance of the night," Carson said, "With Better Than Revenge, here is Danielle Myers." It was quiet for a moment, but then, all that could be heard was Danielle starting off the song.

"Now go stand in the corner and think about what you did."   
Ha!   
Time for a little revenge

The story starts when it was hot and it was summer and  
I had it all, I had him right there where I wanted him  
She came along, got him alone, and let's hear the applause  
She took him faster than you could say "sabotage"

I never saw it coming, wouldn't have suspected it  
I underestimated just who I was dealing with  
She had to know the pain was beating on me like a drum  
She underestimated just who she was stealing from

She's not a saint and she's not what you think  
She's an actress, whoa  
She's better known for the things that she does   
On the mattress, whoa

Soon she's gonna find stealing other people's toys  
On the playground won't make you many friends  
She should keep in mind, she should keep in mind  
There is nothing I do better than revenge

She looks at life like it's a party and she's on the list  
She looks at me like I'm a trend and she's so over it  
I think her ever-present frown is a little troubling and  
She thinks I'm psycho 'cause I like to rhyme her name with things

But sophistication isn't what you wear or who you know  
Or pushing people down to get you where you wanna go  
Well, they didn't teach you that in prep school, so it's up to me  
But no amount of vintage dresses gives you dignity

She's not a saint and she's not what you think  
She's an actress, whoa  
She's better known for the things that she does  
On the mattress, whoa

Soon she's gonna find stealing other people's toys  
On the playground won't make you many friends  
She should keep in mind, she should keep in mind  
There is nothing I do better than revenge

I'm just another thing for you to roll your eyes at, honey  
You might have him, but haven't you heard?  
I'm just another thing for you to roll your eyes at, honey  
You might have him, but I always get the last word  
Whoa

She's not a saint and she's not what you think  
She's an actress, whoa  
She's better known for the things that she does  
On the mattress, whoa

Soon she's gonna find stealing other people's toys  
On the playground won't make you many friends  
She should keep in mind, she should keep in mind  
There is nothing I do better than revenge

Do you still feel like you know what you're doing?  
'Cause I don't think you do, oh  
Do you still feel like you know what you're doing?  
I don't think you do, I don't think you do

Let's hear the applause  
Come on, show me how much better you are  
So you deserve some applause  
'Cause you're so much better

She took him faster than you could say "sabotage"

"Alex," Carson said after coming back on stage and hugging Danielle, "What did you think?"

"I think a bit of a happy dance is in order," Alex said, dancing in his seat a little. "She is mine, and not yours!" he sang, pointing at the other coaches.

Adam rolled his eyes, "Just because her voice is amazing and her performances are flawless doesn't mean she's going to win. I think someone on my team will beat her."

"I'm sorry, what?" Alex asked, "You lost me after 'her performances are flawless'."

"Hey, Danielle," Blake said over the argument happening two chairs away from him.

"Hi, Blake," she smiled, still laughing at Adam and Alex.

"I'm sad you didn't pick me."

"I'm sorry," she pouted jokingly, "I just had to go with my gut."

Since they were short on time, Carson unfortunately had to interrupt Alex and Adam, who were still bickering. He spoke to the camera, telling the viewers the number to call to vote for Danielle and let her leave the stage. Blake quickly stood up and motioned for her to come give him a hug, which she happily did.

"Seriously though, that performance was amazing," he told her. She smiled widely and thanked him, trotting backstage to find Briana.

~

Songs used:  
"Time-Bomb" by All Time Low  
"Better Than Revenge" by Taylor Swift


	30. Destined to Explode (Alex Gaskarth) - Part 5

Live Rounds; Final 8

The contestants were preparing for the holiday episode of the show, running around like madmen trying to get ready on time. It was the final eight, which meant there was only this performance and next week's were the last ones before the finale.

Today was the special holiday episode of the show and everyone was asked to sing Christmas songs. For Briana, it was a no-brainer what song she wanted to do. She'd already done two All Time Low songs before, but hey, a third one never hurt anybody. Danielle had followed Briana's footsteps, choosing a song from the same album – Punk Goes Christmas.

Both girls were understandably nervous – being so close to the finale tended to have the effect of people – but they were just happy the other was still in the competition. Jack and Aiden had since been eliminated, but they stayed in contact with the girls, so they weren't too upset – although the duo definitely didn't deserve to be voted out so early.

"God, I can't believe you picked a song off the same album as me," Danielle scoffed, trotting over to hair and makeup.

"I picked the song first," Briana laughed, shoving her best friend as she sat down in the chair beside her. She paused for a moment.

"You have no proof of that," she said. Chloe and the hair stylist couldn't help but laugh at the pair.

"Alright," the hair stylist, Julia, said, "What were you guys thinking of doing with your looks?"

"Something simple," Briana shrugged, "I'm singing Fool's Holiday by All Time Low, so it's kind of a sad song, but it's more of an upbeat kind of sad song, you know what I mean?"

Julia nodded, "I'm thinking we'll just loosely curl it and maybe pull back some of the hair from the front, leaving a bit to frame your face."

"Let's do it," she smiled.

~

"Danielle!" Briana squeaked once she found her friend, rushing over to her as fast as a person on heels can go, "I need help!"

"With?" she asked, turning around. She motioned down to her untied shoe, making Danielle laugh. "And you couldn't do this because?"

"I'm afraid to stand on one heel," she pouted. Danielle simply rolled her eyes and smiled, dropping to the floor to tie the shoe. "Thank you," she sighed as she stood back up.

"Briana!" a producer came over, "You're up!" She took a deep breath and nodded, beginning to follow him.

"Knock 'em dead!" Danielle called after her, making her smile as she quickly went to her mark on stage.

"And now," Carson told the camera, "Here's Briana Weir with Fool's Holiday." The lights dimmed and then the music started.

I know I've been a real bad guy  
My name's made the list more than a few times  
You could light up a candle for every mistake that I've made  
And I'd follow them home to you on the pity parade

For years and years, I've pushed you aside  
But never again

Wrap me up like a present and put me away  
And when it gets cold, I'll be yours  
Let the bells ring on a Fool's Holiday  
I swear that I'm more than just broken promises

Decorations can change like tinsel and ribbon, so  
Do not open 'til you've got forever to spend  
With me on a Fool's Holiday

I've always lived too selfishly  
Nobody's perfect, babe  
But I never tried to be

So every second I've poisoned  
And all of the minutes you spent on me  
I'll give my whole life's worth of hours  
To fix what I've broken in the first place, yeah

For years and years, I pushed you aside  
But never again, so

Wrap me up like a present and put me away  
And when it gets cold, I'll be yours  
Let the bells ring on a Fool's Holiday

I swear that I'm more than just broken promises  
Decorations can change like tinsel and ribbon, so  
Do not open 'til you've got forever to spend  
With me on a Fool's Holiday

Alright!  
Come on!  
Keep it going now!

Tie me in ribbons and put me away  
Know that I'll always be yours  
Bells will ring on a Fool's Holiday

Wrap me up like a present and put me away  
And when it gets cold, I'll be yours  
Let the bells ring on a Fool's Holiday  
I swear that I'm more than just broken promises

Decorations can change like tinsel and ribbon, so  
Do not open 'til you've got forever to spend  
With me, oh  
Do not open 'til you've got forever to spend  
With me on a Fool's Holiday

"Yes!" Alex nearly shouted when Briana smiled widely to signal she was done with her performance, "Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!"

"Is that all you can say, man?!" Adam sassed.

"That's all I need to say! Did you hear that?! That was amazing!"

"My team was still better," Blake shrugged.

"On what planet was any performance better than that?!"

"Um, I don't know what planet you're living on, but here on Earth, my team has been killing it tonight."

"Unfortunately," Carson chuckled, interrupting the two bickering coaches, "We don't have time to sit in on this argument. If you want Briana to stay in the competition, call or text the number on your screen or go to nbc.com/thevoice to vote."

Briana smiled at the camera before Carson let her walk offstage. Her coach was quick to jump up and give her a hug.

"I know I say this every week, but that was seriously the best performance I have ever seen you give," Alex said in her ear.

"Thank you so much," she grinned, letting go of him to go backstage, immediately taking off her heels and groaning in relief.

~

"And for our final performance of the night," Carson announced, "This is Danielle Myers with This Christmas (I'll Burn It to the Ground)."

"Deck the halls with boughs of holly  
Fa la la la la la la la la  
Tis the season to be jolly  
Fa la la la la la la la la..."

Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!  
Oh my God, it's here, this awful time of year  
How I hate the snow is falling  
Wealthy neighbors bragging about the gifts they're getting

"Hey, Jack!" they say, "Let me take a guess now  
You're getting K-Mart clothes again!"  
And then, I had a revelation  
This is my chance to sew their lips clean shut with fear

Because

This Christmas, I'll burn it to the ground  
This Christmas, Santa's skipping town  
This Christmas, everything will change  
When they see the flames this Christmas day

Christmas lights alive, lighting up the night  
Meanwhile, I'm inside my room conniving though  
The cheer and laughter that resumes

Tonight's the night, I have to do it right now  
So I will strike when all's asleep  
And creep, sneaking through your chimney  
Saint Nick is gone for now

Up on the housetop, gifts are mine  
Kiss your Christmas tree goodbye

Because

This Christmas, I'll burn it to the ground  
This Christmas, Santa's skipping town  
This Christmas, everything will change  
When they see the flames this Christmas day

Oh, make fun of me, will you?  
Well, I'll show you what true misery feels like  
You see, as my idol once said, everything burns  
Hey, everyone, look outside your window  
I have a surprise for you

Imagine this  
One thousand gifts and sixteen trees  
All lay in a heave in a cul-de-sac  
I strike my match and I drench the trail of gasoline

This Christmas, I'm ending the game  
This Christmas, what a crying shame  
This Christmas

Because

This Christmas, I'll burn it to the ground  
This Christmas, Santa's skipping town  
This Christmas, everything will change  
When they see the flames this Christmas day

Danielle had a little smirk on her face as she finished the song. Carson came back to stand beside her in front of the coaches and they waited for the screams of the audience to die down before trying to speak. Miley was the first to say something.

"Everyone on Team Alex has done non-traditional Christmas songs," she said thoughtfully, "And I don't know why, but the performance of that song was my favorite out of all of them and I think of the night, honestly."

"Thank you," Danielle smiled.

Alex went on, "I'll admit I was a little nervous when you told me you had chosen this song because I know people prefer the happier kind of songs about Christmas, but I really think you delivered with this."

"You know what?" Adam spoke up, "If that rendition isn't in the Top 10 on iTunes by tomorrow, I'm just gonna quit; I will leave this show and never come back."

"America, please don't buy this song!" Blake chimed in, making Danielle laugh, "I'm begging you! I don't want to have to deal with Adam anymore!"

"Oh, whatever, Shelton," Adam replied, sitting back in his chair, "You can't get enough of me."

Carson shook his head and began reciting his voting speech once again for the camera.

~

The next night; Eliminations

With every passing moment, Briana's heart started beating harder and harder. By the time it came down to only her and four other people, she was a nervous breakdown waiting to happen. Danielle had obviously been voted to move on to the final six, and Briana was praying that she had been too.

"Now it's time to find out who the first person not going through to the final six," Carson paused. Briana began chewing on her inner cheek, the anticipation eating away at her. "Dominick, I'm sorry, but you've been eliminated." She let out a sigh of relief for herself, but she was sad to see Dominick go as well.

And that was when it hit her: she was going to have to go through The Voice's instant save. Carson explained everything to the viewers as he did every week. Just before they went to commercial break, voting opened for the next five minutes.

"Welcome back to The Voice," Carson had to say in a rush due to being short on time, "Voting is closed, so everything after this point will not count. Alex, Adam, these three are on your teams; Do you have anything to say?" The two men quickly offered their advice and Carson went on. "America has instantly saved..."

Briana felt like screaming at him to just say who made it already. She honestly couldn't handle the wait anymore. Her heart was beating so hard and she could feel it in every inch of her body; She was sure everyone else could hear it as well.

"Briana Weir!" Carson announced.

She let out the biggest breath she had ever held, nearly in tears. She hugged the two contestants who had been voted off before going to walk offstage. Alex hurried to hug her after letting out a sigh of relief of his own, happy she was still in the competition.

~

Songs used:  
"Fool's Holiday" by All Time Low  
"This Christmas (I'll Burn It to the Ground)" by Set It Off


	31. Destined to Explode (Alex Gaskarth) - Part 6

Live Rounds; Final 4

The building was buzzing with excited nerves, everyone getting ready for the show tonight. It was the semi-finals – the last show before the winner of The Voice would be named. Briana felt like she was going to throw up, taking deep breaths as Chloe was doing her makeup.

"You okay?" Chloe asked. Briana chuckled under her breath, relaxing a bit.

"Fine," she nodded, "Just a little nervous."

"You're going to do great; You always do."

"I know, but there's always that thought that I might mess up in the back of my head."

"Whoa there!" everyone in the room looked up at the door and found Danielle coming in, "Are we self-loving in here without me?"

"Not anymore," Briana laughed, earning herself a light slap to the arm as her best friend sat down in the chair beside hers.

"You're always nervous about forgetting the words or something," the brunette shook her head, "And then you always kill the performances."

"So do you!" she giggled, reaching over and hitting Danielle's leg. She rolled her eyes, turning back toward the mirror as Julia started fixing her hair. "Hey, which 5SOS song are you doing again?" Briana asked randomly.

"Vapor," Danielle replied. At that moment, one of the producers happened to be walking by the room and heard her answer.

"You're doing a 5SOS song already?" Frankie gave her a puzzled look.

"Yeah..." she trailed off, "What do you mean already?"

"Well, you know they're on the show tomorrow night-" Danielle obviously nodded, having been looking forward to this day since the contestants found out about it last week. "-and you're gonna be singing with them."

"I-I'm sorry?" she choked as she gasped slightly.

"You're singing Broken Home with them tomorrow," the producer smiled at her.

"No, I'm not," Danielle shook her head rapidly, "You see, I am not worthy of being on stage at the same time as 5 Seconds of Summer, let alone singing the single most heartbreaking song I have ever heard in my entire life."

"Come on, Danielle," Briana laughed, "Think about it: When are you ever going to get this opportunity again?"

"When I become ridiculously famous and they ask me to open for them on their next tour," she stated matter-of-factly, clearly having imagined a moment like it plenty of times before, "Then I'll sing with them all the time and Michael will try to annoy me by constantly quoting Mrs All American until he realizes it's impossible and he'll end up falling in love with me and we'll all live happily ever after." Everyone in the room looked at her with confused expressions for a moment before Briana burst into a fit of giggles.

"Yeah," she nodded, "Just in case that doesn't happen though, you should probably go ahead and sing the song with them."

~

Later that night, the contestants were getting ready for the show. Briana and Danielle were in wardrobe, picking out their outfits.

"What if you did like, a dark, flowy dress?" Briana suggested to her best friend, "I feel like it would fit the mood of your song."

"All these ones are long though," Danielle sighed, flicking past each hanger, "And you know how I feel about long dresses."

"Yeah," she snickered, "Wouldn't want to relive week seven again."

"I told them not to put me in that dress!" she whined.

"Oh, come on, everyone's tripped over themselves at least once in their life!"

"On live TV?" Danielle raised her eyebrows, "I still haven't heard the end of that!" Briana couldn't help but laugh, shaking her head and turning her attention to the clothing rack in front of her.

"Danielle," the two girls heard the stylist, Lillian, say, "I heard your dilemma and I think I found the perfect dress for you." She handed the piece of clothing to Danielle and ushered her behind the curtain so she could try it on. "Alright, Briana," she went on, "What about you?"

"I have no idea," she sighed, "None of these clothes scream Miss Mysterious to me."

"You know," Danielle said thoughtfully, "I don't know why, but whenever I think of the song, I think of red and I think of velvet."

"I think we actually do have a red velvet dress," Lillian chirped, trotting over to a different clothing rack. She came back and handed the dress to Briana, letting her hold it until Danielle was done changing.

"This lace is very itchy," she stated as she walked back out into the rest of the room, "But I don't know if I can get this dress back off without ripping it, so I'm just gonna keep it on until after the show." Briana and Lillian laughed at her before Briana went to change as well.

After both girls were finished with outfits, they went into the seating room where the other contestants were before they were all called onstage.

"Whoa!" one of the other girls, Bailey, whistled as Briana and Danielle walked into the room, "Look at these fine ladies!" The girls smiled and rolled their eyes as everyone watched them plop down side-by-side on the couch.

~

About an hour later, the contestants had come back into the seating room, having just gone through the show's introduction. They all talked for a while as Frankie was coming in and out, calling out names of people who were performing next.

Somewhere in the middle, Danielle's name was called and she followed the producer to the stage. As Carson was introducing her, Frankie sent her out to get into place.

"And now, singing Vapor, here is Danielle Myers," Carson said, turning as the camera panned away from him and over to center-stage.

I'll take what you got, got, got  
I know it's not a lot, lot, lot  
'Cause I just need another hit  
You're the thing that I can't quit

It was dark for the first couple lines, then the blue-tinted lights turned on. People in the audience cheered, making the girl onstage grin as she kept singing.

You got what I want, want, want  
Here and then you're gone, gone, gone  
If you told me that we were through  
You know that I would break the truth

I want to breathe you in like a vapor  
I want to be the one you remember  
I want to feel your love like the weather  
All over me, all over me

I want to print our hands in the pavement  
Savor your words – I won't ever waste them  
Look in your eyes and know just what you meant  
So lie to me, just lie to me

So talk, talk, talk  
Well, tell me what I want, want, want  
If I don't look into your eyes  
It's almost like a perfect lie

So don't stop, stop, stop  
We'll take another shot, shot, shot  
'Cause you know you got perfect aim  
I wanna feel you in my veins

I want to breathe you in like a vapor  
I want to be the one you remember  
I want to feel your love like the weather  
All over me, all over me

I want to print our hands in the pavement  
Savor your words – I won't ever waste them  
Look in your eyes and know just what you meant  
So lie to me, just lie to me

Make it sound so sweet  
When you lie to me  
Make it sound so sweet  
When you lie to me

I want to breathe you in like a vapor  
I want to be the one you remember  
I want to feel your love like the weather  
All over me, all over me

I want to print our hands in the pavement  
Savor your words – I won't ever waste them  
Look in your eyes and know just what you meant  
So lie to me, just lie to me

Make it sound so sweet  
When you lie to me  
Make it sound so sweet  
When you lie to me

The crowd cheered again as Carson met Danielle on the stage.

"That was awesome," he told her, hugging her. She thanked him happily and they both turned toward the four coaches. "What did you guys think?" he asked them.

"You know, I know the boys in that band," Alex said.

"Oh, here we go with Blake Shelton, Junior!" Adam exclaimed dramatically, "Are you also from Australia? Do you live with them?" Blake simply laughed loudly at the comment, letting Alex go on.

"No," the singer rolled his eyes, "But I do know they're gonna be upset that that version of the song was way better than theirs. They're gonna buy it and never stop listening to it."

"Well, I don't know about that," Danielle laughed.

"If they aren't listening to it, I certainly will be," Miley grinned. The singer on stage smiled again, thanking her.

Carson began his voting speech and Danielle looked into the camera with a smile until he was finished. He then let her leave the state and sent the show to a commercial break.

~

Near the end of the show, it was finally Briana's turn to perform. She followed Frankie out to the stage, waited for the lights to dim as Carson spoke to the camera, and then trotted out to her place.

"And now, for our next performance, here is Briana Weir with Miss Mysterious," Carson announced.

Miss mysterious, who are you?  
Who's the girl behind those eyes?  
Just a stranger in disguise

Miss mysterious, who could you be?  
Where's the ghost of what we had?  
Did you erase it from your past?

So I pointed in every direction, oh, well  
Looking for answers I'll never know

I said, "Go, run for your life  
And tell me I'm right  
Or let me know when your heart went numb."

I said, "Go, run for your life  
And tell me I'm right."  
The saying goes, "If you love someone, let them go."

Miss mysterious, may I ask?  
Is your sunshine like my rain?  
Is your pleasure like my pain?

So delirious, casting your stones  
With a blindfold to my face  
Hoping that you'll lose your aim

Well, it looked so bright with the lights out, oh, well  
I guess our star forgot how to glow

I said, "Go, run for your life  
And tell me I'm right  
Or let me know when your heart went numb."

I said, "Go, run for your life  
And tell me I'm right."  
The saying goes, "If you love someone, let them go"

Now, baby, you, you broke my heart  
Now how do I get closure when you're only ever closed off?  
Tell me who could take your place  
When these memories are telling me  
That we were not a waste

Now don't even try to tell me that I should just relax  
And when our train derailed off the tracks  
I tried to reach, outstretch my hand but you turned around instead  
So many nights living inside just to connect with you  
Now I'm trying hard to win this, but we've lost all we can lose

I said, "Go, run for your life  
And tell me I'm right  
Or let me know when your heart went numb."

I said, "Go, run for your life  
And tell me I'm right."  
The saying goes, "If you love someone, let them go"

I stole the moon  
I drove through that bleak December  
Baby, baby, just for you  
You were my touch of duality  
And I'll haunt your every dream  
I won't worry 'bout a thing

'Cause if you love someone  
Said if you love someone  
Now if you love someone  
Let them go  
Let them go

"That was so beautiful, I could cry!" Alex practically shouted the moment the song ended and Briana was stood with Carson in front of the coach's chairs.

"Please do," Blake sighed jokingly, "I would love to see that."

"Well, you can't blame me! Did you hear that last note?! That was incredible!" Briana smiled brightly at her coach's reaction.

"You know what I love about you, Briana?" Miley said, bringing her attention over to her, "You manage to take every single song you do and make it your own, but still deliver it in a way that have people wanting more."

"Kinda makes you wish you hadn't given her up, doesn't it?" Alex snickered.

"I know it makes me wish I'd turned for her in the blinds," Adam said to which Blake agreed.

"I'm honestly going to be shocked if you aren't at least in the top 2," the country singer shook his head.

"Thank you," Briana grinned again while Carson was being given the motion that time was running out.

"If you'd like to vote for Briana, call or text the numbers on your screen or go to nbc.com/thevoice," he said as the girl beside him waved to the camera. He allowed her to leave the stage, continuing his speech about watching the next evening for the results.

~

Songs used:  
"Vapor" by 5 Seconds of Summer  
"Miss Mysterious" by Set It Off


	32. Destined to Explode (Alex Gaskarth) - Part 7

Day of Final 4 Eliminations; Noon

As Briana was walking toward the main stage, she could hear Danielle and 5 Seconds of Summer rehearsing for their own performance for that night. The song had just ended and they were talking to each other through the microphones, so they could still be heard outside of the room.

"I don't know, guys," Calum said, "I really like how it sounds, but it's just not..." he trailed off.

"It's not hitting me as hard as it did when we wrote it," Luke chimed in.

"Exactly!" he sighed, happy someone understood what he was trying to say, "If it's not hitting us, it's not gonna hit anyone else."

"Maybe it's because we've been singing it nonstop all morning," Danielle yawned from having to wake up at 6:30 for rehearsals.

"What if you guys sing the verses and Danielle sings the choruses," Briana spoke up, finally making her presence known. The group looked at the girl walking onto the stage. "I'm just here to tell Danielle it's time for lunch," she shrugged when no one said anything as she stopped in front of them, "But it makes sense, you know? You guys are basically telling this girl's story in the verses and if Danielle came in on the choruses, it would be like she's the girl you're telling it about."

"That actually makes a lot of sense," Ashton piped up from behind his drums, "Let's run it like that and see if we like it." Everyone else agreed and Briana hopped off the stage, sitting herself in Alex's chair.

Danielle and the band ran through the song – Briana couldn't help but chuckle when she got choked up at the bridge – and the moment it ended, everyone looked at each other, knowing they just decided how they were going to perform it on the show.

"Danielle!" Briana giggled as they put their instruments and microphones back on their stands – while Ashton simply walked around his drum kit. She got up from the chair and the group gathered in the center of the stage. "You almost made it through!" she teased her best friend, nudging her arm slightly.

"I was already doomed to fail," she sighed, "I never make it through the bridge."

"It's true," Michael laughed, "She's cried every single time we ran through the song."

"It's not funny!" she pouted, "And just to make you look stupid, I'm not gonna cry during the performance tonight."

"Sure, you won't," he scoffed.

"I won't!" she stated defensively.

"Okay," he nodded, clearly still not believing her, "If you can make it through the song tonight without shedding a single tear, I will take you out for ice cream after the show."

"Looks like I'll be getting free ice cream tonight," Danielle looked at Briana with a cocky grin, holding her hand up. The two girls high-fived, making Michael roll his eyes and the other boys simply smile and shake their heads.

~

Two hours later

Rehearsing with The Script honestly felt like a dream to Briana. She'd always wanted to be in this position – singing one of her favorite songs with the band who performs it – but she never thought she'd actually get the chance. And to have the band members compliment her and say they loved how she was delivering their song? Well, let's just say, she could die a truly happy woman then.

When Frankie came to get her for makeup and wardrobe, she truthfully didn't want to leave rehearsals. She did, of course – she didn't have a choice – but she just reminded herself that she was going to sing it with them again in front of America, and somehow, that made walking away from the stage a little easier.

~

Six hours later

Briana was sat in the seating room watching the television with everyone else after the third round of results and Danielle had just left to go onstage. They all knew about her bet with Michael and were eager to see if she could actually get through the entire song without crying, knowing how much it usually affected her.

"We have a very special treat for you all tonight," Carson smiled as he looked into the camera, "Performing a track off of their album Sounds Good Feels Good, here are 5 Seconds of Summer and Danielle Myers with Broken Home."

The lights dimmed and the camera panned over to the group. Calum began playing the first few notes solo until Luke joined in with the first verse. The rest of the instruments came in while Danielle stood near the blonde, patiently waiting for the chorus.

They would yell, they would scream, they were fighting it out  
She would hope, she would pray, she was waiting it out  
Holding onto a dream  
While she watches these walls fall down

Sharp words like knives, they were cutting her down  
Shattered glass like the past, it's a memory now  
Holding onto a dream  
While she watches these walls fall down

Hey mom, hey dad, when did this end?  
Where did you lose your happiness?  
I'm here alone inside of this broken home

Who's right, who's wrong, who really cares?  
The fault, the blame, the pain's still there  
I'm here alone inside of this broken home

This broken home

Wrote it down on the walls, she was screaming it out  
Made it clear, she's still here; are you listening now?  
Just a ghost in the halls  
Feeling empty, they're vacant now

All the battles, all the wars, all the times that you've fought  
She's the scar, she's the bruises, she's the pain that you brought  
There was life, there was love  
Like a light and it's fading out

Hey mom, hey dad, when did this end?  
Where did you lose your happiness?  
I'm here alone inside of this broken home

Who's right, who's wrong, who really cares?  
The fault, the blame, the pain's still there  
I'm here alone inside of this broken home

This broken home

You've gotta let it go, you're losing all your hope  
Nothing left to hold, locked out in the cold  
You painted memories then washed out all the scenes  
I'm stuck in between a nightmare and lost dreams

Hey mom, hey dad, when did this end?  
Where did you lose your happiness?  
I'm here alone inside of this broken home

Hey mom, hey dad, when did this end?  
When did you lose your happiness?  
I'm here alone inside of this broken home

Who's right, who's wrong, who really cares?  
The fault, the blame, the pain's still there  
I'm here alone inside of this broken home

This broken home

As the audience cheered, Danielle had gravitated toward Michael, looking at him with a small smirk. She pointed to her eyes to show him she hadn't cried, making him roll his own. He was obviously fighting back a smile though, holding his hand up for a high-five. She happily gave him one and smiled brightly.

"Good job," he told her, but it appeared as though he just mouthed it since the sound was drowned out by the screams echoing throughout the room.

~

"And now, performing their 2008 hit Breakeven, here are The Script and Briana Weir!" Carson announced with a smile.

I'm still alive, but I'm barely breathing  
Just prayed to a God that I don't believe in  
'Cause I got time while she got freedom  
'Cause when a heart breaks, no, it don't break even

Her best days were some of my worst  
She finally met a man that's gonna put her first  
While I'm wide awake, she's no trouble sleeping  
'Cause when a heart breaks no it don't break even, even, no

What am I supposed to do when the best part of me was always you?  
And what am I supposed to say when I'm all choked up and you're okay?  
I'm falling to pieces, yeah  
I'm falling to pieces

They say bad things happen for a reason  
But no wise words gonna stop the bleeding  
'Cause she's moved on while I'm still grieving  
And when a heart breaks, no, it don't break even, even, no

What am I gonna do when the best part of me was always you?  
And what am I supposed to say when I'm all choked up and you're okay?  
I'm falling to pieces, yeah  
I'm falling to pieces, yeah  
I'm falling to pieces  
(One still in love while the other one's leaving)  
I'm falling to pieces  
('Cause when a heart breaks, no, it don't break even)

Oh, you got his heart and my heart and none of the pain  
You took your suitcase, I took the blame  
Now I'm tryna make sense of what little remains  
'Cause you left me with no love and honor to my name

I'm still alive, but I'm barely breathing  
Just prayed to a God that I don't believe in  
'Cause I got time while she got freedom  
'Cause when a heart breaks, no, it don't break  
No, it don't break  
No, it don't break even, no

What am I gonna do when the best part of me was always you?  
And what am I supposed to say when I'm all choked up and you're okay?  
(Oh glad you're okay now)  
I'm falling to pieces, yeah  
I'm falling to pieces, yeah  
(Oh I'm falling, falling)  
I'm falling to pieces  
(One still in love while the other one's leaving)  
I'm falling to pieces  
('Cause when a heart breaks, no, it don't break even)

Oh, it don't break even, no  
Oh, it don't break even, no  
Oh, it don't break even, no

The audience cheered as Briana hugged Danny and Carson sent the show to a commercial so the other contestants could come out for the next round of results.

~

Later that night

Briana, Danielle, and another contestant were all standing together in front of the camera with Carson standing beside them. They were about to find out which two of them were moving on to the finale and which one was going home.

"The next person moving forward... Jordan Michaelson," Carson announced.

The two girls' hearts nearly stopped as they looked at each other. It was obvious they – as well as everyone else in the room, including the other contestants and coaches – were in utter disbelief that they were the ones in the bottom two. The girls thought they were doing so well in the competition that it was guaranteed that both would be heading to the final round, but clearly, they were wrong.

"We'll be back with the final result after this," he continued. A producer called out that they were off and Alex jumped up from his seat.

"There is no way that they're in the bottom two!" he shouted. Briana and Danielle were still just standing there in shock, not really sure what to do.

"I'm just reading what's on the card, Alex," Carson shook his head, "I can't believe it as much as the next person, but they have the lowest number of votes out of all the contestants tonight."

"You're telling me they went from the highest to the lowest in a matter of one week?" he cocked an eyebrow. The host shrugged, not really knowing what else to say.

"We're back on in 5 seconds!" the same producer yelled. She gave Carson the cue to start speaking and he did.

"Welcome back to The Voice," he said monotonously, "We have one result left; Do either of you have anything to say to your coach?" he asked the girls. The each spoke to Alex briefly before they had to cut them off for time sake. "Alright, here is America's final result," Carson took a breath, "Moving on to the finale is..."

This was it; Briana knew she was done for. There was no way she could beat Danielle – not with the numbers she had on the iTunes charts. Of course, she had some pretty high numbers of her own, but she was convinced that she didn't have enough.

Danielle grabbed Briana's hand and they both squeezed tightly as they waited for Carson to say one of their names. They knew he had to pause for dramatic effect, but it seemed like years before he spoke again.

"Briana Weir!" Everybody's jaws dropped as they clapped. It was like everyone wanted to be happy that Briana made it through to the finals, but they were beyond shocked that Danielle didn't.

Danielle smiled widely as she hugged Briana tightly, but you could still tell that she was hurt she was voted off. Briana simply stood there, still not totally convinced that Carson had said her name.

"Thank you for watching The Voice," Carson said to the camera, "Be sure to tune in next week for the two-hour season finale." The cameras went off and the show was over. Everyone was still sat in their seats, watching the two girls standing beside each other on the stage.

"Dude!" Danielle squealed as she wiped her wet cheeks, "You made it!"

"M-Me?" Briana whispered, more to herself than to anyone around her.

"Yeah, you!" she giggled, "Congratulations!"

"But you dese-"

"So do you," she said firmly, already knowing what was going to come out of her best friend's mouth, "I've got my name out there now; I'll be fine." Just then, Alex came up on stage to hug them. He talked to Danielle briefly before she decided to change out of her outfit and back into her sweats, leaving Briana with her coach.

~

Danielle's POV

Danielle was sitting in front of the mirror, wiping off all the tear stains from her cheeks. She was obviously hurt that she was voted off the show – not that she would dare let anyone else know that – but she was incredibly happy for her best friend. And even though she was upset she lost her chance, Alex had promised he was going to take care of her.

The brunette jumped slightly when there was a knock on the door, having been so lost in thought. She quickly wiped her face again, calling for whoever was out in the hallway to come in. She looked over at the door as it opened and immediately saw blonde hair.

"Hey," Michael smiled at her, coming into the room.

"Hi," she grinned slightly, "I thought you guys left already."

"The others did. I wanted to stick around for the results." Danielle's smile faded a bit. "I'm sorry," Michael told her, rocking back and forth on his feet, "You really did deserve to win."

"Are you just being biased because I sang Vapor?" she let out a breathy chuckle.

"You did really well though! I haven't stopped listening to it since I bought it last night," he admitted shyly.

"Thank you," she whispered with a light blush.

"What do you say I buy you that ice cream now to make you feel better?"

"You're actually going to buy me ice cream?" she asked, furrowing her eyebrows at him.

"Well, yeah," he laughed, "We made a bet. But I still would have taken you even if I won, to be honest."

"That's not how bets work, Mikey," she giggled under her breath. He simply shrugged in response, making her laugh again.

"Come on," he motioned toward the door, "We've gotta get going before all the shops close."

"Actually-" Danielle said, shoving her phone into the pocket of her sweatpants, "I just... I have to do something first if that's okay."

"Yeah, that's fine," he nodded, "I'll see you in a bit." He smiled at her as she passed him, making her happy she was walking away from him so he couldn't see her blush.

~

Briana's POV

The singer was back on the stage after changing in her own dressing room, looking around at the now empty arena. She hadn't even known anyone walked in until she heard the sound of someone's voice.

"I'm sorry, Miss," the person said as authoritatively as possible, "This area is restricted after hours." Briana turned her head and watched her best friend stride over to where she was standing.

"Shut up," she laughed lightly, shoving her shoulder.

"Hey, I just got kicked off the show," Danielle pouted playfully, "You have to be nice to me; I am very fragile right now."

"You don't look fragile," she pointed out.

"You're right; I'm not," she shrugged, "But that's because there's no use in being sad. It's not like we can go back and change the results. Besides, tonight didn't end all that terribly."

"How so?" Briana asked, tilting her head. She noticed her looked over her shoulder, so she turned to look herself. Both girls looked at the blonde-haired guitarist standing at the door.

"You ready?" Michael asked Danielle. She nodded and then looked at Briana.

"Because I've got an ice cream date with Michael Clifford," she whispered her answer with a bright smile, "And I'll still be cheering you on in the finale next week. I'll even sneak backstage if I have to." She hugged Briana tightly, "I'll see you later."

"Can't wait to hear about your date when you get back," Briana snickered, earning an eye roll and a shoulder shove before the brunette trotted away.

~

Songs used:  
"Breakeven" by The Script  
"Broken Home" by 5 Seconds of Summer


	33. Destined to Explode (Alex Gaskarth) - Part 8

Live Rounds; Final 3

The next week flew by – the final three quickly preparing their three songs for the evening as well as going to film their The Voice journey interviews that would play before their final solo performance. Briana and the three girls she brought back for a group performance had just filmed the segment that would play before they went on that night and they were just lounging around. Danielle – who was obviously one of the girls brought back – had gone outside after receiving a text, coming back not even two minutes later.

Since everyone was in the same room, they all looked up as the brunette walked back in with a blonde in tow.

"God, I thought we got rid of you last week!" Briana exclaimed, making Michael laugh.

"I can never stay away from you," he winked at her jokingly.

"This is why Calum is my favorite," Danielle stated as seriously as she could. Michael gave her his best puppy-dog eyes and she sighed as he draped his arm across her shoulders. "Anyway," she said, looking back at the group, "Since we're all here, I've got some pretty exciting news."

"You and Michael are getting married?" Briana snickered.

"Maybe someday," the blonde teased while the girl beside him rolled her eyes, "But that's not it."

"It does have something to do with him though," Danielle commented.

"What is it?" one of the boys spoke up. She looked up at Michael and he motioned for her to go ahead.

"Say hello to the newest artist signed to Hi or Hey Records," she smiled widely. Everyone's jaws dropped but they were smiling just as widely as she was.

"Seriously?!" Briana shouted, jumping up from her seat. Danielle nodded rapidly and she rushed over to give her best friend a hug.

"I thought Alex was gonna try to have you signed to Hopeless," Kristin said.

"He didn't try hard enough," Michael said.

"The band of idiots begged Alex to let me go with Hi or Hey instead," Danielle replied.

"We did not beg."

"I heard you got down on your knees," she smirked.

"Only for you," he winked at her.

"Okay, you two! Take it to another room!" Briana exclaimed, saving everyone from listening to that conversation.

"The only place she's going is wardrobe," Lillian said as she jogged into the room, "You four-" She looked at Briana, Danielle, Kristin, and Mariah. "-Your group is first, so we've gotta get you dressed and ready to go."

"You mean I can't go out in this?" Danielle asked, motioning to her sweatpants and tank top.

"Yeah, I think she looks great," Michael nodded approvingly.

"Well, unfortunately, you're not the stylist for the show, so your opinion doesn't matter," Lillian replied with a sweet smile as everyone else 'ooh'd.

"God, I love the sound of another small bit of Mikey's pride leaving his body," Danielle sighed dramatically. Michael just laughed, shaking his head at her.

"I'll see you before the show starts," he told her, kissing her cheek before Briana grabbed her hand on the way out, making her tell her everything that had been going on with the guitarist.

~

Four hours later; Showtime

"Our first performance of the night comes from Briana Weir," the girls heard Carson announce out on stage, "And she's brought back three crowd favorites to sing with her tonight."

"Alright, Little Mix, let's go!" Frankie said, ushering the girls to get onstage.

"Yeah, because I could realistically pass off as Perrie Edwards ever," Danielle snorted softly, making Briana, Kristin, and Mariah laugh.

The four girls all stood at their microphones, giggling about something they'd been talking about in the video of them practicing before the segment ended and the camera panned over to the group. The lights were off as the music started and Briana waited for her cue to come in, the room brightening up as she did.

(if you care for a reference: jesy's part- briana, jade's- kristin, leigh-anne's- mariah, perrie's- danielle)

Ladies all across the world  
Listen up, we're looking for recruits  
If you're with me, let me see your hands  
Stand up and salute

Get your killer heels, sneakers, pumps   
Or lace up your boots  
Representing all the women  
Salute, salute

Ladies all across the world  
Listen up, we're looking for recruits  
If you're with me, let me see your hands  
Stand up and salute

Get your killer heels, sneakers, pumps   
Or lace up your boots  
Representing all the women  
Salute, salute

It's who we are  
We don't need no camouflage  
It's the female federal and we're taking off  
If you're with me, women, let me hear you say

Ladies all across the world  
Listen up, we're looking for recruits  
If you're with me, let me see your hands  
Stand up and salute

Get your killer heels, sneakers, pumps   
Or lace up your boots  
Representing all the women  
Salute, salute

Attention! (salute)  
Attention! (salute)  
Attention! (huh!)  
Representing all the women  
Salute, salute

Sisters, we are everywhere  
Warriors, your country needs you  
If you're ready, ladies, better keep steady  
Ready, aim, shoot

Don't need ammunition, on a mission  
Now I'll hit you with the truth  
Divas, queens, we don't need no man   
Salute

Sisters, we are everywhere  
Warriors, your country needs you  
If you're ready, ladies, better keep steady  
Ready, aim, shoot

Don't need ammunition, on a mission  
Now I'll hit you with the truth  
Representing all the women  
Salute, salute

It's who we are  
We don't need no camouflage  
It's the female federal and we're taking off  
If you're with me, women, let me hear you say

Ladies all across the world  
Listen up, we're looking for recruits  
If you're with me, let me see your hands  
Stand up and salute

Get your killer heels, sneakers, pumps   
Or lace up your boots  
Representing all the women  
Salute, salute

Attention! (salute)  
Attention! (salute)  
Attention! (huh!)  
Representing all the women  
Salute, salute

You think we're just pretty things  
You couldn't be more wrong  
(We're standing strong, we'll carry on)  
Knock us, but we keep moving up (moving up, yeah)  
Can't stop the hurricane, ladies, it's time to awake (yeah!)

Attention!  
Attention!  
Individuals!  
Originals!  
Huh!

Let me hear you say

Ladies all across the world  
Listen up, we're looking for recruits  
If you're with me, let me see your hands  
Stand up and salute

Get your killer heels, sneakers, pumps   
Or lace up your boots  
Representing all the women  
Salute, salute

Attention! (salute)  
Attention! (salute)  
Attention! (huh!)  
Representing all the women  
Salute, salute

Ladies, the time has come  
The war has begun  
Let us stand together  
And remember, men fight great  
But women are great fighters

Huh!  
Representing all the women  
Salute, salute

The audience cheered wildly as all the girls smiled. Carson came back to the stage as the four came down from their spots to stand with him. Briana obviously stood beside him as he put his arm around her shoulders.

"Incredible performance, ladies!" he smiled, earning a breathless 'thank you' from all of them. "Now, Briana," he said, looking at the girl beside him, "You're in the final three; How are you feeling about tonight?"

"Well, I'm obviously nervous," she laughed lightly, "I think that Jordan, Kyle, and I all are, but I've met some amazing people-" She smiled at the three girls standing with her. "-and I've had incredible coaching with both Alex and Miley-" She then smiled at the two coaches. "-so I think that no matter what happens tonight, I'll know it was all worth it."

"Whatever the outcome, I'm sure you'll be just fine," Carson said, making Briana nod quickly in agreement, "Well, you go backstage and rest for a bit and we'll see you when you come back out to perform with your coach." They hugged each other and Briana and the other girls walked off the stage.

~

Song used:   
"Salute" by Little Mix


	34. Destined to Explode (Alex Gaskarth) - Part 9

"Glitter!" Danielle shouted, making everyone look at her.

"Listen, Danielle," Michael said as he rubbed his ear, "I know this is coming from me, but you're really loud sometimes."

"Maybe that's why you're perfect for each other then," Briana shrugged, going behind the curtain when Lillian handed her an outfit to put on. Danielle rolled her eyes and the guitarist smiled slightly when she laid her head on his shoulder. "Here's a question for you, Danielle," she went on taking off her shirt and replacing it with the new one, "If you were in the final three, what would you be singing tonight?"

"That's such a loaded question!" she groaned, "Do you know how many songs I'd wanted to sing on the show and had to narrow down to one a week!"

"We were roommates," she laughed, "I remember the struggle very well." Danielle sighed, taking a moment to really think about it.

"I guess I'd sing Oh, Calamity!," she finally answered.

"Really?" Michael grinned, craning his neck slightly to look down at her.

"I don't know," she shrugged, "I mean, I was going to do an All Time Low song if I made it through, I just hadn't decided which one. But then I didn't have to pick, so..." She trailed off with another shrug.

"Are you really sure you're over that?" Briana asked.

"I'm fine!" she insisted, "I didn't totally fuck up my audition this year, I made it to the final four, I've finally been signed to a label after trying to for so long..." Michael smiled again, kissing the side of her head. "The only thing I'm bummed out about is that I never got to sing All Time Low," she said.

"Make a YouTube channel and sing it there," she suggested, "Or put it on an EP or something." Danielle hummed quietly, nodding her head in agreement.

"Don't cover Stella though," Michael interjected, "I might marry you right there."

"You say that like it's a bad thing," the brunette scoffed. Briana finally came out from behind the curtain, making Danielle smile brightly. "Beautiful!" she chirped, making her best friend laugh and shake her head.

"Thank you," she replied, "I'm glad I didn't have to get ready three hours in advance for this one though because this shirt is not working with my arms right now." The three other people in the room laughed and Briana left to quickly get her makeup done before her performance.

~

"Coming back to sing with her coach, here are Alex Gaskarth and Briana Weir with Parachute's Kiss Me Slowly!" Carson announced.

Briana would be lying if she said she weren't nervous to be singing this song. Of course, she knew the song inside and out – it was one of her all-time favorites – but something about singing it with one of her heroes was making her feel queasy.

But if she learned anything throughout this entire show, it was how to overcome any obstacles thrown at her and give the best damn performance she could.

Stay with me, baby, stay with me  
Tonight, don't leave me alone  
Walk with me, come and walk with me  
To the edge of all we've ever known

I can see you there with the city lights  
Fourteenth floor, pale blue eyes  
I can breathe you in

Two shadows standing by the bedroom door  
No, I could not want you more than I did right then  
As our heads leaned in

Well, I'm not sure what this is gonna be  
But with my eyes closed all I see  
Is the skyline through the window  
The moon above you and the streets below  
Hold my breath as you're moving in  
Taste your lips and feel your skin  
When the time comes, baby, don't run, just kiss me slowly

Stay with me, baby, stay with me  
Tonight, don't leave me alone  
She shows me everything she used to know  
Picture frames and country roads  
When the days were long and the world was small

She stood by as it fell apart  
Separate rooms and broken hearts  
But I won't be the one to let you go

Oh, I'm not sure what this is gonna be  
But with my eyes closed all I see  
Is the skyline through the window  
The moon above you and the streets below  
Hold my breath as you're moving in  
Taste your lips and feel your skin  
When the time comes, baby, don't run, just kiss me slowly

Don't run away  
And it's hard to love again  
When the only way it's been  
When the only love you knew  
Just walked away

If it's something that you want  
Darling, you don't have to run  
You don't have to go

Just stay with me, baby, stay with me

Well, I'm not sure what this is gonna be  
But with my eyes closed all I see  
Is the skyline through the window  
The moon above you and the streets below (Don't let go)  
Hold my breath as you're moving in  
Taste your lips and feel your skin  
When the time comes, baby, don't run, just kiss me slowly

Oh, I'm not sure where this is gonna go  
But in this moment all I know  
Is the skyline through the window  
The moon above you and the streets below (Baby, don't let go)  
Hold my breath as you're moving in  
Taste your lips and feel your skin  
When the time comes, baby, don't run, just kiss me slowly

The audience members cheered loudly as the instruments faded out. Alex grabbed Briana and pulled her into a hug, making sure she could hear him tell her how proud he was of her. She couldn't help but smile widely – Alex Gaskarth telling her he was proud of her was something she only ever dreamed of being able to hear – before Carson spoke to the two briefly before sending the show to commercial.

And Briana hurried backstage to another outfit change, another makeup change, and more nerves about her final performance on the show.

~

"I don't know what I'm going to do with myself if you don't win!" Danielle sighed dramatically. It was the same scene as before – Briana was in wardrobe, changing her outfit, and Danielle was sitting on the couch a few feet away with Michael.

"Well, if she doesn't, the boys and I can just sign her to our label," Michael mentioned casually.

"Please," she rolled her eyes, "Everyone knows that if she doesn't win, Alex is gonna set her up with Hopeless the second the cameras stop rolling."

"Hey, Alex was going to sign you with Hopeless too," he reminded her.

"But this isn't me we're talking about," she shook her head, "This is Briana Weir; Number one All Time Low fan, would never desert Alex Gaskarth for anything else in the world."

"She has a point," Briana laughed from behind the curtain as Lillian helped her put on her dress, "If I was given the choice between something involving Alex and literally any other thing, I would pick him every time." She missed the cocky smirk Danielle gave Michael, making him roll his eyes.

"You two are annoyingly accurate with each other sometimes – I hope you know that," he said, laying his arm on the couch behind Danielle.

"That's what best friends do," she shrugged, leaning against him, "So what's the outfit choice for this song?"

"Well, when you think of Adele, what do you think of?" Briana asked.

"We could have had it aaaaaaaaaaall!" Danielle sang loudly, making everyone laugh.

"Outfit-wise, smart ass!" she cut her off.

"Red," she answered seriously, "And like...insanely gorgeous dresses."

"Exactly!" she smiled, coming out and showing the two people on the couch her dress.

"God," Danielle sighed, "Just elope with me, please? I need to marry the most beautiful woman in the world right now."

"I can get you guys to Vegas in an hour," Michael chimed in.

"After the show," Briana laughed lightly, looking at her best friend, "It's you and me, baby."

~

While the producers were showing a video of Briana's time on the show, Carson was waiting back in front of the camera to introduce her. She watched on with a small smile, fondly reminiscing along with everyone else, unable to believe all of this was actually happening to her. 

"And now," Carson said when the clip was over, "Here with her final performance of the season, make some noise for Briana Weir!"

When the rain is blowing in your face  
And the whole world is on your case  
I could offer you a warm embrace  
To make you feel my love

When the evening shadows and the stars appear  
And there is no one there to dry your tears  
I could hold you for a million years  
To make you feel my love

I know you haven't made your mind up yet  
But I will never do you wrong  
I've known it from the moment that we met  
No doubt in my mind where you belong

I'd go hungry, I'd go black and blue  
I'd go crawling down the avenue  
No, there's nothing that I wouldn't do  
To make you feel my love

The storms are raging on the rolling sea  
And on the highway of regret  
The winds of change are blowing wild and free  
You ain't seen nothing like me yet

I could make you happy, make your dreams come true  
Nothing that I wouldn't do  
Go to the ends of the Earth for you  
To make you feel my love  
To make you feel my love

And in that moment, as she listened to everyone in the room cheer for her her performance, she knew there was no other place she'd rather be.

~

30 minutes later

This was it; This was the moment everyone had been waiting for: Carson Daily was about to announce the winner of The Voice. Briana truthfully felt like she was going to throw up – then again, it seemed like she always felt like that.

"Coming in third..." Carson paused for dramatic effect, "Kyle Phelps." Briana sighed slightly in relief as she hugged Kyle and told him he was an amazing singer, but when they let go of each other and Kyle walked offstage, her heart began pounding.

"Do you have any final thoughts you'd like to put out there?" Carson asked her and Jordan. Jordan was first to offer his words of thankfulness to Alex for being an amazing coach to him throughout the season.

And then, it was Briana's turn.

"I mean, this isn't going to be much different than Jordan's," she laughed nervously, making Alex smile, "I guess I should start off by thanking Miley-" She looked at her previous coach. "-for being an amazing coach as well and seeing something in me during my audition that none of the other coaches did." Miley smiled, blowing her a kiss as she turned back to Alex. "And thank you, Alex, for taking a chance on me during the knockouts and keeping me on the show and giving me the opportunity to meet some of the most incredible people I've ever met," she smiled, "I never would have made it this far without your guidance and I'll be forever grateful for everything you've been doing and I'm sure you'll continue to do long after this show is over." He blew her a kiss of his own as Carson went on.

"America, the contestant you've chosen to be the next voice winner is..."

Briana could feel her heart still pounding in her chest as she and Jordan stood next to each other, holding the other's hand tightly. And the next few seconds all seemed like a blur.

"Jordan Michaelson!" Carson exclaimed.

Confetti shot out on the stage as the two finalists hugged each other, Briana offering him a congratulatory kiss to the cheek. The room was filled with cheering as the coaches came up on stage to congratulate Jordan for his win as well as Briana for coming so far.

Alex was quick to hug Jordan – obviously excited about being the winning coach in his first season on the show – but he also didn't forget to hug Briana.

"Don't even worry about anything," Alex said in her ear, hugging her about as tightly as she was hugging him, "I'm gonna take care of you."

And maybe she was hurt that she didn't win, but she knew that no matter what happened when she walked off that stage, she was going to be okay.

~

Songs used:   
"Kiss Me Slowly" by Parachute  
"Make You Feel My Love" by Adele


	35. All I Need is You (Ryan Follese) *

Warning: Abuse

~

If I could wish anything  
Close my eyes and count to three  
All I want is you, you, you  
All I need is you, you, you

He sat in his bedroom, staring at the piece of paper on his desk. He had every line of the song written in under five minutes. He'd never written a song that quickly in his life, but he'd always said that writing songs was easiest with the right form of inspiration, but he wasn't jealous in any sense of the word. She was happy and that's all that mattered to him.

You're like the pot of gold  
At the end of the rainbow  
All I want is you, you, you  
All I need is you, you, you

Sure, he was in love with her. He had been since the moment they met, but she didn't know. She would never know. She had a boyfriend and she was the happiest he's ever seen her.

I could give you the world tonight  
We could do anything you like  
If you weren't with him

Okay, maybe he was jealous.

I wish I knew before I knew  
That someone else was loving you, girl  
I wish it could have been me  
Damn, girl, I wish it could have been me

His brother had tried time and time again to get him to tell her how he felt, but he never would. It was the same excuse every time: What if she doesn't feel the same?

"No, Jamie!" he suddenly yelled, "You don't understand! You don't understand what it's like to see the girl you love be in love with someone else!"

"Ryan," Jamie said calmly, "You can't blame her for this. She doesn't know you like her and until you tell her you do, she's going to date other guys."

He sighed and whispered, "But what if she doesn't feel the same?"

"You've used that excuse for far too long, Ryan. Just tell her. She might surprise you," he told him, walking out of the room.

One more thing before you go  
I just gotta let you know  
Girl, I wish it could have been me  
Damn, girl, I wish it could have been me

And I like the way you roll  
So just let the truth be told  
All I want is you, you, you  
All I need is you, you, you

Ryan sighed. Jamie was right. He always had been. He told Ryan the second he found out he liked her that he should tell her, but he didn't. He couldn't. What if she didn't like him in that way? What if she laughed at him? What if she never spoke to him again? He couldn't handle it. She was the closest he's ever been to being truly happy and he wasn't about to risk it all just because of his stupid feelings.

Just like a luxury  
You're one of the finest things  
All I want is you, you, you  
All I need is you, you, you

He pulled his phone out of his pocket and went to his messages. He opened a new message and texted her: Do you want to get lunch tomorrow?

She texted back almost immediately: I'd love to! When and where?

Cafe Coco at noon?

I'll see you there :)

His heart was racing. He was always a bit nervous to be around her, but never like this. He was as nervous as when the band played their first big tour. But he hadn't seen her pretty much since she started dating her boyfriend. He felt guilty about completely shutting her out of his life, but he knew he couldn't handle it. The way she looked at her boyfriend was the way he wanted her to look at him, but she never would.

And I could give you the world tonight  
We could do anything you like  
If you weren't with him

"Hey, Ryan!" Jessica said happily, sitting down across from him the next afternoon.

He smiled slightly, "Hi, Jess."

"What's up?"

"Nothing, just wanted to see how you were doing and catch up since I'm home."

"I'm great now that you're back for a while!" she giggled, "I haven't seen you in forever! I've missed you!"

He smiled shyly, "I've missed you too. How are you and Isaac?"

I wish I knew before I knew  
That someone else was loving you  
Girl, I wish it could have been me  
Damn, girl, I wish it could have been me

"Oh, we're doing great," she half-smiled. She seemed as if she wanted to tell him something, but she chose not to. "Are there any leading ladies in your life?"

"No," he chuckled, "I haven't really had time for a girlfriend, I guess."

"You can always have time for a girlfriend, Ry. You just have to find the right one."

One more thing before you go  
I just gotta let you know, girl  
I wish it could have been me  
Damn, girl, I wish it could have been me

"Hey, Jess... Can I ask you something?"

"Anything, Ryan."

"If the guy you liked was in a relationship with someone else and was really happy with them, what would you do?"

She thought for a moment before answering, "Well, I think I would tell him. It would suck if he didn't feel the same, but life's too short to live it wondering if we could have had something. You never know, I guess. That could be the person I end up marrying," she shrugged before looking at her phone, "Shit, I have to get going. I've got a lot of cleaning yet to do. We should do this again some time?"

"Yeah, definitely," he smiled at her, standing up as she did.

She reached around his neck to hug him and said, "I mean it, Ryan. Tell her. There's no use in living the rest of your life wondering if she felt the same." She pulled back and smiled, "I'll see you again soon. Tell your family I said hi!" He watched as she walked away, sighing to himself as he headed back home.

Girl, just think about how it could be now  
I could rock your world, turn it upside down  
If you want to, then I want to  
Just say the words and I will

Sweep you off your feet til you can't stand  
And be trapped inside of a bad romance  
If you want to, then I want to  
Just take a chance

As she walked away, she couldn't help but somewhat regret the advice she had given Ryan. Of course she was being honest with him, just not as much as she could have been. She's always had a thing for him, but she could never tell him that. He was in a famous band that sold out hundreds of shows a year and had hundreds of thousands of girls chasing after him. Why would he want her when he could have literally any girl he wanted? Plus, she had a boyfriend and she couldn't just leave him for someone else.

She walked quicker than usual back home, but it was too late. She had no idea why Isaac was home so early, but she knew whatever was going to happen when she walked inside that house wasn't going to end well. She opened the door as quietly as she could without seeming too suspicious, only to be greeted by a slap to the side of her face. She would have fallen down if the wall weren't right there. She held her cheek and looked up at Isaac, who was now towering over her.

"Why were you hanging out with that Ryan kid today?" he asked, but she knew he didn't care to know the answer.

"We were just catching up," she said quietly before being hit again, this time falling to the floor.

"What did I tell you about talking to him?" he shouted down at her.

"To not to..." she responded.

"Exactly! And I have to find out through my brother that you were out with him?"

"We weren't on a date, we were just talking," she told him, which only resulted in another punch to the face.

"I'm done with your bullshit excuses, Jessica! Do you think I'm an idiot? I know you like him. I've known for a while now. Why the hell do you think you're not allowed to see him anymore? We're not done talking about this," he glared at her, walking down the hallway.

I wish I knew before I knew  
That someone else was loving you  
Girl, I wish it could have been me  
Damn, I wish

She heard the bathroom door close and realized it was now or never. She saw the opportunity to run away and she took it. She knew where to go the moment she closed the front door behind her. She didn't want Ryan to know that Isaac beat her, but she couldn't stand being beat anymore either.

She ran all the way across town to Ryan's house, hoping at least one person who lived there would be home. She sighed in relief when Adrienne opened the door. Adrienne took one look at Jessica and pulled her inside.

"Ryan! Hurry and get the first aid kit!" she called out before taking Jessica into the kitchen. She grabbed a towel and soaked it in water as Jessica reluctantly hopped up on the counter, still not having spoken a single word. "Jess, what happened?" Adrienne asked, cleaning the cuts on her face.

"I fell," she lied, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Jessica?" she heard Ryan before she saw him, "What happened to you?" He was now right in front of her, taking his mother's place.

"I fell," she repeated. He looked at her, instantly knowing she was lying to him.

"Mom," he turned to Adrienne, "Could you give us some time alone please?"

"Of course," she said, walking out of the room.

As soon as she left, he looked at Jessica again, "What really happened?" All of a sudden, she couldn't find her words. She tried to speak, but nothing came out.

After a few more tries, she was finally able to shake her head, "I'm sorry, Ryan," before she started crying. Ryan instantly wrapped his arms around her as she did with him.

He lifted her off of the counter and carried her up the stairs to his bedroom, lying her on the bed before going to the bathroom to get soap and a clean towel. He came back, kneeling down on the floor beside her. He put the towel on her face, causing her to flinch and groan.

"I know it hurts, Jess, but I have to clean your cuts," he said apologetically.

Once he was done wiping her face, he rubbed in some antibiotic cream and put two large bandages above and below her left eye so the cuts wouldn't get infected. He returned the first aid kit to the bathroom and came back, crawling onto the bed beside Jessica, wrapping his arm around her again as she buried her face into his neck.

"What happened, Jess?" he asked again. She was silent for a few seconds and he continued, "Jessica, you have to tell me. I know you didn't just fall down. You can't get three separate cuts so close together from just falling."

"You're gonna get mad at me," she whispered into his neck.

"I'm not going to get mad at you, just please tell me what happened," he asked, almost desperately.

"Isaac..." she trailed off

"Isaac did that to you?" he asked, more shocked than anything. She nodded slightly and he became angry, "How could he do that to you? You've never done anything wrong in your life!"

"Ryan..." she whimpered at the loudness of his voice.

He immediately lowered his volume and squeezed her tightly, "You should have told someone."

"Don't you think I wanted to?" she asked defensively, sitting up to look at him, "I tried, Ryan. I tried again and again to tell someone but I couldn't. I knew he would find out and everything he's done to me would just get ten times worse. God only knows what he's going to do to me after he finds out about I went to you of all people. He's gonna kill me," she mumbled, starting to get up, only to be pulled back onto the bed by Ryan, who was now sitting up as well.

"What do you mean 'me of all people'?" he asked.

"It doesn't matter," she muttered, not daring to look him in the eyes.

"Jessica, if he's hitting you because of it, it matters and if there's anything I can do-"

"There's nothing you can do, Ryan!" she exclaimed, "Unless you can do something to make me not love you anymore, I'm screwed!"

"You love me?" he asked, a bit taken aback.

She barely nodded, "He found out and forbid me to ever speak to you again. I meant what I said about missing you, Ryan. Just not the way you thought I did."

I wish I knew before I knew  
That someone else was loving you  
Girl, I wish it could have been me  
Damn, girl, I wish it could have been me

"And he hit you...because you were with me?"

"This is not your fault, Ryan," she told him firmly, now looking at him, "You did not do this to me."

"But if I hadn't asked you to hang out, this wouldn't have happened..."

"Ry, I know you don't want to hear this, but it would have happened whether you asked me or not, he just had a reason this time! What you did today was remind me why I put up with it because even though we barely saw each anymore, you were my reason to keep fighting. When I told you that you should tell that girl you like her now because life's too short to wonder, I should have taken my own advice right there." He was about to say something, but she continued, "I love you, Ryan. And not in the way I've told you since we were kids. I'm in love with you and I'm not going to let some psycho, abusive boyfriend keep me from having the guts to tell you and I know you don't feel the sa-" Ryan cut her off, putting his hand on the side of her face that wasn't covered with bandages and pressed his lips against hers.

"All this time..." he began as soon as they pulled away from each other, "All this time, we could have been together if I had just worked up the courage to tell you how I feel about you."

She shrugged jokingly, "Better late than never, I suppose."

He chuckled, kissing her again and wrapping his arms tightly around her waist, "I love you, Jess."

She smiled, laying her head on his shoulder, "I love you, Ry."

The two continued talking quietly when a loud knock on the front door made them jump. Jessica's eyes widened, having a pretty good idea of who was on the other side of the door.

"I know she's in there, Follese!" Isaac's voice thundered through the house.

By this time, Jessica was terrified to the point where she couldn't speak. Ryan took one look at her before calling for his brother. As Jamie ran into the room, Ryan held Jessica's face in his hands.

"Jess, look at me." She finally met his gaze and he went on, firmly stating, "Do not leave this room." She quickly nodded and Ryan stood up, told Jamie to call 911, and went to make sure his sister and parents were safe upstairs. He took a deep breath and began walking downstairs, just in time to watch the door be kicked open.

"Where is she?" Isaac growled once he saw Ryan staring back at him.

"She's not here, if that's what you're concerned about," Ryan said, "I haven't seen her since this afternoon."

"Oh, I'm not concerned," Issac retorted, "I just want to know why she's here."

"I told you she's not here," Ryan said through clenched teeth, "And I'd appreciate you leaving before I call the cops on you for breaking and entering."

"The only thing I'm going to be breaking is your neck unless you tell me where she is."

"Even if she was in this house, you wouldn't be able to get to her," he glared at him, "I'm not going to let you touch her again."

Isaac became infuriated and punched Ryan almost exactly where he had hit Jessica. Everything was happening so fast it was almost as if it was happening in slow motion. It seemed as though as soon as it started, it was over because – as Ryan stumbled backwards but somehow never fell – he could hear police quickly coming up the street.

"I forgot to tell you," Ryan smirked, holding his face, "My brother called the cops before I came down here."

Isaac glared at him and turned to run out the door, but was instead met by four police officers with their guns drawn. They soon had him arrested and in the back of the squad car. One of the officers walked into house and immediately saw Ryan standing there with blood running down the side of his face.

"Oh, I'm fine," Ryan said when he saw the look on the officer's face.

She nodded and began asking Ryan questions, "What exactly happened?"

"Well, my girlfriend's ex-boyfriend hit her today so she came here and I guess he found out where she was and decided to come look for her."

"And is your girlfriend here right now?"

"Oh, yeah! I'll go get her!" Ryan exclaimed.

~

"Why is it so quiet?" Jessica whispered to Jamie, still having no clue what had gone on downstairs. Jamie bit his lip, not quite sure what to say when they heard someone running up the stairs.

Jessica squeaked quietly and Jamie hugged her tighter, both worried that it might be Isaac. As soon as the door opened, all the fear subsided, seeing Ryan standing there.

Jessica jumped up and rushed over to him, "Ryan, what happened to your eye?!"

"I'm fine," he assured her, "There's an officer downstairs. She wants to talk to you."

Jessica nodded and Ryan wrapped his arm around her shoulders, leading her downstairs. She shook the officer's hand and they got to business.

"Your boyfriend was telling me that your ex has hit you previous to this incident?" she asked Jessica.

Jessica looked at Ryan and smiled slightly before turning back to the officer and nodding, "Yes, it happened about an hour ago."

"Does he do this a lot?"

She felt Ryan pull her in closer as she took a shaky breath, "It depends on the day, but it happens at least twice every day."

"I'm assuming you'll be pressing charges then?"

"Absolutely," she told her, "I hope no one has to have to go through what I did."

"Well, we'll call you about court dates and hearings and such when we've set them up and you'll both need to come down to the station sometime soon and fill out some papers, okay?" The couple nodded and gave the officer all the information she needed before leaving with the other officers.

Jessica watched as the cars pulled out of the driveway and Isaac glare at her through the back window and whispered to no one in particular, "It's finally over."

"And you're all mine now," Ryan smiled, hugging her from behind and kissing her cheek.

"As it should be," she giggled quietly, grabbing Ryan's hand and pulling him to the bathroom.

"What are you doing?" Ryan asked.

"I've got to clean your cut, silly!"

Ryan pouted, "But it'll hurt."

"Just think of it as payback," she laughed.

One more thing before you go  
I just gotta let you know  
Girl, I wish it could have been me  
Damn, girl, I wish it could have been me

~

Song used: "I Wish" by Hot Chelle Rae


	36. Make it Count (Jamie Follese)

"We should go to the fair tonight!" your best friend, Katie, exclaimed.

"I don't know," you sighed.

"We all know how much Y/N hates leaving internet connection," your other best friend, Maria, teased.

"I do not hate it," you corrected her, "I simply don't like being without it."

"Well, dear, for the next three hours, you're just going to have to deal with it!" Katie said, pulling Maria out of the room so you could get ready. You sighed again, not really up for the argument that would occur if you said no. 10 minutes later, after brushing your teeth and fixing your hair and such, the three of you were off to the fair.

"What should we do first?" Katie asked when the three of you arrived at the fairgrounds.

"How about the Ferris wheel?" Maria suggested.

"Dear Maria, count me in!" Katie winked at her with a cheesy smile.

"Do we really have to make that reference every time I say something?" Maria asked, rolling her eyes.

"Yes. Yes, we do," Katie replied in a serious tone.

"You guys can," you said, changing the subject, "I'm gonna go waste my money on rigged games for a stuffed animal I could just buy at the store to far less than I'm going to spend trying to win it."

Maria chuckled, "We'll come find you later then."

You almost immediately spotted a good-sized stuffed giraffe at one of the games. You rushed over and saw what the game was. Popping balloon with darts? Sounded simple enough. The giraffe was a prize for hitting 2 of 3 balloons for $1, so you handed the man at the booth a dollar and he gave you your 3 darts. You sighed after not hitting any balloons and pulled another dollar out of your pocket, having no success yet again. 5 minutes and $8 later, you still couldn't manage to hit anything. You reached into your pocket for another dollar before you were being pulled away from the booth.

"No!" you shouted, "I need to win that stupid giraffe!"

"You're never gonna win that thing," Katie laughed, "And I'm hungry."

"The world doesn't revolve around your needs, Katherine," you said, sticking your tongue out at her.

"It does when she's hungry," Maria giggled, "I don't want to have to deal with her when she's cranky, do you?"

Your eyes widened slightly, "Yeah, we should probably eat. I'm hungry too now that I think about it..."

"Probably because you spent 10 minutes throwing darts. You know your aim sucks," Katie laughed loudly.

"The giraffe was calling my name!" you yelled.

"It would be so much easier to just go to the store and buy one, you know," Maria grinned.

"I'm gonna win it," you said confidently.

After you had finished eating, you pretty much ran back to the booth. To your disappointment, the giraffe was no longer there.

"Where's the giraffe?!" you asked the guy working the booth.

"Some guy won it almost right after you left," he answered, smiling apologetically. You frowned, sighing and walking away with Maria and Katie.

"It's okay, babe," Katie said, throwing her arm around your shoulders, "We'll go to the store and I'll buy you one."

A few minutes later, the three of you were walking around looking for something to do when you heard someone behind you shout, "Hey!"

Out of curiosity, you turned around and watched in awe as Jamie Follese ran up to you with the stuffed giraffe you had been trying to win in his hand.

He stopped in front of you, taking a moment to catch his breath before saying, "I've been looking for you for the past half hour!"

You remained quiet for a few more seconds, only opening your mouth to say to Katie and Maria while still staring at Jamie, "You see him too, right?"

"Uh huh," they nodded slowly.

"Ah, you must be fans," he chuckled, "Anyway, I saw you at the dart booth for like, 10 minutes and heard you were trying to win this giraffe and after you left, I thought I would try to win it for you because I noticed you weren't very good. No offense."

"None taken," you laughed nervously.

"I've realized throughout the time I've been going to fairs that some people don't like when others win things for them, so if you don't want it, I understand."

"No!" Katie shouted, "It's fine! She would love it."

"Hey, Katie," Maria suddenly said, "We should probably go meet up with...uh, you know...now."

Katie looked at her for a moment before exclaiming, "Oh! Right! Yeah! They're probably wondering where we are!

"You'll be fine, won't you, Y/N?" Maria asked you as you stared at them. "Great!" she said before you could answer, "We'll see you later!" They ran away and you could hear them giggling as you watched them.

"They're not really gonna go meet anybody, are they?" Jamie asked, looking in their direction.

"Nope," you sighed, just as nervous as you had been when you first saw him.

"So," he started, looking back at you, "Y/N, huh?"

You shivered slightly when he said your name, "Yeah..."

"I like your name," he smiled, "It's very pretty, much like yourself." You blushed, making him chuckle, "Oh, I guess I should give you this, huh?" He held out the giraffe and you smiled, taking it from his hand.

"Thank you," you said, "I would have won it eventually, by the way."

"I was watching you for probably 10 minutes and you didn't hit a single thing."

"I did so! I hit the wall every time!"

Jamie laughed loudly, "Surprisingly enough, I don't think that counts."

"It's all about the effort you put into it, Follese," you giggled, "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go find my idiot friends before they forget to take me home with them. Thanks again for the giraffe."

You turned to walk away when Jamie stopped you, "I think I deserve a little more than a thank you." You noticed a Sharpie sticking out of his pocket and grabbed it, taking his hand in yours.

"There," you said after writing your number on the back of his hand and putting the Sharpie back in his pocket. You smirked when he smiled at his hand and began walking away.

Jamie called after you, "I expect that giraffe to have a name by the time I call you tomorrow!"

You spun around, "No need. I've already named him Jamie."


	37. Words Never Said (Ryan Follese)

"I can't believe I agreed to this," you muttered as you stared at yourself in the mirror before your date, disgusted by what you saw staring back at you. The dress made your stomach look way too big, it was way too short for your liking, it made your thighs look three times bigger, and not to mention how the nonexistent sleeves made your flabby arms stick out even more.

"Well?" your best friend asked, walking into the room. You glanced at him before looking back at your reflection.

"I look awful, Ry," you answered honestly.

"No, you don't," he said.

"Yes, I do!" you exclaimed, grabbing your stomach through the dress. "Look at this! This isn't what girls are supposed to look like! Girls are supposed to be beautiful and have no flaws whatsoever, but I do! I can't lose weight no matter how hard I try, my makeup is always uneven, my hair never stays in place, and we can stand here and pretend that I'm perfect, but I'm not, okay? I'm just not..." you whispered, more to yourself than to Ryan. He sighed, moving behind you and placing his hands on yours, pulling them down to your sides.

"No, you don't," he told you firmly and looked at you in the mirror, still holding your hands, "You never do and you never have. So what if you don't look like a Barbie? You're gorgeous in every sense of the word and any guy would be lucky to date you, let alone call you his girlfriend. The Y/N you see isn't the Y/N everyone else sees. When we see you, we don't see a big stomach or uneven makeup or messy hair; We see a beautiful girl with a beautiful personality who looks perfect the way she is, and we can stand here and pretend that you won't ever see what we do, but you will. I know you will."

"What if he doesn't think that?" you mumbled, choking on your tears.

"He will," Ryan said confidently, "Because he would be stupid not to. Now come on, you're gonna be late." You sighed, picking your bag up from its place on your bed and following Ryan out to his car.

"Why am I meeting this guy at your open mic night thing or whatever it is again?" you asked as Ryan was pulling out of your driveway.

"I told you," he said, "I want to be there to make sure you're safe."

"But you said he's a nice guy. Why wouldn't I be safe?"

"I'm just not taking any chances, Y/N." You shrugged, but didn't say anything.

When you finally got to the restaurant, Ryan looked around for a moment.

"Oh! There he is!" he suddenly chirped. He took you over to a very good-looking guy who couldn't have been older than 23 and said, "Y/N, this is Shane. Shane, this is Y/N. Have fun!" He walked away and you turned toward Shane.

"Nice to meet you," you smiled shyly.

"The pleasure is mine," he smiled back, pulling out my chair for you. You thanked him, sitting down. "So," he continued, sitting across from you, "Tell me about yourself." You went through the typical questions and answers that are usually exchanged during these types of things and you started thinking that you could really see something happening between you two.

~

The date was going really well and Ryan had just come on stage as you got your food. You ordered a fairly large plate of french fries to share while you listened to Ryan sing.

As he was introducing the third song, you reached for another fry, only to have the plate be pulled away. You looked up at Shane and he looked back with a serious expression.

"Do you really need to have another?" he asked.

"I'm sorry?" you replied, raising your eyebrows.

"No offense, but-"

"When is that ever followed by anything even remotely unoffensive?!" you exclaimed, causing everyone in the small building to look at you.

"You don't need to make a scene," he told you in a hushed tone, "I'm just saying you look like you've had enough fries in your lifetime." Your mouth was pretty much wide open at this point.

"If you're trying to say I'm fat, just say it. Don't sugar-coat it!"

"Well, it's not like it would matter! You would probably eat that too if you could!" Your face dropped. You mustered the best smile you could come up with and stood up, grabbing your bag.

"I'm going home," you said, rushing out of the restaurant.

Ryan's POV

Ryan watched as you ran out of the restaurant and looked back at Shane, who was still sitting at the table as if nothing even happened.

"Why?" he asked from his spot on the stage.

"She didn't need to eat all those fries," he said nonchalantly, picking up his cup and taking a drink.

"Don't think about calling her tomorrow," he growled, putting his guitar on the ground and running out after you.

Ryan looked around for what seemed like hours before he finally found you sitting on the ground, leaning against the passenger door of his car.

"Y/N..." he said softly, kneeling on the pavement in front of you.

"Yo-You told me he was a g-good guy," you stuttered, choking on your tears, "W-Why did you lie to m-me?" He sighed, swallowing the lump in his throat and holding your face in his hands, wiping your tears with his thumbs.

"I thought he was too," he whispered, wrapping his arms around you and letting you cry into his neck.

After a few more minutes, you had calmed down and Ryan pulled away, wiping your face again.

"Listen, Y/N," he said carefully, "I know you just want to go home – and honestly, I don't blame you – but I really want you to stick around for the last song."

"I kind of have to," you sniffled, "You're my ride home."

"I am, aren't I?" he chuckled lightly, standing up and holding his hand out to you. You gave him a half smile, taking his hand and he pulled you up.

You brushed the dirt off of the back of your dress and Ryan draped his arm over your shoulders, taking you back inside. You hesitated before he opened the door.

"Don't think about him, okay? Just keep your eyes on me," he said, squeezing you lightly. You nodded and walked in.

Shane was glaring at Ryan but he ignored him, leading you to the table that was right in front of where he would be standing onstage. He made sure you were okay before making his way back to the microphone.

"Sorry about that," he smiled after picking up his guitar and putting the strap back across his body. He introduced the next song and before he knew it, he was almost done with his set.

Your POV

"For this last song, I wanted to play a new one," Ryan started, "I wrote this about two years ago, but I never told anyone about it. I actually didn't plan on playing it tonight, but I'll never figure out how to bring it up otherwise. This song is about a girl who is very special to me and I don't know whether or not this will ruin what we've got now, but I think she's worth taking the chance." He glanced down at you for a moment before looking back at the crowd and you could just tell it was about you. "This song is called Bleed."

I feel like I'm drowning in ice water  
My lips have turned a shade of blue  
I'm frozen with this fear that you may disappear  
Before I've given you the truth

I bleed my heart out on this paper for you  
So you can see what I can't say  
I'm dying here cause I can't say what I want to  
I bleed my heart out just for you

I've always dreamed about this moment  
And now it's here and I've turned to stone  
I stand here petrified as I look in your eyes  
My head is ready to explode

I bleed my heart out on this paper for you  
So you can see what I can't say  
I'm dying here cause I can't say what I want to  
I bleed my heart out just for you

It's all here in black and white and red  
For all the times those words were never said

I bleed my heart out on this paper for you  
So you can see what I can't say  
I'm dying here cause I can't say what I want to  
I bleed my heart out just for you  
I bleed my heart out just for you

Of course, you were always in awe after one of Ryan's performances because he has such a powerful voice, but this one left you speechless. You knew Ryan would make an amazing boyfriend, you just never thought he could be yours.

You always had a thing for him – although, you would never tell him that. He was your best friend; You weren't going to risk ruining the friendship you had when you knew he didn't feel the same. But he does.

Ryan took a breath and opened his eyes, looking down at you again. He took his guitar and put it on the stand by the wall, walking back over to you and sitting down on the edge of the stage.

"What did you think?" he asked quietly, obviously nervous. You paused and he groaned, putting his face in his hands, "I knew I shouldn't have done that. Oh my God. I'm so sorry. This is going to make everything weird between us now. God, I'm such an idiot! I don't know why I-"

"Ryan!" you shouted, cutting him off as you stood up and walked up to him.

As soon as he looked back up at you, you grabbed his face and pulled it to yours, smashing your lips against his. You heard cheers coming from behind you and felt him smile into the kiss as he pushed himself off of the stage and wrapped his arms tightly around your waist.

When you broke the kiss, he smiled at you hopefully, "This means you feel the same, right?"

You rolled your eyes and smiled, saying, "You really are an idiot," before kissing him again.

~

Song used: "Bleed" by Hot Chelle Rae


	38. Like a Time-Bomb Set into Motion (Jamie Follese)

"Breathe, Y/N, breathe," you whispered to yourself.

"Calm down! Why are you so nervous?" your best friend Leah laughed as you were walking toward the meet and greet room before the concert.

"How are you not nervous?!" you exclaimed.

"Well, I'm not madly in love with one of the band members," she teased.

You entered the room and saw Hot Chelle Rae sitting at a table, looking as flawless as ever, already talking to a few fans. You took a deep breath and walked to the end of the table where Ian was sitting.

"Hi," Ian said happily as you put everything you wanted the band to sign in front of him, "How are you?"

"Good," you managed to squeak.

"Nervous?" Ryan chuckled as Ian passed your things over to him.

"You have no idea," you heard Leah giggle from behind you.

You shot her a glare and Ryan smiled, "No need to be nervous!" He looked over to Nash, sliding everything to him, then looked back up at you, motioning for you to get closer to him. You leaned onto the table and Ryan stood up slightly, whispering in your ear, "If it makes you feel any better, Jamie can't keep his eyes off of you." He sat back down and you looked at Jamie, who looked away quickly, making you turn a light red.

"That actually makes it worse," you laughed nervously.

Nash smiled as you made your way over to him and said hello, signing your things before giving them to Jamie. Jamie looked at you and smiled shyly, looking back down as quickly as he had before to sign the items in front of him. He looked back up and smiled again as he picked your things up off the table and handed them to you. It felt so cliché, but when your hands touched, you swore you saw him blush a little.

"Well, we better get going! Don't want to get a crappy seat for the concert, now do we?!" Leah said, interrupting my thoughts.

"But we didn't even get a picture!" you squealed as she drug you out of the room. You looked at Jamie one last time before you were fully out the door and he looked a little disappointed.

You heard Ryan laugh and shout after you, "Our bus is parked out back! Come find us after the show!"

"What the hell was that about?!" you shouted once you and Leah were in the concert hall.

"You'll thank me later, trust me," she smirked lightly.

~

After the show, you and Leah ran outside to find the band's bus. When you finally found it, there were only a few other girls waiting around, but still no sign of the guys, so you sat down on the curb and talked.

Nash was the first to come outside, so you all crowded around him and talked and took pictures and such. When Ryan came outside, Leah, yourself, and a couple other girls went to talk to him. Ian was next, followed not long after by Jamie. Everyone else was busy with the other three that they didn't even realize Jamie was standing there. After you got your picture with Ian, you went over to Jamie.

"Hi, Jamie," you said quietly. Although you had gotten a bit more comfortable with being around the guys, Jamie still made you nervous.

"Hi!" he grinned widely, happy someone noticed he was outside, "So what's your name?"

"Y/N. I'd ask you what your name was, but I already know," you replied, making him laugh.

"That's cute," he chuckled.

"I try," you shrugged, "A little too hard, actually."

"So... I was wondering if you're not doing anything later, maybe you'd want to-" Jamie was cut off by Leah trotting over.

"Jamie!" she squeaked.

He smiled politely – though he was clearly slightly annoyed that he was interrupted, "Hello!"

"Can we get a picture?"

"Yeah, sure," he said as Leah threw her camera at you. You fumbled around with it, almost dropping it, before turning it on to take their picture. You and Leah switched places so that she was taking your picture with Jamie. It felt like he held you tighter than the other guys, but you simply brushed it off as it just being your imagination.

After your picture, the other girls were finally realizing Jamie was there, so they all came over at once. You didn't really feel like being around a big group of people anymore, so you and Leah decided to wait around a while before leaving in the hopes of meeting Cameron. Sure, he's their guitar tech, but you still wanted to meet him.

~

The next day

You were cleaning up your bedroom when you heard a loud knock on the front door. You rushed to open it, only to see Leah standing there with a huge grin on her face.

"What?" you asked grumpily, still not too happy with her interruptions last night.

"Nice to see you too," she said, walking into your house, "What's got you so annoyed with life?"

"Oh, I don't know," you remarked sarcastically, closing the door, "Maybe the fact that you just had to keep interrupting me when I was finally able to speak around Jamie."

"Have you gotten any calls today?" sh asked, changing the subject.

You rolled your eyes, "No, not that I'm aware of, but I've been cleaning all day, so I haven't really been paying attention."

"Check your phone."

"Why?"

"Just do it!"

"Jesus, fine. Don't yell at me," you sighed. You trotted back to your room, grabbing your phone off of your nightstand where it was charging. You pushed the home button as you walked back out to Leah, "There's nothing on here."

She furrowed her eyebrows and pulled out her phone, "Hold on."

A couple minutes later, your phone started to ring. You stared at the screen to see a number you didn't recognize.

"Aren't you gonna answer it?" Leah asked.

"I don't know the number," you shrugged.

"Answer it!"

You rolled your eyes and mumbled, "Whatever," pressing the green button and moving it to your ear, "Hello?"

The voice on the other end seemed surprised, "Um, hi, is this, uh, Y/N?"

"Yes..." you said slowly.

"Hi! Um, we met last night at the meet and greet. It's Jamie."

You laughed loudly, "You're not seriously trying to tell me you're Jamie Follese."

"Yeah... That's what I'm saying," he chuckled. You looked at Leah with wide-eyes and she just smiled at you.

"Wait, what?!" you screamed.

"That's okay. Didn't need my hearing anyway," Jamie said.

You immediately felt guilty, "Sorry..."

He chucked again, "It's okay. Anyway, about why I was calling.. I was wondering, um, maybe if you weren't doing anything, you would want to go out tonight?" You were speechless. You couldn't come up with anything to say, so you looked at Leah.

"He ask you out?" she asked. You slowly nodded your head and she took the phone from you, "Hi, Jamie! This is Y/N's bestest best friend in the whole entire world, Leah. I'm pretty sure she's currently having what looks to be a mild heart attack, but there's no need for concern, she just can't speak right now. Anyway, she would love to go out with you! ... Yeah. ... Great! She'll see you then!" She hung up your phone and handed it back to you, "Be ready in an hour."

You looked at her wide-eyed again before screaming, "An hour?!" You ran to take a shower, threw on your favorite outfit, and did your hair as quickly as you could.

~

When you got back into the living room, Leah looked at the clock, "45 minutes. That's probably a new record for you."

You laughed sarcastically, "Whatever."

She put three fingers in the air and yelled, "What, whatever!"

You rolled your eyes and heard a knock on the door. Your heart almost stopped as Leah trotted over to the door and opened it.

"Y/N!" she sang, "Your date is here!" 

You rolled your eyes, walking over to the door. You looked at Jamie and when he smiled at you, you were surprised your knees didn't give out.

"You might have to wait for her to start talking again, but she should be good after like, five minutes," Leah told him. You glared at her and she laughed, pushing you over to Jamie.

Jamie just smiled and held out his hand, but you only stared at it. Leah elbowed your side, motioning for you to take his hand. You slowly put your hand in his before he pulled you out to his car.

"So what do you want to do?" Jamie asked as he pulled out of you driveway.

"You didn't plan anything?" you asked.

He smiled, "I did, actually, I just wanted to see if you could still talk."

"Cute," you rolled your eyes.

"I know you are," he grinned, keeping his eyes on the road.

~

About 10 minutes later, Jamie pulled up to a building you didn't recognize.

"If I go in there, I'll be coming back out, right?" you asked half-jokingly.

Jamie shrugged, opening the door for you, "I guess you'll have to find out." You raised your eyebrows at him and broke a smile as you stepped out of the car onto the pavement and he smiled. "You trust me and I like that," he said, sticking his elbow out to you. You linked your arm in his and started walking down a long hallway.

"Well, I figure you wouldn't murder me since it would be pretty bad for your image if you did," you teased.

"I could still murder you and no one would ever know!" he exclaimed, throwing his free hand over his heart.

You laughed, "I might be able to convince you not to murder me though."

"How?" he asked.

"I guess you'll have to find out," you smirked.

Jamie led you to a set of stairs and you walked up, ending up on the roof of the building. There were fairy lights all around the ledge and a table with a dinner already set out.

"Don't worry," he said as he pulled my chair out for you, "The food hasn't been out the whole time."

"So you have a team?" you laughed.

"I guess you could say that," he chuckled.

~

"Dinner was amazing, Jamie. Thank you," you told him as you were standing on your front porch.

"I can't take all the credit," he shrugged, "My mom made it. I tried, but it didn't go well, so she took over."

"Did you burn your house down?" you giggled.

"No!" he said dramatically, "The smoke detector may have gone off, but there was no fire!"

You laughed again, "Well then, tell your mom she makes amazing food."

"Nah, I think you should tell her." You gave him a confused look and he continued, "If you'd like to, that is. I mean, if you'd ever want to go out on another date. With me, of course. But you don't have to. I can just tell her."

You smiled, "Do you always get this nervous around people?"

"Only people I think are really pretty," he answered quietly.

You smiled again, kissing his cheek, "I would love to go out on another date with you, Jamie. Thanks again for tonight. I had a lot of fun."

You turned to open your door, stopping when you heard Jamie say your name. You looked at him and he leaned closer, kissing you. When he pulled back, he looked even more nervous than before, which made you laugh quietly. You quickly kissed him again and he relaxed a bit.

"So, um, I'll see you tomorrow?" he asked.

"Tomorrow, it is," you smiled. He let out a sigh and smiled back, turning to walk back to his car. You waved to him as he pulled out of your driveway before running to your room and calling Leah to thank her for giving him your number.


	39. Everything is Perfect (Jamie Follese)

Your 3-year-old let out a scream in the middle of the airport, running toward the gate where a flood of people were now walking in.

Danielle's head shot up as she yelled, "Brooklyn Marie Follese!" as she had no idea why she had screamed or what she was doing.

Your daughter had begged and begged to go to the airport to get Jamie and Danielle had agreed to take her as she was already going to pick them up anyway and she knew you would kill her if anything happened to your daughter.

It wasn't until she heard her voice squeaking, "Daddy! Daddy!" that she knew what was going on.

Danielle looked at the gates and watched as Jamie picked the little girl up and pressed quick kisses all over her face, making her laugh loudly. She looked around and as soon as she saw her husband, she threw down the small cardigan she was holding, jumped up, and ran toward him. She wrapped her arm around him and kissed him like she hadn't seen him in ten years.

"Welcome home, Nash," she smiled as she pulled away. He returned the gesture, bringing her back in for another hug.

"I missed my two favorite girls," Jamie sighed, "Speaking of my two favorite girls, where's my fiancée?"

"Daddy!" Brooklyn interrupted, giggling uncontrollably, "You're squishing me!"

"Really?" he smirked. Her eyes widened and she let out a loud shriek as he squeezed her some more. She shook her head and smiled at them.

"Excuse me, but where is my girlfriend?" Ryan chuckled, finally speaking.

"She had to work today," Danielle laughed lightly, "But she said to tell you welcome home."

"Uncle Ryan!" your daughter squealed again, reaching for him.

"Brookie!" he smiled widely, taking her from Jamie's arms, "I trust you looked after everything while we were gone."

"Yes, I did!" she smiled proudly.

"Thank you! I'm sensing something in the near future for your excellent work... A cookie, perhaps?"

The 3-year-old started clapping, looking at Jamie, "Daddy, can I?!"

Jamie shook his head, "I don't know. What do you think, Danielle?" He looked at her, "Did she behave while we were gone?" Danielle looked at Brooklyn and she had her bottom lip stuck out.

"We better go get that cookie," she laughed.

"Yay!" Brooklyn yelled happily.

"Wait, I'm here too!" Nash exclaimed, obviously trying not to smile. Brooklyn giggled again, reaching out to him. He took her from Ryan, unable to keep the grin from spreading on his face.

"Hi, Uncle Nash," she told him.

"Hi, Brooklyn," he chuckled, kissing the side of her head.

"Alright, Brooke. Where's Mommy?" her father asked her.

"She was gonna come," she answered sadly, "But then she started not feeling good again, so she's still at Aunt Danielle's house."

Jamie had already known you hadn't been feeling well, of course. There was noticeably something a bit off before the band left for tour four months ago. However, you insisted he go anyway and not worry about you too much; There was a bug going around after all.

"Aw," he pouted slightly, "Did she say what was wrong with her?"

"She was puking a lot. It was really icky," she scrunched her nose.

"Oh, wow. Do you think we should go check on her?" Brooklyn nodded quickly before reaching back to Danielle. She took the little girl back into her arms, setting her down on the ground so she could put her cardigan back on before piling into the car and going back to her house.

As soon as they all walked inside, a light turned on and everyone shouted, "Welcome home!" Ryan, Nash, and Jamie all smiled widely, looking around the room to see their parents, siblings, and Ryan's girlfriend Kate among other close friends smiling back at them. They thanked everyone, hugging them tightly.

"Brooklyn," Jamie said, looking down at the toddler hugging his leg.

"She really isn't feeling good! Promise!" she squeaked, instantly understanding the tone. She let go of his leg and grabbed his hand, pulling him into the living room. Once she let go, she ran over to you and climbed into your lap, "Mommy!"

"Brooklyn!" you smiled.

"Daddy thinks I lied and doesn't believe you're really sick!"

You chuckled, looking at Jamie and gasping, "Brooklyn Follese would never lie!"

Brooklyn stuck her tongue out at him and he chuckled, sitting next to you, "Alright, alright. Brooklyn, I'm sorry I didn't believe you."

"It's okay," she chirped, quickly kissing his cheek before climbing out of your lap and trotting over to Keith and Adrienne.

"How are you feeling?" Danielle asked you, making her way over to the other couch to sit down.

"Better," you sighed, "I still can't keep anything down, but I've been able to move around a lot more." Jamie smiled apologetically at you, kissing your forehead and wrapping his arm around you.

"So you girls up for some baking?" Danielle asked you and Kate.

"What for?" Kate asked.

"Your boyfriend promised Brooklyn a cookie for keeping us under control while they were on tour."

She laughed, "Of course he did. Yeah, I think we can make them happen."

"I may not be able to eat, but I can still cook," you chuckled.

~

After dinner was eaten and all the cookies were gone, everyone made their way to the living room to catch up. Things were winding down and everyone was getting a bit tired, so they decided it would be best to head home before it got dark out.

"Actually," you quickly put Brooklyn in Danielle's lap and stood up just before people began getting up to leave. You turned to face everyone as they patiently waited for you to continue. "I hate to take away the focus from the boys' homecoming, but I have pretty big news."

"Well, dear, what is it?" Adrienne asked.

"I'm sure you're all aware that I haven't been feeling 100% lately so I went to the doctor this afternoon and found out why."

"Babe," Jamie asked worriedly, standing up and taking your hands in his, "Is something wrong?"

You let out a quiet laugh, "No, no, no. Everything is perfect."

"Then what is it?" Kate chimed in.

You smiled at everyone before meeting Jamie's eyes with your own, "I'm pregnant."

He stared at you for a moment and whispered, "We-We're having another baby?"

"We're having another baby," you smiled again.

"We're having another baby!" he repeated excitedly, grabbing your face and kissing you.

"Oh, honey, congratulations!" Adrienne beamed, getting up to give both you and Jamie hugs.

"What does that mean?" Brooklyn asked curiously.

"It means you're going to have a baby brother or sister," you answered.

Brooklyn scrunched her face up, making you smile. You and Jamie sat yourselves on your knees in front of Danielle so you were eye level with your daughter.

"You know how your friends come over and play sometimes?" you asked. She nodded and you went on, "It will be like that, except they'll never have to leave."

"But what if you like the baby more than me?" she sniffled. You smiled sadly at her, feeling your heart sink.

Jamie picked her up and held her in his lap, "You love Grandma and Grandpa, right?" She obviously nodded her head and he continued, "And you love Aunt Anna, Uncle Ryan and Aunt Kate, and Uncle Nash and Aunt Danielle, right?" She nodded again. "See? You can love a lot of people at the same time. Mommy and Daddy will still love you very much, Brooklyn. Nothing will ever change that."

"I love you, Daddy," she said, her voice muffled as she pressed her face against his neck, hugging him tightly.

"I love you more, princess," he smiled, standing up. "Well, we better get going. It's getting pretty late and someone doesn't like being out when it's dark," Jamie said, nodding toward you.

You giggled as he held his free hand out to you, pulling you up off the floor, "You don't like it either."

"Children," Danielle interrupted, chuckling, "Do I need to drive you home?"

"Now, now," Jamie said dramatically, "I am the man in this relationship and I will be the one to transport my family home safely." She shook her head and smiled, hugging the both of you and lightly kissing the top of Brooklyn's head.

She laughed lightly again, "Looks like you won't have too much trouble getting this one to bed." You looked at your daughter and saw she was already fast asleep on Jamie's shoulder.

You smiled, quietly saying, "Goodnight, guys," making your way to the car to go home.

Once you got home, Jamie took Brooklyn out of her car seat and carried her to her bedroom while you got ready for bed.

When Jamie came back, he threw himself on the bed beside you and sighed, "I'm beat."

You looked at him for a moment before saying, "I love you."

He kissed you, "And I love you." You smiled as you cuddled as close to him as you could get and drifted off to sleep, wondering how you got so lucky.


	40. My Heart is Yours (Nash Overstreet)

He didn't like you, you didn't like him; That's all there was to it. No one knew why you two hated each other so much and to be honest, you weren't so sure yourself. You had tried to be nice to him, such as picking up his pencil for him when it rolled underneath your desk and giving it back to him, but he would always come up with some snide remark about something completely irrelevant.

It was the day before prom and while everyone else was excited and doing last minute things, you were sitting in your bedroom, mindlessly scrolling through your timeline on Twitter and listening to music. This is what usually filled your weekends and prom was the last place you wanted to be.

Your phone began to ring and you looked at the caller ID, noticing it wasn't a number you recognized. You shrugged, pressing the green button anyway.

"Hello?" you answered.

"Will you go to prom with me?" Nash asked quickly.

"I'm sorry?" you asked, more confused than anything.

"I know it's kinda last minute, but I'm desperate and I need you to pretend to be my date," he told you.

"Why?"

He sighed, "If everyone finds out I don't have a date tomorrow, I'll never hear the end of it.

You thought for a moment before shrugging, even though he couldn't see you, "Fine."

"Wait, for real?" he asked, shocked.

"Why not? I've got nothing better to do."

"You weren't planning on going?" He sounded almost amazed.

"No, I wasn't, and I'd like to end this conversation before you make some smart-ass remark and I change my mind," you rolled your eyes. It wasn't your intention to come off as rude – in fact, you had no idea where it came from – you just wanted to end the call before he started insulting you.

"Okay, thank you so much!" he exclaimed, sounding relieved, "I'll pick you up at 7:30?"

"Sounds good," you told him. As soon as he hung up, you immediately called your best friend. "Danielle!" you yelled into your phone as soon as you heard her pick up.

"Eardrum," she laughed, "What's up?"

"You'll never believe who just called me!"

"Barack Obama! Tyra Banks! No!" she gasped, "Hunter Hayes!"

"No, no, and I wish," you smiled, "It was Nash."

"What?" she shouted, "Why did he call you?!"

"He just asked if I would be his fake date to prom." She screamed again, hanging up. "Wait for it," you said to yourself right before hearing your front door open, smiling. "Come in!" you shouted, walking out of your bedroom.

"Why didn't you tell me he called you?!" Danielle exclaimed, pulling you outside and across your lawn to her house.

"I did," you chuckled as she pushed her front door open, "I called you literally right after I hung up."

"Well, why aren't you out looking for a dress?!" she shouted, grabbing her keys and bag off of the kitchen counter and dragging you back out to her car.

"Obviously because we're having this conversation."

She spun around to face you, pointing at you, "This is not the time for jokes."

"Then what is it the time for?" you asked as you two got into the car, trying not to laugh.

"It's time for dress buying!" she answered, starting her car and pulling out of her driveway.

"You didn't even let me get my wallet!" you laughed, "I have no money!

"Dude, don't even worry about it. I've got you covered."

"Danielle," you shook your head, "I can't let you buy me a prom dress."

"Too bad," she smirked, "Because you won't have a ride home if you don't."

"I'm going to have to at least pay you back."

"Take me to lunch on Sunday and we'll call it even."

You laughed lightly, "McDonald's?"

She sighed dramatically, "You know me so well."

~

"Why do I have to do this again?" you asked when Danielle threw yet another dress over the dressing room door.

"Because I know things," she stated.

"And what kinds of things would that be?"

"Just things." You could tell she shrugged.

"Why do I have to try though? I didn't even plan on going."

"You've got to look like you're about to walk some huge red carpet event."

"Who am I trying to impress, Prince Harry?" you asked sarcastically opening the door of your dressing room.

"Nash, obviously," she replied before picking up another dress and handing it to you.

You laughed loudly, "Why would I want to impress him? I couldn't care less about what he thinks!"

"I'm not stupid," she told you, "I know you like him." She pushed you into the room to try on the dress.

You sighed, not bothering to put up a fight; She was right and she knew it. It was clear that's why you agreed to go to prom with him in the first place even though you were previously set on not going at all. This was the closest you'd ever get to an actual date with him, so why not take the opportunity? You two would go back to hating each other the next day anyway – you might as well take advantage of him pretending he likes you for one night.

~

The next night, Nash arrived at exactly 7:30 to pick you up. You were just about finished getting ready, so he waited downstairs with Danielle, her date – Nash's friend Ryan – and your parents. You took one last look at yourself in the mirror before grabbing your purse and heading downstairs.

"Oh, she's coming!" your mom exclaimed.

"Mom," you groaned, "You promised."

"Sorry," she smiled as you reached the bottom of the stairs. You quickly glanced over at Nash and noticed he was trying not to smile. You shook it off – it probably didn't mean anything anyway. "Picture!" your mom said.

"Mom!" you squeaked.

"Just one, I swear!" You sighed as she got out her camera and the group piled together in front of the door.

You felt Nash's arm move across your waist slightly, sending chills throughout your body. After she took the picture, you kissed her and your dad goodbye and you all set off for prom.

~

The night was actually going really well aside from the occasional awkward slow dance with Nash.

About two and a half hours later, you were getting tired, so you quickly went to the bathroom then back out to Danielle.

"Hey, I think I'm gonna go home," you told her.

"How come?" she pouted.

"I'm just tired," you shrugged, "Nash is ignoring me like I knew he would anyway and I don't want you to feel like you have to be with me all night."

"Do you want me to take you home?" she asked.

"Nah, you stay and have fun! I'll just call my dad," you smiled.

She gave you a hug, "Text me so I know you got home safe."

"Okay, Mom," you teased. She stuck her tongue out at you before making her way back to Ryan.

You began to pull your phone out of your purse to text your dad, but before you could, a guy walked up to you.

"Leaving already?" he asked with a slight smirk on his face.

You gave him a look, "Um, yeah. It's getting pretty late and I'm tired."

"I'll take you home."

You smiled politely, "Oh, no, that's okay. I was just about to-" You were cut off by him grabbing your wrist and pulling you out of the gym. "What the hell?!" you squeaked, trying to break free. He made it to the curb just before reaching his truck when you heard someone run outside behind you.

"Hey!" Nash yelled, "What are you doing?"

"Nothing. She just wanted to go home, so I was going to take her," the guy answered as he unintentionally loosened the grip.

You took the chance to pull your hand away and run over behind Nash, wrapping your arms tightly around his waist and pressing your face into his back.

You felt Nash's arms cover yours protectively as he narrowed his eyes at the guy, "She is my date and I will be the one to take her home."

The guy just rolled his eyes, mumbling something you didn't catch before angrily getting into his car and driving away. Nash tried to turn around, but your grip on him was too tight.

"Y/N," he said quietly, "He's gone." You let go just long enough for him to turn before you wrapped your arms around him again.

"Thank you," you mumbled into his shirt.

"You're welcome," he responded, wrapping his arms around you and resting his head on yours.

Once you had calmed down enough to the point where you could let go of Nash without shaking, you gave him an almost questioning look.

"Why?" you asked simply.

"Why what?"

"Why did you come looking for me? Why not just let him take me so I would be one less inconvenience in your life?"

He gave you a confused, almost shocked expression, "You've never been an inconvenience."

"Then why do you hate me so much?" you muttered, sitting down on the curb. You heard him sigh before he sat down beside you.

"Honestly?" he said, looking at you, "I don't. I guess I just didn't want my friends always teasing me about liking you simply because I was being nice. I knew it was wrong, but I guess that's what I used to convince myself that what I was doing was okay despite however it made you feel and I'm sorry."

After a couple minutes of silence, you quietly spoke, "Does this mean we can be friends or do we have to go back to hating each other?"

"I don't think we can be friends," he answered.

"Oh," you said quietly, looking down at your hands.

You heard Nash chuckle lightly and he continued talking, "I don't think we can be friends because it would be too weird for me. There's always going to be a part of me that wants you to be my girlfriend, but I know you wouldn't because I've been a dick to you ever since freshman year."

"I would," you said as soon as he stopped talking, looking up at him.

"What?"

"I would love to be your girlfriend, Nash," you said a little louder. He smiled, taking your face in his hands and kissing you.

"It is about damn time!" a very familiar voice yelled, causing you and Nash to pull apart. You turned to see Danielle walking toward you with Ryan following closely behind her.

"What are you talking about?" you asked quickly.

"I told you," Danielle laughed, "I'm not stupid. You two have had a thing for each other for like, ever."

"Exactly!" Ryan chuckled, looking at Nash, "And you stare at her whenever she walks by, man. You don't exactly make any attempt to be subtle about it."

"Can we just go home?" you asked, changing the subject. 

You saw Danielle and Ryan try to slyly high-five each other, making you roll your eyes and smile slightly. Nash stood up, offering his hand down to you to help you up. You took it and he pulled you up, only letting go of your hand for a second to lace your fingers together.

~

"Hey, honey, how was prom?" your mom asked when you walked inside.

"Fun," you smiled, "You didn't have to wait up."

"I know, I just wanted to make sure you made it home safe."

"Thanks, Mom. Love you," you told her. You were beyond tired and ready for bed, but before you made it to the stairs, your mom stopped you.

"Oh, I printed that picture I took before you left and I thought you would want a copy." She handed you the photo and you smiled, thanking her again and trudging to your room. You put the picture on your bed before changing into your pajamas and brushing your teeth. You went back to your bed and picked the picture back up to properly look at it.

You saw yourself, Ryan, and Danielle smiling at the camera and Nash smiling as well, but looking at you. You grinned before setting the photo on your desk and climbing under your blanket, making a mental note to go buy a frame for it tomorrow.


	41. You Make Me Strong (Ryan Follese) *

Warnings: Alcoholism, mention of abuse

~

Ryan had come home drunk... Again.

It was the third time that week and the who-knows-what time since you'd moved in with him three years ago, so you'd finally had enough and decided to confront him the next morning when he would be sober.

"Ryan," you stated, getting up from your spot on the couch when you saw him trudge into the room, "We need to talk."

"This is about my drinking again, isn't it?" he groaned, "God, I was just having fun. Why can't you seem to get that?"

"I don't want to fight about this again, Ryan – I just want to talk."

"That's what you always say and then it turns into one!"

"Only because you make it that way!" you shouted, not holding back. "If you want another fight out of it, fine! I'll give you one!" you exclaimed, "Every night, you come home wasted and you know I hate it! You know I hate it, yet you make the decision to do it anyway and I just don't get it!" You paused, taking a moment to calm yourself down. "I'm done, Ryan. I'm done staying up until 5am worrying about where the hell you are, I'm done with your stupid ways of making me forgive you for it, and I am especially done with being ignored about it. I trusted you, Ryan. I trusted you enough to tell you everything about what happened and you repay me by doing exactly what I had to live with for 18 years! I can't do this – I can't do us anymore! I'm done," you repeated quietly, grabbing your bag and walking to the door.

"Where are you gonna go?" he asked, the amusement in his voice very clear. He was right and he knew it; It wasn't like you could go to your parents' or a friend's house. You moved almost an hour away from them to move in with him. You stared at the hand you had on the door knob for a few seconds.

"As far away from you as I can get," you mumbled, opening the door to leave and slamming it shut behind you.

~

Two weeks.

Two weeks had passed and Ryan hadn't made any attempt to contact you. You could contact him, of course, but why would you? You weren't in the wrong. You obviously hadn't meant for the argument to end this way, but he fucked up and he should be the one to apologize.

Jamie and Vanessa were more than happy to let you stay at their place for as long as you needed – at least until you could muster up the courage to go get your things. As much as you hated yourself for it, you still loved him. You loved him so much, it hurt knowing it was over. After three years together, it was finally over. You couldn't wrap your head around knowing that he knew about your past and still chose to brush it off like it was nothing.

~

Another week had passed and there was still no word from Ryan. Which, of course, did concern you a bit. Although you were pissed at him, you knew he never went a day without talking to his brother and it seemed like he just vanished.

You had asked Nash about him once only to find out he hadn't heard from Ryan either. You shrugged it off, assuming he was just enjoying the fact that he could now drink without having someone yell at him about it when he got home.

"I think it's time for me to go home," you told Jamie and Vanessa randomly after dinner one evening.

"Did you and Ryan finally make up?" Jamie asked.

"No," you sighed, "I meant back home to my family. I can't keep living with you guys."

"But we love having you here!" Vanessa said. You could hear the sadness in her voice.

"And I'm thankful that you both care so much about me, but it's clear to me that Ryan doesn't and I want you two to have the time alone you moved here to get in the first place. I don't want to spend the rest of my life waiting for an apology that will never come. I promise I'll call as often as I can, but I want to be independent. And I don't feel like I can do it here."

Vanessa immediately got up from her chair and rushed over to you, hugging you tightly, "I'm gonna miss you."

Jamie followed suit and pulled you into a hug once Vanessa let go, "I'll be holding you up to that calling as often as possible thing you mentioned."

You smiled, "I will call, okay? Every day if you want me to. Pinky swear." They stuck out their pinkies and you all laughed, linking them together.

"When are you leaving?" Jamie asked.

"In a couple days, I think. I still have to go get my things," you answered.

"How about I take you tomorrow?" Vanessa offered, "I'm sure you still have a lot of stuff there and you look like you want to make as few trips as you can."

"You know me so well," you sighed dramatically, causing her to playfully hit your arm.

~

The next day, you texted Ryan before you left: I'm coming by to pick up my things.

You shoved your phone into your pocket and you and Vanessa made the drive to your apartment building. You pulled into the parking lot and checked your phone for a reply from Ryan: Nothing. Shocking.

You let out a quiet sigh before getting out and getting a box from the back seat, walking up one flight of stairs to the apartment. You turned the doorknob, surprised to find it unlocked.

"Ryan?!" you called out, walking inside with Vanessa not too far behind. You heard a loud thud coming from down the hall and spun to face Vanessa, "Stay here. Jamie would kill me if anything happened to you," rushing down the hallway before she had time to protest. You cautiously walked to the bedroom door and opened it slowly. "Ryan?" you whispered.

The room was dark aside from the light peeking through the curtains, but it was still enough for you to see. You looked inside, your eyes immediately locking on the man laying on the floor.

"Ryan!" you exclaimed, running over to him and dropping to your knees, "What happened?" He was breathing slowly, barely able to get his words out.

"I can't...can't...remember..." he managed to say.

"Vanessa!" you yelled toward the open door, "Call 911!" In a matter of seconds, you heard Vanessa saying your address and apartment number. "Ryan," you choked, looking back down at him, "Why?"

"I...thought...you...hated...me," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

"I do," you admitted, tearing up slightly, "But not enough to let you die." He smiled weakly, slowly closing his eyes. You went into a panic, "No, no, no! Ryan, don't you dare give up on me! Not now! Open your eyes!" When he didn't open them, you began feeling tears streaming down your face. "Ryan! Come on, wake up! You can't die, okay?! Your parents need you, Jamie and Anna need you, Nash needs you-" You choked on your breath again. "-I need you..."

But once you heard the sirens, you completely lost it.

You let out a helpless scream and ran your fingers through his hair, waiting for paramedics to arrive; That was all you could do. It wasn't like you had some kind of magical potion that would heal him so everything would be okay again and you could just forget what had happened that caused all of this in the first place; That just wasn't an option. You were beating yourself up over how maybe – just maybe – if you had stopped being so stubborn before today, this might not be happening.

Your thoughts were interrupted, however, when a paramedic rushed in, gently pulling you away from Ryan.

"How long has he been like this?" the other paramedic asked as they lifted Ryan onto a stretcher.

"I... I don't know," you answered, trying to maintain what little composure you had left, "We just got here probably five minutes ago. Is he gonna be okay?" By this time, they had already begun wheeling him out to the ambulance.

"He appears to have a severe case of alcohol poisoning. At this point, it'll be a miracle if he survives the ride to the hospital," he answered honestly. You stopped abruptly the second the words came out of his mouth. 

You couldn't imagine your life without Ryan, nor did you want to. He made you laugh when all you wanted to do was cry. He was the one that sang you to sleep every night. He made you feel like the most beautiful girl in the world and that was never something that was easy for you to say.

Vanessa, having heard everything the paramedic had told you, grabbed your hand and pulled you out to your car. She opened the passenger door and helped you inside before running around the car and getting in the driver's seat.

"Text Jamie – tell him to get Adrienne, Keith, and Nash and meet us at the hospital," she ordered, starting the car and following the ambulance. You complied, pulling your phone out of your bag and texting Jamie: Get everyone and meet us at the hospital.

Of course, he immediately replied with: Why? What happened?

You could almost see the terrified look on his face, but you didn't text back; You couldn't. You were shaking too much and you could barely see through your tears.

You finally got to the hospital, racing inside and asking the woman at the front desk where Ryan was. She smiled apologetically, telling you they were doing all they could, but that no one was allowed to see him right now.

You let out a frustrated cry and Vanessa walked you over the waiting room. She hugged you tightly as you both sat down and you cried on her shoulder, waiting for everyone else to arrive.

Not even five minutes later, the hospital doors burst open and you heard Jamie call your name.

"Jamie!" Vanessa squeaked, rushing to give him a hug.

"What happened?" Keith asked worriedly.

"One of the paramedics said he has a severe case of alcohol poisoning," you answered quietly, trying not to start crying again. You started to get up, but Adrienne quickly walked over to you.

"Honey, you need to sit down and rest," she told you, "This isn't easy for us and I can't imagine what it must be like for you."

"But this is my fault," you whispered, failing at keeping your tears in, "If I hadn't been so stupid-"

"This is not your fault," Nash said sternly, kneeling down in front of you, "I know you don't want to hear this, but you need to: Ryan was going to do this to himself whether you had gotten there five minutes earlier or five days. Would it have been to this extent? Maybe not, but that is in no way your fault, do you understand me?" You nodded and he hugged you tightly as a doctor walked into the room.

"Are you here for Ryan Follese?" Everyone nodded and he continued, "We've put him in a medically induced coma and hooked him up to a ventilator so the blood doesn't rush back to his brain too quickly."

"What happens if it does?" Adrienne asked.

"Well, that could cause a number of other problems," he explained, "Stroke and heart failure are our main concerns at this point. This is gradually going to allow blood flow to become normal again so he doesn't suffer any more trauma than he already has."

"When will he wake up?" Keith questioned.

"It's hard to say. Some patients are able to breathe on their own the next day, some can take weeks. We'll be monitoring him closely to ensure nothing goes wrong and I promise, we're doing everything we can."

"Can we... Can we see him?" you asked, standing up. The doctor nodded, leading you all to one of the rooms.

When you walked in, you were startled by how many things Ryan was actually hooked up to.

"Um, I'll be right back, I just... I just need some air," you said, quickly excusing yourself from the room and sprinting outside.

As soon as you walked out of the hospital, you sat down on the ground next to the doors with your head in your hands, hearing the doors open just a couple minutes later.

"I meant what I said," you heard Nash say, "This isn't your fault."

You looked up at him and shook your head, "Then why does it feel like it is?"

He sat down in front of you, taking a moment to find the right words before speaking, "Because you feel like there was something you could have done to stop him." You stared at him as he went on, "Deep down, I know you know you couldn't have; None of us could. Yeah, we were all worried about him when he didn't answer our calls or texts or knocks on the door, but we never could have guessed he was doing this to himself and neither could you. I think, in a way, we all sort of blame ourselves for not trying a little harder."

"But you guys didn't do anything."

"And neither did you. We're not psychics, okay? We couldn't have known this what where he'd end up or been able to prevent it from happening. Right now, the best thing we can do for Ryan is stay positive no matter how hard it is." He stood up and reached down to you. You sighed, taking his hand and he pulled you up, walking you back to Ryan's room.

You knew he was right; Nash was always right when he went all motivational speaker on you, but maybe that's what kept you going.

~

Even after nearly five days of staying right by Ryan's side, you were finally able to make your way over to the chair in the corner of the room and sit down, allowing yourself to sleep.

When you woke up around two hours later, you heard Jamie say, "She blames herself, you know."

"She didn't do this to me," Ryan stated, his voice hoarse.

Ryan? Ryan was awake?

"Good luck convincing her of that," Vanessa said, shaking her head, "She was worried sick about you, Ryan. She hasn't eaten in four days, for Christ's sake!"

"I don't know what happened between you two, but you better fix it," Jamie stated, "Because this isn't healthy for either of you."

"Ryan?" you mumbled, slowly opening your eyes and sitting up.

Jamie and Vanessa decided to leave the room to give you two time to talk. You rubbed your eyes and looked at Ryan, who was now sitting up in his hospital bed. He was awake, talking, and most importantly: Alive.

Your eyes widened and you cried, "Ryan!" jumping up and running the short distance to his bed, kissing him as passionately as you ever had before.

"I love you," he told you as soon as you pulled away, "And I'm sorry."

"I know. I love you too," you gave him a half smile.

He moved over slightly, patting the spot beside him. You climbed into the bed with him, getting as comfortable as you could. He wrapped his arms around you and kissed your forehead.

"I mean it, okay?" he murmured into your hair, "I really am sorry."

"I know," you repeated, not really sure what else to say.

"No, you don't," he sighed, shaking his head, "I don't know why I kept going out and getting drunk every night and I understand 100% why you left. It was such an asshole move of me to blatantly ignore you the way I did. I... I never wanted you to go through what you did growing up with your dad and I will spend every second from this point on proving that to you if that's what it takes for you to trust me again."

You smiled up at him, kissing him again, "I love you, Ryan. Nothing is ever going to make me feel differently."

And for the first time in almost two months, you felt whole again.


	42. Gonna Be Gone Till Who Knows When (Ryan Follese)

_Flashback_

_"It's been three years. He's not coming back."_

_"Yes, he is, Jamie. I can feel it."_

_"They looked for **eight months** , Y/N. They couldn't find him."_

_"They didn't look **hard enough**!"_

_He let out a shaky breath, "You need to move on_ _;_ _We all do. We can't keep living like this. He wouldn't want us to."_

_" **He's not dead, Jamie**!" she shouted suddenly, tears streaming down her face, "I don't care what **anyone** says! He's **not dead**! He wouldn't just **leave me** like that! He would have said **goodbye**!"_

_He smiled sadly at her, "I know, but you know what **else** I know?" She looked at him as a means of telling him to go on. "He loved you_–  _he_ _loved you more than **anything**. The way he looked at you, the way he talked about you, the way he touched you; Everything about the way he acted when he was with you just **screamed** he was in love. I know it hurts, Y/N _– _**believe me**._ _.._ _But trust me when I tell you that he **wouldn't** want you to do this to yourself. I don't know what happened to him and I don't know why nobody can find him, but it's been **three years**. The chances of him still being alive aren't that good and we **both** know it. **Please** stop beating yourself up over this, Y/N.  **Please** ," he nearly begged, choking on tears._

_She looked at him and swallowed the lump in her throat, wrapping her arms around his neck, pulling him into a tight hug. Although she knew he was right, she still held out hope and nothing was going to stop her from finding out what happened to her boyfriend._

_End flashback_

You wandered around town, not really doing much of anything. You hadn't planned on going out, but it was better than staying inside a house alone all day. You walked into a music store – it never hurt anyone to browse around and look for new music, after all. You picked up a couple CD's, looking at the track names before putting them back down. As you continued to look throughout the store, you looked up every once in a while for seemingly no reason other than to see who was coming in.

At one point when you looked up, however, the man walking in grabbed your attention. Your breath caught in your throat and you felt like you were about to pass out.

You stared at him for a few more minutes before he glanced over at you. He brushed it off, but when he looked again about five minutes later, he realized you were still staring.

"Is something wrong?" he asked, walking over to you as you snapped out of your trance.

"Oh, um, no. Everything's fine. I just..." you cleared your throat, "You look like someone I know."

He chuckled, "I've been getting that a lot lately. I guess I just have that kind of face. Who do I remind you of?" You couldn't help but notice he had the same voice as Ryan as well.

"M-My boyfriend," you answered.

"You look like you've seen a ghost. Are you alright?"

"Well, he's been missing for three years, so you just startled me, I guess."

"Oh, I'm sorry," he smiled apologetically.

You gave him a small smile, "It's okay."

He looked down at his watch, "Oh, shit. I've gotta get going. My girlfriend will freak out if I'm home late again. It was nice meeting you..." He paused, realizing he had never asked your name.

You immediately got the hint and said, "Y/N!"

He nodded, "Well, it was nice meeting you, Y/N. I'm Ryan. I hope we run into each other again sometime!" He smiled, turning around and rushing out of the store, leaving you even more confused than before.

As soon as you regained your composure, you drove straight to Jamie's apartment. When he opened the door, he saw you were obviously confused about something.

"What happened?" he asked worriedly. You paused, unsure whether or not you should say anything, but figuring you would since you were already in front of him.

You opened your mouth for a moment before saying, "I think I found Ryan."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Jamie said, pulling you inside, "What do you  _mean_  you think you found Ryan?"

"Before you call me crazy and yell at me to move on, just hear me out.  _Please_ ," you begged. He sighed, nodding. You took a deep breath, "Okay. I was at the record shop and this guy walked in who looked  _just_  like Ryan and he walked up to me because I was staring at him and when he started talking, he sounded  _exactly_  like Ryan."

"Y/N-"

You cut him off, " _I know, Jamie_! Okay? I  _know_  I sound like a lunatic and I  _know_  the chances of it actually being him are a million to one, but  _something_ inside of me is telling me that this is him. I wish I could make that feeling go away, Jamie – _I really do_ – but I  _can't_  and I just... I need to  _know_." Your voice cracked and Jamie looked at you for a moment before speaking.

"Fine, but I don't want you to find out alone. I think I should be there too." You sighed in relief, nodding quickly and hugging him.

~

A few days later, you walked to the park not far from your house where you and Ryan used to spend a lot of your free time together. You just needed to be alone where you weren't cooped up in an empty house.

It was early fall – your favorite time of year. Kids were playing on the playground with their parents watching them near by.

You noticed a young couple who couldn't have been older than 17 sitting under a large tree – she was leaning against him and he had his arms around her waist, kissing the top of her head every now and then. It reminded you a lot of yourself and Ryan.

You brushed off your thoughts, however. No use in being sad when thinking about happy memories.

You set your small backpack on a picnic table overlooking the pond and pulled out your notebook. You began doodling, not paying too much attention to what was going on around you. When you were drawing, you put all your focus into it.

You jumped slightly when you looked back up though, now seeing Ryan sitting in front of you.

"How long have you been there?" you asked.

"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you," he chuckled, "A couple minutes, I'd say, but you seemed pretty into what you were doing, so I just thought I'd wait."

"No," you shook your head, "It's okay. It's nice to see you again."

"It's nice to see you again as well," he smiled at you, making your heart race, "Anyway, I know the first time we met was a little awkward and rushed and we barely know each other, but would you like to get coffee with me tomorrow?"

"What about your girlfriend?" you asked quietly.

He shrugged, "We're just two acquaintances getting coffee together. She won't mind."

You looked at him skeptically before nodding, "Sure. We can have it at my place at 11?"

"Sounds good!" he said. You exchanged numbers and gave him your address so he didn't have to text you later when you both forgot about it.

"So, tell me about your boyfriend. He must have been pretty special if you're still looking for him."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, it's just that you seem really set on looking for him. I don't think I could stay that loyal to someone after three years of not knowing where they were and if they were alive or not."

"I don't know, I just want to know what happened for closure, I guess. He's in a band and they were coming home from the UK, but their flight was overbooked, so he offered to take the next flight back while his band mates went on the first one. Everything after that is kind of a blur to me, to be honest. They found all the other passengers – some alive, some not. Every single person on board that plane was found, but they never found  _him_."

"So he just  _disappeared_?" he asked, amazed and puzzled at the same time.

"I guess so," you sighed, "But no one can explain it or find him. I feel like once someone finds him, I'll be able to move on."

"Wow," he said quietly, "I'm so sorry."

"It's alright," you smiled slightly, "I'm just keeping as optimistic as I can until I know the truth."

"How about we change the subject?" he suggested, "You say he's in a band?"

"Yup! He's in a band called Hot Chelle Rae," you nodded, finding it odd explaining it to someone who you were almost certain was the singer of the band. You continued telling him about Ryan anyway, hoping that if it  _was_  really him, it would jog his memory.

"Well, he sounds like a great guy," Ryan smiled.

_Great. It didn't work._

"He really is," you smiled back. It was nice to have someone listen to you talk about Ryan without them telling you to move on.

As you were talking, you heard a shriek not far away.

" _Ryan_!" The girl's voice sounded familiar to you, but you couldn't quite make out who it was until you turned around.

You nearly choked on your breath quietly as he groaned, so he wasn't able to hear you. Anyone would if their boyfriend's ex-girlfriend was running toward them.

" _Great_ ," he muttered under his breath, standing up right before she reached them.

"What are you doing?" she asked, wrapping her arms around his waist, shooting a glare at you.

"Just talking to a friend," he replied, the smile on his face obviously forced.

"Hello, Harper," you smiled sarcastically, "Always a pleasure seeing you too." You stood up as well, putting your things into your bag and saying, "Well, I better get going. It was nice running into you again, Ryan." You quickly rushed back to your house before pulling out your phone and dialing Jamie's number.

"Come on, Jamie," you whispered to yourself as the phone rang, "Pick up, pick up,  _pick up_."

"Hello?" he finally answered.

"Harper! It's Harper!" you exclaimed.

"Slow down, Y/N," he told you in an attempt to calm you down, "You mean  _Ryan's ex-girlfriend_  Harper?"

"What other Harper would I be talking about?!"

"Y/N, calm down, okay? What happened?"

"I ran into Ryan at the park and as he was about to leave, she ran over to him and wrapped his arms around his waist and kept glaring at me. It's  _him_ , Jamie! I know it is!"

"Y/N," he sighed, "I understand you miss him, but you _can't_ keep getting your hopes up like this. It's all just a coincidence – a very _weird_ one, but a coincidence nonetheless."

You let out a frustrated sigh, "Well, when you meet us here tomorrow at 11, you can decide whether it's all  _just a coincidence_  or not." You immediately hung up, not giving him time to respond. You groaned loudly, trudging to your bedroom and throwing yourself onto the bed, falling asleep not long after.

~

You woke up the next morning at 9:30, getting ready for the day by tidying up the house before Ryan and Jamie arrived. As you were doing dishes, you heard the door open and Jamie call your name.

"In the kitchen!" you called back.

"Hey, Y/N," he said, walking into the room.

"Hey, Jay," you smiled to yourself, proud of your rhyme.

He shook his head and chuckled, "Nice."

There was another knock at the door and you yelled, "It's open!" as you dried off your hands. "Jamie," you told him, "Would you mind making the coffee?"

"Of course not, Y/N! I would love to do some work for you!" he teased.

" _Thank you_ ," you sang, giggling as you walked to the door. "Hey!" you smiled at Ryan.

"Hello!" he smiled, looking around your house, "Your place is nice."

"Can't take all the credit," you laughed, "Ryan picked it out."

"Ryan?"

"Oh, right! Another slightly creepy addition to the story I told you yesterday: My boyfriend's name is also Ryan."

"Same looks  _and_  same name, huh? Things just keep getting stranger every time I see you."

"Yeah," you muttered, "You're telling me."

"Hey, Y/N," you heard Jamie making his way out of the kitchen, "Where do you keep the-" He froze as soon as he walked into the room, staring at Ryan. "-coffee filters," he finished quietly. Jamie instantly gave you an apologetic look and you gave him a small smile as if to tell him you told him so.

"Am I interrupting something?" Ryan asked nervously.

"No, no, no," you quickly told him, "This is Ryan's brother Jamie. Jamie, this is Ryan. Jamie insisted he be here today in case you try to murder me or whatever." Ryan chuckled at your comment and the two shook hands.

Throughout the afternoon, you couldn't help but notice Ryan looked like he was trying to figure something out.

~

A few weeks passed and you and Ryan had become good friends. You would usually spend your time at your house as Harper had a knack for interrupting when you tried to meet at the park and such.

"Do you ever get the feeling that your dreams are trying to tell you something?" Ryan asked randomly as the two of you were sitting on the porch steps, looking at the clouds.

"What do you mean?" you asked, looking at him.

"I don't know," he sighed, "I just keep having this dream that I'm on a plane and I fall asleep and then it just goes black until I wake up." You gasped quietly as he continued, "And then I've recently starting having this other dream that's just made of blurs, but I'm standing in front of a bunch of red things and there's a song playing, but I've never heard it before."

"What's the song sound like?" you asked, already having a pretty good idea of what he was talking about.

Ryan began humming the chorus of  _Keep You With Me_  and without a word, you stood and pulled him up, taking him inside. You went into the living room where your laptop was sitting on the coffee table and sat down. Ryan watched you intently as you opened up YouTube and searched  _'hot chelle rae keep you with me amsterdam'_.

"I want you to tell me if this is what you see in your dream, okay?" you told him. He nodded and you clicked on a video.

The second the song started, he shouted, " _That's the song_! And those are the red dots I keep dreaming about!" He looked closely at the person singing it. "Who's that guy?" he asked you, pointing at Ryan.

"That's Ryan, the lead singer," you told him, careful not to be too eager.

"Is he your boyfriend?" You nodded and he whispered, "We really  _do_  look alike."

You smiled sadly and were about to tell him that you thought it was  _him_  when his phone started ringing. He groaned, looking at the caller ID.

"Harper," Ryan told you and you immediately understood the lack of excitement. "Hello?" he answered, "I'm at Y/N's. ... Because I'm allowed to have other friends, Harper. ... Yes, I'm aware she's a girl. ... Fine, I'm on my way." He rolled his eyes as he hung up and shoved his phone back into his pocket, "I'm sorry she always ruins things."

"I'm used to it," you shrugged. Ryan gave you a quick hug before leaving the house and driving back to his place. You sighed, now having to figure out how you would tell Ryan you thought he was really your boyfriend.

~

**Ryan's POV**

It was about 2am. The only thing that could be heard in the small apartment were the springs in the bed squeaking due to Ryan's tossing and turning during another dream about the plane.

Harper obviously woke up, sighing again. This is the eighth time this week she's been woken up because of this.

" _Ryan_ ," she groaned. When he didn't wake up, she shook his shoulder, "Ryan!" He rolled over a bit too much, falling onto the floor and hitting his head on the bottom of his nightstand.

" _Shit_!" he hissed, immediately sitting up and rubbing the back of his head. He looked around after he'd somewhat recovered, realizing he didn't recognize anything.

"Are you okay?" Harper asked.

"Where am I?" he groaned, getting up and turning on the lamp that was on the nightstand.

"You're at home, silly. Where else would you be?" she replied, causing him to look at her.

"What are you doing here? What am  _I_ doing here?!" he exclaimed.

"I'm your girlfriend," she said with a questioning tone, "We live here."

"No,  _Y/N_ is my girlfriend; I live with  _her_." Harper's mouth dropped open, realizing that all Ryan's memories came back when he hit his head. " _What is going on_?!" he shouted.

"Ryan, you're going to wake the neighbors," she whispered, trying to remain calm.

" _I don't care_! Now tell me what the  _hell_  is going on!"

She sighed, telling him that he'd survived the plane crash, but the hospital couldn't find any means of identifying him. She'd happened to be there for her routine shots that day, so she told a nurse that he was her boyfriend. They explained to her that he had a severe case of amnesia, so she strategically only told him simple things such as his first name and age so he couldn't figure out who he was.

"I'm sorry, Ryan," she said when she finished, "I just wanted you to be happy."

"You kept me from my family and my girlfriend for  _three years_ , Harper!" he shouted again, "You wanted  _you_ to be happy! This is why we broke up in the  _first place_! The only person you ever think about is  _yourself_!" He grabbed his jacket and quickly put on his shoes before leaving the room.

" _Ryan_!" Harper yelled after him, but he didn't listen.

He understood that it wasn't his fault he couldn't remember anything, but he couldn't help but blame himself for not putting everything together at your – well,  _his_  – house the previous afternoon. He ran the three miles back home, just happy to  _finally_  remember who you were.

When he reached the door, he began knocking furiously, hoping it would be enough to wake you up.

He heard a loud groan come from inside and you yelling, " _Oh my God_! _Calm down_! _It's 2:30 in the morning_! _What the hell do you_ -" As soon as you opened the door, he grabbed your face and kissed you as passionately as he knew how. He pulled away and you took a moment to catch your breath before saying, "What on  _earth_  are you doing? What about your girlfriend?"

He smiled widely, " _You're_  my girlfriend." You stared at him, much like you did when you saw him in the record shop.

"You remember," you whispered.

"I remember," he repeated.

You screamed, jumping up and wrapping your arms tightly around Ryan's neck as he did with your waist. He kicked the door closed with his heel and walked you into the living room, sitting down on the couch. He felt you crying, so he pushed you back lightly and wiped your tear-stained cheeks with his thumbs before kissing you again.

" _How_?" was all you were able to get out of your mouth after he pulled away.

"I was at Harper's place and I fell off the bed and hit my head on the nightstand," he explained, "Everything just kind of came back to me." You sighed, hugging him again.

"I'm _so_ glad you're back," you mumbled into his neck.

"Thank you," he said, causing you to look at him again.

"For what?" you asked, confused.

"For not giving up on me. For trying to find me even when everyone else stopped. For explaining my entire life to me even though you knew it was me and having the self-control to not bash my skull in," he joked, pulling you closer.

You laughed, "I would  _never_!" He raised his eyebrows at you, grinning slightly. "Okay, maybe I thought about it a  _couple_ times."

He shook his head and smiled, "I love you."

You rested her forehead against his, "That feels _so good_ to hear again," pressing your lips to his.


	43. Anywhere but Here (Jamie Follese)

**Warning: Mention of death**

 

~

 

_He'd been planning this day for months now. Everything had to be perfect. He wasn't typically the perfectionist type, but when it came to you, it was an entirely different story._

He woke up the morning of the surprise to an all-too-familiar song coming from down the hall. He shuffled out of the bedroom and walked into the kitchen to see you making breakfast, dressed in one of his shirts and your pajama shorts, singing and dancing around the kitchen to  _Don't Say Goodnight_. He leaned against the wall, wondering how he got so lucky.

"Morning, Jaim!" you smiled at him when you finally noticed him standing there, continuing to belt out the lyrics.

Any other girl would have been beyond embarrassed to see him watch her dance to his own song, but not you. Maybe that's what drew him to you in the first place. You weren't the type to get embarrassed over things like that nor were you ever afraid to do so at his shows, which was why the fans loved you so much. You were like their older sister or one of those best friends they'd known since kindergarten. As strange as it sounds, you made them feel safe although they lived no where near you.

"Morning, babe," he smiled back, "What's got you in such a good mood today?"

"I don't know," you giggled, hinting at him to guess.

"Let's see... Did you get a promotion at work?"

You laughed, shaking her head, " _I_   _wish_!"

"Did you get a year's worth of free pizza?"

You gave him a serious expression, "Don't tease me like that."

"Sorry," he chuckled, "Well, the only other thing I can think of would be is if it were some kind of special day." You made every effort you could toward keeping a straight face. "It's not Valentine's Day," he continued teasing you, "It's not your birthday, it's not  _my_  birthday, so it  _must_ be our anniversary!"

"Finally!" you sighed dramatically, "I thought you forgot."

"I would never!" he said, walking up behind you and wrapping his arms around your waist, "How many years has it been now? At least 60, right?"

"Not even close," you laughed loudly.

"Good. I was about to say you don't look a  _day_  over 45," he smirked.

" _Jamie_!" you laughed again, reaching behind you and hitting his cheek lightly. He chuckled and kissed your temple.

"Best two years of my life so far," he whispered in your ear, making you shiver. He always had that effect on you.

You two then ate breakfast and spent the rest of the morning watching your favorite Disney movies, singing and dancing along.

~

"I have a surprise for you," Jamie told you after the fourth movie. You gasped excitedly like a little kid on Christmas morning after getting exactly what they asked Santa for.

" _What_?!" you exclaimed.

"Go get dressed and you'll find out," he poked your side, making you giggle.

You rushed into your bedroom, pulled out your favorite outfit, and went back into the living room. Jamie was no longer there, but there was a card with your name written neatly in his handwriting.

_I know how much you love scavenger hunts, so today, I decided to give you just that. Below is your first clue. I tried not to make it too difficult for you. ;) Good luck._

_And don't make fun of my clues. I worked really hard on them and if you do, it will make me very sad._

_Jamie._

You laughed to yourself at his note and read the first clue.

_A not-so-beautiful place for our oh-so-beautiful first date._   
_Shout out to this spot for making me look like a real ladies man._

You smiled, instantly knowing what it was. You walked down the road to the park and kept walking until you reached the smallest tree where Jamie took you for your first date.

You found another card with your name on it sitting on the lowest branch leaning against the trunk. You opened it for your second clue.

_Achievement unlocked: Second date._   
_By the way, I totally crushed you._

You raced back home and went into the basement where the X-box was. You opened cabinet under the television and searched for FIFA. You were never good at that game and Jamie never let you forget it.

Once you found it, you opened the case and a card fell out.

_You're a lot better at this than I thought you would be._   
_Much like how our third date went._

You smiled proudly at the memory of you beating Jamie at every game in the arcade before hurrying out to your car.

The arcade had since closed, but there was still a card taped to the door.

_You're always so cute when you get nervous._   
_And the day you met my parents was no exception._

You rolled your eyes, but smiled as you hopped back into your car and drove to Jamie's parent's house.

No one was home, but there was a card taped to front door.

_And we can't forget the time I was nervous as well._   
_Like when I met your father for the first time._

It was true, he was nervous – as all boyfriends are when meeting their girlfriend's parents – but this was different. You had put off the meeting for about 8 months, terrified it wouldn't go well.

You and your father had one of those relationships that most girls can only dream about having with their dads. Your mother just decided to leave without warning not long after your 5th birthday, so your dad had to teach you basically everything. You loved your dad more than anything and you were devastated when he passed away suddenly due to heart problems about a year before you met Jamie. It was always a touchy subject for you as you never really liked to talk about it – you were one of those people that preferred to deal with things alone before Jamie came along.

But you decided 8 months into the relationship that you didn't want to go through it alone anymore. You did, however, make him swear to you that he wouldn't think you were crazy. He didn't really understand what you meant until the moment you pulled into the cemetery. He felt his heart drop and he looked at you, though you were too focused on driving to pay attention to his stare.

You turned into the cemetery's entrance then parked a little way away from your father's grave. You always did this although there was a path for you to park right along side of it. You just liked the time it took to walk there to gather up your thoughts. You told your father everything – even after he died – going to the cemetery every Friday afternoon and telling him how your week went since your last visit.

You sat down next to his grave and rested your elbow on your inner thigh, holding your chin in your hand. There was a note taped to the tombstone, but you left it until you were done talking to your dad.

"Hi, Daddy," you said quietly once you got comfortable, "I don't really have much to say this week." You paused, trying to think of everything that had happened over the past seven days. "It's Jamie and I's two year anniversary today," you smiled, not knowing Jamie was listening only a few feet behind you. "I hadn't planned on coming today because of that, to be honest, but I'm sure you would have understood. It just sucks that you never got to meet him. I know you'd love him though. He's a great guy." You started biting your inner cheek – something you'd always done when concentrating, "I don't really know what to say, honestly." You felt a warm breeze and the flower began swaying, rubbing against the card, making you chuckle and look up at the sky, "Alright, Dad. I'll open the card. Calm down." You sighed, tearing open the envelope.

_Yay! You've made it to your surprise!_   
_I hope you brought some tissues cause shit's about to get sentimental._

_I know not having your dad around for the past three years has been hard on you, but I want you to know how proud I am of you for having the courage to take on life without him here_ –  _physically, that is. I know I never really met him, but I'm forever thankful he raised such a beautiful, independent, and fearless girl like you. You make me fall in love with you more and more each day without even knowing it, but now, I think it's time I prove that to you._

_And don't worry, I already asked your dad. He's cool with it._

_(This is the part where you turn around.)_

You turned and looked up to see Jamie smiling down at you. He held his hand out to you and you took it, pulling you to your feet. You felt a tear fall down your cheek and wiped it away as Jamie continued.

"Every morning I've woken up for the past two years with your face pressed up against my neck has made me realize that I never want to wake up that way with anyone but you. We've had our ups and downs, but they've never kept us apart and I think that's life telling me that you're the one I'm meant to be with. I know how much you love your dad and I know he would want to be part of this moment in your life, so I wouldn't feel comfortable doing this anywhere but here." You gasped quietly, the palms of your hands instantly covering your mouth as he pulled a small box out of his jacket pocket and got down on his knee. "I love you more than anything and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?"

You couldn't speak for a good 10 seconds before finally being able to choke out, "Yes." Jamie smiled widely, taking your hand away from your mouth and sliding the ring onto your finger. You threw your arms around his neck as he stood up and wrapped his arms tightly around your waist.

"I love you," he mumbled into your hair.

You smiled, your face buried in his neck, whispering, "I love you too."

~

_The inspiration for this came from this post I saw on tumblr, but I can't seem to find it again. If I ever do though, I'll add the link here._


	44. Achievement Unlocked (Tony Perry)

 

"I absolutely did  _not_  let you win," Tony said as he turned off the X-box and put your controllers away.

"17 to 3 and you think I'm buying that crap?" you laughed.

"I didn't! You're just too good at FIFA! My thumbs couldn't keep up!"

"Oh, whatever! The last time we played, you absolutely crushed me!"

He looked at you for a moment before grinning, "Okay, I let you win."

" _Tony_!" you squeaked, hitting his arm.

"What?!" he laughed, "I wanted you to feel good about yourself!"

"By making me think I won on my own?"

"Yes," he said seriously. You rolled your eyes and smiled as you walked out of the room and made your way to the other guys in the front of the bus.

"So how'd it go?" Vic asked once he saw you. You sighed and crossed your arms, raising your eyebrows and he chuckled, "He let you win again?"

" _Oh, yeah_ ," you giggled.

"Score?" Mike asked as he was tossing his empty plate into the trash can.

"17 to 3," you replied.

" _Dude_!" Jaime laughed loudly, "You can't have a score gap like that and expect her to think you  _didn't_  let her win!"

" _Thank you_!" you shouted, throwing your arm into the air.

Tony shook his head, chucking, "I won't let it happen again."

"You're damn right you won't," you smirked.

You all lounged around watching TV for a couple hours before you started feeling tired.

"Well, I'm off to bed," you yawned, "Don't wake me up until we're in Chicago." They told you goodnight and you brushed your teeth before climbing into your bunk and drifting off to sleep.

~

The next morning, you had woken up about 10 minutes before you arrived at the venue for tonight's show. You could hear the guys talking not far away and since you were too lazy to get up and join the conversation, you just listened.

"Look," Mike said, "All I'm saying is until you tell her, she's not going to know."

"She has a boyfriend!" Tony exclaimed quietly, "Whom she is very happy with, might I add. I can't take that away from her just to clear my conscience. She wouldn't even feel the same way anyway."

You heard the rest of them groan before Jaime chimed in, "Just because she looks happy doesn't mean she  _is_."

"What do you mean?"

"That's not my place to say. She's already going to kill me for telling you _that_ much."

You knew they were talking about you at that point. But in your defense, you didn't tell the other guys either. They were the ones that witnessed it and although they insisted, you begged them not to tell Tony. The only reason you hadn't told him about what happened between you and your now ex-boyfriend yet was because you knew he'd go absolutely mental.

Tony had always been super protective of you ever since you met him – the entire band was – but he was slightly more than the others. Not even your  _ex_  cared about you like Tony did and now you knew why; Because he likes you.

You were snapped out of your thoughts when you heard Vic say, "Go wake her up. We need her to get ready for sound check." You immediately closed your eyes and felt the curtain of your bunk open. You groaned, the light shining brightly although your eyes were closed.

"Y/N," Tony mumbled quietly, rubbing your back, "We're almost at the venue. Wake up." You refused, not wanting to leave the warmth of your blanket. He chuckled, "Don't make me pull you out of there." You still remained encased in your blanket and shook your head, almost challenging him.

You quickly found out he was being serious, however, when he wrapped his arms around your waist and pulled you until you were on your back on the edge of your bunk. He was quick to move his arms under you so you fell into his arms and not onto the floor.

"I hate when you do that," you whined, finally opening your eyes.

"Then I don't understand why I have to do it every morning," he replied, sticking his tongue out at you.

"Oh, watch out, everyone! Sass Master Tony has once again  _graced us_  with his presence!" you exclaimed as he carried you to where the rest of the guys were, earning a laugh from them and an eye roll from Tony. He finally put you back on your feet and you went to go get ready for the day.

~

After sound check, you walked to the nearest McDonald's with Tony to get lunch for everyone.

"So-" was all Tony got out before you cut him off.

"He cheated on me," you said as if it were the most casual thing in the world.

"What?"

"I know that's what the conversation was gonna lead up to. I heard you guys talking this morning."

"What did you hear?" he asked nervously.

"I heard Jaime say ' _she's gonna kill me for telling you that much_ ' and then Vic said ' _go wake her up_ '," you shrugged, "So I figured you were talking about me since that's the only thing I would have wanted to kill him over."

"Oh," he let out a sigh of relief, hoping you didn't hear it, "Wait... I  _knew_  you weren't actually asleep!"

"I never implied that I  _was_ ," you smirked.

"Not cool," he laughed.

"You know what else isn't cool?"

"What?"

"Losing to a girl." Before he had the chance to react, you took off toward the McDonald's, Tony following not far behind.

~

"Y/N!" Vic called out and you rushed over to join them for their group huddle before the show – they were always pumped up by your pre-show pep talks.

"Alright, boys," you started, wrapping your arms around Tony and Jaime's waists, "Don't think of this night as just another concert. Think about all those people in that crowd here with their best friend or their boyfriend or their girlfriend that they met because of this band. Think of it as someone's means of getting away from their shitty lives for two hours. Think about all those people struggling with whatever may be bothering them." You paused and smiled at them before continuing, "I want you to go out there and give them the best first, second, fifth, or twentieth concert they've ever seen. I want you to go out there and play so loud, they only hear ringing for the next 24 hours. But most importantly, I want you to go out there and remind them that they're not alone; That they can and  _will_ get through it. Got it?" They nodded and you shouted, " _Got it_?!" They cheered loudly and ran out on stage, putting on the best performance you'd ever seen them give.

~

After the show and meeting fans, you all piled back onto the tour bus and you and Tony decided to head to the back and play _Minecraft_ on the Xbox. Tony sat down on the couch and you sat on the floor between his legs and you two made a bet that whoever enchanted a diamond sword first would have their laundry done by the loser for the next month.

The next hour or so consisted of mainly shouted profanities at monsters the two of you encountered in your caves. Tony ultimately ended up winning – not by much, might I add, but winning nonetheless – and celebrated by sprinting off into the _Minecraft_ sunrise. You laughed uncontrollably, although emotionally wounded by the defeat, and began killing cows and pigs before your character starved.

A few minutes later, Tony randomly said, "Can you come to where I am for a minute?"

"Sure," you said, confused as you switched to your map and made the journey to where Tony was.

He was in the forest, but you couldn't find him. You found a torch on the ground in front of a tree and a sign on the trunk.

You walked over to it and read:  _Be my player two?_

Tony's character walked out from behind the tree – no longer crouched – holding a rose and you couldn't help but giggle. You laid your head on his leg, turning your head to look up at him.

"Always," you smiled before he grinned, leaning forward and kissing you.

 


	45. A Little Bit of Truth (Jack Barakat)

"Do you know where Jack is?" you sighed into the phone once his best friend finally answered. You'd been trying to get through to Jack for the past half hour to no avail, so you decided to try the next best thing: Alex.

"Yeah, I was just about to go get him from the bar," Alex told you, "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, everything's fine," you assured him, "Would you mind if I came with you? I need to talk to him."

"Alright..." he trailed off, obviously confused since you made it perfectly clear you never wanted to see Jack again when he broke up with you five months ago, "I'll be there in 10."

"Thanks, Lex," you smiled and hung up the phone.

~

Alex picked you up 10 minutes later and you headed to the bar.

"So why do you want to see him again all of a sudden?" he asked after a couple minutes of silence.

"I just... I need answers," you sighed, "I know he didn't really break up with me because he didn't feel anything anymore; I could see it in his face. I just want the real reason before I can let him go, I guess..."

Alex smiled sadly now knowing you knew Jack just made up the excuse. He patted your knee before putting his hand back on the steering wheel and turning into the bar's parking lot.

You walked into the building and immediately found Jack at the counter, staring at the empty glass in his hand. Alex left to go to the bathroom to give you and Jack time alone, but it was clear when you got to him that there wouldn't be much discussion. He was absolutely wasted and as much as you hated it when he did this to himself, you couldn't help but feel sorry for him. You hesitated before putting your hand on his shoulder, but he just started talking.

"Alex," Jack slurred, "I gotta confess something." You contemplated telling him you weren't Alex, but before you had the chance, he said, "I fucked up with Y/N, you know?" This had obviously grabbed your attention and you let him continue. "I just... I don't know why I thought I could actually be in a relationship. We tour way too much and she-" He paused, clearly still torn up by what happened. "-She doesn't deserve that. She doesn't deserve someone that's never home. She deserves someone who can tell her he loves her and show her right there, not from thousands of miles away. She deserves to be happy," he sighed, "Whether she's happy with me or with someone else."

Jack suddenly stood up, only to pass out from the dizziness. You had just enough time to react, catching him before he hit his head on the bar stool. You stumbled a bit, barely able to hold his weight. Just then, Alex came out of the bathroom and saw you, rushing over and helping you to hold Jack up.

" _Jesus Christ_ ," you huffed as you and Alex dragged Jack back to Alex's car, "I didn't think he would be  _that_ drunk."

"It's like you don't know him," Alex mumbled, pushing his best friend into the backseat. You chuckled as the two of you got into the car and Alex drove you back to your apartment.

"You guys don't have anything important to do tomorrow, do you?" you asked when he pulled into the parking lot.

"No," he replied, "Why?"

"I still want to talk to him," you said, "Properly, I mean."

"Okay," he shrugged, "Here, I'll help you get him inside." The two of you got out of the car and took Jack inside your apartment. "Where do you want him?" Alex asked.

"My room is fine," you answered. After Jack was on the bed, you hugged Alex, thanking him for the help, and he left.

That night, you slept on the couch, coming up with your game plan for the next morning.

~

Jack had woken up about 10 minutes before you, understandably confused as to why he had woken up in his ex-girlfriend's bedroom. He decided to stay, however, curious of the answer he would get from you. He sat on the couch across from where you were sleeping and just looked at you.

He loved how peaceful you looked when you were sleeping. More so, he loved the way your breath would tickle his neck when your face was pressed against his skin. He couldn't help but imagine it. It was one of the things about you he missed most. He was so lost in thought that he hadn't noticed you had woken up, coming back to reality when he heard your voice say his name and looked at you as if to say ' _Could you repeat that?_ '

"Hi, Jack," you said quietly, giving him a half smile.

"Hi, Y/N," he said just as quietly, "I thought you never wanted to see me again."

"Things change," you whispered.

"So why am I here?"

"I went to the bar last night with Alex to get you," you told him, getting straight to the point, "You were really drunk and you thought I was him."

"What, uh, what did I say?" he asked, terrified of what your answer would be.

"You said you fucked up with me – that I deserved to be happy."

Jack let out a shaky breath and was about to respond, but you didn't give him the chance. You walked over to where he was and climbed onto his lap, wrapping your arms around him.

"I miss you," you mumbled into his neck.

"You  _do_  deserve to be happy," he said, although he hugged you back tightly.

"That's the thing, Jack..." you said, moving back to look him in the eyes, "I'm not happy with anyone  _but you_. When I wake up and you're not there, it's like part of me is missing – even when you're on tour."

"Y/N-" he said quietly.

" _I know_ ," you cut him off, "I know you only did it to save me the hurt of missing you, but you and I both know it only made it worse. I could tell you didn't  _want_  to do it." You sighed, "I'm not saying this means we should get back together – I'm just saying I love you whether you still feel the same or not." You began to get off of his lap, but he grabbed your face gently and pressed his lips to yours.

"I love you too," he whispered against your lips, "Give me another chance?" You smiled and nodded slightly, kissing him again.


	46. Lost (Jamie Follese) *

**Warning: Death**

~

When most people think of a word like  _lost_ , they usually associate it with car keys or weight. Up until January 23rd, you probably would have thought of the same things. The thing about losing something isn't that you don't know where it is, but that you spend minutes, hours, maybe even days looking for it.

But what if you lose something, yet know  _exactly_ where it is?

That doesn't really make sense, does it? Of course not. Losing something but knowing where it is? That's crazy! Unless you have the details.

The summer before your freshman year of high school, your parents moved the family to a different state – Tennessee to be more exact.

When you started school a month later, you met this kid named Jamie in your math class. He was a quiet kid – never really talked much. You didn't know what it was about him but something told you to get to know him better so that's what you did. He was a little confused at first – you later learned it was because people usually never tried to be his friend – but he happily welcomed the attention.

After a few months of talking to him in class and at lunch, you found out you lived just down the street from each other. You would go over to his house after school so you could work on homework together – math really wasn't your best subject.

A few years passed and you had graduated high school. You decided not to go to college as you really couldn't afford it, but Jamie became the drummer of his older brother's band and since then, you hardly got to see him. But that made the days he was home that much more special.

He'd taken you out to dinner during one such homecoming so you could catch up. He seemed nervous that night – more nervous than usual – and while you were laying on the trampoline in his backyard staring at the stars, it became very obvious why. He said your name randomly and when you turned your head to look at him, he kissed you.

They say when you kiss  _the one_ , you're supposed to feel sparks or hear fireworks and that kiss was no exception. He pulled back immediately when you didn't kiss back and sat up, stuttering and apologizing over and over. You quickly sat up with him, taking his face in the palms of your hands and saying his name quietly followed by a hushed ' _shut up_ ' and pressed your lips back together.

Two years later, he asked you to marry him. It wasn't a huge proposal, but it was definitely a memorable one.

He recreated your entire relationship in one day and it started and ended with where you shared your first kiss. He said your name just as he did that night, but instead of turning to be met with his lips against yours, he was holding a small box with a gorgeous ring inside. It was simple – a small, single diamond with even smaller diamonds making up the rest of the top of the ring's band – but that was the way you liked it. You wondered how he could have known as you had never been on the topic of wedding rings, but it hit you that he had obviously asked your best friend what you would like.

The wedding was small – friends and family taking up the seats in the grass of the beautiful butterfly garden at the local zoo. The support your received from the band's fans was almost overwhelming. Once your engagement was announced, it was clear they realized that no matter who they thought was best for him, it was obvious that you loved each other and when they saw how happy Jamie was, they sort of knew that what was best for him was you and what was best for you was him.

Skipping forward a few more years, you started to notice a change in Jamie. He would get headaches a lot more, he was never himself, and he couldn't see as well as he normally could. You begged him time after time to go to the hospital, but he never would. He just brushed it off as the stress of being in a band.

He finally gave in after about 7 months, unable to handle the intensity of the headaches anymore. You still remember the day as if it just happened.

The doctor came into the room after the results from the CAT scan they did on Jamie's brain came in. He looked at you solemnly and you just knew it was bad.

"What's wrong with me?" Jamie whined and he held his head in his hands due to another headache. The doctor took a deep breath and pulled his chair over to sit in front of you two.

"There's never an easy way to deliver news like this, so I'm just going to say it," he told you, "Jamie, the results of your CAT scan show you have stage 4 Acoustic Neuroma."

"What's that?" Jamie asked, looking up.

"Acoustic Neuroma is a type of cancer that starts on the facial nerve of your ear and, if not treated right away, can spread into your brain. You have stage 4, which is essentially telling us that the tumor is now at its largest."

You heart dropped.  _Nothing_  could have prepared you for that.

"What are our options?" he asked calmly.

"We can either do immediate surgery to remove as much of the tumor as we can or you can go home and live as normally as you possibly can until-" the doctor paused upon looking at your face, knowing you weren't ready to hear what he would say next, "-until death." You let out a quiet sob and Jamie grabbed your hand, holding it tightly.

"How long do I have?"

"At this point in the tumor's development, I'd say you have about two months at the most." You sat in silence for a few moments before the doctor spoke again, "It's your choice, Jamie. Do you know what you want to do or would you like time to think about it?"

"I think I'd like to just be at home with my wife," he answered. You looked at him, tears blurring your vision as you got up and left the doctor's office.

You don't remember much about the ride home, you just remember Jamie speaking a couple times but not really hearing what he was saying. You were trapped in your own mind, but you somehow managed to drive back home safely.

Once you walked in the house, you went to the living room and collapsed on the couch. Jamie smiled sadly and pulled you up so you were sitting, kneeling down in front of you.

"I know you wanted me to go through with surgery," he told you softly, "But I know the chances of me dying on the operating table are high as well and I don't want the last time you see me to be in a hospital with a bunch of doctors and nurses." Your eyes started to get watery again and he gently pulled you off the couch and onto his lap, holding you tightly.

"I should have just taken you when I realized something was wrong," you cried into his shoulder.

"Babe," he said firmly, holding your face in his hands and moving you back to look at him, "This is  _not_ your fault. If we're going to blame anyone, it's going to be me and my stubbornness, okay?" You nodded, although you were in no way okay with it, and hugged him as tightly as you could without choking him. "I love you," he mumbled into your neck.

"I love you," you sniffled quietly.

You spent the next couple hours trying to figure out how you would tell everyone and decided you would visit them and tell them the news in person. Jamie couldn't fly anywhere, so you had to call Ryan and Nash, who were living in Los Angeles. You went over to Jamie's parents house, asking his grandparents and Ian and Maggie to meet you there.

Once everyone arrived, you got Ryan and Nash on the phone and told them the news. They were obviously devastated and lots of tears were shed, but Jamie remained calm.

"I'd like to ask you guys not to tweet about it or tell anyone else until Y/N and I have, okay?" Jamie asked them, pulling you closer to him, "We need to be the ones to tell them." They all agreed and you spent some time with them before going back home. Ryan and Nash were getting on the first flight back to Nashville so they could spend as much time with Jamie as possible.

When you got home, it's was nearing 3am, but neither of you couldn't sleep – not without telling the fans. You dug your camera out of your closet and set it up on the coffee table, sitting in front of it. You thought it would be best to tell them this way so they could hear it from you physically rather than reading a tweet.

"Hi, guys," Jamie smiled after hitting record – he was always used to talking to cameras, "We just wanted to kind of inform you about some things that are going on and we didn't want you to hear about it from a tweet." He paused and laughed quietly, "This is a lot harder than I thought it was gonna be." You half-smiled and took his hand in yours, laying your head on his shoulder as he went on, "Basically, what's going on is, right now, I am in stage 4 Acoustic Neuroma, which pretty much means that there is a tumor inside my brain and it's about the biggest it can get. I decided that I don't want to go through surgery to remove it because I don't want Y/N or any of my family and friends to see me for the last time in a hospital should I not make it out of the operating room. By making this decision, it means I have, at most, two months to live. I understand that many of you will with be confused or even angry with my decision, but please remember I'm just doing what I think is best for me and for my loved ones."

You wiped the tear rolling down your cheek before finally speaking, "As much as it hurts, we're going to try to live as normally as possible and we want you guys to do the same thing."

Jamie nodded, going on, "We love you guys very much and we hope you understand why we've decided to handle the situation this way."

You leaned back on the couch as Jamie hit the record button again and turned the camera off. He got his laptop and imported the footage, uploading it to the band's account on YouTube. When it was finished uploading, he took the link and posted it on Twitter.

_@Jamiefollese: I know it's pretty late, but if you're awake, @Y/T/N and I have some really important news._

After a few minutes, floods of comments and tweets came in, full of support and love for not just Jamie and yourself, but for each other. That's what you loved most about his fans: no matter what was going on, they always kept each other going and you knew they're going to keep you going when he was gone.

~

Not even a month had gone by before Jamie's death. You knew it would happen sooner than the doctor had told you. He was deteriorating quicker than expected. He passed peacefully in his sleep, but that fact didn't make it hurt less. His funeral was a private one held soon after his death, although you wouldn't have minded fans being there too. Everyone agreed they wouldn't tweet about it or anything until you told the fans yourself, which you thought was beyond gracious of them.

You sat in the same spot in front of the coffee table as you had with Jamie nearly a month before and picked up the camera, turning it on and positioning it so you were slightly off-center in the frame – leaving a spot for Jamie – and pressed the record button. You tried filming it about five times, but could never get through it without breaking down. The sixth time, you just decided to do it – no editing, no fake smiles, no nothing – just honest words and emotions, no matter how hard it was.

"Hi, guys," you said, just as Jamie had done, "As you can obviously tell, Jamie isn't-" You cleared your throat and wiped the tears that were already falling before taking a deep breath. "Jamie isn't here. Three days ago, sometime in his sleep, he passed away due to the tumor in his brain. I know this is going to be as hard for you as it is for me, and I want you guys to help each other through this. As much as you'll be pissed off at the world, please try to pull through it. I don't want any of you to be more torn up than you have to be and we all know Jamie wouldn't either. He'll still be with us, watching over of us – possibly laughing about how silly we're being, but knowing it's because we love him so much." You smiled slightly at the thought before going on, "Jamie is buried in Mount Hope Cemetery here in Franklin and he wanted you to come say goodbye to him properly if you're ever in the area. I will always be here if any of you need to talk, just message me or tweet me and I'll do my best to help you through this. Thank you guys so much for all the love and support throughout the past month and the love and support that you'll hopefully continue to give us." You smiled again before pushing the record button.

You sat there for a few minutes before uploading it – Jamie was never logged out of the band account – and were instantly welcomed with an overwhelming amount of well-wishes even though they themselves were devastated by the news.

After reading comments and tweets for a few minutes, you shut the computer off and grabbed your car keys. It was 1am, but you didn't care; You just wanted to see Jamie.

You pulled into the cemetery and parked as close as you could to where he was. You walked to his grave and stood there for a moment before you knelt down and pressed your forehead against his tombstone, finally letting out your tears.

Yes, you lost him, but you know exactly where he is.


	47. When It All Falls Down (Ryan Follese)

This was it: the day you  _finally_  got to see your favorite band live.

Even on the way to the venue, you couldn't believe you would be in the same room, breathing the same air, close enough to touch Hot Chelle Rae. You had dreamed about this day for what felt like your entire life and when the band finally announced a tour date in your state, you were  _determined_ to go. Your parents were pretty strict on concerts in the sense that you had to have someone you trusted with your _life_ go with you. Luckily, you had a friend not far away who you knew would be going to the concert as well. Although your parents didn't know this friend personally, they knew their daughter wouldn't trust her if she wasn't at least a semi-decent individual.

The day of the concert, you were  _beyond_ nervous. You weren't so nervous about meeting the band that had helped you through some tough times, but honestly more about meeting who you called one of your closest friends. Your father agreed to make the nearly two-and-a-half-hour drive to the venue as long as he could meet who you would be spending the day with. You, of course, agreed excitedly, texting your best friend the entire ride there.

Nearly an hour later, your dad found a parking spot and they walked into the venue.

You didn't even have time to look around before she heard someone scream, " _Y/N_!" Your mood instantly changed from nervous to excitement as you braced yourself to be tackled with a hug.

" _Danielle_!" you squealed, "Oh my gosh, you're  _real_! Like, I'm actually looking at you with my eyes!"

"Well, I would hope so! I would be a little creeped out if you could see with your teeth..." she trailed off, letting go of her best friend.

You laughed loudly, "Your reputation precedes you, I see."

"With your eyes, I hope," she scoffed jokingly. You introduced Danielle to your dad, as Danielle did with hers.

"How excited are you for today?!" Danielle sang, walking with you to where she was in line while your fathers talked about whatever it is that fathers talk about.

"More excited now knowing you're first in line," you chuckled, "Plus, you live like, 20 minutes away. You didn't have to show up until doors open."

"Hey, I may be an hour late to every other event, but I will  _always_  be 8 hours early for a concert," she smiled proudly.

~

When it was almost time for the show to begin, one of the venue's employees opened the concert hall doors and started taking tickets. You and Danielle eagerly handed over your tickets and ran in to get seats. You managed to snag front and center, right in front of Ryan. There were only about 200 people there, which was both a shock and a relief as you would hopefully have a chance to talk to the band after the show.

"What if you and Nash start dating after tonight?!" you gasped suddenly, hitting Danielle's right arm as you waited for the band to come on stage.

"Not a chance," Danielle laughed, rubbing the spot you hit, "The day Nash Overstreet asks me on a date is the day I stop loving Hot Chelle Rae."

"It could happen!" you insisted.

"You have high hopes for my love life," she replied, lightly patting your cheek, "And I appreciate that."

The lights began to dim and you and Danielle jumped from your seats, squealing in excitement. Ryan was the first to run on stage, followed by Nash, then Jamie. Ryan smiled at the two of you and Danielle elbowed your arm, winking at you. You rolled her eyes and laughed, putting your hand on Danielle's cheek and pushing her, making Ryan and Nash – who had been watching you – laugh. The band opened with  _Whatever_ and moved into  _Beautiful Freaks_  before stopping for a moment to talk to the crowd.

"How is everyone tonight?!" Ryan asked, earning a scream from everyone in the room, "You are a nice looking group of people!" The concert hall erupted into screams again, making him smile before they moved on to the next couple songs.

~

About halfway through the set, Nash began playing the first chords of the next song and you immediately grabbed Danielle's arm and leaned against her. You hadn't expected the emotions to hit _this_ hard, but you couldn't help it either.  _Forever Unstoppable_ meant so much to you and the song helped you through some hard times and just  _finally_ being able to hear it in person – much less standing right in front of the man singing it – nearly brought you to tears.

Danielle, of course, knew this – and felt the same way – so being able to experience this moment with one of her best friends was almost surreal as well. You felt Danielle lay her head on top on yours as you sang the song along with Ryan. The pair of you never even noticed both Ryan and Nash watching you during the song and it was evident by the smiles on their faces that they loved knowing their songs had that much of an effect on people.

Throughout the night, you couldn't help but feel like Ryan was staring at you. It wouldn't be unusual to think he was watching as you and Danielle were clearly the only two in the crowd who were dancing along to every single song and screaming every single word. But every time you looked at him, he would smile at you and then turn his attention to another part of the room. You  _also_  couldn't help but notice Nash watching your best friend very closely throughout the night as well. Danielle was too into the music to realize this, of course, and when Nash looked at you with a mesmerized look on his face, you just shrugged and laughed before going about your dancing.

~

When the concert was over and the band left the stage, you bolted out of the building to find the bus. You found it almost immediately and surprisingly didn't have to wait too long for anyone to come outside. You met Jamie first, talking with him for a while before Nash came outside. You and Jamie were deep in conversation, and Danielle took that opportunity to skip over to Nash.

They had been talking for about 5 minutes about nothing in particular before you finally realized Danielle wasn't standing next to you anymore. You looked around after Jamie had moved on to talk to another group of girls and saw Nash and Danielle talking not too far away, so you decided to have a little fun.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" you shouted dramatically, trotting toward the two, "She doesn't like this band anymore!"

" _Dude_!" Danielle exclaimed as she spun around to face her friend, causing Nash to chuckle quietly.

"You said and I quote: ' _The day Nash Overstreet asks me on a date is the day I stop loving Hot Chelle Rae_ '," you said in your best impression, "And I do believe he's trying to ask you out, my dear."

"Really?" she asked hopefully, looking up at the guitar player.

He scratched the back of his neck nervously, "I hadn't actually asked, but I, uh... I was leading up to it."

" _I see love in your eyes_ ," you started singing.

"Oh my God," Danielle mumbled, pressing her face into the palms of her hands.

" _And it's always been in hers._ "

" _Y/N_!" Danielle nearly screamed.

" _Don't wait till tomorrow!_ "

"I'll be over there as far away from this conversation as I can get!" she attempted to walk away but you grabbed her shoulders and spun her back to face Nash as you finished off the chorus.

" _Just ask her, ask her, please just ask her out!_ "

"Can we please go back to what we were talking about and pretend this conversation never happened," Danielle asked, visibly becoming redder by the second, making you smile victoriously.

Nash looked behind the two of you and smirked, "Sure, but we should go somewhere else."

He grabbed Danielle's hand and pulled her away quickly, leaving you in a state of confusion but feeling accomplished at the same time. It wasn't until you felt a tap on your shoulder that you knew why Nash had taken Danielle away so fast.

You turned to see Ryan smiling at her, "Hi! I'm sorry if this is sorta weird, but I just wanted to make sure you were alright."

"If I was alright?" you asked, tilting your head slightly.

"Well, I was watching you during the show and I noticed you and your friend were kinda tearing up during  _Forever Unstoppable_  and I just wanted to know you were okay."

"Oh," you laughed nervously, "Yeah, we're fine. You know, finally hearing your favorite song live and everything." He blinked a couple times at you as if he could tell there was more to the story, but he just brushed it off.

"I know it's usually the fan asking me for a hug, but would it be okay if-"

You cut him off, wrapping your arms around his narrow waist. He grinned, wrapping his own arms around you tightly.

You pulled away a few moments later and Ryan asked, "Are you from here?"

"No," you answered, "I live a little over two hours away, but this was the only show closest to me on this tour and I really wanted to be able to meet my best friend, so..." You trailed off, suddenly nervous to be standing in front of Ryan and having him actually give you his full attention.

"Oh," he said, seemingly disappointed, "I guess that means you won't still be here tomorrow?"

"Well, kind of, but I think my dad and I are leaving when we wake up. He didn't want to drive through the night and my friend lives like, 20 minutes from here, so they offered to let us crash at their place," you shrugged.

He nodded, "Um, listen, I know this is sort of out of the blue and all, but we have the next couple days off and if it's alright with you and your dad, I'd really like to get to know you better."

You were  _speechless_. You couldn't believe this was happening to  _you_ of all people. You looked around thinking ' _There are girls ten times prettier here, why is he interested in me?_ ', but he _was_. He wanted to talk to  _you_ and he wanted to get to know  _you_ , not those other girls.

Ryan was beginning to grow nervous when you didn't respond – feeling like he overstepped some sort of band member/fan boundary that stated not to ask one out until they've seen them around more than five times. But you were finally able to find the words.

"I'll only do it under one condition," you said, your voice shaky.

"Name it," Ryan said a little too eagerly. You nodded toward Nash and Danielle who were now standing in the grassy area between the building and the parking lot.

"It has to be a double date. It's obvious he's very interested in her and I'm not doing this without her. I can't," you shook your head.

"Deal," he told you.

"Text me tomorrow morning," you said confidently, although you felt like you were about to _puke_.

You took the Sharpie out of his hand and grabbed his forearm, scribbling down your name and phone number as neatly as you could. He nodded quickly and smiled at you, making your heart race. You turned and rushed over to Danielle and Nash, grabbing her wrist and pulling her toward the front of the building.

" _Y/N_!" she squealed in protest, "We didn't even get _pictures_ with them!"

"Did he ask you out?"

She paused before a smile started pulling at the corners of her mouth, "Yes."

"Then it'll be okay."

Once you made it to the front of the building, Danielle texted her dad that the show was over so he could come pick you up.

"So why did you have to pull me away like that?" Danielle asked while you waited.

"Here's the deal: Ryan asked me to go out with him tomo-"

You were cut off by Danielle shrieking, " _He asked you out_?!"

"Stay with me, Danielle!" you tried to remain calm, although you couldn't help but smile, "He asked me to go out with him tomorrow because they have the next two days off and he wants to get to know me better."

"That's great! But I don't understand why you interrupted Nash and I."

"I know, and I'm sorry, but I said the only way I would be able to go out with him would be if it was a double date with you guys," you said carefully.

"Why though?" she asked, confused.

"My dad has met you and he knows you're a real person and I feel like if he knows you'll be there, he'll be more okay with it."

She shrugged, "As long as I get pizza, I'm in."

"You're so easy to please," you chuckled quietly.

"I try," Danielle teased, nudging you slightly.

~

"Should we ask them together?" you asked Danielle as your dads got out of the car.

She nodded her head as you walked over to them and blurted out, "Can we go on a date tomorrow?"

"You're 20-years-old," her dad laughed, "Why are you asking _me_?"

She thought for a moment before looking at you, "Why  _am_ I asking?"

"Because of  _who_ you want to go on a date with," you answered, elbowing her side.

"They're never gonna _believe us_ ," she said quietly, although your dads could hear her.

" _Try us_ ," your dad chuckled.

"Okay, Dad," you took a breath, "You know that band we saw tonight?" They nodded and you went on, "Well, the singer and the guitar player want to take us on a date and we thought it would be better to ask first, I guess..." you trailed off. The men looked at their daughters' hopeful expressions for a moment.

"Will you two be together?" your dad asked. Both of you nodded as quickly as you could.

"We wouldn't mind having you guys stay another night," Danielle's dad said casually.

Your dad shrugged, "I guess we could stay in town for another day."

"S-So that's a _yes_ , right?" Danielle's eyes widened.

"Under one condition," her dad told her, "We have to meet them before you leave the house."

" _Done_!" you squeaked, unable to hold in your excitement as you both hugged your dads.

~

The next morning, Ryan texted you as promised and you let him in on the plan. He seemed excited – as excited as someone _can be_ over texting – which eased your racing thoughts a bit. The two of you got ready – you had luckily packed two extra outfits in case something _tragic_ happened – and headed out of Danielle's bedroom at the exact time Ryan and Nash knocked on the front door.

"I got it!" Danielle squeaked before anyone could make a move, rushing to the door.

"Hey, you!" Nash smiled, giving her a hug when she stepped out of the way to let them inside as Ryan did with you. Your fathers were tough on them – as all fathers are with their daughter's dates.

" _Dad_!" Danielle whined after a few minutes of intense questioning, "Stop interrogating him! You're not a cop anymore!"

"You, uh... You used to be a _cop_?" Nash asked him nervously.

" _Okay_!" she squealed before he could answer, "We better get going! Don't want to waste the daylight!"

Danielle quickly kissed her mom and dad's cheeks before grabbing Nash's hand and pulling him back outside. Ryan looked at you and you shrugged, laughing lightly. You gave your dad a hug and Ryan shook both fathers' and Danielle's mother's hands.

"It was nice meeting you all," he smiled.

"Don't get into any trouble!" your dad called as the two walked out of the house, making Ryan chuckle.

"Well, that was a lot more stressful than I thought it would be," you sighed as you and Ryan walked up to Nash and Danielle.

"Yeah, you're telling _me_ ," Danielle groaned quietly.

Nash laughed quietly, "What do you girls want to do first?"

"Well, I only agreed to come if I got pizza out of it," she shrugged nonchalantly.

"And I'm _starving_ ," you pouted slightly.

"Pizza it is then," Ryan grinned.

~

After finishing your food, the group walked to the park not far away from the pizza place. Danielle took Nash to what she called her secret hideout but was really just a small clearing with a pond in the middle of the woods – it had a trail leading right to it, it wasn't exactly a  _secret_  place – while you and Ryan went to the swing set.

"So do I get the real story or do we not know each other well enough for that yet?" he asked you, pushing gravel back and forth with his shoe.

"The _real_ story?" you asked, confused.

"You know, the real story," he said, "About why you and Danielle were crying during  _Forever Unstoppable_." You opened your mouth, but it was like Ryan already knew what you were going to say. "I know there's more to it than it being your favorite song," he told you, "I could see it in your reaction when I asked you about it last night."

You simply sighed. You'd never told anyone the reason the song meant so much to you – aside from _Danielle_ , of course – but if you were going to tell _anyone else_ , it might as well be one of the people who _wrote it_.

"About a year ago, I was going through things and considered certain..." you paused, trying to find the right word. "... _alternatives_...that I'm not proud to admit."

Ryan watched you carefully as you went on, his heart breaking with every second that passed. He couldn't _imagine_ someone who seemed so vibrant and just happy to be alive could have even thought about harming herself or anything of the sort.

"Anyway," you continued, "I happened to be on Twitter one day and your band was a suggested account to follow and since I'm always interested in looking up new bands, I decided to check it out. The first song that came up when I searched the band's name on YouTube was  _I Like It Like That_ and I thought it was pretty catchy, so I listened to pretty much every song that had a music video up to that point. One of the recommended videos on the side was a  _Forever Unstoppable_  lyric video someone made and I fell in love with the lyrics. So I guess the rest is history," you shrugged. Ryan smiled, although saddened that you'd ever felt that way to _begin with_ , he was honored knowing that something _he wrote_ kept you going.

Without warning, he hopped off of the swing he was on and pulled you up onto your feet, wrapping his arms around you tightly. Once your shock wore off, you wrapped your own arms around his waist just as tightly, smiling into his shirt.

"Thank you," he told you after you let go of each other.

"Thank  _me_?!" you exclaimed, "Thank  _you_! If it weren't for you, I probably wouldn't even _be here_!"

"Exactly," he smiled, "Thank you for reminding me _why_ I make music. I rarely get to hear stories of how people discovered us or why their favorite song is their favorite, but when I do, it reminds me why I _love_ doing this. I'm always so stressed about touring and writing songs and sometimes, I just really need that reminder." You smiled, hugging him again.

"I, um, I know we haven't really gotten to know each other," Ryan stammered, suddenly becoming nervous, "But I think you're amazing and beautiful and fun and-" He cleared his throat, "-and, um, I was wondering if maybe you would like to be my girlfriend?" You stared at him, unable to find words. "It's okay if you don't," he rambled, "I just- I shouldn't have asked because we don't really know each other and-" You suddenly felt a wave of confidence and cut him off, taking his face in your hands and kissing him.

" _Whoa_!" a familiar voice shouted, causing you to pull back quickly, "Looks like things are getting  _steamy_  over here!"

"Shut up," you laughed as Danielle and Nash made their way over to them.

"Those are very rude words," she pouted before looking at Ryan's stupidly huge grin and watching him try to slyly intertwine his and your fingers. She smirked, "So are you two like, a thing now?"

"You saw us kissing," you retorted with an amused expression, "What do _you_ think?"

"Ryan," Nash sighed dramatically, "Please control your girlfriend's attitude."

Danielle rolled her eyes, "I'm gonna need to start taking self-defense classes because _Lord knows_ this boy won't be helping me."

"So are you guys..." you trailed off, winking at your best friend. As if to answer the question, Nash leaned down slightly and kissed Danielle's cheek. "I'll take that as a yes," you laughed as Danielle glared up at him.

"Don't look at me like that," he chuckled.

"I will look at you however I wanna look at you," she sassed, putting her hand on her hip.

"Nash, please control your girlfriend's attitude," Ryan smirked, causing Nash to roll his eyes as you began making the walk back to Danielle's house.

~

"We're back!" Danielle announced as she opened the door.

"You didn't get pregnant, did you?" her father called from the kitchen.

"I don't know," she replied, walking into the room, "We'll find out in like, three weeks." Nash pushed her shoulder and she smiled sweetly at him before addressing her dad again, "We'll be outside. Please try not to need us."

Your group hopped up onto the trampoline and laid down to look at the stars. Although there were no visible stars yet, the sun had just started setting, so you just decided to wait it out outside. Well, more like _you and Danielle decided_ as you preferred not to be harassed by your dads' _ridiculous_ questions.

Once the sun had set and the stars could be seen, Ryan and Nash seemed to be in awe.

"We don't get to see the stars very often living in LA," Ryan said.

"That's why I like living in a small town," Danielle smiled to herself, "It's nice to just come out here without all the noise and lights of a busy city when you need to get away."

"But the nice thing about living in a big city is that there are actually things to _do_ ," Nash chuckled quietly.

"Shhhhhh," she whispered, covering his mouth with the palm of her hand, "You're ruining the moment."

~

A few minutes of silent stargazing passed before you couldn't take the battle going on your mind anymore and just let it out, "Do you _really_ think we can do this?"

"Do what?" Ryan asked you, concerned about your sudden outburst.

"You know," you sighed, " _This_. _Us_. _Long distance_. You guys are always going to be so busy with the album and photoshoots and you live thousands of miles away and I just- I don't know. I'm being dumb."

Danielle continued the thought, "I think what she _means_ is she – well, _both of us_ – feel like this _won't_ be everything we've imagined it being since we became fans."

"It's not gonna be _easy_ ," Ryan shook his head, "And we know that, but I like to think it'll be _worth it_."

"Yeah," Nash went on, "We'll always make trips to see you guys. It's not like we'll _never_ see you again; We just won't see each other as often as we'd all _like_."

"Just think of the times we _will_ see each other! They'll be that much more special and exciting! And who knows? Maybe further down the road if we're still together, you guys could potentially move to LA or we'll move here or something," Ryan said, trying to lighten the mood. You looked over at him and he kissed your nose gently. "Distance _isn't_ going to change how I feel about you," he muttered, "I'll make _sure_ of it."

 


	48. Kiss Me Again (Jamie Follese)

The airport was buzzing with so many excited fans and paparazzi that they had to have at least 10 security guards get everyone back outside. They didn't mean any harm – merely just awaiting the arrival of the plane Ryan, Nash, and Jamie were on. Somehow, you'd gotten caught up in the crowd and were pushed out with everyone else.

You let out an exhausted sigh. It was 5 o'clock in the morning and you'd been waiting for your boyfriend's flight to land for the past three hours because of delays due to snow. It was absolutely freezing outside and everyone was packed together, but you finally managed to make your way back to the doors.

"Why can't they only tour in the summer?" you mumbled to yourself. A group of three girls beside you started giggling quietly, causing you to sigh before chuckling, "I said that out loud, didn't I?"

One of them nodded before nudging you, "You excited for Jamie to be home?"

"I've been here for three hours," you laughed, "I'm excited for  _me_  to be home."

"Yeah, we saw his tweet about the delay," another girl smiled apologetically.

"And then we saw your reply," the third girl snickered, "Very... _interesting..._ choice of words, by the way."

"Thank you," you laughed again, remembering your not-so-politely worded tweet and shaking your head, "I shouldn't complain though. I knew what I was getting into when we started dating."

"You're _very_ cute together," one of the girls gushed.

"Thank you," you grinned.

Not long after, you could all hear the guys' flight being announced over the loud speaker inside. You squealed quietly, beginning to walk forward only to have the security guard beside you stop you.

"No fans," he stated monotonously.

"I'm Jamie's girlfriend," you smiled politely, earning a sigh from him.

He rolled his eyes, "I'm sure you are."

"No, dude," one of the girls you had been talking to earlier stepped in, "She really _is_ Jamie's girlfriend."

The guard didn't have time to speak before you tried to push your way past him after seeing a very familiar redhead and beside him, the light brown hair of the 22-year-old you'd been waiting to hold again for the past four months.

However, your attempt at getting by hadn't worked as well as you hoped once you felt yourself being lifted at least a foot off the ground by the very unamused looking security guard. You looked back at Jamie and noticed he was looking around, trying to find you.

You couldn't hold in your excitement anymore and felt tears starting to form, knowing you were only seconds away from being able to touch him again.

" _Jamie_!" you cried out happily, although you were still in the guard's grasp.

His head shot over to you and he shouted, " _Hey_!" The guard looked over his shoulder and Jamie began making his way toward you, "Gravity exists for a reason! Now put my girlfriend back down so she can come over here and kiss me!" You smiled widely and as soon as your feet hit the ground, you were running to Jamie. You jumped into his open arms and he hugged you tightly, only pulling away to kiss you roughly.

"Jamie," you giggled after a few seconds, "We're in the middle of the _airport_." He smiled, pulling you back in for another hug.

"It feels _so good_ to be able to kiss you again," he mumbled into your neck.

"I know what you mean," you whispered against his hair, happy he was finally home.


	49. Let the Universe Align (Jamie Follese)

You boarded the plane, beyond exhausted from both jet lag and touring all week. This year, your senior class got take a trip to Cannes, France for the senior trip. Although the experience was amazing, your legs hurt from walking and your eyelids felt as though they weighed a thousand pounds.

Once you found your seat for the 15-hour flight back home, you sighed in relief, finally able to sit down and rest. You were happy to find that after everyone boarded, no one was sitting beside you to bother you while you slept. After taking off, electronics were finally able to be used, so you pulled your iPod out of your small carry on bag and put your earbuds into your ears, turning on your music and almost immediately falling asleep.

~

About four hours into the flight, you woke up to movement beside you. You brushed it off and made yourself as comfortable as you could to go back to sleep, but you heard the guy who was now sitting beside you chuckle.

"I've heard that song before," a seemingly familiar voice said as  _Don't Say Goodnight_  started playing in your ears. You sighed, not really feeling up to any interaction with people, but when you looked over at him, you were in shock.

"I, uh, I would _hope so_ ," you replied, pulling out your earbuds and laughing upon seeing Jamie sitting there. "So are the other members of your band on this flight too or did you go to France alone?"

"They are, but they're in first class."

"Didn't want to give up the free drinks, I'm assuming?"

He laughed, " _Obviously_!"

"What are _you_ doing back here then? I mean, you haven't been sitting here the whole flight."

"I'm not much of a drinker," he shrugged, "Plus, the drinks aren't even that _good_. And the flight attendant up there didn't really like me much for some reason. So I asked if there were any seats available coach and here I am!"

He smiled at you, making your heart skip a beat. You'd always imagined meeting him and being speechless or unable to form proper words, but you were actually having a _conversation_ with him.

"I'm Jamie, by the way," he grinned, "But you probably already knew that."

"Y/N," you smiled back.

"Very pretty name. It suits you well." You blushed lightly, making him smirk. "So, Y/N, what brought _you_ to France?"

"Senior trip," you shrugged, "I didn't _really_ want to come, but I figured I would. You know, once in a lifetime opportunity or whatever."

"You didn't _want_ to go?" he asked, visibly in shock.

"Let me rephrase that: I didn't really want to come with my  _classmates_. We were only visiting for five days and it was just schedules, schedules, schedules. I've always wanted to visit France, but I guess I just imagined myself visiting on my own terms, you know? Like, not having to always stay with the group and things like that. I didn't even get to meet a hot French guy at the Eiffel Tower who will come to America in a desperate attempt to find me and profess his undying love! It happens in all the movies! I think I just got ripped off."

Jamie laughed again, "You don't really seem like the type that _actually_ believes those things happen in real life."

"Hey, I'm sitting on a plane next to the drummer of my favorite band. _Anything_ can happen at this point," you giggled. You talked for a little while longer before you started to get tired again.

"Tired?" Jamie asked as you yawned.

"No, I just like to yawn for the fun of it," you teased.

"I was just _asking_ ," he sighed dramatically, "No need for the _sass_." You smiled and put your elbow on the armrest between you and Jamie, laying your head in your hand.

After a few minutes, you finally went to sleep again and your head fell onto Jamie's shoulder. He jumped slightly, not expecting it to happen and looked over at you, smiling to himself before turning his attention back to his phone.

~

Around nine hours later, you felt someone poking your forearm. You mumbled to yourself, lifting your head and rubbing your eyes. You looked over and saw Jamie grinning at you, realizing you fell asleep on his shoulder.

"Sorry I fell asleep on you like that," you laughed quietly, trying to ignore the fact that you were probably red as a tomato.

"Sorry I had to wake you up," he smirked, "But it's almost time to land, so we have to put our seat belts on." You nodded slowly, pulling the seat belt across your waist and buckling it. "Are you okay?" Jamie asked, confused by your sudden change in mood.

"Yeah, I just... It's weird, you know? I'm perfectly fine with being 20,000 feet in the air, but the thought of landing _kind of_ freaks me out a bit," you laughed nervously.

"I've done this a million times. It's gonna be okay," he smiled at you, trying to ease your racing thoughts. When the plane started descending, you began to tap your foot. Jamie put his hand on your knee and repeated quietly, "It's gonna be okay."

You nodded and he grabbed your hand, holding it tightly and it made you feel better. You were undoubtedly still a _nervous wreck_ , but you were a nervous wreck holding _Jamie Follese's_ hand; You took what you could get.

A couple minutes later, the plane had landed safely and when the seat belt light went off, you realized Jamie was still holding your hand.

"Jamie," you said in almost a whisper.

"Hmm?" he mumbled, looking at you.

"You can let go now," you said, nodding toward your hands.

"Right," he chuckled nervously, "Sorry."

You looked at him for a moment before shrugging it off and exiting the plane. It was a mystery to you why he would so nervous all of a sudden, but you just assumed that he was a pretty nervous flyer as well and just pretended he wasn't to seem brave for you. You giggled quietly to yourself as you walked into the airport lobby.

"What's so funny?" Jamie asked curiously.

"Nothing," you smiled, picking your bags up off of the baggage claim carousal. Jamie began looking around for the other members of his band before turning back to you.

"I noticed you have a lot of our songs on your iPod and I thought maybe you'd like to meet Ryan and Nash too."

You were suddenly speechless. Meeting one-third of your favorite band was enough to make you happy for the rest of your life, but now  _he_  was asking  _you_  if you wanted to meet them? You nodded your head slowly and Jamie grabbed your hand again, pulling you toward Ryan and Nash.

"Jamie! There you are!" Ryan exclaimed before noticing you as well and addressing his younger brother again, "We're not kidnapping her, are we?"

"You can if you _want_!" you suddenly blurted out, earning a smile from all three band members.

"This is Y/N," Jamie told them, "I sat beside her on the plane and I found out she's a really big fan."

You looked down and realized Jamie was still holding your hand. You eyes widened slightly and you were increasingly becoming more and more nervous, but you didn't let go. It was often that someone wanted to hold your hand, let alone your favorite band member, and you intended to take in the moment before you never saw him again.

Ryan apparently noticed this and said, "Jamie, can I talk to you for a minute... _alone_?"

"Uh, sure," he answered confused, letting go of your hand and walking off with Ryan, leaving you alone with Nash.

"Hello," you said slowly.

"Hi!" he replied cheerfully, "It's nice to meet you, by the way."

"It's nice to meet you too," you responded quietly, "Especially since you're probably really tired from that flight."

He shrugged, "You get used to it after a while. I'm actually wide awake right now."

"That wouldn't have anything to do with all the drinks you had, would it?" you smirked slightly.

He laughed for a moment before seriously saying, "Maybe." You continued to make small talk with Nash before Ryan and Jamie finally made their way back to you.

Jamie looked nervous as he quietly said, "We should go outside and wait for your ride or something."

"Um, yeah, okay, but I know you're probably ready to go home-" You were cut off by Ryan.

"We'd be _more_ than happy to take a picture with you," he smiled.

"I was just going to say you probably want to go home and take a nap, but I mean, if you _insist_."

They laughed and you took out your phone, asking if one of your friends to take the photo for you. After she did, you thanked her and the guys for taking it and headed outside with Jamie.

"So what were you and Ryan talking about?" you asked Jamie as you sat on a bench a few feet from the doors you just walked out of.

"Nothing really," he answered a little too quickly, "Just brother stuff."

"You seemed really nervous when you walked back to Nash and I."

He sighed, turned slightly red, "Ryan just pointed out that I was still holding your hand."

"I'd be embarrassed to be seen holding my hand too," you said, half-jokingly.

"I wasn't _embarrassed_ to be holding your hand," he told you seriously, "I just wasn't expecting him to _call me out_ on it."

"That's all he had to tell you? That you were holding my hand?"

"No..." he trailed off, "He says he thinks I should ask you out."

"Oh," you said calmly although your heart was beating faster and faster.

"He's right though. I should- I mean, I'd _like to_ ," he said, "And not because he told me to, but because I want to. He just helped me _realize_ I want to, I guess."

"You  _want_  to ask me out?" you asked, shocked.

"Well, yeah. I had a lot of fun talking to you today and it was nice to talk to a fan who wasn't so..."

"Fangirly?" you finished his thought.

" _Something_ like that," he chuckled, then becoming serious again, "Will you go out with me, Y/N?"

"I would love to go out with you, Jamie," you smiled, kissing his cheek.

You two talked for a while longer – exchanging numbers and all that - before your dad finally arrived to pick you up. Jamie helped you load your bags into the backseat and even opened the passenger door for you.

"Who's this, Y/N?" your dad asked loudly as you climbed into the car.

" _Please_ don't embarrass me," you mumbled, pulling your seat belt across your body.

" _Oh_! Is he that kid from that Chili band you're always going on about?"

" _Dad_!" you exclaimed.

"He's the drummer, right? Isn't he your favorite or something?" He smiled victoriously as you hid your face in your hands, wishing you were anywhere but there.

"With all due respect, sir," Jamie chuckled, "I know you know that's not how the band's name is pronounced."

"You got me," your dad laughed, "But how often am I going to get to embarrass my daughter in front of her favorite band member?"

You groaned again, "Someone please tell me I'm dreaming." Suddenly, you felt two pinches on both of your arms. " _Ow_!" you squeaked.

"Sorry," Jamie smiled apologetically, "But now you know you're not dreaming."

Your dad chuckled, putting the car in drive, "It was nice to meet you, young man."

"You too, sir," Jamie smiled, "And don't worry. I'm always up for you embarrassing her in front of me."

"I'm gonna need to rethink this whole _favorite member_ thing," you said out loud to yourself.

Jamie laughed, "Bye, Y/N."

" _Bye, Jamie_ ," you muttered, but smiled at him before he closed the door and your dad drove away.


	50. Drive You Out of My Mind *

**Warnings: Drunk driving, car accident, death**

~

_It's been 24 hours since you walked out the door_   
_Smoke in the air and empty bottles on the floor_   
_With the keys in my hand, my world's spinning around_   
_If I could change my life, well, I would change last night_

He hated himself. He absolutely  _hated himself_.

Even after all the times he'd screwed up, she kept giving him chances, but this time was different. This time, she'd had enough. This time, she ran out of chances to give him. This time, she left. She was gone and she was never coming back.

_Now I can't see the lines on the road up ahead_   
_And with everything you said_   
_It just can't be you're leaving me_   
_You're leaving me_

_If I can't make this right_   
_I'm gonna drive you out of my mind tonight_

He didn't know where he was going, not that it really mattered. All he knew was he couldn't be in that apartment. Not when everything there reminded him of her.

_There a roadside station off 459_   
_A pack of cigarettes and a 6-pack for the ride_   
_A full tank of gas, but my heart's sitting on E_   
_Well, there's no place I can go_   
_That's gonna bring you back to me_

He pulled off of the highway just as his low fuel alarm went off. He walked into the gas station and immediately went for the aisle of alcohol and picked up the same beer he'd been drinking for the past day. He paid for the drinks along with a pack of cigarettes and the gas he'd just put into the tank. He went back to his car and sat in the driver's seat, resting his head against his steering wheel for a moment. He opened a can of beer and downed it in nearly five seconds before starting his car and getting back onto the highway.

_Now I can't see the lines on the road up ahead_   
_And with everything you said_   
_It just can't be you're leaving me_   
_You're leaving me_

_And I'm doing 99 with the radio on_   
_And with every single song_   
_I won't believe you're leaving me_   
_You're leaving me_

_If I can't make this right_   
_I'm gonna drive you out of my mind tonight_

He didn't care what happened to him at that point. He was so convinced that she would never take him back that he didn't even try.

_The love and the hate_   
_The liquor and the pain_   
_It's the song with my heart_   
_And the road and the rain_   
_There's no way to keep these tears inside_

_I can't see the lines on the road up ahead_   
_And with everything you said_   
_It just can't be you're leaving me_   
_You're leaving me_

_I'm doing 99 with the radio on_   
_And they're playing our song_   
_I won't believe you're leaving me_   
_You're leaving me_

_You're leaving_   
_You're leaving me_

That's when it hit him. Well, that's when _he_ hit the _18-wheeler_. He hadn't been paying attention and that's not exactly the safest thing to be doing when you're going 100 MPH, especially when you've been drinking.

Some would say he died the moment of impact and didn't feel a thing, but those who knew him knew he did.

And, _god,_ did he feel _everything_.

_If I can't make this right_   
_I'm gonna drive you out of my mind tonight_

~

_Song used: "Drive You Out of My Mind" by Miracle Drug (Hot Chelle Rae)_


	51. Hold On (Ian Keaggy)

**Warning: Mention of car accident**

~

"I'm sorry, Mr. Keaggy, but there's just nothing we can do anymore. We have to take her off life support," you heard a man say solemnly.

Your husband sniffled quietly and made his way back to the hospital bed you'd been laying in for the past two months. He mustered up the voice to tell you he loved you before kissing your forehead and beginning to leave the room. You opened your eyes and watched as Ian walked away with his head down and his hands stuffed inside his jeans pockets.

You let out a quiet whimper, unsure if he heard you until you heard him shouting for the doctor. Your hospital room was immediately swarmed with your parents, Ian, the doctor, and two nurses.

"Y/N," the doctor said and you looked at him, "Don't try to talk, okay? There's a tube in your throat. This may feel a bit strange, but we're going to take it out, alright?" You nodded and he removed the tape that was holding the tube in position from your face and the tube easily slid out of your throat.

You began coughing and when you finally calmed down, you shook your head and whimpered again, " _No_."

"No?" your mother asked as she rushed to your side, taking your hand in hers.

"Don't...take me...off...life...support..." you breathed heavily, still trying to catch your breath.

"I _told you_ she was gonna wake up!" Ian shouted happily from where he was across the room.

Your stare fixated on him and your eyes started to fill with tears. He ran over to you, grabbing your other hand, fighting back tears of his own.

"I love you so much," he muttered, leaning down and kissing your forehead again. The doctor and nurses left the room after checking your vitals to give you time alone with your family.

"Y/N," your dad spoke, "Do you know what today is?"

"It's our anniversary," you smiled weakly, looking up at Ian.

Ian smiled sadly and took in a shaky breath, "No, it's not, babe. It's January 16th. You've been in a coma since November 23rd."

"But we were going home after dinner," you whined, furrowing your eyebrows.

"I know," he replied quietly, running his fingers gently through your hair, "We got into an accident. I-I slid on some ice and we spun into a tree and you were covered in blood and when you wouldn't-" He paused in an attempt to keep himself from falling apart in front of you, "-and when you wouldn't wake up, I called 911."

It absolutely broke your heart knowing he blamed himself for what happened. You looked over at your parents, opening your mouth to speak, but your dad didn't give you the chance.

He cut you off saying to your mom, "Honey, I think we need to give them time alone."

He kissed your forehead and you smiled at him, thanking him as he ushered your mom out of the room. You scooted over as much as you could and pat the empty space beside you, signalling for Ian to lay with you. He carefully climbed onto the bed and you grabbed his hand again, squeezing it tightly as you looked him directly in the eyes.

"This is _not_ your fault," you told him firmly.

"Yes, it _is_ ," he whispered, unable to keep the tears from falling, "I was messing with the radio. I wasn't paying attention. You would still be _okay_ if I was."

"Ian," you sighed, moving your other hand to his cheek and wiping it with your thumb, "These kinds of things _happen_ and sometimes, nothing you do will be able to stop them."

"But I almost got you _killed_ ," he said, his voice breaking.

It was taking every ounce of strength inside you not to start crying. Not just because he blamed himself, but because he probably spent the past two months convincing himself it was his fault and that, if you did wake up, you would never forgive him.

"I love you, okay?" you mumbled, "So you messed up _one time_? That doesn't mean you're an accident waiting to happen. You are the _best_ thing that has _ever_ happened to me and nothing in the _world_ will make me feel differently about you." He nodded slowly and you pulled his face to yours, kissing him.

"I love you too," he sighed under his breath, pressing his face into your neck and breathing you in, just happy you were still alive.


	52. Can I Have This Dance (Ryan Follese)

"Y/N, do I _really_ have to do this?" your best friend whined.

" _Yes, Ryan_ ," you sighed, rolling your eyes for what may very well have been the tenth time since he walked through your front door, "Kara is a _really_ sweet girl and I think you two will go well together."

"Why does _she_ get to know who _I_ am, but I can't even see a _picture_ of her?"

"You've met her before. She was the one that went to your show with me a few weeks ago."

" _That_  was Kara?" he asked. You nodded and saw a small smile start to pull at the corners of his mouth.

"Now get going," you said after looking at the clock, ushering him out the door, "She's expecting you to pick her up at 7."

"If this goes well, I owe you _big time_ ," Ryan grinned, giving you a hug and trotting out the door. You smiled slightly as the door closed before going over to your couch and plopping down to watch TV.

It was no surprise to anyone that knew you that you'd always liked Ryan – except for _him and Kara_ , of course. You didn't really _blame her_ though. She wasn't really what you would consider a _close friend_ , but what you told Ryan was _true_ : she was a sweet, caring, and funny girl and even though you weren't close with her, you decided to set her and Ryan up. She had been having relationship problems in the sense that after one date, the guy just didn't want to continue the relationship.

It obviously made you feel bad, so you convinced her to let you set her up with your best friend. You didn't care about how you felt because deep down, you knew Ryan would like her more than he could ever like you – if he ever even liked you in that way  _at all_  – and you were prepared for that no matter _how much_ it hurt.

~

The next morning, Ryan burst through your front door, causing you to squeak loudly and fall off the couch. You jumped up, unaware of what was going on until you saw Ryan staring back at you.

"Why were you sleeping on the couch?" he asked, confused.

"I didn't have the energy to walk upstairs," you shrugged, yawning and sitting back down, "What are you doing here?" He walked further into the living room and sat on the couch opposite of you, grinning widely.

"I just came by to thank you for setting me up with Kara. I haven't been that happy on a date in a _long_ time, so I thought it was only fitting to thank you for it," he smiled, "So thank you."

"You're welcome, Ry," you smiled, "Oh! You're bring the popcorn for movie night tonight, right?"

His smile faded, "Movie night..."

"Yeah... We have one every Saturday...?"

"Shit," he mumbled, "Kara and I were gonna go out again tonight."

"Oh..." you trailed off, "That's okay. We'll just skip this week."

"No, no, no. I'll call Kara and cancel. I'm sure she'll understand." He began pulling his phone out of his pocket and as happy as you would have been to just let him cancel, you didn't want to ruin his plans.

"Ry," you said, reaching forward and taking his phone out of his hand and putting it on the coffee table, "It's fine, really. We can just reschedule."

"Y/N, we  _always_  do movie nights on Saturdays," he shook his head, "I should have remembered."

" _Ryan_ ," you stated firmly, " _Go out with Kara_. It's obvious that you _really_ like her and I don't want to be the thing that always ruins your plans." He smiled slightly at you, getting up and sitting down beside you.

"You _never_ ruin my plans," he said, pulling you into a hug, "You just remind me that I need to start remembering them."

You let out a quiet laugh, "That's what I'm here for."

He chuckled, letting go of you and standing up, "I'll call you tonight and we'll reschedule, okay? Don't have _too much_ fun without me."

" _Never_ ," you giggled and he left your house. You sighed and stood up, deciding now was a good a time as any to start your day.

~

**Ryan's POV**

Ryan had just taken Kara home and walked her to her front door. They were standing on the porch, making small talk as he was trying to build up the courage to kiss her. She was about to walk inside her house when he gently grabbed her wrist and stopped her, making her turn back toward him.

"Okay, I don't know how to go about this, so I'm just gonna say it," he rambled, "Kara, I really like you and I was wondering... Can I kiss you?" She smiled at him, but it wasn't like a  _happy_  smile – it was more like a sad smile. She slowly shook her head and he felt his heart drop.

"It's nothing against you, Ryan," she told him, "You're an amazing guy and I really _do_ like you too, but I can't do this to Y/N." She sighed, going on before he had the chance to speak, "I'm sure you're not aware of it because if you  _were_ ,  _she_  would be the one you'd be asking to kiss right now and not  _me_ , but she  _really_  likes you. She would never tell anyone that, but she doesn't have to. I saw the way she looked at you when she introduced us at your show. She wasn't as cheerful when she suggested setting us up and I know it's because this is absolutely tearing her apart. I don't know if you feel the same about her, but I think you need to at least talk to her about it. If you don't, we can pick up where we left off, but if you do, I won't try to keep you from her. She deserves to be happy and I won't be able to live with myself knowing I took that away from her." She smiled at Ryan again, kissing his cheek and walking into her house, leaving him standing there alone.

~

**Your POV**

It was about 8:30pm when you decided you would just have a movie night by yourself. No use in moping around when you could be watching your favorite movies, right? You changed into one of Ryan's shirts – it was your favorite shirt of his and he gave it to you because he knew you loved it so much – and your pajama shorts, making yourself a bowl of popcorn and grabbing a can of Coke out of your fridge before heading to your basement's media room and setting everything up. You put  _High School Musical 3_  in the DVD player – _no shame_ – and plopped onto the couch, singing along to the songs.

Half an hour into the movie, you sighed as your favorite scene –  _Can I Have This Dance_  – started. While Gabriella grabbed Troy's hand and took him further out onto the roof to start teaching him to how to waltz, you heard someone walking down the stairs. You froze, looking over, but let out a quiet sigh of relief once you saw the familiar white Converse and ripped skinny jeans that belonged to your best friend.

"Having movie night _without me_ , I see," Ryan said, walking over to you.

As Gabriella started singing, Ryan sang along with her, holding his hand down to you. You stared at it for a moment before giggling quietly and taking his hand. He pulled you up and you began acting out the scene along with the movie, waltzing around the room, careful not to bump into anything.

When the song was over, Ryan kept his arm around your waist and you felt your heart skip a beat as he looked into your eyes. He moved his other hand to your cheek and pulled your face to his, kissing you slowly.

A few seconds later, he pulled away and rested his forehead on yours.

"What about Kara?" you mumbled, still trying to process what just happened.

"Things just didn't work out," he said lowly.

"But I thought you liked her."

"I do like her, but she helped me realize that I  _love_  you."

"You... You  _love me_?" you asked, putting your hands on his chest and pushing back as far as you could since his arms were still around your waist.

"I _do_ ," he repeated, "And I'm an _idiot_ for not seeing it sooner. Every day, you're the first person I think about when I wake up and the last person I think about when I go to sleep. When I picture the band becoming huge, I don't want _anyone but you_ there to experience that with us. I can't _imagine_ my life without you, Y/N, and I know that if I try to get rid of my feelings for you by dating other girls, it will only result in you keeping your distance from me until you're out of my life _for good_ and I... I  _can't_  let that happen. I love you, okay? And now that I've realized that, I'm _not_ letting you get away."

"I love you too, Ryan," you smiled slightly and balled up his shirt in your hands, pulling him down and kissing him.

You two stayed like that for a couple minutes – just standing there in each other's embrace, giving quick kisses every now and then before Ryan finally spoke again.

"What do you say we start this movie from the beginning and do movie night right?" he jokingly winked at you.

"Are you only saying that because you missed your favorite song?" you teased.

"I did  _not_  miss my favorite song," he gasped sarcastically.

"You  _do_  know that  _I Want It All_ is on before  _Can I Have This Dance_ , right?" His smile dropped and he stood still for a moment.

"I'm gonna go make more popcorn," he muttered, letting go of you and walking back toward the stairs.

"You do that," you giggled, picking up the remote and starting the movie over.

"Y/N," Ryan said before walking upstairs. You spun to face him and he smiled, "Have I ever told you how good you look when you wear my clothes?"

"I don't think so, no," you smirked slightly. He sprinted back over to you, crashing into you and wrapping his arms around your waist again.

"Because you look absolutely beautiful," he said under his breath, kissing you again softly before finally going upstairs. You sighed and smiled to yourself, feeling like the luckiest girl in the world.


	53. If You Don't Know (Michael Clifford)

"Hey, guys!" you smiled, waving at the camera.

You had promised weekly livestreams up to the release of your new album, so that's what you decided to do today since you didn't really have anything planned anyway. A flood of excited comments instantly started filling the chat box, making you laugh.

"Aw, I love you too, Katie!" you said to the first one that caught your eye. "So, how are you guys? I've been working really hard on this album and I'm so grateful you guys understand why it's been taking so long. I just hope you're as excited for it as I am!"

A few minutes later, you began getting an overwhelming amount of questions asking if you knew who 5 Seconds of Summer were.

"Have I been living under a _rock_?!" you laughed, " _Of course_ I know who 5 Seconds of Summer are! They're one of my _favorite_ bands!" You saw questions like ' _Who's your favorite?_ ' and ' _Will you sing one of their songs?_ ' and things like that, so you shrugged, "Hold on, let me go get my guitar."

You got up off of your living room floor and ran to your room to get your guitar. You quickly returned to your spot and set the guitar on your lap, pulling the pick out from between the strings. You saw a few comments saying the band was watching, but you brushed them off. They were probably too busy to watch some random livestream.

"I've been practicing this song because it's one of my favorites and I wanted to cover it eventually anyway, so yeah," you smiled, "I might cover this later with my other camera instead of my webcam so it's better quality, but since you guys asked, I'm gonna be singing  _If You Don't Know_. You might want to turn down your volume because, as we all know, I usually sing very loud," you joked before starting to play the song.

_Tonight, we're fading fast, I just wanna make this last_   
_If I could say the things that I wanna say_   
_I'd find a way to make you stay_   
_I'd never let you get away_   
_Catch you in all the games we've played_

_So go ahead, rip my heart out_   
_Show me what love's all about_   
_Go ahead, rip my heart out_   
_That's what love's all about_

_I want you to want me this way_   
_And I need you to need me to stay_   
_If you say that you don't feel a thing_

_If you don't know, let me go_   
_Let me go, let me go, let me go_   
_If you don't know, then just let me go_

_Let's forget the past, I swear we'll make this last_   
_'Cause I remember the taste of your skin tonight_   
_And the way that you look, you had those eyes_   
_I remember the way it felt inside_   
_And the name of the songs that made you cry_

_You would scream, we would fight, you would call me crazy_   
_I would laugh, you were mad, but you'd always kiss me_   
_And the shirt that I had that you always borrowed_   
_When I woke, it was gone, there was no tomorrow_

_I want you to want me this way_   
_And I need you to need me to stay_   
_If you say that you don't feel a thing_

_If you don't know, let me go_   
_Let me go, let me go, let me go_   
_If you don't know, then just let me go_

_Go ahead rip my heart out_   
_If you think that's what love's all about_   
_Go ahead rip my heart out_   
_Go ahead rip my heart out_

_Go ahead rip my heart out_   
_If you think that's what love's all about_   
_Go ahead rip my heart out_   
_Go ahead rip my heart out_

_I want you to want me this way_   
_And I need you to need me to stay_   
_If you say that you don't feel a thing_

_If you don't know, let me go_   
_Let me go, let me go, let me go_   
_If you don't know, then just let me go_

"I hope that was everything you guys hoped it would be," you chuckled, putting your guitar to the side. There was a sudden flood of comments saying that Calum had tweeted about you and your heart started racing. " _Calum_ tweeted about me, huh?" you asked, managing to stay calm as you opened Twitter, "Hopefully I didn't ruin their song!" you said half-jokingly before finding the tweet and reading it out loud.

_@Calum5SOS: Does anyone else feel like jello when other famous people sing our songs?_

You laughed loudly, "I can't say I've ever felt like _jello_ , but I'm open to the possibility if they ever want to cover one of _mine_!" You winked, shaking your head before continuing, "So I've only been at this for like, 10 minutes and I don't want to stop yet, so how about we do a little Q&A? If you have a question, tweet me using the hashtag  _Ask(Y/N)_!"

_@AshleyRenee: When is the release date for the album? #Ask(Y/N)_

"We're looking to be releasing it Tuesday, so if everything goes as planned, it'll be out in just a few days!"

_@randomname: What's your advice to someone who wants to start a career in music? #Ask(Y/N)_

"I say just _do it_ , you know? Post covers on YouTube, go out and play at coffee shops or anything like that, contact local venues to play shows – but don't just do nothing. You're never going to get anywhere in this business if you don't work for it and put yourself out there," you said before laughing quietly, "I like your handle, by the way."

_@Maria_5SOS: Would you ever write a song with 5 Seconds of Summer? #Ask(Y/N)_

"Absolutely!" you smiled, "I'm always looking to write with people _other_ than myself."

_@AshsBandana: Who's your favorite member of 5SOS? #Ask(Y/N)_

"I love all of them, honestly," you laughed before whispering, "It's Michael. Shh, don't tell the others." As you were searching for another question, a notification for a mention popped up on the screen.

_@Michael5SOS: @Y/T/N you're my favorite too ;)_

"Wow," you chuckled, "You guys weren't fucking with me; They really _are_ watching. You guys can't tell, but I'm actually really freaking out right now. It's kinda cool being your favorite's favorite." You answered questions for a few more minutes before deciding to end the livestream.

"Well, guys, I think I'll answer one more question and then I'm gonna leave, so make it a good one!" you waited for a few seconds until one caught your eye.

_@Luke5SOS: @Y/T/N Will you give Michael your number? He would ask himself, but he's too busy crying because he's your favorite._

"I'll DM him in a few minutes," you smirked, causing everyone to start freaking out. "Thanks for joining the livestream, everyone! And a special shout out to 5 Seconds of Summer for tuning in as well! Who knows? Maybe next week, One Direction will show up!" you laughed, "I'm going to be doing this again on Monday at 11pm Eastern until the album is up on iTunes, so I'll see you guys then!" You blew a kiss and waved before ending the broadcast and closing the tab.

You then went to Twitter and – very shakily – sent Michael a DM. Almost immediately, your ringtone started playing.

Before you could say hello, you heard an Australian accent quickly say, "I was  _not_  crying!"

You laughed, "Man, I was hoping you _were_! I _live_ for making people cry!"

"Maybe someday," Michael chuckled.

"In a _good_ way, of course. I don't have time for feeling guilty about things."

"Obviously," you could hear his smile, "Thanks for giving me your number, by the way. I didn't think you'd _actually_ do it, to be honest."

"Oh, it's no problem. As long as you don't tweet it. Because I won't hesitate to tweet _yours_ if I have to," you smirked.

"Well, remind me not to get on your _bad side_ then!"

You grinned, "I might even have to take it a step further and write a _song_ about you."

"A _good_ one, I hope," he replied with amusement in his voice.

"We'll see how things go," you giggled.

"Speaking of writing songs," he started, "I heard you want to write a song with us."

"Ah, yes! It would make my _already_ fangirling heart _that much_ more fangirly!"

He laughed quietly, "Well, it just so happens that the boys and I are flying to LA in a few days and we've been wanting to get together with you and write something as well."

"Is my fangirl heart playing tricks on my ears or did _Michael Clifford_ just tell me that _5 Seconds of Summer_ wants to write a song with _me_?" you sighed dramatically, falling back against your couch.

He laughed again, "Your ears heard right! And maybe you and I can get lunch beforehand...?"

"Are you asking me out on a date?" you smiled.

"That all depends on your answer."

"What if my answer is yes?"

"Then it's a date," he smiled, "We'll see you in a few days."

"I look forward to it," you grinned, desperately trying to hold in your excitement.

As soon as you said goodbye and hung up, you let out a loud squeal and ran to your bedroom, already picking your outfit.

~

_Song used: "If You Don't Know" by 5 Seconds of Summer_

 


	54. I'm at Home in the Clouds (Ian Keaggy) *

**Warning: Car accident, death**

~

One year. 365 days. 8,766 hours. 525,600 minutes. 31,536,000 seconds.

That's how long he's been gone; That's how long ago he was taken from you. It doesn't even seem  _real_  some days.

You can still hear him walking into the house, announcing he's home, and your now 5-year-old son Dakota running up to him, squealing ' _Daddy's home!_ ' as Ian picked him up and kissed his cheek. You took just a bit longer to get to them, of course, being eight months pregnant at the time.

You can still feel his lips on yours and his hand on your stomach as if to greet both the baby and yourself. You can still hear the quiet gagging noises coming from the toddler in Ian's arm and the high-pitched laughter that would follow right after as his father tickled him.

You still remember being in the grocery store with your mother and Dakota while Ian was at his band's rehearsals and feeling something running down your leg. You started to panic, having already gone through this feeling before and told your mom it was time.

You still remember the confused look she gave you at first but upon seeing your expression, knew exactly what was about to happen. You left the store as quickly as you could and you called Ian on the drive to the hospital.

You still remember Ian telling you he'd be there as soon as he could and you hung up.

_Flashback_

30 minutes after you got to the hospital and delivered a healthy baby girl, your mom came back with a change of clothes and you were happy that they let you get out of the hospital gown not long after giving birth. Even though everything went well, you couldn't help but get this terrible feeling that something was wrong.

Almost on cue, Ian's band mate Ryan had rushed into the room. He didn't look as cheerful as he usually did and you just knew whatever he had to tell you wasn't going to be good.

"Ian's in surgery," he told you, barely able to get the words out.

" _What happened_?!" you exclaimed. Your mom had to take the newborn out of your arms because you were shaking so badly.

"He was on his way here and a semi ran a red light," he choked, "They don't think he's going to make it." It was like your whole world came crashing down in a matter of  _seconds_.

One moment, you had delivered a healthy baby and the next, you were being told that your husband was barely alive. You didn't know what to do. The only option was to wait until a doctor came to talk with you, so that was what you did.

It seemed like  _hours_  before the surgeon walked into your hospital room. The room was now filled with twice as many people since Ian's other band mates – Nash and Jamie – and your father had arrived.

"Mrs. Keaggy?" the doctor asked, walking into the room.

"Is he okay?" you wasted no time getting to the point, sitting up in the bed.

"He's... _stable_ ," he told you, choosing his words carefully.

"Well, can I see him?"

"I wouldn't recommend so in your condition-"

You cut him off, kicking the blanket off of your legs and getting off of the bed, "Where is he?"

"Y/N," Ryan jumped up from the chair he was sitting on, "You can't-"

"I need to see him, Ryan!" you cried, "And either someone is going to _take me_ to him or I'm going to find him _myself_!"

The doctor looked at you before saying, "Follow me."

He led you down the hall and when you entered the room, you saw at Ian hooked up to all kinds of machines. Your breath caught in your throat and you rushed over to him, grabbing his hand and holding it tightly.

You felt his thumb twitch just before hearing him say, "Hey, babe."

"Oh my _God_ ," you sighed, kissing him softly, "Don't _scare me_ like that."

"Did you already have the baby?" he asked, his voice hoarse. You nodded and he smiled, "Sorry I wasn't there to help you."

"I forgive you," you laughed quietly, "Kaitlyn Alexis is a perfectly healthy 6 pounds 4 ounces.

"It's a girl?" he grinned. You two decided that you wanted to be surprised when the baby arrived.

"Do you want to meet her?" Of course, he nodded, so you walked back the room to get her. You took Kaitlyn out of your dad's arms and looked at Dakota, who was being held by Ryan, "Wanna come see Daddy?" He wiggled out of Ryan's arms and grabbed your hand, walking with you back to Ian's room.

" _Daddy_!" he squealed, running over to the bed.

"Hey, buddy," Ian smiled, carefully sitting up. He took Kaitlyn and you lifted Dakota up to sit beside them.

"How come there's so many tubes?" Dakota asked his dad.

"Daddy had an accident and these tubes are helping him get better," Ian replied.

"Why is Kaitlyn so little?" he asked, changing the subject and looking at you.

"She's a baby," you told him in the best way you could, "She's supposed to be little."

"Was I little like her too?"

Ian chuckled, "Yes, you were, and you have to make sure not to be too rough with her, okay? She can't do things you can yet."

"Why not?"

"Well, we have to teach her just like we had to teach you."

"What's the point in having a little sister if she can't  _do_  anything?" he asked. You and Ian looked at each other, trying desperately not to laugh.

You shook your head and ruffled Dakota's hair, "Why don't we go back and see if Uncle Ryan will take you to get something to eat, huh?" He cheered happily as you lifted him off of Ian's bed, completely ignoring the fact that neither of you answered his question. He started to run back to your room, but as soon as he was out the door, you heard Ryan speak.

"Whoa, where are you going?" Ryan picked him up, bringing him back into the room.

"Can we go get food?" Dakota chirped.

He smiled, "What do you want to eat?"

The toddler thought for a moment, "Chicken nuggets!"

"Dakota," Ian said carefully, "I don't think Uncle Ryan wants to go get chicken nuggets."

"Nah, it's fine," Ryan shrugged, "We aren't really doing much of anything here now that we know you're okay."

"Are you sure?" you asked.

"Of course! It's always nice to spend time with this little guy." Dakota laughed as Ryan poked his stomach.

Kaitlyn woke up and started crying, so you took her out of Ian's arms and gave him a kiss, "Get some rest. I'll be back in couple minutes." He nodded and you and Ryan walked out of the room with the kids. You went back to your room and your mom gladly held the baby while you went to go get Dakota's carseat from her car.

"Don't be too much trouble, got it?" you told Dakota when you were done buckling him in.

"Okay, Mommy," he smiled up at you. You kissed his forehead and shut the car door, thanking Ryan for taking him out of the hospital for a while and going back inside as they left the parking lot.

They say that the happiest moments of your life can also become the saddest at the same time. You never really believed that – it hadn't happened to you, so why  _would you_? – but as you walked back to your room, it became very clear that you day had finally come.

You heard the faint sound of a flat-lining heart monitor and turned the corner as nearly 5 doctors and nurses ran into Ian's room.

" _Ian_!" you nearly screamed, breaking out into a run. Jamie and Nash rushed out into the hallway – soon followed by everyone else in the room – as soon as they heard you and followed you to Ian's room.

The staff wasn't really paying attention to anything but Ian as Jamie and Nash immediately put their arms in front of you so you couldn't go into the room.

"Amanda, start chest compressions," one of the doctors ordered a nurse, "We need to get him back into surgery as soon as possible." The nurse hopped onto the bed and started compressions while the others prepared to take Ian up to surgery.

They were about to wheel him out when you squeaked, "What's going on?!" The heart monitor began beeping, showing that his heart started beating again, but it was going much slower than it was when you left.

"Who are you?" one of the doctors asked while they were coming out of the room.

"I'm his _wife_!" you exclaimed, following them down the hallway with Nash close behind and Jamie going outside to call Ryan.

"One of his lungs collapsed and needs immediate surgery to be fixed," he told you as they went through the doors to the operating room.

You stopped abruptly, causing Nash to bump into you. Honestly, you didn't know how you were still  _standing_. Your legs felt like they were going to give in at any moment and you could barely see through your tears.

"Y/N..." Nash said quietly, "Come on... Let's go back to everyone and wait for Ryan." He put his arm around your shoulders and walked back to where everyone was in your hospital room.

When Ryan finally got back, he ran into the room with Dakota, let go of his hand, and crashed into you, hugging you tightly as you cried into his shoulder.

"Mommy?" you heard Dakota ask, "Where's Daddy?" You let go of Ryan and wiped your face quickly before kneeling down to his eye level.

"Daddy went to go visit some doctors so they can make him get better faster," you told him as calmly as you could.

"Can we go see him?"

"I don't think so, bud. They need to focus and they wouldn't be able to do that if they were distracted by how cute you are." Dakota grinned shyly and looked down, making you smile, "I love you very much, Dakota."

"I love you too, Mommy," he said quietly, shuffling over to you and wrapping his arms around your neck. You put your arms around him and picked him up so you could stand again. The doctor that was just with Ian walked into the room and you looked at your mom and dad in a panic.

"Dakota," your dad said, "Why don't we get your ball out of Grandma's car and go play?" Dakota looked at you hopefully and you smiled at him.

"Have fun," you said, kissing his cheek, "Try not to get too dirty." You put him back down on the ground and he grabbed your dad's hand. Your dad kissed your cheek and they left so the doctor could give us an update on Ian, but you could tell by the look on his face that it wasn't going to be what you wanted to hear. Everything after that is kind of a blur, to be honest.

The only thing you remember is the doctor saying, "I'm sorry, but your husband didn't make it through surgery." And you only remember it because it keeps playing again and again in your head.

You felt your heart drop as Ryan helped you to stay standing. You let out a loud cry – loud enough to wake the baby up – but you didn't care. All that was going through your mind was how you were going to raise your kids without Ian.

_End flashback_

They say the loss of a loved one gets better over time, but it _doesn't_.

You still wake up every morning and expect to feel Ian's arms wrapped around you even though they weren't there when you went to sleep. You still expect him to walk through the front door and hear Dakota's laughter as he kisses his face over and over. You still expect it to get easier, but you know it never _will_.

You never really  _fully_  explained to Dakota what was going on and why Daddy wasn't home anymore. At first, you told him you were going home without him because he needed to stay at the hospital longer than you and his sister did. He nodded as if he understood why and you just went about your daily routine minus Ian. The excuses kept coming as he would wonder each day why his dad still wasn't home, but you could never make yourself tell him the truth.

As you were sitting on Ian's side of the bed, you felt your side drop a little and heard the small voice of your son, "Mommy?" You were snapped out of your thoughts and looked at him as he crawled into your lap and sat facing you. "I think we need to have a talk."

"About what?" you asked.

"Daddy."

Your breath caught in your throat, "What _about_ Daddy?"

"I had a dream about him," he said, "He told me that he wasn't coming home, but not to be sad about it because he's all better now and he doesn't hurt anymore. He said to tell you sorry that he didn't get to say goodbye and that he misses us. He wanted to make sure that you know he loves you and he wishes that you weren't so sad all the time because me and Kaitlyn need you."

You felt your eyes getting watery, a little surprised although not _completely_. Dakota was exactly like his father – very mature for his age – and you knew he was going to grow up to be an amazing young man.

"I love you, Dakota," you told him, kissing his forehead.

"I love you too, Mommy," he smiled, giving you a hug.


	55. Give Me Everything (Ryan Follese)

"Don't cause _too much_ trouble, okay?" you told your best friend, giving him a hug.

"How much trouble could someone  _really_  cause in _Colorado_?" he laughed, hugging you back.

"I don't know, you could start an _avalanche_ or something!" you laughed as well, "My point is don't get arrested. I don't want to have to come out and bail you out of jail."

"You're just saying that because you don't want to wear your winter clothes in the middle of summer."

"Hey! You know I like my mid-July Nashville weather!" you protested, crossing your arms and sticking out your bottom lip.

He shook his head and smiled, "I'll see you in three months." He kissed your cheek and hugged you again before walking over to where Jamie and Nash were waiting for him so they could board the plane.

You did this a lot – something that came with being best friends since you were 3 – but you'll never be the last one to admit it felt like _hell_ knowing those small kisses on the cheek or forehead would never mean the same to _Ryan_ as they did to _you_. Yeah, you liked him as more than a best friend, but isn't that how _all_ the stories go? Boy and girl are best friends, one makes a move, then they fall in love and live happily ever after?

 _Not this time_ ; This time wasn't _like_ those stories.

This time was like those stories where girl number one sets the boy up with girl number two because she notices how lonely he is and when he meets girl number two, it's like his life has meaning again or some crap like that. Then boy slowly starts to spend more and more time with girl number two until girl number one is left with only memories and no more best friend.

The point isn't that you weren't happy for him – you were _ecstatic_ ; The point is that, sometimes, you have to sacrifice your _own_ happiness for your _best friend's_ – and that's something you never had to think  _twice_  about doing when it came to Ryan.

"Are you okay?" a voice asked, startling me back into reality and you were suddenly face-to-face with Jamie.

"Yeah, Jamie," you put on your best fake smile, "I'm fine."

He chuckled quietly, "No, you're not."

You sighed, "How do you _always_ know?"

"It's a gift, really," he shrugged, "I think you need to talk to Ryan for a little bit longer."

"But you guys should be getting on the plane right now," you mumbled, looking down.

"Last call isn't for another couple minutes. You'll have time," Jamie said before walking away. You sighed again, sitting down on a chair not far from you, resting your head in your hands.

"What's wrong?" you heard Ryan ask as he knelt down in front of you, steadying himself by putting his hands on your knees.

You shrugged, "Just thinking, I guess."

" _About_?" he pushed you to continue. You began chewing on your lip – something you always did when you were starting to get anxious – and looked up at him.

"Why didn't you ask your girlfriend to come?"

He smiled shyly, "We broke up."

Your eyes widened as you exclaimed, "You  _broke up_?! And didn't  _tell me_?!"

"I didn't think you'd _care_ ," he said.

"You're my _best friend_ ," you said, pushing his cheek lightly, " _Of course_ I care. What happened?"

"It just didn't work out between us," he shrugged.

"I find _that_ hard to believe," you chuckled, "She was  _dying_  for me to introduce you two." He laughed lightly before the loudspeaker came on.

" _Last call for Flight 223 to Denver,_ " the lady said.

Ryan stood up, holding his hand out to you. You took it and he pulled you up and into a tight hug. Everything after that kinda happened in slow motion, but really fast at the same time. He moved back and looked at you carefully as if he was deciding whether or not he should say something.

"Ry-" was all you got out before he gently put his hand on your cheek and leaned down, pressing his lips against yours. He pulled back and didn't even say anything before running back to the guys, picking up his carry on, and boarding the plane, leaving you in shock.

~

The next couple weeks were strange to say the least. You tried to go about your normal routine, but nothing you did could make you stop thinking about that kiss. He  _must_  have the same feelings if he did that... _Right_...? But what if he was just trying to make sure he  _didn't_?

Maybe he didn't feel the same spark or eruption of butterflies that you felt. Maybe it didn't mean anything to him. But you knew there was only one way to find out.

You ran to the living room after aimlessly lying in bed for two hours and picked up the small stack of papers on your coffee table. There weren't many, so it didn't take long to find the one you were looking for: the band's tour schedule. Ryan had written it down for you so you would know when he could and couldn't talk because he was at soundcheck or a show or whatever, but that's not what you were looking for. You were looking for cities – more specifically which one he would be in today. You found today's date and saw he was in Phoenix, Arizona. 

_Great. Phoenix in the **middle** of summer._

You were more than willing to take the heat though. You couldn't stand another day with all the racing thoughts and emotions wondering if you meant anything to him as more than his best friend.

You bought a ticket for the next flight to Phoenix and quickly packed, racing to the airport. You just made the flight and were beyond nervous about seeing Ryan, but you needed the constant wondering to stop.

When the flight landed, you called Jamie and told him you were there, but that you didn't want Ryan to know. He agreed to come pick you up and within 10 minutes, he was there. You put your bag – you had only packed one as you didn't plan on staying for too long – in the backseat and climbed into the car.

"I'm assuming this is because of that kiss before we left?" Jamie said, driving away from the airport.

"Is it _that_ obvious?" you asked, trying to smile but unable to even fake one.

"He's confused about it too."

"That makes me feel  _better_ ," you muttered sarcastically.

Jamie decided to change the subject, "We were just about to head to soundcheck before you called, so that's where he'll be right now."

"Okay," you said, "I just... I need to see him as soon as possible." Jamie nodded, but didn't say anything else and you spent the rest of the drive in silence.

~

Once you arrived at the venue they were playing that night, Jamie led you to the stage. As you got closer, you could hear Ryan singing  _Forever Unstoppable_  which weirded you out a bit, to be honest.  _Forever Unstoppable_  was your favorite song of theirs and Ryan would always sing it to you when you were having a bad day or a day such as this one where you were confused about everything.

You and Jamie stood there for a moment while you built up the courage to walk onstage. Jamie looked at you and you nodded, ready to go. Ryan stopped singing when he heard you walking toward him.

"Jamie, where the _hell_ did yo-" he stopped when he looked over and saw you.

You took a deep breath and went up to him, grabbing his face and pulling it to yours, pressing your lips against his like he had done with you two weeks ago.

When you pushed back, he said a little out of breath, "What was _that_ for?"

"I have been alone with my thoughts for the past _two weeks_ because that stupid kiss and I needed to know whether or not what I felt was _real_ ," you rambled, letting go of him and taking a step back.

"Was it?" he asked simply, looking down at you.

You stared at him for a moment before you felt your eyes get watery and swallowed the lump in your throat, "Yes." You started to walk away so he wouldn't see you cry, but he grabbed your arm and pulled you back to face him.

"Good," he smiled, wrapping his arms around your waist and kissing you again. When you pulled away, he immediately started talking. "I'm sorry I did what I did. Well... I'm not sorry for  _doing it_ , but you know what I mean. I shouldn't have just kissed you and _left_ ," he sighed, shaking his head, "I should have waited until after tour, but I didn't know if you'd go out and meet a guy that you really liked and I understand that it was a selfish thing of me to do, but I needed to make sure you would still be there when I came home."

A smile started to pull at the corners of your mouth and you quietly told him, "I will  _always_  be there when you come home, Ryan." He sighed in relief, wrapping his arms around you again and hugging you tightly.

"I love you," he whispered.

"I love you too," you smiled against his neck.

 


	56. Everything I Didn't Say (Ashton Irwin)

He wasn't exactly the most  _talkative_  boy. Actually... He didn't talk  _at all_.

You'd seen him around town with his friends and you always noticed he never said one word. He usually laughed and he would nod every once in a while, but he never opened his mouth to speak. You shrugged it off as him just being shy – though it still didn't make sense to you why he would be shy around his friends.

One day in particular, you decided to walk to the park not far from your house to take a break from the stress of your school work. You found a picnic table underneath the shade of a large tree pretty close to the playground, but far enough away so you wouldn't be bothered by screaming kids. You pulled your notebook and pen out of your bag and opened it, beginning to doodle.

After a few minutes, you heard people walking by, but they stopped and one of them came over, sitting down across from you. You looked up and recognized him as one of the boy who never talks' friends.

"Hi," he smiled at you.

"Hi..." you trailed off.

"Sorry, this is probably really weird," he chuckled, "I'm Luke." He extended his hand to you and you shook it slowly, telling him your name as well before he continued talking, "You see my friends over there?" He pointed behind you and you looked over your shoulder to see the same three people you'd always wondered about looking back at you. You nodded, quickly turning back to face Luke. "Well, the one with the bandana on his head would really like to meet you, but he's nervous because he thinks you'll think he's weird. He's taken this like, vow of silence thing for reasons he doesn't like to talk about and he hasn't spoken in over a year." It was understandably a lot of information to take in at one time and you felt somewhat guilty about assuming the boy was just shy. "Anyway," Luke went on, "He wants to meet you because he thinks you're really pretty, but he doesn't want you to be weirded out that he never talks."

You smiled, "I would love to meet him."

"Awesome!" Luke said excitedly, "I'll be right back!" He jumped up and ran over to his friends. You couldn't make out what he was saying, but it made the boy in the bandana's eyes widen as

Luke pulled him over to the picnic table. He had the boy sit down where he was just sitting before he ran back to his other two friends and they left. You made a motion to call back to them, but then realized that they probably wouldn't hear you. You sighed, turning back to the boy now sitting directly across from you.

"He never told me your name," you said. He bit his inner cheek and thought for a moment before looking down and noticing your notebook.

He perked up and pointed to it. You immediately nodded and slid it over to him, giving him your pen as well. He quickly scribbled down his name and picked up the notebook, turning it around to show you.

" _Ashton_ ," you read out loud, smiling, "I like it. I'm Y/N, but I'm sure Luke already told you that." He looked down shyly, smiling while you went on. "He also said that you don't talk anymore..." He looked back up, nervously waiting for you to finish your thought. "If you don't talk, why don't you carry around your own notebook or something?" He tilted his head as if he was thinking before writing something down.

_My friends always talk for me_ _,_ _so I guess I never really considered it._

"I'm sure you have a lot more to say than what your _friends_ say  _for you_  though," you shook your head. He shrugged, looking behind you to see his friends making their way back. He quickly began writing again.

_I know we just met, but do you think I could text you sometime?_

You smiled, reaching for your pen and taking it out of his hand, grabbing his wrist and neatly writing your number on his forearm.

"Don't hesitate to text me later," you said as he pushed your notebook back in front of you, "That whole ' _wait two days before calling_ ' rule shouldn't be a thing." Ashton laughed and nodded as his friends came over.

"Hope he didn't talk your ear off," Luke teased, lightly punching Ashton's shoulder, making him roll his eyes as the other two boys – Michael and Calum – introduced themselves to you.

"Eh, it's fine. Who needs ears anyway?" you laughed as you put your notebook and pen back into your bag and stood up, "I should be heading home – still have a lot of work to do. It was nice meeting you guys! I'll talk to you later, Ashton," you smiled before beginning your walk back home.

A few minutes after you sat down at your desk, your phone vibrated. You picked it up and saw it was from a number that wasn't in your contacts, but you didn't need to do much wondering after you opened the message.

_Hope you got home safe -Ash_

You smiled, texting back after you saved the number under Ashton's name.

**_I did! Thank you :)_ **

_Good! So how are you?_

**_As good as one can be while drowning in piles of homework haha_ **

You talked for a little while longer and you had surprisingly gotten a lot of work done before you decided to call it a night. You didn't call it a night, however, without agreeing to meet up for coffee the next morning.

~

When you woke up, you got out of bed, took a shower, and got dressed before heading out to Starbucks. You walked in to find Ashton already sitting at a table, patiently waiting for you. When he saw you, he motioned for me to go sit. You mouthed for him to hold on upon seeing he already had a drink and went to go order your usual. After you paid, you trotted over to Ashton and sat down.

"Hi!" you said happily. He smiled at you and you gasped quietly, "Oh! I brought something for you!" You reached into your bag and pulled out a small dry erase board with a marker and handed them to him. "I figured this would be easier than paper and pen," you giggled. He let out a quiet laugh, writing on the board.

_Thank you_

"You're welcome," you smiled.

~

Fast forward eight months later and you and Ashton are now dating. It's been rough, to say the least. Not the actual relationship, of course, because he's the sweetest guy you've ever dated, but the fans have been taking a lot of getting used to.

You could never figure out why they didn't like you that much, but you just brushed it off. They would always use that ' _you're just using him for the fame_ ' excuse, but you didn't let it get to you; They didn't  _know_  you.

~

"Can I ask you something?" you asked Ashton randomly while you were sitting on your couch watching TV. He muted the TV and nodded. "Why don't you talk anymore?" He paused for a moment before reaching for the dry erase board beside him and writing.

_I used to sing for the band, but people kept telling me that I wasn't good, so I just decided to stop talking and I haven't talked since_

"If you don't talk, how are you still in the band?"

_What do you mean?_

"Well, I mean, you guys haven't had any shows since we met," you replied while he erased his writing, "So I don't really understand how you're still in the band if you don't sing anymore, I guess."

_I'm the drummer. They kind of need me._

"I didn't mean it like  _that_ , Ash," you muttered, looking down.

Ashton laughed quietly, putting his index and middle fingers under your chin and making you look at him. He kissed you softly and smiled, letting you know he knew you weren't trying to be mean.

You laid your head on his shoulder, "Do you think you'll _ever_ talk again?"

_Maybe. If I ever find a really good reason._

You sighed quietly enough so you knew he wouldn't hear you. You respected his decision, honestly, but you were truthfully a bit sad that there was the slight chance you would never get to hear his voice.

~

One night, you were scrolling through Tumblr on your iPod before you went to sleep when you found a post that caught your eye.

_5 Seconds of Summer_   
_Don't Stop (Ashton Demo)_

You had a split-second thought of ' _if he wanted_ _me_ _to hear him, he would have showed this to_ _me before_ ', but you didn't want to ask since there was a _good chance_ he would say no. You grabbed your earbuds and plugged them into your iPod, hitting play.

Obviously, you'd heard the band's songs before, but you'd never heard _Ashton_ singing them. When he started singing, you were shocked at how good he was and it confused you as to why people would tell him he _can't_ sing.

At some point after the tenth time you repeated the song, you fell asleep.

~

When your alarm went off the next morning, you groaned and took your earbuds out, your ears hurting from having them in for so long. You lazily got dressed before walking into the kitchen to get something to eat and found Ashton leaning against the counter, doodling on his dry erase board.

"What are you doing here?" you asked sleepily. He looked up and smiled, erasing his drawings.

_Taking you to get coffee before you go to class_

You laughed quietly, rubbing your eyes, "Thanks, Ash. We better get going though. I have to be there in half an hour."

Ashton grabbed his car keys as you gathered your phone and school bag, checking at least 20 times to be sure you had the paper that was due today. You quickly left and went to Starbucks again. The ride to school was silent – understandably as all your conversations required him to write and he couldn't do that while he was driving.

When he pulled into the parking lot, you gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before flinging your bag onto your shoulder and running inside so you weren't late.

~

When you walked in your front door a few hours later, you found Ashton sitting on your couch watching TV. He looked over and waved happily, but you weren't in the mood for company. You tossed your bag onto the floor beside the couch and plopped down, burying your face in a pillow.

Ashton immediately turned off the TV and came over, sitting on the floor beside you and quickly writing something on his board. He poked your shoulder when he was finished and you sighed, turning your head so you could read it.

_What's wrong?_

You sighed again, reaching down beside him and into your bag, pulling out your research paper and throwing it onto his lap. He picked it up and his eyes widened at the red  _F_  on the top of the page.

_But you worked so hard on it!_

He was frowning and you couldn't hold it in anymore.

"I know," you started tearing up, "My professor kept me after class and told me that I failed because he thought I plagiarized it and I was lucky that I'm usually such a good student or he would have failed me in the entire class _right there_."

Ashton looked at you sadly, helping you off the couch and pulling you onto his lap. He leaned back as you laid your head on his shoulder and he began playing with your hair until you calmed down.

After sitting there for  _who knows how long_ , you sat up when Ashton reached for his board again.

_I saw what you were listening to this morning_

You looked down, "I'm sorry." He put his hand under your chin and made you look at him, giving you a look that asked ' _Why_?'. "I don't know," you answered quietly, "I should have asked if you were okay with it first, but I was afraid you would say no and I really wanted to hear your voice..." He watched you carefully as you went on, "You have an _amazing_ voice, Ash. I think the people who told you that you can't sing are _idiots_." Ashton smiled slightly and wrapped his arms around your waist, hugging you.

You sat like that again for a few more minutes until you felt Ashton take in a deep breath and throw something across the floor.

"Y/N," Ashton said, his voice breaking. You put your hands on his shoulders and pushed back to look at him in complete shock. He cleared his throat in an attempt to keep his voice steady, "I love you."

You smiled, starting to tear up again, "I love you too, Ashton."

"Do you _really_ think I can sing or did you just say that to get me to talk?" he asked hoarsely, which was reasonable considering he hadn't spoken in over a year.

"Both," you joked, making him laugh.

"I love you," he repeated.

"You already said that," you grinned, even though you never wanted him to stop.

"I would have said it sooner, but I wanted it to be with my voice and not in writing," he said, "I guess I was just waiting for the right time."

"So you're gonna be saying it a lot then now, aren't you?" He nodded and you smiled, "Good," before putting your hands on his cheeks and kissing him.


	57. Stay (Ryan Follese)

"What do you want to do today?" your boyfriend asked.

You shrugged, " _Not_  go grocery shopping."

"Then don't?"

"I  _have to_ , Ry," you laughed, "You and the guys ate all of our food when you got back from tour, remember?"

"That wasn't  _our_  fault," he stated.

"Oh, so complete strangers ate all of the food in our kitchen? Maybe  _they_  should pay for our groceries instead of _us_."

"You know what?" he smiled slightly, pushing your cheek, "There's no need for _sass_."

"There's _always_ a need for sass, Ryan," you giggled before standing up, "You coming with?"

He shrugged, "Why not? I've got nothing better to be doing."

"That's the spirit!" you exclaimed, punching his shoulder lightly and getting your car keys and wallet off of the counter.

"Why are you taking that?" Ryan asked, gesturing toward your wallet, "I'm obviously paying for everything."

"First of all,  _we're_  paying. You're not the only one who has a job, you know," you rolled your eyes, "Secondly, I need my license to drive."

" _You're_ driving?" His eyes widened, making you laugh.

"I am _not_ a bad driver!" you said, getting into your car.

"You hit the curb at least  _12 times_  the last time I was with you!"

"Well, maybe you're just bad luck," you teased.

" _I am not_!" he protested.

"I only hit curbs when I'm with _you_ ," you smiled sweetly, making him pout.

~

You'd been at the store for about an hour and were putting the bags in the trunk of your car when you heard someone call your name. You looked up to see a guy jogging over.

" _Mitchell_!" you squealed excitedly, giving him a hug, "I didn't know you were back in town!"

He smiled, "I just came to visit with my parents and sister for a few days."

"Why didn't you tell me?" you gasped dramatically, hitting his upper arm.

"I actually stopped by your parents' house earlier, but they told me you moved and I was planning on stopping by tomorrow."

"How's Jessica doing?" you asked him.

"Stressed," he chuckled, "Busy planning the wedding and everything."

"The poor girl," you gushed, "I wish I could help her out! I miss her!"

"I'm sure she wishes you could too!"

Ryan cleared his throat and you exclaimed, "Oh! Mitchell, this is my boyfriend Ryan. Ryan, this is my best friend Mitchell." Ryan obviously forced a smile as they shook hands.

"It's nice to meet you," Mitchell said politely.

"Nice to meet you too," Ryan replied monotonously.

"Well, we better get going," you said, trying to hide the annoyance in your voice, "It was nice seeing you again, Mitchell."

He grinned, "You as well. We on for lunch tomorrow?"

"Of course!"

"Awesome! I'll see you then!" He gave you another hug before walking away and you and Ryan got into the car.

"Honestly, Ryan," you told him, "Why do you act like this  _every time_  a guy talks to me?"

"Maybe because you're my _girlfriend_ and I don't think you should be _flirting_ with them," he grunted.

You laughed bitterly, "You have absolutely no problems when Nash, Jamie, and Ian talk to me. Mitchell is my _best friend_ – nothing more. He is engaged to a girl whom he is  _very_  in love with and would do  _nothing_  to ruin that, just as  _I_  wouldn't do that with  _you_ ," you said as you pulled into the driveway. He didn't respond – he simply got out of the car and went inside the house, leaving you to carry and put away all the groceries.

As soon as you finished with putting everything away, you sighed upon noticing Ryan still hadn't come out of your room. You tossed your keys and phone on the counter, walking out the door.

You walked for a little while before you ended up on your best friend Rachel's front porch. You knocked a couple times, waiting for her to answer and when she did, she immediately knew something was up.

"What's wrong?" she asked, ushering you inside.

"Just needed to get away from Ryan," you sighed, plopping onto her couch.

"Which just  _screams_  something is wrong," she laughed quietly.

"We ran into Mitchell at the store today and Ryan got jealous."

" _Again_?"

"Yeah," you groaned.

"I don't understand _why_ he gets jealous all the time. It's not like you would ever cheat on him," she stated, "Plus, he talks to loads of girls all the time."

" _Thank you_!" you exclaimed, throwing your arm up, "Apparently, it's different because he doesn't  _flirt_  with other girls."

"And  _you_  don't flirt with  _other guys_!" she nearly shouted. You sighed again, deciding to change the subject as you didn't really feel like getting worked up over something this stupid.

You stood up, "Do you have any Coke?"

"Yup," she said, "You know where it is."

"I'm here  _way_  too much," you laughed.

"I didn't want to say anything, but..." she trailed off jokingly as you went into the kitchen. Before you even got to the refrigerator, you heard loud, continuous knocking that didn't stop until Rachel opened the door.

" _Please_ tell me Y/N's here," Ryan rushed before she could say anything.

"I don't exactly think she's in the _mood_ to see you right now," Rachel said plainly, resting her hand on her hip.

"Rachel,  _please_ ," he practically begged, "I  _need_  to see her." Rachel was about to respond again, but you walked back into the room.

"Rach, it's fine," you told her.

She looked at you carefully before allowing Ryan to come inside, "I'll be in the kitchen if you need me. I better not hear any shouting or crying," she narrowed her eyes at Ryan, leaving the room.

As soon as she was out of sight, Ryan ran over to you, crashing into you and hugging you as tightly as he could.

"I'm such an _idiot_ ," he said, letting go of you.

"Yeah, you kind of are," you mumbled.

"I don't mean to get jealous and it's not that I don't trust you, it's just that I'm afraid that one day, you'll find someone better than me and I know that's a stupid reason because acting like that is only going to push you away  _more_ , but I don't want that to happen," he rambled, "And when I finally realized how stupid I was being and went to go find you, I saw your keys and your phone on the counter and I thought something really _bad_ happened to you and-" You cut him off, pressing your lips to his.

It was times like this when you remembered that, although he does get jealous easily, Ryan really does love and trust you.

You pushed back and sighed, looking into his eyes, "I love  _you_ , Ryan –  _no_ _one else_. I've never met anyone who cares about me as much as you do – I never _have_ , I never _will_ – and there's no way in _hell_ I'm  _ever_  going to let you go." He smiled slightly as you continued, "But you've  _got_  to stop trying to scare away every guy I talk to. You have  _nothing_ to worry about, okay?" He nodded and pulled you back into another hug, burying his face into your neck.

"I love you, Y/N," he mumbled into your skin.

"I love you too, Ryan," you smiled.


	58. Partners in Crime (Cody Carson)

"How the tour life treating you lovely ladies?" your best friend Cody asked, walking up to you and your other best friend Macy while you were setting up the merch table for tonight's show.

" _Living the dream_ ," you sighed dramatically, "I _love_ constantly cleaning up after five grown men who can't seem to understand that the back lounge of the bus is  _not_ where their dirty clothes go."

"Hey," he said, coming up behind you and wrapping his arms around your shoulders, "You knew what you were getting into when you agreed to come on tour with us."

"The bus was spotless when we agreed to come on tour with you," Macy laughed, hanging a shirt up on the wall behind her.

"In our defense again, it was the first day of tour; We didn't have anything to trash it with yet."

You chuckled quietly, shaking your head and wiggling out of Cody's arms, "Unlike  _some_  of us, Macy and I are actually trying to do our jobs, so if you'll excuse us."

" _Harsh_ ," he acted hurt, "But you guys need to take a break. We're all going out to eat before the show."

"Pizza?" you asked in unison.

"Obviously," Cody laughed.

~

A few hours later – about 5 minutes after the show started – your phone started going off. You pulled it out of my pocket and answered.

"Hey, Ash!" you said cheerfully, "Where are you? The show's already started."

"Yeah, about that," she said sheepishly, "I'm stuck in traffic. I don't know when I'll be able to make it in time."

Your smile dropped, "Okay, the song isn't played until the middle of the set, so just try to get here as fast as you can. Be safe." You hung up, rushing over to where Macy was standing at the side of the stage. "We've got a slight change of plans."

"What's wrong?" she asked worriedly.

"Ash is stuck in traffic and doesn't know if she'll be able to make it in time," you replied quickly.

"Well, it's alright," she said, trying to keep you calm, "We'll just wait until before the song and if she's not here, we'll let them know."

~

20 minutes later, you had just locked the box after you finished counting the money you got from merch sales before the show when Macy suddenly ran over. She grabbed your hand and pulled you up, taking you to the side of the stage.

"What are you doing?" you asked.

"You're going on," she said simply, shoving a microphone in your hand.

" _What_?!  _No, no, no, no, no_!" you protested as she pushed you further toward the stage.

"Ash is still stuck in traffic and they're already introducing the song!" she exclaimed, "You're the only one of us that can sing and your voice is similar to hers, so break a leg!"

"You said we'd let them know if she wasn't here!"

"I lied," she shrugged.

"This song is called  _Partners in Crime_  and we have a special guest here to sing it with us," Cody told the crowd and Maxx began counting to when Ash was supposed to come in.

"They don't need to know I can sing!" you squeaked as Macy pushed you onto the stage when he hit four, so you just gave in and started singing, " _You'll never take us alive._ "

" _We swore that death will do us part. They'll call our crimes a work of art_ ," Cody sang, giving you the same confused and somewhat shocked look as the rest of the band.

" _You'll never take us alive_ ," you shot him a worried look, but you swore you saw him smile.

" _We'll live like spoiled royalty, lovers, and partners, partners in crime._ "

Halfway through the second verse, you saw someone run up to Macy out of the corner of your eye. You looked over while Cody was singing and saw Ash standing there. You looked at her in a panic as a sign that you really didn't want to do this anymore, but she shook her head, refusing to take over, and you had no choice but to return to paying attention to the song.

" _Where we gonna go_?"

" _He's got us pinned_." Cody glanced over to where you were looking and saw Ash standing there watching.

" _Baby, I'm a little scared_ ," you looked back at him.

" _Now don't you quit_ ," he continued the song, giving you a small smile. Even though he was just singing the lyrics, the look he gave you made you feel better in a way.

Right after you sang the last line and the crowd started cheering, Cody pulled you into him, giving you a hug.

"We had actually _planned_ on having Ash Costello come out and sing this, but for some reason, my idiot best friend came out instead!" Cody teased, making the crowd laugh. You rolled your eyes, pushing his shoulder.

"I got caught in traffic, sorry," Ash stepped out on stage and the crowd lost it. "Hey, guys!" she smiled.

"C-Can I leave now?" you asked quietly, suddenly becoming nervous again.

Cody gave you a concerned look before whispering in your ear, "You were _amazing_." He quickly kissed your cheek and let go of you so you could rush back to Macy.

"Did he just kiss you?" Macy asked as you went back to the merch table to straighten up before the end of the show.

"I  _hate you_  for making me do that!" you squeaked, plopping down in the chair.

" _Answer me_!" she nearly shouted, picking up a shirt and throwing it at your head.

"It was just on the  _cheek_ ," you rolled your eyes, folding the shirt back up, "He does it _all the time_."

"You really  _are_  an idiot!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms in the air.

"I'm sorry?"

"He has liked you for _forever_ and you  _still_  don't seem to realize it!"

"He has a  _girlfriend_ ," you reminded her, standing up to walk away, but she blocked your path.

"Do you remember last week when he was moping around and he told you it was because he had an off day at the band's rehearsal?" You nodded and she went on, "He lied. Emma broke up with him."

" _They broke up_?!" you asked, wide-eyed, "Why didn't he _tell me_?!"

"Even  _she_  could tell he likes you. She told him that she didn't want to hold him back anymore."

"Why would he tell  _you_  and not  _me_?"

"Stop trying to change the subject!" she yelled, shaking your shoulders lightly, "You turn down so many guys because ' _they'll eventually change their minds about you_ ' or whatever  _bullshit excuse_ _s_ you always come up with. Well, guess what. There is  _one guy_  who has seen you at your best and has spent hours comforting you at your worst  _and he still likes you_. You need to stop living with the constant fear that every guy you date is going to break your heart because I know one person who would do  _anything he could_  to avoid that and he's singing on stage right now." She immediately walked away, not giving you the chance to say anything.

You sat back down in the chair, apparently lost in your thoughts for the rest of the show, because the next thing you heard was your name.

"Huh?" you asked, looking up at a fan who was standing in front of you.

"Are you okay?" she asked, her concern very obvious.

"Yeah, I'm fine," you told her, "What would you like to buy?" She told you what shirt she wanted and handed you the money.

"If it helps at all," she said, putting the shirt in her bag, "We've always known about Cody's thing for you. And if we didn't, we would have found out tonight."

"What do you mean?"

"He's not exactly very _subtle_ about it," she smiled slightly, "The way he looked at you on stage said it all."

You sighed, "What do you think I should do?"

"If you feel the same way, I think you should go for it," she replied honestly, "And if anyone talks shit, the fans have your back."

You couldn't help but laugh, "Thank you."

She grinned, "You're welcome. And I'd just like to add that you have an _amazing_ voice. I hope you sing with him at future shows." You thanked her again and she left, leaving you with even more racing thoughts.

After a few more minutes, the band came over to the table to meet people. Cody looked at you with a confused expression, but you avoided any eye contact whatsoever.

About 15 more minutes passed and the line was starting to get shorter and shorter. The line was completely gone 5 minutes later and this was usually the time that you and Macy would take to count the money and put everything away.

"Mace," you said quietly, "Will you be okay alone for a couple minutes?"

As if she already knew what you were going to do, she nodded and you stood up, taking a deep breath. You went over to the band and, still refusing to look at him, grabbed Cody's hand and pulled him toward the door to the hallway.

Once you were out of sight, you spun around and grabbed his cheeks, stood up on your toes, and pressed your lips to his. You felt him smile as he wrapped his arms around your waist, holding you tightly. You let out a quick breath when you pulled away, a little surprised that you actually had to _courage_ to do that.

"So, uh, does this mean you feel the same?" he asked, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

" _No_ ," you rolled your eyes, "I kiss _all_ my friends like that."

"I guess that was a stupid question," he laughed. "What changed your mind?"

"' _Changed my mind_ '?" you repeated, a bit confused.

"About me," he said, "About  _us_ , I guess."

"Nothing. If I had changed my mind, I _wouldn't_ have kissed you. I've always liked you, Cody," you muttered, looking down, "But I didn't want to risk losing you and you had a girlfriend anyway, so..."

" _Have_ ," he said, putting his hand under your chin and making you look up at him, "I  _have_  a girlfriend and she is the most beautiful and amazing girl I've ever met." You smiled as he kissed your forehead before speaking again, "And apparently, she can  _sing_  as well."

You laughed quietly, " _Apparently_."

"Why didn't you tell me you could sing?"

"Because I knew that if you found out, you would make me sing that song with you," you shrugged.

"We would never make you do something you didn't want to do," he answered, shaking his head.

"That's the thing," you smiled shyly, "It was a lot more fun than I thought it would be."

He grinned, "Are you saying you _want_ to sing with us during shows?"

" _Only_  when Ash isn't there," you giggled.

"Deal," he stated, sticking his hand out to you. You shook it, giving him the most serious expression you could manage. "Shall we?" he asked, holding his hand out to you again.

"We shall," you smiled, taking his hand and lacing your fingers together, walking back into the room where you were greeted with hugs and a few ' _FINALLY_ 's.

~

_Song used: "Partners in Crime" by Set It Off_


	59. Lost Without You (Vic Fuentes)

"Come on, babe!" you heard your boyfriend say from the other side of the door, "We're gonna be late!"

"Coming!" you called back, opening the bathroom door and buttoning the last button on your shirt in one swift motion. You grabbed my jacket off of the chair and slid it on as you and Vic rushed out of the hotel room. He had just pushed the elevator button when a loud crack of thunder shook the building.

"We should take the stairs," you told him. You had attempted to walk toward the stairwell, but Vic held you back.

"It'll be fine," he said casually, "We're only five floors up."

You had a bad feeling in the pit of your stomach, but Vic had already pulled you into the elevator. He pushed the button with the  _1_  on it and the doors closed, beginning to take you to the ground floor.

Once you hit the second floor, however, another loud crack of thunder hit and the elevator suddenly stopped as the lights went out. An emergency light came on, but it wasn't very bright. You started panicking, repeatedly hitting the emergency call button.

"That's not gonna work," Vic pointed out, "The power's out."

"What kind of emergency call button doesn't work in an emergency?!" you shouted aimlessly. "I _told you_ this was a bad idea," you whimpered, sliding down the wall and attempting to steady your breathing.

"How was _I_ supposed to know the elevator would quit working?" he sighed, sitting down next to you.

" _Stop saying that_!" you exclaimed, hitting the side of his knee with the back of your hand.

"What's with you? We're always in elevators. We practically live in them."

"None of them have ever stopped _moving_ ," you sniffled.

"Babe," he said quietly, wrapping his arm around you and pulling you into him, " _Nothing_ is gonna happen. It'll be fine."

"You said that already," you said in an agitated tone, shaking his arm off of you.

"Well, how was I supposed to know this was gonna happen?" he repeated, giving you the same tone.

You crossed your arms, "When have my gut feelings ever been _wrong_?" He looked as if he was trying to think of something, but couldn't. " _Exactly_. This is like last winter all over again," you sighed, mumbling quietly.

"That was _not_ my fault," he said defensively.

"How was it _not_ your fault?! I _told you_ I thought we should have stayed at the cabin an extra day, but you didn't want to pay for it. And then for _some reason_ , you thought we could make it home without stopping for _gas_? We ran out of gas _two hours_ in! It was 1:30 in the morning in the middle of winter and we had no heat! We were stuck for _four hours_ because the guy driving the tow truck had trouble _finding us_!"

"That part really _wasn't_ my fault though."

"No, it was just the _horrible directions_ you gave him."

"They were  _not_  horrible directions," he protested.

"You literally could have told him to go east down the highway until he saw a black car on the side of the road with its blinkers on."

"We made some turns," he stated simply.

"We turned _twice_!" you laughed loudly, "And that was to get  _on_  the highway!"

"You could have told me that at the time," he pouted.

"I _tried_. You wouldn't _listen_ ," you giggled, "I swear the band is the only thing you've done right since I met you."

"I like to think _you're_ the only thing I've done right," he said, looking at you.

You smiled, laying your head on his shoulder, "You would be totally _lost_ without me."

"I would," he agreed, chuckling under his breath and kissing the top of your head. Just then, the light in the elevator came back on and the elevator started moving again.

" _Thank the Lord_!" you yelled once the doors opened on the ground floor and ran outside, " _Freedom_!" Strikes of lightning brightened the evening sky and thunder caused you to jump. You heard Vic laugh behind you.

"You're so _dramatic_ ," he said, grabbing your hand and you began running the short distance to the venue for the band's show since it wasn't raining that hard anymore.

"Drama just makes life more _exciting_!" you squeaked when another bolt of lightning shot across the sky.

 


	60. A Little Too Late

"I don't know why you're getting so worked up over this," you rolled your eyes, "All I said was that you need to stop leaving your dirty dishes on the table."

"That's not all you said," he retorted, "That's never  _all you say_. Once you say  _one_  thing, you add another and then another and you keep acting like my damn _mother_."

"Well, I'm sorry that I would prefer to live in a house that wasn't so _messy_ all the time!" you replied, not holding back either.

"It's not even about the _dishes_! You're always nagging and complaining about everything I'm doing _wrong_!" he shouted without thinking, "Maybe  _that's_  why your dad left you!" You opened your mouth, but no words came out. He saw a tear roll down your cheek and instantly knew he went too far. "Babe, I-"

He was cut off by a small squeak coming from your mouth and you shaking your head as you bit your lip, spinning around without another word and rushing down the hallway. He closed his eyes tightly for a moment before running after you. Just as he reached your bedroom, you slammed the door in front of him, locking it behind you.

He leaned his forehead against the wooden frame, "Babe, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it."

He heard you sit down and start crying softly on the other side of the door and it felt like his heart was being ripped out of his chest. He turned around, sliding down to the floor and leaning against it, not realizing he was crying as well until a tear fell onto his leg. He wiped his face and turned to face the door, resting his forehead against it again.

A few minutes had passed, but he knew you were still sitting there. He didn't know if you were going to listen to him, but he couldn't wait until you opened the door again to apologize.

"Babe," he repeated for the third time, "I'm sorry, okay? I was just mad and I wasn't thinking. I  _swear_  I didn't mean it." He heard the lock on the door release and the door opened, but you didn't give him the chance to speak.

"How do you _say_ something like that and _not mean it_?" you asked quietly, sniffling.

He pressed his lips together in an attempt to cover up the sobs that were desperately trying to escape. He took a deep breath and carefully grabbed your hand, pulling you onto his lap. To his surprise – and relief – you didn't fight back; You simply sat there and buried your face in his neck.

He felt your tears fall down his neck as you cried, "Why did he leave me? What did I do wrong?"

" _Nothing_ ," he said firmly, taking your face in his hands and moving you back so he could look at you. He wiped your tears with his thumbs and looked straight into you eyes, "You did absolutely  _nothing_  wrong."

"But you said-"

" _Forget_ what I said, okay? It's _not_ true and I'm an _asshole_ for using what he did against you. I can't tell you why he left, but what I  _can_  tell you is he was an idiot for doing that to you and your mom. You are the most beautiful, amazing, talented, sweetest girl I've ever met and I will  _never_ do to you what he did."

"Promise?" you asked, your lips trembling slightly.

"I  _promise_ ," he told you, bringing your face to his and pressing his lips to yours.


	61. Out of My League (Luke Hemmings)

"It's _just_ for publicity," Luke let out a frustrated sigh, "It's not like I  _actually_  want you to be my girlfriend."

You rolled your eyes, "If it's for publicity, why don't you find someone _famous_? The media will get a  _kick_  out that fake breakup."

"I don't like you any more than you don't like me, but Ashton said that I need to find someone by tomorrow's VMA performance and you're the only one I could get on such short notice."

" _My brother_  put you up to this? Really?" you asked, a bit shocked, "Ash has been against me being with any of you since the moment he met you."

"We're not really together, remember?" he pointed out, "It's publicity."

"Why do you need a girlfriend anyway? I would have thought your managers would have wanted you to stay single for the fans or whatever."

"Will you just do it?!  _Please_!" he exclaimed, ignoring your question.

You rolled your eyes again, "Fine, but I'm setting some ground rules."

"Name them."

"Don't hug me, don't kiss me, don't even look at me when we're not in public. I don't like you and you don't like me, but we are going to put on a _damn_ good show."

"Deal," he agreed.

~

**Five months later**

It was no surprise to anyone that knew you that you and Luke never really got along. You were never like, all out enemies or anything like that, but something about him just never sat right with you. Maybe it was the way he would feel the need to criticize everything you did or the way he acted like an idiot when he was with his friends. Maybe it was the way he could look perfect without putting in any effort or the way his voice could calm you down no matter what was wrong. Maybe it was because he made you realize that he would never want you to be anything more than his best friend's little sister.

"Why did  _I_  have to come?" you groaned as Ashton pulled you behind him on his way to Luke's apartment.

"You know how I feel about leaving you home alone," he replied, "And he's really not that bad."

"To  _you_ , he's not, but he hates me."

"He does not hate you."

"Well, he certainly acts like it," you mumbled. Ashton rolled his eyes, opening Luke's door and walking in.

"Hey, Ash!" Luke said cheerfully before noticing your presence as well, "What's  _she_  doing here?"

"It's nice to see you too,  _boyfriend_ ," you smiled sweetly, plopping down next to Ashton on the couch.

~

Around an hour or so later, you were starting to get bored, but you knew Ashton wouldn't let you roam around town by yourself.

" _Ash_ ," you whined, "I don't wanna watch this anymore."

"Will you please just go to my room and watch something?" Luke groaned.

"As long as it gets me out of here," you muttered under your breath, getting up and going to his bedroom. His room was messy, as expected, but it luckily wasn't as difficult to find the remote as you thought it would be. You climbed onto his bed and turned the TV on, laying down.

~

At some point, you must have fallen asleep because you woke up to someone putting a blanket over you. You opened your eyes just in time to see Luke close the bedroom door and you smiled slightly. You heard voices coming from the living room aside from Luke and Ashton's and recognized them as Calum and Michael.

You couldn't hear much of what they were talking about, but once you heard your name, you got curious. You walked out of the room quietly and got close enough to where you could listen to their conversation, but carefully enough so that they wouldn't know you were there.

"Dude, why don't you just tell her you like her?" Calum asked Luke, shoving his arm.

"Don't you think I  _want to_?" Luke sighed, leaning forward and resting his head in his hands, "But she doesn't like me and she's way out of my league anyway."

"She agreed to be your girlfriend, didn't she?" Ashton pointed out.

" _Fake_ ," he corrected, " _Fake_ girlfriend. It's not _real_."

"Listen, man," Michael chimed in, "We all know _I'm_ not one to offer up advice on this sort of thing, but something tells me that if this is how she makes you feel, it's real. Whether you want to admit that to her or not is your choice, but you're not fooling anybody."

"I'm doing pretty well at fooling  _her_ , aren't I?" Luke asked, sounding harsher than he meant to. He sighed, standing up, "Sorry. I think I just need to go lay down."

"Everything will work out," Ashton told him as he walked away, "I know it."

You eyes widened as you quietly sprinted back to Luke's room. You jumped back on the bed and pulled the blanket back over you just as he came into the room.

"How long have you been awake?" he asked, closing the door behind him.

You shrugged casually, "Not very long."

He nodded, "If it's okay with you, I'm just gonna lay down for a while."

"Do you want me to leave?" you asked, making a motion to get up, but he stopped you.

"No, it's fine. I don't plan on being here too long."

"Neither did I," you giggled quietly, making him smile. "Are you okay, Luke?" you asked as he laid down next to you.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Why?"

"I don't know... You don't seem like yourself."

"What do you mean?" he looked up at you.

You shrugged again, looking away and responding quietly, "You haven't made fun of me since you came in here."

He sighed, sitting up, "I'm sorry, okay? I shouldn't be so rude to you, especially since you're doing me such a huge favor. From here on out, I promise I won't be a dick unless it's absolutely necessary."

You laughed lightly, "Thank you. I really appreciate that." You looked over at the clock on his nightstand, "I should be heading home anyway. Hey, we don't have any publicity things to attend tonight, right?"

"No. Why?"

"I have a date tonight," you told him, getting up.

"A, uh, a date?" he asked. You could just hear the shock in his voice.

"Mhm," you nodded, slipping on my shoes and jacket.

"With who?"

"His name is Josh. I met him at the mall a couple days ago," you answered. "Don't worry though. We'll keep a low profile. Bye, Luke," you smiled, leaving the room. You walked out to the living room where the other boys still were. "Hey, guys," you smiled at them. They turned to look at you.

"Y/N!" Michael shouted happily, running over to give you a hug, "Did you have a nice nap?"

"Hi, Mikey," you giggled, "I did, thank you."

"Are you gonna hang out with us?" Ashton asked.

"Sorry, I can't. I have a date tonight."

"With Luke?" Calum asked hopefully. You shook your head.

"No, but we'll be sure to keep out of the eye of the media," you assured them. "I'm going straight home, Ash, I promise," you said quickly, leaving the apartment to avoid further questioning.

~

A few hours later, as you were finishing up getting ready for your date, there was a knock at your door. You looked at the clock and realized it was 7, which was when Josh told you he was going to pick you up. You quickly fixed your dress and rushed to the door, opening it to find Luke standing there.

"What are you doing here?" you asked.

"Am I not allowed to drop by my fake girlfriend's house once in a while?" he asked smugly, walking inside.

"I guess, but you know I have a date. He's gonna be here any minute," you said, keeping an eye out for Josh.

"No, he won't."

"What do you mean he won't?" you asked, putting your hand on your hip.

He took in a deep breath and firmly stated, "You're not going out with him."

"And why not?" you rolled your eyes, already over what he was about to say.

"He got here a couple seconds after I did, so I told him to leave."

"Why the  _hell_  did you do that?!" you shouted, slamming the door and spinning around to face him properly.

"I just think that you shouldn't go out with other people when you're already with someone," he said, walking toward you.

"You are  _not_  my boyfriend, Luke. I can go out with _whoever_ I want."

"No, you _can't_ ," he said, looking down at you.

"What are _you_ gonna do about it?" you challenged.

He raised his hands up and the tips of his fingers left sent a chill down your spine as he ran them up your jaw. His palms came to rest on your cheeks and he leaned down quickly as if he couldn't wait any longer, smashing his lips against yours. You grabbed his wrists, pulling his hands off of your face, only to pull them around your waist. You felt him smile as you rested your hands on the back of his neck, locking your fingers together.

"I'm pretty sure this breaks all of the rules," you said under your breath when he pulled back a few seconds later.

"Those rules were  _made_  to be broken," he smirked lowly, pressing your lips back together.


	62. Not Like the Movies (Ryan Follese)

As soon as Ryan tweeted that he would be doing a Q&A for the next 15 minutes, your Twitter timeline immediately began flooding with questions. You were never really one to participate in these things – mostly because you never get answered – but you figured you'd put in one question.

_@Y/T/N: @RyanKFollese will you go to prom with me on Saturday? #AskRyanKFollese_

Almost immediately, you got a notification that nearly made your heart stop.

_@RyanKFollese: @Y/T/N of course :)_

Your friends began freaking out – as were you – and told you that you pretty much  _had_  to go to prom now. Truthfully, you weren't planning on going. You didn't have a date and dresses weren't really your thing, let alone frilly and girly ones. But you played along just to make them happy. After all, how could you be negative when your favorite band member just tweeted you?

~

The next day, you were standing at your locker getting ready for first period when your best friend Lexi trotted over.

"Hey, Lex," you smiled, pulling your pre-calc book out of your bag and putting it on the shelf.

"Hello, gorgeous!" she perked up, singing, "I heard a certain boy tweeted you yesterday!"

"Yes!" you laughed, "All of my dreams are coming true!"

"Does this mean you're going to prom now?" You looked at her and she had a look of hope in her eyes.

You sighed, "No."

"But what if Ryan really does show up?!" she whined.

"He's not gonna show up, Lex," you told her, shaking your head, "I'm sure he has more important things to do than go to some stupid high school dance. Besides, prom is tomorrow and I can't afford a dress anyway."

"I will buy it for you if I have to!" she begged, "Please! You can't make me go alone!"

"No one's asked you yet?" you asked in shock.

"Yeah," she sighed, "But you know how I feel about taking dates to dances."

"Right," you nodded, "That whole ' _I don't wanna feel like I have to stay with him_ ' thing you were going on about during homecoming freshman year."

"It's completely reasonable!" she exclaimed, "Now we are going to the mall after school and there is not shit you can do to stop it. Bye!" she said quickly, skipping away and leaving you in a state of confusion.

~

After school, Lexi dragged you to the mall as promised. She made you try on nearly every dress, vowing that you were not leaving until you found the perfect one. You had been there for nearly four hours before you started to get tired.

" _Lexi_ ," you groaned, "Can we please just leave? I'm not gonna find anything I like and I have a ton of homework to do."

"No," she stated, "The dress is here. I can feel it."

"You can  _feel_  it?" you rolled your eyes.

"Yes! All the other dresses were apparently too much or not enough or too long or too short for you, but I have one last dress in mind. If you don't feel like an absolute princess in this one, I  _swear_  we can go home."

She took you into Macy's and you groaned again, " _Macy's_?  _Really_?"

"Just shut up and follow me!"

You walked over to the prom section and she picked up a light blue dress, handing it to you and ushering you to the dressing room. You put on the dress and walked out, going over to the mirror.

"Lex," you said as she looked at you in the mirror, "This is ridiculous."

"You're not just saying that to get out of shopping, are you?"

"No," you sighed, "If I'm going to this dance, I don't want to go to it in a dress I don't feel good in. The top is way to itchy and it doesn't even stay in place. I don't want to have to pull it up all night or worry about whether or not it's falling down too far. We can just look somewhere else tomorrow and if we don't find anything, I just won't go."

"Alright," she said solemnly, "Go get changed back." She walked away with her head down and you could tell she felt bad.

"Lexi!" you called after her, but she shrugged it off.

You bit your inner cheek lightly and went back into the dressing room to get out of the dress. It was a beautiful dress, honestly – it just wasn't what you imagined your dream dress being. You hung it back up on the rack Lexi found it on and the two of you started walking out of the store.

"Wait!" you said suddenly, grabbing Lexi's arm and stopping in your tracks. You looked over to your left at a spot of red that caught your eye. "Hold on," you told her, rushing to the dress and taking it off the hanger, going back to the dressing room.

Lexi trudged behind you and sat down beside the mirror as she waited for you to come out. When you did, she stood up and her jaw dropped. You kept your head down until you got to the mirror, taking a deep breath and looking up.

" _Whoa_ ," you whispered to yourself, smiling slightly.

"You look _amazing_!" Lexi gushed, "How does it fit?"

You looked in the mirror a bit longer before answering, "Perfect."

"Is it the one?"

"I feel like we're in a romantic comedy," you scrunched your face up, laughing, "But I think it is."

Lexi squealed happily and hugged you, "Come on! Let's go buy it!"

"Alexis Marie," you said firmly, holding her shoulder, "You are  _only_  paying for the difference, got it?"

"Yes, sir!" she saluted, smiling proudly. You rolled your eyes and laughed, changing out of the dress. You both paid and left the mall.

"I already have shoes that will look amazing with that dress, so we don't have to worry about that," Lexi said, pulling out of the parking lot, "Come over at like, 5 and we'll start getting ready, okay?"

"Okay," you chuckled, "I already practically live there anyway."

"Right. I always forget we live across the street from each other."

"The sad thing is I don't doubt that for a second," you teased.

~

The next afternoon, you went over to Lexi's house and started getting ready. You curled her hair and styled it the way she wanted, beginning a loose french braid just behind her bangs and pulling it all together on the left side of her head in a low, semi-messy bun.

When it came time for your turn, you decided you wanted to keep it simple with loose, messy curls. After you did your makeup, you got dressed. Lexi pulled a pair of plain black heels out of her closet and handed them to you.

"You can have them if you want," she told you, "I never wear them."

"These are beautiful, Lex, thank you," you smiled, stepping into them carefully. Once you were all ready, you got your clutches and Lexi stuck her elbow out to you.

"Shall we?" she said in a terrible British accent.

"We shall," you curtsied, giggling and linking your arm with hers.

"Oh, girls!" your mom gushed as you walked down the stairs, "You look gorgeous!"

"Thanks, Mom," you smiled, kissing her cheek.

"Let's get some pictures before you go!" Lexi's mom said. You posed for a couple pictures before heading off to the school.

You walked into the gymnasium and the set up was beautiful. There were fairy lights everywhere and the decorations looked perfect.

~

A while later, Lexi went up to the DJ to request a song.

 _Forever Unstoppable_ started playing through the speaker and you instantly smiled, "Thanks, Lex," and hugged her.

"Don't hate me  _too_ much," she grinned, looking behind you.

Before you could ask her what she meant, you heard a voice behind you say, "Excuse me, miss, may I have this dance?"

You turned to see Ryan Follese standing there smiling at you. You let out an accidental squeak, turning to run away, but Lexi quickly wrapped her arms around your waist and pulled you back.

"Surprise!" she exclaimed.

"This is why you begged me to come?!" you asked loudly, looking at her.

"Guilty," she smirked, "You didn't think I asked you to come to be  _my_  date, did you? I knew you didn't want to be here! Now get dancing, kids! The song's almost over!" She pushed you toward Ryan and trotted off to the refreshment table.

Ryan offered his hand to you and repeated, "May I have this dance?" You smiled, still in a but of shock, but put your hand in his. He brought it up and put it on his shoulder as with the other before resting his own hands on the sides of your waist.

"I am slow dancing with Ryan Follese..." you muttered under your breath as you swayed slightly to the music, "This is ridiculous..."

"But you invited me," he pouted jokingly.

"I didn't expect you to  _actually show up_!" you laughed, calming down a bit.

"Eh, we were driving through anyway," he shrugged casually, "I thought I'd drop by. I've always wanted to crash a prom."

"And you just  _happened_  to have a suit lying around on the bus?" you asked, smirking lightly.

"Alright, alright. We may have gone off course a little bit."

"And by a little bit, you mean..."

"A couple hours," he chuckled.

"Okay, so I guess the next question is  _how_?"

"Your friend messaged me about an hour after my Q&A and was determined to do whatever it took to make this happen," he grinned, "She told me you weren't planning on coming but that she could convince you to, so I talked to the guys and they were more than happy to make a stop here."

"Hot Chelle Rae: Making dreams come true," you teased.

"Basically," Ryan nodded with an amused look on his face. Just then, the song ended. You lingered there for a few more seconds before finally letting go of each other. "You look absolutely stunning, by the way," he said.

"Oh, thank you," you blushed lightly, making him smile.

~

Ryan stayed by your side the rest of the night, which you thought was beyond sweet because he really didn't have to stay.

When prom was over and everyone began leaving, Ryan looked at you.

"The bus isn't parked too far away from here and Jamie and Nash should still be there; Do you wanna meet them?" he asked.

"Are... Are you sure?" you stammered, "I mean, you guys should probably be getting back on the road."

"Yeah! Come on!" He grabbed your hand after you told Lexi what was going on – and earned a couple winks from her as well – and started walking you to wherever the bus was.

"How far away did you say it was again?" you asked after you crossed the street at the intersection.

"Not that far," he answered, "Probably like, half a block. Why?"

"N-Nothing," you told him. He chuckled and stopped walking, moving in front of you.

"Hop on," he said.

"Ryan, I'm not gonna-"

"Look, Y/N," he said as intimidatingly as he could, "I've been around enough girls to know how they act when their feet are hurting. Now I am going to carry you to the bus one way or another and in a dress like that, I would say the best thing would be a piggy back ride."

You sighed in agreement and jumped onto his back and he carried you the rest of the way to the bus. He knocked on the bus door as you slid off of his back and when it opened, Jamie poked his head out.

"Ah, so  _you're_  the famous Y/N," he said before calling Nash's name and coming outside.

"I don't know about  _famous_ ," you said, "I would consider myself more as being greatly misunderstood by a whole bunch of people."

Jamie laughed, jokingly saying, "Where have you  _been_  all my life?"

"This lovely city," you sighed dramatically. The bus door opened again and Nash jumped out.

He looked at you as he closed the bus door and whispered, " _Wow_."

"That's not something I want to hear after I've been sweating for four hours," you said half-jokingly.

"Oh, no, it was a good wow," he assured you, "I mean, Ryan showed us your Twitter picture, but  _damn_."

"Nash," Ryan quickly warned as you were desperately trying to remain calm.

He chuckled, "I'm just saying, Ryan. If you don't ask her out,  _someone's_  got to."

"Why don't you guys go back on the bus?" Ryan hinted.

"But we just got here!" Nash whined. Ryan gave him a look and he sighed, " _Fine_. But I'm serious about asking her out," he said, getting back onto the bus.

Ryan let out a quiet breath, "Jamie."

"I didn't even  _do_  anything!" he exclaimed. Ryan gave his brother the same look he gave Nash and Jamie stuck out his bottom lip, sulking to the door.

"Bye, Jamie," you giggled lightly as the door closed behind.

Ryan cleared his throat nervously, "Sorry about him."

"It's okay," you smiled, "I've never been hit on and to be hit on by a member of my favorite band? Dreams really do come true with you guys." You winked, shoving his arm lightly.

"You've never been hit on?" he asked, seemingly in shock.

"Actually, that's a lie. I have been hit on. Walked away with a cut lip. It was certainly the experience," you replied casually.

He couldn't help but laugh before becoming serious again, "I guess I should ask you out before he comes back out here."

"It was really sweet of you to come to my prom, Ryan," you told him, "But you shouldn't feel like you have to do that. Tonight felt like I was in a movie and in the movies, girls like me don't get the guy." You smiled slightly, looking down.

"Well, what if I told you that this  _wasn't_  a movie and a girl like you  _could_  get the guy?" he said, putting his hand under your chin and lifting your head up so you were looking at him.

"Then I would call you a very optimistic person," you breathed deeply. He let out a small laugh and pulled your face to his, kissing you gently. "We can skip the part where we have some dramatic fallout and not speak for three months until we randomly run into each other while walking around town, right?"

He laughed quietly again, "I told you, Y/N; This isn't like the movies."

"Good," you whispered as he kissed you again.


	63. My Guardian Angel (Cody Carson) *

**Warning: Mention of death**

~

This was it: this was the day you  _finally_ got to see your favorite band live.

The moment Set It Off announced they would be coming to your small town on their next tour, you knew you had to do whatever it took to get there. Although you had your license, you didn't have a car that you could just drive wherever and whenever you wanted to. After a little convincing, your dad finally agreed to take you to the show as long as you had someone you trusted there with you. You immediately called your best friend Nicole and told her and she started squealing. Nicole was the person who got you into the band, so is it was only obvious that she would be the one to go see them with you.

The night of the concert, you looked at yourself in the mirror probably 50 times, making sure you looked good – or at least as good as you could get. You slid your Converse onto your feet just as your dad called your name from downstairs.

"Y/N! We've gotta go now if you want a good spot in line!" he shouted up the stairs toward your room.

"Coming!" you yelled, shoving your phone into your pocket and grabbing your camera off of your bed. You ran downstairs and set off for Nicole's house.

Once she was in the car and your dad was driving away, Nicole started bouncing up and down in her seat.

She suddenly gasped, "What if Cody falls in love with you?!"

You rolled my eyes, "Nicole, of all the guys in the world that could  _possibly_  fall in love with someone like me, it will  _definitely_  not be  _Cody Carson_."

"But it  _could_!"

"But it won't!" you retorted, mimicking her voice. "The only guys who fall in love with me are jerks."

You dad decided to inject himself into the conversation, "If I were young again-"

"For the love of all that is good in this world, please do not finish that sentence," you nearly begged, causing Nicole to snicker quietly.

"I'm just saying, sweetheart," he laughed, "Your mother dated plenty of jerks before she settled on me."  
 _(A/N: For the sake of this making sense later, I'd like to point out that the mother reference here is a step-mother)_

"She  _settled_?" you smiled, "She got tired of looking and decided you were the best thing she could find?"

"Pretty much," he chuckled, "No one is perfect unless you choose to overlook certain things, Y/N. I'm not saying you should be with someone who treats you like crap the rest of your life, but sometimes, you have to look past the flaws and understand that you're not always going to necessarily get along with whomever you choose to surround yourself with, but that doesn't mean they won't serve a purpose in your life."

"Wow," you said as he pulled into the venue's parking lot, "Thanks for that speech, Dad."

"You're welcome. Now get out of my car," he smiled innocently.

You rolled your eyes before laughing quietly and kissing his cheek, "Love you. See you in a few hours."

You and Nicole jumped out of the car and went inside, getting in line. The line was luckily only a few people long, so that meant you would have a chance to be as close to the stage as possible.

~

**Two hours later**

Cody cleared his throat and paused before speaking, "This next song is off our newest record – it's actually the most personal to me, but I wanted to play it on this tour anyway."

You squeaked quietly and covered your mouth with your palm as the song started, desperately holding in any sobs that could escape. Nicole smiled slightly and wrapped her arms around you, resting her chin on your shoulder while you closed your eyes and rested your head against hers.

_Do you believe in happy endings?_   
_Or the mendings of human hearts?_   
_Oh, I believe in both, I'm certain_   
_Because these curtains are state of the art_

_If you'd occasionally happen to spy on me_   
_You'd think I'm having one-sided conversations_   
_But I hear him talking back_   
_You'd think I may even lack some sanity_   
_But maybe I can't let go_

_And so I'll say I finally wrote you song at last_   
_Sorry that this one came out so sad_   
_Every tear I had was shed for the man_   
_That gave me a better sense_   
_Of life and meaning to motivate_   
_There's no short cuts to success_   
_I'll wait for his guiding hands_   
_My guardian angel until the very end_

_I see a cold seat on the couch where I remember_   
_That just four years ago around December_   
_You sat me down and held me next to you so close_

_How I long for things to be restored_   
_To back when times weren't quite this hard_   
_In the car that song you sang to me_   
_Never rang so loud before_   
_Oh, what I'd give for just another hug from you_   
_You may be gone, but love will never die_

_And so I'll say I finally wrote your song at last_   
_Sorry that this one came out so sad_   
_Every tear I had was shed for the man_   
_That gave me a better sense_   
_Of life and meaning to motivate_   
_There's no short cuts to success_   
_I'll wait for his guiding hands_   
_My guardian angel until the very end_

_Tears can't run dry when I start to cry_   
_When I hear people speak_   
_Of how you'd be so proud of me_   
_And how I hope this song will reach your ears_   
_I battled all my darkest fears_   
_I once was blind, but now it's clear_   
_Wherever I go, I know that you'll be near_

At that moment, Cody looked over at you and Nicole. She let go of you and you opened your eyes to see him walking over to where you were standing. You quickly wiped your face, beginning to feel uncomfortable due to the people now looking over at you. Cody sat down on the edge of the stage and smiled at you, holding his hand out to you. Nicole instantly grabbed your elbow and put your hand in his. He pulled you over in front of him, holding your hand tightly. You took in deep breaths, but couldn't stop the tears from falling as he continued singing the rest of the song.

_I finally wrote your song at last_   
_Sorry that this one came out so sad_   
_Any tear I had was shed for the man_   
_That gave me a better sense_   
_Of life and meaning to motivate_   
_There's no short cuts to success_   
_I'll wait for his guiding hands_   
_My guardian angel until the very end_

_Oh, until the very end_   
_My guardian angel until the very end_

While the rest of the band was finishing the song, Cody rested his forehead on yours and whispered, "You okay?" You nodded hesitantly and he hugged you tightly, letting go of your hand and standing back up. You smiled slightly and when you made it back to Nicole, she looked at you with a weird grin on her face.

"Nicole," you warned, already knowing why she was smiling like that, "Don't even start."

"You had a moment!" she squealed quietly, "It's meant to be!"

"He was singing, he saw a fan getting emotional, and he went over to comfort them.  _That's it_."

She rolled her eyes, " _Fine_. But don't say I didn't tell you so." You ignored her as the mood changed when the band led into  _Partners in Crime_.

~

Half an hour later, the show ended and your heart still felt like it was beating right inside your ears.

"Let's go meet your future husband!" Nicole sang, snapping you back to reality and pulling you outside to the back of the venue where Set It Off's van was parked.

They were already meeting people and taking photos, so you and Nicole just stood around waiting for everyone to leave. You quickly went back inside to where Marshall was selling merch and bought some shirts, talking to him for a little while.

20 minutes later, you went back out and had just met Dan, Austin, and Maxx and were talking to Zach when you were interrupted.

"Hey!" you heard behind you and turned to see Cody coming over to you. When he reached you, he pulled you into another tight hug – much better than the one you got when he was on stage. "How are you feeling?"

"I, uh, I-I'm better," you stammered.

"Good," he smiled, "I noticed you seemed to be having more fun after the song ended, but when I saw you were still here, I just wanted to make sure." You let out a squeak, making Cody laugh as you desperately looked at Nicole.

"I made that sound out loud, didn't I?" you asked her with a horrified look on your face.

"Yup," she nodded, giggling quietly, "Hey, uh, Zach looks pretty lonely over there, so I'm gonna go talk to him, okay? Have fun!" She trotted away before you had the chance to object.

"Fuck me," you muttered under your breath.

"At least let me get to know you first," Cody smirked.

You were finally becoming less nervous, laughing, "I've been hoping that line would be used on me one day. Thank you."

"Well, I'm all about fulfilling lifelong dreams."

"I would hardly call it a  _lifelong_  dream," I laughed again.

He chuckled, "In all seriousness though, I would like to get to know you." He gave you a questioning look and you nodded slowly. He grabbed your hand and pulled you back inside the venue, only to lead you to a set of stairs. When you reached the top, you were on the roof.

"Are we allowed to be up here?" you asked as you sat down against the ledge.

Cody shrugged, "I guess we'll find out if we get caught."

"Living life on the edge, are we?" you nudged his arm.

He smiled sweetly, "So, I guess we should start out by introducing ourselves. Hello, my name is Cody."

"I think I've heard of you before," you teased, "I'm Y/N."

"Very pretty name for a very pretty girl."

You rolled your eyes and smiled, "Like  _that_  line's never been used before."

"Come on! I'm just trying to break the ice!" he laughed, "So how about that weather?"

"Well, it  _is_  October, so it's pretty chilly," you grinned.

You talked for a couple more minutes – neither of you were terribly good at meeting new people – before you started getting into what you were sure was the  _real_  reason he was so set on talking to you.

"I've met a lot of people with stories about how our music has helped them," he said, "But I think you've had the most genuine reactions during an actual show that I've ever seen."

"Oh, sorry," you half-smiled, looking down at your hands, "I told myself I wasn't going to do that."

"Please don't be sorry," he replied, "I know how it feels to be attached to a song like that."

"Well, yeah. You wrote it," you teased, shoving his arm slightly, making him laugh.

"So what's your story, if I may ask?"

"My story?"

"You know? Your story. I've learned that reactions like that don't happen without a story."

You thought for a moment. It wasn't that you didn't  _want_  to tell him, it was just that you'd never talked to anyone about why the song means so much to you before. You never even told Nicole, she just understood the moment she heard the song.

"Three years ago, my grandpa started showing signs of Alzheimer's. He was fine – although I use that term  _very_  loosely – for a while. He would only forget things like where he put his glasses or keys or what have you for about a year or so. But then he started forgetting names and faces and it just kept progressing until he forgot who everyone was completely." You took a deep breath, calming yourself before continuing, "My biological mom left when I was around 7 and my dad didn't meet my step-mom until I was about 13, so he had to work multiple jobs just to keep us from going hungry and pay bills and things like that, so my grandma and grandpa practically raised me. But that's not the point. Anyway, my grandpa passed in March last year and I knew it was going to happen, but I didn't think it would hurt that bad. Like, it sucks that he's not here, but it's also kinda comforting knowing he isn't suffering anymore, you know?" You finished your way-too-long story, laughing quietly, "I'm crying again. I'm sorry. I think I've done that in front of you enough already."

Cody gave you a half-smile, wrapping his arm around your shoulders, "Thanks for reminding me why I make music."

"Thank you for reminding me why I love your music so much," you smiled back as you wiped your face. He chuckled quietly, getting up and holding his hand out to you again. "If I didn't know any better," you said as he pulled you up, "I would say you really like holding my hand."

He shrugged, lifting your hands up in front of you, "They look pretty good together if you ask me." You raised your eyebrows at him, trying not to smile. "Too cheesy?"

"Just a little," you laughed, bumping into him lightly. As you were walking back to the front of the venue, you realized you were still holding hands. You smiled to yourself and randomly said, "You wanna know something?"

"Hmm?" he replied, coming out of his own thoughts.

"That's the first time I've told anyone that since he died."

"Really?" he asked, seemingly in shock. You nodded and he grinned, "Well, I'm honored."

After a couple more minutes of mindless conversation, your phone went off. You checked the text message and it was your dad telling you he was sitting in the parking lot.

When you found Nicole, you looked at Cody, "Can I ask you a weird question?"

"Go."

"Would you mind meeting my dad? I showed him the song the moment I heard it and he had pretty much the same reaction I did and I just think he'd like to meet you too."

"I would love to," he smiled. You and Nicole led him to your dad's car and you knocked on the passenger door window.

He looked up and rolled it down, "You know the door is unlocked, right?"

"Yeah," you responded, "But I wanted you to meet someone."

"Is this that boy you're always going on about?" he asked looking at Cody. He looked at you and chuckled as your eyes widened.

"Stay with me, Dad," you said quickly, "Remember that song I showed you a couple months ago because it reminded me of Grandpa?" He cleared his throat, just as choked up about it as he was when he heard it for the time, and nodded. "This is Cody, the guy who wrote it."

"Ah, so you're the reason I cried myself to sleep for two weeks," he told him seriously.

"Sorry, sir," he smiled slightly before looking at you again.

"Hey, kid," your dad said and your eyes widened.

Nicole giggled quietly, climbing into the backseat, "This is gonna be  _good_."

You shot her a glare as Cody cleared his throat nervously, "Yes, sir?"

"Don't look at my daughter like that."

You looked over at him with a confused expression, "How were you looking at me?"

Your dad answered for him, smiling, "The same way I look at your mother." You let out an accidental snort, making everyone snicker as you climbed into the car, already feeling your face turning red.

"Can we please just go home?" you mumbled, pulling your seat belt across your body.

"Aren't you gonna get his number?" your dad asked.

" _Dad_!" you nearly screamed.

"She already has it," Nicole smirked.

"No, I don't!" You heard Cody chuckle beside you before he opened the Sharpie he was holding and reached into the car, pulling your arm up and scribbling seven numbers on your forearm.

"And now you do," he smiled mischievously, making your dad laugh.

"I like you, kid. I hope to see you around," he told Cody.

"Me too," Cody grinned, "It was nice meeting you, sir. Drive safely." He smiled at you again before turning around and going back to the rest of the band.

"What just happened?" you asked as your dad began driving to Nicole's house, more to yourself than your father or Nicole.

"Your dad just got  _Cody freaking Carson_  to be your boyfriend!" Nicole squealed behind you.

"Dad!" you whined, "You're supposed to try to set me up with the boy in the chess club with braces, not the boy in a band with a  _lip ring_!"

"Do you want me to turn around and tell him I forbid him from ever seeing you again?" he teased.

"Please don't," you pouted quietly.

" _Thank you, Dad_ ," he said, attempting to mock your voice, "Oh, you're welcome, princess. Anything for my little girl."

"I so  _told you_  that you would end up together!" Nicole sighed dramatically as you rolled your eyes, finally breaking a smile.

~

_Song used: "Dad's Song" by Set It Off_


	64. Sick Little Games (Jamie Follese)

**Warning: Brief mention of harassment**

~

"Y/N!" you heard your best friend shout as he walked into your house.

"In my room!" you called back, finishing up tying your shoes.

"Come on! I don't wanna get caught in traffic!"

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" you laughed, trotting down the stairs. Before you could even get to the last step, Jamie had already grabbed your hand and was pulling you out the door.

You had surprised Jamie with tickets to the Nashville Predators' last game of the season for his birthday and he nearly crushed you when he opened them. Needless to say, he was pretty excited.

_Flashback_

_"How did you **get** these?!" he shouted, bouncing in his seat, "The game has been sold out since the moment tickets went on **sale**!"_

_"I always **have** been faster than you," you smiled, winking at him._

_"You're not **seriously** telling me that you were one of the **first** ones to buy tickets," he asked, his eyes widening. You shrugged casually. " **Don't lie to me, Y/N**!"_

_"Jamie, when have I **ever** lied to you?" He couldn't say anything, making you laugh again, "Exactly. Now are you gonna hug me and tell me how much you love me again or do I have to do that **for you**?" He wasted no time in tackling you to the ground, repeating 'I love you' over and over until he made himself tired._

_"I love you **so much** ," he whined into your shoulder._

_"I know," you giggled quietly, patting the back of his head, "Just nap it off, Jamie. It'll be okay."_

_End flashback_

Once you got to the stadium and gave the guy at the ticket booth your tickets, you went in and found your seats. The seats weren't in a terrible spot, but the guys around you were already starting to get a little too close for your liking.

"Hey, sexy," one guy winked at you, leaning on the arm rest of you seat and putting his face uncomfortably close to yours. You moved away as far as you could, only to stop when you realized you were practically sitting on Jamie by this point. "Come on, baby, don't be like that," the guy insisted. You heard Jamie let out a deep sigh before he stood up, pushing you to where he just was and standing in front of you.

"I would appreciate it if you would not make a move on her right in front of me," he said calmly, but you could tell he was getting angrier the longer the guy was still here.

" _You_?" he laughed, " _Really_?"

"Yes," Jamie told him through clenched teeth and you saw his fingers begin to curl up tightly, "Now _leave_." The guy just laughed in disgust before looking at you again.

"When you want a _real_ man, let me know," he told you, walking away. You let out a sigh of relief and noticed Jamie still glaring at him as he left.

"Jamie," you said quietly, carefully grabbing his hand and pulling him back down to sit. He finally calmed down enough to where he relaxed his hand and looked at you. You smiled, "Thank you," and hugged him tightly.

He let out a breath as he wrapped his arm around your shoulders and kissed the top of your head, " _No one_ treats my best friend like that and gets away with it." You smiled slightly and talked about nonsensical things until the game started.

~

A couple hours later, the kiss cam showed up on the screen above the ice for the third time and you silently prayed that it wouldn't land on you and Jamie. Of course, it did and you stared up at the screen, unable to move. It wasn't that you didn't want to kiss Jamie, it was just you didn't want this to be the way it happened for the first time.

Jamie said your name and you looked over at him as he quickly pressed his lips to yours. You kissed back for a couple seconds before you realized what you were doing. You gave him an almost panicked look before shaking your head and sprinting out of the stadium.

It wasn't long before you heard someone running after you and you had a pretty good idea of who it was. They grabbed your arm and spun you around and you were now face-to-face with Jamie, who was probably the angriest you'd ever seen him.

"What the hell was _that_ about?!" he yelled, not even caring who heard him at that point.

"You've been giving me mixed signals for the past who knows how long!" you exclaimed, "I think I'm due for at least one moment myself!"

"Don't you dare tell me  _I'm_  sending  _you_ mixed signals!" he shouted, "You kissed back!"

"What was I supposed to do, Jamie?! If I didn't kiss back, you would've looked like an idiot!"

"I'm not concerned with what a bunch of random people think of me, Y/N! I'm concerned with why you've been leading me on the past two years!"

"I have  _not_  been leading you on," you said defensively, lowering your voice.

"I'm not stupid, okay?" he told you, trying to calm himself down, "Until two years ago, you never laughed at my stupid jokes or kissed my cheek before a show." You opened your mouth to talk, but he kept rambling on. "Until two years ago, you never told me you loved me with a look on your face that said you really meant it. And I'm no expert on what being in love is like, but if it feels like everyone says it does, I only feel it when I'm with you." You hesitated for a moment, unsure of what to say. Jamie had been your best friend since you met him on the first day of freshman year and now he was telling you he's  _in love with you_?

"Jamie-"

"I know," he said, cutting you off, " _I know_  you've been hurt by someone who was your best friend before and I know you've had far too many shitty relationships, but I _promise_ I won't be like those guys." He begged quietly, " _Please_ just give us a chance."

You bit your lip and nodded slowly. He began leaning in to kiss you again, but when you heard people start shouting, you ran back to the stadium doors. You came to an abrupt stop at the top of the steps just as the Predators scored their winning goal. You began squealing, jumping up and down along with everyone else. You heard Jamie chuckle behind you and spun around to face him.

"Don't pretend you're not happy too," you glared, pointing your finger at him.

"Oh, I am," he smiled, grabbing your wrist and pulling you into him, wrapping his arms tightly around your waist and kissing you.


	65. Paranoid (Ian Keaggy) *

**Warning: Mentions of death and kidnapping**

~

_She jolted awake, surprised the sudden movement didn't wake her boyfriend up as well. She looked over and..._

_Wait... Something was off..._

_She looked over and instead of seeing the sheets she'd grown accustomed to throughout the past year and a half, all she saw was grey pavement. She wanted to go home and she would if it weren't for three things; She didn't know where she was, she didn't know how she got there, and she didn't have the strength to stand up._

~

**Your POV; 7 hours earlier**

"Hm?" Ian mumbled, "What's wrong?"

"I think someone's downstairs," you whispered, your hand still on his shoulder, shaking him slightly.

"There's no one downstairs, babe," he yawned, "You just had a bad dream. Go back to sleep."

"Will you go check?"

"Babe, there is _no one_ in our house," he insisted sleepily.

" _Please_?" you begged, tears threatening to roll down your face.

He groaned quietly, getting up, "Fine."

"I love you," you said quickly. You don't know why you felt the need to tell him all of a sudden, but you did.

He gave you a funny look before coming over to your side of the bed and kissing you, "I love you too. Go back to sleep. I'll be right back."

The unsettling feeling got worse with every step he took out of the room. You tried to ignore it though. It seemed like you got this feeling of anxiousness every day, but you couldn't shake it off - you just learned to deal with it. Which, in retrospect, probably wasn't a very good idea.

Everything was quiet for a couple minutes until you heard Ian yell your name, immediately followed by, " _Call 911_!"

Your heart started beating a mile a minute; He would never tell you to call 911 unless it was something he  _absolutely_  couldn't handle. You hopped up off of the bed and swiftly unplugged your phone, dialing 911.

And that was the last thing you remember before everything went black.

~

You woke up suddenly in a dimly lit area. You rubbed the back of your head gently and sat up, looking around. It wasn't too bright as the sun was just starting to rise, but you could still see fairly well. You were still in Ian's shirt and your pajama shorts, but you weren't anywhere near your bedroom or even your  _house_  for that matter.

You were in an alley and you didn't have the strength to stand up. It wasn't like you didn't know why, of course. It was the middle of January and there was a fresh blanket of snow on the ground you were laying on for who knows how long, causing your body to go numb. Every time you tried to stand up, your legs would get shaky and you would collapse.

"Well, well, well," you heard behind you, "Look who finally decided to wake up." You looked up, eyes wide and confused beyond belief. "You don't recognize me, do you, Y/N?" You shook your head slowly and he went on, "Jeremy Adams. I asked you to prom and you said no." It suddenly clicked.

"You did all of this because I rejected your prom invitation  _four years ago_?!" you exclaimed, somehow finding the strength to stand up.

"Karma has a funny way of coming back to you," he laughed bitterly.

" _Karma_?!" you nearly shouted, "Karma has nothing to do with this! I shouldn't have to go out with someone I'm not interested in to save myself from shit like this!"

"You were always incredibly hot when you were angry," he smirked, walking toward you, "You were always incredibly hot when you wore guys' clothes too. Although I always imagined you wearing mine and not that prick's."

_Ian. What happened to Ian?_

"What did you do to him?" you growled, narrowing your eyes.

"Nothing you'll be able to prove," he grinned evilly, still walking toward you in what seemed like slow motion.

When he finally got to you, he was about to put his hands on your hips, but you didn't give him the chance. You brought your leg up, kneeing him as hard as you possibly could, running away as he fell to the ground in pain.

You were amazed that you still had the strength to walk, let alone run for as long as you had been, even though you hadn't made it very far at all when you heard Jeremy start shouting and running after you. You didn't know where you were running to, you just knew that if you didn't keep running, there was a good chance the next time people saw you would be face down in that alley. Jeremy was getting closer and closer and right as you felt his arms wrap around your waist, your eyes shot open.

The room was dark and you weren't cold anymore. You felt something warm and soft covering your body and felt around. You sighed in relief at the feeling of being under your own blanket on your own bed.

Suddenly, you remembered everything that happened in your dream. You quickly sat up and looked over at Ian's side of the bed. When you didn't see him, you went into a panic.

" _Ian_?!" you shouted, feeling the tears start flowing from your eyes. " _Ian_?!" You got up and ran out of the room and down the hallway, only to run right into someone as you turned the corner.

"Y/N," Ian said frantically, "What's wrong?" You let out a sigh of relief at the sound of his voice and jumped up, throwing your arms around his neck and wrapping your legs around his waist.

" _You're alive_!" you squeaked against his shirt, holding onto him like your life depended on it.

"Of course I'm _alive_ ," he said slowly, wrapping his arms around your waist, "What happened?"

"Th-There was a guy from h-high school," you choked out, "And he broke in a-and killed you and I woke up in an alley and I tr-tried to run away but h-he caught me and then I woke up for real and y-you weren't th-there and I thought it re-really happened." Your words were a jumbled up mess and probably barely recognizable being muffled by his shirt, but he somehow managed to understand everything you said.

"Babe," he said, hugging you tightly, "I'm not gonna let anything happen to you – not in your nightmares and  _definitely_  not in real life."

"I love you," you cried quietly, finally looking at him.

"I love _you_ ," he smiled slightly, pressing his lips to yours.


	66. Surprise (Cody Carson)

"Hey, babe!" you said cheerfully as your boyfriend walked through the front door. Cody groaned quietly, shuffling over to where you were sitting on the couch and plopped down beside you. You smiled slightly, kissing his cheek and resting your chin on his shoulder, "Rough day, huh?"

"I just want to get this album out," he sighed.

"I know," you sympathized, "How about we just cancel our dinner reservations and order pizza instead?"

"We had dinner reservations for tonight?" he asked, the confusion on his face very obvious.

"Yes..." you said slowly, moving away from him a bit.

"What _for_?"

"You don't know what today is?"

"Yeah, it's Monday... That's kind of a random day to make dinner reservations, isn't it?"

"Yeah, I guess so," you bit your lip, giving him the best fake laugh you could. "I'm just gonna go order that pizza now," you said quietly, getting up and going into the kitchen and reaching for the phone book.

"What are you doing?" Cody asked, following you, "You know their number by heart. Just please tell me what I forgot so I can start apologizing." He looked at you with a pleading expression.

You laughed bitterly, "It's comforting to know that you can know someone for over _five years_ and they'll only forget your birthday _once_."

"Birthday," he repeated, rubbing the back of his neck, "It's your birthday."

"No, it's  _yours_ ," you replied sarcastically. He let out a deep breath and you rolled your eyes, grabbing your phone off of the counter and walking to the door.

"Babe-"

You cut him off, "I'll be back eventually." You slammed the door behind you and went to the nearby park.

There weren't many kids around – which was pretty surprising since it was nearing 7pm and school was over for the day – but it didn't bother you. You just needed to be some place quiet to think.

You walked over to the tree that you and Cody always sat under when you came here together. Maybe you were being irrational and a bit overly dramatic, but he never once forgot your birthday. Honestly, you've never been really into celebrating it, but it was always nice to know that he  _remembered_.

~

About an hour and a half later, you were still sitting against the tree in silence when you heard someone walking over to you. You looked up and watched Zach as he made his way across the grass. He smiled at you, but it wasn't like a ' _happy_ _to_ _see_ _you_ ' smile; It was more of a ' _Cody_ _told_ _me_ _what_ _happened_ ' smile.

"I'm kind of a dick, aren't I?" you frowned, looking up at him as he pulled you up off the ground and put his arm around your shoulders as you began walking back to your house.

"Just a bit," he chuckled, "He really didn't  _mean_  to forget, Y/N, but you know he's been stressing about this album pretty much since our last one came out."

"I know," you sighed, "But you guys were working on _that one_ on my birthday too and he didn't forget!"

He smiled slightly, "I know you're angry, but just try to cut him some slack, okay? He's doing the best he can." You looked down at your feet and still were by the time you got home and you didn't even realize Zach had led you to the backyard until you looked up.

Suddenly, a couple dozen friends jumped up and shouted, " _Surprise_!" You hid your face in your hands for a moment before they were being pulled back down. You opened your eyes, only to meet the sheepish smile on your boyfriend's face.

"Happy birthday, babe," he whispered, kissing your forehead and pulling you in for a hug.

"You're _kidding_ ," you mumbled into his shirt, hugging him back.

"I'm sorry I just let you leave like that, but I didn't want to ruin the surprise."

"You certainly didn't," you laughed lightly.

"I'm sorry I made you mad," he smiled shyly again.

"Please don't apologize for me being an asshole," you said half-jokingly, "I overreacted. I know you've been really stressed out lately, especially the past few weeks, and I shouldn't have added to it over something as stupid as a birthday."

"Your birthday isn't stupid," he replied, "From here on out, I promise to never  _fake_  forget your birthday again."

You laughed loudly, "And I promise to not be a  _real_  asshole about you  _fake_  forgetting my birthday again." He kissed you and the guys started making gagging noises, causing you and Cody to laugh and pull away from each other. "As much as I would  _love_  to make out with you in front of all these people," you sighed dramatically, "Why don't we get this party started?!" Everyone cheered, making you laugh as Cody threw his arm around your shoulders and kissed your cheek before you went to go talk to everyone.

 


	67. Liquid Confidence (Nash Overstreet)

He could barely hear himself think with how loud the music and party goers were being. As he walked into the living room, talking with random people, two of his best friends walked through the front door with you following not far behind. His heart skipped a beat when you looked at him and smiled.

"Hi, Nash!" you said cheerfully, hugging him.

"Hi, Y/N," he grinned shyly.

"Please tell me there's food," you looked at him hopefully.

He couldn't help but smile, "In the kitchen. Uh, Jamie... Could you...?" He nodded and led you out of the room. "What's  _she_  doing here?" he asked Ryan.

"She wanted to tag along," he shrugged, "What's the big deal? I thought you liked her."

"Don't say that so _loud_!" Nash exclaimed in a hushed tone, "She might hear you!"

Ryan laughed, shaking his head, "She's not gonna hear me from all the way in there, Nash. Calm down."

Truthfully, Nash  _did_ want you there, you just never seemed like the partying type to him. You were the kind of girl that would rather stay in your pajamas and play video games all day than go out and be around a bunch of people. But when he and Ryan walked into the kitchen, it was like you were a whole different person.

Although he didn't know you to be much of a drinker, you  _certainly_  fooled him. You had joined in on a game of beer pong and he couldn't help but laugh at how bad you were.

~

Two hours and four lost games of beer pong later, you had passed out on his couch. After everyone else left, Nash, Ryan, and Jamie stood over you.

"Alright, so who's taking who?" Jamie asked Nash. Ryan looked at his younger brother, then they both looked at Nash.

"No, there is absolutely  _no way_ -" He cut his sentence short seeing the look they were giving him. He bit his inner cheek and effortlessly lifted you off of the couch, taking you to his room. You woke up as he opened the door.

"Thanks for the ride," you giggled quietly, shivering as he laid you down.

Nash rolled his eyes and smiled, "I'm gonna go get you another blanket." He went to the hallway closet and grabbed a blanket from the top shelf before heading back to his room.

"Nash," you slurred when you saw him, "You're really cute."

He chuckled quietly, "So are you, Y/N. Now go to sleep."

" _No_ ," you mumbled, "You're  _really_  cute."

"Mhmm," he nodded, pulling the blankets up to you elbows.

"You're not _listening_!" you whined, turning away from him and burying your face in the pillow.

He sat down beside your lower back, rubbing your arm lightly, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'm listening now." You repositioned yourself to lay on your back and looked at him.

"You're really cute," you repeated. You paused for a moment before frowning, "Why don't you like me back?"

Nash's breath caught in his throat, "W- _What_?"

"Why don't you like me back?" you whimpered.

"Y/N," he said, attempting to maintain what little composure he had left, "Go to sleep. We can talk about it tomorrow."

He kissed your forehead, getting up and walking to the door when he heard you mumble, "I love you, Nash." He couldn't help but smile as he closed the door behind him, but he quickly shook it off.

 _You're just drunk. You didn't mean_ _– and would_ remember _–_ _anything you_ _were saying right now_.

Nash went into the kitchen where Ryan was clearly trying to stay standing with Jamie's help.

"You look like you've seen a ghost," Jamie commented, giving Nash a confused expression. He simply stared back, unable to come up with anything to say.

"What?" Ryan asked, "Did she confess her love for you or something?" He nodded slowly and their eyes widened. "Wait," he said, "Seriously?" Nash nodded again. "She finally did it..." he said under his breath, probably thinking he wouldn't hear him.

"What do you mean she  _finally_ did it?" he asked, sounding harsher than he had meant to. Jamie sighed, realizing he wasn't going to let it go.

"She's had a thing for you for forever," he told him, "But she made us  _swear_  not to tell you."

"Why?"

"For the same reason  _you_  made us swear not to tell  _her_ ," Jamie raised his eyebrows. Nash stayed quiet for a moment.

He cleared his throat quietly, "Shouldn't you guys be heading home?"

"You need to tell her in the morning, Nash," Jamie told him, helping Ryan toward the door, "Because if _you_ don't,  _I will_." Nash sighed, closing the door behind them and locking it before laying down on the couch, instantly falling asleep.

~

When Nash woke up the next morning, he went into his bedroom so he could go to the bathroom and saw you still sleeping. He smiled to himself and quietly went into the bathroom to brush his teeth.

As he was finishing up, he heard a quiet groan coming from the other side of the door, making him laugh. When he walked out of the bathroom, he found you sitting up, rubbing your head.

"How are you feeling?" Nash asked you, making you jump.

"What are you doing here?" you asked, obviously confused.

"I  _live here_?" he mocked your tone. You looked around, your eyes widening. "Before you jump to conclusions," he told you, "I slept on the couch. I just had to brush my teeth."

"Oh..." you trailed off, "Then why am I here? Where are Ryan and Jamie?"

"You lost beer pong  _big time_ ," he chuckled, "You passed out on my couch and Jamie didn't want to deal with  _two_  drunks, so he took Ryan and I took you."

"He _never_ picks me," you pouted, scrunching up your face. Nash smiled at how cute you looked.

"In his defense, I didn't pick you either," he smiled sweetly.

" _Ouch_ ," you replied, shutting your eyes tightly, "Do you have any aspirin?"

"It's in the kitchen."

You slowly got up, following him out of the room. Once you turned the corner into the hallway, you almost lost your balance, but quickly grabbed the door frame.

"Are you okay?" Nash asked frantically, rushing back to you.

"Yeah," you shook your head, "I-I'm fine."

"Here, let me help you," he said, putting his arm around your waist.

You rested your arm on his shoulders and he helped you stay upright as you walked the rest of the way down the hall. Your breathing slowed down and you were shaking uncontrollably at how tightly he was holding you.

"Are you  _sure_  you're okay?" he asked you worriedly, leading you to the counter.

You nodded again, hopping up and sitting down, "I'm fine, Nash. I promise." Hearing you say his name sent chills down his spine. He took a breath to calm himself while he got you a glass of water and an aspirin.

"Here you go, my dear," he said, handing them to you. You smiled, rolling your eyes, and took the aspirin.

"So you don't seem very hungover," you pointed out as you finished drinking your water.

Nash took the glass from you and put it in the sink, "Didn't drink too much last night." You gave him a look and he laughed, leaning against the sink, "I know;  _Shocking_ , isn't it?"

You giggled, "I bet you're  _dying_  to tell me all the  _stupid stuff_  I did last night then."

"Do you remember anything?" he asked quietly.

You thought for a moment before laughing again, "I remember calling Jamie an asshole because he took my drink from me."

"Ah, yes," he said, "That's one of my _top 3_ favorite things you did last night."

"I'm scared to ask about the other two."

"Well, the second one was when you went outside and started engaging a stray cat in a  _very_  deep conversation about why you were sad that it was homeless," he chuckled at the memory.

" _I did not_!" you squeaked.

"You _did_! And it was far more amazing than I could have _ever_ hoped!"

"I'm going to see that on YouTube when I get home, aren't I?" you asked, covering your face with your hands.

"That depends," Nash smirked, making you look at him, "How much do you trust me?"

You eyes widened, "If I say with all my heart, will you delete it and never bring it up ever again?"

"I might," he shrugged, "But I  _definitely_  will if you answer one question without lying."

"And what would that be?"

"How long have you liked me?"

You let out a nervous laugh, "What, uh... What are you talking about?"

"Last night, right before you fell asleep, you told me you loved me. And I want to know whether or not you meant it."

"I-I didn't-" you stuttered, "I didn't say that." Nash walked over to you as you pushed yourself off of the counter, putting his arms on the granite on both sides of you so you couldn't leave.

"I think you're lying to me," he said lowly, his face only inches away from yours. You bit your lip and glanced down at his lips quickly before looking back up at meeting his eyes again. "How long?" he repeated quietly.

"Since the moment I _met you_ ," you whispered. Nash felt a smile pull at the corners of his mouth as he leaned down slightly, pressing his lips to yours. "You're such a _dick_ ," you mumbled against his lips when he pulled back slightly.

"But you love me," he smiled.

"I _do_ ," you sighed, grinning and kissing him again.

 

~

_inspiration (luke's): http://imagine5sosmembers.tumblr.com/post/93169579406/4-4-roommates-but-he-has-feelings-for-you_


	68. Somebody to You (Ryan Follese)

"Y/N!" your best friend said next to you, waving his hand in front of your face.

You jumped and looked at him, "Huh?"

"You were staring again."

Your eyes widened, "He didn't see me, did he?"

"Does he _ever_?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Right," you mumbled, looking down and putting your combination into the lock on your locker so you could get your Algebra textbook.

"Y/N," he sighed, "I didn't-"

"I know, Cam," you cut him off as you grabbed the book, "People like Ryan aren't _meant_ to be with people like me. I know," you repeated quietly, "I'll see you after school." You quickly slammed your locker door shut and rushed to your last class of the day.

Algebra was the only class you were ever truly dreading. Not just because it was your worst subject, but because you also had it with Ryan. It wasn't that you hated that you were in the same class, it was that he and his friends would talk about you as if you couldn't hear them. You knew you were basically the loner of the school – that was until Cameron moved from another state, of course. But before that, no one ever liked you.

_Wait, scratch that. No one ever gave you a **chance**._

You weren't sure _why_ they didn't, but the constant glares and snickering every time you passed by was enough proof for you.

You finally made it to the classroom and walked in as the bell rung, earning a stare from everyone that was already in their seats. They looked away when you reached your desk, but one person's gaze lingered –  _Ryan's_. You were sure that he could have stayed staring longer had it not been for one of his friends shoving him and obnoxiously pointing out the fact that he was staring at you. You could feel your face get hot as you kept your eyes glued onto the unopened textbook on your desk.

His friend kept going on for the next hour about how weird you were and how he didn't understand why Cameron even bothered being your friend although he was probably only faking it out of pity and you tried not to let it get to you – really, you did – but at that point, you couldn't take it anymore.

Your teacher did everything he could to get him to stop, but to no avail. He looked at you apologetically and nodded toward the door. You sighed thankfully, not even bothering to take your things with you as you got up and ran out of the room.

By the time you made it down the hall, you couldn't see through your tears anymore. You ran into the bathroom, grateful no one else was in there, and leaned against the wall, sliding down until you hit the floor.

You jumped slightly when you heard heavy breathing from the hallway followed by your name.

"Y/N," Ryan said breathlessly, "Please come out."

"No," you sniffled quietly, wiping your face.

"Y/N," he repeated, "Don't make me come in there."

You sighed quietly, " _Fine_ ," standing up and walking back out into the hall.

Ryan instantly pulled you into him, wrapping his arms around you tightly. You tensed up and it was clear he felt it as he let go of you.

"Y/N-" he said again, but you cut him off.

"You know my name?" you asked in a small voice, looking up at him.

"Of course I do," he smiled slightly, "Listen, Y/N. I'm  _really_  sorry about Scott. I shouldn't have let it go that far."

"Why would _you_ care how far it went?" you asked, sounding harsher than you had intended to, "I'm  _nothing_  to you."

"Who told you _that_?" he asked, sounding genuinely hurt by what you said.

"No one had to  _tell me_ ," you muttered, "It's obvious every time I step into this _stupid_ school. No one likes me."

"What about _Cameron_?"

"I think we've brought Cameron into _enough_ of my problems for one day, don't you?" you retorted, beginning to make your way back to your locker.

You would be lying if you said you weren't mentally beating yourself up as you walked away. You had only ever dreamed of being able to have a conversation with Ryan without the stares and whispers of everyone around you, but now, you were pushing him away.

"If you'll excuse me," you said once you reached your locker and realized he had followed you, "I'd like to go home now."

"No," he stated, resting his hand on the door and putting his weight against it, keeping you from opening it.

" _Ryan_!" you exclaimed in annoyance.

Just then, the final bell rang and you started panicking. You could only  _imagine_  what people would say about you if they saw you talking to  _Ryan_.

"No, Y/N. Tell me why you're a nobody to me. Tell me why you don't like me," he demanded. By this time, there was already a small crowd gathering around you.

"Ryan,  _please_ ," you begged quietly, still facing your locker, on the verge of tears again as everyone glared at you.

"Y/N," he pleaded, "Just tell me why you don't like me and I'll leave you alone! What did I ever do to you?!"

Ryan's friend pushed his way to the front of the crowd, "Ryan-"

Ryan cut him off angrily, " _No, Scott_! I want to know what her problem is!"

" _It's not fair_!" you shouted suddenly, startling everyone as you spun around to face him, "It's not fair that I have to live  _every single day_  of my life being made fun of and judged by people that don't even  _bother_  trying to get to know me! It's not fair that I have to be the subject of all their hurtful jokes and stupid pranks when I've done absolutely  _nothing_  wrong! It's not fair knowing that I'm not good enough for them and it's  _especially_  not fair knowing I'll never be good enough for  _you_!"

As soon as you finished yelling, Ryan grabbed your cheeks and forcefully smashed his lips against yours. Nearly everyone gasped quietly and started whispering amongst each other.

"Who ever said you weren't good enough for me?" he asked quietly when he pulled away, his face inches away from yours.

"I told you: no one  _had to_ ," you shuddered, backing away slightly, "Why did you do that? Do you even understand how much  _worse_  it's gonna get?"

"Let it," he said simply, "Who _cares_ what they think?"

"That's easy for  _you_  to say!" you exclaimed, moving so you were no longer backed up against your locker, "Everyone  _loves_ you! It's  _easy_  not to care when they have nothing bad to say!"

You were a good six feet away from Ryan when you felt a hand on your back. You jumped and looked over, only to see a stupid grin plastered on your best friend's face.

" _Where_  do you think you're going?" Cameron asked, pushing you back toward Ryan.

"I don't want to do this, Cam," you said quietly, your eyes getting watery again, "It's not worth it anymore."

" _Not worth it anymore_ ," he let out an amused laugh and rolled his eyes, whispering to you, "Don't kill me, okay?"

"Cameron-"

He shook his head and began speaking a little louder even though he was still talking to you, "Every day – every single time I see you – you're looking at him-" he pointed at Ryan, "-as if he's the only guy you've ever wanted to be with." You brought your hands up to your face, not daring to look at anyone – and  _especially_  not at Ryan. Cameron put his hands on your shoulders, "And I don't understand love as much as the next person, but I  _do_  know that that's the  _same way_  he looks at you."

"No, he doesn't, Cameron," you muttered into your palms.

"How would _you_ know?" you could hear his smile as he was pushing you forward, "You're never looking at him when he _does_." Cameron pushed you into Ryan and you let out a squeak, finally looking up at him.

"He's got a point," he shrugged, smiling at you.

"Bu-But," you stuttered, "I-I just-"

Ryan cut you off, "Tell me that everything Cameron said is a lie and you don't like me. Then I'll leave you alone."

"I can't..." you said quietly, looking down again. He gently took your face in his hands again and made you look up at him.

"And  _why_  can't you?"

"Because..."

"Because?"

"Because it's  _true_!" you sighed in defeat, "And if this is some sort of genius plan to embarrass me and make my life  _worse_ , congratulations! It's  _working_!"

"Do you ever stop being so  _dramatic_  about everything?" he asked in a frustrated – but polite – tone. "I'm over here trying to tell you I feel the same, but all you can think about is what everyone else is going to say about you! I understand that I'm fortunate enough to not have them all saying horrible things about me, Y/N –  _I do_  – but don't you think that's going to  _change_  after today? No, you're not the most  _popular_  and you don't have  _a lot_  of friends and I know that by admitting all of this in front of them, it's going to make them think  _twice_  about me, but  _I don't care_. I don't think about that when I see you. When I see you, I think about how you're always cracking stupid jokes with Cameron when I walk by and how I wish you would smile more when you  _weren't_  with him. I think about how I see you every day after school just before you get on your bus and hug him and how I desperately wish you were hugging  _me_  instead. I think about how  _cute_  you look when you're concentrating on a math test and that little smile that appears on your face when you  _know_  the right answer. And maybe this is all creepy and maybe I'm acting like a crazy, love-struck teenager, but the thing about love is that it's not between five, ten, or fifteen people; It's between  _two_  and I couldn't care  _less_  about what all these people think about you. I don't know why they pick on you and I don't know why they never gave you a chance; All I'm asking is that you give  _me_  one."

You felt a smile pull at the corners of your mouth as you looked at him, "Okay."

" _Really_?" he let out a hopeful breath.

"Really," you nodded and he wrapped his arms around you tightly. To your surprise, no one really had anything to say – not in front of Ryan at least – so they all just left to go home for the day.

"Hey, Y/N..." Scott said shyly as everyone else walked away, coming up to you and Ryan and looking at the ground, "I'm really sorry about earlier. I shouldn't have said what I did."

"It's okay," you smiled politely. He looked up at you and smiled back.

"Plus, if Ryan likes you, how bad can you  _really_  be?" he asked, making you laugh.

"You have  _no idea_ ," you joked, trying to lighten the mood.

He laughed quietly, "You're not as bad as everyone thinks you are, you know? I look forward to getting to know you. Anyway, I better get going. My mom will freak if I'm home late again. Bye, guys!" he said as he turned and walked away. Ryan kissed your cheek and Cameron smiled, now holding your Algebra book and notebook in his arm.

" _Told you_ ," he sang, handing your books to you.

"You knew this whole time and didn't tell me?!" you yelled jokingly, pushing his shoulder.

"Would you have believed me?" he teased, giving you a hug.

"Probably not," you laughed, rolling your eyes. He smiled as you put your things into your locker and grabbed your backpack.

"Let's get going, loser," Cameron chuckled, "You've probably missed your bus by now. I'll take you home before your mom thinks you got kidnapped."

"I'll take her home," Ryan offered, "If that's okay. You know, since we live in the same neighborhood."

" _We do_?" you asked, confused. He nodded. "How did you know?"

"I'm not stalking you, I swear," he laughed, "I get home around the same time your bus drops you off sometimes."

"Thanks, Cam," you shrugged, "But you live on the other side of town and I don't want your mom thinking  _you've_  been kidnapped either." Cameron laughed loudly.

"Yeah, you're probably right. I'll see you guys tomorrow!" he called back as he sprinted down the hall. Ryan threw his arm across your shoulders as you walked out to his car.

"This is nice," he told you when you put your arm around his waist, "Finally being able to tell you how I feel feels like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders."

"Oh, I know," you giggled quietly, "Pretending someone doesn't exist can be a lot of hard work."

" _Shut up_ ," he laughed, kissing the side of you head, "You're so _dramatic_."


	69. Empty Threats (Michael Clifford)

" _Y/N_!" you heard from outside along with loud knocking on the front door. You trotted out of your home office, an amused grin already plastered on your face. " _Y/N_!" the male voice shouted again just before you opened the door.

"Good evening, Michael," you smiled sweetly, "Oh, I see you've changed hair color again. It's quite nice. Green looks good on you."

"Did you call the police on us  _again_?" he let out a breath, clearly annoyed.

"You were being a bit loud," you shrugged, not _directly_ answering him, "It's distracting me from my work."

"Listen," Michael started, putting his forearm on the door frame and leaning closer to you, "You  _knew_  what you were getting into when you moved in. So either learn to live with it or move out."

You smiled and rolled your eyes, "I hardly think _empty threats_ are necessary, Mikey."

"I _told you_ not to call me that," he mumbled.

"Ash, Cal, and Luke call you Mikey all the time."

He took in a breath, " _They_  are my friends;  _You_ are not."

"That hurts, Mikey," you pouted, "I thought we had something special."

" _Stop calling the cops on us_ ," he stated dryly, narrowing his eyes at you.

"Okay," you smiled politely, "Have a nice night, Mikey." You closed the door and he turned around, shaking his head.

" _She's not gonna stop_ ," he sighed to himself, walking back across the yard.

You never had any problems with the loud noises coming from your neighbor's house. Truthfully, you actually enjoyed listening to the band practice every Sunday night. You just enjoyed the way Michael would come over after every visit from an officer and angrily tell you to stop calling the police on them.

~

The next Sunday night, you were sitting on your living room floor, old photographs spread out in front of you, when there was knock on you door.

"Hello again, Michael," you smiled at your next door neighbor as he stood on your porch.

"Y/N," Michael stated with an anything but cheerful attitude, walking into the house.

"Is there any particular reason you've decided to drop by on this lovely evening, Mikey?" you asked, closing the door and turning to look at him.

"Call me Mikey _one more time_ ," he growled lowly, only a few inches away from you.

"I hardly think empty threats are necessary,  _Mikey_ ," you smirked.

Michael put his hands on your shoulders, pushing you up against the door. He then grabbed your hips roughly and pressed his lips to yours, almost immediately feeling you smile into the kiss as you wrapped your arms around his neck and pulled him as close to you as he could get.

" _Finally_ ," you breathed when he pulled back, "Took you long enough."

He rolled his eyes, but smiled, " _You_  could have been the one to make the first move too, you know."

"Oh, now where's the fun in  _that_?" you giggled, pulling him to sit where you had been on the floor in front of the couch.

"What are you up to?" he asked you, taking your hand in his and tangling your fingers together.

"Trying to come up with a Mother's Day present for my mom," you sighed, "I don't know what I'm gonna do yet, but I'm sure she'll get more use out of these pictures than I will."

"Well, if you don't plan on using this one-" Michael grinned, reaching forward and picking up a photo. "-I'd be  _more_  than happy to take it off your hands." You tilted her head to look at the picture and began laughing when you saw your 2-year-old self covered in spaghetti sauce.

" _Michael_!" you squeaked, slapping his knee lightly.

"Alright, alright," he chuckled, "How about this one?" He picked up another photo and showed it to you. You saw herself when you were around 5, all dressed up in your favorite outfit for your first day of kindergarten.

"Fine," you smiled slightly, "But I have to make a copy of it first."

After a few more minutes of Michael making fun of your baby pictures, you put away the photos and called it a night. You two sat quietly for a while, just enjoying the company of the other, until you decided to break the silence.

"Wanna know a secret?" you asked Michael as he absentmindedly rubbed the back of your hand with his thumb.

"Sure," he answered quietly.

"I've never called the cops."

" _Really now_?" he asked, obviously not believing you.

"Yup. You know how it's the same guy that comes to your house every time?" He nodded and you smiled at him, "That's my friend Nathan."

"Wait, so he's not  _actually_  a cop?" Michael asked in shock.

"No, he's a cop, but he isn't on duty on Sundays. He just owed me a favor."

"Why would you  _do that_?!" he shouted, although he wasn't really mad.

"As an excuse for you to come over," you shrugged casually.

"Why didn't you just  _ask_? I would have come over anytime."

"You wouldn't have come over  _mad_ ," you said simply, "And you're really  _hot_  when you're mad."

" _Really_?" he smirked, "Well, how hot am I  _now_?"

Michael turned his body toward you and repositioned himself so he was now sitting on your thighs, beginning to tickle your sides before you had the chance to react. You let out a short scream before you were laughing so hard, you couldn't breathe.

"Mi-Michael!" you managed to get out, "I c-can't- I can't breathe!" He smiled and stopped tickling you, but left his hands resting on your hips and remained sitting on your legs. You took a few deep breaths to calm yourself down as you smiled, "You're such a dick."

"But am I as hot as I am when I'm mad is the real question," he said, attempting to maintain a serious expression despite the smile pulling at the corners of his mouth.

You scrunched up your face a bit, "I've gotta say it's a close second." He chuckled quietly and gave you a quick kiss.

"Do  _you_  wanna know a secret?" Michael asked you, still sitting on you.

"Sure," you mocked his reply from earlier.

"I've always liked when you call me Mikey."

"I knew it," you laughed, putting your hands on Michael's cheeks and pulling his face to your own.

 


	70. Broken (Luke Hemmings)

"Hey, Y/N," you best friend said cheerfully, coming into your house. "What are you playing?" he asked, looking at the TV.

"Hi, Ash!" you smiled, " _Mario Kart_. What are you doing here?"

"Luke and I are hanging out with the guys today and I came to pick him up. Didn't he tell you?"

" _Oh_!" you exclaimed, "Yeah, he did! I always forget Friday is guys night." You chuckled quietly, "He's been busy writing all after- Shit. Don't tell him I told you that."

Ashton laughed, "I guess you better be the one to tell him I'm here then."

"Right!" you nodded, "Please hold."

"Holding!" You could hear his smile as you trotted down the hallway. You knocked on the bedroom door softly before opening it.

"Hey, babe," you said quietly, closing the door behind you, "How's writing coming?"

He let out a frustrated sigh and looked up from his computer screen, "I can't do it, Y/N! Nothing I've come up with is good enough! I should just ask the guys and Alex to write all of our songs without me!"

You smiled slightly, walking over to where he was sitting on the bed, taking his computer off of his lap and setting it on the desk. When you went back over to him, you climbed onto the bed and sat next to him, wrapping your arms around him. He laid his head on your shoulder and took a few deep breaths in and out to calm down.

"Luke," you said, running your fingers through his messy hair gently, "Every songwriter has off days and today is just one of yours. You'll get something eventually, but please don't stress yourself out about it. You just need to take a break. Ashton is here for you and I want you to go have a fun time with the guys, okay? Don't think about writing and don't worry about whether or not you're going to write the perfect song today. You probably won't and that's okay because it's there, but you can't force it out. You just have to let it happen."

"You always know what to say," he mumbled against your skin, leaving a light kiss on your collarbone.

"I'm your girlfriend, Luke," you smiled, "It's my job to know what to say." You kissed his cheek and let go of him, getting up. "Now get ready. I don't know how long Ash will wait for you," you teased, making him smile as you left the room. When you got back to the living room, you found Ashton playing your game of  _Mario Kart_.

"Ashton!" you laughed, making him jump and drop his controller, losing the game.

"Y/N!" he pouted, "You made me lose!"

"What are you talking about?" you giggled, "You were in last place!"

"I was second to last!" he corrected.

"Ash, I knew you were bad at  _Mario Kart_ , but come on," you joked.

"I bet you couldn't beat me if you tried!"

"Oh, it's  _on_  now, Irwin!" You grabbed another controller and promptly sat yourself on Ashton's lap. He chuckled quietly and picked his controller back up, putting his arms around your waist so he could hold it properly.

About halfway through the game, you heard Luke clear his throat and say your name from behind you. You paused the game and tilted your head back on Ashton's shoulder to look at him. As soon as you saw the look he was giving you, you got up.

"No cheating!" you glared at Ashton as you stood up. He slid his controller across the floor and threw his hands up, making you smile. You squeaked quietly when Luke grabbed your hand and pulled you into the kitchen, obviously tired of you putting off whatever he was so angry about.

"Why were you sitting with him like that?" Luke asked, getting right to the point.

"Luke, nothing is going on," you told him softly so Ashton wouldn't hear you fighting from the other room, "He's my best friend. We sit like that all the time. You know that."

"I just don't like the way he was holding you," he said just as quietly, although you could tell he was getting angrier.

You rolled your eyes, "And  _I_  don't like the way you're talking to me right now, but you don't see me getting all  _bent out of shape_  about it. I hardly think you have any reason to be jealous when you know very well that that is something we've  _always_  done."

"That was  _before_  we started dating!" he exclaimed in a whisper.

"And I'm sure if it were up to  _you_ , I would stop being friends with Ashton, Michael, and Calum altogether, but it's not, so stop acting like a dick!" His face dropped slightly and you took in a deep breath, "Luke, I didn't-" He shook his head, turning toward the front door. "Luke," you sighed, but he didn't stop walking. "Luke!" you called after him one last time, but he was already gone. " _Shit_ ," you muttered under your breath.

"Just go take a nap, okay?" Ashton said, coming into the room, "I'll talk to him when he gets home."

"You heard?" you sighed and he nodded. "Do you think I was too harsh on him?"

"Maybe a little," he answered honestly, shrugging, "If the roles were switched, don't you think you would have reacted the same way?"

"I guess you're right," you mumbled, putting your head in the palms of your hands, "I better go find him."

"Just let him cool off. He'll be back in a couple hours and I'll talk to him so he knows nothing is going on behind his back," he said, giving you a hug. You barely nodded and began making your way to your bedroom. "It'll be okay," Ashton assured you as you trudged down the hall, trying your best to believe him.

~

When you woke up a couple hours later, you heard arguing coming from the kitchen. You clearly heard Ashton and Luke's voices and your name being used and knew it was best to just go break it up right away.

" _Nothing_  is going on between us, Luke!" Ashton shouted, rolling his eyes, "There is literally  _no reason_  for you to be acting like this!"

"Maybe I don't like the way you always hang all over each other!" Luke retorted, "Did you ever think about how walking into the room and seeing my best friend's arms around my girlfriend's waist would make  _me_  feel?!"

"Why is this about how  _you_  feel all of a sudden?! At least  _I_  actually spend time with her!"

"I spend time with her," Luke mumbled under his breath, although it was obvious he was getting angrier with every passing second.

" _Really_?" Ashton laughed, "Did you know she feels like you're always so busy with writing songs that you don't have time for her now?"

"Ash, stop."

"Did you know she feels like she has to  _beg you_  to go to bed every night?"

" _Ashton_ ," he warned quietly.

"Did you know she feels like you don't  _love her_  anymore?"

You watched Luke's fingers curl into a ball as he bit his lip and it was clear he wanted to hit something. You knew he would never even consider hitting Ashton and when he looked at the wall in front of him, your heart skipped a beat at the thought of him getting hurt.

"Luke!" you squeaked, running over to where he and Ashton were standing and throwing your left hand over Luke's fist just before it reached the wall.

The second your hand hit the drywall, you felt three of your knuckles break instantly. You screamed, falling to your knees and holding your hand as pain shot throughout your entire arm.

"Luke!" Ashton gasped, rushing to your side.

"I-I didn't-" Luke stuttered in shock, tears visibly forming in his eyes, "I didn't- I didn't mean to! I-I'm sorry!"

"Oh my god," Ashton mumbled, "I've gotta get you to the hospital." He picked you up carefully and started making his way to the front door with Luke following not far behind. "Luke," Ashton said in the angriest tone I'd ever heard him use, "I think it's best if you stay here." Before Luke could protest, you were already out the door.

~

A few hours later, your hand was in a cast and you had finally gotten some proper sleep for the first time in God knows how long.

When you woke up, you saw Ashton sitting in the chair next to you, smiling at you in relief as your eyes adjusted to the bright lights. Even though you were happy to see him, you were a little disappointed Luke wasn't there instead.

"Why am I still in the hospital?" you asked Ashton as he walked over to you.

"They had to take you into surgery because your knuckles were shattered so badly," he smiled slightly, "They decided to keep you here for a couple days to make sure everything heals properly."

"How long have I been here?"

"Only a few hours," he answered, "Cal and Mikey couldn't make it today, but they said to tell you they're glad you're okay and they'll see you tomorrow."

You smiled, pausing before asking, "Where's Luke?"

"Y/N..." he said slowly, "I don't think it's a good idea for him to be here."

"I want Luke," you felt tears fall down your cheek and Ashton's expression softened.

"I'll go call him," he said, squeezing your right hand – your _good_ hand – and walking out of the room.

A few minutes had passed and you and Ashton were now just waiting for Luke to show up.

"What were you  _thinking_ , Y/N?" Ashton asked you.

"He didn't mean to, Ash," you stated, ignoring his question and shaking your head, "He didn't know I was gonna do that. This isn't his fault, okay? And I know he already feels bad enough; Please don't make him feel any worse."

"Why would you do that to yourself though?"

"I woke up to you guys fighting and listened to see if you could work it out yourselves without me having to intervene, but I could tell he wanted to punch something. I knew he would never think about hitting you and when I saw him look at the wall behind you, I knew that was where his fist was going," you sniffled, looking down at the cast on your hand, "I just didn't want him to get _hurt_." Your head shot back up when you heard someone walk into the room.

"I didn't want _you_ to get hurt either, babe," Luke said in a small voice, smiling at you guiltily.

" _Luke_ ," you said quietly, unable to stop the tears from falling again when you said his name.

He quickly made his way over to the bed and you sat up a little so he could wrap his arms around your waist. You wrapped your arms around his neck and ran your fingers through the hair at the top of his neck lightly.

Ashton stood up, "I'll be outside if you need me."

"I am so sorry," Luke mumbled into your skin when Ashton left, but you could tell he was starting to get worked up again.

"I know," you said softly, kissing his shoulder every once in a while in an attempt to calm him down.

"I never meant for you to get hurt, I  _swear_." You could feel your shoulder getting wet.

"Luke-"

"I  _didn't_!" he sobbed, "And when your hand hit the wall and I felt every break and I heard you scream and you started crying, I felt really bad, but when Ash said I shouldn't come with you, I thought you weren't gonna come  _back_."

"Luke," you whispered, "You didn't mean to do this. You had no intention of hurting either me or Ash, but I was in no way going to let you hurt yourself, okay? I knew what I was doing and you need your hand  _way more_  than I need mine."

You felt him let out a quick breath against your neck as he chuckled quietly, "Don't make me laugh. I don't deserve to be happy."

"Lucas Robert Hemmings," you said firmly, pushing him back so you could look at him, "I will sit here for as long as it takes until you feel like you've apologized enough, but I will  _not_  allow you to tell yourself you don't deserve to be happy."

"But I  _don't_ ," he looked down, "I haven't been that great of a boyfriend lately and everything Ashton said was  _true_. I didn't even realize that I haven't been spending time with you, or that you've had to beg me to go to sleep, or that I've been making you feel like I don't love you anymore, but I  _do_ ," he shook his head, mad at himself, "I swear I do.  _So much_. I just... I promise I'll  _never_  make you feel like that again, just  _please_  don't give up on me."

"Luke..." you said in shock, "No one ever said I was giving up on you."

"But I haven't been a good boyfriend," he said again, sniffling quietly. Luke wasn't really one to cry and the sight of him nearly breaking down in front of you broke your heart.

"You are an  _amazing_  boyfriend, Luke," you told him, putting your hand on his cheek and making him look back up at you and wiped under his eye with your thumb carefully. You kissed him softly before continuing, "Yeah, what Ash told you is true – and I'll admit I should have told  _you_  what I was feeling instead of  _him_  – but you know what? Those are things that can be worked on. You're already so stressed about your music and I don't want this to add to it. The lyrics will come to you, my hand will heal, and I love you  _way_  too much to ever even  _consider_  giving up on you, Luke."

"I love you," he told you, kissing you.

You smiled, "I know. Now go remind Ash you love him too." He chuckled quietly, kissing you again.

"I love you," he repeated quietly before standing back upright.

"I love you too," you said as he left the room, happy everything was okay again.

 


	71. Stuck (Calum Hood)

You stared at the paper on your desk, unsure of what anything on it meant. You had been sick since after school on Friday, and was still sick by the time Sunday night came around, so your mom decided it would be best to keep you home the next day so she could make sure you got better. You obviously had, and now you were in your last class of the day, struggling to understand even one thing your pre-calculus teacher was talking about.

When she let you begin working on your homework near the end of class, you stood up and walked over to her desk.

"Mrs. Williams?" you asked quietly. She looked up at you and you went on, "Can you please explain this to me?"

"I'm sorry, but you should have been here yesterday."

"I-I was sick all weekend," you stuttered, shaking your head. She looked back down at her own work, leaving you just as confused as before. You sighed, trudging back to your desk and sitting down, attempting to figure it out on your own.

After about 25 minutes, you let out a quiet groan because you still couldn't get it.

"Hey, Y/N," Calum, the boy who sat behind you, whispered, poking your back lightly. You turned your head to look at him. "Do you need help?" You nodded and turned around, putting your paper on his desk. He hadn't even gotten three words out before Mrs. Williams decided to interrupt.

"Y/N," she said in the most unamused tone you'd ever had a teacher use on you, "Why aren't you working?"

"Because I don't-"

"Turn around and do your own work."

"I'm trying, but I can't-"

"Maybe that's because you're talking."

"I just needed him to-"

"And  _I_  need you to stop disrespecting me before I send you to the principal," she said plainly. Everyone was staring at you by this point – which made you uncomfortable enough as is, but the fact that you were so close to tears certainly wasn't making it better.

"Mrs. Williams," Calum spoke up, "I really don't think you should talk to her like that either. She didn't understand the lesson and you refused to catch her up, so I asked her if she wanted me to help."

"Calum, it's alright to tell me if she's bothering you," she said, completely ignoring what he told her.

A small squeak escaped your mouth and you knew that if you didn't leave right then that you would start crying in front of everybody. You stood up again, not even bothering to take your books, and began walking toward the door. Mrs. Williams tried to stop you, but you were in no mood to listen to her anymore.

You had just made it out of the room when you heard her angrily say Calum's name followed by the classroom door closing loudly. You looked back and saw Calum smiling apologetically at you, carrying your books as well as his. He came up to you and lifted his arm up, pausing first to make sure it was alright. You barely nodded and he rested it across your shoulders. You made a move to take your things from him, but he refused, telling you he was fine carrying them.

"I'm really sorry about what happened," he said quietly as you walked to Mr. Fisher, the counselor's office.

"It wasn't your fault," you told him, "She's never liked me."

"I've noticed that," he commented, "But why?"

You sighed, "I don't know. She just doesn't." He took his arm off of your shoulder to open the door to the counselor's office.

"Hi, Y/N," the woman at the front desk smiled at you as you walked in.

The counselor's office was somewhere you had been quite a bit since freshman year. Although you were a fairly good student, you did have troubles with certain classes and Mr. Fisher wanted to check in with you every Friday to see how you were doing.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, "It's not Friday."

"Hi, Mrs. Murphy," you said quietly, "I just need to talk to Mr. Fisher."

"He's not here today, dear, I'm sorry. Is there anything I can do for you?"

"No," you shook your head, "I just needed to get out of class."

"Mrs. Williams giving you trouble again?" she asked, as this was usually the only reason you ever had problems. You nodded and she sighed, "If you want to stay in here until the bell rings, that's okay. I will never understand why the school gave that woman a job." You giggled quietly, making Calum grin as you sat down at the desk that was in the room.

"Y/N, I really think you should switch to a different teacher," Calum said, sitting down beside you.

"Even if I _wanted to_ , I _couldn't_ ," you sighed, resting your elbow on the table and your chin in your hand, "She's the only one that's teaching pre-calc this year and I need the credits to be able to graduate."

"What do you mean if you _wanted_ to?" he asked, "Why wouldn't you _want_ to?"

"It's the only class I have with _you_ ," you admitted shyly and he grinned again.

"Well, since there's no one to bother us, how about I help you with this homework now?" He finally gave you your books and began explaining everything you'd missed.

By the time the final bell rang 5 minutes later, you had a pretty good understanding of how to do the rest of the problems.

"Thanks for the help, Calum," you smiled as you stood up.

"You're welcome, Y/N," he smiled back and he began walking with you to your locker.

"Isn't your locker at the other end of the hall?" you asked him. He simply nodded in response. "Then what are you doing?"

"Being a gentleman," he joked. When you made it to your locker, he looked at the clock and started rushing toward his own, calling back, "Wait for me!" You shook your head, laughing quietly as you put the homework from your other classes in your backpack. You shut your locker door and put on your jacket before leaning against the cold metal, waiting for Calum to return.

When you saw him coming, you swung your backpack over your shoulder. He was still rushing and didn't even stop when he got to you, grabbing your hand and pulling you outside, leading you to your bus. You finally stopped running when you got there and he motioned for you to get on first. You found an open seat and slid in beside the window, finally able to catch your breath.

"Made it," he said breathlessly, plopping onto the seat beside you.

"You're such a _weirdo_ ," you laughed, taking your backpack off and putting it on the floor between your legs while he did the same.

"But I'm a weirdo that got us to the bus on time and that's what matters," he chuckled, pushing your arm with his elbow.

You talked for about 20 more minutes before you were coming up to Calum's stop. He looked over at you as he lifted his backpack onto his lap.

"I wrote my number on your paper, so don't hesitate to call me if you get stuck again, okay?" You nodded as the bus came to a stop and he stood up, quickly adding, "Or for any reason in general. It doesn't have to be about school."

You laughed quietly, "I'll talk to you tonight, Cal." He let out a breath and smiled, getting off of the bus while you turned to look out the window, ignoring everyone staring at your stupid grin.


	72. The Irony Of Choking On A Lifesaver (Jack Barakat)

"Hey, babe!" your boyfriend called from the kitchen as you walked into your apartment, "The guys are here, is that cool?" You heard a chorus of greetings as you plopped down on the couch. You simply grunted into the pillow, not knowing whether or not they heard you.

It was clear they _had_ , however, when they all came into the room. Jack effortlessly picked you up and sat down where you were, making sure you were comfortable in his lap. Alex sat beside you while Rian and Zack sat down on the other couch.

"What happened to your eye?" Rian asked.

"Nothing," you said quickly, pushing your bangs over the side of your face.

"Did you fall at work again?" Jack asked, moving your hair back so he could look at the bruise.

"Something like that," you mumbled.

"Come on, Y/N," Zack pushed, "If all you did was fall again, you wouldn't be so grumpy."

"I'm not grumpy!" you protested, "I'm great! I'm wonderful! I've never been less grumpy than I am right now!" The guys gave you a look telling you that they knew you were lying. "I _hate_ when you look at me like that."

"We wouldn't have to look at you like this if you would just stop pretending nothing is wrong all the time," Rian commented.

"What about that whole ' _no mentioning the ex_ ' thing that everyone says is a bad thing to talk about?" you asked, trying desperately to get out of it.

"That's on a first date," Alex said, "And now that we know it's about your ex, there's really no going back, so tell us – what happened?"

You sighed, "I was taking a drink to a customer and Aaron was there and I guess he saw me about to walk by his table and decided it would be funny if he tripped me again."

"What do you mean  _again_?" Jack asked, "He tripped you the last time too?" You barely nodded and he shook his head, "Why did you lie?"

"Because I _know_ you guys," you sighed, "I know what you would do to him and I don't want you to get in any trouble."

"But he doesn't have the _right_ to do that!" he exclaimed, "Just because  _he's_  still miserable about the break up doesn't mean  _you_  have to be!"

You could tell it was making him – as well as the others – mad which was exactly why you didn't want to tell them. You knew they meant well and they just wanted to protect you, but this was a constant thing that happened. You had learned to deal with it – although you would be lying if you said it didn't piss you off too. It always felt good to be able to get all you anger out, but you hated the way you would just keep going after you got started.

"I know! And it's really frustrating!" you ranted, "Like, what did I ever do to him?!  _Nothing_! I did  _nothing_! All I did was break up with him because I didn't feel the same anymore and he suddenly thinks he has the right to treat me like shit because of something that happened  _three years ago_!"

You continued raging on and on for about 10 minutes while the guys just politely listened. You didn't know if they were actually paying attention or not, but it made you feel sort of comfortable just knowing someone was there. You were on the verge of tears and knew you had to do something to get the rest of your anger out.

You let out a quick breath before standing up, "I need to write."

You always wrote songs when you were mad. Well, you always wrote songs when you had  _inspiration_  – and you usually had inspiration to write when you were  _mad_. You rushed down the hall and into your bedroom, heading straight to your desk.

~

After about an hour and a half or so, you had all the lyrics. You had no idea whether or not they would actually work in a song seeing as your only musical talent was pretty much writing, so you called the one person you knew could help you.

"Alex!" you shouted. Almost immediately, he burst into the room, nearly tripping over himself.

"Are you okay?!" he asked quickly.

"Yes. I need you to put this to music," you picked up your notebook and handed it to him.

"Why can't you?" he asked, taking it from you.

"I'm only good for lyrics," you sighed, "You know that." He opened his mouth but you were quick to cut him off, "I mean musically."

"Alright," he told you, "I'm sure the guys and I can come up with something. Do you want to sit in and listen?"

"No," you shook your head, "I kinda just want to be alone still." He nodded, giving you a small smile before walking out of the room.

~

A couple hours later, you were watching TV, nearly asleep, when you heard a light knock on the bedroom door. You opened your eyes as Zack opened the door, immediately giving you a guilty look.

"Sorry," he said quietly, "I didn't know you were sleeping."

"It's okay," you yawned, "I shouldn't be taking a nap this late in the day anyway. What's up?"

"We just finished working on your song and I was sent to ask you if you wanted to hear how it turned out," he answered.

"Yeah! I would love to!" you perked up, getting up and following him to the living room where the rest of the band was. They were sitting in a circle on the floor, so you took a seat next to Jack.

"Feel better?" Jack asked, putting his arm around your shoulder, pulling you closer so he could kiss your cheek.

"A little, I guess," you shrugged, "But I'm excited to hear the song."

"You know you write really intense shit, right?" Alex chuckled.

"You know me: I write the best lyrics when I'm angry." They nodded in agreement, making you smile.

"So," he started, "The song would sound a lot better with all the instruments, but we only have an acoustic, so you won't really get the full effect right now, but you  _will_  be able to get a feel for how the lyrics will sound." You nodded, leaning onto Jack as Alex started playing.

_Stop fucking around with my emotions_   
_I like you better when you're numb_   
_I'm sick and tired of false devotion_   
_Devote yourself to moving on_   
_Or suck it up and let it go_

_But you're always out to get me_

_You're the snake hidden in my daffodils when I'm picking flowers_   
_That's just my luck these days_   
_Why can't you just be happy for me?_

_You're the break lights failing as my car swerves off the freeway_   
_It kind of feels like sabotage_   
_Why can't you just be happy for_   
_Why can't you just be happy for me?_

_You think your opinions make you savvy_   
_Your running mouth falls on deaf ears_   
_You say you're winning 'cause you're laughing_   
_While I'm crying crocodile tears_   
_Just suck it up and let it go_

_But you're always out to get me_

_You're the snake hidden in my daffodils when I'm picking flowers_   
_That's just my luck these days_   
_Why can't you just be happy for me?_

_You're the break lights failing as my car swerves off the freeway_   
_It kind of feels like sabotage_   
_Why can't you just be happy for_   
_Why can't you just be happy for me?_   
_Why can't you just be happy for_

_Why can't you just be happy for me?_   
_I'll never be good enough, no, I'll never be good enough_   
_Why can't you just be happy for me?_   
_I'll never be good enough, no, I'll never be good enough_

_But you're always out to get me_

_You're the snake hidden in my daffodils when I'm picking flowers_   
_That's just my luck these days_   
_Why can't you just be happy for me?_

_You're the break lights failing as my car swerves off the freeway_   
_It kind of feels like sabotage_   
_Why can't you just be happy for_   
_Why can't you just be happy for me?_

_Why can't you just be happy for_   
_Why can't you just be happy for me?_

"That sounds _amazing_!" you squeaked when Alex finished playing.

He sighed quietly, " _Thank God_. I was worried you wouldn't like it."

"I love _all_ of your songs!" you told him, leaning forward and hitting his shoulder.

"You're incredibly difficult to please when it comes to your own lyrics though," Jack pointed out, chuckling. The other guys were quick to agree.

"Only when  _you_  aren't writing the instrumental part!" you exclaimed, "I don't trust anyone but you guys with my lyrics."

"But you don't trust us with your problems," Alex sighed dramatically, "I'm hurt."

You giggled quietly, "Because I have a very strong feeling you're going to ' _coincidentally_ ' run into Aaron and your fist is going to ' _accidentally_ ' hit his jaw."

"What do you think we are, some sort of  _animals_?" he gasped.

"No, you're a group of four very protective guys and although I love you all to death, I cannot allow you to cause a lifetime of emotional pain to anyone but your fans."

"Fine," Rian said, "We won't do anything  _this time_. But if it happens  _again_ , I will not be in control of my actions should I see him around town."

You thought for a moment before extending your arm over to him, "Deal."

~

_Song used: "The Irony Of Choking On A Lifesaver" by All Time Low_


	73. Silent Treatment (5 Seconds of Summer)

**Luke**

"I'm home!" you called out as you walked into your apartment. You expected your boyfriend to come rushing to greet you as he always did, but that wasn't what you got today. "Luke?" You set your things on the living room couch before making your way to the kitchen. You let out a sigh of relief when you saw Luke leaning against the counter with his phone in his hand. "Why didn't you answer me?" you asked, but received no response. You raised your eyebrows and waved your hand in front of his face, "Hello? Can you get off that thing for like 10 seconds? I'm talking to you." He looked up at you and rolled his eyes before returning his attention to his phone. "Ah," you said, "The silent treatment. Let's see. I didn't accidentally use your toothbrush again, so it can't be that. I said I love you before I left earlier, so it's not that. Oh!" you exclaimed, "It's because I didn't kiss you goodbye, isn't it?"

Luke let out an annoyed sigh, "I thought you were going shopping."

"I did," you answered simply.

"Why didn't you tell me you were going with Michael?"

"I didn't think you would care?" you replied, confused.

"You didn't think I would care that my girlfriend hanging out with another member of my band?" he repeated angrily.

"I have hung out with Michael, Ashton,  _and_  Calum plenty of times before, Lucas."

"Whatever," he muttered, pushing himself off of the counter and starting to walk away.

"No," you said firmly, running in front of him and spinning around, "You're not leaving until you tell me why you're so mad about this." He narrowed his eyes at you before shoving his phone in your hand. You looked down at the screen and read the article headline:  _5 Seconds of Summer Frontman's Girlfriend Leaving Him For Another Member?_

"Luke," you sighed, "Why do you keep reading this bullshit?" He began messing with his lip ring and shrugged. You set his phone on the counter beside you and wrapped your arms around his neck, resting your forehead on his. "I love you, Luke," you told him quietly, "You know I would never cheat on you."

"I know," he mumbled, pressing his lips against yours, "I'm sorry."

"Oh!" you smiled, "I have a surprise for you!" You grabbed his hand and lead him toward the living room. Just before you reached the room, you stopped and looked at Luke.

"You know how I said I had to go pick something up which was why I couldn't lay in bed with you all day?" you asked. He nodded and you went on, "Well, the reason I was with Michael was because him, Calum, Ashton, and I went to this guitar shop about a month ago and they just finished this yesterday, so we had to pick it up this morning." He gave you a confused look as you pulled him to the couch. He looked over at the other couch and saw a guitar case sitting there. "Close your eyes," you instructed and although he was still confused, he complied. You opened the case and carefully took the guitar out, setting it on his lap. "Okay!" you said excitedly, "Open!"

"Babe," Luke gasped quietly, his eyes widening as he admired the guitar on his lap. He looked up at you, "What's this for?"

"The new tour is coming up soon and we know your other guitar has gotten pretty beat up over the months during the One Direction tours, so the boys and I wanted to buy you a new one for your first headliner. And since I know nothing about guitars, Michael insisted that he come with me today to make sure everything was good enough for our little Luke," you teased, reaching over and ruffling his hair a bit.

"Babe," he said again, a guilty smile on his face.

"Uh huh," you nodded, grinning, "Say it." He set the guitar gently back in the case, taking your hand and pulling you onto his lap.

"I love you," he said, kissing your cheek, "I'm sorry."

"I know," you giggled. "I love you too. Besides, if I was going to cheat on you, it  _definitely_  wouldn't be with Michael," you smirked, earning a push on the shoulder and a loud laugh from your boyfriend.

~

**Michael**

" _Michael_ ," you whined, poking his arm continuously, "Come on. You know I didn't mean it." He remained silent, eyes glued to the television as he played FIFA in the back lounge of the tour bus.

Michael had been giving you the silent treatment for over 5 minutes now after you teased him for missing a goal. You let out a short sigh and got up, moving to the other couch, sitting across from him. You bit your inner cheek, trying to come up with some way to get him to acknowledge your presence, even if he still refused to speak to you. You suddenly came up with an idea that would for sure get his attention.

"Don't say anything if you don't love me," you said, attempting not to smile when you got no response. "Don't say anything if you never want to see me again." You could tell he was trying as hard as he could to keep ignoring you. "Don't say anything if you're terrible in bed," you sang.

He glanced over and grinned at you before quickly averting his gaze back to the TV. You smiled victoriously, but you still had one more thing up your sleeve that would get him to break the silent treatment completely.

"Don't say anything if you would rather me be with Luke instead of you," you said. He looked at you again and you stuck out your bottom lip, causing him to sigh.

"Alright, you win," he chuckled, rolling his eyes. You grinned, getting up and going to sit next to him again. You rested your chin on his shoulder and kissed his cheek.

"Do you forgive me?" you pouted. He turned his head and kissed you softly.

"I forgive you. Just please don't leave me for Luke," he answered, making you laugh.

~

**Calum**

"Cal," you said in a frustrated tone, "Are you  _seriously_ giving me the silent treatment right now?" He shrugged, which was obviously a yes to you. "Why?!" you exclaimed, only to earn another shrug from the boy sitting beside you. You replayed the previous conversation in your head before realizing what it was. "Calum, is this really because I said I don't listen to Green Day?" He remained silent. " _Calum_!" you groaned, "You're acting like a child!" He bit his inner cheek, still refusing to look at you. You rolled your eyes, standing up and going into the kitchen to grab your keys. "I'll be back later," you told him as you walked out the door, not bothering to wait for a response since it was clear you weren't going to get one.

After about half an hour of aimlessly walking around town, you stopped at the Dairy Queen near your apartment and bought two blizzards for yourself and Calum. You quickly walked home before the ice cream melted and carefully opened your front door. Once inside, you started looking for Calum but it wasn't long until you found him in the spot on the couch where you left him. This time, however, he was asleep.

You sighed, going to the kitchen and putting his ice cream in the freezer before setting your own on the coffee table in the living room, careful not to wake him up. You went to get your laptop from your bedroom and when you returned, you sat across from Calum.

A few minutes later, you were scrolling down your Twitter timeline, still eating your blizzard, when Calum finally woke up.

"How long have I been asleep?" he asked you, obviously forgetting he was giving you the silent treatment.

You shrugged, not bothering to look at him, "Since after I left."

"When did you get home?"

"About 10 minutes ago."

"Did you get me any ice cream?" he asked, just now noticing the cup in your hand.

"Do you feel like you deserve any?" you muttered, putting your now empty cup on the coffee table in front of you.

"No," he sighed, hanging his head.

You closed your laptop and put it on the seat next to you, picking up your cup and leaving the room without a word. When you came back, you had Calum's ice cream in your hand. You plopped down next to him suddenly, causing him to jump and look at you. He looked at the cup in your hand and then back at you.

You shrugged, smiling slightly, "I couldn't not get you one."

"Does this mean you're not still mad at me?" he asked carefully, slowly taking the cup out of your grasp.

"I was never mad at you," you told him, laying your head on his shoulder, "Just annoyed."

"I know I was kind of acting like a kid," he told you, taking a bite of ice cream, "But whenever I sing their songs to you, you never say anything."

"I don't have to like the songs to like when you sing to me, Cal" you giggled quietly.

You could hear his smile, "I'm sorry."

"I know," you said, looking up at him and kissing him, "I forgive you."

~

**Ashton**

"Hi, Ash!" you smiled when you heard your boyfriend walked into your apartment, "How was rehearsal?" He only grunted in response, causing you to quickly save what you had written for your English report before closing your laptop and going into the living room where Ashton had thrown himself onto the couch and was now watching TV. "Alright," you said, sitting cross-legged beside him, "What did I do?" He shrugged, cause a sigh to escape your mouth. "Well, when you decide to stop giving me the silent treatment, you know where to find me."

You stood up and were almost out of the room when you heard Ashton say, "Why did you tell them?"

"Tell them what?" you asked, turning back to look at him as he got up to face you.

"You _know_ what," he said, an amused look on his face.

"I really don't, Ashton. Please just tell me what I did wrong," you practically begged.

"You told them why I was late today," he mumbled, looking down at his feet.

"Ash," you said quietly, walking up to him and taking his face in your hands and making him look at you, "I didn't know I wasn't supposed to."

"You could have lied," he shook his head, "You could have told them I overslept or I forgot or I was still taking a shower. You didn't have to tell them the truth."

"Ashton, they are your best friends. Do you really think that's going to change just because they know you were crying?"

"Don't say that. It's embarrassing."

"Ashton," you repeated, "It is not unusual for guys to cry and whoever decided it was has clearly never felt any emotion whatsoever." You kissed his nose, "But we've told you not to read those horrible things people say about you."

"I know," he sighed, "But I can't help it."

"I know you can't, but please stop believing it. You are the most amazing person I have ever met and those people are idiots for not being able to see it."

"I love you," he said quietly.

"I love you too," you smiled, kissing him softly.

~

_inspiration for michael's: http://imagine5sosmembers.tumblr.com/post/94964676231/downunderirwin-he-looks-like-such-a-fratboy-and_

_shout out to my friends shay, natalie, and maguie for helping with ideas for calum, luke, and ashton's._


	74. Why Worry (Cody Carson)

"Babe!" you called, making your way down the hall to your bedroom. You opened the door and saw your boyfriend standing in front of the mirror, fixing his tie. "Cody, you're gonna be late for rehearsal. We have to go."

"Are you sure this looks alright?" he asked you, looking at you in the mirror. You rolled your eyes and smiled, wrapping your arms around his neck from behind and resting your chin on his shoulder.

"I have told you at least 10 times already that you look amazing," you assured him, "You always do."

He sighed, "I guess I'm just worried."

"And is worrying helping?"

"No," he chuckled, already knowing where you were going with it.

" _Then why, why worry at all?_ " you sang with a stupid grin.

He shook his head and laughed, "Let's go," grabbing your hand and pulling you out to the car.

~

"You know," you said as Cody opened your door after he found a parking spot at the venue, "I find it funny that you're worried considering you're nominated because of  _Why Worry_  and all."

"I know," he mumbled, "I can't even take my own advice."

"Cody," you said quietly, taking his hand and lacing your fingers together, "You're going to give an amazing performance. There will be a lot of fans here, okay? They will still love you whether you win or lose or fuck up the lyrics or not, so stop over-thinking it and have a good time for them."

"I hate when you preach to me."

"You only hate it when I'm right," you smiled, kissing his cheek.

"Well, well, well!" Zach shouted dramatically as you and Cody walked to the stage, "Look who  _finally_  decided to show up!"

"Well, well, well!" you copied, "Look who  _finally_ decided to wash his hair!"

"Harsh," he laughed, pushing your shoulder.

"You know I love you," you giggled, giving him a hug as well as the rest of the band.

~

While the band was on stage rehearsing, you were standing at the side watching when you heard someone come up beside you and groan, "Who invited you?" You looked over at Marshall and smiled.

"I could ask you the same thing. I didn't know they were selling merch tonight," you smirked.

He let out a fake laugh, "Very funny. I'll have you know, I am a +1."

"And who was unfortunate enough to draw the short straw on that one."

"That would be me," Zach said, coming down the stage's stairs.

"Damn it!" you laughed, "I should have known!"

"And I have the prettiest date here, I'd say," Zach chuckled, throwing his arm across Marshall's shoulders.

"I don't know about that one, man," Cody smiled, wrapping his arms around you.

You rolled your eyes and grinned, "You guys sounded great up there, by the way."

"Thanks," he smiled slightly, "I just hope we do well during the show." You simply sighed, knowing that nothing you could say would be able to convince him to stop stressing.

~

A couple hours later, the show had finally started and with every passing second, you could tell Cody was getting more and more nervous.

"Cody," you whispered, leaning forward since you were standing behind him, "You're gonna have a panic attack."

"I'm not gonna have a panic attack," he said quietly, not turning to look at you.

"What happened the last time you were worrying this much?" you asked, wrapping your arms around his neck from behind again.

He paused before answering, "I had a panic attack..."

"Exactly," you nodded, "You're going to do amazing, okay? Just please stop worrying. For me."

He took in a few deep breaths and let them out slowly. You kissed his cheek, keeping your arms around him until it was time for the band to go on. As their introduction was ending, Cody looked at you. You smiled reassuringly and kissed him.

"I love you," you told him. He looked at you for a moment before kissing you again, but didn't respond and walked out on stage with the rest of the band. The crowd was going crazy as they walked out and you could tell Cody had loosened up a little. Maxx started playing and you heard Marshall walk up to you again.

"Would you care to dance, my lady?" he asked in a horrible British accent, making you laugh.

"Why, of course, kind sir," you copied just as terribly, curtsying and taking his hand, resting your other arm across his shoulder.

As you were dancing – which basically just consisted of jumping around – you could hear the tone of Cody's voice change. He was clearly getting a lot more into it upon seeing you and Marshall dancing like idiots as well as people in the crowd. When the song was over, the crowd erupted into screams again as the guys ran off stage.

"You guys were amazing!" you squeaked breathlessly, hugging Cody tightly.

"Thank you," he laughed, "Hey, how come you don't ever dance with me like that?"

"What can I say, man?" Marshall shrugged, "I'm a great dance partner. We could be on  _Dancing with the Stars_."

"You might want to find a new partner then," you giggled, "I'm beat."

"But you're the best dance partner I've ever had," he pouted.

"I'm sure Zach would love to dance with you, Marshall."

"I'm in," Zach said.

"Thank you, dear," Marshall sighed dramatically.

"Anything for you, babe," he chuckled, shaking his head.

~

All Time Low began making their way onstage to present the last award of the night;  _Song of the Year_. You took in a sudden breath and squeezed Cody's hand, making him chuckle and look at you.

"You're not nervous, are you?" he teased.

You cleared your throat, "Why would I be nervous? I'm not nominated." He laughed again, shaking his head and turning his attention back to the band on stage.

"We're very excited to be presenting the award for  _Song of the Year_  tonight," Alex went on, "But we're super bummed because we won't be the most recent winners anymore." He chuckled, "Anyway, the winner of  _Song of the Year_  is..." The rest of the band leaned toward the microphone and they excitedly shouted in unison, " _Why Worry_ ; Set It Off!"

You let out a short scream, nearly knocking Cody down as you jumped on him, giving him a hug. You felt him laugh as he wrapped his arms around you, only letting go because they had to go on stage.

" _Wow_ ," Cody breathed into the microphone after taking the award from Alex and giving him a hug, "Honestly, we didn't really think we would win, so I don't think any of us have anything prepared."

"I'd like to thank Marshall for being my date tonight!" Zach interrupted, looking back and pointing at him, causing everyone to laugh.

"I'd like to thank donuts!" Maxx added, "And my girlfriend and my cat for always being there for me!"

"Thank you to my parents for having me," Austin shrugged, "That was pretty cool of them."

Dan shook his head and chuckled, "Thanks to Brandon Paddock, Tommy English, and Matt Appleton, our producers, and everyone at Equal Vision, and thanks to our families and friends for being so supportive of us over the years, and now that I'm going, I know I'm probably forgetting people, so I'm sorry."

"First and foremost, I'd really like to thank All Time Low-" Cody gestured behind him with a smile. "-because without them letting me sing with them forever ago, I don't think I'd be here on this stage right now." He looked over at you and smiled again, "I'd also like to thank my beautiful girlfriend for constantly putting up with all of our shit and keeping me sane and just for being one of the best things in my life." You couldn't help but let a couple tears fall as he turned to the crowd again, "And also, a  _huge_  thank you to the fans because without you guys, we definitely wouldn't be doing this, so thank you all for making our dreams come true and getting us to where we are now."

"Yeah, man!" Zach shouted over Cody's shoulder, "You guys are fucking awesome!" The crowd cheered and the guys said one last thank you before walking off stage with All Time Low, every last feeling of nervousness completely gone.

~

_Song mentioned: "Why Worry" by Set It Off_


	75. All of the Stars (Hot Chelle Rae)

**Ryan**

_It's just another night and I'm staring at the moon_   
_I saw a shooting star and thought of you_   
_I sang a lullaby by the waterside and knew_   
_If you were here, I'd sing to you_

Ryan sat outside on the roof of the hotel, staring up at the sky and taking in the beauty of the city. He loved visiting other countries and he would never be the last to admit he was jealous of the people who lived there. Amsterdam had always been his favorite place to come to and he was excited to hear that the city was a stop on their second world tour.

He wished more than anything that you could be there with him though. He knew how much you loved to travel and be able to go on tour with the band. You would always talk about going on one of their world tours with them one day and how fun you thought it would be. And you would be with them right now if it weren't for school, but you were in the last semester of your senior year in college and you had finals, so you couldn't make the month long trip.

Ryan quickly got bored of being on the rooftop, so he made his way down to the street. The canal wasn't far from where they were staying, so he decided to head there. He smiled when he reached the water upon seeing that the only open bench just happened to be the same bench from  _The Fault in Our Stars_. It was your favorite book and although he was sad that you weren't there to see it yourself, the thought of how excited you would have been if you were made him happy.

"You know," Ryan heard from behind him, "I've always wanted to recreate that moment when Gus and Hazel are sitting on this bench."

_Wait... He knew that voice..._

He quickly jumped up and spun around, now looking at the girl he left at home nearly a month before.

"Surprise," you giggled as he nearly tripped over the bench to get to you.

"I thought you had finals this week," he breathed as you both wrapped your arms around each other tightly.

"Yeah," you shrugged, "I might have lied about that. Finals were last week. You didn't  _really_  think you could come to Amsterdam without me, did you?"

Ryan smiled at you, kissing you quickly before taking your hand and sitting on the bench. You rested your legs on his left thigh and your arms across his shoulders. You talked about tour for a while – although it ended up being how something in every city the band stopped in reminded him of you – before going back to his hotel room. Before either of you could ask what the other wanted to do now, there was a knock at the door.

"Greetings!" Ian smiled as he walked in, camera hanging around his neck.

"Hi, Ian," you smiled, giving him a hug.

"Hi," he chuckled, "It's good seeing you again although I'm not surprised. I would be crazy to think you would ever miss the opportunity to see sites from your favorite book."

You looked back at Ryan, "He gets me."

Ryan shook his head and chuckled, "What brings you here, Ian?"

"Well-" Ian started, turning on his camera. "-as you know, I was walking around taking photos of the city and I noticed you guys sitting across the canal on the bench that was in  _The Fault in Our Stars_  and..." he trailed off as he searched through his photos for a few seconds, "I thought you'd like this one I took a few minutes ago."

"Ian!" you squeaked, throwing your hand over your mouth as you looked at the near perfect recreation of your favorite still from the movie.

"This is beautiful, Ian," Ryan grinned.

"Thank you!" he said, "I'm really proud of it, actually. If it's okay with you guys, I'd like to put this on my Tumblr and website and such too."

"Please do! I'm due for a new lock screen anyway," you giggled, kissing his cheek.

~

**Nash**

_You're on the other side_   
_As the skyline splits in two_   
_Miles away from seeing you_   
_But I can see the stars from America_   
_I wonder, do you see them too?_

Nash walked mindlessly around the city, trying to find a place to eat or get coffee. He wasn't in the mood for anything in particular, really; He just wanted to get out of the stuffy hotel. It was nearing 6am and he had just got off the phone with you. He made sure to call you every night he was away from home to tell you goodnight, although it was never the same as actually being with you.

He missed the smile you would give him when he kissed your forehead after climbing into bed, the feeling of your grip on him loosening as you fell asleep, the random things you would mumble against his skin in your sleep that would make him laugh quietly. But that was what came with being in a band. Even though it was hard leaving loved ones for weeks or months at a time, the fans – and the anticipation of going back home – made it all worth it.

Nash let out a small sigh of relief when he finally found a cafe that was open. Once he got his drink, he went back outside and sat at an empty table. He was scrolling through his Twitter mentions when he heard someone walk over to where he was sitting and stop in front of him.

"Is this seat taken?" the girl asked.

His heart skipped a beat as he looked up to see you smiling at him. He immediately stood up without saying a word and wrapped his arms around your waist, hugging you as tightly as he could without hurting you.

He felt you laugh, "So is that a no or..."

"It's open," he couldn't help but chuckle as you let go of each other, "What are you doing here?"

"The guys called me a couple days ago and said you've been a little off since you left and asked if there was any way I could make it to one of the tour dates," you gave him a half-smile, "So I checked the schedule and got on the first available flight I could find and here I am."

"I've missed you," he said, kissing you before you sat down.

"I've missed you too," you said quietly, "But I wish that didn't have any affect on your performing."

"I know," he looked down at the coffee cup in his hands, "I'm sorry."

"I'm not saying it's your fault, Nash," you told him, immediately feeling guilty for your poor choice of wording, "I'm just-"

"No, I know," he nodded understandingly, "I know you didn't mean it like that. I wish it didn't either. I feel like I'm always letting everyone down because of it. I should be used to it after this many years and being away from family and friends for so long, but it feels different with you – like it hurts more, you know? It makes me feel weird because leaving my family never hurt like that, but leaving you tears me apart. And I think it's because I know that they'll be there when I come home and it worries me that you won't be because you deserve to be with someone who can drop everything he's doing when you need him at 3 in the morning. You deserve someone who's able to hold you in his arms when you wake up from a bad dream and feel safe knowing he's not going to let anything happen to you. You deserve someone who's home 24/7, 365 days a year, but I can't-" You cut him off, reaching across the table and grabbing his face, pulling it to your own and pressing your lips to his.

"I am  _always_  going to be there when you come home," you assured him, "I love you and if I wanted someone else, I would have left after your first show away from home. I can't promise you it's ever going to hurt any less, but I can promise you that no matter how far away this job takes you, I will always be the first person running to you in the airport when you come home."

~

**Jamie**

_I can hear your heart on the radio beat_   
_They're playing "Chasing Cars" and I thought of us_   
_Back to the time you were lying next to me_   
_I looked across and fell in love_

Jamie laid in bed, staring at the ceiling, the only sounds coming from the radio on the nightstand next to him. It was 7:30am and the sun was just starting to rise. He knew he should probably get up and start getting ready for the busy day of interviews ahead of him, but he just didn't want to. He could hear Ryan start to shuffle around in the room next to his, but that didn't make getting up any easier.

 _Chasing Cars_  by Snow Patrol was playing softly on the radio and all Jamie could think about was the first time he realized he was in love. The two of you had been dating for about 7 months before you slept over at his house for the first time. Neither of you had ever really been in a serious relationship until you met each other and Jamie fully expected the experience to be awkward to say the least. But as you were laying in his bed, he began hearing soft snores coming from beside him.

Jamie knew from very early on in the relationship that it was going to be more than a crush that lasted for four months until one of them decided that it just wasn't going to work out. And when he looked over at you, it solidified it – because when he looked at you and thought about how beautiful you looked and how cute your snores were, he knew at that moment that he was in love.

"Room service!" someone knocked on the door, startling Jamie and bringing him out of his thoughts.

He had heard enough Dutch accents throughout his time of being in a band to know that the person on the other side of the door was not from Amsterdam. He slowly got up and went to the door. When he opened it, he was met by someone he didn't expect to see for another two weeks. It seemed like he couldn't do anything but stare, which made you frown.

"Was the accent really that bad?" you asked.

"It was terrible," he said, letting out a quiet laugh as he pulled you into the room. He closed the door behind you, not wasting another moment before wrapping you up in a tight hug. "What are you doing here?"

"I was in the neighborhood," he could hear your smirk, "Thought I'd drop by and say hello."

"What are you  _really_  doing here?" he laughed.

"I don't know if you've noticed," you stated, moving back to look at him as you raised your eyebrows, "But your tweets are  _really_ intense when you miss someone." He smiled sheepishly, wrapping his arms around you again and pressing his face into your neck.

"I love you," he mumbled against your skin.

You let out a short laugh, "I love you too."

"How long are you staying?"

"Until the end of tour."

" _Really_?" he asked, eyes widening as he looked at you again.

"Really," you nodded, giggling, "You need me too much."

~

_Song used: "All of the Stars" by Ed Sheeran_

 


	76. Long Way Home (Ashton Irwin)

**Warning: Panic attack**

~

You walked around for a while before finding a quiet spot around the other side of the venue and sat down against the brick wall. You sighed, finally able to find a quiet place to recollect yourself. It wasn't that you didn't want to go to the concert; It was that none of your friends liked the band so you knew you would have to go alone.

You had been preparing yourself since the moment you bought your ticket last month, but once you got to the venue, you were overwhelmed with how many people were actually there. Your town wasn't the smallest, but it certainly wasn't a town that bands usually came to either – let alone bands as popular as 5 Seconds of Summer.

When you sat down, you dug through your bag, quickly pulling out your iPod. You scrolled down through your music a bit before you got to Ashton's demo of  _Long Way Home_  that you came across on Tumblr one day. You tapped the screen and it started playing softly in your ears. His voice always helped you calm down when you were stressed and this time was no different.

You sighed in relief and leaned your head against the wall behind you. You closed your eyes and the next thing you knew, you were moving. You opened your eyes and saw you were being carried down a hallway, but before you could freak out, the person carrying you realized you had woken up and you immediately knew who it was.

"Sorry," Michael said, "Didn't mean to wake you."

He stopped walking and put you back down on the ground, giving you your bag and putting his arm on your shoulders to lead you to where he was taking you in the first place. You didn't even have to ask Michael why he had been carrying you – not that you were able to speak anyway.

"I saw you walking around earlier while I was helping take Ash's drums out of the trailer and you looked pretty nervous. I know a panic attack when I see one, so I ran in to put everything I was carrying on the stage, but when I came back out, you were gone," he explained, "I told everyone to keep an eye out for you, but no one had seen you by the time we were done unloading everything. Then a few minutes later, Luke ran inside and said he saw someone that looked like the description I gave them go around to the back of the building, so I went out the back door and saw you were asleep. I was going to wake you up, but I could tell that was probably the most quiet time you've had today. I didn't want you to have to sleep outside and since there's a couch in our dressing room, I thought I'd let you sleep there. But since you're awake now, I guess that doesn't really matter, does it?" he chuckled.

"S-So where are we going now?" you stuttered quietly.

"Oh, we're still going to the dressing room," he smiled, "I'm not just gonna leave you out there alone. Unless you have a friend you're waiting on?" He looked at you questioningly and you quickly shook your head, making him laugh, "Then dressing room it is!" Once Michael opened the door and led you into the room, you were met with the stares of two other members of the band.

"You must be the girl Mikey was worried about!" Calum exclaimed, "Are you okay?"

"Slightly more nervous than before actually," you answered honestly, your voice shaking, "But about what you're referring to, I'm fine now, thank you."

Luke chuckled, "We're glad to hear that. I'm Luke, by the way, but I'm guessing you already knew that since you're here and all. Or maybe you were dragged here. I don't know."

You laughed, finally starting to feel comfortable, "I'm Y/N. And yes, I am well-aware that I am here for a 5 Seconds of Summer concert; I have the empty wallet to prove it." The guys laughed loudly and once they calmed down, you randomly asked, "So where's Ashton?"

"Probably making a Keek or something," Michael laughed lightly, shaking his head.

"Now that you mention it," Luke commented, "I haven't seen him since he finished setting up his drums on the stage."

"Shouldn't someone go check on him?"

"Well, we still have some stuff to take care of before the show," Calum said, "Do you think you can go find him and make sure he's okay?"

Your eyes widened, "M- _Me_?"

"Yeah!" Michael was quick to agree, "We'll make sure to let the crew know you're okay to be back here. We won't be more that 10 minutes."

"Uh... O-Okay," you nodded slowly and they took off. You sighed quietly, wondering why they would tell a random fan to go check on their drummer.

You opened the dressing room door and went out into the hallway, starting your search for Ashton. You looked in every room along the hall without any luck. You made your way to the main part of the venue, carefully opening the door and revealing the stage where you saw the messy light brown hair and bright red bandana of the boy you'd spent the last 5 minutes looking for.

"Ashton," you said quietly when you were about 10 feet away from where he was sitting behind some speakers near his drums. He jumped a bit as he hadn't heard you walk in and turned quickly to look up at you.

"How did you get in here?" he asked, not realizing how harsh he sounded.

"Michael let me in," you mumbled.

"Oh!" he said as if you were a friend he hadn't seen in 10 years and finally recognized you, "You're the girl he told us to look out for earlier?" You nodded and he went on, "Where are they?"

"They told me to come look for you because they didn't know where you were but they had stuff to do so they sent me," you answered, the volume of your voice still low.

"Are you okay?" he asked, referring to why Michael had wanted him to look for you.

You nodded again, slowly inching your way closer to where he was sitting, "Are  _you_  okay?"

"I'm fine," he told you quietly, moving over slightly so there was room for you to sit beside him. You sat down, careful to make sure you didn't knock anything over or sit on anything.

"Ashton, I know I'm just a fan and I really shouldn't even be in here," you said, looking at him intently, "But it's okay to tell me if something's wrong. It's not like I have anyone to tell secrets to." He looked at you with a questioning look and you already knew what he was wondering. "Y/N," you told him and he nodded.

"I guess I'm just nervous," he confessed.

"About the show tonight?"

"I don't know," he sighed, "I've played plenty of shows before and not felt nervous, but there's just something about today in general that makes me feel like my life isn't gonna be the same after." He sighed again, putting his face in his hands, "It sounds so stupid when I say it out loud."

"I know what you mean," you said, picking at the already chipping nail polish on your nails, "That's why Michael was looking for me. I basically had a panic attack when I saw how many people were already in line."

"Why would you stay then?" he asked, looking back up at you, "I mean, why put yourself through that kind of thing?"

"How often do you really get to see your favorite band live?" you shrugged, "But I realized very early on that if I let my anxiety take control, I'll never be able to live normally. I don't want to be stuck in my house for the rest of my life just because I get nervous around people. I'm not a psychologist and I can't tell you why you feel nervous, but I can tell you that you won't feel nervous forever." He looked at you for a moment.

"Thank you," he finally said, "It's nice talking to fans when there aren't others around trying to get my attention."

You let out a small laugh, "You're welcome. Speaking of fans, are you feeling better? I heard things at the airport last night got pretty intense."

He laughed loudly, " _Intense_ isn't exactly the word I would use, but I'm fine. I know they were just excited."

"So..." you trailed off after a couple minutes of silence, "Would it be too much to ask for a picture?"

He groaned jokingly, "I knew there was something more to this. Did you even care if I was okay?"

"I always care about how you're feeling, Ash," you giggled quietly, pulling your iPod out of your bag. You unlocked it and your music was still open, showing the photo of Ashton you had put with his demo. "Well, that's not embarrassing at all," you laughed, shaking your head and pushing the home button.

"My  _Long Way Home_  demo, huh?" Ashton smirked, "I didn't think anyone would ever find that."

"We find everything, Ashton," you teased, "You should know this by now." You opened the camera and quickly got a photo of the two of you before you turned off your iPod and put it back into your bag.

"So why my demo?" Ashton asked as the two of you began walking back to the dressing room to see if the other guys had returned, "Like, why not the actual song?"

"Your voice calms me down," you answered as if it was the most casual thing in the world, "When I feel an attack coming, I turn on one of your demos and it's like it was never going to happen."

A smile began pulling at the corners of his mouth and he nudged your arm slightly. You looked over at him and rolled your eyes, laughing as you pushed him back. Without warning, he jumped on your back, surprised that you managed to keep steady.

"You're a lot stronger than you look," he chuckled as he opened the dressing room door for you.

"You're a lot lighter than you look," you replied, turning your head slightly and sticking your tongue out at him.

He gasped dramatically, "Rude."

You carried him into the room where Michael, Luke, and Calum now were once again. They gave you the same confused look as you kicked the door closed behind you.

"Found him!" you announced proudly, the drummer still on your back.

"Well, there's something you don't see every day," Luke laughed, returning to fixing his hair.

"You're stronger than you look," Calum commented almost exactly as Ashton had a few moments ago.

"Your boyfriend is a lucky dude," Michael chuckled under his breath.

"Don't have one, actually," you told him.

"Girlfriend?" he asked slowly.

You laughed, shaking your head, "No."

"Wait," Ashton said, quickly sliding off of your back so he could look at you, "Seriously?"

"Seriously," you nodded.

"Why?" He seemed genuinely shocked.

"I guess boys are too intimidated by my muscles," you shrugged. "Anyway, I better be heading back out before any rumors start," you said half-jokingly. "Oh, hey!" you squeaked, looking at Luke, Calum, and Michael, "Do you think I could get a picture with you guys before I go?"

"Sure!" Michael smiled. You took pictures with them and as you were putting your iPod away, Ashton spoke up.

"What about me?"

"We already got one!" you laughed. He stuck out his bottom lip and you shook your head, handing him the iPod, "Fine, but you have to let me kiss your cheek." He eagerly nodded his head. You put your arm on his shoulder to support yourself as you leaned toward him and kissed his cheek. When you heard the shutter sound, you pulled away. Ashton gave you your iPod back and you smiled at all of them.

"Thanks for everything, guys. Have a good show tonight!" you called behind you, trotting out of the room. Right before you closed the door behind you, you could have sworn you heard Ashton whisper, " _Wow_."

You went back to the door Michael brought you in from and carefully looked outside, making sure no one was around. When you saw no on was in sight, you stepped outside. You walked back up the side of the building toward where the line was and look a deep breath, reminding yourself of what you had told Ashton. You luckily didn't have to worry much about anyone realizing you were gone since you didn't come with anyone and everyone that did was too wrapped up in their own conversations to notice you. You went to the back of the line and began patiently waiting to be let into the show.

About half an hour later, you were already in your seat and the concert was about to start. You kept thinking about Ashton and how you hoped that everything would go well tonight despite the nervous feeling he'd had all day.

~

An hour into the show, everything was going perfectly. Michael had just grabbed his acoustic guitar and you knew  _Amnesia_  and  _Long Way Home_  were coming up next. After  _Amnesia_ , Luke was talking to the crowd – introducing  _Long Way Home_  and whatnot – when Ashton interrupted just as Michael was beginning to play.

"I just wanna say something real quick," he said into his microphone. Michael stopped playing, allowing Ashton to say what he needed to. "I've gotta confess something," he continued when the screaming died down, "Before the show, I was a bit nervous and not really feeling like myself, but I met a fan and she really helped me get through it. She told me that when she feels like she's about to have a panic attack, she listens to my demo of this song and it helps her feel better. I don't know where she's at in the crowd right now, but I want to dedicate this to her." As Luke and Calum turned to say something to Ashton, you smiled slightly, hoping no one would notice and put it together that he was talking about you.

Luke came back to his microphone and motioned for Michael to start playing, smiling, "This is  _Long Way Home_."

When it came to the end of the song, Ashton stood up and sang the last three lines as he scanned the crowd. Right before the last line, he finally found who he was looking for:  _You_. His eyes locked onto yours as he sang the last line and you felt like your heart was going to stop right in the middle of the venue.

As they were preparing for the next song, you saw that Ashton was still looking at you. When he realized you noticed, he mouthed, " _Find me after the show._ " You mouthed an " _okay_ " and went back to listening to what Luke was saying to the crowd.

~

After the show was over and nearly every person had left, you cautiously walked up to the security guard and opened your mouth, but before you could say anything, he said, "Y/N?" You nodded and he opened the door for you, letting you go backstage.

You thanked him quietly and began your search for Ashton for the second time that day. You didn't have to look for too long, however, because as you were approaching the band's dressing room, the door opened and Ashton came walking out. You immediately ran the short distance to him, surprising him as you crashed into him, wrapping your arms around his neck.

"Thank you," you mumbled into his shirt. He smiled and put his own arms around your waist, hugging you tightly.

"Do you want to come sit down?" he asked as you let go of each other, "You've probably been standing up all day and I'm sure your feet have got to hurt by now." You pouted slightly and nodded, making him laugh. He grabbed your hand and took you into the dressing room. The other boys were still changing out of their sweaty clothes when you and Ashton walked in.

Their faces lit up as they exclaimed, "Y/N!"

"We meet again," you giggled, although you were surprised that they remembered your name.

"Are you feeling alright?" Michael asked, "I saw there were a lot of people around you."

"I'm fine," you smiled, "I didn't even notice once the show started, to be honest."

"So you liked it?" Luke grinned.

"I loved it!" you squeaked, "Much better actually seeing you live than watching concert videos."

~

An hour later, you looked at your phone to check the time. You groaned quietly, not realizing how late it actually was until now.

"I should be getting home," you sighed, really not wanting the day to end, "My mom's probably getting worried about me."

"Is someone coming to pick you up?" Calum asked you.

"No, I walked."

"How far away do you live?"

"I don't know, about 20 minutes or so, I guess. I've never really timed it."

"And you walked all the way here?!" Michael exclaimed, eyes wide. You smiled shyly, shrugging in response. "We can take you home if you want. I'm sure our bus driver won't mind."

You smiled slightly, "Thanks, Michael, but I live on a dead end street. There's no way the bus would be able to leave again without hitting anything."

"Well, at least let me walk with you," Ashton said with a questioning tone, "To make sure you get there safely." You looked at him and he looked as if he genuinely seemed to care about whether you got home safe or not.

"Okay," you agreed. He stood up and held his hand out to you. You took it and he pulled you up off the couch while Luke, Calum, and Michael stood up as well.

"Thanks again for today," you said, giving them hugs.

"It was no problem," Michael smiled, "We hope to see you again soon." He glanced at Ashton and when you looked over at the drummer yourself, he nervously cleared his throat.

"Shall we?" he asked quickly, sticking his elbow out toward you.

"We shall," you giggled, linking your arm through his.

On the way to your house, he would say something that made you laugh every now and then, but for the most part, it was a quiet walk. When your house was in sight, you sighed again, knowing today was probably the only time you would ever get to spend time with the band again – if you ever met them again at all.

"Talk about taking the long way home," Ashton muttered under his breath as you stepped onto your front porch, making you laugh as you dug around in your bag for your key.

"Thanks for walking me home, Ash," you said quietly when you finally found it, giving Ashton one more hug and turning to unlock your front door when you heard him take in a deep breath and say your name. You looked back at him and he immediately started rambling.

"I know that we don't really know each other – well, I don't really know you, at least – but I really do want to change that."

You smiled slightly, "I would love to change that too, Ashton." He let out a small sigh of relief and took his phone out of his pocket.

"Here," he said, handing you his phone, "Put your number in."

You took it as you handed him your own, "You too." You gave each other your phones back and Ashton paused before quickly leaning forward and kissing your cheek.

You smiled, "Thanks for everything, Ashton."

"You say thank you a lot," he chuckled.

"I have a lot to be thankful for," you shrugged, "Also, let me know you got back to the bus safely. If you don't call or text me in the next 30 minutes, I'll assume you've been kidnapped and I  _will_ come looking for you."

He laughed loudly, "I'll call you, don't worry."

Ashton kissed your cheek again before hugging you and walking away as you hurried to get to your bedroom. Before you could reach the hallway, your mom came out of the kitchen.

"You're home!" she exclaimed, "How was the show?"

"The show was great," you smiled.

"I heard you talking to a boy outside," you saw her grin slightly, "Did you meet him there?"

"I guess you could say that."

Suddenly, your 5-year-old sister came running out of her bedroom, screaming, " _Ashton Irwin kissed you_?!"

"You're supposed to be in bed," you chuckled quietly.

"Isn't that the boy in the band you saw that you always talk about?" your mom asked.

"Yes, Mom," you sighed, already having told her the boys' names so many times before.

"And he kissed you?"

"It was just on the cheek!"

" _Two times_!" your sister squealed.

"Well," you said quickly, "I'm expecting a call soon, so I'll be in my room. Night!" You kissed your mom's cheek and your sister's head before rushing to your room, careful not to slam the door behind you as you excitedly replayed the day in your head while waiting for Ashton to call.

 


	77. Apology Accepted (Michael Clifford)

"Mikey, _please_?" you gave your boyfriend a pleading expression, "It's just for a couple hours."

"Y/N," he sighed for what was probably the tenth time that day, "I know this is important to you, but I can't go, okay?"

"You  _can_  go, Michael," you rolled your eyes, "You just _refuse_ to."

"I wouldn't have to if your dad _liked me_ ," he mumbled, plopping down on the couch.

"Michael," you repeated softly, sitting next to him and wiggling your arm behind his back so you could hug his waist, "He just hasn't gotten used to me moving out yet."

"We've lived together for almost _two years_ , Y/N," he said, putting his arms around you as well, "I'm telling you – he doesn't like  _me_."

"Will you please just give it a _try_?" you begged, "If anything happens, I  _swear_ we can leave. I haven't seen them since last Christmas, Michael.  _Please_?" Your voice cracked and he looked down at you, sighing again.

"Alright," he caved, "I'll go. But you _better_ mean what you said about leaving if something happens."

You smiled, reaching up and kissing him, "I love you."

"I love you too," he grinned slightly, kissing your forehead.

~

A couple days later, you and Michael got into the car and began the drive to your parents' house. They lived a little over an hour and a half away and with job schedules and whatnot, it was nearly impossible for you to see them as often as you'd like.

Today was their 25th wedding anniversary and you and your siblings wanted to throw them a small party to celebrate. Michael had just pulled into your parents' driveway and looked at you after he parked.

"Everything's going to be fine, Michael," you assured him, "I promise." You got out of the car and took his hand, walking to the front door. You knocked before opening it, calling out as you walked in, "Mom! Dad! We're here!"

"Y/N!" your mother exclaimed as you and Michael entered the kitchen.

"Happy anniversary!" you squeaked, giving them hugs before going back to Michael.

"Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Y/L/N. It's nice to see you again," Michael smiled politely. Your mom gave him a hug while your father simply grumbled in response. Michael's expression dropped a bit as he backed up and stood behind you.

" _Dad_ ," you said firmly, trying as hard as you could not to sound too harsh.

"Hello, Michael," he said quietly, not bothering to look at him. You sighed and looked at your mom.

"Where are Josh and Katie?" you asked, wondering why your brother and sister weren't with them.

"Outside with the kids," she answered, "Why?"

"I just need to talk to them." Michael made a sound and you turned your head to look at him. "You'll be fine for a few minutes, won't you?" His eyes widened, but he nodded slowly. "I'll be right back," you told him, quickly kissing his cheek before walking to the back door. "Dad," you said, causing your father to look over at you, "Be nice." He mumbled quietly as you closed the door behind you.

**Michael's POV**

Michael cleared his throat quietly, shifting uncomfortably on his feet and playing with the bracelets on his wrist.

"How have you been, Michael?" your mom smiled, breaking the silence.

"I've been alright," he replied, "Thank you."

"Would you like something to drink?"

"Oh," he shook his head, "No, thank you, Mrs. Y/L/N."

"Dear," she laughed quietly, "I have told you over and over you're allowed to call me Y/M/N."

"Sorry, Mrs- Uh, Y/M/N."

"What are you intentions with my daughter exactly?" your dad spoke to Michael directly, finally looking at him.

"U-Uh, I-" Michael stuttered, startled by the sudden question, "M-My intentions, sir?"

"Yes," he nodded, "Your intentions. As in do you plan on marrying her one day or are you going to break her heart like all the others?"

" _Y/D/N,_ " your mom warned in a tone she rarely ever used.

"No, I want to know," he said, never taking his eyes off of your nearly terrified boyfriend.

"Sir," Michael said, "I love your daughter in every possible way you can ever love someone. I could never do what those other guys did to her."

"I've been told that too many times," he stated, laughing bitterly, "And I'll be honest, when she told me you were in a band, I wasn't too happy with that either. I'm assuming you're never home with her then? Is she always alone?"

"I-I knew that when I asked her to be my girlfriend that I was asking so much of her, but she-she's promised me she's okay with it."

"Is she though?" Your mom interrupted again, saying your dad's name, but he kept going. "She's a very good liar, you know. Are you  _really_  sure she's handling it as well as she says she is?"

Michael froze, suddenly overcome with feeling like you weren't as okay as you say you are when he leaves. In the back of his mind, he knew you were, but something about your father's tone made him doubt everything you'd ever told him.

He took a sharp breath in and his voice broke as he whispered, "Excuse me," nearly running out of the house as your mom called after him.

**Your POV**

You and your 4-year-old niece were sitting on the swings in the backyard when the back door suddenly opened and you heard your mom shout Michael's name as he came running out of the house.

"I'll be right back, Ash," you told your niece as you quickly got up and rushed to your boyfriend.

You met him in the middle of the yard where he crashed into you, almost knocking you down as he wrapped his arms around your waist tightly and buried his face in your neck. You paused for a moment, unsure of what was going on until you felt your skin getting wet.

"Michael," you said, wrapping your own arms around his neck and running your fingers through his hair gently, "What happened?"

"What did I do wrong?!" he exclaimed. His voice was muffled but you could still tell he was using every ounce of strength not to break down. "Why doesn't he like me?!"

You didn't know what to say. You didn't know why your dad didn't like him or why your dad wouldn't even give him a  _chance_. You felt beyond guilty for putting Michael through this, especially when he practically told you this would happen.

You saw your mom and dad still in the kitchen talking – well, it looked like she was more  _yelling_  at him than anything – and your dad looked out at you and Michael. You quickly turned your attention back to your boyfriend, not really in the mood to look at your father.

"I'm sorry, Mikey," you said quietly, hugging him tighter, "Do you want to go home?"

He barely nodded, sniffling as he lifted his head up and wiped his face with his sleeve. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the car keys, handing them to you. You grabbed his chin and pulled his face to yours, kissing him softly.

"I'm sorry," you repeated, nearly on the verge of tears yourself, "Let me just tell everyone bye and we can leave." Michael nodded before you walked over to your brother and sister.

"Michael and I are gonna leave, okay?" you told them, hugging them.

"Dad?" your sister asked.

"Always," you sighed.

"It was good seeing you again," your brother said, "Come visit as soon as you can?"

"Of course," you smiled, giving them another hug before you went over to the swing set where your niece was still waiting for you.

"Are you leaving?" she asked, looking up at you. The sadness in her voice nearly broke your heart.

"I'm sorry, Ash," you said, picking her up and hugging her.

"But you just got here!" she whined loudly into your shoulder. You looked at Michael out of the corner of your eye and noticed he started biting his inner cheek, knowing he must have felt like it was his fault that she was so sad.

"You wanna say bye to Michael too?" you asked. She nodded and you put her back down. She ran the short distance to him and wrapped her arms around his leg. "Ashley," you chuckled, "Not so tight. You're gonna hurt him."

"But maybe if I don't move, you guys can't leave," she mumbled into his jeans. Michael smiled sadly, reaching down and tickling her sides so she let go. He picked her up and held her on his hip.

"We'll come back and see you real soon, okay?" he told her.

"Promise?" she asked, holding out her pinky.

He laughed lightly, linking his pinky with hers, "Promise." She hugged him again and he put her back on the ground. You grabbed his hand and sighed as you led him back inside the house.

"Hey, we're gonna head home," you told your parents while Michael kept his eyes glued to the kitchen floor.

"But you haven't even been here that long!" your mom said sadly although she understood why you would want to leave. You were almost out of the room when your dad said your name.

"Y/N-" your dad started before you cut him off, letting go of Michael's hand and spinning around.

"No, Dad!" you exclaimed, unable to take it anymore, "I am done putting Michael through this! I can't keep begging him to come here with me when all you do is make it obvious that you don't like him! I know that you're only hard on him because I'm the youngest, but this is ridiculous!"

Michael pulled on your arm lightly as if he was telling you to calm down and just let it go, but you couldn't. You'd been holding it in for so long and now that it was coming out, you couldn't stop.

"He has been absolutely nothing but respectful to you and you keep treating him like he's the worst person you've ever met! You can't make me pick between loving you and loving him. I love you, Dad, and I always will, but I need you to let me love Michael too."

Michael's grasp on your arm released as your dad walked over to you and hugged you as tightly as he could without hurting you. You hesitated, but when he said what you'd been wanting to hear for over three years, you let out a sigh of relief.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly as you hugged him back.

"I'm not the one you should be apologizing to," you whispered as he let go of you, looking at him. He glanced at Michael before looking at you again. You raised your eyebrows and he sighed in defeat, now giving his attention to a very nervous Michael.

"Sir, I-" Michael started before he was cut off by your dad.

"The way I've been treating you for the past three years was wrong, Michael, and if I could take it all back, I would," your father shook his head, "I was out of line and I want you to know that I knew from the moment I met you for the first time that you were perfect for Y/N. I guess I just didn't want to accept it. The way she looks at you is the same way I looked at her when she was born and I didn't know if I could love anything more. I know that a simple apology isn't going to fix it, but I am sorry."

Your eyes started to get watery as you leaned on your mom's shoulder. She smiled and put her arm around you and Michael was visibly becoming a lot more comfortable.

"Apology accepted, sir," Michael smiled, not really knowing what else to say.

"Kid," your dad said, unable to keep the smile off his face as well, "Call me Y/D/N."

~

_inspiration: http://ohyeahlashton.tumblr.com/post/96140669806/preference-15-a-family-member-doesnt-like-him_


	78. Stupid Little Things (5 Seconds of Summer)

**Luke**

You woke up before the sound of your alarm to someone rustling around in the kitchen. You rubbed your eyes and looked over at the spot on the bed next to you where your boyfriend usually slept. Noticing he wasn't there, your eyes widened and you jumped up.

" _Lucas_!" you screamed, running into the kitchen, " _Put it down_!" He jumped, staring at you in shock, obviously thinking he had been so quiet you wouldn't have been able to hear him. You narrowed your eyes at him.

"But I-"

"Put it  _down_ ," you growled.

"Babe... It's just a cookie."

"Remember yesterday when I asked you if you wanted me to buy you one?" He nodded slowly. "And what did you say?"

"No..."

"No," you repeated, nodding, "And the last time  _I_  checked, that didn't mean ' _maybe if I eat it before she wakes up, she won't be as mad when she finds out later_ '."

"But-"

"Now I'm gonna give you two options. One: You can put the cookie back and I'll pretend this never happened, or two: You can eat the cookie but know that I will not be held responsible for anything I may do to you from now until the day you die." He looked at the cookie for a moment then back up at you, making a small whimpering sound as if to tell you he was going with the second option. "I hope it's worth it, Hemmings," you smiled sweetly, turning back around and heading back to your bedroom to get ready for work.

~

When you returned home a few hours later, you went to throw your keys onto the kitchen counter as you always did, but something caught your eye. Sitting on the granite where your keys usually go was the cookie you had bought the previous day in it's original package, but it was now on top of a larger box of cookies with a sticky note stuck to it.

_I love you_   
_-Luke_

You couldn't help but laugh, running back to your room to get changed. When you were finished getting dressed, you picked up the box of cookies and headed back to your car, driving to Calum's house as you knew Luke had band practice today.

Once you arrived, you greeted Calum's mom and she told you they were in the garage. You trotted to the garage door in the kitchen – toward the sounds of Ashton messing around with his drums – and opened it.

"Hi, boys," you smiled, closing the door behind you, "I would say it's time for a break, but it's obvious you're already in the middle of one."

"Y/N!" Calum, Michael, and Ashton cheered in unison hurrying to be the first to give you a hug while Luke just smiled shyly, remaining in his spot.

"Careful!" you exclaimed just before they got to you, "Don't make me drop these."

"Are those Luke's make-up cookies?" Michael smirked after hugging you.

"I think you already know the answer to that," you giggled, putting the box down on the table by the door, allowing them to get their own cookies while you made your way over to Luke.

"Do you forgive me?" he asked, putting his guitar on its stand a couple feet away. You laughed and nodded, wrapping your arms around his neck and kissing him.

"I forgive you," you said quietly, "And I love you too."

"You weren't serious about what you told him, were you, Y/N?" Ashton asked as he practically shoved his cookie into his mouth.

"I guess we'll never know," you shrugged, smiling at Luke and kissing his cheek.

~

**Michael**

"Michael! You always get to pick what we watch!" you whined, reaching for the TV remote.

"I do not!" he retorted, stretching his arm away from you so you couldn't reach it.

" _Michael_!" you repeated, climbing on top of him. He responded by throwing the remote to the other side of the room. You looked at him for a moment before jumping up, only to be pulled back down again.

"Nope," Michael said, holding you in his lap as you struggled to get away, "Now no one gets to pick what we watch."

" _Bullshit_! You left the TV on  _Family Guy_!" you squeaked as he picked you up and sat you back down in his spot, making his way to where he threw the remote. Seizing the opportunity, you quickly got up and jumped on Michael, causing him to fall down. "Not happening!" you shouted, keeping him pinned down as best as you could while you inched your way toward the remote.

"I am  _not_ watching some stupid soap opera again!" he replied, grabbing your waist and pulling you back, sitting on your thighs.

"Oh, whatever! You were into it and you know it!" you said, pushing him off of you, giving you the chance to get the remote. You were finally able to catch your breath, looking back at Michael just as he fell back and the back of his head hit the edge of the coffee table. "Holy shit!" you gasped, getting up and tossing the remote on the couch as you ran into the kitchen to get some ice. You wrapped the ice up in a towel, quickly going back to the living room where Michael was still sitting on the floor, holding the back of his head. "Here," you told him, dropping to your knees behind him and grabbing his wrist gently, "Let me see."

Michael let you move his hand away from his head and you carefully pushed his hair out of the way. There wasn't a cut, but it was already starting to bruise pretty bad and you knew it wasn't going to look much better by morning. You let out a sigh and kissed his head.

"I brought you some ice," you said. He put the ice on the back of his head, flinching slightly, as you crawled in front of him and sat facing him.

"What was that for?" he asked.

You tilted your head, "What was what for?"

"You kissed it."

"Oh," you giggled quietly, "I kissed it to make it better. Did it work?"

"I think so, but I think I hit right here too," he said, pointing to his lips. You smiled, leaning forward and kissing him.

"Better?" you asked. He shook his head, putting the ice down and grabbing your cheeks.

"Still hurts," he stated, pulling your face back to his.

~

**Calum**

"Please stay with me?" your boyfriend whined as you were leaving the room.

"I don't want you to get sick too, Cal," you told him, your voice coming out weird because of your stuffy nose.

"Then let me sleep on the couch," he yawned, "You can have the bed."

"No, Cal," you shook your head, "I don't want to wake you up if I need a drink or something. You just got home from tour. You need sleep."

After a few more minutes of protesting, he finally caved and went back to sleep, allowing you to go to the living room. You had been sleeping on your couch since you came down with a cold about a week ago because you had always found it to be more comfortable than your bed when you're sick.

It took a couple hours full of trying to cough and sniffle as quietly as possible so you didn't wake Calum before you finally fell asleep.

~

When you woke up the next morning, the first thing you saw was your nightstand.  _That was weird_. You knew for sure that you never moved back to your bedroom.

You went to get up, but the arm hugging your waist prevented you from moving. You turned your head and saw Calum sleeping soundly.

"Cal," you whispered, patting his arm, "Let me go."

"No," he groaned sleepily, pulling you toward him so your back was pressed against his chest.

"You're gonna get sick."

"I don't care," he said, finally opening his eyes.

"Calum, I have to pee," you laughed quietly, "Can I please get up?"

"Are you going to come back?"

"Yes," you sighed, "I'll come back." He let you go and you rushed to the bathroom.

When you came back, Calum was patiently waiting for you. You climbed back under the blankets and laid on your back next to him. He pulled your hand onto your stomach and held it, playing with your fingers as he kissed your cheek.

"How long have you been sick?" he asked after a couple minutes of silence.

"Since Thursday," you shrugged.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I know you, Calum," you laughed, "You would have done everything you could to end the tour early just to take care of me."

"You say that like it's a  _bad thing_."

"It is when you only had two shows left. It's just a cold; I'm not dying."

"But I like to be home when you're sick. It's the only time you let me do things for you."

"That is not the least bit true," you grinned, shaking your head.

"It is!" he protested, "And speaking of doing things for you, I am going to make you breakfast."

"Cal-"

"No buts," he said, kissing your cheek again and getting up, "Waffles?" You sighed, knowing he was going to be too stubborn now that he wasn't so tired anymore, and nodded. "Chocolate chip?"

"Yes, please," you smiled at him remembering chocolate chip waffles were your favorite.

~

**Ashton**

After an entire morning of doing everything they could to convince you to go to the fair, your friends finally got you to cave. You didn't exactly want to go to the fair, but you didn't have anything to do that day, so why not?

Near the end of the night, you were in line, patiently waiting to get on the Ferris wheel. None of your friends were willing to get on with you, so you just decided to go alone.

"Next," the guy running the ride said, looking at you. You paused when you saw someone else already sitting in the seat.

"Can't I go the next time around?" you asked him quickly.

"Do you want on the ride or not?" he asked as politely as he could.

"Yes, but I-" You stopped talking as he shook his head, motioning for you to go sit down. You sighed, trudging over to the seat and sitting next to the last person you ever wanted to see again.

"Do you think you could stop the ride when we get to the top?" the boy next to you asked.

"Or don't!" you squeaked, shaking your head as quickly as you could without hurting yourself, "Please don't. Don't do that."

The guy sighed, pulling the bar down over you and going back to his spot, starting the ride again. 

As you made your way to the top of the Ferris wheel, you began whispering to yourself, " _Please don't stop. Please don't stop. Please don't stop_." As soon as you reached the top, the ride stopped. " _Damn it_ ," you groaned.

"Beautiful day, isn't it, Y/N?" your ex-boyfriend sighed dramatically, putting his arm on your shoulders.

"It would be better if I weren't stuck at the top of a Ferris wheel with  _you_ ," you muttered under your breath, taking his wrist in your hand and putting his arm back on his lap.

"Oh, come on. Don't be like that."

" _Don't be like that_?" you repeated in shock, now looking over at him, "I have every right to be like that, Ashton!  _You_  broke up with  _me_ , remember?"

"Well, if I didn't, that certainly would have reminded me," he said quietly, looking down at his hands.

"What is  _that_  supposed to mean?" you asked, rolling your eyes.

"I broke up with you, I know," he said, "And my reasoning for it was stupid-"

"And by stupid," you cut him off angrily, "You mean  _non-existent_ , yeah?"

"Not exactly..." he trailed off.

"Really? Because  _I_  never got a reason." He was about to reply when you cut him off again, "And don't you  _dare_  say your reason was that you cheated on me this time because we  _both_  know that's not true."

"Y/N-"

"Was it because I always had school when you were home from tour and we never saw each other?"

"Y/N-"

"Was it because of all those rumors that started that said I found someone else after I had lunch with my brother when he came to visit?"

"Y/N-" he tried again, but his voice broke at seeing there were now tears falling down your cheeks.

"What _was it_ , Ashton?" you asked, your voice breaking as well, "What did I do _wrong_?" Ashton took in a deep breath and let it out slowly as he brought his hands up to your face so he could wipe your tears.

"It wasn't _any_ of that, Y/N," he said quietly, leaving his hands on your cheeks.

"What did I do wrong?" you asked again in a whisper, the tone of your voice understandably breaking Ashton's heart.

"You didn't do _anything_ wrong, okay? I just..." he shook his head, pausing to find the right words, "You didn't deserve to be with someone who was never home or someone who couldn't drop what he was doing when you needed him and you  _definitely_ didn't deserve all of those fans constantly saying what they did about you. You deserve someone who isn't me."

"If anyone doesn't deserve someone, it's _me_ ," you said quietly, "You are the most amazing and talented and sweetest person I've ever met. I know you only did what you did to save me from heartbreak, but you and I both know it just made it  _worse_. I've only ever wanted you and no matter how far away life takes you or what anyone says about me will change that."

"Does this-" Ashton cleared his throat nervously, "Does this mean you'll take me back?"

"I never _left_ , Ashton," you smiled, kissing him as you felt the ride start moving again.


	79. Don't Let Me Go (Marshall Traver)

You began picking at your nail polish – something you always did when you were nervous – as you looked over at your best friend. He hadn't really been himself lately. He was beyond stressed about things he didn't normally stress about and every little thing set him off.

After one such moment, you were sitting on the couch in the living room of his apartment. You hadn't really done anything  _wrong_ , but you did feel bad. He had given all the signs of not really feeling like talking to you, but you kept asking him nonsensical questions and he just snapped.

"Marshall," you said quietly after a few minutes of silence, causing him to look up at you. "I love you."

"I love you too, Y/N," he said plainly, looking back down at his hands.

You sighed and began walking out of the room. As you passed where Marshall was sitting, he grabbed your wrist and stood up, turning you toward him.

"Please don't cry, Y/N, please," he practically begged, wiping your cheek with his thumb, "I love you too, okay? You _know_ I do. I'm sorry I took my anger out on you again. Just please...  _Please_ stop crying."

"You don't  _get it_ , do you?" you choked, not knowing you were crying until he pointed it out, "You don't love me, Marshall – not the way _I_ love _you_." He hesitated for a few seconds.

"Y/N..." he said slowly, "I-"

"Just forget I said anything," you cut him off, realizing what you just told him, and shook your head. You wiggled your wrist out of his grasp and quickly went to the front door.

"Y/N, wait-" He was cut off again, but this time, by the door slamming shut.

~

 _Three weeks_.

It had been three weeks and neither of you made any attempt to contact each other. But it probably didn't help that you were both stubborn when it came to apologizing.

You weren't exactly sure why you felt like you should apologize to him, but you knew you didn't have the guts to make the first move – not after you just blurted out your feelings for him like that and ran away.

Marshall, on the other hand, was a different story. He knew he needed to apologize, he just didn't know how to go about doing it – especially since he now knew that you loved him.

_That was a weird thought._

You loved him... You  _actually_ loved him. It was all that was running through his mind the past three weeks. He always knew he liked you as more than his best friend, but he didn't want to say anything at the risk of losing you.  _He couldn't_. You were the most important person in his life and he knew that if you didn't feel the same way, you could easily leave and he didn't want that to happen. But you  _had_  felt the same.

And he  _hated_  himself for letting you leave.

~

Another week had passed and you were running around your bedroom, frantically getting dressed. You didn't have much motivation to do anything anymore which was why all you ever did was sleep; Your dreams were the only places you could ever get away.

Today was one of those days.

Your mom was working late and needed you to pick your 16-year-old sister up from school and,  _of course_ , you had overslept.

You ran into the kitchen and grabbed your keys off of the counter, quickly driving to the high school. Once you arrived, you waited for a few minutes until the last kid left the building. You called your sister in a confused state of panic, worried something bad had happened to her.

" _Morgan_! Are you okay?!" you exclaimed as soon as she picked up her phone.

"I'm fine..." she trailed off, "What's wrong?"

" _What's wrong_?! I'm sitting at the school and you're not here!"

"Marshall picked me up." You could just see her shrugging.

"Mar-" your voice came out shaky, "Why did  _Marshall_  pick you up?"

"He said he wanted to talk to me..." she said in a questioning tone, "He told me he called you."

You took a moment to compose yourself before asking, "Where are you?"

"His place."

"Stay there," you instructed, "I'll be there in 10 minutes." You hung up and threw your phone onto the passenger seat, speeding off to Marshall's apartment.

After pulling into the parking lot, you wasted no time in getting to the third floor of the building. You didn't even bother knocking. You were already beyond annoyed at him and you didn't have the patience for him to answer his door.

You stormed in and saw your sister sitting at the kitchen counter, Marshall standing across from her with his face in his hands. Their heads shot up and they looked at you.

"Get in the car," you told your sister.

"Y/N-" she started, but you cut her off.

" _Morgan_ ," you said slowly, careful not to yell. She sighed and looked back at Marshall.

"Don't fuck this up," she told him, getting up and leaving the apartment. As soon as the door closed, you couldn't keep your anger bottled up anymore.

"What the  _hell_  is wrong with you?!" you shouted, making his eyes widen, "If you want to pick her up from school, that's fine, but don't  _ever_  do it without telling me again." You turned to leave, but Marshall was quick to get to you and grab your hand, pulling you away from the door. " _Marshall_!" you yelled.

"We need to talk," he said, drastically calmer than you.

"I don't have time to talk," you replied, forcefully pulling your arm away from him as you grabbed the doorknob and opened it, only to have Marshall push the door shut again.

"Then when  _will_  you have time?" he asked, "Because you haven't seemed to have time in the past month to have anything to do with me."

"Don't you dare try to pin this on  _me_ , Marshall," you growled, finally looking at him, "You could have done something too. Now let me go."

"I can't."

"You can't  _what_?" you rolled your eyes.

"I can't let you leave again," he said quietly, his breath getting caught in his throat.

You stared at him for a moment before whispering, "I have to get Morgan home..."

Suddenly, your sister burst through the door and announced, "I have to pee!"

You raised your eyebrows at her, "No, you don't. You were eavesdropping."

"You're right," she nodded, "I'll be in the guest room doing my homework. Please try not to yell anymore." She smiled sweetly and trotted down the hallway. You heard the bedroom door close a couple seconds later.

As you turned back to Marshall, he immediately began talking, already knowing what you were going to ask.

"I know I let you leave the first time," he told you, "And that was the stupidest thing I've ever done, but I-"

"Really?" you tilted you head, " _That_  was the stupidest? Because you've done a lot of stupid shit."

He chuckled quietly, "Yes, and I shouldn't have done it." He paused for a moment and then shook his head, "I don't know if you've changed your mind or whatever, but I haven't. And I just... I need you to know that I've always had feelings for you and no matter how you feel now, I always will. I don't want things to be awkward between us because you're my best friend in the entire world and I don't want to lose you, but if you want to leave this time, I'll let you. I just want you to be happy – whether you're happy with me or not."

You felt a smile begin pulling at the corners of your mouth and you tried to hide it, but it was too late – Marshall had already noticed it. He had a look of hope in his eyes and you just let the smile grow and rolled your eyes.

"I love you, Marshall," you told him.

"I love you, Y/N," he grinned, putting his hands on your cheeks and pulling your face to his.

 


	80. Disconnected (Calum Hood)

"Cal?" you mumbled sleepily, rubbing your eye with the back of your hand as you stood at the end of the hallway. Your boyfriend looked up quickly, a bit startled by hearing your voice. "What are you doing up?" you asked when he didn't say anything.

"You know how I am," he shrugged, "I only seem to get inspired at times like this."

"What are you working on?"

Calum motioned for you to walk over to him as he stood up. You did, and when you were finally in front of him, he wrapped his arms around your waist, resting them on your lower back while you put your own arms around his neck.

"You know how you mentioned that you've always wanted to slow dance at 3am to your favorite song?" Calum asked you.

"You remember that?" you laughed quietly into his shoulder.

"I do," he nodded, "And I know this isn't your favorite song, but I've been working on this for a while now. It's not perfect, but I think it's finally good enough for you to hear it." You smiled, hugging Calum a little tighter. You heard him take a breath as the two of you started swaying slightly.

_Life's a tangled web_   
_Of cell phone calls and hashtag I-don't-knows_   
_And you, you're so caught up_   
_In all the blinking lights and dial tones_

_I admit I'm a bit of a victim in the worldwide system too_   
_But I've found my sweet escape when I'm alone with you_   
_Tune out the static sound of the city that never sleeps_   
_Here in the moment on the dark side of the screen_

_I like the summer rain_   
_I like the sounds you make_   
_We put the world away_   
_We get so disconnected_

_You are my getaway_   
_You are my favorite place_   
_We put the world away_   
_Yeah, we're so disconnected_

_We're so disconnected_

_Hands around my waist_   
_You're counting up the hills across the sheets_   
_And I'm a falling star_   
_A glimmer lighting up these cotton streets_

_I admit I'm a bit of a fool for playing by their rules_   
_But I've found my sweet escape when I'm alone with you_   
_Turn down the static sound of the city that never sleeps_   
_Here in the moment on the dark side of the screen_

_I like the summer rain_   
_I like the sounds you make_   
_We put the world away_   
_We get so disconnected_

_You are my getaway_   
_You are my favorite place_   
_We put the world away_   
_Yeah, we're so disconnected_

_Turn off the radio_   
_Those late night TV shows_   
_Hang up the telephone_   
_And just be here with me_

_Turn off the radio_   
_Those late night TV shows_   
_Hang up the telephone_   
_And just be here with me_

_I like the summer rain_   
_I like the sounds you make_   
_We put the world away_   
_We get so disconnected_

_You are my getaway_   
_You are my favorite place_   
_We put the world away_   
_Yeah, we're so disconnected_

_I like the summer rain_   
_I like the sounds you make_   
_We put the world away_   
_We get so disconnected_

_You are my getaway_   
_You are my favorite place_   
_We put the world away_   
_Yeah, we're so disconnected_

_We're so disconnected_

You moved back so you could wipe your cheeks and look at Calum.

"That was beautiful, Cal," you whispered, kissing him.

"You like it?"

"No, Calum," you giggled, "I'm crying and telling you it's beautiful because I  _hate it_."

"But that's how I feel about  _you_ ," he teased, kissing your nose. You stuck out your bottom lip and he laughed quietly, pressing your lips together. You smiled and he pulled away.

"Will you sing it again?" you asked, laying your head back on his shoulder. Calum turned his head to kiss your cheek before he started singing again.

~

_Song used: "Disconnected" by 5 Seconds of Summer_


	81. Please Believe (Luke Hemmings) *

**Warning: Suicidal thoughts, attempted suicide**

~

"Luke!" you called out, walking into your boyfriend's apartment. You closed the door behind you and began searching for him, unsure of where he was until you heard sniffling coming from down the hall. "Luke...?" you said quietly, entering his bedroom.

Luke was standing in front of the bathroom mirror, his eyes red and puffy. He stared down at his hands and your heart skipped a beat when you realized he was holding a bottle of pills.

" _Luke_!" you squeaked, running over to him as he opened the bottle and knocking it out of his hand, causing the pills to go everywhere.

"What the hell, Y/N!" he shouted, honestly a bit annoyed that you had stopped him from what he was trying to do.

"Why...?" was all you managed to get out as you stared up at him.

When he saw the look on your face, all the anger disappeared and he collapsed against you, wrapping his arms tightly around your waist as he cried into your neck. You hugged him and led him the short distance to the foot of the bed where you had him sit down. You sat in front of him, but he pulled you onto his lap, wanting you as close to him as you could get.

"Luke..." you whispered.

"What are you doing here?" he asked you, obviously trying to avoid the question he knew you were about to ask him, "You're supposed to be in class."

"Ash called before I got there," you answered under your breath, "He said he and the boys had been trying to reach you all morning, but you weren't answering any of their calls. They're worried to death about you and clearly with good reason. What were you  _thinking_ , Luke?"

"I can't do it," he choked, "There's too much pressure and I can't handle it anymore."

"Luke, I know some of the things people say about you and the band isn't good, but you can't just throw it all away because a few negative comments. It's gonna get better, okay? Please believe me," you begged quietly, desperately holding back the sobs trying to escape along with your words.

"That's what they all say," he mumbled, wiping his face, "And they only say it to make you feel better. But it's not true. It  _won't_  get better."

"What about me?" He was surprised by the sudden question.

"What about you?" he asked slowly.

"I was like that once," you told him, climbing off of his lap and moving to sit beside him, "Do you remember when I was in the hospital before we started dating?" He nodded and you continued. "All my other friends decided they didn't want me around anymore, I just found out my ex had been cheating on me for a while – I had no hope left. Everything was falling apart and there was no way I could put any of it back together. I didn't want to live anymore. I knew everyone would be better off without me and I convinced myself that you would be too, so I decided to do them a favor and give them what they wanted."

"You tried to kill yourself?" he asked in shock.

"I did," you nodded, "And after I swallowed the bottle of pills, I realized that I didn't want to die – that I had so much to live for. So I called 911 to get my stomach pumped before it killed me."

"That's why you were in the hospital," he whispered, more to himself than to you, "Not because you had the flu."

"I'm sorry I didn't see the signs, Luke – I really am," you shook your head, "I'm sorry I wasn't there when you needed me the most, but I promise I will be from now on, okay? You helped me and now I'm gonna help you."

"I helped you?" he asked quietly – you'd never told him that _he_ was what got you through it.

"More than you'll _ever_ understand," you answered, "It's going to get better, Luke –  _I swear it will_. Please be around long enough to _see it_."

Luke looked at you for a moment before he carefully pulled you back onto his lap. He wrapped his arms around your waist tightly, burying his face into your neck as you began lightly running your fingers through the hair at the top of his neck.

"I will be," he promised you.

 


	82. Pick Me Up (Ryan Follese)

"Y/N!" you heard your boyfriend shout, immediately knowing he had a bad day just by the way he said your name.

"In here!" you called back, pulling your headphones off and pausing the video you had playing. You sat up as Ryan walked in the bedroom not even five seconds later. "What's wrong?"

Ryan let out a defeated sigh as he climbed onto the bed next to you, not even bothering to take off his shoes or change out of his clothes before. He collapsed on top of the bed with his face buried in the pillow and you smiled sadly, putting your laptop at the foot of the bed.

"Rough day, huh?" you asked, laying down carefully next to him and lightly running your fingers across his upper back.

"' _Rough_ ' is putting it  _nicely_ ," he said, moving his head so you could hear him better.

"How about you change into your pajamas and then you can tell me about it?" you suggested. Ryan lazily slid off of the bed and took off everything but his boxers.

"Done," he stated, making his way back to the bed. You rolled your eyes and laughed before opening your arms.

"Come here," you said.

Ryan crawled back over to you and laid back down, putting his head on your shoulder. You wrapped your arm around him and began tracing the tattoos on the forearm that he had laid across your stomach.

"What happened, Ry?"

"What  _didn't_  happen?" he retorted.

"Ryan."

"The label dropped us," he said in a nearly inaudible whisper.

Your jaw dropped, " _They dropped you_?  _Why_?"

"I wish I knew," his voice broke. It was understandable why he was so upset though and you were sure Nash and Jamie weren't taking it easily either.

"They didn't give you a reason?" He shook his head. "What about the album?"

"They act like they're not even planning on releasing it," he sighed, "And since they own the rights to the songs, we can't release them on our own either."

"Ryan, your fans have been waiting for this album long enough. They deserve to hear those songs and I will leak them  _myself_  if I have to." Ryan let out a soft chuckle before lifting his head, looking at your computer screen.

"What are you watching?" he mumbled into your shirt, wiping his face with the back of his hand.

"Nothing," you replied rather quickly. It wasn't that you didn't want Ryan to know what you were watching, it was just that he might think it's strange you're watching random people play video games.

"I heard you laughing when I got home," he told you, "Come on. I need a pick-me-up." You sighed, knowing he really did need to do something that would hopefully make him feel better.

"Up," you said, patting his arm. He lifted himself up so he was resting on his elbow. You reached for your laptop and when you returned to your spot, Ryan's head was back on your shoulder.

You hit play on the video you'd been watching – the latest _Minecraft_ Let's Play from Achievement Hunter – and hoped Ryan would enjoy it, although you didn't have to wait too long to find out.

A creeper had surprised Gavin, causing him to start shouting random things and make weird noises and Ryan nearly lost it. You laughed as well – at both Gavin's and Ryan's reactions.

When the video was over, Ryan looked up at you, "What was that?"

"Achievement Hunter," you answered, "They're part of a company called Rooster Teeth and they make videos playing a bunch of different games."

"Like what?"

"You name a video game and they've probably played it," you laughed.

"Have they ever played  _FIFA_?"

"I should have known you would say that one," you giggled, shaking your head while you went to the channel page to find the videos, "But they've only played it a couple times."

A few minutes into the video, you heard Ryan start whining quietly.

"They're so  _bad_  at this..." he whimpered to himself, making you laugh.

 


	83. Anxious (Cody Carson) *

**Warnings: Anxiety, panic attack**

~

"Hey, babe," your boyfriend said, poking his head into the living room where you were sitting, "I'm going out with the guys. You wanna come?"

"Where are you going?" you asked, looking up from your book.

"I think we're just gonna go see a movie," he answered, "But we might find something else to do after that."

You thought for a moment before shrugging, "Sure." You closed your book and set it on the coffee table, getting up and going back to the bedroom to get dressed.

"Are you sure they don't mind?" you asked Cody as you came back into the room.

You two have been dating for about 8 months now, but you've never really spent time with the other guys. It wasn't that you didn't  _want_  to spend time with them, it was just that they always wanted to hang out where there were a lot of people and you didn't want to ruin the day should you have a panic attack. But you figured that since they were just going to the movies, you would be alright. The movie theater in your town was never too busy anyway, especially this early in the day.

"They ask about you all the time. They miss seeing you," Cody told you, kissing your forehead and making you smile. He took your hand in his and led you out to the car, driving to the theater. 

When you got there, you noticed there were a lot more cars than usual.

"Cody," you said quietly, "I don't know about this..."

He smiled apologetically, putting his hand on your knee, "If you start to feel uncomfortable, just let me know and we'll leave, okay?" You nodded and took a deep breath, getting out of the car and making your way to the entrance.

"Y/N!" you heard in front of you, watching as Zach jumped up and sprinted over to you and Cody.

"Hi, Zach," you giggled as he hugged you as did the other guys.

"Long time, no see," Austin chuckled.

"Yeah!" Maxx spoke up, "We miss seeing you!"

"Well, now you see me," you smiled sweetly, making them laugh.

"So," Dan started, "What movie do we want to go see?"

"How about that  _Annabelle_  movie?" Zach suggested, "I heard it's really good." You made a face and he shook his head, laughing lightly, "Okay, looks like that one's off the table."

The guys kept throwing out suggestions of all the horror movies playing and you were starting to feel guilty about not wanting to watch any of them, knowing they would more than likely trigger your anxiety.

"What about  _Ouija_?" Austin offered, looking at you. You paused and everyone chuckled. "Or not."

"No," you shook your head, "We can go see it. It's fine."

"Y/N," Cody said carefully.

"Cody, it's fine," you assured him.

"I mean, we don't have to see it if you don't want to, Y/N," Maxx said, "It's really no problem. We don't want you to feel like you have to just to make us happy."

"I'll be fine," you nodded, "I promise." They gave you a questioning look before you all made your way inside the building. You went up to the cashier and started reaching in your bag.

"Don't even think about it," Cody said without looking at you.

"I think it's a little too late for that, don't you?" you smiled sheepishly.

He turned to face you, "I have told you from the moment our first date started that you will not be paying for anything as long as I'm with you." You slowly took your hand back out of your bag and he smiled, kissing your forehead.

"I wish my boyfriend was like that," the cashier sighed as she rang you and Cody up.

"I wish my boyfriend  _wasn't_ ," you laughed lightly, thanking her before walking into the theater. You all went to the back half of the theater and sat down. Cody sat on the end with you in the middle of him and Zach.

"Before this movie starts," Zach stated, looking over at you and Cody, "I just want to make sure that you guys aren't going to be making out the entire time."

"Zach," you said before Cody could respond, "Why would I pay to make out with my boyfriend when I could just do it at home for free?"

"I knew there was a reason I liked you," he nodded approvingly, making you laugh.

~

About an hour or so into the movie, you were handling it pretty well. You had jumped a few times, but nothing was sparking any panic – until now, of course. Nothing particularly bad was even happening, but it was the fact that knowing something bad was  _about_  to happen that was getting to you. You kept taking deep breaths, but it wasn't helping and you were starting to feel like you could barely breathe.

You hit Cody's leg quickly and he looked over at you, his eyes widening when he saw the look on your face. He immediately got up, grabbing your hand and quickly taking you out of the theater. Once you were outside, he spun to face you and put his hands on your cheeks.

"Hey, look at me," he said softly, wiping the tears off of your face. You did and he continued, "Breathe with me, okay?"

He began to take deep breaths in and let them out. You started breathing in sync with him when you heard the theater doors open behind you, knowing the other guys had come looking for the two of you.

After a couple more minutes, you had finally calmed down to the point where you were breathing normally again.

"Are you okay?" Cody asked you.

"I was doing so well," you shook your head, starting to tear up again, "I almost made it." Cody wiped your face as the guys cautiously made their way over to you.

"You had a panic attack," Maxx said with a questioning tone to his voice. You bit your lip and nodded slightly.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Austin asked.

"I thought I could handle it," you replied shakily, turning in Cody's arms to look at him, "I don't want you guys to feel like you can't do things just because I'm there."

"Is that why you never hang out with us?" Zach asked carefully, giving you the bag you had left inside. You simply nodded again, looking down at your shoes.

"Y/N," Dan said, making you look back up at him, "We would gladly just go to your place or have you guys come over to one of ours." Everyone was quick to agree.

"Yeah," Austin grinned, "We like when you're around."

"Plus, we would kind of be a bunch of dicks for not being with you because of panic attacks when we don't do it to Cody," Zach laughed. You felt Cody let out a soft chuckle before he let go of you and moved so he was in front of you.

"Babe," he smiled, "These guys may be a lot of things, but a bunch of dicks is not one of them."

"Please hang out with us more," Maxx pouted, "We miss you." You giggled quietly and nodded.

"Okay," you said, causing everyone to pull you into a group hug.

 

~

_inspiration: http://imagine5sosmembers.tumblr.com/post/101112038936/most-likely-to-date-someone-with-social-anxiety_


	84. Bet On It (Luke Hemmings)

" _Please_?" you begged your dad for what was probably the 20th time since you walked through the entrance of Target.

"If I say yes, will you stop talking the rest of the time we're here?" he sighed.

"Yes!"

" _Fine_ ," he caved, "Go get it."

You let out a quiet squeal and darted in the opposite direction, heading for the entertainment section of the store. Once you reached the CDs, you frowned. The display where the 5 Seconds of Summer albums were supposed to be was now empty.

"Can I help you with anything?" you heard someone say next to you.

"Uh, yeah. Where are the 5 Seconds of-" you cut your sentence short when you looked over and saw who was standing there.

"5 Seconds of," Ashton chuckled, "I don't think I've ever heard of them." You were still speechless and he nodded toward what was in his hands, "But I'm guessing you're looking for one of these." You looked down and saw he was holding a stack of albums before looking at him and noticing what he was wearing.

"Why are you wearing a Target uniform?" you asked. Before he could say anything, you saw the name tag on his shirt. "Does your name tag say _Ashley_?"

"Yeah," he laughed, "We're doing a prank video and asking random people in the store to buy the album." He scrunched up his face, "I don't think I was supposed to tell you that though, so don't tell anyone."

"On one condition," you raised your eyebrows at him.

"What?"

"I want an album," you pointed to his hands.

"Right!" he exclaimed, giving you one, "Sorry."

"So is the rest of your band here too or is it just you, Ashley?"

Ashton let out a fake laugh, "Very funny. Well, I just saw Luke and Calum before I came over here, so they can't be too far away and last I saw Michael, he was walking that way," he said, pointing to the left of where you were standing. You started laughing and Ashton gave you a confused look.

"The beauty department is that way. And I'm willing to bet that if he's still over there, he's looking at hair dye."

"I will buy you every color of this album if he's looking at hair dye," Ashton said seriously, "But if he isn't, you leave with that one and have to buy it yourself." You thought for a moment.

"I will take that bet," you replied, immediately beginning the short walk to where the hair dye was with Ashton following close behind. As soon as you made it to the aisle, you stopped and looked back at Ashton, resting your hand on your hip and smiling, "Looks like you owe me four albums." He came up beside you and looked down the aisle you were standing at.

" _Michael_!" he groaned, "This is  _not_  what we're supposed to be doing!"

"I was just passing through!" Michael exclaimed. You and Ashton both gave Michael a look that told him you knew he was lying and he frowned, "Fine." He walked over to the two of you.

"Hand them over, Irwin," you smirked.

"Why do you owe her four albums exactly?" Michael asked Ashton as he was searching his stack of CDs for each color.

"She asked where you guys were and when I said you came this way, she said you were looking at hair dye," he mumbled, placing a CD in your hands, "And I bet her that if you were, I would buy her each color of the album."

"Thank you, Michael," you giggled as Ashton put the last CD in your hand.

"You're welcome," Michael smiled, causing Ashton to sigh again.

"Oh, come on, Ash," you laughed loudly, "You know him better than I do. Why are you so surprised by this?" He was about to say something when you were interrupted by Calum.

"Hey, dudes," he said as he walked over before noticing you, "And dudette. My bad. What's going on?"

"Ash lost a bet," Michael teased. Calum gave him a look to go on, so you continued for him.

"Ashton bet me that Michael wasn't looking at hair dye," you explained.

"Ashton!" Calum laughed, pushing his best friend's arm.

"Can we just let it go please?" Ashton whined. You finally decided to put Ashton out of his misery and go find your dad.

"As much as I would love to stay here and make fun of Ashton, I should probably go find my dad," you said. "Would you care to join me, Ash?" He started to pout slightly and you rolled your eyes, "I promise I won't talk about it anymore."

As you and the boys – Calum and Michael decided to tag along as well – were walking around looking for your dad, you heard his voice coming from around the corner as well as a voice that very distinctly belonged to Luke.

"Isn't that you?" your dad asked, pointing to the cover of the album Luke was showing him.

Luke let out a breath, "Uh, no. No, it's not. Definitely not."

"Listen, kid-" your dad started.

"This is gonna be _good_ ," you snickered, causing Ashton, Michael, and Calum to laugh quietly. By now, you had all stopped walking just to listen in.

"-I have a daughter," he went on, "And this band is the subject of every conversation I've had with her since she started listening to them and I know _way more_ than I want to."

" _Dad_!" you nearly shouted, coming out from where you were hiding, " _Please stop talking_!"

Your dad immediately noticed your hands and asked, "Why do you have four CDs? I was under the impression you were only getting  _one_."

"Well, for reasons I am not allowed to discuss in front of Ashton, he agreed to buy them for me," you stated, putting the CDs in the shopping cart.

"And he's..." your dad trailed off.

"That would be me," Ashton smiled, waving his hand slightly.

"So why does he-"

You cut him off, "I'll tell you when we get to the car."

"You okay there, Lucas?" Calum asked randomly – and quite loudly as well. You looked over, suddenly remembering he was there at all, and saw he was staring at you.

"Is there something on my face?" you asked, putting your hand on your cheek.

"Nope," you didn't even have to turn to look at Michael to know he had a smirk on his face.

"I know that look," your dad spoke cautiously, "And that's a look no father wants to see a boy give to their daughter." Your eyes widened slightly and you felt your face start to turn red.

"Uh," Luke finally managed to get out, "I-I wasn't-" He took a step back, but he accidentally stepped on the corner of a shelf and lost his balance. You quickly grabbed his wrist to keep him from falling. That didn't help his embarrassment too much, but you did save him the humiliation of falling flat on his back. He cleared his throat nervously before saying a barely audible, "Thank you."

"You're welcome," you replied, slowly letting go of him.

"Y/N," your dad interrupted your little moment with Luke, "Come on. We've gotta get home." You quickly turned to look at the guys.

"Would you mind if-" you paused, thinking they were probably needed somewhere for the rest of filming.

"Picture?" Calum asked.

"Please?" you smiled shyly.

"Of course!" Michael chuckled.

You gave one look to your dad and he shook his head and laughed lightly, "Give me your phone." 

You pulled it out of your pocket and went to stand with the band. You squeezed in between Luke and Michael and you noticed Luke's grip on you was tighter than Michael's. When Michael let go after the picture was taken, Luke's arm lingered on your waist for just a little bit longer.

"Thank you, guys," you smiled after getting your phone back from your dad. He decided to go find a checkout and let you talk to the guys for as long as possible.

A couple minutes later, your dad called for you.

"It was really nice meeting you," you told them.

"Hey," Michael said, "What's your Twitter? We'll follow you!" You opened your mouth, but he stopped you before you could get any words out, "And don't bother protesting. We want to." The others nodded quickly in agreement and you gave in, telling them your Twitter handle.

You gave Michael, Calum, and Luke hugs before you and Ashton went to the checkout your dad was in. Ashton grabbed the four CDs off of the conveyor belt just before they reached the cashier despite your dad's objections.

"Ash," you said, shaking your head, "You really don't have to buy those for me."

"No," he replied, taking out his wallet, "We made a bet and I lost."

You sighed, "If you absolutely have to, just buy  _one_  of them. I really don't need four of the same album."

"Alright," he said, "Pick one." You picked the color you wanted and he paid for it.

"Thanks, Ashton," you smiled.

"You're welcome," he returned the gesture, giving you the CD. You gave him a hug and left the store with your dad, telling him why Ashton bought you the album on the drive home.

~

When you got home, you helped put everything away before grabbing the CD and going to your bedroom. You slipped your shoes off and got comfortable on your bed, putting your laptop on your lap and turning it on. You opened Twitter, seeing six new notifications – six notifications you thought you'd _never_ see.

_@Calum5SOS followed you_   
_@Luke5SOS followed you_   
_@Michael5SOS followed you_   
_@Ashton5SOS followed you_   
_@5SOS followed you_   
_@Luke5SOS sent a message_

Your heart skipped a beat at the last one and you quickly opened your DMs, clicking on Luke's.

_Sorry about being so weird today. I should have told you before you left, but I think you're really pretty. That's why I was so nervous._

You stared at the message for a couple minutes, rereading it over and over, fighting the urge to giggle like an idiot before finally messaging him back.

**_It's okay! I'm just really glad I was able to meet you guys. And thank you :)_ **

He was very quick to respond and the two of you continued to message each other for the remainder of the day.

 


	85. More to Love (Jamie Follese)

You stared at yourself in the mirror, tears falling down your face. You were never the type to let rude tweets about your appearance get to you, but clearly, today was the exception. Today was the day people decided to talk about your weight – and that was something you'd always been self-conscious about. You had been doing so well in loving with the way you looked and you had your boyfriend to thank for helping with that.

Jamie never made you feel like you were different than any other girl. He made you feel beautiful. And the fact that you were in front of the mirror, hating the way you looked, made you feel guilty as hell. Jamie hated it when you picked at something you didn't like about yourself – whether it was the way you looked or that you thought your laugh was annoying or something as silly as how much you didn't like your handwriting – because to him, you were perfect.

Sure, you had flaws – everyone does – but when he looked at you, he didn't see them. He saw someone he was excited to wake up to every morning and fall asleep with every night. He saw the girl he wanted to spend the rest of his life with and if he had to spend the rest of his time on this earth convincing you that you were the most beautiful girl he's ever seen, he would do it.

"Babe!" you heard Jamie call out as the door to your apartment opened.

You thought about shouting back to let him know where you were, but you knew your voice wasn't strong enough. And honestly, you wanted to wait as long as possible before seeing the disappointment on his face when he saw you sitting in front of the mirror crying.

A few minutes passed before you heard Jamie make his way down the hall. You quickly wiped your face, but didn't make the move to get up since you knew it was too late; By the time you would have begun to get off the floor, Jamie would already be opening the door.

The bedroom door opened and Jamie jumped slightly, startled by seeing you.

"There you are," he said, closing the door behind him. He took another step closer and immediately knew something was wrong. "What happened?" he asked, quickly sitting on the floor beside you. You shrugged, not daring to look at him. He paused for a moment before saying, "You were reading tweets again, weren't you?" You nodded slightly, feeling the tears starting to well up again. "Babe," he sighed, the disappointment in his voice far more heartbreaking than the look on his face, "I've told you not to read those." He moved to sit in between you and your mirror, carefully taking your face in his hand and wiping your cheeks with his thumbs. You sniffled and just continued to let the tears fall.

"What did I ever do to them?" you cried, your voice breaking, "Why do they hate me so much?"

"You know what I think?" he said, pulling you onto his lap, "I think it's because they're not in love with you the way I am. I think that if they spent even less than 5 minutes with you, they would realize that you're not all those terrible things they say you are. I think that they're doing everything they can to convince you you're not good enough for me when the truth is, I'm not good enough for you. I think they're mad because I want you over any of them and I don't think they realize that saying what they do isn't going to change the way I feel about you. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me and I don't know what I would do without you."

You looked at him with a blank expression for a moment before resting your forehead on his shoulder and crying softly, "I love you, Jamie."

"I love you too," he muttered into your shirt, "And nothing will ever change that."


	86. All Jumped Out (Michael Clifford)

You let out a deep sigh and stood back, admiring your hard work. You were at the local park, enjoying your next couple days off of school, and decided to channel your inner 5-year-old and make a pile of leaves to jump in. It was quite difficult as you hadn't planned on doing this and didn't have a rake, but you managed to get a pretty good pile of leaves by pushing them with your shoes and picking them up in your arms. You quickly made your way back to the pile to check for any stray sticks – you didn't want to go home with an injury, of course – before walking back to where you were.

You were about to run toward the pile when you heard loud footsteps coming from behind you. You looked back just in time to watch a boy run past you and jump into your pile of leaves. He quickly jumped back to his feet and began running away when you let out a small shriek, making him stop in his tracks. He looked back at you just in time to watch you throw yourself onto your back and lie on the cold ground. He watched you with the brief thought that he could just leave, knowing he would never see you again, but he knew he'd feel too guilty later on. You heard footsteps come toward you once again, but this time, they were much slower and quieter.

"Um, hey," the boy – who had bright red hair that could be seen from a mile away – said, looking down at you as he approached you, "Are you alright?"

" _Am I alright_?" you repeated sarcastically, "Well, I  _would_  tell you, but it's clear to me that you have complete disregard for anyone but yourself, so if you could just leave me to wallow in self-pity alone, that would be great."

"Listen, I didn't mean to-"

You cut him off, "I don't know why you're about to lie to me. I watched you make the decision to ruin a random stranger's day."

"Don't you think you're overreacting just a little? I mean, it's just a pile of leaves."

"It's  _just a pile of leaves_  that I spent 45 minutes perfecting!" you squeaked. "I have been beyond stressed out, studying night and day for two weeks for my exams and when I finally decide to give myself a break,  _this_  is how life repays me. Why do I ever leave my apartment? I just don't know," you sighed to yourself, putting your arms over your face. "Can you please leave me to wallow in self-pity now?" you asked, your voice muffled by your jacket sleeves.

"I just-"

You cut him off again, nearly shouting, " _Please_?!"

He mumbled a few things to himself that you couldn't make out – not that you really cared what he was saying. Your day was ruined and although the reasoning  _was_  a bit childish, you were still incredibly mad at him.

~

A few minutes later, you heard rustling of leaves near you again and you groaned, "I thought I told you to leave me alone?"

"You did," he said, "But I couldn't leave with that on my conscience, so I wanted to make it up to you." He grabbed your hand, pulling you up off the ground as you squeaked, startled by the sudden physical contact.

" _Honestly_!" you exclaimed, jerking your hand out of his grasp, "What part of  _leave me alone_  is so hard to understand?!"

"The ' _leave_ ' part," he gave you a cheesy grin. "Come on, just look," he gestured to his left and when you looked over, your eyes widened. He had spent almost 10 minutes making another pile of leaves – far bigger than the one it took you nearly an hour to accomplish. "Go jump in it," he said, nudging you with his elbow lightly.

"I'm all jumped out," you told him, "I have to get home and study anyway." You began walking away when he grabbed your arm and stopped you.

"Listen, Miss I-don't-know-your-name," he stated firmly, "If you do not jump in that pile, I will pick you up and _throw you_ into it." You stared at him for a moment.

"I'm going home," you said, turning around and walking away.

Before you could take even three steps, you felt arms wrap around your waist, spinning you back around. The boy picked you up and threw you over his shoulder, making his way over to the pile of leaves.

" _What are you doing_?!" you shouted, hitting his lower back.

"I told you," he said, unfazed by your punches, "Either you were going to jump or I was going to throw you." He put you back on your feet for a brief moment, but before you had the chance to run, he picked you up again bridal style.

You screamed as he tossed you into the pile – and luckily, there were enough leaves there so landing on your stomach didn't hurt at all. You propped yourself up on your forearms as the boy turned and fell onto his back right beside you. You brushed leaves and strands of hair from your face before looking at him with an almost shocked expression. He simply looked at you and smiled.

"I'm Michael, by the way," he finally introduced himself.

You bit your lip as you felt a smile begin pulling at the corners of your mouth, "Y/N."


	87. Shut Up and Fix Me (Marshall Traver)

You groaned, rudely awakened by your ringtone playing loudly on your nightstand. You reached over, feeling around for a moment before your hand finally landed on your phone.

" _What_?" you snapped after pushing the answer button. You already knew who it was. You let your best friend choose her own ringtone, which you were currently regretting. She had always embraced her habit of being obnoxiously loud and she wanted to remind you of that every time she called.

"I am feeling the love, babe," Allison giggled as you yawned, opening your eyes slightly to look at the time.

"Al, it's 2:30 in the morning. Why aren't you home yet?"

"My car broke down." You could just  _see_  her frown.

"How tragic," you replied sarcastically.

" _Y/N_!" she whined, "Will you please come get us?" She was referring to her boyfriend and his friend as they had all gone out to a local band's concert. You wanted to tag along, but knowing you had a huge test on Monday, you chose to stay home and get all the quiet time to study that you could.

"Why couldn't you have just stayed with Cody?" you asked.

"His roommate says I'm too much of a morning person."

"Maybe that's why he and I get along so well."

"Y/N," she rolled her eyes, "Please?"

You groaned again quietly, sitting up and turning on your lamp, "Where are you?"

"Still at the venue. My car never made it out of the parking lot."

"You're inside though, right? It's the middle of December."

"Yes,  _Mom._ The owner said we can stay inside until he has to leave which is in like, 10 minutes, so please hurry."

"I'll get there when I get there," you muttered before hanging up and pulling yourself out of bed to get dressed. The venue was about a 20 minute drive, so you hurried to get there so they wouldn't freeze.

When you finally pulled into the parking lot, Allison and Cody raced for the back, leaving Cody's friend to sit up front with you. He looked a little hesitant about it, but you couldn't tell if he was shaking because he was cold or because he was nervous after hearing your conversation with Allison or what.

Once they were all in the car, you looked at Cody through your rear view mirror, "You staying with us tonight?"

"If you don't mind," he smiled sheepishly, "I really don't want to wake my roommate up."

"Believe me, neither would I," you said under your breath, making him laugh.

"Oh, Y/N, this is Marshall," Cody introduced you to his friend, "Marshall, this is Y/N." You looked over at him and noticed he was looking down at his hands, playing with his fingers.

"Not much of a talker, are you?" you asked him, making him look up at you, "I swear I don't bite. I'm basically harmless."

"He's only that way around girls he thinks are pretty," Allison joked, poking Marshall's arm.

"But you have a boyfriend already," you stuck your tongue out at her before turning your attention back to Marshall. "Are you crashing at our place too?" When he didn't answer, you finally started pulling back out of the parking lot, "Well, if you're not, tell me when to turn."

The entire ride home was quiet, the only thing that could be heard was light snoring from the backseat. You pulled into your driveway and cut the engine.

"Looks like you're stuck with us for the night," you told Marshall, reaching back and slapping Allison and Cody's knees. "Wake up, assholes. We're home." They slowly got out of the car and you all made your way to the front door. Cody and Allison immediately went to Allison's bedroom, leaving you alone with Marshall. "You can take my room if you want," you said, throwing your car keys on the kitchen counter, "Our rooms are separated by the bathroom so even if they weren't too tired to do anything, you wouldn't be able to hear them."

"It's fine," he said quietly, "I'll sleep on the couch."

"He speaks!" you cheered in a hushed tone, "Cody's got some extra clothes in Allie's room at the end of the hall to the right in the bottom left drawer of her dresser if you want to sneak in and get them, but I will see you in the morning." You told him goodnight as you went to your room, changing back into your pajamas and laying down, instantly falling back to sleep.

~

When you woke up a few hours later, the sun had barely just risen. You yawned, sitting up and getting out of bed, trudging to the kitchen to make your daily morning cup of coffee. You weren't exactly being the quietest you could have been, not that you ever had to be. Allison was a heavy sleeper and it usually took a lot to wake her up. While you were pouring the coffee into your cup, you weren't paying attention and accidentally poured some onto your hand.

" _Shit_!" you nearly shouted, quickly putting the pot back on the coffee maker and running to get your hand under the faucet in the sink. You kept mumbling profanities to yourself when someone came into the kitchen.

"Are you okay?" Marshall asked, rubbing his eyes and yawning.

"Sorry," you winced again as you were still in pain, "I forgot you and Cody were here. I didn't mean to wake you up."

"It's alright. Do you need any help?"

"Uh, yeah," you nodded, "Can you go get the first aid kit from the bathroom? It's just on the counter."

Marshall disappeared into the hallway, quickly returning with the first aid kit. You turned the water off as he came over to you, but he refused to let you take it. Instead, he took the antibiotic ointment and held out his hand. You gave him a look, but put your hand out anyway. He carefully took your hand and started gently rubbing the ointment on the burn. You let out a quiet squeak, still in a bit of pain.

"Does this happen a lot?" Marshall asked, wrapping some gauze around your hand.

"Does what happen a lot?" you asked, unsure of what he was talking about.

"This," he shrugged, "Getting hurt. I don't know really anyone who keeps their first aid kit right on top of the bathroom counter."

"You know, Marshall," you said, tilting your head, "We just met. I don't think it's appropriate to be judging either me or my clumsiness yet. Just shut up and fix me." A smile began pulling at the corners of his mouth.

"Sorry," he laughed lightly, finishing up by taping the gauze in place, "Done."

"Thank you," you muttered and Marshall went to go put the first aid kit back in the bathroom. "Do you want anything for breakfast?" you asked him when he came back. He followed you into the living room so you two could sit down.

"What are you making?"

"Whatever you want," you replied, looking up at him, "Cody and Allie can get something when they wake up."

"I don't want you to do too much if it's just us."

"Hey, if it keeps me from having to study, I'm all for it," you sighed, "Do you need to be home before a certain time?"

"Probably," he shrugged.

"Well, I can just take you home now then," you said, getting up, "We can get something on the way."

"And if I don't want to go home yet?" he said, grabbing your waist and pulling you back down.

You raised your eyebrows at him, "Then I would assume that means you want to see how great of a cook I am."

"That too," he grinned.

"A lot more confident in ourselves than we were last night, I see," you shuddered slightly, realizing his arms were still around your waist.

He laughed quietly, "I guess so."

"Then what was wrong last night?"

"Allison told me you were pretty, but she didn't tell me you were  _this_  pretty," he said seriously, "She says she thinks we'd go well together." You took in a quick breath before clearing your throat nervously.

"Do you think we'd go well together?" you asked him, already knowing his answer.

He smiled, "Do  _you_?"

"That depends on what you think of my cooking."

"Well then, I guess you better go make breakfast," he said, letting go of you and pulling you up, taking you to the kitchen.

You did your best to avoid another accident as you made breakfast, but your shaky hands were pretty hard to work with. Marshall had gone to wake Cody and Allison up and you took that time to pull yourself together.

While you were standing in front of the stove keeping an eye on the pancakes, you were startled by arms wrapping around your waist from behind.

"And for the record," Marshall said in your ear, "I think we'd be perfect for each other."


	88. All the Wrong Reasons (Ashton Irwin)

You sat in silence in your living room, the only sound coming from the kitchen where your mom was doing dishes. Today was a day you would normally spend hanging out with you and your brother's friends, but today, Luke wasn't home. Today, he and the boys were at a wedding. But it wasn't just  _anyone's_  wedding.

It was  _Ashton's_.

Ashton had obviously invited you, but you couldn't go. You couldn't watch him get married to a girl you knew he didn't belong with. Call it jealousy, but it was obvious she didn't love him the way he loved her.

Isn't that always how it goes though? Once you realize you love someone, it's always too late – and you couldn't risk how close you and Ashton were, knowing he would never feel the same about you. He saw you as one of his best friends – as a  _sister_  – and you were  _not_  about to lose that bond you had with him.

So you told Luke to tell Ashton you were sick and couldn't make it to the wedding. He tried to convince you to come – Ashton was still your best friend after all – but you refused to cave. Luke reluctantly left you at home and that's where you still were 5 hours later; Still sitting on the couch, staring blankly out the window.

You let out a sigh and stood up, deciding you needed your mother's advice.

"Mom," you said quietly, walking into the kitchen.

"Yes, sweetie?" your mom asked. She looked up at you when you didn't answer her for a few seconds.

"Am I making a mistake?" you finally asked, "Should I have still gone to the wedding?"

"Y/N," she paused, thinking about how she was going to word what she had to say, "He's still your best friend. Him getting married isn't going to change that."

"I just... I wish it was  _me_ ," you started tearing up as you sat on one of the bar stools at the counter, finally admitting your feelings to someone other than yourself.

"So go stop him from marrying Ellie and tell him that." You sighed, putting your face in your hands.

"He's happy with her, Mom," you mumbled into your palms, "I can't take that away from him."

"Honey," your mom sighed, putting the towel down and coming to stand across from where you were sitting at the counter, "I know you just want what's best for him, but have you ever considered that maybe  _you're_  what's best for him?"

"What do you mean?" you asked quietly, looking up at her.

"I see the way he looks at you, Y/N. It's the same way you look at him. I understand that you feel like he's happier with her, but it's obvious he's not. I can't tell you  _why_  he's marrying her, but I  _can_  tell you that it's very clear he would rather be watching  _you_  walk down the aisle instead of  _her_. He talks about it with your brother all the time."

"Luke  _knew_?" your voice broke.

"You know how he is; He would rather stay out of everyone's business. And while I'm proud of him for not being that kind of person, I really wish he would have done something before today," she shook her head.

"Mom," you said suddenly, "I need to borrow the car." You jumped up and ran to your room to get your jacket. Your mom simply smiled, returning to the sink to finish the dishes.

You had no plans for what you were going to say when you were face-to-face with Ashton; You just knew you had to get to the church before it was too late. The wedding was scheduled to start at 4pm and it was already 4:10. With the 10 minute drive, you knew you would be cutting it close. You drove as fast as you could without getting pulled over or getting into an accident and you were there within 8 minutes.

Groaning at seeing that the parking lot was full, you parked down the street. When you shut the car off, you got out and began running. The church had a simple layout, so it wasn't difficult to find where the ceremony was being held. As you ran toward the sanctuary, you saw through the small windows on the doors that Ashton was leaning in to kiss Ellie and since you never really liked her in the first place, you had no problem interrupting them.

" _Ashton_!" you yelled as you burst through the doors, " _Wait_!"

Everyone's heads shot back to look at you as you came to an abrupt stop halfway down the aisle. You noticed the bride's side of the room staring at you in shock, but when you glanced at the groom's, you saw that everyone was looking at you with an almost relieved expression.

"Y/N?" Ashton said, letting go of Ellie's hands and turning toward you, "What are you doing here? I thought you were sick."

"I can't let you do this, Ash," you said, your voice breaking for the second time that day. You were breathing heavily and your heart was beating so hard, you could feel it in every part of your body. Ellie was giving you the most frightening glare you'd ever seen, but you didn't care.

"Why not?"

"She doesn't love you," you shook your head, "Not for the right reasons."

"Y/N," Ellie growled, "You are ruining my wedding."

" _I'm_  ruining your wedding?!" you exclaimed, becoming more confident even with all eyes still on you, "What about  _you_?! You don't love  _him_! You love his  _money_  and the  _attention_  you get for being with him! You love the things he buys you and the fancy restaurants he takes you to every Friday night! When were you going to tell him, Ellie? When you drain his bank account buying things you know you'll never touch again? When you get sick of waking up and seeing his face every morning? When he decides that he wants to leave the band and start a family with you? Because you know just as well as I do that the second he's out of the spotlight, you're going to leave just as quickly as you came and break his heart and he doesn't deserve to be treated like that!" By the time you were done yelling at Ellie, Ashton was looking at her in shock.

"El..." he said slowly, "Is that true?"

She broke eye contact with you to look back at him and scoffed, "Of course it is. When has she ever lied to you?"

"So the past three years... They.... They meant nothing to you?" The look on his face was undoubtedly breaking your heart and the way Ellie was just laughing at him made you sick. She shrugged, but before she could say anything, Ashton quietly said, "The wedding is off."

"I'm sorry?" she asked, taken by surprise.

"I said the wedding is off," he said a little louder, causing people in the pews to start whispering amongst themselves as he took off his ring and put it in her hand. "And I never want to see you again." You looked over at the alter and saw Luke, Calum, and Michael doing everything they could not to start cheering in front of everyone. Ellie let out a loud shriek and stomped away with her mother and father following close behind her.

Without another word, Ashton rushed over to you, wrapping his arms around your waist and pressing his face into your neck. You put your arms around his neck and let out a sigh of relief knowing Ellie wouldn't be treating him like shit anymore. He lifted you off of your feet, making you squeak lightly, and took you out of the sanctuary away from all the wedding guests.

When he put you back down after he made it outside, he pulled you closer to him and you could hear his quiet sobs.

"Ash," you said gently, running your fingers through his hair, "Please don't cry."

"I'm sorry," he choked, "I'm sorry I never believed what you said about her. I'm sorry..."

"I'm sorry too, Ash," you sighed, "I should have told you how I felt sooner. Maybe you wouldn't have had to go through this if I did."

He lifted his head to look at you, "I love you, Y/N. I should have told you before, but I was scared you wouldn't feel the same and I didn't want to ruin our friendship. And I know it was dumb of me because that's literally what happens in all the movies, but I thought that if I found someone else, I could forget about my feelings for you, but nothing ever worked. You are the one I saw walking down the aisle and the one I see myself waking up next to every day and sleeping with every night. And I don't want to have to keep myself from being able to know what those things are really like anymore."

A smile started pulling at the corners of your mouth and you did absolutely nothing to stop it. Hearing Ashton say he loved you was something you only ever dreamed of and now that it was actually happening, you never wanted him to stop.

"I love you," he repeated, "And I am  _done_  trying to hide it." You let go of his neck and put your hands on his cheeks, pulling his face to yours.

Just before you pressed your lips to his, you whispered, "I love you too, Ash."

~

_inspiration_ _: http://www.wattpad.com/56712495-5sos-preferences-%26-imagines-he%27s-getting-married_


	89. Insecurities (5 Seconds of Summer)

**Luke**

You were never a very tall person and throughout your years in school, nobody seemed to let you forget that. So when you started dating Luke two years ago near the end of your senior year, the jokes seemed to double every day. It was by chance that you met Luke. Of all the girls at his band's show begging for his attention, you never thought he would notice the quiet girl sitting on the curb outside the venue waiting for her ride home. But he did. And he was determined to get to know you.

Skipping ahead to now, you were wandering around outside the same venue where you and Luke met, not really doing much of anything. The boys were currently doing soundcheck and you couldn't stand being cooped up in the hot venue for much longer, so you decided to go outside. There were quite a few fans already in line and they immediately noticed you, calling you over. You were surprised since fans never usually wanted to talk with you, but you made your way to the line anyway. They were excited to see you and you always loved talking with fans – not to mention it gave you excuses to tell embarrassing stories about Luke. They saw you as the older sister they'd always wanted or never had.

You were about to head back inside when you heard someone else call your name. You spun around and saw a girl around your age running up to you.

"Hi!" she said, a little out of breath, "I know you're probably busy, but I just really wanted to meet you."

You smiled, "I'm not busy. What's your name?"

"Jess," she smiled as well, beyond excited that she didn't catch you at a bad time and the two of you talked for a bit about nothing in particular.

"Does the height difference ever bother you?" she asked randomly after a few minutes of mindless conversation.

"What?" you asked, giving her a confused expression.

"You know, like, does it ever bother you that he's way taller than you?"

You paused, unsure of what to say. You heard the venue doors open behind you and turned to see Luke had come looking for you. When he saw the look on your face, he thought fans had been being rude to you.

"What's going on over here?" Luke asked, rushing over to the two of you. He gave Jess an accusing glance and her eyes widened, realizing what it sounded like she was saying.

"Oh my god!" she nearly shouted, frantically shaking her head, "No, no, no! I didn't mean it like that! I meant I think it's cute! I think the way you always have to stand on your toes and he still has to lean down to kiss you is the cutest thing I've ever seen! I don't know why I worded it like that, I'm so sorry!"

"Re-Really?" you stuttered, a bit shocked. While none of the fans had ever really commented on the height difference in a negative way before, no one had ever said anything positive about it either.

"Yeah!" she squeaked, "I've always been a sucker for height. Why else do you think I love this band?"

"Not for the music?" you asked, finally cracking a smile.

"Of course not," she scrunched up her face, "The music is awful. I only buy the albums for their looks."

Luke rolled his eyes and laughed, "As much as I would love to stay and listen to you ladies go on about how good looking I am, I have to get back to soundcheck." He looked at Jess and raised his eyebrows, grinning slightly, "Be careful with your words from now on."

She laughed loudly, "Yes, sir." Luke kissed your forehead before going back inside and you and Jess talked for a few more minutes.

When you looked over and saw the line was starting to get longer and longer, you figured it was time to go inside as well.

"I guess I should be heading back inside too," you told her.

"It was really nice meeting you," she smiled, "I don't know if it's weird to look up to a girlfriend more than the band, but thanks for being my exception." You felt a smile pull at the corners of your mouth – no one had ever told you they looked up to you before.

"What's your Twitter?" you asked, pulling out your phone and opening the app, "I wanna follow you."

"Oh, you really don't have to," she shook her head, "I would probably be the only person on your timeline ever."

You laughed, "Have you  _seen_  how much I tweet? I'm sure I can handle it." She gave in and told you her Twitter and you followed her. You both laughed when you heard her phone go off over the notification.

Jess unlocked her phone and sighed dramatically, "That is a notification I've only ever dreamed of seeing."

"Do the guys follow you already? I'd love to make that dream come true."

"No," she sighed, laughing, "I've been trying since like, they first became a band, but once they became this famous, I kinda just gave up."

"Well, how about we go crash soundcheck and make them?" you smirked.

"Am I allowed to be in there yet?" she asked slowly.

"I guess we'll find out," you said, grabbing her hand and pulling her inside.

"Hey, Y/N!" one of the venue's security guards waved as the door shut behind you. You were at this venue quite a bit since you only lived about 5 minutes away.

"Hi, Mark!" you smiled, "This is Jess. She's with me, so don't let anyone kick her out, okay?"

"Okay," he laughed, "I'll make sure everyone else knows. Tell the boys I said hi!"

"Will do!" you called as you made your way to where the stage was.

"So what's the plan?" Jess asked.

"I was thinking we could go in there and loudly talk about how hot they all are," you giggled, "I think that'll for sure get you Mikey and Cal's follows, Ash will follow you because he loves making people happy, and Luke will because he can never say no to this face."

"Let's do it," she laughed, following you to where the band was doing soundcheck.

~

**Michael**

"Why can't I just stay home?" you asked your boyfriend, staring at yourself in the mirror.

"Babe," Michael said, buttoning the last button on his shirt before coming up behind you and wrapping his arms around your waist, "This is the first time we've ever been nominated for an award and I need my favorite person sitting right beside me."

"But you have the boys..." you trailed off.

"I know I do," he said, moving to kiss your cheek, "But that doesn't mean I don't want you there too. Now why don't you just tell me why you  _really_  don't want to go?"

"I look terrible in this dress," you said in a barely audible whisper.

"No, you don't."

"Yes, I do!" you exclaimed, starting to tear up, "You  _have to_  say that because you're my boyfriend, but I know you don't mean it. My thighs are huge, my stomach is showing way too much, and my whole body just looks disgusting in anything other than a big sweater. I don't know why I let myself buy this thing."

Michael looked at your reflection for a moment before letting go of you and leading you to sit on the bed behind you. You looked down and began playing with your fingers as Michael knelt down in front of you.

"Please don't start singing  _Little Things_ to me again," you mumbled.

"Do you know why I wanted you to be my girlfriend?" he asked you, putting his hands on your knees to keep himself balanced.

"Because Ash said he thought we would go well together," you answered.

"Yes, but that was just for one date. If I didn't see something in you that made me think we would last, I wouldn't have asked you on a second one."

"Then why did you want me to be your girlfriend?" you asked, your voice still quiet, looking up at him.

"Because the moment you smiled at me and told me your name, I knew you were the only girl for me. When you were talking about all of your interests with that look of excitement in your eyes, I knew I wanted to be the one to do all those things with you. I know you hate your body and that you don't look like a model, but you don't have to look like them to be beautiful. You're beautiful because the things you say and the things you do make me fall more in love with you every day. You're beautiful when you're sleeping up against me on this bed and you're beautiful when we're mad at each other and I'm sleeping on the couch. You're beautiful on the low-quality Skype calls we have when I'm on tour and you're beautiful when you're running through the crowded airport when I come home. You're beautiful when you're full of energy and dancing around at our shows and you're beautiful when you're stuck in bed because you're sick. You're beautiful when you're laughing and you're beautiful when you're crying. You would be beautiful if you looked like those models in magazines and you would be beautiful if you couldn't even see your feet. I do not and never will tell you you're beautiful because I'm supposed to and you are not beautiful because I tell you that you are. You're beautiful because you're you and that's all you ever need to be."

You felt your lips start trembling as he finished speaking, tears already streaming down your cheeks. He smiled at you and stood back up, pulling you up with him. He wrapped his arms tightly around your waist and you put yours around him as well, burying your face into his neck. You stood there in silence for a few minutes – the only thing being heard was the sound of you and Michael breathing in sync and your occasional sniffling. When you finally released your grips on each other, Michael took your face in his hands and wiped the tears off.

"And I don't tell you I love you because I  _have to_ ," Michael said under his breath, "I tell you because I  _do_."

~

**Calum**

"Y/N," your boyfriend said quietly, pausing the movie the two of you had been watching.

"Hm?" you mumbled, coming out from your thoughts.

"Are you okay?" You paused before nodding, making Calum ask, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," you replied.

"Babe, you've been tracing the same spot on my arm for the past 10 minutes."

"So?"

"You only do that when something is bothering you." He hesitated for a moment, "Did I do something to make you mad?"

"No, Cal," you sighed, "You didn't do anything; I'm just thinking."

"About?"

"Us." You heard Calum's heart start beating a little harder.

"You..." he cleared his throat, "You're not thinking about breaking up, are you?"

" _No_!" you exclaimed suddenly, sitting up quickly, "Oh my god, no."

He let out a sigh of relief and sat up as well, "Then what's wrong?"

"I just..." you trailed off, "I'm just wondering why you  _don't_."

"What do you mean?" he asked, taking your face in his hands and making you look at him. You sighed again, knowing you were too far in for him to just let it go, and focused your gaze on anything other than his.

"I'm not as pretty as the girls that go to your concerts," you mumbled, "Everyone always says you were happier with your last girlfriend and that I ruined everything. They say I don't deserve you and I hate knowing they're right."

"Y/N..." he said slowly and you cut him off.

"I don't deserve you, Cal," you shook your head, "And I never will." Calum took in a deep breath and let it out before pulling you onto his lap.

"Babe, I don't know who's telling you I was happier with my ex, but I know you know I wasn't," he shook his head, "I may have looked happy to them, but that's because they didn't know what happened when there weren't cameras on us. No one else knew she cheated numerous times or knew that I was stupid enough to forgive her after every single one of them. No one else knew how controlling she was or how jealous she got over the stupidest things. I know that people are rough on you because you're with me and if I could get them all to stop, I would do whatever I had to. You don't deserve to feel like you're not good enough for anyone when in reality, no one is good enough for  _you_. You are the most selfless and beautiful girl I've ever met and I will never understand why some people don't see that."

"I love you, Cal," you mumbled into his shoulder, hugging him tightly.

"I love you too, Y/N," he told you, "Please don't let other people convince you otherwise."

~

**Ashton**

"Are you sure they'll like me?" you asked quietly as your boyfriend led you down the sidewalk toward the recording studio.

Today was the day you were meeting Ashton's band mates and you were beyond nervous. The way he talked about them made you feel like that if they didn't like you, he would break up with you in a heartbeat and you didn't want that to happen. You spent a little extra time trying to make yourself look at least halfway decent, even getting frustrated when your hair just didn't want to cooperate. Ashton had convinced you that you looked perfect – not that he needed to convince himself of it first. He thought you looked beautiful no matter what you were wearing and knowing you wanted to make a good first impression on his friends meant that much more.

"They're going to  _love you_ ," he assured, squeezing your hand, "They would be stupid not to." You bit your lip and pushed yourself up against him.

Ashton opened the door for you and you walked into the studio. He took you down the hallway after greeting the receptionist. You began hearing laughter coming from one of the rooms and knew that was where Ashton's friends were.

"Ash," you whined quietly, "I don't wanna do this." Ashton stopped walking and stood in front of you, holding your face in his hands.

"Y/N," he said lowly so they wouldn't know you were there yet, "They are going to love you, I promise. If I didn't think they would, I wouldn't have brought you with me today." You looked at him and nodded slightly. "Ready?"

"Ready," you barely whispered. Ashton kissed your forehead and took your hand again before opening the door.

"Hey, guys," Ashton smiled when he saw his three best friends.

"Hey, Ash," the one with bright red hair smiled back, "Nice of you to  _finally_  join us."

" _Ha, ha, ha_ ," he rolled his eyes. "Guys, this is my girlfriend Y/N. Y/N, this is Michael, Calum, and Luke," he told you, pointing to each of them. You smiled politely from your spot behind Ashton's arm, practically hiding from them.

"It's nice to finally meet you, Y/N. Ashton never shuts up about you," Luke grinned, causing you to finally relax.

" _Luke_!" Ashton exclaimed, his eyes widening.

" _What_?  _You don't_!" he defended himself. You laughed quietly against Ashton's arm. When Ashton noticed you had calmed down, he led you over to the couch so you could sit down.

"Ashton!" Danny, the audio engineer, came into the room, "You're here! We're ready for you to track some vocals."

Ashton looked at you and you smiled, "I'll be fine." He nodded before looking at the guys with what was almost a glare.

"Don't interrogate her," he warned before leaving the room.

"Well," Michael sighed, plopping down next to you on the couch, "There go my plans for the day."

You giggled quietly while Calum sat down on the other side of you and Luke sat on the coffee table facing you. You suddenly began feeling like you were getting red with all of the guys looking at you and Calum finally spoke.

"We weren't  _actually_  going to interrogate you," he said.

"Yeah," Michael added, "I was just joking."

"If you don't interrogate me though, how are you supposed to get to know me?" you asked.

"What don't we already know about you?" Luke laughed, "Ashton seriously talks about you all the time."

"Good things, I hope."

"Is there anything  _bad_  we should know about?" Michael asked, nudging your arm.

"I'm incredibly narcissistic. But other than that, I'm amazing," you said as seriously as you could, making the guys laugh.

~

After about 20 minutes, Ashton came back into the room to find that you weren't there.

"Where's Y/N?" he asked.

"Bathroom," Luke replied, looking up from his phone.

"Well, while she's gone, I'll just come out and ask you guys," Ashton took a deep breath, "What do you think of her? Be honest."

You stopped just before you went into the room when you heard Ashton ask that. Even though you knew the day was going well, you couldn't help but feel like they weren't totally into you and Ashton being together.

"We like her," Calum smiled, "She's really funny once she gets comfortable." You let out a quiet sigh of relief.

"I didn't expect her to sound like that though," Michael commented, making your heart skip a beat.

"What do you mean?" Ashton tilted his head.

"I don't know," he shrugged, "She looks like she has a higher pitched voice, I guess."

You took a deep breath and walked back into the room, doing the best you could to act like you didn't hear anything. The guys looked at you and you suddenly went back into the state of shyness you started the day in.

"Hey, babe," Ashton beamed as you made your way over to him. You smiled slightly and he wrapped his arms around you, kissing the top of your head. "You ready to go home?" The boys only needed to track vocals that day and since Ashton was the only person that hadn't done it yet, you didn't have to stay all day. You nodded and they all looked at you with concern, noticing your change in behavior.

"Are you alright, Y/N?" Luke asked to which you simply nodded again. Almost as if he could read your mind, Michael instantly knew what was wrong.

"You heard what I said, didn't you?" he asked carefully. You bit your lip and barely nodded for a third time. "Y/N," he sighed, the guilt obvious in his voice, "I didn't mean to make it sound like I thought your voice was really deep or annoying or anything. It's just the high-pitched ones that bother me."

"You mean like that voice you do in  _Good Girls_?" you smiled sweetly, making his eyes widen although he was happy you weren't mad at him.

"Wow!" he said loudly, "Narcissistic  _and_  rude. You know what? I take back what I said about liking you. I don't think you and Ashton are right for each other at all."

"But Michael," you pouted, "How will I ever survive without your approval?"

"You won't," he shook his head, "It's just going to eat away at you until you can't take it anymore."

"How can I make it up to you? I'll do  _anything_ ," you mockingly begged.

He looked at Luke and Calum before turning back to you, "Let us join you guys for movie night tonight."

"Sure," you nodded, "But just so you know, we're watching  _The Fault in Our Stars_."

"Whoa," Luke spoke up, "It's a no for me then. I'll be staying home."

"Why?" Ashton laughed.

"I read the book," he replied, "I will never be prepared for that kind of pain again."

Calum nearly fell over laughing, "Are you telling us you  _cried_ while reading a book?"

"Yes!" he shouted, having absolutely no problem with admitting it, "And I will never cry as much as I did during that time again!"

You shook your head and smiled, "Alright, you can come. Movie starts at 7:30. Don't be late because we're not waiting for you." They all nodded in agreement, giving you a hug before you and Ashton left.

~

A few hours later, as the credits were rolling, you could hear quiet sobs coming from the boys laying on the floor beside you.

"Are you guys crying?" you laughed, although you were in tears too.

"Why didn't you tell us what happened?!" Michael whined, burying his face into the pillow beside you.

"That would have ruined the whole movie for you!"

"Yeah, but at least we would have been prepared!" Calum said, wiping his face.

"Well, Luke  _did_ kind of warn you," you teased.

"My stomach  _actually_ hurts from crying so hard," Michael groaned, sniffling. Ashton began chucking, already knowing what you were about to say.

"That's the thing about pain, boys," you said as you put your arm around Michael's shoulders, " _It demands to be felt_."


	90. Niceness Training (Calum Hood)

You took a seat at the table you always sat at in your favorite café. You needed to take a break from cleaning your apartment and what better way to unwind than by reading your favorite book with a cup of hot chocolate?

You had been there for about an hour and were on your third cup of hot chocolate when you heard a familiar laugh as the café's door opened.

"Hi, Y/N!" you heard someone say cheerfully as they sat at the table across from you with a couple other people a few minutes later. You looked up from your book and saw the boy who lived in the apartment across from yours and two of his friends.

"Hi, Michael," you smiled.

You were pretty good friends with him as he was the only one in your apartment building around your age. You'd only met his friends – Ashton and Luke – a few times, but you thought they were really funny and you liked when Michael had them around.

"No band practice today?" you asked, closing your book and putting it back into your bag to give them your full attention.

"There is," he nodded, "We just stopped by for drinks first. Plus Calum's running late again."

You'd met Calum – Michael's other friend and band mate – as well, but you weren't too fond of him. He was never really the type that enjoyed when people other than Michael, Luke, and Ashton were around him and you could never figure out why. When he  _was_  faced with other people, however, he wasn't exactly the  _nicest_  about it. He could be quite rude at times and it was especially bad when he didn't get what he wanted.

You usually tried to just avoid him altogether though. You never liked confrontation and you knew it would just be best to simply avoid the problem. You were occasionally faced with him – mostly walking down the street which ended with you bumping into him because the sidewalk was so congested – and he was anything but polite about it. Usually, if this happened with someone else, the two of you would just apologize to each other and move on with your days, but not with him. With Calum, you would apologize and he would make some kind of snide remark about how you needed to be more careful or watch where you were going and you would roll your eyes and continue walking the opposite direction.

"Shocking," you muttered under your breath, making the guys laugh quietly. You looked over at the door and saw Calum walking into the café. "Well, I better be heading home," you stood up, smiling at them, "It was nice seeing you guys again." They looked behind them and nodded, understanding why you were leaving.

"I'll see you later, Y/N," Michael said, standing up as well and giving you a quick hug along with Luke and Ashton.

You picked your cup of hot chocolate up and began walking out when Calum went out of his way to bump into you. You let out a quiet squeak, sighing in relief when you managed to keep your cup in your hand.

"Leaving so soon, Y/N?" Calum asked coldly, walking over to his friends.

"You don't know how long I've been here, Calum," you said as politely as you could, turning to face him.

He shrugged, "You're here every time I come in. I think it's fairly reasonable for me to assume that you're here all day."

"It's actually not that reasonable," you stated, "Now if you'll excuse me, I have an apartment to clean."

"You don't like me much, do you, Y/N?"

You sighed, "No, Calum, I don't."

"So what's your problem with me then? We barely talk to each other!" he exclaimed, earning a couple glances from people at nearby tables.

"Calum..." Michael said lowly, "Not  _here_..."

"No, I want to know what her problem is!"

You had the brief thought of knowing you shouldn't say anything in front of all these people run through your mind, but you were so sick of the way he always treated you. And as much as you did hate confrontation, there was no holding back anymore.

"You think the whole world owes you some sort of favor when, in reality, we don't owe you  _shit_ ," you said bluntly, making everyone around you gasp quietly.

"Excuse me, but I-" Calum started before you cut him off.

" _No_ ," you growled, "You wanted to know what my problem is and you're gonna wait until I'm done. You think everyone should just drop what they're doing at any given moment just to make sure you're happy and if you don't get your way, you throw a fit like that child in the middle of the aisle at the store because their mother refused to buy them a candy bar. You have this smug attitude about everything and the only reason you don't right now is because someone's  _finally_ had enough of being treated like shit and you're  _genuinely_ shocked by it because  _no one_  has ever  _fought back_  before.  _That_  is my problem." You let out a breath, finally ending your tangent. When he didn't say anything, you gave him a sweet smile, "See you around, Cal." You held your hot chocolate firmly in your hands and left the cafe, leaving Calum in a state of shock. He watched you walk away until you were out of sight before turning to his friends.

"Is that really how I treat people?" he asked them.

Ashton hesitated before sighing, "Yeah..."

"Why didn't you guys tell me?"

"We've  _tried_ ," Luke said, playing with his lip ring, "You just never wanted to hear it."

"Well,  _now_  what am I supposed to do?" Calum groaned quietly.

"You could start by not being a dick to everybody," Michael shrugged, taking a drink of his hot chocolate, earning a glare from his best friend. "What?" he said, raising his eyebrow, "I'm sure everyone in this café would agree with me when I say you kind of have a reputation for being a complete asshole." Calum looked around the room and everyone quickly went back to what they had been doing before you went off on him and he instantly knew Michael was right.

"So what do I do now?" he repeated.

"You could have a thing for a girl who puts up with your shit or you could try to win Y/N over by learning to be nice to people," Ashton suggested.

Calum shook his head, "I don't want anyone but her."

"Niceness training starts now then!" Michael exclaimed, "And I know  _just_  who to go to." He jumped up and left the café with Luke and Ashton following close behind him.

" _Oh, boy..._ " Calum mumbled under his breath before running out to catch up with them.

~

"Why are we  _here_?!" Calum whispered angrily as Michael knocked on your apartment door. He looked behind him at Michael's apartment door and desperately wanted to go hide, but he knew Michael wouldn't give him the key to get inside.

"I told you," Michael stated, "Niceness training."

"You didn't tell me it was going to be with  _her_!"

"First of all, you wouldn't have agreed to it if you knew it was with her," Ashton pointed out. "Secondly, this is like, a genius plan – especially coming from  _Mikey_."

"Yeah," Luke nodded, "Think about it: What better way to prove to her you're getting better than her seeing it firsthand?"

"Y/N is the nicest person I know," Michael said, knocking on your door again, "If anyone can help you learn to be nicer, it's gonna be her."

"Coming!" you shouted from inside your apartment, making Calum's heart skip a beat. You rushed to the door and opened it, your eyes immediately locking on the last person you wanted to see right now. You looked at Michael, "I don't know what you want, but my answer is no." You went to close the door, but Michael was quick to stop it with his foot.

"Just hear us out?" he asked, "I promise it'll be a win/win for  _all_  of us."

"Michael-" You were cut off by him sticking out his bottom lip and sighed, "I hate when you do that."

"You only hate it because it works," he smiled.

You rolled your eyes and opened the door again, moving out of the doorway, "Come in." Michael, Luke, and Ashton walked in and made themselves at home while Calum was a little more reluctant. He moved slowly over to your couch as you asked them, "You guys want something to drink or eat or anything?"

"Do you have Oreos?" Ashton asked hopefully.

You laughed, "I always have Oreos, Ash." You went to the kitchen to get the cookies and your hot chocolate before going back into your living room. You put the Oreos on your coffee table and Ashton grabbed as many as he could hold. "Ashton!" you squeaked, "I just bought those! Slow down!" He slowly put a few back before sinking down in his spot on the couch.

You didn't have a very big couch, so there wasn't really anywhere for you to sit. Luke shoved Calum's arm and gave him a look, motioning to his seat on the couch. Calum simply raised an eyebrow at him, having no idea what Luke was doing. Luke rolled his eyes and stood up.

"Here, Y/N," he said, "Sit down."

"Oh, no," you shook your head, "It's fine. I'm okay with standing."

"Well, you might want to be sitting for what we have to ask you," Michael said as Luke had you sit next to Calum. You heard Calum take in a sharp breath and assumed it was just because of what you said earlier.

"What do you mean?" you asked, holding your cup carefully so it didn't spill.

"We were wondering if you could help Cal learn to be nicer to people," he answered, getting straight to the point.

" _Really_?" you asked in shock, looking beside you. He still hadn't said a word since he came into your apartment, understandably making you a bit skeptical. "Are you sure  _he_  wants to be nicer?" you raised your eyebrows at the boys, "Because I get the feeling you guys are putting him up to it."

"They're not," Calum finally spoke, causing you to quickly look back at him. He was looking at his hands, not speaking very loud, and it was obvious something was making him nervous. "I didn't realize that the way I treat people was as bad as it is and I don't want people to hate me because of it."

"There's a girl, isn't there?" All of them froze and you went on, "I can't imagine you all of a sudden wanting to start being nice if there wasn't a girl that refused to date you because you're such a dick." You thought for a moment. "Fine, I'll help you. On one condition."

"Name it."

"You have to promise me that if this works and she says yes, you won't go back to being a complete asshole," you said, "Because I will find out about it and I will ruin you. Understand?" He quickly nodded and you stuck your hand out to him. He looked at it for a moment before slowly taking it in his own and shaking it. You smiled, "Good. Come back whenever you're ready tomorrow and we'll get started. Now I hate to kick you all out, but I have chores to finish. And also because Ashton is eating all my cookies and I'd like him to stop."

"Sorry," he frowned with a mouthful of Oreo.

You rolled your eyes and laughed as you stood up, "Go eat your own cookies, Ash." The guys stood up as well and followed you to your front door. "Bye, guys," you told them. Michael, Luke, and Ashton all hugged you as they walked out the door. Calum took a bit longer, but when he finally reached you, you smiled at him, "I'll see you tomorrow, Cal." He looked down and you noticed him starting to smile as he trailed behind his friends. You closed the door behind him, feeling that niceness training – as Michael put it – would go a lot easier than you thought.

~

A few weeks later, you were really starting to see an improvement in Calum's behavior. He no longer intimidated everyone into getting out of his way on the sidewalks, he always made sure to go out of his way to do things such as opening doors for people, and he never let any good deed go unappreciated.

He had told you that the girl he had his eye on was at the cafe at the same time every day, so you both decided on the following Friday that that would be when he went to show her how much he had changed. You met him on the sidewalk right outside the cafe door and gave him a little pep talk before deciding to send him in.

"Alright," you announced, putting your hand on his shoulder, "You're ready, Cal. Go in there and get your girl."

"I have to confess something," he said suddenly, seemingly in a rush.

"Okay..." you trailed off, moving your arm back to your side.

"She's not in there."

"Then where is she?" you asked, a bit annoyed that he lied to you. He mumbled something you couldn't understand. "Calum, I can't he-"

"She's standing right in front of me," he said clearly, staring at you. Your eyes widened and he became increasingly nervous upon seeing it but went on anyway. "I've had a thing for you ever since you moved into the place across from Michael and I was just so nervous around you that I couldn't even say anything, so I pretty much just avoided you altogether. The first time I finally said something to you, I-I was having a bad day and I know it was wrong of me to be so rude to you and I don't know why I kept acting like that every time I saw you, I guess I just thought that since it happened once, you would never forgive me, so I kept being a dick and that was stupid of me and I'm sorry." When he finished rambling, you couldn't help but let out a quiet laugh.

"You remember the first thing you said to me?"

He sighed and nodded, "And it haunts me every day."

"I have to confess something too." He gave you a look and you bit your lip, "I kind of have a thing for you as well."

His eyes widened, much like yours did just a few moments ago, "Seriously?"

"Seriously," you nodded, "I haven't had a thing for you for as long as you've had a thing for me obviously, but I've spent a lot of time with you over the past few weeks and it's made me realize that once you're comfortable around someone, you're not as bad as I thought you were. And I know that may have something to do with everything we've worked on, but all rambling aside, I like you too, Cal."

"So, um, does this mean-"

" _Ah, ah, ah_ ," you cut him off, shaking your head, "Do it like we rehearsed."

He laughed and took a breath, "Hello. My name is Calum and I think you're very pretty and I was wondering if you would want to go on a date with me sometime?"

You smiled, "I would love to."

Calum paused before leaning toward you and whispering, "What do I do now? I didn't expect to get this far."

You laughed loudly and grabbed his hand, pulling him inside the café, "I think this is a good place to start."

 


	91. Dance With Me (Cody Carson)

" _Y/N_ ," your best friend sang, waving his hand in front of your face, " _Earth to Y/N_."

"What?" you were startled out of your daydream.

"You've been staring into your locker for like, 5 minutes now. What's up?"

"Nothing," you shook your head, "What class are we going to again?"

"Lunch," Cody laughed, "We're going to lunch." You let out a quiet groan, slamming your locker door shut. Cody tossed his arm onto your shoulders and you began walking to the cafeteria. "What's got you so spaced out lately?"

"Nothing," you repeated a little too quickly.

"Ah," he said, "I know what it is. You haven't asked anyone to the dance yet." You opened your mouth, but he cut you off. "Don't try to protest. I know you a lot better than I'm willing to admit." 

"You know," you said as you got in line to get your food, "I'm not a big fan of the whole ' _switch it up and have the girl ask the guy_ ' thing."

"I think it's a nice change," he shrugged.

"Of course you do!" you exclaimed, laughing and pushing his arm, "The girls come flocking to you like moths to a flame! It's pathetic!"

"You're just jealous," he sighed, sitting down at your usual table.

"Yeah," you nodded, sitting down across from him and throwing a tater tot into your mouth, "It would be a  _privilege_ to be rejected by you. Why haven't you accepted an invite anyway? I'm sure there's been at least  _one_ girl that's caught your attention."

He shrugged again, "The girl I want to ask me wouldn't ask me if we were the only two students at this school anyway."

"I think you're just saying that because you don't want to go."

"I don't," he agreed, "But if you're still dateless by then, you'd be the only girl I'd say yes to."

You began making gagging noises, "Don't make me throw up my lunch." He laughed loudly, reaching across the table and hitting your cheek lightly.

~

"So you're saying you don't want to ask anybody?" Cody asked you, spinning around in his desk chair.

"Can we focus on homework right now please?" you rolled your eyes. He hopped up and threw himself onto his bed beside you.

"Homework is so... _bleh_ ," he stated, positioning himself so he was laying on his back so he could look at you.

"So is not graduating," you teased, poking him with the end of your pencil.

"If you don't want to take a break, that's fine, but you're not getting out of this conversation."

You sighed, putting your pencil down, "There's this guy that I've been wanting to ask, but I'm sure he has a date already."

"Who?"

"The guy that sits in front of you in English," you mumbled.

"Tanner?" You nodded. "He doesn't have a date yet. He's kind of been hoping you would ask him."

"Really?" you asked, wide-eyed.

He nodded, "You didn't hear it from me."

You felt a smile start to pull at the corner of your mouth, "I better be heading home."

"Planning your outfit for tomorrow when you ask Tanner to the dance?" he asked, sitting up as you began stuffing your things back into your backpack. You stood up, swinging the backpack over your shoulder.

"It's creepy how you always know what I'm thinking," you told him, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm sure that's only reason you still keep me around," he pouted.

"Like I could ever get rid of you," you giggled, kissing his cheek and trotting out of the room. "See you tomorrow, Cody!" you called behind you. Cody let out a sigh and trudged back to his desk, mentally kicking himself for telling you to ask someone _else_ to the dance.

~

The next day, you and Cody walked into your English class and, as usual, Tanner was there before you. You still had a couple minutes before the bell rung, so when you sat at your desk, Cody knew you were having second thoughts. He put his books on his desk and walked over to you.

"What are you doing?" he asked even though he already knew the answer.

"I can't do it," you said, shaking your head before repeating yourself a bit quieter, "I can't do it..." 

Cody sighed, "Yes, you can. And I will carry you over there if I have to."

You took a deep breath and stood up, starting to make your way over to Tanner. You stopped and took a step back and that was when you heard Cody groan from behind you and his arms wrapped around your waist, lifting you not even an inch off the ground. You shot him a glare and he shrugged.

"I warned you," he stated simply. You squeaked when he put you back on the ground in front of Tanner's desk, causing him to look up while Cody went to his seat.

"Hi, Y/N," he smiled shyly.

"Hi, Tanner," you said in a barely audible whisper. "I was-" You cleared your throat. "-I was wondering if, um, if you didn't have a date to the dance, if you would want to go with me..." He looked down and you could have sworn you saw his face start to turn a light red before he looked back up.

"I'll pick you up at 6:30?" he asked.

Your eyes widened as you smiled, nodding quickly, "Yeah! 6:30 sounds great!" The bell rang and you made your way back to your seat.

You glanced at Cody periodically throughout class and every time you looked at him, he was looking down at his textbook. He would flip the pages every once in a while, but you could tell he wasn't actually reading what was written on them.

He seemed totally out of it for the next couple days as well, but you didn't bother asking him what was wrong. You knew him just as well as he knew you and you knew he would talk to you when he was ready.

~

The next Saturday had arrived and it was finally the day of the dance. You spent all afternoon getting ready and by the time 6 came around, you decided to go wait for Tanner in your living room. You were bored, of course, but you had been on your feet all day and you just wanted to rest as much as you possibly could. You were waiting with your parents, mostly just listening to your mom gush about how beautiful you looked and your dad go on about how ' _this boy better treat you right or I'm going to be having a talk with him_ '. You couldn't help but laugh and before you knew it, it was 6:30. Your phone started ringing and you took it out of your bag.

"Hello?" you answered.

"Hi, Y/N," you heard Tanner say on the other end of the line.

"Hi, Tanner," you smiled.

"Listen-" Your smile quickly faded. "-you're a really great girl and all, it's just... This other girl I was hoping would ask me finally did and I don't want you to be mad, but-" You cut him off, not even making an attempt to conceal your hurt or anger.

"Then why would you wait until  _right now_  to tell me?!" you exclaimed, causing your mom and dad to give you confused looks.

He cleared his throat, understandably nervous, "I didn't mean to... She just asked me a few hours ago and I've been trying to find a way to tell you..."

"That's a little last minute, don't you think?" you scoffed, "You could have told me the moment you said yes so I didn't waste my time getting ready."

"I don't want you to not go anymore," he said, "I'm so-"

"Goodbye, Tanner," you grumbled, ending the call and shoving your phone back into your bag.

"What's wrong, sweetie?" your mom asked. You shrugged, feeling a tear fall down your cheek. "Oh, god," she whispered, coming over to hug you, "He's not coming, is he?" You shook your head and laid it on her shoulder. "I know it hurts, dear, and I know you probably don't want to hear this right now, but how ever many years from now when you're married and have your own kids, things like this aren't even going to cross your mind."

"You've been stood up?" you sniffled, looking at her in a bit of shock.

"I have," she nodded, "And if it weren't for those few times it happened, I honestly don't think I would have met your father." You looked over at your dad and noticed he looked angry.

"Dad," you said, making him look at you. "Promise me you're not gonna kill him."

"But I-"

" _Dad_."

"Fine," he mumbled. You smiled slightly and got up to give him a hug.

"I love you, Dad," you muttered before going to sit back down where you were.

~

There was a knock at the door about five minutes later and your dad got up to answer it. You were now lying on the couch with your head on your mom's lap, still a little choked up. He opened the door and a very familiar voice started speaking.

"Hi, Mr. Y/L/N," Cody smiled politely, "Is Y/N here?" You assumed your father nodded because the next thing you heard was footsteps and the front door closing.

"Hey, Cody," you said quietly, getting up and walking over to Cody. Your dad went back to the couch to sit with your mom.

"What happened?" he asked, "I saw Tanner walk into the gym but you weren't with him."

"He bailed," you mumbled, looking down at your shoes, "Someone better asked him earlier today and he went with her instead." You looked at him and saw he was wearing a suit. "I thought you weren't going?"

"I wasn't, but I changed my mind," he shrugged, "And you're not anymore?"

"I can't!" you squeaked, "I can't go alone! I'll look like an idiot."

"Well, you're still dressed. Let's go alone together."

"I thought the girl was supposed to ask the guy."

"Then ask me," he grinned.

You laughed quietly through your tears, "Cody, will you go to the dance with me?"

"I would be honored," he whispered, taking your face in his hands and wiping your cheeks with his thumbs. The two of you said goodbye to your parents before he pulled you outside, closing your door behind you.

~

Once Cody pulled his car into the school parking lot, you quickly fixed your makeup before heading inside. You were beginning to get nervous as you got closer and closer to the gym and it was obvious that Cody could sense it as he grabbed your hand, making you look at him.

"We are going to have an amazing night and Tanner is going to wish he never ditched you, okay?" he said, squeezing your hand. You nodded, relaxing a bit, and confidently walked into the gym with Cody.

The atmosphere of the gym was a nice change from how you normally saw it – fairy lights strung everywhere, gorgeous bouquets of flowers placed at the center of each table, and one of your favorite songs began playing as you entered the room. You looked over to see who was DJing and saw one of Cody's friends winking at you. You rolled your eyes and laughed, mouthing a ' _thank you_ ' to him.

"May I have this dance?" Cody asked, bowing and holding his hand out to you.

You couldn't help but giggle, "Of course you may."

You took his hand and he led you over to the dance floor. You danced – which was really just jumping around like idiots – for a few songs until a slow one started playing. You looked around, a little out of breath from all the dancing, and noticed Tanner watching you from where he was sitting at one of the tables on the other side of the room.

"He's staring at me," you mumbled to Cody, who looked behind him to see who you were talking about.

"Then let's give him something to stare at," he smiled, taking your hands and putting them on his shoulders. He put his hands on your hips and pulled you closer to him. You wrapped your arms the rest of the way around his neck and laid your head on his shoulder as you began swaying to the music.

"How's it working?" you asked.

"Well, he certainly doesn't look the happiest I've ever seen him," Cody answered.

You laughed quietly into his shoulder, "Thank you for saving me the embarrassment of coming alone."

"Anything for you, Y/N," he said, hugging you a little tighter.

"What was up with you last week?"

"What do you mean?"

"You've been acting weird since I asked Tanner to be my date."

He hesitated for a moment, "Remember when I said the girl I wanted to ask me would never consider it?" You nodded and he went on, "The truth is, I was talking about you."

You couldn't fight back your smile, "But I  _did_ ask you, so where does that leave us?"

"I can tell you where I'd  _like it_  to leave us."

You moved so you could look at him and he wasted no time in pressing his lips to yours. You smiled again, feeling Cody let out a sigh of relief.

"Now where does  _that_  leave us?" you smirked when he pulled away.

He laughed lightly and asked, "Will you be my girlfriend?"

"Of course I will," you grinned, pushing yourself back against him as you finished dancing to the song.


	92. I Told You So (Michael Clifford)

Your roommate Ashton and his friends Luke, Calum, and Michael decided to go to the mall and invited you to tag along. You weren't really doing much of anything – and you had been meaning to go buy some new clothes at some point – so you went with them. You quickly ran to your room to get your bag and you all piled into Ashton's car, heading for the mall.

You had met Ashton about seven years ago when he moved to your school and you were asked to show him around. You two hit it off immediately and became practically inseparable. When you moved out of your parent's house after you graduated, you were looking for someone to share an apartment with and Ashton was the first person you thought to ask. He, of course, was more than happy to agree.

Fast forward to two years later and Ashton was now in a band. There must have been something about you that instantly made people like you because just as the case had been with Ashton, you and his band mates – Luke, Calum, and Michael – clicked immediately. Throughout the past three years, people that knew you would rarely ever see you without one of the boys.

As the band grew more and more popular, however, things like tours, recording sessions, and photo shoots began getting in the way of that. But none of you were ever really bothered by it. You supported them in everything they did, even if it meant not being able to see them for months at a time and they knew that no matter how long they were gone, you would always be the first person running through the airport terminal to welcome them home.

Anyway; Back to now.

Ashton had finally pulled into the parking lot of the mall and you all got out. You discussed where you would go first – unanimously agreeing on the food court since none of you had eaten breakfast that morning.

"Oh!" Michael suddenly exclaimed, looking at his phone, "Claire's here! I gotta go."

_Ah, Claire._

Claire was Michael's girlfriend of eight months and whom you could only assume was the actual spawn of Satan himself. Everyone that met her got the vibe that she was just using him and with good reason. It seemed like every moment she wasn't with Michael, she was hooking up with some other guy behind his back.

You had obviously told him this numerous times, but he never took you seriously. Each time, you would simply shrug it off – although you  _were_  disappointed that even after three years of knowing you, he thought you would ever lie to him, especially about something like  _that_.

" _Great_ ," you scoffed under your breath, making Michael stop and turn back around.

"Did you say something, Y/N?" he asked even though he heard you.

"Oh, no, I didn't say anything," you smiled sweetly, "Go ahead; Her highness awaits. You might want to hurry though. For all we know, she could be making out with someone right now."

"Honestly, Y/N," he rolled his eyes, "I know you don't like her, but to constantly accuse her of cheating on me to get me to break up with her? That's low."

"Guys, not  _here_..." Ashton whispered, noticing the few people that were scattered throughout the parking lot were starting to stare.

"I've  _watched_ her do it, Michael!  _More than once_!" you shouted, ignoring Ashton's pleas, "She wasn't exactly trying to be  _sneaky_  about it either!"

"She was right about you," he mumbled under his breath.

" _Oh, boy_ _..._ " Luke whispered as you slowly let out a deep breath to keep yourself from yelling again.

"And  _what_  was she right about?" you asked calmly, but it was intimidating enough to make him and Calum retreat into the mall.

"You're jealous because I spend more time with her instead of you now."

"Figure that out all on her own, did she?" you said sarcastically, "Well, forgive me for wanting to spend time with you before you leave for tour again. She's getting too smart for you, Michael. I know how much you like dating complete idiots."

"If that's how you feel, maybe I should just stop hanging out with you at all since you're  _so_ smart," he spat back.

"Okay,  _that's enough_ ," Ashton said, putting his arm around your shoulders and leading you away, but you spun back around.

"If you want to throw away our three years of friendship over a girl who clearly doesn't give a shit about you, that's fine," you told Michael, tears threatening to fall at any moment, "But don't come crying to _me_ when you find out I'm _right_." You grabbed Ashton's wrist and walked inside the mall, leaving Michael to wonder what he had just done.

~

It had been a couple months since that day and you haven't spoken to Michael. He would come to your place to hang out with the guys as he had always done, but now, you would refuse to join them as long as he was there. There were a few instances where you were forced to answer the door because the other boys were so wrapped up in what they were doing that they didn't hear him knocking. There were awkward glances and uncomfortable silences as he walked past you to get to Ashton's room, but other than that, neither of you made any attempt to apologize.

You certainly missed him and the way he would always make you laugh or how he would always try to teach you how to play his guitar despite the fact that you could never pick up on it, but what could you do? You weren't in the wrong and you were respecting his wishes by never being with the boys when he was with them.

One afternoon, while you were mindlessly scrolling through Twitter, there was a knock on your door. You could hear the boys shouting at each other down the hall and knew they didn't hear it over their video game, so you reluctantly answered the door. You opened it to find Michael looking down at his shoes.

"They're in Ash's room," you mumbled, moving out of the way so he could come inside.

"I'm not here to see them," he said, his voice breaking slightly. You closed the door behind him and turned to face him, finally noticing his eyes were almost as red as his hair.

"Are you okay?" you asked, suddenly more concerned about why he had clearly been crying than why you were mad at him in the first place.

He swallowed the lump in his throat and shook his head slowly before whispering a barely audible, " _No_..." You immediately wrapped your arms around his neck and he buried his face into yours, hugging your waist tightly.

"What happened, Mikey?" you asked quietly after a few minutes of holding him.

"I went t-to Claire's place earlier and I f-found her in bed with ano-another guy," he stuttered through his sobs, "I'm s-sorry I didn't believe you."

"It's okay, Mikey," you told him, not really sure what else to say.

You led him to the couch so he could sit down and you tried letting go of him to get him something to drink, but he wouldn't let you leave. He was understandably beyond upset about finding out his girlfriend had been cheating on him and truthfully, the only thing he wanted right now was _you_. He pulled you onto his lap and you two stayed like that for a little over half an hour until Ashton, Luke, and Calum decided to join you.

The other boys were sitting on the couch across from where you had repositioned yourself to sit with your feet propped up on the coffee table, Michael's head in your lap. You were running your fingers through his hair, stopping to poke his cheek and make him smile every now and then. He had your other hand firmly in his own, playing with the ring on your finger and tracing the lines on your palms over and over again.

You were all brought out of your daydreams when you heard loud, continuous knocking on the front door. You all looked at each other, confused as to who it could be since you were all already together, as Ashton got up to answer the door since he didn't want to disturb Michael. When he opened the door, your eyes widened at hearing the last voice you ever wanted to hear.

"Is Michael here?" Claire asked.

"Yeah, but you can't-" Ashton was cut off by her shoving him out of the way and coming inside, her eyes immediately finding you and Michael.

"Moved on _already_ , I see?" she scoffed. Michael shot up and, since he was still holding your hand, nearly caused you to fall over as he pulled you with him.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, doing the best he could to conceal how shaky his voice actually was.

"I'm here for you."

"I _thought_ Ashton told you you can't come in," you said through clenched teeth. You were never the type of person who got into fights, but when it came to Michael, you would do just about _anything_ for him.

"I didn't _hear_ him say that," she said with a sly smirk on her face.

"Maybe that's because you pushed him out of the way before he _could_ ," Calum mumbled, crossing his arms and leaning back in his seat.

"Yeah, whatever," she rolled her eyes, still looking at you, "Why are you making a move on my boyfriend?"

" _Ex_ -boyfriend," you and the boys said in unison and you went on, "And I am not ' _making a move on him_ '."

" _Please_ ," she laughed, "Everyone _knows_ you like him. Is that what this is? You're trying to break us up so you can have him for _yourself_?" You felt Michael's gaze focus on you while you desperately tried not to show it. "No relationship is over until _I_ say it is. If _I_ can't have him, I'm going to do everything to make sure  _you_  can't either."

"Under what context does cheating  _not_  mean you've  _ended_  the relationship?!" you shouted as you jumped up, causing everyone to flinch. Michael squeezed your hand, knowing he wouldn't be able to stop you from hitting her if you broke free.

She shrugged, "Not _my_ fault he's easy to cheat on." Michael's heart skipped a beat and you heard him let out a quiet whimper. You felt your heart drop at the sound of it and took a deep breath to remain as calm as you could.

"I'm gonna give you 10 seconds to get the _hell_ out of my apartment before I come over there and  _make you_   _leave_ ," you growled.

Claire laughed, "I _can't wait_ to watch you do _nothing_."

The next 10 seconds were filled with silence and no one making eye contact with anyone else until your name was spoken.

"Y/N," Michael said, making you all look at him, "It's been 10 seconds."

" _Perfect_ ," you smirked as he let go of your hand, heading straight for Claire. She was visibly startled, not expecting you to do anything at all, as she took a step back when you stopped right in front of her. "Listen,  _slut_ _-_ " you started angrily, causing the boys' jaws to drop slightly as they looked at each other, knowing how you felt about using words like that to describe someone. "-I put up with you for _eight months_ because of Michael and you have treated him like shit since the  _moment_  he asked you out and I cannot  _begin_  to tell you how _happy_ I am knowing he doesn't have to _deal_ _with you_ anymore. He is the most selfless person I have _ever_ met and the fact that you had the  _nerve_ to manipulate that about him makes me _sick_."

Claire was honestly a bit terrified of your sudden change in demeanor. The only reason she ever pushed your buttons was because she knew you would never  _do anything_  about it. Until  _now_ , of course.

"You don't deserve him," you shook your head, "You never  _have_  and you never  _will_. He's _mine_ , he always _has been_ mine, and  _no one_  is taking him away from me. If I ever so much as see you  _look_  at him again, everything you've ever put him through will be  _nothing_  compared to what I will do to you. Got it?" She nodded quickly and you opened the door, glaring at her, " _Leave_." Claire nearly ran out and after you closed the door behind her, you looked back at the guys in shock. "I can't _believe_ I actually _did that_ ," you said quietly. They were all looking at you with huge grins on their faces apart from Michael who looked like he was about to cry again. "Michael, I-" You were cut off by Michael jumping up and rushing to you, nearly knocking you down as he wrapped his arms around you again.

"We're gonna go back to my room if you guys need us," Ashton said slowly, getting up with Luke and Calum and walking past you rather quickly, disappearing into the hallway.

"It's okay to tell me you told me so," Michael mumbled into your skin when Ashton's bedroom door closed a couple seconds later.

"Michael, I'm not gonna-"

"Just say it, Y/N," he interrupted, letting go of you so he could look at you, "I should have listened to you."

You bit your lip, sighing, "I  _did_  tell you so... Multiple times..."

"I know," he smiled slightly, "I'm sorry." You smiled at him as well, wrapping your arms around his waist.

"Don't let it happen again," you said into his shirt.

"I won't," he whispered into your hair, "I promise."


	93. Distractions (Luke Hemmings)

**Luke's POV**

Today was the day you were introducing your best friend to your boyfriend and you were _beyond_ nervous. You had been going on and on about him while Luke just sat there, quietly listening – or so you thought. You realized about 5 minutes into your gushing spree that he wasn't listening to a word you said and you decided to end it with something you knew would get his attention.

"So yeah," you shrugged, "The only other thing you need to know about him is that he absolutely hates guitar players, so you might not want to tell him about the band."

"Wait, for real?" Luke asked, his eyes widening.

"You got distracted by a pretty girl again, didn't you?" you teased.

"Something like that," he smiled sheepishly, "What were you saying?"

"Nothing," you laughed, shaking your head, "But anyway, he should be here in any minute. I really hope you like him. He's a really great guy and I like him a lot."

"Y/N," he said, "Stop worrying. If you're happy, I'm happy." You smiled as you looked behind him, suddenly letting out a loud squeal. You jumped up and walked quickly to the door.

Luke's eyes followed you and when he saw you hug the guy that had walked into the cafe, his heart started racing. He knew in the back of his mind that even though what he told you was true, he couldn't help but wish he was one you were so excited to see.

"Tyler, this is my best friend Luke," you said when you reached the table again, "Luke, this is my boyfriend Tyler."

"Nice to finally meet you," Tyler smiled, shaking Luke's hand.

"You as well," he replied, "Y/N talks about you all the time."

~

Throughout the afternoon, it became more and more clear to Luke that you were really into this guy. Every time he looked at you, you were looking at Tyler with this small grin on your face – exactly like the one he had when he would look at you.

After a couple more hours, you decided it was time to head back home, so you stood up.

"I'm just gonna go to the bathroom real quick and then we can leave, okay?" you said to Tyler. He nodded and Luke sighed quietly, honestly a bit nervous to be alone with him. When you were out of hearing range, Tyler looked at Luke.

"I don't want to be rude or anything-"

_Great. When has anything even remotely good followed a sentence like that?_

"-but I just... I don't feel comfortable with the way you look at her..." Tyler paused before continuing, "I don't know if the two of you ever had a thing or whatever, but I would appreciate it if you could just lay off a bit." Luke was about to reply, but he was interrupted by you trotting back over to them.

"Ready?" you asked, wiping the little water that was still on your hands onto your jeans.

"Yeah, babe," Tyler told you, standing up along with Luke.

"Bye, Luke," you smiled, giving him a hug, "I'll see you again soon. Tell the boys I miss them." Luke nodded when you let go of him and watched Tyler grab your hand as you walked out of the cafe. He sighed again, trudging outside and heading in the opposite direction.

~

**Your POV**

It had been about four months since Luke met Tyler and you began hearing less and less from him with every passing day. Each time you called, he would never stay on the phone with you for more than a few minutes and when you tried making plans for lunch, he would come up with an excuse as to why he couldn't go. You figured it was because the band was starting to get more popular and he just didn't have time, but it was always in the back of your mind that maybe you did something wrong.

You let out a quiet sigh as you took a seat on Tyler's couch one evening. You tried calling Luke to wish him good luck at the show the band had later, but he didn't answer. You weren't too surprised though – he never answered your calls anymore.

"What's wrong, babe?" Tyler asked, walking back into the room and giving you a plate.

"Nothing," you told him, taking a couple slices of pizza from the box on the coffee table, "Luke just doesn't want to talk to me anymore, I guess."

"And that's a  _bad_ thing?" he asked nonchalantly, beginning to eat his pizza.

"What's  _that_ supposed to mean?" you furrowed your eyebrows.

He shrugged, "I mean, I don't really think that it's okay for you to be hanging out with another guy when you've got a boyfriend."

"And  _I_ don't really think it's okay for my boyfriend to decide who I can and can't hang out with," you said, putting your plate on the coffee table, "I'm allowed to have other friends, Tyler."

"Whoa," he started getting defensive, "I'm not saying you're not allowed to have friends, I'm just saying I don't like the idea of you being around other guys that like you."

"Luke does  _not_  like me."

"Yeah," he laughed loudly, "And I'm the  _Queen of England_. I just don't want you to be around him anymore."

"Well,  _I_  don't want to be around people who act like they're doing me a favor by telling me what to do," you stated, standing up and putting your jacket on as you walked to the door.

"You're not  _seriously_  breaking up with me just so you can keep being friends with that  _loser_ , are you, Y/N?" Tyler laughed again as you opened the door.

"Does this answer your question?" you smiled sweetly, slamming the door behind you.

Now that you knew why Luke hadn't been talking to you, everything became clearer. He wasn't avoiding you because of something you did, he was avoiding you because of something he  _didn't_ ; And that was telling you he liked you.

You let out a sigh of relief when you finally reached the venue as it was a bit chilly outside, but it was only a 10 minute walk from Tyler's place, so you didn't want to go to the trouble of walking home just to come back into town.

"Hi, Jay!" you smiled at the venue owner as you walked inside, "Are the boys here yet?"

"Y/N!" Jay said, sounding surprised, "Didn't expect to see you here tonight."

"Oh," you laughed shyly, "You know about what's been going on with Luke and I?"

"Ash told me," he nodded, "But I'm sure I would have pieced it together with you not being here and Luke moping around since the second they arrived."

"He's been moping?" you asked, feeling bad for not realizing why he had been avoiding you sooner.

"Yeah, but I think he'll be a lot happier when he sees you're here!" Jay grinned, "They're in their usual dressing room."

"Thank you!" you squeaked, walking back to the dressing rooms. You loudly knocked on the door and shouted, "I hope everyone is decent!" You could just see them all looking at each other with the same confused look on their faces. Calum opened the door and grinned widely upon seeing you standing there. He moved out of the way and you walked into the room, "Because the party has arrived."

" _Y/N_!" Michael cheered, running over to give you a hug as did Ashton and Calum. You frowned when you realized Luke wasn't in the room.

"Where's Luke?" you asked, "The  _one_  person I came to see and he's not even  _in here_!"

"Oh, wow," Calum gasped, "I take back my hug then."

"You guys know I love you," you giggled, "But I really do need to see him."

"Last I saw him, he was tuning his guitar on stage," Ashton told you, "Is your boyfriend here too?"

" _Ex_ -boyfriend," you corrected. They all raised their eyebrows and you shrugged, "I'll explain later. Thank you!" you called behind you as you rushed to the stage.

You made it to the concert hall and saw Luke sitting on the stage with his legs hanging off and his guitar in his lap. He looked up as the door closed behind you and you could visibly tell his heart skipped a beat.

"Hey, loser," you said, hopping up onstage and sitting beside him.

"Hi," he said quietly, suddenly more interested in the floor.

"I hear you have a thing for me," you told him, getting straight to the point.

His head shot back up, "Who told you that?"

"Tyler," you said casually, shrugging.

"I-I don't... I don't have a-a thing for you..." he stuttered nervously.

"So he lied to get me to break up with him so he didn't have to do it himself?"

"You broke up with him?" he asked in shock. You simply nodded. "I thought you really liked him."

"I suppose I just liked the  _idea_  of him."

"What do you mean?"

"I liked the idea of having a boyfriend to keep my mind off of the thought that you didn't feel the same way," you answered. He gave you a confused look. "Oh my god," you laughed loudly, "Do I have to  _act it out_  for you?" He just kept staring at you, so you sighed and pushed yourself off the stage, standing in front of him. "I-" You pointed to yourself. "like-" You gave him a thumbs up. "you-" You pointed at him. "too-" You held up your pointer and middle fingers. When he still didn't say anything, you sighed again, "You leave me  _no choice_ , Lucas."

"What are you-"

You cut him off, putting your hands on his cheeks and pulling his face to yours, pressing your lips against his. You felt him smile as you pulled away.

"Does that answer your question?" you asked him.

"I'm afraid not," he said, jumping off of the stage and putting his guitar in the spot where he was just sitting. "I'm still having trouble understanding," he told you as he wrapped his arms around your waist.

"I'm sure you are," you smiled, rolling your eyes before kissing him again.

~

_inspiration: "Teardrops on my Guitar" by Taylor Swift_

 


	94. Call Me Lucky (Ashton Irwin) - Part 1

" _Ow_!" you squeaked as you hit the ground, holding your left – now  _twisted_  – ankle in pain. You looked up at the people that were around you and they clearly didn't care that they had just knocked you down.

You were currently at the airport, hoping for your chance to even  _see_  your favorite band in person. They had just come outside where all the fans were waiting, but you never saw them. You were shoved out of the way before you could catch even a glimpse of Michael's bright red hair. On top of the twisted ankle that was making it difficult to get back up, people kept stepping on your hands every time you tried to stand. You groaned as you tried getting up for what seemed like the 15th time when you heard a very distinct voice start shouting over the fans' screams.

"Everyone just stop for a minute!" Ashton yelled, causing the crowd to become so silent, you could hear a pin drop. He rushed over to where you were. "Are you okay?" You looked up at him with wide eyes.

"Hi," you said slowly.

"Hi," he smiled before repeating, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah!" you nodded, "I, uh, I'm just...making sure that...the ground is, uh...stable... It-It's looking good."

"Yeah, Ash," Calum said as he quickly came over to the two of you, "Just leave her on the ground. You're such a gentleman."

"Right! Sorry!" he exclaimed, shoving his Sharpie into his pocket. They both reached down over the barricade and grabbed your elbows, helping you back up. You stood up, careful not to put any weight on your twisted ankle.

"Thank you," you told them.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Calum asked, noticing you would flinch every time there was even just a little pressure on your ankle.

You nodded again, "I'm fine. Go back to meeting everyone up there. I can wait for my turn." They reluctantly walked back to the front of the crowd. You leaned again the metal barricade and finally noticed all the girls around you glaring at you. "Guess you should be more careful about where you're pushing people next time," you smiled sweetly.

~

It had been about 15 minutes since the band came outside and they were only about halfway back to where you were. Due to being pushed and shoved all night and your now practically useless ankle, you were patiently waiting at the back of the line near the car that was waiting for the boys to take them to the hotel. You had been making random conversation with the bodyguard that was by the car and when he realized that the boys would be a while, he opened the car door.

"Here," he said, carefully taking your forearm in his hand, "You should sit down." You thought about refusing, but sitting down did seem like a good idea and you really didn't want to do any more damage to your ankle than had already been done. He helped you onto the seat where you sat sideways with your legs hanging out the door. You let out a quiet sigh and thanked him, happy to finally be off of your feet.

~

20 minutes later, the crowd had left and you were – surprisingly – the only one still there.

"How are you feeling?" Michael asked, tossing his jacket on the seat behind you.

"I've been better," you answered with a light laugh, "I should really be heading back to my car now though."

"You've been here for an hour and you're not even going to have us sign anything?" Calum laughed.

"I just came for pictures, but my phone died while I was waiting for you guys," you shrugged.

"Oh!" Ashton exclaimed suddenly, "We can use mine!" He stood beside you and put the front-facing camera on, taking a picture with you before taking your photos with the other three boys. "What's your Twitter? I'll tweet them to you." You told him your Twitter and he smiled, "I'll send them when we get to our hotel."

"So where's your car?" Luke asked as he poked his head inside and looking at the driver, "You don't mind taking her, do you?"

"Of course not," he answered, smiling back.

"Oh, uh, it's that way," you told them, pointing the direction the car was facing, "My mom had to park pretty far away."

"Your mum has been here this whole time?" Michael asked, wide-eyed, "We need to get her a Mum of the Year award or something."

"I'm sure she'll appreciate that," you laughed. Calum and Luke climbed past you to the backseat of the car while Michael sat down in the seat behind you where his jacket was. Ashton motioned for you to scoot back to the middle section of the seat and you scoffed jokingly as you did so, "Sure, my ankle isn't already killing me or anything." He sat down where you just were and patted his lap as the bodyguard closed the door and took his own seat up front.

"Gotta keep it elevated," he said.

"Are you a doctor now?" you laughed, carefully putting your legs on his lap. You were practically laying on Michael at this point, so you tilted your head back on his shoulder. "Sorry about this," you told him.

"It's fine with me," he smiled, "Just make sure you follow the doctor's orders and keep that foot elevated."

"This isn't exactly how I imagined tonight going," you thought out loud.

"But is it such a bad thing though?" Calum asked.

"Other than not being able to move my ankle without agonizing pain?" you teased, "No, not that bad at all."

"What kind of car am I looking for?" the driver asked amidst your laughter.

"Oh, it's the same color as Michael's hair. You can't miss it," you answered without missing a beat, making everyone in the car snicker.

"Rude," Michael frowned.

"That one?" he asked, pointing to the right a bit.

"Yup!" You heard Michael sigh and smiled, "And you thought I was just being mean." 

The driver stopped a couple parking spaces away from the one your mom was parked in and you thanked him as Ashton carefully lifted your legs up and got out of the car. You said a quick goodbye to the boys as you shuffled toward the door. You made a motion to get out, but Ashton stopped you.

"Ashton," you said firmly, "You are  _not_ going to carry me. The car is right there." He shook his head and put his right arm around your back and his left arm under your knees, effortlessly lifting you out of the car.

Your mom looked up from her book, confused as to why one of the boys on the posters in her daughter's bedroom was now carrying her toward her car. She reached across and pulled the handle, pushing the door open while you opened it the rest of the way.

"Honey, what happened to your ankle?!" your mom gasped when she saw how swollen it was as Ashton put you in the front passenger seat.

"It's nothing. I just got pushed and twisted it," you said.

"Do we need to go to the ER?" she asked, the worry in her voice and on her face very obvious.

"Mom, I'm fine," you assured her, "I just need to stay off it for a couple days." You looked back up at Ashton, "Thanks, Ash. It was nice meeting you." He grinned and leaned down to give you a hug but before he closed the car door, he looked at your mom.

"I just thought I should let you know that the boys and I think you deserve Mum of the Year for waiting for over an hour so your daughter could meet us," he told her.

"Thank you," she smiled, "At least someone appreciates the things I do for her."

" _Mom_!" you whined, "I've said thank you like, a million times!"

"' _A million thank yous_ ' doesn't give me that hour of my life back, does it, Y/N?"

You rolled your eyes as you pulled your seat belt across your body, mumbling to the drummer still standing beside you, "Bye, Ashton."

"Bye, Y/N," he chuckled quietly as he closed the door, making your heart race at the sound of him saying your name.

**Ashton's POV**

"You're totally into her," Michael grinned as Ashton got back into the car.

"Don't be ridiculous," Ashton replied, shoving his best friend's arm, "I don't know her."

"You know enough to be into her," Calum teased.

"All I know is her name," he mumbled, slouching down in his seat.

"You also know that she's incredibly pretty," Michael commented.

"And you were the one that jumped at the chance to take pictures with your phone for her," Luke pointed out.

"Her phone died and she wanted pictures! I wasn't gonna be a dick and let her leave without getting them!"

"But carrying her to her car?" Michael asked, "She could have made it over there herself. I think you just wanted a reason to keep touching her."

"Well, it's not like it matters because I'm never gonna see her again, so can you guys just back off, please?"

"You have her Twitter," Calum replied, "And I can tell she would be the last person to say no to seeing you again." Ashton simply sighed, staring out the window and remaining quiet for the rest of the ride to the hotel.

~

**Your POV**

A couple hours later, Ashton had tweeted you the photos as promised and even added that he hoped you were feeling better. He had followed you as well, so you were able to DM him and tell him you were doing fine now that you had gotten some ice on it.

However, after a few days had passed, the pain was still nearly unbearable. After quite a bit of persuasion from your parents, you finally went to the hospital to see a doctor. After he was finished with the examination, he explained to you that you would need crutches for a least six weeks because you had torn a muscle and needed to stay off of your foot to let it heal properly. He prescribed you with some pain medicine before sending you on your way.

When you got home, you were struggling to get the hang of your crutches for a while, but when you finally did it, you decided you wanted to go out. Your mom insisted on taking you wherever you wanted to go, but you told her you could manage. After all, the only reason you really wanted go out was so your parents stopped asking you if you needed anything every 5 minutes. While you appreciated the fact that they were so willing to do anything for you at all, you just needed some peace and quiet for a couple hours.

You made your way to your favorite café – it was just down the street – and when you went inside, you saw the last person you expected to see. After you paid for your hot chocolate, you carefully made your way over to Ashton.

"Hi, Ashton," you said casually as you sat down in front of him, leaning your crutches against the table beside you.

"I don't know who that is," he said lowly, not looking up from his phone.

"Oh, I get it," you nodded, taking a sip of your drink, "You're in disguise mode."

"How did you know it was me?" he sighed, finally looking up at you, the realization of remembering who you are showing on his face. "Oh, it's you..."

"That's not exactly the reaction I was hoping for, but I'm glad you remember me," you smiled.

"How could I forget?" he asked under his breath.

"Yeah," you agreed, "I would find it pretty difficult to forget the one person stupid enough to twist her ankle while waiting to meet you too. But anyway, the Australian accent kinda gives you away. Might I suggest faking an American one?"

He nodded and cleared his throat, giving you the most terrible imitation of an American accent you'd ever heard, "How's this?"

"We've got a lot of work to do," you shook your head.

"Was that not American?" he frowned.

"That sounded like no American I've ever heard," you laughed, "Think New York. Everyone can do a New Yorker's accent."

"But we're not in New York."

"Well, that's where definitely-not-Ashton-Irwin-from-5-Seconds-of-Summer is gonna be from." He thought for a moment, trying to come up with a believable enough accent.

"Okay, I've got it," he said, "Is this better?"

You quickly covered your mouth to keep yourself from laughing too loud, "Sure, if you're part of the  _mafia_." Ashton laid his forehead on the table, making you laugh again. "Maybe you just avoid going out in public without one of your bodyguards."

"I've been managing without them," he chuckled, "How about you? How's the ankle?"

"I'm on these things-" you nodded toward your crutches, "-for the next six weeks, so I'm doing just about as well as you can imagine."

"Sorry about that," he smiled shyly and looked down, making you giggle.

"Yeah, because it was totally your fault. Thanks for being in a super famous band and twisting my ankle, Ashton. Worst Person of the Year award officially goes to you." You were able to make him smile, which made you happy even though you felt terrible that he blamed himself.

"What are you up to today?" he asked.

"I don't know," you sighed, "I just needed to get out of the house."

"Well, you're welcome to come hang with the boys and I," he offered, "We were just planning on staying in the hotel room and watching movies all day before we leave to fly back home in the morning."

"If it's cool with them, I'm all for it," you shrugged.

"It will be, don't worry," he said as you both stood up and he grabbed both of your drinks, leading you outside and you began walking to the hotel.

~

"They haven't stopped talking about you," he mentioned without thinking a couple minutes later.

"Understandably," you nodded, "But I make injuries look fabulous, so it's okay."

Ashton couldn't help but mentally kick himself as he opened the hotel door for you and led you to the room. He took his key card out of his pocket and opened the door. You were immediately greeted with shocked smiles and hugs.

"Hello to you guys too," you giggled.

"You're on crutches?" Luke whined.

"We're not doing that today, Lucas," you warned with a small grin on your face, "It's nothing I can't handle."

"What are you doing here?" Michael smiled, glancing at Ashton.

"I have come to enjoy a day full of movies with my favorite band!" you announced, took a quick pause, and finished your thought, "Wow. I never thought I would say a sentence like that."

Ashton led you to one of the beds and you laid your crutches on the ground before jumping up onto it, careful not to hurt your ankle. You kicked off your right shoe – you never bothered trying to put a shoe your left foot since it hurt too much – and after getting comfortable against the headboard in the middle of the bed, texted your mom to tell her what you were doing and who you were with so she didn't worry about you. Calum got a couple of the extra pillows from the chair in the corner of the room and brought them over to you.

"Right," you nodded, sighing quietly as you lifted your leg up, "Doctor's orders." He simply laughed and stacked the pillows on top of each other before letting you put your leg back down.

"I like your socks, by the way," Michael said, getting on the bed beside you, "And I hope this is cool since there are only two beds in here and all."

"I can't wear ugly socks if I'm not able to put on shoes, now can I?" you smiled, "It's fine. I would be crazy to say no to a face like that." You poked his cheek and he rolled his eyes.

"What movie do you guys want to watch?" Luke asked while he and Calum got on the other bed and Ashton sat down on the other side of you.

"What's on?" Ashton asked to which Luke shrugged in response.

Michael gestured for Luke to give him the remote, "Y/N, I'm sure you know what all the good stations are. You pick."

"You guys are gonna get a Disney movie if you don't watch it," you replied seriously, taking the remote from Michael. You scrolled through the TV guide for a couple minutes before you found a movie that interested you. "How about this?" you asked.

"You like  _Scary Movie_?" Ashton asked, seemingly in shock.

"It's only my favorite movie series ever!" you laughed, not even noticing the looks the other boys were giving Ashton.

Each time something funny happened, you would cover your mouth with your hand and lean on Ashton's arm slightly. He would get butterflies in his stomach and his heart would skip a beat whenever you did this, but he still wished there were way more funny parts than there were.

~

Halfway through the third movie, it was now about 9pm and you had fallen asleep with your head on Ashton's shoulder. Calum had looked over and awed quietly, which caused Luke and Michael to look at you as well.

"Dude, seriously," Calum whispered, "Just ask her out."

"We're gonna be on a plane by the time she wakes up tomorrow!" Ashton exclaimed quietly.

"Long distance can work, you know," Luke said.

"She wouldn't-"

"Ash," Michael rolled his eyes, "Don't you dare try to convince yourself that she wouldn't say yes."

"Look at how close she is to you," Calum pointed out, "She could have easily been that close to Michael and had her head on his shoulder right now, but she doesn't."

"There's no use in running from this," Michael added, "We all know that if you don't ask her out, you're gonna be miserable until we come back next month." Ashton sighed and was about to say something, but he was cut off by your phone ringing on your lap. They all chuckled at your ringtone being  _Mrs All American_  as Michael quickly grabbed it so you didn't wake up, answering it.

"Hi, Mrs. Y/N's mum," he said quietly.

Your mom let out a breath, "Which member are you again?"

"Michael." When she paused, he rolled his eyes, "Red hair."

"Oh, like my car!" she exclaimed.

"That reference is common with her, I see."

"She calls the car Michael sometimes, honestly." Michael snickered and she quickly added, "Don't tell her I told you that. Where is she?"

"Right here," he chuckled, "She's just sleeping."

She sighed, "Can you please wake her up and tell her I'll be there in a few minutes?"

"Yes, ma'am," he answered before your mom hung up. "Looks like you've only got a few minutes, Ash," he told the drummer, standing up, "Because her mum is on her way."

Michael gathered up your crutches, your shoe, and your phone and, since he couldn't make himself wake you up, Ashton carefully got off the bed and picked you up, following Michael out of the room. Once they got off the elevator and walked into the lobby, you started stirring.

"What's going on?" you groaned quietly, rubbing your eyes.

"Your mum is coming to pick you up," Michael answered, "And since Ash is a softy, he didn't want to wake you up, so we're taking you outside."

"Thanks, Ash," you giggled sleepily into his shoulder, "Sorry I fell asleep on you."

"It's okay, Y/N," he smiled, putting you down on the bench in front of the hotel.

"I'll leave you two alone now," Michael said, putting your stuff beside you, "It was nice seeing you again, Y/N."

"You too, Michael," you smiled, giving him a hug before he went back inside. Ashton stood beside you and you could tell he was obviously nervous about something. "Ashton," you said, making him look at you, "You okay?"

He bit his lip and sighed, "We're coming back in a few weeks and I wanted to know if you would want to do something – just the two of us." He waited nervously for a response.

"Like a date?" you finally managed to ask. He hesitated for a moment, not really sure what the answer you were looking for was, before he looked down.

"Yeah," he said quietly.

You couldn't help but smile, "I would love to go on a date with you, Ashton."

"Really?" he looked at you in shock.

"Of course I would," you laughed lightly, "Like I would ever say no to seeing you again." He chuckled, remembering what Calum had told him a few days ago as they were leaving the airport.

You two talked for a couple more minutes until your mom pulled up to the hotel. Ashton quickly grabbed your crutches before you had the chance, putting them in the back of the car and opening the passenger door before going back to you.

"Ashton!" you squeaked, "I'm not immobile!"

"Please," he teased, "You like it when I carry you." You rolled your eyes, not even bothering to attempt to hide the grin on your face and he picked you up again.

"So is this going to be a regular thing?" you asked as he set you down on the seat.

"We'll see how our date goes," he smirked.

"Date?" your mom asked, "What date?"

"Bye, Y/N," Ashton smiled, kissing your cheek before rushing back inside.

" _What date_?!" your mom exclaimed.

"It's in a few weeks, Mom," you beamed, "Don't worry about it."


	95. Call Me Lucky (Ashton Irwin) - Part 2

"So what you're saying is you want me to come to the airport at 5am just to hug you?" you yawned, watching as Ashton walked through the crowded airport terminal.

"You don't have to," Ashton said shyly, "I just... I wanted to see you before tonight. It's fine though. I'm sorry I woke you up. Go back to sleep."

"I'm hanging up now, Ash," you grinned slightly.

"Bye, Y/N," he sighed.

"I'll see you in 20 minutes," you quickly added, seeing Ashton's face light up in excitement just before he disappeared from the screen.

You got out of bed, changed out of your pajamas shorts and into some sweatpants, threw your jacket and shoes on, and grabbed your phone before quietly leaving your bedroom. You wrote your mom and dad a note just in case they woke up so they wouldn't worry about where you were and left the house.

The entire drive to the airport, you could barely sit still. Even though you had only known Ashton for a month – which is more than most fans ever get to say – it felt like you two had been friends since you were kids. He had mentioned to you that he was pretty upset that international calls were so expensive, but you had a pretty simple solution to that: FaceTime.

You FaceTimed him as much as you possibly could, but with the band's busy schedule and timezones, it was rare for the two of you to ever be awake and free at the same time. And while you and Ashton knew that there wouldn't be as much free time during this visit as you would have hoped, that wasn't going to stop you from making the most of it.

You pulled into the airport parking lot and began making your way toward the building. You saw fans gathered outside the doors and wondered why the band wasn't outside meeting them yet as you knew they had been there for a while now. You saw their car and the same bodyguard from last time, Justin, was leaning against the side of it.

"Hey!" Justin grinned when he saw you, "You can walk again!"

"Having a perfectly functioning ankle really changes your life," you giggled, "Where are the boys? I thought they would have been out here meeting everyone when I got here."

"Ashton refused to see anybody before he saw you and the others didn't want to come out without him."

"I've only known him for a month and I've already got that boy wrapped around my finger," you shook your head, smiling.

"Will you please make him come out? I don't know how much longer we can keep these girls from rioting."

"I'll try," you laughed loudly, "I know how pushy they can get."

You trotted inside and began looking around for Michael's bright red hair. You found it almost immediately and saw the boys were sitting on the chairs in the middle of the terminal. When Luke and Calum looked up at you, you quickly held your finger to your lips, wanting to sneak up behind Ashton. He was luckily looking down at his phone and didn't even notice them look at you. They desperately tried to hold in their laughter as Michael turned his head to see what they were so excited about. You waved slightly, signalling for him to be quiet as well as you walked up behind Ashton and covered his eyes as best as you could since he had his glasses on.

"Michael," he groaned, "Knock it off."

"It's not me, dude," Michael snickered as you frowned.

"Ash!" you squeaked, quickly taking your hands back, "My hands are way _smaller_ than Michael's!"

Ashton jumped up at the sound of your voice and you couldn't keep the smile off your face as he spun around. He wasted no time in climbing over the chairs to get to you – far too excited to go around them – and wrapping his arms tightly around your waist. You hugged him just as tightly back while the rest of the boys awed dramatically.

You giggled into Ashton's shoulder, "I hear you're refusing to go outside and meet fans."

"Oh," he cleared his throat nervously, "I just didn't want you to have to try pushing through a crowd considering what happened last time and all."

"Speaking of last time," Michael said cheerfully, "You're not on crutches anymore." Ashton finally let go of you and you took that time to give Luke, Calum, and Michael hugs as well.

"Where are your crutches?" Ashton asked, seemingly worried about why you weren't using them like you were supposed to be.

"I don't need them anymore," you shrugged.

"But it's only been four weeks and three days." You tilted your head, smiling slightly. He smiled sheepishly, "I might have been counting down the days until we came back."

"It healed a lot faster than the doctor expected, so he gave me the okay to stop using them yesterday," you replied happily.

"He's definitely been counting down the days though," Luke interjected himself into the conversation, "I haven't been able to talk to him without it being brought up that he's ' _two weeks from seeing you_ ' or ' _24 hours from hugging you again_ '."

" _Luke_!" Ashton nearly shouted while you did everything you could to hold in your laughter. "What's so funny?" he asked you, a small half-smile pulling at the corner of his mouth.

"What? Nothing," you shook your head, "I'm delusional. You know, just woke up and everything. Still kinda tired. Are you guys ready to go?" You began walking back outside, leaving the boys to gather up their things. When Ashton came up behind you, he wrapped his arms around you again.

"Thanks for coming to see me," he whispered in your ear.

"Oh, I think you needed to see me  _way more_  than I needed to see you," you smirked, laying your head back on his shoulder and turning slightly to kiss his cheek.

"You guys are so cute," Luke sighed, hurrying so he could walk with the two of you.

"Yeah, it makes me sick," Michael commented, walking past you.

"Jealousy will get you nowhere, Mikey," Calum laughed as Michael opened the airport door where the boys were immediately met with screams of excitement. Ashton let go of you, letting you go to the car so you could hang around with Justin away from the fans.

You could hear a few people ask if you and Ashton were together to which he simply smiled, "Not yet."

~

About 45 minutes later, all the fans had left and the boys were walking toward the car.

"What are you still doing here?" Michael asked you.

"I thought you would have gone home by now," Calum added.

"Nothing better to do, I guess," you shrugged, "Plus someone's gonna keep Justin company." Justin simply chuckled.

"Do you wanna go do something?" Ashton asked you, "I slept most of the flight, so I'm not that tired."

"We can go back to my house if you want. There aren't many places around here that are open at 6 in the morning." Ashton looked at Justin with a hopeful expression.

He rolled his eyes, grinning, "I want you back at the hotel in a couple hours. Remember you boys have to go to the studio today."

"Thank you," he smiled, putting his suitcase in the back of the car, figuring he wouldn't need it until he got back to the hotel anyway. You hugged Michael, Luke, and Calum and said goodbye to Justin before leading Ashton back to your car.

~

Once you arrived home, you went in as quietly as you possibly could, giving him a brief tour before taking off your shoes and throwing yourself onto the living room couch. Ashton chuckled as he sat down next to you and you two made random conversation until he noticed you were struggling to keep your eyes open.

"Still tired?" he asked.

You nodded slowly and he leaned back, holding his arms out. You put your arms around his waist and laid your head on his chest as he wrapped his own arms around your shoulders. You almost immediately drifted back to sleep while Ashton hummed random songs. He stopped, however, when he heard a door open from down the hallway.

Your dad was on his way to the kitchen to get his usual breakfast before heading to work when he saw glanced into the living room and saw Ashton sitting on the couch with you fast asleep in his arms. He quietly made his way into the room and Ashton smiled politely.

"Hello, sir," he said, lifting his fingers and waving slightly.

"Oh, right," your dad said, "You guys came back today."

"I take it she talked about it a lot?"

"I couldn't get her to talk about anything else," he chuckled, shaking his head, "So is the rest of your band in my house as well then?"

"No," Ashton laughed quietly, "It's just me, sir." Your dad walked around to the couch that was adjacent to where you and Ashton were and sat down. Ashton took a deep, quiet breath, honestly a bit nervous about what he was going to say.

"I'm gonna be honest with you, son," your dad started, "I've never taken a liking to any boy my daughter has brought home before, but I like you so far." Ashton smiled slightly as he went on. "However, I'm worried because I know how different things are going to be for her now than when she was just talking about being with you and I don't want her to get hurt."

Ashton shook his head slowly, "I could never hurt her, sir."

He sighed, "It's not you I'm worried about. I don't think she understands how difficult it's going to be with you being from an entirely different continent and I need you to prepare her for that before you leave again. She needs to understand that you aren't always going to be 15 minutes away at a hotel and that she's not always going to be able to take trips to visit you at home either. This-" he motioned toward you, "This is all she's ever wanted and I'm not trying to put any sort of pressure on you or anything; I just want her to be happy. And I know that 7,000 miles aren't going to stop her from feeling the way she does about you, so just...promise me you'll take care of her."

"I promise, sir," Ashton assured him, "I wouldn't ask her to be my girlfriend if I didn't intend on making it work."

"Welcome to the family then," he smiled, patting Ashton's knee as he got up. He leaned down to kiss the top of your head.  Just before he left the room, he looked at Ashton again. "And Ashton," he said, "Call me Y/D/N."

~

A couple hours later, it was about 8am and you finally woke up, but Ashton was no longer with you. You pushed yourself up and trudged into the kitchen, seeing Ashton sitting at the counter, scrolling through Twitter on his phone and taking bites of the cereal in front of him.

"Good morning, beautiful," he smiled as you walked over to him. You sat on the bar stool next to him and rested your forehead on his shoulder. "Still tired?" he chuckled. You nodded, yawning.

"When do you have to be back at the hotel?" you asked.

"8:30." You looked over at the clock on the oven and groaned, seeing it was already past 8.

"I need to get dressed," you said, getting up and going down the hall while Ashton watched you in amusement, shaking his head. You quickly got dressed, brushed your teeth and hair, and made it back to the kitchen just as Ashton finished his cereal. He got up, putting his now empty bowl in the sink, and grabbed his jacket.

"Ready?" he asked, putting it on.

"As ready as I'll ever be for anything that happens at 8am," you answered and you both left the house.

"I'll see you tonight," Ashton told you as you pulled up to the front of the hotel. "We're in room 205, so you can just meet me in there." You nodded and he kissed your cheek, getting out of the car and running inside as you drove away.

~

That evening at around 6:30, you drove back to the hotel and made your way up to the room. You knocked on the door and Luke came to answer it.

"Y/N!" he grinned, letting you come inside.

"Hi, Luke," you smiled, "Is Ash ready to go?"

"No," he sighed, "He's been in the bathroom getting ready since we got back from the studio."

"How long ago was that?"

"About 2 hours now." You couldn't help but laugh.

"Where are Michael and Calum?"

"They said something about going out to find food about half an hour ago, but they haven't come back yet," he shrugged, "I'm pretty sure they got lost and refuse to ask for directions."

"I certainly wouldn't doubt that," you giggled.

"Well, why don't you have a seat or something," he gestured toward one of the beds, "I'll go see if Ash is done yet." You happily sat down while Luke told Ashton you were waiting for him. "He said he'll be out in a minute which means you'll be here for a minimum of 10 minutes."

"Might as well get comfortable then," you sighed dramatically, lying back on the bed.

"He really likes you, you know," Luke told you, hopping up onto the bed and laying down beside you.

"That's what I'm worried about," you mumbled, staring at the ceiling.

"Why?"

"I know you guys aren't always going to be here," you sighed, "And I don't understand why he would want someone nearly halfway across the world and I definitely don't understand why he would want someone like me when I'm sure you've met hundreds of better girls."

"Do you like him?" Luke asked simply.

You looked over at him, a bit surprised he asked, "Of course I do."

"This isn't a matter of distance or how many ' _better_ ' girls there are," he said, shaking his head, "None of that matters to Ashton. He doesn't talk about that stuff when he talks about you. When he talks about you, he talks about how he loves when you smile and how it lights up a room. He talks about how soft your skin feels against his and how much he loves how tight you hug him. He could go on and on all day about how cute your laugh is and how it gives him butterflies whenever he's the one that causes it." He paused before continuing, "I really like you – all of us do – and we think you and Ash are perfect for each other, but if you can't handle the distance or you're always going to be worried that he'll find someone closer to home, I would really rather you tell him now than several months down the road when he decides to tell you he's in love with you."

"I can handle it, Luke," you said, swallowing the lump in your throat and nodding quickly, "I promise."

"Good," he replied, smiling, "Because we'd like to keep you around."

"Am I interrupting something?" you heard Ashton ask as he came out of the bathroom.

"Finally," Luke groaned as you both sat up. You got off the bed and walked over to Ashton, giving him a hug. Ashton gave Luke a confused look, earning a simple shrug in return. He hugged you back before you let go to look at him.

"Do you always wear that when you go on dates?" you asked, referring to the dark blue bandana on his head.

"Do you not want me to?" he replied, beginning to take it off. You grabbed his hand, stopping him.

"I was just asking," you smirked, pushing it back down over his forehead, "I think you look handsome." He blushed slightly and began leading you to the door.

"His curfew is 11," Luke told you, "Don't get him into any trouble. Say no to drugs. All that stuff."

"Yes, sir," you nodded, "I will bring him back  _just_  like I left with him."

"Have fun, kids," he sighed, closing the door behind you. You and Ashton looked at each other for a moment before running to the elevator to start laughing.


	96. Call Me Lucky (Ashton Irwin) - Part 3

" _Ashton_!" you squeaked the moment he appeared on your computer screen, "You'll  _never_  guess what I found today!"

"What'd you find today, princess?" he chuckled softly.

"You're not even gonna  _try_  to guess?" you pouted.

"Okay, okay," he shook his head with a smile, " _Let's see_... Is it that shirt you're wearing right now?" You looked down to see that you were, in fact, wearing the exact shirt you were talking about.

" _Damn it_ ," you frowned, looking back up at him.

"You tweeted about it earlier too," he reminded you. You threw your head back with a light groan, completely forgetting that you'd posted a photo on Twitter of the 5SOS shirt the moment you saw it.

"It was at a thrift store, Ashton!" you exclaimed, " _A thrift store_! Like, can you believe someone  _didn't_   _want this_  anymore?!"

"People aren't going to like our band  _forever_ , princess," he laughed, "We're lucky enough  _you've_  stuck around this long."

"Well, it's not like I could get  _away_  from it," you scoffed, making him laugh again.

"You could if you  _wanted_  to," he replied.

"But I  _don't_ , so," you shrugged.

"And I appreciate that very much, princess," he grinned.

It was then that you really took in his surroundings – the light was gradually fading out and something seemed to illuminate his face before disappearing and doing it all over again every couple seconds.

"Where are you?" you asked curiously, "You're really dark."

"On the way to our hotel," he told you, "The boys are sleeping so I've gotta be quiet, but I didn't want to miss our weekly Skype date."

"I would hardly call this a  _date_ , Ash," you rolled your eyes.

"Well, I'll try a little harder when I  _actually_  see you again," he mentioned.

"Yeah," you murmured, "Seeing you again would be  _nice_."

"Come on, princess," he frowned, "You know I miss you. And the boys do too; They're just not awake to yell about it."

You cracked a smile at how every single time you and Ashton seemed to Skype, his bandmates would show up out of nowhere and excitedly tell you how they couldn't wait to see you again. Ashton grinned slightly upon seeing your smile, prompting him to go on.

"I'll be back before you know it, princess," he assured you. You barely nodded as he went on. "You should get some rest," he said, "You look tired."

"But we  _just_  started Skyping!" you whined. Ashton chuckled again but didn't say anything as you heard someone else speak.

"We're here, Ash," a man said. Ashton looked up and smiled before looking back at you.

"I've gotta go anyway, princess," he told you, "I'll see you soon, okay?"

"Okay, Ash," you mumbled with a small nod just in case he didn't hear it. He blew you a kiss before disappearing from your screen, making your heart race.

You and Ashton hadn't had your first kiss yet, surprisingly enough. It always seemed like right as you were starting to lean in,  _something_  would interrupt you. There was no doubt in your mind that you were  _ready_  to kiss him, but maybe the universe was trying to tell you it was  _too soon_.

It hadn't even been five minutes since Ashton ended the Skype call that you heard a knock on your front door. You didn't jump up to answer it, obviously, knowing both of your parents were home. You heard the door open, but couldn't make out anything that was being said.

"Y/N!" you heard your dad call out. You sighed to yourself – until Ashton mentioned it, you didn't actually realize  _just_  how tired you were – but closed your laptop and got up anyway.

You trudged toward the front of the house, completely not expecting to find what you did. Your eyes widened as Ashton smiled brightly at you.

"Surprise," he said, holding his arms out.

" _Ashton_!" you squealed, instantly running the rest of the way to him. You jumped up into his arms, your own arms around his neck and your legs around his waist, as he hugged you back tightly. "Why didn't you  _tell me_  you were coming?!" you smacked the back of his head playfully, making him laugh into your shoulder.

"It wouldn't have been a surprise if you  _knew_  I was coming," he sassed, moving his face to your neck so he could kiss your exposed skin.

"Ashton!" your mom grinned, causing him to pat your back so you would let go of him. You pouted lightly when your feet returned to the ground, only making him chuckle as she gave him a hug as well while your dad just shook his hand happily. "It's so nice to see you again!" she gushed, "How have you been?"

"I've been good, thank you!" he chirped, "How are you guys? Have you opened that shop downtown you were talking about when we were last here?"

"Not yet," your dad grinned, flattered he even remembered them mentioning it  _at all_ , "But we're definitely  _much_  closer than before – just have a few more little things to work out at the bank with all the paperwork."

"That's good to hear! I can't wait to see it when it's finally opened!"

"Thank you, dear," your mother smiled before looking over at you, laughing at the pout that was still on your face. "Well, I guess that's our cue to let Y/N have you back now," she shook her head, "We'll be down the hall if you need us. You two know the rules."

When you heard their bedroom door close, you turned back to Ashton, wrapping your arms around his waist and hugging him tightly. He giggled softly, hugging you back.

"Don't be so jealous, princess," he teased, "Be happy your parents seem to like me." You didn't respond to his statements, you just squeezed him tighter.

"I missed you," you mumbled into his shirt. Ashton smiled again, pressing his lips to the side of your head.

"I missed you too," he told you.

After a couple minutes of standing there, Ashton managed to convince you to let go of him long enough to move to the couch. He plopped down on his back, pulling on your hand once he got comfortable. You climbed over him carefully, sandwiching yourself between him and the back pillows. You cuddled up to his side – his arm around your shoulders and his other hand holding your hip, his thumb rubbing your hipbone gently. You breathed in slowly, happy to finally be in his arms again.

You two were talking in whispers – it wasn't that you didn't want your parents to hear you talking; it was just so quiet in the room that talking at any other volume would have felt like too much.

"Hey, princess..." Ashton suddenly said after another moment of silence between subjects, "Can I ask you something?" You shifted slightly so you were able to look at him properly while still being up against his side, nodding so he would continue. "Well... I've been meaning to ask this for a while now..." he cleared his throat, "I know we live on completely different  _continents_  and I can't visit as often as we  _want_ , but... Would you... Maybe... Will you...be my girlfriend...?" You stared at him for a moment – understandably worrying him.

"Ash..." you trailed off. He looked at you as you opened your mouth and closed it again, tilting his head. "What if I'm not good at it?" you whispered, "Like... What if I'm not good at the long-distance thing? It's hard enough just being  _friends_  with someone so far away... I just..."

Ashton could see your eyes getting watery, prompting him to tighten his hold on your shoulders and bring you as close to him as you could possibly get. You repositioned yourself to comfortably lie on him, your head on his shoulder as his thumb rubbed your forearm.

"It's okay not to be good at something, you know," he told you, his voice muffled slightly due to his lips being on the top of your head, "And if you don't think you'll be good at a long-distance relationship, that's okay too; We don't have to-"

"But I  _want to_ ," your voice broke, looking up at him, "I  _do_  want to be in a relationship with you."

Ashton lifted his hand to your cheek, wiping the tears off of your skin. He was looking at you with such a loving expression – an expression you hadn't gotten from another person in a  _long_  time – and you could just tell that he would be okay with whatever happened to the two of you after this moment.

"Whatever you want to do, I'm with you," he said softly, "I'm  _always_  with you." You stared at him for a moment before snapping yourself out of it.

"Ask me again," you whispered. A smile pulled at the corner of his mouth.

"Will you be my girlfriend?" he asked you.

"Yes," you choked out, only making his grin bigger.

But you didn't get a chance to admire it because –  _finally_  – his lips hit yours.

 


	97. Secondhand Embarrassment (Marshall Traver)

"Y/N," your manager said walking over to you, "I need you to take that table over there." He pointed across the restaurant to the table with four very loud guys around your age. It was near the end of your shift and you really didn't want to be the one that had to deal with the most obnoxious group in the restaurant.

"Why can't-" you cut yourself off when you turned and saw he was no longer standing there. You sighed, grabbing your pad of paper and pen and walking over to the table.

"Hello," you smiled politely, causing them to be quiet, "I'm Y/N and I'll be your server today. What can I get for you?"

"Your number would be great," the guy by the window on your left smirked.

"Right," you nodded, "I was actually thinking something off the menu."

"How about you then?" You noticed the guy sitting beside him – the one closest to you – sigh and cover the side of his face with his hand, almost as if he was embarrassed.

"I'm not on the menu, I'm sorry," you replied without missing a beat, "And even if I was, you wouldn't be able to afford me." His friends immediately started snickering as he frowned, sinking down in his seat. You finally got everyone's orders and went back to tell the cooks and took them their drinks before going around to your other tables.

~

About an hour later, the group of guys had finished their food. While you were pouring refills a few tables away from them, you heard someone start snapping behind you. You let out a quiet sigh and the couple gave you apologetic smiles.

"If you need anything else, please don't do that," you told them, nodding toward the guys. They laughed and nodded as you walked away. "Yes?" you asked once you reached the table.

The guy suddenly reached across and knocked his friend's drink off the table so it landed on the floor in front of you and spilled on everything below your knees. You quickly bit your inner cheek to keep yourself from yelling at him and he had the same smirk on his face as he did when he saw you.

" _Dude_!" his friend shouted, looking at him in shock.

"My friend needs a new drink," he told you, ignoring him. You sighed for what seemed like the tenth time that day and bent down to pick up the glass, which luckily hadn't shattered.

You stood back up and were about to go get a refill when his friend grabbed your wrist and whispered, "Don't worry about the drink. We'll just take the check now." You looked at him for a moment before nodding and he let go of you, letting you go the check.

As you were coming back, you heard the guy arguing about why you didn't deserve a tip, but you were grateful for his friends for defending you. They paid and left – and left you a pretty big tip as well, probably trying to make up for their friend's ridiculous behavior.

"Hey, Y/N," one of the guy's friend came back inside and rushed over to you while you were clearing the table he was just at, "I... I'm really sorry about him."

"It's fine," you told him, surprised he remembered your name, "I'm used to it."

"I'm sure you are, but you shouldn't have to be."

"Listen," you sighed, "I appreciate that you came back in here to apologize for your friend, but I'm just trying to do my job and I'd really like to do it alone." He nodded and looked down at his shoes, turning to walk away. You immediately felt guilty, so you grabbed his arm carefully and made him turn back toward you. He looked back up at you, a bit surprised. "I didn't mean to sound rude," you said, "I'm sorry. It's been a long day."

"I know how you feel. I used to work in a place like this."

"Really?"

He nodded, "Yeah. It was never as busy as this one, but I've certainly met a few characters."

I know what you mean," you laughed quietly, going back to what you were doing, "Anyway, I really do appreciate the apology. Although, it would have been _nicer_ coming from your friend."

"He's a bit hard-headed sometimes," he shrugged, "I'm Marshall, by the way."

"Y/N!" you heard someone say angrily behind you. You spun around to see your manager quickly walking over to you. "I do not pay you to stand around and talk to customers all day," he stated dryly.

You sighed and smiled as politely as you could, "It's kind of my job to talk to customers all day, sir."

"Are you getting _smart_ with me?"

"No, sir," you replied, wiping off the table, "Just stating facts." You heard Marshall let out a quiet snort and your manager let out a frustrated sigh.

"In my office," he said with a warning tone, " _Now_." He walked away and you gathered up the dishes and your towel, looking back at Marshall.

You smiled slightly, "Wish me luck." You took everything to the kitchen before meeting your manager in his office.

~

About 20 minutes later, you finally trudged out of the restaurant. You pushed the door open and Marshall looked up at you from where he was sitting on a bench nearby.

"How did it go?" he asked, jumping up and rushing over to you as you opened the back door of your car, reaching in for the extra pair of shoes you had.

"I got fired," you shrugged casually, pulling off your soft drink soaked sneakers and throwing them in the backseat, putting the clean pair on.

"You got _fired_?" You could just hear the guilt in his voice.

"Before you continue thinking it was your fault, it had nothing to do with me talking to you. I have a history of talking back to him and he finally got fed up with it, apparently."

"How long have you worked for him?"

"About 3 years."

"3 years?" his eyes widened, "And he  _just now_  got fed up with it?"

"That's what I said. He wasn't too thrilled about it though."

"You did  _not_ say that!"

" _I did_!" you giggled, "And it was the last straw, I guess."

"Well..." Marshall trailed off, "Since you're not working anymore, would you like to get ice cream or something?"

"How do you know I'm not already seeing someone?" you asked, nudging his arm with your elbow.

"Whoa! Who said anything about this being a date?"

"Weren't you intending on it being a date?" you smirked, locking your car door and shutting it.

"Are-" he cleared his throat nervously, "Are you seeing someone?"

"Not that _I'm_ aware of," you shrugged.

"Would you _like_ to be?"

"Depends on who it is."

He sighed loudly, trying not to smile, and threw his arms up, "Will you go on a date with me?"

"Yes, I will," you grinned, putting your arm around his waist, "Now was that so hard?" He rolled his eyes, resting his own arm across your shoulders and you two walked to the nearest ice cream place.


	98. Speak Now (Ryan Follese) - Part 1

_"If anyone should object to this marriage, please speak now or forever hold your peace," the preacher said._

_"I do," Ryan whispered._

_"It's not time for that yet, Ry," Addison laughed nervously._

_"No," he shook his head, speaking a bit more loudly, "I object."_

~

**Three weeks earlier**

"Why did you even ask me to come? I don't know anything about this stuff," you said, waiting for your best friend to come out of the dressing room.

"Because I trust you to tell me whether I look horrible or not," Ryan replied, opening the door, "How about this?"

"I would turn back around if I saw you at the end of the alter dressed like that." He frowned slightly and you shrugged, "You brought me for the truth and you're gonna get it."

"At least you're honest," he sighed, going back into the room. "This sucks."

"Should have thought about that before you proposed. I hope you two stay together forever because I never want to do this again."

"So you're saying if something happens between Addie and I, you wouldn't help me out again?"

"Nope," you told him honestly, "You'll have to bring your mom next time."

He groaned, "Y/N, don't do that to me! You know how she is. She thinks I look good in everything."

"That's kind of conceited if you ask me. Half of your genes  _are_ her's, you know." You heard Ryan let out a quiet laugh before he opened the dressing room door again. Your heart skipped a beat and you sat there with a blank stare on your face.

"Is it that bad?" he asked, looking at himself in the mirror.

"No," you finally managed to speak, "You look amazing."

"Really?"

"Would I ever lie to you?"

"Well, I do know how badly you don't want to be here," he chuckled. You laughed lightly and stood up, walking over to him. You stood behind him, putting your arms around his neck and looking at him in the mirror.

"You look handsome, Ry," you told him, lifting your right hand in the air, "Best friend's honor." He smiled at you.

"Thank you," he said, turning to hug you before he went back into the dressing room to change back into his clothes so you two could leave.

~

**Ryan's POV; The day before the wedding**

"I don't understand why you're doing this," Ryan's brother mumbled.

"Jamie," he sighed, "We've been through this."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. We know," Nash, Ryan's best friend, said, "You love her."

"Then I don't understand why you guys are so mad."

"Because Addison doesn't deserve to be marrying someone who has feelings for someone else," Jamie stated bluntly.

"I don't have feelings for someone else," he said in a questioning tone, shaking his head.

"What about Y/N?" Nash asked.

"What  _about_  her?" Ryan replied in the same tone.

"You have like, repressed feelings or some shit," he answered, "Like you're trying to cover them up by being with someone else."

"I do no-"

"Yes, you do," Jamie cut him off, "You can hide the fact that your heart skips a beat when she smiles at you and you can hide the fact that you more than likely have butterflies in your stomach right now because we're talking about her, but you will  _never_  be able to hide the way you look at her." He and Nash stood up. "You need to decide whether or not you're marrying Addison because you love her or because she keeps your mind off of Y/N  _before_  tomorrow." They left, not even giving Ryan the chance to speak – simply leaving him to sort out his feelings.

~

**Your POV; Wedding day**

You took your seat next to Ryan's sister, waiting for the ceremony to begin. Jamie and Nash were standing in front of you at the alter, so you motioned for Jamie to come to you.

"Where's Ryan?" you asked as he obviously wasn't standing there and the wedding was scheduled to begin in just a couple of minutes.

"He said he had to go to the bathroom," Jamie shrugged, "If you ask me, he should have gone 10 minutes ago, but whatever." You had a feeling that he wasn't being completely honest with you, but you shrugged it off, leaning back in your seat.

Ryan finally ran into the room a few minutes later and took his spot.

" _Ryan_!" you groaned quietly, making him look at you as you stood up, walking up to him, "Your hair is a  _mess_!" You started combing through it with your fingers and you could hear him breathing heavily, but assumed it was just because he had been running. He quietly thanked you as you finished fixing his hair.

You heard the wedding march start playing and rushed back to your seat. Everyone stood up when Addison and her father appeared in the doorway. You smiled, already feeling tears start to fall down your cheeks. She looked gorgeous in her dress and she looked the happiest you'd ever seen her.

What you  _didn't_  notice, however, was Ryan looking at  _you_  instead of his  _bride_. He watched you carefully and instantly realized Nash and Jamie were right: he was in love with you.

Throughout the ceremony, he felt absolutely  _terrible_  for thinking about you instead of the girl standing in front of him, but he couldn't help it. He was finally snapped out of his daydream when he heard the preacher ask if there were any objections.

"I do," he whispered.

"It's not time for that yet, Ry," Addison whispered back.

"No," Ryan shook his head, speaking a bit more loudly, "I object." Your jaw dropped.

Of course, everyone was understandably in shock, but you honestly couldn't believe what was going on. Aside from the confusion as to why Ryan would object to his own marriage, you didn't understand why Ryan wouldn't tell you he was even having second thoughts at all.

"You  _what_?" Addison's voice cracked. It broke your heart hearing how hurt she was.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, glancing at you just before he ran out of the church.

Addison's eyes followed him and scanned the wedding guests, immediately finding you. She let out a quiet whimper and you jumped up, running over to her.

"Are you okay?" you asked quietly, putting your hands on her shoulders. She shook her head slightly. "Do you want me to go talk to him?" She nodded slowly. "Okay. I'll be right back."

You ran out after Ryan, thinking it would take longer to find him than it actually did. He was sitting outside the church on the steps, his elbows on his knees and his face in his hands.

"Would you mind explaining to me what the hell just happened in there?" you asked, sitting next to him.

"I don't love her," he said quietly.

" _You don't love her_?" you repeated in somewhat of an angry tone, "And you thought waiting until  _now_  would be a good time to let her know that?" Addison was one of your best friends and you would do anything to keep her from hurting, but what Ryan told you next would turn that completely upside down.

"I love you," he said, finally looking up at you to see your eyes widen.

"You love  _me_?" you asked in an almost inaudible whisper.

"I do," he confirmed, "And trying to cover it up with someone else was such a shitty thing of me to do and if I could take it all back, I would, but I can't and I just... I needed you to know."

Without another word, you got up and went back inside the church, leaving Ryan to wonder whether or not he just lost his best friend.

You opened the sanctuary doors and saw everyone still sitting in the pews, talking amongst themselves. Addison was still at the alter, talking to Jamie and Nash, when she looked over at you. Once she saw the look on your face, she instantly knew that Ryan had confessed.

"What did he say?" she asked you when you made it back to her.

"He  _loves me_..." you whispered again, a whisper being as loud as your voice would allow you to get at this point.

"I know," she nodded. You looked at her in shock and she smiled at you. "I've always known, Y/N," she shook her head, "He always used to cancel dates when he forgot that he had planned to hang out with you that night and he always smiles when someone mentions you in a conversation. He's always liked you; I honestly don't know why he's been with me this long when he's had you."

"Addison-"

"Come on, Y/N," she shrugged slightly, "Leaving our place at 3 in the morning just because you needed him to come tell you everything would be alright after a break up? Going over to your house every day that week you had the flu to make sure you were being taken care of? You belong with him," she smiled again, "And I'm not gonna get in the way of that."

"Addie, I can't just-"

" _Yes, you can_ ," she insisted, already knowing what you were going to say, "You are my best friend and I would do  _anything_  for you to be happy. And if that means letting Ryan go so you can be together, I'm going to do it. You've had such terrible luck with guys, but the one that has never let you down is  _him_. Sure, I'm a bit heartbroken about it, but it's obvious that he isn't the one for me. I'm gonna find Mr. Right one day – and it's about time you did too." You let out the breath you were holding and Addison smiled, hugging you tightly. "Go," she said in your ear before she let go of you.

"Thank you, Addie," you said quietly, rushing back out of the room and going back outside.

You exited the church, only to find that Ryan was no longer sitting on the steps. You felt your eyes start to get watery again, realizing you may have just lost your chance with him. You leaned back on the concrete wall, putting your face in your hands and just letting the tears fall.

You were overwhelmed with every sort of emotion; Heartbreak at seeing Ryan was gone, beyond grateful to have a best friend like Addison that was so understanding and willing to let Ryan go for the sake of your happiness, angry at yourself for not realizing you loved him sooner – the list goes on and on. But one thing was certain; Ryan was in love with you.

And you were in love with him too.


	99. Speak Now (Ryan Follese) - Part 2

**Two months later**

"Are you sure he won't talk to me still?" you asked into your phone.

"I promise I would tell you if he would," Jamie told you.

You sighed, "Thanks anyway, Jamie."

"Y/N," he said. When you didn't say anything, he continued, "He loves you, okay? Everything is gonna be fine." You nodded even though he couldn't see you, ending the call and tossing your phone beside you, lying back on your bed.

It had been two months since the wedding – two months since you last saw Ryan. He wouldn't answer your calls or your texts; He would even get his family to make up excuses every time you would go to his house. You were getting fed up with it all, honestly, but what could you do? You didn't want to  _force_  Ryan to speak to you.

But what annoyed you more than anything was that Ryan was ignoring  _Addison_  as well. You could handle him ignoring you – that was fine – but Addison had done  _nothing_  wrong and you couldn't wrap your head around why he would treat her like she  _had_.

~

"I'm really sorry, Y/N," Addison said randomly during one of your movie nights.

"Why are you sorry?" you asked, pausing the movie and looking at her.

"I don't know," she sighed, "Maybe if I'd kept my mouth shut, Ryan wouldn't hate you."

"He doesn't hate me because of what you told me, Addie," you assured her, "He hates me because I ran off after he told me he loved me."

"You  _did_?" She seemed shocked.

You nodded, "After he told me that, I ran back inside the church without saying anything to him and  _that_  was when you told me everything."

"How come you didn't ever tell me how you felt about him?" she asked after a couple minutes of silence.

"Because I saw how happy you made each other," you answered, "I knew that if I said something, I would be ruining what you guys had. Your guys' happiness means so much to me and I wouldn't have been able to live with myself if I took that away."

"You really love him, huh?"

"I do," your voice broke and your eyes started to water, "More than anything." She smiled sadly and wrapped her arm around your shoulders, pulling you closer to her.

"You need to talk to him," she said, laying her head on top of yours.

"Even if I  _wanted to_ , I couldn't," you muttered, "He won't even acknowledge my  _existence_  anymore."

"Then  _make him_  acknowledge it," she stated, "I hate seeing you like this, Y/N. You never smile anymore and you're always crying. If it weren't for me dragging you everywhere, you would probably never leave your bed. I meant what I said about you belonging with him. And if he's as in love with you as he's acted like for as long as I've known him, he'll come around."

~

A few days later, you decided to take Addison's advice and make Ryan talk to you. Jamie told you that he, his parents, and his sister would be out for a couple hours while Ryan stayed home alone – he never left the house in fear he would run into you – so you took the opportunity to go pay him a visit.

You had knocked a few times throughout the past 5 minutes with no luck and you knew he knew it was you at the door.

" _Ryan_!" you knocked for the seventh time, "Come on, Ry! I know you're in there! Please just let me in! You can't keep ignoring me forever!" You put your forehead on the door and waited another couple minutes before sighing.

You turned to walk away when you heard the door unlock. The door opened and you froze. You could feel Ryan staring at you, but you didn't turn around. You simply took a deep breath in and started walking away.

"So that's it?" Ryan asked you, shaking his head, "You're not even going to tell me why you're here?"

"You  _know_  why I'm here, Ryan," you said quietly, stopping again, but still not looking at him.

"So what? You're just gonna leave again?"

"I didn't leave the  _first time_ , Ryan," you stated coldly, finally spinning around. He was wrapped up in his blanket, his hair was a mess, his eyes were red, and you could just picture the tear-stained pillow in your mind.

"Yes, you did," his voice came out shaky, "I told you I loved you and you left."

"Do you want me to say I was  _wrong_?!" you exclaimed, throwing your arm up, "Do you want me to apologize for being in  _shock_?! For not knowing what the  _hell_  to do when my best friend leaves his bride at the alter because he's in love with  _me_?! For not realizing I was in love with you until it was  _too late_?!" He looked at you, eyes wide, surprised by what you just told him. "Is  _that_  what you want, Ryan?" you asked when he didn't say anything.

"You love me?" his voice cracked, instantly reminding you of when he confessed two months earlier.

"I'm sorry I just ran away like that, Ry," you said, your voice coming out in a hushed tone, "I shouldn't have left you thinking I didn't feel the same, but up until that point, I didn't know I  _did_. And after Addison told me she wanted us to be together, I ran back outside to tell you I felt the same, but you were gone. And there are no words to describe how badly it  _hurt_  knowing I lost you."

Ryan looked at you for a moment, feeling like somewhat of an idiot for thinking you would ever just leave him like that – even if you  _didn't_  feel the same way. He then ran over to you and put his arms around your neck, wrapping you up in the blanket with him. You sighed against his shoulder, wrapping your arms tightly around his waist, knowing everything was going to be okay.


	100. Pages and Paragraphs (Cody Carson)

"Sorry about you and Amanda," Cody's best friend Marshall said, taking a sip of his coffee as they sat down outside at their favorite café.

"It's whatever," he mumbled, not really feeling up to talking about the break up.

It was a bit of a rough break up to say the least, but all of Cody's friends were glad it was finally over. The relationship wasn't good for him and she really got into his head, constantly picking at even the smallest things and telling him how stupid he was for doing them even when they were things he couldn't control.

"Nice guys always finish last, I guess," Marshall told him.

"That's debatable," you said as you walked by, stopping to stand by their table. You were never really the type to interject yourself in other people's conversations like this, but you never liked that phrase and decided to finally speak up about it.

"What do you mean?" Marshall asked you while Cody simply sighed, not even bothering to look up at who his friend was talking to, just wanting to go home and mope in peace. "There's nothing debatable about it. Nice guys are never picked first."

"Maybe not," you shrugged, "But they definitely don't finish  _last_."

"Care to explain?"

"Nice guys are often overlooked, I won't disagree with that, but I don't believe they finish last. I think they kind of just stop running once they find the right person."

"So you're saying they never even reach the finish line at all?"

"No," you shook your head, "The finish line is wherever they've found the one – whether that's at the beginning, somewhere in the middle, or near the end. It's like if we were talking about an actual race track, the finish line would basically move up. People are too busy focusing on trying to find where it is to notice that sometimes, you've been there the whole time."

"Yeah, that makes sense," he trailed off, "At least I think it does."

"You haven't found the one yet, have you?"

"I wouldn't say I have, no."

"It'll make sense when you do," you smiled, "Anyway, sorry to interrupt your conversation. I better get going. See you around."

Cody finally looked up at you as you turned to walk away and instantly felt his heart skip a beat. He elbowed Marshall's side, causing him to look over. When he noticed the look on his best friend's face, he knew what he was thinking.

"Hey!" Marshall called after you. You turned around and he paused.

As if you read his mind, you smiled again, walking the few yards back to them, "Y/N."

"Y/N," he nodded, "I'm Marshall. My friend Cody here thinks you're very pretty and would like to know if you're free tomorrow night."

"Did he tell you that? Because he hasn't spoken since I stopped to talk to you," you said with a slight smirk on your face.

"Best friend telepathy," he shrugged, "It's a blessing and a curse, really."

"Well, thank you," you smiled, looking at Cody, "Meet me here at 7?" Cody's eyes widened and he nodded quickly, making you laugh quietly. "Good. I'll see you then. It was nice meeting you guys." You smiled again before walking away.

~

The next evening, you arrived at the café about 10 minutes early, a bit surprised to see Cody was already there waiting for you. You went up to the counter to buy your hot chocolate before walking over to the table where Cody was at, playing with his phone.

"Hey, Cody," you said, sitting down in front of him. He jumped slightly, obviously not realizing you had come in. "Sorry I'm early. I tried not to seem too excited, but I guess you kind of are too," you giggled quietly.

"Hi, Y/N," his voice came out as more of a whisper than anything else. He took a breath and let it back out slowly, clearing his throat, "You look very nice."

"Thank you," you smiled, blushing lightly. "You don't look so bad yourself."

The next two hours were spent getting to know each other and laughing about the most random things until it was time for the café to close.

"We should do this again soon," you said with a questioning tone to your voice.

Cody nodded, "Yeah, definitely." He took his phone out of his pocket and handed it to you, "Put your number in. I'll call you tomorrow or something." You gave him your phone as well and you both put your numbers in before giving them back to each other.

"I'll talk to you tomorrow," you smiled. You made the motion to give him a hug, but quickly stopped yourself. "Sorry," you said, a bit embarrassed, "I know how some people get about their personal space."

"Well, I like to think we know each other pretty well now," he grinned, putting his arms around you. You let out a small laugh and hugged him back before you both went your separate ways for the night.

~

Two months later, you and Cody were now dating. He had only been in your apartment once before, but that was when he was picking you up for a date and you had him come inside while you finished getting ready. It wasn't the biggest apartment, but it perfect for you and you were happy that you able to live on your own.

One Friday night, you two were having your weekly movie night. About halfway through the movie, Cody wiggled out from under you.

"I'm gonna go get a drink real quick," he told you.

"Do you want me to pause it?" you asked, sitting up.

"Nah, I'll be fine," he said as he was going into the kitchen.

Not even a minute later, you were startled by a loud sound in the other room, causing you to squeak loudly. You ran into your kitchen and found Cody with his eyes wide, staring at you once he saw you. You noticed he was holding his hand pretty tightly and knew he had cut himself on one of the pieces of broken glass. You ran to your bathroom and grabbed the first aid kit before going back to the kitchen. You tossed the kit on the counter in front of one of the bar stools as you made your way to Cody.

"Are you okay?" you asked, taking him to the sink so you could clean the cut.

"I-I-I'm sorry," he stuttered, "I didn't-"

"Don't worry about the cup," you cut him off, "Are you okay?"

"You're not yelling at me," he mumbled under his breath, ignoring your question.

"Of course I'm not yelling at you," you shook your head, carefully drying his hand and pulling him to the counter so he could sit down, "Why would I yell at you?"

"Because I broke your-"

"Cody," you smiled slightly, "I've got like, 10 other glasses. Losing one isn't going to kill me." You opened your first aid kit and took out the antibiotic ointment and the roll of compress bandages.

You noticed out of the corner of your eye that he was watching you intently, almost as if he was confused as to why you were so calm. Once you finished wrapping his hand up and taping the bandages so they stayed in place, you looked at him again.

"Are you okay?" you repeated, letting go of his hand.

He nodded slowly and you went to go put the first aid kit back in the bathroom. When you came back, you got the broom out of your pantry and began sweeping up the broken glass, still feeling Cody's gaze on you. You threw what was in the dust pan into the trash and put everything away, going back to the counter.

"Are you  _sure_  you're okay?" you asked again, standing in front of him. You felt like a broken record, but you knew he was lying. He just nodded again. "Because I get the feeling you aren't used to people not getting mad at you for things like that." He opened his mouth, but quickly closed it again and you knew you were right. "I'm not trying to get you to talk about your past, Cody," you told him, "I just need you to understand that the things those people may have done or said to you whenever you screwed up weren't right. You are allowed to mess up and I will  _never_  tell you you're wrong for it, okay?"

Cody didn't respond. He just got up and wrapped his arms around your waist tightly, burying his face in your neck. As you hugged him back, you couldn't help but get a bit angry at whoever made him feel like messing up was a bad thing.

~

_inspiration: "Pages & Paragraphs" by Set It Off _


	101. Missing You (Cody Carson)

"Remember the day we met?" your boyfriend asked you as you were laying next to him. It was the one year anniversary since you started dating and neither of you wanted to get out of bed today.

"I try not to," you giggled quietly as he mindlessly traced the visible veins on your forearm.

"I had to work merch after our show that night because Marshall was sick and you came over to the table and I asked you what you wanted and you said..."

"' _Your number would be great,_ '" you shook your head, still embarrassed you even said that.

"And I said..."

"' _Only if you give me yours._ '" You covered your face with your free hand. Cody chuckled and grabbed your hand, pulling it off your face and bringing it to lay across his stomach.

"It embarrasses you now, but if you hadn't done that, we probably wouldn't be here right now."

"I like to think we would be," you said, turning on your side and pushing yourself up against him, "I mean, why would you ever pass up on an opportunity like this?" He smiled, turning his head so he could kiss you. "I still can't believe that actually worked."

"Well, I'm glad it did because I never would have been brave enough to make the first move."

"I rehearsed doing it in front of my mirror all day before I left for the show," you couldn't help but laugh, making him laugh as well.

"Thank you for not chickening out."

"Thank you for not rejecting me," you smiled, kissing his nose. You made a move to get up, but Cody pulled you back down so you were now on top of him.

"You said we weren't leaving this bed today," he pouted.

"That was before I got hungry," you sassed, pushing the hair out of your face.

"What were you thinking?"

"I don't know," you replied, nuzzling your face into his neck, "I kinda feel like having waffles."

"Whoa, making waffles is my end of the relationship."

"And my end of the relationship is?" you asked, propping yourself up on your forearms so you could look at him.

"Staying in bed while I make them for you," he answered, trying his best to maintain a serious expression.

"I don't know if I can do that." He leaned up and kissed you. You laughed quietly, "I think I can do that." He grinned, kissing you again before you rolled off of him and he left the room to go make lunch. He came back a few minutes later to find you were now listening music on your iPod.

"Listening to my band?" he asked, smirking as he pulled a shirt out of the closet and put it on followed by his jacket.

"Hey, just because I'm dating you doesn't mean I'm not allowed to listen to the band anymore," you smiled, "What are you doing?"

"We're out of chocolate chips," he answered, "So I'm going to the store to get some."

"I don't need chocolate chip waffles, babe."

"Who is the waffle expert here?"

"You are," you rolled your eyes, doing everything you could not to smile but knew you were failing miserably.

"Right," he nodded, "And who is the one who decides how they are made?"

"You are."

"Uh-huh. And who is the one that's going to stay in this bed and listen to my songs?"

"I am?"

"Right again," he smiled, leaning down to kiss you. "Do you need anything else while I'm out?" You shook your head and he left.

~

When Cody returned a few minutes later, he felt like something wasn't right, so he tossed the bag of chocolate chips onto the kitchen counter and went back to check on you. He saw you were still sitting on the bed, but you had a sort of blank look on your face and you were biting your inner cheek, something you only did when you were trying not to cry.

"Babe," he said quietly, sitting down beside you, "You okay?" You nodded slowly and instantly knew you were lying. He looked toward the end of the bed and saw your iPod face down. He sighed, "You were reading tweets again, weren't you?"

"I didn't want to!" you exclaimed suddenly, not even attempting to hold in your tears anymore, "But one of my friends messaged me and didn't want to ignore her but then I went to my notifications and I'm sorry!"

"Babe," he repeated, pulling the blanket off of you and pulling you into his lap.

"What did I ever do them?" you asked, more to yourself than to Cody, "Why don't they like me?"

"I don't know," he sighed, not really sure of what else to say.

"I can't take it anymore," you cried into his shirt.

"If you want to leave, you can," he whispered into your hair, "I won't make you stay." You swallowed the lump in your throat and lifted your head off of his shoulder. He took your face in his hands and wiped your cheeks with his thumbs.

"I'm sorry," your voice came out broken.

"It's not your fault," he shook his head, pulling your face to his and kissing you, "I love you too much to let you do this to yourself."

"I love you too, Cody," you whispered, hugging him tightly again.

~

**One year later**

You thought leaving Cody would ease the hate, but if anything, it only made it worse. Although Cody was still just as energetic at shows and loved meeting fans, that could never hide the fact that he just wasn't the same. He didn't smile or laugh nearly as much as he did when he was with you and the fans blamed you for it. It was like you could never win with them. You're either a terrible person for being happy with him or you're a terrible person for him being sad without you.

Obviously, not all the fans hated you. Most of them absolutely adored you and thought of you as someone they could go to for advice. And while those people were the majority of the fans that had ever tweeted you, the ones that didn't like you were the ones that stuck out the most. You knew that this was bound to happen when you and Cody started dating, but you had no idea that some people would go to the lengths they did just to let you know they didn't like you.

You felt like shit, honestly. You hated that you let them get to you and you hated that they won, but most of all, you hated that you left Cody. You knew he loved you and you loved him too. Why should you let people that don't know you get to you? But you did. And after a year, you didn't know if Cody would give you a second chance.

It was just another average day to most people, but to you, it was the one day you wished wouldn't have come around this year. It was what would have been yours and Cody's two year anniversary, but it was now just another day in November. Just another day you would spend doing everything you could to motivate yourself to get out of bed for even the simplest tasks like brushing your teeth or getting food.

Your best friend did all she could to help you cope, but nothing worked. You moved in with Carter after the break up as you really didn't want to have to face Cody every day and act like you were okay. She was your rock though. She did the best she could with keeping you as happy as you could be and you were beyond thankful for her for that.

~

"Y/N!" Carter called out, knocking on your bedroom door. You didn't answer, which she knew meant she was okay to come in. "Will you please go out with me tonight?" You let out a quiet groan in response. "Come on," she pouted, "It's time you leave the apartment for once. You've been locked up in your room for long enough and we haven't gone out together in forever."

You sighed, "What are you doing?"

"A local band is playing a show and I really want to check them out."

"Alright."

Carter grinned widely, "The show is in half an hour, so get ready! I don't want to be late." She left the room, closing the door behind her, letting you get dressed.

You were pulling your favorite shirt out of your closet when one slipped off of it's hanger and landed on your feet. You took in a sharp breath when you realized it was one of Cody's shirts. It was an old black and white stripped t-shirt that he outgrew, but gave to you because he knew you loved it so much. You decided to wear it, somewhat comforted by the fact that even after all this time, it still smelled like him. You paired it with your favorite black skinny jeans and black Converse, putting on your jacket before going to brush your teeth and hair. Once you were all ready, you walked out into the living room where Carter was eagerly waiting.

"Ready?" she asked cheerfully when she saw you. You simply shrugged and you two walked out the door.

~

When you arrived at the venue, you noticed a lot of people were wearing Set It Off shirts. You were unable to speak, truthfully a bit in denial, thinking that there was no way Carter would bring you to one of their shows. She managed to find a spot in the parking lot and pulled into it, quickly getting out. As you walked toward the venue, people would turn to look at you and you could tell they recognized you from the looks on their faces. You finally made it inside and you were immediately met with a site you really didn't need to see.

Cody was sitting at the merch table across the room, elbow on the table with the side of his face in one hand and his phone in the other, absentmindedly staring at the screen. Austin, Zach, Maxx, and Dan noticed you walk in and their eyes widened, but Carter quickly motioned for them to be quiet, not wanting Cody to know you were there.

"Carter..." you said slowly.

"Listen," she said, pulling you out of Cody's sight just in case he looked up, "I know you don't want to see him which is exactly why you need to. He is a train wreck without you, Y/N, and you're a complete mess without him too."

"Carter," your voice broke as you shook your head, "I can't..."

"That doesn't mean you shouldn't," she told you, "You need him and he needs you and anybody who says otherwise doesn't matter. I just want you to be happy, okay? And if that means I have to drag you over there and force you to stay until you realize that you need each other, then that's what I'm going to do."

You took a deep breath as Carter grabbed your hand, peeking around the corner to make sure Cody was still looking at his phone. He, of course, was and she took the opportunity to lead you over to him.

"Marshall sick again?" Carter asked Cody while the other guys just smiled widely at you.

"Yeah," he nodded, not looking up, "What can I get for you?" Carter elbowed your side and moved her hands to your shoulders, moving you in front of her and you knew what she wanted you to do.

"Your number would be great," you said quietly. His thumb suddenly froze, stopping mid-scroll through his Twitter feed and you could tell his heart skipped a beat. He slowly looked up at you and you smiled shyly, barely shrugging your left shoulder.

He cleared his throat quietly as he stood up, "Only if you give me yours." You felt a small smile pull at the corner of your mouth while he walked around the table, now standing in front of you.

You let out a shaky breath and whispered, "I love you, Cody."

He smiled as he pulled you into him, hugging you tightly, "I love you, Y/N." Carter and the guys had gone off to do something else, giving you two some time alone.

"I'm sorry I-"

"Don't be," he cut you off, "It wasn't your fault."

"They're not gonna get to me again," you said as confidently as you could, "I'm not gonna let them."

"I've missed you," he mumbled into your neck. You didn't respond, you simply moved your head slightly, kissing his cheek. You spent the next 5 minutes just standing there, hugging each other. When he finally let go to look at you, he looked down and smiled, "Is that my shirt?"

"No," you shook your head, "It stopped being yours the moment you gave it to me."

"I can't believe you still have it."

"Yeah," you sighed dramatically, shrugging, "It kinda just jumped out of my closet when I was getting dressed today, so I thought I'd wear it. It still smells like you."

"You know what else smells like me?"

"What?"

"Me," he smiled, lifting you up slightly so your feet were no longer touching the ground. You squeaked before you were sent into a fit of giggles. He put you back down and rested his forehead on yours, "I love you."

"I love you," you smiled, putting your hands on his cheeks and pressing your lips against his.


	102. Under the Mistletoe (Michael Clifford)

"Babe, can you come here for a second?" you heard your boyfriend call from the other room.

"I'm kinda busy, Mikey!" you shouted back as you were still helping your mom wash dishes.

"It won't take long, I promise!"

"I'll be right back," you told your mom, sighing.

She simply laughed and went back to the conversation she was having with Michael's mom as you tossed your towel on the counter and trudged out of the room. As you entered the living room, you nearly ran into Michael. You jumped, startled by him and quickly stopped in your tracks.

"What is it, Michael?" you asked him. He shot you a cheesy grin and pointed up. You followed the trail of his finger and saw he was wearing a Santa hat with a piece of mistletoe taped to the end. You couldn't help but laugh, "And that couldn't have waited until I was done?"

He shook his head, "I'm desperate."

"I can tell," you giggled, kissing him.

You pulled back when you heard your 3-year-old nephew shout, " _Ew_!  _Cooties_!" Michael snickered when he saw the evil grin spreading across your face.

"Here," he said, taking the hat off of his head and putting it on yours, "You might need this."

"Thank you," you smirked, fixing the hat as you sang, " _Oh, Connor_!"

"No!" he squeaked, running behind your brother's leg as you chased him across the room. Everyone tried not to laugh when Connor yelped as you swiftly picked him up and he struggled to get out of your arms.

"Why don't you wanna kiss me, Connor?" you pouted.

"Girls are icky!" he replied, scrunching up his face.

"Mommy's a girl and you let her kiss you."

"Mommy's not icky," he shook his head, no longer trying to get out of your arms.

"Can I tell you a secret?" you asked him.

"What?"

"Did you know that you can't get cooties from family?"

"Really?" he asked, his eyes widening.

"Really," you nodded, "So can I have a kiss?"

"What about Mikey?" Connor whispered as if Michael couldn't hear the two of you.

"Mikey doesn't need to know," you whispered back, hearing Michael chuckle. Connor leaned toward you slightly and gave you a kiss. "Thank you," you laughed under your breath, kissing his cheek before putting him back down on the ground and making your way back to Michael.

"Mikey doesn't need to know, huh?" Michael grinned as you took the hat off of your head and gave it back to him.

"I don't know what you're talking about," you smiled innocently, kissing his cheek as you passed him on your way back to the kitchen.

~

"Time for presents!" your mom called out the back door to where you and Michael were outside with all the kids. They all bolted for the door, nearly pushing each other to be the first one inside.

"Hey, be careful!" you shouted after them as Michael carefully pulled you up from where you had been creating a snow angel. You looked down and sighed, "Beautiful."

"Just like you," Michael smiled, kissing your cheek and leading you back into the house. You both took your coats and shoes off and went into the living room to watch everyone open their presents.

You were never really the type of person that liked attention from a larger group of people, so you were relieved that your parents were more than happy to have you, Michael, and Michael's parents over early to exchange the gifts you all had gotten for each other. You and Michael had agreed to get each other one thing this year and wait until you got back home to open them.

The house was filled with children – and even a few adults – squealing over what they had gotten, making you laugh every now and then. After the excitement had died down, you heard Michael's heart start racing which concerned you. You had your head resting on his chest since the moment you walked into the living room and he had been fine up until now.

You tilted your head slightly to look at him, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," he replied, clearing his throat as he let go of you and made his way over to the tree. He reached in toward the middle of the top of the tree and pulled out a tiny box before walking back over to you. "I know we said we would wait until we got home, but I didn't want to wait that long," he explained, giving you the present and retaking his spot behind you. You felt everyone stare at you as you looked at the neatly wrapped box in your hand.

"Open it, Y/N," Michael's dad urged. You glanced at him and saw he was smiling bigger than you had ever seen him smile.

You returned your attention to the box and carefully tore off the wrapping paper. You opened the lid and saw a piece of paper folded a few times. You took it out and put the box on the couch in front of you and unfolded the paper.

"What's it say?" you heard Connor ask just before you finished unfolding.

" _Turn around_?" you read out loud, confused as everyone looked at you with smiles on their faces. "Mikey, what does that-" you said, turning to face him but cutting yourself off when you saw him. Your hands flew up to cover your mouth as you stared down at Michael in shock because he was now down on one knee with a diamond ring between his thumb and index finger.

Michael smiled up at you, "I love you, Y/N. I love you more and more every day and I knew from the moment you agreed to be mine that you were the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with." You felt tears start streaming down your cheeks as you anxiously waited for the four words you'd been waiting to hear since the day you met him. "Will you marry me?"

You let out a quiet sob and moved your hand just enough to whisper so only Michael heard you, "Yes." He let out a visible sigh of relief and reached for your left hand, sliding the ring down your finger as he stood back up.

You didn't even take a second to admire the ring before grabbing Michael's cheeks and pressing your lips against his. By the time you pulled away from Michael, everyone was clapping and yours and Michael's mothers were already in tears as was your father. Your mom rushed over to you and hugged you tightly.

Your dad walked up to Michael and gave him a hug, laughing quietly, "See, kid? Nothing to worry about." You let go of your mom to look at your dad and Michael, giving them both a confused expression.

Michael smiled sheepishly, "I might have dropped by a couple weeks ago while you were out Christmas shopping to ask for their blessing."

" _Their_?" you asked before it clicked and you spun back to face your mom, " _You knew_?"

"Yeah!" she exclaimed, laughing, "And let me tell you, it was  _not_  an easy secret to keep!"

"Y/N!" Audrey, one of your older cousins, squeaked, "Come here, we wanna see the ring!" While you were with everyone else, you saw your dad rest his arm across Michael's shoulders out of the corner of your eye.

"I would say welcome to the family," you heard your dad tell him, "But I think it's safe to say you've been a part of it since the moment we met you."

 


	103. Just Saying (Zach DeWall)

"Y/N!" your best friend Alex squeaked when you walked in the door after a long day of interviews and recording at your record label's office.

"Yeah, Lex?" you replied, taking your jacket off and hanging it up in the closet.

"Come here! You have to see this!"

"What is it?" you asked, plopping down beside her on the couch where she was sitting with her laptop.

"Just watch," she said as she hit play on the video on her screen.

It was a video about a minute long of a guy – Zach – asking you to be his date to his senior prom and you couldn't help but smile. He was quite cute and even though he wasn't asking you in person, it was very obvious he was nervous. The video ended and before Alex could even ask you what you were going to do, you had your phone up to your ear.

"What date it is?" you asked, pointing to the screen.

"May 19th," she answered, still unsure of what you were doing as she heard a muffled voice through the other line of your call.

"Hi, Jen," you smiled when your manager answered her phone, "I have a quick question for you if you've got time."

"What do you need?" she asked.

"I was just wondering if I have plans on the weekend of May 19th."

"You see the video of that boy asking you to his prom?"

"You knew?" you laughed.

"I did," she smiled, "And I've been working to clear that weekend up for you because I knew you'd want to do it."

"Am I clear?" you asked excitedly.

"You are," she told you, "But you'll be double-booked the week leading up to it."

You let out a quiet squeal, "Thank you! And make sure no one tells him, okay? I want to surprise him."

"Will do. I'll call you tomorrow and let you know what times you'll be needed for that week."

"Okay," you smiled, "Thank you!" You hung up and Alex shook her head.

"I knew you'd do it," she laughed quietly, "How are you gonna surprise him?"

"Not sure," you shrugged, "But either way, I have a feeling he's gonna like it."

~

**Three weeks later**

It was finally the day of Zach's prom and you spent the entire afternoon getting ready at the hotel. You flew to Florida two days earlier and met up with a couple of his friends to make sure that your plan worked smoothly. It wasn't going to be anything huge, but it was definitely going to be something he would remember.

Your label wanted to have someone following you around to document the entire thing and you were more than happy to have Alex tag along with a camera. The boy's friends were  _also_  happy to help out with filming as they knew this would be something he would want to look back on.

"So what are we doing right now, Y/N?" Alex asked you, holding a camera in front of you, trying to keep it as steady as she could but since you were in a moving vehicle, it was a difficult task.

You smiled, "We are going to the school to surprise Zach at his prom."

"What's going through your mind right now?"

"A lot of nerves," you laughed, "I'm hoping he's not going to pass out or anything."

"Anything you want to say to him whenever he watches this video?"

"Hi, Zach!" you waved to the camera, "I can't wait to meet you! Please don't pass out on me, but I totally understand if you do. I would probably pass out too if a celebrity showed up at my prom."

"Aw!" Alex sighed dramatically, "This is gonna be like the prom you never got!"

"We went to junior prom, Lex," you laughed again, shaking your head.

"Yeah, but junior prom sucked." You nodded in agreement. " _We're here_!" Alex suddenly squealed, nearly falling over. You took the camera out of her hand before she broke it.

"Do you guys see what I have to deal with?" you asked, "And I  _live_  with her!" Alex let out a sarcastic laugh as she took the camera back and you got out of the car, careful not to catch your dress on anything that could rip it and met with one of Zach's friends at the front door of the school – everyone introducing themselves.

"You ready?" Dan asked as you walked up to him.

"I'm ready," you smiled. He opened the door for you and Alex before leading you to the gym.

"Wait here," he told you when you got to the door. "I'll go let Cody know you're here so he can start recording and then Mr. Garner will go up and you'll know when your cue is."

You nodded and he went into the gym. You watched him go over to one of the tables and immediately saw Cody and sitting beside him, Zach. You thought he was cute when you saw his video, but you wouldn't be the last to admit that he looked a lot cuter in person.

"You think he's cute?" Alex asked when she noticed your smile.

"He's not  _terrible_  to look at," you giggled, pushing the camera away from where she was holding it two inches in front of your face.

"You remember he's gonna see this, right?" she snickered. You looked straight into the camera lens.

"Just in case I forget to tell you in a few minutes," you said, "You look very handsome."

She turned the camera around and whispered as if you couldn't hear her, "She's not seeing anybody. Just saying." You shook your head before going back to listening in on what was going on in the gym.

The music had stopped playing and the principal went up on stage. Zach looked up, confused as to what was going on, but luckily didn't see you standing at the door. You quickly moved to the other side of the door so that just in case he did happen to look over, he wouldn't know you were there.

"We have a very special guest tonight," Mr. Garner said into the microphone, "I'm sure all of you know who she is and she's here for to sing us one of her songs." He looked over at you and motioned for you to walk in as he announced, "Please welcome Y/N Y/L/N!"

You began walking to the stage with Alex following close behind, seeing Zach look at Dan and Cody in shock out of the corner of your eye. You smiled as the room filled with cheers and squeals of excitement. You got up on stage and Mr. Garner gave you a quick hug before letting you take over the microphone while Alex stayed off to the side.

"Hi!" you waved to crowd of people who were now staring at you with smiles on their faces, "For those of you who don't know who I am, my name is Y/N and I am a singer/songwriter from California. They didn't actually tell me that I was going to sing anything tonight, so is there anything you guys want to hear?"

You heard a few of your song names being shouted out before you could clearly hear Dan and Cody yell the same one. You looked over at them and by the look on Zach's face, it was very obvious that it was his favorite. You smiled slightly as Mr. Garner quickly handed you a guitar and you sang the song, watching while everyone on the dance floor danced and sang along.

Once the song was over, Mr. Garner came back for the guitar and you began talking to everyone again.

"So, I think it's pretty obvious that everyone is probably wondering why I'm here," you said, receiving a good amount of curious nods and whispered agreements. "About a month ago, I saw this video of a guy asking me to be his prom date and I've always wanted to surprise someone like this, so I couldn't say no. But anyway, I never got to go to my own senior prom, so I'm hoping you guys know how to party." A few people cheered and you laughed, "I guess I'll end there then. Thank you guys for having me here tonight." You walked off stage and over to Alex.

"Come on! Let's go meet Zach!" she chirped and you followed her over to the table he was now standing at.

As you and Alex were making your way up behind Zach, you saw there was a guy standing with him that wasn't Dan or Cody and it became very clear that he wasn't one of his friends.

"I can't believe you  _actually_  asked her," the guy scoffed.

"How do you know she was talking about me?" Zach asked quietly, shifting uncomfortably on his feet.

"Only  _you_  would be stupid enough to ask a famous person to prom," he shook his head, "Why'd you ask her, huh? Every other girl you ask say no?" You grabbed Alex's arm just before she made it over to them and pulled her behind you so she didn't do anything she would regret.

"It worked, didn't it?" you asked, walking up beside Zach, hearing his breath hitch quietly.

" _Why_?" he laughed, "He's such a loser and you're... _you_."

"I don't believe in judging someone I don't know," you shrugged. "I will, however, make an exception in this case by saying that people like you are the reason I don't miss high school and whether you like it or not, I'm here because  _Zach_  asked me to be his date. And  _he_  is who I'm spending tonight with." The guy let out a low groan before saving the argument and simply walking away.

"Thank you," Zach said, clearing his throat.

You turned to him, "How much do you want to bet he's going to post online about how rude I am later?"

"Oh, I  _know_  he's going to," he shook his head, "I can't believe you actually came."

"Like I said," you shrugged, smiling, "I've always wanted to surprise someone like this."

"Well, you definitely did," he told you under his breath.

" _Zach_!" Alex squeaked, putting the camera near his face, " _How do you feel_?"

"Not  _you_  too!" he chuckled, pushing her hand away, "Cody has been doing that to me for the past 10 minutes!"

"Lex, can you maybe..." you said, motioning away from you and Zach.

"But I-"

" _Alexandria_ ," you stated, making her eyes widen at hearing you use her full name – something you rarely ever did.

"I'll be over there if you need me," she said, looking at you, "Don't forget to tell him you think he's cute." She trotted away, leaving you more nervous than you were before.

Zach gave you a look and you sighed, "I didn't word it exactly like that, but..."

"How  _did_  you word it?" he asked nervously.

You smiled slightly, "You look very handsome tonight." He looked down, but smiled, and you quickly added, "Well, I'm sure you look handsome  _every day_ , but I've only seen you twice. I mean, you looked very handsome in that video too, but... I'm just gonna stop talking now." His cheeks turned a very faint red as a slow song started playing.

"Do you-" he cleared his throat, "Would you like to...um...dance?"

You smiled, grabbing his hand and pulling him to the dance floor. He hesitated on putting his hands on your waist, so you took his wrists and put them there yourself before putting your arms around his neck.

"You must have been pretty used to this in school, huh?" he asked quietly, looking around at all the people watching the two of you, "People always looking at you like you were the prettiest girl they've ever seen and then looking at whoever you were with and wondering how they got so lucky."

You chuckled, shaking your head, "I don't know what kind of high school  _you_  think I went to, but that is definitely not how  _I_  remember it."

"What do you mean?"

"I was never one of the popular girls. No one even looked  _twice_  at me," you shrugged, "I didn't really have any friends either – the only reason I had a friend at all is because Alex and I have known each other since kindergarten. I was a  _nobody_  before I got my record deal. I still think of myself as a nobody, honestly; I'm just a nobody people pay attention to now."

"Well, you're definitely not a  _nobody_ ," Zach told you, "And I'll bet all those people are kicking themselves right now for not realizing how amazing you are sooner."

"Thank you," you smiled, blushing slightly, "I rarely ever meet someone – a guy especially – that doesn't want something out of me because of the fame."

"Oh, no," he shook his head, "That's all I want out of this too. Do you know how  _famous_  I'm gonna be after tonight? I might as well pack my bags and move to Hollywood right now."

"Well, I'm glad I could help jump-start your career," you laughed.

"Don't worry. You'll be the first one I mention in all my acceptance speeches."

Alex quickly came over to you and Zach as the song ended.

"Y/N," she told you, "Jen just called. She said you've got a radio thing in the morning and she wants you on the next flight home."

"But that wasn't supposed to be until Monday," you said, a bit of disappointment in your voice as you let go of Zach, "I wasn't supposed to leave until tomorrow afternoon."

She shrugged, "I just deliver the messages, babe. Give Zach your number and let's go." You narrowed your eyes at her and she rolled her own at you, "Like you weren't going to anyway. Come on. Jen's gonna be pissed if we miss our flight."

Your eyes widened at the thought of Jen getting mad at you. She was a very laid-back woman – you were pretty sure she didn't even have a rude bone in her  _body_  – but when she got mad, she was absolutely  _terrifying_. The rare times she  _did_  get angry, however, were never directed toward you and you wanted to  _keep it_  that way.

You held your hand out to Zach and stated, "Phone." He quickly took his phone out of his pocket and handed it to you. "I swear to God," you told him as you put your number in, "If you leak my number, I'll kill you." A small smile began pulling at the corner of his mouth and he nodded as you gave him his phone back.

"You're smiling," Alex commented, "But she will."

"Understood," he nodded again.

"Thank you for tonight," you said, giving him a hug, "I had a lot of fun."

"Thank you for not ignoring my video," he chuckled. You kissed his cheek before Alex grabbed your hand and pulled you out of the gym.

Just before you were out of hearing range, you heard Dan and Cody go up to Zach and start teasing him.


	104. Sparks Fly (Maxx Danziger)

**Warning: Brief moment of harassment**

~

"Can I just have like, a Coke or something?" you asked the bartender as you sat down at the bar.

"It's New Year's Eve," he said, putting a glass of Coke in front of you, "Aren't you gonna have even a little fun?"

You were currently in a club overlooking Times Square in New York City, waiting for the ball to drop. You hadn't planned on doing anything tonight since you've never really been the partying type, but when your friends asked you to be their ride home, you couldn't say no. You wanted them to get home safe and if that meant going out with them, that's what you were going to do.

There was a little less than 20 minutes until midnight and you were hoping they would would want to leave not long after that because honestly, all you wanted to do was go to bed.

"How much fun can the designated driver  _really_  have?" you sighed, taking a sip of your drink, "I'm not much of a drinker anyway."

He chuckled, "Say no more. If you need anything else, let me know."

"Thank you," you smiled and he went about serving the other people at the bar.

~

About 15 minutes later, you were still sitting at the bar, minding your own business as you switched between scrolling through your Facebook and Twitter feeds on your phone, when you were interrupted by a man who clearly had too many drinks.

"What's a pretty girl like you doing here alone?" he slurred, pulling the bar stool next to you as close to you as he could get it and sitting down.

You moved away cautiously, "I'm not."

"Doesn't look like anyone else is around to me," he smirked. Your heart began beating a mile a minute upon realizing that he wasn't going to be leaving you alone any time soon.

"Just because no one is around  _right now_  doesn't mean I'm here alone," you said as calmly as you could.

"Why don't we go somewhere more quiet?" he mumbled, putting his hand on your thigh. You squeaked quietly, pushing his hand off, but before you could say anything, another guy walked over to you.

"Hey, babe," he said, putting his arm around your waist, "What's going on here?"

"Oh," the man said in a seemingly disgusted tone, "You have a boyfriend." You looked at the arm around you, then the guy the arm belonged to. He was looking at the man with a glare and you knew he was just trying to get him to leave you alone.

"Uh, y-yes," you stuttered, "I-I do." The man scoffed and walked away. The guy who came to help removed his arm from your waist but stayed with you.

"You okay?" he asked, sitting beside you. You nodded slowly, your heart still pounding. "I would leave, but I'm sure once he sees you alone again, he's gonna come back."

"Thank you," you said quietly.

"You're welcome," he smiled, "So when were you planning on leaving?"

You shrugged, "I thought about it just before that guy came over here, but there are only a few minutes left until midnight and I didn't want to ring in the new year alone again. Plus my friends needed a designated driver."

"You've never been to a New Year's Eve party before?" he asked, genuinely shocked. You shook your head. "What have you been  _doing_  with your life?!"

"Not living it, apparently," you laughed quietly.

"Come on, there must be  _something_  you do for New Year's." You thought for a moment.

"Does burying myself under three layers of blankets and eating my loneliness count as doing something for New Year's?" you asked with an innocent smile.

"No," he laughed, "It doesn't."

"I'm not a partier," you shrugged, "I just came to make sure my friends get home safely." He looked at his phone and looked back up at you, pausing for a moment.

"Can I show you something?" he finally asked.

"That depends..." you said slowly.

He chuckled, "It's nothing bad, I promise." He held out his hand to you and you took it. He pulled you up and led you to a set of stairs. "I'm Maxx, by the way," he told you as he opened the door to the roof.

"Y/N," you smiled. Once you were on the roof, you were in awe of just how beautiful the city looked. " _Wow_ ," you mumbled under your breath, causing Maxx to smile.

"Told you it wasn't anything bad," he said, taking you to the edge of the roof. There was less than two minutes until the ball dropped and hundreds of people were crowding the streets below to watch it, but you now had the perfect view.

You watched as people held onto whomever they were with, randomly saying, "You know what I don't get?" When Maxx didn't say anything, you continued, "The whole  _New Year's kiss_  thing."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't understand it," you shrugged, "It's like, ' _hey, it's the new year, we should make out for a couple minutes_.' But why? Can't you make out with them all the time?"

"You've never had a New Year's kiss, have you?" he chuckled, shaking his head.

"That's not the point," you raised your eyebrows at him, "What's so special about kissing on  _New Year's_?"

"I don't know," he sighed, leaning against the concrete ledge, "It's a good way to start a new year, I guess."

You were both brought out of your conversation when you heard the crowd below you start counting down. As they hit one and started cheering, Maxx turned to you.

"How do you feel about kissing someone you just met?" he asked.

"I feel like I'm about to find out," you replied. He leaned toward you, pressing his lips to yours slightly, and it made every part of your body weak. "Maxx..." you muttered as he moved away, "I understand why people kiss on New Year's now." He let out a quiet laugh before you pulled him back, kissing him again.


	105. Thank Me Later (Ashton Irwin)

You were browsing the candy aisle of the store when you felt something tug on the hem of your shirt. You looked over and saw a young boy smiling up at you. You raised your eyebrows in confusion after a few more seconds of him not saying anything.

"Can I help you with something?" you asked slowly, putting the candy bar you were holding back on the shelf.

"I seem to have misplaced my brother," he answered, "Can you help me look for him?"

"Sure," you said, although you were a little confused as to why he wasn't freaking out that he lost him, "What's he look like?"

He pointed at your 5 Seconds of Summer shirt, "He looks like their drummer."

"Okay then," you shrugged, "Shouldn't be _too hard_ finding someone that looks like Ashton Irwin. Where did you last see him?"

"In the music section," he sighed, taking your hand as you began leading him back that way.

You smiled slightly, "It sounds to me like you just got bored and left him there rather than you lost him."

"I doubt he's even  _noticed_  I'm gone."

"Do you have any other shopping you need to do before you get to him? Because he's probably not gonna let you leave his side again if he  _has_  noticed."

"Nah," he shook his head, "He'll thank me for leaving later." You gave him a look before you shrugged it off.

As you got closer to the entertainment section of the store, you saw a girl that looked only a little bit younger than you rush out of an aisle not far away.

"Ashton!" she squeaked, "I found him!" You watch in a mixture of shock and confusion as Ashton Irwin came running over to you.

"Oh, right," you mumbled, "That's Lauren... You're Harry... And your brother...is Ashton... It makes sense now."

" _Does it_?" Harry smiled, letting go of your hand.

You shook your head for a moment, "Not  _at all_."

" _Harry_!" Ashton exclaimed, pulling his younger brother into a hug, "Don't  _ever_  do that to me again! What were you  _thinking_?!"

"Well,  _you_  weren't gonna go talk to her, so I had to bring her to you  _somehow_ ," Harry stated.

"And the  _her_  in this situation..." you trailed off, causing Ashton to look at you, "...would be  _me_ , right?" Harry nodded. "And the  _you_...is  _Ashton Irwin_...?" He nodded again. "This is officially the weirdest day of my life." You began slowly backing away. "Anyway, I'm glad I could help you relocate your brother, but the candy aisle is still calling my name. Bye," you chirped, quickly turning around and rushing back to the aisle you were just in.

While you were staring blankly at the shelf full of candy, someone walked up beside you.

"Hey," Ashton smiled slightly, "Sorry about my brother. He's not usually one to wander off like that, but thank you for not kidnapping him or anything."

"No problem," you couldn't help but let out a quiet laugh.

"So, um, about what he said a couple minutes ago..." He seemed to be a bit nervous now that his brother and sister weren't standing there. "Lauren saw you walking in and noticed you wearing one of our shirts and when I looked over at you, I kinda forgot how to breathe, so I guess Harry decided to take it upon himself to introduce us."

You felt a smile start pulling at the corners of your mouth, "You forgot how to breathe?" He cleared his throat nervously and nodded, looking down. You paused, taking a moment to realize this was actually happening, before you said, "I'm Y/N, by the way." He quickly looked back at you and smiled as Lauren and Harry walked over.

"You ask her out yet, Ash?" Harry asked.

" _Harry_!" Ashton exclaimed, beginning to turn a light shade of red.

" _What_?!" he replied defensively, "That's what you  _said_  you were gonna do!"

"Alright, that's enough," Ashton said, covering his brother's mouth with the palm of his hand. You and Lauren looked at each other, trying not to laugh.

"You know, Ashton," you let out a quiet sigh, "You should really consider getting rid of all your friends and just taking your brother everywhere as your wing man."

"Yeah," Lauren giggled quietly, "If  _you_  don't ask her out,  _Harry_  might." Harry simply nodded in agreement.

Ashton rolled his eyes, "Can you guys maybe...you know... _go away_  for a minute?"

"One minute, Ash," Harry said as he and Lauren walked away, "If you don't ask her out, she's  _mine_." You covered your mouth with your hand as you spun back to face the shelf to keep yourself from laughing too loudly.

"I'm gonna kill him," he mumbled under his breath.

"I'm gonna say yes to one of you," you shrugged, not looking at him, "And I would prefer if it was the one  _over_  18." He hesitated as you looked behind him. "And you might want to hurry because it looks to me like the competition is coming back a little  _earlier_  than he said he would."

Ashton sighed and gave you a shy smile, "Would you like to go out with me sometime?"

"I would love to," you grinned.

" _Dang it_ ," Harry sighed in defeat.

"Don't worry, Harry," you laughed lightly, "If Ashton and I don't work out, I'm all yours." You and Ashton quickly exchanged numbers before you grabbed a candy bar off of the shelf. "I hate to cut this meeting short, but if I'm late to lunch, my mom will never let me hear the end of it. I'll talk to you later, Ashton," you said before trotting away.

" _You're welcome_ ," you heard Harry tell Ashton just before you were out of hearing range.

 


	106. Just Friends (Ryan Follese)

You were on your way out of your apartment when you heard groaning coming from down the hall where the stairs were. When you peeked around the corner, you saw a guy maybe a little older than you struggling to push a box up the stairs.

"Do you need help?" you asked, making him jump and stare at you. He sighed and nodded. You both lifted the box off of the stairs and you began walking backwards. "Where to?"

"That one," he replied once you were out of the stairwell, pointing to the apartment door across from yours.

"Oh, so  _you're_  my new neighbor," you smiled, opening the door, "I'm Y/N, by the way."

"Ryan," he chuckled as you put the box down on the floor.

You ended up helping him move the rest of his stuff in which wasn't a problem for you since it didn't take that long and you were sure the friend you were meeting for lunch would understand why you were a few minutes late.

"Thank you so much," Ryan sighed, putting the last box down on his kitchen counter, "You're the only one who offered to help me move in."

"No problem," you smiled, "I didn't have anyone help me, so I know how annoying it is to be the only one bringing stuff up three flights of stairs."

"I really owe you though," he insisted, "If you ever need anything, let me know."

"I will," you smiled again, heading out of his apartment, "It was nice meeting you, Ryan."

He sighed again, and even though you were already gone, he quietly said, "It was nice meeting you too, Y/N."

~

A few weeks had passed since then and you were currently having an internal debate as you stared down at the card in your hand before putting it down on the counter and walking out of your apartment. You crossed the hallway, coming to a stop at Ryan's door. You knocked a couple times and waited for him to answer.

As soon as Ryan pulled the door open, you began talking.

"Remember a couple months ago how you said you owed me for helping you move in?" you asked him.

He nodded slowly, "Yeah..."

"Well, I finally thought of a way you can pay me back."

"How?"

"My ex-boyfriend is getting married this weekend. I can't be a  _dick_  and not accept his invitation, but I obviously can't go  _alone_ , so I need you to be my date."

He cleared his throat nervously, "You want  _me_  to be your date?"

"Just for a day," you nodded, "Then we can go back to being acquaintances who live across the hall from each other."

"Um... Sure, I'm pretty sure I'm free this weekend."

" _Thank you_!" you squeaked happily, "You're really saving my life here. The wedding is Saturday at 3:30." Ryan nodded and you smiled, "Thank you again. I'll see you later!" He watched as you trotted back into your apartment and closed your door behind you, sighing as he closed his own.

~

That Saturday, as you were getting ready for the wedding, you heard a knock on your door. You were still curling your hair, so you rushed to answer it. You opened it to find Ryan standing there looking incredibly nervous.

"Well, don't  _you_  clean up nicely?" you smiled as you moved out of the way to let him in. He blushed lightly, but you didn't notice as you were closing the door behind him. "I'm almost finished with my hair and then we can go," you told him, going back to your bathroom, leaving Ryan to look around at the photos hanging on your living room wall for a couple minutes. "Ready?" you asked as you hurried back out of the bathroom. Ryan nodded and you set off for the property where the wedding was being held.

Once you arrived, you immediately took in how beautiful the setup looked. There were two groups of white wooden chairs on either side of the makeshift aisle overlooking a small lake as well as a refreshment table not far away.

As you were admiring the place, you heard someone say your name behind you.

You spun around to see your ex walking toward you with a huge smile on his face, "I didn't think you would actually come!"

"Well, you  _did_  invite me, Liam," you smiled, giving him a hug.

"I suppose I did, didn't I?" he chuckled, "You look amazing, by the way." You thanked him as he looked at Ryan, "Is this your boyfriend?"

"Oh, no," you shook your head, suddenly remembering Ryan was even there, "This is my friend, Ryan. Ryan, this is Liam." Ryan smiled politely, shaking Liam's hand.

" _Right_ ," Liam raised his eyebrows with a slight smirk on his face, " _Friend_."

Ryan cleared his throat, "I'm gonna go get a drink. Do you want one?"

"No, I'm alright," you shook your head, "Thank you." He rushed over to the refreshment table, leaving you with Liam.

"So," Liam started, looking at Ryan, "Just a  _friend_ , huh?"

"Just a friend," you repeated, nodding.

"Forgive me for meddling in your love life, but anyone who looks at someone like  _that_  isn't ' _just a friend_ '," he told you.

"How does he look at me?" you asked, giving Liam a confused expression.

"The same way I used to," he smiled slightly, "All I'm saying is you've been focused on finding ' _the one_ ' since before I met you, but I think ' _the one_ ' may have found you  _first_." You bit your inner cheek, looking over at Ryan as Liam continued, "Anyway, I hope you guys stay for the reception. Rosie's been so excited to see you ever since you  _RSVP_ -ed."

"We will," you said quietly.

"Good!" he grinned, "I'll see you later." Liam walked away, leaving you with your racing thoughts.

~

Throughout the ceremony, you were understandably distracted. Although you and Liam remained friends, he was whom you considered to be your first love and you never thought you would find something like that again after your breakup. But sitting there, watching him being married to the love of his life, was kind of like a reality check for you.

You and Liam didn't work out – there was no question about that; You both simply came to realize that you weren't the ones for each other. And even though it had been nearly three years since then, you hadn't even  _tried_  dating again. You had been so focused on graduating college and managing living on your own, dating hadn't even  _crossed your mind_.

Before you knew it, everyone was clapping as the bride and groom shared their first kiss as a married couple and made their way back down the aisle. After the maid of honor and best man left the alter, everyone left to go to where the reception was being held on the other side of the property.

After having the wedding cake, it was time for Liam and Rosie to dance. Once they were finished, guests began going to the dance floor.

When another slow song came on, you felt Ryan poke your upper arm.

You looked up at him and he said, "Do you want to dance?"

"Sure," you nodded. He stood up and offered his hand to you. You took it and he pulled you over to the dance floor.

"Y/N," he said, bringing you out of your daydream once again, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, Ryan," you replied, "I'm fine." He let out a quiet sigh and you could sense a little hesitation in it.

"I don't know how to say this, so I'm just gonna  _say it_ ," he said before you could say anything, "You know how you said we would go back to being acquaintances that lived across the hall from each other after today?" You nodded slowly, confused as to where he was going with his question. "Well, I've been thinking a lot about that the past week and I'm not so sure I  _want to be_."

"So you're saying you want to go to pretending we don't know each other...?" you asked, the confusion in your tone very obvious.

"Kind of the  _opposite_ , actually," he responded nervously, "I think you're very pretty and I would love to get to know you better." You felt your face starting to get hot and you couldn't stop the smile from pulling at the corners of your mouth, so you put your forehead on Ryan's shoulder. "So is that a yes or...?" he trailed off although he already knew the answer; He saw your smile before you could hide it. You picked your head back up and nodded.

"I would love that too, Ryan," you said shakily – amazed at how nervous someone could make you feel.

 


	107. I'm Yours (Set It Off)

 

**Cody**

"Please hurry," you jokingly begged, "You know you can't leave me alone in a store like this. It's like leaving a kid in a candy store and expecting them to have even the  _slightest bit_  of self-control."

"Sorry, babe," Cody chuckled and you could just see him shaking his head, "Practice ran a little late. I'll be 5 minutes at the most."

"You're lucky I love you," you sighed dramatically, "Tell the guys I said hi."

"I know," he smiled, "I will. See you in a few minutes." The line went quiet when he hung up, leaving you to browse the store while attempting to keep yourself from buying anything.

"Hello," you heard a guy say beside you. You looked over and smiled politely at him.

"Hi," you said, going back to what you were doing.

"What's a pretty girl like you doing out by herself?"

"I'm just waiting for my boyfriend to get here."

"What do you say we get out of here and go get some coffee?" he asked, blatantly ignoring you.

"I just said I have a boyfriend," you stated as firmly as you could despite the fact that you were a nervous wreck, starting to walk away.

"I don't see him anywhere," the guy smirked, grabbing your wrist and held it tightly so you couldn't leave.

" _Hey_!" you exclaimed.

You knew you wouldn't be able to wiggle out of his grip, so all you could do was hope Cody was the next person to walk through the door. You heard the bell at the top of the door go off and waited for what seemed like an eternity until you were able to breath a sigh of relief at hearing your boyfriend's voice coming from behind you.

"Would you mind letting go of my girlfriend?" Cody asked the guy through clenched teeth.

"Sorry, man," he replied, immediately releasing your wrist, "She was all over me. I didn't know she had a boyfriend."

"I told you I have a boyfriend  _twice_!" you squeaked as Cody grabbed your wrist and started pulling you out of the store. "Cody," you said, but received no response. You repeated his name again, but he wasn't paying attention.

Cody looked beyond upset and you weren't sure whether or not he blamed you for what had happened to you or himself for not getting there sooner. He was squeezing your wrist pretty hard and it didn't help that it was the same one that guy was just holding onto either.

"Cody," you whimpered, "You're hurting me." His expression immediately softened and he spun around, wrapping his arms around you tightly. You were a bit confused – understandably – but hugged him back anyway. "You  _do_  know I wasn't ' _all over him_ ,' right?" you asked carefully.

He nodded, mumbling into your neck, "I didn't mean to hurt you."

"I know," you said, moving your head so you could kiss his cheek.

He let out a quiet sigh, "If I had just been there  _on time_ , this wouldn't have happened."

"Hey," you whispered, pushing his shoulders back so you could look at him, "I'm yours and some douchebag that doesn't respect the fact that I told him that isn't going to change it, got it? Besides, it's not your fault I'm ridiculously good looking." He finally cracked a smile.

"I hate how you find humor in situations like this," he muttered.

You shook your head and grinned, "No, you don't."

~

**Zach**

"What are you doing tonight?" your best friend asked you as you walked back into your living room with a bag of chips.

"I dunno," you answered, sitting yourself on his lap, "Zach and I don't really go out much anymore."

"Why not?" he asked, pausing the video game he was playing to open the bag and rest it on your lap so the two of you could start eating them.

You shrugged, "He's always so busy with band stuff and when he  _is_  home, he's always sleeping."

"Like now?" he asked, making you chuckle and nod. "Why don't you and I do something then? Just the two of us. It'll be like old times."

"Maxx," you laughed, "We've only known each other for two years. How many  _old times_  can there  _possibly_  be?"

"You know, ever since you went on Warped with us over the summer, you've been acting like a completely different person," he sighed dramatically, "Fame has changed you, Y/N."

"Whatever," you smiled, rolling your eyes, "What do you want to do?"

"I say we do whatever life leads us to do. And if life leads us to the pier, then so be it."

"Right," you shook your head, "I'll go get my shoes and then we can leave."

You quietly went into your bedroom, careful not to wake Zach up, slipping on your Converse and brushing your teeth to get all the pieces of chip that may have gotten stuck before going back to the other room. You left Zach a note on the kitchen counter about where you were and who you were with so he didn't worry in case he woke up while you were still out and you and Maxx left.

~

A few hours later, it was now around 9pm and Maxx had just dropped you off back home. You trotted up the two flights of stairs to get to your apartment. Once you got inside, you locked the door behind you and went to put your bag back on its usual spot on the counter. You were startled to see Zach standing there, leaning against the counter.

"Hey," you smiled, making him jump as he hadn't heard you come in, "I thought you would still be in bed."

"Got hungry," he shrugged.

"Do you want me to make anything for you?" He shook his head. You tilted your head, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," he mumbled.

"See, I would believe you if I didn't know you better than that," you said, hopping up and sitting on the counter next to him. "Come on. What's wrong?" He shrugged again, moving away from the counter, but you were quick to wrap your legs around his waist and keep him there. He raised his eyebrows at you, but you simply shook your head, "You are not leaving this spot until you tell me what's wrong." He let out a quiet sigh.

"Do I really not do anything with you anymore?" he asked, playing with the hem of your shirt.

"What are you-"

"Earlier," he said, "You told Maxx that we don't go out much anymore because I'm always working or tired."

"You heard that?" you asked guiltily. He nodded slightly. "I'm not unhappy with the way things are if that's what you're worried about," you said, "I just miss spending time with you without the band. And I should have told  _you_  that and not someone else and I'm sorry." He went quiet again for a moment and you knew something else was still bothering him. "Zach-"

He cut you off again, already knowing what you were going to say, "You were sitting on Maxx's lap again."

"And?"

"And I don't like when you do that," he muttered.

"Why not?" you questioned, "I do it all the time and you've never said anything." He bit his inner cheek. You smiled slightly, "Zach, you're not seriously telling me you're  _jealous_ , are you?" He looked down. "Babe," you said, taking his face in your hands and making him look back up at you, "I am  _yours_ , okay? Not his. If it makes you feel better, I won't sit on his lap anymore." He nodded slowly and you leaned down to kiss him. "I know too much about him to even consider dating him anyway," you said, earning a laugh and a push to the shoulder from your boyfriend.

~

**Dan**

"What have you been up to today?" your roommate asked when you sat down in front of him at the café. You had been out all morning with some other friends and you weren't quite ready to be cooped back up in your apartment, so you and Dan decided to meet at your favorite café for a late lunch.

"You already know what I've been up to today," you giggled, putting your bag in your lap.

"If I knew you had a date, we could have rescheduled."

"The only date I have today is with you," you shrugged.

"So who was that guy you were talking to outside?"

"No one," you answered rather quickly.

"' _No one_ ' as in you accidentally bumped into each other and were briefly apologizing or ' _no one_ ' as in you don't wanna tell me?" Dan smirked, raising his eyebrows at you.

You rolled your eyes, "Fine; I  _do_  have a date with him, but it isn't until tomorrow."

"And when were you planning on  _telling me_  about him?" he sighed dramatically, "How am I supposed to give the intimidating best friend speech if you're sneaking around behind my back?"

"Calm down," you laughed loudly, "I only just met him a couple hours ago. Tomorrow is our first date. You don't get to meet him until at least the third because I need the first and second to decide whether or not I see it going anywhere."

"A girl's mind is a strange place."

"You know it," you winked.

~

**Two weeks later**

"So how are things with you and that Mason guy?" Dan asked as you were hanging out at your place.

The two of you were currently lying on the living room floor, not doing much of anything really. There was no logical explanation as to why you decided to lie on the floor and neither of you even suggested it – you just laid down.

"Pretty good," you said happily, "Our third date is tonight."

" _Ah_!" he exclaimed, "So I  _finally_  get to meet him!"

"Yes, all your hopes and dreams are finally coming true," you teased.

"Excuse you," he said, poking your stomach. You squeaked, your eyes immediately widening as an evil grin started pulling at the corners of his mouth.

" _Daniel_ ," you warned in the most intimidating voice you could muster, " _Don't you dare_."

You made your best attempt at escaping by trying to crawl far enough away so that you could get up without him pulling you back down, but you were too slow. He grabbed your waist and pulled you back, beginning to tickle your sides. You let out a short scream before you started laughing so hard, there were tears running down your cheek.

"Danny!" you squealed, "I can't breathe!"

"I'm sorry, could you repeat that?" he replied, still tickling you, "I'm having trouble understanding you."

" _Daniel_!" you laughed. Just then, there was a knock on the door.

"Saved by the bell," Dan sighed, finally letting go of you.

"You're gonna kill me one of these days," you giggled quietly, taking a moment to catch your breath while he got up to answer the door.

"Don't worry," he said, "The eulogy I give at your funeral will be as beautiful as I am." You rolled your eyes as he pulled the door open. " _Y/N_!" he sang, " _Prince Charming_  has arrived for you!"

" _Very funny_ ," you said, getting up and going over to stand beside him. "Hi, Mason," you smiled.

"Hi, Y/N," he returned the gesture, switching his gaze between you and Dan.

"Oh!" you squeaked, "Mason, this is my roommate Dan. Dan, this is Mason." The two men shook hands and you looked back at Mason, "Ready to go?" You quickly linked your arm with Mason's and began pulling him toward the stairs.

"Hey!" you heard Dan call behind you, "What about that intimidating best friend speech I was supposed to give him?!"

"Sorry, man," you shrugged, "Maybe next time."

Just before you were out of hearing range, you heard him say to himself, " _Should've seen that coming_."

~

The date was going really well and you were having a lot of fun. You and Mason didn't do anything too spectacular – he just took you to dinner at your favorite restaurant – and you spent that time getting to know each other some more.

On the drive back to your place, however, was when things started going downhill.

"So, uh, your roommate..." Mason started, "He seems...nice."

"He is," you smiled, "I think you guys are gonna get along really well."

"Yeah... I think you could have warned me about the fact that your roommate is a guy though..."

"Why?" you asked, looking over at him and tilting your head.

"I just think it's weird that you're living with a guy."

"Did you think I was talking about a  _girl_  when I told you about him? Why is it weird? A lot of people live with guys."

"I'm just concerned-"

"Concerned about  _what_?" you cut him off, doing everything you could to keep your cool, "That something is going on between us? If there was, I wouldn't have told you about him in the first place and I wouldn't have introduced you to him earlier. If I was going to cheat on someone, I wouldn't be that stupid about it."

" _Whoa_ ," he said defensively as he pulled into your apartment building's parking lot, "I'm not saying you would cheat."

"Yes, you are! There's nothing else you  _could_   _be_  saying right now! You're not worried about what habits I may have picked up from him or whether or not I still do the dishes or laundry or clean the place or  _whatever_ ; You're worried about whether we've ever slept together or not and let me tell you right now: Even if we  _have_ , it would be none of your damn business." You let out a breath as you got out of the car before he could say anything else.

Mason rolled the window down, "So you're telling me that you  _wouldn't_  think the same thing if you were in my shoes?"

You leaned down to look at him, "No, I wouldn't, because if someone tells me nothing is going on,  _I trust them_." You turned back to walk away before stopping, "Oh, and Mason." He looked up at you. " _Don't call me_."

You sighed as you made your way inside to the building, the sound of Mason driving away ringing in your ears. You closed your front door behind you and didn't even bother taking off your shoes and jacket before throwing yourself onto the living room couch.

A few minutes later, Dan emerged from the hallway and smiled at seeing you.

"Hey!" he said, coming into the room, "How did your date go?" You simply looked at him and grunted, grabbing a pillow and putting it over your face. "Wow," he said, sitting beside you, " _That bad_? What happened?"

"He said he was concerned about my roommate being a guy," you mumbled, bringing the pillow to your lap and hugging it. Dan took the pillow from you, making you look at him. He opened his arms and you repositioned yourself so you could lay your head on his chest as he hugged you tightly.

"Did he think you were referring to a  _girl_  when you mentioned you had a roommate?" he asked.

" _That's what I said_!" you exclaimed, your voice breaking a bit. Even though you had only been on three dates with this guy, you really thought you saw it going somewhere with him and you were understandably hurt.

"What did you say after that?"

You shrugged, "I just said nothing was going on and never would, but it was pretty obvious he didn't believe me, so I told him not to call me and then he left."

He cleared his throat nervously, "So you don't think anything would ever happen between us then, huh?"

"Do  _you_...?" you asked slowly, lifting your head up to look at him.

"I don't know..." he replied, keeping his eyes on anything but you, "I won't say I don't think about it sometimes though."

"How often is ' _sometimes_ '?"

"Slightly more than a few times a day," he muttered.

"I think about it too, you know," you stated casually, putting your head back down on his chest.

" _You do_?" he asked, seemingly in shock.

"I would by lying if I said I  _didn't_."

"What does that mean?"

"I think it means you better start thinking about where you're taking me for our first date," you shrugged.

"So you're mine now?" he said quietly in your ear.

"I'm yours," you smiled into his shirt.

~

**Austin**

"Do you need to come over?" your best friend asked in between your broken sobs. You nodded, knowing he couldn't see you but knowing he didn't need to see you to know you needed him. "The door will be unlocked. Just let yourself in, okay?"

"Okay," you said in a barely audible whisper, ending the call.

It was nearing 2am and you were in the midst of coping with yet another breakup. It wasn't like the guy just decided to break up with you at 2am or anything – it actually happened about four days ago – it was just  _hitting you_  now.

You got out of bed and got dressed, grabbed your phone and your keys, and headed out of your apartment. You drove across town to Austin's apartment building and made your way up to it. You opened the door and walked inside, not even having to call his name before he came rushing out of the kitchen and pulled you into a hug. You couldn't help but break down all over again and he took you over to the couch.

You laid down with your head on his lap and he ran his fingers through your hair gently to help you calm down. You told him what happened and he listened intently, although it was a bit difficult to understand what you were saying in between sobs again.

You sighed after a few minutes of silently drawing circles on Austin's knee, "I'm  _never_  gonna find the one."

"Don't you think you should just... You know...  _Slow down_...?" he asked carefully.

"What do you mean?" you asked, sitting up and raising your eyebrows.

"I just mean..." he hesitated, trying to find the right words, "You kind have a tendency to rush into relationships..."

"I do not," you said defensively.

"I'm not trying to offend you or anything, I'm just saying... You're not gonna know what you want in a relationship if you don't stop to think about it first."

"I know what I want in a relationship, Austin," you said a bit harshly, standing up, "And I don't really think it's any of your business to-"

"It  _is_  my business, Y/N!" he cut you off, jumping up, "When you call me in excitement after another guy has asked you out and when you're here at 2 o'clock in the morning crying until you've run out of tears because another guy broke up with you, you've made it  _my_  business too! If you're going to keep coming to me asking me what you should do for him for his birthday or Christmas or Valentine's Day, then it  _is_  my business! I'm sorry that you've taken what I said the wrong way, but you are my best friend and I love you which is why I can't keep sugarcoating everything for you! It kills me having to see you get your heart broken over and over again just because you're too impatient to wait for someone who actually deserves you to come along!"

He let out a deep breath while you just stared at him. Austin was never one to get upset with you and honestly, you didn't know how to react. So you just did what you always do: you ran away.

"Well then," you managed to say as you began backing up toward the front door, "I guess I'll be finding someone else to talk to then."

He sighed, scratching the back of his neck, "Y/N, I-"

"I get it, Austin," you shook your head, "You don't want to deal with it anymore." Your hand found the doorknob and you swallowed the lump in your throat. "And I won't make you," you told him, smiling slightly as you left his apartment.

~

It had been a few weeks since you last spoke to Austin. You hadn't done much of anything, to be honest. When you weren't at work, you just sat around your apartment. You had done a lot of thinking and realized that he was right though. You  _did_  tend to jump around from one relationship to another. You never really saw that as being an annoyance to anyone, but it was clearly one to Austin. And even throughout all your alone time, you couldn't figure out why he hated it so much.

It was just another Sunday evening around 7:30pm; You were lying in bed with your favorite book, dreading waking up for work the next morning. Your phone started ringing and you reached slightly to pick it up. You looked at the screen and saw Zach's name. You were a bit confused – you hadn't really spoken to any of the guys since what happened between you and Austin.

"What's up, Zach?" you asked after you accepted the call.

"You wouldn't happen to know where Austin is, would you?" he asked.

"I think you and I both know the answer to that."

He let out a sigh, "Well, do you know where he'd be?"

"What are you talking about?"

"None of us can find him. We've tried calling him, but he won't answer and we've tried his apartment, but the door is always locked."

"At least tell me you've tried the spare key on top of the door frame."

"It's not there anymore."

"Well, you know he's in his apartment then. He never moves that key unless he wants to be left alone."

"But for  _five weeks_?"

"Look, you wanted to know where he is and I told you." Zach let out a quiet, held-out groan and you instantly knew the real reason he called you. "Oh, no. No, no, no," you said, shaking your head, "I am  _not_  going over there, Zachary."

" _Please, Y/N_?" he begged, "He barely talks to any of us and when he  _does_ , it's always about how he wishes we were  _you_. We don't know what happened with you guys, but please...  _Please_  try to fix it. He's  _miserable_  without you." You were silent for a moment before you sighed and closed your book, getting out of bed and putting on your shoes.

"Fine, I'll go," you said, "But if he doesn't let me in, I'm leaving."

He sighed in relief, "Thank you."

"Yeah, whatever," you mumbled, hanging up.

You made the short drive to Austin's apartment building, making your way up to the fourth floor. When you got to his door, you stood there for a moment, contemplating whether or not you really wanted to do this. You took a deep breath and knocked a few times. You heard the lock turn and it was clear he didn't bother looking through the peephole to see who was standing there before he opened the door.

" _God damn_ ," you said without thinking, "You look  _terrible_."

"Come all the way over here to tell me that?" Austin asked, a bit shocked to see you in front of him.

"Zach made me come."

" _Of course he did_ ," he muttered, "Why did he make you come?"

"Yeah," you replied, walking past him and into the apartment, "I can't talk to you until you fix..." you paused, motioning toward him, "... _whatever's_  going on here. Like, take a shower or  _something_. Seriously."

"You'll still be here when I come back, right?" he asked quietly and you felt your heart drop at realizing he really  _was_  miserable without you.

"I'll still be here," you nodded slowly, doing the best you could to hide how shaky your voice was. Austin disappeared down the hallway while you got comfortable on the couch.

You sat in silence, playing with the ring on your finger to keep yourself entertained until Austin returned 20 minutes later, looking a lot better than before. He sat on the other end of the couch, putting his feet up on the coffee table and resting his hand in his lap, playing with his fingers.

"So why did Zach make you come?" he asked again. You watched him carefully for a moment.

"Austin," you said. He hesitantly looked over at you and you shook your head, "I think you  _know_  why Zach made me come."

He frowned slightly and let out a breath, "Listen, what I said the other day... I shouldn't have blamed you for the reason you're always heartbroken, okay? It's not your fault those guys don't appreciate you they way they should – the way you  _deserve_  – and I was out of line to use that against you, and I'm sorry." You smiled slightly and there were another couple minutes of silence before you started talking.

"Remember how you said I never took the time to think about what I want in a relationship?" you asked, looking down at your lap.

"I didn't-"

"No," you shook your head. "You were right. I guess I was always hoping I would meet someone who would just help me realize it. Maybe that's why I date so many guys," you shrugged, "But I've been thinking a lot about it the past few weeks and I know what I want now." You felt him staring at you as you went on. "I want someone who makes me laugh when everything is going wrong. Someone I'm not afraid to be myself around. Someone who knows exactly what to say exactly when to say it. Someone I can give all my trust to and know he'll do the same for me." You began biting your inner cheek and you continued rambling, "And once I knew that that was what I wanted, I realized that the only person that's ever given me all that is  _you_. And I don't know... I guess when I realized that I liked you as more than my best friend, I couldn't face you again knowing you would never want me like that, so I  _didn't_."

"Who ever said I didn't want you like that?" he asked in a barely audible whisper. You quickly looked at him and he reached over to where you were sitting, grabbing your hand and bringing you over to him.

Austin sat up, pulling you onto his lap. You couldn't help but smile as you laid your head on his shoulder, wrapping your arms around his waist as he began playing with your hair.

You sat that like that for a few minutes before you spoke up again.

"So I'm yours now, right?" you asked, tilting your head to look at him.

He smiled, kissing your forehead, "You always have been."

~

**Maxx**

You quickly kissed your boyfriend before racing out to the concert hall as doors opened so you get a spot in the front row. You loved the privacy you got being backstage during the band's shows, but you preferred the feeling that came with actually being in the crowd. You loved being able to dance and sing along with the fans in the crowd and they loved that you did too.

During their set, Maxx would make faces at you – as always – and you would smile and roll your eyes. When it was over, you didn't go back to backstage where you usually did when they were finished performing. You actually really liked the band they were opening up for and there was no way you'd miss the opportunity to be front row for one of their shows.

After the show was over, you were making your way backstage to find Maxx when someone stopped you. You turned to see the guy you had been standing with during the concert.

"I realized that I'd talked to you all night and never even told you my name," he chuckled, "I'm Brandon."

"Well, it was nice to meet you, Brandon," you smiled.

"You too! So, I was gonna wait until my sister came to pick me up to tell you this, but then I realized that I might not be able to find you again, so I hope you're not too busy."

"I'm not. What's up?"

"Well, my sister is about two years younger than you and you're pretty much her favorite person ever. I won't go into too much detail, but you're just a huge inspiration to her. I don't know if that's weird to you or not and I'm sorry if it is, but I just thought I'd let you know. She was so crushed that she couldn't make it tonight because she had other plans, but I promised her I'd try to get you to just write a short note for her or something if that's okay with you." His tone was questioning, hoping it wasn't too much trouble.

You smiled, "That's totally okay with me! Do you have something I can write it on?"

"Yeah! I don't have a pen though," he smiled sheepishly, pulling a pad of paper out of his pocket, "I forgot it in the car and didn't realize it until my mom dropped me off." You looked around and noticed Cody walking past a doorway not too far away. He was holding a Sharpie, but he wasn't signing anything at the moment.

"Cody!" you called, causing him to stop in his tracks and back up to see who yelled for him. "I need to borrow your Sharpie!" He walked over to you and handed you the marker as you took the small notebook from Brandon. "What's your sister's name?"

"Mallory," he answered. You wrote Mallory a quick note before giving Cody his Sharpie back.

"Thanks, loser," you told him.

"You're welcome, kid," Cody smirked as he walked away, knowing it annoyed you when he called you that. You rolled your eyes, giving Brandon the notebook back as well.

"Thank you so much," Brandon told you, "You have no idea how much this will mean to her."

"No problem," you grinned, "And tell her I hope she can come to a future show. I would love to meet her."

"I will," he nodded, "Thank you again." He walked out of the venue and you returned to looking for Maxx. You didn't have to look too long, however, because as soon as you turned around, you saw him looking at you.

"Hey!" you squeaked, rushing up to him and wrapping your arms around his waist, "You were amazing tonight!"

"Who was that guy you were talking to?" he asked, not hugging you back.

"That was Brandon," you shrugged, "I met him in the crowd."

"Uh huh," he raised his eyebrows, "What did he stop you for?"

"He wanted to talk to me."

"About what?"

"Nothing."

"If it's nothing, why won't you tell me?"

"What's gotten into you?" you asked, raising your eyebrows as you let go of him, "He just wanted to tell me about his sister, okay? No need for the attitude."

"Yeah, I'm sure," he muttered under his breath while you took a breath to calm yourself as you really didn't want to start a fight in front of everybody.

"I can't be around you when you're acting like this," you said, putting your hands up and walking away.

"Really?" Maxx called after you.  _Great comeback,_  you thought to yourself.

"Yes,  _really_ ," you mocked, stopping to look back at him, "And when you realize how  _ridiculous_  you're being, I will be outside waiting for you." You walked out of the venue, taking a deep breath before putting on a smile and walking over to the group of fans that were waiting by the van in hopes of meeting the band.

"Hey, guys!" you chirped. You had been standing around them during the show, so you didn't feel at all weird talking to them. You received a chorus of greetings from them. "What did you think of the show?"

"It was  _awesome_!" one of the girls squealed.

"Well, I should hope you think so," you teased, "I've seen you at  _how many_  Set It Off shows now?"

" _Too many_ ," she joked, sighing dramatically.

"Do you know if the band is gonna come out?" the only guy standing there asked.

"I'm sure they will soon," you answered, "I think they're helping pack up the other band's equipment at the moment."

You stayed with them a little longer before deciding to head back inside. Before you made it to the door, however, you heard your name being called behind you. You turned to see Brandon rushing over to you, pulling a girl around your age along with him.

"You're not busy, are you?" he asked, a worried tone in his voice. You shook your head and he smiled, "Okay, good. Remember how I briefly told you about my sister after the show?" You nodded and he went on. "Well, I knew she would be coming to pick me up and I know you said you wanted to meet her..."

"Of course I do!" you exclaimed, cutting him off. He pulled the very nervous looking girl out from where she was hiding behind him.

"This is Mallory," he beamed, making you smile. You had never met anyone that loved their sibling as much as he seemed to love her. "I didn't tell you too much about her because I thought she would want to tell you herself, but I don't think that's going to happen," he chuckled, "But I knew how badly she wanted to meet you but she'd never come up to you on her own, so I had to practically drag her over here."

You let out a quiet giggle and looked at Mallory, "If you're not gonna talk to me, can I at least have a hug?" She hesitated for a moment before letting out a breath, wrapping her arms around you as you did with her. You never really saw yourself as the type of person that anyone would look up to, but knowing people did was something you never took for granted.

As Mallory began to get more comfortable and started speaking, Brandon quickly excused himself, walking off behind you.

Maxx had walked outside and saw you standing with Brandon and another girl. He rolled his eyes, annoyed that you didn't bother taking the hint from earlier, and attempted to get back inside before you saw him. Before he could slip away unnoticed, however, Brandon saw him and went over to him.

"You guys were amazing tonight," Brandon smiled.

"Thank you," Maxx said politely, although it was obvious he was forcing the smile.

"Listen," he said, getting straight to the real reason he walked over to him, "I didn't want to say anything to Y/N because I didn't want her to be distracted while she talks to my sister, but I kinda heard you guys fighting before she came out here." Maxx began chewing on his inner cheek, having a very strong feeling he was about to feel like an idiot. "I wasn't trying to flirt with her or anything and I'm really sorry if I made you think that I was," Brandon said, "I'm not going to lie, I think she's gorgeous, but she has a boyfriend and I respect the two of you way too much to make any attempt at ruining that."

 _Yup. He felt like an idiot_.

"Thanks, man," Maxx said, giving Brandon a more genuine smile this time around, "I appreciate that. And I'm sorry you saw that. I guess I just let my jealousy get the best of me again." He looked over at you as you laughed at something Mallory had said. "She  _is_  gorgeous, isn't she?" he said, more to himself than to the boy next to him.

Brandon shrugged, "Well, she's gorgeous, you're gorgeous; It makes sense that you two would be together." Maxx looked back at Brandon and the two laughed quietly. "Anyway," he went on, "I better be heading home. I have finals coming up next week and I need all the extra study time I can get."

"Good luck, man," he said sympathetically, "I know how rough finals can be."

"Thank you," he chuckled, "And make sure you tell Y/N you're sorry. Don't let her get away from you."

"I don't plan on it," he smiled to himself as Brandon walked away. Maxx watched as Brandon said something to you and Mallory and you cheerfully gave both of them hugs.

You turned around to go back inside the venue as they left, but froze when you saw your boyfriend standing there. You suddenly became more interested in the ground as you looked down, keeping your eyes off of Maxx. He took in a deep breath before walking up to you. He put his hands on your cheeks and lifted your head back up so you would look at him.

He kissed your forehead softly and whispered, "I'm sorry." You remained silent, so he continued speaking. "I'm sorry I get jealous so easily, I just... I love you so much and I'm always worried another guy is gonna come along and you're gonna like him more." You couldn't help but smile.

"Hey," you said quietly, "I'm yours, okay? I will never like anyone more than I love you."

"Not even another band member?"

"Not even another band member," you giggled quietly, standing on your toes so you could kiss him.


	108. Perfect Record (Calum Hood)

" _Please_ stop following me," you said, not looking back.

School had just ended for the day and you were now heading back to your locker on the other side of the building. Every other day, this was just an ordinary task that had no unusual happenings. Today, unfortunately, your ex-boyfriend of about two months had spotted you and decided to follow you.

"Come on, Y/N," he said, "Won't you go out with me again?"

"No, thank you," you sighed, "I broke up with you for a _reason_ , Marcus."

"What? You have _another_ boyfriend now or something?" Your eyes widened and you felt a smile pull at the corner of your mouth, but he was luckily walking behind you and didn't see.

"I do," you answered, "So if you could please leave me alone, I would really appreciate it."

"What's his name?"

"Why do you want to know?" you retorted.

"Because I think you're lying," he stated plainly.

"Why would I lie about having a boyfriend?"

"I don't know," he rolled his eyes, "To get me to go away?"

"Well, my right to say no was kind of ignored," you laughed bitterly, "So since you kept persisting, I thought you would respect my unavailability a little more. Clearly, I was wrong."

"But you still haven't told me his name, so you're obviously lying," he smirked. You had a split second to come up with someone he would actually believe you were dating.

"Calum!" you blurted out, "I'm dating Calum Hood."

"Your  _lab partner_?" he laughed loudly, " _That's_ what you go to after me? Like I'm buying that for a _goddamn_ second."

"I don't tell _you_ who to find _your_ love interests in, Marcus," you said, rolling your eyes again. You were still walking to your locker, wondering why the hell your last class had to be so far away.

"You're not even _friends_ with him!" Marcus exclaimed, "You've never said _two words_ to him!"

"How would _you_ know?"

"I see you pass him in the hallway. You don't even _look_ at him."

"I have classes to get to," you stated, "Don't even pretend I didn't do the same thing when I passed you when _we_ were together."

"I just think it's a bunch of _bullshit_ , to be honest," he said as you turned the last corner, finally seeing your locker. You looked across the hall from your locker and saw Calum and his friends standing at his own, letting out an inaudible sigh of relief.

"Calum!" you squeaked, rushing over to him and throwing your arm around his neck. "Put your arm around my waist and just go with it," you whispered quickly.

"Uh..." he trailed off, looking at his friends, "O-Okay..." As he did as you asked, Marcus walked up and the boys instantly knew what you were doing.

"I'm still not buying it," Marcus laughed, shaking his head.

"I'm sorry?" Calum said, kissing your forehead and pulling you closer, making your heart race.

" _She_  is with  _you_  now?"

"Well, I'm certainly not kissing her for the _hell_ of it."

" _Really_? This _nerd_?" he asked, looking at you. You shrugged, smiling slightly. He let out a quiet groan and walked away. Once he was out of sight, you breathed a sigh of relief again and let go of Calum.

" _Thank you so much_ ," you said. You attempted to go across the hall to your locker, but couldn't move because Calum's arm was still around you. "Cal," you whispered, "He's gone. You can let go now."

"What?" he asked, coming out of his daydream, " _Oh_! Right, sorry." He quickly took his arm back and you rushed to get all your homework into your backpack before you missed your bus. You felt the boys' eyes on you as you slammed your locker door shut and began sprinting down the hallway.

"Thanks again, Cal!" you called behind you, "See you tomorrow!"

~

The next day, you were standing in the lunch line when one of Calum's friends, Ashton, walked over to you.

"Hey, Y/N!" he said cheerfully, "Marcus given you any trouble today?"

"Nope!" you smiled, "Thank you guys for playing along yesterday. And I hope I didn't overstep any boundaries with Calum or something."

"Boundaries?"

"Like I don't know if he's already seeing someone and I'm worried I made him uncomfortable," you said quietly, "Especially since I don't really talk to him about anything other than classwork."

"If you feel bad, you should tell him when you see him next period," Ashton told you, "But I can assure you, it's okay. It would have been cool with any of us, honestly. We don't want you getting harassed by your ex and if there's anything else we can do, let us know."

"Thanks, Ashton," you smiled again. Your smile faded, however, when you looked behind him and saw Marcus coming.

"Well, well, well," Marcus said in an obnoxious tone, standing in front of you and Ashton, "One of them not enough for you, Y/N?"

"Yeah," you rolled your eyes as you picked up a tray, "Because standing beside one of my boyfriend's friends in the lunch line obviously means I'm cheating on him. You caught me. Better go tell Calum I'm the worst girlfriend ever." Ashton chuckled quietly, causing Marcus to glare at him. It was clear that he knew he couldn't do anything with Ashton standing there, so he simply walked away angrily.

"So," Ashton spoke up, "Do you want to sit with Luke, Michael, and I?"

"Oh, right," you giggled quietly, "I always forget Calum doesn't have the same lunch as us."

"He thinks he's too good for us or something," he sighed dramatically, making you laugh.

"I would love to sit with you guys," you answered.

~

After lunch, when you walked into your Chemistry class, Calum was already sitting at your table.

"Looks like you finally beat me here," you teased, sitting down beside him.

He looked up from his papers and smiled shyly at you, "Hi, Y/N."

"Hi, Cal," you smiled back, "Thanks again for yesterday. And I'm sorry if I overstepped any boundaries or made you uncomfortable with how I just threw myself on you like that." He gave you a confused look.

"It was no problem, honestly. I'm glad I could help get him to leave you alone," he told you as the bell rang and class started.

~

A couple weeks later, after the final bell, you were running to your locker – as always – but this time, it was because you stayed after class to ask your teacher a quick question. It didn't take that long at all, but it was just enough time that you knew if you didn't hurry, there was no doubt you would miss your bus.

You had burst out of the school doors just in time to see your bus pull out of the parking lot. You threw your head back, groaning loudly as you went back inside. You knew your mom wouldn't be terribly upset with you about missing your bus as it was a very rare occurrence, but you hated making her drive all the way to the school right after work to come pick you up unless she already knew she would have to.

The hallways were now empty, everyone either in the parking lot, on their bus, or at the front of the school waiting for their ride. You were walking down the hallway when you were suddenly pushed into the wall of lockers. You squeaked loudly as whoever pushed you grabbed your shoulder and spun you around. Your eyes widened as you stared at Marcus. He had a smug smirk on his face and you knew that whatever was about to happen wasn't going to be good.

"You and I both know you dating that nerd is bullshit," he stated, "So tell me you're lying and I'll go easy on you."

"I'm not lying," you told him, your voice was shaking like crazy.

"Yes, you are," he growled.

"No, I'm not. And I'm sorry that you're not happy about that, but you just need to deal with it because I don't want you anymore," you said confidently. Marcus brought his arm up and you knew he was going to hit you. Everything happened so fast that the only thing you could do was shut your eyes tightly and brace yourself.

"Hey!" you heard someone shout as they ran over, shoving Marcus away from you just before his hand reached your cheek, "Don't touch her!" Marcus stumbled backwards as your eyes shot back open and you saw that Calum was now standing in front of you.

"What are you gonna do about it, nerd?" Marcus laughed, only to receive a punch to his left cheek. It was like once Calum started hitting him, he couldn't stop. He was on top of Marcus but only got in four more punches before you finally came out of your state of shock and realized what was going on.

"Cal!" you shouted, grabbing his upper arm and doing your best to pull him off of your ex-boyfriend, "Calum! Calum, stop!"

You were finally able to pull him up and Marcus got up, running to what you could only assume would be the principle's office. You knew Calum was about to get a week long suspension at the very least and you were shocked he ruined his perfect record for you.

"What were you _thinking_?" you asked, pushing his hair out of his face as he calmed down.

"Are you okay?" he asked quickly, ignoring your question as he studied your face to make sure Marcus hadn't hit you before he got there.

"I'm fine, Cal," you said before repeating, "What were you thinking?"

"I was _thinking_ you were gonna get _hurt_!" he exclaimed.

"Calum!" you shook your head, "You're gonna get _suspended_ for that! Do you have any idea what that's gonna do to your _record_?"

"I don't care," he said softly, "As long as you didn't get hurt, I don't care." You felt a small smile start to pull at the corner of your mouth.

"How did you even know I was _here_?" you asked, "This part of the school is a _ghost town_ after the buses leave."

"The boys and I were getting into my car when I saw you had missed your bus. I told them I'd be right back and I came in to see if you needed a ride home, but then I saw Marcus push you against the locker and it made me so mad but when I saw him about to hit you, something inside me snapped and I just... I _couldn't stop hitting him_." You paused for a moment before wrapping your arms around his neck tightly.

"Thank you, Calum," you mumbled into his shoulder. He put his arms around your waist and hugged you.

"You're welcome, Y/N," you could hear his smile.

You looked up as you were hugging Calum and saw Marcus coming back with the Principal following close behind. You let go and Calum turned to see what you were staring at.

" _Oh_ _,_ _boy_ ," you heard him mumble under his breath. You put your arms around his waist and he looked at you. You simply smiled and rested your head on his shoulder, letting him know that you weren't going anywhere.

"Mr. Hood-" The disappointment in Mr. Peterson's voice made your heart drop. "-in my office.  _Now_." Calum looked back at you with a panicked expression on his face.

"You'll be fine," you told him, "I'll go let the boys know what's going on." You kissed his cheek and felt him relax as you let go of him and he followed Mr. Peterson and Marcus back to his office.

You quickly spun around and ran back outside, stopping once you made it to the edge of the sidewalk. You looked around for a moment before seeing the three boys leaning against Calum's car. They all looked at you as you ran over and Ashton was the first to speak.

"Where's Calum?" he asked.

"Change of plans," you said, "Cal is in Mr. Peterson's office."

"What happened?!" Michael exclaimed.

"He hit Marcus." Their jaws dropped.

"Sorry," Luke managed to say, "He did  _what_?"

"When he came looking for me, Marcus had me against the lockers and was about to hit me, but Calum got to him first," you answered, still a bit shaken up by the whole thing, "After I pulled him off, Marcus ran to get Mr. Peterson and now they're in his office."

" _Wow_ ," Ashton breathed, "I never knew he was capable of getting  _that_  angry with someone."

"Well, you know he was only that angry because it was  _her_ ," Michael said to him without thinking.

"What do you mean he only got that angry because it was me?" you asked. Ashton elbowed Michael's side, glaring at him.

"Way to go, dude," he muttered before looking at you, "I shouldn't-"

"What did he mean, Ashton?" you asked firmly.

He sighed, "He's had a crush on you for forever. You should have seen him when you were assigned to be his lab partner. He wouldn't shut up about it that  _whole week_."

"Why hasn't he told me?" you asked quietly, a bit surprised.

"You're too good for him," Luke answered. You gave him a look and he quickly added, "His words, not mine. He thinks you're way out of his league and you would just laugh at him if he asked you out or other people would make fun of him for thinking he had a chance with you."

You were about to respond when you heard the school door open. You spun around again to see Calum walking out of the building with his head down. You dropped your backpack and ran over to him, stopping him before he stepped onto the pavement.

"What happened?" you asked, a bit out of breath from all the running you had done in the last 20 minutes.

"Mr. Peterson wants to see you," he said, looking at you.

"O-Okay," you stuttered slightly. You hadn't expected to him to want to see you as well, but if it meant Calum would be spared a couple days of suspension, you were all for it.

Calum quickly told his friends he would be a few more minutes and they were more than happy to wait – not that they really had a choice seeing as he was their ride home. When he came back, he opened the door for you and you began walking to the office with him.

"Why did you hit him, Cal?" you asked, hoping to get him to admit what Ashton had told you.

"I told you," he said, "I saw he was about to hit you and I didn't want you to get hurt."

"Are you sure that's the  _only_  reason?"

Calum suddenly knew what you meant and he sighed, "They told you, didn't they?"

"It's not their fault," you looked down, "I told them what happened and Michael said you only got angry because it was me and I made them tell me what he meant. I'm sorry."

"I do," he said, making you look back up at him, "I like you  _a lot_ , actually. But even if I  _didn't_  like you like that, I still would have hit Marcus. That's like, the  _first_  thing boys learn as kids; You don't hit girls."

You laughed quietly and looked down again but this time, you were seeing where Calum's hand was. He had it in front of him, nervously picking at the skin around his nails. You reached up and grabbed his hand, pulling it back down to his side and laced your fingers together. He gave you a surprised look, but you didn't even need to see his face to know that was what it was.

"I like you too, you know?" you shrugged as the office finally came into view.

"You _do_?"

"Mhm," you nodded. "I could have easily gone with someone else I saw while Marcus was following me down the hallway and I could have easily gone with one of your friends instead. I guess I thought that would be a good way to tell you, but I was always too scared to admit it," you mumbled, "Especially after what happened with Marcus."

"I'm not gonna treat you the way he did, okay?" Calum told you, squeezing your hand, "You deserve way better than whatever you got when you were with him and I'm gonna make sure you know what it feels like when someone  _truly_  likes you." You smiled slightly, looking up and he kissed your cheek just before opening the door to the office for you. You took a deep breath as you made your way into the Principal's office.

Once you went in, you saw Marcus glance at yours and Calum's hands, then back at you with narrowed eyes. Calum let go of your hand, letting you sit down in the chair he was just sitting in minutes before, standing beside you.

"Good afternoon, Miss Y/L/N," Mr. Peterson smiled at you.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Peterson," you said quietly, beginning to play with the ring on your finger.

"Would you mind tell me what happened today?"

"I missed my bus," you started, "And I came back inside to call my mom so she could come pick me up, but Marcus stopped me and pushed me against the locker and was about to hit me before Calum came over."

"Uh-huh," he nodded, "But the punches were not provoked?"

"Define provoked."

"Instigated, prompted, urged, elicited," he answered, "I know you understand the question."

"His hand was  _an inch_  from my cheek before Calum pushed him away! How much more provocation do you  _possibly_  need?!" you exclaimed, leaning forward in your seat so you were no longer resting against the back of the chair. Calum put his hands on your shoulders and started rubbing small circles with his thumbs to calm you down.

"Listen, I just needed all sides of the story before I reviewed the security footage, okay?" Mr. Peterson told you.

You saw Marcus' eyes widen and you started laughing, "You forgot about the cameras, didn't you,  _genius_?"

After the four of you watched the footage, Mr. Peterson looked at Marcus with his eyebrows raised.

"That could have been anybody!" Marcus said defensively.

You rolled your eyes, "Why don't we ask your black eye and bloody nose what  _they_  think?"

"Mr. Palmer," Mr. Peterson told Marcus, sighing, "Go wait outside." When he left the room, Mr. Peterson looked at Calum, "As much as I don't want to, school corporation rules state that I have to suspend you for getting into a fight with another student. I can give you a minimum of one day, so you're off tomorrow, I guess."

"What about  _him_?" you asked, motioning toward the door Marcus just exited, "I shouldn't have to feel like I need to watch my back every time I take a step!"

"I will deal with him, Miss Y/L/N, I promise," he assured you, "You two are free to go home now." You stood up and Calum took your hand again as you left Mr. Peterson's office and heard him call Marcus back in.

The walk back outside was pretty quiet – you had your head on Calum's shoulder and he was rubbing your thumb with his own – and you were simply enjoying knowing that you both felt the same about each other.

When you got back to his car, Luke, Michael, and Ashton were still there, patiently waiting. They looked at yours and Calum's hands and grinned.

"So what happened with Mr. Peterson?" Luke asked.

"I got suspended for tomorrow," Calum shrugged.

"That's such bullshit though," Ashton said, "Like, imagine what would have happened if you  _weren't_  there."

"I'd rather not, Ash," you laughed nervously as you picked up your backpack from its spot where you had dropped it earlier and you all piled into Calum's car.

~

He had been driving for about 10 minutes and was coming up to your street, but he didn't slow down to make the turn.

"Uh, Cal," you said, "You just drove past my street."

"I know," he smiled, keeping his eyes on the road, "After I take the boys home, I'm taking you out on a date."

"I am not  _dressed_  for a date, Calum!" you laughed.

"You look beautiful," he told you as he pulled up to Michael's house and looked at you, "You always do." You blushed lightly, making Calum smile again. Michael got out of the car and motioned for Calum to roll down his window.

"So are we all skipping tomorrow or what?" Michael asked you, Ashton, and Luke. The boys were quick to agree and they turned their attention to you as Calum began to protest.

"Guys, please don't-"

You cut him off, "I'm in." Calum looked over at you in shock, knowing that you hated missing even one class.

"What about your attendance record?" he asked.

"Who needs a _perfect_ record anyway?" you smirked, leaning over and kissing his cheek.


	109. Until You're Mine (Marshall Traver)

_I love you_

You had read the phrase tattooed on your left wrist over and over again and never understood it. See, everyone had this sort of thing somewhere on their body; Some had it on their wrist, some on their rib cage, and some on their ankle. It was one of those soulmate tattoos everyone got at birth – the first word or phrase that their soulmate would say to them. Being that your tattoo was on your wrist and pretty difficult to keep covered, you always had a band-aid on it. There wasn't a terribly long story as to why you chose to always keep it covered, but you really hated talking about it.

You dated a few guys here and there, but obviously, none of them said ' _I love you_ ' the moment they met you. The thing that bothered you was the first thing someone told you wouldn't be that unless you were famous or whatever. But you weren't; You were... Well, you were  _you_.

You weren't famous, you weren't related to anyone famous – you weren't even well-known in school. You were the person that sat in the back of the classroom, never uttering a word aside from the faint ' _here_ ' during attendance. You were pretty quiet, usually keeping to yourself unless absolutely necessary – and you preferred it that way.

You did have one friend though. Your best friend Kennedy was virtually the only reason anyone even knew what your voice sounded like. When you were around her, it was like all your shyness disappeared. The problem with being friends with her was that she was absolutely gorgeous. All the guys wanted to be with her. When someone showed interest in you, you were always excited to introduce them to your best friend, but as soon as they saw her, it was like all their feelings for you disappeared.

But what could you do? You couldn't make yourself prettier or Kennedy less – not that you ever  _would_  – and she would never accept those guys knowing they had hurt you. She felt beyond guilty that she seemed to ruin every potential relationship you could have, but you assured her that it was okay. None of their first words to you were ' _I love you_ ' and you knew you would find your soulmate eventually – you just hoped you didn't have to wait too much longer.

~

It was Friday and that meant date night. You and Kennedy went to the movies every Friday night to see the most recent releases. Most were good, some were bad, and a few were just weird, but you enjoyed the time you got to spend with her after a long day at work.

After the movie was over, Kennedy had gone to the bathroom, leaving you out in the lobby. You were looking down and walking around, mindlessly following the 90's-looking carpet's curving lines, when you bumped into someone.

"I am  _so_  sorry!" you squeaked, looking up at who you had run into.

He was undoubtedly a very attractive guy – about your height, short dark brown hair, nose and lip piercings, and he had the prettiest eyes you'd ever seen. His hand flew up to his ribs and he was staring at you with such a blank look on his face that you had actually turned around to see if Kennedy was coming back and he saw her instead. She wasn't, leaving you more confused.

"Are you okay?" you asked. He nodded quickly, but pointed to his throat. "Your throat hurts...?" He shook his head, a distressed look on his face, as someone else came up from behind you.

"Ready, Marshall?" he asked before he saw the expression on his friend's face, "You okay, dude?" 

"Um... I should go see what's taking my friend so long," you spoke up, looking back to see if Kennedy was on her way out of the bathroom yet.

While you were looking away from the two guys in front of you, you missed Marshall frantically pointing at his ribs and his friend's eyes widen. His friend gasped suddenly, causing you to jump as you spun back to look at them. Marshall elbowed his friend and glared at him slightly.

"Sorry again for running into you," you told Marshall, turning on your heels and rushing into the bathroom. Luckily, Kennedy was the only one in the room. She looked up from the sink where she was washing her hands and looked at you in the mirror.

"What's got you all riled up?" she asked as she grabbed some paper towels.

"Only the most embarrassing thing that's ever happened to me," you sighed, leaning back on the wall beside the door.

"So that means there was a cute boy involved," she smirked, throwing the paper towels in the trash.

" _Beyond cute_ ," you informed her, "And I totally ran right into him."

"What did he say?"

"Nothing – he just  _stared at me_. And then his equally cute friend came over and I got uncomfortable so I came in here."

"How are you supposed to find your soulmate if you keep running away from every guy that breathes in your direction?!" she exclaimed.

"This whole thing is stupid if you ask me," you said, pushing your jacket down to look at your tattoo, "Maybe I don't even have a soulmate and this is just here to tease me. I hate seeing it; I hate knowing it's there. I'm not the kind of girl guys want... I never  _will be_..."

She sighed, "Y/N-"

You shook your head, "I just want to go home." Kennedy looked at you for a moment before sticking her elbow out to you.

"Come on," she said, "Let's go to the store and get some ice cream, then go home and watch  _Project Runway_." You smiled slightly – she always knew how to make you feel better – and linked your arm with hers as she opened the bathroom door.

As you left the bathroom, you saw Marshall and his friend still standing there. You let out a quiet groan, making Kennedy look at you.

"That them?" she asked. You nodded slowly as the two guys looked over at you. You quickly looked back down at the ground as you started walking toward the door, but nearly lost your footing as Kennedy pulled you the opposite way.

"What are you  _doing_?!" you whispered.

"You need to put yourself out there," she said simply, "And if that means I have to give you a little help, then so be it."

"Kennedy, I don't want to-" you cut yourself off as she stopped in front of the guys, letting go of you.

Marshall's friend was looking at Kennedy with a slight smile on his face, but Marshall wasn't; He was looking right at  _you_. Actually, he had been looking at you the whole time and you were seriously starting to think he didn't even realize Kennedy was standing there as well.

"Hi," his friend said to Kennedy, extending his hand to her, "I'm Cody." You quickly brought your hand up to cover your mouth, preventing yourself from squealing. Kennedy's jaw dropped slightly and she cleared her throat.

"Kennedy," she said, shaking his hand. They quickly let go of each others hands and it was obvious they felt that spark that everyone says you feel once you found your soulmate. You felt yourself start to smile knowing your best friend had just found her soulmate.

"I finally found you," Cody said in amazement, "Which is good though because it's really awkward trying to date a girl when you have this in plain view." He pulled his shirt down slightly to reveal Kennedy's name on his collarbone.

"I guess I got lucky then," she laughed quietly, kicking off her shoe and showing him the top of her foot. You smiled as you watched them, honestly forgetting Marshall was standing there as well until he elbowed Cody's side again. Cody looked over and Marshall raised his eyebrows.

" _Oh_!" he exclaimed, "This is my best friend Marshall." Marshall looked at you with a questioning expression and you shook your head, finally paying attention to what was going on.

"Sorry," you said, "I'm Y/N." He smiled again and you felt your cheeks get hot. He hadn't even said one word to you and he was already making you feel weak. Marshall turned to Cody and motioned toward his throat again.

"Right! My bad," Cody nodded, "The thing is, Marshall doesn't speak. He hasn't in about...5 years now, I'd say." Your heart dropped slightly at realizing he couldn't  _possibly_  be your soulmate. If he  _were_ , there would be nothing on your wrist...  _Right_?

Kennedy noticed the look on your face and smiled sympathetically before looking back at the guys.

"It was really nice to meet you guys, but we really should get going," she informed them, "Y/N here isn't feeling too well."

"Not without a date first," Cody said, "Starbucks? Tomorrow at 7?"

Kennedy smiled and nodded, "I'd like that. I'll see you then." She quickly grabbed your hand and pulled you out of the building.

~

The next evening, after Kennedy had left for her date with Cody, you were left in your shared apartment alone. You thought about watching TV, but everything was always about love and you hated being constantly reminded that you still hadn't found it for yourself. So you decided to do the only other thing you could do: Clean. You always cleaned when you were home alone anyway and your apartment could always use the extra tidying up.

After about 30 minutes, you were interrupted by your phone ringing. You put down the towel you were using to wipe the dust off of everything and pulled your phone out of your pocket. It was a number you didn't recognize, but you decided to answer anyway.

"Hello?" you said, taking the opportunity to take a break and sit on the couch.

"Y/N!" Kennedy squeaked happily, knowing you rarely ever answered calls from numbers that weren't already in your contacts, "Can you do me a huge favor?"

"Kennedy? Why aren't you on your phone?"

"That's the favor. I forgot my phone on the counter so I'm using Cody's. Will you come bring it to me?"

"Ken-"

" _Please_?" you could hear her pout, "We're only 5 minutes away! I'll love you forever and ever and ever!"

"You said that the  _last time_  you were out and you forgot your wallet."

" _Y/N_!" she whined.

"Alright, alright," you sighed, "I'll be there soon. Calm down."

"Thank you!" she said just before she hung up. You let out a quiet groan, really not wanting to change out of your pajama shorts, but having to since it was the middle of January.

You went back to your bedroom to get dressed, grabbed Kennedy's phone off the counter, and began making the walk to the Starbucks she and Cody were at. You thought about taking your car, but with gas prices being so expensive, you really didn't want to waste gas on what would only be a two minute drive.

Once you made it to the coffee shop, you walked inside and began searching for Kennedy. You found her almost right away, but were confused as to why there were two guys sitting with her and not just one. She looked over at you and motioned for you to come over. You took her phone out of your jacket pocket and handed it to her. You were about to walk away when she grabbed your arm, pulling you to sit beside her in the booth where you finally noticed she was sitting with Cody and Marshall.

"Kennedy..." you said slowly.

"It was Cody's idea, not mine!" she said, throwing her hands up.

"Thanks for throwing me under the bus there," Cody said, shaking his head. She smiled sweetly at him.

"What idea?" you asked.

"I might had lied," she shrugged, "My phone's dead – that's why I left it at home."

"Then why am I  _here_?"

"Oh, Y/N," she sighed dramatically, "Dear, sweet Y/N-"

"I just want to go  _home_ ," you interrupted her, "Please?"

"Take Marshall with you then!" Kennedy squeaked.

"Kennedy, he's not gonna want to-"

"That's a  _great_  idea!" Cody cut you off, "Marshall! Go with Y/N!" He pushed Marshall out of the booth as Kennedy did with you, causing you both to stumble as you stood back up.

"Come on," you mumbled to Marshall, knowing Kennedy wouldn't let you out of this. He shoved his hands in his jacket pockets as he walked beside you while you lead him back to your apartment.

The walk home was silent – but with Marshall being mute and you hating one-sided conversations, it was understandable. The thing that confused you though was that it didn't feel  _awkward_. Usually, when you put into situations where neither you nor the person you were with was speaking, you felt uncomfortable. But with Marshall, it just felt... _right_.

When you finally made it back to your place, you led him in and closed the door behind him as you said, "You can take your jacket off and just leave it on the couch if you want." You threw your keys on the small table by the door. "Do you want something to drink or eat or anything?" He paused before pulling out his phone to type something. He turned his phone toward you and you went over to him so you could read it.

_Root beer if you have any_

You smiled slightly at his way of communicating with you and went into the kitchen to get your drinks. You came back with two bottles of root beer and sat down next to him on the couch. He poked your leg a few seconds later and when you looked over at him, you saw he had typed something else.

_Thank you_

"You're welcome," you smiled. You made conversation like that for a while – he would ask you a question, you would answer and ask him a different question, and he would type his answer for you and so on.

~

A while later, it was nearing 8 and Kennedy still wasn't home, but you were enjoying Marshall's company. For someone who didn't speak, he had a lot of interesting things to say and he was actually really funny.

"So..." you trailed off, trying to build up the courage to ask what you'd been wondering for a while now, "Why don't you talk anymore...?" Marshall was quick to type up his response.

_You're gonna think it's stupid_

"Try me," you replied, making him chuckle.

_A few years ago, my friends bet me $100 that I couldn't go a year without speaking_

"But Cody said you haven't spoken for  _5_?"

_Well, after I won that bet, they said they would give me $100 for every year I didn't speak so I didn't. They always complain about how I keep winning, but they haven't called off the bet yet, so_

"So do you ever speak when they're not around?" He shook his head. "Seriously?!" you exclaimed in surprise, "Not even when you're alone? You know, just to make sure your voice still works?" He laughed quietly.

_Nope. I used to be roommates with one of them before I got my own place, so I was with him all the time and he would know if I ever talked at all. It's weird in a way – not speaking after I moved out either – but I hadn't spoken for so long that I just didn't want to anymore_

"Do you ever miss it though? Like, do you ever miss singing in the shower or yelling weird things when your friends are on the phone with their parents or anything?"

_Something tells me you have a bit of experience with that second one_

"I've been known to do it before," you shrugged.

_I guess I do miss singing. I used to be in a band and then I left to do some solo stuff, but once the bet happened, I obviously had to stop_

"Would you ever consider talking again?" He shrugged.

_Maybe. But it's gonna take something really important for me to give up getting $100 every year_

You rolled your eyes and laughed, making him smile.

Just then, the door opened and you looked back to see Cody and Kennedy walking inside.

"How was your date, kids?" you asked.

"It was fun," Kennedy smirked, "How was yours?" You stuck your tongue out at her and she happily returned the favor.

Cody chuckled at you and Kennedy before looking at Marshall, "You ready to go?" Marshall looked at you for a moment and quickly typed something on his phone again.

_Is it too soon to ask for your number?_

You looked back up at him and giggled, taking his phone and going to his contacts to add your number. You gave him his phone back and got up while he put his jacket back on. You walked with him over to the door and Cody and Kennedy gave each other a hug. Marshall shrugged and held his arms open as he looked at you. You smiled and wrapped your arms around his neck.

The hug lasted no longer than two seconds, but you felt every part of your body go weak and your heart started racing. You did your best to ignore it as you let go and noticed he didn't seem to have had the same reaction. After they left, Kennedy dragged you back to the couch and made you tell her everything that happened with you and Marshall.

~

**Seven months later**

It was no surprise to anyone that you and Marshall started dating not long after that night. The two of you seemed to click and everyone could tell you really liked each other. Honestly, you had completely forgotten about your tattoo and you never bothered to ask about Marshall's. You figured that you weren't his soulmate since he had never showed you his tattoo, but you liked him too much to care. You were simply going to enjoy the time you had with him while you could before one of you found the one.

During one of Cody and Kennedy's date nights, Marshall was over at your place. He was a frequent visitor, of course – both guys were – but you always preferred to be alone with him as that was usually when he would say the most.

You were currently on your living room floor watching a movie on your laptop. You had no reason for sitting on the floor and you could have easily watched the movie on your TV, but the two of you just decided that you wanted to use the computer. Marshall was sitting up against the couch with you in his lap and your laptop on the coffee table in front of you.

About halfway through the movie, you felt him take his phone out of his pocket and knew he wanted to tell you something, so you paused the movie and waited.

_So what happened to your wrist?_

"What do you mean?" you asked.

_You always have a band-aid on it_

"Oh..." you trailed off. Marshall was quick to type something else.

_You don't have to tell me right now. When you're ready, I'm ready_

"No, it's fine," you shook your head, "It's not a really interesting story though. I had met this guy a couple years ago and he saw my tattoo and decided it would be funny if he said what it says to make me think he was my soulmate." You sighed quietly at the memory. "And a few months later, he told me it was all a joke and he didn't really like me. I was obviously crushed, so ever since then, I keep it covered with a band-aid so something like that doesn't happen again." When you were finished with your story, Marshall leaned forward and kissed your cheek, making you smile. "So what about yours? Do you have some sort of cover-up story for it too?" He chuckled.

_No, it's just on my ribs so it's really easy to hide_

"Lucky," you muttered jokingly.

_Do you wanna see it?_

"It's fine, Marshall. You don't have to-" You cut yourself off when he started typing.

_It's not like you can go back and change the first thing you said to me_

You looked at his expression and noticed he had an amused look on his face.

"Are you sure?" you asked.

He nodded and you pushed the coffee table away from you so you could sit beside him. He lifted his shirt up and turned slightly since you were on the other side of where the tattoo was, nervously waiting for your reaction. Your jaw dropped slightly as you read the ' _I am so sorry_ ' written across his rib cage.

"That's the first thing I said to you..." you whispered as he pulled his shirt back down. Marshall nodded, putting his phone into his pocket. He opened his arms and you crawled onto his lap, wrapping your arms around him, unable to keep the smile off of your face as you laid your head back on his shoulder.

Not even 30 seconds passed before you heard the last thing you expected to hear.

"I love you," Marshall said in a gravelly voice, making your heart start pounding.

"Y-You love me?" you said with a questioning tone, sitting up so you could look at him.

"I love you," he said with a small smile on his face, "I love you so much."

You suddenly felt a burning sensation on your wrist that nearly brought you to tears. You heard that, aside from the feelings you would get from touching your soulmate, once they said the phrase on your body, the tattoo would start to get hot and would almost feel like it was on fire.

"Are you okay?" Marshall asked, noticing your eyes starting to get watery.

You laughed nervously, "I'm fine, I just... I wanna show you something." He sat there, patiently waiting for you to get up, assuming you had to go to another room to get whatever it was that you wanted him to see. He was confused as you began peeling the band-aid off of your wrist until he saw the words ' _I love you_ '.

"Oh my god," he said under his breath, "You're the one."

"It would appear so," you said, your voice breaking slightly. Marshall wasted no time in taking your face in his hands, pulling it to his and pressing his lips to yours. "Marshall," you said, pulling away. He looked at you, tilting his head slightly. "I love you too." He smiled, resting his forehead on yours. "And I hate to break it to you," you whispered, "But I think you just lost that bet."

"I'll get over it," he laughed quietly, kissing you again.

~

_inspirations:_   
_http://igetdresseddown.tumblr.com/post/106634173079/soulmate-au-michael_   
_http://5secondsofsummer--preferences.tumblr.com/post/99258612616/95-your-soulmates-name-is-tattooed-on-your_


	110. Stay With Me (Michael Clifford) *

**Warnings: Death, strong language, violent situations**

~

It had been almost...six months now...since the apocalypse started? You weren't too sure. You were too busy trying to avoid being eaten by brain-hungry zombies that you didn't bother taking the time to figure it out.

You were alone, making your way to your parent's home in Baltimore, Maryland. You had moved to Los Angeles about two years ago when you decided you needed a change of scenery. Ever since this whole thing started, you'd been trying to get home in one piece just to make sure your mom and dad were still alive.

You had camped out in various places over the past six months – abandoned motels, barns, liquor store basements, tool sheds; you had even managed to find shelter in a  _treehouse_  at one point. But you were  _alive_. You hadn't seen another human in over two months, but after what happened with the last one, you wanted to keep it that way.

Sunset was rapidly approaching and that meant you needed to find a place to stay for the night and you needed to find one fast. You came across what seemed like a quiet town – abandoned restaurants and stores where you were sure to find food and water and there were only a few walkers around. You quietly retrieved your baseball bat from the makeshift holster across your back and sneaked up behind one, slamming the bat across its head. You did this with the other four coming your way as well, killing them all in under 10 seconds. You turned to see another group of walkers a couple hundred yards away, but they hadn't spotted you, so you didn't worry about them.

You had almost made it into the small general store when you were startled by a gunshot and a bullet flying past you and lodging into the wooden door frame. You screamed, jumping back and spinning around to see what the hell was behind you.

There were four boys staring back at you – one wearing a bandana across his forehead, one with black hair and blonde highlights, one with a lip ring, and one with bright red hair. The boy with red hair was pointing his gun back toward the ground and you knew he was the one that shot at you. You quickly looked at the group of walkers and saw they were coming toward you, so now, you had to leave the store and find somewhere to hide.

"Are you fucking  _insane_?!" you shouted, running past the boys, "You almost  _killed me_!"

"Oh my god," the boy with the bandana breathed, "You're actually alive."

"Of course I am,  _dumbass_! When was the last time you saw a zombie with a backpack  _cautiously_  walk up to a door?!"

You finally found a safe place to hide in a building just around the corner from the store. You ran in before the walkers saw you, but unfortunately, the boys followed you in.

"Seriously!" you whispered as they talked loudly amongst each other, " _Shut the hell up_!"

"Wow, rude much?" the red-haired boy smirked, "Do you always talk like that to people you just met?"

"We haven't met! I don't know you! And right now, I'm not so sure I  _want_  to know you either!"

"The name's Michael," he stated before pointing to each of his friends, "That's Luke, Ashton, and Calum. We thought we'd come to help you out."

" _Help me out_?" you laughed quietly, peeking out the door to make sure nothing had seen you, "How, by getting me  _killed_? Thanks for the offer, but I'll pass."

"No, you just looked like you needed help."

"Do I  _look_  like some sort of damsel in distress to you?" you asked, gripping the handle of your bat tighter as you glared back at him.

"Whoa," he said, putting his hands in the air, "No need for the hostility."

"Listen, whatever-your-name-is-"

"Michael."

" _Great_ ," you shot him a sarcastic smile, putting your bat back in the holster, "I would love to stay and make mindless small talk with you all, but I have places to get to and not a lot of time to get to them, so if you'll excuse me."

"Will you at least tell us your name?" Ashton asked you.

You paused for a moment. You didn't know these people. For all you knew, they could easily be there to take what little food and water you had left and leave you to die.

"Y/N," you said reluctantly, "My name is Y/N."

You were suddenly startled by a gunshot. Your head shot over to look at Michael, Luke, and Calum and noticed they all had their shotguns pointed out of a broken window. When you looked back outside, you saw the group of walkers coming toward you.

" _God damn it_!" you yelled, shoving the door open the rest of the way and running out of the building in the opposite direction. The four boys looked you, looked at each other, then back to the walkers before shooting the easiest targets and sprinting after you.

"So why are they chasing you again?" Michael asked once they caught up.

" _Me_?!" you said breathlessly, punching his arm, " _You're_  the ones that got us into this mess! Everything was going great until  _you idiots_  came along and decided to start shooting at everything that moved!"

"They were gonna kill us! What were we supposed to do?!" Calum exclaimed.

" _They were nowhere near us_! They hadn't even  _seen us_  in that building! I could have camped out in there tonight but now I've got these guys on my ass  _because of you_! Now I'm gonna be at least a day behind because you four assholes wanted to try to play hero for the princess that  _clearly didn't need saving_!"

"Oh, come on!" Ashton shouted, "You could _obviously_ use the undead human contact and we haven't seen a girl in  _months_!" You immediately stopped running, causing the boys to nearly run into you as you spun around.

" _Do you wanna repeat that statement_?" you asked, a threatening tone to your voice. Ashton quickly shook his head. " _Good_ ," you growled.

Something behind the boys caught your eye and you suddenly felt like you couldn't breathe. They looked behind them when they saw your eyes widen to see a single walker quickly making its way toward you. They started running again, but you didn't move; You  _couldn't_. Even though it was virtually unrecognizable, you knew it looked familiar. And as it got closer, you finally realized who it was – well, who it  _used to be_.

"Just go! We'll catch up!" you heard Michael shout behind you just before he ran in front of you, "Y/N, are you coming or what?"

He looked at your face and saw you looked absolutely horrified and it honestly confused him. He had only known you for 5 minutes, but he knew you weren't the type of person to scare easily – especially since the apocalypse had been going on for so long now and there was only one walker coming toward you.

"Y/N," he said a bit more softly, "What's wrong?"

You just shook your head and he looked behind him. The walker was about 5 yards away at this point and Michael had no other choice.

"Alright, well, if you're not going to run..." he trailed off, bending down and throwing you over his shoulder as he hurried toward where the other three boys had gone.

" _Michael_!" you squeaked, hitting his lower back, "Put me down!"

"Are you going to run?" he rushed.

"Yes!" He stopped, put you back on your feet, and grabbed your hand.

Before you could start running, however, the walker caught up to you and clawed at Michael's left side, leaving a pretty decent sized gash just under his rib cage. Michael fell to the ground with a yelp, taking you down with him.

You quickly flipped onto your back and put your foot on the walker's stomach, pushing it away from Michael with all the strength you could muster. You jumped up as Michael held his side in pain and swiftly pulled your bat out of its holster. You hesitated for a moment, but when the walker made the motion to go for Michael again, the bat came into contact with its neck and it fell to the ground.

You swallowed the lump in your throat and wiped your tear-stained cheeks as you checked the surrounding area to make sure no other walkers were nearby. It was clear, so you dropped to your knees beside Michael to examine just how badly he was hurt.

"Thank you," he hissed in pain as you lifted his shirt up.

"Don't thank me yet," you mumbled, seeing the wound was pretty bad. " _Ashton_!" you screamed, hoping they were close. He came out from a building a couple hundred feet away, running over to you.

"What happened?!" he exclaimed.

"Just help me get him to wherever you guys are!" you nearly shouted, beyond upset with yourself that this happened because of you.

You carefully got Michael up and had him put his arms around both yours and Ashton's shoulder. You kept pressure on his side while you both led him to what appeared to be an abandoned doctor's office. Once inside, Calum and Luke closed and barricaded the door the best they could with what was available. It wasn't much, but it got the job done and you were all sure no walkers would be able to get inside.

You and Ashton laid Michael on one of the exam tables and Ashton stepped back as Calum and Luke came over to see what was going on. You quickly took your backpack off and dug through the cabinets to find some medical dressing. You finally managed to find a roll before giving Michael a sympathetic look.

"I hate to do this to you," you told him, "But I need you to sit up." You took his hands and pulled him up slowly.

You helped Michael take off his shirt before having him rest his forearms on your shoulders to keep him steady. He winced as the small piece of cloth you grabbed while searching for the dressing came into contact with the wound. You grabbed some tape out of the drawer and taped the cloth to his skin before wrapping the dressing around him. When you were done, you helped him lay back down before returning everything to where you found it.

"So what happened?" Ashton asked again once everything had calmed down.

You took a deep breath, "I-"

"I was too slow," Michael cut you off, "The walker caught up to us and grabbed for me. I fell down and Y/N killed him before he could get her too." The boys simply nodded and went to get anything you all could use while you stayed with Michael.

"Why did you do that?" you asked, " _I'm_  the one that froze up.  _I'm_  the one you came back for.  _I'm_  the one that did this to you. It's  _my_  fault."

"Hey," he said quietly, reaching for your hand and holding it tightly, "Don't blame yourself."

"But it was  _my fault_ ," your voice broke, "If I hadn't have stayed behind, you wouldn't have had to come back for me and this wouldn't have happened. Why did you come back? Why didn't you just leave? You would be fine if it weren't for me."

"You're the first person we've seen in God knows how long," he shook his head, "I don't know if you've noticed, but we're an unorganized mess. We need all the help we can get."

"Surprisingly enough, I  _had_  noticed that," you whispered, making him laugh lightly.

"Please stay with us?" Michael said with a pleading look in his eyes, "You're a way better fighter than any of us are. And you're a lot quieter too. I promise we'll listen to everything you say and we'll do everything we can to make sure you get to wherever you're going." You took a breath and let it out slowly.

"On one condition," you said.

" _Anything_."

"Don't  _ever_ scare me like that again."

He smiled, "Deal."

~

**Three months later**

Michael's wound was healing pretty well, but it was still a chore to make sure it didn't get infected. It had been nearly three months – give or take a few days since none of you were focused on keeping up with anything other than  _surviving_  – but you had finally made it to Texas.

The five of you needed shelter for the night and when you stumbled upon a farm on the outskirts of Dallas, you decided that was the best place to set up camp for the night. You had come across a few walkers here and there along the way – and the boys had since replaced all of their shotguns with various other weapons that were far less loud and probably even ten times more effective – so they were nothing you couldn't handle.

After you had set up camp in the barn, you took one look at Michael and noticed looking a little more pale than usual and knew he was getting sick. You barely had any medicine left and you were running low on food and water as well. You knew you needed to find a store and you needed to find it as soon as possible.

As you were all sitting together in the corner of the barn, you decided now was the time to do something.

"Guys," you stated, making them all look at you as you stood up, "I'm going to go find more supplies."

"I'm going with you," Michael said, pushing himself up but groaning as he was still in constant pain due to the wound on his side.

"No, Michael," you shook your head, "You need to stay here."

"Then we'll go with you," Ashton said, getting up along with Luke and Calum, "You can't go alone."

"Someone needs to stay with Michael."

"You stay," Michael spoke up.

"Michael-"

"Please?" he asked, his voice shaking, "These guys aren't gonna know what to do if this-" He gestured toward his bandages. "-gets infected and I sure as hell know I won't either. I... I need you, Y/N."

"We'll be fine, Y/N," Luke insisted, "We're 10 minutes outside the city. We'll be gone an hour at the most." You hesitated before taking one look at Michael's expression and instantly caving.

"Fine," you said, "But if you guys aren't back by morning, I'm going to come look for you." They all agreed and hugged you and Michael, grabbing their backpacks and weapons and leaving. You barricaded the door behind them before going back to sit with Michael.

"I don't think that's gonna get infected, you know," you said.

"I don't either," he shrugged.

"Then why did you make me stay?"

"I just... I don't want you to get hurt," he replied, looking down at his hands, "And this is probably the only time we'll get together, just the two of us."

You smiled slightly before you were startled by a noise outside. You didn't know what it was and, honestly, you weren't going to take the chance and find out.

You looked around frantically, noticing a small loft area on the other side of the barn. You tilted your head, trying to figure out a way to get Michael up there. When you came up with an idea, you turned to him.

"How strong would you say your grip is right now?" you asked, standing up.

"I don't know," he replied following your gaze, "Why?"

"We need to get up there." You grabbed yours and Michael's backpacks as well as your weapons and tossed them up to the loft.

"I'm not gonna be able to climb all the way up  _there_!" he exclaimed.

"I didn't think you would," you stated, going back over to him and looking down at him, "Can you stand up?"

"I think so," he said, holding his arms up to you.

You pulled him up – his legs were weak, but with your help, he was able to get over to the rope ladder that was hanging from the loft. You pulled on it a few times to make sure it was strong enough to hold the two of you going up at the same time. You got in front of him and pulled his arms around your neck.

"Don't let go of me, okay?" He nodded and hugged you tightly enough so that he wouldn't lose his grip on you, but carefully enough so that he wouldn't choke you.

As you climbed up to the loft, you felt Michael nuzzle his face into your neck and you couldn't help but smile. Once you made it to the top, you breathed a sigh of relief at seeing a support beam within arms reach. You grabbed it and pulled yourself across the floor so Michael could safely roll off of you.

"That's impressive," Michael laughed as you helped him to sit against the back wall. You rolled your eyes and smiled before going back to the ladder and pulling it up. You went back over to him and collapsed beside him, understandably a bit out of breath. "Why do we need to be up here?" he asked, turning his head toward you.

"If I have to leave, I need to be absolutely certain that you'll be safe. Nothing is gonna be able to get to you up here if they get in." He smiled at you and leaned over, kissing your cheek softly.

"I wish we met before all this shit happened," he said under his breath, his face only a couple inches from yours.

"Why?" you asked in a shaky, barely audible whisper.

"So I could have fallen in love with you properly," he answered, pressing his lips against yours. You kissed back for a few seconds before you realized what you were doing and pulled away.

"Don't," you whispered, your voice breaking.

"You don't mean that," he said, "I can tell."

You shook your head slowly, "Please don't fall in love with me, Michael."

"And why wouldn't I want to do that?"

"Because if something happens to one of us, the other is gonna get their heart broken," you felt tears start to fall down your cheeks, "And I can't go through that again."

"What do you mean again?" he asked, bringing his hands up to your face and wiping your tears with his thumbs.

"No-Nothing," you stuttered, "Just forget I said anything." You tried to crawl away, but Michael wrapped his arms around your waist, pulling you back to him.

"What do you mean again?" he repeated lowly against your ear.

You were unraveling right in front of him and you completely hated yourself for it. You swore to yourself that you wouldn't get attached to anyone you may meet throughout this whole ordeal and yet, here you were: falling head over heels for someone you had just met only a couple months ago.

"Come on, Y/N," he said, taking your hand and tangling your fingers together, "Tell me what's wrong."

"Remember that walker that hurt you?" you choked. He nodded and you went on. "I had a boyfriend before all this started. We had been together for a couple years and for the first time in my life, I felt happy. When this freak show started, we swore that no matter what, we would never leave each others sight. And then one day, we were being chased by like, 10 walkers and I tripped, so Alex came back for me. But by the time I got up, they got to us and Alex told me to go to the nearest building and hide and he started to distract them but he couldn't get away and they..." You had to stop because you were crying too hard. Michael buried his face into your neck as you calmed yourself down and went on. "I grabbed everything I could fit into my backpack without weighing me down and I've been heading for the east coast ever since."

"Why the east coast?" Michael asked, his voice muffled by your skin.

"My parents live in Baltimore," you sniffled, "I don't know if they're...if they're still alive or not and I need to make sure. Alex had been gone for at least two months if not longer and I swore I would never let myself fall for anyone else, but then you showed up."

Michael looked up at you, "We're gonna find your parents, okay? Together."

"Thank you," you muttered, kissing his cheek. After a couple minutes of silence, you spoke again. "You actually remind me a lot of Alex."

"I do?" he said.

You nodded, "He did everything to make sure I was okay before he thought of himself. He always gave me more than half of our food and he refused to drink the last of any bottle of water in case I needed it later. But Michael..." you paused, making him tilt his head in confusion as he waited for you to finish your thought. " _Please_  don't sacrifice yourself for me the way he did."

"I make no promises," he whispered, kissing you again. He pulled away, resting his forehead on yours. "You know, I like you a lot better when your guard is down," he smiled at you.

You laughed slightly, pushing the hair out of his face, "And I like you a lot better when you're not being an obnoxious piece of shit."

"Y/N," he said quietly.

"Yeah, Michael?"

"You're so beautiful."

"No, I'm not, Michael," you shook your head.

"Yes, you are," he said firmly, "And if we make it through this-"

"When." He gave you a confused stare. "We  _are_  going to make it through this."

" _When_ -" He swallowed the lump in his throat. "-we make it through this, I  _swear_  I'm gonna get you to see it."

"Michael, I-" You were cut off by loud knocking on the barn door, making you jump. "I'll be right back," you told Michael as he sat up.

You grabbed your baseball bat and threw the rope ladder back off the edge of the floor, carefully climbing down to ground level. You were quietly making your way to the door when you heard your name being whispered loudly from the other side. You quickly moved everything out of the way, allowing Luke, Ashton, and Calum to dart back inside before you shut the door again.

"You're alive!" you squeaked, hugging them.

"Where's Mikey?" Ashton asked, pulling the medicine out of his pocket and handing it to you.

"Up there," you answered, pointing to the loft, "I didn't want anything to happen to him in case I needed to leave."

"You got  _him_  up there  _by yourself_?" Calum asked in shock. You simply nodded and you all made your way up to the loft. The boys went over to Michael as you pulled the ladder back up.

"Guys!" Michael said in a raspy voice, letting out a sigh of relief as he hugged his best friends, "Thank God you're alright!"

"You can't get rid of us  _that_  easily, Mikey," Luke chuckled.

Calum pulled out bottles of water from his backpack for everyone and you were all beyond eager to drink something. You scrunched your face up as you gulped down nearly half of the bottle. When you stopped, you noticed the boys were looking at you.

"What?" you asked, screwing the lid back on, "I hate warm water." They simply shook their heads and laughed.

"So what did you guys do while we were gone?" Luke asked as you all got ready to go to sleep.

"Besides be a total bad ass and get Mikey up here by yourself," Ashton nudged you, making you laugh.

"I'm not that heavy!" Michael exclaimed with a pout.

"No one ever said you were, you big baby," you giggled, patting his thigh.

"First one up wakes everyone else up and then we can get going?" Calum interrupted with a questioning tone, yawning. You all nodded in agreement and went to sleep.

~

A few hours later, the sun had just risen and you woke up. You were usually the first one awake – Ashton occasionally woke up before you – and you looked around. Ashton and Calum were spread out across the floor and Michael had moved from his position against you to now being cuddled up with Luke. You laughed quietly and shook your head. Truthfully, you were going to miss them.

But you meant what you told Michael; You couldn't let him get attached to you and you couldn't get attached to him either.

You quietly put your bat in its holster and swung your backpack onto your shoulder, throwing the ladder back down. You didn't worry too much about the ladder hitting the floor because you knew the boys were heavy sleepers – this obviously being proven to you since you were usually the one that had to wake them up. You looked back at Michael and sighed, crawling over to him. You kissed his cheek softly before crawling back to the ladder.

"Y/N..." you heard Michael mumble. You shut your eyes tightly, hoping he was only talking in his sleep. You turned your head to see him rubbing his eyes. "What are you doing?"

_Damn it. He was awake._

"I have to go find my parents, Michael," you said softly as you didn't want to wake the other boys, "And I have to do it alone."

"Why?" the sadness in his voice was very obvious.

"I'll be fine, okay?" you replied, dropping your backpack and going back over to him, "This is just something I need to do by myself."

"What about me?"

"The boys can take care of you, Michael," you shook your head, "They've seen me clean your side and replace your bandages plenty of times now."

"What about  _us_?" his voice broke and you felt your heart drop.

"I'm sorry, Mikey," you leaned forward and kissed him softly before crawling to the ladder for the second time.

"I'm gonna come find you, Y/N," you heard Michael say as you climbed down the ladder, "Whether you like it or not, I'm gonna see you again someday." You let out a quiet sob and quickly left the barn before he heard you.

~

**Five months later**

You took slow, deep breaths as your parents' house finally came into view. You were beyond nervous about what you would find once you stepped inside. You took out your bat and held it as tightly as you could with one hand and gripped the doorknob on the front door with the other. You turned the knob and were surprised to find it unlocked.

" _Fuck_ ," you whispered to yourself. Unlocked doors in situations like these are  _never_  a good sign.

You slowly opened the door and peeked inside before going in. You left the door open just in case and cautiously began searching the house.

"Mom? Dad?" you called out in a loud whisper, "Are you here?"

You were suddenly startled by a sound coming from the kitchen. You began chewing on your inner cheek, having a very strong feeling you shouldn't go in there, but you did anyway. You peered around the corner and saw your mom and dad – or...what  _used to be_  your mom and dad. 

You let out a quiet squeak, but to your dismay, they heard you. They quickly looked at you and began racing toward you.

You knew very well that you could take them both out, but you couldn't make yourself go through with it; They were still your parents, after all –  _true_ , they were trying to kill you, but they were still  _your parents_ _–_ so all you could do was back out of the house and run.

You ran down the street to the abandoned post office and darted behind the building after making sure no other walkers were nearby. You watched quietly as your parents looked around, walking past the building.

You waited for a few minutes before coming out of your hiding spot and trudging over to the road, dropping down on the curb.

You couldn't believe you left Michael for  _this_.

You knew there was a very high chance your parents didn't make it, but you left anyway. You knew the boys would have gone with you and now, you were left to deal with the pain of losing your boyfriend, your parents,  _and_  them all in less than a year.

And it wasn't like you could go back and look for them. It had taken you  _five months_  to reach Baltimore and the boys  _definitely_  wouldn't have stayed in that barn after Michael told them you left.

You sighed lightly, putting your head in your hands.

You had just given up; You figured you had a good run. You had managed to walk all the way across the country, feel like the hero in a zombie movie – if only for a little while – and teach four boys who clearly didn't know what they were doing how to survive. At this point, you were just waiting for a walker to find you and finish you off.

"Y/N," you were startled by the soft voice behind you. You looked up to see Michael sitting down beside you.

"Mikey...?" you whispered in shock.

He gave you a small smile, "I told you I was gonna come looking for you."

" _Mikey_!" you breathed, grabbing his face and pulling it to your own, roughly pressing your lips against his, making him smile.

"Why are you just sitting here?" he asked when you pulled away, "There are still walkers around."

You let out another quiet sigh and shrugged, looking down at your hands, "I don't care."

" _You don't care_?" Michael repeated, "What do you  _mean_  you don't care? What happened to the girl I met eight months ago? What happened to the girl that could fearlessly take on 20 walkers at a time and I wouldn't even worry about her because I knew she could handle it? What happened to the girl that managed to keep four idiots alive for eight months even though she didn't have to? What happened to the girl I fell in love with?"

"I told you not to fall in love with me, Michael," you mumbled.

"You can keep pushing me away, Y/N," he shook his head, "But I'm always going to come back.  _Nothing_  is going to stop me from being in love with you."

"Michael-"

" _I love you_ ," he said slowly, taking your chin in his hand and making you look at him, "I am  _so_  in love with you, Y/N. And nothing – not even the  _end of the world_  – is going to change that."

"Michael..." you whimpered. He simply waited for you to finish your sentence. "I love you too." He smiled widely, kissing you again just before you were interrupted.

" _Whoa there_!" a familiar voice yelled as they approached you, "Save it for the bedroom, you two!" You immediately pushed Michael back and jumped up, spinning toward the direction of the voice.

" _Ashton_!" you screamed, running over and hugging him as tightly as you could. Michael chuckled, standing up as well. "Where are-" You cut yourself off when you saw the two boys you were referring to. " _Calum_!  _Luke_!" You crashed into them, hugging them tightly as well.

"Come on, Y/N," Luke smiled as he wrapped his arms around you, "You didn't think you could get rid of us  _that_  easily, did you?"

"You guys are such  _assholes_ ," you mumbled into his shoulder, making them all laugh.

"Why are you out here all alone?" Calum asked, "Why aren't you somewhere safer?"

"I don't care anymore," you repeated quietly.

Ashton gave you a confused look, "What happened to-"

"Save it, Ash," you sighed, "Michael already gave me that speech."

"Then why don't you care anymore?" Luke asked.

You swallowed the lump in your throat and you knew you were about to cry. Apparently, Michael noticed as well because his arms were immediately around you, pulling you into him. You let a few tears fall as you wrapped your arms around his waist and buried your face in his shirt.

"My parents are gone," you sniffled, your voice slightly muffled by the fabric, "I finally found them, but I was too late. And they saw me and started coming toward me, but I couldn't make myself ki-" You choked on your words before you could finish your sentence. "I couldn't do it... So I just ran away and hid until they left."

"Y/N," Michael said into your hair, rubbing your back, "I'm so sorry."

"I'm not  _fearless_ ," you shook your head, "I'm not that bad ass from those zombie movies I can't bear to watch anymore. I couldn't even keep my  _mom and dad_  safe! They were trying to kill me and I just ran away! Now I've got  _no one_!"

"Hey, that's not true," he whispered, taking your face in his hands and making you look at him, "You are the bravest person I've  _ever_  met. You taught all of us how to fight and how to fix wounds and we're all still  _alive_  because of that – we're still alive because of  _you_. You saved my life when you were scared  _the most_  and if that doesn't say  _brave_ , I don't know  _what_  does."

"We had families too, you know," Luke said, "And when we found out they were gone, we were absolutely  _crushed_. But we got each other through it and we're gonna help you get through it too."

"We may not be much," Calum spoke up, "But we don't need to be like the bad asses in zombie movies to survive; We just have to know what we're doing."

"And we would love nothing more than for you to be right there with us when we do," Ashton smiled.

"Please?" Michael asked as you looked back up at him, "We need you." You started to nod slowly and a smile began pulling at the corner of his mouth. "So you'll stay with us?"

"I'll stay with you," you mumbled. Michael kissed you again just before the other boys cheered, rushing over and putting you in the middle of a group hug.


	111. Stuttering (Luke Hemmings)

You let out a faint sigh, looking around the room. You were at the library, desperately needing a quiet place to study for your finals. You had tried local cafés, but they were always too busy and you tried simply staying in your dorm room, but your roommate wasn't particularly good with respecting your requests to keep her voice down – and you weren't too fond of being stuck on the sidelines during one of her and her boyfriend's Skype dates either.

There were no more than 20 people in the library: You, a few groups of people at various tables, and a kid you'd seen around campus before sitting by himself across the room from you.

Luke was the stereotypical high school nerd all the movies portrayed – the only difference being that he was now freshman in college. He had black-framed glasses that he seemed to be pushing up every two minutes, he was always brushing his hair off of his face, and you rarely ever saw him wearing anything other than khakis and a polo shirt.

There was just something about him that intrigued you. Obviously, you thought he was cute – you'd had a crush on him since the day he transferred to your school when you were in 7th grade – but it wasn't just that.

 _In school_ , he was the student that sat in the front of the class, never turned in an assignment or project late, and was always either asking or answering questions. But you wondered how he was when he was around his friends  _outside_  of school. You wondered if he was as quiet at home as he was in the hallways. You even caught yourself wondering what kind of boyfriend he would be.

You suddenly shook your head, hoping no one saw you staring at him.

You looked out the window beside you to see snow start falling on the already white lawn. It wasn't a heavy snowfall yet, but forecasts predicted your town would have at least a foot of snow by sunset. You looked at your phone and realized you had only been at the library for a couple hours.

You were beyond ready to pack up your stuff and walk back to your dorm before the snow started piling up, but you couldn't. It was Saturday and that meant your roommate would be Skyping with her boyfriend almost all day and you  _really_  didn't want to be there during that.

You sighed again, standing up and going to get another book. You were gone no more than two minutes and as you were coming back to your table, you saw a sticky note stuck on the page of the book you were reading. You took it off of the book as you sat down, reading it to yourself.

_You look beautiful today (Not that you don't every day)_

You felt your cheeks start to warm up as you looked around, seeing whether or not anyone was watching you and waiting for your reaction. When you saw that no one was looking your way, you were left confused, but in a much better mood.

This actually wasn't an uncommon occurrence for you though. Every time you were at the library, something like this would happen, but you still haven't been able to pinpoint who was doing it. You secretly always hoped it was Luke, but he never even glanced at you, so he couldn't possibly be it.

~

A couple hours later, you were brought out of your daydreams by the librarian. She announced that due to the rapid snowfall and the fact that no one had been paying attention, everyone would have to stay in the library until the snow could be cleared. And that basically meant that you were snowed in.

You didn't mind too much though. Honestly, it gave you more chances to stare across the room at Luke – subtly, of course – and the library had a bathroom, so that wasn't going to be a problem either. While you were thinking about it, it was actually about time for a bathroom break.

When you were walking back to your table a few minutes later, you turned the corner and ran into someone. You let out a quiet squeak as you both fell down, them somehow ending up on top of you. You pushed the hair off of your face and saw you had run into Luke.

"Why am I not surprised?" you sighed jokingly.

"Are you okay?" he asked frantically, propping himself up on his forearms so his weight wasn't crushing you.

"You know, this is the 5th time we've ended up like this," you laughed quietly, "I'm starting to think you've taken a liking to being on top of me."

This had happened four times prior to today; Once when he was being chased by members of the football team, once when neither of you were paying attention to where you were going, and twice when one of the cheerleaders tripped him.

" _What_?!  _No_!" he exclaimed, rushing to get off of you and pull you up off of the floor, "I-I did... I didn't... I-I wasn't-"

"Luke," you smiled, "I'm kidding."

"You know my name..." he muttered.

"Of course I do. We've had almost every class together since middle school."

"Right... Well... I, uh, I-I'll see you later," he said, rushing toward the bathrooms. You let out a sigh as you walked away.

" _Hey, Luke. I think you're really cute and would love to hang out with you sometime_ ," you whispered to yourself, " _It's not that hard to say_." When you made it back to your table, you saw another sticky note on your book.

_You look really cute when you blush, by the way. One day, I'll be brave enough to ask you out. (Pinky swear)_

~

A couple hours later, you looked out the window and saw that the snow plows had arrived. You sighed in relief, knowing that your study time was finally coming to an end. They were done within just 5 minutes and the librarian finally allowed everyone to leave. You quickly put the library books back on the shelves where you found them and gathered up all your things.

As you were putting them in your bag, you heard loud laughter coming from the other side of the room. You looked up just in time to watch the captain of the football team trip Luke, causing his books to go everywhere. You stuffed your notebook into your bag before throwing it across your body and running over to Luke.

"Hey, Y/N," the football player smirked at you as you passed him and his friends, "What do you say we-"

"My answer is still the same as the previous 18 times you've asked me out, Christian," you said as you offered your hands to Luke, "And my answer will never change as long as you keep treating people like this." Luke stared at your hands for a moment before taking them and allowing you to pull him up.

"Come on," Christian laughed, "Even  _you_ know he's a loser. You're way out of his league."

"And if I was a  _softball player_ , that statement might be considered  _somewhat_  appropriate," you rolled your eyes, making Luke let out a quiet chuckle.

"What's so funny,  _nerd_?" Christian growled, taking a step toward Luke. You quickly stood in between the two boys.

"Don't you have somewhere to be, Christian?"

"No, I've got all day."

"What a coincidence," you narrowed your eyes at him, " _So do I_."

"You're not  _really_ going to defend him, are you?" Christian asked, a hint of shock in his voice. When you didn't move, he laughed again. "I always thought you were cooler than that, Y/N."

"Yeah, well, I'm full of disappointment," you replied, "I'll see you in class on Monday." You smiled politely and he simply walked away with his friends. You turned back to Luke, "You okay, Luke?" 

"No one's ever stood up for me like that before," he said quietly.

"Sorry it's taken me this long to say something," you sighed, helping him pick up his things, "You're way too sweet to be taken advantage of like that."

"Thank you," he looked away, blushing. You smiled again, grabbing the last piece of loose paper off the floor. You paused, examining the handwriting.

"Is something wrong?" Luke asked, carefully taking the paper from you. You immediately began digging through your bag, pulling out one of the sticky notes you had found on your books.

"It's  _you_!" you squeaked.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he stated, pushing his glasses up. You turned the sticky note around so he could see it and he looked down again, "Maybe I  _do_  know what you're talking about..." Without another word, you simply lifted your other hand up and stuck your pinky out to him. He looked at your pinky before looking back up at you with a confused expression.

"You said you'll be brave enough to ask me out one day," you told him, "You pinky swore. And now you have to make it official."

"What do you-"

"I'm willing to wait until you're brave enough, Luke; Don't make this difficult."

"But I-"

"I can date other people. You're not the only guy I'm interested in, you know."

His eyes widened slightly, "Y-You're interested i-in  _me_?"

"Did I stutter?" you smirked. "Are you going to pinky swear or not, Luke?" He quickly put his stuff down on the table and linked his pinky with yours. "I'll see you on Monday," you smiled, turning and starting to walk out of the library. You had barely made it a few feet before Luke's voice stopped you.

"Why not tomorrow?" he asked.

You turned to face him, "Are you asking me out?"

He raised his eyebrows and bit his lip, a small smile pulling at the corner of his mouth, " _Did I stutter?_ "


	112. Pinky Swear (Ryan Follese) - Part 1

_"You're moving?" you asked your best friend as you sat with him in his front yard while waiting for your mom to pick you up. The sadness in your voice still haunts you_ –  _and Ryan_ –  _to this day._

_Ryan nodded slowly, looking at the ground, "My mom and dad said this is an opportunity they can't afford to pass up."_

_"When do you leave?"_

_"Friday."_

_"But that's in two days!"_

_"I know," he said quietly._

_You sighed, putting your elbows on your knees and resting your chin in your hands, "Promise we'll always be best friends and you'll never forget me?"_

_"Promise," he said._

_"Pinky swear?"_

_"Pinky swear," he nodded, linking his pinky with yours._

~

**10 years later**

So much for  _that_.

Of course, pinky swears are always taken seriously when you're in elementary and middle school and neither of you broke that during those five years. You called each other almost every day – you both even convinced your parents to set up Skype accounts so you could video chat every weekend.

But when you started high school, things changed. You were both being overloaded with homework nearly every night and you barely got to talk to each other anymore. Ryan would text you every now and then, but the conversation never lasted more than five texts.

You hated that you let it get that far, honestly. You hated school for limiting your chances to talk to him. But most of all, you hated his parents' job for taking him away from you in the first place. You obviously didn't hate that they took it – as you got older, you began to understand that being offered a job as songwriters was an amazing chance for them and you never blamed them for wanting that for themselves – you simply hated that they couldn't have been offered a job like that  _here_.

You missed them beyond words. They were like your second family. If you couldn't go to your parents for some reason, Keith and Adrienne were who you wanted to talk to. They, of course, usually always told your parents afterwards, but that was to be expected with how close they were as well.

As for right now, you were in the car with your parents and your younger sister Emily. You had your earbuds in, not paying attention to anything they were talking about – not that you cared. You were currently moving from your hometown to Nashville, Tennessee. You didn't understand why your parents decided to suddenly pack up and move, especially since you had just started your senior year of high school, but you knew the argument wouldn't be worth it. So you sucked it up and went along with it.

You had been in the car for God knows how long now and you were about to fall asleep when your mom reached back and tapped your knee. You jumped, pulling out your earbuds and looking at her.

"Cheer up, sweetie," she smiled. You involuntarily rolled your eyes.

" _Cheer up,_ " you sighed, laughing bitterly, "That's a good one."

"Come on, Y/N," your dad said, "It's not gonna be that bad."

"Of course you think it's not gonna be that bad. You guys aren't in high school anymore."

"We were at one point in time though, dear."

"Times have changed since then, Mother. Classes are harder. People are meaner. New kids are bottom of the food chain."

"What?" Emily asked with wide eyes.

"Y/N, stop being so dramatic. You're scaring your sister," your dad told you.

"I'm not being dramatic, I'm stating the  _facts_!" you squeaked, "And it's not like she has anything to worry about! Middle schoolers and far less intimidating than high schoolers!"

"What's so terrible about you going to a new school then?" your mom asked.

"Have  _none of you_  been listening to me?! I just started my senior year! Unless you're the ridiculously pretty or extremely lucky new kid, you're  _screwed_!"

"Alright," your dad simply chuckled, "Why don't we talk about something else now?"

"Are we there yet?" you and your sister asked in unison.

"10 more minutes," he rolled his eyes, mentally kicking himself for not seeing that coming.

~

As promised, 10 minutes later, your dad pulled into a driveway and you stared at the house as you got out of the car. It was a two-story brick house with a wrap around porch and an attached two car garage – nothing too fancy, but it was  _much_  nicer than your old house already. You all decided to look around the house before you started moving anything in. Your dad unlocked the front door and you walked around. Yup, it was  _officially_  nicer than your old house.

"Where's my room?!" Emily squealed the second she stepped through the door.

"Second door on the left," your mom laughed as her youngest daughter ran up the stairs.

"And mine?" you asked.

"Well," your dad started, "We know you weren't too thrilled about this move, so your mom and I decided that we wanted you to have an entire space all to yourself. Come here." He led you to the beginning of the hallway and pointed to the ceiling at the top of the stairs. "See that door?" You nodded and he smiled, "Go check out your bedroom."

" _The attic_?" you asked, raising your eyebrows, "You knew I wasn't thrilled about the move, so you're giving me  _the attic_?"

"Just go," your mom said, nudging you toward the staircase, "You're going to love it."

You let out a quiet sigh, climbing the stairs and looking up. There was a small piece of rope hanging from the door on the ceiling and you pulled it. A ladder came down and you started climbing up. You glanced back at your parents and they gave you one last weird smile before going outside to start bringing things in. Once you finally reached the top, the ladder came back up and the door closed.

There was a small hallway – no more than five feet long – that led to another door, acting as a sort of privacy thing so that anyone that came in would still have to knock, which you actually really liked. You began chewing on your lip as you gripped the doorknob and turned it, slowly opening the door.

By the time you were fully in the room, you were speechless. It was a huge space and there were actually two fairly large windows overlooking the backyard. You turned to see two doors opposite of the windows. The right was a half-bathroom – which had a shower in it as well, so you weren't about to complain – and to the left was a walk-in closet. There was even a little nook in the wall beside the door to enter your room with its own small window and window seat – something you'd always wanted. Basically, your bedroom was perfect. Of course, there was no furniture, but your parents said that you would be going furniture shopping for the essentials – beds, nightstands, desks, lamps, bookcases, etc. – after everything you had brought with you was in the house.

You quickly rushed out of the room and back down the stairs to the first floor, nearly tripping over yourself multiple times. You ran outside to where your parents were continuing to unload the trailer. They barely had time to brace themselves before you were hugging them.

"I told you you were going to love it," your mom laughed lightly, patting your back.

"Thank you," you mumbled into their shoulders before you let go of them.

"You're welcome," your dad smiled, "Just remember, if you ever bring any boys home, we will know about it."

"I don't think that'll be an issue, Dad," you laughed, beginning to take the boxes with your name on them into the house and putting them on the floor against the wall.

~

A few hours later, furniture shopping was finished as well. After your parents helped you get the boxes into your room, you insisted on putting everything together yourself. You always had a knack for building things and it was just something you liked to do alone as it was actually a pretty good stress reliever for you. They agreed, telling you that if you needed any help to just yell for them. You nodded and they left, allowing you to get started.

You decided to start with your bed, figuring that since it was almost dark out, at least you would have a place to sleep if you didn't finish with all your furniture tonight. You set up your iHome and hooked up your iPod, turning on your music so you weren't working in complete silence.

~

Two hours later, you were in the midst of working on building your desk since you weren't really that tired when you heard a knock on your door.

"Come in!" you called out, pausing your music as the door opened. You looked behind you, watching your sister trudge over to you. "What's up, Em?" you asked as she sat down beside you.

"Can I help you build something?" she asked quietly.

"Why can't you help with your stuff?"

"Dad said I might hurt myself." You sighed. He was always so protective of her despite the fact that she was 14-years-old and rarely ever let her do anything no matter how badly she wanted to help.

You reached behind her and pulled the box your floor lamp was in over beside her, "Think you can handle this?" Her eyes lit up as she smiled, nodding quickly.

"Do you really think school is gonna be bad?" Emily asked you after a few minutes.

"I don't know," you shrugged, "I guess I'm just nervous. I've never been the only new kid before."

"You're nervous?" she asked, a bit of shock in her voice, "You never get nervous."

"I get nervous all the time," you laughed quietly.

"But you always act so brave! Like when that boy in your class was making fun of me and you started yelling at him." You caught yourself smiling.

What she was talking about happened when she was in first grade and you were in fifth. You were surprised she even  _remembered it_ , honestly.

You were waiting for your bus after school since it was running late and you were standing with your friends while Emily was sitting on a bench a few feet away. You heard a boy start making fun of someone behind you and when you turned to see he was standing in front of your sister, you absolutely  _lost it_. Sure, she could be a pain, but she was your little sister and you weren't about to let someone get away with making fun of her right in front of you.

"You're my sister, Em," you replied, putting your arm around her and hugging her, "It's my job."

"Do you think Anna, Jamie, and Ryan still live here?" she asked randomly. She was just as close with them as you were.

"I don't know," you said again, sighing.

"I hope they do," she said, more to herself than to you, "I miss them."

"Me too, Em," you said under your breath, "Me too."

~

Four days later, you walked into your new school. You went into the office and the woman at the desk smiled politely at you.

"How can I help you, dear?" she asked.

You started nervously playing with your ring, "Um, I just transferred so..."

"Oh!" a girl behind you exclaimed, jumping out of her chair, "You're Y/N?" You nodded and she grinned. "I'm Julianna! You can call me Julie, Jules, Anna, Annie, hey you – I'll answer to pretty much anything. I'm the welcoming committee around here." She ushered you out the door and you quickly thanked the woman in the office even though she didn't have to do much to help you at all. Julianna handed you a piece of paper as she led you to your locker, "Here's your schedule. We have all the same classes so you shouldn't have too much trouble getting around. Your locker is right next to mine too, so I hope you don't get sick of me too quickly – at least not until you're used to the school." You couldn't help but laugh.

As you got to your locker, you felt as if someone was watching you. You looked at the few people standing around in the hallway – school wasn't starting for at least another half an hour but your mom wanted you to be there early so you knew where to go – and noticed only one person looking back at you.

"Who's he and why is he staring at me?" you asked, interrupting whatever Julianna was rambling on about as you whipped your head back to put in the locker combination. She looked over to see who you were talking about.

"Ah," she nodded, "Ryan Follese-" Your heart skipped a beat. "-He's one of the ' _popular_ ' kids. His parents are like, famous songwriters or something. Honestly, I think if they weren't, he'd be a  _total_  nerd. He's insanely smart and he's always studying and stuff, but he's supposedly dating the head cheerleader, Chelsea Anderson."

"That doesn't explain why he's staring at me though."

"Maybe he thinks you're cute," she teased, winking and nudging you with her elbow.

"Like  _that_  would ever happen," you laughed, closing your locker and following Julianna as she began showing you were your classes were.

**Ryan's POV**

"The  _new girl_?" Ryan's friend scoffed as he walked up to him, " _Really, dude_? Can you at least  _try_  to be less obvious for once in your life?"

"What's wrong with the new girl?" Ryan asked, finally taking his eyes off of you since he couldn't figure out where he recognized you from.

"Let me explain to you how popularity works," Kaiden said, throwing his arm across Ryan's shoulders and beginning to lead him to the cafeteria to get breakfast, "We are at the top with the football team and the cheerleaders. She is at the bottom with the nerds and the band geeks. We could not possibly be further apart if we were at the North Pole and she was at the South."

"So I'm not allowed to think she's cute?"

"Need I remind you that you have a girlfriend," he replied, raising his eyebrows, "You know, most popular girl in this city, cheer team captain, pretty much guaranteed to be crowned prom queen?"

"I would hardly say Chelsea is my  _girlfriend_ ," Ryan rolled his eyes, "We hooked up at a party  _one time_. We never even  _spoke_  after that."

"Either way," Kaiden shrugged, "She will  _ruin you_  if you start thinking that way about anyone but her, much less the  _new girl_."

Ryan simply sighed and grabbed a carton of chocolate milk, not bothering to put up a fight. He knew Kaiden was right. Chelsea would start a third world war if she found out he liked someone else.

"I bet you wouldn't even last a  _day_  before Chelsea broke you two up," Kaiden laughed as he and Ryan sat down at their usual table.

"Chelsea is  _not_  my girlfriend," Ryan rolled his eyes, biting into his Poptart, " _I_  get to decide who I'm interested in,  _not her_."

"A hundred bucks says you don't make it a month," he smirked, sticking his hand out to Ryan, "50 upfront if she says yes, 50 after the month is over."

Ryan knew he shouldn't do it, but he wanted to prove Kaiden wrong. Of course, he still could have proven Kaiden wrong  _without_  taking the bet, but he didn't. He reached out and shook his best friend's hand, instantly feeling the guilt hit him like a semi going 80 miles per hour.

~

**Your POV**

After school that day, you were leaning against the wall beside the office, waiting for your mom to pick you up. You were scrolling through your Facebook feed on your phone when you felt someone watching you again.

You tried to ignore it for a while, but after 5 minutes, you still couldn't shake the feeling, so you looked up. Your heart started racing as Ryan began walking over to you, noticing you had seen him.

"Hi," he smiled, standing beside you, "I'm Ryan."

"Y/N," you grinned slightly.

"How was your first day?"

"As eventful as the new kid's first day  _can be_ , I suppose," you shrugged, "I didn't get pushed into shit though, so I guess it was pretty good." He laughed, making your knees weak.

_No, Y/N. Pull yourself together. He would never be interested. He's probably here to tell you he remembers you._

"I'm happy to hear that. So, um, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable by staring or anything-"  _Here we go._  "-but I... I think you're very pretty and I would love to maybe take you out sometime?" he said, a questioning tone to his voice.

"I thought you had a girlfriend," you mumbled. He furrowed his eyebrows and tilted his head. "What?" you shrugged, "People talk; I listen."

"Who's been talking?"

"This girl in my art class. She went on and on about you  _all_  period," you groaned.

"Chelsea Anderson?" he sighed. You nodded. "Look, whatever she says about us isn't true, okay? We had a thing one time, but it never went anywhere after that."

"So what about the whole popularity thing?" you asked, looking around to see people staring at you and Ryan and shifting awkwardly on your feet. "I mean, the ridiculously good-looking popular guy going for the distinctly  _average_ _-_ _looking_  new girl? Haven't you seen literally any movie about high school  _ever_?"

"You think I'm ridiculously good-looking?" he smirked. You laughed quietly, pushing his arm with your elbow. "In my defense, the new kid gets pushed into shit a lot in those movies and since that didn't happen to you, I'd say that question is irrelevant." You rolled your eyes as you looked outside, seeing your mom had arrived.

You turned back to Ryan, "I would love to go out with you."

"After school tomorrow?" he asked, grinning widely.

"Can't wait," you smiled, picking up your backpack and trotting outside. Even though you were disappointed he didn't recognize you, you were happy you would have the chance to start over.

~

After a month, your relationship with Ryan was stronger than ever. Chelsea was, of course, extremely pissed and did everything she could to make your life a living hell, but you had Ryan back in your life. And you weren't about to let him go because some jealous popular girl was upset about it and you knew Ryan wasn't going to let her ruin it either.

Even though it had only been a month, you trusted him 100%. Sure, you trusted him when you were younger, but it felt different now. When you're younger, the most vulnerable you can possibly be is if everyone finds out you like ' _weird_ ' things. As you get older, it gets more complicated – you have more deep-seated fears and issues that you can't always tell people about. But when you find that person you can talk to about  _anything_ , it's like a weight is lifted off your shoulders because you don't have to hold everything in anymore.

That Friday, however, was when that all changed. School had just ended and you were walking to the usual spot you would stand while waiting for your mom to pick you up. As you were about to turn the corner, you stopped.

"Congratulations, Ryan," you heard Kaiden say, "I didn't think you would last this long, but a bet's a bet." You peeked around to see him handing Ryan money and you were understandably crushed as you walked up behind them.

"I was a bet?" your voice broke as you dropped your backpack. Ryan spun around at the sound of it.

"Y/N!" he exclaimed, wide-eyed, "I can explain!"

"Explain  _what_?" you shook your head, throwing your arm in the air, "That all of this was just a big joke to you? That you think I'm only good for a casual fuck? That I mean absolutely nothing to you? There's no need to explain, Ryan! It's looking pretty obvious to me!"

"Y/N, I-"

"How far were you going to take it, Ryan? After our first kiss? At graduation? After I confess all my secrets to you because I  _actually_  thought I could trust you? Well," you laughed bitterly, biting your lip as you desperately tried to keep yourself from crying, "Joke's on me then, huh?"

You looked behind you out the doors of the school and saw your mom pull up. You let out a visible sigh of relief, threw your backpack over your shoulder and running outside. Ryan obviously ran out after you, grabbing your arm when you were about halfway to your car.

"Y/N, please hear me out," he said quietly, moving his hands up to your cheeks, "I didn't mean for this to happen."

"Sure," you laughed, feeling tears start to fall, "Because when you made the conscious decision to take that bet, no one could have  _ever_  guessed I'd find out about it. I know you a lot better than you think I do, Ryan. And I know that the guilt would have eaten you up until you couldn't take it anymore and you just  _had_  to tell me."

"I  _promise_  I never meant to hurt you," he whispered, wiping your face with his thumbs.

"Yeah," you nodded, swallowing the lump in your throat and putting your hands on his chest and pushing him away, "You  _pinky swear_ , right?" His eyes went wide, a look of realization on his face as he finally figured out who you were. "So much for never forgetting me," you muttered, rushing to your car and getting in, telling your mom to hurry and drive away.

 


	113. Pinky Swear (Ryan Follese) - Part 2

"What was that about?" your mom asked, pulling out of the school's parking lot. You simply shrugged, not wanting to talk about it.

"Wasn't that Ryan?" Emily asked from her spot in the backseat directly behind you.

"Yeah," you whispered, trying your best to conceal your shaky voice.

"Why were you yelling at him?" You shrugged your shoulder again even though you knew she couldn't see you.

The rest of the ride was silent and once you got home, you ran up to your bedroom, ignoring your dad's questions as to why you were crying. You dropped your backpack on the floor beside your desk and threw yourself onto your bed, burying your face in the pillow.

A few minutes later, you heard someone walk down the small hallway to your room, but they didn't have the chance to knock before someone else interrupted.

"Mom!" you heard your sister exclaim quietly, not knowing you could hear her, "Let me talk to her."

"Sweetie," your mom said, "I don't-"

"I'm not 5 anymore, okay?" Emily sighed in frustration, "I am 14 and perfectly aware of how it feels to have your heart broken. I don't really think advice from someone that's already found the person they're going to spend the rest of their life with is going to help her right now."

You assumed your mom understood because you heard her kiss her head and footsteps fade away just before there was a knock on your door. You didn't answer and Emily took that as a granted entry. She closed the door behind her and made her way to your bed, kneeling on the floor beside your head.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked quietly.

"Yes and no," you sniffled, your voice muffled by your pillow.

Emily stood up, nudging your arm lightly. You turned on your side so she could lay down beside you – and so you could breathe. She stretched her arm out and you laid your head on her shoulder. She wrapped her arms around you and the two of you just laid there until you were ready to talk.

~

"What did you mean when you said you know how it feels to be heartbroken?" you asked after what was probably 20 minutes.

"You heard that?" she asked, biting her inner cheek. You nodded and she went on. "Remember how I had the biggest crush on Jamie when we were younger?" You nodded again. "Well, after they moved, Mom and Dad would let me Skype with Jamie sometimes and he ended up telling me he had a crush on me too and he was sad that he was never brave enough to tell me in person."

Ever since Jamie was born when Emily was just three months shy of turning 2, she always thought he was the cutest thing she'd ever seen and that never changed. As they got older, they were practically attached at the hip. They never did anything without each other. Although he was only 3 when they moved, Jamie was devastated with having to leave her behind and even begged his parents to take Emily with them.

"Then what happened with him that made you heartbroken?" you asked.

"He told me a couple months before we found out we were moving that he didn't like me back anymore. I was fine up until we started school. I saw him before class and everything kinda just came rushing back to me, you know? I know I'm only 14 and this isn't gonna matter however many years from now when I'm married, but it doesn't change how much it hurts  _right now_. And I know I don't know what happened with you and Ryan, but I  _do_  know the same goes for you too. You're gonna have more heartbreaks than this and boys are gonna come and go," Emily told you, "But I'm always gonna be here to help you get through them."

You felt yourself start to tear up again. You were always grateful that you had a close relationship with your sister and she reminded you of that every time you needed her or she needed you. You wiggled your right arm behind her back and laid your left one across her stomach, giving her a hug.

"Thanks, Em," you said quietly, "You always know what to say."

"You're my sister, Y/N," she smiled, squeezing you lightly, "It's my job."

~

**Four months later**

It had been four months since then and neither you or Ryan were quite the same. You had successfully been avoiding him like the plague, which was actually no easy task. You would have to hide out after school – usually in the bathroom – while you waited for your mom to pick you up and then you would have to rush outside when she told you she was there. You were pretty impressed with your stealth because, to be honest, you probably would have found you by now. But you certainly weren't about to complain.

After spending all Saturday cleaning up your bedroom, you made your way downstairs.

"Hi, sweetie," your mom smiled when you walked into the kitchen, "What have you been doing? I haven't seen you all day."

"Cleaning," you replied, grabbing a soda from the fridge as you looked to see what she was cooking, "What's all this?"

"We're having people over for dinner in an hour, so I'm trying out a recipe I found online."

"Who's coming?"

"It's a surprise," she said. You raised your eyebrows at her before heading back up to your room. "Make sure you're ready before they get here!" your mom called after you. You sighed, really not wanting to interact with anyone today.

~

**Ryan's POV**

There was a knock on the front door about an hour later and your mom quickly walked out of the kitchen to answer it, calling you and your sister's names. Emily trotted downstairs – you were listening to music so you didn't hear your name being called – and she froze at the bottom of the steps.

" _Emily_!" Anna squealed happily.

" _Anna_!" Emily nearly shouted, running over to her to hug her.

"My goodness," Adrienne gushed, "Look at how beautiful you've gotten!"

"Thank you, Adrienne," she smiled, giving her a hug as well as Keith. "Hi, Jamie," she said quietly, giving him a quick hug before she looked at Ryan. "Ryan," she stated coldly, walking back to the staircase. Ryan slumped his shoulders, instantly knowing you told her what happened.

"Y/N!" your mom called up the stairs before sighing, "Emily, go get your sister." Emily's eyes widened and she spun around, bolting back up the stairs.

**Your POV**

You were startled to see your sister rushing in, quickly closing the door behind her. You pulled your earbuds out of your ears as she jumped up, landing on the end of your bed.

"They're here!" she squeaked.

You tilted your head, "Who's here?"

"The Follese's!" Your eyes went as wide as they could go.

"No," you shook your head quickly, "No, no, no, no, no. I am  _not_  going down there."

"I can try to make something up, but I don't know if Mom will buy it."

"Please?" you asked quietly, "I don't want to see him..." She hugged you tightly before she stood up.

"If anyone comes up here, don't answer," she told you, "My lie is probably going to be that you went to bed if I can't think of anything else on the way back downstairs."

"Thank you," you said and she left the room.

**Ryan's POV**

"She's asleep," Emily informed everyone as she trotted back down the stairs.

"It's 7:30," your mom said with a questioning tone, "And she knew we would be having company."

Emily gave her a look and muttered through a fake smile, "Maybe if you gave her a little bit of a heads up about who the company  _was_ , she wouldn't be sleeping right now."

"Well, wake her up and drag her down here if you have to," she threatened. Emily groaned lightly and began walking back up the steps before Ryan stopped her.

"Would it be okay if I-"

" _No, Ryan_ ," she responded, turning back and glaring at him, " _It wouldn't_."

"Em, please."

"Em is what my  _sister_  calls me. Emmy is what my  _friends_  call me.  _You_  may call me Emily because, to be quite honest, I'm not too fond of you anymore."

" _Emily_ _Renee_!" your dad exclaimed.

"No, sir," Ryan sighed, "I deserve that."

"Why do you deserve that?" Adrienne asked him.

"Emily,  _please_ ," he said, ignoring his mom's question, "I know what I did was horrible and I just... I need to talk to her."

" _Horrible_?!" she exclaimed, "Horrible doesn't even begin to  _cover it_ , Ryan! You screwed her over! This is the first time I haven't heard her crying in over four months! Do you have  _any idea_  what it's like to listen to your sister cry herself to sleep every night  _for four months_?! She doesn't deserve that! She has liked you for as long as I can remember and  _this_  is how you repay her?! By ripping her heart out right in front of her like it was all just some sort of sick game to you?!"

"We'll be in the kitchen if you two need us," Keith said awkwardly, ushering everyone into the other room.

Ryan swallowed the lump in his throat, "I don't know what that's like, Emily, and I hope I never have to. But I  _need_  to see her. If she tells me to leave, I'll leave, but I... I need her to know I'm sorry." Emily stared at him for a moment before sighing.

"If I hear yelling,  _you're gone_ ," she said quietly, moving out of his way. He ran up the stairs and pulled down the door, climbing the stairs to your bedroom.

**Your POV**

You heard someone coming down the hallway and instantly knew it wasn't Emily. You froze as they knocked on the door.

"Y/N," you heard Ryan say lowly, "Are you awake?"

Your eyes widened and you threw your blanket off of you, getting up and darting into your bathroom as the bedroom door opened. You locked the door and heard him sigh as his footsteps came closer to where you were.

"I know you're in there, Y/N," he said as you sunk to the floor. He could see your shadow under the door, so he sat down as well. "Y/N," he said quietly, "I know you're mad at me – you have every right to be – but please come out here. You can't keep avoiding me forever."

You put your elbows on your knees and your face in the palms of your hands, doing everything you could to cry as quietly as possible. Being only 5 inches away from you and separated by a thin door though, Ryan obviously heard you. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, trying to maintain what little composure he  _himself_  had left.

"I'm not asking you to give me a second chance, Y/N, I'm just..." Ryan swallowed thickly. "I don't expect you to forgive me for what I did – hell,  _I_  wouldn't forgive me either – I just need you to know that I'm sorry. I'm sorry for being an asshole and accepting a bet I knew I shouldn't have accepted. I wanted to prove to Kaiden that I could keep a girlfriend for more than a week without Chelsea fucking it up and I know I could have done that without going along with the bet, but I wasn't thinking clearly at the time. I know that's a shitty reason, but I really wasn't. You are the only girl that has ever given me butterflies and made my heart start racing when you look at me. You're the only girl I've wanted to be with ever since we were  _kids_. I'm sorry I didn't recognize you right away. I'm sorry that it's taken me this long to come up with the words I needed you to hear. I'm sorry I let you slip away when we were younger and I'm  _especially_  sorry for letting you slip away  _now_. If I could take it all back, I would, but I  _can't_. And I will spend the rest of my  _life_  making it up to you if that's what it takes." You then heard him get up and head for the bedroom door.

You quickly jumped up and unlocked the bathroom door, pulling it open. Ryan spun around to see you standing there, playing with your fingers and chewing on your inner cheek, staring at the floor.

"Am I really the only girl you want?" you asked in a small voice. He walked back over to you and took your face in his hands, making you look up at him as he wiped your tear-stained cheeks.

"You are," he said, "And you always will be."

"Pinky swear?"

" _Pinky swear_ ," he whispered, pressing his lips to yours.


	114. Out of Love (Hot Chelle Rae)

**Ryan**

"Babe," you said, walking into your living room, "Will you go tuck Hannah in, please?"

"Why can't you do it?" Ryan asked, not looking up from his phone.

"She's begging me to let you do it," you rolled your eyes, "I'm always the one doing things for her. I need a break."

"You're her mother, Y/N; Mothers don't get breaks."

"And neither do fathers!" you shouted in a whisper so the 4-year-old upstairs couldn't hear you, "In case you forgot, it takes two to make a kid! I'm sick of always having to parent her by myself just because you want to act like she's not your child too!"

"I can't focus when you're acting like this," he stated plainly, getting up. "If you need me, I'll be out with the guys."

"No, you won't," you said firmly, standing in front of the door.

"And why not?"

"I'm sure you haven't noticed because you're never here and when you are, you're ' _super busy_ '-" you said with air quotes, "-but I would really appreciate it if you could at least act like you  _cared_  about your daughter for once in her life."

"Don't you  _dare_  try to tell me I don't care about her," he said lowly, "Going out while she's asleep isn't a crime."

"If you want to go by that logic, I guess coming home at 5am completely wasted and waking her up isn't a crime either, but it damn well  _should be_. Hannah needs to see more of her father than bloodshot eyes and the  _occasional_  goodbye she gets before you leave the house. You need to spend less time with your  _band_  and more time with your  _daughter_."

Ryan let out a frustrated sigh and quietly stomped up the stairs, silently telling you the conversation was over. He noticed the ends of his daughter's light brown hair fly up as she quickly ran back into her room before she was caught out of bed. He peeked into the room and saw she had her back facing the door.

"I know you're awake, princess," he said softly, going over to sit on the foot of her bed. She shut her eyes tighter and he felt his heart drop when he realized she was crying. He pulled her blanket down and picked her up, putting her in his lap. "You heard us, didn't you?" he asked, kissing her forehead and wiping her cheeks.

"I thought you and Mommy loved each other," she sniffled.

"We do."

"Then why are you always fighting? Mommy said not to yell at people if you love them."

"Love doesn't mean you don't have fights," he explained in a way she would hopefully understand, "It just means that you always forgive each other."

"But you do it all the time!" she exclaimed, "You're never home and when you  _are_ , you're always fighting or ignoring each other! When you're not here, Mommy locks herself in her room and cries because she misses you and  _you don't even care_! That's not how you should make people you love feel!" She wiggled off of his lap and ran out of the room.

"Hannah!" he said, rushing out after her.

Ryan went down the stairs and into the living room where you were sitting on the couch. As soon as you came into view, he saw you jump, not expecting Hannah to climb into your lap. He stayed behind the corner, feeling that, since Hannah didn't want to listen to him, he should just keep his distance for a while.

"Why are you out of bed?" you asked, putting your book on the end table beside you as she hugged you tightly.

"I don't want you to leave Daddy," she cried into your shoulder.

"No one ever said I was leaving Daddy, Han," you replied quietly as you rubbed her back, a little surprised by the statement.

"But you always tell me not to be friends with someone who's mean to you." You sighed, taking a moment to come up with the right words. You put your hands on her shoulders and pulled her back so you could look at her.

"You know how the other day, you came home from daycare and you were mad because your friend took your toy without asking?" She nodded. "And remember how you forgave her the next day and kept playing with her like nothing ever happened?" She nodded again. "Being in love is kind of like that," you told her, "Daddy may do things that annoy me and I may do things that annoy him, but  _nothing_  is going to change how much I love him. Love isn't easy, Han, and I know you'll understand that someday, but it's  _worth it_ , okay?"

"So you'll stop fighting?"

You smiled slightly, "I promise we'll try." You lifted her off of your lap and stood up. "Come on," you said, ruffling her hair, "Let's get you back to bed." As you walked past the couch, Ryan rushed out from his hiding spot and crashed into you, hugging you as tightly as he could.

"I love you so much," he said against your neck.

"Are you just saying that because your daughter is standing right there?" you whispered so she wouldn't hear you. He shook his head quickly, moving back to look at you.

"I love you so much," he repeated before picking Hannah up and holding her on his hip, " _Both of you_. And I realize that I've been acting like I don't, but that's gonna change.  _You guys_  are my number one priority, okay?  _Not the band_."

"Promise?" Hannah asked.

"Promise," he said, kissing her cheek. She smiled, laying her head on his shoulder and hugging him.

"I love you, Daddy," she mumbled sleepily.

"I love you too, princess."

"Will you come sing me a song?" He smiled again, leaning forward to kiss you before carrying Hannah back to her room.

~

**Nash**

"You're going out again?" you muttered, watching your husband put on his coat.

"It's just for a couple hours," Nash said, "I'll be home before midnight."

"Yeah, just like last time."

"What is  _that_  supposed to mean?"

You started biting your inner cheek, mentally kicking yourself for starting another argument. You never intentionally started arguments, of course, you just had a habit of forgetting to bite your tongue – especially when it came to how often your husband went out.

"I thought I asked you a question," he said, walking toward you.

You just kept your mouth shut. You knew he wasn't  _actually_  going to do anything – he was always more  _tell_  than  _show_  – but you also knew you wouldn't be able to talk your way out of this. Either way, he was going to get mad at you.

" _Stop_!" your 18-year-old son suddenly shouted as he ran in front of you and pushed Nash away from you.

" _Alexander Ryan_!" Nash yelled, "Do  _not_ disrespect me like that!"

"It's not fun when it's happening to  _you_ , is it?!"

"Excuse me, but I-"

" _No_!" Alex exclaimed toward his father while he led you to sit down at the counter. "You think I'm just gonna let you hurt Mom and act like it didn't happen?!"

"I wasn't gonna hurt her," Nash said quietly.

"You said that under no circumstance am I  _ever_  allowed to touch a girl in any way that is not loving –  _you_  taught me that! You can't teach someone something like that and then go back on it! That's like killing someone and then acting like some half-assed apology should be enough to get you off the hook!" You and Nash both stared at him in shock as he kept going. "All you ever do is yell at her –  _even_  when she doesn't yell back! If I did that with my girlfriend, I would  _beg her_  to leave because she doesn't deserve someone who's constantly at her throat! She's not perfect and she has habits that I can't  _stand_ , but I love her and I don't know what I'd  _do_  with myself if I  _didn't_  have her! She's way too good for me, but I'm lucky to be able to call her my girlfriend!"

"Alex, I wasn't-"

Alex cut him off, "You love Mom, don't you?"

"Of course I love her," Nash's voice broke as he looked at you.

" _Then start acting like it_."

~

**Jamie**

"I think we should tell her at dinner tonight," you told your husband as the two of you were sitting together on the living room couch.

"I don't know..." he trailed off.

"Katie is 17-years-old, Jamie!" you exclaimed quietly, not knowing your daughter was listening from around the corner, "She has a right to know!"

"I'm sorry, Y/N," Jamie replied, "But I'm just not ready."

"I don't understand why you're so worried," you rolled your eyes, "It's not like she would treat you any differently. You practically raised her anyway."

Katie went back up the stairs quietly before coming back down, making more noise than she usually would so you wouldn't suspect that she had been listening.

"Hey, Mom," she said as she walked into the kitchen, "Can I borrow the car?"

"What for?" you asked, getting up and going to the kitchen as well, Jamie following close behind.

"Madison and I were going to the mall today, remember?" she said, "I asked you about it the other day."

"Oh, right," you sighed, "Make sure you're back before dinner."

"Actually," Jamie interrupted, "I think you should stay home today."

 **"** But Mom already said I could go!"

"You've got finals that you need to be studying for."

"I've been studying all week! I need a break!"

"I'm sorry, but I'm saying you can't go."

"You're not my father," Katie sneered under her breath, "You can't tell me what to do."

"Kathryn Elizabeth," you came to Jamie's defense – although you didn't agree with him.

"I'm not  _stupid_ , Mom!" she shouted, "I look  _nothing_  like him! I can hear you guys arguing all the time about when you think you should tell me, but you don't have to! I already know my  _real dad_  didn't want me!"

"Kat-"

"He didn't  _want me_ , okay?! He  _left you_  because of  _me_!" She ran back to her room and you started to go after her, but Jamie grabbed your wrist gently, stopping you.

"Can I talk to her?" he asked softly. You nodded and he kissed your cheek, going to Katie's bedroom door. He knocked lightly and said in a low voice, "Katie, can I come in?" You assumed she said yes because he opened the door and went in.

You tiptoed down the hall so you could listen to what he was going to tell her – you were curious, of course. She was lying on her stomach, her face buried in her pillow.

"I know you're upset about what happened with your dad," Jamie told her, rubbing her back lightly, "But that doesn't mean it was your fault."

"But he left Mom because she got pregnant with me," she sniffled, her voice muffled by the pillow, "If she didn't, they would still be together."

"And if she didn't get pregnant, she wouldn't have had  _you_ ," he said, "Look, I'll leave the backstory of that relationship for your mom to tell you about, but he was no good for her. He wasn't fit to be a parent and there was absolutely nothing in the  _world_  that would have made her give you up. I know how it feels to feel like you're the reason your dad left, Katie."

"You do?" she asked quietly, turning around and sitting up.

Jamie nodded, "After my dad left, I spent every waking moment feeling like I was the one that did something wrong. And when my mom realized that, she sat me down and explained that sometimes, people just fall out of love and they have to do what's best for  _themselves_ _–_ and if that means they move on with separate lives, then that's okay."

"But what if that happens again?" she mumbled, "What if you fall out of love with Mom?"

"I'm never going to fall out of love with your mother, Katie," he shook his head, "I love her and I love how happy she makes me. But most of all, I love that she brought  _you_  into my life as well."

"Really?" Katie asked as she swallowed the lump in her throat and her eyes got watery, her voice breaking.

" _Really_ ," Jamie said, wrapping his arms around her and hugging her tightly, "I know I'm not your father, Katie, but I promise I'm gonna be the best dad I can be."

"You already are," she whispered into his shirt.

 


	115. Second Chances (Ashton Irwin)

"I can't  _do this_  anymore!" you exclaimed, grabbing your car keys off the counter.

"You can't do what anymore?" your boyfriend, Kyle, asked.

" _Us_!"

"Y/N-"

"You and I  _both_  know it's not working, Kyle," you sighed, "We fight way too much and I can't keep putting myself through it. I'll be back for my stuff in the morning." You quickly left before he had the chance to say anything that would make you stay. You meant what you said; You couldn't do it anymore.

You rushed across town to your friend Michael's place. You and Michael weren't  _best_ friends, but you were close enough that if you ever needed someone to vent to, you knew he would listen.

You finally made it to his apartment and started knocking on the door. When the door opened, you tilted your head in confusion.

"You're not Michael," you stated obviously.

"I will take that as a compliment," the guy standing in front of you smiled, "I'm Ashton. Michael went out to... Well, I don't know what he's doing exactly, but he's not here at the moment."

" _Typical Michael_ ," you mumbled, making Ashton laugh.

"Do you want to come in a wait for him?"

"Sure," you replied, walking past him.

"Are you okay?" he asked as you both took a seat on the couch beside each other. You looked at him and he continued talking. "You seem like something's bothering you."

"Isn't there some rule about not talking about your exes with someone you just met?"

"I'm pretty sure that's on a first date," he chuckled, "And technically, we haven't met yet; I still don't know your name."

"Y/N," you said.

"Y/N," he smiled, the sound of him saying your name made your heart race, "Did you just tell me your name so you didn't have to talk about your ex?"

"Yes," you nodded. He rolled his eyes, grinning slightly.

"So you're single then?"

"Wow," you laughed nervously, "You're very  _upfront_ , aren't you?"

He shrugged, "I'm trying to be." You watched him carefully for a moment.

Call it what you will – a burst of confidence, a moment of weakness or vulnerability – but something happened inside you that you weren't expecting. You grabbed the back of Ashton's neck and pulled his head to yours, pressing your lips together. And you finally felt a spark again – something you hadn't felt with Kyle in a  _long time_.

Ashton had just put his arm around your waist when you were interrupted by hearing the door opening. You immediately pulled away and Ashton jumped up, sitting back down on the other couch just before Michael walked through the door.

"Oh," Michael said when he realized you were there, "Hey, Y/N." You covered your mouth with your hand, happy you weren't facing him because you knew he would suspect something was up by the stupid grin on your face.

"Hey, Mikey," you said, quickly recomposing yourself before turning to look at him.

"Trouble in paradise again?" he asked, walking over and throwing the two movies he had went out to buy onto the coffee table as he sat down beside you.

"I guess you could say that," you sighed.

"What happened?"

"I broke up with him," you shrugged. Ashton was looking down at his phone, but it was obvious he was trying not to smile.

"Oh, man," he muttered, "I'm sorry, Y/N."

"It's alright," you smiled, "It was bound to happen eventually."

"Well, you can stay here until you find your own place if you need to," Michael told you, "You know you're always welcome here."

"Thanks, Mikey," you replied, laying your head on his shoulder.

"Oh! Y/N, this is Ashton," Michael said, apparently previously oblivious to the fact that Ashton was still there, "Remember how I told you I'm in a band and we needed a drummer? Well, this is him."

"We've met," you snickered, causing Ashton to start coughing.

" _Dear God_ ," Michael's eyes widened, " _Please_  tell me you didn't have sex while I was gone."

" _Michael_!" you laughed, "I just met him like,  _10 minutes ago_!"

"You still could have done it!"

"He only lasts 10 minutes?" you smirked, looking at Ashton, "No, thank you."

" _Y/N_!" Michael shouted, although you could tell he was holding in a laugh.

"Michael, I can  _assure you_ : we did  _not_  have sex while you were gone."

"Well,  _something_  happened," he stated, raising his eyebrows, "And I'm gonna figure out what it was." He got up to go get a drink and you kept your eye on him until he was out of the room.

"Dinner?" Ashton whispered, making you look back at him, "Friday at 8?"

"It's a date," you smiled, leaning back in your seat.

~

The next morning, you went back to Kyle's apartment to get your stuff. Fortunately, he had already left for work and wasn't home. You packed up everything and were out the door within a couple hours.

You stayed with Michael for a few days, finally able to meet Michael's other band mates, Calum and Luke, and the four of you actually became really close.

You were lucky enough to get the available apartment across from Michael a few days later and the boys were more than happy to help you move in. Ashton was a frequent visitor, of course – which only made Michael more suspicious, but he never brought it up.

The next week, however, when Ashton arrived to pick you up for another date, Michael heard him knock on your door. He watched through the peephole as you answered and Ashton leaned forward to kiss you. He suddenly burst out of his apartment.

" _I knew it_!" he shouted excitedly, "I  _knew_  something was going on between you two!"

"We never said there  _wasn't_ ," Ashton replied simply, draping his arm across your shoulders as you closed your door.

"Yeah, Mikey," you shrugged, "I can't believe it took you this long to say something."

"I just had to be  _sure_!" Michael frowned.

"See you later, Michael," you shook your head, smiling as you put your arm around Ashton's waist, leading him back to the stairwell.

~

When you got back from your date with Ashton, you changed into your pajamas and decided to watch your favorite movie before going to bed. As the movie was just getting started, your phone rang. You sighed, pausing the movie and grabbing your phone. Your heart skipped a beat when you saw who was calling, but you answered anyway.

"He-" you cleared your throat, "Hello?"

"Hi, Y/N," Kyle said quietly.

"What do you want?"

"I want you back."

"Kyle," you sighed.

" _Please_ , Y/N?" he begged, "I miss you. I-I promise I'll treat you better this time – I  _swear_ I will.  _Please_  just give me a second chance."

You had always believed in giving people second chances, but now? You were seriously questioning it. You and Ashton weren't exactly boyfriend and girlfriend, but you weren't exactly  _nothing_  either.

But you decided to give Kyle another chance anyway.

~

The next day, when Ashton came over to hang out, you knew you needed to tell him about Kyle. You had spent all day building up the courage, but chickened out each time. He was getting up to leave and this was your last chance. You got up and walked over to him.

"Ashton-" you started, but he cut you off.

"Will you be my girlfriend?" he blurted out. Your eyes widened, not expecting him to ask you that. He started panicking slightly at seeing your expression. "I know we've only known each other for like, two weeks and we've only been on three dates, but I... I really like you and I really want to be able to call you my girlfriend."

You honestly didn't what to do. On one hand, you had just given Kyle his second chance not even 24 hours ago and you didn't want to go back on it so quickly. But on the other hand, Ashton made you happier than you had been the last two years you had been with Kyle.

So you did the  _worst_  possible thing you could have done:  _You said yes_.

~

**Six months later**

You had been with both Kyle and Ashton for several months now. What was going through your head during that time? You didn't know. All you knew was that you were a terrible person for it. But you also knew that if you came clean, you would lose  _both_  of them and you  _didn't_  want that to happen, so you kept the lies going. You were surprised you kept it up for so long, to be honest. But you knew it had to stop.

You decided that you would confess everything to Ashton after the band's show that night. You didn't want him to be upset or distracted during the show, so you thought afterward would be the safest option.

You were anxiously waiting in the band's dressing room, pacing back and forth. You could hear the show going on as the venue was fairly small and once they got to the last song, you felt your heart start beating in every part of your body. Honestly, you felt nauseous.

Your thoughts were interrupted when the boys came into the room cheering.

"How was the show, guys?" you asked, trying to act as normal as possible.

"It was amazing!" Michael sighed dramatically, falling onto the couch, "What were you doing in here the whole time?"

"Nothing too exciting," you shrugged, "Um, Ash... Can I...talk to you for a minute?"

"No post-show kiss?" he pouted, walking over to you and wrapping his arms around your waist. You rolled your eyes, smiling slightly, and leaned forward to kiss Ashton.

When you heard a voice break as they said your name, your head shot up toward the door and you saw Kyle standing there.

" _Kyle_!" you squeaked, pushing Ashton away from you, "I-"

He cut you off, "You're cheating on me?" Ashton's jaw dropped as everyone just stared at you.

"What are you doing here?" you asked, avoiding his question as well as everyone's eyes on you.

"My sister wanted to come see the show... And I saw you at the side of the stage before it started. It took me this long to convince the security guy to let me back here. I can't believe you of all people would do something like this!"

"Kyle," you swallowed the lump in your throat, "I'm sorry..."

"Tell me it didn't mean anything," he said, although you could tell he was close to tears, "Tell me it was just because he's in a band and he means nothing to you and we'll move on like it never happened." You froze and his face fell. "Y/N..."

You opened your mouth, but couldn't form any words. There was never any justification for cheating. You fucked up – you  _knew_  that – but the problem was Ashton  _didn't_  mean  _nothing_  to you.

"Y/N..." Kyle said quietly, "Tell me you regret it... Please..." You took in a shaky breath, doing your best to avoid making eye contact with Ashton.

"I can't," you whispered, shaking your head slightly. "Kyle, I... I'm sorry – I am  _so_  sorry that I did this to you. There's no excuse for what I did and there's no excuse for letting it go on for as long as I have, but I  _can't_  say those things. I can't keep lying."

"How long have you been doing this?"

"Six months," you answered under your breath.

You heard Ashton let out a breath as he collapsed on the couch. By this time, Luke, Calum, and Michael had retreated to the other side of the room.

"I can't believe this..." Kyle mumbled.

"Ky-"

"I don't want to hear it, Y/N," he said angrily, "We're done."

He walked away and you wanted to go after him, but you knew he wouldn't listen, so you turned around to look at Ashton. He had his elbows on his knees and his face in his hands. You started making your way to him when Michael ran back across the room and stopped you.

"Michael," your voice broke, "I need to talk to him."

"I know you do," he said, leading you over to Calum and Luke, "But he just needs some space right now."

After what seemed like an eternity, Michael finally let you go talk to Ashton. You made your way over to the couch and took a deep breath, sitting down beside him.

"Ashton..." you said slowly as he looked up at you.

"Y-You took him back?" Ashton stuttered.

"Ash-"

"I can't believe you  _took him back_!" he shouted, getting up and starting to pace around the room, "Was  _one_  of us not enough for you?!"

"I was being selfish, Ash!" you exclaimed, standing up as well, "And I know it was a shitty thing for me to do, but you know what? I did it anyway! But if you want me to say I would go back and change it, I'm not going to!" He froze in his spot, turning to look at you. "You clearly don't want to hear any excuses, but  _please_  just know that I'm sorry," you shook your head, "My intentions were never to hurt either of you and I knew you would find out eventually, I just didn't think it would be like  _this_."

"You  _lied_  to us! You lied to  _me_! Why would you think that wouldn't hurt?!"

"Ash, I'm sorry..." You honestly couldn't think of anything else to say.

"Leave," he said in a barely audible whisper.

"Ashton-"

He shook his head, "I never want to see you again."

Those words hurt you a lot more than you ever thought they could. You looked back at the other boys and gave them a slight nod as if to say goodbye.

And that was it. You didn't want to make Ashton even  _more_  mad than he already was by staying, so you left.

And you haven't seen him since.

~

**Three months later**

You were woken up by the irritating vibrating coming from your phone. You groaned, looking at the clock and seeing it was nearly 3am. You checked the caller ID and saw Michael's name.

"This  _better_  be important, Michael," you yawned, lying on your back.

"Have you by chance spoken to Ashton at all in the past couple months?" he asked, sounding a bit out of breath.

"You  _know_  I haven't," you sighed, "He ' _never wants to see me again_ ', remember?"

"Well, he may have meant that  _at the time_ , but he certainly doesn't  _now_ ," Michael told you.

"What do you mean?"

"How fast can you get here?" he asked, a begging tone to his voice.

"Where are you?" you sighed, turning on the lamp on your nightstand and sitting up – you knew he wasn't home because he would have just come to your door instead of calling you.

"His place." You paused for a moment before answering.

"I'm on my way," you said and ended the call. You got up, threw on a pair of sweatpants, your shoes, and your jacket before heading out the door.

~

Once you got to Ashton's apartment, you knocked softly. You heard someone run to the door and you were greeted by a very exhausted looking Michael.

"What  _happened_  to you?" you asked, walking inside.

"See for yourself," he mumbled, motioning toward the drummer lying on the living room couch. Ashton was curled up on his side with an empty container of ice cream in his hand.

"Go get some sleep, Mikey," you whispered, "I'll take care of him."

"Thank you," he whined, trudging down the hallway as he was in no shape to drive himself back home safely. You watched Ashton for a few more moments before taking off your jacket and hanging it up, walking over to him.

"Ashton..." you said quietly, sitting down on the coffee table in front of him.

" _Y/N_!" he exclaimed, shooting up and nearly throwing the ice cream container onto the coffee table beside you as he furiously wiped his face with his sleeves, "What are you doing here?"

"Michael called me," you answered, "Ash, it's 3 in the morning. What are you doing?"

"No-Nothing."

"Ashton, eating an entire thing of ice cream by yourself at 3am with tears streaming down your face isn't  _nothing_." He stood up and tried to leave the room, but you wrapped your arm around his waist, pulling him back as you got up. "Michael wouldn't have called me for no reason, Ash." He looked down at the hands on his sides, then back up at your face.

"I want to hear your excuses now," he stated shakily.

"I don't  _have_  any," you smiled sadly, shaking your head, "What I did was terrible and inexcusable and I don't blame you for never wanting to see me again." You let go of him and made your way back to the front door to leave. Before you could grab your jacket though, Ashton spoke again.

"Have you spoken to Kyle at all?" he asked. You turned to face him, nodding. "What did he say?"

"He forgave me," you replied, "He's still incredibly upset with me, but he said he understands."

"Understands what?"

"Why I did what I did."

"Why did you do it?"

"Kyle and I had been arguing," you explained, keeping your gaze toward the floor, "A lot more than we had been when we first started dating and I knew I had to end it... So I did. And I went to Michael's to vent about it, but you were there instead and one thing led to another..." you trailed off. "Kyle apologized a couple weeks later and promised he would make things better, so I gave him a second chance. And things  _were_  better, but I didn't feel that spark anymore – not like I felt with  _you_ ," you sighed, shrugging, "And you asked me to be your girlfriend the next day and... I don't know... I guess I thought I could have both the feeling of being treated like a princess with him and the feeling of weakness you gave me. I was gonna come clean after the show –  _I swear I was_  – but then Kyle walked in and saw me kiss you and everything fell apart and there was no way I could put it back together."

You finally looked back up at Ashton as saw he was just staring at you. You quickly got your jacket and had just grabbed the doorknob when Ashton's voice made you stop.

"I could treat you like a princess," he said quietly.

"Ashton..." you said, still facing the door, " _Please don't_..."

" _I could_ ," he said, slowly making his way to you, "I've missed you, you know. I've missed your voice, your laugh, your touch, your lips..."

You jumped slightly when he took your jacket out of your hand and threw it onto the couch. You shivered when you felt his breath on your neck as he reached for the hand on the doorknob. He pulled you away from the door as he turned you to face him.

"You need someone who makes you feel safe all the time, not just when his arms are around you," he said, staring into your eyes and he moved his hands to your hips, "You need someone who treats you like a princess  _every day_ , not just when you  _ask him_  to." He pulled you closer to him, resting his forehead against yours. "You need someone who makes you weak every time you  _think about him_ , not just when you're  _with him_."

"Is this your way of telling me you're giving me a second chance?" you muttered. A smile began pulling at the corner of Ashton's mouth as he tilted his head, pressing his lips to yours.

~

_inspiration: http://imagine5sosmembers.tumblr.com/post/110396989361/cal-imagine-youre-dating-niall-horan-and_


	116. Afraid (5 Seconds of Summer) *

**Warning: Panic attacks**

~

 **Luke**  

You were startled awake and looked at the clock, seeing it was 9am. You didn't think anything of it though, figuring your boyfriend just kicked you in his sleep again since he had a habit of doing it, but you looked over and realized that he wasn't even lying there because he had a meeting with the band that morning. You were confused until a flash of lightning lit up the room that you understood why you were woken up.

Ever since you were little, you were always terrified of thunderstorms. There was nothing that triggered this to happen, you just simply didn't like them. Your parents would always do their best to distract you when they knew storms were coming and while it never fully worked, it did make you feel better.

Now, however, was different.

You had been living on your own for about three years – and living with your boyfriend for about one. Luke knew how much you hated being alone during storms and he was always there to make sure you were okay. But right now, he wasn't. Right now, he was at a meeting and there was nothing he could do.

Suddenly, a loud crack of thunder shook your apartment building. You let out a short scream, hiding under your blanket. You quickly grabbed your iPod and stuffed your earbuds in your ears, turning on your music. Listening to music always helped you calm down during storms because you couldn't hear them, you could only hear what was playing in your ears.

10 minutes later, you were still bundled up under the blanket listening to music when you felt someone quickly tapping your side. You jumped, throwing the blanket off of you in a panic. You took your earbuds out and threw your iPod across the bed when you saw Luke looking back at you. His arms were instantly around you as he climbed onto the bed beside you.

"What are you doing here?" you asked, pushing yourself against him. You jumped as another crack of thunder filled the silence.

"I hurried home as soon as it started getting bad out," he answered, hugging you tighter.

"What about your meeting?"

"It was almost over anyway," he shrugged, "They didn't care."

You groaned, burying your face in his chest, "That's so embarrassing."

"How come?"

"You have to rush home every time it storms just because I'm a baby about them. They're probably sick of me, they're just too nice to say anything."

"Babe," Luke sighed, making you look back up at him, "Everyone's afraid of something. Some people are just more afraid of that something than others. We'll never hold it against you. Whether one of us is with you or all four of us, we always want you to feel safe."

~

**Michael**

You shut your eyes as you took in deep breaths, let them out slowly, then repeated. You avoided looking out the window. You didn't care what was going on outside. You just wanted the next six hours to go by as quickly as possible. If there was one thing in this world you would say you hated most, it would be heights.

"Are you okay?" you heard someone ask as they took their seat next to you.

"I'm great," you laughed nervously, finally opening your eyes to look at him, "Never been better. Why do you ask?"

He smiled, "First time flying, I'm guessing."

You sighed, "Is it that obvious?"

"Kind of. But don't worry. I've flown hundreds of times. There's nothing to worry about."

"It's not so much flying as it is being 20,000 feet in the air."

"Ah," he nodded, "So you're afraid of heights?"

"Let's just say I can barely get halfway up a ladder without having a panic attack," you mumbled.

"Well, if you feel a panic attack coming, I'm right here," he smiled, "I'm Michael, by the way."

"Y/N," you smiled back.

"So, Y/N-" The sound of him saying your name made your heart race. "-where are you headed?"

"Los Angeles."

He grinned slightly, "Really?"

You nodded, "I wanna do something with music and I figured L.A. is the best place to do it."

"So you want to be a singer or something?"

"Oh, God, no," you laughed, "I can't sing to save my life. I like to think I'm pretty good at songwriting and I can play most instruments. I haven't mastered the harmonica yet, but I will."

"You play guitar?"

"Kind of," you shrugged, "I'm not very good though. I can never get my fingers in the right places at the right times. I'm actually more into drumming and people tell me I'm getting really good. My neighbors might disagree, but I'm getting there." Michael was about to say something when he was interrupted by the pilot coming on the speaker.

"Good morning, folks," he said, a little too cheerfully for your liking, "We'll be taking off momentarily, so watch out for the seat belt light and enjoy your flight."

~

About halfway through the flight, everything was going great. Michael kept you distracted from the fact that you were even scared in the first place. He would make stupid jokes that made you laugh so much that other people would look over at you with expressions that suggested they were irritated but it was clear they weren't as they smiled and went back to whatever they were doing. However, nothing could distract you from what was about to happen.

"Attention, folks," the pilot suddenly came over the speaker, "It seems like we'll be hitting a bit of turbulence within the next minute or so, so please make sure all tray tables are up and seat belts are on. Thank you."

" _Oh_ _God_ ," you muttered to yourself, shakily fastening your seat belt. Michael watched you intently as you kept repeating, " _Oh God, oh God, oh God_." He reached for your hand, holding it firmly in his own, causing you to stop and look at him.

He smiled slightly, "I'm right here, remember?" You took a deep breath and nodded as he held your hand in his lap, rubbing your thumb with his own.

The plane started to shake and dropped slightly, causing you to let out a short – but loud – shriek. You slapped your free hand over your mouth, already feeling the tears fall down your cheeks as you closed your eyes tightly.

Less than 30 seconds later, it was all over and everything was calm again. You, of course, were still holding Michael's hand like your life depended on it.

"Y/N," you heard Michael whisper, "You can open your eyes now." You did so, letting out a shaky breath and releasing your grip on his hand. Michael brought his hands up to your face, wiping your tears with his thumbs. You stared at him for a moment and he smiled at you, "I'm not gonna let anything happen to you."

~

**Calum**

" _Absolutely not_!" you shouted, attempting to run away only to have your two best friends grab you and pull you back.

"Come on, Y/N!" Nicole whined, "You need to get over your fear of roller coasters at some point!"

"I'm not telling you to get over your fear of bees by pushing you into a beehive, now am I?!" you squeaked, causing her to frown.

"I've been on this ride dozens of times," Grace told you, "Nothing is going to go wrong."

"There's a first time for everything," you muttered. Once you made it to the front of the line, it occurred to you that one of you would have to be paired up with a stranger and when it came time to get on the ride, you realized you were the odd one out. "Seriously?! You're making me get on this death trap and I'm not even riding with one of you?!"

"It is not a death trap, Y/N," Nicole rolled her eyes, pushing you toward an empty car, "You'll be fine." Suddenly, one of the boys in the group that was behind you spoke up.

"I'll go with her," he said, handing the guy his ticket and walking over to you.

"Cal!" one of his friends exclaimed, "Who am I supposed to ride with now?"

"Maybe you'll get paired up with a different cute girl," he replied, shutting his friend up as he turned back to you, "Ignore him." He stood beside the car, motioning for you to get on first. You groaned quietly while Nicole went back to sit with Grace and the boy sat down next to you. The worker pulled the bar down over you and you started taking deep breaths.

" _You can do this, Y/N_ ," you whispered to yourself, " _You can do this_."

"Y/N," the boy beside you said with a questioning tone. You looked at him and he smiled shyly. "I didn't mean to say that out loud," he said, "But that's a very pretty name for a very pretty girl. I'm Calum."

"You're trying to distract me," you told him, although you knew you were blushing, "And while I appreciate the effort, it's not going to work."

"No harm in trying," he sighed. The cars suddenly started moving, making you jump and let out a short squeak.

"Here's how it's gonna work, Calum," you said quickly, holding your hand up, "You're gonna hold my hand, you're not gonna let go until I'm out of this car, and I'm going to try not to throw up in your direction, got it?"

"Got it," he chuckled, putting his hand in yours and locking your fingers together.

As soon as he did so, you went over the first hill. You screamed, squeezing Calum's hand and refusing to loosen your grip until the ride was over. When it came to a stop, he looked over at you to see you had your eyes shut tightly.

"Y/N," he said quietly, shaking your hand gently, "It's over." You cautiously opened your eyes and let out a loud sigh of relief. Calum got up and helped you out of the car. "Are you okay?" he asked, still holding your hand.

"I think my heart met my stomach at one point," you whined, "I can't feel my legs. Please tell me I still have legs."

"You still have legs," he smiled.

"Are you just saying that to make me feel better?"

"Yes," he joked. He let go of your hand and turned around, "Hop on." You didn't bother asking him what he was doing – you just jumped onto his back and he carried you away from the ride.

"Hey, Y/N," you heard Nicole smirk, "Wanna go again?"

"Calum, can you go over to her for a second?" you asked through gritted teeth.

"Why?" he asked slowly.

"I'm gonna hit her."

He laughed, "Yeah, I'm not gonna let you do that."

He stopped at the bench across from the roller coaster and you slid of his back, sitting down. He sat down beside you again as Nicole and Grace trotted over to sit on the other side of you. The four of you made mindless small talk while Calum waited for his friends to get off the ride. Once they did, they made their way over to where you all were.

"Where are we off to next, Cal?" a boy with dark blonde hair asked.

Calum turned to look at you, Nicole, and Grace, "Have you guys eaten yet?"

"No," you whined again.

"She's been complaining about it for like, the past hour," Grace said, "But we made her wait until after the roller coaster so she didn't throw it all back up."

"They're really looking out for me," you mumbled, making the boys laugh.

"Well, we haven't eaten yet either..." he trailed off, "Maybe you girls would like to join us?"

"We would love to!" Nicole and Grace shouted in unison.

"I've just realized that I've had no choice in anything we've done today," you thought out loud.

"So you're saying you don't want to?" Nicole elbowed your arm.

"No!" you replied a little too loudly, "I'm just saying I would like to answer for myself once in a while."

"Would you like to join us, Y/N?" Calum asked, smiling shyly. You nodded and he stood up. Everyone introduced themselves – realizing you hadn't already done so – and as they walked away, Calum held is hand out to you. "Can you feel your legs yet?" he teased.

"If I say yes," you started, taking his hand, "Does that mean you won't carry me?"

He nodded as he pulled you up, "I'm afraid so."

"Oh, no!" you exclaimed dramatically as you plopped back down on the bench, "My legs seem to have mysteriously stopped working again! How did this happen? They were fine a second ago! This is a disaster! How will I get anywhere now?"

Calum laughed loudly, rolling his eyes, "Fine. Come on." You jumped onto his back again and he started hurrying to catch up with the group. "Don't get used to this," he told you.

"I'm afraid I already have," you grinned, resting your chin on his shoulder.

~

**Ashton**

You let out a quiet groan as the car approached the hotel. Your boyfriend begged you to visit Los Angeles with the band and since you'd always wanted to go to California, it really didn't take much to convince you to agree. At this point in time, however, you were anything but excited. There were fans crowding the sidewalk outside and you knew it was only a matter of time before were labeled as ' _the girlfriend that has panic attacks._ '

"Hey," Ashton said in your ear, "I'm not gonna let anything happen to you." You bit your lip and nodded, staring out the window as the car came to a stop. He leaned in and kissed your cheek, grabbing your hand, "Don't let go of me, okay?" You nodded again as one of the bodyguards opened the door and you were instantly met with high-pitched screams ringing in your ears. Ashton held your hand tightly as he helped you out of the car.

Everything happened so fast that you didn't even realize Ashton's grip on you was slipping until he wasn't there anymore. You, of course, started to panic upon realizing that none of the boys were able to get to you as they were now surrounded by fans. You tried snaking your through the crowd, keeping your eyes on Ashton's bright red bandana, but you were suddenly being pushed back.

" _Hey_!" you heard someone shout in front of you, " _Be careful_!"

You saw a girl maneuvering her way away from the boys and toward you. She grabbed your hand, quickly pulling you with her, getting you out of the crowd. You stumbled after tripping over someone's foot, but managed to keep yourself from falling down. The girl helped you sit down on the sidewalk against the hotel a few feet away where you were finally able to catch your breath.

"Are you okay?" she asked as she sat down next to you, the worry in her voice and on her face very obvious. You simply nodded, finding yourself unable to talk. "I would go get Ashton, but I don't think I'm gonna be able to get back in there," she said, making you laugh. She relaxed upon seeing your smile.

"Thank you," you said breathlessly.

"Here," she said, reaching into her bag and taking out a bottle of water, "I haven't opened it yet." You stared at it for a moment before she went on. "If your panic attacks are anything like mine, then your mouth is probably really dry and you need to drink something." You gave her a half-smile, taking the bottle and taking a few gulps of water.

"Thank you," you told her again, holding the bottle in your lap as she probably wouldn't want it back after you drank from it. She talked to you about whatever she could think of until you were finally able to breathe normally again.

"So you have to go through this a lot?" she asked, waiting for the boys with you so you didn't have to wait alone. "Oh, I'm Stephanie, by the way." You nodded, acknowledging the fact.

"Not really," you shrugged, "Most of the time, everyone's calm about seeing them, so he's never accidentally let go of me before."

"Sorry about that," she said guiltily, "I wish people would understand that mobbing them is only going to make it harder to meet them in the future."

"It's not your fault. I know they just get excited. I was like that too when I met them."

"Really?" she seemed surprised.

"Of course, I met them before they got really popular so it was never this crazy, but yeah," you nodded. "I had gone to see Hot Chelle Rae when they opened for them. When I went outside after the show, the boys were kind of just hanging around HCR's bus with them. I guess you could say it was love at first sight," you smiled at the memory, "Ash stayed with me until my dad came to pick me up and he asked for my number and the rest is history."

"You're like a living fan fiction!" she sighed, "How have I never heard that story before?"

"No one ever really asks how we met," you shrugged again, "They're always so focused on him that I think they forget he has a girlfriend – which is fine because I'm not into all the attention on me, but... I won't go into too much detail, but it gets to be a bit much sometimes."

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I think you and Ashton are adorable together," she told you, "And honestly, you're easily my favorite non-famous famous person."

"Thank you," you couldn't help but laugh lightly, "I feel kinda bad though. I mean, you were literally a foot away from Ashton when you saw me."

"It's no problem really," she said, "I know how much it sucks to have to pull yourself out of a panic attack alone and if I can help anyone out, I'll do it in a heartbeat."

You talked to her for a couple more minutes before you suddenly began hearing panicked cries from your boyfriend.

" _Whoa, whoa, whoa_!  _Hold on_!" you heard Ashton shouting over everyone, " _Where is my girlfriend_?!" You and Stephanie jumped up to see where he was. She quickly found him and pointed to him for you.

" _Ash_!" you called out. He spun around and pushed his way out of the crowd as politely as he could, running over to you, the other boys following closely behind him.

"Are you okay?" he asked, taking your face in his hands. He sounded out of breath and you could tell he was worried about you.

"I'm fine, Ashton," you said quietly, realizing everyone's eyes were now on you and your boyfriend.

Ashton kissed your forehead, "Don't ever scare me like that again." He looked at Stephanie for a moment. "You pulled her out of the crowd?" he asked her. She nodded and he hugged her tightly, thanking her.

"This is the greatest day of my life," she squealed lightly, hugging him back.

"Watch it," you teased, "He's mine." She jokingly stuck out her bottom lip as they let go of each other.

"Whatever," she sighed, "I'm a Luke girl anyway."

"Me too," you nodded, "But he didn't want me, so I had to go with the next best thing."

"Oh, shut up," Luke chuckled, throwing his arm across your shoulders and kissing the top of your head, "You know I love you."

"Alright, you two," Ashton shook his head, laughing as he grabbed your hand, pulling you back to him, "That's enough flirting for today." You kissed Ashton's cheek just as you heard honking from down the street. Stephanie looked back and saw her mother motioning for her to hurry up.

"I hate to be that person that cuts in line," she said shyly, "But my mom is really impatient and if I'm not in the car within the next 30 seconds, I'm never gonna hear the end of it." The boys laughed and quickly took pictures with her. She even asked for one with you which you were more than happy to agree.

"Thanks again for making sure Y/N was okay!" Ashton called after her as she ran down the sidewalk, wrapping his arms around you from behind.

She spun around and smirked, "Don't let go of her next time!"


	117. Make a Wish (Cody Carson)

"When are you coming home, Daddy?" your almost 4-year-old daughter whispered into your phone. It was 11:30pm, but you had briefly woken your daughter up so she could talk to her dad. Cody was on tour with his band and they were currently 3 hours away on the west coast.

"Soon, Jackie," he said. You could tell something was wrong right away.

"I love you."

"I love you too, princess."

You smiled and rubbed her back lightly, "Okay, go back to sleep. We've got a big day tomorrow. I love you."

"I love you, Mommy," she said, drifting back to sleep. You kissed her forehead and pulled her blanket back over her before you left the room.

"Alright," you said, plopping down on your own bed, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Cody replied.

"Babe," you stated.

He sighed, "I just miss you is all. I can't believe I'm gonna miss her birthday." You could just see him run his fingers through his hair in frustration.

"It's not like she doesn't understand, Cody," you said softly, "She loves what you do and she loves helping you write songs and she loves when we're able to take her to home shows. You're doing what you love for a living and both of us would rather you not be home for months at a time than having some 9 to 5 job that makes you miserable."

The other end of the line was silent for a moment before you heard Cody say, "I love you."

"And I love you," you smiled, "We'll call you tomorrow night so she can tell you all about her day, okay?"

"Okay," he nodded, although you couldn't see him.

You both said I love you one more time before he let you get some sleep. You went to bed with a smile on your face, excited for the plans you had for tomorrow.

~

The next morning, you went into Jackie's room to wake her up.

"Jackie," you said quietly, shaking her gently, "Happy birthday, baby."

"I'm not a baby anymore, Mommy!" she said excitedly and stood up on her bed, holding up four fingers, "I'm 4 now!"

"Wow!" you gasped lightly, "I guess since you're a big girl now, you have to get your own breakfast."

Her eyes widened, "But I can't even reach the counter yet!"

You laughed, holding out your hands, "Come on. We've gotta get moving if we're gonna go surprise Daddy." She jumped into your arms and you took her into the kitchen to make breakfast.

The two of you ate quicker than usual and after you washed the dishes, Jackie pulled you back to her bedroom. You pulled her small suitcase with Disney princesses on it out from under her bed and set it on her bed. She opened her closet door and peered inside with a look of concentration on her face. After no movement from her for nearly 5 minutes, you couldn't help but laugh.

"Jack, we're only going to be with them for three days," you informed her.

"Choosing outfits is very important, Mommy!" she protested.

"You are just like your father," you shook your head.

"Thank you," she smiled.

She finally picked a few of her favorite outfits and you put them into her suitcase along with every other necessary item. You hurried to your bedroom and grabbed the suitcase you had packed the night before. You took it into the living room while your daughter trailed behind, pulling her own suitcase along with her.

"Ready?" you asked her. She nodded furiously, clapping her hands and bouncing up and down. You grabbed your keys and the two of you set off for the airport.

~

Six hours later, you had finally landed. You called Marshall and he managed to slip away from the venue to pick you and Jackie up.

"Hey!" he said cheerfully as he got out of the band's rental car to give you a hug. He looked down at Jackie and smiled, holding his hands down toward her. She happily jumped up and he held her on his hip. "How's my little troublemaker today? I hear it's your birthday."

"Good!" she answered, "I'm 4 now!"

"I know! And do you know what 4-year-olds get for their birthdays?"

"What?!"

"They get tickled outside of airports!" he said quickly, tickling her stomach. She squealed loudly before laughing. Once her laughter died down, Marshall smiled and whispered to her, "Do you want to know what your real present is?"

"You got me a present?!" she exclaimed.

He gasped lightly, "Now what kind of uncle would I be if I didn't get you a birthday present?" He opened the passenger door and grabbed the gift bag from the seat, handing it to her. She immediately dropped to her knees, pulling out the tissue paper from the top and taking out a dress and shoes.

It was a simple gift – a black top with an attached purple tutu and the shoes were silver sandals – but it was a dress she'd been begging you to buy her since she saw it in the window of a local store back home as you drove by. You told her you couldn't get it for her because her birthday was only one week away at the time, but when Marshall asked you what she wanted, you knew it was the perfect opportunity. She let out a short scream, getting up and jumping back into Marshall's arms.

"Thank you!" she said, hugging him tightly before looking back at you. "Mommy, we gotta put it on!"

"We will when we get to the venue," you laughed.

You buckled her into the car seat before putting your bags in the trunk and hopping into the car. Marshall drove back to the venue and parked by the bus. He stealthy led you and Jackie inside, taking you to a room backstage he knew Cody wouldn't need to go in and that was where you and your daughter hid until show time. You helped her change into her new dress and shoes before picking her up and taking her out to where the stage was, standing with Marshall again.

Jackie was pretty good about staying in your arms throughout the show, but once  _Dream Catcher_  started, she couldn't hold in her excitement. It was her favorite song and Cody would sing it to her every night he was home to help her go to sleep. She made it all the way the bridge before she couldn't handle it anymore. She wiggled out of your arms and landed on her feet, running toward the stage .

"Jackie!" you tried to grab her, but you weren't fast enough.

The crowd started cheering as she ran to Cody, wrapping her arms around his leg. He jumped, looking down. He let out a breath and smiled widely, but kept singing, as he picked her up. He sang the rest of the song to her, whispering to her to help him with the last line. She, of course, was more than happy to sing with him, making the crowd awe. As soon as the song was over, he wrapped his other arm around her, hugging her tightly. He looked over and saw you smiling at your little family. He motioned for you to come on stage with them and you shyly walked out. Cody put his arm around your waist and pulled you into him.

"Surprise," you smiled, kissing his cheek.

"Thank you," he mumbled, kissing you just before taking his arm back and addressing the crowd again. "Wasn't my little girl amazing?" he asked, tickling her lightly. She laughed as the crowd cheered again. "Are you gonna be like Daddy one day?" he asked her.

She shook her head, "I wanna be a drummer like Uncle Maxx." Cody shot Maxx a playful glare and he pulled his microphone down so he could talk.

"Sorry, man," Maxx shrugged, "I can't help that she likes me more." The crowd laughed again. Cody rolled his eyes and turned back around.

"Happy birthday, princess," he whispered so only she heard him.

"Thank you, Daddy," she replied, hugging him and burying her face in his neck.

As soon as she leaned back upright, a small group of fans in the middle of the crowd started singing  _Happy Birthday_. Soon, the rest of them joined in, including yourself and the band. Marshall surprised you, Cody, and Jackie by bringing out a cupcake with four candles in it, making sure not to go so fast that the candles went out. He held it in front of her and the second everyone was done singing, she blew out the candles.

"You didn't even make a wish!" Cody laughed.

"I didn't need to," she smiled, kissing his cheek and hugging him again.


	118. Things You Said (5 Seconds of Summer)

**Luke;** **_Things you said when you thought I was asleep_ **

It was silent – the only thing that could be heard was the faint humming coming from your boyfriend.

It was 10pm and the two of you had just climbed into bed after Luke got home from the studio. He was beyond tired and could barely keep his eyes opened, but he insisted on staying awake, knowing how much you loved when he sang you to sleep. He was obviously too tired to actually sing to you, but that wasn't going to stop him from doing what he could. He simply began humming and it put you to sleep almost instantly. Or so he thought.

You had a tendency to mumble in your sleep and when you started doing so in the middle of the song, it was understandable for him to think you had fallen asleep. He would kiss your cheek when there were moments in the song where there weren't any words – the longer the pause, the longer his lips stayed on your skin. But you weren't asleep. You were simply too tired to do anything.

When the song was over, you expected Luke to drift off as well, but he didn't. He began playing with your hair, drawing circles on your lower back, and he even began speaking.

"I love you, you know?" he asked although he knew he wasn't going to get an answer. Your heart skipped a beat as this was the first time you'd heard Luke say he loved you. "I love you so much. I know you sometimes have trouble believing that anyone could love you, but I don't understand why you think that way. I can name a lot more reasons why I love you than you can for why I shouldn't. When we first started dating, I was terrified," he admitted, "I was so worried you would run away at the first sign of someone saying something nasty about you or the media making up some ridiculous rumor, but you didn't. I don't know why they feel the need to say things that aren't true, but I do know that I love you. And I'm honestly scared you don't love me too." He slowly drifted off to sleep soon after.

~

The next morning, you woke up before Luke – as usual. You pressed soft kisses all over his face until he woke up. He smiled at you, stretching and rubbing his eyes.

"I will never get sick of waking up like that," he mumbled, kissing your lips.

"And I will never get sick of waking you up like that," you smiled back, cuddling up to him.

"So what's on the agenda for today?"

"Well," you thought for a moment, "You have a photo shoot at 2, but I think we should stay like this until  _at least_  1:30." He looked over at the clock and saw it was just past 9.

"I think I can work that into my schedule," he said, kissing your temple.

"Luke," you said in a whisper after a couple minutes of silence.

"Y/N," he replied in the same tone. You paused and he shuffled a bit so he could look at you.

"Do you really love me?" you finally asked. You could immediately tell the question made him nervous.

"What do you mean?" he cleared his throat.

"Last night," you said, "When you thought I fell asleep, you started talking about how you loved me and how you were scared that I don't love you too."

"Y/N-"

"Say it," you cut him off, propping yourself up on your forearm and shaking your head, "I don't want you to say it while you think I'm sleeping or in a mumble that's difficult to hear. I want you to say you love me so I can say it back." He smiled and took your face in his hands, pulling you back down to him.

"I love you, Y/N," he told you simply. You smiled back, pressing your lips to his.

"I love you too, Luke."

~

**Michael;** **_Things you said with too many miles between us_ **

"I can't wait until I get to hug you," your boyfriend told you.

"And I don't blame you," you teased, "My hugs are pretty great. You might never wanna let go."

"I can already promise you I'm not gonna wanna let go," he smiled. You smiled slightly, looking down and starting to play with the ring on your finger.

You had been with Michael for over a year now and you were the happiest you'd ever been. The only problem was you've never met him. You lived over 8,000 miles away from each other. You met a lot of your friends through websites like Twitter and it was because of one of them that you met Michael.

_Flashback_

Michael was your best friend Ashlynn's cousin and he had gone over to her house one day while you were Skyping with her. He was being the usual annoying relative – constantly making random noises and saying her name every five seconds to distract her – but you had seen none of it because you left the room the go get a drink.

"Where is she?" you heard Michael ask as you walked back into your room. "Why isn't she here? What's she doing? Is she okay? Should we report a kidnapping to the U.S. government?"

"Michael," Ashlynn groaned, "Go away. I don't need you bothering her when she gets back."

"How can I be so sure she even exists? How do I know you're not lying and just pretending you have friends?"

"Oh, she exists," you laughed, climbing back onto your bed. The redhead suddenly froze.

"Alright!" Ashlynn exclaimed, seeing the look on her cousin's face, "Now you know she's real. Time to leave us alone." She got up and pushed him out of her room, closing and locking the door so he couldn't get back in.

"What was that look about?" you asked, taking a sip of your drink.

"He thinks you're cute," she sighed.

"Understandably though," you nodded. She rolled her eyes and laughed. The two of you talked for a couple more minutes before she left to go hang out with Michael.

About half an hour later, you were still on your computer when you got a Skype notification saying Ashynn was calling you. You thought it was a little strange seeing as she told you she wouldn't be able to get on again for a few hours, but you answered anyway. As soon as you accepted, Michael showed up on your screen.

"Wow, Ash," you gasped dramatically, "You look a lot like your cousin."

"Ha, ha, ha. Very funny," Michael replied, "Listen, Ashlynn thinks I'm in the bathroom, so I have like, 5 minutes at the most."

"You take 5 minutes in bathroom? You're such a girl."

" _Y/N_!" he pouted.

"I'm sorry, Michael," you laughed, "Why did you call me?" He took a deep breath and let it out quickly.

"I don't know how to say it, so I'm just gonna go for it," he said, "How do you feel about long distance relationships?"

You smiled slightly and shrugged, "They've never worked out for me personally, but I would never reject the possibility of being in one again in the future."

"S-So, um, do you think you would want to give it another shot with me?" he asked quietly, looking down at his hands, "We could have like, a Skype date or something." Before you could say yes, Ashlynn burst into her room.

" _Absolutely not_!" she shouted.

" _But Ashlynn_!" Michael whined as she pulled him off of her desk chair.

"No buts, Michael! I told you you're not allowed to date any of my friends and that  _includes_  friends that are  _not_  in this country!"

"We could be related, Ashlynn!" you said, grabbing her attention.

"You are  _not_  marrying Michael, Y/N!" she replied.

"Who said I was talking about  _Michael_?" you smirked, causing her to narrow her eyes at you. "Come on, Ash!" you squeaked, "You always tell me that I should go out and find a boyfriend, but maybe I want one to find me instead." She sighed and you smiled, knowing she was going to cave.

"Fine," she said before turning to Michael, "If you hurt her, I will kill you."

"But we're related!" he said, "What about family first and all that jazz?!"

"Congratulations on knowing how family trees work," she replied, making you snicker. "Do you want to date her or not?" He nodded furiously and she slowly repeated herself, "Then if you hurt her, I will kill you. Understood?" Michael nodded again and Ashlynn left the room to let you two talk.

_End flashback_

"Y/N," Michael said softly, "Babe, look at me." You did and he tilted his head, "What's wrong?"

"I just... I'm nervous, I guess," you answered.

"Nervous about what?"

"Meeting you," you mumbled.

"Why are you nervous about meeting me?"

"What if you finally see me in person and I'm not what you're expecting? What if you don't like that I'm not as outgoing in person as I am online? What if you decide that you don't like what you see outside of low quality Skype calls and FaceTimes?"

"Please don't say that," he said, a begging tone to his voice, "You're absolutely beautiful and low quality videos aren't going to change that. I want nothing more than to finally be able to kiss you and hold you and tell you how much I love you in person."

"I love you, Michael," you said quietly, wiping your cheek with the sleeve of the sweater Michael had sent you.

You both decided that instead of buying something for each other for Christmas, you would send your favorite article of clothing and wouldn't get it back until you met. You gave Michael your favorite shirt – which was coincidentally All Time Low – and he gave you his favorite sweater.

"I love you, Y/N," he repeated, his heart dropping at seeing you cry, "So much."

~

For the next week, you went on like everything was normal. But it was actually far from it. You had been packing the entire time, taking breaks to Skype with Michael as if nothing was out of the ordinary, but you were less than 24 hours away from finally being able to see him.

You had been saving as much money as you could for the past year and you were finally able to afford a plane ticket to Australia. It killed you not being able to tell him, but you wanted to surprise him.

You and Ashlynn formulated a plan: You called her and gave her all of your flight information and she told you she would convince Michael to come with her to the airport to pick up a friend – she agreed not to disclose your identity – and she would meet you in the bathroom when your flight landed.

Your flight was about 15 hours long, which meant you obviously had to come up with an excuse as to why you wouldn't be able to talk to him all day. You simply told him that your parents wanted to spend some time with you away from technology and that you would be gone for a couple days. He, of course, believed you – your parents were always telling you to stop spending so much time online anyway – and you hadn't spoken to him in nearly 24 hours.

The second you landed, you hurried to the bathroom. You weren't too worried about Michael seeing you as Ashlynn assured you she would keep him facing away from where you would be entering the airport terminal. She told Michael that she had to go to the bathroom before her friend arrived and he sighed as she trotted away. She looked back at him and when she noticed he wasn't watching her, she broke into a run toward where you would hopefully already be.

"Oh my God!" Ashlynn squealed when she saw you, hugging you tightly, "You're actually here!"

"That was the longest 15 hours of my life," you whined. The jet lag was already starting to hit you, but you pushed it aside, knowing you were only moments away from seeing Michael. "Is Mikey here?"

"Yes!" she smiled, "And he's getting really impatient and cranky, but I wouldn't worry too much about that because as soon as he finds out you're the one I had to come get, he's gonna forget all about how much he hates me for dragging him here at 5am ' _for no apparent reason._ '" You peeked around the corner and saw Michael rocking on his feet slightly, waiting for his cousin to return. "Y/N," Ashlynn said, poking your cheek, "You're drooling."

"I am not," you laughed, "Don't be a dick."

"Alright," she said, scheming the final portion of your plan, " _Operation Surprise Michael_  is under way."

"Is that what we're calling it now?" you raised your eyebrows, "How long did it take you to come up with that name?"

"Less than a minute. Don't be a dick," she smirked, "I'm gonna go back over to him and when you're ready, give me a signal and start walking over. You'll know what to say when you hear me. Ready?"

"I've been ready for over a year, Ash," you sighed. She smiled widely, holding her fist up. "You're such a nerd," you rolled your eyes, laughing as you bumping fists with her. She stuck her tongue out at you before hurrying back to Michael.

"When is your friend supposed to get here again?" he asked sleepily, letting out a frustrated sigh.

"She should be around here somewhere," she replied, looking around the terminal. As soon as she looked at you, you gave her a nod, letting her know you were ready. "Hey, Michael," Ashlynn said, "Can you do me a favor?"

"What?" he replied. She didn't respond, she simply smiled, and he looked at her in confusion until he heard your voice behind him.

"Turn around."

He spun around to see you standing a few yards away, smiling at him. He let out a breath and stared at you in shock. He wanted to run over and hug you, but it was like he was frozen.

As soon as you made a break toward him, he shook himself out of his state of shock and met you halfway, wrapping his arms around your waist as you jumped up. Ashlynn grinned as she watched you, wondering why she ever opposed to you two being together in the first place.

"I love you, Michael," you whispered.

" _God_ , you're beautiful," he mumbled against your neck, "You're  _so_  beautiful." You wasted no time in moving back, grabbing his face and pulling it to your own, pressing your lips to his. He smiled as you pulled away, his arms still around your waist, "You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that."

"Probably about as long as I have," you said quietly, kissing him again.

"Have I ever told you how good you look in my sweater?" he asked, looking down and noticing you were wearing it.

"You've mentioned it a few times," you giggled.

"I can't wait to see what you look like without it on either," he smirked, making you blush.

~

**Calum;** **_Things you said that I wasn't meant to hear_ **

You were trying to take a nap, exhausted from your day at work. The only problem was you couldn't seem to fall asleep no matter how hard you tried. You had been lying on your bed for about two hours now with no luck. You decided that there was only one thing to do: Beg Calum to come lay down with you. He was busy working on songs with Luke in the living room, but you figured it was worth a shot.

As you trudged down the hallway, you heard them talking, but it didn't sound like they were talking about music. No, they were talking about you.

"It just feels weird," Calum mumbled.

"What does?" Luke asked him.

"I don't know," he sighed, " _Everything_ , I guess... It's difficult to know what being in love feels like when you've never really been in love before. I mean, we write songs about it all the time, but I've never actually experienced anything like it – well, I didn't until I met Y/N." You tiptoed out from the end of the hallway, hoping you wouldn't be seen.

Unfortunately, Luke looked up before you had the chance to hide. You gave him a pleading expression, silently begging him not to blow your cover. He nodded slightly and let you sneak in and sit on the floor behind the couch Calum was sitting on.

"So you're in love with her?" Luke urged.

"I think so," he muttered.

"Then tell her that."

"I can't," he said, putting his face in his hands and leaning back in his seat, "You know I'm not that confident around girls."

"She's your girlfriend, dude," Luke told him, "If she didn't have some sort of feelings greater than liking you even a little bit, she wouldn't have stuck around for this long. The way she looks at you when you're not looking is the same way you look at her. And I don't know about Michael or Ashton, but I would kill for a girl to be as in love with me as Y/N clearly is with you."

"You're right," Calum stated, standing up, "I'm gonna tell her." Your heart started racing, knowing there was no way out of the room without him seeing you now. "But maybe not right now," he sighed, sitting back down.

"Calum!"

"She's sleeping!" he protested, "I'm not gonna wake her up just to tell her I love her!"

You let out a breath, getting up as quietly as you could and sneaking back out of the living room. Before you could make it out, however, you accidentally ran into the corner of the wall and let out a short squeak.

Calum's head shot back to look at you as you groaned, unable to believe how stupid you were for not remembering there was a wall there. You turned around to face Calum as he jumped up.

"Y/N!" he exclaimed, "I thought you were sleeping!"

"I couldn't fall asleep," you shrugged.

"Ho-How long have you been in here?"

"Long enough."

"I-I-I didn't-"

"Say it again," you cut him off. Luke quickly excused himself from the room, smiling at you on his way past.

"Say wha-"

"Tell me you love me."

A smile started pulling the corner of his mouth as he made his way over to you. He wrapped his arms around your waist and pulled you as close to him as you could get.

"I love you, Y/N," he whispered, "I am so in love with you." You grinned, taking his cheeks in your hands and pulling his face down to yours.

"I love you too, Cal," you said just before your lips met.

~

**Ashton;** **_Things you said when you were crying_ **

It was just another day – another day of busing tables, waiting on costumers, and trying not to lose your cool when someone freaked out over their coffee being too hot.

 _It's coffee,_  you said to yourself nearly three times a day, five days a week,  _What did you expect?_

Honestly, all you wanted to do was go home. You couldn't, of course, because your shift didn't end for another two hours, but you just wanted to be in the quiet of your own home, away from the business of downtown Sydney.

~

After what seemed like forever, you let out a sigh of relief when you looked at clock and saw your shift was finally over. You hurried to put your apron away and ran home. Since you lived so close to the city, you never bothered taking cabs or buying a car of your own. You were more focused on being able to afford the small two-bedroom house you had your eye on since you decided you would be moving to Sydney – which you were more than happy you could.

You walked in your front door and took your shoes off, going back to your bedroom to change out of your work uniform. You could hear drumming coming from your basement and you knew Ashton was there. You and Ashton never officially moved in together, but he was at your place so often that he practically lived there regardless.

You trotted downstairs and saw he was sitting at his drum set with his back to the stairs – he had gotten a new one for his birthday and had nowhere to put the old one so you offered to put your basement to some use.

"Hey, Ash!" you chirped once you hit the bottom step. He jumped, startled by your voice.

"Hey, babe," he said quietly. Your smile immediately dropped.

"Ashton..." you said slowly, making your way over to him as he still hadn't turned around, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

You stood behind him, "Then why won't you look at me?" He shrugged. "Ashton.." you whispered, " _Please_  look at me..."

Ashton bit his inner cheek and finally turned around. His eyes were red and it was obvious that he'd been crying.

You smiled sadly at him and grabbed his hand, taking him back upstairs. You laid down on the couch and pulled him down beside you, wrapping your arms around him. He immediately buried his face in your neck as he hugged you back.

"What happened, Ash?" you asked after a few minutes of silently playing with his hair.

"You love me, right?" he asked, looking up at you with watery eyes.

"Of course I love you, Ashton," you muttered, bringing your hand up and resting it on his cheek, "Why would you think I don't?" He stayed silent and you sighed, "You've been reading tweets again, haven't you?"

"Why don't they think I'm good enough for the band?" he choked, "I always try to be nice to them and I always try to get pictures and sign things but  _I'm still not good enough_! And they tell me I'm not good enough for  _you_  either and I  _know_  they're right, but it still  _hurts_  when they say it!"

"Not  _everyone_  is saying those things, Ash," you shook your head, "And as much as you hate when I say it, there is no way in  _hell_  you're not good enough: for me, for the band, for  _anyone_. You are the most generous person I have ever known and I know that your fans – your  _real_  ones – agree with me. I know it's hard to block out the negativity, but all they want from you is a reaction. What they say about you not being good enough is not the least bit true in  _any_  sense of the phrase and I will do everything I can to help you realize that, Ashton." He leaned up and kissed your jaw and you returned the gesture by kissing his lips. "I love you, Ash," you said quietly as you pulled away, "I love you so much, it hurts. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me and I have never loved anyone like I love you and I hope to God I never will."

~

_inspiration: http://xfactorera.tumblr.com/post/110395333021/send-me-a-ship-and-one-of-these-and-ill-write-a_


	119. Love Story (Marshall Traver)

You grabbed your pocket watch off of your nightstand for what seemed like the tenth time in the past two minutes. Your eyes widened upon seeing you lost track of time and were now almost ten minutes late. You pushed yourself off of your bed and left your bedroom, making your way down the long hallway.

"Princess," one of the servants nodded at you as you passed each other. You smiled politely, returning the nod as you picked up your pace toward your mother's bedroom. You knocked lightly, waiting until you heard her voice.

"Come in, dear!" she called. Your mom could always tell when it was you knocking instead of one of the servants. You opened the door and found her sitting on the balcony, overlooking the kingdom. "What is it?" she asked, smiling at you as you walked over.

"May I go for a walk for a little while?" you asked calmly.

"What for?"

"I just need some alone time outside of the castle," you replied, "And the fields are beautiful this time of year."

"Alright, sweetie," she smiled, "I want you back before dinner. Be careful."

"Yes, ma'am," you said, kissing her cheek before trotting back out of the room. You returned to your bedroom to grab your cloak before exiting the castle and leaving your kingdom.

Once you were out of the guards' sight, you broke into a run. You ran for a couple more minutes before you finally made it to your destination – a field about a quarter mile away from yours and the neighboring kingdoms. You saw a figure leaning against a tree facing away from you.

"Prince Marshall," you said, making him turn around as you walked over to him, "Fancy seeing you out here all by yourself."

"You're late,  _Princess_ ," he smirked, pulling you into him.

"You're lucky I'm here at all," you smiled, pressing your lips to his.

"I've missed you," he whispered against your lips.

"We just saw each other yesterday," you giggled, the sound being music to his ears.

"True," he nodded, "But we were in town and I couldn't kiss you."

"You're so desperate," you sighed dramatically, letting go of him and lying in the grass.

"Only for you," he grinned, lying next to you. He wiggled his arm under your neck and you moved so your head was resting comfortably on his shoulder. He grabbed your hand and held it on his stomach, tangling your fingers together.

"This whole thing is stupid if you ask me," you said randomly after a few minutes of silence.

"You mean sneaking around or...?" he trailed off.

"No, I mean why are we fighting? I'm the  _Princess_  for Christ's sake. I should have a  _general idea_  of what's going on in my kingdom, but no one's told me  _anything_."

"My father told me it's because we both want to expand our land," Marshall replied, staring up at the clouds, "But we can't because our kingdoms are so close together. He said we had no other choice because neither kingdom will give in."

"So why can't anyone just  _tell me_  that?" you sighed, "Ever since my father died, people have been treating me differently. Their smiles are way too  _forced_  and their voices seem so  _condescending_  now. I don't think anyone  _actually_  believes I can handle the responsibilities of being queen, but what am I supposed to do? My mother married into royalty and I'm the only one that can take over now that my father is gone."

"You're going to be a great queen, Y/N," Marshall told you, squeezing you lightly, "I know your people will realize that as soon as you're coronated."

"But when I  _do_  become queen, it'll be harder for me to sneak out," you mumbled into his shirt. You felt him let out a disappointed sigh.

"I know," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

"I wish we didn't have to sneak around like this."

"And when our kingdoms make peace, we won't have to," he kissed your head, "But for now, this is how is has to be." You sighed, sitting up.

"I should be getting back," you said, "My mother will have my head if I'm late for dinner again." Marshall stood, helping you up as well. You brushed off your dress and cloak and he took your hand.

"Until next time, Princess," he bowed, kissing your hand.

"You're such an idiot," you rolled your eyes and smiled, "But I love you."

"And I love you," he replied, putting his hand on your cheek and bringing your face to his, kissing you softly before you both went your separate ways.

You trudged back up the dirt road and it wasn't long until you entered your kingdom once again. The guards welcomed you back as they opened the castle doors for you. You smiled politely, thanking them as you made your way to your bedroom. You tossed your cloak on the end of your bed and headed toward the kitchen where your mother was patiently waiting.

"How was your walk, dear?" she asked upon seeing you emerge from the doorway.

"It was nice," you replied simply, sitting down at the table with her.

And that was your life.

You were constantly having to sneak away to see the prince of the rival kingdom and keep your love for him a secret. Sure, it killed you having to hide the fact that you were finally happy, but you did what you had to. The guards in your kingdom were very strict and protective of their queen and princess – especially after the death of their king – and to find out the princess was sneaking around to be with the prince of the kingdom they were fighting with? They would surely forbid you from going anywhere alone which meant never seeing him again if they were nice enough not to have his head. And you weren't about to let that happen.

~

The next month or so was full of the same old things you always did: Sneaking out whenever possible to go see Marshall, preparing for your coronation in just a few short weeks, and simply learning how to run a kingdom. One such day, your mother had called you into her room, telling you she had some very important news for you.

"Good afternoon, Mom!" you squeaked, skipping through the door. When your mother saw the happy expression on your face, her heart sunk that much more.

"Hello, dear," she said quietly.

"Mom," you said, your smile fading, "What's wrong?"

"There's no easy way to say this, so I'm just going to say it." She took a deep breath, "I went to speak with the royal council a couple weeks ago about your coronation and they informed me that in order for you to become queen, you need to marry."

"I don't understand..." you trailed off, your heart beginning to beat faster and faster with every second that passed.

"After you were born, your father and I were ordered by the council to choose a suitor for you."

"An  _arranged marriage_?!" you shouted, "They can't make me get married!"

"They kind of can, Y/N," she sighed, "I've tried so many times to repeal the law, but they just won't budge. If you're going to become queen, this is how it has to be."

The phrase instantly reminded you of what Marshall had told you just a couple months ago. Wait...  _Marshall_. Your eyes widened.

"Sweetheart," you mother said slowly, "I know this is a lot to take in right now, but-"

"I need some time alone," you cut her off, turning around and rushing out of the room. Your mother simply sighed, but let you leave anyway. She knew you weren't going to take the news well.

You hurried to your room and got your cloak, throwing it over your shoulders. You placed your crown on your pillow and left the castle as your mother followed behind to tell the guards to just let you go to wherever you were going alone. You sighed in relief at hearing her say that because the place you were headed was the one place you were forbidden from ever going to.

Lucky for you, Marshall's kingdom wasn't as strict with who they let come in – so long as it wasn't a member of your royal family or your servants. The guards simply smiled and welcomed you as you walked past and you knew right away that they were fairly new seeing as they didn't recognize you.

You followed the main path for a couple minutes before you found yourself at the steps of the castle. You kept your head down and lifted your dress up as you climbed to the top, making sure that no one could see who you were.

"I'm here to see the Prince," you stated softly once you reached the guard at the door.

"I'm sorry, Miss," he shook his head, "But no commoners are allowed inside the castle." You sighed and looked up just enough for him to recognize you. His eyes widened, "Princess, what are you doing here?"

This guard – William – was the only one who knew about you and Marshall. He caught you two in the field one evening after the king ordered him to bring his son back to castle – Marshall had a tendency to wander off so it was nothing new for William to have to go look for him. He quickly found him, finding you with him as well. After what you considered the most intense moment of your life, he smiled. He saw how much you two loved each other and he was in no way going to ruin that. He agreed to keep your secret and you were more than grateful that he understood your situation.

"I need to talk to Marshall," you whispered, "And it can't wait until tomorrow."

"I can't let you in because you might get caught," he said lowly, "But I'll go get him and see if he can sneak you in." He took your hand and pulled you behind one of the large pillars, "Hide here; I'll be right back."

"Thank you!" you called after him quietly as he hurried inside the castle. William almost immediately found Marshall walking aimlessly throughout the hallways, trying to occupy his time until dinner.

"Your Highness," William bowed upon approaching the prince, "You have a visitor."

"A visitor?" Marshall furrowed his eyebrows. William looked around, making sure there was no one that would hear him.

"The Princess," he said under his breath. Marshall's eyes widened as he followed the guard outside.

"What is she doing here? She could get herself killed!"

"I don't know, Your Highness, but by the look on her face, I'd say it's very important," William replied, opening the castle door for Marshall and leading him to where you were still hiding.

"What are you doing here?" Marshall asked you, putting one hand on your hip and resting the other on your cheek.

"It couldn't wait," your voice broke as you shook your head quickly.

Marshall took your hand and pulled you inside the castle, looking around every corner so you wouldn't be seen. He brought you into his bedroom and closed the door behind him. He spun around to face you, but before he could even ask you what couldn't wait, you burst into tears. Marshall rushed over to you and wrapped you up in a hug as you cried into his shirt.

"They're making me get  _married_!" you squeaked out.

"Th-They're  _what_?" Marshall stuttered, moving back to look at you.

"The council said that the only way I can become queen is by getting married," you replied as you tried to calm yourself down, "If I don't get married, my mother and I will no longer be in power. I don't want to get married, Marshall!" you sniffled, clinging onto him like your life depended on it, "But I want to prove to everyone that I can be a good queen!"

"There's nothing your mother can do?" he asked desperately.

"She tried! They said what's done is done and it can't be changed unless the suitor decides he doesn't want to rule our kingdom."

"Then make him hate it!" Marshall exclaimed.

"What am I supposed to do, Marshall?" you shook your head, "No one thinks I have a chance around there; Why would someone  _new_  feel any different?"

"We'll think of something, Y/N," he said softly, hugging you again, "I'm gonna find a way around it."

~

**One month later**

This was it:  _Wedding day_.

You couldn't believe you were going through with this. More importantly, you couldn't believe  _Marshall_  was allowing you go through with this.

You hadn't seen him in nearly a month and it seemed like your whole world had come crashing down. You  _trusted_  him. You trusted him to do what he promised and that was to not be forced into marrying  _Prince Joseph_.

 _God_. Even thinking about his  _name_  made you nauseous.

Prince Joseph was one of those princes that looked like he would be a gentleman when in reality, he was probably the worst person you'd ever met. He was rude to everyone in your kingdom but being the Princess, you couldn't do anything about it. It was unheard of for any lady to talk to a male in the way you only dreamed of talking to him, much less the  _Princess_.

But worst of all, the way he treated you was anything but the way a princess deserved. He was always picking apart your looks and your clothes – saying how  _his_  seamstress was better and could do some good with the ' _old rags_ ' you'd been wearing. He never said please and thank you, it was always ' _move_ ' or be shoved out of the way.

Of course, he was  _never_  this way around your mother. Around the Queen, he was polite and proper and he never badmouthed you or your appearance. He was basically everything a good prince  _should be_  – everything Marshall  _was_.

The first time you met Prince Joseph, you had been trotting down the hallway. You weren't wearing your crown – you had simply gone to the bathroom and you really didn't feel it was necessary to wear it – when you bumped into someone as you rounded the corner.

_Flashback_

" _Excuse you_ ," the young man scoffed, brushing off the front of his shirt.

"Sorry," you muttered.

"Do you know where I might find the Princess?"

"And you are...?" He gave you a look that just screamed you should have already known.

"I am Prince Joseph of Aroeth."

"Ah," you nodded, "You're the suitor."

"Yes," he stated, "Now I  _order you_  to tell me where the Princess is."

"You're looking at her," you smiled sarcastically, sticking your hand out, "Princess Y/N of Kederran."

" _You_  are the princess?" he raised his eyebrows, "Where is your crown?"

"Hopefully still on my nightstand."

"Why aren't you wearing it?"

"I don't deem wearing my crown to the bathroom entirely necessary," you said honestly, taking your hand back as it was very obvious he wasn't going to shake it. He gave you a disgusted look.

"A princess is required to be wearing her crown at all times," he said. You fought the urge to roll your eyes.

"My apologies, Your Highness, but that's not how we do things around here."

"Well," he said, holding his chin up and puffing his chest out, "When I'm King, that attitude will be the first thing to go." He bumped your arm again as he walked by.

You let out a long sigh when he was gone, already hating the council for making you go through with this.

_End flashback_

The entire kingdom – including the neighboring one – was invited to the wedding. You didn't understand why Marshall's kingdom was invited since the two were feuding, but you couldn't care less about that. All you think about was marrying someone you didn't love and Marshall having to watch you do it.

You heard the wedding march start playing inside the chapel and your mother squeezed your hand. You looked up at her and she smiled.

"Everything's gonna be okay," she told you, "I promise." You nodded slowly, although you had absolutely no idea what she was talking about.

The doors opened and everyone looked back as you and your mother began walking you down the long aisle. Prince Joseph was standing at the alter, acting as if he didn't have a care in the world.

After what seemed like forever, you finally made it to him and the ceremony begun. You glanced at your mother and noticed Marshall's parents were sitting behind her, but Marshall was nowhere in sight.

The ceremony went on and on and honestly, you thought you were going to fall asleep. Once the preacher made it to asking if anyone objected, you hoped with everything you had in you that someone would stand up.

"If anyone has a reason these two should not be wed," the preacher said, "Please speak now or forever hold your peace." You waited for five heart-pounding seconds before you heard a familiar voice come from the back of the room.

"I do," he announced. Yours and Prince Joseph's heads shot over to look back at Marshall as he made his way down the aisle.

Your heart started racing as you swallowed the lump in your throat. You looked at his parents and well as your mother, fully expecting them to be shocked or even furious, but they weren't. His parents looked on almost approvingly and your mother seemed... _relieved_.

"And what is your reason, Prince Marshall?" the preacher asked.

" _Come on_ ," he turned toward the members of your kingdom's royal council, " _Arranged marriages_? That's a bit  _medieval_ , don't you think?"

"I'm sorry, Your Highness," the head of the council stood up, bowing politely, "But it's the law."

"Exactly," Prince Joseph snarled, "It's the law. You can't change the law."

"Isn't there  _something_ you can do, Paul?" your mother asked.

"If there was, we would have changed it a long time ago, Your Majesty," Paul sighed. You watched as Marshall's face lit up.

"The law states that the princess has to marry a  _prince_ , right?" he asked.

"I suppose you are correct, Your Highness," he answered, smiling as he already knew where Marshall was going with it.

"Marry me," he stated, turning to you again. Yours and Prince Joseph's jaws dropped slightly.

"Marshall, I-"

He cut you off, "If marrying a prince is the only way you can become Queen, then marry me."

"You don't have to do this, Marshall," you shook your head.

"And you're not going to!" Prince Joseph nearly shouted, "This is my kingdom now!"

"No, you self-pretentious piece of  _shit_ ," you said firmly, "This is  _my_  kingdom." Everyone gasped and you shot your mother an apologetic glance for your language. You could have sworn she smiled at you.

"Excuse me, Princess – I will  _not_  be treated this way!"

"I don't know how your parents rule in  _your_  kingdom," you narrowed your eyes at him. "But in  _mine_ , the Queen does not treat the Princess like a  _slave_. We treat all our people with the respect they  _deserve_  and I can tell that's something  _you_  have issues with. And if I was your Queen, that attitude would be the  _first_  thing to go," you smirked. He was about to protest again, but you stopped him. "Get out of my kingdom," you said, "And never come back."

The Prince let out a low shriek, stomping back down the aisle. You sighed in relief, knowing you wouldn't have to deal with him anymore. Everyone watched as he left with his parents following close behind him. You were brought back out of your thoughts by Marshall's voice.

"Marry me, Y/N," he said again, softly.

"Mar-"

"Y/N," Marshall said, "I'm sick of having to hide my love for you. I hate seeing you around town and not being able to grab you and kiss you and show everyone you're mine. I love you, and I'm going to marry you one day anyway – it might as well be while everyone is already here." You heard a few people in the pews awe quietly.

"But what about-" He cut you off again, already knowing what you were going to ask.

"The reason I haven't been around for a while is because I've been talking to my parents and your mother," he sighed, "And I am  _so_  sorry if I made you feel like I don't care about you by doing that, but they agreed that there's no use in arguing over land if  _both_  of our families own it."

"You're serious?" your voice cracked and your eyes started to get watery. He wiped your cheeks with his thumbs.

"Princess Y/N," he took your hands and got down on one knee, "Will you marry me?" You looked at your mother and she gave you a smile.

"What are you looking at  _me_  for?" she asked quietly, "Say yes already!" Marshall's parents were both smiling widely at you and motioning for you to accept. You turned your attention back to Marshall and let out the breath you didn't realize you were holding.

"Yes," you whispered as you nodded, a smile pulling at the corners of your mouth. Everyone in the room cheered and the grin on Marshall's face was unlike any he'd ever given you as he stood back up. He kissed your forehead softly and addressed the preacher once again.

"Well?" he smiled, "You heard her."

The preacher smiled as well and cleared his throat, "We are gathered here today-"

"Do you think we could start at the ' _I do_ 's?" you asked quietly.

"Eager, I see?" he chuckled.

You looked at Marshall as you answered him, "You have no idea."

~

_inspiration: http://my-imagines-moonlight53.tumblr.com/post/99709002647/prince-michael-part-1_


	120. Forgive Me (Calum Hood)

" _Please_?" you pouted, putting your chin on your boyfriend's shoulder. After each repetition of the word, you started kissing his cheek, hoping that would be enough to get him to cave.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" he exclaimed, putting his hand on your shoulder and pushing you away, "I know what you're trying to do, Y/N, and it's not going to work."

" _Cal_!" you whined, " _Why not_?!"

"High school reunions aren't really my thing."

"How would you know? You've never been to one."

"And I don't  _plan_  on going to any either," he stated. You bit your inner cheek and got up.

As you walked away, you sighed, "That's alright, Cal. I won't make you go."

"Thank you."

"I  _would_  like my boyfriend to be there to stop other guys from hitting on me, but I guess I'll just have to deal with it myself." Before you made it out of the room, Calum got up. You smiled to yourself, wiping the grin off your face before you turned to look at him.

"O-Other guys are gonna hit on you...?" he asked quietly.

"You've seen my yearbook photos," you shrugged, "I've gotten hotter since then."

"True..." he muttered, hoping you wouldn't hear him. You smiled and kissed his cheek again.

"It's fine, Cal," you said, walking into the kitchen, "I can handle myself."

"Maybe I should go with you... You know, meet the friends you're always talking about not being able to see anymore."

"Mhm," you nodded, fighting back your smile. Calum came up behind you and wrapped his arms around your waist, pressing his chest against your back.

"Nobody but  _me_  is flirting with my girl," he said in your ear.

"They'll run away in fear before they even have the chance to look at me," you teased, turning around in his arms and wrapping your own around his neck, kissing him.

~

That Friday night was your high school reunion and you spent longer than usual getting ready. Even though you were with Calum and you were incredibly happy, you still wanted to show your old classmates what they missed out on.

You walked out of the bathroom and slipped on your ballet flats, going out to your living room where Calum was patiently waiting. He looked at you head-to-toe and bit his lip, making you blush.

"Looking to break some hearts tonight?" your boyfriend smirked, wrapping his arm around your waist as he led you out to his car.

"That's the plan," you smiled.

Within 20 minutes, you were at the school.

"Who has a 5-year high school reunion anyway?" Calum asked randomly as you walked into the school, "I always thought it was after 10 years."

"Apparently not at my school," you shrugged, "Stop being so nervous."

"I'm not nervous."

"You're shaking, Cal," you smiled, "You have nothing to worry about. I'm sure all these guys are in relationships by now anyway."

"They could still want to get with you," he mumbled.

"The only person I'm getting with tonight is you," you giggled, giving him a quick kiss.

You led him into the gym and were immediately greeted by someone screaming your name. You looked over to see your best friend – she now lived across the state but the two of you still talked regularly and you were happy she was visiting home during the reunion – running over to you. You let go of Calum's hand just in time for her to crash into you.

"It's been  _way_  too long, Hal," you hugged her tightly. After you let go, you motioned toward Calum, "Hailey, this is my boyfriend Calum. Calum, this is my best friend Hailey." Her jaw dropped.

" _No way_!" Hailey nearly fell over, "Calum as is  _5 Seconds of Summer Calum_?!"

"That would be me," he said shyly. He looked at you with a confused expression, "I thought you said no one around here listened to the band?"

"They don't," Hailey laughed before you could respond, "But Y/N talked about you guys  _all_  the time. You should have seen her locker; You were always her favorite."

"Oh, boy! Would you look at that?" you squeaked as Calum smiled, "Jeremiah's looking kinda lonely over there by the punch bowl. I better go say hello!" You hurried over to the refreshment table, leaving Hailey to embarrass you further. "Hey, Jare," you muttered, picking up one of the snacks and tossing it in your mouth.

He looked up at you, "Y/N? I haven't talked to you in  _ages_! How have you been?"

"I've been good," you smiled shyly, "How are you and Anne? I heard you guys got married last year! Congratulations!"

"Thank you," he beamed, "We're doing well! She was so upset she couldn't make it tonight, but you know how hospitals are – you can never have  _too many_  nurses." You laughed, nodding in agreement. "So," Jeremiah smirked, nudging your arm, "I hear you've got yourself quite a catch too."

"Is  _everyone_  going to mention that?" you whined, "I was  _17_!"

He chuckled, "It's been the only thing I've heard people talk about since I got here. It's kind of huge when a girl you went to school with starts dating someone famous."

"Yeah, I bet they're all kicking themselves for not dating me when they had the chance."

"Probably," he shrugged, "Then maybe  _they_  would be the famous ones."

"Nah," you laughed, "They would still be losers."

"That sounds about right," he laughed along. As you were laughing with Jeremiah, you felt arms snake around your waist.

"Hey, babe," Calum said, kissing your cheek as he kept his eyes on Jeremiah. Jeremiah raised his eyebrows at you and you shrugged, giving him an apologetic look.

"Cal, this is Jeremiah. Jare, this is my boyfriend Calum."

"I never thought I'd see the day," Jeremiah chuckled, extending his hand to Calum.

Your eyes widened, "Jeremiah, Hailey already did this to me, I don't need you doing it too."

"What do you mean?" Calum asked him, shaking his hand.

"Well, she always said she was going to date you one day," he told him, "None of us  _actually_  believed her though." You quickly wiggled out of Calum's arms and tried to walk away again, but his reflexes were too fast. He grabbed your hand and pulled you back to him, enveloping you in a hug.

"You were right, Cal," you whined into his shirt, "You shouldn't have come."

"What are you talking about?" he laughed, "I'm having a  _great time_." You looked up at him with narrowed eyes and he kissed your forehead. "I'm glad one of the other boys wasn't your favorite," he said so only you heard him. You couldn't help but laugh under your breath, hugging him again.

"Y/N!" you heard behind you a couple minutes later, causing you to tense up. Calum obviously felt this as you let go of him and spun around.

"Miranda!" you plastered on a fake smile, giving her a hug.

"It has been  _too long_ , darling," she said.

Miranda had been one of your close friends up until midway through junior year. She was voted onto the homecoming court and – as in all the terrible movies – suddenly decided she was too popular to be seen with you and Hailey anymore. You and Hailey simply shrugged it off, figuring that if she felt like she didn't need you anymore, you would only be polite and give her what she wanted.

However, she started treated  _you_  badly as well. Her treatment was always aimed at you more often than Hailey for reasons you never  _quite_  figured out and you were understandably excited to graduate just so you would be free from her torment. You figured that since she was living in England now, she wouldn't come  _all the way_  back home just to go to your high school reunion, but you were clearly wrong.

"Who is this  _dashing_  fellow you've brought with you this evening?" Miranda asked in her posh British accent, staring at Calum with a smirk on her face.

"Th-" you cleared your throat, "This is my boyfriend Calum. Cal, this is Miranda."

"Y/N," Hailey trotted over, "Mrs. Gallagher has been wanting to see you."

"Not right now," you whispered as if no one else could hear you, "It would be rude of me to leave Cal."

"Oh, don't worry, dear," Miranda smiled, "I'll keep him company." Calum looked at you with a reassuring smile and Hailey pulled you over to your choir teacher.

" _My goodness_ , Y/N!" Mrs. Gallagher chirped, "Look at you!"

"It's nice to see you again, Mrs. Gallagher," you smiled.

Mrs. Gallagher was one of those teachers that all the students loved. People rarely had a bad thing to say about her and she rarely had a bad thing to say about them. She was really the only teacher you felt comfortable talking to which was why you spent most of your time before school started in the choir room. She was almost like a second mother to you in that she always listened to you and helped you through your problems whether they were school or home related.

As you and Hailey were talking with Mrs. Gallagher, you were briefly looking back to check on Calum every now and then. When you looked back again a few minutes later, your heart skipped a beat. Calum was still there, but he was kissing Miranda.

Hailey immediately marched across the gym toward them, but you were frozen.

"Mrs. Gallagher, is the choir room unlocked?" you asked quietly.

"I believe so," she answered, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," you shook your head, "It's kinda stuffy in hear is all. I just need some air."

You rushed out of the gym and ran to the choir room. You opened the door and turned on the light. You smiled slightly, seeing Mrs. Gallagher still hadn't done much to change the room since you graduated. You looked into her office and saw she still had the card you wrote her before you left the school, making you smile again. You sat down at the piano, took a deep breath, and started playing.

In the spare time you spent with Mrs. Gallagher before school, she was happy to teach you how to play. It rarely ever came up in every day conversation that you played the piano, but truth be told, you were quite good at it. Music was your way of expressing yourself – of letting out all your emotions when you couldn't put them into words yourself.

**Calum's POV**

Hailey had just made it to Calum when his shock finally subsided. He pushed Miranda back as hard as he could and stared at her.

"What the  _hell_  was that about?!" he shouted angrily, causing everyone to look over at him.

"Haven't you ever been kissed before?" Miranda giggled, "Or is your little girlfriend too scared?"

"My girlfriend may not be the most  _outgoing_  girl I've ever been with, but she's beautiful in every way and I love her," he responded coldly, "What is  _wrong_  with you? You can't just  _kiss someone_  like that!  _Especially_  when you  _know_  they've got a girlfriend!"

"Come on, you and I both know you're too good for her. You can't  _seriously_  tell me you actually  _like her_. You're probably just making her think you do so she's feels like she matters for once in her life."

"She  _does_  matter, you selfish bitch," Hailey growled, finally speaking up, "Just because  _you_  decided one day that you didn't want to be associated with her anymore doesn't make her  _less worthy_  of someone's time. Maybe she was never crowned prom or homecoming queen, but here's a newsflash:  _neither were you_. Maybe she wasn't the girl all the guys wanted and maybe over half the school didn't even know her name, but she is a  _much_  better person than someone who thinks it's okay to try to sabotage someone's relationship just because  _they're_  not happy about it."

"Oh my God," Calum mumbled, looking at Hailey and realizing you weren't standing next to her, " _Where is she_?"

"She's-" Hailey looked back and her expression fell, "She was right there." Calum immediately started sprinting out of the gym. "Check the choir room!" Hailey called after him before going back to yelling at Miranda.

Calum stopped at the end of the hall, realizing he didn't know  _where_  the choir room was – he didn't even remember  _which way_  you led him in. He walked away from the noise of the gym to where it was quieter, hoping he would be able to get a clue as to where you were.

He caught a break when he finally heard a piano being played. He didn't know whether or not it you, but it was his best option at that point.

He followed the sound of the familiar tune, peeking into the rooms along the way as the music got louder and he finally found you. He watched you from the hallway for a moment before quietly entering the room.

**Your POV**

You were looking down and didn't hear the door open, so you had no idea anyone was even there until you finished playing the song and heard someone start clapping. You jumped, startled by the sudden presence, and your head shot up.

You watched as Calum carefully made his way over to the piano and sat down on the bench with you. You quickly got up, but still facing him, and he smiled sadly.

"I didn't know you played piano," he said softly, looking at you. You stayed silent. "Will you play me something? Please?" You hesitated for a moment before slowly sitting back down beside him and playing the only song you knew how to fully play from memory: _Amnesia_.

You started singing softly, hoping he would catch on and sing it to you. He, of course, did and you dropped out as he took over.

As he started singing the bridge, he wrapped his arms around your waist and rested his forehead on top of your shoulder for the rest of the song. When you played the last note, he lifted his head back up and you wasted no time in pressing your lips against his.

"Does that mean you forgive me?" he asked as you pulled away.

"There's nothing to forgive, Cal," you shook your head, "It wasn't your fault. She's been trying to steal all the guys from me ever since she ditched Hailey and I junior year. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions like that."

"She's never gonna steal me, babe," he promised you. You smiled slightly and he kissed you again. "I love you, Y/N," he said quietly, "So much."

"I love you too, Cal," you replied.

~

_inspiration: http://imagine5sosmembers.tumblr.com/post/88409170226/luke-imagine-jealousy_


	121. I Wish You Would (Michael Clifford) - Part 1

_Finally_.

You were standing at your locker after the final bell, managing to get through another day of school without the relentless torment of your peers you usually had to endure. However, you weren't home yet. As you gathered up the last bit of your things and put them into your backpack, four of the most popular guys in school turned the corner.

" _Please don't say it, Michael_ ," you whispered to yourself, putting your back on the floor against the locker next to yours as you put on your jacket, " _Please don't say it_."

"Hey, kitten," Michael smirked as he walked past you.

You sighed quietly. You watched him until he was about three yards away from you when you suddenly felt a wave of confidence rush through you.

"Michael!" you called out, causing him and his friends to stop walking and turn to face you. "Why do you keep calling me that?"

"Calling you what?"

" _Kitten_!" you exclaimed, startling them as you slammed your locker door shut, "You've called me kitten since freshman year and I want to know  _why_!"

"It's a cute nickname, you're a cute girl," he shrugged, "It makes sense."

"Well, stop it!"

"Stop?"

"Yes! You don't give nicknames to people unless they're your friends!"

"So what you're saying is I can't have a nickname for you because I don't care about you?" he asked smugly. Your heart dropped instantly.

You knew he didn't care about you, but something about actually  _hearing it_  from him made you sick to your stomach and you knew you had to leave before he realized that. You bit your lip and looked him in the eyes.

"Michael, just..." you whispered, "Please just leave me alone." You swallowed the lump in your throat, keeping your head down as you lifted your backpack onto your shoulder, wiping your face with your jacket sleeve and making your way to your bus.

"Way to go,  _dickhead_ ," you heard Calum mumble as you walked away.

~

The next two days, you didn't go to school. Mentally, you weren't feeling up to it and you were grateful that your mother understood that and let you stay home. Your friend Cassandra was kind enough to collect all your homework and bring it to you after school so you didn't have too much to catch up on.

You were lying in your backyard that Thursday afternoon, not really doing much of anything, when you heard your mom open the back door.

"Y/N!" she called, "You have a visitor!" You thought for a moment – you weren't expecting anyone else to come over and Cassandra had already dropped off your homework for the day.

"Is it Cass again?" you asked, not looking over, figuring she must have forgotten to give you something.

"No!"

"Then tell them I'm not home!"

"I kind of already know you are, Y/N," you heard a familiar voice say as they sat down beside you. Your mom closed the door to give you two time alone.

" _Michael_!" you exclaimed, shooting up, "Wha-What are you doing here?"

"I just... I noticed you haven't been at school the past couple days and I wanted to check on you to make sure you're alright," he said quietly, looking down at his hands.

"Well, now you know," you stated shakily, suddenly nervous about Michael sitting so close to you, "Thanks for stopping by."

"Y/N, listen..." he sighed. "About what I said after school the other day... That wasn't true, okay? I don't  _not_  care about you. I care about you a lot more than I'm willing to  _admit_ , actually," he confessed, "I... I shouldn't have said what I did."

"You don't have to pretend like you like me, Michael," you muttered, "I've had enough charity for one lifetime."

"It's not  _charity_ , Y/N," he shook his head, "This is me telling you that I've liked you ever since I saw you the first day of freshman year. You walked into the cafeteria and sat down at the table across the aisle from my friends and I and just observed everything around you. You were biting your lip in between taking bites of your lunch and you were doing that thing where you mess with your earring when you're nervous. You were wearing a purple jacket over your dress because even though it was the middle of summer, you somehow always seem to be cold. You really only talk when you're tired, but if someone's being treated badly, you never hesitate to step in and defend them regardless of whether you know them or not. The first time you looked at me was after we were assigned to be in the same group for our English project and you caught me staring at you. You looked back down at your book thinking I couldn't see your cheeks turning red, but I did."

"You remember that?" you asked quietly.

"I remember a lot of things about you, Y/N," he told you, "Like the way you smile in class when Mr. Leiker makes a stupid joke and you're always the first one to get your work done so you can read whatever book you brought with you that day. You always eat lunch by yourself and you don't talk to anyone unless you absolutely  _have to_ , but I can tell it doesn't really bother you because you like being left alone. But sometimes, I catch you watching people in the hallway with their friends or their boyfriend or girlfriend and you let out the smallest sigh as if you want something like that for  _yourself_. You feel like no one in school notices you, but I'm putting myself out there right now by telling you that  _I do_. I notice everything you do and I know that may sound weird and a bit creepy, but it's those things about you that make me like you more and more every day and it's been  _killing me_  knowing that what I said on Tuesday made you not want to come to school."

"You can't like me, Michael," you shook your head, keeping your eyes on the pile of leaves in front of you.

"And why not?"

"Because that's not how it  _works_!" you threw your arm up as your voice cracked, "You and your friends are in a band and I stay home on Friday nights studying because I have nothing  _better_  to be doing! Everyone loves you and I'm just trying to make it through every day without being seen because when I'm  _seen_ , I'm  _made fun of_! I keep to myself because the last time I let someone in, they left without reason – and I'm not going to let myself get hurt like that again!" You swallowed the lump in your throat and stood up. Michael quickly got up with you. "I appreciate you coming over to check on me, Michael, but I'm fine with the way things  _already are_." You made the motion to walk back inside, but Michael grabbed your hand, stopping you.

"And what if  _I'm not_? What if I want something  _more_  than the way things already are?" You tried to pull your hand away, but he held it tighter. "Do you want to know why I call you kitten?" he asked. You nodded slowly. He motioned for you to sit back down, so you did. "You seem like the kind of girl that likes to be held and kissed and touched, but you only like it on your own terms," he sad matter-of-factly, "You're quiet and cute and keep to yourself, but you don't take shit from anyone. You're affectionate when you get comfortable around someone, but you still have your guard up and you don't trust even people you know well easily.  _That's_  why I call you kitten."

You started shaking your head, "Michael, I-" He cut you off.

"I know that we're on  _completely_  opposite ends of the popularity scale, but  _I don't care_. What other people say is none of my concern because what those people say about you is  _wrong_. I know that you've been manipulated and I know that you've been lied to and I know that you think I'm just saying all this because I'm trying to play you or whatever, but I'm not – I  _swear_  I'm not," he said almost desperately, "I really,  _really_  like you, Y/N.  _Please_  give me the chance to prove that to you."

You let out a quiet sigh, whispering, "Okay."

" _Really_?" he seemed shocked that you  _actually_  said yes. You nodded and he nearly jumped on you, giving you a hug. You let out a short yelp, catching yourself before your back hit the ground. Michael quickly retracted himself, smiling sheepishly.

"Sorry..." he mumbled. After a few moments of just sitting there with him, you finally spoke again.

"Michael..." you trailed off. He waited for you to finish your thought. You looked up at him, "You're not actually going to stop calling me kitten, are you?" He smiled, chuckling quietly.

"I wouldn't dream of it, kitten," he said, putting his arms around your waist and pulling you into him, kissing your cheek.


	122. I Wish You Would (Michael Clifford) - Part 2

You and Michael were lying on the hammock in your backyard. You had been talking for about 3 hours about everything and nothing at the same time. It was almost dinner time and you figured you should head back inside, but you honestly didn't want to stop talking to him.

When he wasn't being incredibly annoying and obnoxious around his friends, Michael was the sweetest guy you'd ever met – apart from the few others that bothered to attempt to get to know you.

"My band has practice on Saturday," Michael said, "Do you want to come hang out?"

"Are you sure they'll like me?" you mumbled.

"Something tells me they already do," he laughed lightly. You looked at him and smiled.

"Yeah," you nodded, "I'd love to."

"Cool!" he grinned, "I'll pick you up on my way to Ashton's."

"Michael!" you heard your mom call. You both looked over at the back door where she was standing. "Are you staying for dinner?"

"Oh, no thank you, Mrs. Y/L/N," he said politely, getting up and helping you up as well, walking inside with you. "My folks say I spend too much time at other people's places for dinner, so they want me home tonight," he chuckled.

"Well, alright," she smiled, "Don't be a stranger though. We'd love to have you over for dinner sometime."

"I won't be," he nodded before turning to you, "Will you be at school tomorrow?" You nodded and he grinned again. He leaned down and kissed your cheek, "I'll see you tomorrow then, kitten." You let out a quiet sigh, watching him as he walked out of the front door.

When you turned back to face your mother, she had a small smile on her face and her eyebrows were raised.

" _Kitten_?" she asked. Your eyes widened slightly and you could just feel your face getting redder and redder with every passing second.

"I should go get started on my homework," you squeaked quickly, rushing to your bedroom. Your mom simply shook her head and laughed, going into the kitchen to get started on dinner.

~

The next day at school, everything went as it normally did; All the girls swooned over Michael and his friends as they walked down the crowded hallway and everyone ignored you.

When the bell rang for lunch, you were at your locker getting your food when you heard Michael walking past you. He cleared his throat obnoxiously, making you turn to look at him.

"Looking good today, kitten," he winked. You rolled your eyes as you quickly turned back around, praying his friends hadn't noticed your smile.

"Whoa, wait a second," Ashton said as they continued walking, "What was  _that_  about?"

"You didn't think I was going to stop calling her that just because she told me to, did you?" Michael asked. You could hear his smirk.

"Dude, you literally caused her to not come to school for  _two days_  because of that," Luke said, "Are you really willing to risk it happening  _again_?"

"In my defense, that wasn't because I called her kitten."

"Yeah, no," Calum spoke up, "It was just because you straight-up told her you don't care about her even though we  _all_  know that's not even the  _least bit_  true." You couldn't help but smile to yourself.

" _Guys_!" Michael exclaimed quietly, "What if she can  _hear you_?!" His friends simply shrugged. He looked back at you for a brief moment, winking at you again. You blushed lightly, pulling your lunch out of your backpack and heading to the cafeteria.

You ate lunch alone – as you always did – but you caught Michael looking at you dozens of times. It absolutely killed him not being able to go sit with you or have you come sit with him, but he was just doing what you asked. You didn't want to be the center of attention all of a sudden. You wanted to wait until after you met his friends and then just ease into letting the rest of the school see you with him.

~

The next morning, you woke up at 11:30. Michael told you he would be picking you up around noon, but you weren't worried. You had already taken a shower the night before, so all you had to do was get your hair to look the way you wanted it to – or at least as close to decent as you could get. You were slipping on your shoes when you heard a knock on the front door.

"Oh, my goodness," you heard your mom say, "Thank you, Michael!" She started shouting your name before she saw you were already walking down the stairs. "Michael's here, sweetie." She was carrying a handful of flowers. When you looked over at Michael, he had his hand behind his back.

"You bought my mom flowers?" you asked.

"And you," he smiled, revealing what he had hidden. You blushed, taking the flowers from him.

"Thank you," you said quietly, hurrying to find something to put them in. You quickly kissed your mom's cheek. "See you later, Mom! Love you!" you said as you made your way back to the front door.

"Love you too!" she called after you, "Be back before dinner!" Michael began leading you to his car, but you stopped him.

"Shouldn't we just walk?" you asked. He gave you a curious look, so you continued, "You said we're going to Ashton's, right?" He nodded. "Well, he lives at the other end of the street," you shrugged, "I didn't think you'd want to waste gas."

"Oh," he nodded, "Yeah, we'll walk then. Let me just get my guitar." Once you made it to Ashton's house, you were still pretty nervous. "Hey," Michael said softly as he took you inside, "You'll be fine, kitten." You steadied your breathing as he closed the door behind you, seeing Ashton's mom sitting on the couch.

"The boys are downstairs waiting for you, Michael," she told him before she looked up and saw you. "Y/N!" she beamed, "I haven't seen you in ages!" Michael gave you a confused look.

"That's what happened when Lauren got older, Anne," you giggled lightly, "You didn't need  _me_  to watch Harry anymore."

" _Yeah, lucky me_ ," you heard Lauren groan from the kitchen, making you laugh.

Michael led you down to the basement where you could hear the boys talking. There was a hallway that you had to walk down before you got to the main room and Harry just happened to be coming from the opposite direction.

" _Y/N_!" he shouted, running toward you.

You could hear Ashton ask what was going on as you bent down slightly to let Harry throw his arms around your neck. You stood back upright and carried him into the main room where you were met with the surprised stares of Michael's three best friends.

"Alright, Harry," you huffed, putting him back on the ground, "Either you're getting bigger or I'm getting weaker."

"Maybe it's both," Harry teased. You rolled your eyes, ruffling his hair.

"Wait," Luke shook his head, "What?"

"I told you I was bringing someone over," Michael said, taking off his jacket and throwing it onto the armrest of the couch.

"Yeah, we just didn't think it would be  _her_ ," Ashton commented. You frowned slightly.

" _You_  like me, right?" you asked, looking down at the boy attached to your hip. He nodded quickly.

"No, we like you, Y/N," Calum said, "I mean, how could we not? Mikey never shuts up about you." You looked over at Michael and he was turning a light red.

"Can we just get started please?" he mumbled, taking his acoustic guitar out of its case.

You took off your jacket as well, putting it with Michael's, and plopped down on the couch. Harry followed suit and sat down beside you to watch the boys. Ashton was sitting on a wooden box, Calum and Michael were sitting on a smaller sofa beside him with their guitars, and Luke was sitting on the floor in front of them.

"Any special requests?" Ashton asked you.

"Do you know anything by All Time Low?" you asked.

"You like All Time Low?" Michael seemed shocked. You shrugged, smiling slightly.

"She's gonna fit right in," Luke said, tilting his head back to look at Michael before looking back at you, "Any specific song you want to hear?"

"Surprise me." They whispered to each other before nodding and Michael began strumming his guitar. The others quickly joined in, playing  _Jasey Rae_.

While the boys were playing, you were mouthing along and Harry was making comments about their facial expressions – and even pointed out that Michael hadn't taken his eyes off of you since you came downstairs. Of course, every time you looked at him, he would look away and act like he hadn't been staring. You would laugh quietly at Harry's commentary every now and then, which honestly only made Michael like you even more.

He'd never heard you laugh this much before and he was starting to get used to it. In the two days you'd started seeing him as something  _other_  than the comments he'd make toward you in the halls at school, he was really helping you come out of your shell – something he only ever dreamed of being able to do.

When the song was over, you clapped lightly, "I'm  _so_  happy you guys don't suck."

"So are we," Ashton laughed.

~

The boys spent the next hour and a half playing songs and goofing around – Harry had to go back upstairs and do homework – and you were finally enjoying being around other people for the first time in forever.

"Do you guys want to go get a late lunch or something?" Calum asked. The boys eagerly agreed and looked at you.

"I'm down," you shrugged, getting up along with everyone else. You grabbed Michael's jacket and started following Luke to the stairs.

"Hey, kitten," Michael said. You looked back at him. "You know that's  _mine_ , right?" You simply smirked lightly, putting it on as you walked away. He rolled his eyes and chuckled, bringing your jacket with him.

You all decided to go to McDonald's since it was the most convenient place. After bickering the entire ride there, you finally agreed to let Michael pay for you although you were very adamant about the fact that you were not happy about it. He just smiled at you as you walked into the restaurant, throwing his arm around your shoulder and kissing your cheek.

People that were already there and saw you walk in were now staring at you. They were mostly teenagers and obviously knew who the boys were and were clearly confused as to why you of all people would be with them – let alone why  _Michael_  would be kissing  _you_. By the time you and the boys sat down, you were starting to get uncomfortable.

"Y/N," Ashton said, waving his hand in front of your face, "You okay?"

"Why is everyone staring at me like that?" you mumbled, shyly eating a french fry. Michael looked around the room.

"Have you people never seen five friends eating together before?" he spoke up. They immediately went back to what they were doing, leaving you to let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank you, Michael," you said under your breath, leaning into his shoulder.

"You're welcome, kitten," he smiled, kissing your cheek.

~

After lunch, you and the boys went to the park to hang out for a little while before they decided to head back home. Michael insisted on staying until you had to be back for dinner. You obviously weren't going to say no, but he stuck his bottom lip out. You laughed and shoved him slightly, trotting over to a picnic table and sitting on top of it.

"Are you okay?" Michael asked as he nudged you after a few minutes of silence.

"Hmm?" you mumbled, looking back at him, "Oh, yeah. I'm fine."

"Ah, so this is how the relationship is going to go," he nodded, "You're already lying to me."

"' _Relationship_ '?" you asked, looking at him.

"I know we've only really known each other for a couple days, but I was wondering if...maybe...you would want to be my girlfriend..." he trailed off, looking down at his hands.

" _Really_?" you asked, a bit surprised.

"You seem shocked," he muttered.

"I don't want you to take it the wrong way, Michael," you shook your head, "You just don't seem like the girlfriend-wanting type."

"I've had girlfriends before."

"Believe me, I know," you said under your breath. A smirk started pulling at the corner of his mouth as he looked up at you.

"You were  _jealous_ , weren't you?" he asked.

"You know how you said you would always see me watching other couples as if I wanted that as well?" you asked. He nodded. "It hurt to watch you smile at other girls and laugh at something they did or said," you admitted shyly, "It hurt to watch you hug other girls and refuse to not have your arms around them whenever you were with them. But nothing compared to how it felt to watch you kiss them. You weren't the only one eyeing someone you felt like you couldn't have, Michael." He was silent, but it was as if the silence was begging you to keep going. So you did. "When you've got your arms around a girl, it's like you're careful at first – as if you're making sure she's okay with it – and when you know she is, you pull her against you and rest your chin on her shoulder as if to tell everyone she's yours and they can't have her. The way you kiss a girl varies depending on who she is. Sometimes, you're gentle about it – only kissing her cheek or squeezing her just a little when you hug her. Other times, you rougher – sneaking kisses that show everyone how much you love her or putting your arms a little lower when you hug her and pushing your hips against hers." You paused for a moment, "So to answer your question: yes, I was jealous." Michael got up and put his hands on the table on either side of you, trapping you as he leaned closer to you.

"So, kitten," he said lowly, his face only inches from yours, "How do I get to find out what kind of kisser  _you_  are?"

"You're gonna have to work a little  _harder_  for that one," you smirked, kissing the corner of his mouth, just missing his lips.

"That's so cruel," he groaned as you pulled your head back. You smiled, kissing his nose, making him scrunch his face up slightly.

"And to answer your other question," you started, "I would love to be your girlfriend."

~

**Four months later**

You had secretly been dating Michael for four months now and it was starting to take a toll on the both of you. You hated not being able to hug or kiss him before class and having to wait until everyone was gone just to get a ride home. You had begun sitting with the boys at lunch a couple months ago though and no one seemed too troubled by it – not that you heard at least.

One Monday after school, you were gathering up your things to go home. You stared into your locker, mentally going through every class to make sure you had everything. However, you were interrupted just before you finished.

"I heard you and Michael were together this weekend," you heard a girl say behind you. You turned your head and your breathing hitched, now face-to-face with the last person you wanted to see.

Paige Kowalski was captain of the color guard, student council president, and worst of all; Michael's ex-girlfriend. She wasn't the  _meanest_  person you'd ever met, but she certainly wasn't the  _nicest_  either. She had a reputation for always getting what she wanted and not caring  _whose_  lives she had to ruin to get it.

She and Michael dated for a few months prior to him confessing his feelings for you. He broke it off with her after he caught her flirting with a member of the football team after school one day. And, for whatever reason, she's been desperate to get him back ever since.

"Who-" You cleared your throat nervously. "-Who did you hear that from?"

"You don't need to worry about that," she snarled.

"Together is...such a... _strong word_..."

" _Were you with Michael or not_?!" she shouted, making you jump and everyone else turn to see what was going on. You paused for a moment, seeing everyone staring at you in shock.

"Yes," you told her.

"What were you doing with him?"

"I was listening to his band practice."

"Why the hell were you doing that?"

"Because they wanted me to," you said confidently.

"Stay away from him."

" _You're_  not his girlfriend anymore, Paige," you said firmly – and quite loudly as well, " _I am_." The statement caused everyone around you to start whispering amongst each other.

"I swear on my  _homecoming crown_  that if you do not back off, I will make your life a living  _hell_."

"More so than it already is?" you smiled sweetly, "Good luck."

"You'll regret this, Y/N," she growled before stomping away. You let out a breath, looking around the hall.

Everyone quickly returned to what they had been doing, leaving you to gather up the rest of your things and head out to meet Michael at his car. Right after you walked out of the doors, you felt arms wrap around you from behind. You immediately smiled, already knowing who those arms belonged to.

"It's nice to see you too, Mikey," you giggled.

"Kitten!" he said excitedly, letting go of you so you could turn to face him, "You are such a bad ass!"

"Well, I don't want to brag, but-" You cut yourself off with a confused expression. "Wait, why am I a bad ass?"

" _Why are you a bad ass_?" Ashton laughed, "You only stood up to  _Paige Kowalski_! Even the  _teachers_  are afraid of her!"

"Wow," you said under your breath, "That news got around fast, didn't it?"

"It's official," Luke threw his arms up, almost in a shrugging manner, "You're my new hero."

"Well,  _someone_  had to do it!" you laughed.

"So that means you're okay with everyone knowing about us now?" Michael asked hopefully. You giggled quietly, nodding. "Good," he smiled, "Because I've wanted to do this since freshman year."

Before you could ask him what he meant, he put his hands on your cheeks and pulled you into him, kissing you. You dropped your backpack and grabbed his sides, you fingertips digging into his skin under his shirt as you pulled him closer. You couldn't help but laugh when you heard gasps coming from the people around you.

When he pulled away, you both had to catch your breath.

"So you're the  _rough_  kind of kisser?" he grinned mischievously, whispering so the boys couldn't hear him. You laughed under your breath, kissing him again.

"Was that everything you hoped it would be?" you asked with a smile.

"It was," he laughed, "You're a much better kisser than I thought you were." Your jaw dropped.

"Are you saying I look like a bad kisser?" you asked. He shrugged jokingly. You squeaked quietly, picking up your backpack. "Fine," you started walking away, "I'll be walking home then."

"I'll see you guys tomorrow," you heard Michael laugh to his friends. He quickly made his way in front of you, picking you up and throwing you over his shoulder.

" _Michael_!" you squealed loudly. He started to walk away but you stopped him. "Mikey, wait! Can you lean down a little bit?"

"What for?"

"You made me drop my backpack," you stated. He chuckled at you, leaning down and letting you grab it. "Got it!" you announced and he carried you to his car. He put you back down on the ground beside the passenger door. He went to open the door for you, but you stopped him. "Wait," you pouted, leaning against the car, "Do I  _really_  look like a bad kisser?"

"You know what they say; Looks can be deceiving," he smirked, pressing his lips to yours again.

~

Throughout the past few weeks, word had obviously gotten around that you and Michael were an item now. No one seemed too surprised – apparently Michael never shut up about you to  _anybody_ , not just his best friends – no one except Paige, of course. She never caused too much of a problem for you in the past – she always used to ignore you or, on rare occasions, make a rude comment as you walked by – but the moment she learned you had kissed Michael, she was absolutely  _livid_.

It was never anything really crazy; She would really only call you names and knock your books out of your hands whenever Michael wasn't around. You expected it though. It wasn't anything but a minor inconvenience in your day; Nothing you couldn't handle on your own. You finally had Michael and some jealous ex-girlfriend wasn't going to ruin that for you.

One day, you were in your art class waiting for school to be over you could go home. When the bell finally rang, everyone rushed out of the classroom. You groaned quietly when you dropped your pencil, bending over to pick it up from under your desk. You heard Paige and her friend talking, obviously not realizing you were still in the room.

"You're really gonna do it?" her friend asked, a worried tone to her voice.

"Listen, Abby," Paige said, "If I can't have him, no one can – and especially not  _her_. You and I both know he's too good for her."

"I think they look cute together," Abby said shyly. You assumed Paige glared at her or something along those lines because the next thing you heard was Abby exclaiming, "What?! I'm just saying! They're really into each other! What's so bad about that? Just because she's not as popular doesn't mean she's not a cool person!"

"He's  _mine_ , Abby!" Paige shouted quietly, "He's popular, she's a loser; He and I are  _supposed_  to be together and I'm not going to let some  _freak_  stand in my way!" Abby simply sighed, but it made you smile at how someone you never even talked to before would defend you the way she did.

"What's the plan?" she asked.

"I need you to go make sure Y/N is still here and if she is, that probably means Michael is too. I'll be waiting at the doors, so text me when she leaves her locker so I can be kissing him by the time she sees us."

"Alright," Abby said quietly, nodding. You could tell she wasn't looking forward to this.

As soon as they walked out of the room, you grabbed your pencil and stuffed it down the spiral of your notebook. You got up and peeked out the door to make sure they were gone. You bolted out of the room and down a different hallway so you could make it to your locker before Abby got there. You saw the two girls turn the corner just before they would see your locker. You ran down the opposite hallway, making it to your locker just before Abby and Paige made it. You took deep breaths to steady your breathing and opened your locker door, beginning to get everything.

You noticed out of the corner of your eye that Abby had her phone in her hand ready to text Paige, but it was obvious she was shaking. Once the hallway was almost clear, you decided to ease her nerves.

"I know about the plan, Abby," you said, not looking over at her as you continued to get your homework together. You heard her sigh and she started making her way over to you.

"You do?" she asked quietly, leaning against the locker next to yours. You nodded. "I tried to stop her, I swear."

"I know," you told her, finally looking up, "I heard everything. I was still in the room."

"You were?" she asked, wide-eyed.

"Being invisible has its advantages," you shrugged, "I just wanted to say thank you for saying what you did about me."

"Well, you did the same for me freshman year," she said with a small smile, "I'm glad I finally got to return the favor."

"Oh my God!" you gasped, "That was  _you_ , wasn't it?!"

"Yes!" she laughed, "I always forgot that you didn't even know who I was. A lot has changed since I got my braces off."

"Good," you grinned, "You didn't deserve people making fun of you just for having braces."

"And you don't deserve Paige trying to ruin your relationship," she shook her head, "I wish she'd just move on. She was the one that cheated on him in the first place. Honestly, you're way better for him than her anyway."

"Believe me, I know," you nodded in agreement, making her laugh again. You closed your locker door and lifted your backpack onto your shoulder. "Aren't you gonna text Paige?"

"Why?" Abby asked.

"Well, she told you to let her know when I was about to walk outside, didn't she?"

"Yeah, but-"

"If she wants to put on a show, I'm happy to be the star of it," you shrugged. She gave you a confused look, but smiled.

"Your analogies are weird," she giggled.

"They get worse the longer you know me," you chuckled. Abby texted Paige and the plan was put into action. Before you got outside, you looked at Abby. "Thanks again for what you said."

"Please don't hit her," Abby said, "She's not worth the suspension."

You furrowed your eyebrows before sighing, "Fine."

As expected, Paige was standing with the boys at Michael's car. You said goodbye to Abby and kept your head down as you walked out of the school so Paige wouldn't suspect anything. When you looked back up, Paige had just grabbed Michael's face and started kissing him. You smiled slyly before quickly wiping it off of your face.

"What the  _fuck_  do you think you're doing?!" you shouted, marching straight toward them. The boys' mouths dropped when they realized it was  _you_  that said that.

"Y/N! I-I didn't-" Michael started, but you cut him off, shaking your head as you stopped beside him, brushing your hand against his. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw you were still glaring at Paige, knowing you knew he was ambushed.

" _Michael_!" Paige shrieked suddenly, pushing on his chest, "I can't believe you would kiss me like that when you've got a girlfriend!" You quickly threw your arm around his waist so he didn't fall before giving your attention back to the girl in front of you.

"What do you think you're trying to pull here?" you asked.

"I'm sure I have  _no idea_  what you're talking about, Y/N," Paige said innocently.

You rolled your eyes, "The next time you want to brag about some sort of  _genius plan_  to ruin someone else's life, try making sure that person  _isn't_  in the room first." She stared at you in shock. You smiled sarcastically, "Yeah, I heard everything. Do you  _honestly_  think that getting rid of me is going to make Michael take you back? You ruined every chance you had of being with him the  _moment_  you started flirting with someone else."

"You will  _never_  come close to being the kind of girlfriend I was," she growled lowly.

"You may be right, and I may not be good enough for him in more ways than you can come up with, but at least I will  _never_  be known for being the one person stupid enough to let him go," you stated. Paige simply glared at you before shrieking and stomping away. You breathed out a sigh of relief as you turned around, immediately getting pulling into Michael.

"Seriously," Luke nodded, "You're my hero." Michael kissed your forehead and released his grip on you.

"That did  _not_  go the way I thought it was going to," Ashton commented, "I swear, I thought she was gonna hit you."

"I'm kind of disappointed she didn't try, to be honest," Calum chuckled, looking at you, "I would have  _loved_  to see you kick her ass." You rolled your eyes, laughing.

"And I would have loved to  _do it_ ," you teased.

After a few more minutes, the boys decided to head home, so it was now just you and Michael in the nearly deserted parking lot.

"You really are a bad ass, kitten," Michael laughed, resting his hand on your hips and pecking your lips.

"Sorry I let her do that to you, Mikey," you said quietly, putting your arms around his neck.

"No girl has ever fought for me like that before."

"No guy has ever made me feel the way you do before," you smiled. Michael opened his mouth, but closed it again. You tilted your head.

"I love you," he said hesitantly, "I know we've only really known each other for a few months and it's okay if you don't say it back. I won't be mad if you don't feel the same way yet, but I just-"

"I love you too, Michael," you said, cutting him off.

"You do?" he asked shakily.

"I do," you nodded, "Before we started dating, I never would have come out of my comfort zone and I certainly wouldn't have ever stood up to  _Paige Kowalski_  like that. I've never really had any friends, but now I've got  _four_  and I don't feel so isolated anymore. You make me happier than I've been in a while and I don't think I'm ever gonna be able to thank you enough for that." He smiled at you as you quietly repeated, "I love you, Mikey."

"I love you too, kitten," he whispered, pressing his lips to yours.


	123. Like You Do (Ashton Irwin)

"Daddy running late today, Soph?" you asked the 3-year-old sitting on the bench outside.

"Yeah," she nodded, rubbing her eyes.

"Come on," you said, holding your hands down to her, "You can wait inside with me." She happily allowed you to pick her up and carry her back into the building.

You were a frequent volunteer at the daycare not far from your house during your summer vacations and they thought you were so good with the kids that they offered you a job after you graduated high school nearly four years ago. It was a good paying job and you really loved the kids, so it was no surprise you accepted the job offer.

All the kids loved you and not a day went by that they didn't tell you that. But one little girl in particular seemed to have become attached to you.

Ever since her first day at the daycare, Sophie Irwin had taken an immediate liking to you. You always had a smile on your face and she thought you were the prettiest girl she'd ever seen. You weren't too strict and you rarely ever raised your voice, but you were very stern with kids who were behaving badly.

"Will you sing me a song?" the toddler in your arms asked sleepily as you walked into the playroom.

"Sing you a song?" you asked, clearing your throat nervously, helping her take her Rapunzel backpack off and setting it on a chair.

"Daddy always sings to me when I'm tired."

"I can't sing, Soph," you mumbled.

"Sure you can," she said, "It's just like talking except you make your voice move more."

"That's not what I meant, Sophie," you chuckled, "I meant I don't sing  _well_."

"Yeah, you do," she nodded, "When you're putting away toys, I can hear you singing to yourself while I'm waiting for Daddy. You sing really pretty." You couldn't help but smile.

"Alright," you said, standing up and beginning to clean the room while carrying the 3-year-old, "What do you want me to sing?"

"Daddy always sings  _Long Way Home_."

"He sings his  _own_  song to you? Are you sure you don't want to just listen to it instead then? I have it on my phone."

"Miss Y/N!" she whined.

"Okay, okay," you sighed. You started singing to her softly as you were gathering up the crayons and putting them back in the basket.

You had met Sophie's father – Ashton – a few times when he came to pick her up. You were surprised the first time you saw him, obviously being a fan of the band he used to be in. 5 Seconds of Summer decided to hold off on music after they all wanted to start having families – at least until their children were older.

You were so concentrated on what you were doing that you didn't even notice Ashton watching you from the doorway. He smiled at seeing the way you treated his daughter like she was your own. His heart even skipped a beat when he realized  _what_  you were singing to her.

You finally finished the song and put away the last of the toys lying around the room.

"Hi, Daddy," you heard Sophie mumble into your shirt. You turned to find Ashton standing there.

"Hey, Ashton," you smiled, picking up Sophie's backpack and walking over to him, snapping him out of his daydream.

"Hey, princess," Ashton said, taking his daughter out of your arms, "How was your day?"

"Good," she whispered, laying her head on his shoulder.

"Sorry I'm late," he told you, taking her backpack as well.

"That's alright. I like spending time with this cutie," you smiled, poking Sophie's side and making her giggle quietly.

"Well, we'll see you tomorrow," he smiled back, "You have a beautiful voice, by the way." You blushed lightly as he walked back out of the room.

~

**The next day**

As you were wiping the crayon lines that had ventured off of the papers and onto the table, you saw Sophie sitting with one of her friends across the room. The two children were the only ones left waiting to be picked up.

You thought they were getting along, but it was very clear as you looked closer that they weren't. She was looking down, playing with the hem of her dress and it looked like her cheeks were shimmering in the sunlight which meant one thing: She was crying. You tossed your towel in the trash and rushed over to Sophie as she got up.

"What's wrong, Soph?" you asked. The little boy she had been sitting with slowly got up and scurried away.

"W-Why don't I ha-have a mommy?" she stuttered, clinging onto you. You hesitated as you lifted her up and she could tell. "S-Sammy said that I don't have a mommy because sh-she doesn't lo-love me anymore and that's why Daddy is s-stuck with me."

"Oh, Sophie," you said gently, rubbing her back, "Daddy isn't stuck with you. He loves you very much, you know that."

"But why did Mommy leave?" You bit your lip, thinking for a moment.

"Sometimes, people aren't ready to be a mommy or daddy," you said carefully, "But a lot of times, people are  _more_  than ready and that's just what happened with your mommy and daddy. She just wasn't ready for the responsibility, but your daddy was and I think he's doing an amazing job of raising you on his own." As you stood there with Sophie in your arms, you didn't realize Ashton had been leaning against the door frame, listening to you. "I can't give you a reason you don't have a mommy, Soph, because that's something Daddy should talk to you about," you sighed, "But I  _can_  tell you that not having a mommy doesn't mean it was because you did something wrong. I know that someday, your daddy's gonna meet someone that makes him just as happy as you do and whomever that is going to love you  _just_  as much as he does."

"Just like you do?" she mumbled, looking up at you. You smiled slightly, kissing her cheek.

"Just like I do," you nodded and she hugged you again. She leaned back up and looked behind you, finally seeing her father.

"Daddy!" she smiled, wiping her face and wiggling out of your arms to run to him. You spun around as Ashton smiled widely at his daughter, effortlessly picking her up and pressing little kisses all over her face. " _Daddy_!" she squealed, laughing loudly. You watched them with a smile on your face before looking over your shoulder.

" _Samuel_ ," you said firmly. The toddler froze and looked up at you. You motioned for him to come over to you and he obeyed, trudging across the room with his head down.

After briefly lecturing him about what he said to Sophie and why it was wrong, you took his hand and walked over to where Ashton was still standing with her. Ashton put the little girl down and you knelt down on your knees in front of the two children.

"What do you say to her, Sammy?" you stated to Samuel.

"Sorry, Sophie," he mumbled.

"And what are you sorry for, Sammy?"

"For what I said about your mommy."

"It's okay," Sophie smiled, giving him a hug.

"Alright," you said, "Go play, Soph. Sammy, Mommy should be here any minute, so go get your backpack."

Sophie trotted back over to where she was just a few minutes ago, going back to the blocks she was playing with, while Samuel grabbed his backpack and came back over to you. You helped him tie his shoes just before his mother arrived.

As you were moving to stand back up, you saw a hand reach down a few inches away from your face. You looked up at Ashton for a moment before taking his hand and letting him help you up.

"I didn't think you were picking Sophie up today," you said as he reluctantly let go of you.

"Thought I'd surprise her," he replied quietly, "I heard what you told her."

"You did?" you asked shyly. He nodded.

"Thank you."

You gave him a confused look, "For what?"

"Everything, I guess," he shrugged, "I know not having a mom is hard on her and I just wanted you to know how much I appreciate your taking care of her as if you are."

"I mean, it's kind of my job to take care of these kids," you said, watching Sophie play, "But you're welcome. I can't imagine what it must be like to be a single parent, but I meant what I told her; You're doing an amazing job." He smiled slightly before it faded. He took your hand, pulling you out into the hallway.

"It's difficult, you know?" he sighed, leaning against the wall, "There are some things I don't know how to handle on my own when it comes to her. She always asks about her mom and I don't know what to tell her."

"You could tell her the truth, Ashton," you said, resting on your shoulder on the wall beside him but staying beside the door to keep an eye on the little girl, "I'm sure if you just explain it to her, she'll understand. I know I don't know all the details, but I know that it was neither her fault nor yours that her mom is no longer in the picture."

"I just can't keep doing this alone," he admitted, putting his face in the palms of his hands, "I want to give my daughter the best life I possibly can and I know she can have that without a mother, but she's going to go through so many things that only a mother can help her through and I just... I need help."

"Ashton," you said softly, taking his wrists gently and pulling his hands down so you could look at him, "You have to understand that whether she gets a new mother or not, she is still going to love you. The way she talks about you throughout the day is in a way I can only  _hope_  my kids will see me someday.  _Please_  don't rush into a relationship just for the sake of letting Sophie have a mom. I don't want either of you to get your hearts broken in case it doesn't work out. I know that you're going to find someone that absolutely  _adores her_  the way you do, but don't beat yourself up over it, okay?"

"Like you do?" he asked suddenly, pushing himself off the wall.

"Ash-"

"You have no idea how much she talks about you after we get home or how badly she misses you during the weekends," he shook his head, "You may not think you're doing anything more than babysitting these kids for a few hours a day, but I can tell you that's not true. You mean so much  _more_  to her than just keeping her company while I'm at work and it seems as though you've started having that effect on  _me_  as well." His face was within centimeters of yours and your heart was beating a mile a minute as his arm snaked its way around your waist. Your breath hitched, causing a smile to pull at the corner of Ashton's mouth. "Say you'll go out with me, Y/N."

"I'll go out with you, Ashton," you whispered just before he pressed his lips to yours. Truthfully, you could have stayed like that for much longer if it weren't for the small voice that caused you to pull apart.

"Are you guys gonna get married?" Sophie asked hopefully, "Am I gonna have a mommy?"

"Would you like if I was your mommy?" you asked her, picking her up. She nodded furiously and you smiled. "Then I'm sure we can work something out," you kissed her cheek and she hugged you tightly, just happy knowing that she would see you somewhere other than daycare.

~

_inspiration: http://my-imagines-moonlight53.tumblr.com/post/111644089332/punk-daddy-michael-imagine_


	124. No One Does It Better (Luke Hemmings)

You were sitting on the fence by the soccer field, waiting for your roommate's practice to be over. Michael told you not to go with him because he knew how boring it was to watch from the sidelines, but you insisted. You had nothing better to do anyway. Besides, if you don't get an idea of how hard he practices, how are you supposed to tease him if his team loses?

You had been watching the ball go from player to player toward the goals for about half an hour now, not even realizing when someone else walked up behind you.

"Hey, Y/N," you heard a voice say. You jumped, nearly falling off the fence, but the person behind you caught you. You looked over to see one of Michael's friends smiling at you.

"Hi, Luke," you said quietly, blushing when you realized his hands were still holding your waist.

"Sorry," he chuckled, "Didn't mean to scare you. What are you doing here?"

"Didn't have anything else to do," you shrugged, "You?"

"Yearbook stuff," he said, nodding toward the camera around his neck, "I figured I should take pictures of practices too, not just games."

"Why weren't you here 30 minutes ago?"

"I was," he told you, "I got distracted."

"By what?" you giggled, "There's no one else here." He simply removed his hands from your waist and turned on his camera. He pushed a few buttons before showing you the screen.

"By  _you_ ," he smiled, holding the camera out in front of him.

You raised your eyebrows at him before putting your arm across his shoulders so you didn't fall while you were looking at the photos. He clicked through the photos, showing you all the ones he had been taking of you watching the team practice. You glanced back at him and noticed he was smiling at the pictures.

"Oh!" you squeaked, making him stop clicking, "I want that one!"

"I don't know," he sighed, "These aren't really mine to give out. They're for yearbook, you know." 

"I don't even go to this school," you laughed lightly.

"Oh, I know," he said, "I would have a lot more pictures of you if you did." You blushed, making him smirk. "But I'm sure we can come up with a solution."

"What did you have in mind?"

"I will let you have this photo..." He paused for dramatic effect. "...if you let me take you out to eat after practice."

"Today?"

"Yes," he nodded, "I would like to right now, but I don't want Michael thinking you've been kidnapped or anything."

"Good point," you laughed, "He would freak out."

"So what do you say?" he asked, turning off his camera and leaning onto the fence.

"Hey, guys!" Michael interrupted as he trotted over, wiping his forehead with his towel before looking at you, "Ready to go eat?" You looked at Luke for a moment.

"Actually," you turned back to Michael, "I'll be going to lunch with Luke today." Michael sighed, throwing his arms up.

" _Finally_!" he exclaimed, "I thought he would never ask you out!" Luke bit his lip as he kept his eyes on Michael.

"Thanks, dude," he said with a straight face. Michael smiled innocently. "We should get going," Luke mumbled to you. You couldn't help but laugh.

"I'll see you later, Mikey," you said. Michael said goodbye and left as Luke moved his camera to rest against his back. He held his arms out and you fell back into them so you didn't have to get off the fence just to jump back over or go around.

"Finally, huh?" you smirked as he put you on the ground.

"Yeah," he chuckled nervously, bringing his camera back around his neck, "Michael's been trying to get me to ask you out for a while now, but I've just chickened out every time I was going to."

"Better late than never," you grinned, wrapping your arm around his waist, surprising him.

"I guess so," he said with a small smile, putting his own arm across your shoulders.

~

**Six months later**

After that day, Luke started hanging out with Michael more and more. Michael obviously knew it was just a cover to see you, but he didn't mind. He thought you two were perfect for each other.

Luke finally asked you to be his girlfriend a couple weeks after your first date and you couldn't be happier. Although he wasn't your first boyfriend, Luke treated you far better than any of the others did put together. He actually payed attention to the little things about you like how you took your coffee and what you ordered at restaurants. He remembered all the dates in movies that you awed at while you watched them together, taking you out on similar ones the next time you hung out. Honestly, he was perfect and not a day went by that you felt lucky he was yours.

One night, you, Luke, and Michael were hanging out at your place, watching TV. Luke had gone to the bathroom and Michael had repositioned himself so his head was on your lap. You instinctively started playing with his hair as he looked up at you.

"Luke really likes you, you know," he told you.

"I know the feeling," you said quietly, twirling his hair around your index finger.

"What's got you doubting it?"

"I'm not doubting it." He raised his eyebrows at you. "I'm not!" you squeaked defensively, "I'm just...scared."

"Scared of what?"

" _Everything_ ," you muttered. "I've never been in a relationship where I was 100% certain that he still wanted to be with me after this long but now I am. And it terrifies me," you paused before sighing. "There's always going to be someone better and I don't know if I'm ready for the day he realizes that."

"Someone better?" the sound of Luke's voice made you and Michael jump up. "If you don't want to be with me anymore, you should tell me, not someone else!"

"Luke, that's not what I was saying," you choked.

"Sure it is, Y/N! Why else would you be spending more time with him?" he threw his arm up in Michael's direction.

"I live with him!" you squeaked.

Michael finally stepped in, " _Nothing_  is going on between us, Luke."

"Of course there isn't. You're both sensible enough not to betray me like that. You're just waiting for my blessing."

"Luke, we're not-" He cut you off.

"No, it's not a problem, Y/N," he shook his head, "You have it. I hope you two have a good run unlike us." Before you or Michael could respond, Luke was already out the door. You stood there in shock for a few moments.

"I  _knew_  something was going to happen," you whispered, more to yourself than to Michael.

"Y/N," he said slowly.

"Why can't I ever just be  _happy_ , Michael?!" your voice broke, "Why does  _something_  always have to go wrong?!" He didn't answer, he simply pulled you into a tight hug, allowing you to let out all your tears.

~

**Two months later**

"Come on, Y/N," Michael said, "You guys need to talk to each other eventually." You were lying on the living room couch and flipping through the channels, trying to keep yourself occupied.

"I've  _tried_ , Mikey," you muttered, chewing on your inner cheek, "He still won't speak to me."

"Listen," he sighed, "Luke has been staying at his parent's house. I'm gonna take you over there and Liz isn't going to let him leave until he talks to you, okay?"

"How do you know that's gonna work?" you asked, looking up at him.

"You know Liz," he shrugged, "It'll work." You sighed, turning off the TV and getting up.

"Fine," you said as you walked by him, hurrying to get dressed so Michael wasn't late for practice. He dropped you off at Luke's parents' house and you made your way to the door. You knocked quietly, but didn't have to wait long before someone answered.

"Y/N!" Liz smiled.

"Hi, Liz," you grinned slightly as she ushered you inside. "Is Luke here?"

She nodded, "Michael already told me everything. He's still asleep as far as I know, but he should be waking up any time now. We're the only ones home, but I'll be right in here in case he tries to leave, okay? If you need me, just yell."

"Thank you, Liz," you nodded and she went back to sit on the couch. You trudged into the kitchen, sitting down at the counter, waiting for Luke to wake up.

You had been waiting for about 10 minutes when you heard a door down the hallway open. Your heart started beating rapidly, hoping everything went according to plan.

"Hi, Luke," you said quietly as he came out of the hallway. He looked at you for a moment before turning around and walking away. " _Luke_!" you sighed, going after him. He had just made it back to his room and closed the door, but before it closed all the way, you stopped it. "Luke!  _Come on_!" you groaned, pushing against him trying to push the door closed, but you were stronger than he thought you were. You forced the door back far enough so that you could slip into the room. Luke tried to leave, but you grabbed his hand and pushing it away from the handle, moving in front of it and closing the door. "I'm done letting you avoid me, Luke," you stated firmly. He let out a short, frustrated sigh and went to sit on his bed while you stayed by the door. He sat there, waiting for you to start talking. He had this unamused look on his face and you knew that he wasn't going to believe anything you told him. "Never mind," you sighed and turned around, opening the door.

"' _Never mind_ '?" Luke finally spoke, "You finally get me alone and all I get is ' _never mind_ '? You didn't even think about what you were going to say?"

"I didn't think I would get this far," you mumbled.

"You could tell me the truth," he rolled his eyes. "I think that would be a good place to start."

"You didn't want to hear  _the truth_ , Luke!" you exclaimed, shutting the door again and spinning around to face him. "You didn't want to listen to me  _or_  Michael when we tried to tell you two months ago! Why would you listen to me  _now_?!"

"Because I love you!" he shouted, getting up, "I can't go 5 minutes without thinking about you! Do you have any idea what it's like to be in love with someone you shouldn't be in love with?!"

"I do," you choked, nodding slightly. This was the first time he told you he loved you. "But do  _you_  have any idea what it's like to be in love with someone who thinks you're the worst person on the planet? Do you have any idea what it's like to be in love with someone who thought you were going to leave him for someone else? Do you have any idea what it's like to be in love with someone who won't even give you chance to explain yourself?"

"But you said-"

"I  _know_  what I said, Luke," you sighed, putting your face in the palms of your hands and leaning back against the door, "And I understand how you took it the way you did, but I  _swear_  that's not what I meant. If you heard what I said  _before that_ , we wouldn't be  _in_  this mess."

"What did you say before that?" he asked quietly, playing with the hem of his shirt.

"Before you, I'd never been with someone that liked me as much I liked him... No one ever made me feel the way you did – the way you  _do_. That's what I was telling Michael," you looked down, "I was scared that you were gonna find someone better and leave. You didn't find someone else, but you  _did_  leave; I guess I was just scared for the  _wrong reason_." When he didn't say anything, you let out a shaky breath. "Well, now you know the truth... I'll see you around, Luke," you smiled slightly before opening the door and leaving.

You walked out into the living room and Liz looked at you. She gave you a sad smile upon seeing the look on your face. You simply shrugged, telling her goodbye and thanking her for her help – although she didn't really have to help much at all. You closed the front door behind you, only to hear it open again as you stepped onto the grass.

You felt someone grab your arm and spin you around. You let out a squeak, having it cut short by Luke pressing his lips to yours. Your heart skipped a beat at the feeling you'd been missing for two months, whining quietly when he pulled away.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, holding your face in his hands, "I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions like that. No one has ever been or will ever  _be_  better than you."

"I love you, Luke," your voice shook again.

"I love you, Y/N," he said, kissing your forehead, "And I will do  _anything_  to make it up to you."

" _Anything_?" He nodded. "Kiss me again," you said under your breath. A smile started pulling at the corner of Luke's mouth and he happily did as you asked.

~

_inspiration: a dream i had lmao_


	125. No Idea (Jamie Follese)

"Are we there yet?!" you squeaked in excitement, pressing your face against the car window.

"Y/N!" your best friend Emmy looked at you in the rear view mirror, "You will know when we get there."

Your two best friends – Emmy and Sam – surprised you that morning by telling you they were taking you to Disneyland for your birthday. Although it was 8 in the morning, you were beyond excited and nearly fell off your bed when they told you. They helped you pack – they had obviously packed their own bags the previous day – and you all set off for your two day long trip.

You suddenly screamed as you saw the Disneyland sign, causing your friends to jump before they started laughing; This was your first time going to the park and, needless to say, were pretty excited about it.

Once you entered the park, you got your Minnie Mouse headband while your friends decided to stick with the traditional Mickey ear hat. Nothing was out of the ordinary; Your friends let you pick what you did and how many times you did it – within reason, of course – and overall, you had an amazing first day.

~

On the second – and last – day, you trotted into the park once again, getting a birthday button. After a few rides, you noticed your friends had unusually large smiles on their faces.

"Remember how we told you we had another big surprise?" Emmy asked randomly.

"Right," you nodded, "Because taking me to Disneyland clearly wasn't enough." You saw them both glance behind you.

"Happy birthday," Sam smiled widely as you turned to see what they were looking at.

You let out a short scream, running over to another pair of your best friends. You hadn't seen Ryan and Jamie since they left for tour six months ago. They told you they wouldn't be able to see you on your birthday because of that, but clearly, they had lied – and Emmy and Sam were in on it.

"Are you serious right now?!" you squealed, grabbing both Ryan and Jamie and hugging them tightly.

"So serious, Y/N," Ryan laughed.

"I can't believe you lied to me!" you pouted, finally letting go of them as you walked back to Emmy and Sam.

"We had to surprise you somehow, kid," Jamie teased, ruffling your hair.

"' _Kid_ '? In case you've forgotten, you're only  _less than_  a year older than me," you said, pushing his hand away from you.

"How could I forget?" he threw his arm across your shoulders, "You never fail to mention it every time I see you."

You giggled quietly, laying your head on his shoulder, "I've missed you too, Jamie."

~

A couple hours later, while you were waiting in line to get lunch, you could hear one of your favorite Disney songs,  _I See the Light_  from  _Tangled_ , start playing.

You gasped, looking at your friends, "Someone dance with me!"

Before anyone could even blink, Ryan offered his hand to you. You smiled, putting your hand in his. He took you to the open area by the line and bowed. You rolled your eyes and laughed as he retook your hand and put his other arm around your waist, beginning to lead you in the dance.

As you and Ryan were dancing, everyone was watching, but one person's stare stood out the most. Jamie didn't take his eyes off of you until Emmy nudged him and he looked at her. You were curious as to what they were talking about, but you decided not to let it bother you and gave your full attention to Ryan.

When the song was over, everyone that had been watching started clapping. You gave them a shy smile and a thank you before Ryan grabbed your hand, pulling you back over to the group.

"I'm jealous," Sam sighed dramatically. "If  _Beauty and the Beast_  starts playing, it's all us, Jamie," she told the drummer. He smiled shyly, nodding in agreement.

You noticed Jamie looking down slightly and followed his gaze, only to realize Ryan was still holding your hand. You wondered why he was staring as this was something you and Ryan did quite frequently, but you shook it off.

~

When you all sat down for lunch, you were in between Ryan and Emmy. Ryan was sitting so close that your arms were practically touching. Jamie was across from you, but he never looked at you; He kept his eyes on Emmy the whole time.

When he went to throw away his trash, you took the opportunity to see what was going on. You grabbed the closest scrap of garbage you could find as an excuse to get up and follow him.

"Hey, Jamie," you said, walking up behind him.

"Hi, Y/N," he cleared his throat.

"Are you okay?" He gave you a confused expression as you tossed the wrapper into the trash can. "You just seem a little out of it is all."

"I'm fine," he said quietly.

"I notice you've been looking at Emmy a lot," you said.

"So?"

"Jamie, if you like her, you can tell me. You've been my best friend for how long now? You know I can keep a secret."

"I-I don't like Emmy," he stuttered.

"Sure you don't," you nodded, raising your eyebrows and starting to walk back to the table.

"What about you?" Jamie asked, making you stop, "You blush every time Ryan touches you."

"I do not!" you said defensively, walking back over to him so no one else could hear you.

" _Please, Y/N_ ," he laughed bitterly, "When have you ever  _blushed_  around Ryan before?"

"I have not been blushing! But so what if I have been? It's not a crime to blush, Jamie!"

"Then just admit you like him!"

"I don't like him, Jamie!" you whispered, "I don't know why you're on my case all of a sudden, but if you could stop acting like a prick, I would greatly appreciate it!" Before Jamie could respond, the group came over to throw their trash away.

"Ready for more rides, birthday girl?" Ryan asked.

"Yeah, Ry," you replied, not looking away from Jamie until Ryan put his arm on your shoulders and led you to another ride, everyone else following close behind.

~

The group could sense something happened between you and Jamie because the rest of the day, the two of you refused to speak to each other. They tried to get it out of you, but neither of you were budging. It wasn't until Jamie and Ryan went to the bathroom that Sam and Emmy got you to talk.

"What's going on?" Emmy asked, forcing you to sit down on a nearby bench.

"What are you talking about?" you asked monotonously.

"You know what I'm talking about, Y/N."

"Why is everyone on my ass today?!" you yelled in a whisper, refraining yourself from swearing loudly in front of passing children. "First Jamie, now you guys! Can't I just enjoy my birthday without people barraging me with questions?!"

"Just tell us what happened, Y/N," Sam said, "It's not like you and Jamie to ignore each other like this." You looked at her and Emmy for a moment before sighing.

"When we were at lunch, I could tell something was bothering him, so I followed him to the trash can to ask him about it away from you guys. I noticed he was looking at Emmy a lot, so I asked him if he liked her and he said no, but then he accused me of liking Ryan and one thing led to another and I told him to stop acting like a prick and now we're not speaking," you answered in one breath.

"Oh my God," Emmy whispered.

"Look, I'll admit I shouldn't have called him that, but it was in the heat of the moment!" you exclaimed, "He was making me mad and it just came out!"

" _Y/N_!" she groaned, "He wasn't looking at me because he likes me! He was looking at me because he didn't want to watch how close you were getting with Ryan!"

"Then why couldn't he just  _say that_?" you leaned back on the bench, crossing your arms.

" _Because he's jealous_!" Sam nearly shouted, shoving your arm, "Remember all those times we were hanging out and you were talking to Ryan and putting your head on his shoulder or something and Jamie would make some sort of excuse to leave the room?" You nodded slowly. "Jamie has liked you for forever and you seem to be the  _only one_  who doesn't see it!" Your breath caught in your throat.

You'd always had a thing for Jamie, but growing up, he'd been a brother figure to you. When you started developing feelings for him, you pushed them aside as best as you could. You couldn't have a crush on someone who'd been like a brother to you for so many years. But you did. And you were too far in to never have those feelings resurface.

Everything made sense now – the way Jamie would avoid being in the same room as you and Ryan all those times you hung out, how he would always be the first to wrap his arms around you during scary movies... You never thought twice about the way you and Ryan were with each other – you both knew you didn't like each other in that way, but a good amount of people  _thought_  you did – and now you knew  _Jamie_  was one of them.

Your thoughts were interrupted by Ryan and Jamie returning from the bathroom. You got up and the five of you made your way to Sleeping Beauty's castle for the fireworks display. You were understandably distracted the whole way there and it was clear the boys realized that. They looked at each other and shrugged, silently deciding not to ask about it.

~

Once you all found a spot in the grass for the fireworks, everyone sat down. Jamie sat a little further away from Ryan, Emmy, and Sam, so you decided now was the time talk to him. He tensed up as you sat next to him, but you didn't give him the chance to say anything.

"Listen, Jamie," you said quietly, looking down at your hands, "About what I said earlier... I'm sorry. I was just mad and I said things I didn't mean. I didn't mean to make you hate me."

"I don't hate you," he mumbled, "I could never hate you."

"I have to tell you something." He looked at you, but you didn't look at him. "I really like you, Jamie," you confessed, "I like you a lot, to be honest, I just never said anything because I thought it was weird since you were like my brother when we were younger."

"Y/N," Jamie said, causing you to look up. When you did, you were surprised by him pressing his lips to yours. "I like you too," he whispered as he pulled away.

"You have no idea how long I've wanted to hear that," you smiled slightly, putting your arms around his neck and pulling him back to you as the firework show started.

 


	126. Faking It (Ashton Irwin)

**Warning: Mentions of panic attack**

~

"Alright!" the farmer's wife, Beth, announced loudly so everyone could hear her, "Everybody split up into teams of two and we can get started!"

You were with your boyfriend Ashton and two of your best friends, Michael and Luke. Your other friend, Calum, was spending time with his family and couldn't make it. It was mid-October and you and your friends were at a local farm.

The owners had this huge 10-acre corn field and every October, just before they would collect all the corn, they would create a huge corn maze where you had a time limit to reach the end. If you made it out, you got a small prize such as a gift card. You and the boys made it a tradition to come at least once a year.

" _Lukey_!" you sang.

" _Y/N_!" your boyfriend whined, "We  _always_  do these things together!"

"I know, Ash, but I've been with you hundreds of times. Plus, when we  _do_  switch teams, I'm always with either Mikey or Calum; I've never gone with Luke."

"Yeah!" Luke chirped, "It's about time I've had my turn!" He ruffled your hair and you slapped his hand away, laughing.

"Come on, Ashton," Michael said, throwing his arm across his best friend's shoulders, "We'll totally kick their asses."

"Really?" you smirked.

"Really," he nodded.

"Losers buy ice cream on the way home?"

" _Deal_." You and Michael shook hands just as Beth started talking again.

"Everybody got their teams?" she asked. There was a chorus of confirmation and she went on, "You will have one hour to make it through the maze. How far along you are in the maze after the hour is up will determine what prize you receive, okay?" Everyone nodded. "Don't be stupid in there, understand? Do not trample, do not cause harm, and most importantly, do not lose sight of your teammate. Both members of the team must cross the finish line together in order to win. Ready?" You were bouncing in excitement. " _Go_!" You grabbed Luke's hand and ran in, practically leaving Ashton and Michael in the dust.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Luke chuckled, pulling on your arm so you stopped moving, "Let's be smart about this, Y/N. If we go too fast, we might get lost."

"Right," you nodded, pausing to take a breath, "Which way do we try first?"

"Well, everyone's gone right so far... I say we go left."

"I like the way you think, Hemmings," you smiled as he tugged you along with him.

~

45 minutes later, the finish line was finally in sight. You hadn't seen Michael or Ashton in a while, but you were sure they hadn't made it out yet. Just as you and Luke were about to run out of the maze, you heard someone call your name.

" _Y/N_!" Ashton's voice was panicky and you felt your heart drop.

Ashton had a tendency to freak out when he didn't know where someone was or when there were a lot of people around him. To you, it sounded like he was only a few seconds away from a panic attack.

You froze, trying to get a better listen as to which direction his voice was coming from. When you figured it out, you went to go that way, but Luke was still holding your hand.

"Luke!" you exclaimed, "I gotta go find Ashton!"

"Come on, Y/N!" he said, "What if it's a trap? We can cross the finish line and then you can go back for him!"

"What if he's hurt? What if he lost Michael? What if someone's getting a little too close to him? He needs me, Luke! I can't just ignore him!"

" _Y/N_!" you heard Ashton yell again.

"I'll be right back," you told Luke, wiggling your hand out of his and running toward where you hoped you would find Ashton. "Ashton?!" you called out, looking around every corner. "Ash?!" A couple more turns later, you finally found him. " _Ashton_!" you squeaked, running to him.

"Y/N!" he let out a sigh of relief, bringing you into a bone-crushing hug.

"What's wrong?" you asked frantically.

"I don't know," he was breathing heavily, "One second, Michael was right there and the next, he was gone and I don't know where he went and I can't find him!"

"Ash, calm down," you held his face in your hands, "I'm here now, okay? Nothing's gonna happen to you." He took a few breaths to calm himself down. "You okay?" you asked. He nodded and hugged you again. When he pulled back, you saw him look behind you.

He gave you a sheepish smile as he let go of you, "Sorry."

You spun around just in time to see Michael race by the cornstalks and Ashton followed close behind him. You were confused for a moment before you realized what the had done: They tricked you. And they did it in the  _worst way_  possible.

You trudged back to Luke and he had the same confused look on his face.

"Told you," he said as you passed him.

"Whatever," you mumbled shakily, exiting the maze.

Luke pulled you off to the side and put his hands on your cheeks, making you look up at him. You were biting your inner cheek, something you really only did when you were trying not to cry.

"Y/N," he smiled sadly, wiping the few stray tears that had already fallen down your cheeks, " _He's fine_."

"Yeah," you said quietly, "I just wish he hadn't  _lied_  about it." You walked away from Luke to collect your prize and began making your way back to Ashton's car.

Luke was right behind you as you got to Michael and Ashton about halfway to the car. You simply kept your head down and kept walking, not even acknowledging them.

"Good game, guys," Michael smirked.

"Dude, not now," you heard Luke whisper just before his footsteps quickened. You felt Luke's arm drape across your shoulders. "Hey," he said softly, "At least we still get ice cream." You couldn't help but crack a smile. "And don't worry. I'll buy both of theirs."

"If you're buying theirs, I'm buying ours," you said, looking up at him. He rolled his eyes, smiling at you.

"Done," he said, kissing your forehead. He opened the back passenger side door for you, knowing you wouldn't want to sit up front with Ashton, and the ride to the ice cream place was silent.

Michael and Ashton gave each other worried looks when Luke paid for both of their ice creams and you paid for yours and Luke's, knowing they messed up. You all sat down at a table and ate your ice cream in silence as well before going back to yours and Ashton's place. You and Luke went in the living room while Michael and Ashton went to the kitchen to get drinks.

When they came back a few minutes later, you were already fast asleep with your head on Luke's lap.

"What are you doing?" Ashton asked quietly as he sat down on the other couch, noticing Luke was playing with your hair.

"Was it worth it?" Luke asked monotonously, not even bothering to answer the question since Ashton could  _clearly_  see what he was doing already. "Was it really worth making her worried sick thinking you were about to have a panic attack?" he looked at Ashton, "Was not buying us ice cream really  _that_  important to you that you had to  _lie to her_  like that?"

"Luke, I didn't think she'd get mad about it," Ashton said, looking down at his hands, "If I did, I wouldn't have done it."

"You had to have known we were about to beat you because you yelled her name  _right before_  we got to the end!" he whispered, "You know how she gets when you show even a  _little_  sign of nervousness, Ashton! She refused to cross that finish line until she knew you were okay! We couldn't care  _less_  that you guys won; The way you  _did it_  is what we're not happy about."

Luke carefully got up and picked you up before either of them could respond, taking you into your room so you didn't wake up with a sore neck. When he came back out, he pulled his car keys out of his pocket.

"Let's go, Michael," he said, not looking at him and walking out the door.

"I'll be back in the morning to do my apologizing," Michael told Ashton as he stood up, "Good luck, Ash."

"See you," Ashton muttered as the front door closed, letting out a sigh and leaning back in his seat.

~

When you woke up the next morning, you were a bit confused. You remembered what happened yesterday – and honestly, you were still pretty pissed about it – and you remembered coming back home, but you didn't remember going to sleep on your own bed.

You looked over at Ashton's side of the bed. A small part of you hoped he would be beside you, but he wasn't. You got up and changed into a pair of shorts and one of Ashton's sweaters before leaving the room.

You peeked into the living room and saw Ashton asleep on the couch. You sighed quietly, going to the kitchen to find some breakfast.

As you were staring mindlessly at the cereal in the cabinet, trying to decide which one you felt like eating, you felt arms wrap around your waist. You jumped, startled by the sudden physical contact. Ashton reached up and closed the cabinet doors before resting his head on your shoulder.

"Good morning, beautiful," he mumbled against your skin. You laughed bitterly, trying to get out of his grasp, but he just held on tighter.

"Let go of me, Ashton," you stated dryly.

"I know you're mad at me, but listen-"

"No,  _you_  listen," you shoved him away from you and spun around to face him, " _Mad_  doesn't even begin to cover it, Ashton! You had me scared to death! I hate it when you have panic attacks – you  _know_  I hate it – and to  _lie_  about it just to win a stupid bet? What the hell is  _wrong_  with you? If you wanted to win so badly, you should have just told me and Luke and we would have bought your ice cream anyway! You of all people should know how shitty panic attacks are! This isn't something you can just use to your advantage, Ashton! This is a real thing that you have to deal with every single day and you can't just decide when you have them!"

He was silent for a few moments, keeping his eyes on the floor. He knew you were crying and knowing you were crying because of him was already taking its toll on him; There was no way he'd be able to handle seeing it.

"Does this mean you're gonna question whether or not it's real next time?" he asked quietly.

"No," you said shakily, wiping your face with your sleeves, "I know you're not gonna do it again. I just wish you didn't feel like you needed to do it  _at all_."

Ashton finally looked up at you, wasting no time in rushing to you, wrapping his arms around you and hugging you. You put your arms around his waist and held onto him tightly.

"I hate when you have panic attacks, Ashton," you choked, your voice coming out muffled due to his shirt.

"I know," he whispered, rubbing your back and kissing the side of your head over and over, "I'm sorry."

You sniffled and moved back to look at him. He took your face in his hands and wiped your cheeks with his thumbs, kissing you softly.

"Do you forgive me?" he asked, sticking his bottom lip out for good measure.

"I forgive you," you nodded slightly, laying your head back on his shoulder.

"I love you, Y/N," Ashton told you, playing with the ends of your hair.

"I love you too, Ash," you replied under your breath.

After a few minutes of just standing there and hugging each other, there was a knock on the front door.

"Mikey's turn," Ashton mumbled, making you giggle quietly as he let go of you to let Michael in.


	127. Mistakes I've Made (Alex Gaskarth)

_"You're breaking up with me?" your boyfriend asked, sounding more confused than anything._

_"That's usually what '_ I think we should break up _' means, yes," you replied as you put your jacket on. He quickly rushed in between you and the door, keeping you from leaving._

_"But-"_

_"There are no buts, Alex," you told him, "I'm tired of constantly begging for your attention only to be passed off as too needy or shoved aside because I'm '_ being a distraction _.' I've given you too many second chances and this time, I'm done. I don't have any more second chances left to give."_

_"Babe-"_

_"Please don't make this harder than it already is."_

_"If it's so hard, then don't leave."_

_"I love you, Alex," you sighed, "I'm sorry." You kissed his cheek and opened the door._

_He didn't bother trying to keep you from leaving this time; He knew it would just make you upset and he didn't want that. Even though he didn't want you to go, he hated when you were upset or sad_ –  _especially when he was the one that caused it. So he let you go._

_And you haven't seen each other since._

~

**One year later**

It's been over a year since that night and honestly, you weren't over it. You knew that breaking up with Alex was what was best for the both of you, but all you did was think about him. It was like you couldn't shake it off. You finally felt free for the first time in forever, but at the same time, you regretted leaving with every passing day.

Although you hadn't spoken to Alex in over a year, you were still pretty close with Rian, Zack, and Jack, but Zack was the frequent visitor at your place. When you needed someone to talk to, he was the one you called. He was always the member of the band you were closest with – besides Alex, of course – and no matter what was going on, he always knew what to say to make you feel better.

"Do you ever get the feeling that a weight has been lifted off your shoulders, but at the same time, you feel like you've made the biggest mistake of your life?" you asked Zack randomly while you were hanging out in your apartment.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"You know what I mean, Zack," you sighed, getting up. As you did so, you didn't see Zack pull out his phone and dial a number before he stuffed it back into his pocket.

"Why would you break up with him in the first place then?" he questioned after giving the person on the other line enough time to answer and followed you into your bedroom.

"I just thought it was a good idea, I guess," you shrugged, sitting at your desk.

"And why did you think it was a good idea?"

"Because it was," you sighed again, resting your elbow on your desk and your chin in your hand, "At the  _time_ , anyway. But now, it's like I'm living with constant regret hanging over me; It's like a storm cloud that won't clear up no matter how good of a day I'm having."

"So tell him that."

"Why do people think it's that easy?!" you exclaimed, throwing your arm in the air.

"Because it is," he said.

"No, it's not, Zack! Before you started dating Amy, do you remember how Alex and I basically had to  _force you_  to go introduce yourself?" He didn't say anything, already understanding your point. "When you wanted to ask her out, do you remember how nervous you were to even be in the same room as her? When you wanted to surprise her for her birthday, do you remember making me plan with you until 5am because you were scared she wasn't going to like it? When you wa-"

"I get it, Y/N," he interrupted.

"And what if one day, she started treating you badly and never acknowledged your existence and ignored people when they asked about you? What would you do?"

"She wouldn't do that," he shook his head.

" _I know she wouldn't, Zack_!" you shouted, "She loves you way too much to ever even  _consider_  doing that! But what if, one day, you woke up and the person you fell asleep next to  _wasn't_  the person you were in love with anymore? What if they changed and they made  _you_  feel like  _you're_  the one that did something wrong? It's not fair that I wake up every single day feeling like shit for things  _I didn't even do_! It's not fair that  _I'm_  being blamed by fans when I've done absolutely  _nothing_  wrong! It's not fair that I can't move on all because there's this small part of me that hopes Alex will change even though I  _know_  he never will!"

By this time, you were in tears and Zack was left speechless. He knew you were still in love with Alex, but he never knew it had torn you apart  _this_  badly.

The only thing he could do was kneel down in front of you and hug you as tightly as he could. He hated seeing you like this and knowing it was caused by someone else so close to him honestly pissed him off.

Zack tried to stand back up, but quickly realized you had fallen asleep at some point during your almost 10 minute hug. He sighed, carefully maneuvering himself so he could pick you up and lay you down on your bed. He pulled the blanket over you and turned off your desk lamp before quietly leaving the room. He took his phone out of his pocket and pressed it to the side of his face.

"Do you understand why she hates you  _now_?" he sighed in frustration.

"Yeah..." Alex said quietly, "I think I got it..."

"I don't know and  _I don't care_  how you're going to do it, but you better fix her. And you better fix her  _soon_." Before Alex could respond, Zack ended the call.

~

**Three months later**

The band left for a three month long tour which meant you didn't have Zack to come over and comfort you when you needed it. But that was okay because you were starting to feel a little better.

After the night you finally let out all the emotions and thoughts you had kept bottled up, you realized you were finally moving on. It was little-by-little, but you were getting there.

However, you  _did_  have days where you constantly told yourself you were stupid for letting him go.

You missed the days when Alex wasn't writing or gearing up for a tour because on those days, he devoted every bit of his attention to you. You missed how he would sing you back to sleep after a nightmare. You missed running to him and jumping into his arms in the middle of the airport every time he came home. You missed the way he would make you feel better when you were sad by pressing small kisses all over your face until you smiled.

You were suddenly brought out of your thoughts by the host of the music video countdown you were watching.

" _Number 13 on the countdown had a little bit of help with writing this song," the host smiled, "Alex Gaskarth of All Time Low is a frequent name you'll see on 5 Seconds of Summer's_ _debut_ _album. He helped write almost all the songs on the album and we can't get enough. You may remember the band's hit,_ Amnesia _, also co-_ _written_ _by Gaskarth and we're sensing a bit of a pattern with these lyrics. Here is 5 Seconds of Summer at number 13 on the countdown with_ Everything I Didn't Say."

Your heart skipped a beat as the video started and you turned the volume up. You listened closely to the lyrics as the song started, not at all prepared for what you heard.

_Wait, don't tell me, heaven is a place on earth_   
_I wish I could rewind all the times that I didn't_   
_Show you what you're really worth_

_The way you held me, I wish that I had put you first_   
_I was wrong I admit, numb from your kiss_   
_While you were slipping through my fingertips_

_Taking every breath away_   
_With all of the mistakes I made_   
_From all the letters that I've saved_   
_This is everything I didn't say_

_I wish I could've made you stay_   
_And I'm the only one to blame_   
_I know that it's a little too late_   
_This is everything I didn't say_

_Wake me up now and tell me this is all a bad dream_   
_All the songs that I wrote, all the wrongs that I hoped_   
_Would erase from your memory_

_Holding onto a broken and empty heart_   
_Flowers I should've bought, all the hours I lost_   
_Wish I could bring it back to the start_

_Taking every breath away_   
_With all of the mistakes I made_   
_From all the letters that I've saved_   
_This is everything I didn't say_

_I wish I could've made you stay_   
_And I'm the only one to blame_   
_I know that it's a little too late_   
_This is everything I didn't say_

_I hope you know, for you I'd sacrifice_   
_To make this right, whoa whoa_   
_Someday, I'm sure we'll pass each other by_   
_Until that time_

_Taking every breath away_   
_With all of the mistakes I made_   
_From all the letters that I've saved_   
_This is everything I didn't say_

_I wish I could've made you stay_   
_And I'm the only one to blame_   
_I know that it's a little too late_   
_This is everything I didn't say_

When the song ended, you immediately turned the TV off and realized there were tears streaming down your face. For the entirety of those 4 minutes, your thoughts were racing. You were almost over him and now, you were anything but. Deep down, you knew you still loved him and you knew that at least a small part of you always would. You weren't nearly as happy as you were when you were with Alex and it was obvious to you now that the break up absolutely tore him apart too.

~

You had been pacing around the airport terminal for about an hour now, preparing yourself for when Alex and the guys got off the plane. You had no reason for being an hour early – honestly, you had no reason for being there at all. You had told Zack you wouldn't be coming with his girlfriend to pick them up because their flight arrived at 2am and you had work the next morning. Truthfully though, you didn't have to go to work, you just didn't want to see Alex. But after hearing that song, you knew you had to see him; You had to see for yourself whether or not he'd really be willing to change just for another chance with you.

Your heart started pounding once the gate opened and people came flooding out. You anxiously waited for the guys, bouncing on your feet. Amy looked over at you.

"Y/N," she said, making you turn around to face her. She smiled slightly, grabbing your shoulders, "Calm down."

"What if he doesn't want me here?" you choked, "What if that song was written months ago and he's finally over me? What if he sees me and it's just like it used to be when he would act like I wasn't even there?"

"It won't be," you heard someone say quietly behind you. You spun around and came face-to-face with your ex-boyfriend. You swallowed the lump in your throat as you stared at him, suddenly not knowing what to say.

"I thought you said you weren't coming," Zack said with a questioning tone.

"I wasn't," your voice came out as a whisper.

"Then what changed your mind?" Jack asked. You remained silent, so Alex answered for you.

" _Everything I Didn't Say_ _..._ " he said, still looking at you.

You nodded slowly and he grabbed your hand, pulling you away from the group. You tried to wiggle your hand out of his grasp, but he just held on tighter.

"Look, Y/N," he said lowly, "I know I fucked up and I know there's a very slim chance you'll forgive me, but I just need you to know that I'm sorry. I feel terrible for the way I treated you but I feel even worse for the way I  _didn't_. I'm sure you've moved on by now, but I'm happy for you because you deserve the absolute world and I'm not going to keep you from finding that by begging you to come back." He finally let go of your hand and started to walk away when your voice made him freeze.

"Don't you think I  _want_  to move on?" you asked, already feeling your cheeks getting wet. He slowly turned back around. "I almost did," you told him, "I was almost over you and everything you'd done, but I could never get rid of the memories of those nights we would walk around town when we couldn't sleep or those mornings I would wake up to you mumbling in your sleep about how much you loved me. I still hear your voice singing me to sleep and I still smell your terrible cologne all over the bed. I can't get rid of you no matter how hard I try and the only thing that song made me realize is how much I  _don't want to_. I miss listening to you write songs and I miss arguing about what movie to watch. I miss falling asleep next to you because the only time I get sleep is when you're there and I can't stand being away from you anymore."

Alex let out a shaky breath, not wasting any more time. He came back to you, grabbed your face, and pressed your lips together – a feeling you had been craving for the past year and a half.

"I love you so much, Y/N," he mumbled, "I swear I'm gonna do things differently this time; I'm not gonna wait until you're gone to show you how much you mean to me." You smiled slightly, leaning up and kissing him again, only to break apart a few seconds later when your friends started cheering.

~

_Song used: "Everything I Didn't Say" by 5 Seconds of Summer_

_inspirations: "R.I.P." by 3OH!3 (the line "R.I.P. you and me")  
_ _http://timetowitnessmyfirstbreakdown.tumblr.com/post/109355464399/somewhere-in-neverland-ch22_


	128. For Me (5 Seconds of Summer)

**Luke**

You were mindlessly skipping around the venue, looking for something to do. Your boyfriend's band was getting ready for one of the biggest sold out shows of their career and they were basically bouncing off the walls in excitement. But now that you thought about it, you hadn't seen your boyfriend in a while. The hallways were much quieter than where the fans were now piling into the arena, so you decided to start looking back there.

" _Luke_!" you sang, " _Where are you_?!" You were about to enter the band's dressing room when you heard coughing and sniffling coming from the other side. That only meant one thing: Luke was sick.

"Yeah?" Luke cleared his throat. You swung the door open and crossed your arms, leaning against the door frame. "I can still play!" he exclaimed, knowing there was no point in faking it since it was obvious you already knew.

"Luke," you sighed, walking over to him and sitting down beside him, "You can't play shows when you're sick."

"It's just a cold," he mumbled as you felt his forehead. Luckily, he didn't have a fever.

"If you play the show, you're gonna strain yourself and get worse and you know just as well as everyone else that you would beat yourself up if you missed more shows than you had to." He sighed, knowing you were right.

"But this show is sold out!" he whined, "We can't cancel it!"

"So just reschedule it," you shook your head, "I'm sure everyone will understand." He looked at you and you could just see a light bulb go off.

"You play it," he suggested.

"Y-You want  _me_  to play the show?" your eyes widened.

"Yes! You know all my parts and you've heard these songs  _thousands_  of times! I know you can do it!"

"I'm not even that good of a singer!" you squeaked, jumping up.

"Yes, you are," he told you, "I hear you  _singing_  more than I hear you  _talking_."

"Yeah, only when there aren't thousands of people staring back at me!"

"Babe, please?" he coughed, "I don't want to let them down."

"Luke-"

"You can play these songs in your sleep, Y/N," he said, "Honestly, I think you're a better guitar player than Michael."

"I know I am, but that's not the point."

"Then help me  _understand_  the point."

"Your fans don't like me, Luke!" you shouted, throwing your arm up, "They're not gonna want  _me_  up there where  _you_  should be!" Luke looked at you for a moment as you stared at the floor before getting up and walking over to you. He took your face in his hands and made you look at him.

"They haven't warmed up to you yet," he said softly, "They'll come around eventually, Y/N. I think you should help them out with it."

"You really think I can do it?"

"I  _know_  you can do it," he said firmly. Luke went over to the rack of clothes on the other side of the room and pulled his favorite red flannel off of the hanger. "Here," he said, holding the shirt up for you, "I know you're most comfortable in situations with fans when you're wearing my clothes."

You turned around and he helped you put it on. The shirt came down just past your hips and Luke helped you roll up the sleeves so you wouldn't get too hot on stage. As cliché as it sounds, wearing his clothes made you feel better because it was like he was hugging you even when he wasn't near you.

"Come on," he said, taking your hand and pulling you toward the stage, "I wanna make sure my guitar lays on you properly."

"You're gonna let me use your guitar?" you asked, a bit shocked.

"I don't trust it with anyone but you," he smiled, kissing your head. "Ready for showtime, boys?" Luke announced as he made his way over to the guitars.

"You're not playing tonight, Luke," Ashton stated, "You're too sick."

"You figured it out too?" he asked quietly.

" _China_  could have figured it out with how loudly you were sneezing earlier," Calum chuckled.

"It's just a cold," he rolled his eyes, "And  _I'm_  not playing." Luke grabbed his guitar and lifted the strap over your head.

"Wait," Michael grinned while Luke adjusted the strap for you, "Y/N's gonna play?" The boys looked at you and you nodded slowly, honestly terrified you were going to screw up.

"You play?" Calum asked.

"And sing?" Ashton wondered. You nodded again. As if he could read your mind, he added, "Don't worry, Y/N. They'll love you."

"Alright," Luke said, "You're ready to go." You gave him a look and he said, "I'll be right here in case you get nervous, okay? Just keep your eyes on me." A crew member hurried over to help you put on an in-ear monitor before you and the boys went on stage. You were immediately greeted by screams filling the stadium.

"As you may be able to tell, Lukey isn't here," Calum pouted while you shyly walked to center stage. You started playing with your fingers as you stood uncomfortably at Luke's microphone.

"Instead, we've got someone better!" Ashton chirped, "We've got Y/N!" You gave the crowd a small smile and wave.

"She's a little nervous, so you have to treat her just like you would treat Luke, okay?" Michael added, "This is the first time she's ever played for a crowd, so don't be mean to her if she messes up." The crowd cheered in response and you began to start feeling more comfortable.

"Well, Luke  _did_  say I was a better guitarist than you," you smirked, looking over at him. The crowd gasped jokingly.

" _Luke_!" Michael whined into his microphone, looking over at the singer, "Why would you lie to your girlfriend like that?!" Luke simply chuckled.

"Trust me, Michael, he wasn't lying."

" _Really_?" he asked, trying to look as intimidating as possible, but he couldn't keep himself from smiling back at you. You shrugged and he went on, "Then prove it."

"Why don't you get this show started then?" you smiled innocently, grabbing the handle and resting your other hand on the strings, waiting for Michael to start the song.

" _Hey!_ " Michael shouted, starting off  _She Looks So Perfect_. Calum joined him, but you backed away from the microphone.

You began taking slow breaths in as you played Luke's guitar, knowing he was the one that sang the first verse. The boys watched you as their part came to an end, seemingly just as nervous for you as you were. You looked at Luke and he smiled reassuringly at you. You took in a deep breath and went back to the microphone.

" _Simmer down, simmer down, they say we're too young now to amount to anything else,_ " you sang, " _But look around, we worked too damn hard for this just to give it up now. If you don't swim, you'll drown, but don't move, honey._ " The crowd screamed in response – both in happiness that you didn't suck as well as a bit in shock that you were so good.

Throughout the entire show, Luke watched you proudly as you danced around. Honestly, you looked like you felt at home on that stage.

~

When the show was finally over, the boys all came over to you for the group bow. You quickly motioned for Luke to come on stage and join you. The fans cheered as he walked out and squeezed in between you and Calum. After your bow, the boys backed up and held their arms out toward you before clapping. You blushed lightly, smiling and taking your own bow before running off stage with them.

"They absolutely  _loved you_!" Luke beamed, spinning you around after you put his guitar away.

"They did?" you asked shyly.

Calum grinned, "You were amazing!"

"You are going to be the most talked about thing in the world by morning," Michael nodded, "I guarantee it."

"I'm so proud of you," Luke said, kissing your forehead.

"Thank you," you said quietly, smiling.

~

By the time you and the boys got back in the tour bus after loading everything into the trailer, YouTube videos, Vines, and photos of you performing with the band were already taking over Twitter. You were honestly too scared to see what everyone was saying, but curiosity got the best of the boys and they had been sharing tweets about you for the past five minutes.

" _No, wait_!  _This_  tweet is my favorite!" Michael exclaimed for the what was probably the tenth time.

_@5secsofnatalia: It's official. @Y/T/N is my new girl crush._

You finally decided to pull out your phone as Calum spoke up, "Yeah, that one is pretty good, but have you seen this one?"

_@earthtobailey: I would give up my Luke and Ashton follows just for @5SOS to record a song with @Y/T/N for the next album._

You couldn't help but smile at that one. Luke pouted slightly as he read a tweet he found in his mentions.

_@BrooklynHope: Sorry, @Luke5SOS. Your girlfriend is my favorite now._

"Oh," Ashton smirked, "What about this one?"

_@Calum5SOS: Great. Now we have to replace Luke._

The boys laughed before they finally looked up at you, noticing you were being kind of quiet. You were staring at your phone screen with a look they couldn't quite pin an emotion to.

"You okay, babe?" Luke asked carefully. You nodded quickly, leaning on him and grinning before reading the tweet you found.

_@secretreject: I can't believe all those horrible things I used to say about @Y/T/N. You're amazing and don't let anyone tell you otherwise._

"Yeah," Michael nodded, "That one wins."

Luke kissed your cheek and whispered, "Told you they'd come around."

~

**Michael**

" _Mikey_!" you shrieked in horror as he fell to the ground. He let out a yelp as a sharp pain shot up his leg but quickly sat back up, still playing his guitar.

The band was in the middle of a show and Michael had just jumped off of the speaker like he always does. This time, however, he landed on his foot the wrong way and twisted it. You desperately wanted to run out to him, but you hated going onstage in front of all the fans.

Calum, Luke, and Ashton looked at each other then back at Michael. In that split second, Michael still managing to play his guitar told the other boys that he was determined to at least finish the rest of the song and that was what he did.

As soon as the song ended, Michael threw his head back and groaned in pain. At that point, you didn't care about hating to go onstage; All you cared about was Michael.

"Mikey!" you squeaked as you ran over, sliding across the stage on your knees and coming to a stop right behind him, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," he winced when he tried to move his ankle, "I'm fine." The other boys were talking to the crowd, but you knew all eyes were on you and your boyfriend.

"Michael, you need to get checked out."

"Y/N, I'm fine," he insisted.

"Mikey,  _please_ ," you whispered. He looked back at you and saw you were only one more ' _no_ ' away from tears.

"Okay," he said.

You got up, helping him up and pulling his arm across your shoulders as you wrapped your own around his waist, taking him backstage and sitting him down in the chair you had been using. A paramedic was already called, so all you had to do was wait. The crowd had no problem with waiting as long as they knew Michael would be okay.

Once the paramedic arrived, he checked Michael's ankle out.

"It's definitely sprained," he nodded, "You're gonna need to stay off of it for at least a month."

"So I can't play the rest of the show?" Michael asked. The paramedic shot him a confused look.

"Not standing up, no," he replied, packing up all his equipment and getting up, "I would advise you to go to the hospital to get some x-rays done as soon as possible because there's not much I can do here to fix the problem."

"Thank you," you smiled politely as he left. You turned back to Michael and saw he was giving you a small smile with raised eyebrows. " _Absolutely not_ , Michael," you stated, already knowing what he was going to ask you.

" _Come on, babe_ ," he begged, "I don't want everyone to be mad that we had to cancel the show just because I got hurt."

"Why can't you just do it sitting down?! You haven't been teaching me how to play guitar for that long!" you exclaimed, "Plus, the next song is  _Rejects_! You  _know_  how hard that solo is, Mikey! There's  _no way_  I'm gonna be able to do it!"

"No one is going to hold it against you if you mess up, Y/N. Please just give it a shot. For me."

You sighed, "I hate when you do that."

He smiled, "You're gonna do great, okay? I'll be right at the side of the stage. If you get nervous, just look at me." He gave you a quick kiss, "I love you."

"I love you too, Michael," you mumbled. He reached over to the guitars and grabbed his favorite one, handing it to you.

"Well, well, well," you heard Luke announce to the crowd as you lifted the strap over your head. "It looks like we've found ourselves a replacement for Michael and it seems as though it's none other than his girlfriend Y/N!"

You took a deep breath and started walking on stage when you felt a grab on your hand. Michael pulled you back, giving you a reassuring kiss, letting you know that no matter what happened, he was still proud of you.

When it came time for Michael's solo, Luke and Calum had fully intended to help you out with it. However, when you started playing it, everyone watched you in shock for a moment before the crowd continued to scream.

When the song ended, they screamed even louder, blown away by how well you played.

" _Dude_!" Luke smiled widely, looking at you.

You grinned sheepishly, "Was it that bad?"

"No!" Ashton laughed, "Y/N, that was  _amazing_!"

" _Michael_!" you heard one of the crew members exclaim.

Before you had the chance to spin around to see what happened, you were startled by an arm wrapping around your shoulders from behind. Michael had hopped over to you and was now using both you and his microphone stand for support so he didn't hurt his ankle even more.

"This is my girlfriend, guys!" he shouted happily into his microphone, "Isn't she a  _bad ass_?!"

"Michael, what are you doing?" you asked him, "You should be resting!"

"And she  _cares_  too," he sighed dramatically, making everyone laugh. You rolled your eyes and he kissed your cheek.

"Go sit back down before I sprain your  _other_  ankle, idiot," you giggled.

" _God_ , how did I get so lucky?" he teased as you helped him back to the chair.

~

**Calum**

"Y/N!" you heard Ashton call out.

"Yeah, Ash?!" you yelled back.

"Where are you?!"

"On stage!" Ashton hurried out of the venue's hallway with Luke and Michael following close behind. "What's wrong?" you asked, looking up at them as you were finishing up tuning Michael's guitar.

"We think something's wrong with Calum," Luke explained.

"Such as?"

"He won't talk to us," Michael answered, "All he does it shake his head or nod or shrug."

"Can't it wait?" you looked up at them, "I'm almost done." They each gave you the same look and quiet groan, making you roll your eyes. You put Michael's guitar back and got up, "I'll be back in a minute."

"Thank you!" they said in unison. You walked down the hallway to the band's dressing room and found your boyfriend sitting on the couch on his phone.

"Hey, Cal," you said, walking into the room and shutting the door. He simply looked up at you and smiled. "Is something going on with you and the boys?" He gave you a confused stare. "They said you aren't talking and they're worried you're mad at them." He shook his head quickly. "Calum," you crossed your arms, "You're not getting sick, are you?"

He shook his head again. You narrowed your eyes at him. You knew he wasn't lying, but you knew he's wasn't telling the whole truth either.

Your eyes suddenly widened as you exclaimed, "Calum, did you lose your voice?!" He sank down in his seat. "Cal, what have I told you about straining your vocal cords? You're gonna hurt yourself one of these days! How were you planning on playing the show tonight? You can't sing if your voice doesn't work, you idiot!" He bit down on his inner cheek, looking up at you shyly. You sighed, sitting down next to him and grabbing his hand, holding it in his lap. "Sorry," you said, kissing his cheek, "But everyone was going to find out at some point, you know?"

Calum sighed, having absolutely no idea what to do. He began rubbing your thumb with his own, trying to come up with something –  _anything_  – that might work. And that was when the light bulb went off. He perked up, making you jump slightly, as he pointed frantically at you.

"Cal," you sighed, "You know I'm not good at charades. What are you doing?"

He kept pointing at you and making weird gestures with his hands. He suddenly stopped, exhaling quickly. He held his finger up, pulling out his phone. He typed something into his notes before handing it to you. You raised your eyebrows and took the phone, reading what he wrote.

_You play the show_

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," you stood up, giving the phone back to him, "You want  _me_  to do it?" He nodded. "Calum," you shook your head, "I... I can't do that." He got up as well and gave you puppy dog eyes. " _No_ ," you said firmly, "That's  _not_  gonna work on me this time."

You immediately left the room and made your way back to the stage. The other boys were still waiting, rushing to you when you entered the room.

"Is he okay?" Ashton asked. You grumbled in response, taking a seat back down at the guitars. The boys looked at each other in confusion as Calum ran through the door.

"What is  _happening_?!" Michael exclaimed in frustration. Calum didn't answer him – he simply pulled out his phone again.

"He lost his voice," you muttered, setting Calum's bass on your lap so you could tune it.

" _You lost your voice_?!" Ashton shouted, "Why didn't you tell us?!"

"He thought I would play the show tonight," you said over your shoulder.

"You're gonna do it?" Luke asked.

" _No_ ," you stated, "I said he  _thought_  I would."

"Fans have been lining up outside for  _hours_ , Y/N," Ashton said uneasily, "We don't want to have to cancel the show  _now_."

"Well," you laughed dryly, "Your bass player should have thought about that  _before_  he just assumed I would be okay with going on for him."

"Y/N,  _please_?!" Michael whined, "We don't want to let everyone down!"

"I'm sorry," you shook your head, "But there is a reason I'm the guitar tech. I only go on stage during shows for  _emergencies_  and I'd like to keep it that way."

"This is  _kind of_  an emergency though..." he trailed off.

You saw out of the corner of your eye that Calum finally finished typing whatever he was typing and walked over to Ashton. He gave the drummer his phone and nudged him, motioning toward you. Ashton began reading what Calum wrote.

_I know the real reason you don't want to go out there is because you think all the fans hate you for being my girlfriend. And while some fans might say rude things about you, the family doesn't. They love you and they love how happy you make me and they defend you just as quickly as they defend any of us._

_You are one of the best guitar players I know and I want nothing more than for you to show that to the world. You have a beautiful voice that blends perfectly with the boys' and you know my parts better than anyone else._

_But if you don't do it for those reasons, please just do it for me._

You kept your head down for a moment, taking in everything Calum wrote for you. You sighed, turning in your chair and looking up at the boys. They were all giving you pleading expressions, desperately wanting to find a way they wouldn't have to cancel the show.

"I am  _only_  singing, Cal," you said, "You can still play." The boys smiled widely and Calum walked over to you. You put his bass back in its spot and stood up. Calum wrapped his arms around your waist and pulled you into him, kissing you softly.

"I love you," he mouthed after pulling away.

"You better," you mumbled, kissing him again.

~

"As you can see," Ashton said from his spot at his drums, "We have an extra member of the band today!"

"It seems as though Calum lost his voice and can't sing tonight," Luke said. The crowd awed sadly as he continued, "So – instead of one of us singing his parts – we thought it would be fun to switch things up and have his lovely girlfriend Y/N sing for him. Is that cool?" The fans cheered in response and you smiled, beginning to feel a little more comfortable – although you were sure it was just because Calum was standing right beside you.

As the boys began playing the first song,  _Good Girls_ , you began nervously tapping the microphone as you held it tightly. Calum was watching the crowd and when he noticed the girls in front row looking at you with seemingly worried looks on their faces, he looked at you as well. As his part was approaching, he moved behind you and rested his head on your shoulder, putting his face against your neck.

You instantly smiled, leaning back onto your boyfriend as you began singing, " _'Cause every night, she studies hard in her room._ "

" _At least that's what her parents assume,_ " Michael winked at you.

You rolled your eyes and laughed, " _But she sneaks out the window to meet with her boyfriend. Here's what she told me the time that I caught her._ "

Once you were relaxed again, Calum went to walk around the stage as he normally would. He watched you closely throughout the night and noticed that with every song, you would get into the music more and more. You weren't dancing around the stage or anything, but the way you sang the lyrics let Calum – and everyone else – know you were having a lot of fun.

~

You were actually  _sad_  when the show ended, honestly. You didn't expect to be that energetic and everything went a lot better than you thought it would. As soon as you all made it backstage, Calum put his bass back in its spot and wrapped his arms around you, lifting you off of the ground slightly. You let out a quiet squeak against his shoulder before laughing.

"Y/N, you were so good!" Luke said proudly, giving you a hug after Calum let go.

"Yeah," Michael laughed, "Maybe Calum should lose his voice more often." Calum made a face at his best friend – a look that Michael happily returned.

~

**Ashton**

The boys had just run on stage and finished their first song of the set. Everything was going perfectly and they were having a really good time on stage. That is, until the end of the second song. Michael was talking to the crowd when Ashton just got up and ran backstage.

The three boys up front spun around to see what was going on when the crowd started yelling about Ashton, just catching him leaving. They looked over at you in a panic and you shrugged, running after your boyfriend.

"Ash!" you called after him in a confused tone as he got to the dressing room. He immediately went for the bathroom and you heard him start throwing up not long after. You dropped down to you knees next to him, rubbing his back gently.

"Why don't you guys talk to the crowd for a bit while I go check on Ashton?" you could hear Luke tell Michael and Calum. He hurried into the room not even 30 seconds later, still carrying his guitar. "What's going on?" he asked, coming into the bathroom. You looked up at him and shrugged, giving him a small smile. "Ash," Luke said softly, "Why didn't you tell us you were sick?" Ashton sat against the wall, finally finished puking.

"I didn't want to let the fans down," he mumbled. You grabbed his hand, rubbing small circles on his knuckles.

"They would have understood, Ash," you told him, "Your health is more important to them than a rescheduled concert."

"But we can't cancel  _now_!" he whined, "We only made it through two songs!"

"Y/N could always fill in for you," Luke said with a joking tone.

"Okay," you shrugged, getting up.

"Wait, are you serious?"

"Ashton's been teaching me how to play," you informed him, "Why not put it to some use?"

"You're sure you can do it...?" he asked slowly.

"Luke!" you laughed, helping Ashton up, "I can do it." He looked at Ashton skeptically.

"If she says she can do it, she can do it," the drummer nodded.

"Alright, let's go," Luke said, leading you and Ashton back out of the room. Once you finally got to the stage, you let Ashton sit back down at his drum set to explain what was going on.

"Hey, guys," he cleared his throat as the crowd screamed, "I'm really sorry to have to say this, but I can't play the rest of the show. I'm too sick and they won't let me." He pouted slightly, making them laugh despite the fact that they were sad he couldn't finish the show. "So I was wondering if it would be okay if my girlfriend filled in for me."

" _Whoa_!" Michael shouted, holding out the word, " _Y/N's_  gonna take over?!" You smiled sweetly as you flipped him off. " _Wow_ ," he huffed, " _Rude_." The crowd laughed again while you and Ashton switched places. He went to the side of the stage to sit down so the drums didn't damage his hearing, but he was still where most of the crowd could see him.

"Hey, Y/N," Calum said, looking back at you as one of the crew members ran out to give you an extra set of in-ear monitors.

"Hi, Calum," you smiled into the microphone.

"Please don't be good, okay? We don't want to have to replace Ashton."

"No promises," you winked, causing the crowd to laugh again.

"I've gotta ask you guys something," Luke addressed the fans, "Do you think we should start off easy on her or do you think we should just jump right into it?" They started yelling in response. "Jump right into it, huh?" he smirked.

"Bring it on, Hemmings," you grinned.

You looked down at the set list by your feet and read it, breathing a quiet sigh of relief. Ashton's taught you almost half of the songs and the others, you simply knew how to play by ear.

The boys looked back at you again and you nodded as you gripped the drumsticks tightly, signalling to them that you were ready.

" _1, 2, 3, 4!_ " Calum shouted and you immediately began playing  _Try Hard_.

You – and the boys as well – could tell that the crowd was actually really impressed with your drumming. After the chorus, you could see out of the corner of your eye that you were on the big screen and you couldn't help but laugh, already knowing why.

" _She's got a rose tattoo, but she keeps it covered. I play guitar,_ " Calum sang, pointing back at you, " _But she's into drummers._ "

"Well, you're not wrong," you said into your microphone, smirking slightly. The fans cheered, looking over at Ashton. He was smiling and his cheeks were turning a light shade of red.

~

An hour later, the show was finally over. You and the boys ran off stage to where Ashton was waiting for you.

"That was  _awesome_!" Luke shouted as he nudged your arm, still in a rush, "I never knew you could play like  _that_!" You shrugged, blushing slightly.

"You were hilarious during  _Try Hard_ ," Calum added, chuckling.

"And as soon as I'm not sick anymore, I'm gonna show you exactly why you're into the drummer," Ashton smirked, pulling you into him.

"Oh, God," Michael jokingly gagged, "I think I just threw up a little bit."

~

 _Songs mentioned:_  
"She Looks So Perfect" by 5 Seconds of Summer  
"Good Girls" by 5 Seconds of Summer  
"Try Hard" by 5 Seconds of Summer

_shout out to my friend marshy for helping me with the ending of ashton's_


	129. Wherever You Are (Ashton Irwin) - Part 1

You were walking along the dirt road to your cabin after making a trip into town when you spotted someone in the distance. You tilted your head in confusion – no one ever came this far down the road much less going  _toward_  your house. You noticed the messy head of light brown curls and instantly knew who it was – and with the way he was walking and the fact that you  _never_  saw him in these woods by himself, you knew something was terribly wrong.

"Prince Ashton!" you shouted, making him spin around. He looked at you for a moment before he fell to the ground. You broke into a run and dropped to your knees when you reached him. His white shirt had small red spots all over it, so you lifted it up to find cuts all over his body and a bruise the size of your fist just below his rib cage.

You bit your inner cheek, trying to come up with some way to get Ashton back to your cabin. You would have taken him back to the castle, but that was a three day trip and you were not about to drag someone nearly twice your size down the road for three days. So you grabbed his upper arms and carefully pulled him up, quickly turning around and letting him fall against your back. You blew out some air and pulled his arms around your neck, grunting quietly as you dragged him the quarter mile back to your cabin.

When you finally made it back, you took Ashton to your bedroom and laid him down on your bed. You sat down by his feet to take a break and steady your heart rate. Once you caught your breath, you went to your kitchen to get a bowl of hot water and a washcloth so you could clean his wounds.

~

Two days had passed, still with no sign of Ashton waking up. He must have been out wandering around for hours before you found him and you figured he had to have been dehydrated and hungry because he didn't have anything with him. You were sitting at your desk, staring out your window when you heard light groaning coming from the other side of the room. You spun around.

"You're awake!" you exclaimed, yelping as you fell off of your chair. Ashton quickly sat up, immediately regretting it as he hissed in pain. You jumped up, rushing over to your bed and helping him lay back down. "You need to be careful," you told him, "I don't want to have to fix you a second time."

"Who are you? Take me back to my castle," he said.

"Not in your condition," you laughed, hurrying out of the room.

"Excuse me, I am the Prince and I  _order_   _you_  to take me back to my kingdom."

"Yeah, and I'm Y/N!" you called over your shoulder, filling a bowl up with hot water and taking it back to Ashton, "But that's not how things are gonna work right now." He had a disgruntled look on his face. "I know – surprising that someone isn't listening to you for once, isn't it, Your Highness?" you snickered, sitting next to him, "Would you mind explaining to me what happened to you?"

"Nothing happened," he muttered, "I was doing fine."

"You fell unconscious right after I yelled your name," you stated, "There are cuts all over your body, your side has got the biggest bruise I've ever seen, and honestly, I'm surprised you're not dead."

"So you know who I am?"

"Unfortunately," you nodded, "Now explain."

"Nothing happened," he repeated, "I just got lost and ran into a few old friends."

" _Old friends_ ," you snorted lightly, "Right." You took the washcloth out of the bowl of water and squeezed it. You grabbed the bottom of his shirt and started pulling up on it, only to have your hand swatted away.

"What on  _earth_  do you think you're doing?!" he exclaimed.

"You can let me clean your wounds or you can let them get infected," you paused for a moment, "Take your pick."

"I'll take my chances."

"Fine by me," you muttered, throwing the washcloth back into the bowl and putting it on your dresser. You left the room, leaving Ashton alone for a while.

~

About an hour later, Ashton heard a soft knock on the door. He looked up from one of the books he had been reading that he found on your nightstand as you came into the room. You pushed the door open with your hip as your hands were occupied with carrying a tray. Ashton watched you with his head tilted to the right slightly as you set the tray down on the bed beside him.

"Dinner is served," you said.

He looked at it for a second before asking, "What is it?"

"It's chicken," you raised your eyebrows, "Don't they cook chicken at the castle?"

"Yes, but I don't eat it."

"What, are you like, a vegetarian or something?"

"No, I just don't like it."

"Alright," you mumbled, walking back out of the room. You came back not even ten seconds with a loaf of bread. "Here," you stated, holding it out to him. He gave you a confused look.

"Don't you have anything like steak and potatoes or lobster?" he asked. You closed your eyes and took a deep breath in, letting it out slowly.

"Chicken or bread," you said with a threatening tone, " _Pick one_." He stared at you for a good five seconds before slowly reaching for the loaf of bread in your hand. He looked at it and then back up at you.

"Do you have any-" He cut himself off when you glared at him. "Never mind," he said quickly, "This is fine. Thank you."

The two of you spent the next 20 minutes eating in silence. When he was done, Ashton put the leftover bread on the tray.

"You didn't eat that much," you stated the obvious, glancing at the half loaf sitting on the bed in front of you.

"I'm not hungry," Ashton said quietly.

"Listen," you said, getting up, "I'm sorry I don't have the luxury of giving you steak or lobster, but that doesn't mean you just  _can't eat anything_. I don't know how long you were out before I found you, but you've been here almost two days and I know for a fact that you've  _got_  to be hungry."

" _Two days_?!" he shouted, "You kept me here for  _two days_?!"

"You're welcome," you rolled your eyes, grabbing the tray as well as the bowl of water on your dresser and took them back to the kitchen.

" _You're welcome_?" he repeated when you came back, "For  _what_ , keeping me here in this pigsty for two days when people from my kingdom are probably looking for me?" You slammed the bowl of freshly hot water on the nightstand and sat beside him again, making him jump.

"No, for saving your life. And given your reputation and the fact that they haven't come here yet, I think it's safe to assume  _they're not looking that hard_ ," you told him bluntly.

Ashton's expression fell as you were squeezing the water out of the washcloth. You had to admit you felt a little bad for saying it, but it was the truth; No one really liked him and you weren't going to lie and say they did. You reached for his shirt again, but he held it down.

You let out a frustrated sigh, "The sooner you let me take care you, the sooner I can take you back to your castle and we never have to see each other again."

"You're gonna take me back?" he asked, moving his hand, finally letting you examine his wounds. They were healing pretty well since you found him a couple days ago and you knew that he would be well enough to walk again by tomorrow. As soon as you put the washcloth to the cut, he hissed in pain.

"Sorry," you said under your breath, "And yes. I don't want you here just as much as you don't want to be here. With your luck, you'll end up  _dead_  if I let you go alone." You finished cleaning him up before standing once again to leave the room. "We leave in the morning," you said simply, leaving the room and closing the door behind you before he could say anything.

~

The next morning, you and Ashton set off on the three day long trip to the kingdom because you didn't have a horse and you would never be able to afford one. You were forced to carry all of the supplies since it was clear Ashton wasn't going to be helping out. But you still had a small wooden wagon from when you were younger, so it wasn't as bad as it could have been.

You had been walking all day and when sunset began approaching, you decided to set up camp for the night. You ventured off the road a bit before stopping in a field. You took out the blankets for both you and Ashton and gathered up a pile of sticks, telling him to start a fire.

"You want  _me_ to start the fire?" he asked, a confused look on his face. You nodded and he sat down at the pile and took a moment before he picked up two sticks and started rubbing them together.

You tilted your head, "You know you can just use-"

"I know how to start a fire, Y/N," Ashton cut you off.

"Sure, you do," you muttered, leaving to go collect more sticks. When you returned, a fire still hadn't been started. "Come on," you put your hand on your hip, "It's not that hard."

" _I'll get it_ ," he said in a frustrated mumble. You rolled your eyes, laying the sticks beside him and walking away again. When you came back with a handful of leaves a few minutes later, Ashton was still trying to start the fire. You sighed quietly and sat down beside him.

"How's ' _getting it_ ' going for you so far?" you asked.

" _Shut up_ ," he growled lowly. The sun was close to setting and you knew you didn't have much time left.

"Just let me do it," you said, taking the two sticks out of his hands. He started grumbling to himself as he watched you put the leaves in a small pile and a few small twigs on top. "Give me your glasses," you told him, holding your hand out.

Ashton reluctantly took them off and handed them to you, leaning closer so he could see what you were doing. His chin was practically resting on your shoulder as you held the glasses up by the brush pile, hoping you hadn't lost your window of sunlight. You gasped once you started seeing smoke.

"Come on," you whispered, "Come on, come on, come on." A small flame suddenly ignited the leaves and you squeaked, " _Yes_!" giving him his glasses back and feeding the fire with more sticks. Once you had a suitable fire going, you looked at Ashton again as you got up, "Should I ask you to help catch dinner or do you not know how to do that either?"

He narrowed his eyes at you and got up as well, following you toward the river that wasn't far from your campsite. You stood there for a moment, staring into the water. You slipped off your boots and held up your dress as you stepped into the river. Ashton watched you, not moving at all, as you quickly snatched a fish that was swimming by.

"Here, take this," you said, turning and holding the fish out to Ashton.

"You want me to hold  _that thing_?" he asked, a disgusted look on his face.

"You can either hold it or catch your own dinner."

He walked over to the water and you climbed out. You grabbed your boots and took them back to the campsite, not wanting to put them back on yet. You set the fish in the frying pan you brought along with you and were about to start cooking it when you heard a loud yelp. You quickly stuffed your feet into your shoes and ran back to the river, finding Ashton lying in the middle of it.

"If you wanted to go for a swim before we ate, you should have just said so," you said, trying desperately not to laugh. Ashton glared at you as you rushed over to help him up. You grabbed his hand and pulled him back to his feet. "Look on the bright side," you shrugged when you noticed a fish in his other hand, "At least you caught one." He glared at you again before trudging back to the fire. You let yourself smile as you followed him.

You cooked dinner for yourself and Ashton and the two of you ate before deciding to go to bed. Ashton's clothes were still soaked, but he refused to take them off to let them dry. He was shivering as he pulled his blanket over his body, but it was obvious he was trying to be subtle about it.

~

"Where did you learn to do all that?" Ashton asked quietly about 20 minutes later as you two were lying by the fire. Neither of you could fall asleep and it seemed as though the silence was killing him.

"All of what?" you turned your head to look at him.

"Everything," he shrugged, staring up at the stars, "You can start fires in less than 10 seconds, you can catch fish with your bare hands, and it seems like you know these woods better than anyone else. I'm curious as to how you learned to do all of it."

"My father used to take me camping with him and my brothers all the time when I was younger, so I learned a thing or two about the wilderness."

"And they just let you go?" he asked in shock, finally looking at you. "Girls aren't allowed to do any of that stuff in my kingdom."

"I found my way around it," you laughed lightly, "But things are a little more lenient about what girls can and can't do where I live."

"Do you think you could teach me some of that stuff?" he asked shyly. You propped yourself up on your forearm, facing him.

"You really  _don't_  know what you're doing out here, do you?" He started biting his inner cheek.

"Everything is always done for me," he mumbled, "I've never had to know how to start a fire or catch a fish; I don't even know how to navigate this forest on my own. How do you think I got lost in the first place? I'd been walking around for  _hours_  before you found me. Nobody thinks I'll last as king. Everyone loves my mum and when they found out she couldn't continue being queen after my dad left, it was obvious they weren't thrilled about it because they know  _I'm_  the one who will take over."

"Ashton...' you whispered, shaking your head slowly, "You don't have to tell me all this..."

"I just want them to  _like me_ , Y/N," he choked, "I don't want to let them down."

You watched him for a moment. Although the light from the fire was very dim, you could still tell he was trying not to cry. You took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, gathering up your blanket in your arms and crawling over to him. You laid back down beside him and threw your blanket over the two of you.

"What are you doing?" he asked, suddenly nervous at how close you were to him.

"Keeping you warm," you stated, "You're gonna get sick if you don't use more than one blanket and body heat is the best way to stay warm on nights like this."

"Body heat doesn't do much good unless you're closer," he trailed off. You looked up at him and he was still staring at the stars. You smiled slightly at his attempt to flirt with you and wiggled over to him so that you were almost touching.

"Feeling warmer yet?" you asked. He nodded, knowing that if he spoke, you would realize just how nervous you made him.

After a few minutes, you heard him take a breath.

"So what's your kingdom like?" he asked, finally looked at you.

"I don't live in a kingdom," you said, rolling on your back.

"How do you  _not_  live in a kingdom? Everyone lives in a kingdom."

"Not me."

"Come on," he yawned, "I told you about me – now I wanna know about you."

"Go to sleep, Ashton," you said under your breath.

"But-"

"Go to sleep," you repeated, "We'll save my story for when we leave in the morning."

"Promise?" You nodded. "Say you promise."

"I promise, Ashton," you sighed, "Now go to sleep." Soon enough, the two of you had drifted off to sleep with the light crackling of the fire as your lullaby.

~

A few hours later, Ashton was the first to wake up. At some point throughout the night, you ended up with your head on his chest and your arm laying across his stomach. His heart skipped a beat and he couldn't help but think about how peaceful you looked when you slept. He had to restrain himself from playing with your hair, knowing there was a good chance it would wake you up.

He did, however, lift your arm up and put it back to your side before carefully moving so your head was no longer on his chest, despite the fact that he really didn't want to. He didn't want you to keep apologizing for sleeping on him like that when he knew there was absolutely nothing to be sorry for.

Ashton quietly sneaked away from your campsite and walked to the river where you two had caught last night's dinner. He was determined to prove he could do something right and if that meant trying to catch breakfast for the two of you, then he wasn't leaving until he did.

~

You woke up about 20 minutes later, seeing that Ashton was no longer next to you. You quickly propped yourself up on your forearms and looked around, thinking he wandered off and got lost again, but you were relieved when you saw him sitting at the fire. He was putting more sticks on the pile as he looked up at you.

"Good morning," Ashton smiled.

"Morning," you mumbled, sitting up and rubbing your eyes, "How long have you been awake?"

"Not very long."

You looked at what he was doing and saw him holding the frying pan above the fire with two fish in it. Your eyes widened as you returned your gaze toward him, knowing the fire you started last night would have been out by the time he woke up. He was watching what he was doing, but you could see a smile start pulling at the corners of his mouth.

"You caught those?" you asked. He nodded. "And you started a fire?" He nodded again. You crawled up behind him and threw your arms around his neck, "I'm so  _proud of you_ , Ashton!" You felt him tense up and quickly let go of him. "Sorry..." you whispered, moving back.

"Are you really proud of me?" he asked, looking back at you.

"Yeah!" you nodded, "You went from not knowing how to do anything for yourself to catching two fish and starting a fire all within less than eight hours. That's pretty impressive."

He smiled slightly again, "No one's ever said they were proud of me before." You looked at him for a moment before resting your chin on his shoulder.

"Well, I am, Ash," you said.

" _Ash_?"

"I, uh, I..." you stumbled on your words, moving to sit beside him instead, "I mean Ashton..." He looked at you and you were staring at your hands, doing everything to keep yourself from making eye contact.

"You're cute when you're nervous," Ashton said, leaning over and kissing your cheek.

"I'm not nervous," you shivered lightly.

"Sure, you're not," he smirked. His lips lingered on your skin as he whispered, "I could get used to you calling me Ash." You started coughing, shuffling away from him and hopping to your feet.

"I... I should go, uh, make sure that the, uh, that the river isn't f-flooding," you stuttered, running toward the river. Ashton bit his lip and smiled as he watched you disappear behind the trees.

Once he took the fish off of the fire, Ashton made his way to the river to tell you it was time to eat. He was walking pretty quietly and as he approached where you were, he could hear you talking to yourself.

" _Make sure the_ river isn't flooding?!" you exclaimed in a whisper, " _Y/N, you are such an_ idiot!" You sighed, pushing the dirt around with your foot, "It's  _not like you have a_ chance _anyway. You_ can't _fall in love with a prince_ –  _you_ can't _fall in love with someone who's way too good for you_."

Ashton's heart dropped at hearing you say that. In all honesty, he thought  _you_  were too good for  _him_. You were obviously  _far better_  at taking care of yourself. You were the most selfless person he'd ever met as was proven to him by the way you took him in and kept him safe without a second thought. You were beautiful inside and out and the fact that he was a prince didn't matter to you; You liked him for  _him_  – not his  _status_  – and that was something Ashton had a hard time finding in a girl.

Ashton backtracked a few steps before making his was to you. He stepped louder than usual so you wouldn't know he'd been listening. You jumped when you heard his voice from behind you.

"How's the river looking?" he asked.

You spun around, "Oh, it's... It's looking good."

He smiled at you, "The fish are done if you want to come eat." You nodded, keeping your head down as you walked past him. Ashton sighed quietly, replaying what he heard you telling yourself over and over in his head.

~

"So..." Ashton trailed off as you two started walking down the road when you were finished eating.

"I ran away," you said, already knowing what he was leading up to asking. "I used to live in your kingdom when I was younger, but no one liked the fact that I was well-educated female. They made fun of the way I looked and acted and thought, so one day, I decided enough was enough and I ran away."

"You used to live in my kingdom?" Ashton said quietly, "But I thought you said the people in your town weren't so judgmental."

"I was born not too long after you," you shrugged, "And it's easy not to be judgmental when it's only you."

"You live by yourself? Doesn't that get...you know...lonely?"

"I've been managing."

"But you don't have any friends or anything? What about your parents and your brothers? I'm sure they're worried about you."

You laughed bitterly, "They couldn't care  _less_  about me. The only reason my dad ever took me camping in the first place was because I was that brat that screamed and cried about it until he agreed. My mother  _hated_  the fact that I didn't want to be a seamstress like her. All I wanted to do was play outside and learn new things. So when I was 18, I ran away and I've been living on my own ever since."

"You've been living on your own for  _3 years_?" he asked in shock.

"It's not that hard, Ashton," you said, "The hardest part was just finding a house to live in."

"So how did you come about living in the one you do now?"

"I was exploring the forest one day and found it. It wasn't the greatest looking place, but it was abandoned and worked for me. I managed to get a job at the bakery in a town nearby where women are allowed to have jobs so I could pay to fix it up and survive living on my own. It's not the life I ever  _imagined_  having, but it's the life I have and I'm making the most of it."

"What kind of life  _did you_  imagine having then?" he asked. You smiled at how Ashton genuinely seemed to want to get to know you.

"I guess I always saw myself as the owner of my own book store or maybe a professional football player; You know, all those things girls  _aren't_  allowed to do," you giggled quietly.

"You play football?" he asked with a small smile, raising his eyebrows.

"Kind of," you shrugged, "It's kinda hard playing by yourself, but I like to think I'm pretty good at it."

"I'm a bit of a football player myself, you know. You'll just have to prove it to me sometime," he said, nudging your arm with his elbow.

"How about right now?" you smirked.

"You brought a ball with you?" he asked in amusement. You pulled your wagon to the side of the road and dug around, pulling out your soccer ball. "Oh my God," he laughed loudly, "You  _actually_  brought a ball with you!"

"I'm always prepared for boredom, Ashton," you stated, "Or an impromptu challenge."

"First to five goals wins?"

"What did you have in mind?"

"Loser cooks dinner?"

"And the winner?"

"I'm sure it won't take too long for me to come up with my prize," he said, hitting the bottom of the ball in your hands and catching it, taking it to the open field.

"We'll see about that,  _Your Highness_ ," you grinned, trotting after him. You made makeshift goals by shoving four large branches into the ground and began the game.

~

The score was 4-4 which meant the next goal would win. Ashton was certainly giving you a run for your money, but not having played against anyone before, you discovered you were a lot better at the game than you thought you were.

Ashton had the ball and with a completely open field, you knew he was going to win unless you hurried. You quickly chased after him, running in front of him and stealing the ball just as he was about to kick it in the goal.

You squeaked as you ran back down the field. He had almost reached you when you kicked the ball as hard as you could, sending it right through the middle of the goal. You threw your arms up as Ashton crashed into you, picking you up and throwing you over his shoulder.

"That was pretty impressive, I must say," he laughed as he went to retrieve the ball.

"Thank you," you smiled breathlessly.

"You have until after dinner to come up with your prize." You could hear his smile.

"I can't wait to see what you'll be preparing for me this evening," you teased as he put you back down and picked up the ball.

"I'll be preparing  _you_  if you don't watch it," he said, pushing you lightly.

"Cannibalism is never the answer, Ashton," you replied, ruffling his hair before running back toward your wagon.

"Hey! This hair is government property!" he shouted, running after you. Just before you made it to your wagon, you saw your soccer ball bounce past you. You let out a loud squeal as Ashton's arms wrapped around your waist, spinning you around.

"But it's so  _soft_!" you whined as your feet hit the ground again, trying your best not to smile.

"So is yours," he chuckled, grabbing a chunk of your hair and tossing it at your face.

You stuck out your bottom lip, making Ashton smile as he pushed the hair back off of your face. His hand lingered on your cheek for a moment before he brought it back down to his side.

"I'm gonna go see if there's a river nearby," he said, hurrying off.

You shuddered lightly, putting your soccer ball back in the wagon. You still felt the burning sensation of Ashton touching your skin, desperately trying to shake it off, while you began to gather sticks for a fire.

~

The sun had almost set by the time you finished eating, so the two of you just decided to set up camp in the middle of your soccer field for the night. You were currently sitting in a tree, watching the sunset, when Ashton came over.

"Well," he said, looking up at you, "It's now or never; What's your prize?" You leaned your head back against the tree, thinking for a moment. "Have you come up with one yet?" he asked after about a minute of silence. You nodded slowly, pushing yourself off of the branch and landing in front of him. "And what do you want for winning?" You looked at him and bit your lip.

"You," you stated quietly.

"M- _Me_?" he choked.

He didn't say anything for what seemed like hours to you, so you simply began walking back to the fire so you could go to sleep. But you felt a gentle grab on your hand, turning you back around. Ashton was breathing shakily as he stared into your eyes.

"Can I kiss you?" he mumbled.

"If you don't make the first move, I will," you whispered. Ashton slowly put his hand on your cheek, barely touching you. He hesitated for a moment and you couldn't take it anymore.

You put your hand on the back of his neck and pulled his head to yours, pressing your lips against his. You felt him smile as you put your other arm on his shoulder and he snaked his own arms around your waist, pulling you as close to him as you could get.

~

After you had woken up the next morning, you and Ashton set off on the final two hour walk back to the kingdom. It was all bittersweet for you, honestly. You didn't want to leave him, but you knew it had to be done.

He was to be crowned King in less than a month and you were just a commoner – a poor girl who lived by herself in a less-than-lavish wooden cabin in the middle of the woods. You couldn't be seen with Ashton as anything more than someone he'd just met in passing.

"Y/N," you heard Ashton say, bringing you out of your thoughts. You looked at him. "You okay?"

"Yeah," you said a little too quickly, "I'm fine."

"Why are you lying?"

"I'm not lying," you said defensively, "I said I'm fine."

"Y/N." The sound of Ashton saying your name made your knees weak.

"I'm fine," you whispered, desperately trying to hide the fact that your voice had cracked.

"I heard you talking to yourself yesterday," Ashton admitted, grabbing your arm gently and making you stop. "When you were down by the river."

Your eyes widened slightly, "You heard that?"

He nodded, "And I think you've got it all wrong." You have him a confused stare. "I'm not too good for you, Y/N; You're way too good for  _me_."

"Ashton-"

"How good for someone can a future king be if nobody likes him?" Ashton said, looking down and his hands.

" _I_  like you, Ash," you said quietly, taking his face in your hands and making him look back up at you.

"Are you  _sure_  you have to take me back to the castle?" he asked quietly.

"What do you mean?"

"When we get there," he replied sadly, "You're gonna leave and I'll never see you again."

"Ash-" He cut you off again.

"I won't ever see you again, Y/N," he said, covering your hands with his, "Once I get back, everyone is going to be watching me like a hawk and I'll never be allowed to leave the castle again." His eyes started watering as he choked, "I don't want you to leave me."

"Everything's gonna be fine, Ashton," you said softly, wiping his cheeks with your thumbs.

"How do you know?"

"I don't," you answered honestly, "But we'll figure it out." You pulled his face to yours, pressing your lips to his slowly. He relaxed as you kissed him, knowing that no matter what happened, you still wanted him as much as he wanted you.

~

Two hours later, Ashton's kingdom was finally in sight. You let out a sigh of relief, making Ashton look at you.

"My feet are killing me," you whined. He laughed quietly, stopping.

"Hop on," he motioned to his back.

You gladly did so and Ashton carried you, as well as pulled your wagon, the rest of the way to the castle. You buried your face in his neck as he smiled politely at everyone that looked at the two of you.

Once you reached the steps of the castle, you slid off of Ashton's back. Ashton moved your wagon over to the side beside a bush and took your hand.

"Why am I going with you?" you asked. You looked up at the castle doors just in time to see the guard's eyes widen as he rushed inside. You just shrugged it off.

"Your feet hurt," he stated simply, "You need to rest. Then I'm going to see if one of our guards will take you back home."

"Thanks, Ash," you smiled, laying your head on his shoulder. Once you entered the castle, Ashton began taking you down a hallway. It wasn't long until someone realized he had returned.

"Ashton!" the Queen exclaimed as she ran out of a room with two guards, "You're okay!"

"I'm fine, Mum," Ashton said, letting go of your hand as she ran to him, hugging her son tightly. You backed up to give them a little bit of room.

"I have been worried  _sick_ , young man! What were you  _thinking_?! You know you can't just go off into the woods  _alone_  like that!"

" _Mum_ ," Ashton mumbled, becoming embarrassed with you standing there. You smiled as you watched them, glad you were able to bring him back to her in one piece.

However, you were startled when you felt someone grab your arm. You squeaked quietly, looking over and seeing one of the guards.

"Can I help you?" you asked, trying to shake him off of you.

"You're under arrest for kidnapping the Prince," the guard stated dryly.

" _Good one_ ," you laughed. He didn't answer, he simply began dragging you away from Ashton. "Whoa, whoa, whoa!" you said, "You  _seriously_  think I kidnapped him?! Why the hell would I have brought him  _back_?!"

"Change of heart?" the guard chuckled plainly, "But no matter the reason for bringing him back, you're still going to prison."

" _Y/N_!" Ashton shouted. He tried to follow you, but the other guard had grabbed him, holding him back. He watched as the guard forcefully yanked your arm, pulling you along with him. " _Hey_!" he shouted, " _Don't do that to her_!"

When you were more than halfway down the hall, Ashton was finally able to wiggle out of the guard's grasp and run down the hall toward you with his mother following close behind.

" _Prison_?! What do you mean  _prison_?!" you yelled, pulling your arm out of the guard's hand, "I didn't do anything wrong!"

The guard spun around as you stumbled backwards. He tried to grab you again, but Ashton got to you first. He grabbed your hips and pulled you away from the guard, moving in front of you. You instantly wrapped your arms around his waist and pressed your face into the back of his shoulder as he covered your arms with his own.

The look on his face was one you had never seen before. He was angry, but he was calm about the situation. To everyone else, Ashton simply looked like a prince protecting his princess.

"Prince," the guard said sternly, "Let me take this criminal to where she belongs."

"No, Cardin," Ashton stated.

"Your Highness-"

"The only place she belongs is  _with me_." You couldn't help but smile, happy your face was hidden in Ashton's back.

"Ashton," the Queen said carefully, taking small steps toward her son. Ashton turned to face his mother.

"She  _saved my life_ , Mum!" he exclaimed, "I would be  _dead_  if it weren't for her! She only kept me with her for so long because I was unconscious! She was just taking care of me!" She was about to respond when you interrupted.

"Ashton!" you cried, holding onto him tighter. He spun back to see Cardin had grabbed for you again.

" _Stop touching her_!" Ashton yelled, pulling you away from him for the second time.

"She didn't bring him back right away!" Cardin exclaimed, looking at the Queen, "She needs to be locked up!"

"Were you not listening to  _anything_  I just said?!  _I was unconscious_!"

"Ashton," the Queen said, "Will you please wait for me in your bedroom?"

"I'm not leaving her, Mum. I know what's going to happen if I do."

"Then take her with you," she replied calmly, her tone menacing.

Ashton quickly turned to fully face Cardin so that he was in between the two of you and moved around him, pulling your arms off of his waist. He held your hand tightly as he made it to the other side of the guard and made a break for it, running down the long hallway as he pulled you with him.

He opened a door at the end of the hallway and took you in, quickly closing it behind him as he let go of your hand. He turned back to you and took one look at you before pulling you into him. He let go of you and sat down on his bed, patting the spot next to him. You sat beside him with your legs over his and your head on his shoulder, anxiously waiting for his mother.

A few heart pounding minutes later, there was a knock on Ashton's door, making you jump. You whined quietly and pressed your face into Ashton's neck, wrapping your arms around his waist as he did the same with you.

"I don't wanna go to jail, Ashton," you cried quietly, "I was just trying to help you..." Ashton took in a shaky breath when he felt your tears falling down his skin.

"I'm not gonna let anything happen to you, Y/N," he muttered, kissing your head, "You kept me safe and now I'm gonna protect you, okay?" You hugged him tighter as he called out, "Come in!"

The Queen entered the room, immediately seeing how you and Ashton were sitting. He began nervously rubbing small circles on your shoulder while she closed the door behind her. She walked over to Ashton's desk and grabbed the chair, pulling it over in front of you. She put the chair a few feet away from the bed and sat down.

"Your coronation is just three weeks away, Ashton," the Queen said after watching you two for a moment, "This isn't  _exactly_  the way you want to start out ruling."

"What do you mean by  _that_?" he shook his head, "They're trying to put her in prison for  _what_ , taking me to her house so I didn't die at the side of the road? Keeping me there for a couple days while she helped me get better? I'm lucky she's the one that found me, Mum! Someone else could have found me and killed me, but she made sure I was safe and she made the three day walk to bring me back! Why would they put her  _away_  for that?" She looked at you for a moment.

"What's your name, dear?" she asked softly. You lifted your head off of Ashton's shoulder.

"Y/N," you sniffled, wiping your face.

"You understand how this looks to them, don't you?"

"Yes, but what was I supposed to  _do_?!" your bottom lip began trembling, "He was unconscious for  _two days_  and I couldn't  _drag him_  all the way here  _by myself_! I didn't kidnap him, I  _swear_ – I just didn't want anything to happen to him! I was just trying to help!" Ashton immediately pulled you closer to him to calm you back down. His mother took a quiet, shaky breath in, but didn't show it.

"Ashton, may I have a word with you?" the Queen glanced at you before looking back at her son, " _Outside_."

"O-Okay," Ashton nodded as she stood up. He followed suit, turning back to you as she walked out of the room. You looked up at him with a panicked expression. He took your face in his hands and whispered, "It's gonna be okay." You nodded although you didn't believe him and he kissed you before he left the room.

The five minutes it took before you heard anything felt like several hours. You wanted to believe Ashton, but you knew what the officials in this kingdom were like; They were stubborn and ruthless and they were going to do everything they could to put you behind bars.

"Y/N!" you heard the Queen call, signalling for you to come out of Ashton's bedroom.

You slowly opened the door and poked your head out into the hallway. The Queen, Ashton, and the two guards were standing a little way down the hallway. She motioned for you to come over. You shyly made your way down the hall to them. Your pace quickened as you walked past the guards, afraid one of them would grab for you again. You let out a relieved sigh when they didn't, running into Ashton and wrapping your arms around his waist. He put one arm around your shoulders and the other held your waist. He kissed the side of your head and it was in that moment that you realized Ashton had no idea what was about to happen either.

"Cardin," the Queen addressed the guard as Ashton squeezed you. "I want you and Vianelli to escort Y/N back home," Your heart dropped and you let out the breath you were holding.

"Mum-" Ashton started before she held her hand up, cutting him off.

"She'll need help packing her things and moving them back here to the castle." Yours and Ashton's eyes widened.

"I'm sorry," you shook your head, "C-Could you repeat that?"

She smiled at you, "I would like to formally invite you to move in with us."

"But...why?"

"Ashton told me your story." You looked up at him and he avoided eye contact with you, afraid you were mad that he told her about your situation. "And I want to thank you in the best way I can," she continued, "Not many people would have done what you did for my son."

"Oh, your highness, thank you so much, but... I can't accept that," you shook your head, "Isn't there a house I could live in instead?"

"You don't want to stay here?" Ashton asked quietly, his voice breaking.

"I would love to, Ash," you said, "But the castle is for the royal family and their staff. It wouldn't be right."

"Then we will make you an honorary royal family member," the queen said.

"But I-"

"And I won't take no for an answer," she said with a serious tone, but it was clear she was trying not to smile. You sighed.

"Okay," you nodded. You could practically hear Ashton smile.

"Excellent!" she beamed, "I'll have one of the stablemen prepare a horse for you so you and the guards can return home to gather your belongings."

"Would it be okay if-"

"Yes," she laughed lightly, "Ashton may go with you."

"Oh!" Ashton exclaimed, "Can I show her something before we leave?"

She nodded, "Show her to her bedroom as well as around the castle." He grabbed your hand and began pulling you back down the hallway.

"That will be your room," he pointed to the door across from his, "But we'll come back and look at that later."

"Where are we going  _right now_  then?" you asked, your legs struggling to keep up with him.

"You'll see," he grinned, pulling you down up the stairs.

You turned right when you got to the top and saw a large door at the end of the hall. You stopped at the door and Ashton let go of your hand.

"Close your eyes," he instructed. You raised your eyebrows at him. "Just trust me," he smiled. You shrugged slightly and shut your eyes.

Ashton waved his hand in front of your face to make sure you weren't peeking before he opened the door. He took your hands and led you into the room.

"Can I open them yet?" you asked when he had you stop walking.

"Hold on," he said as he let go of your hands. A few seconds later, he smiled, "Okay!  _Now_!" You opened your eyes and your jaw dropped. You were in a room with floor to ceiling bookshelves overflowing with books.

"Oh my God," you mumbled to yourself, turning around to look at the entire room. " _Ashton_!" you squealed happily, spinning back to face him, "It's going to take me the rest of  _my life_  to read all of these!"

"I guess that means you'll have to stay with me  _forever_  then, huh?" he smiled sheepishly, walking to you and resting his hands on your hips, pulling you closer. You giggled, lightly taking his jaw in your hands and kissing his nose.

"Thank you, Ash," you said quietly.

"Thank  _you_ , Y/N," Ashton whispered, pressing your lips together.

~

_inspiration: the prince!5sos series by http://my-imagines-moonlight53.tumblr.com/_

 


	130. Wherever You Are (Ashton Irwin) - Part 2

"This is everything?" Cardin asked you as you came back outside. You had spent the last half an hour packing up your things. You obviously didn't have much, so you weren't even bothering to stay overnight.

"I'm poor and live on my own, remember?" you said, putting a box into the half-filled wagon Cardin's horse was attached to.

"My apologies, Miss Y/N," he bowed.

"Do you have to do that?" you whined quietly, "Miss Y/N, I can do, but  _please_  don't bow. I'm not  _actually_  royalty, you know."

"I understand," he nodded, "The Prince is the same way. He hates the formalities almost as much as he hates wearing his crown."

"He hates wearing his crown?" You watched Ashton and Vianelli come outside with the last of your things, focusing on the crown on Ashton's head. "I think it looks good on him," you smiled to yourself as he made his way over.

"Well, that's the last of it," he said, putting the box in the wagon. He looked at you and raised his eyebrows. "Why are you smiling at me like that?"

"No reason," you shrugged, skipping to Ashton's horse.

Ashton insisted that you only take three horses – the two for the guards and one for you and Ashton – so the stableman didn't have so much work, but you knew it was just because he wanted a reason for you to hold onto him. You carefully, but effortlessly, got onto the horse, having to sit sideways because of your dress.

"What are you doing?" Ashton chuckled, climbing on after you.

"I'm sitting on your horse, duh," you said jokingly.

"In _front_  of me?"

"Do you know how difficult it is to sit this way on a horse  _behind you_?" you replied dramatically, "I could almost fall off... _again_."

"Oh," he nodded, "Well, I'm not gonna let that happen." He put his left arm around your waist and let his right arm rest on your thighs, taking the reign in his hands.

"My hero," you rolled your eyes, kissing the corner of his mouth.

"Come on, Y/N," he pouted, "You can do better than that."

"The guards are right there, Ash," you giggled quietly.

"They'll get over it," he smirked, pressing his lips to yours.

"Are we ready to go, Your Highness?" Cardin asked as he climbed onto his horse, smiling and shaking his head at the two of you. You laughed against Ashton's lips before pulling away, laying your head on his shoulder.

"You're killing me, Cardin," Ashton said as he kissed the top of your head, but you could hear his smile.

"Just want to get back before your mother starts to worry, Ashton," he laughed.

~

Once you arrived back at the gates of the kingdom a few hours later, Ashton began hearing light snoring. He looked down at you and saw you had fallen asleep. He smiled as you all came to stop at the castle stairs. He carefully swung his leg around and – making sure he had a firm hold on you – slid off his horse, managing to land on his feet without waking you up.

"I'll come back to help bring her things in in a few minutes," Ashton told the guards.

"We've got it, Ashton," Cardin said quietly, "You just take care of her."

He nodded, "You can bring it all to her room. She's a pretty heavy sleeper, so she shouldn't wake up." He took you into the castle and to your bedroom, lying you down. He pulled your boots off and set them on the floor at the foot of your bed. He pulled the blanket over you and kissed your forehead before leaving the room.

Despite Cardin telling Ashton he didn't need to help, he still went back out anyway. There weren't that many boxes and he didn't want them to have to make two trips. After they had put all the boxes in the corner of your room, they left to get some sleep of their own.

~

The next morning, you woke up to the sun shining on your face. You groaned quietly, sitting up and rubbing your eyes. You looked around the room, taking it all in. You were now living in the castle you'd always seen from your bedroom window growing up. It was crazy that just one simple decision to help someone out had changed your  _entire life_.

You got up, quickly made the bed, and decided to go through your things before heading to the dining hall for breakfast. The only things you really had were photos, old clothes that didn't even fit you anymore, and your decent sized collection of books.

As you were putting your books on the bookshelf, there was a knock on your door.

"Come in!" you said over your shoulder. The door opened, but whoever was there didn't say anything right away. You heard them walk over by your bed and stand there for a few seconds.

"That one is my favorite," you heard Ashton say. You turned around and found him looking at the photos of you from your childhood that you had sitting on your nightstand. You walked over to see which one he was talking about. There were multiple photos there, but only one that you knew stood out to him.

"Why am I not surprised?" you giggled, looking at the photo of you in a princess costume when you were about seven.

"Maybe you really are my princess," he said, wrapping his arm around your waist and kissing your cheek. You couldn't help but blush. He smiled, "Do you want some breakfast?" Before you could even blink, your stomach started growling. "I guess that answers that," he chuckled, taking your hand and leading you to the dining hall.

"Good morning, Y/N," the queen grinned as you and Ashton entered the room.

"Good morning, Your Highness," you smiled politely as Ashton pulled out the chair across from her for you before taking his seat next to you.

"You can call me Anne, dear," she smiled before motioning to the two other people sitting at the table, "These are my other kids, Lauren and Harry. Kids, this is Y/N."

" _Finally_!" Lauren sighed, "A girl my age!"

" _A girl_?" Harry whined, making you laugh.

"Hey," Ashton said, nudging his younger brother, "She may be a girl, but she can kick your butt in a game of football."

"You play  _football_?" Harry asked, his eyes wide, "I didn't think girls were allowed to play football."

"I'm also really into books," you whispered, "Don't tell anyone."

"You like to read?" Lauren asked hopefully, "I don't have anyone around here to talk about books with! Ashton and Harry always spend their time in the courtyard playing football."

You smiled at her, "How about the next time they're doing that, we hang out in the library?"

She grinned widely as she looked at her brother, "She's mine now, Ashton."

"I should have expected this," he sighed jokingly, holding your hand on his lap.

~

A couple hours later, you and Lauren were reading in library while Ashton and Harry were outside. You had found a book about other places and cultures and were so immersed in it that you barely heard Lauren speaking.

"Sorry?" you asked, looking up from the book. Lauren simply laughed lightly.

"It's nice to finally meet someone – a girl especially – that loves books as much as I do," she told you.

"I know the feeling," you smiled, "Every time I went into town back home, I would always make sure to stop by the bookstore. When I left with a book, people would look at me like I was the craziest person they'd ever seen." You shook your head, laughing at the memory, "The owner would send me home with a new book every time and I never seemed to read the same one twice, but when I did, he would just tell me to keep it. Books are my escape, you know?"

"I wish I could live in books," she nodded. You nodded in agreement and there were a few more minutes of silence.

"You know," you said randomly, "This is the first time I've really spent time with someone before – besides Ashton, obviously."

"Really?" Lauren asked, tilting her head.

"Yeah... I'm so used to doing everything alone."

"Being alone is no way to live your life, Y/N," she told you, "Yeah, being alone is nice sometimes when you need to get away, but it's not always what's best for you – especially mentally."

"You're telling me," you muttered, closing your book and putting it on the table in front of you. Lauren looked at you for a moment, her eyes scanning over you.

"I hope you don't mind me asking, but weren't you wearing that yesterday? I saw Ashton carrying you inside after you got back and it looks like the same dress."

"Oh," you cleared your throat nervously, "Yeah... It's all I have that fits me..." She perked up, putting her book away and taking your hand, pulling you out of the library. "People in this castle sure do like pulling me everywhere, don't they?" you squeaked.

"As a girl, I cannot simply stand around and allow you to only have one dress," she said. She stopped at a door and knocked.

"Come in!" you heard from the other side. The woman – who couldn't have been older than 26 – looked up as Lauren opened the door. "Hello, Lauren," she smiled.

"Hi, Maggie!" Lauren returned the gesture, "You've heard of Y/N, right?"

"Oh, yes!" she exclaimed, "It's very nice to meet you, dear."

"Well, it would seem as though she's only got this one dress-" The Princess motioned toward your body, "-and I was wondering if you have time to make her some new ones."

"Of course!" Maggie chirped, taking her measuring tape out of the desk drawer and coming over to you, "I'll just need to get your measurements." You nodded and let her do what she needed to.

"Lauren!" you heard the queen call from the hallway.

"You'll be fine, won't you, Y/N?" Lauren asked. You smiled, letting her know she was okay to leave and she trotted out of the room to see what her mother wanted.

"Come here, Y/N," Maggie said, nodding toward her desk as she sat down in her chair. You followed her and sat on the trunk under the window. "What did you have in mind for your dresses?"

"I hadn't really thought about it, to be honest," you said sheepishly, "I mean, Lauren just told me about getting some made for me a couple minutes ago."

"Typical Lauren," she giggled quietly, "Alright, what would you like the length to be?"

"Oh," you said, standing up. "Something like this," you gestured toward your legs, "I'm not too keen on dresses that drag on the ground. Plus, my boots make me nearly an inch taller." Maggie nodded as she started sketching.

"There are some books on the shelf over there if you want to have a look to see what kind of top you would like."

You walked over and grabbed a couple of them, taking them back to the trunk so you could sit down. Maggie waited patiently for you to find something you liked, but she didn't have to wait too long.

"I really like this one," you smiled, turning the book toward her as you pointed at the photo. She quickly drew a rough sketch of the top with the skirt before showing you the result. "That looks beautiful," you gushed.

"Now for the most important part," Maggie grinned, "What color?" You let out a breath, thinking for a moment.

"Ever since I was little, people always told me I looked best in darker colors," you shrugged.

~

You and Maggie spent the next couple hours making a dark blue dress for you. She taught you how to sew certain fabrics and advised you that there was no such thing as too much sparkle. Honestly, you were having a lot of fun. It was amazing to discover that you wanted to sew now that your mother wasn't constantly at your throat about it.

When the dress was complete, Maggie helped you put it on.

"Moment of truth," she sighed dramatically, "Ready?"

"Ready," you nodded. She stepped out of the way of the mirror, letting you see yourself in the dress. You almost instantly smiled at your reflection.

You never really saw yourself as a very pretty girl – you thought there was always someone else that was prettier – but looking at yourself now, you knew you were wrong. Sure, there were thousands of pretty girls out there, but that didn't mean you weren't pretty too. It was amazing what a new dress could do.

"What do you think?" Maggie asked, although she already knew the answer by your reaction.

"I've never looked more like a girl in my life," you laughed, "I love it. Thank you."

"Hey, Maggie," you heard Ashton saying as he walked toward the room, "Have you seen-" He cut himself off as he walked into the room and saw you. " _Wow_ ," he whispered, looking at you from head to toe. You smiled again, blushing as you looked down. "You've outdone yourself yet again, Maggie," he said, walking over to you.

"I don't think I can take all the credit, Ashton," Maggie smiled, "Y/N designed it; All I did was sew the fabric together."

"Well, it looks beautiful," Ashton took your hand and lifted it up, bringing it up to his lips and kissing it, "Almost as beautiful as the girl wearing it."

"You two are the cutest couple I've ever seen," Maggie sighed, plopping back down on her chair.

"We're not a couple, Mags," he stated, letting go of your hand. Your smile faltered and you went back to Maggie's desk, pretending to look at all the other sketches she drew up for you.

"What did you need, Ashton?" you asked quietly.

"Harry and I wanted to know if you'd come play a game of football with us," he answered, completely oblivious to your change in mood.

"We're kind of busy right now," you said, looking over your shoulder at him, "Can it wait a little longer?"

"Oh," he said with a slightly disappointed tone, "Yeah, sure. Just come out to the courtyard whenever you're done." You nodded and he left the room. Maggie smiled at you sadly as you collapsed back onto the trunk and put your head on the desk.

"Why don't you go lay down?" she said softly, rubbing your arm, "I can handle the rest of these dresses." You looked up and nodded slowly, getting up.

You peeked out into the hallway to make sure no one was there before picking your dress up and running to your bedroom. You trudged to your bed and threw yourself down, landing in the middle.

You sat in silence for a while until you couldn't take it anymore. You grabbed your favorite book off of the bookshelf and began reading. It was a decent sized book, but you were a fast reader, so it didn't take you long to finish it. You got up to put it back and get another book when your door opened. You spun around to see Ashton staring back at you.

"Hey," he said, "Sorry I didn't knock. Maggie said you were lying down and I figured you might have been asleep, but I wanted to come check on you anyway. I thought you were gonna come outside?"

"I got distracted," you shrugged, turning back to your bookshelf.

"Is everything okay?" Ashton asked, closing your door and walking over to you. He was standing about two feet away but you didn't look at him – you simply kept your gaze on your books.

"What are we?" you questioned, taking him by surprise. "You say we're not a couple but we're  _certainly_  not friends, and I want to know what you consider us."

"Y/N, I don't-"

"Friends don't kiss friends like that, Ashton," you shook your head as you finally looked at him, your voice trembling, "They don't kiss each other the way you kiss me."

"We've only known each other for a few days," he told you, "I didn't think you would want to put a label on it yet."

"So what are we supposed to say?!" you exclaimed, "' _We're not a couple, we're just_ really _close_ '?"

"Y/N," he said softly, taking small steps toward you, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you upset. If you want to label it, we will."

"Don't put a label on it if you're not ready, Ashton," you shook your head again slowly, "The last thing I want is for you doing something you don't want to do just because of me." Ashton reached up and took your face in his hands, running his thumbs along your cheekbones gently.

"Will you be my girlfriend, Y/N?" he asked in a barely audible whisper.

"Ash-"

"If I have to call the entire  _kingdom_  together and ask you in front of them to get you to say yes, I'll do it," he said with a small smile, "I want everyone to know you're mine and mine alone and I'll climb up to the highest part of this castle and scream it until my lungs give out if that's what it takes."

"Ashton..." you trailed off.

"Please say you'll be mine, Y/N."

"I'm yours, Ash," you said quietly, letting yourself smile as he pulled your face to his.

~

You and Ashton walked outside to the courtyard where Harry was kicking the soccer ball around by himself. While you were trying to decide how you would play with three people, Lauren came outside and leaned on the railing of the castle.

"Come play with us, Lauren!" Harry called, "You can be on Y/N's team!"

"No, thank you," she shook her head, "Football isn't really my thing. I'll just watch."

"Football isn't  _anyone's_  thing until they start playing it," you laughed.

"Come on, Laur!" Ashton chirped, "You'll love it!" She shook her head.

"Well, if you change your mind, just come on over," you told her before turning back to face the boys, "I guess I'll just have to beat you two by myself."

"You're gonna play 2 on 1?" Harry asked, unconvinced.

"No, I'm gonna  _win_  2 on 1," you smirked.

"There is no way you can win against  _Ashton_! He's like, the best football player in the  _country_!"

"I beat him once," you shrugged, "I can do it again." Harry furrowed his eyebrows and looked up at his brother.

"She beat you?" he asked.

"You know what? There's no use in bringing up the past," Ashton stated.

"I totally  _owned him_ ," you smiled slyly.

Ashton leaned toward you and whispered, "If my brother and sister weren't here right now, I'd totally own you too."

"We'll see if you still feel that way after this game, lover boy," you laughed, shoving him away.

"First to 10 wins," Harry announced, "Lauren, since you're not playing, you can keep score." Lauren shrugged, hopping up to sit on the railing.

~

The score was now 8-6 with yours being the latter, but you weren't letting it affect your game. Once Harry brought the score to 9-6, Lauren began biting her lip nervously.

" _Jeffrey_!" she suddenly shrieked to the gardener, making you all jump and look over.

"Yes, Princess?" he said, hurrying to her.

"Keep score," she pushed herself off of the rail, "I'm going in."

"You're gonna play football?" he asked her skeptically, "Princess, I've been working at this castle since before you were born. You've never touched a football in your life."

"There's a first time for everything, Jeffrey."

He chuckled, shaking his head, "What's the score?"

"9 to 6, boys in the lead," she answered, making her way to you, "We're going to 10."

"You two girls are gonna beat  _them_  with a 3-point lead?" he leaned up against the castle wall.

"Exactly," Lauren grinned mischievously, holding her fist up as she stopped beside you.

"That's what I'm talking about," you laughed, bumping her fist with your own.

"This is gonna be great," Harry snickered while you all got into position.

"You have no idea," you and Lauren said in unison.

~

After stealing the ball from Harry, you rushed down the grass toward where Lauren was standing. Ashton tried to steal the ball back, but you kicked it to Lauren. She squeaked as Ashton chased her, but she kicked the ball as hard as she could at the goal. The second Lauren scored the winning point, all of your jaws dropped as well as hers.

"Lauren!" you beamed, a huge smile on your face.

"We won?" she asked, still in shock. You nodded quickly while the boys nodded slowly.

"We won!" you exclaimed, running to hug her.

"They won," Harry stated, "They  _actually_  won."

"Do you think Mum can play football too?" Ashton asked him.

"I wouldn't put it past her at this point," he said.

"Pretty impressive, ladies," Ashton said, walking over to the two of you. "Told you you'd love it," he smiled at his sister.

"Thanks," she smiled, "So does football always make you hungry? Because I'm  _starving_." You, Ashton, and Harry nodded, laughing. Lauren and Harry began making their way back into castle to find something to eat.

While you were following them, Ashton grabbed your hand, pulling you back. He turned you around and wrapped his arms around your waist.

"Good game," he stated lowly.

"How do you feel about owning me  _now_?" you asked, a slight smirk pulling at the corner of your mouth. He thought for a moment before biting his lip and nodding.

"Still want to."

You leaned forward, but just before you kissed him, you whispered, "Keep dreaming." You wiggled out of his arms and began running up the castle steps.

"You are gonna  _pay_  for that!" Ashton shouted, laughing as he ran after you.

~

**Three weeks later**

" _Ashton_!" you heard the Queen shout as she knocked on his bedroom door, " _Come on_! We don't have  _time_  for this! Your coronation is in less than an hour!" You quickly put the finishing touches on your hair and smoothed the gorgeous dress Maggie had made for you just for the coronation before exiting your bedroom.

"Is everything okay, Anne?" you asked.

She let out an exhausted sigh, "He's locked himself in his room and nothing I say has been getting an answer."

You smiled slightly, "Why don't you go make sure everything is running smoothly outside? I'll talk to him."

"Thank you," she said, giving you a hug and rushing down the hall. You waited until she was out of sight before knocking on Ashton's door.

"Ash," you said, "It's just me. Will you please let me in?"

You heard quiet shuffling and then the door unlock. You slowly opened the door and found Ashton propping himself up against his headboard, staring at the crown resting on his stomach. You closed the door behind you and stood there, watching him for a moment.

"Ash," you said softly, "What are you doing?"

"I can't do it, Y/N," he mumbled, shaking his head, "I can't be king."

"Why not?" you asked, walking over to the side of the bed.

"It's too much pressure... And no one in this kingdom even  _likes me_  anyway, so what's the point?" You sighed quietly before climbing onto the bed and sitting next to him. You snaked your arm behind his neck and he instinctively laid his head on your shoulder.

"I can't  _imagine_  what it must feel like to know you're about to  _rule a kingdom_ , Ash," you said under your breath, running your fingers through his hair, "But I  _can_  tell you that you're wrong about no one liking you."

"How do you know?"

"People don't look at you with that look of annoyance or disgust like they used to – they look at you with a smile and they actually say hello to you when they see you out now. Why do you think that is?" He shrugged, leaving you to go on. "Near death experiences really change a person, Ashton. Up until I ran away, every time I would see you in town, you were incredibly rude to everybody you spoke to, you never said please or thank you, and you never smiled or said hello to anybody; You were the most arrogant person I'd ever  _seen_." He moved so he could look at you. "But you're  _not_  the same person you used to be, Ash," you smiled at him, "You're  _much_  more polite and you  _never_  fail to light up a room with your smile. Do you know how many times I've been stopped by people thanking me for making you a better person? But  _I_  didn't do that; All I did was take care of your cuts and bring you home. But  _you_  made the decision to better yourself. And that  _isn't_  going unnoticed, Ashton." He stared at you for a few seconds before leaning in and pressing his lips to yours.

"Thank you," he whispered as he pulled away.

"Come on, Ashton," you grinned, grabbing his crown and putting it on his head. You took his hand as you got up, pulling him with you, "Let's go make you a king."

~

After Ashton's coronation, everyone gathered in the ballroom for the party. No one was allowed to see Ashton until he was brought in by Cardin and it was killing both you and him. You hadn't been off of each others side since the day you met and the past two hours have felt like torture.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Cardin announced with a smile as he came into the room, glancing at you as he knew how badly you wanted to see Ashton, "It is my pleasure to introduce to you King Ashton." He motioned to the right and Ashton came walking into the room with the biggest grin you'd ever seen. Everyone bowed and clapped happily as Cardin continued, "The royal family will now kick the celebration off with the first dance."

Ashton began walking toward to you, but you had other plans. As much as you wanted to be Ashton's first dance as  _king_ , you knew his mother deserved it more. Anne was standing beside you, not paying too much attention to what you were doing, so you nodded toward her. Ashton smiled, going over to his mom.

"Mum," Ashton smiled, holding out his hand, "May I have this dance?" Anne looked at you and you quickly turned your head, pretending to admire the ballroom. She let out a small laugh, taking Ashton's hand.

"Thank you," she whispered to you as Ashton pulled her to the dance floor. Lauren asked one of her friends to dance with her, but you didn't see Harry anywhere. That was until you felt someone poke your arm. You looked down to see Harry staring up at you.

"Since you're not dancing with Ashton, will you dance with me?" he asked shyly.

"Of course I will, Harry," you giggled quietly, letting him lead you to the dance floor.

Harry was much shorter that you, but he was actually a very good dance partner. Ashton watched you with his brother and he couldn't keep the smile off of his face.

Once the family's dance was over, everyone else that wanted to dance came onto the dance floor. You were still dancing with Harry when Ashton interrupted.

"Excuse me, sir," Ashton said, tapping Harry's shoulder, "May I steal this young lady from you?"

Harry sighed, looking up at you, "It was fun while it lasted."

"Let me know when you're ready to dance again, Harry," you laughed as he let go of you, "I'll always save one for you." You bent down and kissed his cheek. He walked away in the direction of the table of food as Ashton wrapped an arm around your waist and pulled you into him. "Are we  _jealous_ , Your Majesty?" you teased, putting your hand in his and laying your arm across his shoulder.

"What's he got that I don't have?" he sighed dramatically as you danced.

" _Moves_ ," you winked.

"Well, I've got one move I know Harry  _can't_  do," he smirked.

"And what might  _that_  be?" Ashton held your waist tightly and kissed your lips roughly. "Ashton," you smiled before moving back, "You've  _got_  to stop doing that when there are people around."

"Let 'em look," he grinned, giving you another kiss.


	131. Wherever You Are (Ashton Irwin) - Part 3

**Nine months later**

You and Ashton were out in the town shopping. You weren't looking for anything in particular – Ashton just wanted a break from his duties as King. Despite being as busy as he was, he always made time for you and his family.

Ashton was talking with a few street vendors and you had wander off into the bookstore. He, of course, wasn't worried when he didn't see you standing there, knowing that the store was just across the street and he had figured you would end up there at some point anyway.

After looking around and talking to the owner for a few minutes, you came out of the store empty handed. He hadn't gotten anything new in since the last time you were there, but he promised to let you know when he did.

"Well,  _look_  who's back," you heard a woman say behind you as you were standing outside of the store looking around for Ashton.

Your heart skipped a beat and you debated on whether to turn and face her or walk away like you didn't hear anything. Unfortunately, with how close she was to you, you knew she knew you heard her.

"Hello, Mother," you said quietly as you turned around.

"It's been a while, hasn't it, Y/N?" she said, "I haven't see you in what, nearly 4 years now? What brings you back? I thought you never wanted to step foot in this kingdom again."

"Things change," you stated shakily.

"Y/N!" Ashton shouted. You looked over your shoulder at him. "You ready to head back yet?"

"Yeah, Ash, just give me a minute!" you called back.

"You  _actually_  think he likes you?" your mother laughed, "A  _king_  falling in love with someone like  _you_? Come on, Y/N; You're smarter than that."

"It was nice seeing you again, Mother," you said, doing your best to stay composed, "But I have to go. Tell everyone I said hello." You hurried over to Ashton before your mother had the chance to respond.

~

The rest of the day, you didn't spend much time out of your bedroom. You went to the dining hall for dinner, but you excused yourself as soon as you had finished. Everyone was understandably worried about you – Ashton obviously more so than the others. He replayed the events of the day over and over in his head, trying to figure out what could have happened, but he was drawing a blank.

A couple hours later, he was lying in bed but he couldn't sleep without knowing what was wrong, so he quietly sneaked out of his room and across the hall.

"Y/N," Ashton said softly as he knocked on your door, entering your room. He found you leaning against the railing on your balcony, looking at the stars. "Y/N," he said again. You turned to look at him as he stood next to you.

"Hey, Ash," you smiled.

"Is something wrong? You've seemed out of it ever since we got back from town this afternoon."

"I'm fine."

He sighed, turning around and leaning his lower back against the railing, "I don't know why you keep lying to me about how you're feeling. Come on; Tell me what's going on in your head." You were silent for a moment. "Did I do something wrong?" he asked quietly.

"No, Ashton," you sighed, putting your elbows on the balcony railing and you face in your hands, "You didn't do anything."

"Then what is it?" he asked, taking your hands and pulling you in front of him.

"I ran into my mother today," you mumbled.

"What did she say to you?" he asked, knowing you wouldn't have just shut everyone out the way you did unless she got into your head.

"You love me, don't you?" your eyes started to get watery as you looked up at him. "Like, you're not just  _saying_  you do as some sort of ' _thank you_ ' because I saved your life, right?"

"Y/N," he said softly, his heart breaking at the sight of you crying. He picked you up and took you over to your bed, sitting down with you in his lap. "I love you, Y/N –  _you know that_. Whatever your mother said to you  _isn't true_ , okay? Whether you saved my life or not, I  _still_  would have fallen for you. You are the most beautiful girl I've ever seen and you're beautiful on the  _inside_  as well. I don't think you realize how  _hard_  it is to find someone like that – especially when people  _know_  you're royalty. You love me for who I  _am_ , not what I  _have_. And nothing anyone says is  _ever_  going to change the way I feel about you." You sniffled and took a breath before looking at him.

"I love you, Ash," you muttered.

"I love you, Y/N," he smiled, kissing you. He stood back up with you in his arms and laid you down so you could go to sleep. "Goodnight, Y/N," he whispered, kissing your forehead. He was about to walk away when you reached for his hand.

"Ash," you mumbled sleepily, "Stay." He obviously wasn't going to say no to you, so he laid down beside you. You put your head on his chest and cuddled into him, letting his heartbeat lull you to sleep.

~

A few days later, Ashton was walking around the castle halls, searching for his mother. When he finally found her, she was out in the garden.

"Hey, Mum," Ashton smiled as he made his way over to her, "Cardin said you wanted to see me?"

"Yes," Anne cleared her throat as he sat on the edge of the fountain next to her. She looked at her son and suddenly panicked, completely avoiding the news she had for him. "I heard you and Y/N talking the other night."

"You did?" he asked, blushing at the fact that his mother was listening to what he told you.

She nodded, playing with her hands in her lap, "Which makes what I have to say even  _harder_..."

"What are you talking about?" Ashton asked with a worried tone.

"A while after you were born-"

He cut her off, "Please don't say it, Mum." Anne gave him a sad smile. "Mum, you're not  _seriously_  telling me that you've  _arranged a marriage_  for me." She was silent and his eyes widened, "Mum,  _please_  tell me you didn't..."

Anne took in a shaky breath, "When you were born, your father and I were told to pick a princess that you would marry after you became king."

"But it's been  _nine months_!"

"I know," she sighed, "But the princess we had chosen for you has finally come of age as well."

"Well, tell them I'm not interested!"

"It's not that simple, Ashton. If I could call everything off – I would have done it the  _second_  I saw you with Y/N – but I  _can't_."

"Then what can  _I_  do? I'm the King, I should be able to do  _something_ , right?"

"Just  _meet her_... Please?"

"You want me to  _meet her_?!" Ashton shouted.

"Yes," Anne stated calmly, "I'd like for you to at least give her a  _chance_."

"Meeting this  _princess_  isn't going to change the way I feel about Y/N! You can't expect me to meet someone new and just  _forget about her_! I'm  _not_  meeting her, Mum!" She made a small groaning sound. " _Mum_..."

"She's arriving tomorrow," Anne said, "I'm sorry, Ashton."

Ashton's heart dropped at the thought of marrying anybody but you. He got up without another word and ran back into the castle. His mother didn't even try to go after him, knowing that telling you was something he needed to do himself.

Ashton knocked on your bedroom lightly before opening it, knowing you weren't going to answer. You were taking a nap, but that didn't stop him. He just wanted to be with you.

He picked up your desk chair so the sound of it dragging across the floor didn't wake you up and put it beside your bed. He sat down and held your hand, rubbing the back of it gently. When he brought your hand up to his lips to kiss it, you began stirring and opened your eyes.

"Hey, Ash," you smiled groggily, "What are you doing in here?"

"Just came to check on you," he whispered, but he couldn't hide the fact that his voice was shaky.

"Ashton, what's wrong?" you asked, propping yourself up. He swallowed the lump in his throat, but he couldn't manage to get any words out.

You pulled on his arm as you scooted over so he would get up and lay down next to you. You were lying there facing each other, waiting for Ashton to calm down so he could talk to you. He had his hand resting on your side and was running his thumb up and down your rib cage while you were playing with his hair.

"What's wrong, Ash?" you asked quietly after a few minutes. He took a breath in, trying to prepare himself for what your reaction would be.

"When I was born, my parents had to pick a princess for me to marry," he told you, "And now that she's come of age, we have to wed."

You shot up, " _You're getting married_?!"

"I'm trying to get out of it, Y/N –  _believe me_ ," Ashton sighed, sitting up as well. "But I don't know what to do. My Mum said the Princess will be arriving tomorrow to meet me and she said I ' _should at least give her a chance_ '," he rolled his eyes.

"Well, tell them you have a girlfriend so they don't waste their time coming here!"

"I should at least meet her..."

" _Why_?!" you shouted, "Why would you want to meet a girl when you've already  _got one_?!"

"I'm just trying to be polite!" Ashton got up, "You said yourself that I'm more polite than I used to be and I don't think I should go back on that just because it inconveniences  _you_!"

"The only thing I'm  _inconvenienced by_  is the fact that you're perfectly okay with getting to know this  _princess_  that's been chosen to be your future wife and you have the audacity to  _blame me_ for getting upset about it!"

"Y/N-"

"Get out, Ashton," you said quietly, shaking your head.

"Y/N, please..."

"Ashton," you said with a serious but still  _incredibly_  uneven tone, "Leave." As soon as the door closed behind him, you buried your face in your pillow and starting crying.

~

That night at dinner, everyone could tell that something had happened between you and Ashton. You weren't talking like you normally did – actually, you were doing quite the opposite; You were  _completely_  ignoring each other. You would each add to the conversation once in a while, but it would never be about what the other said or to one another.

You were quick to excuse yourself after finishing your meal and you went straight to your bedroom where no one saw you for the rest of the night.

~

The next morning was no different except you absolutely  _refused_  to go eat breakfast.

"Y/N!" you heard Harry sing outside your door, "Can I come in?!"

"Sure," you said. You were sitting on your bed, working on dress designs as you had really taken a liking to helping Maggie make clothes.

"Aren't you going to come out for breakfast?" he asked.

"I'm not hungry, Hare," you told him.

"Are you sure?" he was clearly skeptical, "Or is it because you just don't want to see A-"

"I'm sure," you cut him off.

"Alright," he said unconvinced, but left you to your work anyway.

~

Around lunchtime, you had swapped out the sketchbook for a novel and were now reading that while buried under your blanket. No one had bothered you since breakfast, so you were enjoying the quiet time – something you rarely ever got anymore. That was until there was a knock on your door. Anne didn't even bother waiting for you to respond before she came in.

"Won't you join us for lunch, Y/N?" she asked you, a sweet smile on her face.

"I'm not hungry," you mumbled.

"You need to eat, dear," Anne said gently, "You didn't have breakfast with us either. Please come eat; Even if it's just a few slices of bacon."

You looked up at her, "There's still bacon?"

She smiled, "I know how much you love it, so I had Gregory save a few slices from breakfast in case you came out for lunch." You were silent for a moment.

"Okay..." you barely nodded, putting your book down on the nightstand and walking to the dining hall with Anne.

You reluctantly sat down in your usual seat next to Ashton as one of the servants brought your plate to you. You smiled, thanking her quietly, and slowly ate your food with everyone else despite the fact that you wanted to finish as quickly as possible. You really didn't have to be in the same room as Ashton for longer than you needed to be. You felt Ashton looking at you every once in a while and when you finished eating, he opened his mouth to say something, but you wouldn't let him get it out.

"May I be excused?" you asked Anne, wiping your hands with your napkin and putting it on your empty plate.

"Of course, dear," she answered. You got up and practically ran out of the room, retreating back to the warmth of your bed.

~

Not much time had passed before you were interrupted again.

"Y/N!" you heard Lauren call out as she knocked on your door, "May I come in?!"

"Yeah," you said lowly, not sure whether or not she heard you. Either way though, she came in. You were sitting on the concrete bench on your balcony.

"Come on, Y/N," Lauren smiled slightly, "My mom wants you to meet the Princess too."

"Tell her I'm ill and I don't want to infect anybody else," you muttered, pulling your knees closer to you.

"She just saw you an hour ago; She knows you're not sick."

"A lot can happen in an hour, Laur."

"I'll be right there with you, Y/N," she said, "I don't want Ashton marrying this girl either, but we should at least show her we're not rude people."

You sighed and got up, trudging to your bed to put on your boots. You went to Lauren and she stuck her elbow out. You couldn't help but smile slightly as you linked your arm with hers and started walking outside to meet the Princess.

As you walked down the steps of the castle, you saw Ashton look over his shoulder. It was like his heart visibly skipped a beat and he quickly turned back around, watching as the Princess' carriage passed through the gates.

The Princess stepped out and you immediately wanted to crawl back under your blankets and never come out again. She was absolutely beautiful – far more beautiful than  _you_  in your opinion; There was  _no way_  Ashton would refuse to marry her now.

"Pleased to meet you, Princess Aria," Ashton bowed politely when she and her escort got to him.

"You as well, King Ashton," she grinned.

"Uh, this is my mother Anne," he motioned toward everyone as he introduced them, "My sister Lauren, my brother Harry, and-" He paused when he got to you but as soon as he spoke, his voice shook. "-and this is Y/N."

 _Well, that's_ great _. He won't even tell her you're his_ girlfriend _. It's all over now._

"It's nice to meet you all," she said with a smile. There was a few moments of uncomfortable silence before the Princess spoke again, "My mother and father say that we should spend the weekend together getting to know each other before we pick a date for the wedding."

You let out a quiet whimper, causing everyone to look at you. The second you made eye contact with Ashton, you slowly removed your arm from Lauren's and began to back away.

"Excuse me..." you choked quietly, turning around and running up the castle steps.

"I'm sorry," you heard Ashton say followed by footsteps chasing you up the stairs. You started to run faster, but Ashton was faster than you.

You were halfway down the castle porch when Ashton grabbed your arm, spinning you around to face him.

" _What, Ashton_?" you asked, ripping your arm from his grasp, "What do you want  _now_?"

"I want to know why you've been avoiding me," he stated firmly.

"I haven't been avoiding you," you snarled, "I saw you at lunch."

"You didn't speak a  _word_  to me, Y/N, and as soon as you were finished, you ran back to your room."

"You should really get back down there, Ashton," you said through gritted teeth, ignoring his statement, "I wouldn't want to be the reason you're keeping your  _future queen_  waiting."

"God, I can't  _win_  with you, can I?!" he exclaimed, "You're not even  _trying_  to see the situation from my shoes!"

"I don't  _need_  to see it from your shoes! All I'd see is her  _walking down the aisle_! You didn't even introduce me as your  _girlfriend_! Do you know how that makes  _me_  feel?! You're not the only one dealing with this marriage, you know!"

"You think I  _want_  to marry her?!" Ashton shouted, "Because I  _don't_!"

"That's not the  _problem_ , Ashton!" you yelled, not holding back, "The problem is that you  _should_!"

"What do you mean I  _should_?" he asked, his voice much calmer.

"She's nicer and she's got more money and she's way more beautiful than I  _ever_  will be; She's a Princess and I'm just... I'm just  _me_ ," you muttered, running your hand through your hair, "How am I supposed to compete with her?"

"Y/N-"

"Name  _one thing_ , Ashton –  _one thing_  I have that she doesn't!"

"My heart," he said without second thought.

"What...?" your breathing hitched. He closed the gap in between the two of you and cupped your face in his hands.

"She doesn't have my heart, Y/N," he said softly, " _You do_. And as long as I'm still alive, my heart will belong to you and  _only you_. I don't want to marry her, Y/N; I want to marry  _you_."

" _You do_?" you choked.

"I do," he smiled, "I want to marry you  _so badly_ , Y/N."

"But I'm not royalty, Ash; You can't marry  _me_."

"Actually..." you could practically see a light bulb go off above Ashton's head, "I think I  _can_."

" _How_ , Ashton?" you sighed, "Royals can only marry other royals and in case you've forgotten,  _I'm not one of them_."

"If Princess Aria decides she doesn't want to marry me, I'm free to marry  _whomever_  I choose because my parents only picked  _one princess_. If she doesn't want me, I can marry  _you_."

"You're everything a girl could ever  _hope for_ , Ash," you smiled sadly, "Why  _wouldn't_  she want you?"

"Because, unfortunately, he wants somebody else," you heard someone say.

You and Ashton looked over and saw Princess Aria walking toward you with everyone following behind her. Ashton let go of your face only to grab your hand and hold it tightly at his side. You tried to leave again, but Ashton wouldn't let you.

"I'm not going to stand here and lie and say I'm not  _interested_  in marrying him," Princess Aria said, "I  _do_  think he's quite attractive and he seems like a very suitable husband, but he's not the one for me. It wouldn't be fair to either him nor I to marry each other when he's already got his eyes on someone else."

"Princess..." her escort trailed off.

"I'm not marrying him, Demetri," she told him before smiling at you, "Consider it girl code." You let go of Ashton's hand and walked quickly over to her, hugging her tightly. You felt her laugh as she hugged you back.

"Thank you," you said quietly.

"You're welcome," she said. After you let go of each other, she put her hands on your shoulders, "And you are absolutely  _gorgeous_ , okay? Never let the beauty of someone else get in the way of you seeing your own."

You gave her a small smile at realizing she had heard the entire argument you had with Ashton. You nodded and she hugged you again.

"Come on, Demetri," Princess Aria chirped, "Maybe we'll find a husband on the way back home." You couldn't help but laugh as you all said goodbye to them and they walked back down the porch.

When you turned back to Ashton, he was already on one knee, smiling up at you.

"Marry me, Y/N," he said, "Be my queen." You let out a breath you didn't know you were holding.

You nodded, grabbing his face and leaning down, pressing your lips against his. Anne, Lauren, and Harry cheered while Ashton picked you up and spun you around, making you laugh as you kissed him.

~

**Two months later**

_Wedding day._

The entire  _kingdom_  was there and you  _honestly_  felt like you were going to throw up. The royal council decided that since everyone would already be gathered together that your coronation would follow directly after. To be quite honest, you didn't know which you were more nervous for: the  _wedding_  or the  _coronation_. You had practiced walking in your heels a million times – you were never really a heels kind of girl. Lauren had stopped by your room to give you a pep talk, which you really appreciated.

Obviously, your parents and brothers came – everyone in the kingdom was required to attend – but your father wasn't walking you down the aisle;  _Anne was_.

"I do," you smiled at Ashton, bringing the vows to a close.

"I now pronounce you man and wife," the priest announced, grinning at Ashton, "You may kiss the bride."

Ashton smiled widely, putting a hand on your cheek and an arm around your waist, pulling you as close as you could get and pressing his lips against yours. You laughed into the kiss as everyone cheered.

"What have I told you about doing that?" you giggled.

"I don't know  _what_  you're talking about," he smirked, kissing you again.

"And now," the priest said, "Her Royal Highness would like to say a few words before Miss Y/N's crowning." He moved off to the side while Anne stood up and took his place.

"We'll try to keep the coronation ceremony short," she smiled at the people before turning to you and Ashton, "Throughout the past year, you two have proven to me that true love  _does_  exist." Ashton put his arms around your waist, smiling into your shoulder. "Y/N," she said to you, "I couldn't have picked a  _better person_  for my son or a better  _queen_  for my people than you. I know you're sort of jumping into the whole royalty thing, but you're a natural born leader and you're going to be just fine." You smiled, wiping a tear that had fallen down your cheek. Lauren got up and handed her mother the crown you had seen so many time before. "This has been my crown for many years," Anne continued, "It was passed on to me by Ashton's grandmother and I think it's only fitting that I now pass it on to you."

The priest came back to stand beside Anne as she handed Ashton the crown. She helped you take off your veil before returning to her seat with Lauren and Harry. The priest talked for a moment before he looked at you.

"Y/N," he said, "Please turn to face everyone." You took a deep breath and turned around.

Everyone was smiling at you apart from a few people in the middle. The priest was talking to Ashton, but you weren't paying attention; You were focused on the woman glaring back at you.

"King Ashton," the priest smiled, bringing you back to reality, "You may crown your queen." The corner of your mouth curled up into a smirk as you stared straight at your mother.

As soon as the Ashton's hands left the crown on your head, nearly everyone stood up and started cheering – everyone besides your parents and brothers, of course, who looked  _anything_  but happy.

Because a lot can change in just four years.

 


	132. Good Enough (Calum Hood)

You moved to Australia nearly three years ago, looking for a new start. Your life in the small town in Maryland you grew up in wasn't exactly as picture perfect as you convinced everyone to believe. You had a lot of family problems and people always told you that you would never amount to anything worth noticing. And maybe they were right, but you knew you didn't need to be noticed by millions of people to know that you were important. You already had four people who cared about you far more than anyone back in Maryland  _ever_ _did_.

You had met Michael, Ashton, Calum, and Luke on the flight to Sydney. You were sat in the middle of Luke and Michael, doing everything you could to keep a straight face. You were obviously a big fan of the band, but you never thought you would ever get to see them in concert, let alone sit next to them on a 14-hour flight.

Michael had been the one to call you out on it, telling you that you were a terrible liar and that he could tell you were a fan from the moment he first saw you as you were boarding the plane. You simply rolled your eyes and laughed, continuing on with reading one of the books you brought with you in your carry-on.

What you  _didn't_  notice, however, was the way Calum would peer around Michael to look at you every once in a while. Ashton chuckled at his best friend, nudging his shoulder and telling him that he should ask you out once you landed. Calum protested by saying that you were probably just visiting and you would be going back home within the next week, but he couldn't have been more wrong.

It had been four months since that day and Calum would occasionally see you around town exploring the stores in Sydney you hadn't gone to yet as you were searching for places to apply for a job.

It had been in his favorite coffee shop that you finally found a place that was hiring. You were quickly hired and two months later, Calum had finally gathered up the courage to ask you out. You, of course, were more than happy to accept and he waited around for about an hour until your shift ended.

Two years have since passed and your life was at a point you only ever used to dream of. You were finally content with everything and you had four of the most amazing friends you could have asked for. Although the boys were away from home a lot of the time and you missed them like crazy, you were still a big supporter of the band.

However, something in Calum had changed throughout the past few months. No matter what you did, it was always  _wrong_. He blamed you for every little thing. The other boys told you time and time again that it was just the stress of being in the band, but you didn't believe them – you  _couldn't_. He'd  _never_  acted this way toward you before – or  _anyone_  for that matter. But despite all of that, you still loved him more than anything.

~

The boys' flight had just landed, meaning they were  _finally_  home. You had been patiently waiting in the airport terminal for nearly two hours, wanting to arrive and get inside before all the fans crowded the entrance.

As soon as they walked out of the gates, you jumped out of your chair and ran to them. Calum dropped his bag as he caught you, hugging you tightly.

"God," he breathed in deeply, "I've missed you so much."

"I've missed you too, Cal," you smiled, giving him a quick kiss. You hugged Luke, Ashton, and Michael as well and did your secret handshake with their bodyguards – Max and Adam – before heading outside.

Usually, either Max or Adam would get you to the car first, knowing how scared you felt around fans, but that didn't happen this time. This time, the fans immediately crowded around the boys, shoving you out to the sidelines. You stumbled a bit, but caught yourself. That was until you tried to walk away.

You ended up tripping over one of the fans' foot as she was moving in to get closer to the boys, sending you both tumbling to the ground.

" _Oh my gosh_!" you yelped, quickly getting up, " _I_ _am_ _so sorry_!" You hurried to help the other girl back to her feet, but she shoved your hand away, making you frown.

"What happened?" you heard Calum ask behind you. "Y/N," he furrowed his eyebrows together, seeing the girl look at you with narrowed eyes as she got up and brushed herself off, "What did you do?"

" _Nothing_!" you squeaked, "I tripped over her foot and we fell!"

"And you didn't even  _bother_  helping her up?"

" _I tried_!" Everyone was staring at you by now and all you wanted to do was cry, but you couldn't. 

"Looks like it to me," he laughed bitterly under his breath, walking to the girl, "I'm sorry about that. It's nice to meet you."

As soon as Luke saw the look on your face, he knew you were seconds away from tears. He quickly excused himself from the group of fans that were around him and ran over to you. He took your face in his hands – a gesture Calum didn't even  _notice_  – and looked at you.

"Are you okay?" he asked. You barely shook your head. "I knew we should have gotten you in the car before we came out," he sighed. He grabbed your hand and pulled you to the other side of the vehicle, opening the front passenger door for you and helping you in.

"Are you sure Adam won't mind?" you asked quietly.

"I'm sure, Y/N," Luke said, "I'm gonna see if Kenny will take you home since we'll probably be a while, okay?" You nodded and he patted your knee before closing the door.

You leaned your head back on the headrest and sighed, allowing yourself to let the tears fall. Not even two minutes later, Kenny hopped into the drivers seat. You quickly wiped your eyes and he smiled sadly at you.

"Bad day?" he asked as he started the car.

"How could you tell?" you laughed slightly.

"Luke told me what happened," he said, "I'd be more than happy to take you home."

"Thanks, Kenny," you smiled.

About 15 minutes later, he pulled up to the front of your apartment building.

"I'll bring Calum home as soon as I can, okay?" Kenny said as you got out of the car.

"Take your time," you chuckled lightly, closing the door and waving as he drove back to the airport.

~

An hour later, you were sitting at your kitchen counter, eating some leftovers and scrolling through Instagram on your phone when the front door opened.

" _Y/N_!" you heard Calum call out.

You let out a breath, knowing by the sound of his voice that he was anything but happy. So you didn't answer – you simply stayed silent, knowing he would find you within the next two seconds.

"What the hell happened today?" Calum asked when he finally walking into the kitchen and saw you.

_Here we go._

"I told you," you said, "I tripped."

"But to not even bother helping her  _up_ , Y/N?  _Really_?"

"I tried; She wouldn't let me."

"You could have at least  _told me_  you were leaving," he said in a frustrated tone.

"It's not like you would have  _cared_ ," you muttered.

"What is  _that_  supposed to mean?"

"It means exactly what it  _sounds like_  it means, Calum," you stated, getting up and throwing your plate in the trash. "You wouldn't have cared even if I told you. You  _never_  care; All you care about is the fans."

"Well, I apologize for taking the time to meet the people who make what I do  _possible_. Since when is it such a  _crime_  to thank them?"

" _They_  aren't dating you, Calum," you said firmly, a sudden wave of confidence rushing over you, " _They_  don't live with you.  _They_  aren't the person you see every single day.  _Excuse me_  for wanting a little bit  _more_  of your time than  _them_."

"If you want more of my time, you should tell me instead of making a goddamn scene every time we go out!"

"I don't  _try_  to make a scene, Calum! It's not  _my_  fault you only start paying attention at the times when  _I_  look like the bad guy!"

"Oh, so now you're trying to blame  _me_? You know what? I'm not dealing with this anymore," he started walking back to the front door.

"Cal," you followed him, "Cal, wait." You grabbed his arm, but he shoved you off.

"I'll be back for my stuff tomorrow," he said, not looking at you as he slammed the door behind him.

~

The next morning, you woke up on the couch with tear stains all over your face. You groaned to yourself, remembering what had happened the previous evening, as you rubbed the kinks in your neck and went to the bathroom to clean yourself up.

Once you finished washing your face and brushing your teeth, you made your way to your bedroom to get dressed.

You went to the closet and pulled out a pair of shorts and a plain t-shirt, putting them on before going over to the dresser. You opened Calum's drawer, pulling out your favorite sweater of his and putting it on, knowing it was the last time you might ever get to wear it.

You went back to the living room to get your phone. You tried calling Calum, but he wouldn't answer, so you decided to call the next best person.

"Hey, Y/N!" Calum's sister said happily.

"Hi, Mali," you smiled, "Is Cal home?"

"No, he spent the night at Luke's," she answered, "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, it's fine," you nodded although she couldn't see you, "Thank you." You two talked for a little while longer before saying your goodbyes and hanging up. You sat in silence for a moment before going to put your shoes on and driving across town to Luke's house.

You let out a sigh of relief when you pulled into the driveway and saw that his parents weren't home. You stood on the porch, staring at the front door for a good two minutes before finally gaining enough courage to knock.

"Y/N," Luke sounded surprised when he answered the door and saw you, "What are you doing here?" Unbeknownst to you, Calum was walking down the hallway, freezing at the sound of your name.

"Cal didn't answer his phone so I called Mali and she told me he was here," you answered shyly, "I hope you don't mind me dropping in like this, but I just wanted to tell him I'm sorry."

"He's asleep right now, but you're more than welcome to wait around until he wakes up," he said, ushering you inside and leading you to the couch, "Why are you sorry?" Calum stayed hidden in the shadows of the dark hallway and watched as you sat down.

You thought for a moment before shaking your head and laughing quietly.

"I don't know," you sniffled, wiping a tear that had fallen down your cheek, "I guess I feel like I should be."

"What happened  _wasn't_  your fault, Y/N – you  _know_  that."

"Then why does it  _feel_  like it is?"

"Maybe because you feel like there was something you could have done differently," he shrugged, "But you were just at the  _wrong place_  at the  _wrong time_ ; That doesn't mean it was  _your_  fault. That fan was  _out of line_  to let Calum believe you  _meant_  to knock her down and  _Calum_  was out of line to blame you for something you didn't do – and he was  _certainly_  out of line to blame you  _in front_  of everyone like that."

"I'm  _used to it_  though," you said quietly, "He blames me for  _a lot_  of things now. I just... I'm never gonna be  _good enough_  for him anymore, am I?"

"Y/N," Luke said, rubbing your knee, "You really need to talk to  _him_  about this."

" _I can't_ ," you felt your cheeks start to get wet, "Every time I try, he gets mad at me and we fight and he leaves and I'm left alone wondering why I'm such a  _screw up_."

"You're not a screw up, Y/N," he told you, a little taken aback by the words that left your mouth.

"I can't do anything  _right_  anymore, Luke! When Cal and I started dating, everything was perfect – even if I messed up, he would forgive me and pretend it never happened. But now... Now it's like he's starting to realize that I'm not as great as he thought I was; I'm  _never_  as great as anyone thinks I am," you said softly, "My whole life, everyone has told me that I was never going to be worth anything... And you have  _no idea_  what it feels like to know that they were  _right_."

"Y/N-"

"Just tell him I stopped by to apologize, okay?" you stood up and Luke followed you to the door, "He can come get his things later tonight or tomorrow or whenever."

As soon as Luke closed the door behind you, Calum finally came out from the hallway. Luke turned to face his best friend.

He shook his head for a moment before simply asking, "Why?"

"I fucked up," Calum whispered, more to himself than to Luke.

" _You think_?" Luke scoffed.

"What do I do?"

"You could start by telling her you're  _sorry_ ," he rolled his eyes, "And maybe it would help you to realize that some fans only treat her the way they do because they  _know_  she won't tell you."

"It's happened before?" Calum furrowed his eyebrows.

"Why do you think she always stays away from us when we're around fans? Have you even noticed how many times Max or Adam has gotten her inside a hotel or the airport or into the car before they let us go out? She doesn't feel  _safe_  around them anymore, Calum!  _You're_  the one that's supposed to protect her, not Max and Adam! She doesn't just disappear when you're meeting fans and then reappear when they're gone! Y/N is a living, breathing person and pretty soon, the stress is going to become too much for her and she's going to leave unless you get your shit together and understand that she needs you  _way more_  than she's willing to admit." Luke sighed, "She loves you, Cal; Don't let her think that you don't love her too." Calum instantly rushed to get dressed and make himself presentable before he bolted outside and got into his car, driving back to your apartment.

~

You had just gotten home and were about to take off Calum's sweater when the sound of the front door opening startled you. You went into a slight state of panic, knowing you locked the door after you came in and the only person with a key was Calum and you were  _sure_  it wasn't him. But as you slowly made your way into the living room, your heart skipped a beat.

"I didn't expect to see you until later..." you said quietly, looking at Calum.

"I was already awake..." he said, "I heard you and Luke talking..."

"Oh..." was all you managed to say.

He cleared his throat nervously, rubbing the back of his neck, "Have I ever told you how good you look in my clothes?"

"No..."

"Well, you look beautiful."

"Thank you," you whispered, "I guess you want it back though." You began pulling the bottom of the sweater up, but Calum quickly grabbed it and pulled it back down.

"I like when you wear my clothes," he told you. You could feel his fingers brushing up against your exposed skin, making you shiver.

"If you're not here for your stuff, then why are you here, Cal?" you asked. Butterflies erupted in his stomach when you said his name.

"I'm here to say I'm sorry," he said lowly, "Not putting you before fans was such a shitty thing of me to do and realizing that I inadvertently allowed them treat you the way some of them do made me sick. It's Adam and Max's job to take care of the boys and I; It's  _my_  job to make sure you're safe. And I promise I'm gonna do a better job of that to you if you give me a second chance." You looked at him with an expression he couldn't quite read before you looked down.

You took his wrists, pulling his hands away from the bottom of his sweater. His heart sunk, thinking you weren't going to forgive him, but when you pulled his arms around your waist, he knew you did. Calum smiled as you put your own arms around his neck and pushed yourself up against him.

"I love you, Cal," you said, kissing him.

"I love _you_ , Y/N," he whispered on your lips, " _So much_."


	133. 15 Seconds (Calum Hood)

**Warning: Head injury**

~

Calum shouted loudly along with everyone else in the stands as you ran down the field with the ball right at your feet. You were in the middle of a soccer game with your school's top rival and your best friend was cheering you on just as he always did.

There were about 15 minutes left in the game and your team was 7 points ahead, but that wasn't going to stop you from getting as many goals as you could. Unfortunately, you never made it that far.

Halfway down the field, the ball was stolen from you and as you came to an abrupt stop to go back after it, one of the girls behind you ran into you. You both hit the ground, but that wasn't the end of it. Another girl from the opposite team didn't have time to stop and she ended up tripping over you, her foot colliding with the back of your head, causing you to let out a loud scream.

Calum's heart nearly stopped as he watched you roll over onto your back, holding your head. You had gotten hurt. And you weren't getting back up; You  _always_  got back up. His mind was racing while he pushed through the crowd as politely as he could.

The second he made it the stairs, he was bolting down toward the field, jumping over the bench that was on the sidelines. The referee tried to stop him, but he wouldn't listen; His only concern was you.

The teammates around you gladly moved out of the way so he could get to you. Calum dropped to his knees and saw that you were still awake, but it was obvious you were slipping out of consciousness and he knew that whatever was going on in your brain wasn't good.

"How are you feeling, Y/N?" he asked softly, pushing the hair off of your face.

"I've been better," you replied, wincing a bit. Even when you'd gotten hurt, you still had that sense of humor Calum loved so much. You went to sit up, but Calum put his hand on your shoulder, carefully holding you down.

"You need to stay still, okay?"

"But we need to finish the game!" you whined. There was the determined side of you; Another thing he loved.

"I know you do," he began rubbing circles on your skin with his thumb where your collarbone meets your shoulder, "But you need to just chill for while."

"Did you really just tell me to  _chill_?" you laughed quietly.

"Yes, I did," he smiled.

As paramedics rushed onto the field, your teammates hurried to get out of their way, but Calum stayed right beside you. They lifted you up onto the gurney and started wheeling you to the ambulance.

The last things you remember were the announcer's voice echoing throughout the stadium saying the rest of the match was cancelled, you mumbling that you were tired, and Calum squeezing your hand, begging you to stay awake.

~

**One week later**

You woke up in a bright room, groaning quietly as you struggled to adjust your eyes to the light. You heard a quiet gasp and fast footsteps going out the door. Your room was right next to the nurse's station, so you heard everything that was going on.

"Hello, is this Calum Hood?" the nurse, Amanda, said into the phone. "Yes, she's awake." There was a brief pause. "Alright, we'll see you soon." She hung up the phone and came back into the room with someone else – presumably your doctor.

"Hello," the doctor smiled, "I'm Dr. Findley. Can you tell me your name?" You shook your head, panic starting to set in. "That's okay, that's okay," she quickly added, "What's the last thing you remember?"

"I heard someone say a game was cancelled, I was really tired, and I think there was a boy holding my hand really tightly," you said hesitantly, now unsure of whether or not those things actually happened.

"Good," she nodded, "Your name is Y/N. You were hit in the head pretty hard and got yourself a decent concussion. That has fortunately healed, but you've obviously suffered some memory loss."

"Will it ever come back?"

"It should with time," she said, "We've called your roommate and he said he'll be here as soon as he can."

"I have a roommate?"

"He hasn't left your side since you got here, but we made him go home last night to get some sleep," she told you before handing you a remote, "You can watch some TV until he gets here if you'd like." You quietly thanked her and she left the room, leaving you to keep yourself entertained until this mystery boy arrived.

~

Around 45 minutes later, you could hear someone say your name.

"Is Y/N still awake?" the male voice said frantically.

"Yes, Calum, right this way," Amanda began leading him toward your room. She stopped at your door and started talking lowly, but you could still hear her. "I have to warn you she's suffered a little memory loss."

"How much is  _a little_?" You could hear the pain in his voice. She paused for a moment before sighing, knowing he wasn't going to take it well.

"She couldn't remember her own name."

" _Oh my God_ ," Calum whispered.

"She's going to be just fine, but I need you to be prepared and understand that it's not her fault if she doesn't remember you."

"No, I understand." The next thing you heard was her knocking on the door frame.

"Y/N," Amanda said as you looked over at her, "You have a visitor." You saw a boy with dark, messy hair and red eyes standing shyly beside her. She ushered him in before she left. You  _swore_  you've seen him before.

"Wait, don't tell me," you closed your eyes tightly, concentrating, "You're my boyfriend?" You opened your eyes again to see him smiling sadly.

"No," he said with a hint of disappointment, walking over to sit on the chair beside you and putting the clothes he was holding on his lap, "I'm Calum; We're best friends."

"Well, that's disappointing," you muttered, making his heart race. You tilted your head, "Do I  _have_  a boyfriend?"

"No," he repeated, chuckling this time, "You always said that having a boyfriend would just distract you from the game, so you never bothered with dating."

"I play football, right?" you asked him.

"You remember?" His eyes were wide.

"Not really," you sighed, "The nurse came in a while ago with some clothes and told me I could keep my uniform. I've been watching football since I woke up and it kinda looks like theirs, but I wasn't sure."

"Oh... Yes, you play football."

"Am I any good?"

"Best high school player in the state," he smiled proudly.

"I can't be that good if I got hurt, can I?"

"Even the best players get hurt, Y/N." The sound of him saying your name made your heart skip a beat. Calum chuckled quietly at the sound of your heart monitor skipping. You were silent for a moment before speaking again.

"Are you  _sure_  we're not together?" you asked him. He nodded his head hesitantly.

"I'm sure," he said, "Why do you ask?"

"You seem to care about me a lot. You haven't taken your eyes off of me since you came in here. The doctor said you haven't left me since I got here and your messy hair and bloodshot eyes are telling me you haven't slept properly in days. You seem really nervous around me and your voice kind of shakes a little when you say my name."

"We're not together," he mumbled.

"But you  _want_  us to be, right?" His breathing hitched, but he was interrupted by Dr. Findley coming into the room.

"Alright, Y/N," she said, "I'm going to check to make sure everything's going well one last time and you should be free to go home."

"She just woke up," Calum said with a hint of confusion in his voice, "You're releasing her already?" She had you sit up so she could listen to your breathing with her stethoscope.

"We were just waiting for her to wake up," she nodded, "The only issue as of right now is her memory loss. I think she'd much rather recover from that at home than in a hospital." You smiled slightly, focusing on your breathing.

"When will her memory come back?"

"She'll be  _fine_ , Calum," she said reassuringly, "Just help her maintain her usual schedule and it should just come back on its own within the next month or so." She looked back at you. "Well, I think you are good to go," she smiled, "Like I told Calum: do everything as normal as you possibly can and you should be good as new within a few weeks." You grinned, nodding. "I'll have Amanda come in and unhook you from everything and we'll see you again in a couple months for a checkup, okay?" You nodded again and Dr. Findley left the room. You looked over at Calum and he swallowed nervously, hoping you wouldn't ask about the two of you again.

"So we're roommates?" you asked. He nodded. "But I'm still in high school?"

"You moved out of your parents' house on your 18th birthday a few months ago," he told you, "You were never happy when you were with them and you would always stay at my place when things got bad at home anyway, so I asked you to move in with me until you went to college."

"Why didn't I like living with my parents?"

"They fight a lot," he said, "They would always use you as payback against one another and you hated being caught in the middle of it." You nodded, but before you could say anything else, Amanda returned.

"Alright," she chirped, "Let's get you out of here." She carefully removed your IV and everything else that was attached to you. She let you go change into the clothes that Calum had brought with him before leading you out to the nurse's station. You had to sign a few papers and then you were allowed to leave.

Calum took you home, explaining your normal routine to you on the way.

"Wait, so I wake up at 5:30  _every morning_?" you asked, your eyes widening while he pulled into the driveway.

"You do," he chuckled, shaking his head. You followed him to the door and he opened it for you. "Welcome home," he said. He watched you look at everything as if it was your first time seeing the house before he took you to your bedroom. "So," he said, plopping down onto your bed, "What do you want for dinner?"

"What do I like?" you asked. He was a bit taken aback by the question.

"What  _don't_  you like would be easier to answer," he laughed. You smiled at the sound of his laugh.

"I don't know," you shrugged, "You pick something."

"Pizza it is!" he announced, getting up and walking out of the room. You tossed your soccer uniform on the bed before following him. As he was getting out the phone book, you looked at the pile of papers on the countertop.

"What's this?" you asked. He walked over to you to see what you were looking at.

"Your football schedule," he told you.

"There's a game tonight?" you looked at the clock and saw it was starting in an hour. "Shouldn't we go?"

"You can't  _play_ , Y/N," Calum said, "You  _just_  got out of the hospital."

"I know, but I think I should at least go  _watch_. I'm still part of the team, aren't I?" Calum looked at you for a moment before shrugging and putting the phone book back.

"We'll pick up a pizza on the way home then," he said. You went to take a quick shower since you hadn't been able to wash your hair for a week and then you and Calum headed to the game.

~

**Three weeks later**

You had actually been doing pretty well in school considering you missed a week, but you never went to your team's practices because you were always trying to catch up on assignments. You always made sure to go to the games though. But to be quite honest, they weren't doing too well.

Calum had told you on the way to that first game that your school was dominating every team you played against, but that night was the first loss since you'd been named team captain at the start of your junior year. They had seven games since your accident and they hadn't won a  _single one_.

Tonight was the last game of the season – a home game against your top rivals – which meant it was the last game you would ever play as part of your team. You still hadn't regained your memory, but that wasn't going to stop you from playing. You knew Calum wasn't going to be thrilled about it – he had been  _so_  protective of you since you got home – but this was something you had to do: not just for yourself, but for your team.

"What are you doing?" you were startled by Calum's voice as you were getting dressed.

"I'm going to play tonight," you said firmly, pulling your jersey the rest of the way over your head and slipping on your Converse.

"You can't play tonight!" he exclaimed in disbelief, "What if you get hurt again?!"

"The doctor told me to do everything like I normally would and according to  _you_ , football was all I ever did! Things don't stop happening just because I get hurt, Calum! This is the  _last game_  of the season! I can't just  _not play_!"

You grabbed your cleats – you decided to put them on when you got to the school – and went into the kitchen. Calum followed closely behind you as you got a bottle of water from the fridge. When you turned back around to face him, he was giving you a anxious look.

"I know you're worried, Cal," you said softly, "But I can't sit around and be afraid of what happened forever. I'd really love for you to come to the game, but I'll understand if you don't show." You quickly kissed his cheek before you were out the door.

~

By the time game time came around, you couldn't keep your leg still as you sat down in the locker room with your team. Although they – as well as your coach – expressed the same fears about you getting back into the game as Calum did, you were determined to play in your last game. They, of course, knew there wasn't much they could do to convince you not to play – they knew you all too well and once you said you were going to do something, you weren't going to stop until you made it a reality.

"Y/N," your coach said, "Do you have anything to say before we go out there?"

As team captain, you were always the last one to pump up the team before games started. Obviously, in your absence, you were unable to do that, but you figured that since you were finally back, you should. You stood up, turning to face everyone.

"I've been at almost every game since the accident and I've gotta be honest, you guys haven't been doing too well," you told them. They seemed surprised, not having seen or heard from you, but they were quick to agree. "What happened happened, guys. We can't go back and change it, we can't magically make my memory come back, and we can't go back and win those lost games. But we can do something  _today_. I know you guys have got it in you to win. Are we really going to let a team called the  _Ladybugs_  beat us?"

"No!" everyone laughed. You smiled, looking around the room.

"Guys," you paused to look at everyone, "This is the last game we will  _ever_  play as a team. Let's end our final season together with a win, alright?" They all nodded and you stuck your hand out and shouted, " _Alright_?!" Your teammates immediately stood up and put their hands in with yours. "We will not let those losses define us," you said, looking around the circle of girls surrounding you, "Now let's go out there and show everyone what being a team really means." The girls started shouting and you all broke the circle before running out of the locker room.

~

As halftime came around, you weren't playing  _anything_  like your old self. You were sitting on the bench with your head in your hands while the cheerleaders were performing. The teammate beside you was patting your knee, so you were startled when you felt hands on your shoulders.

"You know, I always thought you were an amazing player," you heard a familiar voice say, "But I guess I was wrong." You jumped up and turned around, seeing Calum looking back at you.

"You're here!" you exclaimed, hopping over the bench and hugging him tightly.

"Last game of your high school career," he smiled into your neck, "I can't just  _not_  come."

" _Some last game_ ," you scoffed at yourself, "I think the accident messed with my ability to  _play_  too."

"You're just distracted," he shrugged.

"By what?"

"You tell me." You paused for a moment.

"I'm glad you're here, Cal," you said quietly.

"Me too," he said, "I never knew how badly you guys sucked without me here." You and the teammates around you laughed, shoving his arm.

~

With 10 minutes left in the second half of the game, your team was down by two points. Everything was going well – apart from the fact that you still weren't playing at 100% – until you managed to collide with another player yet again. You hit the ground and everyone froze.

Your coach had allowed Calum to sit on the bench and it was like everything starting moving in slow motion. He felt like he couldn't get to you fast enough even though you were directly in front of him.

"Y/N!" one of your teammates exclaimed as you were holding your head, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Mel," you said, rubbing your head as you sat up. As Calum was dropping to his knees beside you, your eyes widened.

"Y/N..." Calum trailed off.

"I remember, Cal," you whispered, looking up at him.

"Your memory is back?" he asked in shock.

" _I'm back_!" you squealed, tackling him.

He fell back, wrapping his arms around your waist. He couldn't help but laugh as he pushed himself back up with you now sitting on his lap. Your teammates giggled quietly, walking away and allowing you to talk to Calum alone.

"You know how I said I didn't want to date because it would distract me from the game?" you asked, not even bothering to ease into what you had to say. He obviously nodded. "Well... That was only  _partly_  true... The  _real_  reason I've never dated anybody is because I was always hoping  _you_  would ask me out," you looked down at your hands, playing with your fingers, "And I think when I was in the hospital, I kind of realized that maybe you had felt the same for a while too, you just didn't feel like  _I_  did."

"There are only 8 minutes left in the game, Y/N," he said quietly, "Don't you want to finish your season the way you started?"

You shook your head, "I want to finish it with  _you_ , Cal." He bit his lip, but he couldn't keep himself from smiling.

"Will you be my girlfriend?" he asked. You nodded, leaning forward and pressing your lips against his.

You pulled away laughing when you heard your teammates awing loudly and jokingly gagging. You got off of Calum, helping him up. The team quickly gathered around you and Calum and hugged you, excited you were finally yourself again.

"You guys are only 3 points away from taking the lead," Calum said, "Don't lose to a bunch of Ladybugs, okay? That would be embarrassing." Everyone laughed and returned to their places on the field. Calum quickly kissed you again before running back to the bench. You stood in the center of the field, right in front of the other team captain.

"It's such a shame you're not playing as well as you usually do, Y/N," she said with a smirk, "I looked forward to the competition. But don't worry about your championship trophy; We'll keep it  _nice and warm_  for you."

"Be careful, Chloe," your mouth curled up slowly, "You might jinx it." You could tell she was shocked when you said her name, realizing that you finally got your memory back.

The referee tossed the ball up and as soon as it bounced off the ground, it was in your control. You immediately took the ball down the field and scored. The next score was made by another person from your team, tying it up. Your coach called a timeout with 15 seconds left on the clock to let you give one final pep talk.

"15 seconds, ladies," you said, "15 seconds left until that buzzer ends this season." You took a moment to look at all the seniors, "We can come back and walk these halls, sit on these bleachers, and step onto this field as many times as we want to after we graduate, guys. But there are only 15 seconds left in these uniforms for us – make  _every single one of them_  count." You put your hand in the middle, causing a chain reaction of hands on top of yours. You broke the circle for the last time and all the girls ran back onto the field. You paused, looking back at Calum. He got up and walked over to you, putting his arms around your waist.

"Make me proud, Y/N," he smiled at you, kissing your forehead.

"I like to think I already have," you grinned, leaning in and pressing your lips to his. He let go of you and you ran back to the center of the field.

Once the clock started, it was like everything began moving in slow motion again. Chloe got the ball and was racing down the field, but one of your teammates was quick to steal it. You bolted for the opposite end of the field and were able to remain open so that she could pass it to you. You took a deep breath and kicked the ball as hard as you could, sending it flying past the goalie and into the net. The crowd erupted into screams as Calum and your teammates ran to you for a group hug.


	134. You Belong With Me (Ashton Irwin)

You suddenly saw a little red dot on your textbook and smiled. Your neighbor had a laser pointer that he would shine through your windows when he wanted your attention. You thought it was clever seeing as you rarely ever looked up when you were doing homework because you didn't want to lose concentration.

You looked out your window to see Ashton smile and wave before he started writing in his notebook. You leaned back, grabbing your sketchbook and marker off of your nightstand and waited for him to show you what he wrote.

_What are you doing tonight?_

You smiled slightly, quickly writing a response.

**_Homework_ **

You stuck your bottom lip out, making him laugh.

_Do you want to take a break?_

**_What for?_ **

_We have a show tonight_

You thought for a moment. It was Friday afternoon and you had just gotten home from school. You preferred to get all your homework done before Sunday so you didn't have to worry about it, but Ashton was right – you needed a break. You loved listening to Ashton's band play and you loved hanging out with his friends, so it was a no-brainer that you wanted to go.

**_I'm there_ **

He smiled widely.

_Meet me outside at 6:30?_

You nodded and he grinned again. You looked back down and wrote something else, but he had already gotten up and closed his curtain so he could get his things ready for the show. You let out a quiet sigh, turning the book around and showing it to the curtain.

**_I love you_ **

You ripped the page out and folded it up, putting it under your pillow. You looked at the clock and saw it was only 5:30, so you figured you might as well grab a quick snack and finish what homework you could before getting ready.

At 6, you put your finished homework in your backpack, leaving what you still had left to do on the end of your bed so you would remember to do it later.

You plugged your iPod into your iHome and turned on your music, opening your closet doors as you were trying to decide what to wear. You ended up picking your favorite outfit and put it on, hurrying to the bathroom to brush your teeth and fix your hair. When you got back to your room, your favorite song came on and you started dancing to it as you looked for your shoes.

Ashton peeked out his window to make sure you hadn't lost track of time and were still working on homework when he saw you dancing around your bedroom. You were using your shoe as a microphone and he couldn't help but laugh.

The song ended and you collapsed onto your bed, finally lifting your leg up to put the shoe on. Ashton shook his head, smiling as he made his way outside to wait for you. You checked yourself in the mirror one last time before heading out yourself.

"Hey, I'm gonna go out for a few hours, okay?" you told your parents as you shoved your phone into your pocket.

"Have you finished your homework yet?" your mom asked.

"Not all of it, but I only have biology left to do. Thought I'd take a break."

"Where are you going?" your dad wondered, turning to look at you from his spot on the couch.

"Ash asked me to come hang out at his band's show," you shrugged.

"Alright, honey," your mom said, "Be back by 10. Tell Ashton we said hello."

"Love you!" you called as you left the house, meeting Ashton in his driveway. He was leaning against his car waiting for you.

"Nice of you to finally join me," he said, looking at his wrist as if he were wearing a watch.

"Hey," you said, pushing his arm playfully, "I'm actually  _early_  for once."

"By  _five minutes_!" he laughed.

" _Still early_ ," you stuck your tongue out at him. He shook his head and chuckled, opening the car door for you.

"What time do you have to be home?"

"10," you answered as you sat down, "Also, my parents said hello." He smiled slightly, closing the door and getting into the drivers seat, driving to the venue the band was playing at that night.

It wasn't a very big venue, but they had a pretty decent sized crowd. There were about 100 people there – a lot more than they usually had – so they were really excited.

~

Near the end of the show, you were backstage singing along quietly and dancing in your spot as you always did. You felt someone watching you and noticed out of the corner of your eye that there was a girl with dark red hair staring at you. You elected to ignore her, however, although you were slightly confused as to why she was backstage.

When the boys came offstage, you happily greeted them as per usual.

"You guys get better every time I see you!" you squeaked, giving Ashton a hug first.

"Thank you," he smiled, squeezing you, "I'm glad you could come!"

The girl that had been staring at you for the last 10 minutes suddenly cleared her throat. Ashton let go of you and the smile on his face grew bigger.

"You made it!" he exclaimed, rushing over to her. The second his lips met hers, you could feel your heart drop.

"Yeah, sorry I'm late," she said as he brought her over, "Work was insane today."

"Becca, you already know the guys," he said, "But this is my friend Y/N. Y/N-" You were nowhere  _near_  prepared for the next statement. "-this is my girlfriend Becca."

"It's nice to meet you," you smiled politely. She smiled back, but you could clearly tell it was forced. There were a few moments of uncomfortable silence between the six of you before Becca finally spoke again.

"Ashton," she pouted, leaning close to his ear, "Can we leave now?"

"Yeah!" he nodded, "I just have to take Y/N home and then we can do whatever you want."

"Can't someone else take her home?" she asked, glancing at you with a smirk on her face, "I haven't seen you  _all_  day." She kissed his ear, making you and the other boys shudder lightly.

"U-Uh, do a-any of y-you mind?" he stuttered, squirming as she nibbled on his earlobe.

"As long as you never do whatever  _this_  is in front of us again-" Calum stated bluntly, motioning toward him and Becca. "-I will  _gladly_  take Y/N home." Ashton nodded, but Becca refused to stop. You knew you had to leave before she went any further.

"Thanks for  _inviting me_ , Ash," you said, emphasizing the fact that Ashton had asked you to come, "I'll see you tomorrow." You grabbed Calum's hand and took him outside. Once you made it to his car, he opened the door for you and you plopped down onto the seat. "I will  _never_  be able to unsee that," you muttered as he climbed into the drivers seat.

"You're telling me," he agreed, "I thought I was  _actually_  going to throw up. Thank you for pulling me out of there."

"You're welcome," you laughed quietly, "I just wish I could have saved Michael and Luke too."

"Looks like they were able to save themselves," he chuckled. You looked in the direction Calum was looking and watched as the boys quickly made their way to the car. They practically dove into the backseat.

"That was the grossest thing I've ever seen!" Michael whined, pulling the seat belt across his body. Luke was too busy making quiet noises of disgust to form any actual words.

"Did you see the way she looked at me before she started doing that?" you asked quietly as Calum pulled out of the parking lot.

"Maybe she thinks you're interested in Ashton and you're trying to take him from her," Michael shrugged. Luckily, he was sitting behind you and couldn't see your face.

"Well, she doesn't have to worry about that," you managed to laugh lightly.

Calum looked like he was about to say something, but obviously decided against it, which you were thankful for. You knew what he wanted to say and he knew you didn't want Michael or Luke to hear it.

After driving you to your house, he got out of the car with you, leaving the boys in the car.

"Y/N," he said as he walked you to your door.

"I know, Cal," you said quietly, "But he's not interested in me and he's got a girlfriend. There's no point in telling him now."

"But she's so..." He completed his sentence by groaning.

"So maybe she's really into public displays of affection," you shrugged, "That doesn't mean she's not a good match for him. I'm not gonna be the one to ruin that for him. As long as he's happy, that's all I care about."

Calum sighed, "Do you want me to pick you up on my way to school on Monday?"

"If you don't mind," you smiled sheepishly, giving him a hug, "Thanks for bringing me home, Cal." You waved to Michael and Luke before going inside.

~

A few days later, you were lying on your bed during a homework break. Your head was at the foot of the bed and your feet were propped up slightly by your pillows. You had your headphones in, so you hadn't heard Ashton call your name through your open windows. He got his laser pointer and a red dot popped up on the wall in front of you. You looked over and saw Ashton looking at you. When he realized he got your attention, he held up his notebook.

_You busy tonight?_

You took out your headphones and sat up, getting your sketchbook and writing your answer.

**_Can't go out. Too much homework._ **

He frowned slightly and nodded understandingly.

_I'll dedicate Out of My Limit to you_

Your heart skipped a beat, but you quickly shook the feeling; It was  _only_  because it was your favorite song of theirs... That's  _all_  he meant by it.

**_I'll dedicate the rest of my homework breaks to you then_ **

You stuck your tongue out at him and he laughed before waving goodbye. You threw yourself back down and sighed, wishing Ashton could see that you were way better for him than Becca.

~

A couple weeks later, you were at the mall with Luke and Michael after school. None of you were there for anything specific, you just wanted to hang out that day. Ashton was with Becca – you hadn't really seen too much of him anymore – and Calum was on his way.

As you and the boys were on your way to the food court to meet up with Calum, you heard him burst through the door.

" _Guys_!" he called after you, running to you.

"What's going on?" Luke asked, worried something bad had happened. He stopped to catch his breath.

"Ashton broke up with Becca."

"What?" you asked in shock although on the inside, you were ecstatic.

"I guess he came here to meet up with her, but he caught her in the parking lot flirting with some other dude," he explained, "He started yelling at her and then he said they were done before he got back in his car and drove away. I don't think he saw me."

"Oh my God," you whispered.

" _Man_ ," Michael let out a breath, "I hope he's okay." You and Luke nodded in agreement.

You were understandably distracted the rest of the time you were at the mall. You were beyond worried about how Ashton was doing, but you didn't want to just ditch the other boys.

You ended up staying with them for a couple more hours before heading home. You told them you were getting pretty tired, but they all knew you were lying. Honestly, they were surprised you hadn't left earlier.

Once you got home, you put everything you had bought away before checking to see if Ashton was in his room. He was and you saw him sitting on his bed with his head in his hands.

You picked up your sketchbook and wrote a message, tearing it out of the book. You quickly folded the piece of paper into a paper airplane and went to open your window. Luckily, Ashton's was already open, but it was only open halfway. You had gotten pretty good at getting your airplanes to fly through his window, but you were still nervous every time it left your hand.

You took a deep breath and threw it, watching as it soared across your yards and into Ashton's bedroom, hitting him in the leg. He was startled and when he looked up, he saw you going back to your bed and putting your sketchbook in your lap. He picked the piece of paper up and read it to himself.

**_Calum told me what happened_ **

Ashton looked back up at you and you smiled apologetically at him. He let out a breath and grabbed his notebook as well.

_I feel so stupid_

The look on his face honestly broke your heart.

**_Meet me in the treehouse?_ **

He nodded, immediately getting up to meet you outside.

When you and Ashton were kids, your father decided to help you two build a treehouse. Since the only tree sturdy enough to hold a treehouse was in your backyard, that was where you built it. Whenever you and Ashton wanted alone time together for your more heart-to-heart conversations, that was where you went.

You walked out your backdoor just as Ashton hopped over the fence. Before you even made it to the treehouse, you wrapped your arms around him, hugging him tightly for a couple minutes. You felt him smile into your neck as he hugged you back.

"How are you feeling?" you asked after you sat down with your legs hanging over the side of the treehouse.

"Like an  _idiot_ ," he answered honestly, "I can't believe I thought a girl like that would  _actually_  like me."

"You deserve better than her, Ash," you said, laying your head on his shoulder, "You deserve a girl who actually appreciates you and the things you do for her and would never even  _dream_  about doing anything to jeopardize the feelings you have for her." He looked at you for a moment.

"You always know what to say," he said quietly, kissing your head. You shrugged, picking your head back up.

"It's a gift, really," you said, "Are you feeling better now?"

"Yes," he nodded, "Thanks, Y/N." He leaned over and kissed your forehead before sighing, "I better go get started on my homework."

"You haven't even  _started_  it yet?" you laughed as he got up and helped you as well.

"You act surprised every time," he chuckled, climbing down the ladder, "I don't understand how you're not used to it by now." You began climbing down the ladder as well, kicking yourself off before you made it to the bottom and letting Ashton catch you.

"Maybe I have a little faith in you," you smiled while he put you back on the ground. He shook his head and laughed at you.

"I'll see you in the morning, okay?" he said, hugging you again, "You still need a ride to school?"

" _Yes, please_ ," you grinned. You both said goodbye before he jumped back over the fence and you trudged inside.

~

That Sunday night, the boys had another show. You were devastated that you couldn't go, but you really needed to put all your concentration into your English paper as English wasn't really your best subject. You hadn't told Ashton that you couldn't make it simply because you had been so focused on writing all weekend that it just slipped your mind. You were staring at what you had written for your paper, desperately trying to come up with the words you needed to help your ideas make sense, when you saw a familiar red light on your knee.

_You coming tonight?_

Ashton was looking at you hopefully. You moved all of your papers out of the way to find your sketchbook.

**_No, English paper due this week_ **

You frowned, making him frown as well.

_I'll miss you_

He smiled lightly before getting up and leaving for his show. You sighed, looking into Ashton's now empty bedroom.

After half and hour had passed, you were still having trouble with your paper. You needed a break, and you knew what you had to do. You got dressed and slipped on your shoes, brushing your hair and teeth before heading out the door. Your parents knew you had been stressing over this paper all weekend, so they didn't even bother to ask you if you had finished.

You drove to the venue and walked inside, quickly finding one of the security guards that knew who you were so he could let you backstage. You thanked him and sneaked back so the boys wouldn't see or hear you.

You saw Becca standing right at the side of the stage. Your heart dropped, thinking she and Ashton may have gotten back together. But why  _would he_? He was so heartbroken at knowing she wouldn't think twice about cheating on him. And that was the thought that made you stay.

You kept yourself hidden behind Becca, moving quietly so she didn't know you were there.

You heard Ashton dedicating  _Out of My Limit_  to you again, making you smile. You stood there silently, mouthing along.

When the song ended, Calum, Luke, and Michael were the first to come backstage. They gave Becca a confused but annoyed glare before they saw you.

"Y/N?" Calum said, "Ashton told us you weren't coming." Becca spun around and her jaw dropped.

You shrugged as Ashton slowly made his way over. He looked up and saw you, a huge smile instantly taking the place of his frown. He wanted to run over and hug you, but Becca grabbed his arm, holding him back.

You couldn't watch her hang all over him any longer, so you pulled a piece of paper out of your pocket. You looked down as you unfolded the paper and showed him what it said.

**_I love you_ **

You looked back up, seeing Becca scowl at you and try to kiss him, but Ashton pushed her away as he kept his eyes on you. You were terrified he wasn't going to react very well, but you were left speechless when you saw him take a piece of paper out of his pocket as well.

_I love you_

You let out a breath as you stared at him, honestly not knowing what to say. He couldn't do anything but smile and walk over to you, grabbing your face and kissing you like it was the only time he would ever get to.

You heard Becca let out a loud shriek and stomp away as you smiled into the kiss, putting your hands on Ashton's sides and pulling him closer. You only pulled away due to the fact that both of you needed to breathe. Ashton chuckled quietly, resting his forehead on yours.

" _Wait_!" Michael shouted, "What just happened there?!"

"Are we missing something?!" Luke added, just as surprised.

"Come on, guys," Calum smirked, "Let's go get our stuff from the dressing room." He led his two best friends away.

Once they were gone, you and Ashton burst into laughter. He quickly kissed you one more time as he put his arms around your waist.

"So this makes you my girlfriend now, right?" he asked, smiling at you while you moved your hands from his sides to his neck.

"Nah," you shook your head, "I kiss all my friends like that." He laughed lightly, kissing your nose.

"Will you be my girlfriend?" he asked. You answered by pressing your lips to his again.

~

_inspiration: "You Belong With Me" by Taylor Swift_


	135. More of You (5 Seconds of Summer)

**Luke**

"Hey, guys!" you waved at your camera, "So today, I thought I would do a Q&A since I haven't done one in forever and people have been asking for it. Yesterday, I asked you guys on Twitter to send in questions with the hashtag  _Ask(Y/N)_ and I got a ton of responses, so I'm gonna go through them and try to answer as many as I possibly can."

You had been answering questions for a few minutes when you heard the front door open. You were looking down at your phone, scrolling through the hashtag when you heard Luke's voice.

"Y/N!" he called.

"In here, Luke!" you said. He walked into the bedroom and found you sitting on the bed in front of your camera.

"Oh, sorry," he said quietly, "I forgot you were filming today."

"It's okay," you said quietly. He could instantly tell something was wrong, so he walked over behind your camera and turned it off, not wanting you to waste battery on something you would just end up cutting from the video anyway.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Why is every question or comment or reply I ever get about you or the band?" you sighed, "I know that a lot of my subscribers are fans of you guys, but I had a lot of them before we even announced our relationship. I don't want people to watch me just because we're together or because you're sometimes in my videos, but is that really the  _only_  reason people stick around anymore? I don't always wanna be ' _Luke Hemmings' girlfriend_ '," you put your chin in your hand and rested it on your knee, "Sometimes, I just wanna be me." He smiled sadly, wrapping his arms around you.

"You worked very hard to get to where you are now, Y/N," he said in your ear, "Everyone loves your videos and you've come so far since you started making them. People think you're funny and beautiful and you have thousands of people who look up to you and it is  _not_  because we're dating." You looked at him for a moment before laying your head on his shoulder.

"I love you, Luke," you mumbled into his shirt.

"I love you too," he smiled, kissing the side of your head, "How about since everyone's so curious, we just film the rest of this thing together?"

"You mean like the boyfriend tag?" you asked, lifting your head back up. He nodded. "But you hate talking to cameras."

He shrugged, "I've gotten used to it." He got up, turning your camera back on and making sure it was recording again before he sat back down. He motioned toward the camera, signalling for you to film an introduction.

"Uh," you cleared your throat quietly, "Luke is here now."

Luke chuckled, "Wonderful intro, babe."

You groaned, "I already filmed  _one_  intro; I don't want to do it  _again_."

"Then just tell them why I'm here now," he smiled, kissing your cheek and putting his arm around your waist. You grabbed the hand at your waist with your own, resting your arm on your lap as Luke tangled your fingers together.

"It turns out I got a lot of questions about Luke and I...  _Again_... So, um, I guess we're turning this into like, a boyfriend tag kind of thing," you explained, "So, yeah. I guess we'll just get started." You looked back down at your phone. "Oh," you said, "This question gets asked quite a lot and it's ' _How did you and Luke meet?_ '"

"Actually," Luke said, taking over the answer, "You guys might remember a while ago, a YouTuber vlogged about coming to one of our shows." You started laughing as you hid your face in your forearm.

"Luke!" you whined, "You  _promised_  to never bring that up again!"

He smiled, "And everyone tweeted me about it like, the  _second_  she uploaded it, so I decided to watch it and I thought she was funny and she was super into the band which I thought was really cute. The friend she went to the show with was teasing her about me being her favorite member and I just thought she was so pretty, so I obviously had to watch more of her videos. I remembered her mentioning in her vlog that she was staying in the city for a couple days after the show, so I tweeted her asking if she wanted to go out to lunch and I guess the rest is history."

"It's a good thing you didn't fall in love with my singing," you shook your head, shuddering slightly.

"No, I fell in love with everything about you," he grinned, kissing your cheek before you moved on to the next question.

~

**Michael**

"Hello, everyone!" you chirped after hitting record on your camera, "Today is a  _very_  special video because I am joined by someone who's clearly  _so excited_  to be here that he won't even be in this introduction with me." You looked to the side and laughed at his pout. You motioned for him to stand next to you and he shook his head. "Mikey," you giggled, "Come here." He grumbled quietly, making his way into the camera frame. "I'm sure all of you know who this lovely gentleman is," you said, wrapping your arm around his waist and looking up at him, "Come on, babe. Tell everyone why we're in our bathroom and why you're so excited."

He sighed, "I promised Y/N that if she hit one million subscribers before her birthday, I would let her dye my hair whatever color she wanted."

"He's acting like I've never dyed his hair before," you grinned, looking at the camera, "He's afraid I'm going to make him look bad as if he doesn't already do it enough  _himself_."

"No," he stated, "You just refuse to tell me what color you're doing."

"Also true," you nodded, "I know the anticipation is killing everyone, so let's just get started, shall we?" You pointed to the chair, telling Michael to sit down.

"Come on!" he whined, "I'm not even allowed to look in the mirror?!"

"Nope," you said, "You can't see it until I'm all done." He huffed as he plopped down onto the chair. You wrapped the towel you always used when dying his hair around his neck and clipped it so it stayed in place. You bent down slightly to look at the camera as you stood behind Michael, "I've already mixed everything together and threw the box away so Mikey couldn't see what the color is so I can't show you guys either, but trust me, it's gonna look amazing."

You put on the plastic gloves and began putting the hair dye on his head. As you were standing in front of Michael and to make sure all of his hair was covered evenly, he was playing with the hem of your shirt. He was understandably bored just sitting there and his only form of entertainment was messing with you.

" _Y/N_ ," Michael whined.

"I know you're bored, Mikey," you said, "I'm almost done."

"I don't mean that."

"Then what are you wanting?" you asked, looking at him. He puckered his lips slightly and you couldn't help but chuckle. "I'm not gonna kiss you right now, Michael."

"Why?" he pouted.

"Because I'm still filming."

"So? I've kissed you plenty of times in your videos before."

"I know, but people don't like when we do that..." you trailed off.

"Why not?" he tilted his head.

"They say I'm bragging about being with you," you mumbled, squeezing the last bit of dye onto the top of Michael's head and spreading it around.

You then took off the gloves and set the timer on your phone so you could keep track of how long the dye is in his hair. You turned your camera off to save battery while you waited and walked back over to Michael.

"You're my  _girlfriend_ , Y/N," he said, pulling you onto his lap, "I'm  _allowed_  to kiss you."

"But I don't want them to get mad at me again."

"Listen, babe," Michael said quietly, "If they don't like me being in love with you, that's  _their_  problem. I'm not going to let someone  _else_  tell me when I can and can't kiss my own girlfriend."

"I love you, Mikey," you said, your voice coming out as a whisper.

"I love you, Y/N," he smiled, kissing you. You laid your head on his shoulder and he sang softly to you until time was up.

When your timer went off, you got up and turned your camera back on, making sure you were recording. You rinsed Michael's hair and conditioned it before having him sit back in the chair, careful not to let him peek in the mirror. You dried his hair as much as you could with a towel before getting out your blow drier and drying his hair fully that way. You styled it how he normally did and smiled at him.

"Ready?" you asked. He nodded eagerly. You had him stand up and you covered his eyes with one hand while moving him to stand in front of the mirror, making sure he was still in frame. "Okay," you said to the camera, "So we let the hair dye sit for what Mikey would probably consider way too long and now it's time for the big reveal!"

" _Come on_!" he whined, " _I wanna see_!"

"Alright, alright," you laughed. You took your hand back and Michael's jaw dropped. He leaned onto the counter to get a closer look and smiled at you in the mirror.

"This looks amazing, babe!" he said happily.

"I know you've already done blue before, but I really liked it," you said, "Plus, when it fades, it's still gonna look awesome." He wrapped his arm around you, pulling you to him. He kissed your cheek as you addressed the camera again. "I hope you guys enjoyed today's video!" you chirped, "Thank you so, so,  _so much_  for one million subscribers! You're all amazing and I love you more than anything! Make sure you follow either Michael or I on Twitter-"

"Or both," Michael chimed in.

"Or both of us-" You giggled. "-if you're not already because we'll be posting better photos of this mess-" You ruffled his hair. "-tomorrow when we've got natural light. So yeah. I'll see you guys in my next video!" You and Michael waved to the camera before you reached over and turned it off.

~

**Calum**

"Hey, guys, it's Y/N," you smiled, "And today I'm joined by..." You looked over at your boyfriend and saw he was just standing there. "Are you gonna be in this video or what?" you laughed. He trudged over and sat down on the floor beside you. "Introduce yourself please," you motioned toward the camera.

"They already know who I am," Calum said, putting his arm across your shoulders.

"Cal!" you laughed. He sighed, but smiled.

"My name is Calum and I am this beautiful girl's boyfriend," he said, kissing your cheek. You rolled your eyes, leaning into him.

"What are we doing today, Cal?"

"Um, the boyfriend does my makeup tag or whatever it's called."

"Well, I think we've just found the  _title_  of this video," you teased. He shoved you lightly before you went on. "You guys can't see it, but I've laid out all my makeup in front of us. I haven't told Calum what any of this is, but he's watched me do my makeup before, so I'm hoping he doesn't mess me up  _too much_."

"Just because I watch doesn't mean I  _understand_  any of it," he mumbled, picking up one of your eye shadow pallets, "You look gorgeous without all of this."

"I don't wear it all at the same time. I'm just giving you options."

"I know, but you still don't need it," he said. A smile pulled at the corner of your mouth as Calum poked at all of your other makeup products.

20 minutes later, he had successfully put everything on your face in the right places so far – how heavily he applied those things, you weren't sure yet, but you were sure it looked hilarious. He was scanning the items in front of him as he bit his lip, something he always did when he was concentrating.

"What's this thing?" Calum asked, furrowing his eyebrows as he picked up a tube of lipstick.

"I don't know," you tried not to laugh, "What does it look like?" He opened his mouth, but you cut him off. "You know what? Don't answer that. I don't want to have to cut out too much footage."

"Does it go on your lips?" You nodded. "Okay, so it's  _my lips_  then," he said, leaning forward and kissing you. You laughed as you pushed him off of you.

"Come on, babe," you said, "You're almost done."

He opened the tube of lipstick and frowned, "Oh, I don't want this color. Where's that red one you're already wearing?"

"Next to it," you grinned. He picked it up and opened it to make sure it was what he was looking for before he turned back to face you.

"Do this," he said, opening his mouth slightly. You did as he asked and he squinted his eyes, sticking out his tongue slightly. He was really focused on what he was doing, but you couldn't help but start to laugh. "Stop laughing!" he whined, "You're gonna make me get it all over your face!"

"As opposed to the  _other stuff_  that's already all over my face?" you joked, making him pout. "I'm sorry," you chuckled, shaking your head, "I'm okay now." He put on your lipstick before closing it again and picking up the last thing he needed to apply.

"Do I  _have to_  do this?" he asked, a worried look on his face.

"It's just mascara," you smiled.

"But what if I miss and get it in your eye?"

"You're not gonna hurt me, Cal, I promise." He took a deep breath and leaned closer to you. His rested his hand on your cheekbone and held the wand up to your eyelashes.

"Blink," he told you, not wanting to move his hand despite the fact that you told him he would be fine. To ease his nerves, you simply did as he asked, blinking each time he told you to. He tilted his head when he was finished and looked at you carefully. "Okay, I think I'm done."

"You sure?" you asked.

"No," he said with wide eyes. You motioned for him to hand you the mirror so you could see yourself.

"How do you think you did?" you asked him, holding it in your lap as you showed the camera his work. He made a small groaning sound, telling you that he wasn't so sure of himself. You giggled quietly and held the mirror up. Your laugh got louder, "I look  _so good_  right now!" He pouted slightly. "I'm serious, Cal. You did a lot better than I thought you would. You really do pay attention," you said, kissing his cheek.

"You're just being nice," he chuckled, "Even though I managed to mess you up, you still look beautiful." He kissed you quickly, making you smile again. "Now let's get all this junk off of you," he said, reaching for your makeup wipes.

~

**Ashton**

"What's up, guys? Today, I have a very special guest who I think you're all going to love..." you trailed off, looking at your boyfriend.

"I need a drum roll, babe," Ashton said. You rolled your eyes, turning your body slightly so you could drum on the couch. He sauntered over to the couch and sat down beside you. "Oh, hey," he winked at the camera as he put his arm around you, "How are you guys?"

"Oh, God," you rolled your eyes again, trying not to smile, "Everyone asks you to be in a video and suddenly, you think you're famous or something."

"It's not my fault they want more of me, Y/N," he said, "I can't help my dashing good looks or my angelic voice."

" _Anyway_ ," you laughed, shaking your head, "You guys may remember that vlog I uploaded a couple weeks ago where Ashton had done the outro for me after I fell asleep. Well, literally every comment on that video and every one after asked if we could do more videos together, so today, Ash and I are going to be doing the Disney challenge!"

"I'm gonna tell you something right now: If you don't get every single one of these right, I'm going to have to break up with you," Ashton said as seriously as he could, "I can't have a girlfriend who doesn't know her Disney movies."

"Oh, man, guys. Someone might be single by the end of this," you winked, before quietly adding, "You know where to find me."

"Whoa!" Ashton exclaimed.

"Hey," you said, "I read every single comment on that vlog and they were all equally jealous of both of us. If you're gonna let me go after this, I'm sure one of  _them_  will appreciate me and my lack of Disney knowledge." You smiled innocently at him and he laughed, kissing your head. "Moving on," you giggled, "We've also got Michael playing the songs and Luke keeping score below the camera because Michael can't multitask to save his life. Say hi, guys."

Luke and Michael reached up so they were barely in frame, smiling and waving, "Hi!"

"Michael and Luke have each picked 10 songs and Michael will play 10 seconds of the song," you explained. "We don't really have any prizes or anything – except the punishment of being broken up with if I lose apparently," you giggled quietly.

"Okay," Luke said, "If one of you knows the answer, just say it. If both of you say it at the same time, you both get the point. Sound good?" You and Ashton nodded in agreement.

"Alright, are you guys ready?" Michael asked. Ashton took his arm back from its spot on your shoulders.

"Oh, boy," you giggled, "The arm has removed. This means war." Ashton winked at you and Michael counted down to when he was going to press play.

The moment the song started, you shouted, " _I Just Can't Wait to Be King_!"

"Seriously?!" Ashton exclaimed.

"I am in it to win it, Irwin," you said, "You are going down."

"We'll see about that, Y/L/N," he said with a threatening tone as he smirked slightly.

~

15 minutes later, you and Ashton were all tied up. There was only one song left and you were determined to beat him. Michael began playing the song and you  _knew_  you knew it, but you somehow just couldn't think of the name. The 10 seconds were up and your eyes widened.

"You don't know it, do you?" Ashton smirked, pushing your shoulder.

"No!" you shouted, "I know it! I know I do! I just can't name it!"

"Come on, Y/N!" Michael said, "You can't get this wrong!"

"I'm gonna hate myself in a second, aren't I?" you groaned, putting your face in your hands.

"Big time," Luke nodded.

You sigh in defeat, "What is it?"

"Ashton?" Michael smiled, "Do you know it?" Ashton was practically dancing in his seat.

"I'm glad you asked, Michael," Ashton said with a smirk, " _I See the Light_."

"Damn it!" you yelled, making the boys laugh as you threw yourself down on the couch and buried your face into the cushion, "That's it! I'm done! I'm quitting YouTube and sending myself to the dump because I belong in the garbage!" Ashton grabbed your arm, pulling you back up and making you lay against him.

"It'll be okay, Y/N," Ashton patted your cheek and kissed your forehead, "You just can't beat the king of Disney."

"If I had gotten  _one more second_ , I totally would have have it!" you whined, your voice muffled by his shirt.

"I'm so sorry about your loss," he sighed dramatically, "Send me postcards from the dump, okay? Let me know how you're doing." You laughed, pushing him away from you so you could end your video.

"Well, thanks for watching, guys! Make sure to tune in next week for the breakup tag," you pouted. Ashton laughed loudly, wrapping his arms around you and kissing your cheek. "Come say bye, guys!" you smiled. Michael and Luke hopped up and sat beside you and Ashton as you all waved goodbye. You got up and hit the record button, stopping the video.

 


	136. Beside You (Ashton Irwin)

"I just want to come home," your boyfriend mumbled sleepily, "I can't sleep without you."

Ashton and his band mates were currently on their first world tour and he seemed to be having the hardest time adjusting to being away from home. It wasn't that he didn't enjoy being able to travel and do what he loves, he just got homesick easily. He was worried most about leaving you, but you assured him you would be alright. Truthfully, you were just as much of a mess without him as he was without you – you were just better at  _hiding it_  from him.

"I know, Ash," you told him, barely able to see him due to it being so dark in his bunk, "But you'll be coming home in a few weeks and I promise I'll let you sleep as much as you want, but at least  _try_ , okay? I don't want you beating yourself up after shows for not giving it your all just because you didn't sleep."

"Will you send me that shirt you always wear to bed?" he asked.

"Why didn't you take it with you?" you asked, getting off of your bed to get it, "It's your favorite shirt."

"I thought you would get mad if I took it," he said shyly.

"You have a closet full of shirts I can wear to bed, Ash," you giggled, picking it up out of the drawer, "I'll send it tomorrow morning, okay?"

"Thank you," he yawned.

"Go to bed, Ash," you whispered, "I love you. I'll see you soon."

Ashton didn't answer, already sound asleep. You smiled at hearing his light snoring and were about to end the FaceTime call when you saw a hand carefully grab Ashton phone and take it somewhere else.

"Luke," you whispered, "What are you doing?"

"Can you send something else with that shirt?" he asked quietly as he walked into the back lounge where Michael and Calum were.

"Like what?"

"You."

"Why?"

"He's a wreck without you here," Calum told you, "He won't admit it, but he been a little off ever since we left. We just think you should come finish out the tour with us."

"I have a job, guys," you sighed, "I can't just-"

"Taken care of," Michael stated with a smile, "You leave at 10am your time."

"That only gives me two hours to pack," you groaned quietly as you looked at the clock.

He quickly defended himself, "We couldn't get you a later flight, I'm sorry!"

"You'll be at the airport, right?"

"I will," Luke nodded, "You should be arriving at about 6pm and seeing Ash by 6:30."

"Actually," you grinned mischievously, "I have an idea." You told them your plan and they were all for it. You said your goodbyes and hurried to pack your bags so you could get to the airport on time.

~

A little over 10 hours later, you were finally getting off the plane. You walked into the airport terminal and immediately found the tall blonde you were looking for. He smiled widely as you ran over and hugged him.

"You ready?" he asked.

"You have no idea," you laughed, adjusting the hem of Ashton's shirt after you let go of Luke.

He helped you get your bags into the car and the driver took you and Luke back to the venue. The bus was parked in the back parking lot and you were quick to do what you needed to do to make your plan work. Luke assured you that Ashton would still be in the lounge – that's where he could be found when the band didn't have sound check or a show – so he wouldn't see you running around outside. You handed Luke two folded up pieces of paper and instructed him to put one in Ashton's bunk and give the other to Ashton. You went to your hiding spot in front of the bus as Luke climbed on.

**Ashton's POV**

"Hey, Ash," Luke said, opening the door to the lounge where his friends were playing video games, "Something from Y/N just arrived." Ashton quickly got up.

"Already?" he asked in confusion. Luke simply handed him the paper and shrugged. He furrowed his eyebrows as he unfolded it, reading your handwriting.

_Ashton,_

_I know you're really into adventures, so I guess this is like a mini version. You're not going hiking_ –  _you're not even leaving the general area of your bus_ –  _but I think you're going to find it just as rewarding._

_Before you start this little scavenger hunt the boys helped me prepare for you, just remember I love you so much and if you get annoyed at me during any point, it's for that reason that I'm doing this._

_-Y/N_

_P.S. I think something might be in your bunk. You should probably go check that out. Just saying._

Ashton quickly ran to his bunk and threw open the curtain, missing the fact that the other boys were smiling at each other. He expected to find his shirt, but what he got was another note.

_Keep looking, Ash. Maybe you should consider checking outside on the back of the bus._

**Your POV**

You heard Michael and Calum quickly rush with Ashton off of the bus while Luke followed closely behind. The second they were out of sight of the door, he hurried to your hiding spot to get you. He grabbed your hand and pulled you up the stairs where you ducked into the lounge and waited. You taped the last note to the window so Ashton would see that first instead of where you were hiding in a little corner by the door and the TV.

Meanwhile, Ashton had found another note taped to the back of the bus. He sighed, just wanting his shirt so he could take a nap before the show, but he took it off and read it anyway.

_Sorry, babe. It's not here either. It really is in the bus lounge though. But I promise, this running around will be worth it. Oh, and I'm sorry if your shirt is a little tired. It had to travel a long way to get to you._

Ashton looked at his best friends in confusion and they simply smiled at him. They had these stupid grins on their faces that he couldn't quite read and he realized that Luke was nowhere to be found. He shrugged it off as best he could and trudged to the bus where he climbed back on and finally found Luke.

"What's going on?" Ashton asked, "You guys have been acting weird all day. I know you're up to something."

"Just check the lounge," Luke smiled, "We think you'll understand then."

Ashton raised his eyebrows at his three friends and slowly made his way down the hallway. He opened the door and looked inside, seeing nothing but a piece of paper taped to the window. He let out a frustrated sigh and tore it off.

_Quick question: Have you checked behind you yet?_

He turned around and his eyes widened. He immediately threw the piece of paper down and wrapped his arms around your waist tightly.

"I've missed you so much," he muttered into your neck, repeatedly pressing his lips against it.

"I've missed you too, Ash," you smiled, happy to finally have your boyfriend's arms around you again. Ashton quickly let go, only to take your face in his hands and kiss you roughly.

"What are you doing here?" he asked when he pulled away, "You were only supposed to send me a shirt."

"I did," you shrugged, "I just decided to be in it." He rolled his eyes, laughing lightly. "The boys told me you've been a little off lately," you said, playing with the ends of his hair, "They – well, all of us – thought that you would do a lot better if I were here."

"Wait," his eyes widened, "You don't mean..." You nodded, already knowing what he was leading up to.

"I'm finishing out the tour with you guys," you smiled. Ashton instantly smashed his lips to yours again, making you giggle. "Come on, Ash," you told him, pulling away and leading him to the front of the bus, "You look like you need a nap." You climbed into his bunk and he followed suit. Although the space was cramped, neither of you minded. You were always practically on top of him when you were sleeping together anyway.

"I love you, Y/N," Ashton muttered as you nuzzled your face in his neck.

"I love you, Ash," you smiled, kissing his skin slightly as he drifted off to sleep.

 


	137. Carry Me Home (Cody Carson)

You were mindlessly walking around campus, trying to come up with something to do. You had been cooped up in your dorm room all day and wanted some fresh air. It was spring break and while everyone else was visiting home or went somewhere else, you were still at college. You couldn't afford to fly home until summer vacation, so you were left alone.

It was kind of nice though. You had cleaned up your dorm room, figuring you'd surprise your roommate when she returned next week. You were able to sleep in as late as you wanted and listen to your music freely without disturbing her as well. But you were missing your friends. A couple insisted on you coming home with them, but you politely declined. You knew they would want to spend as much time with their families as possible before they had to leave again and you didn't want to intrude.

You finally ended up walking to the McDonald's not too far away and getting some lunch before heading back to your dorm. As you were walking along the sidewalk after returning to campus, you spotted a boy from one of your classes sitting on the bench outside his own dorm building.

"Hey, Cody," you said, sitting down beside him. He looked up at you, a bit surprised to see someone.

"Hi, Y/N," he said shyly.

"What are you doing here?" you asked, sipping your Coke, "I thought you went to Disney with your friends."

"I was going to, but I thought I'd stay here and catch up on schoolwork instead."

"You're such a  _nerd_."

He chuckled quietly, "What about you?"

"Couldn't afford to fly home," you shrugged, "But I can afford McDonald's which is basically the same thing, right?" He simply smiled as he rolled his eyes. You peeked over his shoulder to see what he was doing. "That doesn't look like  _schoolwork_  to me."

"Ah,  _that_  is because I've decided to reward myself with a break."

"So what are you working on right now? Writing some more songs?"

He nodded, "I want to be able to show the guys some new stuff when they get back."

"And when will the rest of our ears be  _blessed_  with these new songs you're writing?" Cody looked at you and noticed a slight smirk on your face, making him laugh.

"Soon enough," he told you, "I just want them to be perfect before anyone else hears them."

"Well, I can't wait," you smiled, nudging his arm lightly. "Anyway, I better leave before my lunch gets cold. It was nice talking to you, Cody!" you chirped as you walked away.

"You too, Y/N," Cody said so quietly that you didn't hear him as you trotted back to your dorm.

~

A couple days later, you were straightening up your dorm room before you had a Skype call with your parents. You were taking a break, sitting at your desk and browsing through your YouTube subscriptions when you noticed a new video on All Time Low's channel. You clicked it – the title being ' _Consider it on, dude_ ' obviously made you curious. You immediately recognized it as a response to a video Cody had posted over a month ago asking to sing on stage with the band.

You jumped up to look out your window, hoping Cody would be outside. He was, so you grabbed your laptop and ran out of your room.

" _Cody_!" you shouted as you ran outside, " _Cody, Cody, Cody_!" He jumped, startled by your voice and his head shot up as you jumped over a small puddle, careful not to drop your computer.

"What's going on?" he asked frantically as you plopped down, accidentally bumping into him.

"Have you been on YouTube yet today?"

"No, I've been out here. Why?"

"Do you remember that video you posted about singing with All Time Low?"

"Yes..." he said slowly, not knowing you kept up with his channel.

You simply grinned widely, opening your laptop and setting it on his lap after pressing play. He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, turning the volume up so he could hear it. Essentially, the video was of Alex Gaskarth eagerly accepting Cody's offer and telling him he would see him at the show tomorrow. Cody's jaw dropped and he stared at you while you took your laptop back and putting it on the bench next to you.

"Oh my God," he whispered before repeating it louder, " _Oh my God_!"

"Congratulations!" you beamed, throwing your arms around his neck, "That's  _so cool_!"

"Thank you," he said shakily, suddenly nervous that you were hugging him.

"You're gonna blow everyone away," you said, letting go of him. You checked the time on your phone and squeaked, "Oh, I've gotta go! Skype date with my parents. I can't wait to hear about the show!" You started heading back to your dorm room, but Cody's voice stopped you.

"Why don't you come see the show yourself?" he asked. You turned back and saw he had a nervous look on his face.

"I don't have a-"

"I was originally going to go with Dan, but then the guys decided to go to Disney," he explained, "I've been trying to find someone to go with because he didn't want to waste his ticket and I know you like them, so I've been trying to make myself ask you for a month." You smiled slightly.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah! I was planning on leaving at about noon if that's cool. I wanted to get a really good spot in the crowd."

You smiled again, "I'll see you tomorrow, Cody." He let out a visible sigh of relief and nodded quickly. You both said goodbye and you went back to your dorm to both Skype with your parents and plan your outfit for the concert.

~

The next morning, you woke up earlier than you normally had been that week. It was 11am and you had to take a shower and do your hair before Cody arrived to pick you up. About half an hour later, you were in the middle of straightening your hair when there was a knock on your door.

"Come in!" you called out. Cody shyly opened the door and walked in.

"Sorry I'm early," he said, "I just wanted to make sure you were awake."

"I've been late to class  _one time_!" you exclaimed, looking up at him from your spot on the floor in front of your mirror.

"Yeah," he chuckled, sitting on your bed, " _20 minutes_  late."

"I wasn't feeling well that day," you pouted, making him grin at you in the mirror.

"How are you feeling today?"

"I'm willingly up before 1, how do you  _think_  I'm feeling?" you stuck your tongue out at him.

"I'm guessing either really excited or really mad at the world..." he trailed off jokingly.

You rolled your eyes and laughed, "I'm almost ready, okay?"

" _Okay_ ," he sighed dramatically, falling back on your bed.

~

An hour later, you were finally pulling up to the venue. You were bouncing in your seat in excitement, thanking Cody over and over again for using the extra ticket on you. He simply smiled, his eyes scanning for a parking spot. He finally found an available spot near the back by All Time Low's bus. You both got out of the car and were about to make your way to the line when you heard a familiar voice behind you.

"Cody!" Alex called out in a questioning tone. You and Cody turned around to see him walking toward you.

"Oh my God," you whispered shakily.

"Alex!" Cody smiled, "Thanks so much for letting me do this tonight."

"No problem, man! Do you guys want to come inside?" As if he could tell what Cody was about to say, he cut him off, "Come on! Meet the rest of the band!" You let out a quiet squeak, grabbing Cody's arm as Alex led the two of you inside. Cody blushed and nudged you, making you look at him. He gave you a look and you took a deep breath.

"I'm good," you nodded, "I'll be cool." He shook his head, chuckling lightly.

"Hey, guys," Alex said, walking out to the stage, "This is Cody, the guy I was telling you about." Cody waved slightly, noticing everyone staring at you.

"This is my, uh, friend Y/N," he cleared his throat, introducing you to everyone.

" _Friend_?" Jack grinned slightly, "As in  _not your girlfriend_?" You shyly released your grip on Cody's arm as you blushed furiously, missing the glare he gave the guitarist and the smirk he got in return.

~

At showtime, you and Cody were standing in the crowd, jumping around and shouting along to all the songs.

When Alex pulled Cody onstage for  _Coffeeshop Soundtrack_ , you quickly grabbed his camera from your bag. He had asked you to film the performance for a follow-up video he was planning on filming when you got back to your dorm in the morning and you were happy to do it for him.

When the song ended, the crowd erupted into screams, cheering for Cody. He had never sang in front of that many people before, but he looked right at home. He hugged Alex before making his way back to you.

"That was  _amazing_!" you squeaked over the intro to the next song, hugging Cody and kissing his cheek.

"Thank you," he smiled, blushing again at the feeling of your lips on his skin.

~

After the show, you hung out with the band for as long as the venue security allowed you to stay. It was nearing 1am when you finally left, so Cody drove to the nearest motel, not wanting to risk falling asleep on the hour long drive home.

"Hi," Cody smiled sleepily at the woman sitting at the front desk, "Do you have any rooms available?"

"Let me check," she said, typing away, "We have a few, but they're all one bed rooms, is that okay?" He looked over and saw you had your head on the wall, practically asleep already.

He chuckled at you, turning his attention back to the woman, "Yes, that'll be fine. Thank you." He paid for the room upfront, knowing you would try to argue about it in the morning. "Come on, Sleeping Beauty," he smiled, wrapping his arm around your waist and leading you to the room.

You tossed your bag on the floor and collapsed on the bed, kicking off your shoes and immediately falling asleep. Cody followed suit, climbing onto the mattress next to you.

~

When you woke up around 9 hours later, your face was nuzzled in Cody's neck. You heard the TV faintly, propping yourself up. Cody looked at you and simply smiled. It was then that you realized you must have turning into him at some point throughout the night.

"Sorry," you yawned quietly, rubbing your eyes, "I didn't mean to fall asleep on you like that."

"It's okay," he said quietly. You rolled onto your back, replaying the events of last night in your head.

"Seriously, Cody," you said, "I can't thank you enough for taking me to the show."

"You could repay me by not getting mad that I already paid for the room."

" _Cody_!" you whined, hitting his side, "You could have at least let me pay for  _half_! How am I supposed to repay you now?!"

"You could go on a date with me," he suggested shyly. You raised your eyebrows and he began chewing on his lip nervously. "I mean, if you wanted to..."

"What were you thinking?" you asked, looking back up at the ceiling.

"Uh... I..." he stuttered, "I-I don't know. I didn't think I'd get this far." You couldn't help but laugh, causing him to relax a little.

You scooted back over to him, putting your head on his chest. You heard his heartbeat quicken, making you smile to yourself. He hesitantly put his arm around you, but once he got comfortable, his grip tightened.

"We could go get breakfast," he said randomly, "Do you want to go now?"

"Not really," you mumbled, pushing yourself as close to him as you could get.


	138. Change My Mind (Luke Hemmings)

You've never really been the type that attracted very many people – guys especially. You were a bit of a loner, always by yourself just reading a good book, but you didn't mind. No relationships meant no drama. Of course, you'd fallen in love in the past – as was obvious by the six tally marks on your left wrist – but you didn't really like to think about them.

Everyone got these tallies whenever they'd met someone they would fall in love with; Some had zero, some had ten, some had even more. You had six faded tallies, meaning you'd fallen in love six times. When they faded, that meant that the person you fell in love with fell out of love or simply wasn't in love with you.

You absolutely  _hated_  seeing them on your skin. The only thing you felt they were good for was being a constant reminder that guys just didn't have any interest in you.

You were at your favorite coffee shop that was just down the street from your apartment building. You worked there on weekends, but you still liked the environment. You were never there without a book in your hands, not paying attention to anything but the words in front of you. However, when you heard laughter coming from outside, you looked up.

There were three boys walking along the sidewalk. They walked into the coffee shop and you couldn't help but stare. You'd never seen them before. You knew you didn't know  _every_  single person in your town, but you  _definitely_  would have remembered these boys – especially since one of them had bright blue hair. You figured they must be visiting and it became very clear to you that they were as they placed their orders.

You sighed to yourself upon hearing their Australian accents, but quickly shook it off. They would find no interest in you anyway, so what's the point in getting worked up over them?

You silently got up and made your way to the front of the shop where you were greeted by the door flying open and slamming into the person running in. You squeaked loudly, falling down onto the floor. The person who ran into you quickly grabbed your hand and pulled you up and it became very apparent that he was with the three boys that had just came in.

"Oh my God!" he exclaimed in a deep voice, his Australian accent ringing in your ears, "I am  _so_  sorry!" His friends rushed over to see what was going on.

"It's fine," you said quietly, "I should have been more careful." You still hadn't looked up at him, brushing off the back of your jeans and picking up your book, brushing it off as well.

"No, I shouldn't have run in like that." You finally looked at the four boys standing in front of you. 

The moment your eyes locked on the boy who had run into you, you felt a burning sensation on your wrist. Your eyes widened as you slyly looked down at your wrist, missing the fact that the boy had his own wrist pressed against the side of his leg, looking just as nervous as you.

And there it was: A brand new, dark black tally appearing on your skin right before your eyes.

" _Oh, no_ ," you whispered to yourself, " _No, no, no, no, no_."

"Are you alright?" the blue-haired boy asked slowly.

"What?" your head shot back up, suddenly remembering you were standing in front of them, "Oh, yeah! I'm great!" You brought your hand up to your wrist and pulled your jacket sleeve down. "Sorry again for running into you," you told the blonde, not noticing that his black-haired friend saw what you were doing, "I hope to see you guys around." You rushed out of the coffee shop, leaving the four friends in a state of confusion.

~

Throughout the past two weeks, you hadn't seen the blonde stranger or his friends again, which you were more than thankful for. Of course, that may have had something to do with the fact that you avoided the coffee shop when you didn't have to work. You didn't want to accept the fact that you were destined to fall in love with this boy and you were going to do everything you could to keep it from happening.

Unfortunately, while you were at Walmart running errands one Saturday evening after work, you saw a familiar head of blonde hair as you passed the entertainment section. Your eyes widened and you ducked behind the cover of a DVD display, hoping he hadn't seen you. You peeked around the corner and noticed he hadn't, so you quickly made a break for the opposite direction. However, much to your dismay, you ran into someone else.

"Hello again," the black-haired boy chuckled as you stumbled backwards, "We really need to stop meeting under these circumstances."

"S-Sorry," you said quietly, "I'm sorry." The boy looked over and saw his friend standing there, looking at new album releases.

"You're avoiding him, aren't you?"

"Why would I  _avoid_  him?" you rushed, "I don't  _know_  him."

"You got a mark after you ran into him in the coffee shop, didn't you?"

You sighed in defeat and whispered, "Yes."

"So why not give him a chance?"

" _No way_ ," you said, "I don't believe in these marks." A puzzled look on appeared on his face.

"How can you not believe in something that's right in front of you?" he asked.

"Listen, you don't know me," you said defensively, "You don't know what happened with my other marks and as far as I'm concerned, it's going to  _stay_  that way." You didn't mean to sound so harsh, but you weren't going to willingly put yourself out there only to get your heart broken again. "I'm really sorry I ran into you, but I have to go," you told him, hurrying past him. You heard the boy let out a sigh as he walked over to his friend.

~

The next afternoon, you were sitting in the coffee shop during your break. You were reading your book and sipping a hot chocolate, minding your own business, when you heard the bell above the door ring.

Someone slid into your booth a few seconds later. You looked up from your book and stared at the person across from you in amazement.

"What, are you  _stalking me_  or something?!" you exclaimed, getting up.

"Please don't leave this time," he said almost desperately, grabbing your hand, "Just give me  _5 minutes_." You sighed and, out of sheer curiosity, scooted back to the middle of the seat. He sighed in relief and let go of you, starting his speech. "First of all, my name is Calum." He paused, signalling for you to tell him yours, which you did. "My friend Luke – the guy you ran into the other day – got a mark of his own when that happened too and I'm almost  _certain_  your marks are meant for each other."

"That's great, Calum, but-" He cut you off.

"You're right, okay? I  _don't_  know about your other marks and it's obviously a story I may never be told, but you don't know  _Luke's_  story either – you don't know what his  _nine marks_  mean; You don't know what he's been through. He's just as apprehensive about this whole thing as you are, but I  _know_  you both have the means to fix each other. All I'm asking is for you to give him a chance." You looked at him intently for a moment.

"Calum-"

" _Please_?" he said with a whining tone, "I'm gonna keep asking until you do."

"Fine," you caved, rubbing your temple with your fingers, "I'll go out with him." A grin grew on Calum's face and he was clearly trying to contain his excitement.

"I'll set up a date for you guys on Friday night! Here," he pulled out his phone, "Put in your number. I'll let you know all the details tomorrow." You began chewing on your lip as you typed your name and number. "Thank you," he breathed, getting up, "I  _promise_  you won't regret this."

"I hope not," you muttered to yourself as he rushed out the door.

~

**Luke's POV**

"Good news!" Calum announced, walking into the room his band mates were in at the studio.

"Where have you  _been_?" Ashton asked, an annoyed tone to his voice, "We've been waiting for  _10 minutes_!"

"Yeah, sorry about that, but I think I can make up for it."

"How?"

"I walked by the coffee shop on my way here and saw that girl sitting in one of the booths." Luke's heart skipped a beat at the mention of you as Calum continued. "So I went in and we talked and she agreed to go on a date with you," he finished, looking at Luke.

"No," Luke stated.

"What do you mean  _no_?!" Calum asked, throwing his arm in the air, "Do you know how hard it was to convince her to even  _listen to me_?!"

"If I wanted to go on a date with her, I would ask her myself."

"No, you wouldn't," Michael rolled his eyes.

"Yes, I would!" he exclaimed, getting up, "I am perfectly capable of deciding what girls I want to go out with!"

"She got a mark after running into you," Calum stated. Luke froze, turning to look at his best friend.

"She what...?" he asked quietly, his voice shaking.

"Before she left the coffee shop that day, I saw her pull down her sleeve and I knew a mark had appeared on her wrist just like yours did. Either that's a really big coincidence or you guys are  _meant_  to be together."

"Calum," Luke shook his head, "I appreciate that you care  _this much_  about how I've been treated in the past, but trying to set me up with  _every girl_  I look at is a little too much." He sighed, looking back at Ashton and Michael, "Tell John and Alex I got sick, okay? I'll see you guys when you get home." He stuffed his hands in his pockets and looked down at the floor as he walked past Calum, leaving the room.

"Way to go, Cal," Michael mumbled.

"I'm gonna get them together," Calum stated confidently, "Just watch me."

~

**Your POV; Three hours later**

You were sprawled out on your bed watching your favorite movie when you were startled by your phone going off on your nightstand. You looked at the screen and saw a text from a number you didn't recognize. You opened the message and read it to yourself.

_Looks like you don't have to worry about going on that date_

You texted back, knowing it was Calum.

**_Why not?_ **

_Luke refused_

You reread the message over and over again, feeling the exact same way as every other time you tried dating. You didn't know what it was, but something inside you snapped. You immediately called Calum.

"What do you mean  _he refused_?" you asked angrily as soon as he answered, not even giving him time to say hello.

"He won't do it." You could just  _see_  him shrugging. "I told him you agreed to go out with him, but he got mad at me for trying to set him up with someone again."

" _Again_?!" you exclaimed, "Did you not learn your lesson the first  _however many_  times?!"

"I'm gonna make it happen, okay?"

"No, Calum," you shook your head although he couldn't see you, "I don't need your help in finding someone for me,  _Luke_  clearly doesn't want your help in finding someone for him; Please just let it go."

"But I-"

"I appreciate the effort, but it's not meant to be and I'm fine with that," you told him, "It was nice meeting you, Calum. I hope to see you around again sometime." You quickly hung up before he had the chance to say anything else.

~

A couple days later, you were back at the coffee shop. You had avoided going again – truthfully, you didn't want to run into Calum for a  _third time_  – but you knew you couldn't keep being afraid of it forever – plus, you worked there so it pretty much impossible to just  _not go_.

You were reading your book – as you always were – when you heard someone sit down across from you. You let out a quiet sigh as you looked up from your book, fully expecting to see Calum. But your heart skipped a beat when your eyes met Luke's.

"Hi..." he said shyly. You swore you saw him blush.

"Hi," you responded politely, looking back down at your book. Luke was surprised by your complete lack of interest.

"U-Uh," he stuttered, "I-I was wondering if, um, if you would want to-"

"I know you're not about to ask me out," you stated bluntly.

"I-I'm sorry?"

"I'm gonna be honest, Luke," you said, closing your book and looking back up at him. Luke's breath hitched when you said his name. "I'm not too happy with you."

"Why?" he asked quietly – though, he had a  _pretty_  good idea what your reasoning was.

"You refuse to go out with me when your friend tried to set us up, but now you're asking me out anyway? Calum gave me this whole spiel about how I shouldn't let my past effect me and how I should give you a chance just because I got another one of  _these_  stupid things-" You pulled down your jacket sleeve. "-after I ran into you and I thought about it and you  _seemed_  like a decent guy, so I said okay. Then I get a text a few hours later telling me you got mad and said no when he told you about it?" You laughed bitterly, " _No, thank you_. Have a good day, Luke." You got up, grabbing your book and stuffing it in your bag.

You had just made it outside when you heard the door open and quick footsteps coming toward you. You felt Luke's hand grab your upper arm just above your elbow, stopping you as he ran in front of you and turned around.

"I'm sorry, okay?! I was just nervous!" he said, his facial expression full of hurt, "I  _want_  to go out with you, I just... Calum's always trying to set me up with girls because  _God knows_  I make a fool of myself when I try to talk to them  _alone_  and it always ends badly and I just wanted to find a girl on my  _own_  this time... But then I was running into the coffee shop and I ran into you and as soon as I felt that mark come up on my wrist, I knew I wanted to ask you out, but you left so fast and I thought it would be weird if I chased after you. Then a couple weeks later, Calum told me that you agreed to go out with me and I got scared, so I said no! I'm sorry if I offended you or made you mad, but I just got scared," he repeated quietly, looking down at his feet. You watched him carefully for a moment, realizing that he really  _did_  want something to happen between the two of you.

"The best way to get over your fear is to take a chance, you know," you said. He looked up at you with a confused look.

"What?"

"How are you supposed to get over your fears if you let them dictate what you do?" Luke finally got the hint and cleared his throat nervously.

"Will you... Will you go out with me?" he asked shyly.

"Yes," you said, unable to keep yourself from smiling. He breathed a sigh of relief and smiled back at you. "What are you doing right now?"

"Uh... Nothing," he answered, tilting his head.

"Wrong!" you squeaked, grabbing his hand and pulling him back inside the coffee shop. You went straight to the booth you had been sitting in before. Luke was giving you a puzzled look as the two of you sat back down. "We're going on a date before you can back out again!"

~

Three weeks had passed and you were the happiest you'd been in a  _long time_. Luke still hadn't officially introduced you to his friends yet, but neither of you were in any rush. You were both wanting to take it slow and you were glad you finally found someone that understood why but never asked any questions.

That Saturday night, after you had gotten off work, you and Luke decided you wanted to stay in and watch a movie instead of going out. He invited you to his place – he told you his friends wouldn't be home until after the time you usually left – and that was where you were. He had picked a movie you'd never seen before, but to be honest, you weren't really paying attention.

Luke was lying on the couch and you were sandwiched in between him and the back pillows. He had his arm resting on his stomach, allowing you to continuously run your finger along his marks – more specifically,  _yours_. You were so immersed in what you were doing that you didn't even notice Luke had paused the movie and was silently watching you.

"You can try to rub it off all you want," he smiled, "But it's not going anywhere." You let out a quiet chuckle and buried your face in his chest.

"Sorry," you said quietly. You felt his heartbeat quicken, making you look up at him.

"Will you be my girlfriend?" he blurted out. You couldn't seem to form any words and that made him nervous. "I know it's only been a couple weeks, but I really like you and I want other people to know I really like you too. But if you don't want to, that's okay. I mean, I won't-"

"Luke," you laughed, covering his mouth with the palm your hand, "I would love to be your girlfriend." You felt him smile into your hand before he kissed it. You laughed again, removing your hand and laying your head back down on his chest.

About 20 minutes later, you were nearly asleep when someone shouting startled you. Luckily, being in between Luke and the couch, you didn't fall on the floor. Luke, however, wasn't so lucky.

He hit the ground and quickly sat up, "I wasn't sleeping, I swear!" You both looked over at the door and saw Calum with Luke's two other friends standing there. "What are you guys doing home already?"

"The party was boring," the blue-haired boy sighed, obviously trying to hold back a smile.

" _I knew it_!" Calum shouted again with a huge grin on his face, "I  _knew_  you were gonna end up together!"

" _Calum_!" Luke whined, "Don't scare me like that!"

"But I did tell you so, didn't I? Because I think I did!"

"Y/N, you already know Calum," Luke grumbled sleepily, "These are my other two friends Ashton and Michael. Guys, this is my girlfriend Y/N." You waved slightly.

" _Girlfriend_?!" the smile on Calum's face somehow grew bigger, "This is the greatest day of my life!"

"Can you guys...you know...go somewhere else for a few minutes?" he asked, getting up.

"It's nice to meet you, Y/N," Ashton chuckled while he and Michael ushered Calum out of the room.

"Sorry about hi-" Luke cut himself off when he looked at you, realizing you were dozing off again. He smiled softly, kneeling down next to you. "Do you want me to take you home?" You shook your head slowly, not even bothering to open your eyes. "So you're going to sleep on the couch?" You nodded and he chuckled, "You're not sleeping on the couch, Y/N," he said, effortlessly lifting you up with him and he stood back up. He took you to his bedroom and laid you on his bed, kissing your forehead before walking away. He was almost out the door when he heard your voice.

"Luke," you mumbled, "Don't go." He felt a smile pull at the corner of his mouth.

"I'll be right back," he told you, "I'm just gonna let the guys know you're staying the night."

When he came back into the room a couple minutes later, he simply climbed onto the bed next to you, far too tired to change into his pajamas, and you instantly cuddled up to him. You felt him kiss your forehead again just before you fell asleep.

~

The next morning, you were woken up by the alarm on your phone. You quickly turned it off, remembering where you were and not wanting to wake anyone up, as you checked the time. Your eyes widened and you carefully untangled yourself from Luke, rushing to the living room to put on your shoes before heading out the door.

Luckily, Luke didn't live too far away from your place, so you ran home, hurrying to change into your work uniform. You ran to the coffee shop as well, getting there just before your shift started. You sent Calum a quick text, telling him to let Luke know you were running late to work and couldn't leave him a note – you realized you and Luke  _still_  hadn't exchanged numbers for some reason – before turning off your phone and going about your day as usual.

After work, you turned your phone back on to check your messages and noticed you didn't have any new ones. You shrugged it off, figuring Calum had told Luke anyway, but simply didn't respond to your text. You went home and took a quick shower, changing out of your uniform and walking the short distance to the boys' place.

You knocked on the front door, patiently waiting for someone to answer.

"Hey, Michael!" you said cheerfully when he opened the door. Michael tilted his head as he let you inside.

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

"I don't know," you shrugged, "Just wanted to see if Luke wanted to hang out, I guess."

"Uh, I don't think he's in the mood for visitors right now..."

"Why not?" you asked, becoming concerned. He gave you a look and you instantly knew why. "Was it because I left this morning?"

Michael let out a confused laugh, "A little."

"Did Calum not give him my message?"

"What message?"

"I was running late to work and I didn't have time to leave a note, so I texted Calum to let Luke know where I was because I don't have his number," you said, it slowly dawning on you that Luke was mad at  _you_ , "He thinks I ditched him, doesn't he?"

"He's  _beyond_  upset, Y/N," Michael told you, shaking his head, "He's refused to come out of his room all day."

You groaned quietly, putting your face in the palms of your hands, "I should have just been late."

"Just go explain everything to him," he said, ushering you to go down the hall, "I'm sure he'll understand."

"Thanks, Michael," you said, making your way to Luke's bedroom. You knocked quietly, hearing a less than enthusiastic response come from the other side.

"What?" Luke grumbled.

You simply knocked again, knowing he wouldn't open the door if he knew it was you. He sighed loudly and you heard shuffling followed by the lock on the door retracting. The door opened and you looked up at the tall blonde. His hair was a mess and he had a frown on his face.

"What do you want?" he asked lowly.

"I  _swear_  I can explain," you stated, a worried smile on your face. Luke sighed, opening the door so you could come in.

"Explain," he said, closing the door and turning to face you.

"I was late for work and didn't have time to leave a note," you said, suddenly becoming shy, "I texted Calum since I don't have your number, but he obviously didn't get the message to you and now, you hate me..."

Luke looked at you intently for a moment before closing the gap between the two of you and wrapping his arms around you. You let out a sigh of relief as you hugged him back.

"I don't hate you, Y/N," he said, "I was just worried you left me."

"I would never leave you like that, Luke," you said softly. You heard his heartbeat quicken when you said his name, making you smile and hug him tighter.

"I guess I should give you my number now so that doesn't happen again, huh?" he mumbled into your hair.

"I guess so," you laughed.

~

**Six months later**

"What happened with this one?" you asked, pointing to Luke's fifth faded mark.

You and Luke were sitting on your couch, sitting in silence and simply enjoying each others company, when you got curious about his marks. You skipped around, asking about each mark and he was more than willing to tell you. The fifth one, however, was clearly one he had trouble talking about. His breath hitched and you looked up at him to see a look of hurt on his face.

"I'm sorry," you shook your head rapidly, "Just forget I asked."

"No," he sighed, "You deserve to know why I was so scared to ask you out."

You both repositioned yourselves to sit facing each other. Luke grabbed your hands and pulled them onto his lap so he could play with your fingers, keeping himself from making eye contact.

"I met this girl a few years back. I'd been in love four times before, obviously, but those were nothing compared to what I felt when I was with her and neither did the ones after it – well, up until now." You smiled slightly as he went on. "The moment I met her and felt the mark come up, I asked her out. Looking back, I shouldn't have rushed into it, but I guess it was worth it," he said, squeezing your hand lightly, "Anyway, about a year or so into the relationship, I noticed that I'd never seen her marks before, so I asked about it. She told me she didn't really like having people know – she said she always liked to keep that one thing to herself. But one day, she came over to my house and we went swimming and she wasn't paying attention to how her wrist wasn't covered with her bracelets like it usually was and I realized that she didn't even have any marks. The second I saw it, I confronted her and she got really defensive and yelled at me for not respecting that she didn't want people to know and she left; I haven't seen her since." It was obvious that what happened still got to him as he bit his lip lightly.

You couldn't seem to come up with any words, so you just took your hands back and climbed into his lap, wrapping your arms around him. You felt him smile into your neck as he hugged you back tightly.

"Do you want to hear about my sixth one?" you asked quietly.

"Y/N, you don't have to-" You cut Luke off, shaking your head.

"You deserve to know why I was so hesitant to date you too, Luke," you said, sitting up. "Last year, I met this guy at the coffee shop. I was working and he came in and the second I looked at him when he came to order his drink, my wrist started burning. I didn't really care who saw my marks back then, so I never covered them. He saw the look on my face and we both watched the mark appear, so he asked me out right there. He didn't really have the same reaction I did which I just assumed was because he already had like, twelve marks and was used to it." You looked down at your wrist and started tracing the mark you were talking about. "But he had another girlfriend while we were together... He was never in love with  _me_ ," you mumbled, shrugging slightly, "I don't know – I feel like I should have seen it coming. Guys have never really been interested in me as anything other than friends my whole life and his mark was there before, he just told me it was meant for me. I knew mine was already faded by the time we went out on our second date. I guess I was just trying to convince myself it was still there."

"Y/N..." Luke trailed off.

"How could someone  _do that_?" you asked, your eyes starting to get watery, "How can you already be in love but then go out and date  _somebody else_  like that?"

Luke immediately wrapped his arms tightly around you again. You put your arms around his neck and held onto him like your life depended on it. He kissed the side of your head softly as he ran his fingers up and down your spine.

"I'm never gonna do that to you, okay?" he said lowly, his breath tickling your skin, "My mark appeared because I saw  _you_  and it's  _never_  going to fade." You looked up at him and he moved his hands to your face, wiping your cheeks with his thumbs. "I promise," he said, kissing your nose. Luke noticed you glance at his lips when he pulled away, so he took a chance and pressed them to yours.

You were hesitant at first – despite having been in a couple serious relationships, you hadn't had your first kiss yet and you weren't so sure what to do – but you quickly kissed him back when you realized what was happening.

When you both pulled away, you bit your lip to keep yourself from smiling, but you knew it didn't work. He rested his forehead on yours, quickly kissing you again.

After a few minutes of randomly kissing each other, you decided to ask about the only mark of Luke's you hadn't asked about.

"So what about this one?" you asked, tracing the very first mark on his skin.

"That one's really embarrassing," he chuckled quietly. You sat up straight and prompted him to go on. "Well..." he trailed off before shaking his head, "No, you're gonna laugh at me."

"Probably," you agreed, "But you can't say you have an embarrassing story and then just  _not_  tell me!"

"Okay," he took a deep breath, "Have you ever seen  _Mean Girls_?" Your jaw dropped and you covered your mouth, desperately trying to hold in your laugh.

" _Luke_!" you squeaked, " _No_!"

"I told you it's embarrassing!" he laughed, "I made the boys go with me to see it when it came out and Rachel McAdams came up on the screen and I instantly felt my wrist start burning. They never let me live it down."

"Oh my God," you giggled quietly.

"Don't laugh! I was 16!"

"Come on, Luke," you teased, "You have to admit that's  _hilarious_."

"Do you feel better now?" he asked you. You nodded and he grinned, "Then that's what matters." You let out a short, quiet laugh, laying your head back on his shoulder. There were another few minutes of silence before Luke spoke again.

"Hey, Y/N," he whispered.

"Hmm?" you mumbled into his shoulder. He paused, making you sit back and look at him.

Luke was biting his lip, seemingly trying to judge what your reaction would be by what he had to say. He finally took a deep breath, deciding to just say it.

"I love you," he said under his breath.

"You what?" your eyes widened, thinking you didn't hear him correctly. Your reaction was understandably making him nervous, but he knew it was too late to go back now.

"I love you, Y/N," he repeated a bit more clearly, "I've been wanting to say it for a couple months now, I just... I was scared you didn't feel the same. But you told me not to let my fears push me around, so I'm not. And I love you."

You swallowed the lump in your throat. You were still unable to find the words and Luke was growing increasingly more concerned with every second that passed. But his nerves were put at ease when you put your hands on his cheeks and pulled his face to yours.

"I love you too, Luke," you whispered shakily against his lips, making his heart race.

~

_inspiration: http://my-imagines-moonlight53.tumblr.com/post/114167438397/tally-marks-ashton-au_


	139. Kids Undercover (Ashton Irwin)

You were lying on the trampoline in your backyard with your boyfriend. It was Friday night and you and Ashton were spending it the same way you always did; Tangled up together, looking at the stars. You were simply enjoying each others company as this was something you only really got to do once a week. You had seen him at his basketball game a couple hours earlier – being on the cheer squad, it was nearly impossible for you to never  _not_  see him – but you could never just go up to him and talk to him.

Your relationship with Ashton was a total secret to everyone at school. You were the one that wanted to keep it a secret though, honestly terrified that your two best friends wouldn't approve. They absolutely  _despised_  nearly everything about Ashton – the only positive things they would ever agree on was that he was a phenomenal basketball player as well as extremely good looking. You were scared that they would stop being your friends just because you were dating Ashton.

"Babe?" Ashton whispered, snapping you out of your daydream.

"Hmm?" you hummed.

"I think we should tell everyone about us..." You slowly propped yourself up on your forearm.

"Ashton-" He cut you off.

"I don't want to have to sneak around the way we do anymore, Y/N," he sighed, sitting up. You sat up with him. "I don't like doing this. I don't like seeing you at school or at the mall or at my games and not be allowed to kiss you or tell you how beautiful you look. I hate not being able to pick you up in the mornings or take you out after school. It hurts knowing that you don't want to tell everyone that we're together," he mumbled, "It's like you're ashamed to be with me."

"I'm not ashamed to be with you, Ash," you said quietly. You crawled into his lap and took his face in your hands, making him look at you. "I just... I'm nervous about how my friends will react."

"If you're nervous they'll say mean things about me, just  _say it_." You bit your lip and he knew he was right. "I can handle rude comments, Y/N," he said softly, realizing that his previous tone was a bit harsh, "I just want to be with you openly and let everyone else know that you're mine and I'm yours."

"I know, Ash," you whispered, brushing your thumb along his cheekbone, "But I want to tell Mia and Allison when we're alone; Not at school. And I'm just not ready to do that yet."

"Okay," he sighed and nodded, kissing you gently, "I love you."

"I love you so much, Ashton," you muttered, wrapping your arms around his neck.

~

A little over a month had passed and things with you and Ashton were a little tense. He would still come over as often as he could to hang out with you, but you could tell he was hurt that you  _still_  hadn't told your friends about the two of you yet. You were trying to gather the courage to, but it just wasn't building up as quickly as Ashton –  _or you_  – would have liked. You had been so close to telling them multiple times during cheer practices, but you would always chicken out.

You were mad at yourself, honestly. Ashton was hurt because of something  _you_  wouldn't do for him and that made you feel  _terrible_. You hated sneaking around too – he knew you did – but you  _still_  couldn't make yourself go public.

~

One Friday night, you saw Ashton standing with his friends as you were making your way into the gym for the basketball game. It took everything in you not to tell him how good he looked in his uniform and to resist every urge you had to just grab his face and kiss him right then and there.

You and Ashton made eye contact for a few seconds before he quickly looked at his feet as you passed him. You sighed quietly, swallowing the lump in your throat. He looked back up, obviously hearing you, and watched as you put on a smile for your two friends standing in the area behind the hoop waiting for you.

"He's just so..." you heard Allison whisper, groaning to finish her thought.

"Who is?" you asked, walking up to them as you straightened your uniform.

"Ashton Irwin," Mia answered lowly.

"What's so-" You mimicked the groan. "-about him?" You looked over at him and he quickly looked away again.

"He acts like he's on this high horse just because he's captain of the basketball team," Allison said, "He's always being so loud and obnoxious around his friends. Plus, he's always showing off in choir just because he can sing super low and super high notes."

"That's pretty impressive though," you said, "I mean, can your voice do anything even  _close_  to what his can?" You swore you saw him smile slightly and knew he must be able to hear the conversation despite the fact that Mia and Allison weren't speaking that loudly.

"Are you seriously  _defending_  him right now?" Mia asked, a look of shock mixed with confusion on her face.

You shrugged shyly, turning back to face them, "Have you guys ever actually  _talked to him_? He's not that bad."

"Have  _you_  talked to him?" Allison raised her eyebrows.

"We're lab partners," you reminded them, "We kind of  _have_  to talk to each other."

"But he's so... _arrogant_."

"Ashton Irwin may be a lot of things," you said, "But arrogant isn't one of them." Mia and Allison looked at each other while you and the other cheerleaders got into position as the game started. The two girls simply shrugged and took their places beside you.

~

By the time the buzzer went off for halftime, your team was losing by 7 points. They had taken – and lost – the lead several times in the beginning, but it just faltered after the first 10 minutes and they haven't been able to get it back. Everyone was shouting at Ashton to get his head in the game and you felt awful. You knew he was distracted because of you; He had been all month.

And now he was being blamed for it.

You and the other cheerleaders walked onto the court to perform your halftime routine and you noticed Ashton staring at you the whole time. You kept the smile on your face as you cheered, but inside, you felt like you were going to throw up. Ashton shot you a worried look while you were walking back to the sidelines, but you quickly averted your eyes, knowing you would break down if you continued looking at him.

~

With 10 minutes left in the game, the boys were now only 2 points behind. You watched from the sidelines, cheering on your team, when your heart skipped a beat as Ashton got shoved to the floor.

The referee blew his whistle, signalling that he would get two free-throw shots for the technical foul, but he wasn't getting back up; He was just sitting there. You were standing on the sidelines, chewing on your lip as Ashton's coach was practically screaming at him to get up.

"Y/N," Allison said, nudging your arm, "Are you okay?"

You ignored her question, unable to listen to the coach yell at Ashton anymore. Your classmates went dead silent as you ran out to the middle of the court where Ashton was sitting and dropped to your knees.

"What are you doing?" he asked, his eyes widening at seeing you next to him.

"What are  _you_  doing?" you returned the question.

"I'm gonna miss," he mumbled, shaking his head, "I know I am. I've missed every single shot I've tried to make in this game."

"I'm sorry, Ash," you said quietly.

"Y/N-" You shook your head.

"Don't try to tell me it's not my fault, Ashton," you said firmly, although your voice was shaking, "I know you're distracted because of me." He was about to respond when the referee walked over.

"Are you going to take the shots or not, kid?" he asked politely, but you could tell he was agitated.

You stood up, holding your hands down to Ashton. He looked at you for a moment before taking them and allowing you to pull him off of the floor. You opened your mouth, but closed it again. Ashton gave you a confused look, tilting his head and waiting to see if you were going to say anything.

"I'm ready, Ash," you told him quietly.

"Ready for what?" he asked, not sure what you meant.

"I'm ready," you shook your head again, "I'm ready to tell everyone about us. I'm ready to walk around school with my hand in yours and argue with you about how I can carry my own books to class. I'm ready to wear your jersey everywhere I go and show everyone that I'm yours and I don't want anyone but you. I'm ready to let everyone know that I am in love with the captain of the basketball team."

You heard the players from both your team and the opposing team as well as classmates in the crowd who were close enough to hear you start whispering to each other. You let out a nervous laugh and talked more loudly so everyone – especially Mia and Allison – could hear you.

"I am in love with you, Ashton Irwin," you stated confidently, "And I don't want to keep it a secret anymore."

You felt your heartbeat in every part of your body as Ashton stared at you. His mouth curled up into a smile and he wasted no time in grabbing your cheeks and pressing his lips to yours. You let out a sigh of relief and smiled into the kiss, putting your hands on his sides and balling his jersey up in your hands. You looked at your two best friends when you pulled away from Ashton and saw they were looking on with shocked expressions, but it seemed as if they were also trying not to smile.

"I'm in love with you too, Y/N Y/L/N," he grinned, pressing another kiss on your nose, making you scrunch your face up slightly.

"Now tie this game up, take the lead, and never give it back to them," you told him firmly. He nodded and you reached up to kiss him again. "Make me proud, babe," you whispered before going back to the sidelines. The other cheerleaders had smiles on their faces as you made your way back to them.

"What was  _that_  about?" Mia asked, obviously trying to keep a straight face.

"I might be with Ashton Irwin," you trailed off, watching Ashton shoot his first free throw shot. You grinned widely and cheered along with the crowd as it went into the net.

" _Might be_?" Allison smirked, making you giggle under your breath.

"Okay, I'm  _definitely_  with Ashton Irwin."

"Why didn't you tell us?!" she exclaimed, shoving you playfully.

"I thought you guys would hate me or something because you don't like him," you shrugged shyly.

"We  _didn't_  like him," Mia corrected, "But if you do, maybe we were wrong about him." You smiled at them and they hugged you excitedly.

Ashton shot his second free throw and everyone in the gym cheered again when it went in the net. He looked over at you and winked before running off to continue the game. You blushed lightly and Mia and Allison started teasing you.

"You guys are so  _cute_  together!" Allison gushed, "I can't wait to officially meet him." Mia was quick to agree, making you smile and wonder why you were so worried about telling them in the first place.

Meanwhile, on the court, Ashton was playing better than he ever had before. He had scored 6 times in the past 4 minutes, putting the team in the lead. Every chance he got, he would look at you – sometimes making a funny face, sometimes winking at you, sometimes simply smiling – just to see you blush.

When the other team tied the game up with 10 seconds left, everyone was on the edge of their seat. Everyone in the crowd supporting your school was cheering Ashton's name while everyone on the other side of the gym was cheering for the other captain.

One of Ashton's teammates had stolen the ball and was racing down the court, dodging everyone in his way. Everything seemed to start moving in slow motion when he threw the ball to Ashton with 3 seconds left. Ashton tossed the ball toward the net and you could practically sense everyone's heart skip a beat.

The moment the ball went into the net, the crowd absolutely lost it. Ashton's teammates ran to him and they all had hugged each other. You were jumping up and down with excitement as well before running over and squeezing your way through the group of boys to get to your boyfriend.

You finally got to him, jumping into his arms and wrapping your arms around his neck and your legs around his waist. Ashton held onto you tightly and you could feel his smile as he pressed his face into your neck. You moved back, taking his face in your hands and kissing him roughly. He let out a breath when you pulled back.

"You're wearing my jersey on Monday, right?" he asked you.

"Only if you  _wash it_  first," you said seriously, making everyone around the two of you laugh.

Ashton smiled again, "I love you, Y/N."

"I love you too, Ash," you grinned, kissing him again.

 


	140. Wake Me Up (Michael Clifford) *

**Warning: Mention of death**

_~_

Ever since you were younger, you'd always wanted to save lives. You considered becoming a doctor, but the sight of blood makes you nauseous, so that was definitely out of the question – as were police officer or firefighter due to the fact that they occasionally had to deal with blood. When you get your drivers license, one of the things they ask you is if you'd like to be an organ donor. That was when it hit you. You immediately said yes and began the process of signing up.

Five years went by without a call from anyone. Until now.

You received a call telling you that you were a perfect match for someone who needed a kidney transplant. You didn't even think twice before saying yes. Your boyfriend went with you to the hospital that next week and the doctor began prepping you for surgery.

The surgery was a success and you were soon being wheeled back into your room where Michael was patiently waiting. He looked up as the doctor, Dr. Mason, and your nurse, Nicole, came in to hook you back up to your heart monitor and such.

"When will she wake up?" Michael asked.

Dr. Mason chuckled, "The anesthesia should wear off within the next half hour or so. Just try to keep yourself entertained until then." He and Nicole left the room, leaving Michael to find some way to pass the time.

20 minutes later, yours and Michael's friends came into the room.

"She's still out?" Ashton asked.

"The doctor said she should wake up in-" He looked at the time on his phone. "-about 10 minutes."

The boys were walking out the door, wanting to go get some food before you woke up, when the last sound they ever expected to hear started echoing throughout the room. Michael spun around and his heart skipped a beat, seeing the flat line on your heart monitor.

" _Dr. Mason_!" Nicole shouted, running past the boys and into your room. The doctor was already racing down the hallway, flying by the group not even two seconds later. Michael tried to go back in, but Ashton held him back.

" _Ashton_!" Michael yelled, " _Let go_!"

"You need to let them do their job, Michael," Ashton said calmly although he was just as terrified. Dr. Mason was struggling to get your heart beating again and Michael absolutely lost it.

" _Come on, Y/N_!" he cried, " _You gotta come back_!  _I need you_!"

The second your heart monitor started beeping again, Michael collapsed onto the floor, causing Ashton to fall with him. All of the boys let out a sigh of relief while Michael held onto Ashton, not even bothering to try holding in his tears.

Although they had brought you back, you weren't breathing very well on your own. Dr. Mason was quick to get a breathing tube in and soon, your heartbeat was back to normal. Nicole stopped to catch her breath, looking at Michael. She motioned for Ashton to help him back into the room. He did and led Michael to the chair.

"No," Michael sniffled, shaking Ashton off of him, "I don't wanna sit down." He stood beside your bed and started barely running his thumb up and down your jawline. "Please wake up, Y/N," he whispered, " _Please_..." The boys watched, trying to maintain what little composure they themselves had left. Nicole started walking out of the room, ushering Luke, Calum, and Ashton out in the hallway.

"We should give him a little while," she told them.

"She's gonna wake up, isn't she?" Luke asked, his voice barely able to handle the words.

She sighed quietly, "I hope so."

~

**Three days later**

Your eyes fluttered open, but you couldn't talk. You looked over and saw your boyfriend sitting in the chair beside your bed. His eyes were closed and you knew he must have been exhausted. He could never seem to fall asleep anywhere other than in a bed.

As much as you didn't want to, you knew you had to wake him up. You moaned quietly and he shot up out of the chair. Michael starting shouting for the doctor and within seconds, he and Nicole were running in.

"Y/N," Dr. Mason said, quickly putting on some gloves, "Don't try to speak, okay? We put a tube in your throat to help you breathe and we're going to take it out now." As soon as the tube left your throat, you began coughing, finally able to breathe on your own.

Nicole was holding Michael at the door, not wanting to overwhelm you with any more business going on around you. But that was the problem.  _You needed him_. He was what made you feel safe and right now, you were starting to panic.

"M-Michael!" you choked, feeling your cheeks getting wet. Michael pushed past the nurse and ran over to you, carefully taking your face in his hands as you grabbed his wrists and held onto him tightly.

"I'm right here, babe," he said in a rush, wiping your face with his thumbs and kissing you. He rested his forehead on yours and whispered, "I'm right here. I love you so much, Y/N."

"What happened?" you sniffled, rubbing his skin with your thumbs, simply reminding yourself that he was actually there with you and you weren't imagining it.

"Do you remember anything?" Dr. Mason asked you, still standing beside your bed. Michael moved his head to your neck and you leaned forward a bit so he could wrap his arms around you while you spoke with the doctor.

"I came in because someone needed a kidney, but nothing I read said anything about waking up with a tube down my throat."

"Good," he nodded in relief, "While you were recovering from the surgery, you flat-lined. We were able to bring you back, but you were having trouble breathing on your own. We had to put a tube in your throat to help you breathe, but you just wouldn't wake up again. Until now, obviously."

"I died?" you asked quietly. You felt Michael let out a shaky breath and squeeze your waist lightly. You began running your fingers through his hair to calm him down.

"To put it simply, yes," Dr. Mason stated.

" _How_?"

"That, we're still not sure of," he shook his head, frustrated with himself that he didn't have an answer for you, "There is absolutely  _no reason_  it should have happened. We think you might have had an allergic reaction to the anesthesia, but we can't tell you for sure yet. We sent some tests to the lab and they should be coming back today."

"How long have I been out?"

"Three days." You felt Michael let out another breath and, despite the fact that you couldn't see his face, you knew he was trying his best not to cry in front of the doctor.

Dr. Mason quickly listened to your heart to make sure everything was fine. When he determined it was, he and Nicole left to give you and Michael time alone. You scooted over and he carefully climbed onto the bed next to you. He put his head on the pillow beside yours so he could keep his face in your neck.

"Of course I would  _die_  trying to help someone," you muttered after a few minutes of silence, trying to lighten the mood. You felt Michael laugh quietly.

"That's not funny," he stated.

"Then why are you laughing?" you smiled, kissing the side of his head. He lifted his head to look at you.

"I love you so much," he mumbled, pressing his lips to yours again.

"Mikey," you whispered, "I'm fine."

"I almost lost you," he said, tears welling up in his eyes.

"You didn't."

"But I could have," he sniffled. You brought your hand up to his cheek, wiping his tears. "I love you so much," he repeated for the third time. He was whispering and you could barely understand what he was saying because he kept choking on his words. "The thought of losing you was something I always tried to avoid thinking about, but now... Now it almost happened and that absolutely  _killed me_. I started thinking about what it would be like to be woken up by an alarm and not you kissing me until I opened my eyes. I thought about what it would be like not being able to sing you new songs or not having you sit on my lap while I teach you how to play my guitar. I thought about not being able to marry you or have kids with you and I know we've never talked about that before, but I want to. I've never loved anything the way I love you and I don't know what I'd do if you were ever taken away from me."

"I'm never gonna be taken away from you, Michael," you said, squeezing him, "I fought way too hard to get to this point in my life to just give up now. I love you and I'm gonna be around for as long as you love me too." He reached up, kissing you again, before laying his head back down beside your neck. You moved slightly so you could look at him and noticed he was struggling to keep his eyes open. "How long has it been since you've slept?" you asked him. He shrugged, not answering since he knew you would get mad at him for losing sleep on your account. "You need to go to sleep, Mikey," you said.

"No," he whined, "I've missed you."

"Michael, I  _promise_  we're going to be in this same spot when you wake up. Please go to sleep. You're exhausted." He groaned quietly and you could feel the vibrations on your ribs where his chest was pressed against your side, making you giggle. "I love you, Michael," you whispered, kissing his forehead.

Your lips remained on his skin and you kept telling him you loved him until you heard his breathing even out and him start snoring quietly. You were still running your fingers through his hair though, knowing that it would keep him asleep.

~

About 30 minutes after Michael fell asleep, Nicole came into the room.

"He can't be on the bed with you," she said once she saw your boyfriend. You looked up at her.

"Has he gone home at all since I was admitted?" you asked simply, whispering so you didn't wake him up.

"He hasn't even left this room," she answered, confused as to where you were going.

"And how much sleep has he gotten?"

"Not much," she sighed, now realizing your point.

"I slept for three days," you shook your head, "Can you at least give him three  _hours_?" She nodded lightly as she walked over to you.

"I just need to listen to your heart again," she told you. You nodded, carefully sitting up. "Are you sure he won't wake up?" she whispered, pressing the end of her stethoscope on your back. You took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"When you have a boyfriend in a band, you kinda just figure out along the way what keeps him asleep," you smiled, laying back down. Nicole simply smiled back and left the room.

~

About two hours later, she came back.

"Y/N," she said, "You have some visitors. Would you like to see them now or should they wait until Michael wakes up?"

"Are they three really tall idiots who look like they have no idea what they're doing?" you asked with a slight smirk.

"Hey," Ashton said, walking into the room with Luke and Calum following close behind, "That's rude." You brought your finger up to your mouth and shushed him quietly.

"How long has he been asleep?" Luke asked, sitting in the chair beside you.

"A couple hours," you sighed, "I heard this is the longest he's slept in three days."

"He was scared to death, Y/N," Calum told you, sitting on the armrest of the chair, "I've known him for nearly half of my life and I've never seen him cry like that." You smiled slightly, kissing Michael's forehead again.

"How are you doing though?" Ashton questioned, cautiously sitting beside yours and Michael's legs.

"Alright, I guess," you shrugged, "I'm just ready to go home."

"Well, unfortunately," Dr. Mason said as he walked in, "You won't be able to do that for a couple more days."

"Why?"

"Nothing major. We just want to keep an eye on you. Michael wasn't the only one you scared with that episode, you know," he chuckled, nodding at the three boys around you. You smiled at them as he went on, "We got your test results back and it turns out you  _are_  allergic to the anesthesia."

"Does that mean I won't be able to be a donor anymore?" you asked quietly, nervous for his answer.

"Of course not," he assured you, "Anesthesia can be made out of a lot of different things and the ingredient you had the reaction to is just one of the more rarer things you don't have to worry about in every day life."

"So what is it that she's allergic to?" Ashton asked.

"Angelicotoxin," Dr. Mason said, "Unless administered directly into her body, there's virtually no chance of her ever having an allergic reaction – especially one that will stop her heart – again." He turned back to you, "We can't explain why your reaction didn't happen until  _after_  the surgery, but we've made sure that the drug is out of your system. We want to keep you here just to ensure that nothing else caused the episode." You nodded and he left the room. You and the boys talked for a little bit longer before Nicole came in.

"I'm here to check your vitals again," she smiled, "I'm sorry. I know this can get annoying." You laughed quietly as you leaned up.

"It's fine," you told her, breathing in and letting it out, "Am I allowed to eat?"

"Sure," she nodded, "What do you want?"

"What can I have?"

"Anything you'd like," she shrugged, "One of your friends could go get you some McDonald's if you really wanted it."

"Do you want me to?" Calum asked you, "I'll go."

"We'll all go," Luke said, standing up, "I'm sure Mikey will want something to eat when he wakes up."

"We'll be back in a few," Ashton said, patting your leg as he followed his friends out the door.

When they came back around 10 minutes later, they were each carrying two bags.

"Jeez, guys," you laughed, "How much food do you  _need_?"

"It's mostly fries, to be honest," Ashton chuckled, "We know they're your favorite."

Luke took one of the bags of fries and handed two of them to Ashton and Calum before dumping the other two into the bag. He carefully laid the bag on its side beside you so you could easily eat them without getting them everywhere.

While you and the boys were eating and talking with each other – still making sure to keep your voices down – Michael started mumbling your name. You all stopped, looking down at him and you noticed his face was scrunched up. You were startled when he jumped, scaring himself awake. He was breathing heavily as he blinked his eyes rapidly. He buried his face deeper into your neck when he realized it was just a dream and hugged you tightly.

"Bad dream?" you asked softly. He nodded and you kissed his head again. "Are you hungry? The boys went and got food earlier." He repositioned himself slightly so he was able to look at the boys who were eating off of their makeshift plates at the side of the bed. He gave them a small smile and rubbed his eyes. You reached for Michael's bag and put it on your stomach so he could take it if he wanted.

"I'm not hungry," he said groggily, looking up at you.

"Hey,  _I'm_  the one recovering from surgery, remember?  _You're_  supposed to be taking care of  _me_ , not the other way around," you teased.

"I just wanna hold you," he mumbled. You rolled your eyes at his stubbornness and pressed your lips to his.

"I love you, Mikey," you said quietly.

"I love you, Y/N," he whispered.

~

_inspiration: http://imagining5sos.tumblr.com/post/112469539802/bring-her-back-or-take-me-with-her-michael_


	141. Breaking Point (5 Seconds of Summer)

**Luke**

Every time you and Luke got into an argument, you would storm off to the bedroom and wouldn't come out until you got hungry; It was like  _clockwork_.

Luke, of course, knew that your comfort food of choice was Oreos and he would never fail to put the package on top of the cabinet where you couldn't reach it. He knew you'd have to ask him for help being as short as you were, which meant you would no longer be giving him the silent treatment.

This time, however, was a different story. This time, you refused to let Luke win. This time, you were getting the cookies  _yourself_.

You quietly sneaked out of your bedroom and tiptoed down the hallway. Luke was sitting on the living room couch watching cartoons. The volume wasn't terribly loud, but it was just loud enough to cover your tracks. You went into the kitchen and over to where the cookies were – Luke hid them in the same place every time – and put your hands firmly on the counter top, pulling yourself up.

You were careful not to kick the cabinets below as you twisted your body and brought your legs up, moving to your knees. You carefully crawled to the cabinet where the cookies were and reached up. Much to your dismay, you were a little too short, so you had to stand up. You carefully put one foot up and simply used that to push yourself up and grab the package of Oreos. You smiled victoriously to yourself, but it was a short-lived moment.

"What are you doing?" you heard Luke ask frantically, running into the room.

You were startled and your knee slipped, causing you to fall off of the counter and into Luke's arms. You had your eyes shut tightly, but you opened them and noticed the cookies were safe in your arms.

You sighed in relief and Luke said, "Yeah, you're welcome."

"Not you," you spat, "My cookies. Now put me down."

"No," he stated.

" _Lucas_ ," you growled.

"What the hell were you doing? You could have gotten hurt!"

" _Now_  you care about whether or not I'm hurt," you laughed bitterly.

"That's different!" he exclaimed, putting you back down.

"Oh, so you're only worried about giving me scars I can  _prove_?"

"I've said I'm sorry like, 10 times, Y/N! What more do you want from me?!"

"I don't want you to  _tell me_  you're sorry, Luke!" you shouted, "I want you to  _show me_! You can say you're sorry a thousand times, but that doesn't mean you're gonna  _do_  anything about it! You  _never_  do anything about it! All you do is hide shit on top of the cabinet from me until I give in and ask you to help me! I'm tired of you always using my height against me! It's never  _my_  fault I'm mad at you, Luke! You bring it upon  _yourself_!" You immediately went back to the bedroom with your Oreos, not giving him a chance to respond.

~

Nearly an hour later, you were still locked in your bedroom. Luke hadn't tried to get into the room or apologize since you yelled at him. You felt bad, honestly. Despite the fact that you were right, you knew he hated when you yelled – especially  _at_  him. It was a rare thing for you to yell, but you never meant to do it. It just sort of happened sometimes.

You quietly walked out of the bedroom and down the hallway once again. You found Luke in the living room again, but the television wasn't on. He was just sitting in silence with his guitar and a pile of papers on the coffee table.

"Luke," you said, your voice barely louder than a whisper.

"What?" he asked. You could tell he had been crying. You slowly made your way over to the couch and stood behind him.

"Luke," you repeated, making him look back at you. His eyes were red and you quickly looked down at your hands, playing with your fingers. "I'm sorry I yelled at you."

He let out an almost inaudible sigh, moving his guitar from his lap to the couch cushion beside him. He leaned back, reaching for your hand and pulling you around to him. He held you in his lap, kissing your cheek softly.

"Don't be sorry," he mumbled against your skin, "I deserved it."

"Just because you deserved it doesn't mean I should have yelled," you said, leaning into him.

"I'm sorry I've been a terrible boyfriend," he told you, holding you closely.

"You're not a-"

"Yes, I am, Y/N. I know being teased about your height annoys you, yet I continue to do it anyway. I don't blame you for snapping at me. I'm honestly surprised it didn't happen sooner. I love how short you are," he started rambling, "I love being able to hug you and comfortably rest my chin on top of your head and I love having to help you get things you can't reach yourself. I love when you put your arm around my waist while we're walking around town and I love how you ball up the bottom of my shirt in your hand because you're afraid you might lose me. I love how you grab my face and pull me down when you want to kiss me, but I love when you sit on the counter and pull me in with your legs even more. I've never teased you with the intention of hurting you and I promise I'll stop because I know that if I don't, you might get tired of it for good and I don't want you to leave me." He was nearly in tears by the time he stopped talking, so you put your hand on his cheeks and looked at him for a moment before pressing your lips to his.

"I'm not gonna leave you, Luke," you whispered, "I love you way too much to let you go for such a silly reason."

"I love you too," he said quietly, kissing you again.

~

**Michael**

You hated fighting with Michael; You absolutely  _hated it_.

You did everything you could to avoid arguments, but sometimes, everything just wasn't enough for him. He always seemed to find something wrong with what you did, even if you were just putting away groceries.

You didn't understand why he got so fussy about where you put things anyway. He was almost never home and when he  _was_ , one or all of the boys were over.

 _You_  were the one that cooked.  _You_  were the one that cleaned.  _You_  were the one that did the laundry.

But it was never  _good enough_.

You were currently in the kitchen drying dishes. Michael had left about 20 minutes ago after yelling at you for forgetting to put his guitar back on its stand after you vacuumed the bedroom. He yelled about it for a good 5 minutes before he stormed out of the house, leaving you alone.

You couldn't just sit in silence, so you did what you always did when Michael freaked out at you; Dishes. Something about doing the dishes soothed you. You weren't sure why, but it always seemed to calm you down.

You had grabbed the towel, beginning to dry everything. You picked up a fork from the sink and realized you had forgotten to wash it. Usually, you would have just washed it and that would have been the end of that. But instead, you absolutely  _lost it_.

Michael walked back into the house, hearing the ringing of the fork hitting the inside of the sink forcefully, immediately followed by the sound of you bursting into tears.

He ran into the kitchen as you slid down to the floor with your face in your hands, your cries muffled by your palms. He rushed over, sliding across the floor and coming to a stop in front of you.

"Y/N, what happened?" he asked frantically. Your eyes widened at hearing his voice.

"N-Nothing, I ha-have to f-finish the-the dishes," you said. You tried to get back up, but Michael grabbed your waist, keeping you on the floor with him. "Michael, let go!" you shouted.

"Not until you tell me what happened!" he said, keeping a firm hold on you. You collapsed in his arms, tired of fighting him, and started crying again.

"You're gonna yell at me," you whimpered, your breathing shallow and quick, "I forgot to wash the fork and now you're gonna yell at me."

Michael swallowed the lump in his throat, fighting back tears of his own.

He knew he had a habit of being irrational with you, but he never knew it affected you to this extent. Until now, obviously.

You knew he wouldn't  _actually_  get mad at you for missing a fork, but it was the constant yelling about not putting the guitar back or folding his shirts the wrong way or putting the milk in the door instead of on the shelf that made you feel like he would; It was forgetting to wash the fork that finally broke you.

"I'm not gonna yell at you, babe," he said quietly, running his fingers through your hair.

"But I forgot to-"

"I know, Y/N," he choked, "I know."

"Why aren't you yelling at me?" you sniffled, finally starting to calm down. You relaxed against Michael and felt him let out a sigh of relief, holding you tightly.

"You don't deserve to be yelled at for honest mistakes, Y/N," he said softly, "You don't deserve to be yelled at for doing things the way you do and you  _certainly_  don't deserve to be yelled at for all of the stupid reasons I yell at you. When I left earlier and I said I hated you... I need you to know that isn't true and if I could take it back, I would. I don't hate you, Y/N – I love you more than anything in the  _world_. If I were you, I would have left me by now, but I realized while I was out that the reason you haven't left yet is because you love me too. I've been such a shitty person to you and I will never be able to make up for everything I've done to you. But I'm gonna be a better person, Y/N – I  _promise_  I am. I don't know what I would do with myself if you left me." You moved back to look at him.

"I love you so much, Michael," you whispered, swallowing the lump in your throat.

"I love you too, Y/N," he said just as quietly, taking your face in his hands and wiping your tear-stained cheeks, "More than  _anything_. I swear I'm gonna be better at showing that to you."

~

**Calum (Wa** **rning: Sexual harassment** **)**

Calum was never the type to get annoyed with you – it took a lot for him to get irritated – but when he  _did_ , it was serious.

You had just gotten home from hanging out with him and the boys and you could tell something was bothering him, so you asked him about it. He didn't beat around the bush; He got straight to the point, asking you why you were so clingy and telling you to give him space the way you do at home. You nodded slowly, going back into your bedroom.

And that was where you were now; Two hours later, you were still locked in yours and Calum's bedroom, contemplating whether or not to tell Calum why you were so clingy in public.

_If only he knew._

When you finally decided to leave the room, you could hear Calum talking. You didn't hear anyone answer and figured he must have been on the phone. You sneaked to the end of the hallway, catching the end of the conversation.

"I'm really sorry about today, man," he sighed, "I don't understand why she's so clingy. She's never that way here." There was a pause. "Yeah, I guess so. I'll talk to you later, Luke." He ended the call and got up.

You quickly darted into the kitchen before he turned around and saw you. You stared aimlessly into the refrigerator as Calum walked into the kitchen. You heard his footsteps stop abruptly and felt his eyes on you.

"Hey, babe," he said, walking over to you. You closed your eyes for a moment before closing the refrigerator door and turning to look at him.

"Hi, Calum," your voice came out as a whisper.

"You're mad at me, aren't you?" he started chewing on his bottom lip.

 _That_  was a stupid question; He  _knew_  you were mad at him. You  _never_  called him Calum.

He lifted his arms up as if he was going to hug you, but you quickly ducked under his arm, walking past him.

"You're mad at me," he sighed. You took a deep breath and spun back around.

"When I was 14, I was at the store with my mom and as we were walking back out to the car, a man whistled at me," you told him, "When I was 15, a senior grabbed me while I was walking home from school and forcibly kissed me behind an abandoned house. When I was 16, I was at the park with my friends and a group of older boys followed us around, catcalling us until a random passerby made them leave."

"Y/N-" Calum said quietly, but you cut him off.

"When I was 19, I was waiting in line for a concert and a man went out of his way to drive by several times so he could stare at me. When I was 21, my friends took me to a bar for my birthday and a  _much_  older man kept trying to put his hand on my thigh despite the fact that I was never  _once_  not telling him to stop. Later that night, I was walking back home and the same man started following me, not leaving until I ran into the police station and begged someone to take me home."

By this time, you were close to tears and Calum was staring at you. You couldn't totally read the expression, but you could tell he looked as if he wanted to cry as well.

"Y/N, I didn't-" You cut him off again.

"That's why I'm so clingy in public, Calum," you stated, "I'm not clingy because I'm trying to annoy you or because I have nothing else to be doing; I'm clingy because while you may not like the way other guys look at me,  _believe me_ -" You shook your head slowly. "-neither do I." You turned back around and started walking to the front door.

"Where are you going?" he asked, following you.

"Out," you said, slamming the door behind you.

~

Okay,  _that_  was a bad idea.

It was 8pm and there were hardly any cars on the streets or people on the sidewalks. You did your best to avoid alleys and the sketchy parts of town, but you were still a paranoid mess. You knew Calum regretted calling you clingy the moment the first sentence left your mouth, but you had to get your point across. You had to show him that you weren't the way you were for no reason.

After feeling like Calum had enough time to think about what you said, you decided to head home. You were walking quicker than you had been, just wanting to be back in Calum's arms. You breathed a sigh of relief when you saw your apartment building. Until, of course, you heard the last thing you wanted to hear.

"Hey, sexy," you heard a man smirk behind you, "What's a girl like you doing out here all alone?"

"G-Going home," you stuttered, not turning around to look at him. The guy grabbed your arm and spun you around.

"Don't you know it's rude to ignore people when they're talking to you?" he asked lowly, getting a little too close to you for comfort.

"I-I'm not i-ignoring y-you."

"Oh, believe me," he said, still holding your arm, "I'll make sure of that."

He started pulling you in the opposite direction and the panic was setting in. You were putting up an impressive struggle – you were far smaller than him – but as he was gripping you tighter, it was more difficult to keep fighting.

You looked up at the doors to the apartment building and saw Calum hurrying out toward his car – presumably coming to look for you – so you took a deep breath and mustered up as much energy as possible.

"C- _Cal_!" you yelled as loudly as you could.

His head shot up and he dropped whatever he was holding, running over to you. He jumped over the small hedge that was at the entrance of the parking lot. Before the guy could even react, Calum had punched him right in the jaw. The man's grip on your arm released as he fell and, since you were still trying to get away, you hit the ground as well. You immediately sat up, crawling away from the man so he couldn't get to you again although you didn't have to worry about that.

Calum was shouting every profanity he could think of at him as he hit him two more times before allowing him to run away. His clenched fists and tightened jaw instantly loosened as he looked back at you. You scrambled to get up, finally getting your strength back.

" _Cal_!" you cried, running the short distance to him. You threw your arms around his neck and he stumbled back a bit as he held your waist tightly.

"I'm so sorry," he mumbled into your neck, starting to get choked up, "I shouldn't have let you leave. I don't mind you being clingy; I never have. I love it when your arms are around me. I love when my arms are around you. I love when you lay your head on my chest just so you can listen to my heartbeat because it helps you calm down. I love you so much. I don't know what I'd do without you."

"I love you too, Cal," you murmured, pressing your lips to his neck. You felt him smile against your skin and let out a breath.

His right arm let go of you, only to move behind your knees and pick you up. He started carrying you back to the apartment building, stopping at his car on the way. He put you back down, bending down to pick up the keys he dropped when you yelled his name. He quickly stuffed them in his pocket and picked you up again, making you giggle lightly. You felt him chuckle as you laid your head on his shoulder.

"I love you, Cal," you said quietly.

"I love you, Y/N," he whispered, kissing your forehead.

~

**Ashton**

You and Ashton rarely ever got into serious fights. You would joke around and tease each other all the time, but as far as things that ended in tears or slamming doors? They just never happened. You hated being yelled at and Ashton hated yelling at people. Whenever something he said hit a little too close to home, he could immediately tell by the look on your face and he would start apologizing, not stopping until he you promised him it was okay, although he still had his doubts.

On this particular day, Ashton had told you he was going to spend the entire day with you. However, that's not what was happening.

When you woke up, you found a sticky note on his pillow saying he had to do some last minute things with the band and that he would be back within an hour. That was at 10.

It was now 9pm and Ashton still wasn't home. Any other time, you would have understood; The boys were writing and recording their second album and you knew that it took a lot out of them. But any other time, he would know when he would be at the studio all day and would give you a heads up, not a note left on top of his pillow.

You probably should have seen it coming though. Ashton hadn't spent much time at home with you anymore after getting home from tour. All he ever wanted to do was hang out with his friends or work on new music.

And you were all for him doing those things, but you sometimes, you just wanted him to yourself; No interruptions, no talk about music, no nothing. Just you and Ashton spending time with each other like you did when you first started dating.

You were sitting on the living room couch, not-so-patiently waiting for Ashton to get home. You were drifting in and out of sleep when you heard a car door shut outside. You were startled awake by the front door opening and closing loudly a few seconds later.

"Hey, babe," Ashton said, throwing his keys on the table beside the door, "Sorry I'm late." He walked over to the couch to kiss your cheek, but you dodged his lips, spinning around as you stood up. "You're mad, aren't you?"

"Why would I be mad, Ashton?" you asked, a sweet smile on your face but your tone challenging him.

"I'm not gonna fight with you about this, Y/N," he stated.

"Then you can  _listen_ ," you growled, "You could have  _called me_ , Ash. You could have texted me to let me know you wouldn't be home all day  _despite the fact_ that your note said you wouldn't be gone for more than an  _hour_."

"Y/N-"

"You're never home anymore, Ash!" you exclaimed. You could feel the tears start forming. "And when you  _are_ , someone else is  _always_  over! When was the last time we ever did something, just the  _two of us_? Because, honestly, I'm having trouble remembering! I don't want to be something you just push off to the side for a while and then bring back out whenever you want to use it again! I may hate having all the attention on me, but that doesn't mean I don't want  _yours_! I understand that the boys and the band and the music and the fans mean a lot to you, Ashton,  _I do..._ But lately, I'm starting to think you care about them than me."

"Y/N..." he said softly, "I'm-"

"Don't tell me you're sorry, Ashton," you shook your head, swallowing the lump in your throat and wiping your face with the sleeve of Ashton's sweater, "Sorry's not gonna be good enough this time."

You pushed past him and walked down the hall to your bedroom, locking the door behind you. Ashton followed you, but he didn't try to get in; He simply stood outside with his forehead on the door, listening to you cry into your pillow. You heard him walk away and then the sound of the front door closing, causing you to cry harder until you fell asleep.

~

The next morning, you woke up to your alarm going off.  _That was weird_. You didn't remember setting an alarm for today.

You grabbed your phone off of the nightstand and shut the alarm off, looking at the time. It was 11:30.

 _Pretty weird time to set an alarm for_ , you thought to yourself.

You turned onto your back, hoping to see Ashton smiling at you the same way he did every morning, but he wasn't there. Instead, there was another sticky note. You picked it up, holding it above your head and reading it.

_I'm sure you're still mad at me, but please let me make it up to you. Get dressed and go outside. There's another note on your car that will tell you where to go._

You sighed, dragging yourself out of bed to get dressed. Although you were still upset with Ashton, he wasn't one to not make up directly after an argument, so you knew whatever he was planning had to be good.

You changed into a pair of denim shorts and another one of Ashton's sweaters before heading to the bathroom to brush your teeth and hair. You slipped on your Converse and grabbed your keys, heading out the door.

As promised, there was a sticky note taped to your window. You ripped it off and climbed into the drivers seat, reading it.

_You look absolutely stunning, by the way (I don't need to see you to know that you do). It kinda makes me think about how I felt when I saw you on our first date._

You blushed lightly, already knowing where he wanted you to go; He wanted you to go where Luke had introduced the two of you.

Luke had been one of your best friends for as long as you could walk and he was always telling you about this drummer he met. He casually mentioned a few times that you should go on a date with him, but you always refused – blind dates weren't really your thing – but his incessant begging finally got you to cave.

_Flashback_

Luke took you to the local fair one Saturday morning in July. You had been walking around for a while when he suddenly exclaimed that he saw the boy he wanted you to meet. Honestly, you were tired and you just wanted to go home, but the second you saw who Luke was pulling you toward, you forgot all about how tired you were.

"Y/N, this is Ashton," Luke grinned, noticing the blush on your cheeks, "Ashton, this is my best friend Y/N."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Ashton smiled, taking your hand and kissing the back of it, only making you turn redder.

"If you'll excuse me," Luke said, "Michael and Calum are waiting for me at the Ferris wheel, so I'm gonna go find them. Have fun!" He trotted away, leaving you and Ashton alone. You looked down and realized he was still holding your hand. When he saw you notice, he let go momentarily, only to take your hand again, tangling your fingers together.

"If I didn't know any better," Ashton said, taking you toward the carousel, "I'd say we were just set up."

"What was your first clue?" you asked jokingly, "Luke leaving so suddenly or us holding hands?"

"They both happened so fast, it's hard to say," he winked.

And that was how the relationship started. You spent that entire day with Ashton, somehow never seeming to run into any of the other boys.

Everything felt  _right_  with him; Like you were on top of the world and nothing could bring you down.

_End flashback_

You pulled into the entrance of the fairgrounds. The fair was obviously no longer going since it was the middle of autumn, but people were still allowed to hang out on the grounds. You decided to go to where the carousel was set up during the fair and were met with the sight of the familiar blonde head of your best friend.

Luke smiled at you, handing you three (your favorite flower) and a sticky note. He still hadn't said a word, he just moved his hand behind his back and began rocking back and forth on his feet while you read the note.

_I didn't think it was possible to fall in love with you even more after I said those words, but you proved me wrong when you said them back._

You looked up at Luke and he simply smiled again. You ran back to your car and drove to the place where you and Ashton said ' _I love you_ ' for the first time.

_Flashback_

Ashton had been nervous that whole day and you were starting to worry about him. He was never the type to be nervous about anything – as far as he let anyone see – so you were understandably concerned. He had taken you to this clearing in the woods where there was a small cliff above a beautiful stream. There were no lights from houses or towns around this area and it was perfect for stargazing.

He brought everything for a late night picnic and after you had finished eating, you laid down to look at the stars. You had your head on his chest and he was playing with your hair lightly. You were talking about nothing and everything all at the same time and whenever you would say his name, you heard his heart start racing.

"Y/N," Ashton said softly.  _God_ , you loved the way your name sounded when he said it.

You looked at him and he sat up, bringing you with him. He turned to face you and took your hands carefully in his own.

"I know we've only been together for a couple months, but I love you," he said quickly, knowing that if he didn't say it now, he probably never would. He looked down when you didn't say anything, but he missed the fact that you couldn't hold back your smile.

"I love you too, Ashton," you whispered. He jerked his head back up.

" _You do_?" he breathed. You nodded and he grinned widely, leaning in and kissing your nose. But when you glanced at his lips as he pulled back, he happily took the hint.

Ashton moved his hands from your lap to your cheeks gently as if he thought he was going to break you. He pressed his lips to yours and you instantly felt every part of your body go weak. You crawled into his lap, not breaking the kiss, and rested your hands on his neck so you could run your thumbs along his jawline. You felt him smile against your lips before he pulled away and rested his forehead on yours.

_End flashback_

You drove to the opening of the woods and began walking to the clearing where you found Calum. He smiled at you and gave you three flowers and a sticky note, just as Luke had. You chewed on your lip, reading the note.

_My favorite thing you've ever done is absolutely destroy Michael when we played Mario Kart after we got home from tour._

You couldn't help but giggle at the memory, making Calum smile again.

You drove to Michael's house, going up to the front door and knocking. Michael answered the door, immediately giving you the three flowers and sticky note in his hand.

"I'm still mad about that, by the way," he frowned. You simply grinned as you read the note.

_I know you hate how much I'm here, but please come to the studio. I promise it'll be worth it._

You looked up at Michael and he ushered you off of his front porch. You drove to the studio and walked inside, holding your flowers tightly, not wanting to leave them in the car. You walked up to the front desk.

"Hi, Annie," you said shyly, "Is Ashton here?" She smiled at you.

"Hey, Y/N. Yeah, he's waiting for you in studio A." You thanked her and began walking back.

You opened the door, finding no one in the room or in the recording booth, but there were three flowers on the table along with a note and another piece of paper. You walked over and sat down on the couch, moving the flowers to the side along with your others so you could read the note.

_You know how bad I am at apologizing, so I'll understand if this isn't the kind of sorry you're looking for. One thing being in the music industry has taught me is that if you can't say it, write a song, so that's what I did. I had a little help from the guys here and there, but I've been working on these lyrics for a couple months now. I'm sorry I was too focused on writing this for you and never realized how much you needed me around. I'm sure this won't completely make up for everything, but I hope you like it. I love you._

You put the note down on the table, keeping the larger paper in your hands. As you read, you could feel yourself starting to cry again.

You heard a noise come from behind you and turned to see Ashton watching you, no longer able to hold it in either. You swallowed the lump in your throat as he walked out of the corner.

You got up, meeting him halfway and wrapping your arms around his neck tightly. He let out a shaky breath and hugged your waist, burying his face in your neck.

"I love you, Y/N," he said, his voice muffled by your skin.

"I love you too, Ash," you whispered. He lifted you up slightly and carried you back to the couch, sitting down with you on his lap.

"I'm sorry I've been such a shitty boyfriend," he told you, pressing soft kisses on your face every now and then, "I didn't mean to make you feel like I care about my job more than you, I just wanted your song to be  _perfect_. I hate myself for being too focused on the song and not focused enough on who I was writing it for and for that, I am more sorry than I'll ever be able to make up for. Nothing I could ever write will compare to what it's like to have the real thing and I don't think you realize how lucky I am that you're still with me after all I've put you through."

"Ashton," you said softly as you took his face in your hands, making his heart race, "I love you. So what if I got tired of you never being home? I knew when you guys started getting more popular that that was going to happen. But that just makes me love it when you're home that much more. I know you guys are wanting to get new music out, but please don't overwork yourselves to do it. You guys are allowed to take breaks and you  _need_  to take them too."

"We will," he told you quietly, "I promise." You smiled, pulling his face to yours and kissing him slowly.

"I love you so much, Ash," you mumbled.

"I love you so much more, Y/N," he grinned lightly, kissing you again.

 


	142. After Party (Luke Hemmings)

You were sitting in your seat, nearly bouncing up and down in excitement as Anna Kendrick and Ansel Elgort walked on stage. They were presenting the award for Best Female Artist – one of the categories you were nominated for.

"The ladies in this category are some of my favorite artists," Anna said, "They're talented, they can hit any note you ask them to, they've got insanely catchy songs and even better lyrics, and not to mention they're all incredibly nice to look at. Don't you agree, Ansel?" She looked at him when he didn't answer and hit his arm lightly. "Ansel! Are you even paying attention?"

"What? Oh, I'm sorry, Anna," Ansel said, looking around the room, "I just can't believe I'm presenting this award right now. It seems like just this morning, I was the one winning it."

" _Really_?" Anna laughed quietly along with everyone else, looking at him.

"Yeah," he nodded, "It was weird though. You and I were the only ones nominated and I won. You were pretty upset about it. Hey, you wouldn't happen to know where my award went, would you? Because I woke up this morning and it was gone."

"Ansel, are you sure you weren't just dreaming?" she raised her eyebrows with a smile on her face. He paused before speaking again.

"And the nominees for Best Female Artist are..." Ansel smiled at the camera before the voice over took over and named the nominees.

When your name was announced, you smiled as the crowd cheered loudly for you. You waved at the camera pointed in your direction, making a funny face before laughing. Attention turned back to Ansel and Anna when the nominees were done being announced.

"And the winner is..." they smiled in unison, looking up behind them. One of your music videos started playing on the screen and they shouted happily into the microphone, " _Y/N Y/L/N_!" You immediately put your face in your hands and leaned forward, smiling wider than you ever had before.

This was your very first award show and you were up against people you never even dreamed of seeing in person, but to be nominated with and  _win_  against them? It was a dream come true for you.

You took a deep breath, getting up out of your seat and starting to walk down the aisle. You hugged as many people as you could along the way, including one of your inspirations. Taylor Swift was sitting right in the front row and she excitedly pulled you into a hug, congratulating you. You breathlessly thanked her as you hurried up the stairs to the stage and hugged Ansel and Anna, taking your award.

You stood in front of the microphone for a moment and covered your mouth with your free hand, taking it all in. The crowd was going absolutely crazy for you and it took a few seconds for them to calm down.

"Wow," you smiled, "Thank you guys so much! Um, I just want to start by saying I'm sorry if I seem a little out of breath; I can see Luke Hemmings smiling at me out of the corner of my eye and I'm having a moment about it." You saw Ashton and Calum nudge him – they were the ones on either side of him – as he looked down shyly, which obviously only made you more nervous. "Never in a million years did I think I would be singing for anyone other than my family members, let alone winning awards against people like Taylor Swift." Taylor smiled at you, clapping for you again. "I have so many people to thank, I know I'm going to forget most of them. Oh, God. Thank you to all of my friends and family whether blood-related or not for putting up with my constant singing and never-ending guitar playing while I was growing up. Thank you to everyone at my label and everyone in my band and crew on tour for being like my second family. Thank you to bands like 5 Seconds of Summer and artists like Taylor Swift-" You motioned toward them, causing the crowd to scream as all of them smiled at you. "-who made me want to do this with my life in the first place. And most importantly, thank you to the fans because I would be  _nothing_  without you guys. If I could share this award and let you all have it, I would. I'm getting this because you believe in me and I will never be able to show you guys how much I appreciate you."

You heard the voice-over come on again, " _Y/N is also taking home the awards for Best Song, Best Music Video, and Best Live Performer! Congratulations, Y/N_ _!_ " You covered your mouth again as Ansel and Anna handed you three more awards.

You knew you wouldn't have time to make another speech, so you quickly squealed into the microphone as you walked away, "Thank you, guys! I love you so much!" Everyone in the room cheered as you made your way backstage.

~

After the show, you were talking with Taylor backstage when an interviewer interrupted, wanting to talk with her. She hugged and congratulated you again as you did with her for her own wins that night and she walked off.

You looked around, taking everything in again. You were still having a hard time convincing yourself it was all  _actually_  happening.

"Hey, Y/N!" you heard a very distinct Australian accent say behind you as he put his hand on your shoulder. You turned to see Ashton taking his arm back as he, Michael, and Calum grinned at you. "We just wanted to say congratulations!" he continued.

"And thanks for those mentions in your speech," Calum smirked, "Lukey's still blushing."

"Shut up," Luke grumbled, but you knew Calum was right because he still hadn't looked up at you.

"Thank you," you giggled quietly, "I mean, I somehow always seem to mention you guys in interviews, so why not carry it over to acceptance speeches?"

"We've noticed that," Michael laughed.

You awed jokingly, "You guys watch my interviews?"

"We really don't have a  _choice_ ," Ashton said, throwing his arm across Luke's shoulder. Luke finally looked up, glaring at the drummer before his eyes landed on you.

You smiled at him, "If it makes you feel any better, I watch all of your interviews too." He started to relax a little.

"So," Calum said, "You going to the after party?"

"I hadn't planned on it," you shrugged, "I was gonna have my own after party in my hotel room by myself. Maybe I'll invite a pizza and Netflix. Who knows? This night is full of surprises." They chuckled, nudging Luke toward you. He looked back at them before turning back to you. He was about to speak when someone interrupted.

"Y/N!" an interviewer chirped, "Do you think we could have a quick chat with you?"

"Yeah, sure!" you smiled politely. You gave Luke an apologetic glance as you were being whisked away and he let out a sigh as he turned back to face his friends.

The interview lasted no longer than 5 minutes, but when you went back to see if Luke was still there, he and the rest of the band were gone. You started biting your inner cheek, deciding to just head back to your hotel instead of trying to find them.

When you finally got back to your room, you groaned in relief as you stepped out of your heels. You quickly ordered a pizza before changing into the plain white t-shirt and pair of light grey sweatpants you had brought with you on the trip – you had to fly out to Los Angeles from your home in Baltimore for the show.

You went into the bathroom to remove your makeup and take out your contacts. You hopped onto the bed, grabbing the television and scrolling through movies, trying to find something to watch while you waited for your food.

You heard a knock on your door a few minutes later and looked over, confused. You weren't expecting any visitors and you knew your pizza wouldn't be here for at least 10 more minutes.

You paused your movie and got up, looking out the peephole. You were a bit surprised, but moved to open the door anyway.

"Hello, Luke," you said, tilting your head. He looked at you from head to toe and a smile began pulling at the corner of his mouth, making you blush lightly. "Sorry for how gross I look compared to earlier," you laughed nervously, "I wasn't expecting to see anyone else but the pizza guy tonight."

"N-No," he stuttered shyly, playing with his fingers, "You still look beautiful." You blushed again. "Sorry for just dropping by like this, but I was looking for you and someone said you already came back here and I didn't get to ask you what I wanted to ask you." You were silent, signalling for him to continue. "Um... I know you said you were gonna stay here, but I was wondering if you'd want to go get something to eat with me..." he trailed off quietly.

You smiled weakly, "I already ordered pizza."

"O-Oh," he said, "That's okay. Sorry for bothering you."

He was about to walk away when you spoke up again, "But you're more than welcome to stay." He turned back around.

"A-Are you sure?"

"Yeah!" you said a little too eagerly, "I mean, if I hadn't already ordered the pizza, I definitely would have gone out with you."

"If you're o-" You cut him off, grabbing his hand and pulling him into the room, realizing he wasn't going to come in himself.

"Welcome to the greatest after party you will ever go to," you said, plopping back down on the bed. Luke took a seat on the bed next to you. He was about to pull his legs up when you stopped him. "Whoa there, pal," you kicked his leg back down, "Take off your shoes. I have to sleep on this bed tonight and I don't want your dirt all over it."

"Hey, you could make some serious money off of  _my dirt_ ," he joked, but kicked his shoes off anyway.

"I don't need to make money off of  _your_  dirt," you stuck your tongue out at him, "I've got my own." Luke chuckled, scooting back on the bed next to you as you started playing your movie again.

About 10 minutes later, there was another knock on the door. You paused the movie again, scrambling off of the bed to get a 10 dollar bill from your wallet. You heard Luke start getting up as well and you sprung up from the floor.

"Don't you  _dare_ , Hemmings!" you squeaked as he pulled his own wallet out of his back pocket.

"Too late, I'm already going to," he sauntered toward the door as he pulled out a 10 dollar bill. You ran in front of him and spun around, putting your hand on his chest to stop him.

"You are  _not_  paying for this, Luke," you narrowed your eyes, " _I_  ordered it,  _I_  invited you to stay;  _I'm_  buying."

"We'll see about that," he winked, quickly rushing by you and opening the door.

"Hello!" the delivery boy chirped, "That'll be $7.99."

"Don't you dare take that money from him!" you squeaked again, ducking under the arm he had resting on the door frame and getting in front of him. The arm on the door wrapped around your waist, pulling you back against him. He handed the boy his money and took the pizza.

"Keep the change," Luke smiled. You reached out, the arm around your waist preventing you from doing anything else, and handed him your own money.

"Keep that change too then," you said.

"I- Thank you!" the boy smiled before walking back down the hall. Luke closed the door and took you and the pizza back to the bed before finally letting go of you.

"You're such a dick," you tried to say seriously, but ended up smiling as the two of you climbed back onto the bed. He opened the box, letting the smell of the pizza in front of him fill his nose.

"I don't know," he shrugged, smirking at you, "I found the experience to be quite enjoyable."

"What? The part where you refused to let me pay or the part where you finally get to eat?"

"Both equally rewarding," he nodded, "However, I was thinking about the part where my arm was around you."

You rolled your eyes, desperately trying to hide your blush as you reached for the remote. Luke's hand met yours just before you could get it. You huffed quietly and looked up at him. He briefly looked away from you to close the pizza box and push it to the foot of the bed. You gave him a confused stare as he looked back at you.

"Did you really mean what you said earlier?" he asked, "About saying yes to going out with me?"

"Like anyone's going to say  _no_  to their celebrity crush," you replied, blushing at what you just told him. He started smiling slightly.

"You're my celebrity crush too, you know."

"I  _have_  heard that," you nodded nervously.

Despite being confident around him at the award show, now that you two were alone, you felt butterflies flying all around your stomach and your heart started beating faster than you'd ever felt it beat before.

"Will you go out with me tomorrow?" he asked quietly, "The boys and I have the day off and I know you're not from around here. I'd love to show you the city."

"You're Australian," you giggled, " _You_  aren't even from around here."

"I'm here enough," he shrugged. You laughed under your breath before smiling at him.

"I would love to go out with you, Luke," you told him. He grinned and scooted back on the bed, resting comfortably against the headboard. He pulled the pizza box back toward you both while you sat back beside him and hit play on the remote control.

When you were done eating, Luke moved the empty box to the desk beside the bed and wiggled a bit so he was laying down. You looked at him for a moment and when he finally felt your eyes on him, he looked at you as well.

He took your hand and pulled it lightly, gesturing for you to lay down as well. He stuck his arm under your neck just before you laid your head down. You smiled to yourself, putting your head on his chest as he pulled you closer. You really didn't  _mean_  to fall asleep on him, but you were so exhausted from the day's events that you couldn't help it and his heartbeat was just so calming to you.

When Luke heard your breathing even out and realized you fell asleep, he couldn't help but smile. He carefully took your glasses off of your face and put them on the desk. He kissed your forehead gently before pulling out his phone, texting Ashton to let him and the boys know that he wouldn't be home tonight. He then turned off the TV, shut the lamp off, and slowly drifted to sleep with you in his arms.

 


	143. Taking on the World (Michael Clifford)

Being a hero was a lot more to you than the praise you got for saving the day or the countless people who would see you on the street from time to time to say thank you. No, being a hero was about helping people and making them feel safe. You had become attached to the people in your town despite the fact that not one single person knew who you really were – and that was probably for the best.

When you were out of hero mode, you were just another girl on the streets. You didn't look like much, but when you put on that costume, you felt at peace; Like this was what you were meant to be doing with your life. You didn't have any superpowers or anything of the sort, but you knew a bit of martial arts and you definitely used that skill to your advantage.

One night, you were walking down the alley leading to your base of operations, ready to take your mask off and call it a night. Nothing was out of the ordinary – until you heard sounds coming from in front of you. You immediately moved to the wall, walking along until you made it to the clearing.

You peered around the corner and found four boys poking around; One with blonde hair and a black outfit, one with light brown hair and a blue outfit, one with black hair and a green outfit, and one with dark brown hair and a red outfit. You watched them for a moment, trying to figure out if you'd ever seen them around before seeing as how two of them weren't even wearing masks. You couldn't seem to recall ever seeing anyone with their hairstyles and colors, so you decided to ask them yourself.

"Who the hell are you?" you asked, perking up a bit as you walked into the area, making them jump and spin around.

"Who the hell are  _you_?" the dark brown-haired one retorted.

"I asked you first."

"Well, we were here first."

"With those accents?" you laughed, "I don't think so. Now who the hell are you?"

"I am Mike-Ro-Wave," he answered before pointing to the others, "This is Dr. Fluke, SmAsh, and Cal Pal." You stared at them for a moment before bursting into laughter.

"You're fucking with me, aren't you?" They raised their eyebrows at each other then you. "You're serious? Those are seriously your names? Do you idiots even  _have_ any superpowers or anything?"

"Of course we do!"

"No, wait," you giggled some more, "Let me guess. You-" You pointed at the blonde. "-give the bad guys apples so they'll stay away from you. You-" You pointed at the dark brown-haired boy. "-I don't know, do you overcook them? You-" You pointed at the light brown-haired one. "You, I believe. You're an Incredible Hulk wannabe, but I believe it. And you-" You moved on to the black-haired one. "What is your superpower? Do you  _nice_  them to death?"

"Very funny," the one in green said, "What about you then? What's  _your_  superpower?"

"Don't have one," you shrugged.

"You don't have one?!" the one in red exclaimed, "And you're giving  _us_  shit?!"

"I never said I did," you sassed.

"Do you even have a name?"

"Don't need a name."

"Are you kidding me?"

"Nope," you replied, "I don't need a name or some ridiculous superpower to kick ass. I do it pretty damn well on my own." He scoffed under his breath and you were about to respond when you heard a woman screaming.

You bolted out of the alley and onto the sidewalk, looking around. You saw a woman about your age being dragged by a much larger man. She was crying and screaming for someone to help her, so you sprung into action.

"Hey!" you shouted, strolling over, "What do you think you're doing?"

" _That's her plan_?" you heard the dark brown-haired boy whisper to his friends, making you smirk lightly.

"I think I'm looking at a new piece of meat," he gave you a smug smile, licking his bottom lip slightly. He released the girl and she ran past you, hiding behind the boys.

"Oh, come on," you said, motioning back to the four boys behind you, "I know they look stupid, but you really shouldn't talk to people like that."

" _What_?!" the one in red exclaimed, stomping over to you.

"This your boyfriend?" the man asked.

"Ew," you cringed, "God, no."

"Good," he started walking quickly toward you.

You held the boy's shoulder for support and brought your leg up, forcefully kicking the man backwards. He stumbled a bit, getting angrier. You pushed the boy away and his back hit the wall behind him as you ducked to the side, tripping the man. He landed right on his face.

"Oh," you took in a sharp breath, "That is gonna hurt tomorrow." He began picking himself up, but you didn't give him the chance to make it back to his feet. You raised your elbow up and slammed it on the back of his neck, instantly knocking him unconscious. "Yep," you smiled at the boys, biting your lip lightly, "Definitely gonna hurt tomorrow. And to answer your question-" You looked over at the dark brown-haired boy once again. "- _that_  was my plan."

"Thank you so much!" the girl cried, running out from behind the other three boys and hugging you.

"No need to thank me," you smiled, "Would you like me to walk with you to wherever you were going?"

"Please?" she whimpered. You nodded, letting her lead the way, leaving the four boys watching you in amazement.

"Wait!" the boy in blue shouted. You looked over your shoulder. "What about him?!" he pointed to the man lying unconscious on the sidewalk.

"Take him down to the police station," you answered, "Tell them I sent you."

"How will they know we're talking about you if we don't know your name?"

"They'll know," you laughed, returning to the girl's side.

~

When you returned about 10 minutes later, the boys and the man were gone. You made your way down the alley and into your base, finding the four boys had returned to your base after taking the man to the station.

"Oh," you said in an anything but enthusiastic tone, "You're back."

"Just hear us out for a second," the one in blue said. You gestured for him to continue. "Okay-"

"Second's up," you cut him off, "Now leave." He sighed quietly, continuing with what he had to say anyway.

"You're an amazing fighter-"

"I know," you nodded.

He rolled his eyes, "We want you to be part of our team."

"Like hell we do!" the one in red shouted, "We're doing fine without her, Ash-" He quickly stopped himself, making you tilt your head. "We don't need her bitching about our outfits and names all the time!"

"Call it what you will – I'm still right," you put your hand on your hip. He growled lowly at you. "Wow, that's so terrifying," you snorted lightly, "I'm shaking in my boots." You turned back to the other boy, "Thanks for the offer, but I work alone."

"What do you do when you get caught?" the blonde asked curiously.

"I don't get caught."

"Oh, do you pick at everything until they get tired of you and let you go just to get away from you then?" the dark brown-haired boy asked.

" _I don't get caught_ ," you repeated slowly, narrowing your eyes at him.

"Listen, guys," the boy in blue interrupted, looking around at his friends, "I really think she's the missing piece we need. She's got the smarts and the skills; I think we could be a great team if we all came together."

"I'm all for trying it out," the one in green spoke up.

"I'm in," the one in black agreed. The three boys were now looking at you and the boy in red.

"I will if you will," he muttered in your direction.

"You know what?" you said, "I'll play your little game just for the hell of it. But let's get a few things straight right now: First of all, you idiots-" you pointed at the boys in green and blue. "-aren't even wearing masks. I mean, I'm at least giving you guys the benefit of the doubt and assuming you have secret identities. The people around here aren't that stupid, okay? They're gonna figure it out eventually. Secondly-" You looked at the boy in red. "-Seriously. Lose the cape, Superman."

" _What_?!" he shouted, "This is my  _thing_!"

"Yeah, and it's a  _thing_  that's going to get snagged on something one of these days and get you captured and/or killed. Third, I will not be calling you by your self-proclaimed names because they're the dumbest fucking things I've ever heard. Instead, we will go by outfit color. You-" You pointed at the blonde. "will be Black. You-" You pointed at the black-haired boy. "-will be Green. You-" You pointed at the light brown-haired boy. "will be Blue. You-" You pointed at the dark brown-haired boy. "-will be Red and I am obviously Purple. Any further questions, gentlemen?" They shook their heads. "Good," you smiled, "Meet me at the coffee shop down the street tomorrow at noon and I'll show you around town so you get the lay of the land. Try looking as discrete as possible, please. We don't need – and I don't  _want_  – any attention on us."

"How will we know who you are?" Blue asked you.

"You'll know," you smirked again lightly. They nodded, leaving to go back to wherever their own base was.

You remained still for a couple minutes before quietly going down the drainage pipe to what you called your clubhouse. You went to the middle where there was an open area which was where your base of operations was located. You quickly changed out of your costume and back into your normal clothes, hiding the outfit where you usually did. You went back outside and up the alley, peeking around. After confirming that no one was around, you quickly began walking home.

~

The next morning, you put on a pair of black skinny jeans, a white v-neck t-shirt, and a light grey cardigan along with your black Vans before heading to the coffee shop. You had gotten there 30 minutes before you told the boys to meet you, however, you were surprised to see Blue and Green with two other boys already sitting in a booth waiting for you. You couldn't deny that you thought they were attractive, but you quickly shook it off. You were here for business.

"Aw," you smiled as you plopped down next to Blue, "You guys look so cute when you're not wearing those hideous outfits."

"Purple?" Red asked slowly.

"Red," you nodded.

"So  _this_ is what you look like without the mask..."

"Sorry to disappoint."

"You definitely didn't," he said quietly. You raised your eyebrows at him and he quickly changed the subject. "So since we're not in costume right now," he whispered, leaning as close to you as the table would let him. Although there weren't many people in the coffee shop, none of you were going to risk being heard. "Don't you think we should all know each others real names?"

"No," you shook your head, "I don't think we should do that at all."

"You said it yourself," Black said under his breath, "The people in this town aren't stupid. They'll notice if we call each other by the other names." You let out a breath, knowing he was right.

"Y/N," you said simply. They all looked at you in confusion. You rolled your eyes, "You wanted to know my name and my name is Y/N." You swore you saw Red smile slightly.

"Well, Y/N," Blue smiled, "I'm Ashton. This-" He pointed to Green. "-is Calum. This-" He pointed to Black. "-is Luke. And this-" He pointed to Red. "-is Michael."

"Wait," you whispered, "Your superhero names are similar to your  _actual_  names? How stupid  _are_  the people where you're from exactly?" Michael let out a frustrated sigh.

"Ashton," he whined lowly.

"We need her, Michael," Ashton said firmly, "You're just going to have to deal with it." He sighed again, chewing on his bottom lip. "So how about that tour?" he turned to you.

"Let's go," you said, standing up and leading the boys outside.

You showed them around for a couple hours, giving them all the secrets you knew about where the best lookout points and hiding spots were. You showed them your base of operations and they seemed really into it, telling you it reminded them of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. You rolled your eyes, but couldn't help but laugh at how childish they were sometimes.

~

Three months had passed and the city was as crime-free as ever. You and the boys were called upon by police to help with a few minor crimes such as breaking and entering and stolen belongings, but nothing really major. You were becoming close with them though – as close as you'd ever been to someone for a long time – except for Michael. You never understood what about you irritated him so badly, but you couldn't deny that you worked well together.

~

"Hello, boys!" you chirped, walking into the room. They were all sitting on the concrete in your clubhouse. You sat down in front of them, unfolding a map and laying it on the ground between you.

"What's this?" Luke asked you.

"Our next mission," you answered. "Every city has their power-hungry executives hellbent on taking over the world, but Axel Barclay really puts all the others to shame if you ask me," you informed them, "And yes, he is as pretentious as his name makes him sound."

"What have we been called in for?" Michael asked.

"Well... I wouldn't say we've been  _called in_  as much as I would say we're gonna help out the police... _a lot_."

"So what you're saying is they have no idea we're doing this?" Calum raised his eyebrows.

"Right," you nodded, "They haven't been able to catch this guy for like, three years for whatever reason and I think it's about time we did something. I've tried getting in a few times, but this really isn't a one-person job."

"What's the plan?" Ashton questioned.

"Axel's got this abandoned warehouse not far from here – as do all the bad guys in situations like this – and our mission for now is to simply scope the place out; Find out what he's doing, what it's for, and where it's headed. Then we'll go from there. I've been keeping an eye on this place for a while – you know, trying to get the schedules and everything – and the weekends seem to be his busiest operation days; Weekdays, not so much. So I'm thinking we head over there right now actually. Cool?" They shrugged in agreement and you folded up your map, smiling, "Awesome! Let's go."

As you predicted, once you arrived at the warehouse, no one was there. You sneaked in through a broken window on the ground floor and started looking around. It didn't look like much of anything, so you decided to split up. You, Ashton, and Michael all went separate ways while Calum and Luke stayed together.

A few minutes later, while you were walking around, you decided to head upstairs. You were walking across this rusty metal bridge when you were startled by a door slamming shut and slipping through a hole. You squeaked as you fell, grabbing the bottom rail quickly, but you couldn't seem to pull yourself back up. You were basically a sitting duck, praying the person to find you was one of the boys. To your relief, Michael had walked through the door you had been walking toward not even a minute later.

"Red!" you whispered, making him jump and look down.

"What happened?" he asked – a little too  _calmly_  for your liking.

"Thought I'd just hang out for a bit," you replied, your voice laced with sarcasm as you desperately tried to keep a firm grip. You were slipping, but Michael still wasn't moving. "A little help would be great!" you exclaimed quietly.

"Oh, so you need my help," he smirked, leaning against the railing behind him, "Well, well, well. How the tables have turned."

You kept struggling to pull yourself up until you just couldn't hold on anymore. You let out a loud yelp as you started falling, but a hand grabbed your wrist. You looked up to see Ashton clenching his teeth and squeezing his eyes shut as he grabbed your other wrist and pulled you up. He fell back and you landed on top of him. You both started breathing heavily as you remained there for a moment, missing the look of jealousy on Michael's face. Luke and Calum ran into the room.

"We heard someone scream," Luke said frantically, seeing you and Ashton on the ground, "What happened?" Ashton immediately sat up, pulling you with him. You were now sitting in his lap as he put his hands on your face.

"Are you okay?" he asked softly, ignoring the other boys and only focusing on you.

"I think so," you breathed shakily, hugging him tightly, "Thank you." He hugged you back, standing up with you.

"What the hell is your problem?" Ashton growled at Michael.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he mumbled.

"Bullshit," he hissed, "I know you don't like her, but I can't believe you were just going to watch her die like that."

"You  _what_?!" Calum exclaimed, shoving Michael's shoulder as hard as he could.

"I was gonna help her."

"No, you weren't!" Ashton yelled.

"What about all that shit she said about never getting caught?!" You let go of Ashton, spinning around to face Michael.

"I didn't get caught, I  _fell_! I never said I was immune to fucking up every once in a while, asshole!" you practically screamed at him, "At least  _I'm_  not pretending to be this bad ass hero when my  _friends_  actually do all the heavy lifting  _for me_!" His face fell and you took a deep breath to calm yourself before turning to the other three boys. "It's been a lot of fun working with you guys, but I think I'm done."

"You don't mean-" You cut Luke off.

"You'll do a lot better protecting the city without me holding you back," you said quietly.

"Y/N..." Ashton said quietly.

"I hope to see you guys around," you smiled sadly, hanging your head as you walked past them and back out the door.

~

**Five months later**

You were sitting in the coffee shop, looking out the window at everything that was going on outside. You weren't even paying attention to what was happening right next to you until you heard someone clear their throat. Your head snapped over to find Ashton sitting beside you and Calum and Luke in front of you – Michael was no where to be seen.

"Hi, Y/N," Ashton said shyly.

"Hi, Ashton," you said slowly, confused as to why they were sitting there.

"Please come back," Luke blurted out, "We miss you."

"I miss you guys too," you admitted, "But I'm done with hero business."

"You don't want to be," Ashton said, "I see you around sometimes and you don't look as happy as you used to."

"Just because I'm not happy doesn't mean I'm not doing what's best for me," you sighed, "I appreciate that you guys want me back, but Michael doesn't."

"Yes, he does," Calum told you, "He won't admit it because of his pride or whatever, but he's been beating himself up ever since you left. He's not the same without you by our side – none of us are."

"Listen, guys. I'm sorry – I really am – but I'm  _done_ ," you said firmly, "I'm not going to-" You trailed off, looking back out the window.

The boys followed your gaze and you all watched as a very familiar dark brown-haired boy in a bright red outfit was being dragged down the street toward Axel Barclay's warehouse.

"You let him go  _alone_?!" you whisper yelled, spinning back toward the guys.

"We didn't know what he was doing!" Luke defended, "We haven't seen him since yesterday!" You quickly pushed Ashton out of the booth so you could get out.

"You're going to save him even after what he did to you?" Ashton asked in shock as you got up. You looked at him and slowly shook your head.

"I'm not him, Ash," you said quietly, "I've gotta do  _something_."

~

After you and the boys had run back to your clubhouse to get into your costumes – they had always kept theirs with yours as they didn't really have a hideaway of their own – and you all made a break for the warehouse. You sneaked in through the same broken window you had before and split up. Although it was Friday, Axel still liked to come to the building with a couple of his bodyguards to ensure that everything was running smoothly after the weekends he hadn't been able to make it.

You found yourself heading for the back rooms. If Axel was going to keep a hostage, you were almost certain he would put them back there. You quietly opened door after door, desperately searching for any trace of Michael.

Once you reached the door closest to the main part of the warehouse, you were relieved to finally find him, but not happy with how things were looking.

"Michael!" you squeaked, letting the door close behind you as you quietly ran over to him.

He was hanging from a metal bridge closest to the ceiling, but he was a little lower than the level of the bridge you were on. He had a rope around his torso and two of his fingers were stuck between his cape string and his neck to keep himself from choking.

"What are you doing?" Michael whispered, his eyes widening, "You're gonna get hurt if Axel finds you!"

"What happened to you?" you asked, ignoring his question.

"Axel tied me up and locked the door so I couldn't escape," he sighed defeatedly, "But I started moving around to get my arms out of the rope, but I slipped and fell off. My cape caught on a nail and has somehow been holding my weight for like, 10 minutes now. I barely had enough time to get my fingers up before I managed to hang myself."

"Listen," you said as you climbed over the rail, repositioning yourself so you were facing him again, "Despite what you did to me with not pulling me up from that other bridge and everything, I trust you, okay? In fact, I'm trusting you enough to jump off this thing right now and know you'll catch me."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," he rushed, "You want me to what?"

"I'm not gonna be able to reach you from here, Michael," you shook your head, "I need you to catch me."

"What if I drop you?" he asked quietly.

"That's a risk we're going to have to take," you said, "Ready?" He nodded slowly, holding his free arm out toward you.

You took a deep breath and leaped off of the bridge. Your arms found their way around his neck while his arm wrapped around your waist tightly. You put your legs around his waist as you swung around mid-air and pulled your pocket knife out of your boot. You started cutting through the ropes as your other arm gripped Michael's shoulders firmly.

"Are you okay?" Michael asked you quietly. You stopped for a moment to look back up at him before continuing to cut the rope.

"What I said the other day...about your friends doing all the heavy lifting..." you whispered, "I didn't mean it. I was just mad. I think you're a really great fighter – a lot better than me. I'm sorry I said that."

"I'm sorry I was gonna let you fall like that," he muttered, holding your waist tighter, "I was just jealous because they like you a lot more than they like me but I like you a lot too and I know that was a dick move of me to treat you the way I have been because of it."

You smiled slightly as you finally got through the rope, letting it fall to the floor. You looked around, quickly trying to come up with a plan to get you two down safely. You looked on the floor behind you and noticed a large pile of what you hoped were empty boxes.

"See those boxes down there?" you asked Michael. He looked down in front of him and nodded. "Start swinging toward them."

He did as you asked and when you felt like you had enough momentum to reach them, you took another deep breath. You wiggled the blade of your knife carefully in between his neck and his cape and looked him in the eyes.

"This is probably gonna hurt, okay?" you told him. He nodded again quickly. "1... 2... 3!" You cut the string and sent you both falling toward the boxes. You landed right in the middle with Michael on top of you. "I can't believe that actually worked," you let out a breath and laughed lightly, "I told you that cape was gonna get you in trouble one day."

"Thank you," he smiled, leaning down and kissing the corner of your mouth. He quickly propped himself up, "S-Sorry. I'm sorry. I-I shouldn't have done that."

"You missed," you blinked. He gave you a confused stare, making you grin. "You _missed_ ," you repeated lowly, putting your hand on the back of his neck and bringing him back down, pressing your lips together. You slowly pulled away and smiled at each other. He kissed you a few more times before you interrupted. "We should go make sure the boys are okay."

"They can wait," he kissed you again, "I just wanna stay here and make out with you for a little while."

"Michael!" you laughed, pushing him back to his feet as you got up with him.

"Fine," he sighed dramatically, grabbing your hips roughly, "But when we're done here, you're all mine."

"Come on,  _Romeo_ ," you giggled, taking his hand and pulling him to the main part of the warehouse.

You looked for the boys, carefully peeking around every corner and looking high and low, but you couldn't seem to find them anywhere. The moment you and Michael decided to split up, he found them coming through a door on the opposite side of the room.

"I found them!" Michael exclaimed. You spun around and breathed a sigh of relief, seeing all four boys standing safely with each other. However, it was short lived. Before anyone had time to react, you were being grabbed by the waist and all four boys were being held back by two bodyguards.

"I've waited a long time for this moment," Axel snarled in your ear, "I knew you'd get curious about this place one day, I just didn't think it would take you so long." You were struggling to get out of his grasp when he punched you in the side, dragging you up two flights of rusty stairs.

"Hey! Don't touch her like that!" Michael shouted, doing some struggling of his own.

"Really?" he laughed at you, "Since when do you work on a  _team_?"

"Since I decided that they make me  _better_ ," you growled, elbowing him as hard as you could in the stomach, causing him to let go of you.

You started running back to the stairs, but he was too fast. He picked you up and tossed you over the railing. You let out a short scream but managed to grab onto the bottom rail, reminding you of what happened over 5 months ago.

"Well, this looks familiar," he laughed again, putting his shoe on your left hand. He stepped down, making you scream again in pain, but you refused to let go. "Except this time, I'm going to make sure you don't get pulled back up." Yours and the boys' eyes widened at hearing he was there that night.

He put his shoe on your hand again, twisting his ankle around until you finally let go. You let out another cry and Michael couldn't take it anymore.

" _Stop it_!" he yelled, "Do whatever you want with me – just stop hurting her!"

"You've watched her fall before," Axel replied loudly so Michael could hear him, "Now you're going to watch it again."

Ashton, Luke, and Calum looked at each other and nodded slightly. They all kicked the bodyguards' legs, causing them to release them. While those three took care of the men, Michael immediately ran up the stairs before Axel moved on to your other hand.

"I may have let her fall the first time," Michael stated threateningly through gritted teeth, startling Axel and causing him to forget what he was doing to you, "But I'm  _not_  gonna do it again."

He gripped the top rails and swung his legs up, kicking Axel back, sending him over the railing and landing on the stack of boxes below. Once Axel and the two bodyguards were declared unconscious by the other boys, they ran under you just in case.

" _Michael_!" you cried, feeling yourself slipping and unable to get your other arm back up. He dove to the floor, grabbing your right wrist just before you fell.

"I need you to give me your other arm," he trembled, struggling to keep you in his grasp.

"I can't," you whimpered.

"Y/N, look at me," he said. You looked up at him and he looked you in the eyes. " _Yes, you can_."

You looked at him for a moment before mustering up all your strength to lift your arm high enough. He grabbed your elbow and you let out another squeak as he quickly pulled you on top of him.

"I am  _so_  over this whole hanging from bridges thing," you mumbled into his neck. He laughed loudly, wrapping his arms around your waist tightly. "Thank you," you whispered, propping yourself up on your forearm.

"So can we make out now?" he asked you, bringing his hand up to your cheek.

"Not yet," you smiled, kissing him quickly.

"Y/N!" you heard Ashton shout as he, Luke, and Calum ran up the stairs. You and Michael got up just in time for him to pull you into a hug. "You're okay!"

"Debatable," you shrugged, holding up your swollen left hand.

"Oh my God," Luke whispered, wide-eyed, "We need to get you to the hospital."

"Shouldn't we wait for the police first?" you mumbled, really not wanting to go.

"We will," Ashton nodded, "But you need to go to the hospital."

"Come on," Michael said, "I'll take you."

"You guys made up?" Calum asked hopefully as you walked down the stairs.

"Mhm," he nodded.

"He's still kind of an asshole though," you shrugged. You heard Michael start walking faster, making you squeak and break into a run as you got back to the ground floor.

You ran all the way back to your clubhouse before he caught you, wrapping his arms around your waist and spinning you around. When he finally put you back down, his hands found their way to your hips again and he turned you around.

"Now?" he asked in a begging tone, pushing his hips against yours.

"Hand, Mikey," you giggled, pecking his lips lightly as you took your mask off.

"God, you look so beautiful without that mask on," he said lowly. You bit your lip, taking his off as well.

"So do you," you said under your breath.

"How long is this hospital visit gonna take?" he mumbled, kissing you again, "Because I don't know how much longer I can wait." You smiled against his lips before you pushed on his shoulder.

"You're so desperate," you let out a quiet chuckle, "Go get changed. You look like an idiot." He stuck out his bottom lip as you both went to change. When he came back, you were struggling to tie your shoes.

"Here," he smiled slightly, "Let me do it."

He tossed his flannel on your lap, so obviously, you put it on. You carefully slipped your left arm through the sleeve before moving onto the other one. It was warm, just like Michael, making you feel almost as safe as he did.

When he stood back up, he went to reach for his flannel when he realized it was already being worn. He grabbed the front where the buttons were and pulled you up.

"You are making this _so much more_ difficult for me," he growled lowly in your ear, his lips hitting your upper jaw. You shivered slightly, grinning at him and grabbing his hand, taking him back outside.

You went to the hospital, telling them that the reason for your swollen hand was that you slammed it in a door. They took some x-rays and determined two of your fingers were broken, so for the next two hours while you got a cast put on, Michael would be bouncing his leg as he sat on the chair in the hospital room, impatiently waiting to get his hands on you again.

 


	144. I Love You More (Michael Clifford) - Part 1

Your boyfriend looked up to Alex Gaskarth more than any other person in the music industry. Of course, this was no surprise to anyone that knew him. Michael always talked about how cool it would be to write with Alex one day – or even meet him for that matter.

What Michael  _didn't_  know, however, was that Alex Gaskarth was your older brother. He was actually your step-brother which was why you didn't have the same last name as him, so it was pretty understandable that he didn't know.

You had been dating Michael for almost seven months, but you never told him simply because you were afraid he would start treating you differently or want to spend more time with him than he would you. You knew your reasoning was a bit childish, but with the way Michael talked about the band, you couldn't help but feel that way.

All Time Low were on tour the day Michael met your father and step-mother and you begged them not to tell him about the band. They were confused at first, but they agreed and the night went amazingly. Michael had no clue about your famous brother and it remained that way for your entire relationship. Until  _now_ , that is. You started feeling guilty about keeping the secret, so you decided that you would tell him today – well, actually, you would  _show him_.

The band was home for a few months to do some writing for their next album. You asked the guys if it was okay that you brought someone over while they were practicing and they were all for it. You texted Michael asking if he wanted to hang out and he was more than happy to, so he texted you back saying he would be over in a few minutes. You were sitting on the couch in your basement while the guys were playing when you heard your step-mom yell your name.

"Y/N!" she called down the stairs, "Michael's here!" You let out a breath, making your brother tilt his head. He put his guitar down as you got up and hurried in front of you before you left the room.

"What's up?" Alex asked.

"Nothing," you mumbled, shrugging slightly. He raised his eyebrows at you. "Nothing!" you repeated defensively.

"There's nothing to be nervous about, you know. I'm sure he won't treat you any differently," he told you, ruffling your hair. You hated how he always knew exactly what you were thinking. You rolled your eyes, running your fingers through your hair to fix it as you trotted up the stairs.

"Hey!" Michael beamed when you got into the living room where he was waiting with your step-mom, pulling you into a hug. "So what did you want to do today? We could go to the mall," he suggested, "I've been meaning to pick up a couple new albums at F.Y.E.."

"Actually," you said, "I thought we could stay in. My brother's home for a while and really wants to meet you."

"You have a brother?" he tilted his head. You nodded slowly, taking his hand and leading him downstairs. "Why didn't you ever tell me about him?" You bit your inner cheek as you heard Alex talking with the other guys.

"Just don't... Don't freak out, okay?" you asked before you got to the main part of the basement where the band was. He gave you a confused look and you pulled him over to the band. He froze, making you squeak as you were jerked back since you were still walking.

"Holy shit," he whispered, making them chuckle.

"Whoa!" Alex exclaimed with a smile, looking at you, "You're dating the dude from 5 Seconds of Summer?"

Michael's eyes widened and he looked at you as well, "He knows who I am..."

"Of course I do, man! I love the band! You guys are incredible!"

"Oh my God," was all Michael could say.

"Well, you guys are more than welcome to listen to us practice," Alex said. The others nodded in agreement. "These are a few of the newer songs we're working on for the upcoming record and I think it would be really cool to have some outside help in changing what needs to be changed and all that stuff." Michael was still in shock, so you pulled him to the couch to sit down. You sat down next to him and he immediately put his arm around your waist and pulled you into him while the guys started playing.

"Why didn't you tell me Alex Gaskarth is your brother?" he whispered in your ear. You shrugged, sinking down in your seat. "You're worried I'll ditch you to spend time with him now, aren't you?" You frowned and he knew he was right. He chuckled quietly, kissing your cheek, "I'll never love him more than I love you, Y/N." Your breath hitched as you looked up at him.

"You love me?" you asked shakily. He smiled, kissing your forehead.

"I love you," he nodded. You hid your face in his shoulder, feeling your face get red.

"I love you too, Mikey," you mumbled into his shirt. Michael looked at the band and noticed they were all smiling, obviously having heard the conversation.

 


	145. I Love You More (Michael Clifford) - Part 2

 

"Hey, Y/N," your brother said as he leaned against the frame of your bedroom door, his eyes flicking between you and your boyfriend, "The guys and I are headed to the studio. Do you want to come with?" You shook your head, but you noticed Michael giving you a hopeful look out of the corner of your eye. "But you always come," Alex pouted, making you laugh lightly.

"I know," you said, "But Mikey and I are gonna have a movie marathon today."

"Alright," he nodded, "Mom and Dad won't be home until after dinner, so if you need anything while I'm out, call me." You nodded as well and Alex left the room. You turned to face Michael and saw he had a somewhat disappointed expression on his face, but he was obviously trying to hide it as to not make you feel bad.

"Mikey," you spoke up. Your boyfriend looked at you and you gave him a small smile. "Go."

"No, today is about you and-" You cut him off.

"Michael," you rolled your eyes, "I know you want to go with him. I will drag you downstairs and shove you into the car  _myself_  if I have to."

"Are yo-"

" _Michael_!" you laughed, " _Go_! I'll find something to do until you guys get back." Michael's grin slowly got bigger as he stood up.

"Thank you, babe," he said, bending back down and kissing you, "I'll see you later. Love you."

"Love you too," you replied, but you weren't sure whether or not he heard it because he was already halfway down the stairs by now. You heard the front door close and you sighed, taking in how quiet the house was now that you were the only one home.

You put the first movie you had planned for your marathon into your DVD player, but you got pretty sidetracked about half an hour in. You groaned loudly to yourself – no one was around to hear you so you figured you could at least let out what little frustration you felt about Michael wanting to be with your brother instead of you – until you decided to call one of your friends.

"Hey, Y/N!" Luke chirped the second he answered the call.

"Hi, Lukey," you grinned.

"What have I told you about calling me that?" You could  _hear_ his pout.

"To not to," you smirked. He chuckled lightly.

"Why are you calling?" he asked, "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah," you nodded although he couldn't see you, "I'm just bored and you're never doing anything, so I thought you would be up for having a movie marathon with me."

"I'm going to choose to ignore the first half of that statement," he replied, making you laugh, "I thought that's what you and Mikey were doing today."

"We were, but then Alex asked if we wanted to go to the studio and I said no but I knew he wanted to, so he went with him."

"Oh,  _I get it_ ," Luke sighed dramatically, "I'm the  _second_  choice." You giggled again.

"Actually, you're the fourth, but I already knew Calum and Ashton are busy today," you smirked. He gasped and you whined jokingly, "I'm deprived of cuddles, Lukey! I  _need_  you!"

"I'll be over in a few," you heard him smile before he hung up.

When Luke arrived, he simply walked into your house. Michael and his band mates practically lived there anyway, so he already knew his way around. He trotted up the stairs and into your room where you were propped up against your headboard, a bowl of popcorn already on your lap and scrolling through Twitter on your phone. Luke knocked on your open door, making you look up.

" _Lukey_!" you cheered. He rolled his eyes with a laugh, shaking his head as he took off his jacket and tossed it on your desk chair.

"So what's on the watch list today?" he asked, kicking his shoes off before climbing onto the bed beside you, reaching into the bowl and flinging a piece of popcorn into his mouth.

"Classics,  _obviously_ ," you smiled, pointing to the end of your bed where there were several movies laid out. Luke leaned forward and gathered them up so he could look at them. There was already one opened – the movie that remained paused on your television screen.

"You and Mikey were gonna watch  _Mean Girls_  without me?" he frowned, "Y/N! He doesn't  _appreciate_  this movie like I do!"

"Well, you're here  _now_ , aren't you?" you stuck your tongue out at him, grabbing the remote and starting the movie over. Luke tossed the movies back where they were and sat back against your headboard with you.

~

**Michael's POV**

After being at the studio with the band for about an hour, Michael started to feel guilty about ditching your movie marathon. You had been so excited to spend some time alone with him – something you rarely seemed to get anymore – and he resented himself for silently begging you to let him leave.

He explained to the guys what was going on in his head and Rian happily offered to drive him back to your place since he was next up for a Starbucks run.

Michael hurried up the walkway to the porch steps and went inside. He could hear the end of  _Mean Girls_  as he approached your bedroom and when he peeked inside, he frowned slightly. Luke was still sitting back against your headboard, but you were lying a little lower, your head on his chest and your arms hugging his waist as quiet snores passed your lips.

Michael cleared his throat quietly, causing the blonde to look away from the TV. Luke carefully peeled your arms off of him as he got up, making sure your head hit the pillow and not the headboard. He bent down to pick up his shoes, grabbing his jacket from your desk chair on his way out of the room, following Michael into the kitchen.

"What was that about?" Michael huffed, crossing his arms over his chest.

"What was what about?" Luke asked, beginning to put his shoes on.

"You know what I'm talking about, Luke," he growled slightly, "Why the hell was my girlfriend sleeping on you?"

By this time, you had woken up – your pillow far less warm than Luke – and heard voices coming from downstairs. You decided to investigate, but you didn't want whoever they were to know you were there, so you sat down at the top of the staircase. You quickly recognized the voices as Michael and Luke's and your face scrunched up slightly at hearing Michael's unamused tone.

"Hey, man," Luke said, putting his hands in the air, "It wasn't like I invited myself over. She called and asked if I wanted to come watch movies with her since you left."

"So you're saying it's  _my_ fault then?" Michael let out a frustrated sigh.

"I'm not saying it's your fault, I'm saying it would be best for her if you didn't go off with Alex all the time," he shot back a little harshly.

"She said I could go!" he exclaimed in a whisper, forgetting all about the guilty feeling he had earlier.

"That's not the  _point_ , Michael!" Luke groaned quietly, "My point is that ever since she told us that he's her brother, you've kind of been favoring him over her which is honestly a really dick move since you  _promised_ you wouldn't do that to her."

Michael swallowed thickly. In the back of his mind, he knew he'd been spending more time with Alex than you, he just didn't want to admit it to himself.

"I fucked up, didn't I?" Michael whined, putting his face in his hands.

"As much as you'd like to convince yourself of that," the blonde stated, "I don't think you did." Michael looked up at his best friend with furrowed eyebrows and a confused expression. "I think you could have come to this revelation a little  _sooner_ ," Luke admitted, "But I  _know_ Y/N's not going to let you go that easily. Sure, the exact thing she's been afraid of happening since the day she found out Alex is your idol ended up  _happening_ , but that girl loves you  _way_  too much to let that get in the way."

"Why hasn't she just  _told me_?" he sighed.

"You know her," Luke shrugged, "She's stubborn – probably thinks you'll end up hating her if she tries to tell you no."

"I guess..." Michael agreed quietly, "I'm gonna go lay down with her until her brother gets back." His friend nodded in acknowledgement.

"I should be heading home anyway," he said, slipping his jacket on as he headed for the door, "Tell her I said bye."

"Later, Luke," he said, making his way to the staircase.

**Your POV**

Your eyes widened as you heard Michael coming toward the stairs and you quickly shot up, leaping back onto your bed. You turned your back to the door and threw the blanket back over your body.

You heard Michael stop at the door and felt his gaze on you before he climbed onto the bed, not even bothering to take off his shoes or jacket. He laid on his side and let his right arm rest on your waist, carefully pulling your back against his chest.

At first, he thought you were still asleep, but it didn't take him long to realize that you weren't. Your muscles were a bit tense and he could just tell that you had heard everything he and Luke said. He reached up to take your left hand in his right one so he could tangle your fingers together as he nuzzled his face in your neck.

"Babe," he whispered, his voice muffled by your skin as he pressed small kisses to it, "You should have told me." You let out the lightest puff of air and turned around so you could face Michael, your noses just barely touching.

"It would make me seem clingy if I always told you you couldn't spend time with Lex," you muttered shyly.

"Babe," he repeated with a chuckle, "Do you really think  _I_  have a problem with clingy? I'm never  _not_  holding you when we're in the same room. There's no way you can be clingier than  _me_."

"But then you would get mad at me for-"

"No, I wouldn't," he cut you off, sighing, "Listen, Y/N. I'm sorry I've been pushing you off to the side to spend time with your brother. I know that's why you were scared to introduce me to him in the first place and I feel like a complete  _ass_  for doing  _exactly_  what you told me you  _didn't_  want to happen. But I'm  _your boyfriend_  first and  _Alex's friend_  second, okay? I'm gonna be  _a lot_  better at showing you that starting right now."

"Promise?" you whispered. Michael let go of your hand only to put it on your back and press your torsos together.

"Promise," he mumbled, closing the gap between your faces and kissing you.

You remained like that until you heard the front door open and Alex, Jack, Zack, and Rian's voices traveling loudly throughout the house a little while later. You sighed against Michael's mouth before moving away.

"The quiet was fun while it lasted," you thought out loud, making him smile and kiss your nose.

You looked at Michael for a few moments before a smirk slowly began pulling at the corner of your lips. He raised his eyebrows at you, but before he could ask what was going through your mind, you spoke.

"Want me to go steal a pizza?" you asked, a mischievous glint in your eyes. The band always brought back pizza after they'd been at the studio, so you knew there were  _at least_  five boxes downstairs.

"This is why I love you," Michael laughed quietly, releasing his grip on you so you could tiptoe down the stairs and into the kitchen where the pizza boxes now sat on top of the counter unattended.


	146. Off Limits (Marshall Traver)

"Hey, Y/N," your brother's best friend said as he was sprinting over to you.

"Hey, Marshall," you smiled, straightening up the boxes of candy on the counter in front of you.

"This is a really weird question, but do you think I could hide out behind the counter with you for a little bit?"

"What for?" you stopped what you were doing, raising your eyebrows at him.

"I just really need to, Y/N;  _Please_!" he rushed.

"Fine," you shrugged.

"You're a  _life saver_ , Y/N," he sighed, jumping over the counter and sitting beside your legs.

"Would you mind explaining to me why you're back here exactly?" you asked, looking down at him. He tilted his head up, leaning back against the counter.

"Do you remember that girl I dated a few months ago?" he asked.

"Which one?"

"The possessive one." You shuddered at the mention of her.

"Sammi?" He nodded. "Yeah, I remember her."

"Well, after I broke up with her, she's been calling me and the guys non-stop and she keeps coming to my place."

"Right," you nodded, "Maxx told me about that."

"Do you think I could stay with you for a while?" he asked shyly.

"Why?"

"I know that if I try to stay with one of the guys, she'll find me, and I don't want her to start bothering them more than she already does. She usually tries to avoid you as much as she can anyway, so I thought I'd ask you."

"I don't get why she avoids me though," you muttered, "I've never done anything to her."

"It had something to do with the fact that she didn't like that you were hanging out with me or something. She would always complain about how I was spending too much time with you and not enough time with her."

"You mean when you came over all the time when I still lived with my parents? She knows you were hanging out with  _Maxx_ , right? I was never even home."

"That's what I told her!" he exclaimed quietly, "She didn't believe me!"

"Come on, that's like, the number one unwritten rule of sibling-hood; No dating the best friends." He let out a nervous laugh and looked back down.

"So can I stay with you? It won't be for too long. The lease on my apartment is almost up and I've been looking for a new place, I just have to make sure it's a place she won't find me."

"That's fine with me," you said, "But you'll have to sleep on the couch. I only have one bedroom."

"Thank you so much," he sighed in relief, hugging your leg. You laughed lightly, rolling your eyes at him before looking up and noticing his ex-girlfriend was walking over.

"Hello!" you said cheerfully as you rang up her items, "Did you find everything okay?"

"Did you see Marshall running around here?" she asked with an annoyed look on her face.

"Yeah," you nodded. Marshall hit your calf and you kicked him, continuing, "But you just missed him. He left a few minutes ago." Sammi let out a frustrated sigh. "That'll be $6.83," you told her.

"Well, when you see him again, tell him to call me," she said, handing you some money. You gave her her change and nodded again.

"Will do," you said, "Have a nice day." She took her bag and left the store. The bell on the door rung, signalling that she had left and Marshall groaned, standing up.

"You kick really hard," he said, rubbing the spot on the side of his thigh where you'd hit him.

"Maybe you should let me finish my sentence next time," you smiled sweetly. He rolled his eyes.

"Thank you again," he said, hopping back over the counter, "I'll bring my stuff over to your place tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay," you said as he walked out the door, "Hey, not too much though! My apartment isn't that big, remember!" He nodded, waving goodbye.

~

A few weeks later, Marshall was still living with you. You didn't mind, of course. You loved his company and after living with your brother for almost 18 years, the messiness Marshall brought to your place was a step up. He had been looking for another apartment, but he still wasn't able to find one he liked. It seemed as if he was just saying he hated all the ones he looked at so he could keep staying with you.

One Saturday morning, Marshall was in the living room watching cartoons. He was pretty bored, but you were still in bed and would be for another couple hours. He knew better than to wake you up before 11. But when there was a knock at the door, he had no choice. He looked through the peephole and his eyes widened as he ran back to your bedroom.

"Y/N," he whispered, shaking you lightly. You groaned and pulled your blanket up further, burying your face in the pillow. He let out a desperate sigh, "Y/N!"

"It's Saturday morning, Marshall," you whined as you opened your eyes, making his heart race, "What do you want?"

"Someone's at the door."

"Okay? Why didn't you answer it?"

"I can't..." he trailed off.

"Marshall."

"I can't," he repeated, his voice breaking. You sighed quietly and threw the blanket off of your body, getting up. He tilted his head as he followed you out of the bedroom. "Are you wearing my shirt?" he asked.

"Yeah," you yawned, rubbing your eyes gently, "Sorry. I was really tired and just grabbed the first shirt I found." You didn't turn around to look at him, so you missed the smile pulling at the corner of his mouth.

As you walked to the door, Marshall darted into the kitchen, hiding around the corner. You stopped, looking at him for a moment and raising your eyebrows before shaking your head. You looked out the peephole and immediately realized why he didn't want to be the one to answer the door. You opened it and were met with an almost fuming Sammi.

"Hi..." you said slowly.

"I know he's here," she stated, getting straight to the point.

"Yes, the rumors are all true," you nodded, "I'm the girl Michael Clifford is living with."

"This is not the time for jokes."

"You're right," you said, "This is the time for sleeping and yet here we are, having this conversation."

"Cut the act, Y/N," she growled, "I know Marshall lives with you now."

"I don't know if ' _lives with_ ' would be the correct phrase. Living with a guy is such a commitment and we all know how terrible I am with that."

"Yeah, especially someone else's," she scoffed under her breath.

"I don't know if I would call what you two had a  _commitment_  when half of the relationship didn't even want to  _be with you_ ," you snapped.

"Excuse you-"

"I am going to make this so painfully simple that even  _you_  will be able to understand it, Samantha," you stated, "There is a reason Marshall has not answered your texts or calls or his door when you're pounding on it at 3am and that is because he wants nothing to do with you anymore. He has told you on  _more than one occasion_  that he no longer wants to pursue anything with you, yet here you are, on a Saturday morning before 10, practically beating down my door because you can't take a damn hint."

"Listen, bi-"

"I agree, Sammi, it's been  _lovely_  talking with you. Please don't stop by again," you smiled sweetly as you shut the door. You quickly locked it and turned around, leaning back and letting out a breath.

Before you could react, Marshall rushed out of the kitchen and over to you, wrapping his arms around you tightly.

"Thank you!" he whispered just in case Sammi was still standing outside the door.

"You  _do_  realize that probably didn't work though, right?" you asked.

"I don't care!" you felt him smile against your neck, "That was amazing and you're amazing and I love you so much!" Your heart skipped a beat although you knew he didn't mean anything by it and you just shook it off.

"Get off of me, loser," you laughed, pushing him lightly, "God, you're so emotional." He pouted, making you smile. "I'm going back to bed," you told him, "Don't wake me up again."

~

That same evening, there was another knock on the door, so you trotted over to answer it. You weren't expecting any visitors – you just figured Marshall had managed to lock himself out – but when you looked through the peephole, you were a little surprised. As soon as you opened the door, your older brother walked past and into your living room.

"It's nice to see you too," you said with a confused tone, shutting the door, "Please come in."

"Why didn't you tell me Marshall was living with you?" Maxx asked, folding his arms over his stomach.

"Where'd you hear that?"

"Sammi."

"And you just  _believed her_?"

"Is he living here or not?" he let out a frustrated sigh.

"Yes, but you  _believed her_?"

"What did I tell you about dating him?"

"I'm not dating him!"

"You're wearing his shirt."

"I'm aware of that," you stated, "I was really tired last night and picked up the first shirt I found, but it's really comfy and I don't feel like changing out of it."

"Then why are you living together? He could have stayed with one of us," he said, referring to the band.

"Do you want Sammi knocking on your door at all hours trying to get to him?" you asked simply. He was silent. " _Exactly_. And, to be fair, you only said I couldn't  _date him_ ," you pointed out, "Not that he couldn't stay here while he was looking for a new apartment."

"So you're not-"

"Maxx!" you exclaimed, "We're not together! I sleep in my room, he sleeps on the couch. Nothing  _has_  or  _will ever_  happen because, as you've so kindly reiterated to me every time I've hung out with you two since I was 15, the best friend is off limits." You let out a quiet sigh, plopping down on the couch.

"What was-" He mimicked your sigh and threw himself onto the seat next to you. -all about?"

"Nothing," you muttered.

"You like him, don't you?"

"Have ever since I was 17 – thanks for finally putting it together."

"Is that why you stopped hanging out with us so much?" he asked. You nodded slightly.

"It was like  _clockwork_ , Maxx," you said quietly, "Every time he came over to hang out, you would tell me he was off limits and I didn't want to have to hear it all the time, so I started going out with other friends when you two were at home. I just didn't want to constantly be reminded that I couldn't have him."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Tell the person who was totally  _against_  me being with their best friend in the first place that I liked him?" you laughed lightly, "No, thank you."

"Have you told him?"

"Oh my God, no," you said quickly.

"Well, why not?"

"Guys like Marshall don't go for girls like me, Maxx. He goes for pretty and funny and smart and talented girls and I'm not any of those things. I would rather swallow my pride and keep being  _just friends_  than tell him how I feel and scare him off."

"If that's what you think is right, then keep doing it," he sighed, patting your knee as he stood up, "But just know that I won't try to stop you anymore."

"What do you-" You were cut off by the door closing, leaving you as confused as ever.

**Marshall's POV**

Marshall was on his way back to your apartment with the ingredients he went out to buy for pizza night when he ran into Maxx. He looked at his best friend, his eyes widening, but Maxx simply smiled.

"I already know," he said, "And before you start thinking the worst, I'm not mad."

"You're not mad that I'm crashing at  _your sister's_  place?"

"Well, I was upset about it at first, but that was only because you guys felt like you couldn't tell me."

"So how do you feel  _now_ _..._?" Marshall asked slowly.

"I think it's really cool of her to help you out like this. She's 22 now; I can't stop her," Maxx shrugged, starting to walk away, "Just know that I will not be held accountable for anything I do to you if you hurt her."

"Wait, so does that mean I can-" He cut himself off when he realized Maxx was already gone. He stood there in confusion for a moment before heading back to your apartment.

**Your POV**

"Hey, Y/N," Marshall said as he walked inside, "What did you and your brother talk about?"

"You staying here," you shrugged.

"That's all?"

"Mhm," you nodded, hopping up from the couch and grabbing the bag he was carrying, "Come on, I'm starving."

"You cannot possibly be starving," he chuckled, following you into the kitchen, "You were eating when I left 20 minutes ago."

"I like food. Sue me," you replied, sticking your tongue out at him – a gesture he happily returned.

As you were spreading the dough on the pan, Marshall spoke again.

"So, was that all you and Maxx talked about?" he asked.

"No," you shrugged, "We had a little brother-sister talk."

"Anything about dating?"

"There was one moment where that came up," you nodded. "It was something along the lines of ' _What did I tell you about dating him?_ '" you mimicked your brother's voice.

"What  _did_  he say about dating me?"

"Why do you wanna know all of sudden?" you asked, raising your eyebrows at him as you wiped your hands.

"Just curious," he said quietly, reaching for the pizza sauce to pour it on.

"He said to not to," you stated simply, following the sauce with the cheese.

"And what did you say back?" You looked at him again as you started putting the toppings on and he pretended not to notice.

"I told him not to worry about it."

Marshall was silent as you put the pizza in the oven and turned on the timer. You straightened your back as you turned back around and nearly bumped into him as he walked toward you. You stepped backwards, but you hit the edge of the counter. He put his hands on top of the counter on either side of you, his arms outstretched so there was still space between the two of you.

"Why shouldn't he worry about it?" Marshall asked you.

"Why  _should_  he?" you returned, your heart feeling like it was going to burst out of your chest.

"Do you have any idea why one day, your brother would be so against the idea of you and I being together and then the next day, he would be telling me that I better not hurt you?"

"H-He, uh," you stuttered, "He's bad at making decisions?"

"Would it be crazy of me to think it had something to do with that brother-sister talk you two had?"

"No..."

"And would it be crazy of me to think that you might have feelings for me?"

"Not completely," your voice came out as a whisper, making him smirk.

"One more question." You gave him a look as if you were telling him to finish his though. He leaned closer to you and quietly asked, "Can I kiss you?" Your heart skipped a beat and your breath hitched, but you nodded slowly anyway.

Marshall closed the gap the rest of the way and pressed his lips to yours. You started getting dizzy and felt your knees get weak and you were happy you were leaning against the counter. You, of course, were quick to kiss him back after wanting to do this for as long as you could remember.

You brought your left hand up to rest on his upper jaw, your fingers barely combing through the hair at the top of his neck. You felt him smile and the hands on the counter moved to your waist, pulling you closer to him. Honestly, the two of you were getting pretty into it when the timer on the oven went off, interrupting you.

"I can't wait until we're done with this pizza," Marshall groaned and he let go of you, letting you take it out of the oven.

You let out a loud laugh, putting the hot pan on the stove and closing the oven door again. You hopped up on the counter in front of Marshall and wrapped your legs around his waist, pulling him back to you.

"It still has to cool," you smirked slightly, roughly pressing your lips together again.

 


	147. You Owe Me (Jamie Follese)

You were assigned to run the kissing booth at your local fair and you were anything less than thrilled about it. You begged the woman in charge to switch you out with someone else –  _someone prettier_ , you told her – but she wouldn't budge. So you just sucked it up and arrived just in time for your shift.

You had switched out with the girl that was there before you, hopping up on the table and patiently waiting for people to come to the booth. You sighed quietly, swinging your legs back and forth, praying this would be over soon. You had been sitting there for God knows how long and not a single person had come by your booth. A few guys would stop and look at you, but they would never come over.

You were understandably starting to think something was on your face, so you pulled out your phone and turned on the front-facing camera. Your makeup looked exactly how it did when you left your house, your hair was looking as good as you'd ever gotten it to look, and nothing was stuck in your teeth. So if it was none of that, what was it?

"Hey, Y/N!" your best friend said cheerfully as he trotted to your booth.

"Hi, Jamie," you smiled weakly.

"What's wrong?" he asked, his smile instantly fading. You shrugged slightly and he put his hands on your knees to get you to stop kicking so he could stand in front of you. "Y/N," he stated simply, yet firmly.

"No one's stopped here," you said shyly, looking down at the hands on your legs. "Some guys have looked over and I could tell they thought about it, but they all changed their minds."

"Maybe they have girlfriends," he suggested.

You sighed, "If they were that concerned about their girlfriends, they wouldn't have thought about it in the first place."

"This booth looks pretty inviting to me," Jamie shrugged. You looked back up at him. "In fact," he said, reaching into his pockets, "I think I might have an extra dollar somewhere." He pulled out a one dollar bill and dropped it into the jar next to you. "How many kisses does that get me?"

"You don't have to do this, Jamie," you shook your head, "I'm perfectly okay with living the rest of my life knowing that I'm not appealing in any way and that no guys actually want to kiss me."

"Plenty of guys want to kiss you, Y/N," Jamie told you. He had a look on his face that you couldn't quite read.

"No one's come here since my shift started, Jamie," you said quietly, your voice shaking, "You don't have to lie just to make me feel better about myself." He was about to say something else when a girl trotted over.

"Hi!" she chirped, coming up beside Jamie and smiling at you, "I'm supposed to take the next shift?" Her eyes flicked between you and your best friend. "I'm interrupting something, aren't I?" she asked regretfully.

"No, you're fine," you smiled politely, "It's all yours." You pushed yourself off of the table. "I hope you have better luck than I did." You were starting to walk away when Jamie's voice stopped you.

"I never got my kiss, Y/N!" he called after you. You turned around. "I still gave you a dollar! You can either take it or I'm giving it to her!" he nodded toward the girl now sitting at the table. You looked over and watched as guys started lining up behind him. You swallowed the lump in your throat as you shook your head slowly as you walked backwards.

"I'll see you at school on Monday, Jamie," you said quietly, turning back around and leaving.

~

The next day, you hadn't moved from your bed since you woke up at 11. It was now 6 and the only things you'd gotten up to do were use the bathroom and quickly get something to eat from the kitchen. Your parents were understandably worried – you were never at home on a Sunday afternoon – but they couldn't get any reasoning for it out of you.

About an hour later, there was a knock on your front door. Due to your bedroom being next to the door and only separated by a couple sheets of drywall, you heard what was being said after your mom answered.

"Hi, Mrs. Y/L/N," your best friend Natalia said. You could hear her smile. "Is Y/N here?"

"She's in her room," your mom replied, "Good luck trying to get her to talk to you though."

"I have my ways," she smirked. The front door closed and yours was opening a few seconds later. "Why are you moping, young lady?" Natalia asked, closing your door and sitting on the foot of your bed.

"Because I feel like it," you muttered, putting another piece of chocolate into your mouth.

"But why?"

"I know you heard what happened at the fair, Nat."

"I did," she nodded, "But I still don't understand why you're moping about it."

"I felt like an idiot, Natalia!" you exclaimed, sitting up, "Jamie was the only one who came over!"

"An idiot?" she shook her head, confused by what you were saying, "Y/N, I thought you liked him."

"I do," you whispered.

"I thought what he did was kind of sweet."

"What are you talking about?"

She tilted her head, "What are  _you_  talking about?"

"Imagine how you would feel if only  _one person_  came to your shift at the kissing booth and it was just one of your  _friends_  trying to make you feel better," you said, leaning back on your pillow.

Her eyes widened, "He didn't tell you, did he?"

"Tell me  _what_?"

"The reason no one went by the booth during your shift was because Jamie told them not to."

"Why would he do that?"

"He didn't like the idea of other guys kissing you," she sighed, "When he found out you had to run it, he made sure to tell all the guys that you weren't actually doing it, you were just sitting there waiting for friends."

"Jamie... _likes me_...?" you trailed off.

"Took you long enough," she chuckled. You immediately threw your blanket off of your legs and scrambled to get dressed in proper clothing. "What are you doing?" Natalia snickered as you stepped into your shorts.

"You know  _exactly_  what I'm doing," you stuck your tongue out at her.

You slipped your shoes on and started tying them. As soon as you finished, you grabbed your phone, shoving it into your pocket and running out of your room. Natalia was following close behind and as you were going out the front door, you heard your mom thank her and her laugh quietly.

"Good luck!" Natalia called after you as you ran the opposite direction.

You kept running down the sidewalk until you made it to Jamie's house, knocking on the front door furiously. You were hoping Jamie would answer, but he didn't.

"Uh, hi, Y/N," his brother said slowly, tilting his head.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," you nodded, "I know, Ryan. I'm stupid for not seeing the signs earlier. I'm a total idiot and don't deserve him at all. Now where is he?" He paused for a moment before moving to let you come inside.

"Basement," he answered. You thanked him, rushing down the stairs.

Once you made it downstairs, you found Jamie sitting on the couch watching TV. He hadn't heard you coming down the stairs, so you had to get his attention.

"Jamie," you said, hopping off of the last step and fully walking into the room now.

"Y/N!" he exclaimed, jumping out of his seat and spinning around to face you, "What are you-"

You didn't give him time to finish his question before you were kissing him. He was understandably confused at first, but he quickly responded by wrapping his arms around your waist and pulling you closer to him. You couldn't help but smile into the kiss, which made him smile as well.

"What was that for?" he asked after you pulled away.

"I owed you one," you shrugged.

"How do you know I didn't kiss that other girl?"

"Because I know you, Jamie," you giggled lightly, "You don't kiss people you're not interested in."

"Nat told you what I did, didn't she?" he sighed guiltily, looking down.

"You should have told me you liked me, Jamie," you said quietly, putting your hand on his cheek and making him look back up at you, "You know how bad I am at reading guys."

"I tried to," he muttered, shaking his head, "So many times. But I always got scared you would laugh at me and I didn't want to lose you."

"You're never gonna lose me, Jaim," you smiled, kissing his nose. He scrunched his face up, making you smile a little bigger. "I like you a lot, Jamie," you admitted, "I have ever since 7th grade." The comment made him grin.

"Will you be my girlfriend?" he asked shyly. You answered by pulling his face to back yours and kissing him again.

~

_inspiration: http://my-imagines-moonlight53.tumblr.com/post/94233469172/kissing-booth-preference_


	148. Everything You Do (Ashton Irwin) - Part 1 *

**Warning: Mentions of abuse** ****

~

"Can you just stop yelling at me for two minutes?" you let out an exasperated sigh.

"This isn't yelling," your boyfriend growled, "Do you want to hear what yelling sounds like? Because I will gladly show you."

"I can't do this anymore," you whispered, staring mindlessly at the shelf of candy in front of you.

"Oh,  _you_  can't do this anymore?" he asked, raising his voice, "Why is everything always about you? You know what? Maybe  _I_  can't do this anymore. Did you ever think about that?"

"Spencer-" He cut you off.

"We're done, Y/N," he said, still speaking loudly, "You can come by and get your things tomorrow." And with that, he stormed out of the convenience store.

By now, everyone was staring at you – there weren't many people seeing as it was a little after midnight, but it was still making you uncomfortable – so you simply glued your eyes to the floor and followed your now ex-boyfriend outside. You threw your head back and let out a barely audible groan upon seeing his car pull onto the road, leaving you there. You sat down on the sidewalk in front of the door, trying to come up with your next move.

Your thoughts were interrupted when you heard the door open again. The person walked up behind you, sitting down next to you, making you look at them. The guy looked to be around your age and he had a mess of curly, light brown hair on top of his head and black-rimmed glasses covering most of his upper face. He was looking at you with a shy smile.

"Do you like Twix?" he asked randomly. You tilted your head, making a confused noise. He held up the candy bar he had just purchased. It was already opened and he was chewing on the other half. "I heard what happened in there and I think you need the other half of this more than I do." You let out a quiet laugh and took the candy from him.

"Thanks," you whispered, taking a bite.

"I'm Ashton," he told you.

"Y/N," you responded.

"That's a pretty name," he said, mainly to himself, but it made you blush either way. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," you shrugged, sighing, "We were bound to break up eventually. I just don't know what to do now."

"What do you mean?"

"He left and I don't know anyone around here," you said quietly, putting your elbow on your knee and your chin in your hand.

"Well, you know me," he remarked, "I'd be happy to take you back home."

You laughed nervously, "I think the whole point of him not taking me back was because he didn't want me there."

"Wait," he shook his head in disbelief, "So you're telling me he  _loudly_  broke up with you in front of all those people and just  _left you here_  and you don't have anywhere else to stay?"

"Basically," you mumbled.

"You're more than welcome to stay at my place for as long as you need to if you want," he offered, "I have roommates, but we've got plenty of room."

"I don't even know you that well," you pointed out, "You could be a serial killer."

"There's always that possibility," he laughed loudly, "But believe me, if I was a serial killer, we wouldn't still be sitting here."

"Touché," you nodded. He stood up, holding his hand out to you.

You looked at it for a moment before slowly putting your hand in his. You weren't sure why, but you trusted this random guy you'd met at a 24-hour convenience store not even 5 minutes ago at 12:35am. He pulled you over to his car and opened the passenger door for you. You stood there, a bit taken aback.

"Is something wrong?" Ashton asked you, "I was just joking back there. I swear I'm not a serial killer."

"No, I know. I just..." you trailed off before saying under your breath, more to yourself than to Ashton, "Spencer never opened doors for me..." He looked at you, his eyes appearing to tell you that he felt bad for you.

"Come on," he said softly, ushering you into the passenger seat, "You've had a rough night; You need some sleep."

Once you arrived at his place, he quickly got out of the car and ran over to your side before you could even take off your seat belt. He opened your door for you and took your hand, helping you out. As he was leading you to the front door, you realized he was still holding your hand. You smiled lightly, glad he wasn't looking at you.

"I feel like I should apologize in advance," Ashton told you as you both stepped onto the porch, "My roommates can get a little... _weird_...around girls."

All you did was giggle quietly, making him smile. He pulled you inside, taking you to the living room where there were three boys sitting on the couch playing FIFA.

"Hey, guys," Ashton said.

"Hey, Ash," they replied simultaneously, not looking away from the TV.

"Guys," he said firmly, letting them know he was serious.

One of them paused the game and they all looked back, their eyes widening as soon as they saw you. As if Ashton could sense you starting to feel uncomfortable, he squeezed your hand.

"This is Y/N," he told his roommates, "Some things happened with the person she was living with, so she's gonna stay here for a while, okay?" They quickly nodded. "Y/N, this is Luke, Calum, and Michael," he said, motioning to each of them. You smiled shyly at them. "Why don't I show you around and then you can go to sleep?" You nodded and he began leading you out of the room.

"Nice to meet you, Y/N!" you heard Luke call after you, making you grin. Ashton showed you around the entire first floor of the house before taking you upstairs.

"This is Michael's room," he informed you, pointing to a door, "This is Luke's, Calum's, and mine's right here. The bathroom is right there," he said, pointing down the hallway, "There are some extra toothbrushes in the top drawer if you want to brush your teeth before you go to bed or you could just brush them tomorrow after we go get your stuff."

"You're gonna help get my stuff?" you asked, looking up at him.

"Well, yeah," he smiled sheepishly, "Um, you can sleep in my room if you want. I mean, you could stay in one of the others' if you wanted to, but mine's the cleanest."

"Oh, no, Ashton," you shook your head, making his heart race, "That's fine. I'll just sleep on the couch or something."

"Y/N, you're exhausted. Please just take my bed tonight. We'll sort out sleeping arrangements in the morning." You watched him carefully for a moment and saw he had a pleading expression.

"Okay," you said. He smiled victoriously and led you into his room.

"If you need anything, just ask whoever is awake or come downstairs and wake me up, okay?" You nodded slowly and he was about to walk out of the room.

"Ashton," you said, making him stop and look back at you. "Thank you," you told him quietly, afraid if you spoke any louder that you might start crying. No one had been this nice to you in a long time and you honestly weren't so sure how to handle it.

"You're welcome, Y/N," he smiled, closing the door behind him, leaving you alone.

~

The next morning, you woke up to birds chirping from their spot on the tree right outside the window, something you weren't normally used to. You sat up on Ashton's bed, letting the blanket fall onto your lap. You ran your fingers through your messy hair in an attempt to tame it as much as you could before getting up and going downstairs. Remembering the layout from the tour Ashton had given you the night before, you started heading toward the kitchen when you heard the boys talking.

"I told you," you heard Ashton say quietly, probably thinking you would have been able to hear him from all the way upstairs, "She got into a fight with her boyfriend and he broke up with her, leaving her with nowhere to go."

"I understand that," Calum told him, "But what if it turns out that she's like, tricking you or something?"

"She's not," he replied confidently.

"You met her less than  _12 hours_  ago, Ash," Michael reminded him.

"You guys didn't see the look on her face, okay?" Ashton came to your defense, "If I felt like she was bad news, I wouldn't have offered to let her stay here."

You couldn't help but smile, quickly tiptoeing back up a few steps. You made sure to cough quietly so the boys knew you were coming, not wanting them to know you had been listening to their conversation. As you came into view, they all greeted you with smiles, Ashton's obviously being the biggest.

"How are you feeling?" Ashton asked, walking over to you.

"Better," you said quietly, feeling shy that all eyes were on you.

"Do you want something to eat before we go?" You shook your head.

"I just wanna get it over with," you mumbled, looking down. You missed Ashton look back at his friends as if he was silently saying he told them so.

"Go put your shoes on and we can head out," he said gently.

You looked at your feet, just now realizing you weren't wearing anything. You went back upstairs to Ashton's room and quickly put them on before heading back downstairs.

"Ready?" Ashton asked as you hopped off the bottom step. You nodded and he grabbed your hand, taking you out to his car.

You gave him the address of the apartment building, beyond happy to find out he knew where it was, and you were there in a little less than 20 minutes.

He could tell you were getting nervous as you climbed the two flights of stairs, so he stopped you once you reached the top. He took your hand again, telling you he would be right there if anything went wrong. He kissed your forehead softly – a gesture that made your stomach erupt with butterflies – and you took him to the door you used to live behind. You let go of Ashton's hand, knocking loudly.

You knew Spencer wouldn't be awake and would probably be upset that you woke him up, but you also knew what Ashton told you was true; He wasn't going to let anything happen to you.

" _Seriously_?" was the first thing out of Spencer's mouth as soon as he saw you standing there with Ashton. He looked back at you, "Who the hell is  _this_?"

"I'm here for my things," your voice trembled.

"I asked you a question," he said lowly through clenched teeth.

" _I want my stuff, Spencer_ ," you stated firmly, although you were terrified.

"Then you can come in here and  _get it_ ," he said, reaching for you. His hand never made it to yours though. Ashton immediately grabbed his wrist and held onto it tightly.

"She's not going in there without me," he growled, "You can either bring it out here or we're  _both_  coming in." You could just see him getting angrier as he pushed Spencer's arm back down. Spencer glared at him before shutting the door.

You reached for Ashton's hand, barely brushing your fingers on his palm as they made their way between his own, instantly calming him back down. He looked down at you and you smiled slightly at him. He let out a deep, slow breath and squeezed your hand lightly.

When the door swung open again, you let go of Ashton's hand just in time for a box to be shoved into your arms, causing you to stumble slightly. Ashton was quick to put his arm around your waist to keep you from hitting the wall behind you.

Spencer began mumbling some rude comments about you as he slammed the door and you didn't bother doing anything, but the moment he told you that you were a worthless waste of oxygen, it apparently rubbed Ashton the wrong way. He was about to push the door back open when you stopped him.

"He's not worth it, Ash," you said quietly, lifting your knee up to get a better grip on the box. He took a moment to compose himself again.

"Here," he said, taking the box out of your arms, "Let me carry it."

He effortlessly carried it to the elevator – you decided it would just be safer this way than to try to guide him down two flights of stairs – and you walked back out to his car. As soon as the box was in the trunk, Ashton took your face in his hands and looked you in the eyes.

"Are you okay?" he asked sincerely.

"I'm fine, Ashton," you promised him. He nodded and opened the door for you again, taking you back to his house.

Ashton pulled into the driveway and carried your things inside, taking them upstairs. You quickly followed him, hurrying past the other three boys as they stared at you.

"Ashton, I'm not staying in your room again," you told him as he put the box down on the bed.

"How many times has he hit you?" he asked, ignoring your statement as he turned around to face you. Your eyes widened and you became increasingly nervous with every second that passed.

"What are you-"

" _How many times_ , Y/N?" he cut you off. You felt your bottom lip tremble and your eyes started welling up with tears.

"I don't want to talk about this," you said quietly, turning to leave the room. Ashton grabbed your wrist, pulling you back in.

"How many times?" he repeated lowly.

His tone was menacing and he looked like he really did want to help you, but you couldn't ignore the fact that he was starting to squeeze your wrist a lot tighter than he had squeezed your hand earlier – almost the same way he had held Spencer's. You tried to pull your arm away, but he wouldn't let you go.

"A-Ash-" you whimpered, "Ashton, that hurts." He immediately let go of you and his expression turned into one of both shock and disappointment that the very thing you had just escaped from was exactly the way he was treating you. He shook his head slowly as he backed away from you.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, repeating it at least six more times.

"Ash-" you said, carefully moving toward him, but you cut yourself off when he darted out of your path and rushed past you. " _Ashton_!" you called, chasing after him. Before you got all the way down the stairs, however, the front door was already closing loudly. The boys jumped up and looked at you.

"What happened?" Michael asked. You swallowed the lump in your throat and shook your head, running back up to Ashton's room.

~

As it got closer to sunset, you were still in Ashton's room, lying on his bed. You had fallen asleep a few hours into waiting for him to come back, but you were just woken up by someone opening the bedroom door.

"Ashton?" you mumbled but didn't open your eyes.

Whoever it was didn't answer, they simply walked over to the edge of the bed you were laying on and knelt down beside you. You finally opened your eyes to see Luke sitting there. You closed your eyes tightly.

"Closing your eyes isn't going to turn me into Ashton, Y/N," Luke said softly. You let out a quiet sigh and looked at him again. "Please tell me what happened."

"He asked me if Spencer ever hit me," you mumbled, "But I wouldn't answer him and he grabbed my wrist and he wouldn't let go and it really hurt and when I told him, he kept backing away from me but then he ran out." You were starting to tear up again, so Luke began rubbing your arm gently.

"Has Spencer hit you?" he asked, almost inaudibly. You nodded slightly, mad at yourself for not just telling Ashton earlier so all of this could have been avoided.

"Ashton is the kind of person that feels like he always has to watch over everyone and keep them safe," Luke told you, "If there's one thing he hates most, it's when he hurts people. He never  _means_  to do it, but when he does, he feels bad about it until that person tells him they forgive him. I know you know he wasn't  _trying_  to hurt you, Y/  
N, and the boys and I would really appreciate it if you made sure he knows that."

"Is he back?" you asked. Luke nodded, not even able to finish the motion before you were jumping off of the bed and racing down the stairs.

You saw Ashton walking toward the steps, freezing when he saw you coming. This time though, he didn't have time to run away before your arms were around his neck, hugging him tighter than you'd ever hugged anyone before. You felt him tense up, but you refused to let go of him, needing him to know that you didn't blame him for what he did.

He eventually relaxed – if only a little bit – and hesitantly wrapped his own arms around your waist. Despite the fact that he was so scared of hurting you again, him accepting your hug made you smile into his shoulder which actually calmed him down enough to tighten his hold as well.

"Jump," Ashton mumbled into your neck so Michael and Calum, who were standing a few feet away, couldn't hear him. You quickly did so, wrapping your legs around his waist and letting him carry you back up the stairs.

You passed Luke on the way up, seeing him smile just before Ashton entered his room. He sat down on the edge of his bed with you now in his lap. No words were being said, but none needed to be; All you and Ashton needed right now was each other.


	149. Everything You Do (Ashton Irwin) - Part 2

You and Ashton had been sitting on his bed for about 10 minutes now. The only thing that could be heard was the sound of your breathing and the faint voices from the boys downstairs. But once you heard Ashton sniffle, you had to break the silence.

"Ashton," you whispered, rubbing small circles on his upper back.

"I-I'm sorry," Ashton stuttered, his voice muffled by your neck.

"I know, Ash."

"I didn't mean to-"

"I know, Ashton," you repeated, finally moving back to look at him, "It wasn't your fault."

"Please-"

"I forgive you, Ash," you said, already knowing what he was going to say. You put your hands on his cheeks and wiped his tears with your thumbs. "I know you didn't mean it." He let out a sigh of relief and pulled you back against him, burying his face in your neck again.

It didn't take long for you to hear light snoring coming from the boy you were sitting on, so you waited a few more minutes before carefully climbing off of his lap and laying him down. You slowly picked his legs up and put them on the bed as well before kissing his cheek and leaving the room so he could sleep.

You walked into the living room where the other boys were playing video games. Luke noticed your presence first.

"How did it go?" he asked.

"Well," you nodded with a smile, "He fell asleep, so I thought I'd just come down here and see what you guys were up to."

"Where are you gonna sleep tonight then?" Calum asked.

"On the couch," you shrugged.

"Ash's not gonna be happy about that when he wakes up," Michael sang.

"He'll get over it," you giggled, "So what are you guys playing?"

"FIFA," Luke answered.

"That's like, a soccer game, right?" you asked, plopping down next to Michael.

"You mean football?" he nudged you.

"I'm American, okay? I'm sorry! It's not my fault we ruin everything."

"Yeah," Calum laughed, "You play?" You shook your head. "You want to?"

"Uh..." you trailed off before you were cut off by Michael jumping up and grabbing another controller.

"You can be on my team," he said, "It's really easy." He spent a few minutes going over the controls with you and teaching you how to play and you'd finally gotten the hang of it by the second match.

You all played for about an hour until the boys started getting tired. Luke went to grab you an extra pillow and blanket from his room so you didn't have to risk waking Ashton up and you all went to bed.

~

The next morning, you woke up in Ashton's room. You sighed quietly but couldn't help but smile, knowing that Ashton was the one that brought you there. You trotted down the stairs, finding Ashton sitting in the living room alone watching television.

"Morning, Ash," you chirped, walking around the couch and sitting yourself down next to him.

"Morning," he smiled slightly.

"Would you care to explain to me how I fell asleep right here and woke up in your room?" you smirked, laying your head on his shoulder.

"I told you you're not sleeping on the couch," he said.

"But you also said we'd discuss sleeping arrangements yesterday morning, so..."

"Okay, we'll discuss it now then," he replied, "Sleeping arrangements are as follows: I'll take the couch, you'll take my bed."

"Ashton-"

" _Nope_!" he sang, "That's it. End of discussion. I will not budge." You lifted your head just so he could see you roll your eyes at him. He smiled sweetly at you, making you laugh.

"Fine," you said, "On one condition."

"There's always a  _condition_ ," he sighed dramatically, throwing his head back.

"If you will not take your bed back, I am in charge of breakfast from today on until I find my own place." He looked at you for a moment before lifting his arm up.

"Deal," he said, shaking your hand.

~

**Four months later**

You had been living with Ashton, Luke, Calum, and Michael for almost four months now. You were finally able to find a job about two and a half months ago at a local bakery and for the first time in a  _long time_ , you were  _genuinely_  happy.

You were so close to having enough money to move into your own apartment, but the boys – Ashton, especially –  _insisted_  you stay until you were able to buy necessities since the apartment you had your eye on didn't come with any furniture but a bed, a couch, and a coffee table. To be honest, you were starting to get suspicious that they just wanted you to stay with  _them_.

One night, you were lying on Ashton's bed, just wishing you could fall asleep, when someone opening the bedroom door made you jump. You turned onto your back and opened your eyes.

"Sorry," Ashton whispered guiltily, "I thought you were asleep already. I just realized I forgot my pillow."

"No, I can't fall asleep. How do you forget a pillow?" you giggled drowsily, making him smile.

He shrugged, "Very easily, apparently." He reached over you and grabbed his pillow. He was about to walk back out of the room when you stopped him.

"Ashton," you said quietly. He looked at you again. "You have a big bed, you know."

"I  _do_..." he nodded slowly, unsure of where you were headed.

"You don't have to sleep on the couch when we can  _both_  fit on it..."

"Y/N..." he trailed off.

"It's been nearly  _four months_ , Ash," you shook your head, "You refuse to let me sleep on the couch and I can't keep kicking you out of your room until I can afford my own place."

"You're not sleeping on the couch, Y/N."

"Then neither are  _you_ , Ashton," you said firmly. He looked at you for a moment before sighing and putting his pillow back where he got it.

"Let me go get my stuff," he told you.

"You better come back," you said as he left. He returned about a minute later, putting his phone on the nightstand and climbing onto the bed. You two laid next to each other for a good 10 minutes before Ashton spoke again.

"What's the  _real_  reason you suggested we share my bed?" he asked you.

"I told you," you said, "It's  _your_  bed; You should be sleeping on it, but you won't let me take the couch."

"I think it's more than just my willingness to let you have my bed, Y/N," he said, "I'm completely fine with sleeping on the couch." You sighed quietly. "What is it?" he asked, obviously hearing you.

"You're gonna think it's stupid." You felt his fingers brush up against yours as if he was making sure it was okay with you. You didn't move your hand, silently telling him that it was, and he laced your fingers together.

"Try me," he said under his breath. You kept your gaze on the ceiling. You mumbled, but he didn't understand you. "So I can  _hear you_ , Y/N," he said, squeezing your hand lightly. You began chewing on your bottom lip nervously.

"I don't like sleeping alone," you said, still mumbling but slightly louder, "I haven't slept properly in I don't even know  _how long_  because of it."

"Why not?" You made a small groaning noise and you felt Ashton tense up as Spencer's name left his mouth. You started rubbing his knuckle with your thumb to calm him back down.

"He obviously knew I couldn't sleep without someone there, so he would always sleep on the couch."

"Why would he do that to you?" he asked softly, in honest disbelief that a person would treat someone like you in the way your ex-boyfriend had.

"Simple: When I got a proper amount of sleep, I was less likely to take his shit. Although he  _has_  hit me a couple times, the abuse was more  _emotional_  than anything."

"So why did you put up with it for so long? Why not just leave?"

"That's why I'm staying  _here_ , Ash," you sighed again, "I have nowhere else to go and he  _knew that_. That's why he and I moved out here. My closest relative lives 3 hours away."

"But you're saving up to rent a place  _here_? Why not save up to go back home?"

"I was going to," you admitted, "That's what my  _original_  plan was anyway."

"Then what changed your mind?"

"You," you whispered.

" _Me_?" You didn't even need any lights on to know that his eyes had widened.

"Ever since I moved to this town a couple years ago, the only kindness I'd been shown was fake – the rare times Spencer would let me  _leave the apartment_ , of course. I obviously have every right to think relationships are a waste of time or that people are only nice when they want something from you, but you proved me wrong, Ash. You didn't have to come over and ask if I was okay and you didn't have to offer me the other half of your candy bar. You didn't have to give me a place to sleep and you certainly didn't have to allow me to stay here for more than one night. But you  _did_. And while I don't think I'll ever  _totally_  understand how one person can be as kind as you are – especially to  _strangers_  – I genuinely mean it when I say that I will  _never_  be able to thank you enough for what you and the boys have been doing for me."

Ashton remained silent, taking in everything you'd told him. You started to worry that maybe you scared him by admitting all of that after knowing him for just a few months, but your fears were soon washed away when he reached for the hand laying on your stomach. He stretched his arm behind you as he pulled on your own arm, making you turn on your side facing him. He wiggled his arm under your neck and you instinctively laid your head on his chest. He let your arm rest across his stomach, leaving his hand to lay just above your elbow, stroking your skin softly.

"I'm not gonna let you lose any more sleep, okay?" Ashton murmured, kissing the top of your head and you cuddled up closer to him. He held you tightly in his arms as if he was afraid you were going to get up and leave him. "It makes me so angry when you tell me about all that terrible stuff your ex did to you because you are the  _last_  person that deserves to be treated like that. And I want you to know that whatever else he may have said or did that made you feel like you were never good enough or that you were worthless  _isn't true_. You are one of the nicest, most beautiful girls I've ever met and I'm so happy that I'm the one who gets to show that to you."

"Thank you, Ashton," you said into his chest, hearing his heart race and making you smile. He smiled as well, obviously feeling your grin, and kissed your head again.

"Goodnight, Y/N," he said quietly. You didn't even get out a goodnight of your own before you were letting Ashton's heartbeat lull you to sleep.


	150. Everything You Do (Ashton Irwin) - Part 3

**Three weeks later**

"What do you say we go out tonight?" Ashton asked you after he picked you up from work, "Just the two of us."

"Like a date?" you asked.

"Why would you think it would be a date?"

You shrugged, "Aren't dates usually between two people who are interested in each other?"

"Are you interested in me?" he smirked, pulling into the driveway.

"I've never implied that I  _wasn't_ ," you sang, getting out of the car, "Are  _you_  interested in  _me_?"

"I think I make it painfully  _obvious_  that I'm interested in you," he laughed, throwing his arm on your shoulders and leading you into the house.

"Then it's a date," you smiled.

"What do you want to do?"

"What do people usually do on dates?" you asked. Ashton froze.

"You've never been on a date?" He seemed genuinely shocked.

"Is it that unusual?"

"I mean, you're a beautiful girl; Someone's  _had to_  have taken you out on a date before." You blushed before shrugging with a shy smile on your face. "Then I am going to take you on the  _best_  first date you will ever go on!" he announced.

"Will I be going on  _other_  first dates?" you asked quietly.

He leaned down and said lowly in your ear, "Not if you don't want to," before he went into the kitchen. You shivered slightly, going upstairs to change out of your work uniform.

You stared at your small section of Ashton's closet and made quiet groaning noises. You had what you needed – a few shirts and sweaters and a couple pairs of jeans and shorts – but nothing you would consider suitable for a date, especially a date with Ashton. You heard a knock on the bedroom door and looked over as Calum came in.

"I heard groaning," he said, closing the door behind him.

"There is  _no way_  you heard that," you replied in amazement.

"I did," he nodded, "And by the sound of it, I'm thinking you have a date tonight and ' _nothing to wear_.'"

"This isn't like when everyone else says it, Cal," you sighed, "There is nothing in here that screams ' _wear me on a date_!'" He looked at you up and down before nodding again to himself.

"Give me 10 minutes," he said randomly.

"Calum, what are you-" You were cut off by him leaving the room.

A little over 10 minutes later, you heard a knock on the front door. There were two pairs of footsteps coming up the stairs and then the bedroom door was being opened once again. Calum walked into the room with a girl carrying a tote bag.

"Y/N," Calum smiled, "This is my sister Mali-Koa and I think she might be able to help you with your problem."

"Cal, I don't think-" You were cut off again by him leaving the room, leaving you with his sister. You sighed, "That is the second time he's done that to me in the last 15 minutes."

"You get used to it," she laughed, "You can just call me Mali if you want. So my brother told me you have a date tonight, but nothing to wear." You nodded. She smiled, "Well, as Cal said, I think I can help you." She put her bag on the bed and started pulling out some dresses. "Who are you going out with?"

"Ashton," you replied shyly, making her smile again.

"Then I recommend one of these," she told you, pulling all but three dresses off of the bed, "He likes when girls keep it simple. He's never been much of an outer appearance kind of guy. He's more concerned about personality and things like that, but it never hurts to get dressed up for him every once in a while."

"What if they don't fit me?" you mumbled, noticing that, while she was about the same size, she was still smaller than you.

"I have a plan B, don't worry."

You nodded slowly and picked up the dress you liked the most, quickly putting it on. You were amazed – and relieved – to find that it fit you perfectly.

Mali smiled again widely, "You look beautiful! Alright, now put this on." She pulled out a dark blue denim jacket that went along with the dress and you put it on.

She helped you roll up the sleeves and you looked at yourself in the mirror. You couldn't help but smile at your reflection before turning back to Mali.

"You're not gonna pull a  _shoe rack_  out of there next, are you?" you asked, raising your eyebrow. She laughed loudly.

"No, it wouldn't fit," she teased, "I figured I'd go easy on you on the shoes and let you wear your own. But if you need me to run back to my place, I'll gladly get you a pair."

"Oh, um, that's fine," you said, "I'll just wear these." You picked up your black Vans and put them on. "How do I look?"

"Beautiful," Mali smiled.

"You're sure he'll like it?" you asked nervously.

"Y/N," she grabbed your shoulders, "He's so into you, it's not even  _funny_. Don't overthink it." You took a deep breath and nodded, but jumped when there was another knock on the door.

"Hey, Y/N," Ashton said as he opened the door, "Are you-" He stopped when he saw you. " _Whoa_ ," he whispered to himself. Your eyes widened and Mali giggled quietly, leaning toward you.

"That was a  _good_  whoa," she said in your ear. You glanced at her, nodding slightly and letting out a shaky breath. "I'd better be heading home," she said at her normal volume, "It was nice meeting you, Y/N. I hope to see you again soon."

You smiled, "You too, Mali."

"Have fun," she looked at Ashton, "Don't stay out too late."

"Yes, ma'am," he chuckled as she walked out, "Bye, Mali!" When she was gone, he looked at you from head to toe. "This is new," he commented, putting his arms around your waist.

"D-Do you not like it?" you asked, looking down at yourself, trying desperately to ignore how nervous his arms being around you made you, "I-I can wear s-something else."

"No," he smiled, shaking his head, "You look beautiful." You put your forehead on his shoulder, sighing quietly as you smiled as well. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"Yeah!" you squeaked a little too quickly, "We should get going."

"Okay," he nodded, not  _actually_  believing you but knowing it must have had something to do with Spencer and deciding to just let it go. "Let me get changed and we can go." You smiled when he kissed your forehead and left the room so he could get ready.

You were waiting in the living room with the other boys when Ashton came down the stairs a few minutes later.

"Ready?" he asked. You turned around as you stood up, freezing when you saw him.

He was just wearing a dark grey button up with the sleeves rolled up above his elbows, black skinny jeans, and the boots he wore nearly every day, but something about the way he looked right now was making your stomach do flips. Maybe it was the fact that Ashton had sneaked his way into your every waking thought or maybe it was the fact that you were about to go on your very first date with anyone  _ever_ , but there was no denying that you were nervous as hell.

Luke, Calum, and Michael were standing a couple feet away from you, trying not to smile as you and Ashton stared at each other. Luke was the first to break, chuckling as he put his hands on your shoulders and began walking you to Ashton.

"You two have fun," he said, pushing you lightly so you bumped into Ashton, "Be home before midnight." Ashton rolled his eyes, putting his arm around your waist and leading you out to his car.

"Where are we going?" you asked as he pulled out of the driveway.

"It's a surprise," he smiled, taking your hand and holding it in your lap.

Ashton ended up taking you to one of his favorite restaurants and then to the park where you spent most of the time just getting to know the little things about each other while lying on one of the picnic tables watching the sun set. It wasn't a very spectacular date, but you were having a lot of fun learning everything there was to know about Ashton.

"Wait," Ashton shook his head, sitting up, "You're telling me you don't believe in love?" You shrugged, laughing under your breath. "How do you just  _not_  believe in love?!" he exclaimed, seeming genuinely troubled by the fact.

"In my defense," you said as you sat up as well, "I think I have a pretty solid reason."

"Yeah, but I just... I don't..." He made a distressed noise, making you laugh again.

"Ash, calm down," you put your hands on his shoulders, "It's not the end of the world. I just don't believe that a 100%, would die or do absolutely anything for kind of love exists."

"But it  _does_!"

"Have you ever experienced that kind of love before?"

"No, but-"

"Do you  _know anyone_  who has?"

"Well, no, but I-"

"Then how do you know it exists?" you shook your head, "I think you're very optimistic and I really admire that about you, Ash, but I just don't believe in love. I will happily accept that you do, but for me, I don't think I'm ever going to feel something like that."

"Okay," he nodded solemnly, "I guess I have one more question then before we go back home." You looked at him, signalling for him to continue. "You say you don't believe in love, but you obviously believe in relationships and things like that, so I was wondering if...um...if you would want to be my girlfriend?"

"You still want to be with me after all that?"

"Of course I do," he replied, "Who knows? Maybe I'll change your mind."

You smiled slightly, "I would love to be your girlfriend, Ash."

~

When you two arrived back to the house, Ashton had gone upstairs to change while you went to the kitchen. You found the boys mindlessly standing around, obviously waiting for you and Ashton to get home.

"Hey!" Luke smiled when he saw you, "How did it go?"

"Best date I've ever been on," you giggled quietly, grabbing a small glass to get some water.

"More like  _only_  date you've ever been on," Michael teased. You stuck your tongue out at him and he happily returned the gesture.

You finished your water, putting the cup in the sink as Ashton came back downstairs. He had changed into sweatpants for the night, but he wasn't wearing a shirt. You groaned under your breath, making the boys snort quietly.

"What?" Ashton asked.

"Nothing," Michael snickered, subtly nudging your arm. You elbowed him back and he winked at you, making you roll your eyes. "Do you guys want to watch a movie before bed?"

"Do we have popcorn?" you asked.

"Of course," Calum chuckled.

"Then I'm in," you smiled, "I'm gonna go put my PJ's on first." As you passed Ashton, he put his arm around your waist, pulling you into him.

"Do you know what just happened with the boys there?" he asked lowly.

"Maybe," you barely smirked, "You look good, Ash." You wiggled out of his grasp and quickly turned on your heels, going up the stairs before you could see the grin on his face get bigger.

You took off the jacket and dress, draping them over the side of the laundry basket so you would remember to wash them before giving them back to Mali. You grabbed your pajama shorts and the shirt Ashton had worn that afternoon, putting them on before going back downstairs to the smell of popcorn. The boys were now sitting in the living room waiting for you.

"What are we watching, boys?" you asked, plopping down in between Ashton and Michael.

"That's my shirt," Ashton pointed out.

"I've never heard of that. Is it any good?"

"Yeah," Michael smirked, "It's Ashton's favorite."

"Why are you wearing my shirt?"

"You cannot  _prove_  that this is yours," you gave him a look, desperately trying not to smile.

"I was wearing it today!" he laughed.

" _Were you_? I don't remember that. Guys, do you remember that?" you asked, looking around the room. They all shook their heads, laughing along. "Sorry, Ash," you shrugged, "We just can't seem to recall that ever happening." He smiled, leaning closer to you so the others couldn't hear him.

"I could get used to you wearing my clothes," he whispered against your ear. You bit your lip as he kissed your cheek, laying your head on his shoulder so you could watch the movie.

~

At some point during the two-hour long movie, you must have fallen asleep because you woke up to Ashton carrying you up the stairs.

"I wasn't sleeping, I swear," you yawned quietly.

"Your snoring would beg to differ," Ashton laughed.

"I do not snore," you pouted.

" _Yes, you do_!" you heard the boys call after you. You rolled your eyes.

"Is the movie over?" you mumbled into Ashton's shoulder. He simply shook his head. "But I wanna see the end!" you whined.

"You're exhausted, babe," he chuckled, laying you on his bed. The sound of him calling you babe made you happy you weren't standing. "You need to go to bed." He kissed your forehead and started walking back out of the room.

"Where are you going?" you pouted.

" _I_  am going to go watch the rest of the movie," he smiled, " _You_  are going to go back to sleep. I'll be back as soon as it's over." You simply sighed, letting him finish the movie with the boys.

~

About half an hour later, the bedroom door opened again. Ashton quietly made his way around to the other side of the bed where he carefully climbed under the covers beside you, probably thinking you were asleep. But as soon as he got comfortable, you scooted closer to him, laying your head on his chest.

"I didn't wake you up, did I?" You could hear the guilt in his voice. You shook your head.

"I told you I can't sleep without you here, Ash," you muttered sleepily. He smiled, kissing the top of your head and you both listened to each other breathing until you fell asleep.

 


	151. Everything You Do (Ashton Irwin) - Part 4

**Two months later**

" _Guys_!" you squealed as you opened the front door, " _Guess what_!" The boys looked up at you from their spots around the living room.

"You got us free pizza for life?!" Michael shouted, bouncing in his seat.

" _I wish_ ," you stuck out your bottom lip as you tossed Luke's car keys back to him since you had borrowed his car.

"You finally perfected your skills at the claw machine?" Calum asked with a joking tone. You rolled your eyes at him.

"Okay, I'm just gonna tell you because you're never gonna get it." You took a deep breath and smiled again, "I found the most amazing apartment today and the realtor told me that I have a  _really_  good chance of getting it!"

"Oh, Y/N, that's great! Congratulations!" Luke exclaimed, getting up and hugging you.

"I don't have the place yet, Luke," you laughed lightly, "She said she has to see if they'll be willing to negotiate a lower price, but she said it's looking good because they've been trying to sell it for so long." Michael and Calum also congratulated you, but you noticed Ashton hadn't said a word. Actually, he hadn't even  _looked up_  at you yet. "Ash," you said, walking over to him, "You okay?"

"I'm fine," he nodded, getting up and going upstairs. You heard his bedroom door close loudly and turned back to the boys.

"What's up with him?" you asked. They shrugged, but you knew them better than that. You raised your eyebrows and crossed your arms over your stomach.

"He doesn't want you to move out," Calum sighed, breaking under your stare.

"Why not?" you sighed, "I've been looking at apartments for over six months now. If he had a problem with it, he should have told me sooner. How am I meant to be happy about the possibility of being able to buy my own place now that I know Ashton doesn't want me to?"

"Please, Y/N, don't let me hold you back." You spun around at the sound of Ashton's voice. He was standing on the bottom step with a pained expression on his face that honestly broke your heart. "I just thought you liked living here, but if you want to move out so badly, that's cool too."

"Don't you dare try to blame me," you stated, "You could have told me the moment you started feeling that way that you didn't want me to leave."

"So it's  _my_  fault I like having you around?"

"That is  _not_  what I said, Ashton."

"Well, you're sure making it  _seem like it_ , Y/N. But don't worry, I'm happy for you either way. Let me know how well you sleep without me there with you."

"Ash," you said shakily, "Don't-"

You were cut off by him running back up the stairs and his door slamming shut. You threw your head back and let out a long groan. The boys were standing around awkwardly, not exactly sure what to do.

"Sorry, guys..." you mumbled. You looked up at Luke, "I need to borrow your car again."

"What for?" he asked, giving you back the keys.

"I just need to take a drive for a little while," you said, heading back out the door, "I promise I'll fill up the tank before I get back."

~

About four hours later, you were sitting in a coffee shop parking lot when you got a phone call. You looked at the caller I.D. and saw it was your realtor. You were surprised to get a call from her so soon, figuring it would have taken at least a day or two to come to a negotiated price.

"Hey, Nikki," you said.

"Hi, Y/N," she smiled, "I have some news on the place. The owners have another offer on the apartment, but they agreed to take your deal and it's yours if you still want it." You sat there for a moment with your forehead on the steering wheel.

"I think I'm gonna pass, Nikki," you said, picking yourself back up, "I don't think I can leave what I've already got just yet. Tell them to take the other offer."

"Alright!" she chirped, "Have a good rest of the day!"

"You too," you smiled, hanging up. You put your phone back into your pocket and left the parking lot, driving to the gas station to fill up the tank as promised.

On the 10 minute drive back home, you felt your phone vibrate at least twice with every minute that passed. You were wondering who was texting you so much and when you pulled into the driveway, you were finally able to check.

They were all texts from Ashton; The first few were apologizing for getting mad at you and every one after that being one of panic that something had happened to you since you hadn't texted him back yet.

You quickly cut the engine and grabbed the keys, running inside.

"Ashton!" you called as you opened the front door.

The second you closed it, Ashton came racing out of the kitchen and you didn't have time to say anything before his arms were wrapped tightly around your waist. Luke, Calum, and Michael came out of the kitchen as well, breathing a sigh of relief when they saw you.

"I'm sorry," Ashton sobbed into your neck, "If you want to leave, you can. I won't make you stay if you don't want to. I was just being selfish. And when I found out you left, I thought you hated me so I tried to text you but you wouldn't text back and you were gone for so long and I thought something really bad happened to you."

"I was driving, Ash," you said softly, gently running your fingers through his hair as you hugged him back, "I didn't get a chance to look at your messages until I got back. I could never hate you, Ashton. I just thought I've overstayed my welcome and it was time I moved out."

"But I don't want you to leave," he mumbled.

"Well, you don't have to worry about that now," you smiled slightly, moving to kiss his cheek.

"Why not?" Luke asked.

"The realtor called just before I started driving back," you told the boys, "She said they agreed to my price and the place was mine if I wanted it, but I said no."

"But I thought you really liked it," Calum tilted his head.

"I did," you said as Ashton lifted his head to look at you. You smiled at him, wiping his face with your thumbs, "But I like it  _here_  more."

"You're staying?" Ashton asked quietly.

"I'm staying," you whispered, nodding. He immediately grabbed your cheeks, pressing his lips to yours. You heard the boys groan and walk back out of the room as you kissed him back.

"I love you," he said as soon as he pulled away, making you freeze up.

"Ashton..." you said slowly.

"I know that you've been hurt in more ways than I can ever imagine and I know that you feel like love isn't worth it in the end, but I love you," he rambled, "And when I look at you, I think about how you make the butterflies in my stomach go crazy and how you make my heart beat so hard, it feels like it's going to explode. I think about how lucky I am to know you and how lucky I am that you even let me show you how you  _should_ be treated in a relationship. You make my day so much better just by allowing me to be the one you wake up next to in the morning and fall asleep with at night. And I know that by admitting this right now, I'm putting everything on the line if you don't feel the same, but that's what you do when you're in love and I am so madly, deeply, and shamelessly in love with you, Y/N." You looked at him for a moment before pulling his face back to yours and kissing him again.

"I love you too, Ashton," you whispered against his lips, making him smile and kiss you harder at hearing he finally changed your mind.


	152. Everything You Do (Ashton Irwin) - Part 5 *

**Warning: Violence, kidnapping, strong language**

~

**One month later**

You and Ashton were hanging out at the mall. You weren't there for any reason in particular, you two just liked to spend time together when the boys weren't around. You walked around for a while and, after going to nearly every store, you ended up in the food court. Ashton insisted on buying you everything you tried on, telling you he loved the way you looked in the clothing, but you refused. He had done so much for you in the short time you'd known him already, there was no way you could let him buy you a bunch of new clothes as well.

While you were sitting at your table, Ashton excused himself to go to the restroom. He had only been gone for two minutes when you felt someone walk up. You didn't think anything of it, figuring they were just going to sit at the table behind you, but you couldn't have been more wrong.

"Hello, Y/N," you heard the male's voice say.

" _A_ -" you started to yell, but he slapped his hand over your mouth, cutting you off.

"Make one more sound and I swear to God, you'll never see the light of day again," Spencer growled in your ear.

Your eyes widened as he dropped a piece of paper on the table and put his hand on the back of your neck, gripping it tightly as he took you in the opposite direction. He removed his hand from your mouth so no one would suspect anything and you bit your inner cheek, desperately trying not to make a noise at how much his grip was hurting you.

After he had taken you down the street, Spencer released your neck but kept his arm behind you. He had no doubts that you weren't going try to run away – mostly because you knew that you weren't a fast runner and there was no point in fueling the fire – but that didn't mean he wasn't going to be cautious about it.

He shoved you into the backseat of his car and quickly got into the drivers seat. He sped off, causing you to fall onto the floorboard. You let out a short squeak, picking yourself back up and sitting in the seat.

"What the fuck did I say about making any sounds?" Spencer growled again, at least having the decency to keep his eyes on the road in front of him.

"No one can hear me in here, Spencer," you rolled your eyes, "Don't get your panties in a bunch." He slammed his foot on the brakes, causing you to fly into the seat in front of you. " _For fuck's sake, Spencer_!" you shouted.

"I don't want to hear your goddamn backtalk," he said, looking back at you, "I swear I'll make the rest of your life a living hell and you will never see that worthless asshole you call your boyfriend ever again."

"Ashton is  _not_  worthless, Spencer," you spat, sitting back in the seat, "Maybe if you didn't want to deal with my backtalk, you wouldn't have fucking kidnapped me in the first place. You can do whatever the hell you want to do to me, but I am  _done_  taking your shit." He snarled quietly, simply turning back around and continuing to drive again.

**Ashton's POV**

Back at the mall, Ashton had just come back from the bathroom. He furrowed his eyebrows when you were nowhere to be seen, but he found a piece of paper on the table that wasn't there before. He looked around before picking it up and unfolding it.

_Expect a call at 9pm. If you're not alone, you don't answer, or you tell ANYONE else, you'll never see your girlfriend again._

His eyes widened. He raced out to his car and back home where he was met with the confused stares from his friends as he burst through the door.

"Where's Y/N?" Luke asked.

"You didn't have a fight and leave her at the mall, did you?" Michael joked. He stopped smiling as soon as he saw the look on his best friend's face. "Seriously, Ash..." he said, slowly getting up, "Where's Y/N...?"

"Spencer took her," he choked out.

" _What_?!" the boys shouted in unison as Calum and Luke jumped up. Ashton shakily handed Calum the note and he read it out loud to the other two.

"Ashton, you  _have_  to call the police," Luke said.

"N- _No_!" he exclaimed, "I can't risk that! I can't lose her!"

"Ash, you have to do  _something_!" Calum added, "You can't do whatever he's gonna make you do  _alone_!" Before Ashton could respond, his phone started ringing.

His head snapped up to look at the time and he saw it was 9 already. He froze, making Michael start pushing him to the kitchen.

"Hurry up and answer it!" he said loudly before leaving the room. As soon as he accepted the call, Ashton felt his anger building up.

"Where the fuck did you take her, you piece of shit?" he growled.

"I love you, Ash," you said quietly in his ear, making him let out a huge sigh of relief simply knowing you were still alive.

"Y/N!" he breathed, "I love you so much! Where are you? Has he hurt you?"

"Read it," he heard Spencer say before you could answer. You were trying, but it wasn't good enough for him. "Read it  _faster_!" he yelled at you.

"You know I can't read your goddamn handwriting, Spencer!" you shot back. Ashton heard a loud smack and then you scream, " _Stop doing that_!"

"I swear on my life, I will break  _every fucking bone_  in your body if you touch her again!" Ashton yelled.

"I want $500,000 delivered to the alley near the abandoned warehouse downtown by 6pm on Friday," Spencer said, telling him what was written on the paper in front of you, "You come alone or you're not getting her back."

" _500,000_?" Ashton stuttered, making him smirk.

"She's about to find out just how much she means to you." Before he could say anything else, the line went dead.

" _Fuck_ ," he mumbled to himself. The boys ran into the room after they realized Ashton had stopped talking.

"What did he say?!" Michael asked quickly.

"$500,000 by 6pm Friday or I never see her again," he put his face in the palms of his hands. Calum immediately rushed over and pulled him into a hug.

"So let's give him $500,000," Luke said. Ashton pushed himself off of Calum.

"We don't have that kind of money, Luke!" he exclaimed, "And even if we  _could_  get it, there's no way we could come up with enough in  _less_  than three days!"

"Listen, Ash," he led the boys back to the living room, "We all know I'm a fan of retaining the useless bits of knowledge from my childhood and using them in every day life. When I was younger, my parents would give my brothers and I fake money to ' _buy_ ' things until we were old enough to manage the real thing on our own. They went through a whole thing with printing it out and making it look like actual bills and I happen to remember exactly how they did it."

"Luke..." he trailed off with wide eyes, "You're not seriously telling me you can make this believable."

"No, I can't make it believable," Luke replied, making Ashton's face drop. "But what I  _am_  saying is that unless he handles money constantly, I can give you enough time to give it to him and grab Y/N before he realizes it's all fake."

"Luke, if this works, I owe you  _big time_ ," he mumbled. Luke grabbed his computer to get a photo of a $100 bill.

"Mikey and I will go get more printer ink and some Red Bull!" Calum announced, running to grab his keys.

"What's the Red Bull for?" Ashton asked.

"It's gonna be a long two days, Ash," Michael smiled as he walked to the front door with Calum, "And we're not gonna sleep until Y/N's back home."

~

**Two days later**

"Alright, everyone knows the plan, right?" Luke asked, packing the last of the fake bills into the duffel bag.

The boys decided to put one  _real_  $100 bill on each stack that would be at the top of the bag so that even if Spencer did look more closely, it could still buy Ashton enough time to get you to his car safely before he noticed. They knew Spencer would figure it out and chase the two back into town, but they were ready for it.

"Right," Calum confirmed, "Michael and I will be hiding somewhere outside the police station when Ashton and Y/N pull up."

"Y/N will run inside where you'll be waiting for her to explain to the cops what happened and they'll hopefully be outside before Ashton beats Spencer to death," Michael finished. Luke nodded and handed the bag to Ashton.

"What if it doesn't work?" Ashton let out a breath, "What if he knows the second he opens the bag?"

"It's gonna work, Ash," Luke said firmly, "Just remember to explain the plan to her on the way back so she knows to get out of the car before Spencer does." He nodded and hugged his friends before going out to his car. Ashton gave them one more look as he climbed into the drivers seat and the other three piled into Luke's car.

Luke followed Ashton for about 5 minutes before making the turn to start heading to police station, leaving Ashton alone on the open road. He kept taking deep breaths, glancing at the bag in the passenger seat every so often,  _praying_  the plan would work the way Luke described it.

After about 15 more minutes, Ashton had reached the warehouse. He didn't park too close, but he was close enough that he would be able to get you there before Spencer realized the money was fake.

Ashton walked to the entrance of the alley where he saw two figures standing near the middle. He cleared his throat and your head shot up.

You tried to run to him, but Spencer grabbed your wrist, holding you back. You swallowed the lump in your throat and started tearing up as you felt something press against your side. Ashton saw the shiny object in his hand and knew he had a knife against you, making his heart beat even  _harder_.

**Your POV**

" _Bag_ ," Spencer said. Ashton immediately tossed him the bag, his heart racing as he unzipped it, still holding onto you. "I guess you're not worthless after all, Y/N," he smirked, finally releasing his grip. You immediately ran to Ashton, but before you could hug him, he put his hands on your shoulders and ushered you away.

"Ashton," you sniffled.

"I'll explain on the way," he whispered, "But right now, we need to get to the car." You got in the car and Ashton sped away since he had left it running.

"What did you do?" you asked.

He remained silent for a few minutes and that was when you looked in the side mirror, seeing Spencer's car was approaching you.

" _Ashton, what did you do_?!" you nearly shouted at him.

"It's fake," he said quickly, "We knew we couldn't get $500,000 before today, so the money is fake."

"Oh my God," you whispered, "He's gonna  _kill me_."

" _No, he's not_ ," Ashton said firmly, grabbing your hand and holding it tightly. As he flew down the street, he managed to make every single green light. "Listen to me, Y/N," he said, keeping his eyes on both the road and the rear view mirror, "The boys are at the police station right now and when we get there, I want you to run inside, okay? Don't wait for me. Luke will be inside waiting for you. Michael, Calum, and I are going to make sure Spencer doesn't get to you before the cops come out."

"Ashton..." you choked as Spencer kept getting closer and closer as you were approaching the police station.

"I'm not letting him hurt you again, Y/N," he said softly, kissing your hand. "I love you."

"I love you too, Ash," you said quietly. The second Ashton turned the corner, Ashton let go of you and you unbuckled your seat belt to get ready to get out.

The moment the car stopped, you threw the door open and ran. Calum jumped out from behind a bush and went to go help Ashton and you saw Michael still hiding around the corner of the building. You could see Luke standing with two officers and he looked like he was speaking quickly.

" _Luke_!" you squeaked, running through the door. You crashed into him, wrapping your arms around his waist. "He's got a knife," you said breathlessly, "Spencer's got a knife."

"I'm sorry?" one of the officers said, not sure if he heard you correctly.

"Spencer!" you cried, "He's got a knife and he followed me and Ashton here and he's outside and please don't let him hurt them!"

" _You son of a bitch_!" you heard Spencer yell as he got out of his car, holding his knife with a firm grip, " _I told you not to tell anyone_!"

You and Luke ran outside as Calum held Ashton back, knowing that although he could have taken Spencer down, he didn't want to risk him getting stabbed in the process. Luke quietly told you not to say anything so that Spencer didn't know you were there.

"If you  _ever_  touch her again," Ashton growled lowly, "I swear to God, I'll kill you."

Spencer lunged toward your boyfriend, but you watched Michael run up behind him, putting his arm around his neck. He grabbed his wrist with his other hand while keeping a firm hold on his neck and bent his arm backwards until the knife fell to the sidewalk. He kicked it away and wrestled Spencer to the ground as the two officers finally ran outside.

Luke kept you on the steps of the police station just in case Spencer was able to break free. The second the handcuffs were on him, Luke let go and you bolted to Ashton again. This time, Ashton met you with open arms as you wrapped your own around his neck tightly.

"I can't believe you would have paid $500,000 for me," you mumbled into his shoulder.

"I would have paid  _500,000,000_  if I had to," he said into your skin, "I love you so much, Y/N."

"I love you so much  _more_ , Ashton," you whispered. He moved back and put his hands on your cheeks, pulling your face to his and pressing your lips together.

Spencer was glaring at the two of you as he was being taken inside, but you didn't care. You were back in Ashton's arms and that was all that mattered.

~

_HUGE shout out to my friend sarah for the idea for this_


	153. Unpredictable (Calum Hood)

"Hey, Y/N," the boy who sat next to you in your 3rd period English class, Calum, whispered. You looked up from your paper. "Are you going to the talent show tonight?"

"I hadn't planned on it," you shrugged, "I have a lot of homework so far."

"Oh, okay," he said quietly, nodding his head and turning his attention back to his work.

"Why do you ask?" you asked, suddenly curious as to why the shyest kid in your grade would be asking you if you were going to the talent show.

"I was just wondering..." You watched him as he chewed on his inner cheek before shaking it off and getting back to your work before your teacher yelled at you for talking.

~

That night, you had finished your homework a lot earlier than you thought you would.

It was going on 6:30 and you had just finished dinner. You spaced out as you were staring at the clock and when you came back from your thoughts, your dad was laughing lightly.

"Do you have somewhere to be, Y/N?" he asked. You sat there for a moment in silence.

"Can I borrow the car?" you finally spoke.

"What for?"

"The talent show is tonight."

"I thought you weren't going," you heard your mom ask as she walked into the room after she was done washing dishes.

"I wasn't because I thought it would have taken me longer to do all my homework," you shrugged, "But one of my friends asked if I was going and seemed pretty disappointed when I said I probably wouldn't make it, so I just wanted to hang out with him tonight."

" _Him_?" your dad perked up, making you roll your eyes. He chuckled, "Well, it's fine with me if you go."

You looked at your mom and she nodded in agreement, "Just be back before 11."

You nodded, getting up and kissing your dad's cheek, kissing your mom's on the way out of the room. You quickly put on your shoes and jacket, heading back downstairs. You grabbed the keys off the kitchen counter and went to the front door.

"Love you!" you said as you walked out, hearing them say it back just before you closed the door behind you.

Once you got to the school, you bought your ticket and went into the auditorium, looking around for Calum. You couldn't find him anywhere, figuring he must not have gotten there yet.

~

As the night when on, you were actually surprised with how many people were performing. They were all really good at what they were doing.

There was a brief 10 minute intermission halfway through and you quickly got up to go to the bathroom.

After returning to your seat, you could have sworn you saw Calum peek around the curtain from backstage. You shrugged it off, checking to see if you had any missed texts and missing Calum peeking around the curtain again, making sure he was actually seeing you sitting there. You were the only one sitting in your row at the moment, so he obviously knew it was you. He had already been nervous enough  _before_ , but now that he knew you were there, he was starting to feel like he was going to throw up.

20 minutes later, the student who was hosting the show came on stage to introduce the final act.

"Alright," he said, "Our final act of the night is another singer. I know we've already had a lot of those, but this one is actually performing an original song and I think you all are really going to like it. Please give it up for senior Calum Hood!" You tilted your head as Calum made his way to center stage, carrying a stool and an acoustic guitar.

"Hi, guys," he said shyly into the microphone as he sat down with the guitar on his lap, "Um, I wrote this a few months ago about a girl I really like and...uh...yeah. I hope you like it."

_For a while we pretended_   
_That we never had to end it_   
_But we knew we'd have to say goodbye_

_You were crying at the airport_   
_When they finally closed the plane door_   
_I could barely hold it all inside_

_Torn in two_   
_And I know I shouldn't tell you_   
_But I just can't stop thinking of you_   
_Wherever you are_

_You, wherever you are_   
_Every night I almost call you_   
_Just to say it always will be you_   
_Wherever you are_

_I could fly a thousand oceans_   
_But there's nothing that compares to_   
_What we had and so I walk alone_

_I wish I didn't have to be gone_   
_Maybe you've already moved on_   
_But the truth is I don't want to know_

_Torn in two_   
_And I know I shouldn't tell you_   
_But I just can't stop thinking of you_   
_Wherever you are_

_You, wherever you are_   
_Every night I almost call you_   
_Just to say it always will be you_   
_Wherever you are_

_You can say we'll be together someday_   
_Nothing lasts forever_   
_Nothing stays the same_   
_So why can't I stop feeling this way?_

_Torn in two_   
_And I know I shouldn't tell you_   
_But I just can't stop thinking of you_   
_Wherever you are_

_You, wherever you are_   
_Every night I almost call you_   
_Just to say it always will be you_   
_Wherever you are_

After he finished playing, you were actually in awe, never knowing he could play guitar or even sing. He had glanced at you a few times during the song and your heart started racing at the thought that maybe he wrote it for you.

_But he couldn't have._

Yeah, you guys talked, but only in class. You liked to consider yourselves friends, but you didn't really do anything together outside of school. That wouldn't be enough to have a song written for you, would it?

Calum ended up coming in second place and when all was said and done, everyone began leaving the auditorium.

You were one of the last ones out – obviously being in the front of the room – and immediately started your search for Calum. You didn't have to look for too long, however, because as you were walking down the hallway, you saw Calum come out from the door leading backstage.

You froze in your spot, suddenly not knowing what to do. He still had his guitar, so he moved it to rest on his back as he walked over to you.

"I thought you weren't coming," he said quietly.

"I wasn't," you shrugged, looking down at your feet, "But I got my homework done early and figured since I had nothing else to do, I'd come see why you were asking me if I was gonna be here."

"So what did you think?" he asked nervously. There were a few classmates watching the two of you, obviously curious to see if you were the girl he wrote the song for.

"I liked it," you said, looking back up at him, "I didn't know you could sing. You're really good."

"Did you like the song?"

"Yeah," you nodded, "Whoever you wrote it for is a lucky girl."

He took a deep breath, "You know it's about you, right?"

You bit your lip, quickly looking down as you tried not to smile, but you knew you were failing miserably. He took a couple steps forward, putting only a few inches of space between the two of you.

"I've been meaning to tell you for a while," he said, putting his index and middle fingers under your chin and making you look at him, "But I really like you – I have since the moment you walked into my math class sophomore year – and I was hoping you would agree to go out with me sometime." You nodded slowly and his eyes widened slightly, " _Really_?" You couldn't help but giggle under your breath.

"Really," you whispered, standing up on your toes and pressing your lips to his.

~

_Song used: "Wherever You Are" by 5 Seconds of Summer_


	154. Miscommunications (Luke Hemmings)

When your best friend Calum had introduced you to his roommates, Luke, Michael, and Ashton, there was obvious chemistry between you and Luke. You two got along really well and after a few weeks of knowing each other, he asked you out. You, of course, eagerly accepted.

You had been on three dates before and tonight was your fourth one. You could really see the relationship getting more and more serious with every date you had.

The week leading up to your date, you had been on your period. It didn't worry you – you knew that it would be over by the time Friday came around – but you were worried about your cramps. You tended to get really bad cramps for a couple days both before and after your period, but you were determined not to cancel on Luke.

You were fine all day – you had the occasional cramp here and there but it wasn't anything you couldn't handle – but when you got to the restaurant, you just wanted to curl up on your bed and cry.

Nearing the end of the date, you could feel the beginnings of really bad cramps and you knew you had to get to the bathroom fast.

"I'm gonna go to the bathroom real quick, okay?" you said calmly.

He nodded and you let out a small sigh of relief that the distressed feeling you were having wasn't showing up on your face. You quickly got up and hurried to the bathroom.

As soon as the door closed behind you, the cramps hit you harder than they ever had before.

"Jesus Christ," you grumbled to yourself, holding your stomach in pain.

You fully walked into the room, seeing another girl standing in front of the mirror. She took one look at you, then went back to fixing her lipstick.

"Red raspberry leaf tea and a heating pad," she said, pressing her lips together.

"I'm sorry?" you said, wincing at another cramp. She put her lipstick back into her bag and turned to you.

"It's something my mom taught me," she smiled, "A cup of tea both after you wake up and before you go to bed and a heating pad. They aren't going to make your cramps stop completely, but they'll save you from making faces like that for the week." You couldn't help but laugh.

"Thank you," you told her.

"I hope it helps," she said over her shoulder as she walked out.

You made your way over to the counter and put your forearm down, bending over and resting your head down. The pain seemed to last forever and by the time it passed, you decided to just use the restroom since you were already there.

By the time you finished up and washed your hands, 15 minutes had passed. You felt terrible for making Luke wait, but this was only your fourth date with him and you didn't want to subject him to the hell that was experiencing your period cramps. You looked at yourself in the mirror and let out a quiet sigh, hoping the pain wouldn't interfere with the rest of the night.

You walked back out into the restaurant, tilting your head when you saw Luke was no longer at your table. Instead, there was your waitress, clearing out the dishes.

"Oh!" she exclaimed quietly when you walked up to her, "I thought you left with your blonde friend!"

"No..." you trailed off, your voice laced with confusion, "He left?"

"Yeah... He asked for the check about 5 minutes ago. He seemed pretty upset."

"Oh," you said under your breath, figuring the date didn't go as well as you thought it did, "Thank you."

You walked outside and then it hit you: You had no ride home now. You sighed quietly, pulling your phone out of your bag and calling your mom.

~

"What happened?" your mom asked as you got into her car, "He seemed really into you when he picked you up earlier."

"I don't know," you sighed, pulling the seat belt across your body, "I thought it was going really well; It was a lot less awkward than our first couple dates, but while I was in the bathroom, he just  _left_."

"Oh, I'm sorry, dear," she said sadly, "Do you want to stop for ice cream before we go home? My treat." You smiled slightly.

"Thanks, Mom."

~

The next morning, you woke up to the sun shining right in your eyes. You groaned, looking at the clock and seeing it was nearly 11. You took your phone off of the charger and unlocked it, seeing you had a message from Calum.

_The bathroom excuse??? Really??????_

You furrowed your eyebrows in confusion, typing up a response.

**_What?_ **

Although he sent the text after you had fallen asleep, he was quick to reply.

_That's like, the oldest excuse in the book, Y/N. If you weren't having a good time, you could have just told him. You didn't have to ditch him like that._

Okay, now you were  _really_  confused.

**_What are you talking about, Cal? I didn't ditch him, he ditched me._ **

You received the read receipt, but he wasn't typing anything back. Before you could put your phone down, Calum's ringtone started playing. You immediately answered the call.

"That's not what Luke told me," Calum said, not giving you the chance to say hello.

"You're seriously losing me, Cal," you said, "What did Luke tell you?"

"You told him you were going to the bathroom, but you didn't come back. He said he felt stupid, so he left after waiting for 10 minutes. I can't believe you did that to him. He really likes you."

"My cramps were the worst they'd ever been, Cal!" you squeaked, "You know how I am when that happens! The only reason I was in there for so long was because I would have felt embarrassed for him to see it! When I came back out, the waitress told me that he left! You can ask my mom; I had to call her to come get me!"

" _Oh, God_ ," Calum groaned. You could just see him with his face in his hand.

"Where is he?" you asked quickly, throwing the blanket off of you and jumping up.

"Still in bed," he told you, "He hasn't come out of his room since he got home last night."

"I'll be over in 10, okay?"

"See you then," he said.

You hung up, shimmying out of your pajama shorts and putting on your sweatpants. You slipped your Converse on and threw on a jacket, not even bothering to change your shirt. You darted out into the living room and found your mom sitting on the couch.

"Hey, Mom," you said, "Can I borrow the car?"

"Where are you going this early?" she asked, looking up from her book.

"Last night was just a huge misunderstanding and I need to go talk to Luke."

"Sure, honey," she nodded, "Drive safe." You ran into the kitchen to grab the keys and ran back out, heading out the door.

"Love you!" you called before closing the door behind you and hopping in the car, going to the boys' house.

You pulled into the driveway, happy to see Luke's car was still there. You didn't think he would have anywhere to be at 11am, but you would be lying if you said it didn't worry you. You rushed to the front door and knocked, waiting for someone to answer.

"Hey!" Calum said, hugging you as you walked in, "Luke is still in his room. It's unlocked, but he gets really annoyed when I try to go in."

"I'm sorry," you whispered guiltily.

"It's not your fault, Y/N," he said, pushing you toward the stairs. "Last door on the right," he told you. You thanked him before quickly going upstairs.

You stopped at Luke's door, bringing your fist up to knock, but freezing.

If Luke was as mad as Calum said he is, why would he want to see you? If he didn't want to talk to Calum, why would he talk to you? But you couldn't just  _not try_. You really liked Luke and even if he didn't want to continue a relationship with you, you had to make sure he knew that what happened was just a misunderstanding.

You finally gained enough courage to knock quietly. You didn't bother waiting for him to answer, knowing it would have been something along the lines of ' _go away_ '." You opened the door and saw Luke curled up under his blanket, facing away from the door.

"Luke," you said quietly, closing the door behind you. You saw him tense up at the sound of your voice.

"What do you want?" he said shakily, desperately trying to hide the fact that he had been crying, making you feel even worse.

"I think we need to talk," you climbed onto the bed and laid on your back a few inches from him, causing him to scoot away from you a bit.

"No, we don't. I don't want to hear you tell me you're not interested. I don't think I could handle it," he whispered, his voice breaking, but he turned so he was facing you anyway.

"Luke," you sighed, bringing your hand up to wipe his cheek, "I swear I didn't ditch you. I really was in the bathroom. When I came back out, the waitress said you left and I thought  _you_  were the one that ditched  _me_."

"But you were gone for so long..." he trailed off.

"Look, I was having really bad cramps last night and I just... I felt embarrassed about it, so I excused myself until they were gone. I really didn't expect them to last for as long as they did and I'm so sorry about that. I completely understand how you thought I ditched you, but I  _swear_  I would  _never_  do that to you, Luke."

He looked at you for a moment before scooting over to you and nuzzling his face in your shoulder. You let out a sigh of relief as you wrapped your arms around him, holding him closer.

"Oh my God," Luke mumbled, "I just left you there without a ride or anything."

You smiled slightly, "You thought I left, Luke. What were you gonna do, wait for someone you thought wasn't coming back?" He looked up at you and you kissed his nose, making him scrunch it up.

"Do you have cramps right now?" he asked quietly as he played with the hem of your shirt.

"Kind of," you admitted shyly. "What are you doing?" you asked as he pulled your shirt up slightly and placed his hand gently on your stomach, almost instantly relieving the pain.

"I've had girlfriends before, you know," he said, rubbing your stomach slightly, "They always used heating pads, but one day, I decided to see if this helped and they said it worked way better."

"It does," you muttered under your breath, putting your hand on top of his and making him smile, "I don't know why anyone would let you go, Luke." He smiled again, tilting his head up to look at you.

"I'm glad they did though," he whispered, "If they hadn't, I wouldn't be here right now with you." 

You felt a smile pull at the corners of your mouth as he took a chance and leaned up, pressing his lips to yours. Before you could kiss back, Luke's bedroom door opened.

"So are you guys-" Calum cut himself off, exclaiming, "Whoa! Alright! I should have knocked! Oh my God! I'm sorry!"

" _Cal_ ," Luke groaned, " _Just get out_."

"Don't mind if I do," he stated, quickly closing the door. You laughed and Luke put his head back on your shoulder.

"Sorry," he sighed, blushing slightly.

"Luke," you said, making him look back up at you. "Don't worry about it," you mumbled with a grin, pulling his face back to yours and kissing him again.


	155. Heartbreak Girl (Cody Carson)

"Hey, guys," Marshall said, walking up to his best friends, "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

"What's up?" Austin asked, messing around with a few chords on his bass. Marshall took a deep breath, honestly a bit nervous as to how they would react.

"I think it's time I quit doing merch," he said. The boys' jaws dropped slightly.

"You're leaving?" Cody muttered.

"I've been thinking about this for a while and I just want to start focusing on my career as a singer and not as a guy who sells band merch."

"That's great, man!" Dan exclaimed, "We definitely support you wanting to make your own name for yourself!"

Marshall let out a sigh of relief, "I'm so glad you guys understand."

"Who are we supposed to get to run merch now?!" Cody's eyes widened.

"I'm not leaving until the end of this tour, but I already know someone who's agreed to take the job," Marshall spoke up.

"Does he know how to run merch?" Cody asked, almost desperately.

He chuckled, "She knows exactly what she's doing."

"Who?"

"You'll see when she gets here." Cody sighed, making Marshall chuckle. "Hey, man," he said, putting his hands on his best friend's shoulders, "I taught her everything she knows. You guys will be fine. I wouldn't just drop out on you without making sure you were in good hands."

"Okay," Cody nodded before looking back at the other guys, "Let's start soundcheck."

~

" _Marshall_!" you sang, trotting into the venue.

" _Y/N_!" he cheered, running to you. He wrapped his arms around your waist and picked you up as you hugged him, making you miss the blank stare you were getting from Cody.

" _Y/N_!" you heard the other guys yell as they ran over to you. You smiled, hugging them. You looked at Cody, crossing your arms and doing everything you could not to smile but you knew you were failing miserably.

"At least  _5 out of 6_  are happy to see me," you sighed. He smiled shyly, finally walking over to you. You both wrapped your arms around each other. "Much better," you giggled.

"So you're Marshall's replacement?" he asked quietly as he let go.

"Well, I'm already a walking advertisement for you guys," you shrugged, "I might as well get paid for it."

"I think you're just in it for the free merch," Dan nudged you.

"True," you nodded in agreement, "But there was no way I was gonna pass up the opportunity to spend an entire summer with my five favorite boys." You smiled cheesily, making them roll their eyes.

While you were distracted by the other guys, Cody pulled Marshall off to the side.

"Why didn't you tell me it was  _her_?!" he exclaimed quietly.

"Are you gonna tell her she can't do it?"

"You know I can't say no to her..."

"And that's exactly why I asked her to replace me," Marshall smiled.

"You're such a dick," Cody mumbled.

"You'll thank me later," he smirked, pushing the singer back toward you.

~

**Three months later**

You had spent that first week hanging around with Marshall and letting fans get to know you before he flew back home, leaving you on your own. You were pretty confident in taking over, knowing that if you ever had any problems, the band would be there to help you.

But now, it was time for Warped Tour. You'd never been to Warped, so you were pretty excited to be able to spend your entire summer hanging out with your friends and listening to good music.

"I call first dibs on a bunk!" you shouted as you ran onto the bus. You practically threw your bag into the bunk of your choice and pointed to it as the guys climbed up the steps. "Mine," you said. 

"Maybe I wanted that one!" Maxx pouted jokingly.

"Shouldn't have been so slow, Danziger," you stuck your tongue out at him, "You can have the one across from me. When you wake up from a nightmare, I'll hold your hand."

" _My hero_ ," he sighed dramatically, laughing as he tossed his bag into the bunk. Dan took the bunk under yours, Austin took the one under Maxx, Zach was right right beside Austin, and Cody was right beside you.

"We ready to go, boys?" Thomas, your bus driver, asked as he climbed on. He looked at you. "Oh, and lady. My apologizes." You giggled quietly as you and the boys nodded. "Alright! We should be there in a couple hours!" he announced before going to the drivers seat.

You watched TV with the boys for a while before you got bored and went to the back lounge to play on the Xbox. You were playing  _Grand Theft Auto V_ , but to be honest, you weren't really paying attention.

Ever since you were little, you had a habit of getting terribly homesick. You ended up never really being able to spend the night at friends' houses because of it. Despite the fact that you were excited to go on tour, it was finally hitting you that you would be away from home for nearly two months.

" _Y/N_ ," Cody sang, poking your arm. You jumped slightly, not realizing anyone had come into the lounge. "Are you okay?"

You sighed, "The tour hasn't even started and I'm already homesick. I'm never gonna make it to the end of this thing."

You felt him watch you for a moment before he took the controller out of your hands and paused the game. He put his arms around your shoulders and pulled you into him, making you shift in your seat so you could lay against him comfortably.

"I used to get homesick a lot when we first started out too," he told you, "But these guys have become like my family and that really does make it easier. It's okay to have days where you feel like this, but we want you to remember that we're gonna be here whenever you need us and we're gonna take care of you all summer." You smiled against his chest, scooting closer to him.

"Thanks, Cody," you mumbled into his shirt. He squeezed you lightly and you two stayed like that until he spoke again.

"So you're into  _GTA_?" he said, a small grin pulling at the corner of his mouth.

"I wouldn't say that," you laughed, sitting back up, "I've been trying to teach myself how to play for the longest time, but I just can't get the hang of it."

"How about I help you out?" he suggested, getting up to grab another controller off of the shelf beside the TV. He sat back down beside you and showed you all the controls, going over them again and again until you felt like you were ready to get back in the game.

As you were playing, you were leaning on Cody's arm. You were staring at the TV and didn't notice that he had a light pink tint to his cheeks.

~

"Guys!" Dan called from the front of the bus about an hour later, "We're here!"

You suddenly squealed, throwing your controller down on the couch and sprinting out of the lounge, excited to meet all the other bands on the tour. Cody simply laughed as he turned everything off, heading out behind you.

The day before Warped actually started, all the bands gathered at the Pomona Fairplex in Pomona, California. The parking lot was buzzing with excitement and nerves as everyone spent time meeting and hanging out.

Kevin Lyman, the creator of Warped Tour, stood up on one of the picnic tables to talk to everyone.

"First off, I want to welcome all of you to the 2015 Vans Warped Tour!" he smiled and everyone clapped happily. "I'm very excited to be spending another summer with amazing bands like you guys and I hope you are too." He went on about rules and safety and things of that nature before letting everyone go back to socializing.

"Hey, guys!" a brown-haired guy walked over, "How have you been? I've missed being part of your on-tour shenanigans!" They all laughed and greeted him.

"We've been great!" Cody smiled, "It's nice to finally be back on the road again." The guy glanced at you, then back at the boys. "Oh! This is Y/N. She's running merch for us this summer. Y/N, this is Jesse, the merch guy for Our Last Night." You smiled at him and shook his hand.

"Right, I heard Marshall left," Jesse nodded, "I'm glad to see you guys found someone equally as cute for this tour." You felt your cheeks get hot, making him grin, "It was nice meeting you, Y/N. I hope to see you around." He looked at you up and down before turning and walking away. You let out a breath, turning back to face the guys.

"What was that about?" Maxx smirked.

"Hmm?" you squeaked, raising your eyebrows, "Oh, nothing. It was nothing."

"That blush of yours says otherwise," Austin winked.

"Don't even pretend like you don't do the same thing when people compliment you," you stuck your tongue out at him, "I can't help that I'm cute." It was starting to get dark out, so you decided to leave. "I'm gonna head back to the bus, okay?" you told the guys, "I'll see you later." You began walking away, completely having missed the way Cody was looking at you.

~

The next day, you woke up at around 9:30. Being in charge of merch meant that you had to set up and take down the display every single day, and you wanted to make sure you gave yourself plenty of time to get it done. You quietly climbed out of your bunk and went to the back lounge. You all kept your bags there, so it acted as a little changing room.

After putting your clothes on, you went to brush your teeth and hair. When you finished, you went out front and found Cody sitting on the couch watching TV.

"You're up already?" you whispered so you didn't wake the other boys. He looked over at you.

"I woke up a while ago, but I couldn't get back to sleep, so I just decided to come out here," he answered, "What are you doing?"

"I'm off to set up the merch tent," you said, "I want to make sure everything looks perfect before everyone gets here and I figured since it always took Marshall and I a while to do it together, I would get started really early since he's not here anymore."

"Oh, well, I'll come help you," he said, turning off the TV and getting up, "Anything is better than being cooped up on the bus all morning." You smiled as he went to go get dressed. You went out to the trailer to dig out the boxes of merch when you were interrupted.

"Hey, Y/N," Jesse smiled, walking over to you, "What are you up to?"

"Merch duties," you told him, picking up one of the lighter boxes and setting it down on the asphalt beside the back wheel, "Unfortunately, this merch isn't going to get set itself up."

He laughed, "Do you need a hand? Trevor and I just set up our merch, but I'd be happy to help you out too."

"Cody's gonna help me, but if you want to help me take it all out of here, go for it," you giggled quietly. He smiled, following you into the trailer.

You pointed out the boxes you needed and he helped you take it all out. There weren't that many, but they were filled with shirts making them pretty heavy, so you were thankful for having the help. While you were bringing the last box out, Cody peeked around the corner.

"Oh," he said quietly as you set the box down, "Hey, Jesse."

"Hey, Cody!" Jesse replied cheerfully. You went back into the trailer to get the hand truck you had brought along with you. "Wow," he laughed, "You came prepared, didn't you? I can't believe I didn't think of that!"

"Well, if you ever want to borrow it, you know where to find me," you smiled, nudging his arm as you passed him. Cody helped you push the stack of boxes onto the cart and you began pulling it to the tent. The boys insisted that one of them pull it, but you refused. "I've got this, guys," you said as you came up to the tent, "Don't worry." Luckily, there was a crew who took put up and took down the tents every day, so you didn't have to worry about that. There was already a wire backdrop behind the table, so all you guys had to do was put all the merch out.

You put the box with the accessories and CDs on the table along with the smaller box filled with your supplies while Cody got started hanging up the clothing. He had obviously memorized how Marshall always set up, so he did it the way he was so used to seeing while you focused on the table. Jesse was standing next to you, watching you take out the paper Marshall had given you with all the prices and small discounts and such.

You differed from the way Marshall did things in the sense that you had prepared small cardboard squares to write prices on and stick up beside the shirts. Jesse watched you with a tilted head as you took out some velcro strips and started putting one side on the back of the cardboard. You were putting the other side of the velcro on the wire when Jesse finally spoke.

"So what are you doing with that?" he asked.

"The velcro?" you wondered, looking over your shoulder at him. He nodded and you turned back to continue your job. "Well, I figured since I'm gonna be doing this all summer, I don't want to have to waste a bunch of tape taping the prices up and I thought this way would be easier."

"Huh," he nodded, "All I did was tape pieces of paper to the bottom of our shirts."

You couldn't help but laugh, "You've gotta start thinking outside the box, Jesse. Keep the merch life exciting." Cody narrowed his eyes as Jesse looked at you with a small smile on his face. "I have some extra cardboard and stuff if want to do this with your setup too."

"Do we have time?" You took your phone out of your pocket and checked. It was 10:30, but you all you had to do was set up the accessories and albums.

"We should," you nodded.

"Would you want to come help me?"

"Sure!" you grinned, organizing everything on the table. You looked up as Cody sighed and started walking back toward the bus.

"What's up with him?" Jesse asked.

"Don't know," you shrugged. "I better go check on him though. Hold down the fort while I'm gone!" you called over your shoulder, sprinting after him. "Cody!" you squeaked, running in front of him and spinning around, making him stop before he ran into you. "What's up?" you asked, a little out of breath.

"Nothing," he said monotonously, "I just figured you had everything under control so I thought I'd go rest before our signing."

"Just because I have everything under control doesn't mean I don't like your company, Cody," you told him.

"You don't need me," he mumbled, "You have Jesse."

"What does that mean? I'll always need you."

"Nothing," he repeated, shaking his head as he walked past you, "I have to go get ready for the signing."

"The signing isn't for another two hours!" you called after him. You simply sighed, going back to the tent.

"Everything okay?" Jesse asked you.

"Yeah," you put on a fake smile, "We should get this done before they start letting people in." He nodded in agreement, picking the box of supplies up off the table and leading you across the parking lot.

~

**Two hours later**

"Am I allowed to just wait here before the signing?" a girl asked you as you handed her the shirt she had purchased.

"If you feel up for it," you chuckled lightly, "Do you need a water? It's pretty hot and I don't want you to pass out while you wait."

"No, thank you," she smiled, "I brought my own. So how are you liking selling merch so far?"

"It's really fun! Of course, I'll never be half the merch seller Marshall was, but I'm doing my best," you joked.

A few minutes later, you felt hands on your shoulders. You looked behind you and saw Maxx smiling at you as the other guys came into the tent.

"Well, look who's here! Nice of you boys to  _finally_  join us!" you exclaimed dramatically, making the people in the front of the line laugh.

"It takes time to look this good, Y/N," Zach said, nudging your arm as he stood beside you. You rolled your eyes and laughed. You shook Maxx's hands off of you and stood up on your chair.

"Alright, guys!" you projected your voice so everyone in line could hear you over the business around them, "The band play their set in an hour and a half so you guys can have as much time with them as possible! But please be respectful of those behind you and try not to stay for more than 5 minutes! Equally, also be respectful of those in front of you! If they want to tell the boys a story or if they're taking a while to decide what merch they want to buy, do not rush them! If you need a bottle of water, please do not wait until you're closer to the front of the line! I know it's hot and I'm still trying to maintain my perfect record for never having seen anyone pass out before!" The fans laughed, making you smile. "One more thing before we get started: We're going to be having a deal going on all summer where if you tell Austin a joke and he laughs so hard, he starts crying, you get a free shirt of your choice!"

A few people cheered and Austin shouted, " _What_?! You know crying isn't a good look for me, Y/N!"

"Exactly," you smirked, going back to your spot behind the table and getting the signing started.

You noticed Cody was at the other end of the table, as far away from you as he could be. You thought it was a little weird, honestly – he always stood beside you when you were helping Marshall – but you just shook it off. The other guys obviously noticed the fact that you and Cody hadn't looked at each other once and they were just as concerned.

When the signing was over, the band went to get ready for their set. You talked with the people in the tents around yours as well as the occasional fan who would stop by for merch, but other than that, you remained quiet.

As the first day came to a close, you began packing up the merch.

"Hey, Y/N!" you heard someone say cheerfully behind you.

"Hi, Jesse," you smiled, not needed to turn around to know who it was.

"How was your first day?"

"Best first day of Warped Tour I've ever been to," you smirked lightly.

"So, you know how we have Monday off?" You nodded, pressing him to continue. "Well, I was wondering...if you didn't already have plans...if you would want to-"

"Hey, Y/N," Cody said quickly, stumbling into the tent, making you jump.

"Jesus Christ!" you squeaked, "Are you  _drunk_?"

"No," he mumbled, "I tripped."

"What do you need?"

Cody froze for a moment, obviously not having needed anything. You let out a frustrated sigh. You knew Jesse was about to ask you out and you were beyond annoyed that Cody had interrupted.

"I came to see if you wanted any help," he rushed, finally coming up with an excuse.

"I'm fine, Cody," you said through clenched teeth although you were trying to keep a smile on your face.

"Oh... Um... I'll be on the bus if you change your mind then..." he trailed off, sulking back the way he came.

"I'm really sorry about that," you sighed, looking at Jesse, "I don't know what's gotten into him the past couple days. What were you saying?"

"Hmm? Oh, nothing," Jesse shook his head, "I better go pack up my own merch. I'll see you tomorrow?" You smiled slightly and nodded before he walked away.

You growled to yourself quietly as you finished packing up the last box and put it on your hand truck. You pulled the cart to the trailer and loaded everything in. When you were finally done, you took a moment to catch your breath and drink the rest of your water before locking up the trailer and getting on the bus.

" _Cody Charles Carson_!" you shouted, slamming the bus door behind you. All the boys were sitting on the couch watching TV. Their eyes widened as they looked at you.

"Uh, we're gonna go see if there's any food left," Maxx said quickly, jumping up and ushering Zach, Dan, and Austin past you. "Do you guys want anything?" he asked as he stood at the door. You turned and shot him a glare and he smiled nervously, "We'll be back in a few."

"Full name, huh?" Cody asked quietly.

"What the hell is your problem today?!"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Like hell you don't! You  _knew_  Jesse was about to ask me out!"

"No, I didn't."

"That's bullshit and you know it, Cody! You've been acting weird around me ever since the kick-off party and I'm sick of it! If you didn't want me to hang out with him, why did you introduce us?!"

"I didn't think he'd move so fast!" he exclaimed, getting up.

"What are you-"

"Don't worry about it," he grumbled, "Just go hang out with your new boyfriend or something." You stared at him for a moment before heading back to the door.

"Maybe I will," you stated, getting off the bus and slamming the door for a second time.

~

**Three weeks later**

Ever since your fight with Cody, you hadn't talked to him much. Jesse still hadn't tried asking you out again, but he was hanging out with you as often as he could. You two typically spent days off together roaming around whatever city you were in that day, taking random photos of the sites and each other.

One day, you were running merch – as always – when Jesse came over to the table. He greeted you with a smile as he walked around the table to be beside you. He wrapped his arms around your waist, giving you a hug as you were giving change to a fan.

"Get off me!" you giggled, hitting his arm lightly, "I'm working! Much like you should be."

"The band is on stage right now, so I had someone else take over for a bit," he grinned, letting go of you. You tended to the two other fans that were waiting to buy shirts, then turned around once they left.

"What brings you over to my neck of the woods then?"

"Get someone to cover for you," he said, "I'm starving." You smiled, looking behind him.

"Maxx!" you squeaked as you saw him walk by. He looked over at you and you motioned for him to come to the tent. "Can you cover for me for a while?"

"What for?" he asked, taking a drink of water.

"We're gonna go get lunch real quick," you replied, nodding to Jesse. He paused for a moment before nodding and letting you get some food.

"So," Jesse said as you two sat down at an empty table to eat, "You ever figure out why Cody's been acting all weird?"

"No," you shrugged, "We don't really see much of each other now."

"But you're on the same bus?" he wondered, "Plus, there are signings."

You nodded, "Well, I guess I should say we don't really  _speak_ to each other then."

"Why not?" You shrugged again. "Is it because you found out he likes you?"

You instinctively started laughing, "Cody doesn't like me." Jesse raised his eyebrow at you. "He doesn't!"

"Listen," he sighed, "The day after that whole thing with him happened, I was walking by your tent while Cody and Maxx were covering for you during lunch and I heard them talking about you. Maxx said something along the lines of ' _why don't you just tell her you like her?_ ' and Cody was like ' _she likes Jesse, there's no point in telling her now_ '." You stared at your plate for a moment.

"Cody likes me?" you whispered. Jesse chuckled, shaking his head.

"I could have told you that the moment he introduced us," he said. "That's why I haven't asked you out – well,  _tried to_. The only reason I almost did yesterday was because I thought you had told him you didn't like him, but then I heard them talking. Cody's one of my good friends and it would be pretty dick-ish of me to move in like that. Plus, judging by the look on your face right now, it's pretty obvious you didn't know."

"Is it that obvious to everyone besides me?" you whined.

He laughed loudly, "I'm starting to think so. But hey, I hope everything works out." He pushed your shoulder playfully as you both got up. "I'm sure it will though."

"How do you know?" you asked, tossing your plate in the trash can.

"The way he looks at you," he smiled, "I'm sure he's beating himself up over your fight, but he's just too stubborn to be the first to say anything – kinda like you."

"I am  _not_  stubborn!" you squeaked. You paused for a moment. "Okay, maybe a  _little_..." Jesse rolled his eyes, laughing again.

"I'll see you later, okay?" he said, making the turn to go back to his tent, "Bye, Y/N!"

You waved slightly even though he wasn't looking anymore, walking quickly to your own tent. Luckily, there was no one there at the moment, giving you the perfect opportunity to talk to Maxx alone.

"How long has Cody liked me?" you asked, slamming your hands on the table and making Maxx jump as he looked up from his phone.

"I... Uh... What...?" he stuttered.

"I know you heard me, Maxx."

"Where did you hear that...?" he trailed off.

" _How long_?!" you exclaimed.

"Since Marshall brought you along with him on his first day with us two years ago," he muttered.

"Why didn't anyone  _tell me_?"

"We thought he would and we didn't want to make him mad by telling you anyway."

"Do you even  _know_  how much heartbreak I could have been saved if someone had just spoken up  _sooner_?!"

"Wait, you like him too?" He seemed shocked. You rolled your eyes.

" _Of course_  I like him, Maxx!" you sighed, "Why else do you think I  _agreed_  to replace Marshall? Yeah, I wanted to spend more time with you guys, but I just wanted an excuse to hang out with Cody for two months. Except now, he hates me and I'm starting to feel like I should have just stayed home..."

Maxx was about to say something when the boys arrived for their signing. You made your way to your usual spot in front of the lock box, sighing quietly again as Cody made sure to stand at the other end of the table.

As the fans started lining up about 10 minutes later, you made your usual speech, putting on your best fake smile. You saw out of the corner of your eye that Cody was tilting his head at you, obviously seeing right through it.

You didn't see any of the boys until later that night while you were packing up. After their signing, they'd gone to go see a few bands play and then played their own set, but they never came back to the tent after that. Maxx, Dan, Zach, and Austin did eventually turn up again to help you pack up the merch, but you hadn't seen Cody anywhere.

The boys could tell you were a little off as you were putting the things on the table into your box a little slower than usual, but they decided against asking you about it. Of course, they were concerned about you, but they knew how you dealt with things and you preferred to do it alone.

"Y/N," Maxx finally spoke. You mindlessly looked up at him. "Why don't you go to bed early tonight? We can take care of the rest of this." You didn't even bother protesting, knowing none of them would have had it.

You trudged to the bus and climbed on, beyond ready to curl up in your bunk and call it a night. But you didn't get that far.

You froze momentarily when you saw Cody sitting on the couch in silence, playing with his phone. But you knew he heard the door open, so there was no going back now.

You climbed up the steps and started walking past him, praying he wouldn't say anything to you. 

"So," you heard his voice, "I heard you and Jesse had lunch together this afternoon."

 _Great_.

"Mhmm," you hummed quietly, still walking to your bunk. To your dismay, Cody got up and followed you. He stopped at the end of the small hallway, staring you down.

"You guys look really cute together." His statement was laced with sarcasm.

"We're not together, Cody," you said quietly, grabbing your phone charger and plugging in your phone.

"I'm sorry?"

"I said Jesse and I aren't together, Cody," you repeated a bit more loudly as you looked over at him, "And even if we  _were_ , you don't have a say in who I date."

"I'm just looking out for you," he shrugged, "You know, like I said I would?"

"Looking out for  _me_  or looking out for  _you_?!" you exclaimed, unable to hide how shaky your voice was anymore, "You can't tell me you have my best interest in mind when you're acting like a total  _dick_! If you don't want me to date someone, that's too bad because it's  _my_  choice –  _not_ _yours_."

"I know how people in this business are, Y/N. They don't stop until they get what they want and then they throw it all away when they get bored with it. I don't want you to get hurt."

"Well, you know what, Cody?" you laughed bitterly, already feeling the tears starting to well up, "The only person that's seemed to be hurting me lately is  _you_ , so congratulations: I won't be letting myself get hurt anymore." You quickly went into the back lounge, closing the door and locking yourself inside.

"Y/N," Cody said, not even giving you time to sit down. You simply laid your head on the door as he repeated your name. "Y/N... Come on, Y/N – let me in. I'm sorry, okay? You were right; I wasn't looking out for you, I was making sure no one got close to you because I was jealous and that was wrong of me to do. I understand if you hate me and never want to speak to me again, but please...  _Please_  just say you forgive me."

"Why would you do that to me?" you sniffled, making his heart drop, "I thought you were my friend."

"That's the  _problem_ , Y/N," he said quietly, "I don't want to be your friend; I want  _more_. I wanna be the one who wakes you up every day by kissing your face until you open your eyes. I wanna be the one you're falling asleep next to. I wanna be the first one you're running to after the band is done playing a show. I wanna be the only one who gets to hold your hand and kiss you and show you off to the world. And I know that everything I've done the past month has completely ruined any chances I may have had at that, but I need you to know that no matter what happens when you leave that room, I am always going to love you." You immediately opened the door, pushing yourself against him as you wrapped your arms around his neck, making him stumble back a few steps.

"That's all I wanted to hear, Cody," you mumbled into his shoulder. He wrapped his own arms around your waist and hugged you tightly.

"So you forgive me?" he asked, his lips brushing against your skin.

"I forgive you," you nodded. He moved back, taking your cheeks in his hands and wiping your face.

"I really do love you, Y/N," he told you.

"I love you too, Cody," you whispered, leaning forward and pressing your lips to his.

 


	156. Wait For Me (Michael Clifford)

Michael never really cared for tradition – he was more of a make-things-up-as-he-went-along kind of person – but being in the royal family, he didn't have much of a choice. Michael wasn't too well liked within the kingdom walls – he always had his head in the clouds and he absolutely hated having responsibilities – but what could the townspeople do? It wasn't as though they were able to elect a new heir to the throne now that their King had passed. So they just did what they had done for the last 21 years; They dealt with him.

In Michael's kingdom, once the prince comes of age, the palace throws a birthday party where he must dance with all the eligible princesses from across the continent. Otherwise, he marries the princess his parents chose for him shortly after his birth once she comes of age as well.

He wasn't too keen on the idea of an arranged marriage by any means, but he was much more willing to do that rather than spend time with multiple girls, knowing very well that none of them would be  _the one_. He wasn't even so sure that the  _Princess_  was the one when he met her.

Princess Vivian was a gorgeous girl with dark blonde hair and a smile that lit up every room she walked into. Michael had instantly fallen in love with her appearance, but her personality was what had him feeling iffy. She certainly wasn't the  _nicest_  person he'd ever met, but he somehow justified it with the fact that she wasn't the  _meanest_  either.

At his 21st birthday party, Michael was instructed to dance with all the single girls and see if he could find a bride. He had danced with more women than he could count on both his fingers and toes, but palace officials refused to let him have a break. There were surprisingly a lot of single princesses at the party and Michael whined quietly to himself at the thought of this taking all night.

But all that changed the moment he saw you.

You were wearing a pale purple dress that just barely touched the floor, your silver heels only visible when you began kicking your leg lightly out of boredom. Your hair was in loose curls – falling just past your collarbones – and you had a silver band on top of your head with a few pieces of hair in front of your ears to frame your face.

You were standing with another young lady at the refreshment table and were so immersed in your conversation that you didn't even notice the Prince was staring at you as he danced with yet another girl. Michael couldn't help but smile every time you laughed because – although he couldn't hear it over the music and due to how far away you were from him – he knew it sounded as beautiful as you looked.

As his dance with one princess ended, another one began immediately afterward. He managed to slyly waltz toward where you were standing, the current princess in his arms not even realizing what he was doing until he let go of her. He actually had to force her to let go of him, but once she finally did, he made his way to you.

"Excuse me," Michael bowed, "Would you care to dance?"

Your eyes widened as you stared at the hand being held out for you to take. You glanced at your friend and she quickly nudged you toward him, grabbing your elbow and placing your hand in his. Michael put his other hand on the middle of your back and you instinctively put yours on his shoulder, letting him lead you around the dance floor.

"I don't recall ever seeing you around before," Michael said with a questioning tone, "Are you from another town?"

"I live in the next town over, but I do come here a lot to visit my friend. That doesn't surprise me though," you replied, "I like to keep a low profile."

"Now how is it possible for someone like you to keep a low profile?"

" _Someone like me_?" you wondered.

"Oh, no," he chuckled, "I don't mean it in a bad way; I just mean if I left the castle more often, I feel as though I would have noticed someone as beautiful as yourself walking around my kingdom." You felt yourself blush lightly, making him smile. "Tell me," Michael said, "Are you seeing anybody?"

"I apologize, Your Highness, but I think that wherever that question is leading would be rather inappropriate."

"How so?" he tilted his head.

"Well, I'm not a-" You were cut off by someone tapping on your shoulder. You looked over and saw the Princess from your kingdom with an annoyed expression.

"I do believe you've danced with the Prince for long enough, Y/N," she said snobbishly.

"Y/N," you heard Michael say under his breath, making you look at him. He smiled sheepishly at realizing he had said it out loud.

"It was nice dancing with you, Prince Michael," you smiled as you let go of him, "But I'd best be leaving now."

"Will I get to see you again?" he asked, but you were already hurrying away and he was being pulled in the opposite direction by Princess Aliyah. He watched as you and your friend walked out into the garden, desperately wanting to chase after you, but unable to rid himself of the Princess' grip.

~

"Did you  _see_  the way he danced with you?!" your best friend Olivia squealed as you descended the castle steps.

"It would never work out between us, Liv," you sighed, "He's a prince and I'm just me. I don't even think he  _knows_  I'm not a princess. I tried to tell him, but then Princess Aliyah interrupted and whisked him away."

"But he's so  _obviously_  into you! He couldn't take his eyes off of you the  _entire time_!"

"Maybe so, but I think it's just better if tonight stays a memory. Besides, there's no way I would be able to marry someone like Prince Michael with my status. I can barely afford to  _feed myself_  every day."

Olivia threw her arm around your shoulder, "Well then, I don't know about you, but I'm ready to go back to my place and binge watch  _FRIENDS_  while stuffing ice cream down my throat until my brain freezes over."

"You got that right," you giggled as the two of you left the castle and walked the short distance back to her house.

~

A few weeks after the party, you had gone to the neighboring kingdom to hang out with Olivia. Afterwards, you didn't want to go home just yet, so you had walked around for a while before stopping to rest at the fountain in the middle of the town square. You were sitting on the edge of the fountain reading a book you had just bought when you started hearing a bit of business – a lot more business than usual. You looked up and saw everyone looking in the same direction and whispering to each other.

Curiosity got the best of you and as you looked over to see what all the fuss was about, you saw the gates to the castle were open and Prince Michael was sitting on his horse, following two guards. You were a bit surprised – from what Olivia told you, the prince rarely ever left the castle. 

You simply shrugged though, much more interested in the book on your lap than the boy leaving the castle. However, with all the commotion going on around you, you couldn't focus on the story.

You sighed quietly, mentally bookmarking your place and closing the book. You stood up, ready to go home, but you were stopped by Michael's voice.

"Y/N?" he said lowly, almost as if he felt like he was imagining seeing you in front of him. You looked up and realized he was about 5 feet away from you.

"Oh, uh, Your Highness," you curtsied politely.

"I finally found you." A smile started pulling at the corner of his mouth.

"You've been looking for me?" you asked, furrowing your eyebrows.

By this time, everyone was staring at you, beginning to whisper amongst each other again as Michael hopped off of his horse, readjusting the crown on his head.

"Gentlemen," he said in the direction of the guards, but never turning away from you, "I think I'll be fine on my own."

"But, Your Highness," one of them said, "The Queen said-"

"I know what my mum said, but I promise, I'll be fine. Tell her I'll be back before dark. Oh, and take my horse as well."

"Yes, sir," the other guard said as he took the reigns, going back toward the castle. Michael smiled at you.

"Would you care to join me for a stroll around town?" he asked.

You looked at him for a moment before nodding slowly. He smiled again, widely this time, sticking his elbow out to you. You linked your arm with his and he began walking away from the crowd of people that had gathered around the two of you.

"Do people stare at you like this all the time?" you whispered, noticing everyone would turn to look at you and Michael as you passed by.

"To be fair," he said, "I believe they're staring at the beautiful girl beside me." You blushed again, but laughed lightly.

"I definitely don't think that's it, Your Highness."

"Hey," he said quietly, "Call me Michael. And why wouldn't they? I'm sure the people in your town look at you as you walk by all the time."

"I told you: low profile."

"But it must be hard for a Princess to go out in her kingdom without someone noticing."

"It  _would_ , but I'm not-"

"Good afternoon, Y/N!" you were interrupted by the owner of the local bakery trotting out of his shop to see you. He saw Michael and immediately bowed, "Good afternoon to you as well, Your Highness."

"Hello," Michael greeted him politely.

"Good afternoon, Benjamin," you grinned, "Got anything new today?"

"As a matter of fact, I  _do_ ," he smiled, "Would you like to come in and try it for me?"

You squealed quietly, removing your arm from Michael's and quickly going into the shop. Michael simply chuckled and followed you.

"It smells amazing in here – as always," you said, sitting at the table in the middle of the room.

"Thank you," Benjamin laughed as Michael took a seat next to you, "I've got this new recipe I'm working on and I was hoping you would be okay with taste-testing it for me."

"Like I would ever turn down your baking," you giggled, making Michael smile.

Benjamin took a pan out of the brick oven and set it on the table in front of you. He let it cool for a couple minutes before cutting two small pieces off for both you and Michael.

"I don't know why you ever need me to taste things for you, Ben," you sighed, swallowing the bread, "It  _always_  tastes delicious."

"This is amazing," you heard Michael mumble.

"I'm so happy you like it," he told you, "I was afraid of trying it out today because I had to use up the last of my blueberries for it."

"There are blueberries in this?" Michael asked.

"You're not allergic, are you?" his eyes widened.

"No!" he said quickly, "I've just never been a big fan of them, but this is really good!" Benjamin sighed in relief.

"The Prince likes my baking," he muttered, more to himself than to you or Michael. You laughed quietly.

"You'll have to let me know when you start selling this, Ben," you said, getting up from your seat, "I'll definitely stop by to buy a couple loaves. Hey, I've gotta run, okay? Meredith said my dress should be ready today and she wants me to come try it on. I'll see you next time I'm in town, Ben!"

"Oh, Y/N!" he exclaimed, "Do take this one with you then!" Before you could protest, he was already wrapping up the bread. "And make sure you stop by Olivia's house and let her try it as well."

"Thank you," you smiled, taking the loaf and walking to the door. You turned to see Michael still sitting in his seat, watching you. "You coming or what?" you giggled lightly. He quickly hopped up and followed you down the brick road to the seamstress' shop. "Meredith!" you called as you walked inside.

"Y/N!" you heard her say happily, but you didn't see her. She came rushing out of the back room, freezing when she saw Michael following close behind you. She quickly snapped out of it and curtsied politely, her words coming out a jumbled mess, "Oh, my goodness. Hello, Your Highness." He smiled and greeted her as well.

"Is my dress ready?" you asked excitedly, trying to distract Meredith.

"Yes!" she beamed, "Come back here! I need you to try it on!"

You put your book and bread on the table as Meredith took your hand and pulled you into the back room, leaving Michael to look around the shop. Meredith came back out to let you put the dress on in private and she and Michael talked about her work for a few minutes.

Meanwhile, you finally finished putting on the dress and took a few deep breaths. You slowly turned to look at yourself in the mirror, awestruck at what you saw. The dress was absolutely  _gorgeous_  on the mannequin, but it looked even better actually  _on you_. You couldn't help but smile, quietly walking back into the main part of the shop.

Michael and Meredith were facing away from you, so you cleared your throat quietly. You bit your lip as they turned around, honestly nervous for Michael's reaction. Meredith was smiling widely and you  _swore_  you saw Michael mouth a ' _wow_ '.

"How does it fit?" Meredith asked, skipping over to you to look at everything more closely.

"Perfect," you smiled.

"Beautiful," Michael whispered. You looked at him and he quickly added, "I, uh, I mean the dress! Th-The dress looks amazing." You felt your cheeks get hot again as you turned your attention back to Meredith, hoping Michael hadn't seen you blush yet again.

"It really is beautiful, Mere," you said, "I wish I didn't pay upfront because you deserve  _way more_  than what you told me this would cost."

She laughed, "The only thing I ask is that you get a lot of wear out of it."

"Oh, I will," you smiled, "I promise."

You went back to get your other dress, thanking Meredith probably 10 more times before you were actually out the door. Michael chuckled at you, putting his hands on your shoulders and leading you to a quieter part of of the town square.

After spending a little time with him, you discovered that Michael isn't as bad as everyone makes him out to be. But you still needed to tell him the truth; You weren't a princess and you couldn't let either of you fall for someone you couldn't have. You were about to speak up when Michael interrupted this time.

"So, my lady," he said, standing up, "It's occurred to me that we never finished our dance."

"There's no music, Michael," you giggled lightly. He offered his hand to you and you took it, letting him pull you up.

"That is true," he nodded, putting his hand on the middle of your back as you put yours on his shoulder once again, "But the way I see it, you have two choices in life; You can go by the book and live with the constant wonder of whether or not you're truly happy, or you can take risks and go with what your heart says."

"How are you living  _your_  life?" you asked him as you waltzed around, happy there were no prying eyes.

"I've always been a risk-taker," he smirked slightly, "The  _real_  question is are  _you_  willing to do the same?"

You stared at him for a moment, deciding to take his advice and trust your heart. And right now, your heart was screaming at you to kiss him. So you did.

You leaned up and just barely pressed your lips to Michael's. You felt him smile almost immediately as he leaned in more, deepening the kiss.

You had only been kissed two other times in your life; Once when you were six and you had a ' _boyfriend_ ' in kindergarten and once when you were 17 and in your first – and  _only_  – serious relationship. But  _neither of them_  compared to what you felt when you kissed Michael.

He wasn't overpowering; He didn't try anything more – he simply kissed you and that was it. Although he  _was_  a big risk-taker, he knew it was better to take some things slower rather than dive right in – especially when it came to girls.

But once you sort of processed what was happening, you pulled away. Michael looked at you, worried he overstepped his boundaries. You paused for a moment.

"Michael," you said quietly, "There's something you should know." You took a deep breath and his face filled with concern. "The thing is... I-I'm not a-"

"Your Highness!" you heard someone exclaim as they ran over.

"I can't catch a  _break_ ," you muttered, letting go of Michael and walking back to where you had been sitting, pacing a bit.

"Yes, Brady?" Michael sighed, turning to face the guard.

"The Queen is requesting for you to return to the castle immediately," he bowed.

"May I ask what for?"

"Princess Vivian has arrived, sir." Michael's eyes widened and you let out a quiet breath.

"She wasn't supposed to come in until  _next week_ ," he shook his head slowly.

"Well, it turns out we may have been a  _little_  off with the date of her birth, Your Highness... It's in  _three days_..." the guard said with a nervous chuckle.

You immediately gathered your bread and book and started walking away when you felt Michael grab your hand. He pulled you back, causing you to turn into him. He brought his other hand to your cheek and ran his thumb along your cheekbone gently.

"Don't go, Y/N," he said lowly, "Please." You took your hand out of his and backed away slowly.

"I'm sorry, Michael," you whispered, turning around and running away.

~

" _Olivia_!" you shouted, frantically knocking on her door. "Please be home," you whispered to yourself repeatedly until you heard her run to the door and pull it open.

"What happened?" she asked as you darted inside, "You look like you've seen a ghost."

"I kissed the Prince," you muttered under your breath.

"You  _what_?" Her eyes widened in shock.

"I kissed Michael and he kissed back and then I tried to tell him I'm not a princess but we were interrupted by one of the palace guards and I ran away," you rushed.

" _Y/N_!" she shoved your shoulder, "He's is not going to  _care_  that you're not a princess! Not even my  _father_  looks at my  _mother_  the way the Prince looks at you and they've been hopelessly in love since the moment they met! You  _have_  to tell him!"

"I've tried three times today, but we kept getting interrupted!" you whined, throwing yourself onto the couch, "Plus, Princess Vivian is here and her birthday is in three days which means they're going to get married. And he deserves a princess anyway – not someone like  _me_."

"True love..." Olivia stated, holding her left hand up. "Arranged marriage to a snobby princess..." she said holding her right hand much lower the left.

"Liv," you sighed, "Even if it was ' _true love_ ', we couldn't be together. I'm not of noble birth and I can't just change a law." She sighed as well, knowing you were right. As much as it pained you to admit, there was just  _no way_  for you to be with Michael.

~

**Two days later**

The day before the wedding, you were walking around your own kingdom with Olivia. There wasn't nearly as much to do here than there was in hers, but you really didn't want to go there. You knew the town would be buzzing with wedding chatter and you couldn't risk running into Michael again.

You two were mindlessly weaving throughout the crowd which you found a little unusual. There was never really a crowd in the town square, so whatever was attracting all these people must be huge.

"What's all the commotion about?" Olivia whispered in your ear as you two walked arm-in-arm in the direction the crowd was facing.

"I don't know," you said back, "Nothing exciting ever happens around here." You looked around and noticed no one was at the fountain. "Fountain!" you told her, pulling her over to it. You stood up on the edge, trying to get a better view of what was going on.

You could see Princess Aliyah standing with someone, but there were too many people to clearly make out who it was. She looked over at you and smirked, pointing and your heart started racing as you saw Michael stand on his toes to look over the crowd.

"Olivia, we have to go," you said quickly, jumping off of the concrete and onto the brick road, pulling her with you.

"Why? What's going on?" she asked. Before you could answer, you heard your name.

" _Y/N_!" Michael yelled, pushing his way through the crowd with Princess Aliyah following directly behind him. You could hear in his voice that he was angry and you were not looking forward to whatever he was about to say.

" _That's_  what's going on," you mumbled to your best friend as you both turned around to face the two royals.

"You lied to me!" Michael didn't even bother easing into it, "You're not a princess!"

"I never said I  _was_ ," you said quietly, looking down.

"But you didn't tell me you  _weren't_  either! I can't believe I almost fell for you!"

"I  _tried_  to tell you!" you squeaked, finally making eye contact, "But every time I did, I got interrupted!"

"That's not an excuse!" he shouted at you, "You had plenty of other opportunities to tell me, but you didn't!"

"Michael," you whimpered, "I'm sorry."

"It's  _Prince Michael_  to you," he stated coldly, "Goodbye, Y/N." He spun around on his heels and walked back to his horse, jumping on and rushing past you.

" _Okay_ ," Olivia said, noticing you were about to cry and not wanting you to do it in front of all the people staring at you –  _especially_  not in front of Princess Aliyah – beginning to usher you in the opposite direction, "Come on, Y/N; Let's go."

~

**The next day**

You trudged to Olivia's house, already dressed for the royal wedding. Despite the fact that you didn't want to go – and you were sure  _Michael_  didn't want you there either – it was required that all townspeople from the kingdom as well as the neighboring ones attended the ceremony.

"You ready?" Olivia asked softly after she answered your knocking on her door.

"Do I have a choice?" you mumbled. She smiled sadly as she closed the door behind her.

She snaked her arm around yours and laid her head on your shoulder as the two of you walked the short distance to the castle.

The two of you made sure to sit as far back as possible – it wasn't as far back as you would have liked, but you were just happy you weren't near the front.

As the ceremony began, you kept bouncing your leg nervously, your eyes never leaving the prince standing at the alter in the front of the room. You swore his eyes locked onto yours a few times, but you were so far back that you knew he didn't notice you.

Everyone stood up as Princess Vivian walked into the room and made her way down the aisle. You were taking deep breaths, your heart aching at having to watch Michael marry someone else.

You honestly had no idea why you felt  _this strongly_  about him. You had only really spent a total of  _half a day_  with him. But you couldn't deny that in the time you  _hadn't_  been with him, he consumed your every thought. That one, brief kiss you shared with him made your head spin and your knees weak and it actually hurt to know that you would never get to feel that again.

As the priest announced for any objections, you couldn't take it anymore. You told Olivia you had to leave and she understood, letting you climb over her to get out of the pew. You quietly sneaked to the door, but before you could open it, you were stopped by the sounds of whisper and everyone turning in their seats.

"Do you have a reason these two should not be wed?" the priest asked, making you turn around. You kept your hand on the doorknob behind you.

"I have a couple, actually," you answered honestly, "But neither of them are enough to constitute stopping a  _royal_  wedding for. I do hope the happy couple will take my congratulations, but I was just leaving." Your eyes met Michael's shocked expression as you pushed down on the doorknob and spun around, running out of the sanctuary.

Before the door closed behind you, you could hear a high-pitched shriek and everyone start whispering again. You just made it outside the castle and were almost to the steps when you heard the last thing you expected to hear.

"Y/N!" Michael called out, "Wait!" You spun back around and saw he had chased you outside. However, you quickly came back from your state of shock.

" _Prince Michael_ ," you curtsied, your voice laced with sarcasm, "I do believe you're missing your wedding."

"Y/N..." he said softly, taking small steps until he was about 2 feet in front of you, "Please don't call me that."

"Why not, Your Highness? You told me to refer to you as such; I'm just respecting your orders."

"Y/N, please..." he whispered, "Say my name. I was mad when I said that, okay? I  _swear_  I didn't mean it. Please just say my name."

You shook your head slowly, your voice coming out as a whisper as well, "I'm not royalty and it's not proper for commoners not to use formalities."

"But you could be."

"No, I-"

" _You could be_ ," he repeated, closing the gap between the two of you and taking your face in his hands, "We danced at my birthday party."

"What does  _that_  have to do with me being royalty?" you sighed, curiosity getting the better of you once again.

"All of the princesses I danced with that night asked me first," he said lowly, "But if I ask a girl  _myself_  – Princess or not – it makes her eligible to be my wife."

" _Wait_..." you put your hands on his chest, causing him to let go of your face as you pushed him back, "You're telling me that I could marry you?" He nodded, not smiling as he wasn't exactly sure of your tone. "We don't even know that much about each other... I can't... I can't get  _married_  after only knowing you for  _two months_..."

"I'll wait," Michael said, shaking his head, "I'll wait as long as I have to if it means I get to make you my Queen one day."

"You don't have to-"

"I know I don't, but I  _want_  to," he said firmly – but softly as well – taking your hands in his, " _I love you, Y/N_. You are the most beautiful girl I've ever seen and I want to marry you if you'll let me – no matter  _how long_  it takes."

"Michael..." you trailed off. His eyes lit up at the sound of you saying his name. After a pause, you were finally able to make yourself speak again. "I love you too," you said under your breath. Michael smiled widely and let out a sigh of relief, pulling you into him and pressing his lips to yours.

~

_inspiration: http://my-imagines-moonlight53.tumblr.com/post/113864325667/prince-calum-part-4-final_


	157. Princess Protection (Ashton Irwin)

"What in heaven's name were you  _thinking_ , young lady?!" your mother scolded. You had been caught sneaking out of the castle  _yet again_. This being an almost biweekly occurrence, you were certainly no stranger to having this conversation with your parents.

"I need a little _excitement_ in my life, Mother," you told her, "And I don't need _these guys_ -" You nodded toward the guards that had brought you to your parents. "-following me everywhere and getting in my way."

"Honey," your father sighed, "You are the _sole_ _heir_ to this throne and we don't need you out there doing God knows _what_ with God knows _who_. You need to keep out of the eye of the media and stay here to learn how to run this country."

"No one ever lets me do anything fun around here," you mumbled, crossing your arms over your stomach.

"I'm sorry, dear," your mother said, "But we've decided to assign a personal guard – a knight – for you to make sure you stay out of trouble."

" _What_?!" you shouted, "Mom, I don't need a ' _personal guard_ ' or  _whatever he is_! What I need is a little  _freedom_! You can't  _possibly_  expect me to allow some old dude to follow me around all day!"

"He's not  _old_ , Y/N," she told you, motioning for the guard in the back of the room to let the knight in, "He's only a little older than you."

"Great, so he's a  _babysitter_!" you exclaimed, "I'm 21-years-old, for Christ's sake! I don't  _need_  a babysitter!"

"Exactly," your father said, "You're 21 now which means you need to get your head out of the clouds and start focusing on studying to be a future queen."

"Your Majesties," you heard a voice behind you. You let out a quiet groan as he stopped at your side. "You requested to see me?"

"Yes," the King nodded, "I'm sure you've heard about my daughter, Princess Y/N." You finally looked at him and your breathing hitched, immediately noticing how attractive he was.

"Your Highness," the young knight bowed with a smile, taking your hand and pressing his lips to the back of it, "I've heard many stories about you."

" _That's nice_ ," you scoffed lightly, taking your hand back.

"Y/N," the Queen warned before turning back to the boy beside you. "The King and I have asked you here because we have a new assignment for you, Sir Ashton," she said, finally allowing you to learn his name, "We need you to be Y/N's personal guard and keep her out of trouble."

"Anything for you, Your Majesties," he smiled, bowing again. You rolled your eyes, already over this guy's act. Your parents smiled at him.

"Y/N," your father said, grabbing your attention, "You may go." You opened your mouth, but he beat you to an answer. "Stay in the castle." You threw your head back and groaned loudly, turning on your heels and angrily walking away.

"Good luck," you heard your mother whisper to Ashton.

"I'm sure I can handle her, Your Majesty," you could hear his smile.

" _We'll see about that_!" you said loudly enough for them to hear as you slammed the door behind you.

The door opened again when you were about halfway down the hall. You heard footsteps coming up behind you quickly and saw Ashton slow to your pace out of the corner of your eye. He walked with you until you reached your bedroom where you spun around to face him.

"Here's how it's going to work,  _Ashton_ ," you stated through gritted teeth, " _I'm_  going to do as I please,  _you're_  going to stay out of my way, and we're not going to have any issues."

He smiled at you again and bowed, "Of course, Your Highness." You let out a long sigh, already sensing the problems he was going to cause you.

~

After a couple months of Ashton following you around everywhere you went, you were starting to get sick of him. You were fine for a while, but then it just became annoying. He would always smile at you, bowing every time he addressed you, and he made sure to be extra watchful of you when you two went out into the town square.

But tonight was going to be different. Tonight, you were going out without Ashton. You just had to think of a plan. You had sneaked out of the castle three times since Ashton was assigned to watch after you and he was none the wiser. However, your fourth attempted escape was a different story.

You quietly placed your crown on your nightstand and climbed out your window. Your feet had just hit the ground and you were tiptoeing around the side of the castle. The moment you turned the corner, you ran into something – well,  _someone_. You squeaked quietly, taking a step back and immediately seeing the smirk on Ashton's face.

"Not tonight, Princess," he said. You frowned, narrowing your eyes at him. "Now, Your Highness," he told you, putting his hand on your shoulder and leading you back to your window, "You can either climb back up there or I can take you through the castle and risk running into your parents." You grumbled quietly, letting him help you climb back through your bedroom window. " _Goodnight, Princess_ ," he snickered, taking the long way around to return to his station outside your door.

~

The next morning, Ashton knocked on your door as he always did to make sure you were awake. He opened it when he received no answer and found you were sprawled out on your bed, a small patch of drool on your pillow beside your mouth.

He marveled at the sight of how beautiful you looked when you were sleeping – even if drool falling from the side of your mouth wasn't what most people would consider attractive. Ashton walked over to your bed and sat down, placing his hand gently on your shoulder and shaking you lightly.

"Princess," he said lowly, "It's time to wake up. You'll be late for breakfast." You groaned quietly, turning over to face away from him. He grinned slightly. "Your Highness, don't make me pull you out of bed  _again_."

You sighed quietly – he knew you hated when he did that. You rubbed your eyes and wiped away the drool stains from your mouth as you sat up.

"Good morning, Your Highness," Ashton said cheerfully, "Would you like me to get your lady's maid to help you get ready?" He stood up and began walking out of the room, but you quickly stopped him.

" _No_!" you squeaked, throwing the blanket off of your body and jumping up. You closed your bedroom door just before he got to it, spinning around to face him. "I want to know what last night was about," you said firmly.

"The King and Queen put me in charge of watching after you, Princess," he told you, "And that  _includes_  not letting you sneak out of the palace."

"How did you know?"

"It wasn't that difficult to figure out," he smiled playfully, "You're not exactly the  _quietest_  when it comes to scaling a building." You rolled your eyes.

"Why didn't you tell my parents?"

He shrugged, "It's better to be well-liked by the person you're trying to protect than to be hated and risk even more harm." You looked up at him.

"Thank you, Ashton," you said.

He nodded slightly, "You're welcome, Y/N."

You tilted your head with a small smirk on your face. Ashton  _never_  used your name – even when he was referring to you as Princess. His eyes widened as he realized what he said.

"I-" He cleared his throat. "-I mean Your Highness."

"Here's how it's going to work,  _Ashton_ ," your mischievous smile growing with each passing second, " _I'm_  going to call you Ashton,  _you're_  going to call me Y/N, and we're not going to have any issues." He watched you carefully for a moment.

"Yes, Your- I mean... Y/N," he replied shyly. You moved out of the way of the door so he could leave to let you get dressed. When you came back out, you walked together to the dining hall where breakfast was just starting to be brought out.

"Good morning, dear!" your mother smiled as Ashton pulled out your chair for you before taking his seat beside you.

"Good morning, Mom," you smiled at her as well as your father, "Dad."

You all had breakfast together and talked for a while before you went back to your bedroom to read for a bit. You had gone to the bathroom beforehand and as you were going back into your room, Ashton grabbed your hand, pulling you close to him.

"Would you like to go out today?" he asked quietly, "You've not left the castle in three days and I think you and I could use the fresh air."

You smiled at him as he let go of you and trotted into your room. Ashton followed you as you went to slip on your boots, heading for your nightstand. You were about to leave the room when Ashton's voice stopped you.

" _Y/N_ ," he sang. You looked at him and saw he was holding your crown.

"Can't I go low-profile today?" you pouted. He grinned as he walked over to you, lifting his hands up and placing the crown on top of your head.

"I think you passed low profile when I was assigned to escort you everywhere," he told you. He stuck his elbow out to you, "Shall we?" You smiled slightly, linking your arm with his and leaving the castle.

You walked across the bridge, stopping briefly to admire how beautiful the water looked before entering the main part of town. It wasn't too busy, but everyone that was there immediately greeted you with kind smiles.

"Good morning, Princess," the townspeople said as you passed them. You nodded politely.

This was honestly one of the main reasons you never left the castle. It wasn't that you didn't love getting out of the palace or seeing the people in your kingdom, it was that you simply didn't like that everyone stopped to acknowledge you. All you wanted was to be treated like a normal person, but being an heir to the throne, that was never an option for you.

You took the time to speak with as many people as you could as you and Ashton walked around. You did enjoy getting to know everyone – and Ashton enjoyed getting to watch you interact with the people in your kingdom. He had a smile on his face as you were stopped by a young girl who couldn't have been older than 5.

You had stopped walking when you heard the small voice exclaim quietly ' _Mommy, look! The princess!_ ' and watched as she ran over to a nearby patch of grass and picked the prettiest flower she could find. She ran over to you, tugging on your dress lightly.

" _Lily_ ," her mother warned quietly, worried that you would be upset with her pulling on your clothes like that. You were quick to give her a smile, letting her know it was okay, as you removed your arm from Ashton's and knelt down so you were eye-level with the little girl.

"Lily?" you said with a questioning tone, making her smile, "That's a very pretty name."

"Thank you," she said shyly. She held up the flower, "I picked this for you."

"Thank you very much," you grinned, taking the flower, "But do you know where I think this flower would look the  _most_  beautiful?" She shook her head. You carefully brushed her hair back behind her ear and placed the flower in her hair. "Right there!" you chirped. She smiled widely.

"Your crown is very shiny," she said.

"It is," you nodded, "You better not look at it when the sun shines off of it though or it might blind you and we wouldn't want that." She quickly shook her head and you heard Ashton chuckle. "Would you like to try it on?" Her eyes widened.

"Are you sure?" she whispered.

You answered by lifting your hands up and grabbing your crown. You gently rested the golden band on top of her head and took your hands back. It fell over her forehead slightly, making her burst into a fit of giggles.

"It looks like it's a little too big for you," you smiled, taking your crown back and returning it to its spot on your own head, "But I think you looked like a  _real_  princess."

Her smile was so bright that it could light up a room and she hugged you tightly for a moment before going back to her mother's side. As you stood back up, you bowed to her.

"I trust you'll keep a watchful eye on the town while I'm in the castle, Princess Lily," you said.

"I will," she nodded furiously, "I promise." Her mother gave you a thankful smile before taking her daughter's hand and leading her back to where they had been headed in the first place.

"Forgive me, Your Highness," Ashton smiled as you linked your arms back together again, "But I believe I've just fallen in love with the Princess."

"I think she's a  _little_  too young for you, Ashton," you teased, blushing at his comment and kissing his cheek.

"Shall we head back to the castle?" he asked you.

You nodded, wanting to give your aching feet a break from all the walking you had been doing today. However, just as you made it to the gates, someone decided to let you in on their own plans for you.

"Well, Princess, that was  _truly_  adorable." You and Ashton spun around, now face-to-face with your rival kingdom's Prince. It wasn't anything new to run into this young man; He was frequently lurking around your kingdom, looking to start trouble.

"Prince Edward," you said dryly, "What are you doing in  _my kingdom_?"

"Why, I'm here for you, Your Highness," he winked, pulling out his sword.

Ashton immediately moved in front of you as he drew his own sword, holding you tightly behind his back. The townspeople around the three of you immediately scattered – some running away, others simply hiding behind whatever was around.

"Oh," he laughed, " _This_  is new. Mommy and Daddy finally realize what a pain you are and hire someone to babysit you?"

"If she's such a  _pain_ , why are you here for her?" Ashton shot back through gritted teeth.

"What better way to get the king and queen to surrender than to hold their precious Princess hostage?" he smirked, swinging his sword. Ashton quickly blocked it, keeping you safely behind him as you held the back of his shirt tightly.

You were suddenly being pulled away by one of the guards at the gates as other reinforcements were called in to assist Ashton. When your grip on him released, Ashton looked over his shoulder, worried the prince was merely a distraction and he had someone else with him to take you.

But as he let out a sigh of relief at seeing you were safe with a guard of your own kingdom, Prince Edward's sword glided across his left arm. He let out a loud yelp, causing you to spin around.

" _Ashton_!" you cried as he lost his balance and fell to the ground.

You tried to run back, but the guard wouldn't let you, pulling you back across the bridge as he insisted that you get safely inside the castle. You passed two other guards racing to help Ashton, seeing them apprehend Prince Edward just before you were being whisked into the palace.

~

" _Why can't I see him_?!" you shouted. It had been nearly an hour since the incident with Prince Edward and your parents weren't allowing you to leave the throne room. You had no idea of what Ashton's condition was and you were worried sick.

"There was just an attempt to  _kidnap you_ , Y/N!" your mother exclaimed, her worry coming across with every word that left her mouth.

"But I want to see Ashton!"

"Y/N," your father spoke up, "Until Monroe confirms that you're completely safe and there are no other members of that kingdom here, you have to stay in here with us." You took a deep breath, running your hand through your hair as you began pacing.

The next 10 minutes felt like the longest 10 minutes of your life. You were waiting and waiting for the Captain of the Guard to come in and give you the all-clear so you could run down to the infirmary to check on Ashton.

Finally, the doors to the throne room opened, but it wasn't Monroe; It was Ashton.

The doors closed behind him and he began walking over. His left arm was wrapped up from his shoulder to just above his elbow. You didn't know what came over you, but you felt tears start falling from your eyes.

" _Ashton_ ," you let out a breath, running across the room and throwing your arms around his neck, your crown nearly falling off of your head as you crashed into him. He sighed against your neck and hugged you tightly, still walking until he reached your mother and father.

"Your Majesties," he said respectfully, unable to bow with you in his arms. Your mother immediately kissed Ashton's cheek and your father shook his hand.

"Thank you," he said, "You have no idea how grateful we are that you were with her."

"I must apologize though, sir," he replied quietly, "It's my fault this happened. If I hadn't asked her if she wanted to go out, she would still have been safely in the castle." You let go of him, moving back.

"Ashton," you whispered as if your parents couldn't hear you, "It wasn't your fault."

"But you wouldn't have gone out if I hadn't asked you," he looked down. Your mother looked at your father and quietly motioned for him to follow her out of the room to give you and Ashton some time alone.

"Ashton," you repeated just as quietly as you had been talking, putting your hands on his cheeks and making him look up at you, "Thank you."

"I swore to protect you, Y/N," he told you, putting his arms back around your waist, "I would do anything to keep you safe." You smiled softly, finding yourself glancing at his lips. His heart started racing at the thought of you wanting to kiss him as much as he wanted to kiss you. "Y/N..." he said nervously. You were silent, beckoning him to go on. He took another deep breath and just went for it, knowing that if he didn't ask now, he never would. "Can I kiss you?" You nodded slowly, seeing a smile pull at the corner of his mouth.

Ashton leaned down, his lips barely touching yours. He hesitated, but you didn't give him a chance to back out of it. You pulled his face down further, kissing him roughly. His hold on your waist tightened, bringing you closer to him. You took your hands off of his cheeks and wrapped your arms around his neck. Truthfully, you could have stayed like that all day if your parents hadn't come back into the room.

"What's the meaning of this?" you heard your mom ask, causing you and Ashton to jump, immediately letting go of each other. You looked at both her and your dad, but you couldn't read either of their expressions which made you more nervous.

You were quiet for a moment before letting out a breath, "Yeah, I've got nothing."

"Ashton," she said, "Do you have anything to say?" He took a deep breath and grabbed your hand, tangling your fingers together.

"Yes," he nodded as you looked at him. "Your Majesties," he said, smiling since he saw you looking at him out of the corner of his eyes, "I love your daughter and with your permission, I would love to pursue a relationship with her." You quickly hid your face in his shoulder so your parents wouldn't see you blush. Obviously, that action was soon proven to be pointless.

"Permission granted," your father nodded with a smile. Your head snapped up and your eyes widened. "Not everyone would have risked their life for her the way you did, young man – not even our most  _seasoned_  guards. I know you'll love and protect her and it's very obvious that she cares for you too. You're the only one that's managed to keep her grounded and out of trouble and as long as she's happy, we're happy to give you our permission. But you're still sleeping in your own bedroom."

" _Dad_ ," you groaned quietly, your face turning a bright red. He smiled proudly at the fact that he had managed to embarrass you.

"Come on, sweetheart," he said, wrapping his arm around your mother's shoulders, "I believe the cooks wanted to see us about tonight's dinner."

"Like I believe  _that_ ," she laughed lightly, letting him lead her out of the room.

As soon as the door closed behind them, Ashton wrapped his arms around your waist, picking you up and spinning you around. You squealed, laughing as he put you back down.

"I love you, Y/N," he said lowly, his hands moving to rest on your hips.

"I love you too, Ashton," you grinned, reaching up and pressing your lips to his again.

 

~

_inspirations:  
http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/116880474713/to-say-you-were-handful-to-your-royal-family-was  
_ _http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/116886298268/knight-calum-growing-up-with-you-because-his_


	158. Help Me Out (5 Seconds of Summer)

**Luke**

"Hi, Justin!" you chirped as you walked into the tattoo parlor.

"Hey, Y/N!" he smiled, looking up as he was putting the stencil on a blonde boy's forearm, "I'll be right with you, okay?"

"Oh, that's fine," you said, sitting down on the couch by the window, "I'm not in any hurry. I left my whole day open for this."

"Your tattoo is gonna take like, an hour and a half at the most," he laughed.

"I know," you replied, sticking your tongue out at him, "But that doesn't mean I wanted to do anything else today."

As you were flipping through the book of tattoos on the table in front of you, you could feel the blonde in the chair staring at you. You looked up as he groaned quietly, making you laugh.

"Do you need me to hold your hand?" you teased.

"I do not  _need_  you to hold my hand," he stated. As soon as the tattoo machine started buzzing, he jumped.

You laughed again under your breath, getting up and pulling a chair from another station over to him. You sat down and grabbed his hand before he could protest again, lacing your fingers together.

"First tattoo, huh?" you asked. He rolled his eyes, knowing you already knew the answer. "So first time and you came alone?"

"No," he mumbled, "My friend came with me, but he decided to leave before you came in." Justin was about to start tattooing him, but you held your hand out, stopping him.

"Hold on," you said, looking at the boy in the chair intently, "Are you  _sure_  you want to do this? Like, a tattoo is a really big commitment and you don't seem very into the idea."

"No, I want it," he sighed, "I've wanted it for a while now, I was just never brave enough to make myself come in and get it done. So my friend finally decided that he was gonna make an appointment with me, but after he got his done, he kinda just walked out of the shop."

"Dick," you muttered, making him smile slightly. "I'm Y/N, by the way."

"Luke," he winced as the tattoo gun touched his skin.

"Well, Luke-" His heart started racing at the sound of you saying his name as you squeezed his hand. "-I've got a few tattoos of my own and I promise it's gonna be worth it. Justin is the best tattoo artist around here and you're gonna love it."

"Oh, stop, you're making me blush," Justin sighed dramatically, not taking his eyes off of his work. You rolled your eyes.

"So what are you getting?" you asked, peeking over Luke to see his arm. He explained his tattoo to you and you explained all of yours to him.

Throughout the next half hour or so, you had both been so caught up in each other that you didn't even notice Justin was finished.

"Alright, kid," Justin said, bringing the two of you back to reality, "You're all done."

"Really?" Luke seemed surprised, admiring the work, "This is amazing."

"I'm glad you like it," he laughed, beginning to wrap up the tattoo.

"Told you," you smiled, "Piece of cake." You released your grip on Luke's hand, but he reluctantly let go of yours. He got up out of the chair, switching places with you.

"I should really hire you, Y/N," Justin teased, preparing for your session, "You really make these first-timers forget what's going on." Luke gave you a look at you kicked off your shoes.

"I've only been here for like, three first-timers," you shrugged, looking at the blonde beside you, "But they all seemed to forget they were getting tattoos."

"Guys?" he asked quietly. You nodded. "Maybe they were just distracted because you were so close to them." You couldn't help but let out a loud laugh, leaning back on the chair.

"That probably explains why I'm still single," you remarked as Justin put the stencil on your feet.

"There is  _no way_  you're single," Luke said, his eyes widening.

You nodded, "Apparently, a lot of guys aren't interested in girls with tattoos."

"As if tattoos change who you are," Justin chimed in.

"Thank you!" you exclaimed, "Plus, I have mainly small tattoos. This is the first somewhat big one I'm getting."

"Well, if it matters to you at all, I think those guys are idiots," Luke said shyly, making you grin.

~

As Justin was tattooing you, you were clearly not the most comfortable you'd ever felt. You knew feet tattoos were one of the most painful to get and with your low threshold for pain, you debated on whether or not to get the tattoos for a while. But it was something you really wanted, so when you got the money, you went for it.

Luke had noticed you biting your inner cheek for a while now, so he decided to try to help you out. He took your hand in his, lacing your fingers back together and rubbing your thumb with his own. You looked over at him and laughed lightly, squeezing his hand. You heard the bell above the door ring and someone walked in.

"How'd it go, Lukey?" the person that came in smirked. You looked over and saw a blue-haired boy walking up to his friend.

"It went a lot better than it would have if you were here," he replied, making you snort quietly.

"Rude," he said, putting his hand over his heart. He looked down at yours and Luke's hands and smirked again. "What's going on here?"

"Moral support," you stated dryly, "Something you're clearly not familiar with."

"Well, he's used to it."

Luke sighed quietly, "Y/N, this is my friend Michael. Michael, this is Y/N." You and Michael grumbled at each other, making Luke and Justin fight back their smiles.

"Well, Y/N," Justin said, "Looks like you're done."

"Thanks, Justin," you smiled, looking down at your feet before he wrapped them up, "They're beautiful! I love them!" Michael stretched out his neck to see what you had gotten.

"Are those All Time Low lyrics?" he asked. You looked over at him as you were carefully putting your shoes back on.

"Yes..." you answered slowly. He couldn't keep himself from smiling at you, causing his best friend to shoot him a glare.

"Whoa, sorry, dude," Michael said, putting his hands up, "Didn't know she was off limits."

You immediately looked at Luke and his cheeks were turning so red that he started mindlessly scratching his cheekbone in an attempt to hide it. Justin snickered at all of you as he handed you and Luke a piece of paper.

"Alright, guys," he said, "Here are your instructions on how to take care of your tattoos. If you have any other questions, feel free to call me any time." You both nodded and walked out of the shop, following Michael.

"It was really nice meeting you guys," you smiled, "But I'm starving. Hopefully I'll see you around." You started walking in the opposite direction.

You heard Luke say something to Michael to which Michael replied with an ' _okay_ ' and walked away. He then ran after you, brushing his fingers against your hand, making you stop and look up at him.

"D-Do you think... Um... I-I mean... Would, uh... Would you mind if I... Er..." he stuttered quietly, "Wou-Would you like s-some company?" You simply stared at him. "U-Unless you're sick of me, th-then that's okay too," he added, looking down at his feet.

A small smile started pulling at the corner of your mouth. You took the hand beside yours in your own and laced your fingers together for the third time that day, surprising him.

"I would love it if you joined me, Luke," you said, making him blush again as you began to lead him where you were going.

~

**Michael**

"Hi, Michael!" a chorus of fans said in unison as the guitar player walked over.

You had been in line outside the venue with everyone else for about five hours, waiting to be let in. Michael didn't know you were going to the show – you lived over an hour away and didn't think you could make it on such short notice – so you decided you would surprise him. Luckily, most of the band's fans loved you, so you had no problem with staying outside. You really enjoyed talking to them and they really enjoyed your company as well.

Michael had come out to meet the fans that were already in line and hadn't seen you yet. Honestly, you were glad because you were anything less than excited right now.

Paparazzi had been harassing you and the fans all morning. You had convinced them to leave the fans alone, which only caused you to take the brunt of their stupid remarks. You didn't mind though; As long as they weren't messing with  _fans_ , you were willing to deal with whatever they had to say to you.

They obviously knew you and Michael were together and they always did everything they could to stir up rumors. Fans never believed paparazzi, of course, knowing you and Michael were way too in love with each other to even dream of cheating or breaking up or whatever other nonsense you heard from the media.

"Come on, Y/N," one of the paps said, getting a little too close to you, "We all know he's going to leave you at some point."

" _Is he_ _now_?" you rolled your eyes, slowly inching away from him, but it wasn't working. You noticed a few fans pointing in your direction out of the corner of your eye.

"You should be with someone more worth your time," he said, running his hand down your arm. You immediately jerked your arm back in disgust as you heard your boyfriend's voice come from behind you.

" _Hey_!" Michael shouted, rushing over, "Didn't you mother ever teach you that's not how you treat a girl?"

He was clearly already angry that someone was being treated like that, but the moment he realized it was  _you_ , he became absolutely  _furious_. You slapped your hand over your mouth as soon as his fist came into contact with the pap's jaw, sending him to the ground.

"And that's  _me_  teaching you that's not how you treat  _my_  girl," Michael growled. The camera flashes around the two of you were going crazy as you grabbed Michael's hand and started pulling him back inside.

"I'm sorry, guys!" you squeaked as you passed the fans, "I'll see if I can get you in in a minute!" You led Michael through the venue until you got to one of the dressing rooms no one else was using. "Michael, what on  _earth_  were you thinking?!" you exclaimed, pushing him into the room and shutting the door behind you.

" _Me_?!" he shouted, "He was the one trying to feel you up! Are you really suggesting it's  _my_  fault that I hit him for it?!"

"No, Mikey," you sighed, putting your face in your hands, "But speaking from your managers' point of view, they are gonna be  _pissed_  that you hit him – no matter the reason."

"Speak from my  _girlfriend's_  point of view then," he said simply.

You looked at him for a moment before closing the gap between the two of you and grabbing the back of his neck, pulling his face to yours. You kissed him roughly while his arms snaked around your waist and he pulled you closer.

"I love you, Michael," you mumbled against his lips.

He smiled, "I love you too."

~

**Calum**

You had a little skip to your step as you were doing your daily chores – of course, when you had the best job ever, it was hard not to love working. You worked at the local animal shelter on weekdays. You absolutely loved taking care of the animals, desperately wishing you could adopt all of them to give them a proper home and make sure they knew they were loved, but you did what you could.

You had formed a strong bond with one of the dogs that had been rescued from a neglectful owner; A chocolate lab named Brownie. She was only a few weeks old when she arrived just under three months ago, but she was terrified of everyone. She was placed in one of the kennels in your section – you mainly took care of the abused puppies so it was no surprise that she was placed with you – and it didn't take her long to warm up to you. Out of all the puppies in your section, Brownie was the one you looked forward to seeing the most every day.

You had just arrived for work, excited to see all the puppies. While you were filling up the water bowls, you heard your manager call your name as she walked into the room. You looked behind you and saw she was being followed by a boy about your age with a head of black and blonde hair that looked like he hadn't brushed it that morning.

"Good morning, Elle," you smiled cheerfully.

"Good morning, Y/N," she smiled back, "This is Calum. Since you're usually working this section alone, I thought it would be best for you to be the one to show him the ropes and basically train him. Is that okay?"

"Of course!" you chirped. She thanked you, leaving to go do her own work and prepare for all the potential adopters coming in today. "It's nice to meet you, Calum," you grinned, turning off the hose and putting it back in its place, "I'm Y/N. I've never trained anyone before, so I apologize if this just turns into a total disaster." He chuckled quietly, a pink tint to his cheeks. "Uh, I guess we'll start off with introducing you to the dogs."

You motioned for him to follow you and he did. You walked around to each kennel, telling him the dog's name and a little bit about them and their history. Once you finally made it to Brownie's kennel, you couldn't keep the huge grin from spreading across your face as she looked up at you, wagging her tail furiously. You bent down, letting her lick your fingers and petting her through the fence.

"This is Brownie," you giggled, her tongue tickling the palm of your hand. Calum was still standing, so you missed him smile at your laugh. "She's been here for about 3 months after being rescued from an abusive home," you bit your inner cheek – thinking about where Brownie came from always made you upset, "She hasn't really taken a liking to anyone else, but for some reason, she likes me."

"So are you like, a dog whisperer or something?" Calum finally spoke. You laughed loudly, standing back up.

"I would hardly call myself a dog whisperer. I just really love them," you grinned, "Oh! I should probably show you where the food and stuff is." You spent the rest of the day training Calum as you showed him around, even getting to know each other on your lunch break.

~

**Eight months later**

A couple weeks after Calum started working at the shelter, you two had become best friends. Brownie had immediately warmed up to him and you were pretty impressed, often teasing him about being a dog whisperer as well. When he had completed his training that next week, he gained the courage to ask you out. You, of course, eagerly accepted and you've been dating ever since.

"So what is it about Brownie that you love so much?" Calum asked from his seat across from you. You were at a nearby McDonald's on your lunch break.

"She's sweet," you shrugged, "Despite what she's been through in such a short amount of time, she's the kindest dog I've ever worked with. As corny as it sounds, she's taught me a lot. Even though she's fearful of new people, all she knows how to do is love and I'm happy I get to be one of the people she trusts. As much as I want her to be adopted into a loving home, I don't at the same time because I'd miss her too much."

He sighed quietly, "You're so cute." You laughed lightly, reaching across the table and shoving his arm playfully. "Why don't you just adopt her yourself?"

"My apartment building doesn't allow pets," you replied sadly, "I would have adopted her the second I met her if I could have." The wheels in Calum's head began turning, already formulating a plan for you to get just that.

~

A couple weeks later, you were doing your daily chores as usual when you were interrupted.

"Y/N!" Calum called your name. You stopped what you were doing, thinking it was just in your head until you heard him yell again. "Y/N! Can you come here for a few minutes?" You put the broom you were using to sweep the floor with away and made your way out to the main part of the building. As soon as you walked into the room, you were met with all of the workers and volunteers looking at you with smiles on their faces.

" _Happy birthday_!" they shouted. You instantly smiled as Calum came over and ushered you to a table.

You looked down and there were chocolate cupcakes on a plate, rearranged to look like a dog bone. You couldn't help but laugh, leaning onto Calum as he picked up a cupcake and lit the candle stuck in it before holding it in front of you.

"Make a wish," he beamed.

You thought for a moment, closing your eyes and blowing out the candle. Calum then took his finger and put it in the icing, rubbing it on your nose.

You pouted jokingly as you laughed, " _Cal_!" He smiled brightly, kissing your nose multiple times to get it all off.

Everyone that wanted a cupcake took one and you all talked before going back to work. You were in an amazing mood all day – not that you hadn't been before – but Calum told you he had a surprise for you after work.

~

As you were playing with Brownie in her kennel, you heard someone walking over. You looked up and saw Calum standing there with a solemn expression on his face. You tilted your head, noticing a leash in his hand.

"I have good news and bad news," he said slowly.

His eyes shifted between yours and the dog sitting beside your lap. You instantly felt like your heart was being ripped out of your chest. When he saw the look on your face drop, he smiled again sadly.

"I figured it would be best if you were the one to take her out to her new owner." You looked back down at Brownie.

She was tilting her head, obviously noticing your sudden change of mood. She put her front paws on your thigh and reached up, licking the tears that were starting to fall down your cheeks. You laughed under your breath, wiping your face as you were petting her while Calum opened the door, handing you the leash. You shakily hooked it onto her collar and stood up. Calum put his arm on your shoulders and kissed your temple as you both took Brownie out to the front room where her adopter was waiting.

There was one guy standing there talking to Elle when you came into the room. You smiled slightly at him before looking back down at the dog at your feet, missing the sly smile he shared with your boyfriend. Your hand was shaking as you handed the leash over to the blonde-haired boy.

The boy smiled softly at you, "Calum told me a lot about Brownie before he went back to get you and I just want you to know that my roommates and I will take really good care of her."

You just nodded slowly, not daring to speak. You knew that if you tried, you would end up bursting into tears and you  _really_  didn't want to do that in front of everyone.

The guy signed the adoption papers and was about to leave, but he turned back around. He looked at you and motioned down to Brownie, allowing you to pet her one last time. You carefully dropped to your knees where you were immediately met with the lab licking your face as if she knew you were close to tears again.

You smiled as you pet her, kissing the top of her head before standing back up and watching the guy walk out the door with her. You let out an uneven breath and Calum made the move to hug you, but you shook your head and walked back to the kennels, just wanting to be alone.

"You didn't tell her, did you?" Elle asked Calum when you were out of hearing range.

He smiled at her, "It's her birthday present. I promise she'll be much happier tomorrow."

~

A few hours later, your shift was now over but you still hadn't left the kennel area. Calum had been looking for you for about 5 minutes when he finally found you. You were standing in front of Brownie's kennel, looking at everything that remained inside.

You had been trying to make yourself clean it all afternoon, but you just couldn't do it. You honestly didn't want to accept the fact that you would never see her again.

"Babe," Calum said softly, "Come on; I have one more surprise for you."

"I just wanna go home, Cal," you whispered.

"I know you do," he held your cheek in his hand, "But my friends were really looking forward to meeting you tonight."

You sighed quietly and nodded, letting Calum led you to his car. He had asked you about a week ago to come over and meet his roommates today and since it was already planned, you didn't have the heart to back out despite the fact that you just wanted to go home and cry.

Once Calum pulled into his driveway, he got out of the car, opening the door for you. As you got out, he took your hand and walked with you to the front door. You looked around the front room as you walked in, honestly surprised with how clean it was – Calum told you he lived with three other guys and you were expecting the house to be at least a little messy. He took you into the living room where there were two guys sitting on the couch watching TV.

"Hey, guys," Calum said. The brown-haired boy turned the TV off as he and a boy with white and blue hair looked back at you. "This is my girlfriend Y/N. Y/N, this is Ashton and Michael," he motioned to both of them. He brought you to the other couch and had you sit down, taking a seat beside you. "Luke is probably in the bathroom or something, but I'm sure he'll be down in a minute." You simply nodded in response.

"So Cal told us it's your birthday today," Ashton smiled at you, "Happy birthday!"

"Thank you," you grinned lightly.

"What did you wish for?" Michael asked you, "Anything good?" You shrugged.

"Something tells me you wished for a puppy," Calum said, resting his chin on your shoulder.

"Brownie, right?" Ashton mentioned. You barely nodded, not thinking anything of it, figuring Calum must have talked about her a lot.

"I don't blame you for wishing for her," Michael commented, "She's pretty cute." You looked at him, tilting your head slightly. "She's really energetic too. We'll get along just fine."

"Calum..." you said slowly, turning your head to look at him.

He smiled widely at you, "Don't hate me  _too much_ , okay?" Before you could ask what he meant, he leaned back so he didn't yell in your ear. " _Luke_!"

Your eyes widened at the sound of the four paws you had become so used to hearing running across the hardwood flooring of the kitchen and bolting into the room. You barely had time to drop to the floor before Brownie was jumping on top of you, licking your face over and over again.

" _Calum_!" you squeaked, aware that you were now crying in front of the three boys, but you really didn't care at that point.

You looked up as Luke walked into the room, instantly recognizing him as the guy that had come into adopt Brownie earlier that day. He was smiling at you – as the other boys were – while Calum moved to sit on the floor beside you.

You kept petting Brownie for a few minutes until she calmed down, curling up in your lap. You wiped the remaining tears of your face as you looked at your boyfriend, waiting for an explanation.

Calum smiled again, kissing your cheek, "Surprise."

"You guys actually adopted her?" you asked, looking around the room. They nodded.

"We've always wanted a dog and when Cal came to us a couple weeks ago and told us about Brownie and how you weren't able to take her, we knew we had to do something," Luke told you, "He told us your birthday was coming up, so we decided to adopt her so that when you came to meet us tonight, you would be surprised."

"Plus, we figured that if we did this, it would be harder for you to not like us," Michael commented, making you laugh.

"Yeah," Ashton chimed in, "And we want you to come over as much as you can to see her. She's just as much your dog as she is ours."

"But don't spend too much time with her," Calum pouted jokingly, "I still want your attention too."

"You're such a dick," you mumbled, laughing as you put your head on his shoulder. He chuckled, putting his arm around you.

"Happy birthday, babe," he said quietly, kissing the top of your head.

~

**Ashton**

It was 3:27am. You were awoken by a loud crack of thunder that sounded like it was right outside your window. You felt fingers lightly running through your hair and tilted your head up to look at your boyfriend. He smiled slightly at you and kissed your forehead.

"I was hoping that wouldn't wake you up," he said quietly.

"Did it wake you up too?" you asked.

"Yeah," he told you, "It started about an hour ago, so I've just been trying to keep you asleep." You smiled at him and leaned up, kissing his jaw.

A bright flash of lightning suddenly lit up the room and you closed your eyes tightly, waiting for the thunder. Ashton immediately pressed his lips to your left ear as his hand rested on the other, lowly telling you how much he loved you and that he wasn't going to let anything happen to you, until the thunder quieted down.

Ashton knew how you got during thunderstorms at this time of night. Truthfully, you absolutely loved thunderstorms, just not when it was dark out. During the daytime thunderstorms, you could be found sitting on the front porch, watching the strikes of lightning flash across the dark grey sky. But when it was dark, they absolutely terrified you.

So to help you feel safer, your boyfriend would pull you as close to him as he could and distract you until they were over. He had actually gotten pretty good at keeping you asleep, but every once in a while, the thunder would wake you up.

Sometimes, he spoke to you with his lips against your ear, as he was doing now, never expecting you to say something back. Other times, he would do the exact same thing but he would  _sing to you_  instead. Ashton knew that his voice kept you calm – and honestly, that made him happier than anything else in the world – so he would talk or sing your favorite songs to you over and over again until the storm passed.

You let out a warm breath against his collarbone, making him shiver. You couldn't help but smile at the effect you had on him even after nearly two years together. You pressed your lips to his jaw again, keeping them there for a moment.

"I love you, Ash," you whispered.

Ashton quickly tilted his head downward and replaced his jaw with his own lips. You used your elbow to push yourself up until your faces were right beside each other on the pillow so neither of you strained yourselves. He kept his hand on the side of your face, making sure your ear was still covered. You moved your right hand to lay on his side, gently running your thumb over the bumps on his skin caused by his rib cage, as you both tangled your legs together.

This went on for a while until you both needed to stop for air. You smiled against his mouth before you pulled away and that was when you realized that the storm had passed and it was quiet outside.

But when you and Ashton caught each others gaze again, he feverishly pushed you onto your back and climbed on top of you, kissing you roughly with absolutely no plan to go back to sleep any time soon.


	159. Secrets (Luke Hemmings)

One morning, you were in your bedroom, drawing up some new dress ideas for the queen, when there was a knock on your door. The person didn't bother to wait for an answer before coming in. You turned to look over your shoulder and saw it was one of the princes.

"Hi, Luke," you smiled at him.

"Hi, Y/N," he said shyly. He looked like he had just woken up – either that or he simply didn't bother to brush his hair yet. "Susie said you were gonna do my measurements today."

"Right," you nodded, remembering what the seamstress had told you.

Susie was an older woman – she had just turned 74 a couple months ago – and the queen had asked her to teach you how to make clothing so you could take over when she retired next year. You, of course, were more than happy to learn everything you could from her. You absolutely adored her work and you could only hope you'd grow to be as amazing as her.

"Are you gonna come in or not?" you giggled after you had grabbed your measuring tape and saw Luke was still standing at the door.

He slowly made his way into the room, stopping at the foot of your bed. You kicked your desk chair over to him, beginning to measure. You were talking with Luke when you heard a voice calling your name from down the hallway.

"Y/N!"

"My room, Jack!" you hollered, seeing him rush to the door a few seconds later. "Good morning," you smiled politely.

"Good morning! I managed to rip my shirt on a door hinge and I'm due to leave to accompany my father to his meeting with the Duke of Norway any moment," he said, "I won't have time to change, so I was wondering if you would mind helping me out."

"Of course not!" you said, motioning for him to come in as you kicked your chair over to your desk to grab your sewing kit. "Where is it?" you asked, rolling back over to him and standing up.

"Right here," he replied, taking off his coat and throwing it onto his little brother's lap. Luke jumped, not expecting the heavy coat to land on him. He glared at his older brother, knowing he was flirting with you simply because he was there.

"Tell me, Your Highness," you giggled quietly upon seeing the hole just below his right collarbone, "How does one manage to rip their shirt on a door hinge  _that close_  to their neck?"

"I might have dropped a bit of food," he answered honestly. You laughed loudly as you unbuttoned the first few buttons and pulled the fabric back so you could begin sewing.

"Why am I not surprised?" you teased. You were so close to him that you could practically feel his breath hit your forehead.

"Have I ever told you how beautiful you are?" he asked quietly, but made sure it was loud enough for Luke to hear.

"You've mentioned it a few times, yes," you nodded, blushing lightly.

"Good," he smirked, "Because I don't think you should go a day without being told."

"Thank you," you smiled.

You finished sewing and buttoned his shirt back up. You grabbed his coat off of Luke's lap and held it up. He turned, letting you put it on him. He buttoned it up himself and smoothed the fabric out.

"There," you grinned, "Good as new."

"Jack!" you heard the King call out.

"You're a life saver, Y/N," Jack said, taking your hand and lifting it up to his lips, kissing it before rushing out of the room, "Thank you!" You sighed quietly, turning back to see the annoyed expression on Luke's face.

"What's got you all riled up?" you asked him, putting your sewing kit back in the desk drawer and picking up your measuring tape from its current spot beside the Prince sitting on your bed.

"Nothing," he muttered.

"Like I'm buying that," you laughed lightly, grabbing his hands and pulling him back up, returning to getting his measurements. "Arms up," you ordered, him immediately obliging. As you measured his waist, you could feel his shaky breaths on your ear. "You okay, Luke?" you asked. He nodded slowly but before you could call him out for lying again, Luke's lady's maid, Brianna, rushed in.

"I apologize for barging in like this, Your Highness," she said, bowing to Luke, "But Mr. Lancaster is requesting Y/N's help right away."

"What's wrong?" you asked.

"Prince Jack's horse is acting up again," she shook her head, "He's wondering if you're able to come offer your assistance."

"Yeah, sure!" you chirped. You looked back at Luke, "Sorry, Luke. I'll see you at dinner, okay?" He barely nodded. "Brianna, could you get Susie to finish up his measurements for me?" you said over your shoulder as you hurried past her. She, of course, agreed and you ran out to the stables.

~

After Jack's horse had been calmed down and he and the King left for their meeting, you made your way back into the castle. You were walking to Luke's bedroom to see if Susie had gotten everything done when you heard Luke talking.

"Why does Jack always do that?" he sighed.

"Do what, dear?" you heard Susie ask him. You peeked around the corner and saw he was still getting measured. You moved back so they wouldn't know you were there.

"Flirt with Y/N in front of me... He knows I like her. I can see it in his stupid smirk every time I'm with them." Your heart started racing –  _Luke likes you?_

"Maybe you should tell her," she suggested.

"I can't tell her, Susie," he mumbled, "She flirts back all the time. She doesn't like me that way; No girl ever does. They all want either Jack or Ben."

You tiptoed back down the hallway and began walking back a bit more loudly so Luke wouldn't think you'd been listening.

"Miss Y/N!" you heard from the adjacent hallway, causing Luke's head to snap up.

"Yes, Mitchell?" you stopped at the door, looking over at him.

"The Queen has asked to see you," he informed you. You sighed lightly and nodded, following him as Luke watched you walk away.

~

Over the next few days, you hadn't really seen much of Luke. It wasn't that you didn't want to, it just appeared as though  _something_  had to interrupt you every time you went to visit him.

When you  _did_  get the chance to see him, Jack somehow always seemed to find out and ' _casually_ ' join the conversation. Until Luke mentioned it to Susie, you hadn't even noticed. But now that you were thinking about it, he really was getting in the middle of the two of you and now you knew why; Because Luke liked you.

You were walking down the hallway toward Luke's bedroom to wake him up when you were suddenly pulled into the storage closet. You let out a short squeak and looked up to see who had grabbed your arm. Jack was standing there with a look on his face you couldn't really read.

"Where are you going?" he asked, rocking back and forth on his feet.

"I was going to wake Luke up," you told him, "But then I was pulled into a closet." You raised your eyebrows, "Why are we in a closet exactly?"

"It's the only place I can talk to you without people around," he answered shyly.

"You know that if someone opens the door, they're gonna get the wrong idea, right?"

"What idea would that be?"

"That something is going on between us."

"Would that be such a bad thing if there were something going on?"

"Listen, Jack," you sighed, "I think you're a really great guy, but I don't like you like that. I'm sorry."

"You like Luke, don't you?" he asked, not even attempting to ease into the question.

Before you could respond, the closet door opened and you saw Luke staring back at you. He looked like he had just been punched in the stomach, making your heart drop.

"Luke-" He cut you off.

"Could you guys  _be_  any more obvious?!" he exclaimed. He started going back to his bedroom as you hurried after him.

"Luke," you said, "It's not what it looks like."

"Really? Because it looked to me like you were in a closet with my brother."

"Okay, it's what it  _looks_  like, but we didn't do anything! We were just talking!"

"Who ' _just talks_ ' in a closet, Y/N?!" he shouted, making you freeze. Luke  _never_  yelled at you. "If something is going on, you can tell me! We swore we'd tell each other everything, but you've been keeping secrets!"

" _Me_?!" you shouted back, angry he would try to put all the blame on you, "What about  _you_?! You're confiding into Susie that you like me and you have the audacity to yell at  _me_  for keeping secrets?!"

"Who told you that?" he spun around, his voice coming out as a whisper.

"No one," you said quietly, "I heard you talking to her the other day when I came back from the stable. You said Jack always flirts with me in front of you because he knows it makes you jealous."

Luke looked behind you and saw his brother watching the two of you, so he grabbed your hand and pulled you toward his room. You looked over your shoulder and saw Jack smile before turning around and walking in the opposite direction. Luke closed his door behind you and you leaned back against it as he paced around the room, waiting for him to talk.

"You know?" he finally asked.

"I know," you barely nodded. He looked at you with a confused expression.

"And you're not completely avoiding me?" You let out a small laugh, walking over to him and grabbing his upper arms, making him stop moving.

"Why would I avoid you for having feelings for me, Luke?"

"Because you don't feel the same," he muttered, looking down at his feet. You moved your hands to his cheeks, making him look back up at you.

"Who told you I didn't feel the same?" you asked softly.

"No one, I just... You always blush when Jack compliments you and I thought..." he trailed off, nervous at having you this close to him.

"Maybe you should stop assuming so much," you felt a smile pull at the corner of your mouth. You leaned in closer to Luke, stopping just before your lips touched. "Can I kiss you, Luke?" you whispered. He answered by leaning in the rest of the way, pressing his lips to yours as his arms snaked their way around your waist. "I love you, Luke," you said, causing him to pull away.

"Y-You love me?" he stuttered, "Y-You're not just saying that t-to make me feel better, a-are you?" You started laughing.

"Would I be kissing you if I didn't?" you joked.

"M-Maybe. It could be part of your plan."

"Slapping you is about to be part of my plan if you don't shut up and kiss me." He smiled sheepishly, reattaching your lips together.

"Y/N," he mumbled into the kiss, "I love you too."

~

_inspiration: http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/116888530458/lets-be-cliche-xd-can-you-do-the-thing-where-ash_


	160. Safe Haven (Calum Hood) - Part 1

Every Sunday afternoon, the Prince left the confines of the castle gates to go out into town before dinner. He loved getting out of the castle – he always felt it was so boring having to stay cooped up inside all day – but he loved interacting with the people in his kingdom even more. He loved getting to know all the shop owners and vendors around the kingdom and spending as much time as he could simply watching what they do for a living.

But this one particular Sunday, Calum was walking to the baker's shop when he passed an alley. He heard quiet voices coming from the dark shadows and peeked around the corner where he found you and your 14-year-old sister sitting against the wall. He signaled to the guard that was with him not to say anything while he quietly stood there, listening in to what was being said between the two of you.

"But you haven't eaten in three days," your sister said as you held a piece of bread to her. She had her arms crossed over her stomach, refusing to take it from you.

"Listen, Rosie," you said, "I promised Mom and Dad that I would keep you safe and there is absolutely nothing I won't do to  _keep_  that promise, okay?"

"You can't do that if you're gone too, Y/N," she whispered, pushing your hand toward your mouth.

"Ro-"

"You need to eat, Y/N," she said firmly, "Mom and Dad wouldn't be happy knowing you're doing this to yourself." You sighed, knowing she was right, and tossing the bread into your mouth. She smiled, hugging you tightly, "I love you, Y/N."

"I love you too, Rosie," you mumbled, wrapping your arms around her, "I'm gonna find a way to make life better for us again, I promise."

Obviously, the Prince had been faced with homeless people before and every time, he would do everything he could to help them get back on their feet. But there was something about you and the way you would sacrifice seemingly  _anything_  for your sister that made him want to help you two in the best way he could – he had a sister of his own, of course, and he felt the exact same way about her. He cleared his throat lightly, making yours and your sister's heads snap up.

"Hello," Calum said softly, "I couldn't help but overhear your conversation and I was wondering if you would allow me to get you something for dinner." You stared at him, suddenly self-conscious of the fact that the  _Prince_  was standing in front of you in your condition.

"That's very nice of you, your highness, but we-"

You were interrupted by the low growls coming from your younger sister's stomach. You looked at her and saw she had a pleading look on her face. You swallowed the lump in your throat and turned back to the Prince.

"We would really appreciate that," you said softly, "Thank you."

Calum offered his hands to the two of you. Rosie immediately took it and he pulled her up, but it took a moment for you to convince yourself. He smiled at you and it was like that was all you needed.

You put your hand in his and he brought you to your feet. You noticed that he held your hand much longer than he had held your sister's after she had gotten up. He started leading you toward the castle and you stopped.

"We're going to the castle?" you asked quietly.

"Well, yeah," Calum chuckled, "Where did you think we were gonna go?" You looked down at your dirty clothing and Calum's smile faded. "Why don't you-" He nudged Rosie toward the guard. "-go with him and your sister and I will catch up, okay?" She nodded, letting the guard take her into the palace. He walked over to you, put his arm around your shoulders, and began walking you toward the castle as he softly said, "You look beautiful. I'm not concerned about what your clothes look like and I know no one in my family will be either. No one deserves to go without food and you are no exception to that."

You felt your cheeks get hot and hoped he didn't notice, but knowing he did when you heard him laugh lightly which only made you blush even more.

"Jace," Calum said to a man walking by as the two of you entered the castle, "Will you please go tell the cooks that we'll be having two more join us for dinner?"

"Yes, sir," he nodded, scurrying off to the kitchen.

"You really don't have to do all this, Your Highness," you whispered as he led you toward the dining hall.

"Please, call me Calum," he said, "And I  _want_  to. Like I said, you don't deserve to be in constant worry of when your next meal is going to come."

He opened the door to the dining hall for you and you saw your sister already sitting down with the King, Queen, and Princess, talking with them as if she had known them her whole life. Calum pulled out the chair directly across from Rosie for you before taking a seat between you and his mother.

"Mom, Dad, Mali," Calum started, "This is Y/N and Rosie. I've invited them to have dinner with us if that's okay."

"Of course it is, Calum," the Queen smiled then glanced between you and your sister, "It's nice to meet you girls." You smiled shyly, looking down at your hands and playing with your fingers.

Dinner was brought out a couple minutes later. You ate at a slow pace despite the fact that you were practically starving – but you were in front of the royal family and you were  _not_  about to eat like an animal.

When the family was done with their meals, Calum asked to see them in the other room while you and Rosie finished up. The two of you looked at each other, silently deciding that you were both done eating and putting your forks down. You bounced your leg nervously as you waited for everyone to return.

When they did, they sat down again and the Queen looked at you intently.

"You really have nowhere to live?" she asked you. You looked at Calum, wondering what on earth happened in the other room. You shook your head lightly to answer her.

"After a bit of persuading from our son," the King said, "We would like to offer you a job here at the castle." Your and your sister's eyes widened as you looked at each other.

"You see," the Queen went on, "Calum and Mali's personal maids moved away last week and we've been trying to find replacements with no luck. Until now, that is. Of course, it is ultimately your choice whether or not you two want the job, but we would be very grateful if you agreed." You sat there in shock for a moment before quickly nodding your head. "Excellent!" she beamed, "We'll meet with the seamstress tomorrow to discuss getting new clothing made for the two of you, but for now-" She looked at her children. "-you two will show them around."

Calum smiled brightly, standing up. He offered his hand to you once again and you took it, letting him pull you up. He took you out of the room with Mali and Rosie following not too far behind. The two royals showed you and your sister around the castle before stopping in front of the library to finish off the tour.

"So I think that about covers everything," Calum said.

"The only thing left to decided is who's going with who," Mali commented.

"It doesn't matter to me," you said, your voice barely above a whisper. Rosie rolled her eyes at you.

"Well, Y/N won't say it out loud, but she can be your maid," she said, looking at Calum. You glared at her as she turned to Mali, "And I guess that means you're stuck with me."

"Come on," Mali laughed, "I wanna show you your room." She took Rosie's hand and pulled her away, leaving you and Calum alone.

"I guess that means you're mine," he chuckled. You stared at him for a few seconds.

"Thank you," you said quietly. He smiled, hugging you.

"You're welcome," he said into your hair before letting go of you, "Would you like me to show you your room too?"

"Um..." you trailed off, "If it's okay, I think I wanna go outside for a while."

"Sure!" he nodded, "If you need anything, just come fine me or Mali or someone." You nodded as well, turning and walking toward the doors at the end of the hall.

~

An hour or so later, you were still sitting on the railing of the castle's porch overlooking the garden, now watching the sunset. You were enjoying the peace and quiet when you heard someone walking up behind you. You turned your head to see Calum climbing over the rail to sit beside you, your shoulders just barely touching.

"May I ask what happened to you and Rosie?" he asked.

"I think you just did, Your Highness," you said quietly.

"Hey," he said softly, causing you to look at him, "I told you, you can call me Calum." You took in a shaky breath and felt your eyes start to get watery. Calum lifted his hand up and wiped your cheek. "If you don't want to talk about it, that's okay. I won't make you." You sighed as he took his hand back.

"A few months ago, when that disease was going around, my parents gathered up every spare penny they had to get Rosie and I the vaccine, but they couldn't find enough to get it for themselves," you sniffled. Calum grabbed your hand, holding it in your lap, letting you play with his fingers. "They didn't catch it until four months in. We all thought they just weren't going to get it, but when they  _did_ , it hit them hard. We barely had time to say goodbye," you choked.

Calum let go of your hand, only to replace it with his other as he draped his arm across your shoulder and pulled you into him. You smiled lightly before going on.

"I swore to them I would keep Rosie safe no matter what, but then we were kicked out of our house because I had just finished school and I couldn't find a job on time which obviously meant that Rosie couldn't continue school either because we couldn't afford to keep her there anymore. We got lucky because our dad was close friends with the bakery owner so he would give us any spare food he had and let us stay in the shop when it wasn't open so we could sleep, but I  _still_  feel like I'm not keeping my promise."

"Everyone needs a little help sometimes, you know," Calum said gently, rubbing small circles on your shoulder with his thumb, "I'm sure your parents are watching over you and are just happy knowing  _both_  of you are safe now." You looked at him for a few seconds before putting your head on his shoulder.

"Thank you, Calum," you mumbled into his neck. You felt him smile as he kissed the top of your head, but remained silent, simply holding you in a much needed hug.

~

_inspiration: i cannot for the life of me find the post but i know it was on http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/_


	161. Safe Haven (Calum Hood) - Part 2

**Eight months later**

You were making your way to Calum's room to wake him up – as you did every morning – when you saw he was already awake. You leaned against the door frame, watching him practice his waltzing for the royal ball that was fast approaching. He had his eyes glued to his feet and kept tripping over himself.

Once his hip hit the bedpost, you couldn't hold in your laugh anymore. You snorted quietly, making Calum spin around, not realizing someone had seen him.

"And what exactly is so funny?" he asked you, a teasing tone to his voice, as he rubbed his hip.

"You are, Your Highness," you smiled, fully walking into his room so you could begin your duties, "I'm merely here to do my chores. Just pretend I'm not here."

"You can say it, Y/N," he chuckled, throwing himself onto his bed, "I'm a terrible dancer."

"Your words, Cal, not mine," you winked, going to his closet to pick out his clothes for the day.

"Could you teach me?" he asked, sitting up and staring at you.

"I don't dance," you said, pulling a shirt off of its hanger and draping it over your shoulder as you grabbed a pair of pants as well.

"Now  _that_ -" Calum got up as you closed the closet doors and turned around, only to almost run into him. "-is not true. I see you dancing around these halls every night on your way to bed."

"Calum-"

"Please?" he gave you a shy smile, "The ball is in two weeks and I really don't want to have to take lessons from some middle-aged woman who will probably critique every little breath I take." You looked at him for a moment.

"Get dressed, Cal," you said, handing him his clothes, "Breakfast will be served in 10 minutes." And with that, you left the room.

~

On your way to your bedroom that night, you were, of course, waltzing with yourself slightly. Calum was leaning his door frame, smiling at you. He walked out into the hallway and tapped you on the shoulder. You spun around and were met with Calum looking down at his feet, his arms folded behind his back. You sighed and rolled your eyes.

" _Fine_ ," you said, holding out your hands. He grinned widely and put his hands in yours.

You took his right hand and placed it on the middle of your back, resting your own on his shoulder, and brought his left and your right hands up slightly higher.

"Please try not to step on me," you said quietly.

"No promises," he mumbled, suddenly nervous to have you so close to him.

"Just follow my lead," you instructed.

Calum nodded and you began dancing around the hallway in front of his room. He looked down at his feet for a brief moment, almost stumbling over himself. You took your hand from his shoulder and brought it to his cheek, lifting his head back up.

"Focus on your dance partner, Cal," you said, putting your hand back on his shoulder, "The more you're looking at what your feet are doing, the more likely you are to mess up." He gulped as he nodded, his eyes never leaving your face until you were done dancing. "That was good, Cal!" you smiled, letting go of him while he reluctantly let go of you.

"Well, you're a really great teacher," he said quietly.

"Tomorrow, we'll work on maintaining eye contact." He looked down shyly. "And I can already tell we've got a lot of work to do," you teased, "Goodnight, Cal."

"Goodnight, Y/N," he said so lowly that he wasn't even sure you heard him as you trotted down the hall. He let out a quiet sigh as you turned the corner into your room.

"Just tell her, Cal," he heard someone say beside him. He looked over and saw his sister standing at her bedroom door.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Mali," he mumbled, going into his room and closing the door behind him.

~

"What are you guys doing?" you heard Rosie giggle beside you.

"Staring contest," Calum answered.

"What's that got to do with dance lessons?" Mali asked.

"Everything," you said, "How did you know about that?"

"I saw you guys in the hall last night," she smiled, "How long have you been doing this?"

"What time is it?" you asked.

"10:35," Rosie told you after pausing to look at the clock on the wall behind her. Your eyes widened and you suddenly pushed your chair away from the table, breaking your eye contact with Calum for the first time in 20 minutes.

"I'm late for stable duty!" you shouted, getting up and running out of the room.

"Does this mean I win?!" Calum called after you.

"Absolutely not, Hood!" you called back just before you were outside.

~

"Alright, where are your CDs?" you asked Calum.

"My what?" he wondered.

"Don't play dumb, Cal," you laughed, grabbing his CD player from his dresser, "I know you've got a CD of waltzes around here somewhere. Come on; We need to practice with music."

"It's already in there," he replied sheepishly. You simply giggled under your breath, taking his hand and pulling him out into the hallway.

It seemed as though dance lessons had become part of your nightly routine. You two would meet in the hallway in front of Calum's bedroom and practice pretty much until one of you couldn't keep your eyes open anymore. You enjoyed spending the extra time with him though – especially since you would basically be pressed up against each other for nearly 10 minutes. Your heart was racing during every lesson, but you were glad you were able to hide it. Calum didn't need to know you had feelings for him. He was the Prince – next in line for the throne – and you were just his  _maid_ ; You knew you could never be anything more than that to him.

"Y/N," Calum sang, waving his hand in front of your face.

"Hmm?" you hummed, coming back from your thoughts.

"What are you thinking about?"

"Nothing," you shook your head, "You ready?"

Although he didn't believe you, he decided to let it slide. He nodded and you hit play on the CD player, beginning to dance to the music.

~

**Two weeks later**

" _Please_?" Calum whined.

"It's not proper for maids to go to the royal dances, Cal," you sighed, helping him get ready for the ball.

"Your sister is going," he pointed out.

"Rosie is  _14_  – she can get away with it. Plus, Mali threatened to  _disown herself_  if she couldn't go."

"Then I'll disown myself if you don't."

"No, you won't, Calum," you rolled your eyes, fixing his messy hair. He paused for a moment.

"Okay, I won't," he said, "But I still think you should go."

"No, thank you. I don't even have a dress. I'll just be a waitress or something." He groaned slowly as he looked at you in the mirror with a shy smile. " _Calum Thomas Hood_ ," you warned, " _Tell me you didn't_."

"I  _can't_ , because I  _did_ ," he said sheepishly, "Mandy has been working all week on it and you've got to at least  _look at it_  before you say no."

"Fine, I'll look at it," you sighed, putting his crown on his head, "But I'm still not going."

He grinned widely, hopping up and grabbing your hand, pulling you down the hall to the seamstress' room. He knocked a couple times before walking in, careful to keep you right behind him so you didn't see it yet.

"Hey, Mandy! Is it ready?"

"Hello, Your Highness," she smiled, "Yes! I really think Miss Y/N is going to love it!" Calum pulled on your hand and brought you out from behind his back so you could see the dress.

It was a beautiful mint green, floor-length gown with a silver band around the waist. It had an ombre effect with rhinestones going from the top hem to around the bottom one and you knew it must have taken Mandy  _hours_  of continuous work to complete it.

"So," Calum wrapped his arms around your waist and rested his chin on your shoulder, "What do you think?"

"It's beautiful," you whispered before shaking your head slowly, "I can't wear that, Cal. Things like that shouldn't be worn by  _servants_..."

"Come on, Y/N," he said in your ear, "Haven't you ever wanted to play princess for a night? Why not let  _tonight_  be that night?"

You stared at the dress for a moment before wiggling out of Calum's arms and pushing him toward the door.

"What are you doing?" he laughed.

"I'm not getting dressed with  _you_  in here," you said, closing the door behind him.

Mandy helped you get the dress on and even peeked out into the hallway for you. Once she gave you the all-clear that Calum was nowhere in sight, you ran to Mali's room where she was helping your sister get ready.

" _Whoa_ ," the two girls said in unison as you closed the door behind you.

"That's a  _good_  ' _whoa_ ', right?" you asked, a little out of breath.

Mali simply giggled, "Cal finally convince you to go?"

"Would I be wearing this dress if he  _hadn't_?"

"Touché," she nodded, "What do you need?" You pointed to your hair and she nodded again understandingly, "Got it. I'm almost done with Rosie."

When she was finished with your sister, Mali moved on to you. She loosely curled your hair and grabbed one of her silver headbands, placing it on your head with a few pieces of hair in front of it.

"Princess!" someone called as they knocked on the door.

"Come in, Jace!" Mali said. He opened the door.

"The royal family will be announced to the guests in 5 minutes and I've been sent to come get you," he informed her. She nodded, turning off her curling iron before she followed Jace out of the room.

"Has Calum already been taken downstairs?" you asked.

"Yes, Miss Y/N," he replied, "Do you need me to go get him?"

" _No_!" you said quickly, "I was just wondering."

Mali smiled, "I'll see you guys downstairs, okay?" You and Rosie nodded.

After they disappeared, you scrambled to put on the silver heels that Mali let you borrow and then you and your sister hurried to the ball room before the family was taken in.

~

You and Rosie were standing at the dessert table, desperately trying not to eat anything. Of course, the two of you did snag some smaller things, laughing quietly with the waiter who caught you, knowing he wasn't mad.

Finally, it was time for the royal family to be announced. First, the King and Queen came down the steps, then Mali, and finally Calum. Calum was looking around the room, trying to find any sign of a green dress.

When he finally found it, his eyes locked onto yours. You'd never seen the smile on his face get  _that_  big before. He headed straight toward you, immediately pulling you into a hug.

"You look absolutely  _stunning_ ," he said against your ear, making you shiver. You thanked him quietly as he let go. He was about to say something else when a tap on his shoulder interrupted him.

"Excuse me, Your Highness," Jace said, bowing lightly, "King David is requesting that his daughter be the first to dance with you." Calum let out a quiet sigh, turning back to you.

"Sorry," he said lowly. You shrugged, knowing it was to be expected that he wouldn't be spending too much time with you tonight.

As he was dancing with princess after princess, his footwork was  _actually_  embarrassing you. Mali had decided to take a break from dancing and was now standing with you and Rosie at the dessert table.

You groaned quietly, mumbling to Mali and Rosie, "Have I taught him  _nothing_?" They simply snickered, watching Calum and the Princess move around the dance floor.

"Sorry," Calum mumbled to the poor girl after stepping on her feet for the fifth time.

"It's alright," she smiled politely.

You just put your face in the palm of your hand. Whenever you were teaching him how to dance, he never  _once_  stepped on your feet and you couldn't understand why he was messing up so much  _now_.

When the song ended and the two let go of each other, you saw her let out a quiet sigh of relief. You, Mali, and Rosie couldn't help but laugh. Calum saw the three of you giggling in the corner of the room and walked over to you.

"What am I doing wrong?" he whined.

"What  _aren't_  you doing wrong would be easier to answer," Mali teased.

You chuckled at her response before putting your hands on Calum's shoulders and looked him in the eyes. You missed Mali and Rosie give each other a sly smile as you and Calum stared into each others eyes before you finally spoke.

"You see how you're keeping eye contact with me right now?" you asked. He nodded. "I told you, Cal: You need to do that with these other girls. You're too focused on your feet. Just look at her and let the music do the rest." He nodded again and took a deep breath in before going off to dance with another princess.

"Oh,  _come on_!" your sister whispered, elbowing your ribs. You let out a quiet squeak and looked at her.

"What?" you asked, rubbing your side.

"He's totally screwing up on  _purpose_!" Mali exclaimed under her breath, "He's so desperate to dance with you, it's just  _sad_  at this point!"

"There's no way he's screwing up on purpose," you shook your head, "He's probably just nervous because he's dancing with a bunch of princesses. Besides, I can't dance with him. I may be  _dressed up_  like a princess, but I'm still his  _maid_." Mali rolled her eyes and motioned for her mom to come over.

"Mum," she said, "Will you  _please_  make Y/N go dance with Cal?"

"Mali!" you squeaked, "I'm his maid! It's not allowed!"

"Who said it's not allowed?" the Queen laughed. You gave her a confused glance and she smiled at you, "Dear, I know he's been taking dancing lessons from you and there is no way he's that terrible by  _accident_. Now I  _order you_  to go dance with my son."

You groaned, "I  _hate_  when you guys do that to me."

Mali giggled lightly, pushing you onto the dance floor. You weaved through the dancing couples until you got to Calum.

"Excuse me," you said quietly to the Princess he was dancing with, "Do you mind if I take your place?"

"Not at  _all_!" she said rather quickly, letting go of him with a pained expression.

You gave her an apologetic smile as she hobbled away, startled when Calum grabbed your waist and pulled you into him.

"What are you doing out here?" he asked, taking your hand and beginning to dance with you.

"Saving the princesses from your two left feet," you winked, "And your mother ordered me to dance with you." He looked over and saw his mom, his sister, and Rosie watching the two of you with smiles on their faces. He rolled his eyes, knowing  _exactly_  what they were doing.

"Well," he smirked lowly, turning his head back to you, "Do these look like  _two left feet_  to you?" You finally realized he hadn't stepped on your feet yet.

"Mali was  _right_!" you whispered, hitting his chest lightly before returning your hand back to his shoulder, "You  _were_  faking it!"

"I was  _not_  faking it!" he said dramatically, "You just make me a better dancer. Maybe you should be my dance partner at these things from now on." You rolled your eyes.

"I can't, Cal," you told him, "I'm still your maid, remember? I don't even know why you had me come to this thing. I don't  _belong_  out here. I should be helping in the kitchen or something."

"I had you come because I  _wanted you here_ , Y/N," he said seriously, "You make me forget I'm royalty. You don't treat me like  _Prince Calum_ , you treat me like  _Calum_. You're not afraid to say what's on your mind or yell at me when I'm being annoying. I love spending time with you because you relieve the pressure on me just by being in the same room. I know you view yourself as just my maid, but I want you to be way  _more_  than that."

"Cal..." you trailed off.

"My parents already know how I feel about you, Y/N," he mumbled, "And if I didn't get their approval to be with you, I wouldn't be telling you all this."

"They're okay with you being with your maid?" you asked quietly.

" _Stop calling yourself that_ ," he chuckled in a whining tone, "I would much rather you start calling yourself my  _girlfriend_." You stared at him for a moment before letting go of his hand and putting it on the back of his neck, pressing your lips to his.

He brought you closer to him, smiling as the people around you stopped dancing and gasped, beginning to whisper amongst each other. You heard quiet clapping and instantly knew it was Mali and Rosie. You couldn't help but laugh just before you pulled apart. You looked around, noticing everyone staring at you.

You bit your lip lightly, "Maybe I should have waited to do that when there  _weren't_  a bunch of people around." Calum brought you back to him, kissing you again.

"Let 'em look," he smiled against your lips.

~

_inspiration: http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/116882196188/royal-5sos_


	162. Rescue Me (Michael Clifford)

**Warning: Car accident**

~

You woke up to the smell of smoke, the pain of a massive headache, and the faint sound of sirens in the distance. You could feel something dripping slowly down the side of your head, but you really didn't want to think about what it was. You moaned quietly, suddenly hearing the panicked voice of your best friend.

"Y/N!" Ashton's voice rang in your ears.

"Ash," you looked over to see him still sitting in the drivers seat next to you, "What's going on?"

"We-We got in an accident." You could tell he was freaking out, but he seemed to be doing a lot better than you were feeling. "A c-car ran the red light and hi-hit your side of the car. I'm s-sorry, Y/N..." he sniffled, "Are you okay?"

"I guess so," you shrugged, squinting your eyes due to the bright blue and red flashing lights coming toward you, "I can still feel my limbs if that's what you mean."

"This is not the time to be funny, Y/N," he couldn't help but chuckle, wiping his face with his sleeve.

"There's always time to be funny, Ash," you giggled quietly. The sirens kept getting louder and louder until it finally seemed like they were right in your ear. There were two ambulances and a firetruck coming up on the scene.

The paramedic from one ambulance rushed to examine Ashton while the one from the other came to you. He and his partner carefully lifted you out of the car and onto their gurney. They took you to the ambulance and put you in the back. One of them went to the drivers seat while the other stayed in the back with you. The paramedic grabbed your wrist and checked your pulse. He noticed it was going a lot faster than what it should be and your breathing sounded way too heavy to be a good sign.

"Why can't Ashton come?" you muttered as the vehicle started moving, feeling like you were about to cry and just wanting your best friend there with you.

"He's got another paramedic checking him out," the man sitting beside you said, quickly working to get your vital signs under control, "Can you tell me your name?"

"Y/N..." you said hoarsely.

He smiled slightly, "Hi, Y/N. I'm Michael. I'm gonna get you all fixed up and you'll be better in no time, okay?"

You squeaked quietly when you felt Michael put an IV in your arm. Luckily, he was good at what he does and got it in on the first try, but you still felt your eyes get watery due to the pain. You were starting to close your eyes and Michael had been a paramedic long enough to know that that was never a good thing.

"Y/N," he said quickly, "I need you to stay awake for me."

"I can't..." you trailed off.

"Yes, you can."

That was the last thing you heard before you blacked out.

Michael began to panic when he saw your arm go limp and fall next to your thigh. He wasn't sure why he felt this way – he had seen things like this happen more times than he could count – but something about you laying in front of him right now made him even more determined than he'd ever been to save someone. He hit the window that separated the back of the ambulance from the front.

"Drive faster, Derek!" he nearly shouted, "I'm losing her!" He felt the vehicle speed up, the sirens ringing in his ears as he desperately tried to keep you breathing. He was quick to get the oxygen mask on you and when you came back to a few seconds later, you heard Michael repeatedly mumbling to himself, " _Come on, Y/N, wake up_." You made a quiet groaning noise and he let out a deep breath.

"Michael," you whimpered, making his heart race, "I don't wanna die."

"I'm not gonna let you, Y/N," you remember him promising you just before you blacked out again.

~

When you woke up again, you were no longer moving and Michael wasn't there anymore. You were in a bright room and you knew you weren't alone because you could feel someone's head lying on your stomach. You looked down and saw your best friend with his face toward you, but he was sleeping.

"Ash," you tried to say, but your voice wouldn't give you anything louder a whisper. He didn't wake up, so you slowly picked your hand up and put it on the back of his shoulder, beginning to play with the ends of his messy curls. "Ashton," you said again. This time, he opened his eyes. He quickly got up, grabbing your face and pressing his lips to your forehead.

"Thank God," he mumbled as he pulled back, only to grab your hand and hold it tightly.

"How long have I been here?" you asked.

"Only a couple days," he said quietly, looking down, "I'm so sorry, Y/N."

"It wasn't your fault, Ashton," you told him, squeezing his hand, "That other guy ran the red light, not you."

"But I should have been paying attention," he sniffled, shaking his head, "If I had waited two more seconds-"

"Ash, what happened happened, but I'm fine now, okay?" He looked back up at you and nodded slowly, although you could still tell he would be beating himself up over this for a while.

Even though you took the most damage in the accident, nothing had been broken. You did have to get several stitches on your forehead due to broken glass flying at you, but other than that, you were what the doctors considered to be very lucky. Before they released you the next day, they told you that it was miracle you survived the crash, let alone that you left without a single broken bone.

~

**One month later**

"Ash," you said randomly while you two were sitting on your couch one movie night, "Don't you think we should reschedule that whole meeting your friends thing at some point?" He hesitated for a moment, making you sigh. "You can't keep being afraid of what happened forever, Ashton. You're one of the best drivers I know and like I keep telling you: It wasn't your fault. If it makes you feel better, I'll drive."

"No," he sighed, "You're right. We'll do it tomorrow, okay? Michael has the day off and I really want you to meet all three of them at the same time. Mostly because I want you to know what you're getting yourself into." You heart skipped a beat at the sound of Michael's name.

You would be lying if you said you didn't have a small crush on the paramedic that saved your life, but you definitely weren't going to get in another accident in the hopes of seeing him again. You thought it was unusual that you'd never seen him around town before – you would think a good looking guy with bleached hair would be hard to miss – but you hadn't. Honestly, all you wanted to do was thank him for what he did.

"Can they really be worse than  _you_?" you smiled sweetly, leaning on Ashton's arm. He rolled his eyes, laughing and shoving your leg before turning his attention back to the movie.

~

The next day, Ashton arrived to pick you up and you set off for his place. He was going as slowly as he'd ever gone before and it was actually starting to frustrate you.

"Ashton," you stated, "I'm going to die of  _old age_  by the time we get there. Can you  _please_  drive faster?"

"I am going the speed limit, Y/N!" he exclaimed, his grip on the steering wheel tightening as he approached a red light, "Speed limits exist for a  _reason_ , you know!"

"I can't wait until you're back to your old self again," you sighed, putting your elbow on the door and resting your chin in your hand.

After what seemed like forever, Ashton finally pulled into a driveway. You both got out and he led you to the door, opening it and letting you walk in first. You looked around, noticing how clean it was. From all the stories Ashton had told you about how sloppy his friends were, it was obvious that he made them do some serious cleaning before you got there.

"Guys!" Ashton called out, closing the door behind him, "We're here!"

A tall blonde stumbled out of the kitchen, holding a towel and a can of Pledge. His eyes widened when he realized this and he immediately threw the items to the side. They made a loud crashing sound as they hit the floor and he furrowed his eyebrows, letting out a breath.

"I didn't think that through," he stated, making you laugh.

Ashton rolled his eyes, "Y/N, this is Luke. Luke, Y/N." He looked back at Luke. "Where are Calum and Michael?"

"Michael is in the bathroom and Calum is-" Luke was cut off by someone running down the stairs. "-right here," he finished.

"Hi," Calum said, "You must be Y/N!" You nodded, smiling at him. Calum walked over to give you a hug as did Luke. "It's nice to finally meet you. Ash talks about you all the time."

"Good things, I hope," you chuckled.

"Mostly," Ashton teased. A couple more minutes passed and Ashton was clearly starting to get impatient with his third friend. " _Michael_!" he yelled up the steps, "She's not gonna care about how your hair looks! Can you  _please_  come down here already?!"

"Calm down, Ash," you giggled, "You did the same thing when you met my friends." Luke and Calum started snickering quietly, causing Ashton to glare at you playfully. " _Mostly_ good things, remember?" you smirked.

"Oh, come on!" he laughed, "You've gotta wait  _at least_  10 minutes before you start using things like that against me!" You stuck your tongue out at him as you heard footsteps coming down the stairs. " _Finally_ ," Ashton sighed as you turned around to face the person, "Y/N, this is-"

"Michael," you said, your eyes widening. His eyes widened as well.

"Y/N," he said quietly. Before you realized what you were doing, you hurried to close the five foot gap between the two of you and threw your arms around his neck. "You're okay," you felt him smile against your neck as he wrapped his arms tightly around your waist.

"What?" Calum whispered as he, Luke, and Ashton gave each other confused glances.

"You guys know each other?" Ashton asked. Michael squeezed you a bit before letting go.

"Not exactly," he chuckled, "I was the paramedic that took care of her after the accident."

"Saved my life," you corrected. He looked at you and tilted his head. "I blacked out twice and you kept me breathing, Michael." His heart started racing again when you said his name. "You can be humble about it all you want," you smiled, "But I wouldn't be here if it weren't for you."

"Wait," Luke interrupted, "So  _she's_ the girl you've been going on about for the past month?" Michael's cheeks started turning light pink.

"Why didn't you tell me it was  _her_?!" Ashton exclaimed, pushing his best friend's shoulder, but it was obvious he wasn't angry or anything.

"I didn't know  _you_ were the Ashton she was talking about!" Michael pouted, "I never saw you!"

"Mikey!" he laughed loudly, "How many Ashton's live around here and would talk to you about meeting a Y/N the next day because you were working? Do you think it was a coincidence that  _I_  was also in an accident that night?"

"I'm an idiot?" he replied with a small smile. You unintentionally let out a laugh, making him look at you. A grin started pulling at the corner of his mouth.

"Hey, guys," Ashton said randomly to Calum and Luke, "We should go to the kitchen for a little bit."

"What, why?" Luke asked as he was being ushered into the other room.

"Everyone looks thirsty," he mumbled, trying to subtly nod toward you and Michael but not doing very well.

" _Oh_ ," the two boys said in unison, realization suddenly hitting them.

You looked back at Michael when they left the room and noticed he was turning red again. There were about 10 seconds of silence before it was broken.

"Seriously, Michael," you said quietly, finding yourself nervous around him now that you were alone, "Thank you."

"I was just doing my job," he smiled sheepishly.

"There's gotta be some way I can repay you though," you shook your head, "I can't just let you go with a ' _thank you_ ' and pretend that's enough."

"You could let me take you to lunch tomorrow," he suggested shyly, becoming more interested in the bracelets on his wrist. You bit your lip in the hopes that it would keep you from smiling, but you knew it wasn't working.

"I would like that very much, Michael," you said.

"Really?" his head snapped back up and he was looking at you with a seemingly shocked expression.

You nodded and a bright grin replaced his shock. He put his arms around your shoulders and you automatically put yours around his waist.

"You look even more beautiful without a bunch of blood on your face," he said into your hair. You giggled quietly, happy he couldn't see your face because you knew you were blushing. "I haven't been able to stop thinking about you since that day."

"Me neither, Michael," you mumbled into his shirt, feeling him smile and hug you tighter.

~

_inspiration: http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/114804049763/paramedic-michael-completely-entranced-by-the_

 


	163. Like a Girl (Calum Hood) - Part 1

Being the only girl to make it on the high school baseball team in your junior year certainly made you the most talked about person in town. You had played softball ever since you were big enough to swing a bat without letting go of it, but you decided to try out for the boys' team simply because softball wasn't fast enough for you anymore. You dreamed of being one of the few girls playing in the major leagues one day and you felt like you weren't going to be challenged if all you were playing was slow-pitch.

To be quite honest, you hadn't expected to get on the team. There were a lot of guys – really amazing players – trying out as well, all laughing about the fact that ' _a_ girl _thinks she can make the team_ ,' but you were determined to prove them wrong.

And you did.

"Position?" Coach Lucas asked before looking up at who he was speaking to. He sighed, "Softball tryouts are on the  _other field_ , young lady."

"That's great, but I don't see why you're telling me," you stated.

"You're actually serious?" he raised his eyebrows.

"With all due respect, Coach, don't question me until you give me a chance." He stared at you for a moment.

"What position are you trying out for?" he finally asked.

"Pitcher," you answered.

"You're  _kidding_ , right?" one of the boys on the bleachers laughed. You gave him a glare, shaking your head. "Coach, she can't possibly be a  _pitcher_!"

"Why not?" you asked him, tilting your head.

" _You're a girl_!"

"I know this is your first time seeing one  _this close_ , so thank you for noticing," you shot back without hesitation. The black-haired boy beside him snorted quietly.

"What are you laughing at?" the redhead turned to his friend, narrowing his eyes.

"She's funny," he answered, smiling at you slightly.

"You know what, kid?" Coach Lucas said, bringing your attention back to him, "I'll give you a shot." He handed you the number 7, sending you to the bleachers to wait with everyone else.

"So you  _really_  think you can pitch?" the redhead leaned back since you were sitting a couple rows above him.

" _Michael_ ," the black-haired boy stated lowly, hitting his side.

" _I know I can_ ," you answered, taking the sticker and placing it on the thigh of your basketball shorts.

"How fast can you throw, 10 miles per hour?"

You simply chuckled, "I can promise you it's a  _little_  faster than that."

"Alright!" the coach announced, "Odd numbers are up to bat first, evens are out on the field!"

Michael immediately hopped off of the bleachers and went onto the field. He grabbed a glove and headed straight for the pitchers mound, looking at you and smirking. You rolled your eyes yet again, going to the dugout on the right side. When you noticed his friend was following you, you slowed your pace to let him catch up.

"Is he always so close-minded?" you asked him.

"Yeah," he answered honestly, chuckling again, "I'd like to say you get used to it, but you really don't. I'm Calum, by the way."

"Y/N," you smiled as you sat down beside each other.

"Y/N," he grinned slightly, "How long have you been playing baseball?"

"This is the first time I'm actually trying out for it," you replied, watching as the first person stepped up to the plate, "I've played softball my whole life, but it's just not fast enough for me. What about you?"

"Since freshman year," he told you, "I wanted to do something new, so I tried out for the team. Coach says my throwing arm needs a bit of work, but I can handle Michael's fastballs, so he made me catcher."

"Well, I hope you can handle  _mine_ ," you giggled lightly.

"Y/L/N!" Coach Lucas called, "You're up." You grabbed a bat and walked out to the plate.

Michael threw as hard as he could and you missed it. There was a person clocking the speed with a radar gun, announcing that the speed he was throwing the ball at was 68 miles per hour. The same thing happened the second time, causing the redhead to laugh.

"Bring it in, guys!" he said, having the outfielders move in, "I'm gonna let her have this one!"

You narrowed your eyes at him and began breathing slowly, putting all of your focus into where the ball was headed. He threw another fastball – you knew he wasn't going to give you a break – and you gripped the handle of the bat tightly, swinging as hard as you could.

The sound of the bat hitting the ball rang in your ears as it flew over everyone's heads and landed outside the fence. You ran around the bases, the players in the dugout cheering for you while the boys on the field watched you with wide eyes. As soon as your foot touched home plate again, you looked at Michael.

"Thanks for letting me have it," you smiled sweetly, returning to dugout to receive high-fives from everyone.

~

When it was finally time for the odd numbers to be on the field, you all grabbed your gloves and went out. Calum went to the catchers box and the two of you had a few practice throws before Michael stepped up to the plate. You simply smiled as he made fun of your throwing, shaking your head.

"Alright, Y/L/N," Coach Lucas said from his spot behind Calum, acting as the umpire, "Let's see what you've got." The kid with the radar gun gave you a thumbs up and you brought your arm back, throwing the ball. The moment the ball hit Calum's glove, he threw it off and rubbed his hand.

" _Ow_!" he laughed, looking at you.

"Sorry!" you squeaked, giving him an apologetic smile. The kid beside the coach was staring at the gun in disbelief.

"What's it say, Jackson?" Coach Lucas asked.

He let out a seemingly impressed chuckle, "83, Coach."

"Very funny, Zach," Michael scoffed, "What's the  _real speed_?"

"I'm not joking, Michael," he said, showing him the screen, "It says 83 right here."

"Well, it must be  _broken_ ," he scowled, taking his stance to bat again.

Calum threw the ball back to you and put his glove back on, ready for you to throw another pitch. Zach nodded and you threw. Michael missed it again.

"80," he announced with a smile. Michael started grumbling lightly.

"Would you mind letting up on the speed there, Y/L/N?" Calum chuckled, "Coach needs to see how well these guys can hit too. Plus, I'd like to leave tryouts in my  _own_  car, not in an  _ambulance_."

"Anything for you, Hood," you smirked, catching the ball when he threw it back to you.

~

**Two days later**

"Y/N!" you heard someone shout while you were standing at your locker that Monday morning. You didn't even have time to look up before Calum was crashing into you, hugging your waist. "Congratulations!" You were quick to grab the side of your locker before you fell over.

"What's going on?" you asked, hanging your jacket up and closing your locker door.

"Coach Lucas just put up the list!"

" _Already_?" your eyes widened.

"Yeah!" he said, letting go of you, only to grab your hand and run back down the hallway with you.

He led you to the bulletin board in front of the main office and let you squeeze your way through the crowd to see it. You ran your finger down to your name and across the page to read your position:  _Pitcher._

You squealed loudly, pushing your way back through the crowd. You threw your arms around Calum's neck, making him stumble back a bit.

"Sorry," you said shyly, quickly letting go of him and smoothing down your shirt.

"It's okay," he smiled, "I hope you hug me like that when we start winning games." You blushed lightly.

" _If_  we win," you stated.

"Well, with an arm like that, I'll be surprised if anyone ever even  _sees_  the ball coming at them," you heard a laugh behind you.

"Y/N," Calum chuckled, shaking his head, "This is Ashton, our shortstop, Luke, our left-fielder, and you already know Michael." You greeted Ashton and Luke, chewing on your bottom lip as you looked at Michael. He simply smiled at you, throwing his arm around your shoulders.

"Hey, no hard feelings," he said, "I can't  _wait_  to see the looks on all these guys'  _stupid faces_  when they see  _you_  walking out of the dugout." He and the boys began walking to the cafeteria to get breakfast, taking you with them.

"You've  _got_  to tell me where you learned to throw like that," Luke said as you all sat down at a table.

"Luke's got a hell of an arm," Calum told you, "He can throw it from the fence all the way to me, but he can't throw a fastball to save his life."

"I can too!" he exclaimed defensively.

"Throwing a  _fastball_  and throwing a ball  _quickly_  are two  _totally_  different things, dude," Michael joked, making you laugh.

"I dunno," you shrugged, interrupting the two boys bickering across from you, "I've just always thrown really fast, I guess."

"But Cal told us you've only ever played softball," Ashton spoke up, "Why wait until now to try out for baseball?"

"I can't even tell you how many teams I've tried out for growing up," you laughed again lightly, taking a sip of chocolate milk, "But no one ever let me play on the boys' teams because I'm a girl."

"Yeah, but a  _bad ass_  girl!" Michael said. You simply smiled as the warning bell rang, signalling that there were 5 minutes left until class.

"Shit," you said, getting up, "Sorry, guys, but Mrs. Henderson is gonna kill me if I'm late to class." They nodded, standing up as well, knowing what a hard-ass the Biology teacher was. "I'll see you later!" you called over your shoulder as you tossed your empty milk carton in the garbage and ran out of the cafeteria, missing the way Calum's eyes followed you until you were out of sight.

~

**One month later; Saturday morning**

The first game of the season had finally finally arrived. You were going against your top rivals and to say you were nervous was an understatement. It seemed like there was never a time when you were practicing – whether it was by yourself or with your team – but you were still afraid you were going to mess something up.

You were sitting in the dugout, waiting for the game to begin. You got there early and had been sitting there for the last 20 minutes, breathing in and out to calm yourself down. Not even your parents – who were proudly sitting in the front row on the bleachers – could convince you that you were going to do just fine. You had messed up your ponytail at least eight times already due to pulling at your hair.

As you were redoing it yet again, Calum walking into the dugout with Ashton, Michael, and Luke.

"Someone needs a pep talk," Michael chuckled the moment he looked at you.

"I'm fine," you stated dryly, staring at the field in front of you.

"Can you guys give us a minute?" Calum whispered as if you couldn't hear him. They agreed, going out onto the field to warm up with everyone else. He sat down beside you, but didn't say a word for nearly two minutes.

"So you're just gonna sit there and not say anything?" you huffed, finally looking at him.

He shrugged, "When you're ready to talk, I'm ready to listen."

You moved your hand back toward your head, but Calum grabbed it, pulling it back down to your lap and just holding it there, making your heart race.

"I've been here for 5 minutes and I've seen you mess up your hair more times than I can count on one hand," he said simply.

You let out a loud sigh, "Fine, I'm nervous."

"What are you nervous about? You're an amazing pitcher."

"That's the problem," you muttered, absentmindedly running your thumb back and forth on the back of his hand. "Everyone expects me not to screw up and I don't want to let them down. I wanna prove that Coach made a good decision by putting me on the team, but I'm not so sure I can do it anymore."

"Listen, Y/N," Calum started, "If Coach didn't think you could do it, he wouldn't have given you a spot in the first place. At this point, the only person you need to prove anything to is yourself because the rest of us  _know_  you can do it, okay?" You nodded slowly and he smiled. "Come on," he pulled you up, grabbing your glove and handing it to you as well as getting his own, and took you out onto the field, "Let's go warm up."

~

The coaches pulled all the players to the dugout before the game started for a pep talk. The captains went out onto the field for the coin toss and it was determined that your team was up to bat first. All of your teammates went before you and when it was finally your turn, the bases were loaded and there were two outs. Sensing your nerves and taking into account that Calum was on first base, Michael leaned over.

"You've got this, Y/N," he told you, holding up his fist. You smiled at him, hitting his fist with your own before grabbing your bat and walking out.

"It's a girl," you heard the other team whisper to one another.

" _A girl_?!" your eyes widened as you looked around, " _Where_?!" Everyone on your team snickered quietly – even Coach Lucas.

"Are you  _serious_?" the pitcher laughed.

"I'm  _standing here_ , aren't I?" you rolled your eyes, propping your bat on your shoulder.

"But you're a  _girl_!"

"Then I guess you shouldn't have any problem striking me out."

He smirked lightly, getting the play from the catcher behind you before throwing the ball. You purposefully missed it as well as the second one, figuring that you might as well give them a little show. Coach Lucas saw the slight mischievous grin on your face and knew what you were doing, so he was luckily not getting mad at you.

"Y/N!" Calum called from first base, "Would you quit teasing them and bring me home?!" You looked over to see him smiling at you.

"This one's for you, Cal!" you laughed, preparing to hit the ball.

The pitcher threw the ball as hard as he could and you finally stopped messing around. The ball slammed against the metal bat, causing a brief ringing in everyone's ears. They stood up to watch it go over the back fence as you threw the bat down and started running around the bases, giving your team four points. The other team members looked at each other in shock while you were practically skipping back to home plate.

"Y/L/N," Coach Lucas said, stopping you just before you made it into the dugout, "Stop teasing."

"That was good though, right, Coach?" you had an amused look on your face.

"Go get your glove," he chuckled, shaking his head and patting your back. You went back out onto the field, taking your spot on the pitcher's mound. The pitcher from the other team was up to bat first.

"Oh,  _that's cute_ ," he laughed, "She's the  _pitcher_  too."

"I wouldn't laugh so soon," Calum said, bracing himself for the fastball he knew you were going to throw to him.

"You got a crush on her? How adorable," he said loudly enough for you to hear as he rolled his eyes.

You threw the ball, sending it flying past him, causing him to jump slightly. He looked back to find that the ball was actually in Calum's mitt, leaving him confused for a moment.

"I agree," Calum smiled, more to himself than to the other boy, "She  _is_  adorable."

You did the same thing for the rest of the game, striking out every single player that came up to the plate, giving your team the first win of the season. When you were announced as the winners, Calum ran over, wrapping his arms tightly around your waist and lifting you up. You squealed lightly, but laughed while everyone else ran out from the dugout as well for a group hug.

After everyone had put all their bats and gloves in their respective dugouts, all the players lined up back on the field to high-five each other. You rolled your eyes as all the members of the other team raised their hand before it got to yours. You finally decided to put your hand down about halfway through the line.

"Wait," you heard Calum say behind you, stopping as he hit the last player's hand and turned around to look at all of them, "You're seriously not gonna high-five her?" The members of the other team shrugged with smug smirks on their faces.

"Cal," you said quietly, barely tugging on his arm, "It's fine. Just let it go."

He went on anyway, "So you're not gonna respect her because she struck every single one of you out? Because she hit every single pitch you threw at her over the fence? Because she's a better baseball player than you? What is it?"

"She's not a better player," the pitcher spoke up, "Girls don't  _belong_  in this game."

"I'm sorry," Michael said, "Did you miss the part where she struck every single member of your team out or have you guys repressed that memory already?"

"Guys," you interrupted, "Just go back to the dugout, please." The other members of your team, although upset as well that you were being treated unfairly, respected your request and walked away.

"But they're being assholes!" Michael exclaimed, looking over at you.

"I know they are, Mikey," you nodded, "But that's not gonna change the score, so can we  _please_  just go out and celebrate our win?"

You were practically begging at this point, making Michael sigh and go back to the dugout with everyone else. Calum was still staring down the pitcher, so you wrapped your arm around his waist and started pulling him away. He immediately draped his arm across your shoulders and pulled you into him.

"Thanks, Cal," you said, laying your head on his shoulder. He kissed the top of your head and sighed.

"Sorry," he told you as you let go of each other to get your stuff, "I don't know what came over me."

"We're teammates, Y/N," Ashton said, hugging you from behind, "We've always got each others' backs."

"Especially when that teammate managed to show up our rivals," Luke chimed in, holding his fist up. You giggled quietly, bumping fists with him as you walked out to the bleachers.

"I'm so proud of you!" your mom beamed.

"My little girl's first no-hitter!" your dad hugged you tightly.

" _Dad_ ," you muttered, although you couldn't keep the smile off of your face, "Not in front of the guys." All the teammates that were paying attention awed dramatically at you and your parents.

"This truly is a Kodak moment," Michael sighed, walking over to you with Luke, Ashton, and Calum.

"I'm jealous," Calum nodded, "I'm simply jealous."

"Good game, loser," a girl said, walking up him with another woman.

"See?" he looked at you, "This is what  _I_  get when we win."

"I wouldn't say ' _we_ ' as much as I would say she  _totally_   _dominated_ ," she grinned, holding her hand up to you. You laughed, high-fiving her.

Calum rolled his eyes, "Y/N, this is my sister Mali and my mum Joy." You smiled at them. "The team is going out for pizza," he told them, "And I'm gonna be at Luke's place with the guys after, okay?"

"Sure," his mom nodded, "Are you staying for dinner or should we wait for you to get home?"

"You know my mum, Joy," Luke interjected himself into their conversation, "He's probably staying." She laughed lightly in agreement.

"We'll see you later then," she said, giving Calum a hug, "If you won't be home before dark, call. Love you."

"Love you too, Mum," he grinned, giving his sister a hug as well before the two women left.

"Call me when you're done at the pizza place so I know when to come pick you up," your dad said.

"I'd be happy to drive her home, sir," Calum offered. You gave your father a look – one of both pleading to accept and to not completely embarrass you.

He nodded, "Thank you." He gave you a hug as did your mom. "Let me know if anything changes," he told you, taking your bag from you so you didn't have to take it with you. You nodded quickly and he and your mom left you to hang out with your friends for the rest of the day.

~

You ended up going with the Calum and the boys to Luke's house. You texted your dad to let him know you wouldn't be home until later and you followed them inside.

"Mum! Dad!" Luke called out, "You guys home?"

"Yes, dear!" his mother called back from where you were assuming the kitchen was.

The boys led you into the room where you found her and Luke's father pouring lemonade into four glasses. You and the boys sat down at the counter as she looked over and saw you.

"Oh!" she exclaimed, "I'll have to make some more lemonade!" You opened your mouth as she got another glass and started making more of the drink, but Calum stopped you.

"There's no point in objecting," he said, leaning down so he was talking in your ear, "She's going to give it to you anyway." You giggled quietly, making him smile.

"So you must be Y/N then," Luke's mother beamed, "I'm Liz and this is my husband Andy." You smiled politely at them.

"We've heard a lot about you," Andy chuckled, "Sorry we couldn't make it to the game. How did you guys do?"

"We  _totally_  crushed them!" Michael shouted excitedly, "Y/N struck every single person out and every time she went up to bat, she hit home runs! It was  _awesome_!" You blushed lightly, honestly a bit embarrassed to have people bragging about you.

"Man, I'm sad I missed that. We'll definitely be at the next game though."

"No pressure," you muttered with a joking tone, making everyone laugh loudly.

Liz brought the drinks over to you guys and you thanked her, sipping it as the boys talked with Andy about the game, not really having much input. You were perfectly content with simply listening and admiring the fact that you had finally found people who were as passionate about baseball as you were.

You were brought out of your daydream when Calum nudged your ribs lightly. You look at him and he gestured for you to look behind you. You looked over your shoulder and out the back door to see a hammock in the corner of the yard. You turned back and nodded. He hopped off of his chair, taking your hand and pulling you outside, but not before hearing the quiet snickering from your other three friends.

You squeaked as you plopped down, giggling lightly as you and Calum situated yourselves in the middle of the hammock. You were lying beside each other – it was obviously difficult for one not to be on top of the other, but you finally made it work.

"Seriously," Calum said quietly, filling the silence between the two of you, "You were amazing today."

"Thanks, Cal," you smiled, "And thank you for helping me get over my nerves. I don't think I could have done it without you." He went quiet for a few moments, making you look up at him. "What's on your mind, Cal?"

He sighed lightly, "Did you happen to hear what the other pitcher said after you threw the first strike?"

You thought about lying; You thought about saying no because it was obvious it was something that was making him nervous. But you just nodded slowly instead.

"He's right, you know," he said, "I  _do_  like you. I was going to tell you at some point anyway, but then he said that and I figured now would be a good a time as any. It's okay if you don't feel the same; I just needed to get that off my chest." You felt a smile pull at the corner of your mouth and you repositioned yourself to rest your head on Calum's chest.

"And if I do?" you asked him, hearing his heartbeat quicken. His breath caught in his throat and he struggled slightly to get his words out.

"Will... Uh... Will you be my girlfriend?" he finally asked.

"I don't have any problems with that," you smiled, wiggling closer to him. He wrapped his arms around you and he let out the smallest sigh of relief as he smiled into your hair. "Wait," you said suddenly as you tilted your head to look at him again, "Actually, there is  _one_  problem."

"What?" Calum asked worriedly.

"Whose letter jacket do I wear?" you smirked, causing him to roll his eyes as he laughed and kissed your forehead.

 


	164. Like a Girl (Calum Hood) - Part 2

**Nine months later**

"Cal!" you squeaked, running ahead of your parents to hug your boyfriend.

"Hey, babe," Calum smiled, kissing the side of your head as he hugged you back tightly.

"I never wanna go on vacation ever again," you pouted, nuzzling your face in his neck, breathing in the scent you'd been missing so much. Your parents laughed quietly as they sat down on the bleachers.

"We were gone for a week, honey," your father commented.

"And need I remind you that you were on the phone with him for  _most_  of that time," your mom teased.

"But it wasn't the  _same_ ," you whined, making the boy you were holding onto chuckle.

"Well, you're back now," Calum grinned. You smiled against his skin before releasing him so you could go throw some practice throws before the game started.

It was the last game of the season and you and the boys were pumped. Your team was 24-0 despite the fact that the only no-hitter you ever had was that very first game. You felt that  _actually playing_  the game was more important than – as Michael put it –  _crushing the competition_ , so you began letting up on your speed ever since. As far as outs went, you were virtually immune to getting them – always managing to make it home before anyone could touch you.

Once the game had gotten started, everyone was in the zone; Everyone except Calum that is.

You couldn't help but notice he hadn't hit a single throw which understandably made you a little worried. It wasn't like him not to be focused on a game, especially not to the point where he literally wasn't hitting any pitches.

~

After his turn in the fourth inning, Calum came back into the dugout with an annoyed look on his face. He hadn't hit anything yet again and it was clear he was growing more and more frustrated each time. He plopped down on the bench next to you, refusing to look in your direction. You put your hand on his thigh, but he shook it off.

"Cal," you said softly, but he wouldn't look at you. He was clearly not angry at you, but it made you sigh lightly anyway. He started chewing on his bottom lip when he saw your defeated expression out of the corner of his eye as you went back to your conversation with Michael, but he still didn't acknowledge you.

~

It was the ninth and final inning and your team was down by one point. It was really down to the wire and you were up to bat. As you walked out of the dugout, you heard Michael slide over and slap Calum.

"Don't be mad at her," he said firmly, "She hasn't done anything wrong." You couldn't help but smile at him defending you, but your game face was back on as you stepped up to the plate.

You hit the ball, but were unable to send it over the fence. You made it to third before you stopped running, knowing you wouldn't have been able to make it home.

"Hood!" Coach Lucas called, "You're up!"

"Are you sure you can't have Ashton or someone else go instead?" Calum mumbled. Coach Lucas shook his head and motioned for him to get onto the field. Calum gulped as he slowly stood from his seat.

This meant he was the last person that would go up to the plate in this game and he knew it was all on him if you guys didn't win. He grabbed his bat and swallowed harshly, walking out onto the field. He had gotten two strikes before the pitcher suddenly realized something.

"Guys!" he gasped in amusement, winking at you, "This is gonna be the first time their star player doesn't make it home!" His teammates cheered in response and you immediately looked at Calum.

He looked so disappointed and angry – both at himself for being the one that ruined your scoring streak and the members of the other team for looking at you the way they were. The pitcher was about to throw the ball, but you stopped him.

" _Wait_!" you shouted, making everyone look at you. You quickly gestured for Coach Lucas to come over and he ran across the infield.

"What's wrong?" he asked, his voice full of worry.

"If you call time out, am I allowed to go talk to Cal?" you asked quietly. He furrowed his eyebrows for a moment.

"Let me see," he said before hurrying to the umpire.

Calum wasn't even paying attention to what they were saying; He was just looking at the ground, aimlessly pushing dirt around with the end of his bat. It wasn't until the umpire called a time out and motioned for you to come over that he looked up. He saw you running to him and looked at you in confusion as you grabbed his hand and pulled him to the fence behind the catcher.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled as soon as you stopped and spun to face him, becoming shy knowing that all eyes were now on him and his girlfriend, "I'm not mad at you, I swear. I feel like such a shitty boyfriend. I can't believe  _I'm_  gonna be the one to ruin yo-"

"Cal," you said softly, putting your hands on his face and making him look at you, "Being upset doesn't make you a shitty boyfriend and having one bad game doesn't make you a shitty player. You're just having an off day and there's nothing wrong with that."

"But this is gonna be the first time you never get to home plate." The look on his face was breaking your heart.

"I don't care if I don't make it home," you told him, "What I care about is you leaving this field in the same mood you walked onto it in. And that's not gonna happen unless you understand that no matter how the score comes out, the boys and I are not going to hold it against you."

"You'll still love me even if I make us lose?" he asked.

"Nothing will ever make me  _stop_  loving you, Cal," you smiled slightly, pressing a soft kiss to his nose. He whined, thinking you were going to kiss his lips, making you laugh. "I love you, Hood," you promised him, "Touching home plate is nothing compared to you."

"I love you too, Y/L/N," he muttered, kissing your forehead and letting you pull him back to home. You quickly thanked the umpire and ran back to third, ready for the game to start back up.

"This is gonna be  _so good_ ," the shortstop beside you laughed, causing the pitcher to smirk.

Calum looked at you one last time. You smiled reassuringly at him and he took a deep breath, stepping up to the plate. He gripped his bat tightly, concentrating on hitting the ball. He hit the ball as hard as he could, making it hit the back fence and bounce a few times. Everyone kind of just stood in their spots, surprised he hit it, when you heard a voice from your dugout.

" _Run, you idiots_!" Michael shouted.

You and Calum glanced at each other, smiling widely before breaking into a run and racing toward your respective plates. When you touched home, people in the stands cheered as you tied up the game. You finally came to a stop at the entrance of the dugout, spinning around and anxiously waiting to see if Calum could make it to score the winning point. He was running faster than he'd ever run before – almost to the point where you were scared he might actually hurt himself in some way.

Your teammates jumped from their seats and lined the fence from inside the dugout, watching with you. Michael ran out, throwing his arm around your shoulders as he came up behind you and whispering a ' _thank you_ ' in your ear for whatever you had told Calum. You smiled slightly, but it disappeared when Calum rounded third and the pitcher had just gotten the ball.

He quickly threw it to the catcher as Calum was diving for the base. You could practically sense everyone stop breathing as they waited for the dust to clear and for the umpire to make the call.

" _Safe_!" he shouted. Calum breathed a heavy sigh of relief and smiled widely as he scrambled to get back on his feet.

You let out a short squeal, wasting no time in running to him, jumping up and throwing your arms around his neck as your legs went around his waist. The relatives and friends of you and your teammates started cheering again as Calum hugged you back.

"There's  _no way_  he was safe!" you heard the pitcher shout while your other teammates ran out for a group hug.

"I'm closer than you are, kid," the umpire replied, "He touched home before your catcher put the ball on him."

"I told you so," you giggled, half because of the argument going on beside you and half simply because you were happy for Calum.

"I love you," you felt his lips brush against your skin with every word.

"I love you too, Cal," you said, picking yourself up to look at him, "Win or lose." He hugged you tighter, bringing you as close to him as you could possibly get, and pressing his lips to yours. Your teammates jokingly started gagging, making you both laugh and pull away.

You hopped back down to your feet and wrapped your arms around his waist as you all made your way back to the dugout since it was clear that the other team wouldn't be lining up for the high-fives. Calum put his arm around your shoulder and kissed the top of your head before you all went to greet your family members.

"Oh my God!" Mali exclaimed, punching Calum's upper arm, "You almost gave me a heart attack!" He chuckled lightly, rubbing the spot where she hit him. "And  _you_ ," she sighed, looking at you. She put her hands on your shoulders and shaking you slightly, "You are the  _best thing_  that has  _ever_  happened in the history of  _forever_." You scrunched your face up.

"Thank you," you giggled with a questioning tone as she let go of you.

"My brother is  _nothing_  without you."

"Okay, Mali," Calum laughed, "Cut down the dramatics a bit." His arm found its way around your waist, pulling you into him. "She's right, you know," he whispered in your ear, making you turn a light shade of pink. You pressed a quick kiss to his upper jaw before laying your head on his shoulder.

"You guys are coming over for the barbecue too, right?" Liz asked your parents.

"Wouldn't miss it," your dad chuckled, "Can't keep a close eye on these two lovebirds if I'm not there, now can I?"

" _Dad_ ," you groaned, burying your face further in your boyfriend's neck. Calum smiled, kissing your head again before you moved away.

"Oh, don't worry," Joy smiled, walking over and putting her arm around your shoulders, hugging you from the side, "I already watch her like a hawk when she comes over." You couldn't help but giggle, leaning into her.

"Love you too, Joy," you sighed dramatically.

As she let go of you, Calum's arms were back around your waist, pressing your back against his chest and resting his chin on your shoulder. Everyone was wrapped up in their own conversation that they didn't hear what you and Calum were saying to each other.

"How about when we get to Luke's house, you and I sneak into the living room and make up for lost cuddles?" You could just  _hear_  his smirk.

"I think I'd be up for that," you smiled, laying your head back on his shoulder, "Wouldn't want you to go without cuddles for too much longer. You might actually die."

"Well, it's like Mali said," he kissed your jaw softly, "I'm nothing without you."


	165. Attention (Marshall Traver)

You were lying on the couch with your boyfriend watching TV. He was texting, but his arm was still under your head, making a nice pillow. You were nearly asleep when you felt him carefully lift your head up so he could take his arm back before he got up and walked out of the room.

When he came back a few minutes later, you heard the sound of him picking up his car keys.

"Where are you going?" you asked, looking at Marshall through heavy eyelids.

"The boys want to go see a movie," he said, walking over to you. He kissed your forehead and went to walk away again, but you grabbed his hand.

"I thought you were gonna stay in tonight," you muttered, a slight pout on your face.

"That was before someone made plans."

"We made plans."

"To do what?"

"Stay home," you whispered.

"I'll come back as soon as the movie's over, okay?" he told you, "Then we can do whatever you want."

You started biting your inner cheek as you nodded slowly, making him sigh. Marshall pulled out his phone and quickly texted someone.

"What are you doing?" you asked quietly.

"Letting Cody know I can't make it," he replied with a slight smile.

You could tell he didn't seem thrilled about it though. He put his phone back in his pocket and his keys on the end table before lying back down on the couch next to you, pulling you into him.

"Happy?" he asked.

"No," you sighed.

"Why not? Isn't this what you wanted?"

"Not when you're mad at me," you muttered, wiggling out of his arms and standing up, walking out of the room.

"I'm not mad at you, Y/N," he said, but didn't get up to go after you.

You sent Cody a text of your own and within less than 10 minutes, there was a knock on your apartment door. You hurried to open it before Marshall could get up. The second he saw you, Cody instantly knew something was wrong.

"Are you okay?" he asked, making Marshall get up.

"I'm fine, Cody," you said softly.

"What are you doing here?" Marshall asked, coming up behind you, "I thought I texted you and told you I couldn't come after all."

"You did," he nodded, a confused tone in his voice, "But Y/N told me to come get you anyway. Is everything alright?"

"Y/N-" You cut Marshall off.

"It's fine, Marshall," you shook your head, "Go out with the guys. I'll be here when you get home. Have fun." You hurried into the kitchen, leaving the two boys there in confusion.

**Marshall's POV**

"Seriously," Cody said, "What's going on?"

"Nothing," Marshall answered, "I told her I was gonna go out and she said she wanted me to stay, so I was going to."

"She texted me saying that you were mad at her and she wanted me to come get you anyway."

"I'm not mad at her!" he defended. Cody raised his eyebrows at his best friend, making him sigh. "Okay, I'll admit I didn't use the  _nicest_  tone I could have, but I just wanted to hang out with you guys."

"Talk to her," he ordered, "I've known her since she was born and there's a lot more going on than her just wanting you to stay home tonight. I'll see you later, man." Cody called out a goodbye to you as well before leaving.

**Your POV**

"Bye, Y/N!" you heard Cody holler before the door close and footsteps starting coming toward the kitchen.

You were standing with your elbows resting on the counter top and your face in your hands. You felt arms wrap around your waist gently as Marshall pulled you into him once again.

"Babe," he said in your ear, "What's wrong?"

"I thought you wanted to go out," you said lowly.

"Not when you think I'm mad at you."

"But you  _are_..." your voice shook.

"No, I'm not," he kissed your cheek, leaving his lips on your skin for a few seconds, "If there's something I'm doing wrong, please just tell me so I can stop doing it. I hate when you shut me out like this."

"It's stupid," you muttered, more to yourself than to him.

"It's not stupid if it's making you upset."

You wiggled around a bit, causing Marshall to release you so you could turn around to face him. You leaned back against the counter and looked down, your eyes focusing on the design on his shirt as you played with the bottom hem so you didn't have to look at him.

"You don't spend time with me anymore," your voice came out as a barely audible whisper, "You're always out with the guys or one of them is always over here and the only time I get you to myself is when we're in bed and I don't really count that because we're not awake."

"Babe," he said softly, putting his hands on your cheeks and lifting your head up, "Why didn't you just tell me when you started feeling that way?"

"I didn't want you to get mad at me for wanting you to stay with me," you choked lightly, "You always say you don't like clingy girls and I don't want you to not like me anymore."

His heart dropped at the sight of you trying to hold yourself together. You hated crying in front of people – especially him – and knowing that something he had inadvertently done was getting this kind of reaction from you broke his heart.

"I'm sorry," he murmured, wiping the few tears that had fallen down your cheeks, "There's nothing wrong with wanting to have more alone time with someone, Y/N, and I'm sorry I haven't given you as much attention as I should be. But I love you so much, okay? I promise I'm gonna be better at showing you that." Your bottom lip quivered lightly and Marshall leaned in, pressing your lips together.

~

_inspiration: n/a but i didn't come up with this myself_


	166. Desperate (Michael Clifford) - Part 1

"Alright," you said, handing the boy in front of you his change, "And your name?"

"Will Smith," he smiled, hurrying away before you could respond. You rolled your eyes and wrote his name on the cup, beginning to make his drink.

When you were finished, you rolled your eyes again, knowing you would have to call his ' _name_ ' out loud. You let out a sigh before projecting your voice toward the direction the blue-haired boy ran off to.

"Will Smith!" you called out. He came trotting around the corner with the biggest smirk on his face, but it quickly faltered when you handed him the cup.

"This isn't my cup," he said, looking back up at you.

"Yes, it is," you nodded, "I wrote Michael, but it's pronounced Will Smith, trust me." You saw a smile start pulling at the corner of his mouth, but he was obviously trying to keep it from showing. You leaned onto the counter, motioning for him to do the same. "Little word of advice," you whispered, your faces inches away from each other, "If you want to convince the barista that your name is  _actually_  Will Smith, make sure that one of your friends didn't come in two hours earlier and try the same thing."

He chuckled quietly, nodding his head, "It was Calum, wasn't it?"

"It was," you grinned, moving back, "Oh, and if Luke or Ashton want a clear shot at it, I suggest coming in on weekends between 2 and 8. Anna – she's got bright blonde hair and always wears it in a messy bun – is new to town and doesn't really know anyone yet, so you'll probably have a better shot with her for at least two months."

"Thank you," he smiled, "When do you work?"

"10 to 6 on weekdays," you answered.

"Great. I'll see you tomorrow then," he bit his lip, turning around and walking out the door.

" _Absolutely not_!" you heard someone shout from across the coffee shop.

Your head snapped over to see your best friend heading straight for the counter. She stopped abruptly in front of you, slamming her palms down and making you take a step back.

"Addison? How long have you been here?" you asked seeing as you never saw her come in.

"Long enough!" Her voice was drastically lower as she reached over the counter and pushed your shoulder. "What were you doing flirting with  _Michael Clifford_?!"

"What? Does he have a girlfriend now?"

"No, but-"

"Then I don't see the harm in flirting with him."

"But with  _Michael Clifford_ , Y/N?!  _Really_?!"

"Yes, Addie, with  _Michael Clifford_."

"You know his rep, Y/N! He's a total jerk and hasn't ever kept the same girl around for more than a week! He's like the Taylor Swift of this town!"

"First of all, the amount of people you date does not determine your worth," you started, wiping the counter, "Secondly, I never said I was going to hook up with the guy; I was just flirting. Third, I am well aware of his reputation. We had at least one class together every semester of senior year. Fourth, he's kinda cute. Why not have a little fun?"

"Don't be fooled by his good looks, Y/N!" She was practically begging at this point. It was starting to get sad. "He's like that one piece of chocolate in the chocolate box that you thought was caramel, but was really coconut. He may look cute and sweet and innocent on the outside, but on the inside, he's a disaster and makes you wonder what type of person could hate the world so much that they had to spawn another person just to make it a shittier place."

"I know he's not the nicest person around here, but that's a little harsh, Addison," you said, raising your eyebrows at her, "Besides, you've never even spoken to him. How do you know everything everyone says about him is actually true?"

"How do you know it  _isn't_?"

"I don't judge a book by its reviews, Ad," you shrugged.

"Well, that  _book_  is gonna get into your head and take up every waking thought and you're gonna be too far in by the time you realize it." You rolled your eyes.

"Goodbye, Addison," you waved her off, getting back to your job.

~

The next morning, when you arrived at work, Michael was already there, leaning against the brick wall beside the door. You were usually the one who opened and closed the shop, but you were surprised to see he had actually meant he would see you at opening.

"Michael?" you said, walking up to where he was standing at the door, "I know you said you'd see me tomorrow, but this is a little desperate, don't you think?" He smiled upon hearing the obvious teasing tone in your voice.

"Pretty girls make me do desperate things," he smirked. You rolled your eyes as you unlocked the door, Michael following you inside.

"So why might I have the pleasure of taking your interest all of a sudden?" you asked, grabbing your apron off of its hook and turning back to where Michael was now sat at the counter as you put it on.

"Haven't seen you around," he shrugged, "And I think I would remember seeing someone as beautiful as you." You sighed quietly, making him tilt his head.

"Senior year, first semester, second period History," you stated, grabbing a towel and walking out from behind the counter so you could wipe off the tables. Michael followed close behind.

"Sorry?" he asked.

"You sat in the back and I sat in the front, but there's no way you've never seen me," you told him, "You weren't exactly quiet about the remarks you made every time I walked into the room."

"Wait..." His voice was dangerously quiet. "That was  _you_?"

"It was," you nodded, "But I don't blame you for forgetting. It's a lot easier to forget about it when you're not the one that was being made fun of every day."

"Y/N, I didn't-"

"If this is some sort of trick into getting me to fall for you just so you can parade around saying you've officially slept with every girl in the city, it's not going to work," you looked at him, your tone threatening him, "I may be a lot better looking than I was back in high school, but I'm not as clueless. And you may have been the guy that could get any girl he wanted at the drop of a hat, but it's not going to work on me."

"Y/N-"

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a job to do."

You rushed back behind the counter and went to the back. You really did have to go get more napkins and stirring sticks to refill at the tables, but you mostly just wanted to get away from Michael. You peeked around the corner after coming out, relieved to see that he had left. You sighed, walking back out into the empty building, beginning your regular duties before customers started arriving.

~

"I heard what happened this morning," Addison said, sitting at the counter in front of you.

"How did you hear that?" you asked, beyond confused.

"Calum's sister is one of my friends, remember?"

"Oh, yeah," you mumbled.

"Anyway," she continued, mindlessly stirring her coffee, "Mali told me that Michael went over to her place to vent to Calum about it and she overheard him saying that he really wanted to make up for all the shitty things he did to you during school but he doesn't know how." You laughed bitterly under your breath. "To be quite honest, I think he's just trying to play you until he gets what he wants." You nodded in agreement, but didn't respond. Instead, you looked past Addison and noticed someone walking through the door.

"You've got to be kidding me," you mumbled, a distressed expression replacing your unamused one. Addison looked behind her and saw Michael's friend Luke trotting in.

"At least he's better than Michael," she whispered, turning back around.

"Hi, Y/N," Luke said shyly, sitting on the chair beside Addison.

"Hey, Luke," you put on your best smile, "The usual?" He nodded and you got to work making his drink as he pulled out his wallet.

When you were done, you handed him his cup and he gave you some money. As you were dropping the change into his hand, he spoke up.

"So, I was wondering-" You cut him off.

"If the next thing to leave your mouth is about Michael, you might as well just save your breath, Luke." He started messing with his lip ring.

"But you didn't even know what I was gonna say about him..."

"I don't need to," you said, "Actually, scratch that; I don't  _want_  to."

"But he really  _is_  sorry."

"That doesn't take back all the things he's said about me, Luke," you muttered, "Is it really a coincidence that all throughout senior year, he would make fun of me whenever he saw me and now that I'm hot, he's suddenly sorry about it?"

"Um..." he trailed off, obviously uncomfortable.

"Listen," you leaned on the counter, "You can tell Michael that if he's really that sorry, he can grow a pair and apologize to me  _himself_. Until then, I don't want to hear about it." Luke sighed and nodded, giving you a soft goodbye before picking up his coffee and walking out of the shop.

"I'm so proud of you for finally standing up for yourself like that," Addison beamed. You rolled your eyes and laughed lightly.

"I just wish it hadn't taken me so long to do it," you told her.

~

A couple weeks had passed and you hadn't seen or heard from Michael or his friends. You expected it though; Michael would never apologize even if he  _knew_  something was his fault and you were done hoping there was a side of him that would. Addison was right.

He was a self-centered, egotistical douchebag who never thought of anyone but himself and you absolutely hated yourself for ever having a crush on him. That crush virtually disappeared the first day of senior year, of course, but you knew there would always be a part of you that wished he would change so the feelings you couldn't seem to shake off were a little more justified.

You were cleaning the shop one night after closing when you were startled by the door opening. It wasn't until you spun around and were face-to-face with Michael Clifford that you remembered you hadn't locked the doors yet.

"We're closed," you said through gritted teeth, going back to wiping the tables.

"It was unlocked," he stated quietly.

"I realize it was unlocked. Do you think we'd be having this conversation right now if it wasn't unlocked?" you replied, your voice laced with sarcasm.

"Y/N, can you please just let me talk for two minutes without the bitchy attitude?" You threw the towel onto the table, spinning back around.

"Do you  _honestly_  think referring to my attitude as bitchy is going to get me to listen to you?!" you nearly shouted, "I have an entire  _school year's_  worth of bitchy attitude to give to you before I even  _consider_  letting you talk!"

"I'm just trying to apologize, Y/N!" he raised his voice as well, "And I'm not doing it because you're hot now or whatever, I'm doing it because I am  _genuinely_  sorry! I'm sorry for all those things I said about and to you and I regret not even trying to get to know you and if I could take it all back, I would! But I  _swear_ I'm not the same person I was when we were in high school. I understand that I've ruined any chance I could have had of being with you, but I need you to know that I'm sorry, okay? I'm not asking for a date or anything, I'm just asking you to forgive me." His voice shook a little and he let out a breath. " _Please_." You stared him down for a moment before nodding.

"I forgive you, Michael."

~

_that will smith part that had nothing to do with anything but it was funny and i wrote it in anyway: http://starsofmyshow.tumblr.com/post/115381829070/how-many-times-do-you-think-5sos-has-gone-to_


	167. Desperate (Michael Clifford) - Part 2

**Six months later**

"I was thinking we could go see that  _Unfriended_  movie when you're done," your boyfriend mentioned from his spot in front of you as you wiped down the counter after work.

"You  _know_  how I feel about scary movies, Chase," you sighed.

"Come on, babe, they're just movies."

"I know, but the panic attacks caused by them are very much real and I'm not just going to  _let myself_  have one."

" _Please_ ," he pouted, knowing it always worked on you, "If you start to feel uneasy, we can leave." You gave him an unamused look, but when he tilted his head, you couldn't help but smile. You grabbed his chin and leaned over the counter, kissing him gently.

"You know I hate when you use that face against me," you giggled, pushing him back and going to put your apron away.

"But you love me anyway," he grinned as you came back. You shook your head, grabbing his hand and lacing your fingers together as you left the building. You turned off the lights and locked the doors.

"If you're going to make me do this," you said as Chase pulled out of the parking lot, "Can we at least stop by my place first? I really don't want to wear these clothes any longer than I  _have to_."

"Sure, babe," he smiled, resting his hand on your thigh, drumming his fingers on the fabric of your pants lightly.

After you had changed, you and Chase set off for the movie theater. He bought your tickets and you went to find your seats, luckily making it about 5 minutes before it started so you wouldn't have to search in the dark. You laid your head on his shoulder as you waited for the movie to begin. He could hear you were breathing in and out slowly, so he leaned into you.

"You're gonna psych yourself out, babe," Chase said into your hair as he kissed the top of your head.

"Right," you nodded as the theater lights dimmed down until they were completely off. " _I can do this_ ," you whispered to yourself while the previews were playing on the screen, " _I can do this_."

~

About 70 minutes into the movie, your heart started pounding again, preparing itself for what you  _hoped_  would be the final scary moment. You had let out a quiet squeak, causing Chase to squeeze your hand in his lap.

You knew everything was starting to get better since the movie was almost over, but the tight feelings in your chest just wouldn't go away and you knew you were about to have a panic attack. You sighed to yourself – you had managed to fight the feeling for the past hour, but now it was hitting you and you had a gut feeling it was going to hit you hard.

You went to stand up so you could go outside and get some air, but Chase wouldn't let go of your hand. You patted his leg lightly, not wanting to speak due to the theater being pretty crowded and you didn't want everyone shushing you.

"It's almost over, babe," he leaned over to you.

"Chase," you replied quietly, choking on the words as your throat tightened up, "You said we could leave..."

"But there are only 15 minutes left!" he whispered, "I wanna see!"

You could feel the tears start falling down your cheeks, but you didn't say anything back. You simply yanked your hand out of his and ran out of the theater. You found your way outside and sat on a bench off to the side.

You were desperately trying to control your breathing, but nothing seemed to be working. You heard the door open behind you and heavy footsteps coming quickly toward you.

"Y/N," Michael's voice rang in your ears, "Are you okay?" You looked up at him and he seemed genuinely concerned.

"I'm fine," you whispered breathlessly.

"No, you're not," he stated, dropping down in front of you and putting his hands on your knees to keep him steady, "You're having a panic attack."

"I... I'm fine..." you repeated, but you knew he wasn't going to buy it; You had your hand pressed to the skin over your heart and there were still tears streaming from your eyes.

"Y/N, look at me," he ordered. You reluctantly did so. "Do what I do, okay?" He took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, motioning for you to do it with him. You copied him and within a few minutes, you could finally breathe again.

"Thank you," you mumbled, not daring to try speaking at a normal volume.

"Do you need anything?" he asked, moving to sit beside you on the bench, "I can go get you a water or something."

"No, I have a-" You stopped when you realized you hadn't brought your bag outside with you.

"What's wrong?"

"I have a water," you sighed, "But it's in my bag and I left it inside."

"I'll go get it," he chirped, getting up.

"Michael, you don't-" You cut yourself off again when you realized he was already inside.

Michael came back a couple minutes later absolutely fuming. You shot him a confused glance when he huffed as he sat back down, slowly taking your bag from his hand.

"Your boyfriend is a  _prick_ ," he muttered.

"Michael-" He cut you off.

"What kind of boyfriend just  _lets_  his girlfriend go through a panic attack  _alone_  like that?!" he exclaimed, "You're out here barely able to breathe and he's still in there watching that fucking movie!" You let out a quiet breath, confused as to why he was so upset, but just letting him get it all out. "That's so fucking selfish! Like, if I were your boyfriend, I wouldn't have asked you to go to the movie at all if I knew there was a possibility you have a panic attack because of it!"

Your heart skipped a beat and your eyes widened, knowing that every feeling you had for him was rushing back to you. And there was no way you would be able to get rid of them.

"He's just so..." Michael groaned loudly, throwing his arms up slightly.

"Michael," you said, quickly grabbing his hand and pushing it back down onto his lap, "You're gonna hurt yourself. Calm down." He blushed as you took your hand back.

"You don't deserve to be treated like that," he said quietly, seemingly more to himself than to you, before you both fell silent.

~

Ten minutes later, Chase finally emerged from the theater. He had an annoyed look on his face as he approached where you were still sitting with Michael. Michael, however, was avoiding eye contact with your boyfriend, knowing that if he looked at him, he wouldn't hesitate to give him a piece of his mind.

"What's going on here?" Chase asked, crossing his arms over his stomach as he stopped in front of you.

"Nothing," you answered. There was nothing going on; He had no reason to be acting like this.

"It sure doesn't  _look_  like nothing."

"Sitting on a bench with someone isn't a  _crime_ , Chase," you sighed.

"Why the hell would he come back for your bag then?"

"Why the hell would  _you_  allow her to come outside and deal with a panic attack alone?" Michael asked furiously, getting up. You hopped up with him, holding your hands in front of you, but close to Michael's arm just to be safe.

"She's a big girl," Chase scoffed, "She doesn't need me to baby her after she has a panic attack. She knew what she was getting into."

You were honestly taken aback by the comment. He had never acted like that before and he was usually so willing to help you through attacks. Michael, noticing the look of hurt on your face, only got angrier.

"You are such a  _fucking prick_ , you know that?!" he shouted, taking a step toward Chase. You quickly wrapped your fingers around his elbow, bringing him back to you. Your boyfriend's gaze immediately went from Michael to your hands.

"Are you serious?!" he yelled, "I'm your  _boyfriend_!"

"You're  _both_  acting like children," you said firmly as you released your grip on Michael's arm, but far quieter than the two men standing with you.

" _Me_?! If anyone's a child, it's  _you_! You can't handle scary movies or haunted houses, you're always on my arm when we're out in public, and you can never order your own damn food when we go out to eat! It's like you're set on not letting me have any fun!" You swallowed the lump in your throat, seeing Michael getting more and more frustrated out of the corner of your eye.

"If that's really how you feel, then maybe we should break up," you said quietly. That statement seemed to sober him up immediately.

"Y/N..." he stuttered, his voice drastically lower than before. You shook your head.

"We're done, Chase," you sighed, "I don't want to keep holding you back." He stared at you for a moment before tightening his jaw and stomping to his car. He drove away, leaving you to let out a groan as you plopped back down on the bench.

"I'm sorry," Michael whispered, sitting back down beside you.

"Why are you sorry?" you tilted your head in confusion.

"I let my temper get the better of me again," he looked down at his lap, "And if I hadn't run out after you, you'd probably still be together."

"You know I can't be with someone who doesn't give a shit about my panic attacks," you shook your head. His head jerked up, honestly a bit surprised to hear you swear. "Thank you for checking on me," you told him.

"You're welcome," he smiled shyly.

"You really aren't the same person you were in high school," you commented, leaning on his arm. His heart started racing at having you so close to him and was mentally praying he wouldn't say anything to ruin the moment.

"Do you need a ride home?" he asked quietly, his breath making your hair tickle your forehead slightly.

You let out a breathy laugh, "I guess I do, don't I?" He grinned, grabbing your hand as he got up, pulling you to his car.

"Did you come to the movies alone?" you asked.

"No," he said, opening the passenger door for you, "But we all came in our own cars. They'll understand." The ride back home was silent, but it wasn't awkward.

When he pulled into the parking lot of your apartment building, Michael looked at you.

"You're sure you're okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine, Michael," you chuckled, unbuckling your seat belt, "Thanks for the ride. I'll see you around." You leaned over and kissed his cheek before quickly getting out of the car and trotting inside. Michael watched you in awe, the feeling of your lips still on his skin.

~

That Wednesday evening, you were impatiently waiting for your work day to be over. There were about five minutes left before you could officially close the store. You had already wiped down the tables and were currently just leaning on the counter, playing on your phone. The cars on the road outside became louder as the door opened and you heard a very familiar voice as the person who came inside walked up to the counter.

"It's very unprofessional to be on your phone at work, you know," Michael teased, "I think I should have a word with your manager."

" _Please_  tell me you're not here to buy a drink," you whined half-jokingly, "I'm literally just about to close."

"I'm not," he said, shaking his head, "I was just walking by and saw you were still here, so I thought I'd come say hello."

You giggled softly, "Hi, Michael."

"Hello, Y/N," he smiled, "Well... I guess since that's all I came for, I'll leave." You laughed again, taking off your apron and hanging it up.

You walked out from behind the counter and Michael walked with you to the door. He opened it for you and you reached over to turn off the lights before walking outside. You stayed at the door while Michael began walking back in the direction he was headed before he came in and you decided to take a chance.

"Michael," you said quietly, making him turn back around. You paused for a moment. "What are you doing Saturday?" you finally managed to ask.

"The boys and I have band practice," he answered, slight confusion in his voice, "And then we're going to the movies."

"Oh," you nodded, turning to lock the door. You heard Michael walk up to you.

"Do... Do you want to come?" he asked nervously, his hands behind his back, playing with the bracelets on his wrist.

"N-No," you whispered, "I was just wondering."

"I promise we don't suck," he said, "At least, I don't  _think_  we do. But you could be the judge of that... If you want..." You watched him carefully and he seemed nervous. He was usually loud and obnoxious, but now, it was like he forgot how to speak.

"Are you sure your friends won't mind?" you asked softly.

"Not at all!" he said, almost too quickly, "We love having people that aren't family listen to us play. They're more brutally honest." You giggled lightly, making him blush at knowing he caused it.

"I would love to, Michael," you nodded. His eyes widened as he grinned, completely expecting you to say no.

"I'll pick you up tomorrow at noon?" You nodded again. "I'll see you then," he beamed, kissing your cheek before hurrying down the sidewalk, leaving you a bit breathless.


	168. Need (Michael Clifford) - Part 1

The final bell had just rung and you were walking out to the buses when you heard something coming from around the corner. You stopped, waiting for the traffic in the hallway to clear out so you could hear it better. You felt your heart ache when you realized someone was crying, but as you peeked around the corner, your heart dropped when you saw it was a boy from your chemistry class.

Michael Clifford wasn't at the top of any teacher's list of favorite students – always horsing around with his friends in class, rarely listening to any instructions, and always finding something to joke about within the teachers' lessons – but he certainly wasn't the type to cry the way he was in the middle of the hallway at the risk of being seen. You didn't know what it was about the fiery redhead, but you knew you wouldn't be able to sleep tonight if you didn't at least try to help him.

"Hey, Michael..." you said softly, cautiously walking over to him, "Are you okay?" He jumped slightly, not expecting anybody to find him.

"What are you doing here?" he looked up at you, his sleeve-covered hand immediately raising up to his face to wipe the tears off his cheek, "Come to make fun of me and tell the whole school you found Michael Clifford crying on the floor after school."

"You know I'm not that kind of person, Michael," you shook your head, "You seem upset and I just wanted to make sure you were okay." He nodded slightly, but you knew he was lying. You dropped your backpack against the wall and sat down beside him.

"You're gonna miss your bus," he said, his breathing still pretty shaky.

"I'll be concerned about that later," you told him, "What I'm concerned about right now is why you're crying in an empty hallway."

"It's nothing," he whispered.

"It's obviously not nothing if it's got you in tears, Michael. What happened?"

"Nothing, I just... My girlfriend said I was too needy and broke up with me."

"Oh, Michael," you said apologetically, "I'm sorry."

"I'm not that needy, am I?" he sniffled, his eyes starting to get watery again as he looked at you, "I mean, I just liked to be around her... That doesn't make me needy, does it?"

You slowly moved your arm, holding it up as an invitation for him to lay his head on your shoulder. He was more than willing to accept, scooting closer to you and nuzzling his face into the fabric of your flannel shirt. You started rubbing his upper arm gently.

"It's okay to want to be around someone, Michael," you assured him, "So you're more open with showing your affection than other people are? That doesn't mean anything is wrong with you. You just need to find someone who likes all of that attention."

"But I really liked her," he whimpered, "I thought we were gonna last."

"I'm gonna be honest," you mumbled, "I've never really done anything like this before, so I'm just gonna stay quiet and let you cry, okay?"

And that was what you did. You let him cry as long as he needed to – which ended up only being about 5 more minutes – before he had finally calmed down again. He sat back up and you immediately missed the feeling of having him so close to you, but quickly shook it off. He wiped his face with his sleeve again, staring at you for a moment.

"Thank you," he said lowly. You smiled, standing up. You held your hands down to him and he took them, letting you pull him back to his feet.

"Feeling better?" you asked, picking your backpack up and swinging it over your shoulder as he did the same with his. He nodded. "Good," you chirped happily, "I'll see you around, Michael." You started walking away when Michael's voice stopped you.

"Do you need a ride home?" he asked, just as quietly as he'd been talking for the past 10 minutes.

"That's fine, I can just call my-"

"It's the least I can do, Y/N," he said, making your heart flutter at the sound of him saying your name, not realizing he'd ever even bothered to remember it.

He had a pleading expression on his face and you just couldn't turn him down, so you simply nodded. His eyes seemed to light up and he led you out of the school and to his car.

"So you like All Time Low, huh?" he said as he pulled out of the parking lot, motioning to your shirt.

You couldn't help but giggle lightly, "You ask me that when I walk into Chemistry every time I wear this shirt. You seriously just asked me about an hour ago."

"Did I really?" he chuckled.

"Mhmm," you hummed, "And my answer is the same as it always is: Yes, I do."

"Well, sorry," he sighed dramatically, "I'm very forgetful sometimes." You rolled your eyes in amusement, but didn't respond as Michael pulled up to the curb in front of your house.

"Thanks for the ride, Michael," you said as you got out of the car, leaning down so you could look at him, "And hey, I know tomorrow is Friday and you probably won't want to come to school considering what happened today and everything, but I would really appreciate it if you did. I really hate having to do Chem labs alone." A small smile started pulling at the corner of his mouth as he nodded.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Y/N," he said.

You smiled and closed the car door, trotting across your lawn under the watchful eye of the boy who had just driven you home, not realizing until you were inside that you had never even told him where you lived.

~

"Since when are you friends with  _Michael Clifford_?" your best friend said as he sat down in front of you at the lunch table the next morning for breakfast.

"Hello to you too, Luke," you said, taking another bite of your Poptart, "And I would hardly say we're friends."

"Really?" he raised his eyebrows, "Because I heard from this kid in my math class that his friend's ex-girlfriend's sister's best friend saw you get into Michael's car after school yesterday."

"Yeah, he saw I missed my bus and offered to drive me home. What's your point?"

"He's awful, Y/N!" Luke exclaimed, "You shouldn't be hanging around him!"

"Just because you two hate each other for whatever reason that no one's even sure of doesn't mean he's not capable of being nice every once in a while," you rolled your eyes, "It was one ride. There's nothing bad about that."

"But he-"

"Was really nice to go out of his way to take me home," you finished the sentence for him. He huffed lightly, but continued on with breakfast as normal.

~

When you walked into your chemistry class, your last class of the day, you were surprised to see Michael already sitting at your table. You went over and put your things on your desk, causing him to look up. He instantly smiled at you as you sat down.

"Hey, loser," he said. You sighed dramatically.

"And to think I thought we had something special," you shook your head, unable to keep yourself from smiling as well.

~

"You know how yesterday, you said you'd ' _never done this before_ '?" Michael asked as you two were finishing up your lab near the end of class.

"Mhmm," you nodded.

"What did you mean by that?"

"I've never really comforted anyone before," you shrugged.

"Why me then?" he asked. You looked up at him and saw he was staring at you intently.

You were about to speak when your teacher interrupted, saying there were 5 minutes before the final bell and you needed to put everything away. You let out a quiet sigh of relief, hurrying to clean the beakers and test tubes.

Once everything was back in its rightful place, the bell rung, signalling school was over. You gathered up your books and started walking away from the table, but Michael grabbed your arm, pulling you close to him.

"Wait for me at your locker," he said quietly, "I'm taking you home again." You nodded slowly and he let go of you, letting you leave the classroom.

You were shakily putting all your books onto the top shelf of your locker when someone coming up behind you made you jump. Your head snapped over to see who it was.

"Luke!" you exclaimed, "Don't do that!"

"You never jump when I do that," he furrowed his eyebrows, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," you sighed, "I thought you were always gone by now."

He shrugged, "My mum is gonna be a little late, so I thought I'd walk with you to your bus."

"I'm not riding the bus today," you said nervously, grabbing your jacket and putting it on.

"Why not?" he asked, confusion in his voice.

"She's already got a ride, Hemmings," you heard Michael say behind you. Luke took a step to the side, almost hiding behind you in the hopes that maybe you would offer him some protection. "You got a problem with that?"

" _Michael_ ," you warned as you swung your backpack over your shoulder. He immediately withdrew as your best friend quickly hugged you.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Y/N," Luke said, hurrying past you to head to the main entrance and wait for his mom. You let out a frustrated sigh, slamming your locker door shut.

"You've never even  _talked to him_ , Michael," you said, walking down the hall with the redhead following closely behind you, "I don't understand why you treat him like that."

Michael didn't have anything to say – probably sparing the argument you clearly would have given him had he said something bad about Luke. You started heading to your bus, really not wanting to get a ride with him anymore, but he grabbed your hand.

"I thought I said I was taking you home," he told you as he pulled you along with him to his car.

"What for?" you asked, wiggling your hand free but still going with him.

"I want to know why you stopped to check on me yesterday," he replied, opening the car door for you. He closed it after you sat down and quickly ran to the drivers seat.

"I told you," you muttered, "I heard crying and I would have felt bad if I didn't make sure whoever it was was okay, I guess."

"But you didn't have to stay once you saw it was me," he said, glancing at you as he pulled out of the parking lot, "You could have left, but you didn't. You gave me advice. You let me cry on you."

"What does the fact that it was  _you_  have anything to do with it?" you asked, finally looking at him, "Just because it was you doesn't mean I still wouldn't have felt bad for not trying to help."

"I mean, I'm not exactly the  _nicest person_ ," he mumbled, more to himself than to you, "Especially to your friend." Things were quiet until Michael turned onto your street.

"You're not a bad guy, Michael," you said softly when he stopped in front of your house, "You just tend to make bad decisions." You unbuckled your seat belt and got out, leaning down. "Thanks again for the ride," you said, shutting the door and running inside your house before he had time to respond.

~

That Monday morning, you walked into school as you usually did. You were minding your own business, putting your things in your locker, when you heard people running down the hall. The footsteps were getting louder, so you knew they were coming in your direction.

When you looked up, you saw Luke racing toward you with Michael following not far behind him. He immediately took cover behind you as if he thought you would be able to protect him from whatever had Michael chasing him.

"Oh, sure, run to  _her_  for help," Michael rolled his eyes. Luke was breathing hard down your back – he was never much of a runner – so you turned your head to look at him.

"What happened now?" you asked.

"The usual," he told you.

"And you've come to me because...?"

"You're the only one that can make him stop," he mumbled into your neck.

"Michael," you sighed, finally looking at him.

"Why do you always take  _his_  side?!" he exclaimed, causing the people who weren't already looking at the three of you to turn their attention to the scene at your locker.

"I don't want to deal with this today," you muttered, more to yourself than to the two boys, putting your face in your palms for a moment before turning back around. You quickly hung up your backpack on the hook and closed the door.

You pulled Luke out from behind you and held his upper arms in your hands, leading him toward the cafeteria so you two could get breakfast, leaving Michael to let out a sigh of frustration before going his own way.

~

Throughout the next few weeks, you avoided any conversation with Michael. You only talked to him when you absolutely had to during labs, but never even gave him a second glance when he said your name in the hallway or whispered it in class. You truthfully didn't want to  _not_  be friends with him, but you had been incredibly protective of Luke since the moment Michael started picking on him in middle school. If Michael couldn't learn to stop treating Luke the way he was, you really didn't want to be associated with that.

~

One morning, Luke walked up to you. You were putting your things in your locker as you heard him come up beside you. You smiled at him as you did every time you saw him.

"So what have you said to Michael?" Luke asked you.

"I haven't said  _anything_  to him," you gave him a confused glance.

"Really?" he seemed surprised, "He hasn't been mean to me since he chased me down the hallway. He's actually been kind of  _nice_. It's really weird."

You remained silent, not really sure of what to say. Luke left, saying he had to go talk to one of his teachers about a project, leaving you alone once again. You decided to take the opportunity to skip breakfast and go see why Michael had stopped bothering Luke all of a sudden. You were making your way to where he usually hung out before classes, but you froze when you saw him.

Michael was standing with his friends where they always were, but his ex-girlfriend was standing with him and you felt your heart start to ache. You weren't sure  _why_  you were feeling this way – you and Michael were never really friends, after all – but something about him being back with his ex made you a bit jealous.

You knew his friends already saw you, so you just decided to walk by as if you were passing him on the way to the cafeteria. They were staring at you, which obviously made Michael curious as to what they were looking at, and his expression dropped when he saw they were looking at you.

You, of course, hadn't seen this due to the fact that you kept your eyes glued to the floor. You missed the breath he let out, you missed the way his eyes followed you, and you missed the tone in which he told his ex no when she asked if he would give them another chance.

**Michael's POV**

There was no denying that Michael had started falling for you when you were assigned to be his lab partner at the beginning of the semester, but he fell even harder that day you held him while he cried. You saw him in his most vulnerable state and you didn't judge him for it. Anyone else would have killed to see Michael like that, but you actually cared. You let him cry on your shoulder and you didn't tell anybody else about it. And now he realized that maybe it was because you liked him too.

Maybe those small smiles he would get out of you when he was goofing off in class or those times you would blush when he said your name meant that you liked him. And after seeing the look on your face that day he chased Luke to you, he knew that any hope of you seeing him as more than just your best friend's bully was virtually impossible unless he changed.

Michael quickly excused himself from his group of friends, but his ex-girlfriend grabbed his hand, holding him back. She didn't say anything for a moment, causing the redhead to let out a frustrated sigh. He tried wiggling his hand out of hers, but her grip was too tight.

"You're not seriously going after  _her_ , are you?" she finally asked.

"What do you care?" he muttered, " _You_  broke up with  _me_ , remember?"

"I was just mad that day and I took it out on you," she said with puppy dog eyes, "I didn't mean it, baby."

"You don't just  _accidentally_  break up with someone, Hailee!" Michael nearly shouted, causing everyone to look over as he jerked his hand free, "Maybe you're right and maybe I  _am_  needy, but there's nothing wrong with that! And it sucks that we didn't work out because I really,  _really_  liked you, but there's one girl that's never pushed my arms away from her shoulders or tensed up when I went to hug her and that's Y/N. And if you don't like it, that's your  _own_  problem, because I made a very big mistake with her and I intend on making it right."

Michael didn't give her a chance to respond before he was running to the cafeteria, hoping that was where you went. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw you sitting with Luke at your usual table. He took a moment to compose himself before he inhaled deeply, making his way toward you.

**Your POV**

"Luke," you heard Michael said quietly, making your heart skip a beat, "Do you think I could talk to Y/N alone for a minute?" Your eyes widened as Luke paused, looking at you.

"Sure..." he said slowly, picking up his trash and walking away.

You kept your eyes on your food, taking small bites as Michael watched you intently as you finished your breakfast. You began to grow even more annoyed until you just couldn't take it anymore.

"I can't eat when you're  _staring_  at me!" you exclaimed, loudly enough for the people at the tables around you to be startled, but not enough so that they kept watching you.

"I just need to talk to you," he said, his voice much lower than yours.

"Well, I don't want to talk to you," you said shakily, crumbling up your Poptart wrapper and getting up. You heard Michael push his chair out and follow you as you walked away.

You started making the trek back to your locker, but Michael refused to let you leave that easily. He grabbed your hand and pulled you to the hallway where his locker was. It was usually an empty hallway, so you two were alone.

"You don't have to talk, but you're going to listen," he said firmly, spinning you around so your back was against his locker. He put his hands on either side of your shoulders so you couldn't get away. "I promise you, I'm not back together with Hailee."

Your voice came out as a whisper, "I didn't think you were-" He cut you off.

"Yes, you did," he said, "The only reason you would have ever come down that hallway on your way to breakfast would be to see me and I could tell by the look on your face that you thought Hailee and I are dating again."

"Why would I care?" you mumbled.

"You tell me." You hesitated for a moment before looking down at your hands. Michael sighed, "I would never get back with her after what she did, Y/N. You said I deserve someone who likes all the attention I give them;  _You_  told me that, remember?" You barely nodded. "I'm not asking for much from you, okay?" he said, "I just want to know why you came to see me."

"Why are you being nice to Luke now?" you asked quietly.

"Honestly?" he asked. You nodded again. "I knew that if I kept treating Luke the way I have been, you wouldn't want anything to do with me. I think you made it very clear to me the past few weeks that you would ignore me, so I'm trying to be nicer to him because..." he trailed off, making you look up at him. He sighed again, "I want a chance with you, Y/N, and I know I'll never get that if I'm always treating him like shit."

"Y-You what?" you stuttered.

"I've liked you ever since we became lab partners," he confessed, "And I guess after you gave me a shoulder to cry on, I fell even harder. You're so beautiful, Y/N – like, you're  _way_  out of my league – but I would love to be the person to remind you of that every single day because you don't push me away when I go to hug you the way Hailee did."

You shook your head slowly, "I'm not out of your league, Michael, you-"

"Don't you dare say I'm out of your league because there is absolutely  _no way_  that's true."

"Michael-"

"Please just give me a chance," he begged, "I swear I'll try to be friends with Luke and I'll only be around you as much as you want me to and I'll never make you feel uncomfortable on purpose.  _Please_..."

"Mich-"

"I'm pushing you, aren't I? God, I really  _am_  needy. I'm so stu-"

" _Michael_!" you said loudly, grabbing his face, "Can you shut up for like,  _two seconds_?" He let out another sigh and nodded. You smiled slightly at him and whispered, "I like you too." His eyes widened and he took his hands off of the lockers, taking a step back away from you.

"Ca-" He cleared his throat nervously, "Can I kiss you?"

"We're in the middle of the _hallway_ ," you giggled. He snaked his arms around your waist, going back to the confident person you were so used to seeing.

A smirk started appearing on his face as he lowly said, "I don't see anyone _else_ around, _do you_?"

He leaned down but just before your lips touched, the warning bell rang causing you unintentionally let out a laugh. You heard the voices of fellow students begin to get louder as they were coming to the lockers in the hallway, but you didn't care. You pulled Michael's face in the rest of the way and pressed your lips to his, making him smile as you heard the first people rounding the corner gasp.

~

_inspiration (michael's): http://next2hemmings.tumblr.com/post/112404918177/please-be-mine-by-jonas-brothers-inspired_


	169. Need (Michael Clifford) - Part 2

" _You're_   _what_?!" Luke nearly shouted, causing everyone around the two of you to start staring. He blushed deeply, sinking down in his seat. You gave them a look and they simply went back to their conversations.

"I'm going on a date with Michael next Friday night," you repeated, shrugging casually.

" _Why_?!" he whispered, "I told you he's a  _terrible_  person! He doesn't  _deserve_  to be shown kindness!"

"You know, Luke," you rolled your eyes, "I think if the two of you actually took the time to get to  _know_  each other, you would find you've got  _a lot_  in common."

"Not a  _chance_ ," he protested before mumbling, "I can't believe you would  _do this_  to me."

"Why is this about  _you_  all of a sudden?" you asked rather loudly, standing up. You put your hands on the table and leaned toward him, your voice dangerously low. "I really  _like_  Michael," you told him, "And I'm sorry that  _you_   _don't_ , but I am  _not_  going to reject him just because of all your  _bullshit drama_  that won't even  _matter_  in a couple years." His eyes widened, never having heard you speak that way – let alone to  _him_  – before. "I'll see you in gym," you finished through gritted teeth, grabbing your Poptart wrapper and walking away, leaving Luke to finish the rest of his breakfast alone.

You sighed to yourself as you opened your locker door. You really didn't  _mean_  to be that harsh with Luke, but it made you angry that he and Michael wouldn't even  _try_  to settle their differences. You knew they would be great friends if they'd just give it a  _chance_.

Before you could grab your History book, you felt arms wrap around your waist from behind you. You couldn't help but giggle as Michael pressed his face against your neck.

"Are we starting this so  _soon_?" you asked.

"Do you not  _want_  me to?" he tensed up. He started to take his arms back, but you held them in place. You leaned back onto him, tilting your head on his shoulder so you could kiss his cheek.

"I don't want your arms to ever  _not_  be around me," you assured him. He smiled and kissed your cheek as well.

"How did it go with Luke?" Michael asked. You groaned lightly, making him laugh, " _That bad_ , huh?" You shrugged. "I'll talk to him." You raised your eyebrows at him.

"Michael," you stated.

"It'll be fine; No name calling, no yelling, no chasing him down the hallway," he promised you, "Just a civilized conversation between best friend and hopefully future boyfriend." You blushed lightly and Michael smiled again, kissing your forehead. "I'll see you in Chem, okay?" You nodded and he let go of you, walking away.

You immediately missed the feeling of his arms around you, much like you did the day you held him as he cried. You smiled to yourself as you gathered up your things for History before closing your locker door and heading to the classroom.

~

**Michael's POV**

After school, Michael had walked you to your bus, kissing your cheek just before you got on. He wanted to talk to Luke, but you had to be home right away because you were going on a trip with your family that weekend, so you just opted to take the bus. You told Michael that Luke would probably be in the band room – he went there every Friday after school because his mom was usually a little later – so that's where he was walking to now.

He could hear the faint sounds of a guitar being played and as he got closer to the band room, he knew exactly what it was. He peeked in through the window to see Luke strumming at his guitar and softly singing  _Jasey Rae_  by All Time Low to himself. He quietly entered the room, letting Luke finish the rest of the song before making his presence known.

Michael closed the door behind him, causing Luke to jump and snap his head up to see who was there. His eyes widened slightly, obviously knowing you weren't at school anymore and wouldn't be able to save him.

"Hey," Michael said quietly, slowly making his way to where Luke was sitting, "I didn't know you played guitar. You're really good. I love that song."

"Thank you," Luke whispered, "You like All Time Low?"

"They're my favorite band," he smiled. He pulled a chair to sit in front of Luke, getting to the reason he was in the same room as him in the first place. "I wanted to talk to you about Y/N," Michael said.

"What  _about_  her?" Luke muttered.

"I know you don't want her to date me," he said with a small sigh, "And I don't  _blame you_ , honestly. If my best friend started dating someone who made  _my_  life hell, I'd be pretty upset about it  _too_." Luke remained silent. "But I  _really_  like Y/N, Luke," he told him, "You can ask my friends; I haven't shut up about her since the day she became my  _lab partner_. I know how badly she wants us to be friends or at least come to a  _truce_  and I'm willing to try it if you are. For  _her_." Luke sat there for a moment, thinking about Michael's words.

"For  _her_ ," he nodded, making Michael grin.

"So," he started, "You play guitar, huh?"

"Oh, yeah," Luke smiled shyly, "I'm all that  _good_  though."

"Are you  _serious_?!" Michael exclaimed, "You're  _crazy_  good! Come on, play something else!" He got up, hurrying across the room to grab another guitar.

"You play?" he spoke up as he came back. The redhead nodded as he sat back down with the guitar in his lap. "Um..." Luke hummed as he was trying to think of something else to play. He started strumming the first song that come to his head and Michael immediately joined in, surprising him. "Don't tell me you like  _Blink_  too."

"There's a lot about each other we don't know," Michael said lightheartedly, but it made Luke's expression fall. His eyes widened slightly, "What?"

"Nothing," the blonde shook his head, looking at Michael shyly, "Y/N just yelled at me this morning for how I was being a bit of a dick to her for saying yes to going out with you next Friday."

"She  _yelled_  at you?"

"Believe me,  _I_  was surprised too," he chuckled. His phone suddenly buzzed from inside his backpack and he quickly checked the message he'd just received. "My mum's here, so I should probably get going," he told Michael, "Thanks for coming to talk to me. And I'm sorry for being such a dick about you behind your back."

"It's no problem," Michael grinned, " _I'm_  sorry for literally everything I've ever done  _to_  your back." The two boys shared a quick hug before Luke hurried to put his guitar back in its case and get out to his mother's car so she didn't have to wait too long.

~

**Your POV**

On Monday morning, you were at your locker after getting to school when you heard shouting. You looked up and saw Luke and Michael running down the hall toward you. You groaned lightly, thinking that whatever happened Friday hadn't gone the way you  _hoped_  it would.

"Y/N!" Luke yelled, "Don't make me do it!"

" _No, Y/N_!" Michael chimed in as they both came to an abrupt stop in front of you, "Tell him he  _has to_!"

"Do  _what_?" you asked, the confusion in your voice very obvious.

"He's trying to make me sign up for the talent show and I don't  _wanna_!" Luke pouted.

" _Come on_!" Michael whined, "I  _told you_  I'd sign up with you! People need to hear how  _good_  you are!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," you shook your head, "What the hell did I  _miss_  this weekend?" Michael let out an exasperated sigh.

"You know how I went to talk to him after school on Friday?" You obviously nodded and he continued. "Well, he was singing All Time Low when I went in the band room and we talked for a little bit and then we started playing Blink-182 and we spent all weekend talking on Facebook about bands and stuff and I told him earlier that he should sign up for the talent show but he won't do it!" He finally took a deep breath, ending his explanation. You crossed your arms and raised your eyebrows at the two boys in front of you.

"Did I not  _tell you_  that you two would get along?" you asked, "Because I think I  _did_."

" _Babe_!" Michael groaned, "We can talk about how right you were  _later_!" You grinned victoriously, blushing shyly when he called you babe, and set your gaze on Luke.

"Luke-" He cut you off.

" _What_?!" he exclaimed, "What ever happened to always taking  _my_  side?!"

"I only take your side when you're  _right_ ," you told him, "Come on, Luke! You're a  _phenomenal_  guitar player and your voice is  _amazing_! I'm sorry, but I'm siding with  _Michael_  on this one."

" _Thank you_!" he said, wrapping his arms around your waist tightly. You simply smiled, leaning into him. Luke still had a distressed look on his face.

"Luke," you sighed, "You've talked about wanting to do the talent show since we were in  _sixth grade_. This is the last chance you're  _ever_  going to get to do it. Why not just  _go for it_? I don't want to have to hear that your ' _biggest regret was not doing the talent show in high school_ ' for the rest of our lives." He started chewing on his bottom lip.

"Fine," he mumbled, "But only if  _Calum_  will do it with me too."

"Why don't you ask him?" you smiled, looking behind the two boys and seeing Calum walk up.

"What's going on  _here_?" the black-haired boy asked slowly, finding it a bit strange that  _Michael and Luke_  were standing next to each other and nothing was happening.

"Nothing!" Luke said quickly.

"Hey, Cal!" you chirped, "We were just talking about you." Luke let out a quiet whine while Calum trotted to you, throwing his arm around your shoulders.

"You  _know_  I hate when you greet me with statements like that," he shook his head as you hugged his waist.

"Luke," you spoke up, "Don't you have something to ask Cal?"

"I don't think so," the blonde cleared his throat, "No, nothing comes to mind." You and Michael simultaneously rolled your eyes before you looked back up at the boy holding onto you.

"Michael is trying to convince Luke to do the talent show, but he said he won't do it without you."

"Michael... _and Luke_..." Calum trailed off, skeptic glances flicking between the three of you, "Am I  _missing_  something?"

"I'll explain in History," you murmured to him. He gave you one more confused look before shrugging.

"I'm down," he said, making Michael cheer and Luke groan.

"Come on, Luke," you said, wiggling away from Calum and putting your hands on your best friend's shoulders, "You guys are gonna  _kill it_." You let go of Luke, only to be pulled into Michael.

"Yeah, man," Calum said after giving you another confused look, "You always talk about how cool it would be to start a band. I think this could help us put ourselves out there."

"You need a  _drummer_  to have a  _band_ ," the blonde mumbled.

"Then we'll just stick to acoustic until we find one," he shrugged. Luke's face contorted in thought for a moment, causing you to speak again.

"Come on, Luke!" you repeated, "You've imagined doing this for like,  _seven years_!" You noticed his chest fall and his lips purse slightly.

"Fine," he sighed, "I'll do it." You, Calum, and Michael smiled happily, and as Calum was patting Luke's back as a form of reassurance, Michael was leaning down to whisper in your ear.

" _Told you_  it'd be fine," he murmured, squeezing your waist lightly, laughing when you elbowed him in the ribs.


	170. Ours (Calum Hood)

> _Elevator buttons and morning air_   
>  _Strangers' silence makes me wanna take the stairs_   
>  _If you were here, we'd laugh about their vacant stares_   
>  _But right now, my time is theirs_

You rocked back and forth on your heels as you waited for the elevator door to open. Once it finally did, you sighed at how crowded it was. You walked in and turned around, now waiting to be taken up to the fifteenth floor. You caught a glimpse of the expressions on a few people's faces and smiled to yourself, thinking about what your boyfriend would say if he were here with you.

You met Calum in this exact spot nearly two years ago. The bus you took to work was running late that day and as you entered the office building, you saw the last couple people disappear into the elevator before the door began to shut. You shouted for someone to hold it open so you didn't have to wait, truthfully not expecting anyone to listen to you. Being as young as you were working in a building full of older people, no one really took you seriously. But you were surprised when you saw a hand grab the side of the door, causing it to open back up. You thanked the person breathlessly before you saw who it was.

He was a tall young man, looking to be about the same age as you if not a little older, with black hair, brown eyes, and a smile that made your stomach do flips. You quietly thanked him again before turning around, doing your best to ignore the gaze you knew he was giving you.

Once the elevator stopped at the third floor, everyone but you and the boy who had held the door for you got off. The doors closed again with no one else getting on, leaving the two of you alone. You reached over – as you always did – but your hand brushed up against the boy's as you both hit the number 15, making you blush.

"They're like zombies," you heard him say as the elevator started moving once again.

"What?" you asked quietly, looking up to find him smiling at you.

"They're like zombies," he repeated, shrugging, "Probably haven't had their morning coffees yet. Coffee is like middle-aged people's source of power." You let out a giggle, making him smile wider. "I'm Calum, by the way. Why haven't I seen you around?"

"Y/N," you told him shyly, "And because I'm usually early, I guess."

"Hmm," he hummed, nodding casually. The doors opened and he spoke to you over his shoulder as he walked out into the office. "I guess I'll have to be earlier tomorrow," he said with a wink, leaving your stomach to start doing flips once again.

But that was just the beginning.

~

For the next few weeks, Calum kept his word and was there a little earlier every day to ride the elevator with you. After everyone got off on the third floor, he would shuffle closer to you, telling you a random fact about whichever person he had observed on the ride up that day, never failing to make you laugh.

"Dude in the dark grey suit was holding that briefcase a little too closely if you ask me," Calum said so close to your ear that you could feel him breathing on you, "Closet superhero? Maybe. Overprotective father of three teenage daughters?  _Definitely_."

"That's oddly specific," you giggled lightly, "Even for  _you_."

He grinned at you before looking up at the floor number. You had just reached the tenth floor and it was clear he became nervous. You were about to ask him what was wrong, but he beat you to speaking.

"What are you doing after work?" Calum blurted out.

"Nothing probably," you sighed, thinking about the boring day ahead of you.

"I-" He cleared his throat. "I, uh, I'm not either. Maybe you'd like to do something together?" You didn't even try to hide your smile.

"I would like that very much, Calum," you nodded. He let out a quiet sigh of relief.

"Um... I'll meet you in the lobby at 5?" he suggested, "I can take you back to your place if you want to change or we don't have to do that because you look beautiful already or-" You cut his rambling short as the elevator door opened.

"Lobby at 5," you confirmed, walking to your cubicle with a giant grin on your face.

> _Seems like there's always someone who disapproves_   
>  _They'll judge it like they know about me and you_   
>  _And the verdict comes from those with nothing else to do_   
>  _The jury's out, but my choice is you_
> 
> _So don't you worry your pretty little mind_   
>  _People throw rocks at things that shine_   
>  _And life makes love look hard_   
>  _The stakes are high, the water's rough_   
>  _But this love is ours_

" _Cal_!" you squealed loudly, causing everyone walking by to look at you, "Put me down!"

The two of you were at the park, having a picnic. It was a regular thing for you two to be seen there on dates; Calum loved the fresh air and you loved spending time with Calum.

You've been dating for nearly eight months now and every single day, you fell more in love with him. You knew very early on in the relationship that you were in love with Calum, you just didn't know how to go about telling him. Those three words –  _I love you_  – weren't three words you took lightly and you couldn't risk the chance of him not saying them back. So you sat on them.

"Not until you say I'm the best boyfriend you've ever had and will ever have for as long as you live!" he said, spinning you around.

"Calum, I'm gonna get sick," you giggled half-jokingly.

"Fine," he chuckled, finally putting you back on your feet. He wrapped his arms around your waist, keeping you in front of him. "But you're not leaving this spot until you say it."

"Calum, you are the best boyfriend I've ever had and will ever have for as long as I live," you grinned, kissing his nose. He scrunched his face up lightly before kissing your forehead.

"I'll take it," he said, leading you back to the picnic blanket.

"That was close," you sighed dramatically, cuddling up to him as he laid down, "I thought you were going to make me say some ridiculous lie like you're the most amazing kisser or you're the hottest guy on the planet or something."

"Are you suggesting that those are not facts?" he gasped, grabbing your chin gently and making you look up at him. You moved so your head was resting comfortably on his shoulder.

"Sounds like I am," you shrugged with a small smirk.

He shook his head and chuckled, "You're lucky I love you." Your breath hitched.

"Y-You what?" you stuttered, propping yourself up on your forearm. He started turning a light red once he realized what he had said, but he didn't deny his words; He simply owned up to it.

"I love you, Y/N," he said confidently, "I have for a few months, but I didn't want to say anything because I was worried you wouldn't say it back. But I decided that it's okay if you don't because I love you and I'll wait for as long as I have to until you're ready to say it too." You felt a smile pull at the corners of your mouth.

"I love you too, Cal," you whispered, taking him by surprise.

"You do?" he asked quietly, "You're not just-"

"I love you, Calum," you stated, louder this time but not loudly enough for anyone around to hear; Only Calum. "I would never say it just to make you feel better or to get something out of you. You know that. I was just scared you wouldn't say it back..." you trailed off. Calum put his hands on your cheeks and bringing you down to him. His breath tickled your face as he stared into your eyes.

"I'll always say it back, Y/N," he said lowly, pulling your face the rest of the way, pressing his lips to yours.

> _You never know what people have up their sleeves_   
>  _Ghosts from your past gonna jump out at me_   
>  _Lurking in the shadows with their lip gloss smiles_   
>  _But I don't care cause right now, you're mine_   
>  _And you'll say_
> 
> _Don't you worry your pretty little mind_   
>  _People throw rocks at things that shine_   
>  _And life makes love look hard_   
>  _The stakes are high, the water's rough_   
>  _But this love is ours_

Three months later, you and Calum had made the leap to move in together. Since your place was closer to where you worked, he decided to move in with you, telling you he wanted as much time as possible to cuddle with you before you had to leave every morning.

Calum had since started a band with three of his friends and they were getting more and more popular with every day that passed, obviously making him quit his office job to focus solely on his music. You loved when Calum had the boys over for writing sessions because you loved watching them do what they loved. But what you loved the most was that he never let that get in the way of your relationship.

If he was working on a new song or writing with the band and you came home after a bad day, he would drop everything and not go back to it until he knew you were okay. You never thought someone could love you so much, but he proved you wrong. But the relationship certainly didn't come without its judgement, mainly from ex-boyfriends and girlfriends.

On one such day after work, you stopped by the grocery store to buy some food as you knew the boys would be over today and would clear out your kitchen by the time they were finished working. You were minding your own business, trying not to drop anything as you mentally cursed at yourself for not getting a basket, when you bumped into one of the last people you wanted to see.

"Oh," Calum's ex-girlfriend grumbled, "It's you."

"Hello, Lydia," you smiled politely despite the fact that you desperately wanted to run in the opposite direction. She looked at you up and down, the same way she always did when she saw you.

"I still don't know what he sees in you," she scoffed, shaking her head, "You know you're not that good looking. You don't have a very nice body either. You'll never be half the girlfriend I was."

"Well, I don't really think that's for you to decide, Lydia," you said honestly, keeping your poker face on. "It was nice seeing you again," you said in a rush, "But I should be heading home."

You hurried toward the checkout, not even bothering with the rest of the things you needed. You held your grocery bags in your lap as you sat on the bus, praying you made it home before you broke down.

Once your stop finally came, you headed up the two flights of stairs to your apartment. The boys looked up as the door opened and you walked inside.

"Hey, babe," Calum smiled at  you.

"Hi, Y/N!" the other boys exclaimed cheerfully. You gave them the best smile you could, closing the door behind you.

"Hey. How's writing?" you asked.

The three boys on the couch gave you a thumbs-up, making you let out a breathy laugh, but Calum watched you from the his spot on the coffee table, instantly knowing that something was wrong.

"Are you guys staying for dinner?"

"Nah," Luke shook his head, "My mum and dad like me to eat at home as much as possible."

"And my mum's making spaghetti tonight," Michael was practically drooling at the thought of it and you couldn't help but chuckle.

"Plus, we think we've taken Cal away from you this week enough already," Ashton added, "You deserve a break from us too."

"You guys know I love having you over," you shot him a genuine smile before heading into the kitchen to put everything away.

"Can you guys give me a minute?" you heard Calum ask quietly as you were finishing up with the groceries.

You assumed the boys agreed because the next thing you heard was footsteps coming into the room. You soon felt your boyfriend's arms wrap around your waist from behind, pulling your back against his chest.

"What's wrong?" he asked, nuzzling his face in your neck, pressing soft kisses onto the skin. You could feel your eyes start to get watery.

"Not in here, Cal," you whispered, really not wanting the boys to hear you. Calum quickly released you and grabbed your hand, taking you back to the bedroom.

The second the door closed, you let your frustrations out in the form of tears, holding onto Calum tightly while you let them fall down your cheeks. He was rubbing your back gently while your tears soaked his shoulder. Neither of you spoke a word until you calmed down enough to where he could understand you.

"I ran into Lydia at the store," you sniffled while you repositioned your face to rest on his neck, your voice coming out muffled.

"What happened?" he asked lowly, knowing it wouldn't have brought you to tears unless she really got into your head.

"Same as last time," you answered quietly, causing him to pull you closer. He held you for a couple more minutes before moving back and taking your face in his hands.

"You know I love you, right?" he asked, wiping the tear stains off of your cheeks. You obviously nodded. "I love you so much, babe," he muttered, "I'm so sorry about my ex."

"It's not your fault, Cal," you assured him, "You're mine now and she's not gonna ruin that."

"And you're mine," he smiled, kissing you softly. He took your hand in his again and led you back into the living room, insisting that you listen to the new songs he and the boys have been working on.

> _And it's not theirs to speculate if it's wrong_   
>  _And your hands are tough, but they are where mine belong_   
>  _And I'll fight their doubt and give you faith_   
>  _With this song for you_
> 
> _'Cause I love the gap between your teeth_   
>  _And I love the riddles that you speak_   
>  _And any snide remarks from my father_   
>  _About your tattoos will be ignored_   
>  _'Cause my heart is yours_

"Hey, babe," Calum smiled the moment he showed up on your computer screen.

"Hi!" you beamed, "How's your day been?"

"It would be better if you were here," he pouted. You rolled your eyes and smiled.

"Next tour, Cal," you reminded him of what you promised, "Have you guys played the show yet?"

"No, it's not for another..." He trailed off, looking down at his phone. "Two hours."

"Well, I can't wait to hear about it tomorrow. I know you guys are gonna rock it though." Calum seemed a little quiet which was unusual for him. "Cal," you said, grabbing his full attention, "You okay?" He nodded and you raised your eyebrows at him, letting him know you knew he was lying.

"I just miss you is all," he sighed, "And I've been reading Twitter a lot lately..."

"Calum," you groaned, "The boys and I have told you not to do that."

"I know, but I can't help it. I like to interact with the fans, but there's just so much shit about you and me and us being said and I can't take it anymore."

"You love me, don't you?" you asked, taking him by surprise.

"Of course I love you," he nodded, "Why would you ask me that?"

"Then screw what other people think!" you exclaimed slightly, "I'm not in a relationship with them and neither are you. I'm in love with you and everything about you, Cal, and  _nothing_  those people say is going to change that."

"I love you so much," he whispered, "I wish you were here." You smiled sadly.

"I know, Cal," you said quietly, "But I'll see you when you get home."

"But that's three weeks away!" he whined. You giggled, causing him to finally break a smile.

"Yeah, but then you're home for the next six months," you shrugged casually, "Just think about how much I'll be able to kiss you in that time." He paused, furrowing his eyebrows.

"Now I  _really_  wanna come home!" he stuck out his bottom lip. You smiled again.

"I love you, Cal," you told him, "I'll talk to you tomorrow, okay?" He nodded, telling you he loved you as well before disappearing from your screen when you ended the call.

> _So don't you worry your pretty little mind_   
>  _People throw rocks at things that shine_   
>  _And life makes love look hard_
> 
> _Don't you worry your pretty little mind_   
>  _People throw rocks at things that shine_   
>  _But they can't take what's ours_   
>  _They can't take what's ours_

**Three weeks later**

You were never one to pay too much attention to the clock when you were at work, but this day, you seemed to look over every five minutes. Your boss noticed this and asked you to go make him some copies so you would stop being so fidgety. You blushed lightly at realizing he had been watching you – you  _were_  distracted from your work, after all – and quickly took the papers to the second floor where the only good copier in the building was located.

Once you were finally done, you went back up to give everything to your boss before trudging back to your cubicle. You went straight back to what you were doing for the next half hour until it was  _finally_  5.

You hurried to gather up your things, stuffing them into your bag. You threw the bag over your shoulder and ran out of the office. You were practically bouncing up and down in the elevator, making everyone around you glare are you, but you didn't care. The only thing on your mind was that you were just a short time away from being back in your boyfriend's arms where you belonged.

You darted out of the elevator once the doors opened on the ground floor to make sure you made it to the bus stop on time. You smiled at the bus driver, sitting in your usual seat right behind him.

"Airport today, Joe," you said happily.

"Calum coming home today?" he asked with a grin, pulling back onto the road.

"Why else would I be this happy?" you giggled.

"I don't know," he shrugged, "Maybe you got promoted."

"I wish," you chuckled under your breath.

About 20 minutes later, the bus began approaching the drop-off area outside the airport. The second Joe opened the door, you were bolting out of it. He simply laughed lightly, waiting for everyone else that needed to get off before closing the door again and driving away. There was a group of fans waiting behind a barricade at the door to the lobby.

"Y/N!" you heard one of the boys' bodyguards say from where he was standing at the car, "I didn't think you'd make it! Their plane just landed!"

"Thank you, Charlie!" you called over your shoulder, starting to go inside, but you would never make it.

You were about halfway to the door when screams filled your ears. Your eyes immediately met Calum's and he had the biggest smile on his face as he dropped his bag. You pulled your bag off of your shoulder while you slowly walked toward him before throwing it down and running the rest of the way. You leaped into his arms and he wrapped them tightly around your waist as yours found their way around his neck.

"I've missed you so much," he mumbled, pressing multiple kisses onto your jaw leading to your mouth, "I love you." You smiled when his lips hit yours.

"I love you too, Cal," you whispered into the kiss.

> _The stakes are high, the water's rough_   
>  _But this love is ours_

~

_Song used: "Ours" by Taylor Swift_


	171. Forget About It (Cody Carson)

**Cody's POV**

"Mom, you can't possibly expect me to work with  _her_!" the Prince whined.

"You've never even  _met_  the girl!" his mother replied.

"And I was hoping I would never have to," he mumbled quietly, "The Prince should not be associating with  _the help_."

"Listen here, young man," she scolded, "Without people like her, we would have to clean and cook by ourselves. Now you are going to go downstairs and help Y/N with the laundry and scrubbing the floors or you are going to outside and help Mr. Harris tend to the horses." Cody let out a long sigh as he angrily walked out of the room.

**Your POV**

Meanwhile, you were dancing around the laundry room as you swept the floor, using your broom as your dance partner. Once you finished sweeping, you filled a bucket up with soap and water to begin scrubbing the floor.

Around half an hour had passed and you were humming quietly to yourself when you heard angry footsteps coming down the stairs. You paused your work, tilting your head in the direction of the noise. The moment you saw it was the Prince, you scrambled to your feet.

"Good morning, Your Highness," you curtsied. He simply grumbled in response. The Queen had already come the previous day to explain to you what was happening, but you were still incredibly nervous.

"Just tell me what to do," Cody muttered.

"Um... Well, the clothes have already been soaking for about 5 minutes, so you can just start scrubbing whatever stains may be left, I guess. But you might wanna wait a little while longer because the water is still pretty hot." He went over to the basin as he pulled his sleeves up, starting to reach for an item of clothing when you had to stop him. " _Whoa_!" you squeaked, running over and grabbing his hand before it touched the hot water.

"What  _are_  you doing?" he asked, jerking his hand away.

"I just said it's still really hot!" you told him, "If you want to get burned, that's fine, but you're not doing it on  _my_  watch!" You trudged back to your spot on the floor, beginning to scrub the tiles once again.

Throughout the next couple hours, you could hear Cody mumbling to himself, complaining about how wrinkly his skin was getting and how stupid it was that his mother would force him to work with the servants.

You ignored it, of course – he was just a spoiled prince who had everything handed to him – but after a while, it was starting to get annoying. You sighed quietly, thinking he wouldn't hear you but soon finding out you were very mistaken.

"Is something wrong?" Cody asked you, throwing the shirt he had finished washing into the basket beside him.

"No, Your Highness," you said quietly.

"Excuse you," he said, "But you are to look at me when I'm speaking to you. Weren't you taught any manners?"

"Weren't  _you_?" you shot back, looking up at him. His eyes widened slightly due to never having been back-talked by a servant before.

"I will  _not_  be spoken to this way!" he said, getting up.

"And neither will I," you replied confidently, remaining in your spot on the floor, "I may just be a  _servant_ , Your Highness, but I'm still a  _person_  and I will not be treated as anything  _lower_  than that. You need to understand that without the people who work for you,  _you_  would have to be the one to work for everything you get and it's about time you stopped treating us like garbage and started being more polite."

He let out a quick breath and stomped out of the room. You were obviously terrified he was going to tell the Queen about what you had done, but if it was something you were going to be fired for, you were glad to be going out knowing you were simply being honest.

About 10 minutes had passed and you were still scrubbing away at the floor. You were always amazed at how dirty this tile managed to get every week as you were usually the only one in the laundry room. You were leaning against the wall, taking a small break when you heard heavy footsteps coming back down the stairs.

"Oh, so now you're not even going to do your  _job_?" Cody huffed.

You remained silent, rolling your eyes as you shuffled back over to your bucket of soapy water. Cody's heartbeat quickened as he noticed you were taking in slow, deep breaths and he just knew you were overworking yourself.

He walked over to you and bent down, carefully taking the brush out of your hand and putting it back in the bucket. You furrowed your eyebrows at him as he took your hand and brought you back over to the place you were just resting.

"Your clothes are going to get dirty, Your Highness," you said quietly as he sat beside you.

"It's fine, Y/N," he said, making your heart race, "Are you always having to catch your breath like that?"

"Kind of," you replied shyly, "If I get my chores done before noon, the Queen lets me go out and help take care of the horses."

"You  _like_  going out there?" he asked, scrunching up his nose in disgust.

You giggled quietly, "Some of us actually do  _more_  than just ride the horses into town and back every once in a while."

"So what do you do with them?"

"Well, I do clean their stalls almost every day, but since Mr. Harris is getting older, he lets me walk them around the fields."

"Theoretically then," he said, getting up, "If we get the rest of this work done together, it will go faster and we can get to the stables, right?" He was holding his hands down to you, but you were just staring at him.

" _We_?" your voice came out as a whisper.

"Yes, we," he nodded, leaning down and taking your hands himself, pulling you to your feet, "I want to know what it is I would have to do if we didn't have servants around." He took you to the basin and had you sit down. "You wash the rest of these and I'll finish up the floor."

"But your clothes," you said quietly.

"My clothes will be fine," he smiled, "Now stop arguing if you want to get done before noon." You watched him walk over to the bucket and sit on the floor, beginning to scrub the tiles. Without looking up at you, he said, "Y/N, the longer you stare at me, the less time you have to get those clothes done." You blushed lightly, quickly getting to work.

~

" _Stop_!" you laughed loudly, grabbing Cody's arm for the third time, "I will  _tell you_  when we have to turn!"

"Oh, so what you're saying is it's  _not_  on this road right here?" he asked with a sly smile, starting to walk toward the road. You giggled as you reached for his arm again, pulling him back to you.

"Okay, I'm just gonna hold onto you until we get there because you  _clearly_  don't trust me," you teased.

"How can I possibly trust you?" he nudged you lightly, "I barely know you."

"Well, I  _did_  keep you from burning your hand off earlier."

"It would not have  _burnt off_!"

"It could have! I'm not gonna be the one to test it out, but it  _sounds_  plausible enough!"

Cody chuckled at you as you slid your hand down his forearm to grab his own. You missed the blush on his cheeks as you began sprinting, pulling him with you, when the stable was finally in sight. He struggled slightly to keep up, not used to running.

"Hi, Mr. Harris!" you said happily as you entered the stable.

"Hello, Y/N," he smiled, bowing politely when he saw Cody, "Your Highness." He raised his eyebrows at you when he saw you were holding the Prince's hand, but you were practically bouncing on your feet, making him laugh. "Will you please just go walk one of the horses already?" He knew it was your favorite thing to do. You grinned brightly, letting go of Cody's hand and going to the dark brown horse that was looking at you from its stall.

As you climbed up on the stool beside the door, the horse gently nudged you with its snout. You giggled quietly, petting the animal as you grabbed a brush to comb through its mane as you did before every walk.

"So is this one your favorite?" Cody asked, coming up behind you.

"They're all my favorites," you said, "I would say  _I'm_  more of  _his_  favorite."

"I'm not even my own horse's favorite," he sighed dramatically, "Today is just not my day."

"You'll live," you winked at him.

You grabbed the reigns and put it on the horse, opening the stall door and leading him out of the stable. You and Cody talked about anything you could think of during the short walk.

Once you were about 10 minutes away from the stable, you decided to turn around and head back.

"How many times would you say you've ridden a horse?" Cody asked you. You thought for a moment.

"At least 100, I think. Maybe more."

"But you don't ever ride these ones?"

"I don't really think I'm allowed to," you shrugged, "Plus, I can't ride a horse without a saddle and I don't like putting saddles on them when I'm just walking them around."

"But you've never  _tried_?" he asked with a mischievous grin.

"I'm not getting on the horse, Your Highness," you stated. He stuck out his bottom lip and you shook your head. "I don't care how cute that face is, it's not gonna work."

"So you think I'm cute?" he smirked. You rolled your eyes, but you could feel your cheeks getting hot.

"Of course  _that_  would be the part of the sentence you focus on."

"I mean, I could certainly get annoying about it," he said, nudging you lightly, "Or you could do it this one time and I would never ask you again."

"Why do you want me to ride the horse so badly?" you wondered, "You've ridden this horse plenty of times before. You know it's not  _that_  exciting."

"You've already done so much work today," he shrugged, "Not to mention you have to put up with me all day. I figured you deserve a break wherever you can get it." You let out an unintentional laugh, making him smile.

"I promise I'm fine," you assured him, "Maybe I'll take a break with the last horse."

~

About an hour and a half later, you were walking the last horse back to the stable. Cody started nudging you with his elbow slightly, making you roll your eyes.

"I said  _maybe_ ," you told him, but were unable to keep the smile off your face as he kept pestering you.

"' _Maybe_ ' doesn't mean you still don't need a break," he commented. He stopped moving, making you stop as well and look over your shoulder.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm not leaving this spot until you take a break," he said, crossing his arms over his stomach. You raised your eyebrows as a smile pulled at the corners of your mouth.

"You're gonna stay out in the woods alone?" He simply nodded. You shrugged, "Alright. I'll come back for you tomorrow morning then." You began leading the horse back down the road once again, laughing lightly when you heard Cody's footsteps chase after you.

"Are you  _mad_?!" he exclaimed, pushing your shoulder, "I could be kidnapped or mauled by a bear or eaten by a mountain lion!"

"Mountain lions aren't in this part of the country," you laughed loudly. He started pouting again and you threw your head back. "If I do it, will you  _stop_  making that face at me?" you groaned. He nodded rapidly. You sighed, having the horse stop, and jumped on its back.

"I thought you said you've never ridden without a saddle before," Cody smirked as he took over leading the horse.

"I haven't, but I didn't say I couldn't  _get on_  a horse without a saddle," you stuck your tongue out at him.

Once you got back to the stable, Cody took the horse back to its stall.

"Were you really gonna leave me back there?" he asked, holding his hand up to you. You took his hand, hopping off of the horse and landing right in front of him.

"I guess we'll never know," you smirked lowly, letting go of him to finish the rest of your stable duties for the day.

~

"Okay, I've got one," Cody said, "Favorite movie."

"Really?" you laughed, "You've been trying to think of a question to ask for like, 5 minutes and  _that's_  what you come back with?"

You and Cody were sitting on a concrete bench in the garden after you'd finished all your chores. He decided that he wanted to play 20 questions to get to know you better. You were confused as to why the  _Prince_  of all people would care enough know anything about other than your name, but you certainly weren't going to complain.

"A favorite movie really says a lot about a person!" he defended with a chuckle. You chewed on your bottom lip, thinking for a moment.

" _The Princess Diaries_ ," you finally answered.

"Really?" he asked, "What's it about?"

"You've never heard of it?!" you nearly shouted in shock. He shook his head, laughing lightly at your response. "Um, first of all, Julie Andrews – absolutely  _flawless_  as always, Anne Hathaway –  _so many_  yeses, and Chris Pine in the second movie –  _thank you, casting director_." He laughed at you again. "Plus, what girl doesn't dream about being a princess? It's like, the first thing girls ever want to be when they're younger."

"Being royalty isn't all it's cracked up to be though."

You wiggled away from him, making him let out the quietest whimper of detest – probably hoping you wouldn't hear it. You laid down on the bench with your head on his lap.

"So what  _do_  you do then?" you asked, looking up with a small smile. He couldn't help but chuckle down at you, his fingers instinctively starting to play with your hair.

"Well, I have to sit through a lot of meetings with parliament and visit the leaders of other countries with my dad, but luckily, I don't have to do it as much as he does," he explained, "Sometimes, I sit in on voting for new laws and stuff though which is kind of cool, I guess, but it's really boring. All those guys do is argue and yell at each other." You giggled lightly, making him smile for a moment before it faded again. "But I always have to look perfect before I leave the castle gates," he sighed, starting to chew on his lip, "My mom says that even if we can't see people from the media, they're always watching us when we go out. I think they're just watching me though; Like they're just waiting for me to screw up so they have some big news story for the night or whatever." You stared up at him in awe.

Although you had never spoken directly to Cody before today, you heard a lot about him and the things he's said and done. It honestly confused you because now that you were actually getting to know him, he seemed like the complete opposite of what everyone – including  _himself_  – made him out to be. And you felt terrible that you never gave him a real chance.

"So the way you treat servants and everyone is an  _act_?" you asked, your voice laced with confusion. He scrunched up his face slightly as if he were trying to come up with the right words.

"I don't know if I would call it an  _act_ ," he answered honestly, "I guess I  _did_  feel like I was more or less better than everyone else because I'm the Prince, but..." he trailed off, remaining silent for a couple seconds. "Now that I'm saying it out loud, I  _have_  been pretty awful, haven't I?" he laughed nervously, scratching the back of his neck with his other hand, "I guess I never really thought about how I've been treating people before today. It's no wonder no one likes me."

" _I_  like you," you said confidently.

"You do?" he asked, his voice coming out as a whisper.

"I do," you nodded, "I think you're a really sweet guy; You just need a little help in showing  _everyone else_  that."

"How do I do that?"

"Smiling at people when they greet you is always a good place to start," you grinned, "As well as saying please and thank you. People like to know that their work is appreciated and I think you tend to forget to let them know that." He was about to say something when the two of you were joined by someone else.

"Ah, Cody!" the King exclaimed from the castle porch, "There you are!" He raised his eyebrows at the two of you, causing you and Cody to quickly jump to your feet.

You bowed respectfully, "Hello, Your Majesty." He still had his eyes on you and Cody could tell you were starting to get nervous, so he stepped in.

"You needed me for something, Dad?" Cody spoke up.

"Yes..." he replied slowly, his gaze averting to his son, "I want you to attend my meeting with the king of Ederral this evening and we need to leave in 10 minutes." He turned back to you, "What do you do around here?"

"U-Uh," you stuttered, "I mainly work in the laundry room and I tend to the horses with Mr. Harris as often as I can, but I help out wherever I'm needed."

He nodded, "Will you please go tell him that mine and my son's horses need to be prepared for us then?"

You nodded quickly, "Yes, sir." You smiled politely, looking at Cody. "Have fun at the meeting, Your Highness," you teased quietly, hearing him let out a small gasp as he smiled back and watched you run toward the direction of the stable.

~

**Cody's POV** **; A few hours later**

"So who's that girl you were with in the garden earlier?" the King asked as he and his son made their way down the road after the meeting.

It was nearly midnight and the two men were heading back to the castle. With no one else on the road, the King decided to have a sort of heart-to-heart with his son.

"She told you," Cody answered quietly, "She works in the laundry room and stable."

"I meant who  _is_  she, son," he smiled lightly, but didn't let Cody see it, "You two looked pretty comfortable."

"She's just a servant," he said quickly, his hands already starting to shake.

"So you don't have any interest in her?"

"No," he whispered.

"Good," the King replied, "You need to become involved with a  _princess_ , not a  _castle worker_."

" _You don't even know her_ ," Cody defended angrily.

"So you  _are_  interested in her!" he smiled victoriously.

" _No_!" he nearly shouted, "I just... She's very pretty and she can hold a conversation and she's not afraid to call anyone out – especially  _me_  – and she doesn't act  _differently_  around me just because I'm the Prince."

"Son," the King said, "There will come a time in your life when you'll look back on the things you've done and the people you've been with and I don't want you to look back on her and wonder what things would have been like if you'd taken that chance.  _I_  don't care that she's not a princess,  _your mother_  won't care that she's not a princess, and you  _certainly_  aren't bothered by that fact either. We would much rather you be with someone who makes you  _happy_  than be with someone just because they're royalty as well."

"How do you know when a girl likes you back?" Cody mumbled.

"Well, if she makes up any sort of excuse to be around you, that's usually a dead giveaway," he shrugged, "You notice how your mother smiles at me?" Cody nodded. "That's another sign," he told his son, "Even after all these years, she still blushes when I compliment her. If you think she looks beautiful, tell her. If you think her eyes are pretty, tell her. You have to tell her as much as you can no matter how long you've been together, otherwise, she may start feeling like you don't care if you suddenly stop. If a girl tells you what's bothering her without you having to try forcing it out of her, that's a  _very_  good sign that she trusts you. And you  _can't_  take that kind of trust for granted."

The two men spent the rest of the journey home in silence as Cody thought about what his father had told him. They took their horses back to the stable and made the walk back inside. Cody went to change into his pajamas, but before going to bed, he wanted to sneak into the kitchen to get a quick snack.

He carefully peeked around every corner and quietly opened every door. He knew he wouldn't get into too much trouble for getting something since he had just gotten home, but it wasn't as fun to be loud about it.

Once he peered into the kitchen, he was was surprised to see you sitting at the island in the middle of the room.

"Now if I'm not mistaken," Cody said as he walked fully into the room, making you jump and spin around on the stool you were sitting on, "I do believe you're supposed to be in bed." You relaxed when you saw who it was.

"In my defense, you are too," you smiled, eating another spoonful of ice cream.

"Touché," he chuckled, grabbing a spoon of his own and sitting down beside you. He stuck the spoon in the carton in front of you, grinning at you as he put it in his mouth.

"I don't remember saying I would share this," you stated jokingly. He tilted his head slightly and stuck his bottom lip out. "You told me you wouldn't use that look on me again!" you laughed quietly, leaning on his arm. He simply shrugged with the smile still on his face.

"So what are you doing up so late?" he asked you.

"Couldn't sleep," you sighed, "Too much on my mind."

"Like what?"

" _Everything_ , I guess..." you replied softly.

Cody nudged you lightly, making you look at him. The look he was giving you was one that told you he really did care about how you were feeling. You sighed again, pushing the carton of ice cream in front of Cody and hopping up off of the stool, going to the sink.

"I don't know," you said, washing your spoon, "I guess I just thought I would be doing more with my life by now than working in the castle. Like, don't get me wrong, I really like it here because it gives me a place to stay and food to eat every day, but... It's hard to lead a  _meaningful_  life when all you're doing is  _washing clothes_  and  _cleaning up after people_. Plus, the basement gets really creepy at night and I can never seem to get a lot of sleep down there anyway." Cody got up, put the ice cream back in the freezer and came up beside you at the sink. You tried to take the spoon from him, but he wouldn't let you have it.

"You can still have a job like this and lead a meaningful life, Y/N," he told you, washing the spoon in his hand, "You're going to leave this earth meaning something to someone – whether that be just one person or ten thousand – but it looks to me like you're already on your way there."

"How do you know that?" He turned off the water and took the towel from your hand, drying off the spoon and putting it away.

He smiled at you again, "Do you think I ever would have done something like  _that_  if I hadn't met you?"

"Maybe," you couldn't help but grin, "I just think it would have taken a lot longer."

"So you say the basement is creepy, huh?" he asked randomly. You nodded. "Well, it just so happens that there's an empty bedroom across from mine and I think it would be a waste if it never got used, don't you?"

"Oh, no, I can't-"

Cody cut you off, grabbing your hand and taking you upstairs. He stopped at a door, opening it for you, but not letting you go in yet. He rested his forearm against the door frame and pulled you closer to him.

"But you  _will_ ," he stated quietly as to not wake anyone up or capture the attention of the guards that might be around, "And you are not to leave this room until 9 o'clock."

"But I have chores to do!" you exclaimed lowly, "9 is too  _late_  to be waking up!"

"Well, that's too bad," he smirked, "Because I don't wake up until 8 and I don't function properly until after breakfast at 8:30. And we wouldn't want me doing chores without functioning properly, would we?" You were about to protest, but he didn't give you the chance. "I look forward to spending another day with you, Y/N," he said, a small smile pulling at the corner of his mouth.

Cody finally released his grip on you and sauntered across the hallway. You watched as he opened his own bedroom door, turning around and winking at you before he closed the door behind him.

You were left in a slight state of shock before coming back out of it and simply backing into the room, closing the door. You trudged over to the bed, finding yourself beyond exhausted, but unable to fall asleep for the next hour due to your racing heart.

~

**Your POV**

The next morning, you woke up after the best night's sleep you'd gotten probably since you started working in the castle. You looked over at the clock on the nightstand and saw it was about 10 till 9, so you wiggled out from under the covers and made the bed. You rubbed your eyes as you opened the bedroom door.

You saw Cody's door was open and figured he must still be eating breakfast. You trotted down to your bedroom in the basement where you changed out of your pajamas before beginning your chores for the day.

You didn't have much to do and knew you'd be done well before noon, looking forward to going out to the stables for another day. You filled up the laundry basin with hot water and threw all the clothes from the hamper into it to let them soak. You went into your room to tidy up a bit when you heard footsteps coming downstairs.

"Y/N!" Cody called about halfway down the steps. There was a tone in his voice that suggested he was annoyed, but you could tell it was in a joking manner.

"Good morning, Your Highness," you smiled, walking back out of your room. He broke his serious character to smile back for a split second.

"I thought I told you that you were not to leave that room until 9."

"It was 10 minutes before!" you giggled.

"But still not 9," he said with a barely noticeable grin, "And for not following orders, I don't think I'm going to allow you to help Mr. Harris today."

"Oh, come on!" you laughed a bit, "It was  _10 minutes_!" He shrugged dramatically and turned on his heels, beginning to leave the room. "Wait," you grabbed his hand, pulling him back to you, "You're not  _actually_  serious, are you?" He shrugged again, leaning against the wall beside the two of you. " _Cody_!" you exclaimed, " _You can't do that_!" He raised his eyebrows and smirked as this was the first time you hadn't used formalities with him. Your eyes widened slightly. "I... I mean... Yo-Your Highness..." you stuttered, making the smirk on his face get bigger.

"I actually  _can_  do that," Cody said, pushing himself off the wall and moving so he was standing directly in front of you, practically touching you, "However, I am a man of reason and I think we could come to some sort of agreement to make me forget  _all_  about you not following orders."

You gave him a confused look, "What are you-"

"Kiss me," he said as seriously as you'd ever seen him. Your jaw dropped slightly.

"I-I'm sorry?"

"You heard me," he stated.

"But I... I'm not... I mean, I'm just a... I-I can't k- _kiss_  you."

"It won't mean anything if you don't let it, Y/N," he said lowly. You quickly leaned forward and pecked his cheek, making him chuckle. "That was cute," he told you, "Now do it for  _real_  this time."

"Bu-But I'm-"

"You're  _stalling_  is what you're doing."

You gulped as you stared at him, waiting for a few moments before you built up the courage to finally do as he said. The second your lips hit his, you immediately pulled back, but Cody clearly had other plans. His hands found their way to your hips and he pulled you against him, pressing his lips back to yours roughly.

You weren't exactly sure what came over you, but your own hands went straight to his cheeks, holding his face there as if he even  _wanted_  to move. You felt him smile just before he pulled away for air, resting his forehead on yours.

You let out a quiet sigh, "I thought you said it wouldn't mean anything."

"I never said it wouldn't to me," he replied, pecking your lips quickly.

"You know," you whispered, "I always knew you were a good kisser."

" _Shut up_ ," he muttered with a smile, kissing you again.

~

_inspiration: http://shawn-lick-my-turtles.tumblr.com/post/116886721104/spoiled-prince-ashton-being-a-little-mommas-boy_


	172. On Your Own (Calum Hood)

You breathed a small sigh of relief once you  _finally_  got your 5-month-old daughter to fall back asleep after an entire night of failed attempts. You had nearly broken down in tears more times than you could count on all of your fingers and toes, but you never gave up, and that's what got you to this point. It was 9am and you were beyond ready to fall onto your bed and get some sleep of your own, but you were interrupted by loud knocking on the front door.

" _No, no, no, no, no_ ," you whispered frantically to yourself, running down the stairs. You threw the door opened to find your best friend standing there with a grin on his face.

"Hi!" he beamed. You slapped your hand over his mouth, making him furrow his eyebrows at you.

" _Shut up_!" you exclaimed quietly, "I  _just_  got Leah to go back to sleep!" Calum tried to talk, but his voice was muffled by your palm. You rolled your eyes and took your hand back, letting him come inside.

"I think you're starting to need more sleep than she does," he said, taking his shoes off before walking over to the couch and propping his feet up on the coffee table.

"Yeah," you laughed lightly, plopping down beside him, "Sleep would be  _nice_."

"Why don't you go take a nap?" he suggested.

You raised your eyebrows at him, "What if she wakes up?"

"I'll take care of her," he chuckled, "If I can't handle it, I'll come get you." You sighed, kissing his cheek before you got up.

"Thanks, Cal," you muttered, trudging up the stairs.

~

**3 hours later**

Calum was watching TV when he heard quiet crying coming from the baby monitor on the coffee table in front of him. It was gradually getting louder, so he quickly went upstairs to the nursery so you wouldn't wake up – unfortunately, you  _had_ , but you stopped at Leah's door once you noticed Calum was already there. You watched as he carefully lifted her out of her crib and held her in his arms.

"Leah Kathryn," he smiled softly at her and her crying instantly started fading as she looked up at him, "You know, Mummy's trying to sleep so you really should try not to be so loud." Leah giggled lightly, making him chuckle. "I know you don't want to, but she's really tired and she needs lots of sleep so she can take care of you better." He sighed. "I wish she'd let me move in so she's not taking care of you alone, but she's very stubborn. I'm sure you'll figure that out on your own as you get older and find you're just as stubborn as she is. I hope you're just like your mummy someday, Leah. You're already beautiful though, which means you're halfway there. But maybe you'll have her laugh and her gorgeous (e/c) eyes and her little pout. Hopefully, you don't use it on me as much as she does though because I know I'd never be able to resist your pouting either," he laughed to himself. "I know I'm not your daddy, Leah, but I promise I'm gonna treat you like I am," he told her, kissing her forehead. You felt a tear fall down your cheek and smiled as you quickly wiped it away. "Your mummy was really scared when she found out she was having you because Daddy wasn't ready, but I think you're pretty lucky because you've got a mummy and  _four_  daddies who love you very much. I love you the most out of all of them, but don't tell them I told you that. So do you think you can go to sleep for me now?" Leah giggled again and he nodded. "Okay," he whispered, kissing her cheek and putting her back down in her crib, "I'm trusting you not to wake Mummy up."

You quietly rushed back to your bedroom as he stood back upright. Knowing Calum, he was going to come into the room to check and make sure your daughter's cries hadn't woken you up and that was exactly what he did. You had gotten yourself back under the blanket just before the door creaked open slightly. He was about to close it again before your voice stopped him.

"Cal," you said quietly. He scrunched up his face, opening the door once again.

"I didn't wake you up, did I?" he asked with a guilty tone. You shook your head, motioning for him to come over to you. "You're gonna make me cuddle with you, aren't you?" he laughed lightly. You nodded, a smile pulling at the corners of your mouth.

Calum walked into the room and closed the door behind him, going to the side of the bed you were closest to. He threw himself on top of you, making you slap your hand over your mouth so you didn't laugh too loudly.

" _Calum Thomas Hood_!" you groaned, "Get  _off_  of me!"

"But you said you wanted to cuddle," he pouted, nuzzling his face in your neck.

"Not when you're  _crushing me_!"

"I'm not  _that_  heavy!" he chuckled, getting off of you.

"Maybe not to most people, but I'm a lot smaller than you," you smiled.

You wiggled your way out from under the blanket and curled up next to Calum, letting him keep you warm. You rested your head on his shoulder and he wrapped his arms around you, bringing you close to him.

"Tell me you got at least  _some_  sleep," he said lowly.

"I got a couple hours, I think, but then Leah started crying," you shrugged.

"But you didn't go check on her?"

"I heard her stop and figured you had it covered," you answered. You felt him let out a breathy laugh against your forehead.

"I know you were listening, Y/N. You're not a very quiet sniffler." You sighed in defeat, tilting your head to look at him.

"Thank you guys for taking care of us, Cal," you muttered.

"We'd do anything for you, Y/N," he said, "You know that."

"I've been thinking a lot about the whole you moving in thing..."

"And?"

"And if you're still up for it, I'd really appreciate the help," you said quietly, "I don't think I can do this on my own anymore." He smiled, kissing your forehead.

"You've never been doing this on your own, Y/N," he mumbled against your skin.

~

_inspiration: http://misshemmingsx.tumblr.com/post/117881820023/single-daddy-calum_


	173. Without You (Michael Clifford) *

**Warning: Harassment**

~

_Babe, please come home._   
_Y/N, please. I don't want you to get hurt._

You scoffed quietly as you read the texts popping up on the screen.

**_Oh, NOW you don't want me to get hurt._ **

He was quick to reply.

_I'm sorry, okay? I didn't mean to yell at you._

You let out a breath, your thumbs shaking as you typed your reply.

**_But you still did, Michael._ **

Not even 5 seconds later, you had a new message.

_Just please come home so we can talk._

You rolled your eyes at your phone, but didn't text him back.

After a few minutes, your phone went off again.

_Y/N, please answer me._

You were going to when you noticed out of the corner of your eye that someone was following you. The guy had been trailing about 10 yards behind you for a while now. You didn't think anything of it at first, figuring he just needed to go the same direction, but after making a few turns, he was still on your tail. You immediately called Michael.

"Oh my God, thank you," he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Mikey..." you whispered so the guy wouldn't hear you, "I think someone's following me..."

"What do you mean someone's following you?" You could practically sense his heart start racing as you heard him grab his car keys and run out the front door.

"This guy has been walking behind me for I don't know how long and I thought he was just going the same way, but every time I turn a corner, he does too."

"Where are you?" His car door shut and he quickly started the engine.

"U-Um... I'm walking around near the coffee shop we always go to. I was gonna come home, but I don't want him to know where we live," you started tearing up, "M-Mikey, please hurry. I'm scared."

"I'll be there in three minutes, babe," he said, trying to keep you calm despite the fact that he was just as scared as you were, "Stay on the phone with me, okay?" You nodded although he couldn't see you.

The next 180 seconds were the longest 180 seconds of your life. The guy was still following you and he luckily hadn't tried anything yet, but that didn't mean he wasn't going to.

"Mikey," you mumbled, "How far away are you?"

"I'm almost to the turn," he answered, "What's wrong?"

"He's starting to get closer," you cried quietly.

The second you saw Michael's car turn onto the road, your heart skipped. The five seconds it took him to pull over and get out when he saw you felt like an eternity, but the moment he did, you raced toward him. You crashed into him, wrapping your arms tightly around his torso, burying your face in his chest and letting your tears seep through his shirt. You could hear his heart beating rapidly.

As he put his arms around you and kissed the top of your head, he looked at the guy who had been following you. He narrowed his eyes and the guy turned the corner as fast as he could, leaving you and Michael alone.

"I love you, Mikey," you whimpered into his chest.

"I love you too, Y/N," he said into your hair, "Everything's fine, babe. I'm here now. You're safe." You both stood there for a moment before Michael started taking you to the other side of the car. "Come on, let's go home." You mumbled into his shirt. "I know you don't," he said, understanding that you didn't want to let go of him yet, "But I promise, as soon as we get home, I'm not gonna do anything but hold you."

You reluctantly released your grip and sat down, letting him close the door. He rushed around to the other side and started the car before taking your hand and holding it in your lap, letting you play with his bracelets.

When you made it back into the house, Michael spun around, grabbing your face and smashing his lip to yours. Neither of you pulled away until you needed air. He looked into your eyes as he ran his thumbs along your cheekbones.

"I love you so much," his voice came out as a whisper, "I don't know what I'd do without you."

~

_inspiration: http://5sostxts.tumblr.com/post/115747849472/au-you-walk-out-during-a-fight-but-get-into-some_


	174. Remind Me (Luke Hemmings)

It's been eight months since your boyfriend left for Iraq. You were obviously constantly worried about him, but this was something Luke had wanted to be a part of since he turned 18 and signed up to join the military. He went to college to get his PhD so he could treat his fellow soldiers on the battlefield and was deployed almost immediately after he graduated.

Luke called you as often as he could – which was usually every night – but there were times when he was so swamped with patients that he just couldn't. You usually didn't worry though because you knew he'd always call you the next day. And it was during one of your phone calls that he instantly knew something was up the moment you answered.

"Babe," Luke said quietly, "What's wrong?"

"How do you always know something's wrong?" you asked, stifling a laugh.

"I know you." You could hear his grin. "Come on, talk to me." You shrugged despite the fact that he couldn't see you.

"I just miss you," you whispered, "I miss falling asleep to your heartbeat and waking up with our legs tangled together. I miss cooking for two and the looks you give me when I'm mad at you for not bringing your dishes back until after I've done the rest of them even though I'm more mad at myself for not checking first. I miss you holding me as close as you can just because you like having me against you. But I mostly miss your kisses because it feels like I'm actually starting to forget what they feel like and all I want is for you to be here and remind me because it hurts when you forget the feeling you love the most." By this time, you were in tears and although you couldn't see him, you knew Luke was too.

"I'll be home in a month, Y/N," he said lowly, his voice shaking, "I love you so much."

You swallowed the lump in your throat, "I love you, Luke."

"Hemmings!" you heard someone yell, causing Luke to sigh.

"I'm really sorry, but I have to go," he told you, "I'll Skype with you tomorrow before you go to bed, okay?"

"Okay," your voice barely came out above a whisper.

"I love you, Y/N," he said again.

"I love you, Luke," you repeated just before he hung up the phone.

~

**Two weeks later**

It had been two weeks since that phone call: Sixteen days since you'd last heard Luke's voice. You had waited for a couple hours for him to call you on Skype like he promised, but he never did. You knew he was busy – he was one of the few doctors deployed and there were obviously people who needed him a lot more than you did – but after not hearing from him for so long, you couldn't help but start to imagine the worst. You desperately tried to rid your mind of the thought that something had happened to him, but nothing ever worked.

You didn't want to think about what your life would be like without Luke in it. You didn't want to imagine a life where his smile wasn't the first thing you saw when you woke up nor did you want to imagine never being able to fall asleep to him singing to you again. You couldn't do it. Luke was one of the few stable things in your life and you honestly didn't know what you'd do if he was taken away from you.

~

"Can you take me to the airport tomorrow?" your 19-year-old sister asked you, "My friend is coming home and I really don't want him to have to take the bus."

"You have your license, Kara," you sighed against your phone, "Why can't you?"

"Mom's car is in the shop so she has to use mine to get to work until it's fixed."

"Can't you just  _borrow_  my car instead?"

" _Y/N_!" she whined, "You know how hopeless I am with directions and following a GPS!" You let out another long sigh.

"Fine," you told her, "What time does his plane land?"

"Around 5:30 tomorrow evening," she told you, "Thank you. I love you."

"You better," you said, finally cracking a smile, "I'll see you tomorrow."

~

You were sitting in the airport terminal with your sister, bouncing your leg impatiently. She looked at you and noticed you were holding your phone tightly.

"He's not gonna call," Kara said.

"You don't know that," you muttered. She sighed quietly.

"It's been over two weeks, Y/N."

"When someone comes to my door holding a folded up flag,  _then_  I'll believe he's not coming home," you snapped.

"I didn't say he's  _not coming home_ , Y/N," Kara told you softly, "I'm just saying you need to stop waiting around your phone all day. Luke wouldn't want you doing this to yourself."

"I can't help it," you said under your breath, finally putting your phone in your pocket, "He hasn't called in two weeks and I'm terrified something happened to him." You got up and started pacing. "When is your friend getting here?" you asked, changing the subject. She looked at the clock on her phone but was interrupted by the woman over the loud speaker.

" _Flight 392 from Washington, D.C., now arriving_ ," she announced.

"He just landed," Kara smiled. She seemed suspiciously excited to you, to be honest.

"Who is this friend of yours exactly?" you asked her. She squealed happily as she looked behind you.

"Why don't you turn around and see for yourself?" she said.

You furrowed your eyebrows at her before simply giving in and looking over your shoulder. Your eyes widened and you immediately felt tears start to well up. You let out a short scream, causing everyone around you to watch as you ran across the terminal, nearly running into several people along the way.

Luke dropped his bags right before you got to him, catching you as you jumped into his arms. You wrapped your arms around his neck tightly as your legs went around his waist.

"Sorry I haven't called," he said into your neck.

You felt his smile, but you didn't say anything.  _You couldn't_. You were shaking as badly as you ever had before and you didn't dare remove your face from his shoulder because you knew people were staring and you didn't want them to see how gross of a crier you were.

"W-Why didn't yo-you call m-me?" you finally got out, "I thought s-something happened to yo-you."

"I'm sorry," he whispered, rubbing your back, "But my boss said I could come home early if I finished all my duties and I wanted to get them done as quickly as possible. I didn't mean to make you worry, babe."

"I love you so much, Luke," you sobbed.

"I love you too, Y/N," he smiled.

You picked yourself up to look at his face, moving your hand to his cheeks and pressing your lips to his. You let out a quiet breath as you pulled away and rested your forehead on his.

"Do you remember now?" he asked with a small grin. You shook your head, smirking lightly. "I guess we should get home so I can remind you then," he quickly kissed you again before bending down to pick up his bags and carrying you back toward your sister.

~

_inspiration: http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/114820995258/military-luke-being-deployed-for-the-holidays_


	175. Make Me (Ashton Irwin)

**Age 6**

" _Stop it_!" you shouted at the curly haired boy that was now standing in front of you as you stood up and spun around.

"Make me," he smirked, pulling your hair one more time. His friends started snickering –  _make me_  was always an amazing comeback to anyone under the age of 13.

You huffed lightly, bringing your arms up and putting your hands on his shoulders, pushing him back. He couldn't do anything but look at you in shock as your teacher came rushing over.

"What is going on here?" she asked firmly, her gaze focused on you.

"She pushed me!" Ashton pouted, playing the victim.

"Well,  _he_  wouldn't stop pulling my hair!" you exclaimed.

"Both of you need to stop," she ordered, "You know very well that we don't tolerate bullying at this school. Now say you're sorry." You and Ashton both mumbled half-assed apologies to each other, making your teacher sigh. "Y/N, go play over there," she said, pointing toward the swing set. "Ashton-" She pointing at the jungle gym on the other side of the playground. "-over there." The two of you angrily stomped in opposite directions, not looking at each other for the rest of the day.

~

**Age 13**

" _Stop touching me_!" you told Ashton.

"What are you gonna do?" he giggled.

"I'm gonna push you off of your chair," you mumbled.

"Okay," he snorted quietly, obviously not believing you. He got up and walked away, letting you eat more of your lunch in peace.

Unfortunately, he came back a few minutes later. He sat down beside you and started poking your arm again.

"Stop it," you said, your voice dangerously low.

"Make me," he grinned, scrunching up his nose.

You angrily threw the french fry you were holding back down onto your tray, putting your hands on Ashton's upper arm and shoving him off of his chair. You let out a quick breath and he just stared up at you as everyone turned to see what was going on.

"What on earth is going on?" a teacher rushed over. She helped Ashton off of the floor and immediately looked at you.

"She pushed me!" he shouted, pointing at you.

"I warned him," you shrugged, tossing a french fry into your mouth.

"Go to the Principal's office right now, young lady," the teacher scolded.

You sighed – this was seriously cutting into your lunch time – as you got up. You grabbed a couple more fries off of your tray for the journey to the office and sauntered past Ashton out of the cafeteria.

~

**Age 22**

It had been 9 years since you'd last seen Ashton Irwin. The summer before freshman year, his family moved away which obviously meant he would no longer be able to torture you at school. You were, of course, beyond ecstatic. You no longer had to put up with his constant poking or hair pulling or stupid smirks. You were finally free, and you'd never felt better.

"Honey," your mom said with a begging tone as she walked into the living room where you were watching TV, "Please go put on something more presentable."

"What could possibly be more presentable than sweatpants and a t-shirt with Dorito stains all over it?"

"Y/N!"

"Mom," you rolled your eyes for what felt like the tenth time, "You're making too big a deal about this. If you're as good a friend with this woman as you say you were, she's not gonna care whether or not everything looks perfect."

" _Please_? I haven't seen her in nearly 10 years. She's bringing her kids, you know. I'm pretty sure you were in the same grade as her oldest."

"And I'm happy for her." Your mom gave you a desperate look, making you throw your head back before getting up. "I'm not wearing a dress."

"Fine," she compromised, "But at least change into something  _clean_. They're going to be here any minute." You trudged up the stairs to get changed.

You knew that one of your mother's old friends and her kids would be staying for a couple weeks, but she hadn't told you exactly who it was. You were home from college for the summer and all you wanted to do was lounge around with your mom watching terrible Lifetime movies like you used to in high school. But you also knew that this was important to your mom for whatever reason, so you just decided to humor her and ease her stress – if only a little bit.

"Honey!" you heard your mom shout as you were pulling your shirt over your head, "They're here!"

You looked at yourself in the mirror one last time before trotting out of your room, not bothering to put on any shoes. As you came around the corner, your eyes widened.

Although it had been almost a decade, Ashton didn't look all that different. The moment his eyes met yours, you swore you saw him smile slightly, but it quickly turned into a scowl.

 _Same old Ashton_.

"Anne," your mom said, putting her hands on your shoulders when you stopped next to her, "You remember my daughter Y/N."

"Of course I do!" she beamed, coming over to hug you, "Look at how beautiful you've gotten!"

"Thank you, Mrs. Irwin," you smiled with a light blush, hugging her back.

"Please, dear, call me Anne," she let go of you, "I'm sure you remember my son Ashton, and these are my other two kids Lauren and Harry." You gave the two younger ones a smile, but avoided any sort of eye contact with Ashton. It was silent for a moment before your mother spoke again.

"You can just leave your bags right here," she pointed to the floor behind the living room couch, "Y/N, why don't you show everyone out to the backyard while I get the lemonade?"

You simply nodded and began leading your guests to the back door. You slid it open and stepped out onto the patio, the cold concrete relieving you slightly from the hot sun. You felt Ashton stare at you as he walked past, but you kept your eyes on the hand on the door handle. You cleared your throat nervously as you motioned toward the patio furniture.

"You guys can sit down if you want," you said quietly.

"Can we go play over there?" Harry pointed at the trampoline in the corner of your yard. You nodded and he and Lauren ran over, hopping up and starting to jump around.

"I had a feeling they'd go right over there," your mom laughed as she came outside with a pitcher and some cups.

You, your mom, Anne, and Ashton sat down at the table under the umbrella and poured yourself some lemonade in the hopes of cooling down. You were sat across from Ashton – which was really not where you wanted to be because he just  _wouldn't_  stop looking at you.

"That old trampoline deserves to get some use out of it. This one hasn't touched it in almost five years," your mom nodded toward you.

"That's not true in the slightest, Mother," you rolled your eyes, taking a sip of your drink.

"When was the last time you used it?"

"This morning," you stated matter-of-factly. She raised her eyebrows at you, clearly not believing you. "I come out here almost every morning to watch the sunrise," you informed her, "It's much more preferable than looking at it through my window." She simply chuckled.

"So I hear you're home from college," Anne said to you, "What are you doing?"

"Um, I'm studying forensic science at Boston University," you replied shyly.

"Oh, so you're  _really_  far away from home?"

"Yeah," you laughed lightly, "But they have a really good program and it's been a lot of fun. I'm actually kind of sad to be graduating next year."

"What about you, Ashton?" your mom asked.

"Hmm?" he hummed, finally taking his eyes off of you to look at her, "Oh, I, uh... I graduated last year and I'm in a band now."

"How's that going then, the band thing?"

"Pretty well," he shrugged, "We put covers up on YouTube and we've played a few shows here and there, but nothing too crazy." Anne and your mother caught up with each other for a while you and Ashton just sat there in silence.

"Y/N," your mother said while tapping your elbow, startling you a bit as you weren't really paying attention, "Could you go make more lemonade before Lauren and Harry get tired of jumping?" You nodded, grabbing the empty pitcher as you got up.

"Ash, honey," Anne said, "Go help her." The both of you groaned quietly as he followed you inside.

Being alone in your kitchen with Ashton Irwin was the last thing you wanted right now, yet here you were. The situation was already far more uncomfortable than anything you'd ever experienced, but the fact that neither of you were uttering a word to each other made it worse.

You cleared your throat lightly, "So-" You were cut off by Ashton.

"Don't try making small talk," he grumbled, "Just make the lemonade so we can go back out."

"Why don't you just go then? I don't need your help – I don't  _want_  your help. Not that you would be any help at all," you muttered.

"You're such a bitch," he rolled his eyes, pushing himself off of the counter. He started walking back to the door, but you stopped him.

"Ashton," you said his name, making him swallow harshly as he reluctantly turned back to face you. You were shaking your head slightly, "What did I ever do to you?"

He came back with a simple, barely audible, "Shut up."

"What have I done to make you hate me so much?"

"Y/N," he said a little louder, but his tone was still the same, "Shut up."

"No!" you exclaimed, "I've never made fun of you, I've never given you a dirty look; I've never done  _any_  of the things you did to me in school! I'm sick of you treating me like shit when you know damn well you have  _no reason_  to!"

"Would you just shut the fuck up?!" he shouted in frustration.

" _Make me_ ," you growled.

Ashton stared you down for a moment before backing you into the counter and pushing himself against you, roughly pressing his lips to yours. You kissed back for a few seconds until you realized what was happening. You put your hands on his chest and pushed him away.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" you squeaked.

"If you hadn't kissed back," he smirked, "I almost would have believed you were actually mad at me."

"What?! No! Y-You can't just  _kiss people_  like that!" your voice was wavering, "You can't do that after treating them like shit for seven years and then just act like you like them!"

He simply chuckled as you spun back to get the pitcher of lemonade out of the sink, but your hands were shaking so bad that you could barely lift it. You heard Ashton walk up behind you before seeing his arm come up beside you and effortlessly pick the pitcher up.

"Wouldn't want you spilling this all over the place, now would we?" he asked. As he moved away, you felt his lips lingering at your ear, making you shiver. "You look beautiful, by the way," he said quietly before taking the drink back outside, leaving you alone to recollect yourself.

~

Your mother and Anne – as well as Lauren and Harry – could tell something was a little off with you the rest of the day. You were far more jumpy – especially around Ashton – but luckily, none of them confronted you about it. You had made it to bedtime without any more incident; Now you just hoped you could make it through the next two weeks they would be staying.

That night, your mom came into your room to say goodnight. You smiled at her, kissing her cheek before she left you to sleep. Lauren and Harry took the guest bedroom, Anne and your mother slept in her room – they said it would be just like the sleepovers they had when they were in high school – and Ashton happily slept on the couch.

~

You woke up at around 6am and laid in bed for the next half hour or so, mentally debating on whether or not you would risk waking Ashton up to go outside and watch the sunrise. You figured you would take the chance though – Anne told you and your mom that he was a heavy sleeper and not to worry if you needed a drink or something in the middle of the night – so you tossed your blanket off of your body and tiptoed out of your room.

You made it to the back door without making a sound and slowly unlocked and opened it, stepping onto the patio. You closed the door and turned around, seeing someone already lying in the middle of the trampoline. Your heart skipped a beat as you barely made out the curls of the boy you'd been avoiding for the past 12 hours. You were backing up to the door when Ashton looked over at you and immediately sat up.

"Y/N," he whispered loudly so you could hear him. You froze, making him sigh. "Please come here. I need to talk to you."

Your steps were small, but they were still taking you toward the trampoline where Ashton was patiently waiting for you. He patted the spot next to him when you stopped at the railing. You turned around and pushed yourself up, scooting over to the brown-haired boy, but leaving plenty of space between the two of you. He sighed again, knowing his actions caused you to not want to be around him.

"I'm sorry about forcing myself on you like that yesterday," he said softly, keeping his eyes on his hands as he played with his fingers. "I shouldn't have kissed you – especially not without asking first – and I just wanted you to know that I'm sorry." You swallowed the lump in your throat, remaining quiet for a few seconds before saying anything.

"Why do you hate me, Ashton?" you asked, playing with your fingers as well, but watching his face.

"I don't hate you, Y/N," he mumbled, "I could never hate you; I guess I just picked on you in school because I thought it was fun. The last few years I've been away from you have kind of made me realize what a dick I was though. And when my mom said we were staying here for a couple weeks so she could visit your mom, I was happy that I would finally get to apologize for all the stupid things I did, but when we got here and I saw your eyes widen when you looked at me... I don't know, I guess I felt like you would never see me as anything other than the kid who bullied you for seven years. I know it was wrong to pretend like I'm still the same stupid kid I was back then, but I really didn't want to apologize in front of our moms and my brother and sister. But when we were alone yesterday and I was watching you make more lemonade, I got this weird feeling in my chest – like my heart was about to explode – and you've gotten so much more beautiful since I moved and it was like I couldn't stop myself; I had to know what it would feel like to kiss you, so I just did it." He finally looked up at you to see a blank stare on your face, making him sigh again. "I know that's a lot to take in and I know I rambled a little too much, but the point I'm trying to make is that I'm sorry: For yesterday and for everything I've ever done to you in school. And I really hope you'll forgive me." You couldn't find the words for a couple moments but when you did, they took Ashton by surprise.

"What did it feel like?" you finally asked.

"Hmm?" he hummed in confusion, tilting his head.

"Kissing me," you stated, "What did it feel like?"

"U-Um," he stuttered, "I... I don't know..."

"I can help jog your memory if you need me to," you muttered. His eyes widened as he processed what you were saying.

"C-Can I kiss you?" he whispered.

You answered by scooting the rest of the way over to him and sitting yourself on his lap with your legs wrapped around his waist. You nodded and he leaned closer and closer until his lips were barely touching yours, making sure you were actually okay with it. When he hesitated, you put your hand on the back of his neck and pulled him in, pressing his lips hard against yours.

You felt Ashton's hands rest on your sides, playing with your shirt slightly. The butterflies in your stomach were going absolutely crazy as you kissed him – just like they did before you pushed him away in the kitchen yesterday.

After what only felt like two seconds, you were forced to pull away when you realized your lungs were begging for air.

"Well," you said after you both caught your breath, "What did it feel like?" Ashton let out a quick breath.

"It felt like I never wanted to stop," he smiled sheepishly.

"You know," you replied quietly, your fingers lightly running through his hair, "If oxygen wasn't necessary, I would be totally okay with that." He chuckled, shaking his head. "Hey, Ash..." you trailed off. He looked at you, signalling for you to go on. "I forgive you," you said softly, making him smile widely.

His hands slid to your back and he hugged your waist firmly. You moved so your legs were no longer behind him and he laid back down, taking you with him. You smiled into his shoulder as you situated yourself on top of him. You brought your hand out from behind his neck and rested your forearm on his chest beside your head so your fingers could run back and forth on his collarbone.

"You come out here almost every morning to watch the sunrise," Ashton repeated your words from the day before, "Yet, right now, you're not even paying attention to it."

"Like you  _care_ ," you giggled lightly, making him smile and kiss your forehead.

 


	176. Nightmares (Luke Hemmings)

Luke quietly opened the bedroom door across from his, peeking inside to see the sleeping figure of his roommate sprawled out on the bed. He knew you to be a bit of a heavy sleeper, so he closed the door behind him and climbed onto your bed with you. It was a queen-sized bed, so he had plenty of room to give you some space – you always slept on one side, rarely right in the middle. He watched you for a couple minutes, taking in how peaceful you looked when you were sleeping, before turning to his side, facing away from you.

Once he did though, you opened your eyes. You couldn't help but smile at him.

Luke had a tendency to have nightmares and when he did, he would always come lay with you. Honestly, there was nothing that made you happier than knowing you made him feel safe – and he made you feel the same. You watched Luke's back rise and fall slowly as he drifted back into a peaceful sleep before you finally did the same.

~

When you woke up the next morning, Luke was no longer laying beside you. You expected it though – he never stayed in your room until you woke up, probably not even wanting you to know that he had slept there in the first place. And you never let him know that you did.

"Morning, sunshine," Luke chuckled as you stumbled out from the hallway, not quite used to the bright light yet. "Walk much?" You let out a fake laugh, narrowing your eyes at the boy sitting at the kitchen counter with his phone.

"Very funny," you retorted.

"I made some coffee if you want some." You nodded, going over to make yourself a cup.

"Have you gotten anything to eat yet?" He shook his head. "Good," you smiled.

"Why?"

"Felt like making pancakes," you shrugged, "But I didn't want to if I was going to be the only one eating them."

He grinned as well, "I would love some, thank you."

~

About a week had passed and Luke hadn't ended up in your room at any point throughout those nights. You were happy that he wasn't having any nightmares, but you would be lying if you said you didn't miss the feeling of him sleeping beside you.

One Sunday night, it was around 1am when you woke up to your bedroom door opening. Your heart dropped knowing Luke had another bad dream. You thought about just pretending to be asleep like you always did, but you decided that this time, you would finally speak up.

"Luke?" you mumbled, barely opening your eyes when he was about halfway to the bed.

"S-Sorry," he stuttered, startled by your voice, "I-I didn't mean to wake you up, I just... I c-came to see if...uh...if you had a-any extra toilet paper."

"Did you have a nightmare again?" you asked, getting straight to the point.

"No, I-" He cleared his throat nervously. "Um... What do you... W-Why do you ask?"

You patted the spot on the bed next to you, "Come here."

"I-I don't-"

" _Luke_ ," you chuckled quietly but firmly at the same time, " _Come here_."

You threw the blanket off of you as he trudged over. He slowly climbed under the blanket and laid down, pulling it over his body. You moved to lay on your stomach, your head resting on the pillow so you could look at him.

"I know you come sleep in here when you have nightmares."

"You do?" he muttered. Although it was dark and the only light was coming from the digital clock on the nightstand beside you, you could still tell he was blushing.

"Mhmm," you hummed with a small giggle, "You think you're being quiet, but you're really not."

"You're not mad?"

"Why would I be mad?"

"Because you don't like when people come in your room."

"I don't like when they don't knock first," you corrected, "But you do even when you think I'm asleep and I don't mind you being in here anyway. Can I ask you something?" He nodded and you went on. "Why do you come in here when you have a nightmare?" He stayed silent for a moment before sighing.

"When I try to go back to sleep, I just have another one," he told you, "But when I come in here, it's like you stop them from happening. Even though it's just a dream and I know nothing is actually going to happen to me, it makes me feel better when I know you're beside me. You make me feel safe."

You couldn't stop the smile from pulling at the corners of your mouth as you scooted over to him. You put your head on his chest, causing him to jump slightly as you heard his heart start beating faster.

"You make me feel safe too, Luke," you whispered into his shirt.

The statement made his heart flutter and he wrapped his arms around you, pulling you as close to him as he could while you both drifted back to sleep.

~

_inspiration: http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/119825330963/ahhh-imagine-roommate-luke-sneaking-into-your-room_


	177. Strong (Calum Hood) - Part 1 *

**Warning: Car accident, seizures, mention of death**

~

"Y/N!" one of your colleagues, Brooke, whispered as you were walking to the nurse's station to start your shift, "Did you hear the news?"

"What news?" you asked, taking your jacket off and hanging it on the back of your chair before sitting down.

"Apparently, a doctor just transferred to this hospital from one upstate and Melissa was here when he clocked in this morning and she said he is  _incredibly_  hot."

"If he was here this morning, he's definitely not working the night shift with us then, right?" you wondered out loud.

"I think his shift just ended," she shrugged, "But I haven't seen him leave."

"How do you know what he looks like though?"

"I don't," she stated, "But Mel's never called any other doctor ' _incredibly hot_ ' before, so that's really saying something."

"I don't know," you leaned back in your chair, "That new surgeon...uh..." You paused, trying to remember his name. "...Dr. Katler!" you squeaked when the name came to you, "He could get it." Brooke looked at you with wide eyes, but it was obvious she was trying not to smile at your comment. "What?" you laughed, "He could and you know it!" She finally broke a grin and shook her head at you.

"Hello, ladies," you heard someone behind you say, making you both turn around. You stared up at him as he smiled. "I don't believe we've met," he extended his hand to you, "I'm Calum Hood, the new doctor." You shook his hand slowly and told him your name as did Brooke. "Did you two just get in or have I not been paying attention?" You unintentionally laughed, making him grin slightly.

"Uh, no," you shook your head, "Our shift just started about 5 minutes ago."

"Oh, so we don't have the same hours then," he replied in a disappointed tone, studying your face as if he would never see you again, "That's a shame. Well, I'll see you ladies again soon." He smiled at you again, "It was nice meeting you."

"What just happened?" you muttered once he was gone, more to yourself than to Brooke.

"He was totally flirting with you!" she squeaked quietly, nearly falling off her chair.

"He probably flirted with another nurse this morning too," you sighed, grabbing a clipboard left by a nurse from the previous shift to see what patients you and Brooke would have throughout the night.

"I think you two would be cute together," she shrugged casually.

"There are way prettier nurses, Brooke," you said quietly, "He wouldn't pick me over them." She sighed, getting up to begin checking on patients.

~

**Three weeks later**

"Hey, Y/N," one of the nurses whose shift just ended said, "Do you think you can cover for me on Friday? My brother is getting married and I can't find anyone else that'll do it. I'll take your shift the night before if you need me to."

"No, it's fine, Ali," you smiled, "I'd be happy to cover for you. I'll just take off Thursday night and work that whole day."

"You're a life saver, Y/N," she sighed with a smile on her face, "Thank you." You smiled as well, waving as she left the building.

~

That Friday morning, you woke up at 7 to get ready for your 24-hour day. You were understandably a bit worried that you would start to get tired by the time your actual shift was supposed to start, but Brooke promised you that she would take care of all the patients to let you sleep should you need to once she got there. You stopped to get a coffee on the way to the hospital, needing all the caffeine you could get due to not being used to waking up this early.

Once you got to work, you sat down at the nurse's station, greeting the nurse that worked alongside Ali – Madison – and began reviewing all yours and Ali's patients for the day. You decided to go visit one of your shared patients – you and Ali were typically assigned to the same room numbers, so you knew almost all of them already anyway. You knocked on the door lightly before walking in just in case he was sleeping. When you saw him look over at you, you smiled.

"How are you feeling today, Ethan?" you asked the 14-year-old lying on the bed.

"Better," he said sleepily, "Where were you last night?" His voice was scratchy, obviously having just woken up not too long ago.

"I'm covering for Ali today, so I took the night off," you answered, looking at the screen above the bed to check his vital signs, "But I'm gonna be here for the next 24 hours."

" _You're_  gonna work for 24 hours straight?" he chuckled.

"You know, Ethan," you shook your head with a grin, "You should really have more faith in your nurses."

"You as a  _nurse_ , I have faith in. Your ability to stay awake for more than 12 hours at a time, not so much."

"Well, I've got a lot of coffee," you smiled, "Call me if you need anything before I get back, okay?" He nodded and you left the room to check on the other patients.

As you were making your rounds throughout the day, you kept yawning here and there. You stopped to check Ethan's blood pressure and heart rate before heading to the break room to get another cup of coffee. You sighed as you walked into the room and discovered the pot was empty; You hated when people didn't make more after taking the last of it. It wasn't that it took long to make a fresh one, it was just that you weren't a fan of waiting for it. You had your head resting on the wall while you waited when you were startled by a voice behind you.

"Tired?" the male laughed.

"I wasn't sleeping!" you said quickly as you spun around and found Calum smiling back at you.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, looking you up and down before walking over to you, "I thought you worked the night shift."

"Ali needed me to cover for her," you replied quietly.

"Yes," he nodded, "I do remember her mentioning that to one of the other nurses before she left yesterday. So you're tackling both day and night shifts today?"

"Trying to," you laughed under your breath.

"Have you taken your lunch break yet?"

"No, but I wasn't really planning to."

"Come on, you have to eat something! Maybe you'd like to join me?" he asked shyly. You blushed lightly – that almost sounded like a date invitation – but you were interrupted before you could give him an answer.

" _Y/N_!" Madison shouted toward the break room, " _Ethan_!"

You immediately pushed past Calum and ran out of the room. The doctor followed closely behind as you bolted down the hallway and disappeared into Ethan's room where you found he was having another seizure.

Due to Ethan's history, this unfortunately happened quite a bit. It had gotten drastically better since he first arrived at the hospital, of course, but it still terrified you. You sprung into action, grabbing the medicine you needed from on top of the counter – you always had it ready – and quickly putting it in his IV. You waited a few tense moments before the medication finally took effect and Ethan came back to.

He was breathing heavily – he never got used to it happening either – and looking at you with wide eyes. You could tell he wanted to cry but was obviously trying not to with you, Calum, and Madison all in the room with him.

You let out a sigh of relief, holding your hand out to him. He happily took it and you both squeezed tightly as you watched his vitals go back to normal. You went to let go of his hand, but he held on tighter, laying his head back on his pillow.

"Hey," you said softly, rubbing the back of his hand with your thumb, "Remember what I told you?" He looked at you. "I'm not gonna let anything happen to you, Ethan," you said as you did after every seizure he had. You brought your free hand to ruffle his hair, making him laugh slightly and finally release his grip, letting you leave the room.

You rushed past Calum and Madison and went back to the break room, leaning against the wall. Every time this happened, you had to take a moment to regroup before you could go out and do anything with other patients, but you were on edge for the rest of the day.

~

A little before 9pm, Madison had left and Brooke just arrived. You were spending time with Ethan when you looked up and saw her standing outside the door. She nodded for you to come outside and you excused yourself, letting Ethan finish his late dinner alone.

"Madison told me what happened," Brooke said as you both sat down in your chairs, "How's he doing?"

"Still positive as always," you smiled to yourself.

"Do you need to take a break?"

"Probably," you sighed, "I just need to get outside."

"You took lunch, right?" You let out a small groan, knowing she was about to get upset with you. "Dude, you really need to stop skipping meals," Brooke scolded slightly, "Especially since you've been here for over 12 hours and I  _know_  you didn't eat breakfast this morning."

"You still haven't eaten?" you heard Calum ask from behind you, not realizing he was still there.

"I'm just not hungry, guys!" you said defensively, but were immediately foiled by the growling coming from your stomach.

"Please let me take you to get something." He was practically begging. "You need to take a break." You looked at Brooke and she nodded in agreement. You sighed, getting up and taking your jacket off of the back of your chair, slipping it on.

"If anything happens with him," you told Brooke firmly, pointing toward Ethan's room, "Call me." 

"You know I will," she said before Calum started leading you to the doors.

~

"You seem to really care about Ethan," Calum pointed out randomly.

The two of you were sitting on a bench outside of the McDonald's you'd just eaten at. You were sitting about three inches away from each other, your arms almost but not quite touching. You still needed a little time to clear your head after what happened with Ethan and since Brooke hadn't called you, you figured she had everything under control.

"I know I'm not supposed to get attached to patients or whatever," you replied, "But it's hard not to when people like him come in."

"So what's his story?" he asked. You paused before sighing.

"About three months ago, he and his older sister were hit head-on by someone who was texting and driving. I was on duty when they came in. He didn't have any broken bones – just a few cuts and bruises here and there – but he had hit his head really badly on the dashboard when his seat belt locked. He was rushed to surgery to stop the bleeding in his brain, but we couldn't save his sister." You started getting choked up slightly and you cleared your throat so you could continue. "The paramedics lost her two minutes before she got to the hospital and we tried for probably 20 minutes before we realized we just couldn't bring her back. A couple days after Ethan came out of surgery, he woke up in a panic, begging to see his sister and I had to be the one to tell him that she was gone since I was covering for another nurse that weekend. I don't think I'll ever get the look on his face out of my head," you mumbled, more to yourself than to Calum, but moving on before you started thinking about it again. "He originally wasn't in one of my rooms, but he was moved because, for some reason, he would always ask for me, so the doctors just decided it would be better if he were moved to my area and I've been his nurse ever since. He had his good and bad days obviously, but he's always got a smile on his face and I really admire that about him."

"Does he ever have anyone visit him?" Calum asked carefully, "Every time I pass by his room or go in to check on him, he's always either alone or with another nurse."

"No," you sighed again, "I guess his parents were deemed unfit to raise him when he was younger, so he lived with his grandmother until she passed a few years ago and then his sister took him in. As far as I know, he'll have to be put into foster care after he leaves the hospital. To be quite honest, I've been trying to find a way to maybe adopt him or something, but I'd probably have to quit my job to take care of him since they're worried about his seizures and they want someone with him constantly until he learns out how to handle them on his own."

"Why not just take smaller shifts and ask someone to watch him while you're at work then?"

"The hospital won't let me," you grumbled, "They say I'm one of the best nurses in the city, but I know it's just because they don't want to have to go through the trouble of hiring someone else and no one else is willing to add on more hours. It's all just really frustrating, but I'm trying to stay positive for Ethan's sake. He's like the younger brother I never had and I feel like I have to be strong for him."

"It's such a big burden to always be the strong one though," he shook his head. You bit your lip as you swallowed the lump in your throat.

"I know," you whispered, unable to stop the tears from falling down your cheeks. You quickly looked away so he wouldn't see you crying, but he already did.

Calum carefully took your hand and started rubbing the back of it with his thumb for a few seconds before he decided that that wasn't good enough. He scooted over to you, wrapping his arms around your shoulders and pulling you into him. You let out a shaky breath as you laid your head on his shoulder, accepting his hug.

You didn't move from that spot until you were completely calmed down nearly 10 minutes later.

"Sorry," you chuckled nervously, wiping your face while you sat back upright, "Didn't mean to cry all over you like that."

"I'd like to say you can do it again anytime," he said with a small smile, "But I've just decided that I really don't like seeing you cry."

You laughed under your breath, making his smile grow bigger. He stood from the bench, holding his hand to you. You took it and he pulled you up, taking you to his car to drive you back to the hospital for the rest of your shift. As he turned into the parking lot, he took a deep breath.

"I wanna take you out," he said, "On a  _proper_  date, I mean."

"Was this a date?" you asked with a light smirk, raising your eyebrows.

"It wasn't nearly spectacular enough, so unfortunately, I'm going to have to say no. However, I did enjoy the time spent together regardless." You looked at him for a moment and he was giving you a hopeful stare.

"I would love to go on a date with you, Calum," you told him. He let out a sigh of relief that you didn't reject him. "I have next Friday off if you wanna do something then..." you trailed off when he stopped in front of the door.

"Next Friday," he beamed with a nod, "I can't wait." He leaned over and pressed a kiss to your cheek, making you blush.

"Thanks for dinner, Cal," you said quietly, getting out of the car. You turned back to look at him, smiling, "I'll see you later." You closed the door and hurried inside, ready to tell Brooke all about how the newest doctor just asked you out.

~

**Eight months later**

You and Calum have officially been together for about seven and a half months now and you couldn't be happier. Although you two had made the huge step to move in together a month ago, with both of your schedules being the opposite of each other, it was difficult to find time together, but you made it work. His days off would usually consist of him whining every time you left the bed, complaining that your need for food and bathroom breaks was really cutting into his cuddle time with you before you had to leave for work. You would simply giggle at him and go do whatever you needed to before trotting back into the bedroom and laying back down.

On this particular day, you weren't looking forward to leaving Calum's arms at all. Today was the day you'd been dreading for the last two weeks; Today was the day Ethan would finally be released from the hospital. You obviously didn't have any family members to watch him while you were at work and there was no way you could ask so much of Calum no matter how much he would have insisted that he was okay with it.

"Babe," Calum whispered when he heard your stomach growl for the third time, "You should really go get something to eat." You simply shook your head, burying your face further into his chest. "Oh," he said, suddenly coming to the realization, "Ethan gets released today, doesn't he?" You barely nodded, making him hug you tighter. "He's gonna be fine, Y/N. They're not gonna send him to foster parents that can't take care of him."

"I know," you sighed, "I just wish I could have gotten custody."

"I know, babe," he muttered, pressing a soft kiss to the top of your head, "But it'll all work out. I promise."

~

**Four months later**

You walked through your front door after getting home from work one morning to find Calum practically bouncing up and down in his spot, obviously waiting for you. You raised your eyebrows at him.

"What's going on, Cal?" you asked him, tossing your keys onto the table beside the door.

"I have a surprise for you," he smiled brightly. He brought his hand out from behind his back to reveal an envelope in his hand.

"Oh my God," you gasped dramatically as he led you to the couch and had you sit down, "Is this the part where you tell me you're pregnant?!" You put your hand on his stomach, making him laugh loudly as he gave you the envelope.

"Just shut up and open it," he shook his head, walking back across the room and leaning against the window pane.

"It's mine, right?" you asked, tearing the top open and pulling out the piece of paper, "You haven't been screwing around with anyone else, have you?"

He chuckled quietly, "I promise, he's yours."

"Oh, so it's a  _boy_ ," you smirked at him. He pointed down to the paper in your hands, motioning for you to read them. " _Dear Mr. Hood_ ," you read out loud to yourself, " _I am pleased to inform you that the...adoption papers were finalized this morning and we will begin the process of...preparing Ethan to be taken home with you and your girlfriend in just a few short weeks..._ " You trailed off as you read the rest of the paper which told you when you would be able to pick Ethan up from the adoption agency. "Cal..." you looked back up at him with wide eyes.

"Surprise," he smiled widely, pushing himself away from the window as you quickly got up and rushed to him. You jumped into his arms and hugged him tightly.

"How did you... Why...  _When_?" You couldn't even form complete sentences.

"I know you're still upset that you couldn't adopt him right after he was released from the hospital and I hate seeing you like that, so I knew I had to do something," he explained, holding you tightly, "I knew I wanted to surprise you, but I didn't know how, and then the agency told me that if we were approved, I would find out about it last week and that's when I knew I wanted this to be your anniversary present. I know you were seriously considering quitting nursing, but I figured that since we both work opposite shifts that I could be with him at night and then you could be with him during the day. And what could be better than having two medical professionals looking after him 24/7? Plus, I thought it would be good practice for when we have kids of our own one day." You felt a blush on your cheeks as you leaned back to look at him.

"You wanna have kids with me?" you asked quietly.

"Of course I do," he smiled, kissing you.

"Thank you, Cal," you mumbled against his lips, making his smile grow as he kissed you harder.

~

_inspiration: http://infamousirwin.tumblr.com/post/114798767213/doctor-calum-being-the-hottest-new-doctor-at-the_


	178. Strong (Calum Hood) - Part 2

_for my tumblr anon who wanted a second part <3_

~

**Five weeks later**

You and Calum walked into the adoption agency's building on Monday morning, beyond ready to bring Ethan home with you. You were practically cutting off the blood flow to Calum's hand with how tightly you were holding it, having no idea why you were so anxious.

"Babe," you heard Calum chuckle softly, making you look at him, "I know you're nervous, but I can't feel my hand anymore."

"S-Sorry," you whispered, quickly releasing your grip.

"What's gotten into you?" he asked, wrapping his arms around your shoulders and bringing you into a hug, "You've been wanting this for nearly a  _year_  now."

"I know," you sighed, laying your head on his shoulder, "But what if he's not  _happy_  with it? What if he's doing fine here and taking him home will just make things  _worse_?"

"You  _know_  that's not going to happen, babe," Calum shook his head, "Ethan loves you more than  _anything_  and he's going to be  _thrilled_  that you wanted custody of him instead of him going with a family he may not get along with." You tilted your head up and stuck your bottom lip out slightly. Calum laughed again – knowing what you wanted – and pecked your lips.

"Alright, you two," your lawyer, Kellie, smiled at you as she walked over, shaking your hands, "You ready?" You eagerly nodded and she led you down the hall to the room Ethan and his current primary caretaker were waiting for you in. "Ethan," Kellie announced as she knocked on the already open door, "Ready to go?"

"Can I know who's adopting me  _now_?" he sighed in frustration. Calum had asked them not to tell the teenager that it was you two who were taking him home, so ever since he'd heard he was approved for adoption last month, he's been trying to get them to break; They never  _did_  though.

"Come on in, guys," Kellie beamed, motioning for you and Calum to come into the room.

When you froze, Calum put his hands on your shoulders and walked you in. The moment Ethan saw you, the sigh he let out was almost  _comical_.

" _Oh, thank God_ ," he said, rushing over to you and throwing his arms around your waist, "I thought it was gonna be some middle-aged lady who already had 7 kids and  _hated them_  or some creepy dude who liked kids a little  _too much_." You couldn't help but laugh as you hugged him back.

"To be fair, I'm sure that man wouldn't have even made it through the  _background check_ ," you teased, feeling him sigh again.

"You're  _really_  adopting me?" Ethan asked looking up and you and Calum.

"Mhmm," Calum hummed, "Which makes today either the best or the worst day of your life."

"I think the worst day is already  _taken_ ," he said lightheartedly, making your smile falter a bit. He paused for a moment, furrowing his eyebrows. Before either of you could ask what he was thinking, he looked at you, "I don't have to call you guys Mom and Dad, right?" Everyone but you and Ethan laughed while you simply cocked an eyebrow.

"If you do, I'll be sending you right back here," you said seriously, but Ethan knew your humor well enough to know when you were kidding. He simply smiled at you, hugging you tightly again.

~

A few months passed – Ethan was now nearly 17-years-old and he couldn't be happier. He would still have seizures here and there – averaging out at about one every two or so months – but he felt lucky in having you and/or Calum around when they happened.

One Tuesday afternoon, Calum was doing laundry while Ethan was in the living room playing video games after lunch... Or so he  _thought_.

He'd just dug through the pockets of the jeans he'd worn on the date he took you on that Saturday when his fingers hit something. He grabbed it and pulled his hand out of the pocket, his eyes landing on the diamond ring he'd purchased two weeks ago.

He was planning on proposing on your date, but he couldn't find a moment where it seemed appropriate. He thought about asking you once you got back home, but you'd fallen asleep on the drive and he couldn't force himself to wake you up just to ask you to marry him.

Calum stood there, staring at the ring for a moment, when he was startled by a voice behind him.

"When are you going to ask her?" Ethan asked, making Calum's head snap over.

"I don't know..." he answered honestly.

"You should go to the hospital and ask her now then."

"I can't ask her  _now_ ," Calum shook his head, "I have to ask her when the moment is  _right_."

"What moment could possibly be more right than  _right now_?" Ethan threw his arms up.

"Ethan," he sighed, beginning to say something else but the teen cut him off.

"I thought I had more moments with my sister," he said bluntly, "I thought my sister was going to see me get my license and go on my first date and go to prom and graduate and get into college. But I don't  _get that_  anymore. You're a  _doctor_ , Calum – you  _know_  how fast someone can be taken away. You love Y/N, don't you?"

"More than  _anything_ ," he murmured.

"Then why would you want to  _wait_?" Ethan shrugged. Calum stared at the ring between his fingers again for a moment before his head snapped back up.

"Ethan," he stated, "I'm gonna need your help." The 16-year-old smiled widely, excited to be part of your proposal.

~

**Your POV;** **Four hours later**

You were sitting at the nurse's station, itching for your shift to be over – you were  _beyond_  exhausted and you just wanted to go home and go to sleep. You had just come back from the bathroom and you noticed Brooke was clearly trying to hide a smile.

"What's going on with you?" you asked, sitting back in your seat.

"Hmm?" she hummed, looking away from her computer.

"You're holding back a smile," you said.

"Oh, I just saw a funny post on Facebook, that's all," she shrugged.

"You're supposed to be  _working_ , not browsing  _Facebook_ ," you shoved her playfully.

"Hey, trying not to  _fall asleep_  is hard work! I don't need to remind  _you_  that I've been here for almost  _12 hours_!" You smiled, chuckling softly. When a call button lit up for one of the rooms, you looked back at Brooke.

"I thought we didn't have anyone in 211," you said.

"Oh, someone came in while you were in the bathroom," she answered.

You simply shrugged, getting up and going into the room since it was on your side of the hallway. However, you were left with more  _questions_  than  _answers_  when you found Ethan sitting on the bed, his hands behind his head and not even wearing a hospital gown.

" _Ethan_?" you furrowed your eyebrows, "What are you doing here? Did you have another seizure?"

"No," he shook his head with a small shrug, "But the bathroom is out of soap, so you should probably get on that."

"It  _can't be_!" you squeaked, "I just filled the thing when I  _got here_!" You went into the adjoining bathroom, only to find that the soap dispenser was, in fact, as full as it could be.

When you came back out, however, Ethan was nowhere to be seen. You blinked a few times and then just shook it off, figuring you were more tired than you thought you were. You let out a breath and walked out to the nurse's station, finding Brooke gone now as well.

Actually, it seemed  _eerily quiet_  throughout the whole ward – the only sounds being that of the few admitted patients' heart monitors beeping.

You looked at your side of the desk and found a note with your name on it lying on your keyboard, reaching over to grab it. As you examined it closer, you recognized the handwriting as  _Calum's_.

" _What are you doing, Hood_?" you mumbled out loud to yourself as you unfolded the paper.

_Y/N,_

_I'm sure you're incredibly confused by this point, but bear with me for a moment. I promise it'll all make sense soon enough._

_First off, I wanted to say that I love you more than anything in the world and nothing I could ever fit on this one piece of paper would be enough to tell you that._

_Ever since the first day I met you in the exact spot I'm assuming you're standing in right now (because Lord knows you're too impatient to just walk around your desk and sit down), I knew I wanted to get to know everything there was to know about the beautiful nurse with the completely opposite shift times as me. I love every single moment I get to spend with you and every single moment I get to wake up knowing you're mine. You've told me your dreams and your fears and how much you hate to love watching reality TV, and while I'll never understand why, I love to hate that you got me hooked on it too._

_One month before Ethan was released from the hospital, I knew both of our lives were about to change, but I never told you – because that was the day I started the process of getting custody of him. I knew you would never ask me to do it yourself, but you've done so much for me in the time we've been together that this was something I was determined to do for you. We've had our ups and downs with him, but I've watched you two become so much closer, and I am so happy that I get to be part of the ride._

_I think that the only way to close this letter out – the only way that truly makes sense – is to let Ethan have the rest of the space. (He told me he didn't need much_ –  _don't worry.)_

You laughed softly, looking below Calum's writing to read Ethan's.

_Turn around!_

You tilted your head, but complied with the words anyway.

The moment you did, the first thing you saw was all the nurses in your ward standing around with the widest smiles on their faces. The second was Ethan standing a couple feet away. And the third was Calum kneeling down on one knee with a diamond ring between his thumb and index finger.

You dropped the letter onto the floor as your hands flew up to cover your mouth, cutting off the sob that had just escaped. Calum smiled brightly – and just as widely as everyone else – as he looked up at you.

"I think you already know where this is going, princess," he said, "Will you marry me?"

You knew you'd never be able to find your voice, so you just settled for nodding as quickly as you could. Calum reached up, pulled your left hand down to him, and slid the ring on your finger. You grabbed his cheeks, smashing your lips to his as you pulled him back to his feet, causing everyone to cheer happily.

You pulled away to breathe, your arms around Calum's neck and hugging him at tightly as you could. You felt him hug you back for a few moments before one of his arms' grip loosened.

He reached over to Ethan, bringing him into the hug as well. You felt the teenager's arm come around your shoulders as he laid his head on your arm, letting you feel his smile, happy he finally had a  _family_  again.


	179. Runaways (Jamie Follese) - Part 1

"Jamie!" you sang, skipping into the kitchen. The dish washer jumped, fumbling around with the plate in his hands before he dropped it back into the soapy water. He spun around to face you.

"Oh, it's just you," he said.

"Nice to see you too,  _best friend_ ," you giggled, hopping up onto a stool at the island across from where he was standing, "Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you."

"You didn't scare me," he replied.

"Sure," you nodded with a smirk, "Are you almost done?"

"Yes... Why?"

You pouted, "You said you'd teach me how to play soccer today!"

"I said I'd teach you how to play  _FIFA_ ," he corrected.

"Same thing," you rolled your eyes, "Now hurry up with those dishes or I will be forced to help you finish them."

"You're  _not_  helping me, Y/N," he stated firmly, retrieving the plate he had dropped.

"Is that a challenge?" you grinned, getting up and walking to the sink to stand beside him.

"No," he said, raising his eyebrows at you, "There's a reason that someone was hired to do this job."

"And that reason is?"

"So you don't have to."

"Well, maybe I  _want_  to!" you huffed, leaning against the counter, "Maybe I want to do things for myself and learn how to make my own meals and clean up after myself when I'm done! Maybe I don't want people always waiting on me and bringing me things!"

"Should've thought about that before you became a princess," he teased.

"I didn't have a choice with that either!" you laughed loudly.

"Princess Y/N?!" you heard your lady's maid shout, causing you to let out a quiet groan as you leaned your forehead on Jamie's shoulder.

"Problem?" he chuckled.

"She's been following me around  _all week_ ," you told him as her footsteps got closer to the kitchen.

"She's new," he nudged you, "She'll back off eventually."

"Not soon  _enough_ ," you mumbled just before she entered the kitchen.

"There you are!" Bridgette squeaked, curtsying.

"Here I am," you forced a smile as you picked your head up, "What do you need?"

"The Queen wishes to see you."

"I just saw her 10 minutes ago. What could she possibly want?"

"Something about a dress fitting, I believe."

"Don't I have enough dresses already?" you whined, squeaking lightly when Jamie elbowed your ribs. You sighed, "How long will it take?"

"An hour at the most," she answered. You pushed yourself off of the counter and over to Bridgette before clearing your throat loudly, making Jamie look over his shoulder at you.

"I want you in the media room in an hour," you said with narrowed eyes, "Do not make me come find you." He nodded quickly and you turned around, following your lady's maid to wherever your mother was.

~

You let out a quiet grunt as the seamstress tightened the corset around your torso.

"How's that?" she asked.

"Am I supposed to be able to  _breathe_  in this thing?" you gasped a bit, your hand covering the skin over your heart.

"No," she shook her head.

"Then it fits perfectly," you said through gritted teeth.

"Honey," your mother said softly.

"There's nothing wrong with wanting a little  _room_ , Mother," you stated.

She sighed, "Loosen it a bit, will you, Carol?"

"Yes, Your Majesty," she nodded. You took a big breath as she undid the strings and retied them.

"What am I doing this for?" you groaned, looking at your mom.

"I told you," she said, "The Prince of Eliria is arriving on Friday and your father and I want you to look your best."

"But what for? He's probably just another egotistical idiot who thinks he can snap his fingers to get whatever he wants just because he's a prince. I could refuse to meet him, you know," you thought out loud, "Yeah, I could lock myself in my room until he goes back home."

"You could..." your mother nodded slowly, "In theory..."

"What does that mean?"

"No one's told you yet, have they?" she chewed on her lip nervously.

"Told me  _what_?" you asked in confusion.

"Listen, honey, there's no easy way to say this, but-"

" _No_ ," you started shaking your head, your eyes widening, "Mom,  _please_  don't say what I think you're about to say." She let out a deep sigh.

"Prince Oliver is the man parliament made your father and I choose for you to marry before you can become queen."

"I don't need a  _man_  to be queen, Mother!" you nearly shouted, "What kind of person agrees to an arranged marriage anyway! That's completely and totally medieval!" She smiled sheepishly and you sighed, "You and Dad were an arranged marriage..."

"I know it may seem like the end of the world right now," she said, putting her hand on your shoulder, "But I was lucky enough to fall in love with your father and I'm hoping you feel the same about Prince Oliver as well. We have tried reasoning with parliament since the day you were born, but they just won't budge. It's the law and they refuse to change it." You stared at the floor for a moment.

"I want this dress off," you muttered.

"Y/N-" You cut your mom off.

"It fits fine and it looks beautiful," you said, "But I just want to be alone and I don't want to wear this anymore." She sighed, nodded at Carol to help you take it off so you could change into your sweatpants and t-shirt since you knew you wouldn't be leaving the castle for the rest of the day. "I'll see you at dinner," you told your mom, kissing her cheek before leaving the room.

You walked to the media room and found Jamie already playing a game of  _FIFA_ , making you smile slightly. You stood at the door for a moment, but you were both startled by Bridgette coming up behind you.

"Hello, Princess!" she chirped, causing yours and Jamie's heads to snap over to look at her, "May I be of assistance with anything else?"

"I just want to be left alone, Bridgette," you snapped.

"But you're-" She lifted her hand to point at Jamie, but you slapped it back down, making a noise of detest.

"Can you please go do something else for a little bit?" you muttered as politely as you could, hoping Jamie wouldn't hear you, "And don't come back until dinner is ready." She raised her eyebrows at you as her gaze flicked between you and the boy sitting on the floor in front of the couch a few feet away. She quickly nodded.

"Yes, Your Highness," she bowed before skipping back down the hall. You sighed in relief and closed the door behind you, trudging over to Jamie.

"Why are you on the floor?" you asked, sitting down beside him.

"Why not?" he returned, making you push his arm playfully.

"Let's just get on with it," you smiled, poking at his hand on the controller. He spent a few minutes going over the controls with you before handing it over and letting you finish the game he was playing.

"No, it's left bumper  _and_  B to kick it hard," he laughed.

"Why can't you just  _hold B_?!" you exclaimed.

"Because holding B when you're not on defense doesn't do anything."

" _But why_?!" you whined, "That would be so much  _easier_!"

"Here," he chuckled, taking the controller from you. He held it up in front of the two of you. "Watch the controller, but keep your eyes on the screen," he told you. You nodded and focused on the two things in front of you. Before you could even blink, Jamie scored a goal, leaving you even more confused than before. "Did you get that?" he asked. You groaned, throwing your head back on the seat cushion, making him laugh again. "It's not that hard once you get the hang of it."

"Which I will never do," you said, "I might as well just stick to  _Mario Kart_  because that's the only video game I'm  _decent_  at."

"Come on, you've just gotta keep trying," he perked up. He patted the spot on the floor between his legs, "Come here." You gave him a look. "You're clearly a hands-on kind of person and I think I know of a good way to help you. Unless you wanna give up already," he teased.

You furrowed your eyebrows and climbed over his leg, sitting yourself in front of him. He brought his arms around your waist and let his forearms rest on your thighs. You felt your cheeks get hot, happy Jamie was sitting behind you so he couldn't see you blushing.

"Now put your hands over mine," he said. You swallowed harshly as you did so. His hands were warm and soft despite the fact that he was constantly washing dishes. "Good! Now don't look away from the screen, but don't ignore what your fingers are doing, okay?" You nodded shyly, your eyes glued to the screen, watching as he scored another goal. "Got it?" he asked.

"I think so," you mumbled.

Jamie wiggled his hands out from under yours and you immediately missed the feeling of your hands on top of his. He gave you the controller and you chewed on your lip as you recalled the buttons he pushed. You led your player down the field, squeaking when the ball went into the net. 

" _I did it_?!" you nearly shouted in excitement.

"You did it!" Jamie laughed, hugging your waist tightly, "See? I told you it was easy."

You scoffed, "I made  _one goal_ , Jamie. That doesn't make me the next Lionel Messi."

"One day," he joked, letting go of you, "Do you wanna finish this game?"

"No," you shook your head, "You can."

You handed him back the controller and he waited for you to go back to your spot beside him, but you didn't. Instead, you leaned back so your back was pressed against his chest as you put your head on his shoulder. He was honestly surprised you couldn't feel his heart beating with how it felt like it was going to jump out of his chest at any moment.

"What are you doing?" he asked, clearing his throat nervously.

"You're  _comfy_ ," you mumbled with a whining tone. He simply smiled and shook his head, resting his arms in your lap once again.

You barely even noticed when the game was over until you felt Jamie poke your leg. You tilted your head on his shoulder to look at him.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Mhmm," you hummed, but he obviously didn't buy it.

"Y/N," he said quietly, but firmly as well, "I've known you for three years. I know when you're lying to me." You remained silent for a few seconds before giving in.

"You know that Prince that's coming tomorrow?" He nodded. "My mom said that he was picked for me when I was little and I have to spend time with him before..." you trailed off, making Jamie pat your leg again, urging you to continue. You sighed. "Before we get married."

"You're getting  _married_?" he whispered in shock.

"Yeah," you replied just as quietly, "Apparently, my mom and dad have been trying to get me out of it since I was born, but parliament isn't having it. I have to marry before I can even  _consider_  taking the throne."

"Why do you have to get married  _now_?" he shook his head in confusion, "The King and Queen aren't going to be stepping down any time  _soon_." You couldn't help but let out a breathy chuckle.

"Why do you seem more upset about this than me?" you asked Jamie.

"You're my best friend," he said quickly, "I don't like seeing you being forced into something you don't want to do." You smiled lightly, pressing your lips to his cheek.

"Thanks, Jamie," you muttered as you pulled away. Jamie took in the feeling of your lips on his skin for a moment before moving on.

"Wanna watch a movie before dinner?" he asked.

" _Tangled_?" you grinned, sitting up.

"You know it," he laughed, wiggling out from his spot behind you so he could put the movie in.

~

**The next afternoon; 3pm**

"Your Highness!" Bridgette called from the other side of your bedroom door, "Prince Oliver has arrived!"

You took one last look at yourself in the mirror as you smoothed out your dress. You breathed in deeply, leaving your room and walking with Bridgette outside to stand by your parents as the prince's car pulled up to the castle steps. The royal's servant got out of the front passenger seat and opened the back door for the Prince.

As he stepped out, you immediately took in how handsome he was. The moment his eyes met yours, he smiled at you and you swore your knees shook a little bit. He made his way up the castle steps, stopped in front of you.

"Your Majesties," he bowed to your parents, speaking in an accent you couldn't quite place, before he turned to you. "Princess," he bowed again, taking your hand and placing a kiss on the back of it, "May I be so bold to say you look absolutely stunning." You blushed.

"Thank you," you smiled shyly.

"Prince Oliver," your mother grinned at the two of you, "We're so pleased to have you stay with us. Why don't we show you around?"

"I would very much enjoy that, Your Highness," he replied, quickly winking at you before letting go of your hand, only to stick his elbow out. You linked your arm with his as you and your parents gave him a tour of your castle.

~

**One week later**

Until a couple days into his visit, everything was going amazingly and you could honestly see yourself start to be okay with marrying this man. But as soon as your parents and the guards left you alone, it was like he was a completely different person.

Around  _everyone else_ , Prince Oliver was the picture of a perfect prince; Always polite, never went without complimenting something about you, and he was just an overall nice guy. But when you were  _alone_ , he was rude and selfish and acted like he wanted nothing to do with you.

On one such evening, the two of you were in the garden at the request of your mother. She felt that you two needed to spend more time together getting to know one another, but truthfully, you knew all you needed to. But the moment she left you alone, the Prince began degrading you.

"You  _do_  realize that the only reason I'm here is to become king, you know?" he mentioned, pacing back and forth in front of where you were sat on a concrete bench. You were sitting cross-legged – you were wearing your usual sweatpants and t-shirt – and staring at your hands, not daring to look up at him. "There are so many things wrong with this kingdom that I can't wait to fix," he shook his head, "It's just a shame I have to wait until  _Mommy and Daddy_  step down to do them."

"There's noth-" You were cut off.

"I'm sorry," Prince Oliver froze in his spot, raising his eyebrows at you, "Did I give you permission to speak?"

"I don't need your damn  _permission_ ," you stated firmly, quickly standing up. Although your voice – as well as what seemed to be every other part of your body – was shaking, you stood your ground. "My kingdom is not some sort of real life game of Sims where you get to build your own town and my people are not pawns in your little game either."

"Listen here,  _Princess_ ," the Prince scowled, walking toward you. You backed up until the backs of your calves hit the bench and you let out a quiet squeak as you plopped back down. "This is going to be  _my_  kingdom one day and there is  _nothing_  you can do to stop me. You may be the future queen, but you ultimately have no say whatsoever in what goes on here. As far as I'm concerned, you're not fit to be a queen, you're not smart enough to be a queen, and you definitely aren't  _pretty enough_  to be one either. Do I make myself clear?"

Your jaw tightened as you got back up, pushing him away and hurrying back up the steps. You walked down the porch and back inside the castle, missing the messy brown hair of the dish washer that had seen the whole thing.

The moment the door shut behind you, you ran to the library. You would very rarely go there, so you knew it would be a safe place for you to let out all the frustrations from the past week. You were crying in a far corner of the room when there was a quiet knock on the door, making you freeze. You thought no one would find you, but clearly, you were wrong.

You remained silent, praying whoever was on the other side of the door would think they were hearing things and just leave. Unfortunately, the door slowly opened, but as soon as you saw who it was, you let out a sigh of relief.

"Y/N?" Jamie called out quietly, "Are you in here?"

"Yeah, Jamie," you whispered. He looked in the direction of your voice and immediately closed the door before rushing over to you.

He dropped to his knees in front of you before repositioning himself to sit cross-legged. He grabbed your hand and pulled you onto his lap, running his fingers up and down your spine.

"I was walking around outside and heard what the Prince said to you," he said softly, his breath tickling the hair on the back of your neck, "Are you okay?"

"I don't want to do this anymore, Jamie," you sniffled, feeling your face start to get wet again, "I don't want to be royalty, I don't want be constantly judged, and I sure as hell don't want to marry that  _awful_  excuse of a prince." You felt Jamie take in a deep breath as he hugged you tighter.

"Run away with me," he mumbled against your shoulder.

"What?" you asked in shock, moving back to look at him.

"Run away with me," he repeated, "I hate seeing you like this, Y/N. You don't smile as much as you used to and I miss hearing your laugh. I want to go back to the time when it was just you and me against the world and nothing could tear us apart. I miss sneaking out to the garden for our late night talks because neither of us could sleep... I miss the Y/N I fell in love with three years ago." Your eyes widened slightly at the confession.

"Y-You're in love with me?" you swallowed the lump in your throat, "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because you're... You're the princess and I'm just some kid who washes the dishes," he sighed, "Even if you liked me back, we couldn't-"

You cut him off, putting your hands on his cheeks and pressing your lips together. He was obviously surprised, but quickly started kissing back, holding you even tighter. You came back for air, chuckling as you rested your forehead on his.

"You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that," you said under your breath. He started chewing on his bottom lip, smiling slightly. "Where were you thinking?"

"Hmm?" he hummed, a wondering look on his face.

"You said you wanted to run away," you reminded him, "Where to?"

"You would actually do it?" he gaped.

"I don't want this life, Jamie," you shook your head, "I want a life with you. And if you feel like the only way that can happen is if I'm not a princess anymore, then I'm not gonna stop until I'm not."

"You would give all this up-" He motioned around the room. "- _just_  to be with me?"

"Do you think I'd be crying in the library if I didn't?" you replied, making him smile again.

"You're so beautiful, Y/N," he muttered, kissing you, "I love you so much."

"I love you too, Jamie," you said against his lips.

~

The next day, you and Jamie went on with everything as normal; He washed the dishes, you spent an  _ungodly_  amount of time with Prince Oliver, and no one suspected a thing. The two of you had packed as lightly as you could the night before so you could leave as soon as everyone went to bed. You kissed your parents goodnight, telling them you loved them – as you did every night – but it made your heart ache a little knowing this would be the last time you would ever do it. You knew you couldn't leave without writing them a note – you would have felt way too guilty – so you quickly came up with something and placed it on your pillow, knowing Bridgette would find it first thing in the morning.

Jamie climbed down from the balcony first so you could throw your backpacks down to him. He quietly set them down as you brought your legs over the railing. It wasn't so high where it could seriously injure you if you jumped off, but knowing your clumsiness, Jamie decided it would be best if he were there to catch you just in case. The moment your feet hit the ground, you both grabbed your backpacks and sneaked through the garden. You climbed over a couple fences before you were finally in the clear.

You let out a sigh of relief as you ran down the road through the woods with Jamie following very closely behind you, not stopping until you simply couldn't run anymore. You slowed to a complete stop to catch your breath about a mile away from the castle. You turned around as Jamie approached you, wrapping his arms around your waist and pulling you into him.

"I love you so much, you know that?" he mumbled, bringing you in for a kiss.

"So the rumors are true?" you teased. He rolled his eyes, but smiled at you.

"Where do you want to run away to, Princess?"

"Hey," you said, shoving his chest lightly, "Don't call me that anymore." He smiled again, kissing your nose. You sighed in content and put your head on his shoulder. "Well, you know they're going to come looking for me," you groaned at the thought, "I think for now, we should just focus on getting as far away as possible and finding a really good hiding spot."

"I like the way you think," he squeezed you before letting go. He took your hand, lacing your fingers together, as you both started walking down the road once again.

And you never looked back.


	180. Runaways (Jamie Follese) - Part 2

**Three years later**

" _Jamie_!" you sang over your shoulder loudly, "Your breakfast is going to get cold if you don't get your lazy butt out of bed!" As you were putting the final pancake on the plate, you felt arms wrap around your waist from behind. "Morning, Sleeping Beauty," you teased, leaning back onto Jamie.

"Good morning, princess," Jamie said in the morning voice that always made your heart flutter.

"What have I told you about calling me that?"

"To not to," he answered, "But just because you're not  _a_  princess anymore doesn't mean you're not  _my_  princess."

"Smooth," you blushed lightly.

"Worked, didn't it?" he smirked, lifting his head to kiss your cheek.

"Maybe," you giggled, shaking him off of you so you two could go to the table and eat.

It's been three years since you ran away and you couldn't be happier. You obviously missed your parents, but you were finally free to be with Jamie and that was all you ever really wanted.

You found a small cabin in the woods that didn't look like it'd been used for a few years, so that was where you stayed. Jamie had gotten a job in the nearby town right away so you could afford the necessities like electricity and water and food and stuff while you managed to find a job at a bakery. They weren't  _high-paying_  jobs by any means, but you two were  _happy_.

You never thought you and Jamie would get the opportunity to be together – especially after your mother told you about Prince Oliver. And maybe the cabin wasn't suited for living in for anything longer than a summer vacation, but you two made it home and that's where you'd been ever since.

~

You were walking home after going to the store later that morning when something caught your eye. You noticed a car parked outside your house and tilted your head, freezing in your spot. You had never told anyone where you lived and you were sure Jamie hadn't either.

As you got closer, you saw the flags with your family crest on them on either side of the hood. You dropped the bag in your hand and began to run toward the door, but you never made it.

Arms were wrapped around your waist and your head snapped over to see Lawrence, a castle guard, holding onto you tightly. You were already upset enough, but when you saw another guard, Clarke, dragging Jamie outside, you absolutely lost it.

" _Let him go_!" you practically screamed, trying to wiggle out of the guard's grasp but not being able to.

"I'm sorry, Your Highness," Clarke shook his head, "But we were given orders to bring you two home."

Jamie had a distressed look on his face, knowing what was bound to happen when you got back to the castle. You couldn't handle his expression, so you ripped your arm out of the guard's.

"And  _I'm_  ordering you to let go of him," you stated firmly.

"Princess-"

" _Now_ ," you growled, narrowing your eyes. The guard sighed, releasing the brown-haired boy.

Jamie groaned lightly, scurrying a few feet away, rubbing his arm. You quickly ran to him, putting your hands on his cheeks.

"Are you okay?" you asked frantically.

"Are  _you_?" he mumbled. You studied his face for a moment before averting your gaze to the ground.

"I'm sorry, Jamie," you whispered.

"Don't be sorry," he said, placing his hands on top of yours and rubbing your knuckles lightly, "Like you said; You didn't choose to be a princess."

"Jamie-"

"I think you should go with them," he told you, making your eyes widen.

"But Ja-"

"Your parents are probably worried about you, Y/N."

"But what about you?" your bottom lip trembled slightly.

"Why would they be worried about  _me_?" he returned, obviously trying to make you laugh. With tears in your eyes, you couldn't help but smile, leaning your forehead on his shoulder. You felt his body shake as he chuckled and wrapped his arms tightly around your waist.

"I love you, Jamie," you muttered into his neck.

"I love you too, Y/N," he murmured, "So much." He moved his hands to your cheeks so he could pick your head up. As soon as your face was in front of his, he pressed a kiss to your lips. "I know you, Y/N," he assured you, "You're gonna find a way out of this. And I'll be waiting for you right here when you do." He let go of you and you glanced at the two castle guards now standing awkwardly off to the side before swallowing the lump in your throat.

"I will go back," you started, bringing them back to attention, "But you will  _not_ be taking him too." They looked at Jamie – who was watching you – none of them too sure where you were going with this.

"But, Princess," Clarke said, "The King said-"

"I don't care  _what_  my father said," you snarled. You were already pissed that they had come for you at all – especially after  _three years_  – and you  _really_  didn't care what your parents had ordered them to do. "You're either taking me or neither of us." They sighed in defeat, nodding their heads. "And I suggest you spread the word around that if  _anyone_ comes looking for him-" You motioned toward the boy beside you. "-whatever reward my parents have posted –  _and I know they have one_  – will be the  _least_  of their concerns when I find out about it, are we clear?"

"Yes, Your Highness," they replied in unison, nodding solemnly.

You hesitantly stepped toward the car, but Jamie grabbed your hand, pulling you back to him for one last kiss. When you pulled away, he held your face in his hands.

"I love you so much, Y/N," he mumbled for only you to hear. You couldn't bear to attempt even a fake smile.

"I love you so much more, Jamie," you said, kissing him again.

~

Four hours later, you were reentering the gates of the kingdom. It was bittersweet, honestly. Despite the fact that you  _did_  miss it so much, it hurt, you were hoping you would never have to step foot in it again.

"How did you find me?" you asked suddenly as the driver of the car pulled up to the castle steps. The guards were simply going to get out without acknowledging the question which only made it worse. " _Stop_!" you shouted, making their arms freeze before they could reach the door handles.

They both looked at you, surprised expressions on their faces. You were never a very vocal person when it came to giving orders – you were always quiet and sweet – but now that you were forced to come back to the  _one_  place you didn't want to be, you were understandably angry.

" _No one_  is getting out of this car until I find out how you knew where I was," you said dangerously low. Clarke and Lawrence looked at each other before turning back to you.

"That Prince had scouts all over the country looking for you for the past three years," Clarke answered, "One of them came to the castle early this morning and said he saw you walking into that cabin last night, so your mother and father ordered us to come get you."

" _Asshole_ ," you mumbled under your breath as you threw your door open.

"Princess-" You cut him off as you all got out of the car.

"I know how to open a door, Clarke," you snarled, "I'm not incompetent." You stormed into the castle with the two guards following close behind.

"Throne room!" Lawrence spoke up so you knew where to go.

The moment you were approaching the room, the guard standing there's eyes went wide. He went to open the door, but your voice stopped him.

"I'm perfectly capable of opening doors myself!" you exclaimed, "Jesus Christ, I'm not 3-years-old anymore!" He immediately retracted, letting you do it yourself. You gripped the handle, stopping and looking at him. "Thank you," you nodded with a small sigh, pulling the door open.

Much to your dismay, Prince Oliver was standing with your parents when Clarke and Lawrence led you into the throne room. He jumped up from his seat, putting on the fakest act you'd ever seen.

"Princess!" he gasped, making you roll your eyes, "You're alive!"

"Oh, don't give me that," you growled as you let the door slam shut behind you before it was opened again by Clarke and Lawrence.

" _Honey_!" your mother screeched, tears streaming down her face, "You're safe!" She ran to hug you, but you didn't hug back; You simply stood there in the middle of the room, letting her squeeze you.

"What were you  _thinking_ , young lady?!" your father exclaimed breathlessly, hugging you as well.

"I was thinking life was great until  _these two_ -" You nodded toward the guards. "-showed up at my house this morning."

"I thought I told you to bring the dish washer back as well?" the King inquired to the two men behind you, but you answered for them.

"He's not here," you shook your head.

"What do you mean?" your mother asked.

"She ordered us not to bring him, Your Majesty," Lawrence said quickly, "She said it was either her or neither of them."

"My  _daughter_  is not the one who makes executive decisions around here," your father stated dryly.

"I understand that, but forgive me, Your Majesty," Clarke cleared his throat, "She's a  _little_  scarier than you are." You smiled proudly at the statement.

"But he  _kidnapped_  her!" Prince Oliver spoke.

" _We ran away_!" you nearly shouted at him, "And this conversation does not concern  _you_ , so why don't you just keep your mouth  _shut_?!" He raised his eyebrows at you with a menacing look, but you couldn't care less at that point.

You were so fed up with the Prince that nothing he could do was going to be worse than having to leave Jamie.

" _Y/N Y/M/N_ ," your mom threatened.

"I wouldn't leave with someone I didn't  _trust_ , Mom!" you exclaimed, "Maybe if you guys hadn't put so much pressure on me, I wouldn't have left in the first place! Jamie is the only person who listened to my problems and didn't judge me for them and now he's been taken from me, so I hope you're happy!" You narrowed your eyes at Prince Oliver before looking back at your parents, "And if you think I'm going to marry that  _sorry excuse_  for a prince, you're  _wrong_." By this time, the Prince was absolutely fuming.

" _Excuse me_ -" Your mother raised her hand up, cutting him short.

"What do you mean ' _sorry excuse for a prince_ '?" she asked you.

"Oh, I can answer that, Your Majesty," you heard your lady's maid chirp as she walked into the room. She respectively bowed to you all before going on, "I don't know if you're aware of this, but he's kind of been treating your daughter – forgive my language –  _like crap_." Both your mother and father looked at him before turning their attention back to Bridgette.

"How so?" your father asked.

"Well, whenever you leave them alone, he starts talking about how it's a shame that he has to wait for you guys to step down before he can take over. Whenever she wants to say something to him, she has to have his permission and even then, he never gives it to her. I've lost track of how many times he's degraded her appearance or ability to rule a kingdom. And honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if he's laid a hand on her when no one was around."

"Y/N," your mother whispered, still trying to process everything that had been said, "Is all of that true?" You looked down at your hands, playing with your fingers as you nodded. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"You never would have believed her, Your Highness," Bridgette said, seeing your shaking hands, "Prince Oliver is the definition of a perfect prince when he knows someone is watching."

"That's why you ran away?" your dad tilted his head, "Because you don't want to be with Prince Oliver?" You shrugged and he finally got the message. "You ran away because that was the only way you could be with Jamie..." his tone was questioning, but he already knew the answer. You swallowed the lump in your throat, nodding slowly. "Clarke," he told the two guards who had brought you back, "I want you to bring Jamie back to the castle." Your head snapped back up.

"Dad-" He cut you off.

"Lawrence," he said, "Please escort Prince Oliver downstairs to the holding cells; He needs somewhere to stay while he waits for his servants to come pick him up."

" _Holding cell_?" Prince Oliver furrowed his eyebrows, "What's the meaning of this?" He protested as Lawrence grabbed his upper arm and started taking him away, but not before leading him over to the King.

" _No one_  treats my daughter like that and gets away with it," he said with a low growl before waving his hand, signalling for the guard to take him away.

The Prince kept shouting as he was being dragged out of the room, but you weren't paying attention to what exactly he was saying. You looked at your mom and dad in confusion for a moment.

"I don't understand..." you trailed off. He looked at Bridgette and nodded for her to leave the room.

She smiled at you when you gave her a thankful glance and quickly bowed again. She skipped back into the hallway, just happy she was able to help you.

"You should have told us about the way you were being treated," your father said.

"But you wouldn't have believed me," you mumbled, looking down at your shoes.

"Yes, we would have, honey," your mom sighed. She walked up to you and put her hands on your cheeks, lifting your head up so you would look at her. "We know you didn't want to marry him, but you never would have  _lied_  just to get out of it."

"But why did you tell Clarke to go get Jamie? You're not gonna put him in jail, are you?" your eyes widened, desperately looking between your mother and father, "It wasn't his fault! I mean, yeah, he suggested we run away, but he was  _really_  surprised when I agreed!"

"Sweetheart!" your mom laughed, "Slow down!"

"Why is he getting Jamie?" you murmured.

"You're going to be an amazing queen, Y/N," your dad told you, "Hell, you've already got  _Clarke and Lawrence_  afraid of you." You couldn't help but laugh under your breath. "And if having Jamie by your side is what it takes for you stay and rule our people, then your mother and I aren't going to come in between that."

"You mean... I can be with Jamie?"

"Your father and I were an arranged marriage, Y/N," your mom smiled, "And I was lucky enough to fall head over heels for him." Your dad came over and kissed her temple, making you grin. "But I never wanted that for you; Not after Jamie started working here." You tilted your head in confusion and she simply smirked. "I've known how you felt about him for a while, sweetie," she said.

"Going outside before bedtime to look at the stars with him, always going into the media room after meals so you could hang out with him," your dad chuckled, "Sneaking into the kitchen during parties to hide out with him..." He trailed off, knowing he could go on and on.

You blushed lightly, "You knew about that?"

"Doesn't take a genius, honey," your mom laughed again, "You have a crown on your head; You're not that hard to spot in a crowd." You frowned and she lifted her hand up, ruffling your hair. "Please don't run away again," she whispered, "If you don't like something, just come talk to us, okay?" You nodded and she kissed forehead before hugging you tightly as did your father, happy you were finally home.

~

A few hours later, you were lounging around in the throne room with your parents, waiting for Clarke to return with Jamie. You were lying sideways on your throne – your legs dangling off of the armrest – while your parents filled you in on everything that had happened in the kingdom within the three years of your absence. Not much had happened, but they did tell you that everyone was anxiously waiting to see when – or  _if_  – you would return.

It was nearing sunset by this time and none of you had had dinner yet. You were too eager to see Jamie and your parents obviously didn't want to eat without you, so they told the cooks to wait as long as they could.

When Lawrence came in and informed you all that Clarke had just passed the gatekeepers with a very distressed looking dish washer at his side. You smiled guiltily, knowing Jamie must be freaking out.

Your father told Lawrence to go tell the cooks to begin preparing dinner for four, making you look over at him. He simply smiled without acknowledging your stare; If his daughter wanted to be with a servant, then he figured he should stop treating the boy like one.

"Oh, come on!" you heard Jamie's voice echoing throughout the hallway as he approached the room five minutes later, causing you to perk up and spin around so you were sat properly in your seat, "I thought she told you not to-" You cut him off as soon as he was brought into the room.

" _Jamie_!" you squealed, a wide smile on your face. You pushed yourself off of your throne and ran across the room, jumping into his arms.

He stumbled backwards and probably would have fallen if not for Clarke quickly putting his hand on his back to keep him upright. Although he was still confused, Jamie wrapped his arms around your waist.

"What's going on?" he asked slowly, looking over your shoulder at your parents. He raised his eyebrow when he saw they were smiling at the two of you.

"Y/N," your mother chuckled, "You can bring him over here now." You whined quietly, burying your face further into his neck.

Jamie, despite being incredibly confused, hugged your waist tighter and lifted you up, carrying you over to your parents. You squeaked, scrunching up your nose and lightly pressing a kiss to his skin just before he let your feet touch the ground again.

"Your Majesties," Jamie said shyly, bowing as best he could with you still holding onto him. Your parents watched as he rubbed your lower back gently, realizing in that moment just how much you two loved each other.

"I'm sure you're wondering why we had Clarke bring you back," your dad said.

"Well, sir," Jamie cleared his throat nervously, "I would say it's because you're upset for running away with your daughter, but she seems really happy at the moment, so I'm guessing that's  _not_  the case."

Your mother chuckled quietly as you finally let go, only to wrap your arms back around Jamie's waist. He wrapped his arms around your shoulders, holding you closely.

"We want you to come back; Both of you," she said, her eyes darting back and forth between you and Jamie. "After hearing everything that happened under this roof, I don't think there's anything we wouldn't do to redo it. We should have seen the signs you were giving us about the Prince," she sighed, looking at you before turning to Jamie, "And we should have known that she wanted to be with you instead. All we've ever wanted is for our daughter to be happy and if she's happy with you, then we feel we have no right to stand in the way of that."

"You mean..." Jamie trailed off, his eyes widening, "I can be with Y/N..?"

"Yes, Jamie!" your dad exclaimed with a laugh at hearing him say practically the same thing you did just hours before, "You can be with Y/N."

"Your Majesties," Lawrence came back into the room, "Dinner is ready when you are."

" _Thank God_!" you exclaimed, grabbing Jamie's hand and immediately taking him to the dining hall.

Your parents laughed as they followed a ways behind as to give you and Jamie some space. You heard them tell Lawrence and Clarke to get a couple more guards together to go retrieve your things and bring them back to the castle.

"Why are you taking me too?" Jamie asked you.

You stopped dragging him, now walking along side him, your fingers tangled up in his. He held your hand tightly and you laid your head on his shoulder.

"I don't know," you answered honestly, "But my dad said to prepare dinner for four, so I'm guessing that means you too."

"You never know," he said with a teasing tone, "He could have meant Prince Oliver."

"Well, I'm sure my parents and I aren't going down to the prison just to eat dinner with him," you giggled.

"He's in the  _prison_?" he seemed shocked.

"Mhmm," you hummed with a nod, "When I got back, Bridgette explained what he'd been saying and doing to me, so they had Clarke keep him in a cell until someone arrived to take him back home."

"See?" he said lowly, kissing the top of your head, "I told you you'd warm up to her." You rolled your eyes, lifting your head off of him.

"Jamie," you said, making him look at you. You leaned up and pressed a kiss to his lips. "I love you," you whispered when you pulled away. He smiled bashfully, knowing your parents were behind you, bending down and kissing your cheek.

"I love you too," he said, squeezing your hand.


	181. Won't Let Go (Marshall Traver)

You stared at your reflection in the rear view mirror. You had been sitting in the parking lot of your apartment building for about ten minutes now, trying to make yourself go back inside. You had a fight with your boyfriend in which some things were said that really got to you, but you had left before you let him see it. You were gone for all of three hours when you finally decided that you needed to go back home since the sun was setting and you hated being out at night when you were alone. But you just couldn't force yourself to get out of your car.

You sat there for another five minutes or so before swallowing your pride and opening the door. You were taking slow, deep breaths as you made your way back to your apartment. You walked in the door and barely had time to close it before arms were wrapped tightly around your waist from behind. You jumped, feeling your boyfriend's face press against your neck. You were about to snap at him, not feeling like having him around you at the moment, but you felt your skin get wet and his chest was shaking against your back.

"Marshall," you said, "What are you doing?"

"I saw on the news that there was an accident," he rambled into your neck, "But they didn't say who was hurt and you wouldn't answer your phone and I thought it was you." You found yourself smiling slightly, but quickly snapped out of it. You were still mad and no matter how sweet he was being now was going to change what he said.

"You know, I find that pretty hard to believe coming from the person who said they didn't care about what happened to me not even three hours ago," you scoffed, shaking him off of you and walking into the living room. You sat down sideways on the couch, putting your feet up on the seat beside you so he couldn't sit there.

That obviously didn't stop him, however, because he pushed you up against the back pillows and sat on the edge of the couch so your hips were practically touching and you couldn't get away.

"Babe..." he said slowly, "You know I say stupid shit when I'm mad... I swear I didn't mean it."

"But you still said it!" you exclaimed, your voice shaking dangerously, "And just because you ' _didn't mean it_ ' doesn't mean it doesn't still hurt!"

"Y/N," his voice cracked when he saw you were crying. He started rubbing your hip bone with his thumb, but you pushed his hand away.

"Don't ' _Y/N_ ' me, Marshall! You think that every time you mess up, you can just ' _Y/N_ ' me and I'm automatically going to forgive you!"

You climbed over the armrest to leave, but Marshall clearly wasn't going to give up that easily. He wrapped an arm around your waist, pulling you back to him as he stood up, your back now against his chest.

" _Marshall_!" you shouted, struggling to get away, but he kept a firm grip on you.

"I love you, Y/N," he stated, "And I don't want to be with anyone but you." You gradually stopped struggling, but still refused to look at him. "But if you want me to let you go, then I will. I want you to be happy and if you would be happier without me, then so be it."

"Marshall..." you trailed off.

"Tell me, Y/N," he said simply, "Tell me to let you go and I'll do it."

"No," you whispered. His hold loosened so he could turn you around and hug you properly. Your arms wrapped around his neck and you buried your face in his skin.

"I love you so much," Marshall whispered against your ear, "I promise I'm gonna be a better boyfriend."

"You're an amazing boyfriend already, Marshall," you told him, "You just need to work on the attitude. And maybe get some better comebacks."

" _What_?!" he laughed, squeezing you just before he let go so he could look at you, "My comebacks are way better than  _yours_!"

"Whatever you say," you sighed dramatically, falling back onto the couch, your head laying on the armrest. A smirk started pulling at the corner of his mouth as he – carefully – threw himself down on top of you. " _Marshall_!" you squealed loudly.

"My comebacks may not be great, but this is always guaranteed to win," he smiled sweetly, kissing your cheek.

"The day you win with this move is the day you end up crushing me to death," you chuckled. You wiggled around a bit so you were more comfortable, finally wrapping your arms around his waist to keep him in his spot.

Marshall nuzzled his face in your neck, putting his forearms by your sides to hold himself up slightly just so his weight wasn't completely on you. You slipped your hands under his shirt so you could absentmindedly draw shapes on his back.

"Have I ever told you how beautiful you are?" he asked, his voice coming out muffled.

"You've mentioned it once or twice," you smiled slightly, happy he couldn't see you blushing.

"Because you're so beautiful." He seemed to be talking more to himself than to you. "Whether you're happy or sad or angry at me, you're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen."

"Even counting Demi Lovato?" you asked. You felt his body shake as he let out a quiet laugh before he pushed himself up slightly.

" _Especially_  counting Demi Lovato," he said, pressing his lips to yours.

 


	182. Jealous (Maxx Danziger)

You were sitting sitting at the counter at the house party you were at with your friends. Your best friend Maxx had invited you, but you hadn't seen him for nearly 20 minutes. The only people keeping you company were the random guys here and there that would come over and attempt to flirt with you. You talked to a few of them before they were pulled into the living room to dance and eventually, you just gave up. The rest of your friends hadn't come around you for the past few minutes either.

After what seemed like forever, you were finally approached by one of them.

"You're still alone?" Dan asked, a hint of surprise in his voice.

You shrugged casually, "You know parties aren't really my thing."

"Then why did you come?"

"Maxx invited me," you sighed, "I said no at first, but then he started whining and wouldn't stop until I agreed."

"Typical Maxx," he chuckled, "Where is he now?"

"Your guess is as good as mine," you muttered. You talked to Dan for a few more minutes before Maxx finally reappeared.

"Y/N!" he beamed, coming up and wrapping his arms around your waist.

You raised your eyebrows at him, "Are you drunk?"

"Why do I always have to be drunk to want to hug you?" he stuck out his bottom lip.

"Maxx."

"Fine, I had a couple beers, but I haven't had enough to be cuddly yet," he said.

"Really?" you rolled your eyes, "Because you seem pretty cuddly with that girl you've been dancing with all night."

"Jealous?" he wiggled his eyebrows. You rolled your eyes again.

"No," you stated, "That would be suggesting she's getting what I want."

"Then you won't have any problem with me asking her out, right?" You simply shook your head and he smiled again. "Wish me luck," he said over his shoulder as he sauntered away.

"Why did you let him do that?" you heard Dan say.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Daniel," you mumbled, keeping your eyes on the blonde boy in the middle of the living room.

"That glare is telling me otherwise," he stated. Maxx had just put his arms around the girl's waist as she gave him a flirty grin and you decided you'd had enough.

"I'm not feeling well," you said suddenly, getting up from the bar stool, "Tell the boys I'm gonna head home. I'll see you later." You gave him a quick hug before hurrying out the front door.

~

The next morning, you were woken up by loud knocking on your door. You rushed to answer it, knowing your neighbors were probably going to chew you out for this later. You pulled the door open and found your best friend standing there with a sly smile on his face.

" _What_?" you asked dryly, walking away from the door and letting him let himself inside.

"Just came by to make sure you got home safely," he shrugged, following you into the kitchen.

"And a text wouldn't have worked just as well?" you yawned lightly.

"Why did you leave so early?" he asked, getting straight to the reason he had stopped by.

"Did Dan not tell you?" you replied, "I starting feeling sick, so I came home."

"Feeling sick how?"

"How  _else_  do you feel sick?" you shot him a confused glance.

"Illness, drunkenness, jealousy," he shrugged nonchalantly.

"I told you, I'm not jealous," you rolled your eyes again, "Don't flatter yourself." He hopped up to sit on the counter, giving you a knowing look.

You elected to ignore him, beginning to look for something to eat. You stared into the cereal cabinet, seeing him smile out of the corner of your eye. He knew you weren't actually paying attention to what you were looking at.

"Y/N," he stated.

"You  _invited me_ , Maxx," you closed the cabinet doors and spun to face him, "Excuse me for being under the impression that that meant you were actually going to  _talk to me_  every once in a while." He raised his eyebrows at you and had another smirk on his face.

"Dan told me you were watching that girl and I," he informed you.

"Of course he did," you rolled your eyes, "To be quite honest, you were so close to her, I was surprised when she managed to get even  _closer_."

"Admit it, Y/N," he said, getting off the counter and standing right in front of you, "You were jealous."

"So what if I was?!" you nearly shouted, not even caring about your neighbors anymore, "Some stupid girl you met at a party gets all of your attention while I'm left sitting alone looking like a god damn idiot?! That was really the cherry on top of a wonderful night, Maxx! I'm  _so happy_  I agreed to go with you!"

"I think it's cute that you were jealous," he mentioned, seemingly ignoring how upset you were.

"Well, I'm glad one of us is enjoying it, Maxx," you whispered, knowing that if you spoke any louder, your voice wouldn't hold up, "Because on this end,  _it fucking sucks_." You quickly pushed past him and went back to your bedroom, locking yourself inside.

"Y/N," Maxx was outside your door not even five seconds later, "What are you doing?" You remained silent. "Why would you even be jealous, huh? If anyone should be jealous, it's  _me_. All those guys coming up to you and flirting with you while I wasn't around? You should have  _seen_  how jealous I got." You slowly pulled down the doorknob, causing the lock to release.

"Why would you be jealous?" you asked quietly, looking at him shyly. He simply smiled, putting his hands on your cheeks.

"I've only liked you for forever," he said, "I thought I was always pretty obvious about it, but I guess I was wrong."

"What about that girl?"

"I already knew her," he chuckled, "And she's into girls."

"Oh..."

"That's all you have to say?"

"What do you  _want_  me to say, Maxx?"

"Say you'll be mine," he said lowly. His face was only a couple centimeters away from yours and you felt his lips brush up against yours as the words left his mouth.

"I always _have been_ ," you replied, closing the gap between the two of you and pressing your lips together.

~

_inspiration (luke's): http://assholelukey.tumblr.com/post/107644995600/can-you-do-a-lashton-blurb-where-you-get-really_


	183. Tattoo (Set It Off)

**Cody**   **(Warning: Mention of self-harm scars)**

You rarely ever wore shorts. It wasn't that you didn't like the way your legs looked in shorts, it was just that you didn't like the way your scars showed when you wore them. You weren't ashamed of them by any means – your scars were a reminder of all the tough times you pulled yourself through – but that didn't mean you constantly wanted people to judge you for them. People always seemed to have a problem with things they didn't understand and the reasoning behind your scars was one of them. You simply chose not to deal with it by never letting them see them.

But today, you were feeling good about yourself. Today, you wanted to put on your favorite pair of shorts and go out without a care in the world about what other people thought. And that was what you did.

You walked to the elementary school about 5 minutes from your house. It was the middle of summer, so you knew not many people would be there. Honestly, you just wanted to swing for a while.

After swinging for about 20 minutes, you were about to get up and go back home when you felt someone tickle your sides. You jumped up, spinning around, and were met with the sight of your smirking boyfriend. You stared at him in shock for a few seconds before squealing and jumping into his arms. Cody and his band had been on tour for the past four months and you weren't expecting him to come home for another two days.

"What are you doing here?" you mumbled into his shoulder, "You weren't supposed to be home until Tuesday."

"We were able to get an earlier flight." You could feel his smile on your skin. "I've missed you so much."

"I've missed you too, Cody," you grinned, moving back so you could kiss him. When you pulled away, he smiled at you.

"Well, this is new," he said, tugging at the belt loops on your shorts – he obviously knew about your scars and was pleasantly surprised to see you in something other than jeans or sweatpants. You rolled your eyes and smiled as well. "What's that?" he asked, finally noticing the writing on your thigh.

You looked around and saw the only other people on the playground were all the way on the other side of it. You pulled Cody over to the curb and sat down so he could read the words ' _you are loved_ ' in his handwriting that were tattooed on you. He hadn't said anything for a while, so you looked up at him. He was smiling again.

"When did you get that done?"

"Last year," you answered quietly while Cody's finger barely traced the words etched into your skin, "About a month before we met."

"You weren't the girl I wrote that for, were you?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.

"No," you laughed, "But I saw you tweeted about the girl you  _did_  and I knew I wanted to get it done too."

"Shouldn't it be facing the other way so people can read it?"

"I didn't get it for them," you shook your head, "I got it for me; I got it to remind myself." Cody smiled, wrapping his arms around your waist.

"You are," he said, kissing your cheek, "I love you so much."

~

**Dan**

"Why don't you guys start off by introducing yourselves and what you do in the band and then we'll go from there?" the interviewer, Elizabeth, suggested. The boys decided to start at the end of the line and work their way toward her, looking at the camera in front of them.

"I'm Zach and I play guitar."

"I'm Cody and I sing."

"I'm Dan and I also play guitar."

"And I'm Maxx and I play drums."

"Awesome!" Elizabeth beamed, "I'm so happy to  _finally_  be able to interview you guys!"

"And you have  _all of us_  which is pretty rare," Cody nodded with a chuckle, "But yeah, we're happy our schedules finally matched up!"

"I guess the first question I have to ask is how is tour going so far? You guys have been saying you've wanted to headline a tour for a while now, so what's the experience been like?"

"It's been amazing," Maxx chirped, "We love working with the crew and spending time with the other bands on the tour. It's basically like a huge party every night."

"Except you don't get kicked out for noise complaints nearly as much," Zach spoke up, making everyone laugh in agreement.

"Now you guys just released an album which is basically the reason for this tour in the first place. What's the crowd's reaction been like? Were you ever nervous at all playing songs they'd never heard live before?"

"I think we're always nervous to play new songs at shows," Cody nodded, "But the crowds seem to really enjoy them and we try to put as much energy into them as we possibly can."

~

A few minutes into the interview, the one question you were hoping wouldn't come up did. It wasn't that you didn't mind it being asked, but you knew the boys were going to find a way to sneak you on camera now.

"So I've been keeping up with the tour and such and I've noticed that you seem to have somewhat of a mom along with you," Elizabeth said.

"Yes," Dan laughed, "My very beautiful girlfriend who is way out of my league and I have no idea why she agreed to go out with me in the first place came along for the ride." The boys looked beside the person behind the camera where you were standing and saw you were rolling your eyes, making them laugh.

"The viewers can't see her," Cody chuckled, "But she's clearly disagreeing with that statement right now."

"Oh, is she here?" Elizabeth asked with a grin, following their gazes, "Can we bring her over?"

You quickly shook your head, but your boyfriend jumped up, grabbed your hand, and pulled you over to the couch. He had you sit in between him and Cody so you were right in the middle of the band.

"Why am I always dragged into these things?" you mumbled, playing with your fingers on your lap.

"Because we love you," Maxx grinned cheesily.

"Love your own girlfriend," you laughed lightly, reaching over Dan and hitting his knee.

"So you're brought into interviews a lot?" Elizabeth asked.

"Yeah," you nodded, "And I'd like to start out by saying that I am  _not_  out of his league and I don't know  _why_  he keeps saying that-" You heard Dan chuckle quietly and rest his hand just above your knee, rubbing his thumb on your skin slightly. "-and also, of course I'm their tour mom. Lord knows what kind of trouble these idiots would get into if I weren't around."

"She may be small," Zach stated, "But she's terrifying when she's mad so we try to avoid that as much as possible." You and the boys simply nodded in agreement.

~

"Okay, I have one last question for you and then we'll let you go," Elizabeth said, "But I see a lot of tattoos and I'm actually really curious as to what they all are."

"Well, there are only two people with tattoos," Cody laughed, "But I guess they do have quite a bit."

"In my defense, it's mostly Dan," Zach said.

"It's been a while since I've gotten one though," Dan chuckled, "But yeah." He pulled up his sleeves to show his arms as did Zach and they explained them a little bit. You remained silent, but it was obviously proven to be ineffective.

"Now, I noticed you said only  _two_  people have tattoos, but I'm  _seeing_  a third," Elizabeth wiggled her eyebrows. The boys looked at each other in confusion.

"Fine," you couldn't help but laugh, "Yes, I have one too."

"You got a tattoo?" Dan asked, a bit shocked.

"I got it done a couple weeks before we left for this tour, but yeah," you nodded. You pushed down the bracelets you were wearing so they could see the ink on your wrist.

"If I'm not mistaken," Elizabeth said, "That's a lyric from a previous album of theirs, right?"

"Yes," you nodded again, "I don't know if the camera can see it, but it says ' _you can't break me_ '. It's from  _Freak Show_  on the  _Cinematics_  album."

"Anything you can tell us about it?"

"I mean, I won't go into too much detail because it's both an incredibly long story as well as extremely personal, but it's my reminder that I'm stronger now than I used to be and that I'm not going to let anything anyone says change the way I view myself," you said, absentmindedly tracing the ink with your index finger as you talked to her, "It's my reminder that no one can break me without my consent. And they're never going to get it." Dan immediately leaned down to kiss your cheek as Elizabeth concluded the interview, making you smile.

"It was so nice talking to you guys!"

"Thank you for having us!" Cody grinned.

She looked at the camera, "Tickets for the tour are on sale now. If you can go to a show, I high recommend you do. You won't be disappointed." The guy behind the camera turned it off and everyone stood up. Elizabeth hugged the boys and thanked them again for taking the time to let her interview them before letting you all leave.

You decided to go get a late lunch before the boys had to be at the venue for sound check. As you were walking down the sidewalk, Dan had his fingers locked with yours and you felt his thumb running back and forth on your tattoo. You knew it was more of an absentminded thing since he was wrapped up in conversation with the boys, but you were glad that he – and the others – seemed to really like it.

"Now how did you manage to keep us from seeing that?" Cody poked your side repeatedly, making you giggle as you squirmed closer to your boyfriend.

"I dunno," you shrugged, "You guys are dumb?"

"I agree, but a tattoo is still pretty difficult to hide," Zach chuckled.

"I guess I just wore more bracelets than usual. I really don't know how no one noticed. Especially  _you_ ," you grinned, nudging Dan.

"Well, forgive me," he sighed dramatically, "I don't spend all my time searching your body."

"You sure about that?" you smirked.

"Oh, God!" Cody exclaimed, "Please don't have that conversation right here! I don't wanna hear about that!" You laughed loudly.

"So you guys really like it then?" you asked shyly after a few minutes. You were now sitting in a booth at McDonald's with your food.

"We love it!" Zach chirped, "It's crazy that our music effects people so much that they want to get it permanently tattooed on their bodies." The others were quick to agree.

"It's still the coolest part of this job," Cody nodded, "And the fact that something I wrote is on someone so close to me makes it that much cooler."

~

**Zach**

The moment it finally started to feel like spring out, you were basically bouncing off the walls in excitement. You were more than ready to put the jackets and jeans away and start wearing your lighter clothing again. You put on your favorite tank top and a pair of shorts as well as sandals, locking your front door behind you before making your way to the coffee shop a few minutes away to meet your boyfriend.

You decided to walk – seeing as it was a beautiful day out, you felt it would be a waste to take your car. You went inside and ordered your drink, taking it outside and sitting at an empty table in front of the shop.

Your boyfriend managed to slip inside unseen a few minutes later to buy his own drink, forcing back a smile as he came back out. You hadn't looked up at him but you knew he was there, and held in a smile of your own as you scrolled through Twitter on your phone.

"I hate when you do that," Zach laughed, sitting down in front of you.

Every time Zach was late when you met at the café for lunch, you would always pay for his drink. Chloe, the barista, knew who the two of you were and actually enjoyed seeing the look on his face when she got to tell him you already paid.

"Maybe you should stop being late," you smirked, laying your phone on the table and smiling sweetly at him. He rolled his eyes as he laughed at you. "So what are we doing today?"

"I don't know," he shrugged, sipping his coffee, "We could go to the mall if you want. I've still gotta pick up the new All Time Low album."

You nodded, "I'm always up for something that gives me an excuse to buy new shoes."

Zach groaned jokingly, getting up, "You're such a girl."

"That's kind of why you're dating me," you winked, hopping off of your seat and stuffing your phone in your pocket. Zach grabbed your hand, tangling your fingers together, and you walked back to his place to get his car.

~

While Zach was on the hunt to find  _Future Hearts_ , you were in the shoe store looking for a new pair of sandals. It didn't take you long to fall in love with a pair and the way they looked on, so you bought them, immediately switching the shoes you were already wearing out for the new ones outside of the store. You trotted to the F.Y.E. and found your boyfriend still browsing the music, the album he had originally came for already in his hand.

"Hey," he smiled when you came up to him, kissing your cheek, "That was fast."

"I can be quick when I wanna be," you smirked, "What do you think?" You did a little dance, making him laugh as he looked down at your feet.

"They look nice," he told you – typical guy's response – before tilting his head, "What's that?"

"Oh!" you squeaked, realizing you had never shown him your tattoo before. "I got a tattoo!" you smiled brightly, putting your hand on his shoulder for balance and lifting your leg up for him to see it better.

"You got a tattoo?" he asked quietly, "When did that happen?"

"About 3 months ago," you answered as he admired the small duality symbol just above your ankle, "I get really bored when you're on tour."

"You were so bored that you got a  _tattoo_?" he laughed loudly, looking back up at you so you could put your leg down.

"It's a blessing and a curse," you teased.

Zach went to the cashier to buy the album he had come for and you both left the store, beginning the search for something else to do since neither of you were hungry enough to go to the food court just yet.

"So," Zach said, grabbing your hand and lacing your fingers together. You smiled, already knowing what he was going to ask. "Why duality?"

"I dunno," you shrugged, looking down at the ink on your ankle briefly, "I just liked it. I like what the symbol represents. There's good and bad in everybody, but that's what makes them who they are. And the song is pretty great too." He rolled his eyes, chuckling under his breath.

"You're too cute," he sighed, squeezing your hand.

"So you like it?" you smiled hopefully.

"Of course I do! I'm upset that we didn't get it together though," he nudged you lightly.

"Next time," you nudged him back before laying your head on his shoulder.

~

**Maxx**

You had just finished blow drying your hair after getting out of the shower when you realized you hadn't brought a shirt to change into. You rolled your eyes and laughed quietly at how dumb you were to remember everything but a shirt, putting on your underwear, shorts, and bra and throwing your previous clothing in the hamper before leaving the bathroom. You trotted over to the closet to look for a shirt. When you finally found the one you wanted, you pulled it off of the hanger and closed the closet door.

"Hey, babe," you heard your boyfriend open the bedroom door, "Do you know where my-" He cut himself off when he saw you. You couldn't help but blush – Maxx always froze when he saw even a little bit of your skin and it made you flustered knowing you still had that effect on him. "What's that?" he asked, not even bothering to finish what he was saying before he came into the room. You looked over your shoulder at him.

"What's what?" you asked, tilting your head as you pulled your shirt down. He walked over to you and grabbed the hem of your shirt, playing around with it.

"It looks like  _someone's_  got a tattoo she's never told me about," he smirked, making you laugh as he pulled your shirt back up. You held your arm up so he could see it better and you saw his smirk fade into a small smile. "How long have you had it?" he asked quietly, running his thumb over the small arrow with ' _please believe_ ' written underneath it.

"About eight or so months now," you replied with a shrug, "I got it done about a week before I saw you guys in concert for the first time."

"Why haven't you told me?"

"It's just never come up. I always forget it's even there. I was gonna show you guys at the concert, but I was too nervous," you giggled lightly.

"I think you should have," he wiggled his eyebrows, "I probably would have asked you out right there."

"No, you wouldn't have," you laughed, shoving his shoulder playfully, "You still stutter every time I walk into the room." Maxx's cheeks turned a light pink, finally realizing you noticed.

"It would be easier not to if you weren't so beautiful," he replied. You bit your lip, blushing as well, making him smile as he pressed a soft kiss to your cheek. "Can I hear about your tattoo?" he asked, pulling you to the bed. You both laid down with your legs dangling off the end. Maxx had his arms around you, absentmindedly rubbing the ink with his thumb.

"It doesn't have much meaning, to be honest," you told him, "Well, obviously it has meaning, but it was just like, a sudden decision to get it done, I guess. ' _Please believe_ ' has been one of my favorite lyrics ever since I heard the song and I knew I wanted to get it tattooed one day."

"Why an arrow?" he wondered.

"A dream catcher would have been too obvious," you teased. He tickled you lightly, making you squeak and grab his hand so he stopped. "I don't know. Just wanted a small tattoo, I guess. Plus, I wanted the words on my ribs and I didn't want to have to go through too much pain," you shrugged with a laugh.

"Well, I think it looks beautiful," he said.

"You really like it?"

He nodded, "However, I don't think you'll be showing it to the other boys."

"Why not?"

"I'm not gonna just let my girlfriend lift her shirt up in front of my friends!" he exclaimed dramatically.

You rolled your eyes, giggling quietly, "You're so dumb."

"But you love me though," he whined, sticking out his bottom lip.

"I do," you smiled, kissing his cheek.

 


	184. Home (Michael Clifford)

**Warning** **: Parents fighting, verbally abusive parent**

~

You jolted awake, but it didn't take you long to understand why. You looked at the clock and saw it was nearing 1am, but your parents were downstairs shouting at each other in low voices again. You could vaguely make out what the argument was about, but you could hear your name being used by your father which clearly meant your mother had started whatever they were fighting about this time. You sighed to yourself, grabbing your phone and taking it off the charger so you could call your best friend.

"Hello?" Michael asked groggily after the third ring.

"Can I come over?" you mumbled.

"Parents at it again?"

"Yeah," you sniffled.

"Text me when you get here," he yawned, "I don't want to wake the boys up." You nodded although he couldn't see you and hung up the phone.

You didn't even bother with changing your pajamas. You simply held your phone tightly as you climbed out of your window, your feet landing on the cool wood of the porch beneath you. You closed the window but left it open a tiny bit so you could get back in before you were running to Michael's house.

It was normally a five minute walk, but since you were running, it only took you two. You texted him after you caught your breath and the front door opened not even five seconds later. He smiled sadly when he saw the look on your face, knowing this was about much more than just your parents fighting again.

Michael took your hand and pulled you into him, hugging you tightly with one arm and closing the door before putting that arm around you as well. Your own arms were around his waist, never wanting to let go. He led you up the stairs and into his room where you both climbed onto the bed. He put his arms around you again and you cuddled up to him, sighing in content.

"Why don't you ever call your boyfriend when your parents start doing this?" Michael wondered.

"'Cause he's a jerk," your voice was muffled by his shirt.

"What happened?"

"He dumped me; Said I was too clingy."

"You're not too clingy," he said, almost offended for you.

"Yeah, I am," you sighed, "You're just saying that because you're the same way."

"Just because I'm the same way doesn't mean it's cool for someone to break up with someone for such a stupid reason," he stated, "But in my defense, I  _have_  told you from the beginning that he was no good for you."

"I know, Mikey. You were right and I was wrong and I'm an idiot who will never be loved back."

"Y/N..." he said slowly, "I didn't say that..."

"But it's still  _true_ ," you felt tears start welling up again, "Not even my own  _parents_  love me – they just use me to get back at whichever one of them started another dumb fight. If it weren't for that, they'd probably kick me out."

"I'll love you enough for everyone then," he shook his head, "For your parents, your stupid ex, yourself; I'll do whatever it takes for you to know that you're loved." You tilted your head to look at him and he brought his hand up, wiping the tears on your cheek with his thumb. He pressed his lips to your forehead. "You should get some sleep," he mumbled against your skin. You couldn't help but smile.

"Thanks for everything, Mikey," you whispered, nuzzling your face in his neck and letting yourself fall asleep in his arms.

~

When you woke up the next morning, Michael wasn't there anymore. You sat up and rubbed your eyes, looking at the clock. It was 10am and you knew you had a few hours before your parents would come home from work. They hadn't blown up your phone with calls, so you knew they hadn't noticed you weren't there before they left.

You let out a quiet groan as you stretched before getting out of bed. You made your way to Michael's closet to find something to put on so you would be a little warmer than you were in the tank top you were already wearing. After pulling your favorite sweater of his over your head, you did your best to tame your messy bedhead and went downstairs.

"Hey, Y/N!" Ashton chirped as you walked into the kitchen, "How long have you been here?"

"Since 1 or something," you replied in a gravelly voice. He gave you a small smile.

"Parents?"

"Always," you mumbled, "Where's Michael?"

"He said something about getting you a change of clothes from your place," he said, "I always thought you wore his clothes when you slept over anyway, but I've learned to just not ask too many questions with him." You let out a small giggle, going to the fridge for some orange juice. "When do your parents get home?" Ashton asked you as you sat down at the dining room table with him.

"Around 5:30," you answered, "Why?"

"I was thinking since the carnival's in town this week, the boys and I could spend the day with you there," he shrugged, "Help get your mind off of things." You smiled slightly.

"Thanks, Ash," you nodded, "I would really love that."

"Awesome!" he beamed, "I'm gonna go wake Luke and Cal up and then we can leave whenever Mikey gets back with your clothes." He stood from his seat, ruffling your hair as he trotted by you and up the stairs.

When he came back a few minutes later, Luke and Calum weren't far behind. They were both obviously still tired, their eyes barely open as they trudged down the steps, but when they saw you, they smiled brightly.

"Hi, Y/N," Luke said, wrapping his arms around your shoulders. You laid your head on his stomach since you were still sitting down.

"Hey, Luke," you smiled back. You did the same thing with Calum and you all just sat around waiting for Michael to get back.

When he returned about five minutes later, he was carrying a box.

"Oh, Y/N!" Michael exclaimed when he saw you, "You're awake!"

"Yeah, well, you weren't there," you teased, "I got cold."

"Cute," he tried to remain serious but ended up chuckling under his breath.

"What's with the box?" Ashton spoke up. Michael put it on the floor behind the couch and looked at his four best friends.

"I've been thinking," he said.

"That's a  _first_ ," Calum laughed.

Michael rolled his eyes but continued without rebuddle, "I've decided that you should stay with us for a few days, Y/N." The boys shrugged in agreement while you tilted your head.

"Why?" you asked, a bit surprised.

"You're over here almost every other night anyway," he shook his head, "I think you need a break from your parents."

"They're never going to  _agree_  to that," you mumbled, sinking down in your chair. Michael walked over to you and knelt down, placing his hands on your knees to keep himself steady.

"They don't have to," he said, "You're 18 now; They can't exactly keep you at home anymore. You could move in with us just to get away from them if you really wanted to and they would have no say in it." You looked around at the others and saw they were simply nodding. You furrowed your eyebrows.

"You're not asking me to move in, are you?" you asked in confusion.

"No," he replied, "But the offer is always there if you want to take it." You swallowed the lump in your throat and leaned forward, wrapping your arms around his neck.

"Thanks, Mikey," you mumbled into his shoulder. Michael wrapped his own arms around your waist, bringing you with him as he stood up.

"You're welcome, Y/N," he said quietly, squeezing you a bit. You missed the boys wiggling their eyebrows at Michael, making him roll his eyes again. "So what are we doing today?" he asked, letting go of you.

"We were gonna take Y/N to the carnival," Ashton answered.

"Cool," he smiled, going back over to the couch and picking up the box with whatever belongings of yours he had in there. "Come on," he motioned for you to follow him as he climbed up the stairs, "You should get changed."

"What's wrong with this outfit?" you pouted, following him.

"Absolutely nothing," Calum smirked, earning a glare from the boy in front of you. "Tell me I'm wrong," he retorted, coming up the steps behind the two of you with the other boys so they could all get dressed as well. Michael simply grumbled in response, making you furrow your eyebrows in confusion once again before shrugging it off.

"Thanks, Cal," you giggled, "You don't look so bad yourself. Shirtless is a good look for you." He laughed loudly.

"Guess I'll have to avoid shirts as long as you're here then, huh?" he said.

"I would appreciate that," you grinned.

He sighed dramatically, "You only want me for my body."

"Do you blame me though?" you looked over your shoulder and winked at him, making him laugh again before you were being pulled into Michael's room. He quickly shut the door behind him before Calum had the chance to respond. He tossed the box onto his bed and opened it as you came up beside him. "Don't be jealous, Mikey," you giggled, "I love your body too."

"I'm not jealous," he muttered. You wrapped your arms around his waist, laying your head on his shoulder as he continued. "I put as many things in here as I could," he cleared his throat, "But we can always stop by your house and get more if you need to."

"This is fine, Mikey," you said quietly, "Thank you."

"I'd do anything to keep you happy, Y/N," he promised you, kissing your head and hugging you with one arm tightly, "You know that." You picked your head up to look at him and he kissed your forehead. "Get dressed," he said, removing himself from your arms, "I'm gonna go brush my teeth and then you can have the bathroom." You nodded and he walked into his bathroom, leaving you to get dressed.

You rifled through the box and found a bra, your favorite pair of black denim shorts, and your red All Time Low tank top before walking back over to Michael's closet and searching for a flannel to match them. Once you found one, you took off the sweater and your pajamas, putting the new clothing on. You were pushing the sleeves of the flannel up to rest above your elbows as the bathroom door opened again. Michael took one look at you before chuckling.

"I should have seen that coming," he shook his head.

"Oh, is this yours?" you tilted your head, giving him an innocent expression.

"I heard the closet door open," he smiled. You paused for a moment.

"You done in there?" you asked, going into the bathroom before he answered, "'Cause you are now." You grinned at him, leaning forward to press a quick kiss to his cheek just before you closed the door behind you, hearing him laugh and open his closet door again to get dressed himself. You brushed your teeth with the toothbrush Michael had always kept for you before walking back into his room.

Michael had just buttoned his skinny jeans and grabbed his shirt, pulling it over his head. You didn't mean to stare, but you couldn't help it. What you told Michael was true; No matter how much he picked at what his body looked like, you loved every inch of it. You were chewing on your bottom lip when a small chuckle brought you out of your daydream.

" _Y/N_ ," Michael sang, not looking away from the mirror while he slipped a flannel on as well, " _You're staring_."

"I-I wasn't... I wasn't staring," you shook your head quickly, "I was... Um... I just spaced out for a second."

"Mhmm," he hummed with a smile, grabbing his shoes and sitting down on the edge of his bed. You quickly fished for your black Vans out of the box and mumbled a ' _see you downstairs_ 'before rushing out of the room.

~

You had been at the fairgrounds with the boys for the past few hours, but you weren't really paying attention to the time. It wasn't until your phone started ringing that you even glanced at it. You took it out of your pocket, your eyes widening as you groaned nervously upon seeing the caller ID. The boys didn't even have to ask to know who it was. You finally answered after the fifth ring.

"He-" You gulped lightly. "-Hello?"

"Where the hell are you?" your mother asked.

"At the carnival with the Mikey and his friends," you muttered.

"You know how I feel about that boy, Y/N Y/M/N."

"I don't understand why..." you trailed off.

"He's a bad influence," she stated, "He makes you ignore your responsibilities and sneaks you out of the house and I don't approve of this kind of behavior from you."

"But I like being with him..."

"Well, if you like being with him so much, why don't you just live with him so your father and I don't have to deal with you anymore?" You swallowed the lump in your throat and the boys obviously noticed your face drop.

"Goodbye, Mom," you whispered before hanging up on her.

"What happened?" Michael asked.

"That offer to move in is still open, right?" you choked lightly. He immediately wrapped his arms around you, pulling you into him.

"It's always open for you, Y/N," he said, kissing your temple.

~

" _Please_?" you begged the four boys.

Calum shook his head, "You know how we feel about Ferris wheels." The boys were quick to agree. You gave them a dumbfounded look.

"You were on well over 50 planes on the band's last tour alone," you reminded them. The bassist simply shook his head again, causing you to groan. "Mikey," you stuck out your bottom lip, pulling on the arm you'd been holding onto since the moment you started walking around the carnival.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," he said, removing his hand from yours to cover your mouth with the palm of his hand, "Not this time. I'm putting my foot down. That look isn't going to work anymore." You let out a sigh against his skin, waiting until he took his hand back to talk.

"Can we at least go on the merry-go-round?" you asked as you took Michael's hand again. They all made quiet groaning sounds. "Come on!" you exclaimed, "You said this was supposed to be getting my mind off of stuff, but so far, we haven't gone on  _any_  rides I wanna go on! All you guys have been doing is wasting your money trying to win stuffed animals that are bigger than I am! And I  _know_  you're lying when you say you're trying to win them for me!"

"It's just that circles aren't really our thing," Ashton shrugged dramatically.

"Okay," you rubbed your temple with your free hand, "Let's recap what we've done today thus far; We played ring toss, that game where you had to throw a ping pong ball into cups, the basketball game like at all the arcades-" You quickly shoved his shoulder, "Ash, your  _drum set_  is just a bunch of circles, for Christ's sake!"

"Nah, those are spheres and cylinders."

"Oh my God," you mumbled, unable to keep a straight face anymore, "Whatever. I'll ride everything by myself then." You started pulling Michael toward the Ferris wheel with the other three trailing behind when a voice made you freeze.

"Hey, Y/N," you heard your ex-boyfriend say. You spun around, causing Michael to stumble slightly, not expecting you to pull on his arm the way you did.

"H-Hi, Josh..." you said, barely above a whisper, not daring to make eye contact. You did, however, notice the way he looked at yours and Michael's hands, causing you to quickly release your grip and cross your arms over your stomach.

"How are you?"

You cleared your throat nervously, "Good... You?"

"Same," he nodded, "Would you like to go on the Ferris wheel with me? I couldn't help but overhear that you were trying to convince one of your, uh-" He paused, raising his eyebrows at the four boys standing with you. "- _friends_...to go."

"Um, I-I gue-" you stuttered before you were cut off.

"She's already got someone to go with," Michael said lowly.

"Oh," Josh said, "I could have sworn I just heard you tell her no."

"Well, you heard  _wrong_ ," he growled. You swallowed nervously, worried he might do something stupid.

"My apologies then," Josh smirked lightly before looked at you again, "How about the merry-go-round later?"

"I don't think that's gonna happen either," Michael stated, putting his hands on your shoulders and turning you back around, "Goodbye, Josh." He led you and the boys toward the Ferris wheel. When you got to the line, you turned to look at him.

"What the hell was that about?" you asked.

"Hey," Ashton spoke up, "Luke, Cal, and I are gonna go find something to eat, okay? We'll see you guys later." He quickly ushered the other two boys away, leaving you and Michael alone.

"Well?" you crossed your arms again.

"Nothing," he mumbled, giving the guy your tickets and going to the seat. You followed him, sitting down beside him.

"That wasn't  _nothing_ , Michael," you stated as the ride got started again.

He huffed lightly, "Were you  _seriously_  going to agree to come with him?"

"Why not?" you shrugged, "You guys said no and I didn't  _really_  want to do it alone."

"Because he's a dick!" he nearly shouted, "He broke up with you! Now he's trying to find his way back into your life and I'm not gonna let him!"

"Whether he gets back in is  _my_  choice, Michael, not  _yours_!" you exclaimed, "I understand that you're upset with the reason he broke up with me and I really appreciate that you care so much, but if I want to let him back in, I'm going to!"

He didn't say anything as the ride came to a stop, allowing you to get up and walk away. You found Ashton, Calum, and Luke waiting for you at the popcorn stand across the path, but before you got to them, Michael grabbed your wrist and spun you around. You didn't have time to say anything before his hands were on your cheeks and his lips were on yours. The boys' jaws dropped slightly but Michael pulled away before you could respond. He took a deep breath.

" _That's_ why you shouldn't let him back in," he told you.

You still had a look of shock on your face, unable to do anything but stare at him. His expression fell and you immediately knew he felt like he just ruined everything. He pushed past you, ready to simply leave the fairgrounds, but you finally came to your senses.

"Mikey!" you squeaked, running after him. You wrapped your fingers around his elbow and turned him around – now taking your turn to grab his face and kiss him. He let out a sigh of relief as his arms went around your waist, pulling you closer. You smiled slightly, causing him to smile as well before you moved back to look at him.

"Y/N..." he mumbled, resting his forehead on yours, "I think I might be in love with you." You let out a small giggle.

"That's good," you said just as quietly as him, "Because I'm  _definitely_  in love with you, Michael." He smiled brightly, leaning in for another kiss. You broke apart again when the boys excitedly ran over to you.

" _Finally_!" Ashton shouted happily, "I never have to hear about ' _how much it sucks that she doesn't feel the same way_ ' ever again!"

"Yeah," Calum nodded, "Now we get to hear all about how he ' _can't believe she likes him too_ ' or how ' _she's_ such _a good kisser_ '."

"Well, she  _is_ ," Michael stated shyly, making you squeak bashfully and bury your face in his neck. You felt him let out a breathy chuckle and squeeze you lightly. "And on the bright side," he said, looking at his three best friends, "Now you don't have to get mad at me for chickening out of telling her how I feel anymore." They shrugged in agreement. He kissed the side of your head and you could feel yourself starting to blush. "How about we go on the merry-go-round now?" he suggested. You lifted your head up.

"Nah," you sighed, "I think it's about time I showed you boys how ring toss  _should_  be done." You wiggled out of Michael's arms and began sauntering away, quickly being met by four sets of footsteps running past you to prove you wrong.

 


	185. Catching Lightning (Ashton Irwin)

You ran through the school hallways, racing toward the auditorium after school. You had auditioned for the musical a couple weeks ago and your choir teacher, Mrs. Kyle, had called everyone to the auditorium to announce the roles instead of posting it up at the office.

This year's musical was  _High School Musical 3_  and you were especially excited. You'd been in every musical since you were a freshman, but this was the one you were most looking forward to. You auditioned for the role of Sharpay since your friends had told you that you were really good at playing meaner characters. You had rolled your eyes at them, laughing along as you knew they were joking, but went for the part anyway. You liked all of her songs in the movies and you knew you'd be able to play her perfectly, but truthfully, you wanted the role of _Gabriella_.

Ashton Irwin was pretty much a straight-shot to play Troy and you'd had a crush on him ever since he transferred to your school and walked into your choir class sophomore year. He was crazy talented and fit perfectly into whatever role he was given – main or background – and you loved to listen to him sing.

When you finally ran into the auditorium, you were immediately met with your best friend waving for you to sit by her near the front of the room. You smiled widely and made your way to her. You noticed Ashton and one of his friends sitting at the end of the row with their two other friends behind them and gave them a small smile. The curly haired boy smiled back and tapped his friend's knee. He motioned to you and they both stood up, not even needing you to speak to know that you needed to get by.

"Good luck, by the way," Ashton said when you were right in front of him, "I hope you get Sharpay."

"You too," you replied shyly before quickly adding, "I-I mean I hope you get Troy, n-not Sharpay. Unless you wanted that part, then I..." You let out a defeated sigh, knowing you were already blushing like an idiot. "Thank you," you mumbled, hurrying to sit with Spencer before you embarrassed yourself further. You heard Ashton chuckle as he and his friend sat back down which only made you even  _redder_.

"You look like a tomato," Spencer giggled as you sunk down in your seat.

"Could I  _be_  any more of an idiot?" you whispered, more to yourself than to her, dropping your backpack on the ground between your feet.

She leaned in closer, "He's still staring at you." You looked over and Ashton quickly looked away, going back to paying attention to what his friends were saying.

You bit your lip and turned back to the front as your teacher came out from backstage. She walked to the area everyone was waiting in front of and you all fell silent, eager to know what parts you'd gotten.

"Alright, guys!" Mrs. Kyle smiled as everyone looked up at her. She was sitting on the edge of the stage so everyone could see her. "I know these announcements are traditionally given by posting a piece of paper outside the office, but I just want to see the look on some of your faces," she laughed quietly before starting to read off her paper. She named the background characters before getting to the main ones. "Spencer Pittman," she said, looking at the girl beside you, "You're playing Kelsi."

" _Yes_!" she squeaked, throwing her arms up and making everyone laugh.

"Michael Clifford, you've got Jason," she continued, "Kylie Andrews, Martha. Jonathan Baker, Zeke."

"Is it because of my name, Mrs. K?" he called out. Everyone laughed again as she shook her head with a small smile.

"I've stepped into your home-ec class a few times, Jonathan, I can _promise you_ that's not why I gave you the part." The group ' _ooh_ 'd lowly.

"Ouch," he laughed, "That hurt, Mrs. K."

She smiled again as she went on, "Allison Howley, Taylor. Calum Hood, Chad. Luke Hemmings, Ryan-" You looked at Spencer and saw her blush lightly, knowing she had a crush on Luke. "-Lindsay Barnes, Sharpay."

You frowned slightly, beginning to bite your inner cheek. You thought for sure you would get the part of Sharpay, but clearly, you were wrong. Spencer nudged your knee with hers, making you look at her. She shrugged apologetically, but you simply sighed, putting your elbow on the armrest and resting your chin in your hand.

"Ashton Irwin, you'll be playing Troy," Mrs. Kyle said, making him smile as she turned her attention to you, "And Y/N Y/L/N, I know you auditioned for Sharpay, but I believe your voice fits perfectly with Ashton's, so I decided to give you the role of Gabriella."

Your eyes widened slightly as you lifted your head up, letting your arm fall back onto your lap. You saw his friends start teasing him out of the corner of your eye before Spencer started doing some teasing of her own. Due to your friends distracting you, both you and Ashton missed the horrible blush on each other's cheeks.

"Okay, guys," Mrs. Kyle beamed, clearly somehow knowing that you had a crush on Ashton, "Rehearsals start after school on Monday. Make sure you come up here and get a copy of the movie before you leave and watch it at least once this weekend."

Spencer went to go get her copy, not getting you one simply because she knew you already had the movie. You grabbed your backpack and swung it over your shoulder, scooting past the seats to meet her at the end of the row. Ashton and Calum stood up again to let you through but you kept your eyes on the floor, knowing there was a very good chance you would start blushing again if you looked at him.

As you and Spencer were leaving the auditorium, you heard someone run up behind you. There was a tap on your shoulder, making you turn around. Spencer snickered upon seeing Ashton standing there and excused herself, telling you she'd meet you at her car.

"Hey, Y/N," he cleared his throat nervously, "Sorry you didn't get Sharpay." You looked at him for a moment before feeling a smile pull at the corner of your mouth.

"I think I'll be okay," you told him, "I'll see you Monday." He nodded sheepishly and let you trot away, not taking his eyes off of you until you were out the door.

~

A few weeks later, you were in the auditorium after school for rehearsals. While the stagehands were building and painting sets, Mrs. Kyle was working on teaching you and Ashton  _Can I Have This Dance_. Having seen the movie as many times as you had, you picked up on the choreography pretty quickly, but Ashton just couldn't seem to get it. He would step on your feet every time he was near you and he just seemed to be distracted the entire time. It wasn't until he dropped you and sent you both to the ground that he lost it.

"I'm gonna get it!" Ashton exclaimed, jumping back to his feet, "I-I promise!"

You tilted your head at him as he quickly helped you up. Opening night wasn't for another three months; Why was he getting so worked up about not being able to get the moves right  _now_?

"How about you two take a break for a little bit, huh?" Mrs. Kyle suggested softly, "We'll try again after I've helped Luke and Spencer with  _A Night to Remember_." It was obvious she wasn't annoyed with Ashton, but he was still beating himself up over it.

You simply nodded your head, walking off stage with him. You sat down in the front, but Ashton went back a few rows, sitting right in the middle of the auditorium. You looked back at him every once in a while and noticed the same disappointed look on his face each time, so you finally decided to do something.

You got up, making your way over to the brown-haired boy and sitting next to him. You could see him tense up, but you elected to ignore it.

"We're not gonna get everything perfect  _right away_ , Ashton," you told him.

"They can just put Matt in for me," he mumbled, "What do you care if I screw up? I'm sure he's a better dancer anyway."

"I care about you not tripping me in every scene we have together," you stated with a joking tone. He only began chewing on his bottom lip, making you sigh. "I was kidding," you said, " _You're_  my Troy, Ash – not Matt." His face turned red at the statement. "If you want, you can come over to my house this weekend and we can work on everything together." He finally looked up at you.

"You would help me?" he asked quietly. You furrowed your eyebrows at his surprised expression and nodded.

"You're gonna get it, Ashton," You patted his knee, "You just need a little extra practice."

~

That Saturday afternoon, there was a knock on your front door. You heard it open and your mom called your name.

"Y/N!" she hollered, "Ashton's here, sweetie!" You quickly closed your laptop, grabbing the  _High School Musical 3_  DVD off of your bookshelf and trotting out of your bedroom.

"Hey, Ash!" you smiled when you came out from the hallway. He smiled back shyly as you looked at your mom, "We'll be downstairs, okay?" She simply nodded and you led Ashton to the large family room down in the basement so you had plenty of space to move around. You put the movie in the DVD player and went to the scene with  _Can I Have This Dance_ , letting the beginning of the scene play out as you turned to face him.

"This dance is really easy once you get the hang of it," you said, "So just follow my lead, okay?" He nodded slowly. You held out your hands for him to take. He did, and you brought his arm up to your upper back and kept your other hands up at your sides.

He stepped on your feet a few times, apologizing profusely as he turned redder and redder despite the fact that you told him it was okay. You played the scene over and over again, explaining everything he had to do, until you felt like he had enough of a sense for the moves. Once the scene was over for probably the fifteenth time, you went back to start it again.

"Think you can do it while singing now?" you asked.

"I think so," Ashton said quietly. You nodded, taking a breath and starting to sing with Gabriella.

" _Take my hand, take a breath, pull me close, and take one step_ -" Ashton copied Troy's moves and facial expressions, making you giggle. " _Keep your eyes locked on mine and let the music be your guide._ " You smiled slightly as Ashton started singing along with Troy, but kept your cool, going along with the scene on the television behind you.

When the song ended and Troy and Gabriella were leaning in to kiss, Ashton was staring at your lips. Unfortunately for him though, you – much like Gabriella – weren't even paying attention. You removed yourself from his arms and reached for the remote to pause the movie, looking back at Ashton with a proud smile.

"I told you you just needed practice," you beamed. His eyes widened in sudden realization.

"Wait..." he said lowly, "I didn't mess up...?" You shook your head and he threw his arms around you, hugging you tightly. Your own arms went around his neck as he lifted you up, making you squeal.

"Ashton!" you laughed, making him put you back down.

"Sorry," he muttered, quickly letting go of you.

~

After running through it one more time, you two decided you needed a break. You both plopped down on the couch, letting the movie play on the TV instead of finding something else to watch. You didn't even make it to  _A Night to Remember_  before Ashton's mumbles made you look at him.

"I think we should practice the kissing scenes," he said so quietly that you almost didn't hear him.

"What for?" you wondered, "We only kiss like, two times."

"Yeah, but I wanna make sure I get it right the first time."

"I think you just wanna kiss me," you teased him. He sunk down in his seat, making your smile fade. "Do you wanna kiss me, Ashton?" you asked lowly.

"F-For the play," he answered quickly, "W-We should practice a-all of our scenes together..."

"So you just want to because you  _have to_ ," you nodded sheepishly.

He grumbled quietly, but you couldn't quite understand what he was saying. You stared at him as he kept his gaze on his lap and played with his fingers. He seemed really nervous, but something told you that he suggested practicing kissing because he just simply wanted to kiss you.

So you went for it.

"Ashton," you said, making him look up at you. Your faces were inches away from each other and you said the two words that made the boy beside you go weak. "Kiss me," you whispered.

Ashton's heart fluttered, but he wasted no time in closing the gap between the two of you and pressing his lips to yours. His hand went straight to your cheek, his thumb softly grazing back and forth on your cheekbone, while yours went to the back of his neck, burying your fingers in his hair. You pulled on his hair a bit by accident, but it made him whimper quietly and pull away.

"S-Sorry," he blushed, "I-I didn't mean to-"

You simply tugged his hair a little harder, causing him to make the same sound, but this time, it was louder. You smirked slightly, pulling his face back to yours and continuing to kiss him. He removed his hand from your cheek and wrapped it around your waist, pushing up against you so you laid down on the couch. He hovered over you, making sure he wasn't putting too much weight on top of you. When he pulled away, you let out a quiet whine, making him blush again.

"That was terrible," you shook your head, "I think we need to practice a little more." He laughed a bit, leaning down again.

After moving away the second time, he pulled you off the couch only to lay down on his back and pull you to lay on top of him. You nuzzled your face into his neck as he took the remote and started the movie over. It wasn't until  _Can I Have This Dance_  came back on the screen that anyone spoke again.

"So this makes you my girlfriend now, right?" Ashton muttered, pressing a small kiss to the top of your head. He felt you smile against his skin.

"I think we should see how well the play goes first," you teased.

"But the play is three months away!" he pouted, "I won't be able to concentrate if you don't agree."

"Are you threatening me?" you asked, lifting yourself up on your forearm to look at him.

"Maybe," he shrugged.

"Well, I guess since you're gonna be so distracted,  _Matt_  will have to take over the role instead," you replied dramatically, "I mean,  _he_  looks like a good kisser." Ashton stuck out his bottom lip and hid his face in the palm of his left hand, but he was obviously trying not to smile. You giggled quietly. "Hey, Ash," you whispered, taking his hand off of his face to make him look at you. You tangled your fingers with his and held his hand. "This  _definitely_  makes me your girlfriend now," you nodded. A big smile spread across Ashton's face as you leaned down, kissing him again.

~

_Song mentioned: "Can I Have This Dance" from High School Musical 3: Senior Year_

 


	186. Like We Used to (Calum Hood)

You looked around the arena from your seat near the front at the barricade on the side. Your heart was racing and your brain was trying to convince the rest of your body to leave, but you  _couldn't_ ; It was like you were frozen.

You had broken up with Calum almost eight months ago – about a week before they left for their headlining tour. You knew you wouldn't be able to handle him being away for so long, so you decided to do what you thought would be easiest on you. Truthfully though, it was the hardest thing you'd ever done. You were nothing but miserable these past few months and every little thing seemed to remind you of Calum.

When you were brushing your teeth, you thought about the way Calum would try to slyly watch you out of the corner of his eye when you got ready for bed together. When you were standing at the stove cooking dinner, you thought about the way he would wrap his arms around your waist, kiss your neck, and tell you how amazing it smelled. When you sat on your couch to read a book, you thought about how he would sprawl out beside you and wiggle around so his head was in your lap, pouting until you gave in and paid attention to  _him_  instead of the words on the page.

You could go on and on about the reminders of your ex-boyfriend, but that was just what they were:  _Reminders_.

You needed  _closure_ ; You needed to see him on stage, being happy with the way his life was. You needed to see that so that you could see how well he was doing without you and move on. Until you had that, you didn't think you would  _ever_  get over him.

"Y/N?" you heard beside you, bringing you out of your daydream. Your head snapped up to see Ashton staring at you in confusion. "What are you doing here?"

"Dave let me in," you answered quietly. He let out a breathy chuckle.

"I figured that. I meant what are you doing  _here_?" he motioned around the room.

"I don't know," you sighed, slumping down in your seat, "I just... I wanted to see how Cal's doing, I guess. I feel like if I see how happy he is without me, then I'll finally be able to move on." Ashton was about to say something when Dave rushed out onto the stage.

"There you are, Ash!" he exclaimed breathlessly, "Come on, you boys have to get in the dressing room before they start letting everyone in!" Ashton nodded in response, turning back to you.

" _Please_  don't tell anyone I'm here, Ash," you begged, " _Especially_  not Calum." He sighed, but nodded again.

"Alright," he said, "But promise you'll come find me before you leave here?"

"Promise," you nodded, getting up and hugging him.

"We really miss having you around, Y/N," he muttered into your hair, " _All_  of us." Before you could ask what he meant, he was running backstage, leaving you alone again.

When venue security started letting in fans a few minutes later, you were luckily around some really nice fans. You asked them not to draw too much attention to you, really not wanting Calum to know you were there, and they told you they would. They obviously asked what you were doing there and you told them; They simply nodded, not saying anything further, and went back to excitedly waiting for the show to start.

~

Halfway through the show, as Luke was introducing  _Amnesia_ , you noticed Calum's face fall a bit. He hadn't done very much talking throughout the night but still he seemed like his happy self, so you figured he was just a little tired. You knew he tended not to get a lot of sleep on tour and since this was the last show, you had convinced yourself that that was finally showing.

When they began the song, Calum's voice would waver as he sang, but you didn't think anything of it. It wasn't until Luke ended with his usual ' _'_ _Cause I'm not fine at all_ ' that he finally broke down. He stopped playing and put his face in his hands. You watched his chest shake with sobs and it was like your heart broke all over again; It was in that moment that you realized the break up was  _still_  effecting him just as much as it was you.

The crowd stopped cheering and started talking amongst each other, their concern for Calum just as prominent as the boys'. Luke immediately went over to Calum to make sure he was okay. You swallowed the lump in your throat, desperately hoping you could catch the singer's attention. You couldn't, so you looked at Ashton. He had been watching you all night, so you knew he was your best option at that point.

You pointed to Luke and Ashton quickly got up, going to where he and Calum were standing. He put his hands on his back and when Luke looked over his shoulder at him, he pointed to you. Luke looked at you in shock as you motioned to the right and mouthed ' _backstage_ ' to him. He nodded furiously as you had a security guard – who luckily knew who you were – lift you over the barricade so you could run up the stairs leading to backstage.

As soon as your foot left the last step, Luke was leading Calum back.

"I can still play," Calum sniffled, shaking his head, "I said I'm fine."

But that quickly changed when he saw you standing there. Luke smiled slightly, trotting back onstage while you and Calum stared at each other, frozen in your spots. Your arms moved up from your sides and you held your hands on your stomach as if you were going to open them for a hug but didn't know whether or not he would accept it. You nodded for him to come to you and without missing a beat, his arms were around your waist, pulling you into him.

"Let go, Cal," you whispered, grabbing the strap on his shoulder and the neck of his bass. He briefly let go of you so you could take it off of him, but before you could put it down, his arms were around you again.

A crew member rushed in to take the instrument from you and you mouthed a ' _thank you_ ' to him before wrapping your own arms tightly around Calum. He sobbed into your skin as you pressed small kisses onto his shoulder and ran your fingers lightly through the hair at the top of his neck, doing your best not to start crying yourself.

"I love you, Y/N," Calum whimpered.

You remained silent, kissing his shoulder one last time before picking your head up. You moved your hands to his cheeks and pushed him back so you could look at each other. You wiped his tears away with your thumbs, letting your hands rest there even when you were finished.

"I love you," he repeated softly, leaning into your hand.

"I know, Cal," you said quietly.

"Please give me another chance," he pleaded, shaking his head, "I swear I'll do better this time. I'll call you more or I'll fly you out to shows or I'll bring you on tour with me... I'll do whatever it takes for you to love me like you used to. I miss you so much."

"I miss you too," you breathed, "I'll always love you, Cal. No matter how far this job takes you away from me; I'll never stop loving you."

"Will you be my girlfriend again?" he mumbled. He had the small pout on his face he knew you couldn't say no to, making you smile slightly. You simply nodded in response and he sighed in relief, squeezing you tightly and pressing his lips against yours.

And as cliché as it sounds, all your worries melted away. It was like that one kiss was telling you how silly you were for breaking up with him in the first place. You knew you could have handled Calum being away for so long; You'd obviously done it plenty of times before for two or three months at a time. Honestly, you felt bad for not believing that you could have made it through, but you knew he forgave you for it. He was giving you a second chance and there was no way you were going to let your worries get the better of you again.

"Hey, lovebirds!" you heard Michael shout into his microphone, bringing the two of you back to reality. You smiled sheepishly at each other after pulling away, a little taken aback by the feeling you'd both been missing for eight months. You turned to look out on stage and saw all the boys smiling widely. "I hate to break up the make-out session," Michael continued, "But if it's not too much trouble, we've still got a show to finish." You couldn't help but laugh under your breath.

" _Sorry_ ," you mouthed as a crew member came back with Calum's bass. You took it before Calum had the chance to and lifted the strap over his shoulders.

"Hey, Y/N," Luke spoke up. When you looked at him, he smiled, "Welcome home." You couldn't see the fans, but you could hear them start cheering.

You wiped the tear that was falling down your cheek away before turning back to Calum. He was about to walk back out on stage, but you grabbed his hand. You looked at your hand in his, not wanting to make eye contact.

"I'm sorry I didn't have faith in us before," you whispered.

"Hey," he said quietly, putting his hands on your cheeks and making you look at him, "Don't blame yourself, okay? I was the one stupid enough to let you get away that easily."

"I love you, Cal," you muttered, reaching up for a quick kiss.

"I love you too, babe," he smiled, kissing your forehead.

You looked at him for a moment, making him lean down and press another kiss to your lips, almost as if he was reassuring you that he was still just as in love with you as he was before.

Calum finally made his way back onto the stage where he was met with the arena filling with screams once again. He quickly apologized for having to leave, but promised he was more than better now, looking back at you and winking just to make you smile. The boys went on to play the rest of the show, performing more energetically than they ever had before.

~

_inspiration: http://5sos4me.tumblr.com/post/120348691350/can-you-just-imagine-like-breaking-up-with-him-but_


	187. Wrapped Around Your Finger (Luke Hemmings) - Part 1

_Hey, Y/N? This is Luke_

You stared at the message on your screen for about a minute before replying.

**_Luke?_ **

_Hemmings? We went to high school together_

**_I don't remember, I'm sorry_ **

He sent you a photo of himself and your heart skipped a beat.  _Of course_  you remembered him.

Luke Hemmings was the bad boy every girl had a crush on – never seen in anything other than skinny jeans and his favorite leather jacket – but now, his arms were almost completely covered in the tattoos he'd collected since graduation and you were sure he had more scattered across the rest of his body.

And you were obviously confused as to why he was texting  _you_  of all people.

You were the shy girl that sat in the front of the classroom and silently followed along with the teachers, scribbling down her notes as fast as she could before they moved on to the next slide in the power point. You weren't the type of girl that guys normally went for – especially not guys like  _Luke_.

_A friend of a friend told me you had a crush on me and gave me your number_

**_Yeah, but that was in high school_ **

_So you're saying you wouldn't want to go out with me on Friday?_

**_I don't know... I might be busy_ **

_No, you won't. You're just being shy_

**_I'm not being anything_ **

_Come on. One date. If you're still not interested, I'll never bother you again._

You sighed at your phone.

**_One date._ **

_Great :) I'll pick you up at 7_

You began chewing on your lip, now anxiously awaiting your date with Luke Hemmings.

~

That Friday, your heart felt like it was going to beat out of your chest all day. It was 6:45pm and you had been sitting on the couch, ready for the date for about an hour now. Luke had texted you that morning for your address and you'd been beyond nervous ever since – the thought of maybe he was just using you in an attempt to hook up with every girl he graduated with in the back of your mind.

You tried desperately to rid yourself of the thought though. You always saw the best in people and just because Luke was the local troublemaker didn't mean he didn't deserve that same chance.

You were startled out of your daydream by a knock on your apartment door. You looked at the clock and saw it was exactly 7.

 _At least he's on time_ , you thought to yourself as you got up.

You opened the door and your heart skipped a beat as it had so many times before in school when you saw him. Luke was wearing a plain black shirt and a red flannel, black skinny jeans, and the black Converse and leather jacket he would never be seen not wearing in school.

You breathed a small sigh of relief as you thought about your own attire – dark blue skinny jeans, red Vans, a floral shirt, and a light grey cardigan. You weren't too dressed up, but you were dressed up enough, and you were happy Luke looked about the same.

"Y/N," Luke smiled, "You still look as beautiful as ever."

"Thank you," you said quietly, already knowing you were going to be a blushing mess by the end of the night.

"Shall we?" he asked, holding his arm up.

You stepped out of the apartment, making sure the door was locked. Luke put his hand on your lower back and led you outside to his car. He still drove the same thing he did in high school – an old, beat up, rusty blue pick-up truck – but he was always so in love with it that he couldn't bear to buy a new one no matter how much he needed to. He opened the passenger door for you before hurrying around and hopping in himself.

As he was driving, you were looking out the window, playing with the ring on your finger. Luke glanced at you a few times, taking note of how nervous you were, but didn't say anything until he finally stopped at a red light. He lifted his arm up and rested it across the top of the seat, letting his fingers barely touch your right shoulder.

"You don't have to be nervous, you know," Luke told you, "If it'll make you feel better, I could give you the game plan for tonight." You barely nodded and he went on. "Well, I was thinking we could go bowling, grab something to eat there, and then go visit this spot on the lake that's perfect for stargazing."

" _Stargazing_?" you finally looked at him, confusion laced in every part of your voice, " _You_?  _Really_?" He let out a loud laugh as the light turned green and he started driving again.

"I know," he nodded, "That surprises a lot of people. But yeah, I love to look at the stars." He smiled slightly when he saw you start to relax out of the corner of his eye and it was quiet again until he pulled into the bowling alley parking lot.

~

You hadn't gone on too many dates before, but this was definitely your favorite. There was never a moment where Luke wasn't making you laugh. You felt bad for being so quick to judge him based on how he acted in school and his tattoos; He was the funniest, most polite guy you'd ever met – not to mention he was  _just_  as attractive as he was in high school.

After a couple games of bowling, you went to the concession stand to get some food. He paid – like a true gentleman – and you sat down, ready to get to know everything there was to know about each other.

There were a lot of people around your age – mainly people you went to high school with – in the bowling alley as well and you couldn't help but notice their stares out of the corner of your eye. Everybody knew you were the shyest girl in town and you expected them to be surprised to see you with Luke. You shrugged them all off for a while, but when the two girls at the table next to you started talking, it was really starting to get to you.

"What's  _he_  doing with  _her_?" the brunette whispered to her friend, probably thinking you couldn't hear her.

"I know, right?" the blonde groaned, "Probably just another hook up."

"Probably," she giggled under her breath, "No way a guy like him would ever go for her."

Luke watched as you started chewing on your inner cheek and pushed the cheese in the cup around with your chip. Obviously having heard the girls' conversation, he happily intervened, knowing you were way too shy to do anything about it yourself.

"Excuse me, ladies," Luke smiled as he turned to face them but his voice was dangerously low, "Do you have a problem with my date?" Your eyes widened along with theirs, but you didn't dare take them off of your food.

"What? Oh, no," the brunette shook her head quickly, "W-We weren't talking about  _you_ , Luke. We were talking about...uh...s-someone else."

"Then I don't suppose you'd have any problem talking about them somewhere else so we can have some quiet time?" he motioned between the two of you. The two girls looked at each other then back at Luke. He narrowed his eyes at them, " _Now_." They quickly got up and rushed away, but you didn't look up.

He watched you again for a few moments before taking the chip out of your hand and taking the almost empty plate of nachos and throwing it away. He grabbed your hand and pulled you back outside to his truck.

~

After driving to the lake, Luke ran over to open your door for you again before you even had the chance to unbuckle your seat belt. He took your hand and you hopped onto the grass, but he didn't let go. He brought you around and helped you climb into the bed of the truck where you both leaned against the back, side-by-side.

"That's not what this is," Luke said randomly once you got comfortable. You gave him a confused glance and he sighed. "What those girls were saying earlier... This isn't a hook up or a one night stand or whatever," he shook his head slowly, "I didn't ask you out with those intentions. I asked you out tonight because I want to get to know you. I feel like I missed my chance when we were in school and I really want to change that." You swallowed lightly but let a small smile form on your lips, letting him know that you understood.

After a few minutes of just admiring how bright the stars were away from all the city lights, Luke spoke again.

"So did you really have a crush on me in high school?" You nodded bashfully. "Why didn't you say anything back then?" You let out an unintentional laugh.

"Tell a boy I like him," you said quietly, "That's really great; Wish I'd thought of that."

"I liked you too, you know," he mentioned.

"Then why didn't  _you_  say anything?" you retorted.

"Because I was an idiot," he stated, looking you in the eyes, "I was more concerned with maintaining the ' _bad boy_ ' image and when I had a girlfriend, people would call me a softy and whipped and shit like that and I didn't want to deal with it. That's probably my biggest regret."

"What, not having more girlfriends?"

"Sort of," he shrugged, "Not asking you out."

You saw him glance at your lips and start leaning in, but you put your hand on his chest and stopped him. You were silent for a moment, making him worry that he'd ruined everything by trying to kiss you too soon.

"Why me?" you finally managed to speak.

"What do you mean?" he asked in confusion.

"Why me?" you repeated, "We were never exactly part of the same crowd. We never had any mutual friends. We never looked like we would have belonged together and we definitely don't now. Why did you ask me out instead of someone who was more like you?"

"I don't want someone like  _me_ ," he shook his head, "I never have. All those girls in school wanted to be with me for the popularity or my looks; They were never interested in  _me_. But you... You were quiet and cute and every time you smiled, it made my heart ache in the best way possible – it  _still_  does. Even though you were the shyest girl I'd ever seen, you didn't take shit from anyone and I really liked that," he chuckled to himself.

You watched him carefully, trying to find any sort of trace that he was lying, but you couldn't. And that made your stomach erupt with butterflies.

"After we graduated, I would always see you around town, but I could never make myself go up and talk to you," he admitted, "I don't know what it is about you, Y/N, but you made me realize that everything I hated being called in high school was stupid. I would rather be called soft or whipped than wonder what something between us could have been like. And I know that it's your choice where you want this to go if you want it to go anywhere  _at_ _all_ , but I just needed to get all that off my chest before I chickened out of saying it."

You stared at him, taking in everything he just said. Your heart was racing, screaming at you to kiss him, so you did.

You leaned forward, pressing your lips softly against his. You felt him let out a sigh and kiss you back, bringing his hand up to rest on your cheek. The kiss was sweet and innocent – just like you were learning he was – and he never deepened it or kissed you harder; He went at your pace, letting you get comfortable with him.

You pulled away, a smile pulling at the corner of your mouth as a blush crept onto your cheeks. You'd always wondered what kissing Luke would be like and now that you finally knew, you found yourself never wanting to stop.

"I don't know what came over me there," you whispered shyly, "I'm sorry."

"Don't be," he grinned, "I liked it." You blushed for what felt like the hundredth time that night, making his smile grow wider.

Luke was messing with his lip ring – you quickly figured out it a nervous tick – and he slowly snaked his arm around your waist. When you scooted closer to him, he knew you were silently telling him it was okay, so he pulled you into him. You leaned on him, laying your head on his shoulder. You felt him let out another sigh as he kissed the side of your head gently.

"I wish I'd done this sooner," he mumbled against your skin.

"I think all that matters is that you did," you told him, nuzzling your head more into him and closing your eyes in content.

Your moment of peace was interrupted, however, by the faint sound of thunder. You opened your eyes and saw lightning strikes lighting up the sky in the distance.

Luke sighed, "I should get you home before the storm gets here."

"Am I gonna melt?" you giggled lightly.

"Probably not," he smirked, "But I might."

He kissed your head again before you both got up. The cool air and Luke not being against you anymore made you shiver as he grabbed your hand, helping you back out of the truck.

"I'm gonna let you in on a little secret of mine, Y/N," Luke said, taking you to the passenger door. He slipped off his jacket and draped it on your shoulders. "I've never let anyone else wear this jacket – not even past girlfriends."

You giggled again, slipping your arms through the sleeves and pulling it close to your body. It hit just above the middle of your thigh and your shoulders could barely keep the material up, but it was warm and comfortable, just like Luke.

As he opened the door for you, he put his arm around your waist and pulled you close to him.

"But I think I'm willing to make the exception with you," he said lowly. The corner of your mouth curled up into a smirk. You stood up on your toes, pressing your lips to his, surprising him.

When you pulled back, you simply climbed into the truck, leaving him with a small smile on his face.

~

When you finally made it home, the storm luckily still hadn't arrived, but it was pretty close. He parked his truck and walked with you to the doors of your building.

"I had a really fun time tonight, Luke," you said, shrugging off his jacket and handing it to him.

"Me too," he smiled, putting it back on, "So does that mean you'd be up for a second date?" He seemed really shy and nervous, a side of him you thought never even existed.

"I would like that," you nodded with a grin, making him let out a quiet sigh of relief.

"I'll call you tomorrow," he said with a questioning tone to which you nodded again. He kissed your cheek before trotting back to his truck.

You walked into the building, but turned around to make sure he left safely. You noticed a somewhat frustrated look on his face as he was messing with his lip ring again, obviously struggling to get his truck started back up. It was starting to rain a bit and the thunder and lightning were beginning to happen louder and more frequently, so you went back outside. You waited for him to look up before motioning for him to come in. He frowned, grabbing his keys and getting out of the car, hurrying back to you just before it started pouring.

"This is really embarrassing," he muttered to himself as you led him to the elevator.

"Luke," you laughed lightly, "I know you love that truck, but don't you think it's time for an upgrade?"

He gasped dramatically, pushing your shoulder, "That's my  _baby_  you're talking about!"

You rolled your eyes with a smile, leaning on him after hitting the button for the fourth floor. He wrapped his arm around your waist and just held you in silence. The elevator doors opened again and you took him to your apartment.

"Well, this is where the magic happens," you said, unlocking the door, "And by magic, I mean ice cream and Netflix." He chuckled, walking around to look at your place. "I'm really itching to get out of these jeans, so I hope you don't mind if I change real quick." He shook his head and you went to your bedroom. When you came back out, you were wearing a pair of sweatpants and a white tee. "I found some basketball shorts my brother gave me if you want," you suggested to Luke, holding them up, "They don't fit me, so I never wear them, but apparently I was dying when I moved out so he made me take them as ' _something to remember him by_ '." Luke couldn't help but laugh as you mocked your brother's voice.

"Thank you," he took the shorts from you and went to change as well. You heard him groan in relief a couple minutes later, making you cover your mouth to conceal your laugh.

He came back out into your living room and tossed his jeans and jacket on the chair across the room, putting his shoes on the floor beside it before coming over to where you were now sitting on the couch. He put his arm on the back pillow of the couch behind you and you leaned into him, still looking for something to watch. You finally decided on  _Criminal Minds_  and you watched a couple episodes before Luke realized that the storm had passed.

He was about to get up so he could change back into his jeans, but when he looked at you, he couldn't help but smile. You had your head on his shoulder, fast asleep. He carefully got up, turning to pick you up, and took you to your bed. When he went to leave the room, your voice stopped him.

"Luke," you mumbled sleepily, "Don't go." He was happy it was dark because he knew he was blushing at this point.

Luke simply took off the flannel he was wearing and went out to lay it with the rest of his clothes. He came back and got onto the bed next to you. You scooted over and cuddled up to him, laying your head on his chest as he put his arms around you and held you closely while you both drifted off to sleep.

~

_inspiration: apparently the original post was deleted but it was inspired by jackofthefuture on tumblr_


	188. Wrapped Around Your Finger (Luke Hemmings) - Part 2

When you woke up the next morning, you felt an arm hugging your waist and your back pressed against his chest. You tried to get up, but Luke wouldn't let you move. You felt the lips on your neck curl up into a smile, kissing your skin gently.

"Good morning," Luke said with a gravelly morning voice that made your heart flutter. He rolled onto his back, letting his arm fall off of you. You turned over to face him, using his upper arm as a pillow.

"I fell asleep on you, didn't I?" you giggled quietly, stretching your legs.

"Kind of," he teased, "I brought you in here, but you told me not to go, so I didn't."

"Hmm," you hummed, "Only one date and we've already slept together." You felt his body shake as he laughed, kissing your forehead.

"If I knew sleeping with you would be that exhausting, I would have done it a long time ago," he winked, making you laugh again.

"Do you want coffee or something?" you asked, "I could make breakfast if you don't have to be anywhere... Or you don't have to stay... It's up to you."

Luke looked at you before taking your hand and holding it up above his stomach. He slipped his fingers in between yours and brought your hand to his lips. He kissed the back of it, letting it linger for a moment before taking it away to rest on his stomach.

"If you want me to stay, I will," he told you quietly, "But I think breakfast can wait a little bit."

"Why?" you tilted your head to look at him. He grinned lightly.

"I'm not ready to leave this spot just yet," he said, squeezing you and making you blush.

~

When you and Luke finally dragged yourselves out of bed, you trotted into the kitchen to make some pancakes. While you were standing at the stove, Luke was behind you with his arms around your waist and his head on your shoulder.

" _Luke_ ," you sang under your breath. He hummed in acknowledgement. "You're gonna fall asleep on me."

"You say that like it's a bad thing," he mumbled into your skin.

You smiled, "It is when we both know I wouldn't be able to hold your weight."

"I think you just need to build up a little muscle," he snickered.

"Oh, great. Can I borrow some of yours?"

Luke picked his head up to see you smirking as you put the last pancake on the plate. You reached over to put the pan and spatula in the sink, turning off the stove before your sides were being tickled. You squealed loudly, the sound of your laugh making Luke laugh as well.

"Please," he sighed once you both calmed down, "You love my muscles."

"They're alright," you teased. He stuck out his bottom lip, making you giggle. You reached up, pecking his lips briefly. "Still alright," you told him, getting two forks so you could get your breakfast.

~

When you were done eating, Luke went to change back into his jeans. He came back out with a small frown, not wanting to leave.

"I'll call you later," he told you after slipping on his jacket, kissing your forehead. You smiled, a light pink tint to your cheeks, and nodded. You walked him to your door and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before he left.

**Luke's POV**

Luckily, his truck started and he was able to drive home. The moment he walked through the front door, his roommates started barraging him with questions.

"Where were you last night?" Ashton asked.

"I told you I had a date," Luke answered, fidgeting with the keys in his hand.

"Yeah, but we expected you to come home at some point."

"I'm home  _now_ , aren't I?"

"Who'd you go out with anyway?" Calum asked, coming into the room with his cup of coffee.

"Just a girl," he shrugged casually.

"Come on!" Michael groaned, "You're always bragging about which girl you got to say yes to a date! Why are you so secretive about  _this one_?!"

Luke sighed, "It was Y/N Y/L/N, okay?"

"You mean that nerd from high school?" Calum snickered.

"She's not a nerd," he grumbled.

"You finally bang her?" Michael winked.

" _Michael_!" Ashton scolded.

" _What_?! We're  _all_  thinking it! She's the only chick Luke hasn't gotten with! It's about damn time she put out!"

"I did not have sex with Y/N," Luke growled through gritted teeth, "We fell asleep after that storm passed; Nothing more. And if you  _ever_  talk about her like that again-" He narrowed his eyes at Michael. "-I swear I'll kill you." He stormed up to his bedroom, leaving his three friends to look at each other in shock.

~

By the time 7pm came around, the boys hadn't seen Luke all day. It wasn't like him to react to their teasing like that, so they knew it really got to him. Michael immediately volunteered to be the one to head upstairs to coax Luke out since what he said was what made him mad in the first place. He knocked on the door, earning a somewhat annoyed ' _What?_ ' from the blonde on the other side. He turned the doorknob, happy to discover it was unlocked, and went in.

"There's pizza downstairs if you want some," Michael said softly. Luke grumbled lightly, not looking away from his phone. When his phone vibrated, Michael could see a smile pull at the corner of his mouth. "You texting her?" He got a simple nod in return. "Luke,  _I'm sorry_ , okay?" he sighed, "I didn't know she was  _that_  important to you."

"I find that hard to believe," Luke scoffed, typing his reply to you.

"I mean, you can't blame me though," he defended himself, "With the way you used to talk about girls in high school and all."

"Well, I was an idiot in high school. But I'm not the same person I was back then – none of us are."

Michael tilted his head at his best friend for a moment before coming into the room, closing the door. He sat on the end of Luke's bed and just looked at him for a moment.

"You really like her, don't you?"

"I  _really_  like her, Michael," Luke confirmed with a sigh, putting his phone down and finally looking up at the redhead, "And I don't know what to do."

"What do you mean you don't know what to do? You go out with her again. And you keep going out with her until it's over."

"No, I just..." he trailed off when his phone vibrated again. He stared at your name until the screen went black and then looked back up. "I'm terrified I'm gonna end up hurting her somehow and I don't think I could ever forgive myself,' he admitted, "People are already talking and I know it's just gonna get worse if we end up becoming official or whatever."

"Fuck those other people!" Michael exclaimed, throwing his arm up and letting it fall back onto the bed, "Do you like her?" Luke obviously nodded. "Does she like you?" He nodded again, but slowly this time as if he were sure you did but still had his doubts. "Then who cares what those people think? If you've liked her since high school, I think it's really saying something that you  _still_  feel this strongly about her, Luke. I'm not saying there aren't going to be rough patches along the way, but if you're meant to be together, then you'll make it through them. It's not like you to give up so easily and I don't think you should make an exception just because of things that  _might_  happen."

Luke was left in shock, honestly. Michael was never the type of guy to offer advice and to hear that coming from him of all people really surprised him. But he also knew that what he said was true. He couldn't let other peoples' opinions of the two of you ruin it. Because now that he finally had you, there was no way he was letting you go.

~

**Your POV; Six months later**

You and Luke had officially been a couple for nearly six months now and you couldn't be happier. You had met his friends a couple weeks after Luke asked you to be his girlfriend and you were both ecstatic that they all instantly loved you. You had become closest with Michael though.

Being as shy as you were, you found comfort in playing video games, so you were obviously able to bond over that with him – and he found you to be a  _challenge_  compared to the other boys. When he wanted to dye his hair a new color, you were the only person he called to help him out and you felt like you could talk to him about anything.

~

" _Please_?" Luke pouted as he got up, getting ready to leave.

He had come over to your place to hang out for a while before another one of those parties he'd thrown with his friends ever since they were in school. He'd been trying to convince you to come all week, but you were still unsure about it. Shy people and parties never really went together.

"You know how I feel about crowds, Luke," you said quietly.

"I'll stay with you the whole time and when you wanna come back home, I'll bring you," he said. You looked at him and saw his bottom lip was still stuck out. You started biting your inner cheek and his eyes got brighter, knowing you were about to give in.

"You promise?" you asked. He nodded furiously. You let out a deep sigh, " _Fine_ , I'll go." He grinned widely, throwing his arms around you and hugging you.

"Don't worry, babe," he kissed your cheek, "You'll have lots of fun. The boys and I throw really awesome parties." You chuckled quietly.

"Well,  _I'll_  be the judge of that," you teased, wiggling out of his grip so you could go get changed out of your sweats.

~

A couple hours later, you were actually having a pretty fun time – aside from the fact that you couldn't find Luke anywhere. You looked in every room you thought he would be, but he had seemingly disappeared.

When you finally found him again, he was talking to a small group of people you didn't know, but you let out a sigh of relief anyway, just happy to have found him at all. You went over and put your arm around his. To your surprise, however, he pulled his arm out of yours, leaving you with a confused look on your face.

"Luke..." you said quietly, glancing at the people he was talking to and noticing they were glaring at you. You were uncomfortable enough already, but the way Luke handled it  _definitely_  didn't make you feel any better.

"I'm in the middle of something right now, Y/N," he said monotonously, "What do you want?" You began chewing on your lip.

"N-Nothing," you managed to get out, "Ne-Never mind."

You quickly turned and left him, now desperately searching for the one person you knew wouldn't blow you off like that. You finally found him in the kitchen getting another drink.

"Mi-Michael," you whispered as you walked up to him and tapped his shoulder. He spun around, a little startled to have someone touch him.

"Hey!" he smiled when he saw it was you, "Do you want me to get you something to drink?"

You shook your head, "I just wanna be around someone I know." He nodded, putting his arm around your shoulders and pulling you into him.

"How are you feeling?" he asked. His concern was very clear, obviously knowing this wasn't really your scene. "Where's Luke?"

"Talking to his friends," you muttered, leaning on him, "I'm fine. Just didn't think there would be so many people here is all."

"Do you want me to call Ash so he can take you home?"

Ashton had gone out with his mother and siblings for the night – he was never much of a partier either – and Calum was probably somewhere outside unable to walk straight, so Michael knew Ashton would be able to get you back home safely.

"No," you shook your head, "I don't wanna bother him." Michael watched you more carefully and knew something was off.

"What's wrong?" he furrowed his eyebrows, "You seem upset." You paused for a moment.

"Can I talk to you about something?" you mumbled, "...Alone."

"Yeah!" he exclaimed, grabbing your hand.

Michael pulled you through the crowd of party-goers until you ended up on the front porch. The commotion from inside could still be heard, but it was far more quiet than it would have been if you went upstairs.

"What's wrong?" he asked again after you situated yourselves on the steps.

"Have you noticed anything..." you trailed off, trying to come up with the right words, "...unusual-" You shook your head to yourself but that was the best word you could think of. "-going on with Luke?"

"Not really," Michael shrugged, making you sigh. "Why?"

"He's been so distant lately," you muttered, putting your face in your hands, "I've tried talking to him, but he won't answer me with anything other than one word or annoyed noises. All I did was say his name earlier and he just blew me off and went back to talking to his friends like I wasn't even there." You really didn't want Michael to see you get emotional, but once the tears started falling, it was like they wouldn't stop. "And I'm trying to figure out what I've done wrong," you sniffled, "But I can't and it's driving me insane."

"You didn't do anything wrong, Y/N," he said quietly, although he was angry to hear that Luke had been treating you so poorly.

"Obviously I've done  _something_ , Mikey!" you choked, looking up at him, "He's probably realized that he didn't like me as much as he thought he did, he just doesn't want to tell me. Being with a shy girl is great because we don't like confrontation, but most guys want to do fun things with their girlfriends like party and stuff," you shook your head again slowly, "But I just  _can't_  be that girlfriend and it makes me feel like I'm not  _good enough_  for him anymore." Michael could see your cheeks shining in the moonlight, so he reached up and wiped your tears away with his thumbs.

"I really think you should talk to  _him_  about this," he told you, "And don't let him leave until he listens."

"I've tried," you mumbled again, "He just gets defensive and upset."

"I'll go find him, okay? Promise me you'll stay right here." You sighed, nodding your head. He pressed a light kiss to your temple before getting up and hurrying back into the house to find your boyfriend.

**Luke's POV**

" _Luke_!" he heard Michael shouting over the loud music and the conversations going on around him.

Luke looked around, searching for his best friend's bright red hair. He hadn't done much drinking – only a couple beers – so he wasn't drunk or anything. He wasn't even feeling slightly buzzed due to being able to handle his alcohol pretty well. Michael finally found him now standing in the kitchen and had an anything but thrilled look on his face, making the blonde nervous.

"What's up, Mikey?" Luke asked.

"Where's your girlfriend?" he returned in a dangerously low tone.

"Don't know," he shrugged, "Haven't seen her since we got here."

" _Really_?" he rolled his eyes, "Because she just told me that she was with you a few  _minutes_  ago and you completely  _blew her off_. You  _know_  she doesn't feel comfortable at parties like this, Luke! She's been hanging around me for the past 10 minutes because I'm the only one she knows that she could find!"

"Then I'll just take her home," he said.

"You are  _not_  driving, Luke," Michael stated firmly, "I don't care how well you can handle alcohol, I'm  _not_  letting you behind the wheel. But Y/N doesn't want to go home, she wants to talk to you."

"Well, what for?"

"For  _this_ , Luke!" he nearly shouted, motioning toward him, "For not being with her! You've been pushing her away for weeks now and you don't even care!"

"I care," he whispered, more to himself than to Michael.

Michael took a deep breath to calm himself down, "I don't like seeing her cry, okay? And the fact that it's  _you_  that's been making her feel like shit is making it  _really fucking hard_  for me to believe you."

"Sh-She's crying?" his voice shook.

"She's on the porch waiting for you. I made her promise not to leave, but at this point, I wouldn't blame her if she did."

As soon as the words left his mouth, Luke was running to the front door, pushing past everyone to get to you.

**Your POV**

You had been outside for almost 5 minutes, waiting for Luke or Michael, when you heard the front door open behind you. Honestly, you were expecting it to be Michael coming to tell you that Luke had refused to talk to you, but when the person stepped off the porch and stood in front of you, you stared at the tattooed wrists peeking out from under the leather jacket you knew all too well.

"Hey, babe," your boyfriend said quietly.

"Hi, Luke," your voice cracked. You still refused to look up at him and he knew he fucked up big time.

"Can we, uh..." He cleared his throat slightly. "Can we go for a walk? You know, get away from all the noise?"

You finally looked up and saw his pleading expression. You barely nodded and he offered his hand to you, but you didn't take it. You simply stood up, hearing him sigh in defeat as you started walking down the driveway.

The two of you walked to the nearby elementary school, making your way to the empty playground. You had your arms crossed over your stomach, holding onto your jacket tightly in an attempt to keep yourself warm as you mentally cursed yourself for not wearing something heavier.

Luke obviously noticed you shivering and took off his own jacket, making you jump as he rested it on your shoulders. You mumbled a ' _thank you_ ', instinctively slipping your arms into the sleeves before sitting on one of the swings. Luke sat on the swing next to you and it was silent for a few minutes.

"Michael said you wanted to talk to me," Luke finally said in a quiet voice.

"Well, he said I  _should_ ," you replied, "Didn't think you'd agree, to be honest."

"Y/N," he sighed again, "I'm sorry, okay? I know I've been pretty distant lately and that's  _such_  a shitty thing to do – especially to  _you_  – and I just... I'm sorry."

"Do you  _want_  to be with me?" you asked, taking him by surprise.

"Of course I do," he whispered.

"'Cause you don't avoid people you want to be with, Luke," you shook your head, looking down at your lap as you pushed yourself back and forth on the swing, "And you don't ignore them when they try to talk to you about it, and you  _definitely_  don't leave them alone in situations you know make them nervous." There was a moment of silence before Luke blurted out the  _last_   _thing_  you expected to hear.

"I think I'm in love with you," he said so quickly that you almost didn't catch it.

Your jaw dropped slightly and you slowly looked at him. He swallowed nervously, looking down as he played with his fingers, but knew it was too late to back out now.

"That's why I've been so distant; It's because I'm in love with you," he repeated, "There's nothing I've ever wanted more than I want you and I'm fucking terrified that I'm gonna break your heart and I thought the best way to not do that was to avoid my feelings altogether, but I ended up hurting you anyway and I'm  _so fucking sorry_ , Y/N. I'm sorry that I pushed you away and if you want to leave, I'll understand. You deserve to be with someone who isn't afraid of being in love with you and who will make you feel safe when you're out of your comfort zone and who you can love just the same way; You deserve someone who can give you the  _world_. And if that person  _isn't me_ , I won't make you stay." He looked back up at you, seeing the same shocked facial expression as before.

Luke sighed, getting up and starting to walk back home to the party he really wasn't in the mood for anymore. But after a few seconds of processing what he had told you, you finally came to your senses.

"Luke!" you squeaked, jumping up and running to him.

Luke turned around at the sound of his name, just in time for your hand to reach behind his neck and pull his face to yours, kissing him like it was the last time you would ever get to. He was tense at first – a little confused – but he quickly relaxed, putting his arms around your waist and pressing your bodies against one another. You barely pulled back, your words brushing against his lips as you spoke.

"I'm in love with you too, you idiot," you said quietly.

" _Really_?" he let out a shaky breath.

"Really," you nodded, briefly kissing him again. You moved back to look at him, "But pushing someone away isn't the  _best_  way to show them you love them." He laughed lightly.

"I know," he sighed, resting his forehead on yours, "I'm sorry."

"It's okay to be scared, Luke," you told him, "I'm scared too, but that doesn't mean I'm gonna leave you."

"Promise?"

"Promise," you smiled. He kissed you again just before you shivered. He chuckled lightly, letting go of you.

"We should probably get back before you get sick," he said, turning around and letting you jump on his back.

" _Me_?" you laughed, "I'm the one wearing two jackets. What are you wearing? Exactly: A flannel.  _You're_  the one that's gonna get sick,  _not me_."

"Is that a  _challenge_?" he smirked.

"No," you giggled, "I don't want to have to take care of a whiny, needy, diseased Luke."

"I do not whine!"

"Of course not," you hummed into his neck.

"Okay, maybe sometimes," he laughed lightly. You sighed in content against his skin, feeling him hold you a little tighter.

The rest of the way back to the house was silent – the only thing happening between the two of you being your thumb running back and forth along his collarbone.

"Luke," you mumbled as he climbed up the porch steps.

"Hmm?" he responded.

"I love you," you whispered. He smiled brightly.

"I love you too," he muttered for only you to hear as he made his way back through the house to find Michael, being met along the way with shocked whispers of how Luke was  _finally_  letting someone else wear his favorite leather jacket.

~

_inspiration: http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/120465019358/you-and-calum-had-been-dating-for-a-while-now-and_


	189. Catch Me (Ashton Irwin)

You were at your best friend Luke's house on a Friday night and he and his friends insisted you come over. They knew you'd been stressed because of work and they wanted to help you get your mind off of everything. Knowing the boys, you knew the moment they said ' _get your mind off of everything_ ' that there was going to alcohol involved.

You'd never been a drinker – you were just never interested – but you agreed to go over anyway. Despite the fact that you knew they were all going to get drunk and you were going to have to take care of them the next morning, you loved spending time with them and they really did help you relax.

However, there was one boy you could never seem to get along with. Ever since Luke introduced you to his three other best friends, you and Ashton just couldn't see eye-to-eye on anything. No matter what you did or said, it was always met with Ashton's oppositions or a roll of the eyes. You never knew exactly what you did to make him detest you, but you figured two could play at that game.

It wasn't that you didn't like  _Ashton_ , you just didn't like  _the way he treated you_. This had admittedly gotten better within the last few months, but you could never ignore the glares or small sighs when you looked in his direction.

You had been watching a very drunk Michael play video games in the living room when you decided you wanted another soda. You hadn't eaten that day – work stressed you out beyond belief and you just never made the time to sit down and properly eat something – so you understandably felt a little off. Every time you'd gotten up, you would get dizzy and have to stop and hold onto the couch or whatever was closest to you at the time.

You made your way to the kitchen, finding Calum and Luke standing there talking. You didn't know where Ashton had gone off to, but truthfully, you didn't really care. You trudged into the room, but you were becoming so lightheaded that you couldn't clearly see where you were walking, causing you to run right into the edge of the counter.

" _Fuck_!" you squeaked, your hand flying up to the side of your waist.

"Y/N," Luke said slowly, "You should really sit down and eat. We'd be happy to order a couple pizzas or something."

"Yeah," Calum quickly agreed, "You've run into the counter like, five times so far. That's not normal – especially since you haven't had  _one drink_  tonight."

"Guys, seriously, I'm fine!" you rushed breathlessly.

"Y/N-"

"I didn't come here to be barraged with questions!" you exclaimed suddenly, "Jesus Christ, you guys are supposed to be my friends, not my mother! You know what? I'm going home. I'll see you guys later." You spun around and the last things you remember were the boys shouting your name and falling into someone's arms before everything went black.

~

**The next morning**

You opened your eyes, squinting as the sun shone through the window right onto your face. You turned onto your stomach, burying your face into the pillow. You froze, suddenly realizing something; You never went to bed – you never even went  _home_.

You replayed the events of the previous night in your head before remembering what happened. You propped yourself up on your elbows, brushing the hair off of your face, and looking around the room.

You knew you were still at the boys' house, but you weren't in a room you recognized. You'd been in their bedrooms plenty of times before, so why hadn't you seen this one? And that was when it hit you; You were in  _Ashton's_  room.

"Hey!" you heard someone say as they door opened, "You're awake!" Your head snapped over to see Ashton walking into the room.

He sat on the edge of the bed closest to you, holding a small glass of water and an Aspirin. You cocked an eyebrow at him before slowly sitting up, letting the blanket fall to your lap. He placed the pill in your hand and gave you the glass, letting you take it. You took the pill with a sip of water and went to give the glass back, but Ashton wouldn't take it.

"You need to drink  _all of it_ ," he said softly, gently pushing your hand back to you.

You complied after a few intense seconds of staring. He smiled once you emptied the glass, finally taking it back.

"Feeling better?" he asked you.

"I guess..." you said quietly, your voice laced with confusion, "Why... I mean... What am I doing in here?"

"You passed out," he said, telling you the only thing you remembered. You were about to tell him you already knew that, but he went on before you could. "Probably would have hit your head pretty badly if I hadn't happened to be walking into the room when you fell."

" _You_  were the one who caught me?" you asked in surprise, "I thought that was Michael."

" _Michael_?" Ashton chuckled, " _God, no_. You know he'd had one too many drinks himself; There was no  _way_  he would have caught you."

"I wasn't drinking," you mumbled defensively. He tilted his head, but you beat him to speaking. "Why would you-"

"Catch you?" he asked as if he didn't already know what you were going to say, "You may not like me, but that doesn't mean I want to see you get hurt." You swallowed a bit.

"You brought me in here then?" you asked. Ashton simply nodded. "Well, why not the couch or someone else's room?"

"Other rooms were taken," he shrugged, "And you literally almost slammed your head against the floor, we didn't need you falling off the couch too. You're already too much of a safety hazard."

"I could have fallen off the  _bed_  too," you replied, letting out a breathy chuckle at his last comment.

"Good point," he laughed lightly, "I'll give you that one." There was a moment of surprisingly comfortable silence before Ashton spoke again. "There's breakfast downstairs," he told you, "You should really come and eat something. I don't want to have to catch you two days in a row." He got up, but when you suddenly realized something he had said, you stopped him.

"Ashton," you said. He turned, giving you a look. "Earlier, when you said ' _you may not like me_ '... What did you mean by that?"

"It meant what it sounds like," he said, not going into anymore detail. You raised your eyebrows, shaking your head lightly. He sighed quietly, probably thinking you wouldn't have noticed, as he leaned on the door frame, "I know we got off to a rough start for whatever reason, but I figured there's no point in hating someone who's really important to Luke and Calum and Michael, so I've kind of just got used to having you around. I meant what I said about not wanting to see you get hurt and just because you may not like me still doesn't change that. I'll always be there to catch you." Your breath hitched as he turned back around. You let him get through the door frame before stopping him for the second time.

"Ash," you whispered, knowing your voice wouldn't give you anything more than that without breaking. He stopped again, but didn't turn around this time – he really didn't want you to see the blush on his cheeks due to you using his nickname. "Thank you," you told him. Even though he wasn't facing you, you could tell he smiled just before he walked back down the hallway.

 


	190. Dial Tones (Marshall Traver)

_it was 3 in the morning when i wrote this. i am so sorry. (also it's in his pov just saying)_

~

_Hey, Marshall. I know it's midnight and you're probably asleep, but I've been calling for like, a week now and you never answer, so I thought I'd finally just leave a message. Um... I found some of your stuff while I was cleaning the other day and I just wanted to know when it would be cool for me to bring everything by your place. So..._ _Uh_ _..._ _Yeah_ _... Call me back when you can._

Marshall replayed the voicemail over and over again as he laid in bed that morning. He didn't call you back – he never intended on calling you back – he just wanted to hear your voice. It wasn't that he didn't want to call you, it was just that he didn't want set a time to get his stuff back. Because the moment you give him his stuff back is the moment it's officially over between the two of you.

And he knew he would never be ready for that.

~

_Hey, it's me again. Look, I know we didn't end on great terms, but that doesn't mean I don't want you to have this stuff back. I know you're listening to these messages, Marshall. Just because we're not together anymore doesn't mean I don't still know you. You don't even have to speak to me when I stop by if you don't want to, I just want you to get your stuff back. Please just call me, okay?_

Another week had passed by this point and he could hear it in your voice that you were growing more and more frustrated with him. Marshall felt bad for not calling back, but he simply wasn't ready. When he was ready, he would; But that time wasn't now.

~

_I guess we kinda made this a weekly thing, didn't we? I'm sorry, okay? But if you don't call back by next week, I'm just going to have to assume you don't want any of this and donate it or something. I'm trying to move on just like you did and I can't do that when I have to keep staring at this box in my room. I know you hate me, but these dial tones are driving me insane. I can't wait for you forever, Marshall._

The last sentence echoed in his mind.  _I can't wait for you forever_. Any person would be hurt by being told something like that, but those words hit Marshall like a speeding truck. Those words were the exact ones he told you six months ago when he broke up with you.

But what stuck out more was the fact that you said you were  _trying_  to move on. To him, that meant you were still in love with him – or you at least thought about him fairly often. He didn't completely know, but there was one thing he was sure of: You missed him and there wasn't anything he wasn't going to do to try to get you back.

~

The next morning, Marshall didn't wake up to any voicemails. He hadn't expected to, to be honest. You only called once a week and he knew that even then, you felt like it was too much. No one calls their ex that many times unless they're drunk or desperate. But you were neither of those things and he knew that.

Marshall looked at the clock on his bedside table and saw it was 11 o'clock. He knew you'd be awake by now, so with shaky hands and sweaty palms, he dialed the number he couldn't forget even if he tried. He waited for five heart-pounding rings before they stopped and he heard the voice he fell in love with the moment he heard it.

"He-" You cleared your throat, obviously trying to make it seem like you didn't know who had called you. "Hello?"

"Hi, Y/N," Marshall said quietly.

"Hey, Marshall," you replied just as softly.

"Sorry I haven't called you back... I've been busy," he lied. He didn't know why he lied; He knew you knew he was never too busy to call someone back.

"Oh, that's okay," you told him, "So... Um... Would it be cool if I stopped by today? You know, to give you your stuff back?"

"Yeah," he nodded, although you couldn't see him, "Today is good. Whenever works for you."

"So we'll say 7 then?"

"Yeah, I'll be here."

"See you, Marshall," you swallowed the lump in your throat, hoping he didn't notice.

"See you, Y/N," he copied lowly just before you ended the call. He let out a breath, closing his eyes for a moment.

Marshall would finally get to see you again after six months. He wasn't sure if you were as eager to see him as he was to see you, but he didn't care. He missed you and he was going to appreciate every second you were standing in front of him, knowing it very well may be the last time you would ever be there.

~

Marshall was pacing around his apartment, anxiously waiting for your arrival. It was already 7:08 and he was nervous you weren't going to show up. But the nauseous feeling he got when there was a knock on his door was far more nerve-racking than anything he had been feeling since your phone call. He rushed to the door, pulling it open and found you standing beside a box filled with the belongings he hadn't seen in over six months.

"Sorry I'm late," you were practically whispering, a little out of breath, "The elevator was...out of service and there were...a lot of...a lot of stairs."

"You should have let me know you were here," Marshall said, helping you bring the box inside, "If I knew the elevator was broken, I would have come help you." You smiled shyly, looking down as he closed the door behind you. You both took the box into the living room and let it rest in front of the couch.

Marshall sat down in front of the box, curious as to what was inside. You watched as he opened it and began pulling the random things out. You shifted uncomfortably on your feet, not really knowing whether he wanted you to stay any longer or not.

As he reached the bottom of the box, you noticed his expression drop. He pulled out the shirt you used to wear every chance you got, but you quickly realized that wasn't what caused his sudden change in mood. He picked up the last thing in the box; A piece of paper with his handwriting on it.

"This is the song I wrote you," he said quietly, sadness in his voice, as he looked up at you.

You simply stood there, still not knowing what to do. The pain in his voice broke your heart – much like the pain you felt when you put the song in there. You truthfully didn't want to give it back to him, but you knew you couldn't keep it. You wanted to get rid of every trace of Marshall and that included the thing that meant the most to you.

"You're giving it back?" Marshall asked. You barely nodded. "But... I wrote it for you..."

"I'm giving back every memory of you, Marshall," you told him as strongly as you could, "I'm sure you'll find something to do with the song. You can give it to your next girlfriend."

"But I wrote it for  _you_ ," he repeated, shaking his head, "I understand that you don't want to be reminded of me anymore, but I still wrote it for  _you_. Giving it to anybody else would just feel wrong."

"Then don't," you said, looking down at your shoes, "I should really be leaving. Thanks for finally getting back to me, Marshall. Maybe I'll see you around."

As you were turning back toward the door, you heard Marshall get up. You had just grabbed the doorknob when he reached for you hand, pulling it away from the knob as he made you turn around.

"So this is it then?" he asked. You pursed your lips together as you looked into his eyes and realized he was fighting back tears. "Once you walk out this door, it's really over?"

"Marshall..." you whispered, "This is what you wanted." He let out a shaky breath, releasing your hand and bringing his hands up to cover his face for a moment.

"You think I  _wanted_  this to happen?" he shook his head again. You furrowed your eyebrows in confusion.

" _You_  broke up with  _me_ , remember?"

"I didn't think you'd actually  _leave_!" he nearly shouted, throwing his arms up, not even bothering to hold in his tears anymore.

"You told me you couldn't wait for me anymore!" you exclaimed, "So I figured I wouldn't make you!"

"I didn't know what I was saying! I was just upset that things weren't moving fast enough! I wasn't thinking about you and what made you comfortable; I was thinking about me and how I felt, and that was selfish of me and if I could take it back, I would..." he trailed off, his voice becoming quieter, "You have no idea what I'd do to get you back, Y/N..." You watched him for a moment before letting out an uneven breath of your own.

"I'm sorry, Marshall," you murmured, turning and reaching for the doorknob again.

"Do you still love me?" Marshall asked, making you freeze mid-turn. Your wrist went back to normal, but you didn't say anything; You just rested your forehead on the door and let him continue. "Do you still have trouble falling asleep because you're too busy thinking about how empty the bed feels without me next to you? Do you still wake up the next morning and feel like something's missing because I'm not there anymore? Do you still have pictures of us on your phone because no matter how hard you try, you can't seem to delete any of them?"

"Marshall-" You repeated as you turned to face him, but were immediately cut off.

"Because I do," his voice broke, "I can't get you out of my head, Y/N. I can't do anything without being reminded of you in some way. But I realized after you left that first voicemail that I don't want to forget you. I don't want to forget the memories. I don't want to forget the times we got caught in the rain without an umbrella on dates because we were too excited to take the time to check the forecast before we left. I don't want to forget singing to you as we slow danced in the kitchen at 3am because you couldn't fall asleep no matter how long you'd been trying. I don't want to forget what you look like when you're wearing my clothes or that smile you give me when I realize that the shirt I've been looking for for the past 10 minutes is the shirt you've already got on. I don't want to forget the night I woke you up at a quarter past 3 because I'd  _finally_  finished the song I wrote for you and I just couldn't wait until morning; And I definitely don't want to forget the way you kissed me when I was done singing it to you." He let out a breath, ending his speech. "I can't make you take me back if you don't want to, Y/N," he sighed, "I just need to hear you tell me you don't love me anymore so I can move on too." You were quiet for a few moments before speaking.

"I can't," you whispered so quietly that you weren't sure if he heard you.

"You can't what?" he asked.

"I can't tell you I don't love you anymore," you felt tears already starting to roll down your cheeks, "I can't tell you I don't miss you. I can't tell you I've moved on... I can't..." Marshall's eyes widened slightly upon hearing your confession.

"Y/N..." he said quietly, "Please say you'll give me another chance."

Your bottom lip trembled and you knew you wouldn't be able to speak without bursting into tears, so you simply nodded – and that was good enough for him.

Marshall immediately grabbed your hips and pulled you into him, pressing his body against yours. You wrapped your arms around his neck while his held your waist tightly, never wanting to let go. You couldn't help but let out a few soft cries into his skin, causing him to start rubbing your back – something he knew always helped calm you down when you were crying.

"Do you really think about all that stuff still?" you sniffled after a few minutes.

"More than you'll ever know," he mumbled, squeezing you lightly. He let go of your waist to put his hands on your cheeks, pushing you back so he could look you in the eyes. "I love you so much," he told you as he gently wiped your tears away with his thumbs. You leaned into his hand, inhaling shakily.

"I love you too," you whispered.

Marshall breathed a sigh of content, smiling slightly at hearing those words come out of your mouth. He kissed you softly, both of you taking comfort in the feeling you'd been missing the most for the last six months. He could feel every ounce of love you still had for each other in that one kiss and now that he had you back, he was never letting you go.

~

 _inspirations:_  
"Dial Tones" by As It Is  
http://my-imagines-moonlight53.tumblr.com/post/94590141642/ashton-irwin-imagine-based-on-tee-shirt-by-birdy 


	191. All of Me (Michael Clifford)

"Guys..." you breathed, peering around the corner you were hiding behind, "I don't know about this."

"Come on, Y/N!" your best friends Luke and Calum said in unison.

"He's so into you, it's not even funny," Luke continued.

"Yeah," Calum nodded in agreement, "There's no way he'd say no."

"Okay," you nodded confidently, "I can do this." You peeked around the corner again.

Michael Clifford had a reputation for being the school's freak, nerd, loser; Whatever students could come up with, they would call him. The brown-haired kid wasn't on anyone's list of top 5 people they'd like to be seen with. He wasn't on the football team, he didn't have more money than most, and he would much rather curl up in bed with his textbooks to study than go out and party on a Saturday night.

You, on the other hand, were the complete opposite. You lived in a pretty nice house, your family was fortunate enough to be on the higher end of the income bracket, and everyone in the school wanted to be your friend. And while you did have a large circle of friends, you only really spent time with two of them outside of school. Luke and Calum weren't exactly the most popular guys in school, but you hung around them a lot, so they were kind of just accepted into that crowd. You were confident in everything you did and you never let anything stand in your way of getting what you wanted.

But when it came to the shy boy that kept to himself, your body practically went into shock. You had tried to approach Michael multiple times since you first saw him when he was transferred into your History class junior year, but you would chicken out every single time. You would catch him watching you, but before you could smile at him, he would look down at his books and not look back up until he was certain you weren't looking his way anymore.

Calum was the first to come up to you and inform you that the brown-haired boy had a crush on you. At first, you didn't believe him, but when Luke confirmed it by telling you about the way he looked at you when you didn't know he was there, you knew you had to do something.

The homecoming dance was coming up soon and you'd been asked by seemingly every other guy had asked you; None of whom were the one you really wanted to go with. Your best friends knew that Michael would never ask you at his own free will, so they convinced you that you should ask him instead. And that was what you were doing now – well, what you were  _trying to do_.

"Y/N," Calum groaned quietly, "I thought you were going to go ask him." You flung yourself back, leaning against the wall.

"No," you shook your head, "I can't do it."

"You could always take the secret admirer approach," Luke suggested, "You know? Leave a note in his locker telling him to meet in the middle of the dance floor and 9 or something."

"Luke!" you whined, "That's way too cliché!"

"Well, do you have a  _better_  idea?" Calum sassed.

"No, but I'll come up with something! I'll ask him eventually, just not today..."

The two boys simply rolled their eyes at you. The warning bell rang, signaling there were 5 minutes before classes started. You told Luke and Calum that you would see them at lunch, hurrying to your locker to get your books for your first period class. They looked at each other as you walked away, a sly smile pulling at the corners of their mouths.

If you weren't going to ask Michael yourself, then they were going to take matters into their own hands.

~

**The next day**

Once you arrived at school, you shoved your backpack into your locker and rushed down the hallway. You stopped at the corner, looking around to see if Michael was standing at his locker. He, of course, was and you took a few deep breaths. You were about to step out from behind the corner when Calum's voice came from behind you.

"What are you doing?" he asked, making you jump. You spun around to see Calum and Luke looking at you with confused expressions.

"I was gonna go ask Michael to the dance!" you squeaked quietly.

"No, you weren't," Luke rolled his eyes, knowing you would have chickened out again the moment you were within 10 feet of him.

"Yes, I was!"

"Well, you don't have to," Calum smiled, "He already said yes." You tilted your head in confusion.

"Right," Luke nodded, "See, Cal and I may have helped out a little bit." Calum pulled a folded up piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to you. You quickly opened it up and read Calum's messy handwriting.

_Michael_

_I've been trying to ask you to the homecoming dance for a while, but always got nervous, so I thought this would be the easiest way. Leave your answer at the bottom of this paper and drop it in the flower pot in the courtyard at lunch. I'm really sorry I'm not doing this in person, but I really hope you'll say yes._

_Signed, your secret admirer._

Underneath Calum's note was a single word in Michael's handwriting:  _Yes._

Your eyes scanned over the word for a few more seconds before you looked up at Calum and Luke again.

"How?" you wondered.

"You know how my locker is two down from his?" Calum asked. You obviously nodded. "Well, I wrote the note during first period yesterday and slipped it in beside his math book so it would fall out when he grabbed it. Then I just waited until everyone left the cafeteria to go outside and get the note back." He took the paper out of your hands. "I do need this back though," he said, "I have to write where to meet at the dance."

"And do you plan on giving  _me_  those details at some point?" you put your hand on your hip.

"When the first slow song starts playing, that's when you two will meet in the middle of the dance floor," he stated as the warning bell rang.

"Cal-" He cut you off.

"No, no," he sighed dramatically, "Don't worry, you can thank me later. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get to class. See you at lunch." He winked at you before he and Luke hurried away, leaving you in a state of confusion, but your heart was also fluttering, knowing that Michael had unknowingly agreed to be your date.

~

**Homecoming night**

"Y/N!" Calum beamed as you walked into the gym, "You look beautiful."

"Thanks," you smiled, looking at him and Luke, "You guys don't clean up so bad yourselves. It's a shame you don't put in this much effort every other day; Then you might actually have girlfriends."

"Ha, ha, ha," Luke rolled his eyes, "Very funny." You smiled sweetly, punching his arm.

"Is Michael here?"

"Haven't seen him yet," Calum shrugged.

"Great," you threw your arm up, "He's not coming. I knew this wasn't going to work. This is-"

"Y/N!" he laughed, grabbing your shoulders and making you look at him, "We only got here a couple minutes before you did. All I said was that we haven't seen him yet; That doesn't mean he's not here."

"What if he backs out anyway?" you mumbled, "What if he sees it's me and he just walks away?"

"He's not going to, okay?" Luke assured you, "He's into you just as much as you are into him and tonight is going to be the start of a beautiful relationship." You let out a deep sigh and nodded. Calum let go of you and you hung around with them until the moment you'd been waiting for finally arrived.

When  _All of Me_  started playing through the speakers, your eyes widened. It couldn't have been a more clichéd song, but it was the first slow song nonetheless. Luke came up behind you, putting his hands on your shoulders, leaning down so he was talking in your ear.

"Look who's already out there," he whispered. Your gaze followed his to see a head of brown hair standing alone in the middle of all the dancing couples. "Go get him," he chuckled quietly, giving you a light push.

You mentally gave yourself a pep talk as you walked up behind Michael. Your fingers locked behind your back and you were surprised when the words just came right out of your mouth.

"Kinda strange how you're standing right in the middle of the dance floor and have no one to dance with, don't you think?"

"Y/N?" his eyes widened.

"Hi, Michael," you smiled shyly.

" _You_  left that note in my locker?" You looked around to see all eyes on you and Michael, so you grabbed his hand and pulled him over toward the refreshment table as it was clear you wouldn't be dancing just yet.

"Yeah..." you answered him quietly with a small nod, "Well, one of my friends did it because I was too nervous..."

"I can't believe this," he mumbled.

"You're not mad, are you?"

You started chewing on your bottom lip when you noticed the look on his face. He seemed more hurt than anything – which truthfully confused you – and he seemed confused, but he also looked a bit upset as well. You weren't sure why though – Luke and Calum told you he had a crush on you – and you were really nervous for his response, but you definitely weren't expecting the one you got.

"Did your friends put you up to it or something?" he asked. Your furrowed your eyebrows.

"What are you-"

"Did you lose a bet so they dared you to go to the dance with the loser no one likes?"

"Michael-"

"No, I get it, Y/N," he shook his head, "It's totally cool. I'm stupid for thinking someone would want me to be their date in the first place. If you could tell your friends I look forward to the humiliation, I'd really appreciate it."

Before you could say anything, Michael rushed away, leaving you standing there with your jaw dropped slightly. You swallowed the lump in your throat, not really sure what to do. You looked around and noticed everyone who within hearing range of what happened was staring at you, but quickly looked away when your eyes met theirs.

Your mood only worsened when Luke and Calum came trotting over.

"So how'd it go?!" Luke chirped with a wide grin that matched Calum's.

You simply stared at them before letting your expression fall, slyly wiping the tear rolling down your cheek. You let out a breath, turning around and running out of the gym, leaving Luke and Calum to look at each other in a state of confusion.

~

**Two weeks later**

Despite the fact that they bugged you constantly, you still hadn't told Luke or Calum what happened between you and Michael. You were slowly becoming more distant though and they could tell that whatever you weren't telling them was the reason for it. You would do everything you could to avoid eye contact with anyone –  _especially_  Michael. He would still stare at you in the halls, but these days, it was more of a glare than anything.

And your two friends didn't understand it at all; They were  _100%_ certain that Michael had a thing for you. They just didn't see why he would have rejected you.

However, they finally got you to talk when they cornered you after school as you closed your locker. You turned around and ran into Luke's chest, immediately jumping back.

"Jesus Christ, Luke," you mumbled, holding your hand over your heart, "Warn me next time."

"What happened with you and Michael?" Calum asked, jumping straight into why he and Luke were standing in front of you.

You tried to just avoid the question the way you have been for the past two weeks, but they clearly weren't going to let you. You went to leave, but both boys stood side-by-side, putting their arms on either side of you. You were quick to duck under Luke's arm, but he was quicker to wrap them around your waist and pull you back.

" _Luke_!" you shouted, " _Let go_!" A few of the remaining students scattered throughout the hallway turned to see what was going on as you struggled to free yourself.

"Not until you tell us what happened," he said lowly in your ear.

"Nothing happened," you mumbled, letting yourself relax in his arms.

"We know you were crying, Y/N," Calum stated, "So whatever it was definitely wasn't nothing."

"I just-" You let out a shaky breath, "He didn't think I was serious."

"What do you mean?"

"He thought I was joking..." you swallowed the lump in your throat, making sure you weren't facing anyone else as you wiped away your tears, "He thought someone dared me to ask him to the dance..."

"But we thought-" You cut Luke off, ripping yourself out of his arms.

"Well, you thought  _wrong_ , Luke!" you exclaimed, an accidental sob escaping along with your words as your voice broke, "You were  _wrong_ , okay?! Michael  _doesn't_  like me, so can we  _please_  just drop it?!" You grabbed your backpack and ran down the hallway to go home before you started crying in front of everyone.

But you missed the way your friends crossed their arms and leaned against the wall of lockers. You missed the looks of pain on their faces, knowing you were hurting as bad as you were. You missed the way Luke and Calum looked down the opposite hallway and shook their heads slowly. And you missed the way Michael looked back at them in shock, feeling worse than he'd ever felt before.

~

That Sunday night, you were getting ready to go bed when your phone lit up on your nightstand. You picked it up and saw you had a new text from Luke. You unlocked your phone and read the message.

_Meet Cal and I in the choir room when you get to school in the morning_

You sent a response asking him why, but he never texted back. You sighed lightly after about 5 minutes of waiting, reaching over to turn off your lamp so you could go to sleep.

~

The next morning, you drove to school as normal. You put all your stuff in your locker and began making your way to the choir room just as Luke had requested. You opened the door and your eyebrows immediately furrowed in confusion.

"Hey, guys..." you trailed off, seeing the two boys sitting in front of the piano with their guitars, "What's going on..?"

"Hi, Y/N," you heard someone behind you say. You turned your head to see Michael smiling sheepishly.

Your heart skipped a beat as you backed away from him and into the room, stopping behind Luke and Calum. You swallowed another lump before attempting to speak.

"What am I doing here?" you whispered.

"I would have asked you to come myself," Michael said, "But I didn't think you'd agree."

"Did one of your  _friends_  put you up to it?" you asked harshly. He gave you a sad smile.

"I deserve that," he nodded lightly, "But that's not why I wanted you here, Y/N – I wanted you here so I could say I'm sorry."

"There's nothing to be sorry for," you murmured, looking down as your fingers played with the collar of Calum's shirt, "You don't have to apologize for not liking me." He let out a sigh so quiet that you almost didn't hear it.

"What happened at the dance..." Michael started, "I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions like that. I was so used to the people you hang around with picking on me that I thought you were just doing the same thing. And that was wrong of me – especially since I  _know_  you're not that kind of person. I just never thought a girl like you could feel the same about some loser like me."

Calum could feel your fingers begin to move around less and he gave Michael a smile, letting him know you were seriously thinking about what he said. The brown-haired boy looked at you with a hopeful glimmer in his eyes, praying you wouldn't reject his confession. You opened and closed your mouth a couple times trying to search for the words you wanted to say before you finally just decided on the only ones that made sense.

"You still like me?" you mumbled.

Michael smiled slightly, cautiously walking over to you – just in case. He held his hand out for you to take. You looked up at him and after a moment, slowly gave him your own hand. He gently pulled you out from behind Calum and Luke and brought you to him. He led your hand up to neck-level and put your palms together, both of you watching as he slipped his fingers through yours.

"I've never stopped liking you," he told you.

As you looked into his eyes, you searched for any sign that he was lying. But you couldn't find a single one; He was being completely serious and it made your heart skip a beat again. You breathed out, letting your forehead fall onto his shoulder and causing him to let out a sigh of relief.

"If you only needed them to convince me to come, why are they here with their guitars?" you mumbled into Michael's shirt. You felt him nod lightly and then Calum and Luke started playing. You lifted your head up and looked over at them as you recognized the tune as  _All of Me_.

"Good question," Michael grinned, letting go of your hand only hold it out to you again and bow, "They are here because we never got our dance." You blushed lightly, taking his hand again.

He pulled you into him, wrapping his other arm your waist as yours went to his shoulder. He held you even closer, bringing your bodies together. Michael pressed a soft kiss on your forehead, making you smile lightly. You laid your head back on his shoulder as Luke started singing the song you were supposed to dance with Michael to at homecoming.

You felt yourself blushing again as you and Michael swayed to the music, finding this way more enjoyable than being in the gym with a bunch of other people. But right now, it was just you and him – and Calum and Luke, of course – and you couldn't be happier.

"I really am sorry," Michael whispered so only you could hear him. You tilted your head so you could kiss his jaw.

"You're forgiven," you mumbled against his skin.

 


	192. Everybody Talks (Michael Clifford)

You kept your eyes glued to #95 as he glided across the ice, hockey puck sliding side to side in front of him between the stick as he blocked everyone else from getting it. You chewed on your bottom lip as everyone watched your boyfriend take the puck to the goal and shoot it into the net just before the buzzer went off. You cheered along with everyone else as Michael's team took the lead at the end of the second period of the game. He looked over to where you sat at every game and pointed at you with a wink, making you blush. He smirked at you before going to the players bench to prepare for the third period.

~

**Michael's POV**

15 minutes later, the players came back onto the ice for the final period. Michael was taking the puck to the net when a player from the other team came up alongside him by the wall. There was no way he was going to let him have the puck, but the player had other things in mind.

"It's a shame that pretty (hair color)-haired girl isn't single," the kid smirked lowly, "I bet she'd look even hotter underneath me."

"Shut up," Michael narrowed his eyes, keeping them on the goal.

"Bet she'd sound amazing screaming my name too."

Michael suddenly passed the puck to a teammate and shoved the kid against the glass as hard as he could, getting right in his face. He obviously wasn't looking at you, so he missed you gasp lightly.

"If you  _ever_  talk about my girl like that again," he growled dangerously low, "I swear to God, I'll beat the shit out of you." He pushed him one more time for good measure before skating back to the middle of the rink.

He noticed out of the corner of his eye that you were staring in a bit of shock. He elected not to acknowledge you, however, knowing that no gesture he could give you would be enough to save himself the lecture you were sure to give him after the game.

**Your POV**

You knew hockey could be a violent game, but you hated when Michael got angry. He never got as angry as he did inside the rink, outside though. He was always a gentleman – especially when it came to you. You knew Michael loved hockey, but you would never be the last to admit you were terrified every time he skated out onto the ice. He had a very short temper and sometimes, he just didn't know when enough was enough.

The game went on as normal – pushes and shoves here and there, but nothing too serious. Until there were only 10 minutes left, that is.

Michael was standing across the same kid he shoved earlier and gripping his hockey stick tightly and you knew he was starting to make him really mad. You stopped breathing when he suddenly threw the stick down and just started  _whaling_  on him.

You sprung up from your seat along with everyone else as Michael's teammates desperately tried to pry him away from the other kid. They were having way too much trouble for your liking, so you politely scooted down the row and ran down the steps. You went into the players box – the coach happily let you in as he did every time Michael got like this – and you leaned on the wall, trying to get his attention.

"Michael!" you called. He obviously hadn't heard you. " _Michael_!" you shouted again a little louder, your words coming out shakily as you choked back tears, " _Mikey, please stop_!"

That time, he heard you and his fists immediately relaxed as he let his teammates pull him to the players box where you were. They sat Michael down on the bench in front of you, but he wouldn't look up. He knew you were crying and he knew you were upset with him and he knew he wouldn't be able to keep it together in front of his teammates if he looked at you.

"Y/N," his coach sighed, "Go clean him up, please."

You nodded furiously, wiping your face before dropping down to untie his skates. You practically threw them off of his feet and pulled him up with you, dragging him to the locker room. You ordered him to sit on the bench in front of his locker as you got the first aid kit from the coach's office.

When you came back, he was still looking down, playing with the bloody fingers in his lap. You put the kit on the bench beside him and opened it, pulling out a small cloth and hurrying into the bathroom to get soap and water on it. You reentered the room, pushing his legs apart with your knee so you could stand in front of him.

"Hand," you said quietly, holding out your own.

Michael slowly put one of them in yours so you could wipe off all the blood. It was so silent in the room that you could hear the game continuing in the arena.

You moved on to his other hand and as you carefully wiped it clean, you sighed, "Michael..."

"I'm sorry," he mumbled, hanging his head even lower.

"Don't say you're sorry, Mikey," you whispered, "' _Sorry_ ' implies that it won't happen again, but you and I both know it will." You put his hand back down on his lap. Your fingers gently curled around his chin and you lifted his head up, but he avoided eye contact with you. "You never used to fight like this before, Mikey," you reminded him, wiping the small cut below his left eye from where the other player managed to get a hit in.

"I wasn't dating you before," he muttered so quietly that, despite the fact you were only four inches away from his face, you barely heard him.

"What does that have to do with anything?" you asked, beginning to bandage his cuts.

"Everyone knows how pissed off it makes me when they say shit about you," he looked down again as you weren't holding his head up anymore, watching you wrap up his hands, "They know saying things like ' _I'd show her what a real man is_ ' or ' _I bet I'd last longer with her_ ' or ' _She probably fakes pleasure when you fuck her, doesn't she_?' will get me put in the penalty box. I just don't like when they talk about you like that."

You smiled slightly, securing the last bandage on his left hand. You went to put the first aid kit away, coming back to Michael still looking at his hands. You wrapped your fingers around his wrists, pulling his arms apart so you could straddle his lap. Your left hand went to his cheek while your right rested on the back of his neck as you lifted his head back up, immediately capturing his lips in a deep kiss.

Michael was a bit surprised at first, but quickly got into it, letting his hands slip under the jersey of his you were wearing and rest at the waistline of your jeans, his fingers skimming along the fabric so slowly that it sent chills throughout your entire body. You pulled away, but he wasn't done with you. Your fingers just barely combed through his hair as his lips made their way down your jaw, stopping on your neck.

He kept nibbling at your skin, sure to leave bruises, but you didn't care. That was one of the things Michael loved most about you; You weren't afraid to show off the hickeys he gave you – and he wasn't afraid to show off his own either.

"I'll make you a deal, Mikey," you said, whimpering slightly and pulling on his hair when he bit your weak spot.

"And what might that be?" he asked, his lips never leaving your neck.

"If you can make it through Friday's game without hitting anybody-" You took in a sharp breath as he nipped you again. "-I'll show you why all those pricks are  _wrong_." You felt him smirk before he picked his head back up, only to reconnect your lips.

" _Done_ ," he mumbled against your lips, kissing you harder.

 


	193. Fireworks (Marshall Traver)

"Hey, Y/N," you heard someone say as they walked up behind you. You  turned your head to see a friend of your best friend smiling at you.

You and Marshall first met three years ago after being dragged to a Fourth of July party that a mutual friend's parents were throwing. He was virtually the only person there who wasn't drunk – neither of you were of legal age yet but, to be honest, you didn't really care for alcohol that much – so you two immediately hit it off.

Throughout the last three years, you would see each other at every party Cody begged you to come to despite the fact that you never really saw him around once you were there due to being so wrapped up in conversation with Marshall. You weren't sure why you two never talked outside of ridiculous block parties and family get-togethers, but you were happy with time spent together nonetheless.

"Hey, Marshall," you grinned, "Cody force you into coming?"

"Of course," he laughed, "You?"

"He wouldn't shut up until I agreed," you giggled, making him smile. Marshall turned around and leaned against the edge of the deck in Cody's backyard with you. You lifted your elbow to nudge him slightly. "You seem a lot less drunk than I thought you'd be considering you're finally 21," you teased.

"I can't drink tonight," he pouted, "I was unwillingly named Cody's designated driver." You couldn't help but laugh.

"I'd be happy to drive you guys home," you offered.

"Oh, now if I start drinking, who will keep you company?" he scrunched his nose at you, making you push his arm.

"Well, if I'm not drinking," you sighed dramatically, "And you're not drinking-" Marshall cut you off with a mischievous grin.

"Someone's got a plan," he sang, leaning on your arm.

"How about we go fuck with some drunk people?" you suggested, a sly smile on your face. He stuck out his bottom lip again.

"Damn it," he said, "I thought you wanted to make out with me."

"I'll take a rain check," you rolled your eyes, laughing lightly, "So what do you say?"

"I say let's do it," he replied, grabbing your hand and pulling you away from the deck.

~

"Did you  _see_  the look on that guy's face before he ran inside?" you squeaked quietly as you and Marshall sat down. You had rushed away from the large group of party-goers and found yourselves at the front of the house, sitting on the porch swing. He let out a heavy sigh, catching his breath, and absentmindedly rested his arm behind you.

"I can't believe you  _actually_  convinced him that someone drew all over his face!" he laughed, "He clearly looked like he hadn't even had that much to drink!"

"What can I say?" you shrugged, "I have a gift." His chuckles trailed off,  making you look at him. "What's up?" you asked, knowing something was off.

"Why don't we ever hang out outside of these stupid parties?" he asked.

"I don't know," you answered honestly, "Maybe they're the only times we have open."

"I'd open up more time," he said quietly, removing his arm from behind you and looking down at the hands in his lap, "I really would like to see you more often." You couldn't help but smile.

"I'd like to see you more too, Marshall," you admitted. His head snapped up and he had a hopeful look in his eyes.

"Really?" You simply nodded in response, watching him let out a barely visible sigh of relief.

The two of you talked for a little bit longer before you heard a loud whistle followed by crackling noises. You gasped in excitement.

"Fireworks!" you squealed happily, grabbing Marshall's hand as you got up, pulling him off of the porch and into the yard.

You sensed Marshall watching you instead of the fireworks for a couple  minutes before he turned his attention to the sky. You decided to take that opportunity to look at him, admiring the way the fireworks reflected in his eyes and desperately trying to act like you didn't notice that you were still holding his hand.

However, you weren't very good at hiding your gaping at him because you saw a smile pull at the corners of his mouth. He looked back over at you as you tilted your head, gazing intently for a moment.

"Are you-"

You cut him off by putting your hand on the back of his neck and bringing his face to yours. You felt him smile against your lips while he let go of your hand and wrapped his arms around your waist. Your other hand rested on his upper arm and neither of you pulled away until you absolutely needed air. Marshall let out a nervous chuckle, still holding you tightly.

"What was that about?" he asked.

"I told I'd take a rain check," you breathed, blushing slightly as you were a bit embarrassed that you had kissed him.

"I didn't think you were actually serious," he replied, resting his forehead on yours.

"I take my rain checks very seriously," you smirked lightly, snaking your arm all the way around his neck, "And I don't hear you complaining about it."

"Never said I was," he grinned, capturing your lips in another kiss as even more fireworks lit up the sky above you.

 


	194. Invincible (Calum Hood)

You were browsing the baby section of the supermarket, looking for something for your niece's birthday. You made your way to where the cups were at – your sister told you that her daughter needed a new cup as well after losing her favorite one at the fair last weekend, so you decided to pick one up while you were there – when you jumped as you felt tiny arms wrap around your leg. You looked down and saw a little boy with dark, messy hair and big brown eyes who couldn't have been older than three smiling up at you.

"You are the cutest little thing I've ever seen," you gushed with a small laugh.

He held his arms up to you and you looked around. You saw no trace of anyone running around or shouting for a lost child, so you shrugged to yourself, picking him up and holding him on your hip.

"So what's your name?" you asked him.

"Aiden Thomas Hood," he giggled, gripping your shirt tightly in both of his small hands.

"Well, that name is almost as cute as you are," you smiled, ticking his stomach and making him laugh again, "My name is Y/N Y/M/N Y/L/M. Who are you here with?"

"Daddy!"

"And where is Daddy?" He simply shrugged. You tilted your head; You figured his father had to have noticed his son was gone by now, but you still didn't hear anything. "Well, Aiden," you started, "Before we go find your daddy, do you think you could help me pick out a cup? I can't decide on one myself."

You missed the man approach the aisle with a terrified look on his face, but seeing you with his son made him stop and watch you in awe.

"Trucks!" he exclaimed, pointing to a cup on the third shelf.

"I would go with that one because I trust your judgement," you laughed lightly, "But my niece is a girl and I don't think she'd like it too much."

"Princess?" he suggested in a cute voice.

"Which princess do you think I should get her?"

"That one cause she's pretty like you!" he exclaimed again, pointing at Belle and making you smile shyly.

"Okay," you nodded, "Thank you very much for all your help." You grabbed the cup and stood back upright. "Alright, Aiden," you chirped, "Where was the last place you saw Daddy?" You turned to walk down the aisle and begin your search, but a voice stopped you.

"Aiden!" You spun around and saw a man with black hair and blonde highlights hurrying toward you.

" _Daddy_!" Aiden giggled, wiggling out of your arms. You quickly bent down and put him on the ground so he wasn't jumping from so high up.

As soon as his feet hit the ground, he waddled to his father, only to be scooped back up. You smiled at the two of them and once the man was done kissing his son's face, he walked the rest of the way over to you.

"Thank you," he let out an exasperated sigh and it was obvious that he had been running around despite the fact that you hadn't heard him, "I looked away for two seconds and he was just gone."

"Sorry," you said shyly, noticing how handsome he was, "I would have started looking for you earlier, but I decided to ask him about cups." You couldn't help but giggle, making him smile as well. He paused for a moment before sticking his hand out to you.

"I'm Calum." You gladly took his hand.

"Y/N," you answered.

"Daddy, look!" Aiden squealed happily, "I helped her pick a princess cup!"

"You did, huh?" Calum smiled at the boy on his hip, "Good job!"

"See?" he pointed at the cup in your hand, "I picked it cause she's pretty like Y/N, Daddy!"

"Yeah, bud. I think you made a very good choice," he smiled at you, making you blush. He turned his head, calling over his shoulder, "Mali!" A girl that looked sort of like Calum came trotting into view. "Aiden, why don't you and Auntie Mali go look for something to get Grandma for her birthday and I'll be there in a minute, okay?"

The toddler eagerly nodded, leaning toward his aunt and letting her take him. Mali's eyes flicked between her brother and you, a small grin growing on her face as she walked away.

"Thank you again for not like, kidnapping him or anything," Calum said. You were both obviously more shy now that it was just the two of you.

"Well, I can barely handle my niece when I'm babysitting for a few hours," you giggled, "I don't think I could take on a kid full-time."

"Yeah," he let out a breathy laugh, "It's tough."

"So his mom..." you trailed off.

"She's not around," Calum told you, "It's just me and him."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"It's okay," he gave you a reassuring smile before clearing his throat, "So... Um... Are you seeing anyone?" You shook your head, already blushing, having a fairly good idea of where this was going. "Would you... Would you like to go out sometime? Or you don't have to. That's okay too. I know lots of girls don't want to date a guy with a kid." You laughed quietly.

"I would love to go out with you, Calum," you nodded, making his heart race at hearing you say his name.

"Cool!" he smiled widely, happy you didn't reject him, "Here, put in your number." He pulled out his phone and shakily handed it to you. "I'll let you know when I can get a sitter." You grinned, typing your number into his contacts and saving it before giving the phone back to him. He cleared his throat. "Thanks again," he said over his shoulder as he walked down the aisle, "I'll see you soon."

"See you, Calum," you responded.

"Oh," he chirped, turning around, now walking backwards, "And no offense to my son, but I think you're way prettier than any princess I've ever seen." You bit your lip, your face heating up as you smiled. He smirked lightly, turning back around and heading off to find Aiden and Mali.

~

On Saturday, Calum called you and asked if you were free that night. You were so he asked you out and, of course, you agreed. He told you he would be taking you to dinner at 7, but he didn't tell you where, so you decided to get a little dressed up – but still keeping it casual – with a skater dress and a denim jacket, finishing the outfit off with your favorite pieces of jewelry and sandals. You looked at the clock and saw it was only noon, so you opted to take a shower. You blow dried your hair – because, let's face it, it would have taken forever to air dry – and then styled it the way you wanted.

By the time 7 was rolling around, you had been sitting on your couch in silence for about an hour and a half. You didn't know why you were so nervous – you'd been on plenty of dates before – but there was something about Calum that made the butterflies in your stomach go absolutely crazy. He was obviously handsome and incredibly caring – as was evident by the way he was with his son – and you honestly didn't understand why he was still single despite having a kid.

A knock on your door made you jump, startling you out of your daydream. You looked at the clock and realized it was 7, so you rushed to the door. You straightened yourself out – you didn't want to look  _too_  eager since it was only the first date – and calmly turned the knob, pulling it open.

Calum instantly smiled at you, "You look beautiful." You blushed lightly, telling him a quiet thank you. "You ready?" he asked.

You nodded, patting your jacket pockets simply to make certain you had your phone and keys before locking the door and letting Calum lead you to his car. He opened the door for you like a gentleman and you rode in a surprisingly comfortable silence all the way to the restaurant.

~

"I know you want to know about what happened with Aiden's mum," Calum said randomly as you two were finishing your desserts. You were caught off guard a bit, not expecting that to come out of his mouth.

"I wasn't gonna ask," you replied.

"But you don't deny that you're curious," he wiggled his eyebrows, making you giggle lightly.

"I mean,  _yeah_ , I guess I'm  _curious_ , but I don't really think that's a  _first date_  kind of topic," you said lightheartedly, but Calum insisted on telling you the story anyway. You shrugged, pushing your now empty plate off to the side, giving him your full attention.

"About three years ago, Aiden's mum and I had a bit of a falling out, I guess you could say," Calum told you, "We were 19 and pretty much thought we were invincible, you know? When we found out she was pregnant, we both agreed she would carry the baby, but we would put it up for adoption so we could keep things going the way they were."

He let out a small sigh and there was a part of you that told you that whatever happened still hurt him. You reached over and let your fingers brush over his. He looked up at you and smiled slightly, turning his hand on its back and holding your own, rubbing your knuckles with his thumb.

"You don't have to tell me all this, Calum," you said quietly. He looked around the restaurant for a moment before turning back to you.

"I just don't want to do it  _here_ ," he admitted. You nodded and he grabbed the waiter's attention before he walked past. "May we have the check now?" he asked softly.

"Of course, sir," the waiter nodded, "I'll be back with it in a moment." Calum played with your fingers for a few seconds before you started pushing his around with your thumb. He looked at you with a small smirk, taking that as a challenge.

"You wanna play? I'll play," he said quietly, putting his fist in the middle of the table, "You and me; Thumb war."

"Right now?" you giggled under your breath.

"Right now," he confirmed.

You bit your lip, putting your hand in his. You stared intensely at each other as he counted it down. You were putting up an impressive fight, but ultimately, he won.

"No fair," you pouted jokingly, "Your hands are way bigger than mine."

"Well, you know what they say," he winked.

"That's about  _feet_ ," you stuck your tongue out at him, reaching over the table and pushing his shoulder lightly. You both smiled at each other as the waiter returned with your check. Calum retrieved the money from his wallet along with a tip and you were out the door.

Calum drove you to his favorite spot overlooking the city. He parked his car and quickly got out to open your door for you. You both hopped up to lay on the hood, your backs on the windshield and your arms against each others.

After laying in silence for a moment as you looked at the city lights, he finally spoke again.

"So where was I?" Calum said, making you turn your head to look at him.

"Calum-" The sound of you saying his name made his head spin. "-you really don't have to tell me."

"I  _want_  to," he assured you, "I trust you."

"You don't even know me," you told him.

"True," he nodded, "But you haven't tried getting out of the date yet-" He smiled at you. "-and you haven't said anything about me holding your hand which sort of tells me that you  _might_  say yes to a second date." You looked down and saw he had your hand, your fingers tangled together, resting on his hip. You tilted your head back up and smiled as well.

"Maybe you  _do_  know me," you grinned mischievously. It was silent for a moment as you both stared into each others eyes until you spoke again. "Something about deciding to put the baby up for adoption," you reminded him quietly.

"Right," he nodded again, "Well, my ex went on with the pregnancy as normal – like I said – and one night, she texted me telling me she was going into the hospital the next morning so they could break her water since she was a few days past the due date. I almost threw up when I read the message, honestly. Obviously, I knew she would have the baby  _eventually_ , but I don't think I would have been ready at any point. When I woke up that morning, I kind of had this weird feeling because I was going over the plan in my head as I was getting ready to take her in, but I still felt really nervous and I didn't know why. It was like, why should I be nervous if we're not even going to keep the baby, you know? After a couple hours, they finally induced labor and she had Aiden. We knew we wanted to at least give him a name and we'd had Aiden in mind for months, so that's what we decided. We hadn't picked out a middle name, but the nurse asked and it was kind of impulse that I gave him mine. Anyway, the nurse cleaned him off and weighed him and everything before asking if we wanted to hold him. His mother obviously said no – she wanted nothing to do with him, unfortunately – but something inside me was telling me to, so I did. And I fell in love with him."

Calum had a look of adoration as he recalled the memory of holding his son for the first time. You found yourself smiling at him as you listened to his story. You remembered holding your niece in the hospital when she was born and feeling nothing but absolute joy; You couldn't imagine what it must feel like to hold someone you brought into the world  _yourself_.

"A few days later," Calum continued, "She was being prepared to be discharged from the hospital. I was holding Aiden in her room – I basically refused to put him down the entire time I was in the room with him – when the nurse came in and said everything was ready. We had to sign a few papers and then we could hand him off to whoever was there from the adoption agency or foster home or wherever they were planning on taking him. She signed right away, but I-" He cleared his throat, obviously trying not to get emotional. "-I couldn't make myself do it. I couldn't force myself to sign away a child I no longer wanted to give up. My ex was obviously mad – I mean, we'd had this decided for  _nine months_  – but I refused to do it. She ended up making me choose between her and Aiden and I'm sure you can guess which one I picked," he chuckled, making you smile, "She left the hospital after throwing a bit of a fit and I haven't seen her since. I called my mum in somewhat of a panic – I was still only 19 and I had absolutely no idea how to raise a child – but my family has been really supportive. They love Aiden almost as much as I do and I couldn't have gotten any luckier. I'm still living with my parents, but I found a good-paying job and a daycare I really like so my mum doesn't have to watch him every day. I've almost got enough money saved up to buy Aiden and I our own place and I'm really excited to be able to provide for him like a father is supposed to." He took a deep breath, chuckling again. "I didn't mean for that to turn into a short story, I apologize," he told you.

"It's okay," you whispered with a smile, leaning your head on his shoulder, "If it means anything at all, I already think you're an amazing father. The way Aiden looked at you in the store was in a way I can only hope my kids will look at me someday."

"I think they will," he nodded, "Aiden already does."

"What do you mean?" you picked your head back up, tilting it as you looked at him.

"He hasn't stopped talking about you," Calum said, "You should have seen the look on his face when I told him  _you_  were the one I was going out with tonight."

"Well," you sighed dramatically, laying back on the windshield, "I think this means I kind of  _have to_  say yes to a second date now."

"Who said I was going to ask you out on a second date?" he smirked. You raised your eyebrows with a sly smile, making him laugh. He started rubbing the back of your hand with his thumb. "Will you go on a second date with me?" he asked quietly. You didn't say anything, you simply nodded.

Calum's eyes flicked between yours and your lips. He leaned in slowly, looking for any sign that you were going to pull away. Instead, you surprised him by quickly closing the gap, letting your lips crash into his. He brought the hand that wasn't holding yours up to your cheek, letting it sit on your skin.

Calum pulled away a few seconds later, not wanting the kiss to last for too long this  _was_  only your first date, but he couldn't help but miss the feeling of your lips on his.

"Is it too soon to ask you to come back to my place?" he mumbled after a moment.

"Already meeting the family, are we?" you teased.

"Only if you want to," he rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

"I think I can make time," you giggled, squeezing his hand. He smiled and you both slid off of the car. He opened your door for you again, trotting around to the other side and beginning the drive back into the city.

Once you made it back to his parent's house, Calum led you inside. The house was pretty quiet, so you figured Aiden must be asleep. You walked quietly into the kitchen where you found his sister yawning as she leaned against the counter.

"Hey, Mali," Calum said.

"Oh, thank  _God_  you're home," she groaned, pushing herself up.

"What's wrong?" his voice instantly became panicked, thinking something had happened to Aiden.

"We've been trying to get Aiden to go to sleep since 8:30," she sighed. You looked at the clock on the microwave and noticed it was almost 11. Mali went on, "Mum  _just_  got him to stop crying about 10 minutes ago."

"Sorry," Calum looked at you shyly, "I didn't think they'd have too much trouble getting him to bed."

"It's okay," you smiled reassuringly. He left you in the kitchen with Mali while he went upstairs to put his son to bed.

You and Mali talked for about 10 minutes until you started hearing small cries from upstairs. You both looked at each other, curiosity getting the better of you, and you followed her to Aiden's bedroom. You peeked in and found Calum, his mother, and his father desperately trying to calm the 2-year-old down to no avail.

Calum was chewing on his lip, a somewhat frustrated expression on his face; He'd never had this much trouble getting Aiden to go to sleep before and he just couldn't figure out what was wrong. 

When the three adults noticed a new presence, they looked at where you were standing with Mali in the doorway.

"You must be Y/N?" Calum's mom asked.

You nodded with a bashful smile, "It's nice to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Hood." The toddler lying on the bed rubbed the tears from his eyes.

"Y/N!" he chirped, saying your name as well as a 2-year-old can. Before anyone could blink, he was off of the bed and waddling to you.

You couldn't help but smile as he raised his arms just before he got to you. You effortlessly picked him up, holding him on your hip.

"Hey, cutie," you grinned, poking his stomach through his striped onesie. He was still crying a little, but he giggled anyway before laying his head on your shoulder.

"See, Gramma," Aiden sniffled into your neck, "I  _told you_  she looks like a princess." You smiled lightly, patting his back as you looked at everyone.

"I'd be happy to try to get him to go to sleep," you offered, "My niece has trouble winding down sometimes too and my sister always calls me when she needs help."

Calum and his parents looked at each other before shrugging and getting up. They walked past you as you came into the room. His mother and father hugged you, telling you they were pleased to finally meet you after their son had been talking about you non-stop for the past week. Calum groaned, quickly ushering his family to go to bed before they embarrassed him further.

While he was gone, you seized the opportunity to take a seat in the rocking chair beside Aiden's bed. You let him nuzzle up against you, his head now resting on your chest, just under your chin.

"What did you do while Daddy was gone, Aiden?" you asked, speaking softly as you rocked back and forth.

"Me and Gramma played cars and she let me help her make pizza," you felt him smile against your skin.

"Did you do anything with Auntie Mali?"

"We watched Spongebob with Grampa," he mumbled, "What did you and Daddy do?"

"We went out to eat," you answered, "We didn't have pizza, but it was still pretty good."

"You should have pizza next time," he told you, making you let out a quiet chuckle.

"We will for you," you promised him.

"Do you like Daddy?" he asked, "Daddy really likes you. He always talks about how pretty you are."

You heard a barely audible groan from the hallway and knew Calum was listening, obviously embarrassed that his son just told you that. You smiled, rubbing the toddler's back.

"I like your daddy very much, Aiden," you nodded, "And don't tell him, but I think he's very pretty too." Your voice was still soft, but you made sure it was loud enough for Calum to hear clearly.

"Are you guys gonna get married so you can be my mummy?" he asked, taking you by surprise, "All the kids at daycare have mummies and I want one too."

"I can't say anything for sure, buddy," you replied before Calum could come into the room, "But I can be  _like_  a mommy if you want."

"What's that mean?" He was barely able to finish his sentences at this point and you knew he was about to fall asleep, but you answered him anyway.

"Mommies do all the things your daddy and auntie and grandma and grandpa do, we all just have different names," you explained, "So I can play cars and watch _Spongebob_ and let you help make dinner and I can  _even_  let you sneak cookies out of the cookie jar as long as you don't tell Daddy-" You heard Calum chuckle. "-but you don't have to call me Mommy. You can just call me Y/N."

"Okay," he whispered, "I think Y/N sounds prettier than Mummy anyway."

You let out a small laugh again, but didn't respond; You just continued to rub Aiden's back for a couple more minutes until you began hearing quiet snores coming from his mouth.

When you were sure he wouldn't wake up, you carefully lifted him up and stood from the rocking chair. You laid the little boy on his bed and pulled the blanket over his body.

"Goodnight, Aiden," you said under your breath, kissing his forehead. You turned off the lamp beside his bed and stealthily maneuvered your way back to the door.

You found Calum leaning against the wall waiting for you, smiling at him as you quietly closed the door. He led you back downstairs, sitting with you on the couch in the quiet living room. He turned the lamp on the end table on before turning back and capturing your lips in a kiss.

" _God_ , you're perfect," Calum muttered against your lips before pulling away.

"Well, I didn't want to say anything earlier and sound cocky, but yeah, I kind of am," you smirked, pecking his lips again.

"I really,  _really_  like you," he admitted.

"So I've heard," you winked, making him smile.

~

_inspiration: http://assholelukey.tumblr.com/post/120890814086/could-you-do-a-blurb-of-single-dad-calum-meeting_


	195. First Impressions (Ryan Follese)

You were currently curled up on your living room couch, desperately clinging to any trace of happiness you had left in you. You had just caught your on-again, off-again boyfriend cheating on you yet again not even two hours ago. Your older brother did everything he could to convince you to come to his band's practice so he could keep an eye on you, but honestly, all you wanted to do was mope.

You heard the front door open, but you didn't think anything of it; You just thought your brother had come back already, figuring he must have felt sick. You continued sniffling quietly, maintaining your curled-up position on the couch, cuddling your blanket. There was a good 30 seconds of dead silence until your heard your name.

"Y/N?"

_Wait, a second... That voice didn't belong to your brother._

You shot up just as your brother's best friend came into the room.

"What are you doing here?" you asked, quickly wiping your face.

"Nash forgot his guitar, so he made me come get it," Ryan answered, setting the case on the ground as he took into account that you had been crying.

"He was going to  _band practice_ ," you gave him a dumbfounded expression, "How did he forget the  _one_  thing he needed?"

"He's  _your_  brother," he shrugged, "Are you really surprised?" You chuckled quietly, shaking your head and throwing yourself back down on the couch. "Hey," he said, coming over and sitting by your stomach, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," you whispered. He smiled softly at you.

"Your mouth is telling me you're fine, but you tears are telling me you're not," he stated, wiping them off of your cheek with his thumb.

"It's nothing," you muttered, "I'll get over it just like I always do."

"Don't tell me it was that asshole you've been dating again," he said, his jaw tightening as the words left his mouth. When you didn't say anything, he knew he was right. "Y/N," he sighed, "Even  _you_ know that prick is no good for you. Why do you keep running back to him?"

"Because I'm stupid," you accidentally let out a quiet sob.

Ryan gently nudged you to scoot over, which you gladly did. He laid down and wrapped his arms around you, pulling you into him. You nuzzled your face in his neck and he started rubbing your lower back right along your spine. You thought it was weird – you and Ryan were never that close and you truthfully thought he didn't really like you – but you certainly weren't going to complain.

Neither of you spoke a word until you had completely calmed down.

"What happened?" Ryan asked, squeezing you lightly.

"The usual," you mumbled against his skin.

You knew Nash constantly complained to his band mates about your  _ex_ -boyfriend and while you had told him to stop numerous times, he never did. He absolutely despised him and so did Ryan and Jamie.

"I mean it, Y/N. You need to stop going back to him."

"But he really is nice..."

"Making you feel like shit every single day does not make him nice. I understand that he has times where he treats you like a princess – like you  _deserve_ to be treated – but those one or two days a week aren't worth it and you know it. You're gonna find someone who treats you like a princess  _and_ makes you feel beautiful every moment of every day, but it's gonna take a lot longer if you keep crawling back to the guy that isn't worth everything you're giving him for nothing in return."

You sniffled quietly, tilting your head on his shoulder to look at him. He was giving you a very serious look, but also one that said he really did care about you.

"Thanks, Ry," you said, pressing a quick kiss to his cheek before returning your face to his neck.

You two laid like that until Ryan's phone went off a few minutes later. You groaned, the noise coming out muffled, making him laugh lightly. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and you glanced at the text on the screen.

_Quit making out with my sister and hurry up. We still have practice, you know._

Ryan rolled his eyes, but smiled at hearing you giggle at the message.

"Can't even make out with my best friend's sister without him suspecting that's what I'm doing," he sighed dramatically as he typed out his reply.

"You couldn't handle me," you teased.

"Is that a challenge?" he smirked, causing you to roll your own eyes and push him off of the couch. "If your brother's cuddles aren't good enough for you later, you have my number." You couldn't help but laugh. Ryan bent down to kiss your forehead. "You're beautiful in every way, Y/N," he told you, "And you're gonna meet someone someday who finally helps you realize it."


	196. Caught Up (Luke Hemmings)

"Nah," you shrugged, "I mean, I think he's cool and a great actor and everything, but I don't think I'd ever sleep with him."

You were currently lying on the couch with your head on your best friend's lap. You two and your other three friends were hanging around backstage in the venue their band was playing that night, trying to occupy your time until they went on in a few hours. You and Luke were alone upon his request, saying that you ' _never had enough Luke and Y/N time anymore'._

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Luke said as he twirled your hair around on his index finger, "So you're telling me that even if Ryan Gosling was totally up for it, you  _wouldn't_  get with him?"

"It certainly sounds like it, yes," you giggled up at him, "Are you saying you  _would_?"

"Absolutely!" he exclaimed, "That's like, a once in a lifetime opportunity, Y/N! I'm not gonna just pass it up!"

"You do you, Lucas," you snickered.

"Hey," he pouted, "That's not even my name."

" _Lucas_ ," you held out, scrunching your nose at him. You watched as a smirk grew on his face, making your eyes widen. "Luke, no!" you shouted as you shot up, but it was too late. His arms were already pulling you back and he began mercilessly tickling your sides. You were wiggling around, squealing and laughing loudly, trying to get away.

" _Y/N_!" Michael sang as he trotted into the room, "Why do you sound like you're being tortured in here?"

"Because I am!" you chirped, finally able to get out of Luke's arms. You jumped up as he came over to the couch and threw your arms around his waist. "Save me, Mikey?" you stuck out your bottom lip as your head rested on his shoulder, looking up at him.

"Always," he chuckled, kissing your forehead. He took you back to the couch and sat down with you. Your head was still on his shoulder and his arm was now around your waist, his hand sitting on your thigh.

" _Michael_ ," you heard Luke growl lowly, making you look at him. He seemed absolutely livid – giving his friend a look you'd never seen him give anyone before. "We were talking."

"Didn't look like it to me," Michael shrugged, his arm squeezing you lightly, "Looked more like you were tickling her."

"You wanna try  _not_  to be a dick for five minutes?"

"Luke," you finally intervened, "It's fine. It's not like we were talking about anything  _important_."

"Well, he needs to understand that when I ask to spend some time alone with you, I expect him to respect that," he stated, getting up.

"You've had your time alone with her," Michael said, getting up as well, "An hour, to be exact. It's my turn now."

You remained on the couch, not entirely sure what was going on. Luke and Michael argued for your attention all the time, but Luke never got  _this_  upset about it.

"Guys, seriously," you said, trying to calm them down, "We can all just-"

"Luke has a crush on you!" Michael shouted suddenly, making you freeze, "That's why he acts like such a jealous  _prick_  all the time!"

"You have a crush on her too!" Luke yelled back, shoving his shoulder, "That's why you always interrupt us!" Michael immediately narrowed his eyes at the blonde boy in front of him.

"Don't fucking push me," he growled, shoving him right back.

"Don't fucking push  _me_ ," he mocked, doing it again.

Everything happened so fast that you didn't have time to stop Michael from slamming his fist directly into Luke's jaw. Luke immediately retaliated by throwing a punch at Michael's cheekbone.

You let out a short scream, hiding your face in your hands; That was all you could do. You couldn't muster up the words to tell them to stop and you couldn't find the voice to yell for anyone else. You just sat there, helpless, until someone came into the room.

" _Guys_!" Ashton shouted, running over to pull the two boys off of each other, "What the  _hell_  is going on?!"

"I was talking to Y/N and Michael decided to start being an  _ass_  and interrupted!" Luke shouted.

"Well, maybe if  _you_  weren't so fucking annoying, I wouldn't have come in here in the first place!" Michael shot back.

Through the heavy breathing and intense stares, Michael and Luke immediately sobered up upon hearing your sobs. Ashton's eyes widened and he pushed past them to get to you.

"Y/N, what happened?" he asked frantically, grabbing your wrists and pulling your hands away from your face, "Did you get hurt?"

Your cries were louder now, no longer muffled by your palms. Ashton put his hand on the back of your head, leading it to his shoulder. Your tears instantly soaked the fabric of his shirt as he wrapped one arm around your back and snaked the other under your knees, standing up. He gave the two boys staring at you in shock a menacing glare.

"I hope you idiots are happy," he growled, walking out of the room with you in his arms.

Ashton took you to another dressing room down the hall, sitting down and holding you on his lap. Although you were no longer wailing, you were still shaking pretty violently and you kept choking on the excess air you were taking in.

"I-" You choked on another breath. "I- _I_  did that..."

"No," Ashton said softly, yet firmly at the same time, "What happened back there was  _not_  your fault."

"Ye-Yes, it w-was! Th-They were f-fighting o-o-over  _me_!"

Ashton rubbed your back, trying to calm you down. This usually worked, but today, it wasn't doing anything helpful. His eyebrows furrowed in desperation when he realized your tears weren't going to stop.

As he was trying to come up with a new plan, however, he saw Calum pass by.

"Calum!" Ashton called. The black-haired boy appeared back in the doorway two seconds later.

"What's up?" he asked, obviously not knowing you were crying yet.

"I need you to stay with Y/N for a little while." It wasn't until Ashton motioned to you that his eyes widened.

"What's going on?" he asked, running over to the couch. Despite the fact that the question was directed more to you than to him, Ashton answered.

"I have to go yell at the two assholes in our dressing room," he said dryly, picking you up and setting you back down so he could switch places with Calum. As soon as Ashton released you, Calum was right by your side, wrapping his arms around you tightly.

Although he didn't know exactly why you were in tears, he wanted it to stop as soon as possible. He hated seeing you like this – all the boys did – and watching Ashton walk out the door as angry as he was, he knew it was something  _serious_. You were like another sister to him and he would do anything to keep you happy.

Calum helped you lay down, climbing on top of you as he kept a secure hold on your waist. He wasn't completely on you – he had moved you against the back pillows and rested near the edge of the couch with his leg draping over yours. This was your favorite way to cuddle with him – you always told him it made you feel safe and warm – so he made sure to do it as often as he could. He leaned in, kissing your cheek before letting you bury your face in his neck. You brought your hand up, absentmindedly tracing the outline of his feather tattoo with your middle finger. He never once asked you what happened or who Ashton ran off to yell at, but you knew he was curious.

"M-M-Michael and Luke s-started fighting," you whispered through your sobs.

"They argue all the time though," he said lowly with a confused tone.

"But th-they don't-" You sniffled with a shaky breath. "-they don't h-h-hit each other."

"They  _hit_  each other?" You didn't need to look at him to know his eyes had widened in shock.

"L-Luke and I w-were talking a-a-and he s-started tickling me, s-so M-Michael came in and th-they started yelling and then M-Michael hit him and Luke h-hit back."

" _Shit_ ," he muttered under his breath. You let out a couple more broken sobs and Calum started rubbing your arm. "Y/N," he said softly, "You need to calm down; You're gonna make yourself sick."

"I c-can't," you choked with a small whine.

"How about I sing to you?" he suggested.

You nodded quickly; You always felt more at peace when one of the boys was singing to you. Calum started singing your favorite song and you took deep breaths, taking in his cologne and feeling your heartbeat gradually slow down as the song progressed.

~

**Ashton's POV**

"What the  _fuck_ is wrong with you two?!" Ashton shouted as soon as he walked back into the dressing room, making the boys jump.

Michael and Luke had calmed down by this time, sitting on opposite sides of the vanity in silence as they examined their bruises in the mirror. They glanced at each other – knowing the other regretted what happened but was too stubborn to be the first to say sorry. They then shyly looked up at Ashton, honestly  _terrified_  by the look on his face. He'd been angry at them for arguing over you before, but  _nothing_  like this.

" _Well_?!" he shouted again.

"We weren't thinking," Michael mumbled.

"It won't happen again," Luke whispered.

"You're damn right it won't happen again! Did you  _honestly_ think hitting each other was going to solve anything?! Do you have any idea how  _scared_  she is right now?! Nothing I did was calming her down! Your guys' fights over her have always annoyed the shit out of me, but this is seriously taking it too far! And to do it  _in front of her_  like that?! How fucking stupid can you  _be_?!"

"We're sorry, Ashton," Luke frowned, "We were just caught up in the moment."

"We don't want her to be scared of us," Michael looked down at his hands, playing with his fingers. He sighed quietly after a brief pause, getting up from his seat. "We should have just let her decide from the start."

"To be fair," Luke mumbled, "I don't think she's gonna choose  _either of us_  after what we did."

"Yeah," he let out a breathy chuckle, "You're probably right. But if she does, let's just say no hard feelings? And no more fighting over girls again?" Luke nodded and they shook on it before Ashton led them to where you and Calum were.

**Your POV**

"Y/N," you heard your name, causing Calum to stop singing. You didn't dare move your face from Calum's neck, feeling your heart start pounding again. "Y/N," Ashton repeated, "Mikey and Luke wanna talk to you." You whined quietly, feeling your eyes start to get watery again as you pushed yourself further against Calum, still a bit traumatized by what happened.

"Come on, Y/N," Calum said quietly, "Ash and I will be right outside. If you want us to come back in, just yell, okay?"

You slowly moved back and he helped you sit up. You felt Michael and Luke's eyes on you as Calum wiped your cheeks with his thumbs. He pressed a small kiss to your forehead before getting up and walking out of the room with Ashton, leaving you with the other two boys. They gave each other a look of nervousness before cautiously walking over to the couch.

You were sitting as close to the armrest as you could get yourself. You brought your legs up and curled up in your seat. Luke sat in the spot beside you – still leaving plenty of space between you – and Michael sat on the coffee table in front of him.

"Y/N..." Michael started softly. He trailed off, not knowing what to say. He looked at Luke for some sort of help.

"Y/N," Luke said, "We're really sorry. We never meant for it to go that far." When you didn't say anything, they sighed simultaneously.

"We really, really,  _really_ don't want you to be scared of us," Michael continued, a begging tone to his voice, "That's the last thing we ever wanted to happen."

"We were both being incredibly selfish," Luke took over, "And we honestly wouldn't blame you if you wanted nothing to do with us again. Nothing we can say or do will ever be enough to show you how sorry we are, but  _please_  forgive us."

You were chewing on the tip of your finger, avoiding any eye contact. They could see you looking at them out of the corner of your eye though, which made them a little hopeful that maybe you would simply look in their direction. You never did, but you did give them all they wanted to hear.

"I forgive you," you whispered, causing them to let out sighs of relief.

Luke tried to reach over and touch your knee to comfort you, but you unintentionally flinched. His face fell as he immediately retracted his arm, not wanting to scare you further. He watched you for a moment, seeing your eyes get watery again. He glanced at Michael before getting up.

"Excuse me," he said so quietly you almost didn't hear him, running out of the room. You stared at the door even after he was out of sight, making Michael sigh through a small smile.

"You like  _him_ , don't you?" he asked. You finally tore your gaze away from the door to look at him, but remained silent. "It's okay if you do, Y/N," he said, "Just because I like you too doesn't mean I won't be happy for you guys."

"I'm sorry, Mikey," you whispered, your voice shaking.

Michael opened his arms slightly, giving you a questioning look. You nodded slowly and he moved from the table to the couch. You repositioned yourself to lean on him and he wrapped his arms around you, bringing you closer for a tight hug.

"Don't be sorry for your feelings, Y/N," he told you, "It's okay if you don't like me back. I'm not gonna hold it against you or stop being your friend or anything."

"But I can't be with Luke knowing you having feelings for me," you sighed.

"Sure, you can!" he chirped.

"But you guys-"

"Y/N, what happened today was a  _mistake_ , okay? Luke and I both regretted it the moment we hit each other and there is absolutely nothing we wouldn't do to take it back. We'll never forgive ourselves for letting it go that far and scaring you the way we did."

You stared at Michael for a moment, searching for any sign of hurt on his face. You couldn't find any – although you knew it was going to be hard on him at first.

"Go get him, loser," he smiled, giving you all you needed to get up.

"Guys!" you squeaked, causing Ashton and Calum to run into the room.

"What happened?" they asked frantically.

"Where did Luke go?"

"That way," they replied in unison again, pointing left – toward where the stage was.

As you ran out the door, you heard Ashton ask Michael what was going on to which Michael replied with a genuine smile, "She chose Luke."

~

You were running down the long hallway for what seemed like hours before you were finally nearing the end. However, you would never make it to the stage.

Luke opened the door to the hallway, his eyes on the floor. He didn't look up until he heard your shoes squeak against the concrete floor when you came to an abrupt stop about 10 feet away from him. He froze and you both stared at each other. He looked like he was trying to speak, but you didn't want to talk.

You simply rushed the last few steps to him, throwing your arms around his waist and hugging him tightly. He was understandably surprised at first – you had flinched because of him not even 5 minutes ago – but when you said the four words he'd only ever dreamed of hearing, he couldn't stop himself from hugging you back.

"I love you, Luke," you mumbled into his shirt. You felt the hair on top of your head move as he breathed shakily against it. He wrapped his arms around you, never wanting to let go.

"I'm not imagining this, right?" he whispered, obviously more to himself than to you, but it made you laugh anyway.

"No," you replied, lifting your head up.

A wave of confidence went through him and he leaned down without warning, pressing his lips to yours. Not realizing what you were doing, you brought your hands up to hold his face, but the second you grazed his jaw, he took in a sharp breath.

Just as quickly as the kiss started, it was over. You jerked your hands away from his face, breaking free from his arms.

"I'm sorry!" you squeaked, "I-I-I didn't mean to! I'm sorry!" You were starting to tear up again, thinking you'd hurt him. His expression fell as you backed away, shaking your head.

"No, no, no, babe," he cooed, taking your hand and pulling you back to him, "You didn't hurt me. If you think touching the  _bruise_  hurts, you should try getting punched by  _Michael_." Even though you didn't want to, the statement made you giggle quietly.

"Could you repeat that first part?" you whispered, laying your head on his chest.

"You didn't hurt me?" he asked in a confused tone.

"No, before that."

"No?" You shook your head, tilting it to look up at him. The corner of his mouth slowly curled up into a smirk as he finally got where you were going. "I love you, babe," he said, making your heart flutter.

"I love you too, Luke," you mumbled as he kissed your forehead. He wrapped his arm around your shoulders, beginning to lead you back toward the dressing rooms.

The other three boys were in the original room, lounging around. They perked up as you and Luke walked in.

"So are we all good?" Michael asked, a hopeful look on his face.

"Are we?" Luke returned softly.

Michael got up from the couch, walking toward the two of you. The blonde removed his arm from your shoulder, preparing himself to give Michael a hug.

"I'm really sorry, man," Michael muttered, squeezing his best friend slightly before letting go.

"I'm sorry too," Luke sighed, "And you're sure you're okay with-"

"Yes, Luke," he chuckled, glancing between the two of you, "I'm obviously bummed she didn't pick me, but I respect her choice. You know I would tell you if it bothered me. You guys are my best friends; I want you to be happy. And if you're happy together, then I'll totally support that. I know you'll treat her right; You always do."

You looked at him for a moment before rushed forward and bringing him into a bone-crushing hug. He let out a breathy laugh, hugging you back. He kissed the top of your head before you moved away.

You grabbed both his and Luke's hands, taking them over to the vanity and having them sit down so they were eye-level with you. You carefully held Michael's face in your hands for a moment, inspecting his bruise. You let out a quiet groan as you moved on to Luke's. There wasn't any serious damage to either boy's face, but you knew the dark blue and purple spots would be there for at least a couple weeks if not longer.

"You guys are such  _idiots_ ," you mumbled, holding Luke's face carefully in your hands.

"Battle wounds," Luke stated, turning his head slightly to kiss your palm.

"How are you going to explain this to everyone?" you sighed.

"Simple," Michael smiled, obviously already having come up with a story, "Luke and I had an ongoing rivalry for the prettiest princess in all the land. We finally decided to duel and he won and now, he gets to shower the princess with hugs and kisses until the day he dies. Or until you get sick of him." You couldn't help but snort quietly at the last part.

"You guys are dumb," you smiled, a light pink blush on your cheeks.

"But you do not deny that you are, in fact, a pretty princess?"

"Hey," Luke grinned, pulling you onto his lap, "Find your  _own_  pretty princess to flirt with; This one's mine." He kissed your cheek, making you blush.

"Calum!" Michael whined, making the bassist look over, "Will you be my pretty princess?" Calum got up and made his way to the vanity. He sat himself down on Michael's lap.

"I thought I already was," he pouted.

"What about  _me_?" Ashton frowned, coming over as well.

"You can get with us, Ash," you said, reaching over and wrapping your arm around his waist, pulling him to you and Luke, "I live in a polygamous kingdom; We're into that sort of thing."

~

_inspiration: http://vshtons.tumblr.com/post/117040832713/you-dont-want-to-do-that-blondie-muke-imagine_


	197. Something New (Calum Hood)

You were walking down the street, hoping to run into a member of your favorite band. 5 Seconds of Summer were in your city for a few weeks and you were determined to meet at least one of them before they left as you weren't able to get tickets for any of the shows since they sold out so fast.

You were looking at your phone, not paying attention to where you were going, when you ran into someone. You squeaked quietly, stumbling backwards. You looked up at the older gentleman and the look on his face just screamed that he was not having a good day.

"Sorry," you said, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"

"Just watch where you're going, okay?" he asked politely, looking behind him. You nodded quickly, following his gaze. He sighed at the boy staring into the window of a store, "Come on, Cal! We don't have time for this! We have to get to the studio!" Calum looked up and noticed you standing there first. You felt your heart skip a beat as he smile at you.

"Sorry, John," Calum said, hurrying over. He looked at you and chirped, "Hi!"

"Hi, Calum," you said shyly. The security guard suddenly put his hand on Calum's lower back and started leading him back down the sidewalk. "Bye, Calum," you said, sighing to yourself.

"John, come on! Give me two minutes!" you heard Calum say.

"We can't, Calum," John shook his head, "We're already late."

"They won't mind," he said, spinning around and coming back to you. "Hello again," he smiled, "Sorry about him. He's not having a very good day."

"Really?" you muttered, "I couldn't tell."

Calum chuckled, "So do you want me to sign something?"

"Nah," you joked, "I just wanted to get out of the house for some fresh air. Are you famous or something?"

He laughed loudly, "That would have been more believable if you hadn't said my name earlier."

You nodded, "Note to self: Don't say other three members' names if you run into them later." You glanced over at John and noticed he looked anything but pleased, so you quickly told Calum, "A picture would be nice if you don't mind."

"Of course!" he grinned. You opened your camera and Calum got closer to you. He moved away slowly after you took the photo.

"Thanks, Calum," you said.

"No problem," he replied, giving you a hug. You still had your arms around Calum's waist when you heard John sigh yet again.

"S-Sorry," you said, quickly releasing your grip on the bass player as he did the same with you.

"Sorry I didn't have more time," Calum told you, "I hope to see you around again later or something."

"Me too, Calum," you said quietly, watching him and John walk away. You squealed to yourself quietly, ignoring the random people passing by that gave you strange looks.

~

A couple hours later, you were sitting in your favorite café, scrolling through Twitter on your phone. You were sipping your hot chocolate, not really minding what was going on around you. You didn't even hear anyone come in and sit across from you until they poked your hand.

You looked up and saw Calum sitting in front of you with Luke and Ashton on either side of him and Michael was standing beside you. He smiled and pointed to the seat next to you.

"Right!" you exclaimed, scooting over so he could sit down, "Sorry." You looked at Calum, "We meet again. How did things at the studio go?"

"Really well, thank you," he smiled.

"Did you guys know he's famous?" you asked the other boys, making him laugh.

" _Is he_?" Ashton sighed with a smile, putting his elbow on the table and resting his chin in the palm of his hand, "Tell us  _more_."

You nodded, "He has his own security guard and everything! It was crazy! I decided to Google him earlier and  _apparently_ , he's in this  _ridiculously_  famous band. I can't remember their name, but it sounded really dumb. It was like, 2 Minutes of Autumn or something like that."

"I would have believed that," Michael said, making you crack a smile as you remembered what Calum told you nearly two hours ago, "But Cal already told us about you." You finally laughed, resting your head on the wall behind you.

" _Calum_!" you whined, "I didn't even say any names! I thought I  _had it_  this time!"

"Sorry," he smiled, "So you're probably wondering why we're here."

"Surprisingly enough, that thought  _has_  crossed my mind."

"Well, you look like you know this town pretty well and since we have a couple hours to kill before the show tonight, we were wondering if you would be up for showing us around seeing as we'll be here for a few weeks."

"Sure," you shrugged, "But don't expect me to help you out if you get mobbed. I mean, look at me." You nudged Michael so he would let you get up. "I'm gonna go to the bathroom and then we can go."

"Isn't ' _going to the bathroom_ ' usually girl code for like, fixing makeup or something?" Michael asked, "You look fine already."

"Usually it is," you nodded, "This time, however, I have to fix my full bladder." The boys chuckled.

"Shameless," Ashton nodded approvingly, "I like it." You smiled sweetly, quickly going into the bathroom.

When you returned to the table a few minutes later, they got up and followed you outside.

"I'm Y/N, by the way," you said, looking back at them, "I probably should have mentioned that earlier." You missed Calum smile at the sound of your name as you began to point around. "The park is over there. I don't recommend going though because there are only like, two swings and someone that isn't you  _always_  seems to be on them," you said, rolling your eyes. "There's a bookstore down that way that's pretty cool, but the books are unreasonably priced and you can never finish reading one by the time it closes." You looked around for a moment, chewing on your bottom lip. "I guess we'll go this way first," you said, leading them around the corner of the coffee shop.

"We're gonna get lost, aren't we?" Luke asked.

"Ye have little faith, Hemmings," you said, holding up your phone, "Plus, I have this; We'll be fine. Shall we?" They eagerly nodded and you gave them a tour of your town.

~

Although your town wasn't small, it wasn't very large either, so you were finished in less than two hours. Of course, you and the boys did stop at a local donut shop because, according to you, they had  _the_  best donuts they would ever eat. And it was obvious by the looks on their faces as they took their first bites that they unanimously agreed with that statement.

"Sorry there wasn't much to do," you said, walking out of the donut shop, "Most of the locally owned stores aren't really open on Sundays."

"It's fine," Calum smiled, "It was still fun." All thoughts were interrupted by Ashton's phone going off. He opened the text message and his eyes widened.

"It seems we're late for soundcheck, boys," he said.

"Sorry," you smiled sheepishly, "I didn't realize we'd been going for that long."

"Nothing to be sorry for," Michael assured you, "It's just soundcheck. One of us is always late anyway."

"Yeah, and it's usually  _you_ ," Luke chuckled, causing the guitar player to shove his shoulder.

"Will we see you at the show tonight?" Calum asked you shyly.

"No," you sighed, "My parents are visiting tomorrow, so I have to clean my place. Plus, the show sold out before I could get a ticket."

"What about next weekend?"

"Sold out," you shrugged, ushering them down the sidewalk, "But you guys have a venue to get to."

"Will you at least stay for soundcheck? Even if it's just for 10 minutes?"

"If it will help you sleep tonight, yes," you sighed, "I will stay."

Luke, Michael, and Ashton smiled at each other and you raised your eyebrows at them, but shook it off. They'd been acting weird all day – constantly whispering to each other and pushing Calum toward you. Essentially, they were acting like boys who were teasing a friend about a crush, but you convinced yourself that was absolutely  _not_  what was happening. There was no way someone like  _Calum Hood_  would have a crush on someone like you.

~

As you were listening to the band sound check, you were also watching everything that was happening around you backstage. You'd never been backstage before and you were always fascinated by the work crew members do. You were watching the guitar tech tune one of Luke's guitars and barely heard someone walk up to you.

"How are you liking soundcheck so far?" you heard next to you.

You turned your head to see Michael standing there with a silly grin on his face. The other three boys were still on stage, so you figured he just came back for a bottle of water or something.

"Oh, it's good," you nodded, "You guys sound amazing as always."

"Thanks," he smiled, "So I just wanted to say thank you for making Cal late to the studio earlier today. We really appreciate that." You noticed a smirk on his face and knew he was only joking.

"I wouldn't say  _I_  made him late, Michael," you smiled slightly, "He was the one that insisted it was fine if he was."

"He tends to do that with fans," Michael chuckled, shaking his head, "But he's never invited one to soundcheck before."

"Maybe he wanted to try something new," you shrugged.

"Well, something tells me this ' _something new_ ' was only a one-time thing," he snickered.

"What do you mean?" you furrowed your eyebrows in confusion. He gave you a surprised glance, figuring you already knew.

"Calum's not really one to be upfront about his feelings," Michael explained, "But it's so  _painfully_ obvious when he's into someone."

"Okay..." you trailed off, "I don't understand why you're telling  _me_  all of this though..." He raised his eyebrows at you, moving his head slightly, staring at you until you got the picture. "No," you shook your head slowly, your eyes widening, "You're kidding."

"I know I have a rep for being the prankster of the band, but I've never been more serious than I'm being right now." Something about his tone made you realize he wasn't joking, but you still refused to believe it.

"There's no way someone like  _Calum_  would be interested in  _me_ , Michael," you mumbled.

"Why not?" he asked, "You're really nice, very attractive, and he couldn't keep his eyes off of you during that tour you gave us today." You blushed at his compliments, but you still shook your head again. You quickly hit the home button on your phone, breathing a sigh of relief as you looked at the time.

"I'm sure he couldn't, Michael," you whispered, "But that doesn't change the fact that it could never work."

"Why no-" You cut him off.

"I'm really sorry, but I have to get going. Tell the boys I said sorry I couldn't say bye." You hurried away from the guitarist, hearing him sigh before he made his way back onstage.

You let out a sigh of your own, really not  _wanting_  to leave but knowing you couldn't stay. Although Calum had always been your favorite member of the band and you only even  _dreamed_  about this happening to you before, you felt as though you weren't – and never  _would be_  – good enough for him.

And you couldn't let yourself get your hopes up.

~

**One week later**

That next Saturday, you were sitting at a booth in the coffee shop again. You hadn't seen any member of the band for nearly a week and you were kind of disappointed, to be honest. You still did love that time you spent with them, but you felt like you couldn't be around them now knowing Calum was interested in you.

You were so immersed in the book in front of you that you didn't notice the brown-eyed bass player that had slid into the seat across from you.

Calum watched you curiously for a good 5 minutes before making his presence known. He cleared his throat lightly, causing you to jump and your head to snap up. Your eyes widened as you looked at him.

"Hey," he smiled shyly. You remained silent which only made him more nervous. "Um... I just wanted to say I was sad to hear you left before saying bye the other day and I hope you're feeling better." You tilted your head, not too sure what he was talking about. "Mikey told us you were feeling a little weird and that's why you left in such a hurry."

"Where are they?" you finally spoke, your voice barely above a whisper.

"At the hotel," he told you cheerfully, just happy you were talking to him, "They said they didn't really feel like doing anything before we have to go to the venue later, but I didn't want to be cooped up in my room all day, so I decided to go for a walk and explore the city some more. As I was passing by here, I looked in the window and saw you, so I figured I'd come say hi."

"Oh, hi," you gave him a small, genuine smile.

"Hi," he chuckled lightly, "Well, I guess since that's all I came for, I'll let you get back to your book now."

"It was nice seeing you again, Cal," you told him.

"You too, Y/N," he said quietly.

You noticed him blush and it made you blush a bit as well, knowing you caused it. He got up out of the booth, but stopped.

"Hey, Y/N," he said, turning back to face you. You looked up at him and he went on. "Would you mind showing me around some more?" he rocked back and forth on his feet, "I'd really like to see all the places that were closed the other day..."

You felt a smile pull at the corner of your mouth as you looked back down. You closed your book, put it in your bag, and slid out of the booth, standing up next to him. He looked down at you – he was almost a foot taller – and couldn't help but smile at the fact that you hadn't rejected him. You led him outside and began taking him to your favorite record shop.

You sneaked glances as you walked beside each other and your heart skipped a beat when you realized Michael wasn't lying. Every time you looked at Calum out of the corner of your eye, he was already looking at you. You tried not to show him that you knew he was staring and it was clear he didn't as he kept his gaze on you even after you looked away – either that or he just didn't care.

As you were nearing the record shop, you could feel Calum's hand brushing up against yours. You'd been in enough relationships to know that he was trying to work up the courage to hold your hand, but you elected to ignore it as best you could. When his index finger remained on the back of your hand for more than two seconds, you quickly lifted your arm up.

"Here it is," you cleared your throat, pointing to the store.

Calum started biting hit lip as he opened the door for you and followed you inside. It was quiet compared to the business of the streets, but that was just the way you liked it.

"Y/N!" the shop owner, Cameron, chirped happily.

"Hi, Cam," you smiled, "Got anything new?"

"Yup! They're all around the store though, so you'll have to do some searching," he said, "Who's your friend?"

"Oh, uh, this is Calum," you replied, "Calum, this is Cameron, the store owner."

"Hello," Calum nodded politely. He went over to talk to Cameron while you browsed for new music. "This place is really cool," you heard Calum tell him.

"Can't take all the credit," he shrugged, "My grandpa opened it."

"So it's a family business?"

"I don't know if I would really call it a ' _business_ '," Cameron laughed, "We have a few regulars like Y/N, but other than that, not many people stop by." You rolled your eyes lightly as you listened to their conversation, but didn't make any remarks.

They talked for a couple more minutes before you heard footsteps coming toward you.

You and Calum rifled through the records together for a while before finding one you both wanted to check out. You led him to the back room where you could listen to the records before you bought them. You sat side-by-side at the table, putting the record on the turntable and brought the arm over to it, gently setting it down on the record. Since you were the only ones in the store, you decided not to use headphones and just let the small building fill with music.

A couple songs in, you were now leaning on Calum's arm. He swallowed harshly, finally gaining the courage to speak.

"Y/N, can I ask you something?" he said, making you sit back up straight and look at him. You turned the volume down as you nodded. He took a breath and let it out quickly. "Well, the other day...when Mikey told us you felt sick and left... I could tell he was lying," he said, making your heart start racing, "I didn't say anything because I figured it wasn't that big a deal, but then I started thinking and I knew you wouldn't have left without saying goodbye first even if you weren't feeling well. So why did you leave?"

"I told you," you said lowly, "My parents were coming to visit the next day and I couldn't stay for very long. I just started feeling weird, so I decided to leave earlier than I planned to." You were trying not to chew on your inner cheek – something you always did when you were lying – but it didn't work; He already knew.

"What happened between you and Michael?" he asked softly, but firmly at the same time, "'Cause I can tell you're not telling me the truth and I don't know why  _both_ of you would lie unless something was going on."

"Nothing's going on," you said as assuredly as you could, "I just couldn't stay longer." He gave you a skeptical look, raising his eyebrows as if to tell you he didn't believe you and he wasn't going to let it go until you came clean. You sighed quietly, "Michael said you have a thing for me." He groaned under his breath, leaning back against the chair, before coming to a sudden realization and sitting back up.

"Why would that make you want to leave?" he asked, his expression falling.

You debated on whether or not to tell him the truth, but you couldn't deny that the look on his face was breaking your heart; You figured he deserved to know why you ran off the way you did.

"It's nothing against  _you_ , Calum," you muttered, staring at the record player in front of you, "I think you're really great and you're honestly my favorite member of the band, but I'm not important enough for  _anyone_  to be interested in me, let alone someone like  _you_. I mean, you're in a band and you travel the world and you've got hundreds of  _thousands_  of insanely beautiful girls who would do anything just to be in the same  _state_  as you. But I stay in one city and I order the same drink and sit in the same spot in that café every single day and I prefer to keep to myself rather than go out with friends... I'm nothing special, I'm just  _me_ ; And I think you deserve someone a whole lot better than I  _ever_  could be." You lifted the arm off of the record, causing the room to fall silent once again. You returned the record to its packaging and stood up. "I'm sorry, Cal," you whispered, avoiding looking at him, "I hope you don't take it personally."

You went to put the record back where you found it and leave the shop, but a hand grabbed your wrist as you reached for the handle on the door. You jumped slightly, not expecting someone to grab for you.

Calum took you back to where you were just sitting together; He simply wanted a place where Cameron or anyone entering the store couldn't see you. He lifted you up and had you sit on the tabletop so you could be eye-level with him, but his hands never left your sides.

"First of all, I think ' _just you_ ' is amazing," he stated sternly so you knew he was serious, "Second, I don't care if you've never left this city or that you follow the same old routine every day. There may be thousands of beautiful girls at our shows, but the only beautiful girl I've got my eye on is  _you_. I can tell you're scared of what people will say about you if we're seen on a date together, but I'm more than ready to help you through all that. I know our fans can be rough, but please...  _Please_  just give me a chance. I promise I won't let you down."

You stared at him for a moment, trying to find any trace that he was lying in some way, but the look on his face seemed almost desperate and there was no way you could make yourself say no.

"Okay," you whispered with a small nod, making his eyes light up.

"Really?" He seemed shocked. When you nodded again, he smiled widely, "I... Um... Are you free right now? Or after the show? Or tomorrow? Or-" You let out a small laugh as you cut him off.

"Right now is good," you told him. He sighed quietly.

"Cool," he tried to seem casual but he couldn't keep the stupid grin off of his face, "Uh, I wanna take you out, but I don't know any good places around here to get lunch, so maybe you could show me one?" You giggled, making him smile.

You jumped down and led him back out of the shop, waving bye to Cameron, and walked outside. You began walking with him to your favorite local pizzeria. You felt his fingers brush against yours again, but instead of moving away, you eagerly took his hand, tangling your fingers together.


	198. Never Be (Luke Hemmings)

"Guys!" you squealed happily as Luke and Calum walked into the room you were currently in, "I'm glad you're here!"

Ever since 5 Seconds of Summer was signed to the record label you worked for, you were assigned to be their main songwriter. You had been best friends since the moment you met them and they really loved your writing style, so you five were an obvious match. Whenever they came in to record, you had at least a snippet of a song for them and they were always excited to spend time with you as often as they could when they were home from tour.

"Someone wrote a new song," Calum sang with a chuckle, taking a seat next to you while Luke sat on the coffee table in front of the two of you.

"Yes! It's the best song out of the ones I've written this past week, but I think I really like it," you nodded.

"Well, let's hear it," Luke urged, pushing your knee lightly. You lifted your guitar onto your lap, taking the pick out from its home between the strings. You took a deep breath as you started playing.

_I need your love to light up this house_   
_I wanna know what you're all about_   
_I want to feel you, feel you tonight_   
_I want to tell you that it's alright_

_I need your love to guide me back home_   
_When I'm with you, I'm never alone_   
_I need to feel you, feel you tonight_   
_I need to tell you that it's alright_

_We'll never be as young as we are now_   
_It's time to leave this old black and white town_   
_Let's seize the day, let's run away_   
_Don't let the colors fade to gray_   
_We'll never be as young as we are now_   
_As young as we are now_

_I see myself here in your eyes_   
_Stay awake till the sunrise_   
_I want to hold you, hold you all night_   
_I want to tell you that you're all mine_

_I feel our hands intertwined_   
_Hear our hearts beating in time_   
_I need to hold you, hold you all night_   
_I need to tell you that you're all mine_

_We'll never be as young as we are now_   
_It's time to leave this old black and white town_   
_Let's seize the day, let's run away_   
_Don't let the colors fade to grey_   
_We'll never be as young as we are now_   
_As young as we are now_

_We won't wait for tomorrow_   
_It's too late, we don't follow_   
_We won't wait for tomorrow_   
_It's too late, we don't follow_

_We'll never be as young as we are now_   
_It's time to leave this old black and white town_   
_Let's seize the day, let's run away_   
_Don't let the colors fade to gray_   
_We'll never be as young as we are now_   
_As young as we are now_

_As young as we are now_

You stopped playing and looked back up at the boys to find they looked a bit shocked. You scrunched your nose up slightly.

"It was bad, wasn't it?" you asked, a defeated sigh escaping past your lips, "I  _knew_  it wasn't good enough;  _Nothing_  I've written lately sounds good."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Calum finally spoke, "Are you kidding? That was  _incredible_!"

"Really?" you mumbled.

"It was amazing!" Luke assured you, "I think some stuff could be added in where there are longer pauses, but other than that, it sounds perfect. Like, if you thought  _that_  was horrible, I can't wait to hear what you consider  _amazing_."

"Thanks," you said shyly.

"Why don't you and Luke work on things he thinks you should add while I see if Michael and Ashton can take a break and come hear it for themselves?" Calum suggested with a sly smile.

"Calum, I don't-" Luke cut himself off when he realized Calum was already out the door. He let out a nervous breath.

"So..." you trailed off, "What do you think should be added?"

Luke cleared his throat, switching from his spot on the coffee table to the spot on the couch next to you where Calum once was. His breath hitched as your arms touched and he moved your sheet music to where you both could read it.

"Um, I guess... Do the song again and I'll sing what I'm thinking with you," he said. You nodded and began playing it again. Luke added a few ' _oh_ 's and such here and there and you were so immersed in the song and his voice that you didn't even notice Calum, Michael, and Ashton standing at the door.

When the song was over, you grabbed a pencil and quickly jotted down everything Luke had added so you could redo the sheet music for recording.

"That was really good," you said as you put the pencil back down.

Luke simply smiled bashfully, not saying anything back. You looked at him and saw he was already staring at you – as he always did when you were in the same room. You swallowed lightly as you looked into his eyes, but before anything else happened, you noticed the three boys in the hallway. You cleared your throat, moving slightly and putting some space between yourself and Luke.

"You guys ready to hear the new song?" you asked quietly, noticing Luke's expression drop as he messed around with his lip ring.

"Yeah," Ashton replied, coming into the room now, "Cal says it's really good. We're excited to hear it."

They all sat down around you – Calum sat on the armrest next to Luke and Michael and Ashton took a seat on the coffee table. You began strumming your guitar again, not expecting Luke to start singing the parts he added. A small smile pulled at the corner of your mouth and you hoped no one noticed, but you knew they could hear it in your voice as you sang.

"Looks like Cal was right," Michael beamed when you and Luke finished singing, "That  _was_  amazing." Calum's face scrunched up.

"Did you not believe me?" he asked, trying to act offended.

"Well, we obviously knew it was gonna be good," Ashton chuckled, "I mean, it's  _Y/N_ ; She's never given us one  _bad_  song-" You couldn't help but blush lightly. "-but we didn't know it was gonna be  _that_  good. Seriously, Y/N," he said, patting your knee, "You never cease to amaze us."

"Do you think we could start recording that one when Mikey and Ash are done with the other song?" Calum asked hopefully to which the others readily agreed.

"Yeah!" you nodded quickly, "I'll just need to redo the sheet music, decipher solos, and track guitar so you have something to sing over, but I should be done by the time you're all ready to go."

"Awesome!" Michael smiled widely, getting up with Ashton, "We'll be back later." They left the room and Calum got up as well.

"Come on, Luke," he said, "We should leave her to her work." The blonde's bottom lip stuck out slightly as he sighed and got up, following Calum out of the room.

~

After about half an hour, you were putting the finishing touches on the sheet music when the boys came back in. You were sitting on the couch with your feet up on the coffee table and your papers in your lap, scribbling down the last few notes. You looked up as the band sat down around you in the same spots they had before they left.

"You guys are done already?" you asked, a semi-worried look on your face.

"Yeah," Luke nodded, "What's wrong?"

"I've been so busy trying to get solos decided that I haven't recorded guitar yet," you sighed.

"That's okay," Ashton assured you, "Are you almost finished?" You nodded, putting your pencil down to signal that you already were. He stood up, taking your guitar in one hand and holding his other out to you. "Come on," he said, "We'll have Andrew record it for you." You took his hand and he pulled you up, leading you and the rest of the boys to the recording booth they were just in.

"Hey, guys," Andrew smiled as you all walked in.

"Hey, man," Michael chirped, "Y/N's got something she needs to record, so do you think you could do that for us so we can start recording?"

"I swear, Y/N," he chuckled, beginning to hook up cables to the guitar after Ashton handed it to him and such, "You have at least one new song fully written every time I see you."

"My mind is a complicated place, Andy," you giggled lightly, sitting down on the chair beside him. He gave you your guitar back, made some adjustments on the soundboard, and gave you the thumbs up to tell you he was ready when you were. You nodded and he hit record.

~

When you were finished recording, Andrew told you he was ready for the boys to head into the booth. You ran down the hall to make a copy of your music for them to take so you could keep your own for notes. You came back and Ashton was already in the recording booth waiting for you. You couldn't help but smile at their eagerness, having a pretty good feeling they all fought about who would be the first to go in.

You quickly went in to give Ashton the copy before making your way back to Andrew and the other boys. You sat back down, pencil in hand and paper on the desk in front of you.

"So how do you want to do this?" Andrew asked you.

"Whole song," you replied, "I have ideas of which parts to give to which person, but I need to hear the whole thing from each of them just to be sure."

He nodded, turning to the boy in the booth, "Ready, Ash?"

Ashton put his headphones on and nodded. He waited for you to give him the cue to come in and after that, he just went through the song, recalling the way you sang it in his head and watching as you mouthed the words. Michael went next and did the same thing, then Calum.

While Calum was getting ready to start, Michael and Ashton decided to go on a coffee run – but you knew they were just leaving to get you and Luke alone again. While Calum was recording, you heard Luke clear his throat nervously.

You looked over your shoulder at him and he nodded his head lightly, motioning for you to come over to the couch with him. You brought your music with you, setting it on the table, but Luke put his hand on top of the paper, sliding it away from you.

"Luke," you sighed, reaching for it, "I need that." Luke wrapped his fingers around your wrist, pushing your arm back to your lap.

"Not right now," he stated softly.

"Cal is recording right now; I have to listen to his voice so I know what parts to give him."

"I understand that, but I don't know when we're gonna have any time alone again and I have to tell you this before I chicken out," he rambled. You sighed again quietly, putting down your pencil to give him your undivided attention. He took a deep breath, "I know you're always saying it's unprofessional for us to flirt with people we work with, but I really,  _really_  like you and I'm hoping you'll at least give me a  _chance_." Your eyes widened slightly, making him worried. "It's okay if you say no," he added in a whisper, "I'll understand if you-" You cut him off by leaning toward him and pressing your lips to his.

Luke was understandably a bit shocked at first, but he quickly kissed back. You felt him let out a sigh of relief, making you smile. This obviously made him smile as well and he lifted his hand to your cheek, keeping your face there as if you were ever going to move away in the first place.

Unfortunately though, you  _had to_  because Michael and Ashton had returned sooner than you expected them to.

" _Finally_!" Michael shouted, causing you and Luke to break apart.

"Wait, what's going on?" Calum asked, taking off his headphones as Andrew stopped recording.

"You missed Luke and Y/N making out?!"

"We were not  _making out_!" Luke exclaimed, his face getting redder and redder by the second.

"It finally happened?!" Calum asked excitedly.

"Yeah, and now you owe me a pizza!" Michael told him.

"Why does he owe you a pizza?" you asked him, causing everyone to look at you.

"Calum bet Mikey that Luke wouldn't admit his feelings for you until  _after_  the album came out," Ashton answered for him.

"My feelings are only worth a  _pizza_  to you?" Luke furrowed his eyebrows at the guitar player.

"Listen," Michael said, "You really like Y/N, I really like pizza; It just makes sense."

"You better be sharing that pizza with the people who helped you  _get it_  then," you said with a small giggle. The three boys who knew about the bet sighed in relief now that they knew you weren't mad about it.

"How about we have pizza and binge watch whatever's on Netflix at our place tonight?" Ashton suggested.

"I'm in," you and the boys said in unison, making you all laugh.

"Wait," Calum said suddenly with a small pout from where he was still standing in the recording booth, "Were you even listening to a  _word_  I was singing?"

~

_Song used: "Never Be" by 5 Seconds of Summer_

_inspiration: http://www.wattpad.com/93432577-%E2%80%A25sos-preferences-%E2%80%A2-%E2%86%92-you%27re-their-song-writer-and_


	199. Flashback (5 Seconds of Summer) *

**Luke (Warning: Speculation of death, missing persons)**

"Babe," Luke said softly as he opened the bedroom door. He found you sitting on the bed, your back pressed to the headboard and your knees pulled close to your chest. You were holding a photo in front of you and he could tell you were trying not to cry. "Babe," he repeated, walking over and sitting down beside you, "You're supposed to be getting dressed. I told you I had a surprise for you today, remember? We can't be late."

"He was supposed to come home for good two months ago," you whispered, your eyes never leaving the photo.

Your older brother had been in the army ever since he was 18; He was deployed only three months after he graduated high school. You were 11 at the time and didn't  _completely_ understand why he was leaving, but you did know that there was a chance he may never come home. Your mother had been preparing you for the possibility of that news and you continued that after each time he left from leave.

You were 21 now and you'd seen your brother for all of 18 months in the 10 years he'd been away. It was understandably still hard on you – especially now that you could fully comprehend the real danger of being in the army. You tried not to think about it though. You knew he wouldn't want you to worry so much about him, but how could you not? Despite the fact that he was 7 years older than you, your brother was your best friend and you used to do everything together.

When your brother came home on leave for two months to spend your 18th birthday with you, he made sure that everyone took lots of pictures of you two. You remember rolling your eyes and begging them not to, but you were always thankful they did.

The photo you had in your hands was the last time you ever saw him in person. He was giving you a piggy back ride – as he always seemed to do whenever you were within arms reach of him – and you were both smiling widely at the camera.

You moved to Sydney not long after that because you wanted a change of scenery, but you never imagined that you wouldn't be able to see him again. You had been saving up every penny you could for the last 3 years so you could fly home, but it was tough. You were living alone and since you had an apartment in the city, so much of your paycheck was going to just going toward that. About 6 months into your lease, you decided to see if you could find a roommate to split the bills with. And that's how you met Luke.

The two of you immediately hit it off and started dating not long after he signed onto your lease. He didn't find out about your brother's deployment until you introduced him to your family on Christmas while you were Skyping with them.

No one ever directly told you that your brother was killed in battle, but the letters you would get from him just stopped when you were 19. A couple weeks after that, you got a call saying he was missing in action and it felt like your whole world came crashing down. Luke completely understood that you needed your space, but he would tell you before each time you locked yourself in your bedroom that he would always be there if you needed him; And he never took back that promise.

"You looking at that picture with Anthony again?" Luke asked, moving to the other side of you so he could cuddle up to your side.

"Yeah," you said quietly.

"Babe," he nuzzled his face in your neck, "You haven't left the house in three weeks. I know you miss him, but-"

" _But nothing_ , Luke!" you snapped, shaking him off of you and getting up, standing beside the bed, "Don't you dare tell me that I'm not allowed to miss him! You can't possibly understand what I'm going through! I haven't heard from Anthony in nearly three years and you have  _no_ right to tell me that my feelings are invalid!"

"I'm not saying your feelings are invalid, Y/N," he said carefully, sitting up and scooting over to you, "I'm just saying that he wouldn't want you doing this to yourself. He would want you to go out and have fun and not be hiding yourself away from people who just want to help you."

You watched him as he slowly reached for your hands, making sure you wouldn't pull away. You didn't and Luke held them tightly in his own, rubbing circles on the backs of them. You let out the quietest whimper, making him look up at you.

"It's okay to miss him, Y/N," he told you softly, "And it's okay to want to deal with that alone sometimes, but you can't keep shutting everyone out like this. It's not good for you."

"I miss him," you managed to get out before the sobs took over your body, "So much."

Luke immediately let go of your hands and grabbed your waist, pulling you onto his lap. He kept a secure hold on you for the entire 15 minutes you were crying.

"Babe," Luke muttered when you calmed down again, "Please don't make me go to your surprise alone."

"But I-" He cut your protest off.

"I talked to your mum last week," he stated, "Your brother made it home."

Your eyes widened, " _He's alive_?"

"Yeah," he smiled slightly with a nod, "He was found about a month ago. They didn't call because they wanted him to adjust to being back, but he was constantly asking about you, so we set up this surprise for you. You keep telling me that I'm not allowed to buy you a ticket home even if I go with you, so Anthony let me buy him one to come here."

"Luke..."

"He's staying with us for the next three months," he held back his grin as he studied your shocked expression, "His plane lands in an hour and a half."

" _Luke_!" you practically screamed, your arms flying around his neck as you tackled him and he fell backwards onto the bed. You started crying again, feeling Luke smile and kiss your neck gently. He rubbed your back for a few minutes before patting it lightly.

"Come on, babe," he said, helping you sit back up, "We've gotta get to the airport." Your eyes widened again and you instantly tore the baggy shirt you were wearing off of your body as you made a beeline for the closet.

As you were pulling out one of Luke's flannels and your skinny jeans, he came up behind you, wrapping his arms around your bare waist. He put his face to your shoulder, kissing it lightly before looking at you in the mirror.

"Please promise me you won't shut me out like that again," he whispered, "It scares me when you do that to yourself." You turned around in his arms, tossing the clothes on the bed. You took his face in your hands and pressed a kiss to his lips.

"I promise," you mumbled, "I love you so much, Luke." He smiled into the kiss.

"I love you so much  _more_ ," he replied, letting go of you so you could get dressed.

~

**Michael**

"Hey, babe!" you heard Michael coming down the hallway, "Do you know where my guitar clamp is? I really don't want to have to borrow Luke's again." The door opened and he stopped when he saw you smiling at your computer screen. "What are you doing?" he asked. You let out a quiet giggle as you kept scrolling down the page you were on.

"I found my old 5SOS blog," you told him.

He tilted his head, "Isn't that the one that you stopped updating after we announced our relationship to the fans?" You simply nodded. "What's got you all smiley about it?"

"You remember when we went to that ice cream place at like, 3am because you'd just gotten home from tour and you weren't tired?"

He didn't respond, he just climbed onto the bed and crawled up next to you. He situated himself at your side, laying his head on your shoulder to look at the screen with you.

"That was a couple days before we told everyone, wasn't it?" he looked up at you. You hummed in agreement. "Why are you smiling like an idiot about it?" he teased, poking your cheek.

"Just thinking," you replied, grabbing his hand and bringing it down to rest on your stomach, tangling your fingers together.

"About what?"

"About how protective you used to be of me."

"I'm still protective," he stated, reaching up and kissing your jaw.

"I know," you smiled, "But that day, you saw fans outside taking pictures and you made me stand in front of you because you were worried about what they might say."

"Then the next morning, you saw everyone on Twitter freaking out about us and told me you thought it was time to go public," he nodded.

"And you really didn't want to," you laughed, laying your head on top of his.

"I was worried," he bit his lip lightly, "I know how the fans can get sometimes."

"They  _mean well_ , Mikey."

"I know, but they can mean well without constantly judging everything we do – you especially. It's like they aren't even here for the music anymore; It makes me feel like they're trying to tell me how to live my life to fit around their fantasies of being with me or something." Michael sat up, shaking his head as he kept his eyes on his lap. "I knew that this would happen when we announced it," he sighed quietly, grabbing your hand and playing with your fingers, "But I don't want our relationship to be the only thing people ever talk about."

"It's still  _our_ relationship, Mikey," you said softly, taking your computer off of your lap and putting it on the nightstand before pushing yourself up.

You swung your leg over Michael's so you were now straddling him. You let go of his hand and rested your own on his cheeks, making him look at you and giving him a small smile.

"And it is as public as we want to make it," you reminded him, "They'll never know what we don't tell them." Michael looked at you for a moment before wrapping his arm around your waist and turning abruptly, throwing you against the mattress.

"I think we can both agree that everything we're about to do is gonna be our little secret then, yeah?" he smirked lowly as he hovered over you just before roughly pressing his lips to yours.

~

**Calum** **(Warning: Mention of death)**

"What are you looking at, babe?" Calum asked, closing the door behind him. You looked up at him for a brief moment before turning your attention back to the photos in your hands.

"Nothing," you whispered, shuffling through them. Calum came over to sit next to you, resting his chin on your shoulder.

"Who's that?" he asked, pointing to a man that had a baby resting on his chest as they slept.

"My dad," you swallowed, not even sure he heard you due to how quiet your voice was.

"And the baby?" he went on, letting you know he heard.

"Me," you sniffled. Calum lifted his head up, watching you wipe a tear that had fallen down your cheek.

"What's wrong?" he asked, putting his hand on your knee and rubbing circles on your skin.

"Nothing," you repeated, "My mom just sent them. Said she found them in her closet while she was cleaning and wanted me to have them, I guess."

"It's okay, babe," he said, pressing a consoling kiss to your shoulder, "You can cry if you need to. I'm not going anywhere."

Calum knew that your father passed away when you were 15, but you never went into any more detail than that. You were always so close with him that after he died, you refused to talk about it; It hurt too much.

"No," you sighed, "I'm alright now, I just... I was thinking, I guess."

"About what?" he mumbled.

"Memories," you shrugged, "The future. Everything." You pursed your lips together when you moved on to the next photo in the stack, but couldn't help the smile from appearing on your face. "This was right after he let go of the bike during my first ride without training wheels." You felt another tear roll down your cheek, but you just let it go. "I kept telling him to let me go, but he wouldn't do it," you laughed lightly, "And when he finally did, I didn't make it 10 feet before I fell into a bush." Calum chuckled along with you, moving his arms to hug your waist. "I started crying and wanted to go back inside, but he said I couldn't until I got back on and tried again. He told me that I'm gonna fall and I'm gonna wanna give up, but I can't; I have to get back up and keep going no matter how many tries it takes me because I'm gonna get it right eventually. I always used to think he was just talking about learning to ride a bike, but growing up, I kinda realized that it meant way more. When he died, I wanted to hide away in my room and never come back out because I knew he wouldn't be there anymore." You paused, feeling your throat tighten. You sniffled again, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. "I still wanna give up sometimes, but I know I have to keep going; I have to do it for him."

"I think he'd be really proud of you, babe," Calum said, squeezing you lightly. The comment made you tear up even more.

"But it still sucks not having him here anymore," you choked, "He wasn't there when I learned to drive, or when I graduated high school and college, or when I moved out of the house. He won't be there to walk me down the aisle when I get married, or when I'm telling my mom that she's going to be a grandma, or when the family gets together and it'll be the baby's first Christmas. He never got to meet you and make any sort of attempt to scare you away from his little girl." You took in a shaky breath. "There are no new memories waiting to be made; All I have are photos of things that have happened and other than these, I don't remember a  _damn thing_  I've done with him."

You angrily shoved the photos back into the box on your lap and tossed it to the side, moving and curling up in Calum's lap. His arms instantly held you tighter while you buried your face in his neck and finally broke down. He rocked back and forth lightly as he always did to help you calm down. He didn't say anything; He simply held you as you cried, knowing that all you needed right now was just the comfort of knowing he was there.

It took a few minutes, but once you calmed down enough to where you weren't vocally sobbing, Calum started talking to you again.

"I know it hurts, babe," he mumbled, rubbing your back lightly, "Losing anyone that close to you is never easy, let alone when it's a parent. I know I can't relate exactly to what you're feeling, but I  _can_  promise you that wherever your dad is right now, he's  _so_ proud of the woman you've become." You let out a quiet whimper, burying your face further into his skin.

"You really think that?" you asked.

"I really do." You could hear his smile.

"Thank you," you whispered.

"I love you, Y/N," he said lowly, squeezing you a bit.

"I love you too, Cal," you said, pressing a small kiss to his collarbone.

~

**Ashton** **(Warning: Self-harm)**

"Babe," Ashton felt his heart rate speed up as he walked into the bathroom and found you sitting on the floor with your back pressed to the side of the counter. You had a history of self-harm and when he saw you holding a razor, he couldn't help but fear the thoughts that made you want to hurt yourself were coming back to you. "You okay?" he asked you.

"It's crazy, you know?" you whispered, not looking up at him.

"What is?" he asked cautiously, slowly inching his way toward you.

"This thing..." you continued staring at the razor between your thumb and index and middle fingers, "I used to think this thing would make everything better; I convinced myself that I needed this to be happy." Ashton sat down beside you, listening intently. "I don't ever remember a moment in the past six years that I've picked one of these up and not wanted to do anything apart from throw it away," you reminisced quietly, "There was never a time when I didn't have it within arms reach and not wanted to hurt myself with it. And now-" Your gaze shifted to your arm. "-I have all these scars to remind me how  _pointless_  it all was. I can't even remember why I made a single one of these cuts and now, it's like they're taunting me – like they know I know it was all meaningless and I can't do anything about it."

"You  _are_  doing something about it," Ashton's words were soft as he carefully took the razor out of your grasp and placed it on the counter behind you. You gave him a confused glance as he grabbed your hand, tangling your fingers together. "You're proving them wrong," he said, gently running his finger up and down your scar-covered forearm, "Every single one of them. There's never a moment I'm with you where you're not smiling or laughing; In the two years I've known you, you were  _never_  like that. Sure, you would express some level of happiness every once in a while, but it didn't last for more than a few  _seconds_. I can't tell you how proud I am of you for overcoming something as hard to stop as self-harm. Maybe you feel like they're teasing you, but your scars are just proof of every low point you were able to pull yourself out of. And I think that's pretty damn amazing." You felt a small smile pull at the corners of your mouth. You leaned toward Ashton and pressed a soft kiss to his cheek, leaving your lips on his skin for a few seconds before pulling back to lay your head on his shoulder.

"Thanks, Ash."

"You're welcome, babe," he smiled, kissing the top of your head.

"I mean it, Ashton," you told him, picking your head back up and looking him in the eyes so he knew you were serious, "I know you hate when I say this, but you really were the reason I stopped. Yeah,  _I_  was the one who decided to quit, but if it weren't for you, I don't think I would have done it. Not even my parents or friends could convince me that what I was doing wasn't good for me. But when I met you, you showed me that I could be happy without the pain. I don't think I'm ever gonna be able to thank you enough for that."

"You don't have to thank me," he said, putting his hand on your cheek and bringing your face to his. He kissed you, mumbling against your lips, "You still being here with me is more than enough."


	200. A Cinderella Story (Michael Clifford)

_Homecoming is almost here._

You stared at the message on the screen in front of you, having a very good feeling of what your virtual friend was leading up to.

**_I'm glad you're up to date with things that are going on in school._ **

You smirked lightly, proud of your witty remark.

_Ha, ha, ha, very funny. Are you going?_

**_I hadn't planned on it._ **

_Why not?_

You sighed to yourself. You truthfully  _did_  want to go, you just didn't have anyone to go  _with_. Your best friend Lizzie was out of town that weekend and there was no way you were going to go alone; Not with the way everyone at school treated you already. Going alone would just give them even  _more_  reasons to ridicule you.

**_Friend's out of town and I don't want to go alone._ **

_You could always go with me..._

Your heart started fluttering.

**_You don't have to do that. I'm fine_ ** **_with_ ** **_not going._ **

_But what if I WANT to take you?_

**_Then I would call you crazy._ **

_Come on. Just think about it. Please?_

You sighed again.

**_I'll think about it._ **

~

_Had enough time to think yet?_

You had just gotten home from school and logged into the chat room when the IM popped up on your screen. The homecoming dance was now four days away and your stranger had been bugging you about it for the past two weeks.

**_I've had plenty of time._ **

_And?_

You chewed on your inner cheek before shakily typing your answer.

**_Yes, I'll go with you._ **

_Awesome :D Meet me in the middle of the dance floor at 8:30?_

**_See you there._ **

~

**Homecoming night**

You looked at yourself in your full-length mirror one last time before grabbing your mask – it was a masquerade themed dance – and trotting downstairs.

"Oh, honey!" your mom gushed, "You look beautiful!"

"Thanks, Mom," you smiled lightly as she kissed your forehead.

"Let me get a picture and then you can go."

" _Mom_ ," you groaned as she hurried to get her camera.

"Just one, I promise!" she chirped, holding it up. You gave her a genuine smile, posing for her. When she finally took the photo, she came back to you and kissed your head once again. "Have fun," she told you, "Try to be home by 11, but make sure you call me if you can't." You nodded quickly. "Love you, sweetie," she gave you a hug.

"Love you too, Mom," you grinned, heading out the door.

~

After arriving at the school, you looked at yourself in the rear view mirror. You took a deep breath and put your mask on before getting out of the car.

As you walked up to the already open gymnasium doors, you could hear everyone whispering to the people around them. You didn't think anything of it until you finally looked up from your feet as you entered the room and saw everyone staring at you. You felt your entire face getting hot at having all the attention on you, but you noticed that this look wasn't like the usual ones you received as you were walking from class to class. These were stares of shock and awe – stares that only the popular people would get.

You looked up at the wall and saw it was going on 8:30, so you took another deep breath and – with all eyes still trained on you – made your way to the middle of the dance floor. You stood there awkwardly, not really sure what to do. People were still staring as they danced and you were starting to feel really uncomfortable.

You figured whoever you were meeting knew who you were and decided they didn't want to be seen with you. You sighed, ready to walk away, but then you heard a voice behind you. The male said your chat room username and your heart stopped as you turned around.

" _Michael Clifford_?" your eyes widened, staring up at him like you just saw a ghost.

Michael Clifford was the  _textbook definition_  of popularity. He had the money, he had the looks; He had  _everything_. Every girl in school had a crush on him – and you were no exception. You seriously considered trying to talk to him on the first day of freshman year, but it seemed as though the second he stepped onto school grounds, everyone was swooning over him. All he had to do was  _glance_ at a girl and she was all his – and with as many girls as there were at your school, there was no way he'd ever give  _you_  the time of day; And he never did.

"How did you know it was me?" he furrowed his eyebrows, his bottom lip sticking out.

"The hair kind of gives you away," you giggled, reaching up and pushing the bright red strands off of his mask. He leaned into your touch with a small smile, making your heart race.

"I think it's only appropriate that I know who you are since you know who I am," Michael wiggled his eyebrows. You let out a breathy chuckle, shaking your head. "Or not," he nodded, "That works too. What do I have to do to get you to tell me then?" You simply shrugged with a small smirk. "Well," he smirked back, "How about you think about it while we dance?" A slow song had just started playing as you nodded. Michael put his arms around your waist and pulled you into him, making you blush while you wrapped your arms around his neck and started swaying to the music with him.

~

"If I ask you a question, do you promise to answer honestly?" Michael asked you.

You two were now in the small sitting area set up in the garden outside the school. You were sitting side-by-side on a bench and he had his arm lying on the top of it behind you.

It had been about two hours now and Michael was still trying to guess who you were. He was running out of girls to name, but you weren't worried. He didn't know you existed anyway; He would never guess it was you.

"I really don't like things that start out that way," you breathed out.

"It's nothing terrible," he assured you. You nodded, motioning for him to continue. "If you didn't already know who I was, would you tell me who you are?" You swallowed thickly, looking away from him and nodding. "Why won't you just because you know?"

"It's just best that you don't know, Michael," you whispered.

"Why though?" he asked almost desperately.

"It's nothing against you, I just... Guys like you don't go for girls like me."

"I'm going for you  _now_ , aren't I?"

"That's my  _point_ ," you sighed, keeping your gaze on the flowers in front of you, "Before tonight, you've never looked at me for even a second. You've never smiled in my direction. You've never apologized after running into me in the hallway – you just kept going and acted like I wasn't even there. Yeah, we message each other all the time and you're one of the closest friends I've ever had, but off of the computer, I... I am  _nothing_  to you. I am as invisible as I can possibly get;  _That's all I'll ever be_. I will never look the way I do tonight on any other day. I will never make people stare at me again in the way they did tonight. After this dance is over and all is said and done, I will continue to remain a nobody, but you will  _always_ be Michael Clifford." You got up to leave, just wanting to go home and try forgetting tonight ever happened. You heard Michael stand up, but he didn't move from that spot.

"Maybe I don't want to be  _Michael Clifford_  anymore!" he called after you, making you turn around to see the hurt expression on his face, "Maybe I just want to be  _me_." You shook your head slowly, backing away.

"I'm sorry, Michael," you said quietly, turning back and running out of sight.

~

**Monday morning**

"Thank God you're finally here!" Lizzie exclaimed as she came to an abrupt stop at your side as you stood in front of your locker.

"What's going on?" you asked, hanging your backpack up.

"Michael Clifford-" She was whispering lowly so no one would hear her say his name. "-has been asking around about you."

" _Me_?" your eyes widened.

"Well, he doesn't know he's asking about  _you_ ," she clarified, "He still doesn't actually know it was you he was with at the dance."

Lizzie had come over on Sunday evening right after she got home from her weekend-long vacation. You obviously told her everything, including the fact that you had been talking to  _Michael_  this whole time. You distinctly remember her nearly falling off of your bed in excitement when his name left your mouth.

"Don't talk so loud!" you squeaked, "Someone might hear you!"

"Y/N, you need to tell him! He seems so desperate!"

" _Absolutely not_ , Lizzie!" you shoved her shoulder, closing your locker door and beginning to walk to the cafeteria so she could get breakfast, "I told him it would be better if he didn't know who I am and I meant it!"

She let out a puff of air, but didn't say anything until you reached your usual lunch table after going through the line. You sipped on your chocolate milk – you were never a fan of the school's breakfasts – until she finally spoke up again.

"Why won't you tell him?" Lizzie asked with furrowed eyebrows, "What's so bad about him simply  _knowing_? It's not like anything  _has_ to happen with him, you know."

"First of all, because I don't want to deal with the unnecessary shit storm that would occur if everyone finds out it was me," you stated, making her roll her eyes, "Second, he made it very obvious that he was interested in me that night. Third, if he's as desperate as you say he is, then he  _definitely_ wants something to happen between us. And I can't do that."

" _Why not_?!" she whined, "If he's as into you as  _you_  say he is, then he's not gonna care about ' _how not popular_ ' you are or  _whatever_  it is you're so worried about! He's not as shallow as everyone thinks he is, Y/N, and, to be honest, it's kind of hypocritical for you to say that he would never give you a chance when you're not giving  _him_  one either."

Having made her point, Lizzie immediately stood up and walked away before you could respond. You sighed to yourself, putting your elbows on the table and resting your face in your hands until the warning bell rang. You picked yourself up, throwing your now empty milk carton away and heading to your locker to get your books.

~

By the time second period ended, you were completely out of it. You were so oblivious to everything going on around you, it was a miracle you managed to stay alert during class and passing periods. Lunch finally came around and you were mindlessly staring into your locker, waiting for the hallway to clear out a bit before making your way to the cafeteria. However, as you were turning a corner, you ran right into someone coming around it at the same time.

You fell back, waiting to hit the ground, but you never did; Instead, you felt an arm fly around your waist, keeping you from falling. Your hand just instinctively grabbed their upper arm as the stranger helped you stand back upright.

"I am so sorry!" you rushed as you looked up, seeing Michael Clifford smiling at you, "I-I didn't-"

"No, it was my fault," he cut you off, "I should have been watching where I was going."

You retracted your arm, causing him to realize he was still holding your waist and quickly let go. You held your hands in front of your stomach and began playing with your fingers – something you always did when you were nervous. Michael tilted his head at you and you knew you had to leave before he caught on.

"Well... Uh... It's lunch and stuff, so..." you trailed off, "Sorry again for running into you." You turned on your heels, but only made it a few steps before your arm was being grabbed and you were spinning back around.

"Excuse me if I'm being too forward," Michael started, "But I can't help but feel like I know you from somewhere." You began chewing on your bottom lip.

"We have fifth period together," you reminded him quietly, "You sit a couple rows over."

"Really?" he asked, making your heart drop.

You knew you were right about him never noticing you, but something about having him confirm it himself made you sick to your stomach. You simply nodded, hoping your facial expression wasn't showing your disappointment.

"Are you sure that's it?" he startled you with the question, "I mean, I'm pretty sure I've seen you somewhere  _other_  than class."

"Probably just around town or something..."

"I guess so..." he hummed, "Before you go to lunch though, can I ask you something?" You nodded again. "Did you go to the dance on Saturday?" You nodded for the third time. "Did you happen to see a girl with a pale purple dress and a silver mask? She was the most beautiful girl there and she had (hair color) hair like yours except it was curly and the prettiest smile you've ever seen. She left without telling me who she was and I can't seem to find her anywhere."

"I don't remember seeing her," you swallowed lightly, "Sorry." He let out a quiet sigh.

"It's alright," he said, "Sorry to keep you for so long..." He trailed off, realizing he didn't know your name.

"Y/N," you practically whispered.

"Y/N," he smiled brightly, making your stomach erupt with butterflies, "It was nice meeting you. I'll see you in fifth period." You couldn't help but smile bashfully, quickly turning on your heels again and hurrying toward the cafeteria.

~

Later that day, you were in your fifth period Geometry class. Every time you looked out of the corner of your eye, you could see Michael staring at you with a small smile. You didn't know if he'd been putting the pieces together or not, but you definitely weren't going to let him look at your face long enough to find out.

After your teacher went over the lesson, he allowed everyone to get into pairs to work on the homework together since the problems were a little more difficult. You began chewing on your inner cheek – the girl who sat behind you would usually pair up with you, but she was absent today and you weren't friends with anyone else in the class.

You opted to just work alone, but when someone walked over and sat down in the seat behind you, you were a bit confused. You figured they were working with someone else, but when they poked your back, you were startled. You turned your head and found Michael smiling at you once again.

"Need a partner?" he asked.

"U-Um," you stuttered, "I-I guess..."

"Don't worry," he said, "I'm not as terrible at math as I look." A tiny laugh escaped past your lips, making him grin even wider.

Throughout the rest of the period, you could feel everyone staring in your direction. You did your best to ignore them and you were beyond relieved when the final bell rang. Your classmates piled out of the room while you slowly gathered up your things – you always made sure to be the last one out of the room so you didn't get trampled – and you were surprised to find that Michael had stayed behind as well.

"So," he cleared his throat, "Do you think it would be okay if I got your number? You know, in case I get stuck later on what we didn't finish." He seemed really nervous – something you weren't expecting, especially from him – but you nodded anyway. He let out a sigh of relief and smiled, pulling out his phone. "Here, put your number in." You did so, texting yourself so you would have his number as well. "Cool, thanks," he said, trying to be nonchalant but obviously holding back a grin, "Call me if you get stuck too, okay?" You nodded yet again, making him chuckle, "You don't talk much, do you?"

"Sorry," you whispered, not really sure how else to respond.

"No need to apologize," he told you, "Anyway, I think I've kept you here long enough. You won't miss the bus or anything, will you? I'll feel bad if I leave you without a ride home." You shook your head. "Okay!" he chirped, "I'll see you tomorrow then! Bye, Y/N!" Michael left the classroom with a small skip in his step, leaving you frozen for a moment as you tried to make out what just happened.

~

**Six months later**

It had been six months since that day and you and Michael had actually become really close. Whenever he would see you in the hall, he would make it a point to say hi to you and ask you how your day was going no matter how much of a rush he was in and he even invited you to sit with him and his friends during lunch the  _second_  he found out you ate alone.

Lizzie would constantly beg you to tell him about the dance, but you knew you couldn't.

Michael had  _just_  become your friend outside of the chat room you met him in and there was  _no way_  you were going to jeopardize that over something that didn't even  _matter_  anymore. Sure, Michael was still looking for his mystery girl, but you knew it was only a matter of time before he forgot about her completely and moved on.

~

You and Michael were in your bedroom working on homework one Friday after school. Well,  _you_ were working on homework.

Michael had gotten bored 5 minutes in and decided to situate himself on your desk chair and spin around to entertain himself. You were sitting cross-legged on your bed, working out the math problems you knew he would be begging to copy before he went home, when you noticed he'd gotten unusually quiet. You were about to say something – it wasn't like him to be quiet for this long – but he beat you to it.

"Hey, Y/N," Michael said randomly.

"Yeah, Mikey?" you chirped, writing another answer in your notebook.

"What's this?" he asked, making you look up at him. Your eyes widened slightly, seeing the silver mask in his hand.

"Looks like a mask to me," you tried playing off as your usual, sarcastic self, but you were sure you weren't being very convincing.

"Huh," he nodded, "It looks a lot like the one the girl I met at homecoming was wearing."

"Oh, that's weird."

You looked back down at the textbook on your lap as Michael put the mask back where he found it. He walked over to your bed, plopping down in front of you, making you bounce slightly and let out a quiet squeak, not expecting him to do it.

"Y/N," he said firmly, making you swallow the lump in your throat. " _Y/N_ ," he repeated when you didn't look up, "Look at me." You began taking slow, deep breaths, doing as he asked. "I know when you're lying to me, Y/N. Now where's the mask from?"

"Homecoming," you mumbled, doing your best to maintain eye contact.

"What color was your dress?" He was pushing for answers, but at the same time, he seemed incredibly nervous to get them.

"Purple..."

Michael raised his eyebrows at you and you sunk down, returning your eyes to your books, not acknowledging the look he was giving you. His hands came into your field of view, taking your geometry book and pulling it off of your lap. He put it to the side and pushed all of the various notebooks and worksheets along with it. He scooted up so your knees were touching, carefully taking your cheeks in his hands and tilting your head back up so he could see your face.

"If I looked in your closet, would I find a similar dress to the girl I danced with at homecoming?" he asked simply. When you didn't answer again, he knew he was right. "Why didn't you tell me it was you?"

"I told you," you whispered, mentally praying you wouldn't start tearing up, "It was best if you didn't know."

"I know I never spoke to you before then, but you still should have told me," he shook his head, "I have been going absolutely  _crazy_  for the past six months looking for that girl."

"Well, you found her," you said shakily.

"Why are you so afraid of admitting it?" he let out a frustrated sigh, releasing your face and bringing his hands back down to rest in his lap. "What is so bad about telling me it was you?"

" _Everyone_ knows you've been looking for this girl, Michael!"  _Shit. Tears were already falling_. "And as soon as they find out it was  _me_ , I'm going to be even more of a  _joke_  than I already am! They're already saying so much shit about me just being  _friends_ with you, but when they find out you were with  _me_ at that dance? Every shred of what little dignity I have left is all gonna be gone and I will always be known as the girl who  _actually_  thought she had a chance with  _Michael Cli_ -" You were cut off by Michael grabbing your face again but this time, he pulled it to his own. He pressed your lips together, instantly making you melt.

When he felt you relax and kiss back, Michael pulled on you some more as a gesture for you to crawl to his lap. You did so without ever breaking the kiss and the hands on your face trailed down your body, coming to rest at your hips to securely hold you there as if he was worried you were going to leave anytime soon. Your own hands found their way to his hair, tangling your fingers in it. Neither of you pulled away until you were practically on the verge of passing out from lack of oxygen.

"Do you even understand how  _long_  I've been wanting to do that?" he breathed, resting his forehead on yours. You just looked at him, your fingers still playing with his messy red hair. "Since the moment I saw you at the dance and realized  _you_  were who I'd been messaging," he told you, "You just looked so beautiful and I don't know what that comment on not looking that way during every other day was about but I can promise you, you were completely wrong. You've always been gorgeous, Y/N; Getting dressed up for  _one_  night didn't change that."

"But everyone-" He cut you off again.

"I am not concerned with what everyone will say about us."

"That's because they won't say shit about  _you_ ," you muttered.

"And they're not gonna say shit about you either."

"How do you know that?" He tilted his face to kiss your lips again, leaving them there a moment before returning to his previous position.

"Because if they do, I'll kick their asses," Michael stated seriously, making you giggle. He finally cracked a smile, "You're laughing, but you know I will."

"I know," you said quietly with a small nod.

"Y/N," he said under his breath, bringing your lips together once again, "You're so beautiful."

"Mikey-"

"So, so beautiful," he whispered in between kisses.

~

 _inspirations:_  
"A Cinderella Story"  
http://stories-5sos.tumblr.com/post/112330407503/its-not-another-cinderella-story-ashton-irwin


	201. Long Live Us (5 Seconds of Summer)

**Luke**

"How many of you are single?" the interviewer asked. Calum, Michael, and Ashton raised their hands. "So you've got yourself someone special then, Luke?" she smiled.

"I do," he laughed, "Her name is Y/N and we went public a few months ago. I'm so happy everyone loves her as much as I do."

"I did know that," Sadie nodded, "And we've got a surprise for you."

His eyes widened, "She's not here, is she? I swear I'll cry if she walks in here." The boys laughed along with Sadie.

"She's actually on the phone right now. We know it can be difficult for you guys to talk to loved ones on tour with time zones and such, so we specifically scheduled this interview for right now so that she was able to call in."

"No, you didn't," Luke said, putting his elbow on the table in front of him and the palm of his hand over his mouth.

Sadie simply smiled, "Y/N?"

"Hey!" you smiled widely.

"Y/N!" all the boys besides Luke exclaimed, surprised to hear your voice.

"Hi, guys! Please tell me Luke's still there and hasn't passed out or anything." The boys looked over at him.

"I think he's about to," Ashton chuckled.

" _Lukey_ ," you sang, "Come on, babe. Talk to me; Let me know you're alive." He finally cracked a smile.

"You are embarrassing me on an international radio show right now," he told you.

"Oh, please," you laughed, "You don't need  _me_  to embarrass you on the radio. You do it well enough on your own." The boys hummed in agreement, making Luke roll his eyes. "So how's the tour going, guys? I can't wait to see you again!"

"It's going really well!" Ashton chirped, "We miss your cuddles though. We'll definitely have to have a nice group cuddle when we get home."

"Of course!"

"We miss your cooking too," Calum pouted, "Food on the road is nothing compared to yours."

"Are you just saying that because you know I won't yell at you on the radio for lying?" you smirked.

"Yes," he teased.

" _Y/N_!" Michael whined, "Stop talking to everyone else and pay attention to me!"

"Hi, Mikey," you giggled, "You're being good, right? Not pranking anybody too hard, are you?"

"Not  _too_ hard," he grinned mischievously.

"So you're like their tour mom even though you're not with them?" Sadie laughed.

"Well, yeah," you chuckled, "You didn't think they survived this long on their own, did you?" She laughed again, shaking her head.

"Thank you so much for calling in, Y/N," she told you.

"Thank you for letting me!"

"Do you guys have anything to say before we let her go?"

"Will you make spaghetti when we get home?" Calum asked sweetly.

"Yes, Cal," you rolled your eyes, "But you better not try to start a food fight this time." He snickered proudly at the memory.

"Bye, Y/N!" Ashton and Michael said in unison before the drummer continued, "We miss you!"

"I love you, Y/N," Luke said shyly. The boys awed jokingly, making you laugh as he blushed.

"I love you too, Luke. I'll see you guys really soon, okay? Bye!" you hung up. Luke looked at Sadie.

"I cannot believe you did that to me," he whined. She simply smiled, moving on with the interview.

Before it ended, however, she revealed that she had one more surprise up her sleeve.

"So I'm sure you guys have noticed the cameras around the room," Sadie said, motioning to the three camera placed around them. They nodded. "Well, we have  _one more_  surprise for you guys – mainly for Luke again – and we wanted to make sure we got it on camera."

"It's not gonna get any better than that phone call," Luke shook his head.

"I wouldn't speak so soon," she grinned, pulling out a tissue box from under her side of the table and putting it in front of him. He looked at it and he and the boys gave her a confused look.

She motioned at one of the people behind the window to open the door and when he did, Luke immediately buried his face in his arms and put them down on the table.

" _Y/N_!" Ashton, Calum, and Michael shouted together again, practically shoving each other out of the way to hug you as you came into the room.

"Guys!" you beamed, hugging the three boys tightly.

"What are you doing here?!" Ashton asked.

"I was in the neighborhood," you shrugged casually, "Thought I'd drop by."

"But you were just on the phone!" Michael said.

"That's the great thing about phones, Mikey," you teased with a mischievous smile, "You can call someone from across the country or from where you're hiding in the other room."

"Oh my God," Calum laughed, squeezing you tightly, "We've missed you so much."

"I've missed you guys too, Cal," you smiled, letting go of him.

You walked over to Luke's chair seeing as he hadn't moved yet. The other boys sat back down as you grabbed the arm of your boyfriend's chair, spinning him to face you. He briefly lifted himself off of the table, only to put his face in your neck and hug you tightly. You smiled again, kissing the side of his head and playing with the hair at the top of his neck lightly.

"Can we get another chair in here?" Sadie called out in the direction of the door.

"Oh, no, that's fine," you said.

You put your foot up on the bottom rail of Luke's chair and pushed yourself up to sit in his lap. He repositioned himself so you were both more comfortable, but his face never left your skin.

"Aw," Michael said, "Lukey's  _actually_  crying." Luke mumbled into your neck.

"In case no one could hear that," you smiled, moving Luke's microphone so you could talk into it, "What Luke just said was ' _I told you I would_ '."

"Hello, Y/N," Sadie greeted you, "Thank you for being here today!"

"Thank you for having me!" you grinned. You weren't too nervous; Interviewers asked you to join the boys all the time after you and Luke went public, so this was nothing new to you.

"So why don't you tell the listeners and the boys what you're doing here?"

"Sure! Well, as everyone knows, they've been away from home for about...five months now?" you looked at them and they nodded. "Yeah, five months, and I've always been a sucker for those videos of people surprising each other at airports and stuff and I always thought it would be cool to be able to do that and when you guys called and asked if you could fly me out, I obviously wasn't going to say no to seeing my four favorite boys before they were supposed to come home," you giggled quietly.

"So what's it like for you? I know everyone asks the boys what it's like to be on tour away from home, but what's it like for you to be at home when they're away for months at a time?"

"It's hard," you nodded, feeling Luke hug you tighter, "And I'm not gonna say it gets easier. I have to constantly remind myself that I can't just call him-" You motioned toward your boyfriend. "-and know that he'll be at my house in like, 10 minutes ready to do whatever if I've had a bad day or I just need him or something like I used to. I worry a lot when they're gone too because anything can happen to them and I won't know about it until, you know, a few hours or so later, so that's definitely difficult for me personally. I mean, I grew up with these idiots, so I knew what I was getting into when they told me about trying to get into the music business," you laughed quietly, "But I think it just makes me appreciate them actually being with me that much more. I obviously wish they could be home more or I could go on every tour with them, but they're doing what they love and I am fully supportive of that."

"That was beautiful," Michael started fake crying, "I need a moment, I'm sorry."

"You're lucky you're all the way over there, Clifford," you shot him a playful glare.

"What do you plan on doing the rest of the time you're with them?" Sadie questioned.

"As much of this as possible," you replied, rubbing your thumb on Luke's collarbone, "I'm hoping to finish out the tour with them, so I can't wait to see what they do firsthand instead of watching the tour diaries or Twitter and Instagram videos."

"You're staying?" Luke asked you, finally lifting his head. You wiped his face with the sleeve of the sweater you stole from his suitcase back on the bus.

"If you guys let me," you shrugged.

" _Luke_!" Michael shouted away from his microphone, "Let go of her! I wanna hug her again!"

" _No_!" the blonde whined, his arms pulling you even further into him, " _She's mine_!" As they went back and forth, you looked at Sadie again.

"You might wanna just wrap it up right now," you giggled, "This kind of argument usually takes a while – especially between  _them_."

"Well, that was it for 5 Seconds of Summer," she laughed along with you and the other two boys, "Say bye, guys!"

" _Bye_!" Michael and Luke interrupted their arguing to say with Ashton and Calum before going back at it. Sadie closed out the segment as you sighed in content, laying your head on Luke's shoulder, just happy to be back in his arms.

~

**Michael**

"So you guys are going to play a few songs for us?" Kevin, the radio DJ, asked.

"Well, you told us we were," Ashton chuckled.

" _Ooh_ ," the other three boys snickered as they got up to go to the area where their instruments were set up for them.

"I will be feeling that tomorrow," Kevin joked.

"You know I love you, man!" Ashton shouted so the microphone would pick up his voice.

"We're going to take a quick song break," Kevin said into his microphone, looking through the window at the people waiting to hear the band, "Someone give me a song to play!" Your best friend Lindsay nudged you and you blurted out the first song that came to mind, but Michael was also shouting a song name.

" _Somewhere in Neverland_!" you called toward the room in unison. You both looked at each other as Kevin smiled at you.

"This is  _Somewhere in Neverland_  by All Time Low," he said, playing the song. He came out of the room to get situated outside the door. "Out of my 10 years as a radio DJ, I've never had two people yell the exact same song to me like that," he laughed lightly.

You blushed, finally looking away from Michael. You looked down at your phone to prepare to take pictures, quietly singing to yourself. You were so wrapped up in what you were doing that you completely missed the way Michael was still staring at you and the way Luke nudged him with a knowing look.

A couple minutes later, the song came to an end and the radio show was going again.

"And we're back with 5 Seconds of Summer," Kevin said. You and the other fans clapped happily at having one of your favorite bands a mere 5 feet in front of you. "What are you boys going to be playing?"

"Well," Luke spoke up, "We've got the four singles from the album and then whatever they want us to play." He motioned toward the group in front of him.

"Alright," he smiled, "Let's hear it."

Throughout the songs, you were singing along with everyone. Lindsay elbowed your side about halfway through  _Amnesia_ , making you look at her. She didn't glance at you, she just cocked her eyebrow, causing you to furrow your own. You followed her gaze and your eyes landed on the black-haired guitarist staring at you as he sang his harmonies. He quickly looked away, making you blush again.

This went on for the other three songs as well; Lindsay would get your attention, you would look at Michael, and he would look away, desperately trying to act like he hadn't been staring at you which only made you blush even more.

After the fourth song, there was a brief Q&A session where fans could ask anything. You simply stayed silent, not really having anything you wanted to ask. There were a couple silly questions and a few more serious ones before they went into the fifth and final song.

"So what do you guys want to hear?" Ashton asked, looking around the room. You all looked at each other with small smiles before looking back to the front.

" _If You Don't Know_ ," you answered simultaneously.

"Should've seen that coming," Michael chuckled.

"Come on, guys!" Calum whined, "You know I suck at remembering the words to this song!"

"We'll sing it with you, Cal!" a girl from the middle of the group spoke up and the rest of you nodded quickly in agreement. The four boys looked at each other, shrugging and playing the song.

~

After the mini concert, the band was taken away and Kevin went back into his studio to do the rest of his show. An intern led you to where the meet and greet would be and you and the other fans were practically bouncing up and down in excitement. You and Lindsay were last in line, but you didn't mind because each person/group of friends that went in was promised 5 minutes with the band.

When you were finally in the room – still in line – Michael felt like his heart started to visibly beat against his chest. He knew there were still about 25 minutes left before he actually got to talk to you and those 25 minutes seemed to be the longest 25 minutes of his life. But when they finally passed, he was praying he wouldn't say something stupid.

You and Lindsay got your picture taken with them first. Michael's heart started racing again as you walked over and stood in between him and Calum. After the picture was taken, they signed everything you'd asked them to.

As Michael shakily handed you your things back, he decided to strike up a conversation with you.

"So you like All Time Low, huh?" he asked. You nodded shyly. "You know," he leaned against the wall behind him, "I'm friends with them."

"Is that supposed to win me over from the other boys?" you giggled, "Because, I've gotta be honest, you've had me wrapped around your finger since  _Somewhere New_." He blushed a very bright red.

"Did you really just use one of our song titles against him?" Calum chuckled, sliding over to the two of you.

"It's a curse, really," you shrugged.

"Then I'm assuming it happens often?"

"I wouldn't say often, to be honest. It's really kind of unpredictable." They looked at you for a moment before the cheesy grin spread across your face. They groaned as they finally got the joke and the rest of the group came over.

"What's with all the groaning?" Ashton asked with a giggle. Lindsay took one look at you and simply rolled her eyes.

"You're making song puns again, aren't you?" she smiled at you.

"No..." you replied innocently.

She sighed, "You're such a try hard, Y/N."

"Oh my God," Calum let out a loud laugh, "You guys are ridiculous. Just saying."

"Calum! Not you too!" Michael whined, making you smile excitedly.

"Sorry, girls," the security guard interrupted, "Your 5 minutes are up."

"Already?" Luke furrowed his eyebrows. He shrugged, giving the blonde an apologetic smile.

"Well, boys," you sighed dramatically, "Looks like Lindsay and I have gotta get out of here now."

"Damn it!" Michael shouted with a laugh, "You're good."

"Would you say I'm-"

"No!" his eyes widened, "Don't even go there." You smiled giving the boys one last hug. "Wait!" he squeaked as you and Lindsay started walking away.

"Michael," the guard said firmly, "We can't give them more time than the others just because you think she's cute." You and Michael both turned a light red, making everyone in the room snicker quietly.

"It'll only take 10 seconds, I swear," Michael said with puppy dog eyes. He sighed, motioning for him to continue with you. "Give me your arm," he rushed, looking at you as he pulled the cap off of his Sharpie.

"What are you gonna do to it?" you raised your eyebrow skeptically, but stretched it out to him anyway. He quickly scribbled seven numbers on your forearm, making you blush for what was probably the hundredth time that night.

"Text me later, okay?" he looked at you hopefully. You nodded and he let out a sigh of relief, releasing your wrist and letting you leave.

As you slowly walked out of the room, you pulled out your phone to text him. You heard his phone go off once you reached the door and stopped walking, looking over your shoulder so you could see the look on his face as he read the new message:  _A good girl?_

Michael looked up at you with what was probably supposed to be an annoyed expression, but he was doing a terrible job of holding back his smile. You smirked lightly, winking at him before turning back around and leaving the room with Lindsay giggling beside you.

~

**Calum**

"Calum!" he heard his name being said loudly, bringing him back to reality.

"Hmm?" he mumbled before shaking his head, "Sorry, what were we talking about?" The interviewer cocked an eyebrow.

"The tour," she replied, "How's it going?"

"It's going well," he nodded, his eyes darting off to the side as he trailed off, "Really well..."

"Uh..." she said, looking at the four boys sitting in front of her, "Do you guys need to take a break? Because we can let you do that..." Luke followed Calum's stare and immediately nodded.

"Yeah," he told her, "Sorry about him. He's not usually this distracted. He'll be fine in a few though." She simply nodded understandingly and Luke grabbed his best friend's arm, pulling him away while Michael and Ashton quickly followed.

"What's up with you, man?" Ashton asked, picking up a bottle of water.

"Yeah, dude," Michael chirped, "It's not like you to not be so talkative in interviews."

"It's nothing," Calum mumbled.

"He's jealous," Luke stated.

"No, I'm not."

"Y/N's over there talking to a guy over there," he nodded behind him. Michael and Ashton looked over Luke's shoulder and saw you talking to one of the interns at the stations.

"Definitely jealous," Michael nodded.

"She's my girlfriend," Calum said lowly.

"She's allowed to talk to other guys," Ashton raised his eyebrows, "She talks to us all the time. You don't even care when she cuddles with us."

"You guys aren't gonna try to take her from me."

"She's just talking, Cal!" Luke rolled his eyes, "That doesn't mean she's gonna leave you! If you have that much of a problem with it, you should just go say something."

Calum looked over and saw you laughing, so he decided to follow up on Luke's advice. He put the bottle he was holding back on the table and marched over to you. Before you could even say hello, Calum's lips were pressed against yours and he was kissing you roughly.

You stumbled back a bit, your forearm finding the wall behind you to keep you from falling as your other hand went to the back of his neck. When he pulled away, you had to catch your breath for a moment.

"It's nice to see you too, babe," you said, a confused tone to your voice, "Is your interview over already?"

"No," he said quietly, keeping a secure hold on your waist, glancing at the intern now standing uncomfortably a couple feet away.

"Uh..." the boy said shyly, "I should get back to work. It was nice talking to you, Y/N."

"You too, Matt," you chuckled, calling after him as he walked away, "Sorry my boyfriend is a jealous idiot!" He wasn't facing you, but you could tell he laughed and you turned back to the boy holding onto you. "Calum," you said as you snaked your arms around his neck, trying to hold back your smile, but knowing you weren't doing a very good job.

"I wasn't jealous," he muttered.

"But you are an idiot, yes?" you smirked.

He pouted, "I'm sorry. I just thought-"

"You have nothing to worry about, Cal," you assured him, running your fingers through his hair gently, "I love you and no one else."

"I love you too," he whispered, kissing you again.

"Calum!" you heard Luke whine, "I said say something, not scare the kid away!" You laughed against your boyfriends lips, making him pout again as you pulled away.

"Totally  _not_  jealous, right?" you teased.

"Never," he responded, pressing a small kiss to your nose. He let go of you and went back to the boys so they could finish their interview, all his worries gone while you stood beside the cameraman and looked on with a smile.

~

**Ashton**

You and the boys excitedly walked into the television studio. The band was scheduled to be on a popular live talk show and none of you could keep still. You were hand-in-hand with Ashton, your head resting on his upper arm, as a producer led you to the stage area. The audience was full of fans and they were lucky enough to get to meet them before the show started. You were talking to a few fans as well while the boys were taking selfies with others, telling them embarrassing stories about the band.

"If you guys tell anyone and they have doubts, send them to me," you smirked, "I'll back you up."

"Are you sure they won't get mad?" one of the girls asked with a small giggle.

"Of course they will," you chuckled, "But it'll all be on me, so don't worry." You kept chatting until they had to go back to their seats. You were given a spot right in front row and the boys were whisked backstage to get ready.

When the show started, it went on for about 20 minutes before the band was brought out. They performed a song and then sat down with the host for an interview. Everything was going amazingly – you were laughing with the fans at some of the boys' answers and the boys seemed to be having a lot of fun as well – until the host started asking questions you personally found unnecessary.

"Do you ever think about what it must be like for your girlfriend when you're off in other countries and she's home alone?" Scott asked Ashton.

"I'm sorry?" the drummer replied, his smile fading as he tilted his head.

"I mean, you boys are away for months at a time. I'm sure she gets lonely."

"Are you seriously suggesting there's cheating going on?" Michael interrupted, instantly becoming angry as Ashton's eyes quickly found yours. He briefly looked at the people in the audience and they had the same shocked look on their faces as you did.

You didn't notice his gaze though. You were too busy looking at the man sitting across from them in disbelief.

"You know she's  _here_ , right?" Luke asked. Scott looked over and met your confused glare.

"Oh," he nodded, turning back to Ashton, "So you brought her along with you because you don't trust each other?" Ashton looked at you in a panic, not knowing what to say.

Luckily, you knew exactly what to do. You took a deep breath and pushed yourself up, making the fans start whispering to each other.

"Okay," you said as you walked on stage, no longer caring that it was a live show. "I'm gonna stop that ignorance right now." You made your way behind Ashton and put your hands on his shoulders to help him relax. "Ashton and I are very much in love with each other and him being away from me for however many months at a time is not going to change that. I would never cheat on him, he would never cheat on me; We both know that. I came on this tour because the boys wanted me to experience their first headliner with them. I understand that you're a man in your late 40's and you've been divorced more times than I can count on one hand-" The fans in the audience, as well as the boys, snickered at your comment. "-but that doesn't mean that love doesn't exist. Your job as an interviewer is not to pry into people's personal lives and I am  _very_ proud of these boys for not just getting up and leaving the moment that  _ridiculous_ question left your mouth. I find it very disappointing that a band of  _three teenagers and a 21-year-old_  are more respectful than you. You may view Ash and I as just stupid kids who don't really know what love is, but I can assure you: We know love a lot better than you do." The audience clapped for you, cheering even louder when Ashton stood up and spun around, pressing his lips to yours.

"I love you," he mumbled against your lips so no one else heard him.

"I love you too, Ash," you smiled, kissing him quickly again. He wrapped his arms around your waist and hugged you tightly as Calum stood up.

"Well, boys," he said before looking at the man sitting across from them, "I think this interview is over." Luke and Michael were quick to agree and get up as well, following the bassist off of the stage.

They waved to the audience, thanking them for coming and apologizing for having to cut the interview short, while you led Ashton backstage as well – which was proving to be quite a challenge since he refused to let go of you. You simply giggled, careful not to trip over his feet, finally making it to the dressing room.

"Who even gave that asshole his own show?" Michael grumbled, throwing himself onto the couch.

"Your guess is as good as any of ours," you sighed, taking Ashton to the couch and having him sit down beside Michael with you on his lap.

"You are my  _hero_ , Y/N!" Luke exclaimed, plopping down on the couch across from you, Ashton, and Michael.

"Seriously," Calum nodded, sitting next to Luke, "I don't think Mikey would have lasted much longer before the claws came out." Michael rolled his eyes, but nodded in agreement.

"Well, I don't think anyone has a right to tell me that I don't love my boyfriend." You felt Ashton's hold on you tighten as you pressed your lips to his cheek. "I mean, I think I would know," you said against his skin, making him smile.

~

_inspiration for calum's: http://fivesecondof5sos.tumblr.com/post/120628910819/ashton-gets-jealous-a-n-still-trying-to-get-the_


	202. Stay Awake (Ashton Irwin)

**Ashton's POV**

"What are you doing home so early?" Luke asked, watching Ashton throw himself onto the couch across from him.

"I'm always home at this time," he stated plainly, his voice muffled by the cushion as he desperately tried not to fall asleep right then and there.

"Yeah, but I thought you had another date with Y/N tonight." Ashton immediately shot up, scrambling to retrieve his car keys from the kitchen.

"She is gonna kill me!" he exclaimed, hurrying to put his shoes back on.

"No, she won't," Luke rolled his eyes, returning his attention to the television, "You're overreacting." But he was already out the door by the time Luke even finished his sentence.

**Your POV**

You had been standing at the entrance of the ice skating rink for about half an hour now waiting for Ashton. You considered going home, but – even though you'd only been on four other dates with him – you really liked him and you were sure he had a good reason for being late.

You were about to text him and ask him where he was, but you stopped when you heard him frantically saying your name. You looked up in the direction he was coming from and saw he was running down the sidewalk, nearly colliding with several people along the way.

"I am  _so, so, so, so, so, so_  sorry!" Ashton shouted, crashing into you. You stumbled a bit, quickly grabbing his arms as his hands found your hips. He was understandably out of breath, but he wasn't taking the time to calm down before he continued. "I just got home from work and I totally forgot we had a date tonight until Luke reminded me!" he exclaimed, "I'm seriously such an ass and I'll  _completely_  understand if you never want to see me again! I can't  _believe_  I forgot!  _God_ , I'm so-"

"Ash," you shook your head, your thumbs rubbing small circles on his skin, "You look exhausted."

"I'm fine," he said quickly.

"Ashton, we can just reschedule. It's no big deal. You should have called me and told me you were tired. I would have understood."

"But I wanted to see you," he pouted, moving his hands slightly to get a better grip on you. You giggled lightly, making him smile at the sound of it.

"We don't have to go out all the time, you know," you shrugged with a shy expression, "I mean, we can go back to my place if you want."

"You really wouldn't care?" he breathed.

"Of course not! Why would I care about staying in? I just like being with you," you admitted, making him blush.

"Your place sounds good," he said softly with a nod. He let go of your hips only to take your hand and lace your fingers together as you walked back to your apartment building.

Once you finally got to your door, you unlocked it and led him inside.

"Well, this is where the magic happens," you said with a small chuckle, "And by magic, I mean constantly crying over Disney movies because that's what you do when you live alone." Ashton laughed lightly while you tossed your keys on the table beside the door. "Oh," you said as you stepped out of your shoes, "If you could take off your shoes, that would be great. I may live alone, but I still have standards."

Ashton simply smiled again, slipping off his shoes at your request. You both plopped down on the couch, your arms practically overlapping. He took your hand again, holding it on your thigh.

"Are you hungry?" you asked as he laid his head on your shoulder, "I could order a pizza or something."

"Pizza sounds good," he mumbled, moving his head around to find the perfect spot. When he finally found it, he nuzzled his face into your shirt and let out a sigh of content, making your heart flutter.

"Are you sure you're not gonna fall asleep before it gets here?" you teased, pulling out your phone. He nodded his head in response, listening to you order a pizza for the both of you.

About half an hour later, you were watching a movie on Netflix when there was a knock on your door. You could hear Ashton snoring quietly in your ear, making you giggle. You carefully held him up, putting a pillow on the armrest before laying his head back down. You quickly grabbed your wallet and trotted to the door.

You paid the delivery girl, telling her to keep the change, and took the pizza box, shutting your door and locking it. You set the box on the coffee table before kneeling down in front of Ashton.

"Ash," you whispered, shaking him gently, "Pizza's here if you want some." He let out a small whine, making you smile. "Do you want me to drive you home? Or I can call Luke to come get you." He whined again, shaking his head. "Well, I'm hungry, so do you think you can wake up long enough to make it to my room?" you joked.

You watched as he stuck his bottom lip out, but he never opened his eyes. You rolled your eyes with a laugh, standing up. You grabbed his elbow and pulled him up so he finally opened his eyes.

"You're mean," he pouted.

"You get used to it," you winked, helping him stand up, "Come on, Ash. You'll kill your neck if you sleep on the couch, trust me." He fell back onto the bed, but not before making sure he was pulling you down with him. "Ash!" you laughed, "Let go!"

"No, you're warm and cuddly," he grumbled, wrapping his arms around your waist just a little tighter. You were happy he had you so close so he couldn't see you blush.

"I'll still be warm and cuddly later," you said softly, but gave in and laid your head on his chest anyway, "I just want pizza."

"But I want you to be warm and cuddly  _right now_." You sighed in defeat, feeling him smile as he pressed his lips to your forehead.

"If my pizza goes bad, I'm blaming you," you stated, pushing yourself up against him even more as he hugged you closer.

"I can live with that," he mumbled, his thumb rubbing your hipbone lightly as he drifted back to sleep.


	203. Someone Like You (Michael Clifford)

"Oh my God," you said for the millionth time that day, "Oh my God. Oh my God.  _Oh my God_."

"Will you stop saying ' _Oh my God_ '?!" your best friend Savannah laughed, hitting your arm.

The two of you were just let into the arena of the venue that would be filled with screaming girls in less than 15 minutes. You made your way to your seats in the upper section, but you were far too excited to sit down.

Savannah had surprised you about a month ago with tickets to see your favorite band, 5 Seconds of Summer, on your birthday. For that entire month, nothing could bring you down. Every time you thought about the tickets sitting on your desk, you would start squealing like a madwoman.

Your eyes widened slightly as you bounced around near your seats, "I have to go to the bathroom."

"Hurry up!" Savannah called after you, "Show starts in 10 minutes!"

~

By the time the show started, you swore you were going to pass out. Not from the heat or anything like that, but because you were  _finally_  seeing 5 Seconds of Summer in person after almost four years of being a fan. You couldn't believe you were still standing, honestly.

Halfway through the set, the band went into  _Rejects_. As they slowed it down to pick someone from the audience, Michael suddenly ran off stage. When he came back about 20 seconds later, everyone gave him a confused look.

"Mikey, if you need to go to the bathroom, just say so," Calum teased, "We'll wait for you."

"Shut up, Calum," Michael laughed, rolling his eyes.

"What were you doing then?" Luke asked. Michael walked over to him and flung his arm around his shoulder.

"You see that sign up there, Lukey?" he asked, pointing right at you. You furrowed your eyebrows when you looked next to you at Savannah and found her smiling like an idiot.

"What did you do?" you narrowed your eyes at her.

"I might have taped a sign to the railing in front of us while you were in the bathroom," she shrugged casually. You quickly leaned over as Luke read the sign to everyone.

" _Will play Rejects for Happy Birthday,_ " he chuckled, causing everyone else to laugh. Your eyes widened and you immediately slapped your best friend's arm as hard as you could.

" _Savannah_!" you shouted, but it sounded normal compared to the crowd's screams. She simply grinned, rubbing the spot on her arm where you hit her.

"Someone didn't know the sign was there," Ashton giggled from his spot behind his drums.

"Hey, dude!" Michael called up to the security guard standing in the upper section, "Can we get her on stage?"

The guard came over to you and Savannah and motioned for you to follow him. Savannah grabbed your hand, having to practically drag you out the door. The long hallway to the stage was dead silent compared to inside the arena, allowing you to finally talk at a normal volume.

"Can you really play the song?" the guard wondered.

"I hope so," you mumbled, already feeling like you were going to throw up, knowing you were seconds away from standing with the members of your favorite band in front of thousands of people.

When you finally reached the side of the stage, Michael trotted over with a giant grin on his face. Savannah let go of your hand only for it to be taken by Michael immediately afterwards. You were quick to give her your bag before he pulled you onto the stage. You were met with loud screaming, making you scrunch your face up a bit.

"What's your name?" Luke asked you as Michael helped you put his guitar on.

"Y/N," you said shyly into the microphone he was holding to your mouth.

"First of all, happy birthday," Michael smiled at you and you felt your cheeks start to get hot, "So you know the song?"

"I-I think so," you said nervously.

"Alright, let's see what you've got," Luke smiled, jumping right into it. You watched him, Ashton, and Calum as they gave you the intro to the solo before letting you take over.

You played Michael's solo perfectly, leaving everyone speechless. The boys quickly went back to their microphones, unanimously deciding to let you play the rest of the song with them. When it was over, everyone screamed louder than before – which you honestly didn't think was even possible – and the band was looking at you with shocked smiles on their faces.

"Michael," Calum tried to seem serious, but it was obvious he was desperately trying not to smile, "I hate to say this, but I think it's time we replaced you."

"You know what?" he replied as he took his guitar back, "If she weren't a million times better, I would be really mad about that." You blushed again as Michael put his arm around your shoulder, "Now, since you just played  _Rejects_ , I think we should follow through with our end of the deal." He addressed the crowd, "We're gonna need all of your guys' help with this, okay? Do you know how  _Happy Birthday_  goes?" They obviously screamed in response. "Don't lie to me," he joked, "Do you know how it goes or not?"

They screamed again and Michael started singing the song to you. Everyone quickly joined in as you hid your face in the palms of your hands. When they stopped mid-song to scream loudly, you looked up, knowing something had happened. You looked over and saw a crew member holding a cupcake in one hand and the other was in front of the flame on the candle, making sure it didn't go out as he made his way to where you and Michael were standing. You looked at Michael and noticed he was watching you with a smile, and you knew that was why he ran off stage before the song. The crew member held the cupcake up to you as the song came to an end.

"Make a wish!" Ashton chirped behind you. You paused, genuinely not knowing what to wish for. 

You eventually came up with something, blowing out your candle to the crowd's cheering. The crew member gave you your cupcake and you thanked him.

Calum, Luke, and Michael hugged you before letting you walk off stage, but not before you hopped up to the elevated portion behind you where Ashton was. You reached over his drums to high-five him. He wrapped his fingers around yours, holding your hand for a moment as he stood up and leaned toward you.

"I'll give you a proper hug later," he chuckled in your ear. You smiled shyly as he let go, letting you jump back down and go to the side of the stage to eat your cupcake.

~

For the rest of the show, the crew just let you and Savannah hang around with them. You were paying more attention to what they were doing than the actual show at that point – you were always fascinated with how a concert was run – so you were a bit startled when the boys ran off stage. They were obviously still hyped up with adrenaline as Ashton came bouncing toward you. He stopped just before he reached you with a frown on his face.

"I should dry off first," he said, rushing past you toward the dressing rooms, "I'll be right back!" You sighed with a light chuckle.

"Yeah," Luke agreed, "We all should. We'll see you in a few."

"Don't go anywhere," Michael told you, hurrying with his friends around the corner. You turned to Savannah and saw she had a sly smirk on her face.

"What?" you raised your eyebrows at her.

"Don't ' _What?_ ' me like you don't already know," she snickered.

"Savannah, I don't-"

"Michael is totally into you!" she whispered, "You should have seen the way he was looking at you while you were playing that solo! I'm pretty sure I watched him fall in love!"

"You've officially lost your mind," you nodded, "I didn't think it was possible, but you've fallen further down the rabbit hole."

She rolled her eyes, "Okay, well, when we get home, I'm gonna tweet you videos of the concert and then I'm gonna tell you I told you so." You glared at her, but remained silent as you heard the boys coming back.

"Okay," Ashton smiled, "We should be good now." You giggled lightly, giving him a hug.

"Oh, guys," you said, motioning to the side, "This is my best friend Savannah." They all greeted her with hugs as well.

"So how did you guys like the show?" Calum asked.

"It was amazing!" you beamed, nudging Savannah, "Best birthday present I've ever gotten."

"Yeah," she laughed, "I could tell you were really happy because you've been crying for the past month about it."

"I have not been crying for a month," you mumbled, "It was only two weeks."

"Excited, huh?" Ashton chuckled, "So do you guys want to take pictures or have us sign anything?"

"Yes!" you said, pulling out the album you wanted them to sign as well as your phone. You took pictures with each of them individually and all of them together as did Savannah. "Oh!" you squeaked once her turn was over, "I also have presents for you guys!"

"You didn't have to bring us anything," Luke shook his head, "Liking our music is enough of a gift." You and Savannah started pretending to gag, making them all laugh.

"Well, I didn't buy them for you guys not to take, so you're gonna like it," you teased. "Luke," you said, "I'm sorry it's not much, but this is for you." You pulled out a small stuffed penguin and his eyes lit up like a kid who got exactly what they asked Santa for. He took it and started admiring it as you turned to the drummer. "Ashton, you have to promise me that if you take this, you're gonna wear it on stage at the next show."

He raised his eyebrows, "That depends on what it is." You smirked, pulling out a purple bandana. He instantly started laughing. "Come on! This is the tenth time someone's done this to me!" he said, but took the piece of fabric from you anyway.

"And we're not gonna stop until the bandanas make a comeback, Ashton," Savannah snickered beside you.

"Although I'm still expecting you to wear it," you said, "Here's your real present. Don't burn it all in one place." You had a slight smirk on your face as you handed him a vanilla scented candle, causing him to laugh even harder.

"You get me," he told you, "And I promise I'll wear the bandana tomorrow." Finally, you turned to the two remaining members.

"You guys were a little harder to find things for," you admitted, "However, I refused to give up and now here we are. I'm a big fan of going to yard sales and I came across this one where the guy was selling some really good stuff and when I found these, I knew I had to get them to you somehow. Calum," you said, handing him five CDs face down, "These are for you. I hope you don't already have them." When he turned them over, his eyes widened and his jaw dropped slightly as he stared at them.

" _Are you serious?!_ " he shouted, "I've been looking for these since the moment I started listening to them!" You were happy to see him so excited about getting Green Day's first five albums and you were even happier knowing that you were the reason for it.

"The guy told me there's a few scratches here and there, but I'm hoping you won't mind."

"Of course not! This is the greatest thing anyone's ever given me!" he wrapped his arms around you, squeezing you tightly. You smiled for the hundredth time that day as he let go of you and let you talk to Michael. When you looked at him, he was smiling sheepishly, but was very eager to see what was in store for him.

"I thought I was saving the best for last, but I really don't think you're gonna be able to top that reaction," you pouted, making him let out a breathy laugh. "But anyway, at that same yard sale, I found these beauties. I took some out and kept the doubles for myself, but I knew they had to go to you, Michael." You pulled out a small drawstring bag and handed it to him with a smile, excited to see his face when he opened it. As soon as he did, his jaw dropped, much like Calum's had.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" he mumbled, looking back up at you. You simply smiled again while he pulled out a Gameboy Color and all the Pokemon games that went with it. "Th-This is mine?" he asked you.

"Great," Ashton threw his arm up, "We're never gonna see Mikey again."

"Sorry," you giggled, "And yes, Michael, it's all for you. You better cherish it for the rest of your life." He frowned quietly, bringing you in for a hug.

"All the hugs in the world aren't enough to thank you!" he whined into your shoulder.

"Let's just agree that if we ever meet again, you and I will have a little battle then?"

"You play guitar  _and_  Pokemon?" he sighed.

"When you're ready to lose, let me know," you winked.

"There's no way you can beat Michael," Calum spoke up, "He's like, the best Pokemon battler I know."

"I wouldn't be so sure of that," Savannah snickered, "When we were in 7th grade, all of the boys decided that they would battle her on the last day of school. She  _totally_  crushed every single one them. Some of them cried. It was beautiful."

"7th grade egos are so large, yet so fragile," you shrugged, smiling fondly at the memory. Michael smiled at you again.

"Hey, guys," Savannah said to the other three boys, "Would you mind showing me where the bathroom is?"

"All of us?" Ashton asked in confusion. She not-so-subtly nodded toward you and Michael and his and Calum's eyes widened.

"Yeah!" he exclaimed, "Sure! Follow us!"

"Wait, why do we all need to go?" Luke whined, finally looking up from his penguin. The bassist rolled his eyes, grabbing his best friend's arm and pulling him along with them. When they were gone, Michael couldn't help but chuckle.

"She's not actually going to the bathroom, is she?" he asked.

"I doubt it," you sighed before shrugging again, "Or maybe she is. She  _did_ drink a lot of water before the show started." He laughed before peeking out into the arena.

"Come here," he said, grabbing your hand again and pulling you on stage for the second time. The place was completely empty apart from the few venue workers cleaning up. You stood there in awe for a few seconds until you could come up with something to say.

"This place was full?" you asked, still looking around.

"I know," he mumbled, "It's crazy."

"So glad I didn't know that at the time," you let out an unintentional giggle, "I probably would have thrown up."

"You get stage fright?" he furrowed his eyebrows. You simply nodded. "There's no way you get stage fright!" he squeaked.

You smiled, "When I was a freshman, I was in choir and at our first performance, I passed out before we even went on stage."

"Wait a second," he shook his head, "So you're telling me that you're a total Pokemon nerd  _and_ you're a bad ass guitar player, but you get really bad stage fright?" You shrugged with a small smile. "God, you're like, the cutest thing I've ever seen," he muttered.

You laughed with a small blush, "I'll take that as a compliment, thank you. But I can't take all the credit for being a ' _bad ass guitar player_ '. You're the reason I started playing."

"I am?"

"Yeah. I bought the album and listened to it on repeat for probably four days before I started really focusing on anything other than learning the words," you giggled to yourself, "But one of the times, I was only focusing on guitar and your riffs and solos and everything just blew me away, to be honest, and I really wanted to learn how to do that stuff, so I saved up to buy myself a guitar and I guess the rest is history."

"Which was the first song you learned how to play?" he asked curiously.

"In it's entirety,  _Long Way Home_. Truthfully, I wanted  _Rejects_ to be the first, but I gave up because I was like ' _I'm never gonna get this solo down_ ', ' _This is way too hard_ ', ' _My fingers aren't fast enough for this_ ' – all that stuff," you replied, "But I eventually did it and I like to think it paid off. I mean, I didn't completely embarrass myself today. Not yet anyway." Michael chuckled quietly, turning a light shade of red at hearing he was your inspiration.

It was like he couldn't have found someone more perfect. He'd been searching for someone like you for so long and now that you were finally in front of him, he was scared. He was scared that if he asked you out after only talking to you for 10 minutes, you would say no. He was scared that you would you would say no to avoid being attacked by countless fans that were more concerned with protecting their own fantasies than allowing him to just be happy. He was scared you would run away at the first rude tweet about you because, although he didn't know you, he could tell that you were a very introverted person and you would probably end up letting those things get to you. He was terrified he wouldn't be able to protect you.

But Michael also thought you were the prettiest girl he'd ever seen. He'd met plenty of girls that could play guitar or loved Pokemon as much as he did, but he'd never felt that sort of instant connection the way he had with you. Sure, you were a bit shy and nervous around people, but you weren't around him – and he felt the exact same way. Being in the spotlight obviously meant meeting new people and constantly venturing out of his comfort zone, but it just felt right with you. With you, he didn't feel like he was  _Michael Clifford from 5 Seconds of Summer_ ; He simply felt like  _Michael_.

" _Michael_ ," he heard your voice sing lightly as you waved a hand in front of his face. He jumped slightly, not realizing he had spaced out, and looked at you. "You okay?" you asked. He could see the concern on your face.

"Yeah," he nodded, "I'm good." You raised your eyebrows a bit and he knew you didn't believe him. He cleared his throat, desperately wanting to change the subject. "So, um, do you live around here?"

"Kind of, I guess," you shrugged, "My town's about 45 minutes away."

"Oh, man. Well, thanks for coming out."

"It wasn't that far, really," you giggled, "I mean, I overheard one girl say she traveled  _10 hours_  to come today."

"Either way," he smiled shyly, "I'm glad you could make it." You smiled slightly before tilting your head.

"Are you sure you're okay, Michael?" you asked him. The sound of you saying his name made his heart speed up.

"I'm fine," he said reassuringly – trying to convince himself of it more than you. When he heard his band's and Savannah's laughs faintly from down the hallway, he frowned, knowing he didn't have much more time alone with you. "This is probably a really weird thing to ask a fan," he said in a rush, "But do you have Skype or something?"

"Yes..." you nodded slowly, "Why do you ask?" He started chewing on his lip.

"We're leaving for the next city right after we get everything packed up," he started nervously, "And I... I would really like to see you again and I-" He cleared his throat again. "-I was just wondering. It's okay if you're not interested or something. I'll understand." You couldn't stop the smile from pulling at the corner of your mouth. You pulled out your phone and got on Twitter, sending him your Skype name.

"I just tweeted it to you," you grinned, looking back up at the very nervous looking guitar player rocking back and forth on his feet in front of you. "Good luck trying to find it," you winked, making him blush as your friends came back out to the arena. Michael was too busy fumbling around with his phone to pay attention to them. "Wow," you said, looking at your phone then back at Savannah, nodding your head, "15 minutes. That may very well be a new record." She rolled her eyes as the other boys laughed.

"In her defense, we don't really know this venue too well," Ashton stated, "We may have gone the wrong way a couple times."

"Can we go back to the bus yet?" Calum whined randomly, bouncing up and down, "I wanna listen to these now!" He held up the CDs you gave him.

"Listen, Cal," Luke said, still holding his penguin tightly, "I love Green Day as much as the next person, but if I have to hear  _only_ these albums for the next three weeks, I swear I'm gonna cut all the strings on your bass."

"You wouldn't  _dare_ ," Calum threatened lowly. Luke shrugged, silently accepting the challenge. You and Savannah laughed with Ashton quietly when Michael startled all of you.

"Found it!" he shouted, making all your heads snap over to look at him. His eyes widened, realizing he had said it out loud. "I, uh, I mean... Welcome back..." You brought your hand up to scratch your cheek, attempting to hide your growing grin from everyone else. Savannah looked down at her phone and sighed.

"I hate to be the bearer of bad news, babe," she said to you, "But we have to get going. My mom hates when I drive at night and I've gotta get you home before yours calls mine in panic." You scrunched your face up, knowing she was right.

You sighed as well, asking the boys for one more hug before you left. They happily obliged, thanking you again for the presents. You stood in front of Michael again, smiling at him before wrapping your arms around his waist. He let out a breath, hugging you tightly, not letting go until you did. You stood up on your toes so you could whisper in his ear.

"Call me whenever," you told him as you took your arms back. He nodded furiously and you leaned in, pressing a quick kiss to his cheek before trotting off with Savannah under the confused gazes of Ashton, Calum, and Luke and the love-struck awe of Michael as they watched the two of you leave.


	204. Lessons Learned (Calum Hood) *

**Warning: Mention of suicidal thoughts, attempted suicide**

~

You were exiting the doors to the school one Friday afternoon to begin your short walk home. You were in your sophomore year of high school and undeniably exhausted – you had two tests today and were stressing about your poor grade in math – so you were in a bit of a rush to get home so you could just curl up in bed until dinner time. But when you heard loud laughing behind you, you looked over your shoulder. You watched four members of the football team point at a kid who was walking about 10 feet in front of them and then whisper to each other.

Calum Hood was the kid everyone considered to be the biggest nerd in the school – he had been since what seemed like the first day of freshman year. He began his homework right after it was assigned, he finished projects and book reports a week early, and he had these black-framed glasses that he was always pushing up the bridge of his nose. He had no friends and it seemed like no one was interested in trying to make themselves one either.

One of the football players sneaked up behind Calum and reached around him, pushing down on the top of the stack of books in his arms. This obviously caused everything to be sent to the ground, loose papers flying in every direction. The jock then shoved Calum down, his hands luckily flying out in front of him in time so his face didn't hit the pavement.

You saw him let out the smallest sigh as the other guys walked away, still laughing. Although you couldn't completely see his face, you knew he was on the brink of tears. Despite the fact that simply picking up his things wouldn't stop him from crying, you couldn't just not go help him, knowing that everyone else sure as hell wasn't going to.

You turned around and sprinted down the sidewalk until you reached where Calum was. Fortunately, it wasn't windy that day, so none of his papers had gotten too far away. The black-haired boy jumped as you knelt down beside him, presumably believing you were one of the jocks who had come back for one more humiliation stunt. But when he looked up and saw you, he was understandably surprised. He was never really the type to attract any girls, so the fact that one was now helping him pick up his stuff was a bit startling to him.

You were quick to gather up all the papers strewn about the sidewalk before people stepped on them and returned back to Calum. You couldn't help but notice that he was carrying a lot of books – way more than you usually saw him carrying on the few occasions when you would see him after school. As you both stood back up, you kept what you were holding in your arms – about half of what he had with him – as you smiled politely at him.

"Calum, right?" you asked, "You live down the street from me?" He swallowed thickly, looking into your eyes as he nodded. "I'm Y/N," you introduced yourself, "Do you need help carrying your stuff? I mean, you look like you've got the entirety of your high school existence with you."

He chuckled nervously, speaking in a whisper, "It's fi-"

"No, come on," you shook your head, "I wouldn't offer my help if it didn't look like you needed it." Calum agreed after a moment of silence and you two walked down the sidewalk together. The walk home was a good one – one in which you walked slower than you usually did, finding yourself wanting to spend as much time with Calum as possible before you reached his house.

You talked about what seemed like a hundred different things in the span of about 10 minutes and found yourself laughing harder than you ever had with anyone else. When you finally made it to your street, you started chewing on your bottom lip.

"Hey, Calum," you said suddenly, making him look at you, "You're pretty good at math, right?"

"They don't call me a nerd for nothing, Y/N," he replied, giving you a bit of a forced smile.

You let out a breath, "Right, sorry... Well, I was wondering...if it's okay with you...if you could maybe come over for a little bit? Like, I'm having a  _really_ hard time understanding all the stuff we're doing in algebra and I have a really big test next Thursday that I  _can't_  fail and I thought maybe you would be able to help me..." He remained quiet, so you quickly went on. "It's totally cool if you can't," you told him, "I'm sure I can figure it out on my own."

"No, no, no," he rapidly shook his head, "I just... I'm not used to people asking for anything other than the answers. No one's ever asked me to help actually  _understand it_  before. But I'd be happy to come over. Besides, if the nerd can't help you, who can?" You accidentally laughed, making him blush and smile.

"Thank you," you replied gratefully, "You're really saving me on this one." You stopped on the sidewalk in front of your driveway, your eyes flicking between the books in both yours and Calum's arms. "We should probably drop this stuff off first," you suggested.

"Yeah," he agreed with a laugh, "Probably."

~

**Two weeks later; Friday**

You had been preparing for your algebra test with Calum after school for the 12 days leading up to your test and today was the moment of truth; Today was the day you would be getting your result.

You were pretty confident that you at least got a passing grade, but you still had your doubts. Calum was an exceptional tutor and he made sure that he never left your study sessions without you completely understanding what he'd helped you with that day.

You were bouncing your leg under your desk, anxiously waiting for your teacher, Mr. Morrison, to pass the tests back. What made him decide to wait until the end of class to do it, you didn't know, but you had been an emotional wreck the entire day due to algebra being your last period.

Your heart nearly stopped, however, when he grabbed the papers off of his desk. He began calling names and your classmates went up to get their tests. The pile was getting smaller and smaller and your name remained uncalled.

When he got to the last test, he called the only name left that wasn't yours. He looked over at your puzzled expression.

"See me after class, Miss Y/L/N," Mr. Morrison said monotonously. Everyone glanced at you, making you sink down in your chair.

In the five minutes it took for the bell to ring, you had managed to come up with every possible worst case scenario in your mind. You didn't think you did that bad, but you must have considering the fact that your teacher wanted to talk to you. You waited as everyone filed out of the room, some friends even giving you worried looks on their way past your desk. You finally got up as the last few people left, gathering up your books and heading across the room to Mr. Morrison's desk.

"You-" you cleared your throat nervously, "You wanted to see me, sir?"

"Yes," he nodded, strategically placing his hand over your grade so you couldn't see it, "Out of sheer curiosity, how much have you studied since the last test?"

"You have no idea," you mumbled.

"Any tutors at all?"

"Um..." you trailed off, "Just Calum Hood..." He raised his eyebrows in surprise, then nodded.

"Well, Miss Y/L/N-" You prepared yourself for the worst. "-it looks like all that extra studying finally paid off." He finally handed you your test and in the top corner, you saw a large-printed  _A_. Your eyes widened in shock.

"A-Are you serious?" you tore your eyes away from the ink to look at your teacher.

"I'm serious," Mr. Morrison smiled, "I'm very proud of you, young lady. I knew you had it in you to get marks like this."

"And my parents  _don't_  have to sign this one, right?"

He laughed loudly, "No, but I  _do_ want you to show it to them! And I expect to see better grades on future tests and assignments as well." You nodded rapidly. "Have a good weekend, Miss Y/L/N," he told you, "You deserve it."

"Thank you!" you squeaked, already halfway to the door.

You raced to your locker, practically throwing all of your books on the shelves and shoving the ones you needed to take home into your backpack before you slammed the door closed and took off again. Your test paper never left your hand – your fingers now tightly curled around it so it didn't fly away.

When you got outside, you saw Calum had already begun walking home – probably thinking you had either already left or simply didn't want to be seen with him now that your testing was finished.

" _Calum_!" you shouted as you ran toward him, weaving around the other students walking down the sidewalk as well.

Calum spun around at the sound of your voice, just in time for you to drop your backpack and throw your arms around his neck – he had stopped carrying what seemed like everything he owned about a week after you officially met, so his arms were already empty. He stumbled backwards as his arms flew around your waist.

"What's going on?" he asked.

You pulled back with a giant smile, turning your paper to face him. His jaw nearly dropped when he saw your grade and he wasted no time in wrapping his arms back around you, picking you up slightly.

"Y/N!" you could hear his smile, "That's amazing! I'm so proud of you!"

"Well, I couldn't have done it without you, Cal," you grinned when he put you back down. You picked your bag back up and slung it over your shoulder so you and Calum could start walking home.

"How are you going to celebrate?" he poked your arm.

You laughed lightly, "I'm probably not, to be honest."

"Y/N!" he exclaimed, "You can't just  _not_ celebrate this! This is a huge deal! Come on, how about I take you out for an ice cream date later or something?"

"A date?" you felt a small smirk pulling at the corner of your mouth.

"O-Or we could just do it as friends," he stuttered, retreating back to the shy, nervous boy you were so used to seeing, "Or we don't have to go at all. It's up to you. Whatever you want to do." You let out a quiet giggle.

"I would love to go on a date with you, Calum," you said, pressing a kiss to his cheek, making him blush a bright red.

~

**Two years later**

"I was thinking either this one or this one," you said, laying two dresses out on your bed, "What do you think?"

"Does it really matter?" your boyfriend asked, getting off of your desk chair and coming up beside you, "The gown is going to cover it anyway."

"Cal!" you whined, "Graduation is tomorrow, okay?! I need an outfit! This is going to be the last time people from school see me until reunion! I need to go out looking hot as hell!"

"You always look hot as hell," he chuckled, wrapping an arm around your waist.

"Can we focus, please?" you sighed, but you knew you were blushing. Calum began chewing on his bottom lip, his eyes crinkling as he focused on the clothing in front of him.

"You'll look beautiful in this one," he finally said, reaching for the pink and white dress.

"You say that about every piece of clothing I show you," you rolled your eyes.

"Well, if you didn't look beautiful in everything you buy, you wouldn't have to hear it so much," he sassed, kissing your cheek.

"Thanks, Cal," you said, leaning into him. There were a few moments of silence before you spoke again. "I'm gonna miss you, you know," you whispered.

"I think we'll do just fine," he told you, turning you in his arms so he could hug you properly.

"2,000 miles is a long way away though," you swallowed thickly, your forearms resting on his shoulders so your fingers could play with his hair.

"I know," he said quietly, "But I love you, Y/N, and I'm willing to do whatever it takes to make the distance work for as long as you still want to be with me."

"So forever?" you asked, looking into his eyes.

"Forever," he smiled with a nod, leaning forward and pressing his lips to yours.

Ever since you and Calum went on that ice cream date sophomore year, you noticed a change in him. He was a lot more social than he used to be, people didn't pick on him anymore, and he gained quite a few friends. He could now be found at all the sporting events and dances with you by his side.

Calum had asked you to be his girlfriend – well, more like passed you a note while you were at his house for one of your study dates because he was way to nervous to actually say it. You obviously accepted and you'd been practically inseparable ever since. It was rare to see Calum walking around without you, his fingers tangled up in yours.

Calum was one of those people that everyone loved to be around; All he needed was to come out of his shell. And you really helped him with that. You were sure that if it weren't for the decision you made to help him pick up his books and ask him for tutoring, everyone would miss out on what a great guy he really was.

~

**Graduation day**

"Come on, honey!" your mom called from the bottom of the staircase, "We don't want to be late!"

"Coming!" you shouted, grabbing your cap and gown after putting your sandals on. You ran down the stairs, turning around when you reached her so she could help you zip your dress up the rest of the way before you put your gown on and headed out the door.

The ride to the school was one filled with your parents going on about how proud they were of you and how much they were going to miss you when you went off to college. You tried to block it out for the most part, not wanting to start crying before the ceremony even started.

When you arrived, you immediately began your search for Calum. He was the valedictorian, so you figured he would be hanging around the stage somewhere, but you didn't see him. You shrugged it off, figuring he simply hadn't gotten there yet. You said goodbye to your parents as they went to find seats and you left to line up with your classmates.

As you stood in your spot – you already had a general idea of where to go since you had rehearsals the previous Thursday – you were talking to the girl who would be sitting beside you. You chatted about plans for college, what you would be majoring in, and all things related.

You were so immersed in conversation with her and those around you that you were startled when arms wrapped around your waist from behind. You turned your head to see Calum smiling widely at you.

"Cal!" you squeaked, turning and putting your arms around his neck, "I was looking for you earlier!"

"Sorry," he chuckled, "Principal wanted to see me." He looked at you from head to toe and nodded, "You look beautiful – as I predicted." You giggled lightly, pushing his shoulder.

"Alright, guys!" your principal hollered, making everyone get quiet, "Who's ready to graduate?!" Everyone obviously cheered, laughing as well. "We'll be heading out in about 5 minutes, so get your caps and gown on and get in your assigned spots!"

"I'll see you later," Calum said, kissing you quickly, "Hey, don't leave right away, okay? My folks want pictures with you too." You nodded, smiling when you thought about how much Calum's family seemed to love you more than he himself did. Your boyfriend gave you one more kiss – he could never seem to leave you with  _just one_  – before he trotted off to the front of the line.

~

The ceremony had started and you had just walked out onto the football field. You sat down and the speeches immediately began.

About 30 minutes in, it was time to walk across the stage for diplomas. Everything went as smoothly as it possibly could have and once everyone was back in their seats, your principal went up to the podium again.

"Our last speaker is someone who was pretty much an obvious choice for valedictorian," he smiled, "He is one of the brightest students this school has ever seen and it gives me great honor to introduce the Class of 2014's valedictorian, Calum Hood."

Calum grinned as he stood up and everyone was clapping. You sighed lightly, staring up at your boyfriend and finding yourself wondering how you got so lucky to call him yours. He shook the Principal's hand and stepped up to the podium.

"I know valedictorian speeches are usually pretty boring and uneventful – as most speeches are," Calum began with a bright smile, "So instead of the whole ' _high school was an amazing experience and I'm so glad I got to share it with all of you guys_ ' spiel-" Everyone couldn't help but laugh. "-I'm going to tell you all a story."

He took a deep breath, pausing for a moment. His eyes scanned the rows of classmates until they landed on who they were looking for:  _You_. He smiled again, causing you to grin back, as he finally went on.

"It's no secret to anyone that's been through it that high school isn't the easiest time in someone's life. It comes complete with pages upon pages of homework, countless hours of studying for exams, and focusing a little too seriously on that  _one_ bad mark and not enough on the things that really matter. My high school experience is what most people would consider a movie-esque one; I was your typical nerd – never really did anything outside of my comfort zone and didn't really have any friends either. But sophomore year, nearly halfway through the second semester, that all changed."

You felt a smile pull at the corner of your mouth as the girl to your left nudged you gently. You glanced at her and she winked at you, making you giggle quietly before you turned your attention back to the boy on stage.

"I believe that everyone deserves to have at least one person in their life that they would do absolutely anything for; One person that changes their life in ways they may not fully understand whether that person knows it or not. And I just wanted to take this moment to thank my girlfriend for being that person for me." Calum smiled, motioning to you, making you blush when everyone turned to look at you. "Now, I've never told this to anybody but my parents and my sister," he went on, "But before I met that beautiful girl right there-" He gestured toward you again. "-I was at an incredibly low point in my life." The smile on your face – as well as everyone else's – instantly faded, having a pretty good idea of where the story was heading. "And the day I met her, I was carrying every single thing I had in my locker home with me because I was planning on ending it all that night and I didn't want my mother to have to clean out my locker. I did that every day for a week and  _every single day_ , she was waiting for me outside after school and she came over in the mornings so we could walk together, just like she has every day since. Up until the day I finally left school without anything extra, I felt as though nothing was going to get better and that I would be just as miserable and lonely as I had been for the previous year and a half. And let me tell you; I have never been more grateful to be as wrong as I was in my life. I am not proud of the unspeakable thing I'd considered doing by any means, but I'm hoping that at least one person leaves this ceremony with this message taken to heart: You may think that helping that one kid pick up his things after he falls or even just tipping a little extra to the waitress who brings you your food isn't that meaningful in the grand scheme of things, but to that one person, it could be the difference between seeing them the next day or hearing about their funeral later. And Y/N-" He looked right into your eyes as you wiped a tear, a small smile forming on his lips. "-I cannot even begin to thank you enough for everything you've done for me. I never would have gotten this far without your love and support and I never would have come out of my shell and made as many new friends as I have now if it weren't for you." He looked around the room again, "I guess I only have one thing left to say; Congratulations, Class of 2014! We made it!" Everyone clapped loudly as Calum stepped away from the podium, shaking the Principal's hand and taking his diploma, moving the tassel to the left side of his cap.

As he walked down the stage stairs, the girl beside you tapped your leg again quickly. She motioned to Calum, telling you to go hug him. You smiled, wiping your tear-stained cheeks again with the sleeve of your gown. You got up and everyone in your row moved their legs out of the way so you could get through quicker. 

When you were finally out of the row, Calum looked up and saw you in front of him. You didn't bother waiting for a reaction; You just ran the short distance to your boyfriend, crashing into him, and your fellow classmates – as well as everyone in the bleachers – burst into cheers. You hugged his neck and his arms squeezed your waist tightly. You felt quiet sobs shake your body, causing Calum to hold you even closer.

"I love you so much," you whimpered into his shoulder. You felt him smile against the skin of your neck.

"I love you so much  _more_ ," he stated simply, just happy he had finally met someone like you.

_~_

_inspiration: http://tcsnc.sharpschool.com/district_information/superintendent/wednesday_wisdom/_


	205. Our Song (Luke Hemmings)

"Ah, what a pleasure is it that you've  _finally_  decided to join us, Mr. Hemmings," your English teacher sighed as the tall blonde sauntered through the door, "You are certainly nothing like your brothers."

"Thank you," Luke gave her a lopsided grin, making his was to his usual seat in the back. He winked at you as he passed, making you scrunch up your face in confusion. You looked over at Emily and she shrugged lightly.

"Alright, class," Mrs. Moore said, bringing everyone's attention back to her, "Now that Mr. Hemmings has decided to grace us with his presence, I can make my announcement." Luke smiled at her again, leaning back in his chair. "As you all know, finals are in two weeks-" Groans echoed throughout the classroom, making her chuckle. "-and I know you'll all be busy studying for your other tests, so I wanted to go easy on you. All I want you to do is create something; It can be a short story, a power point, a diorama – whatever you would like – about something or someone that has had some sort of major impact on your life. We'll be presenting these projects during finals week and you will have partners, but  _I_  will be assigning them."

You and Emily looked at each other in slight panic, praying you would end up together. Mrs. Moore went down the list in her hands, naming off the pairs. At some point in the middle, your name was called.

"Miss Y/L/N-" You shut your eyes tightly and held your breath. "-you will be working with Mr. Hemmings." You threw your head back, letting out a barely audible whine.

"Nice," you heard one of Luke's friends, Calum, snicker quietly as he punched Luke's shoulder.

Evidently, Emily heard it too because she looked at you with a confused expression. You shook your head as if to tell her you didn't know what it was all about either and you both turned back to the front of the room, hoping the rest of class would go by quickly.

When the bell finally rang, you sighed in relief. You quickly gathered up your things and hurried out the door. You leaned against the wall, waiting for Emily as you always did. When she walked out, you started your trek down the hall so you could put your books away and head to lunch, but you were stopped by someone calling your name.

"Y/N!" Luke hollered, sprinting toward you, "Hey, Y/N, wait up!" You turned as you stopped walking and he came to a stop in front of you. He glanced at Emily, making her raise her eyebrows.

"I'll meet you at your locker," she told you. You nodded slowly before she trotted away, leaving you standing with Luke in the middle of the hall. He smiled at you, finally having your attention.

"Do you want to come over after school?" he asked, pausing before quickly adding, "You know, so we can get started on the project?" You were a bit taken aback by the question; You didn't think he'd be so prompt about starting your project – if he even did anything  _at all_.

"Uh..." you replied, "Sure..."

"You seem surprised," he pointed out with a frown.

"No, I just..." you trailed off, "After school is alright."

"Cool," he flashed you a smile, "I'll meet you outside near the buses? I have to take my other friends home first if that's okay."

"That's fine with me," you nodded.

"Awesome!" he chirped, a goofy grin on his face, "I'll see you later then!" He trotted away and you shook off the confusion, hurrying in the direction of your locker.

~

**After school**

"Y/N!" you heard behind you, making you turn around for the second time that day. You watched as Luke exited the school and came up to you with his two best friends. "You already know Calum," he told you, motioning to the boy from your English class. You both gave each other a small nod as Luke motioned to his other friend. "And this is Michael," he introduced the two of you. The brown-haired boy smiled at you, making you blush. You returned the gesture with a sheepish grin and Luke spoke again. "My car is over here," he said, putting his hand on your upper back and ushering you into the parking lot. He seemed to be more tense and it sounded like he was speaking through clenched teeth, making you wonder what had happened so suddenly to make his mood change.

"You can sit up front," Michael said once you all reached Luke's car, opening the door for you.

"Oh, no, that's fine," you shook your head, "I'll si-"

"I insist, Y/N-" Him saying your name made your heart flutter. "-You'll be the last one in the car anyway. It would make no sense for you to be in the back the whole time or have to move to the front." You blushed lightly again.

"Thank you," you practically whispered, sitting down.

Michael closed the door and as you put your backpack on the floorboard between your legs, you could hear the three boys mumbling to each other. You couldn't make out what they were saying exactly, but Luke sounded anything but thrilled for whatever reason. They all got into the car; No one speaking a word until Luke pulled out of the parking lot.

Michael was sat behind you, so he leaned forward and started whispering stupid jokes into your right ear. You giggled quietly with every joke he told you, causing Luke to glance at you each time. His jaw tightened more and more as he finally pulled up to Calum's house.

"Later, guys," Calum said, earning a chorus of goodbyes as he got out of the car. Once Luke was back on the road, Michael was at it again with his jokes.

You never spoke – only giggled occasionally. You could see out of the corner of your eye that Luke was getting more frustrated with everything Michael said, but you shrugged it off, not really considering that it had anything to do with you and Michael.

When Luke arrived at Michael's, the brown-haired boy unbuckled his seat belt, leaning forward again, but this time, he was speaking on your left side so you could actually look at him.

"It was nice meeting you, Y/N," he said, "I hope to see you again tomorrow."

"You too, Michael," you replied shyly. He got out, hurrying around the car. He waved as he passed the front, looking directly at you. You smiled at him while Luke let out a sigh of relief.

"Sorry about him," he mumbled, beginning the short journey to his house, "He never shuts up sometimes."

"It's okay," you said, the smile still on your lips, "I like him." You weren't looking at him, but a pained expression appeared on Luke's face.

The blonde quickly shook it off before you saw it, but he couldn't deny that his heart was still hurting and he wondered why he was getting so upset. He'd never talked to you before today; He only gave you sly winks and small smirks during class and passing periods. His friends had no idea about his developing crush on the quiet girl from his English class, so it was understandable that Michael was flirting with you.

But what Luke  _did_  know was that he liked you; And judging by the confused looks his winking got from you, he was really going to have to convince you of it.

Luke finally pulled into his driveway, parking in what you guessed was his usual spot in front of the garage door. You both got out and he led you inside, quickly introducing you to his parents and pulling you upstairs to his bedroom before they could embarrass him.

Once you entered, you couldn't help but admire it a bit. There were band posters covering nearly every inch of his wall as well as photos of him and his friends and family. You accidentally let a small chuckle pass your lips as you looked at a photo of him, Calum, and Michael pulling silly faces for the camera at one of the football games. You missed Luke blush at the sound of your laugh, but by the time you looked at him, the red tint on his cheeks had already vanished.

"So for the project," Luke started as he sat down on his bed, "I was thinking we could write a song."

" _Write a song_?" you wondered skeptically, sitting yourself on his desk chair.

"Yeah-" He cleared his throat with a nod. "-I'm not really very good at artsy-craftsy kind of stuff, so I thought we could do that instead. Plus, I figured no one else would do anything like songwriting and doing something really different could get us more points." You felt a smile pull at the corner of your mouth.

"How would we present that though?" you asked. He thought for a moment.

"What's your singing voice like?"

"Oh, uh... I don't know. People tell me it sounds nice, but I don't think I'm all that great, honestly."

"Can I hear it?" You groaned quietly, unsure, but he reached down on the opposite side of his bed, bringing a guitar with him as he sat back up. "Come on," he said, putting the instrument on his lap, "I'll play, you sing." You nodded slowly. "I see you wear All Time Low shirts a lot, so how about that?" You nodded again and he began playing  _Somewhere in Neverland_. You couldn't tell which part of the song he was playing, but he luckily led you into the chorus. " _So here we go again,_ " he sang, " _Wishing we could start again._ "

" _Wendy, run away with me,_ " you quickly came in, " _I know I sound crazy; Don't you see what you do to me? I wanna be your lost boy, your last chance, a better reality, yeah. Wendy, we can get away. I promise if you're with me, say the word and we'll find a way. I can be your lost boy, your last chance, your 'everything better' plan. Oh, somewhere in Neverland._ " Luke was beaming by the time he stopped playing, moving his guitar to the empty spot on the bed beside him.

"You sound beautiful!" he said, making you blush. You saw him smile wider and knew he saw your cheeks turning red.

"Thanks," you mumbled.

"I think we could definitely do a song for our project."

"But I don't know the first thing about writing a song..."

"That's okay," he replied, "It's not that hard, I promise."

"Really?" you asked sheepishly.

"Yeah!" he nodded, "Record labels will be  _begging_  to hire this duo-" He motioned between the two of you. "-by the time we're done." You couldn't help but laugh, making him smile again, knowing he caused it.

~

The next morning, when you arrived at school, Emily was waiting at your locker – as usual – but she was standing with Luke, Michael, and Calum. You approached cautiously, but with a small smirk on your face as well.

"If I knew there was a party at my locker today, I would have brought some snacks," you stated, making them look over.

"Hi, Y/N," Michael smiled, "You look very nice today." You blushed as Luke elbows his ribs, making him jump. "What was that for?!" he whined, rubbing the spot where he got hit. You cocked an eyebrow, but decided not to get into it.

"Thank you, Michael," you grinned, turning to put your combination in your locker, "So what's with the gathering?"

"Oh, I, uh-" Luke cleared his throat nervously. "-I wanted to see if you were able to come over after school again... F-For the project, obviously... Cal and Mikey just decided to tag along."

"Sure," you shrugged.

"Okay," he smiled shyly, "Well, uh, I'll see you in class."

"Later, Luke," you replied, looking over your shoulder at him.

He and his friends quickly scurried away. When they were out of hearing range, Emily smacked your upper arm.

" _Ow_!" you squeaked, giving her a confused, shocked expression, "Emily!"

"Don't ' _Emily!_ ' me!" she exclaimed in a low whisper, "Luke is so into you! It's embarrassing to have to watch, honestly!"

"No, he's not," you sighed, closing your locker door and beginning to walk toward the cafeteria for breakfast, "He's just my partner for the project. He has to act like I exist until it's done." Emily let out a low groan.

"He gets so nervous around you, it's ridiculous," she stated, "The only reason you don't notice when he stares at you is because you sit in front of him. I've never seen him wink at anyone but you. I mean, did you not see the way he hit Michael when he complimented you?! He's obviously jealous!"

"If he was really that jealous, he would have done something about it by now."

"Have you been listening to anything I've said?!" she whined, shoving you lightly as you went through the line, "You make him nervous! Think about it: When was the last time you heard him trip up his words?"

"I don't know," you answered, "I've never talked to him before yesterday."

"Well, I'll give you a hint: It only happens when he's around  _you_. And I know you're into him too, you just don't want to admit it."

"Em, I'm not-"

"You can deny it all you want," she said as you sat down with your food, but she didn't sit with you like she normally did, "But what you can't deny is the way  _you_  look at  _him_  when  _he's_  not paying attention."

"Emily-" Before you could finish your sentence, she walked away, leaving you to think about everything she said.

~

**One week later**

"How about ' _And the dreams you left behind, you didn't need them, like every single wish we ever made_ '?" Luke sang softly. You two were currently in his bedroom – he was lying on his bed with his guitar on his stomach and you were mindlessly spinning around on his desk chair – working on your song.

"Sounds great," you muttered.

"Are you okay, Y/N?" he asked, putting his guitar on the floor, "You've seemed really out of it for the past few days."

"I'm fine," you sighed, slowly coming to a stop and turning the chair to face him, "I think I just need a break."

"Oh," he nodded, "Well, why didn't you just say so? We can take a break. Do you want something to eat or anything?" You shook your head and he tilted his. "Are you sure you're alright?"

You barely nodded and he looked at you for a good 15 seconds before gesturing for you to come to the bed. You did, climbing up and lying down next to him.

He raised his eyebrows at you, "What's  _really_ going on?"

"It's just the song," you answered honestly with another small sigh, "I know we're supposed to do something that's had an impact on us, but... I don't know... I guess I didn't think it would hit me as hard as it is."

"That's the cool thing about music though," Luke nodded understandingly, "It's a really great way of telling people how you feel without  _actually_ telling them."

"So who's making you suggest such heart-wrenching lyrics for our song then?" you joked, your hand pushing his thigh lightly.

He laughed, "It's nothing too elaborate, to be honest. I dated this girl for about a year and then she just told me she was done with the relationship one day. Never really gave me a reason for it, but I'll admit I do think about where we'd be now if she'd stayed." You smiled slightly, staring up at the ceiling. "What about you?" he asked, studying the side of your face, "I mean, ' _If what we had was real, how could you be fine?_ ' is pretty depressing too, you know." Your smile grew a little bit as you chuckled.

"Same thing, pretty much," you shrugged, "A few months ago, the guy I was dating broke it off without too much reasoning. He seemed heartbroken that he was breaking up with me, but I see him around sometimes and he looks totally fine. And I don't know; I guess it's confusing. Like, I'm still trying to pick up the pieces and he's moved on like I was nothing to him."

"Wait," Luke furrowed his eyebrows, "Is that why you missed school for a couple days back in like, October?"

"Yeah," you murmured, turning your head to look at him, "You noticed I missed school?"

"Well... Yeah..." he said quietly, unable to keep himself from turning red, "And you looked really sad when you came back. It really sucked seeing you like that and not knowing what was wrong."

"There wasn't anything you could have done, Luke," you shook your head.

"I could have at least tried," he mumbled, "And for what it's worth, I think that guy is a complete idiot. Anybody would be lucky to have you as their girlfriend." It was your turn to blush.

"Anybody would be lucky to have you as their boyfriend, Luke," you told him. You gazed at each other for a moment before you pushed yourself up, "We should get back to work." Luke cleared his throat, grabbing his guitar once again, desperately trying not to think about what it would be like to kiss you.

~

**Presentation day**

You were standing outside your English classroom, leaning against the wall. You were tapping your foot, fidgeting with your fingers as you waited for Luke.

Once you saw him coming down the hallway – guitar resting on his back – you breathed a sigh of relief.

"Luke," you grumbled, pulling on his arm before he passed through the door and bringing him in front of you, "I don't think I can do this."

"Hey," he said softly, putting his hands on your shoulders and holding onto you firmly, "You're gonna do amazing, okay? And if you start to feel nervous, I'll be right there beside you." You swallowed thickly, taking a deep breath and nodding.

Luke let go of you, only to put his arm around your shoulders and walk into the room with you. You both went to your assigned seats, anxiously waiting for class to start.

About 25 minutes into the period, Mrs. Moore called you and Luke up to present your project. Luke made his way up the row, but when he passed you and you still hadn't gotten up, he went back for you. He took your hand, pulling you up and bringing you to the front of the room with him.

"For our project," Luke started since it was clear you wouldn't be introducing anything with the way you were squeezing his hand, "Y/N and I decided to write a song. I think it'll become pretty obvious what the song means to us once you hear it, so we'll just get into it." He went to let go of your hand, but you still refused. "Y/N," he whispered in your ear, "You'll be fine. You can hold onto my arm if you want, but I kind of need my hand to play."

You let out a shaky breath, finally releasing your grip and wrapping your fingers around his upper arm after he moved his guitar from behind his back. He played the first few chords and you breathed in deeply, beginning to sing.

_I drove by all the places we used to hang out getting wasted_   
_I thought about our last kiss, how it felt, the way you tasted_   
_And even though your friends tell me you're doing fine_   
_Are you somewhere feeling lonely even though he's right beside you?_   
_When he says those words that hurt you, do you read the ones I wrote you?_

_Sometimes, I start to wonder, was it just a lie?_   
_If what we had was real, how could you be fine?_   
_Cause I'm not fine at all_

Luke joined you with harmonies for the chorus and you relaxed a bit at the sound of his voice.

_I remember the day you told me you were leaving_   
_I remember the make-up running down your face_   
_And the dreams you left behind, you didn't need them_   
_Like every single wish we ever made_

_I wish that I could wake up with amnesia_   
_And forget about the stupid little things_   
_Like the way it felt to fall asleep next to you_   
_And the memories I never can escape_

_Cause I'm not fine at all_

_The pictures that you sent me, they're still living in my phone_   
_I'll admit I like to see them, I'll admit I feel alone_   
_And all my friends keep asking why I'm not around_   
_And it hurts to know you're happy, yeah, it hurts that you moved on_   
_It's hard to hear your name when I haven't seen you in so long_

_It's like we never happened, was it just a lie?_   
_If what we had was real, how could you be fine?_   
_Cause I'm not fine at all_

_I remember the day you told me you were leaving_   
_I remember the make-up running down your face_   
_And the dreams you left behind, you didn't need them_   
_Like every single wish we ever made_

_I wish that I could wake up with amnesia_   
_And forget about the stupid little things_   
_Like the way it felt to fall asleep next to you_   
_And the memories I never can escape_

_If today, I woke up with you right beside me_   
_Like all of this was just some twisted dream_   
_I'd hold you closer than I ever did before_   
_And you'd never slip away_   
_And you'd never hear me say_

_I remember the day you told me you were leaving_   
_I remember the make-up running down your face_   
_And the dreams you left behind, you didn't need them_   
_Like every single wish we ever made_

_I wish that I could wake up with amnesia_   
_And forget about the stupid little things_   
_Like the way it felt to fall asleep next to you_   
_And the memories I never can escape_

_Cause I'm not fine at all_   
_No, I'm really not fine at all_   
_Tell me this is just a dream_   
_Cause I'm really not fine at all_

All of your classmates began clapping wildly – a few, including your teacher, were even tearing up – once you and Luke were done singing, making you smile. You wiped the few stray tears that had fallen throughout the song – you were sure there was never going to be a time when the lyrics  _didn't_  get to you – as Luke leaned down. He pressed a soft kiss to your cheek and whispered again so only you could hear him.

"See?" he grinned, nudging you gently, "Nothing to worry about." The skin where his lips were felt like it was on fire as you both went to sit back down and you couldn't keep still for the rest of the period.

When class was finally over, everyone left the room. You were still pretty jittery and practically ran to your locker to get your lunch, not even waiting for Emily. It was understandable for you to think that it was her when you heard someone walk up behind you, but it wasn't.

"Will you go out with me?" Luke's words were so fast that you almost didn't catch them. You spun around and looked up at him as he began messing with his lip ring. "I mean... I wanna take you on a date, Y/N," he said a bit more calmly, "If you'll let me." You could feel your cheeks getting hot, but you didn't turn away; You just nodded with a shy smile. "Friday night?" he asked, breathing a sigh of relief.

"Friday night," you nodded right as Michael, Calum, and Emily were walking up and entering hearing range.

" _Finally_!" Michael practically shouted, throwing his arms around yours and Luke's shoulders, "I thought this scaredy cat would never ask you out!"

"I'm not a scaredy cat," Luke stuck out his bottom lip, "And what do you mean by that?"

Calum rolled his eyes, "You're not exactly  _subtle_  when it comes to staring at her, you know."

" _Thank you_!" Emily exclaimed, throwing her arm up, making him and Michael laugh.

"Well, she didn't seem to  _notice_ ," the blonde mumbled, pushing his guitar to rest on his back.

"Oh, sure, it was all  _my_ fault," you stated dryly, but there was still an obvious joking tone to your voice. Luke stuck out his bottom lip, making you roll your eyes and quickly turn back to your locker before anyone saw you smile.

As you were putting in your combination, you felt arms snake around your waist and before you could respond, you were being pulled back into Luke's chest.

"Seriously though," he said quietly, leaning down and speaking so his lips were brushing against your ear with every word, "You did so well today."

"Thank you," you replied in a whisper, biting your bottom lip. He pressed a small kiss to the top of your ear, letting go and immediately leaving you to miss his arms around you.

"I'll see you later," he said, winking at you just before walking away with Calum and Michael. You sighed under your breath as Emily squealed under hers, poking your arm and repeatedly saying ' _I told you so!_ '.

~

_Song used: "Amnesia" by 5 Seconds of Summer_


	206. Kiss Me Slowly (Ryan Follese)

You were hard at work in the castle kitchen, making deserts for yet another party – not that you minded. There was nothing you enjoyed more than cooking and the fact that you got paid to do it was even better. You were mixing up some batter for another batch of cookies when you heard fast footsteps coming toward the room. You looked over as the door opened, you raised your eyebrows as one of the princes darted into the room.

"Ryan?" a confused tone seeping throughout your voice, "Shouldn't you be-"

"Probably," he cut you off with a sigh, "But I needed a break."

"Oh, I'm sure," you nodded, "Being around so many beautiful princesses can be really tiring." He let out a quiet chuckle, hopping up onto the counter beside you.

"The only beautiful princess I've got my eyes on is  _you_ ," he winked, making you roll your eyes, "I would just rather spend my time with someone who doesn't try so hard."

"Hey, I try  _really_  hard; I just make it  _look_  effortless," you said, twirling around once to show him how much flour and various other food items were all over your uniform.

"I can see that," he laughed, "What have you been doing to get this messy anyway?"

" _Working_ ," you reminded him, "The food for these parties doesn't make itself, you know."

"When are you going to be done?"

"A couple hours after the party is over, I'm guessing," you answered, cracking an egg and whisking it into what you already had in the bowl in front of you, "I'm sure I'll be recruited to help clean up the ballroom at some point."

"But I want to cuddle!" he whined lowly, making you laugh.

"My job is not to be your personal cuddle buddy, Ryan. Besides, you have a party to get back to."

"But I don't want to be out there! It's just a bunch of people acting like they're all that because they're part of a royal family."

"Well, at least you know how I feel around you," you winked.

"You love me and you know it," he frowned.

"Just because I love you doesn't make it any less true," you giggled, standing up on your toes so you could kiss his cheek.

"You can kiss better than that."

"You would know," you smirked, making him blush lightly.

"Come on," he said, "One kiss and I'll go back out."

"No, you won't," you stated.

"How do you know that?"

"Because I know you, Ry," you shook your head.

Ryan was about to respond when the sound of footsteps startled him. His eyes widened as he hopped off of the counter and hid on the floor, right beside your legs. You rolled your eyes again, but continued mixing as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

"Good evening, Y/N," the King smiled as he came into the room, "How's everything going in here?"

"Hello, Your Highness," you smiled politely, "It's going really well! I should have another round of desserts in about 20 minutes!"

"Excellent! Have you by chance seen my son wandering around? It's almost time for his dance with Princess Mia and Adrienne and I can't seem to find him anywhere."

"No, sir," you shook your head, "I haven't seen Jamie at all."

"Y/N," he chuckled, making you giggle lightly.

"He was down here earlier," you told him, "He left a few minutes ago, but he didn't tell me where he was going." The King furrowed his eyebrows.

"Alright, thank you," he nodded, "And your food is a big hit out there – as always. Well done."

"Thank you," you smiled brightly. He walked out of the room and Ryan waited a few seconds before standing back up.

"That was close," he muttered, dusting off the back of his pants and readjusting the crown on his head.

"You really should go back out, Ry," you said, "You can't keep the Princess waiting forever. And I can't keep lying to your parents just to save your ass."

"But I'd rather dance with you," he pouted lightly before wiggling his eyebrows, "And you love my ass."

"I'll make you a deal then." Ryan rested his hip on the counter, leaning closer to you. "If you go and spend the rest of the party at the actual party, you and I can sneak out to the garden after everyone's asleep and you can have that dance and your cuddles."

"Does this deal include unlimited kisses?" he asked.

"If it gets you out of my kitchen, yes," you teased. Ryan smiled, pressing a quick kiss to your forehead.

"Can't wait," he winked at you as he trotted back out to the ballroom, making you blush.

~

It was a little after midnight and everyone in the castle was now asleep apart from the few guards here and there. You were quiet as you sneaked past them, making your way toward the garden. You weren't quiet enough, however, because you heard a voice behind you.

"Sneaking out again, Miss Y/N?" The teasing tone made you relax instantly before you turned around.

"Well, you know how it is, Jamie," you smiled, "Make a deal with the Prince, gotta go through with it." He laughed lightly as he shook his head, but his smile quickly faded.

"Y/N," he frowned, "Why don't you guys just tell my parents? I'm sure it would be a lot easier than sneaking around all the time."

"You  _know_  why, Jamie," you sighed, "He's supposed to be seen with princesses; Not the help."

"But you guys have been together for nearly two years. Plus, everyone loves you; Especially my parents."

"I agree it sucks, but that's just how it is."

"So what are you gonna do when people expect him to marry a princess then?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it," you answered, "But right now, I have a date in the garden." You waved as you turned back around and rushed outside.

"You're late," Ryan stated the moment you stepped onto the grass.

"Your brother stopped me," you said, sticking your tongue out.

"What did he want?"

"The usual," you shrugged.

Ryan grabbed your hand and pulled you closer, putting his other arm around your waist. Your own arm went to rest on his shoulder as you two began swaying to nothing but the sounds of crickets chirping all around you.

He sighed, "I wish he'd just stay out of it."

"He  _means well_ , Ry," you reminded him, "It's not like he's forcing us to come clean about us or he'll tell everyone."

"I know and I really appreciate that, but there's a reason we haven't told anyone and I don't want to be pressured into doing it by my little brother."

"And what's the reason exactly?" you asked suddenly.

"What?" he furrowed his eyebrows as you both looked at each other.

"What's the reason?" you repeated.

"You said you didn't want everyone to know..."

"That was a year and a half ago, Ryan," you stated, "Things change."

"So you're saying you  _want_ to tell people?"

" _Don't you_?" you sighed, letting go of him and taking a couple steps back, "Aren't you sick of sneaking around like this all the time? Don't you want to be able to tell people you've got a girlfriend when they ask?"

"Y/N," he said slowly, "I don't think-"

"Are you ashamed of me or something?"

"Babe, I'm not ashamed of you. You know I love you."

"Then what's the problem? What's so bad about telling people about us? Are you scared that they'll make us break up because I'm not a princess? Are you scared of what they'll say because I'm a castle worker and you shouldn't be associating with me?"

"Y/N," he said softly, stepping forward and putting his hands on your shoulders, "Calm down." You took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. Once you were calmer, you looked up at Ryan. "I'm just scared you'll get hurt." You let out a breathy laugh, rolling your eyes.

"I'm not a child, Ryan," you said plainly, "I'm more than capable of handling my feelings when people talk shit about me."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," he took his hands back, "Why is this being pinned on  _me_?! I'm not the only one in this relationship!"

"Well, it certainly  _seems_  like it!" you shot back quietly, "It's not like I haven't brought this up before, Ryan! You just keep coming up with the same lame excuses and act like I'll forget about it!"

"What's  _that_ supposed to mean? If you really wanted to tell everyone, you would have by now."

"And completely ignore how  _you_  feel about the situation?" you laughed bitterly, "Nice to know I'm the only person ever considering what the other wants. This relationship is  _definitely_ 50/50." He was about to say something else, but you didn't give him the chance. "We need a break, Ryan," you told him, not even thinking about what you were saying yourself. He instantly froze.

"A-A  _break_?" he said, his voice barely audible.

"I think we both need some time to ourselves," you sighed, "Time to think about what we  _really_  want."

"I want  _you_ ," his voice broke. You smiled sadly, taking his face in your hands and pulling it to yours. You barely pulled away, your words brushing against his lips as you spoke.

"I love you, Ryan," you whispered. You let go, beginning to walk back to the castle steps when you heard his voice again, making you stop but you didn't look back at him.

"If you love me-" His voice was still shaky. "-why are you leaving?"

You let out the smallest whimper before hurrying back into the castle, leaving Ryan alone in the garden.

~

**One week later**

You were making breakfast for the family when footsteps coming into the room made you jump. You dropped the whisk in your hand as your head snapped up to find the youngest Follese perched on the small counter top on the island.

"What's up with you?" Anna asked you.

"What do you mean?" you asked, picking the whisk back up and continuing to stir.

"You seem really jumpy lately," she pointed out, "And you haven't been spending much time with Ryan."

"Just been busy, I guess," you replied quietly.

"You've never been too busy for Ryan!" You could hear her pout. "Is everything okay?"

"Everything's fine, Anna," you nodded. Before she could say anything else, the door flying open startled the both of you.

" _You broke up with him?!_ " Jamie exclaimed in a whisper. You sighed lightly.

"Good morning to you too, Jamie," you mumbled.

"Why would you break up with him?!" he asked.

"It doesn't matter. It's done."

"Wait," Anna spoke up, "Is that why he's been moping all week?"

"Apparently," Jamie said before turning his attention back to you, "What happened?"

"Nothing!" you exclaimed, pouring your mixed batter onto the waffle iron.

"He said it was because he didn't want to go public yet." You spun around to look at him.

"If you already got the story from Ryan, why the  _hell_  are you asking me?" you snapped. Jamie cocked an eyebrow in surprise; You rarely ever talked back to anybody.

"I just want your side of the story," he shrugged.

"Well, it seems to me like you've already been told everything you need to know," you stated unevenly, "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a breakfast to finish." Jamie sighed, ushering his sister to leave with him. You let out a sigh of relief, making the rest of the waffles in silence.

~

"Miss Y/N," one of the servants said as he came into the kitchen while you were cleaning up.

"Yes, Jeffrey?" you replied, drying the bowl in your hand.

"The King and Queen are requesting to see you in the dining hall."

"May I ask what for?"

"I don't know," he said, "They just told me they wanted to see you right away."

"Alright," you sighed quietly, putting the now dried bowl away and wiping water off of your hands, "Thank you." He nodded as he left, you following not too far behind him.

You walked into the dining hall where Keith, Adrienne, Ryan, Jamie, and Anna all sat around the table. The places in front of them were empty and there were all just sitting there. Nothing was being said; It was just silent.

"You wanted to see me, Your Majesties?" you asked, coming to a stop about five feet away from where the King and Ryan were sitting.

"Yes, Y/N," Keith nodded, "Very good breakfast, by the way. It was delicious, as always."

"Thank you..." you trailed off, not sure why you needed to be brought out of the kitchen for that.

"Honey," Adrienne cleared her throat, looking at her husband, "Let's not beat around the bush here. Although the food  _was_  excellent, that's not why she's here."

"What's going on?" you asked, looking around the room. Jamie and Anna were watching you intently, but Ryan hadn't even looked up at you. The King held out a groan, making Adrienne sigh and look at you.

"It's come to our attention that you're seeing our oldest," she said bluntly, taking you by surprise. When you didn't say anything, she went on. "Is that true?" You shook your head slowly. "Really?" she asked, "Because Ryan said you've been together for almost two years." You glanced at Ryan and noticed he was still playing with his fingers in his lap.

"I don't-" You cleared your throat when your voice broke. "-I don't know what he's talking about, Your Highness," you swallowed thickly. Jamie and Anna's eyes widened, shocked you would lie to their parents. But  _technically_ , you weren't lying; You  _had_ broken up with him, after all.

"Hmm," she hummed with a small nod, "Very well. You may return to your post." You let out a breath, hurrying back toward the door. "Ryan-" you heard her say sternly before she was cut off.

" _Y/N_!  _Stop_!" Ryan exclaimed, making you freeze.

He was using the tone he only used when he was giving orders – a tone he  _never_ used with you – causing everyone's jaws to drop slightly. He pushed his chair back as he stood up, placing his palms on the table.

He looked over his shoulder at you, "Come here."

You whined to yourself, slowly making your way back to the table. You stood in the same spot you were in before, not wanting to be too close to everyone –  _especially_  not Ryan.

"Why are you lying?" he asked you.

"I'm not lying," you said, chewing on your bottom lip.

"Yes, you are!" he exclaimed, a hurt expression on his face, "You told them we're not together!"

"We aren't," you whispered.

"Y/N," he said softly, almost inaudibly, "I'm sorry, okay? I didn't mean to make you feel like I was ashamed of you by not telling anybody about us – that's the  _last_ thing I wanted – and not being with you the past week has made me realize what an idiot I was being. There's always going to be someone who doesn't approve and I know that I can't protect you no matter  _how_  badly I want to.  _Please, Y/N_..." he said with a begging tone, "You  _can't_  throw away what we have. You can't expect me to just forget about you and how you make me feel. I promise I'm done with the secrets and avoiding the relationship questions. Just... Please just come back to me."

"Ryan... I can't..." He let out a breath, making his way over to you. He took your face in his hands and gently ran his thumbs along your cheekbones.

"I know you think I should be with a princess," he shook his head slightly, "But I don't know how many times I have to tell you that I only want you. I fell in love with you and no matter how hard you try to convince me that I shouldn't have is going to change that."

"But yo-"

"Y/N," Adrienne said, making you turn a light shade of red as you remembered that there were other people still in the room. You looked over at her and saw she was giving you a warm smile. "We're not upset if that's what you're concerned about," she told you, "We're a little heartbroken that you kept this from us for two years, but you know we wouldn't have made you break up or fired you because of it."

"We want our kids to be happy," Keith continued, "And whomever they fall in love with isn't our decision to make."

Ryan could tell you were about to protest again, so he brought your face to his, smashing your lips together. Keith and Adrienne quickly ushered Jamie and Anna out of the room to give you and Ryan some time alone to work things out.

"Ryan," you said, putting your hands on his chest and pushing him back, "What are you doing?"

"I'm apologizing for being an idiot," he replied, taking his hands off of your face and letting them rest on your hips. "I miss you, Y/N, and I know you've been having just as hard of a time this past week as I have. I'll have the entire kingdom gather together and tell them all how much I love you if that's what it takes for you to come back," he said desperately, "I  _need_ you, Y/N...  _Please_..." You were silent for a moment.

"You just need my  _cuddles_ ," you mumbled in a teasing tone, making Ryan smile wider than you'd ever seen him smile before. He snaked his arms around your waist, hugging you closely.

"I love you," he muttered, burying his face in your neck.

You grabbed his cheeks, pulling him back up and pressing your lips to his again. You barely pulled away, your lips brushing his.

"I love you too," you whispered.

"You know, you never followed through with that unlimited kisses promise the other day," Ryan pointed out, making you roll your eyes.

"You're ruining it, Ry," you said. You tried to walk away, but Ryan tightened his hold on you.

"I suppose this will have to do then," he smirked, kissing you again.

"You're an idiot," you told him, your voice coming out muffled.

"But I'm  _your_ idiot," he smiled brightly. You simply smiled in return, deepening the kiss even more.

~

_inspiration: http://shitmike.tumblr.com/post/125203098101/shitmike-prince-michael-who-would-sneak-out_


	207. Nothing Left (Ashton Irwin)

" _Please_ , Y/N?" your best friend whined, coming up behind you and wrapping his arms around your waist while you were standing in the living room of your shared  apartment.

" _No, Ashton_!" you exclaimed, squirming to keep his face away from your neck.

Ashton did this every time you said no. He knew that, no matter how much you didn't want to do what he had asked you to, all he had to do was nuzzle his face into your neck and give it a couple minutes.

"But Y/N," he pouted, his nose running along your cheek as he searched for a way to get your head off of the position it was currently in with your shoulder pressed to your ear, keeping your neck hidden.

But by this point in the six years you'd known him, he knew how to get what he wanted. He acted as if he were going to try the other side of your neck, causing your head to snap up and switch sides. Ashton quickly darted back, pressing his face to your skin.

" _Ashton!_ " you shouted, desperately trying to wiggle away from him. His grip was too strong, firmly keeping your back against his chest.

"Please?" he breathed.

"No," you said sternly, but you knew just as well as he did that it was only a matter of time before you caved.

"Why not?"

"Because it's not my engagement ring," you replied, "I don't know what your girlfriend wants."

"Soon-to-be-fiancée," he corrected. You felt him smile.

"Whatever," you mumbled.

"Come on, Y/N," he said softly, "I don't trust anyone with this secret but you. I just want to be able to propose to the love of my life the moment I find the perfect ring for her."

You felt his lips start to move on your neck and your heart skipped a beat. Your breathing hitched, but you hoped he didn't notice. You mentally cursed at him for simulating kissing your skin when that was all you'd ever wanted. But how would he know? Ashton didn't like you in that way and you sure as hell weren't going to ruin your friendship with him over something as stupid as being in love with him.

"Fine," you whispered, "But as soon as you find it, we're coming home." He grinned widely before picking his head back up.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" he beamed, grabbing your hand and pulling you out the door.

~

"Do you think she'll like this one?" Ashton asked you excitedly, pointing to yet another diamond ring.

"She'll love it, Ash," you said monotonously, never looking up from your phone. You heard him let out an exasperated sigh.

"Y/N, you're not even looking at it. How do you know Lily will love it if you're not even looking at it?" You finally shoved your phone back into your pocket.

"She'll love it, Ash," you repeated, staring straight into his eyes, "She'd love it if it's the cheapest ring in here and she'd love it if the most expensive one in the entire world. She's not going to care how much it costs; She'll just be happy enough with the fact that you want to spend the rest of your life with her." He smiled slightly, turning his attention back to the ring case.

"May I see that one?" he asked the store owner, pointing to the ring. She smiled as well, opening the door and taking it out. She handed it to him and he stared at it for a moment. He scrunched his face up, stretching his arm back, "It's not the one."

" _Ashton,_ " you groaned, "I know that this is a very crucial decision and you want to get it right on the first try, but you told me we'd be done in less than an hour. I'm tired. I want to go home."

"One more, Y/N, I swear," he told you, "Come on, play along for a minute and close your eyes."

"Ash-"

"Please? We'll be done after this, I swear." You sighed, giving in and closing your eyes. Whatever got you home faster, the better. "You and Lily have pretty similar tastes, so just pretend you're her for me, okay?"

"Okay," you shrugged.

"Now I want you to look at these rings and just point to the first one that catches your eye." You nodded, opening your eyes. They immediately locked onto a rose gold band with a small white, heart-shaped diamond on top.

"That one," you stated, pointing to it. The woman behind the counter retrieved the ring, handing it to the man beside you.

You kept your eyes glued to it – you really did think it was gorgeous – but you missed the way Ashton wasn't even glancing at it. He was watching the way you stared at it, visualizing the way his future fiancée would react. He quickly turned his head as you looked back up so you wouldn't know he was staring at you.

"This is the one," he nodded, his grin almost too big for his face. His phone suddenly started going off and he quickly reached into his pocket, his smile only getting wider and you just  _knew_ it was Lily. "I have to take this," he chirped, "I'll be right back."

Without warning, he put the ring in your hand and rushed away. You kept your eyes on the ring lying on your palm. The pain of when Ashton first told you he had a girlfriend was bad enough, but now? Now that you were holding the ring he would give to a girl that wasn't you, it was like your heart was being stabbed over and over again and the feeling just wasn't going away.

You felt your eyes start to well up with tears, but you refused to let them fall. You couldn't let Ashton see you like that when he came back, so you quickly wiped them away. You were calming yourself back down, but that all changed when the woman started talking to you.

"You should tell him," she said, making your head snap up to look at her.

"Tell him what?" you asked, trying to hide the fact that your voice was uneven.

"How you feel," she stated, "And I suggest doing it  _before_  he proposes to this other girl."

"I don't know what you're talking about," you murmured.

"Honey," she smiled softly, "I've been working here for nearly ten years. I've seen  _so many_  girls come in with their boyfriends to look at engagement rings. The way you look at that boy is the same way those couples look at each other." You sighed in defeat.

"It doesn't matter anyway," you mumbled, "He's getting engaged to someone he's very happy with and I care about him too much to ruin that." You paused for a moment, staring down at the ring between your fingers again. She was about to say something else, but you cut her off. "Do you think I'm throwing away my only chance?" you asked, more to yourself than to her, but it just made you feel a little more comfort knowing she was there to listen.

"I think you'll have as many chances as you want to give yourself," she said simply.

"I just..." you trailed off, "If I tell him how I feel and he doesn't feel the same, I know he won't marry her just because he knows it would kill me. But if he  _does_  feel the same, then she's gonna be heartbroken and she seems like a really great girl; I couldn't do that to her."

" _Seems like_?" she wondered, curious as to why you chose that pairing of words, "Haven't you met her?"

"Only a couple times," you shrugged slightly, "He never brought her over much; Said she was shy and he didn't want her to feel uncomfortable with how rowdy me and our other friends can be when we're all together."

"So you've never actually spent  _time_  with her? How do you know she's right for him then?"

"The way he talks about her," you sighed again just thinking about it,  _wishing_  he talked about you the way he did her, "He sounds so in love. I could never live with myself if I took that away from him." You swallowed lightly, "Do you have a restroom I could use before he comes back in? I... I really don't want him to see me like this and start asking questions." She nodded, pointing to where the bathrooms were. You gave her the ring and ran off before Ashton made his way back.

But you didn't notice that he was already inside. You thought he went outside to answer the call, but he didn't; In fact, he'd never walked out of hearing range and instead listened in on your entire conversation. He walked up to the counter with a small smile on his face as you left the room.

**Ashton's POV**

"She's actually in love with me," Ashton whispered to himself.

"Well, yeah," the owner laughed, "I could have told you that the moment you two walked in, Ash." Ashton rolled his eyes, chuckling.

"Thanks for your help, Julie," he grinned, "I'm ready to buy the ring."

"Are you sure?" she asked him cautiously, "I don't want you to tell her about this and then be surprised if she gets upset that you led her on." He furrowed his eyebrows.

"I didn't lead her on," he shook his head.

"Ash," she sighed lightly, "I don't want to be  _that person_ , but don't you think she'll be a little upset that you lied to her about seeing someone for two years? I mean, wouldn't  _you_  be mad if she did all this just to get you to admit your feelings for her? She thinks you're about to get  _engaged_ , Ashton. She ran to the bathroom crying because she thinks you're proposing to someone else. I know I don't know her, but I  _do_  know that she is  _very much_  in love with you and it's killing her to imagine you being with this other girl for the rest of your life. I'm sure she'll be happy to know you're not getting married to another girl; I'm just worried that she won't take being lied to for so long  _lightly_." Ashton stood there in shock for a moment. He'd never thought about it like that.

"Is she still back there?" he asked in a rush.

"Yeah, she-" Julie cut herself off, looking behind him. "-just left through the back door." Ashton's looked over his shoulder just in time to see you disappear from the view of the store's windows.

" _Please_ , Julie," Ashton begged, " _Please_  ring it up. She'll say yes – I  _know_ she will. I have to go after her." She sighed again, but nodded in agreement. He told her your ring size and she hurried to grab it from under the counter, put it in a box, and hand it to him after he paid.

"Good luck, Ashton!" she called after him as he ran out the door, heading in the direction you went.

**Your POV**

You took in slow, deep breaths as you walked down the sidewalk with your head down. You weren't paying too much attention to where you were going, so it was no surprise when you ran right into someone. Your head shot up and you instantly felt your face getting hot.

"I am  _so_  sorry," you breathed.

"I'll be honest; I want to be mad," the young man smiled, "But it's not every day that you  _literally_  run into a beautiful girl." You blushed an even deeper shade of red.

"Thank you," you said shyly.

"I apologize if I'm being too forward, but what are you doing right now?"

"Oh, um," you cleared your throat, "I was just heading home."

"If it's alright with you, I'd love to take you out for coffee," he offered, "Or ice cream. Whichever you prefer."

You bit your bottom lip lightly, "Coffee sounds gr-"

"Y/N!" you were cut off by Ashton's voice and his fast footsteps coming up behind you. He stopped at your side, his eyes flicking between you and the man in front of you. "What's going on here?" he asked, a little out of breath from running.

"I accidentally ran into him," you shrugged.

"And I asked if she wanted to go get a coffee," the man continued.

"She's not interested," Ashton answered for you, making you narrow your eyes at him.

" _Ashton_ -" He cut you off again.

"I'm terribly sorry for the run-in," he said monotonously, "It was nice meeting you. Have a nice day." The man left with a defeated expression on his face and you stared at Ashton for another moment before angrily walking away. "Y/N," he grabbed your arm, turning you back around, "We need to talk."

"What the fuck is  _wrong_  with you?!" you shouted, ripping your arm from his grasp, "I mean,  _honestly_ , Ashton! Do you feel like you're happy enough with Lily that  _I_  shouldn't be allowed to be happy too?!"

"What are you-"

" _God forbid_  I want to go out and have coffee with someone who  _isn't_   _you_  for once!" you rolled your eyes. By now, everyone was staring at you, but you couldn't care less. You were so angry at Ashton that you couldn't keep it bottled up; You had to let it out right there.

"I didn't say you couldn't go out and have coffee with other people," he said defensively.

" _Yes, you did_!" you screamed, "You literally  _just_ told that guy I wasn't interested when you knew  _damn well_  I would have said yes!"

"Well, maybe I don't approve of him," Ashton stated, the look on his face unreadable.

"Oh, so now you decide who I can and can't date?" you threw your arm up, "Glad to know I moved out of my parents' house just to keep being babied by  _you_."

"I just don't think he's the right guy for you," he shrugged.

"And maybe  _I_  don't think Lily is the right girl for you!" you raised your voice again, "Maybe  _I_  think you two are a terrible match! Did you ever think about that?!"

"You don't even know her," he said through gritted teeth.

"And  _you_  don't know  _him_ ," you shot back, pointing in the direction the man left in, "You may be my best friend, but that doesn't give you the right to scare off every guy I talk to that isn't Calum, Michael, or Luke. You're not even acting like my best friend anymore; You're acting like a  _jealous asshole_." Having made your point, you began walking away again, only to have Ashton's voice follow you.

"We're not done talking about this, Y/N!" he called after you.

"There's nothing left to  _talk about_ , Ashton!" you shouted back, "All the talking is  _done_!" Everyone watched as Ashton walked up to you, grabbing your arm and spinning you to face him yet again. " _Ash_ -" you started yelling his name again before you were cut off by his lips smashing into yours.

You were understandably taken by surprise; You'd obviously always wanted this, but you never thought it would actually happen. You kissed him back for about ten seconds before you fully processed what what going on. You immediately put your hands on his chest and pushed him back.

"What the hell what that?!" you exclaimed, backing a few steps away from him.

" _That_  was six years of hiding how I feel about you," he answered seriously, " _That_  was six years of pretending that you don't make my heart race when you smile at me, six years of helping you get ready for dates that ended with you coming home and going on and on about them when the only thing I've ever wanted was to be the guy you're going on about until 2am, six years of letting you lay with me when you can't sleep and talking to you about the things that are too deep to talk about with anyone else until you finally get so tired that you end up sleeping in my bed because you know you won't make it back to yours;  _That_  was six years of desperately wanting to tell you I'm in love with you but not wanting to ruin what we already had."

You – as well as the crowd around you – stared at him in shock. Although the passersby didn't know the two of you, they knew that Ashton was being dead serious; They knew that Ashton was in love with you.

"But Lily..." you trailed off in a whisper. He let out a sigh, taking in a shaky breath as he pulled his hand through his hair.

"Lily is an old friend from high school," he confessed, "She knew how I felt about you and agreed to pretend to be my girlfriend to make you jealous. But after a couple years, it didn't seem to be working and you started dropping hints about how you thought I should propose to her. The boys have always said you liked me, but Lily suggested that maybe getting you to help pick out a ring would convince you to finally admit it. And when Julie said that you went to the bathroom crying earlier, I-" You cut him off.

"Julie?" you tilted your head in confusion.

"The shop owner," he hung his head, looking at the box in his hands, "She's a family friend. She was in on it too."

"But why would you still buy the ring?" you muttered.

"That's why I made that guy leave," he replied.

Ashton carefully took a step toward you. When you didn't move away, he kept walking until he was in front of you. Your breathing quickened as you looked at him.

"Look, Y/N," he said, fidgeting with the box, "I know that we've never officially been a couple, but I do know that falling asleep and waking up in the same apartment as you is what makes every single day worth living. I know that anywhere can feel like home as long as you're with me. I know that  your eyes are the most beautiful shade of (eye color) I've ever seen. I  know that your smile and your laugh are the reasons I keep tickling you even though you're begging me to stop. I know that you may hate me for lying to you for as long as I have, but I also know that you can't stay mad at me no matter how hard you try. But most of all, I know that you've been the only thing that's been constant in my life for the past six years and  _you're_ the one I want by my side for the rest of it. I know that I'm in love with you, Y/N. And I know that you're in love with me too."

"Ashton..." you whispered, tears threatening to fall at any moment, "What are you doing?"

"I told you that I was going to propose to the love of my life right after I bought her a ring," he smiled slightly, mentally praying you wouldn't reject him. Ashton got down on one knee, making the crowd let out a collective gasp as your hands flew up to cover your mouth. "You are the love of my life,  Y/N," he said confidently, "And I promise I'll do everything I can to show you just how much I love you if you just give me a chance."

It was never like you not to have anything to say, but you were honestly speechless. No one had ever done something like this for you. Although you were truthfully – and understandably – upset that Ashton had lied to you, you couldn't deny the fact that you were overjoyed he wasn't marrying another girl; No, he wanted to marry  _you_.

"Y/N Y/M/N Y/L/N," his voice wavered as he said your name, "Will you marry me?"

The crowd held their breath as they waited for your answer. You let a muffled sob escape from your mouth, your vision now blurring as the tears streamed down your face. You still couldn't find your voice, so you settled for nodding furiously. You noticed Ashton's expression drop before he realized you said yes.

His eyes widened and he quickly grabbed your hand, sliding the ring down your finger. He wrapped his arms around your waist as he stood back up, picking you up and spinning you around. The crowd cheered as he let your feet return to ground and wasted no time in kissing you roughly, not caring that people were still watching.

"I love you so much, Y/N," Ashton mumbled against your lips.

"I'm still pissed that you lied to me," you whispered honestly, putting your hand on his cheek and running your thumb along his cheekbone, "But I love you too, Ash." You pressed your lips to his again, " _So, so much_."

~

_inspiration: http://www.wattpad.com/57137516-5sos-imagines-you-help-him-pick-an-engagement-ring_


	208. In the Making (Calum Hood)

You sat in the waiting area, bouncing your leg up and down as you waited for your name to be called. You had wanted to audition for  _America's Got Talent_  for the the longest time, but you could never make yourself actually do it – until you met your boyfriend, of course.

Since the moment Calum heard you sing for the first time over two years ago – to be fair, you were singing in the shower and didn't know he was there until you got out – and when he found out you'd been wanting to audition for the show since the first season, he was constantly begging you to go for it.

However, you had incredibly awful stage fright. You couldn't sing in front of people without feeling your throat get tight and your heart start racing to the point where it would sometimes take over 20 minutes to get completely calmed down again.

But meeting Calum sort of changed that for you. As cliche as it sounds, he really sort of brought you out of that pit of fear you were in. You weren't singing in front of thousands of people by any means, but you were getting there. You finally started singing in front close family and friends about six months ago, but  _nothing_  like you were about to do: The  _America's Got Talent_  stage.

"Babe," your boyfriend smiled softly, putting his hand on your knee to stop the bouncing, "You're gonna do great."

"What if I mess up?" you whispered, your own hand covering Calum's so you could play with his fingers, "What if I sing the wrong note or I forget the words or I drop the mic or I-"

"Y/N!" he said a little loudly, but not loud enough to make anyone turn to look at you. He took your face in his hands, "You'll be fine, okay? If any of that stuff happens, just try to keep going. You're an amazing singer and you're gonna blow everyone away." You took a deep breath and barely nodded. Calum pressed a kiss to your forehead, taking his hands back and holding yours in your lap.

~

"Y/N Y/L/N!" a producer called out a few minutes later.

You let out a quiet whimper, making Calum smile. He stood up, pulling you with him and leading you to where the producer was.

"You ready?" she asked, handing you a microphone.

"Not at all," you answered honestly, already feeling your stomach starting to turn. Calum squeezed your hand while you were walking to the side of the stage where Nick was waiting.

"You look nervous," he gave you a reassuring smile as you and Calum stopped in front of him and the camera.

"Probably because I am," you forced a small laugh.

"Well, don't worry. Just go out there and do what you do best," he patted your shoulder.

You looked at Calum and he kissed your cheek, letting go of your hand so you could go out on stage. You gripped your microphone tightly, walking out and immediately being met with the audience cheering and the judges smiling at you.

"Hello!" Mel said as you walked onto the  _X_  on the stage, "Welcome to  _America's Got Talent_! What's your name and how old are you?"

"I'm Y/N and I'm (age)," you said shyly.

"And what are you going to be doing for us today?"

"Singing."

"Have you ever sung in front of people before?" Howie asked, "Because you seem very nervous." 

"Not this many," you laughed lightly, "I usually only sing around my friends and family."

"And what song will you be singing?" Howard spoke up.

" _Two Worlds Collide_  by Demi Lovato," you breathed.

"Alright," he nodded, "Let's hear it."

You took deep breaths in and let them out slowly. The room was completely silent as you waited for the track to start playing. You looked at Calum one last time and he was rocking back and forth on his feet slightly, obviously nervous for you as well. But he still had a big smile on his face and you could tell that he was really proud of you for just having the courage to get on the stage.

_She was given the world, so much that she couldn't see_   
_And she needed someone to show her who she could be_   
_And she tried to survive wearing her heart on her sleeve_   
_But I needed you to believe_

_You had your dreams, I had mine_   
_You had your fears, I was fine_   
_Showed me what I couldn't find_   
_When two different worlds collide_

You looked at Calum again as you sang the bridge of the song, your voice making the audience cheer loudly.

_She was scared, unprepared_   
_Lost in the dark, falling apart_   
_I can survive with you by my side_   
_We're gonna be alright_   
_This is what happens when two worlds collide_

You felt yourself getting choked up when you saw that Calum clearly had tears in his eyes because of the way you looked at him when you sang, but you pulled through so you could finish your audition.

_You had your dreams, I had mine_   
_You had your fears, I was fine_   
_Showed me what I couldn't find_   
_When two different worlds collide_

_La dee da dee da_

_You had your dreams, I had mine_   
_You had you fears, I was fine_   
_Showed me what I couldn't find_   
_When two different worlds collide_   
_When two different worlds collide_

You let out a shaky breath when everyone in the audience as well as Mel stood up, continuing to clap for you. You wiped the tears from your cheeks, smiling wider than you ever have before. When the crowd quieted down, the judges started talking.

"There is no way a voice like that was coming from a girl like you! That was brilliant!" Mel practically shouted, making you smile even more.

"I'm gonna be honest with you, Y/N," Howard said, "It was a bit shaky in places – a little too much in a couple – but you know what? I really liked it. I definitely think you've got something special."

"I know how it feels when you get nervous on stage," Howie nodded, "But I really feel like you owned it tonight. I mean, you got everyone and Mel on their feet, so you must be doing something right." You giggled under your breath, thanking him.

"I saw you look over in the middle there," Heidi pointed out, "And then you got a little emotional. Who's back there?"

"My boyfriend," you replied shyly, sniffling quietly with a small laugh.

"Let's bring him out!" she chirped, "I would love to meet him!"

Nick nudged Calum lightly and he sheepishly made his way over to you. He stopped beside you, immediately putting his arm around your waist as you leaned into him.

"Hello!" Heidi beamed, "What's your name?" You handed him the microphone – you were still shaking and felt like you were going to drop it at any moment.

"Calum," he answered.

"You seem very proud of her."

"I am," he grinned, squeezing you, "I've been trying to convince her to do this for two years now."

"Two years?!" Howie exclaimed.

"Yeah," Calum chuckled, "She gets really nervous in front a lot of people, so I'm just really proud of her for getting up here at all, to be honest."

"I think you have an amazing support system and you shouldn't ever let him go," Heidi laughed to which you quickly shook your head, making Calum smile and kiss your cheek.

"Well, guys," Mel said to her fellow judges, "I think we're all on the same page, so why don't we vote together?" They nodded and she counted it down, leading up to all of them shouting, "Yes!" 

Your face was instantly covered by your palms as the room erupted with cheers and Calum wrapped his arms around your waist, picking you up and spinning you around. Your arms moved around his neck and you could feel his smile on your skin. He put you back down and you took the microphone.

"Thank you so much," you choked out.

"Congratulations! We'll see you in Vegas!" Howie said happily.

"Thank you," you repeated, walking offstage. As soon as the two of you were back at Nick's side, Calum's arms were around you again.

"How do you feel?" Nick asked with a smile.

"I don't even know," you laughed, wiping your face again, "I'm so happy."

"You did an amazing job and I can't wait to see you in Las Vegas!"

"Thank you," you grinned. Nick gave you and Calum a hug before letting you walk away. Calum grabbed your hand, tangling your fingers together and pulling you close to him.

"I'm so proud of you, babe," he said quietly. You sniffled again, laying your head on his arm. "I love you so much."

"I love you too, Cal," you closed your eyes, nuzzling your face into his skin and squeezing his hand.

~

_Song used: "Two Worlds Collide" by Demi Lovato_

 


	209. Rumor Has It (Ashton Irwin)

**Ashton's POV**

"Now Ashton-"  _Please don't say it... Please don't say it..._  "-you had been talking about being excited to bring your girlfriend on the tour with you-"  _He said it._  "-but we saw photos of you guys arriving at the airport and she wasn't there. Is she okay?"

Ashton's jaw tightened as he swallowed the lump in his throat. Luke, Calum, and Michael glanced at each other, worried expressions plastered on their faces.

"She's fine," the drummer nodded slightly, doing everything he could to mask the shakiness of his voice, "She just had some family issues and decided it was best if she stayed at home."

"Will she be joining on a future leg of the tour?"

"I don't think so, no."

"Wh-"

Calum cleared his throat rather loudly, "Why don't we actually talk about the band now?"

"Sure," the interviewer replied, causing Ashton to let out a sigh of relief.

~

The interview seemed to drag on for hours, but when they were finally told it was over, Ashton couldn't have been happier. Once he was out of sight after turning a corner, he practically ran to the car. The other three boys quietly piled in and the driver began the drive back to the hotel.

"Thanks for getting me out of that conversation, Cal," Ashton said quietly after the two minute silence.

"No problem," Calum replied, nudging his best friend's leg, "The focus should have been on our music anyway, not our personal lives." The drummer barely smiled, letting it fade just as quickly. 

When they arrived back at the hotel, the driver went around to the back so they could avoid all the fans at the front door. It wasn't that the boys didn't want to meet any of them; It was that they knew Ashton just didn't want to deal with the craziness right now. Calum and Michael went into their room while Luke and Ashton went to theirs.

After about half an hour, the two boys heard the last voice they expected to hear coming from the hallway. They looked at each other as they listened to what was being said.

"I just want  _10 minutes_  with him, Joe, please," you begged the guard outside the room.

"I'm sorry, Y/N," he told you, "On any other day, I would be more than happy to, but I was given specific orders not to let  _anybody_ in this room."

You sighed, "Will you at least tell him that I'm in 215 and I really need to talk to him?" The boys assumed Joe nodded because the next thing they heard was you saying ' _thank you_ '. You started to walk away, but Ashton grabbed the knob and flung the door open.

"Y/N?" he said quietly, making you spin back around, "What are you doing here?" You opened your mouth to speak, but nothing came out. You swallowed thickly and tried again, but Luke interrupted.

"I think I'm gonna hang out with Cal and Mikey for a while," he said, hurrying out of the room. "Later!" he called over his shoulder as he sprinted down the hallway.

Ashton watched you intently for a moment before moving out of the way and motioning for you to come inside. You swallowed again, your legs somehow managing to carry you past him.

"I don't want anybody bothering us," Ashton mumbled, probably thinking you wouldn't hear him.

Joe nodded and Ashton closed the door, turning back to you. You were standing at the foot of Luke's bed, your hands in front of your stomach so you could fidget with your fingers.

"Why are you here?" Ashton asked again, not moving from his spot.

"I needed to talk to you," you answered shyly.

"And you flew all the way here to do it? You couldn't have just called me?"

"Would you have answered?" you responded. He sighed, knowing you were right.

"Then go ahead," he said, passing you on his way to his bed, "What was so important that you couldn't have tricked me into a phone call?"

"I just wanted to say I'm sorry," you whispered.

"And you wasted all that money on a plane ticket for an apology?"

"Listen, Ash," you sighed in defeat, "I didn't come here looking for another fight. I don't know what made me fly out just to say it, but I truly am sorry. Accusing you of cheating was bad, I know, but to still accuse you of it even when you promised me you weren't was too much. I was acting like a complete bitch and I don't blame you for breaking up with me. I'll understand if you don't believe my apology – I deserve it. I deserve whatever insults you may have for me and I deserve to be kicked out of the room and told to never speak to you again. I don't deserve your forgiveness or any kindness from you or the boys, but what I really don't deserve is  _you_ ; I never have. You're too good for  _anyone_ , Ash; I hope you know that. I'm sorry I believed those stupid rumors and not you, okay? There aren't enough  _words_  to tell you how sorry I am. And I want you to know that I love you despite how much you hate me – whether you like it or not." You took a deep breath after finishing your speech. You finally looked up at Ashton and saw he was staring at you with a blank expression. You gave him a small, fake smile, "I guess that's all I have to say, so I'll leave. Bye, Ash. Have an amazing rest of the tour." You sniffled quietly, letting some tears fall while you turned to leave.

You pulled down on the door knob and opened it, but Ashton's arm suddenly coming into view and pushing the door back closed made you jump.

He grabbed your wrist, causing you to release the handle, and made you turn back to face him. Before you could ask what he was doing, his hands were on your cheeks and he was kissing you like his life depended on it – and as far as he was concerned, it did.

"Ashton," you breathed when he pulled away, his hands still holding your face.

"I could never  _hate you_ , Y/N," he muttered, resting his forehead on yours, "You know that."

"But I-"

"I know," he barely nodded, "And yeah, I agree that you should have had a little more faith in me, but I still love you; I'll  _always_  love you. You're everything I've ever wanted in a girl and  _then some_." He kissed your nose, making you smile involuntarily. "I think we both have things we need to work on when it comes to relationships, but I would  _much_  rather work on them with you by my side. I know that trusting someone completely isn't easy for you, but-"

"That's not an excuse, Ashton," you said firmly, "Not when I knew you would never cheat on  _anybody_. I still should have believed you."

"Y/N," he gave you a half smile, "I'm not saying it's an excuse; I'm saying I  _want_  to be that person for you. I want to be the person you can tell all your secrets to and know that I won't tell anyone else. I want to be the person you tell about all the things you're afraid of and know that I won't make fun of you for them. I want to be the person you put every little bit of your trust into and I want me to be that person for you as well. I have never met anyone who's willing to be woken up at 3am in case I want to talk about something stupid that's been keeping me awake. I've never met anyone who is as willing to go exploring a new city with me despite the fact that we just landed and could fall asleep at any moment. I've never met anyone who makes me feel the way you do and I honestly don't think I ever will again. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me, Y/N, and it would be so incredibly stupid of me to let you go because of something so minor."

"Believing those rumors wasn't  _minor_ , Ash," you mumbled.

"Then we'll work on it," he shook his head, "I'll tell you I only want you every single time I look at you for the rest of my life if it would make you feel better about what happened."

"Ash-"

"I love you and  _only_ you, Y/N," he said softly, but sternly at the same time, "And no matter how many times you try to convince yourself that I shouldn't is going to change that." You let out a quiet sigh.

"I really don't deserve you, Ash," you whimpered.

"Well, that's too bad," he smiled, pressing his lips to yours again, "Because you're going to be stuck with me for a very long time."

~

_inspiration: http://falloutnoelle.tumblr.com/post/122770020470/imagine-you-and-ashton-had-just-had-a-terrible_

 


	210. Worthless (Marshall Traver)

"Y/N!" you heard one of your friends shout. You looked up after closing your locker door, watching as the small blonde raced toward you.

"What's up, Ash?" you chirped, slinging your backpack over your shoulder.

"You know that Marshall kid from your music and art classes?" she breathed heavily due to however long she'd been running, "The one you have a crush on?" You simply nodded. "I saw him and Noah at the end of E hallway and I'm pretty sure it's not gonna end well."

Your eyes immediately widened as you bolted toward the end of the hall. Ashley couldn't be late for band practice, so she didn't follow you. Your shoes squeaked on the tile floor as you came to an abrupt stop. You looked to the right and didn't see anything, but when you looked to your left, your heart nearly stopped.

Marshall Traver wasn't the type to ever intentionally cause a scene, so when you saw the circle of people beginning to gather around him and your ex-boyfriend, you had a fairly good idea of who instigated whatever was going on. You obviously couldn't hear what the football player was telling the shy boy off for, but you couldn't just stand around and watch it happen. You took off again, running as fast as you could. You knew your ex, and you knew it was about to get physical really soon.

"Noah!" your voice traveled loudly throughout the hallway as you came up to the small gathering.

You dropped your backpack and began to push through the crowd just as Noah raised his fist. You stumbled into the middle of the circle, throwing your arm up and wrapping your fingers around his balled up hand just before it reached Marshall's cheek.

"What the  _hell_  is going on?" you asked, shoving his arm back down to his side.

The boy beside you looked at you in shock, but you kept your eyes trained on the football player. Noah glared at him, causing him to jump slightly and move behind you.

"What are you doing here?" Noah turned his glare to you.

"I'm asking you what the hell is going on," you stated, maintaining your confident stature.

"Loser needed to be reminded who's boss around here," he shrugged.

"And you needed to punch him to remind him that Mr. McClane is in charge?" You heard snickering around you, causing Noah to growl lowly.

"You  _know_  what I meant, Y/N," he said monotonously.

"Oh, Noah," you sighed dramatically, "Everyone already knows you're captain of the football team. I mean, you never shut up about it!" Quiet laughing came from the crowd again. "So I know for a  _fact_  that you have  _way_  better things to be doing on a Friday after school than picking on Marshall." You felt Marshall let out a breath against the back of your neck, but didn't think anything of it.

"Well, maybe if he would stop staring at my girl-" You cut him off.

"And who's your girl  _this time_? It can't be Naomi because you guys have been off for like, a week now and honestly, bitchy dance team captains don't really seem like his type." Marshall let out another breath, but you could tell it was because he was laughing.

"You know I'm talking about you, Y/N," he snarled, taking a step toward you. You put your hands on his chest and pushed him back.

" _I_ _am_ _not your girl, Noah_ ," you reminded him, "I made it perfectly clear that we were done when I caught you with Angela at Justin's party two months ago."

"You're seriously choosing this worthless lowlife over  _me_?"

"I am only going to say this one time, Alexander-" Your voice was low and raspy – the way it only got when you were truly angry. You put your hand back on his chest and started walking forward, slowly backing him away from Marshall. "-He may not have many friends, he may prefer to stay home on a Saturday night, and he may not be as popular as you are, but he is  _not_ a worthless lowlife." You finally stopped moving, but kept your hand on him so he didn't try anything. "You wanna know what makes someone a worthless lowlife? When they cheat on their girlfriend and then have the  _audacity_ to call her later that night and tell her he loves her. You are in  _no_ position to be calling someone a lowlife, understand? The day I pick you over anybody else will be the day hell freezes over." You took your hand back, narrowing your eyes at him. "Now you're going to turn around, walk away, and never even  _think_  about laying another hand on Marshall, are we clear?"

"And what are you going to do if I don't?" he growled again. Your mouth curled into a mischievous half-smirk.

"We dated for a year and a half, Alexander," you stated plainly, "There's an entire  _list_  of things I could do."

Noah let out one more low growl before spinning around and stomping away. His friends looked at each other for a moment, then you. You shot them a glare and their eyes widened before they sprinted to catch up with him. You sighed in relief – finally breaking your pissed off character – and turned back to find Marshall still standing there wide-eyed at you. You nodded your head, motioning for the crowd to dissipate. They wasted no time in scattering, hurrying off so they could go home for the day. Not knowing what else to do, Marshall quickly gathered his books off of the floor and passed you as he went to leave, but you stopped him.

"Hey," you said softly, grabbing his arm and making him turn back to you at the same time you bent down to pick up your backpack, "Are you okay?" He swallowed thickly, rapidly nodding his head as he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

"Thank you," his whispered, making you smile.

"You're welcome, Marshall."

"You know my name..." he trailed off, a light pink hue on his cheeks.

"Of course I do," you shook your head, confused as to why he seemed so surprised, "We have fourth and fifth periods together."

"I know," he said so quietly that you almost didn't catch it, making you smile again at how shy he was. You were about to comment on it, but a couple of his friends, Cody and Dan, came up.

"Marshall!" Cody exclaimed, "We've been looking everywhere for you, man! How come you weren't outside already?" Marshall's eyes darted to you then back to them, making their eyes widen.

"O-Oh... Hi, Y/N..." he and Dan said in unison.

"Hi," you giggled, "Well, I guess I should get going." You turned your attention back to Marshall. "If Noah gives you any more problems, let me know. I'll even let you choose which piece of blackmail I use against him first." The boy pushed his glasses up again with a barely-there laugh. You grinned again, turning around and calling over your shoulder, "Later, losers!" The three boys watched as you froze, tilting their heads when you spun back to face them. "I wanna be clear that I don't mean it like that," you rushed, "I actually think you guys are pretty cool. It was a poor choice of words on my part. I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Cody said, knowing Marshall was too embarrassed to talk, "As long as you're actually speaking to him, Marshall doesn't care  _what_  you call him." Cody earned an elbow to the ribs, making him shriek. " _Ow_!" he snapped his head to look at his best friend. You grinned lightly, hoping your blush wasn't too noticeable.

"I'll see you Monday, Marshall," you said with a questioning tone and a hopeful expression. He nodded rapidly and you flashed him one last smile before turning back around and trotting out of the building.


	211. Loose Ends, Old Flings (Cody Carson) - Part 1

"Hey, Mom?!" you heard your 15-year-old daughter call from her room.

"In the living room, Lex!" you hollered back. Lexie came trotting down the hallway not even five seconds later with her English textbook in her hand.

"Can you help me with my homework?" she asked as she came around the couch, not looking at you yet, "We're working on Shakespeare and I don't-" She cut herself off when she finally saw you. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, sweetie," you said, patting the seat beside you, "What don't you understand?"

" _Mom_ ," she said sternly as she sat down, "I know when something's wrong; I'm your daughter. Why are you home so early from your date? You seemed really excited before you left."

"Let's get your homework done and then we can talk about it, okay?" She nodded, setting her book on her lap and you got to work.

~

You and your daughter decided to go to the ice cream shop down the street to talk. After buying your treats, you went outside to sit since it was a nice evening and because there was no one out there.

"Now spill," Lexie stated after you sat down, taking a bite of her ice cream.

"There's nothing to spill," you shrugged, "He just turned out to be someone I wasn't looking for after all."

"But you were so excited!" she reminded you, "You wouldn't stop talking about it  _all week_!"

"Yeah," you chuckled lightly, "That was before he didn't show."

" _He stood you up_?" her eyes widened. You simply nodded. "Why would he stand you up? Did you at least get a text or  _something_?"

"I did," you nodded, "He said the pressure of me having a kid was too much and he didn't think he could handle it."

"Wait," she shook her head, " _You're_  the single parent and  _he's_  the one feeling pressured? How old does he think I am?! I know how to take care of myself when I need to! I don't rely on you for  _everything_!" You couldn't help but laugh at her small rant.

"It's fine, Lex," you told her, "If he doesn't want to take on a responsibility like that, then I'm in no position to make him. Anyone who refuses to get to know you isn't someone I need in my life." You reached across the table, poking Lexie's nose.

" _Mom_!" she whined, scrunching up her face while you both smiled.

You talked for a while longer – mostly about school – until you were finished with your ice cream. You got up, threw your trash away, and were about to start heading back home when you heard your name.

"Y/N!" You spun around at the sound of your best friend from college's voice, a huge grin already on your face.

"Cody!" you exclaimed happily, throwing your arms around his neck as he came in to hug you.

"God, you look even better now than you did in college," he squeezed your waist lightly before letting go just in time to see you roll your eyes.

"You still look about the same," you teased.

"Still a smart-ass, I see," he chuckled.

"Always," you smiled.

"So what's been going on? We haven't seen each other in ages. I miss you!" You were interrupted by Lexie clearing her throat. Your head snapped over to look at her and she had a sly grin on her face.

" _Oh_!" you squeaked, "Cody, this is my daughter Alexis. Lex, this is Cody, my best friend from college."

"It's just Lexie," she informed him as they shook hands, "If you call me Alexis, I won't be responsible for anything I may do to you." Cody let out a breathy laugh.

"She is definitely your daughter," he told you, making you smile proudly. "Anyway, I have to get going," he said, a seemingly sad expression on his face, "We have to meet up again sometime though. I miss seeing you."

"Me too, Cody," you smiled slightly.

"Here, let me get your number," he said, pulling out his phone for you. You typed it in and then gave it back. "I'll call you tomorrow and we can try to do something, okay?" You quickly nodded your head and you both hugged again. "It was nice seeing you again," he mumbled, pressing a light kiss to your cheek before pulling away. "And it was nice meeting you, Lexie," he smiled at your daughter. "Bye, guys!" he chirped, trotting away. You let out a breath and turned back to Lexie, finding her smirking.

"What?" you asked her.

"Nothing," she winked, beginning to walk back home. You hurried to catch up with her, but before you could say anything, her question caught you off guard. "Did you and Cody have a thing in college?"

"What?  _No_!" you squeaked, "We were just friends!"

"Mhmm," she hummed in response.

"Why do you think there was something going on?"

"It's just so obvious he's into you is all," she shrugged, a smile still on her face.

"Lexie, I haven't seen him in over 16 years," you sighed, "He was just happy to see me after so long."

"So you guys never had a crush on each other then?" You paused for a moment.

"No."

"You hesitated!" she squealed, "You have a crush on him!"

" _Had_ ," you said, "I  _had_ a crush on him."

"Why didn't you ever get together then?"

"Need I remind you that if Cody and I  _had_ gotten together,  _you_  probably wouldn't exist." Lexie rolled her eyes.

"And if you  _had_?"

You swallowed thickly, "I don't know."

"So why not ask him out or something?"

"No..." you whispered, "He's probably already seeing someone..."

"Why would he be so eager to hang out with you if he were already seeing someone else?" she pointed out.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," you shook your head, "I am  _not_  about to start taking dating advice from a  _15-year-old_."

"You will though."

"How do you know?"

"Because you still like him," she snickered.

~

**The next day**

"You're  _sure_  you'll be fine alone for a couple hours?" you asked, worriedly looking at your daughter in the mirror.

You and Cody had just gotten off the phone and were scheduled to meet up in about 10 minutes. You were beyond nervous and worried that it would be awkward having not seen each other in almost 20 years. You tried convincing yourself a couple times to call back and cancel, but your daughter refused to let you, saying you needed to take a chance.

"You've left me alone before, Mom," Lexie rolled her eyes, "You know I will be. I thought you didn't like Cody anymore anyway."

"I don't," you answered a little too quickly.

"Then why are you so nervous?" she smiled. You let out an exasperated sigh, slumping your shoulders slightly.

"Because I still like him," you finally admitted.

"It's okay to like someone, Mom," Lexie told you.

"What if this turns out like all the others and he runs away because I have a daughter?" you confided in her.

"He won't."

"You don't know that."

"No, I  _do_ ," she nodded confidently, "If he had an issue with it, he wouldn't have asked to hang out with you after you introduced me to him." You began chewing on your inner cheek, staring at yourself.

"You're sure he's interested in me?" you muttered.

"He would be insane  _not_  to be," she said, holding up your bag for you to take.

"Thank you," you sighed, lifting the bag over your head so it was resting across your body. You and Lexie walked out of your bedroom and into the kitchen. "I don't know when I'll be home," you told her, grabbing your keys, "So don't feel like you need to wait up for me." She nodded as you went on. "I left some money on the coffee table in case you want to order a pizza, but I trust you won't burn the house down in case you want to cook something instead." She giggled quietly. "No parties, no having anyone over unless you call and ask first, no-"

"Mom," Lexie interrupted, putting her hands on your upper back and leading you toward the front door, "I know the drill; I get this speech every time you leave the house. I promise I'll be good. Don't worry about me. You just go have fun catching up with Cody." You sighed lightly as you grabbed the door knob and pulled the door open.

"I love you," you told Lexie, "Stay safe."

"Love you too, Mom," she smiled, kissing your cheek, "See you later."

~

You and Cody had met up at the ice cream shop, but then decided that you wanted to go to a local café instead.

You had been there for about an hour and a half catching up on everything that had been happening in your lives, casually sipping your hot chocolates, before Cody started getting into the serious stuff.

"So you have a daughter now?" Cody asked, taking another sip of his drink.

"I  _do_ ," you chuckled lightly with a nod, "A lot has changed since you left to chase your dreams of being in a band, you know."

"When did that happen?" You thought for a moment.

"The summer before senior year," you replied, "About a year after you left to pursue your music career."

"Her father then..." he trailed off.

"Not around," you answered, your expression falling a bit.

"I'm sorry," he murmured.

"It's alright. He would have been a deadbeat dad anyway. We're better off without him."

"And she's totally okay with it? I mean, not having her father around?"

"She seems to be," you shrugged, "She would ask about it a lot when she was younger, but as she grew up, I think she understood the situation a little better."

"Why didn't it work out?" he wondered, quickly adding, "If you don't mind me asking."

"Just realized he wasn't ready to raise a kid, I guess," you sighed, "He stuck around for a few months after she was born, but then decided that the stress was too much for him and just left."

"Asshole," Cody muttered under his breath, making you smile slightly.

"So what about you?" you asked, changing the subject, "How are things with the band?"

"They're going really well," he nodded, understanding that you didn't want to talk about Lexie's father anymore, "The boys and I have a show coming up next weekend, actually. You and Lexie should definitely tag along. I know they'd love to see you again as well as meet her."

"We'll try," you nodded, giving him a genuine smile.

~

"I did  _not_  cheat!" you shouted, pushing Cody with your elbow as you walked down the sidewalk, "I won that title fair and square!"

"Please!" he laughed, "You and I both know you won because the guy hosting that party had the  _biggest_ crush on you! You weren't even able to get past 10 seconds before you stopped kissing him!"

"I lasted longer than  _you_ , didn't I?" you smirked.

"I was drunk!" he gasped dramatically, "I didn't know I was kissing  _him_! Gabby Decker lasted way longer than you and you  _still_  won!"

"What can I say?" you giggled, "I know how to work a crowd."

"So you admit it! You  _did_  cheat!"

"No, I didn't! I didn't  _force_  Jared to name me the winner."

"But you knew he was going to," he nudged you, "Jared Miller was so in love with you, it was embarrassing to watch him whenever you two were in the same room."

"I think you were just jealous," you teased.

"Jealous of you winning a title you didn't deserve?" he laughed again.

"How do you know I didn't deserve it?" you stated, "You've never kissed me before."

"Maybe I think you just look like a terrible kisser," he winked.

"I'll have you know I am an  _excellent_  kisser."

"Prove it," he challenged, making your heart skip a beat. You were sure he wasn't intentionally suggesting that you kiss  _him_ , but he was the only person around.

You grabbed the back of Cody's neck and pulled his face to yours, smashing your lips together. He wasted no time in reacting, his hands finding your hips and bringing you closer to him.

Something about the way your lips were moving together made you wonder: Was this  _really_  about Cody thinking you looked like a bad kisser or was he just saying it because he knew you would try to prove him wrong?

In that moment though, you didn't care. You didn't care that there were people walking along the opposite side of the street glancing at the two of you and you didn't care that Cody was – at one point –  _only_ your best friend because none of that occurred to you until later that night when you were trying to go to sleep.

All those days in college you spent hanging out in each other's dorm rooms and going out to lunch with him and his friends were moments spent wondering what it would be like if it were just the two of you. You often found yourself wondering what would have been if you had come clean and told Cody you liked him when you were in school – you obviously didn't regret it as you now had a beautiful daughter and wouldn't trade her for the world – but what if you and Cody could have had something?

After finally coming to your senses, you moved away from Cody, desperately hoping it was dark enough so he couldn't see your face turning red.

"Well?" you cleared your throat, "Still think I'm a terrible kisser?"

"I've had better," he shrugged, but you could tell he was blushing too.

"You are  _such_  a liar," you breathed. You began walking once again, heading for your house.

It was silent for the most part – the only things being heard were the sounds of crickets chirping around you. You weren't so sure what you were supposed to say and you let out a small sigh of relief as you walked up your driveway, knowing the awkward silence would be over soon.

"Um..." Cody trailed off as you climbed the porch steps, "I had a really nice time tonight."

"Me too," you smiled shyly, "And Lex and I will see you this weekend." There was a bit of a questioning tone to your voice, but his eyes lit up.

"Yeah!" he exclaimed, nodding furiously, "I can't wait to see you guys!"

"Bye, Cody," you said, pressing a soft kiss to his cheek and entering your house.

"Bye, Y/N," you heard him whisper just before you closed the door behind you.


	212. Loose Ends, Old Flings (Cody Carson) - Part 2

_requested by my dude lunalove25 on tumblr_

~

**One week later; Saturday afternoon**

"Guys!" Cody beamed as he entered the dressing room, "Guess who I found!" The band kept throwing out ridiculous guesses because you finally pushed past Cody.

"Sorry," you said, "It's just me." Their jaws dropped, making you smile. "Are you gonna stand there trying to catch flies or are you gonna come hug me?" you teased.

" _Y/N_!" they shouted in unison, practically shoving each other out of the way as they ran over to the door. Cody quickly pulled Lexie out from behind you so she didn't get trampled, causing her to laugh lightly.

"Thank you," she told him.

"What are you  _doing_  here?!" Zach exclaimed, his arms tightening around your waist.

"Heard you guys were in town," you snickered, "Thought I'd drop by."

"We've missed you  _so much_!" Maxx pouted, making you ruffle his hair. The boys finally let go of you by this point, allowing you a moment to catch your breath.

"I've missed you guys too," you grinned, "And if we're gonna be seeing each other a lot more often, there's someone  _else_  you should get used to having around as well. Lex, this is Zach, Dan, and Maxx," you said pointing to each of them so she knew who was who, "Guys, this is my daughter Alexis."

"Lexie," she corrected you, offering them a smile.

"When did  _that_  happen?" Maxx's eyes widened, "How long had it  _been_  since college?"

"At least 15 and a half years," your daughter grinned a bit wider, "Give or take a couple days."

"And  _you_  were the one Cody went on a date with last weekend?" Dan asked you. You nodded and he sighed, "So much has  _happened_  since we last saw you!" You giggled softly, but decided to change the subject.

"Have you guys practiced for the show tonight?" you asked, "I wanna hear some songs!"

"Still our number one fan, I see," Cody chuckled, walking over to you and wrapping an arm around your shoulders, pulling you in so he could kiss your cheek.

"It's debatable at this point," you shrugged.

"What does  _that_  mean?" Zach gave you a confused laugh.

"Potential new number one fan here!" Lexie mock-saluted, "Reporting for duty,  _sir_!"

Dan couldn't help but laugh, "Your mother  _did_  always say she was going to make Set It Off fans out of her future kids."

"Did you think I was  _lying_?" you scoffed.

"Of  _course_  not; You would  _never_  lie to  _us_ ," Maxx smirked, rushing over and poking your stomach as he nudged you out of the room. Dan and Zach followed while Cody stayed behind with Lexie.

"We better go before one of them tries to steal your mom away from me," he said lightheartedly. Lexie simply laughed and rolled her eyes jokingly.

" _Please_ ," she told him, "She hasn't stopped  _talking about you_  since the moment you ran into each other at the ice cream place last week."

"Really?" Cody couldn't keep the smile from pulling at the corner of his mouth. Lexie didn't respond – she just grinned softly at his reaction.

The room was silent for a few moments before Cody spoke again.

"Can I ask you something, Lexie?" he wondered. She nodded and he motioned to the couch, leading her to sit down before sitting on the seat beside her. "You've corrected your mom  _both_  times when she introduced you as Alexis and you did seem pretty  _serious_  about what you'd said when she introduced you to me," he pointed out, "Why don't you like being called that?" Lexie didn't say anything for a second, worrying Cody that it was too touchy of a subject for the second time meeting him.

But she answered anyway. 

"I was partly named after my father-" She began chewing on her inner cheek. "-you know, back when he  _wanted me_  – and I don't really feel I'm too good with Faith-" She was referring to her middle name. "-so I just go by Lexie."

"' _Back when he wanted you_ '?" he repeated softly.

"I don't want to talk about it," she stated, getting up, "Especially not with  _you_."

"Why  _not_  with me?" Cody hopped up as well, gently grabbing her arm and turning her back around.

"Because when it happens  _again_ , I don't want to be  _responsible_  for it this time." He tilted his head in confusion.

" _What's_  gonna happen again, Lexie? I get that it's hard for you to talk about, but I can't make sure I  _don't_  do it unless you tell me what it  _is_."

"It doesn't  _matter_  if I tell you or not because you're gonna do it  _anyway_!" Lexie exclaimed, her voice breaking, "When I become too much to handle, you're gonna leave  _just_  like my dad did and just like all the guys my mom has tried dating  _since_!"

"Lexie," he sighed, pulling her back to the couch and sitting back down, "You're  _not_  the reason they left your mom." 

"Yeah, I  _am_ ," she whimpered, "Mom was supposed to go on a date the night we ran into you but he stood her up because of  _me_."

"Listen, I know I've never had to deal with anything like this before, but I  _promise_  I'm not gonna leave your mom; Not because she has a daughter or because she can be too sarcastic for her own good sometimes-" The statement made Lexie let out an involuntary giggle. "-I  _love_  your mother, Lexie," Cody promised her, "I have since we were in  _college_. And sure, maybe some things have changed like the fact that she has a  _daughter_  now, but I guess that means I have  _two_ times the convincing to do." She swallowed the lump in her throat as she looked at him.

"She loves you too, you know," she told him, "I can tell. It's like those looks people in the movies give to each other when they're not looking. Whenever I bring you up, it takes her  _all day_  to wipe the smile off of her face. I just... I don't want her to get  _hurt_  again." She took in a shaky breath, looking back down at her lap. "She thinks I can't hear her when she cries herself to sleep," she admitted, "She thinks she's being quiet when she mumbles to herself as she's looking in the mirror... I know she just acts strong for my sake, but I know the constant failed dates and guys who never call back are getting to her; She just won't  _admit it_."

"I'm not gonna hurt her, Lexie," Cody said quietly, shaking his head.

"That's what they all say until they  _do it_ ," she sighed, "They all promise the  _same_  things; They love her and they'd never leave and they'd never even  _dream_  about doing what those  _other guys_  did. And we  _believe_  them-" She sniffled lightly. "-We believe them  _every time_."

"How about when your mother and I are sitting on our front porch after you leave with our grandkids, then I can call you later that night and tell you ' _I told you so_ '?" he offered, succeeding in making her laugh through her tears.

"Sure," Lexie barely smiled, wiping her face again, "You can tell me you told me so."

"You wanna know what I like about you, Lexie?" Cody asked randomly. She looked at him, her head tilted slightly. "Most 15-year-olds barely even  _talk_  to their mothers, but you guys are like  _best friends_ ," he told her, "And I'm starting to think  _you're_  more protective of  _her_  than  _she_  is of  _you_."

"I don't think  _that's_  possible," you said, finally coming into the room from where you'd been hiding around the corner.

"How long have you been there?" Cody chuckled.

"Long enough to know that I  _literally_  have the most amazing daughter ever," you grinned, sitting beside her.

"You  _heard_  all that?" Lexie asked quietly. You simply wrapped your arm around her shoulder, pulling her into you and kissing the top of her head.

"I love you, Lex," you said.

"I love you too, Mom," she mumbled into your shoulder, putting her arms around your waist and hugging you tightly.

" _Alright_!" Cody exclaimed over-dramatically, "Let  _me_  in on this!" He fell onto Lexie as his arms went around the both of you, making her squeak in surprise before she started laughing.

"Hey, guys!" you heard Zach shout as he appeared in the doorway, "Group hug!"

"Can't believe this is happening  _without_  us!" Maxx feigned hurt as he and Dan scurried into the room behind Zach. All three boys piled onto you, Cody, and Lexie, making you squeak while Cody and Lexie just laughed hysterically. 

Sure, maybe the boys were dramatic and over-the-top sometimes, but they were still your best friends – and you were happy they were back in both yours  _and_  your daughter's lives.


	213. Bad Dreams (5 Seconds of Summer)

**Luke**

"Y/N," you heard your boyfriend say frantically, "Y/N, wake up."

You jolted awake with a sudden, sharp breath. You were sweating slightly and breathing heavily. The moment your eyes met Luke's worried ones, you broke down. You pushed yourself up with your elbow, sending your body toward his. He fell back onto the bed with you now on top of him, clinging onto his shirt like your life depended on it.

"Tell me about your nightmare, princess," Luke said softly as he ran his index and middle fingers up and down your spine slowly. You mumbled incoherently into his neck, but he somehow understood you. "Okay," he nodded, "When you're ready, then we'll talk about it." You slowly sighed in relief, thankful Luke knew you just needed time to calm down.

It took about 10 more minutes for you to calm down to the point where you were able to form proper sentences, but when you could, you just started talking.

"We were out on a date and having a lot of fun, but then fans started coming from everywhere," you told him with an exasperated sigh as you played with his hair, "And they made you let go of me and they wouldn't let you come back and I couldn't get away and none of the boys or bodyguards were with us and they kept asking why you were with me and why someone like you would want me and I-" Luke cut you off when you started getting worked up again.

"I'm not gonna let that happen to you, princess," he said quietly, kissing your temple, "You know that."

"B-But there were so many of them, Luke..."

"I know, Y/N, but I made you a promise before we started dating to always keep you safe and no amount of fans mobbing us is going to keep me from fulfilling that promise," he assured you. He squeezed you lightly, making you smile against his skin. "I love you so much, princess," he said, pressing another soft kiss to your head, "You're always gonna be safe with me."

~

**Michael**

"Kitten."

You woke up to Michael saying your nickname as he shook you gently. You unconsciously let out a low whine, still practically asleep and not quite sure what was going on. But your boyfriend was persistent, insisting that you wake up. You brought your arm up to rub your eye, feeling something wet before opening your eyes to look at the clock on your bedside table. It was 3:30 in the morning – not usually a time Michael would be awake. You turned onto your side so you could face him and, despite the fact that it was dark, the dim light from your clock illuminated the terrified look on Michael's face.

"Mikey," you stated groggily, "What's wrong?"

"You were crying in your sleep," he mumbled, lying back down so his nose was barely touching yours, "And you kept saying my name."

Ever since you and Michael started dating over two years ago, he had been away on tour for two, four, and seven months at a time. During the first two-month-long tour, you found yourself having dreams nearly every night about how Michael, for whatever reason, wouldn't come home. Even when he was on break, you would still have the dreams, but he was usually such a heavy sleeper that he never heard your quiet whimpers; Until now, of course.

"It's nothing, Mikey," you told him.

"It's not nothing, kitten," he replied, "This is the fourth time this week I've woken up because you were crying, but this time, you were saying my name."

You sighed, knowing there was no way out of this conversation and that he wouldn't wait until morning. So you explained everything to him – the dreams that would start out as him either getting on a plane to fly home and the plane crashing or the ones that would end with him getting sick of you and simply not coming back.

By the time you finished, you had tears in your eyes again. You lifted your hand up to wipe them away, but Michael beat you to it, putting his own on your cheek and pulling your face to his. He kissed you like it was your first kiss every single time, but this one felt different; With this kiss, you could feel how much he loved you without him even having to say it.

"I love you so much, kitten," he muttered against your lips, "I know I can never guarantee that nothing will happen to me, but I can promise you that I'm never going to let you go. Should I ever not come home, it'll never be because I got sick of you or I don't love you anymore, okay? You mean  _the world_  to me and I want you around for as long as you want me too."

~

**Calum**

Calum's eyes fluttered open to the sound of your quiet whimpers. Having just woken up, he didn't realize yet that that was what brought him out of his peaceful slumber. Either way, he climbed out of bed, seeing it was 7am and figuring he might as well get ready to take on the day ahead of him.

After getting dressed, he shuffled back over to the bed, bending down to press a soft kiss to your forehead before going to the kitchen to make a pot of coffee.

As he was waiting for the coffee, he had his forearms on the counter, scrolling through Twitter on his phone. He hadn't heard you come into the room, causing him to jump slightly when your arms wrapped around his waist from behind.

"Good morning, babe," he smiled, setting his phone down so he could turn around, but you weren't letting go of him. He noticed you were holding him a lot tighter than usual which confused him. But it wasn't until he heard faint sniffling that he instantly became worried. "Babe," he said again, "What's wrong?"

"I'm sorry," you whispered into his shirt. Calum furrowed his eyebrows and began to recall the events of the previous day.

You two had a lazy day since he wasn't needed in the studio – you watched a few movies, binge ate a bunch of junk food, and went to bed a little earlier than usual, rarely ever leaving each other's arms; Nothing coming to mind that you would be apologizing for.

"Why are you sorry?" he asked.

"I'll be a good girlfriend, Cal, I promise," you swallowed thickly, "Just please don't leave me..."

Calum immediately pried your arms off of his waist and brought you in front of him. He held your sides as he effortlessly lifted you up to sit on the counter so you were eye-level with him. This obviously didn't stop you from hanging your head, not wanting to look at him.

"Y/N," he said lowly, his hand sliding down to rest on your hips, "Come on, babe. Look at me."

You reluctantly picked your head up and noticed how concerned your boyfriend looked. He brought his hand up to your cheek, wiping the few tears that had fallen off of your face. He left his hand there, carefully stroking your cheekbone.

"What do you mean you'll be a good girlfriend?" he shook his head.

"We were watching a movie before bed last night," you sniffled again, "And you said you wanted to go hang out with the boys but I told you it was too late and you got mad and you left and when I woke up, you still weren't there." You were in tears again, broken sobs escaping your lips.

"Babe," Calum cooed gently, "I didn't ask to go out last night; I was the one who suggested we stay home."

"You did?" you asked quietly, your bottom lip trembling slightly.

"I did," he nodded, "I think you just had a bad dream."

"You're not leaving me?"

"Of course not," he assured you, a small smile on his lips, "I would never leave you – especially not over something as silly as wanting to go out with the boys. I love you too much to do that to you."

You let out a sigh of relief, leaning forward and wrapping your arms around his neck. His own arms snaked the rest of the way around your waist and he rubbed your back gently.

"You're an amazing girlfriend, Y/N," he muttered into your skin, "Absolutely nothing in the world is going to change that."

~

**Ashton**

Ashton stretched groggily, squinting as the sun was peeking through the curtains at just the right angle so it was hitting his face. He smiled as he turned over to where you were sleeping next to him, but it instantly faded. Your face was scrunched up and he could see tears falling down your cheeks and onto your pillow where there was already a small wet spot.

"Y/N," he whispered, scooting closer to you and putting his hand on your cheek.

"Ashton..." you mumbled his name in your sleep with a small sob.

"I'm right here, baby," he said lowly, wiping your tears away as you gradually woke up.

Once you were able to comprehend that you had only been dreaming, you let yourself smile. You quickly curled up against him, burying your face into his bare chest, instantly becoming warmer after having kicked the blanket off of you during the night. Your boyfriend's hand slid off of your face and down the side of your body, leaving a trail of goosebumps to where it came to rest on your hip.

"You wanna tell me about your dream?" Ashton asked you, pressing a kiss to your forehead. You shook your head, earning a ' _Why?_ ' from him.

"It's embarrassing," you murmured.

"As embarrassing as that time you woke up in tears because you had a dream that you dropped your ice cream?"

You let out a quiet chuckle, "No, but pretty close."

"Come on, baby," he smiled at the sound of your laugh, "Tell me what happened."

"It was nothing," you sighed, "You just left for tour again."

"You've been having those dreams a lot lately."

"I know..."

"I hate to break it to you," he said, kissing your head again, "But you're stuck with me for the next eight months." The statement made you laugh again. You let it taper off, nuzzling yourself further into him.

"I love you, Ash," you whispered.

"I love you too, baby," he grinned, rubbing circles on your hip bone as he kissed you for a third time, "Leaving for tour isn't ever going to making me feel differently."

~

_inspiration: http://snugmicheal.tumblr.com/post/118091402887/waking-up-from-a-nightmare-gasping-and-sweaty-as_


	214. Coming Clean (Luke Hemmings)

_Dear Nev and Max,_

_My name is Y/N, I'm a 20 year old college student, and I live in (your city, state). For the past three years, I've been dating a guy named Luke who lives in (whatever city is like, four hours away from you). We met on Tumblr and have been talking ever since. Luke knows everything there is to know about me and has helped me with things I don't even trust my own friends here with. The only problem is I've never actually seen him._

_I've asked him to Skype and FaceTime and everything, but he keeps coming up with excuses as to why he can't. We planned to meet last year, but about 10 minutes before I arrived at his house, he texted me saying something came up and he had to leave town. I was beyond upset and didn't talk to him after that for probably a month before I ended up forgiving him._

_I really feel like Luke is the one for me, but I don't think I'll ever be sure until I find out exactly why he doesn't want to meet me. I want to be able to share my life with someone who understands me and loves me for who I am, and I'm really hoping that person will be Luke._

_Nev and Max, please help me finally meet the person I've been in love with for the last three years._

_Hope to hear from you soon,_

_Y/N_

"Come on," Max shook his head as soon as Nev finished reading, "Calling off meeting her  _10 minutes_  before she pulled into his driveway? That's ridiculous! If he didn't plan on meeting up with her, he should have said something before she wasted the time to drive to him!"

"This girl really needs us," Nev commented, "I say we get her on video chat and then go from there." Max agreed and Nev typed in the Skype name you had included in the email before hitting call. As soon as you popped up on the screen, you were smiling widely.

"Hey, guys!" you beamed.

"Hey, Y/N!" Nev returned the gesture, "Max and I were just finishing reading your email! Why don't you tell us a little more about your relationship with Luke?"

"Okay," you nodded, "Well, I saw Luke's Tumblr blog in my suggested users and I thought his icon was really cute and I liked everything he posted, so I was like, ' _what the heck?_ ' and I followed him. I didn't really expect anything to come out of it, but a few hours later, I saw that he followed me back and sent an inbox basically just telling me that he thought I was beautiful and he was hoping to get to know me and it kinda just took off from there."

"When did you guys start talking about being a couple?" Max wondered.

"About a year and a half ago," you told him, "I had been dating this other guy and he'd just broken my heart, so I called Luke at nearly 3 o'clock that morning. I was in tears because I really thought this guy and I were going to last and I was explaining that to Luke. He kind of just blurted out that he was in love with me and he started apologizing, saying he didn't mean to say it, and I think it actually surprised him when I admitted the same thing."

"Well, we would love to come out and help you meet this guy if you're up for it!" Nev chirped.

"Yes!" you grinned, "I'm so ready!"

"We'll see you soon then!" He ended the Skype call and turned to Max, "Off to (your state)."

~

"Hi!" you cheered the second you opened your front door and saw Nev and Max standing there with the crew.

"Y/N," Nev smiled, "It's nice to meet you!" He and Max gave you a hug as you stepped aside to let everyone into your apartment, greeting them as they passed. You showed them into the living room where you all sat down. "This is a very nice place," Nev pointed out, "Is it yours?"

"Thank you," you smiled, "And yes. I didn't want to live on campus, so I decided to rent my own apartment."

"What are you studying?" Max asked.

"Well, I actually want to be a therapist so I can help people cope with their depression or anything else they may need me for."

"Is there any one reason for choosing that line of work?"

"There's nothing specific," you shook your head, "I just want to be able to give someone an outlet – someone they can talk to in a safe and trustworthy environment."

"That's awesome of you," Nev commented before moving on to the reason they were there. "So tell us a little more about Luke. What makes him different than guys around here?"

"He's just a lot more caring," you replied, "He doesn't have to  _try_  to be funny or anything. I've tried dating guys before, but none of them ever worked out because they would either use me or they didn't really bother with trying to get to know me; I was always just another notch in the bedpost to them. But when I met Luke, he sort of helped me realize the way I should be treated in a relationship."

"What are you concerns as far as the things he's told you about where he lives and his job and everything?" Max spoke up again.

"He moved from Australia a few years ago and now, he's got a job at a local record shop in his town."

"And you really believe he's Australian?" he questioned.

"Yes," you nodded.

"What makes you so sure?"

"His accent," you giggled.

"Oh," Nev laughed, "Well, that's definitely a good sign."

"Do you want to hear a voicemail?" They eagerly accepted and you pulled your phone out of your pocket, playing the last voicemail you received.

" _Hey, princess,_ " you heard Luke's smile again as you relistened to his message, " _I'm sure you're sleeping right now, but I just wanted to make sure you wake up to something special. I know you're stressing about your midterms today and I'm sorry I'm not there to help you, but I know you're gonna ace them. Make sure you call me later to tell me how everything went. I love you._ "

"Would you say you guys are pretty serious then?" Max asked.

"I would say so, yes," you responded, "Nobody treats me the way Luke does. In every relationship I've been in, no one's ever called me before bed just to say goodnight or sent me a good morning text before I leave for school. I really can't explain how he makes me feel. I just... I love him."

"Now you understand that this guy may be lying, right?" Max asked, "Like, it's pretty unusual for people these days to have a computer or phone and not be able to video chat."

"I know," you said with a small sigh, "I just feel like that shouldn't be the deciding factor in whether or not I stay with him, you know? I know what I want and I know that it's Luke."

"Well, we're gonna go back to our hotel and do some investigating and we'll come back tomorrow to let you know what we find," Nev said as he stood up, the rest of you following suit.

"See you tomorrow," you said, hugging them before they walked out the door.

"I'm worried," Max said solemnly once Nev pulled out of the driveway and began making the short drive to the hotel, "Y/N's obviously a really sweet girl who has had her heart broken more times than I think she's willing to admit. I don't want her to find out that this Luke guy has been lying to her and then have that entire relationship come crashing down on her."

"I think we should do some research first and then decide how to go about relaying the information back to her once we find out what he's hiding if he's even hiding anything," Nev said optimistically.

"He's obviously hiding  _something_!" Max threw his arm up slightly, "I mean,  _look at her_! There is no reason that he would not want to video chat with her.  _None_."

~

**The next day**

"Hey, Y/N," Nev said into his phone, "It's Nev and Max."

"Hi!" you smiled, "How are you guys?"

"We're good. We've found some interesting stuff and we were wondering if we could come over and talk to you about it."

"Yeah, totally! My best friend is actually over right now too. He knows everything about what's going on and he's really excited to meet you guys."

"Cool, we'll be over in a few minutes."

"Alright," you nodded although they couldn't see you, "Bye."

~

"Come on in, everyone," you chirped, ushering the crew into your apartment. "This is my best friend Hayden," you introduced them to the brown-haired boy standing beside you.

"It's nice to meet you guys," Hayden smiled, shaking Nev and Max's hands. You all went into the living room and sat down. You and Nev sat on one couch and Max and Hayden took the adjacent one while the rest of the crew was scattered around the room.

"So Y/N told us you know pretty much everything that has to do with the situation," Nev said to your best friend, "And we just want to kind of hear what your take on it is and how you feel about it all."

"I think it's amazing that she's finally found someone she can talk to," Hayden smiled slightly, "I mean, there are things she tells Luke that I don't learn until later and I'm sure there are other things she'll never trust me with the way she trusts this guy. I'm really happy she's got someone like him in her life who loves her when she doesn't even love herself; I'm just worried that he might not be who he says he is. Like, I understand that it takes a long time to save up the money for gas or a plane ticket, but if I was seeing someone, I wouldn't send as many gifts as he sends her and I would save that money to actually go see her."

"But you're not," you shook your head, your voice soft as you looked at him, "You don't know what it's like to be in a long distance relationship."

He sighed, putting his hand on your knee, "I just want you to be careful, Y/N. That's all. You wear your heart on your sleeve and I hate seeing people take advantage of that." You looked back down at the hands in your lap with a small smile on your face, happy you had a friend like Hayden who didn't judge you the way other people had about your relationship with Luke.

"You guys ready to see what we found?" Nev spoke. You eagerly nodded and he opened his laptop. "So we started off by going to his Tumblr blog and couldn't really find anything that would be useful, so we decided to go to his Facebook page next. We went through his friends and it seems like he has a lot of people from his town which is a pretty good sign, but we didn't see anyone else from Australia which concerned us. I mean, we should have found family or something, but we didn't."

You were chewing on your lip, taking in slow, deep breaths to try to calm your racing heart. You were still trying to remain optimistic, but it was becoming increasingly difficult as every second passed.

"We then searched his phone number," Nev continued, "And we were happy to find that it's registered in his name and he lives in (city)." You couldn't help but let out a small sigh of relief. "However-" Your heart dropped again. "-when we took some photos from his Facebook page and Tumblr blog, we found this."

Nev showed you a photo you'd seen hundreds of times before, but it was on a like page for a concert venue. He hovered over Luke's face and you began feeling nauseous when a completely different name popped up. The sick feeling wouldn't go away as he continued and you knew you wouldn't be able to handle much more before you were in tears, and you  _really_ didn't want to cry on camera.

"Can we stop for a minute?" you asked, your voice barely above a whisper.

"Yeah, sure," Nev nodded quickly, understanding that you needed a moment to process everything. You wiped the stray tears off of your face as you stood up, going into your bedroom since it was the closest room with a door. Everyone could hear you sniffling quietly, trying to hold yourself  together.

"Should I go talk to her?" Hayden asked after a few seconds. Nev and Max nodded and he got up, going into the room after you.

You looked up at your best friend as he closed the door behind him. Your vision was blurry as Hayden sat down cross-legged in front of where you  were curled up on the floor at the foot of your bed. He was giving you a sad smile as he opened his arms, signaling for you to crawl onto his lap. You wasted no time in doing so and as he rubbed your back, he tried making you feel better.

"I know you're upset," he said lowly, "But that still doesn't mean he lied about everything else."

"He still  _lied_ , Hay," you whimpered into his shoulder, "He promised he'd never lie to me and he  _did_."

"Just keep an open mind. I'm sure there's a reason he felt like he had to lie and I can tell you really love him, so just hear him out when you meet him, okay?" You looked up at him and he wiped your tears away with his thumbs before you both got up and returned to the living room.

You sat back down next to Nev with a small sigh. You cleared your throat lightly as you wiped one last tear off your cheek.

"Sorry about that," you murmured.

"It's totally understandable," Nev assured you, placing his hand gently on your shoulder, "You're hurt and confused and I don't think anyone would blame you for feeling that way."

"Okay," you breathed, "What else did you find?"

"Unfortunately, we couldn't find any photos related to who Luke really is," he answered, "All we know is he's not the guy in the pictures."

"So what now?" Hayden spoke up.

"I could go outside and call him, basically let him know that we know he's not the guy in the pictures, and see if I can get him to meet us," Nev said, rubbing your back with his thumb.

You nodded slowly and he got up, heading toward the balcony off of the kitchen. Hayden immediately jumped over to where Nev had been sitting, pulling you into another hug. You wrapped your arms around his waist and rested your head on his shoulder while he whispered words of encouragement in your ear.

**Third person POV**

"Hello?" the person on the other end of the phone answered after the fourth ring.

"Hi, is this Luke?" Nev asked.

"Yes, who is this?"

"This is Nev from the MTV show  _Catfish_ ," he replied, "I don't know if you're familiar with it."

"Yeah..." he trailed off, "I've heard of it."

"Oh, okay," Nev nodded although Luke couldn't see him, "It sounds pretty apparent that you sort of know why I'm calling then."

"My girlfriend," he said softly.

"Yes, Y/N contacted us in the hopes of getting to the bottom of why you won't meet her."

"Wow," he let out a breath, "I... I really don't know what to say."

"Let's start with the reason you haven't met her. She obviously now knows that  it's because you're not the person in the photos she's seen, but why not come clean sooner and not lead her on for so long?"

"I don't..." Luke let out a frustrated sigh, "I want to meet her so badly, I just... I don't want her to hate me. I've put the past three years into building a relationship with this girl and I don't want it to come crashing down..."

"Well, no matter the outcome, I think you owe it to her to meet her face-to-face," Nev explained, "She's understandably starting to feel like something's wrong with her because you  _keep_ coming up with excuses not to meet up or Skype with her and I don't think she can handle many more."

"I don't want to make her feel like that," Luke swallowed the lump in his throat, "I never want her to feel like that. She's an amazing girl and there's nothing about her that isn't beautiful." There was a long pause before he finally caved in. "Yeah, I'll do it," he said.

"You'll meet her?"

"I'll meet her," Luke confirmed, "You're right. This has gone on long enough."

"Cool," Nev replied, "Well, we'll be driving out tomorrow and we can arrange a meet up when we get there."

"Alright, I'll see you soon." After that, Luke hung up and Nev was left to go back inside and explain the situation to you and Max and hurry to pack your bags so you could finally meet the guy you've been talking to for the last three years.

~

**Your POV;** **The next morning**

After the four hour drive to Luke's city, you reached the hotel at around 1:30am. You were beyond exhausted and the second you got to your room and laid on your bed, you were out.

When you woke up, you decided to quickly get dressed before Nev, Max, and the crew came to your room. As soon as you finished brushing your teeth, there was a knock on your door. You hurried to open it and were greeted by everyone.

"Good morning!" Nev cheered, "How did you sleep?"

"I've slept better," you answered honestly as you all went to sit down. You plopped down on the bed, Nev sat on the desk chair, and Max simply leaned against the wall in between you. "I got a text from Luke this morning," you randomly stated, causing Nev to perk up.

"What did he say?" Max asked. You pulled your phone out of your pocket to read it.

_Hey, princess. I just wanted to say I'm sorry. I know you know about the pictures and I know you're hurt. I never meant for that to happen and I feel even worse because I care about you so much. I hope you had a good night sleep and I'll see you later today. I love you._

"Did you send him a reply?" You pursed your lips together, remaining motionless for a moment before shaking your head slowly.

"I wanted to," you admitted, "But I need answers first."

"Well, I'll text him and see if he's ready," Nev started, "And hopefully we'll be able to meet him today." He texted Luke and got a reply not even 5 minutes later. "Looks like we're heading to a park," he told you and the crew, "Shall we?" You stood up and you all filed out of the hotel room, heading to the car. 

~

You had been sitting at a random picnic table for about 10 minutes now, waiting for anyone to come around. There were obviously people there, but you made sure to stay a ways away from them. Nev had questioned calling Luke to see where he was, but you had interrupted before he could finish asking.

"Is that him?" you asked, everyone looking over Max's shoulder when you saw a tall blonde with his hands stuffed in the pockets of his jeans coming toward you.

"I think that's him," Max confirmed. Your heart nearly stopped as he walked over.

You couldn't deny that you thought he was cute, which made you wonder why he would lie about what he looked like in the first place. You saw he was wearing a plaid flannel with the sleeves rolled up above his elbows – something he knew you loved – and it became a bit difficult to stay mad at him knowing he did that for you. But you remained stoic; He still lied and no amount of thoughtfulness was going to change that.

"Luke?" Nev asked, earning a nod.

"Hi," Luke whispered, shaking his outstretched hand. He still hadn't looked at you which only made you more upset.

"Are you really not going to look at me?" you shook your head in disbelief, making everyone but him do so, "Like, you can lie for three years, but you can't look me in the eye when you do it?" When he  _still_ refused to make eye contact, you could feel tears begin welling up and knew you had to walk away before they started falling. "I'm sorry," you whimpered, pushing yourself off of the picnic table and quickly walked past him, rushing back to the car.

You got in the passenger seat and hunched forward with your face in your hands. You let out a couple brief and loud broken sobs, oblivious to what was going on outside.

**Luke's POV**

The breath Luke let out as you walked away was one that would have broken your heart if you had heard it. It was a pained one at knowing he was the reason you were hurting as badly as you were. He didn't know why he couldn't look at you – maybe it was because he'd been lying for so long or maybe because he felt like you were disappointed in what you saw – but he just couldn't do it.

"She hates me," Luke mumbled, plopping down on the seat of the picnic table you were just sitting at as Max left to check on you.

"She's confused," Nev tried reassuring him, "I think you had to have expected her to be at least a  _little_  upset about this."

"I did, but... I didn't think she'd start crying," he put his face in his hands, "I hate when she cries."

"Then why not just tell her the truth earlier?"

"Because she never would have stayed if she knew. She's so... She's so beautiful and I... I'm just  _me_ ," he sniffled lightly.

**Your POV**

When you heard the driver's side door open, you finally sat back upright and you and Max sat in silence for a good 15 seconds. When you'd finally stopped crying, you wiped your face with the sleeve of your sweater.

"I'm sorry," you repeated quietly. Max shook his head slowly, reaching over to rub your back gently.

"Don't be," he stated, "No one is blaming you for feeling the way you do."

"I can't believe he won't even  _look_  at me," you scoffed lightly, releasing a shaky breath.

"I know you don't want to, but I think you should at least hear him out. You have to remember that he's just as nervous as you are and you deserve to get some answers." You looked over at him and sighed, knowing he was right.

"Okay," you said, pulling the door handle and getting back out of the car.

You met Max beside the trunk and he put his camera on the ground, pulling you into a tight hug. He let go and you made your way back to the table where you heard Luke say ' _I'm just me_ ' before Nev nudged his shoulder to let him know you had returned.

Luke's head snapped up and his eyes finally met yours – and you swore your heart stopped again. This time, however, it was because you became instantaneously captivated by him.

Now that you were getting a closer look at him, you saw how one of his blue eyes was a little more on the greener side and he kept flicking his lip ring with the tip of his tongue. He couldn't maintain eye contact for more than ten seconds at a time, but he would always look back two seconds later.

"How about we leave you two alone to talk?" Nev suggested, backing away from the table, "You guys can come back over when you're done." You nodded and they walked off.

After one of the crew members put a mic on him, Luke spun around toward the table while you went to sit on the other bench. They backed off as well, giving the two of you some space.

You sat in silence for a few moments. You knew exactly what you wanted to say, you just didn't know how to go about saying it. You could tell that Luke felt terrible about lying to you and you didn't want him to feel like you resented him for it because you honestly didn't.

"Your name  _is_ Luke, right?" was the first question to leave your mouth, trying to lighten the mood. Luke let out a breathy chuckle.

"Yeah," he whispered, folding his arms on the table top, "I'm Luke."

"I guess all I really want to know is  _why_ ," you told him, "Was everything you've ever told me a lie?"

"No," he answered quickly, his tone firm, "The  _only_ thing I lied about was the pictures. Everything else was real – my name, where I live, where I work, every secret I've told you, how I feel about you...  _Everything_."

"If you weren't going to go through the trouble of faking anything else, why the pictures? Why not just be yourself?"

"I don't know..." Luke sighed, resting his face in his palms again, "That's such a pathetic thing to say. I guess I did it because I was sick of everything going wrong in my life and I just needed someone to talk to."

"Why couldn't you do that as  _you_  though?" you asked with what felt like a permanent look of hurt on your face, "Why did you have to  _lie_  to me?"

"Y/N..." he trailed off quietly, lifting his head to look at you, "I really  _am_  sorry I lied – especially to you because you are the  _last_ person who deserves anything like this happening to them – but I just... I'm not confident with who I am and I'm  _especially_ not confident with who I am when it comes to girls. I guess I thought that if I could be someone else for once, I would be able to talk to them. And I was – like, I was  _really_  coming out of my shell – but then I met you. When I started talking to you, it felt like we'd known each other forever and I found myself actually  _wanting_ to be myself with you. But you thought you were always talking to that guy in the pictures and I could never make myself tell you the truth... And now that I'm saying it out loud, I know I'm an even bigger asshole because it's like, if you meant as much to me as I've been telling you you do for the past three years, I would have come clean by now. But I  _swear_ , Y/N, you mean the  _world_  to me and I really,  _really_  hope we can at least still be friends after this. I don't care how long it takes for you to be comfortable with trusting me again; I'll wait forever if I have to."

You took a moment to process everything Luke had told you. You knew you still wanted him in your life and you knew it would take a while to get back to where your relationship used to be, but there was no way you were letting him go that easily. Despite the fact that he'd been lying to you about what he looked like, you knew his feelings for you were real – you knew that no matter how hard he tried, he would never be able to fake how he felt about you; And you knew you felt the exact same way about him.

"I mean, I'm obviously going to need some time to think about everything, Luke," you finally said. Luke felt his heart start racing at the sound of you saying his name. "But I can promise you I'm not going to cut all ties off with you," you told him with a small smile, "You've been there for me through some pretty rough shit and I would honestly never forgive myself if I just left here pretending I never met you." You watched as he let out a big sigh of relief. You both stood up and gave each other a quick hug before making your way back to Nev and Max.

"So," Nev said with a nervous smile, "How'd it go?"

"It went well," you nodded, glancing at Luke, "I think we both need to take time for ourselves to just process this whole experience, but we'll definitely be staying in touch." Luke couldn't keep the grin from spreading across his face as he looked at his feet, shyly rocking back and forth in his spot beside you, while both Nev and Max looked surprised.

"Well, that's great!" Max chirped, "We're really glad to hear that!"

"I guess we should probably get going," Nev spoke up, "But I agree; I'm so happy you guys are planning to stay friends." The three of you said goodbye to Luke – you obviously giving him another hug – before heading back to the car.

You smiled slightly, but let it fade as you all climbed in, camera men in various places to get shots of you leaving the park. Nev started the car, but Max stopped him from going anywhere, noticing your change in demeanor.

"Y/N," he said, putting his hand on your shoulder, "What's going through your mind right now?" Both men were looking at you intently as you stared at the console between you and Nev.

"Would it be okay if I talked to Luke for a little while longer?" you blurted out, looking up at them, "Like, without mics and cameras and everything." Nev and Max looked at each other and shrugged.

Luke – along with the crew – watched in confusion as you got out of the car and came back over to him. Nev explained what you had requested and the crew was more than willing to allow you and Luke one-on-one time, so they helped you both take off your mics.

As soon as they were off, you grabbed Luke's hand and led him away.

"What's wrong?" Luke asked once you were out of hearing range.

You stopped abruptly, spinning around to face him. You saw out of the corner of your eye that every camera was pointing at the two of you – not that you didn't expect them to be – but you knew the microphones couldn't catch anything you were saying.

"You remember that night I called at like, 3am crying because I just found out the guy I'd been seeing was just using me to get back at his ex?"

"The night I told you I was in love with you," Luke nodded, smiling fondly at the memory of you saying it back.

"Why did you say it?" you asked, taking him aback a bit, "I mean, why did you say it  _then_  and not before or something?"

"You were always talking about how happy you were when you were with him," he hung his head, "And I never thought you could feel that way with me, so I just sat on my feelings. I convinced myself that a girl like you would never want to tell people that she was with  _me_. But as soon as I woke up and saw your name on my phone, I knew that whatever had you calling so early was important and I got really scared that something happened to you. The second I heard you crying, I wanted it to stop – I wanted to kick that guy's ass for hurting you; I still do. You're honestly such an amazing person and I hated seeing you get hurt by guys who weren't worth the tears and who didn't deserve you. And I'm not saying  _I_  deserve you any more than anyone else – because I really don't – but I couldn't let myself watch you keep going into relationships without telling you how I felt, so I did. And I don't think I'll ever fully understand why you felt the same, but I'm really glad you did."

" _Do_ ," you whispered after taking in everything he said for a second time. He looked back up, not too sure what you meant. When you went on, however, it took him completely off guard. "I  _do_ love you, Luke," you said, "You know that, right?"

"Even after all this?" he shook his head slightly in shock, "Even after knowing I lied about who I am, y-you  _still_ love me?" You felt a sudden rush of confidence and answered him by grabbing his face and pressing your lips together.

Luke let a puff of air out of his nose as his hands found their way to your hips. He pulled you against him, leaving absolutely no space between your bodies. You faintly heard everyone back at the car gasp, making you giggle slightly. You couldn't help but blush as you pulled away, your lips still only centimeters apart.

"Sorry," you whispered again. Luke chuckled, blushing as well.

"You have no idea how many times I've thought about doing that," he replied lowly, making you grin again as his thumbs gently rubbed circles on your hipbones.

"I love you, Lukey," you repeated, a sheepish expression on your face while you ran your thumb back and forth on his cheekbone. Luke's face turned even redder at hearing your voice speak and actually being able to  _see_ your lips say the nickname he'd heard through the static sound of your phone calls so many times before.

"I love you too, princess," he smiled, allowing you to finally do the same with what he'd been calling you practically since day one, "So much."

You reached up, pressing another kiss to his lips. It was much slower than the previous one, neither of you wanting this moment to end before you had to go back home. After imagining what it would be like to kiss Luke – no matter the fact that it hadn't been  _him_ you were imagining – you were somewhat relieved to finally be doing it. As cliché as it sounds, it just felt like his lips were  _made_  for yours; You'd never felt the way you did when you were kissing Luke.

When you were kissing Luke, it wasn't awkward and it didn't feel forced – like the kind of social norm it was to kiss someone when you're standing on their porch after a date. He didn't make any movements other than gradually tightening his hold on your hips, but you definitely didn't mind.

You loved the way Luke held you; You felt like some expensive vase that looked like it could be broken with just one touch. Luke held you like exactly that, but he was still rougher – almost as if he knew you were easily broken, but also knew you just needed to know you were worth the risk.

When you pulled back, you opened your eyes just in time to watch Luke's flutter back open as well. You both smiled at each other, taking a moment to catch your breath.

"If I had known I was missing out on things like that, I would have come clean a lot sooner," Luke smirked, making you let out a loud, short laugh.

"No, you wouldn't have," you shook your head. You looked over his shoulder at everyone, giggling again. "I wish you could see the looks on their faces."

"I'm sure I'll see them when the show airs," he chuckled, pressing a kiss to your nose. Your smile faltered slightly, causing Luke to perk up. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"I have to go back home after we leave here," you whispered, unintentionally letting a couple tears fall down your cheeks. Luke smiled sadly, bringing his hands up to your face to wipe away your tears.

"We'll see each other again, you know," he said reassuringly.

"When?"

"Eager, are we?" he teased, succeeding in making you smile. "I've been saving up to buy you something nice for Christmas," he confessed, "But I think now, I'd rather use the money to come visit you."

"Really?" your voice cracked in excitement. Luke nodded and you immediately pulled him closer, hugging him tightly. "I'm gonna miss you," you whimpered into his skin.

"Look on the bright side," he kissed the side of your head, "At least we can Skype now." You moved back to slap his chest.

"You're such a dick," you told him, trying to hold back a grin. When he smiled back though, you knew you weren't doing a very good job.

"I'll see you in December, princess," he whispered, resting his forehead on yours, "I love you."

"I love you too, Lukey," you sighed in content, kissing him again.

As you started walking back to the car, your fingers were tangled with Luke's. You pulled him closer, leaning in to whisper in his ear.

"How much do you want to bet that they're not going to ask about that kiss until after we drive away?" you asked him, a sly smirk on your face.

"Oh, no," Luke chuckled, "I learned my lesson in making bets with you during the last season of  _The Voice_. I'll just swallow my pride and agree with you from now on." You smiled proudly.

"How'd it go?" Nev asked as you were approaching, still seemingly surprised, but obviously attempting to conceal it.

"I have no complaints," you shrugged as a producer put your mic back on, causing Luke to snort quietly. Max chuckled under his breath.

"Well, it was nice meeting you, Luke," he said, shaking his hand, "We're glad everything seems to have worked out."

Luke thanked him, shaking Nev's hand as well, and pulled you into another hug. He pressed his lips to your ear, mumbling an ' _I love you, princess_ ' before letting you leave. Once you, Nev, and Max were in the car, it was silent until Nev began driving away – just as you had expected.

"So," Nev said, obviously trying to hold back a fairly wide grin as he glanced at you before turning his attention back to the road in front of him, "What did you have to say?"

"Nothing..." you trailed off shyly, a smile of your own plastered on your face as you sunk down in your seat slightly.

"That didn't  _look_  like nothing," Max laughed.

"Just wanted to say bye," you shrugged. They were still eyeing you knowingly, causing you to finally break. "And I couldn't make myself leave without telling him I love him." Their jaws dropped.

"You told him you love him?" Nev asked, wide-eyed.

"Well, I  _do_!" you squeaked, "It's not like I haven't said it before!"

"Well, yeah, but he-" You politely cut him off.

"He may not be the  _pictures_  that attracted me to him in the first place," you stated softly, "But the guy standing in front of me today was the guy I fell in love with. And I think it would be pretty shitty of me to not give him a chance just because he doesn't look like what I've been imagining for the last three years."

"Wow," Nev let out a breathy chuckle, "I'm speechless."

" _That's a first_ ," Max commented, earning an eye roll from the man in the driver's seat.

"In any case," he went on, "I think you're handling this very maturely and I don't think you're giving yourself enough credit for it. Any other person in your situation would be incredibly upset – which is understandable – but you're handling it very well."

"I just..." you couldn't contain the smile you had whenever you thought about Luke, "I love him; I'm in love with him."

~

**Six months later; March**

"Hey, Y/N!" Nev and Max exclaimed when you came up on the screen for you check-up with them.

"Hi!" you waved happily.

"How have you been since we last saw each other?"

"I've been great! School is really kicking my butt," you giggled, "But I just found out that if I keep my grades looking the way they are now, I'll be able to graduate next year!"

"Oh, congratulations!" You thanked him with a small giggle.

"So," Max grinned, "How are things with Luke?"

"They're going really well," you nodded, "Do you wanna talk to him?" The two men looked at each other in surprise for a moment.

"He's not with you, is he?" Nev asked.

You smiled brightly, telling them you'd be right back. You returned five seconds later, sitting back down in front of your laptop and pulling your boyfriend down with you.

"Nev! Max!" Luke cheered, his arms snaking around your waist, "It's good to see you guys again!"

" _What_?!" Nev exclaimed with a wide smile, "When did this happen?!"

"Last month," you answered, leaning into Luke's side.

"She actually tried to convince me to let her move in with me," Luke laughed, "But with her still being in school, I thought it would be better if I moved here."

"You two are really a  _Catfish_ success story then, huh?" Max chuckled, making everyone laugh.

"I guess so," you replied sheepishly as Luke kissed your cheek. You blushed a light shade of pink.

"Well, we're really happy to see everything's worked out!" Nev beamed before he and Max said in unison, "Bye!"

"Bye!" you and Luke smiled, disappearing from the computer screen.

 


	215. Stood Up (Michael Clifford)

"Welcome to Manny's!" the restaurant hostess recited cheerfully as she'd been doing all day long, "Table for one?"

"Oh, no," you replied, shaking your head, "I'm meeting someone here, but is it okay if I go ahead and find a table?"

"Of course! Enjoy your evening!"

"Thank you," you smiled politely, walking past her and finding an empty table. You took a seat and began patiently waiting for your date to arrive.

You had gone out with Grant before and while you weren't head over heels for him, you thought he was a sweet guy and you really did enjoy his company. Although he was quite attractive, he wasn't the type you would typically go for; But the mutual friend that set you two up insisted that you two would have chemistry, so you decided to give him a chance.

You felt as if something was there when you first met him and you thought he felt it too, but after 20 minutes of waiting, it became painfully clear that Grant wasn't going to show up.

You had been sitting alone for that entire time, the other people in the restaurant looking at you sympathetically. Your waitress, Lucy, would periodically come over to check on you, asking if you were ready to order, but you declined, trying to stay optimistic. You knew in your gut that you were being stood up though.

Another 10 minutes passed and you slyly looked around the restaurant once more, seeing everyone watching you with sad eyes and apologetic expressions. Of course, this only made you feel like even  _more_  of an idiot, so you went to stand up so you could leave. But as you were getting up, you felt a hand on your back.

"I am  _so_  sorry I'm late, babe; Traffic was  _ridiculous_ ," the man said rather loudly, bringing you into a hug and whispering so only you could hear him, "My name's Michael. Just go with it, okay? Whoever stood you up is a massive prick." You barely smiled, but hugged him back anyway, whispering your own name so he knew it. You sat back down and Michael pushed your chair in for you before taking the seat across from you.

"Are you ready to order?" Lucy smiled as she walked up, seeing you were finally sitting with someone. You glanced at Michael and he smiled at you. He looked back up at the waitress and told her what he wanted, gesturing for you to do so as well. After you did, she trotted away, leaving you to turn back to the man across the table.

"You don't have to do this, Michael," you told him quietly.

"It's no problem, really," he assured you with a soft smile, "No girl should ever feel humiliated because their date stood them up – especially one as gorgeous as yourself." The statement made you blush and look down at your lap. You heard Michael chuckle, prompting you to speak again.

"So how long have you been watching me?"

"Only about five minutes," he shrugged, "But I could tell from the way everyone else was looking at you that you've been here a lot longer." You let out a breathy, forced laugh and the two of you made small talk while you waited for your food to arrive.

As you were eating later on, you found yourself having more of a fun time that you had originally anticipated. You had been on numerous dates with Grant, but he never made you laugh as much as Michael was or made your conversations seem so effortless. Despite only knowing the boy across from you for only about half an hour, you realized you were developing somewhat of a crush on him.

"I like your hair, by the way," you told Michael as you were both finishing your deserts, your eyes scanning the unkempt white and blue strands on his head.

"Thank you!" he smiled brightly, "I just dyed it like, a couple days ago."

"What color did it used to be?"

"Red." You nearly choked on your food, causing his eyes to widen.

" _Red_?!" you exclaimed in a whisper before he could say anything, "How the hell did you go from red to  _white_?! I can't even put  _highlights_  in my hair without managing to screw it up!" Michael giggled lowly.

"I don't know, to be honest," he said, "I mean, I let it fade  _a lot_  before I bleached it, but it kinda just turned white on its own. I didn't really like how plain it looked, so I decided to add some blue." You let out a puff of air, your bottom lip sticking out slightly.

"Well, the next time I wanna do something with my hair, I'm gonna have to find you somehow," you told him.

"You don't have to do much searching, you know," he said shyly, "I could always just give you my number."

You cocked an eyebrow at him as he chewed on his bottom lip. You felt a smile pull at the corner of your mouth as you pulled your phone out of your bag and held it out to him. Michael looked at your phone and up at you, seeing your smile. He couldn't help but blush as he took your phone, put his number in, and then texted himself so he would have yours as well. He cleared his throat nervously as he gave you the phone back.

"You don't have to just call with hair related things either," he told you, "You can call for any reason... If you want..." You stared at him for a good 10 seconds before you said anything.

"Thanks for tonight, Michael," you grinned sheepishly, "This was easily the best not-date date I've ever been on." He chuckled under his breath.

"You're welcome, Y/N," he said as your waitress was making her was back to the table.

"Will that be all for you two this evening?" Lucy asked, picking up the empty plates.

"I think so," Michael smiled politely.

"Alright," she chirped, "I'll be back with your check in a moment." She left and you watched as Michael reached behind him.

" _Michael_!" you shouted in a whisper again, "You are  _not_ paying for dinner!"

"Are you sure?" he smirked, pulling his wallet out of his pocket, "Because it certainly looks like I'm  _going to_."

" _No_!" you whined, digging your own wallet out of your bag, "You weren't even my date to  _begin with_!"

"Exactly," he nodded, "But I chose to come over and eat with you, so I'm paying."

"Michael-" You were cut off by Lucy returning.

"Okay, guys," she said cheerfully, "That'll be $26 even." You and Michael quickly reached for $30 out of your wallets and both stretched your arms out to her at the same time, making her laugh lightly.

" _Michael_ ," you repeated, narrowing your eyes at him.

"Come on,  _babe_ ," he grinned mischievously, somehow knowing it would make you blush, "We do this every time we go out; Don't be so difficult."

"You haven't seen difficult yet,  _babe_ ," you growled, only making him grin wider.

"You could always split the bill in half," Lucy suggested with another giggle.

"I'm paying for your half," Michael proposed.

"In your dreams, Michael," you stated. You both handed her $20, telling her to keep the change for her tip, and she smiled at you again.

"You guys haven't been together for very long, have you?"

"You have  _no idea_ ," you muttered while Michael watched you with a look of adoration.

"Thank you for dinner," Michael spoke to her while standing up. He walked over to you, holding his hand out. You gave him a confused glance, but put your hand in his anyway. He pulled you up, lacing your fingers together as you both exited the restaurant.

"What are you doing?" you asked him, but you didn't try to pull your hand away.

"For effect, you know?" he said matter-of-factly, "The people in there think we're on a date and dates usually hold hands."

"But we  _weren't_  on a date," you nudged his arm with yours as you led him toward your car.

"But we  _could be_ ," he countered with a shy look on his face, "I mean, I had a lot of fun tonight and you really are gorgeous and you laughed at all my jokes which is always a plus." You giggled lightly, getting your keys out of your bag and unlocking your car.

"Are you asking me out?" you asked, leaning back on your car, still holding his hand. He bit his lip, opening his mouth and closing it again, almost as if he was gathering up the courage to say those words.

"Will yo-" He coughed a bit before taking a deep breath. "Will you go on a date with me next Friday?" You didn't even bother trying to mask your smile as you leaned in to kiss his cheek.

"I would love to go on a date with you, Michael," you confirmed, making him sigh in relief.

"I'm gonna be honest, Y/N," Michael started, "I don't know why, but I  _really_  want to kiss you. I won't though because we haven't been on an  _official_  date yet, but I just want you to know that it'll be the only thing I'm thinking about all week." You let go of his hand only to put it on his cheek and bring his face to yours, pressing a small kiss to his lips.

"Now you don't have to worry about it," you smirked when you pulled away.

"Except now,  _all_  I'm gonna be thinking about is doing it again," he joked, trying to ignore the fact that his face was turning a light shade of red.

"Then just think of it as something to look forward to," you shrugged. He quickly kissed your nose, making you scrunch your face up.

"I'll see you Friday," he asked, a bit of a questioning look on his face as if to tell you he was worried you'd changed your mind.

"And I'll talk to you tomorrow," you responded with a questioning tone of your own. Michael nodded furiously, giving you a tight hug before you went your separate ways, both of you thankful for the spontaneous not-date date you just shared.

~

_inspiration: http://peacetealuke.tumblr.com/post/121044132161/imagine-that-youve-been-stood-up-by-your-douche_


	216. Second Best (Ashton Irwin)

"Hey, um, Ash-" You cleared your throat nervously as you approached the boy walking ahead of you. "Ashton?" The senior turned around, adjusting the beanie on his head as he looked down at you.

You were suddenly more nervous than before – asking for help was something you  _hated_ doing and having to ask  _Ashton Irwin_  of all people made you feel nauseous – but you were one bad grade away from flunking one of your classes and you needed any help you could get, so you just had to go for it.

"I was... I was wondering if maybe you could help me with my cardiology class." You were doing your best to maintain eye contact but the way he was just staring at you made you look off to the side. "I, um, I'm having trouble with telling the difference between certain arteries and stuff and I thought since you've got one of the highest grades that you might be able to help me..."

" _The_ highest," he finally spoke.

"What?" you furrowed your eyebrows.

"I've got  _the_ highest grades. I'm the top student at this school."

"S-So is that a yes or..." you trailed off.

"I'm busy today," Ashton said plainly.

"O-Oh, okay," you nodded solemnly, "What about-"

"Busy."

"You didn't even know what I was gonna say..."

"Doesn't matter," he told you, "I'll be busy."

"Okay," you whispered with a forced smile, "Sorry for bothering you, Ashton." Your voice cracked and you could feel tears start to fall down your cheeks as you turned and began to walk away.

Ever since you were in elementary school, your teachers would tell your parents all about how exceptional you were. Your grades were well above everyone else's and even teachers you'd never had would tell you how gifted you were.

This was obviously cause for continuous ridiculing from your peers all throughout school and you were always a bit of a loner. You were alright with it though because as long as you were making your parents proud, you didn't care what everyone else thought of you.

But all that praise growing up really messed with your head. You knew you wanted to be a doctor when you got older and you knew you had to be  _very_ smart to be able to find a job in that line of work. You would beat yourself up over any mark  _less_  than a 97 and you would spend countless hours on your homework to make sure it was perfect.

And that's why you needed Ashton.

Your cardiology grades had been gradually slipping ever since the semester started and you were at your breaking point, honestly. You were so close to failing that you weren't sure how much more of the little things you could take. You desperately needed help and not even the smartest student in the school was willing to give it to you.

You shifted your books to one side while you walked away from Ashton, using your now free hand to slyly wipe your face. You heard a defeated sigh and then quick footsteps follow you.

"Y/N, wait," Ashton said, putting his hand on your shoulder and rushing in front of you, spinning around, "What did you need help with?"

"But you said-" you started before he cut you off.

"I'm sorry. I was being a dick because I know that if you do well in this class, you'll easily have the highest grades in the school and I-" He sighed again. "I'm just sorry, okay? But I'll help you," he said with a fast nod, "As long as you promise me that you won't beat me  _too_ bad." You swallowed the lump in your throat and addressed him with a small smile.

"Do I have to promise those words  _exactly_?" you asked.

He groaned loudly, chuckling, "You are gonna be a real pain in my ass, aren't you?"

You let your smile get bigger as you looked down to check the time on your phone. Your eyes widened slightly as you realized you only had a few minutes to get to your next class on the other side of campus.

"Thank you so much, Ashton," you breathed. You wrapped your arm around his waist, giving him the best hug you could given the fact that your other arm was already occupied. "Meet me at Starbucks around noon tomorrow?" you asked as you let go of him. He nodded and you started sprinting away, calling over your shoulder, "See you tomorrow, Ashton!" Ashton chewed on his lip as he watched you leave, both excited and incredibly nervous to see you again.

~

You walked into the coffee shop at 11:30, figuring you should give yourself one more shot to try to understand your work. But when you were looking around for an empty table, you saw Ashton's unmistakable curly hair peeking out from under the hat he was wearing. He hadn't seen you – he was staring down at his phone – so he understandably jumped when you came up from behind him.

"Since when do you wear snapbacks?" you asked, flicking the lid of the hat upwards with your middle finger before you slid into the booth across from him. Whenever you saw him around campus, he was either wearing a beanie or just letting his hair do whatever it wanted, so you were a little surprised to see that he was doing something different.

"Thought I'd try something new," he said quietly, shoving his phone into his pocket and pushing the hat back down, his heart racing when he realized you noticed he was wearing something different.

"I like it," you commented, "It suits you." You were flipping through your textbook and notes to get to what you needed help with, so you missed Ashton's cheeks turn bright red. "So, like I said," you started, "I can't tell the difference between all the types of arteries there are and what they do for the heart and I have a test on Monday that I  _can't_  fail or else I'll-" You cut yourself off, causing Ashton to tilt his head. You swallowed thickly, "I just need help." He nodded, understanding that it was obvious you didn't want to go into detail. He stood up and slid over to your side of the booth, sitting next to you so it was easier to point and explain things.

~

But, an hour into it, you  _still_  weren't understanding anything. You found it a bit unbelievable that Ashton hadn't just gotten up and left, telling you that you were a lost cause and couldn't be saved. But he remained patient and went at your pace, never once getting frustrated with you when you mixed up the same two arteries five separate times.

After the sixth, however, it was obvious he was starting to get run-down too.

"How about we take a break?" Ashton suggested, closing your books and getting up and returning to his original seat across from you.

"I'm sorry," you whispered, staring at his arms as he folded them on top of the table.

"Why are you sorry?" he wondered.

"I'm never gonna get this," you sighed, putting your elbows up and resting your face in the palms of your hands. "Maybe I'm not meant to be a doctor after all," you shook your head, "I'll just work at McDonald's or something for the rest of my life with all the other med students who thought they had a shot." Ashton heard you sniffle quietly and knew you were about to break down.

"Y/N," he frowned, wrapping his fingers gently around your wrists, "Please don't start that again. I can't handle watching you cry a second time."

He pulled your arms down to the table before letting go and reaching back up. His hands carefully held your face – barely even touching you as if he thought he was going to break you – and he wiped away the few tears that had already fallen from your eyes. He gave you a small, reassuring smile.

"You're gonna get it," he told you, taking his hands back, "No one ever gets very far unless they work really hard and you're almost there; You just need a little something extra."

"Like what?" you mumbled, finding yourself missing the feeling of Ashton's hands on your skin.

"You need to actually  _see it_ ," he chirped. He hopped up, gathering your books up in one arm and grabbing your hand with the other, pulling you along with him.

" _Ashton_!" you squealed, quickly grabbing your empty school bag and throwing the strap across your body, "What are you doing?" Ashton didn't answer; He simply continued dragging you to wherever he was headed.

You finally found yourself being taken toward Ashton's apartment building. He was always the kind of person who would rather study than go to frat parties, so he opted to rent an apartment off campus so he didn't have to have roommates. You were beyond confused as to what Ashton was doing taking you here. He preferred to spend his time alone – that was how he liked to do things – so him taking you to the one place that was solely his own was both startling and somehow flattering.

"Ashton..." you trailed off after he unlocked his door and led you inside.

"When I was a junior," he started, setting your books on the coffee table and ushering you to sit down, "I took the same cardiology class as you. I had a lot of trouble understanding it as well – Professor Ranford just made things  _really_  confusing for me-" You chuckled lightly, completely understanding as you were now in the same boat he was. "-and I was seeing this girl at the time and she suggested that I try mapping out to see if that helped at all."

"How am I supposed to do that?" you sighed, "I can't even understand the pictures in the  _textbook_."

"Consider  _me_  your new textbook then," he stated, taking his snapback off and tossing it on the open seat behind you.

"What do you mean?"

"This might be weird," he said carefully, "And if you feel uncomfortable with it, then I'll find another way to help you remember everything, but my ex let me draw the arteries on her and it really helped me."

"You want me to  _draw on you_?" you tilted your head, cocking an eyebrow at him.

"Only if you're okay with it," he nodded, hurrying to get three washable markers from his kitchen. He held the markers out to you as he sat down on the coffee table, telling you that black was for basic outlines, blue was for veins, and red was for arteries. You looked at them for a moment before shrugging and taking them from him.

"I'll try  _anything_  at this point," you told him honestly, a bit of humor in your tone.

Ashton smiled shyly, taking your textbook and turning to the page you needed before setting it on his lap so it facing you. His fingers grasped the bottom hem of his shirt and he looked at you for approval to take it off. You nodded slightly and he pulled it over his head, causing you to clear your throat nervously as your cheeks got hotter and hotter with every passing second.

"Is this okay?" he asked, holding onto his shirt just in case you had changed your mind and wanted him to put it back on. You took in a sharp breath, nodding again.

"It's fine. I'm fine. You're fine," you rambled, making him blush as he put the shirt with his snapback.

"Okay," he said, "Just start by drawing my heart right here." He pointed to the skin above where his heart was and you followed his directions, carefully and meticulously dragging the black marker across his skin until you connected the lines. "Good," he grinned, "Now draw the coronary arteries and the aorta." You capped the black marker and grabbed the red one. Since those were the easiest arteries for you to remember, so you were able to draw them without having to look at your book. "How about the pulmonary arteries?" he urged once you looked back up at him.

You closed your eyes, chewing on your lip as you tried to remember where they were. You were about to put the marker back on his skin, but paused. You moved your hand down a bit, but Ashton's voice made you stop.

"You were right the first time," he informed you, "What you're trying to draw right now are the pulmonary veins." You let out a breath, slumping your shoulders and hanging your head a bit. "Hey," he said softly, taking your chin in his hand to make you look back up at him, "This isn't to make you feel stupid or like you aren't good enough, remember? We're doing this to help you. You had it on the first try, you just need to learn to trust your instinct." You shakily brought your hand back up as he let go of you, steadying it once you rested the side back on Ashton's chest and mapped out the right and left pulmonary arteries. You went ahead and grabbed the blue marker, drawing on the pulmonary veins as well. 

~

"Alright," Ashton said once you drew on the last vein, "Now tell me what each of them do." You took a deep breath and let it out slowly before pointing to each drawing, naming the artery or vein, and describing their purpose. "Excellent," he beamed when you were done.

"I did it?" you whispered, your eyes widening. He couldn't help but chuckle.

"I told you you just needed to see it," he said, patting your leg.

"Thank you so much, Ashton," you breathed, leaning forward and throwing your arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. Before he could even respond, you were pulling back. "Sorry," you said quietly, "I-I didn't-"

"No need to be sorry, Y/N," he told you, making your heart race, "I'm happy to help. Do you think you've got this all memorized or do you need a little more time before I wash all this marker off?"

"I think I'm good," you answered with yet another nod.

"I'll be right back then," he smiled, disappearing into the bathroom.

You took this time to get up and look around Ashton's apartment, admiring everything he had. There were a lot of photos of the same people – his mother and younger siblings – and you felt a smile pull at the corner of your mouth. You made your way around the room, chuckling quietly every now and then, before you reached the photos hanging on the wall behind the couch. You subconsciously picked up Ashton's snapback and placed it backwards on your head as you looked at his memories.

You vaguely remembered the three other boys in the photos to be Ashton's only close friends – he obviously had others he would talk to around campus, but none of them were as close with him as he was with those three. They didn't go to your school, but you would see them around town every once in a while. You came across one on the end of the row with the boys and a little girl, finding yourself wondering who she was.

However, you were startled when Ashton came up behind you and cleared his throat. You jumped, spinning around as he was pulling his shirt back over his head. He looked up at your own head, making you remember that you had his hat on.

"Sorry," you said for what felt like the tenth time. You reached up to take the snapback off, but Ashton grabbed your wrist, stopping you. He returned your arm back to your side, holding it there for a moment before letting go.

"It suits you," he said, reminding you of what you had said in the coffee shop earlier that day. You blushed lightly, turning back toward the wall. "Looking at all my photos, huh?" he chirped, moving closer so he was  _barely_ touching you.

"Yeah," you said just above a whisper, "Who's she?" You pointed to the little girl with him and his friends.

"Luke's niece," he answered, pointing at the blonde in the photo so you knew who he was talking about, "She calls herself our number one fan and insists we take at least one photo with her after every show."

"Oh, yeah," you said knowingly, looking over your shoulder at him, "You're in a band, right?" He simply nodded.

"You ever come out to see us play?" he asked.

"I have a couple times when I wasn't swamped with homework," you said, "You guys sound really good."

"Thank you," he blushed with a shy smile, "Um... We have another show coming up this Saturday... If you can make it, obviously..."

"I'll definitely try," you nodded, "Could use a break from thinking about school all the time."

"Speaking of school," Ashton said, seemingly nervously, "I realized while I was in the middle of washing the marker off that I forgot to go over something with you."

"What?" you asked. He held his hand up, signaling for you to put yours in it. Although you were a bit confused, you did so anyway.

"I'm sure Professor Ranford will want you to know things like what a stable heart rate is supposed to feel like," he said lowly.

"Yeah," you nodded, "It's around 70 beats per minute." Ashton brought your hand up and pressed your palm over his heart and you could already tell that it was beating way faster than it should be. "That's definitely not 70 beats per minute, Ashton," you stated the obvious.

"I know," he nodded, taking in a deep breath, "It does that whenever I see you."

"Ashton-" He cut you off.

"It does," he repeated, "And if I could make it beat normally when I'm around you...I'm not so sure that I would-" You stared up at him intently as he rambled on. "-because I would rather it always beat as fast as it is right now instead of having it drop even one more time like it did when I saw your face after I acted like a complete ass over something as ridiculous as having the highest GPA. Ever since I saw you for the first time walking into Professor Ranford's classroom, I knew I was in for way more than just some silly crush that I would get over after never seeing you again. But then, you came up and asked for help and I just... I panicked because, even after only seeing you a few times before that, I remembered how long it took me to get my heart rate back to normal and I don't know... I guess I thought acting like I cared about staying top student was more important than how you felt and I'm  _so_ sorry I acted like that. Truthfully, I think you're the prettiest girl I've ever seen and I really don't care if you're the person that bumps me into second place." He let out another breath. "I guess what I'm trying to say is I like you... _a lot_...and I would be honored if you'd let me take you out on a date tonight."

The blank expression on your face was beginning to worry him. He couldn't help but feel like he'd just messed everything up – what little there  _was_  to mess up anyway – and having you just stare at him the way you were made him feel sick to his stomach. The hand covering yours on his chest dropped back down to his side, but it was like that was what you needed to come back to reality.

You immediately reached up, pressing your lips to Ashton's softly. It understandably took him by surprise, but he definitely wasn't about to complain. You felt his heart skip a beat underneath your palm, making you smile into the kiss which made Ashton smile as well. His arms loosely snaked their way around your waist and he pulled you closer to him so your stomachs were pressed against one another. Your hand remained on his chest while your other slid up his arm, coming to a rest on the side of his neck.

You stayed like that until the moment you needed air made you sort of process what you'd just done. You pulled away, giving Ashton a sheepish grin.

"I mean-" You cleared your throat. "-I would love to go on a date with you, Ash."

" _Ash_?" he cocked an eyebrow, a small smirk playing at the corner of his mouth. You blushed again, but didn't say anything since it was pretty clear he wasn't opposed to the nickname. "I'll pick you up at 7?" he asked, reluctantly letting go of you. You nodded and he helped gather up your books and put them back into your bag. "Come on," he said, slinging the bag onto his shoulder and wrapping the opposite arm around your waist, "I'll walk you back to your dorm."

You arrived back at your dorm a lot quicker than you would have liked. Ashton handed you your bag and pecked your cheek lightly.

"See you tonight," he said with a questioning tone as if he was worried you changed your mind. You nodded rapidly while digging around in your pocket for your key.

You reached up to scratch your ear and your fingers brushed up against the snapback you were still wearing. The moment you realized it was still on your head, you went to take it off but Ashton stopped you yet again.

"Keep it," he told you, "Might as well let everyone know you're unavailable tonight."

He gave you a wink, causing you to fumble around with your key as you tried to unlock your door. He snickered quietly when you finally managed to get it and heard the lock release.

"I'll see you later," he said, kissing your cheek before sauntering back down the hallway.

You let out a deep breath, pulling down on the door handle and pushing your way into the room. You found your roommate sitting at her desk where she was working on her psychology paper. She looked over her shoulder when she heard the door close and smiled at you.

"Did you get a new hat?" she tilted her head.

"Something like that," you muttered, flinging your bag onto your bed.

"Does it belong to whoever you went out with?" When you nodded, she wiggled her eyebrows, "Whose is it then?"

"Ashton Irwin," you replied shyly.

Her jaw dropped, but she had the biggest smile on her face – she knew you were going to meet someone to help you study, but you never told her  _who_  it was. She'd been telling you for the longest time that you and Ashton would be cute together, but you always just shrugged it off, telling her that someone like Ashton would never go for someone like you.

" _You're kidding_!" she squealed, forgetting all about her paper. You couldn't help but chuckle, shaking your head.

"We have a date tonight."

" _I knew it_!" she nearly fell off of her chair in excitement, "I  _knew_ you guys were gonna end up together!" You simply let her ramble on as she made a beeline for the closet, insisting on having you try on practically everything you – and even  _she_  – owned to help you pick the perfect outfit.

~

**Two years later**

"Y/N Y/L/N," Dean Jackman called your name. As you walked across the graduation stage, you heard your friends and family cheer for you, but only one person made your face turn bright red.

" _That's my girl_!" Ashton shouted, his voice echoing throughout the room.

Despite being embarrassed, your smile got bigger as you shook the Dean's hand and took your diploma. As you were stepping back off the stage to return to your seat and finish out the ceremony, you looked up and Ashton blew you a kiss the moment you found him.

By the time you and your classmates filed out of the arena, all the friends and family members were already outside waiting. You immediately found Ashton's curly head of hair and trailed your eyes down to see he was beaming at you. A grin spread across your face again as you ran to him, jumping into his arms.

"Babe," you felt his smile on your neck, "I'm so proud of you."

"Well, I couldn't have done it without you," you teased as he set you back down on the ground, briefly reminiscing all the times he would stay up with you until 3am helping you with things you didn't understand.

"Yeah," he nodded with a small pout, "So you remember that every time someone asks about what honors you graduated with and how they were all  _way_  better than mine." You laughed loudly, wrapping your arms around his waist and resting your chin on his chest as you looked up at him.

"How could I forget?" you smirked, "You never shut up about it." He rolled his eyes with a small smile, pressing his lips to yours before letting you hug your parents, the boys, and everyone else that came to watch you graduate.

Ashton couldn't deny that he'd fallen for you over the last two years and he'd fallen  _hard_. Of course, he never ceased to remind you every chance he got, but he was never so sure you actually understood  _just_ how much he loved you. He wasn't really the type to fall for a girl so fast, but for you, he did.

And as he watched you smile and laugh with everyone, he fiddled around with the diamond ring in his pocket, thoughts swirling around in his mind that there was always the possibility you would say no.

~

 

_inspiration: http://kinda-hot-shrink.tumblr.com/post/126300793727/collegeashton-had-the-highest-grades-in-his_


	217. End Up Here (Luke Hemmings) - Part 1

You looked around at all your cheering classmates from where you were currently sitting on the bleachers on the football field. Your best friend had been begging you to come to the game for weeks and you finally caved. It was the first football game of the year; Your school was going up against their top rivals and all eyes were on the quarterback.

Luke Hemmings didn't  _look like_  the type of person whose first choice was football, but he was damn good at it. He led the team to victory ten times since becoming quarterback in junior year and you never saw him anywhere without a cheerleader on his arm or without a member of the team with him. Of course, it would have been no surprise that he would be seen with cheerleaders even if he  _wasn't_ on the team; He was what everyone considered to be the hottest guy in school, so it was natural that everyone would be gawking over him.

You, on the other hand, weren't so popular. In fact, no one even knew your name – no one besides your best friend, that is. Kelsey was on the cheer squad, but you'd been best friends with her since you were in diapers. Your mothers met in college and have been practically inseparable ever since, so they would always meet up and bring you two along for play dates.

It was no surprise that Kelsey ended up on the squad in freshman year – she had always been an incredibly athletic girl – but she never ditched you to hang out with them. If you two had plans and the girls on the squad wanted to hang out, she would tell them no. You always came first to her, and that was something you were completely grateful for.

Kelsey had tried getting you to come to games before – whether they be football, basketball, soccer; whatever – ever since you two were freshmen. You opted not to though, always saying you would rather study – you were working as hard as you could toward scholarships so you could afford to go to college – or that you simply didn't understand the game; Which was true in a sense. You didn't understand how very many sports worked and you weren't too interested in learning either. You would much rather stay at home on Friday nights with your books and get your homework done so you didn't have to rush to do it on Sunday like everyone else.

But this year was obviously different.

This year, you were a senior and you wanted to stop being so uptight; You wanted to start socializing more. So you finally gave in and went to a football game.

Kelsey was ecstatic when you asked her to pick you up on her way to the school that night. You found a spot right in the front, close to where Kelsey was with the other cheerleaders so you could still talk to her and she told you she would be happy to explain what was happening every time the crowd cheered or yelled.

And now, here you were: watching your best friend cheer on the team that was about to come onto the field. You were more interested in people watching than the actual game itself, however. There were people decked out in school colors, people with face paint, and people who just looked like they did when they came to school every day.

A sudden burst of screams around you made you jump and snap your head over. Your school's team had just been announced and they were running out with huge smiles on their faces. You watched them, completely oblivious to the way the quarterback was looking at you.

It wasn't until Kelsey mentioned it that you found out. She had sat down on the bench, leaning back against the railing. You leaned forward, knowing she had something to say.

"What was  _that_  about?" she asked you.

"What was what about?" you furrowed your eyebrows, having no idea what she was talking about.

"Did you really not see who was just staring at you?"

"The shyest girl in the school is at the football game for the first time since she started going here," you told her, "I'm pretty sure  _everyone_  has been staring at me." She let out an exasperated sigh.

"Not just  _anyone_ was staring at you though!" she said, "It was  _Luke Hemmings_!" You looked over at the players in the group huddle on the field, scanning for Luke's jersey. When you found it, your eyes traced the name on the back.

"Yeah," you said, "Like I said; Shy girls and football games are an odd pairing."

"Y/N!" she exclaimed in a whisper, "That definitely wasn't a ' _what is she doing here?_ 'stare, that was a ' _what is_ she _doing here?_ ' stare!"

"That's literally the same thing, Kels."

"No, it isn't! Can't you be a girl for like, two minutes?!" You scrunched your face up – if you weren't confused before, that comment  _certainly_  would have gotten you. "It's like the look every other girl gives him! He looks at you like that  _all the time_!"

"You mean that hopelessly in love, lost puppy look?"

" _Yes_!" she squeaked, finally getting her point across.

"Why would he look at  _me_  like that?" you mumbled, "You're always with me; He's probably looking at you." She groaned quietly.

"Well, if you people-watched  _him_  like you do everyone else, you'd be surprised," she said simply, getting up with the other cheerleaders to go to the track and pump everyone up.

~

The game ended in a win for your school – as always – and Kelsey excitedly bounced over to where you were still seated. You had patiently waited for everyone else to dissipate from the stands – plus, Kelsey was your ride home so you couldn't really leave yet anyway. You picked up your cardigan from your lap, slipping it on as it was starting to get chilly out, and stood up.

"I have a question," Kelsey smiled sheepishly. You tilted your head.

"I hate when you make that face at me..." you stated slowly.

"Will you go to the party with me?" she asked.

After every win, everyone would go to the party held at Luke's house. You had no idea where his parents were during these things or if they even knew what was going on, but you had no interest in going. House parties were always incredibly loud and there was sure to be way too much beer despite the fact that you were all only in high school. Not to mention Luke lived a few houses down from you which annoyed you beyond the limit you thought your tolerance level could go.

"I think I'll pass," you shook your head, following Kelsey to the parking lot, "If football games aren't my scene, then the parties after football games definitely aren't  _either_."

"Well, I tried," she shrugged, "Can I at least park my car at your place?"

"You always do," you replied. She stuck her tongue out at you, a gesture you happily returned.

~

It was nearing 1am and Luke's party was still going on with no sign of ending any time soon. All you wanted to do was sleep, but you couldn't block out the noise no matter how hard you tried. You sighed in frustration, throwing your blanket off of your body.

You slipped into a pair of sweatpants and threw a cardigan over your tank top before putting on your shoes. Luckily, your parents were gone for the weekend and you didn't have to worry about being quiet – although you were sure they'd be awake anyway. You grabbed your key, stuffing it into your pocket and leaving the house, heading straight for Luke's.

There were party-goers strewn about the front lawn of Luke's two-story brick house, all stopping their conversations to stare at you as you walked up the sidewalk. You elected to ignore them as best as you could, making your way to the porch; You were on a mission and you wanted to get in and out as quickly as possible.

You considered knocking, but you knew it would be pointless seeing as you could practically  _feel_  the music shaking the ground you were walking on. You turned the doorknob and walked in, the music instantly becoming louder. You shut the door behind you and immediately began your search for Luke. You were about to walk into the kitchen – feeling all eyes on you – when a voice behind you stopped you.

"Y/N?" You spun around to see Luke looking at you with a seemingly shocked expression. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to see  _you_ , actually," you stated loudly so you could be heard over the music.

"Why would-" He cleared his throat nervously. "Why would you want to see me?" His eyes ran up and down your body, obviously confused as to why you would be at his party in the first place, let alone looking for him – especially in sweatpants. You were becoming self-conscious under his gaze, but didn't let it show.

"It's  _1 in the morning_ , Luke," you sighed. His swallowed harshly when you said his name. "I'm tired; I want to go to sleep."

"So go to sleep...?" he trailed off. You stared at him in awe for a moment.

"Well, why didn't  _I_  think of that?!" you squeaked, sarcasm lacing your voice as you threw your arm up, "Thanks for the advice, Luke! I'll see you on Monday!" You turned to leave, feeling like you weren't going to get anywhere with him, but were unable to make it even five steps.

"Y/N, wait," Luke said, grabbing your hand. He turned you back around and you looked up at him with your eyebrow raised. He reluctantly released you, clearing his throat again. "U-Uh, you should stay for a while. I mean... Y-You're already here. Have a beer or something."

"I have no interest in drinking," you informed him.

"Neither do I," he said, "Maybe we could go outside?"

"You don't drink?" you asked in surprise.

"Nah," he shook his head, "I like my liver too much." You unintentionally let out a laugh, making him blush, knowing he was the reason for it. "So... Outside?" he asked shyly.

"Um..." you trailed off, but before you could give a definitive answer, someone crashed into you.

" _Hey, Y/N_!" Kelsey slurred, " _You're here_!"

"Oh, Kels," you groaned, having to support her weight as she clung onto you, "How much have you had to drink?"

" _Seven_ ," she giggled in your ear.

"Seven what?" She didn't answer; She just giggled even more. You sighed, "Come on, Kels. I'm taking you back to my place."

" _But the party_!" she whined, hugging you tighter as you shifted to put her arm around your shoulder.

"There will be more parties, Kelsey," you assured her, "Come on. You need to drink more water so your hangover isn't so bad."

" _Thank you for loving me_ ," she sighed dramatically, laying her head on your shoulder.

"Mhmm," you hummed with a nod. You wrapped your arm around her waist, making sure you had a firm hold on her. "It was nice talking to you, Luke," you told him, "I'll see you at school."

"You too, Y/N," he practically whispered.

"Congrats on the win, by the way," you smiled at him before turning and helping Kelsey to the door while Luke kept his eyes on you until you were gone.

~

**The next morning**

You were sitting in your living room watching Saturday morning cartoons when you heard Kelsey's groans as she trudged down the steps. You chuckled to yourself as she came into the room.

"What happened last night?" she whined, plopping down beside you.

"You had seven," you told her with a giggle.

"Seven what?"

" _Seven_ ," you teased. She groaned for the second time, laying her head on your shoulder.

"I'm never having seven of anything ever again."

You laughed quietly, "You tell yourself that every time."

"Whatever," she muttered, a small smile forming on her lips. You watched cartoons together for a few minutes before she spoke again. "Did you bring me here?" she asked, "Because I don't remember walking here alone." You simply nodded. "So does that mean my drunken state  _wasn't_  playing tricks with my mind and you actually  _were_  talking to Luke Hemmings then?"

"Yup," you popped the ' _p_ '. She lifted her head up and nudged you so you would look at her. She cocked an eyebrow at you. "What?"

" _What_?!" she exclaimed, "You were talking to  _Luke Hemmings_ , that's what!"

"How many times can we say ' _Luke Hemmings_ ' in one conversation?" you threw the question out there, "So far, we've got three!"

"Don't change the subject!" she squeaked, slapping your leg, "Why were you talking to him?!"

"I went over to ask him to turn down the music so I could sleep," you shrugged, "Then he asked to talk outside and-"

"Did you go with him?!"

"I don't know, Miss had-seven-beers-and-started-using-me-as-a-crutch-so-I-had-to-bring-her-home," you rolled your eyes, "What do  _you_  think?"

" _Damn it_!" she nearly shouted, "Drunk Kelsey always ruins  _everything_!"

"I don't see why you're making such a big deal about this," you shrugged again, "He just asked to talk."

"Would you have gone?" she wondered.

"I was tired, Kels."

"But would you have?" You paused, chewing on your lip for a moment.

"Maybe... I don't know," you sighed, "He seemed really nervous and he was the only one that wasn't drinking and... I don't know," you repeated.

" _Holy shit_ ," her eyes widened, "You're  _into him_ , aren't you?!"

"Kelsey-"

"Admit it!" she smiled widely, "You have a crush on him!"

"I think he's  _cute_ ," you corrected, "That's it."

"You would  _totally_  agree if he asked you out though!" You rolled your eyes, turning your head back to the TV.

"Shouldn't you be heading home, Kels?" you muttered. She was still smiling but got up anyway, retrieving her car keys from the kitchen counter.

"See you on Monday," she sang as she trotted to the door. She opened it, but right before she left, she said, "And for the record, I think you two would be really cute together."

~

**Two weeks later**

Even after a couple weeks, everyone was still buzzing about winning the first game of the season. You heard people in the halls talking by the party as you walked by, unable to ignore the fact that they would stare at you as you passed. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out they were talking about you – you had always been known as the ' _quiet freak_ ' ever since elementary school. You simply sighed, doing the best you could to just go about your business as usual.

You were walking to the cafeteria for lunch when an arm shot out in front of you. You let out a short – and somewhat loud – squeak, coming to an abrupt stop just before you ran into it. Your hand flew over the fabric above your racing heart as you looked over to see who the arm belonged to. You mentally groaned upon seeing the cheer captain glaring at you, three of her friends from the squad around her giving you the same look.

"Hey, loser," Jada stated dryly, "Couldn't help but notice you were at Luke's party the other day." You raised your eyebrows, not too sure where this was headed. "Also couldn't help but notice you were talking to him." You remained silent. "Wanna explain what that was about?"

"I asked him to turn the music down so I could sleep," you replied lowly, not wanting any more attention on you than there already was.

"You were talking to him for way longer than that," she shook her head, her glare becoming more and more intense with every passing second, "A little  _too long_ , if you ask me."

"But I  _didn't_  ask you, so..." you trailed off. She started coming forward, causing you to back toward the lockers on the opposite side of the hallway.

"Listen,  _nerd_ ," she growled, "I will  _not_  be talked back to like that. And if it ever happens again, I will make your life a living hell. Luke is  _mine_ , so you better think twice about getting too close to him, are we clear?"

Before you could respond – and before you even hit the wall – a large hand was pressed up against your back to stop you. You jumped again and both yours and Jada's heads snapped over to see Luke glaring at her.

"Is there a problem here?" he raised his eyebrows at the cheerleaders. They quickly shook their heads, understandably not seeing the way Luke's thumb was rubbing circles on your spine.

"Of course not, Luke," Jada smiled sweetly, "We were just telling Y/N-" You tilted your head, not realizing she even knew your name. "-that we were sad she didn't stay at your party longer."

"Uh-huh," he nodded, obviously not believing her, "Well, I think you can tell that to someone without backing them across the hall, don't you?" She paused before nodding slowly. "Good," he forced a smile at her, "Now shouldn't you ladies be heading to lunch?"

Jada let out a visible sigh of frustration before going back to her locker and slamming it shut, leaving with her friends. You stood with Luke in silence for a moment – his hand still on your back – before he started walking in the same direction, bringing you with him.

"Thank you," you whispered, finally breaking the silence. 

"You're welcome," Luke gave you a genuine smile, taking his arm back. You immediately missed having him touching you, a cold spot being where his hand once was. "Sorry about her, by the way," he continued with a small sigh, "You hook up with her at a party one time and she suddenly thinks she owns you."

You let out a breathy chuckle, looking around the hall. You noticed everyone would stop and stare at you, clearly wondering why Luke was walking so close to you – something you were starting to wonder yourself.

"So," Luke said before you could say anything else, "Would... Uh... Would you like to take a rain check on that thing I asked you the other day?"

"You asked to talk outside," you said, feeling a smile pull at the corner of your mouth, "Not to have lunch together."

"Well..." he trailed off so you would look up at him. You did and he continued with a smile on his face, "We could have lunch together right now... _or_  I could take you out on Friday night."

"Like a date?" you furrowed your eyebrows.

He cleared his throat nervously, unable to read your expression, "If you want to..." You walked up to the lunch line and grabbed your tray.

"And if I want  _both_?" you asked casually, picking up a carton of chocolate milk.

Luke's breath hitched for a moment and he was frozen before shaking his head and continuing down the line. He punched his number into the computer and quickly followed you through the cafeteria. He hurried in front of you to open the door to the courtyard, letting you through. You smiled to yourself as you walked by despite knowing that nearly every single eye was on you. Jada and her friends were obviously in the courtyard as well – it was viewed as a sort of perk for seniors to eat outside – and she looked anything but happy.

You sat down at one of the empty picnic tables in the shade. Luke sat across from you, facing everyone else so you didn't have to. You both ate lunch – somewhat in silence – talking here and there, but not too much. When the bell rang, he walked you to your locker.

"See you in Psych?" he said shyly. You let out the quietest chuckle, pulling out your history book.

"You sit behind me," you reminded him, "We kind of  _have to_  see each other." His cheeks started to turn a light red and he quickly said ' _goodbye_ ' before rushing off to his own locker. You smiled to yourself, obviously knowing he blushed, and traveled to you next class with a small skip in your step.

~

As you were sitting in your last class of the day, you were copying the notes from the power point your teacher was presenting to the class. You could hear Luke bouncing his leg behind you, clearly not taking notes. Of course, this was no surprise to you; He could never keep up with your teacher – truthfully, you could barely do it either – so he never bothered writing anything down.

He kept sighing every now and then, tapping his pencil on the back of your chair. You were about to turn around and ask him to stop, but it was as if he read your mind because the noise behind you quit.

Your teacher was still going on though and Luke was getting more and more bored. He needed to occupy his time somehow and it appeared the thing that was going to do the trick was you. You heard him lean forward on his desk and felt the eraser side of his pencil start flipping your hair around. You tried to laugh as subtly as possible, moving slightly.

Luke immediately stopped, thinking he had bothered you, but when you leaned back in your seat to give him easier access to your hair, he knew you didn't have a problem with it. This time around, however, the pencil was replaced by his fingers. He gently twirled your hair around, somehow still managing to pay attention to the lesson.

When your teacher handed out worksheets, she allowed you to work with a partner. Luke poked your back, making you giggle and turn around. You put your textbook in your lap and your paper on his desk. As you were reading through the sections of the book for answers, you noticed Luke wasn't doing anything apart from watching you. You put your arm on the desk to write another answer.

"If you think I'm gonna let you copy my answers, you've got another thing coming, Hemmings," you teased in a whisper.

"I-I-I wasn't-" he stuttered, "I-I mean, I w- I was going to-"

"Luke," you smirked lightly, "I'm kidding. I would like you to do something  _other than_  stare at me though." He held out a sigh for a few seconds before biting his inner cheek, getting to work.

~

"Hey, Y/N," Luke said after the final bell rang 10 minutes later. You hummed in acknowledgment, but didn't look at him as you were gathering up your things. "You look really pretty today," he mumbled shyly. You looked over your shoulder, ignoring that you were probably blushing by now, seeing just how nervous he really was.

"Thank you," you smiled sheepishly, getting up. You and Luke turned your finished papers in and he walked with you to your locker again.

"Um..." he rubbed the back of his neck as you were putting all of your things on the shelf, "Would it be okay if I got your number? You know, so I don't forget before Friday..."

"So you don't forget," you repeated with a small laugh, "Right." You pulled out your phone, going to your messages. "Number," you stated. Luke froze for a moment before giving you the seven digits to his phone number.

You quickly typed up a text, making sure he couldn't see what you had said until his phone went off. He took out his pocket, reading the text you sent him:  _People are going to start thinking you're in love with me if you keep staring at me like that._

Luke looked up to see you putting all your homework into your backpack with a sly smirk on your face. He couldn't stop the smile from pulling at the corners of his own mouth.

"I-" He swallowed lightly. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow then." He turned to walk away, but your voice stopped him.

"Hey, Luke," you said, making him look at you, "Just so you know, you don't have to wait until  _Friday_  to text me." He blushed yet again, but you saw a smile on his face as he quickly turned around while you closed your locker door, heading outside to meet Kelsey at her car.


	218. End Up Here (Luke Hemmings) - Part 2

You trotted over to where Kelsey's car was parked only to find she wasn't there. You shrugged to yourself, dropping your backpack by the tire and pulling out your phone. This wasn't an uncommon occurrence with her being a cheerleader – someone always seemed to stop her as she was leaving the school to talk to her – so you were used to it. You simply leaned against the front passenger door, scrolling through your Facebook feed until she came outside.

"Hey," you heard Kelsey breathe as she ran up to you, "Sorry. Jada stopped me on the way out."

"It's cool," you told her, picking up your backpack and climbing into the car with her.

"It's weird," she said, starting the engine and pulling out of the parking spot, "She said someone was picking on you at lunch and Luke came to your rescue."

You rolled your eyes, "Did she tell you that  _she_ was the one picking on me?"

"I guess she forgot to mention that part," she replied with a teasing tone, making you laugh.

"But yeah," you nodded, "She was backing me across the hallway and Luke stepped in and made her stop."

She let out a high-pitched sigh, "He's  _such_ a modern day Prince Charming."

"Whatever," you laughed loudly, "You're so dramatic." It wasn't until she turned onto your street that you mentioned anything about Luke asking you out. "I got asked out today," you said nonchalantly.

"By who?" Kelsey asked, looking at you out of the corner of her eye.

"Luke."

" _What_?!" she nearly screamed, her head snapping over.

"Hey!" you said loudly, putting your hand on her cheek and pushing her face back, "Eyes on the road! I don't wanna die yet!"

"When did he ask you?!"

"At lunch," you shrugged.

"Why didn't you tell me?!"

"I just did," you stated, "And I haven't seen you since before 3rd period."

"That's why you make time to come find me!" she squeaked, "You can't sit on something like that for three and a half hours and not come find me!"

"It's just a date, Kels," you said, "He didn't ask me to marry him."

"It's the same thing! When is it?!"

"Friday night," you sighed, but couldn't help but smile at how excited she seemed to be for you.

"Okay," she breathed as she turned onto your street, "I'm going to stay after school until he picks you up. This is  _huge_!"

"Kelsey! It's just a date!" you repeated, "Calm down!"

" _Luke Hemmings_ asked my best friend out on a date and you're telling me to  _calm down_?!"

"I'm trying to, yes," you giggled.

"I am calm," she said with a nod, "I am totally and completely calm." You rolled your eyes as she pulled up in front of your house.

"Sure, you are," you chuckled, getting out of the car.

"Shall I start planning the wedding now or later?" she asked with a small smirk as you reached for your backpack. You rolled your eyes.

"I'll see you tomorrow," you told her, closing the door, but the window opened while you were walking through your lawn.

"I'm thinking Caribbean blue for the maid of honor dress! What about you?!" she shouted after you.

"Goodbye, Kelsey!" you called over your shoulder, but you were unable to hold in your laughter.

~

**Friday**

"Okay, I've got it, Y/N! This is the one!" Kelsey squealed, throwing yet another item of clothing at you.

"You've said that about the last ten outfits!" you whined, pulling the fabric off of your face. You looked down at the dress in your hand before taking off your shirt and jeans.

"Well, he didn't give me much to work with!" she shot back, digging around for a pair of shoes, "Dinner and a movie?! That could mean anything!"

"It just sounds like we're going to dinner and a movie," you sighed, stepping into the dress on. "Come zip me up real quick," you said as you pulled the dress's straps over your shoulders. Kelsey hopped up and rushed over to you.

You held your hair out of the way and she zipped it up when there was a knock on your door. You called for whoever was there to come in and they opened the door.

"Hey, girls," your mom smiled, "How's everything going?"

"She's gone absolutely mad," you shook your head, making her laugh.

"She's just excited for you, honey," she told you, "Her mother and I were the same way when we were in college."

"See?" Kelsey said, pulling out a pair of sandals from your closet and standing back upright, turning to face you, "It's not just me." You simply rolled your eyes in response.

"Anyway," your mother chuckled, "I'm here to tell you that I just saw Luke leaving his house, so he'll be here any second." Your eyes widened and you snatched the sandals from Kelsey, rushing to put them on. The doorbell rang and you let out an accidental squeak.

"Mom!" you exclaimed, "You have to go back downstairs and make sure Dad doesn't scare him away!"

"You are  _so_ into him," Kelsey giggled as you threw on your denim jacket, pushing the sleeves up to your elbows.

"And  _you_ ," you stated, grabbing your best friends shoulders, "You have to go make sure neither of them embarrass me." Kelsey and your mom laughed as you pushed them toward the door.

"Hurry up," your mom told you, "If you're not downstairs in five minutes, I'm breaking out the baby pictures."

" _Mom_!" you whined. The two women simply laughed again before heading downstairs.

You rushed into your bathroom to do everything you needed to. You grabbed your bag off of your bed, checking yourself out in the mirror one last time before going downstairs. You could hear Luke mention how he liked the photos hanging up on your living room wall beside the door.

"If you think  _those_ are cute, you should see her baby pictures," your mom grinned. You picked up the pace, jumping off the stairs and finally coming into Luke's view.

"That doesn't sound enjoyable," you stated, talking fast, "I don't think we should do that." You looked at Luke and his eyes were scanning you from head to toe.

"You look beautiful," he smiled, making you blush.

"Eh," your dad said rather loudly, "She looks alright."

You rolled your eyes, "Thanks, Dad."

Your mom giggled at you and your father before looking at you, "Be back by 10, okay? You know I don't like you out after dark."

You nodded as your dad spoke again, "I say 9." You pushed on Luke's shoulder to turn him around and grabbed Kelsey's hand, leading them out the door.

"We're gonna go now, bye!" you sang over your shoulder, closing the door behind you.

"You two kids have fun," Kelsey sighed, putting her hands on your cheeks, "My baby's all grown up now; Spreading her wings and leaving the nest." You rolled your eyes again.

"Kelsey," you stated, "If you do not let go of my face-"

"You'll revoke party parking privileges," she said, letting go of you and holding her arms above her head, "I'm going, I'm going." She leaned toward you so Luke couldn't hear her. "I want every detail when you get home."

"Of course," you whispered, laughing lightly. Kelsey said bye before trotting to her car while you and Luke walked back toward his house.

"Sorry I'm making you walk to my place," Luke said, nervously stuffing his hands into his pockets, "I just didn't want to waste gas but I still really wanted to pick you up like all gentlemen should."

"And they say romance is dead," you giggled. Luke cleared his throat as he opened the car door for you.

"You really do look beautiful tonight," he said before quickly adding, "I mean... Y-You look beautiful every day, but... You know what I mean..." You blushed again, thanking him as you sat down.

~

"Wow," you chuckled, watching Luke take out a picnic basket and blanket out of the trunk, "You really went all out, didn't you?"

"Well," he said, setting them on the ground and looking at you, "If you want any chance at a second date, you can't half-ass the first one." He closed the trunk and hurried to the backseat to grab something else. You peeked over and saw he was reaching for a guitar.

"You play guitar?" you asked.

Luke shut the door and came back over. He leaned the guitar on the car and picked up the blanket, setting it between the handles of the basket and slipping his arm through, picking them both up. He grabbed the neck of the guitar with the same hand, sticking the opposite elbow out to you. You linked your arm with his and he began leading you to wherever he was planning on setting everything up.

"Aside from being an amazing football player," he started, making you roll your eyes and laugh, "It turns out I know my way around a guitar too."

"Well," you smirked, " _I'll_  be the judge of that."

~

After you ate and he played you a couple songs, Luke led you back to his car and drove to the movie theater. You and Luke stared up at the marquee, trying to decide which movie to see.

"What one are you thinking?" Luke asked you.

You let out a sigh, "Would it be rude of me to say that none of these movies sound appealing to me right now?"

"Thank God," he laughed, "I thought you were going to make me go see  _If I Stay_."

"Oh, no," you shook your head, "I do want to see it, but I know it's going to make me cry, so I figured I'd spare you the torture of having to see and listen to that."

"Well, I appreciate that," he said, "Although, I'm much less concerned with watching a chick flick than I am with knowing I would have to see such a beautiful girl cry." You felt your face getting hot at the comment, making him smirk. "What do you say we go out for ice cream instead then?" he offered. You simply nodded, knowing your voice would have failed.

~

"Okay, I've got one," you chirped, "Do you believe in ghosts?"

You and Luke were now back at his house, but you were lying in the front yard, waiting for sunset. He suggested playing 20 questions and you instantly agreed. You figured this would be the best way to get to know him and if you only got 20 questions to do it, you were going to go for it.

"Really?" he chuckled, turning his head to look at you instead of the pink and orange clouds above you, "We're only on the fifth question."

"Too heavy?" you asked sheepishly.

"No, no," he quickly added, "I just meant it like, people usually ask things like favorite color or favorite song or something lame like that for the first ten questions."

"Well, I don't  _do_ lame," you said dramatically.

"Alright," he laughed, "I guess I'm on the fence about the topic. I like hearing and reading about people's experiences, but I'll believe it when I see it for myself." You nodded approvingly. "Since you don't do lame questions," he teasingly scrunched his nose at you, "My fifth one for you is... What would you say if I told you I really wanted to hold your hand?"

"I would say I thought you'd never ask," you said lowly, making him smile.

Luke slowly moved his hand toward yours – despite lying next to each other, you were still a few inches apart – before his fingers were barely touching yours. His index finger linked with your pinky and he hesitated, making sure you were actually okay with it. When you didn't move your hand, he put the rest of his fingers underneath it and wiggled them around so he was causing your hand to come on top of his own.

You couldn't hold in your laugh anymore, finally deciding to just grab his hand and lace your fingers together yourself. You noticed him blush, but he held your hand tightly at his side. You scooted over so your arms were now practically overlapping, making him blush for the second time. Your grin faded slightly and he obviously noticed it.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Nothing," you said, "Just thinking."

"About what?" You shrugged in response and he elbowed you gently so you would look at him. He gave a reassuring look, letting you know that, although you two had never really talked before today, you could trust him.

"You," you answered in a whisper, staring at the pink and orange sky above you.

"Me?" he asked, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion.

"Or how wrong I was about you, I guess," you sighed, "And please don't hit me with the fact that ' _I shouldn't have made such a gross generalization just because you're a jock and I'm just some loser with only one friend_ ' thing, but-"

He cut you off, "Who ever said you were a loser?" You let out an exasperated breath.

"I know what people say about me when they think I'm not listening, Luke," you shook your head, "And I know they've been saying even more since that party."

Luke sat up, pulling you with him. He moved in front of you and sat cross-legged facing you. You had to sit on your knees due to the fact that you were wearing a dress. It wasn't the most comfortable position you could be in, but it was working for you.

"What kind of ' _gross generalizations_ ' are you talking about then?" he wondered. You kept your eyes glued to your hands on your lap, playing with the ring on your finger.

"Just the usual," you mumbled, "The quarterback of the high school football team is never walking down the halls without at least one girl silently begging him to notice her. He's never seen without another member of the team or a cheerleader at his side. He practically runs the school even if he feels like he doesn't. Everybody either wants to be him or be with him."

"Where is this going?" he was still confused. You let out one more sigh, finally looking up at him.

"We can sit here and pretend like everyone would be okay with this-" You motioned between the two of you. "-but you know just as well as I do that they wouldn't. No matter if it's their business or not, nobody would think we belong together."

"Do  _you_ think we don't belong together?" You started chewing on your inner cheek, returning your gaze to your fingers.

"I think my head is telling me to say yes, but my heart is beating too loudly for me to hear," you answered honestly. A smile just barely made itself known on his lips as he reached for your hands. He took them in his own and pulled you up, making you move to his lap.

"Hey," he said softly, "Y/N, come on. Look at me." You gave in and lifted your head, seeing what seemed like a mixture of desperation and adoration on his face as he studied your face. "I understand why you feel that way," he told you, "I would feel the same if the roles were switched, but you know what? I couldn't care less about what the people at school think of this. I care about you and you alone and if they don't like it, then that's not my problem. I know they're still gonna talk shit, but I also know that you're the only one I want and I promise I'm gonna stick with you no matter what."

Your heart fluttered at the confession. You never really thought Luke was the type of guy that cared about anyone but himself or his friends or football, but then again, you didn't really know him. You went off what other people said he was like; And maybe he  _was_ a dick to some people, but only when they really deserved it. You never saw yourself as being the only girl he really wanted to be with, but now that you were here – sitting on his lap in his front yard with the sunset in the background – you knew that that was what you'd really wanted all along too; You wanted someone like Luke.

You swallowed the lump in your throat, finding yourself glancing down at Luke's lips, hoping he would take the hint. His breathing hitched and he leaned forward slightly, but stopped just before your lips touched. You let out a small puff of air, your bottom lip following it as you pouted. Luke couldn't help but laugh.

"I was going to say I should ask if I could kiss you first," he muttered, "But I have a feeling you're going to say yes anyway."

"I'm not getting any younger, Hemmings," you breathed. He smiled, moving in the rest of the way and pressing his lips to yours.

With as many times as you had imagined kissing Luke – because, let's be honest, you certainly weren't immune to gawking over him either – it was a lot less rough than he seemed. Maybe it was because it was your first kiss, but it surprised you how gentle he was. You always saw Luke as the football player who would beat up anybody who rubbed him the wrong way or picked on one of his friends. You imagined him having a soft side that he never let anyone else see, but you couldn't actually picture that being true. But right now – kissing him underneath the star-filled sky – you knew that he was; He was just waiting for the right person to come along and share that secretive side of him with.

And that person was you.

Luke was the first to pull away, earning a small, involuntary whine from you. The noise made him blush furiously, but you didn't see it as you had already buried your face in his neck, a pink tint to your own cheeks. He turned his head slightly, pressing a small kiss to your cheekbone as he tightened his hold on your waist.

"Can I tell you a secret?" Luke asked quietly after a couple minutes. You hummed in response, your head never leaving his shoulder. "You know how you said I'm never seen without a teammate or a cheerleader?" You obviously nodded. "The truth is, I've always wished they were you." You finally lifted your head up to see Luke looking at you with a bashful grin. "I don't know how you do it, Y/N, but you've managed to sneak your way into every waking thought," he shook his head, "I like you and I want to be with you. I want everyone at school to know that I think you are the most beautiful girl I've ever seen and I want all those guys to be jealous that you're mine and make them beat themselves up over how stupid they were not to notice you sooner. I guess what I'm trying to say is... Will you be my girlfriend?" He had this sort of expression on his face that suggested he was nervous you would reject him, but when he saw the corner of your mouth twitch slightly while you tried not to smile, he couldn't help but grin himself.

"I would love to be your girlfriend, Luke," you told him, blushing yet again. He let out a sigh of relief, kissing you briefly before pulling his phone out of his pocket.

"I guess I should walk you home now," he murmured after seeing there were only 5 minutes left until 10.

You reluctantly got off of his lap, straightening out your dress before pulling him up as well. Luke only let go of one of your hands, lacing his fingers with yours as you both began walking – very slowly – back to your house.

"I had a lot of fun tonight," you stated randomly once you were standing at your front door.

"Me too," he practically whispered, squeezing your hand slightly. He leaned forward, kissing your cheek. You pouted again, making him smile. "You know," he said, releasing his grip on your hand to wrap his arms around your waist, "I never pegged you as the kind of girl who was always so desperate for kisses."

"Well, there's a lot about me you don't know, Hemmings," you challenged, your arms snaking around his neck so you could play with his hair.

"Such as?" he smirked.

"Such as the reason I went to that football game wasn't  _just_ so Kelsey would stop begging me," you sighed dramatically, "But more so because I  _really_ like the way you look in that uniform." Luke rolled his eyes, but he couldn't keep himself from blushing.

"Guess you'll be attending all of our games from now on then?" he asked, eyebrows raised slightly and the smirk still on his face. "And you  _do_  realize that agreeing to be my girlfriend includes having to wear my jersey to school on game days as well, correct?"

"I don't remember signing up for that," you shook your head.

"Should've read the fine print," he winked.

"Bring it over tomorrow and I'll even wear it to school on Monday," you grinned mischievously.

"You've got yourself a deal," he chuckled, pressing his lips to yours.


	219. End Up Here (Luke Hemmings) - Part 3

**Monday morning**

"Are you sure you wanna do this?" Luke asked you, grabbing your hand before it reached for the door handle. He had given you a ride to school and you two were currently sitting in his car in the parking lot.

"I'm wearing the jersey, aren't I?" you countered, raising your eyebrows at him.

"Yeah, but..."

"I thought you wanted to tell everyone about us," you began biting your bottom lip, "A-Are you backing out?"

"No," he shook his head furiously, rubbing your knuckles with his thumb, "I want them to know, it's just... I didn't think you'd want to jump right into it, you know? Like, you seemed so worried after our date about what everyone was going to say..."

"I was," you told him, "But then, I put this on-" You played with the bottom hem of Luke's jersey in the fingertips of your free hand. "-and then I realized that I don't care what they have to say. I know what I want and I know that it's you." You looked over to see him trying to hide the fact that he was blushing, making you giggle quietly. "When I thought about it while I was getting dressed this morning, I thought that the only person I was ever  _really_ worried about finding out in the first place was Jada. But after looking at myself in the mirror before I left the house, I realized that I don't give a fuck about what she thinks." Luke's eyes widened slightly, surprised to hear you swear. "If she doesn't like the idea of us, that's too bad, because you were never hers in the first place."

"So you're really ready to do this?" Luke asked, almost trying to convince himself more than you, "Because once people see the name on the back of your shirt, there's no going back." You released his hand, grabbing his face. You pulled him to you, looking him directly in the eyes.

"Stop stalling, Hemmings," you said firmly.

"I'm not stalling... I just need more convincing." You rolled your eyes, knowing what he wanted. You brought him in the rest of the way, pressing your lips to his. He smiled victoriously into the kiss, even whining when you moved away.

"Who's desperate for kisses now?" you smirked.

"Me," he pouted. You kissed him again and he sighed in content. "Ready?" he asked when you pulled back.

"Let's do it," you grinned, both of you grabbing your backpacks as you pulled on your door handles.

There were a few students scattered throughout the parking lot and they looked over as you closed your door. You could hear them whispering to each other and you had to admit, you were starting to get a nauseous feeling in the pit of your stomach, but when Luke came around and grabbed your hand, you instantly felt better. He kissed the side of your head, tangling your fingers together, and you began walking toward the building in front of you.

People obviously stopped what they were doing as you and Luke walked down the hallway on the way to your locker. You could hear various whispered comments of shock, some of them even making you laugh under your breath.

"Is she wearing his jersey?" you heard one kid whisper to his friend.

"No, dude," the friend replied, "She's wearing the other Hemmings' jersey." The kid tilted his head as if he were trying to think of who ' _the other Hemmings_ ' was, causing his friend to slap him. "Of course it's Luke's jersey, you idiot! They're holding hands!"

You felt Luke give your hand a small squeeze, making you look up at him. He winked at you, letting you know he heard the conversation too. You laughed a little louder, leaning into him.

When you finally made it to your locker, Kelsey was already standing there. She was propped up against the locker next to yours, probably scrolling down some social media site on her phone. She hadn't even noticed you until you cleared your throat when you were about 10 feet away from her.

"Hey, Kels," you chirped. Her head snapped up and she smiled as widely as you'd ever seen her smile before. "Yup," you giggled, "Let it all out, Kelsey. Your dreams are finally coming true."

"This is the greatest day of my life!" she sighed dramatically, placing her hands on both yours and Luke's shoulders. "I never thought I'd see the day when-" Her eyes caught a glimpse of your outfit and you swore she was about to pass out. " _You're wearing his jersey_?!" she squealed loudly, taking her hands back so she could put them over her heart. You looked around out of the corner of your eye and saw everyone was still staring.

"Could you be a little louder, Kels?" you wondered, letting go of Luke's hand so you could open your locker, "I don't think China can hear you yet." Luke came up behind you, wrapping his arms around your waist and pressing his chest to your back. He leaned in so his lip brushed against your ear as he spoke.

"I think her reaction is rather flattering," he whispered. You tried to maintain a serious demeanor, but the moment you caught a glimpse of your boyfriend's smirk, your lips curled up into a small smile.

"Why am I not surprised?" you murmured. He chuckled quietly, kissing your upper jaw before letting go of you.

"I better get going," Luke said with a bit of a frown, not wanting to leave you just yet, "The boys are probably organizing a search party right now to come find me." He succeeded in making you laugh which made him grin in return. He leaned in a kissed your cheek. "I'll see you at lunch," he told you. You nodded, biting your lip as you watched him walk away.

"You are  _so_ into him," Kelsey stated with a smirk, making you turn your attention back to her.

"I never said I wasn't," you blushed, stuffing your backpack into your locker so you could head to the cafeteria for breakfast.

After you sat down at your usual table, Kelsey looked at you with an expression you couldn't quite read. Before you could ask what she was doing, she spoke.

"What's the  _real_ reason you started going to games?"

"I told you," you cleared your throat nervously, "It's senior year. I wanna put myself out there more."

"Really?" she smirked for the third time that morning, "Because  _I_  think you just wanted to see more of Luke."

"Seeing more of Luke was just a bonus," you shrugged, taking a bite of your Poptart.

"Whatever you say," she sighed, "I get it. It's not like we haven't been best friends since we were in the womb or anything. I guess I'll never know the real reason you-"

"Kelsey!" you laughed loudly, "Cut the dramatics down a notch, will you? You wanna know the reason?" She eagerly nodded her head, gripping her milk carton as if it were a lifeline. "I like the way he looks in his uniform." She giddily clapped her hands.

"You guys are the cutest things I've ever seen!" she beamed, "I'm so happy!"

"Really?" you teased, "I couldn't tell." The warning bell cut your breakfast short and you and Kelsey hurried to get to your first classes of the day.

"I'll see you next period," Kelsey chirped, trotting off in the direction of her locker while you went to your own.

~

It wasn't until lunchtime that anyone but Kelsey made any sort of remark – that you knew of – about you wearing Luke's jersey. And, of course, it was the  _one_  person you didn't want to see. An arm flew out in front of you, making you squeak in surprise, but you already knew who it was. This girl really needed a better way to get your attention.

"Well, well, well," the head cheerleader snarled, "If it isn't the little home-wrecker herself."

"We have really got to stop meeting like this, Jada," you stated, straightening out the bottom of Luke's jersey.

"Where'd you get that?" she asked, glaring at the fabric on your torso.

"Found it in the cafeteria this morning," you shrugged nonchalantly, "Thought I'd try it on. It fits rather nicely as well, don't you think?"

"What did I tell you about getting too close to Luke?"

"Technically, you never said I couldn't wear his clothes, so I don't really think I'm breaking any rules," you informed her, "Also, I didn't  _actually_ agree not to do that, so I think I'm gonna keep seeing him. Have a nice day, Jada."

You started to walk away, but Jada grabbed the back of the jersey and yanked you back. You squeaked loudly, stumbling back to the spot where you were just standing.

"Okay," you sighed, "We're not done yet."

"I don't know who the fuck you think you are-"

"I'm Y/N," you smiled sarcastically.

Jada growled lowly, "But you can't just come in here one day and start acting like some popular bitch."

"Yeah," you nodded, "I think you have that position pretty much locked in. Even if I wanted to be ' _some popular bitch_ ', I could  _never_ compete with you." The statement obviously only made her angrier.

"What the hell makes you think you're his girlfriend now? Why would he pick you when he could have me?"

"I think I'm his girlfriend now because he asked me to be," you snapped, "And believe me, I don't know why Luke would want me either, but I can pretty much guarantee that the reason is because I'm  _not you_. Luke isn't some sort of prize you win at the carnival and throw into the back of your closet after you get home. You don't get to drunkenly hook up with someone at a party and then act like you own them, Jada. Maybe if your head wasn't so far up your ass and you actually  _tried_ to be a decent person for once in your life, he would have picked you. But he didn't; He picked  _me_. And no matter how many times you threaten me is going to make me leave him."

Jada – as well as the few various students still roaming the halls – stared at you in shock. You were never the type to defend yourself, especially in the way you just had, and it understandably surprised them. You saw the cheerleader look behind you before she let out a low shriek and stomped away. You turned around just before Luke's arms wrapped around your waist.

"I noticed you and Jada earlier and thought about coming over to help you out," Luke told you as your arms went around his neck, "But it looked like you had it handled pretty well on your own."

"I like to think that was enough to stop her, but I'm sure she'll be back at it tomorrow," you sighed, leaning into him.

"And I don't doubt that," he grinned, "However, I definitely think you should have done it a little louder. You know, get your point across better."

"I'll remember that for next time," you giggled, rolling your eyes.

Luke kissed your nose before you let go of each other and started walking to the cafeteria. He grabbed your hand, lacing your fingers together and pulled you close to him.

"If you want to come over after school," he said lowly so none of the people still watching you could hear, "I'd be happy to show you all the reasons I would want you over someone else." You took your bottom lip between your teeth, desperately trying to hold back your smile.


	220. End Up Here (Luke Hemmings) - Part 4

**Nine months later**

"Where's Luke?" you asked Kelsey, "I would have thought he'd be back by now."

Luke had been out sick for a few days, telling you not to come over because he didn't want you to catch whatever he had. You simply respected his wishes, but after a couple days, you were starting to get concerned. He wasn't usually the type to refuse you asking to come over even when he was feeling a little under the weather which made you worry that he was sicker than he was leading you to believe.

Kelsey furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, looking at you once she stopped at a red light, "Didn't you hear?"

"Hear what?"

"He got a concussion at practice on Saturday," she informed you, "The doctor told him not to come to school for a few days."

" _He what_?!" you nearly screamed, "Why didn't anyone tell me?!"

"I thought you already knew," she replied shyly, "Haven't you been talking to him?"

"Yeah, but he told me he was sick, not that he had a concussion!"

"Maybe he just didn't want to scare you," she shrugged, driving again when the light turned green.

"He still lied to me," you mumbled, sinking further into your seat.

"Come on, Y/N," she said, reaching over and patting your knee, "He loves you and didn't want you to worry. You would have done the same thing." You sighed, knowing she was right. The rest of the ride was silent until she turned onto your street. "Do you want me to drop you off at Luke's?" she asked.

"Nah," you muttered, "I need to get out of these jeans." She giggled quietly, stopping in front of your house. You got out of the car and started to walk to your door when Kelsey called out her window after you.

"Don't yell at him!" she said. You didn't even look back at her as you flipped her off, hearing her laugh loudly before she drove away.

You said a quick hello to your parents as you hurried up the stairs. You shimmied out of your skinny jeans and into a pair of sweatpants, slipping your shoes back on. You went back downstairs and were almost to the door again when your mom stopped you.

"You finally going to see Luke?!" she hollered, making you stomp into the kitchen.

"Don't tell me you knew too!" you whined.

"You  _didn't_?" your dad asked, confusion lacing his voice.

"His mother called Sunday to make sure we knew he was okay," your mom told you, "We thought you already knew." You sighed, trudging back to the door.

"Liz will probably have me stay for dinner, so I'll be home later, okay?!" you called. You heard your parents laugh, knowing her all too well.

"Love you!" your mom said, "Try to be back by 10!"

"Love you too!" you said, finally heading out the door.

When you made it to Luke's house, you knocked on the door. The moment Liz opened it, she had a bright smile on her face.

"Hi, sweetie!" she said, giving you a hug. She let you walk in, closing the door behind you. "I thought you would have been over here a lot sooner." She said it with a teasing tone, but when you frowned, she tilted her head. "He didn't tell you, did he?"

"I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who  _didn't_  know," you replied, a small laugh escaping your lips. 

"He promised me he was going to tell you," she sighed lightly, "Are you here to yell at him or should I do it?"

You giggled, "I think you should. I can try, but I know he's gonna give me  _that_ look."

"And you think he won't use it on me?" she laughed, patting your back. "Are you staying for dinner, dear?"

"I told my parents you were probably going to convince me to, so they're not expecting me home until 10," you smiled.

"Well, we love having you here," she grinned as well, "It's nice to see you again."

"You too, Liz," you said, trotting up the stairs while she went back into the kitchen.

You knocked on Luke's bedroom door, waiting for the okay to come in. As soon as you got it, you opened the door to find him propped up against his headboard watching TV. When he looked over and saw you, a guilty expression immediately replaced the neutral one.

You closed the door behind you, going over to his bed and climbing up onto the mattress. You kicked your shoes off and curled up beside him, wiggling your arm behind his back so you could hold his waist, laying your head on his shoulder.

"Concussion, huh?" you asked simply while he wrapped his own arms around you.

"I'm sorry, babe," he said quietly, kissing your forehead, "I just didn't want you to worry about me."

"You're on the football team, Luke," you nuzzled your face in his neck, "I'm always gonna be worried about you getting hurt."

"You're not mad at me, are you?"

"For not telling me you got hurt? No," you answered, "But I  _am_ mad that you lied about it."

"I'm not gonna make up excuses for why I lied," he told you, kissing your forehead again but leaving his lips on your skin this time, "There's no good reason for it. But I promise, I'm never gonna do it again." You moved your head to look at him and he gave you a small smile, pressing his lips to yours for a few moments. "You know I love you, right?" he mumbled into the kiss. Luke had starting telling you a few months ago that he loved you, but it still made your heart flutter every time.

You nodded, "I love you too, Hemmings."

~

**Friday night**

"I should go get ready," Luke said suddenly, untangling his legs from yours before getting off of the couch. You'd been at his house ever since school ended after he insisted on you spending the rest of the day with him.

"Get ready for what?" you furrowed your eyebrows. You didn't recall the two of you making any plans.

"There's a game tonight, remember?"

"Luke..." you said slowly, getting up as well, "You're not playing."

"Yeah, I am," he nodded, "My doctor finally let me go back to school and he says I'm almost better."

"Almost isn't completely, Luke," you said, your voice wavering slightly.

"It feels like completely though, so I'll be okay," he said. He started to walk away, but you grabbed his elbow, bringing him back to you. "Y/N!" he exclaimed before you cut him off.

"No, Luke," you stated firmly, pushing him back onto the couch. He looked up at you with a frustrated expression, but that disappeared the moment he saw the look on your face. " _No_ ," you whispered, swallowing the lump in your throat.

"But I'm the quarterback, Y/N," he said just as quietly, "I have to play."

"No," you repeated with tears in your eyes, shaking your head, "Not until your concussion is completely healed."

"But-"

"If you get hit again before then, it's gonna be a hundred times worse," your bottom lip trembled, "And I can't watch that happen to you."

Luke sighed lightly, taking your hands and pulling you onto his lap. You laid your head on his shoulder as he ran his fingers up and down your spine to calm you down.

"I won't play," he promised you, kissing the base of your neck, "But we should still at least go to the game."

"Luke," you mumbled into his shirt, "They're gonna convince you to play."

"No, they're not," he said, "I'm not gonna let them."

"Luke..."

"If it'll make you feel better, I'll sit on the bleachers with you or you can sit on the bench with me," he said, the arm around your waist squeezing you a bit, "Just please...  _Please_  don't cry. You know I hate it when you cry." He poked your sides until he felt your chest shake as soft giggles escaped your lips. "See?" he smiled, kissing your skin again, "That's what I like to hear." You leaned back to look at him and he moved his hands to your cheeks, pulling your face to his. "I love you so much," he muttered against your lips.

"I love you too, Luke." He kissed you one more time before pushing you away and letting his hands rest on your hips.

"Now," he said with a small sigh, "Since I won't be playing the game-" A smile was already pulling at the corner of your mouth, knowing where he was going with this. "-I think it's only appropriate that you keep this on," he finished, tugging at the hem of the jersey you were already wearing.

"Why, so they can put  _me_  in instead?" you teased.

"Absolutely!" he chuckled, "I would love to see you out there. Do you know how  _hot_  that would be?"

"I would die," you rolled your eyes, but blushed at his comment. He pressed a gentle kiss to your nose, his thumbs just barely rubbing your hipbones.

"So will you wear it for me?" he asked.

"Only because I love you, Hemmings," you replied, putting your forehead on his. He scrunched up his nose as he smiled.

"I love you too," he said, kissing you again.

~

Once you arrived at the school, Luke led you to the field, his arm securely holding your waist. It wasn't that he was afraid of losing you in a crowd, he just liked to show everyone you were his. People watched you as you both walked toward where the bench was – you were used to everyone staring at you when you were with him – but a couple of Luke's teammates stopped him before you made it there.

"Hey, Luke," Michael snickered, looking at you, "How are you supposed to play if she's still got your jersey on?"

Luke's arm moved from your waist back to his side as he took your hand, tangling your fingers together. He hated the way his friends looked at you, but he knew you hated when they talked about you as if you weren't standing there even more.

"I'm not playing," he told them firmly. They seemed almost shocked.

"Not playing?" Calum raised his eyebrows, "What do you mean you're not playing? It's the second to last game. You can't just not play."

"My concussion isn't completely healed yet," he replied calmly, but you could tell he was getting annoyed with them, "I don't think I should risk making the injury worse. I'll be in the next game." 

The two boys looked at you, immediately assuming you had something to do with it. You began chewing on your lip, slowly backing up to hide behind Luke's arm.

"Guys!" Luke raised his voice slightly, making Michael and Calum look back up at him, "You're talking to me, not her."

"Whatever, man," Michael huffed, "Come on. If you're gonna bail on us, the least you can do is give the usual pep talk." He and Calum walked toward the school to go to the locker rooms. Luke sighed, his hold on your hand becoming loose as he went to follow them.

"Luke..." you mumbled, your grip tightening as you held him in his spot. He released your hand to put it on your cheek.

"Babe," he said softly as his other hand came to a rest on your hip, pulling you closely, "They just want me to give the pep talk like I always do."

He was giving you a reassuring look and you knew that he wasn't going to let his teammates persuade him into the game. You nodded slowly and he pressed a kiss to your forehead.

"I'll see you on the bench, okay?" he said, "Make sure your hair isn't covering my name. I want all those people in the bleachers to know you're mine." You laughed lightly.

"I think you make it hard enough for them to forget already," you told him, a small smile pulling at your lips. He gave you a grin, squeezing you gently.

"I love you," he said, "See you in a few." He let go of you and hurried to the locker room.

**Luke's POV**

"Nice of you to finally join us, Lucas!" Calum shouted obnoxiously when Luke entered the locker room a few minutes after him and Michael.

"That girl finally stop worrying about you?" Michael wiggled his eyebrows.

"' _That girl_ ' is my girlfriend, Michael," Luke stated dryly, "She has been for almost a year now. So I would appreciate it if you would at least  _try_ to use her name every once in a while."

"So you're really not playing tonight?"

"No, I'm really not," he shook his head.

" _Man_!" Calum laughed, pushing Luke's shoulder, "She's got you totally  _whipped_! The Luke  _we_  know would never let some  _stupid concussion_  stop him from playing a game!" There was a chorus of agreements from the boys around them.

"Well, when you've got a girlfriend who's almost in tears because she's worried about your safety,  _then_ we can talk about how whipped I am," he rolled his eyes before looking around at the rest of his teammates, "Do you guys want the pep talk or not? Because if you're just going to give me a bunch of shit for not wanting to scare my girlfriend, then I would rather go back outside and be with her." The guys all nodded furiously and Luke motioned them to come in for a huddle in the middle of the room.

**Your POV**

You clapped along with everyone else as your team was announced. They came running onto the field and you couldn't help but smile when you saw Luke. He was grinning back at you as he walked over, but you could tell something was off.

He sat down beside you, wrapping his arms around your waist and pulling you as close to him as you could get. You lifted your legs up over his and laid your head on his shoulder.

"Are you okay?" you asked, tilting your head to look at him.

"I'm fine, babe," he nodded, kissing your forehead.

"You're lying," you stated firmly, picking your head back up. He sighed quietly.

"It's nothing," he told you, "The guys were just giving me shit because I'm not playing tonight."

"I'm sorry," you mumbled, looking down at your hands.

"Hey," Luke said softly, putting his fingers under your chin and making you look at him, "There's nothing to be sorry for. You're right. I shouldn't play and risk an even worse injury."

"You've done it before though and nothing's ever happened," you swallowed, "I'm just being paranoid."

"I was incredibly lucky before. I could have easily been hurt again, it just took you to make me realize how stupid I was to constantly risk it." You barely smiled and he kissed your nose. "Besides, I know you still would have been worried sick and what kind of boyfriend would I be if I let my princess worry about me like that?"

"Your princess?" you blushed lightly.

"Well, you've got your nickname for me," he chuckled, "I figured I should have one for you as well." You couldn't hold back your grin, making him smile. "I love you, princess," he murmured.

"I love you too, Hemmings," you whispered, pressing your lips to his.

 


	221. Beautiful (Michael Clifford)

" _Shit_ ," you heard your boyfriend grumble from upstairs, his footsteps getting louder as he got closer. You quickly shoved your bookmark into your book and threw it onto the coffee table, jumping up and rushing to the fifth step where he now was.

"Michael," you said sternly, taking his arm, "You know you're supposed to yell for me when you need to come downstairs." He was rubbing his hip and you knew he'd run into something; He always did.

"I know how to get around my own damn house, Y/N," he snapped, jerking his arm away from you, "Just because I'm blind doesn't give you an excuse to baby me." Michael regretted the words the moment he heard your defeated sigh.

"I'm just trying to  _help_ , Mikey," you whispered, sulking back to the couch.

Michael swallowed thickly, letting out a breath. He put his hand on the wall and let it lead him into the living room. After whimpering slightly when his hip hit the back of the couch, he felt around until his hand landed on your knee and then plopped down on the space beside you.

"I know you are, Y/N," he sighed, rubbing your skin with his thumb, "And I'm sorry I keep taking my frustration out on you. I just forget that this is just as hard for you as it is for me sometimes, you know?"

"It's never gonna be as hard as it is for you, Mikey," you told him, placing your hand on top of his. 

Michael flipped his hand over so he could lace your fingers together. He then turned his body toward you, his other hand sliding up your arm and neck until it reached your cheek. He was silent for a moment, his eyes staring at you as if he could see you.

"I wish I knew what you looked like, kitten," Michael whispered after a few more moments. You let out another breath, turning your head a bit so you could kiss his palm.

"I know, Mikey," you swallowed, "I know."

~

**A few weeks later**

"Come on, kitten!" You woke up to Michael straddling your waist while pressing kisses all over your face.

" _Michael_ ," you whined groggily, grabbing his cheeks to make him stop, "What are you  _doing_?"

"I have a doctor's appointment today, remember?"

"Since when are you  _excited_  to go to the doctor?"

"Just get up! I don't wanna be late!" He climbed off of you only to grab your arm and literally pull you off of the bed.

"Mikey!" you laughed, taking your arm back, "At least let me get dressed. Just because  _you_  can't see me doesn't mean  _other people_  aren't going to." He stuck his tongue out in the direction your voice was coming from. You giggled quietly, kissing his cheek before going to your closet.

You grabbed a pair of jeans, your boots, and your favorite sweater of Michael's. You put on the jeans and then pulled your pajama shirt over your head – which was honestly another item of Michael's clothing – and put on your bra. You went to reach for the sweater when you felt arms wrap around your bare waist. Despite being blind, it was almost as if Michael had some sort of sixth sense as to where you were when it came to you not wearing clothes.

" _Michael_ ," you said sternly, but you knew you were smiling. He grinned as well, burying his face into your neck, pressing kisses onto the skin every now and then. "You know, I'm not so sure you  _are_  blind," you stated, "I think you just  _act_  like you are so you can watch me change."

"You caught me," he chuckled, turning you around. He went to lean in, but you quickly grabbed his face, holding him still. " _Kitten_ ," he pouted.

"You're going too fast, Mikey," you giggled, "You're gonna give me another bloody nose." His cheeks turned a light shade of pink.

You reached up to kiss his nose and then paused. He started whining again and you finally pulled his face to yours, kissing his lips. Michael's heart skipped a beat and he held you tighter, bringing your body closer to his.

It baffled him as to how someone as amazing as you would waste their time with someone as damaged as him. Of course, he had his fair share of girlfriends, but they never stayed for very long. They didn't want the baggage that came with being with someone who would always need that little bit of extra help with doing everyday things like housework and getting his clothes together so he didn't look like a toddler whose mother finally allowed them to pick their own outfit.

But when you met him in the hospital waiting room the day your cousin was having her baby, you two immediately hit it off. You didn't give him the usual ' _Oh my God, I'm so sorry_ ' he always got when he told people he was blind; You lightened the mood with a joke, saying that he was lucky he would never have to see Miley's performance with Robin Thicke at the VMA's. He couldn't help but laugh and he knew in that moment that he wanted to get to know you more, so he asked you if you wanted to go out with him sometime. You obviously said yes, making his heart flutter because he could hear your smile and he was sure it was as beautiful as your voice.

Two years later, nothing has changed – apart from the fact that you and Michael now lived together, of course. You were apprehensive about moving into the home at first, telling Michael you were worried about him falling down the stairs, but he assured you that he would quickly learn the layout – and he did – but you would be lying if you said it didn't still scare you when he was on them without you nearby.

After finally getting away from Michael's grasp long enough to finish getting dressed, he eagerly pulled you out of the house and to your car. You made sure he didn't hit his head getting into the passenger seat before trotting around to the driver's side. You tossed your wallet into the cup holder and stuffed your key into the ignition, starting the car.

"Would you mind telling me why you're so excited now?" you asked, backing out of the driveway and beginning the short journey to the hospital.

"I told you, kitten," he said, opening his hand for you to put yours in, "I just don't want to be late."

"Since when do  _you_  care if you're late to an appointment?" you chuckled as Michael played with your fingers, " _I'm_  usually the one begging  _you_  to get out of bed." You glanced over at him when he didn't say anything, seeing a smile on his face. You shook your head, turning your attention back to the road, hoping you found out soon enough what had Michael so giddy.

~

"Michael," one of the nurses, Natalia, smiled as she opened the waiting room door, "How have you been?"

"Other than not being able to see? Pretty good," he chuckled, letting you take his hand and lead him to where the nurse was taking you.

She shook her head and laughed along, "Always a pleasure to catch you on a good day when you feel like being sarcastic."

"Imagine  _living with him_ ," you smirked, earning a playful shove from your boyfriend.

Natalia did her routine with him – weighing him and checking that his eyes' health wasn't deteriorating and such – before telling you that the doctor would be with you shortly. When she left the room, Michael whined quietly, holding his hand open on his knee. You giggled, placing your hand in his and letting him tangle your fingers together while you waited.

Around ten minutes later, the doctor came in as promised. She took a seat at the counter and smiled at you.

"Hello, you two," Dr. Perella greeted you, "How are you doing today?"

"Good," Michael chirped while you simply grinned.

"I have good news, Michael," she smiled again. Michael squeezed your hand, making you tilt your head at him. He was chewing on his lip and you knew that whatever the doctor was about to say was what had him so eager to get there early. "Your papers and everything have been reviewed and we were given the go-ahead on the surgery." Your head snapped back to look at her.

" _Surgery_?" you asked. Michael could sense the doctor's confusion at your reaction.

"I didn't tell her I was thinking about doing it," he explained, his eyes trained on the wall behind her, "Wanted it to be her anniversary present."

"What surgery?" you repeated, shaking your head.

"Michael called about a month ago wanting to know if there were any sort of operations that could grant him vision," Dr. Perella answered, "We had some tests sent in and he was approved for one."

"Mikey could be able to  _see_?" your eyes widened. Michael felt your hold on his hand loosen and he was understandably starting to get worried.

"If he chooses to go through with the surgery, yes," she nodded, "I'll tell you what: Why don't you two go home and talk it over, then call me within the next couple days with your decision?" Michael nodded rapidly and Dr. Perella let you leave the hospital.

It wasn't until you had gotten home that you or Michael spoke again. You had immediately released your grip on him the moment the front door closed behind you and rushed into the kitchen, saying you were going to start making dinner.

Michael carefully maneuvered his way toward the room as well, using the walls as his guide. He heard you open one of the cabinet doors and walked to you. His hand landed on your shoulder and trailed down your arm until it reached your hand, pushing the door closed before he turned you around. You leaned back against the counter while his hands found your hips. 

"I do, you know," Michael said, "I wanna do the surgery."

"Is that what you and your mom were doing the other day?" you asked softly, "When you said she wanted to see you, was she actually taking you to get those tests done?"

"Yeah," he whispered, feeling guilty now that he thought about the fact that he lied to you.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I wanted you to be surprised," he said, chewing on his lip again. You were quiet for a moment before you spoke again in a barely audible voice.

"You could finally see," you said, more to yourself than to him.

"Yeah," he repeated with a small smile, nodding, "And you wouldn't have to cook or clean or do anything by yourself anymore, and you wouldn't have to help me get dressed or be worried that I'm gonna fall down the stairs... We could finally be like a normal couple."

"We  _are_  a normal couple, Mikey," you said, putting your hands on his cheeks, "Just because I do all those things for you doesn't mean we're not."

"But I know it gets annoying," he frowned.

"So what if it  _does_  sometimes?" you shrugged, "If I minded having to do them, I wouldn't still be with you. I love you, Michael – with or without vision." He smiled again, a bit bigger this time, slowly leaning forward. You teased him by moving your head back which obviously made him start whining.

"I know you're not that far away, Y/N," he said, "I hate when you do that."

"Hey, if you're gonna get your vision, I am gonna milk being able to tease you like that while I still can," you stated.

He stuck his bottom lip out, making you roll your eyes. You pulled his face to yours, pressing your lips together, making him smile. His arms snaked all the way around your waist, bringing your bodies closer.

"I love you," he mumbled when he pulled away, his lips still brushing up against yours.

"I love you too," you grinned.

"I'm gonna be able to  _see_ you soon, kitten." His smile was so wide at the thought of it, but yours faded.

"Yeah, Mikey," you whispered, just barely kissing his nose, "You'll see me soon."

~

That night, you were lying in bed, staring up at the ceiling. It was around 2:45am and you had just woken up from a nightmare that got you thinking: When Michael was  _finally_ able tosee you, what would stop him from leaving? What if he didn't like what he saw and wanted someone else? You were scared that the next time you went out, he would find someone better –  _prettier_  – and leave you. You'd never felt this way about anyone before and the thought of it being taken away – no matter how badly you wanted him to be able to see the world – made you feel nauseous. You knew you wouldn't be able to handle him leaving.

"Kitten," Michael's voice suddenly replaced the deafening silence, startling you as you didn't know he was awake. You looked over at him and despite the fact that the room was dark, you could tell he was already lying on his side facing you. When you didn't speak, he continued, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," you whispered, the break in your voice instantly giving you away.

"Are you mad because I didn't tell you that I asked about the operation?" he asked shyly.

"No, Mikey," you said, "I'm not mad."

"If we talked about it before today, would you have said you didn't want me to do it?" He began chewing on his lip nervously. "Do you not want me to see?"

"I  _want_  you to see, Mikey," you assured him before proclaiming in a voice so low, you weren't sure he would hear it, "I just don't want you to  _leave_."

"Why would I leave?" he furrowed his eyebrows.

He felt your shoulder hit the pillow as you shrugged. He felt around for you, his hand landing on your hip. He slid it across to your opposite hip, allowing him to pull and turn you into him. He wiggled his other arm under your neck, allowing you to use his bicep as a pillow.

When you both got comfortable again, he went to kiss your forehead, but missed and kissed the corner of your eye instead, earning a small giggle from you. He smiled at the sound of your laugh, but it quickly faded.

"I would never leave you, Y/N," he told you, "You know that."

"I don't know what you've been imagining when you think about me, Michael," you sighed, "But I know it's not what I  _actually_  look like."

"But you're beautiful."

"No, I'm not."

"Yeah, you are," he argued.

"You've never seen me," you muttered, "How would you know?"

"I just  _know_ ," he stated matter-of-factly, "I know that your laugh is why I keep making stupid jokes all the time. I know that your lips on mine is my most favorite feeling in the world. I know that when you hold onto my arm when we're in public, I don't look forward to coming home because I love every single second that I get to touch you. I like the way you scrunch your face up and giggle when I miss where I was aiming to kiss you. I like when we slow dance in the kitchen because we can't sleep. But most of all, I like that you don't treat me as someone who's blind – you treat me like I'm  _Michael_. I love everything about you, kitten, and whatever insecurities have got you convinced that I won't when I finally get to see you aren't going to change that." Silence lingered in the air once again before your quiet sniffling took over.

"I love you, Mikey," you whimpered, moving so you were practically on top of him, your face buried in his neck.

"I love you, kitten," he sighed, hugging you tightly, "So much." 

A few minutes later, you rolled off of Michael. He kept his arm under your head, letting you use it as a pillow while your hand was on his cheek, absentmindedly caressing his skin. You were staring at his eyes, the dim light from bedside lamp you'd turned on before doing so allowing you to see them.

"You have really pretty eyes, Mikey," you whispered randomly.

"What do they look like?" he asked. You contemplated for a moment.

"Do you remember what I told you green looks like?"

He nodded, "Green looks like how freshly cut grass smells."

"And when it's cloudy?"

"Cloudy is the way the air feels right before summer rainstorms," he smiled.

"They look like that," you told him, "Except I get tired of looking at those things sometimes; I'll never get tired of your eyes." Michael blushed lightly as you kissed his nose gently.

"What do your eyes look like, kitten?" he asked you, already beginning to drift back to sleep.

"(Green: They look like how freshly cut grass smells; Blue: They look like how cold feels and how crashing waves in the ocean sound; Brown: They look like how chocolate tastes and how a warm cup of coffee feels against the palm of your hand; Hazel: They look like how midnight summer showers lull you to sleep or how caramel tastes as it melts in your mouth)," you replied.

"That sounds beautiful, kitten," he mumbled.

"They are, Mikey – and you'll get to see them real soon," you whispered, kissing his forehead before you both fell asleep once again.

~

**One week later**

You had taken Michael back to the hospital on the date of his surgery. You were sitting in the chairs you always sat on when you came to appointments and Natalia was prepping him to be taken into the operating room when he looked over at you – well, he was  _facing you_ , but his gaze was somewhere on your collarbone.

"I'll see you later, kitten," he snickered to himself. You rolled your eyes, letting go of his hand.

"Michael Gordon," you used his middle name so he knew you were being serious, "If you keep making that joke, I am going to slap the vision right back out of you." Natalia couldn't hold in her chuckle as Michael scoffed.

"That's rough, babe," he said.

"So is having to hear you say that  _every time_  we're in the same room," you smiled sweetly, kissing his cheek.

"Alright, Michael," Dr. Perella said as she entered the room, "You ready to go?"

"He's ready," you immediately answered for him.

"He's making sight jokes, isn't he?" she laughed, knowing him all too well.

"You have no idea," you mumbled under your breath.

"Well, we'll get him back here in no time and hopefully, he'll stop making them."

" _Kitten_ ," you said, almost perfectly copying Michael's voice, " _It's so nice to_ see  _you. I can't wait to_ see _you again. Do you come here often? I'd love to_ see _you again sometime._ "

"What can I say?" Michael shrugged, "She knows me." You finally giggled, leaning over and pressing your lips to Michael's.

"I love you, Mikey," you told him.

"I love you too,  _kitten_ ," he chuckled.

~

About an hour later, Michael was brought back to the room in a wheelchair. There were bandages covering his eyes and he was a bit groggy, but Dr. Perella informed you that the surgery couldn't have gone better. She helped him onto the bed and told him to rest for a few hours before she took the bandages off and you thanked her as she left the room. You waited until Michael fell asleep to go get a quick snack from the cafeteria.

When you went back to his room, you simply found a way to occupy your time until he woke up.

When he began mumbling a couple hours later, you knew he was about to wake up, so you went to get the doctor. She decided to wait for him to fully come back to and gave him a few minutes to completely wake up.

"I'm gonna check on some other patients and then we'll take those bandages off, okay?" Dr. Perella asked him.

Michael nodded with a yawn and she exited the room, coming back about 15 minutes later.

"Would you like to stay on the bed or do you want to sit with Y/N?" she wondered.

"Y/N," he answered without missing a beat. He swung his legs over the side of the bed and hopped onto the floor, letting Dr. Perella hold his forearm as she guided him to you.

The moment he sat down, he immediately opened his hand for you to take. You laced your fingers together and anxiously waited.

"You ready, Michael?" the doctor asked. He took a deep breath and nodded.

She carefully peeled off the tape that was keeping the bandages on his skin, letting out a faint chuckle when she saw his eyes were shut tightly. He was beyond nervous that the operation hadn't worked and he wasn't quite ready to find out the truth.

"Michael," Dr. Perella said after a few moments, "We'll never know if it worked unless you open your eyes."

Michael squeezed your hand, slowly opening his eyes to adjust to the room's bright light. His vision was a bit cloudy at first, but as he kept blinking, it got clearer and clearer. He looked around the room with wide and curious eyes while your heart started beating faster knowing it was only a matter of time before he looked at you. Your leg was bouncing up and down in anticipation, but the moment his eyes landed on you, you both froze. He was gaping at you with a look you couldn't quite read until you saw tears start to form. He covered his mouth with the palm of his free hand and let out a couple broken sobs.

"Mikey..." you said slowly. He moved his hand just enough so you could hear his words.

"You're so  _beautiful_ , kitten," he choked. It was your turn to start getting teary-eyed as he let go of your hand and put both of his on your cheeks. He pulled your face to his, eagerly bringing your lips together.

"I'll be back in a few minutes," the doctor told you with a smile – although she was sure you weren't paying attention to anything but each other.

Michael pulled on you a bit more, wanting you to move to his lap. You did so, placing your hands on his hips to keep yourself steady since there wasn't really much room.

When he pulled away, his hands remained on your face, his thumbs carefully running along your cheekbones. He kept quiet for a moment, simply taking every one of your features in.

"You're so beautiful," he repeated in a whisper. You let out an accidental whimper, leaning your forehead onto his. He kept saying ' _so beautiful_ 'under his breath until you kissed him again to shut him up.

When the doctor came back, you pulled away but stayed on Michael's lap. She smiled at the two of you again, sitting back down in her chair.

"How does everything look, Michael?" she asked him.

" _Beautiful_ ," he replied, never taking his eyes off of you. You blushed as she chuckled lightly.

"I meant how is your  _eyesight_? Are you seeing any spots or is anything blurry at all?"

"No spots," he said, finally looking at her, "Um, things far away are kind of blurry though." The doctor nodded.

"If I could have you come sit over here," she trailed off, gesturing toward the exam chair, "She can't sit on your lap though, I'm sorry."

You giggled breathlessly, climbing off of your boyfriend and returning to your own seat. Michael moved across the room and sat down. She swung the refractor so it was in front of his face and examined his eyes.

10 minutes later, she nodded her head, returning the machine back to its usual position.

"You'll definitely need glasses," she told him, "It's not uncommon for people in your situation to need them though. Otherwise, your eyes are perfectly healthy. You can go pick out some frames and then come back in a couple hours and we'll have your glasses all ready for you."

"Thank you," he smiled, getting up. You rose to your feet as well, letting the doctor lead you out of the room.

The next two hours were spent going around town, allowing Michael to see all the things he'd only been hearing the business of his whole life. You told him what colors were and  _he_  even told  _you_  what a few were – remembering the nights you would lay in bed and he would ask you to describe what each color looked like.

He knew he had a long road of learning things such as how to read and write ahead of him, but he wasn't worried; As long as he had you by his side, nothing was gonna hold him back.

~

_inspirations:  
http://my-imagines-moonlight53.tumblr.com/post/95810798477/deaf-michael-imagine  
_ _http://my-imagines-moonlight53.tumblr.com/post/98960875632/welcome-home-a-blind-ashton-imagine_


	222. If I'm Lucky (Calum Hood)

You were mindlessly walking down the aisles of Walmart on a late-night ice cream run. As you were walking, you reached up to scratch the back of your neck. You heard shoes squeak on the linoleum floor and then someone tap your shoulder. You turned to find a tall young man smiling shyly at you.

"Hi," he said softly, "I'm sure this is a bit strange to ask, but are those-" He gestured to your left bicep. "-State Champs lyrics?"

"Maybe," you shrugged with a nervous chuckle, "I don't know, honestly. I've never really bothered to look up whose lyrics they are."

Everyone had this kind of tattoo, it appearing somewhere on their skin on their 18th birthday – the tattoo that would one day help them find their soulmate. When you met your soulmate at first, you wouldn't know it; You would only know when they sang their favorite lyrics.

The lyrics on your arm read ' _But I'm willing to prove you've got more fight left in you_ '. You thought they were nice lyrics – certainly happy you didn't have ones that meant absolutely nothing or were from the  _Sesame Street_  theme song or something – and you couldn't help but wonder what the story was. Why were these your soulmate's favorite lyrics? Did something happen to them that made them resonate so deeply with them?

"Wait," the boy's eyes widened, "So you  _don't_  know who State Champs is?"

You shook your head, "Never even heard of them."

"You  _have_  to have a listen," he told you, "I'm sure you'll love them." You looked at him for a moment before saying anything.

"What song are these from?" you asked, lifting your arm slightly before bringing it back to your side.

" _Easy Enough_ ," he answered with a bright smile that made your heart skip a beat, "I have no doubt you'll love it though. They're an amazing band." You giggled quietly. "Anyway, I'm sorry if I've bothered you," he continued, "The next time I run into you, you'll have to tell me how you like the song though."

"You weren't bothering me at all," you assured him, "It was nice meeting you."

"You too," he smiled, "I have to get going, but don't forget to listen to the song." You nodded and he smiled again before turning around and trotting away.

~

**Calum's POV**

"My prince of snacks has returned!" Calum's best friend shouted when he walked into the living room and dumped out the grocery bag onto the coffee table.

"You don't need to call me that  _every time_  I come home from the store, Michael," Calum rolled his eyes, walking to the kitchen.

Michael sighed dramatically, " _My sweet prince_."

"Fuck off!" he laughed loudly, grabbing a drink from the fridge.

"You got the joke though, right?" he asked as he came back into the room.

"We  _got_  the joke, Mikey," Ashton chuckled.

After the boys had been playing video games for nearly half an hour, Calum decided to call it quits, not really feeling up for it anymore. He put his controller on the coffee table, grabbing another snack and leaning back in his seat.

When he finished it, he mindlessly scrolled down his Twitter timeline on his phone until he heard his name being said.

"Cal," Luke was the one to pause the game and speak up. When he knew he had his attention, he continued, "What's up?"

"What do you mean?" Calum asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"I don't know," he shrugged, "You've just seemed a little spacey since you got back from the store." Calum looked around at his three best friends and sighed.

"I met this girl as I walking down one of the aisles and she... She has my favorite State Champs lyrics tattooed on her arm," he replied, motioning to the area your tattoo was.

"Wait," Michael tilted his head, "Are you saying you found your soulmate?"

"I'm not sure," he sighed.

"Didn't you sing the lyrics in front of her?" Ashton asked.

"I'm not gonna just burst into song in the middle of the store, Ash," Calum rolled his eyes.

"Did you at least get her number or ask her on a date?" Luke pressed. Calum groaned softly, earning a louder groan from the three other boys. " _Calum_!" he continued, shoving his best friend's shoulder, "That could have been your  _soulmate_!"

"You know," Michael spoke up thoughtfully, "My best friend has State Champs lyrics as her tattoo; Maybe she knows of other people who have them too. I could invite her over for dinner this weekend. I'm sure she'd love to finally meet you guys."

"I'm down," Ashton shrugged, "Is she the same girl you were saying threw up on that kid she was sitting next to on a roller coaster last year?"

"Yup," he snickered, "That's her."

~

**Your POV; Friday night**

In the business that was your schedule of work and errands, you completely forgot to check out the band that the boy from the grocery store recommended. But you were  now in the middle of getting ready to meet your best friend's housemates and he would be there any minute, so you didn't exactly have time right  _now_  either. He had texted you earlier that week asking if you were free to meet them and, of course, you said yes. He talked about them all the time and you were curious as to who these boys were.

You were in your bathroom when you heard a knock on your apartment door.

"It's open, Mikey!" you shouted loud enough for him to hear you. The door opened and within five seconds, Michael was leaning against the frame of the bathroom door.

" _Still_ getting ready, I see," he said with a teasing tone, "So I can expect you to be ready in what, two hours?" You rolled your eyes, making sure your earring was secure before you spun on your heels to face him.

"Very funny," you said monotonously, pushing his shoulder on your way past him.

You went into your living room and slipped on your boots, using the armrest of the couch to steady yourself as you tied the laces. You went to grab your phone and keys off of the counter and came back to where Michael was now propped up against the wall beside the door.

"Let's go, loser," you told him, opening the door and ushering him into the hallway.

" _Me_? A  _loser_?" he gasped dramatically, "I think you must have me mistaken with your  _other_  best friend named Michael. Oh, wait. You don't  _have_  any other friends."

"That's not true and you know it, Clifford!" you laughed.

" _My_  friends don't count," he said, "They might not even  _like you_."

"Well, if they're friends with  _you_ , they already have pretty terrible judgement, don't they?" you smirked as you climbed into his car, making his jaw drop slightly. You looked at him and noticed he was pouting as he drove out of the parking lot. You giggled, lightly hitting his cheek. "You know I love you, Mikey," you told him, bringing his smile back.

~

Once you arrived at Michael's place, he led you inside. You could hear three voices talking from another room, them getting louder as you and Michael got closer.

"Hey, guys," your best friend chirped when you entered the room, "This is-"

"State Champs girl!" one of them exclaimed, making your head snap up to look at him. You instantly smiled when you saw the boy from the grocery store.

"I have a name, you know," you teased.

"Well, you never told me," he countered, a light blush on his cheeks from his sudden outburst.

"You would have known it if you hadn't interrupted me," Michael chuckled before motioning to you. "Guys, this is Y/N," he said and then pointed to each of the boys, "Y/N, this is Luke, Ashton, and Calum."

"So  _you're_  the famous Y/N then?" Calum smiled. The sound of him saying your name made you find yourself wishing he would never say anything else. But once you processed what he said, you turned back to Michael.

"What have you told them about me?" you asked, narrowing your eyes.

"Nothing..." he snickered, "Nothing that wasn't  _embarrassing_ , at least."

" _Michael Gordon Clifford_!" you tried to say threateningly, but you knew you were smiling.

As the night went on, you noticed that Calum seemed to have taken more of a liking to you than the others. He always seemed to gravitate towards you, he would make any excuse he could to touch you – even if it was just for half a second – and he was cracking jokes left and right, his smile brightening each time you laughed. It wasn't like you had a problem with it though; You yourself had grown quite fond of the brown-eyed boy in the past few hours. You really enjoyed his company – and Luke and Ashton's as well – and you couldn't wait to spend time with them again.

~

**Two months later**

It was another Friday night – you were back at the boys' house, in the middle of making dinner.

You were already a frequent visitor – obviously – but the moment the boys found out you could cook, they were begging you to come over practically every other day. You were flattered to say the least and you  actually enjoyed their company, so you never found it annoying that they wanted you to stop by so often.

You were in the kitchen with Michael, Luke and Ashton were in the office working on songwriting, and Calum was in his bedroom taking a nap. Well,  _supposedly_ , that is.

**Calum's POV**

Calum had been lying there for the past two hours, trying to reign in his scattered thoughts. He wanted to know if you were each other's soulmate, but that would require singing and there wasn't exactly a  _subtle_  way to work that into an everyday conversation. He could simply start singing the lyrics on your arm, but what if that scared you off? He couldn't do that. No matter if he was your soulmate or not, he still really liked spending time with you – sure, it was never actually time  _alone_ , but it was time nonetheless.

He was certain you were never going to willingly sing his tattooed lyrics to him either. Whenever music was playing, during your many visits, you would never so much as mumble the words under your breath, always telling them ' _You know I don't sing in front of people._ ' His fingers absentmindedly rubbed the ink on the skin under his collarbone: ' _When in front of you, I feel invincible._ '

The moment the lyrics appeared on his skin when he turned 18, he took to the internet to find out whose they were – a band called You Me At Six. He thought the lyrics – and the song – were beautiful and he couldn't help but find himself wondering what they meant to his soulmate. Ever since then, he found himself always touching them. In his mind, it made him feel closer to his soulmate despite the fact that he had no idea who she was.

Calum sighed, pulling himself out of bed. He'd finally had enough of being consumed by his own mind, so he decided to see what everyone else was up to. He walked out of the room and toward the stairs, hearing you and Michael giggling in the kitchen as you made dinner.

"I'm gonna go get everyone," Michael chirped. You nodded and he trotted out of the room, leaving you to finish up the meal by yourself.

Calum quickly went back into his bedroom upon hearing Michael was coming upstairs. After Michael made it to the top step, Calum came out into the hallway.

"Oh, hey," Michael said, "Dinner's almost ready." Calum simply nodded and he went to let Luke and Ashton know as well.

Calum walked downstairs, but stopped at the door to the kitchen when he heard you singing quietly to yourself. His heart started racing as he recognized the song as the one his lyrics were in, thinking he was about to find out whether or not you were his soulmate.

Unfortunately, however, his friends were starting to come back downstairs. Calum knew you were going to stop singing when you heard the boys coming, so he quickly ran to the bottom of the staircase to shush them.

"Guys!" Calum exclaimed in a whisper, "Be  _quiet_!"

"Why?" Luke asked softly. He stopped the boys at the doorway to the kitchen.

"Y/N's singing," he answered simply.

"So?" Ashton said.

"You know she's gonna stop when she hears us," Michael pointed out. Calum could hear you getting closer to the part where his lyrics were, so he made them be quiet again. "Cal, she-" Calum cut Michael off.

" _Shut up_!" he muttered.

The moment the lyrics left your mouth a few seconds later, Calum's breath was knocked out of him and he was gripping his chest tightly.

"Cal, what's wrong?" Ashton asked in a rush, following Calum as he ran back up the stairs to his room as quietly as he could.

" _Shit_ ," he gasped, " _Shit, shit, shit_."

"What's going on?!" Luke exclaimed.

"It's  _her_ ," he responded breathlessly, looking up at them, "She's the one."

"What do y-"

"She sang her favorite lyrics, Luke!" he hissed in pain, "And it hurts like  _hell_!" All three boys' jaws dropped at hearing Calum found his soulmate.

Michael gasped excitedly, " _Y/N_  is your soulmate?!"

"Michael! Not so loud!"

"But now you can sing your favorite lyrics to her and you guys can-"

"What if I'm not her soulmate, Mikey?" Calum sighed, collapsing on his bed, still in a bit of pain.

"But you have to be!" he frowned.

"No one ever said it would be a  _mutual_  thing," he replied, "She's too beautiful and smart and talented and... She's way too good for me. I could never be  _that_  lucky."

"And what if you  _are_?" Ashton spoke, sitting down next to Calum.

"We see the way you look at her, Cal," Luke said, "Just forget about the soulmate stuff for right now; You're too into her not to at least  _try it out_. Even if it's  _not_  mutual, you guys would be amazing together. There's no harm in taking a  _chance_." Calum simply remained silent, none of the boys doing anything until they heard your voice echo throughout the house.

"I don't want to have to eat all this food alone, guys!" you called out.

"Come on, Cal," Ashton said, patting his back and pulling him up along with himself, "We'll figure out what to do later."

~

After dinner, the boys had now moved to the living room while you were washing dishes. Since they were talking about you and Calum's tattoo, their voices were lower than usual.

"Hey, Cal," Michael suddenly said, making everyone look at him, "I just remembered that I have plans next weekend and I don't think I'll be able to go to the concert with you." Calum tilted his head – Michael  _never_  planned  _that_  far ahead – but shook it off, making a mental note to ask him about it later.

"Okay," he said, turning to Ashton and Luke, "Do one of you want to come with?"

"Sorry, man," Ashton shrugged, "You know I've got a family reunion to go to."

Calum furrowed his eyebrows, "Luke?"

"Can't," he replied, "My brothers and their families are coming to visit and my mum and dad want to have a barbecue." Calum let out a frustrated sigh, having no clue why all his friends were bailing on him at the last minute.

"Who am I supposed to go with then?"

"Why don't you take Y/N?" Michael suggested, a sly smile on his face – and it was in that moment that Calum realized what they were doing.

"Y/N's not gonna want to go," he stated.

"Y/N's not gonna wanna go where?" you asked as you came back into the room and plopped down in your usual spot between Michael and Calum. Calum was about to protest, but he was beaten to speaking.

"Cal's got an extra ticket to see State Champs next Saturday," Michael told you, "We were gonna go together, but something came up and I won't be able to make it and since Luke and Ash already have plans, we thought you and Cal could spend some one-on-one time together – you know, get to know each other a little more without the rest of us always interrupting."

"Sure," you shrugged.

"Really?" Calum asked with a surprised expression.

"Well, I'm not doing anything," you told him, "Plus, it would be a good way to make sure I actually listen to them since I keep forgetting. And who am I to turn down a free concert ticket?"

"Who said it was  _free_?" he smirked. You mirrored the grin, leaning onto his arm.

"How badly do you want me to go?" you asked innocently. His smirk turned into him trying not to smile and you knew you won. You giggled lightly, standing up again. "I better head out before it gets too dark," you sighed, "You know how I am about driving at night. I'll see you guys later."

You received a chorus of goodbyes and hugs from the boys. You noticed Calum hugged you a little tighter than the rest of them, but didn't think anything of it. You left them with a small wave, promising to text Michael when you got home so they knew you made it safely.

~

**Your POV; Saturday night**

You and Calum were near the stage, a little to the right side, by the time State Champs' set actually started. You didn't know  _how_  he was able to get you guys so close, but you would have preferred being along the edge or even near the back, to be quite honest. People kept pushing you and kicking your head as they crowd surfed.

At one point about halfway through the set, a kick was just hard enough that it knocked you into Calum. He looked at you as you rubbed the back of your head and he could just tell you were getting pretty beat up.

"Do you wanna stand in front of me?" he asked you. You nodded and he pulled you to him. He wrapped his arms around your waist and put his chin on your shoulder so he could be sure he would get hit before you did.

After a couple more songs, the one the lyrics on your arm were from started. Of course, having no idea who this band was, you had no clue. Calum had been singing in your ear to relax you throughout the night and you were leaning back on him, your eyes closed in content.

Just before Derek sang the lyrics tattooed on your skin, he pointed his microphone to the crowd, allowing you to clearly hear Calum. The moment he sang the line, your bicep felt like it was on fire.

You winced in pain as your hand flew up to grip your arm and you nearly doubled over – and had it not been for the boy holding you, you probably would have.

Calum immediately stopped singing, turning you around. He saw tears in your eyes as you squeezed your arm in the hopes of relieving the pain. He put his hands back on your shoulders, beginning to lead you out of the crowd.

Calum took you to the door that lead backstage, nodding at the security guard. You were in too much pain to even bother asking why the guy let you in without question, but you figured Calum was just at the venue so often that everyone knew him. Once you were in, he took you to one of the dressing rooms that weren't being used.

"What happened?" he asked frantically as he turned you to face him.

"Someone sang my lyrics," you sniffled, still in pain.

"Wait," he eyes widened, "So your soulmate is  _here_?" You obviously nodded. "Do you have any idea who it  _was_?" You shook your head.

"I don't know," you replied, the pain beginning to subside, "I wasn't really listening to anyone else singing but you." You both took a moment to process what you had said before you looked at each other with wide eyes.

"That means we're-" You cut Calum off.

"We can't be," you stated, "I don't sing in front of people; You'll never hear me." He gave you a sheepish grin. "Calum..." you mumbled.

"When you were over for dinner the other night and Michael came to get Ashton, Luke, and I, I went downstairs and heard you singing," he confessed, "That's why Michael bailed out on coming – because he wanted me to sing to you and find out if I was your soulmate too." He then undid the first few buttons on his flannel and pulled it to the side, showing you the tattoo of your favorite lyrics inscribed along his collarbone.

You subconsciously raised your hand up, placing it on his skin and letting your thumb run along the words. You were both silent, not really sure what to say – if you could even speak at all. It wasn't until you looked up at Calum, finding him watching you intently, that you knew; He was the one.

You didn't even think before you reached up, connecting your lips with his. He was understandably surprised at first, but he certainly wasn't about to complain. His arms snaked around your waist, pulling you closer to him so there was absolutely no space between your bodies.

Despite the fact that your arm still burned, it was like you became numb to the pain when you were kissing Calum. You never heard any stories of what happened when people kissed their soul mates – only that your tattoo would burn when they sang the words. Sure, you'd kissed your fair share of people before, but it felt  _nothing_  like this. Kissing Calum made you feel like nothing else mattered; Like nothing in the world could hurt you.

Your favorite lyrics – ' _When in front of you, I feel invincible_ ' – never had any specific meaning to you; You just really loved them. But now, as unbelievably cliché as it was, with Calum, you felt invincible. 

When you pulled away, you watched his eyes flutter open. He smiled at you, pressing a gentle kiss to your forehead before you laid your head on his shoulder.

"I thought I'd never find you," he breathed, making goosebumps rise all over your body. You grinned slightly, tilting your head to kiss the middle of his jaw which made him smile as well.

You two remained in silence for a couple minutes, simply enjoying knowing you had each found your soulmate.

"Cal," you said randomly, lifting yourself up so you could look at him, "Do you think people's tattoos burn  _every_  time their soulmate sings the lyrics?"

"I hope not," he couldn't help but chuckle at your sudden outburst, "It hurts like hell." You giggled and he then proposed his own theory. "Do you think  _kissing_ your soulmate feels like that every time?" he smirked. You thought for a moment.

"We could always test it out," you shrugged, a sly grin pulling at the corner of your own mouth.

"Well, you don't have to ask  _me_  twice," he laughed lightly, moving one of his hands from your waist to your cheek, pulling your face to his and kissing you again.

But it didn't; It felt  _better_.

~

_Lyrics used:_   
_"When in front of you, I feel invincible" - Little Bit of Truth by You Me At Six_   
_"But I'm willing to prove you've got more fight left in you" - Easy Enough by State Champs_

_inspiration: an au i've seen where you don't know who your soulmate is until you've heard them sing but i don't remember who wrote it_


	223. Meant to Be (Luke Hemmings)

You were over at your boyfriend's house one evening, simply enjoying the lazy Sunday evening. It was about 9pm and Luke was upstairs getting his 5-year-old daughter ready for bed. Lacey Hemmings was an exact replica of her father; Bright blue eyes, dark blonde hair, and she knew how to get what she wanted without ever having to say a word.

_Flashback_

Luke and Lacey's mother had only been seeing each other for about a year when she got pregnant with Lacey. A few weeks after giving birth, Luke's ex-girlfriend waited until he got home from work to tell him that she was leaving him with their baby. He didn't even have time to ask her why before she was out the door and never to be heard from again.

Panic immediately set it when he heard Lacey start crying upstairs due to being woken up from the front door slamming. As he rushed to her bedroom, he couldn't help but wonder what he was going to do. And that was how he met you.

You and Ashton had known each other since you were freshman in high school. You had never actually met Luke, but Ashton talked about him a lot. When he told you about what happened, you immediately felt bad for him. Despite the fact that you didn't know him, from everything Ashton had ever told you, he seemed like a great guy. He had mentioned that Luke was looking for someone to care for Lacey while he was at work and you instantly offered your help, so Ashton and Luke arranged a day for you and him to come by.

The moment he saw you when he opened the door, Luke was mentally praying you would do well with his daughter, already developing a slight crush on you. He moved out of the way of the door, careful not to move too suddenly, his sleeping daughter in his arms. He quietly showed you around the house before leading you back to the living room. You, Luke, and Ashton sat down, talking quietly as Luke was still cradling his baby.

Much to Luke's dismay, however, Lacey woke up and immediately started crying. He was apologizing profusely as he got up, but you stopped him from leaving the room.

"I can take her," you said softly, getting up as well, "I mean, if you're considering me to be with her while you're at work, we might as well see if I can handle her while you're here."

Luke's gaze flicked from you to Ashton, almost as if he were asking for approval. Ashton raised his eyebrows, gesturing toward you. Luke turned back to you, carefully placing the baby in your arms. He stood frozen in his spot as you wiped Lacey's cheeks, already mumbling a song to her as you took her upstairs. Within five minutes, the crying had stopped, making Luke look at Ashton again.

"When Harry was probably four or so, Y/N was my mum's go-to babysitter," Ashton explained with a light chuckle, "He would always stop crying or whatever the moment he saw her; We always thought it was because he had this huge crush on her – which, you know, he probably did – but it turns out, she's just really amazing with kids. You know I wouldn't have brought her over if I didn't think she could do it, Luke. Lace is in good hands with her." Before Luke could come up with anything to say, you were already trotting back down the steps.

"Now, now," you said lowly, a small, cocky smirk on your face, "No need to applaud me – mostly because we wouldn't want her to wake up again. However, I will accept golf claps or poetry slam snapping." The two men simply stared at you, Ashton with a smile and Luke with a look of amazement. "I will also accept that expression," you nodded to Luke, "You're welcome." Luke let out a breath, chuckling quietly.

"And you're  _hired_ ," he said, "When can you start?"

"When do you need me to start?" you grinned.

"Monday, if you can..."

"Done," you chirped. Luke made the motion to give you a hug, a motion you happily accepted.

"Thank you," he muttered just before releasing you. You simply smiled again, telling him goodbye as you left with Ashton.

~

Five years later, not much has changed – aside from the fact that Lacey was now in pre-school and you and Luke were together, of course.

He didn't ask you out until Lacey was nearly four, actually making  _her_  ask  _for him_  since he was too nervous. She informed him that she wasn't going to ask until the timing was right, making him whine slightly.

"You can't  _rush_  these things, Daddy," she told him, putting her hands on his face after making him kneel down to her level, "Don't worry. I've got a plan." Luke sighed as she let go of him and skipped to her off into the living room to watch TV while he began dinner.

The next day, after Luke returned home from work, Lacey asked you if you would stay for dinner. You looked at Luke and he shrugged, telling you it was alright either way. You graciously accepted the little girl's offer and the two of you helped Luke make dinner that night.

As you were all finishing up, Lacey suddenly blurted out, "Y/N, Daddy wants to know if you'll go on a date with him!" Your hand went up to cover your mouth to hide your smile while Luke practically choked on his drink. The 5-year-old was innocently looking between the both of you.

"Lace," Luke said once he calmed down, " _That_  was your plan?"

"Well,  _your_  plan was to make  _me_  do it!" she pouted, crossing her arms over her chest.

"She makes an excellent point," you spoke up, removing your hand and showing the two your grin, easing Luke's racing thoughts slightly.

"Daddy," Lacey squeaked, tilting her head at her father, "If Y/N says yes, does that mean you'll stop talking about how pretty she is all the time?"

"Lacey," Luke cleared his throat, a bright red tint to his cheeks, "Can you go watch TV or something while I wash dishes?" She happily climbed off of her chair and ran into the living room, leaving you and her father alone.

Luke stood up, grabbing the empty plates and glasses, hurrying over to the sink. He fumbled around with the soap as you walked up beside him.

"You know," you said, leaning against the counter on your hip so you were facing him, "I never got to give Lacey an answer. Although, and no offense to her or anything, but I think I'd much rather you ask  _yourself_  than recruit  _your daughter_  to do it for you." Luke breathed out deeply, putting everything down and turning the water off. He turned to face you, a sheepish expression on his face.

"Will-" He cleared his throat again. "Will you go on a date with me sometime?"

"Yes," you smiled, wasting no time in answering him. He let out a sigh of relief, but the moment was cut short.

" _Yeah_!" Lacey cheered from the doorway. Yours and Luke's heads snapped over to look at her. Her eyes widened and you glanced back at Luke, seeing a mischievous smirk on his face. " _Daddy, no_!" she screamed, racing out of the room as he chased her. You shook your head, laughing quietly as you went in the direction they were going, finding Luke tickling his daughter on the couch.

_End flashback_

Fast forward to right now: Luke had just come downstairs and informed you that Lacey requested to be tucked into bed by you. He said it with a small pout as he threw himself down beside you, making you giggle and kiss his cheek.

"Hey, it's not my fault she loves me more," you teased, hopping up and going to Lacey's room. "Hey, cutie," you grinned as you walked in the door. Lacey smiled sleepily at you, sitting up and holding her arms open. You walked over to her, giving her a hug. "How would you like to sleep tonight?" you asked thoughtfully when you let go.

"Burrito," she giggled quietly, lying back down. You tucked the edges of her Minnie Mouse blanket underneath her, making sure she was in snugly.

"How does that feel?" you asked once you had finished. She nodded happily, and you leaned back down. "Goodnight, Lace," you whispered, kissing her forehead.

"Goodnight, Mummy," she mumbled as she drifted off to sleep, making your heart skip a beat. You couldn't keep your eyes from welling up with tears as you leaned down and kissed her forehead. You tiptoed out of the room, turning off the light. You made your way back downstairs to where Luke was waiting for you.

"How'd it go?" Luke asked, not looking up at you.

"She's already asleep," you answered quietly, trying to mask the unevenness of your voice. Obviously, it didn't work and he glanced up, his eyes widening.

"What happened?" he asked frantically, grabbing your face once you sat down next to him, "Why are you crying?"

"She called me Mummy," you barely smiled, a sob escaping your lips.

" _She did_?" his eyes widened again as he wiped your cheeks with his thumbs. You nodded and he brought your face forward so he could kiss your forehead.

When you were 23, a small tumor developed on one of your ovaries. It wasn't caught until it had spread to the other one, resulting in both having to be removed. This obviously meant you would be unable to have children of your own, which understandably broke your heart.

Ever since you were younger, you always wanted to be a mom and your whole world came crashing down when you found out you would never be able to have kids. But you felt as though that void was filled when you started caring for Lacey. You didn't tell Luke that until after you'd been dating for a few months, but he didn't look at you any differently and you were incredibly grateful for that.

Luke moved his computer from his lap to the coffee table and replaced it with you. You cuddled as close to him as you could get while he held you tightly, his hand running gently up and down your spine.

After a few minutes, Luke heard your breathing even out and he knew you were about to drift off. 

"Babe," he whispered, kissing the side of your head, "Let me go get my phone so I can call Ash and he'll take you home before you fall asleep." You whined quietly, shaking your head. "Then he can stay with Lace and I'll take you home," he chuckled, only to earn another shake of your head. "So you want to stay the night?"

You didn't answer the question directly; You simply pressed yourself further up against him. You could almost  _hear_ his heart start beating faster; No matter how many times you'd stayed the night, it always made Luke's heart flutter at the thought of being able to wake up next to you.

"Okay," he muttered, kissing your head again, "But can you at least get up so we can go to the bedroom?" It took you a moment, but you finally lifted your head up. You looked at him with tired eyes and a pout on your lips, making him smile. "Come on," he said, getting up after you got off of him, "My bed is a lot more comfortable than my lap." You shrugged slightly as if to say it was debatable and he took your hand, making sure the front door was locked before he led you upstairs where you fell asleep right after you laid down.

~

"Good morning, beautiful," Luke grinned once you'd opened your eyes. You pressed your lips to his and giggled lightly.

"I can't believe you let me fall asleep in these jeans," you teased.

"I thought about asking if you wanted to change, but you were out the second your head hit the pillow," he stuck his tongue out at you, letting it poke your nose. You scrunched your face up and he laughed quietly. "I'll get your shorts from the dresser," he said as he threw the blanket off of his body and got up, "Do you want a shirt too?"

"Only if it's one of yours," you stated, rolling onto your back and rubbing your eyes. He returned with the clothes, telling you he was going to get started on breakfast before leaving to let you change.

Once you were done, you put your clothes on the edge of the bed and walked out of the room. You went downstairs, finding Luke at the stove making pancakes. You wrapped your arms around him, laying your head on his upper back.

After a couple minutes, he asked you to go wake Lacey up so she would have plenty of time to eat before school. He turned around when you let go of his waist, grabbing your chin and stealing a kiss. You blushed despite the fact that he would always do that with you before happily skipping back upstairs. You quietly entered the bright blue bedroom and went over to where Lacey was sprawled out on her bed.

"Lacey," you whispered, rubbing her arm lightly, "It's time to get up."

She let out a quiet groan, turning onto her back. She barely opened her eyes to look at you, but when she realized that you were the one who had woken her up, she smiled widely. She held her arms up, making you chuckle. You pulled her blanket off of her and picked her up, resting her on your hip and taking her downstairs for breakfast.

"You're still here," she mumbled sleepily into your neck.

"It looks like it, yeah," you laughed lightly.

"Will you do my hair after we eat?"

" _What_?" Luke pouted, pouring chocolate milk into Lacey's cup at the table where everything else was now ready and waiting. "I  _always_  do your hair."

"You just brush it and put it in a pigtail, Daddy. But it's picture day today and I want Y/N to do it." Even though she was only five, she had already mastered sass, proving to everyone that she was indeed Luke's daughter.

"Oh, man," you snickered, putting her down on the chair and looked back up at Luke, "How does it feel knowing that your hair-doing skills aren't good enough for  _picture day_?" He narrowed his eyes, a smirk pulling at the corner of his mouth.

"Not that great," he answered, his arm snaking around your waist and pulling you as close to him as he could get you, "But I've got other skills I'd be glad to show you later."

"Are you gonna show her how you can stay inside the lines when you color?" Lacey chirped, taking a bite of her pancakes.

"I'll certainly be staying inside the lines of something," he smirked, never taking his eyes off of you.

" _Lucas_!" you squeaked, hitting his arm, but you couldn't help the giggle that escaped your lips. He laughed, quickly kissing you before you both sat down and joined the 5-year-old for breakfast.

~

"Y/N," Lacey said suddenly, looking up at you. She was sitting on her bed after she had gotten dressed and you were standing behind her, finishing up with her hair.

"Lacey," you copied with a small smile.

"I'm sorry I called you Mummy yesterday," she frowned, "I was just really tired and didn't know what I was saying."

"Why are you sorry?" you asked, tilting your head.

"Daddy said calling you that might make you uncomfortable," she practically whispered, "And if I make you uncomfortable, you might not come over anymore and I don't want you to do that because I'll miss you too much."

"Lacey," you sighed. You walked around to the other side of the bed and knelt down so you were eye-level with her. "I love you, Lace," you told her, "Calling me Mummy isn't going to change that. You're the closest thing I'll ever have to a daughter and hearing you call me Mummy was one of the best feelings I think I'll ever know."

"Why am I the closest?" she wondered. You bit your lip, trying to quickly come up with how to word what you had to say next.

"Have you and Daddy talked about where babies come from yet?"

She nodded, "He said they grow Mummies' tummies."

"Well, sometimes, tummies aren't able to grow babies," you explained.

"Why not?"

"Some people just aren't meant to carry them," you replied, a sad tone in your voice.

"Which is a shame-" you heard Luke say behind you. You turned to look at him and saw him smiling at you as he stood in Lacey's doorway. "-because some people are just meant to be mummies," he finished.

Your cheeks turned a light red as he came over to you. He opened his arms and you immediately stood up to hug his waist, laying your head on his chest. He kissed your forehead, letting his lips linger for a few seconds until his daughter spoke again.

"But if Y/N is meant to be a mummy, why isn't her tummy allowed to grow a baby?" Lacey pouted up at her father. He gave you a worried expression, making you laugh lightly.

"Some people don't have things in their body that you need to grow a baby," you answered for him, "But that doesn't mean they don't still want to be mummies."

"You can be  _my_  mummy if you want," she looked down at her hands, picking at her already chipping pink nail polish, "I would like it if you were." You swallowed the lump in your throat, but heard Luke's breath hitch.

"Lacey, I don't-" he started before you cut him off.

"I would love to be your mummy, Lace," you said, "But I think it's really up to  _Daddy_." Her head shot back up and she gave him the biggest puppy dog eyes you'd ever seen, making you snicker for the second time that morning.

"No, not the puppy dog eyes!" Luke whined. His eyes went to you, only to find you giving him the same look as she was. " _Y/N_!"

"Now you know how I feel when you do it to me," you joked, kissing his nose.

He sighed, "You know I have a hard time saying no when you do that." Lacey hopped off of the bed and reached her arms up to Luke. He picked her up and she immediately came forward, kissing his nose as well. "What was that for, Lace?" he chuckled as she leaned back.

"If you have a hard time saying no when Y/N does it, then maybe you'll say yes if I help," she replied innocently.

"You wanna know a secret?" Luke whispered to her. She frantically nodded her head. "I was gonna say yes anyway."

Lacey let out a loud squeal, "So Y/N can be my mummy?!" Luke nodded and without warning, she tilted her body so she could fall into your arms and hug your neck. "Now no one can be mean to me for not having a mummy anymore!" she said happily. Your heart dropped and Luke's smile faded.

"People are being mean to you?" he asked, instantly going into protective father mode.

"Mhmm," she hummed into your neck as she nodded, "But now, I get to tell them that I  _do_  have a mummy and they can't be mean anymore." You squeezed her lightly, kissing the side of her head.

"I love you, Lace," you said lowly. You felt her smile widely against your skin.

"I love you too, Mummy," she whispered, hugging you tighter.

~

_inspiration: https://www.wattpad.com/45884018-5sos-preferences-his-child-calls-you-mum_


	224. Unextraordinary (Luke Hemmings)

You peered around your door frame, looking out into the hallway. One of the castle guards had just turned the corner, giving you the perfect opportunity to escape. You had informed everyone that you were feeling a bit under the weather and were going to be taking a nap, not wanting to be disturbed unless it was life threateningly important; But that was simply a cover-up.

What you were  _really_ doing was sneaking out of the castle so you could explore the town by yourself. It wasn't that you didn't enjoy the guards' company, it was just that they were always business and you didn't really care for being proper when you were out in the town.

You had some things on your mind and you just wanted to be alone to think about them. The royal ball was tomorrow night and you really needed to get away from the hectic activity going on inside the castle. So that's what you did.

You began making your way to a back entrance – making extra careful before you turned any corners or passed any open doors – stealthily exiting the castle. You were able to sneak past the guards at the gate by taking a detour through the garden, a secret way into town that you had stumbled across one day completely by accident.

As you strolled through town, people would bow politely to you. You were wearing your more comfy clothing – jeans and a t-shirt – but you still had your rose gold crown on. You always wore your crown, even on your sneaky adventures, just in case you ever needed to use your authority. You rarely ever did, but it was simply comforting to you to know that no one would question your orders.

You were walking along the sidewalk, paying more attention to what was in the shop windows than you were to where you were going. That being said, it was obviously no surprise that you ran into someone. You squeaked under your breath, grabbing the blonde boy's arm as he reached for you before you fell down.

"I'm  _so_  sorry, Your Highness," he said frantically, "I didn't mean to-"

"It's alright," you said, looking up at him.

His eyes were the brightest shade of blue you'd ever seen and you could feel yourself getting lost in them. You quickly shook yourself out of it, however, your voice coming out softer with your next statement.

"It was  _my fault_ , really," you told him, "I should have been watching where I was going." He smiled at you, causing you to finally notice his lip ring.

"I suppose we're  _both_  to blame then," he commented, "I mean, if either of us were paying attention, I don't think we would have run into each other."

"You make an excellent point," you chuckled. You two looked at each other for a moment before he spoke again.

"I'm surprised one of the castle guards hasn't arrested me for nearly trampling the Princess," he said with a half-joking tone.

"They probably would have," you couldn't help but giggle, "If they knew I was  _here_ , of course."

"Ah," he nodded, "Sneak out of the castle, did you?"

"Well, you know how it is," you shrugged, "Everyone's getting ready for the party and I just needed to be alone for a while." He tilted his head as he gave you a wondering look, but you simply cleared your throat. "So do you live here?" you asked him, hoping he would understand that you didn't want to talk about it.

"Oh, no," he shook his head, "I live about an hour away. I just like to explore places I don't see every single day." You gave him an acknowledging nod, knowing how he felt.

"Tell me about you then," you said.

"I'm rather unextraordinary, to be honest," he told you. You raised your eyebrows at the young man briefly before returning your gaze to the clothing behind the glass in front of you.

"Well, I suppose looks really  _can_  be deceiving then," you replied.

"Why?" he perked up, "Do you think I seem  _interesting_?"

"Maybe," you shrugged, moving to the next window with him trailing close behind you, "Seems like you've got a story to tell. Plus, everyone has things they never tell anyone else. I'm sure you're a lot more extraordinary than you're giving yourself credit for."

You weren't looking at him and missed his mouth curl up into a small smile. He quickly wiped it off of his face when you did look up, however, and looked as completely stoic as he had been the entire time you'd been talking.

You ended up hanging around with him for another two hours or so – you weren't really too sure how long you'd been with him – and the sun was starting to set by the time you even realized how late it actually was.

"Well, I should be returning home," you sighed, a small pout on your lips, "Everyone has probably realized I'm gone by now."

"I applaud you for even being able to sneak out  _at all_ ," he chuckled, "Where I live, it's virtually  _impossible_  for the Prince to sneak around without getting caught." You giggled lightly.

"Well, maybe he just needs to be a little more creative," you smiled, "It was nice meeting you. Will I see you at the party tomorrow evening?"

"Yes, indeed, Princess," he bowed jokingly, making you roll your eyes. "I'll see you tomorrow," he said, taking your hand and placing a gentle kiss on the back of it before you both went your separate ways.

Despite your concerns, no one seemed to have noticed you had sneaked out – no one except your mother, that is. She caught you the moment you walked in through the door you left from earlier. You gave her a small shrug, making her laugh under her breath as if she was telling you she wasn't mad.

She did, however, ask you why you had such a silly grin on your face. You instantly told her everything, feeling lucky that you were so close to her that you were even able to talk to her about your life at all.

~

**The next evening**

As the royal ball dragged on, you were becoming increasingly impatient. No matter the fact that you never liked these events to begin with, you hadn't spotted the blonde boy you met yesterday anywhere and you were starting to worry he wasn't going to come after all. You didn't know why you felt so strongly about this boy after only having met him less than 24 hours ago, you just knew that you did.

You were watching the people on the dance floor, studying them. You mostly just watched the girls that looked close to your age though. They all seemed so happy with their partners, a feeling you were sure you were never going to experience for yourself.

Sure, you'd met plenty of guys before, but none of them sparked an interest in you. None of them made you feel like you were on fire when their skin brushed against yours. None of them made you weak when they smiled at you. None of them cared about  _you_. They never bothered asking what you wanted or what your interests were; They just wanted to be seen with you for publicity; They wanted the royalty – the 15 seconds of fame your title could give them.

"Sweetie," your mother said as she came up beside you, "Could you at least  _pretend_  you're enjoying yourself?"

"I'm sorry, Mother," you replied, your eyes still following the dancing couples, "It's not proper to lie to the Queen." A light chuckle escaped past her lips.

"This is about that boy you met yesterday, isn't it?" she asked despite the fact that she already knew the answer.

"He  _told me_  he would be here," you sighed, finally looking over at her, "I haven't seen one person that looks even  _remotely_  like him."

"I'm sure he'll come around," she assured you, "He's probably just running a bit late. In the meantime, why don't you come meet the royal family from Ayria? They have a son a couple years older than you. I'm sure you two will get along wonderfully."

"I was actually hoping to  _avoid_  pretentious princes who think they're too good for everyone else tonight," you stated dryly.

"You don't even know him, sweetie."

"I don't need to  _know_   _him_ ," you mumbled, "They're all the  _same_."

"Well, you can either come with your father and I while we chat with them or you can go out-" She motioned toward the dance floor. "-and find someone else to dance with while you wait for this other boy," she told you. You grumbled lowly – she knew how much you despised dancing – and unenthusiastically followed her up the stairs.

"Ah!" your father said as you reached the bottom of the steps, " _There_  you are! I was just coming to look for you – thought you got lost." Your mother simply smiled at him and he went on, his words now directed toward you. "I can tell by the look on your face that you're  _everything_  less than thrilled, sweetheart," he chuckled, "But I would greatly appreciate it if you could keep the sarcastic comments to a minimum of  _zero_."

"I don't know  _what_  you're talking about," you said, beginning to climb the steps with your parents.

He shook his head, "The Hemmings' have traveled a long way to be here tonight and we're happy to see them after what happened with your sister."

"Dad," you rolled your eyes, "They live an hour away; They didn't exactly come in from  _the moon_. And Stella got off  _easy_  if you ask me. At least she's  _happy_."

"If you're so unhappy, why don't  _you_  run off with a boy then?" your mother laughed softly.

"I would if he bothered to  _show up_ ," you mumbled, making her laugh again.

Once you made it to the room the other royals were in, the servant opened the door for you. You quietly trailed behind your parents, not bothering to look up from the floor.

"Andy, Liz," you listened to your father say, "You remember my wife Jacquelyn-" The sound of them greeting your mother echoed throughout the room. "-and my daughter Y/N."

" _My goodness_ ," Liz said, causing you to finally look up, "I haven't seen you since you were a young teenager! You look beautiful, dear!"

"Thank you," you replied shyly.

"I'm sure you recall briefly meeting my son all those year ago," she gestured toward the tall figure off to the side, looking at all the things displayed on the bookshelves. "Always distracted, that boy is," she sighed, shaking her head before calling his name. "Luke!"

The moment he perked up and turned around, your stomach felt like it was in knots. You weren't expecting to see some disheveled, unattractive man walking over to you, but you  _certainly_  weren't expecting to see the boy with piercing blue eyes that you had been looking for all night.

Luke had this sly grin on his face, like he knew you were caught off guard. Your eyes landed on his head, almost as if you were trying to convince yourself he wasn't actually the Prince. Unfortunately, the gold band resting in the midst of his perfectly messy, dark blonde hair was becoming incredibly difficult to disprove with every passing second.

"Y/N, this is Luke," Liz said, ushering him to stand in front of you.

"Princess," he smirked, bowing lightly.

You shot him a sarcastic smile, letting it quickly fade into a glare before you raised your leg and slammed your foot down on top of his as hard as you could. He grunted loudly, but didn't budge, while you stomped out of the room, leaving everyone else with wide eyes and sharing confused glances.

**Luke's POV**

"I am  _so_ sorry!" your mother quickly exclaimed, "I don't know  _what_ has gotten into her!"

"It's alright, Your Majesty," Luke breathed out slowly as the pain in his foot already began subsiding, "I'm sure it won't be the  _last time_  someone steps on my feet."

"If you'll excuse me-" Your father said, an angered look on his face. "I need to go have a word with my daughter."

"If it's alright, sir," Luke spoke up, "I'd actually like to have a moment alone with her." The King's expression softened and he nodded, allowing Luke to hurry out after you.

**Your POV**

You had just reached the bottom of the steps when Luke left the room, so he quickly followed you. You walked outside, making it halfway down the castle porch, when you were a bit startled when you heard a voice behind you.

"Would you mind explaining what that was about, Princess?" Luke's smug expression was right back on his face. You instantly stopped, spinning around.

"Oh, like you don't  _already_  know!" you exclaimed, "You  _lied_ to me! You're a pr... _A prince_?!""

"Hey, don't try to pin this on  _me_ ," he shot back, stopping in front of you once again. "I never said I  _wasn't_."

" _'I'm rather unextraordinary,'_ " you repeated his words from the previous day with a mocking tone, "Well, excuse me,  _Your_ _Highness_ , but I think this is  _rather_  extraordinary, don't you?"

"Not  _my_  fault you didn't recognize me," he scoffed.

"I'm so sorry I didn't remember some snobby-nosed prince I had a two-minute interaction with when I was, what,  _12_?  _Please_ forgive me,  _Your_ _Majesty_ ," you sighed obnoxiously, "I'll  _never_ be able to live with myself if you don't."

"Oh, whatever," he muttered.

" _Great_ comeback," you laughed bitterly, "I  _would_  love to know what all that talk about the Prince in your kingdom not being able to sneak out of the castle gates though, because it certainly seems to me like he was able to do it without  _any problems_  whatsoever while also managing to  _conveniently_  leave his crown behind." Luke rolled his eyes as you kept ranting. "What is it you  _do_  when you come onto my land anyway?" you spat, "Finish making notches in your bedpost with the girls in  _your_  kingdom and figure you'd take a swing at the ones in  _mine_? Or maybe they've all refused to sleep with you because they know you're a selfish pig and you thought you'd have better luck over here?"

Luke took a step toward you, causing you to step away, only to have your back hit the concrete structure behind you. He was quick to close the gap, grabbing your wrists and pinning you to the wall.

" _Say that again_ ," he growled lowly, his tone far more threatening than anything you'd heard before. You weren't scared of him though – refusing to back down despite the fact that you now couldn't go anywhere.

"It  _is_ that, isn't it?" you smirked, your faces dangerously close together, "It's because  _you're a selfish pig_." You were given absolutely no time to say anything else before Luke's lips were pressed firmly to yours.

You immediately melted into the kiss, forcefully pushing both of his hands away from the wall and bringing them around your waist. Luke finally released his hold on your wrists, his hands coming to rest on your lower back. He pushed his hips against yours as your hands made their way up his arms and to his hair. Your left hand carefully grabbed his crown, lifting it off of his head, only to be replaced by your other hand. Now able to freely run your fingers through his hair, you were also able to keep him firmly in place – as if he even  _wanted_ to move.

When you both pulled away for air, he was looking at you with a goofy grin.

"I've always wanted to kiss a  _princess_ ," he winked. You rolled your eyes, beginning to chew on your inner cheek.

"I'm sure you've kissed  _tons_  of princesses before," you mumbled, "Now you can just add  _me_  to the list." You removed your hand from the back of his head, placing his crown back on top. You wiggled out of his grasp and began walking away.

You had always been praised for being the member of the royal family that always stayed level-headed and wasn't boy-crazy like your sister. That was why you were next in line for the throne; Your sister ran away to be with someone your parents didn't approve of, which automatically granted you the power when the King and Queen stepped down. You just couldn't believe you allowed yourself to get caught up like that, giving the Prince all the bragging rights he wanted.

"Hey, hey, hey," Luke said softly, grabbing your hand and spinning you back to face him.

You looked up at him and saw a mixture of desperation and hurt on his face, which confused you slightly. If all he wanted was another name to add to his list, why would he look at you like that?

"I don't know what kinds of stories the people around here have told you about me, but they're not true," he shook his head slowly, "I don't parade around my kingdom trying to find girls to sleep with and I  _definitely_ don't do it when I come here."

"Then why  _do_  you come here?" you asked, your voice barely above a whisper. His hold on your hand loosened, only to take it again and lace your fingers together. He led you off of the castle porch so you two could take a walk in the garden.

"When I was growing up, I would always hear my parents talk about this pretty little girl a year younger than me in the next kingdom over," Luke told you, "I was supposed to be betrothed to your sister when she turned 21, as you know, but obviously, things have changed since then." You let out a small giggle, making him smile. "My mother, father, and I came to your kingdom when I was 15-years-old to meet my future wife and that was when I first saw you."

"Yeah," you barely nodded, "I remember that."

"Well, when your sister ran away, our betrothal was obviously terminated and I was free to marry anyone I pleased," he said, "But there's  _something_  about you that I couldn't find in any other girl. I don't know what it is, Y/N, but every time I think I'm free, I see you around town or at royal events and you reel me right back in." You could feel yourself blushing at his confession.

You would never be the last one to admit that you had a bit of a crush on the cute blonde prince from the neighboring kingdom, but you thought he was way out of your league – you  _still_  did. But it never hurt to take a chance, right?

"I know that it's ultimately your decision about where we go from here," Luke went on, "But if it helps my case at all, I always liked you more than your sister anyway." You found yourself laughing again, stopping in front of the fountain and turning to face him.

You took his face in your hands and brought his lips to yours. His hands went to your hips and he pulled you back against him.

You didn't know exactly  _how long_  you'd been kissing Luke for, but it startled you when you heard voices coming from around the corner of the castle.

"They have to be around here  _somewhere_ , Andy," you heard your father say, "I mean, it's not like they could have gotten  _too far_  away."

"You thinking what I'm thinking?" Luke whispered to you.

"Sneak back inside and act like we were there the whole time?" you snickered.

"Oh," he frowned, "I was thinking we could run further into the garden and make out some more, but your plan will get us into less trouble, so we'll do that." You giggled softly, pressing a kiss to his lips again before grabbing his hand and running back to the castle steps, making it inside just before your fathers turned the corner.

You took Luke back through the kitchen, muttering to the cooks to keep this between the four of you. They simply chuckled and nodded, returning to their jobs as you and Luke went back out into the ball room. It was a miracle no one saw you come back in, but you were pretty proud of yourself nonetheless.

"Since we're here and everything..." Luke sighed, releasing your hand only to hold it back out to you, "May I have this dance, Princess?" You rolled your eyes but smiled anyway, taking his hand once again. He pulled you out to the dance floor where everyone was now watching you as they danced with their own partners.

"You know," you said quietly as the two of you waltzed around, "I was starting to think you weren't going to show up."

"Hey," he chuckled, "I told you I was going to be here, didn't I? I would never lie to anyone, much less a  _princess_."

You let out a light giggle, leaning a little bit more onto him. Luke brought your hand to his lips, giving your knuckles a gentle kiss. You took this moment to look around out of the corner of your eye and noticed everyone staring.

You caught a glimpse of yours and Luke's parents at the entry way to the ballroom. They turned to face inside the room, instantly finding you and Luke. You quickly looked away as they stared in surprise, hoping they didn't know that you noticed them.

"You don't think this is weird, right?" you whispered, swallowing lightly, "You know, with you almost being engaged to Stella and everything..."

"Even if it is, I don't care," he shrugged, "Your sister is happy with the man she chose to run away with and I think you owe it to yourself to do what makes you happy as well."

"You know what would make me  _really_  happy..." You trailed off with a thoughtful tone, making him tilt his head. "...is if we actually gave these people a  _reason_  to stare."

"Don't mind if I do," he laughed under his breath, his hold on you tightening as he leaned in and pressed his lips to yours.


	225. All That Mattered (Maxx Danziger)

"Maxx," you sang softly, placing your hand on the sleeping boy's shoulder and shaking gently, "You have to get up now. I can't let you sleep anymore." You heard a muffled whine and saw him shake his head ever so slightly. "Your Highness," you said sternly, "Don't make me go get your mother... _again_." He sighed, finally turning onto his back. He squinted his eyes at the sunlight peeking through his curtains, looking at you.

"You  _know_  I hate when you call me that," he stated, sitting up.

"Threatening to go get your  _mother_  is completely fine," you sighed dramatically, walking over to the wardrobe to fetch his outfit for the day, "But  _God forbid_  I use the title I'm  _meant_ to be calling you." You turned back around to find a smile on Maxx's face.

"Good morning, Y/N," he said, rubbing his eyes.

"Good morning, Maxx," you giggled, "How did you sleep?"

"Pretty well, I guess," he said with another small sigh.

"Do you need to talk about it?" you asked, tossing his clothing beside him and beginning your search for his crown – since he hated wearing it, Maxx had a tendency to hide his crown from you.

"It's a  _long_  story," he grumbled, peeling off his pajama shirt and replacing it with the newer one before he climbed out of bed to put on his pants.

"Well, we can talk about it when I come get you for lunch then."

"You don't need to pick me up from lessons, Y/N; I'm a big boy now," he rolled his eyes, fastening the button as you turned around and sitting back down to put on his shoes.

"So you  _don't_  want to see me later?" you pouted, "I see how it is. I guess I'll just have to send someone else after you while I-"

"Y/N," he chuckled. You let out a puff of air, now digging through his nightstand drawer.

"You're getting a lot better at this, Danziger," you muttered.

"What  _ever_  are you talking about?" he smiled innocently, making you roll your eyes.

"We don't have time for this, Maxx," you told him, "Where's your crown?"

"Is it not where you always put it?"

" _Whatever_ , I'll find it later," you said, grabbing his hand and dragging him out of the room, "You're gonna be late." Maxx smiled proudly as he followed you outside.

"Ah, Prince Maxx, Miss Y/N!" George, his fencing instructor, exclaimed with a smile, "I thought you two had gotten lost! Where's your crown, sir?"

"Y/N lost it," Maxx snickered.

"I'm  _gonna_  find it," you growled, releasing your grip on him and walking back toward the door.

"Y/N!" he called after you. You stopped, turning to look at him. "I'll see you at lunch?" he asked with a sheepish grin.

"11:30,  _Your_ _Highness_ ," you smirked as you curtsied. Maxx rolled his eyes – knowing you were only doing it as payback for hiding his crown – and watched as you disappeared into the castle.

"You hide your crown again?" George chuckled, bringing Maxx back to reality.

"Of course I did," he beamed, "When has she ever  _lost_  it?"

~

**Four hours later**

You twirled Maxx's crown around on your wrist, a smug smile on your face as you made your way down to the laundry room. After finishing all your chores, you went to search for the crown again, finally finding it on top of his bookshelf.

"Good morning, Miss Y/N!" Rosie, the girl who washes all the clothes, chirped when you entered the room.

"Morning, Ro," you smiled, "Need any help today?"

"Aren't you supposed to go get the Prince for lunch?" she wondered.

"Nah, not for another half an hour  
," you replied, "And you know how George gets when you interrupt lessons."

Rosie giggled lightly, "Well, I'm almost done, so I think I'll be fine. But it you wanted to take everyone's clothes to their rooms, then I certainly wouldn't object to it." You laughed under your breath, grabbing Maxx's laundry basket and placing it inside the Princess', then taking theirs and placing it inside the King and Queen's.

"I'll see you after lunch when Maxx spills something on himself again, okay, Ro?" you said with a teasing tone.

"I've already got the cleaner ready," she winked. You laughed loudly, offering her another goodbye before lifting up the pile of baskets and exiting the room.

Maxx's crown was starting to dig into your wrist, so you had to stop once you got to the hallway. You put the baskets on the ground and placed the crown on top of your head. You rubbed your wrist slightly, happy to be relieved of pain, and picked the baskets back up so you could continue upstairs to the royals' bedrooms. You stopped by the King and Queen's room first, setting the basket on the little bench at the foot of the bed for their maid. You then went to the Princess' room, finding her maid doing some tidying up while she was downstairs in her math lessons.

"Oh, good morning, Y/N!" the maid said when she noticed your arrival. Mary was only a couple years younger than you, so you two became quite close when she started working at the castle as the Princess' personal maid.

"Hey, Mary," you grinned, "I've got Syd's clothes for whenever you're ready to put them away." As you were lifting Maxx's basket out of Sydney's, Mary tilted her head, her eyes fixed on the crown on your head.

"Isn't that Prince Maxx's crown?" she asked.

"Oh!" you squeaked, "Yeah. I just had my hands full and it was digging into my wrist, so." She nodded with a slight smirk on her face.

"He hide it from you again?"

"Doesn't he  _always_?" you laughed.

"Where'd you find it this time?"

"On top of his bookshelf."

"Wow, that's new," she nodded approvingly, "He never goes into that corner of his room." You couldn't help but snort lightly.

"I'll see you later, Mare," you giggled, exiting the room once again and heading back to Maxx's.

When you were finished putting his clothes away, you began to make the trek out of the castle. You completely forgot you were still wearing his crown, so when you went outside and Maxx turned to look at you, you were a bit confused by the expression on his face. You shrugged it off, gesturing for him to come to you.

"Time for lunch, Maxx!" you said. He let out a breath, turning back to his fencing instructor. Maxx rolled his eyes at the look he was getting from George – it was the same amused look he always gave him when he stared at you a little too long.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Your Highness," George smiled, watching Maxx make his way to you. You led the Prince back inside, neither of you speaking until you were about halfway to the dining hall.

"So..." Maxx cleared his throat, "Is that new?" You looked at him, a puzzled look on your face. Maxx's eyes flicked between your own and his crown, making your eyes widen.

" _Oh_!" you exclaimed, "Right! Sorry!" You quickly snatched the gold band from your head, placing it on Maxx's.

"Finally found it, I see," he said, readjusting it so it was comfortably resting amongst his blonde hair.

"I told you," you stated matter-of-factly, "You can't hide it from me; I'll always find it."

"I thought it looked pretty good on you," Maxx said randomly.

"I don't know," you hummed, "Gold isn't really my color. I'm more of a silver kind of girl." The Prince rolled his eyes, but smiled at you anyway as you opened the door to the dining hall for him. "I'll see you later, Maxx," you told him as he walked past you. He froze in his spot, turning to face you.

"You're not staying?" he furrowed his eyebrows – you always ate lunch with him and his family.

"Not today," you replied solemnly, "I'm needed out in the stables this afternoon." His eyes landed on his feet as he nodded slightly. "I'll come back as soon as I'm done and we can talk about whatever was bothering you last night, okay?" you tried to lift his spirits, ducking your head lower so you could catch his gaze. He smiled at your somewhat child-like attempts at making him feel better, looking up and nodding again, watching you skip away before the door closed in front of him.

~

**Maxx's POV**

"So what had you all riled up and sleepless last night?" you asked him, plopping down beside him on his bed.

It was now close to bedtime – by the time your stable duty was done, the sun had already disappeared. You never really worked there that late, but you knew that Maxx didn't have anything else he needed to get to on time today, so you were sure it was alright. You had just gotten Maxx all ready for bed and you were sitting beside his hip, polishing his crown as you did every night.

"It was nothing," he whispered, watching the way your fingers delicately handled the gold in your hand as if you were afraid it was going to break if you were too rough with it.

"Maxx," you said, glancing at him, "You're not one to let something bother you, so I know it wasn't  _nothing_. Come on; What's wrong?"

"I just... There's this girl..." he trailed off. He could visibly see your breathing hitch and your fingers pause as you stared at the crown on your lap before you went on as if nothing happened.

"And you're losing sleep because...?" you swallowed thickly, hoping he didn't notice that the statement affected you at all.

"I don't know," he muttered, looking down at his own hands and playing with his fingers, "I don't think she likes me in the same way."

"Why not?"

"Because... She's really beautiful and smart and stuff; I'm not good enough for her and I'm sure she can see that."

"Maxx," you sighed, turning your body and looking at him, "You're a  _prince_ , for Christ's sake. If anything,  _she's_  not good enough for  _you_. That girl would be clinically  _insane_  not to like you back."

"I just don't know what to do..."

"Have you tried talking to her before?"

"I talk to her every day," he said softly. You felt a weird tug on your heart, almost as if you were feeling  _jealous_.

You mentally kicked yourself for feeling this way; You knew you and Maxx could never be together – he was a prince and you were just his personal maid – but that could never stop you from imagining what being with him would be like. Until now, that is. Now, it was like a reality check; Now, you knew that nothing could ever happen – because he liked someone else.

"I don't know if she'd accept even if I did ask her to be mine," he went on when you didn't say anything.

"Why wouldn't she?" you whispered, trying to mask the shakiness of your voice.

"She... She's not exactly in the same class..." he said carefully.

"What do you mean?" you shook your head, a confused expression on your face.

"She's not a princess," he responded, "She's kind of... She's a servant – a-a maid."

"Oh..." your voice was so low that had he not been sitting right there, he probably wouldn't have heard it. Maxx was about to speak again when there was a knock on his door.

"Excuse me for barging in like this at such a late hour, Your Highness," the king and queen's servant, Elijah, said as he pushed the door open the rest of the way, "But the Queen is requesting to see Miss Y/N right away." You let out a subtle sigh of relief and hopped up off of the bed, placing Maxx's crown on his nightstand.

You didn't care  _why_  the Queen needed you, you were just happy to escape that heart-wrenching conversation. You knew you wouldn't be able to handle much more of Maxx talking about this mystery girl he had feelings for and you were relieved at hearing you were needed  _anywhere else_.

Maxx's face dropped slightly as you and Elijah left the room. You didn't even say goodnight – something you  _always_ did before leaving his room – making him think you might come back.

But he waited for nearly 40 minutes before he eventually just fell asleep, coming to terms with the fact that he wouldn't be seeing you again until morning.

~

**Two weeks later**

Ever since that conversation with you, Maxx could sense that you were starting to distance yourself from him. Aside from the fact that you never brought up this other girl again, you would start to visit him less and less throughout the day, keeping yourself busy with other chores.

It all frustrated him a bit, to be honest. You didn't know  _who_  he had feelings for, yet you just assumed the worst. Or maybe you knew exactly who he was talking about and you didn't want to accept the fact that it was you.

~

One morning, Maxx was woken up earlier than usual. He didn't know exactly what time it was, but he knew it was early seeing as the sun was just barely starting to peek through his curtains.

"Good morning, Your Highness!" he heard a servant chirp.

Maxx's eyes were still closed as he furrowed his eyebrows;  _That didn't sound like your voice at all_. He finally opened his eyes to see his sister's maid preparing his clothes for him.

" _Mary_?" the confusion in his voice very obvious, "Where's Y/N?"

"She's tending to Princess Sydney now, didn't she tell you?"

"No... Why is she with Syd?"

"She came to me and asked if there was any way she could be reassigned to your sister, so we decided to just switch." She was giving vague answers, but Maxx knew she knew more than she was letting on.

"Why did she want to switch, Mary?" he asked sternly, making her sigh.

"I really don't believe it's my place to share something she confided in me with, sir," she answered respectfully, "All I can tell you is that she just felt as though she couldn't handle it anymore." Maxx's expression dropped, instantly having a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach,  _knowing_ it was about what he had told you a couple weeks ago.

"Mary," he said after he was changed out of his pajamas, "Will you tell Y/N I wish to have a word with her right away?"

"Of course, Your Highness," Mary curtsied before leaving the room to go get you.

**Your POV**

"You asked to see me, Your Highness," you practically whispered, knocking on the door as you entered the room. You watched as Maxx's fingers delicately ran over the ridges on his crown.

"Close the door, Y/N," Maxx ordered, not looking up. You swallowed thickly, doing as he asked. "Come here," he said monotonously. You carefully walked to the bed, standing beside the corner. "Why did you ask to be reassigned?" he asked bluntly, finally looking at you. You shrugged lightly, causing him to let out a frustrated sigh. He quickly rose to his feet, moving the few feet to stand in front of you. "Is this it?" he asked, placing his crown on top of his head and gesturing toward himself, "Is this why you're pushing me away?"

"I'm not pu-" He cut you off.

"Yes, you  _are_ , Y/N!" he exclaimed, a pained expression on his face, "You've been avoiding me like the plague ever since I shared that I have feelings for someone! You asked Mary to switch jobs so you didn't have to be my maid anymore!"

"Your Hi-"

" _Stop_  calling me that!" his voice cracked.

He seemed so broken, but  _why_? You weren't anything  _special_ ; You were just his  _maid_. You didn't think switching over to take care of his sister would have this much of an effect on him.

"I'm still a servant," you said lowly, "It's not allowed."

"That's never stopped you  _before_!" he reminded you. Maxx then took a breath to calm himself down. "Pretend this doesn't exist, Y/N," he stated, removing his crown once again and tossing it onto his bed, "Pretend I was never born into royalty and you weren't a servant and we'd just met on the streets in town."

"Why?"

"I need to know that if what I'm feeling is as real as I think it is and you're the only one that can help me figure it out."

" _Me_?" you furrowed your eyebrows, "Why  _me_? Why don't you ask that  _girl_  you've got  _feelings_  for?"

"I'm trying," he said, his eyes never leaving yours, "But she's being incredibly stubborn." You swallowed again, finally realizing what he was saying.

"Your-"

"The crown doesn't exist right now, Y/N," he reminded you, "I'm just Maxx and you're just Y/N."

"But you-" Maxx let out another frustrated sigh, finally deciding to just grab your cheeks and roughly press your lips together.

You breathed out abruptly, but never moved away from him. You felt him smile as you held his sides and kissed back, letting him know that you felt the same for him as he did for you.

You finally pulled back, taking a sudden breath in, your chest visibly rising and falling. Maxx's hands quickly moved from your face to your lower back, pulling you against him. You squeaked, only allowing yourself to stifle a giggle when you felt him try to bring you even closer.

"I'm pretty sure I'm as close as I can get, Maxx," you whispered. He shot you a bright smile when you said his name, then blushed at your comment.

"Sorry," he mumbled, loosening his hold but still keeping you in the same spot, "I didn't want you to leave."

"Why would I leave?" you asked, bringing your hand up and pushing away some of the hair that had fallen onto his face. 

"Because... You know... You've been distant and I just thought..." he trailed off as he leaned into your touch.

"I know I have," you whispered with a guilty tone, "I'm sorry."

"Was that why?" he asked, "Because of who I am?"

"It wasn't that, Maxx," you sighed, "I... I was kinda jealous..." He gave you a look that almost begged you to go on, so you did. "I just... You were talking about how  _into_  this girl you were and it  _hurt_ ," you admitted, "It hurt because it never crossed my mind that you could have been talking about  _me_."

You looked down, only to feel one of Maxx's hands come off of your waist and move to your cheek, lifting your head back up to meet his gaze. He didn't say a word, he just leaned down and pressed your lips back together. And just like the first time, your entire body felt like it was on fire as you kissed Maxx.

You only ever imagined being able to do this and now that you actually were, you realized it was nothing like you expected. He was incredibly gentle with you, but rough at the same time. He didn't make any movements other than the way your lips were moving against each other and the way his hold on you would loosen every so often before firming right back up again. It was as if he were afraid you were going to back away – like you were going to finally realize what you were doing and run out of the room before he could catch your hand.

But what Maxx  _didn't_  know about was the thoughts you had every night in your own bed about how nice it must be to be cuddled up with him as you fell asleep. Since the moment you started working at the castle, you'd always been fond of the Prince – of course, you would never tell anyone that. The only person that knew was Mary and even then, it was an accident.

Soon after Maxx had told you about  _the other maid_  – as far as you were concerned – Mary could tell you were a bit off as you worked. She pulled you aside one morning after you'd gotten the Prince to his fencing lesson and you couldn't help but let everything inside go. You were practically out of breath by the time you finally stopped crying as she hugged you. She told you everything would be okay – as people who comforted others always did – and you simply brushed it off. But now you knew she was right.

Even if no one else approved of your feelings toward Maxx,  _he did_. And that was all that really mattered to you.


	226. Heroes (5 Seconds of Summer) *

**Luke**

You sat down in the doctor's office waiting room with a magazine in your hands, flipping through the pages. Your 3-year-old daughter Charlotte was playing with the toys across the room. She was here for her six-month check-up and didn't seem to have a care in the world.

You were told while scheduling the appointment that your regular pediatrician was retiring and there would be a new one a couple weeks before you came back in. You were a bit skeptical to say the least. The receptionist told you that this new doctor – Luke Hemmings, if you remembered correctly – was 25-years-old and they had gone to medical school together, but not how long he'd actually been working in the field. You'd known the girl since high school, however, so you eased up a bit when she said that he was a very excellent doctor, but you still had your concerns.

"Charlotte," Alissa, the nursing assistant, said as she opened the waiting room door, smiling at the toddler.

"Ali!" your daughter cheered, hopping up and running over to her.

Alissa had been her nurse ever since she was born – and another one of your best friends in high school – so obviously, Charlotte was comfortable with her. She reached up and took her hand, letting her lead her down the hallway as you followed behind.

"Alright, Char," Alissa said, taking her to the scale, "Hop up here for me." Charlotte climbed up onto the metal slab, letting the nurse release her hand so she could weigh her. "35 pounds exactly," she smiled, taking Charlotte's hand again and walked you both into the room you always went in. She looked at you as you sat down beside the desk, Charlotte happily sitting in her own chair next to yours. "She's gained a good amount of weight since her last visit," she informed you, "She's now where she should be."

"She better be," you laughed lightly, "She eats like I never feed her when my mom comes over."

"Well, your mom is an amazing cook," Alissa giggled as well, "I can't say I blame her. How is she eating when your mom isn't cooking for her though?"

"Pretty well," you replied, "We're still working on the pickiness, but she's getting a lot better."

"Good," she nodded approvingly, standing up, "I'll go let the doctor know you're ready for him."

"Hey, Ali," you said before she reached the door. She turned around and you went on, "How good is he?" She smiled at you.

"He's an excellent doctor, Y/N," she assured you, "You have nothing to worry about. He's amazing with kids and you're gonna love him." You let out a breath and nodded, letting her leave. You only had to wait a couple minutes before the doctor came in.

You didn't know what you were expecting to see, but a tall blonde with hypnotizing bright blue eyes and a smile that could cure any level of sadness wasn't it. You swore you saw him look you up and down with a small smirk on his face, but by the time you were actually paying attention, it was gone.

"Good afternoon, ladies," he chirped, "I'm Dr. Hemmings, but please feel free to call me Luke."

You heard the toddler next to you let out the faintest whine as she grabbed onto your pinky and ring fingers. You looked down at her and saw she had a nervous look on her face. You had obviously told her that there would be a new doctor, but she didn't seem to be too affected by it. Now that it was actually happening though, she looked absolutely terrified of him.

"How are you today, Charlotte?" Luke asked after glancing over her charts, looking at her.

Charlotte immediately stood up on her chair and crawled onto your lap, burying her face in your neck. You could feel your skin getting wet and it took everything in you not to start crying yourself, wishing you could take away how scared she felt.

"I'm sorry," you said quietly, looking at Luke after you kissed her head and started rubbing her back, "She does this around new people sometimes."

"Totally understandable," he grinned back, "I see kids like this all the time."

"And how long have you been seeing kids like this exactly?" Luke chuckled again.

"Alissa told me about your concern," he said, "But I've been a doctor for about three years now. I promise I know what I'm doing." With every word that left his mouth, Charlotte's grip on you got tighter and tighter.

"Char," you sighed, whispering in her ear, "Mommy's right here, okay? Nothing bad is gonna happen to you."

"It's okay to be a little scared, Charlotte," Luke spoke up, "Doctor visits aren't really all that fun, especially when there's someone you're not used to, but if you're good, you get to pick something out of that jar." When she curiously turned her head to see what he was talking about, he pointed to a shelf on the wall behind him with a bunch of small toys and pieces of candy. "So do you think it would be okay if I checked you out?"

Your daughter's eyes lit up and she eagerly nodded her head. You smiled slightly at how easy the little girl was to cheer up. She sat up in your lap and you wiped her face gently, missing the way the doctor was eyeing you.

"What's that thing?" Charlotte sniffled, pointing to what Luke was taking off of his neck.

"It's a stethoscope," he answered, "It helps me listen to people's hearts to make sure everything is okay. Do you want to try it first?" She looked up at you with puppy dog eyes, making you laugh lightly as you nodded. Luke held the eartips of the stethoscope on her ears and handed her the chest piece. "Now you put that thing in your hand right here," he said, pointing to the area above her heart. As soon as she did, she gasped lightly, never having heard the beating of her heart so clearly before.

"Do all hearts sound like that?" she wondered, looking up at the doctor.

"They do," he nodded, "Put it here-" He tapped the cloth covering his own heart. She did and her eyes widened.

"Yours is a lot faster than mine," she pointed out, "Does that mean something's wrong with your heart?"

"No," he chuckled, shaking his head, "That just means I'm nervous."

"Why are you nervous?" Charlotte asked him. Luke's eyes met yours for a brief moment, making your heart skip a beat. He smiled at you before turning his gaze back to your daughter.

"Well, I'm nervous because you're nervous," he told her, "And if you're too nervous to keep going, then you won't be able to get something out of that jar up there," he motioned to the shelf again. She frowned, her bottom lip sticking out slightly, making him laugh again. "So do you think you can be a brave girl for me so you can get something?" She nodded furiously. Luke brought the eartips of the stethoscope back to his own ears. "The trick is you have to take a  _really_  big breath and then let it out  _really_  slow, okay?" She nodded again and he nudged her shirt down slightly, putting the chest piece on her skin so he could hear her heart as clearly as possible. She jumped slightly, but took a deep breath in and let it out slowly just like he asked her to. "Good!" he beamed, "That wasn't so bad, was it?"

"It was really cold," she giggled.

"I'll be sure to warm it up next time I see you, okay?" Luke chuckled. Charlotte giggled again, nodding her head. The doctor went on with the check-up, asked a couple questions here and there, and you were finished within 10 minutes. "Alright, Miss Charlotte," Luke grinned, "You're all done."

Charlotte looked up at him with an excited expression, making him chuckle, knowing what she wanted. He reached up, taking the jar of toys off of the shelf and carefully placing it on the edge of his desk beside your arm. She squirmed around on your lap, turning to face the jar before digging through it to find what she wanted. When she did, Luke led you out to the receptionists' desk so you could make your daughter's next appointment. You set Charlotte down on the ground, ushering her to go back to the play area in the waiting room.

"She's adorable," the doctor told you, leaning up against the side of the counter adjacent to you, "Looks exactly like you."

"If I didn't know any better," you let a mischievous grin pull at the corner of your mouth, "I would think you just called me adorable."

"You would think correctly," he winked, looking at his clipboard. "Well, she's looking perfectly healthy, so she won't need to come back for another few months as usual." You nodded lightly. "However," he said, placing the clipboard down on the counter and looking back up at you, "I don't think you should wait until then to come see me again."

"With or without my daughter?" you began chewing on your lip slightly.

"You can bring her if you'd like," Luke shrugged, "But I think she'd get pretty bored in the waiting room by herself." You felt a blush rise to your cheeks, making him chuckle lowly. "How about April 27th for her next appointment-" Luke thought out loud before looking back up at you, his eyes scanning you as if he was going to forget what you looked like the moment you walked out the door. "-and this Friday night for ours?" he finished, a hopeful gleam in his eyes.

"April 27th is good," you nodded, beginning to walk toward the door. You turned, walking backwards, and noticed his expression had fallen slightly. "You already have my number," you stated with a small smile, his face lighting up at knowing you didn't reject him.

You spun back around once you reached the door leading to the waiting room where Charlotte was playing, patiently waiting for you. Luke watched as your daughter looked up from the toy she was playing with when you said her name.

"Come on, Char," you said, holding your arms out. She happily got up and reached for you, letting you pick her up. "What do you say we call Grandma and ask her if she wants to go out to eat tonight?" Charlotte squealed, bouncing happily on your hip. You glanced back at Luke and saw he was smiling fondly. You slyly returned a smile of your own before exiting the building, looking forward to your date with the cute new doctor.

~

**Michael**

You were sitting on the couch in your living room when you heard your husband let out an exasperated sigh as he closed the front door behind him. You hadn't seen him yet, but you could just tell he had a stressful day.

Michael worked in the pediatric ward at the local hospital and he would always come home with a smile on his face and a story to tell you about something funny one of the kids had done or said that day. It was rare for him to return from work in a mood such as this, so you knew whatever had happened today was bad.

When Michael finally walked into the room, his eyes were barely open as he trudged over to the couch. He laid down with his head on your lap, pressing a gentle kiss to the skin where the hem of your pajama shorts was.

"Hey, babe," you smiled softly, "How was work?"

"I can't keep doing this job," he sighed, closing his eyes and humming in content as you ran your fingers through his messy hair.

"Mikey, you love those kids almost as much as they love you."

"I know, but I just want to have one of my own – one that looks like me and calls me Daddy instead of Doctor and one I get to come home to every night and read bedtime stories and-"

"I know you do, Mikey," you said quietly, "I'm sorry."

"Why are you sorry?" he asked, looking up at you.

"Because  _I'm_  the one that can't get pregnant," you muttered, "It's my-"

"Don't you dare say it's your fault, Y/N," he said firmly, sitting up.

"We've been trying for over three years, Michael," you felt your eyes start to get watery, "Maybe I'm not able to get pregnant."

"Then we'll go see a specialist and find out," he said, trying to make you feel better.

"And what if I can't?" you whimpered, "You're gonna lea-"

" _Stop_ ," he stated, taking your face in his hands, "You take that thought out of your head right now. Nothing on this earth would ever make me leave you – especially not something like that when you would need me the most. If you're unable to get pregnant, then we can just adopt or something. I love you so much, Y/N," he kissed your nose, "I wouldn't have asked you to marry me if I didn't. I want to raise kids with you, babe, and if they're not biologically ours, that's perfectly fine with me."

"Really?" you sniffled. He gave you a small smile.

"I love you," he repeated, pressing a kiss to your lips.

"I love you too, Michael," you whispered.

~

**Two months later**

Michael had left for his shift at the hospital about half an hour ago and you were still in bed. You hadn't been feeling too well for a few days now, but you just figured that since it was the middle of fall and cold season was approaching that you were just one of the few unlucky enough to catch the bug early.

It wasn't until you suddenly jumped up and ran into the bathroom to throw up that you realized that maybe it wasn't a cold. The flu, maybe? No, it couldn't be that. Your eyes widened slightly, thinking back to the last time you had your period.

" _Oh my god_ ," you whispered to yourself.

You quickly flushed the toilet and ran out of the bedroom, only to go back when you realized you were only wearing Michael's shirt and your underwear. After throwing on some sweatpants and your shoes, you went back to the kitchen, grabbed your car keys and wallet, and ran out the door.

When you returned home 20 minutes later, you made a beeline for the bathroom. You put the plastic bag on the counter top and looked at yourself in the mirror, silently praying that what you and Michael had been trying for for so long was finally happening.

After taking the first pregnancy test, you stared at it for what seemed like hours until the result showed up. You felt as though your heart stopped at your eyes ran over the two lines:  _A positive test._

You didn't quite believe it – and apparently you didn't believe the next couple either – so you took the rest of the tests out and took those as well. They all told you the same exact thing:  _You were pregnant._

~

"I wanna go out tonight," Michael informed you after he got home from work that evening, "Have a few drinks."

"Alright," you nodded, "Just call me when you need me to come pick you up."

"I want you to come, babe," he rolled his eyes.

"I can't," you shrugged.

"Why not?" he whined, "I need to let loose a little. Work is stressing me out."

"Why can't you go with the boys?"

"You know they can't handle alcohol like you can." You smiled proudly at the statement. "What's up with you?" he frowned, "You never pass up the opportunity to go out."

"I'll go out," you told him, "I just can't drink."

"Since when can't you drink?" You raised your eyebrows at him as he continued rambling. "The only reason you wouldn't drink would be if you were on medication or maybe if you had an alcohol problem or if you were having a baby or-"

Michael cut himself off, his eyes widening as a look of realization began spreading across his face. He looked at you and saw you were trying desperately not to smile as you covered your mouth with the palm of your hand, tears already falling down your cheeks at his reaction.

"Babe..." he trailed off, "You're not..."

"I took like, 5 tests this morning," you nodded, sniffling quietly, "We're having a baby, Mikey." He grabbed your face, pressing his lips to yours roughly, making you smile into the kiss.

"I get to keep this one?" Michael whispered, his eyes fluttering back open.

"Yes, Mikey," you laughed, "This one gets to stay."

~

 **Calum**   **(Warning: Mentions of death, blood)**

Ever since Calum was a kid, he'd always wanted to be a paramedic. He used to say it was because he wanted to be able to drive really fast without getting in trouble, but as he grew up, it became about something more important. He wanted to save people, wanted to be able to see someone in need and help them; He wanted to be a hero. And that was how he met you.

_Flashback; Five years ago_

You were visiting your grandmother in her nursing home when another elderly resident had a minor fall. An ambulance was called in simply because the staff would rather be safe than sorry. One of the paramedics on call that day just happened to be Calum.

A few minutes after arriving, Calum and his partner began packing up to leave.

"Excuse me, young man," your grandmother said as she walked up to Calum, "Is Willie going to be alright?"

"Yes, ma'am," Calum nodded with a gentle smile, "He didn't break any bones, he just needs to take it easy for the next couple days." Your grandmother let out a sigh of relief while you walked back into the room.

"I'll see you on Monday, Grandma," you said as you trotted over to her, giving her a hug. It wasn't until you let go of her that you noticed a paramedic standing there eyeing you. Your eyes widened slightly. "Are you okay?" you asked your grandmother, "What happened? How long was I in the bathroom?"

"Oh, it wasn't me, dear," she said in a rush, smiling and placing her hand on your arm so you would calm down, "Willie just fell and I was asking this gentleman if he was alright – which he is so there's nothing to worry about."

"Oh," you breathed deeply with a relieved nod, "Okay." Your grandmother finally noticed how the paramedic was looking at you, so she took it upon herself to introduce you to him, knowing full well that you wouldn't do it yourself.

"I'm Virginia and this is my granddaughter Y/N," she told him, making you turn a bright red.

"Two very beautiful names for two very beautiful ladies," he smiled, holding his hand out, "I'm Calum." Your grandmother immediately shook it, but you looked at it for a moment before taking it, letting him shake your hand.

"Hood!" the other paramedic called out as he came back into the building. Calum looked over his shoulder at his partner. "We just got another call. We have to go now." Calum nodded, turning back to you.

"Sorry I couldn't stay longer, ladies," he said, "I hope to see you again under less unfortunate circumstances-" His eyes scanned your face again as if he were burning it into his mind. "-and maybe when I'm  _not_ on duty." You felt your cheeks get hot again as he turned around and hurried out the door.

"He's cute," your grandmother commented, "I might have a little accident next time you're here just so you have the chance to see him again."

" _Grandma_!" you exclaimed, lightly hitting her arm, making her laugh.

"I'm kidding, dear," she promised, "But I do hope you two run into each other again."

"Me too," you said under your breath, giving her another hug and telling her you loved her before you left.

About a week after that day, you happened to run into Calum on a midnight run to Walmart. You were a bit surprised he remembered you, but you were relieved by it nonetheless. He ended up walking around with you as you shopped, even walking you back to your car after you checked out. He asked you on a date for that Friday since it was his weekend off and you happily accepted.

And five years later, you and Calum were still together and very much in love – the wedding rings on your left hands proving that to everyone who saw you. Although, people didn't even need to see the rings to notice the way you two looked at each other. You completed Calum and Calum completed you; If soulmates really did exist, there was no doubt in your mind that Calum was yours.

_End flashback_

It was just another brisk, early winter morning and Calum had left for his shift at the hospital after kissing you goodbye. He was going about his daily routine, simply doing his job as he always did, not thinking anything of it when he and his partners got a dispatch that evening just before the end of their shift. They'd done this plenty of times before – this was all just second nature to them.

_"Victim is a 23-year-old female, 125 pounds; Vehicle versus telephone pole. Fire rescue is still trying to free her from the car."_

Once on the scene of the accident, Calum jumped out of the ambulance and ran with his two partners, Luke and Michael, to the crash site. Firefighters had finally freed the victim from the wreckage and had her lying on the grass a few feet away.

"What's her status?" Calum asked, bending down to check her airways.

"Caller said he was out on a run when he found her," one of the men answered, "He didn't know how long she's been here, but I'd say it couldn't be more than 25 minutes with how fresh the blood still is."

Calum's main focus at that point was making sure that the girl in front of him didn't have any hidden injuries. He could clearly see some wounds on her legs, but nothing appeared to be broken. He worked his way up, seeing no further red flags until he got to her head. Her hair was beginning to mat with drying blood, but her scalp looked slightly swollen and he knew it wasn't good.

He and his partners quickly lifted the girl onto the stretcher and rushed her to the ambulance. Luke hopped back into the driver's seat while Calum and Michael were in the back, working on the patient.

Calum got an IV line into the girl's arm while Michael was working on her airway. It wasn't until the IV was secure that Calum finally took the time to really look at her face. He immediately froze, his eyes widening as he looked down at her left hand. He carefully pushed the wedding ring up her ring finger and that was when his heart stopped. Tattooed in a tiny print on the top of her finger was a  _C_ , a heart, and a(n) ( _your first initial_ ) – the same exact tattoo he had under his wedding ring.

"Y/N..." Calum trailed off in a broken whisper, causing Michael to look up at him.

"You know her?" he asked, not knowing he had said your name. Calum swallowed thickly.

"I'm married to her," he choked. Michael didn't know what to say, clearly shocked to hear that his partner's wife was lying right in front of her husband, practically hanging onto life by a thread.

Of course, being one of Calum's best friends, Michael had seen you hundreds of times at get-togethers and birthday parties; He just didn't recognize you underneath all the blood. He couldn't imagine what Calum must have been feeling in that moment, but it was obvious he was trying to hold it all in.

Calum's hand brushed the blood-coated hair off of your face, resisting the urge to lean down and kiss you. He wished he could make it all better right then and there; He wished he could just snap his fingers and take the trauma for you. But he couldn't. He had to sit there, hoping and praying the hospital staff would be able to fix you up and have you better as soon as possible.

When the flat-lining of your heart monitor started echoing throughout the vehicle as Luke pulled up to the emergency room doors, Calum made a split second decision. The moment you were out of the ambulance, he put his hand by your hip and pushed himself up onto the gurney, straddling your stomach.

It wasn't typical to see a paramedic doing this as they were rushing a patient into the emergency room, but Calum wasn't thinking about that; Calum was thinking about you and you alone and he didn't care what protocol was.

"Calum," Michael said, "You can't-" The paramedic cut him off.

"I'm not letting her die, Michael!" he shouted, beginning CPR and desperately trying not to cry in front of his co-workers, "I need her!" Michael simply withdrew from the situation, letting Calum continue as he and Luke picked up the pace into the building.

"Calum?" one of the doctors – who luckily happened to be a surgeon – said as the three paramedics rushed past him. He began sprinting along with them, unsure of where they were headed. "Why are you on top of her?" Calum ignored the question, his words coming out in a jumbled up mess.

"I don't care what you're doing right now, Ashton," he told the doctor, "She needs a CAT scan and she needs it  _now_."

The second they reached the elevator, you let out the smallest gasp for air and began coughing. Calum's heart skipped a beat as you opened your eyes, squinting due to the bright lights above you.

"Thank God," he breathed, "You're alive."

"Cal?" you mumbled, noticing the three other men with you, "What happened? Where am I?" Calum barely put his hand on your cheek, gently caressing your cheekbone.

"You were in an accident, baby," he told you, "You hit black ice and ran into a telephone pole. You stopped breathing when we got here."

"Is that why you're on top of me in front of your friends?" you asked, making all four of them let out a breathy chuckle.

"Yeah, Y/N," Calum nodded, finally climbing off of you before you went into the elevator.

"Cal," you whimpered softly, your breathing beginning to shallow as you started panicking, "Are you holding my hand?"

"Yeah..." he trailed off, squeezing it tightly.

Your bottom lip began trembling dangerously, "Why can't I feel it?" His heart started pounding again.

"You're gonna be fine, princess," he said as firmly as he could, wanting to be strong for you, "I promised you the moment I asked you to be my girlfriend that I wasn't gonna let  _anything_  happen to you and I'm sure as hell not gonna go back on that promise now."

"I love you, Cal," you breathed out softly.

"I love you, Y/N," he smiled reassuringly, kissing the space on your forehead that didn't have blood on it. When you reached the CAT scan room, Calum quickly leaned down and kissed you, "I'll see you in a few minutes, baby." You nodded and he and Ashton went into the other room while Michael and Luke took you to get prepped for the scan.

"Cal," Ashton said when the machine began scanning your head, "I think it would be best if you waited outside."

Calum shook his head, "Ash, I'm not-"

"I know you, Calum," he told him, "And I know that if these results are bad, you're not going to be able to keep it from her and I don't want her to be more scared than she already is."

The paramedic sighed, knowing he was right. As much as Calum wanted to be by your side, he knew that you would immediately pick up on anything he was feeling and he couldn't be the one to frighten you.

~

A few minutes later, Calum was sitting up against the wall across from the room when he started to hear loud whispers. The door suddenly flew open and Calum jumped to his feet. Your oxygen mask was back over your mouth and your eyes were closed. The surgeon and paramedics rushed you down the hallway, heading for the surgical ward.

"What happened?" Calum asked frantically, struggling to keep up with how fast they were going. 

"Michael!" Ashton hollered just before they reached the doors leading to the ward. He immediately stopped, grabbing Calum's arm and yanking him to a halt.

" _Michael_!" Calum yelled next, watching Ashton and Luke burst through the doors and disappear behind the next corner.

"She went limp and blacked out right after the results showed up on screen," Michael sighed, unable to keep the information from his partner, "The entire front left side of her brain is bleeding." He gauged Calum's reaction before carefully going on, "Doc doesn't think she'll make it, Cal." It was in that moment that everything in Calum's world stopped – time, his heart;  _Everything_.

He collapsed in Michael's arm, sending them both to floor. Michael's heart ached for his best friend – he couldn't possibly imagine what he was going through and he honestly hoped he would never have to.

~

Thirty-seven days. Thirty-seven days since Calum last saw the (eye color) eyes and heard the voice he loved so much. Thirty-seven days since the last time he saw you breathing without the assistance of a machine. Thirty-seven days since he'd seen anything other than the inside of the hospital.

Calum barely left the chair beside your bed in over a month, wanting to be there the moment you woke up. You came out of surgery with an unlikely chance of pulling through, but your husband had somehow convinced Ashton to keep you on life support. Calum understood that the chances of things ever being the same were close to none, but that wasn't going to stop him from fighting for you.

"Calum," he heard a voice coming from the doorway. He looked up to see your grandmother smiling softly at him.

"Virginia," he gave her a weak smile, getting up to hug her, "What are you doing here? I thought you couldn't make it until tomorrow."

"That lovely Michael fellow convinced the home to let him take me out for an hour to see you two," she said, looking at your unconscious body on the bed. "He told me that you still haven't left the hospital."

"I can't," he whispered, "I can't leave her."

Calum led her to the chair he was just sitting in, ushering her to sit down. He took a seat on your bed next to your legs, subconsciously grabbing your hand and rubbing your knuckles with his thumb. Your grandmother's eyes flicked between the two of you before she looked back up at Calum.

"I was the same way before my husband passed," she said carefully.

"She's not gonna  _die_ , Virginia," he said sternly, almost as if he was trying to convince himself more than her.

"I said the same thing about Charlie," she replied softly, "But, you know, the best things to do aren't always the easiest. She wouldn't want you to be doing this to yourself – to be losing sleep or not living your own life on her account."

"She's gonna wake up," his bottom lip trembled as he swallowed the lump in his throat, looking down at you, "She has to."

"It's never easy to lose someone you love, but you can't begin to heal until you let her go."

Calum simply kept his watery eyes glued to you as Virginia stood back up. She placed a hand on his shoulder comfortingly.

"We have to let her go, Calum," she whispered with tear-filled eyes of her own, "We can't keep her forever. It's time heaven got a new angel."

"She's right, Cal."

Calum's head snapped over to see Michael, Ashton, and Luke. They cautiously walked over to your bed, standing beside Calum and your grandmother.

"You've been a paramedic long enough to know that the likelihood of her coming out of this isn't good, Cal," Michael went on, "You're never gonna move on until you give yourself a chance."

"Well, you guys might be ready," he whispered so lowly that they almost didn't hear him among the beeping of the machines you were hooked up to, "But I promised I wasn't gonna give up on her-" His thumb fiddled around with the diamond ring on your finger. "-and I'm not gonna start now."

"Calum," Ashton said firmly, making him look up with slightly wide eyes at the tone of his voice, "I love you, man, and I want her to survive just as much as you do, but we've done everything we can. There's nothing else we can do for her. Keeping her on life support isn't working and I know you know that. I can give her until tomorrow morning, but after that... We have to let her go." With that, he left the room, leaving a heavy silence behind.

"Come on, Virginia," Michael said softly, "I better take you back home. I'll send Luke to pick you up in the morning, okay?" Your grandmother nodded at him before turning back to Calum. The two looked at each other for a moment before leaning in for a tight hug.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Calum," she whispered in his ear. He forced a smile as she let go of him and walked out with Michael.

"I'm sorry, Cal," Luke gave him a hug of his own before leaving the room as well, allowing Calum more time alone with you.

~

Calum had stayed up all night, dreading this moment. He continued talking to you as he had been for the last month and a half, but nothing could take his mind off of the events that were about to take place. Luke had just arrived with your grandmother and now he, she, Ashton, Michael, and Luke were all standing around your bed. Ashton was standing at the machine that was breathing for you, opposite of your husband.

Calum's hand was firmly holding yours and he was leaning down, his ear pressed to the skin above your heart, kissing it every now and then. He knew he was crying on you, but he didn't care; If you weren't going to come back, he wanted to be the one to hear your heart beat for the last time.

"Are you ready, Cal?" Ashton asked softly.

"I'm never gonna be ready, Ash," he choked. The doctor nodded understandingly, allowing everyone to give any last words.

Your grandmother went first, then Michael, then Luke, then Ashton himself. By the time it was Calum's turn, he couldn't get anything more than an ' _I love you, princess_ ' out before he was choking on his tears again. You could hear a pin drop with how quiet the room was when Ashton finally turned life support off. Calum listened to your heartbeat get slower and slower and then he furrowed his eyebrows.

"Ashton," he said slowly, "Why can I hear her breathing?" Calum knew that this shouldn't be happening – the plug was pulled and you should be slipping away. But you weren't.

When the doctor didn't say anything, he lifted his head up to find everyone in the room looking his direction with wide eyes and gradually growing smiles. He saw Ashton let out a breath of disbelief before his eyes landed on you, watching your own eyes flutter open. They were droopy and sensitive as you hadn't seen light in over a month, but they were open; And you were alive.

"Heard you guys were trying to get rid of me," your voice was raspy and uneven, but it was still  _your voice_  – a voice that Calum thought he was never going to hear again. He immediately burst into tears, not caring that everyone was watching him as he grabbed your cheeks and kissed you as passionately as he could.

"I love you, princess," Calum repeated what would have been his last words between kisses, "I love you so much."

"I love you too, Cal," you whispered, waiting until he was done kissing you to turn your attention to everyone else. "And while we're on the subject of last words," you said, looking at Michael, "' _You were great_ ,' Mikey.  _Really_?" Michael let out a breathy chuckle, going to the opposite side of the bed to press a kiss to your forehead.

"I am  _so_  happy you're here to yell at me for that," he told you. You smiled at him, weakly holding your arm up so he would lean down. You hugged him tightly, then hugged Luke, your grandmother, and Ashton.

"You're alive," Ashton muttered as he stood back upright, "You were  _not_  supposed to make it, Y/N."

"You need to learn to have a little more faith in me, Ash," you giggled softly. Without thinking, he bent over to kiss your head, making you smirk slightly. "I think that's against hospital rules, Ashton," you told him, "You shouldn't be going around kissing patients." He stifled a small chuckle.

"It's good to have you back, Y/N," he said, taking your hand and squeezing it gently.

After a few more minutes of reuniting with everyone, your grandmother had to go back to the nursing home. She promised to come back as soon as she could. You nodded and she kissed your cheek, walking out with Michael so he could take her home. Ashton and Luke left as well, allowing you and your husband some time alone.

"I love you," he mumbled, rubbing your knuckles again.

"I love you, Cal," you said, holding his hand a little tighter, "Thanks for stalling for me." He chuckled under his breath, leaning over to kiss you for what was probably the hundredth time since you woke up.

"I knew you were gonna wake up," he said softly, bringing your hand to his lips and kissing it. He kept your hand there, letting you feel his words brush against your skin. "They didn't think you would, but I did," he whispered, "I knew you weren't gonna leave me."

"Even if I didn't wake up, you wouldn't have gotten rid of me," you informed him, "I still would have haunted you as a ghost." A wide grin began making an appearance on his face. Calum brought your hand back down, only to reattach your lips once again.

"And I wouldn't have had it any other way," he muttered into the kiss, feeling you smile back.

~

 **Ashton**   **(Warning: Death)**

It was 12:30am and you were woken up by your front door closing. You smiled to yourself, knowing your boyfriend was finally home from his shift at the hospital. Ashton quietly opened the bedroom door, tiptoeing around the room, obviously thinking you were asleep. It wasn't until he stripped down to his boxers and climbed into bed behind you that you let him know you weren't.

"Hey, Ash," you yawned with a sleepy grin, turning into him, "Sorry I didn't wait up for you. I was really tired."

"It's okay, babe," he whispered, his voice shaking slightly, "Sorry for waking you up." He wrapped his arms around your waist and you buried your face in his neck the same way you two did every night, but this time, he was holding you tighter than usual.

"Ash, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," he told you, kissing the side of your head. Your heart dropped.

"You lost someone today, didn't you?" you asked softly. His breath got caught in his throat.

"She was only 17," he choked, "She had such a long life ahead of her and she was gonna do so much with it, but it was just taken from her by some asshole who couldn't have given up  _five seconds_  to stop at a stop sign." You rested your arm on his stomach and began rubbing his forearm. "I wish I could have saved her," he whimpered. You lifted your head up and pressed your lips to his cheek.

"You did everything you could, Ash," you told him.

"But it wasn't enough."

"You can't save everyone, Ash."

" _She was 17_ , Y/N," he let out a frustrated sigh, "She didn't deserve to die yet; Not like that. And I couldn't save her. One of the top surgeons in the state and I couldn't fucking save her." Ashton got out from under you, standing back up and walking out of the room.

"Ash-" You were cut off by him loudly shutting the door on his way out. You heard the front door slam shut next, making you sigh to yourself.

You got up, going into the kitchen. You made two mugs of hot chocolate, putting extra marshmallows into Ashton's cup. You picked the cups up and made your way to the door, carefully opening it so you didn't spill anything.

You found Ashton exactly where you expected him to be – sitting on the porch steps, looking up at the stars. You sat down beside him, holding out his mug to him. He looked at it for a moment, then at you to find you were giving him a small smile. He dropped his gaze again, taking the mug from your hand.

"Thanks," he mumbled, letting it warm his hands as he took a sip.

"I know you're upset, babe," you said, "But losing a patient doesn't make you a bad surgeon, it just means that their time on Earth was over for whatever reason. If you were meant to save her, you would have been able to."

"You said that last time," he whispered.

"And it was true then as well, Ashton," you told him, "There's a reason so many people trust you to do their surgeries, Ash, and it's  _not_  because you have a low mortality rate. It's because you're one of the top surgeons this state has ever seen and you are damn good at what you do. That girl's family may have a long road of grief ahead, but they know that you did everything you possibly could to save her and I  _promise_  they're not blaming you because she's gone." Ashton swallowed the lump in his throat, staring at the marshmallows floating around in his cup. He sniffled and let out another shaky breath.

"It got me thinking, you know," he murmured, "Thinking about how one day, I could come home and you wouldn't be here anymore. Thinking about how if you're ever in a situation where you need surgery, I'm probably gonna be the one that has to do it-" He started shaking his head slightly. "-and I don't think I could... I would never forgive myself if I lost you, Y/N. I would never be able to go on knowing that  _I_  couldn't save you." You gently placed your hand on his knee, rubbing his skin with your thumb.

"You know I can't promise that something like that won't ever happen, Ash," you said, "But I  _can_  tell you that the only person that's going to blame you is yourself."

Ashton looked up at you and you set your mug down behind you before putting both of your hands on his cheeks. You wiped his tears away, but left your hands there when you were done. He put his own cup down, his hands wrapping around your wrists, taking comfort in simply touching you.

"No matter what happens, Ashton-" You spoke softly, yet firmly at the same time, your thumbs running back and forth on his cheekbones. "-I am  _always_  going to love you. You know that, right?" He nodded slightly.

"I know," he whimpered, "I love you so much." You smiled, leaning forward and pressing a kiss to his lips.

"Come on, Ash," you said, grabbing your mug and standing up, holding your hand down to him, "You've had a long day. You need to go to bed." Ashton picked his own mug up, taking your hand and letting you pull him up.

You both went back inside, going to the kitchen. You rinsed both of the mugs with Ashton's arms holding your waist tightly and his face buried in your neck before leading him to your bedroom. You laid down, pulling the blankets over yours and Ashton's bodies. He immediately cuddled up to you, laying his head on your shoulder, drifting off to sleep as you ran your fingers through his hair, mumbling another ' _I love you_ ' as you drifted off yourself.

~

_inspirations:_   
_Luke: http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/114816430868/dr-hemmings-being-so-awkward-when-you-come-for_   
_Michael: http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/114816617648/but-can-you-imagine-midwife-michael-delivering_   
_Calum: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IE7YZmModVY and part of ashton's (bc i wrote that one first tbh)_   
_Ashton: http://lukehiemings.tumblr.com/post/114800252769/i-saw-anarchyaustralia-was-doing-a-service-5sos_


	227. Love Song (Jamie Follese)

_requested by malloryxbands on wattpad_

~

You were frantically knocking on the front door of your best friend's house, desperate for anyone to answer. You had just gotten home from filming the solo parts of the video for your new cover where you found out that the guy who was supposed to play your love interest backed out at the last minute. You needed to find someone to take his place and the only person you could think of to ask on such short notice was your best friend.

"Y/N!" Jamie's sister chirped when she opened the door, "I thought you were filming today."

"We just finished," you said breathlessly, having just run from your house a couple blocks away, "Is Jamie home? I need to talk to him."

"Yeah! Come in!" she said, ushering you to come inside. "Jamie!" she called out, "Y/N needs to see you!"

"Thank you," you told her.

"You're welcome," she smiled as she walked back to wherever she was before. Moments later, Jamie came trotting down the stairs.

"What's up?" he asked, his head tilted in confusion as to why you were there so late.

"I need you to be the lead in my video," you stated, making his heart skip a beat.

"Why? I thought you already had someone."

"We did, but he dropped out today," you sighed, "We really don't want to put off filming just to search for someone else, so I told everyone I'd ask you." He let out a breath along with shaking his head. "Jamie,  _please_!" you whined, "I'm desperate!"

"Y/N," he sighed, "You know how I feel about being filmed." Just then, Jamie's older brother walked into the room, looking over at you.

"Hey, Y/N!" he chirped, a bright smile on his face, "I didn't know you were coming over today. I'd give you a hug, but I can still feel my hair dripping from my shower."

" _Ryan_!" you shouted happily, rushing over to him and grabbing his bare shoulders, "I need you to be in the music video for my new cover!"

"What for?" he wondered.

"The guy who was supposed to play the lead backed out today," you let out an exasperated sigh, "I need to find someone for the shoot  _tomorrow_ , but Jamie said no."

"I'd be happy to do it," Ryan shrugged, earning a glare from the brunette standing a few feet away.

"Thank you!" you breathed out as you threw your arms around his shoulders, not caring that his inability to manage to completely dry himself off was practically soaking your shirt, "You're a life saver, Ry."

"It's only 'cause I love you," he chuckled, ruffling your hair. You shoved his shoulder as you laughed.

"They want us there by noon," you informed him, "I hope that's okay."

"That's fine, Y/N," he grinned, "I'll see you tomorrow." You let out another sigh of relief as he walked into the kitchen. You turned back to Jamie, finding him chewing on his inner cheek.

"Don't start that, Jamie," you rolled your eyes, "You shouldn't have said no." You went back to the door, grabbing the handle. "You and Anna are more than welcome to come to the shoot tomorrow if you want," you told him, "Night, Jaim."

~

The next morning, you and Ryan showed up on set at 11:30. You quickly introduced your small crew to Ryan before you both went to the costume trailer.

About 15 minutes later, there was a knock on your trailer door while your makeup was being done. When it opened, Ryan, Jamie, and Anna climbed in and sat on the couch behind your chair.

"Hey, guys," you grinned as Rachel, your makeup artist, finished up your eye makeup.

"So," Ryan chirped, "What's the schedule for today?"

"Well, I think they want to start out with me mouthing along to the track and then they just want to film us doing random stuff."

"What song are you covering?" Anna asked.

" _Disconnected_ by 5 Seconds of Summer."

"Isn't that a  _love song_?" Rachel teased. You rolled your eyes and laughed.

"I asked the fans what they wanted and they wanted  _Disconnected_ ," you replied, "And who am I to deny them what I hope is a decent cover?"

"Any kissing scenes?"

"As long as Ryan thinks he can handle them," you winked at him, making him laugh loudly.

"Come on, Y/N," he said, "I'm sure you're not  _that_ bad."

"Who said anything about me being a  _bad kisser_?" you gasped in an attempt to act offended, "I'm just saying you might not want to stop." You saw Jamie take a deep breath and his jaw tighten as he stared at his phone.

"The anticipation is  _killing me_ ," Ryan rolled his eyes.

"Well, it doesn't have to anymore," Rachel giggled, "I'm all done. Have fun, guys."

"Thanks, Rach," you beamed, hopping out of the seat and grabbing Ryan's hand, pulling him back outside with Jamie and Anna following close behind.

~

**Jamie's POV**

"I'm gonna be sick," Jamie scoffed, watching you and Ryan from his spot at the refreshment table. You two were merely playing around while the cameraman got the shots he wanted, but it was clearly rubbing Jamie the wrong way.

"Then why would you turn her down when she asked you?" Anna asked him, "She  _did_ go to you first, you know."

"I didn't think she'd ask  _Ryan_."

"So you're saying you would have been okay with any other guy, but since Ryan is our brother, you have a problem with it?"

"No," he said defensively. Anna raised her eyebrows at him, making him sigh. "I didn't think they would have to kiss."

"Jamie," she stated in a surprised tone, "It's a  _love song_. And she would have had to kiss the other guy too."

"Not all love song videos have kissing!"

"You're ridiculous," she groaned, "Just tell Y/N you're in love with her so she can make you the lead and the rest of us can stop hearing you whine about Ryan kissing her even though  _they're just acting_."

"I'm not gonna tell Y/N I'm in love with her," Jamie replied monotonously.

"Then suck it up, Follese, because I'm sick of hearing you complain." Anna walked away, leaving Jamie to sigh again.

~

**Your POV**

About half an hour later, you and Ryan were sitting on the curb at the side of the road. You weren't talking about anything in particular since the audio track would be placed over this scene in editing anyway. He was making you laugh so hard, you were practically leaning on him for support, making Jamie jump up from his chair.

"Alright!" he said suddenly, "That's enough for right now! I say we all take a 10-minute break!" He hurried off to your trailer, leaving everyone confused. You apologized to everyone before stating that you needed to go check on him.

" _Jamie_ ," you said in a threatening tone as you opened the door, letting it slam shut behind you, "This is the fourth time you've interrupted filming. You need to stop or they're gonna kick you off set." He simply shrugged, making you sigh and sit down beside him on the couch. "What's up with you today?" you asked him, "You were so against being involved with this video yesterday and now, it's like you  _want_ to be in it."

"I just don't think Ryan is right for the part," he mumbled.

"Then maybe  _you_  shouldn't have said no," you rolled your eyes. Your best friend looked at you incredulously for a moment.

" _Fuck it_ ," he mumbled under his breath.

You were about to ask him what he was doing, but he cut you off by grabbing your face and smashing your lips together. The corners of your mouth curled up into a smile and you swore you felt Jamie let out a sigh of relief. You turned your body, throwing your leg over his and straddling his lap, your hands coming to rest on his hips.

When you pulled back, you felt your smirk growing as Jamie blushed a bright red.

"I knew you liked me," you teased.

"You did?" he pouted.

"Yeah," you giggled with a small nod, "I had my suspicions when you started letting me win at  _FIFA_  even though we both know I'm absolutely terrible at it. But after I asked Ryan to be in my video and you started acting weird – especially after you heard about the kissing scenes – I knew." He frowned, chewing on his inner cheek. "Jamie," you said, making him look up at you. "I love you," you admitted, swallowing lightly. He let out a deep breath, pressing his lips to your nose.

"You have  _no idea_  how long I've wanted you to say that and actually have it mean  _more_ than best friends," he told you, "And I love you too." You couldn't help but blush lightly, sighing in disappointment as you climbed off of him, not wanting to leave that spot.

"As much as I would love to sit and listen to how much you love me-" Jamie chuckled at your comment. "-I have a video to finish filming."

"Y/N, wait," Jamie said, jumping up and grabbing your hand before you reached the door, turning you back to face him. "Is it too late to..." he trailed off, not really sure how to word what he had to say. "You don't think everyone would... Is that offer of being in the video still up or did I miss my chance?" You giggled under your breath, putting your arms around his neck.

"You just don't want me kissing your brother," you teased. He put his hands on your hips, his thumbs rubbing your sides gently.

"I never want you kissing my brother  _ever_ ," he stated.

"Hey, Y/N!" you heard Ryan shout as he knocked on the door, "Did Jamie confess his undying love for you yet or is it safe to come in?" You laughed again while Jamie rolled his eyes. You wiggled away from him, opening the door.

"Both," you answered, hopping out of the trailer.

"Then I'm assuming Jamie will be taking over my role?" he smirked as Jamie came out after you. You simply grinned, taking both men back to where Anna and the crew were waiting.

"Slight change of plans," you announced, making everyone look at you, "We've got a new lead." The moment Jamie came up to stand beside you, they all smiled.

" _Thank God_!" Anna shouted, "I don't have to hear his complaining anymore!"

You looked at Jamie and noticed his eyes were slightly widening at his sister's outburst, but you just smiled again, grabbing his hand and walking with him to the crew. They obviously decided that you had to do everything all over again – which you didn't mind – but that you would do it after lunch. You nodded and they walked off to go do their own things for the next hour. You suddenly felt Jamie's arms around your waist as he moved in front of you, yours instinctively wrapping around his neck once again.

"Was this all just a lure to get me on camera?" he asked, wiggling his eyebrows.

"I  _always_ win, Follese," you smirked.

"I think it's a tie this time, Y/L/N," he grinned, leaning in and pressing his lips to yours.

 


	228. Safety Pin (Ashton Irwin)

You stood off to the side of the room, leaning back against the wall as you watched party-goers dance around. You had a bottle of Coke in one hand, your other crossed over your stomach. You were never a fan of huge parties like this, but you had virtually no choice in coming due to the fact that you were part of 5 Seconds of Summer's crew.

_Flashback_

5 Seconds of Summer had been searching for a drum tech for what felt like years before the guitarist found you in a local music shop a few months ago. You were going crazy on a drum kit that was set out for public use and he used that to start up a conversation with you when you were finished. He asked how long you'd been playing and if you knew all the technicalities that came with it – you did, of course – so he asked you if you would be interested in working for his band on tour. You obviously decided that you needed to sit in on a rehearsal first, which Michael was more than happy to let you do, so you arranged to meet the band at his house a couple days later.

When the day came and you showed up at his house, Michael immediately insisted on having you tune the drum set since the rest of the band hadn't arrived yet. You simply sighed and sat down. With the sticks in your hands you spent the new few minutes tediously working on the drums. As you were finishing up, the garage door opened and you heard a voice.

"Michael, if you're going to screw around on my drums, can you at least make it sound  _decent_?" a boy with light brown hair said before he saw you. His eyes widened when he realized it hadn't been his friend with his instrument, but a pretty (hair color)-haired girl instead.

"Hey, I could hear him screwing around as I was walking in here earlier and I am offended that you thought that was him just now," you stated.

"I'm standing right here!" Michael whined.

"So you must be the drum tech Mikey was telling us about," the black-haired boy smiled.

"Guys, this is Y/N," the guitarist chirped, "Y/N, this is Calum, Ashton, and Luke." He pointed to each of them so you knew who was who. You found yourself to be immediately captivated by Luke. The moment the blonde noticed you staring, it was like a permanent smirk was etched onto his face.

"So you play?" Ashton asked you.

"Oh, no," you shook your head, finally tearing your gaze away from Luke, "I just like to sit at drum kits and act like I know what I'm doing. Apparently, I'm not as good at it as I thought I was though." Calum chuckled quietly at your teasing toward Ashton, tossing his jacket onto a random table at the side of the room.

"Let's see what you've got then," he said.

"Alright," you mumbled, beginning to hit the drums along to the first song that popped into your head. You weren't looking at them, so you missed the shock on their faces. When you looked back up, however, the expressions were gone and they were just smiling.

"You're hired," Ashton said.

"Not so fast, lover boy-" Your comment made him blush slightly as you stood up. "-I still need to hear you guys 'cause, I'm gonna be honest, if you suck, I don't want to have to listen to it every day." The four boys looked at each other for a moment before going to their respective instruments. When Ashton walked over to you, you nodded your head slightly, "I should have guessed you were the drummer."

"Why?" he asked, taking the sticks from you and sitting down.

"Arms," you stated simply. You were walking away from him to hop up onto the table the boys had laid their coats on, so you missed him blush again.

As the band was playing, you found yourself unable to stop staring at Luke. You didn't know what it was about him – maybe it was his looks or how well he sang or a combination of both – but you couldn't seem to focus on anything else. Ashton would glance at you in the moments he wasn't playing and noticed you staring at Luke. His heart dropped a little, realizing you weren't developing a crush on  _him_  like he was for  _you_. But he quickly pushed the thought aside – if it's meant to happen, it'll happen.

When the boys were done playing their first song, they looked at you. Your arms were crossed over your stomach as your eyes flicked between all of them. They were anxiously waiting for your answer, looking like they might burst into tears at any moment.

"I'm in," you said, making Michael cheer and the rest of them smile widely.

~

Five months had passed since that day and you had grown to be incredibly close with the boys – which obviously wasn't any surprise – but one of them just couldn't seem to put the past behind him. Luke had found out very early on that you had a thing for him and he would do nothing but tease you about it.

Due to his constant sarcastic comments, that crush you had on him quickly turned into you getting annoyed just by someone saying his  _name_. Of course, being that you were the band's drum tech, it was pretty difficult to avoid him, so you just had to deal with it. The other boys were your best friends though, and they made everything a little more bearable.

_End flashback_

"Come on, Y/N!" Michael slurred as he and Calum bounced toward you, "Live a little!" Despite the fact that he clearly had one too many beers, he was still fairly mobile.

"I told you I didn't want to be here, Mikey," you stated plainly.

"But you're part of the crew!" Calum whined, leaning onto you, "You  _had_ to come!"

" _God, Cal_ ," you groaned as he buried his face in your shoulder, "You're such an  _annoying_  drunk. And  _half_  of your crew isn't even here. Why did  _I_ have to be?"

"Because we  _love you._ " You rolled your eyes.

"Whatever," you replied, "I've gotta get home somehow, so I won't be drinking tonight."

"You can stay here!"

"And clean up this mess when you all pass out with your heads in the toilet?" you laughed slightly, "No, thank you."

"You're no fun," he pouted, pushing himself off of you.

"Love you too, Cal!" you called after him as he and Michael stumbled back toward the kitchen.

~

A few minutes later, you went to the kitchen as well to throw your now empty bottle in the trash. As you were passing the entrance to the hallway on your way back to your spot in the living room, you were stopped by a voice coming from behind you.

"Hey, Y/N," Ashton chirped.

"Hey, Ash," you grinned.

"Having fun?" he winked, making you laugh.

"Oh, absolutely," you nodded, "I couldn't think of  _anything else_  I'd rather be doing right now."

"Well, you're more than welcome to come watch movies with me in my room."

"You haven't even been  _out here_?!" you stuck out your bottom lip, "I could have been hiding out in your room this whole time?!"

"No," he chuckled, "I've come out a few times to get drinks."

"But you're still hiding in your room! Come on, Ashton,  _live a little_."

"Mikey use that on  _you_  too?" he smiled. You sighed, but didn't respond. "Let me go throw this away-" He held up his empty cup. "-and then we can go hide together."

Ashton returned a few seconds later, motioning for you to follow him as he walked by. You both trotted up the stairs and he led you toward the end of the hall. He opened a door and you both walked into the room, but the moment it closed behind you, he spun around to face you. You jumped slightly, your back hitting the door, not expecting him to do that.

"Ash-" you started, but he cut you off.

"I really wanna kiss you right now..." Ashton whispered, making your heart race.

"No, you don't, Ashton," you rolled your eyes, "You're just drunk." He leaned in so his lips were brushing against your ear.

"I haven't had a  _single_   _drop_  of alcohol tonight," he stated. You swallowed thickly before doing something that surprised yourself.

You turned your head slightly, using your nose to push Ashton back. He had a look of disappointment on his face, but it didn't last for more than a second. After you gave yourself enough room, you ducked your head between his and the door so you could press your lips firmly against his. Ashton's heart skipped a beat, but his hands immediately found your hips and he brought your bodies together.

When you pulled away for air, you couldn't help the intense blush on your cheeks.

"Sorry," you said softly, "I've never really kissed anyone before... That was probably really bad." Ashton gave you a small shrug.

"I've had worse," he told you, succeeding in making you giggle. He released your hips and smirked slightly. "If you ever want to practice though..." he trailed off with a wink, beginning to back up toward his bed. He never got the chance to reach it, however, because your hand was already on the back of his neck, guiding his lips back to yours.

~

**One month later**

"You and Ash, huh?" Luke asked, "What, am I not enough for you anymore?"

You were sitting on the couch in the band's dressing room after just having finished setting Ashton's drums up on stage, wanting to give yourself a short break before you tuned them. Tour had started three weeks ago and you were just starting to get into the schedule. You and Ashton officially became a couple the day before you left, so you were a bit surprised that it took Luke this long to say anything about it.

"Yes, Luke," you answered simply, choosing to ignore the second statement as you could already feel the annoyance beginning to bubble up, "Me and Ash."

"Huh," he nodded, "Never knew he had such low standards."

"Very funny," you rolled your eyes, getting up from your seat.

"I'm just saying," Luke shrugged, "Didn't think he would ever be the type to settle for whatever he could get, but I guess you can never be too sure – even with your best friends."

You went to leave the room, but you never made it through the door. You were greeted by Ashton when you ran into his chest, making you squeak lightly. His arm went to your waist as he narrowed his eyes at the blonde standing a few feet away.

"I'm sure you were only joking," Ashton stated dryly, "But I would appreciate it if you  _didn't_  talk to my girlfriend like that."

"It's fine, Ash," you muttered.

"Yeah, Ash – all in good fun," Luke grumbled, pushing his way past you two so he could go anywhere else.

"You know he's just being an ass, right?" Ashton asked lowly, looking at you, "I didn't settle. If anything,  _you_  settled for  _me_."

"No one settles for  _Ashton Irwin_ ," you giggled, " _Ashton Irwin_  looks at you and goes '... _eh_.'" You ended with a little shrug as you scrunched up your nose. You watched a smirk start appearing on Ashton's face, making your eyes widen.

You quickly shoved his arm off of you in an attempt to escape, but he was too fast. He wrapped his arms around you, lifting you off of the ground and taking you toward the couch. He gently threw you down, then climbed on top of you, straddling your hips.

" _Ash, no_!" you squealed in protest as he grabbed your hands and pinned them above your head. He started to tickle your stomach, earning loud, breathy laughs from you.

When you felt his grip on your hands loosen as he giggled along with you, you seized the opportunity to free yourself. The moment your hand was out of his, it was on the back of his head, pulling his face to yours. Ashton gradually stopped tickling you, repositioning himself so he was no longer sitting, but rather lying on top of you. He let go of your other hand so he could hold himself up, not wanting to crush you with his weight. He felt your now free hand go straight to his the side of his neck, your fingers lightly running up and down his jaw.

"If that's how you get me to stop tickling you-" Ashton breathed after he pulled away, "-then I might have to tickle you more often."

"Do it and you  _die_ , Irwin," you replied with a sweet smile. He chuckled at you, giving a quick kiss before sandwiching himself between you and the back pillows of the couch, burying his face in your neck. "Don't you have a show to be getting ready for, Mr. Rockstar?" you teased lowly, your fingers now playing with his hair.

"Don't  _you_ , Miss Drum Tech?" You felt his smirk on your skin.

"Do you really want me to leave?" Ashton tilted his head upward when he heard your tone, thinking you were actually serious. When you winked at him though, he knew you were only joking.

"Not yet," he answered, putting his face back where it was.

After a few minutes, you could tell something was off. Ashton was usually quite chatty when you cuddled, but so far, he hadn't said a word.

"Do you wanna talk about it, Ash?" you asked him.

"Talk about what?" he mumbled.

"Whatever's bothering you."

"Nothing's bothering me."

" _Ashton_ ," you said firmly. There was a brief pause and then you felt his breath fan across your skin as he sighed.

"I really like you, you know," he whispered.

"Well, you  _did_  ask me to be your girlfriend, so I would hope you have at least  _some_  level of feelings for me," you replied.

"Y/N," he said, propping himself up on his elbow, "I'm serious."

"I know you do, Ash," you said, grabbing his other hand and holding it on your stomach so you could play with his fingers, "I really like you too." He swallowed lightly and you furrowed your eyebrows. "Ashton, seriously," you said, "What's wrong?"

"I don't know," he sighed again, "I just... You used to have a thing for Luke and I... I don't know."

"You-" You cleared your throat softly, "You don't think I'm using you to make him jealous, do you?"

"No!" he exclaimed, sitting up. He looked down at the hands on his lap before putting them on his face. "Maybe," he replied honestly, his voice muffled by his palms, "I'm such a shitty boyfriend."

"You're not a shitty boyfriend, Ash," you told him, sitting up as well. You sat cross-legged on the seat, facing him.

"But I should trust you, and it makes me feel really bad that I even considered you were using me in the first place."

"Ashton, you're not gonna build up complete trust in what, the  _five months_  it's been since we met?" you said.

You took his wrists and pulled his arms down. He still refused to look at you though, so you simply crawled onto his lap. You wrapped his arms around your waist, putting your hands on his cheeks and making him look at you.

"Maybe I  _did_  have a thing for Luke at first," you said, making his expression drop even more, "But  _at first_  isn't  _now_ , Ashton. I don't blame you for being concerned – if it were me, I would probably think the same thing – but I promise that whatever feelings I had for Luke were gone the moment he decided to start being a dick about it. I'm with you now and that's not gonna change – until you get tired of my constant, tone-deaf singing or how much I complain when you guys take all the hot water when you shower, of course." You succeeded in making him smile as he looked back into your eyes. "Everything I felt for Luke is  _gone_ , Ash," you said softly, "I'm  _yours_  now. And past feelings aren't gonna ruin that. I'm never gonna hurt you or anything."

"Promise?" he whispered.

"Promise," you said, kissing his nose. Ashton pouted as you climbed off of his lap.

"Where are you going?" he whined, reaching for your hand and pulling you back to him. You giggled as your shins hit the edge of the couch.

"Well, like you said: I've got a job to do," you replied, "Those drums aren't gonna tech themselves and you're sure as hell not gonna do it."

"Why would  _I_  do it when we're already paying  _someone else_  to?" he sassed.

"I just think it's because you don't know  _how_ ," you smirked, wiggling out of his grip and sauntering toward the door. You heard him get up, making you immediately break into a run. You flew down the long hallway with Ashton close behind you.

The other members of the band were already on stage practicing when you and Ashton burst through the door to the arena. Their heads snapped up just as Ashton grabbed your waist and spun you around. Your squeal echoed throughout the room, then your laugh, as he let your feet return to the ground. You glanced up at the three boys on stage, finding Michael and Calum smiling at you two and Luke rolling his eyes.

As you approached the stage, you stood there for a moment, staring at the edge. It was a little higher that your waist, but just tall enough that it would take a couple tries to jump up since there were no stairs. You squeaked when Ashton grabbed your hips and turned you around, lifting you up and sitting you on the stage.

"I could have made it myself," you pouted, watching him as he hopped up himself. He stood up, reached down for your hands, and pulled you back to your feet.

"Sure, you could have," he chuckled, kissing your forehead. You heard Luke groan quietly as you went to Ashton's drums.

~

**Five months later**

You were carrying in the last bit of Ashton's drum set onto the stage when you were met with one of the band members. You caught a glimpse of the snapback Luke never seemed to take off, so you just decided to ignore his presence. Luke, however, wasn't going to let you.

"Can't believe Ashton's making his girlfriend do all the work," the blonde commented, making you roll your eyes.

"You know he's outside meeting fans with Mikey and Calum, Luke," you stated, sitting down so you could begin to tune the instrument, "Now why aren't  _you_  with them?"

"Wanted to see if you needed any help."

"Sure, you did," you scoffed lightly.

"Can't believe you guys have been together for what, almost a month now?"

" _Six_ ," you corrected with another roll of your eyes.

"Shame," he shook his head, beginning to walk over to you, "I could've been in Ashton's place."

"Uh-huh," you hummed, "And then you decided to be a dick about things."

"Oh, come on, Y/N," he smirked, "Haven't you ever heard of boys being mean to girls when they like them?"

"I have," you stated plainly, standing up as you were now finished tuning, "And I think it's a bunch of bullshit. You don't treat someone like shit –  _especially_ if you like them."

"Don't you ever think about what  _we_ could have had?" he asked lowly, stopping in front of you so you couldn't leave.

"I did-" You narrowed your eyes at him. "- _before_ I started dating Ash."

"So you're telling me you don't think about it at all? Not even for a moment?"

"What are you talking about?" you asked, "You know what?  _Never mind_ ; I don't want to know. Get out of my way."

You pushed him to the side with your elbow, but as you were passing, he grabbed your face and pressed his lips to yours. Your hands immediately found his chest, forcefully shoving him away from you.

"What the  _hell_  is wrong with you?!" you shouted.

"Ash was right," he smirked, "You  _are_  a good kisser."

"I'd like to say I can't believe you would do something like that, but actually,  _I really can_ ," you said in disgust, "That was fucking  _low_ , Hemmings – even for  _you_."

"Don't pretend you didn't enjoy it, Y/N," he replied, "It's okay to admit it; I won't tell Ashton."

"You're not gonna tell Ashton  _shit_ , understand?" you growled, " _I'm_  going to tell him when we get back to the hotel because I don't want this having any effect on his performance tonight. Until then, don't even  _look_ at him." You quickly walked away, grumbling out a few profanities as you left.

~

After the show, the boys were bouncing up and down with adrenaline – as always. You all piled into the car after getting everything packed up, now on your way back to the hotel. You could feel Luke staring at you the whole time as Ashton held your hand on his lap with his head on your shoulder, but you did your best to ignore it. You were feeling jittery, but you weren't too nervous – you knew Ashton wouldn't be mad at  _you_ once you explained what happened.

When you made it back to the rooms, the boys decided they wanted to hang out in Michael's room for a while before they went to bed since they had the day off tomorrow. As the minutes passed though, Ashton could tell you were feeling drained, so he nudged you gently.

"You ready for bed?" he asked softly in your ear as you two sat on the couch. You looked at him, shaking your head. He tilted his own head, "What's wrong?"

"I have to tell you something, Ash," you replied quietly.

"What is it?" You glanced at the other three boys who weren't really paying attention.

"Not here," you told him. Ashton was understandably starting to worry, so he stood up.

"Y/N and I are gonna call it a night, guys," Ashton announced, holding his hand down to you, helping you up, "We'll see you in the morning." You were about halfway to the door when you heard the last thing you expected to hear from anyone.

"Y/N kissed me today!" Luke shouted suddenly, making the three boys look at you in shock. Your eyes widened, not expecting him to blurt it out like that.

"No, I didn't, Lucas!" you screamed, " _You_ kissed  _me_!"

"I went to help her set your drums up-" Luke went on, ignoring you as he looked at Ashton. "-and then she just kissed me!"

"You kissed him?" Ashton's voice sounded so broken and shaky that you felt like your heart was literally being ripped in half.

"It's not like that, Ash!" your breathing was shallow and rapid and you felt like your lungs were actually going to collapse, "Luke came onto me! You know I would never-" He cut you off.

"Save it, Y/N," he whispered. You felt the tears begin falling down your face.

"A-Ashton," you whimpered, "I didn't-"

"We're done," he told you, brushing past you and going back to his hotel room. You heard his door slam shut a couple seconds later.

You looked up at the three boys still standing there; Michael and Calum looked beyond upset while Luke's eyes were widened in shock. A broken sob passed your lips as you quickly wiped your cheeks and snatched your coat from the couch, turning around and running out of the room.

~

**Two months later**

It had been nearly two months since then and Ashton was still ignoring you. Every time you tried to speak to him, he would brush you off. You didn't want to stop trying to tell him what really happened, but what could you do? He wasn't going to listen to you, and Luke  _certainly_  wasn't going to tell him the truth.

All four boys would do everything they could to avoid you aside from the glances you got from Luke when he thought you weren't paying attention.

You hadn't spoken to any of them – just completely shutting yourself out. You knew they weren't going to listen to anything you had to say, so you figured you would just make it easier on them by not saying anything altogether.

Michael was the only one who seemed to be gravitating toward you again. Whenever he caught you watching Ashton, he would shoot you a small smile, making you turn your attention back to whatever you had been doing at the time. You didn't know whether or not he was starting to realize something in Luke's story was off, but you didn't bother ever confronting him about it, thinking he would push you away just like Ashton had.

~

"Y/N?" Your head snapped up to see Michael standing at the side of the stage where you were tuning Ashton's drum kit.

"Finally talking to me again?" you mumbled although you were truthfully shocked to see him.

"What are you doing?" he ignored your question.

"I'm still the drum tech, Mikey," you whispered, "My job doesn't stop getting done just because everybody hates me."

Michael stared at you for a moment with his lips parted slightly in concentration. He then walked over to you, sat on the ground beside the chair, and placed his hands on your knees, spinning you to face him. You let out an exasperated sigh, just wanting to get your work done before Ashton or Luke showed up for rehearsals. He took the drumsticks from your hands and placed them beside him before looking back up at you.

" _Michael_ ," you grumbled.

"You didn't kiss him, did you?" he asked. It was a simple question, but it instantly brought you to tears.

"No," you whimpered, the cracking of your voice very prominent.

Michael immediately rose to his knees, grabbing your shoulders and pulling you into him. You buried your face in his neck while your arms wrapped around him as well, your cries now muffled by his shirt. He was rubbing your back soothingly, waiting until you calmed down again to push you back so he could look at you.

"Why didn't you tell us?" he asked.

"I  _tried_ ," you felt another tear fall, prompting Michael to wipe it away with his thumb, "Nobody believed me – but why would they? Luke is an _angel_ when everyone else is around-" You scoffed lightly at the thought of it. "-I'm not surprised you believed him."

"But it's not the  _truth_ , Y/N," Michael shook his head, "You need to tell everyone what  _really_  happened –  _especially Ashton_."

"You don't get it, Michael!" you exclaimed, standing up, "Ashton and I are  _over_!"

Michael got up with you, following you as you walked backstage. You turned to face him again. You breathed in shakily, letting it back out.

"I appreciate your concern, Mikey," you said, "But I can't keep opening up old wounds. He's done with me; I guess I'll just try to be done with him too."

The blonde watched you walk away, knowing very well that Ashton wasn't done with you –  _not even close_.

~

**One week later**

You were sitting on the couch in the boys' dressing room after finishing your job. The band was outside meeting the small group of fans already in line until they had to come back in before it got too hectic.

At around noon, the band came inside and found you.

"Hey, Y/N!" Michael chirped since it was obvious that the other three boys weren't going to greet you. You looked up from your phone and gave him a faint smile – but it was a genuine one nonetheless.

"Hi, Mikey," you said softly, your eyes following him as he, Ashton, and Calum sat on the couch across from you, "How did meeting fans go?"

"The usual," he shrugged, "How were things in here?"

"Oh, you know... Quiet," you whispered. Calum gave you a small smile – Michael had obviously told him everything he knew – but Ashton hadn't so much as glanced your way, making you look back down at your phone. It wasn't until Luke suddenly plopped down next to you that Ashton's eyes finally landed on you.

"So," Luke said, his arm lying across the couch behind you, "What are we doing after the show?"

" _I'm_  going to bed the second we get on the bus," you stated dryly, taking his hand and lifting it back up, shoving it onto his lap.

"Hmm," he hummed lowly as he leaned in to whisper in your ear, making sure his voice was still loud enough for the boys to hear, "Mind if I join you?" Ashton's jaw tightened, but you didn't notice – because that was the last straw for you; That was the moment you finally snapped.

"Oh,  _go fuck yourself_ , Hemmings!" you shouted as you jumped up, making all the boys' eyes widen in shock, "You are such a selfish piece of  _shit_ , you know that?! There are more important things in this world than you and your stupid fucking ego! Do you even  _understand_  how much shit I've gotten for this?! I can't go out or get on Twitter or Instagram or  _anything_ without someone calling me a slut or telling me to kill myself! I've finally just stopped telling people I didn't do anything wrong because I know they won't believe me! Do you  _know_  what that's like?! Do you know what it's like to have hundreds of  _thousands_  of people hate you for something like that while the person who fucked you over is running around without a care in the world?! You  _ruined my life_ , Luke, and you don't seem to understand that! How can you keep going on knowing you  _lied_ to everyone – to your  _best friend_?! How can you keep going on knowing that my life is  _over_  because of you?!" You paused and took a deep breath to compose yourself. "If you want to fuck around with everyone else's lives, that's fine – but you're  _done_  fucking with mine." You swallowed thickly as you hurriedly left the room.

You quickly ducked into a different, unoccupied dressing room, not even bothering to turn on the light. You threw yourself onto the couch and just started bawling. You hated Luke; You  _hated_ him. But you hated yourself even more for ever having a crush on him in the first place.

"Y/N?" you heard Luke say quietly as the door opened, "Y/N, are you in here?"

"What do you want, Luke?" you spat, trying to mask the unevenness of your voice.

"I just wanted to come see if you were okay..." You let out a short, loud, bitter laugh as he flicked the light switch.

"You don't give a shit if I'm okay," you stated bluntly, wiping your face with your sleeve again, "All you care about is yourself. You don't care if anyone gets hurt as long as  _you_  get what you want."

"Y/N," he said, sitting down beside you, "That's not true."

"Yes, it is and you  _know_  it, Luke!" you shouted, getting up and turning to face him yet again, "You knew I liked you and decided to be an asshole about it, and when  _Ashton_  started giving me attention, I moved on and you decided that  _you didn't like that_!  _You_ kissed me,  _you_ have Ashton convinced that I didn't push you away,  _you_ ruined my relationship! And now you're acting all nice and shit because why, you think I'm gonna come crawling back and have a crush on you again?! Well, here's a newsflash for you,  _Lucas_ : The world doesn't fucking revolve around  _you_!  _You_  are not the center of the universe and  _you_  don't get to decide who I'm in love with! Yo-" Luke cut you off with a voice so quiet that you almost didn't stop for it in the middle of your rant.

"You're in love with Ashton?" he asked. You swallowed the lump in your throat, shaking your head slowly.

"It doesn't matter anymore," you whispered, "It's over."

"Y/N..." he said as he stood up, "I'm s-"

" _Don't tell me you're sorry, Luke_ ," you growled, "You can keep being an ass all you want and you can keep it up with all your stupid acts of jealousy; But don't you  _dare_ tell me you're sorry because you and I both know it's  _bullshit_. You wouldn't have kept this going for so long if you  _actually_ gave a fuck about how I felt. I'm not a toy, Lucas," you said coldly, "You don't get to watch me from across the room without ever playing with me and you sure as  _hell_  don't get to wait until someone else comes along and shows interest to push them away and claim me as yours. I'm done playing this game with you." You let out a shaky breath before beginning to back up toward the door. "I don't know what the prize for this whole thing was, Luke," you shook your head again, "But congratulations on winning it." You spun around on your heels, breaking into a run the moment you crossed the threshold.

~

**Luke's POV**

Luke stared at the empty doorway for a moment before plopping back down on the couch. He leaned forward, his elbows on his knees and his face in his hands, and just sat there. What he did was wrong – he  _knew_  he was wrong to do all those things to you and Ashton – but that obviously never  _stopped him_  from doing any of it.

"Luke..." The blonde's head snapped up as Ashton slowly entered the room.

"Ash!" Luke exclaimed, jumping up from his seat, "How... Uh... How long have you been there?" Ashton simply stared at him for a moment, trying to come up with a complete thought.

"Did she  _really_  push you away?" he finally asked. Luke sighed, knowing there was no point in lying anymore.

"Yeah," he whispered, hanging his head, "She did."

"Why would you tell me she kissed you?"

"Because I'm an asshole," he admitted.

"Luke," he let out a breath, "I... I  _broke up with her_  because of that. I've been ignoring her because I thought  _she_  kissed  _you_. I didn't believe her when she said it was your fault because I thought there was no way my  _best friend_  would ever do that to me."

"I didn't mean for it to go that far, Ashton..."

"But  _it did_ , Luke!" he exclaimed, his voice breaking slightly, "And  _you_  let it! I spent the last two months absolutely  _hating_  her for something  _she never did_! I spent the last two months wondering how someone who promised she would never hurt me could end up doing it in the worst way imaginable only to find out she  _never even did it_  in the first place! I understand that you're pissed because she moved on from you, but that was your  _own damn fault_! You drove her away from yourself and you drove her away from  _me_ -" His voice caught in his throat again. "-and I don't know if I can get her back." Ashton quickly left the room before he started tearing up in front of Luke, making the blonde wonder how it was possible to feel even  _worse_  than he already did.

~

**Your POV**

A couple days later, you were on stage, tuning Ashton's drum kit as you always did. It was quiet apart from the occasional beat of the drum you were working on, the rest of the crew having taken their break.

"Hey, Y/N," Michael said, walking up to you.

"Hey, Mikey," you whispered.

"Ashton wants you to meet him right here at 3, okay?"

"What for?" you asked, mentally cursing your heart for  _still_ skipping a beat whenever you heard your ex-boyfriend's name.

"Don't know," he shrugged, "But it seemed pretty important." You nodded and he gave you a tight hug. "Hey, Cal and I are gonna go explore the city," he said, "Do you wanna come?" You shook your head in response. "Promise you'll meet Ash later then?" You sighed quietly.

"I promise, Mikey," you told him, making him smile before he trotted back the way he came.

~

At 3 o'clock that afternoon, you walked back into the arena as promised, but found no one there. You looked down at your phone, thinking you may have read the time wrong, but you didn't. You looked around and as you approached the stage, you saw something lying on Ashton's drum set. Your curiosity got the best of you – you  _knew_ it wasn't there earlier – and you decided to investigate. You hopped up onto the stage near Michael's microphone stand and made your way to the drums.

There was a paper that had been cut into the shape of a heart and ripped down the middle, the two halves rejoined together by a safety pin. You couldn't help the giggle that passed your lips, the lyrics to their song now playing in your mind. As you got closer and picked it up, your heart skipped a beat when you realized that one half of the heart had your name written on it and the other half had Ashton's.

"Y/N?" you heard a broken voice beside you. Your head shot up as Ashton stopped next to you, looking at what was in your hand. "Where'd you find that?"

"On your drums..." you whispered, "You didn't leave it here?"

"No..."

"Michael said you wanted to meet me here, so I thought..." you trailed off. He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

"Michael told me  _you_  wanted to meet  _me_  here," he informed you, "Why did he lie?"

"Because I asked him to," another voice spoke up from a little further away. Both you and Ashton looked to the right side of the stage and saw Luke with his hands shoved into his pockets. He cautiously made his way over, coming to a stop a few feet away. "I knew you guys wouldn't come if I asked you myself, so I made him help me."

"Did you leave that here?" Ashton asked him, nodding to the paper heart in your hands. Luke let out a quiet puff of air and nodded, his eyes never leaving his shoes.

"I know you guys probably won't forgive me," he said softly, "I deserve it. I fucked up – I know that. I don't expect you to believe me, but I really am sorry for what I did. I know a simple  _sorry_ isn't gonna be enough for things to go back to how they used to be, but I promise I'll do  _anything_ it takes for you to trust me again. And I really hope you guys will get back together," he admitted, finally looking up at you and your ex-boyfriend, "I hate seeing you so upset and hurt and sad all the time and knowing  _I_ caused it.. I don't know what I expected to happen when I did what I did, but I didn't want you guys to hate each other because of it." He turned to address you. "I  _really_ am sorry I kissed you, Y/N, and I'm even more sorry I told Ashton it was your fault. I can't tell you why I thought breaking you guys up would be a good idea, but you don't understand how many nights I've spent lying in my bunk wishing I could take it back when I hear one of you trying to hide the fact that you're crying yourself to sleep." Yours and Ashton's eyes widened, both of you sure that everyone was asleep before you allowed yourselves to cry. "I don't know if this is gonna fix what I did," Luke concluded softly, "But at least talk to each other, please. I just want us to all be close like we used to be again." After finishing his speech, Luke walked away, now only able to pray that you and Ashton would make up.

"Y/N..." Ashton murmured when he was certain Luke was out of hearing range.

Your bottom lip trembled slightly, but you refused to turn back around and face him. You were clutching the paper heart tightly between your fingertips, your eyes repeatedly scanning over both of your names.

You heard Ashton sigh before he moved so he was standing in front of you. You watched his hands rise up to your cheeks, lifting your face so you would finally look at him. You could see his pained expression, guilt written all over his face.

"Babe-" You cut him off.

"You believed him," you choked, "I told you he was lying, but you believed  _him_."

"He's my best friend, Y/N," he shook his head, "I didn't think he'd ever lie to me like that."

"Why would  _I_  ever lie to you like that?!" you exclaimed, backing away from him, making him let go of you. You dropped the paper back onto his drums, tears already streaming from your eyes. "I promised I'd never hurt you, Ashton, and I didn't!"

"Y/N-"

"I didn't hurt you, Ashton..." you whimpered.

Ashton closed his eyes and took a deep breath for a moment, ridding the stray tears from his own face before closing the gap between you two again. He took your face back in his hands, gently wiping your cheeks with his thumbs. He left his hands there, watching you for a moment.

"Were you really in love with me?" he asked quietly – so quietly that if you hadn't been so close to him, you probably wouldn't have heard it.

"Where did you hear that?" your eyes widened slightly.

"After you ran out of the dressing room the other day-" He started chewing on his bottom lip. "-I... I followed Luke when he went to look for you. I heard you yelling at him and you told him he doesn't get to decide who you fall in love with..." You were both silent for a moment – the only sounds that could be heard were crew members shuffling around to prepare for the show.

You were debating within your own mind about whether or not to confess that you never fell  _out_ of love with him. That was what made the past two months even more unbearable: The fact that you were in love with Ashton and he absolutely hated you.

"I still am," you barely whispered.

"You are?" his voice broke, letting another tear fall.

"I never stopped, Ashton," you sighed. "I tried," you admitted, averting your gaze to something other than his face. "I tried so hard to convince myself that I wasn't in love with you anymore and that maybe I never did love you in the first place... But even after everything that happened, nothing I did worked. Maybe if I wasn't on this tour and haven't been seeing you every day since then, I would be over you... Or maybe I'm  _still_  lying to myself."

"I'm in love with you too, you know," he said softly, thinking that maybe if he were quiet about it, you would be less likely to reject him, "I've been absolutely miserable without you, Y/N. And maybe I did spend the last two months thinking you were the worst person I'd ever met, but that didn't change how much I loved you – how much I  _love_ you." The look of guilt returned as he began lightly stroking your cheekbones. "I'm sorry," he mumbled, "You have no idea how sorry I am that I believed you would ever hurt me – especially like  _that_. I promise I'm gonna do better though, Y/N... I promise I'll be a better boyfriend if you give me another chance..."

"Ashton..." you trailed off.

Ashton let out a defeated sigh, thinking you were going to say no. However, he was surprised when your hands held his sides for support as you reached up, pressing your lips to his. His breathing hitched, but he quickly responded, kissing you back like it was the last time he would ever see you.

You stayed like that until both of you needed air. Your eyes fluttered open while you took a breath and you saw Ashton smiling slightly at you. He rested his forehead on yours, briefly pecking the tip of your nose.

"You're already an amazing boyfriend, Ash," you promised him.

"I love you, Y/N," he sighed, "So much." You couldn't help but mirror his grin.

"I love you too, Ashton," you replied, kissing his lips once again.

~

 

_inspiration: http://onelamesauce.tumblr.com/post/127254694325/au-meme-part-1-you-always-had-a-crush-on-luke_


	229. Safe and Sound (Calum Hood)

You jolted awake, hearing shouting coming from downstairs. You threw the blanket off of your body and quickly – but quietly – hurried to the staircase. You calmed down a bit after realizing it was just your friends shouting at each other as they played  _Mario Kart_ , but made your way to them anyway.

" _Guys_!" Calum yelled in whispered tones, "Shut up before you wake Y/N up!"

"Too late, Cal," you said softly as you came into the room. Calum groaned lightly.

"See?!" he said a little more loudly this time.

"Sorry," the other three boys mumbled in unison, not looking away from the screen.

"It's fine, Cal," you giggled, climbing in behind him as he sat on the front edge of the couch. You wrapped your arms around his waist, laying your head on his back. "I couldn't sleep anyway," you murmured.

"Why not?" Michael asked you.

"My stomach kept growling," you sighed.

Ever since the apocalypse started four months ago, you would have to keep reminding your four best friends that they couldn't eat as much as they used to. It was incredibly dangerous to even step outside for a few minutes with zombies and looters everywhere, so you weren't always able to go out and find food. On the rare occasions you did – or Luke, Michael, and Ashton rather as Calum insisted you stay with him and make sure everything at camp was okay – they would bring back as much food as they could fit in their backpacks.

"Is it safe to go out yet?" Luke asked, pausing the game so you could all look at each other.

"I'll check," Ashton said, getting up. He left the room, opening the front door just enough so he could peek outside. When he came back a few moments later, he nodded, "Looks pretty safe to me. We better head out before any jokers show up though." You immediately let go of Calum, getting up.

"What are you doing?" Calum asked, tossing his controller onto his seat as he stood.

"I  _never_  get to go!" you pouted, "I hate being locked up all the time."

"Luke and I can stay behind this time," Michael chirped, "My legs are still tired from walking for four hours yesterday."

"Same," Luke agreed, "We'll have everything under control." Calum chewed on his inner cheek for a moment before grabbing his backpack and flinging it onto his shoulder.

"Let's go," he said, heading to the door. You and Ashton hurried to get your backpacks as well, following him outside.

~

"Think this will be enough to last us a few more months?" Ashton asked while you were making your way back to the house.

"It better be," you chuckled, "Although I'm so hungry, I feel like I could eat a  _killer whale_." The two boys laughed lightly at your comment.

You walked for a while longer until the house was finally in site, but you were starting to feel weird.

"Guys," you said randomly, "I need a break for a minute."

"But we're almost there," Calum said, looking back at you since you had been trailing behind him and Ashton.

"I know, but... I can't..." Your heart started to feel like it was going to beat right out of your chest and you began seeing double.

"Y/N," Ashton said, "Are you okay?"

You reached your arm out, grabbing the first thing your hand found – Calum's forearm. Your vision started to fade and your legs went weak, making falling against Calum the last thing you remembered.

~

You let out a soft moan, opening your eyes to see nothing but darkness. Looking at the clock, you noticed it was well into the night – about 2:30am. You felt an arm around your waist and something pressed against your back. You turned your head to find Calum sleeping soundly next to you. You remained there, admiring him for a moment, before deciding to wake him up. You carefully turned around in his arms so you were now lying face-to-face with him.

"Cal," you whispered, prodding his cheek gently, "Calum. Wake up."

"Hmm?" he mumbled, stretching his legs.

"Calum."

Calum's eyes shot open at the sound of your voice, finding you staring at him. He wrapped his arms tightly around you, flinging himself onto his back and pulling you on top of him.

"What happened?" you asked, unable to keep yourself from smiling at his actions.

"You passed out," he mumbled into your neck, "We were almost home from getting food and you said you had to stop and then you just fell on me and I carried you back here and I tried to wake you up but I couldn't and I was so worried and-"

"Cal, calm down," you cut him off, "I'm awake now."

"I thought I lost you, princess," he sniffled, tightening his hold on you once again.

You didn't respond; You simply let him hold you for a couple more minutes until your stomach growled.

"Here," Calum whispered, helping you sit up and reaching onto the floor. He returned with an already opened box of granola bars and two bottles of water. "You need to eat now," he said. You took a granola bar and water with a small smile.

"Thanks, Cal," you said quietly, ripping open the packaging and taking a bite.

"Don't you  _ever_  scare me like that again," he ordered.

"Not on purpose," you replied, leaning forward and kissing his cheek softly.

The two of you ate in silence for the most part – the only thing heard being the other three boys still arguing over their video game downstairs. It wasn't until they went  _quiet_  that you got worried. You and Calum looked at each other, both wordlessly agreeing that the red flag just went up.

" _Guys_!" you suddenly heard Ashton's voice as footsteps raced up the stairs, " _We've gotta go_!" He, Michael, and Luke burst into the room, going straight to the window.

"What's going on?" you asked, your voice laced with panic as Calum grabbed your hand, pulling you up off of the bed.

"Walkers all over the front yard coming toward the house," he answered, climbing out onto the roof, "We don't have a lot of time."

Michael and Luke had already scaled the side of the house, ready to help you, Ashton, and Calum as well. However, the faint sound of glass breaking downstairs caused Calum to perk up.

"Calum," you stated firmly, "Don't even think about it."

"You guys need a distraction!" he exclaimed, "Don't worry about me! Just get out of here and get to safety!" Another broken window seemed to break you as well.

"I'm  _not_  leaving here without you, Calum Thomas!" you yelled at him, using his middle name so he knew you were being serious.

" _Yes_ _,_ _you are, Y/N_!" he shouted back before snapping his head toward the window, "Ashton!" The brown-haired boy looked back, rushing back to the windowsill upon seeing Calum motioning for him. "Take her," he ordered, grabbing your wrist and dragging you toward Ashton, slapping your hand in his.

" _No_!" you screamed, tears now freely falling down your cheeks as you struggled to get out of his grasp, " _Not without you_!" Calum sighed upon seeing you cry. He gestured for Ashton to let go of you but stay where he was.

"Y/N," Calum said softly, gently cupping your face in his hands, "I will find a way to find you guys, okay? But I have to distract these walkers so you can get there  _safely_."

"C-Cal," you choked.

"I'll be fine, princess," he promised you, "Please just go with Ash." A loud crash downstairs made the three of you jump. " _Please_ , Y/N," he begged, " _Please_  go with Ashton."

You stared into your best friend's eyes for a moment before doing something that surprised both him and Ashton. You grabbed his face, pulling it to yours and pressing your lips together roughly. Sure, maybe this wasn't the best time for that, but should he not make it, you would never be able to keep going if you didn't let Calum know exactly how you felt.

The moment you pulled away, you were startled by yet another crash – this time, however, it sounded like it was  _right_  down the hall. Calum immediately pushed you to Ashton and began walking toward the door.

" _Cal_!" you cried as he opened it and peeked out. Ashton's hands gripped your waist, carefully tugging you out the window. "A-A-Ashton..." you whimpered, tears beginning to form again.

"I'm sorry, Y/N," he sighed, leading you to the edge of the roof where Luke and Michael were waiting on the ground below to catch you.

You looked over your shoulder and you and Calum locked eyes for a brief moment before he turned and disappeared into the hallway.

~

**Three months later**

You and the boys hadn't heard from Calum since that night and to say you were terrified was an understatement. Usually, when one of the boys stayed behind to fend off any walkers, he knew exactly where the rest of you were going and would find you within a matter of hours.

But this time was obviously different.

This time, none of you had any clue where you were going, you were just running for safety. You didn't know how long you'd been running, but you finally found it, taking shelter in another abandoned house where you were able to take regular showers and such, but none of that mattered to you – nothing mattered when a piece of your heart was missing.

You were sitting on the couch one night, Ashton's head on your lap. You were mindlessly playing with his hair, both of you so silent, you could hear a pin drop. Michael and Luke were outside on their shift as lookouts, watching out for both walkers  _and_  hoping Calum had managed to find you all.

"Ash," you whispered.

"Yeah, Y/N?" he replied just as lowly.

He wasn't sure why you two were whispering, but he could tell by the look on your face that something was bothering you. You twirled Ashton's hair around your fingertips, your eyes watching the fingers in his hair, not daring to meet his gaze.

"Y/N," he repeated at his normal tone, sitting up, "What's wrong?"

"Do you think I was wrong to kiss Cal?" you swallowed thickly, now playing with your fingers.

"It was a split second decision, Y/N," he shrugged, "You were just-"

"Can you just be  _straight_  with me, Ashton?" you let out a frustrated sigh, looking over at him, "I don't need you to try to make me feel  _better_ , okay? I just need to know if what I did was wrong."

"I mean, it obviously wasn't the  _best_  time for you to have done it," he answered bluntly, "But, you know, you did it, and there's really no taking it back now."

"Do you think things would be weird?" you sniffled, "Like, if he's still-" You bit your tongue, not allowing yourself to think he was really gone.

You heard footsteps running toward the room, but you could tell it was just Michael and Luke. You hated when they ran though because you knew something was about to happen. You couldn't care less though; All you wanted was Calum.

"If he came with us, do you think he would hate me?" you finished your thought.

"I don't think he would," you heard a voice behind you say as they came in. Your heart stopped and you spun around as you stood up. "I could never hate you, princess," Calum gave you a small smile, "You know you can't get rid of me that easily." He was covered in tiny cuts and bruises, but he was there and he was  _alive_ – and that was all that mattered.

" _Cal_!" you cried, running over and jumping into his open arms.

Your arms were wrapped tightly around his neck, his holding your waist. You felt him sigh deeply, his breath fanning out across your skin. He peppered a few kisses here and there before you lifted your head off of his shoulder. With your stomachs still pressed together and the other boys now in the other room, you held his face in your hands and simply stroked his cheekbones.

"You're really here?" you whispered, swallowing the lump in your throat, "I'm not dreaming?" Calum let out a light chuckle, his stomach shaking against yours.

"No, you're not dreaming," he returned just as quietly, "I've told you, princess; I'm always gonna come back to you." He noticed your face fall a bit and his grip on your waist tightened. "What's wrong?" he asked you.

"Cal..." you trailed off with a small sigh, making him tilt his head, waiting for you to go on. "About what happened back at the house... I didn't... I mean... I shouldn't have kissed you."

"Why not?"

"Because you're my best friend and best friends don't kiss each other," you muttered.

"Then why did you do it?" he countered. You shrugged in response, but he wasn't going to take that answer. One of his arms released you, only to snake its way under your knees to pick you up.

Calum carried you back to the couch where he sat down on the front edge, placing you on top of him. You moved to wrap your legs around his waist so you were more comfortable. He looked at you intently and when you didn't say anything, he continued talking.

"You and I both know you didn't kiss me for no reason, Y/N," Calum said firmly, "And I'm pretty sure I know what it was."

"If you already know, then why are you asking me?" you swallowed, keeping your eyes on the bottom hem of his torn-up shirt which was now balled up in your hands.

"I want to hear you say it, Y/N," he whispered, his face coming dangerously close to yours. Your breathing hitched, causing a small smile to pull at the corner of his mouth.

"Ca-"

" _Say it, princess_ ," he breathed, his thumbs digging into your hips, earning a low groan from you.

"I love you, Calum," you admitted. Your voice wasn't merely above a whimper, but it drove him absolutely crazy.

Calum instantly pressed his lips to yours, kissing you rougher than you'd ever been kissed before. Your hands made their way to his neck – one hand resting at the base on his shoulder, the other on the back, playing with his hair.

"I love you, Y/N," Calum mumbled against your mouth in between kisses, "I'm so in love with you." You pulled back, your eyes fluttering back open.

"You  _are_?" you asked, your voice breaking slightly.

"I  _am_ ," he assured you, rubbing your sides a bit, "I know I should have told you earlier or at least told you after you kissed me, but I guess we both have terrible timing, don't we?" You giggled involuntarily, your hand sliding off of the back of his head to his cheek. Your thumb ran back and forth on his cheekbone as you stared at him intently for a moment.

"I'm really happy you're back, Cal," you whispered.

"Me too, princess," he smiled, leaning forward and kissing you again.


	230. Over It (Michael Clifford)

"I'll go order," your boyfriend told you as you both entered the local coffee shop, letting go of your hand. You simply nodded as he kissed your cheek and went over to your usual table.

You didn't bother telling him what you wanted because you'd been with Mark for a while now and he knew what you liked to drink. Plus, you noticed Michael was working when you walked in as well. With how often you stopped by – nearly every day since you moved to the town – it was no surprise that the barista had come to memorize your order – not that it was too difficult to remember seeing as you only ever got hot chocolate.

But when your boyfriend came up to the counter requesting two lattes, Michael tilted his head. He could have sworn he watched you walk in with the man in front of him and he knew for a fact that you hated the taste of coffee. But Mark already handed him the money to pay for it, telling him to keep the change as he walked back to you. Michael sighed and rolled his eyes, making a latte for Mark and a hot chocolate for you.

"Mark!" Michael called out when the order was finished.

The brown-haired boy got up, going back to the counter. He thanked Michael and began making his way back as he looked at the cups in his hands, stopping about halfway between your booth and the counter. He turned around, causing you to raise your eyebrows but not bothering you enough to ask what he was doing, simply looking back down at your phone.

"Excuse me," Mark said once he returned back to Michael, "This isn't what I ordered. I wanted two  _lattes_  and you gave me a hot chocolate instead."

"I know," Michael nodded.

"What do you mean  _you know_?" he raised his eyebrow, an angry tone in his voice, "If you know I didn't order a hot chocolate, why did you give me one?"

"You came in with Y/N, right?" Mark obviously nodded. "Then that's why I gave it to you," he stated monotonously, continuing to wipe down the counter top between them.

"I ordered a latte for her, not this."

"I understand that, but she's not going to drink the latte," Michael informed him, "I'm not going to waste my time or the ingredients to make something I know Y/N isn't going to drink."

"And who the hell are you?" Mark's voice got louder, causing you to finally look up.

"My name is Michael," he answered, a sarcastic grin on his face as he tapped his name tag, "I work here."

"And I'm Mark," he growled lowly, "Y/N's  _boyfriend_."

"You know," Michael chirped, throwing the towel in his hand into the bin under the counter, "I find it incredibly strange how you're her boyfriend and you don't seem to understand that she's not going to drink the coffee."

"Well, she needs to try new things."

Although they were using hushed tones, you could tell that your boyfriend was getting agitated, so you hopped up and walked over to the two men.

"Mark," you spoke softly, "What's taking so long?"

"This joker is refusing to give me another latte," Mark told you, his eyes never tearing away from Michael.

"Why do you need another one?" you furrowed your eyebrows, "It's gonna keep you up all night."

"It's not for  _me_ ," he rolled his eyes.

"Who else would it be for?"

"Y/N," Michael greeted you with a smile. He slid the cup of hot chocolate Mark had placed in front of him over to you. "Here's your hot chocolate." You grinned happily, but before you could take the drink, Mark pushed it back to him.

"She wants a latte," he snapped.

"No, she doesn't," you and Michael said in unison, making the both of you smile slightly before you continued, "You know I don't like coffee, Mark."

"Come on, Y/N," he rolled his eyes, "Just drink a damn coffee."

"Hey," Michael intervened, narrowing his eyes at the man beside you, "Don't talk to her like that."

"She's  _my_  girlfriend, understand?  _Mine_. I will talk to her however the hell I want to talk to her."

"Not anymore," you stated confidently, causing both of them to look at you, "I'm sick of you always acting like you know what's best for me and treating other people like shit just because they're my friend."

"Babe-"

"Don't call me that," you scoffed, "I'm done." Mark shot one more glare at Michael before stomping out of the shop. You let out a puff of air, plopping down on one of the seats at the counter in front of the barista.

"I'm sorry," Michael whispered, looking down at his fingers as he fiddled with them on the counter top.

"Why are you sorry?" you asked, tilting your head as you reached for your hot chocolate once again.

"If I had just kept my mouth shut-"

"Michael," you smiled softly, putting your hand on his forearm so he would look up at you, "If you had kept your mouth shut, I'd be gagging on a latte right now." He couldn't help but laugh. "To tell you the truth, I've wanted to break up with him for a while now, I just haven't been brave enough. And yeah, maybe I'm a little bummed that it's finally happened, but he's not worth being upset over."

"Will you let me know when that is?" he whispered, his cheeks turning a rosy pink color. You gave him a questioning look, urging him to explain what he meant. "I've been wanting to ask you out ever since you first walked in here," he admitted, "But I wanna wait until you're over that jerk first."

"As far as I'm concerned, I'm already over him," you smirked.

~

_inspiration: http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/127826417873/bartistamichael-noticing-when-you-step-by-his_


	231. Unforgivable (Ashton Irwin) - Part 1

It had been a year and a half since the apocalypse officially ended – although walkers could still be found roaming the streets every once in a while. You, your boyfriend, and your three best friends had been together ever since you were in middle school and vowed to stick with each other until your last moments on Earth. Luckily, with the help of each other, you all managed to make it through the time of zombie-infested streets and being unsure of where your next meal was going to come from – if you even got to eat that day  _at all_.

Unfortunately, due to all the disease in the air and your limited supply of medicine, the five of you were incredibly prone to illness. But none of you were as affected by it as the youngest of your group was.

It seemed like every time Luke would recover from whatever he caught, he would catch something else a week later. Of course, it had gotten significantly better than it was in the beginning, but because of the scarcity of his immune system failing to hold up nowadays, you weren't always prepared. You would have to go out and search for medicine if you weren't in a city, but you always managed to come back with just what Luke needed.

It was one such day – Luke had been showing signs of coming down with something for a few hours now, but he always urged the group to keep going until you found a safe place to bunker down for a while. It wasn't until Luke had passed out as you were approaching a quiet neighborhood, each house looking as abandoned as the one next to it, that you were forced to find shelter to ride the newest illness out.

It was like clockwork these days; You and Ashton would set out to find some medicine while Calum and Michael stayed with Luke to ensure that he would be okay until your return. You and Ashton, however, searched for nearly four hours for a doctor's office or a pharmacy or  _something_ , but came back empty handed. It wasn't that you didn't find any of those buildings, it was just that other people who were simply passing through had taken the medicine you needed. You decided to check back at the house, hoping there would be something there Luke could take when he woke up.

"You find anything?" Calum asked as you and Ashton walked back into the house. You noticed Luke was in the same position he was when you left - lying on the couch in the living room.

"Nah," you sighed, "Every place we looked was clean of anything that would actually be useful. Has he woken up at all?"

"No," Michael shook his head, "We tried a few times, but he's out cold – probably will be for a little while longer." You nodded, letting your backpack fall off of your shoulder and setting it beside the door with everyone else's. You noticed Ashton hadn't moved though – still standing in front of the door with his hand on the knob.

"Ash..." you said slowly, "You okay?"

"I'm leaving," he said simply. You, Michael, and Calum looked at him with confused expressions.

"Leaving where? We already turned this town upside down looking for medicine."

Ashton brushed you off, leaving the house. The door slammed shut behind him and you looked at Michael and Calum for a moment before rushing outside as well.

"Ash!" you called, running after him, "Ashton, seriously, what are you doing?"

"We have to keep going," he replied monotonously.

"We can't keep going, Ashton!" you shook your head, "Luke needs us!"

"He's weak," he stopped, turning to look at you.

" _He's sick_!" you reminded him, "We can wait a few days until he gets better!"

"You don't get it, Y/N!" he shouted, making you jump back a couple steps and stare at him with wide eyes having never seen this side of him before. "He's not suited for life in this world! He's not a good fighter and he doesn't stand a chance if we're ever mobbed by walkers!"

"He doesn't  _have to_!" you shot back, "There are virtually no walkers left!"

"So what then? We bust our asses to nurse him back to health and then just wait for him to get sick again? I can't keep doing this!"

"So what you're suggesting is we leave Luke alone to die?" you heard Michael scoff in disbelief as he and Calum came up behind you, "Is that what you're wanting us to do?" Ashton gave you all a small shrug.

"You can either come with me or keep being held back by him," he stated.

"He is our  _best friend_ , Ashton!" Calum spoke up, "We're not just gonna desert him!" The two boys laughed bitterly at the emotionless expression on Ashton's face, heading back to the house to take care of Luke.

"Y/N," Ashton said, giving you the puppy dog eyes that always made you give into him. You slowly shook your head.

"That look's not gonna convince me this time, Ash," you whispered.

"It's either me or Luke, Y/N," he growled lightly. You stared at him for a moment before stepping forward. Ashton relaxed slightly when you put your hands on his cheeks and kissed him.

When you pulled away, you swallowed the lump in your throat.

"I love you, Ash," you told him, taking your hands back, "But it's gonna be Luke." Ashton's jaw tightened as he let out a puff of air, turning around and leaving without another word.

You wiped the tears from your face before you reentered the house, not wanting Luke to know what happened if he had woken up yet. You saw he was lying on the couch with Michael and Calum kneeling down beside him, trying again to wake him up. They looked up when they realized you had come inside, already able to tell by the look on your face that the news wasn't good.

You nodded for them to follow you as you went down the hallway. They quickly did so and all went into the bathroom as you searched for some medicine that Luke could take when he woke up, keeping your voices at a whisper – just in case.

"He  _actually_  left?" Calum shook his head.

"I can't believe him," Michael grumbled, grabbing a random towel and dampening it to hopefully break Luke's fever, "After everything we've been through together, I can't believe he would just leave."

"Maybe it's for the best," you sighed, "We can stay here and take care of Luke until he's better and then we'll get back on track without Ashton."

"So does that mean you guys are..."

"He made me choose between him and Luke," you said softly, breathing a sigh of relief upon finding the medicine Luke needed, "And I sure as hell wasn't going to leave Luke." Michael and Calum nodded understandingly, deciding not to delve further into the topic of your impromptu breakup.

As you and the boys were walking back to the living room, you started to hear a quiet groaning. Your eyes widened as you snatched the cloth from Michael's hand, sprinting over to Luke and dropping to your knees on the floor beside him. He tried to sit up, but you gently placed your hand on his shoulder, keeping him down.

"What happened?" he asked hoarsely, sighing in content as you laid the cool cloth on his burning forehead.

"You passed out," Michael answered, sitting on the adjacent couch with Calum to give you enough room to take care of Luke.

"Again?" he sighed.

"Yeah," you whispered, "Again."

You poured some of the medicine into a plastic spoon you had fished out of your backpack and carefully helped Luke sit up. He whined when he saw what was in your hand, shaking his head when you put it to his lips.

"You don't know where that's been," he pouted. You couldn't help but giggle at his child-like actions.

"It's all we have, Lukey," you said, "If you don't take it, you might get sicker before we come across a pharmacy or anything."

"Hey," Michael spoke up, "If it kills you, the rest of us will take and we'll all die together."

Luke raised his eyebrows at the blonde skeptically. You immediately stuck your pinky out, making the three boys chuckle. They linked their pinkies with yours, all of you unanimously agreeing that if one goes down, you all go down with them.

"What about Ashton?" Luke asked. He tilted his head at the sudden tension going around the room, but looked at you.

"He left," you said simply.

"Did he go to find more medicine?"

"No," you whispered again, "We... We had a fight and he left." You held the spoon back to his lips and he opened his mouth, swallowing the medicine in one gulp.

"He's gonna come back though, right?" He wrinkled his nose at the sour taste of the liquid. "And you guys are gonna make up and be okay again?" You took a bottle of water from your backpack, unscrewing the cap and giving it to Luke.

"I hope so, Lukey," you sighed as he took a drink, "I hope so."

~

**Six months later**

It had been six months since you last saw Ashton – and six months since Luke last got sick. You and the boys had been teaching him how to defend himself in the off chance that he would ever come across a walker when he was alone – or  _anyone_  trying to harm him for that matter – and you were amazed at how quick he was picking up on everything. He would still get freaked out from time to time and would need someone to help him, but he was doing remarkably well – a lot better than Ashton ever gave him credit for.

Luke would still ask about his best friend – still wondered what exactly made Ashton leave so suddenly. He seemed less hurt over the fact that Ashton had left at all than he was about him leaving without even saying goodbye. He stopped asking about it as frequently after a couple months though, noticing how uncomfortable it made you.

It wasn't until one brisk fall evening that you had come into contact with your ex-boyfriend again. You and Luke were outside on the front porch, watching out for any signs of looters or walkers. You both perked up – weapons gripped tightly in your hands – when you saw someone walking along the street quickly turn back around and go the way he came. Luke lowered his arm, a blank expression on his face as he looked at you, noticing you were clearly thinking the same thing.

"Was that Ashton?" he asked you. Your heart started pounding.

"Go inside," you ordered, "Tell Mikey and Calum that we might have seen Ashton, but don't come back out, got it?"

"But what if it's not and you get hurt?"

"I'll be fine, Lukey," you assured him, "You know I will. I'll use the knock when I come back, okay?" Luke nodded, quickly heading back inside.

You heard the lock click once the door closed behind him and jumped off the porch, racing in the direction the figure was last seen headed. When you reached the end of the street, you were met with an intersection. You looked to the right, just in time to see the figure hurry into a parking lot.

When you finally reached the entryway, the person realized their mistake of choosing this direction, a tall fence lining the perimeter of the lot. There was a hole large enough for them to climb through, but by the time they realized it, you were already there.

"Hey!" you called out, making the figure freeze – and that was how you knew it was him. When he didn't reply, you went on. "What are you doing here?"

"It's a free country," he mumbled, turning to face you, "This city doesn't have your name on it."

"Who  _are_  you?" you asked, your eyebrows knit together.

"You know who I am, Y/N," he rolled his eyes.

"No, I don't," you shook your head, your voice coming out as a whisper, "You're not my Ashton anymore; You're not the Ashton I fell in love with." You could almost see a hint of pain in his expression before he sucked in a deep breath.

"The end of the world changes you," he said simply, brushing past you and beginning to walk away.

"Luke always asks when you're gonna come back!" you called after him, making him stop but not look back, "He hasn't stopped asking since the day you left! But we can't bear to tell him the truth! How do you think he would feel if he knew he was the reason you left?!"

"He wasn't the rea-" You cut Ashton off, stomping toward him.

" _Yes, he was, Ashton_!" you exclaimed, grabbing his elbow and turning him to face you, "You left because he got sick and you wanted to leave him to fend for himself when you knew  _damn well_  he would have  _died_  without someone! He's a lot stronger than you  _think_  he is, Ashton," you growled, "It wasn't  _his_  fault he kept getting sick."

"If he's so fucking strong, then why don't you tell him I abandoned him, huh?!" Ashton shot back, ripping his arm out of your grip.

"Because it wouldn't be  _you_  he hated – it would be  _himself_ , and you know it!" you shouted. Ashton's breath hitched, knowing you were right.

Of course he missed Luke and he felt absolutely terrible for leaving him behind, but was he going to admit he was wrong?  _Never_. Swallowing his pride and owning up to any wrongdoing was never Ashton's strong suit – especially not after what he had done to his  _best friend_  of all people. Leaving Luke was one of the hardest decisions Ashton ever had to make, and even now – six months later – he wouldn't be able to give anyone a good reason as to why he did it.

Upon noticing the look on Ashton's face, your own anger faded dramatically. You both stood in silence as he looked at his feet, his fingers playing with the tattered bottom hem on his hoodie. You pursed your lips together, swallowed the lump in your throat, and took a step toward Ashton. You gently put your hands on his face, tilting his head up to look at you.

"We're still not gonna tell him," you said softly, stroking his cheekbones as he stared at you, "You know, maybe it's wrong of us to lie to him, but he doesn't need to know the truth."

You pulled his face to yours, kissing him the way you always used to – the way you used to when he was  _your Ashton_. When you pulled away, you watched his eyes flutter back open.

"And whenever you're ready to come back home, we'll be waiting for you," you told him, letting go of his face. "I love you, Ashton," you managed to choke out as you back away before turning around and heading back to the house. Ashton watched you as you left, letting out a defeated sigh as he walked in the opposite direction.

~

_inspired by: http://imagine5sosmembers.tumblr.com/post/93062302801/luke-imagine-when-you-cant-sleep-at-night_


	232. Unforgivable (Ashton Irwin) - Part 2

_"We're still not gonna tell him," you said softly, stroking his cheekbones as he stared at you, "You know, maybe it's wrong of us to lie to him, but he doesn't need to know the truth."_

_You pulled his face to yours, kissing him the way you always used to_ –  _the way you used to when he was your Ashton. When you pulled away, you watched his eyes flutter back open._

_"And whenever you're ready to come back home, we'll be waiting for you," you told him, letting go of his face. "I love you, Ashton," you managed to choke out as you back away before turning around and heading back to the house. Ashton watched you as you left, letting out a defeated sigh as he walked in the opposite direction._

~

You looked behind you, noticing Ashton was nowhere to be seen. You let out a bitter laugh, shaking your head. When you got back to the house, you did your secret knock – the knock you and the boys made up when you were in 6th grade when you were made  _the exception in their 'no girls allowed' club_  – and were immediately greeted the second they opened the door.

"Was it Ashton?" Luke asked, a hopeful look on his face as he grabbed your hand and pulled you inside. Your heart began to ache – he seemed so desperate for Ashton to come back and you couldn't bear to tell him the truth.

"No, Lukey," you sighed, "It wasn't Ashton." He hung his head and trudged back into the living room.

You saw Michael out of the corner of your eye as he stood at the kitchen door. You looked over at him and he nodded for you to come to him. You went into the room where he and Calum were heating up some leftover pizza.

"It was Ash, wasn't it?" Michael asked, speaking in hushed tones so Luke wouldn't hear. You didn't answer him, simply went to the fridge and got a bottle of water.

"I hate him," you muttered.

"No, you don't," Calum sighed, "As much as we want to, none of us hate him. I guess we just have to accept the fact that he doesn't want to be part of the team anymore."

"Then what do we tell  _Luke_?" your voice cracked.

"We'll figure something out," Michael assured you, coming up behind you and wrapping his arms around you, kissing the top of your head before resting his chin there, "But whatever we do, we're gonna be fine. We don't need him to make it through this."

"But it would still be nice to  _have him_  here," you whimpered, wiggling out of his arms and going into the bedroom before you started crying in front of them.

~

That night, you were sitting on the front porch steps, watching the trees move with the breeze. The boys had gone to sleep a couple hours ago, but you couldn't calm your mind enough to even consider resting. You were thinking about the way Ashton just up and left as if everything you'd ever been through meant nothing to him.

Maybe it was selfish of you to be more upset about him making you choose than you were about him leaving Luke, but you couldn't help it. You thought you – and the group – meant more to him than anything else, but clearly, you were wrong.

"Y/N?" you heard Luke whisper. You jumped slightly, never even having heard the door open or close. You quickly wiped your eyes before he sat down beside you. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Lukey," you murmured, "Go back to sleep."

"You're not fine, Y/N," he frowned, "You've been crying for the past 5 minutes."

"You saw that?" He nodded, making you sigh. "I just miss Ash is all. I'll be fine."

"I miss him too," Luke said, an understanding tone to his voice, "Do you think he'll ever come back?"

"I don't think so, Lukey," you replied.

"I'm sure he misses us though, don't you?" You looked at Luke as he was staring up at the stars. "He probably misses you the most though," he said thoughtfully, "You always were his favorite."

"I was his girlfriend," you chuckled softly, "I better have been his favorite." Luke laughed along, letting it taper off.

"He could never go a minute without talking about you though," he told you, "Even way before you started dating. You guys were so in love, Y/N... We really thought you were gonna get married one day."

"Yeah," you whispered, feeling a tear fall down your cheek, "So did I."

"Y/N,  _no_ ," Luke whined lowly, "I didn't mean to make you cry." He wiped the tear away with his thumb, then took your hand and held it on your lap, rubbing your knuckles soothingly.

"I know, Luke," you said, "It wasn't your fault;  _Nothing was_."

"What do you mean?" he tilted his head.

Before you could answer, you heard a stick snap as someone walked across the yard. You and Luke immediately jumped up – him pulling you behind him protectively. It wasn't until the unknown figure came out from the shadows that you two let your guards down. Your breath caught in your throat as Ashton made his way to where you were.

"Ash?" Luke's eyes were so wide, you thought they might actually pop out.

The moment Luke hurried forward and threw his arms around his best friend, you let out the shortest whimper. The two boys let go of each other to watch as you shook your head, going back inside. You ran to the bedroom Michael and Calum were sleeping in, tossing yourself over Michael so you landed in the middle of them, and began frantically shaking them awake.

"What's going on?!" Michael rushed while he and Calum shot up into a sitting position.

"Ashton," you breathed heavily, making their eyes widen much like Luke's had.

"You mean..." Calum trailed off. You nodded your head as quickly as you could without giving yourself a headache.

"Outside," you confirmed, "With Luke." The three of you glanced at each other before you were scrambling off the bed, practically shoving each other to get back outside.

The moment before you opened the door, you straightened yourselves out. You went back out just as Luke was telling Ashton that he had missed him, seeing the way Ashton bit his lip, obviously fighting back tears.

"Ashton," Michael's tone was surprised, almost as if he hadn't actually believed you when you said he was there.

"Where have you been, Ash?" Luke asked him, "You know what? Never mind; That doesn't matter right now. I'm just happy you're alive!" He had the biggest smile on his face as he hugged him again and you had to bite your tongue to keep yourself from audibly sobbing. "You came back to see Y/N, right?" he asked after he let go. Ashton glanced between you and Luke, tilting his head. "She said you guys had a fight and that's why you left," he explained, "But that's why you came back, right? So you guys can make up and be together again?"

Ashton remained speechless, still not having said a  _single word_  to any of you. He looked at you once again, making you let out a breathy, bitter laugh. You turned around and went back inside, not in the mood to hear whatever bullshit excuse he was going to give Luke about leaving.

You understood that it was a pretty hypocritical thing to do considering you'd been doing some lying of your own to the blonde for the past few months, but you could never make yourself tell him the truth. It was clear that Luke really did love Ashton and you didn't want to have to ruin that – even if it meant you had to stretch the truth a little.

Of course, you never expected Ashton to actually  _come back_.

**Ashton's POV**

The four boys stared at the door for a moment after it slammed shut behind you, unsure of what to do next. They turned back to face each other – Ashton still keeping quiet.

"Ashton," Calum finally spoke, his voice laced with resentment, "Aren't you going to say anything?" The brown-haired boy shrugged slightly.

"Well, if you don't tell him,  _I will_ ," Michael grumbled.

"What's going on?" Luke asked, eyebrows furrowed in confusion, "Tell me what, Ash?"

"Y/N and I  _did_  have a fight," he murmured, "But that wasn't why I left."

"Then why did you?"

Ashton looked at Michael and Calum, silently begging them to give him and Luke some privacy. The two boys reluctantly agreed, heading back inside to make sure you were alright.

Ashton and Luke sat down on the porch steps where you just were. Ashton was playing with the strings on his hoodie, doing all he could to avoid eye contact with Luke.

"You got sick," Ashton whispered, "And whenever you got better, you would just get sick  _again_ , so I took the selfish way out and left."

"You left because of  _me_?" Luke asked softly, his expression falling slightly.

" _No_ ," he said firmly, finally looking at him, "I left because I'm selfish and I thought that I would get places faster without having to stop all the time to nurse you back to health."

"But... But you're my best fri-"

" _No, I'm not_ , Luke," Ashton sighed, putting his elbows on his knees and his face in his hands, "Those guys  _inside_  are your best friends. They're the ones who stayed when things got tough – I'm the one who abandoned you when you needed me most. Best friends don't give up on each other; They don't give up like I gave up on you."

Silence lingered in the air for a few moments before anything was said again. Ashton expected Luke to be pissed – he knew he certainly would have been – but he was surprised by what left Luke's mouth.

"You're still gonna stay though, right?" he asked.

Ashton was taken aback, not understanding how Luke could be so eager for his return. Of course, he'd know Luke for  _years_  now and knew he was incredibly forgiving of people who had done him wrong, he just never expected him to simply get over something as unforgivable as leaving him in his time of need.

"You actually  _want_  me to come back?" Ashton's voice cracked, lifting his head up.

"You're my brother, Ash," Luke smiled slightly, "I still love you more than anything. Having you back – no matter the reasons you left in the first place – is the only thing I really ask for. I know you're feeling guilty and as long as you understand that what you did was  _really_  shitty, that's good enough for me."

Ashton didn't hesitate before throwing his arms around Luke's shoulders, pulling him into a tight hug. He felt Luke chuckle a bit as he hugged him back, although he knew he'd be doing a lot more to prove that he really was back for good.

"Ash," Luke said as the two pulled away, "I think there's one more person you should apologize to." Ashton let out a low whine.

"I don't think she's gonna be as forgiving as you though," he commented, standing up. Luke laughed, getting up as well, leading Ashton inside.

"Unfortunately, I can't help you there," he replied, "That's all on you."

"If I start screaming, please come save me."

Luke lifted his hand, patting Ashton's back, "You're on your own, man."

Ashton let out a breathy chuckle, "I guess I deserve that." The boys walked into the bedroom upstairs where you, Calum, and Michael were sitting on the bed, talking.

The three of you looked over at the doorway, going quiet as you looked at Ashton and Luke. The blonde gave you all a small smile, letting you know that he had forgiven Ashton. Michael and Calum nodded, silently forgiving him as well, but you were being incredibly stubborn.

Luke motioned for the boys sitting beside you to follow him, allowing you and Ashton some time alone. As they walked by Ashton, they gave him a quick hug, making you scoff under your breath. Luke closed the door after nudging a very nervous Ashton into the room.

You were sitting cross-legged in the middle of the bed, staring at your hands. You  _wanted_  to look at Ashton – you wanted to throw yourself into his arms and have everything go back to the way it used to be – but you couldn't. You were still undeniably upset with him even after all this time and no amount of time spent hugging him was going to change that.

"Y/N..." Ashton said softly as he finally began making his way to you. He sat down on the edge of the bed, scooting back so he could mirror how you were sitting. "I know you hate me, but-"

" _But nothing_ , Ashton," you snapped, "You think that just because Luke forgave you that I'm automatically going to as well?  _You left us_  – you left  _him_! He needed you and you decided that wasn't enough to stay! And to have the audacity to even  _consider_  making me choose between you two?! How much more of a fucking asshole can you be?! Do we really mean that little to you?!"

"You guys mean the  _world_  to me, Y/N –  _you know that_ ," Ashton said firmly, "What I did was incredibly selfish and wrong and if I could go back and stop myself from doing it, I would. You have no idea how miserable I've been without you guys! There were nights when I couldn't fall asleep because I felt so shitty about what I'd done! And when I  _was_  able to fall asleep, it was only because I was so tired from crying!" Ashton's voice softened when he noticed you were really thinking about what he was saying. "I did my apologizing to Luke for the things I did to him, Y/N, and he forgave me," he went on, "I'm not asking you to forgive me right away; All I'm asking is that you give me a  _chance_. I'm sure I still have a long road ahead with him and the rest of you to prove that I really  _do_  regret what I did, and I want you to know that I'm going to do  _whatever it takes_  to earn that trust back and hopefully be able to call you my girlfriend again." You were silent for a moment before untangling your legs from one another and getting off of the bed.

Ashton let out a defeated sigh, thinking you were going to leave, but was pleasantly surprised when he felt your hands on his face, tilting his head up as you leaned forward to kiss him. He scooted over to the edge of the bed, putting his hands on your hips and pulling you to stand between his legs.

"If Luke forgives you, then I guess I can too," you whispered, feeling Ashton smile and kiss you again. He moved back to look at you, his thumbs rubbing your hipbones gently as your hands slipped down to play with the strings on his hoodie.

"I love you, Y/N," he said quietly, almost as if he was scared you weren't going to say it back.

"I love you too, Ash," you replied, "And I want you to remember that in the next three seconds."

"Why?" he asked slowly, letting go of your hips.

You suddenly jerked one of the hands holding a hoodie string downwards, causing the other end to get lost somewhere in the middle of Ashton's hood. Before he could grab you again, however, you were already racing out of the room.

" _Y/N Y/M/N_!" you heard Ashton shout with a laugh as he got up and chased after you.

You ran into the kitchen where Michael, Calum, and Luke were searching for food, their heads snapping up when you squealed right after Ashton caught you. He lifted you off of your feet, taking you into the middle of the room with everyone else. The boys had their eyebrows raised, but there were smiles on their faces as they watched you giggle and try to free yourself from Ashton's arms, knowing you had forgiven him too.

"What's going on?" Luke asked when your laughter died down.

"Y/N did a  _very_  mean thing," Ashton pouted.

"You deserved it," you poked your tongue out at him, finally wiggling out of his grasp. You went to the counter, hopping up so you could sit down.

"I know," he replied, "But it was still mean." He leaned back against the counter between your legs, allowing you to wrap your arms around his neck and rest your chin on his shoulder while his thumbs lightly drummed on your thighs.

"What did she do?" Calum asked. Ashton simply pointed to his hoodie where they noticed one side was missing. They immediately busted out laughing.

" _Hey_!" Ashton whined, "It's not funny! This is a very serious problem! How am I meant to rescue the other side?!"

"You'll figure it out," Michael snickered, returning to his quest for food. Ashton heard you chuckle in his ear.

" _I love you, Ash_ ," you sang quietly, pressing quick kisses to the top of his jaw. He rolled his eyes, turning around so he could grab your face and kiss your lips properly.

"I love you too," he grinned, forgetting all about the lost hoodie string.

~

 

_inspired by: http://imagine5sosmembers.tumblr.com/post/93062302801/luke-imagine-when-you-cant-sleep-at-night_


	233. Clueless (Marshall Traver) - Part 1

It was just another Friday afternoon – you were sitting in your English class, listening to your teacher go on and on about yet another project. Truthfully, you weren't really paying attention, knowing the handout Mr. Goldstein was going to give you would have everything you needed to know anyway. However, when he mentioned the word  _partner_ , you perked up slightly.

You breathed a small sigh of relief when he announced that he would be assigning the groups – you didn't have any friends and you knew that when anyone asked you to be your partner, it was only because they knew they wouldn't actually be doing any work.

"Miss Y/L/N," your teacher said, taking your attention away from your thoughts, "You'll be working with Mr. Traver." You let out the breath you didn't realize you were holding.

You heard everyone groan quietly at hearing they weren't paired with you, but in the midst of those groans, you could hear laughing as well. You looked over your shoulder and saw Marshall's friends poking fun at him, making you sigh lightly. You turned back to face the front of the room – not even noticing the way Marshall was watching you – and sunk down in your seat.

Marshall Traver was high school royalty – practically  _destined_  to receive the title of prom king. There was never a moment when girls weren't hanging all over him in the hallways. Not that you minded, of course. If the attention on Marshall kept people away from putting attention on you, you certainly weren't going to complain.

You'd always been the target for bullies – you had been ever since freshman year. You thought that as time went on, they would get tired of picking on you and move on to someone else, but they never did. When you weren't being pushed around by the jocks, you were being verbally tormented by the popular girls. It was a never-ending cycle of shoves into walls and " _Did Mommy let you dress yourself this morning?_ "

When the bell finally rung to signal the end of another school day, you quickly gathered up your books and hurried out the door – you tried not to stick around for very long after school because that was when people liked to pick on you the most. While you were standing at your locker, packing up your homework, you heard someone approach you and lean against the locker next to yours.

They didn't make a bit of noise, but it still made you flinch, thinking it was another bully. Your head snapped up and you found Marshall looking at you with a curious expression on his face, obviously wondering why you had jumped. You both looked at each other for a moment before he said anything.

"So," Marshall chirped, crossing his arms over his stomach, "Since Mr. Goldstein only gave us two weeks to do our project, I figured we should probably go ahead and get started tomorrow."

"W-We?" you murmured, your voice so low that you didn't think he heard it.

"Yeah, we," he replied, "We're partners, Y/N. Did you think I was gonna make you do it by yourself?" You swallowed lightly when he said your name.

"I don't know... I just thought..." you trailed off.

"Well, I'm not," he told you, "So tomorrow?" You nodded your head slowly. "Cool," he smiled, "Do you want to come over to my house or should I go to yours? Or we could go to the library or something if you're more comfortable with that."

"Won't people see us if we go to the library?" you asked quietly, wondering why he would want to be seen with you  _outside_  of school.

"Come on, Y/N," he said, "Who goes to the  _library_  anymore?" You couldn't help but giggle, making him smile.

"Your house is fine," you said.

"Alright," he nodded, "Do you know where it is?" You shook your head no and he pulled out his phone. "Here," he said after creating a new contact and holding it out for you to take, "Put your number in. I'll text you tomorrow when you can come over." You did as he asked, blushing slightly when your hands touched as you gave the phone back to him. "I'll see you tomorrow, Y/N," he smiled, stuffing his phone back into his pocket and waving as he walked away.

~

Early the next afternoon, Marshall texted you with his address, telling you to come over whenever you were ready. You had been up all morning, getting an early start on your project. You didn't think he'd actually text you, to be quite honest, figuring he just said he wasn't going to make you do the work alone so you didn't feel as bad about having to be his partner. You thought about it for a moment before getting up to change out of your pajamas. Since he texted you, you felt that you should go to his place anyway.

Reading the directions Google maps gave you, you learned that Marshall only lived a couple blocks away, so you decided to walk. It was a bit chilly that day, but you didn't mind – you simply pulled a sweater over your head and put on your jeans before slipping on a pair of shoes. You put everything you would need into your backpack and headed out the door after letting your parents know where you were going.

Once you arrived at Marshall's house, you knocked on the door and patiently waited for someone to answer. It took a few moments, but Marshall finally got there, cheerfully greeting you and moving out of the way so you could come inside. He led you to the dining room where he already had his books lying on the table.

"My parents aren't home right now," he told you, "I hope that's okay."

You nodded, sitting down and beginning to take your books out of your bag. You had put your notebook in your textbook so you didn't lose your place and when you put it on the table, you heard Marshall sigh.

"Did you get started already?" he asked, making you look up at him. You nodded sheepishly, sinking down in your chair. "Y/N," he smiled slightly, not wanting you to think he was actually upset with you, "I told you; We're gonna work on this together, so you don't need to do any extra work."

"Sorry," you whispered, looking down at your hands.

"You know, Y/N," Marshall said softly, "You really need to stop letting people take advantage of you."

"Easy for you to say," you muttered, "People won't do anything if  _you_  tell them no." You dug your pen out of your bag and opened your textbook, hoping Marshall would get the hint that you didn't want to talk about it anymore. Fortunately, he did, simply sighing again and opening his own book.

~

A little over half an hour later, you and Marshall were still working. It had been mostly silent, only a few instances of " _Do you think we should include this?_ " thrown around here and there.

But as time went on, you could feel Marshall beginning to pay more attention to you than to the words in front of him. You finally looked up at him to see if he was actually staring and he was, his head barely tilted to the right.

"Do you need help with something?" you asked him. He cocked an eyebrow as if to ask what you meant. "You keep staring at me," you answered the unspoken question, "Figured you wanted something."

"I do," he said confidently, "A  _someone_ though, not a something."

"Well, you can go get them after we're done here then."

"Don't think she'll want much to do with me after we're done here."

"Why?" you raised an eyebrow, "She getting tired of waiting? We can go ahead and call it a day if you want."

"She's doesn't seem very interested actually," he shrugged.

You scoffed lightly, "I doubt that."

"Why do you doubt it?" he asked, closing his book. You rolled your eyes.

"Because boys are clueless," you answered, looking back down at your book, "Never notices when a girl likes them."

You were reading the material, jotting down notes every now and then, and you could still feel Marshall's stare. You sighed lightly, but continued trying to ignore it.

When another few minutes passed and he still hadn't so much as glanced at the book in front of him, you finally spoke up.

"Marshall," you looked at him again, "Seriously. Why do you keep staring at me?"

"Because you're fascinating," he chuckled, "I like to look at fascinating things."

"I'm  _fascinating_?" you gave him a somewhat sarcastic laugh, "Okay, I'll play along. What's so  _fascinating_  about me that you can't manage to look away for  _two seconds_?"

"Everything," he answered simply, "But right now, it's the way you're reading that book. You're chewing on your lip and twirling the same strand of hair around your finger over and over. You seem so lost in the words you're reading – like if you stopped and thought about something else even for a  _second_ , everything you read would just disappear. I could write a  _book_  about how fascinating I find you, you know. Kinda makes me wonder how you would act if you were as into a  _person_ as you are the things you read."

You stared at him for a moment before looking back down at your book. You never thought someone could be captivated by the way you read, and to now know that that someone was  _Marshall_ made your heart flutter. It confused you as to why he would pay so much attention to you when he could have literally any girl he wanted, but you would be lying if you said you didn't enjoy it.

"We have to do this project, Marshall," you swallowed, not really sure what else to do.

Marshall stood up, moving around the table and taking new residence on the chair next to you. He took the pen out of your hand and set it down, then wrapped his thumb, index, and middle fingers around your chin. Your heart skipped a beat as he lifted your head back up so he could look into your eyes.

"What do I have to do to get you to look at  _me_  like that?" he whispered. You didn't know where the comment came from, but once the first word left your mouth, you didn't bother stopping the rest.

"Maybe try to not be so clueless," you told him. You saw the corner of his mouth twitch into a smirk.

"Would I be crazy if I asked to kiss you right now?" he asked.

"Completely," you stated, leaning forward and pressing your lips to his.

~

_inspiration: http://fivesaucekisses.tumblr.com/post/128519877759/what-i-questioned-looking-up-from-my-book-and_


	234. Clueless (Marshall Traver) - Part 2

"We've been working for the past  _six hours_ , Y/N," Marshall whined, throwing his head back onto the couch.

"I've been here for 45 minutes, Marshall," you giggled softly while he drew random shapes on your thighs as they laid across his lap.

"Exactly! We need a break!"

"You're unbelievable," you shook your head, slipping your pencil into the spiral of your notebook.

"Unbelievably handsome?" he smirked, "I agree."

"Sure," you nodded, "If you have to tell yourself that to get this project done."

"I don't  _have_  to tell myself something that's already true, darling," he squeezed your thigh to make you laugh again.

"We have less than three days to finish this thing, Marshall," you said.

"It's already done!" he reminded you.

"It's not  _perfect_ ," you replied.

"It doesn't need to be  _perfect_ , Y/N," he sighed.

"Yes, it does!" you let out an exasperated sigh, "If we fail, then you're gonna get a bad grade and everyone's gonna blame me and I-"

"The only person who's going to blame you is yourself," he rubbed your skin gently, leaning over and pressing a kiss to your forehead. "One bad grade isn't going to kill me and it's not going to kill you either. But with the way this project looks, we don't have to worry about anything less than an  _A-_." He looked at you intently, but the moment was interrupted by a knock on the door.

"You should get that," you said quietly.

Marshall pursed his lips together, a small sigh leaving through his nose. You moved your legs so he could get up, putting them back down once he did so. He went to the front door, opening it to find one of his friends grinning slyly at him.

"Hey, Marshall!" Trevor exclaimed, "Come on, man! Let's go party!"

"I told you I can't tonight," Marshall rolled his eyes.

"You've been getting  _way_ too into this assignment, man," he shook his head, pushing past Marshall and coming into the house. He looked over at the couch to look at you, "Now pull whatever the hell is up your ass out, Marshall, and tell this loser to go home."

You simply shifted your gaze between Marshall and Trevor. When you didn't move, he narrowed his eyes at you.

"Maybe you didn't hear me," he growled, " _Leave_." Before you could even consider closing your book, Marshall spoke again.

"She's not going anywhere, Trevor," he informed his friend, "We've got a project due on Monday."

"Since when do you associate with people like  _her_?" Trevor scoffed, turning his attention back to Marshall, "You never bothered with her before this stupid project and you won't bother with her when it's over, so you might as well stop acting like you care about her now." With that, he left, slamming the door behind him. Marshall sighed again, going back over to the couch. You were chewing on your inner cheek, thinking about the things Trevor had said.

He was right; Marshall never seemed to notice when you were around before. The only reason he noticed now was because you were project partners. So what if he kissed you back? That didn't mean he wasn't going to drop you after you got the  _A_.

"Hey," Marshall said softly, kneeling down in front of you, "Don't you start that with me, Y/N. He was just trying to get a reaction from you. I cared about you before this project and I'm going to care about you long after it's over."

"You never talked to me before," you whispered, looking down at the book on your lap.

"In my defense, that was only because I thought you didn't like me," he told you.

" _Whatever_ ," you snorted quietly.

"It's true!" he chuckled, placing a hand back on your thigh, "Remember when Mr. Goldstein assigned partners? I saw you look back at me and sigh."

"Your friends were making fun of you," you mumbled.

"Because they know I like you."

"You do?" you asked, finally looking at him.

"Mhmm," he confirmed with a nod, taking your book off of your lap and putting it on the coffee table behind him. Before you could ask him was he was doing, he climbed onto the couch, lying on top of you.

" _Marshall_ ," you groaned at the sudden weight, but wrapped your arms around him anyway. His face was pressed to your neck, the cool metal lip ring causing your body to erupt in goose bumps.

As you were trying to wiggle him off of you, the front door opened. Marshall's mother had just returned from work, raising an eyebrow at the scene in front of her.

"What's going on here?" she asked slowly, closing the door behind her.

"A slow and painful death by means of suffocation," you answered, making her chuckle.

"Marshall, sweetie, quit suffocating your girlfriend," she told him.

"She's not my girlfriend, Mom!" he whined as if he'd told her that before.

"Sure she's not," she scoffed lightly, going into the kitchen. You looked at Marshall and noticed his cheeks were turning a light shade of pink, making you smile to yourself.

"Am I really suffocating you?" Marshall mumbled into your skin.

"Depends on whether or not you consider crushing my lungs to be a form of suffocation," you replied, your fingers playing with the ends of his hair. He turned so he was sandwiched between you and the back pillows of the couch, his face never leaving your neck.

"Sorry," he whispered. After a couple minutes, you heard Marshall's breathing become slower and even out.

"Not falling asleep on me, are you?" you murmured.

"Maybe," he replied softly.

"Staying home on a Friday night working on a project with your loser of a partner and then falling asleep before 10 is really gonna trash your reputation – especially when they find out you kissed her."

"I seem to remember that afternoon happening differently," you felt him smile, "I only  _asked_  if I could kiss you; You were the one who kissed me."

"You still kissed back."

"I'd do it again too."

"Prove it."

Marshall lifted his head up, pushing himself toward your face with his forearm. He stopped when his nose was touching yours. You didn't make a move, making him cock an eyebrow.

"Aren't you gonna do something?" he muttered.

"Nah," you grinned, "Wanna see how long you can last."

"That is a cruel and unusual punishment that I in no way deserve," he pointed out. You giggled softly, tilting your face just enough so that your lips brushed against his.

"How badly do you want to kiss me?" you asked. You suddenly felt him press his lips to yours.

"Pretty badly," he mumbled into your mouth, making you smile victoriously.

"Honey!" Marshall's mom called out, walking toward the living room, "Is your girlfriend staying for dinner?" He pulled away with a sigh, resting his forehead on yours.

"Not my girlfriend," he told her.

"You keep saying that," you could hear her smile, leaning against the doorway, "And then I find you like this." His head returned back to your neck as his mom addressed you. "Are you staying, dear?"

"I'm afraid he doesn't want me here, Mrs. Traver," you sighed dramatically, "I'm just another project partner to him."

"Shut up," Marshall whispered, kissing your skin lightly.

"Not your girlfriend," his mom nodded, exiting the room again and smiling to herself, "Right."


	235. Clueless (Marshall Traver) - Part 3

_requested by Stiles_Lover on wattpad_

~

**Three months later**

' _Not my girlfriend_ ' seemed to be a lot more serious than you thought.

Sure, Marshall would kiss you in front of people and no one doubted that there was something going on between the two of you, but every time someone mentioned it, he would either brush it off or tell them you weren't his girlfriend. It was confusing the way he was acting about it; Like he didn't want to be tied down by a relationship so he could flirt with other girls, but if another boy began showing interest in  _you_ , you were suddenly unavailable.

"So what color is your dress for prom gonna be?" Marshall asked you after school one day, leaning against the locker next to yours.

"Why?" you returned, slipping your arms through your jacket sleeves and fixing the collar.

"Well, I was gonna buy a matching tie."

"What would you need a matching tie for?" you cocked an eyebrow, briefly looking at him before returning to putting your homework in your backpack.

"I mean, we're obviously going to prom together," he said in a confused tone.

"Are we?" you asked dryly, "Because you haven't asked me yet. Maybe I'm already going with someone else."

"You're not going with someone else, Y/N," he replied, a frustrated expression on his face.

"And why not? I'm not your girlfriend, remember?"

"But you-"

" _But nothing, Marshall_ ," you snapped, "You are constantly telling people we're not together and I am sick and tired of sitting around and waiting for you to decide. It's not fair that  _I_  sit back and watch all these girls come up and start flirting with you while  _you flirt back_ , but I'm not allowed to even  _look_ at a guy that  _isn't you_." You threw your backpack over your shoulder as you sprinted away, praying you wouldn't miss your bus. A small part of you hoped Marshall would chase after you, but he didn't.

And that left you with some thoughts of your own: Why would he keep telling people you weren't a thing when he would clearly act that way with you all the time? It was no secret that Marshall wasn't afraid to show girls off – and his crush on you was no different now that you actually knew about it. But if he wasn't afraid of other people knowing about it, why wouldn't he ask you to officially be his girlfriend?

~

**Two weeks later**

You were sitting in your World Geography class, listening to your teacher go on about the projects she'd assigned yesterday. She had paired you up with Jacob Henderson and, despite the fact that Jacob was constantly making fun of you, you were happy that you weren't paired with Marshall. Unfortunately though, as it seemed everything was happening these days, things didn't stay in your favor for very long.

"Miss Y/L/N," Mrs. Walker said, making you look up and her. Everyone else looked up at well out of sheer curiosity. "I've decided that you and Miss Montez will switch partners," she announced, "So Miss Montez-" She looked at the black-haired girl a couple rows over. "-You will be working with Mr. Henderson, and you-" She turned back to you. "-will be working with Mr. Traver." You couldn't help the bitter laugh that passed your lips.

"Did Marshall ask you to switch partners?" you asked, earning shocked looks from everyone in the room. You were never one to respond to a teacher this way – you usually just accepted it and moved on. But everyone knew why you were acting out now: because of Marshall.

"I don't believe it makes any difference," Mrs. Walker answered.

"So he did is what you're saying," you nodded, crossing your arms and leaning back in your seat. The uncomfortable silence was interrupted by the bell for lunch ringing, causing everyone to jump.

"Miss Y/L/N, Mr. Traver: stay," Mrs. Walker sighed, "Everyone else: enjoy your lunch." Your classmates immediately filed out of the room as quickly as they could while you and Marshall remained in your seats. "You two," Mrs. Walker said, motioning to the two seats in front of her, "Right here."

You rolled your eyes, moving from your seat to the one on your teacher's left while Marshall shyly moved up to the one on her right. She didn't say anything for a moment, causing Marshall to start bouncing his leg slightly.

"Y/N," Mrs. Walker finally spoke, "What's going on? This isn't like you."

"Did he ask you to switch?" you asked her again, your expression more relaxed. She nodded, making you laugh dryly. " _Typical_ ," you muttered, "Honestly, Marshall, what are you gaining from this?"

"I seem to recall you being constantly picked on by Jacob," Marshall commented, "I thought I'd do you a favor."

"A  _favor_!  _Wow_!" you exclaimed, hitting the desktop lightly, leaning forward, and looking at him, "I didn't realize that you were doing me  _a favor_ , Marshall!  _Thank you_! I guess that makes everything okay then!"

"Is this something that would be better sorted out by you two talking alone?" Mrs. Walker asked, "Because I will happily give you the room for as long as you need."

"To tell you the truth, I'd rather talk to my counselor about switching class periods, but we can't always get what we want – well...  _Most of us_  can't anyway," you shrugged, smiling innocently at the boy next to you.

She sighed again, "Just go to lunch, cool off, and I'll decide what to do about your project when you come back."

You instantly got up, leaving the room and going to your locker. You put in the combination, grabbed your lunch, and shut the door, not even realizing Marshall was there until you turned around. He stepped toward you, backing you up until you hit the wall.

"Are you just about done making a scene about everything?" he asked lowly, his forearms on either side of your shoulders. Your faces were so close together that, honestly, if you weren't so pissed at him, you probably would have kissed him right then and there.

"Are you just about done acting like a douche?" you shot back just as quietly, narrowing your eyes at him.

"I am  _not_ acting like a douche."

" _Really_?" you laughed bitterly again, "Because you glare at  _any_ boy who looks at me, you asked Mrs. Walker to switch partners because I was paired with  _another_ boy, and you keep acting like some overprotective boyfriend even though  _we're not together_  and it's  _really_ getting on my nerves."

"So it's  _my_ fault for acting like a boyfriend?" he rolled his eyes.

" _I'm not your girlfriend, Marshall_!" you said loudly, "You'd think with how many times you've said that to everyone, you'd understand!" You ducked under his arm, walking away from him to go to the cafeteria.

"So all those times we spent at each other's houses didn't mean anything at all then?" he called after you.

You turned to face him again, now walking backward slowly. You threw your arms up and shrugged.

"Apparently not as much as I thought they did," you couldn't avoid the break in your voice, turning back around before he could see how hurt you actually were.

But Marshall knew; He saw the way your upper body jolted as that one small sob escaped your mouth and the way your arm bent as your fingers wiped the tear from your eye before it had the chance to fall down your cheek. And you didn't know it, but he'd already begun formulating a plan to win you back, just hoping it would all work out in the end.

~

**Marshall's POV**

**One month later; Prom night**

Marshall had asked you two weeks before prom to go with him. You hadn't  _exactly_ said no – you simply shrugged and turned away from him – but he had no idea if you were actually going to show up. He kept his outfit simple – a white button-up, black tie, black blazer, and black dress pants and shoes to match – since he didn't know what you would be wearing if you  _did_ end up coming.

He was nervous, to say the least – his plan for getting you back was really only counting on you walking through the gymnasium doors and him winning prom king. He hadn't been doing much dancing with his friends either, his eyes never leaving any door you could come in from. A few girls had tried to convince him to join them on the dance floor – especially when slow songs came on – but none of them were more persistent than Jennifer Moore.

Jennifer Moore had been one of those girls that were always hanging around Marshall long before you ever came into the picture. So it was needless to say she was pretty upset when you came along and started getting all the attention  _she_ wanted. But now that you were upset with Marshall and hardly speaking to him, she took the chance to swoop in.

That, however, wasn't going  _quite_ the way she planned.

After you made it clear you were mad at him for flirting with other girls, Marshall had completely just stopped talking to girls altogether. It killed him knowing that you hated him and everyone could see that. The person that used to go out on the weekends and party with his friends now preferred to stay at home and spend time with you. But now, without you, he just seemed  _lost_.

When it finally came time to announce prom king, Marshall still hadn't seen you. He sighed to himself as the principle stepped onto the stage with a microphone in his hand.

"Alright, guys," Mr. Mackey grinned, "What do you say we crown ourselves a prom king?" The group in front of him cheered. He opened the envelope in his hand and, to no one's surprise, announced, "Marshall Traver!"

Marshall barely smiled as everyone cheered again, watching him make his way to the stage. Mr. Mackey put the crown on his head, then handed him the tiara, telling him to pick someone to be prom queen. Everyone was quiet as he looked around the room, and when a smile appeared on his face, they all looked toward the back, watching you enter the gym.

Marshall stood there for a moment, mesmerized by the way you kept your eyes on the ground, making sure not to step on your dress, noting that you walked surprisingly well for someone who insisted that heels were ' _a social construct used to further objectify a woman's body and were in no way comfortable to wear on any occasion_ '.

But Marshall was in awe, honestly. The long, sky blue dress made you look like you'd just stepped out of a fairy tale – which further proved to himself that you really were a princess;  _His princess_.

When you finally looked up, your eyebrows furrowed when you realized everyone was staring at you. Your eyes met Marshall's as he stepped off of the stage, your heart racing as he walked toward you. You had to admit he looked handsome – then again, when  _didn't_  he?

" _Marshall_!" you heard Jennifer screech, watching her yank on the boy's arm, pulling him back to her, "If you give that loser that crown, we're done."

"You can't end what never started, Jennifer," he stated dryly, taking his arm back and continuing his walk to you. "Y/N," he said softly, holding his hand out to you, "Come with me? Please."

"What are you doing, Marshall?" you swallowed thickly, shaking your head slowly in disbelief that he was actually doing this in front of everyone.

"I'm crowning my queen," he smiled, reaching for your hand and pulling you up on stage.

"Marshall..."

"I figured with all these people watching, you wouldn't say no," he said shyly.

"Say no to what?"

"Being my girlfriend," he answered loudly enough for everyone to hear him while placing the crown on top of your head.

You looked at him for a moment, everyone staring in anticipation. It was obvious Marshall was starting to get nervous when you still hadn't said anything. While you wanted to make him wait even longer, you figured he'd finally realized how dumb he'd been acting.

"Take me on a date first and we'll see," you answered.

Marshall rolled his eyes but smiled widely at knowing you hadn't rejected him. He grabbed your cheeks and pulled your face to his, making everyone cheer.

When he pulled back, he took your hand again and brought you to the dance floor. The DJ for the dance started playing your favorite slow song, making you raise an eyebrow at Marshall as he put his arms around your waist.

"Oh, right, this is your favorite song!" he gasped dramatically. You couldn't help but smile, wrapping your own arms around his neck.

"You trying to reel me back in, Traver?" you asked.

"Is it working?" he asked shyly.

"Yeah," you murmured, "It's working."

He smiled, squeezing your waist lightly, "You look beautiful."

"You don't look too bad yourself," you grinned, pressing a quick kiss to his nose.

"I'm sorry for being a jerk," he mumbled, "I should've known you'd get mad about me flirting with other girls – especially when I wouldn't let other guys flirt with you. And I just want you to know that I haven't even been talking to other girls since then."

"I know," you stated simply.

" _You know_?" he tilted his head.

"I ran into your mom when I was at the store with mine the other day," you answered, "She said you keep moping around and you won't leave the house." He groaned under his breath, making you giggle softly. "You know, she guilt tripped me into coming tonight," you informed him, "Said I would have looked back on my high school years and regretted not going to prom."

"So she can convince you to say yes in less than 5 minutes, but I can't get more than a shrug?" he tickled your sides lightly, making you squeak in surprise.

"Hey, if she  _hadn't_  convinced me, I wouldn't be here right now. And you probably would have given the crown to Jennifer and you'd be dancing with her instead."

"Like  _hell_  I would be," he scoffed, hugging you tighter.

~

_the crowning moment during prom inspired by "Picture This"_


	236. Broken Home (Calum Hood) *

**Warning: Parents fighting, panic attacks**

~

You woke up to sound of glass breaking, making you whine lowly as you buried yourself further into your mattress. Your parents were fighting again, never mind the fact that it was almost 4am. This was the norm for you – jolting awake due to another one of your mom and dad's screaming matches, being scared to death when they suddenly got quiet, not knowing whether or not one of them had taken it a little too far that time, and grabbing your phone to call your boyfriend in the ungodly hours of the morning.

Calum was nothing short of an angel in your book. He never complained when you woke him up at 3am, he was always there to talk you through your panic attacks, and he didn't mind constantly reassuring you that he still wanted you despite your attempts at convincing him he shouldn't. You weren't sure if love existed, but if it did, you knew that you loved him.

"Y/N, what's wrong?" Calum asked groggily the moment he answered your call. You couldn't get anything other than broken sobs out and when he heard the faint sounds of shouting, he knew exactly why you called. "I'll be over in 5, okay? Open your window."

"Thank you," you whimpered before he hung up.

As promised, Calum was climbing into your bedroom a few minutes later. Your parents were still arguing downstairs and you were curled up in a ball under your blanket. He could hear you crying softly, which understandably made his heart sink. Calum hated it when you cried over your parents' fights – especially in front of him – because he knew nothing he could say or do would make anything better.

"Hey, baby," Calum whispered, placing his hand on the blanket where he thought your shoulder was, "You're safe, princess. I'm here now."

You immediately threw your blanket down to your hips and pulled Calum on top of you without any warning. He huffed lightly, moving quickly to get his weight off of you, but you stopped him.

"No," your voice cracked, hugging him tighter, "Stay."

"I don't want to crush you, babe," he told you.

"Don't care," you mumbled. Calum simply nodded, letting you squeeze him for as long as you needed to while he pressed kisses on every bit of skin he could reach.

When you finally allowed him to roll off of you, you cuddled into his side. He wrapped his arms around you and began playing with your hair. Your parents' shouting had died down by this point, so you and Calum spoke in whispers so they didn't know he was there.

"Cal," you said softly.

"Yeah, babe?" he replied.

"I'm sorry I annoy you so much..."

"Who said you annoy me?" he asked, moving a bit so he could see your face.

"No one," you sniffled, "But I know I do. Nobody likes being called at 3:30 almost every morning."

"I've told you before, Y/N, I don't care when you need me: You will  _never_ be bothering me. When I asked you to be my girlfriend, you warned me about your baggage and I told you that I was always going to help you carry it, remember? And I intend on keeping that promise for the rest of my life." You let out a shaky breath against his skin.

"I think I'm in love with you, Calum, and I'm really scared," you confessed. You had your face buried in his chest, so you missed the grin that began spreading across his face. You did, however, feel his heart beat faster and his lips hit your forehead and stay there.

"Why does that make you scared?" he replied, his voice muffled by your skin.

"My mom and dad promised all that stuff too," you whimpered, your eyes getting watery again. Calum started rubbing your back, pressing soft kisses to your head again. "But now, they can't even stand to hear each other's  _names_. They keep talking about getting a divorce and I know the only reason they're still together is because of me. And I hate knowing  _I'm_  the reason they're unhappy."

"It's not your fault, Y/N," Calum said firmly, "Maybe they think that it's better to stay together for you, but that's only because they don't know what it's doing to you. You have to tell them how you're feeling or else it's just gonna get worse and you know that." You were silent for a moment, knowing he was right.

"I don't wanna end up like that," you said, "I wanna be as in love with someone on my last day on Earth as I was when I met them. I wanna be able to be those parents that our kids are embarrassed by in front of their friends but secretly hope to have a relationship like ours one day. I just wanna be  _happy_..."

"And you're going to find that one day, babe," he told you, "You're gonna come home to someone who lights up when they see you and who feels like their heart is going to jump right out of their chest when you kiss them – whether that's with an old flame, someone completely new, or me." Your heart skipped a beat at the thought of being able to spend the rest of your life with Calum. "And to be quite honest..." he trailed off so you would look up at him. He smiled slightly, kissing your forehead. "I'm really hoping it's going to be me." You blushed a bright red, making Calum's smile get bigger. "You're not gonna end up like your parents, babe," he promised you.

"How do you know?" you sighed. He leaned in, closing the small amount of space between your faces, and pressed his lips to yours.

"I love you, Y/N," Calum said, pulling back just enough so that his words weren't muffled but his lips were still brushing yours, "I've never felt the way I feel about you before. I want nothing more than to be able to spend the rest of my life with you – no matter how much baggage may come with you."

~

**Two weeks later**

While your parents were at work one morning, you finally decided to take Calum's advice and drove to a local attorney's office. You talked with him for a while and by the time you left, you were holding a stack of papers tightly in your hand. You drove back home and sat in silence until you heard your mom's car door close outside, making you jump. Your dad got home a few minutes later and the second he stepped into the house, they started arguing.

You looked over at your desk where you hid the papers from the attorney under a few random notebooks, but you couldn't make yourself get them and take them out to your parents. You reached for your phone and unlocked it, going to Calum's name in your contact list. You were about to call him when you stopped yourself.

 _No, Y/N,_  you closed your eyes and took a breath,  _You don't need to bother him about this. You can handle it. Just block it out._

But, almost as if he  _knew_  something was wrong, your ringtone began playing and Calum's name popped up on your screen. You couldn't help but let out a breathy chuckle; He always knew.

"Hi, Cal," you said softly after accepting the call.

"I'm coming over," he stated simply.

"Cal, ple-"

"I know something's wrong, Y/N," he said firmly, "I can feel it." You were quiet for a moment.

"Meet me at our spot?" you suggested. You could tell he was nodding furiously, already hurrying throughout his home.

"See you in 5," he said, hanging up the call.

~

"What's wrong?" Calum asked you the second you climbed into the small cave.

You had accidentally come across this area in your town on a day you sneaked out while your parents were fighting. It was your place of solitude; The only place you really felt safe – before you met Calum, of course. You had met Calum right here, in your little cave, a little shocked to find someone else there to say the least.

_Flashback_

Your parents were arguing again one morning – of course, when  _weren't_  they anymore? – so you climbed out of your bedroom window and ran to the woods near your house. You didn't stop until the cave was in site, then slowing down to a walk. You wiped your cheeks – although the effort was pointless since the tears were still falling – and dropped down to your knees at the entrance. As you were crawling in, you looked up and saw a dark-haired boy staring curiously at you, making your eyes widen slightly.

"S-Sorry," you sniffled, "I didn't know anyone else knew about this place." You began to back out of the cave, but his voice stopped you.

"Wait," he said, grabbing your forearm gently, "Are you okay?"

"I-I'm fine," you replied, whimpering as you tried to pull yourself from his grip. He wouldn't let go, however, which instantly sent you into a panic attack.

The only things you'd ever known when seeing someone's arm being grabbed were things that never ended prettily, so it was understandable for you to have reacted the way you did. You plopped down on the ground, tears now falling down your cheeks at a steady pace, and you felt like you couldn't breathe. The boy finally released you, his eyes widening at the scene he had caused, not immediately knowing what to do, but quickly regaining his composure and springing into action.

He hurried to move in front of you, sitting cross-legged with your knees touching. He cautiously reached for your hands, holding them tightly in his when you didn't move away. He started rubbing circles with his thumbs, maintaining eye contact the best that you would allow.

"What's your name?" he asked lowly. You managed to stutter it out, surprising even yourself as you wouldn't usually be able to speak in the midst of one of your attacks. "Y/N?" he asked, smiling slightly. You nodded. "Y/N," he repeated, "I'm Calum. I need you to breathe for me, okay?"

"I c-ca- I can't," you choked.

"Yeah, you can," he told you, "Watch me." He started breathing in and out deeply, squeezing your hands. You squeezed back and started to mimic his actions, slowly calming down again.

It took a few minutes, but your heart rate finally returned to normal. Your cheeks turned a light shade of red, a bit embarrassed that you had just had a panic attack in front of a complete stranger.

"Sorry," you whispered, looking down at the hands still holding yours.

"I'm sorry I triggered that," he told you, letting go of you.

You didn't know what it was, but there was a sudden coldness that engulfed your hands the moment he released you. You shrugged it off though, thinking it was just a draft – logically, of course, the air was absolutely still, but you didn't want to take that into consideration just yet.

"It's okay," you said, watching as he scooted back to his spot against the cave wall, "You didn't know." Calum looked at you for a moment and you were beginning to feel a bit self-conscious under his gaze, so you started inching your way back to the entrance of the cave.

"You know," Calum's voice stopped you again, "You can stay if you want to... I don't mind the company." You felt your cheeks get hot again, both of you staring at each other before you made a move. You crawled over and sat next to him, making him show off a little blush of his own.

"So..." you said after a few moments of silence, "How did you find this place?"

"Just walking around one day," he shrugged, "I was hanging out with some friends and had actually gotten lost-" He chuckled lightly at the memory as he looked around the cave. "-and I stumbled across this place. It's nice and quiet – a good place to come think or get away from everything – so I try to come as often as I can to clear my head. What about you?"

You paused for a moment. You tried to come up with some sort of lie so he didn't think you were a pity party waiting to be thrown, but when you looked at him and saw the look he was giving you – one that showed he genuinely was concerned as to why you came here crying – you decided to tell him the truth.

"My parents fight a lot," you whispered, looking back at your hands, "They were screaming at each other really loud this one afternoon and I couldn't take it anymore, so I decided to sneak out for a while. I wasn't really looking for anything – I just needed out of the house – but I found this cave and... I don't know, I guess I fell in love if that's even possible," you mumbled the last half of the sentence, rendering Calum speechless. He had only known you for 20 minutes, but he could see just how much pain your home life caused you.

You saw him turn his hand over on his thigh and hold it open, making you look up at him again. He was giving you a look that said he was sorry for what you were going through, but it was like you knew it wasn't just the automatic reaction. You put your hand in his and he tangled your fingers together, his thumb rubbing circles again. You let out a breath of content, finally allowing yourself to be relaxed around another person for the first time in a long time.

Throughout the day, you found yourself in fits of uncontrollable laughter –  _genuine laughter_  – and it made you wonder why you couldn't have run into Calum sooner. He was like your ray of sunshine; Some sort of light at the end of the tunnel you'd been trying to get out of for 22 years.

You forced yourself away from the thoughts, however; You knew you were only feeling this way because he was giving you attention. But you couldn't ignore the fact that he would blush and look away every time you glanced at him.

Unfortunately, the day was coming to an end. You had to get home before your parents realized you were gone, not wanting to stir up another pointless argument. You and Calum exited the cave and began walking back up the trail.

"I had a lot of fun today, Calum," you said when you got back to the main road, "It was really nice to meet you." You gave him a friendly smile, beginning to walk away. You felt his eyes on you and you could tell he wasn't going back home himself just yet.

"Hey, Y/N," Calum said, making you turn back around. He was holding his phone with a shy expression. "Do you think it would be okay if I got your number?" he asked. You felt the corner of your mouth twitch slightly, taking his phone and putting your number in. You handed it back and watched him text you so you had his number as well. "Thanks," he said softly. You were about to leave again when he carefully took your hand, making you look up at him. "If you ever need help coming down from another panic attack or you need to talk or you're bored or anything... Just call me, okay?" You nodded, surprising both him and yourself by pressing a kiss to his cheek.

"Thanks, Cal," you whispered, giving him a hug as well.

"You're welcome, Y/N," he replied, kissing the top of your head. As you walked away, you looked over your shoulder when Calum spoke again. "And I don't care what time it is either; If you need me, call me."

And when it was 5:27am that Monday morning and you had just woken up to your parents screaming at each other before they left for work, you did exactly what Calum told you to.

And he answered the second you called.

_End flashback_

"What's wrong?" Calum repeated when you didn't say anything for a few moments.

"They were just arguing again," you muttered. Calum grabbed you and pulled you onto his lap. You wrapped your legs around his waist and laid your head on his shoulder, sighing in content as his fingers ran up and down your spine.

"You haven't talked to them yet?" his voice suggesting he was disappointed.

"No," you murmured.

"Babe," he sighed, "You really need to-"

"Can you just stop lecturing me for  _five minutes_ , Calum?!" you exclaimed breathlessly, lifting yourself up so you could look at him, "You don't understand what I'm going through! Your parents are happily married and that's fantastic, so you can't  _possibly_ imagine what it's like! I would do  _anything_ for my mom and dad to be like yours, but they're not; They're miserable and they hate each other! I'm sorry that I'm not brave enough to talk to them yet, and I don't need you constantly at my throat about it!"

You had to admit, you felt bad after seeing the look on Calum's face when you finished your rant. You didn't mean to be so harsh, but you needed him to understand that this wasn't as simple as just talking to them.

You felt your eyes start to get watery and the moment a tear fell down your cheek, Calum's thumb was wiping it away and then holding your face in his hands. You were about to apologize for yelling at him, but he cut you off by pressing a kiss to your lips before peppering kisses all over the rest of your face. You swallowed the lump in your throat, finding yourself leaning into his touch.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled after kissing your lips one more time, "You're already stressed enough with your parents and you don't need  _me_  adding to it. I'm supposed to be making you feel safe and loved, not  _worse_. And I'm really sorry I haven't been doing that." You looked at him for a moment before bringing your own hand up. You pushed the stray hairs away from his eyes, stroking his cheekbone with your thumb.

"I love you, Cal," you whispered. He smiled shyly as he blushed – the way he always did when you told him you loved him since he knew how difficult it was for you to even believe in love.

"I love you, princess," he replied, pecking your lips again. When he pulled away, you returned your head to his shoulder and you both sat in silence for a couple minutes.

"I went to town a couple weeks ago," you randomly informed him, "To an attorney's office."

"Why did you go to an attorney's office?" Calum furrowed his eyebrows.

"The divorce papers have been sitting on my desk since then," you sniffled, "And I wanna be brave enough to ask them to sign them, but I  _can't_."

"You don't have to be brave enough yet, princess," he said, holding you a little tighter, "No one can  _force you_  to be brave; That's something you have to be ready for on your  _own_. But you  _will be_  someday – and if someday's not  _soon_ , that's okay too." You picked yourself up again, looking at him for a moment. You glanced down at his lips, making him chuckle quietly. He leaned forward and kissed you, feeling you sigh and eagerly kiss back.

"I love you, Calum," you mumbled against his mouth.

"I love you, Y/N," he returned, kissing you a little harder.

~

**One week later**

Today was it; Today was the day you decided you were going to confront your parents about their relationship.

You were nervous to say the least, completely unsure of how things were going to go. You promised Calum you would call him with the results that night and you hoped you would be able to tell him something good.

Your mom had just gotten home, walking in the door and finding you standing at the dining room table. She raised her eyebrows when you asked her to sit down, but she did it anyway. She asked what was going on, but you didn't respond.

A couple minutes passed and your dad finally walked through the door as well. Both you and your mother looked at him, causing a confused expression to make itself known on his face.

"What's going on here?" your father asked as he cautiously walked into the room.

You simply gestured to the seat next to her and waited for him to sit down. You watched them both sit there, leaning away from each other, making you swallow the lump in your throat.

Without a single word, you reached down to the chair beside you and returned with the small stack of papers you've had for nearly a month. They were stapled together in the top left hand corner and you flipped to the last page. You folded the corner and set the papers down on the table in front of them, right in the middle so they could both see it. Their eyes skimmed the words for a moment before looking back up at you with bewildered expressions.

"Are these..." your mom trailed off, watching as you took a deep breath.

"Divorce papers," you confirmed, "I went to the attorney's office three weeks ago and got them. All you have to do is sign them so I can take them back."

"Why would we-" You cut your dad off.

"I can't  _do this_  anymore, Dad," you swallowed thickly, "I can't keep being woken up at 3am because of another one of your stupid fights or living in constant worry that you're going to kill each other. It's  _not fair_  that the only thing I've ever known is  _fighting_  and  _throwing things_  and screaminguntil you can't _talk_  the next day, and it's not fair to  _Calum_  either. He shouldn't have to deal with the insecurities I've developed because this family is so broken, and I don't know why he insists that it's okay because it's  _not_. So you can either sign the divorce papers now or sign up for a marriage counselor-" You took in a shaky breath and let it out slowly. "-because I can't live like this anymore." Your parents sat in a stunned silence for a moment, never expecting  _you_ to be the one to initiate a divorce.

For the next couple minutes, it was so quiet, you could hear a pin drop. Your father was the first to break the silence.

"We could try ma-" Your mom cut him off with a shake of her head.

"You know counseling isn't going to fix this, Y/D/N," she said softly, finally looking at him, "Maybe it's best that we just move on. Y/N's right; She can't live like this anymore – none of us can. She deserves a chance to be truly happy with her boyfriend and she's not going to get that chance if she's always worried about ending up like us."

Your dad almost looked hurt by the statement, but it was obvious he agreed. He looked away from your mom and up at you, seeing how desperate you were. You had lived practically your whole life with their arguing and it was clear to him – to  _both_  of them – that you had finally had enough.

He reached his arm out toward you with his palm facing upward. You immediately scrambled to grab the pen in front of you and hand it to him. You watched as he scribbled his signature on the line at the bottom of the page and handed the pen to your mother. She instantly signed her own name and you all looked at each other for a moment.

"You know I love you, Y/M/N," your dad said, making her look at him. He lifted his hand and wiped the tears that were falling down her cheeks. "I'm sorry things ended up like this."

"I'm sorry I couldn't give you what you wanted," she whispered. He simply smiled, getting up and walking to you. He wrapped his arms around your shoulders and pulled you into him.

"You gave me everything I could have ever wanted," he replied, kissing the top of your head, "And I think that, despite the hell she's endured for the past 22 years, we did a pretty good job of raising her."

You let out the quietest whimper, wrapping your own arms around your dad's waist and hugging him tightly. Your mom came over and joined in the hug as well, making this the first time you'd ever seen your parents hug each other somewhere other than old photographs.

~

_inspired by: "Broken Home" by 5 Seconds of Summer_


	237. Believe In Me (Ashton Irwin) - Part 1

"Hey, Ash!" you smiled as he exited the airport. He visibly sighed, a frustrated look on his face. But when he turned his head and saw you, he gave you a lazy grin.

"Hey, Y/N," he whispered tiredly, "Haven't seen you in a while."

"Well, you know how it is," you shrugged, "So many celebrities to photograph, so little time. Do you mind if I get a couple shots before you leave?"

"On any other day, I'd be happy to let you, but I just got off a 14-hour flight and I'm  _exhausted_."

"It's alright, Ashton," you chuckled lightly as his guilty expression, "I can't expect you to  _always_  want your photo taken. Just be glad it's me here and not anyone else."

"Yeah, well, I'm not friends with other paps," he teased.

"Ash, can you come here for a second?"

"No," he laughed, "You're gonna hit me."

"I'm not gonna  _hit_ you," you stated, "I'm just gonna give you a little tap on the back of the head."

"Can you  _reach_ the back of my head?" he smirked, making your jaw drop slightly.

"I'm not that short!" you squeaked, "And just for that, I'm not gonna ask you if I can take photos next time I see you."

"Sure, you won't," he shook his head, smile still on his face.

"Come on, Ash," Terry interjected himself into the conversation, "We've gotta get to the hotel so you can rest up for recording."

"Oh," you grinned mischievously, "So you're going to be at the  _studio_  tomorrow?"

" _Y/N_ ," Ashton couldn't hold back his smile.

"What?" you sighed dramatically, "You've got songs to record, I've got rent to pay. That's just life, Irwin."

"I'll see you tomorrow?" he questioned with a faint blush on his cheeks.

"Later, Ash," you smiled, waving to him as he climbed into the car.

~

"There are my favorite boys!" you cheered once the car door opened after pulling up to the studio and Michael hopped out.

"Y/N!" he beamed, trotting over to give you a hug.

"What are you doing here?" Calum asked as he was the next one to get out.

"Yeah," Luke chuckled, following him, "We were told paps wouldn't know about this."

"She was tipped off," Ashton laughed under his breath, causing the bodyguard now closing the car door to sigh loudly.

"I said I was sorry!" Terry laughed along, "I thought she already knew!"

"Oh, she did," you chirped.

"You did?! And you let  _me_ take the fall for it?!"

"Sorry, Ter," you shrugged, "I have no say in who Ash blames when I'm not around." Terry rolled his eyes, but smiled.

"You coming with?" Luke asked as you all walked toward the building, pulling a few silly poses for you as you snapped some photos of him.

"Nah, not this time," you replied, pointing your camera at Calum, "I heard Emma Stone is in town this weekend and I  _can't_  miss out on that."

"But we're way  _cuter_  than Emma Stone," Michael pouted. You quickly took a picture before he could protest.

"Hmm, debatable," you hummed with a smirk, "But I'm just saying; If you can get good quality photos of celebrities like  _her_ , your paycheck is gonna look  _ridiculous_."

"Well, good luck with  _Emma Watch 2015_ ," Calum snickered, making you roll your eyes, "We'll see you later."

"Bye, guys," you giggled, hugging them before they walked inside. Ashton was the last to pull you into a hug, but he didn't let go right away like the other boys.

"Take a break around noon and meet me back here?" he asked lowly, "I wanna talk to you about something."

"That's not vague at all," you said, "But sure – I'll be here." He gave you a small smile, hurrying to catch up with the three boys already inside the building.

~

"So what's up?" you asked, tossing a fry into your mouth.

You and Ashton had just sat down in a booth in the McDonald's you had walked to. He hadn't really said much, making you worry a bit. Ashton wasn't one to be quiet for very long unless something was really bothering him.

"Did you get any pictures of Emma?" Ashton asked, clearly avoiding the reason he asked you to lunch in the first place.

"A few," you answered, cocking an eyebrow, "I haven't looked at them yet, but I'm sure I got at least  _one_  decent one." He nodded in acknowledgement, but didn't say anything further. "Ashton," you stated, making him look up at you, "What's going on?"

"Nothing," Ashton shrugged, swallowing thickly as he sipped his drink, "Just haven't seen you in a while is all – wanted to catch up."

"You said you wanted to talk to me about something, Ash," you reminded him, "And judging by the tone you were using when you said it, it sounded pretty serious."

"You're pretty good at taking pictures," he trailed off, leaving you unsure what he was leading up to.

"I'm alright, I guess," you said, the confusion in your voice very clear.

"Well... The boys and I were talking and... We think it'd be kind of cool to have an official tour photographer and we know that paps don't really get paid all the much and you talk about barely being able to pay rent sometimes and we just thought-"

"Ashton," you interrupted, reaching across the table and putting your hand on his forearm, "Slow down. Are... Are you asking me to come on tour with you?"

"A-As our photographer," he clarified, chewing on his lip nervously, "We-We've been looking for someone to come on the road with us for a while now and we think you take really good pictures so we thought we'd ask if you wanted the job... B-But it's okay if you don't; We can ju-"

"Ash!" you cut him off again with a squeal.

You quickly got up and went to his side of the booth, throwing your arms around his neck as you basically sat down on his lap. One of his arms flew to your waist while the other grabbed the edge of the table to keep himself from falling back and hitting his head on the window.

"I-Is that a yes?" Ashton stuttered out.

"Of course!" you replied, squeezing him a bit before letting go. "Thank you so much," you breathed, pressing your lips to his cheek. After realizing what you were doing, you hurried to scoot away from him and back to your own side of the booth. "Sorry," you said shyly, "I didn't mean to-" You cut yourself off when you noticed Ashton's face beginning to turn a bright shade of pink.

"It's okay," he whispered, swallowing thickly again.

It was silent until you both finished your food and you decided to say what was on your mind.

"You guys  _really_  want to hire me to photograph your tour?" you asked, looking at Ashton shyly.

"Why wouldn't we?" he countered, the two of you standing up and throwing your trash away before beginning to make the walk back to the studio, "You're an amazing photographer."

"I'm just  _paparazzi_ , Ash," you murmured, "I follow celebrities around and take pictures for whatever magazines will use them. I'm not exactly someone people hire for full-time positions, let alone photoshoots or an entire  _world tour_."

"They would if you offered," he said, "I'm sure if you started a website or something that let people know you would be willing, you'd have tons of emails within the first  _hour_. The fact that you're ' _just paparazzi_ ' means nothing – not when you're as talented as you are. That's why the boys and I want to hire you; It's because we believe in you, Y/N – even when you don't believe in yourself." You swallowed the lump in your throat, taking in Ashton's words.

After a moment, you wrapped your arms around his waist even though you were both still walking.

"Thanks, Ash," you mumbled. He stopped moving, bringing you close to him. He hugged you tightly, his cheek resting against the side of your head.

"We're really excited to tour with you, you know," he told you, pressing his lips to your temple before you both let go of each other.

"Can't say I blame you," you shrugged as he opened the door to the studio for you, "However, I do have some rules."

"We're starting this  _already_?" Ashton laughed, "We haven't even made it to the elevator yet!"

"Never said I didn't come with terms and conditions, Irwin." He laughed again, shaking his head.

"Alright, alright," he held his hands up, "You can lay them out when we get to the rest of the band."

After Ashton led you into the room where the other boys were, they happily greeted you once again. You ordered everyone to sit on the couch, leaning against the counter with all the recording equipment where John was sitting.

"What did they do now?" John chuckled, turning his chair around to face them with you.

"They've asked me to go on tour with them," you stated, making their eyes light up.

"So you're gonna come with us then, right?!" Michael exclaimed, nearly falling off the couch.

"Yes," you nodded. The three boys cheered, Ashton simply shaking his head as he knew what was coming next. " _However_ -" Their cheers turned into nervous groans and they sunk down in their seats. "-we need to set a couple ground rules  _first_."

"Such as?" Luke asked.

"Number one: Don't take all the hot water." They nodded understandingly. "Number two: I reserve the right to raid any of your wardrobes for any item of clothing that I want at any time I please." They let out quiet sighs, but nodded again anyway. "And finally: No pranks."

" _But Y/N!_ " Michael yelled.

" _But nothing_ , Clifford," you glared at him, "You can prank each other and your supporting acts and crew members all you want, but they will  _not_  be directed toward me or I will kill you with the strap on my camera. Are we in agreement?" You earned a chorus of monotonous ' _yeah_ 's.

You walked over, stopping at the coffee table in front of them and sticking your arm out, your pinky already extended. Ashton immediately linked his pinky with yours, glaring at the other boys when they hesitated. They quickly attached their pinkies with yours and Ashton's, making you smile victoriously, excited for what their world tour had in store.


	238. Believe In Me (Ashton Irwin) - Part 2

_requested by my pals catelyn and sarah_

~

Four months into tour, you were honestly having the time of your life. Spending nearly an entire year on the road with your best friends was something you only ever dreamed about being able to do and now that you were actually doing it, it really did feel like a dream. Of course, tour life did have its ups and downs – you never realized how homesick you got because you'd never really left home before – but the boys helped you through it and you were incredibly grateful for that.

One afternoon, you were going around getting individual shots of all the boys. You had already gotten Calum and Luke's photos and were now working on Michael's – you hadn't managed to come across Ashton yet – but he was being a pain. He kept pulling ridiculous poses and silly faces and you were truthfully starting to consider giving up on him for the day.

" _Michael_!" you groaned, " _One_ serious photo – that's  _all_ I'm asking for!"

"But serious is  _hard_!" he whined.

"Give me one serious photo now and I won't bother you for one for the rest of the week," you offered. He cocked an eyebrow at you with a small smirk.

"For real?" he asked. He heard the shutter on your camera go off before seeing you smile victoriously.

"Now was that so difficult?" you winked.

"Let me see!" he exclaimed, grabbing your hand and spinning you around to sit next to him. You pushed a couple buttons and the photo you had just taken popped up on your screen. Michael nodded approvingly. "You make me look good," he commented.

"Always," you giggled, ruffling his hair. You went back to camera mode as you stood up. "Do you know where Ash is?" you asked, "He's the only one I haven't gotten individual shots of yet, but I can't seem to find him anywhere."

"Last I saw him, he was on stage," Michael answered, "He said he didn't want to be bothered though."

"Ashton always has time for me. Later, Mikey!" you called over your shoulder as you trotted out of the room.

You made your way down the hallway until you finally reached the door to the main area. The first thing you saw was Ashton sitting at his drum kit, but he wasn't doing anything apart from sitting there. The door closed behind you rather loudly, making Ashton jump. He watched as you hopped up onstage and walked over to him.

"Hey, Ash," you said, "You okay?"

"I'm fine," he answered softly, "Why?"

You shrugged, "Michael told me you said you didn't want to be bothered." He couldn't help but chuckle.

"So you came to bother me?" he asked.

"Of course," you grinned mischievously. He smiled slightly.

"So what's up?"

"Been looking for you all day," you informed him, "Still haven't gotten photos of just you yet. Figured we could have done it now, but I guess it can wait."

"Wait for what?" he tilted his head. You quickly raised your camera and snapped a photo before he could stop giving you that look.

"For that," you chirped. You opened the photo and showed it to him, "Look at how cute you are." 

"Hmm," he hummed, "You're cuter."

"I agree," you nodded, "But I'm not who we're taking photos of right now."

Ashton looked at you for a moment before suddenly saying, "Have you ever played drums before?"

"There's a reason I'm a photographer, Ash," you laughed, "I can't play instruments to save my life."

"Come here," he waved his hand, "I'll teach you."

"Oh my God!" you gasped dramatically, "Are you quitting the band?! Am I taking over for you?! I don't think I could handle that kind of fame, Ashton!"

"Y/N, come here," he repeated with a laugh.

You took your camera off of your neck and set it down on one of the amps beside the drum kit. You got to where Ashton was and he reached for your hand, pulling you over to him. He had you sit on his lap and handed you the drumsticks.

"I'm gonna teach you how to play the chorus of  _Vapor_ , okay?"

"Good luck," you scoffed, making him chuckle again. 

"It'll be easy," he assured you, "Every time I tap your knee, I want you to push down on that pedal-" He pointed to it. "-with your foot." You nodded and he started tapping his thumb on your skin. You waited for a few taps to get the rhythm before you started hitting the pedal. "Good," Ashton said, "Now I'm gonna stop, but you keep that beat going."

You nodded again and his taps ceased, but he wrapped his hands around yours, leading the sticks in your hands to the drums they were supposed to hit. He started singing the chorus under his breath in your ear, but you did your best to ignore the butterflies it was giving you.

Ashton randomly let go of your hands and you immediately hit the wrong drum, making the both of you burst into laughter at how horrible it sounded. You then heard the sound of a camera shutter and looked up to find Calum smiling at you.

"Aw, look at that," he cooed jokingly, turning his phone around to show you the photo, "You guys are so cute."

"Shut up, Cal," you stifled a laugh, standing back up. You handed Ashton's drumsticks back to him and retrieved your camera, returning it to its usual resting spot around your neck.

"Come on, Y/N," he pouted, "It's a nice photo."

"You're an idiot, Cal," you giggled, "You're right, but you're an idiot." You began walking away, calling out as you left, "I'll be in the dressing room editing these photos if you guys need me!"

~

You had been editing photos for about an hour now when your eyes were starting to get strained from staring at your computer screen. You decided to take a break, so you saved the work you'd been doing on a photo of Luke and closed your laptop. You were rubbing your eyes when you heard the door to the dressing room open.

"Tired?" You smiled at the sound of Ashton's voice.

"A little," you answered, watching as he made his way over to the couch you were sitting on, "What are you doing here so early? I would have thought you'd be outside talking to fans."

"I was," he replied, plopping down next to you, "But then I wanted to come back in."

"Why?" you asked, "Are you okay?" He nodded - a little too quickly as far as you were concerned – and everything was silent for a moment.

"Is that Michael's?" Ashton asked you, looking at the flannel you were wearing. You simply nodded. "Why are you wearing  _his_?"

"I told you I have free range to raid any of your wardrobes at any time I want," you reminded him.

"Yeah, but you always end up in mine," he commented.

"Mikey's flannels are warm," you shrugged.

"So are mine," he mumbled.

"His are warm _er_ ," you raised your eyebrows, "Why are you so bothered by it?"

"I'm not."

"Yeah, you are."

"No, I'm not."

"Ashton."

"Whatever," he said monotonously. He got up and went back to the door, making you sigh.

"Ash-" You were cut off by the door flying open and Michael marching in. He grabbed Ashton's shoulders and turned him back around, bringing him back to you.

"You did not come in here to argue with her about whose clothes she's wearing," Michael stated, "Now ask her out or I will do it for you, Ashton."

"Michael!" Ashton shouted, looking over at his best friend, consequently missing the blush on your cheeks.

Michael sighed, looking at you, "Y/N, will you go on a date with Ashton?"

" _Michael_!"

"Yeah," you answered, making the drummer's eyes widen and his head snap back toward you.

"What?" he asked, thinking he misheard.

"Yeah, Ash," you repeated with a shy smile, "I'll go on a date with you."

"You're welcome," Michael said, patting Ashton's shoulder and leaving the room, closing the door behind him. Ashton stared at you, an expression of shock on his face that made you giggle.

"You'll really go on a date with me?" he asked you, clearly still trying to convince himself you actually  _wanted_ to go out with him.

"Ash," you said, putting your laptop on the seat beside you and standing up. You went up to him, holding his face in your hands so he couldn't look away. "How many more times do I have to say yes before you understand that I want to go on a date with you?"

"I just... I thought you would say no..."

"Why would I say no?" you shook your head.

"I don't know..." he mumbled, "Because I didn't think you would ever like me like that..."

"Ashton," you said under your breath, "I've liked you since the moment I met you."

"Well, why didn't you tell me?" he pouted.

"I thought  _you_ didn't like  _me_ like that!" you laughed.

"Oh, whatever," he scoffed, "Anybody would be stupid not to like you like that."

You smiled slightly, "Tell that to all the guys that shot me down then."

"Maybe I will," he scrunched his nose up at you.

"If I had my camera, I would have taken a picture of that," you winked. Ashton quickly pecked your nose, making you blush a bright shade of red.

"And I would have taken a picture of that," he beamed. You rolled your eyes and you were both silent for a moment. "So you'll really go on a date with me?" Ashton asked.

"If you ask me that one more time, I might change my mind," you commented. His eyes widened and he cleared his throat nervously.

"So... Uh... After the show... Would you maybe want to get something to eat?" he asked shyly.

"I would like that, Ash," you nodded.

You pressed a kiss to his own nose before letting go of him. You grabbed your camera and laptop from the couch, went to put the computer away, and came back with your camera around your neck.

"I'm off to go meet some fans," you told Ashton, "And I will see you later." You heard Ashton let out a quiet sigh just before the door closed behind you.

~

**Two months later**

Ashton asked you to be his girlfriend the night after your first date. You didn't miss the opportunity to tease him for being eager, but of course you said yes. Everything felt right when you were with Ashton; Ever since the day you met the band, you had this connection with him that you didn't have with the other boys. You looked forward to when they came home from tour because you knew you would get to see him again.

You had always wanted to ask if he wanted to hang out in places other than airports and outside recording studios, but you didn't think he would. Despite the fact that you had known Ashton way before you started photographing celebrities, you always figured you were just another pap to him now – another heckler just trying to get a photo. Which, when you thought about it, was a pretty stupid way of thinking.

You were something different to Ashton. To Ashton, you were the only pap he looked forward to seeing when he walked out of an airport or a studio or a club. You were the only one he would let take his photos when he was tired. If anyone had anything negative to say about you, let's just say they hoped it never happened to be around him.

Ashton was undeniably protective of you, knowing from all those times the boys were curious about your line of work and would practically interview you about it. He knew that pay was tough and you had come home more than a few times with bruises due to being shoved by other paps to get photos of major celebrities. That was one of the main reasons the band hired you for the tour – they hated knowing you constantly got hurt out on the job and they hated that they would see you on the verge of a breakdown if you were barely able to pay your rent that month. Of course, they loved spending time with you and being able to see you for the duration of tour was a major bonus.

~

**Five months later**

You and Ashton had been together for quite some time now and you were certainly no stranger to tabloids spreading rumors about your relationship. You didn't normally let it get to you, but today was obviously different.

You had run into Walmart to buy a new memory card and were standing in line at the checkout when you glanced at the magazine rack beside you. You usually tried to avoid looking at them, but it could be challenging – especially when you and Ashton were right there on the cover. You flipped to the article and began reading it, scoffing quietly every now and then. It wasn't until you reached the end of the article that your jaw tightened.

You noticed the woman in front of you finish up her checkout, so you put both the memory card and the magazine down on the conveyor belt. You put on a fake smile for the cashier as she run up your items. Luckily, she didn't notice you were the one of the cover of the magazine – she didn't mention it, at least – and you paid her before grabbing your bag and leaving.

You walked back to the hotel, having to keep a straight face the entire way there. You trudged up to yours and Ashton's room with heavy footsteps – them only getting louder as you opened the door and let it slam shut behind you. The boys perked up, their smiles disappearing the moment they saw you.

"You okay, Y/N?" Calum asked.

"Yeah," Luke added, "You've seemed a little off lately." When you didn't say anything, Ashton stood up.

"Babe," he said quietly, putting his hands on your cheeks, "What's wrong?"

You simply rolled your eyes, pushing his hands away. You retrieved the magazine from the bag and tossed it onto the desk in front of where Calum was sitting. You plopped down onto the bed where Ashton just was and leaned back on the headboard while the four boys gathered around each other.

" _PAP TO PRO?_ " Luke read out loud, picking up the magazine, " _Magazine photographer Y/N Y/L/N finally got her big break when she was hired as 5 Seconds of Summer's on-tour photographer for their world tour at the beginning of this year, but how did she land such a huge job so quickly?_ " The boys looked at you and saw you had your arms crossed over your stomach with an anything but happy look on your face, knowing you've already read the article. " _The photographer and the band's drummer, Ashton Irwin, make it no secret that something's happening between them, and we can't help but wonder if something less innocent is going on,_ " Luke went on, " _Sources tell us that the drummer is just a victim in Y/N's quest for fame, and that she'll dump him and move on to the next big opportunity as soon as the tour is over. Of course, only time will be able to tell what her motives really are, but US Weekly will be on top of it to give you all the shocking news first._ "

The group looked at you again. You were staring at the toes of your shoes, not daring to make eye contact with any of them. You swallowed the lump in your throat, desperately trying to hold back the tears that were already clouding your vision. You missed Ashton nod toward the door, but you heard Michael speak up.

"We're gonna go get something to eat," he announced, "Do you guys want anything?" You remained motionless, so he ushered Calum and Luke out quickly.

The door shut behind them and Ashton went to lock it so you wouldn't be disturbed later. When he turned back around, you were taking in a shaky breath and wiping your eyes. He cautiously made his way back to the bed, standing at the foot of it for a moment.

The second he heard the broken sigh that left your mouth, he hurriedly climbed onto the mattress and sat next to you. He pulled your arm so you would move to him and you wasted no time in wrapping your arms around his waist. Your face found his neck as his own arms wrapped around you. He kissed your forehead, letting his lips linger on your skin for a few seconds. His hand ran up and down your side, wanting nothing more than for your uneven sobs to stop.

"You know I love you, right?" Ashton murmured, squeezing you lightly. You obviously nodded, but that didn't make the pain go away.

It hurt that people thought they knew about your relationship. It hurt that people said you were using Ashton and his fame to further your career. It hurt that people said Ashton was just a pawn in a game to you. But nothing hurt more than it did when people said you didn't  _really_ love Ashton.

"And you know that I know you love me too, right?" Ashton went on, almost as if he knew what you were thinking.

You didn't respond, you simply tilted your head up to look at your boyfriend. He took his hand off of your side to rest it on your cheek, wiping your tears with his thumb. His hand stayed there when he was done, however, gently running back and forth on your cheekbone.

"I love you, Ash," you whimpered.

"And I love you, Y/N," he said softly, but firmly at the same time, "No amount of bullshit those magazines publish will ever make me feel differently about you. I know that you're not using me and I know that you love me for me and not the fame. You know that I love you more than anything and that I'm not using you for the photos you take of me." He succeeded in making you smile, which made him smile as well. "See?" he spoke in a whisper, "There's that smile I fell in love with. And I'm gonna be in love with it and the rest of you until the day I die."

You stuck your bottom lip out slightly and Ashton chuckled, knowing what you wanted. He leaned down and pressed his lips to yours, making you let out a breath of content as you kissed back. You stayed there for a few moments before you finally pulled away, lying your head back down on his chest. Ashton began humming quietly, eventually lulling you to sleep.

~

**Ashton's POV**

After you had been asleep for about 20 minutes and he knew you wouldn't wake up, Ashton pulled his phone out of his pocket. He took to Instagram, picking his favorite photo of the two of you – the one that Calum had taken when Ashton was " _teaching_ " you how to play his drums – and writing the longest caption he'd ever written before posting it. He then copied the link and went to Twitter, tweeting it with " _Here's what the magazines won't tell you_ " before locking his phone back up. Ashton put his phone face down on the nightstand, wrapped his arms back around you, and played with your hair until he allowed himself to drift to sleep as well.

~

**Your POV**

A couple hours later, you woke up. You were a bit confused, to be honest – it was still light outside – so you looked up at the boy you'd fallen asleep on to find him still sleeping. You yawned quietly, taking your phone out of your pocket and checking the time. It was only 1pm, but that wasn't what caught your attention.

You had what seemed like an endless amount of Twitter and Instagram notifications, making you furrow your eyebrows. You had always had a lot of notifications every time you checked your phone, but  _nothing_ like this. You unlocked it and went to Twitter first, scrolling through your mentions until you found the one you needed. It was a fan that had replied to a tweet of Ashton's but also tagged you, so you clicked it. You saw Ashton's original tweet and tapped the Instagram link. When it loaded, you instinctively smiled at the photo, then scrolled down to the caption.

 _We don't owe anyone an explanation or anything to validate our relationship, but for those of you who don't know, this beautiful girl right here is my girlfriend Y/N. She's also the photographer the boys and I hired to come on tour with us and honestly, I couldn't be happier. She is an amazing individual and I love her more than anything in the world. There's a lot of people saying shit like she was only hired because we're dating or because she's using me, and I want to clear all that up by saying it's not true_ –  _nothing in those gossip magazines is. She wasn't hired because she's dating me_ –  _in fact, she was hired months before I even asked her for a first date_ –  _and she's not "using me in order to get better jobs." The boys and I knew her long before she started photographing for magazines and I hope she sticks around long after she stops. Y/N is one of the most amazing photographers we have ever met and THAT is why we wanted her to have this job. So if you believe just ONE thing you read, please let it be this one, because all those magazine articles are full of shit and will never tell you the REAL story._

You wiped a tear off of your cheek before feeling Ashton stir slightly. You looked up at him again and found him smiling at you.

"Guess you saw that post?" he chuckled lazily, untangling his legs from yours so he could stretch them. You didn't reply, you simply tossed your phone off to the side and grabbed his face, pressing your lips together. You felt Ashton smile and pull you closer.

"I love you so much, Ash," you whispered, your voice muffled by his mouth.

"I love you so much more," he said, kissing you again.

 


	239. Love is An Open Door (Michael Clifford)

You and your boyfriend were out with friends at a karaoke place one night after he and his band had gotten home from tour. The boys surprisingly didn't want to stay at home, so they invited you and the other girlfriends to go out to your favorite karaoke bar with them. You, of course, were more than eager to go – you loved karaoke despite the fact that you never actually went up and sang anything.

A couple hours into the night, Luke suggested that you and Michael go sing something.

"I don't know..." you said softly, looking around the room before you turned back to your friends, "There are a lot of people here..."

"There are always a lot of people here," Ashton reminded you.

"Yeah, come on, Y/N!" Calum's girlfriend chirped, "You guys always talk about wanting to do karaoke night!" Michael looked at you and shrugged.

"I'm down," he said. You watched him curiously for a moment before getting out of your seat.

"Screw it; Let's do it," you stated, grabbing his hand and pulling him up. You both went to the side of the stage where the DJ was.

"What would you two like to sing?" he asked with a sly grin on his face, giving your boyfriend a knowing look.

" _Love is An Open Door_ ," Michael answered, making you furrow your eyebrows and look up at him.

" _Frozen_ , Mikey?" you asked with a small giggle, "Really?" He simply smiled and shrugged, pulling you up onto the stage.

All of your friends cheered as you and Michael grabbed your microphones. When the music started, Michael winked at you, making you laugh.

" _Okay, can I just say something crazy?_ " you grinned.

" _I love crazy!_ " Michael giggled.

" _All my life has been a series of doors in my face,_ " you jokingly pouted, " _And then suddenly, I bump into you._ "

" _I was thinking the same thing!_ " he gasped, " _'Cause like, I've been searching my whole life to find my own place, and maybe it's the party talking or the chocolate fondue._ " He tapped your nose, making you smile again.

" _But with you..._ " you held the note while Michael went on.

" _But with you, I found my place._ "

" _...I see your face,_ " you finished your part before you both continued together.

" _And it's nothing like I've ever known before._ " Michael grabbed your free hand, twirling you around. " _Love is an open door, love is an open door, love is an open door with you._ "

" _With you,_ " Michael scrunched his face up.

" _With you,_ " you reached up, pecking his nose quickly.

" _With you,_ " he returned the gesture and sang with you again, " _Love is an open door._ " You both giggled. " _I mean, it's crazy,_ " Michael shrugged.

" _What?_ " you asked excitedly.

" _We finish each other's-_ "

" _Sandwiches!_ " you trotted to the other side of the stage.

" _That's what I was gonna say!_ " he began to follow you.

" _I've never met someone-_ " Michael joined in. " _-who thinks so much like me._ " You spun around. " _Jinx!_ " you both linked your pinkies, " _Jinx again! Our mental synchronization can have but one explanation._ "

" _You..._ " he pointed at you.

" _...and I-_ " you pointed at yourself as well, " _-were just meant to be. Say goodbye..._ "

" _Say goodbye-_ " Michael echoed, twirling you in a circle again as you both waltzed around the stage, " _-to the pain of the past. We don't have to feel it anymore. Love is an open door, love is an open door. Life can be so much more with you,_ " you sang.

" _With you,_ " he smiled.

" _With you,_ " you mirrored the expression.

" _With you. Love is an open door,_ " you finished the singing and Michael released you.

The music cut off and you thought you were done. You looked at your group of friends as put your microphone back, slightly confused as to why they were practically bouncing in their seats.

" _Can I say something crazy?_ " you heard Michael say behind you. You simply giggled, turning back to look at him.

Your heart skipped a beat and your hand flew up to cover your mouth. Michael was right in front of you, bent down on one knee with a ring between his thumb and index finger. He beamed at you, happy to know that you had absolutely no clue he picked the song because was planning to propose.

"Will you marry me?" he asked. You swallowed thickly, stifling out a small laugh.

" _Can I say something even crazier?_ " you replied, making Michael chuckle as you stayed in character. You put your hands on his face and pulled him up so you could kiss him. " _Yes,_ " you nodded, your voice slightly muffled by his lips.

You felt Michael smile and the moment his arms went around your waist, the whole room burst into cheers – the loudest obviously coming from your friends. He pulled away so he could slide the ring down your finger and pressed his lips to yours again.

~

_Song used: "Love is An Open Door" from Frozen_

_inspiration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGUx5lQs-bI_


	240. The First Daughter (Luke Hemmings) - Part 1

"Hey, princess," you heard behind you while you were sitting at the counter in the kitchen, eating your lunch. You turned your head as your best friend plopped down on the bar stool next to you.

Your father had been President for the past two and a half years now and Luke had been working at the White House for a little under ten months. The blonde-haired boy didn't really  _seem_  like the type that would want such a high-risk job, but as you got to know him and his skills, he proved to be incredibly good at it. Of course, that didn't stop the other members of the service from teasing him and counting him out of a lot of missions and whatnot, but he was alright with it. Whenever there was a slow day of duty, he would spend it with you.

He'd been calling you princess for as long as he'd been working there, but it clearly wasn't meant in a cocky sort of manner; He just simply enjoyed the nickname and felt it suited you perfectly. As far as he was concerned, you were his princess.

"Why do you call me princess?" you tilted your head, "My dad's just the President, Luke."

"' _Just the_ _President_ ,'" he rolled his eyes with a smirk, "Rub it in, why don't you?" You couldn't help but laugh.

"I'm just saying he's not a  _king_ ," you shook your head, "So it doesn't make me a  _princess_."

"But your family is kind of like the royal family of the United States," he pointed out, "If we were in England, it  _would_  make you the Princess."

"If something were to happen to my dad,  _I_  wouldn't automatically take over," you reminded him, "The job would go to the Vice President, then Speaker of the House, then President of the Senate, then Secretary of State..." you trailed off. "I'm sure the guy that cleans the  _bathrooms_ would have a better shot at being the President before anyone would even  _consider_ me!"

"Yeah, well, that's because you're not 35," he winked.

" _God_ , you're so annoying," you giggled, "Who even  _hired you_  anyway?"

"Your dad," he stuck his tongue out at you.

"Then I'm gonna tell him that he should fire you."

" _Please_ ," he scoffed, " You love me and you know it."

"You keep telling yourself that, Hemmings," you rolled your eyes. You stood up, throwing your trash into the garbage can and walking out the door.

Luke followed behind you, waiting until you got to the door before doing anything else. You felt his arm wrap around your waist, pulling you back against his chest.

"I'll keep telling myself that for as long as it keeps being  _true_ , princess," he said lowly in your ear, letting go and brushing past you. You swallowed thickly, shuddering and simply walking in the opposite direction as Luke.

~

**A few days later**

You were sitting on your bed, simply enjoying some peace and quiet as you read your book. It was a little past 11am and your father was in a cabinet meeting. You weren't expecting him to be finished until at least noon, so when your bodyguard, Tim, came in and told you that your parents wanted to have lunch with you in the garden, you were a bit confused.

You shrugged though, figuring the meeting had just ended earlier than usual today. You put your bookmark in between the pages, closing the book and setting it back on your nightstand. You hopped off of your bed and followed Tim out to the garden. When you made it outside, however, your parents were nowhere to be seen.

You were about to turn around and ask Tim where they were, but a cloth-covered hand suddenly came out of your peripheral vision, pressing to your mouth. You knew you shouldn't have breathed, but you gasped in surprise and became lightheaded so quickly that you didn't even get the opportunity to fight back before everything went dark.

~

**Luke's POV; Six hours later**

"Y/N!" Luke called as he roamed the White House hallways. He had been looking for you for the past hour after you didn't meet him in the theater room for your weekly movie marathon. You were usually there by the time he arrived, so he was a little puzzled when he didn't see you already cuddled up on the couch with your blanket. " _Y/N_!" he hollered again, thinking maybe this time, he'd get a response.

Luke was approaching the Oval Office when the doors burst open and a group of five of the best Secret Service members came rushing out. He looked inside the room and noticed your father knelt down in front of where your mother was sitting on one of the chairs in front of his desk and sobbing into her palms. He didn't quite know what was going on, but judging by how quickly his colleagues were walking, it wasn't good.

"Have any of you seen Y/N?" Luke asked the group innocently as they passed him. None of them responded except the last one to walk by him. The Head of the Service, Ashton, looked over his shoulder and nodded his head.

"Walk with me, Hemmings," he ordered. The blonde quickly obeyed, hurrying alongside the group.

"What's going on?" Luke asked.

"Y/N was kidnapped," Ashton replied monotonously. Luke immediately froze in his spot, the shock very evident on his face.

" _Kidnapped_?" he whispered to himself, watching as the other men kept moving. Once he got over the initial shock, he was running back to Ashton. "When was she last seen?"

"Somewhere between 11:00 and 12:00 hours."

"She's been missing for  _six hours_?!" Luke exclaimed, "Where the hell was  _Jacobs_  during all of this?!"

"We believe Jacobs is the one who took her," Ashton informed him.

"Her  _bodyguard_? Are you absolutely  _sure_ of this?" 

"Security cameras show Jacobs leading Y/N to the garden and then they just disappear. Neither of them have been seen since then. The President has ordered my team and I to go out and find her."

"Then I'm coming with you," Luke said.

"Not a  _chance_ , kid," another man, Michael, spoke, "Newbies don't need this kind of trouble."

"She's not  _trouble_ ," he snapped, "She's my best friend."

"Ten months on the job and you're already willing to risk your life for that girl," he laughed.

"I'd do anything for  _that girl_ ," Luke's jaw tightened.

"You haven't even proved to us that you can  _handle_  this job, Hemmings," Calum chimed in.

"Then  _let me_  prove it!" Luke pleaded.

The men got to the cars where they stopped to look at each other. Ashton could see how desperate Luke was, but he could tell that the newbie didn't care about proving himself to his superior officers; He cared about  _you_  and getting you back home.

"You have your gun and your radio?" Ashton asked him to which Luke nodded rapidly with wide eyes.

"You're not  _seriously_  letting him come, Irwin," Michael scoffed.

"The kid's right, Clifford," he shrugged, "He's gotta learn the ropes eventually." Luke breathed a sigh of relief as Ashton went on. "Clifford, Hood," he spoke firmly, "I want you two searching the northern part of the city. Ramirez, Austin-" He spoke to the other two men. "-I want you in the east. Hemmings and I will cover south and west. Jacobs is unlikely to leave D.C., so Y/N can't be too far away. Radio in if you find anything. We meet back here if nothing turns up before sundown, clear?" Everyone nodded and went to their respective cars. Luke hopped into the passenger seat of Ashton's car and they quickly drove toward the west side of the city.

~

Ashton drove for a couple hours around the western part of the city before beginning to drive to the south. They didn't talk at all – both of them too focused on finding any sign that you had been there. It wasn't until Luke heard Ashton radio the other teams that he was calling off search for the night that he nearly lost it.

"You're calling it off?" Luke asked him when the others confirmed the order and he was offline.

"The sun is going down," Ashton said simply.

"But that doesn't mean we should stop!" he exclaimed, "She could be scared or hurt or d-" Luke cut himself off, making Ashton look at him.

"What's the  _real_  reason you were so set on coming, Hemmings?" he asked.

" _The real reason_?" Luke cleared his throat, slyly wiping his cheek when he felt a tear fall.

"This is about  _more_  than just wanting to prove yourself," Ashton stated, "You don't seem like you care about what us other guys think of your abilities; You just seem... _broken_."

"I'm fine." Ashton chuckled, making Luke look at him. "What's so funny?"

"You're in love with her," he stated matter-of-factly. Luke let out a laugh of his own.

"Don't be  _ridiculous_ ," he scoffed under his breath.

"It's just me, Hemmings – you can admit it," Ashton said, "You can't always control who you fall for." He sunk down in his seat, staring blankly out the window.

"It doesn't matter," he mumbled, "She doesn't feel the same anyway."

"Did she tell you that?"

"No, but-"

"Then  _but_ _nothing_ , Luke."

The blonde was a little surprised to hear his first name. Ever since he started working at the White House, Luke was always called  _Hemmings_ or  _newbie_ or  _kid_ and, to be honest, he wasn't sure whether or not anyone even  _knew_ what his first name was.

"Do you love this girl or not?" Ashton went on.

"More than anything," he whispered.

"We're gonna find her, Luke," he promised him. He then got back on his radio. "Clifford, what's your position?"

"Uh, turning left from Arkansas Avenue, heading south on 16th Street," Michael answered, "Why?"

"What's going on?" Luke asked, his eyebrows knit together in confusion.

"Ramirez," Ashton said, brushing off the questions, "Position."

"Southwest on Maryland Avenue," he replied, "Is everything alright, Irwin?"

"We're not calling it off until we find her," Ashton told them. Luke couldn't help but smile and started praying that when they did find you, you were just fine.

~

The six men searched all night with no luck; They hadn't even so much as seen a girl that  _looked_ like you.

As sunrise approached, they all met up at a local diner to discuss their next move. None of them had slept in over 24 hours and it was starting to take its toll. Luke was practically falling asleep on Ashton and the others could barely keep their eyes open.

"I think we need to go back and get some sleep and then begin another search later tonight," Ashton said once they had all finished their early breakfasts.

"But we haven't found her yet," Luke mumbled, his eyes not even opening as he yawned into the palm of his hand.

"We're in no condition to keep going right now, Hemmings," Calum yawned as well, "It'll be too dangerous if we go on like this without proper rest."

"He's right," Michael spoke up, "You can hardly keep yourself awake right now. I say we get some shut eye for a few hours and then head back out."

"Come on, Luke," Ashton said softly, getting up from his chair, "Y/N's a strong girl. She's gonna be fine." He helped Luke stand up and get out the door, hoping to get him back before he fell asleep.

After a few minutes, they returned to the front gates. Everything was as normal as usual – early-rising tourists were lining the fence and getting pictures in front of the White House, city residents were walking their daily commute to work, and no one suspected a thing.

"Hemmings," Ashton tapped the blonde's leg after he parked the car, "Let's go."

Luke grumbled quietly but unbuckled his seat belt and got out of the car. Ashton walked close beside him to make sure he didn't pass out or anything and the men went up to the gate. Michael swiped his badge and the gate opened, allowing them to go through. Ashton told Michael to make sure that Luke made it to his room while he went to go talk with your father, sure he would already be awake waiting for any updates.

The moment Luke's head hit his pillow, he was in a deep sleep – all six of the men were. They were understandably exhausted and needed all the sleep they could get before heading out again.

~

**That afternoon; 3pm**

Luke woke up to Ashton shaking him gently. He didn't know what was going on at first, but his eyes then shot open and he sprung up. He looked down at his clothes, seeing he wasn't in the normal attire he wore to bed. He let out an uneven sigh, looking up at Ashton.

"It wasn't a dream, was it?" he asked. Ashton gave him a sympathetic smile.

"She's gonna be fine, Luke," he said softly, "I promise."

Luke obviously didn't believe him though. For all he knew, you could be on a boat heading to another continent or locked inside the trunk of a car heading to the other side of the country right now. All he wanted was to hear your voice, but he couldn't – not until he found you and knew you were alright.

He hoped with everything inside him that you weren't hurting or scared, but he knew you were. He knew you were absolutely terrified and that you probably had no idea what was going on or whether or not anyone was looking for you.

But he was; And he was going to find you even if it killed him.

The group walked outside, immediately noticing the cameras on the outside of the fence. They looked at each other for a moment, not knowing how the media had found out about the kidnapping.

"What do we do now?" Calum asked.

"Get to your car as quickly as you can," Ashton stated, "Don't say a word to any of them." His orders earned a chorus of ' _got it_ 's and they all set out for another night of searching.

~

**Later that night; 2am**

"Irwin," Michael's voice came through the radio, "Come in, Irwin." Ashton quickly grabbed his radio.

"This is Irwin, go," he said.

"We think we've found Y/N." Luke's eyes widened and his heart started pounding against his chest. Ashton was speechless for a moment as well, but quickly regained composure.

"What's your location?" he asked.

"Intersection of 16th and Alaska near Silver Spring," he answered, "We caught a glimpse of a man entering one of the houses, but it was definitely Jacobs."

"And you're  _sure_ it was him?"

"No doubt." Luke could just tell Michael was nodding. "Do you want us to try and get a better look?"

"No, no, no," Ashton shook his head, "Just keep an eye on the house and let me know if anything happens.  _Do not_  go in there without backup, understand?"

"Affirmative," he replied, "Hood and I will wait for backup."

"Ramirez, did you and Austin copy all that?" Ashton asked.

"Yes, sir," he said, "We're heading that way now."

Ashton put the radio back down and sped up. He glanced over at Luke, noticing he honestly looked like he was about to throw up.

"She's gonna be fine, Luke," Ashton repeated, "We're going to get there and go in and take out whoever we need to and we're going to find her and she's going to be alive." Luke breathed in deeply, but didn't say anything; He simply continued staring straight ahead, praying that everything Ashton had said was the truth.

~

"What's the plan?" Calum asked after the six men had met up at a gas station near the intersection.

"You guys can go in the front to distract however many guys are in there and I'll go in the back and find Y/N," Luke spoke up.

"No offense, kid, but don't you think you should wait outside?" Michael cocked an eyebrow, "You're a little too... _inexperienced_...for something like this, in my opinion."

"I am going to go inside that house,  _Clifford_ ," Luke snapped, "She is probably scared and confused and she needs me and I am  _going_  to find her whether you like it or not." The group was speechless for a moment, surprised that Luke had it in him to stand up for himself like that. Ashton smiled slightly and nodded.

"I'm with Hemmings," he said, "You four take the front. Use deadly force if you have to – if they don't care about  _our_  lives, they sure as hell won't care about  _hers_." Luke swallowed thickly at the statement but quickly pushed the image out of his mind. The four men nodded after getting over the initial surprise of Luke's outburst and they quickly hopped back into their cars and drove back to the house.

Luke and Ashton sneaked up to the side of the house, hiding around the corner. Calum peeked into one of the windows and found three men lounging around. Michael's window showed two men standing in the kitchen talking, but Tim was nowhere to be seen. Ashton and the other men nodded at each other, silently saying they were ready. Their guns were drawn and Michael carefully turned the doorknob. It was unlocked so he and the other three looked at each other before Michael pushed the door open.

There was suddenly a lot of yelling and gunshots as Ashton and Luke raced to the back of the house. The back door was luckily unlocked as well, so Ashton tiptoed inside with Luke not far behind him.

"I'm going to find Jacobs," Ashton whispered, "You look around upstairs. Stay quiet, stay alert, and if you find Y/N, make sure she stays calm." Luke nodded quickly, separating from the leader and quietly climbing the steps.

~

**Your POV; A few minutes earlier**

You woke up with a light groan, finding yourself in total darkness. It didn't take you long, however, to realize that you were wearing a blindfold. You could hear people talking below you, making you think you were on an upper level or at least somewhere with a basement. You heard the unmistakable voice of your bodyguard – well,  _former_ bodyguard – and you suddenly got angry.

You  _trusted_ Tim –  _your family_ trusted Tim. You trusted this man to protect you and keep you out of danger, but he was the one who kidnapped you in the first place. God knows how long he'd been planning this, but honestly, you didn't want to think about that right now. What you  _did_ think about was Luke.

You couldn't help but wonder if he was worried about you or if he even cared. You were sure that Luke cared – even if it was only a little bit – but you were certain he didn't care about you like you cared about him. Despite only knowing him for as long as he'd been working for your family, you and Luke had a bond that no one else had. Never mind the fact that he was the only one closest to your age, Luke actually  _wanted_ to spend time with you when he wasn't on duty. He wanted to be with  _you_ and he wanted to do things with  _you_. He didn't care that you were the President's daughter. To him, you were Y/N, and that was all you'd ever wanted.

Determined to see Luke again, you began wiggling your nose in the hopes of getting your blindfold to fall. Your wrists were bound behind your back and your ankles were tied together as well. You definitely weren't flexible enough to get your hands to the front of your body and you couldn't tell if you were around anything that could help you, so you had to settle for trying to wiggle the cloth off.

You were finally able to shimmy the blindfold off of your face after a few minutes of trying and look around the room. It was still dark – the only light source coming from the small space between the bottom of the door and the floorboard.

You began to hear shouting followed by gunshots coming from underneath you and then saw a shadow quickly moving toward the door. You quietly cursed to yourself and scooted over to the corner of the room, hiding behind some boxes – if it was one of the men who were holding you there, they  _definitely_ weren't going to be happy seeing that you had managed to get the blindfold off.

The shadow moved past the door and down the short hallway. You could hear them rustling around in other rooms of the upper levels of the house and you knew it was only a matter of time before they got to yours.

Suddenly, the door flung open, making you jump and shut your eyes tightly. Whoever had just come in was frantically looking around the room, but they were still being incredibly quiet. Your heart was pounding so hard, you could feel it in your entire body.

As the footsteps got closer, tears started spilling from your eyes. It wasn't until you heard a sigh of relief that you realized the person wasn't there to hurt you.

"Y/N," you heard a familiar voice breathe out. Your eyes shot open and found your best friend climbing over boxes to get to you as quickly as he could.

"You came looking for me," you whimpered.

"Of course I did," he said softly.

Luke dropped to his knees beside you and swiftly undid the knots in the ropes around your ankles before moving to your wrists. The moment the rope slid down your hands, you were launching yourself toward Luke. Your arms were wrapped tightly around his neck as his were with your waist.

"I'm here. I've got you," Luke mumbled into your hair, rubbing your back, "You're safe now, princess. I'm never gonna let this happen to you again."

"I love you," you suddenly blurted out when you moved back to look at him, "I didn't say anything before because – I don't know – you're my best friend and you work for my family and I'm sure my dad would have a  _fit_  if he knew and I didn't think you would feel the same but I don't care anymore because when I was kidnapped, all I could think about was how stupid I felt for never admitting it and then I thought I would never get to tell you  _at all_  and I-"

You were cut off by Luke's lips crashing into yours. You let out the rest of the breath you had been holding since you started rambling, wasting no time in kissing him back. Luke pulled away a few seconds later, earning a low whine from you.

"I love you too, princess," Luke said softly.

" _You do_?" you choked out.

"I do," he responded, pecking your lips again, "And as much as I would enjoy continuing to show it to you, I have to get you out of here first." He stood up, reaching down and grabbing your hands, pulling you up as well. "Here's what we're gonna do," he started, leading you to the door and peeking out to make sure no one was there. Once he confirmed that the area was clear, he turned back to you, "I'm going to go downstairs and make sure it's safe and then I'm gonna come back and get you, okay? I want you to stay here and don't leave this spot for  _any_  reason, understand?"

"But what if you-"

He cut you off with a firm tone, " _Do not leave this spot, Y/N._ " You swallowed thickly and his expression softened. He squeezed your hand before letting go of it, only to put his hand on your cheek. "I'll be fine," he promised you, kissing your forehead.

You nodded – he had just come in and saved your life when he  _really_  didn't have to, so you figured the  _least_ you could do at this point was trust him. He leaned down to press a quick kiss to your lips, making you smile slightly. You watched him stealthily walk down the stairs, your leg bouncing in anticipation.

Everything was quiet – which seemed good for the most part considering nothing but shouting and gunshots were ringing in your ears just a couple minutes ago – but you couldn't help but worry. You didn't know if the people who kidnapped you were actually dead or arrested or anything, and you were scared that something was going to happen to Luke. But when you saw a head of blonde hair appear as Luke came up the steps once again, you breathed a heavy sigh of relief.

"Come on, princess," he smiled, holding his hand out to you, "Let's get you back home." You happily took his hand, letting him pull you down the stairs.

As you walked into the living room, you found all the men that were holding you hostage lying in pools of blood. Normally, the sight of this would have made you sick, but you were more relieved than anything, knowing that the whole ordeal was actually over.

Once you were out of the building, you saw the other members of the Secret Service – the ones that typically protected your father – all let out a sigh of relief when they saw you while you and Luke were immediately ushered to a car by Ashton.

Luke helped you into the backseat, but when he went to go sit in the front with Ashton, you whined quietly. You pulled on his hand, making him look at you.

When he noticed how scared you still looked – no matter the fact that you  _knew_  nothing was going to hurt you now that you were with him – it made his heart drop. Luke had never been your security guard – the new members of the secret service were reserved for your father so they could be trained by the guards that escorted him everywhere – but that didn't mean he would never take a bullet for you. He meant what he said when he told you he loved you; He would do whatever it took for you to feel safe,  _especially_  now that you were always going to be on edge due to the kidnapping.

Luke closed the front passenger door and climbed into the backseat with you. After closing the door, he told Ashton to start heading home. You immediately cuddled up to him, wrapping your arms around his waist and laying your head on his shoulder. His own arms went around you as well, holding you tightly as he kissed the top of your head. You breathed slowly as you took in his scent, the cologne he always wore gradually calming you down.

~

As you were approaching the White House, you looked out the window and saw news reporters lining the streets leading all the way to the gate despite the fact that it was nearly 3am. You let out what you thought was a quiet whine, not realizing that both Luke and Ashton heard you.

"I would have thought they'd get bored of waiting around by  _now_ ," Ashton sighed, unintentionally telling you that they had been there all day, if not longer. "How do you want to do this, Hemmings?" Luke chewed on his bottom lip, trying to come up with a plan to get you out of the car and into the house as quickly and safely as possible.

"If they get in her way, just shove them," he answered as the car came to a stop, "I'll deal with the backlash later if I have to."

"Got it," Ashton nodded. Luke felt you squeeze him slightly when the reporters swarmed the car, their shouted questions all becoming blurs in your mind due to them coming out at the same time.

"Y/N," Luke whispered, making you look at him, "You're gonna be fine. Just keep your head down, don't let go of my hand, and don't stop moving. You've done this before." You nodded and he kissed your forehead. Ashton was the first to get out of the car, quickly making his way around to Luke's door to move reporters away. "Ready, princess?" he asked you. You took a deep breath and nodded again. He pressed a kiss your lips, knowing that the darkly tinted windows were preventing everyone from seeing you two.

Luke then opened the door and flashes of cameras and barrages of questions hit you all at once, but you did exactly what Luke told you – you kept your head down and held his hand so tightly that you were sure it had to be hurting him. You were fine up until the point a reporter grabbed for you when you were almost to the gate. Your hand slipped out of Luke's as you let out a short scream, tears already falling down your cheeks.

You felt a hand on your back, the person behind you pushing you through the crowd and past the White House gates. You looked up at Ashton, your breathing becoming uneven again.

"Where's Luke?" you asked just loud enough for him to hear.

"He'll meet us inside," Ashton told you.

" _I want Luke_ ," you whimpered.

"He'll be fine, Y/N," he assured you, ushering you quickly toward the house. You could hear Luke's voice shouting at the reporters for thinking it was okay to grab for you, but the sound faded as you got closer to the house.

The moment you walked inside, your parents were coming out of the oval office. They had obviously just been told that you were found and when they saw you, your mom immediately burst into tears. You broke away from Ashton, running down the hallway and into your mom, throwing your arms around her.

"Oh, my baby!" she sobbed, hugging you as tightly as she'd ever hugged you before, "We were so worried about you, sweetie! Are you okay? Did they hurt you?"

"I'm fine, Mom," you promised, your voice coming out muffled due to her shirt. She finally let go of you so you could hug your dad. He pulled you as close as he could get you, kissing the top of your head.

"I'm so sorry, sweetheart," he murmured, "If I hadn't-"

"It wasn't your fault, Dad," you sniffled, pulling back so you could look at him, "You couldn't have known." He swallowed the lump in his throat, hugging you again.

"I love you so much," he sighed, just happy you were finally home.

"I love you too, Dad," you whispered, squeezing him lightly.

"Irwin," your dad said as he let go of you. Ashton immediately hurried down the hallway to you and your parents.

"Yes, sir," Ashton stood up straight, waiting for what your father had to say.

"Thank you for bringing her home," he nodded, holding out his hand. Ashton shook it firmly.

"It wasn't me, sir," the guard informed him, "Hemmings is the one who came up with the plan and got her out of there."

"The new kid went with you?" your dad furrowed his eyebrows in shock. Ashton simply nodded. "Tell him to report to my office immediately then," he ordered, "I'd like to speak with him." Ashton nodded again, turning around and sprinting back down the hallway, exiting the building to go find Luke.

~

Meanwhile, your dad had you and your mom go to the Oval Office with him. You sat around waiting for Luke, anxious about what your father had to say to him. You didn't know whether he was mad or not – you wouldn't think he would be considering Luke had saved your life – but you were never so sure when it came to your dad. He had a poker face on and he clearly wasn't going to crack any time soon. Newbies weren't ever recruited for missions and when they  _were_ , it certainly wasn't a mission as high-stakes as  _rescuing the_ _President's_ _daughter from kidnappers_.

When the office doors opened, you all looked up to find Luke walking in. He still appeared to be fuming from what the reporters did to you, but he relaxed the moment his eyes met yours – he knew you were safe now and that was all that mattered to him. Luke moved across the room, coming to a stop beside the chair you were sitting on in front of the desk.

Before anyone could speak, you were back on your feet with your arms around Luke's waist and had no intention of letting go any time soon. As Luke's arms wrapped around you as well, you heard your father's voice.

"I suppose asking you to leave the room is pointless then?" he commented with a small smile.

Despite the fact that he couldn't really tell, the way you tightened your hold on the boy you were hugging answered the question for you. You felt Luke chuckle under his breath, his thumb beginning to rub circles on your shoulder. He wanted to kiss you, honestly, but he knew he couldn't do that in front of your father, so he simply settled on keeping you firmly against his chest.

"Hemmings," your father said very authoritatively, "It's come to my attention that you went out with the other five men on this mission." You could hear Luke's heart start beating faster.

"Yes, sir," he nodded, clearing his throat nervously.

"As upset as I am that Irwin allowed a member of the service as new as you are go out on a mission as dangerous as this one, I can't ignore the fact that you brought my daughter home safely. I trust Irwin's judgement in letting you go with the team, and I want to thank you for your bravery today."

"It's my job, sir," Luke replied respectfully, "I swore to protect you and your family no matter the risks I have to take."

"Yes," he nodded, "Thank you again. Now, I want you to go get some rest and meet me back in here as soon as you wake up. I have some things I want to discuss with you... _alone_." By this point, you had lifted your head off of Luke's chest so you could look at your father. Your bottom lip was sticking out slightly which made him laugh. "Yes, Y/N," he said, "That means  _without you_. Now get to bed – both of you." You swallowed thickly, knowing he wasn't going to change his mind.

It wasn't that you were against the fact that your dad wanted to talk with Luke alone, it was just that you didn't want Luke to leave. Due to what had happened with Tim, you were starting to look at everyone around you differently. You didn't know whether or not you could trust  _anyone_ anymore. 

Luke squeezed you gently before leading you out of the room.

"Come on, Y/N," he said lowly, "You need to get some sleep." When you were almost to your bedroom, you began breathing heavily again.

"What if someone comes in and-" Luke stopped abruptly, taking your face in his hands and wiping your cheeks with his thumbs – both of you missing the fact that your mom and dad were peeking around the corner of the door frame of the Oval Office.

"Nothing's going to happen to you, princess," he told you, "You're safe now."

"But your room is all the way down the hall," you whimpered. Luke pursed his lips together at the sight of how scared you were that  _something_ was going to go wrong again.

"You still have that couch beneath your window, right?" You obviously nodded. "Then that's where I'm gonna sleep until you feel safe again."

"What about my dad?" you mumbled.

"I'll deal with your dad later," he shook his head, "But right now, you and I both need to sleep."

"I love you, Luke," you looked up at him.

"And I love you, princess," he kissed your forehead, taking your hand and bringing you to your bedroom.

~

**Luke's POV; The next morning**

Luke woke up to the sun shining down on him. He groaned quietly, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. He looked around your room, his eyes landing on your soundly sleeping figure. He couldn't help but chuckle when he heard the soft snores escaping past your lips. He got up, went over to your bed, pressed a gentle kiss to your forehead, and left your room. He went to his own room to change his clothes before going to meet with your father in his office.

Luke would be lying if he said he wasn't nervous about what your father had to say to him; Was he still upset that such a new member of the service went out on a mission? Did he know about the way he felt about his daughter and was going to tell him to stay away from you? Luke didn't know.

But what he  _did_  know was that no matter the verdict he walked out of that office with, he was going to stay with you. You were obviously scared to death without him around and if he could keep you from feeling that way, he was going to do whatever it took.

The blonde took a deep breath before knocking on the office door. It took a moment, but he finally heard the okay to come in. He entered the room, closing the door behind him. He made his way to the desk under your father's watchful eye.

"Good morning, sir," Luke said respectfully.

"Please sit down, Luke," your father gestured to the chair directly in front of him. He did as he was told, sitting himself on the front edge. "I'm sure you're wondering why I wanted to talk with you without my daughter around," he continued, earning a slight nod from the boy in front of him. "Y/N has a way of convincing people to go her way, as I'm sure you've already come to learn."

Luke let out a breathy chuckle, knowing exactly what he meant. Your dad was quiet for a moment, which understandably started to make Luke worry.

"My wife and I saw you two out in the hall after you left my office last night," your dad informed him. Luke let out the breath he didn't realize he was holding.

"You did?" he practically whispered.

"We did," he nodded, "And I'm just curious as to what that was about."

"She was scared, sir," Luke answered truthfully, knowing there was no point in lying, "She still is; I think she's  _always_  going to be scared now. But I also think that I make her feel a little safer and I take that  _very_  seriously." You father laced his fingers together and placed them on top of the desk, leaning forward slightly.

"Do you like my daughter?" he asked, a serious look on his face. Luke swallowed nervously but didn't shy away from the question.

"I love her, sir," he replied softly, looking down at his hands as he played with his fingers, "I'd do anything for her." Luke missed the smile on your dad's face.

"Then that makes my decision a little easier," he said, making Luke look back up.

"What decision?" he asked, his leg bouncing up and down in anticipation.

"I would like to promote you to the most important position on my priority list."

"With all due respect, sir, I don't think it would be right for me to take a position so many others have to work toward."

"You've already proved to me you can handle the job, son."

"How so?" he raised his eyebrows.

"You brought her home."

"You mean-" He was cut off by your dad.

"My daughter needs a new bodyguard," he announced, "And I want you to have the job, Hemmings."

Luke's eyes widened at the news, "Y-You want  _me_ to be her bodyguard? And you're okay with how I feel about her?" Your dad chuckled under his breath before nodding.

"My daughter will never have a normal life, Luke," he told him, "Her mother and I have been in the public eye since before she was born and because of that, she will be too for most – if not the  _rest_  – of her life. I know how hard it is to find someone who loves you for you when you've got so much attention on you 24/7, and it wouldn't be right of me to take you away from her. I'm sure she has a long road of recovery ahead of her, but if you're what makes her feel safe, then I want you around her as much as you can stand to be."

Luke laughed lightly at the statement, standing up with your father. The two men shook hands and began to leave the room.

"It's 7am, so you should probably start waking her up for breakfast which will take you at least an hour," your dad commented, making Luke smile. "You know her schedule, right?"

"I'm pretty familiar with it," Luke nodded, "But I'll go over it with her to make sure."

"Good. Breakfast is in the garden at 8:30, but if she's not comfortable with that – which could very well be the case – then just let her mother or I know and we'll have it inside." Luke nodded again, wordlessly telling your dad that he understood. They both then went in separate directions down the hallway – your father going to find your mother and Luke heading back to your room.

The moment Luke was halfway to your room, he heard you calling his name in a panic. He broke into a run, reaching your door as it flung open. Your hair was a mess, your eyes were red from crying, and your forehead was covered in a thin sheet of sweat. Your eyes widened when you saw Luke and you ran into him, your arms wrapping around his waist tightly.

"Are you okay?" he asked frantically, "What's going on?"

You tried to talk, but you could hardly get any words out without choking on them. When you tried to speak again, Luke stopped you.

"It's okay, princess," he said softly, "Just wait until you're done crying. I'm right here."

Luke led you back into your room, sitting down with you on your bed. You crawled onto his lap, wrapping yourself around him like a koala – your arms around his neck and your legs around his waist – and you both stayed like that until you were out of tears 10 minutes later.

"Do you wanna tell me what happened now?" Luke asked, his lips brushing on your ear. Your voice was incredibly shaky, but at least he could understand what you were saying now.

"I was s-sleeping and then s-s-something really loud w-woke me up," you told him, "And I saw T-Tim dragging y-you out of the r-room and then you were y-yelling and he h-hit you re-really hard and then he ca-came back and he was c-coming toward me b-but then I w-woke up and I looked f-for you but you weren't h-h-here and I tho-thought it really ha-happened." By this time, you were in tears again, so Luke carefully wiped them away with his thumbs.

"Tim's gone, Y/N," he reminded you, "He can't hurt you or me or anyone."

"But you weren't- you weren't here," you whimpered, your arms slipping off of his shoulders. You hooked your finger around the exposed chain of his necklace and pulled it out from under his shirt so you could distract yourself.

"I'm always gonna be here for you, princess," he said, kissing your nose, "You know that. Nothing and no one is going to hurt you; Not while I'm around."

"What if my dad hires a new bodyguard for me and I don't ever learn to trust him?"

"That's not gonna happen."

"How do you know that?" Luke smiled at you, his hands sliding to your hips and squeezing lightly.

"Because you already trust me," he answered.

You sighed, "That's not funny, Luke."

"Look at me, Y/N," he said quietly but firmly at the same time. You looked up and met his gaze. Your breathing hitched when you realized he wasn't kidding.

"You're serious?" you whispered with widening eyes, "My dad made you my bodyguard?" Luke grinned widely again.

"You're gonna be safe with me," he said, pressing his lips to yours, "I promise." Your hands found Luke's face, holding him in place as if he was even  _planning_  on moving.

"I love you, Luke," you mumbled against his mouth. You felt him smile yet again.

"I love you too, princess," he replied, kissing you even harder.

~

_inspiration: http://irwinxsgalaxy.tumblr.com/post/128814261020/you-never-really-enjoyed-being-the-presidents_


	241. The First Daughter (Luke Hemmings) - Part 2

_"I'm always gonna be here for you, princess," he said, kissing your nose, "You know that. Nothing and no one is going to hurt you; Not while I'm around."_

_"What if my dad hires a new bodyguard for me and I don't ever learn to trust him?"_

_"That's not gonna happen."_

_"How do you know that?" Luke smiled at you, his hands sliding to your hips and squeezing lightly._

_"Because you already trust me," he answered._

~

**Six months later**

You and Luke were walking down the hallway on your way to lunch. He wanted to take you out to eat, promising your parents he would keep a watchful eye on you. As you were walking, his fingers were tangled with yours and he was humming some random song. When you turned a corner and saw some people talking, Luke took it upon himself to make room, despite the fact that they weren't even in the way at all.

"Out of the way, everyone! America's sweetheart coming through!" Luke called out, making everyone look at him, "And the President's daughter is with me!"

" _Luke_!" you laughed loudly as you smacked his arm, earning a laugh from the group as you passed them.

"What?" he asked innocently, "I'm becoming more well-known around the country after that rescue, you know."

"Yeah, with teenage girls who think you're hot," you teased.

"Are you suggesting I'm  _not_?" he gasped, putting his freehand over his heart.

"No," you shrugged, "Why  _else_  do you think I'm dating you?"

"That's real shallow," he chuckled.

"Well, you're still with me, so who's the real idiot here?" you smirked, looking up at him. He looked at you for a moment before breaking another smile and leaning down to peck your lips.

"You're lucky I love you, princess," he said.

"I'm lucky I love me too," you sighed. He nudged your arm playfully and you reached back up and kissed him again. "I love you, Lukey," you said under your breath, making him grin widely. Luke didn't say anything – he simply squeezed your hand and you kept making your way down the hall.

You turned another corner into the east wing hallway and found it was empty. You relished in the fact that you were now alone with your boyfriend – something that you were never really able to have. Luke, however, suddenly stopped, making you squeak in surprise.

"Warn me next time," you let out a breath, looking up at him, "What are you doing?" He looked at you incredulously for a moment before letting go of your hand, only to hold his back out to you and bow.

"May I have this dance, princess?" he asked with a small smile. You couldn't help but giggle at the randomness, happily placing your hand in his.

"Of course you may," you said in a teasing tone with a curtsy. Luke pulled you closer to him, wrapping his other arm around your waist as you did with his shoulder and you began slow dancing in the middle of the hallway to a different quietly hummed tune.

You were enjoying being in your boyfriend's arms, pressed against each other as he hummed in your ear. It was almost therapeutic – you really did feel like nothing could hurt you when you were with Luke. However, you feet had other plans.

You let out a loud squeal as you tripped over yourself and fell to the ground. Luke landed on top of you, but quickly propped himself up with his elbows on either side of your head.

"Are you okay, princess?" he asked, but he already knew you were – you were laughing uncontrollably underneath him, making him smile at you.

"I'm fine, Lukey," you giggled once you'd calmed down, "I would ask you the same thing, but I'm guessing the answer is yes since you're still on top of me." He rolled his eyes at your smirk before kissing your nose. He climbed off of you and sat down, pulling you up to a sitting position as well.

You decided to sit there for a while, not really wanting to leave the house just yet.

You talked about nonsensical things for the most part – that was, until you were interrupted. Luke was knelt down on his knees as he was getting ready to stand back up and your sentence was cut short as you looked behind Luke and saw Tim coming up with a rope in his hands. Your eyes widened and Luke furrowed his eyebrows.

"Y/N, what's wrong?" he asked.

It wasn't until you swiftly grabbed his gun from its holster on his waist and put your foot on his chest, kicking him away from you that he knew what was going on. Luke fell onto his back as you kicked yourself across the floor in the opposite direction, happy it was hardwood so you slid without any problems. Tim stumbled a bit when he tripped over your leg before you were able to get it out of the way.

"Hemmings requesting all available backup to the east wing main hallway  _immediately_ ," you heard Luke say frantically into his radio. You had his gun; That was all he  _could_ do.

Tim growled loudly, turning back around. He may have come for Luke, but that move you just made earned you the role of his new target. As you were crawling away, he grabbed your ankle.

" _Y/N_!" Luke shouted in horror. He heard his fellow officers running down the adjacent hallway run even faster when they heard your name, but he was sure they weren't going to make it in time.

As Ashton, Michael, and Calum rounded the corner – their guns already drawn – you flipped over onto your back, loaded the gun, and pulled the trigger. Tim's grip loosened as he fell to the ground, the single bullet wound to his forehead killing him instantly.

Everything was quiet for a moment; The only sound that could be heard was your heavy breathing. You let your arms fall to your sides and closed your eyes, letting out one final deep breath of relief. Luke stumbled a bit as he quickly crawled to you while you were sitting back up. You yanked your foot away from Tim's body and scooted back into your boyfriend.

Luke's arms flew around your waist and his face was pressed against your neck. You were both aware of the other three men watching you – in shock from how effortlessly you managed to take out a threat and in relief that both you and Luke were alright. But you two didn't care about their presence. In that moment, you only cared about each other.

"What the  _hell_ were you thinking?" Luke mumbled into your skin, his grip on you getting tighter.

"I was thinking you were going to get  _killed_  unless I did something!" you exclaimed, grabbing his shoulders and pushing him back so you could look at him.

"But taking my gun so  _I_ couldn't was out of line, princess." When he used your nickname in that tone, you knew he was upset. You rolled your eyes, getting up and walking away.

"You're welcome,  _Hemmings_ ," you scoffed, pushing past the officers who were now awkwardly standing at the end of the hall.

~

**A few hours later**

You had just finished up with your parents in the oval office about how ' _it's Luke's job to protect you and that you shouldn't have done what you did_ ' despite the fact that you had bothsaved yours lives  _and_  eliminated any possibility that Tim would ever manage to do something like that again.

The lecture wasn't even over before you walked out, but honestly, you were just sick of hearing them nag you. No one seemed to appreciate what you'd done and how quickly you reacted to seeing Tim despite being scared since you  _thought_  he was dead.

You trudged back to your bedroom and had only been lying on your bed for about five minutes before there was a knock at your door. You groaned loudly into your pillow, making sure the person on the other side of the door could hear it.

" _What_?!" you shouted, giving them permission to come in. The door opened and you turned your head to find Michael standing there.

"Hi, Y/N," he smiled nervously, "Irwin needs to talk to you."

"No."

" _No_?"

"No," you nodded in confirmation, "I'm not in the mood to be lectured for a  _third time_  today."

"I don't think he's going to be lecturing you, Y/N," Michael told you.

"Of course he is, Michael," you rolled your eyes, "First it was Luke, then it was my parents, and now it's gonna be Ashton."

"Listen, Y/N," he said, closing the door so no one could hear what he was about to say, "Don't tell Ashton I told you this because if he finds out, he's gonna kill me, but he's really upset with himself."

"Why would he be upset with himself?" you sat up, " _He's_  not the one who killed Jacobs."

" _Exactly_ ," Michael stated, "When we were in that house to find you, Ashton told Luke he was going to take care of Jacobs, but he never did; Jacobs got away before he ever found him."

"Wait... Jacobs had been  _alive_ the whole time?!"

"You know Ashton, Y/N," he sighed, "You know he's not really one to beat himself up over stuff, but he's really losing it right now. I really think you should go talk to him." You sat in silence for a moment before jumping up.

"Where is he?" you asked as you walked past Michael to leave the room.

"Last I saw him, he was in his office," he told you. You then broke into a run down the hallway, quickly making it to Ashton's office.

You knocked on the door softly, hearing Ashton clear his throat before calling out for you to come in. As you opened the door, you caught a glimpse of him wiping his eyes. You closed the door behind you and made your way to his desk as he stared at you.

"What are you doing here, Y/N?" Ashton asked you, his voice slightly shaky.

"Came to talk to you," you answered, sitting in the chair in front of his desk, "Heard you were feeling a little off today – wanted to make sure you were alright."

He sighed, "It was Michael, wasn't it?"

"I'm not allowed to say."

"It was Michael."

"Yeah," you nodded, "He told me what happened with Jacobs. Why didn't you tell anyone earlier?"

"I don't know," Ashton hung his head, "I didn't think he'd ever try to come back and finish the job."

"Well, you don't have to worry about that anymore," you tried to reassure him, "None of us do."

"We wouldn't have had to worry about it  _at all_  if I had just been able to catch him before he got away," he grumbled, putting his elbows on his desk and his face in his hands.

Ashton was only a few years older than you, but he certainly took his job very seriously. He had worked so hard to be promoted to the position of commanding officer and he was understandably pissed at himself for allowing things to go this far.

"I think what you did today was incredibly brave, Y/N, and if I had the power to give you a Medal of Honor or something, I would," Ashton told you, making you chuckle under your breath, "But I wish you never had to do that in the first place. If I had just swallowed my pride and told everyone I failed-"

"Not being able to catch the bad guy doesn't make you a failure, Ashton," you said firmly, "Not  _telling people_  that you weren't able to catch the bad guy doesn't make you a failure. There's a reason you were put in the position you're in and that's because you're an amazing asset to the Service and there's  _no one_  I would rather be in charge of the men protecting my family than you. You don't deserve to be blamed for what happened today any more than I do. We're both just protecting the people we care about." Ashton smiled slightly, looking back up at you.

"Thanks, Y/N," he said softly.

"Come on, Ashton," you chirped, standing up, "I'm starving and I'm not in the mood for Luke to take me out to eat."

"Where do you want to go?" he asked, grabbing his keys and following you out of the room.

"Maybe that diner downtown that opened a few weeks ago?" you suggested, "Everyone says it's really good, but I haven't been able to go yet since everyone's been too damn paranoid to let me leave the building."

"I hear there's this really nice place called the White House kitchen that has food  _to die for_ ," he teased. You laughed loudly, shoving his shoulder.

"We need to get out, Ashton!" you said dramatically, "Experience what wonders the world has to offer!"

"Whatever you say, Y/N," he chuckled, opening the door for you and leading you out to the car.

**Luke's POV**

"She's going out with  _him_?" Luke gritted his teeth as he peeked out the window and watched you leave with Ashton, having heard the conversation through the thin walls.

"They're just getting food, Hemmings," Calum rolled his eyes, "She's had a stressful day. I don't blame her for wanting to go out for a while."

"She wouldn't have had such a stressful day if she'd have just let me handle it," he grumbled.

"Yeah, because she would have felt  _so much better_  if the roles were switched."

"It's  _my_ job,  _not hers_."

"Are you seriously telling me that you're not even a  _little_ grateful for what she did?" Michael snapped, "Need I remind you that your girlfriend  _literally_ saved your life today and had it not been for her buying you the time to call for backup, Jacobs probably would have killed  _both of you_." Luke began chewing on his bottom lip.

"She didn't have to go out with  _Irwin_ ," he stated monotonously, " _I'm_  still her bodyguard."

"Well, to  _her_ , you're her boyfriend  _first_ and her bodyguard  _second_ ," Michael reminded him, "And I think she'd appreciate being shown a little gratitude for how well she handled seeing Jacobs again. She's been scared to death about every sound she hears and every move someone makes around her since she was kidnapped and honestly, I don't think I would have been able to take him out the way she did."

"Maybe if Irwin had taken care of him the  _first time_ -"

"Maybe if  _you_ weren't so ignorant, you and Y/N would be fine again!" Calum spat, interjecting himself back into the conversation, "Irwin already feels bad enough about this whole thing and he doesn't need  _you_ making him feel worse! What's done is done, Hemmings! We can't go back and change it so we just have to deal with it and move on!"

Luke angrily got up and stormed out of the room, leaving Michael and Calum shaking their heads in disappointment.

~

**Your POV**

After you and Ashton got back from the diner, you went to your room to call it a night. It was only nine o'clock, but you really didn't feel like interacting with anyone else today, so you requested that Ashton tell everyone you'd like to be left alone until tomorrow morning. He happily obliged, wishing you a good night's sleep before you closed your bedroom door.

~

Two hours had passed and you started feeling like you could barely keep your eyes open, so you put the book you had been reading back on your nightstand. You got up to change into your pajamas, tied your hair into a messy bun on top of your head, and climbed back onto your bed, burying yourself under your blankets. You let out a sigh of content at how warm it was and turned onto your right side.

You were almost asleep when you heard a light knock on your door, but the person didn't even wait for a response before they came in. The door closed again and you heard them tiptoe across the room. They turned on your lamp and you figured it was just your mom or dad coming in to check on you, but you didn't open your eyes, really not wanting to see either of them. Whoever it was leaned down and kissed your cheek, making your heart skip a beat as you breathed in Luke's cologne.

Luke climbed onto the bed behind you, wrapping his arm around your waist. It was pretty difficult to get a nice grip since he hadn't gotten under the blanket with you, but he made it work – he just wanted to have you near him again after ignoring each other all day. He pressed a kiss to the back of your neck, leaving his lips there for a moment before pulling back.

"I know you're not asleep," Luke whispered, making you sigh. You still didn't say anything though. "I know you're mad at me, princess," he swallowed the lump in his throat, "You have every right to be; I shouldn't have blamed you for anything and I'm really sorry I did. What you did today was nothing short of heroic and I'm  _so_  lucky to be with someone who would risk their life for me like that even though it's  _my_  job to protect  _them_." You swallowed thickly as well, wiggling around so you could turn to face him. "But I'd still protect you even if it  _weren't_  my job," he told you, kissing your nose, "I love you so much, princess."

"So you're not mad at me anymore?" you asked softly, your voice not giving you anything more.

"I was never mad at you to  _begin with_ ," he sighed, "I was just worried you were going to get hurt and I didn't know you even knew how to handle a gun like that. I shouldn't have reprimanded you for it –  _especially_ not after you just saved both of our lives." You couldn't help but smile.

"You don't have to apologize, Lukey," you told him, bringing your arm out from under the blanket and resting your hand on his cheek so you could stroke his cheekbone, "I shouldn't have just taken your gun without you knowing what I was doing."

"Well, you couldn't have told me without Jacobs finding out, now could you?" he stuck his tongue out, letting it poke your nose. You giggled quietly as he continued, "So would you mind telling me how you became such a bad-ass today?"

You laughed again, shrugging, "I just watch a lot of  _Criminal Minds_."

"You cannot tell me that a  _TV show_  taught you how to use a gun," he stated, "I refuse to believe it."

"I mean, my dad taught me how to shoot when I was younger, but I learned how to  _actually_ use it from the show," you told him, "It was literally like one of the scenes apart from the fact that you didn't kick me." Luke gave you a confused look, making you snicker. "I'll have to show you the episode sometime."

"How about we have a  _Criminal Minds_  marathon tomorrow instead of movies?" he suggested with a small yawn. You smiled at him.

"I think that can be arranged," you whispered, kissing his nose just like he had kissed yours. He let his eyes flutter shut, clearly about to fall asleep. "You should go to your room, Lukey," you said, pushing the hair that had fallen over his eye back to where it should be, "Someone might come in here."

"Don't care," he murmured, "Just wanna hold you." You couldn't help the grin that spread across your face.

You took your hand away from his face to get out from under your blanket. Luke whined lowly as he opened his eyes again, thinking you were going to make him leave. But you simply straightened your blanket and laid back down next to him, letting his body heat keep you warm. He immediately turned to lay on his back and wrapped his arms around you, pulling you into him. You pressed a lazy kiss to his lips, whispering a ' _goodnight_ ' and an ' _I love you, Lukey_ ' before laying your head on his chest. He tried to mumble an ' _I love you too, princess_ ', but he was already drifting to sleep, happy to have you back in his arms.

~

_inspirations:  
Ellen and Taylor Swift, "America's sweetheart coming through": https://youtu.be/hPcFvIURqpc?t=145  
_ _fight scene (ish), Criminal Minds episode "L.D.S.K." (season 1, episode 6)_


	242. Over and Out (Michael Clifford) - Part 1

You and Michael were having what you two called ' _a Michael and Y/N day_ 'at the local mall. And it was going really well for the most part – until Michael's girlfriend showed up.

Michael had been dating Madison on and off for a little over a year and a half now and no matter how many times she broke it off with him, he would always go back to her. It was like clockwork these days; Madison would break up with him, Michael would come to your apartment in tears, and she would call him two days later begging him to come back because she loved him. And you never understood why, but he always believed her.

It was no surprise that Madison wasn't the greatest girl – she was constantly going out and getting with guys that weren't Michael – but there was nothing you could do. Of course, you'd tried to tell Michael so many times, but she convinced him you were lying despite the fact that he should have  _known_ you'd never lie to him,  _especially_ not about something like that.

So you just got over it. You got used to the 2am phone calls when Michael was in tears about yet another breakup and the 6pm phone calls when he was happily telling you they were back together. You got used to the pain you felt when he never stopped talking about her and when he would go on and on about her after he saw something that reminded him of her.

But what you never got used to was the way Madison  _always_  seemed to show up when you were spending alone time with Michael. You were sure Michael had something to do with it – an innocent ' _At the bowling alley with Y/N_ ' or ' _Hanging with Y/N at her place_ ' text on his part when she asked what he was doing – but it wasn't like you could ask him to stop. You knew he wouldn't listen to you.

You were walking behind Michael and Madison, desperately trying not to gag at how cutesy she was being with him because you  _knew_  she was only doing it because you were there. You wanted to leave, honestly, but Michael was your ride home and you didn't  _really_  want to bother your mom or any of your other friends unless it was an absolute emergency. So you did what you always did these days: You sucked it up and dealt with it.

It wasn't until an hour after Madison had showed up that anyone had spoken directly to you – apart from store employees. Honestly, you were pretty sure Michael had forgotten you were even there. As you came up to GameStop, he finally let go of Madison's hand and addressed both of you.

"I have to go in here for a minute, do you guys want to come?" he asked.

You shook your head, not really wanting to stand around while Michael looked at video games for half an hour. Madison also declined, making you groan internally, knowing you'd have to spend that time with her.

"Okay," he  nodded, "I'll try to hurry."

"No, you won't," you shook your head, making Michael smile. He stuck his tongue out at you before turning around and trotting into the store.

You and Madison sat down across from each other in the small seating area. You were both on your phones, doing your best to ignore each others  presence, until you couldn't take it anymore.

"I'm gonna head home," you announced, making Madison look up at you, "Tell Mikey I said bye and I'll call him later." You grabbed your bags and walked past her, hoping she would deliver the message but knowing she probably wouldn't.

"You're pathetic, you know," you heard Madison's voice.

"I'm sorry?" you asked, turning back around.

"You always think that being alone around Michael more often is going to  make him leave me," she giggled, "You always think he'd believe you over me. You always think  _you're_  more important to him than  _I_  am. Five years of being ' _best friends_ ' means nothing anymore; Not when he has me."

"You know what,  _Madison_?" you snarled, deciding you were done playing the nice one, "One day, he's gonna see right through you. One day, he's going to know what you do behind his back. Maybe that day isn't going to come as soon as I hope, but it's going to happen. And I'm gonna put him back together like I always do. But you will  _always_  be a manipulative bitch."

"What's going on here?" Michael's voice came from behind you. He turned, putting his arm around Madison's waist as he did so.

"Baby," she stuck her bottom lip out, "Your friend was being very rude." You rolled your eyes, already knowing Michael was going to fall for it.

"Y/N-" You cut him off, not in the mood to be reprimanded once again for your feelings toward his girlfriend.

"Madison, I'm so sorry that you can't handle the truth," you smiled sweetly.

" _Y/N_ ," Michael narrowed his eyes, "I know you're upset because this day was supposed to be just us, but you don't need to talk to Maddie like that. You're acting like a selfish brat."

"Okay," you nodded, "I'll talk to  _you_  like that then."

"Y/N-"

" _Shut the fuck up_ ," you growled, making his eyes widen; You'd  _never_  talked to him like this before, even when you two were teasing each other. "I'm sick of you always ditching me for your girlfriend. When you say we're going to have a  _Michael and Y/N day_ , I expect you to  _follow through_  with it. You don't see  _me_  inviting people along without  _asking you_  first, do you? I'm  _done_  trying with you; I can't do it anymore. All it does is leave me in the dark with no sort of explanation about why your fucking girlfriend is more important than the best friend you  _promised_  would  _always_  come first. But it's fine with me if you want to go around showing off a girl who clearly couldn't give two shits about you and how you feel. But don't come crying to me when your head is out of her ass long enough to see who she  _really_  is." You ended your rant by spinning around on your heels and walking away. Michael called after you, but he cut himself off. You didn't look back to see why though, certain it had something to do with Madison.

You made it outside, heading around the corner of the building to a less densely populated part of the parking lot. You leaned against the concrete wall, taking deep, slow breaths before pulling your phone out of your pocket.

"Hey, Y/N!" Ashton chirped when he answered the call.

"Hi, Ash," you murmured, "Are you busy?"

"Am I  _ever_?" You could hear his smirk, making you smile involuntarily.

"Can you come get me from the mall?" you asked, "Or at least ask Cal or Luke for me."

"Yeah, I can come," he said, "What's wrong?"

You paused before sighing, "I'll tell you when you get here."

"Alright," he nodded, "Where are you at?"

"In the back – outside of JC Penney."

"I'll be there in 10."

"Thanks, Ash," you said softly, hanging up the call.

~

"What's wrong?" Ashton asked as he got out of his car and ran over to you, immediately bringing you into a hug, "I thought you and Mikey were spending the day together." You let out a breathy chuckle, hugging him back.

"Madison showed up and he ditched me," you mumbled into his shirt. Ashton sighed and you felt his breath fan out across your neck.

"Again?"

"Yeah," your voice cracked slightly.

"Well, I can tell you don't really want to go back home yet," he said, "So how about we go inside and have some Ashton and Y/N time instead."

"But if Madison sees us, she's just gonna say that I'm trying to make Mikey jealous."

Ashton raised his eyebrows, "Since when do you care about what  _Madison_ thinks?" You couldn't help the smile that started pulling at the corner of your mouth.

"I really hate you sometimes," you told him.

"You only hate me when you know I'm right," he chuckled, taking your bags from you, "I'll go put these in my car." You tried to protest, but he was already running into the parking lot. You watched as he jogged back, wrapping his arm around your shoulders once he got to you and leading you back inside. "What do you say we stop at the food court first?" he suggested, "My treat."

"You don't have to do this, Ash," you said quietly as he opened the door for you, "I'm fine with going home."

"Nah, come on," he said, "We never spend time together, just the two of us. And I've been meaning to buy some new albums at FYE for a while now, I've just been too lazy to come out and get them." He followed you through the door, his arm returning back to your shoulders once you were back inside.

" _You, lazy? Never,_ " you gasped dramatically.

"Oh,  _ha, ha, ha_ ," Ashton rolled his eyes, "You know what? I was gonna buy you that All Time Low album you wanted, but now, I'm not going to."

"Well, joke's on you, Ashton," you stuck your tongue out at him, "I bought it half an hour ago."

"Low blow, Y/N," he giggled.

"I'm short, Ash, it's as high as I can reach," you pouted, making him shove your arm playfully.

As you and Ashton were standing in line for pizza, you were leaning on him and his arm was still around you. He kept whispering nonsensical things into your ear to brighten your mood and as much as you didn't want to laugh at how lame the jokes were, you couldn't help it. You had to bury your face in his chest every time you laughed loudly so that attention wasn't put on you, but Ashton was making it incredibly difficult.

"Ash, stop," you giggled breathlessly, interrupting another joke, "My stomach hurts. I need a break."

"But you feel better, right?" he smiled.

"Yeah," you replied, hugging him, "Thanks, Ash."

"You're welcome," he kissed the top of your head as you reached the counter.

Once you and Ashton got your pizza, you sat down at an empty table. You talked for a while until you were both finished eating. He got up, grabbing both of your plates to throw them away. When he came back, you were about to stand up, but he stopped you.

"I'm gonna go to the bathroom real quick and then we can go, okay?" he told you.

You nodded, pulling out your phone and scrolling through Twitter to occupy your time. When someone sat down across from you a few seconds later, you looked up from your phone. You let out an annoyed sigh, staring straight at Michael.

" _What_?" you spat.

"You and Ashton seem to be having fun," he commented quietly. You cocked an eyebrow.

"Have you been watching us?" you asked. You looked around and sure enough, you saw Madison glaring at you from across the food court. "What the  _hell_ , Michael?!" you whispered, "Why are you  _watching us_?!"

"Just curious as to what's going on between you two."

"Nothing is going on, Michael."

"Really? Because you're getting pretty close. Doesn't  _seem_  like nothing."

"If you  _must_  know, I called Ash to give me a ride home but he suggested we stay since he needs to pick some things up. Not that it would be any of your business if there  _were_  something going on between us; I am perfectly capable of deciding who I want to spend my time with."

"I told you that was off limits. He's my  _best friend_ , Y/N."

" _So was I_ ," you growled, looking over and noticing Ashton coming back to the table. Michael swallowed thickly.

"W- _Was_?" he whispered. As Ashton approached the table, you stood up abruptly and pushed your chair back in.

" _Goodbye, Michael_ ," you said dryly, grabbing Ashton's hand and pulling him in the direction of FYE.

As you browsed the albums in the store, Ashton came up behind you, having already found what he was looking for. He snaked his arms around your waist, putting his chin on your shoulder.

"What was that about?" he asked. You chewed on your bottom lip, staring blankly at the album in your hand.

"Nothing," you muttered, putting the CD back and trying to walk away. Ashton kept you firmly in place, however, tightening his hold on you.

"That wasn't  _nothing_ , Y/N," he said firmly, "You're as upset as you were when you called me earlier. Now what's going on?"

"He and Madison were watching us at the food court," you answered, "He's mad because he thinks something is going on between us."

"Probably jealous, to be honest," Ashton commented.

"Why would he be  _jealous_?" you asked, "He's got a girlfriend."

"Well, I don't think it's a surprise that any guy would be lucky to have you, Y/N." You rolled your eyes then heard him chuckle, "I'm serious."

"I'm sure you are."

"You know, Michael's had a thing for you since the day he met you," Ashton informed you. Your heart skipped a beat and you swallowed the lump in your throat.

"Well, he has a shitty way of  _showing it_ ," you whispered unevenly.

Ashton turned you around in his arms, holding his CDs to you. You instinctively took them and he raised his hands to wipe the stray tears off of your cheeks. He looked at you intently for a moment before leaning in and kissing your forehead.

"I don't know why he thinks this is the best way to handle things, but it's gonna be okay," he told you reassuringly, "Maybe it's not gonna be okay as soon as you want it to be, but I promise, it will be."

You nodded slowly, "Thank you, Ash." He smiled at you, pulling you into his chest for another hug. He pulled away, taking his CDs back.

"Do you have hot chocolate back at your place?" he asked you.

" _Ashton_ ," you scoffed, "It's like you don't  _know me_." He simply chuckled in response.

"Let's go find a movie," he told you, "I'll buy and we can go back to yours and watch it." You smiled with a quiet sniffle, letting Ashton take your hand and lead you to where the movies were, completely missing the way Michael solemnly walked past the door with Madison nowhere in sight.

~

Halfway through the movie, Ashton had already fallen asleep on your lap. You were playing with his hair when you heard a knock at the door. You didn't want to wake Ashton up – and honestly, you didn't really want any  more company anyway – so you ignored it.

The person knocked two more times before you heard some jingling and the lock retract. You furrowed your eyebrows – the only person you knew of with a key to your apartment was Michael. You looked back as the person entered the living room and your eyes met Michael's. You resisted the urge to roll your eyes at him, simply turning your attention back to the TV.

"Come to get your stuff?" you asked monotonously. He didn't answer; He just walked over and looked at Ashton.

"What's  _he_  doing here?" he grumbled.

"He's my friend, Michael," you snapped back, "We wanted to watch a movie. That's what friends do."

"We used to do that..." he trailed off so quietly that you almost didn't hear it.

"Yeah, and then you became an asshole who only cared about his stupid girlfriend."

"Y/N," the boy on your lap mumbled, "Be nice." Ashton rubbed his eyes with the backs of his hands. You huffed lightly as he sat up. "I should leave you two alone," he yawned, "I'll see you, Y/N." He leaned over and gave you a hug – one that you happily returned – and stood up, digging his keys out of his pocket.

"Ash," you said, getting up with him, "Are you sure you don't want to stay in the guest room? I don't want you falling asleep at the wheel."

"I'll be fine, Y/N," he assured you, "Just be nice." You rolled your eyes and he smiled. "Call me if you need anything," he told you. You nodded and he gave you one last hug before heading out the door. You turned back to look at Michael, glaring at him now.

" _Honestly, Michael_ ," you stated, "You can ditch me to hang out with your girlfriend, but  _I'm_  not allowed to spend time with someone who  _isn't_   _you_?"

"I thought Ashton told you to be nice," he mumbled.

"Well, Ashton's not here anymore,  _is he_?" you spat, grabbing yours and Ashton's empty mugs from the coffee table and pushing past him, going into the kitchen.

"Listen, Y/N," Michael sighed, trailing close behind you, "I know you're mad at me, but I swear I didn't come here to argue with you."

"Then why  _are_  you here?" you asked, washing the cups. He was quiet for a moment, causing you to look over your shoulder at him.

"Maddie and I broke up," he told you, "Before I came to talk to you at the food court, I caught her with another guy." You sighed quietly, turning back to the sink.

"Do you want me to feel bad?" you asked, "Because I don't. I warned you about her and you didn't listen to me."

"I know, but-"

"But  _nothing_ , Michael," you sighed again, beginning to dry the mugs, "You're only here because you need someone to hold you and tell you everything is gonna be alright and she doesn't deserve you and you're way too good for her, and as much as I want to do all that, I  _can't_  anymore;  _I'm done_. I can't keep telling you those things when I know you're going to run back to her when she calls you and tells you how much she ' _misses you_ ' and ' _loves you_ ' and how she ' _can't stop thinking about you_ '. You always do."

"I'm not going back, Y/N," he said.

"You always say that too," you whispered.

"Well, I mean it this time." You heard footsteps coming up behind you and his arms wrapped around your waist. "I know Ashton told you how I feel about you," he mumbled against your ear, "I heard you guys talking earlier in the store."

You slowly put the last mug on the counter once it was dry and got the water off of your hands, but you didn't turn to face Michael. You simply stared at the bubbles of soap still remaining in the sink.

"I really do like you, Y/N," he continued, "Maybe more than a best friend should, and I'm really hoping you like me too."

"Michael..." you muttered, removing yourself from his arms, "I don't want this to be something you want just because you just broke up with your girlfriend." You started to back away from him, "I don't want something to happen only to have you leave when she wants you back; That's not fair. I don't deserve to have my feelings played with like that."

You felt your back hit the counter, but before you could move, Michael's hands were already pressed to the granite on either side of you. His hands slid to your hips, picking you up and sitting you on top of the counter so you were eye level with him. He stood between your legs, his thumbs rubbing small circles on your hipbones.

"I know you don't," he told you, "And things aren't going to be like that if you just give me a chance to prove it."

"Michael-"

" _One date_ , Y/N," he shook his head, "If you still feel like I don't really mean if after one date, then I'll let it go and move on."

You stared at him for a moment before slowly raising your hand up. You pushed the stray hairs off of his forehead, leaving your hand to rest on his cheek. As you ran your thumb back and forth along his cheekbone, Michael leaned into your touch with a small smile on his face.

"One date, Mikey," you murmured, "You better make it a good one." Michael's grin got wider and he wrapped his arms around your waist, pulling you forward so he could hug you tightly.

"It will be," he said into your skin, "I promise."

 


	243. Over and Out (Michael Clifford) - Part 2

"Admit it, Y/N," Michael stated, "That was the best date you've ever been on and you know."

"Michael," you raised your eyebrows, unlocking your apartment door and leading him inside, "We went ice skating and you laughed at me when I fell."

"I wouldn't have laughed if it wasn't funny!"

"It  _wasn't_  funny!" you pouted, "It really hurt!"

"Hey, I offered to kiss it and make it better, but you just smacked me," he smirked.

"I'm not letting you kiss my  _ass_  in front of all those people, Mikey," you giggled, going into the kitchen.

"I don't see them  _now_ ," he said, coming up behind you where you stood at the counter and wrapping his arms around your waist.

"And they say romance is dead," you sighed dramatically, leaning back on him.

"I was  _very_  romantic tonight," he scoffed, squeezing you gently.

"I would hardly call you a  _romantic_ ," you replied, "The most romantic thing you did was give me your jacket when I got cold, but I don't really count that because you do it all the time."

"Just because I do it all the time doesn't mean it's not romantic," he pointed out, laying his head on your shoulder, "Guess I'll just have to start doing things you're _not_ used to."

"Such as?" you cocked an eyebrow. Michael pressed his lips to your skin, trailing up your neck and stopping on your ear.

"Won't be much of a surprise if I tell you, now will it?" he murmured, pressing one last kiss to the top of your ear. You hummed in content, feeling his lips curl up into a smile before he pulled away.

Michael's hands slid to your hips, turning you around. He kissed your forehead, then moved back to look at you for a moment. He was just staring at you, but before you could ask him if he was alright, he spoke.

"I love you, you know?" he thought out loud.

"I know," you nodded without missing a beat, "I love you too, Mikey." You weren't really fazed by it; You and Michael told each other you loved each other all the time.

His face fell a little and he started chewing on his inner cheek. He effortlessly lifted you up onto the counter, his thumbs gently rubbing your hipbones. Your left hand came to rest on his right forearm while your right hand made its way up to his left cheek, your own thumb running back and forth along his cheekbone.

"Y/N, I don't..." Michael sighed, "Um... I-I don't mean it like that... I mean it like...  _Fuck_..."

"Mikey..." you said slowly.

"I love you," he repeated, looking into your eyes with what seemed to be a look of desperation and worry, "Like, I'm  _in_  love with you." You couldn't help the light chuckle that passed your lips, making him frown. "Why are you laughing?" he honestly looked like he was going to cry, "God, I knew I shouldn't have said that. Fuck, I'm so stupid. I should have waited. I'm sorry." He went to let go of you, but you tightened your hold on his arm before bringing your other hand up to his cheek as well.

"I'm laughing because you're an _idiot_ , Mikey," you told him with a soft smile.

"How is that supposed to make me feel any  _better_  about this?" he asked, letting out a defeated sigh. You leaned forward until your forehead landed on his.

"I'm in love with you too, Michael," you whispered, "Always have been, always will be." You felt his breath of relief fan out across your face, making you start laughing.

"If I didn't love your laugh so much, I would be incredibly annoyed at you for ruining for that moment," Michael commented, pulling back so you could see the small smile on his face.

"Mikey," you mumbled. He raised his eyebrows at you as if he was telling you to go on. You took in a deep breath, letting it out shakily. "I-Is it too soon to ask you to kiss me?" Michael's heart skipped a beat, but his smile only got wider.

"I just told you I'm in love with you," he said, "I think anything is fair game now." He leaned forward again, letting his lips  _barely_ brush against yours. When he didn't move, you whined quietly.

" _Mikey_ ," you pouted, making him laugh under his breath before pressing your lips together firmly.

"And Y/N," he said, his voice muffled by your mouth, "You  _never_  have to ask me to kiss you."

~

**Three months later**

"You pick the movie, I'll order the pizza," Michael announced the second he walked into your apartment.

"It's nice to see you too, Mikey," you giggled, getting up from the couch, "Please come in. Make yourself at home."

"Think it's safe to say I already have," he chuckled, tossing his coat onto the back of your couch. He wrapped his arms around your waist when you got to him, pecking your lips, "Love you, babe."

"Love you too," you grinned, "Now go order my pizza."

" _Your_ pizza?" he cocked an eyebrow with a light smirk on his face.

"Mhmm," you hummed, removing yourself from his arms and going over to the shelf you kept all your DVDs on. Michael watched you with a smile before heading toward your bedroom. "Hey, don't forget the-"

"Extra cheese cups with the breadsticks!" he called over his shoulder, "Yeah, yeah, yeah!" You smiled to yourself as your eyes scanned over your movie titles.

There was a sudden knock on your door, making you look over your shoulder. You stood still for a moment – you hadn't really expected anyone but Michael to come over today. But you still trotted toward the door, looking through the peephole to see who it was. You frowned when you realized their hand was covering it, so you cautiously opened the door slightly, only opening it fully when you saw who was there.

"Madison?" you asked, furrowing your eyebrows in confusion.

"What are you doing here?" she narrowed her eyes at you. You raised your eyebrows and stared at her for a moment.

"I live here..." you replied, "This is  _my_ apartment... What are  _you_ doing here?"

She shrugged nonchalantly, "Saw Michael come in."

"Oh," you nodded, "So you're stalking him."

" _No_ ," she rolled her eyes, "I just need to talk to him."

"About..?"

"That's none of your business," she stated.

Madison stepped forward to walk past you, but your arm shot out and you grabbed the other side of the door frame. She jumped back slightly, looking at you like you'd just committed a crime.

"I did not invite you in here," you told her, "And until you tell me why you're here, that invitation is not coming out of my mouth."

"I need to talk to him about... _personal_...things."

"Are you pregnant?" you gasped dramatically, "Are you sure the baby is his?"

"I'm not pregnant," she rolled her eyes again.

"Oh, what a relief," you sighed, "You're much too young for such a big responsibility."

"Let me in, Y/N," she growled.

"I would, but it's awfully messy in here," you shook your head, "I'll tell you what: I'll call you when it's clean, and then you can come back." Madison was about to respond when Michael's voice could be heard as he came out of the bedroom.

"Hey, babe!" he called out, his voice getting closer, "I was thinking instead of the usual pizza and a movie, we could go to the fair toni-" He cut himself off when he saw Madison standing at the door. "Madison..." he said softly, "What are you doing here?"

"Why are you calling her  _babe_?" she snarled, "You know what? Never mind. I don't care why. We need to talk."

Madison pushed you out of the way, causing you to let out a loud squeal as you stumbled. Your back hit the door of the closet behind you, luckily keeping you upright. She grabbed Michael's arm and dragged him into your bedroom before he could rush over and make sure you were okay.

"Please, Madison, come in," you mumbled to yourself, closing the door. You went into the living room to sit down, worried about what was happening.

You couldn't deny that you were scared Madison was going to convince him to be with her again. You and Michael weren't official – despite the fact that you'd been dating for three months now, he  _still_  hadn't asked you to be his girlfriend – so you were terrified that  _this_  was the reason why: Because he was waiting to see if Madison would ask him to come back.

**Michael's POV**

"What the hell, Michael?!" Madison whispered after closing the door.

"I could ask you the same thing," he responded quietly, not wanting you to hear them fighting, "Why are you here?"

"You're being a little dramatic, don't you think?" she pouted, "It's been three months, Mikey. When are you going to stop messing around with other girls and come back to me?" He looked at her incredulously for a moment.

"First of all,  _you_ cheated on  _me_ ," he reminded her, "It wasn't  _my_ fault we broke up. Second, I haven't been ' _messing with other girls_.' The only girl I've been with is Y/N."

"I didn't cheat!" she replied defensively, "We were talking and he lost his balance!"

"Right, and his mouth just  _happened_  to collide with yours and you were in such shock that your tongue  _accidentally_  slipped into his mouth. I totally understand now. All is forgiven, Madison," he rolled his eyes.

"Babe-"

" _Don't_  call me that," Michael growled, "You lost the rights to call me that the moment I caught you making out with another guy." He put his hand on her upper back and opened the door, pushing her out of the room.

**Your POV**

When your bedroom door swung open, you jumped up from your seat on the couch, watching Michael push his ex-girlfriend back toward the front door. As he approached the entryway, Madison spoke up.

"You called  _her_ babe!" she snapped at Michael, pointing back at you. He shoved her out of the apartment, smiling at her when she spun around to face him.

"Yeah, I did," he told her, "Because  _she_ is my girlfriend." He closed the door and you heard her shriek and footsteps stomping away before Michael turned around again.

You were standing there with a blank stare on your face, not really sure how to process everything that just happened. Michael was starting to worry about you, having no idea what was going on in your mind.

" _Girlfriend_?" you whispered, finally breaking the silence.

"Yeah," he replied softly, "You  _are_ my girlfriend, aren't you?"

"I... I don't know," you answered honestly, "You... You never asked... I-I didn't think you wanted... I thought you were w-waiting for Ma-"

"Well, I do, and I wasn't," he said, moving away from the door but still leaving a fair amount of space in between you, "I know there were so many times where I  _was_ waiting for her, but those are long gone, Y/N. I told you I'm done with her and I mean it. And I want nothing more than to be able to finally call you my girlfriend." You smiled shyly, giving him a small nod, letting him know you accepted. He breathed a sigh of relief, happy you didn't reject him.

"So... The fair, huh?" you asked him.

"Mhmm," he hummed in response, "Your life is in serious need of a giant teddy bear."

"Why?" you smirked, "You're already here." He looked at you for a moment before finally cracking a smile. He hurried over to you, wrapping you in a tight hug.

"Just think of it as something to help you get by when I'm not," he said against your ear before kissing it.

"You always  _could be_  though..." you trailed off, not looking at him. He let go of your waist and put his hands on your cheeks, lifting your head up. He gave you a look that asked you to continue, so you did. "I-I mean... You practically live here already anyway, s-so maybe it would be easier if you just stayed here all the time..."

"Are you asking me to move in?" he asked.

"U-Um, I-I-I..." you stuttered before finally sighing and whispering, "Yeah." You looked down at your feet, really not wanting to watch him tell you no. You heard a quiet chuckle, then felt his hands lift your head back up.

"Yeah, you idiot," he said, kissing your forehead, "I'll move in with you."

You closed your eyes as you smiled, wrapping your arms around his waist and burying your face in his chest. He kissed the top of your head, wrapping his own arms around you.

You hugged each other in silence for a moment before Michael said, "I'm still gonna win you a giant teddy bear though."

"Why?" you giggled under your breath, "So you can wake up in the middle of the night and cry because you forgot it's there?"

" _I do not cry_ , Y/N," he said seriously, making you lift your head back up. You raised your eyebrows at him.

"Really? Because my shoulder would beg to differ," you stated, "I could name at least 15 times in two seconds."

" _Really_?" he scoffed, obviously not believing you, "Prove it."

"Every single time you and Madison broke up," you said smugly.

"Oh my God," he laughed loudly, "That's low."

"Well, there was the time you met Alex Gaskarth, but I promised I would never bring that up again," you smirked. His jaw dropped.

"I was  _not_ crying!" he exclaimed.

"Oh," you nodded, "Maybe I'm remembering it wrong then. I better go call Ashton just to make sure."

You wiggled out of his grip and trotted to where your phone was lying on the couch as if you were actually going to call him. Michael rushed forward, grabbing your waist just as you picked up your phone. He turned you around and threw you over his shoulder.

" _Mikey_!" you squealed, unable to hold back your laughter.

"No, we are going to the fair and you are not going to call Ashton," he said, but you could hear him smile. He grabbed the key to your apartment and left, making sure the door was locked before heading to the elevator.

"Put me down before you have to explain this to someone," you giggled, listening to the elevator door close and Michael hit the button for the ground floor.

"Nope!" he chirped.

"Then put me down or I really  _will_  call Ashton," you smirked again.

"You won't do it," he shook his head, exiting the elevator when the door opened again. You were silent for a moment as you quietly went to your contacts and called Ashton. You put the phone to your ear and waited for Ashton to pick up.

"Hi, Y/N!" he answered cheerfully after the second ring.

"Hey, Ash," you smiled, "I have a question for you."

"Like I believe  _that_ ," you heard Michael scoff, exiting the apartment building.

"What's up?" he asked. You turned on the speaker.

"When you and Mikey met Alex Gaskarth for the first time a couple years ago, did he cry or am I making that up?"

Ashton laughed, "No, he definitely cried."

" _Y/N_!" Michael shouted, finally returning you to the ground once he reached his car. He had a shocked expression on his face while you were just smiling victoriously.

"Thanks, Ash," you grinned.

"Good luck," he chuckled, referring to whatever Michael was going to do after you hung up.

"I'll see you later," you laughed along.

"Bye," you heard Ashton smile as he ended the call.

You stuffed your phone into your pocket, crossing your arms and falling backwards until your back hit the side of Michael's car. You had a smug grin on your face and it was becoming increasingly difficult for Michael to keep pretending he was actually upset with you.

"Now," you sighed dramatically, "What were you saying?"

Michael finally let himself smile widely, grabbing your sides suddenly and beginning to tickle you. You let out a short scream before falling into a fit of uncontrollable giggles. You found yourself back against his chest, your laughter now muffled by his shirt.

"M-M-Mikey!" you managed to choke out, "I ca- I can't bre-breathe!"

Michael's own cheeks were starting to hurt from smiling so big, so he stopped, wrapping his arms around you. You both remained still as you were calming down. When you finally tilted your head upward to look at him, he smiled at you.

"I love you, babe," he told you, kissing your lips, letting his linger for a moment. You closed your eyes, breathing a sigh of content.

"I love you too, Mikey," you mumbled, thinking about how lucky you were to finally be able to call him yours.

 


	244. Fix a Heart (Luke Hemmings) *

**Warning: Swearing, harassment, serious injury, murder**

 

~

You trudged tiredly down the abandoned road. You desperately wanted to go to bed, but you hadn't eaten at all in the past two days and you knew you needed to find something. You had found unopened bags of chips and cookies throughout the day, but they were nowhere near filling enough. Your stomach had been growling non-stop for what seemed like the past four hours. It was acting up again as you passed an alleyway, and you heard a gravelly voice come from the darkness.

"Hey," the man said, tapping your shoulder. That instantly woke you up, making you turn to look at him. "You hungry, princess?" You raised your eyebrow at the nickname, already over whatever he was about to say.

"No, thank you," you told him, "I'm fine."

"Oh, come on, princess," he said, "I'm sure you would be interested in having something to eat tonight. Maybe there's a way you could... _earn it_." The smirk on his face was telling you that he definitely wasn't talking about giving him money and it made you want to gag, to be quite honest.

"If you seriously think I'm going to give  _a blowjob_  just to get some food, you are  _sadly_  mistaken," you spat. You began to walk away, but the man grabbed your elbow, spinning you back around.

"Listen,  _princess_ ," he growled, his grip on your arm tightening, "If you don't give me what I want in the next 10 seconds, I promise I will have no problems taking apart this pretty little body of yours." You felt the corner of your mouth twitch into a sly grin as you nodded your head.

"Alright," you stated, freeing yourself from his grasp. You put your hand on his chest and pushed him back into the alley, making him smirk again victoriously. He dropped his backpack beside the dumpster and leaned against the wall. "How do you want to do this?" He cocked an eyebrow at you and you rolled your eyes. "Foreplay is important, you know. So should I take it easy on you or do you like it rough?"

"Surprise me," he told you.

"With pleasure," you grinned mischievously.

You slid your hand up his arm, making him shiver as you left a trail of goose bumps. You were chewing on your bottom lip in concentration – but he didn't need to know you weren't purposely doing it seductively. You let your hand come to rest on the back of his neck and felt his hands lay on your hips. You leaned forward, letting him feel your breath on his lips. You could feel him already getting hard through his jeans, resisting the urge to roll your eyes.

Just before your lips touched his, you stopped playing around.

Your hand forcefully gripped the hair on the back of his head and you ducked out of the way as you pulled him to the other side of the alley, slamming his face against the brick wall with such force that you could  _hear_  his nose break. When you went to take him back to the other side, your hand went to the front of his neck so the way you shoved him against the dumpster would knock him out instantly and the man fell to the ground with a thud.

You examined him closely to make sure he was actually out and when you determined he was, you grabbed the backpack that was lying down beside him. You dug through the bag and found it had everything you could use, so you decided to just simply take the whole thing with you. You looked at the unconscious man beside you, a light chuckle escaping your lips.

"It's a shame you didn't last longer," you spoke as you hoisted the backpack onto your shoulder, "I was having a lot of fun."

And with that, you skipped away.

~

About an hour later, you had finally stumbled across a neighborhood. You sighed in relief, happy to finally be able to find a place to sleep for a few days and prepare for your journey to the next city. You tried a couple houses before you found one with a window that was unlocked.

You tossed your backpack in and climbed in yourself. You stealthily searched the entire house, making sure no one was there. When you determined it was empty, you instantly headed to the kitchen. You cleared out the cabinets, putting as much perishable food items in your backpack as you could fit, and then made your way to the bathroom.

You searched through the medicine cabinet – your past history with getting sick influenced you to  _always_  check the bathrooms, but you didn't really like to talk about it.

As you were reading one of the labels on a box to see what it was, you thought you heard a noise coming from inside the house. You froze for a moment, but the sounds ceased, so you simply shrugged it off as your mind playing tricks on you.

You put the box back since it was nothing that would be useful to you and out of the corner of your eye, you saw a figure now standing in the hallway. You involuntarily jumped, your head snapping over to see a tall blonde with a gun in his hand, pointing it straight at you.

"L-L-Leave or I'll shoot," he stuttered. You saw his hands shaking though, and it was clear he didn't have much experience with handling guns. You simply stifled out a small chuckle.

"Get lost, kid," you stated, turning back toward the cabinet, "I was here first." You smiled brightly when you finally saw a medicine you could actually use, snatching it off of the shelf.

"I-I said leave o-o-or I'll sh-shoot," he repeated quietly.

"No, you won't."

"E-Excuse me?"

"You won't do it," you told him, "Not skilled enough with guns."

"Yeah, well, I am," another voice stated, making you turn around again. There was a boy about the same height as the blonde with fiery red hair, the gun in his hand pointed straight at you as well. "And I suggest you do as he says." You rolled your eyes.

"Having your friend fight your battles  _for_  you?" you scoffed, "He's a nice touch though – almost had me convinced for a second there."

"Drop the fucking medicine and get out," the redhead growled.

"Fine," you smirked mischievously, "But the medicine is mine whether you like it or not."

You put the small bottle in your backpack as you passed the two boys on your way out, only to have the more vocal one grab your arm. You spun around to face him, the amused grin on your face instantly replaced by sheer anger. You shoved him against the wall, your hands gripping his wrists so tightly, you would be surprised if they  _didn't_  bruise. You had his arms crossed over his chest so he couldn't try anything.

"Don't even  _think_  about it, pretty boy," you spat.

He turned his head over to his blonde friend, "Luke-"

"If  _Luke_  knows what's good for him, he'll stay over there," you cut him off, never taking your narrowing eyes off of the redhead. "Now you're going to let me leave, and I'm going to give you my last ounce of good will and pretend this never happened, got it?" He grumbled quietly, so you tightened your hold on his wrists, making his jaw tighten in response. " _Got it_?" you growled.

"Got it," he murmured. The moment you let go of him, he was rubbing his wrists and watching you back away.

"It was nice meeting you, gentlemen," you smiled sweetly. You parted with a small wave and turned around, trotting out of the house.

~

**Three days later**

You woke up with one of the most painful headaches you'd ever experienced in your whole life. There was a numb sensation throughout your upper left arm and you had no idea what was going on. You looked around and realized you were lying on a bed, but you didn't remember falling asleep on one. In fact, you didn't remember anything after the point when you left the two boys in the house.

Before you could glance at your arm to see why it felt so numb, however, you were startled by the bedroom door opening. The moment you made eye contact with the blonde who had a gun pointed at you the last time you saw him, your heart skipped a beat. You didn't know why you were there and your first thought that he and his redheaded friend had kidnapped you or  _something_.

" _What the hell_?!" you exclaimed, shooting up to a sitting position.

You flinched and swallowed thickly when pain shot up your left arm, but obviously tried not to show it. The boy's eyes widened and he came running over to you, kneeling down beside the bed.

"Here, you need to drink this," he said softly, holding a bottle of water out to you. You were starting to think he couldn't speak any louder.

"Not until you tell me what the hell is going on!" It was getting harder to ignore the pain, but you didn't need to show him that.

"Just let me at least change the bandage and then I'll tell you," he reasoned.

You stared at him for a moment before nodding slowly. He took your right hand and pulled you into the bathroom you had been in not even three days ago. You could hear other voices – one distinctly being the redhead's and then two others you didn't recognize.

The blonde lifted you up onto the counter, giving you the water again. You raised your eyebrows at him and he looked at you with a pleading expression. You didn't know what it was or why he seemed so concerned, but the look of desperation made you feel guilty enough to start drinking. He smiled slightly as you gulped the whole thing down, not realizing how thirsty you were.

He began unwrapping the bandage he'd clearly put on you while you were out, allowing you to see what had happened. There was only one wound, but you could already tell you'd passed out due to blood loss. But that still didn't explain why the boy you'd only met a few days prior – and not at all on good terms – was taking care of you now.

"My friend and I heard shouting this morning while we were out looking for food," the blonde explained, pulling a first aid kit out from under the sink, "We didn't know what it was but I recognized your voice, so we looked around the corner just as some guy put a pretty nasty cut across your arm. He grabbed your backpack and ran away when he saw us, but you were already on the ground passed out." He soaked a cotton pad in rubbing alcohol and put it on your wound, but didn't get much done.

" _Ow_!" you shouted, jerking your arm away from him.

"Sorry," he murmured.

You heard the voices in the other room suddenly cut off and then footsteps hurry toward the hall. The three boys nearly tripped over each other as they came to a stop in the doorway, staring at you. They looked more relieved than anything, which you found odd considering the blonde and the redhead  _must_  have told the other two about you. The blonde tried to take your arm again, but you moved it further away, a frown on your lips.

He smiled apologetically at you, "I know it sucks, but I have to clean it so it doesn't get infected."

You let out a breath, your frown only turning into a small pout – you were honestly the most vulnerable you've ever been in your life and you  _hated_  it. You reluctantly gave him your arm back and whined when the alcohol came into contact with your open skin again.

"Anyway," he continued with his story, "Ashton and I carried you back here and I bandaged you up and let you ride out the rest of your injury in the bedroom."

"Wait..." your eyes widened, "Did you say he took my backpack?"

"Yeah," he replied, beginning to wrap your arm with some more bandages. You threw your head back with a groan.

" _Great_ ," you mumbled, "It took me  _forever_  to find all that food."

"Speaking of food," he said, taping the bandage in place and beginning to put everything back into the first aid kit, "You need to eat."

"I'm fine," you told him.

"Listen," the brown-haired boy at the door spoke up, "We're about to have dinner ourselves and you've been out for the past six hours. You can leave and go off to do whatever it is you've been doing later, but right now, you  _need_ to eat something."

"I'm fine," you repeated, "I'm not even hu-" Your stomach immediately started growling and you sighed, knowing they  _definitely_  weren't going to let you leave now.

You looked around and they all had their eyebrows raised, making you roll your eyes. The blonde put the first aid kit back under the sink, then held his hand out. You carefully lifted your left arm up and put your hand in his, wincing slightly. You used your right arm to push yourself off of the counter and back to your feet, letting the boys lead you to the kitchen. The boy still holding your hand helped you sit on a bar stool at the counter and remained beside you while the other three boys started looking around the kitchen.

"We could have pizza," the redhead suggested, poking his head into the freezer.

"We had pizza for dinner last night," the black-haired boy finally spoke.

"Well, alright,  _Gordon Ramsay_ , what do  _you_  propose we make?" he shot back. You unintentionally let out a quiet giggle, making everyone look at you. You sunk down with a light blush on your cheeks, missing the way the blonde was smiling at you.

"How about while they're competing in  _Master Chef_  over there-" The redhead flipped him off. "-we introduce ourselves. I'm-"

"Wait," you cut him off, looking up at him, "You're..." You paused, trying to recall his name. "...you're Luke, right?" you asked. He nodded with a big grin on his face. You looked over at the redhead. "And you're... Ashton?"

"No," he smiled slightly, "I'm Michael. This-" He motioned to the brown-haired boy. "-is Ashton."

"And I'm Calum!" the black-haired one waved happily, making you smile.

"What's your name?" Ashton asked you. You paused, looking around at the four boys, almost reluctant to tell them even the simplest thing about you.

"Y/N," you finally answered quietly.

You weren't sure if you could trust these boys despite the fact that they had taken care of you  _even_  after what had happened in the previous days. But you figured you could always give them a chance and if you didn't like it, you could leave; They couldn't make you stay.

~

**Nine months later (** **_sorry for such a big time jump fam_ ** **)**

"You should go to bed, Luke," you whispered upon hearing him yawn. You and Luke were sitting at the kitchen counter, the two of you deemed lookouts for the night while Ashton, Michael, and Calum were asleep.

"I can't," Luke murmured, struggling to keep his eyes open as his head rested on your shoulder.

"You haven't slept in two days," you reminded him, leaning your head on his, "It's not safe nor healthy to be doing this to yourself."

"But we're supposed to be lookouts," he said, his volume tapering off with every word he spoke.

"Nothing's gonna happen. I'll be fine alone for one night, Luke," you assured him, "Just go to sleep. I'll come wake you up when the sun rises."

"You promise?" he asked, knowing you had a tendency to be the boys' mother figure and let them sleep longer than they planned to.

"No," you smiled, shaking your head. Luke rolled his eyes, picking his head up.

"At least promise me you won't let me sleep for more than 17 hours this time." You gave him a shrug and smiled again, kissing his cheek because you knew he wouldn't be able to keep arguing. "I hate when you do that," he sighed.

"Goodnight, Luke," you giggled under your breath.

"Goodnight, Y/N," he replied, pressing a lazy kiss on your cheek in return, leaving your face red as he made his way upstairs.

You had obviously decided to stay with the boys after the night you met them and honestly, you couldn't be happier – well, you  _could_ , but that was a confession for some other time. You had grown close to the four idiots you now called your best friends. You were constantly teasing each other and you always had a reason to smile when you were with them. You hadn't felt that comfortable around other people –  _especially_ guys – in such a long time. It was nice to know you could find even one person that you could trust, but knowing you had four made you feel so much better.

~

A couple hours later, you were walking around the first floor of the house. You were understandably bored as there wasn't much to do, but you took the duty of being a lookout very seriously. You didn't want anything to happen to you or the boys. You went back to the kitchen to sit down again and after a few more minutes, you were joined by one of your friends.

"Hey, Y/N..." you heard Michael's voice behind you. You looked over your shoulder and watched the redhead shyly come into the room as he rubbed his eyes.

"Hi, Mikey," you smiled slightly, "Why aren't you still asleep? You only went to bed a few hours ago."

"Too much on my mind, I guess," he replied, taking a seat next to you.

"Are you okay?" you turned your body to face him.

"I just... I was thinking about when we first met..."

"That never happened, Mikey," you reminded him of what you said.

"I know, but I just... I feel bad," he sighed shakily. You watched him, listening intently. "I mean... It wasn't like you were threatening anybody or whatever and you really were there first and all you wanted was that medicine and..." he trailed off, sure he could go on forever. "I'm sorry for the way I just was ready to shoot you," he looked down at his fingers, "I wasn't really gonna do it, but... I don't know... It was loaded and I had it pointed right at you and if my finger slipped, I totally could have killed you, and I just-"

"Michael," you said softly, reaching for his hand. You began rubbing your thumb on his knuckles, making him look at you. "It's okay," you promised him, "If anyone should be apologizing, it's me. Your bruises didn't go away for like, a  _month_." Michael couldn't keep himself from laughing.

"Yeah," he said, looking at his completely healed wrists, "You know you've got like, a death grip, right? I bet you're a  _nightmare_  to get a hand job from." You instantly let go of his hand and smacked his leg.

" _Michael_!" you gasped, desperately trying to suppress your laughter but knowing you were doing poorly. "I'll have you know I give  _exceptional_ hand jobs," you sassed.

"Really? Prove it," he smirked with a teasing tone, earning another smack to the leg.

"You're an idiot, Mikey," you giggled, laying your head on his shoulder while he rested his hand on your thigh. Both of you were silently enjoying each other's company for a few minutes before Michael spoke again.

"So what's your story?" he asked you.

"My story?" you shifted your head to look at him.

"Yeah," he nodded, "I can't imagine you  _always_  knew how to fight as well as you do or anything." You picked yourself up and swallowed thickly. "You know you don't have to tell me," he added, rubbing your skin gently, "I'm not gonna make you." You just sighed.

"When this apocalypse thing or whatever ended, my best friend and I were the only two left from our group," you swallowed again, "Everything was fine until one day, I got sick. It wasn't like a cold or anything like that that I could have just dealt with and kept going; I was constantly passing out and throwing up and I could barely walk at one point. I was practically dying, so Alice and I found this abandoned house in some random city to take shelter in. She told me she was going to go find medicine and food and water and that she would be back within the next two hours, but those two hours turned into two days, then two weeks, and I haven't heard from her since."

"She just left you to die?" his eyes widened but you could see the pain in them, never having imagined leaving his own friends – or even  _you_ – like that.

"Five days in, I realized she wasn't coming back and I was understandably pissed, but I managed to find enough strength to go out and find the medicine and everything I needed myself. I got better a couple weeks later, so I taught myself how to fight and use a gun and everything," you went on, "I wasn't that good at first – I couldn't really use that stuff to fend for myself – so I just acted like some helpless girl when I would run into groups of people – boys especially – and convince them to give me food and water if I hadn't found any myself that day."

"So what about when you  _did_  get better with fighting?"

"I think I'm more of a mind game kind of fighter," you shrugged, "But I'll occasionally get physical if I feel like it's the only option. It's more of a problem with older guys though; I can't tell you how many times some asshole has come up to me and said he'd give me food or whatever in return for sexual favors." You rolled your eyes at the memories. "I don't like to think of myself as this person that's always closed-off and annoyed with everyone, but I just... I haven't met anyone who hasn't seen me as a piece of meat in so long." You were looking down at your hands, watching Michael's reach for yours and tangle your fingers together, holding onto you tightly.

"I'm not going to lie to you and say that it's never annoyed me how cocky you can be or when you refuse to let the boys and I help you with something no matter how frustrated it's making you," he told you, "But after hearing all that, I totally understand why you're like that. You have every right to be mad at the world and done with the people you meet, but I think it's really saying something that you've stuck around with us the last nine months."

"Well, I like being around you," you admitted softly, "I trust you guys." The confession made Michael lean over to kiss your cheek, causing you to smile in response.

"What's going on here?" a voice behind you made you and Michael snap your heads back. Luke was standing at the doorway to the kitchen with what appeared to be an expression of hurt and anger and shock all in one.

"We were just talking," you answered, not really sure why he was acting like this.

"Didn't look like ' _just talking_ ' to me," he scoffed.

"What's the big deal, man?" Michael spoke up, "It's not like we were doing anything illegal."

"It might as well have been," he spat.

"Luke, what are you overreacting for?" you shook your head.

"Overreacting? I'm not overreacting! He knows I li-" he cut himself off, swallowing thickly, "Never mind. I'm going out to find food."

"Luke!" Michael called out, jumping up as the blonde walked toward the front door with you following close behind, "It's almost 6am! You can't go alone! Just let me-"

"No, Michael!" he shouted, grabbing his backpack, "I don't need your help all the time! I can do this myself!"

"Luke," you said, "Mikey's right. It's not safe to go out there without someone else – especially at this hour."

"Oh, that's  _great._ You've got a  _nickname_  for him too. Well, I can't wait for the wedding. I'm sure it will be  _lovely_."

" _Wedding_?" Michael furrowed his eyebrows, "Luke, what on  _earth_  are you talking about?"

"Just forget it," he mumbled, "I'll be back later."

"Lu-" You were cut off by the door slamming shut. You heard a door upstairs open and then two pairs of footsteps race down the staircase.

"What's going on?" Calum asked frantically.

"Nothing," Michael sighed, "Luke's just gone out for food."

" _Alone_?" Ashton asked.

"No," you answered, "I'm gonna go with him."

"Are you sure?" Michael asked nervously, "Maybe Ashton or Calum should go instead."

"Yeah, I'm sure. We'll be back soon," you told them.

"Good luck!" you heard him say as you closed the door behind you. The sun was just starting to peek over the horizon so you could see, but it was still too dangerous to go out looking for food.

You saw Luke trudging down the street, so you instantly jumped off the porch and ran after him. He looked over his shoulder when he heard footsteps, sighing to himself when he saw who they belonged to. When you finally caught up to him, you rushed out in front of him, spinning around and putting your hand on his chest, making him stop.

"What are you doing?" you asked him.

"I told you," he murmured, "I'm finding food."

"No you're not," you stated, "We have enough food to last us for the next week. What are you  _really_  doing?"

"I just want to be alone, okay?!" he let out an exasperated sigh.

"You never want to be alone, Luke. Why won't you just tell me what's bothering you?"

"You are, Y/N!" he exclaimed, " _You're_  what's bothering me!"

" _Me_?! What did  _I_  do?!"

"You're opening up to all the boys except me and it makes me feel like you don't trust me!" he confessed, "You're telling  _them_  all this personal stuff and  _not me_ , and I don't like it!"

"I only tell them when they  _ask_ , Luke!" you shouted back, "If you would just ask me about it, I would tell you too, but you  _haven't_!"

"Well, I shouldn't  _have to_!" he didn't bother holding back either, "I tell you stuff all the time without you asking for it!"

"That's  _not_  the same thing! You  _want_  to talk about those thing and I'm really happy that I'm the one you choose to tell, but I'm not just going to  _randomly_  bring up my past like that!"

"You certainly didn't have any problems talking about it with  _Mikey_ , did you?!"

"Why are you so upset with  _him_ all of a sudden?!" you shook your head, "All he did was ask about my story!  _I_  was the one who decided to tell him! He didn't do anything wrong!"

"Whatever," he muttered under his breath, "I don't want to talk about this."

Luke pushed past you, making you stumble lightly. He froze for a brief moment as if he was going to apologize for almost knocking you down, but when he noticed you had stayed on your feet, he kept going.

"L-Luke, you're going to get hurt," you said softly, but still loud enough for him to hear, "Please don't get hurt, Luke..."

Luke turned around and despite the fact that he was over ten feet away, he could still tell your eyes were getting watery. You both stood there for a moment, watching each other.

He was the first to move, taking a step back in your direction, but an unknown figure came out from behind a house and kicked his side, sending him tumbling into someone's yard. He immediately grabbed the gun from his backpack and pointed it at his assaulter, but in his state of panic, he forgot to load it.

" _Luke_!" you cried. You dropped down beside him, lifting his shirt to assess the damage. Nothing was broken, but you knew he was going to have a pretty nasty bruise for a couple of weeks.

" _Well, well, well,_ " you heard the person who had kicked Luke say, "If it isn't Y/N. Long time no see." Your eyes widened, your head snapping up to see your ex-best friend smiling evilly at you. "Aren't you a sight for sore eyes?" she commented, "So happy to see you've made it through your illness."

"Beat it," you growled, hopping up and getting in front of Luke as he scrambled to get back on his feet.

"This your boyfriend?" she smirked.

" _Leave, Alice_ ," you said slowly, narrowing your eyes.

"And if I don't?" You grabbed the gun from Luke's hand, loading it and pointing it right at her. "You won't do it," she giggled, "You've always been all talk – probably have this kid thinking you're some bad ass fighter when you and I both know you're not brave enough to pull the trigger  _just like him_."

Your jaw tightened and you pointed the gun at the ground about two feet away from her and fired into the dirt. You didn't even flinch as she jumped back and looked at you like she  _hadn't_  just provoked you into shooting at her.

"What the f-" she started before you cut her off.

"Still don't think I'll do it?" you said monotonously, "You don't get to leave me for dead and then come back and act like we're still best friends. You're  _nothing_  to me anymore." She stared at you for a moment before laughing again.

"You've gotten cuter since we last saw each other, Y/N," she sighed dramatically, stepping forward. You loaded the gun and pointed it to the ground again, a few inches from her feet this time, and pulled the trigger. " _You little bi_ -"

"One more step and I swear to God, the next one's going right into your stomach," you breathed heavily.

"Y/N..." Luke mumbled, placing his hands on your hips, "Just... Can we please go back to the house?"

There was something about his touch that immediately made you relax, letting your arm come back to your side. He cautiously reached for the gun, taking it out of your hand and putting it in his backpack. His hand returned to your side and he pulled on you gently.

When you let him turn you around and begin leading you back toward the direction of the house, that was when everything seemed to slow down.

You heard footsteps rush up behind you, but didn't have time to turn before Alice's previously concealed knife was sliding across the skin just under your other scar. You let out a loud yelp, bringing your leg up to kick her backwards as hard as you could as you spun around out of Luke's grasp. In the moment it took her to come back for you, you had already grabbed the gun from the backpack, loaded it, and pulled the trigger – and as promised, the bullet went right into in her stomach.

She fell to the ground and you quickly grabbed her knife so she couldn't get to it, not that she would be able to. She bled out pretty quickly, a breathy gasp for air being the last sound she would ever make. You and Luke stood in silence for a moment, staring at the body of your ex-best friend.

Your bottom lip trembled slightly as you whispered, "I'm sorry, Ali." The moment Luke tore his eyes away from Alice and looked at your arm, he sprang into action.

"Y/N, come on," he said quickly, "We need to get back to the house." You looked at your arm as he took the gun back and put it away for the second time. The wound was bleeding, but it wasn't  _nearly_  as bad as the one above it had been.

"Luke, I'm fine," you tried reassuring him, but he had already grabbed your hand and began dragging you with him. You simply sighed and let him go, not understanding why he was so worried.

~

Luke pulled you back into the house, dropping his backpack beside the door. He rushed into the bathroom, leaving the three boys on the couch in the living room confused, but not enough to get up and see what was going on. He silently patched you up just as he'd done the first time – the only sound being heard was your sudden gasps at the stinging and his grunts of concentration every now and then.

It wasn't until he was starting to wrap the bandage around your arm that he actually spoke.

"You want to explain to me what happened back there?" he asked you. It seemed more on the rhetorical side, but when he looked at you and cocked an eyebrow, you knew he really did want an answer.

"It was nothing," you said softly, keeping your head down.

"That wasn't  _nothing_ , Y/N," he said firmly, "I wish you would stop keeping everything bottled in around me and at least  _acted_  like you cared enough to talk to me every once in a while." You shook your head slightly.

"Don't tell me I don't care, Luke," you mumbled under your breath.

"Maybe if you would show it more, I wouldn't have to assume you don't," he returned.

"I just  _murdered_ someone who used to be my best friend so don't you  _dare_  tell me that I don't fucking care about you, Lucas!" you shouted, causing the three boys in the other room to finally come into the room.

"I didn't  _make you_  do that, Y/N!" he shouted back.

"What's going on?" Calum asked cautiously.

You didn't answer; You simply grabbed the tape out of Luke's hand, ripped a piece off, tightened your bandage, and stuck it on. You hopped off of the bathroom counter and pushed past Calum, Ashton, and Michael. You were walking toward the front door when someone grabbed your right hand, spinning you back around. You rolled your eyes as Luke kept the argument going.

"I could have handled it myself, Y/N," he told you, "You didn't need to come  _rescue me_."

You laughed bitterly, "Yeah, because  _you_  were going to do anything about it."

"What is  _that_ supposed to mean?"

"You had the gun pointed at her, but you didn't load it, idiot!" you let out an exasperated sigh, "Did you really think she wasn't going to  _notice that_?! You're absolutely  _pathetic_  when it comes to handling that thing! Your shaky hands and constant nerves are sorry excuses and I don't blame any of  _them_ -" You pointed to the boys watching in shock. "-for never teaching you how to use it either! You're a shitty fighter and you've contributed  _nothing_  useful to anyone since I've met you!" The look on his face honestly made your heart drop slightly, but you were too far in to go back now.

"Well, if you don't like it, then leave," he managed to choke out.

" _I already was_ ," you growled, turning back to the door and leaving. You heard Michael call your name, but it was cut off by the door slamming. You immediately began running – you didn't know where you were going, you just knew you wanted to get as far away from Luke as possible.

~

**Three months later**

You had since moved on to another city, but you would never be the last to admit that you missed the four boys you'd gotten closest to throughout this whole ordeal. You knew you couldn't go back though. You were sure they wouldn't want you there anyway no matter how many times you apologized.

You really hurt Luke – hurting yourself in the process as well. As much as you didn't show it, you really  _did_  care about him – and you'd be lying if you said you didn't have feelings for him. But you had to push that to the back of your mind; It didn't matter anymore anyway.

You were walking around one evening when you were coming up on a two-story house on a street corner. You saw someone quickly walk inside, but you didn't catch a glimpse of their face – only of their bright red hair. You shook your head slightly, telling yourself there was  _no way_  that was Michael. You  _couldn't_  have run into them again. You cut across the lawn to get to the adjacent street, but you would never make it there.

"Hey, princess," you heard a man's voice behind you.

Your eyes immediately widened and you tried to run toward the house you saw Michael walk into, but his arms were holding your waist before you were even halfway there. Something about running into the man you faked out of a blowjob by nearly killing him wasn't sitting right with you. He luckily didn't have any weapons on him, but his grip was way too strong for you to break free by yourself.

"Did you  _really_  think I wouldn't come after you?" he growled in your ear, "I told you you're going to give me what I want or I'm going to kill you."

"Not if we have anything to say about it." Michael's voice made the man spin around, you still in his arms.

You breathed a small sigh of relief when you saw him, Ashton, and Calum now standing in front of you. You wondered where Luke was, but you really didn't have time to worry about that right now; You had other things to deal with.

"Oh, come to rescue the poor, helpless princess?" the man laughed bitterly. You let out a low grunt as he squeezed your waist. "Well, I hate to break it to you, boys, but this one's mine. Go find your own."

"Actually-" You heard a click behind you and he turned around again. Luke was standing there with the most menacing look you'd ever seen, the gun in his hand pointed straight at the man's forehead. "- _she's mine_ ," Luke continued, "And I'm going to give you ten seconds to let her go before I blow your fucking head off." If it weren't for the fact that you were absolutely terrified, you would have been proud of him for finally learning how to handle a gun.

"Nice try, kid," the man laughed again, "But I found her first."

" _Five seconds_ ," Luke narrowed his eyes. By this time, the other boys had moved off to the side for safety, not wanting to get hurt in case the bullet they knew Luke was definitely about to shoot would go right through his head.

"Go on, princess, tell him you're taken," he said against your ear, making you shudder.

Luke's jaw tightened when he heard the man call you princess, but when he squeezed you again and you had to bite your lip to suppress any whimpers of pain, that was when Luke had enough. He tilted his head downward as if to tell you to duck and your eyes widened, silently telling him you understood.

The next few seconds were some of the most intense seconds of your life.

"Y/N!" Luke said quickly, breaking the silence, " _Now_!"

You immediately flung your upper body as far down as you could with the man's arm holding your waist – or at least far enough to get your head out of the way. You closed your eyes tightly, unable to hold back the short scream that escaped your throat when the gun went off. You then felt the arms holding you loosen and the man hit the ground at your feet.

You fell forward since nothing was holding you up any longer, but Luke's arm shot out and caught you. Your own arms flew around his neck and you pressed your face into his skin. His heart was beating a mile a minute and he hugged you back as tightly as you were hugging him.

After a moment, Michael came over and took the gun out of Luke's hand and one of the blonde's arms let go of you to carefully pick you up and take you inside the house with the other boys following close behind. They made sure the door was securely locked and nothing could get in while Luke took you upstairs. He sat you down on a bed in one of the bedrooms and tried to walk away, but you refused to let go of him.

"Y/N," he said softly, rubbing your back, "I need to go get you some water." He felt you shake your head, hugging him even tighter. Luke sighed in defeat, calling out for one of the boys to bring it as he helped you lay back on the bed. He laid down with you, letting you cuddle up into his side.

Your heart rate finally started to slow back down, but that didn't stop you from starting to sniffle quietly. You tried to play it off as allergies or stopping yourself from sneezing, but Luke knew you were crying; He could feel the wetness on his skin.

"Y/N-" You cut him off.

"I'm sorry," you were unable to swallow the sob before it left your mouth, "I'm sorry I yelled and I'm sorry I called you a shitty fighter and I'm sorry I said you aren't useful and I'm sorry I wasn't a good member of your team and I-"

" _Our team_ ," he corrected. You finally moved your head to look up at him. He brought his hand up from your hip to your cheek, wiping the stray tears away. "As much as you want to convince yourself that we've kicked you out, we haven't," Luke told you, "We would never do that. Yeah, you have a hard head and you can be too cocky for your own good sometimes, but we wouldn't trade you for anyone else."

"Plus, Luke has been a  _wreck_  without you here," Michael snickered from the doorway. The blonde shot a glare at his best friend, making him hold his hands up defensively, the bottle of water on display. "Hey, you yelled for water," he said.

You rolled onto your back as Michael walked to the bed, putting the bottle on the nightstand beside you. He held his fist out to you and you stared at it for a moment before looking back up at him. He smiled reassuringly, making the corner of your mouth twitch. You hit his fist with yours, then laid your arm back down on your stomach.

"It's good to have you back, Y/N," he said, bending down and kissing your forehead. You didn't bother stopping yourself from smiling that time.

"Thanks, Mikey," you whispered. He left the room and you turned your head to look at Luke, finding him staring at the ceiling.

"I really like you, you know," Luke spoke before you could say anything, still not looking at you, "I know that it's hard for you to trust people – especially guys – and I think it's really nice that you trust me and my friends at least a little bit. You're very pretty and I feel...um...happier when I'm around you. And I always want to keep you safe and when I saw that guy and how he was touching you... I got really mad and I wanted him to stop, but he  _wouldn't let go of you_  and I just..." he trailed off, finally moving his head to look at you.

Luke couldn't  _exactly_  read the expression on your face, but you didn't  _seem_  upset or uncomfortable, which relaxed him a little. You were both staring at each other – neither one of you doing anything – until Luke swallowed thickly and took his chance. He scooted over to you, pressing his lips to yours. You had never kissed someone before – well, you did when you were in second grade, but that doesn't really count – so your body subconsciously tensed up. He immediately felt the hesitation, making him pull away.

"S-Sorry," he stuttered, "I'm sorry... I di- I didn't... I just... I'm sorry."

Luke started to get up, but you quickly grabbed his face, pulling him back down. You didn't  _mean_  for him to land right on top of you, but hey, you certainly weren't going to complain. His eyes widened when his lips met yours once again before fluttering shut, using his forearms to hold himself up and keep his weight off of you. You felt him let out a sigh of relief through his nose and you didn't know why, but it made you giggle softly. Luke smiled against your mouth but pouted when you pushed his face away.

"I really like you too, Luke," you muttered, your lips brushing up against his with every word. You opened your eyes and found him smiling widely.

Luke immediately started peppering kisses all over your face, making you squeak before you fell into a fit of laughter. The last kiss was pressed back onto your lips, and he kissed you much more slowly. One of his hands slid down your side until it came to a stop on your hip, making your body erupt into goose bumps. Your own hands moved to his neck – one resting at the base on his shoulder, the other tangling itself in his hair.

"I've missed you, you know," Luke mumbled in between kisses, "Missed going out to look for food with you, missed our late night talks when the other boys were sleeping, missed waking up next to you, missed seeing your beautiful face every day..."

"Luke," you stated, pushing his face back again.

"You're so beautiful, Y/N," he said, resting his forehead on yours, "You're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen. Even when you think you're not because you haven't showered in a few days or you just fought off a group of looters and have blood all over you or you just woke up and haven't brushed your teeth yet or-"

"Luke," you whispered, cutting him off because you  _knew_  he could keep going.

"You're never going to stop being beautiful, Y/N," he smiled slightly, "And I'm never going to stop being in love with you."

Your breath hitched, "Luke..."

"I love you," he said confidently, lifting his head up so he could see you properly, "God, Y/N, I'm so in love with you. I know it seems impossible to find love in a world that's so flawed and broken, but I know that I've found it in you. When I see you, I think about how much I love your smile and laugh and how it makes my heart beat faster when I'm the reason for them. I think about the times we poured our hearts out even though we didn't  _really_  know each other and I knew that was when you were starting to trust me and I never felt so nervous because I knew how hard it was for you and the  _last_  thing I wanted to do was fuck it up. I hate when you cry and when you're hurt and I want to do everything I can to take away whatever pain you're in because I can't stand seeing you like that at all. And it's okay if you don't feel the same yet or maybe even ever as long as you promise me you won't leave again because that hurt more than any knife or bullet wound ever could. I don't want this to scare you off, but if you want me to give you space, then I will. I'll give you anything if it means you'll stay."

You stared at him for a while and he was understandably starting to get nervous. But his racing thoughts were brought to an immediate halt the moment you feverishly brought his lips back to yours and kissed him like it was the last time you would ever get to. Luke could feel you breathing heavily as your chest rose and fell against his.

"Hey, calm down," he whispered into the kiss, "I'm right here, princess. Just breathe."

"Princess?" you repeated softly, moving your head back.

"Do you not want me to call you that?" he asked, worried since the man earlier kept calling you that as well.

"I like it when you say it," you breathed. He grinned as you pulled his face back to yours.

"I love you, princess."

"I love you too, Luke," you mumbled. He hummed happily in response against your lips, the kiss only getting more heated.

 


	245. Finish Line (Ashton Irwin) - Part 1

This was it; The final track meet of your high school career.

You were understandably nervous – you were competing against the best runners from every school in the state. You had won 32 out of the 39 competitions in high school so far, and this one – your fourth state championship – would make 40: Your very last race before you graduated. Winning as many times as you had, it wasn't unusual for you to show up and have people automatically know who you were.

"Good luck out there today, Y/N!" you heard someone shout behind you.

"Thank you!" you called over your shoulder despite not having seen who said it.

As you turned back around, you bumped into someone. You squeaked loudly, your head snapping forward, and your eyes landed on the top runner from the neighboring county.

Ashton Irwin definitely wasn't your  _number one_  fan; You were fairly certain he hated everything about you. He always looked you with this scowl on his face and no matter how nice you were to him seemed to break it. Your face turned a light shade of pink in embarrassment – as if Ashton didn't like you enough already, running into him seemed to be the icing on the cake.

"Sorry, Ashton," you said softly, taking a couple steps back.

"Try watching where you're going, yeah?" he scoffed, earning him a slap to the chest from his friend.

"Be nice, Ash," he warned before smiling brightly at you, "Hi, Y/N!"

"Hi, Cal," you returned the gesture, "Are the other boys here too?"

Calum Hood lived in the same county as Ashton, but they went to different schools. They were rarely ever not seen hanging out together with their other two friends, Michael and Luke.

"They'll be here a little later," he nodded.

"Good," you grinned slightly, "I feel like I haven't seen them in forever."

"We really need to start hanging out outside of these competitions so we're not concerned about beating each other," he nudged you gently, making you laugh.

"Definitely," you agreed, "You'll have to let me know when your band has another performance so I can try and make it out sometime."

"We have one come up next Saturday, actually," he informed you, "If you need a ride, I'd be happy to pick you up and take you back home."

"Oh, you don't have to do that, Cal."

"You act like you live across the state, Y/N," he chuckled, "A half-hour drive won't kill me. I'm sure you're fun to road trip with."

"You have no idea," you replied with a joking tone, making him laugh.

"Well, you have my number, so text me on Friday if you need me to come get you, okay?" You nodded and he grinned again. "Great! I hope you can make it!" he gave you a quick hug, "Anyway, we better be getting ready for the race. Good luck – although you're the last person that needs it."

"Good luck, Cal," you giggled under your breath before glancing at Ashton. "You too, Ash," you said shyly. You didn't even wait for a response before trotting past the two boys and heading over to your coach, completely missing the blush on Ashton's cheeks.

~

After the race had started, you were comfortably running along with the group. It wasn't until Ashton broke away from the pack with two laps to go that you decided it was time to pick up the pace. You caught up to him after one lap and in the final lap of the race, you and Ashton were neck-and-neck for first.

100 feet from the finish line, you had sped up and were in front of Ashton. You sprinted faster, making sure there was no way for him to tie with you at the finish line. However, your right ankle suddenly gave out, causing a sharp pain to shoot up your leg.

You instantly fell to the ground, letting out an agonizing scream as you completed two somersaults before curling up on your left side, holding your leg in your hands while he passed you. You were understandably in tears, still crying out in pain, as you heard medics and your coach run over.

The people in the bleachers – who had all obviously jumped to their feet by this point – began talking to each other. You didn't quite understand why since you couldn't hear exactly what they were saying; That was, until you looked up and saw Ashton hovering behind your coach and every other runner had stopped before they passed you as well. The medics lifted you up and began leading you off the field, but you fought back.

"No!" you exclaimed through your sniffles, "I have to... I have to finish!"

"You can't keep going, Y/N," your coach said, "You're injured."

"But I was so close!" you began tearing up again.

"Put her on my back," you heard a voice behind you, making you all turn your heads. Ashton was walking up to you, the most serious expression you'd ever seen on his face.

"But you ha-" He cut you off, already knowing what you were going to say.

"I hate  _losing_ ," he corrected you, "But you would have won if you hadn't gotten hurt. And if I'm gonna lose my last high school race to anyone, I want it to be you." You were happy your face was already red from running because you knew you were blushing at the comment.

Ashton turned around and you took your arms off of the medics' shoulders, grabbing his with your hands. The medics' hands went to your waist to help you jump onto Ashton's back, not letting go until they knew he had a hold of you and you had a hold of him. He went back to the track and began a slow, steady walk, keeping you firmly in place. You looked over your shoulder and saw the other runners start following at a slightly slower pace.

"You guys stopped," you pointed out in surprise.

"You were going to win," Calum shrugged, "Plus, what do any of us gain from winning? We could never beat your record at this point anyway."

"Taking home a gold medal is pretty nice," you teased, making them laugh.

You whined quietly when you moved your leg in a way that made your ankle bump against Ashton's knee as he was walking, accidentally tightening your arms around Ashton's neck. He groaned at the sudden pressure. "

Sorry, I'm sorry," you said quickly, relieving your hold, "I didn't-"

"You're fine, Y/N," he assured you. You wondered if he could feel your heart race when he said your name.

You felt Ashton's hold tighten a bit more as he slowed down. He had just reached the finish line and stopped before he crossed.

"Why are you stopping?" you asked. He turned his head slightly so he could look at you.

"I told you," he replied, "If I'm gonna lose, it's gonna be to you."

He bent down slightly, letting your foot touch the ground on the other side of the line before he crossed it himself. The people in the stands burst into cheers while you were announced the winner as Ashton made his way back to the medics, making you smile widely.

"Thanks, Ash," you whispered, kissing his cheek. His face turned a brighter shade of red that it already was, making you giggle softly. The medics helped you off of Ashton's back and laid you down on the grass.

You expected Ashton to leave, but he didn't; He moved behind you, sitting down and scooting up to your back, letting you lean on his chest while your ankle was being checked out. You sucked in a sharp breath when one of the medics moved your foot the wrong way, only to feel Ashton start to rub your upper thigh soothingly. You tilted your head on his shoulder so you could look at him.

"And to think I thought you hated me this whole time," you sighed dramatically. Ashton rolled his eyes, a small smile pulling at the corners of his mouth.

"Would you like me to?" he joked.

"Not really," you mumbled. He let out a breathy chuckle.

"Good," he said, pressing a kiss to the skin covering your cheekbone.

"I knew you liked her," you heard behind you, making both you and Ashton look over his shoulder. Calum walked up with a smirk on his face, sitting down beside you two.

" _Cal_ ," Ashton groaned quietly, " _Don't_."

"No, Cal," you smiled sweetly, "Please tell me all about it."

Ashton's jaw tightened in an attempt not to smile, but you could still see it plain as day. You tilted your head to kiss the middle of his jaw, leaving your lips there for a few moments. He looked at you when you pulled back.

"I like you too, Ash," you admitted softly and he didn't even bother trying to hide his grin anymore. He rested his chin on your shoulder, his hand squeezing your thigh lightly.

"Alright, Y/N," one of the medics said, "You're all done. I suggest getting some x-rays done to be sure, but it looks like you've only sprained it, so you'll need to keep any weight off of your leg for the next few weeks." You threw your head back onto Ashton's shoulder and whined as they walked away, making him and Calum chuckle.

"Cal-" He looked at you. "-I think I'm gonna need a ride to that show."

"You know..." Ashton spoke to Calum, "You guys will probably need to tune your guitars and everything... I-I could go get her..."

"Is giving us time to tune our guitars your excuse for wanting to spend more time with Y/N?" Calum asked bluntly, a cocky grin on his face.

His eyes widened and his cheeks turned bright red again. You simply giggled as the two boys stood up. They reached back down to you and you took their hands, letting them pull you to your feet – well,  _foot_.

It was time to hand out the medals for first, second, and third place, so they helped you hop over to where the winners podium was. Since Calum had come in third, they were able to start the moment you got there. Ashton lifted you up onto the first place spot, quickly getting onto the second so you could hold his shoulder for support.

The bronze and silver medals were given to Calum and Ashton first. The announcer then said your name and as you leaned down to let the person with your gold medal put it around your neck, you felt Ashton's hands grab your waist so you didn't fall. Your left hand reached up to cover his, almost as if you were holding it. His thumb was rubbing the back of your hip gently, making you smile. The three of you posed for a few photos for newspapers before they let you get down.

Ashton reluctantly released you, only to scoop you up in his arms and hop back to the ground. You squeaked quietly, wrapping your own arms around his shoulders.

"My other leg still works, you know," you reminded him.

"Yeah, but you're kinda slow," he replied without missing a beat.

"Okay, well, ask this medal what it thinks," you sassed, pointing to the gold circle hanging from your neck.

"Oh," Calum snickered beside Ashton, "That's  _rough_ , man."

"You're already using it against me?" he pouted jokingly. You smiled slightly, pressing your lips to his cheek.

"Thanks, Ash," you murmured against his skin, laying your head on his shoulder.

"You deserved it," he said softly, kissing your forehead as he took you to your parents.

 


	246. Finish Line (Ashton Irwin) - Part 2

_requested by my pal catelyn_

~

"Sweetie!" you heard your mom call up the stairs after first hearing a knock on the door, "Ashton's here!"

You stuffed your phone into the pocket of your shorts, grabbed your crutches, and exited your room. Your tongue was stuck out slightly in concentration as you hobbled toward the steps to get downstairs.

Your mother made the motion to go up and help you, but Ashton stopped her, telling her that he would take care of you. Your mom simply smiled and returned to her spot on the couch with your dad while Ashton trotted up the stairs.

"Hey, beautiful," Ashton grinned at you. He took your crutches and took them down to the first floor, leaned them against the wall, and then hurried back to you to help you the rest of the way. When he returned, however, you were just sitting there with your elbows on your knees and your chin in your hands. "Y/N," Ashton said, sitting a couple steps down so he would be eye level with you, "What's wrong?"

"I can't do  _anything_  by myself anymore," you mumbled into the palm of your hand, "Someone has to help me get something to eat because I might drop a crutch and won't be able to pick it back up and someone has to help me go down the stairs because I might fall and I have to take a bath because I might slip in the shower. I have to rely on other people now and  _I don't like it_."

"You only have to do this for a few weeks, Y/N," he tried to be reassuring, "I know you're having a rough time, but it'll be over soon. Now come on; We've got a show to go to." Ashton promptly stood up, not even giving you time to do the same before his arms were around your back and under your knees, lifting you up and carrying you downstairs.

" _Ashton_!" you squeaked, causing your parents to look up from their spots on the couch. They smiled slightly at the two of you as Ashton told you to grab your crutches so you could leave. "You are  _not_  carrying me everywhere today, Ashton," you said firmly.

"We'll see about  _that_ ," he smirked lightly. He looked at your mom and dad, "It was nice seeing you again, Mr. and Mrs. Y/L/N. I promise I'll have her home  _at least_  before next week." They laughed at the comment.

"Before dark, young man," you dad told him, "I want you having enough light to get back home safely."

"I will have her back in this house at 8:30," he announced confidently.

"Don't think I won't be holding you up to that," he chuckled, "Bye, you two. Drive safe."

You and Ashton both said goodbye while you added on a ' _love you_ ' for both your parents before Ashton took you outside and to his car. He put you back down on the ground and opened the back door to put your crutched in the seat, then opened the front door for you. He made sure you didn't hit your head as you sat down and trotted over to the driver side.

The car ride to the venue you were meeting the other boys at was full of laughter and singing along to the radio. Ashton had his forearm resting on the console between the two of you.

At every red light, you would flick one of his fingers and then look out the window, pretending you hadn't. On the sixth time, however, Ashton grabbed your hand mid-flick. You looked over with a small pout to find him trying not to smile as he stared forward. When you wiggled your hand free to tangle your fingers with his, you saw him blush. You smiled shyly when he glanced at you out of the corner of his eye, holding his hand in your lap for the rest of the ride.

Once you arrived at the venue, Ashton hurried over to open the car door for you and help you out. He had you hop on his back, telling you he'd come back for the crutches after getting you to the dressing room.

"Hey, Ash!" the venue security guard grinned as he walked up, "Gotta tell you, I'm having some real déjà vu here."

"Why's that, Nick?" Ashton asked him.

"You seen the paper today?" he asked, earning a shake of the head in return. "You two are on the front page," he informed you, "Everyone's been talking about you giving up the state title."

"Well, like I told everyone else; She was gonna win anyway," Ashton shrugged. You smiled into his shoulder and felt his hold on you tighten.

"And like I've been telling people; I think the world needs more people like you," Nick returned. You hummed quietly in agreement, making Ashton smile slightly.

"Thanks," he said, "Is the rest of my band here yet?"

"Yup," he nodded, "They just got here about 10 minutes ago." Ashton thanked him again, carrying you inside.

"Y/N!" Calum cheered the moment Ashton walked through the door to the dressing room, "How's the ankle?"

"It hurts and I hate everything," you smiled sweetly, earning a chuckle from all four boys. Ashton took you over to the vanity, letting you hop off of his back and sit on the stool in front of the mirror since there was no couch in the room.

"I'll be back in a minute," he declared, trotting back out of the room to retrieve your crutches from his car.

"Y/N!" Michael sang, bouncing over to you, "I've missed you!"

"Hi, Mikey," you grinned into his chest as he hugged you.

"Yeah," Luke pouted, hugging you as well, "You're always MIA when we have shows."

"I know," you sighed, resting your elbow on the counter top and your cheek in your hand, "But I'm trying to keep my grades up to get scholarships, so I haven't had much free time."

"Come on," Calum spoke up, "You need to give yourself a break once in a while. It's not like we're playing shows every single day."

"I need to get into  _college_  is what I need," you murmured.

"Oh,  _please_ ," Ashton scoffed as he came back into the room, "Any college that doesn't accept you is missing out on the smartest, most talented, and prettiest girl they'd ever have on campus." You smiled shyly, hoping the blush you felt on your cheeks wasn't  _too_  noticeable.

"Thanks, Ash," you whispered. The boys smiled at the two of you before Calum spoke again.

"We should go out onstage and practice a couple songs," he said. The rest of the band agreed and he, Michael, and Luke left the room. Ashton went to pick you up again, but you stopped him. 

"Please let me walk, Ash," you swallowed lightly, "I just want to feel like I can still do things myself."

"Sorry," he said softly, handing you your crutches.

He went to walk away, but you grabbed his hand, pulling him back to you. Since sitting in the chair made you the same height as him, all you had to do was lean forward and press your lips to his cheek. You stayed there for a moment, practically  _feeling_  Ashton's face get hot as he blushed.

"S'not your fault I'm stubborn," you reminded him, moving back. You heard him chuckle under his breath as you stood up, letting him lead you out to the stage.

~

After the show, you and the boys were hanging around in the dressing room when Ashton looked at his phone. He sighed quietly, noticing it was almost 8 and he had to get you home.

Once you were back in his car, the exhaustion really started hitting you. With Ashton's hand in your lap, he felt your grip loosen, only to look over at you and realize you were drifting in and out of sleep. He smiled slightly at the sight, thinking there was no place he'd rather be.

But when he pulled into your driveway, he had to wake you up.

"Y/N," Ashton whispered, squeezing your hand. You whined a bit, making him chuckle under his breath. "You have to wake up now, princess," he told you, "You can go to sleep when you get to your room." The corner of your mouth twitched and you lazily opened your eyes to look at him.

"You calling me princess now?" you murmured.

Ashton didn't answer you; He simply brought your hand up and lightly kissed the back of it. You smiled again as he let go of you, getting out of the car to help you out. He walked with you to your porch, seemingly a bit nervous when you turned to face him.

"Thank you for today, Ash," you said quietly, "I had a lot of fun."

"You're welcome, Y/N," he whispered.

"You okay?"

"Yeah, I just... Can I ask you something?" You nodded and he went on. "Do you... Ah, fuck, um..." he scratched the back of his neck, "Would you wanna go out tomorrow?"

"Like on a date?" you asked.

"Yeah..." he started chewing on his bottom lip. You shook your head slowly, making his expression drop. "But... I thought you... You know... I thought you liked me..."

"I like you  _a lot_ , Ash, I just... I don't want to go on a date when I can barely  _walk_ ," you admitted. He looked at you incredulously before a shy laugh passed his lips.

"Oh, okay," he nodded, but you could still tell he was disappointed.

"I'll be better soon," you promised, "And if you still like me then, I'll  _definitely_  go on a date with you."

Ashton rolled his eyes with a scoff, "I'll  _always_  like you, Y/N." You smiled at him, leaning toward him and kissing his cheek.

"Then I guess it's a date," you chirped, standing back up straight.

~

**The next day**

You were sitting on the couch in your basement watching TV when you heard someone coming down the stairs. It didn't sound like either of your parents' footsteps, but you knew they were home, so you just figured it was a friend coming to check on you.

What you  _didn't_  expect, however, was for that friend to be  _Ashton_. You were confused upon seeing a plastic bag in one hand and a pizza box in the other, tilting your head at him.

"Ash?" you furrowed your eyebrows at the boy walking over to the couch, "What are you doing here?"

"Your dad let me in," he said, sitting down beside you, "I know you said you wanted to wait until you could walk properly to go on a date with me, but I don't think I can wait that long, to be honest, so I asked Cal what your favorite kind of pizza was and I brought some movies we could watch... If you  _want to_ , I mean." You smiled slightly, repositioning yourself to lean on his arm.

"You know, some people would label this as  _desperation_ ," you said thoughtfully, making him laugh.

"And  _you_?" he asked.

"We'll see how the day goes," you teased, reaching for the bag to see what movies he had brought. You began laughing, pulling them out and setting them on the table in front of you. "These are all  _Disney_  movies," you giggled.

" _What_?" he pouted, "Everyone loves a good Disney movie!" You smiled again, picking up  _Tangled_  and making a motion to get up, only to squeak quietly when Ashton grabbed your shoulder, pulling you back down. "Not today, missy," he stated, taking the DVD from you and getting up himself.

"Ashton, it's  _five feet_  away!" you exclaimed.

"And that's four more feet than you  _have_ , princess," he smirked, looking over his shoulder to find your bottom lip sticking out.

He chuckled to himself, putting the movie into the DVD player and coming back to the couch. He sat back down, putting his arm around your shoulders and pulling you back into him, kissing the side of your head.

"If you think kissing me is gonna make me forgive you for that comment, you're sadly mistaken, Irwin," you tried to say with a serious expression as you shoved him, but you knew he could tell you were smiling. You pressed play on the DVD's menu and putting the remote down on the table.

"How about if I did it right here?" he asked, kissing the skin just below your ear when you leaned back up. You shook your head and Ashton's lips then found the middle of your cheekbone. "There?" he asked.

"Nope," you replied, popping the ' _p_ '. He bravely kissed the corner of your mouth and you just as bravely responded, "That was so weird. It was like the forgiveness was there, but then it just  _left_. I don't know what-"

Ashton grabbed your chin, bringing your lips to his. He felt you smile into the kiss, making him breathe a small sigh of relief as you kissed back.

When you both pulled away to breathe as you heard the beginning of the moviestart playing on the television, Ashton rested his forehead on yours.

"I  _guess_  I forgive you," you shrugged, earning a soft chuckle from the boy beside you. He pecked your lips again and then the both of you began your day of eating pizza and singing along to every Disney movie Ashton had brought with him.


	247. If Only You Knew (Calum Hood)

There wasn't any rhyme or reason as to how you came to fall asleep on top of a picnic table in the middle of the park, yet there you were; Your lips parted ever so slightly and the snore was only able to be heard if someone were to stand right next to you. You didn't mean to fall asleep – and in such a public place nonetheless – but you did. Those who passed you simply let you be, apparently not bothered by how long or even  _why_ you were sleeping there.

That was, until a tall young man about your age came by on his daily evening run.

Calum Hood was fairly well-known around town, never leaving anyone without wishes of a good day and a bright smile. He wasn't so intimidating that strangers were afraid to talk to him; He just preferred to keep to himself. He was rather quiet when he was alone, but his friends always managed to bring out the social butterfly in him.

You and Calum weren't  _friends_  by any means, but you did talk every now and then when you saw each other around town. He did notice the fact that the only places he ever seemed to see you was in the park or catching you coming out of the locker room every couple days at the gym or the local laundromat once a week, but he never really thought too much of it. He figured you were enjoying nature and taking care of yourself – and he really liked that about you.

Calum carefully walked up to your makeshift bed, assessing the situation in which he'd found himself. The worst case scenario, he thought, was that you had fallen asleep at some point in the afternoon and the heat had finally taken its toll on you. But he quickly shook that image out of his mind. He nudged you gently, his heart pounding against his chest – both from his run and you not moving – as he continued to prod at your arm. This went on for what felt like an eternity, but you finally started stirring.

You heard your name being whispered and felt someone poking your arm. You jumped suddenly, your eyes shooting open as you sat up, startling Calum. Your breathing was uneven as your eyes darted around you before finally widening as they landed on the shirtless boy in front of you, now becoming aware of your surroundings and remembering where you were.

"If you don't mind me asking..." Calum trailed off, "Why are you sleeping on a picnic table?" You were silent, making him go on. "I mean, if that's something you enjoy doing, then that's cool; It just seems a bit...dangerous...to me."

" _Dangerous_?" you cocked an eyebrow.

"It's just... Anyone could just come up and like, kidnap you or something. And it took me a couple minutes of trying to wake you up, so you're obviously a pretty heavy sleeper."

"What do you care?" you asked rather harshly, "You don't know me." He began chewing on his bottom lip.

"I know..." he muttered, "I was just making sure you were okay. I'll leave you alone now then." You didn't know why you did it – maybe it was the defeated tone in his voice or the hurt expression on his face – but you stopped him.

"Calum," you stated, making him turn around. You swallowed thickly, "Thank you." You swore you saw his cheeks turn a light shade of pink as a smile pulled at the corners of his mouth.

"You're welcome, Y/N," he replied. He was about to turn back to finish his run, but he froze. With eyebrows raised, you watched as he opened and closed his mouth a couple times, trying to find the words he was looking for. "I-" He cleared his throat nervously. "I, uh, I come out for a run around the same time every evening if... If you, um, if you wanted to meet me here again sometime..." You looked at him intently, causing him to shift uncomfortably under your stare.

"Right here?" you asked. His eyes widened slightly as he nodded. "Will showing up tomorrow make me seem too eager?" You couldn't help but smirk when Calum blushed again.

"I don't think so," he said quietly.

"Then I'll see you tomorrow," you nodded. He let out the smallest sigh of relief, giving you a shy wave before darting away to finish his run.

~

**The next day**

You sat on top of the picnic table, anxiously waiting for Calum's arrival. You were trying not to imagine him being sweaty and shirtless again, thinking he would probably run a little less harder since he asked to hang out with you. It wasn't that difficult not to think about though. Unfortunately, the thoughts you decided to distract yourself with weren't ones you preferred either.

You couldn't help but feel like maybe this was all some sort of practical joke – that maybe Calum wasn't going to show or was going to be hiding and watching just to see how long you'll sit there. In the back of your mind, you thought that there was no way someone like Calum would actually want to be seen with someone like you. No one deserved him in your opinion. He was too good for  _anyone_  – and he was  _especially_ to good for you.

"Hey!" you heard a cheerful voice, "You actually came!" You came back to reality, watching Calum as he trotted over. He hopped up and sat down next to you.

"Why wouldn't I come?" you tilted your head in confusion.

"Oh, um..." he scratched the back of his neck, shyly looking away, "I don't know... Maybe you would have found something better to do." You eyed him for a moment, even more confused, but forgetting about it once you looked at what he was wearing.

"You don't look like you're dressed for a run," you stated. He was wearing black skinny jeans, black Vans, a torn up band tee, and a red flannel – definitely not clothing you would wear to run in unless – God forbid – you were running for your life.

"Decided to go this morning instead," he blushed, "Didn't really think you'd appreciate me being covered in post-run sweat."  _God, if only he knew._

"You didn't have to get so dressed up for me, Cal," you nudged him, a small smirk on your face.

He let out a quiet chuckle, "Well, I thought you were worth the extra effort."

"That's really sweet," you said, your tone only half joking now, "But I'm nothing special."

"Debatable," he stated firmly. You looked at him and he was looking at you with a serious expression.

"So-" You cleared your throat, hoping you would be able to change the subject. "-do you want to walk around or stay here or...?" Thankfully, he took the hint that you didn't want to talk about it anymore.

"You know that new burger place that opened not too long ago?" he asked. You nodded. "I was thinking we could go there."

"I thought we were staying here..."

"D-Do you want to stay here?" he rushed, "We can do that too."

"I just... I didn't know that's what you wanted to do, so I didn't bring any money for food!" you answered a little too quickly.

"I'd be more than happy to pay for you, Y/N," Calum told you.

"I can't make you spend money on me," you muttered.

"You wouldn't be making me; I  _want_ to do it," he said, a little confused as to why you were desperately trying to come up with excuses, "It's no problem, honestly. But if you really don't want to, I don't want to press it. I'll be fine with whatever you want to do."

You chewed on your inner cheek for a few seconds before nodding in agreement. You stood up, but Calum grabbed your hand. He got up in front of you, looking you right in the eyes.

"Are you okay with it?" he asked sincerely, "Because I'm seriously fine with not going if you don't want to. I don't want you to feel like you have to go just to make me happy. What will make me happy is you being comfortable and not feeling any sort of pressure to do something you don't  _really_ want to do."

"It's fine, Cal," you assured him with a slight shrug, trying not to think about how firmly he was still holding onto you, "I'm kinda hungry anyway. I haven't eaten yet today." The words left your mouth before you could think about what you were saying. You pursed your lips together, praying he wouldn't ask about it.

"You haven't eaten yet?!" he exclaimed, his eyes widening, "Well, come on! We've gotta get something in you now!" He let go of your hand, only to lean down so he could throw you over his shoulder.

"Calum!" you squealed, unable to stop yourself from laughing as you hit his lower back, "Put me down!"

"I can't!" he announced, "We have places to be and burgers to eat!"

"If you want to carry me so badly, give me a piggy back ride or something," you giggled, "The blood is rushing to my head!" He stopped walking, returning your feet to the ground.

"That, I can do," he said, an attempted serious look on his face but it was so painfully obvious he was holding back a smile.

He let you jump onto his back, hooking his arms under your knees as you wrapped your own around his neck and rested your cheek on his shoulder. You subconsciously sighed in content, your breath hitting his skin and making his heart race.

~

"I had a lot of fun tonight, Cal, thank you," you said as you leaned over the center console in his car to kiss his cheek, making him turn a deep red. Calum had just brought you back home and you were now sitting in your parents' driveway.

"Will I see you again tomorrow?" he asked hopefully.

"If you're lucky," you teased, getting out of the car.

"Hey, Y/N," Calum said just before you closed the door, making you stop. "I'm glad we're doing more than talking during passing now," he told you.

"Me too, Cal," you grinned.

"Do you-" He cleared his throat, swallowing thickly. "-Would you like to... Um..." He was staring at his hands as they tightly gripped the steering wheel, so he missed the way you were smiling at how nervous he was. "Will you go on a date with me?" he finally blurted out, his head snapping up to look at you, "Like, a  _real_  date; One where I take you to some fancy restaurant and you argue about how expensive it is but I eventually win and you agree to let me pay for it anyway but when we get there, all the food on the menu sounds disgusting and we end up just going to some fast food place down the road and then we go see a movie or something." You stared at him for a moment with what seemed to be a permanent smile on your face.

"Speaking from experience, are we?" you asked. He paused for a moment, his cheeks turning a light pink due to thinking about his rambling.

"Maybe," he answered, making you giggle.

"I would love to go on a date with you, Cal," you grinned. He let out a small sigh of relief. "I'll see you tomorrow," you told him. His smile was so big that you knew it had to be hurting his cheeks by now.

You closed the car door and trotted to the porch. You turned around, giving Calum a small wave as he backed out of the driveway and drove away. You waited until he was completely out of site plus a few seconds before darting away from the house in the opposite direction.

~

**Four months later**

Calum took you on as many dates as he could after that first one and even asked you to be his girlfriend on the third. You had obviously accepted, never seeing anyone smile as widely as he did in that moment.

But you haven't seen him in probably three and a half weeks now. It wasn't that you didn't want to spend time with him; You just had a lot on your mind and needed some time to yourself.

You were at the park – as always – lying on a picnic table away from the business of other people. You were under the shade of a tree, but you could still see the clouds, so you were mindlessly searching for shapes and such. You didn't know how long you'd been there exactly, but the sun was just barely coming up when you arrived.

It was now probably around 5pm and this was usually the time Calum would come on his run. You made sure you weren't at your regular table though, not wanting him to see you.

Unfortunately for you, he decided to veer off his usual path and ended up finding you anyway.

"Y/N?" Calum seemed surprised to see you, but he was smiling just as widely as he always was when you saw him.

"Hey, Cal," you gave him a small smile.

"I haven't seen you in a while," he hopped up, sitting beside your hip. The look on his face was clearly showing his concern. "Is everything okay, babe?"

"Everything's fine," you nodded, moving your arms behind your head to act as a pillow.

"So I stopped by your house earlier to see if you wanted to go out," he started, making your stomach drop, "But your mom just rolled her eyes and slammed the door on me. What was that about?"

You cleared your throat and shrugged, "Must be having a bad day, I guess."

"Well, haven't you seen her?"

"Not since I left."

"What's up with you?" he asked blatantly, "I haven't seen you in over a month and you seem really detached whenever I do. Do you not..." he trailed off. The look on his face as he stared at his hands was understandably breaking your heart and you instantly felt guilty. "Are you not interested in me anymore?" he whispered.

"Calum-" He cut you off.

"It's alright if you're not, Y/N," he shook his head, "I'm a big boy. I can handle it."

"It's not that at all, Cal," you sighed, pushing yourself up to sit beside him. "I like you a lot, honestly; I'm just scared."

"Scared of what?" he asked, but you could tell he was over the moon about your confession.

"Everything," you shrugged again, playing with your fingers.

"You're not scared I'm gonna hurt you, are you?" he bit his bottom lip, "Because I promise that's something I don't want to do. I know that it'll happen because I can be hardheaded sometimes, but I swear it's not gonna be a thought every morning after I wake up to think about how I can hurt you that day." You let out a quiet laugh, making him smile.

"I know," you whispered.

Calum reached over to your lap, pausing for a moment. When you didn't move away, he took your hand and tangled your fingers together. You couldn't help but blush lightly, leaning onto his arm in an attempt to hide it. He put his chin on top of your head, but not before barely pressing a kiss to your hairline.

"You have really small hands," Calum said suddenly. You scrunched your face up, a confused laugh escaping your lips as you looked at him.

"Maybe you have really  _big_  hands," you shot back, a teasing tone to your voice.

"My hands are an average size, thank you very much," he poked his tongue out at you.

"Nah, I think it's because you're a giant," you sassed.

He gasped dramatically, placing his free hand over his heart as if he were hurt by the statement. Unable to stay in character anymore, you giggled quietly. You pulled his hand away from his chest and laced those fingers with yours as well.

"I like how warm they are," you mumbled, more to yourself than to Calum. You had your eyes trained on his hands, so you missed how much wider his grin became.

"I like how cool yours are," he said, kissing your cheek, "I think we complement each other nicely."

"Oh, come on, Cal," you said, "That was too cheesy; Even for  _you_."

"Made you blush, didn't it?" he winked. You shoved him playfully, laying your head on his shoulder.

You two were silent again, simply enjoying each other's company. Calum knew you were a shy person, but he could still tell something was wrong whenever you went quiet so quickly. You could feel him looking at you and you knew he was going to ask what was wrong, so you beat him to it.

"I'm sorry I haven't been around much lately," you whispered, scooting even closer to him so your hips were pressed up against each other. He began rubbing the back of your hand with his thumb.

"I've missed you, you know," he said quietly.

"I've missed you too," you admitted.

Calum hopped off of the table and sat down on the bench, pulling on you lightly and urging you to move to his lap. You happily did so, straddling him and then moving so your legs were dangling under the table. You were now able to properly cuddle up to him, wrapping your arms around his waist, burying your face in his neck. His hands came to rest on your sides, sliding them under your shirt so he could run his fingers back and forth along your bare skin.

"It's okay to want time to yourself, babe," he said softly, his breath tickling your neck, "But at least warn me next time, please. It killed me thinking you hated me and were avoiding me."

"I could never hate you, Cal," you muttered, squeezing him a little more firmly.

~

You two lost track of time as you were sitting there holding each other. You didn't even realize it had gotten so late until you heard a mother call for her kids so they could get home before it got dark. This caused you and Calum to look up and finally notice the sun was just starting to set. You let out a small whine, not wanting Calum to leave, but knowing he probably had to get home. You climbed off of him and you two walked hand-in-hand to his car.

"Do you want me to take you home?" he asked once you reached the vehicle.

"No, I'd rather walk alone," you smiled politely, "But thank you."

"Okay," he nodded, "I'll see you later then." He kissed your forehead, letting his lips linger there for a moment, making you smile again. He let go of your hand and you two went your separate ways.

~

**A few days later**

Calum walked up to the familiar scene; You curled up on yet another picnic table, snoring quietly. He sighed to himself, putting his knee up on the seat and leaning forward.

"Y/N," he whispered, his lips brushing against your ear, "Babe, wake up." You let out a quiet groan – picnic tables were obviously uncomfortable – before you realized where you were. You shot up and Calum stepped away from the table.

"What are you doing here?" you asked quickly.

"Decided to go for a morning run today so I could watch the sun rise," he stated, "What are  _you_ doing here?"

"I was, uh-" You coughed nervously. "-I was doing the same."

"You were sleeping," he stated the obvious, "What's going on with you? It's like you never leave the park. I mean, I love it too, but not enough to fall asleep here all the time."

"It's nothing..."

"Stop lying to me!" he exclaimed, surprising you. This was the first time you knew of that he'd ever gotten upset at someone. "Do you not trust me? Is that what it is? Do you think I'll go around telling everyone your secrets or something?"

"I trust you, Cal, I just-"

"Then what is it, Y/N? What are you not telling me? There is  _no_ reason that you should constantly be sleeping here! If you're arguing with your parents and you just need to get out of the house, then you can come to my place! You don't need to-"

" _They kicked me out, okay_?!" you shouted, instantly slapping your hand over your mouth. Calum's eyes widened.

"They  _what_?" he asked, his tone much softer now. He moved to stand in front of you, pulling your hand back down and holding it in your lap. You let out a sigh of defeat, hanging your head as you knew there was no possible way of getting out of this.

"They kicked me out," you repeated in a whisper, "I told my parents I dropped out of college and they kicked me out."

"Why didn't you tell me?" he shook his head, "You could have come live with me."

" _That's why_ ," you swallowed, "I don't want you to feel like you have to take care of me."

"It's just having a roof over your head, Y/N, it's not like I'd be waiting on you hand and foot. I don't want you to have to live on the streets;  _That's not safe_."

"I know," you muttered, hanging your head even more. Calum took your chin in his hand and lifted your head back up so you would look at him.

"Please just come live with me," he said with a begging tone, "I know I've got housemates, but they won't mind. They'll love you – I  _know_  they will."

"You don't know that, Cal."

"Yes, I do," he said, never taking his eyes off of yours, "They'll love you just as much as I do." Your heart skipped a beat.

"You love me?" your voice was barely above a whisper.

"I love you, Y/N," he confirmed with a nod, "Anybody would be stupid not to." Your eyes start to water but before any tears could fall, you leaned forward and firmly pressed your lips to his.

You could feel him smile into the kiss as you mumbled, "I love you too, Calum."

When you pulled away, his hands immediately went up to cup your cheeks. He didn't say anything for a few moments, he simply held your face, his thumbs running back and forth along your cheekbones softly as if he thought he might break you.

"Say you'll move in with me," he murmured, his gaze never breaking yours.

"Cal-"

"You can't keep sleeping God knows where and waking up hoping you get to eat that day, Y/N," he said, "If you don't want to live with me, then I'll pay for a room at a hotel for you to stay at until you can get back on your feet."

"Calum," you said firmly, "You are  _not_ paying for a hotel room."

"Babe,  _please_ ," he swallowed, "I can't keep letting you do this to yourself. I will annoy you into doing it if I have to; I will beg and whine and nag for as long as it takes unti-"

"If I say yes, will you  _shut up_?!" you exclaimed. He smiled widely before furrowing his eyebrows together.

"But I didn't even get to pout!" he said, "That was gonna be the thing that  _got you_!"

"Hmm," you hummed, "I'm sure you'll find more reasons to use it against me." Calum grinned slightly, tilting your head down and kissing your forehead.

"I love you," he said, moving you back and laying his forehead on yours. You looked into his eyes, searching for some hint of uncertainty. When you couldn't find any, you sighed.

"I love you, Cal," you muttered, shaking his hands off of your cheeks and sliding your arms around his waist, bringing your bodies together as you hugged him tightly.


	248. Twitter Videos (5 Seconds of Summer)

**Luke**

"Hey, guys!" you whispered with a bright smile, "So Lukey and I just got back from the show about half an hour ago and-" You were cut off by Luke's singing getting gradually louder, making you slap your hand over your mouth to avoid laughing and letting him know you were right outside the bathroom door. You moved your hand slightly, looking back into the camera, "I don't know how well my phone's mic is picking it all up, but he's been singing one of the songs from the new album ever since he went in there to shower."

"Hey, babe!" Luke suddenly shouted, making you smile as your eyes widened. You quickly tiptoed a few feet away from the door.

"Yeah?" you called softly, hoping he would realize how close you actually were.

"Were you talking to me just now?"

"No," you answered, giggling quietly at the camera.

"Oh, I could have sworn I heard you say something."

"You must be hearing things, Luke," you snickered.

"Alright, what did you do?"

"Why do you think I did something?"

"Because you never call me Luke," he replied, opening the bathroom door. He wasn't wearing anything apart from a pair of sweatpants as he continued drying his hair with his towel. He froze when he saw you holding your phone in front of you. "Are you filming me again?"

"No," you replied with a smirk, "I'm filming me listening to you again."

" _Y/N_!" he yelled with a laugh as you took off down the hall.

"Bye, guys! I hope you appreciate me for this!" you squealed once Luke started chasing you downstairs.

You immediately stopped recording and tweeted the video as fast as you could without running into or tripping over anything. Once you were sure it uploaded, you shoved your phone into your pocket. You ran around the first floor, coming back to the staircase with Luke not far behind. You thought you would lock yourself in your bedroom, but he was too fast, slipping inside before you shut the door. His arms wrapped around your waist and you let out a high-pitched shriek as he tackled you onto your bed. He quickly repositioned himself so he was sitting on your thighs.

"Lukey, no!" you screamed, laughing as he started tickling your sides.

"Tell me what you were doing," he ordered, smiling at the sound of your laugh.

"I ca- I-I can't brea-breathe!" you said, grabbing his hands and making him stop. You took a moment to catch your breath, your jaw hurting from smiling so much.

When you finally calmed down, Luke raised his eyebrows at you.

"Now tell me what you were doing," he said.

"I told you," you grinned slyly, "I was filming me listening to you."

"You better delete that video before anyone finds it." You took in a sharp breath.

"About that..." you trailed off teasingly.

" _Y/N_!" he pouted.

"Oh, come on!" you said, hitting his stomach with yours and his hands, " _You're in a band_ , Lukey! People hear you sing all the time! They love to hear your voice!"

"But while I'm in the shower, babe?  _Really_?"

"Fine," you stuck out your bottom lip, "I'll stop."

"No, you won't," he chuckled lightly.

"I'm tending to the fans'  _needs_ , Lucas!" you squeaked, "It's the only reason they like me!"

"Is that really the only reason?" he asked with another chuckle.

"They came because I'm your girlfriend and they stayed for the sneaky videos," you sighed dramatically, making Luke roll his eyes.

"You're incredibly strange, you know that?" he scrunched up his nose.

"Yeah," you nodded, "And for some reason, you're into it."

"Can't argue with that," he grinned, leaning down and kissing you.

~

**Michael**

"Hello, everyone!" you beamed, "As everyone's favorite member of 5SOS-" A small smirk began pulling at the corner of your mouth. "-I thought I'd steal Mikey's phone and do something a little special for you guys today. As I'm sure all of you know, the boys are back in LA for a while and this is when they like to get in writing and recording sessions with John and Alex. Mikey's been singing this song non-stop ever since he and Ash wrote it last week and he finally got the chance to record it today, so I thought I'd give you guys a sneak peek of it!"

You smiled again, turning the camera to the recording booth Michael was in. You had asked him if it was okay beforehand, so he knew you were going to be filming him. He started making faces at the camera so you would laugh and – as always – he succeeded. However, when John needed him to get serious and start recording, he went into game mode in a snap.

As he was singing, he would be subtly looking at you out of the corner of his eye. He couldn't tell what you were saying, but when you walked out of the room to say it, he made a mental note to watch the video later to find out.

~

Later, you had gone to the bathroom after uploading the video to Twitter. John had asked you to only record a few seconds of the song and you happily agreed; A ten second teaser is better than no teaser at all, right?

As you were walking back to the room, you could hear your voice and knew Michael was watching the video. You were confused at first – he never really liked listening to his own voice, especially when he sang – but when you heard him skip straight through the intro, you knew what he was doing.

"Can I be honest with you guys for a second?" you listened to your own staticy words through Michael's phone speaker, "I don't understand why Mikey doesn't like his voice. I know that it's one of those things where it's like, the way you see yourself is different than how everyone else sees you, but I wish he could see how amazing he really is. I know you guys feel the same way and I know you're all super protective of him, so I just wanted to let you know how thankful I am that you're so accepting of me being part of his life. I know Mikey and I argue sometimes and some people act like I'm such a terrible girlfriend because of it, but I really,  _really_ love him. I mean, you guys were here before I was, so I know you already know he's one of the most amazing people out there. I promise I never intentionally do anything to upset or hurt him and I promise to love him with everything I have and care for him just as much as you all do." You closed out the video and Michael sat there with a stupid grin on his face.

You finally sneaked into the room, coming up to sit on the armrest beside him. You didn't even get a word out before Michael tossed his phone on the couch cushion beside him and wrapped his arms around your waist. He pulled you onto his lap, burying his face in your neck.

"I just went to the bathroom, Mikey," you giggled, "I didn't think you'd miss me  _that_ much." His stomach shook with quiet laughter.

"I know you were standing outside the door," he mumbled against your skin. You smiled, kissing the side of his head for a moment.

"I love you, Michael," you whispered.

"Did you really mean all that stuff you said?"

You were a bit taken aback by the question, not sure how to respond for a moment. You put your hands on his cheeks, picking his head up so he would look at you.

"Of course I did," you assured him, "You know I love your voice."

"And the rest of me?" he asked, the small smirk pulling at the corner of his mouth making you smile.

" _Especially_ the rest of you," you replied, pressing a kiss to his nose.

~

**Calum**

"Good morning, guys," you smiled at your phone's camera, "I just woke up and I can hear Cal working on a new song downstairs and I thought I'd let you guys have a sneak peek of it. He's been stressing about getting his vision for the song perfect for a couple weeks now and it sounds like he's finally got it. I don't know if I'm allowed to do this, so make sure you save this video in case someone makes me delete it later."

You winked jokingly before sneaking down the stairs and peering around the corner into the living room where Calum was. You turned the front-facing camera off again so they could see him hard at work. You smiled fondly at him as you poked the phone out and watched the screen. When he stopped playing to write down more notes, you saw him look over at you.

"Morning, babe," he smiled, setting his guitar off to the side. You pouted as you came out from behind the corner, turning the camera back to you.

" _Busted_ ," you sighed, but couldn't hold in your giggle. You sat down next to Calum on the couch and he wrapped his arms around your waist.

"Hi, guys," he smiled, already knowing what you were doing, as he rested his chin on your shoulder, "You leaking new songs again?"

"It is my  _duty_ as your girlfriend to give the fans what they want, Cal," you wiggled your eyebrows, leaning back on him, "Except you; You're mine." You looked back at the camera and shrugged, "Sorry, guys."

"Alright," Calum chuckled, "End this video so I can keep working on this song. Management will make us break up if you keep leaking our new stuff." He poked your sides, making you squeal and giggle as you looked into the camera.

"Do they  _really_ think a forced break-up would make me stop leaking songs?" you smirked, squirming around in your boyfriend's arms while he just laughed loudly.

"Bye, guys," he smiled to the camera, taking your phone out of your hand and stopping the recording.

Calum posted the video onto your Twitter account before placing your phone onto the coffee table with the notebook he scribbled all of his lyrics in. His arms wrapped back around your waist, pulling you as close to him as he could get you. You repositioned yourself to sit on his lap instead, laying your head on his shoulder.

The two of you sat there for nearly five minutes – both of you simply enjoying each other's presence – before Calum broke the silence.

"What do you think of the song?" he asked quietly, his voice muffled lightly due to him having his face pressed to your neck.

"Of what little I heard of it?" you responded with a teasing tone, "I liked it. Will you sing that part you just wrote to me?"

"Do I have to use my guitar?"

"I would prefer you didn't," you answered, pressing a light kiss to his skin.

"Good," he stated before sighing slightly. He paused for a moment before taking in a breath and letting it out slowly. " _I want a little bit of California with a little bit of London sky. I wanna take my heart to the end of the world and fly away tonight,_ " he sang the chorus he had just written in the notebook on the coffee table softly, his grip on your hips tightening, " _I want a little bit of open ocean with a New York state of mind. I wanna take my heart to the end of the world and fly away, fly away tonight._ " You couldn't help but smile, kissing his shoulder again.

"Sounds beautiful, Cal," you muttered.

"Really?" he asked, sounding unsure of himself as he picked his head up to look at you, "You don't think it's boring?"

"Why would I think it's boring?" you asked, furrowing your eyebrows and shaking your head.

"'Cause it kind of  _is_ ," he sighed, beginning to chew on his bottom lip, "It's the same thing, it's just the places are different. What if the fans think it's repetitive and don't like it?"

"They're gonna love it, Cal," you assured him, your thumb gently rubbing his collarbone, "You could write a song about your  _left shoelace_  and they would think it's the most genius thing you've ever written."

"No, they wouldn't," he let out an unintentional chuckle.

"You're probably right," you smiled, "But it still made you laugh." His smile faded a bit, making you frown. "Let's go out for breakfast with the boys," you suggested, "You need to take a break. Maybe run the new song by them."

"What if they-"

"They're going to love it, Calum," you repeated firmly, "And even if they're not crazy about it, they're gonna help you make it to be exactly what you're imagining." Calum grinned sheepishly.

"Thank you," he whispered, "I love you."

"I love you too," you smiled, kissing his nose. You climbed off of him and pulled him up with you, pushing him in the direction of the bedroom. "Go get dressed," you ordered, "I'm gonna call Mikey until he wakes up." He laughed, stealing a kiss from your lips before walking away.

"Good luck, babe!" he called over his shoulder while you were already in the middle of dialing Michael's number.

~

**Ashton**

"Hi, guys!" you grinned, waving to the phone you were holding in front of you, "I'm at the studio with Ash and he's currently recording drums and I'm holding his phone for him which is why it's me on his account. Anyway, he would never admit this to you guys, but he's been in there for like, an hour because he can't get his parts to sound just the way he wants them to. I can tell he's getting really frustrated and I hate when he beats himself up like this, so I thought I would ask you guys for some help. I really want Ash to forget all about how bad of a day he's having and since he loves you guys so much, I think it would be really cool as well as good for him if you just tweeted him a bunch of words of encouragement for him to come back to when he's finished." You gave the camera another smile. "You guys mean the absolute world to him and maybe if he sees how much you love him even on his bad days, he'll go back to being the bubbly Ashton we all know and love." You stopped recording and quickly tweeted the video.

Within seconds, tweets were already flooding in. You read a few of them, actually tearing up a bit at some of the things fans were saying about how much he'd helped them without him even realizing it. You heard Ashton stop playing, so you quickly locked his phone, heading back into the room before he came out of the recording booth.

You returned to your spot the couch, lying down as you waited, and Ashton emerged from the booth a couple minutes later. He had an anything but happy look on his face, making you smile sympathetically at him when he looked at you.

You held your arms open and he immediately sighed, striding over to the couch and climbing on top of you. You wrapped your arms around his waist tightly while he buried his face in your neck. Neither you, Ashton, nor John said a word until John excused himself. You mouthed a ' _thank you_ ' and he gave you a smile, making his way out of the room. Once he was gone, you kissed Ashton's temple.

"How are you feeling?" you asked quietly, rubbing light circles on his back.

"Like shit," he answered honestly, getting off of you. You sat up, allowing him to sit beside you. You wiggled over to him, cuddling up in his lap.

"It's okay, Ash," you said, laying your head on his shoulder.

"No, it's not," he muttered, "Nothing I do with this stupid song is working. It's a miracle I haven't been kicked out of the band yet. I don't  _deserve_  to be in it anymore anyway."

"Ash," you hugged his waist lightly, "If Luke sang a few flat notes, would you tell him that he didn't deserve to be in the band?" He was silent. "Or if Mikey kept messing up his guitar solos, would you kick him out?" He began biting his inner cheek. "Or if Cal played his bass out of tune for a verse or two, would you give him a bunch of shit for it?"

"No," he whispered, sighing quietly.

" _Exactly_ ," you nodded, "You four started this band because you love playing music and you love being able to do it together. They are your best friends and the band will just cease to exist the moment any of you decide to leave. If you're not playing music together, you're not playing music at all; Remember when you said that?" He looked down, barely nodding as he played with the buttons on the flannel you stole from him that morning. "Not every day is going to go like exactly how you imagined it, but that doesn't make you any less of a phenomenal drummer, Ash," you assured him, "Each of you boys are an important part of this band and the occasional bad day won't make any of you or your fans feel any differently." Ashton looked back at you, leaning forward and kissing you softly.

"Thank you, babe," he muttered. You smiled, kissing his nose in return and laying your head on his shoulder.

After a quiet couple minutes, Ashton asked for his phone back. You handed it to him, being sure to control your smile as to not to seem too suspicious. He unlocked it and immediately went to Twitter – as per usual – but didn't say anything for a few minutes until he went into his mentions.

"Y/N..." he said slowly. You hummed in acknowledgement. "How come everyone is saying all this stuff about me?" he asked, showing you his phone. You humored him by looking at the replies for a moment before shrugging casually.

"They always say stuff like that," you told him, lying your head back down.

A few seconds later, you heard your voice and knew you were busted. Ashton watched the entire video – taking in every single word you said – and when it was over, the room was so silent, you could hear a pin drop. It wasn't until you heard him sniffle that you looked up and saw he was tearing up. He didn't even wipe his face before his lips were on yours again.

"Thank you," he mumbled into the kiss, making you smile, "I really don't deserve you."

"What a coincidence; I don't deserve you either," you said quietly as he kissed you again.

 


	249. Marry Me (Vic Fuentes)

_requested by kaitlynnicholeeee on wattpad_

~

"It's too big, Vic!" you whined, "I'll never be able to pick that up!"

"That's what she said," your boyfriend snickered, earning himself a slap to the chest.

"I have never in my life met a girl I thought would say those words, Victor," you told him seriously.

"I'm sure there are some chicks who like it small," he shrugged.

"You know what? We can talk about how big or small we like the sizes of our dicks to be later," you rolled your eyes with a small smile, "But right now, we have to finish this snowman."

"Why do you want to go back inside so badly?"

"Because I'm freezing!" you sassed, "And also because I'm not seven anymore."

"It's the first snowfall of the year, babe! We had to celebrate somehow!"

"We could have celebrated inside under a pile of blankets with hot chocolate and a nice Christmas movie," you pouted.

"We're almost done, babe," he assured you, "Just have to add the arms after this."

Vic stuck his tongue out in concentration as he maneuvered the head onto the snowman's body, making sure it was firmly in place. He then went to find some sticks, coming back only a few seconds later. He shoved both of them into the side of the body, then stepped back to where you were standing a few feet away.

"Babe!" he gasped randomly, "We forgot the carrot!"

"Oh my God,  _no_!" you giggled, "How will he breathe?!" Vic shoved your arm, making you laugh again. "Tell you what," you said, "I'll go get a carrot, you go find better sticks for his arms."

"Are you saying these aren't good enough?" he frowned.

"Babe, look at them," you raised your eyebrows, motioning toward the snowman with your glove-covered hand. He looked at the uneven arms for a moment before sighing loudly.

"Nothing I do is good enough for you anymore!" he shouted dramatically. You rolled your eyes, shaking your head and laughing.

"Do it right the first time and it would be," you teased, kissing his cheek before trotting into the house.

You dug around in the bag of carrots for a couple minutes to find the perfect nose for your snowman. When you did, you made your way back outside. You didn't see Vic anywhere, but even from how far away you were, you could tell that the snowman's arms were finally even. You went over and stuck the nose on, stepping back to admire your work.

It wasn't until you moved in a way that made the sun reflected off of the shiny object hanging off one of the sticks that you noticed anything out of the ordinary. You tilted your head curiously and approached the snowman once again. You didn't even need to get that close to know what it was, your heart immediately skipping a beat.

You turned around to see if there was any sign of your boyfriend and when you did, he was there on one knee, smiling widely at you. Your hand flew up to cover your mouth as Vic reached for the engagement ring handing off of the snowman's stick arm.

"From the moment I met you, there was something different about our relationship," Vic started his speech, "I knew very early on that you were the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. I fall more in love with you every day and I want to make sure I never stop falling in love with you." He took a deep breath, almost as if he was nervous you would say no. "Y/N, babe, will you marry me?"

You let out a breath of your own, seeing it be released in the cold December air. However, you wasted no time in frantically nodding your head, making Vic's smile get bigger – if  _that_ was even possible. He took your left hand and slid the ring up your finger. You grabbed his cheeks and pulled him back to his feet to kiss him. You were both smiling, so it was pretty difficult to kiss each other, but all you did was laugh it off.

"I love you so much," you sniffled, prompting Vic to wipe the tears that were falling down your cheeks.

"I love you so much more," he said, pecking your lips and resting his forehead on yours.

"What would you have done if I didn't go inside?"

"Panic," he answered with a straight face, making you giggle.


	250. Guide Me Home (Ashton Irwin) - Part 1

You were running down the hallway one morning, hurrying to get to the main office. You were meant to be showing a new student around the school before classes started, but you had woken up later than you planned to. You knew you shouldn't have been running at the risk of running into someone, but the hallways were so empty – barely anyone was at school yet – that you didn't think it would be a problem.

But, of course, you were wrong.

As you turned around a corner, you ran straight into someone. You both went tumbling to the floor, each of you letting out a surprised noise. The boy you had run into sat up, pushing his hair off of his face and honestly looking like he was about to have a panic attack.

"I am so sorry!" you nearly shouted, scrambling to get back on your feet. You reached down to him, but he didn't respond – he just stared at your legs.

The brown-haired boy carefully got up on his own and your first thought was that he was extremely rude, but then you realized something; He had been looking in your direction, but it was almost as if he couldn't see you. His eyes looked cloudy, but they were the prettiest hazel color you'd ever seen.

"I-It's okay," he said quietly, "Um... D-Do you know where m-my notebook is?" You looked down at the floor and immediately spotted the bright red notebook. You bent down to pick it up and held it to him. He didn't move this time either and that was when you were sure of your hunch; He was blind.

"Here," you said softly, cautiously curling your fingers around his wrist and guiding his hand to his notebook. You felt him twitch slightly and you couldn't help but wonder if he felt the same spark you did.

"Thank you," he murmured as you let go.

"Well..." you trailed off, "Sorry again for running into you. I should have been watching where I was going."

"It's okay," he repeated. You both stood there for a moment before you spoke again.

"Do... Do you need help?" you asked him. He let out what appeared to be a defeated chuckle.

"Kind of..." he hung his head, playing with his fingers, "I'm new and I don't know where I'm supposed to go."

"Do you have your schedule?" He shook his head. "Well, I'll take you to the office and then show you around before class starts."

"Thanks," he whispered.

You put your hand on his back to let him know you were beginning to walk and he stayed close beside you. You took your hand back and he made a little sound of detest. You tilted your head and stopped walking again.

"Are you okay?" you asked him.

"Y-Yeah," he said, "I just... I don't... I can't see and I-"

"It's alright, you know," you cut him off, "Is it okay if I hold your hand?" He nodded quickly, making you blush at how eager he seemed. You gently took his hand in yours, tangling your fingers together.

You started walking again, having a much easier time with leading him to the destination. He would squeeze your hand every time he heard a voice getting louder as you walked by a group of friends or when someone passed the two of you, and it was obvious these things made him nervous.

You opened the door to the main office and guided the boy in. The woman at the front desk looked up from her work and smiled at you.

"Good morning, Y/N!" Mrs. Foster chirped, "The student you're supposed to assist today hasn't arrived yet, so you're a bit early."

"Oh, that's fine," you replied, rubbing the back of the boy's hand when he squeezed again at the sound of her voice, "I was going to try and show this one-" You nudged him with your shoulder gently. "-where all his classes are, so you can just call me over the speaker when he gets here."

"Will do," she nodded, "What do you need?"

"His schedule."

"What's your name, dear?" Mrs. Foster asked the boy next to you.

"Uh, Ash-" he cleared his throat nervously, "Ashton."

"Ashton Irwin?" you looked at him in surprise. He nodded shyly, a bit puzzled by how you knew his last name. "You're who I'm meant to help today," you grinned. Ashton blushed lightly. Mrs. Foster handed you his schedule, although you didn't actually need it since you were told he was going to be in all of your classes. "Thank you, Mrs. Foster," you smiled.

"You're welcome, Y/N," she returned the gesture, "And have a wonderful first day, Ashton." He thanked her quietly as you led him back out into the hallway.

More and more students were starting to arrive and you could hear Ashton's breathing get heavier. You held his hand tightly in yours, carefully maneuvering your way through the crowd and taking Ashton to your homeroom. When you walked in the door, your teacher – Mrs. Parton – looked up from the papers on her desk.

"Hello, Y/N," she said, "Is this our new student?"

"Uh-huh," you nodded, looking back at the boy following closely behind you. You were quick to grab his hip before it hit the edge of a desk, giving him a soft ' _careful_ ' before stopping in front of your teacher's own desk. "This is Ashton Irwin," you told her, "Ash, this is our homeroom teacher, Mrs. Parton."

"Hi," he said, his eyes landing on the wall just over her shoulder. She smiled at him despite the fact that he had no idea she was doing it.

"It's very nice to meet you, Ashton," she told him, "Your other teachers and I have already been made aware of your challenges and Y/N here is going to take very good care of you, so you have nothing to worry about." Ashton's mouth twitched up into a smile as he squeezed your hand again. "Have you gone through his schedule with him and where his other classes are yet?" she turned back to you.

"No," you shook your head, "The hallway's getting pretty crowded and I don't want to lose him." Your teacher grinned at the blush on Ashton's cheeks.

"That would probably be best," she nodded, "Well, I'll let you two leave five minutes early so you have enough time to get him to your next class." You nodded as well in acknowledgement as she went on, "Why don't you have him take the seat behind you and then go get him a textbook so you'll have that ready for fourth period?"

You promptly led Ashton to his desk and made sure he was situated before releasing his hand and hurrying across the room. You grabbed an English textbook off of the shelf and brought it back over to him. You set it on his desk and then took your own seat in front of him. You talked to him, answering his questions about his schedule and whatnot, until the warning bell rang a few minutes later. The room flooded with students as the next five minutes passed and then the bell signaling the beginning of school rang.

You could sense Ashton's anxiety go up the moment the first student entered the room and you felt your heart ache for him. You couldn't imagine what it must be like for him to come to a new school, let alone to be blind. But it was obvious that, despite the fact that he just met you, he trusted you, and you were going to do everything you could to make sure he felt safe in the midst of all the chaos and judgement you were sure was to come.

Ashton was playing with your hair – a sort of comforting mechanism, you figured – when he heard Mrs. Parton say his name. She introduced him to everyone since it was obvious he was too nervous to do it himself. He swallowed thickly when everyone turned to look at him, but relaxed when he felt your hand reach under his desk and land on his knee, letting out a small sigh of relief just knowing you were there.

Mrs. Parton let you and Ashton leave with five minutes of homeroom left as promised, writing you a quick note in case any other teachers stopped you in the hallway. Ashton held his books in one arm, letting you take his free hand and lead him out of the room.

"I didn't like that," he whispered when he heard the classroom door close behind him, "I could feel everyone staring at me."

"Well, I hate to break it to you, Ash, but you're gonna have to go through the same thing at least five more times today," you said lightheartedly, succeeding in making him laugh. You took him to the locker right beside yours – his locker – and helped him with his combination. "I don't really see you being very far from me for at least a few weeks, but just in case, we should practice with your locker combination," you told him.

"Sh-Shouldn't we get to class before the bell rings?" he asked quietly, the nerves in his tone very obvious.

"Would that make you more comfortable?" you asked him. He nodded rapidly. "Okay," you said, "Let me just get my books and then we'll go." You went to let go of his hand, but he wouldn't release his grip. "Ash," you said softly, "I kind of need my hand at the moment."

"S-Sorry," he stuttered, finally letting go.

"Here-" You took his wrist and guided his hand to the side of your waist opposite of him. "-If I ever need to let go of you, just put your arm around me, okay?" He blushed a bright shade of red, but you didn't notice since you were opening your locker.

You got your math textbook and notebook, making sure you had your pencil case, before shutting the door. You opened Ashton's locker as well to put his English book away so he didn't have to carry it around all morning.

You grabbed Ashton's hand once again and began leading him to your first period class. As you were walking down the empty hallway, you saw the most popular girl in school coming toward you. You sighed, really not wanting to deal with her right now, but virtually having no choice because she'd already seen you. As she passed, she deliberately bumped Ashton's arm, making him let out a low squeak of surprise.

"Excuse you, losers," she scoffed, not stopping at all.

"What was that?" Ashton asked you.

"Cheyenne Miller," you mumbled – you were sure she wouldn't hear you, but you didn't want to take any chances, "Dance team captain, dating the quarterback of the football team this month, virtually guaranteed to be crowned prom queen..." You trailed off, knowing you could go on and on.

"Why did she hit me? I thought no one was in the hallway?"

"There isn't," you sighed again, "She's just a bitch."

"But she doesn't even know me."

"Doesn't matter," you told him, "You're hanging around me. That's enough for anyone to treat you like shit. After you get comfortable with the school, you can find other people to be around and then you'll be fine."

"And if I  _like_ being around you?" You were silent for a moment, your heart racing at the thought of someone  _wanting_ to be seen with you, let alone that someone being  _Ashton_.

"We're here," you murmured as you came up to the classroom, not wanting to talk about it anymore. The bell rung as soon as you said it and you had Ashton stand against the wall just to be safe. You waited for the students to file out of their homeroom before taking Ashton in.

"Hello, Miss Y/L/N," Mr. Leiker said when he saw you, "This is-" He looked down at his papers. "-Mr. Irwin, correct?" You simply nodded and he went over to retrieve a book for Ashton. "We'll have him sit beside you, okay? I presume Mrs. Parton let you leave homeroom early?" You nodded again. "Then I'll let you as well." You thanked him and took Ashton over to your seats.

You did this throughout the rest of the day – leaving class early, taking Ashton to the next ones, taking him through the lunch line, and then repeating the morning's routine after that. You spent the extra time in the empty hallways getting to know him, surprised to find out you actually had a lot in common. You liked almost all of the same bands, foods, TV shows, movies – it was almost like fate, honestly. You had been treated poorly by your classmates for so long that it was nice to have someone you could talk to without it being forced by group projects or assignment partners.

~

At the end of the day, Ashton had told you that his mother would be picking him up from school and since you drove yourself, you two waited around after class until the hallways were nearly empty. After about 10 minutes of waiting in your choir class, you figured it would be safe to leave, so you helped Ashton gather his things and took him to your lockers.

"So," Ashton said when he heard your locker door open, his fingers lightly drumming on your hip, "How were you planning on helping me with my locker?" You let out a quiet hum of confusion, looking up at him. "You said after homeroom that you thought you should teach me how to open my locker in case you're ever not around," he reminded you, "I'm curious."

"Well, it doesn't seem like it would be that hard," you shrugged, putting your homework into your backpack.

"That's because you're not blind," he said with a small chuckle.

"Ash," you bit your inner cheek, "I didn't-"

"I'm kidding, Y/N," he assured you, squeezing your waist slightly, "Come on, I wanna see if I can do it."

"Okay," you murmured, closing your locker and putting your backpack on the floor in front of it. You grabbed Ashton's schedule and looked at his combination – you obviously hadn't memorized it yet – and set the dial back to zero. "It's on zero right now, so you just have to go to the seven first." You took his hand and put his fingers on the dial for him, "We'll do one number at a time for now, okay?" He nodded and you counted the single digits with every turn so he knew how long each one would take. You then helped him go to the 36 then back to the three and told him to open his locker. He did so and then decided he wanted to try for himself.

You took your hand off of his after setting the dial back on the zero and Ashton went through everything you told him. He counted a few digits too many at the end and let out a defeated sigh when his locker didn't open.

"Ashton, you're not gonna get it right on the first try," you reminded him, putting it back on zero, "You have to practice." He nodded again and gave it a few more tries. After yet another failed attempt, his phone started ringing, distracting him from what he was doing.

"Hello?" he answered, "No, I'm at my locker. ... Right in front of the doors? ... Okay, I'll be there in a minute." He hung up the phone, shoving it back into his pocket. "My mum's here," he mumbled, "Can you..." he gestured toward his locker, but you shook your head.

"I wanna see you do it," you told him. He raised his eyebrows, surprised by your refusal.

"Y/N-"

"One more try, Ash," you said.

Ashton caved and let you put it on zero, then put all of his concentration into it. He counted as meticulously as possible, taking a deep breath right after he hit what he thought was the last number. When he lifted up and it clicked, the smile on his face was so big, you couldn't help but smile as well.

"Told you," you grinned.

"I would give you a hug, but I don't know where you are!" he exclaimed happily.

You giggled lightly, taking his books out of his hands and putting them on the shelf before wrapping your arms around his waist. His own arms immediately went around your shoulders and he hugged you tightly.

"Thank you," he mumbled into your hair, "That's the first time anyone's ever let me do something by myself." Your smile faded slightly and you squeezed him before letting go.

You helped him get his homework – you only had math, so it was no problem that he hadn't brought a backpack today – and he took your hand again, letting you lead him to where his mom was waiting.

Once outside, you saw a woman sitting in a car in front of the doors – right where Ashton's mom told him she would be. She smiled at the two of you and it was clear that that was her. You opened the door for him and helped him into the front passenger seat, making sure he didn't hit his head. Since the window was already down, you just shut the door, still able to talk to them.

"Sorry I'm late, Ash," his mom told him, patting his knee as he pulled his seat belt across his body. She looked out the window at you, "Hello."

"Hi," you waved shyly, "It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Irwin."

"You can call me Anne, dear," she smiled, "What's your name?"

"Y/N."

"Well, Y/N, thank you for taking care of my son. I was pretty nervous dropping him off this morning, but I can tell he's in good hands now."

" _Mum_ ," Ashton groaned quietly, making you giggle.

"It's no problem," you assured her.

"Do you need a ride home?" Anne asked, "I didn't expect to be so late in picking him up."

"Oh, no," you shook your head, "I drive myself, so it's fine. I should be heading home though. Uh, what time do you usually get to school?"

"I try to get him here around 7:15." You nodded, turning your attention back to Ashton.

"I'll meet you right here tomorrow morning, okay?" Ashton quickly nodded. "If you need help with your homework, you have my number. I'll see you tomorrow, Ash." You quickly turned on your heels and trotted back into the building, heading toward the back of the school where your car was parked.

**Ashton's POV**

"She's cute," Anne told her son as she exited the parking lot.

"I wouldn't know," he mumbled.

" _Ashton_ ," she said sternly.

"I know she is, Mum," he swallowed lightly, "I just wish I could actually  _see_  her."

"I know, honey," she sighed, reaching over to pat his knee again, "I'm sorry."

"Why are  _you_  sorry?" he asked, "It's not  _your_  fault I can't see."

"If I could just afford that surgery-"

" _M_ _um_ ," it was Ashton's turn to speak sternly, "You need to focus on housing and feeding the family and putting Lauren, Harry, and I through school before we even  _consider_  something like surgery. I'm doing really well and I've got Y/N to help me in school and I'll be totally okay no matter what happens."

"No, you're right," she nodded, "I know this is way harder for you and I need to remind myself that you're handling it."

"Love you, Mum," Ashton said with a small smile, making her smile as well.

"Love you too, Ash."

~

**Four months later**

It was a brisk morning in early December – it was unusually warm weather for this time of year, but no one was complaining – and Ashton's mom had just dropped him off at school. You had called a few minutes prior, apologizing profusely that you were going to be late. Ashton insisted that it was okay – that he would have his mom help him get to his locker and wait for you there. You were apologizing again, making him laugh and give you an ' _I'm hanging up now, Y/N, bye_ ' before he quickly ended the call.

Ashton had just gotten to his locker and excitedly showed his mom that he could open it by himself. Anne simply chuckled, kissing her son's forehead and telling him to have a good day before she left. As Ashton was facing his locker, someone came up behind him.

"Hey, loser," they said.

He didn't turn around, thinking it wasn't directed at him, and closed the locker door. He let out a short squeak when whoever was there grabbed his shoulder and spun him around. He jumped as his back hit the locker.

"Don't you know you're supposed to look at someone when they're talking to you?" the person growled. Ashton raised his eyebrows, now knowing who it was.

"You're joking,  _right_?" he asked in the direction Cheyenne's voice was coming from.

"Do I  _look_  like I'm joking?"

"I  _honestly_  have no idea," he answered, shaking his head.

"Oh, right," she snickered, "You're the blind kid that's always hanging around that  _freak_."

"Y/N is  _not_  a freak," he said lowly, but confidently.

"Sure, she is," Cheyenne shrugged, "She has no friends, she never speaks;  _No one_  likes her."

" _I_  like her."

"Exactly:  _No one likes her._ "

"I don't know what you're trying to pull here, but-"

Cheyenne had glanced to the side and saw you turn the corner, then cut him off. She suddenly grabbed his cheeks and forcefully smashed their lips together. Ashton immediately shoved her away from him.

"What the  _hell_  was that about?!" he shouted at her, "You can't just kiss people like that!"

"What?" she pouted, "Are you saying you didn't like it?"

"Yes, that's  _exactly_  what I'm saying!"

"Shame Y/N doesn't know that," she smirked. Ashton froze.

"What are you talking about...?" he asked slowly.

She simply laughed and walked away and that was when Ashton  _knew_. He knew that you had seen her kiss him and he knew that you had left before you saw him push her away.

Ashton had to find you and he had to find you  _fast_. But how was he going to do that? You were the person who led him everywhere and you were nowhere to be found. He had a pretty good idea of where you went to, but he had no way of getting there safely. But he had to; He had to make sure you knew what  _really_ happened.

He hurried carefully to homeroom, hoping Mrs. Parton was there.

"Good morning, Ashton!" she chirped, "Where's Y/N?"

"That's the thing," he said with a shy smile, "Something happened and she left before I knew she saw it and I think I know where she went, but I'll never be able to get there on my own and I was hoping you could help."

"Where do you think she is?" she asked, getting up from her seat.

"Under the bleachers on the football field," he answered as she put her hand on his shoulder and began leading him out of the room. "She always goes there when she needs time away from everyone."

"What happened?"

"A girl kissed me and I didn't want her to, but Y/N saw it and I think she thinks I wanted to," Ashton replied, swallowing the lump in his throat.

"Sounds to me like she's a little jealous," Mrs. Parton pondered.

"Why would she be jealous?" he mumbled.

"Ashton," she smiled, "You have  _no idea_  how much that girl likes you. I catch her staring at you in class all the time and whenever you touch her, her whole face lights up. I have been her homeroom teacher for the past almost four years and I have  _never_ seen her as happy as she has been since she met you."

"Why would she like  _me_?" he sighed, "I'm not good enough for her; I can't even  _see_ her."

"You know, I think that's something you should talk to her about," she told him, opening the door and taking him outside, "But I  _can_ tell you that she doesn't care about your disability, Ashton. You make her feel important, cared for, special – you make her feel loved." Ashton was about to speak again, but Mrs. Parton cut him off. "We're here," she said quietly, "She's right where you think she is, so I'm going to go back inside. Be careful; Watch your head. Take as much time to talk to her as you need to – I'll write you a pass to give Mr. Leiker."

"Thank you," he whispered back, listening to her walk away.

Ashton took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He started making his way toward the bleachers, hearing your sniffles get louder as he followed the fence line, reaching in front of him with his free hand to make sure he didn't run into anything.

Unfortunately, reaching around wasn't going to stop him from accidentally kicking the edge of the bottom bleacher with the toe of his shoe. He cursed under his breath, hearing you squeak in surprise. He heard the gravel under your feet move as you jumped up while he was approaching. 

"Y/N, please let me explain," he said quickly before you ran away again.

"You kissed her," you whispered, your voice coming out broken, only making Ashton feel worse.

"No, I didn't."

"Yeah, you  _did_! I  _saw it_!"

"Y/N," he sighed in defeat, stopping when he thought he was in front of you, "She saw you coming, grabbed my face, and kissed me. You left before you saw me push her away." His tone was desperate and you could see the hurt in his facial expressions. "I swear I would never do that to you."

"Why would I care if you were kissing somebody?" you murmured.

"Why are you crying under the bleachers?" he returned.

You sniffled again and he carefully reached for you, not wanting to accidentally hit you. Ashton, however, was nowhere near you, so you sighed in defeat and took a few steps forward. You gently grabbed his hands so he knew where you were and he held onto you tightly.

"Y/N, you know I'd  _never_  kiss someone like Cheyenne Miller," he said softly, rubbing your knuckles with his thumbs, "And I  _definitely_  wouldn't kiss someone like her in front of you."

"You can kiss whoever you want to, Ash," you replied just as quietly.

"I would kiss  _you_  if I knew where your lips were," he mumbled. Your eyes widened at the serious expression on his face.

"You would?" you whispered.

"I really like you, Y/N," he admitted, "I like that you take care of me without babying me. I like that you hold my hand so I'm not running into things every two seconds, but you don't let go even after we've sat down somewhere. I like having you so close to me that I can smell your shampoo. I like that you make me laugh without trying too hard. I li-"

You were sure he could go on forever, but you didn't give him the chance. Instead, you let go of his hands and put yours on his cheeks, pulling his face to yours. The moment your lips connected, he smiled, snaking his arms around your waist and bringing your body to his.

With as often as you imagined kissing Ashton, you weren't surprised to find it felt like exactly what you thought it would. It was sweet – just like him – and he didn't try anything; He simply held your waist and didn't make any other moves as he wasn't sure what you would and wouldn't be comfortable with.

You stopped kissing him to breathe, but you were both still pressed against each other. You waited until he opened his eyes so you could see them, admiring how they still looked soul-piercingly hazel despite being cloudy. You didn't know how long you were looking at them, but you were brought back to reality when he chuckled and kissed you again.

"What're you staring at, princess?" You could  _feel_ his smirk.

"I'm not staring at anything," you mumbled.

"Yeah, you are," he pecked your lips, "I can tell." You let out a small sigh, sliding your right hand up his face until you could stroke the corner of his left eye with your thumb.

"You have really pretty eyes, Ash," you whispered, making him blush and kiss you again.

"You have really pretty  _everything_ ," he returned, a permanent grin plastered on his face.

"Ashton-" He cut you off.

"Don't tell me that you're not or that I wouldn't know or that there are prettier girls out there," he said firmly, "None of that matters. You're nice and treat everyone with respect even though some of these people are so mean to you. You have every right to be mad at all of them and treat them the same way, but you don't. You make me so happy just by walking with me to class every day and being that person I can go to with anything and know you won't judge me or make me feel worse. You don't look at me as ' _that blind kid_ ', you look at me as  _Ashton_. I don't think you'll ever understand how much it means to me that you see me as a  _person_  and not a  _disability_ ; I don't think you'll ever understand how much  _you_  mean to me. You're one of the most beautiful people I know, Y/N, and the fact that I can't see you is  _never_  going to change that." You stared at him for a moment before pulling his face back to yours, kissing him roughly.

Never in your life had you felt as important as Ashton made you feel and you knew that nothing you could ever do would be able to repay him for the confidence he gave you. Ashton made you look forward to coming to school every day because you knew you would get to see him. So what if he would never be able to put a face to your voice? You didn't care about that anymore. You had Ashton and that was all you'd ever needed.


	251. Guide Me Home (Ashton Irwin) - Part 2

**Three weeks later; Winter break**

"Do you  _have_  to leave?" you pouted, making Ashton laugh.

You were both standing beside the car in his driveway while Anne, Lauren, and Harry were finishing up getting their suitcases into the car. You offered to help them load everything up, but Anne insisted that you say goodbye to Ashton since they were visiting family out of town during your break from school. You had your arms around his waist and your head on his chest, tilted up to look at him.

"I told you, princess," he said, "I'll be back New Year's Eve so you won't have to worry about kissing your dog again this year."

"She's a better kisser than you are," you smirked. Ashton suddenly leaned down, his lips landing on the corner of your mouth. "Told you," you said, "At least  _she_ knows where my lips are."

"Well,  _she_  can see," he shook his head with a small smile, "Come on. I'm not gonna get to kiss you for two weeks."

"How tragic," you sighed dramatically.

" _Princess_." You finally caved and pressed your lips to his. He let out a breath of content, hugging you tightly.

"Alright, Ash!" Anne called as she and her other two kids came out of the house, "We've gotta go before traffic gets too bad."

"I'll see you in a couple weeks, princess," he told you.

"Will you though?" you snickered.

"Why are you being so mean?" he whined, sticking out his bottom lip.

"I'm mad you're leaving me," you giggled.

"You could have come with us," he pointed out.

"Next time, Ash," you smiled, pecking his lips before letting go of him as his family came up to the car.

"We'll miss you, dear," Anne said, giving you a hug.

"I'll miss you guys too," you said, moving on to hug Lauren, "Even this loser." You snatched the beanie off of Harry's head and ruffled his hair.

"Who are you calling a loser,  _loser_?" he scoffed, grabbing the hat and putting it back on.

" _You_ ," you stuck your tongue out at him. You both finally broke and smiled at each other.

"Who am I supposed to annoy all winter break?" he asked, hugging your waist.

"Your brother is pretty fun to annoy," you whispered in his ear, "Especially because he doesn't see it coming."

"I'm  _blind_ , princess – not  _deaf_ ," Ashton stated, making you and Harry laugh. Harry climbed into the backseat next to Lauren.

"Hey, Laur," you said, making her look at you, "Make sure Ash doesn't find a new girlfriend, okay?"

"You got it," she laughed. Harry closed the door, leaving Ashton to speak to you.

" _A new girlfriend_ , huh?" he questioned, drumming his fingers on your hips as he always did.

"Unless you can recreate the first scene of  _High School Musical_ , it's off limits," you shrugged.

Ashton smiled at you, leaning down again. The kiss landed right where it was supposed to, making you grin as well. You opened the front passenger door when he pulled away, helping him into the car.

"Have fun," you told everyone then looked at Anne, "Drive safe." She smiled and thanked you.

You quickly kissed Ashton's cheek before closing the door and watching Anne drive away. You waited until the car was out of sight before getting back into your own and making your way home, wondering what you were going to do for the next two weeks.

**Ashton's POV**

"Y/N didn't seem very excited about anything," Harry pointed out once Anne got onto the highway, "Did you not tell her, Ash?"

"Nah," Ashton replied.

"Wait,  _why_?" Lauren furrowed her eyebrows.

"I want her to be surprised," he told his siblings.

"But what if something happens during surgery and she finds out? Won't she be mad you didn't tell her?"

"Who knows?" Ashton shrugged, "If that happens, I'll deal with it then."

"Are you nervous?" Harry asked.

"About surgery or about how she'll react?"

"Both."

"I think I'm more nervous about what she'll say," he answered honestly, "I mean, my eyes can't really get much worse, so I'm not really concerned about that. But I guess there's always a possibility that Y/N will get mad that I lied to her about what I'm doing over break."

"Technically, you didn't really  _lie_  though," Lauren mentioned, "You just left out the part where you could come back with your vision."

"Yeah..." he trailed off.

"I'm sure it'll fine, Ash," Anne assured him, "Like you said; If something happens, we'll deal with it." Ashton nodded slowly, putting his earbuds in and pulling his iPod out of his coat pocket, reaching back to Harry.

"Hare, can you put my music on for me?" he asked him. Harry simply did as he asked, making sure the volume was quiet so it didn't hurt Ashton's ears before pressing play.

"Here, Ash," Harry chirped, putting the iPod back in his brother's hand.

"Thank you," he said, turning back to the front and listening to his music on the rest of the ride.

~

**Your POV; Two weeks later**

The night of your parents' New Year's Eve get-together, you were practically bouncing up and down with anticipation. Ashton, Anne, Lauren, and Harry were joining you and your family to ring in the New Year together. You missed Ashton more than anything and knowing you were only a few hours away from seeing him again had you  _oozing_  happiness.

"Honey," you mom chuckled, "Calm down. You're going to hurt yourself."

"Can't," you grinned widely, "Too excited." She simply laughed again, shaking her head and going back to her conversation with your grandmother.

At 10:30pm, you were still waiting around for Ashton to show up. He had called you that morning and told you they should be getting back at around 10, but there was no sign of them anywhere. You tried to assure yourself that they were okay – they're just running a little later than they thought they would be – and you somehow managed to make it to 11:30. You thought about calling him, but as you were going to his contact, Ashton's name popped up on your screen.

"Why aren't you guys here yet?" you pouted the moment you answered the call.

"Hello to you too," Ashton chuckled.

" _Ash_!" you whined. He let out a deep sigh.

"Here's the thing, princess-" You cut him off.

"Ashton,  _no_ ," you frowned, "You  _promised_!"

"I know I did, but we got stuck in traffic," you could hear how bad he felt, "I'm really sorry, princess, but I don't think we're gonna make it."

"It's okay, Ash," you said softly, trying to hide your disappointment so he didn't feel worse, "It's not your fault."

"I promise I'll come over tomorrow to see you, okay?" he said, "I'll call you back a few minutes before midnight."

You nodded, "Okay."

"I lo-" He cut himself off and your heart started racing. "- _miss you_...princess."

"I miss you too, Ash," you whispered. You ended the call and threw your head back on the couch cushion behind you.

"What's wrong?" your mom asked.

"Ash isn't coming," you mumbled, "They're stuck in traffic."

"Oh, honey, I'm sorry," she frowned.

"It's fine," you said, getting up, "I'm gonna go lay down for a little bit. I'll be back later." You received a chorus of ' _goodby_ e's and ' _see you later_ 's as you trudged up the stairs to your bedroom and threw yourself on your bed.

~

**Ashton's POV**

" _Traffic_ , Ash?" Harry laughed, " _Really_?"

"Hey, she still bought it," Ashton said, reaching behind him and hitting his brother's knee.

"You know, you've been hitting me a lot since you got out of surgery," he frowned.

"Yeah, well, I can see now; I know where you are," he sassed, adjusting his glasses – he obviously needed them since his vision wasn't 20/20.

"You almost told her you love her," Lauren smiled widely.

"Did I?" Ashton cleared his throat.

"Why didn't you?"

"That's not something you should say for the first time over the phone," he murmured.

"So when  _are_ you going to say it?" Harry chirped.

"I don't know, but if either of you ruin it, I swear I'm gonna bury you in the backyard."

"Vision has changed you, Ashton," Lauren commented, making her brother roll his eyes.

" _Mum_ ," Ashton groaned, turning back to face the road in front of them, "Can't you go faster?"

"20 more minutes, Ashton," she grinned, "I am going as fast as I can. If I get pulled over, we  _definitely_  won't get there in time." Ashton's leg was bouncing up and down – much like you had been earlier – as he anxiously waited to finally  _see you_.

~

The moment Anne pulled into your driveway, the car had literally just been put in park when Ashton jumped out. The rest of his family hurried after him, hopping onto the porch as Ashton knocked quietly on the door. He was relieved to know that someone heard him, although he was hoping it wasn't you just yet.

When your mom opened the door, she smiled widely and was about to start a loud greeting, but Ashton quickly shushed her as well all of your relatives and his family so they didn't ruin the surprise. He dialed your number and as he was waiting for you to pick up, he noticed your dad looking at him.

"You have glasses," he whispered.

"I had surgery while I was visiting family, but Y/N doesn't know yet," he replied with a mischievous grin. He perked up when he heard the ringing on the other end of the line cut off.

**Your POV**

You were still lying on your bed when your phone rang again. You looked over at the clock on your nightstand and then reached down to where you had put the phone beside your hip and answered the call, already knowing it was Ashton.

"Hey, Ash," you smiled weakly, truthfully a little tired now.

"Hey, princess," he grinned. He sounded like he was talking quieter this time, but you figured Lauren or Harry had just fallen asleep in the car and he didn't want to wake them up. "Where are you at?"

"My room," you murmured, "Why?"

"Well, I got a present for you that had to be delivered and the store just called and said it arrived at your house, so you need to come downstairs and kiss him."

"You need me to  _what_?" you furrowed your eyebrows, not sure if you heard him right.

" _Bye, princess_ ," you heard him smirk before he ended the call and that was when you knew.

You threw your phone onto your bed as you jumped up and bolted out of your room. You could hear laughing as you made your way down the stairs, nearly tripping over your foot when you reached the doorway to the living room. Everyone turned to look at you and you nearly screamed when you saw your boyfriend.

"Sorry I'm late, beautiful," he smiled brightly.

" _Ashton_!" you squeaked as you ran over to him, jumping into his open arms. "I thought you said you weren't coming," you mumbled into his neck, hugging him as tightly as he was hugging you.

"I might have lied about that," he replied, "We weren't stuck in traffic, we just left my aunt's later than we planned to and I wanted to surprise you." You glanced at the countdown on the television and saw there was a little over two minutes left until the ball would drop. You pulled back to look at him and that was when you noticed something different.

"Why are you wearing glasses?" you tilted your head in confusion. You noticed everyone watching you two with huge smiles on their faces out of the corner of your eye.

"You know how I said we were leaving to go visit family for two weeks for the holidays?" You hummed in response and he began chewing on his lip, clearly nervous about something. "Well, we  _did_  do that, but they gave me my Christmas present early and I got vision surgery." Your eyes widened and your jaw dropped slightly. "Surprise," he said with a questioning tone and a small smile.

"Y-You can see now?" you whispered.

"Yeah," he replied just as quietly, kissing your forehead, "You're  _so_  much more beautiful than I'd been imagining." While everyone else was distracted by the TV, you pulled Ashton into the kitchen. "Are you mad?" he asked, hanging his head.

"I'm not mad, Ash," you shook your head, "Why didn't you tell me?" You hopped up onto the counter so you could be eye level with him. He stood between your legs, placing his hands on your thighs.

"I don't know, I just... I wanted you to be surprised and I felt bad for not really getting you anything for Christmas and I thought-"

"You're  _more_  than enough, Ashton," you told him, putting your hands on his cheeks and lifting his head up. You stared into his eyes for a moment and noticed they weren't as cloudy anymore. "You can really see?" you asked, still not completely sure of it. You heard everyone in the living room start counting down from 10, but neither you nor Ashton made a move to rejoin them.

"Yeah," he let out a breathy chuckle, "And I don't remember what the color is called, but I know that your eyes are the prettiest shade of it and I know that you're the most beautiful girl I'll ever see in my entire life."

Your breath hitched when you heard everyone shout ' _Happy New Year!_ ' in the other room and Ashton's lips landed  _right_  on yours. And that was what convinced you that he really could see you.

Despite the fact that he did have  _some_  moments when he would kiss where he was aiming, that was only when you were really close to him and he could feel your breath hitting his face. But now, he had been a good ten inches away from your face and you weren't breathing that hard, so there was no way he could have known – especially since he'd leaned in so quickly.

You smiled against his mouth, wrapping your legs around his waist and pressing him up against the counter as you kissed him harder. You felt him chuckle lightly, his hands sliding up your thighs and to your hips, rubbing your hipbones through the fabric of your sweatpants.

When you finally pushed his head back so you could breathe, he smirked at you.

"You believe me  _now_?" he asked.

"Shut up," you laughed, pressing a kiss to his nose.

"Hey, princess," he said lowly when you looked at him, "I love you." You felt your cheeks get hot.

"Yeah?" you whispered.

"Yeah," he nodded.

"I love you too, Ash," you responded, eagerly kissing him again.

 


	252. For Good (Calum Hood) - Part 1 *

**Warning: Self-harm, suicide**

~

You lived in a world where everyone had a soulmate – their perfect half. But the problem was you didn't know who that person was until they spoke their last words to you.

When you were 18-years-old, your grandmother told you about how your grandfather was her soulmate. She said that the moment their last words to you leave their mouth, it's almost as if your heart is physically breaking inside your chest – that it's unlike any other pain in the world.

This thought, of course, terrified you, and you swore to yourself that you would never fall in love with anyone at the risk of that person being your soulmate. Sure, your grandmother spent 81 years with her soulmate, but that didn't mean  _you_  were going to.

That was, until you met Calum.

You met Calum when you were both in first grade and have been dating since your junior year of high school. He loved you more than anything else in the world and you loved him the exact same way. It always crossed your mind that maybe Calum could be your soulmate, but you preferred to steer clear of the subject – feeling your heart hurt just at the thought of ever losing him.

~

You had just gotten into your car for an early lunch break from work, turning on your phone to just in time to receive a call from your boyfriend. And that  _instantly_  worried you. Calum never called your cell while you were at work because he knew you couldn't answer, and when he  _did_  call you, it was during your normal lunch hours – certainly not today because there was no way he would have known you'd taken lunch early.

"Cal, what's wrong?" you asked the moment you answered the call.

"Oh, hi, princess," he whispered, "I didn't think you'd answer. I was just gonna leave a voice mail."

"Calum, what's wrong?" you repeated a bit more firmly, starting your car and beginning to drive home.

You had this horrible feeling in the pit of your stomach and you just  _knew_  something wasn't right. Calum didn't answer you for a moment, and if it hadn't been for the fact that you were driving, you probably would have started crying right then and there.

" _Calum Thomas_ ," your voice shook.

"I'm so sorry, baby," he swallowed the lump in his throat, "I'm sorry."

"Cal, why are you sorry? What happened?" You felt your heart start pounding against your chest.

"I did a bad thing, princess," he choked.

"Calum... Tell me you didn't..."

"I went too deep this time," he whispered, "I'm really dizzy."

"Cal, you need to hang up and call 911."

" _No_ ," you could hear his pout, "I wanna talk to  _you_."

"Calum, you need to get help  _right now_."

"When are you gonna come home?"

"I'm on my way," you could feel your eyes start welling up, "Cal,  _please_  call 911 or I'm going to do it for you."

"Don't cry, princess," Calum mumbled – he always knew.

"Cal, please hang on for me..." you whispered, "I'll be home in two minutes. Please..."

"I love you, Y/N," he said just as quietly, "I'm sorry."

"I swear to God, Calum Hood, I am going to  _kill you_  when I get home," you said through gritted teeth and wiped your eyes.

"Baby, you gotta call 911," he sniffled, "I don't... I don't wanna die..."

"Promise me you're going to stay awake, Cal," you said quickly, "Where are you?"

"In the bathroom... Princess-"

"You're gonna be fine, Calum," you said reassuringly, but it seemed like you were trying to convince yourself more than him, "I'm gonna hang up now, okay? I'm already on our street."

"I love you."

"I love you too, Cal," you said softly, taking a deep breath before you ended the call, immediately dialing 911.

While you were on the phone with the operator, you pulled into the driveway and raced for the front door. You fumbled with your keys for a moment, letting out a frustrated sob, before you finally unlocked the door. You didn't know what was going on or how long Calum had been in his state, but even though you lived near the hospital, you had a bad feeling that they weren't going to make it in time.

"Y/N," the 911 operator said, trying to keep you calm, "Tell me what's going on." You threw your bag and keys onto the floor and ran to the bathroom, finding Calum propped up against the bathtub.

"Cal," you choked lightly, earning a barely audible groan from the boy on the floor. He opened his eyes and smiled weakly at you. You dropped to your knees and assessed his condition.

Calum had had a problem with self-harm since your freshman year of high school and he finally agreed to get help a couple years ago. You thought the therapy was working and that he had been doing fine, but clearly, you were wrong.

"Y/N," the operator repeated, "Have the paramedics arrived yet?"

"Um..." you trailed off as you sniffled, perking up when you heard the sirens in the distance get closer and closer, "They're almost here."

"I'm going to hang up then, but you need to make sure you go let them in, okay?"

"N-No!" you choked, "I can't leave him!"

"Is your door unlocked?"

"Uh-huh," you cried softly, doing everything you could to keep pressure on his forearm so he didn't lose even more blood than he already had.

"Okay, I'm going to tell them to go ahead and go in, but I need you to remain as calm as you can for me. Keep Calum awake until they get there."

"Okay," you murmured, listening to line go quiet. You tossed your phone off to the side, not caring whether or not it broke.

"Hey, princess," Calum said hoarsely, "I've missed you."

"Cal, why?" you sobbed. He puckered his lips slightly and you sighed, giving in without a fight. You pressed your lips to his, letting them linger for a moment, knowing deep down that this may very well be the last time you get to feel his kisses.

"I'm so sorry," he said as he had when you were on the phone, not giving you an answer. He had his hand on your thigh, but you felt it slide off as his arm went limp.

"No, no, no, no, no," you said frantically, "Cal... Come on, Cal... You can't leave me."

"I love you, baby girl," he smiled weakly again and that was when you felt the pain in your heart that you never wanted to feel.

" _Calum_!" you cried, trying to ignore the ache in your chest, "Don't do this! You  _can't_!"

Calum's smile faded and the hand you had over his heart balled his shirt up when you no longer felt it beating, your cries only getting louder as you heard the front door open and paramedics rush inside.

~

**Two months later**

It had been a little over two months since Calum's death and you were nowhere near close to coping with it. You had been living with Calum's family since that night, absolutely  _refusing_  to step back into the apartment you and Calum called home for the last two and a half years. Everything was going well – as well as it could be going anyway – and his family was really helping you get back to your old self again, but there were some days when all you wanted was Calum.

_You were at the park where you and Calum spent hours with each other before deciding to move in together, sitting under your favorite tree. You were confused as to why you were in the park – you didn't remember going there – but as you looked around, you noticed everything color looked muted and fuzzy._

_"Hey, baby girl," you heard an all too familiar voice behind you. Your head snapped up and your eyes widened._

_"Cal._ _._ _.?" you whispered, "I thought you were dead..."_

_"I am," he said with a sad smile, "But that doesn't mean I'm leaving."_

_"What are you talking about?"_

_"You're dreaming, Y/N," he informed you, "I can come and go within your dreams for as long as I want or as long as you let me." He went to touch you, but you backed away from him, swallowing the lump in your throat._

_"_ Don't _," you ordered, your voice breaking. The look on his face was heartbreaking, but you didn't want to look at him right now, let alone touch him – even if it was only in your dreams._

_"Y/N-"_

_"I wanna wake up now," you told him._

_"Baby-"_

_"_ No _!" you finally allowed the tears to fall, "You don't get to leave me in real life just to stay with me in my dreams, Calum! You could have stayed with me, but you decided to take the selfish way out!"_

_"I wasn't being sel-"_

_"_ Yes, you were _, Calum! You took the easy way out of your problems and you left me and your friends and your family and your fans to deal with it! That's not fair! We could have helped you, but you didn't give us a chance!"_

_"I'm sorry," he murmured, "I'm so sorry, baby."_

_"Sorry's not gonna change it, Calum!" you shouted at him, wiping your face angrily, "Sorry's not gonna change how many nights I've cried myself to sleep! Sorry's not gonna change how much it hurts to see people we know or be stopped on the street by a fan and keep pretending that I'm doing okay without you! Sorry's not gonna bring you back to me!"_

_"Baby girl, you know I-"_

_"I wanna wake up," you repeated, closing your eyes tightly, hoping it would make him go away._

_"Y/N, I-"_

_"I wanna wake up," you whimpered, letting yourself cry again. You heard Calum sigh and then you heard the frantic chanting of your name._

You jolted awake, breathing heavily. You sat up and looked around the room, then at the person who had woken you up. Mali was looking at you with a panicked expression, clearly worried about you.

"What time is it?" you asked softly, rubbing your eyes.

"2:30," Mali replied, sitting on the bed next to you. It was then that you realized it was still dark outside, the only light coming from the lamp on the nightstand beside you.

"What happened?"

"You were crying in your sleep," her voice cracked, "Wouldn't stop calling Cal's name."

"I'm sorry," you whispered.

"For what?"

"For waking you up," you told her, "For being a burden on you and your parents. For not making it home in time."

"Y/N," she said, swallowing the lump in her throat as she grabbed your hand, "What happened wasn't your fault. There was no way you could have known Cal was doing that to himself. You've never been a burden on us. We know this is just as hard for you and we love you too much to let you go through this alone."

When Mali saw the tears well up in your eyes, she pulled you in for a much needed hug. You buried your face in her shoulder and she let you cry, not doing anything but rubbing your back gently.

When you pulled away a couple minutes later, you wiped your face with the backs of your hand.

"Thanks, Mali," you said quietly.

"We love you, Y/N," she reminded you, smiling softly, "You're welcome to stay here as long as you need to."

"Can I-" You choked back even more tears, "Can I just...sleep in Cal's room from now on?"

"Yeah," she nodded, "Come on."

Mali got off of the bed and you followed suit, throwing the blanket off of your legs. You quickly made the bed, promising you'd do a better job in the morning, making her laugh lightly. You grabbed your phone and turned the lamp off, following Mali out of the room.

"I'll be right now the hall if you need anything, okay?" she told you. You nodded and she put her hands on your shoulders. "Please try to get some sleep," she said, "You look like you've been hit by a truck."

"I look how I feel," you said softly, a half-joking tone in your voice. Mali gave you a small smile and hugged you tightly.

"I'll see you in the morning," she said, letting you drag your feet to Calum's bedroom. You hadn't been in Calum's room since his family had you stay for Christmas and New Year's – about two months before his death.

You opened the door after taking a deep breath, a little nervous. You couldn't tell  _why_  you were nervous, but something about stepping into what you were sure was the untouched room of the house made you feel a bit uneasy. You thought about going back to the guest room, but you needed to know if sleeping in Calum's bed would help ease the pain – even if it was just a little bit.

You flicked the light switch, squinting your eyes at the sudden change of brightness compared to the dim lamp of the guest room and the darkness of the hallway. You carefully maneuvered around Calum's still messy bedroom – the memories of him hurrying to pack before you two went back home despite how much you nagged him to do it two days beforehand still prominent in your mind. You turned on the lamp and went back over to turn the overhead light off, sighing quietly when the light wasn't so harsh on your eyes.

You looked around, now able to fully take in just how messy the room was – clothes all over the floor near the hamper that he'd missed while trying to shoot baskets, his blankets still left unkempt and halfway hanging off of the mattress, and his favorite shirt lying on top of his pillow. You remembered it well how you two had just gotten home and he was unpacking that he realized he left the shirt behind. It wasn't so much as he was upset about forgetting it because  _he_  loved it; It was because it was his favorite shirt to see  _you_  wearing.

Your jaw tightened as you walked back over to the bed, your fingers  _barely_  skimming over the fabric as if you thought it would disappear the moment you touched it. You finally picked it up and looked at it for a second before deciding to pull it over your head. You had been wearing a tank top already, but you didn't care; You hadn't worn anything of Calum's since he passed and you just wanted to be in his clothes again. You sighed unevenly, your breathing hitching as you took in how the shirt smelled – still  _exactly_  like him, even after this long.

You placed your phone on the nightstand and climbed onto the bed, just sitting there for a moment. You looked around the room, looking at all of the photos and posters littering the walls. When your eyes landed back on the table beside you, you couldn't help but smile. You reached over, picking up the framed photo of you and Calum from the night he asked you to be his girlfriend. You were at the county fair and he had a random passerby take your photo only a couple minutes after he asked you. You were hugging his waist and he was kissing your head, both of you already in love with each other but neither of you wanting to move too fast.

You swallowed again, feeling a tear roll down your cheek. Before you could wipe it away, it fell right onto the spot on the picture where Calum was kissing you, making you sigh. You wiped the tear off of the glass with your thumb and put the frame back on the nightstand before crawling under the blanket and turning off the lamp. You closed your eyes, hoping Calum didn't return to your dreams because you knew you were in desperate need of sleep.

~

You woke up a few hours later after having one of the most refreshing night's sleep you'd had since you lost Calum. You were a bit disappointed that he didn't show up in your dream, to be honest, but if there was one thing you knew about Calum, it was that when you told him you wanted space, he was going to give it to you. You had to give him credit though – even in your  _dreams_ , he was a good listener. But if anything, it only made you miss him  _more_.

"Good morning, sweetheart," Joy smiled when you trudged into the kitchen.

"Morning, Joy," you smiled groggily, rubbing your still sleepy eyes.

"Did you sleep well? I heard what happened this morning." Her face was full of concern as you nodded and sat down at the counter.

"I'm fine," you whispered, sure your tone was barely audible.

"You know, dear, I think it would benefit you to go out and do something today," she said thoughtfully, "I'm sure your friends miss you."

"I can't," you swallowed thickly, "Everything reminds me of him."

"And I think everything is going to for a while," she said softly, coming over and standing beside you, "But you know he wouldn't want you doing this to yourself."

"He should have thought about that before he left," you stated bluntly, getting up and going back to Calum's room.

You grabbed your phone off the nightstand and went to the guest bedroom so you could get dressed for the day. While you were digging around the closet for a pair of jeans, you felt your phone buzz in your pocket, letting you know you had a new text.

_Hey, Y/N. Hope you're doing well. The boys were hoping you'd be up for meeting up today, but we'll understand if you aren't. We love you and miss you a ton._

You subconsciously smiled at Ashton's text message, immediately texting him back.

**_I miss you guys too. Give me a time and place and I'll be there._ **

_The park in an hour?_

**_I'll see you soon._ **

You spent the next hour getting ready, deciding you should probably take a shower before you leave. After showering, you blow dried your hair and fixed it to your liking, then went back to the guest room to put on your clothes. You shimmied into your jeans and put Calum's shirt back on. You couldn't be bothered to mess with makeup today but you didn't mind because the boys had seen your naked face plenty of times before. Once you had your shoes on, you made your way downstairs. You found Mali had joined Joy at the kitchen counter.

"I'm gonna go out for a while," you said, making the two women look over their shoulders as you approached them.

"Alright, dear," Joy smiled, "Tell the boys we said hello."

"How do you know I'm gonna see the boys?"

"Ashton called a few minutes ago," Mali told you with a light chuckle, "He said that they were prepared to come over and drag you out of the house if you told him you changed your mind." You let out a breathy laugh – a  _genuine_  laugh – and shook your head;  _Typical Ashton._  You let your smile fade, making Joy turn her body toward you.

"What's wrong, Y/N?" she asked.

"I'm sorry about earlier," you said, looking down at your feet, "I didn't mean to snap at you, I just-"

"No matter how much time passes is going to change how much it hurts, sweetheart," she said reassuringly, "I would rather you snap at me than keep everything bottled in." You wasted no time in hugging her tightly.

"Love you, Joy," you mumbled into her shoulder.

"Love you too, dear," you heard her smile. When you pulled away, you glanced at Mali.

"We still on for the movies tonight?" you asked her.

"Just as long as you are," she responded. You smiled slightly, giving her a hug as well before saying goodbye and heading out the front door.

The park was only five minutes from the house, so you decided to walk, figuring you could use the fresh air. When you walked through the park entrance, you headed right for the playground. You and the boys always hung out at the playground at this time because there weren't many kids around due to them being in school.

The moment Michael's bright red hair came into view, you couldn't help but grin.

"Y/N!" the redhead beamed before you had the chance to sneak up on the group, pushing himself off of the swing he was sitting on and running over to you. He wrapped his arms around your waist tightly as if he hadn't seen you in ten years – which, to him, it felt like he hadn't. "I've missed you so, so,  _so_  much!"

"We've all missed you," Luke spoke up as he and Ashton walked up to you.

"I missed you the most though," Michael mumbled into your neck before he released you, making you giggle softly.

"I've missed you guys too," you said, hugging Ashton and Luke as well.

"How have you been?" Ashton asked you.

"I don't wanna talk about that right now," you shook your head slightly, "I spent all night remembering. I just wanna forget for a couple hours."

" _Done_!" Michael stated before gasping suddenly, "Hold on! You  _have_  to hear this song I wrote the other day!"

" _You_  wrote?" Ashton scoffed.

"Ash and Luke sorta helped too!" he called over his shoulder, already halfway to Ashton's car to grab his guitar. Ashton rolled his eyes while you snickered.

"Don't worry, guys," you told them, "I know you did most of the work."

"Thank you," Luke sighed, throwing his arm across your shoulders and leading you to a nearby tree to sit down on the grass.

~

After the boys played the song for you, you smiled proudly. Ever since Calum had passed, you knew they hadn't had much motivation to write songs. He was the band's strongest writer and it was like they felt they could never do anything better now that he was gone.

"That was really good, guys," you told them with a genuine grin on your face.

"You think so?" Michael asked, biting his inner cheek.

"You guys have always been amazing songwriters, Mikey. Losing Cal didn't change that." The boys looked at you and saw a sad smile, but they could tell you truly meant what you said.

"We wrote something for Cal too," Luke suddenly spoke. Michael and Ashton shot him a worried expression before turning back to you, knowing you were still grieving over him. You raised your eyebrows at the three boys.

"Are you going to play it then or are you just going to stare at me?" you asked.

"We just thought..." Ashton trailed off.

"I'm his girlfriend, Ash," you said, "I can't avoid it forever." You saw the faintest smiles on their faces as they thought about how you still told people that you  _are_ Calum's girlfriend, not that you  _were_.

"Are you sure?"

You nodded and motioned for them to play as you leaned back onto the tree behind you. Michael began playing another new tune and Luke started the song, the others joining for harmonies later.

_Carry on, let the good times roll_   
_Sail on, let your path unfold_   
_It won't be long, won't be long, won't be long_   
_You know it's gonna get better_   
_You know it's gonna get better_

_Say a prayer for the broken bones_   
_'Cause who cares? We're all going home_   
_And it won't be long, won't be long, won't be long_   
_You know it's gonna get better_   
_You know it's gonna get better_

_I got one foot in the golden life, one foot in the gutter_   
_So close to the other side, so far from the wonder_   
_I got one foot in the golden life, one foot in the gutter_   
_So sick of the tug of war that keeps pulling me under_

_Let the good times roll_   
_Let the good times roll_

_Carry on, outlast the ignorance_   
_Moving on, survive the innocence_   
_Won't be long, won't be long, won't be long_   
_You know it's gonna get better_

~

_Song used: "Carry On" by 5 Seconds of Summer_


	253. For Good (Calum Hood) - Part 2 *

**Warning: Self-harm, suicide**

~

**Four months later**

Calum hadn't come back to your dreams for about a week after that day. When he  _did_  return, he told you that he just wanted to give you some space because he thought that would make things easier. He wanted to make you happy even in the afterlife and really did mean a lot to you. It didn't make anything easier, of course, because he was still dead, but he was trying.

_"Hey, princess," Calum said softly, his fingers playing with yours._

_After he came back, you gradually allowed Calum to get closer and closer to you with every dream, which led to this point. You were both sitting under the tree in the park, as you always seemed to do in your dreams now, and his back was against the tree while yours was pressed to his chest._

_"Hmm?" you hummed, your eyes closed, simply enjoying what little time you would have with him that night._

_"I love you."_

_"I love you too, Cal," you said, a bit confused at the randomness._

_"But I don't want you to not ever find love again," he admitted. You tilted your head to look up at him, your heart actually hurting at the thought of ever loving someone else the way you love him. "I don't want you to spend the rest of your life alone just because you miss me," he told you, "That's not fair to you. I ruined my chances to be that person you spend the rest of your life with, but that doesn't mean you don't deserve to be in love again."_

_"I_ am _in love, Cal," you shook your head, "I'm in love with_ you _."_

_"You know I'm in love with you too, baby girl, but you deserve someone you can have every single day, not just in your dreams."_

_"I deserved_ you _," you choked slightly, swallowing the lump in your throat, "You can keep telling me to move on, Calum, but I'm not ready yet. I want to be in love with you still and nothing you say is going to change that, so you might as well give it up." Calum let out a defeated sigh, wiping the stray tears from your cheeks._

_"I didn't mean to upset you, princess," he said._

_You buried your face in his neck and you remained there for a few minutes until you spoke again._

_"Was it worth it?" you whispered._

_"Was what worth it?" he asked, but he already had a pretty good feeling about what you meant._

_"Did killing yourself make you feel better?"_

_"No," Calum swallowed thickly, "Not even a little."_

_"Because it didn't make us feel better either, Cal," you told him, "We'll never feel better. You always felt like no one gave enough of a shit about you or that we didn't tell you enough when you knew_ damn _well that wasn't true. You knew we loved you – that we_ still _love you. I can't imagine what it must be like for your parents or Mali or the boys or fans or_ anyone  _because you don't visit them in their dreams – you can only visit your soulmate's. They'll never get to hear you tell them you love them again or hear your laugh or see your smile or watch you play shows or-"_

_"I get it, Y/N," he sighed, wiping the tears that were falling down his cheeks, "I get that you're still mad and confused and there's never a moment when I'm not wishing I could come back, but I can't. Believe me, I haven't stopped trying since that night." He finally looked at you and realized you were crying as well, lifting his hand up to wipe your face. He left his hand there, gently stroking your cheekbone with his thumb._

_"I just want you back," you whimpered, squeezing his waist, "I want you to come back."_

_"You know I would if I could, baby girl," he swallowed the lump in his throat, "I love you so much."_

_"I love you too," you hiccuped through your sobs, "I just wish I could have loved you enough."_

_"You loved me more than enough, princess," he shook his head, "Way more than I ever deserved. It was_ my _fault for not realizing it."_

 _"But if I told you_ more _-"_

 _"Nothing you could have done was going to save me, Y/N, and you know that. I should have told you or the boys or Mali or_ someone _that something was wrong, but I didn't. I know you're blaming yourself for not seeing any signs, but that's only because I wasn't giving you any reason to think it was getting bad again. It's not your fault that I went that far;_ I _did that to myself,_ not you _."_

 _"I want you to come back," you repeated, sure you were soaking his shirt with your tears by now, "I wanna wake up and see you lying there and I wanna feel your arms around me_  for real _and I wanna hear you sing to me when I can't sleep, but I can't and it's_ not fair _."_

_"I know it's not, princess," he whispered, a guilty expression on his face._

_"You didn't even let me say goodbye," you choked again._

_"I know, baby girl," he pressed his lips to yours and disappeared._

You woke up with a sharp intake of air and sighed. You hated when Calum kissed you in your dreams because you always woke up right after – and sometimes even before his lips even touched your skin. You propped yourself up on your forearm and looked at your pillow, noticing all the tear stains. You swallowed slightly, pulling yourself out of bed to get ready for yet another day without Calum.

~

**Three weeks later**

You had finally gone back to live in your own home about two weeks ago, assuring Calum's family that you were well enough to be on your own. Of course, Calum  _did_ have to do a bit of convincing, but you knew that it was time anyway. It comforted you knowing that you would never  _completely_ be alone though; Calum always promised he was hanging around throughout the day as well, you were just only able to see him in your dreams.

However, Calum had stopped coming into your dreams eleven days ago and you had no idea why. You knew he wouldn't have just left without one last visit to let you know where he was going and you couldn't help but worry. You had no idea what it meant when your soulmate stopped being in your dreams. You didn't know whether or not he was okay – as okay as a dead person  _could be_ , at least – and all you wanted was to see him again to make sure. You already missed him when you were awake; You didn't want to miss him when you were  _asleep_ too.

You had been lying on the couch all morning, thinking about Calum and trying to come up with explanations for his disappearance. You were so lost in thought that you were startled by your front door flying open. You jumped and landed on the floor with a short, loud squeal, quickly sitting up to find Mali barging into your apartment.

"Mali?" you furrowed your eyebrows, watching as she grabbed your keys from the table beside the door, "Are you okay?" She came over to you and grabbed your hand, pulling you to your feet. She began dragging you toward the door. "Mali! I need shoes!" you squeaked, not wanting to go anywhere in only your socks.

"You can borrow mine," she said monotonously.

"Where are we going?"

Mali didn't answer you, she just took you out to her car and sped off. The hour and a half car ride was silent because she refused to answer any of your questions, leaving you beyond confused because you knew she wouldn't just show up at your house without calling first.

~

Mali pulled into the hospital parking lot closest to the ICU when you finally made it to Sydney, but that still didn't give you any hints as to what was going on. You got out of the car anyway though, allowing Mali to drag you inside the building. She took you up to the third floor and as you were nearing the first room with an open door, you could hear Joy and David's voices. Your eyes widened, thinking something had happened to one of them.

"Mali, what's going on?" you asked again, "What happened to your parents?"

She pulled you into the hospital room and the second you were through the threshold, you froze. Mali let go of your hand and walked over to Joy and David, but you just stood there in utter shock. You felt like you couldn't breathe and you were looking at the people in front of you for answers, but no one was giving you any sort of help. The first person to speak was someone you honestly thought you'd never get to see again.

"Hey, baby girl," Calum smiled weakly from where he was lying on the hospital bed. He then looked at his family, "Will one of you go get the boys too?"

"I'm on it," Mali nodded and left once again. His parents decided to leave as well, coming up with some excuse that you weren't paying attention to.

As they passed you, Joy nudged you further inside so she could shut the door and give you and Calum some privacy. But you couldn't do anything apart from stare at him.

"Are you gonna come over here or am I coming to you?" he asked hoarsely.

You let your feet slowly take you to the bed, knowing very well that Calum would have gotten up if you didn't. You stopped at the foot of the bed.

" _Princess_ ," he said.

"What's going on?" you whispered, unable to get your voice to give you more.

"Come here," he prompted, motioning for you to come to his right side.

You did so, looking at his left arm. It was covered in scars and tiny cuts that were almost completely gone. Once you reached him, Calum grabbed your hand. He squeezed it firmly and you stared down at him, not really sure what to say.

"Cal..."

"You want an explanation," he nodded, "I know." Calum started rubbing your knuckles, almost as if he was letting you know that he was  _actually_  there. "Two weeks ago, after that night we talked, I was called to go see God," he told you, "He said that he had been thinking of making me a guardian angel –  _your_  guardian angel – but after seeing how broken you still were without me there and realizing it wasn't going to get any better, he said he was sending me back instead."

"' _Back_ ' as in..."

"Alive," he said with a small smile, "I'm alive."

"B-But you-"

"After God sent me back, I woke up in a really cold room," he explained, "My dad told me that while you guys were trying to come up with enough money for a funeral, I was being kept in the morgue. Well, when I came back to my body, I startled the medical examiner with my mumbling. She immediately called ICU and they brought me up here. They said they haven't been able to come up with an explanation as to why I came back after being dead for so long, but I'm not gonna tell them. I've obviously told my parents and my sister and you and I'll tell the boys, but I don't think anyone else would believe me."

"Is that why you haven't been in my dreams?" you asked softly.

"Yeah," he replied, "I'm sorry, princess. I'm sure you've been worried, but I wasn't able to tell you what was going on since it happened before you went to bed again."

"Y-You're really back?" you asked, staring at your hand in his, honestly believing you hadn't actually woken up that morning.

"Why don't you come here and find out?" he grinned slightly.

You remained still, so Calum released your hand and slowly lifted his arm up. He was weak, but his hand still made it to your cheek. He stroked your cheekbone for a moment before pulling you down to him.

The moment your lips connected with his, your stomach filled up with butterflies and your heart skipped a beat. You immediately leaned back upright, your eyes closed tightly. Calum knew it was because you were scared he was going to be gone if you opened them, making him chuckle under his breath.

It was then that your eyes shot back open, realizing that he was  _actually_  there and you weren't imagining it. You swallowed the lump in your throat and felt tears start streaming down your face. Calum scooted over, giving you as much room as he could to climb into bed next to him. When you got on, you were halfway lying on top of him, your arms around his neck and your legs tangled with his.

"I love you so much, baby girl," Calum breathed, his right hand's fingers running through your hair. You were sobbing into his skin and he wanted to soothe you, but he knew it wasn't going to work, so he just let you cry.

"I l-l-love you, Cal," you choked, tightening your hold on him, "P-Please don't l-leave me aga-again."

"I won't, princess," he promised you, "You're gonna be stuck with me for a  _very_  long time." He felt your body shake against him as you giggled through the tears, making him smile and hug you tighter. You picked your head up just enough so that you could sniffle and wipe your face before pressing your lips back to his.

After a few minutes of random kisses and soft ' _I love you_ 's, you had finally calmed down to the point where you weren't crying anymore – although you were sure it was just because you'd run out of tears. You were still lying on Calum, but his left arm was now resting on his stomach so he could hold your hip, his thumb rubbing circles on hipbone. You had your head on the pillow next to his as he watched TV, your forearm on his chest as your fingertips were barely skimming over his collarbones. You would kiss his cheek every now and then, making the smallest smile pull at the corner of his mouth, and he would turn his head back to you every time he wanted to kiss your lips. It was like both of you couldn't believe this was actually happening and you just wanted each other as close as possible.

"Mali," you heard a distinct voice – one that could only belong to Ashton – suddenly coming from the hallway, "Seriously. What happened to Y/N? Why are we at the hospital?" You knew Mali must have told them you were the one here and not Calum.

"That's what you sounded like earlier," Calum whispered, snickering when you rolled your eyes.

" _Asshole_ ," you mumbled, pressing another kiss to his lips, feeling him laugh. You buried your face in his neck, breathing him in again. He smelled mostly like the hospital, but he was still soft and warm and  _alive_.

"If something bad happened to her and you don't tell us, so help me God, Mali, I will-" Michael's worried voice cut off and you heard his shoes squeak on the linoleum floor. You heard two low grunts follow the squeak as Luke and Ashton ran into Michael's back, unable to keep themselves from running into him because he had stopped so abruptly.

"What the hell, Mikey?" Luke said. He and Ashton looked at their best friend, noticing the look of complete shock on his face. They followed his gaze and soon shared the same expression.

"What exactly are you going to do to my sister, Clifford?" Calum asked him. You couldn't help the giggle that passed your lips, feeling him squeeze you lightly.

"Cal?" he whispered, "W-What are you... How are you..."

Calum gestured for his best friends to sit down – both in the chairs and on the bed – so he could explain. He told them the same thing he told you, feeling your grip on him tighten at certain parts. The boys sat in silence for a moment as they took everything in, still just in shock that Calum was even in front of them again.

"So... You're..." Ashton clearly had no idea how to say what he wanted to, but luckily, Calum had known him long enough to finish the thought.

"Alive," he nodded, "I'm alive."

"And you're gonna stay this time then?" Luke murmured, "You're not gonna-"

"I'm staying for as long as I can," he said, "For as long as you guys and this one-" You felt him squeeze you again. "-want me around."

"So forever then?" you mumbled into his skin, making him smile. Calum shook his shoulder slightly so you would look up at him. When you did, his lips were instantly on yours.

"Yeah, princess. Forever," he confirmed, smiling against your mouth as you eagerly kissed him back.

And maybe three weeks later – when Calum was strong enough to be released from the hospital – he took you to that same tree in the park and proposed to you. But that's a whole different story.

 


	254. Broken Pieces (Cody Carson)

"Guys," you said breathlessly, trying to keep up with your boyfriend and best friend, "I can't... I can't breathe."

"We can't stop now, baby!" Jeffrey said, pulling your hand, "They're gonna catch up!"

The three of you had an unfortunate run-in with a group of about 20 zombies and there was no way you'd be able to take out all of them before one of you got hurt. So in everyone's best interest, you had to run. The thing about running was... Well, you weren't good at it. Ten seconds in, you felt like you were going to throw up and you were praying that you found a safe shelter soon.

"Guys, look!" Nicole suddenly exclaimed. You and Jeffrey looked in the direction she was pointing and saw a treehouse. It wasn't exactly the most lavish place, but it was a  _safer place_  nonetheless.

Your legs sprinted even faster so that all of you would have time to climb up before the zombies caught up. Nicole and Jeffrey got up without any problems, but you were shaking so badly that you couldn't climb up the rope ladder.

"Y/N!" Jeffrey said with a desperate tone, "Come on!"

"Don't you think I'm  _trying_?!" you shouted, pausing to catch your breath.

You looked over your shoulder and saw the group of zombies were close to 50 feet away. That was when you started to panic.

Your eyes widened and you spun back around, grabbing the rope ladder. You were more than halfway up when you felt a tug on your foot, making you squeak in surprise. Had it not been for the fact that Jeffrey had grabbed your wrists to pull you the rest of the way, you probably would have fallen. You wrapped your hands around his own wrists, kicking the zombie away from you with your free foot and letting your boyfriend pull you to safety. Nicole was already taking out most of the zombies and the second you were lying beside him, Jeffrey's gun was out and he was killing them as well.

You were breathing heavily, your hands on your face as you tried to calm down again. You were never much of a fighter – all the more reason you honestly felt useless to your group – but they kept you around, so that had to count for  _something_ , right?

~

Later that evening, you, Jeffrey, and Nicole were walking to the next town in search for food. It was quiet and there didn't seem to be a zombie for miles – which, of course, was an incredibly good thing.

As you were walking, you were feeling a little dizzy, but you didn't tell either of your friends that. You really didn't want them to think you couldn't handle a little dizziness, but when your vision started to blur, you knew you were in trouble.

"Guys," you said softly, "I can't see..."

"What's wrong?" Jeffrey asked, his eyes widening.

"I don't know... I'm really dizzy..."

"You're probably hungry," Nicole said, "I think I might have something in my backpack." You all stopped at a building, Nicole putting the bag on the ground and kneeling down.

The last thing you remembered was everything spinning and then it went black.

**Third person POV**

" _Y/N_!" Jeffrey exclaimed in horror.

You had hit your head on the brick wall as you collapsed, receiving a pretty nasty cut on your forehead above your right eye. Jeffrey did his best to stop the bleeding, and it felt like hours to him before it finally let up.

Nicole bandaged your head up the best she could with what she had, but even then, she was sure it was going to get infected. She knew you guys didn't have the medicine to take care of you, so she had to make the decision to leave.

"Jeffrey, let's go," Nicole interrupted the quietness in the air.

"Y/N..." he sniffled, shaking your shoulder gently, "Come on, baby, wake up... Y-You have to wake up..."

"Jeffrey," she stated firmly, "We have to go."

"But w-we have to w-wake her up," he whimpered.

"She's not gonna last, Jeffrey, you know that. We can't drag her around until she comes back to. What if we come across more walkers? We'll never be able to make it to safety." Jeffrey swallowed slightly, looking up at Nicole. "We have to go," she said again. Your boyfriend turned back to you, staring at you for a moment before pressing a kiss to your forehead and getting up, leaving the scene with Nicole.

~

**Your POV; The next evening**

You opened your eyes and found yourself in an unfamiliar place. You quickly sat up, looking at your surroundings. You were in a bedroom that you'd never seen before and you had a massive headache. You reached up to touch your forehead and felt the bandage that had been wrapped around your head, hissing in pain when your fingers pushed on whatever wound was underneath it.

You heard voices coming toward the room and your eyes widened – that definitely  _wasn't_  Jeffrey or Nicole – but before you could make a move to hide, the door was already opening.

"Guys!" one of the boys whispered as if you couldn't hear him, "She's awake!" The other three boys' eyes widened and they started to rush in but you squeaked, scrambling further away from them on the bed.

"Don't scare her!" the boy in front scolded before turning back to you. "Hi," he said softly, walking over to the edge of the bed furthest away from you and just standing there, "My name's Cody and these are my friends, Zach, Dan, and Maxx-" He pointed to each of them. "-We're not here to hurt you, okay?"

"W-Where am I?" you asked softly, feeling tears start to well up, "Where are Jeffrey and Nicole?"

"Guys, go get her something to eat, a bottle of water, and the first aid kit," Cody ordered. They quickly obeyed, hurrying out of the room to allow him to explain everything to you. "You're at me and my friends' house – well, it's not really  _our house_ , it's just our shelter. I don't know who Jeffrey and Nicole are, but-" You cut him off.

"M-M-My boyfriend and best friend," you informed him.

"Well, we haven't seen them," he said, "We only found you."

"F-Found me where?" you whimpered, feeling the tears start to roll down your cheeks. Cody attempted to reach over and wipe them away, but you jumped, making him quickly retract. He did, however, sit down on the edge of the bed.

"We were looking for food last night and we heard someone groaning quietly," he told you, "You were lying against a building and we think you hit your head on one of the bricks. You weren't looking too good and it didn't look like anyone was around, so we brought you back here. We tried to wake you up a few times, but then we just re-bandaged your cut and let you sleep."

"Why?" you asked softly.

" _Why_?" he repeated, unsure of what you meant.

"Why did you help me?" you clarified, "You don't know me."

"Just because we don't know you doesn't mean we're going to let you die," he shook his head. You were both silent for a moment until he broke it again. "What's your name?" he asked you.

"Y/N," you whispered.

"Well, Y/N-" You felt a flutter in your chest when he said your name. "-I promise my friends and I are gonna do everything we can to make sure you find your friends safely."

~

**One month later**

It was 6:13am and everyone in the house was asleep. Well, not  _everyone_.

You were sitting on the couch, losing yourself in your thoughts. You always found yourself waking up before everyone else, trying to come up with reasons as to why Jeffrey and Nicole weren't around when the boys found you. But you could never figure it out. Yeah, you weren't really a huge help in any given situation, but you were sure they wouldn't just  _leave you_  like that.

But you couldn't help but smile to yourself, still in a bit of disbelief that four boys could be so nice without knowing you. Where you were from, a boy wouldn't have helped you even if he'd known you since elementary school. Of course, it didn't really help that you'd been somewhat of a loner growing up, but you had Nicole and Jeffrey, so you didn't think it was all that bad.

"Hey, Y/N," you heard behind you, startling you. Cody was rubbing his eyes as he was coming around the couch, so he didn't even know he'd scared you.

"Why aren't you still sleeping?" you asked him.

"I was about to ask you the same thing," he returned, plopping down next to you so your arms were pressed against each other. You huffed slightly when he landed on you.

"This whole couch and you have to be  _right_  up against me?" you cocked an eyebrow, but your tone told him you didn't actually mind.

"You're warm," he shrugged.

You rolled your eyes, "So is a blanket."

"You're warm _er_ ," he insisted. You simply sighed, shifting yourself so you were comfortable again. 

You both sat in silence for a few minutes, Cody's head on your shoulder as he tried not to doze back off, wanting as much alone time with you as he could get before the other boys woke up.

"Have you ever killed a walker before?" Cody asked you randomly.

"What?" you asked, a bit surprised by the sudden question.

"Have you ever killed a walker before?" he repeated, sitting upright so he could look at you.

"No..." you whispered, averting your eyes to your hands.

"Hey," he said softly, nudging your arm so you looked back up at him, "It's okay. Why haven't you?"

"I don't like it," you murmured, "Makes me feel sick."

"You know they're already dead though, right?"

"That doesn't make it  _easier_ ," you shook your head, "They used to mean something to someone – I'll bet they  _still_  do. I wouldn't be able to kill them if they were someone I cared about." Cody looked at you for a moment before raising his hand to your cheek and wiping the stray tears, leaving his hand there.

"You're a really great girl, you know that?" he told you, "Your boyfriend's a lucky dude." A small smile pulled at the corners of your mouth as he took his hand back and stood up. "Come on," he said, taking your hand and pulling you to your feet, "I'm starving."

"You're  _always_  starving," you said with a teasing tone as he dragged you into the kitchen.

"So are  _you_ ," he shot back, but you didn't need to look at him to know he was smiling.

You felt wrong; You felt  _so wrong_  for having feelings for Cody when you already had a boyfriend. You loved Jeffrey more than anything, but Cody...

Cody made you feel  _wanted_. Jeffrey  _told you_  he wanted to be with you, sure, but you were starting to get the feeling that he was just  _saying it_  so you felt better. You weren't sure why he would stay with you if he didn't want you anymore though, and that was what kept you going.

~

**Two weeks later**

A couple weeks had passed and you and the boys were moving on to the next place. You had encountered a hoard of walkers only three times since you'd met them, but they never made you feel like you weren't a huge help in staying alive.

You were their escape artist; The moment you saw a walker – no matter how far away or if they even saw you coming – you were already figuring out a safe place to perch so that the boys could take them all out. It was a skill you didn't even know you had – Nicole and Jeffrey had always done everything for you, never even giving you a chance to prove that you really could survive in this world – and you were beyond grateful that these boys saw potential in you.

The group was passing through a quiet town – not a walker or any other human in sight – when you started hearing noises. You stopped the boys, whispering for them to be quiet. You peeked around the corner of a building and your heart dropped.

You found your boyfriend and best friend sitting on a bench, kissing each other. You let out a broken whimper and their heads shot up, looking at you in complete shock.

"Y/N...?" Jeffrey's eyes widened, "You're  _alive_?"

"What are you doing?" you whispered, "Why were you kissing her?"

"Where have you been?!" he exclaimed, jumping from his seat, "I thought you were dead!"

"Why were you kissing her?" you asked a little louder, backing up as he stepped forward, your back hitting the brick wall behind you.

Jeffrey came up to you, taking your face in his hands as if he didn't actually believe you were there. But you only shoved him away from you.

" _Why were you kissing Nicole_?!" You shouted. He looked at you, surprised to hear you use the tone you were.

"I thought you were dead..." he repeated.

"And you got over it that  _quickly_?!" your bottom lip was trembling, but you were managing to hold everything in.

"It's been  _six months_ , Y/N," he answered without missing a beat.

You were never sure why he would stay with you if he didn't really want you, but now you knew; Jeffrey was staying with you so he could be with Nicole.

"How long?" you whispered.

"What are y-"

" _How long have you been fucking around with Nicole_?!" you screamed at him, startling everyone. Jeffrey let out a breath, but couldn't bring himself to answer the question.

And that was what broke you.

You quickly turned around, running past the boys as Jeffrey called your name. You ran until you reached the street corner, going into an empty alleyway. With your back against the wall, you shrunk down until you were sitting on the ground, your knees pulled tightly to your chest. You finally let it all out, crying softly as you didn't want to direct anymore unnecessary attention to yourself.

You heard fast footsteps coming toward the alley and you immediately cut off your sobs, thinking it was Jeffrey. The person ran past the opening to the alleyway before stopping abruptly and coming back. You kept your eyes on the person's shoes as they approached you, coming to a stop in front of you. They bent down and held your knees for support.

"Hey, Y/N," Cody said softly, "Look at me."

You sniffled lightly, but did as he asked. He dropped to his knees and brought his hands up to your face, wiping your tears away with his thumbs.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"Do I  _look_ okay to you?" you choked, making him sigh in defeat. You swallowed the lump in your throat and looked down at your hands, "I'm sorry."

"Why are you sorry?" he tilted his head in confusion.

"It's not your fault," you whispered, "I shouldn't snap at you."

"It's alright, Y/N," he assured you, "You're upset – I would be surprised if you  _didn't_  snap at me. It was a stupid question. But I promise, everything's gonna be okay."

"No, it's not," you sobbed slightly, "I don't have anywhere to  _go_  now."

"Sure, you do." You looked back up at him and he smiled softly, beginning to run his thumbs back and forth on your cheekbones. "You've got me and the boys and we wouldn't just let you go off alone – especially not after  _that_."

"You guys were doing fine before me," you said, "I don't wanna hold you back any more than I already have."

"You've  _never_  held us back, Y/N," he told you, a bit surprised to hear the words come out of your mouth, "We were only doing fine before you because we hadn't  _met you_  yet."

"I'm even more broken than before, Cody!" you exclaimed under your breath, shaking your head, "You guys don't  _need_  that!"

"We're all a little broken, Y/N," he whispered, sitting down completely and pulling you onto his lap, "But that's the thing about being broken: We can be fixed."

"I can't be," you sighed, playing with the bottom hem of Cody's shirt, "I'm  _too_ broken."

"Maybe you feel like you can't because it's happened so many times and the pieces have gotten so small-" He wiped more stray tears from your face. "-but you just need to find someone that's willing to help you put those pieces back together." You finally met his gaze and he smiled again. "You're  _worth_  being put back together, Y/N," he promised, "And I'm gonna help you do that if you'll let me."

Your heart was pounding against your chest by this point. The way Cody was looking at you made you feel like he was going to keep his promise no matter how long it took to fix you, and you honestly felt like crying all over again. No one – not even  _Jeffrey_  – had  _ever_ said something like that to you, and here Cody was: only having met you six months ago and he was already willing to do  _whatever_  he had to to make you feel whole again.

But little did he know, your broken pieces were already starting to heal.


	255. Make Believe (Michael Clifford)

 

You walked into the fraternity house, making sure everyone who saw you knew you were  _not_  happy to be there. You made a beeline for the kitchen, pouring the first alcoholic beverage you could find into a red solo cup.

Normally, you were the life of these parties – any party you went to was sure to top the last one. But the reason you were anything less than thrilled was because you were forced into showing up. You didn't want to be at  _this_ party. You didn't want to be in  _this_ house. What you  _did_  want was to do everything you could to avoid the frat's president –  _your ex-boyfriend_  – Michael Clifford.

Michael had broken up with you at the end of your junior year eight months ago. He told you that he wasn't interested anymore – that he didn't feel the same as he did when he asked you out at his frat's Halloween party last year. You, of course, were devastated – you honestly thought you meant something to Michael, but clearly, you were wrong. 

So you did what it seemed like any post-break-up college student would do; You went out to every single party on campus that wasn't hosted by Michael's fraternity and drank until you didn't feel anything anymore. This obviously led to dozens of drunken hook-ups and one-night-stands, but you didn't care. All you wanted was to get rid of the pain you felt in your chest whenever you saw Michael with another girl. You knew he was obviously going to hook up with other girls after you – it was just who he was – but that didn't make it any easier. You had fallen in love with Michael within the seven months you'd been his girlfriend and to know that he could just toss you off to the side as if you were nothing hurt like  _hell_.

"Y/N!" your best friend chirped as he bounced over to you. You had already gulped down eight cups of Jack and you were only just starting to feel buzzed; Being able to handle alcohol exceptionally well was a real pain sometimes.

" _Hood_ ," you greeted him with the most unenthused voice you could.

"Can you please at least act like you're having fun?" he frowned – you only called him by his last name when you were  _really_  mad at him.

"I told you I didn't want to be here, Cal," you reminded him.

"But you're here anyway, so at least  _try_. For me?" You closed your eyes for a moment before downing the last bit of alcohol in your cup and pouring yourself some more.

"I'm not having fun until I can't remember his name," you stated dryly, earning a sigh from the boy next to you. Calum didn't add anything else to the conversation, he just let you be. He did, however, walk away to find the only person who could fix you.

**Michael's POV**

"Dude," Calum tugged the hem of his best friend's shirt sleeve after coming up behind him, "You really need to at least  _talk_  to her."

"I don't  _need_  to do anything with her," Michael said monotonously as he turned around, "She's not my girlfriend anymore."

"Yeah, because you're fucking stupid," he stated, earning a raised eyebrow from the redhead.

"Cal-"

" _No, Michael_ ," Calum said, giving Michael the most angered expression he'd ever seen, "You don't get to parade around acting like you never gave a shit about her when all that girl ever did was love you." Michael swallowed thickly. "You don't get to keep pretending that you don't care when you threaten to beat the shit out of any guy that even  _looks_  in her direction. How the hell do you expect her to move on when you know damn well she'll never be able to without the truth? If you're going to keep up this charade that you two had a fallout or whatever, you can at least have the decency to tell her everything she deserves to know." Calum walked away before Michael had the chance to respond, leaving him with what felt like the weight of the world on his shoulders.

~

Half an hour later, Michael was watching you dance with yet another guy. He saw him something in your ear, earning him a fast nod from you. He took your hand and began leading you to the staircase and that was when Michael had enough. The redhead pushed himself off of the wall he was leaning on and quickly intercepted the two of you before you reached the step.

"Party's down here," Michael said lowly, "Not much going on upstairs."

"Not yet, there's not," the guy smirked, make his jaw tighten.

"Beat it, Alexander."

"Why, Clifford? Jealous?"

" _Leave_ ," he growled. The guy laughed bitterly, releasing your hand and heading back to the dance floor.

" _Hey, Mikey_ ," you slurred with a prominent pout on your face, "Why'd you do that?"

Michael didn't answer, he simply walked into the kitchen. You followed behind him like a lost puppy, instantly forgetting why you had. You were both standing beside the counter where the alcohol was sat out. As he poured himself another drink, you started poking his ribs repeatedly.

"Mikey!" you whispered loudly even though he was right in front of you. Michael sighed, but didn't acknowledge your actions. " _Mikey_!" you whined when he didn't say anything.

"What, Y/N?" he asked, putting his cup down and looking at you.

"Come here! I got a secret!" you giggled.

"I'm right here, Y/N, what is it?" You leaned forward, your lips barely brushing against his ear.

"It's a  _secret_."

"What's your secret?" You took a deep breath before releasing it, letting it fan across the side of his face.

"I can't tell you," you continued to giggle uncontrollably.

"Y/N," he rolled his eyes.

"You gotta kiss me first," you told him, pointing to your cheek.

He didn't want to, but he knew you weren't going to stop bugging him until you got whatever this secret was out of your system, so he gave you a quick peck on the cheek.

"You can kiss better than  _that_ , Mikey," you pouted.

Michael sighed again, finally caving in. He wrapped his arm around your waist and pulled you into him, planting a sloppy kiss on your cheekbone. Your face scrunched up and you wrapped your own arms around his neck as he pulled away. You laid your head on his shoulder and closed your eyes.

"Y/N," Michael said, "We had an agreement. Now you have to tell me your secret."

"But I'm  _sleepy_ ," you whined, "Wanna go home. Want you to take me home."

"I'm not getting behind the wheel, Y/N," he said firmly, "I'll go call one of your friends and they can-"

" _No_!" you pouted even more, "Want  _you_ to take me home!" Michael rubbed his temple with the tips of his pointer and middle fingers, sighing again.

"Then just go sleep in my room and I'll take you home tomorrow," he bargained.

"Are you gonna sing to me?" you asked with big puppy dog eyes, "You gotta sing to me or I can't sleep. I don't sleep anymore, Mikey."

"Yeah, whatever," he muttered, trying not to think too much about what you meant by that.

Michael led you upstairs to his bedroom. He couldn't have taken his eyes off of you for more than two seconds to shut the door, but when he turned back around, you had your hands on your back, struggling to unzip your dress the rest of the way.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Michael said quickly, "What are you doing?" You furrowed your eyebrows, tears of frustration already falling.

"I wanna sleep in your shirt," you mumbled as you sniffled, "But it won't unzip." He closed his eyes, putting his hands on his face for a moment.

"You just have to ask, Y/N," he spoke softly, going over to you and wiping the tears off of your cheeks, "Please stop crying. You know I hate it when you cry."

Michael finally went over to his dresser, grabbed a shirt, and tossed it onto his bed beside where you were standing. He moved behind you, helping you get the zipper undone and then went back to the front. He picked his shirt up and pulled it over your head. He pushed the straps off of your shoulders and you slipped your arms out, letting your dress fall to the floor.

Michael helped you get your arms into the shirt, careful not to let his gaze linger anywhere other than your face. When his shirt was straightened out, it ended a little lower than the middle of your thighs. He knew you didn't have enough balance to put on shorts, so he picked a shirt he knew would be huge on you. He took you over to the bed and had you lay down under his blanket. He tried to leave, but your voice stopped him.

"Mikey," you murmured, your eyelids getting heavier and heavier, "You said you would sing." He sighed, coming back to the bed. He sat on the edge, but you pushed him back up, only to pull him under the covers with you.

"Y/N-" He cut himself off when you cuddled up to him with a small smile on your face. Michael swallowed the lump in his throat, trying to ignore how much he missed having you in his arms.

He followed through with his promise and sang a couple songs to you softly. When he thought you were asleep, he went to get up, but he only felt your grip tighten.

"I pretend they're you," he heard you say.

"You what?" he asked, not really sure what you meant.

"That's my secret; When I go out and meet guys, I pretend they're you and it makes it easier," you told him. Michael's heart started racing. "But it's not the same waking up next to them because then I remember they're not you." Your words were jumbling together in your tired state, but Michael still understood every single one of them. "No one will ever be you," you whispered, your voice breaking.

"Y/N..." Michael trailed off. But when he looked down and saw your eyes closed and heard the quiet snores pass through your slightly parted lips, he didn't bother stopping himself. He pressed a gentle kiss to your forehead and whispered, "Goodnight, kitten," before drifting to sleep himself.

~

**Your POV**

The next morning, you woke up with a massive headache. You couldn't really remember much of last night – all you knew was that there was an arm lying on your waist and a body pressed to your back. You turned your head and your eyes widened instantly.

" _Fuck_ ," you mumbled to yourself, "Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck."

You carefully started to scoot away from your ex-boyfriend, but his arm only tightened around you. You let out a quiet puff of air as he pulled you back to him. You couldn't tell if he was consciously doing it or not, but either way, it made your heart flutter.

_Wait, no, stop it. You're not together anymore for this reason – he broke up with you because he didn't feel anything anymore._

The thought  _still_  hurt, to be honest. You knew you were outright faking your smile whenever someone asked about him or whenever you spent another weekend at home and it was always ' _Whatever happened to that Michael boy you were dating? He was such a nice young man._ ' and you  _hated_  it. You didn't need to be reminded by your family that Michael didn't want you anymore; You were reminded of it enough when you saw him around campus flirting with other girls.

"Morning, kitten," you suddenly heard a deep, gravelly voice whisper in your ear. You jumped lightly, not noticing Michael had woken up. But when you realized he'd called you kitten like he always used to, your heart started pounding.

"Michael, what are-" He cut you off, already knowing what was going through your mind – he always knew.

"You got drunk at the party last night," he told you, letting go of you to stretch himself out and rub his still tired eyes, "I mean, I've seen you drunk before, but you were  _so_  wasted, Y/N." If you didn't know any better, you would say he seemed  _worried_. "You kept going on about having this secret," he went on, causing your heart to start racing again, "You begged me to take you home, but I said no since I was drinking – not nearly as much as you had, obviously, but I still wasn't in any condition to drive – so I told you to sleep here. You were nearly in tears because you couldn't get your dress off, you made me sing to you..." He trailed off, making you raise your eyebrows at him. He began chewing on his bottom lip, like he was debating whether or not to tell you what you'd said.

"What did I say?" you asked softly.

"You ima-" he cut himself short, "I don't remember."

" _Michael_ ," you murmured, narrowing your eyes at him.

"You said you imagine me when you're with other guys," he caved, "Said waking up next to them isn't the same."

You threw yourself forward, leaning your forehead on your calf muscle. You sighed quietly, but not as quietly as you'd thought. Michael sat up and then took your arm gently, urging you to sit back up as well. You eventually gave in, feeling like a complete idiot and not having the energy to fight him.

"I pretend all those other girls are you, you know," Michael confessed, earning a head tilt from you, "I try to flirt with them, but it's not the same. They're not effortlessly witty like you are. They don't text me some stupid joke they came up with at 3am after their roommate got mad about them laughing so hard and waking them up. They don't know what makes me laugh like you do or upset like you do and they certainly don't know the things you do about what turns me on." You swallowed thickly, doing your best to ignore the last statement. "They will never be you; They will never compare to what I felt when I was with you. I know I said all that stuff about how the spark was fading, but that was a lie. I lied about losing my feelings for you and I lied about wanting to go our separate ways. I'm such an asshole for it, but the real reason I broke up with you was because I knew I was falling in love with you, and I was fucking terrified. I didn't know if you felt the same or if you would laugh at me or if you would leave, and I'm so sorry I wasn't brave enough to give you any say. God, Y/N, you have no idea what I'd do to have you back in my arms again for good. I'll understand if you want nothing to do with me now, but please just know that I love you. I love you so much, kitten."

You cleared your throat, but your voice still came out shaky, "Y-You  _love me_?" Michael nodded, not sure if he could find the words anymore. Your face scrunched up slightly. "But you left..." you reminded him, "You said you didn't want me anymore..."

"I lied," he whispered, "You're the only thing I've ever wanted."

"Then why did you tell me you  _didn't_?!" you exclaimed, your voice breaking just like you were, "Y-You can't say you don't want me and then tell me you only did it because you're in love with me!"

"I was scared, Y/N!"

"That's what being in love  _is_ , Michael! It's doing things you don't normally do, it's going out of your comfort zone, it's being terrified to fall but taking the jump anyway! I know that you've got a reputation of being this tough frat guy, but..." you trailed off, looking at him. You shook your head, "You know what? Never mind. I'm going home." You went to throw the blanket off of your legs, but Michael grabbed your wrist.

" _But what_ , Y/N?" he asked, a hint of a glare in his eyes. You stared at him for a moment before swallowing thickly, feeling your eyes get watery yet again.

"I thought it would be different," you admitted, "I thought you would finally get your shit together and settle for  _one girl_  and I was stupid enough to think that one girl could have been  _me_."

There was no pause on Michael's part – no hesitation or doubt in his mind; There was nothing that stopped him from grabbing your face and pulling it to his, forcefully smashing your lips against each other. Michael had kissed you plenty of times before, but this one was different; This one was filled with desperation and passion and  _love_  and it knocked the air right out of you – so much so that you couldn't do anything but kiss him back.

Michael's hands roamed down to your hips, tugging you onto his lap. You straddled his thighs, letting your fingers tangle themselves in his messy red hair. You pulled away to take a breath, nearly gasping for it. You rested your forehead on his as he breathed deeply, a silly grin on his face. You felt his hands slip under the shirt you were wearing and that was when you realized something.

"Am I not wearing shorts?" you asked. Michael started laughing at your sudden outburst, earning him a slap to the chest.

"Kitten, you know you have the balance of a baby learning to walk for the first time when you're drunk."

"I do not!" you pouted.

"Yeah, you do," Michael chuckled, "But I love you anyway."

"I love you too, Mikey," you finally admitted, making his grin even wider. Your hands fell to your lap and you started fumbling around with the hem of Michael's shirt.

"What're you doing, kitten?" he asked.

"You're wearing too much," you mumbled as your hands slipped under the fabric.

Michael practically ripped the fabric off of his torso and threw it to the floor at the foot of the bed where your dress still was, not having to be told twice by you to take his shirt off. You stared at his body for a moment, taking it in. Obviously, you'd still seen it after you'd broken up – and before, of course – when he and the other frat guys would go to the pool, but there was something different about seeing it now. Now, it was more intimate; You two were alone and you were the only one there to see and you couldn't get enough.

"Kitten," Michael murmured with a smirk, "You're drooling."

"No, I'm not," you mumbled, a light red blush on your cheeks. He smiled, lifting his head back up to yours and pressing your lips together again. Your hands found their way to his stomach and you felt the muscle twitch.

"Your hands are fucking freezing," he told you, his voice muffled by your mouth.

" _I'm_  fucking freezing," you sassed, "I'm only wearing a shirt and it's like you idiots don't know how to turn up the damn heat in this house." Michael bit his lip as he pulled back – he'd always found it attractive when you swore – turning his head to look at the clock on his nightstand, seeing it was almost 11:30.

"Come on," he patted your sides, signaling for you to get up, "I'm taking you out for lunch."

"Since when do you  _want_  to go get lunch?" you scoffed, climbing off of his lap.

"I'm hungry," he shrugged, hopping to his feet.

"Yeah, but I haven't seen you at all when I'm out."

"Haven't had a reason to go out since-" He cut himself off, but you knew what he was talking about. He only ever went out to lunch with you because he knew you liked it. He cleared his throat and softly said, "I just want you to be happy; I want to make you happy. I don't want to fuck this up again."

Michael looked down at his hands – he hated letting people see the sensitive side of him because he knew they'd never let him live it down – but he was okay in front of you. He knew you would never make fun of him or go around telling everyone about it. He trusted you – maybe  _far_  more than even he himself was willing to admit.

You got off the bed, standing up in front of Michael. You pulled his hands away from each other, bringing them around your waist so he would hug you. Your own arms wrapped around his neck and you both stood there with virtually no space between your bodies.

"I'm always happy as long as I'm with you, Mikey," you whispered, kissing his nose.

"S-So does this mean you'll be my girlfriend again?" he asked shyly.

"Yeah," you replied, your tone barely audible but you nodded so he knew you accepted. "Hey," you said so he would meet your gaze again, "I love you."

He finally smiled again, "I love you too, kitten." He kissed your lips until your stomachs growling in unison made both of you giggle and pull away. "Go find something to wear while I'm in the bathroom and then we'll go get lunch, okay?" You nodded and he kissed you quickly before letting go of you and leaving you alone.

You walked over to his closet and opened the door. There was a section of shelves in the middle with drawers, so you opened the one all the way at the bottom. That drawer used to hold all of your stuff, and to your surprise, you found everything you left here still in it. You laughed lightly, shaking your head.

You pulled out your bra and shorts, pulling Michael's shirt off and putting them on. You were looking at Michael's flannels – you had a shirt of your own in the drawer, of course, but when the opportunity to wear one of your boyfriend's presents itself, you're obviously going to take it.

 _Boyfriend_ , you thought to yourself,  _That felt nice to say again._

When Michael came back into the room, you looked over at him. He was blushing lightly – as he always did whenever you didn't have a shirt on no matter how many times he'd seen you – but as you looked at him, you starting laughing.

"What's so funny?" he asked. He had decided to take his jeans off, leaving him in nothing but his boxers.

"Those are real cute, Mikey," you giggled at the Pokemon printed underwear.

"Thanks," he responded, "Maybe I'll let you wear them sometime."

You looked at his face and found him smirking. You rolled your eyes with a small smile on your face. You turned back to the closet, hearing Michael walk over to you. You felt his arms wrap themselves tightly around your bare waist.

"Nice to see these still fit," he murmured, pressing a kiss to the skin beside your bra strap and letting his fingers run along the front of the shorts' waistband.

"Can't believe you kept them," you hummed in response, leaning back on his chest.

"Well, I'd hate to get rid of them," he shrugged, "You know, in case someone else needed them or in case you came back..."

You tilted your head to look at him and saw he was avoiding your gaze. You turned around in his arms, wrapping one of your own around his neck, the other resting on his chest so you could run your thumb along his cheekbone.

"I love you, Mikey," you whispered, making the corner of his mouth twitch slightly. He finally looked at you, his hands sliding to your sides, stopping on your hips.

"I love you too, kitten," Michael mumbled, rubbing your hipbones with his thumbs. He leaned down, pressing your lips together as if it was the last time he was ever going to kiss you.

 


	256. Picture Perfect (Marshall Traver)

_requested by my bud alycia_

~

"Come on, Y/N!" your best friend poked your nose in the hopes of getting you to smile, "At least  _act_  excited!"

You were currently sitting on a bus heading for Six Flags as part of a school field trip. You were honestly everything less than thrilled – you were just going to come back in the summer with Bethany anyway, why did you need to go  _now_ too?

"Why would I act excited when I don't care for this at all?" you swatted her hand away, "What kind of senior trip is to go to an  _amusement park_? You can go to one any time you want on every other damn day of the year."

"Then why did you have your parents sign the permission slip and pay for it?" she giggled.

"I told you, Bethany," you rolled your eyes, "I planned on skipping today, but my mom found it when she was going to take the trash out and forced me to come as some sort of ' _you need to put yourself out there and stop being so shy_ ' bullshit she started preaching about that I stopped listening to two seconds in."

"But you love amusement parks!"

"I love them when I go with my friends."

"What am I, unbuttered popcorn?!" she scoffed. You finally cracked a smile at the ridiculous analogy, making her grin widely.

"You know what I meant, Bethany," you shook your head, "I just don't care for forced interaction among classmates."

"You're unbearable," she laughed under her breath.

"And you're  _still_  friends with me," you shot back, sticking your tongue out at her.

~

The moment you entered the park, you met up with the seniors from the other school and the teachers that were chaperoning the trip gathered you all together. They announced that two students from each school would pair up with students from the other one and that would be their group for the day and let you pick yourselves. You obviously went with Bethany, and she took the initiative to find the other pair.

"Hi!" you heard a boy behind you say, making you and Bethany turn around, "Do you guys have partners yet?" Bethany shook her head while you just stood there nervously. "Would it be cool if we hung around you then?"

"Yeah, totally!" she smiled, "I'm Bethany and this is my best friend Y/N."

"I'm Marshall and this is Cody," he introduced himself, "We're not friends though. I don't like him at all." Cody rolled his eyes.

"And Marshall here is a compulsive liar," he smirked, shoving his friend playfully.

"It's nice to meet you guys," Bethany smiled again, "So what should we do first?"

"We could just start here and make our way around the park," Marshall suggested, "We've never been here, so we don't really know what all the good rides and stuff are."

"Well, you're in luck, gentlemen!" she announced, "Y/N and I have been coming here every summer since we were in diapers! We'd be happy to give you the grand tour!"

"Right," Cody chuckled, "Would you mind showing me the bathrooms first? I had three bottles of water on the ride here and let me tell you, that is one water park I do  _not_  want to visit today." You couldn't help but laugh quietly at the comment as you stared at your shoes, earning a smile from the group.

"Yeah," Bethany giggled, "They're over here." She led you all around the corner and Cody immediately disappeared into the men's room. You sat down on a nearby bench, not having to go yourself. "I better go too," she said suddenly, making your eyes widen, "I'll be right back." You swallowed nervously, turning your attention to the hands in your lap as Marshall sat down beside you.

"Y/N, right?" he asked. You looked up at him and nodded, surprised he remembered your name even though he'd been told it only two minutes ago. "You're kinda shy, aren't you?" You began chewing on your inner cheek, making him smile. "It's okay," he told you, "I'll tell you a little secret of mine: I'm actually really hoping that we don't go on any roller coasters today because I am absolutely terrified of them." You giggled and he smiled again.

"Well, I hate to break it to you, but Bethany and I only come here for the roller coasters," you said softly, "But if you get too scared, you're more than welcome to hold my hand."

"I will  _definitely_  be taking you up on that offer," he grinned slyly.

~

Marshall wasted no time in doing just that, because the very first ride you went on was, in fact, a roller coaster. Seating worked out before anyone even asked how it was happening because Bethany grabbed the first hand she could, which ended up being Cody's. You rolled your eyes – this was her favorite ride in the entire park and she was incredibly eager to get on – and simply followed Marshall to the next available car. He grabbed your hand before the ride even started, making you look over at him and raise your eyebrows.

"I'm scared," he stated.

"Sure," you hummed lowly, rolling your eyes and hoping the blush on your cheeks wasn't  _too_  noticeable.

You ended up with sitting with Marshall on the next few coasters as well but on the sixth, you went with Cody. You didn't quite understand it, but after that ride, you couldn't get the thought of Bethany and Marshall holding hands out of your head. And it didn't really help when you found them laughing hysterically together when you and Cody got off the ride – you had to go after them since there were no more cars available.

You couldn't say you didn't expect it though. Bethany was always attracting guys while you merely sat on the sidelines. You were shy and everyone knew it – of course the more outgoing person would have more friends than you. But you didn't know why you were so jealous of her  _now_. This happened all the time and you'd never felt this way before. You knew the likelihood of ever seeing Marshall again was slim; Why did it bother you so much?

~

"Hey," Bethany said as you finishing up your lunch, "What's up with you?" You and Bethany weren't quite done with your food yet, so Marshall and Cody decided to go to the bathroom to occupy their time so they weren't just sitting around.

"What do you mean?" you asked, already knowing very well what she was talking about. You'd been spacing out at random moments ever since the ride you went on with Cody.

"You've been out of it for a while now," she pointed out, "You don't really seem like you're having as much fun as you do whenever we come here."

"I was just hungry, I guess," you shrugged.

"I don't think so," Bethany said thoughtfully, "You were in a really good mood until the Boomerang ride." You simply shrugged again, picking up a fry and tossing it into your mouth. "It's more than just being hungry," she said, "I've seen you when you're hungry and it's not pretty." You rolled your eyes, wiping your hands with your napkin. "You know... Boomerang was the first ride you went on with someone besides..." Her eyes suddenly widened and you braced yourself for the realization. "You have a crush on Marshall!" she whisper-yelled, leaning toward you on the table.

"I do not!" you returned just as quietly, "I met him an hour ago!"

" _So_?! You were totally jealous!"

"And you're totally  _insane_!"

"My little baby has a crush!" Bethany sighed dramatically, falling back in her chair.

"I'm older than you!" you exclaimed.

"But you totally have a crush on him!"

"Oh, Y/N's got a crush on who?" you heard Marshall gasp playfully as he and Cody came back to the table. You swallowed thickly while he sat down in his seat beside you.

"Just someone from our school," Bethany covered for you and the boys thankfully dropped the subject as well.

"That's cool," Cody said, "So now that you slowpokes are done eating, what are we going to do now?"

"I was thinking we could start heading to the Ferris wheel," she answered with a mischievous grin on her face and you just  _knew_  what she was doing.

"Bethany," you said softly, "I'm not-"

"There's a first time for everything, my dear Y/N!" she said, jumping up and throwing her arm into the air, "Onward!" She grabbed Cody's hand and began pulling him away, leaving you and Marshall alone at the table.

"Are you done?" Marshall asked you since you still had a couple fries left.

You nodded and he got up, took the tray, and threw it in the garbage can. When he came back, he held his hand out to you. You took it slowly, letting him pull you up and you reluctantly began leading him to the Ferris wheel.

"So what did Bethany mean by ' _there's a first time for everything_ '?" he asked, letting go of your hand.

"I don't like it," you sighed, "It seems stupid because I love roller coasters and everything, but I'm just scared of being on the Ferris wheel, I guess."

"You know, if you get too scared, you can always hold my hand." You looked up at him and found him smiling shyly. You smiled slightly as well, looking back in front of you. "Are you okay?" You hummed in response, signaling for him to elaborate. "You seem upset," he said, "Or at least distracted or something. Did I do something?"

"No," you said softly, shaking your head, "You're fine. I'm just having one of those days."

"Oh, okay," he sighed in relief. As you approached the line for the Ferris wheel, Marshall could sense your discomfort. "We don't have to do this, you know," he leaned in so Bethany and Cody – who were only a couple people in front of you – couldn't hear, "I'm fine with not going if you don't want to."

"Hey," you took a deep breath, "If you can face your fear and ride all the roller coasters, I guess I can take one for the team and ride this thing."

"Well, just remember-" His fingers brushed up against yours. "-you're welcome to hold my hand if you get scared."

"I'm already scared," you laughed nervously. Marshall grinned lightly, now completely taking your hand and tangling your fingers together. You looked up at him as he tightened his grip and gave your hand a reassuring squeeze. You smiled slightly again, leaning onto him and just waiting for your turn.

~

You were now at the top of the ride, sitting patiently since it had stopped to let more people get on. Marshall was looking around the park while you were just focusing on not throwing up. His thumb was rubbing the back of your hand soothingly and it was actually working quite well in keeping you calm.

"There's a photo booth here?!" he suddenly exclaimed, "We should totally go there next!"

"A photo booth?" you chuckled, still taking slow breaths.

"Well, yeah," he laughed as well at his outburst, "So you can have something to remember me by." You rolled your eyes, letting out a bit of a louder laugh.

"Whatever will help you sleep tonight, Marshall," you told him.

~

The moment you got off the Ferris wheel, the group headed toward the photo booth. All four of you squeezed in first, then you and Bethany, Bethany and Marshall, you and Cody, Bethany and Cody, Marshall and Cody, and finally, you and Marshall. You took a few silly photos and you thought you were going to take a couple regular ones to end it off, but when the countdown hit one, Marshall quickly pressed his lip to your cheek. After the photo was taken, you looked over at him and found him grinning but not looking back at you.

The countdown for the last photo started and you decided to give him a little payback. When it hit one, you kissed Marshall's cheek lightly. The photo was taken and you pulled away, smirking victoriously when you saw the blush on his face.

You climbed out of the photo booth, only to be met with Bethany and Cody's idiotic smiles as they looked at your photos. Bethany winked at you and you rolled your eyes, shoving her playfully. You snatched the photo out of Cody's hands and looked at them yourself.

Your eyes immediately landed on the last two photos, seeing that both yours and Marshall's faces were scrunched up happily. You never thought someone would be happy that you kissed them, and to see the look of pure joy on Marshall's face made your heart flutter.

As you stared in awe at the photos in your hand, Marshall came up behind you. His arms went around your waist and he took the photos from you, ripping off the one of you kissing his cheek as well as the one of him kissing yours. He gave back the set, taking the photo of him kissing your cheek.

"I'll be taking this one," he stated, completely wrapping his arms around you now.

"Maybe I wanted that one," you replied, tilting your head back onto his shoulder so you could look at his face.

"First come, first serve," he smirked, "Besides, I'm sure we'll have plenty more photos like this taken of us in the future."

"Really?" you said, trying not to smile, "What makes you say that?"

"It depends."

"Depends on what?"

"On whether or not I leave here with your number," he answered.

"Oh, well, now  _that_  depends," you bit your lip lightly.

"On?"

"On whether or not I'm given a phone to put my number into."

 


	257. Temporary Home (Cody Carson) - Part 1

Having a child was something you'd wanted ever since you were younger. You always had such a close relationship with your mom and dad and you wanted to be able to have a bond like that with your own children one day. So when you finally went to see a doctor after a year of trying to have a baby with your husband and found out you were infertile, you were obviously devastated.

It was Cody who brought up the idea of adoption – an idea you didn't even think of until he mentioned it – that you realized you still could have a family. You started the adoption process – hiring a lawyer, filling out the paperwork, having stranger after stranger come into your home for home checks and interviews, and finding a child that matched with you and Cody – and it took about a year to get everything finalized and approved.

When you got the call from your lawyer, Rachel, that a child had been matched to you, you almost dropped the phone in shock. You arranged a time to meet with her in her office and the moment the call ended, you dialed Cody's number to tell him and he was just as speechless as you were. He took the rest of the day off of work and rushed home to be with you.

That next morning, when you met with Rachel, she showed you a photo of the child you were hopeful to adopt – a brown-haired, brown-eyed two-year-old named Gracie – and you instantly fell in love with her. She gave you a bit of a backstory on the toddler and then told you the best news you could have heard; She was only an hour and a half drive away. Rachel told you that the foster parents would be at the adoption agency the next week so you could meet the little girl and hopefully take her home.

And now, here you were; Entering the building and knowing you were moments away from meeting the toddler you were praying was going to be your daughter.

You and Cody met with Rachel at the front desk. She shook both of your hands and began leading you to the room Gracie was in with her foster parents. She stopped you at a door and began speaking quietly.

"We're just going to go over a couple things before I take you in to meet her, okay?" Rachel said. You and Cody nodded, allowing her to continue. "Now, since Gracie is two and doesn't  _completely_  understand what's going on, she may be a bit scared of you at first. She's not used to anybody but her foster family and I don't want you two to feel hurt because she won't warm up to you right away. It's going to take some time, and we want you guys to be prepared for that." You nodded again. "Okay," she smiled slightly, "Go on in." You shyly entered the room, one hand squeezing Cody's and the other nervously gripping the coat you'd taken off when you came in.

Gracie was sitting on the floor with her foster parents, quietly playing with a tea set. The two adults looked up at you and your heart started racing when the toddler followed their gaze. She tilted her head at the new presence in the room, curiously looking at both of you.

"Hi, Gracie," Rachel walked over to her, "Are you having fun?" She blinked a few times before tearing her eyes away from you and your husband. "I'm Rachel," she said, "Remember?" Gracie nodded happily. "And do you remember what we talked about the last time we saw each other?"

"Adop," she said, not quite able to say ' _adoption_ ' yet.

"Right," Rachel smiled, "These are Cody and Y/N, the very nice people who want to adopt you." She motioned for you and Cody to sit on the floor with the group.

Your heart started pounding again and you wanted to move your legs, but you couldn't. You knew Gracie may not warm up to you just yet, but it was the thought of it never happening that had you so nervous. All you've ever wanted was to be a mom and the possibility of that dream never coming true broke your heart.

You felt a squeeze to your hand, pulling you out of your racing thoughts. You looked at Cody and found him smiling reassuringly. He pressed a kiss to your cheek then tugged you to the middle of the room. You both sat down cross-legged on the floor, close to Gracie but not overwhelmingly close to her.

"Can you say hi, Gracie?" Rachel asked her.

The two-year-old immediately dropped the plastic teacup she was holding and scrambled into her foster mother's lap. You swallowed thickly, looking down at yours and Cody's hands in your lap as you tried not to cry. He kissed the side of your head before you rested it on his shoulder.

"It's okay, Gracie," you heard the foster mom say.

As you were wiping your eyes with the back of your hand, you felt a new, small presence in front of you. You looked up, a little startled to see Gracie had crawled over to you. You stared at her for a moment just as she was staring curiously at you.

"I make Y/N sad?" she asked quietly, saying your name as well as a two-year-old could.

You remained silent, not really knowing what to say. Her tone of voice suggested a bit of guilt and you didn't want to make her feel worse, but you didn't want to lie to her either – because you honestly  _were_  a bit sad that she was nervous around you. She went back over to where the toys she was playing with were, grabbing the teacup she'd dropped and bringing it to you. She sat down in front of you again, innocently holding the cup out for you to take.

You finally cracked a smile, picking your head back up, making Gracie smile widely. She even went back to get another cup to give to Cody, making him chuckle under his breath. You all joined the tea party for a while before Rachel stood up.

"Okay, Gracie, are you ready to leave?"

The two-year-old nodded, trotting over to grab her coat while everyone else rose to their feet. She came back to the group, taking a hold of her foster mother's hand. You smiled weakly again, the actions of putting on your own coat slowing down.

"No, sweetie, you're going to go with Y/N and Cody," her foster mom told her. Gracie looked up with a fearful expression and she smiled reassuringly, kneeling down on her knees. "Do you remember how we talked last night about what being adopted means?" Gracie nodded and she continued, "Y/N and Cody aren't here to make you feel scared, sweetie, they want you to feel safe and happy and loved. They're here to give you a permanent home so you don't have to keep moving houses all the time."

"No more move?" her eyes widened again, but it was clear she was more curious than scared now.

"Right," she nodded. Gracie looked over at the two of you and frowned when she saw your face again.

"Y/N sad," she mumbled.

"Y/N's nervous," her foster mom explained, "She's very afraid that you won't like her."

Gracie then hugged both her foster parents before waddling over to you and Cody. You swallowed the lump in your throat when she grabbed your finger, reaching for Cody's with her other hand. He happily let her take it and Rachel led you all out so you could sign some papers at the front desk.

The moment Cody took the pen off the paper, it was official; Gracie was your daughter.

~

"Home?" Gracie chirped from her car seat behind you. You had just come back into county lines after the hour and a half drive from the adoption agency. It was almost 9pm, but you had one more stop to make before you took your daughter home.

"No, we're at the mall right now," Cody chuckled lightly, "We already have things for you at home, but we wanted to bring you here so you can pick out something yourself." You and Cody got out of the car and you met him on the driver's side since that's where the car seat was. He opened the door and unbuckled the toddler, helping her jump onto the pavement.

"What mall?" she asked, holding both of your hands as you entered the building. Your heart ached that Gracie had never known what a mall was, but you explained it the best way you could.

"Malls are where people buy things to play with," you told her.

"Like teddy?" she looked up at you.

"Do you want to get a teddy?" She nodded rapidly, making you laugh. "Then yeah, we can get a teddy." She smiled happily, quietly walking through the building.

It wasn't too busy – which really relieved you. You didn't know how well Gracie would handle a crowd, and you were sure you'd have to deal with it eventually, but you were just happy knowing it wouldn't be today. You didn't want her to be more overwhelmed than you were sure she already was.

You walked into the toy store, watching Gracie as her eyes widened, never having seen so many toys in one place in her life. You let her explore the store without holding onto her, but you obviously still followed close behind. You expected the toddler to ask you to buy everything she saw, but she didn't; She simply looked back at you and Cody and asked you where the teddy bears were. You both glanced at each other with small smiles before you reached out to her. She gladly took your hand and let you guide her to where the bears were.

It didn't take long for Gracie to find the bear she wanted, instantly falling in love the moment she laid eyes on it. It was a fluffy brown bear about half the size of a newborn baby with a bright purple ribbon tied in a bow around its neck. She hugged the bear closely while you and Cody just looked at her fondly.

"Do you want to look at anything else, Gracie?" Cody asked her. She yawned, rubbing her eye with the back of her hand, and shook her head.

You reached for her hand again so you could take her to the checkout counter, but instead, she held her free arm up, wordlessly telling you that she wanted you to pick her up. You did, letting her rest on your hip as she laid her head on your shoulder.

Once you made it to the checkout, you held out the tag attached to the bear's foot since it was obvious Gracie didn't want to let go of it. Cody paid for the bear and you went back out to the car, buckling the toddler back into her car seat, and then heading home.

You and Cody took Gracie to her new room, happy she was awake just enough so you could put some pajamas on her. It seemed like the second her head hit the pillow, she was already asleep. You carefully took the tag of off the bear and tucked Gracie in, obviously deciding to wait until the next day to show her around the house.

~

**Six months later**

You had put Gracie down for her nap about half an hour ago and had just decided you wanted to make some cookies to decorate with her when she woke up. You had a baby monitor right beside you on top of the counter so you could be sure that you would hear her if she called your name.

Gracie hadn't been calling you and Cody her mom and dad, but you were completely okay with it. She knew that you weren't her birth parents, but she still loved you as if you were, and that was good enough for you.

As you were mixing the things in the bowl, you heard soft crying coming from behind you. You spun around to find Gracie hurrying over to you with her teddy bear in her hand. She immediately latched onto your leg and you felt her tears fall down your skin. You were a bit surprised since you hadn't heard her on the monitor, but you didn't have time to think about that right now.

"Gracie, what's wrong?" you asked, dropping the spoon into the bowl.

You pried her arms off of you so you could kneel down to her level, only to have her throw them back around your neck. She mumbled something into your skin, but the only word you could make out was ' _alone_ '. You lifted her off of the ground so you could stand back up, rubbing her back to calm her down.

"I think you just had a bad dream, baby," you rocked her gently.

"No, Mommy leave," she sobbed into your shoulder, "Mommy leave me alone."

It was then that you realized Gracie knew more about what happened to her than you thought, making your heart drop. You couldn't imagine what she must feel; All you knew what that you would never understand how her mother could just  _leave_  her when she was only a baby.

Rachel told you and Cody all about how Gracie's birth mother had taken then one-year-old Gracie to a regular doctor's appointment. At some point during the nurse leaving the room to get the doctor and the doctor coming in, Gracie's mother had abandoned the baby, only leaving a note saying ' _I'm sorry_ ' behind. No one could tell you exactly  _why_  she did it, but you didn't want to think about it, honestly. You just swore to yourself that you were going to give Gracie the best life she could possibly have and you were going to love her no matter what.

"You don't have to worry about being alone anymore, Gracie," you said softly. You heard the front door open and sighed in relief, knowing you shouldn't talk to her about this without Cody.

"But what if you leave like Mommy," she sniffled. Your eyes met Cody's as he entered the room, clearly surprised by the statement that left Gracie's mouth.

"We're not gonna leave, Gracie," Cody spoke up, shrugging his jacket off of his shoulders and hanging it on the chair beside him.

He came over as Gracie pushed herself up, reaching for him. He happily took her in his arms, kissing her head as she hugged him tightly. He then placed her on the countertop so she could sit down and see both of you in front of her. Gracie wiped her face with the back of her hand, holding her bear protectively on her lap.

"We love you very much, Gracie," Cody told her, "We love you so much that we wanted to bring you home with us so we could show you we love you all the time."

"But Mommy didn't?" she sniffled again.

"Mommy didn't have  _enough_  love to give you," you said, rubbing her thigh with your thumb, "That doesn't mean that Mommy didn't love you, baby, it just means she wanted to give you to people who could give you all the love you deserve."

"She loves you so much that she decided to let other people have the chance to love you too," Cody kissed her forehead. Her eyes flicked between you and Cody for a moment.

"Mommy loved me so much, she gived me another mommy  _and_  a daddy?" she asked with a smile on her face. Your heart skipped a beat and you swallowed the lump in your throat.

"Yeah, Gracie," you murmured, pressing a kiss to the top of her head and leaving your lips there for a moment, "You've got another mommy and daddy."


	258. Temporary Home (Cody Carson) - Part 2

**Six months later**

You were in the kitchen making macaroni and cheese for Gracie for lunch one day while she was with her teddy bear in the living room watching  _The Princess and the Frog_. She was quiet for the most part – you could hear her singing along to the songs every time one came on – so when you heard her voice halfway through the film, it surprised you a bit.

"Mommy..." you heard Gracie trail off, a worried tone in her voice.

You instantly took the pot off of the stove, not caring that noodles weren't quite done because it was better than burning them. You hurried to where your daughter's voice was coming from, finding her hiding in the hallway.

"What's wrong, Gracie?" you asked.

She pointed to the door and you saw a woman standing on the other side of the glass. You moved into the hall as well – out of the sight of the woman – and knelt down to your daughter's level.

"Why are you hiding from her?"

"I looked out the window when she knocked and she sawed me and said that she was my mommy but I knowed that you were already here," she said softly.

You furrowed your eyebrows in confusion for a moment before your eyes widened, knowing exactly who was standing on your porch. You pulled your phone out of your pocket and went to Cody's contact, bringing it up.

"I want you to go into my room and tell Daddy what you told me, okay?" you said, "Don't come out until I come get you." She nodded quickly and you hit the call button, giving Gracie the phone and watching her run upstairs.

**Gracie's POV**

Gracie launched herself onto the bed just as Cody answered the phone.

"Hey, baby," he said, understandably believing it was you.

"Daddy," Gracie said softly, surprising him a bit.

"Oh, hi, princess," he corrected himself, "Is everything okay?"

"N-No," she started tearing up.

"What's wrong? Why are you crying? Where's Mommy?"

"A l-lady came over and said sh-she was my mommy," she sobbed, wiping her face with the back of her hand, "And M-Mommy said to come in your room and talk to you."

"Is Mommy talking to the lady right now?"

"Uh-huh. W-What if she hurts Mommy and comes in and takes me?" she started crying harder, "I don't wanna go with  _her_ ; I wanna stay with  _you_."

"Princess, you  _know_  Mommy's not gonna let that happen," Cody assured her, "Listen, I'm on my way home and I'll see you in a few minutes, okay? I love you, princess."

"I love you too, Daddy," she replied. Gracie then heard the door handle jiggle, making her jump. But when she heard your voice, she instantly knew everything was alright.

**Your POV; 5 minutes earlier**

You waited until you heard the bedroom door close before you rose back to your feet. You took a couple deep breaths, but your heart was still racing as you walked out from behind the corner and to the door. The woman was still standing there, and when she saw you, her neutral expression turned into a glare.

"Hello," you said politely after pulling the door open, "May I help you?"

"You have something of mine," she stated dryly.

"I'm sorry, do I know you?"

"I want my daughter back."

"I think you have the wrong house, ma'am," you shook your head, "The only daughter that lives here is mine."

"It's cute that you think you're her mother," she scoffed.

"I'm more of a mother to her than you ever were," you spat, not holding back either, "She  _knows_  you left her and I'll be damned if I ever let you near her again." You quickly closed the door, making sure it was locked –  _just in case_.

"I'll see you and your husband in court, you child-stealing bitch!" you heard her shout before she stomped away.

 _That's the_ best _you could come up with?,_  you thought to yourself as you rolled your eyes

You looked at the entrance to the hallway for a moment before sprinting up the stairs. You could hear Gracie still talking to Cody as you approached the bedroom door.

"I don't wanna go with  _her_ ; I wanna stay with  _you_ ," she whimpered. You obviously couldn't hear what Cody told her, but she then mumbled, "I love you too, Daddy." You smiled slightly, reaching to pull down on the door handle, but you quickly found out that Gracie had locked the door.

"Gracie," you spoke softly, "She's gone, baby; It's just me." You listened to the toddler's feet hit the floor as she hopped off of the bed and pulled the door open.

Before you could even look down at her, her arms were around your legs and she was holding onto you like her life depended on it. You pried her arms off of you so you could sit on the floor. She wrapped her arms around your neck as she stood right up against your torso.

"Gracie," you could hear Cody's voice, "Let me talk to Mommy, princess." Gracie handed you the phone without ever moving her face from your neck.

"Hey, Cody," you said softly.

"Baby, what happened? Are you okay?" he asked, the words coming out in one breath.

"I'm fine, Cody," you promised him, "A little concerned about how she found out where we live, but she's not here anymore."

"Call Rachel and tell her what happened, okay? I'm on my way home."

"Cody-"

"I know, but Gracie started getting worked up about how she might come in and hurt you and take her, so I'm coming home and you can't stop me because I'm already here."

"I hate you," you giggled softly.

"I know," you heard his smile, "Now hang up and come let me in."

"Where's your key?" you snickered, carefully bringing Gracie with you as you stood up since she was still attached to you.

" _Baby_ ," he whined.

You simply laughed again, hanging up and making your way to the front door. The moment you opened the door, Cody went to take Gracie from your arms, but she only held on tighter.

" _No_!" she cried, not realizing it was him.

"It's me, princess," he told her, making her push herself off of you.

She let Cody take her that time, holding onto him much like she had been holding onto you. She was crying into his neck, his skin becoming wet within seconds of her face coming into contact with it.

"Princess," Cody cooed, rubbing the little girl's back gently, "No one's gonna take you away from me and Mommy."

"You promise?" she murmured, her voice muffled by the collar of his shirt.

"I  _promise_. And when I promise something, I never, ever break that promise.  _Ever_ ," he quoted  _Tangled_  to her, making her giggle through her tears. She lifted her body back up and wiped her face.

"I love you," she said softly, reaching for you so you knew she wasn't just talking to her dad.

"We love you too, princess," Cody said before you both leaned in and kissed her cheeks, making her giggle again.

~

**Two weeks later**

You, Cody, and Gracie were waiting for Cody's mother to arrive before leaving for your court hearing.

Rebecca, Gracie's birth mother, had obviously been serious about fighting you on the custody of her child, so your hearing was set for today. Rachel had told you that Gracie needed to be there ' _just in case_ ', but the only thing it did was make you even  _more_  paranoid – it reminded you that there was  _actually_  a chance you weren't going to return home with your daughter.

" _Gramma_!" Gracie cheered, snapping you out of your thoughts as she bolted toward Stephanie and jumped into her arms.

"Hi, sweetheart!" she smiled, kissing her cheek and hugging her before setting her back down on the ground. She looked up at you and Cody as you followed close behind your daughter. "Hey, you two," she said, giving her son a hug.

"Hi, Mom," Cody grinned, kissing her cheek.

When you gave her a small – and somewhat  _forced_  – smile, it prompted her to immediately put her arms around you. You let out a breathy laugh, hugging her back tightly.

"Thanks, Stephanie," you murmured. She could tell you were close to crying – she'd been able to read your expressions since the moment Cody introduced you when you started dating – so she looked back at Cody.

"You have her ready to go yet?" she asked, nodding toward Gracie. Cody glanced at you and knew what his mother was doing, so he knelt down to Gracie's level.

"You know, princess, I'm sure Grandma would  _love_  to see those new dresses you got the other day," he told her.

Gracie's eyes widened and she grabbed Stephanie's hand, eagerly pulling her grandmother toward her room. The 3-year-old's exclamations about her new clothes faded gradually until Stephanie closed the door behind them, not wanting her to hear you and Cody.

"Baby," Cody said softly, turning to you. Your bottom lip  _barely_  quivered, but Cody still noticed it. 

He grabbed your waist and pulled you into him, letting your arms wind around his neck and hugging him tightly. Your cries were silent, holding back every possible sound that could be heard by your daughter.

"We're not gonna lose her, baby," Cody assured you.

"Y-You don't  _know_  that," you whimpered.

"A judge is  _not_  going to send her back to a woman who  _clearly_  did not  _want_  her, Y/N," he returned firmly, rubbing circles on your lower back with his thumb, "We are going to go to court, sit through the hearing, and we  _will_  come back home with our daughter, do you understand me?" You sniffled quietly, lifting your head up and taking in a deep, uneven breath. Cody moved one of his hands from your waist to your cheek, wiping the wet skin. "And no matter  _what_  happens today, we are  _still_  going to be a family," he reminded you, "I love you  _so much_ , princess."

"You haven't called me that since  _college_ ," you giggled softly. Cody smiled at you, leaning forward to kiss you. "I love you too," you replied into the kiss, "Thank you."

~

"How come I can't sit with you and Mommy?" Gracie pouted, looking up at Cody. She tried using her puppy-dog eyes on him, but as much as he wanted to give into her like he always did, he knew he couldn't.

"Because the judge doesn't need to talk to  _you_ , princess," Cody replied, kneeling down on the floor in front of where she was sitting on Stephanie's lap, "She only needs to talk to  _me and Mommy_."

"But your friends don't care when I'm with you when  _they_  talk to you."

"You've really picked up on Mommy's sass, haven't you?" he chuckled.

" _Excuse you_ ," you scoffed, seeing as you could still hear them even though were already sitting at the defendant table. Cody simply looked over his shoulder at you and winked, making you roll your eyes and turn back to Rachel to continue your conversation with her.

"Mommy and I will be done  _real_  soon, okay?" Cody told Gracie, "Remember what I told you on the way here?"

"We get  _ice cream_  when we leave!" she bounced happily.

"Only if you're  _good_ ," he reminded her.

"Everybody, please stand," the bailiff announced. Cody quickly kissed Gracie's forehead and hurried to the table to stand with you. "The Superior Court of Pinellas County is now in session," he continued, "The Honorable Judge Lauren A. Rhodes presiding. You may be seated." You, Cody, and Rebecca remained standing to be sworn in.

When you all sat back in your seats, your leg was already bouncing up and down. Cody put his hand on your knee to stop you, making you look at him. He gave you a reassuring smile and you warily turned back to the judge as you wiggled your hand under his to lace your fingers together.

"Ms. Wilhelm," the judge spoke, reading from the paper in front of her, "What seems to be the issue with Mr. and Mrs. Carson?"

"Well, Your Honor, they stole my baby from me," Rebecca answered, making you roll your eyes slightly.

"And why does this woman believe you've stolen the child?" she asked you and Cody.

"Because they did!" Rebecca squeaked.

"I was not speaking to you, Ms. Wilhelm," the judge said firmly before looking back at you, "Mrs. Carson-" Your heart skipped a beat as you hoped you would be able to find your voice to answer her. "-would you care to elaborate on that?"

"We-" You cleared your voice when it cracked and Cody squeezed your hand lightly. "-We adopted Gracie from an agency a couple hours away," you explained.

"Homeland Adoption in Orlando, correct?"

"Yes, ma'am," you nodded.

"How long had the child been there before you were legally given guardianship?"

"We were told a little under a year."

"Ms. Wilhelm, where were you throughout the duration of this year?"

"Looking for my daughter," she answered, "Wondering where the hell she was."

"Why was she placed into the adoption system?" Judge Rhodes asked. Rebecca didn't answer at first, earning a raised eyebrow from the woman on the bench. " _Ms. Wilhelm_ ," she said sternly, " _Why was the child in the system_?" When Rebecca remained silent, she turned back to you. "Mrs. Parson," Judge Rhodes addressed Rachel, "You're the adoption agent who worked with both the child and the adoptive parents, correct?"

"Yes, Your Honor," your agent nodded.

"Why was she in the system?" she asked.

"Gracie was left at a doctor's office when she was a baby," Rachel explained exactly the way she did when she was telling you and Cody about her, "Officials had tried to contact Ms. Wilhelm as well as other family members  _countless_  times without ever receiving any response. We even tried  _ourselves_  once Gracie came into our care to contact her-" She motioned toward Rebecca. "-but we never heard back, so we had no choice but to place the child in the system."

"And in your professional opinion, has the child's life improved?"

"I couldn't have picked a  _better_  couple to adopt her," Rachel smiled, making you and Cody do the same, "I've updated the foster parents on Gracie a few times and they've been so happy to hear that she's doing as well as she is. She would have nightmares almost every night and she was incredibly weary of new people, but I really do think that being with Mr. and Mrs. Carson is what's best for her."

"Then in light of the events leading up to the adoption of the child, the court rules in favor of the adoptive parents," Judge Rhodes announced, "In the matter of Rebecca Wilhelm versus Cody and Y/N Carson, this case is dismissed." She hit the gavel and you smiled as widely as you did the day you found out Gracie would be your daughter.

You heard Gracie ask Stephanie if that meant she would get to stay with you and Cody and when Stephanie said yes, the little girl suddenly slid off of her lap.

" _Gracie_!" Stephanie exclaimed in a whisper, making your head snap over to where she was sitting.

You watched a small head of brown hair run to the door that led to the seating area of the courtroom. Gracie pushed it open and you jumped up as she ran to you.

" _Mommy_!" she said happily when you picked her up and holding her on your hip as you hugged her tightly. Rebecca started shouting at you and Cody, prompting the judge to order her to be escorted out of the room.

You felt one of Gracie's arms loosen as she reached for Cody, signaling him to join you two. He smiled brightly, coming up behind you and wrapping one of his arms around Gracie, resting right on top of yours, and the other wrapping around your lower waist, his thumb landing on your hipbone so he could rub it gently. Cody kissed the skin right behind your ear, mumbling an ' _I love you, princess_ ' before pressing his lips to Gracie's forehead and telling her the exact same thing.


	259. Temporary Home (Cody Carson) - Part 3

**Cody's POV** **;** **Saturday morning**

"Princess, you  _know_  we don't eat ice cream for breakfast, so just tell Daddy how many pancakes you want," Cody said for what felt like the hundredth time.

This argument had been going on for a  _good_  10 minutes now – Gracie wanting ice cream instead of the pancakes she'd asked her dad to make the night before when he was putting her to bed. To be quite honest, Cody was starting to lose his patience with her, but he remained calm, continuing his work at the stove.

You were still in bed, your husband giving you as much time to sleep as he could before breakfast was ready. He knew Gracie would have listened to you the  _moment_  you told her no, but she was Daddy's little girl and she  _knew that_ , so she tried  _everything_  she could to get what she wanted from him when you weren't there. Cody wasn't giving in, however, but Gracie wasn't going down without a fight.

"But  _Daddy_!" she whined, hitting her foot on the hardwood floor since she was standing in the kitchen with him.

"No buts, princess," he stated, "You know the rules."

"I  _hate you_ ," the toddler mumbled, stomping her way to her bedroom. Cody simply sighed, going about his business.

~

**Your POV**

You trudged down the stairs a few minutes later, having finally just woken up. Cody was finishing up with breakfast at the stove, so you walked up behind him, wrapping your arms around his waist.

"I was wondering when I would see Sleeping Beauty again," he snickered, earning himself a light slap to the chest from you.

"What're you making?" you asked, laying your head on his shoulder.

"Pancakes."

"Chocolate chip?"

"Is there any  _other way_  to make them?" he grinned, turning his head so he could kiss your temple.

"I  _love you_ ," you sighed dramatically.

"At least  _someone_  does," he commented. You picked yourself up, releasing his waist so you could move to the counter. You leaned back against the granite, facing your husband.

"What does  _that_  mean?" you asked him.

"Nothing," Cody shook his head, "Gracie just said she hates me."

"Why would she say  _that_?" you furrowed your eyebrows.

"Wouldn't let her have ice cream until after breakfast."

"You know she didn't  _mean it_ , right?" you asked softly.

"I know," he mumbled, "But it's still not fun to  _hear it_."

"Well, I could  _never_  hate you," you said, kissing his cheek, "That's gotta count for  _something_ , right?"

"Remember in high school when I accidentally stepped on your homecoming dress and it ripped?" Cody smiled slightly, "You said you hated me and wouldn't talk to me that  _whole week_  after."

"Did I  _mean it_?" you countered with a smile of your own, wrapping your arms around his neck.

Since the pancakes were done, he put the last one on the plate and turned off the stove before turning to you. His hands landed on your hips, pulling your body to his.

"Maybe," he answered with a shrug, "You never  _actually_  said you forgive me." You couldn't help but laugh, leaning forward and kissing him.

"I forgive you," you said, your voice muffled a bit by his lips, "It was an ugly dress anyway."

"It really was," he nodded. You hit his cheek playfully and he chuckled, "But you made it look  _absolutely beautiful_." You grinned, pressing your lips to his again.

"I'll go get Gracie," you said when you pulled back. But Cody grabbed your hand as you walked away, bringing you back to him.

"M'not done with you yet," he stated lowly, just before his lips smashed back onto yours.

You were kissing each other for a few minutes when you made a comment about breakfast getting cold. Cody pulled away, making sure his pout was incredibly prominent. You giggled softly at him, pecking his lips one last time before he released you and allowed you to go get your daughter so you could all eat.

"Gracie," you said once you entered her bedroom after knocking on the door, "It's time to eat, baby."

"I want  _ice cream_ ," she mumbled, not looking away from the teddy bear on her lap as she sat on her bed.

"You can have ice cream later, but you have to eat breakfast first," you informed her.

"No, want ice cream  _now_."

"You  _know_  the rules, Gracie," you said firmly.

"Your rules are  _dumb_." You sighed to yourself, grabbing the door knob once again.

"Well, when you decide that you want ice cream bad enough, you can come into the kitchen and eat your pancakes first," you said, closing the door and walking back out.

~

Later that day, you had gotten Gracie dressed before you went grocery shopping since she was  _refusing_  to speak to her dad, obviously still mad she couldn't have ice cream for breakfast. She  _begged_  to go to the store with you instead of wherever Cody was going that afternoon, but you told her she couldn't. You knew she was going to ask you for candy – she  _always_  did – and to be honest, you didn't feel like she was behaving well enough to get any, so you told her she had to go with Cody instead.

She didn't know where Cody was going, but she had a frown on her face as he lifted her into her car seat and buckled her in before getting in the car himself and pulling out of the driveway.

**Cody's POV**

About 20 minutes later, Cody pulled into the courthouse parking lot. Gracie looked out the window beside her and saw Rachel standing there, making her eyes widen. He only had to finalize some last-minute paperwork from the adoption agency, but  _Gracie_  didn't know that.

Cody got out of the car, unbuckled the little girl and went to pick her up so he could get her out, but she immediately started panicking.

" _No_!" Gracie screeched, kicking her legs and pushing his hands away from her, "I don't  _wanna_  go back!" Cody tilted his head, furrowing his eyebrows at the toddler.

"Go back  _where_?" he asked.

"I wanna stay and have ice cream  _after_  breakfast and listen to Mommy read to me before bed and sing princess songs with you and I don't  _wanna_  not have a Mommy and Daddy anymore!"

"Gracie, what are-" She cut him off with tears streaming down her face, gripping onto her teddy bear like her life depended on it.

"You're gonna send me back!" she cried, pointing at Rachel, "You're mad I said I hate you and you're gonna send me back!"

"Princess," he sighed, putting his hand on her head and leaning over to kiss her forehead, "No one's sending you back  _or_  taking you away." She looked up at him and he grabbed the bottom of his shirt, wiping her cheeks for her. "You're going to get in trouble sometimes, but that doesn't mean that Mommy and I are going to  _leave you_ ," he told her, "We love you  _very much_ , Gracie." The three-year-old held her free arm up, silently telling Cody that she wanted him to pick her up. He did so and she wrapped her arm around his neck tightly with no signs of letting go anytime soon.

"I don't hate you, Daddy," she sniffled, "I love you a lot."

"I know, princess," he smiled, shutting the car door and beginning to walk toward Rachel, "I love you too."

~

When the paperwork was all done, Cody buckled Gracie back into her car seat. As he pulled out of the parking lot and stopped at the red light, he looked in the rearview mirror at his daughter.

"What do you think about surprising Mommy at the store?" he suggested.

"And making sure she's getting dinosaur chicken nuggets?" Gracie asked, making him laugh.

"What are we going to do if she put  _regular_  chicken nuggets in the cart?"

"We switch them before she sees!"

"Okay," he grinned, " _You_  distract her while  _l_  switch the bags." She giggled quietly, looking out her window and watching everything pass by on the way to the store.

Cody managed to park in the spot right behind your car, making sure to park as  _close_  as he could because he  _knew_  how much it annoyed you when you didn't have enough space to put the groceries in the trunk. He got Gracie out of her seat, making sure she was holding his hand as he led her to the door.

The two walked through the store, hoping you were still there and not already in the checkout. Luckily, you were, and they found you in the frozen foods aisle where the chicken nuggets were.

"Here's what we're gonna do," Cody whispered, kneeling down to Gracie's level, "You go over and distract Mommy while I go around to the other side where the chicken nuggets are. If there's already a bag in the cart, just give me a thumbs up, got it?" Gracie nodded and hugged her teddy bear close to her as Cody nudged her into the aisle. He waited until he heard her speak before jogging down the aisle next to it, knowing you were aware of her presence now.

"Hi, Mommy," Gracie said, making you spin around. You furrowed your eyebrows, looking behind her as you wondered how she got there.

"Hey, baby..." you said slowly, "When did you get here?"

"I dunno," she shrugged nonchalantly, "A couple seconds ago."

"Well, where's Daddy?"

She didn't answer you that time, she simply just stood up on her toes and looked into your cart. When she looked behind you, you watched her hold her thumb up and you turned to find your husband coming up to you.

"What are you guys doing?" you gave them a confused laugh as Cody scooped Gracie up and held her on his hip.

"Just making sure," Cody shrugged.

"About?"

"Dinosaur chicken nuggets!" your daughter chirped.

"I have two  _children_  to take care of; You think I don't know what shape of chicken nuggets to get?" you teased, tickling her stomach and making her squeal with laughter.

" _Hey_!" Cody pouted.

"You love dinosaur chicken nuggets  _just_  as much as she does," you winked, "Don't lie to yourself." You all got the rest of the groceries together and went through the checkout before heading back outside.

When you got back to your car, you noticed that Cody had parked  _unreasonably_  close to your bumper.

" _Cody Charles Carson_ ," you scolded, making him snicker.

"Yes, dear?" he returned innocently.

"If you do not move your car in the next 10 seconds, I will-" Cody cut you off, pressing his lips to yours. You let out a displeased breath through your nose but kissed him back anyway.

"You love me," he grinned against your lips before pulling back.

"I do," you nodded, "But I'll still-"

" _Alright, alright_ ," he sighed dramatically, passing Gracie onto you, " _I'm moving it_."


	260. When You Feel Too Much (Calum Hood) - Part 1

You weaved through the sea of people, cursing your best friend under your breath. Calum knew parties weren't your scene – you'd rather spend Saturday night curled up on your couch and watching a movie with him – but you made him a deal: He'd spend last Saturday with you, and you'd go to a party that next Friday with him. And boy, was it coming back to haunt you.

You couldn't find Calum anywhere and honestly, you were starting to think about ditching the party altogether, but you didn't. You knew you would get upset with him if he bailed on you after promising you something, so you just dealt with it. You continued your search until you found yourself in dire need of a bathroom. You trudged upstairs, knocking on and opening random doors – you had no idea whose house this was, so you couldn't ask where the bathroom was at. You opened the first door on the left, sure it was the bathroom, but it wasn't.

However, you  _did_  find the boy you'd been looking for for the past 10 minutes. Unfortunately, being straddled by a random girl as she sucked on his neck wasn't exactly how you were hoping to find him. You let out a quiet sigh and went to close the door, but Calum's voice stopped you.

"Hey, Y/N," he said, grunting and gripping the girl's hips tightly as she bit his weak spot.

"Hi, Cal," you said softly, "Sorry for interrupting."

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah... Have you been here before?" He hummed lowly, but you weren't sure whether or not it was an answer to your question or the girl biting down again. Either way, you continued. "Where's the bathroom?"

"Right across the hall," he gasped lightly before grabbing her face and kissing her lips roughly.

"Thanks," you mumbled, closing the door and turning around.

You knocked on the door softly and when you didn't hear anything back, you slowly turned the knob, praying no one was there. You sighed in relief at the emptiness of the room and quickly shut the door behind you, locking yourself in. You did everything you needed to, and then looked in the mirror after you dried your hands. You fixed a few strands of hair that were out of place and slowly put your hand back down on the counter top. You were silently staring back at yourself, but mentally, you were anything but.

You were used to Calum doing this – making you go out with him only to have him disappear somewhere with a girl that he would never speak to again – so you couldn't really say you were surprised. But you didn't think it would kill him to at least  _act like_  he wanted you there when there were pretty girls around. You obviously told him time and time again about how you were feeling, but he never changed anything. That was just who he was; He didn't care about others, he only cared about himself. As far as you were concerned, he didn't have any real emotions whatsoever.

"Y/N?" you heard suddenly, making you jump. You turned to look at the door as if staring at it long enough would help you see who was on the other side. "You still in there?" You sighed at hearing Calum's voice, taking a deep breath to compose yourself before reaching for the knob and opening the door. He shot you the heart-stopping smile that reeled you in in the first place. "You okay?" he asked. You simply nodded. "When did you get here?"

"Probably 15 minutes ago or something," you shrugged. Calum put his arm around your shoulders and began leading you downstairs to the kitchen.

"You should have texted me," he said.

"And ruin the make out session?"

"Come on," he squeezed you slightly before letting go to get a drink, "You know you're my number one girl." He looked up at you, "You want one?" You shook your head and he leaned onto the counter beside you, taking a sip. "You'll always be my number one girl," he reminded you. Your mouth twitched into a small smile, but it quickly faded when you heard a voice behind you.

"Hey, Cal." The flirty tone in her voice honestly made you want to throw up.

"Hi, Veronica," Calum smiled back.

The blonde came up beside him, putting her hands on his shoulder and leaning on his arm. She looked at you out of the corner of her eye, a mischievous grin on her face and what appeared to be a bit of a glare in her eyes.

"It's been a while since I've seen you," she commented, moving her mouth closer and closer to his ear. You rolled your eyes, knowing what she was doing. "Maybe we could go upstairs and catch up?"

"I'm talking to Y/N right now, but I'll meet you up there in a few minutes," he told her.

"Oh, I'm sure Y/N won't mind. Would you, Y/N?" she giggled, biting his earlobe lightly.

"Actually, I-"

You were cut off by Veronica pulling his arm as she left your side, taking him back to the stairs. You swallowed thickly, not even noticing that Calum had seen the defeated look on your face, and looked over just in time to see the two disappear around the corner.

"Number one girl  _my ass_ ," you mumbled to yourself, making your way to the front door so you could go home.

You were jealous; You  _knew_  you were jealous. All you wanted was for Calum to want you the way he wanted other girls, you just wanted him to want you for  _longer_  too. But you knew that would never happen. It wasn't in Calum's nature to have anything but one night stands.

And as much as you wanted him in that way, you didn't want to be a one-time thing.

~

It wasn't until the next evening that you heard from Calum again. He texted you asking you to come over and hang out. You were sure he just wanted to brag about the other girls he got with at the party after you left, but that was another thing about Calum; No matter the reason you thought he wanted to see you, you could never say no.

You walked to Calum's apartment building, surprised to find him already waiting outside for you. He smiled brightly the moment he saw you, hopping up from the bench outside the door.

"Hey, stranger," he said, pulling you into him by your waist. You smiled instinctively, your face finding his neck as you hugged him back. "I missed you last night," he told you, moving away. You both sat on the bench side-by-side.

"In between the breaths you took during your make out sessions?" you couldn't help but let out a light chuckle.

"Hey, I missed you  _during_  them too," he smirked.

You scrunched your face up, "Well, it's nice to know you still think of me while you're sucking face with another girl. I'm surprised you're not at another party right now, to be honest."

"I was," he answered, "Decided to come home early though."

"Oh, and how did you get all those girls to stop throwing themselves at you long enough to leave?" you asked.

"It was tough, but I finally got away from 'em," he replied, a cocky grin on his face. You rolled your eyes, tempted to tell him you weren't trying to be humorous, but obviously deciding against it.

"I feel so honored that you would ditch all of them for me."

"Well, like I said: You're my number one girl," he shrugged, "And you don't try so hard to get my attention."

"I don't  _try_ at all," you reminded him, a bit of a dry tone to your voice. He looked at you for a moment, watching the way the setting sun reflected off your eyes as you stared up at the sky.

**Calum's POV**

_Flashback_

Calum started falling for you the first time he ever laid eyes on you six years ago – and,  _God_ , did he hate himself for it. You were an office runner in high school – one of the students who went around the school to deliver things to teachers and call for other students to come to the office – and you had come into his Lit class one afternoon in your senior year. He felt his heart skip a beat as you smiled at his teacher. He remembered your exact words – " _Is Calum Hood here?_ " – very well; He couldn't get them out of his head the rest of the week no matter how hard he tried.

His teacher motioned toward him and you both locked eyes. Calum swallowed thickly, getting up from his seat and following you out of the room. Despite his awe of you, he went back to being his cocky self – he had a reputation to uphold and he'd be damned if it was going to be ruined.

"They sending escorts out now?" Calum spoke roughly. It was meant to be intimidating, but you saw right through it, not even phased in the slightest.

"Mr. Murphy said you rarely ever show up when you're called so whoever pulled you out of class had to walk with you," you shrugged, "I drew the short straw."

"Ouch," he chuckled, "Anyone else would have jumped at the chance to pull me out of class."

"Obviously not  _anyone_ ," you reminded him, a small smile on your face. Calum looked at you, and it was in that moment that he knew he was never going to be the same.

_End flashback_

**Your POV**

"We're pretty close, right?" Calum suddenly asked, making you raise an eyebrow at him, "Like, we can talk about anything?"

"I like to think so," you replied. He kept his gaze on the cars passing by rather than on you. "Cal," you said, making him feel weak, "You okay?"

"Yeah, I just... I have to get something off my chest and I don't know how you'll react."

"What do you mean?"

"I love you," he whispered before he backed out completely, "I'm in love with you, Y/N." Your heart skipped a beat, but then you felt more pain than anything else.

"No, you aren't," you sighed, making him look up at you. You were shaking your head, "I don't know why you think you are, but you aren't. You're incapable."

"Y/N, I'm not-"

"You know just as well as I do that you're an emotionless heartbreaker and you are mentally incapable of having real feelings for  _anyone_ ," you stated through gritted teeth, "You will never be with a girl until morning, and if you  _are_ , it's because you were too wasted to drag your ass back home the night before." You took in a shaky breath, finally looking at him. He had a hurt expression on his face, but you didn't stop. "Do you have  _any_  idea what it's like to be in love with someone for six years but know that nothing could ever happen?" Calum's heart started racing at the confession. "I've sat on my feelings for so long and listened to you brag about sleeping with  _girl after girl_ , promising to call them the next day and then you never do... I've seen what you do to girls, Calum – the games you play with their hearts – and I am  _not_  going to be another victim." He looked like he'd just been punched in the stomach, but he was desperately trying not to show it.

"Y/N, I-" You shook your head again, cutting him off.

"Save it," you told him, getting up, "I don't wanna hear it." You walked away, hoping Calum wouldn't come after you.

And he didn't.

~

**One week later**

You wish you could say you were surprised when you didn't hear from Calum for the next few days. Unfortunately, you would have been lying to yourself if you had. In fact, you didn't hear from anyone else that knew him either. You were sure at least  _one_ of his friends would call and ask what was up with him if he seemed as hurt as he had when you left, but  _nothing_. You hadn't heard a single word about Calum; Until that Thursday night.

Calum had texted you completely out of the blue, telling you he was outside your apartment building, but the door was locked so he couldn't get in. You reread the text probably ten times before sighing to yourself. It was the same every time; You just couldn't say no to Calum.

He smiled weakly at you the moment you opened the main door, giving you a soft greeting. You walked back to your apartment in silence, the elevator ride up the two floors being the most uncomfortable you'd ever felt when you were with him. You both sat on the bar stools at your kitchen counter when you got back to your apartment, sitting in silence for a couple minutes.

"I-I'm not emotionless," Calum started rambling quietly, "At least not when I'm with you. If anything, I feel  _too much_  when I'm with you – I have since you pulled me out of class junior year. You've never meant  _nothing_  to me, Y/N, and you know that; You've been my number one girl since the day we met. Please, Y/N. I... I can commit to one girl,  _I know I can_.  _Please_  let me prove that to you."

You stared at him, closely studying the look on his face. When you were still silent after a few moments, Calum swallowed the lump in his throat. He shut his eyes for a moment before getting up and walking away.

And it was like that was what you needed to snap out of your trance.

"Cal!" you called after him when he reached the door, jumping up from your seat.

He spun around just as you stopped abruptly at the doorway to the living room, only a few feet away from him. You both looked at each other for a couple seconds before you asked him the only thing that could convince you to agree.

"When did you realize you were in love with me?" you asked. Calum let out a breathy chuckle, swallowing again.

"The night of senior prom," he answered, "I remember begging you to be my date for at least three months, and I felt like my heart was going to come out of my chest when you said yes. I knew we were only going as friends, but we were still going  _together_  and that was good enough for me. We'd just gotten back to my parents' house and changed out of our clothes and into our sweats and I swear, I'd never seen anything as beautiful as you when you came out of my bathroom wearing the shirt I had on earlier that day." He was smiling fondly at the memory and you felt your heart flutter. "We were lying on my bed watching some stupid TV show that isn't even on anymore, but you'd fallen asleep halfway through," he went on, "I remember looking at you right before I fell asleep myself and the  _only_  thing I could think about was how lucky I'd be if I got to fall asleep and wake up like that every single day." He shook his head lightly, letting out another breath, "I know I should have told you sooner. I know I should have told you how I felt the moment I started feeling all of it, but I couldn't. I didn't want to ruin what we had and I didn't think I'd be good enough for you; I  _still_  don't think I'm good enough for you, but I can't keep it in anymore either. I know I've never really been in love before, but I know that I'm in love with you.  _God_ , Y/N, I'm so in love with you."

That time, you didn't wait another second before you closed the gap between you and Calum. He barely had time to react before your hands were on his cheeks and his lips were on yours, but he  _certainly_  wasn't going to complain. He just snaked his arms around your lower waist and pulled you into him. You let out a breath, letting one arm wrap around his neck while the other remained on his cheek, running back and forth along his cheekbone.

You finally had to pull away for air, but your face was still only centimeters away from his.

"I'm in love with you too, Cal," you murmured, making his face turn a light shade of red as he smiled, "I just-"

"I know you're worried," he stopped you, "I know you feel like this is too good to be true. But I  _promise_  you, I am going to make you the happiest girl in the world. You deserve to be treated like a princess every single day and I am  _not_  about to miss my chance at being the person who does it." You couldn't help but blush, pecking his lips quickly.

"I love you, Cal," you whispered, your lips brushing against his.

"I love you so much, Y/N," he replied just as quietly, giving your waist a light squeeze. It was silent for a few more seconds, both of you just enjoying being so close to each other, before Calum spoke again. "I've got pizza and a movie already waiting at my place if you wanna come over..." he trailed off with a shy grin. You cocked an eyebrow, trying to hide your own smile.

"How did you know I was going to say yes?" you asked curiously. Calum simply let his smile get bigger, pushing his lips onto yours.

"You can never say no to me," he mumbled into your mouth, earning him a light slap to the cheek as you kissed him harder.

~

_inspiration: http://hoe4luke.tumblr.com/post/134676266273/mess-calum-hood-part-3_

 


	261. When You Feel Too Much (Calum Hood) - Part 2

 

A couple months later, you found yourself at another party. Calum wouldn't stop begging you to go, so you eventually caved in just so he would shut up. You were a little more okay with it these days though since you knew Calum wouldn't be ditching you for other girls now that you were together.

You had just walked into the house when you felt someone's arms wrap around your waist. The boy trailed kisses along your skin starting on your shoulder and ending on your ear. You just grinned – you knew that unusually warm body anywhere.

"Thought you'd never show up," Calum said lowly in your ear. You giggled softly, shaking your head.

"You're lucky I'm here at all," you replied.

"I know, I know," he said dramatically, "You're only here because you love me."

"Actually, I'm only here because that means I don't have to buy my own alcohol," you smirked. Calum turned you around and quickly sandwiched you between his body and the counter.

"Do you want to repeat that, princess?" he asked roughly, but it was painfully obvious he was trying not to smile. You simply grinned at him.

"I love you, Cal," you murmured, pecking his nose. He instantly broke his serious expression.

"I love you, princess," he replied, kissing your lips quickly. He scooted to the empty space beside you so you could turn around and pour yourself a drink while he got his own.

You and Calum went to sit on the couch in the living room where there weren't that many people. You were sitting beside the armrest and Calum was partly sitting on the middle seat, but most of where he was sitting was right up against you. You laughed quietly as he grabbed your legs and pulled them up to rest over his. He had his hand on your thigh and his other elbow resting just below your knee so he could still take sips of his drink every now and then. He laid his head on your shoulder and you wrapped your arm around him so your upper arm was resting on his back and your fingers were running through his hair.

You talked about nonsensical things for a good 10 minutes before anyone even realized Calum was sitting there.

"Hey, Cal," a brown-haired girl plopped down onto the couch next to him. You were sure that had your legs not already been there, she definitely would have taken a seat on his lap.

"Hey, Mandy," he mumbled, reluctantly lifting his head off of your shoulder, making you stop playing with his hair. He didn't seem to be the least bit interested in having any sort of conversation with this girl, but he didn't want to be rude either. You swallowed the lump in your throat, staring down at Calum's hand on your lap.

"You said you were gonna call me after the last party but you never did," she pouted, running her fingers up his arm.

Calum politely pushed her hand back to her lap, making her furrow her eyebrows in confusion – you knew this girl was one of the rare ones Calum would hook up with more than once and each time, he was completely willing to let her touch him, so she was obviously confused as to what was wrong with it now.

"Anyway," she said, putting her flirty face back on, "It's kinda loud, so I was wondering if you'd wanna go upstairs with me."

"It's a party, Mandy," Calum said, "It's going to be loud. If it's too loud for you, then maybe you should just go home."

"Will you take me there?" she stuck out her bottom lip.

"I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm kind of with someone already," he stated. Mandy looked at you and cocked an eyebrow, an amused smirk on her face.

"I'm sure she won't mind," she told Calum as she kept her gaze on you. You forced a smile, grabbed your cup, and lifted your legs off of his.

"Of course not," you replied, getting up and going into the kitchen, ignoring Calum as he called your name.

You threw your cup into the trashcan, pausing to determine your next move. You knew Calum would see you leave if you left through the front door, but you really didn't want to deal with all the drunkards in the backyard. You opted for the front, taking your chances with being spotted.

As you passed the living room, you saw Calum say something to Mandy out of your peripheral vision and her jaw dropped as he jumped up. Your eyes widened, knowing he was coming after you, so you picked up your pace.

" _Girlfriend_?!" you heard Mandy shout just before you closed the door behind you.

You just made it to the sidewalk in front of the house next door before you heard Calum running up to you. You kept walking with your head down, not wanting him to see the tears welling up in your eyes. It was a pointless endeavor though, because he knew; Calum always knew.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," he said softly, grabbing your hand to make you stop walking. He quickly got in front of you and turned to face you. He put his hands on your face and lifted your head up so you could see how confused he really was. "What was that about?" he asked, wiping the tears that had managed to escape already.

"Why are you out here?" you mumbled, avoiding his question as well as his gaze.

"Because my girlfriend's upset and I can tell it's my fault," he answered, "Now what did I do wrong?"

You let out a barely audible, bitter laugh. You grabbed his hands, pulling them off of your face so you could brush past him and start walking again. You didn't make it more than a few feet though because Calum wasn't letting you leave without an answer.

"Y/N," he said firmly, reaching for your elbow and moving in front of you for the second time, "What did I do?"

"Nothing," you shrugged. He threw his head back for a moment and sighed, listening to you as you went on. "I should be used to girls throwing themselves at you by now," you said.

"Is that what this is about?" he looked back at you, releasing your elbow, "You thought it would just  _stop_  when everyone found out you're my girlfriend?"

"I knew it was going to keep happening, Calum!" you exclaimed, "What I have a problem with is when you just  _let it_!"

"What do you want me to do, announce that I have a girlfriend every time I walk into a room?" he scoffed.

"Don't be ridiculous," you rolled your eyes, crossing your arms over your stomach.

"Then I don't know what you  _want_  from me, Y/N!" he let out a defeated sigh, slumping his shoulders, "I obviously wasn't going to go upstairs with her!"

"That's not the point, Cal!" you swallowed thickly, "The point is it would be nice if you'd tell whatever girl is trying to get in your pants that you've got a girlfriend the moment she starts being flirty with you!"

"If you want me to do that, then I will," he said softly, "I'll do anything, okay? Just don't leave me."

You let out a breath, stepping forward and taking his cheeks in your hands. His eyes were glossed over, but he wasn't crying. This was the most vulnerable you'd ever seen him though, and it broke your heart knowing you unintentionally caused it.

"I'm not gonna leave, Cal," you said reassuringly, stroking his cheekbones with your thumbs. His hands found your hips and he held on tightly, not wanting you to try and walk away again.

"I'm trying," he choked, "I'm trying  _so hard_ not to screw this up, princess. But I've never had a girlfriend and I've never been in love and I have  _no idea_  what the hell I'm doing."

"I know you don't," you reminded him, "And I know I need to remember that when things like this happen, but it hurts. It hurts when you have all these girls looking at you and wanting to sleep with you and I just-" You paused to take a shaky breath, making Calum tilt his head. "-I don't get why you'd want  _me_ when you can have any of them," you admitted, casting your gaze down to the collar of his shirt. Calum was silent for a moment, just taking in how vulnerable you yourself were, his heart aching at the sight of it.

"Princess," he muttered, rubbing your hipbones, "Please look at me." You reluctantly did so, your eyes meeting his. "You're  _so_  beautiful, princess – I don't know why you can't see that. Any guy would be lucky to have you, and the fact that you chose the  _last_ person who deserves you baffles me every single day I get to wake up knowing you're mine." He kissed your nose and you grinned slightly, making him smile. "I love you so much, princess," he went on, "Not a single one of those girls at any of these parties or  _anywhere else_  is ever going to change that."

You didn't respond, you simply reached up, pressing your lips to his roughly. You felt him smile as his arms snaked the rest of the way around your waist, pulling you into him so there was no space between your bodies.

"You know," Calum said, the words brushing against your lips, "You're the only girl I've ever really wanted to sleep with." You laughed at the sudden outburst, deciding to take it as a compliment. You kissed him one more time before wiggling out of his arms and walking away again.

"Maybe," you smirked, winking at him as you passed by.

"W-Wait," he stuttered, spinning around, "What... What does that mean?" You began chewing on your lip, but you didn't look back at him.

"It means you better hope you remembered the key to your apartment this time," you replied. Calum's eyes widened as he raced after you, now  _completely_  understanding what you were trying to say.

 


	262. Happily (Michael Clifford)

You trudged into the studio for your last class of the day – your dance class – just wanting to go home so you could lie down and take a nap. You were already exhausted and although this was your favorite class, you were already over it. The only thing that kept you from skipping was the fiery redhead you looked forward to spending 70 minutes near every other day.

Michael Clifford certainly didn't  _look_ like a dancer – he looked like he belonged in a gang, to be honest – but when he stepped into the studio, he was an entirely different person. You absolutely envied the way he moved and how much he put into dancing and maybe one day, you'd be brave enough to tell him that.

But today was not that day.

You stayed off to the side of the room while you followed your teacher's instructions on breathing exercises and such for the next hour. You were all standing in front of the large mirror so you could watch yourselves, but you couldn't help but notice the pair of eyes on you. Michael was in the middle of the room – right up front – and there was no question that he was watching you instead of himself. You ignored it though, figuring he was just mentally making fun of you.

 _Well, look on the bright side, Y/N_ , you thought to yourself,  _At least he's not vocal about it like everyone else is._

"Good work today, guys," Mrs. Russo smiled, "Now if you'll all come over here, I've got an announcement." You all gathered in the middle of the room, sitting on the floor and silently waiting for her to continue. "As you all know, I've been trying to organize a showcase this year for the entire school, and administrators finally gave me a go-ahead on it," she grinned, "The performance will be on December 19th, so you and your partner have the next two and a half months to prepare for it. I will be assigning partners and it  _will_ be for a grade."

Your heart started racing at the possibility of being partners with Michael, but you quickly shook it off; You were never  _that_  lucky.

"I want you and your partner to choose a song that speaks to both of you and create a dance around that song," she continued, "You will both be graded on how well you can choreograph a routine as well as how well you work and move together. I will email the schedule for each pair's time in the studio tonight when I'm finished getting it all sorted out. I won't be here with any of you as you come up with your routines, so the showcase will be the first time I'll see anything you've created."

Mrs. Russo then named off the pairs and, much to your dismay, you weren't paired with Michael. But you couldn't say you didn't see it coming. What you  _could_  say you didn't see coming, however, was the look on Michael's face. He seemed  _disappointed_ that he wasn't your partner. But maybe you were just seeing things. Instead, with your luck, you were paired up with  _Jackson Hughes_.

Everyone knew Jackson had only signed up for the class because his dad threatened not to pay for his tuition once he got to college unless he did something that  _didn't_  involve partying while he was still in high school. And apparently, that  _something_ was this dance class. He always made it a point to cause trouble – whether that be screwing around while Mrs. Russo was speaking or humiliating another classmate during free time. And somehow, that classmate he humiliated always seemed to be  _you_.

"Get with your partners and begin discussing what you'd like to perform," Ms. Russo said, allowing everyone to talk amongst each other.

"What if our partner makes us feel uncomfortable?" Jackson announced loudly as everyone stood up. You remained on the floor, swallowing the lump in your throat and desperately trying to hold in the tears of embarrassment threatening to fall down your cheeks.

"Then you can find someone to switch with despite the fact that you know that's not true," she said monotonously. You appreciated the effort, of course, but that didn't make you feel any better.

"Who would want to be with  _her_?" he laughed bitterly. You pursed your lips and closed your eyes, concentrating on not crying when you heard the last person you expected to hear.

"I'll be her partner." Your eyes shot back open as Michael left his partner's side and came over to you.

"You  _can't_  be serious, Clifford," Jackson scoffed as you stared up at the redhead when he reached down to you. He gave you a small smile, pulling you to your feet before turning his attention back to Jackson.

"You know,  _Hughes_ ," Michael narrowed his eyes at him, "Maybe if you weren't such an ass all the time, people would actually hang out with you for something other than your daddy's money." Your jaw dropped – as did all of your other classmates' – the moment the words left his mouth. Jackson took a step toward Michael, but was intercepted by Mrs. Russo.

"Alright, boys, that's enough," she said firmly, her eyes darting between them before addressing the entire class once again, "Make sure you don't miss the email tonight because I will  _not_  reschedule anything." The final bell rung and you immediately dropped Michael's hand and ran to your dance bag, threw it over your shoulder, and left the building.

You were heading back home – it was times like these you were grateful that you lived a block away from school because, honestly, all you wanted to do was hide under the safety of your blankets – when you heard a voice behind you again. You stopped walking, turning around as Michael came up to you.

"Hey, Y/N," he said, a bit breathless from chasing after you, "I'm really sorry about what happened back there and everything. If you don't want to be partners, I'll just tell Mrs. R and we can-"

"You didn't have to do that, Michael," you practically whispered, "But I'm fine with being paired with you. Unless you don't want to..."

"Of course I  _want_ to," he chuckled confusedly, "I wouldn't have said anything if I didn't."

"Really?"

"Well, yeah," he nodded, "I mean, I've seen you dance and you're  _crazy_ talented. We are  _totally_ gonna own that stage in December."

"Thanks," you blushed lightly.

"You're welcome," he smiled, "Anyway, the reason I stopped you was because I kind of forgot the password to my email account and I was hoping you'd be cool with texting me once you get our studio times and stuff." You couldn't help but giggle.

"Yeah," you nodded, "I can do that."

"Thank you," he sighed in relief, "Here-" He pulled his phone out of his pocket and handed it to you. "-put your number in." You did, texting yourself so you had his as well before giving the phone back. "Cool," he grinned, "I'll see you later." You gave him a small smile, watching as he turned around and trotted away in the direction of the parking lot his car was in.

~

**The next morning**

It was a little before 10am on that Saturday morning and you had just run into the studio. It was raining – not  _too_ hard, but just hard enough that you had to run through it so you didn't get soaked – but that wasn't unusual for the beginning of October. Once you entered the building, you were surprised to find Michael already there waiting for you.

"Didn't expect you to get here early," you said, pulling the redhead's attention away from his phone. He smiled brightly at you, putting the cell on top of his closed gym bag.

"Well, I figured since we're the first ones that get to use the studio, we should take as much advantage of it as we can," he returned.

"So do you have any ideas for a song?" you asked, tossing your bag onto the floor beside Michael's, sitting yourself down next to him, "Because, I'm gonna be honest, I have no clue."

"I do," he nodded. His voice was soft, as if he was nervous about something, making you raise an eyebrow in concern. "I... Um... I was thinking that we could come up with a dance to a song that I wrote..."

"You write songs?" you asked, a bit surprised.

"And play them," he smiled shyly, "It's okay if you don't want to do that though. We can do some other song."

"Well, can I at least hear it first?" you let out a breathy giggle. His eyes widened and he quickly reached back to get his phone.

"I just have a voice memo because I thought it would be weird if I brought my guitar, so I'm sorry if you can't hear it very well," he told you as he sat back upright. You had your elbow on your knee and your chin in your hand, waiting for Michael to play the song for you. "It doesn't have a name yet either, but-" You cut him off.

"Just play it, Mikey," you laughed under your breath. He blushed at the nickname, nodding his head and pressing play on the memo. He turned the volume up and you both sat in silence, listening to the recording of him singing.

_Everybody's got their demons_   
_Even wide awake or dreaming_   
_I'm the one who ends up leaving_   
_Make it okay_

_See a war, I wanna fight it_   
_See a match, I wanna strike it_   
_Every fire I've ignited faded to grey_

_But now that I'm broken_   
_Now that you know it_   
_Caught up in a moment_   
_Can you see inside?_

_'Cause I've got a jet black heart_   
_And there's a hurricane underneath it_   
_Trying to keep us apart_

_I write with a poison pen_   
_But these chemicals moving between us_   
_Are the reason to start again_

_Now I'm holding on for dear life_   
_There's no way that we could rewind_   
_Maybe there's nothing after midnight_   
_That could make you stay_

_But now that I'm broken_   
_And now that you know it_   
_Caught up in a moment_   
_Can you see inside?_

_'Cause I've got a jet black heart_   
_And there's a hurricane underneath it_   
_Trying to keep us apart_

_I write with a poison pen_   
_But these chemicals moving between us_   
_Are the reason to start again_

_The blood in my veins is made up of mistakes_   
_Let's forget who we are and dive into the dark_   
_As we burst into color, returning to life_

_'Cause I've got a jet black heart_   
_And there's a hurricane underneath it_   
_Trying to keep us apart_

_I write with a poison pen_   
_But these chemicals moving between us_   
_Are the reason to start again_

_The blood in my veins is made up of mistakes_   
_Let's forget who we are and dive into the dark_

" _Jet Black Heart_ ," you said after a couple moments of silence when the audio was over. Michael tilted his head, letting out a quiet noise of confusion. "That's the name of the song," you told him, " _Jet Black Heart_." The redhead paused for a moment before slowly nodding in agreement.

"I like it," he said, "Yeah.  _Jet Black Heart_. That's a good name."

"It's a good song," you told him, "So is that like, the one thing that nobody else knows about you: that you play music?"

"Besides my family, obviously," he chuckled with a small shrug, "But other than them, I guess only one person knows." 

"Well, I'm honored," you smiled, nudging his knee. You stood up, holding your hand down to Michael. "Now, how about we get started on choreography?" you chirped, pulling him to his feet.

~

**45 minutes later**

"Okay, how about something like this?" Michael offered, stepping arms-length away from you then motioning for you to spin back into him. You did so, your hand landing on his shoulder and his on your hip. "Like that!" he smiled proudly, "And then we could go into the rest of the dance."

"The rest of the dance that hasn't even been thought of yet," you reminded him, desperately trying to ignore the fact that your faces were mere  _centimeters_  apart.

"You need to stop being so negative and start being appreciative that I'm your partner now and not Jackson," he sassed.

"You know what?" you tried to hold back your smile, "Jackson Hughes may be a total dick and not the least bit interested in the class, but he's still a damn good dancer."

"So am I!" Michael pouted.

"That piece of our three and a half minute long routine that you just came up with involved me moving and you just standing there, Mikey. We've been here for almost an hour and that's all we've come up with."

"That was half a second! I'm not gonna be staying still the whole time!"

"So what? Are we going to stay like this and slow dance for the rest of the song?"

"Think that might hurt our grade a bit," he commented, "Although, I'm not saying I would be opposed to including slow dancing at some point in our routine." You rolled your eyes, removing yourself from his arms and walking over to your bag before he noticed your blush.

You grabbed your water bottle and took a couple sips, taking subtle deep breaths to calm your racing heart. When you recomposed yourself, you put the bottle back on the floor and went to go back to the middle of the room.

However, when you turned around, you bumped right into Michael. He took your hand in his and pulled you back to where you just were. He grabbed your other hand and brought it back to his shoulder before his hand came down to rest on your hip once again.

"And if we  _are_ putting it in," he said softly, leaning his forehead on yours as you began swaying to the sound of the rain hitting the roof, "I think we should practice."

"You wanna know what _I_  think?" you mused, earning a low hum from the boy holding you. "I think that you didn't switch with Jackson just because of what he said about  me."

"Is that so?"

"Mhmm," you nodded, "I think you switched with him because you were jealous." Michael let out a breathy chuckle.

"I think you're completely right," he murmured just before he tilted his head and pressed his lips to yours. Your heart skipped a beat, but you wasted no time in kissing him back. You felt his lips curl up into a smile, making you smile as well.

Michael released your hand, only to put it on your cheek. His thumb stroked your cheekbone gently as he tightened his hold on your waist. Your now free hand rested on the base of his neck, your fingers playing with the soft red strands of hair.

You were the first to pull away, desperately needing to breathe, but you didn't move more than an inch. Your eyes fluttered open at the same time as Michael's and you both smiled shyly.

"You have no idea how long I've been trying to make myself do that," Michael confessed, letting out a nervous chuckle.

"Probably about as long as I've been wanting you to," you giggled softly, making him blush. He leaned in to kiss you again, but the studio doors opening made you jump. The two classmates walking in cut off their conversation when they saw how you and Michael were holding each other.

"Are we interrupting something?" Maria smirked. She was one of the only friends you had, but you never really hung out with her outside of class. You and Michael both blushed, quickly letting go of each other to get your bags.

"N-No," you stuttered, a nervous laugh passing your lips, "We were just, uh, we were just leaving."

"Sure you were," she snickered. You hurriedly stuffed your water bottle, towel, and phone back into your bag and passed Maria and her partner on the way out.

"Okay, have fun, bye," you smiled, pulling the door open and leaving with Michael following close behind you.

"Hey, Y/N," he said, making you look up at him, "Wha-What are you doing today?"

"I don't know," you sighed, thinking about the boring day ahead of you, "Probably just gonna watch movies or take a nap or something."

"Do you... Do you wanna get lunch?" he asked, "L-Like, with me?" You didn't even bother stopping the smile from pulling at the corner of your mouth.

"Can I take a shower first?" you asked. He paused for a moment, then scrunched his face up and nodded.

"Yeah," he said, "We should probably do that. I'll pick you up in an hour?" You nodded and he let out a small sigh of relief. He pressed a quick kiss to your cheek before hurrying away so you didn't notice the bright red blush on his face.

~

**Three months later; Saturday night**

You were standing at the side of the stage with Michael, waiting to go out and perform your routine. You had left the room you were all waiting in several times so you could peek into the audience in search of your parents, but the only thing you could focus on was how many people were there. You didn't think the turn-out would be that large, but the auditorium was packed with parents, teachers, and fellow students. You were pacing around in a corner of the room when you heard a voice behind you.

"Y/N." You spun around to find Michael smiling at you. "You worry too much, you know that?"

"I'm gonna screw up," you whispered, shaking your head, "I know I am."

"You know this routine inside and out, princess," he reminded you, pulling you into a hug and kissing your forehead, "We're gonna do fine. Plus, our folks are taking us out to eat after the show, so at least we have that to look forward to." You couldn't help but let out a small giggle, tilting your head to look up at him. "See?" he grinned, kissing your nose, "There's that smile I love so much."

"Thanks, Mikey," you murmured. He leaned forward to kiss your lips and when you pulled away, one of the stagehands came into the room.

"Last performers are on in two minutes," she announced.

"Oh my God, that's us," your eyes widened.

Michael simply chuckled and let go of you, only to grab your hand and follow the girl out to the side of the stage. He wrapped his arm around your shoulders and yours automatically went around his waist as you watched Maria and her partner finish their routine. When they bowed as it came to an end, you took your arms back so you could clap happily as they came offstage.

"You guys were so good!" you squeaked, giving Maria a hug.

"Thank you," her partner smiled when you hugged him as well, "Try not to make what we did look amateur though." You scoffed lightly, earning a giggle from your friend.

"Stop worrying so much!" she exclaimed, shoving your arm, "You guys are gonna kill it!"

"Stop reading my mind," you sassed, sticking your tongue out at her, a gesture she happily returned as she trotted away. You looked up at Michael one last time and he smiled reassuringly. You pressed a quick kiss to his lips before dashing to the other side of the stage, your actions masked by the curtain next to you.

"Our last performance of the night is to a song that this young man wrote and composed himself," Mrs. Russo announced with a smile, "Here are Michael Clifford and Y/N Y/L/N." You heard her heels click as she walked back offstage and then the unmistakable sounds of your parents cheering along while everyone else just clapped. You let yourself smile, but when the curtains went up and the room went quiet again, you got back into character.

The second the music started, you walked onto the stage, looking around as if you were trying to find someone. You let out the small sigh you were supposed to, then acted surprised when Michael came up behind you and grabbed your hand when the words started coming through the speakers. You spun one time into him – just like you'd done on the first day of rehearsal.

And when the song was over, you finished right where you'd started: in Michael's arms, hearing everyone in the room cheering loudly as he kissed your nose.

~

**Monday afternoon**

You walked into your dance class to hear the excited chatter of your fellow classmates. Today was the day Mrs. Russo was going to tell you what she thought about your routines and what your grade was and you were beyond nervous. You knew you and Michael had done every move you choreographed perfectly, but that still didn't mean she was going to like it. The group was sitting down in the middle of the room, waiting for class to begin, so you set your bag down in the same place you always did and made your way to Michael.

"Hey, princess," he smiled once you sat down next to him, kissing your cheek. You smiled, laying your head on his shoulder as he wrapped his arms around your waist and brought you as close to him as he could get you.

The moment your teacher walked into the studio, you all got quiet. She made her way to the front of the room, leaning against the mirror and facing everyone.

"I just want to start out this class by saying that every one of you did an  _amazing_ job Saturday night," Mrs. Russo smiled brightly, "I was incredibly impressed by your routines and I'm very proud of all of you. I know you guys are eager to know what your grades are and what my thoughts were on your performances individually, but I have an announcement to make first. After the show, I was approached by a couple scouts from Julliard that happened to be there," she explained. You perked up at the mention of Juilliard – it was your dream school, but you knew you could never be able to afford it, so you never bothered applying. "They have offered to give two scholarships to two students in this very room."

Your eyes widened and your heart started racing. But there was  _no way_  you'd be picked for that. Sure, you were a good dancer, but you weren't  _Juilliard good_. You were sure one of the two would be Michael or Jackson – it  _had to be_. They were the best dancers in the room and there was no way you'd be picked over one of them.

"They asked me to help them decide which two students would receive the scholarships," Mrs. Russo went on, "And it was a bit of a tough choice because I loved  _all_  of your performances, but I know that this is the pair that makes most sense."

"Come on, Mrs. R, stop stalling," Jackson smirked, "I think it's pretty obvious who's getting them."

"You're right, Mr. Hughes," she smiled, making his smirk get bigger as she picked up the two documents and walked over to him.

However, at the last second, Mrs. Russo turned to you and Michael since you were sitting right beside Jackson. She smiled again, holding the papers down to you. Your heart skipped a beat as you stared at the paper in front of your face, your name written right in the middle. Michael looked at his own name, a huge grin on his face.

" _What_?!" Jackson shouted. Michael took both papers from your teacher since it was obvious you were in shock.

"Princess," your boyfriend hugged your waist tightly, "I'm so proud of you." You could feel his smile as he kissed your ear. You finally looked up at your teacher.

"Why?" you practically whispered.

"Yeah, why _them_?" Jackson scoffed, "Our dance was  _ten times_  better than theirs."

"First of all; no," Mrs. Russo told Jackson, earning a quiet snicker from everyone in the room as she turned back to you, "Your routine was unlike anything I've seen in all my years of teaching this class, Miss Y/L/N – you as well, Mr. Clifford-" He smiled again, resting his chin on your shoulder as she went on. "There was not one moment in your performance that was boring, and I especially enjoyed the fact that you used an original song. Everything was so well put together that I have no doubts you'll excel in a school like Juilliard."

She went on to tell other students about their routines, but you weren't listening. You were completely spaced out as you stared at the paper on your lap and Michael's. It was almost as if you were trying to convince yourself that Michael's scholarship was real, but yours was some sort of prank or something.

Michael simply held your waist as he listened to Mrs. Russo speak with everyone, but he was still aware of your shock. He had his hand on your thigh, rubbing small circles with his thumb. He kissed your cheek every now and then, earning an involuntary smile from you.

When the final bell rung, you came out of your trance due to everyone congratulating you and Michael on their way out. When the last person left, Michael stood up, reaching down for you. You looked at him for a moment before putting your hand in his and letting him pull you up.

"Are you alright, Miss Y/L/N?" Mrs. Russo asked, coming over to you and Michael, "You've seemed a little out of it." You were staring at the paper in your hand again, making her smile. "I can assure you, dear, it's really yours."

"B-But there are people who deserve it..." you trailed off.

" _And you're one of them_. I meant what I said, you two," she addressed both of you, "I truly believe you deserve to go to that school. Now I want you to go home and show those to your parents because you both should be very proud of yourselves for all that work you put into the last three months."

"See, princess?" Michael grinned, squeezing your hand, "Told you we were gonna own that stage."

You looked at him for a moment before letting it sink in:  _You were going to your dream school_. You finally cracked a smile and released his hand, throwing your arms around his neck and hugging him tightly. He and Mrs. Russo laughed lightly as he hugged you back, softly telling you how proud he was of you.

~

_Song used: "Jet Black Heart" by 5 Seconds of Summer_

 

_inspiration: http://mikeysprinzez.tumblr.com/post/133682504570/51-dancing_


	263. Over and Over (Ashton Irwin)

You were at your house, half-lying on the couch with your legs dangling over the armrest and your head on your best friend's lap. Ashton had come over after receiving a text that you needed to vent to him after a bad date. You'd only gone on a few dates with this guy, but you really like him. Up until the point when he stood you up without so much as sending you a text to let you know he wasn't coming to the restaurant.

Of course, being left alone at a table for two hours in any instance would be enraging, but you found yourself still there even after two hours, clinging onto the hope that he might show up. Once you realized he wasn't going to though, you went home.

You should have seen it coming, honestly; He asked if you could drive there yourself. He didn't do that on any of your other dates; Why would he start now?

Ashton had been playing with your hair, listening to you groan about the failed date for about 20 minutes before he finally said anything since entering the house.

"Can we please stop talking about him now?" Ashton mumbled.

"But that's why I asked you to come over, Ash," you replied, raising an eyebrow.

"I know, but it's getting repetitive."

"What does  _that_  mean?" you asked, sitting up and crossing your arms over your stomach. He sighed – he really wasn't trying to pick a fight, but he knew you weren't going to let it go until you got your answers.

"You always have dates with these guys that you say you really like, and then you come to me a few weeks later to complain about how they hurt you. I don't get it."

"I come to you because you're my best friend, Ashton," you reminded him.

"So is Calum, but you never run crying to him," he scoffed.

"I do not  _run crying_  to you!" you exclaimed, standing up. Ashton got up as well; If you wanted an argument... Well, he  _did_  always end up giving you what you wanted.

"Either way," he stated, " _I'm_  the one that's always there for you, Y/N,  _not him_."

"I know you are!" you said loudly, "That's  _why_  I talk to you about this stuff, Ashton:  _Because you're there for me_!"

"Well, maybe I'm tired of hearing about these dickheads! Did you ever think about  _that_?!"

"If you're so tired of hearing about them, why haven't you said anything?!"

"Because there's no way to say it without telling you I'm in love with you!"

You immediately froze, your eyes almost as wide as Ashton's. You both stared at each other for a moment before he started backing up toward the door, speaking as he did so.

"I'm going home," he murmured, turning the knob.

"Ashton," you choked, "You can't just-"

"I can't watch you keep chasing after guys that aren't me anymore, Y/N," he whispered, "I'm done."

"Ash, I-" You were cut off by the door closing loudly, leaving you in a deafening silence.

~

**Three weeks later**

Another day, another week spent without contact with Ashton. You'd called and texted and even stopped by his house once in a while, but with no luck. You thought the first few times you stopped by the house, Anne would convince him to talk to you, but even she couldn't get him out of his room to do it. You were like a second daughter to her and it honestly broke her heart to see how defeated you looked each time she told you she couldn't do anything. So you eventually just stopped going altogether.

However, one day, you knew Anne, Lauren, and Harry were going to be out, so you decided to try again. You had a spare key – the family had given you one a while ago because you used to pet sit while they went on vacation in the summer, but Anne had you keep it at all times ' _just in case_ ' – so you knew you could get in if Ashton refused to let you in himself.

But when you got to the door, you heard voices. The windows in the living room were open and the voices were really clear, so you knew they had to be there.

You took out your phone, making one last attempt to call Ashton before you let yourself in. You heard his phone go off and he immediately hit the ignore button, making you roll your eyes. You were about to dig your key out of your pocket when you heard Calum's voice.

**Ashton's POV**

"Ashton," Calum sighed as Ashton tossed his phone onto the couch cushion beside him, "You at least need to let her have a say in this. This is  _her_  friendship too." Ashton simply shrugged, leaning back in his seat. He was beyond the point of reasoning, so Calum knew what he had to do. "Don't you think you're being selfish?" he stated bluntly. Ashton looked up at him in surprise.

"I think that I'm done with watching her fall in love with guys who aren't right for her," he replied.

" _Which is selfish_."

" _No, Calum_ ," Ashton snapped, "You don't know what I'm feeling. You don't get to talk to me like that."

"If I were treating a girl the way you are Y/N, you would be yelling at me for it and you know it! This is  _not_  her fault, Ashton!" Calum's voice gradually got louder, "You have no right to be treating her like this when she had no idea about your feelings for her! You get mad about how she's dating these douchbags – well, it's about time you started getting mad at  _yourself_. I've got a newsflash for you, Irwin: The way those other guys acted with her is  _exactly_  the way you're treating her right now! When she comes to you about her problems, it's  _not_  just because you're her best friend; It's because she trusts you to listen to her and not judge her, and I'm sorry if you think this is too harsh, but maybe if your head wasn't so far up your ass, you would have realized it by now."

Ashton was honestly speechless by the time Calum's rant was over. He didn't want to admit it, but he really did see how selfish it was now. You didn't know about his feelings for you;  _Of course_  you were going to date other guys. And that was all on  _him_. He couldn't blame you for not knowing when he had never come out and said it.

"Calum, I'm s-" Ashton started before he was cut off by his best friend standing up.

" _Don't_ ," he growled, narrowing his eyes at the brown-haired boy, "The first apology that comes out of your mouth is going to be to Y/N and until  _she_  tells me that you came to your senses and started talking to her again, I want nothing to do with you." Calum made his way to the door, grabbing the knob and looking back at Ashton. "And if that sounds a little familiar," Calum stated, "It's because it's the same thing you told Y/N. But unlike her,  _you_  deserve it." He ended his speech by slamming the door shut behind him, leaving Ashton to feel guiltier than he'd ever felt before.

**Your POV**

The moment you heard Calum start walking toward the door, you jumped off the porch in an attempt to hide. Unfortunately, you only made it about halfway across the yard before the door slammed shut. Calum stormed out of the house, immediately seeing you.

"Y/N, wait!" he whispered, hurrying after you so Ashton wouldn't know you were there. You turned around as he reached you and he took in a breath, letting it out slowly with a sheepish grin. "How much of that did you hear?" he asked softly.

"Enough," you answered in a whisper, rushing forward to hug him, "Thank you." He chuckled under his breath and wrapped his arms around you, pressing a kiss to the top of your head.

"You're welcome," he said, "What are you doing here?"

"Well, Anne called and said they'd be out for a few hours and Ash stayed home, so I figured I'd try one more time."

"And if he doesn't let you in?"

"Anne let me keep a spare key," you smiled slightly.

"Do you want me to stay just in case?"

"I think you've done enough damage already, Cal," you giggled.

"Well, he really did deserve it," he said, "The way those guys treated you wasn't your fault."

"Thanks, Cal," you whispered. He simply smiled, kissing your forehead and letting go of you.

"Call me later, okay?" he said. You nodded and he walked away, leaving you standing there alone.

You stared at the door for a moment. You had your hand raised as if you were going to knock, but you couldn't build up the courage to do it. Ashton didn't want to see you; He didn't want to be your friend anymore. He made that perfectly clear three weeks ago when he left your place. So you swallowed the lump in your throat and listened to your heart for once; And you walked away.

But what you _didn't_  know was that Ashton saw you. He heard Calum's voice, so he peeked out the living room window and saw you standing there. He couldn't hear what you two were saying, but when the black-haired boy left and you made your way to the porch, he ducked, but he could still see you. Ashton watched as you held your fist to the door, waiting for you to knock, but you never did. He heard the broken sigh and the footsteps fading away, angrily pushing the tears off of his cheeks, hating himself knowing  _he_  was the one who'd hurt you the most.

~

**A few days later**

"Hey, Y/N!" Calum chirped as he walked into your house. You texted him asking him to come over for a movie night since your parents were out and you were bored. And of course, he was more than happy to agree.

"Hi, Cal," you said softly.

"What's wrong?" he asked, quickly rushing over to the couch where you were already curled up in a blanket. He put the pizza he picked up on the way over on the coffee table and plopped down beside you.

"Nothing."

"Y/N, I know when you're lying to me." You swallowed thickly, wiping the tears off of your cheek.

"I miss Ashton," you whimpered. Calum smiled sadly, pulling you onto his lap.

"I know you do," he said, rubbing your back gently, "There's nothing wrong with missing him, Y/N."

"I know, but... I don't know. I wanna see him, but I want him to come to me," you choked, "But he won't even text me back."

"You know you're still his best friend, Y/N, he's just being stubborn like he always is. I thought you talked to him the other day?"

"No," you mumbled, leaning onto him, "I couldn't even make myself knock on his door."

"It's o-"

"No, it's not, Calum!" you let out a broken sob, "I miss him so much and he doesn't even care!"

"Yeah, I do, Y/N," you heard behind you. Yours and Calum's heads snapped up to find Ashton standing there. "I've been knocking for a couple minutes," he said softly, "But nobody answered, so I used my key."

"What do you want?" you asked harshly despite the fact that your voice had cracked.

Ashton looked at Calum for a moment, almost as if he was silently pleading him to leave the room. Calum's eyes narrowed at the boy before he finally lifted you off of his lap and put you back down. He rose to his feet, not even glancing at Ashton as he passed him to go into the kitchen.

Ashton was chewing on his bottom lip and inhaled deeply. He made his way to the couch, sitting on the seat beside you but making sure he was giving you as much space as he could no matter how badly he wanted to pull you into his arms.

"I'm sorry I've been a dick," he whispered, staring down at his hands, "It's such a shitty way to treat someone you love and I'm not gonna sit here and make up excuses. It wasn't right of me to treat you like shit because of the way other guys treat you and things I never told you. I know just saying sorry isn't enough, but I promise I'm gonna be a better friend if you give me another chance." You stared at him for a moment before slowly shaking your head.

"I don't wanna be friends," you told him. He let out a shaky breath, but nodded anyway.

"I understand," he whispered, "I'm sorry."

He stood up to leave, but you quickly jumped up from your seat. You grabbed his hand and turned him back around. You let go and put your hand on the back of his neck, pulling him down to kiss you.

Ashton was understandably surprised at first, but he quickly responded, kissing you back almost desperately. His hands came to lay on your hips, bringing your body to his, wanting to feel you against him. Your hands then slid to his cheeks, your thumbs lightly running along his cheekbones. You pulled back just enough so that your words weren't muffled but your lips still brushed his.

"I love you, Ashton," you said softly.

"You do?" he choked.

"I  do," you confirmed, "Maybe you would have found that out sooner if you'd stuck around longer." He turned a light shade of red in embarrassment.

"I'm sorry," he repeated.

"I know," you nodded, "I forgive you, Ash." You felt him let out a breath against your mouth.

"I love you so much," he told you.

"I love you too," you told him, reattaching your lips together, only breaking apart because Calum had reentered the room.

"I can see my services are no longer needed, so I'll just be leaving," he announced.

He stopped at the door, remaining there for a second, before he walked into the living room. He grabbed the pizza box off of the coffee table and nodded at you and Ashton.

"I'm taking this with me," he said, walking away again.

" _Cal_!" you laughed.

"Hey,  _I bought it_!" he retorted, closing the door behind him.

You looked back up at Ashton, "Should I order another one then?"

"Maybe later," he answered.

"Why later?" He smirked, squeezing your hips to make you squirm slightly.

"Because right now, I'm gonna show you  _just_  how much I love you," he said lowly, pushing you up against the closest wall and pressing his lips back to yours roughly.

~

_inspiration: http://my-imagines-moonlight53.tumblr.com/post/97923826842/hes-your-best-friend-but-likes-you-part-2_


	264. Happily Ever After (Luke Hemmings)

"Mummy," your 5-year-old whispered after tip-toeing into your bedroom. When you didn't reply, he started shaking your shoulder. "Mummy," he whispered a little louder. You groaned quietly, turning onto your back and rubbing your eyes.

"What, baby?" you grumbled, laying your hands on your stomach – smiling slightly when you felt the baby inside kick – and looking at your son.

"Daddy said you gotta wake up now or else we'll be late," he said, rocking back and forth on his feet.

His father had given him permission to go into your room – the only room in the house he wasn't allowed to enter freely – so he seemed nervous. You had to give the little boy credit though; Even though he was 5, he was one of the most polite people you'd ever seen. You put your index and middle fingers under his chin so he would look at you, then pointed to your cheek. He smiled brightly, knowing you weren't going to yell at him for being in the room, and pressing a quick kiss on your skin.

"You go tell Daddy that if he wants me to get out of bed, he can come in here himself and make me," you grinned.

"Is that so?" you heard Luke smirk as he walked into the room. Your smile grew as he came over to the bed, carefully flopping down beside you. "And how, exactly, do you propose I do that, darling?"

"I do have  _one thing_  in mind," you began to smirk as well, "But we can save that for tonight." You gave him a sly wink and he couldn't help but blush. Luke pressed his lips to your shoulder, trailing his kisses up your neck. "Oh," you said suddenly, "Wait. I can feel it... It's getting closer... Almo-" You were cut off by Luke's lips attaching to yours, making you giggle into his mouth. "There," you said when he pulled away. He chuckled, shaking his head and kissing you quickly before getting off of the bed.

He grabbed your hands and pulled you to a sitting position. You let out a quiet groan at the ache in your back – pregnancy was certainly taking its toll on your body the second time around.

"You okay, princess?" Luke asked worriedly, rubbing the backs of your hands with his thumbs.

"I'm fine, Luke," you promised him with a light chuckle, "Back just hurts a little again." Josh's eyes widened and he quickly climbed up onto the bed behind you. You felt little hands start moving across your upper back. "What're you doing, Josh?" you asked, looking at him over your shoulder.

"Whenever your back hurts, Daddy pushes it and makes it all better," he replied.

"Well, you're doing a very good job, baby," you said, "Thank you."

"Better than Daddy?" he asked.

" _Much_  better than Daddy," you snickered. Luke cocked an eyebrow, leaned forward, and pushed his lips against yours.

"We'll see about that," he murmured lowly so the 5-year-old couldn't hear him before he stood back upright. "Come on, bud," he held his hands out to his son, "Let's go brush your teeth so Mummy can get dressed." Josh happily stood up and jumped in Luke's arms, letting him take him to the bathroom down the hall.

You got up and went over to your closet, grabbing a pair of jeans and one of Luke's larger flannels. You struggled a bit to put everything on, but you did it. However, your luck ended when it came to your feet. You gathered up a pair of socks, your boots, and your phone before heading downstairs.

" _Lukey_ ," you whined, entering the living room to find Luke tying Josh's shoes.

"And what's wrong with your flats?" he chuckled, not even needing to look at you to know what you wanted. When you didn't say anything, he looked up and saw your pout.

"They don't go with this shirt," you mumbled.

Luke just smiled at you, nodding for you to come to him. He tied Josh's other shoe and helped him stand up, telling him to put on his jacket. He turned to you, taking the things from your hands. You held his shoulders for support as he slipped your socks onto your feet and then your boots, tying them for you. He stood back up, pecking your lips before going to put on his own jacket.

"Thank you," you said softly. Luke got the car keys and made his way back to where you and Josh were standing by the front door.

"You're welcome, princess," he murmured, kissing your forehead. He took Josh's hand and led you both outside.

~

You arrived at the doctor's office for your monthly appointment, had your regular nurse weigh you and ask how you've been doing and everything, and you were now waiting in one of the rooms for your doctor.

"Why does Mummy have to sit there?" Josh asked when you sat down on the exam bed. He was on Luke's lap in the chair right beside you, but being the mommy's boy he was, he always preferred to be closer to you.

"The doctor's gonna check on the baby with that thing-" Luke pointed to the ultrasound machine. "-so Mummy has to be really close to it." It appeared as though Josh accepted that answer, not really saying much else until the doctor arrived.

"Hello Mr. and Mrs. Hemmings," Dr. Massey smiled when she walked in, looking at you, "How have you been?"

"Pretty good," you grinned, "Muscles hurt a bit more, but it's not too bad." She told you to lie back and had you lift your shirt up.

"Is that report from your last visit or your last pregnancy?" she asked with a joking tone.

"Both," you laughed.

"Well, I'm glad to see this little one is doing so well," she smiled at Josh, making him blush and hide his face in Luke's neck. Luke chuckled under his breath, patting his son's back gently.

"Are you two wanting to find out the gender today as well?" the doctor asked.

"We were actually thinking about letting our son decide," your husband smiled.

"What's a gender?" Josh asked, picking his head up to look at you.

"It means we'll find out whether you have a little brother if it's a boy or a little sister if it's a girl," you explained.

"I'm gonna have a sisser," he said confidently, forgetting to pronounce the  _t_.

"Oh,  _are you_?" Luke asked with a light laugh.

"Uh-huh," he nodded, "Daddy already has a kid like him and now Mummy is gonna have a kid like her."

"I like the sound of that," you giggled, "I don't think I could handle another one of Daddy."

"You weren't saying that six months ago," he smirked, earning himself a smack to the shoulder.

" _Lucas_!" you squeaked, but you couldn't fight off the smile. Luke simply chuckled, leaning over and pressing his lips to your forehead.

"Alright, you two," Dr. Massey shook her head as she laughed along quietly, "You ready to find out what you're having?" You and Luke nodded eagerly as she squirted the gel onto your stomach and began pushing it around with the transducer.

"Mummy, what's  _that_?" Josh gasped, pointing to the screen.

"That's your baby brother or sister," you smiled.

"It's  _inside you_?" his eyes widened, "How did it get there?"

"We'll talk about that later, kiddo," Luke cleared his throat nervous as you desperately tried not to laugh.

"Okay, you guys ready to hear your baby's gender?" Dr. Massey interjected. You nodded again. "Looks like your son's logic is spot on." Your heart skipped a beat.

"You mean..." you trailed off.

"Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Hemmings," she smiled brightly, "It's a girl." Your husband put his lips on your forehead again and you felt him smiling widely.

"A baby girl," Luke murmured into your skin. He moved his lips to yours for a brief kiss then looked down at the boy staring curiously at the two of you. "You hear that, buddy?" Luke poked Josh's stomach, making him giggle, "You're going to have a little sister."

"Told you," he scoffed, only making Luke start tickling him.

~

After you left the doctor's office, you and Luke decided to take Josh bowling and out for ice cream to simplistically answer his questions about ' _how his sister got in your tummy_ ' by saying that you were just keeping her safe because she wasn't big enough to come into the world yet before heading home.

It was about 7pm, so you just changed into your pajamas and sat on the couch in the living room to watch a movie before bed.

Halfway through the movie though, you'd fallen asleep on Luke's chest. Luke kissed your head every now and then as he played with your hair, not even realizing the pair of eyes that were on him.

The 5-year old watched Luke stare at you, noticing the way his father's mouth formed a small smile whenever you unconsciously nuzzled further into him. He watched silently for a few minutes, not paying the least bit of attention to the movie on the screen, before he gently started poking Luke's leg.

"Daddy," Josh whispered, not wanting to wake you up.

"Yeah, bud?" Luke said, turning his attention to the little boy in his lap.

"Am I gonna meet someone who makes me as happy as Mummy makes you?"

Luke was understandably surprised by the sudden question – then again, it wasn't a huge shock. You and Luke always joked with family members during the holidays that he was a grown-up trapped in a toddler's body. He loved to learn about  _adult things_  – as he described them – like having his dad teach him how to play guitar or help him write new songs or whatever. Honestly, you were sure he'd completely understand everything that was going on in a place like a science museum instead of just  _big circles and pretty stars_.

"What do you mean?" Luke asked him.

"Will someone make me smile like you do at Mummy?" he responded, looking up at his dad with the (e/c) eyes that matched yours perfectly.

"Yeah, bud," he smiled slightly, "When you grow up, you're gonna meet someone who makes you feel like the happiest person in the world and then, you're gonna want to spend the rest of your life with them so you never stop feeling that way."

"How did you know you wanted to spend the rest of your life with Mummy?"

"The first time I saw her," Luke replied, kissing your forehead softly. You smiled in your sleepy state and it faded as you cuddled further into your husband.

"When was that?" Josh asked, making him chuckle again.

"I've told you this story already," he reminded his son, reaching over and ruffling the blonde's hair.

"But I like it," he pouted. Luke just smiled again.

"When I was in a band and we were just starting out, we were playing a show in a really small venue," Luke reminisced, "Mummy was standing right in the front row, but I didn't see her until the end of the show. In the middle of my solo in the last song, I finally looked at her and completely forgot the words I was singing." Josh giggled – that was always his favorite part of the story. When his laugh faded out though, so did Luke's smile. "What are you thinking about, bud?" he asked.

"What if I don't ever find someone like that?" he looked up at his dad with glossy eyes.

"Buddy," Luke smiled sadly, "You're only 5. You've got the rest of your life to find the person you're going to marry."

"How old were you when you met Mummy?"

"Well, let's see..." He pretended to think about it even though he didn't  _really_  need to. "It was May 27th, so I was just about to turn 23."

"You went a whole  _23 years_  without knowing Mummy?" his eyes were wide.

"I don't know how I did it either," Luke muttered, kissing your forehead, "But I wouldn't have had it any other way." He looked back down at Josh. "You might meet your person earlier or you might have to wait a little longer than we did, bud, but I promise it's all going to be worth it." He leaned over and kissed the top of his son's head. "Go brush your teeth," he ordered softly, "I'll be there after I put Mummy in bed."

"Can I help tuck her in?" Josh asked, "Mummy always tucks me in but I never get to do it to her." Luke let out a breathy chuckle as he turned off the TV.

"Yeah, kiddo," he nodded, "I'm sure Mummy would really like that."

Luke carefully lifted your head off of his chest and stood up. He bent down and snaked his arms around your back and under your knees, making sure he had a firm hold on you before he picked you up. Josh followed him to your bedroom, still admiring how fragile Luke treated you.

"Can you get the blanket, bud?" Luke whispered.

Josh immediately darted out in front of his dad and jumped up onto the bed, pulling the blanket far enough for Luke to lay you down. He did, making sure you at least  _looked_  comfortable before reaching out for Josh. He picked his son up, having him grab the blanket again and helping him pull it up to your shoulders. Once you were under the covers, he bent down so Josh was near your face.

"Kiss Mummy goodnight," he told him. Josh did exactly that, kissing your cheek.

"Goodnight, Mummy," he murmured, "Thanks for keeping my sisser safe." Luke swallowed thickly, kissing the side of Josh's head before exiting the room to help him get ready for bed.

When the two boys left the room, you finally allowed yourself to smile, having actually been awake since the moment they started talking.


	265. In An Instant (Ashton Irwin) - Part 1

**Warning: Missing persons, kidnapping**

~

"Just got a case, guys," Ashton announced as he walked out of his office and over to his team. They all gathered around the television screen as their boss pulled up a photo. "19-year-old Katie Y/L/N was last seen walking down Washington Street sometime yesterday afternoon," Ashton briefed them on the situation, "Reported missing two hours ago by her mother when she didn't return home."

"Why didn't she call it in last night?" Luke asked.

"She was supposed to be staying the night at a friend's house. When she didn't come home, her mother called her friend to find out she never showed up there either, and that's when she contacted us."

"She contacted us directly?" Calum piped up, "Why didn't she go to local police first?"

"Wait, you said Katie  _Y/L/N_?" Michael furrowed his eyebrows, "Isn't that-"

"Y/N's younger sister," Ashton stated, making the other three men's eyes widen.

"Does she know?"

"Has she come up here freaking out yet?" Michael shook his head slowly. "Then I think it's safe to say she doesn't, Clifford," he said. "Listen, I want all of you to drop whatever you were doing before this," he ordered, "This case is our  _number one priority_  until we find Katie. Understood?" Everyone nodded quickly. "Clifford, take Katie's photo and start asking around Washington Street – someone  _had_  to have seen her. Hood, go search Katie's home and question Mrs. Y/L/N. Hemmings, I want you going to every store on that street and getting every second of their security footage from noon to 5 yesterday to bring back here and analyze."

"What are you gonna do, Boss?" Michael asked, putting his gun in its holster on his belt as well as his badge.

"Someone's gotta tell Y/N," he said, heading to the elevator to go downstairs.

When Ashton walked into your lab, he found you sitting at your desk, bobbing your head to whatever song was playing in your headphones. He started chewing on his lip nervously – he knew you, and he knew you weren't going to handle this well. Ashton approached you, lightly tapping on your shoulder to get your attention. You jumped at the sudden presence in the room, your head snapping up to find your boss standing behind you.

"Ashton!" you exclaimed, immediately pulling your headphones off, "I was working, I swear! Actually, that's a lie – I wasn't working," you shook your head before he could even make a sound, "But that's only because I don't have a case right now!" You paused, tilting your head. "Why are you down here?" you asked him, "You never come down here. Well, you do come down here, but not when I don't already have something for you; You always know when I have something for you. But I don't have anything for you because I don't have a case right now. So why are you down here?" Ashton waited a few seconds before speaking to make sure you were finished.

"Can I talk now?" he asked you.

"Yes, sorry," you nodded.

"Case just came in 5 minutes ago," he informed you.

"Oh," you said with a smile, "What is it this time? Small town gets shaken up by not-so-coincidental murders? Close-knit community targeted by a serial killer?"

"Missing person," he interrupted.

"It hurts when you disappoint me, Ash," you frowned, "How long has this missing person been missing?"

"Less than 24 hours."

" _Less than_?" you furrowed your eyebrows, "Why are we being called in then? Hasn't the family called local authorities? What can we do that they can't?"

"Y/N..." Ashton trailed off in the tone you hated to hear.

"I don't like that tone, Irwin," you reminded him, "That's the tone you use when I'm really about to  _not_  like what you have to say."

Ashton put his hands on your shoulders, coaxing you to sit back down in your chair before kneeling down front of you. He rested both of his hands on your knees to balance himself and began rubbing your skin gently.

"Ashton..." you whispered, "What's going on?"

"Your mom called this morning-"

You cut him off in a frenzy, "Why? What happened? Is she okay?"

"She's fine, Y/N," he assured you, "But your sister is missing."

"Katie's missing?" your voice broke.

"She never made it to her friend's house last night," he said softly, hating seeing you like this.

"A-And they think she's in trouble, don't they?" your eyes started getting watery, "They... They think some psycho serial killer took her?"

"No, no, no," he shook his head quickly, wiping your tears, "No one thinks that at all."

"Then why are we being put on the case?"

"We haven't actually been officially assigned to this, your mom just wants us working it because she knows we'll find her." He looked at you intently for a moment before putting his hand on your cheek and lifting your head so you would look up at him. "We  _will_  find her, Y/N," he said firmly, "I made sure this case is the team's number one priority until she's home."

"Well, what do you have for me?" you asked, leaning toward him.

"I sent the Michael out with her photo, Luke is getting security footage, and Calum is at your mom's to see if there's anything there," Ashton told you, "We will be down here the second they come back with something."

"What are  _you_  doing?"

He cocked an eyebrow, "I'm letting you know what's going on."

"Why aren't you out there looking for her?" you asked, standing up. Ashton got up as well, putting his hands on your shoulders.

"Y/N, you know just as well as I do that you would have been twice as upset if I hadn't come down here," he reminded you. You covered your face with the palms of your hands as you took in a deep, shaky breath.

"Sorry," you whispered. He grinned slightly, pulling you into a hug.

You two stayed like that – your arms around his waist tightly as if you were afraid something bad would happen if you let go – as you waited for the team to return. It didn't take long after Ashton sent them out for them to come back with evidence – it wasn't much, but it was a good starting point.

"Good news," Michael announced as he and Calum walked into the room, "Bakery owner on Washington was able to give me a time when Katie passed his shop. He remembered seeing her when a timer went off at the same time: 3:15. Said he saw Katie with a man about 24-years-old, an inch or two taller than her pushing her into a car parked in the alley. We've got a BOLO out on the plate he gave me already."

"So who is he?" you asked, hurrying over to them.

"Uh..." Michael trailed off, "We... We don't know yet..."

"Then how is that good news, Clifford?!" you exclaimed. You felt Ashton come up behind you, his hands resting on your hips and his chin on your shoulder.

"Calm down," he murmured. You closed your eyes, taking another deep breath and letting it out slowly.

"I'm fine, Irwin," you grumbled, "I don't know what you're talking about." He chuckled quietly as Michael went on.

"Well... We have an exact time that Katie was there, so that makes Hemmings' job searching through security footage easier."

"What did he find?"

"We  _just_  got back, Y/N," he said. Your jaw tightened and you stepped toward Michael, but Ashton pulled you back to him.

"You're not hitting anybody, Y/N," he said in your ear, "The more people you hit, the less people that are gonna be working on this."

" _Fine_ ," you growled, narrowing your eyes at Michael. The agent's eyes widened and he started backing out of the room.

"I should go help Luke," he said, spinning around and retreating to the elevator. Ashton laughed again at Michael's reaction to you before looking at Calum.

"What did you find at the house?" he asked. Calum looked at you as he chewed on his bottom lip. When he didn't answer, you grew even more agitated.

"Hood, if you do not tell me what you found in the next three seconds, I am going to-" Calum cut you off, knowing you weren't going to like it.

"Blood," he said, making you lose your breath. You fell back onto Ashton's chest, honestly too shocked to say anything.

"How much?" Ashton asked, rubbing your hipbones soothingly.

"About a teaspoon," he replied, pulling the sample he'd collected.

"Where was it?" Calum eyed you carefully, but he knew he had to say it.

"Katie's room." You whimpered quietly, prompting Ashton to turn you around and hug you again.

"Was there a trail?" Calum shook his head. "See, Y/N?" Ashton said softly, rubbing you back, "There was no trail and losing a teaspoon of blood is nothing to worry about."

"That doesn't mean she's not still hurt!" you replied, your voice muffled by his shirt as you held onto him tightly.

"Listen," he said, grabbing your face so he could push you back and look at you again, "We are going to do everything we can to find the man who has her, and as much as I know you'd rather not, you're the only person that can run this blood sample to try and find out who that man is."

"You're right!" you exclaimed, "I have to find her!" You snatched the evidence bag out of Calum's hand and pushed the two men out the door. "I have work to do and you need to leave so I can do it!" They simply left without protest, knowing it was better to just let you do your thing alone.

~

**The next day**

"Y/N?" you heard someone say as they gently shook your shoulder, "Y/N, wake up."

"Ashton?" you murmured, lifting your head up, "What're you doing here?"

"Did you not go home last night?" he asked. It was then that you shot up, realizing you'd never left your lab.

"I fell asleep!" you exclaimed, more to yourself than to Ashton, "I can't believe I fell asleep! How long was I out?" You looked at the clock on the wall and your eyes widened. " _Half an hour_?! I lost so much time! I need to find Katie!"

"Y/N," Ashton said as you started typing away on your computer again. "Y/N," he repeated when you didn't respond. " _Y/N_!" he said loudly, grabbing your hands and making you face him. "Half an hour isn't going to kill you," he tried to be reassuring, but you were beyond consolation at that point.

"But it could kill Katie!" you reminded him, desperately trying to pull your hands out of his so you could get back to work.

Ashton sighed, releasing you and letting you get back to work before leaving. You watched him walk into the elevator without so much as a brief glance as he turned to push the button. You swallowed thickly, but as the doors closed, he looked at you with a small smile, letting you know he didn't blame you for snapping on him. Relieved he wasn't upset, you went back to work.

~

**Two hours later**

You had been working non-stop, running the blood sample through database after database with nothing showing up on screen that wasn't ' _NO MATCHES_ '. It seemed like you were hanging onto your sanity by a thread, but you couldn't stop now. You felt like you were  _so close_  to finding a match that you couldn't give up; After all, Katie wouldn't give up on you.

After another failed test, you decided to run the one you were absolutely  _not_  looking forward to. You knew you needed to isolate the blood  _just in case_  there were someone else's mixed in, but you knew that someone else's could very well be Katie's. However, it had to be done.

You took the sample and ran it with Katie's information, praying that if any of it  _was_  your sister's, it wouldn't be enough that it would mean she was seriously hurt. You jumped when your computer made a dinging noise right away, a ' _POSITIVE MATCH_ ' screen appearing in front of you. After isolating the positive blood, you discovered that luckily only 3% of it belonged to Katie. But that posed a more frustrating question: If only 3% of Katie's blood was there, why wasn't the other 97% picking up a match?

"Hey, Y/N," Ashton's voice suddenly echoed throughout the room. You spun around, letting out an exasperated sigh.

"Did you find her?" you asked, your words seemingly coming out one whole one.

"Uh, no," he replied.

"Then why are you down here?" you frowned, "Because I still don't have anything. I haven't had anything since you were last here."

"What's on your screen then?"

"A positive match for Katie's blood," you said, "But it's only 3% and I don't have a positive on the other 97% so I don't know why you're here."

"But it's still something."

"It's not  _helpful_ , Ashton!" you shouted, "I'm nowhere closer to finding whoever the hell the rest of this blood came out of than I was last night so when I know, I'll tell you, but for right now, can you  _please_  just let me work in peace?!"

Ashton listened to your heavy breathing become quieter and quieter as you calmed down. When you worked up the courage to look at him, he had a blank expression on his face.

"I'm s-" He cut you off, motioning for you to come to him. "Ash, I di-" He did it again, making you swallow thickly. You complied though – whatever he was going to do now would be much less painful than what he would do if you didn't follow orders at all. You slowly shuffled over to him, fully expecting the worst.

But the moment you reached him, Ashton grabbed your hips, pulling you into him for a tight hug. You felt every ounce of your sadness hit you at once, unable to do anything but hug him back. He rubbed your lower back for a moment in silence, allowing you to cry on him.

"Go home, Y/N," he murmured into your shoulder. You immediately pulled back, looking at him with wide, watery eyes.

"I can't go home!" you exclaimed, "There's still so much work-"

"You need to sleep," he told you.

"I can sleep here! I have labs running! What if the results come back?! I have to be here! I can't leave!"

"Then go lay down on the couch in my office," he offered, "I'll have Clifford keep an eye on everything in here and the second the results come in, he will come wake you up." You narrowed your eyes at the thought of Michael being alone in your lab, knowing how easily he gets bored.

"Then you better tell him that if he so much as  _breathes_  on any of my things, I will kill him," you grumbled.

"And you will leave no evidence behind, Y/N," he smiled slightly. You cracked a tired smile as well as he moved his hands to your cheeks to wipe your face. "We are going to find the person who did this," he promised you, "And we are going to make sure they pay for it."

You just swallowed again, nodding ever-so-slightly. Ashton pressed a kiss to your forehead before putting his arm around your shoulders and leading you out of the lab. You rode the elevator up to the third floor where the rest of the team was still working on the case.

"Clifford," Ashton said authoritatively as he came into view. Michael jumped slightly, his head shooting up from the papers in front of him.

"Yeah, Boss?" he said.

"I want you in Y/N's lab," he stated, "She's got some tests running and she'll need to be notified the second the results come back."

"Where will she be?" he asked, looking at you.

"Taking a nap in my office."

"Yes, sir," he replied, quickly getting up. You went up to him, putting your finger on his chest.

"And Michael-"

"No evidence," he nodded with a sigh, already heading to the elevator, "I know, I know." You smiled sweetly as Ashton pulled you along, taking you into his office.

"I don't want to see you leave this office until either Michael comes to get you or until after you've slept for at least two hours, are we clear?" Ashton stated sternly, stopping beside the couch.

"You don't need to use the tone with me, Ashton," you murmured.

"I'm worried about you, Y/N," he said, "I hate when you overwork yourself like this."

"I'm fine," you told him unconvincingly. He stared at you for a moment.

"Go to sleep," he spoke again, "I'll see you in a couple hours." He went to walk away, but you grabbed his hand.

"Ashton," you whispered as he turned back to you, "Thank you." He smiled softly, putting his free hand on your cheek and kissing your forehead again.

"You're welcome," he murmured into your skin, removing himself from your grasp and exiting the room.

You remained looking at the door for a few seconds before sighing to yourself and lying down on the couch. You didn't expect yourself to fall asleep at all, but you did; The moment your head hit the armrest, you were out, the exhaustion finally taking over.

~

**Ashton's POV**

"Hemmings," Ashton announced, walking over to the newbie's desk, "What have you got so far?"

"Oh, uh..." Luke trailed off with an exhale, "I, uh, I don't-"

"Don't tell me you don't have anything," he stated dryly, placing his hands on the desk in front of him and leaning toward the wide-eyed blonde.

"I mean... I can't tell you that I  _do_..."

"Then you can go downstairs to Y/N's lab and have Clifford help you search through it."

"But I-"

" _That wasn't a suggestion, Hemmings_!" he shouted, " _Go do it_!" Luke quickly grabbed everything he needed and got up, running to the elevator.

"Don't you think you're being a little harsh on him?" Calum said carefully when the blonde disappeared, "He's only been here a couple months."

"Then he should know what he's doing by now," Ashton grumbled, standing back upright to look at him.

"I have no doubt he knows what he's doing, Boss, I'm just saying cut the kid a break once in a while. He needs time to learn the ropes just like the rest of us did."

Ashton let out a sigh before heading back to his office to make sure you were asleep. He opened the door as quietly as he could and peeked in, happy to hear light snores coming from your mouth. He closed the door and went back to Calum just as he was getting off the phone.

"BOLO came back on the car the bakery owner saw the suspect pushing Katie into, boss," he informed him, "It was spotted about 10 minutes ago at a gas station a few miles away."

"Go get Clifford and meet me outside," Ashton ordered, picking up his pace with Calum following close behind, "I want Hemmings still searching every  _inch_  of that footage and waking Y/N up the moment he finds something useful." Calum nodded and went to the elevator as Ashton grabbed his keys, his badge, and his gun and headed to a different elevator to go out to the car.

~

**Luke's POV**

Luke blinked a few times, his eyes starting to dry out from staring at the computer screen for so long. Calum had just come to your lab for Michael about 20 minutes ago, leaving him alone in the quiet room. However, it seemed like being left alone was exactly what he needed.

He noticed on the screen that the second Katie enters frame with the unidentifiable man, a person driving happened to run the red light. He quickly grabbed your phone and called the local police department.

"Hi," Luke said when the woman answered, "My name is Special Agent Luke Hemmings and I work with NCIS. I was wondering if your department has a camera on the stoplight at the intersection of Washington Street and 5th Avenue."

"Let me check..." she trailed off. Luke could hear her typing, waiting a couple moments before she responded. "We do," she said simply.

"Is there any way I'd be able to get my hands on that footage like,  _right now_?"

"Well, I can't give it to you without you coming down here and showing some credentials, but if you do that, I'd be more than happy to give you a copy."

"Okay, yeah," he nodded rapidly despite the fact that she couldn't see him, "I'll be right there."

Luke hung up the phone and sprung up from his chair. He knew he shouldn't leave the room uninhibited, but no one else was around and he couldn't  _not_  go get this footage, so he did what he had to. And the police department was only 5 minutes away anyway, so he made it back within 15 to analyze the stoplight camera's footage.

Only 3 minutes after returning and pressing play, Luke found exactly what he was hoping to see. The computer you were running another database search with the blood sample started beeping as well, making Luke's eyes widen – not even looking at the screen. He paused the footage, jumping off of the chair and bolting to the elevator. His leg bounced nonstop as he impatiently waited for it to reach the third floor.

The moment the doors opened, Luke saw that the other men had returned, but he didn't stop as he ran to Ashton's office. Ashton called his name but remained unacknowledged as the three watched him push the door open.

**Your POV**

You were startled awake by the door swinging open, and would have fallen off of the couch if Luke hadn't caught you. You looked up at him, rubbing your eyes and blinking a few times. The blonde still hadn't said a word, making you raise your eyebrows.

"Are you going to tell me why you woke me up or not?" you mumbled, sitting up.

"Right!" he exclaimed, "Your blood work results came back and also, I think I have the face of who took Katie." Your eyes became so wide, Luke thought they might pop right out of your head.

"Why didn't you say that?!" you shouted, springing to your feet and grabbing his hand, pulling him out the door.

"What the hell is going on?" Ashton asked as he, Calum, and Michael followed you and Luke, frustrated he was being bypassed once again.

"Results and an ID," you stated, not looking at him. You rapidly pushed the elevator button, but it wasn't coming fast enough for you. "I don't have time for this!" you groaned loudly, releasing Luke's hand and running to the stairs. The elevator doors opened a couple seconds later but there was already someone on it, so the men opted to follow you once again.

When they got to your lab, you had already let out the defeated sigh at the ' _NO MATCHES_ ' on the screen.

"An ID on  _what_  exactly?" Ashton asked as he came in.

"I don't know," you said, "Luke said something about it." He looked at Luke as he swallowed nervously.

"Well, I don't have an ID on anyone," he answered honestly, heading to the computer beside yours, "But I do have a face." He played the footage back for everyone. "You can see Katie walking toward this camera with someone who's just out of frame," he said, pointing at the screen and following her movements with his finger, "This guy clearly knows where the cameras on this street are because he isn't seen in any of them."

"You said you have a face, Hemmings," Ashton reminded him monotonously.

"And I do," he nodded, "As I was watching the footage, I noticed someone ran the red light right at this intersection. I called the police station to see if they have a camera installed there – which they do – and they sent me the few moments of video they had from the day Katie went missing." He switched to the stoplight camera's footage and paused it right when Katie came into view.

Right there, in plain sight, was a still of Katie's abductor.

"Hemmings, print that photo off. Y/N-" Ashton pulled you out of the thought process you were in. "-you know him?" You looked at the screen, desperately trying to figure out if you'd seen him.

"No," you whimpered, "I've never seen him before."

"Hey, no, come on," he said softly, going over to you and holding your chin in his hand, "We're gonna ask around and see if any of the store owners have seen him, but for right now, I need you to tell me what you  _do_ know." You nodded slightly and turned back to your computer.

"I ran some tests on the blood you brought back," you told them despite the fact that Ashton had already heard this spiel, "Some of it was Katie's, but most was from someone else. There was quite a bit, so I think Katie punched him, gave him a bloody nose, and scratched up her knuckles in the process."

"Do you know who?"

"If I knew who, I would have told you already!" you exhaled sharply. You froze, looking over your shoulder at him. You opened your mouth, but Ashton shook his head.

"Stupid question," he said, kissing the side of your head lightly. He walked over to the printer to grab the photo of the man and then walked out the door. "Clifford! Hood!" he called, making the two turn around and quickly leave the room. You and Luke looked at each other with confused expressions before Ashton's voice echoed throughout the room again. "Hemmings," he grabbed your attention, making the both of you look over your shoulders, "Nice work." The blonde barely smiled as Ashton went on, "Help Y/N. I want to know whose blood that is when I get back." And with that, he rushed onto the elevator and left. Luke let out a deep breath, looking back at you.

"Do you always feel like you're going to throw up when he's in the room?" he asked you.

"You get used to it," you shrugged, "He'll ease up after you've been working here for a few more weeks."

"How long did it take when you started working here?" You scrunched your face up as a high-pitched hum came from your mouth. Luke sighed again, "Not that long, huh?"

"You'll be fine, Luke," you assured him.

"So are you and Irwin..." You cocked an eyebrow, stopping what you were doing to turn to him. "Never mind," he added quickly, avoiding eye contact.

"No," you answered, going back to work, "We're not a thing."

"Oh," he said, "The way he looks at you... I just thought..." Your typing slowed down, making Luke look at you again, but he didn't say anything else; He just went back to work.

"He says we can't," you whispered after a couple minutes of silently working.

"What?" Luke asked, "Be together?"

"He's technically my boss," you said, "He said people would get the wrong idea or ignore the fact that I earned this job if we were together."

"Oh... I guess I understand that. But it's still a pretty lame excuse."

"Excuse?" you tilted your head.

"Well, yeah," he shrugged, "If I really liked someone as much as he likes you, I wouldn't care what other people thought. Sure, some people would talk shit, but everyone else knows that no matter who you date, you're still the best damn forensic scientist in the country. Seems kinda dumb that he would openly act like that around you and still not want to pursue any sort of relationship." You thought about it for a moment, starting to realize that he had a point.

"Yeah," you whispered, more to yourself than to him, "Thanks, Luke." He smiled at you, then got back to work seeing if there were any other clues in the security footage.

~

About 30 minutes later, Luke looked at you when you groaned for the fifth time. He found you with your face in your hands and yet another ' _NO MATCHES_ ' screen on your computer.

"What databases have you run that sample through?" Luke asked you, wanting to help you get back in your zone.

"Which ones  _haven't_  I run it through?" you sighed, "I've tried NCIS, CIA, FBI-"

"Have you tried the local police records?" Luke interrupted.

"Local?"

"Well, yeah. Maybe this guy has been arrested more than once or maybe he's was a one-time offender at some point, but either way, they're gonna have a record of him."

Your eyes widened – you hadn't even  _thought_  about local police records – and you quickly began running it through their database. You expected it to take a little while – there were a lot of people with records, after all – but you were still growing impatient.

"Y/N," Luke chuckled, putting his hand on yours to keep you from tapping your nails on the table, "The results will come in soon."

"But not soon  _enough_!" you replied, "My sister's out there with God knows who and they're doing God knows what to her and I just-" Luke grabbed your shoulders, turning you so you were facing him.

"We're gonna find her," he said firmly, looking straight into your eyes so you knew he meant it, "And she's going to be alright and the bastards that did this are going to have hell to pay for it."

You let out a breath and nodded before letting your head fall onto his shoulder. Luke was rubbing your back with one hand, playing with your hair with the other, not even realizing it when Ashton had returned.

The brown-haired boy swallowed thickly, his jaw tightening at the sight of Luke holding you the way he always did. Sure, he was jealous; Then again, it wasn't like he was surprised. He had flat-out told you that you two could never have a relationship –  _of course_  you were going to try your luck with someone else.

"Alright, guys," Ashton said as he came into the room, making you and Luke jump at the sudden presence, "Whose blood is it?"

"We... Well, we don't know yet," Luke answered nervously as you stood back up straight.

"Why the hell not?" he asked dryly, making him look down at his hands.

"Lighten up, Ash," you murmured, not bothering to look at him, "He's not even the one running the test and the computer is still searching through the database."

Ashton started chewing on his cheek, knowing you hated when he reprimanded people for things they couldn't control –  _especially_  Luke since he was still so new to the team. Luke noticed the change in Ashton's demeanor, further proving to himself that his observation that Ashton was into in you was  _more_  than correct. He decided not to say anything on the matter in front of his boss though.

The sudden ding of your computer made you squeak loudly upon seeing ' _POSITIVE MATCH'_ , earning confused glances from the two men beside you. You started typing again, feeling their eyes on you.

"Blood results came back," you said, "It belongs to a-"

"Gregory Bernier," Ashton cut you off the moment the man's photo popped up on the screen. You slumped your shoulders as Luke raised an eyebrow.

"How did you know that?" you pouted, knowing he didn't have time to read the name before the words left his mouth.

"Fruit stand owner saw him," he replied, "Said he saw Katie with him the day she disappeared. Thought they were together." You scoffed lightly, looking at the photo on the screen.

"Katie would never go for a guy like that," you stated matter-of-factly.

"How do you know?" Luke asked.

"She has something us women like to call  _standards_ , Luke." You heard Ashton chuckled under his breath before he got serious again.

"Hemmings, you're with us," he ordered, "We need to find out where he took her."

"You don't need to," you said before they could start walking.

"Why not?" Ashton asked.

"His dad owns the old watermill on Burbank Road," you informed them. Ashton and Luke immediately ran to the elevator. The blonde looked at you over his shoulder as he left. " _Thank you_ ," you mouthed to him. He smiled just before he disappeared around the corner. "Be careful!" you called after them, now only able to pray that would get to Katie in time.

~

25 minutes and 46 seconds later –  _yes, you were counting_  – you got a call from one of the other agents on the third floor telling you that the team had returned. They didn't tell you whether or not Katie was with them, but either way, you slammed the phone back down onto the switch hook to end the call before going into the elevator.

Once you made it to the third floor, everyone watched you as you ran out of the elevator and over to where the team was standing at their desks. Ashton looked at you for a moment and your heart dropped, thinking he had the worst news he could give you. But when he stepped out of the way and you finally saw your sister again, you nearly broke down.

" _Katie_!" you cried, rushing the rest of the way to her as she jumped up from Luke's desk chair. You both threw your arms around each other, knowing all eyes were on you and trying not to cry in front of them but unable to hold the tears back.

"Took you long enough to find me," Katie said lightheartedly.

"You're lucky we found you at all," you murmured, squeezing her before letting go to look at her. "Are you okay? Did anyone hurt you?"

"I'm fine, Y/N," she assured you, "I had the best team working on it." You smiled slightly, hugging her again.

"I got the blood from your room," you said worriedly, "What-"

"You really thought I was just going to go with that ass?" she scoffed, "Nah, I gave him a bloody nose and cut up my hand a little bit." You sighed in relief, hearing the quiet chuckles from the men behind you since you'd told them that's what you thought happened.

"I love you so much," you told her. You felt her smile as well.

"I love you too, sis," she replied.

"Y/N," you heard the break in Ashton's voice, making you let go of your sister as everyone looked at him. He cleared his throat and brushed past you, heading for his office. "I need to have a word with you," he mumbled as he passed, making you quirk an eyebrow. You followed him anyway though, barely catching the short conversation between Luke and your sister.

"What's going on?" Katie asked the group.

You could hear the smile in Luke's voice as he answered, "He's gonna tell her."

The second the office door closed behind you, Ashton had locked it and pressed you against the wall with his lips on yours. You were understandably surprised at first – after all, Ashton always told you that nothing could ever happen – but you'd been waiting for this moment for so long that you didn't even want to think about that right now. All you wanted to do was memorize the way Ashton's lips felt on yours and the way they moved and the way he kissed you like he meant it.

"You're so beautiful, Y/N, you know that?" he grumbled into your mouth, "Do you have any idea how long I've thought about doing this – any idea how many times I've thought about how  _good_  your body would feel against mine?"

"Something like a year and a half," you said, putting your hands on his cheeks and pushing his face back so you could look at each other. "At least, that's when you told me that this would never happen because you're my boss and no one would approve."

"Well, I decided that I don't give a shit anymore," he said softly, rubbing circles on your hipbones with his thumbs.

"And what if  _I do_?" you countered. His expression dropped and you let out a quiet sigh, stroking his cheekbones lightly. "I've been waiting for this moment for over a year, Ash," you whispered, "That's a really long time to decide whether or not you care about what people think."

"I know," he mumbled, "But I was thinking about what happened with your sister and I just..." he trailed off, swallowing thickly, "I didn't want to come into work one day and find you not here with the possibility of you never coming back, knowing that I was always too fucking scared to tell you how I feel."

"How do you feel?" you asked simply, your voice barely above a whisper. He looked into your eyes, taking a deep breath.

"I love you," he said confidently, "I'm in love with you." He was starting to become worried as you just stared blankly at him, but when you finally cracked a smile, he let out the breath he was holding.

"I love you too, Ashton," you said.

Ashton's lips curled into a silly grin and he pressed them back to yours. You both remained like that until you needed to breathe again.

"Luke knew," you said randomly.

"How?" Ashton tilted his head.

"Said he could tell by the way you look at me," you grinned, pecking his lips again, "And something else about how you make it incredibly obvious."

"Well, if I don't make it obvious, other men might get the impression that you're available," he smirked.

"I  _am_  available," you reminded him, "I'm no one's girlfriend – haven't even been on a proper date since high school. So you're telling me you've been scaring them all off?"

"And let them make a move on  _my_ girl?"

You hummed lightly, "Maybe you should make your own move on  _your girl_ before you worry about everyone else."

"Think I'm gonna wait until after she stops working here so there's absolutely  _no way_  people can say she got the job because of me," he said thoughtfully.

"Why, you planning on firing her?"

"If I fired her, I wouldn't get to do this every day," he replied, leaning in and pressing his lips to yours again.

"I think that's considered to be a form of harassment in the work place," you said, your voice muffled slightly against his mouth.

"It's not workplace harassment if both people consent and neither of them are drunk," he countered, "And I'm not drunk."

"But do you consent to it?"

"Fully," he murmured.

"Then I guess we don't have any problems," you whispered, your lips attaching back onto his and kissing him roughly.


	266. Begin Again (Michael Clifford)

 

**Warning: Smut??? if you can even call it that???**

~

_Flashback_

_"You never talk to me about how you're feeling, Y/N!" Michael shouted, "I don't know what you want from me anymore!"_

_"I want you to stop acting like you regret marrying me!" you let out quite a loud sob, making Michael freeze. Even in the three years he'd known you, he'd never seen you cry like this. Sure, you'd cried during movies, but nothing like this – you never cried when you knew you couldn't mask it somehow._

_"Y/N..."_

_"Ever since tour ended, you've been with the boys," you whimpered, "You're never home anymore and when you are, we aren't in the same room. We don't even sleep together anymore, Michael! You don't put your arm around me and pull me into you and mumble into my ear that you love me before you fall asleep like you used to! If you didn't want to marry me, you shouldn't have proposed!"_

_"I wanted to marry you, Y/N," he said shakily._

_"No, you didn't, Michael!" you angrily wiped the tears off of your face, "Don't tell me that I never talk to you when you don't actually give a fuck!"_

_"Well, if you don't like it, then leave." Both you and Michael froze, staring at each other as if you were trying to convince yourselves that he hadn't actually said it._

_"Fine," you swallowed thickly, going into the kitchen to grab your keys. You went back to the front door, Michael following you like a lost puppy. "I'll be at my parents' house," you told him – despite the fact that you knew he didn't care, you didn't want him constantly calling and texting asking where you were._

_You looked down at you left hand, staring at your wedding ring for a moment before taking a deep breath. Michael's breath hitched as he watched you take the ring off, signifying that you really were ending it._

_"I love you so much, Mikey," you whispered, taking his hand and placing the ring in it, "Please don't ever think I don't."_

_You reached up and pressed a kiss to his cheek before turning and opening the door, leaving Michael alone in the house you were leaving behind._

_End flashback_

~

**Five weeks later**

You'd been living with your parents ever since that day, but a piece of you was always missing. Your mom offered to go back to the house to get your things after a few weeks, knowing you didn't want to face Michael again. You had to say yes – even though you'd barely left your old bedroom, you knew you couldn't live in that one outfit forever. Needless to say, when your mom came back with only a pair of sweatpants and one of Michael's shirts half an hour later, you were beyond confused.

"Why do you have his shirt?" you frowned, "Where are  _my_  clothes?"

"Honey," your mom sighed, sitting down on the bed beside your thigh, "I know you're hurt, but I really think you need to talk to him."

"Why should I?" you scoffed, crossing your arms, "He doesn't care." You couldn't believe she was taking  _his_ side.

"Marriage wasn't meant to be easy, sweetheart," she shook her head, "Your dad and I had our fair share of fights in the beginning too, but that doesn't mean he ever regretted marrying me. It sounds to me like you and Michael just need to hear each other out." She put the sweatpants and shirt on your lap. "Here's a change of clothes," she informed you, getting up. She leaned down and kissed the top of your head. "Go home, honey," she said, "He's losing it without you." Your mom left the room, leaving you with a decision. And as much as it hurt your pride to admit it, you knew you were wrong.

~

You pulled into your driveway 20 minutes later, sitting in the car for a moment before getting out and trudging to the front door. It was locked, so you found your key and went inside. You pushed your shoes off at the door, not feeling like you were going to be leaving again anytime soon.

It was quiet, kind of like it was the day you and Michael bought it. It was almost as if no one had ever lived there even though there were furniture and photos everywhere. You tried to call out to Michael, but your voice broke before you could even get the first syllable out.

"Michael?" you said softly as you closed the door behind you and walked through to the living room to get to the kitchen, giving what your voice would allow.

You didn't see him, so you put your keys down and made your way down the hall. Before you could knock on the first door on the left, you heard Michael sniffling inside the room. You should have already known he was in there – when he needed time to think, he would always go into the room where all his music equipment was.

You quietly opened the door and found him sitting on the floor in the middle of the room, staring at the paper he'd had laying in front of him. You took one glance at the bolded title, seeing it was the song he'd written and sang for you during the first dance at your wedding reception. His fingers were barely touching the words on the paper as he used his other hand to wipe his face.

"Michael," you whispered, making him jump. His head snapped up to look at you as you closed the door behind you.

Michael rubbed his red eyes again, almost as if he was convincing himself that you were actually there and his mind wasn't playing tricks on you. You cautiously walked over to him, kneeling down beside him. You didn't expect him to grab you before you could sit down and pull you onto his lap, but he did. Your legs wrapped themselves around his waist and his face immediately found your neck, letting himself sob into your skin.

"I'm sorry," he cried softly, "I never, ever wanted you to feel like I didn't want to be married to you or that I didn't love you anymore. I've been trying to figure out why I'd been spending so much time away from home but I can't and I hate myself for it because that just means I never had any reason to. I love you more than anything, Y/N,  _I swear I do_. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me and so much of me has been missing since you left." His words were muffled, but you still understood every single one.

"I love you too, Michael," you murmured, your fingers combing through the hair on the back of his head, "But it wasn't your fault. I overreacted; I blamed you for all those things when I knew that if I'd just talked to you about them in the first place, you would have fixed them. You always do everything you can to make me happy and I was wrong to accuse you of not loving me. I know you love me, Mikey," you squeezed him tightly, "I've always known." He hugged you just as tightly as you were hugging him and the two of you sat like that for the next few minutes.

"Can we go lie down?" he sniffled, lifting his head to look at you, "I miss how we used to wake up and stay tangled together all day."

"Yeah, Mikey," you smiled slightly, putting your hands on his face and wiping his cheeks, "I'd like that." You crawled off of his lap and got up, holding your hand out and pulling him up as well.

You walked into your bedroom and climbed right onto the bed, not even bothering to get under the blanket. Michael laid down on his back in the middle of the bed and you laid down beside him, putting your head on his chest. He wrapped his arm around you as you tangled your legs with his. He took your left hand and slipped his fingers through yours, resting them both on his stomach. You watched as he played with your fingers, spending a significant amount of time with the one your wedding ring used to call home.

"Michael..." you whispered, earning a low hum in response. "Can I... Can I have my ring back?" you asked shyly.

"Not yet," Michael stated.

"Why?" you frowned, tilting you head to look at him.

"I want to do it right this time," he told you, kissing your forehead, "I want to give you a proposal you  _deserve_ , not some half-assed, out-of-the-blue thing that happened after we had a couple drinks in our systems." You felt yourself start to tear up, making him panic. "Kitten, please don't cry," he said frantically, letting go of your hand to wipe away the tears, "If you want it back now, you can have it, just please don't cry." You laughed quietly, pressing your lips to the corner of his mouth.

"It's not about the ring, Mikey," you murmured.

"Then why are you crying?" he mumbled.

"Going to sleep alone for the last few weeks has been  _hell_. It's  _so_  hard to fall asleep without you anymore," you sniffled, "I've missed you so much but I was too stubborn to come back and say I was sorry because I didn't think you'd forgive me and I felt like just avoiding it altogether would be easier than hearing you tell me to leave again."

"I shouldn't have told you to leave in the first place," he whispered, stroking your cheekbone with his thumb, "I should have stopped you the moment you started to take your ring off. I never want to be married to anyone but you, kitten, and I promise I'm gonna do a better job at showing that."

You didn't say anything else – you just put your hand on his cheek and turned his head so your lips were right on his. You turned your body into him and his hand came to rest on your hip, squeezing the skin through your sweatpants every once in a while.

"Kitten," Michael pulled back to take a breath, "Can I..." He trailed off, but he was fiddling with the waistband of your sweats, so you knew what he was hinting toward.

You nodded and he gently pulled them off of your legs, discarding them onto the floor at the foot of the bed. Your own fingers were at the band of his basketball shorts as well, but he grabbed your hand, bringing it up to his lips.

"Tonight is all about you, kitten," he murmured, "Let me take care of you." You slipped your hand out of Michael's grasp and roughly grabbed the hair on the back of his head, pulling his face to yours.

"If you think all of my clothes are coming off before yours, you are  _sadly mistaken_ , Clifford," you growled, nipping at his bottom lip. You felt him smirk as he kissed you back.

Michael took your hand again, leading it back to his shorts and letting you take them off, throwing them away. He pushed himself against you so you turned onto your back, climbing on top of you. You pulled his shirt off and tossed it onto the floor as well, your hands now free to roam around his body. However, it was time that was short lived. Michael suddenly snaked him arm under your body and turned onto his back, bringing you on top of him.

"Feeling like being a bottom tonight?" you smirked, making Michael laugh.

"Tonight's about you and you think I'm gonna have you top?" he replied, kissing your lips again, "You're only here until this shirt comes off."

"Then I guess I might as well enjoy my stay," you replied.

Before Michael could say anything else, he felt your hips grind against his, making him let out a breathy moan. But he meant what he said. He pushed aside his own pleasure to practically tear the shirt right off of your body and flip you so he was back on top.

"That was rough, kitten," he growled, trailing his lips down your jaw and stopping to paint a few hickeys on your neck. "I told you: tonight isn't about me, it's about you."

"And if I want it to be about you too?" you returned, the hand in his hair pulling at the strands whenever he bit on a weak spot.

"Then you'll have to wait until I'm done with you," Michael answered simply, continuing to kiss down your chest until he reached the top of your right breast, kissing along the skin where it met the fabric of your bra on his way to the left, making sure he paid equal attention to both of them. 

" _Michael_ ," you gasped as he nipped at you. He smiled again, loving that he was the one that was making you feel this good.

"Yes, kitten?" he asked.

"S-Stop teasing," you answered.

"I'm not teasing," he replied innocently, only earning himself a strong pull to his hair as you brought him back up to your face.

" _I need you, Michael_ ," you stated through gritted teeth, " _Now_."

"I haven't even started on the appetizer and you already want to jump to the main course?" he teased, pressing a sweet kiss to your lips.

"Consider it dessert then," you said with a sly grin, making him laugh.

"Really are saving the best for last, aren't we, kitten?" You didn't respond that time, you just ran your free hand down his torso until it reached the waistband of his boxers. "Ah, ah, ah," he shook his head, running his own hand up the side of your body until he reached your bra, "Not until this is gone."

Michael slid his hand under you so he could unhook the clasp – which, lucky for you, he'd done this with you plenty of times to get it undone with one hand without any trouble. You felt your bra loosen and Michael pulled it off of you, taking a moment to admire your bare chest.

"You're so beautiful, kitten," he murmured, kissing as much skin as he could before you made him stop again. He was surprised when you didn't, and trailed his lips back up without any prompting from you. He kissed your lips slowly, whispering, "How did I get so lucky?" He felt you smile while also feeling your hand coming back up his torso and landing on his cheek.

"I ask myself that every day, Mikey," you returned just as softly, kissing him again.

 


	267. Ticklish (5 Seconds of Summer)

 

**Luke**

You were standing at the stove one morning cooking breakfast while the rest of your family was asleep. You yourself were trying not to fall back asleep right then and there, and luckily, you didn't have to worry about it. You heard your husband trudge into the room, coming up behind you and wrapping his arms around your waist.

"Hey, princess," he mumbled, his face buried in your neck.

"Hey, handsome," you grinned, turning your head so you could kiss his temple, "What are you doing down here already?"

"You weren't there when I woke up." You could feel his pout, making you giggle.

You kissed his head again before lifting the pancake you'd been waiting to cook onto the spatula and putting it on the plate with the rest of them. Luke moved with you as you took the pan over to the sink to soak it since you were finished cooking.

"Do you think you can let go long enough to go wake up Lily and Jackson?" you teased.

"You know what we haven't done in a while?" he asked randomly, not answering your question.

"Slept until noon?" you laughed.

"That too," he chuckled, "But no. We haven't slow danced since our wedding and I was thinking about how much I miss it."

"Why's that?"

Luke released you, turning you around and pulling you into him. He pressed his lips to yours before letting you lay your head on his shoulder and swaying to the faint sounds of birds chirping outside.

"Marrying you was one of the happiest moments of my life," he murmured, "And I'd like to relive it any way I can." You simply smiled, closing your eyes. "Can't believe it's been almost ten years since that day," he rambled. You knew he was talking more to himself than to you, but you responded anyway.

"Didn't know you even remembered," you snickered. You felt his stomach shake as he chuckled again.

"I remember it very well, princess," he reminded you, "In fact, if I'm not mistaken, there's a  _certain spot_  I happened to find that night..." He trailed off and you felt him start dragging his fingers across your back and toward your left side.

" _Lucas_ ," you threatened, "Don't even-" But it was too late; Luke's hand had already reached your side and he was tickling you.

You squealed loudly, hoping you didn't wake up your kids – but then again, they needed to get up anyway. You couldn't contain your laughter, your legs nearly giving out. Luke stopped for a moment, only to lift you up onto the counter and start tickling you again. If he hadn't been so busy laughing with you, he probably would have told you that you should be thanking him for keeping you from falling on the ground.

"Mummy?" your 8-year-old son's sleepy voice came from the hallway behind you, "Are you okay?"

Luke finally ceased his attacks, letting you rest your head on his shoulder so you could catch your breath. Luke looked over to find Jackson carrying his 2-year-old sister into the room. The blonde-haired second grader came over to stand beside Luke at the counter.

" _Daddy, Daddy_!" Lily chanted, bouncing happily on her brother's hip. You picked yourself back up so Luke could take the toddler, peppering her face with kisses.

"Hey, baby girl," he grinned at her. He moved her to his opposite hip before pulling his son into his side and ruffling his hair. "Mummy's fine, kiddo, she just needed to be reminded who's boss around here," he smirked at you.

Jackson looked up at his dad, "Why did you need to remind Mummy she's the boss?" The look on Luke's face made you laugh loudly, leaning forward and pushing your lips onto his.

"And don't you forget it, Hemmings," you mumbled against his mouth, feeling him smile just before you pulled away to hop off the counter.

"Wouldn't dream of it, Hemmings," he returned, watching you kiss your son's head and grab three more plates out of the cabinet so you could finally eat breakfast.

~

**Michael**

You were sitting on the floor in the living room with your boyfriend – him leaning on the couch and you between his legs with your back to his chest. He had his forearms on your thighs while he played a video game he'd bought earlier that day. You weren't particularly interested in watching him play, but you were interested in being  _with him_. It wasn't like you were bored out of your mind though – you had your phone and were keeping yourself entertained with that.

Michael paused his game to reach over to where his drink was sitting, his hand accidentally grazing your side. You flinched slightly as a small noise escaped your mouth, making him stop mid-reach.

"Babe..." You could hear the smirk growing. "Did you just  _squeal_?"

You cleared your throat, "I don't know what you mean."

"Oh, okay," he nodded, "I guess I was just hearing things."

"Must've been."

"It sounded so real though," he said thoughtfully, "I reached for my drink like this, and then-" He made the motion again and you tried to hide it, but he still knew. Michael put his controller down and you knew you were in trouble. "That's so weird," he said, his grin only getting cockier, "It happened  _again_." You grabbed his hands the moment they started coming toward your stomach.

" _Michael Gordon_ ," you looked over your shoulder with the most intimidating expression you could muster, " _Don't you dare_."

Unfortunately, Michael was a lot stronger than you and you were unable to keep him from reaching his destination. You squealed again, loudly this time, laughing uncontrollably as you doubled over Michael's left leg. He brought his right leg over both of yours to pin you down as he continued to torture you.

"M-M- _Mikey_!" you gasped, "I ca- I can't bre-breathe!" His own stomach hurt from laughing along with you, so he stopped, allowing you both time to calm down. "I hate you," you muttered with a smile.

"Love you too, princess," he smiled, pulling you back up so he could press a kiss to your cheek.

~

**Calum**

You woke up to the sound of your husband's mumbling, opening your eyes to find him lying sideways on the bed, propped up on his elbows with his face beside your stomach. You smiled slightly, reaching your hand up and letting it land on his head so you could play with his hair.

"I didn't wake you up, did I, baby girl?" Calum asked worriedly. You rubbed your eyes with your other hand, giggling softly.

"Probably," you shrugged sleepily, "What are you doing?"

"Came in to check on you," he whispered, "Figured it would be rude of me not to ask my other baby girl how she's doing too."

You smiled again, "You getting anything out of her?"

"She kicks sometimes, but only when my face is right up against your belly." He tried to demonstrate, but your stomach twitched, making him look up at you. "What was that? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Cal," you assured him, "Are you growing a beard?"

"Kind of," he beamed, feeling his chin, proud of himself for finally being able to grow some hair in that spot, "Why?"

"Just tickles is all," you replied.

" _Really_?" he smirked.

Your eyes widened, " _Cal, no_!"

"Too late!" he said, pushing your shirt up over your prominently pregnant belly and rubbing his scruffy chin all over the areas he could reach. You giggled loudly, pleading him to stop between deep breaths. "I heard laughter is healthy for the baby," he stated matter-of-factly, leaning back up.

"Is it?" you chuckled under your breath, "Where did you hear that?"

"I didn't read it so much as sense it," he informed you, "But I love your laugh, so that means the baby should too."

"Well, we like it when Daddy sings more, don't we, baby?" you smiled, putting your hand on top of your stomach, feeling her kick. "See?" your smile grew wider, "She agrees with me."

Calum grinned as he rolled his eyes, reaching up to kiss your lips before going back to your stomach. He pressed his lips to the side of your belly, only earning himself a kick to the mouth.

"Ow!" he pouted, "Baby, that wasn't very nice."

You simply smiled proudly, "That's my girl."

~

**Ashton**

You slowly opened your eyes to the sun shining down on your face through the blinds on the window. You groaned quietly – mentally cursing yourself for still not fixing them like you'd been meaning to for the past few weeks. You didn't want to get up though – your boyfriend didn't have to go into the studio today and you just wanted to spend the day tangled together. But when nature calls, you have to answer.

" _Baby_ ," Ashton whined, startling you as he pulled you back to him, not realizing he was awake.

"Ash, let go," you murmured.

"But this is my only day off this week and you promised we'd spend all day in bed," he pouted.

"I have to pee, Ash, and unless you want it all over you, I suggest you let go of me," you giggled.

Ashton stuck his bottom lip out even further, loosening his grip so you could get up. As you were sliding out from under his arm, his fingers brushed the exposed skin of your stomach, making you let out an involuntary gasp. The smirk that instantly grew on his face made your eyes widen. Unfortunately, before you could get away, Ashton grabbed you again.

" _Ashton_!" you screeched as you were pulled back onto the bed, your back against his chest and his hands moving quickly all over your stomach. "A-A-Ashton!" you yelled again in between laughter and gasps for air, "I'm s-serious, Ash, I am t-ten seconds away from m-making  _you_  wash the-these sheets!"

Ashton couldn't help but chuckle under his breath, "Fine, but as soon as you come back in here, it's  _on_."

" _Not a chance_ , Irwin," you jumped off the bed and ran into the bathroom before your bladder  _actually_  exploded.


	268. Paint You Wings (Ashton Irwin)

**Warning: Mentions of death**

~

It was humiliating, honestly – being forced to take the art class you were currently wishing would end. Your mother signed you up for this class a few months ago in the hopes of getting you to meet new people. It wasn't that you didn't  _want_ to meet people, it was just that you couldn't see colors; You hadn't found your soulmate yet.

Well, I should clarify: You could see one color – the color of your soulmate's eyes. However, you had never seen  _any_ color before; Everything was black and white to you – proving that you didn't even have a soulmate. Or at least, that's was what you thought.

Your parents explained to you when you were younger that many people feel as though they don't have a soulmate because of one thing: Their person has hazel eyes, and not many things are that same color like they are for blue, green, and brown. Of course, that only discouraged you even more. All you wanted was to see color – even if it was just  _one_.

You stared down at your drawing and the grey-toned watercolor paints in front of you. You had your elbow resting on your desk and your chin in your hand. Your mother had labeled each color for you, but looking at their names only made you sadder. You desperately wanted to see color, but you didn't at the same time. You knew firsthand what could happen if you ever lost your soulmate and after seeing your mom go through it, that was something you never wanted to experience.

"I think different shades of blue would be beautiful for those wings, sweetheart," you heard the teacher say lowly as she patted your back.

"That doesn't mean I'll know where to put them or how much is enough or if I've put too much in one spot," you mumbled. The older woman smiled sadly, simply moving on to the next person.

When the class ended, Mrs. Shields had you stay a while longer. The last student left and she came over to your workstation, sitting on the seat beside yours. It was silent for a moment as you continued to just stare at the picture you had drawn.

"That's a very beautiful picture, dear," Mrs. Shields told you.

"Thank you," you practically whispered, not sure whether or not she heard it.

"Why did you draw it?"

"I've had it in my head for a while," you answered.

"What's he doing?" she asked, pointing to the boy you had drawn.

"He's supposed to be painting wings for her," you answered, "He wants to set her free from all the stuff that makes her scared."

"Would this by any chance happen to represent how you're feeling?"

"No. I don't need to be set free from anything."

"I think you do, dear," she told you, "I think you just don't want to admit it. I see you looking at your paints in class. I can tell you want to find your soulmate."

"I don't have a soulmate," you said shakily, "I just want to know what colors look like."

"Now, why do you think you don't have one?"

"Because I don't see any color!" you let out an exasperated sigh, "Everything is grey!"

"Your soulmate is a hazel-eyed boy, isn't he?" she said simply. You didn't respond, you just slumped your shoulders and began gathering up your things.

"Sorry I'm late, Mrs. Shields," you heard a male's voice as he came in the door, "Are you ready to-" He cut himself off when he looked up and noticed she was with someone else. "Oh, I'm sorry," he said with a guilty tone, "Am I interrupting something?"

"No, Ash," Mrs. Shields assured him, "We were just finishing up. Y/N, sweetie, this is my neighbor Ashton. Ashton, this is Y/N, one of my students." The boy walked over to where you were sitting, looking over your shoulder.

"That's a beautiful picture," he commented, "Did you draw that?"

You simply nodded, not looking up at him since you didn't want him to see you blush at his compliment. You put your paints into your bag and pulled out the folder to put your pictures in so they didn't get crumpled up. You stood up and pushed your chair in, looking at your teacher.

"I'll see you on Thursday, Mrs. Shields," you smiled at her, "It was nice meeting you, A-" You froze the moment your eyes met his. Everything was slowly beginning to be colored in, seemingly coming from the boy's eyes – the color you would finally be able to label as hazel.

Ashton had the same look on his face, keeping his gaze on you as you looked at everything around the room. His world was finally no longer black, white, and grey, but he didn't care about those other colors right now; He was focused on you – focusing on the way your eyes sparkled under the fluorescent lighting of the classroom. And even though there were so many beautiful colors around him, the only color he cared about – the only color he'd known his whole life – was in your (e/c) eyes.

You swallowed thickly as your eyes met Ashton's again. You lifted your bag over your shoulder and began slowly backing away. Ashton's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Y/N, wait-" He was cut off by you spinning on your heels and running out of the room. He took a few steps to chase after you, but remembered he couldn't; He still had to take his neighbor home.

"What was that about?" Mrs. Shields asked, a prominent confused look on her face. Ashton was honestly speechless for a moment, not really sure what to say as he stared at the door. Never tearing his gaze away from the last place he saw you, Ashton answered the woman's question.

"I think I just found my soulmate..." he whispered, more to himself than to her.

~

Two weeks had passed since that day and Ashton had made sure he was outside the classroom before every single class ended. You, of course, would shoot down every pass he made at you, but he was incredibly persistent; When Ashton wanted something, he wasn't going to stop until he got it.

**Ashton's POV**

On that Friday evening, when Ashton finally had enough of your excuses in avoiding him, he decided he needed to do something more. What he was already doing – showing up to class early and just  _letting_ you leave after telling him no – wasn't cutting it anymore. And he needed Mrs. Shields to help him out.

"Please, Bev," Ashton said, "I'm begging you."

"Ashton, honey, you know I would love to help you, but I can't do that," she shook her head with a sigh, "It would be a violation of privacy to give you her address."

"You don't understand, Bev," he swallowed thickly, "No matter what I do, she refuses to talk to me. I don't care if nothing ever happens between us, I really don't – I just need to know  _why_."

Mrs. Shields stared at the papers in front of her for a moment before slipping them into her bag. She opened her desk drawer and pulled out a small notebook where she kept her students' information. She flipped to your name and wrote your address down on a sticky note for him.

"Ashton," she said as she handed him the paper, "I want that girl to find happiness more than anything. Please don't screw this up."

"I won't, Bev," he sighed in relief, taking the address and giving her a thankful hug, "I promise."

**Your POV**

Your mom had just left for a well-deserved night out with her friends, leaving you home alone. You found yourself sitting on the couch in the living room – the TV was on in the background but you weren't actually paying attention to it – and you were going through your art folder. You stared at the still unfinished picture of the boy painting the girl's wings, finding yourself feeling incredibly guilty.

It wasn't Ashton's fault by any means that you were avoiding him – that was all on you. But as much as you'd been wanting to find him your whole life, now that he was here, you were panicking. Your father's passing was obviously hard on you, but what was even  _harder_ was watching your mother deal with the loss of her soulmate. And you swore to yourself that you would never let the same happen to you.

You were brought out of your daydream by a knock on the front door. Your heart began pounding – you weren't expecting anyone to come over, especially at a time like this. You put your drawing on the coffee table and slowly made your way to the door, jumping lightly when the person knocked again loudly. You cautiously opened it, your heart skipping a beat when you saw Ashton standing on your front porch.

"Ashton?" you whispered, "What are you doing here?"

"We need to talk," he stated simply.

"There's nothing to talk about..."

"Yes, there is, Y/N," he said firmly, making your heart flutter when he said your name, "So you can either let me in and tell me what I need to know or I can keep bothering you about it after your art classes."

You began chewing on your inner cheek, but stepped out of the way to let him inside. You closed the door and led him into the living room. You sat back in the spot you'd been sitting in and turned off the TV while Ashton sat on the couch adjacent to you.

You two sat in an awkward silence for a moment before Ashton took initiative, realizing you weren't going to be the first to speak.

"Mrs. Shields told me about your drawing," he informed you, motioning to the picture on the table in front of you.

"Oh..." you trailed off, not really sure what else to say.

Ashton let out a sudden breath, "I guess I'll just get right to it then: Why do you keep avoiding me? Can you not see yourself with me for the rest of your life?"

"It's not that, Ashton," you whispered.

"Obviously, it's got something to do with it," he shook his head, "Am I just not your type? Am I not attractive enough? What's so wrong about me being your soulmate?"

"It's not y-"

"Don't give me that ' _it's not you, it's me_ ' bullshit, Y/N," Ashton cut you off with a frustrated sigh, "I've heard it with every single girl I've dated and I am not about to sit here and listen to  _my soulmate_  say the same damn thing."

"Please stop saying that," you begged, closing your eyes so you didn't have to look at him anymore.

"Do you think that if I stop saying it, it'll stop being true? Do you honestly think avoiding the subject is going to change the fact that you're my soulmate?"

"No, I don't!" you shouted, a sob escaping your mouth, "I just don't want to lose you!"

"How can you lose me if you're not even giving me a chance?!" he returned, not holding back.

"Because when my dad died, my mom cried until she made herself sick for three months and kept saying that  _actually killing her_  would be better than dealing with the pain, and I don't want to go through that with you!"

By this point, you were full-on crying and you couldn't force yourself to stop. Ashton's angry expression immediately faded as he watched you try to pull yourself back together. You were breathing heavily, biting harshly on your bottom lip in an attempt to keep the sobs as quiet as possible.

"If she knew the kind of pain that she would go through with losing him before she met him, do you think she would have tried to avoid him too?" he asked simply.

You let out a small breath, knowing he was right; Your mom and dad loved each other more than anything and growing up, you were always excited knowing that you would have a love like theirs someday as well.

Ashton watched you sink down in your seat and look at your hands as you played with your fingers. He smiled sadly, getting up and moving to sit next to you. You watched Ashton's hand come into view as he took your own, tangling your fingers with his. You finally looked up at him and he immediately began talking again.

"I know you're scared of getting hurt, Y/N," he said softly, rubbing the back of your hand with his thumb, "But don't you think I've thought about it too? My best friend lost his soulmate after only two years, but he wouldn't have traded those two years for anything. He loved her so much and he was absolutely devastated when he lost her. But if you asked him if he would do it all over again, even knowing exactly what the pain would be like, he would say yes in a heartbeat. I'll never be able to promise you that nothing like that will happen to us, but  _we're soulmates_ , Y/N;  _We were made for each other_. I've dated so many girls before I met you, but I've never feel  _half_ of the things I felt the moment our eyes met and everything had color. You are who I've been made to care for every day and fall asleep with at night and love with all my heart and I promise I'm going to give you as much of the world as I can if you let me."

You felt yourself start to tear up – this man hadn't even known you for two weeks and he was already in love with you. Sure, you had been in relationships before where a boy had told you things like that, but until now, you'd never  _felt_  it. You never felt the racing heart or the butterflies in your stomach when they said those things to you, but with Ashton, you did; You felt all that and  _then some_.

And you couldn't help but put your free hand on his cheek and pull his face to yours.

When you kissed Ashton, you felt him smile against your lips. He released your hand, only to put his on your hips and bring you onto his lap. You straddled his thighs and he held onto you tightly, not wanting you to run away from him again.

You had kissed plenty of guys before Ashton, but kissing him was different. Kissing Ashton made you feel like you were flying – like nothing in the world could hurt you. It baffled you how much love you could feel in a kiss with someone you'd only met two weeks ago, but that was what happened when you kissed your soulmate; It seemed like every emotion was intensified by ten –  _especially_ when you kissed them.

When you pulled away from the kiss to breathe, you opened your eyes just in time to watch Ashton's flutter open. He smiled slightly, pressing a soft kiss to your nose to make you smile as well. You rested your forehead on his, taking a moment to catch your breath.

"Does this mean you'll go on a date with me now?" Ashton whispered, his fingers drawing small circles on your lower back. You couldn't help but giggle quietly, stroking his cheekbone with your thumb.

"Yeah, Ash," you murmured, "I'll go out with you." His grin grew a bit and he tilted his head to kiss you again, burning the feeling of your lips on his into his memory.

Maybe this was what you'd needed all along – what  _Ashton_ needed all along; You needed each other to paint your wings and set you free of the pasts you were scared of.

~

 _inspirations:_  
"Paint You Wings" by All Time Low   
http://my-imagines-moonlight53.tumblr.com/post/107587674877/soulmate-au-a-michael-clifford-imagine


	269. The Haunting (Ashton Irwin) - Part 1

**Warnings: Mentions of death**

~

When most people think of ghosts, they probably think of  _Casper_  or  _A Christmas Carol_. But Ashton Irwin and his crew – Luke Hemmings, Michael Clifford, and Calum Hood – knew it was much more than that. Ghosts were their livelihood – they made a living on going into haunted places and collecting evidence of paranormal activity for their television show. Sure, the program was entertaining, but it was also meant to be informative. Whether the viewers believed in ghosts or not, they knew the things they captured with their equipment was real. And they liked to think they've even helped some of those spirits move on to the afterlife where they were  _meant_  to go.

It was one such afternoon; Ashton and his crew were walking up to a two story hotel to interview its owner before their investigation that night. They'd already interviewed plenty of people the last couple days about the building, but the owner wasn't available until now.

The men entered the front doors, taking in how eerie it still felt – having already been in the building for previous interviews, they already knew it was a creepy place.

They approached the front desk and Ashton smiled politely at the petite blonde girl.

"Hello, we're looking for the owner of this hotel: Y/N Y/L/N?" he hoped he remembered the name correctly.

"Oh!" she squeaked, "You're the paranormal investigators she was telling us about?" He simply nodded. "I think she's downstairs right now," she said, grabbing her phone and pushing some buttons, "Let me just call her." She paused, waiting for the owner to pick up.

"Hey, Macy," you answered, "What's up?"

"Hello, ma'am, I was just calling to let you know the investigators are here."

"Awesome!" you chirped, "Tell them I'll be right up!" She acknowledged the order and hung up the phone, but she didn't really need to tell them since they could clearly hear your voice.

They heard footsteps coming from down the hallway a few seconds later.

Despite having done some preliminary research on the building, neither Ashton nor his crew knew what you looked like. He didn't know what he expected, but a cute (h/c)-haired, (e/c)-eyed girl like you wasn't it.

"Y/N," the man following you said, a bit of a desperate tone in his voice, "Come on, at least just hear me out."

"I've heard you out 16 times already, Marcus," you stated dryly, "And I am still not selling you anything."

"Why not?"

"This hotel has been in my family for six generations and it is  _not_  going to end with me," you told him for what felt like the hundredth time, "The day I hand someone else the keys will be the day hell freezes over and I can guarantee you, you will already be there by then."

The men at the front desk turned to Macy as they desperately tried to contain their laughter. You looked at them out of the corner of your eye before turning back to Marcus.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I've got things to do that are actually worth my time," you smiled sweetly, motioning toward the front doors.

Marcus grumbled quietly but left the building without protest, leaving you to let out a sigh of relief. You stood there for a moment to recompose yourself before turning and making your way to the front desk. 

"So sorry about that," you said as you trotted up to the group and looked at the brown-haired one, "Ashton?" The sound of you saying his name made his heart flutter.

"Yeah, hi," he cleared his throat, "You're Y/N?"

"That, I am," you chirped.

"And he's..." he trailed off, pointing toward the door.

"A pain in my ass," you sighed.

"Right," he chuckled with a small nod, "So is there anywhere specific you'd like to have your interview?"

"We can do it here, that's fine," you said. You walked around them so you could talk to Macy. "Hey, Macy," you smiled at the blonde, "Have all the guests been relocated?"

"Yes, ma'am," she nodded, "I just finished up this morning. The only people who have yet to leave are the ones eating breakfast."

"Awesome, thank you," you grinned, "You can go ahead and get something to eat yourself if you'd like. We're just going to start our interview and I'd like to do it right here."

"Okay," she smiled, "Thank you." Macy came out from behind the desk and went to the dining hall to get breakfast while Ashton kicked off the interview. Since your name would be voiced over in post, he opted to skip that portion of the introduction. 

"Why don't we start off with what you do here?" he suggested.

"What  _don't_  I do here would be easier to answer," you chuckled quietly, "I'm the owner, manager, tour guide on Saturdays, front desk from 6 to 10am, bartender on Friday nights; You name it, I probably do it."

"Do you clean at all?" Luke asked with a silly grin. You couldn't help but laugh loudly.

"No, I don't," you shook your head, "I'm far too busy so have our maids doing things throughout the day and then our janitor come in at night when everyone is asleep, but that's the time when I refuse to leave my room, so no, I don't handle any of the cleaning."

"Why do you refuse to leave your room?" Michael piped up.

"I'm sure you guys have investigated some pretty creepy places, but if this doesn't end up in your top 5, I salute you," you replied honestly.

"So how did you come to own the building?"

"Well, I'm the sixth generation to own this building, so I've been here my entire life," you said, "The only other house I've lived in was my mother's every summer after my parents' divorced, and I only lived there for about 6 years."

"Can I ask why?" Luke asked carefully.

"Why did they get divorced?" He nodded and you went on with a nod of your own. "It was the building," you shrugged, "My dad inherited it before I was born, and I was 14 when they separated. I mean, I think part of it was the stress of maintaining a hotel that got to her, but I really do believe that it was ultimately all the activity. She's never been too big on paranormal stuff, so I definitely get it from my dad," you laughed softly, making them smile, "Anyway, my dad left me the hotel in his will when he passed, so I've owned it coming up on four years now."

"So why don't you tell us about the history?" Ashton changed the subject, "We were reading up on the drive here and it looks like some bad stuff happened here or around here."

"I apologize if everything I'm about to say sounds recited; I  _am_  a tour guide, after all," you smiled, "Follow me, gentlemen!" You led the four men downstairs to the basement where the bar was located.

"Whoa," they murmured in unison, looking around at all the old photographs and newspaper articles from throughout the years.

"These are..." Ashton trailed off. You looked at what photo he was referring to and answered.

"My great-great-great-grandparents," you began, "They're standing on the area – give or take a few feet – where the front desk is now located. They built this place in 1857 along the outskirts of where the Civil War was fought a few years later, so this building was more often than not a place for soldiers fighting for the North when the hospitals just couldn't take them."

"So a whole lot of people died here?" Calum asked.

"Oh, yeah," you nodded, "It was estimated that around 28,000 soldiers lost their lives on these grounds. Actually, many of them died in this room."

"In the bar?" Michael wondered.

"Well, it didn't used to be a bar. The basement was used largely for storage until my grandfather decided to put the bar in-" You then motioned to the back of the room. "-and that door leads to the storage room."

"I  _did_  get a creepy feeling down here..." Ashton mentioned. A small laugh passed your lips.

"If you think the feeling  _down here_  is creepy, you're going to  _love_  the first and second floors," you winked, taking them back up the stairs.

"Why's that?" Calum said curiously, following close behind you.

"With every hotel you go to – especially ones as old as this one – I think you're bound to have some suicides," you said, stopping between two doors - the one on the left labeled  _Mariah_  and the other labeled  _Misty_. "This room right here-" You opened the door to the right and went in. "-is Misty's room. The story goes that Misty was the wife of a Union soldier who died in this building in 1865 shortly after the Civil War ended. She had come to retrieve the body of her husband, and since she'd arrived so late, they allowed her to stay the night for free. They went to check on her the next day at about 1pm because they'd noticed she hadn't left yet and that's when they found her in the bathtub."

"What happened to her?"

"She had been so overcome by grief at the loss of her husband that she drowned herself."

"What about  _Mariah_?" Luke asked, reading the label behind Ashton.

"Mariah is our only child ghost and she's definitely a little troublemaker," you grinned, taking them inside, "But in the  _best_  way."

"How so?" Michael chuckled.

"She likes to move things around on you," you explained, "If you leave something on the dresser and go to the bathroom, when you come back out, it will be either at the other end or on the floor. People actually started bringing toys for her to play with and just leaving them here, so we put-" You pointed to the corner of the room beside the nightstand. "-a little toy box in here for everything."

"They leave her toys?" Ashton tilted his head slightly.

"Mhmm," you hummed, "I can't tell you exactly how far back it goes because we don't know when she died, but there are some pretty old things in there."

"What happened to her?"

"We don't know," you shook your head, "We don't know where she came from or why she's attached to this hotel, but she – and Misty as well – has never been a problem."

"Do you have any spirits that  _are_  problems?" Ashton spoke.

"I'm glad you asked, Ashton," you grinned. You gestured for the men to follow you up the next flight of stairs leading to the second floor. "Now, all of those rooms are what we've found to be the only ones that aren't haunted," you said, pointing toward the doors on the right side of the hallway, "These are the rooms we don't rent out unless there are children staying here or someone specifically requests one."

"Why is that?" Luke asked.

"Most of the folks that come into this hotel come here  _because_  of the ghosts," you explained, "The only families with children that really come through here only do so because every other hotel is booked and this was the only option they had left, so we want to make sure that they still feel safe even though they're in a building that's known for its hauntings."

"You know, I think this is the first hotel we've ever been to that's done that," Ashton said, earning nods of agreement from the other men, "That's really cool."

"Thank you," you smiled, "And now that I've given you the good news, how about we move on to the bad?" You smiled again, leading them to the left.

"What's the bad news?" Michael asked curiously, following you down the hallway.

"Room 203," you said, taking them right to the door and opening it so they could look inside.

"So you'd say this is the worst of the actual rooms people stay in?" Ashton wondered.

"If you ask anyone that works here or has attempted to stay in here, they will all tell you the same thing," you nodded.

"When you say  _attempted_..." Calum trailed off.

"This is another room we only rent out to people who ask for it – the people who have heard about it and want to be brave. But we have never had a single person stay there all night. They've all come running down to the lobby asking if they could switch to a different room."

"Why?"

"Ray just doesn't like people in his room," you chuckled.

"Ray?"

"Well, we don't know if that's actually his name, but that's what we call him," you replied, "For whatever reason, he prefers to have two or more people in the room. If you're with someone else, he'll leave you alone, but if you're staying alone, he will actually show himself 9 times out of 10 in the hopes of scaring you off. And it usually ends up working."

"Luke," Ashton smirked, "I know where you're gonna be tonight."

" _Come on_ ," he groaned.

"You never know, Luke," you smiled, "He might like you."

"Don't say that. That doesn't make me feel better," he pouted, making you laugh.

After a few more questions and showing them around the rest of the building, you and the crew ended back in the lobby. They all shook your hand as they said goodbye so you could double-check that all guests were relocated properly.

"Oh, Y/N," Ashton said, "I was wondering if you would be cool with coming back around midnight to investigate with us?" You paused for a moment, letting out a deep breath.

"Sure," you nodded, "Yeah, I'll do it."

"Awesome," he beamed, "We'll see you tonight." He shook your hand again and let you get back to work.

~

**12:03am**

You unlocked the front door, locking it again after closing it behind you. Ashton had told you to meet Michael and Calum in the kitchen where nerve center was, so that's where you went. You knocked lightly on the door frame as you entered the room, making the two men look up at you.

"Hey, guys," you smiled brightly, "You get anything good yet?"

"Hi, Y/N," Calum grinned, "Just a few voices here and there, but nothing really alarming." Michael grabbed the walkie talkie on the table and held it to his mouth.

" _Ashton_ ," he sang into the speaker, " _Y/N's here_."

"We're on our way," Ashton answered immediately.

"Why'd you say it like that, Michael?" you asked.

"Like what?" he tilted his head back so he could look at you.

"Like you were teasing him."

"I wasn't teasing him."

"My friends and I tease each other all the time, you know," you said with a sly smile, "Especially when a boy that one of us likes is around."

"I, uh-" Michael cleared his throat. "-I don't know what you're talking about."

"Sure you don't," you giggled. You heard footsteps coming from down the hallway and then Ashton and Luke were at the door.

"Y/N," Ashton breathed, earning a snicker from the other three men that they quickly tried to conceal.

"Hi, Ashton," you chirped, then looked at the blonde, "Luke." He gave you a smile, walking around you to look at the computers in front Michael and Calum. Ashton went to one of the bags on the floor, coming back to you with a recorder.

"Alright, Y/N," Ashton said, "We want you to take this recorder downstairs to the bar-" He held it out to you for you to take. "-and ask whatever questions you'd like. Hold it as still as you can and if you hear any noises or you cough or anything like that, make sure you mark it so we don't confuse them with the spirits. Are you okay with taking Luke's camera?" You nodded and Luke handed it to you. "You ready?" You made a few noises before using any words.

"Do I have to answer that question?" you laughed nervously.

"You don't have to go alone, you know," Calum spoke up, "It's no problem if one of us goes with you."

"I'm fine," you said reassuringly, "I'll be fine."

"Alright," Ashton said although he clearly didn't believe you, "Be careful and watch your step. If anything happens or you want to leave for any reason, just yell, okay?" he told you, wanting to make sure you understood that it was okay to not want to continue. You nodded and he went on. "We'll be on this floor away from nerve center, but we'll still be able to hear you if you yell for us." You nodded again and carefully made your way downstairs, entering the bar.

"Hello?" you called out, "Is anyone here?" Between every question, you paused, allowing whatever was there enough time to answer you if they chose to. "Do you remember me? ... Why are you here? ... Why can't you leave? ... What happened to you?"

A few minutes later, you decided to set the camera down on the end of the bar's counter top, facing where you were going to be at the other end. You walked over as carefully as you could, but it wasn't careful enough. You squeaked when your hip hit one of the chairs, cursing yourself under your breath because you knew where every single chair was and  _still_  managed to hurt yourself. You marked both your squeak and the movement of the chair before going over and standing by the corner of the counter beside the wall.

You asked a few more questions, but when you started to feel a burning sensation on your back, it was becoming harder to concentrate. You kept going though, still asking questions until the pain became too much.

"What the fuck?" you mumbled to yourself.

You reached under your shirt and felt a bumpy area of skin on your spine. It felt a bit wet as well, and since you didn't have any source of light to find out what it was, you were starting to freak out a bit.

"Ashton?!" you called out, waiting for a response for about 15 seconds.

When you didn't get one, your heart started pounding.

" _Ashton_!" you shouted as loudly as you could, hoping at least  _one_  of the men upstairs would hear you.

~

**Ashton's POV; A few minutes earlier**

Ashton was using the spirit box with Luke while Michael and Calum were off doing thermal imaging sweeps at the other end of the hall. No voices had come through until about 15 minutes after it was turned on.

"What's the name of the girl downstairs?" Ashton asked.

_Y/N..._

"Whoa," Luke said, "It just said Y/N."

_Scratch..._

"What?" both of them said in unison.

"Did it say scratch?" Ashton asked.

"Yeah, dude, I think it did!"

"Do you want to scratch her?" Ashton paused, receiving no answer. "Why do you want to hurt Y/N?"

_Hate...her..._

"Dude..." Luke said slowly, "I've got a  _bad_  feeling right now. Maybe we should go check on her."

"Yeah," he agreed, "Let's g-" He was cut off by a faint noise, making him perk up. "Did you hear that?" he looked at Luke.

"Yeah," he nodded quickly, "What was that?"

Thinking it was another spirit trying to get their attention, Ashton turned the spirit box off and they met with Michael and Calum in the hallway who had heard the same noise. They all waited in complete silence to see if it was going to happen again.

And it  _did_ , but not for the reasons they originally thought –  _or_  were hoping for.

" _Ashton_!" they heard you shout. All the men's eyes widened, hearing the panic in your voice.

They ran downstairs, Ashton nearly running into you as you both turned the corner. You stopped abruptly, your breathing heavy.

"What happened?" Ashton asked frantically, "Are you okay?"

"I was standing over there-" You pointed over to the further end of the counter. "-and I kept hearing noises and footsteps and then my back just started burning really bad."

"Does it still burn?" You nodded. "Where at?"

You turned around, lifting the back of your shirt up. Right in the middle of your back, there was a large, dark red scratch running all the way down your spine with a tiny bit of blood in some spots.

"Oh my God," Ashton whispered, "Cal-"

"Already on it," Calum stated, his camera off of night vision so he could document what happened to you. "Did you run into anything?" the black-haired boy asked you.

"I mean, I bumped into a chair as I was walking around the room, but I only hit my hip," you told him, "Nothing's touched my back – it was to the wall when it started burning. What's wrong?"

"You got scratched," he informed you.

"Oh..." you trailed off in a whisper, "That's a first."

"You've never been hurt by anything in here before?"

"Not directly," you swallowed, "I've had stuff thrown at me and been hurt that way, but nothing's ever scratched me." Ashton pulled your shirt back down before looking at the crew.

"We have a first aid kit at nerve, don't we?" he asked, earning a nod from each of them, "I'm gonna clean this up where there's better lighting, but I want you guys to go investigate the second floor so I can come back in here alone and try to find out why whatever is in here did this, okay?" They nodded again and Luke grabbed his camera off of the counter top before following the group up the stairs.

Ashton took you back to the kitchen while the other three went up the next flight of stairs to continue investigating.

**Your POV**

"Is it that bad?" you asked worriedly, but you knew it was. You'd had plenty of scratches in your lifetime, but nothing burned quite like that.

"I'm gonna find out," Ashton stated, having you hop up onto the island in the middle of the room.

He grabbed the first aid kit from one of the bags and came back over. He had you hold your shirt up again, able to thoroughly inspect the red mark.

"Hmm," he hummed lightly, "It doesn't look as bad as I thought it did, so that's good, but I still need to clean it so it doesn't get infected."

"But that's gonna hurt worse than actually being scratched!" you whined. Ashton chuckled under his breath, getting the rubbing alcohol and a cotton ball.

"An infection is going to hurt worse than  _both_  of those things," he reminded you, earning himself an eye roll. You whimpered quietly when the alcohol touched the open skin, but it was bearable. "Are you okay?" he asked softly.

"I could ask you the same thing," you chirped.

"Why's that?"

"You seem pretty upset," you pointed out.

"I don't like when spirits start physically hurting people," he said stoically.

"But you tell them to scratch you all the time." Ashton paused, making you look over your shoulder to find him giving you a confused stare. "What? I keep up with the show," you shrugged. He let out a quiet breath as he finished up.

After a couple more moments, he told you that you could put your shirt back down. You did so, spinning yourself around on the counter top so you could watch him put everything away. As he put everything back into the first aid kit, you spoke up again.

"Ashton," you said. He hummed again as a sign that he was listening. "Will you promise me something?"

"Depends on what it is," he said honestly, closing the kit and walking back across the room to return it to its rightful place.

"When you go back downstairs, will you try not to provoke whatever scratched me?"

"What do you mean?" he asked, coming back and standing beside you, his head tilted up so he could look at you.

"I mean I've seen the show," you reminded him, "I know you like to provoke the spirits that hurt people."

"So why don't you want me to provoke this one?"

"It already doesn't like me for some reason," you began chewing on your bottom lip, "It's never hurt me like this before and I'm afraid if you make it mad, it'll just get worse around here. And if it can hurt someone to the point where they need a first aid kit, then I don't want it to attach itself to you."

"So you're worried about me?" he smirked, making you shove him lightly.

"Ashton, I'm being serious," you said.

"I know you are," he nodded, "But I've had plenty of attachments before and they've never been anything I couldn't handle."

"And what if this is the one you finally  _can't_?" There was a moment of silence between the two of you.

"I'll be fine, Y/N," he said unconvincingly.

"Ashton,  _please_ ," you choked.

"I won't provoke it," he shook his head, "I promise."

"Thank you," you whispered.

You both looked at each other and it seemed like his face starting inching closer and closer to yours. But before he could reach his destination, he heard his name over the walkie talkie on the desk where all their computers were.

"Ashton?" Michael's voice came through the speaker, "Where are you?" Ashton let out a deep sigh, closing his eyes for a moment before turning around to retrieve the device.

"Just finished up with Y/N," he replied, "What's up?"

"I know you wanted to go into the basement to talk to whatever hurt her, but we're getting some  _really_  creepy activity related to what happened near 203, so we think it's up here now."

"Alright, I'll be right there." He put the walkie talkie back and then returned to your side. "I guess we'll see you at dawn," he said quietly, looking down at his hands.

"Yeah," you nodded, "And Ashton?" He looked up at you and you pressed your lips to the corner of his mouth, leaving them there for a few seconds. "Be careful," you whispered, pulling back. You hopped off of the counter and made your way to the front door so you could leave, completely missing the bright red blush on Ashton's face.

~

**5:51am**

" _Freedom_!" Michael shouted, bursting out onto the porch the moment the door was opened.

"Glad to see you guys are still alive," you giggled.

"Thank you," Calum chuckled, noting your sarcasm, "How's your back?" You took in a sharp breath, letting it out with a nervous laugh.

"I'm working with it," you answered. While the others went to retrieve the cameras around the outside of the building, Ashton stayed behind with you on the porch.

"Seriously, Y/N," he said quietly despite the fact that no one but you could hear him, "Are you okay?"

"I will be," you shrugged, "But I appreciate your concern." You turned to go inside the hotel, but Ashton grabbed your hand, stopping you.

"When will anyone else get here?" he asked you. You checked the time on your phone, seeing it was almost 6.

"About an hour," you said, "Why?"

"I just... I don't think you should be in there alone for a while."

"Worried about me?" you smirked, the same way Ashton had just a few hours ago.

"Yes," he replied without hesitation, the most serious look on his face. Before you could respond, the crew came back to the porch.

"It was really nice to meet you, Y/N," Calum smiled, making you tear your gaze away from Ashton's.

"It was nice meeting you too," you returned the gesture, "I can't wait to see what you guys got." They all said goodbye and stepped off the porch, but Luke noticed Ashton wasn't following.

"Ash, you coming?" he chirped.

"I think I'm gonna stay here for a bit," Ashton answered, "Make sure that spirit doesn't hurt her before someone else arrives."

"Mhmm," the blonde smirked, "When do you want me to come back and pick you up?"

"Uh... 7:30 should be good."

"Alright, I'll see you then," he grinned, "Later, Y/N." You and Ashton watched the car drive away before you led him back inside.

"You are something else, Irwin, you know that?" you shook your head. Ashton followed you to the front desk. You turned on the computer and started making sure everything would be in order when you and Macy started checking guests back in.

"' _Something else_ ' that is really worried about your safety," he said seriously, making you look at him over your shoulder.

"Ashton," you sighed, "I'll be fine. I've dealt with the things that go on in this place my whole life."

"None of them have ever hurt you like that, Y/N," he reminded you of what you'd said, a firm tone in his voice.

Ashton raised his hand up to your back, his fingers beginning to run parallel to your spine without ever actually grazing over where the scratch was. Your body erupted into goose bumps, your breathing hitched, and your heart started racing at how fragile he was treating you.

"Ashton..." you mumbled. You turned to face him, but you didn't get another word out.

Ashton put his hands on your hips and effortlessly lifted you up onto the counter top like you had been in the kitchen just house prior. This time, however, he stood between your legs and wasted no time in pressing his lips to yours.

You didn't know if it was wrong – he  _had_  been there for business after all – but right now, you couldn't care less. Your heart was soaring at the feeling of your lips moving together and you couldn't help but tangle your fingers in the hair on the back of his head. He wrapped his arms around your waist, completely forgetting about your scratch until he rested his arms on it and you sucked in a short breath.

"I'm sorry," Ashton immediately pulled away and took his arms back, "I didn't mean to, I swear. I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Ash," you murmured, combing your fingers through his hair.

Your other hand wrapped around his upper arm, encouraging him to bring both of them back to your sides. He instinctively grabbed your hips again, holding you tightly, but carefully at the same time.

"So are you  _really_  worried about me or did you just want an excuse to kiss me without someone walking in on us?" you asked with a sly grin. Ashton blushed slightly.

"I really am worried," he answered truthfully, "I think I'm always going to be worried about you now – especially since you've been scratched."

"Please don't be, Ashton," you said, "I'll be fine. I can't let one bad experience scare me away."

"I guess..."

"Did you quit after the first time you got scratched?"

"No," he sighed, already having a pretty good idea of the direction you were headed.

"This is  _my_  hotel, Ash, not theirs," you said confidently, "I  _let them_  stay here and they're not getting rid of me – not that easily."

"You're a brave girl, Miss Haunted Hotel Owner," Ashton said, "You're incredibly stupid, but you're brave."

"I could say the same about you, Mr. Ghost Hunter," you smiled, sliding your hand up to his cheek and pulling his face back to yours.

~

_inspiration: "Ghost Adventures"_


	270. The Haunting (Ashton Irwin) - Part 2

**One year later**

You and Ashton had been dating for about a year now. You weren't living together, but you  _did_  spend most of your nights over at his place and he spent a fair amount of time at the hotel – especially when a lot of paranormal things were happening.

It was one such night when you were staying at Ashton's that you were woken up at nearly 3am to Ashton whimpering softly. You yawned lightly, propping yourself up to turn on the lamp. When you turned back to Ashton, you could clearly hear him repeating the word ' _no_ ', as well as mumbling ' _she's mine, you can't have her_ ' and ' _please give her back_ ' in his sleep. You'd been with him long enough to know that he was having a nightmare, so you shook him gently.

"Ash," you said quietly, "Baby, wake up." He still wasn't opening his eyes, so you shook him harder. "Ash," you said more firmly, "Ashton, you need to wake up now."

After a couple more tries, Ashton's eyes finally shot open and he was gasping to catch his breath. He looked at you frantically and it was almost as if seeing you was what calmed him down. 

He immediately lunged forward, his arms wrapping around your waist. You lost your balance on your arm, falling back onto the bed with Ashton now lying halfway on top of you. You brought one of your hands up to run your fingers through his hair while the other was stroking his upper arm lightly. Your lips were pressed to his forehead, his face buried in your neck.

"You're okay," Ashton murmured, more to himself as a form of reassurance.

"Mhmm," you hummed into his skin, "You wanna talk about it?"

"No," he whispered, "Just wanna hold you." You remained silent, playing with his hair until you both fell back asleep.

And when you went out to a local diner for breakfast a few hours later before you had to go back to your hotel, you sat on the same side of the booth as your boyfriend, your legs draped over his. Ashton held your hand on your lap, squeezing every now and then to remind himself you were there and you were alright. He was always like this for a couple days after having a nightmare, so you didn't think too much of it – you simply just allowed him to cling to you all day.

~

**Two weeks later**

You woke up in the middle of the night one night to find a dark figure standing at the end of your bed. Normally, this wouldn't have bothered you – you were sleeping in your own room at the hotel and this sort of thing happened all the time; What  _wasn't_  normal, however, was that this figure had glowing red dots where its eyes would be. When it turned to look at you, you were quick to grab your phone, calling the only person you knew could help calm you down. The phone rang a few times and you watched with wide eyes as the figure approached you, disappearing the moment you heard Ashton's voice in your ear.

"Hello?" he yawned, clearly not having checked the caller ID.

"A-Ashton," you choked out, wiping your face.

"What's wrong?" his voice automatically sounding alert as he sat up.

"There was... There was a shadow at the end of my bed," you breathed out, "B-But it had bright red eyes and I don't... That's never happened before and I don't know what to do."

"Is Kara working tonight?" he asked you, referring to the girl who was stationed at the front desk for the night shift, and you heard him rustling around.

"Y-Yeah," you answered.

"Let her know I'm on my way, okay?" he ordered, "And if you don't feel safe waiting for me in your room, go downstairs and wait with her."

"Ash, you don't- you don't have to come here," you said, "It's three in the morning."

"Princess, you're clearly scared and I want to be there for you."

"You're already in your car, aren't you?" you asked softly.

"Yes, and nothing you say is going to make me turn back around," he stated, letting you hear his smile.

"Fine," you sighed dramatically, having no choice but to give in.

"I'll see you in a little bit, princess," he told you, "I love you."

"Love you too, Ash," you murmured, hanging up the call.

You then picked up the phone on the nightstand that was in every hotel room, hitting the button for the front desk. The hotel phones were set up so that people at the front desk could see which room number was calling, so when Kara saw your room number pop up on the screen, it wasn't surprising that she was confused.

"Hey, Y/N," she answered after a couple rings.

"Hi, Kara," you said sleepily, "I just wanted to let you know that Ashton's going to be here in like, half an hour minutes, so you can just send him upstairs."

"Ashton's coming? Why? Is everything okay?"

"Everything's fine, I just-" You cut yourself off when you saw the shadow with red eyes again out of the corner of your eye and your heart dropped.

You immediately slammed the phone back onto the receiver, grabbed your cell and room key, and bolted out of the room. You were luckily wearing shorts on under the shirt you'd stolen from Ashton's closet, so you weren't worried about anyone seeing you. Kara's head snapped up when she heard you coming down the stairs in your pajamas without any shoes on.

"Y/N?" she tilted her head, "What's going on?"

"Just a nightmare," you cleared your throat, "Don't want to try and go back to sleep yet."

"Is that why Ashton's coming?"

"Yeah," you nodded, "You know, typical paranoid boyfriend."

"I wish  _my_  boyfriend was like that," she laughed softly, "He just tells me to not think about it and go back to sleep."

~

You and Kara waited around for the next 30 minutes or so, looking up when the front doors opened and Ashton came rushing in. You didn't even have time to walk out from behind the desk before he was already at your side, his arms wrapped tightly around your waist.

"Are you okay, princess?" he asked you, his voice muffled by your skin.

"I'm fine, Ash," you replied. When he pulled away, you took his hand and said goodnight to Kara, leading him up the stairs.

"Night, Y/N," Kara said after you, "I hope you don't have any more nightmares tonight." You thanked her over your shoulder, taking Ashton to your room.

"Nightmares?" Ashton murmured, wrapping his arms around your waist from behind as you unlocked your door.

"If it's only in my room, I don't want to worry everyone," you whispered, shaking your head, "They've got enough ghosts to deal with already."

"I don't think I need to remind you that a black shadow with glowing red eyes isn't exactly something that should be ignored, princess," Ashton said while you closed the door behind you.

"I'm sure it's just my imagination," you sighed, setting your phone and key on the bedside table before sitting down on your bed beside Ashton. He urged you to lie down, letting you cuddle up to his side. He wrapped one arm around your shoulders and let his other hand lie on your hip, kissing your forehead.

"I think that if you were really sure it was your imagination, you wouldn't have called me," he stated. You remained silent, knowing he was right. "Princess," he murmured, "I know you're used to seeing ghosts and experiencing paranormal stuff, so calling me crying in the middle of the night isn't something we can just brush off as  _normal_. This thing could  _really_  hurt you – a lot  _worse_  than when you were scratched. And I can't just  _watch_  that happen to you."

"Ash, if I was genuinely worried this  _thing_  was out to hurt me, I would  _tell you_ ," you reminded him, shaking your head, "You  _know_  I would tell you. It was just something new I haven't seen before that surprised me. If you want to douse the room in holy water or  _whatever_ -" Ashton rolled his eyes. "-tomorrow to feel better, then I'll let you. But right now, I'm tired and I just wanna go to sleep with you." He looked at you carefully for a moment before sighing.

"Okay," he nodded, "But I'm not closing my eyes until you're asleep." You let out a breathy chuckle – your heart skipping at how much this man clearly loved you – and kissed his cheek. You then both laid down, you cuddling into his side as he wrapped his arms around you protectively.

And, as promised, Ashton didn't close his eyes until you started snoring softly in his ear.

~

**An hour later**

You woke up again, whining softly upon looking over and seeing it hadn't even been a full hour since you'd fallen back asleep. But what really caught your attention was the movement out of the corner of your eye.

Did you  _really_  want to look over?  _Of course not_. But you knew you couldn't go back to sleep without knowing if something was  _really_  there or if it actually  _was_  your imagination that time.

And your heart skipped when you saw the  _same_  shadow at the end of your bed.

You watched it curiously; It wasn't really doing anything – it was just standing there, seemingly looking out the window. But when it turned around again – almost in  _exactly_  the same fashion as it had done before – you started to panic.

As it made its way toward you, you shook Ashton awake. The moment he started mumbling groggily, the shadow was gone. You sat up with your face in your hands, leaning over so your head was lying on your calves.

"Princess," Ashton rubbed his eyes, "What's wrong?"

"It came back," you whimpered, your voice muffled by your palms, "I woke up and it was here again."

"C'mere, princess," he said softly, pulling your arm so you sat back up.

You didn't remain upright for long though, because the second Ashton's hand touched you, you were lying back down, your face in his neck, arms around his stomach, and legs tangled with his. He held you for a moment, his fingers running through your hair as he kissed every area of skin he could reach. You heard him sigh quietly, which obviously confused you, but you didn't even get the chance to ask him what was wrong before he was speaking into the darkness.

"I think now is as good a time as any to tell you..." Ashton trailed off, "You know that nightmare I had a couple weeks ago?" You obviously nodded and he went on. "There was a shadow with red eyes in it," he said quietly, "It was going after you and I could hear you yelling for me, but I couldn't find you-" His eyes started to get watery. "-and I finally found the shadow, but you weren't there and... I... I knew you were..." He couldn't make himself finish the statement, just wanting to forget that it had gotten you in his dream.

"I think whatever it is is scared of you," you whispered, sensing the confused look on his face.

"What makes you think that?" he wondered, his thumb rubbing your shoulder blade just to remind himself that you were there with him and you were okay.

"When I called you earlier, it left after you answered," you informed him, "And when you woke up just now, it disappeared again... I think you scare it... I think it's scared of you... But I think it wants  _you_  to think it's  _not_ , so that's why you had that dream..."

"What are you, a  _ghost expert_  now?" Ashton couldn't help but chuckle, smiling again when he felt your body shake as you giggled.

"I'm an expert in  _my_  ghosts," you shrugged lightly, "And an expert in  _you_."

"Yeah?" he hummed, with another soft laugh, "What makes you an expert in  _me_?"

"Well, we've been together for a year; I think I've gotten to know you and your own ghosts pretty well. So I think I can tell when one is afraid of you."

"Hmm, maybe you should start coming to investigations with me then," he murmured sleepily.

"Sure, Ash," you rolled your eyes fondly, "But maybe we should test it out a little closer to home before I just pack up and start going on the road with you."

"We can do it here," he said.

"You've  _already_  investigated here, remember?" you grinned.

"We haven't met your  _new_   _ghost_  yet." You giggled again, hearing him smile in response.

"Yeah, you two can get acquainted sometime," you told him, feeling him squeeze you lightly.

"Love you, princess," he murmured, clearly about to fall back asleep.

"Love you, Ash," you breathed out in amusement, barely kissing his skin as you heard his own breathing even out.

~

_inspiration: https://youtu.be/tjZ9GyXJebo?t=6m35s_


	271. Another You (Calum Hood)

"Ah, Y/N!" your boss chirped when you walked into her office.

"Hi, Stacy," you smiled, sitting down on the chair in front of her desk.

"I'm so sorry to call you in on such short notice."

"It's okay," you assured her, "Cal had to go into the studio today, so I wasn't really doing much. Do I have another shoot to do?"

"No..." she said slowly, making you tilt your head, "I just didn't want to discuss this with you over the phone."

"What is it?" you asked worriedly.

"Well... You and Calum have been together for a while now..."

"And thank you for setting us up," you smiled again, "I haven't been this happy with a guy in a long time."

"Yeah... That's why this is a little more difficult."

Your smile faded, "What are you talking about?"

"We want you to break up with Calum," she informed you, getting straight to the point. Your breathing hitched as you fell back in your chair.

"Break up with him?" you shook your head, "Why?"

"The agency is losing momentum, Y/N," she replied, "We need something that will put it back on the radar."

"And you think that breaking up with Calum is going to do that?!" you asked loudly, standing up.

"Y/N-"

"No, Stacy! I'm not going to break up with him just because you want a little publicity!"

"You can either end it with Calum or I can end it with you," she stated dryly. Your heart skipped a beat and you stared at her in shock.

"You're going to  _fire me_?"

"If you don't break up with him, I'm afraid so."

You stood in silence for a moment despite the fact that there was no doubt in your mind what decision you were going to make. You looked at Stacy and shrugged slightly.

"Then I quit," you told her. She was clearly surprised by the answer, but you didn't stay long enough to allow her to tell you that you were making a ' _bad decision_ '. You knew what you wanted – and you knew it was Calum.

~

Later that afternoon, you were lying on the couch watching TV when you heard a car door close outside. Calum opened the front door a few seconds later, closing it behind him with a sigh. You couldn't help but smile when he dropped his guitar case – carefully, of course – and stalked over to the couch, lying down on top of you.

"Rough day?" you giggled softly, kissing him before beginning to run your fingers through his hair.

"Long day," he corrected, breathing a sigh of content.

"That makes two of us."

"I thought you didn't have any plans?" he wondered, propping himself up on his elbows so he could look at you.

"I didn't," you replied, "But Stacy called me in after lunch."

"You have a new project?" he cocked an eyebrow, "Perhaps swimsuit season related?" You laughed loudly, lightly slapping his cheek.

"You can see me in a swimsuit any time you want, Cal," you reminded him.

"I'd like to see you in a lot less than a swimsuit, beautiful," he commented, kissing your neck.

"That wasn't what she wanted to talk about, Cal..." you shook your head, knowing that if you didn't say it now, you probably never would. "I quit," you blurted out.

His eyes widened and he got off of you, sitting beside your calves, "You quit? Why on earth would you quit?! You love being a model!"

"Yeah, well, I love you more," you murmured. Calum froze. You quit because of  _him_?

"What do you mean?" he asked slowly.

"Stacy wanted me to break up with you to get even more publicity and she said if I didn't do it, she would fire me," you told him, "So I quit."

"Just like that?"

"Why are you acting like I made the  _wrong_ decision?" you stood up. Calum quickly jumped up as well, following you into the kitchen.

"That contract was all you've ever wanted, Y/N!" he said, his voice gradually getting louder, "I just don't get why you threw it all away!"

" _You're_  all I've ever wanted!" you shouted, spinning around to face him, "I can find another job, Calum, but I will never find another _you_!" You let out a shaky, frustrated breath, angrily wiping the tears off of your cheeks. You put your phone on the counter and grabbed your keys, heading for the door.

"W-Where are you going?" You could barely hear Calum's voice, but you  _clearly_  heard how broken it was.

"I don't know," you spat, slamming the door shut behind you without even glancing at him.

~

After you had cooled off a couple hours later, you realized how irrational you were being. You completely understood why Calum reacted that way; You probably would have been ten times  _worse_  if he had said he quit the band for you. You knew you had to apologize, so you drove back home as quickly as you could without getting into an accident.

You sat in the driveway for a couple minutes before killing the engine and trudging back to the front door. You opened and closed it quietly, hearing Calum's panicked voice coming from the kitchen.

"No, I don't know where she is, Ashton!" he let out a frustrated sigh, "If I knew where she was, I wouldn't have called you! ... She left almost three hours ago. ... I can't, sh-she left her phone here. ... You don't... You don't think she's gonna leave me, do you? ... I know she does, but I just... I'm really scared, Ash..."

When you heard how hurt he sounded even after the two and a half hours you had been gone, your heart dropped. You always knew that Calum loved you and cared about you, but you never realized just  _how much_  until now.

"Cal," you whispered as you stepped into the room.

Calum spun around and you immediately noticed how red his eyes were. He let out a loud puff of air – one that you were sure startled Ashton.

"I'll call you back, Ashton," he choked out, ending the call. Calum tossed his phone onto the counter and ran to you.

You dropped your keys onto the granite as well before he got to you. He wrapped his arms tightly around your waist while one of your arms went around his neck and your other hand landed on the back of his head. Calum loved when you played with his hair, so you were hoping that running your fingers through it now would help him calm down. You pressed long kisses to his upper jaw and ear, both of you holding each other as closely as you could.

"I'm so sorry, baby," Calum mumbled into your neck, "I'm sorry I yelled and I'm sorry I got mad and I'm sorry I didn't listen to you. I love you so much and I want you to be happy and I want you to keep your job, but I don't want you to leave me because it'll hurt way too much."

"You don't have to apologize, Cal," you told him. You moved back so you could look at him. "I shouldn't have stormed out like that. You had every right to respond the way you did and I was wrong to yell at you for it when I would have done the same thing."

"But you love being a model," he sniffled, repeating his words from earlier.

"But I love  _you_  more," you reminded him, wiping his cheeks with your thumbs, "I've been wanting to quit for a while, Cal, you know that. Trying to force a breakup was just the last straw. There are other modeling agencies around here that I'm sure will hire me, but there's only  _one_ Calum Thomas Hood and I love him way too much to let him get away." Calum smiled shyly, a light red blush rising to his cheeks. He leaned forward, pressing his lips to yours.

"I love you too," he mumbled against your mouth.


	272. Roses (Maxx Danziger)

_this is nothing like bee movie_

~

**Yellow; Happiness**

It had been a particularly rough couple of years for your small flower shop; Just not that many people sent flowers anymore. You were barely able to keep your store running, so you weren't really able to afford advertising. Sure, you had a Facebook page, but who  _really_ pays attention to those kinds of invites?

It was nearing Valentine's Day – the only time of year when you would actually receive any consistent business. After one such high-traffic day, everything was settling down near closing time. You were beyond tired, happy you could go home soon. You looked at the clock on your computer, seeing it was about 10 minutes before you were scheduled to close. Since you never had people come in in the last half hour of your day anyway, you walked to the front door and turned the open sign around so you could do everything you needed to before going home. But as soon as you went to turn the sign over, you heard footsteps running toward the door.

The blonde boy on the other side frowned, "I thought this place didn't close until 9!"

"It doesn't," you shrugged, putting the closed sign up and opening the door, motioning for him to come in.

"Then why are you closing now?"

"Because it's my shop and I can do what I want," you smiled sweetly, "What can I do for you?"

"Are you sure?" he asked skeptically, "I can come back tomorrow." You simply nodded your head, prompting him to continue. "How much is a single flower?"

"$2.50," you answered. He gave you a surprised look.

"I should have been coming here then," he commented, "The last place I went to sells singles for like, 5 bucks."

"With the way business is going, I should probably be doing that too," you chuckled lightly, "So what kind of flower were you thinking of getting?"

"Well, to tell you the truth, I have no idea," he said, sheepishly scratching the back of his neck, "I saw this girl in a store once and she looked kinda down, so I wanted to give her a flower to hopefully brighten her day."

"That's very sweet of you," you told him, "You sure you'll see her again?"

"I hope to," he grinned at you.

"Well, I would suggest a yellow rose," you chirped, leading him over to the flowers.

"Why yellow?" he asked.

"Yellow roses are a symbol of happiness," you informed him.

"The colors have meanings?" he tilted his head, "What about the other ones?"

"The red one is obviously a symbol of love – those are the ones that are given to people the most often," you explained, "Then there's pink which expresses admiration, purple which expresses beauty, white is typically used when apologizing, orange means desire, and a peachy-colored rose is usually a symbol of friendship."

"Oh, that's cool," he smiled, "Well, I'll take a yellow one for now and hopefully work my way up to buying her a red one." You simply laughed under your breath, pulling a yellow rose out from the bunch and taking the boy to the counter.

"Is this length alright or would you like it shorter?"

"Maybe shorter," he answered, "Like, a little lower than where you're holding it." You grabbed your scissors and cut the stem.

"Would you like to add a note or anything?" He pulled out his wallet and leaned onto the counter, thinking for a moment.

"What's the cheesiest line you've ever heard from a customer?" he asked.

"Oh, God," you giggled softly, "I've heard a lot, but I'd have to say the one I've heard the most is ' _A very pretty flower for a very pretty girl_ '."

"I like it," he laughed, "Let's do that one." You quickly pulled out a small card, neatly writing the message. You cut a small piece of twine, looped it through the hole on the card, and tied it on the upper portion of the stem.

"Alright," you chirped, "Is that all for you?" He nodded and you went on, "Then that'll be $2.50." The boy pulled a five dollar bill out of his wallet and you handed him the flower so you could get his change. Before you could even open the register, however, he had turned around to leave. "Don't you want your change?" you asked him. He turned around once he reached the door.

"I'm sure I'll be back soon," he smirked lightly.

"That's assuming she accepts," you reminded him.

"She will," he returned, exiting the shop. You shook your head, sitting on your stool and beginning to look through inventory on your computer.

~

**Purple; Beauty**

The next week – on the same day as the previous one – the blonde boy had returned just before closing once again. The bell above the door had rung and you looked up as he approached the counter.

"She accept your cheesy gesture?" you asked him with a sly smile.

"You had no faith in me and I don't appreciate that," he commented jokingly.

"Are you here to get her another one or did you just want to update me?" you teased.

"Both," he winked, "What's a step up from yellow?"

"Hmm," you hummed for a moment, "I would say purple, but that depends on whether or not you think she's beautiful."

"She's very beautiful," he told you.

"Then purple is the way to go," you chuckled, hopping up from your seat to grab a purple rose. You went back to the counter, reaching for your scissors once again. "Same length?" you asked, to which he nodded. "Another cheesy line as well?"

"Oh!" he exclaimed, "I actually looked some up last night!" He pulled out his phone, bringing up his notes where he had a few typed up. He read through them for a moment before saying, "How about ' _If you stood in front of a mirror holding this rose, you'd see the two most beautiful things in the world_ '? Or is that too long?"

"I think that's perfect," you smiled, taking out a card and beginning to write, "Whoever is getting these flowers from you is a lucky girl."

"I hope so," he said shyly.

~

**Peach; Friendship**

The next Friday evening, your new regular sauntered through the door again.

"Hey, stranger," you grinned, earning a bright smile in return, "What color are we going for today?"

"Peach," he said, putting a five on the counter top as you went to go get the flower. You trimmed the stem in the same spot as the previous two.

"Ah, friendship. I'm assuming things are really  _blooming_ between you two then," you snickered to yourself, making him laugh loudly.

"I guess you could say that," he nodded, "And you should definitely write that on the card this time."

You smiled proudly at knowing he liked the comment enough to want to use it, writing it down as he asked. You tied the card to the stem and handed him the flower, thanking him for his purchase. He smiled back at you, handing the flower back.

"This one's actually for you," he said, taking you aback a bit.

You furrowed your eyebrows, "For me?"

"Mhmm," he nodded again, "The name's Maxx, by the way. I figure I've been coming around enough for you to know my name."

"Y/N," you smiled slightly, finally taking the flower from him.

"Very pretty name for a very pretty girl," he winked, reminding you of the first time he'd come in. You rolled your eyes, but couldn't hold back the grin. "I'll see you next week," he chirped, trotting back out the door.

"See you, Maxx," you murmured to yourself, keeping your eyes on the door before looking at the flower in your hand.

~

**Pink; Admiration**

"Pink this time, Y/N!" Maxx announced as soon as he opened the door. You were already standing beside the roses, anticipating the blonde's arrival.

"Admiration," you said, pulling a nice-looking pink one from the bunch, "Things must be going pretty well."

"They are," he smiled, "Unfortunately, I have no idea what line to use for this card."

You pulled up customer orders on your computer after trimming the stem and retrieving a card, alienating the orders with single or bouquets of pink roses. You motioned for Maxx to come around the counter, then pointed to your screen.

"Which of these do you like?" you asked, referring to the notes you had with each order about what they'd wanted on the card.

You could feel Maxx's breath on your ear as he leaned over your shoulder and it was undoubtedly making the butterflies in your stomach go crazy. But you had to remember that he was giving these flowers to another girl – and you were sure someone as attractive as him would never even go for a girl like you anyway.

"How about that one?" he said, reaching up and pointing to a line on the screen.

"' _If I had a rose for every time I thought of you, I'd be able to fill up a garden by tomorrow_ '," you read it back with a soft giggle, "I always did think that was one of the cutest." You handed him the rose a couple minutes later. "Next week?" you asked him.

"Maybe sooner," he replied, leaving the shop before you could respond.

~

**Red; Love**

That Wednesday, you decided to close early and run to the bank before it closed.

When you came back to the shop, there was a withering yellow rose lying on the ground in front of the door. You looked around before picking it up. Looking at the card, you saw the pick-up line you'd told Maxx nearly a month ago written in your handwriting. Your face scrunched up in confusion as you entered your quiet shop.

You happened to look at the display of daisies that everyone first noticed when they walked in, seeing a purple rose mixed among them. You picked it up, noticing your handwriting yet again. Upon reaching the rose display, you found a missing red rose – the pink one from the last time Maxx was there now in its place. You plucked it from the bunch, making your way to the counter.

You didn't make it to your usual spot behind it though, noticing the color red out of the corner of your eye. You walked up to find the missing red rose lying on the counter top with a card tied to it and two one dollar bills and two quarters sitting close by. You picked the rose up, turning the card so you could read it. It was a line scrawled in messy handwriting – sure to be Maxx's since you knew it wasn't yours – and read it to yourself.

_Roses are red_   
_And this poem's not a winner_   
_But it would make me feel better_   
_If you'd let me take you to dinner_

You found yourself giggling at the card, making Maxx come out from his hiding spot around the corner behind the counter. He was smiling shyly, his hands in front of him as he nervously played with his fingers.

"Were these for me the whole time?" you asked him. He swallowed thickly, nodding slowly, a light pink tint to his cheeks. "Did you come up with this one yourself?" you asked, holding up the red rose. He nodded again. "Well, that's good," you replied, "If you hadn't, I probably wouldn't have accepted." It was like his heart visibly skipped a beat because you could sense his breathing hitch.

"You'll go out with me?" he asked, apparently in a minor state of disbelief.

"Yeah," you smiled softly, "Yeah, Maxx, I'd love to go out with you."

He let out a breath, clearing his throat, "I... Uh... When do you... Is this weekend okay?"

"You know..." you trailed off, chewing on your bottom lip, "I closed up early, so I'm free right now if you're not-" You were cut off by Maxx coming out from behind the counter and grabbing your hand, taking you outside. "I guess you're not busy then," you teased, wiggling your hand out of his so you could lock the door. He blushed a brighter shade of pink as you turned back to him, bravely taking his hand again and lacing your fingers with his. "You ever been to Café Bean?" you asked him.

"Is that supposed to be a play on ' _coffee bean_ '?" Maxx chuckled, pulling you closer to him as you began walking down the sidewalk.

"I'm sure that's what they were going for," you replied with a light laugh of your own.

"No, I haven't been there," he answered, "Is it any good?"

"I can't speak for the opinions of other people, but if I could only drink one thing for the rest of my life, it would definitely be their mint chocolate chip iced coffee."

"I'm gonna be honest; That doesn't sound appealing at all."

"Okay, well, when you get your boring coffee or hot chocolate or whatever it is you get when you go to coffee shops, I'll let you taste it and you'll never want to drink anything else," you stated matter-of-factly. All Maxx did was look at you in adoration for a moment before squeezing your hand a bit, letting you lead him into the small café.

And while you both sat at the table getting to know each other, he didn't want to admit it, but the iced coffee was his  _second_ favorite thing in the coffee shop that day.


	273. Secret Santa (Ashton Irwin)

This year, the senior class president decided to hold a Secret Santa for the entire grade. You  _hated_  the idea honestly – buying a present for someone you may have no clue about or what their interests are – but being a senior, you had to do it. So when Shelby came into your English class and asked the seniors to come pick a name from the hat, you trudged over, pulled out a slip of paper, and went back to your seat.

"Who did you get?" your best friend whispered as she leaned over your shoulder from her spot behind you. You unfolded the piece of paper and sighed.

"Ashton Irwin," you answered.

Ashton Irwin was the stereotypical and cliché popular kid in the school. The senior had never so much as smiled in your direction before as far as you were concerned. However, that wasn't to say you had no idea what to get him. He was in a band with three boys from another school in the area – the drummer, to be exact. Whenever you saw him, he was always drumming his fingers on something – whether it was a desk, a cafeteria tray, or the hips of whatever girl was on his arm that week.

But  _that_  wasn't to say that Ashton Irwin didn't see you at all. You never noticed him staring at you at lunchtime when you were laughing with your friends about some dumb joke one of you made. You never noticed when his friends smacked his shoulder because he was ' _being incredibly obvious about his crush on you_ '. You never noticed that, while he was frequently seen with other girls, the only girl he really actually liked was you.

"You got  _Ashton_?!" Kristin whispered, a huge smile on her face.

"That's what I said," you rolled your eyes.

"What if he gets your name?" she sighed dramatically.

"Kris, do you know how many seniors there are?" you murmured, "There's no way we'd get  _each other's_  names." She sat back in her chair and pouted.

"Why can't you just play into my fantasies once in a while?" she whined, making you giggle quietly.

**Ashton's POV**

"This is totally  _archaic_!" Ashton's friend, Ryan, groaned when Shelby came into the room.

"What could possibly be archaic about a  _Secret Santa_?" Ashton laughed, pulling a slip of paper out of the hat.

"Who even  _does this_  anymore?!"

"Plenty of people still do Secret Santas, Ry," Shelby smiled, holding the hat out for him.

"Shelby," Ryan stated loudly, reaching his hand in, "I want you and everyone in this room to know that I'm only doing this because you're my neighbor and you know where I live."

"And you don't want her to back out of your date on Friday," Ashton pointed out.

"That too," he nodded, making everyone laugh. 

"I wouldn't be able to back out of the date anyway, Ash," she giggled, "We're neighbors; He knows where I live." She left the room with a small wave, thanking the teacher for his time.

"Let me see who you got!" Ryan said, grabbing for the paper Ashton was holding. He quickly retracted his arm before Ryan could get it.

"Stop it!" he scolded, opening up the paper, "I got Mitchell Hicks."

"You can keep him," Ryan said, leaning back in his seat.

"Who'd you get?"

"Maria Torres."

"Isn't she on the dance team?"

"I think so."

"She shouldn't be too hard to shop for then. That girl does nothing but dance."

"Doesn't mean I'll know what she wants," Ryan scoffed, making Ashton chuckle and turn back to the front of the room.

After class, Ashton and Ryan went to their lockers to get ready for lunch. Ryan met Ashton back at his locker and they just stood there, waiting for their other friend before heading to the cafeteria.

" _Oh_ ,  _Ashton_!" they heard someone coming up to them sing, "Guess whose name  _I_  got for the Secret Santa!"

"Scarlett Johansson?" Ryan snickered, prompting an eye roll from his friend.

"Impossible," Dylan stated, "And Ash doesn't have a crush on her."

"Wait," Ashton's eyes widened, "You got-"

" _Y/N Y/L/N_ ," he announced with a small smirk.

"Dude, switch with me!"

"You think I'm just gonna  _switch with you_?" he scoffed jokingly, "What's in it for  _me_?"

"I  _won't_  make you walk home for the rest of the month?" Ashton suggested.

"That's harsh, man," Dylan shook his head, handing over the piece of paper anyway, "Who's my new victim?" Ashton gave him his paper and he started laughing. " _Oh, yes_!" he exclaimed, "God is on my side  _today_! Mitchell Hicks, do I have plans for  _you_!"

"Don't do anything that will get you  _expelled_ , please," Ryan rolled his eyes.

"It'd be  _so_  worth it though!"

"Don't get him  _nothing_  either," Ashton said, "Just because  _he's_  an asshole doesn't mean it's cool to be an asshole  _back_."

"You guys are no fun," Dylan frowned.

~

**Your POV**

**One week later; Saturday**

"Do you know what you're getting Ashton yet?" Kristin asked as she was lying on your couch that afternoon. You two had decided to go to McDonald's for lunch and then went back to your house to lounge around.

"I think so," you said, but you were still unsure of your idea.

"What are you thinking?"

"You know how he's the drummer for a band?" She obviously nodded, having been to their shows with you plenty of times before. "Well, I was thinking I'd get him some drumsticks, but like, get something printed on them. I just don't know what yet."

"What about like, his signature or something?"

"But how would I get that without him knowing?" you sighed.

"Didn't he sign your yearbook last year?"

"Only because you asked him to!" you squeaked defensively.

"Only because  _you_ were too scared to!" she stuck her tongue out at you, "Anyway, there's a music shop downtown. We should go see if they can do this."

"Right now?"

"Well, we're not doing anything," she giggled, getting up, "Plus, we can go to the mall and see if there's anything Cooper might like." You shrugged in response, jumping up as well so you could get your yearbook off of your bookshelf – it's not like you wanted to stay home all day anyway.

~

**Two weeks later**

It was the Friday before Christmas break and all the seniors had been called to the gym to get their gifts during the last half of 5th period. You had all brought in your presents for your person that morning, so once everyone was in the gym and sitting on the bleachers, Shelby could pass them out.

It took about 25 minutes for her to get every senior their gift – every senior except  _you_.

Shelby noticed that you didn't get anything, but when you made eye contact with her, you just shrugged, signaling to her that it was alright and not to make a big deal about it. She was a close friend and knew that you didn't like attention on you, so she just let it go.

When the final bell rung, you and Kristin got up to go get your stuff from your lockers. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Ashton go up to Shelby and they both glanced at you. You simply shook it off, not wanting your mind to overthink anything.

After getting everything from your locker, the two of you made your way out of the school.

"Y/N!" you heard someone call after you.

You turned around and saw Ashton sprinting up to you. Kristin told you she'd meet you at your car, scurrying off just as he reached you and smiled shyly.

"Hi, I just wanted to say thank you for this," he held up his gift, "I don't think any other gift I could get will be better than this one."

"You're welcome," you practically whispered, "How did you know it was me?"

"You went to the music shop on 3rd Street, right?" You nodded and he continued, "My band mate's uncle works there and said that a girl with (h/c) came with her blonde friend and asked if she could get my signature put on some drumsticks."

"He could have been talking about  _anybody_ ," you pointed out, unable to hold back a small grin.

"Good point," he smiled back, "But you already admitted it." It was silent between the two of you for a moment before Ashton went on. "Anyway, the real reason I stopped you was to tell you that I had your name, but I kinda forgot your gift at home," he rubbed the back of his neck, truthfully embarrassed that he'd forgotten it, "So I was wondering if it would be cool if I swung by your place tomorrow to give it to you."

"Yeah," you nodded, "Just don't make it before 11. I like to sleep in on Saturdays."

He chuckled lowly, "Is 12:30 good?" You nodded again, and he smiled brightly. "I'll see you tomorrow then," he chirped, trotting toward his car as he called over his shoulder, "Thanks again for the drumsticks!"

You watched him for a moment before going to your own car where Kristin was smiling knowingly at you, preparing yourself for the squeals that would ensure when she told you she told you so about Ashton having your name.

~

**The next day**

You were finishing up unloading the dishwasher – your mom had asked you to before she left to go get groceries – when you heard a knock on the door. You looked at the clock and noticed it was a few minutes after 12:30. You hurried to put the last few dishes away before jogging to the door. You opened it to find Ashton smiling brightly again, his right hand behind his back.

"Good afternoon, my Secret Santa!" he beamed, making you crack a smile as well.

"Hey, Ashton," you said. You moved out of the way so he could enter the house, and he made certain that he kept whatever was behind his back hidden from you.

"So, I... Um... I couldn't wrap it without it being obvious as to what it is, so I hope that's okay," he chuckled nervously. You nodded and he pulled your gift out from behind his back.

You honestly lost your breath, staring in disbelief at the guitar in his hand. A guitar was something you'd always wanted but never asked for, knowing how  _expensive_  they were and not wanting anyone in your family to spend  _that much_  money on you.

" _Ashton_..." you murmured, "This is... I  _can't_ -"

"Before you say anything, I didn't go out and buy a new one," he told you, "This was an old guitar I never used. Jerry – he's my friend's uncle; I told you about him yesterday – offered to refurbish it for me so I could give it to you."

"Ashton, I..." you breathed again, "How did you know I wanted a guitar?"

"I asked Kristin," he smiled again, "She named off a few albums you've been wanting and I thought about getting one of those, but then she mentioned something like a book that would help you learn how to play guitar. I thought maybe I could get her to steal your guitar for a few days if it was older and get it refurbished for you, but she said you didn't even have one yet, so I knew that this was what I wanted to do."

"This... I..." you sighed again, knowing that nothing you could say would be enough to thank him.

"That's the same reaction I had when I opened what you got me," he commented. You laughed under your breath.

"Thank you, Ashton," you said softly, unable to stop yourself from hugging him. He leaned the guitar up against the couch before wrapping his own arms around you as well.

"So, um, I was thinking," he cleared his throat, rocking back and forth on his feet when you released each other, "Since my friend's uncle worked on the guitar for free, I didn't actually  _buy_  you anything for the gift exchange, so maybe you'd like to, um, go out to dinner with me sometime?" Before you were even given time to respond, Ashton kept rambling. "Because, like, I figured you can always look up tutorials on YouTube or I could teach you how to play or something... Unless you want the book instead, then I'll totally-"

You cut him off, "How much do you charge for lessons?" You had a small smirk on your face, making Ashton blush lightly.

"For  _you_?" he thought for a moment, "That's gonna run you  _at least_  ten dates."

" _Ten_?" you grinned, "Seems a bit  _pricey_  to me."

"Well, you know, you'd be my only customer, so I have to pay the bills  _somehow_."

"Now, is the Secret Santa date  _included_  in that package?"

"I'm afraid not," he shook his head, "Tell you what though: I'll give you your choice of what we do on those dates free of charge."

"That's a pretty good deal."

"S-So is that a yes?"

"Yeah," you smiled slightly, "Yeah, Ashton, I'll go out with you." Ashton tried to breathe a subtle sigh of relief, but you still noticed.

"Will asking to take you out tonight make me seem too eager?" he asked.

"Will saying yes to going out tonight make  _me_  seem too eager?" you returned bashfully. His eyes widened slightly – he had  _completely_  expected you to turn him down and the fact that you wanted to see him again as soon as possible  _too_  made his heart race.

"I don't think so, no," he tried to play it cool, "I guess I'll see you tonight then."

You nodded and Ashton took a deep breath. He quickly pressed his lips to your cheek, said goodbye, and hurried out the door, leaving you both with bright red blushes on your faces to go with your ear-to-ear grins.

~

_inspiration: http://fivesecondsofanfiction.tumblr.com/post/135795457032/christmas-countdown-secret-santa_


	274. How You Get the Girl (Jamie Follese)

"Go, go, go," you murmured to yourself, watching the ball roll from player to player as they raced down the field. " _Yes_!" you said softly, smiling when the ball went into the net in favor of your team.

You were sitting in the bleachers on the soccer field at your high school. Your school's team was playing their first game of the year and you were there to support your best friend Chelsea's brother. The game was getting pretty intense – the score being tied for most of the first half. All eyes were on #4 as he stole the ball from the opposing team and dribbled it between his feet back down the field.

" _Yeah, Jamie_!" the man sitting next to you suddenly shouted when the player scored, startling you. He felt you jump and immediately turned to you. "I am  _so_ sorry," he spoke at a normal volume this time, "I didn't mean to burst your eardrum."

"Eh, who needs to hear anyway?" you joked, "So are you related to Jamie or are you like, his biggest fan?"

"Both," he laughed, "He's my little brother. I'm Ryan."

"Y/N," you smiled. He had a look of surprise on his face.

"Y/N Y/L/N?"

"Yes..." you tilted your head. Ryan's eyes widened slightly.

"That makes me sound like a creep, doesn't it? I just mean I recognize the name. You're in Jamie's sociology class, right?"

"I'd like to say this is getting less weird, but it's really not," you laughed nervously.

"Sorry. It's just that Jamie talks about you sometimes."

"He  _does_?"

"Yeah," he nodded, "Don't tell him I told you that though. He'd send his cleat right through my stomach."

"Well, we wouldn't want  _that_ ," you giggled.

~

"So do you come to all the games?" Ryan turned to you once again when halftime was called.

You nodded, "My best friend's twin brother has been #11 since we were freshman, so she always made me come with her to keep her occupied."

"Where is she now?" he asked when he looked around you and noticed no one was sitting there.

"Probably making out with her boyfriend in the parking lot," you rolled your eyes, "It happens every time."

"If she's never even out here to watch the game, why do you bother coming?"

"Tyler likes when I tag along, so I figured I might as well."

"So are you and him like..." You scrunched your face up at the question, making him laugh.

" _God, no_ ," you stated, "I love him, but he's more of the annoying brother type. Plus, who else is gonna take him home when his sister goes with her boyfriend?"

"I guess so," he chuckled.

~

After the game ended in a win for your school, you and Ryan giddily hurried down to the field to find Jamie and Tyler. You found Jamie almost immediately and his eyes widened as you walked up.

"Jamicles!" Ryan beamed, ruffling his brother's hair.

" _Ryan_ ," he groaned, turning a light shade of red. Ryan looked at you and winked, making you laugh lightly.

"Good game, Jamie," you smiled at him, "You were amazing as always."

He blushed again, "You come to the games?" Before you could nod, you were interrupted by your name being shouted.

"Y/N!" Tyler cheered as he ran over to you. He threw his arms around your shoulders.

"Hey, loser," you grinned, leaning into the hug he was giving you. You missed the look of slight jealousy that Jamie was giving the two of you.

" _Excuse me_ ," he scoffed jokingly, "Did you not see that we  _won_?"

"Still doesn't make you any less of a loser," you smirked, wiggling out of his grip.

"You coming to celebrate with us?" Tyler asked you.

"Might as well," you shrugged, "Lord knows your  _sister_  isn't going to."

"Where  _is she_  anyway?"

"Where is she  _ever_?" you rolled your eyes.

"Right," he nodded, a quiet chuckle escaping his mouth, "Well, let me go get my jacket and we can head out." He started trotting away before looking back at your small group. "Follese!" he called, bringing his teammate out of his daydream. Jamie perked up, a light hum passing his lips. "You coming?"

"Oh!" he exclaimed, "Yeah!" He ran after Tyler, walking with him back to the locker room. You heard Ryan laugh lightly.

"What?" you asked him, looking up at him.

"Nothing," he shook his head, making small talk with you as you waited for the two boys to come back.

~

You were sitting in the pizza parlor waiting for your pizzas, buzz of the team's win still echoing throughout the building. You were sat in a booth with Tyler, Ryan and Jamie sitting across from you. You, Tyler, and Ryan were doing most of the talking while Jamie was just staring down at his hands.

While Ryan and Tyler were having their own conversation, you took the opportunity to talk to Jamie. You lightly kicked his shin underneath the table, making him jump and look up at you.

"What was that for?" he frowned.

"Oh, don't worry. You play soccer – your shins can handle a little tap every once in a while," you giggled, making him roll his eyes. "You seem bored," you shrugged, answering his question, "Thought I'd talk to you for a bit."

"I'm not bored," he said, "Just distracted."

"Distracted  _by_...?" you trailed off. Jamie simply shrugged in response, making you raise your eyebrows at him. "Don't make me kick you again, Follese," you threatened. Luckily for Jamie though, the waitress finally came over with your pizza and you all got to eating.

Jamie eventually came out of his own little world, joking and laughing along with you, Ryan, and Tyler. You had never really talked to Jamie before – now that you thought about it, the only thing you've ever said to him was ' _Do you have a pencil I can borrow?_ ' – but you were starting to realize how funny he was.

You were hoping this wasn't going to be a one-time thing, finding yourself really enjoying Jamie's company. He was incredibly witty and always had some silly joke to add right after either you or one of the other boys said something. You honestly hadn't laughed that much in so long, it felt nice to feel like you were being included in something.

Sure, Chelsea was your best friend, but ever since she and her boyfriend started dating, you were always sort of left out. She only ever wanted to spend time with him now – which, of course, you didn't mind if it meant never being the awkward  _third wheel_  to them.

Unfortunately, the night finally came to an end and you knew you should be heading home. You really didn't want to, but your mom was always the type to worry if you weren't home by 10:30 –  _even_  if you called and told her you would be late for whatever reason.

"I should be heading home," you announced with a small sigh. You could have sworn you saw a disappointed look on Jamie's face out of the corner of your eye.

"Oh, yeah," Tyler nodded, "Your mom is a worrier."

"You know her well," you laughed softly, sliding out of the booth when he got up to let you out.

"I'll see you guys later," Tyler said, grabbing his jacket.

"You know, I can take you home, Tyler," Ryan shrugged, "It's really no problem."

"You should stay, Ty," you looked at him.

"Oh, come on," he chirped, throwing his arm around your shoulders and pulling you into him, "I love spending time with my favorite girl." You rolled your eyes, not even noticing the jealous look on Jamie's face yet again.

"You're only saying that because I give you a ride home from school almost every day," you scoffed, shoving him off of you.

"Doesn't mean I don't still love spending time with you," he stuck his tongue out at you.

" _Anyway_ ," you rolled your eyes again, turning back to the two boys still sitting in the booth. "It was really nice to meet you Ryan," you smiled shyly, "I'll see you Monday, Jamie."

Jamie swallowed thickly, nodding rapidly as you and Tyler walked away. He let out the breath he didn't realize he was holding, causing his brother to look at him.

" _Dude_ ," Ryan smirked, a knowing look in his eyes.

"Don't  _even_  start, Ryan," Jamie mumbled firmly.

~

**Two weeks later**

To your surprise, Jamie had started talking to you a lot more. Of course, it wasn't too difficult seeing as he sat right behind you in your shared sociology class, but you didn't think he'd actually want to talk to you. Truth be told, he would always avoid eye contact with you whenever you saw each other, so you didn't think he really liked you that much. But you certainly weren't going to complain about that now.

"I thought you and Tyler weren't a thing," the boy at the desk behind you mumbled. You turned slightly, looking over your shoulder at Jamie. He was chewing on his inner cheek, his arms crossed on top of his desk.

"We aren't," you stated.

"You're wearing his jacket."

"That doesn't mean I'm with him," you replied, "It means I got cold and he offered me his jacket since I forgot mine at home." Jamie returned his gaze to his textbook, but you went on. "Why are you saying anything about it now? I've worn this dozens of times." He shrugged, not looking up at you, causing you to sigh and turn back toward the front of the room.

~

There was something off about Jamie for the next few weeks. You couldn't quite pinpoint what it was, but now, every time you wore Tyler's jacket, Jamie would avoid you altogether. He wouldn't really talk to Tyler either – only nodding or shaking his head when he asked him a question or giving him the shortest answer possible when the question required a little more.

It wasn't until after a game one Friday night that you found the answers you were looking for. You had gotten a ride with Chelsea and Tyler to the soccer game that night, not really feeling like driving yourself.

After the game, you found yourself alone on the field in front of the net and a ball at your feet. You were standing in the middle of the center circle and the penalty arc, staring at the net. You had been trying to make a goal the whole time you were waiting for Tyler to come out of the locker room, but had no luck.

You kicked the ball for what was probably the tenth time, only to have it hit the side of the net and bounce off the bar. You huffed quietly, taking a step to retrieve the ball when you were stopped.

"You're doing it wrong," you heard a voice behind you say. You jumped a bit, startled by the sudden, new presence. You looked over your shoulder as Jamie approached you, automatically rolling your eyes.

"How do you kick a ball  _wrong_?" you scoffed.

"You keep missing the net," he chuckled, "You tell me." He trotted over to retrieve the ball and bring it back to where you were standing.

"Well, since you're such an  _expert_ , why don't  _you_  show me how it's done then?"

Jamie simply smiled, putting the ball back down on the ground before stepping behind you. His hands landed on your hips and your heart started racing at having his hands on you.

"You aren't using your hips the way you should," he told you.

"I know four people that would beg to  _differ_ ," you stated, making him laugh lightly.

"You  _know_  what I mean, Y/N," he said, "You have to move your hips with your leg."

Jamie's foot came out in front of you to roll the ball to your own. He instructed you to put the inside of your shoe on the ball – which you did – and then moved your hips.

"So, as your foot hits the ball, this is the way your hips should be going," he informed you.

You nodded and he let go of you, allowing you to practice what he just taught you. You kicked the ball perfectly, sending it right into the middle of the net.

"See?" Jamie beamed, "Keep that up and you'll be ready for the World Cup in  _no time_."

"The only way I'll ever be interested in the World Cup is if  _you're_  going to be playing in it," you said without thinking.

"What about Tyler?" he murmured. You immediately blushed when you realized what you'd said.

"What  _about_  him?" you replied in a whisper. He glanced down at your lips and your heart skipped a beat.

"Y/N... Can I ki-"

"Y/N!" Tyler called out as he jogged to the edge of the field, "Are you coming or what?! Chels is getting annoyed that she's been here long enough as is!"

You swallowed thickly, your eyes never tearing away from Jamie's. After the most intense moment of eye contact you'd ever had with someone, you took a couple steps back. You turned to walk away, but you didn't get three more steps before you felt Jamie grab your hand and bring you back to him, your faces now only  _centimeters_  apart.

"I'll take you home," he mumbled even though he knew Tyler couldn't hear him.

You swallowed again, raising your free hand up and waving for Tyler to leave. You obviously missed the smile on his face, knowing something was about to happen. Jamie turned his head to watch Tyler walk away, waiting until he was out of sight to look back at you. But before he could finish what he was going to say before he was interrupted, you grabbed his cheeks and pressed your lips to his.

Jamie was understandably surprised at first and it took him a moment to process it, but once he realized you were  _actually_  kissing him and he  _wasn't_  dreaming, his heart started pounding. He kissed back for a few seconds before you pushed his face away. He assessed your expression and it was clear that you were shocked you did that as well.

"I-I'm sorry," you whispered, your voice shaking a bit, "I-I don't know why I... I didn't mean... I-I should go." You tried to leave again, but the hands on your hips kept you firmly in place.

Jamie rubbed small circles on your hipbones, making you close your eyes in content with how relaxing it felt. His lips hit your forehead and stayed there for a solid 30 seconds. When he pulled away, he let out a deep breath and you felt it fan across your face.

"Don't be," Jamie said softly. You breathed a contented sigh of your own. You pecked his nose lightly, making him scrunch his face up and smile. "Will you go on a date with me?" he asked you. You nodded and he let go of you, only to grab your hand and pull you toward his car.

"Wait, you mean  _right now_?" you giggled, tangling your fingers with his as you walked by his side.

"There's no time like the present, Y/N," he announced, making you laugh again.

"Don't guys usually ask a girl out and then wait like, three days before actually taking her anywhere?" you teased.

"They usually kiss her  _after_  the first date too," he grinned, "But we're already  _well past_  that one."

"So what's a guy's stance on kissing the girl after he opens the car door for her," you asked right as Jamie was opening the door.

"Eager, are we?" he winked.

"There's no time like the present, Jamie," you smirked.

"I'm going to smack you," he chuckled when you used his own words against him.

"Oh,  _kinky_ ," you quirked an eyebrow, "I like it." Jamie's lips were suddenly back on yours, taking you by surprise, but you certainly weren't going to complain. One of your hands slid up his arm and landed on the back of his neck, lightly pulling at the hair there.

" _Shut up_ ," he mumbled into your mouth, finally responding to your comment. You smiled and pulled him to you so there was virtually no space between your bodies. When Jamie pulled away, he smiled shyly. "I never thought I'd see the day you  _actually wanted_  to kiss me," he admitted softly. You simply smiled at him, giving him another quick kiss.

"So where are we headed to, soccer boy?" you asked.

"Well," he said thoughtfully, "That depends on how you feel about bowling."

"I feel pretty good about it," you replied, "Can't say the same for you when I crush you though."

"Oh, it's  _on_ ," he laughed as you sat down in the passenger seat of his car. He closed the door and trotted around to the driver's side, a silly grin plastered on his face that remained there for the rest of the night.

And on that chilly Monday morning two days later, as he sat behind you in your sociology class, Jamie stared at his last name on the back of the jacket you were wearing with the same grin, thinking about how happy he was that he  _finally_  got the girl.


	275. Forever and Always (Luke Hemmings)

You walked into the BuzzFeed office that morning, completely unaware of what was in store for you. All you were told was that you would be in a video with one of your exes, but they wouldn't tell you which one or what you would be doing. You met with Harley, the girl who was in charge of organizing this video, when you walked through the door, and she took you into another room.

The set was already put up – a bed surrounded by a couple cameras that were already recording – but that didn't give you any clue as to what you would be filming. In fact, if anything, it made you  _more_  confused.

"Do you have any idea what's going on today?" Harley asked, motioning for you to sit on the bed.

"Well, I mean, I know it has something to do with my ex," you replied, "I'm just nervous as to which ex that is."

"How about we bring him in now?" she said, motioning for the person at the door to let him in.

The moment Luke stepped through the door, both you and him froze. You let out a shaky breath as he walked over to the set. The blonde shyly sat down beside you, making sure there was at least half a foot of space between the two of you.

"Okay," she nodded, "What we want you to do is lie down and just cuddle like you normally would and we're gonna have you pull questions out from this bowl to ask each other." You and Luke nodded hesitantly at the idea of cuddling like you used to. "You two can back out at any time, okay?" Harley reminded you, "You don't have to do this."

"I'll do it if you will," Luke murmured.

You nodded slowly, "I'm down."

Luke laid down on the bed, his arm bent on the pillow with his hand under his head. You laid down next to him, putting your own head on the makeshift pillow his arm had created. Your faces were mere centimeters apart and you were breathing in his scent for the first time in years.

"Still wear the same cologne?" you said softly.

"Still use the same shampoo?" Luke returned just as quietly.

"Where's your antler necklace?"

"Right here," he told you, pulling it out from under his shirt. You instinctively brought your hand up to play with the pendant, doing anything you could to distract yourself from Luke's gaze.

"You guys ready for the questions?" Harley asked once she felt you and Luke were as comfortable as you were going to get.

"Mhmm," Luke hummed in response, nodding slightly. Harley placed the bowl in the space between both of your stomachs, telling you to start whenever you were ready. "You wanna go first?" he asked.

"Sure," you whispered, taking your fingers away from the necklace and pulling out a slip of paper. You looked down to read it.

You couldn't help but laugh quietly at the question, making Luke's heart race – he would never admit it, but he missed the sound of your laugh.

" _In a zombie apocalypse, which of your friends would you eat first_?" Luke smiled slightly at the question as well.

"To be fair, I think  _they_  would eat  _me_  first," he answered.

You nodded in agreement, "It would probably be Michael." He chuckled a little more loudly, agreeing with your statement as well.

Luke reached into the bowl next and pulled out a question.

" _If you were able to throw away one thing that I owned, what would it be_?" he asked. You began chewing on your lip, having to think about it.

"Oh, God," you mumbled, "Um... You know that black long sleeve shirt you always wore onstage?"

"But I really like that shirt!" he pouted.

"I know, but give your other shirts a chance," you smiled. You reached into the bowl again. " _What's one thing, if anything, that you miss most about our relationship_?"

" _Only one_?" he breathed shakily. You felt your heart start racing. "I guess what I miss most is being this close to you and knowing you didn't hate me," he told you.

"I don't  _hate you_ , Luke," you shook your head, making him purse his lips together.

"What do  _you_  miss about our relationship?" he asked, swallowing thickly.

"When we used to sneak out at midnight and walk to the lake in the middle of the woods."

"You can do that with  _anyone_ ," he pointed it out.

"I liked it better with  _you_ ," you whispered. You didn't dare make eye contact with him, instead watching his fingers reach into the bowl again and unfold the paper.

" _Knowing what you know now, would you still have gotten into a relationship with me_?" he read.

"Yeah," you answered without hesitation, "I don't  _regret_  being with you, Luke, but I regret the way it  _ended_." You finally looked up at him. "I know you thought it was because of the band or the touring or the fans, but that wasn't it  _at all_ ," you said firmly, wanting him to understand, "It was all on  _me_."

Luke was flicking his lip ring with the tip of his tongue as you pulled the last piece of paper from the bowl. You cleared your throat, hoping your voice wouldn't crack as you read it.

" _What's the biggest secret you've been keeping from each other since your breakup_?" You decided to go first, figuring yours wasn't really that shocking. "You know how I never used to keep my phone locked?" Luke obviously nodded. "I put a passcode on it after we broke up so that no one I date now will be able to find out that I still have all of the photos of us." He barely smiled, but quickly let it fade, knowing the secret he was going to tell you.

"A couple weeks before you broke up with me..." he trailed off, nervously tapping his fingers on the blanket between you, "I... I told my friends that I was thinking about proposing," he confessed.

Your heart skipped a couple beats and you felt like you'd been punched in the stomach. It was clear that everyone in the room was shocked as well, no one really sure where to go from here.

"Why don't we take a little break?" Harley announced, ushering the two other people in the room out, making up some excuse as to why they were leaving.

You grabbed the bowl and carefully tossed it onto the floor before sitting up and looking at Luke. He honestly looked like he was going to cry and you were speechless. Never in your life would you have guessed that Luke was ever going to propose to you – you truly didn't think he would want to settle down, much less with  _you_.

"Lu..." you finally managed to speak, "You... Were you  _really_  going to..." He tried to slyly wipe his eyes as he sat up with you, but you knew he was trying not to cry.

"I started saving for a ring two months before and I almost had enough," he told you, "But then you broke up with me and I just... I felt like everything fell apart. And there was no way I could put it back  _together_."

"You  _wanted_  to marry me?"

"I  _still_  do," he answered honestly.

"Lu, I... I ended it because I didn't think you could ever see us  _being together_  for the rest of our lives," you admitted, "We were together for  _so long_... I didn't think you..."

"Princess," he murmured your old nickname and placed his hand on your thigh, making your heart flutter like it used to, "You were the  _best_  thing that ever happened to me. I would have been  _crazy_  not to want to marry you."

"I'm such an  _idiot_ ," you whimpered, looking down at your lap, feeling tears slide down your cheeks, "I lost the best thing I ever had over something I could have just  _asked you_  about." Luke shifted slightly, moving his hands to your face. He swiped his thumbs across your cheeks to wipe away the tears, holding your face.

"You  _haven't_  lost me, princess," he said, "And I'd be more than willing to give us another chance if you are." You looked at him intently as he went on, "And I promise I won't wait as long to marry you this time." You let out a breathy chuckle, swallowing the lump in your throat.

"I love you, Luke," you whispered, making him smile.

"I love you, Y/N," he said, pressing a soft kiss to your lips, "Forever and always."

~

_inspirations:_   
_https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHXM28QPTKQ_   
_https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYo_ZVBKYdU_


	276. Hands to Myself (Marshall Traver)

_if smut isnt ur thing, u should probably just stop reading now. real talk, guys. this goes from 0 to 100 real quick._

~

You were sitting in a booth in a restaurant beside your boyfriend, fidgeting a bit as you were waiting for his parents to arrive. You were meeting them for the first time tonight, but that wasn't what had you feeling so antsy. Last weekend, you had taken Marshall to dinner at your parents' house so they could meet and to say it was a hard night on you was an understatement.

Marshall started out with his hand on your knee under the table – a completely innocent gesture – but when he started inching his hand up your thigh, you knew he had other plans. You shot him a warning look, even scolding him quietly when your parents left the room to bring in the food, but he wouldn't listen. You had to sit there the whole time shoving his hand out from under your dress subtly – having to pretend that A) nothing was out of the ordinary on your side of the table, and B) you weren't three seconds from grabbing his hand and dragging him up to your old bedroom.

Needless to say, after you got home and he helped you wind down, you forced him to sleep on the couch. Of course, you knew that that wasn't enough to get him back for what he'd done, so when he told you that his parents wanted to meet you that next Friday night, you were already hatching a plan.

I mean, hey; Payback's a bitch.

Your hand was on Marshall's upper thigh, your fingers dancing around dangerously close to his crotch. You heard his breathing start to slow down as he concentrated on  _anything_ other than what you were doing to him, but you were incredibly persistent. 

" _Stop it, princess_ ," he murmured.

"What, baby?" you smirked. It was then that Marshall knew what you were doing – you never called him baby until you were trying to get him worked up.

"You know  _what_ ," he growled, grabbing your hand suddenly and putting it palm-side down on the crotch of his jeans, allowing you to feel his very prominent boner. You only snorted softly, pushing your palm down to make him moan, having to bite his lip so it wasn't too loud.

"I don't know  _why_  you thought putting my hand there was going to make it any  _easier_  for you," you returned, looking at him with an innocent smile.

"What the he-"

"Do you remember when I took you over to my parents' house for dinner last weekend?" you asked him. Marshall grumbled under his breath.

"I thought we were  _past that_!" he whispered.

"Oh, you thought  _sleeping on the couch_  that night was your punishment?" the corner of your mouth curled into a mischievous grin. You pushed down again, making his breath hitch as he swallowed thickly. "Such a shame your parents aren't here yet either," you sighed, leaning in so you could press your lips to his ear, "It's gonna be a  _long night_ , baby."

"Y/N, don't you-"

"Wish we weren't in such a  _public_  place right now," you murmured, nipping at his earlobe as your fingernails scratched his jeans. He squeezed your hand, pushing it down again to give him something –  _anything_ – to relieve himself without drawing any attention.

" _Y/N_ ," he warned shakily.

"Been thinking about you  _all day_ , baby," you went on, ignoring his comments as you kissed his ear, "Couldn't get the memory of how  _good_ you made me feel last night out of my head. Wanted to take care of myself, but I know  _nothing_  takes better care of me than you do."

"Princess, I-"

"Marshall!" your heads snapped over to find his parents coming to the table. "We're so sorry we're late, sweetheart," his mom continued, "But you know how your father is with asking for directions."

"So  _that's_  where you get it from?" you smirked, looking at Marshall as you took your hand back. He whined softly, but his parents didn't notice as you stood up to greet them.

"Hi, dear," his mom beamed, "You must be the famous Y/N we've been hearing about." She went to hug you – which you happily accepted – and Marshall's father hugged you as well.

"I resent that statement, by the way," he directed the comment toward his wife as you both leaned back upright, "It's not my fault the GPS died halfway here."

"But it  _is_  your fault that you didn't pull over and ask for directions," she sassed, looking at you to make you giggle, knowing all too well that you completely understood what they were talking about.

" _Anyway_ ," he rolled his eyes, turning back to you and his son as you all sat down, "We hope we didn't keep you waiting for too long."

"It's alright," you smiled, your hand finding Marshall's thigh once again, making him swallow thickly, "We kept ourselves busy."

Throughout the night, you kept teasing Marshall under the table and if it hadn't been for food he was stuffing into his mouth to keep himself from making any sort of sounds, people would have  _definitely_ figured out what was going on. But he remained stoic through it all, honestly impressing you. You didn't think he'd last more than five minutes, but he did – in fact, he pulled through until the moment his parents left the restaurant.

"It was so nice meeting you, dear," his mom smiled as Marshall and his dad kept bickering about who was paying the check, standing up to hug you again.

"It was nice to meet you too, Mrs. Traver," you grinned, leaning toward her, "Do you think we should pay the check just so we can get out of here sometime  _tonight_?" She laughed at your comment, shaking her head.

"We might have to," she replied before turning to the two men still sitting across from each other. "Boys," she said sternly, making them stop and look up at her, "If you don't stop arguing, Y/N and I are going to pay it ourselves."

"No, you're not, Mom," Marshall rolled his eyes. You simply reached into your bag and pulled out your wallet.

"We'll split it!" his dad sighed, pointing to the wallet in your hand, "Just put that back!" You giggled softly, putting the item back in your bag as they called the waiter back over and split the bill in half.

"Now was that so hard?" you stuck your bottom lip out, wrapping your arms around your boyfriend's neck when he stood up, kissing his cheek. He grumbled quietly when you released him so he could hug his parents.

"We really hope to see you again soon, young lady," his dad told you, pulling you into a hug as well.

"I hope to see you again too, Mr. Traver," you smiled, "It was nice meeting you both." The started walking out, but stopped when you spoke again. "I actually have to go to the restroom, so I'll be out in a few minutes," you told Marshall. You sauntered away, hearing Marshall tell his parents that he was going to wait inside for you and to drive safely.

You entered the ladies' room – and luckily there was no one in there because you knew what was coming. You set your bag down on the counter top as you stood in front of the mirror, the corner of your mouth curling up when you heard the door open and close behind you.

You looked at Marshall in the mirror as he locked the door and came over to you. He grabbed your hips, turning you around and lifting you onto the counter. He took your hand, reaching down so you could feel the fact that his boner hadn't gone away in the slightest.

"You feel that, princess?" he growled, shoving his hands up your dress and roughly holding your hips, "Do you know how  _hard_  it's been to contain myself while you've got your hand half an inch away from my dick  _all night_?"

"You've lasted this long, baby," you smiled, kissing him slowly, taking his bottom lip between your teeth before you pulled away completely, "I know you can wait until we get home." He whined as you left the room, waiting a few moments before going out after you and meeting you outside at his car.

~

The moment the front door of your apartment closed behind you, Marshall had you pinned up against it. His lips were already on the weak spot on your neck, trailing up to your own lips, and his thumbs were digging into your hipbones.

"You think you can just  _get away_  with pulling shit like that, princess?" he growled into your mouth.

You responded by grabbing his hips and making him grind against you, the bulge in his pants bigger than before – if  _that_ was even possible. You knew your underwear was soaked by now, but you had to refrain yourself from just pulling him to the bedroom – you had to remember that this was  _finally_  your turn to tease him like he'd teased you.

"Y/N, you better-"

"I don't have to keep my hands to myself anymore," you whispered hoarsely, raking you nails down his chest after you slipped your hands under his shirt, "You're  _all mine_ now, baby."

Marshall shivered at your touch, immediately pulling away and grabbing your hand to drag you to the bedroom. You were pressed back against the door again, your boyfriend's hands sliding up your body. He paused at your breasts for a moment before continuing on to his destination: the zipper on your back. He unzipped your dress, pushing the straps off of your shoulders and letting it fall to the floor.

" _God_ , I love when you wear that dress," he groaned, his hands moving back to your now bare chest, making you rest your head back on the door and close your eyes, "I always forget you don't wear a bra with it." As his left hand remained gently kneading your right breast, you felt his right hand trail down your left side. Before he could reach your panty line, however, you pulled yourself back up and grabbed his hand, stopping him.

"Not until these are gone," you mumbled, fumbling with the button on the front of his jeans. It took a couple tries because, even though his was only using his hands, he was making you feel so  _good_ that you were physically shaking.

The moment the button was undone and the zipper was down, you were shoving the jeans down Marshall's legs. He stepped out of them, kicking them off to the side as you tore off his shirt as well. His hands were suddenly on your hips and his body was pushing you back up against the door, wanting to feel your bare skin on his.

You wrapped your arms around his neck and he squeezed your hips, mumbling for you to jump. You did so, his nose now level with your collarbones. He pressed kisses to the bones, nibbling every few seconds, when he suddenly moaned into your skin. He pulled down on your hips so you slid down the door and he could press his lips to yours roughly.

"You're so wet, princess," he murmured.

You felt his cloth-covered bulge rub against the wet spot on your underwear, making the both of you let out moans – yours a little louder than his. You whined quietly, your nails scratching his shoulders.

"Use your words, princess," Marshall ordered softly, "Tell me what you want."

"D-Don't wanna wait anymore," you gasped out your answer, pulling his lips back to yours, "Need you n-now."

"You need me  _where_ , princess?"

"I-Inside, Marshall," you whimpered, "I need you inside m-me."

You gasped quietly when he suddenly brought you away from the door and threw you onto the bed, climbing on top of you. He made sure that he dragged his hips along your body as he crawled up to reattach your lips, wanting to hear you moan again because he honestly thought it was the sexiest sound you ever made – especially when it was paired with his name.

"Anything for you, princess," he whispered, the words being muffled by your mouth.

His fingers delicately ran down the curves of your body that he loved so much, hooking around the band of your underwear and pushing them down your legs, discarding them somewhere onto the floor. The rush of sudden cold air paired with Marshall's fingers  _barely_ touching you as his hand slid back up your inner thighs made you feel like you were going to orgasm before he was even inside of you.

"Mar," you breathed unevenly, "I-I'm gonna-"

" _Already_?" he smirked, kissing you passionately, "I haven't even  _started_  yet, princess."

You moved your grip from the bed sheets to his hair, knowing he loved when you pulled on it. He pressed his body to yours, reaching over to the nightstand to fish for a condom but never taking his lips off of yours. Your hips lifted up and your legs wrapped around his lower waist,  _needing_ to feel him against you.

"Princess-" You cut Marshall off once he propped himself back up after finally finding the condom.

"I'm not playing games tonight, Marshall," you whispered roughly, your nails scratching his scalp, "You can either hurry up or you can let me do it myself." He simply gave you a sly smile.

"You said it yourself, princess," he replied huskily, his lips barely brushing yours, " _No one takes care of you like I do_."


	277. Fall Back (Michael Clifford)

You stared up at the bathroom ceiling from your spot in your bathtub. There was a birthday party for your little sister going on in your backyard, but you couldn't make yourself go back out. Your 7-year-old cousin kept bugging you about ' _why isn't Mikey here?_ ' and when you told her that the two of you broke up, she got mad at you.

It was a laughable concept, honestly –  _her_  getting mad about  _Michael_  breaking up with  _you_  – but you couldn't bring yourself to tell her the truth; You couldn't bring yourself to tell her that  _Michael_  was the one who ended things. She absolutely  _adored_  Michael and it would have  _broken her heart_  to know that  _he_  was the one who left.

So now, here you were: sitting in the tub in your bathroom, staring at the photos of you and Michael on your phone that you couldn't bear to delete. You knew it wasn't helping you get over him at all, but it was oddly comforting to just look at the way he used to smile at you.

You didn't know how long you were there for, but when you heard a knock on the bathroom door, it undoubtedly scared you.

"Y/N?" your cousin called out, "Are you in there?" You sniffled as quietly as you could, wiping your face and locking your phone before telling her she could come in.

Amelia cautiously opened the door, poking her head inside the room to find you in the tub. She was chewing on her inner cheek, fully entering the room so she could close the door behind her. She shyly walked over, climbing into the tub and sitting cross-legged between your legs.

"I didn't mean to make you sad," she said softly, "I was just mad Mikey's not here."

"I know," you whispered, your eyes trained on the faucet over the child's shoulder.

"Mom said that I should say sorry for yelling 'cause I don't know why he's not here," she looked down at her lap, "I'm really sorry I got mad at you, Y/N."

"It's okay, Mia," you assured her, making her look back up.

"How come you guys broke up?"

"I just fell out of love with him," you lied.

She scrunched her face up in confusion, "How do you fall  _out_  of love?"

You smiled slightly, "You'll understand it more when you're older."

"Why do people  _always_  say that?" she frowned, "I'm almost  _8_!"

"Because it's  _true_ ," you giggled softly, "Come on, we should go back outside." You both got out of the tub and made your way back downstairs.

You were almost to the back door when you heard a knock on the front one. You furrowed your eyebrows – you thought everyone who was invited to the party was already there – but went to answer the door anyway. Amelia straggled behind carefully, unsure about this unknown visitor. The moment you pulled the door open, your heart skipped a beat.

"Michael?" you questioned, "What are you-"

" _Mikey_!" Amelia interrupted with a delighted squeal, running over and throwing her arms around his waist.

"Hey, cutie," Michael grinned although he was a bit surprised to see her.

"Y/N said you weren't coming!"

"She didn't think I was," he said, bring her back inside as he entered the house, "But do you think I could talk to her alone for a few minutes?"

"Are you gonna make her fall back in love with you?" she asked hopefully. Michael shot you a look as you pursed your lips together, shaking your head as a signal for him not to mention it in front of her.

"How about I just talk to her first and we'll see what happens?" he suggested.

Amelia nodded rapidly, hugging him tightly before letting go. She trotted to the back of the house and you heard her exclaim ' _Mikey's here_!' before she closed the door. You let out a quiet groan, knowing everyone was going to ask about it when he inevitably left again.

" _Fall back in love_?" Michael asked you.

"Why are you here, Michael?" you whispered, ignoring his question.

"Just came back for a couple shirts," he said, "None of the boys have them, so I thought they might be here."

"I haven't seen anything of yours," you mentioned, leading him to your bedroom anyway.

"Well, you and I both know that closet is a black hole," he commented, making you roll your eyes.

Once you reached your room, Michael sat on your bed while you went through your closet. Sure enough, there his shirts were, in the bottom drawer of your dresser. You grabbed the pieces of fabric and stood back upright, closing your closet door.

"Here," you murmured, holding them out to him.

Michael stood up and took the shirts out of your hand. You felt the same electric feeling you got every time he touched you, and you couldn't help but wonder if he felt it too. He looked at you intently for a moment, noticing how desperate you were not to look him in the eyes.

"Y/N," he said, making your heart race.

You still refused to look at him though, causing him to sigh. He stepped toward you, putting his fingers underneath your chin and forcing your head up. Your eyes automatically met his and he could see how hurt you still were.

"Why does Mia want me to make you fall back in love with me?" he asked, and you knew he wasn't going to leave until he got an answer.

"She yelled at me when I told her you weren't coming," you swallowed thickly.

"She  _yelled at you_?" he seemed surprised by the statement.

"I told her we broke up and she got mad thinking  _I_  was the one who ended it," you continued, "And she came back inside to apologize for yelling and asked why I broke up with you and I told her it was because I didn't love you anymore."

"Why didn't you just tell her  _I_  ended it?"

"She  _loves you_ , Mikey," you whimpered, the nickname just coming out without thought, "She would be  _heartbroken_  if she knew you were the one who broke up with me. She would probably think you didn't want to see her anymore."

"Y/N-"

"I know I shouldn't have lied, okay?" you sighed, pulling your head so he wasn't touching you anymore, "But I  _did_  and she still loves you, so please just go and let her think it was me, Michael,  _please_."

"Did you  _really_  fall out of love with me?" he asked, seemingly hurt by how easily you were able to say the phrase.

"You can't fall  _out_  of something you were never  _in_ ," you whispered, trying to remain stoic. But Michael knew you were lying –  _he always knew_.

He tossed his shirts onto your bed and cupped your face in his hands, pulling it to his. You felt your knees weaken when his lips touched yours and there was absolutely no part of you that could convince yourself that this was wrong;  _Nothing_  with Michael ever felt wrong.

When he pulled away to breathe, he rested his forehead on yours and moved his hands to your waist.

"You can tell yourself you were never in love with me all you want, princess," he said with a small smile, "But you don't kiss someone you were never in love with like  _that_."

"Why are you  _doing this_ , Michael?" you let out a shaky breath, "You can't break up with me and then come back six months later just to do it all over again."

"I was an idiot for ever even thinking about doing it the  _first_   _time_ ," he told you with a firm voice, pulling his head back to look at you, "I know you may not believe me, but I really  _do_  love you, Y/N. I think that, no matter  _what_  happens after this moment, I'll  _always_  love you."

"I love you too, Mikey," you mumbled, finally giving in to yourself.

"Is it too soon for me to ask you to give us another chance?" he asked with a hopeful smile. You barely laughed, shaking your head no. He kissed you again, only to be interrupted by your mom opening the back door.

"Y/N!" she hollered, not knowing where at in the house you were, "We're about to light Emma's candles!"

"Oh, well, we wouldn't wanna miss  _that_ ," Michael chuckled, pulling away again. He grabbed your hand, tangling your fingers together, and began pulling you toward the door.

"You just want  _cake_ ," you pouted.

"I already  _got_  what I wanted," he said, pressing a kiss to the side of your head, "The cake is just a  _bonus_." You blushed lightly, opening the door and stepping out onto the deck.

There was a table set up in the middle of the yard – everyone gathered around your sister as she stood in front of her cake. They all glanced between Michael and each other before they even noticed the two of you were holding hands.

" _Mikey_!" Amelia cheered again, but didn't move from her spot beside your sister so she didn't lose it, "Did you make Y/N fall back in love with you?"

"Amelia-" your aunt said, but Michael happily interrupted.

"The plan was a success, kiddo!" he announced, planting a sloppy kiss on your cheek, making you squeal in surprise. Amelia had the biggest smile on her face and everyone joined her as Michael released your hand and threw you over his shoulder.

" _Michael_!" you squeaked again, unable to hold in your own laughs as he stepped off of the deck and put you back down once he reached the table.

"So everything's good again?" your sister asked softly as if no one could hear her.

"Yeah, Em," you grinned, speaking just as lowly, "Everything's good again."

As your mom began to light the 11 candles on the birthday cake, Michael wrapped his arm around your shoulders and made you turn into him. Your own arms instinctively wound around his waist, your head resting on his shoulder.

"I love you, princess," he mumbled into the hair covering your ear, feeling you smile against the skin that wasn't covered by his shirt.

"I love you too, Mikey," you whispered back, neither of you knowing that everyone around you heard the two of you as well as they smiled at each other.

~

_inspiration: http://thehalcyonclubwritingprompts.tumblr.com/ but i cant find the post sooooo sorry fam_


	278. Something Special (Ashton Irwin)

You were walking around town one night when you heard someone speaking loudly, so you snuck around a building to try and find the source. You peered around the west side of the brick wall and saw a brown-haired boy wearing a leather jacket and a snapback on his head standing in front of a larger man. The bigger one was yelling at the smaller one for something involving a girl – you didn't really understand it, to be quite honest – but when the man pulled out a gun, you knew it was serious. You quickly – and quietly – snuck a little closer to them, hiding behind a dumpster.

"I'm not going to ask again, Irwin," the man growled, loading the gun and pointing it directly at the boy's face, "What the hell were you doing with her?" The boy remained silent, a challenging smirk on his face, and when the man put his finger on the trigger, you sprang into action. Your hands shot up, causing the two men in front of you to freeze.

You darted from out of the shadows, going over to the boy and trying to figure out how you were going to get him out of there. You hooked your arms around his waist tightly and pulled on him to see if you could drag his weight. When you realized you could, you carefully took him back down the alleyway and across the street to safety.

After maneuvering him to sit on a bus bench, you walked back to unfreeze the man with the gun. You watched him look around, clearly wondering where the boy had gone. He shook his head lightly, putting his gun away and walking back inside the building he must have come from.

You let out a quiet sigh of relief before returning to the boy on the bench. You had to admit he was quite attractive; His light brown hair curling up along the edge of the snapback and the look of a leather jacket, torn white tee, skinny jeans, and black combat boots suited him well. He looked harmless, honestly –  _so why did he just have a gun pointed at him?_

You unfroze him before moving from your spot, eyeing him closely as he looked around in a slight panic. He was mumbling to himself about ' _how did I get here_?' and ' _what the hell_?' and that was when you decided to make your presence known.

"Hi," you said softly, walking over to him. The boy jumped and his head snapped up to look at you as you sat down on the opposite end of the bench.

"Who the hell are  _you_?" he spat.

"You wanted to know how you got here."

" _You_  brought me here?" he asked skeptically, "There's  _no way_. A girl like you could not have  _possibly_  gotten someone twice her size anywhere without them knowing."

"You asked," you shrugged, "But what  _I_  want to know is why that guy had a gun pointed to your head."

"It was  _nothing_ ," he grumbled, standing up and beginning to walk away.

"Didn't  _look_  like nothing to me," you cut him off, hopping up from your seat.

"I had it covered myself. I didn't need anyone's help," he said.

"A simple ' _thank you_ ' would suffice," you commented, following him down the sidewalk.

" _Thank you_?" he cocked an eyebrow, "For  _what_?"

"Oh, I don't know,  _saving your life_?"

"My life wasn't in danger."

You simply rolled your eyes, "I don't know if this is some sort of bruised ego or masculinity kind of thing, but I'm sure you'll see me around to thank me properly later." You smiled sarcastically at him and turned to walk away.

"The only ' _thank you_ ' you're gonna get from me is  _over my dead body_!" he called after you.

"Yeah, well, with the way  _you_  handle things, I'll be expecting that  _real soon_  then!" you said over your shoulder.

~

**Two weeks later**

You were sitting in your philosophy class when the door to the room opened. You didn't look up from your paper, but you still heard everything the professor was saying.

"Ashton Irwin," he announced, handing him the syllabus and the requirements for the paper the class was currently working on, "Welcome to Philosophy. Go find a seat."

It wasn't until this mystery student took a seat next to you that you looked up. You were slightly ticked that out of all the empty chairs in the lecture hall that he had to sit right beside you, but when you looked up at him, your eyes widened. It was only  _then_  that the name  _Irwin_  registered in your mind as the same name you heard the man with the gun say a couple weeks ago. He was wearing practically the same thing as the last time you saw him – minus the snapback, making the curls in his hair more obvious.

Ashton winked at you with a smirk on his face, making you roll your eyes. You turned your attention back to your paper, flipping through your textbook and writing down things you could use for your paper every so often. You felt Ashton staring at you and you were about to say something when he beat you to it.

"Hey, princess," he said, resting his arm on the back of your chair and leaning toward you, "You wouldn't happen to have an extra pen I could borrow, would you?" You sighed at the nickname, glancing over and noticing he already had one stuck in the spiral of his notebook.

"What's wrong with the one you've  _got_?" you remarked, your eyes never leaving the words in front of you. You heard him chuckle lowly.

"Well, I guess I already have one, don't I? Thanks, princess."

You snorted softly, "That was  _almost_  a ' _thank you_ '." You missed  _Ashton's_  eye roll that time as he took his arm back and grabbed his pen.

~

When your professor dismissed the class a little over half an hour later, you couldn't have been more thrilled. Ashton had been eyeing you the whole time – luckily for you, it hadn't affected your work in any way, but it was still pretty annoying, to be honest.

After stuffing your things into your backpack, you left the classroom and began walking back to your off-campus apartment. Not even 10 steps into the walk after making it outside, you heard someone coming up behind you – and you had a pretty good idea of who it was.

"Wait up, princess!" Ashton called out, stopping his sprint and walking alongside you once he reached you.

"I have a  _name_ , you know," you murmured.

"Well, what is it?"

"Y/N."

"Eh," he shrugged, "Pretty, but I think I like ' _princess_ ' better." You sighed quietly, shaking your head but not saying anything as you continued walking. "So," he chirped, "Where are you headed?"

"Why do you want to know?" you asked.

"Just curious is all," he shrugged again, "More curious as to what a girl like you is doing looking for trouble at 11:30pm though."

"I don't look for trouble," you commented monotonously, "Trouble finds me."

" _Does it now_?" he smirked lightly, finally making you look up at him.

"Well,  _you're_  still following me, so it  _must_  be true."

"Fair enough," he nodded, "Well, I'll see you around, princess." He winked at you again before spinning on his heels and leaving you to continue your walk alone.

~

A few more weeks had passed without much incident with Ashton – he would still sit beside you in class and annoy you with tacking ' _princess_ ' to the end of practically everything he said to you, but you learned to deal with it, knowing he wasn't going to stop even if you told him to.

You found yourself in the same situation with Ashton again that following Thursday; He was back in front of a man with a gun, making you roll your eyes, wondering why he kept getting himself into this kind of trouble.

After freezing the scene in front of you, moving Ashton to another safe place, and going back to unfreeze the man. After returning to Ashton to unfreeze him, he immediately rolled his eyes upon seeing you.

"Why is it that whenever I end up in a different place without remembering going there, you're  _always_  the first person I see?" he asked dryly.

"Why is it that whenever I see  _you_ , you've got a  _gun_  pointed at your face?" you returned, your arms crossed over your stomach.

" _I don't need saving, Y/N_ ," Ashton growled.

"Clearly, you  _do_ ," you sassed, "There is no  _logical_  reason you should have people who are constantly ready to  _shoot you_."

"You wouldn't understand," he mumbled, getting up and walking away.

"I can't understand what you don't  _explain to me_ , Ashton!" you called after him.

"Just stay  _out of it_ , Y/N!" he ordered, "This is  _my_  business,  _not yours_!" You simply sighed, shaking your head and leaving in the opposite direction.

~

**One month later**

The third time you saved Ashton didn't  _quite_  go the way you'd planned. You had been hiding at an odd angle from the group of men who were no more than 20 feet in front of you, and you couldn't really see Ashton – the only reason you knew it was him was because his voice was unmistakable.

Whatever fight Ashton seemed to find himself in was generally about a girl – you never heard her name, but the same man always seemed to be yelling at him about her. You didn't know what it was about this girl that was so worth these situations, but you knew Ashton must have liked her a lot to keep putting himself in danger the way he was.

The situation he'd gotten into tonight was tame so far – just a little yelling here and there – but you  _did_  hear Ashton say something along the lines of ' _I don't know what the hell you're talking about, she's always just_ there!' You weren't exactly sure what that meant, but you didn't really have time to think about it.

The moment you heard the gunshot, you squeaked and threw your hands up. Your eyes were closed tightly, but you knew you had to open them to make sure Ashton was okay.

When you did, you were surprised to find Ashton hadn't been frozen and he had  _seen_  you do what you did. His eyes were as wide as you'd ever seen anyone's eyes before as you hurried over to him.

The bullet was about 18 inches away from his face and the only thing you could think to do with it was flick it out of the air. It bounced on the concrete a couple times before coming to a stop. Ashton looked between you, the bullet, and the frozen men in front of him with an understandably shocked expression.

"How the hell did you do that...?" he finally spoke.

"I would love to try and explain that, Ashton, but I would  _really_  rather not be here when they unfreeze," you said quickly, grabbing his hand and pulling him down the street. You turned the corner just before the men came back to, looking around and shouting Ashton's name along with a few profanities.

You didn't stop pulling Ashton with you until the moment you took him inside your apartment and locked the door behind you. Ashton eyed you carefully as you rested your forehead on the door frame and breathed a sigh of relief. You were undeniably scared, but you didn't seem like you were scared of the men; No, you were scared  _for him_ – and that  _wasn't_  something Ashton was used to seeing.

"Y/N," Ashton said quietly, pulling you back to reality. You swallowed as you looked back at him, taking in the relief of seeing him in front of you with nothing more than a few scrapes on his knuckles, knowing he was safe.

"Go sit," you ordered in a whisper, going into the bathroom. Ashton simply shrugged and took a seat on your couch, waiting for you to return. When you came back, he noticed a first aid kit in your hand.

"Y/N, I really don't-" he tried to protest, but you cut him off.

"Your knuckles are bleeding, Ashton," you reminded him, sitting next to him.

"Then I'll just wash it off myself."

"Ash-"

"I don't need a damn first aid kit, Y/N;  _I'm fine_ ," he snapped, getting up.

Ashton went to the bathroom, letting you listen to the water running as he cleaned his wounds. He hissed quietly every once in a while, probably thinking you wouldn't hear him.

He looked at himself in the mirror for a moment after turning the water off and drying his hands before he came back out to where you were. He sighed quietly as he returned to his spot beside you.

"Sorry," he said softly, "You were just trying to help; I shouldn't have gotten upset with you. But see?" He lifted his hands palm-side down to show you his knuckles, "They're not  _that_  bad."

Without really thinking about it, you took his hands in yours to inspect the damage. You weren't paying attention to his reaction, so you missed the light red blush on his cheeks and the way he swallowed thickly as his heart started racing at your touch.

"It's still  _bad_ , Ash," you murmured, taking your hands back.

"It's nothing I haven't handled before, princess," he brought out the nickname, surprised he didn't earn an eye roll or annoyed sigh like he usually did. Ashton took the first aid kit off of your lap, placing it on the end table next to him and then turning back to you. "So would you care to explain to me what I witnessed tonight?" he said.

"I can freeze people..." you trailed off, earning a confused chuckle from the boy in front of you.

" _Yeah_ ," he nodded, "I  _noticed_  that.  _How_?"

"You know... Everyone's special  _somehow_..."

"Not everyone has  _powers_  like that, Y/N," he reminded you, "How long have you been able to do that?"

"Since forever, I guess," you shrugged, "My dad always told me to hide it because people wouldn't understand-" You began chewing on your bottom lip, looking down at your hands. "-He said that they would treat me differently if they knew – that they would call me a freak or think I was weird. And I didn't want to not fit in, so I've kept it to myself my whole life."

"Why  _me_?" he asked, "Why am  _I_  the person you tell about it?" You laughed under your breath, looking up at him again.

"You're not  _stupid_ , Ash," you shook your head, "I'm sure you would have figured it out  _eventually_."

"But you  _keep_  doing it," he shook his head, "You  _keep_  showing up right when trouble starts and you bail me out every time and  _I don't get it_. I know I annoy you with the whole ' _princess_ ' thing and constantly sitting next to you in class, but you  _keep_  saving my ass."

"It surprises me when you  _don't_  call me that," you admitted, "Maybe it was annoying at first, but I've just gotten used to it."

"That doesn't mean you have to keep helping me," he pointed out.

"I guess I do it because you've grown on me, Irwin," you shrugged again, "Don't make it complicated." He was a bit taken aback by the statement, obviously not expecting to hear  _anyone_  say they cared about him – let alone  _you_.

"You've grown on me too, princess," he replied. You rolled your eyes, but the smile pulling at the corners of your mouth was a dead giveaway that you really didn't mind the nickname anymore. "So," he cleared his throat, "Am I free to go home or am I confined to this apartment for the night?" He succeeded in making you laugh, smiling himself at the sound of it.

"If I find out you were put in the hospital on your way home, I'm gonna wait until you're fully healed before I put you  _back_  there," you teased, standing up to show him out.

"Fair enough," he chuckled, following you to the door, "I'll call you when I get home, okay?" You paused for a moment, then turned to look at him.

"They don't know where you live, right?" you asked him. He was silent, taking in the worried look on your face. Ashton then surprised both himself and you when he wrapped his arms around you and pulled you into him.

"I'll call you," he repeated. You shook your head as you put your arms around his waist.

"That  _wasn't_  what I asked, Ash," you whispered into his shirt, hugging him back tightly.

"I'll be  _fine_ , princess," he promised you, barely kissing your forehead before letting go of you.

And although you knew he would be, you couldn't help the bad feeling in the pit of your stomach as you watched him walk out the door.

~

Throughout the next few weeks, every time you would see Ashton, he would have a different mark  _somewhere_  on his body – whether it was a cut on his knuckle, a bruise under his eye, or a busted lip. He tried assuring you again and again that he was fine – that nothing bad was going to happen to him – but even though you'd only known him for a few months now, you knew he was just as worried as you were.

One night, while you were taking a late night walk around your neighborhood, you heard voices coming from nearby. You didn't think much of it at first – it was a Friday night in a town full of mostly college kids and it wasn't unusual to hear parties on the weekends – but when you heard those voices say  _Ashton's name_ , your heart felt like it had dropped down to your stomach.

You broke into a run, making sure your steps weren't too heavy as to alert the men who were with Ashton. When the voices started getting louder, you slowed your pace, sneaking quietly up the alleyway. You were careful not to make your presence known, taking a hiding spot behind someone's truck that was parked to the side. You peeked over the bed of the truck, finally seeing Ashton.

Ashton was in the fetal position on the ground, getting kicked over and over again by the men, immediately throwing your hands up to freeze them. You ran over, dropping to your knees behind him. You waved your hand over him so he was the only person to unfreeze.

"Hey, princess," he smiled weakly.

"Can I help you  _now_ , Ash?" you asked in a broken whisper, brushing his hair off of his face before it stuck to any of the blood.

Ashton could see how scared you were, so he just nodded his head slowly. You helped him get up, draping his arm across your shoulders and wrapping your own around his waist, taking him away from the situation. You left the men to unfreeze on their own, not wanting to be anywhere near the area when they did.

You got Ashton back to your apartment, making sure to lock the door as well as the deadbolt behind you before you took him to the bathroom. You had him sit on top of the toilet seat as you grabbed the first aid kit from under the sink. You set the kit on the counter and opened it up, beginning to work.

As you were cleaning the cut above his eyebrow, he looked up at you.

"Princess-" was all he got out before you cut him off.

"Why do you have to get into fights, Ashton –  _why_?" you breathed out shakily, your voice as stern as you could make it, "What's so worth having to hit someone or getting a black eye?"

" _You_ ," he answered simply, making you freeze. You swallowed thickly, moving your gaze from the cut you were working on to the eyes that were currently staring at you. " _You're_  worth it, princess," he murmured, moving his hands up to your hips and holding you in place, "You're worth  _whatever_  beating I have to go through in order to keep you safe."

"Why wouldn't I be safe?" you asked softly, furrowing your eyebrows and shaking your head.

"They know about your power," he told you, "I don't know how they figured it out, but they know it's how I've been getting out of every fight. And they keep trying to make me admit it, but I won't. I know that if I tell them, they're gonna come after you and I'm  _not_  gonna let that happen."

"Ash-"

"I promised myself the moment you told me about your power that I was going to protect you no matter the costs and I'm not about to go back on it  _now_ , Y/N," he said firmly, squeezing your hips gently, "You are the  _only_  reason I get out of bed every other morning and go to that stupid philosophy class." You couldn't help but giggle lightly, a light pink blush rising to your cheeks. Ashton smiled at your reaction and went on. "I don't know what they're gonna do if they get to you, but as long as I'm around, they know they can't touch you." You looked at him for a moment before putting your hand on his cheek, carefully stroking his cheekbone on the side of his face that wasn't bruised.

"Thank you, Ash," you said. Ashton smiled again, leaning into your touch.

"Thank  _you_ , princess," he mumbled, moving his hands to your face and bringing your lips to his. He felt you smile against his mouth, stepping forward so your bodies were pressed against each other.

" _Finally_ ," you whispered, making Ashton chuckle under his breath and kiss you harder.


	279. Next Christmas (Michael Clifford)

**Michael**

"Mikey!" you called out after making sure your phone was recording and well-hidden so you could get his reaction to the news you were about to give him.

"Yeah, babe?" Michael called back from where he was in the kitchen.

"I can't hang up this picture! It's too high!"

"So put it lower!" he laughed, but you heard his footsteps anyway.

"But I don't  _want it_  lower," you pouted as he came into the room.

"You're  _impossible_ , kitten," he grinned, kissing your forehead when he reached you.

"Well, you asked me to marry you, so who's the  _real_  idiot here?" you sassed.

"You  _agreed_  to marry me, so I think it's both of us," he winked, "Where do you want the picture?" 

"Right there," you pointed to some random spot on the wall, holding the photo to him to take. You knew Michael would look down at the photo in the frame before he did anything else and you couldn't contain your smile when you heard his breathing hitch.

" _No, you're not_ ," his voice cracked as he looked back up at you with slightly widened eyes. When he saw your smile though, he knew you were being serious. "Kitten..."

You nodded your head, "We're gonna have a  _baby_ , Mikey."

"Oh my God," he murmured. As Michael processed things, the smile on his face grew bigger and bigger. " _Oh my God_!" he said a little more loudly, quickly bending down and putting the frame on the floor before coming back up, grabbing your cheeks, and kissing you roughly. "I love you  _so much_ , kitten," he sniffled, not even bothering to hide the fact that he was crying. You put your hands on his own cheeks, pushing him back so you could wipe his tears with your thumbs.

"I love  _you_ , Michael," you whispered, pecking his lips.

Michael moved his hands to your stomach and he dropped down to his knees in front of you. He pushed your shirt up over your stomach and kissed the skin above your belly button.

"I love you too, baby," he mumbled, making you smile as you ran your fingers through his hair.

~

**Your parents**

You had called your mom one afternoon – as you did every single day – but this time, you asked if she, your dad, and your sister were busy that weekend because you and Michael wanted to visit. She, of course, eagerly invited you over, knowing you wouldn't be home on Christmas day this year and wanting to spend as much time with her oldest daughter and son-in-law as possible.

So that weekend, as you and Michael were on the road to your parents' house, you were both practically bouncing in your seats, excited to tell them about their first grandchild.

After you'd arrived, you all just spent time catching up. You and Michael stayed for dinner, and afterwards, you let them in on the surprise. You had all moved into the living room – your mom, dad, and 15-year-old sister Olivia were sitting together on the couch, and it ended up being the perfect time.

"We wanted to give you this early since we'll be spending Christmas with Mikey's family this year," you explained, setting the present in your dad's lap since he was sitting in the middle, "It's for all of you, so you have to open it together." You moved back to stand with Michael as he subtly held his phone up to record their reactions to the news – just as you'd done with him. Your dad and Olivia opened the gift as your mom read the card that had been taped to the top of the lid.

" _Sorry I can't be with you this year, but I'm excited to spend next Christmas with you!_ " your mom tilted her head and looked up at you and Michael in confusion before your sister gasped.

" _You are not_!" Olivia shouted, the widest smile you'd ever seen on her face.

Since your dad had already seen what was in the box as well, she put the box on your mom's lap so she could jump up and hug you tightly. Your mom looked down, her eyes immediately widening as she let out a short scream, her free hand flying up to cover her mouth.

"Are you  _serious_?!" she exclaimed, tears already falling from both her eyes  _and_  your dad's.

"I'm 8 weeks," you grinned. Olivia squealed happily, letting go of you and moving on to hug Michael.

" _What_?!" your dad smiled as widely as everyone else was, "Why didn't you tell us at  _Thanksgiving_?!"

"I didn't  _know_  at Thanksgiving!" you giggled, "I took a test a couple weeks ago, but I wanted to get the ultrasound before I told anybody just to be sure!"

"My little girl is having a  _baby_ ," he gushed, pulling you into a tight hug and kissing your forehead.

"When can I tell everyone?" your mom asked excited.

"Not until the 27th," Michael chuckled, "We're telling my parents and family on Christmas day and my bandmates on the 26th, so we don't want the news to get around to them yet."

~

**Michael's parents**

**One week later; Christmas day**

"Mum, Dad?!" Michael called out as he pulled you inside his parents' house on Christmas day a week later.

"Michael!" his mom cheered as she hurried out of the kitchen with his dad following close behind.

"Hi, Mum," he smiled as he let go of your hand to hug her. You hugged his dad as Michael went on, "Sorry we're here a little early."

"That's alright, son," Daryl said, switching with Karen to hug him so she could hug you, "You know we love having you two here as often as you can come over."

"Well, there's actually a  _reason_  we're here so early," he informed them, leading them to the couch so they could sit down.

"Why's that, sweetie?" Karen asked curiously.

"We have a present for you that we wanted you to open before the rest of the family got here," you grinned as Michael took out his phone to record them as well. You pulled a box from your bag of gifts and held it out for one of them to take. Karen took the box from you as you continued, "It's for both of you, so open it together." Daryl opened the card on the box – you had prepared the gift the exact same way as you had for the one for your parents and sister – and read it out loud.

" _Sorry I can't be with you this year, but I'm excited to spend next Christmas with you!_ " He had the same confused look on his face that your mother had.

"What does that mean?" Karen asked, looking at you and her son.

"Open the box and find out," Michael chuckled, gesturing toward her lap.

The two shrugged slightly and pulled the lid off of the box, removing the tissue paper. Their gasps were quiet, but you still heard them as their heads snapped back up.

" _Michael Gordon_ , if you're  _joking_  around right now..." Karen threatened, making you laugh.

" _Mum_!" Michael frowned as both of his parents looked at you, waiting for you to tell them it was all a prank. You simply smiled and shrugged.

"I'm 9 weeks," you told them, earning a loud, excited squeal from Karen. She immediately jumped up, throwing her arms around you.

"When is it due?" she asked, squeezing you gently before letting go and holding your shoulders.

"July 19th," you answered, earning yourself another hug.

"Who all knows?" Daryl asked, finally getting a chance to hug you when Karen moved on to her son.

"Just you guys and Y/N's parents and sister," Michael answered, "So if you could please hold off on telling Luke, Ashton, and Calum's parents for a couple days, we'd really appreciate it. We're planning on telling the boys tomorrow if we can."

"Are we allowed to tell everyone today?" Karen asked hopefully.

"I know it's going to kill you, but no," he chuckled again, "We're going to tell everyone after dinner."

~

**Michael's family**

"I thought it would be kind of fun to play a game since we're all still around the table if that's cool," Michael announced, getting up from his seat. You had just finished dinner and you couldn't wait anymore. You wanted to just blurt it out, but Michael had come up with a really cute way of telling everyone and you didn't want to ruin that for him.

The group eagerly agreed and he went to grab a notebook and Sharpie from the living room, not even realizing that Daryl had Michael's phone, recording all of them.

"Alright," he said, beginning to draw on the paper, "Everyone knows how to play hangman, right?" They obviously nodded, you, Karen, and Daryl doing so as well, not wanting to seem suspicious. "Okay, we're going to start with Mum and go around the table," he informed everyone, wanting to leave you for last.

The group consisted of nine people – Karen, Daryl, you, Michael, Karen's parents, her sister and her husband along with their two kids who were both older than 18, and her brother as well – so you and Michael lucked out when the only correct letters guessed were an  _i_  and an  _n_ , andyou had obviously asked Karen and Daryl to purposefully guess wrong letters.

"Y/N," Michael looked at you, trying to hide the smile on his face, "What's your guess?" You pretended to think for a moment.

"Can I buy a vowel, Mikey?" you asked, earning a small laugh from everyone.

Michael mockingly rolled his eyes, "Only because I love you."

" _A_ ," you chirped.

"Uh-huh," he nodded, writing the  _a_  in the places it belonged, "Pick another letter."

"Oh, I already know it."

" _Really_?" he raised an eyebrow for show.

"Mhmm," you hummed, hopping up and taking the notebook and marker from him. You held the book in your hand as you filled in the rest of the letters, showing it to Michael when you were done but not anyone else.

"Wow," he stated, "That's exactly what it was."

"What is it then?" one of Michael's cousins asked. You and Michael smiled at each other before you turned the notebook back around, letting them read the " _We're having a baby!_ " written across the page. Everyone's jaws dropped as you, Michael, and his parents smiled widely.

"Are you  _serious_?!" Michael's grandmother screeched, jumping up from her chair. You nodded and she ran over to you. Michael took the notebook from you just before she reached you and hugged you tightly.

"Wow," one of Michael's cousins gaped, "I always thought you'd be the  _last_  person to have a kid." Michael rolled his eyes, making everyone laugh as the rest of the family got up to hug both of you.

~

**The boys** **(and Mali)**

You were hanging around on the porch at Calum's house, waiting for a good time to spring the news of your pregnancy onto the boys. You were all talking about memories of vacations you'd all taken together when Michael slyly brought up the last time you'd taken a group photo. After Ashton mentioned the last one he could remember was when you went to Bali the previous summer, you took that as your cue.

"Let's take a picture now then!" you squeaked, hurrying to Michael's car to grab your camera and tripod – you always carried them with you, so the boys didn't think anything of it.

" _Y/N_!" Luke whined as you came back to them and began setting up the tripod.

"Come on, Lukey," you stuck your bottom lip, " _Please_?"

"Well, we're  _definitely_  doing it now," Calum chuckled, knowing Luke could never seem to say no to you when you called him that, as you set your camera up in front of the steps.

Luke, Calum, and Ashton squeezed together on the top step while Michael sat down in front of them on the bottom step. You pressed record on your camera, made sure it was focused properly, then hurried to sit beside Michael as if you'd set the timer for a photo.

"Okay, guys," you said after a few seconds had passed, "Say ' _we're gonna be uncles!_ '"

"We're gonna be uncles!" they smiled. You sat there for a couple seconds as it sank in first for Ashton.

"Wait,  _what_?!" he shouted, shoving Michael's shoulder. You turned so you could look at them.

"You're gonna be uncles," you repeated with a goofy smile, looking at Calum and Luke since they didn't seem to get it yet. But when they did, the looks on their faces were priceless.

"You're having a baby?" Luke asked. You nodded rapidly and his eyes widened. " _Y/N_!" he exclaimed wide-eyed, " _You're having a baby_?!"

Calum's arms flew around your shoulders and he was practically sitting on top of you as he hugged you. The front door opened behind all of you and Mali looked down in confusion.

"What's with all the yelling?" she asked. Michael quickly moved to the camera to act like he was taking it off the tripod, but he was really angling it so he could get Mali's reaction next.

"We're gonna be  _uncles_!" Calum blurted out.

" _Calum_!" you and Michael shouted at the same time, obviously having wanted to tell Mali yourselves.

"Sorry," he murmured, sinking down slightly.

"Wait..." Mali trailed off, her eyes widening as she finally began to understand what her brother meant, "So you're..." You giggled softly, standing up to face her.

"I'm pregnant," you smiled. Mali's gaze went to Michael to find him smiling just as brightly as you were.

Her jaw dropped and she let out an excited squeal, nearly kicking Ashton and Luke as she jumped over them to get to you. She threw her arms around your neck and you would have fallen over if it hadn't been for Calum hopping up and putting his hand on your back just before she reached you, knowing how his sister was when she got news like this.

"You're gonna name the baby Mali, right?" she asked, making everyone laugh.

"What if it's a boy?" Michael teased. She thought for a moment.

"Malik," she compromised.

"We'll consider it, Mal," you giggled again. She squeezed you a bit before letting go and sighing in content.

"I never thought  _Mike_  would be the first out of these idiots to reproduce," Mali commented. Everyone laughed as Michael groaned.

"Believe me, neither did anyone else," he said monotonously, make you grin as you trotted over to him. You wrapped your arms around his waist, laying your head on his chest so you were looking up at him. "But I'm glad I did," he murmured, cupping your cheek in his hand and placing the other on your hip as he pressed a kiss to your lips to make you smile.


	280. Wasted (Marshall Traver)

_a lovely anon on tumblr wanted something based on a song from The Summer Set's "Stories for Monday" album, so I picked this one_

~

_Flashback_

> _We were right there in the desert_   
>  _I was seventeen years old_   
>  _We were talking 'bout the future_   
>  _All the places we would go_
> 
> _Swore we'd start a revolution_   
>  _We were young and unprepared_   
>  _Growing up can make you stupid_   
>  _Why is everyone so scared?_

"Where do you see yourself in five years?" Marshall asked suddenly as you were sitting in the bed of his pick-up truck, staring up at the stars.

"What is this, some sort of college interview?" you giggled.

"Come on," he smiled at the sound of your laugh, "Just answer."

"Well, I'll be 22," you said thoughtfully, "Hopefully, I'll be graduating college and finding a job so I don't have to move back in with my parents..." You trailed off with a small sigh, making him raise an eyebrow at you, but you didn't notice – you were too busy looking at the sky above you. "It's kinda scary, to be honest," you whispered, more to yourself than to Marshall.

"What's so scary about it?" he asked.

"The uncertainty of it all," you replied, "Not knowing whether or not you're going to be able to make it on your own or what's going to happen five years from now or five months or even five  _hours_. There's so much I want to do with my life, but I don't know if I'll ever have the  _means_  to do them. It's just scary to think that I won't be able to do it all before I die."

> _'_ _Cause I believe that we gotta be good for something_   
>  _I believe that the moment will come but_   
>  _If we die and find out it was all for nothing_   
>  _Least we know that youth wasn't wasted on us_

"I think you're gonna do just fine, Y/N," Marshall told you.

"Are you a  _psychic_  now?" you teased, turning your head to look at him.

" _No_ ," he chuckled, shoving your arm playfully, "But I know you well enough to know that you're going to do everything you could ever want. You deserve the world and you're not gonna stop until you  _get it_."

"Thanks, Mar," you murmured, leaning over and kissing his cheek to make him smile. "So what about  _you_?" you asked, "Where do you see yourself in five years?"

"That's kind of what I brought you here to talk about," he cleared his throat. You propped yourself up on your forearms so you could look at him properly.

"What do you mean?" you raised an eyebrow.

"You know how I've been kinda MIA lately?" he asked, making you nod. "Well... I've been talking with someone who works for a record company in New York... They saw my covers on YouTube and want to sign me." Your eyes widened and you immediately flung yourself at him, wrapping your arms around his neck.

"Mar, congratulations!" you squeaked, "That's  _so cool_!"

"I know, but..."

" _But_?" you furrowed your eyebrows, picking yourself back up, "But  _what_? This is  _huge_  for you! You can  _finally_  get your name out there now!"

"That means I'll have to move to New York," he reminded you, a soft tone in his voice, "Which means I'll have to-"

"Leave me," you finished quietly, your voice breaking.

"Baby," he sighed, pulling you onto his lap, "I'll  _always_  love you, Y/N – you  _know_  that. You've been my number one fan since I  _started_  this whole thing and I don't want you thinking that I'm just going to  _forget_  about you when it takes off."

"But we  _are_  breaking up, aren't we?" you whispered, your hands finding their way to his cheeks so you could stroke his cheekbones.

"You're going to do  _so_  many wonderful things in your life, princess," he smiled sadly, "And I think you deserve someone who can go along with you for the ride." You didn't know what else to say, so you just leaned forward and pressed your lips to his.

"I love you, Mar," you murmured into his mouth, feeling him smile a little bigger.

"I love you  _more_ , Y/N," he promised you.

_End flashback_

~

**5 years later**

> _Now there's no one at the party_   
>  _No one left in Neverland_   
>  _But between empty_ _parts_ _and broken hearts_   
>  _Is_ _something worth believing in_
> 
> _More than all the resolutions_   
>  _Maybe there's no master plan_   
>  _Growing up can make you stupid_   
>  _But we do the best we can_

It had been five years since that night and if you told anyone you didn't still think about your high school sweetheart, you'd be lying.

Marshall had gotten pretty well-known since being signed the summer before senior year and since he'd just turned 18, he'd immediately moved to New York. He promised he'd call you every day, but pretty soon, those days turned into weeks and then months and then he just stopped calling altogether. You eventually gave up yourself – every time you called, he was always busy and couldn't talk, so you just figured you'd leave him to his work.

Your heart  _ached_ , honestly. Sure, you were  _17_  when you and Marshall were dating and you knew that 95% of relationships in high school don't last after graduation, but not  _one_  person in that school would have ever guessed that you and Marshall  _wouldn't_  be in the 5% that make it. You two were so  _obviously_  in love that everyone was shocked to find out you two had –  _officially_  – broken up the day he got on the plane to go to New York.

And now, Marshall was living his dream while you were stuck in the same town, just trying to find a way to get  _out_.

You couldn't say you weren't content with your life though; You knew it could always be worse than waitressing, but you worked at a pretty high-end restaurant, so the pay wasn't  _all_  that bad. You  _did_  work mostly for tips though and being that the place was so fancy and the only people who tended to dine there were rich people who didn't believe in good tips unless it was a ' _tip_ ' about how their kids should be lucky they're don't have to work like ' _people like you_ '. You brushed off the comments though, knowing they were only entitled jerks who didn't have anything better to do that patronize the people serving them.

_'_ _Cause I believe that we gotta be good for something_   
_I believe that the moment will come but_   
_If we die and find out it was all for nothing_   
_Least we know that youth wasn't wasted on us_

It wasn't until one evening when business was starting to slow down for the night that your opinion on that matter  _changed_. You were cleaning another table when you heard a comment from a man across the aisle that was clearly directed at you.

"You see, kid?" he said, " _That's_  why you're in this business – so you don't have to be forced to work among people like  _her_." You rolled your eyes as you picked up the last plate to put in your bin, wiped off the tabletop, and walked back to the kitchen. You let out a quiet sigh, making the dishwasher laugh.

"You heard that comment too, I see," you said, putting the bin on the counter beside him.

"You know who that is, right?" Troy asked, making you shake your head. "That's Max Roswell," he informed you.

"Wait, isn't he the CEO of Atlantic Records in New York?" Troy nodded and you furrowed your eyebrows, "What's he doing  _here_?"

"Apparently, one of the artists on the label is from here," he shrugged.

"That's just what we need," you sighed, "A small town musician making it big and coming back to  _brag_  about it." Troy laughed loudly as you grabbed your notepad and pen.

"Good luck!" he called after you, "I'll pray for you!"

"Shut up, Troy Bolton," you winked, knowing he hated when you called him that. You took a deep breath as you stood at the kitchen door, preparing yourself. " _Here we go, Y/N_ ," you murmured to yourself before pushing the door open and making your way to the table. "Hello!" you chirped, putting on your best smile, "My name is Y/N and I'll be your server this evening. What can I get you?"

" _Y/N_?" you heard a familiar voice say, making your head snap up and your heart skip a beat.

" _Marshall_ ," you said softly. He smiled widely, the same twinkle in his eye as there was every other time he used to look at you.

"Look at you," he gushed, "You look as beautiful as ever."

"You look about the same," you hummed, a small smirk on your face.

"If by that, you mean ruggedly handsome, then I agree with you," he sassed, making you laugh softly. Your conversation was cut short when Max cleared his throat, making you remember that Marshall wasn't sitting alone.

"Sorry," you apologized quickly, "What can I get for you this evening?"

"A waitress who  _isn't_  so distracted would be nice," Max said monotonously. You swallowed thickly, hoping you weren't blushing too badly by now.

"I'm sorry, sir," you shook your head, "But I'm the only waitress on duty right now."

" _Of course_  you are," he muttered under his breath. Marshall cleared his throat so you would look back at him. He gave you an apologetic look and you smiled slightly at him.

"I'll just take a Coke," he told you.

"I should have known that," you hummed, writing it down anyway.

"I'll take water," Max interrupted again rudely, "And if you could take it easy on the ice, that would be great. I know how you people like to put way too much ice in your drinks." You breathed deeply, writing it down as best as you could without letting either of the men know just how badly your hands were shaking.

"I'll be right back with your drinks for you, gentlemen," you said, quickly rushing off.

"You don't have to talk to her like that, Max," you heard Marshall whisper firmly since the soda fountain was only a few feet away from where they were seated.

"She is to be  _serving us_ , Mr. Traver, not  _making friends_ ," he replied.

And that was the tone of the treatment you received from Max for the rest of the night.

He would  _constantly_  belittle your job and make snide remarks about your life choices, but nothing got to you as much as a comment made as you were going to get their check. You were walking away from the table and you couldn't hear what Marshall had said, but you definitely heard his boss's response to it.

"You  _dated_  her?" you could hear the surprise in Max's voice, "Well, thank God you got out of  _that one_ , Mr. Traver."

"What the hell is  _that_  supposed to mean?" Marshall spat back.

"You shouldn't be associating yourself with people as low as  _her_ ," he said nonchalantly, "You are a  _celebrity_ , Mr. Traver; People like her are not  _good enough_  to be seen with people like you."

You didn't even bother waiting to hear Marshall's response, you just darted into the kitchen and leaned back against the wall and slid down so you were sitting on the floor. You knew Max was going to give you an earful for making him and Marshall wait so long for the check, but you also couldn't let him see that what he'd said got to you.

"Y/N, here, let me take that," you heard Troy say softly.

You looked up at him as he took your notepad and pen out of your hands. He added up everything from the two men's order and wrote the check himself. You were about to stand up so you could go out, but Troy shook his head.

"I heard what he said, Y/N," he told you, "You're not going back out there just to have it happen  _again_." You bottom lip trembled slightly and you thanked him quietly as he left the kitchen.

> _Turn the lights on, party's over_   
>  _Maybe someday, we'll never get older_
> 
> _I believe that we gotta be good for something_   
>  _And I believe that the moment will come but_   
>  _If we die and find out it was all for nothing_   
>  _Least we know that youth wasn't wasted on us_

You heard Marshall ask Troy where you were, so he made up some excuse that you had been on a call with the manager since he had been out that evening. But if there was one thing Marshall knew about you, it was that you were  _definitely_  letting Max get into your head.

After Max paid the check, he went outside for a smoke break. He expected Marshall to follow him, but he had stayed inside. Figuring he just had to go to the bathroom, Max shrugged it off, having no idea what was actually going on back in the restaurant.

"Where's Y/N?" Marshall asked Troy.

"In the kitchen," he replied softly, knowing you'd be able to hear him, "Your boss is kind of a dick."

"I know," he said with a sigh, "Can I talk to her though?"

"Be my guest," Troy shrugged, "She's right beside the door." Marshall thanked him and hurried to the kitchen door. He pushed it open and walked in, immediately finding you.

"Y/N," he sighed again, making you look up at him.

"Marshall," you said, quickly getting up, "You're not supposed to be back here."

"Your friend said I could come talk to you."

You put your hand on his chest and pushed him back out of the room, letting the door swing back closed behind you. You caught a glimpse of Troy smirking at you out of the corner of your eye as he made his way to the kitchen door on the opposite side of the restaurant to give you and Marshall some privacy.

"I'm fine, Marshall," you told him, "I'm used to people saying things like that."

"You're not used to it being so  _personal_ , Y/N," he reminded you.

You swallowed thickly, knowing he was right, and felt your eyes begin to well up with tears. Marshall immediately brought you into a hug, wrapping his arms around your waist tightly.

"I wanna make this up to you, Y/N," Marshall said, "Let me take you out tomorrow night."

"Your boss won't  _like that_  very much, Marshall," you whispered, feeling him squeeze you gently.

" _Screw him_ ," you felt him shake his head, "I don't give a fuck what  _he_  thinks about you. The only thing that matters to me is how  _I_  feel about you and how  _you_  feel about  _yourself_  and, right now, I can tell you're not feeling that great." You let out a breathy laugh.

"How  _are_  you feeling then?"

"Like I never should have broken up with you in the  _first place_ ," he answered honestly, making you look up at him. He brought his hands up to your cheeks to wipe your tears, but he left them there when he was done. "I know we were only 17, but not a  _day_  goes by that I don't think about how  _happy_  I was when I was with you," he rambled, "I left this town because... Well, I wanted to make my family and friends proud – I wanted to make  _you_  proud."

"I've  _always_  been proud of you, Mar," you murmured.

"Even  _now_?" he asked shyly.

" _Especially_  now," you promised him. Marshall didn't waste another second, pulling your face to his and smashing your lips together.

"You have  _no idea_  how much I've missed you, princess," he mumbled into your mouth.

"Think I have a  _pretty_  good idea, Mar," you replied, kissing him again.

> _Turn the lights on, party's over_   
>  _Maybe someday, we'll never get older_

~

_inspiration/song used: "Wasted" by The Summer Set_


	281. Coffeeshop Soundtrack (Luke Hemmings) - Part 1

You worked in the coffee shop of a small record store in the heart of Sydney where most of your time was spent breathing in the scent of freshly brewed coffee and vinyl records. You were more often than not working from opening to closing, but you didn't mind. It was the only job you'd had that you actually  _enjoyed_  since your move to Australia five years ago. You met a lot of nice people and even became friends with a few of the regulars, but no one caught your attention more than the shy boy who had starting coming in with his three best friends on a regular basis a few months ago.

The blonde didn't speak much – you'd never seen his lips move once unless they were smiling at something one of his friends had said – and the boy with black hair always ordered his drink for him, but you didn't think too much of it; Some people were just better speaking with strangers than others were.

You were working a particularly slow morning – a few people coming in here and there, but none of them staying in the shop after receiving their drinks. You and your co-worker, Carter, were the only two working in the store that day. You were leaning back against the counter, not talking about anything of importance, when he looked behind you.

"Oh, looks like your boyfriends are here!" he announced as the four boys walked in, "I guess I'll go do literally anything else for a while!" You playfully shoved Carter's shoulder as he walked away and turned around.

"Hey, guys!" you said, giving them all a bright smile.

" _Boyfriends_?" the blue-haired boy pouted, "I thought you and I had something special, Y/N."

"Sorry, Mikey," you shrugged, "You're all just so tempting, I can't help myself." Michael rolled his eyes, a smile pulling at the corner of his mouth. "So, guys, the usual?" you asked, looking at all of them.

"Luke here-" the black-haired boy – Calum – said, throwing his arm around the blonde's shoulders, "-was thinking about trying something different today, but wasn't sure what. So what do you recommend?"

"Well, my personal favorite is the mint chocolate chip frap, but we do always have a drink of the day," you motioned to the board beside you. You noticed Luke had been eyeing your lips carefully, but when you were done speaking, he looked back to Calum, holding up his index finger.

"He'll try the mint chocolate chip frap," he smiled before Luke poked his shoulder. He held up his fist, his index finger on top of his thumb, and shook his hand side-to-side slightly. Calum looked back at you, "Do you guys have a bathroom here?"

"Yeah," you nodded, pointing behind them, "It's around the corner over there, to the right."

"Thank you!" he called over his shoulder as he led Luke to the back of the shop.

"What does that mean?" you asked the two boys still standing there curiously as you began making their drinks.

"What?" Ashton, the curly-haired one, returned.

"What Luke did with his hand there," you clarified.

"Oh, you mean this?" Michael asked, mimicking the motion the blonde had made. You nodded and he went on, "It's sign language for bathroom."

"Sign language?"

"Yeah," Ashton said, "I thought you knew already: Luke's deaf."

"Oh," you said slowly with another nod, understanding a bit more why Luke hadn't warmed up to you yet. It wasn't because he was weary of you; It was just because he couldn't hear you. "I always thought he never talked just because he didn't like me very much," you admitted shyly.

"Luke's the  _furthest_  thing from not liking you," Michael snickered, earning an elbow to the ribs from Ashton. You raised an eyebrow, but dismissed the comment.

"I have a question though," you said, "And if it's not appropriate for me to ask, I'm really sorry." The two motioned for you to go on. "If he can't hear me, how did he know what I said about the drinks?"

"He can read lips pretty well," Ashton answered, "But he mainly communicates through sign language. He doesn't really like to do it in public though because people usually stare at him." You nodded in acknowledgement, grabbing four cups from under the counter and uncapping your marker. You wrote all the boys' names on the cups, then got back to making their drinks.

~

**Three weeks later**

The boys had come in again one Tuesday at about 11:30. Tuesdays were the days when the record shop received new vinyls and such, so the group made sure to come in when business was slow. Ashton and Calum had gone to the listening area to decide whether or not they wanted to buy a record while Michael and Luke were still browsing. When you noticed this, you knew now was the best time to get the blue-haired boy's attention.

"Mikey!" you called quietly so there was no chance Calum or Ashton would hear you. He perked up at the sound of his name, looking over his shoulder at you. You motioned for him to come to you and he nodded. He turned back to Luke, tapping his shoulder to make him look up. He signed something to him – you didn't know what, but Michael was just telling him he'd be right back – and Luke nodded, allowing Michael to trot over.

"What's up?" he asked.

"Well, I was thinking the other day about what Ashton said about how Luke is pretty good at reading lips and stuff..." you trailed off, making Michael raise his eyebrows. "But I was thinking that a conversation wouldn't really be two-sided because I would still need one of you to help me understand what he was saying, so I've been trying to teach myself sign language for the last couple weeks but I can't get the hang of it and I was hoping you could teach me." Michael couldn't hold back the smile that was growing wider and wider by the second on his face.

"You wanna learn sign language for Luke?" he asked.

"He seems really sweet," you said shyly, "And I think it would be nice to be able to talk to him without anyone else's help."

"Yeah, Y/N," he nodded, "Of course I'll teach you. Are you free this weekend?"

"Yeah," you nodded back furiously, "I don't work Saturdays and Sundays, so whichever day works best for you would be cool."

"I'll be over on Saturday?" he suggested. You sighed gratefully.

"Thank you, Mikey," you told him, "I really appreciate this."

"You're welcome," he smiled, "Luke's gonna be so happy."

"Could you maybe not tell him about this?" you asked, "I was kinda hoping to surprise him."

"Yeah, totally!" Michael chirped, "So I'll see you later then."

~

**Saturday afternoon**

Michael had been teaching you basic words and phrases as well as the alphabet in sign language for a couple hours now and you were slowly but surely starting to catch on. Michael was incredibly patient with you, remembering how frustrating it was for him when he himself was learning. It wasn't until you threw your head back and groaned that he decided you needed a break.

Michael told you he was going to order a pizza for lunch and he wasn't going to take no for an answer, already dialing a number on his phone. You simply rolled your eyes and gave him your address when he needed to recite it to the girl on the other end of the call. By the time you had both finished eating, you wanted to get right back at it.

"How do you sign Luke's name?" you asked. Michael chuckled at how eager you were, making a mental note to ask you why you  _really_  wanted to learn so badly later.

"Well, you can either spell it-" he demonstrated by signing the letters  _L_ - _U_ - _K_ - _E_. "-or you can do this-" He brought both of his hands up beside his ribcage, holding them flat with his palms facing the floor, and moved them up and down slightly while keeping his wrist relatively still.

"That's how you say ' _Luke_ '?" you couldn't help the small giggle that passed your lips.

"Well, not exactly," Michael chuckled, "That's the sign for ' _penguin_ '. It's his name sign, which is basically something that other people give you – kind of like a nickname – and our sign for Luke is ' _penguin_ ' because he loves them so much."

"So what's  _your_  name sign then?"

Michael paused for a moment before shaking his head, "You know what? This isn't about me."

"Come on,  _Mikey_!" you pouted.

"No, don't start that," he said, pushing your lip back in with his finger, "That's not nice."

"I thought we had something special, Mikey." Michael threw his head back with a groan.

"I knew those words were gonna come back to haunt me," he sighed. You smiled victoriously as he sat back up and signed to you. He moved his arms side-to-side as if he was cradling a baby and then pinched his thumb and index finger together at the bottom of his nose, pulling his hand away from his face.

"What's that?" you asked.

"It means ' _kitten_ '," he grumbled.

"Why are you so embarrassed?" you giggled again, "I think it's cute, Mikey."

"I'm not  _cute_ , Y/N; I'm  _punk rock_ ," he pouted.

"Sure, you are," you grinned, reaching up to ruffle his hair. "So what are Calum and Ashton's then?"

"This one's Cal's-" Michael made the same cradling motion as before, but instead followed it up with a motion as if he was going to snap. "-and that means ' _puppy_ ', and Ashton's is-" He brought his hand up, his fingers spread out, and brought it back down the side of his head. "-which means ' _lion_ '."

"' _Lion_ '?" you tilted your head.

"Well, it's mostly because of his hair," Michael teased and you laughed under your breath. "So why do you want to learn sign language so bad?" he asked you.

"I told you," you shrugged, "Luke should be able to hear me just as well as you guys can."

"I think it's because you like him," he said bluntly. You paused for a moment and his eyes widened as a huge grin spread across his face. "You  _do_!" he yelled happily, "You like Luke!"

" _Stop it_!" you scolded.

"He's not gonna  _hear me_ , Y/N," Michael snickered, earning himself a slap to the arm. " _What_?!" he whined, rubbing the spot where you hit him, "He says that all the time!"

"You  _can't_  tell him, Michael!" you shook your head quickly, "You have to promise you won't tell him!"

"But I-"

" _Michael_!"

" _Fine_!" he pouted, "I won't tell him! Just stop yelling at me! You're gonna have to deal with  _two_  deaf people if you keep doing that!"

~

**A few months later (time jumps this big are great amirite lmao)**

"Why are you so giddy today, Mike?" you heard Calum ask Michael as the four boys walked into the store.

"Yeah," Ashton chirped, "I'm pretty sure you haven't stopped smiling since the moment you woke up."

"It's just gonna be a good day," he beamed, looking at you as you tried to hold back your own grin, "Hi, Y/N!" You waved to him as the four boys came over to the counter.

"Hi, guys!" you chirped, "Usual again?" You noticed Luke shake his head, but before he could poke Calum, you began signing to him. " _What would you like then, Luke?_ " Ashton and Calum's eyes widened, Michael's grin was so big, you were sure it had to be hurting his cheeks, and Luke looked like the air was knocked out of him.

" _You can sign?_ " Luke signed to you shakily.

" _Michael's been teaching me_ ," you answered with a bright smile, " _Thought it would be nice to include you in a conversation every once in a while. You seem interesting enough._ " The small smirk on your face made Luke roll his eyes, but he smiled back shyly.

" _You learned for me?_ "You simply smiled at him and nodded. He let out a small sigh, signing again. " _This might be really weird, but can I hug you?_ " You giggled softly, coming out from behind the counter.

You stood up on your toes, wrapping your arms around Luke's neck as his went around your waist. His face pressed up against the skin of your neck that wasn't covered by your shirt and you could feel his smile. He hummed in content, sending chills down your spine. That was the first time you'd ever heard him make any sort of sounds and it had you feeling like you could get used to it. After you pulled away, you went back behind the counter.

" _Seriously though, what do you want to drink_?" you asked Luke. He smiled brightly, signing to you that he wanted to try what was on the drink of the day board. You nodded and turned to the others, "And you guys?"

"Usual," they answered in unison.

"No sense of adventure with you three," you shook your head, reaching for the cups. You heard Luke laugh quietly – another sound you couldn't wait to hear again – and knew he must have been reading your lips.

After making the drinks and handing them to the boys after they paid, they stayed at the counter. You looked at them with a bit of confusion – they usually left the shop to do whatever it is they do. But they stuck around that day, spending a little bit of time talking to you and teaching you words that Michael hadn't already.

" _Luke, I think we should give her a name sign_ ," Michael randomly signed to the blonde with a sly grin. Luke nodded quickly, spinning in his chair back to face you.

" _Michael already told you what a name sign is, right?_ " he asked you. You nodded and he looked back at the other boys. They simply motioned back to you, urging him to pick it out himself. He eyed you carefully for a moment before nodding to himself, having made his decision. " _This is gonna be yours_ ," Luke signed, following it up by making a circular motion with his hand at his face.

" _But that's the sign for_ _'_ _beautiful_ _'_ _, isn't it?_ " you furrowed your eyebrows.

" _Then I guess it's perfect for you_ ," he grinned, smiling wider when he noticed your cheeks turn a light shade of pink.

~

_inspiration: http://mic.com/articles/135887/this-starbucks-employee-went-above-and-beyond-for-a-deaf-customer?utm_source=policymicTBLR &utm_medium=main&utm_campaign=social#.Xt88Kcimp_


	282. Coffeeshop Soundtrack (Luke Hemmings) - Part 2

**One year later**

It was just another day; You were on break, sitting with Luke at the counter of the coffee shop. He usually came in to spend your lunch break with you even though he knew he was going to see you when you came back home that evening.

Nothing seemed out of the ordinary – you and Luke were minding your own business, signing to each other as you ate your lunch. That was, until you noticed something out of the corner of your eye.

You could see a group of three girls making fun of you and Luke. While you never caught them looking directly at you, it was very obvious they were making fun of you because they over-exaggerated their copying Luke's signing. You remained engaged in conversation with your boyfriend, however, not wanting him to know what the group was doing.

" _I'll let you get back to work, princess_ ," Luke signed to you, picking up his coffee cup, " _I'll see you when you get home_." You nodded and he kissed your cheek, leaving the store.

You went back to the counter, putting on your apron. Once the group realized you were back, they went to order their drinks.

" _What can I get for you_?" you signed to them. They raised the eyebrows, looking at each other in confusion before turning back to you. "Oh, I'm sorry," you smiled sarcastically, "Did you not understand that?"

"No..." one of them replied.

"So it would be  _silly_  of me to assume that you understand sign language since you aren't  _deaf_ , right?" you asked rhetorically, "Kind of like how it would be silly of  _you_  to assume that the deaf blonde you were just making fun of would be able to understand what someone was saying unless they were signing to him?" The girls then had the nerve to get mad at you for talking back, glaring at you.

"Is there anyone with  _better_  customer service working today?" one of them snarled.

"Yes," you answered, "But we don't serve such  _rude and disrespectful_  people here, so you might as well just go ahead and  _leave_."

"Well, we want to talk to your  _manager_ ," another spat.

"I mean, fine by me, but he's just going to tell you the same  _damn_  thing I did," you laughed dryly because calling over your shoulder, " _Daniel_!"

"What's up?" he asked, coming out from the kitchen. You didn't say anything – you just motioned to the girls in front of the counter. "Is something wrong?" he asked them.

"Yes," the girl who demanded to see him huffed, "This  _employee_  is being incredibly rude to us and  _refuses_  to take our orders." You snorted softly as Daniel looked at you.

"Why's that?"

"I don't appreciate people being  _blatantly disrespectful_  about my boyfriend's deafness," you replied monotonously.

"Is that what you were doing?" Daniel asked the girls. They remained silent, giving him the answer he needed. "Well, I'm going to have to ask you to leave then," he said. Their eyes widened.

" _Excuse me_?" one of the girls said.

"We do not  _tolerate_  that kind of behavior in this store," he said –  _just_  like you told them he would, "So you can take your business  _and attitudes_  somewhere else." He didn't even given them a chance to respond before turning around and going back into the kitchen. You smiled sweetly at the three girls as they let out sharp breaths and headed for the door.

"Have a nice day, ladies!" you called out to them.

~

**Four hours later**

If you said you weren't still upset about those three girls, you'd be lying. You kept repeating what they were doing in your head for the last four hours and it wasn't getting better on the way home.

But you kept it together – you toughed through the rest of your shift, helping Chase and Daniel close up, and walked into your apartment at 6:45.

While there were numerous disadvantages to dating someone who was deaf, it  _did_  come with its perks.

Luke would never have to hear you sing in the shower or hear the thunder that kept you up at night despite the fact that he was awake anyway comforting you, but most importantly, he would never know when you were  _crying_.

You found yourself locked in the bathroom to let out your tears while Luke was in the living room reading a book.

You had been in there for about 15 minutes – as far as you were concerned, Luke didn't even realize you were home – when you jumped at hearing a knock on the door. You were going to let it go, but the knocking became frantic very quickly and you knew Luke was worried about you. You got up from the floor, looking at yourself in the mirror to wipe the tears off of your face and make yourself seem like you were totally fine.

But the moment you opened the door, Luke knew you weren't – Luke  _always_  knew.

He immediately wrapped his arms around your waist and pulled you into him, hugging you tightly. He kissed your skin softly and you couldn't stop the tears from coming on again, pushing yourself closer to your boyfriend.

Luke tapped your lower back lightly – his way of telling you to jump. You didn't hesitate to do so, hopping up and wrapping your legs around his waist. He turned the bathroom light off before carrying you to the bed. He helped you lay down and climbed onto the mattress next to you, wrapping his arms around you again.

The two of you remained that way for nearly half an hour until you felt Luke reach into his pocket and pull out his phone.

When Luke was holding you like this, he preferred to type what he wanted to say instead of make you sit up so he could sign. And any way you could still have Luke holding you while he talked to you was something you were always up for.

_What's wrong, princess?_

You smiled softly at what Luke had typed – his little pet names for you were always your favorites – but you simply shrugged, burying your face further into his chest. Luke hummed quietly in a way that told you he knew you were lying to him. You sighed, holding your finger up, letting him know that you would tell him when you fully calm again. He nodded, pulling you back into him as closely as he could and kissing your forehead, leaving his lips there until you finally picked yourself up a few minutes later.

Luke sat up with you, his head tilted to the right as he patiently waited for you to tell him what was wrong. You scooted over a bit so you were both sitting cross-legged in front of each other.

" _When you came by for lunch, there were three girls making fun of you for signing,_ " you told him, " _And I don't like when people do that_." Luke smiled slightly, leaning forward to kiss your head again.

" _I'm used to people making fun of me, princess,_ " he replied, having already gone over this with you a couple times before.

" _Just because you're used to it doesn't make it okay,_ " you shook your head.

" _I know, but there's no point in getting worked up over things that I know won't change,_ " he shrugged, " _People are always going to be ignorant about things they don't understand when they're not willing to even try._ "

" _So I'm just supposed to ignore it?_ "

" _For now, yes._ "

" _And if I don't?_ " you challenged.

" _Princess-_ "

" _Lu, I'm not going to stand around and listen to people make fun of you every time you come into the store,_ " you told him with a stern expression, " _Just because you can't hear them doesn't mean I can't._ " Before Luke could respond, you got up and left the room.

He sighed again quietly, shifting so he could lie back down, allowing you some time to cool off. He didn't know what you were doing or where you had gone, but he'd been with you long enough to know when you needed to be alone.

~

About half an hour later, Luke had begun smelling something coming from the kitchen. He knew that scent  _anywhere_  – spaghetti had been his favorite meal for as long as he could remember – but what coaxed him out of the bedroom was the fact that the apartment smelled  _exactly_  like how his childhood home did whenever his mom made it.

When he got to the kitchen, the only person standing there was you, making him tilt his head.

Luke shuffled across the hardwood floor, coming up behind you and wrapping his arms around your waist. He felt you jump slightly, having not even heard him come into the room. He pressed his lips to your neck before laying his head on your shoulder and closing his eyes in content.

Since the noodles were almost done anyway, you turned down the heat to both them and the sauce before turning around in Luke's arms. Luke immediately pressed his lips to yours, feeling you sigh in relief, knowing he wasn't mad at you for snapping at him. Your hands moved up to cup his face, running your fingers on his cheekbones.

When you stopped kissing him, you moved back as far as you could – Luke refusing to let you go.

" _I'm sorry for yelling at you earlier, Lu,_ " you signed shyly. Luke simply smiled, finally releasing his grip to reply.

" _You can't exactly yell at a deaf person, princess._ " You rolled your eyes but laughed anyway, making him smile. " _Thanks for always sticking up for me_ ," he told you.

You smiled at him as well, wrapping your arms around his neck and hugging him. You reached up to kiss his ear before moving back to kiss his lips again. With your lips touching his, you whispered ' _I love you, Lu_ ' to him, making him smile and kiss you harder.

' _I love you_ ' was the only phrase you ever verbally said to him – and the only phrase he ever wanted to  _feel_  you say.

The first time you did it – the first time you  _ever_  told him you love him – he didn't  _quite_  understand since he wasn't able to actually  _see_ your lips moving, but he never asked you what you'd said. By the  _sixth time_ , he'd caught on, blushing furiously when he realized what you'd been telling him.

It wasn't that you didn't want him to know what you were saying, it was that you wanted him to be able to hear it without really  _hearing_  it. You wanted him to feel your lips saying those words and you wanted him to feel the way your breath hit his face when you said them.

In fact, because of this, Luke had come up with his  _own_  way of saying ' _I love you_ ' to you without signing it. He would press his face into your neck, kiss your skin, and brokenly whisper ' _I love you, princess_ ' back, making it the  _only_  thing he ever said out loud.

The other boys had seen you two do this numerous times before and asked about it every time since you both said it so quietly, but you never told them. You and Luke wanted something to yourselves and while you both loved your friends, your ways to say ' _I love you_ ' to each other was the one thing that would stay between the two of you.

Because if you could learn sign language  _for him_... Well, then he might as well speak a word or two  _for you_.


	283. Coffeeshop Soundtrack (Luke Hemmings) - Part 3

_requested by drownitoutwithmusic on wattpad, and anonymous and sknnyjnsndbndts on tumblr_

 

~

**Luke's POV; One year later**

The four boys were sitting in Ashton and Calum's living room, all of their eyes glued to the TV. Michael and Calum were in the middle of a very heated  _FIFA_ match, throwing insults at each other while Ashton signed to Luke what they were saying so he could laugh along.

"This game is  _rigged_!" Michael shouted upon Calum's winning screen coming up.

"How can you rig a  _video game_?" he laughed, "You were playing against  _me_ – not a  _computer_."

"Then you  _cheated_ ," he shrugged.

"You're right; You caught me," Calum snickered, "Luke has been feeding me the answers to winning this whole time." Michael rolled his eyes while Luke and Ashton continued giggling behind them.

They hung around for a couple more hours before Luke felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He pulled it out to find a text from you, asking if he ' _could bring pizza home because I don't feel like cooking_ '. He chuckled at the message, letting the group know what you'd said. Michael hopped up from his spot on the couch to grab his coat, tossing Luke his own when he stood up.

The blonde waited until all the boys were looking at him before he started signing again.

" _Hey, before we go, I need your guys' help with something but you can't tell Y/N_ ," Luke informed his three friends, immediately catching their interest.

" _Help with what?_ " Calum asked.

" _And why can't we tell Y/N?_ " Michael wondered.

" _I need..._ " Luke trailed off nervously, " _I need help learning to speak so I don't stutter..._ "

" _Seriously?_ " Ashton smiled as well as the other two boys, " _What are you gonna say?_ "

" _I... I wanna ask her to marry me... And I don't wanna sign it..._ "

"Luke!" they all exclaimed out loud in surprise before chuckling to themselves, remembering he couldn't hear then.

" _Luke, that's awesome!_ " Calum continued, " _But why not wait until we get home from our holiday?_ "

" _Yeah,_ " Michael nodded, " _Why not wait until after you get your implant?_ "

" _I am gonna wait until after,_ " Luke told them, " _But if it doesn't end up working, I still wanna be able to ask her without stuttering. And if it does work, I'm gonna ask her before she notices the hearing aids._ " Once he finished, he earned himself three understanding nods.

" _We'll definitely help you!_ " Ashton smiled widely, " _This is gonna be so exciting! She'll never see it coming!_ "

~

**Your POV; Three weeks later**

You perked up upon hearing the front door open, looking over to find Luke coming into the room after setting his bags down. He looked up himself, finding you already looking at him, smiling brightly at you as you raced toward him.

You threw your arms around his waist and pressed your face to his chest, squeezing him tightly – sure, he'd only been gone for a few days, but you still missed him more than anything. You heard him chuckle softly before feeling his lips hit the top of your head, hugging you back.

"I love you, princess," he said more clearly than he ever had before, but you didn't seem to notice.

You tilted your head just enough to kiss him and whisper your usual ' _I love you, Lu_ ' into it. His breathing hitched slightly upon realizing that the first thing he  _physically heard_  you say was ' _I love you_ '.

You felt him kiss you harder, causing you to let out a confused laugh. You released your hold on him to look at him.

" _Are you okay?_ " you signed to him.

" _I'm fine,_ " he nodded, " _Just missed you._ "

" _I missed you too, Lu,_ " you smiled at him, pecking his cheek, " _How was your trip? What did you and the boys do all week?_ "

" _I'll tell you all about that later,_ " he said, making you tilt your head, " _I have something I wanna ask you first._ " You raised your eyebrows, prompting him to continue. " _You know I love you more than anything, Y/N,_ " he couldn't help but grin – and you had a  _pretty good idea_  of where this was going, " _Not many people have stuck around for whatever reason because of my disability, but you've stayed by my side through every up and down, and I wanna make sure you're around for all the rest of them._ "

"Luke..." you trailed off out loud, not even realizing yet that he could hear you.

Luke reached into his pocket as he took a deep breath, pulling out the daintiest ring to hold between his index finger and thumb. He smiled at you again when you covered your mouth with your hands as he got down on one knee.

"Y/N, baby," he spoke, his voice shaky from his nerves, "Will you marry me?" He could see your breathing hitch – and he couldn't see your lips move from behind your hands, but he  _still_ heard your voice.

"Yes," you whispered. He didn't know why you actually  _said it_  rather than nodding or signing, because he was sure you  _hadn't_ noticed his hearing aids yet, but his heart still started  _pounding_ when he realized you'd said  _yes_ to marrying him.

The smile on Luke's face reached his ears as he quickly returned to his feet. He took your left and and pulled it down, slipping the ring onto your finger. He looked at your face and found tears falling. Luke then moved your other hand as well so he could put his own on your cheeks and swipe his thumbs across it. He brought your head forward, pressing a kiss to your forehead.

One of your arms went around his neck while the other went to the back of his head, but he felt you stop when your wrist brushed his ear. He anxiously watched your gaze avert to the side of his head, unsure of what your reaction would be to him getting a  _surgery_ without telling you.

Your eyebrows furrowed in confusion at the device in Luke's left ear. You didn't know what it was, but you were almost certain he'd never had anything in his ear before –  _why **would** he? He couldn't  **hear** anything to warrant needing anything in either of them._

" _Lu,_ " you looked at him, " _What's in your ear? Are you okay? Did something happen?_ "

"I'm fine, princess," he said out loud, "They're hearing aids."

" _Why would you need-_ " Your eyes suddenly widened in realization. " _You just answered me..._ " you couldn't help but keep signing, " _How... How did you know what I said...?_ " The blonde began chewing on his inner cheek, a shy smile on his face.

"Surprise," he shrugged.

" _Luke_!" you shouted, making him wince. Your hands flew up to your mouth again. "Sorry!" you squeaked, realizing you'd been too loud and hurt his ears.

"Still gotta get used to loud sounds," Luke chuckled lightheartedly.

"How long have you been planning this? How long have you been able to hear? Why didn't you  _tell me_  you could hear?" you asked. Luke opened his mouth, but you unintentionally cut him off. " _God_ , it feels so weird  _talking to you_ ," you mumbled, more to yourself than to him. He laughed again, wrapping his arms around your waist and bringing you back into him.

"I guess I should probably tell you what we  _actually_ did on our holiday now..." he admitted.


	284. Still Into You (Luke Hemmings)

" _Calum_!" you laughed loudly, chasing after him, "Give it back!"

"It's  _my_  hat!" he chuckled defensively as he stopped running so you could catch up to him. Once you reached him though, he placed the hat backwards on your head, throwing his arm around your shoulders and kissing your forehead. "You're lucky you look cute in it," he commented.

"Whatever," you giggled, wrapping your arms around his waist.

"Come on, princess," Calum started leading you back down the sidewalk, moving his arm off of you so he could hold your hand, "Ash gets upset when one of us is late to practice." The smile on your face faded slightly.

"Are you sure they'll like me?" you asked, tilting your head up.

"They'll love you, Y/N," he assured you, squeezing your hand lightly, "Scout's honor."

"You've never been a scout in your life," you giggled again, shoving him playfully.

A few minutes later, you stepped onto Ashton's front porch and Calum knocked on the door. When it opened, a woman smiled brightly.

"Hey, Cal!" she beamed, "This must be your girlfriend?"

"Hi, Anne," he smiled back, "Yup, this is Y/N. Y/N, this is Anne, Ashton's mum."

"Hello, dear, it's nice to meet you," she told you, making you smile as well. "The boys are in the basement waiting for you two."

"Mike's already here?" Calum asked.

"I know," she shook her head, "I was surprised too." You laughed softly – from what Calum had told you, Michael was usually  _always_  late to practice – as your boyfriend led you downstairs. Calum was excitedly pulling you behind him, beaming as his best friends came into view.

"Hey, guys!" Calum chirped, "This is my girlfriend-"

" _Y/N_?" you heard the familiarly deep voice say your name, making your head snap up and your eyes widen.

" _Luke_..." you said softly.

"You guys have met?" Calum tilted his head.

"Briefly," Luke swallowed in response, but that wasn't  _exactly_  true.

_Flashback_

When you were in high school, you and Luke dated for the entirety of your junior year and nearly all of your senior year until you broke up just two weeks before graduation. He had been the one to end it, claiming that he just simply didn't feel anything for you anymore. You were obviously heartbroken and spent the three months after the breakup crying into your pillow from the second you woke up in the morning to the second you fell asleep at night.

It wasn't until your mother convinced you to go to the mall with her, wanting you to get out of the house for something that wasn't school, that you met Calum. You were in FYE, trying to get something from a shelf that was  _just_  out of reach, when you noticed a tattooed arm coming in from your peripheral vision. The unknown man grabbed what you had been reaching for and held it to you.

"Looked like you needed some help," he chuckled as you turned to look up at him. Your heart skipped a beat and you swallowed thickly at how attractive he was. He smiled at you, "I'm Calum."

"Y/N," you whispered, slowly taking the item from his hand, "Thank you."

"All Time Low, huh?" he cleared his throat, nodding toward the  _Don't Panic_  vinyl you were holding under your arm.

"Oh," you giggled softly, "Yeah. I was hoping to find  _The Finer Things_ , but they don't have it."

" _The Finer Things_?" he had a small smile on his face, "State Champs, right?"

"Yeah," you nodded, "You know them?"

"They're one of my favorite bands," his smile became wider, "You know... I actually have that album on vinyl if you wanna come over sometime..."

"How do I know you're not an axe murderer?" you teased, making him laugh loudly.

"Well, I guess you won't until you get to my place," he winked. You started chewing on your bottom lip, trying to hide your smile. "Maybe you could come over this Saturday?" he offered.

"Yeah," you confirmed, a light blush on your cheeks, "Yeah, I'd love to."

"Cool," he let out a relieved sigh so quiet, you barely heard it. He took his phone out of his pocket and handed it to you. "I'll text you my address on Friday," he said as you typed your number in, "If you need a ride, I have no problem with picking you up." You nodded as you handed his phone back to him and he smiled at you again. "It was nice meeting you," he said.

"You too," you replied shyly, beginning to go to the register.

"Oh, and Y/N," Calum said, making you stop and turn back toward him. "You look very beautiful today," he told you before turning and exiting the store, leaving you with a racing heart and looking forward to Saturday.

And good news; Calum isn't an axe murderer.

_End flashback_

"You can sit here, princess," Calum told you, leading you to the couch.

You missed the way Luke's jaw tightened when Calum called you princess, and you missed the way Michael looked at him – obviously being the only other person in the room that knew about you and Luke.

Of course, it wasn't like you would have cared if you  _had_  noticed. Luke broke up with you and you weren't about to start feeling sorry for him or yourself or anyone anymore.

~

**Two months later**

You were at another band practice – this time at Calum's house – listening to the band play a cover of Blink-182. Your eyes were glued to Calum, mesmerized by the way he played so well. You glanced at the other boys a few times and each time, you noticed that Luke hadn't stopped looking at you.

The blonde would do this a lot – stare at you with this unamused expression on his face, similar to a look of jealousy. You couldn't pinpoint  _why_  he would be jealous though – after all,  _he_  was the one who dumped  _you_  – but you chose to just let it go; He wasn't your problem anymore.

 _After practice_ , however, was a completely different story.

You and the boys were hanging around in the basement – Calum sitting beside you on the loveseat with your legs hanging over his as he absentmindedly drew circles on your thighs with his fingertips, Michael and Ashton were comically sprawled out on the floor, and Luke was sitting cross-legged in between the two.

"I'm hungry," Michael stated after a high-pitched sigh.

"You're  _always_  hungry," Ashton chuckled, reaching over and kicking his calf lightly, "What do you want?"

" _Pizza_ ," you, Calum, and Luke said in unison before Michael could answer.

"I spend too much time with you idiots," the blue-haired boy grumbled.

"We ordering one or going out?" Calum spoke up.

"I say we go out," you chirped, "I've had enough of the smell of  _boys_  today. I need some fresh air before I suffocate on cologne and sweat."

"You don't  _like_  the smell of boys, huh?" your boyfriend smirked, grabbing your shoulders and pulling you into him so your face was pressed into his chest.

" _Cal_!" you squealed before laughing loudly.

Calum smiled at the sound of your laugh as you nuzzled into him, letting out a quiet sigh of content that fanned across the skin that wasn't covered by the tank top he threw on that morning. He pressed a barely-there kiss to your forehead and you heard the quietest groan you came to know all too well. You subtly rolled your eyes at how childish Luke was acting, but chose not to confront him – not right  _now_  anyway.

Once the five of you decided to stop being lazy about 20 minutes later, you all got up and began to go back upstairs. Calum, Ashton, and Michael went first, however, allowing Luke to grab your arm and pull you back.

"Are you doing this on  _purpose_?" he seethed, making you cock an eyebrow.

"Doing  _what_?" you asked.

" _Dating Calum_!" he whispered.

"Wait," you laughed bitterly, "Do you  _honestly_  think I'm dating Calum just to  _spite you_? I didn't even know you guys were  _friends_  until two months ago!"

"But you're  _still_  dating him!"

"What's your  _point_ , Hemmings?" you spat, "I wasn't going to break up with him just because  _you're_  friends with him!"

"He's my  _best friend_!"

"Then if you have a problem with it, you can take it up with  _him_!" You went to walk away, but Luke grabbed your arm again.

The moment you were spun back around, Luke's lips were on yours. You regrettably kissed him back for half a second before you were shoving him off of you – but you knew it was too late; You knew all your feelings were rushing back to you and they were going to hit you  _hard_.

"What the fuck, Luke?!" you exclaimed softly so no one would know what just happened.

"Yeah, you're  _definitely_  over it," Luke smirked.

The moment you turned back around, all your anger was replaced when your heart dropped and you saw Calum standing there staring at the two of you. Luke's smirk was wiped off of his face and he was equally as speechless as you were.

"Calum-" you started before he cut you off.

"I think you should go home," Calum said, not clarifying which one of you he was talking to.

"Cal, I can explain," Luke said.

"Go, Luke," Calum grumbled, " _Now_."

Luke immediately shuffled past him and bolted up the stairs. You heard the front door slam shut and looked at Calum, but he wouldn't make eye contact with you at all.

"Cal..." you trailed off, causing him to start shaking his head.

"You should go too," he whispered. Your heart dropped again and you swallowed thickly, praying the tears wouldn't start falling until you got home.

"I'm sorry, Cal," you said softly with a shaky exhale, hurrying by him before you began sobbing.

~

**One week later**

You hadn't heard from either Calum or Luke since that day and, to be honest, you weren't  _expecting_  to. What you did was wrong and if you had just pushed Luke away the  _second_  he kissed you, maybe everything would be fine.

But it  _wasn't_.

You were sure Calum was just as confused as you were about this whole thing and you knew you had to talk to him. You made the walk to his house – it was 10 minutes away, but you figured you could use the time to think about what you were going to say to him – if he let you say anything  _at all_.

Once you reached his house, you stood on the porch for a moment. Your fist was already in the air as if you were going to knock, but you were frozen.

_What if Calum didn't want to see you? What if he just slammed the door on you? What if-_

_No, Y/N_ , you thought to yourself,  _Just knock on the stupid door_.

And that was what you did.

You forced your fist to the door, knocking five times,  _hoping_  he would answer. You heard grumbling on the other side just before the door swung open. Calum's expression was heartbreaking, but he clearly didn't seem to be losing sleep over anything.

"We need to talk," you said softly before he had the opportunity to close the door on you.

Calum nodded in agreement, stepping out onto the porch and closing the door behind him. He motioned for you to sit down on the steps with him and once you both got comfortable, you began talking.

"Cal... I'm sure you hate me, but I really  _am_  sorry about what happened with Luke," you said, looking down at your hands as you played with your fingers in your lap, "You probably won't forgive me –  _I_  wouldn't forgive me either, to be honest – but I  _swear_  I never meant to hurt you in any way. I feel like  _such_  a shitty person for kissing him back, and I'll understand if you never want to see me again." Calum swallowed lightly, nodding his head again.

"I  _do_  forgive you, Y/N," he said quietly, "But can I ask you something?" You nodded and he went on, "How long were you and Luke together before we met?"

"Almost two years," you whispered, "We broke up a couple weeks before graduation – near the end of May."

"Why?"

"He said he didn't love me anymore," you sniffled.

"And you  _believed that_?" he asked.

"What?" you furrowed your eyebrows, looking up at him.

"Y/N," Calum sighed, "Just give him another shot."

"Cal-"

"I know you still have feelings for him, Y/N," he shook his head, taking your hand and tangling your fingers together, "You wouldn't have kissed him back if you  _didn't_. And I know that he still has feelings for you too. Whatever may have happened to cause Luke to tell you he didn't love you anymore was clearly a mistake and if you two would be happier together, then I'm not going to come in between that. You know, if it doesn't work out this time, then maybe you and I can try again, but for now, I really do think this is for the best."

"But are  _you_  going to be happy?" you asked him, making him chuckle softly.

"I will be," he promised you, "Your happiness is all I could ever want and if you would be happier with someone else, so be it." You swallowed thickly again, leaning up and pressing your lips to his cheek.

"Thank you, Cal," you murmured into his skin before pulling away. He smiled slightly, returning the gesture by kissing your forehead.

"Go get him, loser," Calum chirped.

"That my new nickname?" you giggled.

"Well, I figure Luke won't be too pleased if I kept calling you princess, now will he?"

"So you're already taking the role of annoying best friend?"

"You'll still be seeing a lot of me, I'm sure," he hugged you tightly, "I'd rather keep it on  _good_  terms."

"Thanks, Cal," you repeated, pecking his cheek and darting off in the direction of Luke's house.

~

"Y/N?" Luke's mom furrowed her eyebrows when she opened the front door and saw you standing there.

"Hi, Mrs. Hemmings," you said shyly.

"Honey, what have I told you about calling me that?"

"To not to," you blushed as she ushered you into the house and closed the door behind you.

"And that still stands, dear," she said with a smile, "No matter  _what_  may have happened between you and Luke."

"Yeah... About that... Is he here?"

"He's in the backyard. Do you want me to go get him?"

"No, that's alright," you shook your head, "Would it be okay if I went out and talked to him?"

"Of course," she nodded, gently nudging you toward the back door, "You know where it is."

"Thank you, Liz," you grinned, quickly going through the kitchen and out the door onto the patio.

You closed the door behind you once you got outside, seeing the blonde on the hammock in the corner of the yard look over. His eyes widened as he nearly flipped over to stand up when he realized it was you.

"Y/N," he choked, "W-What are you doing here?" You didn't feel like beating around the bush.

"I want you," you blurted out.

"Y-You want  _me_?" he stuttered, "B-But what about  _Calum_?"

"Calum was the one who  _told me_  to do this," you informed him, "He said that he could tell I still have feelings for you and you still have feelings for me and while I still don't understand why that would be true after you told me you didn't love me anymore, he helped me realize that I want you; I've  _always_  wanted you, Lu. For Christ's sake, every time I look at Cal, all I see is  _you_. You wear the same clothes, you both call me princess, you both hold me the same way when we watch movies together... I haven't been able to get you out of my head since the day you broke up with me and you have no idea how  _frustrating_  that is." You huffed lightly, letting your shoulders slouch as you went on. "You broke my heart and the  _only_  thing I could focus on for the past  _ten damn months_  was how my happily ever after was  _over_. You fucked me up, Luke;  _You ruined me_. And Calum doesn't  _deserve that_. Calum doesn't deserve a girl who will always be in love with  _someone else_  –  _especially_  when that someone else is his  _best friend_. That's not fair to him, and it's not fair that I am still in love with someone who just  _stopped_  feeling the same way, but I  _do_  and I  _hate it_."

Luke didn't know if you were finished ranting or not, but either way, he grabbed your face and smashed his lips to yours. He felt you let out a breath from your nose as your eyes fluttered shut. You balled up the sides of his shirt in your fists and pulled his body to yours, leaving virtually no space between the two of you.

By the time you pulled away from each other, you were both breathing heavily.

"I'm still in love with you too, princess," Luke mumbled, resting his forehead on yours, "I'll  _always_  be in love with you."

"Then why did you say you  _weren't_  anymore?" you whimpered.

"Because I was  _scared_ ," he sighed.

"Of  _what_?"

"I don't know," he answered honestly, "There was absolutely  _no good reason_  for me to have been scared of our future after graduation, and there was  _certainly_  no good reason I told you I didn't feel anything anymore. I'm sorry I lied, princess – I'm  _so_  sorry I lied – but I promise I'm going to be a  _much_  better boyfriend if you'll let me."

"Why didn't you say anything before?" you asked, "Why didn't you do it before Calum brought me to that practice?"

"Honestly?" he questioned, moving his arms to wrap around your waist, "I didn't think you would accept my apology and I felt like not saying anything at all would be better than saying everything only to have you shut the door in my face or hang up the phone on me. When I saw you with Cal and how you two acted together like the way we used to, I got  _so_  jealous and instead of talking to you about it, I forced myself on you, and that was  _incredibly_  wrong of me to do – especially since Cal is one of my best friends. It was  _my_  fault I let you go and I should  _not_  have tried to come in between you two like that."

You just simply smiled softly, reaching back up to kiss him. Luke sighed again and held you tightly, afraid you would suddenly come to a realization about what you were doing and leave him. When you felt him try to pull you closer even though you were as close as you could possibly get, you couldn't help but giggle into the kiss, relaxing Luke enough to loosen his grip.

"So Cal is really okay with this?" Luke mumbled upon pulling away.

"He  _is_ ," you nodded, bringing one arm up to wrap around his neck while your other hand went to his cheek. You began running your thumb back and forth on his cheekbone as he turned his head, kissing the palm of your hand. "He just wants me to be happy," you went on, "Even if that means I'm not happier with  _him_." Luke let out a breathy chuckle.

"He really  _is_  my best friend," he commented, pecking your lips again, "I think I could  _kiss him_ , to be honest."

"Wouldn't it make more sense for him to kiss  _me_?" you smirked, "I mean, you know, seeing as how  _you_  kissed me when I was  _his_  girlfriend and everything."

"Hmm," he hummed, "So you're mine now?" He kissed your nose, smiling when you scrunched it up.

"Am I  _not_?" you whispered, worried he didn't  _actually_  want to get back together.

"You're  _all mine_  now, princess," Luke replied, pressing his lips to your forehead and hugging you tightly.


	285. Worth It (Ashton Irwin)

You were sitting outside at a local pizza place one afternoon, wanting to get out of your apartment for lunch. You had just finished a couple slices of pizza and were sipping on your soda and scrolling through your Twitter feed when you happened to look up – and it just so happened that  _Ashton Irwin_  had turned the corner, walking toward the pizzeria with his mom and siblings.

Your eyes widened slightly, immediately feeling your heart beat even harder as they approached. You knew Ashton was spending time with his family during his week off of tour, so you weren't sure whether or not to ask him if he could take a quick photo with you.

You opened your mouth as he approached, but quickly decided against bothering him, looking back down at your phone. You were sure he wouldn't want to be bothered by any fans – especially after what had happened yesterday with the ones that had been following him pretty much since he got home.

When Ashton and his family passed you, you let out the breath you were holding, not realizing just how loud it was until a couple minutes later when someone poked your shoulder.

**Ashton's POV; Two minutes earlier**

"Did anyone ever buy that place on 5th?" Ashton asked his mom.

"Yeah, a pizza place opened there a couple weeks ago," Anne replied, "You wanna try it out?"

"Not unless there's somewhere else you guys want to go," he said, looking at his siblings.

"I could go for some pizza right now," Harry mentioned, causing Lauren to giggle.

"You could  _always_  go for some pizza," she teased, making him shove her gently as they turned the corner.

Lauren couldn't help but notice your eyes widen as they were walking to the door. She saw you open your mouth slightly before you closed it again and looked back down. She smiled as everyone piled through the door, hearing you sigh just before it closed behind Ashton.

"Hey, Ash," Lauren spoke up while they stood in front of the counter, looking at the menu and waiting for the person in front of them to finish ordering.

"Yeah, Laur?" Ashton said, not looking at her.

"I think you should go out and talk to that girl." She waited until she got her brother's attention before pointing out the window to the table you were occupying.

"Yeah? And why do you think I should do that?" he asked.

"She's a fan."

"You can tell that by looking at the back of her head?" he cocked an eyebrow, making Lauren roll her eyes.

"She was going to say something before we walked in here, but she stopped herself," she informed him. Ashton looked out at you for a moment before turning back to his sister.

"This week was supposed to be about you guys," he shook his head.

"Ash," Harry rolled his eyes that time, "Just go talk to her. We'll come out and find a table when our food is done."

"Are you sure?"

" _Yes_!" Lauren squeaked, " _Now go_!" Ashton turned to leave the restaurant just as Anne stepped up to the counter.

"Oh, Ash!" she called after her son, making him turn around, "What kind of pizza do you want?"

"I'll just split with you," he answered, making her nod as he opened the door and walked back outside, feeling his brother and sister's eyes on him as he walked up to you.

**Your POV**

You felt a gentle poke on your shoulder as you took a sip of your soda, making you look up from your phone. You gasped a bit as you swallowed, causing you to start coughing. Ashton's eyes widened and he just instinctively placed his hand on your upper back.

"Oh my God, are you okay?" he asked in a bit of a rush, "I'm so sorry; I didn't mean to scare you."

"No, it's fine!" you assured him once you'd calmed down, "I just wasn't expecting to turn around and see  _you_." He smiled at you as he took his hand back.

"May I?" he asked, holding the back of the chair next to you. You nodded and he sat down. "My sister said you looked like you were going to say something as we walked in," Ashton explained, "She said I should come out and say hi myself." You couldn't help but laugh lightly, making him smile again.

"I was, but I figured since you're leaving again in a couple days that you'd want to spend as much time with them as possible. And after what happened yesterday, I didn't really think you'd want another fan bothering you for a photo or something," you admitted shyly.

"You're not being a bother," he told you, "Those girls yesterday had been following me around all week recording me and my family."

"If it makes you feel any better, no one  _blames you_  for the way you reacted," you said, "They  _totally_  deserved it."

"They kinda  _did_ , huh?" he chuckled.

" _Kinda_?" you giggled, "I think you handled it pretty well considering you'd kept telling them to stop. I mean, you just smashed that girl's phone; I probably would have hit her, to be honest."

"Wow, maybe I should hire  _you_  as my bodyguard then," he teased. You rolled your eyes, a small smile on your face. Ashton looked through the window and noticed one of his family's pizzas were being put on the counter, so he quickly turned back to you. "You mentioned not wanting to ask for a photo," he reminded you, "But I really wouldn't  _mind_  taking one with you."

"Are you sure?" you asked softly, "I'm totally cool with-"

"Of course I'm sure," he promised.

"O-Okay," you stuttered a bit, opening your camera and handing your phone to Ashton. "Would it be okay if you took it?" you asked shyly, "I'm kinda shaking and I really don't want the photo to turn out  _too_  terrible."

"Are you okay?" he asked, clearly worried about you.

"Yeah," you assured him, "You know, it's just the whole  _favorite band_  thing. I have to put all my concentration into either not shaking or not throwing up, so..."

"Well, I appreciate it being the second one," he grinned, taking your phone.

Ashton scooted his chair closer to yours so he could lean back comfortably and get you both in the frame. He snapped a couple photos of you two – one of both of you simply smiling at the camera and then two kissing each other's cheeks upon your very shy request. Ashton, of course, was happy to do it for you, and he gave you your phone back as Anne, Lauren, and Harry came outside.

"Hey, Ash!" Harry chirped, then looked at you, "Hi!"

"Hi," you smiled sheepishly. You noticed Anne was looking around for a table, but there weren't any open with four seats. "I-I can move if you-" You started to stand up, but Anne quickly stopped you.

"Oh, that's alright, dear," she said, putting her hand on your shoulder to make you sit back down.

Anne set the two pizza boxes down on the table in front of Ashton, urging Lauren and Harry to take a seat as she went to the next table. She politely asked the couple sitting there if anyone was using the seat in front of her and when they said no, she brought it over to your table, sitting it between her sons. Ashton moved his chair until it was touching yours so his mom had some room. He paused for a moment before looking at you.

"Sorry," he said, "I should have asked if it was cool if I did that first."

"I'm cool with it," you nodded quickly, making Lauren and Harry snicker quietly to each other. Ashton paused for a moment before gasping slightly.

"I just realized I  _totally_  forgot to ask you what your name is," he said.

"Oh, my  _name_!" you squeaked, "Right, I have one of those!"

"Oh my God, you and I have that in  _common_!" Ashton teased, making you giggle softly.

"No way,  _you_  have a name too? What are the chances?!" you said dramatically, "I'm Y/N." As the family was opening their pizza boxes, you heard your stomach growl loudly. "Well, that's not embarrassing," you looked down as if you were talking to your stomach, making the group laugh. "I'm gonna go..." you trailed off, pointing behind you to the door. You were stopped from getting up once again by Ashton.

"You can have a slice of my half," he offered. You chewed on your bottom lip, thinking for a moment.

"That depends on what kind you got," you said.

"Just pepperoni," he shrugged.

"Mmm," you hummed, shaking your head, "No, thank you."

" _What_?!" he exclaimed quietly, "Y/N, do  _not_  tell me you're one of those people who  _only_  gets cheese on their pizza."

"I'm a simple girl, Ashton," you shrugged.

"You just got  _far_  less attractive," he scoffed before he thought about what he was saying.

"Well, I'm sorry my taste in pizza toppings doesn't meet your standards," you teased, getting up and going inside, hoping your blush wasn't too noticeable.

~

**Ashton's POV**

"I am  _so_  happy I was alive to witness that!" Lauren squealed.

"God, why did I say that  _out loud_?" Ashton groaned, putting his face in his hands.

"Well, it's not like she didn't  _enjoy it_ ," Harry snickered, causing Ashton to kick him under the table. " _Ow_!" he yelped, " _Ashton_!"

"Know that you deserved that," he grumbled, glaring at his little brother.

"Mum!"

"Kids, stop fighting," Anne said after swallowing a bite of pizza.

"Way to intervene, Mum," Lauren rolled her eyes, making her laugh.

"What? Ash is into her, she's  _obviously_  into him..."

"I don't want to hear about this from my  _mum_  too!" Ashton whined.

"Oh, are we having a family meeting out here?" you asked, making him perk up at the sound of your voice, "Do I need to go back inside and pretend to go to the bathroom or something?"

"That's a little dramatic, don't you think?" Ashton scoffed jokingly.

"Hey, if you were having a family meeting, I wouldn't want to intrude," you sassed, setting your plate on the table and sitting back down in your chair, "I can't be part of family meetings if I'm not part of the family, you know."

"Not  _yet_ , you aren't," Harry whispered to himself, earning himself another kick to the shin from Ashton. You simply smiled and shook your head at the behavior, a bit confused as to why the two boys were acting that way since you didn't  _actually_  catch what the younger one had said.

~

**Your POV**

Over the next couple hours, you had gotten to know the Irwin family very well. Being a fan of 5 Seconds of Summer, you never in a million years thought you would ever get to  _meet_  a member of the band, much less spend an afternoon with one of their families.

You had always thought that you would pair well with Ashton and after getting to know him more personally, you realized you were completely right. Conversation with Ashton was never boring and he never made you feel out of place with his family. Honestly, they treated you like their own or like they'd known you their whole lives.

You found yourself pushing the thought of knowing Ashton was leaving in a couple days and would probably forget about you once he meets another girl, but he was paying attention to you now and you were going to appreciate every single moment while you could.

It was in the middle of a very heated – and very  _hilarious_  – discussion about how Ashton  _still_  couldn't understand how someone could order just plain cheese on their pizza that it was interrupted. It was Lauren who pointed it out right after everyone noticed the smile on her face had immediately dropped after laughing at something you had said.

"Uh-oh," she mumbled, looking over her mom's shoulder, "Stalkers, 2 o'clock." Ashton couldn't keep his groan in as he looked over and saw them coming.

"You can go if you want," he said, turning back to you, "I'm sure you don't want to have to deal with this." There was a hint of disappointment in his voice, almost as if he didn't really want you to leave.

"They got me on camera, Ash," you sighed, "I'm  _already_  dealing with it."

"Hi, Ashton!" the blonde girl chirped, stopping a few feet away from him and his mom.

"Hello, girls," he forced a smile, "I really would like to just spend this lunch with my family, so if you could please leave us alone for a while..."

"What about  _her_?" the redhead asked, pointing at you. You swallowed thickly, not expecting to be brought into this so quickly. Ashton breathed deeply, not wanting to cause a bigger scene since there were already people watching.

" _She's_  not causing any problems," he stated in your defense.

"But she's still just a  _fan_ ," the blonde scoffed, "What makes  _her_  so special?"

"She hasn't been  _stalking me_  all week," he said bluntly, "She was here first, she offered to move so we could sit together, but we told her she could stay. You two have already crossed the line with stalking my family now as well, but I would  _really_  appreciate it if you kept yourselves away from her."

"We aren't stalking  _anybody_ , Ashton," she said, batting her eyelashes at him as you all subtly rolled your eyes.

"Is that why you got your phone smashed then?" you spoke up, earning yourself a surprised look from the family and a glare from the two girls standing to the side. "You guys were straight-up  _stalking him_  yesterday," you went on, despite the obvious pleading look Ashton was giving you to just let it go, "I mean, I saw the video and the fact that  _literally_  the sweetest person alive reacted that way should tell you  _just_  how out of line you were to  _do_  and  _say_  what you did. He's just trying to spend time with his family before he leaves again for...what is it, five more months?...without having people like  _you_  harassing him and stressing him out and  _telling everyone his address_. Like, I don't know how  _anyone_  could think that's okay, but you just aren't very good people – or  _fans_  for that matter – for  _doing that_."

"And  _you're_  better?" the redhead shot back.

"Better than  _you_ ," you replied, leaning back in your chair. The two girls looked at each other before silently stomping away, not having anything further to say to you or Ashton. "Let the  _rumors_  begin," you said lightheartedly, trying to make the family feel better. They all chuckled under their breaths, turning back to you.

"You didn't have to do that," Ashton shook his head, "But thank you."

"Like I said: They deserved it," you shrugged.

"Y/N, can we keep you?" Harry asked innocently, "That was the fastest they've left us alone this  _entire week_."

"I'm afraid I've got my own things to do, Harry," you smiled at him, "But if you ever see me around town and you need help, I'll come to your rescue."

"Hey, kids," Anne spoke up, looking at her two youngest, "Why don't we go visit some shops down the street for a bit?" Lauren and Harry nodded eagerly, making Ashton furrow his eyebrows in confusion as they all got up.

"Mum, what are you-" Anne cut Ashton off, smiling at him.

"I know how much you don't like the stores down there, Ash," she said slyly, "Why don't you stay here and talk with Y/N for a while longer and we'll come back in a bit?"

" _Mum_ ," Ashton said firmly, now knowing exactly what his mother was doing.

"See you, Ash," she grinned, "And it was very nice meeting you, Y/N."

"You two, Mrs. Irwin," you smiled, waving to her, Lauren, and Harry as they walked away. "She did that on purpose, didn't she?" you asked despite already knowing the answer.

"Yeah..." he trailed off, "I can leave..."

"You can if you want," you whispered, hoping the disappointment in your voice wasn't too obvious.

"I  _don't_ , to be honest," he replied sheepishly.

"Really?" you asked, a bit surprised by his answer. He tilted his head at your reaction.

"Well, yeah," he let out a confused laugh, "I think you're really nice and the way you stood up to those girls for us was really cool. It's nice having actual conversations with fans when they don't just want a photo with you or your autograph."

"But  _s_ _peaking_  of autographs," you sighed dramatically. He giggled quietly, holding out his hand for you to put something in for him to sign. You, however, decided to have a little more fun with him. "Ashton," you scoffed jokingly, putting your hand in his, "If you wanted to hold my hand, you just had to ask." He laughed loudly that time, and you expected him to just take his hand back, but he didn't – he slipped his fingers through yours, squeezing your hand as he rubbed his thumb on the back of it. "This is officially the greatest day of my life," you commented, leaning toward him so your arms were pressed together.

"Do you actually have something you want me to sign though?" he chuckled, "Because I will."

"Oh, no," you giggled softly, "I don't even have a  _Sharpie_." Ashton reached into his pocket, pulling out a marker.

"You never know when you'll need one," he shrugged.

"Clearly,  _you_  do," you stuck your tongue out at him. He let go of you to reach for a napkin and you instantly found yourself missing how warm his skin was.

"If I find this on eBay later, I'm going to come back and find you somehow," Ashton told you with a teasing tone.

"Is that a threat or a promise?" you smirked, making him look up at you. He smiled slyly, looking back down to draw you a little picture.

"That, Y/N, depends on how much you sell it for."

"I was thinking I'd start the bidding at a million," you said thoughtfully, leaning back in your chair.

"You think this is worth a million dollars?" he asked, capping his marker and handing you the napkin. Ashton had drawn you a picture of a piece of pizza right beside his name. You laughed as you took the napkin from him.

"I think it's worth way  _more_  than a million dollars," you answered honestly.

"Thank you," he shook his head as he smiled. He paused for a moment before speaking again. "Can I ask you something?" You simply nodded and he went on. "Earlier, after those girls left and you said ' _let the rumors begin_ ', what did you mean by that?"

"I don't know," you shrugged, "I just figured they're gonna be pretty pissed, so they'll start some stupid rumor about how you're dating a girl and how rude she is to fans and all that bullshit."

"That doesn't have to be a  _rumor_ , you know," he murmured.

"What, me being rude to fans?" you asked half-jokingly. Ashton couldn't help but smile slightly before letting it fade.

"No, I mean... We  _could be_  dating..." Your heart started racing and your stomach filled up with butterflies, but you tried to keep your cool.

"I've never been asked out on a date before, but that almost sounds like an invitation," you commented. Ashton furrowed his eyebrows, looking at you in surprise.

"You've never been asked out on a date before?" he asked. You shrugged again, a sheepish grin on your face. "So you've never had a boyfriend?"

"No, I've  _had_  boyfriends," you shook your head.

"But they've never taken you on a  _date_?" he seemed so confused by the fact.

"Is it  _that_  unusual?" you asked.

" _Kind of_!" he chuckled quietly, "But I am going to take you on a date so spectacular that even if you  _had_  been on any other date before, it would obviously be so vastly superior in every way that you would never want to date anyone else ever again."

You cocked an eyebrow, "You've been practicing that speech, haven't you?"

"No, but I'm still taking you out," he said matter-of-factly.

"And when are you going to do that?" you giggled, "You're leaving to go back on tour  _tomorrow_ , Ashton."

"Then I guess I'm going to have to take you out  _tonight_ ," he smirked. You felt your cheeks getting hot, but he didn't stop there. "Or-" he said after looking at his phone. "-since it's already nearly 3, we could just do it right  _now_."

"Ash, I am not  _date-ready_  right now," you shook your head, but you were smiling about the fact that he seemed so eager to spend more time with you.

"You look beautiful to me," Ashton shrugged, getting up to throw everything away. He came back over to you, holding his hand out for you to take.

You looked at it for a moment before placing your hand in his, letting him pull you up. You quickly grabbed the napkin Ashton had signed for you, putting it in your pocket.

You expected Ashton to let go of your hand again, but you found yourself thinking you needed to not expect Ashton to do anything because you were usually wrong. He tangled your fingers together, holding onto you tightly as he led you down the street.

"So where are we going on this date exactly?" you asked, making sure you stayed close to him.

"Well, first, we're going to find my mum, brother, and sister so they're not worried about why we're not at the pizza place anymore," Ashton chuckled, "And then, I'm gonna take you to my favorite place in all of Sydney."

"And where might  _that_  be?"

"That, my dear, would be Sky High Trampoline Park." You gasped suddenly.

"I've always wanted to go to a trampoline park," you giggled at your own outburst.

"You've never been?" his eyes widened, " _God_ , is there anything you  _have_  done?"

"I met Ashton Irwin from 5 Seconds of Summer once," you smirked.

" _Really_?" he grinned, "I hear that guy is a real douche. Is that true?"

"Nah," you sighed, "He's  _literally_  the sweetest person alive." He smiled widely before leaning down and pressing a kiss to your cheek, making you blush.

As Ashton led you to the store he knew his family would be at, he spent that time getting to know you. He found himself actually able to be his happy self around you and not just doing it for cameras or fans.

He knew he was falling for you, and he was falling fast. But he didn't even know if you'd be willing to stay with him through the constant months away from home or whatever the fans might say about you – especially after that video gets out.

But as he felt you lay your head on his shoulder and your hand tightly holding his, he knew it was going to be  _worth it_.

~

After you returned home later that night – and despite your brain telling you not to – you opened up Twitter. You wished you could say you were  _surprised_  to find you timeline filled with the video of you telling off the stalkers, but you really weren't – the redhead wasn't exactly being  _discreet_  about filming Ashton and you just happened to be in the frame since you were sitting so close to him.

What you  _could_  say you were surprised with, however, was the way your friends and the other fans you followed were all saying how incredible the video was – and a friend would occasionally pop up in your notifications screaming about how ' _OH MY GOD, Y/N, YOU MET ASHTON IRWIN_ '.

As you scrolled down your timeline, you found yourself laughing at some of the reactions and how quickly the video turned back on the two girls who had started the whole thing.

After a few minutes of scrolling, you found one tweet that caught your eye. It was a quote tweet of the original video with the caption ' _this girl is my hero_ '. You smiled at the tweet, but your heart skipped a beat when you scrolled down a bit more and saw that Ashton had responded to it.

_She's my hero too_


	286. Our Little Secret (Luke Hemmings) - Part 1

 

You had been working as Luke's personal assistant for almost three years now, but you've been seeing Luke for a little less than two. Although he was both incredibly attractive and incredibly young for a CEO, that wasn't what drew you to him. Luke never acted like he was better than those who worked for him, and he treated everyone in the office as equals.

Well, not  _everyone_.

You could tell very early on that Luke paid a little more attention to you than he did to your other coworkers. He would call you princess a lot and although the nickname made you a bit uncomfortable due to such a professional setting, you were  _way_  too intimidated to say anything in fear of being fired.

However, Luke could tell that you were weary of the attention and made it his personal mission to prove to you that he wasn't intentionally trying to make you feel that way. So he stopped; He stopped calling you princess and he stopped winking at you and he stopped eyeing you as you sat at your desk directly in front of the little window in the office door. And it confused you enough to finally be brave enough to ask him about it.

You waited until he was working late one night – everyone else had gone home, but being his assistant, you couldn't leave until he told you to – and you knocked quietly on his office door. You were breathing deeply, his coffee in one hand as the other played with the pleats in your skirt, and you nearly jumped when you heard Luke tell you to come in. He looked up from his papers as you walked in, swallowing thickly.

"Here's your coffee, Mr. Hemmings," you smiled politely, setting the cup down on the desk.

"I didn't ask for a coffee, Y/N," he shook his head, but there was a small smile on his face, "And I've told you before – call me Luke."

"I know, Mr. Hem-" You cleared your throat. "-L-Luke. But you've been working non-stop since a-after lunch and you haven't asked f-for another. I-It's decaf so it won't keep you awake when you return home, b-but if you don't want it, I can go get you something else o-or-"

"Y/N," Luke chuckled softly, "It's fine, thank you. I appreciate the thought. Why are you still here?"

"I'm not allowed to leave until you're done or you tell me to," you murmured.

"You should have reminded me you were still here, Y/N," he said, "I can't imagine how boring it must be just sitting at your desk. I would have told you to go home hours ago."

"S-Sorry," you whispered. You were avoiding eye contact with him, making him raise his eyebrows.

"Is everything alright, Y/N?" Luke asked you.

You nodded quickly, "I'll see you tomorrow, Luke." You went to leave the office, but Luke's voice stopped you just as you were opening the door.

"Y/N," he said firmly, making you freeze and close your eyes tightly. "Close the door," he ordered. You did so very slowly, wanting to prolong whatever he was going to say to you. "Come here."

You took in another deep breath and turned back around as he was getting up out of his chair. He moved to the front of his desk, leaning back onto it, motioning for you to stand in front of him. When you did, you noticed that he didn't look upset, he just looked concerned. 

"Something's on your mind, Y/N," Luke stated with his arms crossed over his stomach, "What is it?"

"Nothing," you replied softly.

"Y/N," he sighed, "It's only you and I here. I promise that whatever you have to say will stay in this room." You looked at him and noticed he seemed genuinely concerned about what was bothering you.

"I just..." you trailed off, swallowing lightly but knowing you weren't leaving this office without telling him, "I was thinking lately and... You used to call me princess a lot and be kind of flirty and then you just stopped and I was worried something was wrong..."

"I thought it made you uncomfortable?" he questioned, raising his eyebrows again.

"It did," you admitted, looking at your feet, "At first. And then it was kind of nice that someone took the time to tell me I looked nice that day or whatever. But then, it stopped and I thought maybe I did something to make you not interested anymore..."

"I stopped because I thought you didn't like it," Luke informed you, his voice quiet, "And the last thing I wanted to do was make you feel uncomfortable around me." You looked back up as he pushed himself off of the desk and stood directly in front of you, just close enough that you could feel his breath hitting your face. "I don't want this to scare you away or anything, but I need to confess something and I can't keep it in any longer." You barely nodded, your breath hitching when he placed his hand on your cheek. "You've worked here for about a year now, correct?" You didn't bother nodding because you already knew he knew the answer. "See, the thing is, when I hired you, I didn't expect you to be here for as long as you have been." You furrowed your eyebrows, causing him to laugh under his breath. "No other assistant has lasted for more than a few months because... Well, to be honest, they weren't prepared for how boring the job can be. But you do all your work the moment it's given to you, you don't complain when you have a little more work than everyone else, and you don't mind running back and forth for coffee or lunch or  _whatever_  for me. Truthfully, I think you're incredibly underpaid, but unfortunately, if I promote you, you would no longer be my assistant and I can't have that."

"Why not?" your whispered, your voice cracking.

"I like you, Y/N," Luke answered, "A lot more than I'm sure is appropriate for someone to feel about their personal assistant. But if you would be willing to take a chance on me, I promise I won't disappoint you. And I'll try to remember to tell you to go home earlier when I'm here so late next time." You couldn't hold back the giggle that escaped at the comment, making him smile again.

"But if you'd let me go home earlier," you said lowly, "Would we be here right now?"

"No, I don't suppose we would," Luke replied, leaning down, but stopping once his nose touched yours. "May I?" he asked.

The only response he received was you closing the gap between your lips and his,  _barely_  kissing him, and teasing him to take it further. Luke, of course, had no problem with doing exactly that, putting his other hand on your hip and pulling your body to his as he kissed you passionately.

You noticed the taste of the coffee and breath mints Luke always seemed to be eating – a nervous habit, you'd realized, when he asked you to go get a couple tins from the gas station across the street before you came into the office on the morning of one of his important meetings – but what you noticed even more than that was how good of a kisser he was. He wasn't overbearing – he didn't try anything too crazy – he simply moved his lips with yours, letting you get comfortable with him.

He started sliding the hand on your hip a little lower and around your waist, but he stopped himself. He pulled back, your eyes fluttering open in time to watch him run his hand through his blonde hair.

"I want to do this  _right_ ," Luke said, shaking his head, "I don't want this to be like my other relationships; You deserve better than that. I really do care about you, Y/N, which is why I'm going to take it slow." You had a light blush on your cheeks, reaching up to peck his lips gently.

"Thank you," you whispered before pulling away, only making him smile.

"You should go home, princess," he told you. You began chewing your bottom lip – although you were happy to hear the nickname again – making Luke tilt his head.

"The bus stops running at 10," you said softly, hoping you could convince Luke to give you a ride, really not wanting to walk all the way back to your apartment building.

"Princess, why didn't you tell me?" he sighed, feeling bad for keeping you so late, "If I had known you take the bus, I definitely would have let you go a lot sooner."

"Sorry," you whispered, looking down again.

"It's not your fault, princess," Luke assured you, taking your chin in his hand and lifting your head back up so he could kiss your forehead, "I'll take you home. I can just finish this work tomorrow. It's almost midnight anyway."

Luke grabbed his jacket off of the back of his chair, slipping it on before turning off his desk lamp. He led you out of the office so you could get your own coat, putting it on and returning to his side. He took your hand and tangled your fingers together, making you smile as he tugged you to walk right up against him. You rested your head on his shoulder as he flicked the light switch off, causing the entire floor to go dark.

The ride home was fairly silent aside from the soft sounds coming from the radio and Luke's quiet hums along to the music. His hand was in your lap, allowing you to play with the ring on his pinky until he pulled up to the front doors of your apartment building.

"Thanks for the ride, Luke," you said softly.

"Thanks for not getting mad that you missed your bus," he smiled, a bit of a teasing tone in his voice. You giggled quietly, moving to get out of the car but stopping when he squeezed your hand.

"What would you say to dinner this Friday night?" Luke asked you nervously.

"I'd say I can't wait," you grinned. He sighed in relief that you hadn't shot him down.

"I'll see you tomorrow, princess."

"Mhmm," you hummed, leaning over the center console to kiss him. You got out of the car and trotted into the building as he drove away, a smile on your face until the moment you fell asleep in your bed.


	287. Our Little Secret (Luke Hemmings) - Part 2

**Two years later**

"Hey, princess," Luke smirked as you walked into his office, "We still on for tonight?"

"On for what?" you smiled slightly, placing the stack of papers on his desk.

"We haven't done it on the kitchen counter for a while," he winked.

You giggled softly as you rolled your eyes, shoving his shoulder and beginning to walk out of the room. You heard Luke get up from his chair before feeling him grab your hand and turn you around.

"I was thinking pizza and  _How I Met Your Mother_  reruns at my place," he offered.

"Make it pizza and  _FRIENDS_  reruns and I'm there," you replied.

"Done," he agreed immediately, leaning in to kiss your cheek quickly. "Love you, princess," he murmured even though you were nowhere where anyone would hear him. You felt a smile pull at the corner of your mouth.

"Love you too, Lukey," you returned a kiss of your own, pecking his lips. He let go of your hand and let you go back to your desk, not wanting people to think you'd been in his office for  _too long_.

~

**The next day**

You had returned from your lunch break about an hour ago and were finishing up some paperwork. You were so immersed in your job that you barely heard anything when another person approached your desk.

"Miss Y/L/N," you heard someone say, making you look up. Your eyes widened upon seeing Charles Adler, the president of the company's board –  _Luke's boss_  – standing in front of your desk.

"Yes, sir?" you swallowed.

"I need to speak with you and Mr. Hemmings in the conference room right away," he said monotonously, not even giving you a chance to acknowledge the order before he walked toward the room.

You waited until he disappeared into the hallway before jumping up and running to Luke's office door. You knocked, but didn't wait for the okay to enter. You just went in and quickly closed the door behind you. He was on the phone, but when he saw the look you were giving him, he knew whatever had brought you there was important.

"Hey, I'm gonna have to call you back, Mum," Luke said, "My love needs me." You rolled your eyes as he winked at you. "Okay," he nodded despite the fact that Liz couldn't see him, "Yeah, we'll see you tonight. Love you too." He ended the call and stuck his cell back into his pocket. "Hey, princess..." he said slowly, "Is something wrong?"

"' _Your love_ ' doesn't need you, Luke," you informed him, "But y _our boss_  does." Luke's eyes widened just as yours had.

"Okay," he cleared his throat, picking up his office phone, "What line is he on?"

"Conference room," you mumbled.

" _He's here_?"

"He said he needs to see us."

" _Us_?" his eyes widened just as yours had, "Why both of us?"

"I don't know, but I'd really rather not keep him waiting," you replied. Luke immediately agreed, jumping up and walking over to you.

"Whatever it is, princess, I'm sure it'll be fine," he said reassuringly, kissing your forehead, "Maybe I'm getting promoted."

"He wants to tell you that in front of me as well?" you giggled.

"Well, obviously, if I get promoted, you're getting promoted with me," he shrugged, a cocky grin on his face, "You're the only assistant I've kept around for more than six months."

"And the fact that I'm sleeping with you has nothing to do with that?" you smirked slightly.

"It certainly helps," he chuckled, pecking your lips before you opened the door and went to the conference room where Charles was impatiently waiting.

"Nice of you two to finally join me," he said dryly while Luke closed the door behind him.

"You wanted to see us, sir?" Luke spoke. Charles simply gestured to the two seats across from him. You both sat down, your leg instantly starting to bounce in nervousness.

"You both know how important it is that the company maintains its good reputation," he began, "Unfortunately, it has come to my attention that that is becoming more and more of a problem."

Luke furrowed his eyebrows, "I'm not sure I understand, sir."

"Miss Y/L/N," Charles looked at you, "Are you or are you not sleeping with Mr. Hemmings?"

"I-I'm sorry?" you stuttered while Luke's jaw just dropped slightly.

"There's no use in lying, Miss Y/L/N," he shook his head, "I already know." He hit a button on the remote in his hand and you all looked up to the television mounted on the wall, watching a clip from a time you'd kissed Luke after bringing paperwork to him – and a rather heated kiss at that. Your heart started racing.

"You had a  _camera_  in there?" your voice cracked as you stared at Luke in shock.

"Y/N, I-" Luke's boss wouldn't even let him finish.

"Pack up your belongings, Miss Y/L/N," Charles said monotonously, "You're fired."

"F- _Fired_?" you swallowed, "I can't... You don't understand how  _badly_  I need this job!"

"Then you should have thought about that  _before_  you started sleeping with your boss."

"Who told you I was..." you trailed off when you notice him glance at Luke and smile. "Lu-"

" _Goodbye, Miss Y/L/N_ ," Charles said firmly.

You stormed out of the room, unable to believe Luke would do something like that. You actually thought you  _meant_  something to him; You  _actually_  thought you were more than just a casual fuck.

But clearly, you were  _wrong_.

Luke never loved you; Luke loved  _his job_. You should have known from the moment he asked you out that it was a ploy to get you to fall for him and eventually start sleeping with him.

And you believed him.  _You actually believed him_.

~

**Two months later**

You were at a local homeless shelter – your place of residence for the last month and a half. But living in a shelter? That was  _nothing_  compared to all the rumors and the fact that you couldn't find another job. Your life had gone downhill so quickly that you didn't even have time to brace yourself for impact.

But what hurt more than all that was that Luke hadn't even  _tried_  to contact you. You obviously couldn't pay your phone bills anymore, but you hadn't gotten any visits from friends or family saying that Luke was looking for you or anything.

You  _hated_  yourself for still loving him, honestly. Even after everything he'd done, you spent night after night replaying the memories in your head just before you fell asleep. You missed him more than anything, but he played you; And,  _boy_ , did he play you well.

One evening, you were sulking around the city – as you usually did these days – on your way back to the shelter. You had spent most of the day at the park, just wanting to clear your head, when you caught a glimpse of a crisp black suit and the blonde hair you couldn't seem to rid your fingertips the feeling of. You kept your head down as you picked up the pace and entered the shelter, but it was too late; Luke had already seen you.

"Y/N!" Luke followed you into the building. He put his hand on your shoulder to stop you, hurrying in front of you and spinning around. "I've been looking for you  _everywhere_! What are you doing  _here_?"

"It's a homeless shelter, Luke," you sighed, caving in and looking up at him, "What do you  _think_  I'm doing here?"

"You're not..." he trailed off. Everyone in the small building was looking at you – knowing very well about what happened with you and Luke – but you couldn't help yourself; Something inside you just  _snapped_.

" _I am_ ," you spat, "You know, once word got out that Adler fired me for sleeping with you, no one else wanted to hire the girl who would be ' _willing to have sex with her boss to get promotions_ '," you mocked the rumors you'd been hearing about yourself. "I couldn't afford to pay rent anymore, so they kicked me out of my apartment and now  _here I am_."

"Y/N... I-"

" _Don't_ ," you growled, "Don't you  _dare_  give me that shit,  _Lucas_. You don't get to act like you care now that you realized you ruined my life. Maybe you should have thought about that before you hid that camera in your office. You are a self-centered asshole who is only concerned with getting richer, and you proved that  _loud and clear_  when you did  _nothing_  when Adler fired me. You don't give a shit  _who_  you have to tear down in order to stay on top-" You swallowed thickly. "- _even_  if you have to tell them you love them. So you can take that  _bullshit_  sorry look off of your face and shove it up your  _ass_. But you know what? I hope it all works out for one of us, and since it sure as hell isn't going to be me;  _Good fucking luck_. Have a nice life,  _Hemmings_." You turned on your heels and walked back out the door.

"I did love you!" you heard as the door swung open, making you freeze. "I  _do_  love you, Y/N!" Luke called after you.

You noticed those around you staring at the two of you, so you closed your eyes so you didn't have to see them. Luke could see you breathing deeply and all the attention on you now, but he kept talking – you  _did_  stop walking, after all, and that had to count for  _something_.

"I'm  _in_  love with you, Y/N," he said softly, but still loud enough for you to hear him, "I fucked up by not fighting Adler when he fired you –  _I know that_ – but I still  _love you_." You finally caved in and turned around to face him. His breath visibly hitched and he kept going, not wanting you to leave. "No matter  _how_  far you push me away, Y/N, I will  _always_  love you."

"But the camera-"

"I swear to  _God_ , Y/N, I had  _no idea_  that was there," he pleaded, "I would have  _told you_  if I knew. I... I would  _never_  do that to you..."

"Luke..." you murmured, "The rumors finally  _stopped_... I can't... I don't want people-"

"You don't want people to say  _this_ , you don't want people to say  _that_ ," he let out an exasperated sigh, "Don't think about  _other people_  right now; Think about  _you_  for once. What do  _you_  want?"

Your breath caught in your throat, but you didn't say anything. He took a few steps toward you, taking your face in his hands when he reached you.

"What do you want, princess?" he asked lowly.

" _You_ ," you choked. His mouth curled into a small smile and he pulled your face to his.

"Live with me," Luke said before his lips were even off of yours. You grabbed his hands and took them off of your face, looking at him on confusion.

"What?" you asked.

"Live with me," he repeated, "You can't live here, Y/N, you deserve better than being homeless."

" _Yeah_ ," you scoffed, "Being seen with a homeless person will really  _trash_  your reputation."

"Y/N," he sighed, wiggling his hands out of yours and putting them back on your face so he could run his thumbs along your cheekbones, "You know that's not true." You cast your gaze to his collarbones so you didn't have to look into his eyes. "I love you  _so much_ , Y/N," he murmured, "I just want to keep you  _safe_ ; I can't do that while you're living on the street. You deserve the  _entire world_ , princess, and I want to be the one to give you  _as much of it_  as I can." You swallowed thickly again, looking back up at him.

"I love you, Lu," you said almost inaudibly, but he still heard you. Luke smiled, knowing you'd agreed to move in with him, and pressed his lips back to yours.

He always kissed you like he meant it, but it was only  _now_  that you realized it. Maybe you began questioning everything after you were fired, but one thing was certain to you now; Luke was in love with you, and you were in love with him too.

~

_inspiration: stupid dumb idiot dumb danielle accidentally deleted the post that inspired this and now she can't find it again_


	288. The Best Worst Day (Calum Hood) *

**Warning: Harassment, attempted kidnapping**

~

You had just gotten off of your shift at the 24-hour diner you worked at and were walking back to your apartment building. This wasn't unusual – you only lived about 10 minutes away, so you didn't see the need to drive. What  _was_  unusual though was the man that currently following you.

You had seen this 40-something looking man a few times within the last couple weeks. He would come into the diner about half an hour or so after your shift started, but he would stay later and later every time. His eyes never seemed to leave you, giving you an incredibly unsettling feeling. You had never been watched so closely before and you honestly didn't know to do.

You made the dumbest decision, however, by clocking out as normal and leaving through the front door instead of the door in the kitchen, because as soon as you walked out the door, your creepy admirer got up and left 10 seconds later.

It wasn't until the man let out an accidental cough that you even noticed anyone was behind you. You barely looked over your shoulder, and when he realized that you knew he was there, he started walking faster. This obviously sent you into an immediate panic and the moment you turned the corner, you started running. You mentally cursed yourself for not leaving your phone on the charger for just  _a little bit_  longer because,  _of course_ , it had died 5 minutes before you clocked out of work.

You breathed a small sigh of relief when you saw a phone booth coming up, hurrying into it and locking yourself inside. You pulled out all the change you had in your pocket – just enough to use the payphone – and stuffed it into the machine. You then shakily dialed your neighbor's number, not even realizing you'd hit a couple wrong buttons until the person picked up after the fourth ring.

"Hello?" the man's voice said groggily, clearly having just been woken up.

"Oh my God, you're not my neighbor," you felt your tears start falling, " _Oh my God. You're not my neighbor._ "

"Yeah, I think you've got the wrong number," he told you. You let out a shaky sob and softly said you were sorry, but he stopped you from hanging up the phone. "Are you okay?" he asked, "Why are you crying? And don't tell me you're not crying because I know you're crying. What happened?"

"I just got off work and I was walking home when this guy started following me and I found this phone booth because my phone is dead and I tried to call my neighbor but my hands are shaking really bad and I accidentally dialed your number instead," you cried softly, "I'm sorry. I really didn't mean to wake you up." You heard some rustling on the other end of the phone, but you couldn't make out what it was.

"Is he still following you?"

"I don't know," you whimpered, "I don't want to turn around and look."

"What's your name?" he asked you. There was a faint sound of jingling and then you heard a door close.

"Y/N."

"My name's Calum," he said, "Listen, Y/N, I'm going to ask you to do something that might sound a little weird, but I promise you're going to be fine, alright?" You hummed in response as a gesture for him to continue. "I need you to tell me where you are so I can make sure you get home safely, okay?"

For whatever reason – you didn't know  _why_  – you trusted this person. He was doing an exceptional job at keeping you calm in what was probably the single scariest situation you've ever been in, and you knew he wasn't going to hurt you when he got there.

"I, um... I'm on Main Street..." you sniffled.

"I live 5 minutes away. Can you stay on the phone with me?"

"Uh-huh," you nodded even though he couldn't see you.

Calum kept you talking for a couple minutes as you listened to the sound of him, what almost sounded like,  _sprinting_  to get to where you were. However, when you suddenly let out a short scream and started crying again, he began to panic.

"Y/N? What's going on? Talk to me," he said in a rush although he didn't even have to ask; He could hear the pounding on the glass of the phone booth through the receiver. Luckily, however, he was just around the corner, so he full-on started running. "Y/N," he said the moment the phone booth came into view, "Y/N, can you look up for me?" You did as he asked and instantly saw a tall boy with dark, messy hair coming down the sidewalk toward you. "You see me?" he asked.

"Mhmm," you answered, jumping as the man behind you yelled for you to ' _turn the fuck around and look at me!_ '.

"I'm going to hang up now, but I don't want you looking away from me and turning to him, okay?"

" _Oh_ , you don't have to worry about that, Calum," you mumbled, making him let out a breathy laugh. You watched as he hung up the phone, but you kept yours to your ear so the man was none-the-wiser.

"Excuse me, sir," Calum said as he approached the phone booth, making the man glare at him, "I don't mean to be a bother or anything, but is there any reason you're pounding on a phone booth at 2 in the morning when there's already someone using it?"

"This doesn't concern you, kid," he spat, "Beat it."

"Harassing a girl who clearly isn't interested and doesn't feel safe around you by shouting profanities at her  _in public_  at 2am makes it my concern," Calum returned monotonously, "Now you can either leave her alone, or I can call the police."

"Go ahead and call the police," the man narrowed his eyes, "I'll be gone with her before they even get here."

"Like  _hell_  you will," Calum growled lowly.

The man suddenly stepped away from the phone booth and swung at Calum, but Calum had quickly ducked, coming back up with a swing of his own. He hit the guy right in the nose and even though you were still in the booth, you cringed when you heard the bone break. He yelled out in pain, holding his nose and leaving the scene as fast as he could.

You immediately slammed the phone back into place, unlocked the door, and threw your arms around Calum's torso. Despite not even knowing you, Calum breathed a sigh of relief, resting his head on yours, kissing the top of it lightly. You instinctively smiled at the feeling, squeezing him a bit before letting go.

"Thank you," you breathed, wiping the tears from your face.

"Come on," he smiled softly, putting his arm around your shoulder, "Let's get you home. Where do you live?"

"The apartment building on 13th," you murmured, moving further into Calum's side.

" _Really_?" he asked, seemingly surprised. You looked up at him with a confused expression. "I live in that building too," he informed you, "How have I never seen you before?"

"I'm sure not  _everyone_ in that building knows everyone living there," you giggled quietly, feeling him squeeze you gently, "And I only work weekends, so I'm usually always inside."

"Well, I always thought I would know whether or not such a pretty girl lived so close to me," Calum commented, making you blush.

"Now you know," you said with a small smile.

"Yeah," he grinned as well, "Yeah, I guess I do. Well, hey, I live in 358 if you ever want to get out of your place and visit a different one."

You giggled softly, "We even live on the same  _floor_."

"Y/N, if you tell me you live across from me, I'm  _not_  going to be happy about it," he said sternly, but you could tell he'd be  _ecstatic_.

"No," you shook your head, "But I  _do_  live at the other end of the hall." He sighed dramatically as you got to the apartment building, opening the door for you.

"This is either the best or the worst day of my life – I haven't decided yet," Calum told you as you entered the elevator. You leaned back on the wall and watched him as he hit the button to the third floor. He stood next to you, his hand brushing yours. "I'm hoping I'll be able to call it the best though," he said. You smiled shyly with a light blush on your face.

The doors opened and Calum walked you to your door. You dug your key out of your pocket before looking at him again.

"Thanks again, Calum," you murmured.

"If you ever need me again, you know where I am," he replied, kissing your forehead.

You watched him walk back down the hallway to his own door. He unlocked it and looked over at you, shooting you a smile before he entered the room and closed the door behind him.

~

_inspiration: http://demineil.tumblr.com/post/110467148603/here-have-some-aus-as-if-there-arent-enough-on_


	289. Let Me In (Cody Carson)

"Hey, Y/N!" your neighbor chirped as you were leaving your apartments at the same time one morning. He came over to you and furrowed his eyebrows. " _God_ , you look awful-" His eyes widened when you glared at him. "- _ly lovely today_...is what I was going to say..." he quickly saved himself, only to earn an eye roll from you.

"Sure, you were," you grumbled.

"Why are you so grumpy today?" he frowned.

"Didn't get much sleep."

"Why not?" You looked at him incredulously for a moment.

"Well, my neighbor and his girlfriend were having what sounded like a college-style rave until  _5am_ ," you answered.

"Oh..." he chuckled nervously, "Right... Sorry..."

"I get that you two are like,  _nocturnal_  or something, but can you at least  _try_  to have a little respect for the other people in this building?" you said, sounding a little harsher than you meant to, "I can't move out until my lease ends in November."

" _Move out_?" he furrowed his eyebrows, "You can't  _move out_!"

"I can't keep running on only  _three hours_  of sleep either, Cody," you sighed.

"We'll keep it down," he nodded rapidly, "I promise."

~

**Six months later**

Cody kept his promise to you – he and his girlfriend still did the same things they'd been doing, but it was much quieter and allowed you to finally start getting enough sleep again.

But something seemed off the last few weeks.

Those late nights of listening to music and dancing around the apartment seemed to just stop and you hadn't seen Cody in what felt like  _years_. He would always come out in the hallway and greet you when he heard you leaving for work, but now, it was like his apartment was a ghost town. You didn't hear anything coming from or going into the place next door, and you'd be lying if you said it wasn't starting to worry you.

That Saturday evening, after returning home from running errands all day, you decided to check on Cody. You changed into a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt, grabbing your phone and key. You went the six feet to Cody's door and began knocking.

A few minutes passed without hearing anything. You knew for a fact he was home because you could hear his TV on as you were changing.

"Cody?!" you called out, "Cody, I know you're home! Answer the door!"

After 5 more minutes of knocking with no response, you stopped. You let out a defeated sigh, resting your forehead on the door frame.

"Cody..." you said softly, not knowing whether or not he could hear you, "Please just let me in... You're scaring me..."

When you didn't hear anything after another minute or so, you decided to go back to your own apartment. However, right before you stepped away from the door, it opened.

One look at Cody was all you needed to know that he hadn't slept properly in months and he had clearly spent all that time crying. Your heart dropped at the sight of him, but you didn't even get to ask him what was wrong before he grabbed your hand and pulled you into his apartment.

He closed the door behind you before spinning back around, throwing his arms around your waist and burying his face in your neck. Your hand found the back of his head immediately, running your fingers through his hair, while your other arm wrapped around his neck.

You managed to lead him over to his couch and sit, but with the way he was still holding onto you, it was easier to just lie down. You laid on your back with Cody sandwiched between you and the back pillows, practically lying on top of you – not that you minded.

You simply just played with Cody's hair until you heard his breathing even out, letting you know he'd fallen asleep. He was snoring softly in your ear, making you smile slightly. You never thought you'd  _enjoy_  the sound of someone snoring, but with Cody, you found yourself wishing you could listen to it for the rest of your life.

~

The next morning, you woke up a bit confused until you felt Cody still lying on you and remembered what happened the night before. You stretched your legs carefully, thinking he was still sleeping, but were surprised when you heard his voice.

"Good morning," Cody said, his voice hoarse from however long he'd been crying before you got there.

"I didn't wake you up, did I?" you asked with a hint of a guilty tone.

"No, I've been awake. I just didn't want  _you_  to wake up."

You smiled slightly, stretching your arms this time before returning one to lay on your stomach and the other to rest on Cody's back. You absentmindedly began playing with his hair again, feeling him let out a small sigh of content as he relaxed against you.

"Care to explain to me what happened yesterday?" you murmured.

"It was nothing," he whispered.

"Cody," you sighed, swearing you heard his breathing hitch but you shook it off, "You cried yourself to sleep and when I tried to get up and go back to my apartment, you only held me tighter. I haven't seen you in  _weeks_  and I never hear anything coming from here except your  _TV_  anymore. Whatever is making you do all that isn't  _nothing_." Cody swallowed thickly, letting out a breath on the skin of your neck.

"Gabby broke up with me," he muttered.

" _What_?  _Why_?" your eyes widened, honestly in shock. They had been together since you moved into the apartment building two years ago and they seemed so in love, it was hard to believe she had ended it.

"She said we've been drifting apart," he sniffled, "Said she doesn't feel like I love her the way I used to."

"What's  _that_  supposed to mean?" you scoffed lightly, "You were head-over-heels for that girl."

"No," he sighed, "She's right." The hand in his hair froze as you moved your head so you could look at him. You had your eyebrows raised, prompting him to continue, and he did. "I don't know," he shrugged, "I was thinking last night and I just... I don't feel like we're right for each other anymore. We only ever joked around and stuff; We could never seem to be serious with each other. She's a great girl and I think part of me will always  _love her_ , but I'm just not  _in love_   _with her_  anymore."

"You concluded all of that in  _one night_?" you asked, making him chuckle softly.

"It's amazing how much quiet time can help you realize," he commented.

"Believe me, I  _know_ ," you teased, bringing your hand up and hitting his cheek lightly. Cody laughed again, letting it taper off.

"Thanks for coming to check on me," he whispered, squeezing you gently.

"You're welcome," you replied softly, pressing a kiss to his head. "Do you want to come over for breakfast?" you asked him.

"Nah," he shook his head, "I've had your cooking."

"It's not  _that_  bad!" you whined.

"Maybe not to  _you_ ," he smirked, "You're  _used to it_."

"You're  _rude_ ," you pouted, "I'm going home to enjoy breakfast  _by myself_  then." You went to get up, but Cody refused to let go of you.

"We could always go out," he suggested, "I know how much you like McDonald's breakfast."

"Are you bribing me, Carson?" you tried to say with a straight face, but the smile pulling at Cody's lips were proof that you weren't doing a very good job.

"Is it working?"

" _Maybe_ ," you mumbled. Cody grinned widely, finally releasing his grip so you could both sit up. "I'm gonna run and grab my wallet and then we can go," you said.

"It's cute that you think I'm gonna let you pay for yourself," Cody said as he got up and went into his bedroom to change his shirt.

"It's cute that you think I'm not gonna fight you about it," you sassed, trotting out of his apartment before he could respond, leaving him with the kind of smile on his face that hadn't been there since his break up.

~

_inspiration: http://ladiieschoice.tumblr.com/post/124416909010/ok-but-a-your-apartment-is-next-toabove-mine-and_


	290. My Favorite Song (Zack Merrick)

"Y/N!" John called from the end of the hallway. You looked over your shoulder. "Zack's here!"

"Thank you!" you shouted back, gathering up your copies and going back into your office. You grabbed the rest of the songs you'd been working on and hastily made your way down to the studio the men were waiting for you in.

As you got closer and closer to the room, you could hear a small voice coming from inside. Being the songwriter that worked with Zack the most, you soon discovered that he had a daughter. He hadn't been able to find a babysitter for that day and there was no way he could reschedule, so he just had to bring her in.

Addison was only seven months when her mother left and one and a half when Zack's band was signed to the label. She had obviously been accustomed to always being around music – whether that was her dad singing her to sleep or listening to him and her uncles write songs in the living room. But what she looked forward to the most when coming to work with Zack was that she got to see you.

The now four-year-old had taken an immediate liking to you the first time Zack ever brought her into the studio. Addison had just turned two and had  _begged_  her dad to take her to work. Being daddy's little girl – and the fact that she'd used the biggest puppy-dog eyes she could muster – there was no way Zack could say no.

" _Y/N_!" the toddler cheered your name as well as she could. She wiggled out of her father's arms as fast as she ever had before and ran to you.

" _Addie_!" you smiled widely. Zack obviously couldn't take his daughter to the studio with him as often as she wanted him to, so you were happy to see the little girl running toward you. You picked her up and held her on your hip, all eyes on you at this point.

"I missed you," Addison pouted.

"Well, you know Daddy can't bring you  _every time_ ," you told her, making the pout get bigger.

You only laughed, putting your papers onto the table in front of the men. You then put your hand on the back of her head, holding her in place as you started peppering her face with kisses.

" _No_!" she squealed loudly, squirming around as she laughed uncontrollably.

Addison quickly grabbed your face, making you stop. Her payback, she decided, would be to just return the favor. You laughed as she kissed your cheeks over and over again, then tickled her stomach to make her stop.

You caught a glimpse of Zack watching you with his daughter with a look of fondness on his face. You always thought that he was simply smiling at Addison, but Zack had a tendency to look at you that way, even when his daughter was nowhere to be seen.

You chose to push it to the back of your mind, however, thinking there was no way anything could ever happen – you  _were_  practically coworkers after all; You were sure that was all you'd ever  _be_  to him.

"Daddy wrote a new song!" Addison declared proudly, bringing you out of your thoughts.

" _Did he_?" you grinned, smiling over at Zack who blushed and looked back at John, "Well, I guess that makes  _two of us_  then, doesn't it?"

"You wrote a new song  _too_?!" she gasped, a wide smile on her face. Addison always told you how much she loved the songs you wrote – and even when they weren't always your greatest, it still meant a lot that she liked them.

"I  _did_ ," you nodded, taking her over to the couch where Zack was sitting.

You sat down beside him with Addison on your lap. You were so busy sorting through your sheet music that you didn't even notice the look that she gave her father.

"So," you began, looking at John and Zack, "I've had this idea floating around in my head ever since Alex and I wrote  _Time-bomb_  like, forever and half a century ago." The two men chuckled at the over-exaggerated comment.

"You have guitar done for it?" John asked. When you nodded, he got up. "Let's hear it then!" he said, grabbing one of the guitars in the room and bringing it back to you.

You had Addison crawl back onto her father's lap before taking the guitar and playing it a bit to make sure it was in tune. The toddler was bouncing up and down excitedly, beyond ready to hear what you'd written. You smiled slightly upon noticing this out of the corner of your eye, beginning to play the intro into the song.

_This bed's an island made of feather down and I'm stuck here alone_   
_With little else but memories of you on memory foam_   
_Visions of a brighter love, I'd kill for one more day_   
_To pool my thoughts and find the words to say_

_If these sheets were the states and you were miles away_   
_I'd fold them end-over-end to bring you closer to me_   
_Because I don't sleep at all without you pressed up against me_   
_I settle for long distance calls, I'm lost in empty pillow talk again_

_I'm lost in empty pillow talk again_

_This room's become a mausoleum filled with relics of regret_   
_Paying dues to every moment wasted, on words left unsaid_   
_Collisions of a finer love, I'd kill for one more way_   
_To tell you how you make me better every day_

_If these sheets were the states and you were miles away_   
_I'd fold them end-over-end to bring you closer to me_   
_Because I don't sleep at all without you pressed up against me_   
_I settle for long distance calls, I'm lost in empty pillow talk again_

_Lost in empty pillow talk again_   
_Lost in empty pillow talk again_

_If these sheets were the states and you were miles away_   
_I'd fold them end-over-end to bring you closer to me_   
_Because I don't sleep at all without you pressed up against me_   
_I settle for long distance calls, I'm lost in empty pillow talk_   
_I settle for long distance calls, I'm lost in empty pillow talk again_

_I'm lost in empty pillow talk again_

Before you even stopped playing the guitar, Addison was bouncing again and clapping wildly.

"That's my favorite song you've ever written!" she squeaked. You laughed lightly, shaking your head.

"You say that  _every_  time you hear a song I've written," you reminded her, poking her stomach playfully to make her giggle.

"But every song you write it  _awesome_!" she exclaimed, dramatically throwing her arms into the air. Zack started nodding in agreement and you smiled and thanked her. "Daddy!" Addison chirped, turning her body so she could put her hands on her dad's cheeks.

"Yes, princess?" he asked, his voice slightly muffled due to the way she was holding him.

"Sing Y/N the song you wrote for her," the little girl ordered. His eyes widened as you blushed a bright shade of red, neither of you expecting that to come out of her mouth.

"Addison, I  _told you_  not to say that," Zack mumbled, taking her hands off of his face, allowing you to clearly see that he was blushing as well. Her expression fell and she frowned, thinking he was actually upset with her. But when he kissed her nose, she smiled, knowing he wasn't. The two were interrupted when you held the guitar out to Zack, making him look at you.

"I know about it now," you shrugged, "You might as well." He smiled shyly, taking the guitar from you.

Without any prompting from either you or her father, Addison moved back to your lap, laying her head on your chest so she could listen to Zack play the song she'd already heard numerous times.

_Say goodbye to the halls and the classes_   
_Say hello to a job and the taxes_   
_The weekends with old friends spilling into 9 to 5 routine_

_Tell me how you feel over and done with_   
_Like your life is a map with no compass to guide_   
_At the bar drinking way too much_   
_We sing along to "Forever Young"_

_So here we go again_   
_Wishing we could start again_

_Wendy, run away with me_   
_I know I sound crazy_   
_Don't you see what you do to me?_   
_I wanna be your lost boy_   
_Your last chance, a better reality, yeah_

_Wendy, we can get away_   
_I promise if you're with me_   
_Say the word and we'll find a way_   
_I can be your lost boy, your last chance_   
_Your "everything better" plan_

_Oh, somewhere in Neverland_   
_Somewhere in Neverland_

_We'll start a life of the plain and the simple_   
_Of great times with far better people_   
_And weekends with our friends_   
_Laughing about the wine that stains their teeth_

_We'll talk about how your parents separated and_   
_How you don't wanna make the same mistakes as them_   
_I'll say it's all about sticking it out_   
_And trying to feel forever young_

_So here we go again_   
_Wishing we could start again_

_Wendy, run away with me_   
_I know I sound crazy_   
_Don't you see what you do to me?_   
_I wanna be your lost boy_   
_Your last chance, a better reality, yeah_

_Wendy, we can get away_   
_I promise if you're with me_   
_Say the word and we'll find a way_   
_I can be your lost boy, your last chance_   
_Your "everything better" plan_

_Oh, somewhere in Neverland_

_So here we go again_   
_Wishing we could start again_

_Wendy, run away with me_   
_I know I sound crazy_   
_Don't you see what you do to me?_   
_I wanna be your lost boy_   
_Your last chance, a better reality, yeah_

_Wendy, we can get away_   
_I promise if you're with me_   
_Say the word and we'll find a way_   
_I can be your lost boy, your last chance_   
_Your "everything better" plan_

_Oh, somewhere in Neverland_   
_Oh, somewhere in Neverland_   
_Somewhere in Neverland_

It was silent for a moment as Zack finished the song's chords and then looked down shyly, not wanting to look at you. But if he  _had_  been looking at you, he would have seen the small smile on your face. So instead, you simply leaned over and pressed your lips to his cheek.

"That was my favorite song you've ever written," you whispered, letting him feel your grin. He looked up at you and smiled, but before he could respond, you were suddenly interrupted by a small voice next to you.

" _See, Daddy_?" Addison scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest, "I  _told you_  she was gonna like it." You and Zack glanced at each other before smiling evilly, not even giving the toddler time to react before she was screaming, laughing, and squirming around on your lap as you were both tickling her sides.

~

 

_Songs used:_   
_"If These Sheets Were States" by All Time Low_   
_"Somewhere in Neverland" by All Time Low_

_inspiration: http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/136426669218/single-dadcal-would-have-such-a-hard-time_


	291. Truth or Dare (Ashton Irwin)

Another weekend, another party at the Beta Omega Rho frat house. There were  _tons_  of people there from every single house across campus, even you. You were never one to join in any fraternity or sorority parties unless it was a party hosted by your best friend's house.

You and Ashton had known each other since before freshman year had even started and he would always beg you to come to his frat when they threw these parties. And let's be clear on one thing: The  _only_  reason you went was because Ashton pulled the same move every time – puppy-dog eyes and the famous pout that could get  _anyone_  to agree to whatever he wanted.

You found yourself sitting on the couch in the living room very early on, sitting behind Ashton as he and his brothers played truth or dare with a handful of girls who wanted to play as well. You were never one for these games – those boys always made each other do or admit something embarrassing and although you were friends with all of them, you didn't trust them during games like this.

Ashton was propped against the couch in front of you as you absentmindedly toyed around with the hair peeking out from his snapback. You finally snatched the hat off of his head, causing Ashton to look over his shoulder at you as placed it backwards on your own. You smiled innocently at him, returning your fingers to his head.

"It was in my way," you stated with a small shrug. Ashton simply smiled, turning back around and leaning further toward you, allowing you to reach his hair more easily, finding the way you ran your fingers through it to be relaxing.

~

The group had been playing their game for a good hour now and, as expected, it was nothing short of embarrassing for all of them. You had to admit though, some of these people were  _really_  good at choosing dares to give each other.

"Irwin!" Michael chirped when it was Ashton's turn again, "Truth or dare?"

"Dare," Ashton said confidently – typical Ashton, always picking dare. The blue-haired boy tapped his index finger on his chin as if he didn't already know what he was going to dare Ashton to do.

"I dare you..." he trailed off for dramatic effect –  _typical_   _Michael_ , "...I dare you to kiss the prettiest girl in the room."

You rolled your eyes at the sheer childishness of the dare, but maybe you were more  _jealous_  than anything. You were never ' _the prettiest girl in the room_ ' by any standards of the people who sat in the truth or dare circle, but that wasn't what had you feeling the way you were.

You'd had a crush on Ashton ever since you met him at freshman orientation two years ago. You two quickly became inseparable – the dynamic duo whose friendship  _everyone_  seemed to be jealous of.

But isn't that  _always_  how it goes? Someone falls for their best friend and just  _sits on it_  because they don't want to lose them.

Honestly, you thought about getting up and walking out of the room the moment the words left Michael's mouth. You didn't  _want_  to watch Ashton kiss  _someone else_  – despite the fact that you knew  _damn well_  you weren't going to confess your feelings before he kissed another girl in front of all these people.

So you just sat there, waiting for the Ashton to take his turn and be done with it.

But when Ashton sat up on his knees and turned around to face you, your heart started racing. He placed his hands on your knees and leaned forward, pressing his lips to the corner of your mouth – not  _quite_  touching your lips, but just enough so that you could feel the warmness of his breath on them. You swallowed thickly as he moved back, giving you the signature dimpled smile that surely would have made your knees weak if you had been standing.

Ashton returned to his sitting position in front of you, much to the dismay of Michael.

" _Ashton_!" he whined, "I didn't mean on the  _cheek_!" The statement only made you blush, the thought of Ashton kissing your  _lips_  making your head spin.

"Should've been more  _specific_  then, Clifford," Ashton chuckled, moving on to his turn, "Truth or dare, Hood?"

Throughout the rest of the night, Ashton would lay his head on your leg whenever it wasn't his turn, making your heart beat at the speed of a hummingbird's wings. You were  _sure_  your face wasn't showing how nervous you were, but with the way Michael, Calum, and Luke kept glancing at you every now and then, you were starting to think you were wrong. No one knew about your crush on Ashton – as far as  _you knew_  anyway – and, to be honest, you wanted to  _keep it_  that way. Those three boys couldn't keep a secret if their lives  _depended_  on it, and you were  _not_  about to let Ashton know the truth.

~

A few hours later, after all the partygoers had left and the only people in the house were the frat members, you started cleaning up. Since you were Ashton's best friend and a frequent face in the house anyway, the boys had no problem with putting you to work. You simply laughed when they ordered you to clean the kitchen with Luke, jokingly reminding them who was boss when you were in the house but going to help out the blonde boy anyway.

You hadn't seen Ashton in about half an hour since he was cleaning up outside with Michael and a few other guys, but when he came back in, it was clear something was bothering him.

"Hey, princess," Ashton said softly, walking over to you.

"Hi, Ash," you replied, tossing an empty cup into the trash bag you were holding.

"Can I talk to you for a minute..." he glanced at Luke's curious stare before turning back to you, "...upstairs?"

"Sure..." you trailed off, the confusion in your voice very obvious.

You put the bag against the wall and followed Ashton. He led you into his room, closing the door behind you while you sat on the bed.

"What's up?" you asked.

He was pacing in front of you – something he only did when he was  _really_  thinking about something – and you'd be lying if you said he wasn't starting to worry you.

"Ash," you stated, making him look at you, "You okay?"

"Am  _I_  okay?" he furrowed his eyebrows, " _I_  should be the one asking if  _you're_  okay."

"Why?"

"You've been acting weird ever since we were playing truth or dare," he commented, "I could feel you tense up every time I touched you. You  _never_  used to do that."

"Ash, I-"

"Does me touching you make you uncomfortable now?" he shook his head, "Because if it does, you can just tell me and I'll stop. I never want to make you uncomfortable, Y/N, you  _know_  that." You nodded and he sighed, "Then what's going on with you? Is it because I kissed you during the game? Michael said everyone noticed you seemed off after that. Did you not want me to kiss you?"

"No, Ash, I just..." you murmured, "I'm never the one kissed during those ' _kiss the prettiest girl in the room_ ' dares and it just...surprised me..."

"You're  _always_  the prettiest girl in the room, princess," Ashton said softly, kneeling down in front of you. He placed his hands on your thighs – much like he did during the game – and looked up at you with the big hazel eyes you fell in love with. "Even if every single girl in the world was put into the same room, you'd  _still_  be the prettiest one there," he told you.

"No, I wouldn't, Ashton," you whispered.

"Now what makes you think that?"

"There's always going to be someone  _prettier_ ," you said, "Someone all the guys want to be with. But that someone will never be  _me_."

"Well, I'll always think you're pretty enough for the  _both of us_  then," he said, shaking his head, "You'll always be the prettiest girl  _anywhere_." Ashton rose back to his feet, kissing your forehead. 

In a sudden burst of courage – and being tired of hiding your feelings any longer – you grabbed his cheeks, pulling him down to kiss his lips. You felt him let out a breath through his nose and even though he kissed you back, you pushed him away, already convincing yourself you'd ruined everything.

You didn't even say anything as you stood up and went to the door, completely prepared to leave. But just before your hand landed on the door knob, Ashton grabbed it, turning you back around. He put his free hand on your cheek, bringing your face to his again and letting his lips brush yours as he spoke.

"If I'm completely wrong and you don't actually feel the same way, just pretend you do so I can kiss you again," he whispered.

You didn't respond – you simply closed the gap and kissed him like this was all a dream and you'd wake up at any moment. You felt him smile and let go of your hand, wrapping his arm around your waist and pulling you into him as close as you possibly could be while his thumb ran along your cheekbone.

"I love you, you know," Ashton murmured, causing you to stop kissing him.

"You  _do_?" your voice cracked.

"Have ever since I  _met you_ ," he nodded.

You looked at him as if you were desperately trying to find any sort of lie in the statement, but you couldn't. And of course, when Ashton realized this, he squeezed your waist and pecked your lips like he was assuring you that he was being serious.

"You know how Mikey pretended to think about the dare he was going to give me before I kissed you?" he asked randomly.

"Mhmm," you hummed with a nod.

"The reason he already knew was because I  _told him_  to say it," Ashton confessed shyly, "And I was going to actually kiss you, but I chickened out and kissed your cheek at the last second."

"Why?" you tilted your head.

"I thought that if I kissed you here-" His gaze moved from your eyes to your mouth and he moved his thumb from your cheekbone to the corner of your bottom lip. "-and you didn't like it, you'd get up and leave. And I didn't want to embarrass you or anything, so I figured kissing you on the cheek would be safer." You caused his thumb to retreat back to your cheek when you reached up to kiss him.

"Thanks for not kissing a different girl," you whispered.

"There's only  _one girl_  I'd like to kiss for the rest of my life and that's  _you_ , princess," he grinned.

"I love you, Ash," you finally admitted to him, feeling his grin grow wider.

"And  _I_  love  _you_ ," Ashton returned softly.

~

_the answer to your question is yes, that frat house is a real fake one i stole from a movie_

_inspiration: http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/143923914943/truth-or-dare-was-probably-your-least-favourite_


	292. Attached (Ryan Follese) - Part 1

Ryan walked into work at the BuzzFeed office that morning with a nervous ache in his chest. He was scheduled for a video shoot after lunch in which the topic made him more anxious than he'd ever felt in his entire life.

It seemed like the morning drug on and on before lunch finally came around. Ryan ate as quickly as he could without making himself sick before throwing away his trash and heading to set. The moment he got there, his friend greeted him with her usual cheerfulness.

"Ryan!" Kayla beamed, "We were just waiting for you! Come on!" She led him to the table and had him sit down, letting Mandy, who was the camera person for this video shoot, make sure he was perfectly in frame and in focus before she gave everyone the go-ahead. "Okay, Ryan," Kayla chirped, "Just start off by saying what the video is." Ryan nodded, cleared his throat, and looked into the camera.

"I'm about to Skype the girl I had a crush on in elementary school," Ryan smiled, starting the video off.

"Okay, now kind of explain the backstory about her."

"Her name is Y/N," Ryan started, "We met on the first day of kindergarten in like, 1992, so that gives you a little indication as to how old I'm feeling right now." He laughed lightly before continuing. "I very distinctly remember sitting on this rug that had the alphabet on it, playing with some blocks before class actually started, and a woman had come in with this really cute girl. She was crying, you know, not wanting her mom to leave, and our teacher went over to try and get her to come in, but she wouldn't do it. So me being me, I decided to get up and walk to the door, and l just looked at this girl. Our teacher told me to go back to playing, but I think, in my mind, I was thinking ' _not without her_ '. So I held my hand out and said ' _you can come play blocks with me if you want_ ' and as she was sniffling, her mom urged her to come with me, so she wiped her eyes and nodded. Her mom kissed her goodbye, saying she'd be back in a couple hours, and the girl took my hand and we played with blocks for like, 10 minutes until class started."

"How long has it been since you've seen her?"

"Well, I moved to a different state the summer before we started middle school, so I haven't seen her in almost...20 years now, I'd say," Ryan said.

"You ready to Skype her?"

"As ready as I'm ever going to be," he laughed.

Kayla hit the call button and placed the laptop on the table in front of Ryan. He took deep breaths as he waited for you to answer – you were obviously asked about this video shoot at the same time as Ryan, so you knew what was going on – and the moment you popped up on the screen, Ryan actually lost his breath.

"Ry!" you smiled brightly, your hands covering your mouth, "Oh my God, I haven't seen you in so long! I think I'm gonna cry!"

"It'll be like kindergarten all over again," he smirked slightly.

"Shut up!" you laughed.

"Hey, you were the one attached to me that entire first week of school!" he grinned.

"And for some reason, you didn't tell me to leave you alone," you winked, making him chuckle.

"I'd never tell my favorite girl to leave me alone."

"I'm still your favorite girl?" you teased.

"Always will be," Ryan smiled, "So you already know what this video is about, right?" You nodded and he went on, "Did you ever know I had a crush on you?"

"I think remembering all the stuff we did and how you didn't even care that I was pretty much attached to you for a while, looking back on it now, it's like, ' _Oh wow, he totally had a crush on me_ ', but at the time, I honestly don't think I had any idea. Because, you know, that was back when girls were told that if a boy is mean to you, he likes you, and you were never mean to me, so I always just assumed you didn't  _like like_  me. What about you? Did you know I had a crush on you?"

"You had a crush on me?" his eyes widened, making you laugh loudly.

"Well, there's  _that_  answer," you shook your head.

"Man, Y/N, we could have been each other's first boyfriend and girlfriend, first kiss, first breakup..." Ryan sighed dramatically.

"When time travel is possible, we should definitely go back and make sure that happens," you teased, sticking your tongue out at him. Kayla interrupted for a moment, telling Ryan it was time to wrap up the conversation.

"Kayla says I have to stop talking to you now," Ryan pouted, causing his co-worker to roll her eyes and smile.

"Probably just jealous she's not on this level of reminiscence right now," you snickered, hearing the girl laugh in the background.

"So I have one more question before we end this," Ryan cleared his throat, "Would you be surprised if I said I still kind of have a crush on you?"

"I wouldn't blame you," you shrugged, "Puberty was so good to me." He rolled his eyes at the comment, but laughed along with you. "You know, I'm actually flying out to LA soon for a job interview..." you remarked, "We should hang out or something..."

" _Yeah_!" he practically shouted, "If you need someone to get you from the airport, just call me and I'll be there."

"Thanks, Ry," you giggled, "I'll let you know. Well, it was nice seeing you again. I've missed you."

"I've missed you too, Y/N," he replied a bit quieter than he'd been talking that whole time. You both waved goodbye and he watched you disappear from the screen. He stared at it for a moment with a silly grin on his face until Kayla's voice brought him back to reality.

"How you feeling after that?" she asked him, beginning to close out the video.

"She's just as beautiful as I remember," Ryan smiled.

"If you guys get married, I expect to be the first to receive an invitation since this video  _was_  my idea."

Ryan simply laughed, rolling his eyes as he got up from his seat. The person working the camera turned it off, letting Kayla take the memory card so she could return to her desk and begin editing.

Throughout the rest of the day, Ryan wore that same silly grin, confident that everything with you was going to work out.

~

_inspiration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_POb3xhZYY_


	293. Attached (Ryan Follese) - Part 2

**One month later**

To everyone who passed Ryan as he stood against his car in the airport's pick-up zone, he looked like any other person waiting for someone to arrive. But on the inside, he was anything  _but_  calm.

You called him in a slight panic just before you boarded your flight to LA, telling him that your ride just texted you and told you they couldn't make it. He, of course,  _immediately_  told you he'd be there, chuckling lightly when he heard your relieved sigh on the other end. This didn't stop you from making  _sure_  he was okay with it though. He promised you that he  _was_ , having you text him what time you landed and that he'd be outside waiting for you.

He pulled up to the airport 20 minutes early, wanting to make sure to get a spot close to the doors so you wouldn't have to search for him. Honestly, he felt like he was going to throw up, knowing he was only  _minutes_  away from seeing his childhood best friend for the first time in 20 years.

The moment you stepped through the door, he lost his breath. Sure, you looked beautiful when you were Skyping with him during the BuzzFeed shoot, but something about the way you looked right now – dressed in sweats, hair in a messy bun, and no makeup on – had him speechless. If his crush on you hadn't already resurfaced during the Skype call, it  _definitely_  would have seeing you  _now_.

You looked around for a brief moment before finally spotting Ryan. You instantly smiled, quickly going over to him. He pushed himself off of his car as you let go of your suitcase and carry-on bag, making sure they weren't going to fall over, before you threw your arms around his neck. You were hugging him so closely that he was  _sure_  you could feel his heart pounding against his chest as he hugged you back.

"You still own this old thing?" you giggled softly, your arm moving so you could poke at the beanie on his head.

"Hey, don't talk bad about it," he smiled, "My best friend gave it to me in fifth grade."

"I think I remember her," you replied, "She was a pretty girl back then."

"Pretty girl then, beautiful woman now," he said, squeezing you before you both let go of each other.

"Thank you," you smiled shyly, "And thank you for picking me up."

"You still have that irrational fear of taxis?" he smirked, putting your suitcase in the backseat.

"It's not  _irrational_!" you protested, getting into the car after he opened the passenger door for you, "There is a one in 5,000 chance that I'll be kidnapped in my lifetime!"

"But that statistic isn't  _about_  people who  _drive taxis_ ," Ryan countered after getting in the driver seat, "So, statistically speaking,  _I_  could be kidnapping you right now." He started the car and began driving, earning a sigh from you.

"Well, there goes me ever trusting anyone from elementary school  _ever again_ ," you replied. Ryan simply laughed loudly, reaching over and placing his hand on your knee, patting it gently.

"All I'm saying is, the more afraid of everything you are, the less you're gonna go out and do something that could make you happy," he shook his head, "Like, what if there's a concert or something, but you have to take a cab to get there. Your soulmate could be there, but you wouldn't know because you were too scared to take the cab!"

"Ah, the  _classic_  soulmate argument," you rolled your eyes.

"Hey, you never know," Ryan shrugged, taking his hand back.

"What if I've  _already_  met my soulmate?" you returned, leaning your head back on the seat and looking at him, "How would I know  _then_?"

He glanced over at you and smiled slightly. He didn't want to automatically assume you were talking about  _him_ , but then again, he couldn't remember the last time a girl looked at him the way you were at that moment.

"Maybe you should just take a chance," he replied softly, reverting his gaze back to the road in front of him.

"Well, he  _did_  agree to hang out with me while I'm in LA," you said thoughtfully.

" _Did he_?" Ryan grinned.

"Uh-huh," you chirped, watching the palm trees fly by the window, "He also said he had a crush on me when we were kids; I heard he still does."

"When you were  _kids_ , huh? Well, if he  _still_  feels that way, it sounds to me like he very well could be your soulmate."

"Only problem is I have no idea how to  _find him_ ," you shrugged with a light sigh, "LA is  _huge_ ; He could be  _anywhere_."

"What's he look like? Maybe I've seen him around before."

"Well, now that I'm getting a good look at you, he looks  _a lot_  like you: brown hair, always wearing sunglasses but he's got the prettiest brown eyes hiding behind them." Ryan smiled, looking over at you upon stopping at a stop sign and peeking out from the top of the sunglasses on his face. "Yeah, like those!" you nodded, pointing to his eyes.

"You think my eyes are pretty?" he winked, turning his attention back to driving.

" _The prettiest_ ," you returned, a silly grin on your face.

"You know, I think I  _have_  seen him before," he mentioned, "How about his name?"

"Well, his name is Ryan Follese," you said, "He works at BuzzFeed – I don't know if you're familiar with it."

"Really?" he wondered teasingly, " _My_  name is Ryan Follese and  _I_  work at BuzzFeed. I'm the only Ryan Follese there though."

"So you  _must_  be who I'm looking for!"

"What a small world – me picking you up from the airport  _and_  being the one person in LA you're looking for," he shook his head. You simply smiled, your head leaning on the headrest again as you looked at him.

It was silent for a moment until Ryan reached back over and took your hand. He tangled your fingers together and brought your hand up, pressing his lips to the back of it.

"I've missed you, you know," he said, his voice laced with seriousness as he moved your hand back down, holding it on your thigh.

"I've missed you too, Ry," you murmured, squeezing his hand lightly. You both sat in silence – Ryan rubbing your skin with his thumb as you played with his other fingers.

After a couple minutes though, Ryan spoke again, realizing he had no idea where he was supposed to be taking you.

"What hotel are you staying at?" he asked you.

"Oh, I don't know," you shrugged, "I was just gonna try to find a cheap one or something."

"Well... You know... You could always stay at  _my place_..."

"Ry, you don't have to-"

"I know I don't  _have to_ , but I  _want to_ ," he insisted, "You shouldn't waste money on some cheap hotel when you can just stay with me for free. Plus, we're already  _here_ , so-" He ended his speech by shrugged as he let go of your hand to pull into an apartment building parking lot.

"You're not going to  _charge_  me?" you awed teasingly, "You're too kind."

"Shut up or I  _might_ ," he laughed, winking jokingly at you. He got out of the car to open your door for you, finding you sticking your bottom lip out, making sure your pout was extremely prominent when he looked at you again.

"You wouldn't  _really_  make me pay to stay with you, would you, Ryan?" you asked sweetly. He couldn't stop himself from smiling at you, holding his hand out. When you put your hand in his, he pulled you to your feet into his chest, his arms wrapping around your waist while yours went around his neck.

" _Never_ ," he answered, pecking the tip of your nose, "But you better not tell any of my friends about this or else I'll have to stop making  _them_  pay when they want to stay with me." You giggled quietly, letting it taper off as you laid your head on his shoulder and stepped forward so your body was pressed right up against his, feeling him squeeze you a little tighter in the process.

You didn't want to let go of him, afraid this was all just some weirdly realistic dream that you would wake up from any second and he would be gone. You spent the last 20 years wondering how your childhood best friend was doing and what he was up to. Now that you were finally hugging him again, you never wanted to leave his arms because the last time you hugged him like this, he moved 500 miles away.

"Hey," Ryan said softly as he kissed the side of your head, "What are you worrying for? I'm here now." You sighed into his shoulder.

"Even 20 years later, you still know what I'm thinking," you murmured.

"20 years ago, I wasn't brave enough to tell you I liked you either," he countered. You finally released him just enough so that you could pull back to look at you – both of your arms still wrapped around each other.

"Didn't you think girls still had  _cooties_  back then?" you teased, making him roll his eyes playfully.

"It's not  _my_  fault," he shook his head, "If anything, it was  _yours_ for being so cute."

"Don't hate the player, hate the game, Ry," you smirked, "And, you know, you had some questionable hairstyles, but you were still adorable." You moved one of your arms to rest on his chest while your hand patted his cheek, earning yourself a  _real_  eye-roll that time.

"Listen, it was the  _90s_ , okay? Those hairstyles were  _cool_  back then," he said defensively.

" _Were they_?" you smirked.

Ryan's hands immediately slid to your sides, tickling you roughly. You squealed loudly, your laugh unable to keep Ryan from maintaining his straight face. You grabbed his hands to make him stop, giggling softly as you caught your breath.

"I would hardly consider that a  _fair_  punishment for that comment," you informed him, "But a ' _thank you_ ' would have been appreciated."

"Why would I have thanked you?" he grinned, "You weren't there when I decided on a less embarrassing haircut."

"And whose fault is that?"

"Technically my mom and dad," he chuckled.

You gasped obnoxiously, hitting his cheek again, "Don't talk about my second parents like that!"

"You still calling them that?" he teased.

"Whatever," you scoffed, "You're just jealous they loved  _me_  more than they loved  _you_."

"That's not even  _fair_!" he whined, " _Everyone_  loved you more than they loved me!"

"Your brother couldn't have cared  _less_  that I was around," you said matter-of-factly.

"Well, Jamie was  _8_  by the time we moved; He didn't care about girls  _at all_ ," Ryan reminded you.

"Not true," you informed him, "He cared about Adrienne and Anna."

"You're  _asking_  to get tickled again," he stated, "You  _want_  me to do it."

"On the list of things I could even  _possibly_  want from you, tickling me  _isn't_  one of them."

"How about we talk about the things you  _could_  want then?" he grinned mischievously.

"A ride from the airport, a place to stay, a ride to my job interview tomorrow morning, maybe some pizza for dinner toni-" Ryan cut you off, his lips colliding with yours.

You smiled slightly as your eyes fluttered shut, your arms wrapping back around his neck and your fingers playing with his hair. He let out a small sigh as his own arms went back to your waist and pulled you into him – having imagined doing this for so long, he couldn't believe it was  _actually_  happening.

When you pulled away to breathe, you couldn't help but smile again.

"That wasn't on the list, but I'll take it," you shrugged.

" _Shut up_ ," he chuckled, pressing his lips back to yours.

"Hey, Follese! Couldn't wait until you got  _inside_  your place?" You pulled away once again and looked over, finding someone walking out to their car.

"You're just upset  _you_  have a roommate and have to go  _other places_  to see your girlfriend," Ryan shot back, his tone obviously playful.

"Fair enough," he nodded before looking at you, "It's nice to finally meet you. Ryan's been talking about you non-stop for the last month." Ryan's eyes widened as you laughed under your breath.

" _Goodbye, Aaron_ ," Ryan murmured, only making you laugh a little louder.

"Bye, Ryan!" he replied innocently, getting into his car and driving to wherever he was off to.

"So," you said after a few moments of silence, " _Non-stop_ , huh?" Ryan paused before releasing you to open the back door to get your suitcase.

"So pizza," he cleared his throat, "(Favorite topping) still your favorite?" You didn't answer him – you just simply smiled and followed him toward the building and to his apartment.

~

**The next morning**

You woke up to the sound of ducks quacking repeatedly. You groaned into the chest your face was pressed against, hitting Ryan's stomach through the blanket with your palm.

"Ry, turn that thing  _off_!" you whined, turning onto your opposite side and covering your ear with your hand, "It's  _too early_!"

"Woke you up though, didn't it?" Ryan chuckled after he turned the alarm on his phone off, his voice coming out gravelly from obviously having just woken up. He leaned over and pressed a kiss to your shirt-covered shoulder before taking your hand off of your ear and moving it down to your waist as he kissed your cheek.

"But the  _duck_  alarm, Ryan?  _Really_?" you frowned, finally turning onto your back.

"I can't help that it's the only one that ever actually  _wakes me up_  on time," he grinned, "Now you get dressed so we can stop by Starbucks on the way to your interview."

"Are you bribing me to get out of bed?"

"No," he stated matter-of-factly, "If I were bribing you, I'd use kisses instead."

"You're right," you nodded, "I'd rather have coffee." Ryan responded by throwing himself on top of you and peppering your face with kisses.

You squealed before laughing, squirming being about the only thing you could do since he was literally on top of you. You managed to free your arms out from under him, grabbing his face and pushing him back slightly.

"A nice way to wake up," you affirmed, pecking his lips, "But that still won't get me going like coffee will."

"We'll see about that  _later_ ," he smirked, kissing you again before getting off of you and going into the bathroom so you could get dressed.

~

"You know where you're going?" Ryan asked you after you both got into his car.

"Yup," you chirped, "I'll tell you when to turn." He nodded and pulled out of his parking spot.

The closer Ryan got to the BuzzFeed office, he would glance over at you more often. He was confused as to why you hadn't told him to turn at any point, and when he pulled into his work's parking lot, the confusion wasn't eased much.

"You know you never told me where to turn, right?" Ryan cocked an eyebrow while putting his car in park. You finally looked up and out the window and shrugged.

"That's okay," you replied, grabbing your coffee cup and unbuckling your seatbelt, "We're here." You got out of the car, Ryan quickly mimicking your actions.

"Wait..." he said slowly, "Your job interview is for  _BuzzFeed_...?"

"Mhmm," you hummed, taking his hand when he came around the car.

"And you knew that when we Skyped?" he asked, "Why didn't you  _tell me_?"

"You didn't  _ask_ ," you shrugged again.

"Well,  _you're_  asking to be tickled again," Ryan finally laughed, poking your side.

"I most certainly did  _not_ ," you let out an involuntary giggle, pushing his hand away from you.

"Maybe you asked for it telepathically then because I  _definitely_  heard it," he said.

"Maybe you're picking up signals from some  _other_  girl then because it definitely wasn't  _me_ ," you grinned.

"Hey, Ryan!" you heard a voice as Ryan led you inside the building.

"Hi, Kayla," he smiled back at the girl standing with someone behind the front desk.

"You're Y/N, right?" she asked you, "You were the one he Skyped during a video we made last month?"

"That would be me," you grinned.

"Well, it's nice to finally meet you! Ryan's been talking about you all month."

"Thanks, Kayla," he murmured.

"Well, it's not like it was a secret, Ryan. You've been telling everyone she was coming to town since the moment she told you," she replied, making you laugh.

"So you've been telling your neighbors  _and_  your co-workers?" you smirked lightly, squeezing his hand.

"You know what? This isn't  _about_  me," he shook his head.

"It may not be about you  _now_ , but we're  _definitely_  going to be touching on this  _later_ ," you snorted softly. You let go of his hand, hearing him let out a quiet whine in protest as you looked at both Kayla and the other girl sitting at the desk. "I have an interview with Joel Greengrass at 9," you said.

"You applied here?" Kayla asked with a wide grin.

"He thought he got rid of me 20 years ago," you said with a teasing tone, nudging Ryan with your hip.

"Well, I'd be happy to take you to his office!" She walked out from behind the desk and started to lead you away, but quickly froze when she realized Ryan was following. "You know, Ryan, I'm pretty sure you still have a couple videos to edit," she said coyly, "Maybe you should try to get one done before lunch." They both looked at each other for a moment before he caved.

"Don't you dare embarrass me," he said accusingly.

"He's right, you know," you told her, "He's never liked having anyone  _help_   _him_  with things." Kayla laughed loudly while Ryan grabbed your hips and leaned down to whisper in your ear.

"Find my desk when you're done," he murmured before kissing your cheek and letting go of you, "Good luck." You shot him a sweet smile, going off with Kayla as Ryan watched you, thinking about how grateful he was you were back in his life.


	294. In My Head (Luke Hemmings) - Part 1 *

_an au in which you can hear your soulmates thoughts, but not until you turn 18 – and that's proving to be a huge problem for luke_

**Warning: Mention of suicidal thoughts, attempted suicide, and self-harming**

~

The morning Luke woke up on his 18th birthday, he began hearing something in his head. It wasn't his own thoughts like it had been for the past 18 years – the new voice sounded completely different than his own. Luke wasn't surprised though; His parents explained to him not too long ago that this would happen – that he would wake up and suddenly hear another person's – his  _soulmate_  – thoughts.

After turning 18, Luke would always send his soulmate good morning or goodnight thoughts in his head, never knowing if they were actually being received. He assumed they weren't because he never heard anything back, but maybe –  _just maybe_  – his soulmate was ignoring him. He pushed that idea out of his mind though, having a little faith that his soulmate just hadn't come of age yet. So he continued to just patiently wait for her.

Up until he was coming up on his 21st birthday, Luke didn't sense anything truly wrong with his soulmate. Of course, he would hear the occasional belittlement of herself when she received a bad grade in school or the self-deprecating remarks that simply came with growing up when she looked in a mirror. But when he started hearing her tell herself she ' _would be better off dead_ ', he started taking serious notice.

The first time it happened – the first time his soulmate thought it – he ran to his mother for advice. There wasn't much she could do, obviously, but she told him to hold out hope and continue trying to think back to her – she had to turn 18  _eventually_ , right? Well, to be quite honest, with the direction her thoughts were going, he wasn't so sure she'd  _make it_  to 18.

One evening, Luke came home from work. It was a normal day – he woke up, went to work until 3, and came home – but it didn't  _feel_  normal. He couldn't pinpoint why, but he just knew in his gut that something was wrong with his soulmate.

Aside from the fact that he hadn't heard from her all day, when he did, he would only hear the consistent chant of ' _I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry_ '. He didn't know what it meant, but he knew it wasn't  _good_. Later that night, he would hear a slew of curse words followed by an eerie, calm silence, and then it would repeat until he fell asleep.

And it went on like that for the next few weeks. Until  _one day_...

It was almost 2pm and Luke was lounging around his apartment, not really knowing what to do. He had the day off of work and while most people would find it relaxing, Luke was just stressed out.

He hadn't heard anything from his soulmate in the last couple days and it was really starting to worry him. He didn't know what was wrong, but it wasn't unusual not to hear from her during this time because she was usually sleeping – he figured she just had a really fucked up sleeping schedule. But he hadn't heard anything on her end in the last  _three days_  which was incredibly unusual.

But the moment the clock hit 2, everything changed.

**_Hello?_ **

Luke froze for a moment, not really sure if he heard that right.

 ** _I guess you're not 18 yet then_** , your voice sighed inside his head.

He couldn't help the smile on his face as he sat up in his seat. This was it; He would  _finally_  be able to talk to you.

 _I've been saying the same thing for the last 3 years_ , Luke thought back to you.

 ** _You can hear me?_** , you replied.

 _And you can hear me_ , Luke grinned to himself,  _Finally_.

 ** _Why are you awake so late?_** , you asked him.

 _Late?_ , Luke chuckled confusedly,  _It's only 2_.

**_PM?_ **

_Yes..._

**_Oh_** , your voice sounded soft,  ** _It's midnight here_**.

 _Wait, so you're on the other side of the world?_ , Luke's eyes widened at the thought.

 ** _Looks like it_** , you sighed,  ** _Just my luck_**.

 _And here I thought it was gonna be so easy to meet up with you after you started being able to hear me_ , Luke replied. He heard you giggle softly, only hoping he'd be able to hear it in person one day.  _So why are you awake then?_ , he asked you.

 ** _Well, I'm finally 18_** , you reminded him,  ** _I wanted to stay up and see if my soulmate was too_**.

 _Oh, right!,_  he exclaimed,  _Happy birthday!_

 ** _Thank you_** , you grinned.

_So what's your name?_

**_Y/N_** , you said.

"Y/N," Luke repeated out loud to himself, already liking the way it sounded with his.  _I'm Luke_ , he told you.

 ** _Luke_** , you said, making his heart race,  ** _I like it. It sounds very you. And I like your accent as well. Australian, right?_**

 _Exactly,_ he smiled,  _How did you know? People tend to think it's British at first_.

 ** _Australian accents have always been my favorite_** , you informed him,  ** _I can't believe my soulmate actually has it_**. Luke heard you giggle softly to yourself again and he wanted nothing more than to hear it in person.

~

You continued talking to each other for the next week or so whenever the two of you were awake at the same time, which usually ended up being from around the time Luke woke up to the time he would normally return home from work. When he started to think about it though, he realized that you were going to bed extremely late at night. He didn't want to be the reason you lost sleep, so he knew he had to be the one to tell you to go to bed – even though he never wanted to stop talking to you.

 _Isn't it like, 3am for you right now?_ , Luke asked you one night after you'd been talking for a few hours.

 ** _Yeah_** , you sighed.

_Why aren't you sleeping?_

**_I've told you before; I would rather talk to you_** , you sassed.

 _I know that_ , he hoped you could sense him sticking his tongue out at you,  _But I'll still be here tomorrow_. You were silent for a moment, making Luke perk up again.  _Y/N_ , he said,  _Are you okay?_

 ** _Hmm?_** _,_  you hummed,  ** _Oh, yeah, I'm fine_** _._

_Y/N._

**_Luke, don't worry about it, I'll be fine_ ** _._

_You just said you already_ were _fine, now you're_ going to be _?,_  Luke was incredibly concerned at this point, unsure exactly why you were wording things the way you were.

**_Luke..._ **

_I'm not going to just_ not _worry about you now, Y/N_ , he informed you,  _I've been waiting for you for the last three years and I want to know everything there is to know about the girl I'm meant to be with for the rest of my life, no matter if it's good or bad._

**_Just... Promise me you won't freak out..._ **

_Well, I can't promise that_ now, he said.

**_I, um... I'm kind of in the hospital_ ** _._

_What? Why?_ , his eyes went wide and he quickly sat up. He heard you sigh and then you started speaking softly.

 ** _I know you've been hearing my thoughts for the last 3 years_** , you said, earning a hum of acknowledgement from Luke,  ** _Well... I cut myself sometimes and a couple weeks ago, I went too deep and lost a lot of blood, so I had to go to the hospital_** **...**

Luke honestly lost his breath the moment he heard you hurt yourself. He'd known what you'd been feeling for so long, and it was like he blamed himself for not being able to help you.

 ** _Lu_** , you went on,  ** _There's no way you would have been able to help me_** _._

 _Oh, right, you can read my mind_ , Luke chuckled nervously, but his heart skipped a beat at hearing you'd already given him a nickname.

 ** _It's a downside to this life, I suppose_** , you said. Luke could just  _see_  you shrugging.

 _You should go to sleep though_ , he commented,  _How about I try and sing to you?_

 ** _You can do that?_**  you furrowed your eyebrows.

 _Well, yeah_ , he grinned,  _I can hear you singing to yourself all the time_.

 ** _Do I sound as horrible as I do when I sing out loud?_**  you asked.

 _You can sing to me when we meet each other and I'll let you know_ , he teased.

Luke waited for a few moments until he thought you were comfortable enough and started singing the first song that popped into his head to you. He could hear you telling yourself that he sounded really good and you couldn't believe you got to be the one to hear him sing for the rest of your life.


	295. In My Head (Luke Hemmings) - Part 2 *

**Warning: Mention of suicidal thoughts, attempted suicide, and self-harming**

~

**Two days later**

Gathering the information he'd heard from your thoughts while you were reading the things around the hospital room throughout the last couple days, he caught a break when you read your patient chart to yourself. You had completely thought that Luke was asleep, but he wasn't. In fact, he was just waking up.

When he realized you'd read the hospital name to yourself, Luke made  _extra_  sure not to think about the things he was reading when he Googled the name on his phone. He had the exact address in a matter of minutes and he knew that what he was about to do would be considered crazy, but he did it anyway.

He bought a ticket for the first flight out of Sydney.

~

28 hours later, Luke was getting off of his plane in your state. He couldn't believe he was  _actually_  doing this, but there was really no turning back now. He was careful not to think about his plans for the night – since it was nearly 11pm by the time he arrived. He knew it would take at least an hour to get to the hospital you were in, so he quickly went to baggage claim to wait for his bag. The moment he saw it, he grabbed it off the conveyor belt and he was rushing to catch a bus out of the airport.

~

 _You know what we've never discussed?_ , Luke asked you randomly that night in the midst of your conversation. It was 11:51pm, but this obviously wasn't out of the ordinary with him being 14 hours ahead of you.

 ** _Childhood stories?_** , you smirked _,_ ** _Favorite movies? Our stances on whether or not ghosts are real?_**

 _All true and things we will be touching on in the near future_ , Luke chuckled,  _However, not what I had in mind._

 ** _Then what would you like to discuss?_** , you giggled.

 _I want to know what you look like_ , he stated,  _I mean, we're bound to be meeting one day, and I'd like to know what I'm looking for._  You simply grinned, describing yourself for him.

While you were doing that, you had no idea that Luke was only four floors down, just now entering the hospital. He was listening to you, but he was also asking the receptionist at the front desk where your room was. She told him and he started making the trek to the elevator to get to you. With his hands shoved into his pockets and his face stoic to anyone who looked at him as he spoke to you in his head, he rode the elevator up.

When you were finished describing yourself, you asked him to do the same.

 _Blue eyes_ , he started as he looked at every room number, realizing he was getting closer,  _Blonde hair that looks incredibly under-styled today_. He grinned when he heard you laugh at the comment.  _Lip ring on the left side of my mouth_ , he went on,  _I live in skinny jeans and Converse. Decided on a boring, old t-shirt and red flannel today._

 ** _Why are you telling me what you're wearing right now?_** , you chuckled to yourself.

"Thought you should know what you're looking for," Luke said out loud as he walked into your hospital room.

You visibly lost your breath as you stared at the boy in the doorway, smiling shyly at you. He was as attractive as his voice made him seem and you couldn't believe  _he_  was your soulmate.

"Luke?" you whispered, "You... What are you... When did you  _get here_?"

"My flight landed an hour ago," he replied.

"How did you..."

"Heard you reading to yourself when I woke up yesterday."

"Why are you  _here_...?"

"Wanted to make sure you were alright," he said quietly, "And I've been wanting to see you ever since I found out what soulmates were..."

You accidentally moved to push yourself to a sitting position with the arm covered in cuts and scars, making you whimper lightly. Luke rushed to your bedside, only to have your strong arm around his neck, pulling him down to you.

He leaned onto the bed, his own arms winding around your waist, hugging you tightly. You managed to lift your weak arm up, but you could only go as far as his collarbones, so you just had to settle with letting your hand rest on his chest.

Luke took the hand on his chest in his own, lifting it up to his mouth. The coolness of his lip ring and the warmness of his breath made your fingers twitch as he kissed your knuckles. When he let go of your waist, he moved back, but only enough so that he could look at your face.

Without warning, his lips were on yours. You didn't mind, of course, and eagerly kissed him back. His hands were on the bed beside your hips and your hand was on his cheek, your thumb stroking his cheekbone. Your weak arm was lying on your lap, too sore to be moved anymore. Luke took your hand again, carefully tangling your fingers together. His thumb was rubbing your skin and he felt you smile just before he pulled away.

"Sorry," he said shyly, "I couldn't stop myself." You simply smiled again, squeezing his hand gently. "How are you feeling?" he asked softly, glancing down at your scar-covered arm.

"Better  _now_ ," you answered honestly.

You scooted over on the bed, pulling on Luke's hand as much as you could bear to coax him into lying down with you. You didn't need to ask him twice, so he carefully climbed up, allowing you to cuddle up to him. You laid your head on his chest, whining softly when you bumped your arm on the railing beside you.

"Are you okay, princess?" Luke asked quickly.

"I'm fine, Lu," you murmured, but you knew you were blushing at the nickname, "My arm just hurts."

You watched Luke take your elbow, slowly bringing your arm up to rest on his stomach so he didn't hurt you further. You were confused as to what he was doing until his hand moved to your upper arm where you hadn't made any cuts. He began barely running his fingers up and down your skin, making your body erupt in goose bumps. He felt the contented sigh you let out on his chest as you closed your eyes, finally beginning to feel sleepy. You felt him tilt his head down to look at you and when he noticed you were drifting off, he started singing to you under his breath.

And you couldn't believe you got to be the one to hear him sing for the rest of your life.


	296. All of My Regrets (Calum Hood) - Part 1

_there's some swears and a tiny little itty bitty minuscule moment of smut-like actions so sorry if that's not ur thing_

~

You were sitting at a booth at the edge of the counter in the bar you were at. You had your head resting on the table, absentmindedly running your finger along the top of the glass in front of you. You had been stood up from a date, waiting at your apartment for a solid hour and a half before receiving a text from him that said he wasn't coming.

You decided that you didn't want to waste your perfectly planned outfit on that jerk, so you just walked the one block to the bar down the road. You'd already been there for a couple hours and had a couple drinks already, but you were drinking them at a fairly slow pace.

With the way the booth you were sitting in was set up, it wasn't easy to tell that there was someone already there since you were sat facing away from the entire bar. So it was no surprise when someone sat down across from you, thinking it was empty. 

"Oh, shit," you heard the familiar voice said, "I'm sorry, I didn't realize anyone was sitting here." The man got up to leave, but your own voice stopped him.

"Cal...?" you asked quietly as you lifted your head up, your voice cracking. Your ex-boyfriend froze, looking back at you in surprise.

" _Y/N_?" Calum murmured. He furrowed his eyebrows when he saw that your eyes were watery. "What's wrong? Why are you crying?" You quickly cleared your throat and wiped your face.

"I'm fine," you told him. He immediately sat back down, giving you the look he always gave you when he knew you were lying to him. He raised an eyebrow at you, making you sigh. "I had a date tonight," you explained softly, "But he never showed."

"He stood you up?" his expression dropped. You didn't say anything, you just pulled out your phone, showing Calum the message you'd gotten from him after you asked him where he was _._

_Thanks for being stupid enough to think I actually wanted to go out with someone as ugly as you. I'll think of you when I'm using my $20 to take out a girl actually worth my time._

"What the  _fuck_?!" Calum exclaimed, "He actually  _said that_ to you?!"

"It's fine, Calum," you shook your head, putting your phone back in your purse and taking another sip of your drink.

"No, it's not, Y/N," he insisted, "You're the most beautiful girl in the  _world_. You don't deserve to be treated like that."

"Calum, I-"

"Just because we broke up doesn't mean I stopped giving a shit about you, Y/N," he said firmly. You whispered a ' _thank you_ ' to him, but were surprised when he didn't automatically get up and leave. "So," he cleared his throat, "You're seeing people again?"

"It's been over a year, Cal," you reminded him with a small sigh, thinking about how every single guy you've tried to date after Calum just didn't work.

"I know," he nodded slightly, "I just... I'm trying to make conversation, but I'm just making it awkward, aren't I?" You giggled under your breath, making him smile.

"If you want to make this less awkward, I think we're both going to need  _a lot_  more drinks in us," you pointed out.

"That, I can do," he said, calling a waiter over and ordering you both a drink.

~

**Three hours later**

It was now close to 1am and you and Calum were still at the bar. You had stopped drinking about 45 minutes ago, but the alcohol was still fresh in your systems. Calum was reminiscing about times you would get drunk together and you  _both_  were giggling messes.

"You remember when we were at Luke's 21st birthday party and you were dancing along to some random  _High School Musical_  song that started playing because ' _Check this out, guys! I totally know all the moves to this song!_ '?" Calum nudged you. You responded by shoving him a bit harder.

"You swore you'd never bring that up again!" you whined with a loud laugh, "And that's not even fair!  _You_  were the one who told the DJ to play it because you  _know_  how I am when I'm drunk!"

"Well, that party needed some life and I had to do  _something_!" he grinned.

"Then embarrass  _yourself_!" you giggled.

"It's fun embarrassing drunk you though," he said thoughtfully, "Drunk you doesn't remember it and sober you can't figure out a reason to stay mad." You laughed softly, nodding your head a bit in agreement.

"You were always such a dick to me when I got too drunk," you sighed.

"But I always took care of you the next morning," he shrugged.

"Yeah," you said softly, a small smile pulling at the corner of your mouth.

"Hey, guys," the bartender came up to your booth, "I hate to kick you out, but the bar closes in 10 minutes." It was then that the two of you looked around the room and realized that practically everyone else was gone.

You and Calum got up, stumbling a bit, but you were otherwise walking pretty well for the amount of alcohol you'd both consumed within the last three hours.

"You still live in the building down the street?" Calum asked you. You nodded in response as he plopped down on the bench outside the bar entrance. "Would you mind sticking around while I wait for a ride?" he asked shyly.

Despite his tough exterior, Calum really didn't like being alone when he was in a drunken state. You knew you shouldn't have done it, but the words were coming out of your mouth before you could even process them.

"You can stay at mine if you want," you offered, "You just have to sleep on the couch."

"Y/N, I... Are you sure?" he seemed to sober up a bit, surprised that you would ask.

"Cal, you and I both know that you don't know how to take care of yourself when you've had too much to drink," you stated. He looked up at you and saw a barely-there smirk on your face, making him roll his eyes.

"How would I have been able to take care of  _you_  then?" he countered.

"Too-many-drinks-hungover Calum never took care of me," you grinned, " _Ashton_  was the one who did that while you waited until your headache was gone and I woke up."

Calum gave you a sheepish smile, "You knew it was Ash the whole time?"

" _Please, Cal_ ," you giggled, "Ashton was the only person who could control himself and get us all home safely.  _Of course_  I knew it was him. Now come on," you said, turning and beginning to walk to your apartment building, "I'm tired and I don't want to wait for someone to come get you." Calum watched you for a moment before getting up and following you down the sidewalk.

When you got back to your apartment, you and Calum kicked your shoes off at the door. He knew how much you hated vacuuming and if there was any way to keep dirt out of your carpets, you were going to do it.

You grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and the bottle of aspirin, quickly hurrying into your bedroom to put them on your nightstand. You got an extra pillow and blanket from your closet before going back out to the kitchen.

"You remember where everything is, right?" you asked Calum.

"You haven't changed anything?" he asked you. You gave him a look and he nodded, "Right." You handed him the things in your arms and he took them.

"If you leave before I wake up, just try to let me know you got home safe if you can," you told him, "Night, Cal."

"Night, Y/N," Calum said softly, leaning forward and pecking your lips lightly.

It was a force of habit to kiss you goodnight – even when you  _did_  make him sleep on the couch – and when he realized his mistake, there was a bit of a panicked tone in his voice.

"I-I'm so sorry," he stuttered, "I-I didn't-"

But at that point, you didn't  _care_ ; You didn't  _care_  that he had kissed you, you didn't  _care_  that he was your ex, and you sure as  _hell_  didn't care that you shouldn't kiss him back. What that kiss said to you was that a part of Calum – no matter how  _big or small_  it was – still felt  _something_  for you, so you just  _went for it_.

You grabbed the back of his head and pulled his face back to yours, smashing your lips together. Your fingers were roughly pulling on his hair like you knew he loved and he dropped the things in his arms, his hands finding your hips and holding them so tightly, there was no doubt in your mind that they were going to be bruised in the morning. He then backed you down the hallway toward your bedroom, never breaking the kiss even once.

Calum kicked the door shut behind him and picked you up, throwing you onto your bed. You squeaked in surprise, but it was quickly muffled by him climbing on top of you and kissing you again. He wasted no time in pulling your shirt off, tugging your skirt down your legs right after that, throwing them both onto the floor.

Before he could slip his hand to your back to unhook your bra, however, your hands were on his chest, pushing him up. He looked at you quizzically for a moment before you grabbed the bottom hem of his shirt and pulled on it. He immediately took the hint, putting one of his hands over yours and helping you take his shirt off. The second the fabric left his hand as he threw it away, your hands were back on his face, pulling him back down to kiss you.

Calum's forearms were resting on either side of your head to keep his weight off of you. You let go of his cheeks, dragging your nails down his torso until your fingers hit the top of his jeans. You shakily undid the button and pushed them down as far as you could, letting Calum kick them the rest of the way off his legs.

"How are you so damn  _warm_  all the time?" you mumbled against his mouth, feeling him smile. His lips began trailing up your jawline, to your ear, and then back down your neck.

"Probably for the same reasons  _you_  always seem to be  _cold_ ," he whispered, nipping at your skin.

Since you and Calum had been in this situation numerous times before, it didn't take him more than two seconds to begin biting your weak spot. You let out a cross between a whimper and a moan of his name, feeling him smile again. One of his hands had trailed down the side of your body, coming to rest on your inner thigh. Your breathing hitched as he moved closer to your underwear, and you sighed deeply when his hand moved away again.

"C- _Calum_ ," you tried to say sternly, but you knew your voice was wavering under his touch.

"Y/N," he smirked, kissing his way back up to your lips.

" _Do s-s-something_ ," you demanded. Calum returned his lips to yours, his fingers pushing your underwear out of the way and sliding into you without any warning. You moaned loudly, the sound slightly muffled by his lips once again.

"Anything for you, baby girl," he said hoarsely.

~

**The next morning**

You woke up to the sun shining through your window, making your hangover-induced headache even worse. You moved slightly, your heart skipping a beat when the arm on your waist hold you even tighter. You felt your bare back press against an unusually warm chest – the unusual warmth you knew all too well. Your eyes widened and you began praying to yourself.

 _Please don't be him_ , you silently begged,  _Please don't be him. Please don't be-_ ** _Fuck_**.

You had looked over your shoulder and saw Calum laying there, sleeping peacefully. Now, if this were  _his_  apartment, you'd be up and out of there before you could have even  _blinked_.

But it  _wasn't_ ; It was  _your place_.

So you had a decision to make: Wake Calum up and kick him out or wait until he wakes up on his own and just let the cards fall where they may.

Before you could even  _consider_  making the choice, however, Calum began stirring behind you. You felt his grip on your waist loosen as he rolled onto his back and groaned softly. You laid on your own back so you could look at him, finding his hands on his face as you were pulling the covers over your bare chest.

"We did what I think we did last night, didn't we?" Calum asked, his voice gravelly from just waking up.

"Yeah..." you whispered, pursing your lips together, "We did." You saw him swallow thickly as he took his hands away from his eyes so he could look at you.

"I'm  _really_  sorry, Y/N," he said.

"It's okay, Cal," you shook your head, "I didn't stop you."

You reached over to your nightstand and grabbed the aspirin bottle, getting two pills. You sat up, holding your blanket firmly to your chest, and taking one of the pills with the water.

"Here," you said, holding the other pill as well as the water out to Calum.

"Thanks," he mumbled. He tossed the aspirin into his mouth and took a couple big gulps of water before handing the bottle back to you. "I should be going home," he said so softly that you almost didn't catch it. He got up, quickly finding his boxers and putting them on.

"Hey, Cal, can you..." you trailed off, motioning toward your bra and underwear. He picked them up and tossed them onto the bed beside you.

You carefully put on your bra so you could let the blanket fall, strategically sitting on the edge of the bed so Calum couldn't see – even though he'd obviously seen you naked the night before and when you were dating, it still embarrassed you not to have  _something_  covering you in front of him. Once your underwear was on, you stood up and went to your dresser to get some sweatpants and a t-shirt.

You didn't even realize that Calum had completely stopped what he was doing for a moment, now staring at you, admiring the tops of the dark purple bruises on your hips that were peeking out from your underwear.

It was just like the morning after when you two were dating that you would both get dressed and ready for the day together, but  _now_  it was different.  _Now_ , neither of you were speaking and neither of you knew what was running through the other's mind.

_Did you regret it? Did you never want to see him again? Were you going to blow him off if he tried to talk to you about it?_

Calum didn't know.

But what he  _did_  know was that you were still  _so beautiful_  in this state: only in your underwear, your hair a mess, still smelling the same as it always did – just like strawberries. He knew that he would give anything for a second chance with you. He knew he was still as in love with you as he was the day it ended and he was sure he'd be in love with you for the rest of his life.

Calum shook the thoughts, however, when he realized you were pulling your shirt over your head and that you were going to look back at him any second. He didn't want you to know he'd been staring, so he quickly buttoned his jeans and put his own shirt back on, bringing it over his face just as you were turning toward him. He smiled shyly, grabbing the door knob and leaving the room with you following behind him.

"Well, I, um, I guess I'll see you around," Calum said softly after putting his shoes on when he reached the front door. You nodded in response, giving him a small smile of your own.

"Bye, Cal," you said. Calum exited the apartment without another word, already pulling out his phone to call for a ride home.

~

_inspiration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_YU_gBPBZA_


	297. All of My Regrets (Calum Hood) - Part 2

The second you closed the door behind Calum, you bolted back to your bedroom. You grabbed your purse from where you'd put it on your dresser, dug out your phone, and dialed your best friend's number.

"I slept with Calum last night!" you blurted out the moment you heard her pick up. She instantly started laughing.

"I'm sorry," Micah replied, "It sounded like you just said you slept with your ex-boyfriend last night." You let out a high-pitched sigh, immediately hearing the laughing stop. " _Y/N_ ," she said firmly, " _Do not tell me you slept with your ex-boyfriend last night_."

"Okay, I won't tell you," you replied shyly.

" _Y/N_!" she screeched, "What the fuck is  _wrong_  with you?!"

" _I don't know_!" you groaned, throwing yourself back onto the bed, "He showed up at the club I was at and we started talking again and we ended up back at my place and he kissed me and the next thing I knew, I woke up naked with his arm around my waist!"

" _Dude_." You didn't even need to see Micah to know she was shaking her head.

" _I know_!" you shouted, "Just tell me what to do; I don't know what to do!"

~

**Calum's POV**

"Hey, man," Luke greeted Calum the moment he walked into the door, "Where were you last night? I thought you'd be home by at least midnight."

"Things got a little messy at the club," Calum cleared his throat nervously.

"What does that even  _mean_?" Michael laughed, pausing the game on the TV to look over at him. When he didn't answer, Michael's eyes got wide and a sly smile spread across his face. "You went home with a  _girl_ , didn't you?"

"Mike-"

" _You totally did_!" the blue-haired boy shouted, "You totally got some last night! Did you get her name? Was she hot? Did she have a nice-"

"It was Y/N!" Calum blurted out. The boys' jaw instantly dropped.

"Your  _ex-girlfriend_?" Ashton finally spoke, "You slept with your  _ex-girlfriend_?"

" _Please_  stop saying it like that," he practically begged.

"Do you think if I  _stop_  saying it like that, it'll all just  _stop_  being  _true_?!  _You're_  the one who slept with his  _ex_! What on earth were you  _thinking_?!"

"We were both a little drunk and weren't thinking clearly!" Calum said defensively.

" _A little drunk_  is calling the other and telling them you made a mistake by letting them go!" Luke chimed in, "Not going back to their place and having  _sex_  with them!"

"Well, unless you've got a time machine, I can't go back and undo it,  _Hemmings_ ," he snapped.

"You're going to have to talk to her about this, Cal," Michael said.

"Or I could  _not_  do that and we'll all just return to the way we've been living our lives for the last year and a half."

"Calum," Ashton rolled his eyes, "You can't just  _avoid her_  for the rest of your life."

"And why not?"

"Because you're still in love with her!" he shouted, throwing his arm up, "Do you ever think that  _maybe_  there's a chance  _she's_  still in love with  _you_  too?"

"She's seeing  _other people_ , Ashton," Calum sighed.

"She can't sit and wait around for you  _forever_ , Cal," Luke said, "You  _know_  she's too scared to be the first to say anything. She's just trying to move on."

"Then I think it's my job to  _let her_ ," he said solemnly, trudging upstairs to his bedroom.

~

**Three weeks later**

You hadn't seen or spoken to Calum since that night and as far as you were concerned, you wanted to keep it that way. You wanted to see his face and hear his voice again  _so badly_ , but he seemed so regretful about sleeping with you that you thought it would just be better to never see him again.

"So what are you going to do?" Micah asked you. She had insisted she come over to your place to talk to you about Calum even though you didn't want to. You sighed, throwing your head back against the couch.

"I have no idea," you answered honestly, "I haven't  _heard from him_  since then."

"Well, you guys are going to have to talk about it  _eventually_."

"I say we just forget it ever happened," you shook your head.

"Y/N."

"Then what am I supposed to  _tell him_ , Mic?" you swallowed, "That I don't regret sleeping with him? That I miss him? That I'm still in love with him?"

" _Finally_! You  _admit it_!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms up in the air. You furrowed your eyebrows at her as she rambled on. "Anyone with a  _brain_  can tell you're still in love with him!" she said, "And that's exactly why you  _shouldn't_  have slept with him!"

"Well, you know what, Micah? I can't exactly take it back  _now_ ," you huffed, crossing your arms over your stomach, "So how about instead of telling me what I  _shouldn't_  have done, you start helping me figure out where I'm supposed to go from here?"

The sudden knock on your door cut Micah off, making the both of you jump. Micah immediately got up and went over to the door, looking out the peephole.

"Oh, boy," you heard her whisper to herself.

"What?" your head snapped over to look at her, your body moving with it as you jumped up, "Mic, who is it?"

"Looks like you're going to have to figure out where to go on your own," she laughed nervously, not letting you speak before she was opening the door. You started walking over, but right before you reached her, you heard the last voice you expected to hear.

"H-Hey, Micah," Calum stumbled softly, "Is this a-a bad time?"

"No," she chirped, "I was just leaving." She grabbed his elbow and pulled him into the apartment. "Bye!" she chirped.

" _Micah_!" you growled, but it was too late – she was already closing the door behind her. You let out a puff of air, awkwardly turning back to Calum.

"We need to talk," he insisted before you could say anything.

You looked at him for a moment and then led him over to the couch. Calum sat on one end while you sat on the other, but you were both still facing each other slightly.

It was silent for a few moments – neither of you entirely too sure what to say – but Calum finally spoke again.

"Listen, Y/N... About the other night..." he sighed, "That... That was a mistake and shouldn't have happened. We were both drunk and not thinking straight and I know that if we were completely sober, we wouldn't even have  _spoken_  to each other."

You honestly felt like he was taking your heart out of your chest and ripping it in half right in front of you, but you couldn't say anything; You couldn't tell him you still loved him when it was incredibly obvious to you that he  _regretted_  hooking up.

"I hope we can still be friends," he told you, "But I just think, for right now, it's best if we go our separate ways."

"Mhmm," you gave him a short, high-pitched hum as you chewed on your lip, letting him know you understood.

And although Calum knew you well enough to know that you were holding something back, he didn't acknowledge it – he simply got up and started walking back to your door. You got up with him, showing him out even though he'd lived with you for eight months.

"Well," he cleared his throat, scratching the back of his neck, "I guess I'll see you around."

"Bye, Cal," you whispered, not wanting him to know that you were choking back tears. Calum walked out the door and a few seconds after it closed behind him, you were sliding down the wall with your hands on your face, muffling your sobs.

But what you  _didn't_  know what that Calum hadn't immediately walked away. There was a small part of him that hoped you would open the door and tell him you didn't regret sleeping with him, but you didn't. He assumed that you thought it was a huge, drunken mistake – and he would have continued believing that if he hadn't heard your soft crying on the other side of the door.

He wanted to go back inside, wrap his arms around you, and promise you that everything would be okay. He wanted to kiss the tears away like he used to when you were together. He wanted nothing more than to be your boyfriend again, but he had convinced himself that you didn't want him anymore.

So, despite his better judgment, he walked away. He went to the elevator, got out to his car, and drove back home, getting all his tears out before he got there so his friends wouldn't ask  _too many_  questions.

Because maybe –  _just maybe_  – you were crying because you regretted it.


	298. All of My Regrets (Calum Hood) - Part 3

**Four months later**

You had only left your apartment in the last four months now because of your job and you'd been sleeping on your couch, your bed too painful of a reminder that Calum was never coming back. Maybe you were being a little overdramatic or whatever, but that didn't mean you weren't  _hurt_. You were still in love with him and no matter  _how_  stupid you felt still being hung up on him was going to change anything.

But Micah was the  _definition_  of an angel, honestly. She stayed with you as often as she could, only really leaving your side when one of you had to go to work or she had to get something from the store for you.

Micah was out at the store one such night upon your request for some of your favorite candy. She was looking at the shelves, trying to find it, when she heard someone's shoes squeak on the linoleum floor right after coming into the aisle. She looked up and noticed one of Calum's best friends staring at her with wide eyes.

"Why are you looking at me like that, Hemmo?" Micah asked him, "Hood was the one who fucked up, not you."

"Haven't heard that nickname in a while," Luke said softly, turning to face the shelves with her.

"Yeah, well, I don't get to abuse you as much anymore," she said, "You guys all still living together?"

"Yup," the blonde shifted awkwardly.

"Good," she stated, "If you could tell Calum he's dead to me, that would be fantastic."

"Hasn't Michael already told him that for you...?" he furrowed his eyebrows.

"Yeah, but that was when they broke up. Now I want him to know he's dead to me for breaking her heart all over again."

"' _All over again_ '?"

"Listen, Hemmo," she said, "I put Y/N back together after the breakup – which  _wasn't easy_ , by the way – and everything was fine. But then, the two drunken  _idiots_  decided to hook up and he told her it was a mistake and she's been an absolute  _mess_  ever since. And let me tell you, I  _can't_  keep buying comfort foods every three days!"

"Wait, so she... She  _doesn't_  regret it?" Luke shook his head.

"What the hell made you think  _that_?!" Micah exclaimed.

"Cal said he heard her crying after he left her place when he went to talk to her about hooking up..."

"Well, Cal says a lot of things, but that doesn't mean they're  _right_!" Luke paused for a moment, staring blankly at the items on the shelf in front of him before looking back at Micah.

"So what do we do?"

" _I_  am going to buy Y/N her favorite candy and watch movies with her like I have been for the last four months," she spat, "I don't give a shit  _what_  you do with Calum." Micah grabbed two bags of bite-sized candy off of the shelf and stomped away, leaving Luke standing there in shock.

When he finally snapped out of it, he quickly picked up the boxes of candy Michael and Ashton had asked for as well as something for himself before hurrying to a register to pay.

~

"Guys!" Luke said upon seeing Michael and Ashton in the living room when he entered the home, "Is Cal back yet?"

"Nah, he's still at his parents'," Ashton replied, "Why? What's up?"

"I ran into Micah at the store – she told me to tell him he's dead to her again," he informed them, walking over to the couch and handing them their candy before plopping down.

"Haven't I already passed on that message?" Michael wondered.

"Yeah..." he trailed off, "About that... Turns out Y/N  _doesn't_  regret it and Micah's been constantly buying comfort foods for her because she hasn't stopped crying since Calum told her hooking up was a mistake."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Ashton shook his head, "So you're saying Cal was wrong?"

"Well, if I'm not, I'm saying he's very, very  _not right_."

"Then what do we do?" Michael asked, "He's not going to just  _believe us_  if we tell him ourselves."

"We have to get them in the same room again somehow," Luke sighed, "They have to  _see_  how much of a mess each other is."

"Do either of you still have Micah's number?"

"I do!" Ashton chirped, digging his phone out of his pocket.

"Text her and ask if she can meet up tomorrow," Michael said, "We need to come up with a plan."

~

**Your POV**

"Hey, Mic..." you said slowly, your eyes locked on the screen of the phone lying beside you.

"Yeah?" Micah called out, walking back into the room with the popcorn she just took out of the microwave.

"Why is Ashton asking you to meet up with him?"

"Huh?" she furrowed her eyebrows, picking up her phone and opening the message. She read it with a confused expression on her face, texting him back anyway. "Maybe he meant to text Michael," she shrugged. You shrugged as well, turning your attention back to the movie – it seemed like a logical enough explanation.

But what you  _didn't_  realize was that Micah kept receiving and sending texts back and forth with Ashton, hatching a plan to get you and Calum back together.


	299. All of My Regrets (Calum Hood) - Part 4

**Three days later**

It was Saturday night and Micah had been trying to convince you to go out with her for last couple days. You didn't understand why she was so adamant about taking you to a party that night – all you knew was that you didn't want to go. You knew Calum and his friends were bound to be there – there was never a party in town that they  _weren't_  at – and you  _really_  didn't want to run into him. But once Micah brought up all the things she'd been doing for you for the last few months, you groaned loudly.

"That's  _dirty_ , Mic," you stated, making her squeal.

"So you'll come?" she asked excitedly.

" _Fine_ ," you rolled your eyes, getting up, "But I'm raiding  _your_  closet."

" _Done!_ " she said, letting you grab your phone and keys before taking your hand and leading you out to her car.

~

**Two hours later**

You were actually having a really great time at the party, having not seen Calum even once. You saw Ashton, Luke, and Michael and talked to them a bit before wandering off to the living room where the music was being played. You weren't drinking – not wanting to make any stupid decisions and offering to drive home so Micah could loosen up a bit after dealing with you for so long.

You were standing against the wall – none of the songs being played were ones that you really knew, so you weren't actually dancing to them. But when one of your favorite slower songs came on, you smiled slightly. You were swaying in your spot when you caught a boy across the room looking at you. When he noticed you saw him, he set his drink down and walked over to you.

"You look like you're wanting to dance," the brunette smiled sweetly.

"Good," you grinned back, "I was worried I wasn't being obvious enough."

He chuckled, holding his hand out to you. You happily took it and he led you to the middle of the room. You put your arms around his neck and his wrapped around your waist, resting on your lower back.

"So does the pretty girl I have the pleasure of dancing with right now have a name?" the boy asked you.

"She might," you replied slyly, "As long as you answer a question correctly."

"Well, I'll give it a shot," he shrugged, "Just don't be  _too_  hard on me."

"If given the choice, would you either have to kill a) a thousand spider-sized elephants, or b)  _one_  elephant-sized spider?"

"What kind of spider are we talking?" he asked you.

"Doesn't matter," you heard beside you, "The answer is a thousand spider-sized elephants." Your head snapped over to see Calum walking up to you. "She's less scared of something she can kill by stepping on it," he went on, "Not that it would  _matter_ ; Even if it was only  _one_ , she'd still make  _you_  kill it."

"Calum," you said lowly, "I'm in the middle of something that  _doesn't_  concern  _you_."

"Well, I need to talk to you right now,  _babe_ ," he stated and then glared at the boy in front of him.

"' _Babe_ '?" he said, cocking an eyebrow at you before looking back at Calum, "Sorry, man... I didn't know..." He let go of you and scurried away, leaving you with your ex-boyfriend.

"You are  _such_  a piece of  _shit_ ," you growled, not wanting to draw any attention to yourself.

You pushed past him on your way to the kitchen where Micah had been hanging out all night. She hadn't been drinking too much, so she was still fairly alert when you approached her.

"Here's some money for a cab," you told her, handing her a couple 10 dollar bills, "I'm going home."

"What happened?" she asked, raising her eyebrows at you. You simply shook your head and said Calum's name before turning around and walking out of the house.

Honestly, right now, you hated Calum; You  _hated_  him. But you hated that you still loved him  _even more_.

One minute, he was telling you it was a mistake that you two got drunk together, and the next, he was scaring off other guys from talking to you. And you didn't understand it  _at all_.

As you were walking down the sidewalk – you had to park half a block away from the house – you heard someone running up behind you. A brief thought in your mind suggested that you should probably run, but you didn't. At this point, you honestly didn't care  _what_  happened to you because  _anything_  would hurt less than how Calum had been making you feel.

"Y/N!" Calum called after you, "You can leave this party angry with me if you want to, but you have to know that I'm sorry for everything!" You instantly froze, hearing the sincerity in his voice.

You honestly didn't think he'd chase after you – he never did. You turned around slowly, swallowing the lump in your throat. You opened your mouth to speak, but nothing was coming out. You just stood there, looking at Calum.

"I should have made more of an effort –  _I know that_. I should have taken you on dates. I should have watched your favorite movies with you. I should have learned all your favorite songs so I could sing them to you when you were sad," he shook his head, continuing his rambling, "I should have done  _a lot_  of things for you that I  _didn't_ , Y/N, and I will  _always_  regret not doing them while I had the chance. But I will  _never_  regret that night at the bar and what happened afterwards. I will never regret kissing you, and I will never regret doing what  _sober me_  has been too scared to admit. I will  _never_ regret falling in love with you, Y/N; I will only regret ever making you think that I  _stopped_." You stared at him blankly for a moment, not really sure what to say. 

"Y-You're still in love with me?" you choked out, feeling your cheeks get wet.

"I always  _will be_ , baby girl," he said softly, moving until he was standing in front of you, his hands still stuffed in his pockets.

"B-But you said it was a-a  _mistake_..."

"I say a lot of things to avoid getting hurt," he told you, "But  _nothing's_  hurt more than leaving you."

" _Then why did you_?" you whimpered, your eyebrows furrowing. Calum sighed deeply, feeling guilty for everything he'd put you through.

"I was  _scared_ ," he said, looking down at his shoes, "I heard you crying after I left your apartment and I thought... I thought you regretted it..."

"I was gonna tell you I was still in love with you," you admitted, your voice not giving you anything above a whisper, "But then you said it was a mistake and I... I had to let you go..."

"Do you still love me?" he asked, looking back into your eyes. You pursed your lips together for a moment, nodding slowly.

"I'll  _always_  love you, Calum," you stated.

"Can we-" He cleared his throat nervously. "-Can we try again?"

You nodded again and took his face in your hands, pressing your lips to his. Calum removed his hands from his pockets so he could hold your hips and pull your body into him. You both breathed a small sigh of relief, which made the other smile.

"I love you so much, baby girl," Calum mumbled into your mouth.

"I love you too, Cal," you replied softly, kissing him harder.

 


	300. Boyfriend (Calum Hood)

"Hi, Y/N!" you heard someone across the street yell, making you stop. You had been running back to your sorority from the frat party you'd just been at.

You looked over to find a boy sitting on the front lawn of his frat house, a bottle of beer in his hand. The black-haired boy was smiling at you and waved as soon as he realized he'd caught your attention. You and Calum weren't  _best friends_  by any means, but you  _did_  talk from time-to-time at parties around campus and got notes from each other when one of you missed your shared history class.

You sighed in relief, crossing the street and hurrying over to him.

"You okay?" Calum asked you, turning to look over his shoulder since you were practically hiding behind him. You were breathing heavily down his neck from how long you'd been running, not realizing it made him shiver slightly.

"You didn't go to that party tonight?" you asked, catching your breath.

"Nah," he shrugged, "The guys in that house are total assholes. What happened?"

"This guy..." you mumbled, "He wouldn't leave me alone all night and when I said I wasn't gonna go to his room with him..." Calum put his beer down and turned to face you.

" _What did he do to you_?" he asked lowly.

"Nothing..." you swallowed thickly, "I got away before he could grab me..." He was about to say something else when a loud voice interrupted him.

" _There_  you are!" the president of the frat smirked, stopping in front of the group on the sidewalk. If you thought  _you_  weren't pleased he'd managed to find you,  _Calum_  definitely wasn't. His jaw tightened and you saw him ball up his fists at his sides.

" _Beat it, Anderson_ ," Calum growled.

"And why would I do  _that_ , Hood?" Bryce cocked an eyebrow, the smirk still on his face.

"You and your little frat boys aren't  _welcome_  here."

"What are you going to do about it,  _pretty boy_?" he challenged.

Calum made a motion to get up, but you quickly grabbed his hand, keeping him in place. He sighed lightly and remained on the grass, a little surprised when you didn't let go of him – you just held on tighter and rubbed the back of his hand with your thumb.

" _Leave_ ," Calum stated through gritted teeth.

"Alright, alright," Bryce put his hands up and then looked at you, "Come on, princess-" Just  _hearing him_  call you that made you want to puke. "-We have a party to get back to."

"She's staying here, Anderson," Calum answered for you, " _Now leave_."

"She's a big girl, Hood; She can speak for herself," he returned, "You coming, princess?" You felt queasy as the nickname left his mouth, but looked up at him anyway. You shook your head slowly, making him raise his eyebrows again. "What the f-"

"Well, Anderson, there's your answer," Calum cut him off, "Have fun at your party." Bryce grumbled under his breath, turning around and walking away. You let out a sigh of relief, letting your head fall onto Calum's shoulder.

" _Thank you_ ," you breathed, squeezing his hand.

"Do you want me to walk you back to your house?" he asked, turning his head so his lips were barely brushing your forehead. You nodded slightly, feeling him smile against your skin. "Come on," he chirped, shaking his shoulder so you would sit back upright.

Calum rose to his feet, pulling you up to your own as well. He had you let go of his hand long enough for him to take it again, tangling your fingers together and pulling you closely into his side.

"You know, Cal, you look very ' _boyfriend_ ' right now," you said thoughtfully, "Not sure how many of your brothers are gonna let this go without explanation." Calum chuckled softly.

"I would only look ' _boyfriend_ ' if I did  _this_ ," he informed you, taking the snapback off of his head and placing it backwards on your own. You blushed lightly, repositioning the hat so it sat more comfortably on your head. " _But_ -" he went on, "-I could look  _even more_  boyfriend if you agreed to go on a date with me next Saturday."


	301. Pity Date (Luke Hemmings)

"Hi," a cute blonde said shyly as he approached you, plopping down onto the couch next to you. You shifted away from him slightly, cocking an eyebrow at him.

"You're not  _drunk_ , are you?" you asked cautiously.

"No..." he trailed off, "Do you  _need_  me to be? Because I'll go down a bottle of Jack right now if you want." You relaxed, giggling softly as you returned to your previous position.

"As impressive as that would be, I would rather you  _didn't_ ," you told him. He smiled at you, leaning back against the cushion.

"What's your name?" he asked.

"Y/N."

"I'm Luke," he smiled again, "What brings you here? I don't remember ever seeing you before."

"I was invited," you murmured, leaning back as well.

"By who?"

You nodded toward the staircase where the boy who had originally asked you to come to the party with him was making out with another girl. Luke furrowed his eyebrows and turned back to you.

" _Jared_  invited you? And he just  _ditched you_?" You shrugged and he went on, "Why'd he do that?"

You laughed bitterly, "Apparently, refusing to  _suck his dick_  was a real  _deal_ _-_ _breaker_  for him." Luke sighed and rubbed his temple as if this has happened before – although it wouldn't  _surprise you_  if it had.

"If he bailed on you, why are you still here?" he asked.

"I wouldn't be if I knew how to get home," you sighed, "And my roommate doesn't get off work until 4, so he wouldn't be able to come if I called anyway."

"Well, I'd be happy to take you home," Luke said, "Being left alone at a frat party is no fun." The corner of your mouth twitched slightly.

"Do I  _look_  alone to you?" you asked simply. The blonde couldn't help the red tint on his cheeks, but you didn't even notice. "I suppose I'm still here because I'm waiting for someone  _interesting_  to talk to," you said.

"Oh, really?" he chuckled, happy you didn't see his blush, "You find anyone yet?"

"Depends on how long you're going to stay with me," you grinned slightly, looking back at him.

"Be careful what you wish for," he winking teasingly, making you laugh.

~

It had been about two hours since you met Luke and started talking to him. You learned quite a bit about the blonde boy – and even came to find out he was in your philosophy class, he just sat all the way in the back so you never noticed – and you found yourself really enjoying his company.

But your moment was cut short when the guy who ditched you came stumbling over.

"Hey, princess," Jared slurred, obviously drunk, making you scrunch up your face in disgust, "You gonna-"

"Still not sucking your dick," you said monotonously, not even looking at him. Luke snorted softly, obviously trying not to smile.

"What the hell is so  _funny_ , man?" he asked, shoving Luke's arm roughly. You went to speak, but the blonde put his hand on your knee, making you look at him. He smiled at you and shook his head before turning to his friend.

"She's a funny girl, Jared," Luke replied, "Maybe you would have known that if you had more respect for women."

"I respect women," he scoffed.

"Waiting 10 minutes after getting to a party to ask them to suck your dick is  _not_  respectful," Luke said firmly, "How would you like it if someone talked to your  _sister_  that way?" Jared simply grumbled an apology to you before walking away.

"Thanks," you murmured, leaning onto Luke's arm. He smiled again, patting your thigh. "It sucks that guys have to think about it happening to someone they  _care about_  to realize it's wrong though," you commented.

"Yeah," Luke chuckled softly, rubbing circles on your skin, "I swear, if my son ever talks to a girl like that... Well, I don't know what's I'll do, but it won't be  _pretty_."

You laughed loudly, hiding your face in his shoulder as people around you looked at you. As you were calming down, you were breathing slowly, so you were able to smell Luke's cologne. You didn't want to move from his shoulder, but you didn't want to weird him out either, so you picked yourself back up.

"You know," Luke said with a tiny smirk, "For someone who hasn't been drinking, you laughed  _really_  hard just then. I mean, even  _I_  know that joke wasn't that great."

"Everything is ten times more hilarious at 3am, Luke," you reminded him, shoving him playfully.

"I think it's because you're more tired than you're letting on," he chuckled, "Come on, I'll take you home. Where do you live?" You told him the name of the apartment building right off campus, earning yourself another small laugh. "That's not even a  _10_ _-_ _minute_  walk from here," he informed you, "You could have been home  _hours_  ago." You shrugged as he gave your thigh one last squeeze and stood up.

"I still had fun," you replied, taking his hand when he offered it to you and letting him pull you to your feet.

"Really? And why's that?" he asked, leading you to the front door and out of the house.

"I think you already have a  _pretty_  good idea," you grinned, squeezing his hand to remind him that he hadn't let go of it.

Luke simply pulled you closer, rubbing the back of your hand with his thumb. You laid your head on his shoulder and talked about nonsensical things on the way back to your place.

When the building was in sight, Luke squeezed your hand again.

"So," he cleared his throat, "I'm guessing your experience with Jared kinda turned you off from frat guys, right?"

"Would I have let one walk me home if he  _had_?" you returned.

"Maybe," he said, "It's dangerous for a girl to be walking home alone at this hour."

"I don't know if you've noticed, Luke, but I'm not exactly the kind of girl guys are jumping at the chance to go out with."

"What about Jared?"

"All he wanted was a  _favor_ ," you shook your head, "He wanted a blow job in return for a pity date."

"A  _pity date_?" Luke furrowed his eyebrows.

"You know: A pity date," you said, "A guy tells a girl he's interested in her and asks her on a date and a while into the night, he asks for a hook-up and when she says no, he says that's the only reason he asked her out, usually thrown around with a few choice insults."

"He  _actually_  said that to you?" Luke seemed so bewildered by the concept – unintentionally proving to you that he was one of the few  _decent_  guys out there.

"I'm willing to bet  _at least_  85% of the girls at this school have heard that at least  _once_  in their lives."

"How have  _I_  never heard of that?"

"You're what us women like to call a  _miracle_ ," you replied, "It's actually a  _good_  thing that you had no idea what that meant."

"I can't believe he  _said that_  to you," he mumbled, more to himself than to you. You tilted your head up and saw his jaw was clenched slightly, clearly mad about what his brother had done.

"Luke," you said, making his expression soften as he looked at you, "Do you believe everything happens for a reason?"

"In some cases," he said, cocking an eyebrow, " _Why_?"

"Would you have come over to talk to me if I hadn't been sitting alone?" you asked simply. He let out a breathy chuckle and held your hand a little tighter.

"I guess not," he answered, "So if everything happens for a reason, does that mean that the reason it didn't work out with Jared was because it was supposed to work out with  _me_?"

" _Whoa_ , you haven't even asked me out on a  _date_ ," you squeaked, trying to contain your smile but you knew it wasn't working.

"Will you go on a date with me?" Luke asked shyly, "And not a pity one either; I want to take you on a  _real_  date." You giggled softly, nodding your head.

"I would love to," you accepted.

As you approached the front doors to your apartment building, Luke nervously asked if he could hug you. You smiled at him, standing up on your toes and wrapping your arms around his neck. He hugged your waist firmly, and even snuck a kiss on your cheek before you both let go.

"I-" Luke cleared his throat again, "I, um, I'll pick you up tomorrow night? U-Unless you already have plans or you don't want to go out with me so soon, th-then I'll come next week. Or we could-"

"Tomorrow, Luke," you cut him off, smiling at how nervous he was.

"Tomorrow," he nodded, letting out the deep breath he didn't realize he was holding, "Goodnight, Y/N."

"Goodnight," you whispered, reaching up and pecking his cheek, leaving him a blushing mess as you went into your apartment building.


	302. Out of Ten (Josh Ramsay)

"Good evening, Mrs. Ramsay," your husband said in a purposely horrible French accent the moment you stepped into your home, making you roll your eyes, "If you would be so kind as to remove your shoes, we here at  _Le Ramsay_  just had our floors cleaned."

"No, we didn't, Josh," you said with a light giggle, slipping your shoes off anyway and following him to the living room, "What are you doing?"

When you entered the room, you found a candlelit dinner already waiting on the coffee table with pillows on the floor. There were various candles lit throughout the room so it wasn't completely dark.

"Allow me to take your coat, madam," your husband said, moving behind you. He wrapped his fingers around the collar and pulled the fabric off of your shoulders, then tossed it onto the back of the couch. You couldn't help but chuckle, shaking your head.

"Are you going to stop with the horrible accent and tell me what's going on now?" you asked him.

"I thought the accent really topped it all off," he scoffed, finally speaking normally.

"Hmm... Four out of ten," you shrugged. Josh frowned at the rating. "What's all this for, babe?" you asked again, wrapping your arms around his neck.

"Well, I was on tour on our anniversary," he said, placing his hands on your hips, "So I thought we'd celebrate now."

"I told you it was fine if we didn't," you reminded him, "I'm just happy you  _remembered_."

"You think I  _wouldn't_  remember the best day of my life?" he grinned, kissing your forehead, "We should still celebrate though. Being married for five years shouldn't go unnoticed. Plus, the dinner I made is going to get cold and I worked really hard on it." You laughed lightly again.

"And what have you prepared this evening, Mr. Ramsay?" you asked, letting go of him.

"Well, Mrs. Ramsay," he said as you both sat down in front of your plates, "Our main dish for this evening is mac and cheese in the shape of Spongebob Squarepants, we have a side of grilled cheese sandwiches, and I've selected the  _finest_  jug of chocolate milk."

"Anything for dessert?"

"Only the most  _delectable_  cookie cake Walmart has to offer."

"Oh, my," you giggled, "You really didn't have to go to  _all_  of this trouble just for  _me_." Josh leaned forward as he motioned for you to do the same, kissing your lips when they met halfway.

"You're worth whatever trouble I have to go through to make you happy," he told you, making you smile and peck his lips again before moving back. You picked up your wine glasses of chocolate milk and clinked them together. You couldn't hold back your laugh as you both took a sip, drinking it like you were drinking actual wine.

For the next what only seemed like 5 minutes, you and Josh ate and talked about anything that came to your mind. By the time both of you were finished eating, it was nearing 10pm. Before you could stand up, Josh grabbed your empty dishes, stating – once again in his horribly overdone French accent – that they would be dealt with and that you should go put your pajamas on, relax, and pick a movie.

You simply smiled and did as he said, first going into your bedroom and changing out of your work uniform, putting on one of Josh's shirts, and going back into the living room. You picked your favorite movie and put it into the DVD player, letting it rest on the menu as you waited for your husband to return.

"How was dinner, Mrs. Ramsay?" Josh grinned, speaking in his normal voice as he plopped down on the couch beside you.

"Nine out of ten," you answered, scooting over so you were pressed up against his side.

" _Nine_?" he pouted, "Why a  _nine_?"

"I took off a point for the return of the accent," you smirked, earning yourself a light tickle to your side.

You squealed, grabbing his hand to make him stop. Josh responded to that by lacing your fingers with his and bringing your hand up, kissing the back of it. When you smiled at him, he pressed another kiss to your forehead.

"Well, I give your attitude a three out of ten," he state matter-of-factly, "And overall, you get a nine out of ten – minus one because you look like a goof."

"I'd still give your looks a ten out of ten though," you stuck your bottom lip out. Josh smiled brightly and leaned down, kissing your lips gently.

"Happy anniversary, babe," he murmured, "I love you."

"I love you too," you whispered back before reaching for the remote, pressing play, and enjoying the rest of your anniversary date with your husband.


	303. The Element of Surprise (Ryan Follese)

 

"Wait," you shook your head, your phone pressed to your ear, "You scheduled a show on my  _birthday_?"

" _Manager_  scheduled a show on your birthday," Ryan corrected you.

"Why didn't you try to-"

"Babe," he sighed, "Of course I  _tried_ to change it. But I didn't have a  _choice_. It was either that or no show  _at all_."

"And no show at all wasn't an option  _because_...?"

"Look, I understand you're upset about this, but this is what I was given to work with and this is how it has to be, okay?" he said softly, "I'm sorry."

"It's fine, Ryan," you mumbled, "You're just doing your job."

"I'll see you when I come home, babe," he reminded you, "I love you."

"Love you too," you replied before hanging up the phone, now having to come up with an entirely  _new_  plan for your birthday.

~

**Two weeks later**

You woke up at around 11:30 on the morning of your birthday in a surprisingly good mood for the fact that your boyfriend wasn't there to celebrate it with you. You decided that you would spoil yourself – going to the mall and buying some new clothes and even considering getting your nails done.

Although you didn't  _completely_  know what you were doing today, you definitely knew that you needed to get something to eat. So you quickly texted a couple friends about going out to lunch, got out of bed, and went to your closet to get dressed. You put on your favorite outfit and went to brush your teeth, receiving replies to your group text when you came back out of the bathroom.

_Sounds great! I'll come pick you up!_

_Where do you want to go? I'll meet you guys there!_

You replied with your favorite restaurant and they immediately responded, letting you know they were on their way. You grinned happily – maybe this day wouldn't be so bad after all.

~

Two hours later, you and your two friends were at the mall. You had a couple bags in your hand already, both girls insisting that they buy you whatever you wanted. You hadn't gotten much – just a pair of shoes and a couple tops – but you hadn't found really anything else you wanted.

"So I heard there's gonna be a concert in town later," Lacey mentioned, "We should go."

"Yeah, I heard it's gonna be really good," Taylor nodded. They both looked at you and you simply shrugged.

"I'm down," you said. You then turned back to the window of the store you were in front of, missing the sly smirks on your friends' faces as they looked at each other.

~

**Five hours later**

You put on one of the new outfits you'd bought that day, looking at yourself in the mirror one last time before heading out to where your friends were waiting in your living room. You all then went outside and got into Taylor's car, driving to the venue the concert was going to be at.

The girls hadn't told you who was playing that night, but you were surprised to see that Taylor had turned into the entrance to the local park. You thought outdoor concerts were nice though, so you certainly weren't complaining.

What you  _were_  confused about, however, was the fact that there were no buses around the amphitheater that you could see, having you thinking it was a local band or musician. You were excited to listen to some new music though, following your two friends as they made their way closer and closer to the stage. After they walked past the seating area, you tilted your head.

"How close are we  _going_ , guys?" you wondered out loud, hearing a laugh off to the side.

"Right there's fine," a familiar voice said, making your head snap over. Your eyes widened when you realized your boyfriend was smiling widely at you.

" _Ryan_!" you squeaked, running to him and jumping into his open arms, "You said you had a show tonight!"

"I  _do_ ," he grinned, hugging you tightly. You released your grip on him just enough so that you could move back and push your lips onto his. You felt him smile into the kiss and squeeze you harder just before you pulled away.

"Why didn't you tell me your show was  _here_?!" you laughed, slapping his chest playfully.

"Now where's the element of surprise in  _that_?" he smirked, making you roll your eyes.

But your lips found his again as you mumbled, "You're such a  _dick_."

"I love you too," he chuckled, his voice muffled by your mouth, bringing your body back to his.


	304. What I Like About You (Ryan Follese)

 

"R-Ryan," you said, nervously approaching the boy at his locker. He turned to look at you, his eyes widening upon realizing it was  _you_  speaking to him. He didn't say anything though, so you had to just be brave and do what you came over here to do. "Do you... I mean..." you cleared your throat, "Will you...go to homecoming with me...?" He was still silent, but when he finally opened his mouth to speak, you heard the last thing you wanted to hear.

"I-I already have a date, I'm sorry," he whispered. Your heart dropped and your face fell, but you did your best to fake a smile, not wanting him to see how disappointed you were.

"Oh, okay," you barely nodded, "Sorry for bothering you."

"You're not bo-"

Ryan cut himself off when you quickly turned around and rushed away, leaving him alone at his locker once again. His eyes followed you down the hallway, waiting until you were out of sight before he sighed and went back to getting his books.

Whenever Ryan saw you throughout the rest of the day – and in the days leading up to the dance – you would never be looking at him. Before, he would always catch you glancing at him during class, but now, you hadn't so much as looked at him out of the corner of your eye.

As far as Ryan knew, you didn't like him. Well, maybe you  _liked_  him, but he never thought you liked him in the boyfriend-girlfriend sense. But when you nervously asked him to go to the homecoming dance with you, he started second-guessing himself.

Because why would you have asked him to the dance if you didn't like him?

~

**Two weeks later**

It was the night of homecoming and you had just gotten to the school. Your mom dropped you off, telling you to call her when you needed to be picked up if one of your friends couldn't take you home. You kissed her cheek before getting out of the car and walking inside the building, heading to the gym.

A few people stopped you along the way to tell you they loved your dress or that you looked incredible and while you appreciated all the compliments, you'd be lying if you said you didn't wish they were coming from  _Ryan_.

It was a  _total_  cliché, honestly – the popular girl having a crush on the nerdy boy in her math class – but you just can't help who you like. Of course, you'd liked Ryan ever since middle school – the time when no one even so much as bothered to learn your name.

You didn't know what happened between 8th grade and now, but you'd gradually become part of the popular crowd in high school. Apparently, you just happened to befriend the right people when you were a freshman, and they just naturally accepted you as one of the popular girls – not that you  _fit_  that title at all.

The popular girls in your school were generally very nice, but a few of them – the few you happened to be friends with –  _weren't_. You simply elected to ignore it, however – you'd been a nobody for  _so long_ , and you  _definitely_  didn't want to go back to that in your last few months of school.

Anyway, back to the dance.

You were sitting at one of the tables near the refreshments, your finger tracing the rim of the empty cup beside you. You hadn't done much dancing – only going up when your two friends forced you because they knew the songs were some of your favorites. But after that, you went back to your table, silently people-watching.

You let out a quiet sigh when a slow song began playing, and when someone approached you halfway through the second verse, you were a bit surprised to say the least.

"Hi, Y/N," you heard someone say shyly, making you look up. Ryan was standing in front of you, his hands in front of his stomach as he played with his fingers. "Do you... Would you like to dance?"

"Why aren't you dancing with your date?" you asked softly.

"She didn't show," he murmured, "Should've seen it coming, I guess. She left a note in my locker asking me to the dance. I should've  _known_  it was a prank." You instantly felt bad for him, but you'd be lying if you said you were happy now that you got to spend time with him.

You stood up suddenly, causing Ryan to jump a bit. You grabbed his hand, pulling him toward the dance floor. People were staring – with you being considered one of the popular girls and Ryan being the nerd everyone picked on – obviously wondering why you would be on the dance floor together.

You took his other hand in yours as well and had him wrap his arms around your waist, then moved your arms to his neck. Everyone was whispering and it was clear that it was making Ryan embarrassed.

"You don't  _have_  to dance with me," you stated, surprising him. His attention was back on you as he tilted his head, wondering what made you say that. "You're not comfortable with the kind of attention these people think is okay to give you," you whispered, "And it's just going to get worse the longer you stay here, so it's okay if you want to go. I'll understand."

"Y/N, I-" Ryan was cut off by the song ending and your friends coming over.

"You two look  _cozy_ ," Karina snorted. Your eyes never left Ryan's tie, your face clearly showing him how much you didn't want the two girls there.

"So,  _nerd_ ," Mariah said plainly, "Heard your  _date_  didn't show. I can't  _imagine_  how embarrassing that must be to wait for a girl who was  _never_  coming." Your eyebrows furrowed together and Ryan raised his at you, seeing you were thinking about something.

You thought back to what Ryan had told you earlier – about how someone left a note in his locker asking him to come tonight. You didn't  _want_  to believe your friends would do that, but the  _condescending_  tone of her voice gave you all you needed.

"Why did you  _do_  that?" you asked bluntly, letting go of Ryan so you could look at your so-called friends.

"What are you talking about?" Mariah scoffed.

" _You_  left that note in his locker about the dance!" you accused, everyone around you turning to look at you as your voice got louder.

"Well, it certainly wasn't  _you_ ," Karina laughed bitterly, "You're  _never_  interested in having any  _fun_."

" _Having fun_  doesn't mean you have to be a  _bitch_  to other people!" Everyone's eyes widened as soon as the insult left your mouth.

Before either girl could react, Ryan grabbed your hand and pulled you out of the gym. He took you outside to let you calm down, but you obviously weren't going to.

"Ryan, I... I am  _so_  sorry," you shook your head, "I can't believe they... That was so  _wrong_! Why... I'm so-"

" _Y/N_!" he said loudly, grabbing your cheeks and tilting your head up so you would look at him. "You have  _nothing_  to be sorry for," he assured you, " _You_  didn't do that;  _They_  did. You played  _no part_  in trying to make me look like an idiot in front of everyone."

" _Try_?" you replied, "Ry, you waited for someone for-"

"10 minutes," he told you. You hummed in confusion and he smiled at you. "I waited  _10 minutes_ ," he told you, "Sure, that's 10 minutes  _more_  than I should have waited, but it was still  _only_  10 minutes. I'm not an  _idiot_ , Y/N, and no one can  _make me_  something I'm not." He began stroking your cheekbones with his thumbs, making you breathe a sigh of content. "But how much of an idiot can I really be when I got to dance with the prettiest girl in school?" he commented. You instantly blushed a bright shade of red, causing him to chuckle quietly. "What do you say we ditch this dance and go do something else?" he suggested.

"Like a date?" you asked, your voice  _barely_  giving you enough volume.

"Yeah," he smiled softly, "Like a date." You nodded slowly, a small smile pulling at your own mouth.

"I would like that," you said.

"Here," he said, shrugging off his suit jacket and draping it on your shoulders, "I'll take you home so you can put on something warmer and more comfortable."

" _Thank you_ ," you sighed happily, making him laugh again as he led you outside to where his car was parked.

Ryan took you home, waiting in the living room with your mom as you quickly changed into a pair of jeans, your favorite shirt, your boots, and threw a jacket and beanie on. You looked at yourself in the mirror one last time before going back out, hearing your mom and Ryan making small talk.

He smiled at you when you emerged from the hallway, telling your mother that it was nice to meet her as you made your way over. You kissed your mom's cheek and she told you not to be home too late before you and Ryan went back outside.

He told you he wanted to stop by his own house and change as well and you nodded. You took your turn with small talk with his parents while he was upstairs. He took a bit longer than you did, but when he came out from the hall, you could see why. He had on jeans, a band tee, Converse, and his favorite jacket, and he'd also switched from the contacts he put in before the dance to the glasses he wore every day to school.

You gave his parents the similar ' _it was nice to meet you_ ' speech that Ryan had given your mom, and his mother had told him not to keep you out too late. You smiled as Ryan put his hand on your back, quickly ushering you out of the house before she could embarrass him  _further_.

"Sorry about that," he cleared his throat, nervously rubbing the back of his neck, "My parents aren't really  _used_  to me bringing girls over."

"I hope they don't get  _too_ used to it," you said softly. Ryan blushed at the idea of  _you_  being the only girl he ever brought home, but quickly shook it off, convincing himself that that wasn't what you meant.

"Sorry I took so long," he said as you both got back into the car and he started driving, "I don't wear contacts too often, so they were starting to hurt my eyes."

"It's okay," you assured him, "I like your glasses." Ryan swallowed thickly, thanking you quietly. You looked over at him and noticed he was blushing, making you smile. "So," you said, snapping him out of his thoughts, "What are we doing?"

"Oh, I... Uh... Maybe a movie?" he shrugged, "I didn't think you'd  _actually_  agree to go out with me, to be honest, so I didn't exactly plan that far ahead..."

"Why wouldn't I agree?" you furrowed your eyebrows.

"I just... You know... You're really popular and I... I'm the kid with no friends that everyone picks on... I didn't think you'd want to be seen with me like that..."

"Ry-" The nickname kind of just came out, making Ryan blush yet again. "-Anyone would be  _stupid_  not to want to go out with you," you told him, "Who  _cares_  if you're really smart? At least you won't be held back another year like half of the class." He couldn't help but chuckle, making you smile as you continued rambling. "And you're really cute, you know," you informed him, "I like catching you concentrating on a science test because you do this thing where, when you're thinking, you accidentally bite your lip too hard and it makes you jump."

"You notice that?" he frowned and you giggled.

"It's  _cute_!" you told him.

"Well, you know what I like about  _you_?" he said. You hummed in response, prompting him to go on. "You're in the popular crowd, but you don't  _act_  like them at all," he shook his head, "You're really nice and you don't let your friends treat other people like crap and your grades are  _almost_  as good as mine." You looked over at him again to find he had a small smirk on his face, making you laugh and smack his knee playfully. " _Hey_ ," he pouted, "It's  _not nice_  to hit."

Ryan took your hand and moved it back to your lap, but when he went to take his arm back, you grabbed his hand. You held it on your thigh, your fingers playing with his, as he stopped at a red light and looked at you.

You had a small smile on your face as you looked down at your hand in his. His eyes followed your gaze and he found himself looking at your hands the same way, thinking he could really get used to holding your hand.

But he noticed the light turn green again out of the corner of his eye, so he had to look away and start driving again.

"Are there any movies you've been wanting to see?" he asked you. You thought for a moment before grinning.

" _Finding Dory_ ," you giggled.

" _Really_?" he grinned slyly, a joking tone in his voice. You simply nodded and he continued, "I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to see it too."

" _Oh God_ , you really  _are_  a nerd," you teased. He pulled into the parking lot of the movie theater, parked his car, and turned to you.

"Well, I hate to break it to you, princess," Ryan said, lifting your hand up to his lips and kissing your knuckles, "But it looks like  _you're_  as much of a nerd as  _I_  am."


	305. The Longest Ride (Marshall Traver) - Part 1

_Flashback_

It was a familiar scene – you shouting at your boyfriend in his family's barn. Marshall had a tendency to brush off things you said or did, which led to the argument you were having right now.

He was standing in front of his horse –  _his baby_ , as he called her – brushing her mane before he took her out for a walk around the property. You entered the barn innocently enough – whenever you went to the farm, you never bothered to go to his house because he was always in the barn with the horses. You were wearing the cowboy hat you'd snatched from him the previous night when he'd planned a moonlit picnic at the lake you both met at.

But the innocence of your visit quickly went downhill when Marshall wasn't giving you anything but short answers or low hums. Your patience was wearing thinner and thinner until you just couldn't handle it anymore.

"Mar, I understand that you've got a rodeo coming up, but could you at least  _pretend_  you give a shit about anything I'm saying right now?" you snapped. Marshall froze, having never heard you so upset with him before. He put the brush in his hand away, petting his horse before turning toward you.

"You think I don't give a shit that you've been offered a job in New York?" he cocked an eyebrow at you, walking until he was in right front of you, "It's the only damn thing I've been  _thinking about_  since you told me about it two months ago."

"Well, you certainly haven't  _acted_  like it," you rolled your eyes.

"What am I  _supposed_  to say? How am I supposed to respond to that? I'm not going to act  _excited_  that you're moving across the country if  _that's_  what you were hoping for."

"And why the hell  _not_?" you growled, "Just because  _my_  dream doesn't involve horses and rodeos doesn't mean it's not worth  _going after_."

"What the hell is  _that_  supposed to mean?" he asked, "I should just drop everything to cater to your dreams?"

"I'm not saying that you can't go after your dream, Marshall, I'm just saying it would nice if you didn't act like  _mine_  isn't just as valid!" you screamed at him.

"When did I say your dreams aren't as  _valid_  as mine?!" he said defensively.

" _Every goddamn time_  we have this argument!" you threw your arms up, "Everything is always about your rodeos or your horses or ' _I can't talk right now because I have to train_ '! It's  _never_  about my dream of being a journalist since I was in  _middle school_! You're so preoccupied in this  _stupid_  game of chicken you play with animals that could  _kill you_  at any moment without even  _trying_  that none of  _my_  accomplishments  _matter_!"

"So what, you're willing to just throw the past  _three years_  away to write for some silly newspaper?" he scoffed.

"The last three years of my life have been devoted to supporting  _you_  and making  _you_  happy," you spat, "And I'm  _truly_  sorry if it upsets you that I'm  _finally_  doing something for  _me_ , but I am  _going_  to New York whether you support that decision or not." You spun on your heels, beginning to walk out of the barn.

"Y/N, if you leave this barn-"

"Allow me to save you the trouble, Marshall!" you said, not even turning around to look at him. You took off his cowboy hat and tossed it onto the bale of hay beside the door. " _We're done_!" you stated, never looking back.

_End flashback_

~

**Two years later**

Everyone in town was talking about how you had just recently left your job in New York to come back to the state and work for a news station in Austin, joining the team as the lead reporter. You went to visit your family back in Arlington as often as you could, but you were excited to begin a new chapter of your life. You'd always wanted to be a reporter – out in the field covering the latest stories – and to finally reach that point in your life was a huge milestone for you.

Marshall's life, however, wasn't going as well.

The weekend after you left, Marshall came in first in that rodeo. That next week, he came in first as well. And the week after that, he came in first. Then, he won state for the fifth year in a row.

But once the anger he was feeling started to wear off and he began realizing you were actually gone and you were no longer together,  _that_  was when he started losing. They would be gradual loses – he would get thrown off the horse or bull a  _little bit_  earlier each time – but they would turn into him just not showing up to rodeos  _at all_.

After he hadn't shown up to the previous  _five_  tournaments in Dallas and Fort Worth, Todd – Marshall's trainer – was starting to get upset. He finally found Marshall out by the lake one night at about 11:30pm, lying in the bed of his truck as he stared up at the sky. He wasn't completely lying in the middle, but you didn't need to ask to know why; That was  _your_  spot. Plain and simple.

You were his other half; You were the missing piece in the puzzle that was his life. And that piece was taken out on the day you left.

Marshall was missing a puzzle piece; The most  _important_  puzzle piece as far as he was concerned. Sure, he could go out and try to find something or someone else to fill it, but he knew there was no point. No one would  _ever_  fit with him as perfectly as  _you_  did.

"Marshall," Todd spoke, not eliciting any sort of response from the man in front of him. "Marshall, what are you doing?" he tried again, "We've got state coming up in two days."

"I'm not going," Marshall muttered, never taking his eyes off of the stars.

"Marshall, you can be stubborn some other time, okay? We can't afford to lose the title."

" _We_  can't or  _you_  can't?" he returned harshly, sitting up, "I couldn't give less of a shit about holding onto state anymore! The only reason I ever competed in those stupid competitions was to provide for my girlfriend, but  _she's not here anymore_!"

"Then find some other girlfriend to provide for and let's get going!"

" _No, Todd_!" he shouted, " _I'm done_! Go get yourself a  _new_  state champion!" Marshall slid out of the bed of the truck and hopped into the driver's seat, leaving Todd at the lake.

~

**Your POV**

"Y/N!" your boss – Cecilia – called out to you. You turned around and smiled.

"Hey!" you chirped, "What's up?"

"You're originally from Dallas, aren't you?"

"Arlington," you shrugged, "But pretty much."

"Right," she nodded, "I'm sure you know that the Texas State Rodeo Championships is going on this weekend in Dallas at the state fair." You obviously nodded – being from the area, it was one of your family trips every year, not to mention at least  _one_  of your older brothers was always in the competition. "The station wants you to cover it," she told you. Your heart skipped a beat as your mind immediately went to Marshall.

"Are you sure  _Jen_  can't do it?" you asked, clearly trying to get out of it, "I've got stories I'm supposed to cover here and I-"

"We've already got reporters on those stories," Cecilia said, "Don't you want to go back home? I'm sure everyone would love to see you." You thought for a moment before sighing, nodding again.

"I'll cover it," you accepted.

"Excellent!" she beamed, "You and Nate leave tomorrow!"

" _Tomorrow_?" your eyes widened slightly.

"Yes! So take the rest of the day off to pack your bags!" You sighed again as she walked away, but did as you were told and went back to your office to get your things to go home.


	306. The Longest Ride (Marshall Traver) - Part 2

**Warning: Contains smut**

~

**The next day**

A couple hours after lunch, you and Nate drove the three hours to Arlington. As you got closer and closer to the exit on the highway, you were becoming increasingly anxious. Nate glanced over at you a few times, noticing that your leg never seemed to stop bouncing.

"You okay, Y/N?" he asked as he was taking the exit into your hometown.

"Fine," you murmured.

"I've worked with you for two years," he reminded you, "I know you're lying to me."

"It's nothing," you shook your head, "Just an ex-boyfriend."

"He gonna be there this weekend?"

"I guess you could say that."

"What do you mean?"

"He's gonna be  _in_  the rodeo," you sighed, "He's been the state champ for the last five years."

"Your ex-boyfriend is  _Marshall Traver_?" he seemed genuinely surprised.

"Don't say his name, Nathan," you groaned softly, making him laugh.

"If I say his name, he's not going to show up in the rearview mirror, Y/N," he teased, "This isn't Bloody Mary."

You rolled your eyes, "Why am I friends with you again?"

"Because I'm the best cameraman you've ever worked with and I was also the only person to talk to you on your first day at the station," he said matter-of-factly. You couldn't help but roll your eyes again, shoving his shoulder lightly as he pulled into the driveway of your parents' ranch. You smiled instinctively upon seeing your entire family all waiting for you on the front porch.

Instead of having the station pay for a hotel in Dallas, you convinced them to allow you and Nate to stay at your parents' house for the weekend. There wasn't much deliberation – any way they could save money, they were going to do it – so when you called your mom with the news, she nearly burst into tears, excited her daughter was coming home for the state fair.

"You're related to  _all_  of these people?" Nate asked you as he put the van in park.

"They don't know how to keep it in their pants," you winked jokingly, unbuckling your seat belt and throwing the door open. You closed the door just before your mom reached you, wrapping you in the tightest hug she'd ever given you.

"I'm so happy to see you, honey!" she beamed, "We've missed you so much!"

"I've missed you guys too," you grinned as she let go of you so you could hug your father and brothers. As Nate came around the news van, you introduced him.

"Guys, this is Nate," you said, "He's the one always behind the camera making me look good."

"Believe me, it's not as easy as it sounds," he snickered. You stuck your tongue out at him, a gesture he happily returned. He shook your father's and brothers' hands, hugged your mom, and simply waved to the rest of your family before your parents ushered everyone inside for dinner.

~

Near the end of the meal, your family was talking about how they were looking forward to the rodeo this year. You couldn't lie – you were excited about it too, but you were wondering how it would be seeing Marshall after so long. However, you didn't know if you would  _get_  that chance.

"Well, you know, Marshall isn't competing this year, so maybe this guy will be the new state champ," your dad said as he reached over to ruffle your oldest brother's hair.

" _Dad_ ," Will groaned, but a light chuckle left his mouth as he combed his fingers through his hair to fix it.

"Marshall's not in it?" you asked, the surprise in your tone very obvious.

"Yeah," your second oldest brother, Tyler, nodded, "He quit after he won state last year."

"Why?"

"No one knows," the first oldest, Blake, shrugged, "Guess he was finally tired of  _winning_." Everyone but you laughed at the comment.

For the rest of the night, you were in your own little world. It wasn't until everyone went to bed later that night that you were snapped out of it. You were sitting on the front porch, watching the fireflies light up the front yard, when the screen door next to you opened. You looked over as Nate closed the door behind him and sat next to you on the steps.

"You should go see him," he told you.

"I thought you were asleep," you whispered, ignoring his statement.

"Not quite tired enough yet," he shrugged, "But I really do think you should go see Marshall."

"What makes you think he'd want to see  _me_?" you sighed.

"I don't know, but I think seeing him would somehow help the fact that you blame yourself for him quitting."

"How do you-"

"Because I  _know you_ , Y/N," he said, " _Go_." You let out a breath, standing up.

"Don't wait up for me, okay?" you told him.

"When have I  _ever_  waited up for you?" he smirked, making you smile as you stepped off the porch and began walking.

You made your way down to the lake where Marshall usually went every night, hoping this wouldn't be the night he wasn't there. You breathed a small sigh of relief when you saw his truck sitting by the edge of the water. You saw his head leaning against the back window as he laid in the bed of the truck.

"Heard you weren't competing for state this year," you said as you approached the vehicle you'd known for so long.

"No point in it," Marshall responded, clearly not realizing it was you.

"That's a shame," you said, "I was really hoping to tell the station I know the winner." Marshall's breath visibly hitched and he quickly sat up just as you rested your forearms on the wall beside him. You smiled slightly, your voice coming out as a soft whisper, "Hey, Mar."

"Y/N," he swallowed, "What are you doing here?"

"Boss wanted me to cover the competition since it's near my hometown," you replied, "Dad mentioned you weren't competing this year and Ty said it was because you quit. I just wanted to know  _why_." But Marshall didn't say anything – he just remained quiet.

You put your foot on the tire and pushed yourself up, climbing into the truck. You stepped over Marshall, sitting yourself down in the spot you used to sit in nearly every night when you were together. You heard him breathe in shakily as you looked at him again.

"Why'd you quit, Marshall?" you asked lowly.

"I don't want to do it anymore," he said in a barely audible whisper, "Hurts too much."

"Mar-" He cut you off.

"So much of me has been missing since you left, Y/N," he shook his head, not caring that he was already starting to tear up, "I can't focus on doing the one thing that cost me  _you_. Being a cowboy may have been my dream when I was a kid, but my dream  _changed_  when I met you. I wanted to be able to provide for you and save up so we could buy a little house and we could get married..." Your heart skipped a beat when he mentioned marriage. "I wanted to buy you a nice ring and spend the rest of my life with you and the only way I was gonna be able to do that was by winning the prize money from all those competitions."

"Mar..." you whispered, turning your body toward him and putting your hands on his cheeks, wiping his tears with your thumbs.

"I've never wanted  _anything_  more than I want  _you_ ," he sniffled, "I've lasted eight seconds on countless horses and bulls in the last six years, but you...  _You_  were going to be my longest ride. I'm  _so_  sorry I was so wrapped up in the rodeos, Y/N," he shook his head lightly, "I  _never_  wanted you to feel like I didn't care about you or what you wanted. I just wanted to make you happy, but I  _lost you_  instead."

"You haven't lost me, Mar," you murmured, "I shouldn't have overreacted; I shouldn't have bottled up how I felt for so long."

"You didn't overreact, princess," he said, placing a hand on your thigh and rubbing circles with his thumb, "I should have paid attention to you more. And I promise I will if you give me another chance."

"Yeah," you whispered, nodding slightly.

Marshall sighed in relief, sliding his hand up your hip and around your back, tugging you onto his lap. You repositioned yourself to sit on his thighs with your legs wrapped around his waist. His hands went to your hips and he held you firmly as if he was scared you were going to get up and leave at any moment. He leaned in until his forehead was on yours, your noses were touching, and you could feel each other's breaths on your lips.

"Can I kiss you?" he asked softly.

" _Please_ ," you breathed.

Marshall pressed his lips to yours and you both sighed in content. You missed the feeling of Marshall's lips more than anything, and you were happy you  _weren't_  dreaming for once.

When you returned home, you  _honestly_  didn't think Marshall was going to want anything to do with you. But to find out that he was still wanted you  _just_  as much as you wanted him... It was beyond  _anything_  you ever could have asked for.

"I love you  _so much_ , princess," Marshall mumbled in between kisses, making the corner of your mouth twitch slightly.

"I love you too, Mar," you replied, squirming a bit when you felt his thumbs dig into your hipbone.

He continued doing this – pressing down and clawing at your skin – knowing you loved it when he did. You whimpered his name softly a few times, feeling him smirk every single time.

"You sound so sexy when you do that, princess," he told you, kissing you roughly. You retaliated by grinding your hips hard against his, making him let out your own name in a loud, straggled moan.

"You sound sexy when you do  _that_ ," you gave him a smirk of your own, grinding again. He was becoming a whining mess underneath you and you were loving every second of it.

" _Y/N_ ," he moaned again quietly, "I'm not going to last much longer if you keep doing that, princess."

You suddenly got off of his lap, making him whine in protest. He heard the passenger door open and then close again a few seconds later. You climbed back on top of him, resting your knees on either side of his legs.

"You still keep these in your glove box?" you snickered, holding up the condom packet in your hand.

Marshall took hold of your hips again, forcing you to grind on him that time for some sort of relief. He let out another shaky moan, his fingers moving toward the button on your shorts. He was struggling a bit, so you grabbed his hands, helping him unbutton them. You got off of him to slide the shorts down your legs, turning back just in time to see him wiggling his jeans off.

"Eager, are we?" you grinned slyly. You went to get back on him, but he stopped you.

"These might as well come off now too," Marshall murmured, his fingers running along the band of your panties. You leaned forward, pressing your lips to his.

"Only if  _yours_  do," you whispered, your finger hooking around the waistband of his own underwear. You both immediately took them off, admiring each other for a moment before Marshall's hands were on your bare hips, pulling you back onto his lap. You wasted no more time in ripping the condom packet open and sliding it onto his erection. He tried to nudge you off of him so he could lay you down, but you pushed his shoulders back against the window, making him groan.

"You gonna ride me, princess?" he asked hoarsely. Your lips found his once again, kissing along his cheekbone all the way to his ear.

"You gonna let me, baby?" you whispered.

"I'll let you do whatever you want," he chuckled, feeling you smile as your lips returned to his.

"Be careful what you wish for," you smirked, taking him in your hands and slowly lining him up with your entrance. His nails dug roughly into your skin as a way of telling you he didn't like your teasing.

"Princess, just-" He didn't even get to finish the sentence before you sank down onto him, causing the both of you to let throaty moans. "You feel so good, princess," Marshall's chest visibly rose and fell. You whimpered softly as he helped you move your hips, hitting you in all the right places, and buried your fingers in his hair.

" _Mar_ ," you gasped.

"I know, princess," he swallowed thickly, knowing you were close, "Me too." He pulled you down as low as he could, pushing his lips onto yours, muffling the loud moans coming out of your mouth. "Just let go, princess," he said against your lips and your walls clenched around him. Feeling your orgasm was enough to make him reach his own, and your head fell onto his shoulder as you both remained still, breathing heavily and coming down from your highs. "I love you," Marshall murmured, turning his head to kiss your nose. You smiled slightly, pressing your lips to his jaw.

"I love you too," you sighed. You both groaned softly as you lifted yourself up and he pulled out of you, still a bit sensitive. He took the condom off, tying it off and putting it to the side.

"Remind me to throw that away later," he told you. You giggled as you got off of his lap and you both put your clothes back on.

Marshall reached in the window and grabbed the blanket he always kept in his truck. You cuddled up to his side and he wrapped his arm around you before laying the blanket over the two of you. You didn't realize just how tired you were until Marshall kissed your forehead before you laid your head back on his shoulder. You sighed in content and closed your eyes, breathing him in.

"I've missed you, Mar," you said as you kissed his neck softly.

"I've missed you more, princess," he replied, squeezing you gently.

"You'll still love me even when I go back to Austin, right?" you swallowed thickly. Marshall heard the break in your voice and put his hand on your cheek, coaxing you to tilt your head and look at him. When you did, he smiled lovingly at you.

"Whether you're in Arlington or Austin or New York City, I will  _always_  love you, Y/N," he said firmly but softly at the same time, "You are the love of my life and if I have to move to Austin with you to prove that to you, then you just say the word and I'll be there." You furrowed your eyebrows at him.

"You would leave your family and your horses and your  _life_..." you whispered, "You would leave all that for  _me_?"

"I would do  _anything_  for you, Y/N – you know that."

"I... I can't ask you to just  _drop_  everything, Mar," you shook your head, "Not when I travel for work so much. I'm hardly ever  _home_..."

"Then you tell me when you have days off and I'll come down to visit you," he compromised, "This isn't  _about_  leaving Arlington, princess; This is about me wanting to give you everything I never did for the last five years. I want you to know that I support you and your job and everything you want to do in your life and I am  _not_  about to take everything you've done for me and everything you put up with for granted again." You felt your eyes get watery, but before Marshall could wipe the tears away, your lips were back on his. His thumb ran back and forth along your cheekbone as your hand came up to his chest, resting right over his heart. "I love you so much, princess," he mumbled into the kiss, "Please say you'll be mine again." He felt the corners of your mouth twitch into a small smile as your fingers danced slightly on his chest.

"I'll  _always_  be yours, Mar," you said softly, making him kiss you harder.


	307. The Longest Ride (Marshall Traver) - Part 3

**Warning: Contains a lil bit of smut**

~

**The next morning**

" _Princess_ ," you woke up to Marshall groaning and feeling of your phone vibrating against your leg, "Answer your phone before I throw it into the lake."

"Do it and I'll drown you," you grumbled, sitting up and rubbing your eyes before pulling your cell out of your pocket.

"I'd like to see you  _try_ , princess," he smiled sleepily.

You looked at the screen and noticed you had three missed calls from your mom and six texts from Nate. You looked at the time and groaned softly, realizing it was 9:43am and you were supposed to leave at 9:30 so you could get to the fair and talk to people before the crowd arrived.

" _Fuck_ ," you groaned, quickly texting Nate back that you would be right there.

"What?" Marshall yawned, sitting up.

"Nate and I were supposed to be leaving for Dallas at 9:30 to interview people before the fair got started," you sighed. You got up and hopped out of the bed of the truck, but Marshall quickly stopped you.

"I'll take you home," he told you, jumping onto the ground beside you, "Can't have you running back and getting all sweaty before you go on camera." You let out an unintentional giggle, making Marshall wrap an arm around your waist and pull you into him. His lips hit yours and you smiled as he pulled away. He opened the passenger door for you before going around to the driver's side.

Marshall's hand was on your thigh the entire ride home, allowing you to play with his fingers. When he pulled up your driveway, Nate and your mom were talking on the porch and they looked over when they heard the truck. You could see the confused glances they gave each other as you and Marshall hopped out of the car, heading over to them.

"I'm  _so_  sorry, Nate," you let out an exasperated sigh, "I  _just_  woke up."

"It's fine, Y/N," he chuckled, "It's not like we  _have_  to be there so early anyway."

"Where is everybody?" you asked your mom in reference to your dad and brothers.

"They already went to Dallas to get ready for the competition," she answered, "I was just waiting with Nathan before I left to make sure you got back."

"I told her I'd be fine alone," Nate grinned, "But she insisted."

"Sounds about right," you nodded with a small smile, "Well, we should get going." He nodded as well, standing up. Your mom got up with him and hugged you. "You sure you'll be fine going alone?" you asked – your mother hated Dallas traffic more than most people.

"I can take her," Marshall finally spoke, making you all look at him.

"You know..." Nate trailed off, "I could always drive your mom there if you wanted to go with him..." In that statement, you knew he knew that you'd both worked everything out. "You can get changed and do whatever," he chirped, "We'll see you in Dallas." He quickly ushered your mom to the news van, leaving you and Marshall alone on your front porch.

"He seems nice," Marshall commented as the van left the driveway, making you let out an unintentionally loud laugh. He looked back at you when Nate pulled out onto the road with a small smirk on his face.

"Don't look at me like that," you demanded, "Whenever you look at me like that, it means clothes are about to come off."

"You say that like it's a  _bad_  thing," he chuckled, following you into the house.

"It is when I'm already late for work and don't have  _any_  spare time at all," you countered, trotting up the stairs and into your bedroom.

"C'mon, princess," he pouted as you dug through your bags to find something nice to wear, "I'll be quick. Honest."

" _Mar_ ," you sighed.

Marshall came up behind you, wrapping his arms around your waist and pulling your back to his chest. His lips hit the weak spot on your neck immediately, making you swallow back a moan. You felt him smirk, knowing he could sense you were coming undone all over again.

"Mar... W-We  _can't_..."

"Then at least let me help you get dressed, princess," he whispered roughly and you instantly gave in, nodding your head.

Marshall's fingers were already working on the button of your shorts, your nod being the only thing he needed to push the denim down your legs. His hands squeezing your thighs before sliding back up to the hem of your shirt. He pulled it over your head and tossed it in the direction of your hamper, not actually caring whether or not it went in. He then put his hand on your cheek, turning you around so he could kiss you properly. You wrapped your arms around his neck, your fingers combing through his hair.

"You're so beautiful, princess," Marshall murmured into the kiss, feeling you smile, "I love you so much."

"I love you too, Mar," you responded softly. As much as you didn't want to, you had to stop him from going further, knowing very well that this wasn't getting you any closer to going to the fairgrounds.

" _Princess_ ," he whined.

"You  _know_  I want to keep going, Mar," you giggled, "But at this rate, I'm going to get sweaty and I'd have to take a shower and I  _really_  don't have the time."

"Tonight then?" You looked at him and he stuck his bottom lip out, making you roll your eyes.

"If you behave yourself today," you promised him, grabbing a change of clothes and going into your bathroom so you could get ready.

After getting dressed, brushing your hair and teeth, and doing your makeup, you and Marshall were on the road to Dallas. Much like the ride home from the lake, his hand was on your thigh and you were playing with his fingers while the radio was playing softly. He would sing the songs he knew when they came on, making you smile slightly.

Most people didn't know it since Marshall was mainly known around town for his rodeo skills, but he was quite an amazing singer as well. Of course, that skill was usually saved for you on the nights you couldn't sleep or the times when you were on long car rides together.

Once you arrived at the fairgrounds, you met with Nate at the news van and Marshall went to go talk to your brothers, stating he was going to offer them some advice for the rodeo later that evening. He pecked your lips before walking away, causing Nate to smile knowingly at you when you turned to look at him.

"Told you," he winked and you rolled your eyes at him.

"Let's get to work, camera boy," you stated, grabbing your microphone.

"You love me and you know it," he chuckled, lifting his camera onto his shoulder and closing the van door, following you to the rodeo arena. Upon entering the arena, you saw all the contestants preparing for the evening.

" _Y/N_!" one of them cheered, " _You're home_!" The rest of the cowboys in that small group looked at you, their faces lighting up. You'd know these boys ever since Tyler started competing in rodeos, getting to know them even better when you started dating Marshall.

"Hi, guys!" you beamed, bouncing over to them and hugging the five that were standing there.

"How have you been?" the same one, Dakota, asked, "How's life in Austin?"

"Can't complain," you laughed lightly, "How about you guys? You ready for the show tonight?"

"Yeah," he chuckled, "With Marshall not competing this year, we might actually have a chance at  _winning_."

"I don't know about  _that_ ," Daniel commented, "Those brothers of hers-" He nudged your arm. "-have been getting pretty good."

"Plus, he's over there talking to 'em, so we've  _definitely_  got our work cut out for us," Miles shook his head with a small laugh of his own.

You looked over your shoulder and noticed Marshall was still talking to your brothers. Sensing someone's gaze, he looked up, smiling when he saw you. He winked at you, making you blush and turn back to the group.

"So you two back together?" Dakota asked.

"To be fair, I think you already know the answer to that," you grinned shyly.

"Well, we hope this gives you more incentive to visit home more often," Miles teased. You rolled your eyes and shoved him a bit.

" _Anyway_ ," you stated, "Nate and I-" You motioned to where Nate was standing beside you since you hadn't actually introduced them. "-are covering the fair for the station and we wanted to do some interviews before everything kicks off. Is that cool?"

"Anything for  _you_ , Y/N," Dakota smiled. You all decided that you would talk to them together and those who wanted to talk could just do it.

After finishing up, you hugged the boys one last time before you and Nate made your way to the other side of the arena. You interviewed your brothers and Marshall separately, then you and Nate decided to walk around and get footage of the fairgrounds as well as talk to a few people here and there.

Once you got back to the arena, Marshall practically  _begged_  you to take a break and get lunch with him. Nate didn't hesitate to take the microphone out of your hand and usher the two of you off.

Your breakup – for  _whatever_  reason – had been the talk of the town for the last two years. People noticed right away that Marshall seemed a lot sadder after you left and he'd finally gotten so annoyed with the constant questions about it that he'd just  _blurted it out_  one day at a competition. He didn't really  _mean_  to say it, but it seemed like everyone and their  _brother_  wouldn't let it go.

So when you and Marshall walked to a tent where someone was selling burgers – the same place you  _always_  went to get something to eat at the fair – the person running it greeted you cheerfully, happy to see you two back together.

And after you were done and wanted to play some games, the people running those booths – as well as people along the way – had the same look on their faces upon seeing Marshall's arm around your waist, three of his fingers stuck in your back pocket.

And since you'd previously been together for two years before that, absolutely  _no one_  was surprised when you and Marshall announced your engagement when you came back to visit three months later.


	308. Mischief Managed (Ashton Irwin) - Part 1

The first day of your first year at Hogwarts was nerve-racking to say the least. You had been far too shy to approach anyone on the train on the way there, so you had no one that could help you make your transition into the wizarding school easier. You simply followed the crowd of other first years as they followed Professor McGonagall to the Great Hall, sitting down in preparation for the sorting ceremony and feast.

But sitting on the chair with the Sorting Hat on your head and everyone watching was a  _whole new level_ of nervousness.

" _Ah_!" the Sorting Hat exclaimed once it was placed on your head, "Finally, a  _challenging_  sort! Very brave qualities, but also an incredibly brilliant mind. Yes, I know just where to put you...  _Slytherin_!"

Now, you believed that the Sorting Hat would never place a student in the wrong house, but you couldn't say that you were a little surprised. Growing up, your father always told you that your mother was  _sure_  you'd be a Gryffindor – but since she had been a Gryffindor  _herself_ , maybe she was just being  _biased_.

Everyone watched as you made your way to the Slytherin table, a bit bewildered to say the least. You didn't really  _look_  the part of a Slytherin, but then again, they didn't know you; For all they knew, you were the  _picture perfect member_  of the Hogwarts house.

Your eyes met the bright blue ones of a blonde boy, the black piercing in his lip contrasting the paleness of his skin. He smiled at you, patting the open seat next to him. You smiled shyly, climbing over the bench and sitting down.

"Hi!" the boy said cheerfully, "I'm Luke!"

"Y/N," you smiled back.

"Don't worry," he chuckled, "When I was a first year last year, no one thought I would be a Slytherin either."

"You kind of look the part though," you commented, pointing to the corner of your mouth where his lip ring was located on his.

"I got this thing so I  _did_  look the part," he laughed, "But once people get to know you, they'll come to understand why you were sorted here."

"Even  _me_?"

" _Even_  you," he nodded.

When sorting was over and the feast began, Luke introduced you to all of his friends in the Slytherin house. It wasn't until you were finished eating that he introduced you to his three best friends, who were in different houses.

"Ash," Luke turned, patting the shoulder of a boy sitting at the Hufflepuff table. The brown-haired boy didn't even seem to glance at Luke before his eyes were on you, showing off his dimples as he smiled. "Ash, this is Y/N. Y/N, this is Ashton," Luke told you, "He's a Hufflepuff, but I still like him anyway." Ashton rolled his eyes.

"Very funny, Luke," he said monotonously before smiling at you again. "It's nice to meet you, Y/N! You can just call me Ash if you want. Everyone else does," he chirped, "And don't let Luke get you into  _too much_  trouble."

" _Please_ ," the blonde scoffed, "If  _anyone's_  going to get her in trouble, it would  _Calum and Michael_. They're in Gryffindor, so we'll meet them later," he explained, causing you to nod, "They always seem to be getting into  _some_  kind of mischief, but they never invite  _me_." You giggled softly, not even noticing the way the corner of Ashton's mouth twitched when you did. "Anyway, the boys and I always go the Secret Garden after these feasts to hang out," Luke said, "Do you want to come with us?"

You paused for a moment, sure that a first year would need to be doing something else. But you slowly nodded your head, earning yourself a smile from the two boys looking at you. These two were your only friends at Hogwarts so far and you didn't want to mess that up by playing it safe.

After you were released from the Great Hall, everyone left to do their own things. Luckily, the castle tours for first years weren't being conducted for another hour, so you figured it was safe to go with Luke.

Upon entering the hallway just outside the doors, you saw two boys adorned in Gryffindor colors – one with a blonde stripe in his hair and one with an eyebrow piercing – waiting. They grinned once they saw Luke and Ashton coming toward them, you trailing a bit behind.

"Y/N, this is Calum and Michael," Luke informed you, pointing to each of them, "Guys, this is Y/N."

"Pleasure to meet you, Y/N," Michael smiled, holding his hand out. You took it and he brought your hand to his lips, kissing the back of it. You swallowed thickly, sure your face was about as red as a ripe tomato by now.

"Alright, Mike," Calum slapped his friend's hand so he released you. "Sorry about him," he shook his head, shaking your hand, "He tends to blur the lines of boundaries with girls."

"Just trying to be nice," Michael said defensively, throwing his arms up before looking at you, "But if I ever make you uncomfortable, please tell me and I'll stop." You smiled shyly and nodded.

"So, you coming with us to the Secret Garden?" Calum asked you.

"Well, I... Um... L-Luke invited me," you tripped over your words a bit.

"Awesome!" he beamed, "We better get going before someone else gets there though so we have it to ourselves."

The other three boys agreed and Michael grabbed your hand, pulling you along with them as they ran down the hallway. You squeaked in surprise, but your legs managed to keep up with them.

They went to the second floor and through a corridor in what looked like one of the Professors' office before you found yourself in the Rear Hall. You furrowed your eyebrows, seeing no other door in the room. But the group took you – Michael still holding your hand – to a bookshelf across the room.

Luke and Ashton pushed the bookshelf to the side slightly, just enough for their bodies to get through to the other side. You watched in awe as Michael tugged you toward the entrance to the garden, releasing your hand so you could follow them through. After you were through the door, Ashton and Luke pushed the bookshelf back into place so no one knew you all were there.

You looked around the garden; It was pretty plain – nothing more than a patch of grass secluded from the rest of the castle – but it was fairly quiet. You could hear students laughing  _somewhere_ – but where exactly that  _was_ , you had no idea.

"A  _Slytherin_ , huh?" Calum asked, bring you out of your daydream. You all sat down in the middle of the garden since there wasn't really any place in the shade.

You shrugged in response, "My mom always thought I'd be a Gryffindor, but I guess not."

"So were your parents both Gryffindors?" Luke spoke up.

"My mom was," you said, "My dad moved to London from America and that was how they met, so if I switch between English and American accents sometimes, I apologize." The boys chuckled softly.

"So you're half-muggle?" Michael smirked slightly.

"Yeah," you laughed under your breath, "My dad wanted me to stay in America and go to school there, but my mom always wanted me to come to Hogwarts. She said that being half wizard was something that made me special and that if I came here, I wouldn't have to hide it all the time."

"Was she excited when you go your letter then?" Ashton asked.

"She would have been," you barely smiled, "She died when I was eight, but she would have been  _so_  happy."

"Oh, I'm sorry," he said solemnly, probably thinking it was a touchy subject for you. And while you  _did_  miss your mother, it wasn't ever something you hated talking about.

"It's okay," you assured him, sending him a friendly smile so he knew you were alright with him asking about her.

"Did your mum ever tell your dad about her powers?" Michael asked curiously.

"I mean, she obviously  _had to_  after I was born," you giggled, "I think she knew she couldn't keep it from him  _forever_ , but after she had me, I would always have the random bursts of magic. My dad didn't really notice until I was about three."

"What happened?"

"He would always find me in the backyard talking to animals," you shook your head with a smile, "He couldn't understand what the animals were saying, but I think he could tell I did. He yelled for my mom and that was when she told him everything."

"Why didn't she tell him before that?"

"My dad told me it was because she was afraid he was going to leave her if he knew," you smiled at the memory of all the times your father told you about her, "As if he  _wasn't_  madly in love with her."

"He tell you a lot of stories about her?" Ashton grinned at your smile.

"I can never walk into the same  _room_  as him without hearing another story about her," you laughed, "His favorite one to tell me was when he was teaching me how to ride my bike without training wheels. I started coming up off the ground like I was on a broomstick and my dad was freaking out, but my mom was just sitting on the back deck laughing at him. That was one of the last times we ever heard her laugh, but it was one of the many that reminded him why he loved her so much. I like that story a lot."

"She sounds like an amazing woman," he said.

"She was," you smiled to yourself.

You suddenly heard a voice outside of the walls calling out to all first years to meet back at the Great Hall for tours.

"I'll take you back," Luke said as he stood up, "Mike was practically dragging you along, so I'm sure you don't know where you are." Michael scoffed with a roll of his eyes, making you giggle as you took the hand Luke was offering you. He pulled you to your feet, addressing the boys again. "I'll be right back," he said, earning a nod.

"Bye, Y/N!" they said in unison. You smiled shyly and waved before Luke led you out of the garden.

"Sorry if they're a bit overwhelming sometimes," Luke told you as you walked down the hallway, "You'll get used to it."

"I like them," you said softly, "They're really nice."

"Well, these tours only take a couple hours or so," he explained, "Would you wanna hang out with us again before curfew?"

"How will I know where you are?"

Luke chuckled lightly, "One of us will come find you, don't worry."

"Yeah," you nodded, "I'll hang out."

"Cool!" he grinned, "We'll see you later then." You approached a group of people standing in front of someone Luke had introduced you to earlier.

" _Ah_!" he said when he saw you, " _There's_  my last first year!" You blushed lightly at the attention as he continued, "I'm not at all surprised that Hemmings was the one keeping you behind."

"Hey, I got her here, didn't I, Malcolm?" Luke smirked.

"Fair enough," Slytherin's head boy laughed, "Now if you'll excuse us, Luke, I've got a tour to conduct."

"Don't get lost, Chase!" Luke called over his shoulder, "See you later, Y/N!" You blushed again and Chase shook his head, beginning the tour.


	309. Mischief Managed (Ashton Irwin) - Part 2

**Five years later**

You and the boys had grown incredibly close in your five years at Hogwarts. You were never seen without  _one of them_  at your side – usually Luke since he was in your house – and absolutely  _no one_  was surprised to hear about the events leading up to when one of those boys admitted his feeling for you.

It was a Friday evening; dinner was almost over and you decided to wanted to go out to Hogsmaede before curfew. You just got up – not even thinking to tell Luke where you were going since he'd been busy talking to someone else. He  _did_  notice you walk out of the room, however, but he just figured you were going to the bathroom.

~

You were trotting back toward the castle a couple hours later when you stopped halfway along the path. You stood there, admiring the Whomping Willow – despite the fact that you'd seen it literally  _hundreds_  of times in the last five years – when your heart nearly stopped.

Coming out of the Forbidden Forest was a  _huge_  forest troll, holding its club at its side. It hadn't noticed you yet, but you definitely weren't about to stand around and wait for it to.

It was  _also_  right about now that you  _deeply_  regretted not telling Luke where you were going. True, he could  _easily_  walk outside and find you, but you should have at least given him a  _time_  you thought you'd be back.

You knew there was no way you could get to the castle without the troll spotting you; You didn't even know if you could get to the  _Quidditch Pitch_  without it spotting you – God knows the Whomping Willow didn't offer much protection – but you didn't have any other choice so you had to run.

While the troll was distracted by an animal running past it, you made a break for it. You'd never run so fast in your  _life_ , and when you finally made it to the pitch, you darted under the bleachers.

But unfortunately, with your luck, the troll turned at just the right time and caught a glimpse of your hair flying just before you disappeared behind the corner.

You quietly cursed under your breath when you heard the troll approaching. You held your breath, your mouth covered by the palms of your hands, as you hid,  _praying_  it wouldn't find you. You could hear it getting closer and closer before you heard a voice – it sounded like it was only on the path between the pitch and the forest – yelling out.

" _Hey_ ,  _tiny_! Why don't you pick on somebody your  _own_  size?!"

And your heart  _stopped_  when you realized it was  _Ashton_.

You were suddenly more terrified of  _him_  getting hurt than  _yourself_  as you heard the troll walk away and follow the new sound. You scrambled out of your hideout and peeked around the corner. You watched Ashton lead the troll back toward the Forbidden Forest.

You couldn't hear what Ashton was saying, but he pulled out his wand and it was clear he'd used the Wingardium Leviosa charm to pluck the club from the troll's hand. After dashing away from the edge of the forest, he ended up behind the troll and swung his wand as hard as he could so the club knocked the troll back into the forest. Ashton then used the Stupefy spell to knock the troll out, causing it to collapse so it couldn't follow him anymore. The moment the troll hit the ground, you were bolting toward the brown-haired boy.

Ashton spun around when he heard someone coming up behind him, but when he realized it was you, he shoved his wand back into his boot and his arms wrapped around your waist the second you reached him. You were breathing heavily,  _understandably_  in tears, and held onto Ashton like your life depended on it. He let out a deep sigh of relief and held you just as tightly, knowing you were safe now.

"Come on, Y/N," Ashton said softly, "We have to get back to the castle before the spell wears off."

You reluctantly let go of him, allowing him to take your hand and walk you the short distance back. Once you made it into the Entrance Hall, Ashton turned to face you again. He released your hand and held your shoulders so you couldn't walk away.

"What on  _earth_  were you doing out there, Y/N?" Ashton asked you, the usual cheerful expression absent in his eyes.

"I wanted to go to Hogsmaede before curfew," you mumbled, not daring to look directly at him, "And on my way back, I was looking at the Whomping Willow when that troll came out of the forest, so I went to hide in the Quidditch Pitch while it was distracted, but it saw me anyway."

"You shouldn't have gone out  _alone_ , Y/N," he said.

"Don't you think I  _know that_ , Ashton?" you snapped, shoving his arms away from you, "I don't need  _you_  to tell me I fucked up."

You pushed past him to leave, but Ashton reached for your hand, moving back in front of you. Without ever releasing your hand, he grabbed your chin and made you look at him.

"You  _didn't_  fuck up, Y/N," he said softly, "You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. But you're lucky I got there when I  _did_. That thing could have  _killed you_." You stood nervously under his gaze, unsure of exactly what he was thinking about. "I don't know  _what_  I'd do without you," he whispered.

"Ash," you swallowed thickly, "What are you saying?"

"Y/N..." he trailed off, "Can I... Can I kiss you?" You heart skipped a beat and you opened your mouth, but no words were coming out, so all you could do was nod.

Ashton's lips were soft against yours, never feeling too over-powering – allowing you to get comfortable with him. When he felt you sigh and kiss back though, he smiled ever-so-slightly, finally letting go of your hand so he could hold your lower back instead. Your own hands moved up to ball up the area of his sweater that was covering his collarbones, pulling his body closer to yours. He slid his hand to hold your cheek rather than your chin, his thumb barely stroking your cheekbone.

But unfortunately, your moment was interrupted.

"Well, it is  _about damn time_!" Michael exclaimed.

You and Ashton pulled away from each other, you looking at the boys directly as they came down the staircase and Ashton looking over his should so he didn't have to let go of you. You blushed at the fact that they had  _clearly_  just seen you kissing Ashton, letting your hands slide around his torso so you could bury your face in his chest shyly.

Ashton simply chuckled, bringing his own arms around your shoulders. He leaned down and peppered the exposed side of your face with kisses, making you squeal in surprise before falling into a fit of laughter. The boys smiled as Ashton stopped his silly attack, letting you calm down. You let out a sigh of content, tightening your hold on Ashton and snuggling further into his chest.

"So where did you run off to after dinner, Y/N?" Luke asked you.

"Yeah," Calum agreed, "It was like as soon as you were finished eating, you were gone." You mumbled into Ashton's sweater and he leaned down to whisper in your ear so the others couldn't hear him.

"You wanting me to tell them?" he asked you. You hummed in acknowledgement and he kissed the top of your jaw before looking back up and speaking normally. "She went to Hogsmaede for a while and when she was coming back, a troll came out of the Forbidden Forest." Their eyes widened as he went on, "I distracted it long enough to get it back to the forest, knocked him out, and got Y/N back inside before the spell wore off."

"You  _knocked out_  a forest troll?" Michael cocked an eyebrow skeptically, "How the hell did you manage  _that_?"

"Wait," Calum said, "Did you say _'before the spell wore off_ '?" Ashton simply nodded. "Mate, you  _know_  we're not supposed to be using magic outside of school!" he exclaimed softly, not wanting anyone that could possibly be around to hear, "You could get in serious trouble or lose house points for that!"

"I'll give up every point I have to my name until the day I leave this school if I have to," Ashton shook his head, "I am  _not_  about to let that troll or anything like it touch my girl." He felt you smile and squeeze him gently, earning yourself another kiss to the head.

" _Yuck_ ," Michael gagged jokingly, "You two are so cute, it makes me  _sick_."

"Sick... Jealous; Same thing," Luke shrugged, making Michael shove him lightly.

Suddenly, Professor McGonagall came out from around the corner, startling the five of you. All of your eyes widened,  _knowing_  that she'd heard everything just by seeing the look on her face.

"I would ask you five to explain what you're doing in the entrance hall so close to curfew," she said, an eyebrow raised as she stopped beside your group, "But I  _do_  believe I've heard enough."

By this point, you had moved your face slightly so you could look at the Professor, finding her already looking at you. You swallowed thickly, tightening your grip on Ashton, but you could have  _sworn_  you saw her smile at you.

"Although I should be taking away points for the use of magic outside of a classroom, Mr. Irwin," Professor McGonagall went on, turning her gaze to him, "I cannot simply ignore the fact that you very clearly saved Miss Y/L/N's life." You and the boys looked at her, confused as to what she was leading up to. "Therefore," she said, "I will be awarding 50 points to Hufflepuff for your bravery and quick thinking." With your ear pressed to his chest, you could clearly hear Ashton's breathing hitch. "Now you five get back to your dormitories; You have 5 minutes until curfew," she ordered.

While the boys congratulated Ashton on his points for his house, you glanced at Professor McGonagall as she walked away. She made eye contact with you, smiling just before she turned around. You couldn't help but smile as well, turning back into Ashton and hugging him tightly.

When the boys were finished giving him congratulatory shoves and teasingly ruffling his hair, they all said goodnight to each other. Calum and Michael went off to the Gryffindor dorms, while Luke stayed back for a moment. His gaze shifted between you and Ashton before he looked back at you and smirked slightly.

"I'll wait for you at the stairs," he stated, turning around and walking toward the way to the Slytherin dungeon.

Knowing you didn't have that much time, Ashton simply put two fingers under your chin, tilting your face up so he could press his lips to yours. You smiled as you kissed him back, making him smile in return.

"I'll see you in the morning, princess," Ashton told you, causing you to blush lightly at your new nickname.

"Goodnight, Ash," you murmured. He pecked your lips one last time before releasing you, and you both dashed toward your dorms so you could make it to bed before curfew.

~

_inspiration: http://victimofthemusic.tumblr.com/post/131130869795/spellbound-calum-hood-hogwarts-au_

_i guess it's more so based on the first harry potter movie than that imagine, i was just reading it when i decided i wanted to write a hp au_


	310. One Last Time (Luke Hemmings)

**Warning: Contains smut**

~

The scene you currently found yourself in was a familiar one: You on the phone with your best friend the morning after Luke had long left your apartment. Kaylynn had listened to you whine about how you'd ended up falling in love with your friends with benefits buddy for the last few months – or  _10 years_ , as she put it. She was adamant about the fact that you should tell him, but you were just as adamant about the fact that you  _shouldn't_.

"I can't  _tell him_ , Kay!" you exclaimed.

"Well, why not?! It's not that hard! Just say, ' _Hey, Luke, I'm in love with you_ '!"

"Why would I say  _that_?!"

"Because it's  _true_!" she reminded you.

"Just because it's  _true_  doesn't mean I can just come out and  _say it_!" you told her, "When we started this thing, we swore  _no feelings_!"

"Oh,  _come on_! You knew from the  _get-go_  that wasn't going to work out!" Kaylynn groaned, "Those kinds of agreements  _always_  end up with someone having feelings for the other!"

"Not  _always_!" you insisted in a high-pitched tone.

"Y/N," she stated seriously, "Just tell him how you feel. What's the  _worst_  that could happen?"

"He could kick me out of his apartment and tell me to never contact him again," you shook your head despite the fact that she couldn't see you, "Just because we agreed to this being nothing more than a casual fuck doesn't mean I want to  _lose him_."

"You are  _insufferable_ ," she sighed, "You called for my advice and my advice is to come clean. Whether you choose to do that or not is up to your discretion, but that's all I've got for you." Kaylynn hung up before you could say anything else, making you groan and throw yourself back onto your mattress.

But what you  _didn't_  know was that on the other side of the door, Luke had heard your entire conversation, his heart  _racing_  at the thought of you feeling the same way as he did.

~

**Two weeks later**

It had been nearly  _two weeks_  since you and Luke last saw each other. You had texted him  _multiple_  times asking if he wanted to come over, but as far as you knew, he never read them – Lord knows the boy didn't have his read receipts turned on. You wouldn't be the last to admit you were starting to get worried – even though you and Luke really only met up for sex, he was still your friend and you still  _cared_  about him.

So the knock on your apartment door one night surprised you when you opened it and found Luke standing there.

" _Jesus Christ, Luke_ ," you let out a breath, "I get that we're only friends with benefits, but that doesn't mean you can just fall off the radar!" The blonde just stared at you, rocking back and forth lightly on his feet, his hands in front of him as he nervously played with his fingers. "Lu," you said, repeating the nickname you've said hundreds of times but it never failed to make his heart flutter, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," he finally spoke, "Just wanted to...apologize for not answering your texts the last couple weeks. I've been...um...busy..."

"Okay..." you cocked an eyebrow, "And you came all the way over here to say that  _because_...?"

"I... I don't know," he answered honestly, "I was bored, I guess... Wanted to get out of the house..."

"Well, I'm bored too and since you're already  _here_..." you trailed off, your gaze flicking to his lips for a brief moment.

And suddenly, the  _real_  reason Luke showed up was forgotten and he couldn't resist himself anymore – he could  _never_  resist himself around you.

He grabbed your face and his lips crashed onto yours. Your free hand landed on the back of his neck so you could pull him inside, closing the door behind him. His hands then moved to your waist and he mumbled for you to jump, so you did, letting him press your back up against the door.

But as things got more heated and you moved to your bedroom, you began to feel as though this night was different than all the other times you had hooked up.

Luke was going much slower than he usually did, making sure his lips spent extra time in the places he knew made you shudder. When you begged him to do something, his teasing seemed like it would drag on and on. He was ignoring the treatment of his own pleasure for the sake of yours, almost as if he wanted you to know that he'd been paying attention to the things he did that made you feel good. And when he was finally inside of you, his thrusts weren't as fast-paced as they had been previously – they were slow and caring and he  _wanted_  you to feel as amazing as you possibly could.

"Lu," you moaned breathlessly, making him hum into the skin on your neck that he was currently biting, "Do something else."

"Like what, princess?" he asked gruffly.

" _Anything_!" you whined, "Go faster, harder –  _I don't care_  – just do  _something_!"

"I can't."

" _Why_?"

"If this is going to be the last time we ever do this, I want to savor every moment of it," he answered honestly. You suddenly grabbed his face, pushing him up so you could look at him.

"Why would this be the last time we do this?" you asked, your heart sinking at the thought.

Luke looked back at you fondly as if he was burning your face into his memory so he never forgot what it looked like. He leaned down, pressing a deep kiss to your lips.

"I love you, Y/N," he said as seriously as he'd ever sounded before when he pulled away, "And I realize that the sincerity of that statement might seem a little off-putting due to my being as deep as I can possibly be inside of you right now, but  _God, Y/N_ , I've never loved  _anyone_  the way I love you. And if you're going to push me away or shut me out or move on from me because of that, then I want to make sure I remember every little sound you make and the way your breathing changes when I move a certain way and-"

"You're not just saying that, are you?" you asked worriedly, "You really  _are_  in love with me?"

"I know I could have picked a better moment than this," he chuckled, bashfully hiding his face in your neck, "I was going to tell you when I got here, but I chickened out and you said since I was here and I didn't want two weeks ago to be the last time if me admitting I broke the agreement was going to make you leave, so I just... I had to do this one last time."

"' _One last time_ '?" you furrowed your eyebrows.

"Well, yeah..." he replied shyly, "We swore this would be nothing more than casual and I ended up falling in love with you... I didn't think you would-" You cut him off again – this time, by kissing him as deeply as you could.

It wasn't the kind of kiss that was just to shut him up or that of not wanting to hear anything else he had to say just to reach your climax faster; This kiss was full of passion and happiness and  _love,_ because now you  _finally_  knew that Luke felt the same way.

"I love you, Lu," you breathed, your thumbs stroking his cheekbones. He pulled back, clearly very surprised by the confession.

"You  _do_?" he whispered, almost as if he were trying to convince himself that he'd heard you correctly.

"Mhmm," you hummed, pecking his nose. He let out a sigh of relief, his breath fanning across your face and making you giggle softly which made him smile in return.

"I never thought I'd be able to hear you say that, princess," Luke admitted.

"Me either, Lu," you said, pulling his face back to yours.

~

_inspiration: http://tadpolehemmings.tumblr.com/post/147205413226/girls-talk-boys-luke-smut_


	311. Out of the Woods (Maxx Danziger) - Part 1

**Warning: Kidnapping, mentions of death**

~

_Flashback_

" _Y/N_!" you heard your younger brother shout. You spun around, your eyes widening as you saw he was being dragged away by a militia officer.

" _Jace_!" you screamed, running after them.

You grabbed his arm, only to be pushed back by the man who was taking him. The officer didn't so much as breathe loud enough for you to hear – of course, that may have been because you were too busy tumbling to the ground.

There were tears streaming down Jace's face as he was being shoved into a car. He pounded on the back window, calling your name as you ran toward the car. Unfortunately, it immediately sped off, leaving you behind knowing there was no way you'd be able to catch it on foot.

And that was when you started to panic.

You ran in the opposite direction, back to the house where your friends were waiting. You stormed into the house, making them all jump. Their heads snapped up and they watched you slam the door behind you. They looked at each other for a moment before following you into the bedroom where you kept all your gear.

"Where have you been?" Cody exclaimed, "We've been worried sick!"

"Where's the food?" Zach asked.

" _Where's your brother_...?" Maxx trailed off, making the boys' eyes widen.

"What are you doing?" Dan asked you.

You grabbed a backpack, filling it partially with the non-perishable foods you kept in case of emergencies, as much ammo as you could foresee yourself needing, and a couple of the spare handguns.

"Are we even  _here_  right now?!" Maxx shouted. You closed the backpack and stood up, grabbing your usual gun, finally looking at the boys. He let out a deep breath, "Would you mind telling us what's going on now? Where's Jace?"

"Those assholes took my brother," you stated through gritted teeth, "And I'm going to get him  _back_."

"Wait, the militia  _took Jace_?" Dan furrowed his eyebrows.

You didn't say anything; you just stomped back out the door. The boys looked at each other, all silently agreeing that you were officially insane. They quickly chased after you, reaching you once you'd gotten to the street in front of the house.

"You are  _actually_  crazy if you're thinking about going alone," Cody told you.

"Well, I'm sure as hell not going to sit around and wait for a fucking  _search party_ ," you spat, not even so much as glancing over your shoulder.

"You're  _really_  going to take on the militia?" Dan raised an eyebrow.

"If I have to."

"What in God's name does  _that_  mean?" Zach spoke up.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Maxx said, grabbing your arm and spinning you to a stop, "You are  _not_  taking on  _the militia_ , Y/N."

" _Maxx_ ," you growled, "If you do not let go of me in the next three seconds,  _so help me God_ , I will-"

"No, you won't," he challenged, "You know you can't  _possibly_  take on something like the militia  _by yourself_!"

Your jaw tightened and you spun around so your back was to him. Now that you had better control, your elbow went straight to his stomach.

Maxx immediately released you with a loud groan and the other guys just watched in shock. He held his midsection in pain while you pushed the hair off of your face.

" _Watch me_ ," you mumbled, taking off in a run away from the group, mentally hoping none of them followed you.

And to your surprise,  _they didn't_.

_End flashback_

~

**Now; One month later**

Well,  _that_  was a stupid idea.

You'd been searching for Jace for nearly 5 weeks now, and you haven't found a  _single_  sign of him. There was no question that you were blaming yourself for his kidnapping and you were terrified that  _he_  blamed you too. Of course, he didn't – Jace  _knew_  you were doing  _everything_  you could to find him – but  _you_  didn't know that. You were  _consumed_  with anxiety and worry and not knowing what was happening to him.

But you knew  _one thing_  for sure; You were going to get him back no matter  _what_  you had to do.

It was mid-afternoon, the sky was cloudy so it wasn't as hot as it could have been that day which you were thankful for. You were nearing the end of your water supply, but you didn't want to veer away from your mission to find more.

You caught a break when you saw a building through the trees, darting behind one when you noticed a militia officer outside beside the door. You watched as another man opened the door and told him to come inside for a moment and that was when you sprang into action.

This  _had_  to be where Jace was, so you bravely snuck out from the forest and around the side of the building, careful to stay below the windows. You made it to the back and climbed the ladder to the roof. You remained low, not knowing if there were other militiamen outside but not wanting to take your chances. You looked around the roof, finding an air vent opening. Your eyes widened, the plan coming together in your mind almost immediately.

However, your thoughts were interrupted when you heard a voice coming from behind you.

"Y/N!" Maxx called up to you quietly, " _What_  do you think you're doing?"

"I  _think_  I'm getting my brother back,  _Maxx_ ," you stated with a low growl.

"You cannot possibly think that you go in there and get him  _alone_! Are you ready for our help yet?"

"I've got it covered, thank you!" you replied sarcastically. You heard his groan cut off and panic fill his voice.

"Then you should probably look behind you!" he warned.

You spun around to see the militia officer that had previously been guarding the door quickly coming up behind you. Your eyes widened again, having no idea how he got up there, and you ducked as he lunged forward. His arms missed you and he stumbled a bit.

In the midst of his stumble, you had attempted to run away, but the officer was too fast. He grabbed your forearm and pulled you back, leaving you with absolutely no other choice.

You elbowed his stomach – just as you'd done with Maxx – hard enough so that he would release you. When he did, you put your foot on his midsection and kicked him back. His calves hit the edge of the roof and he tumbled back over it. You had no idea whether or not the drop was high enough to kill him, but honestly, you didn't want to stick around long enough to  _find out_.

Maxx was waiting for you at the bottom of the ladder and the moment your feet touched the ground, he grabbed your hand and pulled you away from the building. You both ran through the forest for as long as you were physically able to, which ended up being a little less than a mile.

Once you got to a safe place, Maxx suddenly stopped and spun around.

"What  _the hell_  is wrong with you?" he asked harshly, his hands on your cheeks so you couldn't leave again.

The angered expression on your face was slowly fading and he knew it. When he saw you swallow the lump in your throat, his whole demeanor changed as well.

"It's  _okay_  to ask for help, Y/N," he said, softly stroking your jawline, "It's okay to  _need_  someone, it's okay to  _cry_ , it's okay to not  _always_  be the strongest person in the room." Your bottom lip trembled and you let out a defeated breath.

Maxx immediately dropped his hands to your waist, pulling you into him. Your arms went around his neck, hugging him tightly as you cried into his skin. He sighed in relief at your display of emotions, knowing all along that you were never as brave as you acted. He held onto you, keeping you close to him, wanting to assure you that you didn't have to do this alone.

"Why won't you just let us  _help you_?" Maxx asked simply.

"Because it's  _my fault_!" you sobbed, your voice muffled by his skin, "I wasn't  _watching him_ ; I  _let them_  take him! They already killed my  _parents_! He's all I have  _left_!"

"We're gonna find your brother, Y/N," he said softly, running his fingers through your hair in the hopes of calming you down, "And we're gonna do it  _together_. But you're  _wrong_  about Jace being the only one you have." You swallowed thickly, lifting your head so you could look at him. He swiped his thumbs across your cheeks to get rid of your tears, continuing his speech before you could say anything. "You have me and Cody and Dan and Zach, and we're not gonna give up until we get your brother  _back_ , Y/N."

"But if one of you gets killed, then it's gonna be  _all my fault_ ," you hiccupped.

"Y/N," he smiled softly, "Don't you think we  _know_  what we're getting into here? We know that we could get hurt or captured or die, but we would do  _anything_  for you – you  _and_  your brother.  _We are going to get him back, Y/N_ ," he said firmly, " _Please_  just come back home."

"You still want me back?" you murmured.

" _Of course we do_. Why  _wouldn't_  we?"

"'Cause... Well... I kinda wasn't very  _nice_  when I left..."

"Well, there's no taking it back now," Maxx chuckled softly, "And the bruise is healing pretty well."

"It's  _still there_?" you asked guiltily.

"Hey, don't worry about it," he pulled you into him again, "I probably would have done the same thing."

"No, you wouldn't have," you countered, laying your head on his chest.

"How do you know that?" he scoffed jokingly.

You simply grinned, "You love me too much."

"Can't argue with  _that_ ," he murmured, pressing his lips to your forehead.


	312. Out of the Woods (Maxx Danziger) - Part 2

******Warning: Kidnapping, mentions of death**

~

Maxx took you to the house the boys had taken shelter in not far from the building where Jace was. The moment you walked through the door, they sighed in relief, happy to see you were still alive. They quickly got up to hug you, honestly taking you by surprise. Maxx assured you that none of them hated you for leaving the way you did, but you were sure they would have been a little upset about you coming back.

"So what's the plan?" Dan asked after Maxx explained to everyone that you thought you knew where Jace was. You furrowed your eyebrows at him, making the boys chuckle.

"Y/N, we're gonna help you get him back," Cody told you, "There's no way you're gonna be able to distract those guys  _and_  find your brother."

"Yeah," Zach agreed, "You're not the  _only one_  watching out for him anymore, you know. You don't have to carry the  _sole_  responsibility of keeping him safe. You have  _us_  now; We look out for each other."

You glanced at all of them and then down at the hands in your lap. You weren't really sure what to say, but the good thing about these boys was that you didn't need to; They knew you well enough to know you appreciated their help.

"How about we all get some sleep?" Cody suggested, "We'll come up with a plan tomorrow."

"But I-"

"Goodnight, Y/N," they cut you off in unison, smiling innocently at you. They all got up and went up the stairs while Maxx stayed with you.

"You can take the room I've been sleeping in," he said when the others were out of hearing range.

"I'll just sleep on the couch, Maxx," you murmured, "I'll be fine."

"Y/N, when's the last time you slept in a bed?" You began chewing on your cheek and he smiled. "That's what I thought," he nodded, "You're taking the bed." You sighed and let him take you upstairs, showing you where the bedroom was.

Upon realizing that the bed was a queen, you insisted that you didn't need the  _entire_  thing to yourself, telling Maxx he could sleep there too. He simply nodded – he was incredibly tired and didn't  _really_  feel like bickering about where he was going to sleep that night – so you both plopped onto the mattress and got comfortable. He told you goodnight and you did as well, then the both of you drifted off to sleep.

~

**Four hours later**

Maxx's eyes fluttered open as he woke up to you crying in your sleep. He turned on the lamp and looked over at you, finding your back facing him, your body shaking as you cried.

" _No_!" you exclaimed, " _Give him back_!" Maxx said your name, putting his hand on your bicep, but it didn't give him the reaction he was hoping for. " _No, let go_!" you sobbed. He shook you harder, not stopping until you gasped, shooting up into a sitting position.

Your breaths were heavy as you looked around the room, your heart pounding against your chest. Your eyes were watery and Maxx immediately pulled you back down, bringing you into his side.

Without hesitation, you cuddled up to him, letting out a quiet sigh of relief that it was all just a nightmare. His arms were wrapped securely around you, holding you tightly so you knew you were safe.

"How often do you have nightmares?" he asked, his voice muffled due to his lips being on your forehead.

"Since I left...?" you whispered, not really  _wanting_  to answer but knowing you had to, "Um... Every time I go to sleep..."

"Y/N-"

"You can't stop the nightmares, Maxx," you shook your head with a sigh, " _No one can_. They'll probably still be around even if we get Jace back."

" _When_ ," Maxx stated. You hummed, tilting your head to look at him. " _When_  we get him back," he told you, his fingers lightly playing with the ends of your hair, "Because we're  _going_  to get him back tomorrow and he's  _going_  to come home with us and he's  _going_  to be  _fine_."

" _Home_?" you swallowed, causing his arms to loosen when you propped yourself up on your forearm, "I don't know if you've noticed, Maxx, but there  _is_  no  _home_  anymore. None of us have stayed in one house for more than  _two_   _weeks_! That's not-"

Maxx cut you off again, but this time, it was because he grabbed the back of your head and brought your face down to his. You instantly lost your breath, completely not expecting him to kiss you. Your other hand moved to rest on the bed beside his shoulder so you could hold yourself up, gradually starting to kiss him back.

When you both needed to breathe again, he removed his hand from your hair and let you pull back. You sighed as your head fell onto the pillow right next to his, and he turned his body so he was facing you.

"You need to stop being so pessimistic all the time," he said simply, making you chuckle breathlessly.

"Can't help it," you mumbled.

"When I think of being at home, I don't think of a  _place_ , you know," he started, "I think of  _you_  and  _Jace_  and  _Cody_  and  _Dan_  and  _Zach_... I think of all of us sleeping under the same roof of the house we've taken shelter in or the treehouse we've had to hide out in that night... I think of all of us eating whatever food we've found that day and waiting for  _someone_ -" Maxx teasingly poked your stomach, making you giggle. "-to finish because she insists eating too fast will make her too sick to keep moving..." You pouted and he smiled at you, bringing his hand up to your cheek. His thumb ran back and forth along your cheekbone as he went on. "It doesn't matter where we are or where we end up next," he told you, " _You_  will always be my reason to keep going.  _You_  will always be the person I'm fighting for.  _You_  will always be where home is for me." You swallowed thickly at the confession, but you were unable to keep the smart-ass side of you quiet.

"So you've technically been homeless for the last month then?" you commented. He smiled widely, laughing under his breath.

"I guess I have," he nodded.

Maxx noticed you glance at his lips, making him pull you back to him. You let a breath out of your nose, pushing your lips onto his roughly. You felt him smile into the kiss, wrapping his arm around your back and putting his hand on your hip, coaxing you to scoot closer. You got as close as you could, sighing in content.

After stopping to breathe again, you grinned.

"How long have you wanted to do that exactly?" you asked. Maxx chuckled, his fingers drumming on your hip.

"Well, let's see," he replied, "When did we first meet?"

" _That_  long ago?" you wondered out loud, "And what stopped you?"

"Oh, you know," he shrugged, "The total cliché that you wouldn't feel the same way and it would make you want to leave me and the boys." You smiled softly, pecking his lips.

"Thanks for taking care of Jace and I," you murmured, "And thank you for helping me get him back." Maxx squeezed you gently, pressing a kiss to your forehead.

"Anything for you, princess," he replied. You moved your head to his chest and you both laid there until you finally drifted back to sleep. Once Maxx heard your breathing even out, he turned off the lamp and fell asleep himself.

And for the first time in a  _long time_ , you didn't wake up from another nightmare.


	313. Out of the Woods (Maxx Danziger) - Part 3

**Warning: Kidnapping, mentions of death**

~

**The next morning**

It was about 10 o'clock by the time all of the boys had woken up and trudged out of their rooms. You and Maxx were already awake, sitting on the couch and watching some random TV show.

Cody, Zach, and Dan stood in the hallway, glancing at each other when they noticed you curled up on Maxx's lap and his fingers drawing circles on your thigh. They knew you and Maxx were the closest in the group – aside from you and your brother, of course – but they could tell by the way he was holding you that he'd  _finally_  admitted how he felt about you. And they knew by the way you were sitting with him that you felt the  _same_  way.

"You guys coming in here or are you just gonna stare at us?" Maxx asked, making the boys jump slightly. You giggled softly, finally lifting your head to look back at them. They smiled shyly, finally walking into the room.

"So," Cody cleared his throat, "You guys are..." You shrugged with a smile, laying your head back on Maxx's shoulder.

"You guys eat anything yet?" Dan asked.

"We had some cereal a couple hours ago," Maxx replied, tilting his head back to look at them.

"Wasn't it stale?" Zach scrunched his face up.

"Not when the box hadn't been opened yet," he laughed.

The three boys wandered into the kitchen to get some breakfast and Maxx took that as an opportunity. He shook his shoulder so you would pick your head back up and look at him. The moment you did, his lips were on yours and you couldn't help but laugh at him. You happily kissed him back though, pulling away just before the boys returned.

~

20 minutes later, when everyone was finished eating, it was time to come up with a plan. You all discussed it for about two hours, wanting to make sure nothing could  _possibly_  go wrong – but also wanting to have backup plans in case anything  _did_.

"We all good on the plan?" Maxx asked. You all nodded in agreement and got up, grabbing your guns and backpacks and anything else you may need.

Once you were ready, you left the house – you and Maxx leading the group toward the building you'd found the previous day.

You all climbed up onto the roof, being incredibly careful not to attract any unwanted attention. You went to the vent opening and shrugged your backpack off, setting it on the ground beside your feet. You obviously couldn't take it because you wouldn't have fit in the vents – and it  _definitely_  would have made too much noise anyway. You were about to have Zach and Dan help you into the opening when Maxx suddenly stopped you.

"Y/N!" he said softly, "Y/N, hold on!" You turned to see him digging through his backpack. He pulled out a pad of paper and a pen, handing it to you. "If you need to talk to Jace, use this so no one hears you."

"Thanks, Maxx," you said softly, taking the items.

You stuck the pen in the spiral of the pad and then stuffed it between your stomach and the waistline of your jeans. The two boys then hoisted you up into the vent and you quietly climbed in, beginning your search for your brother.

You used your forearms to drag yourself through the cramped space, careful not to make too much noise. You could hear militiamen talking, your heart pounding loudly in your ears as you passed wherever they were. You moved on until you reached what you calculated to be the middle of the building, breathing a small sigh of relief when you looked down and saw your brother lying on the jail cell's bed.

His eyes were closed, but you could tell he was awake. You quietly pulled the pad of paper out of your jeans and put it down in front of you. You then used the pen to lightly tap the vent walls, causing Jace to open his eyes.

The moment your brother saw you, he opened his mouth, but you quickly shushed him. You didn't want the guards that may be around to know that you were there. You grabbed the notepad and wrote down something for Jace before showing it to him.

_Blink once for yes, twice for no_

Jace just laid there, but you knew he understood, so you kept writing.

_Are there any guards around?_

Jace blinked once.

_Would they all leave if they heard something outside?_

One blink.

You nodded to him and slowly tore the paper out of the notepad. You crumpled it up as quietly as you could looking up for another opening to the roof. The boys were still standing around, so when your paper ball came flying out of the vent opening you were under, they knew it was time for their phase of the plan.

Maxx and Cody climbed back down from the roof to create a diversion that they hoped would make every guard that was inside leave so you could get Jace out quickly and safely. Zach and Dan were stationed outside the vent opening they had helped you climb into, ready to help you and your brother back out. The two boys on the ground figured that they only guaranteed way to get all the guards outside was to shoot their guns into the dirt, so that's what they did.

The moment the shots were fired, you and Jace listened to the guards ask each other what they just heard. When the boys fired again, the men began shouting, running outside. Jace waited until the door closed behind the last guard to actually speak to you.

"They're all gone," he informed you. You immediately lifted the vent door.

"Can you make it?" you asked him.

"I think so," he replied, standing up on the bed. The ceiling wasn't that high, so with both of your arms outstretched, you could grab his forearms.

"Jump on 3," you ordered and Jace nodded. "1... 2... 3!" He jumped up and you pulled him into the vent with you.

After he was in, you closed the metal door, grabbed your pen and paper, and started leading Jace back to where Dan and Zach were waiting for you back at the vent opening. When you got there, the two boys helped you out then your brother.

"Where are Maxx and Cody?" you asked softly, going to the edge of the roof to keep an eye on the guards.

"They ran into the woods to hide after the second shots," Dan said as he, Zach, and Jace followed you, "Only one of the guards went in their direction, but we lost him after a few seconds."

"How long should we wait before we go after them?"

"How do you know where they are?" Zach cocked an eyebrow. You gave him a looked at him over your shoulder and he sighed. "Right," he nodded, "You and Maxx have that weird  _telepathy_  thing going on." You laughed at him, turning back to watch the men on the ground go back inside.

"They're in," you said and you all hurried back to the ladder.

You grabbed your backpack, swinging it back on along the way, and then climbed down to the ground. You waited until the rest of the boys were off the ladder before taking off in the direction Zach said the other two went.

You ran for about a quarter mile until you heard a ' _psst_ ' sound coming from behind you. You spun around, immediately seeing Cody waving at you from his hiding spot behind a large tree trunk. You went over to him, all of you splitting up to hide behind your own trees until Cody thought the coast was clear.

"Where's Maxx?" you whispered to him since you were close enough. Cody pointed to a tree a few feet away from yours and you looked over to see him peek out at you.

You looked around and when you determined it looked safe enough, you darted away from your tree and over to Maxx's. He wrapped his arm around your waist and had you sandwiched between him and the tree just in case anything happened so you wouldn't get hurt.

"Glad to see you're still alive," you told him, your voice never above a low whisper.

"We're not back at the house  _yet_ ," he replied.

"You need to stop being so pessimistic," you commented, tapping his cheek playfully. He smiled and looked back at you, pecking your lips.

You all  _thought_  you were in the clear, but when you heard a voice that didn't belong to anyone in your group, your eyes widened.

"How did you get out of your cell?!" the man exclaimed and you knew he'd found Jace.

You spun around and looked out from behind the tree, finding the same guard that had originally kidnapped him grabbing his arm and taking him back toward the building. Your brother looked back at you with a panicked expression, but you simply pointed to the guard and motioned for him to keep the man turned around so you could sneak up behind him.

Jace did exactly that, getting in front of him and tearing his arm out of the guard's grip. The guard took his gun out but didn't point it at Jace – obviously just trying to scare him into following orders – but when the corner of Jace's mouth twitched into a small smile, it clearly made him angry.

"What the hell are you smiling about?" he spat. Your brother didn't answer – he simply looked behind him instead. He looked over his shoulder and saw you standing there with the boys right behind you.

"Remember me?" you asked sweetly.

In the time it took the guard to spin around and point his gun at you, you had already brought your leg up and kicked it out of his hands so Maxx could hurry and pick it up. He tried to grab you, but you ducked under his arm, spun around, and wrapped your arms tightly around his neck. You had your face close to his neck so he couldn't hit you, but the man resorted to grabbing and pulling at your hair and clawing your forearms – but that only fueled you to squeeze harder.

"The next time you want to kidnap someone,  _don't make it my brother_ ," you growled in his ear just before he passed out. You finally released your grip, letting the man fall to the ground.

You didn't have time to breathe a sigh of relief because you and the boys had to get out of there as quickly as possible, knowing it was only a matter of time before the other militiamen realized he and Jace were missing.

You ran as fast as you ever had in your life, racing to get back to the house and get inside. Once you were all in the door, you threw it closed and locked it. The boys went around, making sure every single window and door was locked and every curtain and shade was shut so no one could see or get inside.

When they all came back into the front room and said the place was locked up, you  _finally_  let out your sigh of relief, grabbing your brother and pulling him into you. His arms went around your waist and you both hugged each other tightly.

"I'm so sorry, Jace," you said softly, "I shouldn't have let him take you."

"It's okay, Y/N," he said reassuringly, his voice muffled by your shirt.

"The next time we go out by ourselves, I'm  _handcuffing_  you to me," you stated, making everyone laughed under their breaths.

"I'd rather be handcuffed to  _Maxx_ ," he mumbled, causing you to let go of him and give him an offended expression.

" _Please_ ," Cody snickered, "If  _anyone's_  handcuffing Maxx, it's gonna be  _Y/N_." Both yours and Maxx's eyes widened, blushing as the other boys snorted softly at the remark.

Jace looked between the two of you for a moment before speaking again, "So did you guys finally-"

"Wow, would you look at the time!" you exclaimed, "It's getting late! I'm gonna go upstairs!"

"It's only 2:30," Dan said.

"Yes!" you nodded, "Very tired, need a nap, right now!" You released your brother and hurried to the staircase.

"So..." you heard Jace say, "Are you guys...?" You assumed Maxx nodded because the next thing you heard was " _Finally_!"

You unintentionally smiled as you closed the bedroom door behind you and took your backpack off, tossing it onto the floor beside the bed. You went into the bathroom to see exactly what damage the guard had done to your arms.

As you were running a random cloth you'd found under some warm water, you heard the bedroom door open and a lock click. You looked into the mirror, finding Maxx walking up behind you. He wrapped his arms around your waist and pressed his lips to your shoulder before looking at you in the mirror.

"What're you doing?" he murmured. You simply turned off the water and held your arms up so he could see the scratches.

Maxx instantly turned you around and lifted you onto the counter, taking the cloth from you so he could clean you up himself. You found yourself smiling slightly as you watched him carefully wipe off what little dried-up blood was on your arms, not wanting to hurt you further.

"So," you said softly as he finished up, "Is there any particular  _reason_  you locked the door on your way in here?" Maxx smirked slightly, rinsing the towel and hanging it on the edge of the bathtub to dry. He then went back over to you and put his hands on your hips, kissing you roughly.

"Not unless you actually  _wanted_  to take a nap," he replied, his voice muffled by your mouth.

"Well, not  _anymore_ ," you grinned, putting your own hands on his cheeks.

Maxx's arms slid around your waist and he mumbled for you to wrap your legs around him, carrying you out of the bathroom when you did. He took you over to the bed, only breaking the kiss to lay you down and climb on top of you. You balled up the bottom hem of his shirt in your hands, tugging on it so he would pull it off. He did, tossing it off to the side and then doing the same with yours.

"It doesn't  _sound_  like you're taking a nap in there!" you heard Zach say outside the door, followed by the snickers of the other three boys. You couldn't stop yourself from blushing at knowing they knew what you were doing – especially your  _brother_  – but you'd be lying if you told yourself you weren't going to keep going.

"We're  _not_!" Maxx called back, moving his head away from yours so he wasn't yelling toward you, "So unless you  _pervs_  want to stick around and listen, I suggest you leave  _now_!" The boys gagged jokingly, but you  _did_  hear them walk away. You giggled under your breath, taking Maxx's face back in your hands and kissing him again.

"I love you," you admitted softly.

"I love you too, princess," he whispered, both of you smiling at the confessions you thought you'd never hear.


	314. The Baker's Assistant (Alex Gaskarth) - Part 1

 

**Warning: Attempted kidnapping**

~

Walking around the town square of your kingdom, you'd think that the business of the place would  _detour_  thieves and kidnappers. Obviously, that  _wasn't_  the situation you found yourself in. You were currently being taken to  _God_ _-knows-where_  by  _God_ _-knows-who_  – his arm tightly holding onto your wrist, sure to leave a pretty decent bruise.

You were panicking, no doubt, too scared to even call out for  _help_  – of course, the man's ' _don't scream or I'll do much worse_ ' order certainly wasn't taken lightheartedly either. You were heading toward the alleyway, running out of time, when you heard a voice behind you.

"Your Highness!" another male said, making both you and your kidnapper turn around. "I'm very sorry to cut your time outside the castle short, but your father has requested that you come back immediately."

Now, you knew you'd seen this person before, and you knew he didn't work for the castle. His eyes seemed to flick between yours and the hand around your wrist, and it was then that you knew exactly what he was doing.

"Of course," you nodded, trying to pull your grip away from the man. Unfortunately, his hold only tightened, making your face scrunch up in pain.

" _You_  work for the castle?" he raised his eyebrows at the boy.

"I do apologize for any inconvenience," he said, not directly answering the question, "But Princess Y/N really must be getting back."

"Let me see some ID." The boy paused and you stepped in the moment you realized who he was. 

"I don't think that will be necessary," you said, "Right, Alex?" His eyes widened slightly before he nodded.

"Of course not, Princess," he smiled at you, making your heart race.

He held his hand out to you, letting you place your own in his. You stepped away from the man, but he  _still_  wouldn't let up. Alex's eyes narrowed and he took a step toward him.

"I am  _not_  going to tell you again, sir," he growled lowly, "Now you can either release her, or I can arrest you for attempted kidnapping of the Princess."

The man snarled under his breath, but finally let go of your wrist. You sighed in relief as Alex quickly whisked you back toward the castle, making sure not to let your hand slip out of his.

As you approached the front gates, the guard standing there was about to stop you, but you rushed the words out of your mouth, knowing the man was still watching and you didn't want to make it seem like Alex couldn't get through.

"He's fine, Justin," you said once the guard was within earshot, "There's a man watching us from the alley near the bakery-" Justin subtly looked over and found exactly who you were talking about. "-and I just need him to think that Alex is a guard for reasons I'm sure you'll hear about within the next hour, so please let us in." He quickly opened the gate just as you approached.

"Is everything okay, Your Highness?" Justin asked as you passed him. You made a few noises of indifference, making Alex chuckle softly as you pulled him up the steps.

The moment you were inside the castle and the door shut behind you, you spun around. You threw your arms around Alex's neck and hugged him as tightly as you'd ever hugged anyone before. Your heart was racing – both from the experience you just had and feeling Alex smile against the skin on your neck as he hugged you back.

" _Thank you_ ," you breathed. You felt him grin again, squeezing you slightly before he let go. He put his hands on your cheeks and examined your face, making sure the man hadn't hurt you.

"Are you okay?" he asked, the concern in his expression very obvious.

"I'm fine, Alex," you assured him.

"You know my name?" he whispered, letting go of you. You immediately missed the feeling of his hands on your skin, but shook it off.

"Yeah," you said, "You're Joseph's assistant, right?" Alex nodded. "I go to the shop sometimes to get bread for the cooks," you told him, "You're always in the back baking  _something_  when I'm in there so I've never actually  _met you_ , but I've had some of the stuff you make and it's  _really_  good."

"Thank you," he looked down at his shoes, a light pink tint to his cheeks, "You could always drop by some other time and we could make something together... I-If you  _wanted_   _to_ , I mean..." Before you could answer, your dad's voice was echoing throughout the hall.

"Y/N!" he said, coming up to you and Alex, "I just received word from Justin that something was wrong." He glanced at Alex, "Who's this?"

"U-U-Uh," he stuttered, his eyes as wide as they could get, "A-Alex, Your Majesty." Your father's eyebrows furrowed together, clearly confused as to why he was in the castle.

"Dad," you said, pulling his gaze back to you, "Lighten up on the staring, please. I  _brought him_  here."

"Why?" You started making random noises again, so Alex spoke up before you could tell your father it was nothing.

"Attempted kidnapping," he stated, earning another glance from the king. "Sir," he added quickly.

"By  _who_ , young man?" he asked quickly, motioning for you and Alex to follow him. You both looked at each other for a moment before hurrying after him, not entirely sure where he was going.

"Oh, uh... I don't know, sir," Alex finally answered his question, "He was just holding her wrist really tight and when they passed me, I could tell she was panicking, so I stepped in and got her back here as soon as I could."

"How did you manage  _that_?" he raised an eyebrow.

"Convinced him I was her guard."

"You impersonated an officer?" Alex swallowed thickly, knowing there was no way out of this.

"Yes, sir," he said softly. Your father opened a door without another word, ushering the two of you inside.

You were met with the sight of some of the best castle guards. Alex stayed close beside you, neither of you really sure what was about to happen.

"What did the man look like, son?" the king asked him.

"Uh... Grey hair, I'm pretty sure he had green eyes, but they could have been blue... A little taller than the Princess – an inch more than myself, I'd say, so about 6'1''. He had on  _really_  nice clothes though," Alex pointed out, "Like he'd just come out of a  _business meeting_  or something."

"Where did this happen?"

"Well, I don't know where it  _started_ , but I got there at the alley by the bakery."

"Wait, so you're Joseph's new assistant... Alex..." Your dad started snapping as he tried to put a name to the face he was looking at. " _Gaskarth_!" he exclaimed once he remembered.

"Yes, sir," Alex nodded with a small smile.

"Well, Alex," he said, holding his hand out, "Thank you for being around when you were." Alex shook your dad's hand. "We'll be on the lookout for anyone fitting this description and call you back here to confirm it if we find any leads." The boy beside you nodded quickly as your dad turned back to you. "Y/N, why don't you show him back out and then report back here," he ordered. You threw your head back and groaned loudly, spinning on your heels and simply motioning for Alex to follow you.

"They're gonna give me a  _babysitter_ ," you frowned, knowing he was giving you a wondering look.

"I'm sure they're not going to give you a  _babysitter_ ," Alex chuckled, nudging your arm lightly.

"That's because you don't  _know_ them," you sighed.

"Well, I'm sure this will all blow over in a couple months and you'll be free to go places alone again," he said reassuringly, "But until then, I think it's  _good_  for you to have a watchful eye on you."

"Would  _you_  like someone watching your every move 24/7?" you rolled your eyes.

"No," he smiled, "But I would  _understand_  – especially if I was almost just  _kidnapped_." You grumbled quietly, knowing he was right.

Once you made it outside and reached the steps at the bottom of the castle, you pulled Alex into another hug.

"Is this going to become a thing?" Alex laughed, hugging you back anyway. You squeezed him a bit before letting go to look at him.

"Thank you," you murmured, making him grin again.

"You're welcome," he chirped.

"And if you could tell Justin I said thanks as well, that would be great," you commented.

"You know what? I don't think you  _really_  mean that," he smirked, stepping away from you.

"Hey, Alex," you said, making him look over his shoulder. "I'll see you tomorrow?" you asked shyly, letting him know you were accepting his offer from earlier. His eyes widened and he nodded rapidly, but he couldn't keep himself from grinning ear-to-ear.

"Bye, Princess," he said, walking onto the bridge before you could tell him he  _didn't_  have to call you that.

~

**The next day**

"So you put the flour in half a cup at a time," Alex explained.

"Why a  _half_ a cup?" you whined, "That  _takes_  too long!"

"Because it doesn't make a mess that way and I don't enjoy cleaning flour off of everything," he chuckled.

"What's the fun in  _baking_  if you don't make a  _mess_?" you asked, a serious expression on your face.

"Do  _you_  want to clean it up?" he asked simply. You felt a small smile pull at the corner of your mouth.

"You know just as well as I do that you're not going to make me do that," you stated. Alex paused for a moment before he sighed, knowing you were right.

" _Fine_ ," he said, "But we're  _still_  not making a mess."

"You're no  _fun_ ," you pouted, shoving his arm with yours. You missed the blush on his cheeks as you poured half a cup of flour into the bowl of wet ingredients, Alex taking his mixer and combining the flour with them.

~

An hour later, the timer for your bread went off and Alex carefully removed it from the oven. You were growing impatient, just wanting to taste it, but he made you wait until it was cool enough, not wanting you to burn yourself. You tried sticking your bottom lip out, but that only made him smile – not budge. You huffed lightly and jumped up on the counter to sit while Alex came over and you just talked about whatever popped into your heads.

When Alex thought the bread was cool enough, he gently shook it out of the pan onto a plate. He brought it over to the counter where you were sitting and sat it beside you, getting out a knife to cut off a piece. He then cut that piece in half, handing you one. You giggled softly as you toasted the pieces of bread before taking a bite. You groaned loudly, making Alex look at you with raised eyebrows.

"I've never tasted anything so good in my  _life_ ," you declared.

"I find  _that_  hard to believe," he chuckled.

"Princess," the guard assigned to look after you poked his head into the bakery, "We should be going back to the castle. You know how Charlotte is if she doesn't have enough time to help you wash up before dinner." You sighed under your breath, really not wanting to leave yet.

"Here," Alex said, cutting the loaf of bread in half, "You can share some at dinner." He put it into a bag and held it out to you. "Or keep it to yourself," he grinned. You rolled your eyes at him, causing him to chuckle as you took the bag from his hand. Your heart skipped a beat when your skin touched his, but you did your best not to show it.

"Thanks for inviting me today, Alex," you said softly, "I had a lot of fun."

"Me too, Princess," he replied shyly, "And you're welcome to stop by any time you want."

"Hey, I don't call you  _Baker_ ," you reminded him, "So you don't call me  _Princess_."

"But I-"

" _Alex_." You noticed his cheeks turn pink that time, making you smile slightly.

"I'll see you around, Y/N," he told you.

You smiled brightly, surprising him by leaning up and kissing his cheek before trotting out of the shop and following the guard back to the castle. Alex watched you for a moment, the area where your lips were on his skin feeling like it was burning.

"The  _Princess_?" Alex heard behind him, making him turn around to find Joseph.

"Why do you say it like that?" he asked.

"I don't mean it like  _that_ , Alex," the baker shook his head, "I just meant she never seemed like your type."

"My  _type_?"

"You always struck me as the kind of guy who likes party girls," he shrugged, "And the Princess is the  _furthest_  thing from that."

"Well, I want someone I could see myself with for more than one night," he commented, resting his elbow on the table and his chin in his hand.

"Well, if it means anything to you, I think you two would make a good couple," Joseph said, "I'll see you tomorrow, Alex."

"Thanks, Joe," Alex smiled, thinking you and him would make a good couple too.

~

**Three months later**

You trotted into the bakery one morning, all ready to go to lunch with Alex. However, when you arrived, you heard him talking to himself. His back was toward the door, so he didn't know you had come in.

You listened for a couple minutes as he went on about how ' _she's too good for me anyway_ ' – something that you'd heard Alex say to himself before. You finally decided to make your presence known, walking further into the shop.

"Hey, Lex," you chirped, hopping up onto the counter beside where he was working, "Who were you just talking about?" He hummed in response, continuing to press the dough into the pan. "When I came in, I heard you talking to yourself," you explained, "You said that ' _she'd never like you like that_ ' and ' _it wouldn't be allowed anyway_ '. What does that mean? Who were you talking about?"

Alex froze; He hadn't realized you were there when he started monologuing to himself, and he didn't know whether or not he should tell you the truth. He was terrified you would laugh at him.

"N-No one..." he trailed off.

"Well, you mumble to yourself about this ' _no one_ ' a lot," you said thoughtfully, "I was just gonna say you should go for it."

" _I should_?" he raised an eyebrow, sliding the pan into the oven and setting the timer.

" _Yeah_!" you chirped, watching him wash his hands, "What's the use in living with a secret like that? Even if she doesn't feel the same, at least you'll  _know_  – then you can move on and find a girl who  _does_." Alex came back to the place where he just was, wiping the counter top beside you in silence.

When he was finished, he went to throw the towel away and walked back over to you. He stood beside your leg, looking at you curiously for a moment.

"Even if she  _did_  like me back, it wouldn't  _work_ ," he said.

"Well, not with  _that_  attitude," you rolled your eyes, making him chuckle.

"I mean it wouldn't be  _allowed_ ," he informed you, "Her status is way too good for someone like  _me_."

"So she's a royal?" you wiggled your eyebrows, "Is she from your home state? Do I know her?"

"Not from my home state, but you  _do_  know her," he answered shyly, "You know her  _very well_."

"Is it Princess Natalia? She's very beautiful – seems like your type."

"No, it's not her," Alex laughed, "She's way more beautiful than Princess Natalia."

"There's someone  _more_  beautiful than her?" your eyes widened, genuinely shocked by the statement.

"Mhmm," he nodded.

"Fine," you pouted, "I give up. Who is it?"

"You," he whispered. You instantly felt a blush overtake your facial features.

" _Me_?" you replied softly. Alex simply kept his eyes glued onto his hands as he played with his fingers on the counter top. "I'm not more beautiful than  _Natalia_ , Alex," you mumbled, looking down at your own hands in your lap.

Alex looked up at you, taking you in for a moment before moving to stand between your legs. He put his hands on your face, tilting your head back up.

"Yeah, you  _are_ ," he stated softly, yet firmly at the same time, "You are the most beautiful girl I've ever  _seen_ , Y/N. You're kind and funny and you care about your people  _so much_ , and they love you  _right back_." You couldn't help but blush at his words.

"But why couldn't it work?" you asked, remembering one of the things he always said when talking to himself.

"Because you're a princess and I... I'm just  _Alex_ ," he sighed.

"I  _like_  ' _just Alex_ '," you muttered, swallowing lightly. The corner of his mouth twitched into a small smile before he let it fade.

"You should be with someone of your own status," Alex told you, simultaneously breaking both of your hearts.

"My  _dad_  wasn't," you muttered under your breath.

"Wasn't  _what_?" he tilted his head to the side slightly.

"He wasn't with someone of his own status," you told him, "My mom grew up on a farm a couple miles away from here. She went into town one day when she ran into my dad. He always says it was love at first sight." You found yourself smiling fondly as you remembered all the times your parents would tell you the story of how they met. "My mom  _married into_  royalty. Just like my grandpa and my great-grandma did. I don't know of  _any_  member of my family who married another royal. You can't  _make_  someone fall in love; You have to let them do it  _themselves_. And I want to fall in love with  _you_." Alex's heart was pounding inside his chest and he honestly wouldn't be surprised if you could hear it.

"Has anyone ever told you that you talk too much?" he asked softly. You nodded and he grinned. "I thought so." Alex pulled your face to his, attaching your lips together.

You let out the breath you didn't even realize you were holding. You wrapped your legs around his waist as his hands slipped down your body to rest on your hips, bringing him up against the counter. You slid forward, your chest pressed to his, as your own hands found his cheeks.

When you both pulled away to breathe, your forehead was on his, your lips still brushing up again each other. Alex let out a soft laugh, his chest rising and falling as he caught his breath.

"Has anyone told you that you're a good kisser?" he asked you, making you slap his cheek playfully. " _What_?!" he exclaimed with another laugh, "It's a completely  _valid_  question!" You simply rolled your eyes as he continued speaking, "Can I take you out on a date?"

You nodded slowly, "I would like that."

Alex suddenly got a firm grip on your hips, lifting you off of the counter and putting you back on your feet. He pressed a quick kiss to your forehead before moving his hands off of yours, letting one of them take your hand and tangle your fingers together.

"You meant  _right now_?" you giggled as he led you out of the bakery, laying your head on his shoulder. Alex didn't respond, he just smiled and squeezed your hand, turning so he could kiss the top of your head.

 


	315. The Baker's Assistant (Alex Gaskarth) - Part 2 *

**Warning: Brief mention of parent's death, kidnapping**

~

**Six months later**

You and Alex had been official for about six months now, and you could honestly say you'd  _never_  been happier. He didn't treat you like a  _royal_  – he just treated you like  _Y/N_  – and that was all you'd ever  _really_  wanted.

You'd never really been with someone who completely threw all formalities out the window just to make you feel like you were both  _equal_  in the relationship, and now that you finally had it, you'd never felt  _more_  in love with someone.

One night, after one of the palace's many parties – Alex seemed to fit right in from the moment he started coming to them, no matter  _how much_  he tried to deny it – you and your boyfriend were out in the garden. You two would always go there after events such as this where it tended to take the energy right out of you and all you wanted to do was be with him.

On  _this_  night, however, Alex was incredibly quiet.

Usually, you would both lie on the grass and look at the stars while he would go on and on about his day, telling you all the funny things that happened or the new recipe he came up with. But tonight... Tonight, he hadn't said a  _word_  so far – and when he  _did_ , it wasn't something you particularly  _wanted_  to hear.

"Can I talk to you?" he swallowed, instantly worrying you.

"The last time someone said something like that, my dad told me my mom was dying," you mumbled.

"It's nothing like that, Y/N, I promise," he assured you. You watched the stars while Alex watched you, still not understanding how someone  _that_  beautiful could want to be with someone like  _him_.

"Lex," you said, interrupting his thoughts. He hummed stupidly, raising his eyebrows at you. "You said you wanted to talk," you reminded him.

"Oh, right," he cleared his throat, "I just... I've been thinking lately, and... Well..."

"You're not breaking up with me, are you?" you whispered, your voice cracking a bit.

" _What_?  _No_!" he exclaimed, " _God, no_!"

"Then what are you saying?" you shook your head, beyond confused by his demeanor tonight.

"I..." Alex trailed off before sighing, finally deciding to just let it out, "I've been trying to find the perfect way to tell you I love you, but no moment has ever been the  _right one_." He looked back up at the sky, missing the small grin that was pulling at the corner of your mouth.

"I love you too, Lex," you replied softly. His head snapped back up to look at you.

"You  _do_?" he whispered, honestly looking like he was going to cry.

"I told you I wanted to fall in love with you," you reminded him, "The truth is, when I said that, I was already halfway there."

Alex breathed a sigh of relief, putting his hand on your cheek and pulling your face to his. You giggled into the kiss, feeling him smile back and kiss you harder.

You turned your body, halfway lying on top of him. His hand slid down from your cheek to your hip, making your arm erupt with goose bumps. You shivered slightly, feeling Alex smile again just before he pulled away to breathe.

"I love you," he told you, staring at you lovingly.

"I love you too," you murmured with a smile, pecking his lips before laying your head on his chest. You sighed in content as his hand came off of your hip, only to grab your hand so he could play with your fingers on his stomach.

"So, you'll never guess what recipe I came up with earlier today..." he started, making you chuckle softly, happily listening to his rambling.

~

**Two weeks later**

A normal day: that's  _all_  this was.

You were minding your own business, walking to the bakery for your daily lunch date with Alex. It was something you'd done  _hundreds_  of times before, not even imagining the situation you were about to find yourself in. It felt like déjà vu, honestly – feeling someone come up behind you and cover your mouth with their hand.

You, of course, instantly started panicking, desperately trying to break free. But when you heard him speak, you heart dropped, knowing it was the  _same_  man who'd tried to kidnap you  _before_.

"I  _knew_  I recognized that stupid kid somewhere," the man growled in your ear, "The  _baker's assistant_  trying to pass off as a  _castle guard_?" He laughed bitterly at the thought of it. " _Daddy_  must have had a  _field day_  with him for impersonating an officer. But  _I'm_  gonna have a  _hell of a time_  with you,  _Princess_ ," he said into your ear, making you shudder in disgust.

You were running out of time to make a scene and you knew it – but no one was around; Who would hear you?

You decided you should at least  _try_ , and that was when you were dragged past a small record shop.

You knew Alex spent a lot of his time there and when you saw him through the window, you hoped he would hear you because what you were going to do was going to get you in a lot of trouble with the man taking you away.

You wiggled your nose so one of the man's fingers was between your lips and you quickly bit him as hard as you could. He yelped out in pain, taking his hand off of your face and giving you just enough time to yell for help.

" _Alex_!" you screamed as loudly as possible.

**Alex's POV**

The moment you screamed, the boy in the record shop perked up and looked out the window. The man punched you in the stomach, making you double over and he picked you up. Your crown fell off of your head and onto the ground, getting left behind in the man's rush to get away.

Alex's eyes widened as he dropped the record he was holding and ran outside, chasing after you. Unfortunately, he wasn't fast  _enough_.

The man shoved you into the trunk of his car and hurried into the driver's seat, speeding off before Alex could get there. Alex let out a breath, staring at the car for a moment before he spun around, grabbing your crown as he ran back toward the castle.

"Justin!" Alex exclaimed as he approached the castle gates, "Where's the King?!"

"Last I heard, he was in a meeting with Parliament," the guard said, opening the gates for him, "Why?"

"I don't care  _what_  they're doing right now!" he informed him, running down the bridge, "Y/N was kidnapped and he needs to send someone to find her!" Justin quickly closed the gates back up, going into the small watch tower and grabbing his radio.

~

"Alex!" the King said when the brown-haired boy burst into the meeting room, "You can't just  _barge in_  like thi-"

"I'm sorry!" he nearly broke down in front of everyone, "I wasn't watching for her! I should have been watching for her! I should have come get her myself! I shouldn't have-"

"What are you  _talking about_ , son?" he stood up slowly, finally noticing the crown grasped tightly in his hands. He pointed at the gold band, "Alex... Why do you have Y/N's-"

" _Gaskarth_!" the captain of the guard, Rodriguez, roared as he and a group of six of his men stormed into the room, "How could you let this  _happen_?!"

"I-I didn't-"

The King cut Alex off, "Would someone please be so  _kind_  as to tell me what's so important that everyone is disrupting a  _parliament meeting_?"

"The Princess was kidnapped, Your Majesty," Rodriguez said monotonously, making all the members of parliament start whispering to each other. The King lost his breath, falling back in his chair.

"How did this happen?" he murmured, almost so quietly that no one could hear him.

"Your daughter's little  _boyfriend_  over here-" Rodriguez spat, honestly not making the situation any better for anybody, "-asked her to meet him at the bakery, but he wasn't  _there_."

"I told her to meet me at noon so we could get lunch!" Alex angrily wiped the tears off of his face, " _She was early_!"

"So this was  _her_  fault?! Is  _that_  what you're saying?!"

" _Hey_!" the King shouted, getting up from his seat and stepping down to where Alex and the guards were, "Throwing blame isn't going to find my daughter! Gentlemen-" He turned to the members of parliament. "-I think we're going to postpone this meeting until further notice. You're all dismissed." He waited until all of the men had left the room before addressing the captain once again. "Now what's your strategy, Rodriguez?"

"I'll have all my men turning this city upside down, sir," he announced, "Not  _one inch_  of this land will be left unsearched."

" _Go_ ," the King ordered, "I don't want to see you again unless you've got my daughter with you."

"Yes, sir," the men said in unison. They went to leave the room until Alex's voice made them stop.

" _AWVR777_ ," Alex spoke up.

"I'm sorry?" Rodriguez cocked an eyebrow as he turned around.

"That was the license plate on the car that she was pushed into," he stated shakily, "That's the plate that belongs to the guy who took her." Everyone was still for a moment, all the guards looking at each other.

"And you're  _sure_  that's right?" the King asked him.

"More sure than I was when I told Y/N I love her," Alex nodded. He smiled slightly, then turned his attention back to the guards.

"You heard the boy, gentlemen," he raised his eyebrows at them, "Go find the car."

The guards looked at each other again, not believing that the King would listen to someone as  _low_  on the status bar as Alex without  _questioning him_. But when they didn't move again, it was obvious he was starting to get angry.

" _Now_!" the King shouted. The men scrambled to get out of the room, leaving your dad and Alex alone.

It was silent again for a few moments.

"They're gonna  _find her_ , right?" Alex choked out, looking up at your dad.

The King let out a deep sigh, shaking his head, "For their sake, they  _better_."

"I'm sorry," he whispered, looking down at your crown, "I know she usually shows up early. If I had just  _been_  at the bakery-"

"This  _wasn't_  your fault, Alex," he said firmly, "Rodriguez was out of line to blame you and believe me, he will be hearing about it as  _soon_  as they bring her home. He can be a real pain, I know, but if anyone can find Y/N, it's gonna be him."

~

_if anyone can guess the significance of that plate number without googling it (no one likes a cheater ok) then i'll kiss ur face as many times as u want_


	316. The Baker's Assistant (Alex Gaskarth) - Part 3 *

**Warning: Kidnapping, starvation**

~

**Your POV; Four days later**

You'd been missing for four days now –  _going on_  five. There were no windows in the room you were in, so you never knew whether or not it was light outside. You would only occasionally hear rain hitting the roof or a television playing somewhere in the house – or  _whatever_  building you were in.

You were drifting in and out of sleep – to be quite honest, you didn't  _want_  to sleep because you didn't know  _what_  that man would try if he found you like that. But after getting little to  _no_  sleep in the last few days, ' _exhausted_ ' wasn't exactly the most  _accurate_  word to describe how you felt.

You were doing pretty well – as well as a sleep-deprived, kidnapped person  _could be_  doing, at least – in fighting back every time the man would come into the room he had you locked up in though. You didn't know what his intentions were with kidnapping you, but he'd stopped coming into the room as often the morning you kicked him so hard in the chest, a bruise formed. Was he mad at you for it? Maybe. But now that you were determined to make it out alive, he was clearly just waiting for you to go hungry enough to the point where you  _wouldn't_  be able to fight him in  _whatever_  he wanted to do.

But he would never see that day.

On your fifth day of captivity – sometime in the evening hours – you started to hear rustling outside. This let you know that you weren't in an  _inner_  room of the building. Your arms and legs were tied up, but you could still scoot yourself around, so you managed to make it to the wall where you could clearly hear the noises.

You heart skipped when you heard the Captain of the castle guard's voice whisper something to another guard, receiving an affirmation in return.

It was as if everything then happened at once – you heard a door being kicked in and then shouting as the guards immediately tackled the man who had taken you to the ground right outside the door he was trying to run to.

This prompted the Captain to go into that room first, his eyes landing on you the moment he opened the door. You met his gaze and let out a sigh of relief, relaxing your body for the first time in  _five days_.

" _Princess_!" he exclaimed, rushing over to untie you, "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

"Hungry," you murmured just as your stomach growled loudly.

"When did you last eat?"

"Last week..."

"Come on, Princess," he said, "Let's get you home."

Rodriguez tossed the ropes used to tie you up off to the side before taking your arm and wrapping it around his shoulders. He then hooked his arms around your back and under your knees, easily picking you up and taking you back through the building.

"Rogers," he said firmly, causing the guard to spin around. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw you were awake. "You still have any of those granola bars you always have with you?" the Captain asked.

"Yes, sir," he nodded, quickly reaching into the car and opening the glove compartment, pulling out a package. Rodriguez sat you down on the backseat, turning back to the other guard.

"Help her eat and then get her back to the castle," he ordered, "She's not eaten in a week and needs to eat a proper meal as  _soon_  as possible. The rest of us will be back as soon as we can."

"Yes, sir," he said again and the Captain walked away.

Rogers closed your door and ran around to the driver's side. He opened the wrapper and broke off a piece, reaching back to hand it to you before starting the car and driving back toward the castle. He looked at you in the rearview mirror, sending back another bite as he drove.

"Doesn't this count as distracted driving?" you asked, your voice gravelly from not speaking the last few days.

"You know just as well as I do that Rodriguez will have my head if I don't get you back  _right now_ ," he smiled.

You laughed lightly, knowing he was right, and put the granola bar in your mouth. It wasn't your  _favorite_  flavor, but it was still  _food_  – and you were just happy to  _finally_  be eating again.

~

You had eaten five granola bars by the time Rogers pulled up to the castle gates. You promised him you buy him more but he simply smiled, assuring you that you didn't need to – you, of course, were going to do it anyway, but he didn't need to know that yet.

" _Mark_!" Justin exclaimed once the guard rolled down his window, "Did you find her? Is she okay?" Finally having regained some strength back from eating on the way there, you were able to pull yourself up and poke your head out from the backseat.

"Hey, Justin," you smiled slightly – and just as everyone else who had seen you so far, he sighed in relief.

" _Thank God_ ," he breathed, looking back at his post to hit the button that opened the gates, "Should I let the King know you're here?"

"Just tell him to meet me in the throne room for an update," Rogers nodded, "I don't want everyone in the castle to see her before her dad does." Justin nodded rapidly as the guard drove through, the gate closing behind him.

As Rogers was helping you out of the car to see if you could walk yourself or needed to be carried inside, you heard more cars pull up. You looked over to find Rodriguez and the other men that went on the mission to rescue you stepped out of their vehicles.

"Think you can stand on your own?" Rogers turned his attention back to you.

"I think so," you nodded. He held your hands anyway – just in case – but let go when he noticed you were doing just fine by yourself. "What's  _in_  those granola bars?" you giggled lightly, not feeling weak in the knees or anything.

" _Magic_ ," he teased, making you laugh again.

"Rogers," Rodriguez said as he walked over to you, "Has the King been notified of her return yet?"

"Yes, sir," he nodded, "But I told Justin to just tell him that he was needed in the throne room for an update so word doesn't get around and no one sees her before him."

"Good," he nodded approvingly, "Take my car to the garage and then get some rest – all of you-" He told every single guard, "You all deserve it. I'll take the Princess to her father." Everyone thanked him simultaneously as well as voicing that they were happy about your safe return as the captain led you into the castle.

Rodriguez knocked on the throne room door once you got there, hearing your dad hurry to the door. He opened it and saw the captain standing in front of him, tilting his head in confusion.

"I thought Justin said  _Mark_  was the one who-" he cut himself off, however, when his eyes landed on you.

Your dad's eyes widened and he immediately grabbed your shoulders, pulling you into him and hugging you tightly. You sighed once again, wrapping your arms around his waist, happy to finally be home.

Rodriguez closed the door behind you two so no one passing by would be alerted of your return so you could just hug your dad in peace before walking around to greet everyone else in the castle.

"I  _knew_  I shouldn't have let you go out alone," your dad said, letting you hear the shakiness in his voice, "I knew something bad was going to happen; I had a gut feeling  _all day_  that day. I should have just  _cancelled_  the Parliament meeting and-"

"Dad," you mumbled into his shirt, "There was nothing you could have done. That man would have just waited another day or week or month until I was finally  _alone_  again." Your dad simply sighed, knowing you were right.

"I love you," he murmured, kissing the top of your head and making you smile.

"I love you too, Dad," you whispered, squeezing him tightly.

"You're lucky Alex was around when he was," he told you, "They wouldn't have found you if it weren't for the license plate he gave them."

"He  _heard_  me yell?" you asked, moving back to look at him – you were honestly starting to think you weren't loud enough each day that went by and no one had found you. "And where  _is_  Alex?" you asked.

"I told him to go lay down in one of the guest rooms," your dad said, "He hasn't slept a  _wink_  since you went missing."

"Rodriguez!" you called out, making the captain hurry into the room, "Go get Alex."

"Your Highness..." he started, "With all due respect, I don't think that's such a  _good_  idea."

You cocked an eyebrow, "And why the hell  _not_?"

"Well... Um..." His eyes flicked nervously between yours and your dad's, never having heard that tone from you before. "He kind of  _is_  to blame for your kidnapping, Princess."

" _I was 15 minutes early_ , Captain," you growled, suddenly more  _upset_  he was insulting your boyfriend than  _grateful_  he'd saved you, "Alex could not have  _possibly_  known that I was waiting for him."

"I just don't think-"

"And  _I_  don't think that it's your decision who I want to see right now," you narrowed your eyes at him, "Now you can either  _bring him_  to me or you can  _take me_  to him." He looked at your father for some sort of intervention.

"She's going to be the Queen someday, Rodriguez," he said authoritatively, "So you might as well get used to following her orders  _now_." The guard grumbled quietly, stalking back out the door.

" _Screw it, I'll find him myself_ ," you muttered, earning a small chuckle from your dad as you left the room. When you got out into the hallway, you looked to the left and found Rodriguez. "There are no guest rooms down that way,  _sir_!" you shouted sarcastically, seeing him tighten his fists into balls.

"Y/N...?" you heard a small voice behind you, making you spin around. The moment your eyes met your boyfriend's, you felt all your emotions hit you at once.

" _Alex_!" you cried, running to him and throwing your arms around his neck. You felt him let out a sigh of relief as he hugged you back tightly, one of his arms around your waist and the other hand on the back of your head.

"You're okay," he murmured into your skin, kissing it every few seconds, " _Thank God you're okay_."

"Thank you," you whispered.

"For what?" he pulled back to look at you.

"My dad said without that license plate you gave them, they probably wouldn't have  _found_ me," you sniffled. Alex wiped the stray tears from your cheeks.

"I'm  _so_  sorry, Y/N," he shook his head, "If I hadn't been late-"

"You weren't  _late_ , Alex," you reminded him, "I was  _early_. There was  _no way_  you could have known that was going to happen." He put his forehead on yours, relishing in the fact that you were home and you were with him and you were  _safe_.

"I love you  _so much_ , princess," he said softly.

"I  _told you_  not to call me that," you mumbled, blushing as you did every time he told you he loved you.

He smirked slightly, "Who said I was using your  _title_?" You felt your face get hotter, only making his smile get bigger.

You pushed your body up against his, pressing your lips together, not even  _caring_  that your dad had been watching since he heard you yell at Rodriguez. Alex's hands moved back down to your waist and he kept a firm grip on your hips.

"Lex," you said into his mouth, earning a quiet hum in response. "I love you too," you whispered, feeling him smile again and kiss you  _harder_.


	317. Much Better (Michael Clifford)

**Your POV**

You were already in your seat at the 5 Seconds of Summer show, bouncing excitedly as you counted down the minutes until the band came out. There had been a subtle ringing in your ears for a few hours now, but you just ignored it; You weren't going to let  _anything_  ruin this day. But as you got closer and closer to the arena, the ringing would only get  _louder_.

You'd been told before by your parents that when you and your soulmate are near each other, you would hear a ringing sound in your ears. That ringing would get louder – almost to the point of it being  _unbearable_  – until the two of you were actually face-to-face. You never believed it – you didn't think things like that  _actually_  happened since it still hadn't happened to  _you_  – so you'd been ignoring it all day. Since the sound was so soft, you thought it was just because of the commotion of the fans waiting in line around you that was making your ears ring.

What you  _didn't_  know, however, was that it  _was_  actually because of your soulmate – and he was inside the venue experiencing the  _same thing_.

**Michael's POV**

Michael had been in the city for a good  _12 hours_  before he ever started hearing the ringing in his ears. He didn't know it had started at the same time as yours – as you were closer to the city the show was in that night – but he didn't say anything to his band mates. All of the boys knew the ringing meant you were near your soulmate, and he didn't want them freaking out and forcing him to go out and find whoever this person was; He just wanted to get ready for the show.

And it's not like he hadn't experienced ringing in his ears before – he heard it for about 10 minutes after every single concert, but he'd be lying if he said he didn't think this was any different; He  _knew_  it was. The sound in his ears was usually very high-pitched, but this one was more of a low hum – letting him know his soulmate was around  _somewhere_ , but they weren't  _incredibly_  close.

**Your POV**

As you and your best friend Kara walked into the arena when security finally started letting people in, you found it increasingly more difficult to focus on anything other than the ringing.

You didn't speak a word of it to Kara, however, knowing  _damn well_  that she would have started freaking out about how one of the members of the band could be your soulmate. You couldn't deny that you were thinking the same though, but you refused to get your hopes up.

**Michael's POV**

Moments before the band would run out onstage, Michael's eyes were closed tightly and he was focusing on breathing in and out slowly. He was alone in the dressing room, not knowing exactly where the other boys were but not really caring either. It felt like he couldn't hear anything but ringing, the sound having gotten  _louder_  in the last half hour. But he  _did_  hear the door open and Ashton's voice follow immediately afterward.

" _There you are_ , Mike!" he sighed in relief, clearing having been looking for him for a while now, "Come on, we go on in 5!" The drummer left right after, not even paying attention to look of exhaustion on Michael's face.

It was difficult to get excited to play a show when he couldn't hear anything but a shrill ring, but he got up anyway, heading out to where the band was waiting at the side of the stage. Unfortunately though, the ringing only got  _louder_ , and it would continue to do so until he was actually onstage.

**Your POV**

The countdown for the band's appearance popped up on the screens and everyone started cheering, but you weren't affected by it in the slightest. Of course, that was only because you were beginning to feel  _physically ill_  at how loud the ringing in your ears was by that point.

You honestly felt like you were going to pass out, and when the countdown hit zero and the band came out and the crowd burst into screams, you just about  _did_. You hit Kara's arm and she looked over at you, her eyes immediately widening.

" _What's wrong_?" she yelled, hoping you could hear her over Ashton's drumming. The only words she could make out was ' _pass out_ ', but she knew right away what you were telling her.

Kara grabbed your hand and pulled you through the crowd, yelling that she had to get you to the front. When you got there, she told the security guard that you were going to pass out and you needed to get out of the crowd. The man immediately lifted reached over and picked you up, bringing you over the barricade as you pressed your hands to your ears as if the right amount of pressure was going to make the ringing stop. He told the guard next to him to get Kara and bring her as well before he carried you away.

You were sure that all the attention was on you at that point; And it probably would have been... If Michael hadn't been experiencing the  _same thing_  only a few feet away.

**Michael's POV**

"Ash," Luke said, looking back at the drummer, " _Ashton, stop_!" Ashton finally heard him, confused as to why he was stopped. Everyone followed Luke's line of sight and found him looking at Michael. "Mikey?" he said away from his microphone, "Michael?" He went over to him, putting his hand on his back, "Mike, you don't look so good. Are you okay?"

"I'm f- I'm fine," Michael stuttered out.

"No, you're not, mate," Calum said after coming over to the guitarist – Ashton hurrying out from behind his drums as well as everyone in the crowd watched the group in concern. "You look pale," the bassist pointed out.

"I'm  _always_  pale," he replied, obviously trying to make light of the situation even though he could barely  _think_  straight.

"I think you need to go sit down for a few minutes," Ashton said.

"That's not gonna  _help_ ," Michael whimpered as he covered his ears with his hands, unable to stand the sound anymore, "They're gonna  _keep_  ringing." The three boys looked at each other in shock for a moment, finally realizing what was going on.

At that moment, Ashton happened to look over and noticed a (hair color)-haired girl holding her ears being lifted over the barricade to be taken backstage. His eyes widened as he caught the gaze of another girl being brought behind the barricade as well. Kara simply nodded her head before disappearing from Ashton's sight, letting him know that what he was suspecting was actually happening.

He briefly explained to Luke and Calum what was going on, telling them he was going to take Michael backstage for a few minutes. They immediately agreed to keep the crowd company and Ashton ushered Michael away.

Michael didn't even bother putting up a fight, the ringing in his ears too much to bear. A stagehand took the guitar off his shoulder and Ashton quickly found where the security guard had taken you and Kara – the unused dressing room right beside theirs.

You were curled up on the couch, Kara right beside you, rubbing your back as you cried softly into a pillow. All you wanted was for the ringing to stop, but it was only getting  _worse_  as Ashton brought Michael  _closer_.

Kara looked up and noticed the two boys coming in, both her eyes and smile widening when she realized  _Michael Clifford_  was your soulmate. She got up and Ashton let Michael sit down, insisting he pick up where she left off.

The moment Michael touched you, the ringing just  _stopped_. You could finally hear other sounds now – those sounds being your quiet sobs and Michael's sigh of relief. You instantly shot up and your eyes went to the boy sitting on the coffee table where your best friend had just been.

You opened your mouth, but no words were coming out – you were in shock that a member of the band actually  _was_  your soulmate. You caught a glimpse of Ashton leading Kara out of the room and closing the door behind him to give you and Michael some privacy.

But instead of speaking, you just sighed, happy that the ringing was  _finally_  over. You threw yourself back down onto the couch, lying on your back, earning yourself a light chuckle from Michael.

"That's not going to start happening again after you leave the room, is it?" you asked softly, trying to look at him but finding yourself unable to. The ringing in your ears ended up causing a  _major_  headache, and you felt incredibly sensitive to the bright lights in the room at the moment.

When Michael noticed you struggling to keep your eyes open, he immediately got up and turned the light off so it wasn't as harsh. He closed the blinds over the window so that there was still enough light so you could still see each other, but not so much that it physically hurt you. When he came back over to you and returned to his spot, you smiled at him.

"Thanks," you murmured, not able to open your eyes fully, but still able to open them a bit more than before.

"My mum said it won't ever happen again once you meet your soulmate," Michael finally answered your question. He then went silent and stared at you for a moment, lost in his own thoughts. "So  _you're_  my soulmate then?" he found himself wondering out loud.

"Sorry to disappoint," you replied shyly – the way he said it making you think he actually  _was_.

"Who said I was  _disappointed_?" he asked, a small half-smile on his face, making you blush, "I'm Michael, by the way."

"Y/N," you whispered, your voice not giving you much more than that.

Michael then did something that surprised himself, getting up from the table and lifting your head up. You propped yourself up on your elbows so he could sit down, putting your head on his lap once he did. He made sure to get your hair out from under you when you did so he could run his fingers through it without pulling on it and hurting you. You closed your eyes in content, feeling your migraine begin to fade.

You were in awe, honestly – this boy had only met you  _five minutes ago_  and he was already doing everything he could so he didn't hurt you.

You looked down at your side and noticed Michael's hand resting on the cushion beside your ribs, so you took a chance of your own. You grabbed it gently, bringing it on top of your stomach so you could play with his fingers. You didn't know it since you weren't looking at him, but Michael smiled at you as your thumb ran back and forth over his anchor tattoo.

He decided to mess with you, moving his thumb around so you couldn't touch it anymore. You started giggling under your breath, finally looking back up at him. He was grinning again – this time at the sound of your laugh. Your gaze moved to his bicep, bringing your opposite hand up and touching his skin.

"This one's my favorite," you informed him with a mumble, your fingers delicately grazing along his ' _To the moon_ ' tattoo. He laced his fingers with yours and squeezed your hand.

" _You're_  my favorite," Michael responded just as quietly, making you look back up at him again.

"You don't even  _know me_ ," you pointed out despite the fact that you knew you were blushing at the comment.

"I don't  _need to_ ," he grinned, bringing your hand up to his lips and kissing the back of it, "You're my  _soulmate_ ; I already  _know_  you're perfect." You looked at him, your face still red, but you suddenly sat up anyway.

Michael watched you curiously, blushing  _himself_  when you repositioned yourself to curl up on his lap, your arms around his middle and your head on his shoulder. He instinctively kissed your forehead, returning his fingers to your hair as his other hand laid on your thigh, drawing small shapes on your skin.

You'd only been there for a few minutes, but since your headache was nearly gone, you thought Michael should get back onstage. You lifted yourself off of him, his arm falling down from your head to your waist, but his hand never leaving your thigh. He looked at you with a confused expression, but you spoke before he could.

"You've got a  _show_  to play, rockstar," you reminded him.

" _Come on_ ," Michael smiled at you, "I just met my soulmate; I think they'll understand if I'm a  _few more_  minutes late."

"Hey, I paid  _a lot_  of money to see this show," you said, giggling when he tickled you playfully.

"I'm sure you'll be seeing a lot more than the  _show_  now," he murmured, bravely leaning in and pressing his lips to your cheek. It was like he could feel the skin beneath his lips get hot as you blushed, letting you feel him smile before he pulled back.

"Oh, do you think I'll get to meet the  _band_?" you asked innocently, making Michael laugh.

"If you're  _lucky_ ," he smirked. You got off of him and he stood up, immediately grabbing your hand and tangling your fingers together.

Michael held you as close to him as you could possibly get until the very last moment when he had to go on stage. Ashton had already returned to his drums and Kara was off to the side talking to a stagehand.

The boys finally noticed Michael as he grabbed his guitar, letting go of your hand to lift it over his head. He then looked at you, motioning with his finger for you to get closer to him. When you were practically right up against him, he leaned down, sticking his tongue out and letting it poke the tip of your nose.

" _Mikey_!" you giggled, wiping it with the back of your hand. Michael smiled brightly, leaning back in to give you an actual kiss on the cheek. You smiled as he walked away, hearing the crowd scream loudly when he reappeared in front of them.

"Hey, mate! You feeling better?" Calum asked, despite the fact that he and the boys saw the two of you and knew the answer.

" _Much_  better," Michael grinned, his gaze turning back to you when he heard your best friend's gasp upon realizing you'd returned. Kara grabbed your shoulders and Michael couldn't hear what she'd asked you, but when you nodded your head, the brunette immediately pulled you in and sloppily kissed your cheek.

" _Kara_!" you squealed, scrunching your face up in disgust and wiping your skin on the shoulder of your shirt, making Michael laugh. You then looked over at him and he winked at you, making you smile shyly as your face turned a light shade of red.

And Michael was sure he could get used to making you blush for the rest of his life.


	318. Fed Up (Luke Hemmings)

Here you were, standing in the Alpha Sigma Phi frat house, trying to maintain what little composure you had left. Your best friend Luke was a member of the frat and always insisted that you come to the parties he and his brothers throw every weekend.

Usually, Luke treated you like a princess, but he had a tendency to treat you poorly around other guys – especially when they were his  _frat brothers_.

Tonight, however, was a whole  _new_  level.

You swallowed thickly as everyone laughed at your so-called best friend's comments. You couldn't believe that someone who claimed to be your  _friend_  would switch so drastically just to maintain some sort of  _reputation_  in front of his friends.

But you weren't having  _any of it_  anymore. You'd sat on feeling this way for  _so long_  – listening to Luke bash you and your grades and your major and your  _appearance_  time and time again when he was with his frat brothers – and you were  _finally_  fed up.

Your eyes were glazed over with tears as you quickly wiped them from your face with the back of your free hand. You looked down at the half-filled cup of beer in your other hand, taking a deep breath as you looked back up at Luke.

You suddenly tossed your drink at him and everyone immediately stopped laughing. They stared you in shock as you threw your now empty cup at him, took his snapback off of your head, and threw that at him as well. You stomped out of the frat house without a single word, slamming the door shut behind you.

Luke was still standing there, his jaw loose and slightly hanging open. He looked down at his beer-covered shirt, trying to fully comprehend what had just happened.

"Hey, man, are you-" Luke's friend cut himself off when the blonde bent down, grabbed his snapback off the floor, and went upstairs.

Luke tore his shirt off and threw it onto the floor, placed the hat back on his head, and – not even  _bothering_  to put a clean shirt on – went back downstairs. He didn't even acknowledge the stares as he left the house to find you.

You lived in the sorority four houses down from Luke's frat, but he knew you didn't go back. Luke had known you well enough to know  _exactly_  where you went when you were upset, and that was the koi pond behind the library. It was the furthest building from the houses – clear across campus – but that was how you liked it when you wanted to be alone.

Luke walked all the way to the library, noticing no one in sight. He made his way around the building, finding you exactly where he knew you'd be – sitting at the edge of the water, looking at all the koi fish. You were breathing shakily and Luke would be lying if he said he didn't feel a pang of guilt in his chest when he heard that you were sniffling.

He stepped on a stick as he approached you, making you jump and snap your head back to see who was there. Luke sat down cross-legged beside you, but you didn't say anything – you just moved to get up.

The blonde immediately grabbed your hips and pulled you back down so you were sitting in his lap, your back pressed to his bare chest. You huffed in response, going to move again only to have his arms wrap around your waist.

"Why are you so upset, baby girl?" Luke asked you.

"You  _know_  why I'm upset,  _Lucas_ ," you spat, "You constantly bash me in front of your friends and I  _don't like it_."

"I don't-"

" _Yes, you do_!" you shouted, "You treat me like you actually  _care_  about me when we're alone or with  _my_  friends, but when we're with  _other guys_ , you treat me like  _complete shit_  and you  _know it_! You act like such an  _asshole_  around them and I'm  _sick of it_!"

"Then why haven't you said anything before?"

" _I have_!" you finally broke free from his grip and stood up, "You  _say_  you'll stop and then you  _don't_  and it's really  _fucking_  annoying!" You started walking away, hearing Luke hop up from the ground.

"You can't keep running away from your problems, Y/N!" he called after you.

"I'm not running away from  _shit_ , Luke!" you countered, "I'm cutting out people who don't treat me the way I  _deserve_  to be treated! If you want to think that means I'm running away from my problems, then that's your  _own_  fucking choice!"

"You can't cut me out of your life, Y/N!" he insisted, hurrying to catch up to you.

"Like  _hell_  I can't," you growled, more to yourself than to him.

You felt Luke grab your hand and spin you around, more than surprised the moment his other hand landed on your cheek and his lips hit yours. You let out a sudden breath, but you didn't pull away – instead, you gave Luke a surprise of his own by kissing him back.

He took the snapback off of his head and placed it back onto yours before moving that hand to your cheek as well. Your hands moved up to Luke's sides, causing you to pull away from him and furrow your eyebrows.

"Why aren't you wearing a shirt?" you mumbled, your eyes lingering on his body a little too long.

"You poured beer on me, remember?" he smiled, kissing your forehead. You began chewing on your bottom lip shyly.

"I wouldn't have drunk the  _first_  half if I'd known I was going to be pouring it on you," you stated, making him laugh loudly.

"I get it, baby girl; I deserved it," he told you, "But don't think that just because I know I deserved it means that I'm gonna let you pour half of  _another_  on me."

You couldn't help the smile that pulled at the corner of your mouth, but it faded slightly. Luke watched curiously, his own expression falling when your arm raised up to take the hat off.

"Baby girl," he said softly, " _Please_  don't give it back again." You ignored him, returning it to its spot on his head.

"I'll stop giving it back when you learn how to treat me in front of your friends, Lu," you replied.

"I will, baby girl," he promised, tilting his head and brushing his nose against yours, "I love you so much."

You were a bit taken back by the confession, but that didn't stop you from moving your head just enough so that you were barely kissing his lips. He whined lightly, feeling you giggle as he took charge and pushed his lips onto yours.

~

Half an hour later, you were walking back into the party. Luke squeezed your hand tightly when he noticed you shying behind his arm as everyone stared at the two of you. He took you into the kitchen where the drinks were, moving you in front of him so his arms were around your waist as he poured two cups of beer.

"Don't pour it on me this time," he said in your ear, making you giggle. Luke's hand grabbed your chin, turning you around so he could kiss you. You heard everyone start whispering, but quickly shut them out as you kissed back.

When he pulled away, his arm wound back around your waist and you both picked up your cups, going back toward the living room. You never made it though, stopping yourselves when you heard a voice off to the side.

"Pay up,  _idiots_ ," one of Luke's best friends, Michael, snickered. The two boys he was standing with, Calum and Ashton, rolled their eyes, pulling out their wallets.

"That was a  _stupid_  bet anyway," Calum stated, handing Michael a 20 as did Ashton.

"You still went along with it," he smirked, "And now thanks to Luke, I'm $40 richer."

Your heart dropped and you looked at Luke for a moment. He looked back in panic when he realized what you were thinking, but he didn't get the chance to explain himself before you were walking away yet again – you had taken your drink with you that time, but that didn't make it better.

**Luke's POV**

"What bet?" Luke asked his friends so lowly that no one heard him due to you slamming the door on your way out for the second time that night. When he didn't get a response, he angrily repeated himself. " _What fucking bet_?!" he shouted, making the partygoers' eyes widen.

"It wasn't anything-" Michael started before Luke cut him off.

"She thinks I had something to do with it, Clifford, so you better not  _fucking_  tell me it was nothing," he growled.

"He just bet us that you were going to admit your feelings for her and then she was gonna come back!" Ashton said defensively.

"And you couldn't have  _worded_  it that way when they paid up?!" he exclaimed at Michael.

"I didn't know she was gonna blame  _you_!" the blonde whined.

Luke didn't bother waiting for any more explanations, racing back outside to find you. He didn't have to go too far though, because the moment he stepped outside, he saw you sitting on the porch swing.

"You're still here," he sighed in relief, cautiously approaching you once again.

"Heard you yell at them," you muttered, "Figured that meant you didn't even know." Your eyes never left the hands on your lap, your cup long gone from having downed the whole thing after you sat down.

"Y/N, I know I have a tendency to be a douche to you when I'm around them, but I'd  _never_  make a bet about you like that," Luke assured you, sitting down beside you. Your head immediately found his shoulder and your legs overlapped his. His arms wrapped around you tightly as he pressed his lips to your forehead. "I love you, baby girl," he told you, "I'm s-"

"Don't apologize, Lu," you shook your head, "It wasn't your fault; I shouldn't have assumed anything."

"I love you," he repeated in a whisper, making you smile.

"I love you too, Lukey," you finally admitted, making his heart soar.

Luke nudged your head off of him, only to kiss you roughly when you looked up at him. You smiled again, your hand finding the back of his neck so you could play with his hair while the other landed on his knee.

You two stayed like that for a few more minutes until you randomly decided to pull away.

"I bet you 20 bucks I can get one of those 20s from Michael," you grinned mischievously.

" _Really_?" Luke cocked an eyebrow, "You know that idiot  _never_  gives up his money." You winked, hopping up and trotting back inside as he followed you.

"Clifford!" you chirped, walking up to him, "Gimme 20 bucks."

Michael scoffed, "And  _why_  would I do that?"

"Because  _you're welcome_ ," you stated.

You both stared each other down for a moment before he grumbled, pulling one of the bills out of his pocket and handing it over. You spun around as Luke was approaching, holding your hand out.

"Pay up,  _idiot_!" you smiled victoriously.

"Are you  _serious_?!" Luke exclaimed. You showed him the money in your hand and he rolled his eyes, begrudgingly taking out his own wallet and giving you another $20.

" _What_?!" Michael shouted in disbelief.

"She bet me 20 bucks that she could get you to give her one of your 20s," Luke sighed. Ashton and Calum snorted softly while Michael just sighed as well.

"I always  _knew_  there was a reason she fit in around here," he mumbled. You smiled again, going over to him and kissing his cheek.

"Thanks, Mikey," you told him, causing him to roll his eyes playfully. Luke suddenly came over to you, grabbed you by the waist, and pulled you into him.

" _I_  am the only person around here you're supposed to be kissing," he grumbled, his fingers digging into your back.

"Well, I don't see  _you_  kissing me," you challenged. He instantly smashed your lips together, feeling you smile and wrap your arms around his neck, bringing your body closer to his.


	319. One in Seven Billion (Ashton Irwin) - Part 1

Everyone had this marking on their body – the name of their soulmate in that person's handwriting. It appeared on some random area of skin on the day of their 18th birthday. You waited and waited the  _entire day_  – forcing yourself to go through your party and the rest of the evening with your parents as if nothing was bothering you when, in fact, you were becoming  _more_  discouraged with every passing  _minute_. You hadn't felt a  _single_  thing on any part of your body that day apart from when your aunt accidentally bumped your thigh with the present she'd brought over for you. It was a bit sore the rest of the day, telling you that there was definitely going to be a bruise there later.

But after your family had gone home and you hopped in the shower before bed, you couldn't help but notice a black mark on your leg out of the corner of your eye. You looked down, your eyes widening at the infamous scrawl of your soulmate's name. You were one of the lucky ones – those who could actually  _read_  their soulmate's handwriting.  

You would do nothing but stare at your thigh all day, your fingers running along the ink etched into your skin. You had no idea how or when you were going to find this Ashton person.

Because in a world of seven billion people, the odds of finding him were  _literally_  one in seven billion.

~

**Three years later**

You were now 21-years-old and still living in the city you grew up in. It wasn't a small town by any means, but it certainly wasn't a  _well-known_  one either. So when a band as  _popular_  as  _5 Seconds of Summer_  announced they would be playing not one but  _two_  shows there, the buzz around town was somewhat surprising.

You had known the drummer of the band was your soulmate since you saw a photo on Twitter that someone had posted of his signature. You'd been a fan of their music for a few months before ever knowing what the members' names even  _were_ , and to find out your  _soulmate_  was one of them... You  _honestly_  thought you were being pranked. You thought that maybe someone  _else_  had the same signature – but you wouldn't know for  _sure_  until your soulmate wrote it  _for you_.

And that was when you hatched a plan.

The moment tickets for the shows went on sale that following week, you tried to get one. With your luck, it didn't happen, so you had to go with the next best thing: walking around the city in the hopes of running into the band.

~

**Two months later**

5SOS had been in your town since last night, so you woke up that morning feeling pretty skeptical that you would even get the chance to  _see_  them. But you went out anyway, putting on your favorite outfit – making sure that the shorts you were wearing were long enough to cover the tattoo – before you headed out. You had a few errands to run that day anyway, so it wasn't like you weren't going out with no plan, you were just hoping to see Ashton along the way.

Your break came as you were coming out of Starbucks after buying yourself a drink. You looked to your right and saw Ashton and Calum walking down the sidewalk toward you. Your heart instantly started pounding in your chest as they got closer and closer. You were trying to make yourself brave enough to stop them and say hi, but you didn't have to make that decision – they already noticed your wide eyes.

"Hi!" Ashton chirped, giving you his famous dimpled smile, "You look like you're a fan."

"Yeah," you sighed, "Sorry for staring. I just didn't expect to  _actually_  see any of you today."

"What's your name?" Calum asked you.

"Y/N," you smiled shyly.

Ashton froze for a moment, but quickly shook it off before you noticed. Calum gave him a look, obviously knowing what was going through his best friend's mind, but simply chose to keep quiet for now. 

"So, Y/N-" The sound of Ashton saying your name honestly made you feel weak. "-would you like to take a photo?" Your eyes widened again.

" _Right_!" you squeaked, quickly pulling out your phone, " _Yes_!  _Please_!" They chuckled at you and you took a photo with each of the boys, thanking them when they were done.

"Do you have anything you want us to sign?" Calum asked slyly, earning himself a subtle jab to the ribs from Ashton.

"Uh..." you trailed off, looking around you for something they could sign. "You can sign this," you shrugged, giving them a nervous laugh as you pointed to the sleeve on your coffee cup.

They laughed in return and Calum took the cup to sign it with the Sharpie he always kept in his pocket just in case. You noticed Ashton's slight glare at the bass player when he handed him the cup and marker, making you cock an eyebrow. You didn't think too much of it though, figuring it had nothing to do with you or the situation you'd all found yourselves in.

As Ashton was writing his name, you felt your thigh start to itch. There was an uncomfortable look on your face, but you tried not to show it, not wanting either of the boys to think it was their fault. But the moment Ashton handed you your drink back and you looked at his name, it became increasingly difficult to ignore the searing burning sensation on your leg.

"Are you alright?" Ashton asked, the concern on his face very obvious.

"Mhmm," you squeaked, nodding rapidly.

You leaned down to subtly scratch your leg, hoping that would relieve some of the pressure on it. It  _didn't_ , of course, so you knew you had to leave.

"I'm sorry, but I have a lot of errands to run today," you told them, standing back upright and pretending your tattoo didn't hurt, "It was really nice meeting you guys. Tell Luke and Michael some random fan they'll probably never meet said hello." Ashton's face dropped slightly at the thought of never seeing you again and you saw him rub his collarbone lightly.

"It was nice meeting you too, Y/N," he said.

"Yeah," Calum nodded, "And we'll be sure to tell them." You smiled, giving them both hugs.

And then, you were gone.

~

_inspiration: http://thegeminisage.tumblr.com/post/94680598838_


	320. One in Seven Billion (Ashton Irwin) - Part 2

**Ashton's POV**

"So you don't think she's..." Calum trailed off, making Ashton sigh as they both got to walking again.

"I don't know," he answered, " _Surely_ she would have said something if I was hers..."

"Or maybe she's worried about how the fans would react," he suggested.

"But  _she_  could be soulmate – not any of  _them_."

"Put yourself in her shoes, Ash," Calum instructed, "You've seen what some of them have said to people you were just  _hanging out_  with. Maybe their judgment wouldn't be as tame if they knew  _they_  weren't your soulmate."

"Then how am I supposed to find her again?" Ashton sighed, "She just said Luke and Mikey would probably never meet her.  _Surely_ that means I'll never see her again."

"Not unless you go after her now."

"Cal, I can't just  _chase after her_! What if she thinks I'm  _desperate_?!"

"To be fair, mate, you kind of  _are_ ," Calum shrugged, "But it's either that, or  _hope_  you run into her again someday."

Ashton stopped walking for a moment, really thinking about everything Calum had said. He knew the chances of ever seeing you again were slim – if he had any other chances  _at all_  – so he had to do it; He had to go after you. He immediately jogged in the direction you had gone, missing Calum's smile but hearing it as the bassist called after him.

"Don't forget soundcheck at 4!" he reminded him before heading off to explore the rest of the city alone.

Ashton had no idea whether or not he was actually going to be able to find you, but he knew he had to  _try_. The chances of him actually having found his soulmate were as high as they'd  _ever_  been as far as he was concerned.

He'd heard your name  _so many_  times after meeting fans, but he'd never  _felt_  this way before. He didn't quite understand it, but  _something_  in his gut told him that you were the one. Hearing you say your name made his stomach do flips and his heart flutter in ways he couldn't  _describe_ ; And that convinced him that you were  _it_  for him.

But if you  _were_  and you  _knew_ , why did you just  _leave_?

Ashton had been so lost in thought that he didn't even realize he was about to run into someone. The moment he  _did_ , he grabbed the girl's waist so she didn't fall to the ground, feeling her grab onto his arms in return.

"I'm so sorry!" he exclaimed, "I wasn't watching whe-" He stopped when he realized the girl in his arms was  _you_ , his eyes widening.

"Hi, Ashton," you cleared your throat nervously, "Kinda wish we met like this the first time, to be honest."

"S-Sorry," he stuttered, quickly releasing you, "I was- I wasn't watching where I was going."

"I can  _see_  that," you giggled, bending down to pick up the coffee cup you'd dropped when he ran into you.

"Oh my God, I'm sorry!" he shook his head, apologizing for a third time, "What did you have? I'll buy you another one!"

"Ashton, it's fine," you shrugged, slipping the sleeve off so you could keep his and Calum's autographs, "It was almost gone anyway."

"But I-"

" _Ashton_!" you laughed, placing your hand on his arm again, "Trust me: it's fine." Ashton's breathing hitched when you touched him, but you didn't seem to notice. "What are you doing anyway?" you asked, "I thought you and Calum were going the other way."

It was then that Ashton realized he had absolutely  _no plan_  as to what he was going to say to you when he found you.

"Uh..." he trailed off, "What am I doing? That's a good question. I... Um... I was going to ask you if you...uh...if you were coming to see a show this weekend..."

"I don't believe that for a  _second_ ," you answered honestly before a frown took over your features, "But no, I'm not. Couldn't buy a ticket in time." Ashton frowned as well.

"Well, you know, I'm  _in_  the band, so technically, I can  _get you in_..."

"Ashton, you don't have to-"

"But I  _want_  to," he told you.

"Ash-"

"I don't want to have to  _carry you_  to the venue, Y/N," he stated with a serious expression on his face.

"That's  _unfortunate_ ," you replied with a dramatic sigh and sarcastic tone.

"I will if you want me to," he shrugged.

"Right now?" you smirked slightly.

"I thought you had errands," he laughed, turning around and letting you hop onto his back.

"Eh," you squeaked, wrapping your arms around his neck while his elbows hooked under your knees and held you firmly as he began walking again, "They can wait until tomorrow."

"You know, we have another show tomorrow if you want to come to that one  _too_ ," Ashton mentioned.

"Hmm," you hummed, "Then Sunday sounds good."

"I think you're procrastinating," he laughed.

"I think you're completely correct," you grinned.

"You shouldn't do that, you know," he sighed. You sighed as well, a bit more higher-pitched than he had.

"First, you want me to come to the show and now, you want me to do my errands," you shook your head, "Make up your mind, Irwin; I can't do  _both_." Ashton simply grinned, walking up to Calum – who surprisingly hadn't gotten very far since he'd last seen him.

"Hey, Cal," Ashton said, making him look over from the shop he was looking into. Calum let out a confused laugh at seeing you with your chin on Ashton's shoulder.

" _Really_?" he asked, looking at you.

"The desperation to get me to a show was  _so real_ ," you commented, making him laugh as Ashton rolled his eyes and smiled.

"Believe me, I  _know_ ," Calum snickered, earning himself another glare from his best friend. You giggled softly in Ashton's ear, feeling him shiver slightly.

You shifted your head to look at him, seeing his cheek turn a light shade of pink. You chose not to say anything though, instead just deciding to rest your chin back on his shoulder and let him carry you.

Ashton and Calum continued to explore the city – you pointed out your favorite places to go and shops you thought they would enjoy – before it was time for soundcheck.

Upon entering the backdoor of the venue to avoid the crowd of fans already waiting in line outside, you immediately ran into Luke and Michael when Calum opened the dressing room door.

"Well, I'm excited to hear the explanation for  _this_ ," Luke commented when he noticed you on Ashton's back.

"This is the  _greatest_   _day_  of my  _life_ ," you sighed, feeling Ashton's body shake as he chuckled. He let you hop off of his back so you could hug the other two boys.

"What's your name?" the blonde asked you.

"Y/N," you replied bashfully, moving to hug the other blonde.

"Y/N?" Michael tilted his head, "Isn't that the na-" Ashton made an immediate noise of protest, causing you to let go of Michael and look between the two boys skeptically. But you ultimately just shrugged it off.

"You guys wouldn't happen to know if there's a bathroom or anything around here, would you?" you asked.

"Yeah," Calum nodded, "I'll show you."

**Ashton's POV**

The moment you left the room, Luke and Michael eagerly swamped Ashton with questions about you.

"So is she your soulmate?"

"Are you  _her_  soulmate?"

"Have you written your names for each other yet?"

"I don't know, I don't know, and I signed a cup sleeve for her," Ashton interrupted them.

"But if you signed something for her, then you should  _know_  if you're her soulmate or not," Michael shook his head, "Fans are usually  _jumping_  at the chance to say they're your soulmate."

"Maybe she's just nervous," Luke said in almost exactly the same way Calum had earlier, "You know how they get when we're around other girls."

"Or maybe she's just  _not_  his soulmate," the blonde shrugged.

"She is," Ashton spoke, sitting down on the couch.

"How do you  _know_?" Luke asked, "Has she written her name for you?"

"No," he shook his head, "But I can tell; I can feel it."

"You can  _feel it_?" Michael cocked an eyebrow.

"I can feel it," he repeated, "I don't know what it is, but  _something's_  telling me she's the one."

"How are you going to  _prove it_?" Ashton paused for a moment before sighing.

" _I have no idea_ ," he admitted with a groan, throwing his head back onto the cushion.

"You could always just ask her to write her number down for you and maybe she'll include her name," Luke shrugged.

"She wouldn't  _sign_  her name, Luke," Michael rolled his eyes. The blonde frowned, but recognized his point.

The two boys then plopped down on the couch with Ashton, none of them exactly sure where to go from here.

~

_inspiration:http://thegeminisage.tumblr.com/post/94680598838_


	321. One in Seven Billion (Ashton Irwin) - Part 3

**Your POV**

After coming out of the bathroom, Calum had taken you to the stage, letting you see what it was like from the band's point of view. You were both sitting on the edge of the runway – you simply admiring the empty arena. But it quickly became clear that Calum's intentions weren't to  _just_  show you around the venue.

"If I ask you a question, do you promise you'll answer it honestly?" he asked you. You sighed softly, already knowing what he was leading up to.

"Is this about when I was acting funny earlier?"

"After Ashton signed your coffee cup? Yeah," he nodded.

"What about it?"

"I think you know  _what about it_ , Y/N," he said seriously. You kept your eyes trained on the empty seats, hearing Calum sigh next to you. "Is Ashton your soulmate?" he asked bluntly.

"Yeah," you swallowed thickly.

"Why didn't you  _say anything_?"

"He should be with someone else," you whispered, "Someone who can  _handle_  things people would say about them."

"But  _someone else_  isn't his soulmate, Y/N;  _You_ _are_ ," Calum shook his head, "Ever since I've known him, people introducing themselves as Y/N has gotten his hopes up and he's  _so sure_  that you're it for him. I get that you're scared, but you  _can't_  take that away from him."

"H-He has  _my name_?" you asked, finally looking up at him, "But how does he know it's  _me_?"

"There's only one way to find out, you know," he replied, taking his Sharpie out of his pocket and holding it out to you.

"Does this count?" you furrowed your eyebrows, "Doesn't  _he_ have to ask for it?"

"Well, the thing is you just have to write it  _for_  him, so it might. We'll never know if you don't try it out." You took a deep breath and took the marker from Calum.

You pulled your cup sleeve out of your pocket, staring at Ashton's name for a moment. You uncapped the Sharpie and carefully signed your name on the inside of the sleeve – right behind Ashton's. Everything was silent for a moment before Calum stood up.

"I'll go check on Ashton," he said, leaving before you could respond.

So you sat alone, anxiously waiting to know whether or not Ashton Irwin was your soulmate.

~

**Ashton's POV**

As Ashton, Michael, and Luke were trying to think of possible ways to get you to write your name for Ashton without you knowing that was what you were doing, Ashton started to feel a tingly sensation on the skin covering his collarbone. He was able to ignore it at the beginning, but when it started to feel increasingly more like a burn, he couldn't stop himself.

" _What the fuck_?!" he groaned, his palm instantly sliding under his shirt and pressing onto his skin.

"What's wrong, Ash?" Luke asked, the concern in his voice very obvious.

"My skin just started... _burning_ ," he shook his head in confusion. Once the boys noticed where Ashton's hand was, their eyes widened.

"Isn't that where Y/N's name is?" Michael pointed out. Ashton immediately pulled his collar down and moved his hand, looking at the redness that outlined your signature.

" _Holy shit_ ," the two blondes said in unison, wide smiles on their faces.

"How is that  _possible_?!" Ashton shook his head, "I didn't  _ask her_  to write her name!"

"You know... No one ever said  _you_  had to ask," Luke said, "She just had to have written it  _for you_."

"Why would she have written it for me  _now_?"

Suddenly, the door opened and Calum came sauntering into the room. Ashton knew right then and there by the smirk on his face that his best friend had every little thing to do with it.

" _Calum_ -"

"Well,  _you_ weren't going to ask her!" Calum said defensively. Ashton's breathing hitched.

"She really  _did_  write it?" he murmured, more to himself than to anyone else.

"She's sitting on the stage," he shrugged, "Go ask her yourself."

Ashton didn't need to be told twice, hopping up and practically sprinting out of the room.

**Your POV**

You looked behind you when you heard someone running into the room, watching Ashton stop to catch his breath, blushing when he realized you were looking at him. He then walked over and sat down beside you in the spot Calum previously occupied. Neither of you spoke for a moment – not too sure what to say – until Ashton asked you the only thing he could make sense of.

"Can I see it?" he asked shyly, hoping the question wouldn't creep you out.

You didn't say anything, you just pulled the cuff of your shorts up just enough so he could see his signature inked onto your skin. He went to touch it, but held back, not wanting to scare you away by touching you without your permission.

"Why didn't you say anything when I signed your cup?" He seemed so hurt that you'd just  _left_  without telling him he was your soulmate and you honestly felt guilty.

"I don't... I don't get  _that_  lucky, Ashton," you shook your head, "I'm not the girl that meets a celebrity and finds out they're my  _soulmate_."

"That's because you hadn't  _met me_  before today," he commented, making you laugh unintentionally. Ashton smiled at the sound, already thinking he could get used to hearing it every day. But your expression fell slightly, making him perk up.

"I thought management wanted you to stay single for fans," you said softly.

"So what if they  _do_?" he said, making you look at him, "They can keep me from dating other people, but they can't keep me from being with  _you_ , Y/N.  _You're_  my soulmate; Not _anyone else_. If people are going to be angry that I'm not theirs, that's  _their_  problem. I've dated  _so many_  people before and even after your name showed up on my skin." He pulled his shirt down so you could see your signature, and you lifted your hand up to run your fingers over it as he continued talking. "Nothing ever worked out with them," he shook his head, "But you... I can't tell you  _what_  it was, but  _something_  drew me to you when I saw you walk out of that shop today. Things started to feel  _right_  when I met you and it was like I  _knew_  that this tattoo was  _yours_. I  _know_  I won't be able to stop people from being rude to you about being my soulmate – and  _God_ , Y/N, I wish I  _could_  – but they're going to find their soulmates someday too. I finally found  _mine_ , Y/N.  _Please_... Just  _don't_  make me keep living  _without you_." You let out a shaky breath, leaning in and resting your forehead on his.

"I won't, Ash," you promised him, feeling him let out a sigh of relief.

Ashton put one of his hands on your cheek, the other resting right on top of your exposed tattoo. His lips were on yours in a matter of seconds and the both of you instantly smiled. Your heart was beating a mile a minute and the butterflies in your stomach were going absolutely crazy, but you didn't care.

You had finally met your soulmate, and you weren't  _ever_  letting him go.

~

_inspiration: http://thegeminisage.tumblr.com/post/94680598838_


	322. Technicalities (Michael Clifford)

_Hey, Y/N! This is Nev from Catfish. Max and I are filming an episode right now and we just read your email and were wondering if you're available to Skype._

Your heart skipped a beat as you read the text message. You quickly responded with confirmation as you logged into your Skype account, waiting for the call. The moment you got it, you squeaked – this was  _actually_  happening – and answered.

"Y/N!" Nev cheered when you both popped up on each other's screens.

"Hi!" you grinned widely, "How are you guys?"

"We're good! We just read your email, and it's just crazy! I mean...  _Michael Clifford_?"

"I know!" you laughed lightly, "I know it's pretty hard to believe, but that's why I contacted you guys. I'm hoping to get some answers for myself."

"Well, I think we're just going to head on out to you and jump right into this, okay?"

"Absolutely!" you nodded, "I'll see you guys when you get here!"

~

**The next day**

You heard a knock on your door that afternoon, hurrying to open it. When you did, you found Nev, Max, and the crew standing on your porch.

"Hi, guys!" you smiled, hugging Nev and Max before ushering everyone inside. You all sat down in your living room, everyone eager to get started.

"Alright, are we ready?" Nev asked, looking around the room. The crew either nodded or gave him a thumbs up, signaling for him to move on. He turned back to you, "So, Michael Clifford, huh?" You couldn't help but laugh.

"I know it sounds fake," you acknowledged, "But I think there's that  _fan_  side of me that believes that it really  _is_  him."

"What about it  _makes it_  feel real?" Max asked you, "Like, what makes you feel like it's  _actually_  him?"

"I think it's mainly the  _consistency_  of it all," you shook your head, "There will be days when he'll tell me he can't talk because he has interviews or promo shoots or soundcheck or whatever, and it all ties in with what other fans online are saying about meeting the band during those things."

"You realize how... _farfetched_...this seems, right?"

"Yeah," you replied with a light chuckle and a sigh, "And I know there are going to be people who see this and think I'm insane, but either way, I've spent the last  _eight months_  talking to this guy and even if it's  _not_  actually Michael, I just want to know  _who_  it is. I've got  _such_  a strong connection with this person and I've told them  _so_ many things about me that  _no one else_  knows, and I just... I wanna know  _who's_  getting those secrets."

"So, you said in the email that you two Skype a lot," Max pointed out, "So if you do that, why exactly are we here?"

"It's only ever audio," you sighed, resting your elbow on the armrest beside you and your chin in your hand, "I've asked him before if he would get on video, but the excuses were always ' _it's too dark_ ' or ' _I'm at the studio_ ' or ' _the wifi at this hotel isn't good enough_ ' or whatever." Both men gave you sympathetic expressions when you paused, taking in a shaky breath. "I  _really_  want to believe that it actually is him – I mean, I've heard him talk in interviews and stuff and the voice sounds the  _same_ , but it also sounds  _different_  too, you know?" you said, "I just feel like he's keeping  _something_  from me and I'm not sure I'm brave enough to find out what it is  _alone_." They both nodded understandingly.

"Well, we'll go do some digging and come back tomorrow," Nev told you. You nodded, all of you standing up and going to the door. "We'll see you later, Y/N."

"Bye," you smiled, giving him and Max another hug as they walked out your door, "Thank you."

**Third person POV**

"There's  _no way_ ," Max shook his head as he and Nev got into the car to go back to their hotel.

"Let's just keep an open mind here, Max," Nev said.

" _An open mind_?" he let out an exasperated breath, "Nev, there is absolutely  _no reason_  that this guy would refuse to video chat with her if he was  _legit_.  _Look at her_! She's  _gorgeous_! There's  _no way_  that she's talking to the  _real_  Michael Clifford."

"Then I think the question now isn't  _really_  who's pretending to be him, but how are we going to tell her that this person she's clearly devoted so much of her  _time_  to has been  _lying_  to her?" he sighed. Max leaned back in his seat, sinking down slightly, having absolutely no idea how they were going to break it to you either.

~

**Your POV; The next day**

"Y/N!" Nev chirped after you'd answered his call, "We've found some stuff that we'd like to go over with you. Is there any way we can meet up right now?"

"Of course!" you nodded even though he couldn't see you, "I'm at home right now, and my parents are actually here if that's alright."

"That's more than alright. We'll see you in 10 minutes."

"See you then!" you said before hanging up your phone.

~

10 minutes later, Nev, Max, and the rest of the crew were filing through your front door. You led them to the backyard since it was a nice day and everyone could be spread out comfortably.

You, Nev, Max, and your parents sat down on the patio furniture – you, Nev, and Max on the couch with you in the middle, and your parents took their seats adjacent to Nev.

"I guess I first want to start by talking to you guys," Nev addressed your mom and dad, "What's the extent of what you know?"

"We know that she thinks she's dating one of her boy band members," your mom stated dryly.

Your jaw tightened as you leaned back in your seat. Your mother never believed it – always saying that whoever this boy was was an obvious fake, only seeking out to break your heart.

"We're not going to do this again, Mom," you said softly, making everyone look at you.

"I just don't understand why you couldn't have found someone around here. What's so special about that boy that you couldn't-"

" _His name is Michael_ ," you said through gritted teeth, "And he is  _ten million times better_  than any of the  _jerks_  around here  _ever_  will be."

"How about we just hear what these two found out before we start picking fights?" your dad spoke up, patting your mom's knee. You let out a breath to calm yourself down and your mom finally relaxed as your dad motioned for Nev to begin.

"Well... We would usually start by doing a reverse image search on Google, but since Michael is as famous as he is, we knew it wouldn't be useful since his photos are all over the internet," Nev told you to which you nodded understandingly, "We searched his phone number, and it's registered to Daryl Clifford which is a really good sign."

"Why is that good?" your dad asked.

"That's Michael's dad's name," you chuckled under your breath.

"As for Facebook, everything on the account he gave you..." Nev paused, shaking his head. Your heart was racing, terrified that something was off about it. He then let out a nervous laugh, "It all  _seems_  legit."

"So you're saying that my daughter is  _actually_  dating who she thinks she is?" your mom raised her eyebrows.

"No," Nev shook his head, "But we  _are_  saying there is no solid proof that she  _isn't_."

"But if it's him, why won't he get on video when they talk on Skype?" your dad wondered.

"Well, that doesn't mean this  _is_  him," Max explained, "It just means that if it's  _not_ , this person has gone to incredible lengths to make sure she doesn't  _find out_."

"So what's the next step then?"

"I think the next step is to call him and ask if there's any way we can meet him in person," Nev said, "At this point, it's the only way we'll find out if the guy Y/N's been talking to really  _is_  Michael Clifford."

**Third person POV**

_Hey, you've reached Michael. Sorry I can't answer the phone right now, but leave a message and I'll do my best to get back to you as soon as I can._

"Hey, Michael," Nev spoke to the voicemail, "This is Nev from the MTV show  _Catfish_. I have some questions for you and would love if you could call me back when you get this. Thanks." He looked at the two camera men that had followed him. "And now, we wait," he shrugged, heading back outside.

"That was fast," Max said as Nev sat back down beside you.

"It went to voicemail," he informed you all, "Hopefully we won't have to wait too long for a reply."

~

You all sat around for about 20 minutes just talking when Nev's phone started to ring. He pulled the phone out of his pocket and read the caller ID.

"It's Michael," he announced, causing your eyes to widen and your heart to start racing again. "Hello?" he answered.

"Hi, is this Nev?" Michael asked.

"Yes, it is," Nev nodded, "And you're Michael?"

"I am. Sorry I couldn't answer your call earlier. I was recording vocals."

"Oh, that's alright. Do you have any idea as to why I would be calling you?"

"I've seen the show, so I have a pretty good guess," he chuckled, "Is someone using my photos?"

"That's what we're trying to figure out," he laughed as well, "We got an email from a girl named Y/N, and-" Nev could hear Michael's breathing hitch.

"Y/N Y/L/N?" he asked.

"Yes."

"My  _girlfriend_  emailed you?" Nev could sense the confusion in his voice.

"She  _did_ ," he confirmed.

"Is she there right now?"

"Yes, she is. Do you want me to put you on speaker?"

**Your POV**

Once Nev asked if Michael wanted to be put on speaker, your heart skipped a beat. You didn't know whether or not he was mad that you had gone to  _Catfish_  about him and honestly, you were a little scared to find out. If it really  _was_  him, would he be  _mad_  that you didn't trust him?

You assumed Michael said yes though, because Nev brought his phone in front of him and tapped the speaker icon.

"You're on, Michael," Nev told him.

"Hey, kitten," you could hear your boyfriend's smile, "You there?" You bit your lip and exhaled deeply, blushing at the use of your nickname in front on your parents.

"Hi, Mikey," you practically whispered.

"Heard you emailed  _Catfish_  about me." His tone was teasing, so you were relieved that he wasn't upset.

"Sorry," you apologized anyway.

"There's nothing to be sorry for, kitten," he assured you, "I know you've been having your doubts and I haven't exactly been helping much to ease them."

"So, Michael," Nev interjected himself, "We don't want to keep you too long, so we were wondering if there's any way we can meet up with you...maybe tomorrow?"

"Yeah!" Michael nodded, "I'm with the band in LA until next week."

"Awesome! I'll have Y/N text you tomorrow to make plans to meet up with you."

"I look forward to it," he beamed. Nev motioned for you to say something.

"Bye, Mikey," you said softly.

"Bye, kitten," he grinned, "I'll see you tomorrow." He hung up the call and you all looked at each other for a moment.

"I guess we should go get packing," Max spoke up.

"This is actually  _happening_?" you murmured, looking at Nev and Max as they stood up, "Like... We're  _really_  doing this?"

"We  _are_ ," Nev confirmed with a wide smile, patting your back, ushering you to hurry up and pack so you could get on the next flight to LA.

~

**The next afternoon; 1:30pm**

You had just gotten the text from Michael telling you that he would meet you at a local park. You, Nev, Max, and the crew arrived and were walking around looking for any sign of the blonde-haired boy. The park was pretty empty – which was good so you wouldn't have any fans interrupting the meeting if it really  _was_  him.

You'd been walking around for 10 minutes, but just as you were about to suggest calling and asking where exactly he was, you looked to your right and your heart nearly jumped out of your chest.

"Oh my God," you whispered, stopping dead in your tracks.

"What's wrong?" Nev asked, his voice panic-stricken.

Your hands were covering your mouth and it was painfully obvious that you were trying to hold in tears. Everyone looked at each other for a moment before following your gaze, watching in shock as the guitar player came over to you.

"Hey, kitten," Michael grinned widely just before he wrapped his arms around your waist. Your arms immediately wound around his neck, hugging him tightly.

"You're  _real_ ," you murmured into his neck. You felt him smile against your own skin.

"And so are  _you_ ," he returned, pressing a kiss to the top of your jaw.

When you and Michael pulled away a minute later, one of his arms remained around you, holding you against him – although, you weren't about to leave his side until you  _absolutely_   _had to_. He kissed your temple, making you scrunch your face up happily. Your arms went around his waist, your head lying against his chest.

"Alright," Nev laughed, holding out his hand, "I've gotta make sure you're actually real." Michael smiled, shaking his hand as well as Max's. " _Wow_ ," he breathed, "I can't  _believe this_! You're  _Michael Clifford_! This is  _crazy_! Let's all sit down and talk!"

You went over to a random shelter that wasn't being used, Michael's arm never in a position where he  _wasn't_  touching you. You all sat on the tops of the picnic tables, you and Michael sitting beside each other on one while Nev and Max sat on the other one, facing you. Once the rest of the crew was set up, Nev started talking.

"What was it about Y/N that sort of attracted you to her?" he asked Michael.

You gave Michael a look, making him laugh. He pressed a kiss to the side of your head before his arm slid around your shoulders and pulled you into him, your own arms wrapped around his waist while your head rested on his shoulder.

"I think it was just how  _genuine_  she is," Michael answered with a small shrug, "She's a very brutally honest kind of person and she's not afraid to tell anyone how she feels about something. She  _knows_  what she wants and she doesn't  _stop_  until she  _gets it_. She's just an amazing girl and I feel really lucky to have her in my life." He ended his speech by kissing the top of your head and there was no doubt you were blushing as your face was buried in his shirt.

"I mean, she's also understandably had her concerns about whether or not she was actually talking to  _you_ ," Nev informed him.

"I know," Michael said with a guilty tone, earning himself a light squeeze from you. "And I know that all those excuses seemed like a bunch of shit, but they really  _were_  true," he told everyone, "I could just never make myself be brave enough to be the one to ask her to FaceTime me when I actually had the  _time_."

"Why not?" Max asked.

"I guess I didn't want her to freak out," he replied, chewing on his bottom lip, "I felt like if she found out it really was me, then she would tell everyone or something."

"You  _know_  I wouldn't have done that, Mikey," you mumbled into his shoulder. He let out a breathy chuckle.

"I know, kitten," he kissed your head again, "I'm sorry."

"You have nothing to be sorry for."

He shook his head slowly, "I didn't trust you."

"I emailed  _Catfish_ , Michael," you lifted your head up and cocked an eyebrow at him, "I think it's safe to say we're even." Everyone chuckled and Michael pulled you back into him, his lips hitting your forehead and staying there for a few seconds.

"You still had better reason to not trust  _me_  than I had to not trust  _you_ ," he pointed out. You kissed his cheek as if to tell him it was okay before putting your head back on his shoulder.

"Well, I think Max and I are going to give you two some time to talk alone," Nev announced, standing up. They walked away and a crew member set up his camera pointing at the two of you.

"I gotta say," Michael said, "The camera's kinda killing the mood a bit." You couldn't help but giggle, but you didn't say anything – wanting as much time holding Michael as you could get.

~

Later that afternoon, you were back at the hotel. Nev, Max, and the crew were in their rooms and you were in yours. Michael had stayed with you all day, promising you that he didn't have anywhere to be – he'd cleared up as much of his weekend as he could for you.

You were sitting on your bed, both you and Michael propped back against the headboard as you watched TV. Neither of you were really paying attention to the screen though, distracting yourselves with each other. You were laying a little lower than Michael was, your head on his chest and your arms around his waist, listening to the steady beating of his heart. Meanwhile, he had his arms around your shoulders, holding you close to him. He watched the way your stomach rose and fell as you were breathing, feeling your breath barely move the loose fabric of his shirt.

"How long are you here?" Michael asked you randomly.

"Until Sunday morning," you said softly, disappointed you only had a day and a half left to spend with him.

He simply smiled, "I wanna take you on a date."

"You  _do_?" your eyes widened slightly as you moved to look at him.

"Well, yeah," he furrowed his eyebrows, a confused laugh passing his lips, "I think my girlfriend deserves at least one date that isn't through a screen." You blushed when he called you his girlfriend – hearing it in person just made the butterflies in your stomach go crazy. "Plus-" He leaned toward you. "-I'm  _really_  looking forward to kissing you without all the cameras around." You laughed lightly.

"I don't see any cameras right  _now_ , do you?" you said with a playful smirk. His eyes widened slightly and he cleared his throat.

"Kitten," Michael said, visibly gulping. He took a deep breath, "Can I... Can I kiss you?" You simply nodded. He leaned forward so his lips were barely brushing yours as if he was thinking about backing out, but you didn't give him the chance, pushing your lips onto his roughly.

Michael was usually a pretty reserved person, but when it came to you, he wore his heart on his sleeve. Everything began to feel  _right_  when he met you. You knew who he was – despite having your doubts, which was understandable – but you didn't let that affect anything. You still treated him like  _Michael_ , not  _Michael Clifford from 5 Seconds of Summer_. You listened to his problems and helped him through his random bouts of depression and anxiety; You  _stayed_  through it all, promising him that if he had to endure it, you were going to ride it out  _with him_  – and that was something he really  _wasn't_  used to.

"I love you," Michael blurted out as he pulled away. You blushed at the random confession, but the smile on your face was undeniable.

"I knew it," you sighed, putting your hand on his cheek and stroking his cheekbone, "Every bad boy has a soft side."

"I'm not  _soft_ ," he pouted, "I'm  _punk rock_."

"Pouting isn't very punk rock, Mikey," you giggled, "And I didn't say you were  _soft_ , I said you have a soft  _side_."

"Only for  _you_ ," he mumbled, drumming gently on your hips. You grinned again, pressing a kiss to his nose.

"I love you too, Mikey," you whispered. Michael didn't say anything, he simply put his lips back on yours and pulled you as close to him as possible.

~

**The next day**

You were spending your full day with Michael at the venue he and the band were playing that night. He insisted that since you were leaving the next morning and he wouldn't get to see you until you were at the airport that you should at least come see a show. Obviously, being a fan of the band for as long as you have, you weren't going to say no to him.

You were sitting in the dressing room alone – Michael had gotten in the shower about 5 minutes ago, promising you he wouldn't take longer than 10. You were occupying your time on your phone when the dressing room door opening startled you. You looked up as Calum entered the room, his eyes widening at the sight of you.

" _Oh my_   _God_!" he shouted, " _Guys_!  _She's real_!" Ashton and Luke then came into view, practically shoving each other to get through the door. They stood back upright, all three of them now staring at you.

"H-Hi..." you said shyly.

"You're Y/N, right?" Ashton asked. You nodded and he looked at Calum and Luke, "He wasn't fucking with us."

"Should I go somewhere else...?" you asked slowly.

"No, no, no!" Luke told you, "We're just a little surprised us all." They came to sit around you – Ashton on the couch beside you while Calum and Luke took a seat on the coffee table in front of you.

"About what?"

"Well, see, we always thought  _you_  were the one catfishing  _Michael_ ," Calum chuckled. You couldn't help but laugh.

"No offense, but you guys are pretty  _dumb_  for thinking I'd catfish him," you teased, "If I was gonna catfish someone, I'd use pictures of a girl who was actually  _hot_."

"The girl  _I've_  been talking to is  _pretty_  hot," Michael pointed out as he walked back into the room, finishing up drying his hair with his towel.

You smiled slightly, but it was a bit forced – and Michael could tell. He didn't say anything though; He just came over to the couch, squeezing in between you and Ashton. You squeaked loudly before laughing.

" _Mikey_!" you groaned, pushing him gently as the other boys smiled.

"Hey, don't push him onto  _me_!" Ashton chuckled, shoving him back.

Michael finally came to a resting position curled up on your lap, his face buried in your neck. You smiled – a  _genuine_  one this time – and just put your arms around his shoulders, laying your head on top of his.

You were so wrapped up in the happiness you felt with finally being able to hold your boyfriend that you completely forgot his band mates were even  _there_  until Calum cleared his throat.

"Well," he said, getting up, "The boys and I are gonna go explore the city. Do you guys want to come?" Michael declined before you could respond. "Do either of you need anything while we're out?" You both shook your heads that time and Calum, Luke, and Ashton left.

It was quiet in the room, the only things happening being you kissing Michael's head every now and then and Michael listening to the steady beat of your heart. But it didn't stay quiet for long.

"I really  _do_  love you," Michael said suddenly, tilting his head so he could look at you, "You know that, right?"

"Yeah, Mikey," you murmured, "I love you too."

"Kitten," he swallowed, letting go of you and moving to sit back up right where Ashton just was, "I don't think you  _get it_..." He shook his head slowly. "I am  _in_  love with you, Y/N. I've never felt the way I feel about you about  _anyone_  before. Seeing your name pop up on my phone when I get a text from you gives me this weird feeling in my chest that I've never  _had_  before. We've only been talking for eight months, but I know I want you around for so many more. You make me  _happy_  – far happier than I've been in a  _very_  long time – and I don't-" He choked slightly. "-I'm scared you'll  _leave_  if-"

"I'm  _not_  leaving you, Michael," you said firmly, sitting up straight as well, "You are one of the most  _important_  people in my life and I don't think I'll  _ever_  find anyone who makes me feel the same way you do."

Michael looked at you – the vulnerability showing on his face making your heart feel heavy – and he leaned in to kiss you. One of your hands moved up to his cheek, holding him in place as if he was ever even thinking about leaving that spot. His hands found your hips and he gently tugged you onto his lap, sliding them to your lower back once you were settled on top of him. He slipped his hand under your shirt and mindlessly rubbed your spine with his thumb.

"I love you, kitten," he mumbled into your mouth.

"I love you  _more_ , Mikey," you replied.

" _Impossible_ ," he told you, but you could feel the corner of his mouth twitch into a small smile.

~

After soundcheck, while the boys were in the dressing room getting ready for the show, you were sitting on the edge of the stage in front of Michael's microphone. There was no one in the arena yet – the only reason you were out there and not in the room with the boys – just admiring the building.

It was another sold out show and you were just thinking about how proud you were of the band for everything they were doing from a fan's perspective. And you couldn't believe that out of every fan they had, Michael would pick  _you_.

"Hey, Y/N," you heard Ashton say as he came up behind you. You jumped slightly, looking at him as he sat down beside you. "You okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine," you practically whispered, staring at the empty seats in front of you.

"No, you're not," he shook his head, "I'm sure you'd rather talk to Michael about whatever's bothering you, but you can trust me. I know you don't really know me that well, but I promise I'm a good secret-keeper." A small giggled passed your lips, making him grin slightly before he noticed your own smile fade.

"I'd actually rather  _not_  talk to Mikey about it," you confessed, swallowing thickly.

"Why not?"

"He'd just say the stuff all boyfriends say to their girlfriends when they're feeling insecure," you shrugged, "And I know I really only know whatever's gone through the media about you, but I know  _you'd_  say the same stuff too."

"Try me," he stated. You looked at him for a moment and he really did seem like he cared, so you caved in and let go.

"There are better girls," you said shakily, wiping your already watery eyes as you turned back to the arena, "It's not that I think I'm not ' _pretty enough_ ' or whatever, but I know there's gonna come a time when someone says that after they see us together and no matter  _how_  I feel about myself will  _change_  that I'm going to  _believe it_. I'm just really scared that I won't be able to  _handle it_  and then  _Mikey_  would be heartbroken and it literally makes me feel  _sick_  thinking about ever  _hurting him_  like that. Michael deserves the  _entire world_  and I'm terrified I won't be able to  _give it to him_." Ashton watched you wipe your tears and everything was quiet for a moment before he said anything.

"Maybe you're  _not_  perfect, but you're perfect for  _Michael_ ," he told you, "You have been  _such_  a big part of him since the day he met you and I don't think  _either_  of you realize  _just_  how well you fit together. Not even his  _family_  has seen him as happy as he has been since you came into his life. I've been there for some of his  _lowest_  points throughout the last eight months and you've  _always_  seemed to pull him  _right_  back out. You've already given him so much  _more_  than you're giving yourself credit for, Y/N, and I don't think we'll ever be able to thank you  _enough_  for everything you've done for him."

You looked up at him and he gave you a small smile, carefully swiping the wetness from your cheeks. Without warning, you turned your upper body toward him so you could wrap your arms around his waist and hug him tightly. Although he was a bit confused, Ashton put his arms around you as well, squeezing you affectionately.

"Thanks, Ash," you mumbled into his shirt. He smiled again, pressing a friendly kiss to the top of your head.

"Should have seen this coming," a voice from the side of the stage said. You and Ashton looked over to find Michael with a smile on his face. "I bet you were just using me this whole time so you get to Ash since he  _was_  your favorite, after all," he sighed dramatically, making his way to you.

"You caught me," you giggled.

" _I_  was your favorite?" Ashton asked with a sly smile, earning him a shove to the shoulder from you. "Can't believe I missed my chance," he shook his head, "All this time Michael was talking about you and I didn't believe him, I could have been sneaking in and making my move."

"Maybe in another life, Ash," you grinned.

"I look forward to it," he winked, pulling you into another hug, "And anytime you need to talk, I'm here for you." You didn't say anything; you simply squeezed him before he left you and Michael alone.

"So what did you two talk about?" Michael asked you, putting his arms around your waist and kissing your forehead.

"Nothing," you shrugged, your own arms winding around his neck, one of your hands resting on the back so you could play with his hair, "Just talked about fans and stuff."

"What about them?" he asked, his voice suddenly filled with worry.

"Nothing bad, Mikey," you assured him, "It's nothing to worry about."

"But you talked to  _Ashton_  about it..."

"And when I'm  _ready_  to talk to you about it, I will," you promised, sliding your hand to his cheek, "Please don't stress out about it, Mikey – it's just something I need to handle on my own first."

"But Ash-"

"Did a very nice job in helping me figure out where to  _start_ ," you finished his sentence, "Just trust me."

Michael pressed a kiss to your nose and murmured, "I trust you."

"I love you, Mikey," you told him. You swore you saw a pink tint on his cheeks, but his lips hit yours before you got a good look.

"I love you too, kitten," he breathed, feeling you smile and kiss him harder.

~

**Three months later**

"Hi, Y/N!" Nev and Max said in unison after calling you for your update.

"Hi!" you smiled widely, "It's good to see you guys again!"

"How are things going with you and Michael?"

" _So terrible_ ," you replied, making sure to over-exaggerate your tone, "He's  _awful_ ; Not at  _all_  what I thought he was."

"Alright, kitten," Michael chuckled, coming out from the little hallway of the tour bus you were currently on, "It's not nice to  _lie_." He sat down beside you, his arm snaking around your waist as he kissed your temple. You leaned into him while Nev and Max's eyes – as well as their  _smiles_  – widened.

"You guys are  _together_!" Nev exclaimed with a bit of a questioning tone.

"We  _are_ ," Michael chuckled, "And unfortunately for her, she's stuck with me for  _at least_  three more months."

"Why's that?" Max asked curiously. You simply grinned, taking the computer and turning it around.

"Guys!" you chirped, making Luke, Calum, and Ashton look up from where they were sitting on the couch, "Say hi!"

"Hi!" they cheered in unison, waving happily when they realized who was on the screen.

"Are you guys on a bus?" Nev asked.

"Yes," you giggled, turning the laptop back to you and Michael, "I was kidnapped and forced to go on the Australian leg of the tour."

"You  _begged_  to come and you  _know it_ ," Michael teased, poking your stomach to make you squeal.

"See, Mike, I seem to remember you asking her to come with us, her not being sure about it, and then  _you_  begging until she finally caved," Ashton commented loudly enough for the men on the computer screen to hear.

"I think he  _cried_  when she finally agreed too," Calum smirked.

"Okay, listen, there are some technicalities that we don't need to get into," Michael shook his head, flipping off his friends.

"Well, we're glad to hear you guys are still going strong!" Nev smiled.

"Me too," you grinned, earning another kiss from your boyfriend.

"We hope to hear from you guys again soon!" Max said.

"Bye!" you all said in unison before you looked at the other boys, "Guys, say bye!"

"Bye!" they replied before you all laughed and the screen went black. You felt Michael sigh gently beside you, causing you to look up at him.

"I  _really_  love you," he murmured so his friends wouldn't hear him. You smiled brightly, leaning in to kiss him.

"I really love you  _too_ ," you said under your breath, only pulling away because you started to hear obnoxious gagging noises from across the bus.


	323. Black Magic (Luke Hemmings)

"Oh God," you murmured, "Oh God, oh God,  _oh God_."

"What's wrong, Y/N?" Jade asked as she, Jesy, Leigh-Anne, and Perrie all stopped what they were doing and rushed over to the couch you were sitting on as you waited for them.

"Yeah," Jesy nodded, "Why do you keep saying ' _oh God_ '?" You didn't respond; You simply turned your phone in your hand and held it up to the girls, showing them the tweet on your screen.

_@Ashton5SOS: Sorry we're late, TCA's. Cal wouldn't leave the hotel bathroom until his hair looked right_

"You knew they were coming," Leigh-Anne reminded you.

"I know, but now they're  _here_  and I haven't seen Luke since he broke up with me and I just... I'm  _nervous_ ," you admitted with a sigh.

"Well, look at it this way," Perrie started, "We're performing  _Black Magic_ , so we can all pretend we're singing it to him while you absolutely crush these dance moves tonight, then he'll be  _begging you_  to take him back."

"You make it sound like you're  _actually_  going to perform black magic on him," you finally cracked a smile.

"We can neither confirm nor deny that assumption," Leigh-Anne grinned, "Now come on; Let's get ready for the show."

~

"Our last performance for the evening is one I'm sure you've all been looking forward to," Lea Michele smiled at the camera.

"After winning  _The X Factor_  in 2011-" Lucy Hale continued, "-Jesy, Jade, Perrie, and Leigh-Anne skyrocketed into fame with the release of  _Wings_  and topping charts all around the world with every single since."

"With their latest single  _Black Magic_ ," Lea said before Lucy joined in, "Little Mix!" The audience cheered loudly as the camera panned over to the stage the band was on.

The girls looked back at you before the track started, but you didn't notice – you had just caught a glimpse of where Luke was sitting with the boys, a bit nervous to say the least that they were seated near the stage right in front of you. Perrie cleared her throat quietly, making you look at her.

"Show him what he's missing," she whispered loudly enough for you to hear. You couldn't help but smile as the track started.

Once the music was playing, the band was singing, and you were doing your choreography, it was like everything you were worried about disappeared. You still glanced at Luke every now and then – finding him staring at you every single time you did.

You were so immersed in your dancing though that you didn't even realize that when Jesy sang ' _Come and get it while you still got time_ ', she looked right at the blonde and nodded her head in your direction.

The gesture made Luke sit up in his seat and swallow thickly, his eyes darting back to you. In his mind, that was Jesy's way of telling him that you missed him – that you wanted him back. But you looked so  _happy_  on that stage...

Then again, you were  _always_  happiest when you were dancing.

_Flashback_

_He remembered the day Little Mix's management called to tell you they wanted you to be one of their full-time dancers. You hadn't even hung up the call before you were screaming and jumping in excitement. Luke sprung up from the couch when he heard you scream – honestly thinking something was_ **_wrong_ ** _– and when he saw the tears on your face, it didn't help the fear he was feeling._

_But when he saw the smile on your face – the kind that hurt your cheeks for hours afterward – he_ **_knew_ ** _._

_He'd asked you if you got the job and you couldn't do anything but nod rapidly. His own grin instantly grew and he ran over to you, wrapping you up in the tightest hug he'd ever given you. He kept telling you how proud he was of you – how he knew you were going to get it because they would have been crazy not to want you – and peppering kisses all over your face._

_But all that ended the day before you left for tour rehearsals._

_Luke couldn't tell you_ **_why_ ** _he did it – maybe he was just looking for a way to make it easier not having you around as much – but he ended the relationship. You were taken aback by how calm he seemed – especially since you were already in tears, begging him not to do it._

_But he still did; He still left you without so much as a reasonable explanation._

_And you hadn't seen each other since._

_End flashback_

The song ended with your hand on your hip and Leigh-Anne's forearm on your shoulder. You had the brightest smile on your face – one that gave Luke butterflies every time he saw it – as she looked at you. She raised an eyebrow, the small smile on her face making you giggle softly. You teasingly kissed her cheek, earning yourself a laugh from her as well.

She joined the girls in the middle of the stage for a bow, waving to the audience before the camera switched to the host to close out the show. You linked arms with Leigh-Anne as you all went backstage to change back into your clothes for the after party the girls insisted you went to with them. 

~

" _Y/N_!" you heard a familiar voice yell excitedly. You spun around just in time to have Michael wrap his arms around your waist and lift you off of the ground.

" _Mikey_!" you beamed, your arms going around his neck so you could hug him, "I didn't think you  _went_  to these after parties!"

"Well, I heard my favorite girl was gonna be here, so I  _had to_  come," he said, putting you back down.

"Oh, right, I think I saw Taylor Swift around here a couple minutes ago," you said, trying to hold back your smile.

"Ha, ha, ha, very funny," he rolled his eyes, "You  _know_  I'm talking about  _you_."

"Glad to hear I'm still your favorite girl then," you grinned.

"You'll  _always_  be my favorite girl," he told you, wrapping his arm around your shoulder, "And speaking of my favorite girl, is there any reason she hasn't hit me up for another ass-kicking in  _Mario Kart_?"

"You know..." you started, lifting your arm up so you could lace your fingers with his as your other arm went around his waist, "I seem to remember the last time we played before I left for rehearsals was  _me_  kicking  _your_  ass and you  _whining_  about it all over Twitter and Snapchat."

"I don't know  _what_  you're talking about," he stated as monotonously as he could.

"I can bring up the tweet if you want," you smirked, moving your arm slightly so you could tap the pocket he always kept his phone in.

" _Whatever_ ," he scoffed, "I felt bad that we wouldn't get to play for a while, so I let you win."

"Is  _that_  what you called it?" you heard a voice snicker beside you. You looked over to see Calum and Ashton coming over with Luke trailing behind.

"And I thought you were just a shitty  _Mario Kart_  player, but it turns out you've been  _letting_  everyone win this  _whole time_ ," Ashton shook his head. You giggled softly, letting go of Michael so you could hug him and Calum.

"Hey, beautiful," Calum grinned, "We've missed you."

"I've missed you too, Cal," you replied, your voice slightly muffled due to him pressing you to his chest.

"How's life been treating you?" Ashton asked, pairing his hug with a kiss to your forehead, "You and the girls get along?"

"They're like my  _sisters_ ," you smiled brightly, "I probably would have lost my  _mind_  by now if it weren't for them."

"Why's that?" Michael asked you. You glanced at Luke quickly, finding him staring down at his shoes. You heard the other boys ' _ah_ ' quietly. "Well, I think I'm gonna go see if I can catch up to Taylor," the blonde went on, "I'll see you later." Calum and Ashton also made up some  _lame_  excuse as to where they were going, leaving you alone with your ex-boyfriend.

You watched them until you couldn't see them anymore, but even then, you didn't turn back to Luke right away – not until he started speaking.

"You, uh..." Luke cleared his throat, "You were really good out there tonight."

"Thank you," you replied softly, looking down at your own feet.

"So, I... I guess the dancing thing is going well for you," he said, desperate to keep an awkward silence at bay, "That's really cool. Congratulations."

"Thank you," you said again, "I never thought they'd  _actually_  want me."

" _I did_ ," he stated seriously, "You're an  _incredible_  dancer, Y/N. They would have been  _stupid_  not to take you."

"Thanks," you repeated, your voice barely above a whisper. It was silent between the two of you for a moment, so you decided it was time to leave. "Well, I, uh... I'm gonna go find the girls," you told him, "It was nice seeing you again, Lu." The nickname kind of just came out, but instead of correcting yourself, you just turned to walk away.

You had only taken a couple steps before you felt Luke grab your hand and pull you into the hallway. You squeaked slightly, not expecting him to do that, but what you  _really_  didn't expect was to have him grip your hips tightly, pin you back against the wall, and kiss you.

You were in such shock that you didn't move or anything – you  _were_  a bit guilty in kissing him back though. You knew you  _shouldn't have_  – Lord knows this wasn't helping you get over him in the  _slightest_  – but that was the thing about Luke: you could never say no to him.

When he pulled away, he didn't say anything – he just let out a deep breath, keeping his eyes shut. You cocked an eyebrow as you watched him, not really too sure what exactly just happened.

"I keep telling people I'm over you," he said softly, "And I thought that if I kissed you again, I would be able to convince  _myself_  too."

"Did it work?" you whispered despite already knowing the answer. He let out a defeated laugh, letting his forehead rest on the wall right beside your ear.

"Not at  _all_ ," he admitted, "I think it just made it  _worse_."

"Yeah," you nodded, "And whose fault is that?"

"Mine," he sighed.

"Why'd you do it, Lu?" you asked, "I stuck with you throughout all the tours and time away from home... Why couldn't you do the same for  _me_?"

" _I don't know_ ," he replied in a slightly whiny tone.

"You realize that's a really  _shitty_  answer, right?"

He chuckled again, "Yeah... I'm sorry."

You pursed your lips together for a moment before moving your hands to his face. You held his cheeks as you pushed his head back, watching his eyes open as he came face-to-face with you.

"I've missed you a lot, Lu," you admitted to him, "Things are different waking up knowing we're not together now. I don't have anyone to stay up until 2am for anymore so I can tell them good morning or wake up to them telling me goodnight and that they miss me. But the sad thing is, even if I  _had_  time to start dating again, I would always compare them to  _you_. And that's not even fair because they'll never  _be_  you. They'll  _never_  make me as happy as you did;  _Nothing_  will."

"You looked pretty happy on stage tonight," he murmured, but you could tell he was blushing even though your hands were covering his cheeks.

"I'm  _always_  happy on stage," you sighed, "But even  _that_  doesn't make me  _as_  happy anymore. You've always been  _it_ , Lu; You've always been the  _one thing_  that's made me the happiest. I could dance for Little Mix for the  _rest_  of my life, but that will never be  _you_." Luke swallowed the lump in his throat, chewing on his bottom lip for a moment as he stared at you.

You weren't looking at him – your gaze had moved down to the collar of his shirt. Your eyes were watery and Luke's heart ached at knowing it was because of him. He always did everything he could not to hurt you, but he did it anyway – and he'd never felt guiltier.

"Princess," Luke whispered so quietly that you almost didn't hear it. You blushed upon hearing the nickname you'd been wanting to hear again for so long, giving in and looking back up at him. "I know I don't deserve it, but if you give me another chance, I  _promise_  you won't regret it," he shook his head.

You could have made some snarky comment about how he didn't deserve  _you_  either, but you knew he already  _knew that_. So you just settled with reaching up and pressing your lips to his. You felt him let out a deep sigh, pulling your body as close to his as he could.

"I love you, princess," Luke mumbled into the kiss, feeling your mouth twitch slightly.

"I love  _you_ , Lu," you responded just as quietly. You suddenly heard a soft squeal coming from down the hallway, so you and Luke pulled away to look.

You found the girls and the rest of Luke's band peeking around the corner, Perrie's hand covering her mouth, letting you know the sound had come from her. You couldn't help but smile as they came out from their hiding spot, knowing they got caught.

"How long have you been there?" you asked, your hands sliding off of Luke's cheeks so you could wrap your arms around his neck. One of his hands released your hip so he could hug your waist, but one hand remained in its spot, his thumb rubbing your hipbone through the fabric of your dress.

"Since around the point Luke dragged you out here," Calum shrugged.

"And we  _told you so_!" Leigh-Anne cheered, " _Didn't_  we tell you? Because I think we  _did_!"

"Told you  _what_?" Luke asked, glancing back at you for a moment before turning his gaze to Jesy when she started talking.

"That you were gonna see her on stage tonight and be begging her to take you back," she informed him.

"Well, they weren't  _wrong_ ," Luke stated, earning a small whine from you.

" _Don't encourage them_!" you protested, making everyone laugh.

"Would you  _rather_  we have been wrong?" Jade commented.

"No," you sighed, laying your head on Luke's shoulder.

"Well then, now that  _that's_  settled," Michael interrupted, "How about we all get back to the party now? I saw a chocolate fountain earlier that's just calling my name." You froze for a second before quickly lifting your head back up.

"There's a chocolate fountain here?" you asked. Michael smiled widely, rushing over to you.

"You can have her back later!" he told Luke, "She's mine now!" He grabbed your hand and began sprinting with you back toward where the party was being held.

" _Michael_!" Luke called after him, following close behind you while the others laughed and followed him.

_~_

_inspiration/song mentioned: "Black Magic" by Little Mix_


	324. All I Ever Wanted (Calum Hood)

" _Please_?" you begged, sticking your bottom lip out.

"You  _know_  I don't like spin the bottle, princess," your best friend sighed.

"But it gives you an excuse to kiss pretty girls, Cal!" you chirped, stealing his snapback and placing it on your own head.

"I can kiss pretty girls anytime I want."

"Oh,  _alright_ , Mr. I'm-so-hot-and- _everyone_ -wants-to-kiss-me over here!" Calum couldn't help but chuckle at your outburst, but groaning softly when your arms went around his neck and you rested your chin on his shoulder,  _knowing_  what was coming next. "Just  _one game_ , Cal," you blinked.

"Princess-"

" _Please_? I'll never ask you for anything  _ever_  again!"

"You said that the  _last time_ ," he reminded you. You leaned in closer to kiss his cheek, making him let out a deep sigh. "That's not  _fair_ ," he murmured. You didn't respond, you simply kissed his cheek again and again until he finally caved. " _Fine_!" he sighed, moving his head away from yours, "Just stop  _doing that_!"

"You  _love_  my kisses," you frowned, removing your arms from his neck and grabbing his hand, pulling him toward the living room. "Okay!" you beamed, going to the circle on the floor and sitting beside Luke, tugging Calum to sit beside you, "We're ready!"

"You  _actually_  convinced him?" Michael shook his head.

"I always  _do_ ," you replied, sticking your tongue out at him.

"You tell him you weren't going to give his hat back until the game was over?" Ashton asked you.

"Don't give her  _ideas_ , Ash!" Calum whined, making everyone in the circle laugh. You shoved his shoulder playfully as Michael was the first to spin the bottle.

After a few more people, Calum took his turn and then you took yours. Your spin landed on the blonde boy beside you.

"How do I  _always_  land on you first?" you rolled your eyes.

"You know you can't get enough of this," Luke chuckled. You pecked his lips and then he took his turn, completely missing Calum's jaw tightening when you kissed him.

The next time around, your spin landed on the boy across from you, so you leaned over and kissed him, not realizing once again that Calum looked anything but thrilled.

But when it was Calum's turn during the third round, your heart was racing. He'd spun the bottle and it landed right in the middle of himself and  _you_. You were confused as he went to reach for the bottle again, but Michael stopped him.

"What're you doing?" he asked.

"It didn't land on anyone," Calum stated nonchalantly.

"Well, it's close enough to Y/N – just kiss her."

"It didn't land on her, Mike," he shook his head, making your heart sink. You knew he was your best friend, but was it really  _that_  repulsing for him to just give you a little peck for the game?

"Come on, mate – don't be a pussy," Michael shoved him, "She's not  _that_  bad of a kisser." You rolled your eyes at the comment. Calum froze for a moment before turning toward the blonde.

"How the hell would  _you_  know?" he spat, making everyone's eyes widen.

"Not like we haven't played this game before," Michael shrugged, leaning back against the couch, "At least  _I'm_  not afraid of kissing her."

"I'm not  _afraid_  of kissing Y/N," he replied.

"Then why won't you  _do it_?" he challenged.

"You want me to kiss her?" Calum stated, " _Fine_."

He went to lean in but you leaned away, swallowing the lump in your throat. The group looked at you in confusion, clearly wondering why you weren't letting Calum kiss you.

"Y/N, come on," he murmured, noticing everyone was staring at him.

"No," you whispered. They all cocked an eyebrow, curiously waiting for Calum's next move.

" _No_?" he asked, "What do you  _mean_  ' _no_ '?"

Your heart was  _pounding_  against your chest – you didn't want to  _not_  kiss him, but it was clear to you that he didn't  _really_  want to kiss  _you_  – so you did what you  _had_  to do.

"I don't want to play anymore," your voice trembled softly. You quickly got up and disappeared into the hallway.

**Calum's POV**

"Way to go,  _genius_ ," Michael scoffed.

"What the hell did  _I_  do?!" Calum exclaimed, " _You're_  the one who called me a pussy for not doing it in the  _first place_!"

"Did you  _honestly_  think she was going to want to kiss you after you  _immediately_  said no when the bottle landed on her?!" Luke said loudly in your defense.

"She's just my  _friend_!" he replied.

"And this is just a  _game_!" Ashton shouted, "What, did you think she doesn't  _know that_?! Did you think she was going to  _fall in love with you_  all because you kissed her during a fucking game of  _spin the bottle_?!" He got up before Calum could respond, running off to go find you.

"Think it's safe to say this game is over," Michael announced, grabbing the bottle and tossing it into the trash bag in the corner of the room. The group dispersed, leaving Calum sitting alone in the middle of the room, wondering  _why_  he couldn't have just kissed you and been  _done with it_.

**Your POV**

There was a knock on the door of the bedroom you were in – Calum's room – and you looked over as it opened. You watched Ashton close the door behind him and make his way over, sitting down next to you on the floor at the foot of the bed.

By this point, you were planning on hiding out until the party was over, so you'd changed into the shorts Calum kept for you as well as a t-shirt you stole from his closet, still wearing his snapback.

"Don't know why I bothered checking any other rooms," Ashton commented, "You're  _always_  in here when you come over."

"You don't need to try and make me feel better, Ash," you said softly, wiping the tear that fell down your cheek, "I get it: he's not comfortable kissing his best friend – even if it's just a game."

"Y/N, that's not true."

"Obviously, it  _is_ ," you shook your head, "He wouldn't have refused so quickly if it  _wasn't_. And it's  _fine_ ; If he's not okay with doing something like that, I can't  _force_  him to be. It was my fault for making him  _play_  anyway." Ashton sighed, taking your hand and beginning to rub your knuckles with his thumb.

"Even if he wasn't comfortable kissing a friend, that wouldn't change how much it  _hurts_ ," he said, making you look up at him. "It's  _okay_  to be hurt that he flat-out refused to kiss you," he told you, "It's  _okay_  to be mad that he was only going to kiss you because Michael called him a pussy. It's  _okay_  to have feelings for him, Y/N.  _It's okay_." You were silent for a moment, not really sure what to say, but deciding on the only thing that made  _sense_.

"How long have you known?" you asked so softly that if he hadn't answered right away, you would have assumed he didn't hear you  _at all_.

"Since the day I met you," he replied. You laughed lightly, realizing then that you hadn't concealed your feelings as well as you thought you had been. When you didn't say anything though, Ashton continued. "He loves you, you know?" he told you.

"No, he doesn't," you whispered, shaking your head.

"Y/N-" You cut him off.

"Calum doesn't love me, Ashton," you said firmly, "Not the way I  _want_  him to."

**Calum's POV**

Calum got up and rushed to his bedroom, knowing that was where you'd be. He was set on just walking in – not  _caring_  whether or not he interrupted something important – but when he heard your voice say his name, he stopped to listen.

" _Calum doesn't love me, Ashton; Not the way I_ ** _want_** _him to_."

Calum's eyes immediately widened at the confession, sincerely believing that he'd heard you wrong. He had himself  _convinced_  that a person like you could never feel the same about him – or even like him  _at all_ for that matter.

 _But you did_ ; He heard it. He knew he wasn't  _supposed_  to hear it, but he  _did_.

And despite wanting to know how Ashton would respond, he had to let you know he felt the same way.

"Y/N?" he knocked on the door lightly, "Can I talk to you?" There was a pause and then Ashton's voice came from the other side of the door.

"Now's not really a good time, mate," he said. Calum let out a defeated sigh, knowing that in that pause, you'd shaken your head no.

"Y/N,  _please_ ," he begged, "I don't know if I'll ever be brave enough to do this again." There was another pause and then he heard someone get up and walk to the door.

It opened to reveal Ashton, but the brown-haired boy didn't speak a word – he simply exited the room and left to go back downstairs.

Calum turned his attention to the girl sitting on the floor, her eyes red from rubbing the tears away so much and the bottom of his shirt littered with wet spots. He sighed,  _hating_  himself for making you cry, but he knew he had to make it right; He had to do it because he  _loved you_.

He entered the room and closed the door behind him, staring at the doorknob for a moment. He debated on whether or not to lock it before finally deciding to – not wanting to be interrupted by anyone barging in. He then cautiously approached the spot where you were sitting, dropping down to where Ashton had been just moments before.

"I fucked up, princess," Calum said, looking at you with a sad expression, "There's absolutely  _no reason_  I should have done that to you and I'm  _really_  sorry I embarrassed you in front of everyone like that."

"You don't have to apologize for not kissing someone you don't want to kiss, Calum," you said softly, "I shouldn't have made you play when I know you don't like it."

"It's not the  _game_  I don't like, Y/N," he admitted before he lost the courage, "It's that I don't like the idea of  _other guys_  kissing you." You paused for a moment, not really too sure what he meant by that. "I don't like when you play that game and other guys kiss you," he shook his head, "I don't like when other guys kiss you  _knowing_  how I feel about you." He noticed your eyes widen as you swallowed thickly, which understandably made him a bit nervous.

"H-How do you feel about me?" you stuttered, not even sure if you were  _ready_  for the answer. Calum took a deep breath, knowing he was too far in to back out now.

"I love you," he stated as confidently as he could, "I'm in love with you, Y/N. And I can't tell you why I said no to kissing you when  _all I've ever wanted_  was to know how your lips would feel against mine or how it would feel to be able to call you my  _girlfriend_  instead of my  _best friend_  or if it would feel different to have you fall asleep on me as something  _more_  than a friend or-"

You were sure Calum could go on  _forever_ , but you didn't have that kind of  _patience_.

You put your hand on his cheek and pulled his face to yours, feeling him let a breath out of his nose the moment your lips met his. Without missing a beat, Calum's hands were on your hips and he was pulling you onto his lap.

Without ever moving your face a single centimeter away from his, you repositioned yourself, wrapping your legs around his waist and resting your other hand on his chest. You felt his heart race at your touch and when you smiled at the fact, it skipped a beat as you felt him smile against your own lips.

Things were suddenly interrupted, however, when you heard the doorknob start to jiggle. Calum sighed as whoever was on the other side knocked obnoxiously, letting you know instantly who it was. His forehead rested on yours, never opening his eyes as he answered the knock.

" _What, Michael_?" Calum said monotonously, making you smile slightly as you drew circles in the fabric of his shirt.

"Did you guys make up yet?" Michael asked, "Why's the door locked? You're not having sex, are you? You always complain about when the other guys do it."

"Yeah, when it's 3am, you're being loud, and I have an exam that morning," he replied.

"It's not my fault we get more than  _you_  do," the blonde scoffed.

"Michael,  _go away_ ," Calum demanded.

"Just make sure you use protection," he said. "Hey, guys! Don't bother Calum and Y/N! They're gonna fuck each other for the next three hours!" you heard him shout as he walked back downstairs, earning some whistles from the frat boys in return. Calum sighed again, finally opening his eyes to look at you.

"Sorry about him," he murmured.

"Is he wrong?" you asked, a hint of a smirk on your lips. Calum cocked an eyebrow, taking his forehead off of yours so he could look at you properly.

"Is he  _not_?" he asked.

"Depends on how badly you want this hat back," you shrugged, using Ashton's earlier words against him now.

"I don't care if I  _ever_  get it back if it means you never take it off," Calum told you, "But I'll gladly let this be the one thing Michael is  _right_  about." You leaned forward, your lips brushing his.

"Then let it," you whispered.

Calum immediately pushed his lips back onto yours, kissing you roughly. One of his arms wrapped securely around your waist while the other went to the top of the mattress behind him. He pulled himself up off the floor, bringing you with him. He laid you on the bed and climbed on top of you, his lips never leaving yours.

"He's going to be wrong about one thing though," Calum said randomly. You hummed in response, urging him to continue. "I'm not going to fuck you, princess," he told you, his words muffled by your mouth, "I'm going to make love to you." He felt you smile, your fingers already tugging at the hemline of his shirt, completely ready to prove Michael right.

~

_inspiration: http://wrap-your-wings-around-me.tumblr.com/post/145990246666/a-closeted-couple_


	325. Coming Home (5 Seconds of Summer)

**Luke**

Luke watched you from his spot in the back of the auditorium, bouncing on his feet while he impatiently waited for his cue to go onstage. He had it all planned  _perfectly_ ; It was now just a matter of  _waiting_.

You had  _no idea_  he was there – he wasn't supposed to be home until next week – and he was just excited knowing he wasn't far from being able to hold you again for the first time in nearly seven months. He had brought Michael with him, knowing you were going to stop playing your guitar the moment you saw him, and he wanted to finish the song with you.

"And for our last performer of the night," the teacher hosting the talent show said, "Here is senior Y/N Y/L/N." Your friends and fellow classmates cheered as you walked out to the microphone.

"I know it's the last song of the night, but I'm gonna slow it down a bit if that's alright with everyone," you smiled into your microphone as the crowd clapped in response. "Okay, good, because you really don't have a choice," you joked, making them laugh. "As I'm sure all of you know – which you should because I never  _shut up_  about it – my boyfriend is coming home next week and he was upset he couldn't make it tonight, so he asked if I would sing this song, so that's what I'm doing." Cheers filled the auditorium for the third time as you went on, "This is  _Beside You_  by 5 Seconds of Summer."

_Within a minute, I was all packed up_   
_I've got a ticket to another world_   
_I don't wanna go, I don't wanna go_

_The silent words are hard to speak_   
_When your thoughts are all I see_   
_"Don't ever leave," she said to me_

_When we both fall asleep underneath the same sky_   
_To the beat of our hearts at the same time_   
_So close but so far away_   
_Can you hear me?_

_She sleeps alone_   
_My heart wants to come home_   
_I wish I was, I wish I was beside you_

_She lies awake_   
_I'm trying to find the words to say_   
_I wish I was, I wish I was beside you_

You heard a few people shriek, but you didn't think anything of it until you looked in their direction and saw someone walking toward the stage. The moment you realized your boyfriend was walking down the aisle, your hands flew up to cover your face – as Luke had expected them to.

You were confused as to how the song kept going without you playing, but when your boyfriend came onstage and pulled your hands back down, you caught a glimpse of Michael following behind him. He stuck his tongue out at you, making you smile before you turned your attention back to Luke as he took your hand in his and continued the song.

_Another day and I'm somewhere new_   
_I made a promise that I'll come home soon_   
_Bring me back, bring me back to you_

_When we both wake up underneath the same sun_   
_Time stops, I wish that I could rewind_   
_So close but so far away_

_She sleeps alone_   
_My heart wants to come home_   
_I wish I was, I wish I was beside you_

_She lies awake_   
_I'm trying to find the words to say_   
_I wish I was, I wish I was beside you_

Luke motioned for you to come back in, so you lifted your guitar off of your shoulder, knowing you were going to tackle him the moment the song ended.

_There are pieces of us both_   
_Under every city light_   
_And they're shining as we fade into the night_

_She sleeps alone_   
_My heart wants to come home_   
_I wish I was, I wish I was_

_She sleeps alone_   
_My heart wants to come home_   
_I wish I was, I wish I was beside you_

_She lies awake_   
_I'm trying to find the words to say_   
_I wish I was, I wish I was beside you_

_She lies awake_   
_Beside you_   
_I wish I was, I wish I was_

_She sleeps alone_   
_My heart wants to come home_   
_I wish I was, I wish I was..._

The moment you both stopped singing, Luke grabbed your waist and pulled you into him, causing everyone in the room to lose it. You jumped up, wrapping your legs around him, your body visibly shaking as you sobbed into his neck.

"Hi, princess," you felt Luke smile into the skin of your own neck, "I've missed you."

~

**Michael**

After missing your alarm one morning, you rushed to get ready to go to work. You hurried into the choir room, the soft chatter of your students gradually dissipating as they looked at you.

"I am  _so_  sorry I'm late, guys," you breathed as you put your bag down by your piano before looking up at your students. They all had wide grins on their faces – definitely unusual for you to see from the teens so early in the morning, even on a Friday. "Alright," you crossed your arms, leaning on your piano, "What's going on?"

"Nothing, Miss Y/L/N," Amelia chirped. You looked around the room.

"I see you guys every morning for an hour five days a week," you smiled slightly, "I can  _tell_  when something is up." Just then, the Principal walked into the room.

"Good morning, everyone," she beamed at the students then turned to you. "I'll be overseeing your class today, Y/N," she informed you.

You furrowed your eyebrows, "I thought that wasn't until  _next_  week."

"I have to train a new staff member," she said.

"Since when do we train new teachers?"

"Since right now," she grinned slyly, "We won't have to do much because he's an excellent guitar player and singer, but I just want to be here to make sure everything goes smoothly. I would like you to meet him though." She then called over her shoulder, "You can come in now!" Your students were practically bouncing in their seats and when you looked away from them to see who was coming in the door, you knew exactly why.

" _Mikey_!" you cried, immediately pushing yourself off of your desk and running across the room into your boyfriend's open arms. He hugged you tightly, the smile on his face getting bigger as your students clapped happily.

"Hey, beautiful," Michael said, "I've missed you."

"What are you  _doing here_?" you sniffled, moving back to look at him, "You said you wouldn't get back until  _Sunday_."

"We were able to catch an earlier flight," he told you, kissing your forehead.

"Alright," you said firmly, looking back at the students, "How did you guys know?"

"He came in before you got here," Amelia grinned, "Told us you were gonna be late and to not tell you that he was here." Your eyes widened and you quickly turned to face Michael again.

"You snuck in the house and turned off my alarm this morning,  _didn't you_?!" you exclaimed as you smacked his chest, making everyone laugh.

"I never would have been able to surprise you if you woke up  _on time_!" he defended with a chuckle, pulling you back into him for another hug. He took in a deep breath, then let it out slowly. "I've missed you so much, baby," he said softly, kissing your skin.

"I've missed you  _more_ ," you whispered, hugging him tighter.

~

**Calum**

"Let's go dance!" Sydney pleaded. You shook your head slightly, taking another sip of punch. "Come on, Y/N! You've been moping all night! I know you miss Calum, but he wouldn't want you to waste the night away at  _his_  expense. This is the last prom we'll  _ever_  get to go to! Plus, I made a special request and the DJ said he would play it next so you  _have_  to come dance." The current song faded out and the moment the chords of the next one began playing, your best friend grabbed your hand and pulling you out of your chair.

"Syd," you muttered as she weaved through the crowd of students to get the middle of the dance floor, "You  _know_  this is me and Cal's song."

"Exactly," she had a wide grin on her face, making you raise your eyebrows, "Which is why you're going to dance with  _him_." Sydney pulled you into the middle of the circle of prom-goers and you instantly put your hands on your face.

"Thanks, Syd," you heard your boyfriend smile as she walked away.

Calum came up to you, gently prying your hands away from your face. He pulled your arms around him and chuckled when you buried your face in his neck. His arms went to hold your waist, tugging you into him as you both swayed to the music. He felt your tears start to roll down his skin, so he began to rub your lower back with his thumbs.

"You look beautiful, princess," he whispered as he kissed your ear.

"Y-You're not s-s-supposed to be ho-home for two m-more months," you stuttered.

"Come on, baby girl," you heard him smile again, "You didn't really think I wouldn't take some time off for one of the  _biggest_  nights of your life, did you?"

You didn't respond, you simply let a breath fan out across his neck and hugged him tighter. You mumbled into Calum's tuxedo, hearing him chuckle when you stopped.

"I know, princess," he squeezed you a little more, "I've missed you too."

~

**Ashton**

"Y/N Y/L/N," the college's dean of students announced.

Your smile faltered a bit as you walked across the stage and noticed he wasn't holding your diploma. He simply grinned, already knowing what was going through your mind, as he put his arm around you.

"Miss Y/L/N doesn't know this, but we got a call from her mother this morning and she told us that she's been pretty upset that someone couldn't make it today." You wiped your already watery eyes as he continued. "Y/N's fiancé has been touring with his band and wasn't able to make it to watch her graduate, but we were able to get ahold of him for long enough to get you this," he told you. He gestured toward the screen and you let out a quiet sob, covering your mouth with the palm of your hand when your fiancé popped up.

"Hi, princess," Ashton smiled widely, "I know you've been pretty down about me not making it to your graduation, but I just wanted to say I'm  _so_  proud of you. You make me feel like the luckiest guy in the world by sticking with me even though I know me being away can be hard on you. I love you so much and I can't  _wait_  to see the look on your face." You furrowed your eyebrows, wiping your face again. "And if you're confused by that statement, you should probably just turn around before your friends give it away." Ashton smiled again slyly as he disappeared from the screen and you heard cheers echo throughout the entire room. You spun around, instantly letting out a scream of your own.

" _Ashton_!" you cried, running the rest of the way across the stage.

You jumped into his arms, your legs wrapping themselves around his waist as you both hugged each other tightly. Your body was shaking with sobs and you felt Ashton's lips against the skin on your neck.

"I've missed you  _so much_ , princess," he breathed.

You moved your head back and, not caring that anyone else was there, roughly pressing your lips against his. You felt him smile before he pulled away.

"I've missed you too, Ash," you whispered, hugging him again.

~

_Song used: "Beside You" by 5 Seconds of Summer_


	326. Lie to Me (Michael Clifford) - Part 1

Michael dealt with his harsh reality – seeing you around school, hanging around the popular kids while he sat by himself most days, knowing he could never tell you how he felt about you.

He could never tell you that the only reason he could bear to go to school anymore was because of the fifth period P.E. class he got to spend with you. He could never tell you that he was surprised to see you on the first day of the semester sitting in the bleachers looking dead as you waited for the class period to start. He could never tell you that he didn't know what came over him when he sat down beside you and asked if you were alright. He could never tell you that the way you smiled at him when you told him you were just tired made his stomach do flips and his heart race. He could never tell you that after that day, when you continued to talk to him and volunteered to be his partner during every group activity, he knew – he just  _knew_  – that he was going to end up falling for you.

But then again... Maybe he could.

And that was exactly what he did.

It hadn't been at school when he told you – far too scared to approach you since you never seemed to be alone anywhere other than gym. It hadn't been at the mall when he would see you shopping with your mom on the weekends just to see what was new in your favorite stores. It hadn't been any of the places he  _thought_  he would admit his feelings toward you.

It had been at the county fair – the  _last_  place he ever expected to see you  _alone_  – while you were trying to win a stuffed (favorite animal) at the water-gun game. Michael watched you for probably 10 minutes, forking over ticket after ticket trying to win. He watched you hand the guy your last ticket and when you lost that round, the breath of defeat you let out was enough to make him walk over to you.

You were about to stand up – tired and ultimately disappointed in yourself that you couldn't win such a  _stupid_  game – when you felt hands on your shoulders, pushing you back down. You looked up as Michael handed the guy a ticket of his own –  _his last one_ , in fact – and wrapped his arms around you, holding onto the little toy gun while other players sat down to play.

"Don't tell me you're one of those guys who sits around watching a girl make a fool of herself and then magically appears when she's ready to give up," you stated, making him chuckle lowly.

"No – just you," Michael told you, his mouth so close to ear that you could feel his breath, "But I'm gonna let you in on a little secret." He leaned down so that no one else would be able to hear him. "You line up your shot and start squeezing the trigger  _before_  the bell goes off," he told you.

To prove his point, he did exactly that – lining up his shot and squeezing the trigger right before the bell rang. You watched the balloon get bigger and bigger until it finally popped. You turned your neck so you could look at him, a dumbfounded grin on your face.

"So what?" you asked, "You one of those guys who researches how to win carnival games online to impress girls?" Michael simply smiled, pointed to something behind you, and thanked the guy when he handed it to him.

"No," he replied, "Just you." He handed you your favorite animal and you looked at him again.

"How did you know  _this_  was what I was trying to win?" Michael held his hand out to you and you took it without second thought. He pulled you up to let someone else play the game, reluctantly letting go of your hand as you started walking.

"Saw you stare  _longingly_  at it every time you lost as if you were reminding yourself what you came here to win," he teased. You shoved his arm as you laughed loudly.

"Thanks," you grinned, "I think I'm gonna name him Mikey in your honor."

Michael blushed lightly, but you were too busy admiring your knew stuffed animal to notice. It was his turn to shove you playfully, making you giggle again.

"So did you come here with friends or are you stalking me?" you joked.

"Oh, I've been stalking you for a  _while_ ," he nodded, "Thought you would have figured that out by now. You didn't think it was a  _coincidence_  that I always seem to be in the same places as you, did you?"

"I've had my suspicions," you replied, leaning on his arm slightly.

"What about you?" he asked, "Where are all of your friends?"

"You know that party Dylan Gibson has been talking up all week?" Michael obviously nodded – he couldn't go a  _single_  class period without hearing about it. "They all went to that," you said with a small sigh.

"Why didn't you go?"

"Wasn't  _invited_ ," you mumbled, "Dylan's still pissed that I said no to going on a date with him freshman year, so he made sure to tell everyone to remind me that he was going to make sure I wouldn't be able to get in even if I  _did_  decide to show up."

"What a  _dick_ ," Michael said under his breath, making you smile again.

"It's alright, I guess," you shrugged, "I'd rather be here alone than at a party with hundreds of drunk morons anyway."

"Oh, well, if you'd rather be  _alone_..." he trailed off, but you could tell his tone was mocking you. He stepped away, but you grabbed his elbow as you laughed, bringing him back to you and wrapping your arm around his.

"I'm glad you came over, Mikey," you said, "It's nice to see you outside of a class where I sweat profusely." Michael laughed at the comment, but blushed again at the nickname. "We should do this more," you murmured thoughtfully, "Hang out outside of school, I mean."

"You'd  _want_  to do that?" he asked softly.

"Why  _wouldn't_  I?" you furrowed your eyebrows, tilting your head to look up at him.

"I don't know, I just... You're really... You know... And I'm just a..."

"I'm really  _what_?" you asked quietly, your grip on him loosening.

"Beautiful," he said so softly, you barely heard it, "And popular... And I'm just... I'm just trying to make it through the school week without getting shoved into shit every day." You were silent for a moment, your heart fluttering at what he'd just told you.

"You think I'm beautiful?" you looked up at him. He let out a quiet sigh and looked down at his feet.

"I think you're the most beautiful girl I've ever  _seen_ ," he admitted, "And I've been trying to make myself brave enough to tell you that and ask you on a date, but I could never work up the courage because you're just... You're way out of my league and I-"

You cut him off by stopping right in the middle of the path you were on, moving in front of him, and standing up slightly on your toes, pressing your lips to his. You felt Michael's breath hitch before he sighed again, his hands finding your hips as he kissed you back.

You pulled away, but your noses were still touching, and let out a nervous laugh.

"Sorry," you said, "I've been wanting to do that for a while now."

"You  _have_?" his eyes widened a bit. You shrugged bashfully.

"And if you ever wanna ask me out on a date..." you trailed off.

"We-" He cleared his throat. "-We could make  _this_  a date..."

"If you want to make this a date, you're gonna have to buy me a  _funnel cake_  first."

"I can do that," he laughed, kissing your cheek before moving away completely. His hand slipped down to yours so he could tangle your fingers together, tugging you to the area where all the food was.

~

_inspiration: http://illicithemmings.tumblr.com/post/148473919763/confessions-of-a-wallflower-michael-clifford_


	327. Lie to Me (Michael Clifford) - Part 2

_Three and a half months._

That was all it took for Michael to fall in love with you.

Of course, he was already a  _good_  portion of the way there having known you since last semester. But he knew it was more of a  _sudden_  feeling than anything.

The date nights that ended at a lookout point over the city where you would tell each other things you never told anyone else to the entire Saturdays spent making fun of each other during Mario Kart...

Michael knew he'd fallen for you and he'd fallen  _hard_.

But was he going to  _tell you_  that?

Sure... If you'd asked him  _before_ word had gotten around that you were seeing him, of course.

Michael was a loner – the  _outcast_  of the school. He didn't have many friends and those who  _were_  didn't even  _go_   _there_. He was teased, pushed, and flat-out tortured even more so than he had been before – all because he was dating  _you_.

It wasn't  _your_  fault –  _God_ knows he knew it wasn't your fault. You tried  _desperately_  to stop everyone from picking on him, insisting that if they got to know him, they'd realize he wasn't as weird as everyone made him out to be. But no one ever  _listened_.

And you would be the first to admit that you felt  _terrible_  about it.

You couldn't help but feel guilty every time someone made some snide remark when they saw you holding his hand – whispering loudly about how you were probably just leading him on just because they knew he'd hear them. You'd simply squeeze Michael's hand, hoping it provided him with the assurance that what those people were saying was complete and utter bullshit.

What you  _wouldn't_  admit, though, were the nights you spent locked in your room just to cry.

You  _hated_  that they treated him like this, and what you hated more so than  _that_  was that these people had the nerve to call themselves your  _friends_. You, of course, distanced yourself from them as the days went by – not that you  _minded_. They weren't really good friends to you anyway –  _especially_  not after the way they treated Michael.

But Michael was oblivious to it – not even noticing that you were favoring staying in with  _him_  rather than going out with your  _so-called friends_  on the weekends or days off of school.

And unfortunately, that was what led to this night: the night Michael was dreading more than anything in the world –  _even_  going to school.

This was the night Michael decided he couldn't take the ridicule and humiliation anymore and chose to end things with you.

It had started out innocently enough: Michael had taken you to your favorite fast food place and then to the lookout point over the city – as he did every Saturday night. But you could tell something was off with him. He seemed distracted – like he was lost in his own little world. Sure, he would engage in conversation and listened intently to everything you had to say, but when you were both silently eating your food, he appeared completely out of it.

And when you finally realized  _why_ , you felt your heart  _shatter_.

You and Michael were sitting on the bench you always sat on up at the lookout point. Your hand was in his and he was absentmindedly playing with your fingers – as per usual. But when he took a deep breath, you knew –  _you knew_  – everything was about to fall apart.

"Princess..." Michael said softly, making you close your eyes, preparing for the worst, "I think... I think maybe we should...see other people..." You let out a shaky breath, causing him to look at you. You shook your head slowly for a few seconds before saying anything.

" _Please_  don't do this, Mikey," you begged softly.

"Y/N," he sighed again, "It's not that I  _want_  to break up with you, I just... I can't  _handle_  what people are doing to me anymore..."

"That's not  _my_  fault, Michael," you reminded him, finally looking back at him.

"I  _know_  it's not, princess," he swallowed, " _God_ , I know it's not your fault, but I-"

"Then why am  _I_  being punished, Michael? Why am  _I_  the one getting in trouble?"

"Princess, I lo-"

" _Don't_ ," you cut him off hoarsely, "Don't say it."

"Y/N, I-"

"Don't you  _dare_  try to tell me you love me," you stated through the gritted teeth and the tears streaming down your face.

"But I-"

" _I don't care, Michael_!" you shouted, angrily wiping your cheeks, " _Just don't say it_! If you  _really_  loved me, you wouldn't be saying it for the first time right before  _leaving me_!" He opened his mouth to speak again, but your voice made him stop. It was quiet and shaky and  _broken_ , just like he was. "Say you don't," you whispered, "Tell me you don't love me. Tell me you never  _did_."

"Y/N..." Michael choked out.

"Tell me, Michael!" you demanded.

He shook his head slowly, "I can't do that..."

" _Then lie to me_!"

"No."

"So why are you leaving?!"

"Because you deserve  _better_!" he returned loudly, "You don't want to be with someone like  _me_!" You sucked in a deep breath, reaching over to Michael, grabbing the back of his head, and forcefully planting your lips onto his.

You felt him let out a sigh through his nose, truthfully a bit surprised to feel him kiss back. One of his hands went to your cheek while the other firmly gripped your thigh. Your fingers pulled at the strands of hair they were tangled in, making Michael whimper and groan.

You suddenly pulled him back, both of you breathing heavily.

"Before you leave, just answer one question," you said softly. Michael blinked at you and you took that as a sign to go on. "How would you feel about me kissing  _other people_  like that?" you asked. He stared at you for a moment before taking his hands back and looking down at his lap. "You don't get to tell me what I do and don't want, Michael," you stated, "That's  _my_  choice. And if I  _wanted_  to want someone else, then I would have  _chosen_  them. But I  _don't_. I want  _you_." He finally looked up again as you rambled on. "If you want to end it, I can't make you stay," you swallowed thickly, your fingers combing through his hair, "But you can't expect me to move on if you leave here telling me you love me. And  _I'm_  not going to tell you I love  _you_. I'm gonna sit on it, and I'm gonna save it for the person who  _doesn't_  run away when things get too hard."

You both sat there for a moment, the only thing happening being your fingers in his hair. Michael was silent, but you could tell by the way he was looking at you that his mind was racing. And it wasn't until his eyes started getting watery that you knew he didn't  _really_  want to do this.

"I'm sorry," he let out a short sob, "Please... Please don't make me go."

You instantly pulled his head back to you, but instead of kissing him, his face landed in your neck. His arms wound around your waist, bringing you onto his lap, hugging you like he was afraid this was just a dream and he was going to wake up to find you weren't actually there.

"I love you, Mikey," you whispered as you pressed kisses to the side of his head, "No matter what  _anyone_  else tells you, I love you more than  _anything_."

"I love you too," he finally admitted without your interrupting, squeezing you tightly.

And sure, maybe things at school didn't change. But you had Michael and Michael had you, and you were going to get through it  _together_.

~

_inspiration: http://illicithemmings.tumblr.com/post/148473919763/confessions-of-a-wallflower-michael-clifford_


	328. In An Instant (Ashton Irwin) - Part 2

It was a normal day in the NCIS building – everyone was working upstairs and you were helping out a few co-workers with forensics stuff they needed to get done. You had just finished helping someone and decided to take a break, heading to the break room to get something to snack on.

You were halfway through your bag of chips when you heard loud footsteps quickly approaching the room. You cocked an eyebrow as Ashton appeared in the doorway, noting the upset look on his face.

" _There you are_!" he exclaimed, coming over to you. He grabbed your hand and pulled you up suddenly. You yelped as you pushed in your chair, snatched the bag off the table, and tossed it into the trash can, all while Ashton was dragging you out of the room.

"If you need me back in my lab for a case, you could have just called my cell, Ash," you said, struggling a bit to keep up with him.

Ashton didn't respond; He simply kept pulling you to the elevator. He hit the arrow pointing up, making you furrow your eyebrows. When you got in, he pushed the button for the next floor up – the second story – and you were officially confused.

"Ash, I know you know my lab isn't on the second floor," you stated.

"We're not going to your lab," he replied plainly, beginning to tug you along again when the doors opened.

"Then where are you taking me?" you asked.

"Interrogation."

"Okay..." you trailed off, " _Why_...?"

"You need to talk to someone."

"I don't  _do_  interrogations, Ash, why do I-" You cut yourself off the moment Ashton opened the interrogation room door and you saw who was sitting in the chair.

"Hey, babe," your ex-boyfriend smirked, "Nice to see you again."

"Call me that again and so help me God, I'll slit your throat with my fingernail," you growled, "Why the  _hell_  are you here, Matthew?"

"Heard you were working here now," he winked, "Thought I'd drop by to say hello."

"He's a suspect in the murder of Petty Officer Simmons," Ashton grumbled, trying incredibly hard to maintain professional despite how the man in the chair was talking to you. Your eyes widened as you looked at him, then back to Matthew.

"What the hell did you  _do_?!" you exclaimed. He simply smirked again, leaning back in his seat.

"You've always been incredibly sexy when you were angry," he commented.

You didn't even get to fire back at him because Ashton grabbed your hand again, pulling you out of the room. He closed the door loudly, dragging you to his office. Calum, Luke, and Michael all watched the two of you until Ashton closed the door, looking at each other in confusion before just shrugging and getting back to work.

Meanwhile, in Ashton's office, you were standing there as he paced back and forth. He wasn't saying anything, which only made you more confused as to why he was clearly so adamant about bringing you here.

"Ash, what's-" you got out before he cut you off.

"Who is he, Y/N?" Ashton asked you.

"An ex-boyfriend," you crossed your arms over your stomach, "And I don't appreciate the  _tone_ , Ashton."

"Well,  _I_  don't appreciate the way he talks to you," he said lowly.

"Matthew Reynolds is a sadistic asshole who rarely hears the word ' _no_ ' from a girl and when he  _does_ , he  _does not take it well_ ," you replied just as quietly.

"And you just never thought to bring him up?" he sat down at his desk.

"He's my  _ex_ , Ashton! Have you told me about any of  _your_  exes?!"

"I would have if they treated me the way  _he_  does  _you_!" You laughed bitterly.

"Oh, no, you  _wouldn't have_! ' _No use in dwelling on the past, Hemmings_ ,'" you mocked Ashton's voice as you recalled overhearing a conversation he'd had with Luke after the blonde's most recent breakup, "Now, I don't know about you,  _Irwin_ , but Matthew is one thing from my past I'd  _really_  not like to dwell on."

"Well, you're going to  _have to_ , Y/L/N," he shot back, "Because he's our prime suspect in a murder investigation and whether you like it or not, he's gonna be here a while."

You narrowed your eyes at him before spinning on your heels and leaving the room, making Ashton jump slightly as you slammed the door behind you. He sighed quietly, putting his face in his hands and leaning back in his chair, asking himself why he decided to pick a fight with you.

~

**Luke's POV**

"Everything alright, Y/N?" Calum asked you, noticing you were significantly more upset leaving Ashton's office that you were when you went in.

" _Fine_ ," you mumbled, heading to the elevator and leaving them in an even deeper state of confusion.

"You don't think they're..." Michael trailed off, his eyes flicking between the elevator and office doors.

"Of course not," he shook his head, "He loves her."

"Love is  _stupid_ ," Luke murmured quietly, his elbow on his desk and his cheek resting in his palm.

"Hem-" Calum got cut off.

"I'm gonna go help Y/N," the blonde stated, getting up and going to the elevator before his co-workers could respond. Calum and Michael looked at each other and sighed, hoping that whatever was happening would all blow over soon.

**Your POV**

"Hi, Y/N," Luke said softly as he entered your lab.

"Hey, Lu," you watched him as he trudged over to you, "What are you doing down here?"

He shrugged, "People ask too many questions upstairs." You found yourself letting out a soft giggle, completely understanding what he meant.

"Well, you're more than welcome to do your work down here," you said, "I'm just gonna be going through security footage while I wait for the blood samples Chris gave me to come back."

"Thanks," he whispered, turning to the computer and typing away.

After a few minutes of only listening to the sounds of each other's keyboards, it seemed like Luke couldn't handle the silence anymore.

"So... Reynolds..." he trailed off, obviously having met the man since he was the one to bring him in for questioning.

"What  _about_  him?" you asked dryly, thinking Ashton had sent him down to talk to you.

"I mean... He doesn't really seem like your  _type_..." You looked at him, raising an eyebrow. "Well, he just seems..." the blonde continued, "Perpetually arrogant, can't maintain a serious relationship, endless amount of commitment issues..."

"Exactly the reason I  _broke up_  with him, Hemmings," you said, turning back to your computer.

"But... Why even date him  _at all_?"

"I was in  _college_ , Luke," you sighed, "I thought  _every_  guy that said ' _I love you_ ' meant it."

"Yeah," he let out a breathy chuckle, "I know what you mean." You looked at him, seeing he was looking down at his hands.

"Lu," you said softly, making him look up at you. "She was a bitch," you barely shook your head, "But there was no way you could have known she was sleeping with someone else."

"I  _should have_  though," he murmured, "A girl like that would never  _actually_  be into  _me_."

"She's a serial cheater; She's incapable of appreciating a good thing when she's got it."

"Why  _me_  though?"

"You wear your heart on your sleeve, Lu," you shrugged, "And there's nothing  _wrong_  with that; You just have to learn to not trust people so quickly."

"I trusted  _you_  faster than I did  _her_ ," he gave you a small – but  _genuine_  – smile.

"That's because I'm the only one who understands you when you start speaking  _nerd_ ," you giggled, pushing his shoulder.

~

**Two hours later**

"Y/N's lab; This is Luke speaking!" the blonde answered your phone when it rung since you were on the other side of the room retrieving the blood samples that have finished processing. "Uh-huh. ... Yes, she's right here," he said, making you look up. "Got it, Boss," he said, letting you know that it was Ashton. Luke hung up and looked at you, "Boss is coming down with Reynolds for a DNA test." You groaned softly, slumping your shoulders as you trudged back to the computer to try and find who all the blood samples belonged to.

"Lu!" you suddenly squeaked, "Where's your gun?!" He looked at you cautiously for a moment.

" _Why_...?" he asked slowly.

"I want you to shoot me," you stated, "I want you to kill me before they get down here."

"Yeah... I'm not gonna do that," Luke shook his head, "Just think, Y/N: The faster we get this done, the faster we solve this case, and the faster you never see Reynolds again."

"Just give it to me; I'll do it myself," you reached for his belt where he usually had his holster, making him grab your wrists.

" _Y/N_!" he laughed, "No one is going to shoot you! You're gonna be  _fine_! Maybe I don't know the  _details_  of the relationship and breakup, but I'm sure if you can get through  _that_ , then you can get through  _this_  too."

You let out a soft sigh as you heard the elevator doors open and Ashton and Matthew came into the room. Matthew didn't say anything, but he did wink at you, earning himself an eye roll in return.

"Hemmings," Ashton said, nodding for the blonde to follow him. They walked out the door where they could still see you, but you couldn't hear them. "I need to go talk to Christian in autopsy for a few minutes. I want you watching that man like a hawk," he grumbled, his eyes never leaving you as you continued your work, "If he so much as  _breathes_  on her,  _shoot him_."

"I-I don't think that's  _legal_ , sir!" Luke whispered after Ashton as he went down the hallway without another word. He stood confused for a few seconds before making his way back to you.

"How about you just open your goddamn mouth before I cut your finger off and get your DNA  _that way_?" you stated through gritted teeth.

"Y/N," Luke interrupted, making both you and Matthew look up at him, "As much as I'd  _love_  for you to follow through with that, I'm sure that is  _incredibly_  illegal."

You growled lowly, balling up your fist around the cotton swab in your hand. You closed your eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath in and then letting it out.

" _Please_ ," you said slowly, "Open your goddamn mouth."

"I'm sure that's not the first time you've ever heard  _that_  sentence," Matthew snickered.

" _That's it_!" you shouted, throwing the DNA test on the table and lunging toward him. Luke quickly jumped in front of you, wrapping his arms around your waist and holding you back. " _Hemmings_!" you exclaimed, " _Let go of me_!"

"You know very well that I can't do that, Y/N," he reminded you, struggling a bit to keep you from breaking free.

"That asshole has had this coming since  _college_!"

"And I have no doubts about that, but  _now_  is not the time for it."

"What the hell is going  _on_  in here?" you heard Ashton say as he rushed back into the room when he heard you yelling, "I was gone for  _two minutes_!"

You grabbed the test back off of the table and tore yourself out of Luke's arms. You walked over to Ashton, shoving the test into his chest. You took yet another deep breath and let it out.

"If you want this fucking DNA test done,  _Irwin_ , then  _you_  can take him back to interrogation, get it from him  _yourself_ , and bring it  _back_  to me. I want him  _out_  of my lab and I want him out  _now_." Ashton looked at you incredulously for a moment before turning and glaring at his suspect.

"What the  _hell_  did you do?" he grumbled.

Matthew immediately got defensive, "Why do you think it was  _me_?!" Ashton didn't respond – he simply grabbed the back of the collar on Matthew's shirt, muttering something you couldn't really understand as he dragged him out of the room.

~

**Three hours later**

Ashton had been in interrogation with Matthew for a  _solid_  two and a half hours at this point, but he was nowhere closer to getting any answers. He'd come to his boiling point  _so_  many times throughout the interview, but he just sat on it, knowing he couldn't do anything to the suspect. He had gotten up so he could leave the room to reprioritize, but a voice behind him stopped him.

"If you want me to talk, I want Y/N sitting right there," Matthew pointed at the chair Ashton was just sitting in. Ashton stared at him incredulously for a moment before loudly shutting the door behind him, wondering how the hell he was going to convince you to agree to this.

~

Ashton walked into your lab, finding you and Luke staring intently at the computer screen in front of him. Your chin was on his shoulder – practically falling asleep on him, to be quite honest – but you were both scouring security footage from the bar. He cleared his throat lightly, causing you and Luke to look over.

Ashton walked in, nodding toward the door as a signal for Luke to leave the room. Luke stood there frozen for a brief second before complying, quickly shuffling past his boss and going out into the hallway to give you both a moment alone.

"I need you in interrogation," Ashton said monotonously as if  _that_  was going to convince you to agree.

"Absolutely not," you stated, making him groan.

"Please, baby girl,  _please_ ," he begged, finally breaking the façade that he was still upset, "The only way he's going to talk is if  _you're_  the one he's talking to."

"Don't ' _baby girl_ ' me,  _Ashton_ ," you spat, "You should have thought about  _that_  before you decided to be an  _ass_  earlier."

"Y/N, I am  _desperate_."

" _Really_? I couldn't tell."

"Princess," he said softly, putting his hands on your cheeks, "I'm  _sorry_  I yelled at you for not telling me about him, okay? That... That was  _wrong_  of me and I  _promise_  I will make it up to you, but  _please_ , I  _need_  you to do this for me right now." You sighed under your breath.

" _Fine_ ," you mumbled. Ashton instantly pulled your face to his, pressing his lips to yours roughly. " _Ashton_!" you pushed him off of you, "We are at  _work_!"

" _Thank you_!" he exclaimed quietly, ignoring you and kissing you again, "I owe you  _big time_  for this, baby girl."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," you grumbled, letting him take you out of your lab and up to the interrogation room so Luke could get back to work.

~

"Hey, babe," Matthew smirked the moment he saw you enter the room. Your expression remained stoic – he was playing a game with you and as you were concerned, you weren't going to lose.

"Why am I here, Reynolds?" you asked plainly, leaning back against the two-way mirror in front of him.

"Wanted to catch up," he grinned slyly, "It's been a while since I've seen you, you know." And that was when you decided to stop playing nice.

"Enough with the  _bullshit_ , Reynolds," you narrowed your eyes, "You've had Agent Irwin playing your sick little guessing games for the last  _six hours_ , but I'm not going to sit here  _begging you_  for answers. You're either going to stop screwing around, or I'm going to have you arrested for withholding evidence and interfering with a police investigation." The man in the chair stared at you for a moment before speaking.

"Fine," Matthew stated, "But before I answer any of your questions, you have to answer one of  _mine_." You rolled your eyes, but motioned for him to go on. "Does he treat you right?"

You furrowed your eyebrows, "Huh?"

"That Irwin guy," he clarified, obviously knowing that something was going on between the two of you, "Does he treat you right?"

"Yeah," you nodded slightly, "Yeah, he does." Matthew nodded as well, leaning back in his chair.

"What do you want to know?" he asked you. You let out a confused laugh.

"I guess I'll start with the  _obvious_  question," you replied, finally sitting down in your seat and crossing your arms on the table, "Why did you kill Petty Officer Simmons?"

"I didn't," he shook his head, making you cock an eyebrow at him.

"Well, a lot of people seem to think you  _did_ , Matthew," you reminded him.

"And they're  _wrong_ ," he said, "Come on, Y/N-" He leaned forward on the table, mirroring your position. "-I know I'm a bit of an asshole, but you know I wouldn't  _kill someone_."

" _A bit_?" you scoffed, making him laugh.

"See? That's what I like about you, Y/N," he commented, "You've always got a snarky comeback right off the top of your head. Kinda makes me wish I hadn't taken you for granted when we were together."

"Yeah," you said softly, finally smiling at him, "Why do people think you killed Lynn, Matt?"

"Probably because I was the one she left the bar with," he shrugged again, a small sigh passing his lips, "But all I did was take her back to her hotel room; I didn't even  _stay_."

"Did you see anyone in her room or anyone who looked suspicious hanging around?"

"Well, the bellboy didn't seem too pleased that she'd nearly thrown up on him twice," he chuckled, "But I don't think he would have  _killed her_  over it. I  _did_  pass a guy on the way out of the hotel, but he didn't  _seem_  suspicious."

"Did you notice her talking to anyone else at that party?"

"She was talking to the bartender until he cut her off from buying drinks. And when I started talking to her, there was this guy down the bar that kept watching us that wouldn't stop glaring at me as we left."

"He follow you out?"

"I don't think so," he responded, "I didn't see him, but it was so crowded, I can't be sure. I told her that he'd been watching us and she mentioned that he'd been pretty handsy with her after he bought her a drink when she got there."

"She tell you his name?"

"I think she said it was Derek or something, but I never got a last name. He looked like a total Marine though – had medals on his jacket and everything."

"See, Matt?" you asked, getting up, "Was that so  _difficult_?"

"It's  _never_  difficult with  _you_ ," he said, smiling at you.

"Yeah, well, I'm a forensic scientist; We like to get to point as quickly as possible," you smiled back, opening the door to leave the room.

"Hey, Y/N," Matthew said, stopping you. You leaned back against the door frame to look at him as he went on, "If you and that Irwin guy don't work out, do you think I have another shot?"

"Not on your  _life_ , Reynolds," you grinned, hearing him laugh as you closed the door behind you. You went to walk to the observation room door, but Ashton was already flinging it open, hurrying out.

"So what do you think?" he asked frantically, "Do you think he's lying?" You looked at him for a moment, knowing he wasn't going to like the answer you were about to give him.

"He didn't do it," you shook your head.

"Are you s-"

"Ashton."

"But witnesses said-" You cut him off with a sigh.

"He may have been there that night and he may have gone to that hotel with our sailor, Ash," you shook your head slightly, "But he didn't kill her." Ashton let out the breath he didn't realize he was holding.

"Then who  _did_?" he asked, more to himself that to you. The defeated look on his face honestly broke your heart.

"Ashton," you said softly, bringing your hand up to his cheek so you could stroke his cheekbone with your thumb, "You're gonna figure it out; You always do."

"What if this is the one case I  _can't_  solve?" he swallowed thickly, putting his forehead on your shoulder. You sighed quietly, sliding your hand to the back of his head and running your fingers through his hair.

"You're  _going_  to solve this, Ashton," you said firmly, "And you're going to do it because you have an  _amazing_  team working with you and they're not going to let  _anything_  get by them."

"Wow, Y/N," you heard, making you look up to find Michael coming down the hall with Calum following behind him. "I'm honored that you think so  _highly_  of us," he placed his hand over his heart, making you roll your eyes.

"But don't forget  _you're_  part of this team too, Y/N," Calum reminded you with a smile, "We'd never get  _anywhere_  without your forensic work."

"I'm sure you'd still solve your cases," you scoffed, "It might take a bit  _longer_ , but I bet you could do it."

"I don't think so," Michael spoke again, "We need you just about as much as Irwin does."

You felt Ashton's lips curl up slightly as he smiled, kissing your skin. He lifted his arm up, waving the two men off. They snickered quietly but complied with the silent demand, heading to your lab to see if there was anything they could help Luke with.

As soon as they were out of sight, you felt Ashton's kisses trail up your neck.

"Ashton," you said firmly, but he didn't stop. "Ashton Fletcher, we are  _not_  doing this in the middle of the hallway!" you whispered.

"But you still  _want_  to do it," he murmured, nipping at your earlobe.

" _Not here_." Ashton grumbled as he tore himself off of you and grabbed your hand, pulling you down the hallway.

While in the elevator, you let him kiss you wherever he wanted to until just before the doors opened again and you pushed him off of you, knowing he was too into it to do it himself. He peeked out the elevator doors and when he determined that no one was looking, he sneakily pulled you into his office. Surprisingly enough, no one had seen you get pulled inside, so you quietly closed the door behind you, locking it just before you were backed up against it.

Ashton's hands were gripping your hips tightly as his lips were moving against yours. Your fingers were tangled in his hair as your other hand was holding his cheek. He started trailing his lips back down your jaw to your neck, his teeth grazing over your exposed skin. You were scratching at his scalp when you felt him start biting at you again, making you push his head back.

"No hickies I can't cover up, Ashton– you  _promised_ ," you said. The pout on his face was undeniably cute, but you stood your ground. "You not get enough of me  _last night_?" you giggled softly, pulling the collar of your shirt down slightly to remind him of the hickey he'd put above your right breast.

"Can never get enough of you, baby girl," he murmured, leaning down to give you a few more of the purple bruises. You swallowed back your moans, not wanting anyone outside the office to hear you. "Come on, princess," Ashton kissed back up to your neck, "Let me hear that pretty moan of yours."

" _Ashton_ ," you gasped between kisses, "We... We're at  _work_."

"Jump," he mumbled into your skin. You instantly jumped up, wrapping your legs around his waist as he pressed you further against the door to make sure you stayed put. "I think that if you  _really_  had an issue with us being at work, we wouldn't be  _in here_  right now, would we, princess?" You groaned softly as he grinded his hips against yours, feeling him smirk into your skin again. "Let me here you, baby girl," he grunted, doing it again, "Wanna hear you say my name."

" _Ashton_ ," you whined, resulting in even rougher kisses leading up to your mouth where your moans were finally silenced by his lips.

"I love you, baby girl," Ashton said under his breath, feeling you smile.

"I love you too, Ash," you replied, squealing when he suddenly carried you away from the door and carefully tossed you onto the couch.

You and Ashton made out for a while – 43 minutes, to be exact – not doing anything too crazy or loud since you  _were_  in the office. It didn't even feel like you'd been there that long, but when Ashton looked at his clock and groaned, he knew you both had to get back to work.

As much as he didn't  _want to_ , he climbed off of you, helping you sit up on the couch before getting up. He stepped away to leave the room, but you were quick to stop him.

"Ash!" you whispered, "Ashton, wait!" You grabbed his hand, pulling him back to you. "No one's gonna not suspect something if you walk out of here with your hair looking like that," you said, combing your fingers through it to fix it. Ashton wrapped his arm around your waist, pulling you in so there was no space between your bodies.

"No one's going to not suspect something anyway when  _you_  walk out of here, baby girl," he smirked, making you roll your eyes.

"Get back to your case, Irwin," you told him.

" _Fuck_ , I love when you order me around," he groaned, kissing you roughly.

"Solve this thing by tonight and I'll do a lot  _more_  than order you around," you grinned slyly into the kiss.

Ashton suddenly grabbed your hips and lifted you up onto his desk.

Things were getting pretty heated again when the ringing of the phone on the desk made Ashton groan. He reached over and hit the speaker button, pulling his head away from yours just enough so it didn't muffle his voice.

"Special Agent Irwin," he answered monotonously, making you giggle.

"Uh, it's Luke, Boss," the blonde said. Before he could continue, Ashton interrupted.

"That's great, Hemmings – what do you want?" You giggled again, bringing your hand up and softly hitting Ashton's cheek, making him smile.

"Well, uh, Christian found some skin under our petty officer's fingernails and he took it to Y/N's lab but she's not  _here_ , so..."

"And what do you want  _me_  to do about that?"

"Uh... I don't know... Find her and tell her Chris needs her?"

"I already  _know_  where she is."

"Oh, right," you heard Michael snicker, "You two  _snuck_  into your office earlier." You could just  _see_  him making air quotes. You couldn't help but blush as Ashton rolled his eyes.

"What was that, Clifford?"

"Nothing, Boss," he replied, but you could still hear his smile.

Ashton ended the call with another sigh, really not wanting you to leave, but knowing you had to if he ever had any shot at closing this case. He backed away from you, letting you hop off of his desk.

However, before you even made it to the door, you were stopped.

"Hey," Ashton said softly, grabbing your hand and pulling you back to him for the third time that day. He put one hand on your hip while the other rested on your cheek. "I love you, princess," he murmured. You smiled slightly, reaching up and pecking his lips.

"I love you too, Ash," you replied quietly. You pulled back, running your hand through your hair to fix it before leaving the office.

~

**One hour later**

You and Luke were still painstakingly reviewing security footage and blood samples when one of the samples came back with a match. Your computer dinged, making you squeak in surprise as both of your heads snapped over to look at the screen. Your eyes widened upon seeing who the DNA under Petty Officer Simmons's nails belonged to.

"Go get Matthew," you ordered Luke.

"I thought you said he wasn't-" he started before you cut him off.

"I know what I said, Lu," you shook your head, "Just do it." Luke shrugged, trotting out of the room.

He came back a couple minutes later with Matthew and a very curious Ashton, Calum, and Michael following behind him.

"Hey!" Matthew cheered, "Am I allowed down here again?"

"Get over here," you responded.

"Right," he nodded, "Straight to the point." He stood beside you, putting his hands on the counter top by your keyboard. "What can I do for you?" You clicked a few buttons on the computer that the security footage from inside the bar was on.

"This the guy you were talking about seeing at the hotel?" you asked. Matthew leaned over your shoulder to get a closer look, causing Ashton's jaw to tighten.

"That's not him," he answered, making everyone look at him with confused expressions.

"Matt, that's the  _only_  guy that was watching you all night," you informed him.

"I'm telling you, Y/N – that's  _not him_ ," he said adamantly, "I know it was dark in the bar, but the guy in the hotel was blonde. Kinda like him-" He nodded at Luke. "-except... _bleachier_. You know, how like in junior year when you-"

" _I'm aware, yes_!" you said loudly, making him chuckle.

"Sorry, forgot about the vow of silence on that," he nudged you. You rolled your eyes as he went on, staring at the screen intently. "Can you make his hair  _look_  bleached?" he asked.

You cocked an eyebrow, "Yeah..." You zoomed in on the man in question, cleaning up the image to make it clearer. You colored the man's hair blonde and Matthew sighed.

"I don't know what's going on, but I  _swear_  that's the guy at the hotel," he told you.

"You don't think he was wearing a wig, do you?" Luke asked.

"Maybe he dyed it," Michael suggested.

"He would never dye his hair," you said.

"How do you know?" Calum wondered. You glanced over your shoulder, taking note of the curious expression on Ashton's face. You turned back to the computer, your eyes on the screen in front of you.

You let out a deep sigh, "I dated him."

"Is there anyone involved in this case that you  _haven't_  dated?!" Ashton exclaimed, immediately leaving the room.

You sighed as you watched him leave, hearing the elevator open then close again. The men saw the defeated look on your face, glancing at each other before looking back at you.

"So..." Luke trailed off.

"We went on two dates last year," you said, "Neither of them went well."

"If the  _first_  one didn't go well, why go on a  _second_?" Calum asked.

"She's an incredibly forgiving person," Matthew answered for you, his eyes never leaving you, "Sometimes forgets that bad dates or fights in relationships aren't always her fault." You moved your gaze to him. "You should go talk to him," he told you. You spun back to your computer, typing on your keyboard and bringing up the petty officer's ID.

"I want this man in this building," you stated, turning toward Luke, Michael, and Calum, "I don't care what you have to tell him to get him here, but I want him in an interrogation room  _today_."

"But we don't even-" You cut Luke off.

" _I don't care, Hemmings_!" you shouted, " _Just do it_!" Before anyone could respond, you were out of the room and in the elevator, heading up to the third floor.

You walked into Ashton's office without even knocking, but you were surprised to find he wasn't even  _there_. You didn't even bother closing the door before you sat down on the couch with a sigh, your elbows on your knees and your face in your palms. You let out a shaky breath, wiping your face, when you heard a noise beside you.

"I figured you'd come here first," Ashton said softly, closing the door behind him.

Your head snapped up as he made his way over to you and got down on his knees. He took your face in his hands, wiping your tears with his thumbs.

"Coincidence is  _not_  your fault, princess," Ashton told you, "What  _is_  your fault is that you're dating someone who is  _way_  too quick to put the blame on you."

"Like you're doing  _right now_?" you whispered with a small smile.

" _Exactly_  like I'm doing right now," he grinned, pressing a kiss to your forehead, "But you  _do_  make terrible decisions in who to date." You giggled under your breath, leaning forward and kissing his lips.

"Yeah," you murmured, "But I finally got one  _right_."

~

**Ashton's POV; Two hours later**

As you were finishing getting all the evidence you needed, the men were in the observation room, watching the petty officer slowly lose his mind.

"You can't hold me here!" Derek shouted at the mirror, "Not without any evidence!"

"Boss, it's been  _two hours_ ," Luke said, "How long are we going to let him do this?"

"We can keep him for 48 hours," Ashton shrugged, "But we won't need that long."

"And how do you know that?"

"Please, Lu," you chirped, entering the room, "Have  _a little_  faith in me."

"He guilty?" Ashton asked.

"Guiltier than two teenagers peeking out of a utility closet at school." The five men looked at you with confused expression, making you roll your eyes. " _Anyway_ ," you stated, "The prints Christian found on our petty officer's arm matched him-" You nodded to the man sitting in the interrogation room. "-but if the DA needs more evidence, the blonde hair pulled from Simmons's body matches the blonde wig Calum found in Wilson's car."

"He still had the wig?" Matthew cocked an eyebrow.

"What can I say?" you shrugged, "I'm attracted to total morons." He and Ashton looked at each other and laughed under their breaths. "So," you said, "How long has he been waiting for someone to come in?"

"Couple hours," Michael told you, "You ready?"

"I've  _been_  ready to take this asshole down since the moment that second date  _ended_ ," you nodded.

" _Really_?" Calum asked.

"Petty officer wasn't lying when she told Matt he likes to get handsy," you said, leaving the room and going to the interrogation room door.

You took a deep breath and pulled down on the handle, not even having entered the room when Derek started speaking again.

"Jesus Christ, it's about  _damn_  time!" he exclaimed, "Do you know how  _long_  I've been-" He cut himself off and his eyes widened when he looked over and saw you standing there, " _Y/N_? You work at NCIS?"

"Yeah," you nodded, sitting down across from him, "Yeah, I do. Have ever since 2012 –  _long_  before we ever even met. Although, you already  _knew_  that, didn't you? I mean, I  _did_  tell you what I did for a living on our first date."

"It's been so  _long_..." he trailed off, obviously trying to convince you he'd forgotten who you are.

"It was last year," you reminded him, "But that's not what you're here to talk about."

"Then why  _am_  I here?" he asked plainly.

"You know a Petty Officer Lynn Simmons?" you asked, taking her photo out of the folder in your hand and placing it on the table in front of him.

"The name doesn't ring a bell."

"Okay," you nodded, taking out another photo, "Maybe you recognize her better this way."

You took out the photos from the crime scene and put them down, taking note of how his Adam's apple moved as he swallowed. He spoke the same, however, trying to maintain his composure.

"I'm not sure why you think I'd recognize these," Derek shook his head. You looked at him for a moment before continuing.

"Where were you Saturday night?" you asked.

"At the base," he insisted.

"That's funny," you said without a hint of humor in your voice, "I've got security footage that can place you at a bar downtown that night."

"Okay, fine – I was at the bar," he caved, "But I was supposed to be on the job, so no one could know that I was there."

"I've also got footage of you sitting down and talking with Petty Officer Simmons," you informed him, "And that footage  _clearly_  shows her shaking her head and pushing you away  _multiple times_  when you touched her. Care to explain  _that_?" Derek was quiet, prompting you to continue. "A marine getting handsy with a girl who said ' _no_ '," you shook your head, "I should have  _known_  it was you right from the  _beginning_. You always  _did_  assume every woman you bought a drink owed you  _something_."

"So what?" he laughed bitterly, "You can't  _prove_  anything. You weren't smart enough to realize that the only thing you're good for is a one night stand; You  _definitely_  aren't smart enough to prove I killed anyone."

Your jaw tightened and you suddenly stood up, taking off your lab coat. You threw the chair you'd been sitting on into the corner of the room, your coat following right after it. Every single man jumped lightly –  _even_  Derek.

"What's she doing...?" Matthew asked slowly.

"She's about to get a confession," Ashton answered, glaring at the man sitting at the table. He wanted to go in there and beat him  _himself_  for talking to you the way he was, but he knew you could handle yourself.

"You think the same thing about Petty Officer Simmons?" you asked calmly, placing your palms on the table and leaning toward the suspect, "You think she was only good for sex too?" You noticed Derek's jaw tighten and you started laughing. " _Oh_ , don't tell me you were  _in love with her_!" you said, "Did you not  _like_  that she was talking to other men, Petty Officer? Did you feel  _angry_  when Matt sat down with her and she seemed interested in  _him_?" Derek shifted and you could tell that what you were saying was starting to get to him. "Did it make you  _jealous_  that she left that bar with him? Did you feel so jealous that you followed them back to her hotel, changed out of your uniform and put a wig on in your car, walked right by Matt in the lobby, and told the receptionist that you'd forgotten what room your ' _girlfriend_ ' was staying in? Did you knock on the door, grab her arm when she opened it, and force her back onto the bed before you suffocated her with the pillow?" Derek remained silent and that was obviously starting to annoy you. " _Answer me_!" you shouted at him, slamming your hands down on the table, " _Why did you kill Lynn_?!"

"Because if  _I_  couldn't have her, then I made sure  _no one_  could!" he shouted back, standing up.

"There's our confession," Ashton stated as Calum and Michael left the room to go put cuffs on the marine before he could do anything to you.

" _Damn_ ," Luke muttered, "Can we get her to interrogate more  _often_?" Ashton couldn't help but laugh, following the two men. He waited outside, hearing your voice just as Derek was brought to the door.

"Hey, Wilson!" you called after him, making him, as well as Calum and Michael, turn to look at you, "If they go easy on you and you ever get out of jail: the next time you want to frame someone for murder," you glared at Derek as you put your lab coat back on, " _Don't make it in my jurisdiction_." Derek tried to break free from Calum and Michael's grips, but the agents pulled him back hard, forcing him down the hallway.

Ashton was in the room not even two seconds later, his arms around your waist, pulling you into him.

"I'm so  _proud_  of you, princess," he murmured into your neck.

"Thanks, Ash," you whispered, hugging him back tightly until the two of you were interrupted by a knock on the door frame. You turned to see Matthew standing there, smiling shyly.

"I just wanted to say thanks for clearing my name," he told you before turning to Ashton, "And I'm sorry about the way I acted today, sir. That was incredibly rude and uncalled for on my part." Ashton smiled, letting go of you to shake Matthew's hand. The man sighed in relief, giving you another bashful smile. "Are we good now?" he asked. You laughed softly, wrapping your arms around his neck and giving him a hug.

"We'll be good as long as you  _never_  call me ' _babe_ ' again," you told him.

" _Deal_ ," he nodded, squeezing you before you both released each other. "I better be heading home," he said, "It was nice seeing you again, Y/N."

"You too, Matt," you rolled your eyes with a smile, making him smile in return, glad you'd forgiven him for everything he'd put you through.

"Well, princess," Ashton said when Matthew left, his arms snaking around your waist again, "Work day is officially over. What do you say we head home?"

"Any reason in particular you're so eager to get home?" you asked, "You usually want to go out to eat after you close a case."

"I don't know if you remember your little promise earlier," he grinned mischievously, "But I seem to recall a certain  _something_  happening if I closed this case by tonight."

"Nothing's coming to mind," you replied just as slyly, biting down on your bottom lip, "You wouldn't happen to be able to help jog my memory on that, would you?" Ashton laughed under his breath, leaning down and pressing his lips to yours, his fingers digging into your skin after he slipped his hands under your shirt.

"Remembering anything yet?" he mumbled into your mouth.

"It's  _almost_  there," you replied, letting him feel your smirk, "Not  _totally_  though... Maybe if I just laid down, it might come back to me..." Ashton smiled again, pulling away just so he could grab your hand and tug you through the building, eager to get you home as fast as he could.


	329. Little One (Ashton Irwin)

_"You're too high maintenance!" you shouted at Ashton, throwing your arms up, "You ask me to do something, I do it, you throw a fucking fit because it's not_ **_perfect_ ** _, and you end up doing it yourself anyway! Nothing anyone ever does is good enough for you and it sure as shit isn't enough when it's_ **_me_ ** _!"_

_"Well, if you would do it right the_ **_first_ ** _goddamn time, we wouldn't be_ **_having_ ** _this problem!" he shot back, causing you to roll your eyes._

_"You know what, Ashton?" you growled, "I wouldn't be surprised if_ **_you_ ** _were why your dad left."_

_You regretted it –_ **_God_ ** _, you regretted it. You regretted it when the last word left your mouth, you regretted it even before the look of absolute anguish on Ashton's face, and you sure as_ **_hell_ ** _regretted it when he turned around and retreated to the bedroom without another word._

_You immediately started crying – Ashton_ ** _trusted_**  you _to never hurt him, yet you did it in the_ ** _worst way imaginable_** _. If there were ever a time when you felt the shittiest in your life, even combining all of those experiences together wouldn't come_ ** _close_** _to comparing to how shitty you felt now._

~

**Two weeks later**

Ashton obviously hadn't spoken to you much since that night. He would nod or shake his head every once in a while to things you said or asked, but he was never verbal with you. He'd been sleeping at friends' places – really only coming home when the boys left their apartments – but that didn't mean you were sleeping in your bed.

Your bed was too harsh of a reminder how badly you hurt Ashton. Sure, the couch was uncomfortable and cold, but if you didn't have Ashton there holding you, what was the  _point_?

When Ashton came home one morning and found you sleeping on the couch, he knew you felt terrible. Of course, he could tell whenever you spoke to him that you felt terrible for what you'd said. Your voice was always soft – never going above a whisper – making it hard for him to hear you at times.

He would never lie and say he didn't miss holding you and kissing you and sleeping beside you at night, but he still wasn't speaking to you. He wanted to  _hear you_  say you were sorry. And since saying sorry was something you'd  _always_  had trouble with, he knew it'd be a  _while_  before he heard those words.

All Ashton did when he saw you on the couch was walk over, pick up the blanket you'd kicked onto the floor in your sleep, and place it back over you. You unconsciously sighed and hugged one of the throw pillows closer to you. The pillow was supposed to be  _him_  – Ashton knew that for a  _fact_. You would always hug him in your sleep, gravitating toward the warmth he was giving off.

And as much as a pillow just  _wasn't_  Ashton, it was enough for now.

~

You woke up one morning, immediately feeling sick. You threw the blanket Ashton had put back on you onto the floor and ran into the bathroom,  _barely_  making it to the toilet before you were throwing up.

You tried to be as quiet as possible – knowing Ashton was sleeping down the hall and not wanting him to wake up just to ignore you. You knew you should apologize, but you also knew that a simple ' _sorry_ '  _wasn't_  going to cut it this time. You had to  _really_  show Ashton that you were sorry for what you said... Just maybe not right at this  _moment_.

You finally stopped throwing up, but when you realized it had been nearly two months since your last period, you started silently freaking out. You rushed back into the living room, grabbing your phone off of the coffee table.

You texted your best friend, begging him to go to the store and get you a pregnancy test. He, of course, immediately agreed, telling you he'd be there in 20 minutes.

~

20 minutes later, there was a knock on your door. You flung it open, grabbing Luke's hand and dragging him into the apartment. He knew everything that was going on with you and Ashton, so he didn't even bother asking why you didn't have  _him_  go get it instead. You took the bag, thanked him, and quickly went back to the bathroom.

After peeing on the stick and setting your timer, you grasped the test tightly in your hand as you walked back out to the living room. You and Luke sat in silence for the next 5 minutes as you waited for the results.

The blonde looked up at you when you visibly jumped at your timer going off, watching you as you just sat there.

"Are you gonna look at it or...?" he finally spoke.

"I can't..." you whispered, "You do it." You held it out to him, letting him take it from you.

Your eyes were closed tightly, but when he didn't say anything right away, you knew what it meant. But you still wanted to  _hear him_  say it.

"Lu-"

"You  _are_ ," he cut you off, looking back at you when you whimpered softly.

You and Ashton were never trying for a baby – he knew you wanted to wait until you were married for a couple years before you started having kids, and since he was only your  _boyfriend_ , he didn't really fall under that category.

You wouldn't say you'd never  _thought_  about having a baby with him though. You knew he was going to be an  _amazing_  father and you only  _hoped_  that you'd be  _lucky enough_  to get to experience that  _with him_.

But now, in the midst of the  _biggest_  fight of your relationship, you  _really_  didn't think that was going to happen.

"He's gonna leave," you whispered to yourself, " _Oh my god_ , he's go-"

"Y/N, he's  _not_  gonna leave," Luke insisted, interrupting you again.

" _Yes, he is, Luke_!" you exclaimed softly, " _I fucked up_! I swore I would  _never_  hurt him, but I told him  _his dad left because of him_  over a  _stupid_  argument that we would have forgotten the  _reason_  for the next day! He  _hates_  me now! And no matter  _how_  many times I apologize for  _that_  is going to be enough! And  _the band_! The band is the most popular it's  _ever_  been! He's not going to give all that up just to take care of a  _screaming baby_  at 3am with a girl who uses shit like that  _against him_!" The blonde sighed, knowing  _damn well_  that Ashton wasn't going to leave you, but letting you continue ranting anyway. "And what am  _I_  gonna do?" your eyes widened, "I don't know how to take care of a  _baby_ ; I can barely take care of  _myself_... I can't even afford to pay my  _rent_  half of the time... There's  _no way_  I'll be able to afford raising a  _kid_..."

"So what are you saying, you're going to get rid of the baby?" Luke raised an eyebrow. You paused for a moment as if you were  _actually_  considering it and that was  _when_  Ashton couldn't keep himself quiet anymore.

"You can't  _do that_!" he all but shouted as he came out from his hiding spot around the corner, making you jump.

" _Ashton_!" you shot up off of the couch, spinning around to face him.

"I'll leave you two alone then," Luke cleared his throat awkwardly, "See you guys later." He left the apartment, leaving you and Ashton alone.

Your boyfriend walked over to you, making you swallow thickly in nervousness. You couldn't exactly read the look on his face, but he didn't  _seem_  angry – of course, that didn't mean he  _wasn't_.

It wasn't until his arms wound around your shoulders and he pulled you into his chest that you realized that maybe you'd been too quick to judge his reaction.

"You're really pregnant?" Ashton murmured into your hair. You nodded slowly, making him release you. "And you're sure it's  _mine_?"

" _Ashton_ ," you rolled your eyes. He smiled, taking your face in his hands and pressing his lips to your forehead.

"We're gonna do this, princess," he promised you, "And we're gonna do it  _together_."

"You're not gonna leave?" your voice cracked as you looked up at him.

" _Of course not_ ," he shook his head, surprised you ever thought he would in the first place – no matter  _what_  had been said in the past.

"But you and the boys have the band and then  _I_  said-"

"The music thing can be put on hold, Y/N;  _You_ _can't_  –  _especially_  not when you're carrying my  _child_. Yeah, I'm still upset about what you said, but you can't take it back. We'll get past it and be okay again –  _just_  like we always do."

You stared at him for a moment before reaching up to kiss him. You felt Ashton's smile on your lips as his arms went back around your waist, pulling you closer to him.

"I'm  _really_ sorry, Ashton," you whimpered into his mouth, feeling him squeeze you.

"I get it, Y/N," he said softly, "You were just mad."

"That's not an  _excuse_ , Ash," you swallowed thickly, pulling back so he would open his eyes. You were close to tears again as you shook your head, "I crossed the line and being mad  _doesn't_  get me off the hook."

"Well, you're going to have to come up with a  _new_  punishment for yourself because if you think I'm going to let you  _continue_  sleeping on the couch now, you're  _wrong_ ," he promised you.

"Then I'll sleep on the  _floor_ ," you stated seriously, "I don't deserve to sleep on anything  _comfortable_." Ashton smiled so you could see his dimples, his lips then hitting your forehead.

"Then don't act surprised when you wake up with me on the bed."

"I don't deserve anything comfortable and I  _sure as hell_  don't deserve you," you choked out.

"That's too bad, princess," he murmured, his hand moving to your stomach, "You're going to be stuck with me for at least 18 more years."

~

Later that night, despite your persistent battle of why you'd determined you weren't allowed to sleep on the bed yet, Ashton dragged you into the room, picked you up, and laid you down. Ashton was always gentle with you, but now that he knew you were pregnant, it was like you were a fragile glass that could be broken if you were touched the wrong way.

You were lying on your side, Ashton's forearm resting on your side as his hand covered your stomach. You could feel his breath on the back of your neck, slowly lulling you to sleep. He then moved to kiss the exposed skin of your shoulder and you knew he was about to speak.

"Princess," you heard Ashton whisper. You hummed in response, placing your arm on top of the arm around your waist. "You actually  _want_  to have this baby, right?" he asked you. You immediately propped yourself up on your elbows, leaning over to turn on the lamp, and looked back at him.

"I don't really think I have much of a  _choice_ , Ash," you replied, "It's  _literally_  growing inside of me."

"Well, you could... You know..." he said, turning to lie on his back, "You don't  _have to_ go through with it..."

"Are you having second thoughts...?" you asked softly.

" _No_!" he replied instantly, rapidly shaking his head, "I just... I realized that I didn't really give  _you_  much of a choice in this... I mean... You didn't  _ask_  to get pregnant in the first place and when you were talking to Luke, it really sounded like you didn't  _want_  to have a baby and I... I kinda just came in and said you  _had_  to do it... I didn't really give you a  _choice_..."

"Ashton..." you whispered, moving so your head was resting right beside his on his pillow.

Ashton automatically wrapped his arm back around your waist while his other hand found your hip. Your own arm lay on his chest so you could hold his face in your hand, your thumb barely stroking his cheekbone.

"I love you  _so much_ , Ash," you assured him, "There's  _nothing_  I want more than to have a family with you. Maybe it happened a little  _earlier_  than I would have liked, but I wouldn't change it for anything  _now_."

"I just don't want to be like my dad," he admitted, "That's why I didn't want you to end the pregnancy or give it up or..." He trailed off, making you lean over and kiss his cheek lightly.

"You are  _nothing_  like your dad, Ashton," you reminded him, saying it more sternly as if you were telling him you were wrong to say it to him in the first place.

"I could be... He didn't leave until I was two... I could still-"

" _But you won't_ ," you said firmly, "You'll be there for this baby's first words and first steps and first day of school and high school graduation and when they move out and get married and start having kids of their own... You're going to be this baby's  _entire world_ , Ashton, and I know you well enough to guarantee that you wouldn't miss out on their life for  _anything_." Ashton swallowed thickly before turning his head, his nose brushing yours.

"I love you, princess," he murmured. He then sat up, pushing the shirt of his you were wearing up to reveal your stomach, and leaned down, pressing a kiss to your skin. "And I love  _you_  too, little one," he whispered, peppering your stomach with kisses. You smiled as you threaded your fingers through his hair, feeling yourself tear up a bit.

You couldn't believe you thought for even a  _second_  that Ashton was going to leave you and seeing him now, you knew he was going to be an amazing father – he just didn't know it yet.

~

_inspirations:  
http://five-sauce-preferences.tumblr.com/post/143917402895/ceo-part-2  
_ _http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/144300801693/i-can-just-see-ash-being-such-a-brilliant-dad_


	330. Good Intentions (Calum Hood)

" _Crap_ ," you mumbled to yourself as you walked down the sidewalk, the soft rumble of thunder echoing in the air. You didn't think it was supposed to storm until later that night, which was why you were walking from your dorm to your History project partner's off-campus apartment  _now_.

You had known Calum Hood since high school – you were both in the same grade, although you transferred to his school in the middle of sophomore year. You didn't really know him, but you knew  _of_  him. Your boyfriend at the time was on the soccer team with Calum, one of his best friends, so he talked about him all the time.

You never met him though, having broken up with your boyfriend two months into junior year – after only five months of dating. And from then on – for no discernible reason at all – it seemed like the  _entire_  soccer team and anyone they were friends with  _hated_  you.

Calum wasn't the  _worst_  of them, but he certainly wasn't the  _nicest_  either. He would tease you every day after the break-up, picking on what you were wearing or how your hair looked – whatever he thought would get under your skin. You, of course, never gave him the satisfaction of letting him see that what he was saying was getting to you; You held it in until you got home from school instead.

But even as you both entered college, the teasing never ceased. You were fine with it though – as fine with day-to-day mocking as you  _could be_ , anyway; You just held your head high and ignored him whenever you saw him on campus.

Unfortunately though, you couldn't ignore him  _forever_.

Your History professor paired you and Calum up on a project. He was the kind of professor that refused to switch partners he'd placed together, so you knew you'd have to suck it up – just like you did  _whenever_  Calum was around you.

And that was where you were now.

You'd done your portion of the project, so you were taking what you'd done to Calum's apartment so he could finish his portion. Despite the constant torment, he really  _was_  a good student, so you had no doubt that he would  _actually_  do the work.

You had been there for all of  _10 seconds_  before Calum started making fun of you yet again. You didn't understand why he was making fun of your outfit choice – you were wearing sweatpants and an old t-shirt; did he expect you to get  _dressed up_  just to give him your work? – but you just brushed it off; If he wanted to continue to be immature about something that happened  _four years_  ago, so be it.

You  _did_ , however, silently curse yourself for not organizing all of your work before you left your dorm because now, it just meant spending  _more_  time with Calum. You were quick to pull out all your books and gather up the random pages of notes and such into a folder you didn't mind letting him have.

The thunder outside had started becoming more and more frequent, but it was no more sound that that of a train on tracks a quarter of a mile away. You weren't about to take the chance of getting caught in a storm on your walk home, so you picked up the pace.

Once you finished putting everything in the folder, you started to pack up your books. But it was too late.

A loud crack of thunder startled you and you usually grabbed the closest thing to you when it happened. Unfortunately for you though, this time, that closest thing happened to be  _Calum's forearm_.

"What are you doing?" Calum asked you.

"S-Sorry," you whispered, quickly releasing your grip and taking your hand back. He instantly cocked an eyebrow at you.

"Are you  _scared of thunder_?" he asked, letting you hear every bit of amusement laced in his voice.

" _Shut up_ ," you mumbled.

"It's just  _thunder_ , Y/N; It can't come down from the sky and hurt you," he teased.

" _Whatever_ ," you swallowed, continuing to pack your books into your backpack, "Just don't forget to finish your part of the project."

As you were finished up, another – much  _louder_  – rumble of thunder shook the building, making you jump again. You closed your eyes and breathed in slowly before letting it out, closing your bag after putting the last notebook away. You got up from the couch, but you only managed to take two steps before Calum grabbed your wrist.

"Where are you going?" he asked, the amused expression and teasing tone no longer present – now, he just seemed  _concerned_.

"My  _dorm_ ," you muttered.

"You can't  _walk_  back to the dorms in this, Y/N."

"Yes, I can," you insisted, "It's not tha-" More thunder made you jump again. "-It's not that bad..." you whispered, more to yourself than to him.

"Y/N," Calum sighed, "Just stay here until the storm passes, okay? It's not safe to go out in something like this."

"I'll be  _fine_!" you squeaked, trying to pull your wrist out of his grasp. You were finally freed, but that was only because Calum had let go so he could stand up and wrap his arms around your waist, bringing you into him. " _Calum_!" you shouted, trying even harder to break free now.

"Y/N, I can stay here for as long as it takes, but you are  _not_  leaving this building in weather like this," he stated firmly.

An even louder rumble of thunder – far louder than anything you'd ever heard before – shook the building again, making you jump, drop your backpack, and let out an involuntary yelp.

"Just sit back down," Calum murmured in your ear, "I promise I'll let you leave the  _second_  it stops storming." And it seemed like Calum really  _did_  care about you getting back home safely, so you swallowed your pride and gradually stopped struggling. "You gonna stay?" he asked when you were done squirming. You barely nodded and he finally released you, plopping back down onto the couch. "You seen  _Stranger Things_  yet?" he looked up at you as he reached for the remote to his television. You shook your head slowly, prompting him to pat the seat beside him. "It's really good," he informed you as you reluctantly sat back down. He went to Netflix and pulled up the show, clicking on the first episode.

A couple minutes passed when another crash of thunder made you jump for what felt like the hundredth time that night. Calum obviously saw it out of the corner of his eye, turning to see your eyes closed as you were concentrating on breathing evenly and not crying.

"Y/N," Calum said, causing you to open your eyes to look at him. He gave you a confused smile, "Seriously – are you okay?"

"I'm fine," you replied softly, "It's just thunder." Upon hearing you repeat what he'd told you earlier, Calum sighed.

"Hey," he said under his breath, "I'm sorry, okay?" You furrowed your eyebrows, confused as to why he was apologizing. "I shouldn't have made fun of you just because you're scared of storms," he shook his head, "I didn't know you were  _this_  scared." You continued staring blankly at him. "You know," he went on, "I'm kinda scared of storms too." You rolled your eyes, figuring he was just going to tease you again, and went to get up.

However, Calum grabbed your hips and pulled you back down. The arm closest to you wrapped around your waist again while the other slid to your thigh. Your shoulder was now parallel with his ribcage and you huffed as you looked up at him.

"I'm being serious," he insisted.

"You don't  _look_  scared," you pointed out.

"Well, that's a thing guys do," he shrugged, his thumb beginning to rub your hipbone, "They act tough around girls."

"So why are you not acting tough  _now_? I'm pretty sure guys wouldn't let someone they  _hate_  know they get scared."

" _Everyone_  gets scared," he replied with a small smile, "And I  _don't_  hate you."

"Yeah, you do," you mumbled, looking down at the arm around your waist as you relaxed against him, "You've hated me ever since Todd and I broke up in  _high school_."

"You know  _why_  Todd's friends hated you?" You shook your head slowly, having never figured out exactly what happened. "Todd convinced us that you broke up with him because a guy you liked more asked you to homecoming."

"But I didn-" you started protesting before Calum cut you off.

"But two years later, when we found out you  _actually_  broke up with him because he cheated on you with a girl from another school, we stopped being friends with him," he informed you. You were speechless for a moment.

"He  _said_  that?" you whispered, your voice coming out quieter that you expected.

"Yeah," Calum sighed, "And when Emma Kennedy told us that wasn't what actually happened, we confronted him about it and he told us the  _truth_."

"Why didn't anyone  _tell me_?" you swallowed, shaking your head again, "People  _still_  treated me like  _shit_  because of that..."

"We couldn't convince  _everyone_  that he lied. Some people refused to believe anybody but  _him_."

"Why didn't  _you_  say anything then?"

"Because I... I didn't think I'd be able to do that without you finding out that I... I liked you..." You visibly lost your breath, making Calum swallow nervously.

"You  _liked me_?"

"I liked you  _a lot_ , Y/N," he sighed again, "But Todd got to you first and I didn't think you'd want to date one of his friends after what he did to you... I should have apologized for the way I treated you the  _moment_  I found out everything he said was a lie, but I... I didn't think you'd  _believe me_... I didn't think you'd see me as anything other than one of the  _idiots_  who made your school life  _hell_  for two years."

"That's because you didn't bother trying to get to  _know_  me," you retorted, making him shoot you a confused look. "I would have forgiven you, you know," you said, the look of confusion turning into that of disbelief, "Yeah, you made my life a living hell, but that doesn't mean you didn't have good  _intentions_  – they were just good intentions for the  _wrong_  person."

"So... Do you-" He cleared his throat nervously. "-Do you forgive me  _now_?" You let out a quiet chuckle.

"Yeah, Cal," you said softly, leaning up and kissing his cheek, "I forgive you." Calum's breathing hitched as you pulled away.

"Listen, Y/N... I know you don't owe me  _anything_ , but... I still feel really bad and I... I was wondering if you'd let me take you out for ice cream some time..."

"Is that so  _you_  can forgive yourself too?" you asked with a light giggle. Another confused head-tilt prompted you to go on. "I've forgiven you now, Calum," you told him, "It's about time  _you_  did the  _same_."

~

_inspiration: http://bananashemmo.tumblr.com/post/150332121789/2-am_


	331. Playing It Safe (Ashton Irwin)

It was Friday night and you were standing on the sidewalk outside of a house that hosted yet  _another_  party, waiting for an Uber. You couldn't really say you went to these things every weekend, but that didn't mean they weren't just as mentally draining. But your best friend asked you to go and you'd said no every time he'd asked you for the last three months, so you figured you could just suck it up for him.

You had known Ashton for about 5 years now – meeting when he grabbed something for you off of a shelf you couldn't reach in the grocery store. You never really felt comfortable around strangers, but something about Ashton made you feel at home. And you'd been best friends ever since.

But that wasn't to say you didn't enjoy the parties Ashton invited you to –  _any_  time you got to spend with Ashton was worth it in your book. And the Uber rides home, where you were wearing his sweater because you didn't bring one of your own even though he'd  _told you_  you were going to get cold before you left your house, were your favorite parts of those nights.

Your Uber had just turned the corner when Ashton found you looking up with a look on your face. He cocked his eyebrow knowingly at you.

"I told you to bring one," he said, just as he did  _every_  time you did this.

"But I  _didn't_ ," you replied innocently.

"You  _never_  do."

"And I never  _will_ ," you shook your head. Ashton rolled his eyes, but pulled his hoodie over his head anyway, handing it to you. "Thank you, Ash," you smiled brightly, kissing his cheek.

"What would you do without me?" he chuckled, watching you put his hoodie on.

"Freeze?" you suggested, earning yourself a nod from him.

"You're lucky you have me," he said, wrapping his arm around you and pulling you into him.

"I know," you murmured into his shirt while the car pulled up in front of you.

As you sat in the back of the Uber, you were watching the houses fly by the window. Your mind was racing and you were close to tears, but you held them in. This wasn't an uncommon occurrence though – you sitting in silence, the idea of your best friend never reciprocating your feelings for him or even  _laughing_ at you if you ever gained the courage to tell him about them honestly making you feel sick to your stomach.

But when you felt a head fall on your shoulder and looked at Ashton as he snored softly, you couldn't help the one tear that slipped down your cheek. You quickly wiped it away with the sleeve of Ashton's hoodie, but it was too late – the driver already saw you.

"You should tell him," he said lowly as to not wake up the sleeping boy, making you look up to find that he was already looking at you in the rearview mirror.

"There's nothing  _to_  tell," you whispered.

"You know," he said, looking back at the road so he could make a left turn, "My daughter used to say the same thing about her best friend."

"' _Used to_ '?"

"Yeah – things have changed a little though."

"How?"

"She married her," he smiled slightly, "Three years ago."

"That's different," you mumbled, "She was probably her wife's type."

"You don't think you're his type?" he wondered, nodding at Ashton.

"I  _know_  I'm not..."

"Well, you're a pretty girl," he shrugged, "And if you're  _already_  best friends, it's safe to say he likes you as  _that_  much. I'm sure he'd be willing to give a relationship a chance."

"But if he  _doesn't_ , then it'll be  _weird_."

"How do you know that?" You were silent, earning another smile from your Uber driver. "All I'm saying is maybe you should give  _him_  a chance before you start assuming he wouldn't give  _you_  one."

It was quiet again until the driver pulled up to the front of Ashton's house.

"What do I do if he doesn't feel the same?" you asked suddenly, looking in the mirror again, "I don't... I can't lose him..." The driver put the car in park and turned off the meter, putting his forearm on the center console so he could turn to look at you and Ashton.

"I've seen hundreds of couples in that backseat since I started working as an Uber driver," he told you, "And even though I only see them for 20 minutes and rarely hear from them again, I can already tell you two have more chemistry than any of those others people. What you choose to do after you get out of this car is up to you, but even though he's been asleep practically since the moment you got in, I can tell he cares about you too much to let you go just because you have feelings for him. And I just think everyone deserves a person like that." You swallowed thickly again, wiping more stray tears from your cheeks.

"Thank you," you choked out, making him smile again.

"If we ever run into each other again, I want to know how things ended up," he told you. You couldn't help but giggle under your breath. You nodded as a promise before turning to Ashton.

You put your hand on his shoulder and shook him gently.

"Ash," you whispered, shaking him a bit harder when he didn't budge, "Ash, we're back. Wake up."

"Hmm?" Ashton mumbled lightly, blinking a few times.

"We have to get out of the car now," you informed him. Ashton lifted his head and looked out the window, seeing his front door.

"Oh," he said, his voice sounding gravelly, and looked at the driver, "Thanks for the ride."

"You're welcome," he replied as Ashton opened the door, "It was nice meeting you two." The brown-haired boy climbed out and you scooted out after him. "Good luck," you heard him whisper so only you heard him.

You smiled slightly as Ashton took your hand and helped you out of the car. He patted his pockets to make sure he had his phone and wallet before closing the door and leading you to his apartment.

"Sorry I fell asleep on you," he murmured, fishing around for his keys before finally pulling them out and unlocking his door.

"It's okay," you replied softly.

"Do you want some water or something before you go to bed?" he asked. You shook your head and he nodded, "Well, I'm gonna take a shower if you're alright with that."

"It's  _your_  house, Ash," you smiled sleepily, "I can't tell you what to do here."

"Maybe not, but I'd still listen," he grinned, kissing your forehead before disappearing into the hallway. The skin his lips touched felt like it was  _on fire_  and the butterflies in your chest didn't make you feel any  _better_.

You  _desperately_  wanted to take the Uber driver's advice and admit everything you ever felt to Ashton, but you knew you realistically weren't going to do that. You were too scared of rejection – too scared of the possibility that Ashton would never see you the way you saw him.

Ashton was the kind of person who brought life to whatever room he walked into. People flocked to him like moths to a flame. He made sure that everyone was taken care of before he even  _thought_  about himself.

You never quite understood, out of all the people he could have chosen to be friends with, why he would choose  _you_. You weren't the life of any party or social gathering like he was – if it weren't for Ashton, you would never even leave the  _corner of the room_. You weren't the one who made plans with him – unless you asked him if he wanted to come over and watch movies and eat pizza with you. You just  _weren't_  as extroverted as Ashton was, and you couldn't see why he would want to be anything other than friends with you.

The moment you heard the shower turn on, you finally allowed yourself to cry. You made it to the couch, bringing your knees to your chest, your hands unable to keep up with wiping your tears.

You didn't understand why you had to make this so difficult. You'd been brave enough to tell  _plenty_  of guys that you liked them before.

But there was  _something_  about Ashton... You just couldn't do it; You couldn't force yourself to fess up at the risk of losing everything you had.

Because the pain of Ashton never knowing how you felt is easier to deal with than how much the memories with him would hurt if he  _didn't_.

~

**Ashton's POV**

After getting out of the shower and drying off, Ashton put on a pair of sweatpants before tossing the clothing he'd worn that day into his hamper. He wiped his eyes and yawned slightly, a wave of tiredness coming over him again, as he trudged out of his bedroom and back into the main area of the apartment. He went to the kitchen to get a drink before walking into the living room.

"Hey, Y/N, can I talk to y-" Ashton cut himself off, instantly smiling upon seeing you curled up on your side on the couch, your face buried in the cushion of the armrest as soft snores passed your lips. He felt his chest warm up as he watched your back rise and fall with every breath you took.

It was no surprise to anyone that knew Ashton's secret that he'd fallen for you in the few years he'd known you. Your witty personality and snarky attitude was so endearing to him – he knew from the moment you introduced yourself that he was going to fall for you and he was going to fall  _hard_. He always had you apologizing to him for the nights you didn't want to go out, and no matter  _how_  many times he assured you it was okay, he knew you  _still_  felt bad.

But Ashton loved staying  _in_  with you rather than going  _out_.

He loved sitting so close to you on the couch _, knowing_ that your head was going to fall on his shoulder when you inevitably fell asleep during the movie you made him watch for the hundredth time. He loved when, on the nights you  _would_  go out with him, you would cling onto his arm and refuse to let go if a certain area was too crowded and you were afraid of getting lost.

But even more so than those things, Ashton just loved  _you_. Everything about you was so enticing and mysterious and  _beautiful_.

And that was it.

You were beautiful in every sense of the word. Your laugh was what made him continue tickling you even though there were tears in your eyes and you were begging him to stop. The way your eyes sparkled when the light hit them a certain way had him contemplating following you around with a small flashlight just so he could see it every moment he was with you.

Ashton never asked God for anything that would directly benefit him – his prayers were worth much more to other people as far as he was concerned – but he'd be lying if he said he didn't lie awake every night, just before falling asleep, and pray that maybe –  _just maybe_  – you would see him the way he sees you.

~

**Your POV**

You were woken up by a sudden disturbance – not a huge one, but it was enough to wake you nonetheless. You were being carried down a narrow pathway, leaving you with only one conclusion.

Ashton had a tendency to let you sleep on the bed when you were over while he stayed on the couch despite that the bed was clearly big enough to fit both of you comfortably without either of you ending up on the other – not that you would have  _minded_  if that were ever the case.

He was carrying you to his room – there was no doubt in your mind about it – and you didn't want him to know you were awake, so you didn't move at all. Any moment where Ashton was holding you was a moment you wanted to savor for as  _long_  as you possibly could.

And when Ashton laid you down on his bed, he leaned down and kissed your forehead. Your heart skipped a beat – he always kissed your forehead, but it never ceased to have the same effect on you.

But something was... _off_...about this one; This kiss was different.

Like  _clockwork_ , Ashton kissed your skin and his lips were off within the next second.

But  _this one_...

With this one, he stayed there for  _well_  over ten. And when he finally stood back upright, you heard him sigh just before he walked away.

You wanted to tell him to stay – God knows all you wanted right now was to cuddle up to him and fall asleep in his arms – but you remained silent. You swallowed your pride – as well as the lump in your throat – and let Ashton leave the room, closing the door behind him before he went back to the couch to go to sleep himself. And you did the same, turning onto your side and hoping that one day, you'd be brave enough to tell Ashton how you felt about him.

~

**Two months later**

It started out as a normal Saturday evening.

Ashton texted you about a party one of his friends was throwing, but you turned down the invite, really not feeling up to going. You insisted that he just go without you, but if you knew one thing about Ashton, it was that he wasn't going anywhere but your place once you said no.

And that was what led you to now.

Ashton was unreasonably sprawled out on your couch while you were in the kitchen making a bag of popcorn to share during a movie. Your fingers were tapping the countertop as you waited, listening to the uneven tempo of the pops coming from the microwave.

"You know-" Ashton's voice made you jump slightly and look over your shoulder at him. "-just because you tap your fingers doesn't mean your food will be done any faster." You rolled your eyes at the goofy grin on his face.

"You've got your quirks, I've got mine," you replied, returning to looking at the sunset out the window in front of you.

Ashton came up behind you and you expected him to stand beside you, but he didn't; Instead, you felt two hands on your hips, turning you around. Ashton backed you up against the counter, his forearms resting on the granite as he leaned forward.

Your breathing became heavier, hyper-aware of the fact that your best friend's lips were now only a mere  _centimeter_  away from yours. You swallowed thickly, wanting to move away but finding yourself unable to – if this was going to be the only time you felt Ashton's breath on your lips... Well, you were going to take advantage of  _every single second_  of it.

"Ashton," you whispered so lowly that even  _you_  barely heard it, "W-What are you doing?"

"I've been thinking..." he said softly, "I've been playing it safe for so long... I think I want to try something  _new_."

"And that ' _something new_ ' led you here... _how_?" you asked. Ashton's gaze flicked downwards and he blatantly stared at your lips for nearly ten seconds before his eyes met yours again.

"I think you're incredibly breathtaking, Y/N," he replied, making your heart race, "And as terrified as I am of this ruining everything I've worked for with you, I'm sick and tired of having to keep my feelings to myself."

"Wha-" You released a shaky breath when he stepped forward and his body was pressed to yours, "What f-feelings?"

"I  _could_  tell you," he said, the tip of his tongue gliding across his bottom lip, "But that would require a lot of time and that's something I'm not willing to waste any more of."

You thought about countering the statement – you thought about pushing him off of you and forcing the explanation out of him.

But the  _second_  his lips hit yours, none of the things you  _thought about_ doing mattered. All that mattered in that moment was Ashton and his lips and the sweet and simple fact that he was –  _finally_  – kissing you.

It could have been a dream – a sick and unfair and magical and  _wonderful_  dream – that Ashton was finally reciprocating your feelings toward him. Then again, your dreams of Ashton kissing you never felt quite like  _this_. His lips were moving roughly against yours – like he was trying to remove every last bit of the chapstick you'd put on only minutes before from off your lips.

And you didn't know what came over you, but it was like what Ashton had said really got to you. More time with him was never a guaranteed thing – you weren't promised another tomorrow each time he left your apartment.

And that was what prompted you to lift your hand up, thread your fingers through the hair on the back of his head, and roughly pull the strands.

Ashton, of course, let out a mix between a whine and a moan, feeling your lips twitch at the sound as you kissed him back even harder. Your other hand slid up his arm and neck until it landed on his cheek, allowing your thumb to stroke his cheekbone gently. Ashton's arms wrapped themselves completely around your waist as he pressed you against the counter, wanting your body as close to him as he could physically get it.

You two continued this for a while – your lips only parting every few minutes to take a proper breath. And when you finally stopped kissing to look at each other, you watched his eyes flutter open, a look of total happiness on his face. He didn't move his head away from yours though, still letting you breathe the same air as him.

"It's not too soon to tell you I've been in love with you since the moment I  _met you_ , is it?" Ashton asked lowly.

"Maybe," you whispered, making him furrow his eyebrows, "But I'm sick of playing it safe  _too_." He shot you the dimpled smile you fell for five years ago as you went on. "I love you, Ash," you breathed shakily, relieved to  _finally_  be saying those words to him.

"I love you too, princess," Ashton replied just as softly, giving you your new nickname, and pressed his lips back onto yours.

~

_inspiration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJtYicd8Qcc_


	332. The Lucky Ones (Michael Clifford)

_an au in which everyone is born with heterochromia – your right eye is your own natural eye color and your left eye is the color of your soulmate's_

~

" _Lukey_!" you beamed, bouncing over to your best friend, "Sorry I'm late!"

"Hey, babe!" he chirped, giving you a hug, "It's okay. You'll have plenty of time to meet the boys after the show, but I'll introduce you to them now anyway." You nodded and he grabbed your hand pulling you over to a small group of three boys, all holding instruments. "Guys!" Luke said, making them look at him, "This is Y/N. Y/N, this is Ashton-" He pointed to the boy with the drumsticks. "Calum-" He pointed to the boy with the bass hanging off his shoulder. "And Michael," he finished, pointing to the boy with a black guitar.

"Y/N!" Ashton cheered, "It's so good to meet you! Luke talks about you all the time!" He pulled you into a hug as you giggled.

"Good things, I hope," you commented.

"Mostly," Calum chuckled, hugging you as well. You then hugged Michael, but he didn't say anything – he was just watching you.

You hadn't really looked at him too closely, but he definitely noticed how your left eye looked an awful lot like his right one and your right one looked an awful lot like his left. He didn't know if it was just some sick coincidence, but he couldn't deny that his heart was racing at the thought that someone as beautiful as you could be his soulmate.

"You're on, boys!" someone said as he came up, ushering them onstage.

"We'll talk properly later," Luke said.

"Yeah," Ashton nodded, "We can't wait to officially meet the girl Luke never shuts up about." The blonde rolled his eyes, shoving his best friend as they trotted on stage. Calum followed behind them, but Michael lingered for a moment, finishing tightening his guitar strap.

It was then that he looked up at you and you both froze in shock. You each watched the other's left eye change colors, telling you that you were soulmates.

Michael wasn't even given a second to comment on what had just happened, being physically nudged toward the stage. But he was going to be the  _first_  person to say something to you after the show – he  _was_  your soulmate, after all, it wasn't like he could avoid talking to you  _forever_.

Unfortunately though, it seemed like that would end up being the case.

Because when the boys got off stage 45 minutes later, you were nowhere to be found. Remembering he'd felt his phone vibrate halfway through their set, Luke took it out of his pocket to see if you'd texted him – and you did.

_Please tell Michael I'm sorry_

Luke tilted his head in confusion before asking what they thought that meant. But the moment he looked up at them, he knew. He could tell that Michael's eyes were now  _both_  the same color.

And they were also glossy from the tears he was holding back at knowing you'd  _left_  because of it. 

~

**Two weeks later**

It had been a couple weeks since you last saw Michael or any of the boys. You weren't going to deny that what you did was  _wrong_ , but you also couldn't say you wouldn't have done it again. However, you knew you had to explain to Michael why you just left like that, so that was what you did.

You texted Luke – not surprised that he was upset with you for leaving Michael – but he gave you the blonde's address anyway, being able to tell that – even though you were only texting him – you felt incredibly guilty for it.

You plugged the address Luke had given you into Google Maps and then got in your car, driving to the house.

Upon pulling into the driveway, you stared at the front porch from your seat before finally killing the engine and getting out. You were taking deep breathes, letting them out slowly, nervous about what Michael would say or do.

" _Okay, Y/N_ ," you whispered out loud to yourself once you reached the porch, " _You can do this_."

You brought your hand up to knock before you chickened out. A few moments later, a woman opened the door and smiled politely at you.

"Hello, dear," she said.

"Hi," you replied shyly, "I-Is there a Michael here?"

"Yes, there is."

"Um... Can I... Can I talk to him?"

"Sure," she nodded, giving you a confused look as she motioned for you to come in. You did so and she closed the door behind you. "Is everything alright?"

" _Yeah_ ," you said with a high-pitched squeak and she instantly knew you were lying. She raised an eyebrow at you as you desperately pretended not to notice.

"What's your name, dear?" the woman asked you.

"Y/N..." you said softly.

"Y/N," she repeated in acknowledgement, "You know  _I know_  you're lying, right?"

"Yes, ma'am," you whispered, looking down at your shoes.

"And you wouldn't happen to be part of the reason my son's been locked in his room all week, would you?"

"He locked himself in his room?" you asked, looking back up at her.

"He  _has_ ," she replied, "Now, I know Michael can be quite a shy boy at times, but he's never locked himself in his room for  _this long_  before. Do you have any idea why he might have done that?"

"Maybe..." you nodded solemnly.

"I've seen the color of your eyes for the last 20 years, so I don't want you to  _lie_  to me when I ask you this: Are you the girl that ran off after his eye changed colors?" You barely nodded again. "Up the stairs, first door on the left," she said suddenly, "I don't want you two to leave that room until he gets some  _answers_." Your eyes widened slightly and you nodded rapidly, hurrying upstairs.

You stopped at the door and had to convince yourself to knock for the second time that day. You were  _sure_  Michael didn't want to see you – not that you  _blamed_  him at all; You shouldn't have just run away the way you did, but you couldn't really go back in time and redo it. So this was what you had to work with.

You knocked on the door a couple times, stopping to listen for any sort of response. You didn't get one, so you knocked again. And when you didn't get a response that time, you knocked for a  _third_.

You finally heard a deep sigh and footsteps on the other side of the door. Your heart was pounding against your chest as Michael pulled the door open, completely ready to tell his mother that he still didn't want to be bothered. But when he saw you, he visibly lost his breath.

"How did you know where I live?" he asked coldly.

"Wasn't that hard, Michael," you murmured, "Luke is my best friend."

"Well then, go to  _Luke's_  house," he spat, "I don't want to talk to you." He went to close his door, but you put your hand on it and held it open.

"I'm not allowed to leave until you get answers," you said. He cocked an eyebrow and you went on, "Your mother's orders."

Michael rolled his eyes although he wasn't  _totally_  surprised to hear that the reason you were standing there was because of his mom. He glared at you for a moment before pulling his door back open and moving out of the way, allowing you to enter. You looked around his room, admiring all the band posters, photos of his friends, and albums and vinyls he'd collected over the years.

When Michael closed his door and turned to face you, he couldn't help but stare. Sure, he was upset with you for running away from him after finding out he was your soulmate, but he still thought you were beautiful – he would  _always_  think you were beautiful.

The way your hair seemed somehow perfect every time he saw you made him wonder if  _felt_  as soft as it  _looked_. The way you smiled when Luke introduced you to him made him wish more than anything that  _he_  could be the one making you smile like that. The way your eyes sparkled when the light hit them  _just right_  had him hoping you would never move from that spot so he could look at them forever.

But you turned back to look at him as he was in the middle of his trance, blushing at knowing he'd been staring at you. When you thought he was listening, you began to speak.

"Michael, I-" He cut you off, unable to keep up with his pissed facade.

"Why did you leave?" he asked, the pain in his expression making your heart ache, "Why did you run away? Am I not attractive enough for you? Can you not see yourself being with someone like  _me_  for the rest of your life?"

"It's not got anything to do with the way you look, Michael," you whispered.

"Then what is it?" he asked, defeatedly plopping down on his bed.

"I've never actually  _been_  with anyone before..." you admitted, slowly sitting beside him, "I just... I never bothered with  _dating_. I didn't think there was any  _point_  to it unless it was with my  _soulmate_."

"But if you've been wanting to be with your soulmate, why did you run away from me?" he shook his head.

He seemed so hurt and it honestly broke your heart. The  _last thing_  you ever wanted to do was hurt Michael and to know that you did it  _anyway_  made you more upset with yourself than words could even  _describe_.

"I'm just  _scared_ ," you replied.

"Of  _what_?"

"I wouldn't even  _begin_  to know how to be a good girlfriend," you remained staring at your lap despite knowing Michael's eyes hadn't left your face even  _once_ , "I wouldn't be able to handle the arguments or the screaming matches or the things you would say just because you knew they'd hurt... I'd shut down at the first sign of you getting mad at me – I  _know_  I would. And I just think you deserve  _better_."

"How can I do better than my  _soulmate_?" he countered, cautiously scooting closer to you.

You swallowed thickly and looked up at him as he came to a stop right beside you. He held his hand open on his knee, allowing you to take it yourself, not wanting to scare you off by just grabbing yours. Michael wanted to make sure that you knew you could trust him – and if that meant asking if he could hold your hand or kiss you or hug you or  _whatever_  for the rest of his life, then that was what he was going to do.

"You are my  _soulmate_ , Y/N," Michael said softly, rubbing the back of your hand with his thumb, "You were  _made_  for me – we were made for  _each other_. I can't tell you that we won't ever argue or fight or anything like that because I  _know_  we will, but I  _can_  tell you that I'll stick with you  _no matter what_ ; That's what soulmates  _do_. I want to be the one to show you all the  _good_  things about soulmates, but I want nothing more than to show you how a boyfriend in  _general_  can love you more than anything else in the world. I just want to fall in love with you, Y/N," he practically begged you, "And I want to be the one lucky enough to be loved by you in return."

You stared at him for a moment before glancing down at his lips. Michael swallowed thickly, his heart rate quickening. He didn't know if you actually wanted to kiss him or if you were just trying not to look into his eyes.

But he took the chance anyway.

"Y/N..." he murmured, "Can I... Can I kiss you?" Your eyes met his once again and you nodded slowly.

Michael leaned in carefully, giving you the opportunity to back out if you wanted to. When you didn't move, however, he picked up the pace, stopping when his nose was on yours and your lips were barely touching.

"You don't  _have_  to do this, Y/N," he told you despite the fact that he really wanted to, "I'm not going to force you into anything you're not comfortable with."

"Mikey," you said under your breath, "Just shut up and  _kiss me_."

And that's exactly what he did.

Michael pushed his lips onto yours, both of you letting out sighs of content. He released your hand, only to place it gently on your cheek, his thumb running back and forth on your skin.

You found yourself getting up on your knees and crawling onto Michael's lap, wrapping your legs around his waist. His other hand landed on your lower back to keep you in place as he scooted back on his bed so there was no chance of you falling off of him. You smiled at how he was already taking care of you, making him smile in return.

When you pulled away to breathe, you watched Michael's eyelids flutter back open, a light pink blush on his cheeks. His hand dropped from your cheek to your hip, his forearm resting on your thigh as he rubbed your hipbone.

"I'm sorry I left like that, Mikey," you whispered, your fingers playing with the ends of his hair.

"It's okay," he assured you, squeezing your waist gently, "It was unfair of me to assume you didn't want to be with me because of looks."

"But if it helps, even if you  _weren't_  my soulmate, I'd  _still_  think you were the hottest guy I've ever seen," you replied with a sly grin.

" _Really_?" he chuckled, a growing smirk on his face.

You simply giggled, one of your hands sliding up to his cheek. Michael leaned into your touch, closing his eyes and sighing softly. He turned his head a bit to kiss your palm, opening his eyes again when he moved back.

"Can I take you out for lunch?" he asked you.

"Yeah," you murmured, nodding your head.

Michael smiled brightly, quickly pressing another kiss to your lips before you climbed off of him. He grabbed his wallet and his phone, stuffing them into the pockets of his sweatpants before standing up. He purposely bumped his hand against yours, making you giggle again and take it yourself, tangling your fingers together.

He led you out of the room and back downstairs where you were both stopped by his mother's voice.

"You give Mike his answers, dear?" she called out as she came around the corner from the kitchen. When she saw yours and Michael's hands, she couldn't help but grin. "I'll take that as a yes then," she commented.

" _Mum_ ," Michael said in a warning tone, "I'm not going to have you scaring her off when I just convinced her to stay." You blushed slightly, finding yourself pressing your face to Michael's arm in a failed attempt to hide it. His mom smiled again, shaking her head.

"You two going out?" she asked.

"Mhmm," Michael hummed, squeezing your hand a bit.

"Alright," she nodded, "Don't stay out too late. Call me if you need anything."

"Thanks, Mum," he said, kissing her cheek quickly, "See you later."

"It was nice meeting you, dear," she told you.

"You too, ma'am," you replied softly.

Michael pulled you to the front door, opening it for you. He closed it behind him, but when you went to step off of the porch, he tugged you back to him. Your lips hit his, making you smile instantly.

When he pulled away, he had a sheepish grin on his face.

"Sorry," he said, "I should have asked if I could do that first." You responded by kissing him again, feeling him sigh through his nose.

"You don't have to  _ask_  to kiss me, Mikey," you assured him, feeling him smile.

~

_inspirations:  
http://my-imagines-moonlight53.tumblr.com/post/125747418302/soulmate-michael-colors-final  
_ _http://werewolfzero.tumblr.com/post/105833859008/soul-mate-au-where-everybody-is-born-with_


	333. Everything Has Changed (Marshall Traver)

It was unfair, honestly – listening to your best friend blabber on and on about this girl he'd met recently.

You'd known Marshall for nearly 15 years now, having met him in elementary school. The two of you  _instantly_  became best friends and had been inseparable ever since you scraped your knee on the playground and he insisted he kiss it because ' _that's what my mommy does and it always makes it better_ '.

Growing up, he tended to shy away from girls he was interested in – instead going to you to tell you how cute he thought they were. As the years passed by, you were happy for him that he was becoming more confident, but you  _knew_  you were jealous. You could just never bring yourself to  _admit it_.

It was one such afternoon – another Saturday with Marshall hanging out in his apartment. He'd had a date with a girl named Jess he met at a concert a couple weeks ago – their  _third_  date, in fact – the previous night and he was going on and  _on_  about her.

You were pretty sure you were going  _insane_  – listening to the boy you were in love with be interested in someone else was really taking its toll on you. But you sucked it up; He was happy and that was all that mattered to you.

"You wanna go to the park or something later?" Marshall asked you suddenly, surprising you due to the question's lack of  _Jess_  mentions, "I heard it's supposed to snow tonight and I know how much you love being in the park when it snows."

"I can't tonight..." you trailed off.

"Why not?" he frowned.

"I have a date." The boy beside you visibly lost his breath, his heart skipping a beat.

"A-A  _date_ , huh?" he cleared his throat, "With who?"

"Cody," you said softly.

" _Cody_?" he asked, sitting up straight and looking at you at the mention of your mutual best friend, "Since when do you like  _Cody_?"

"I've always  _liked_  Cody," you insisted, rolling your eyes, "I've just decided to see if I like him as something  _more_  than friends."

"Why  _now_  all of a sudden? You've known him for as long as  _I_  have!"

"What is  _up_  with you?" you furrowed your eyebrows, "I've been single for too long. You should be  _happy_  I'm finally putting myself out there."

"But with  _Cody_?" he scrunched his face up.

"What's wrong with Cody?"

"I just don't think he's the right fit for you," Marshall shrugged.

"Well, I don't think that's  _your_  decision to make," you stated, getting up, "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a date to get ready for. I'll see you later, Mar." You grabbed your coat, slipping it on as you walked out the door, leaving Marshall to wonder why you'd be going out with someone he  _knew_  you weren't interested in while you quickly sent Cody a text.

_If Marshall asks, we're going on a date tonight_

~

**Later that night**

"So," Cody chirped, walking along the edge of the snow-covered road in the park with you, "What was that text about earlier?"

" _Um_..." you said with a high-pitched sigh, making him chuckle, "I might have told Marshall that this was a date so I could get out of listening to him talk about Jess again..."

"How did telling him about our ' _date_ ' go then?" You snorted softly, making him laugh.

"Could have been  _worse_ , I guess," you stated.

"What'd he say?"

"Well, it was mostly just repeating your name in shock and wondering why I  _liked you_  all of a sudden."

" _Hey_!" he pouted, "I'm a  _very_  likable guy!"

" _Of course_  you are, Cody," you giggled, wrapping your arm around his waist. His arm draped across your shoulders, pulling you close to him.

"You know, I really think you should just tell Marshall the truth," Cody said thoughtfully.

"He's got Jess now, Cody," you mumbled, "He doesn't need me anymore."

"He'll always  _need you_ , Y/N," he insisted, "14 years of friendship aren't going to just  _go away_  now that he's seeing someone." You were silent, not really having anything to counteract that one with. Cody kissed the top of your head, "How about we stop by Starbucks, get some hot chocolate, and then go back to my place for a movie night?" You smiled slightly, nodding against his shoulder. You felt him squeeze you as you both began walking back to the car, surprised to find someone there waiting for you.

Marshall was leaning against the side of his car, parked right beside Cody's. As he looked at you and noticed your arms around each other, his face fell slightly. You were a bit confused but brushed it off, telling yourself it didn't have to do with you and Cody.

Marshall pushed himself off of the door once you got there, looking at you intently.

"We need to talk," he stated simply, his voice much quieter than it usually was. You looked at him for a moment before tilting your head on Cody's shoulder.

"Can we take a rain check on that hot chocolate and movie night?" you asked lowly. He chuckled softly, turning you into him so he could hug you properly.

"Of course," he affirmed, kissing your head again, "Text me later – let me know you got home safely." You nodded, squeezing him a bit before letting go. He got into his car, giving you a small wave as he drove away, leaving you alone with Marshall.

"Can we walk?" he asked. You simply nodded, turning around to take another walk around the park with him.

It was silent again until he cleared his throat nervously.

"So... How'd your date with Cody go?"

"It was good," you nodded slightly, "He's a really great guy. What about you? How are things going with Jess?"

"Oh, they're... They're alright..." he trailed off.

"Just ' _alright_ '?" you wondered, looking up at him.

He shrugged, "She's a nice girl, but she's just turned out to not be what I'm looking for."

"This is coming from the guy who said  _not even_  6 hours ago that you could see the two of you being together for a long time?" you cocked an eyebrow.

"Things change," he replied softly. You noticed he hadn't looked at you once since you started walking, making you worry.

"Mar," you said, "You okay?"

"Why wouldn't I be okay?" he asked.

"Because you haven't looked at me since Cody left."

"I'm fine," he replied.

"Marshall," you sighed, "I've known you for almost 15 years; You should know by now that you can't lie to me and get away with it."

"It's nothing, Y/N," he shook his head.

"Then why won't you look at me?" you asked, almost desperately that time.

"Because I can handle it on my own."

"Maybe  _this_  is your problem, Marshall," you stated, no amount of humor in your voice, "Maybe you and these other girls don't work out because you refuse to let anyone  _help you_." Marshall had a surprised expression on his face, but he still refused to even  _glance_  at you.

"Y/N, you know that's not tr-"

" _No_ , you know  _damn well_  it is," you spat, "I've never seen you go on more than three dates with anyone because they're ' _not what you're looking for_ '. But maybe the problem is  _you_. Maybe you don't know what you want, so you keep dating around, hoping you'll  _find it_  somehow. And that's a  _dangerous_  thing to do, Marshall. One of these days, you're going to break it off with a girl after three dates and she's going to wonder what's wrong with  _her_  when the real problem is  _you_."

"Well, maybe there wouldn't  _be_  any problem with me if  _you_  weren't around," he grumbled, making you freeze. He stopped walking as well, his eyes closed tightly, mentally kicking himself for saying that out loud.

"What did  _I_  do?" you asked softly, your voice cracking slightly.

Marshall's hands came up to his face, holding it in his palms for a moment. He didn't want to be admitting this right now, but he knew he didn't have a choice – you weren't going to let him leave until you got an answer.

So he sucked in a breath, took his hands off of his face, and looked at you for the first time since Cody left you with him.

"None of those girls have ever been what I'm looking for because I'm always comparing them to  _you_ ," he replied, barely giving you any volume – but you were still hearing him loud and clear. "Their eyes don't shine the way yours does when the light hits them just right," he went on, "Their hair isn't as soft as yours and I don't like running my fingers through it. Their faces don't scrunch up in that cute way yours does after I tell a bad joke. Those girls will never be  _you_ , Y/N... And I know it's not fair for me to keep stringing them along, but I just... I can't keep beating myself up over the fact that you'll never look at  _me_  like that." And Marshall was surprised when you cautiously closed the gap between the two of you, your glove-covered hands linking on the back of his neck.

"Who said I don't look at you like that?" you whispered. The brunette was speechless for a moment – his mind only able to process a small piece of what was actually important about the situation.

"Sh-Shouldn't you tell Cody first?" Marshall swallowed, his heart pounding at knowing he only had to move up a  _centimeter_  to have his lips on yours.

"He already knows," you replied, a shy smile on your face, "Tonight wasn't a date... We were just hanging out like we always do... I just said it was a date because... I don't know... I  _panicked_... You were going on and  _on_  about Jess again and I didn't want to listen to it anymore, so I just... I said I was going on a date so I could leave... If you knew I was just  _hanging out_  with Cody, I thought you would have said he'd understand if I was a little late and I... I couldn't listen to you keep talking about her, Mar –  _I couldn't_... It  _hurt_  too much..."

"Why didn't you just  _tell me_?" he begged, "I never, ever,  _ever_  want to hurt you, Y/N."

"I know, but... If you didn't feel the same, then it would have been weird and I don't want... I can't  _lose you_..."

"I can't lose you either, princess," he whispered, shakily bringing his hands up from his sides to rest on your hips. He felt your breathing hitch as you swallowed thickly. "But you know what?" he murmured, "I'm not going  _anywhere_."

Marshall then leaned in, causing you to let out a sigh the  _moment_  your lips touched his. You felt him smile when you did, making your heart skip a beat and eagerly kiss him back. Your own hands slid to his cheeks, stepping forward so his body was pressed to yours.

"I love you, Y/N," Marshall said into the kiss, "I love you so much." And actually hearing those words after imagining them for  _so long_  made you want to cry right then and there.

"I love you too, Mar," you choked out under your breath, feeling him smile and kiss you harder.

 


	334. Love Me Again (Luke Hemmings) - Part 1

**Warning: Car accident**

~

_"I think you should leave, Luke," you whispered, making his expression fall._

_"You don't mean that," he said softly, shaking his head, "You don't... You don't want me to go."_

_"Please just go."_

_"But, baby, I-"_

_"Luke,_ **_please_ ** _!" you choked, "I don't want to see you anymore!" You couldn't bear to look at him, but you knew he was about as close to tears as you were – if they weren't_ **_already_ ** _falling._

_This was the third time this month you'd told Luke to get out of your apartment, but he always came back; He always came back and you always made up. But as he left on this night, you couldn't help but feel like it was different – you couldn't help but feel like you'd made the_ **_biggest_ ** _mistake of your life._

~

**A couple hours later**

It hadn't even been  _two hours_  since the argument and you were still feeling sick to your stomach. You had this heavy feeling in your chest – like you were about to have a panic attack, but no idea  _why_. And when your phone started ringing and you saw Calum's name, your heart started racing, having a haunting feeling that it had something to do with the way you were feeling about the fight with Luke.

"H-Hey, Cal," you stuttered.

"Y/N, i-it's Luke..." he said, his voice coming out hoarsely like he'd been crying just before he called, "H-He was in an accident... They... They won't tell us his condition or anything until we get to the hospital." Without another word, you immediately ended the call and grabbed your keys, running out to your car.

You parked your car in the emergency room parking lot, having barely just put it in park before you were jumping out and running into the building. You saw Michael sitting in one of the chairs in the waiting room – no one else there with him.

As the doors opened, the blonde looked up, his eyes immediately narrowing.

"This is all  _your_  fault!" Michael shouted suddenly, jumping up from his seat and coming over to you. Your eyes widened as you backed away from him, only to jump when your back hit the wall. "If you weren't so  _goddamn_  stubborn, none of this would be  _happening_!" he continued ranting, "Luke has done  _nothing_  but love you and you're too  _stupid_  to accept it! Things would have been so much  _better_  if he'd  _never met you_!"

" _Michael_!" you heard Ashton shout as he and Calum ran down the hallway as they came out of the bathroom, "That's  _enough_!"

"Like  _hell_  it is! It's not like I'm telling her something she doesn't  _already_  know!" he replied, never taking his eyes off of you.

"Okay, we're going outside," he stated dryly.

"Why would we do that?! I'm not done yet!" Michael insisted.

" _Yes, you are, Michael_!" Ashton replied, grabbing his friend's arm and dragging him out the door.

You and Calum stood there in silence for a moment. He watched you as you stared straight ahead, not blinking or anything.

"Y/N..." he said carefully.

You finally let out a breath and the tears began falling, but you didn't even acknowledge him. All you did was push yourself off the wall and start running.

You only made it past the waiting room before Calum ran up behind you and grabbed your waist, pulling you back to him. You let out a fairly loud sob as your knees gave out, sending the both of you to the floor.

Calum was quick to sit up, turn you around, and pull you onto his lap. His arms went around you as you balled his shirt up in your fists, needing something to hold onto. Your face was pressed to his chest and he could feel the fabric getting soaked with your tears, but he didn't care; All he cared about in that moment was you.

One of Calum's hands then moved to the back of your head, his fingers playing with your hair. He looked out the window and found Ashton yelling at Michael for what he said to you. When he pointed inside the building and Michael looked at you, he still had the same pissed-off look on his face, making Calum roll his eyes as he continued trying to calm you down.

The door behind the two of you suddenly opened and one of the nurses walked out. She looked down at you with a surprised expression – you were still crying, but it was significantly softer than it had been before – but she spoke up anyway.

"Are you here for Luke Hemmings?" she asked Calum. He nodded as the main doors opened and Michael came back in with Ashton. "You can go see him now if you'd like," she said, "He's awake."

"Come on, Y/N," Calum murmured, rubbing your back gently, "Let's go see Luke."

"There's no chance in  _hell_  she's going back there  _with us_ ," Michael spat.

"Then  _you_  can wait out here and  _she_  can go in first," Ashton growled.

"If you  _honestly_  think she's going in there  _before_   _me_ -"

"Can you stop with the dramatics for  _two minutes_ , Michael?!" Calum exclaimed, "For Christ's sake! You're not helping  _anybody_  feel better about this!"

"Well, we wouldn't even  _be here_  if it weren't for her!" he shot back.

"Do you remember when we were at soundcheck one day and you and Luke were horsing around?" Ashton interrupted, "And you pushed him too hard and he fell and cut his forehead open on one of the amps so we had to cancel the show that night while he sat in the hospital getting stitches? That  _was_   _your fault_. But did Y/N blame you for it?  _No, she didn't_ , because it was an  _accident_. You didn't  _know_  he was going to get hurt and  _neither did she_. So why don't you just get off your high horse now and stop treating her like she had  _any_  idea all of this was going to happen?"

Michael didn't say a word – all he did was push past Ashton and go through the door the nurse was holding open as she stood there awkwardly. And for the first time since you got there, you finally spoke.

"You guys should go see him," you said so softly they barely even heard it, wiping your face as you sat up.

"Y/N, we're not-"

"It's okay, Ash," you cut him off, "I'll wait until Michael's cooled off and someone can come get me when he's out of the room."

"Are you-"

"I'm  _sure_ , Cal," you promised him, "Just go make sure he's okay."

"Okay," he nodded with a sigh, "I'll come get you in a few minutes."

Calum stood up, holding his hands down to you to help you up as well. He kissed your forehead before having you sit down in a chair, following Ashton and the nurse back.

The moment the door closed behind them, however, you started crying again, getting up and leaving the hospital.

**Luke's POV**

"Luke," the nurse said as she walked in, "Do you feel up to having visitors?"

"Y/N?" he asked hoarsely, making her smile slightly but she didn't respond – she simply allowed Calum, Ashton, and Michael to enter the room before going back to the nurse's station.

"Hey, Luke," Ashton said softly, "How are you feeling?"

"Where's Y/N?" he asked, his voice coming out as a whisper. Michael scoffed as he rolled his eyes, earning a sigh from the other two boys.

"She's in the waiting room," Calum explained, "She'll be back in a few minutes."

"Why didn't she come with you?"

"Didn't  _deserve_  to," Michael grumbled, making Luke furrow his eyebrows.

" _Michael_ ," Ashton warned.

"Well, she  _doesn't_!" he said defensively, "It's  _her_  fault!"

"No, it wasn't, Michael," Luke said before Ashton or Calum could, "She didn't know this was gonna happen."

"Maybe if she wasn't so stu-"

" _Don't_  talk about her like that," he growled.

"It's not like I'm wrong!"

"I wanna see her."

"No wa-"

"I don't  _care_ , Michael! I  _want_  Y/N!"

"I'll go get her," Calum said, promptly leaving the room. However, he came back only a few seconds later, rushing back into the room. "She's not in the waiting room," he said.

"What?" Ashton asked.

"Her car isn't in the parking lot anymore either," he sighed, "She's gone." The only sound in the room was the slowing down of Luke's heartbeat on the monitor until he looked straight at Michael.

"Get out," he stated dryly.

Michael cocked an eyebrow, " _Excuse me_?"

"You heard me," he growled again, "Get. Out."

"I'm not le-"

" _Get out, Michael_!" he said as loudly as he could, "It's  _your_  fault she left and I don't want to see you anymore!"

" _Whatever_. Just remember which fucking one of us was there for you every time she broke your heart," he spat before stomping out of the hospital room.

~

_inspiration: http://malumshighlight.tumblr.com/post/139786398962/nothing-like-the-rain-part-two_


	335. Love Me Again (Luke Hemmings) - Part 2

**Warning: Car accident, starvation**

~

**Your POV**

It had been a few days since Luke had been in the hospital and you still hadn't gone to visit him; All you'd been doing was lying in bed all week. You hadn't even gotten up to eat at all and you were  _literally_  starving, but you couldn't find the energy to even get up and  _order a pizza_.

Calum and Ashton had been calling and texting you  _non-stop_  since they realized you left the hospital. They were clearly worried about you – telling you that Luke was begging them to get you there somehow – but you still never answered; Everything Michael had told you really got into your head.

It  _was_  your fault. You didn't  _want_  to turn Luke away, but in your stubbornness, you did it  _anyway_  – and now he was in the  _hospital_  because of it.

Your pillow hadn't seen anything but  _tears_  the entire week, but you just  _couldn't_  make yourself get out of bed. But it's not like it would have  _mattered_  anyway. Since you hadn't been eating, you were incredibly weak and there was  _no way_  you'd be able to get out of bed – even if you  _wanted to_.

~

A couple more days passed – the texts from Ashton and Calum kept coming in, but you never responded to them. You knew they were only trying to look out for you, but at that point, you didn't  _care_  what happened to you.

A knock on your front door later in the evening startled you, but you didn't get up to answer it – not that you even  _could have_  anyway.

"Y/N!" Calum called out, knocking again, "Come on, Y/N! I know you're in there!"

He sighed to himself before reaching up and grabbing your spare key from on top of the doorframe. He unlocked the door and went inside, setting the key on the table beside your door as he began searching for you.

It didn't take Calum long to find you – your apartment only had a living room, kitchen, one bedroom, and a bathroom, so it wasn't like it was going to take him  _forever_. He opened the bedroom door and found you curled up under your blanket, fresh tears falling down your cheeks.

"Y/N," he sighed softly, just happy you were okay, "Why haven't you been answering my texts?" You barely shrugged as he sat down beside you, earning yourself another sigh when he saw the tears. "Y/N, come on; Look at me," he begged.

You figured you could at least do  _that_  for him, turning so that you were lying on your back. He carefully wiped your face with his thumbs.

"Come on, Y/N," he said, "Luke really wants to see you."

"I  _can't_ ," you said hoarsely since you hadn't spoken in over a week. Noting the scratchy tone of your voice, Calum raised his eyebrows.

"How long has it been since you've gotten out of bed?" he asked you.

You just shrugged again, not wanting him to get mad at you. Your stomach growled and his eyes widened.

"Y/N..." he said slowly, " _Please_  tell me you've at least been  _eating_..." You looked at him warily and he groaned under his breath. "Y/N, you  _can't_  be doing this to yourself," he shook his head, "Listen, I'm gonna go get you something to eat and you  _better_  eat it or I will feed it to you  _myself_ , understand?"

You weren't even given a chance to reply before he was out of the room and leaving the apartment, putting the key back on top of the doorframe for when he returned.

Not even five minutes later, there was another knock on your door. Calum would have just come back in, so you  _knew_  it wasn't him. The visitor got your key and unlocked your door and the second they spoke, you knew who it was.

"Y/N?" Luke said, "Are you here?" He placed the key in the same spot Calum had before closing the door behind him.

Unlike Calum, however, he went  _straight_  to the bedroom.

The moment you saw him in the doorway, your eyes landed on the cast on his left forearm. In one of his texts, Ashton told you it was a miracle Luke survived the crash, let alone only came out of it with a few cuts on his face and a broken arm.

You swallowed thickly when your eyes met his and he breathed a sigh of relief at knowing you were alright. He rushed over to the bed and sat down by your hip.

"I've been so  _worried_  about you, princess," he murmured, his good hand cupping your cheek. You didn't say anything – you just weakly wrapped your arms around his neck and pulled him down to you.

Luke's hand moved to wrap around your waist, pulling you up so he didn't put any weight on his broken arm. He noticed you weren't hugging him as tightly as you usually did, instantly making him worry.

"Y/N, are you okay?" he asked, pulling back but keeping his arm around you because, even though he asked, he could already  _tell_  you weren't.

You swallowed again, closing your eyes when you started feeling dizzy. Your fingers gripped the back of his neck as tightly as they could – which wasn't very tight at all – and Luke started rubbing your back.

Your stomach growled again and, in the same exact fashion Calum had, he asked, "Haven't you been eating?" You turned your gaze away from him and he sighed, "Baby girl... When was the last time you've eaten anything?"

"Before I heard you were in the hospital," you whispered, looking down at the arm on Luke's lap.

" _Princess_ ," he sighed again, "Why would you do that to yourself?"

"Because Michael was  _right_ ," you choked, beginning to cry again, "It was  _my fault_."

" _You_  didn't run that stop sign, baby girl," Luke shook his head.

"You wouldn't have  _been there_  if I hadn't made you  _leave_!" you cried, "I didn't want you to go but I told you to anyway! You got hurt because of  _me_!"

"Hey, don't  _say that_ ," he said softly, sliding his hand from your back up to your neck. He brought you forward and pressed a kiss to your forehead, leaving his lips there for a few seconds. "Michael was  _wrong_  to have blamed you and, believe me, I'm sure Ash is  _still_  yelling at him for it," he told you, "You couldn't have  _possibly_  known that was going to happen, princess. Please... You  _have_  to trust me when I tell you that it wasn't your fault  _at all_."

"But I made you  _leave_..."

"Well, I'm here  _now_ ," Luke smiled slightly, "We can't change what happened, so let's just go from here, huh?"

"I'm sorry, Lukey," you mumbled, "I shouldn't have made you go... I just want you to  _come back_..."

"And I  _did_  come back," he said, "So what  _else_  do you want?"

"You..."

"Yeah?" he murmured, moving his hand to your cheek and pull your face to his again, "You want me to do  _what_?"

His lips were  _barely_  touching yours, making you whine softly. You felt him smile, but you knew he wasn't going to move until you  _told him_  what to do.

"Kiss me," you finally whispered. Luke's lips then smashed onto yours, kissing you like it was the last time he would ever get to.

When you both needed to breathe, he pulled away, but your lips were still touching his.

"I love you, Lukey," you said under your breath.

"I love you, baby girl," he replied, pressing his lips back onto yours.

"Yeah, and I love you too," Calum said as he walked into the room, "Which is why you're gonna stop making out for a while and eat something." Luke felt you frown, making him laugh as he pulled away a second time.

Calum tossed the McDonald's bag onto the bed beside your thigh and set a cup of Coke on the nightstand as you looked up at him. You didn't make a motion to reach for anything, so he cocked an eyebrow at you.

"Y/N, do not make me  _feed you_ ," Calum threatened. You furrowed your own eyebrows – you didn't  _really_  think he was serious earlier, but you could tell by his tone now that he  _was_.

You put all your concentration into taking your arms off of Luke's shoulders and moving them toward the bag, but the boys could tell it hurt you to do; They could see it on your face that you were trying not to show them just how weak you were, but the strained expression spoke loud and clear.

"Come on, princess," Luke said, getting up, "Let's go put on a movie and I'll help you eat." He went to pick you up, but you carefully grabbed his left bicep.

"Lu, your arm," you reminded him of the cast.

"I can still do things, Y/N," he chuckled lightly. He made the motion to pick you up, but you stopped him again.

" _Lu_ ," you said with a warning tone. Luke sighed and looked to Calum for help. Calum simply laughed, coming over to you.

"Is he allowed to pick up a fast food bag?" he teased, effortlessly lifting you off of the bed.

"Does he  _have to_?" you asked, but the boys could hear the playful tone in your voice.

"I can still  _do things_ , Y/N!" he repeated with a laugh, grabbing the bag and drink, following Calum out into the living room.

~

_inspiration: http://malumshighlight.tumblr.com/post/139786398962/nothing-like-the-rain-part-two_


	336. Love Me Again (Luke Hemmings) - Part 3

**Warning: Car accident, starvation**

~

Halfway through the movie, there was a knock on your apartment door. Calum got up to go get, laughing as Luke teased you by pulling a fry away from your mouth.

"I can't wait until I'm strong enough again to  _punch you_ ," you muttered, making him chuckle as he finally let you have the fry. He pressed a kiss to your temple, leaving his lips there as he fed you another fry.

"Y/N!" Ashton beamed as he came into the room, "You're alive!"

"Hi, Ash," you smiled sheepishly, feeling a bit guilty for making him worry about you so much.

Your smile  _faded_ , however, when you saw Michael trailing behind Calum. You thought he'd still be pissed at you, but you furrowed your eyebrows when you saw the solemn expression on his face.

"Calum told us what happened and we came over as quick as we could," the brown-haired boy informed you, sitting on the couch adjacent to the one you and Luke were on. You turned your attention to Calum, but he simply shrugged. "Anyway," Ashton continued, making you look back at him, "We just wanted to make sure you were okay. And, if you're alright with it, Mike would like to talk to you alone for a minute." You nodded slowly, starting to get up, but Luke held you down.

"Princess, I don't think you should try walking yet," he shook his head.

"I'm just going to the kitchen, Lu," you said softly.

"Then at least let someone  _help you_  get there so you don't fall," he insisted. You sighed, nodding lightly.

Luke started to stand up, but Michael stopped him that time.

"I got her," he said, his voice coming out strained.

He held his hands down to you and you, surprising the boys, took them without hesitation. He pulled you to your feet, bringing one arm around his shoulder and wrapping his arm around your waist, leading you into the other room.

Once you reached the counter, he lifted you up so you were eye level with him.

"I'm  _really_  sorry about what happened at the hospital, Y/N," Michael mumbled after a couple moments of silently collecting his thoughts.

"It's okay, Mikey," you said softly.

"No, it's  _not_ , Y/N!" he exclaimed, swallowing thickly, "What happened to Luke  _wasn't_  your fault but I  _still_  blamed you for it! But this... When Calum texted Ash about you not eating, I... I  _knew_  it was because of what I said! This  _is_  my fault!"

"I've been  _choosing_  not to eat, Michael."

"Yeah, because of what  _I said_!" he shook his head, "I... I  _knew_  it wasn't your fault, but I  _blamed you_  anyway! And I should've... I should've come over and said I was sorry the  _moment_  Luke kicked me out of his room at the hospital,  _but I didn't_! I just went home and kept on pretending like I really  _did_  think it was your fault and I just... I'm  _really_  sorry, Y/N. Like,  _insanely_  sorry. I swear I... I'll do  _anything_  to make it up to you."

"Anything?"

" _Anything_."

"Okay, Mikey," you nodded, grabbing his face and making him stop moving around, "What I want is for you to take a breath-" He did, letting it out slowly. "-and  _stop_  saying you're sorry." He furrowed his eyebrows.

"But I-"

"I get it, Mikey," you shrugged, taking your hands back, "You were just mad."

"That doesn't excuse the things I said, Y/N," he mumbled.

"Mikey, if  _I'm_  not holding it against you, why do you feel like  _you_  have to?"

"Because I... I just... I was... I mean..." he trailed off, knowing he didn't have any  _real_  argument for that one.

"I forgive you for what you said, Michael," you assured him, "Now all I want is for you to forgive  _yourself_."

Michael looked at you for a moment before wrapping his arms around your waist and pulling you into him, hugging you tightly. You hugged him back as hard as you could, finally regaining some of your strength back.

"Are we good now?" you asked him.

"I love you, you know?" he said, his voice slightly muffled by your shirt, "You're funny and smart and make good food and you're stubborn as  _fuck_ , but you make Luke really happy. And you're my best friend and I love you a lot."

"I know," you affirmed, squeezing him a bit, "I love you too, Mikey."

"I'm still gonna make it up to you," he informed you, lifting himself back up to look at you.

"Mich-"

"No," he cut you off, rapidly shaking his head, "I'm gonna buy you whatever you want to eat until you're back to normal."

"You don't have to-"

" _Yes, I do_ ," he insisted, "It's the only way I'll forgive myself."

You rolled your eyes, "I should have  _known_  you were gonna find a way to use those words against me." Michael smiled widely, quickly hugging you again. He kissed your forehead before releasing you.

"So what movie are you guys watching?" he asked.

" _Deadpool_ ," you shrugged, making his eyes widen.

"You're watching  _Deadpool_   _without me_?!" he nearly shouted, leaning down just enough so that he could wrap his arms around your legs and throw you over his shoulder.

" _Mikey_!" you squealed, laughing loudly.

The other boys looked over as Michael came back into the room, chuckling when they saw you on his shoulder. Michael came to a stop in front of where you'd been sitting beside Luke, carefully putting you on the couch. You huffed jokingly, pushing your hair off of your face.

"I  _hate_  when you do that," you reminded him as he plopped down beside you. He lifted his arm up and you immediately cuddled up to him, wrapping your arms around his waist and laying your head on his shoulder.

" _Hey_ ," Luke pouted, " _I'm_  your boyfriend;  _I'm_  the one who should be getting your cuddles."

"Ah, come on, Luke," Calum grinned, "You should just be happy they're okay again." You smiled, hugging Michael tighter as he kissed the top of your head.

"And speaking of being okay again, let's start this movie over!" Michael chirped, making everyone roll their eyes as he grabbed the remote.

~

_inspiration: http://malumshighlight.tumblr.com/post/139786398962/nothing-like-the-rain-part-two_


	337. Fireflies (Ashton Irwin)

You were in a small room illuminated by the fluorescent light bulbs in the ceiling. You just had your blood drawn – excited it was finally over, to be honest – and were making your way back out of the room when you saw the same little girl sitting in one of the seats that you'd seen earlier. She was still sitting there alone, and now that you were getting a good look at her, you couldn't deny that she was  _definitely_  scared.

"You look like you're getting your blood drawn today," you said to her, making her look up at you. She nodded shyly, her thumb stuffed in her mouth as a form of comforting herself. "Are you nervous?" She nodded again. "You wanna know what it feels like so you're ready?" Another nod.

You sat down cross-legged in front of her chair so she didn't have to look up at you and could relax her neck instead.

"Have you ever been pinched before?" She shook her head. "Can I show you what it feels like?" She nodded. You carefully pinched her leg, surprised when you earned a small giggle from her. You smiled at her and continued talking. "The nurse in that room-" You pointed back to the room you had just come out of. "-is going to tell you to make a fist, she's gonna poke your arm right here-" You then held your own arm up and showed her your bandaid. "-and she's gonna make that pinching feeling happen on your arm. And this might be just a rumor-" You looked around as if you had a big secret to tell her that no one else could know about. "-but I heard that if you're  _really brave_ , she'll give you a sucker." You could see her eyes light up at the comment just as the nurse came out of the room.

"Emmi Irwin," she said, smiling at you, obviously having heard what you were saying to the little girl, "Is Daddy back yet? Do you want to wait for him?" The little girl's eyes widened at the sound of her name as she looked at you.

"If you don't want to wait anymore, I'll go with you," you offered.

Emmi nodded and scooted off of the chair, walking close beside you as the nurse led her into the room. She climbed up onto the chair in that room, sitting as close to you as she possibly could. You bent down so you were resting on your knees, but still standing so you were eye-level with her.

The nurse moved a small cushioned arm in front of her – much like the one already on the chair – and asked her to put her arm on it. With her thumb still in her mouth, she did as the nurse asked, slowly lifting her opposite arm up and placing her elbow on the cushion. Exactly like you'd told her, the nurse had her ball up her fist, poked her arm, and then cleaned it with an alcohol wipe.

"Do you want me to count down, Emmi?" she asked her. The child nodded and looked back at you.

"This part is the hardest, but it's not that hard, I promise," you assured her, putting your hand on her knee and rubbing it with your thumb. "You remember what I told you it feels like, right?"

"A pinch," she finally spoke, her voice so quiet, you barely heard it.

It was at this point that you heard someone walk into the room, but you didn't take your eyes off of the girl in front of you, worried she would start to panic if you did. You saw them out of the corner of your eye though – a tall man with messy, light brown hair and glasses – looking with what almost seemed like  _awe_  at you and the girl on the chair.

"Uh-huh," you nodded, "And if you don't want to watch it, you don't have to. I never look back at my arm until the bandaid is on." You saw her smile behind her hand, relaxing a bit.

"Okay, Emmi," the nurse said, "I'm gonna pinch you in 3... 2... 1." Emmi jumped slightly, but she didn't cry – she simply kept her eyes on you. You could tell her eyes were getting watery though the longer the needle stayed in her arm, so you did your best to distract her.

"You wanna know what scares me more than needles?" you asked. She nodded again. "Fireflies," you told her. She giggled a little more loudly than before.

"Fireflies aren't scary," she said softly, "They're pretty."

" _No way_ ," you insisted, " _Any_  kind of bug is a scary kind of bug."

"Nuh-uh," she shook her head, "Butterflies are bugs and they aren't scary 'cause they can't hurt you. And fireflies can't hurt you either. 'Specially when you put 'em in a jar."

"But what if it's a  _really_  big one?"

"The big ones are the prettiest 'cause they glow more," she grinned.

As quickly as the nurse had stuck the needle in, she was taking it out, placing a cotton ball on top of the small hole and opening a bandaid with her other hand. 

"Well, Miss Emmi," she smiled, sticking the bandaid onto her skin, "You're all done."

"See?" you grinned at her, "Told you it wasn't so bad." The nurse grabbed a sucker out of the drawer and handed it to the child.

"The rumors are true about really brave kids," she said, causing Emmi's eyes to light up again. She took her thumb out of her mouth to take the sucker, finally noticing anyone else had entered the room.

"Look, Daddy!" she beamed, getting up and running to the brown-haired man, "I did it!" He scooped her up as she reached him, resting her on his hip. She proudly showed him her bandaid-covered elbow, then her sucker. "Look what I got! She gave it to me 'cause I was brave and didn't cry!"

"That's very nice, princess," the man finally spoke, smiling at her, "Did you say thank you?" She thanked the nurse for her sucker, making her smile as she cleaned up the station for the next person. "And did you say thank you to the nice girl who helped you when I wasn't here?" he looked at you and you hoped you weren't blushing  _too_  much – but it was evident by the smile that appeared on his face as you broke eye contact with him that you were though.

"Thank you, Y/N," she said your name as well as she could, shyly hiding her face in her dad's shoulder.

"You're welcome, Emmi," you smiled at her, following the man as he walked out of the room.

"Thank you for staying with her and keeping her calm," the man said, slowing down so he was walking right beside you, "I really didn't think I was going to be on the phone for that long and I was worried she wouldn't go in without me."

"It was no problem, really," you shrugged, "My nephew is the same way unless he has something to distract him." It was silent between the three of you for a moment until you reached the front of the building.

"I'm Ashton," he said as he opened the door for you.

"Y/N," you replied, walking outside.

"Well, I... It was nice meeting you, Y/N," he said, making your heart skip a beat when he said your name, "I, um... I hope we run into you again sometime."

"Me too, Ashton," you smiled shyly.

~

After leaving the doctor's office, you decided to go to McDonald's – after all, you deserved a treat for being brave too. You ordered your usual meal, getting your drink while your food was being cooked. When it was done, you went to the only open booth and started eating.

Not even 5 minutes later, you were interrupted by a small voice giggling beside you.

"Y/N!" Emmi cheered softly as she wiggled her way behind you to sit by the window.

"Hey, Emmi," you grinned, "Does Daddy know where you are?"

"He told me to find a seat while he waits for our food," she informed you.

" _Ah_ ," you nodded, "But he doesn't know what table you ran off to?" She giggled again, shaking her head.

"How long 'fore you think he finds me?" she wondered. You leaned back and peeked around the corner of the booth, finding Ashton standing at the counter.

"Here's how it's gonna go," you started, turning back to the little girl, "He's gonna pick up the tray, turn around, look for you for a moment, and then he's gonna go get your drinks. When he's done with that, he's gonna turn back around and look for you again. He's not gonna find you, but he  _is_  gonna see the empty chair in front of us and figure you're  _probably_  sitting right here. And that's when he's gonna come over here and find you."

At that moment, you heard Ashton thank the cashier, and both you and Emmi peeked out from the booth again. Ashton seemed to follow every single prediction – minus the fact that you'd forgotten about condiments and napkins – and you quickly retracted when he looked over at your booth. He walked over, immediately seeing his daughter.

"There you are, princess," he said before his gaze locked onto you. His eyes widened slightly as he cleared his throat, "Oh, h-hey, Y/N."

"I know you said you wanted to run into me again, Ashton, but I didn't think you meant this soon," you teased. Ashton didn't have the chance to respond before Emmi was speaking again.

"Daddy," she whispered as she stared at you in awe, "I think Y/N's a psychic." The puzzled look on Ashton's face made you laugh, causing him to smile slightly.

"Yeah, princess?" he said, sitting down across from the two of you, "Why do you think that?"

"'Cause she said you were gonna look around and then come over here and find me."

" _Did she_?" he grinned, setting her Happy Meal and drink in front of her before looking back at you, still addressing Emmi, "Well, can she tell me if I'm gonna win the lottery this year?"

"I think you're going to get something  _better_  than winning the lottery," you laughed.

"And what might  _that_  be?"

"Well, if I  _spoil it_ , it won't be as  _exciting_ ," you winked, tossing a small fry into your mouth. You, Ashton, and Emmi then ate together, talking for a while.

After you were all finished, you walked out of the restaurant together. Ashton had parked a few spaces away from where you did, but you went with him to his car anyway, wanting to say goodbye.

"S-So I was thinking..." Ashton stuttered shyly after putting Emmi in her car seat and closing the door, "If you're up to it... Maybe you'd like to... Um... I could have my mum watch Em for a while this weekend if you wanted to... Or if you  _can_..." You had a small smile on your face, knowing what he was leading up to but was clearly too nervous to say.

"Ashton," you giggled softly, putting your hand on his arm. He swallowed thickly at your touch as well as the look you were giving him. "I would love to go out with you," you told him. Ashton let out a visible sigh of relief, making you laugh again.

"Sorry," he breathed, "It's been a while since I've done this."

"Well, I'm free on Saturday if you are," you said. Ashton's eyes widened slightly, realizing you were actually  _seriously_  accepting to go on a date with him.

"Y-Yeah!" he exclaimed, "Saturday is good! I'll see if my mum can take her!" You looked at his hand and noticed he was holding his phone. Since it was unlocked, you plucked it out of his hand.

"You let me know if she can watch Em," you said, putting yourself in his contacts before holding it back out, "And I will let you know my address." Ashton smiled brightly with a light blush on his face, nodding rapidly.

"I'll talk to you later," he said softly.

"Bye, Ashton," you grinned.

Before you walked away, you tapped on the window. Emmi looked up at you, smiling and waving at you when you waved at her. You then went to your car and drove off, leaving Ashton watching you with a small smile on his face before getting in the driver's seat.

"Daddy," Emmi spoke up as he pulled his seat belt across his body and started the car, "Are we ever gonna see Y/N again?"

"Yeah, princess," he smiled to himself, "I think we will."

~

**Saturday night**

After eating dinner with Ashton, he took you back to his house since neither of you really wanted the date to be over yet.

"Sorry if it's a little messy," Ashton said shyly, closing the door behind you.

"You call  _this_  messy?" you giggled, looking around, "It's a good thing we didn't go back to  _my_  place then. And  _I'm_  not even the one with a  _kid_." Even though his back was to you, you could still tell Ashton smiled.

"You want something to drink?" he asked, setting his keys down on the counter.

"Oh, no thank you, I'm fine," you replied. He nodded, leading you through the kitchen and out to the backyard. "You have a hammock," you grinned once you saw that's where he was taking you. He hummed in response as you both sat down in it. "I've always wanted one of these," you told him, "But I live in an apartment building, so there goes  _that_  dream."

Ashton laughed at your dramatic sigh, moving around until he got comfortable. You did so as well, ending up right against his side with his arm around your waist. Your head found his shoulder and you both let out sighs of content.

"Emmi said this was the only thing she wanted for her birthday last year," Ashton chuckled softly, "We come out here every night to look at the stars until she falls asleep."

"Sounds like she's got an amazing dad," you commented, wrapping your arms around his torso. His heart was racing at your touch – something he hadn't felt in a  _long_  time.

"I try to be," he sighed, "I just worry about her a lot."

"Why?"

"She's only 5, but she acts  _so much_  older... She growing up too fast and there's nothing I can do to  _stop it_."

"Maybe not, but it's already clear she's going to be an  _incredible_  woman one day," you said thoughtfully, "I think you should be  _proud_  of her – and proud of  _yourself_  for raising her on your own."

"Thanks," he said shyly, squeezing you gently. You and Ashton sat in silence for a few more minutes until the back door of the house opened.

" _Y/N_!" Emmi cheered, running over to the hammock.

You couldn't help but smile as she leaped up, landing on Ashton's stomach. He yelped in surprise, making you laugh.

" _Warn me_  next time, Em," he coughed lightly, his arm moving out from behind you to make sure Emmi stayed securely on his lap.

"Sorry, Ash," a woman said as she closed the door behind her, "She saw Y/N was still here and was out the door before I could stop her."

"It's alright, Mum," he said, carefully getting up. He situated the 5-year-old on his hip before holding his hand down to you. You took it and he pulled you up, leading you over to the deck. "Mum, this is Y/N," he introduced you, "Y/N, this is my mum."

"It's nice to meet you, Ashton's mum," you said with a sly smile, causing Emmi to giggle and his mother laughed along lightly.

"My son tends to forget I have a  _name_  when introducing me to people," she grinned as he just rolled his eyes.

"Daddy," Emmi said suddenly, "Can we go play?" Ashton quickly looked at the time on his phone before nodding in agreement.

"You have a little while before bedtime still," he said, "Sure, we can play." He set his daughter back down on the ground and she grabbed his hand, pulling him out into the yard, leaving you with his mom.

"So  _you're_  the famous Y/N I've been hearing about  _all week_ ," Ashton's mom smiled as you both sat down on the deck's stairs.

"I guess so, Mrs. Irwin," you grinned.

"Please, call me Anne, dear," she said, making you nod in acknowledgment as she went on, "You know, it's been a while since my son has taken this much interest in a woman since Emmi was born."

"Ash mentioned that at dinner," you replied, watching him chase his daughter around the yard as she giggled loudly.

"I've heard a lot about you," Anne said again.

"From Ash?"

"A bit," she nodded, "But mostly from Emmi." You looked over at her and she smiled, "I know she's not a very shy girl, but she's been incredibly weary of the few women Ash  _has_  seen here and there."

"Why?" you wondered.

She simply shrugged, "I think she was always hoping that one day, he and her mother would find their way back to each other."

"So what makes me different from all those other women?" you shook your head.

"I don't know," she answered honestly, "But she sees something in you that the others haven't had. I don't have the slightest clue as to what that something  _is_ ; All I know is Ash may have asked you out, but  _Emmi_  was the one who  _chose you_. So you must be  _pretty_  special then." You couldn't help but smile again, your eyes landing on the little girl. "Well, I'd better be heading home," Anne said, "I hope to see you around a lot more, dear."

"Me too, Anne," you said with a shy grin, watching her stand up.

"Emmi!" she called, causing her to stop running around and look over, "Come give me a kiss. I have to go home." Emmi immediately ran over, jumping into her grandmother's arms and kissing her goodbye. After putting her back down, Anne looked up at Ashton. "See you later, Ash," she waved.

"Bye, Mum," he smiled, "Call me when you get home." She nodded, saying goodbye to you one more time before disappearing into the house.

You watched Emmi and Ashton return to whatever game they were playing, not even paying attention to the fact that they were catching fireflies,  _or_  noticing the firefly that was making its way toward you.

You squeaked and jumped lightly when it lit up right beside your leg, making Ashton and Emmi look at you. Emmi had a confused expression, like she was unsure of what she just heard, while Ashton was smiling widely.

"You're  _actually_  afraid of fireflies, aren't you?" he smirked.

"Did you think I was  _joking_?!" you exclaimed, making him laugh loudly.

"They're not gonna  _hurt you_!" he shook his head, reminding you of what Emmi had said when you told her.

"I'm just not a  _bug_  person!" you insisted.

"But they're  _pretty_ , Y/N!" Emmi told you, holding the jar in her hands close to her body as she walked over to you. She set it down beside you, pointing to one of the fireflies inside. " _See_?" she said when it glowed.

Emmi then grabbed your hand, pulling you to your feet and taking you to where Ashton was standing in the yard. He held his arm up as you reached him, wrapping it around you and pulling you into him when his daughter released your hand to go back and get the jar.

"Don't worry," he murmured, kissing the side of your head, "I'll protect you from the scary glowing bugs." You rolled your eyes and slapped his chest lightly, laying your head on his shoulder. He laughed softly and kissed your head again, his thumb rubbing your arm gently.

"Y/N, I'm gonna teach you how to catch a firefly so that way, you won't be scared of them anymore," Emmi announced on her way back to you and her dad.

"And how do you suppose that's going to help me?" you asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"Because that's what Daddy did with me and it worked, so now  _I'm_  gonna do it with  _you_ ," she said confidently. You glanced up at Ashton and he simply shrugged, smiling at his daughter.

As she trotted away to catch another firefly, you were still staring up at Ashton. You couldn't understand how someone like him could have trouble finding a girl, but if all that trouble meant it led him to you – well, you were certainly okay with that.

Feeling your stare, Ashton tore his gaze away from his daughter. He looked at you for a moment before swallowing thickly. He probably should have asked if he could kiss you first – it would have been the polite thing to do – but with the way you were blatantly glancing down at his lips, he figured you wouldn't mind.

When Ashton's lips touched yours, you felt your heart skip a beat. You yourself hadn't dated much, but you felt this weird connection the moment you met him. Maybe you had fallen a bit for Emmi first, but you couldn't deny the fact that you were  _definitely_  already falling for Ashton.

You were the first to pull away, realizing your lungs were begging for air, but you could still feel his breath on your lips. His eyes fluttered open as he sighed softly, but you were the first to speak.

"So," you started, a cheeky smile on your face, "Better than winning the lottery?"

" _Shut up_ ," he mumbled, putting his hand on your cheek and bringing your lips back to his.


	338. Love Yourself (Calum Hood)

You padded quietly throughout the small apartment, heading for your bedroom. You'd just turned off the television and were heading to bed. It was then that you realized you hadn't seen your boyfriend in a couple hours.

You figured he was on his laptop – he tended to lose track of time when he was on it – but upon opening the door and seeing his journal on the desktop, you knew that's what he'd been doing. You then looked over and found him lying on the bed, soft snores passing his lips. You couldn't help but smile, a warm feeling burning in your chest as you thought about how much you loved him.

But your eyes seemed to instantly dart back to the journal.

Calum  _never_  left it on his desk – he always kept it in the drawer with a lock on it and the key never left the chain around his neck. The small book was open, lying there for anyone to see.

And you knew you  _shouldn't_  have – Calum never let you read anything he'd written in it before and you were  _sure_  he'd be upset if you read it without his permission now.

But you couldn't  _help yourself_.

You walked over to the desk, sitting down in the chair and quietly scooting forward. The lamp was already on – Calum clearly must have been pretty tired – so all you had to do was read.

 _My biggest fear is that you'll wake up before me one Tuesday morning and instead of leaning in and kissing me on the cheek, you'll look at my sleeping body and start to notice all of my flaws. You'll think about my random spouts of jealousy and the fact that I talk too much. You'll listen to me go on and on about something you don't care about and you'll start to hate my lisp or when I stumble over my words. You'll realize just how selfish I can be when it comes to you sometimes and find yourself becoming more and more annoyed with how I'm always asking you if we can stay home rather than go out. I'm afraid that, one day, you'll walk into the kitchen, brew a cup of coffee, stare at the pale morning rays of sunshine entering the window frame, and come the conclusion that, for no particular reason at all, you don't love me anymore_.

Your heart broke at the words he'd written about you, but it broke even more at the words he'd written about  _himself_.

So you decided to grab the pen sitting beside the notebook and write your  _own_  entry.

~

**Calum's POV; The next morning**

Calum woke up to a warm sensation on his legs, letting him know that the sun was shining down on them. He felt a small weight on his stomach, looking down and seeing your arm.

He looked over his shoulder and found you acting as the big spoon and he couldn't help but smile. He was never one to be the little spoon – especially when it came to laying with  _you_  – but he'd be lying if he said there weren't times he didn't enjoy waking up that way.

He carefully turned onto his back so he could kiss your forehead, mumbling an ' _I love you_ ' he knew he couldn't hear. He yawned lightly, carefully removing your arm from his stomach so he could get off the bed. He delicately pulled the blanket over you so you were still warm without him there and then went to go to the kitchen to make a pot of coffee before he would ultimately have to wake you up so you didn't sleep in too late.

But he wouldn't even make it to the bedroom door.

Calum noticed his journal out of the corner of his eye, realizing that he hadn't put it away before he went to bed. His eyebrows furrowed upon seeing something written on the next page,  _certain_  that – even in his tired state – that wasn't his handwriting.

And upon further inspection, he realized he was right – he hadn't written this entry;  _You did_.

 _My biggest fear is that you'll never see yourself the way I see you. You'll never happen to pass by a mirror or window as you're laughing at a stupid joke and see the smile on your face. You'll never see the way your face scrunches up and you throw your body back into whatever you're sitting on when I've messed up for the 138th time in whatever song you're trying to teach me how to play. You'll never see the way you look at me when I've finally beaten you in a video game and I'm celebrating the win even though I_ _know_ _you let me every single time. You'll never see the way I look at you when you've fallen asleep in the middle of the movie I've made you watch for the 36th time. But no. You'll wake up before me one morning, walk into the bathroom, and stare at yourself in the mirror as you brush your teeth, asking yourself how someone like me could want someone like you. And while I'm in the bathroom and you're getting dressed, I'll look in the mirror as I brush my teeth, wondering how someone like me became lucky enough to be loved by someone like you. And I'll look over my shoulder at you and hope that maybe – just maybe – you'll look in the mirror one morning and love yourself as much as I do_.

And Calum was never much of a crier, but that morning, he didn't bother holding in the tears as he looked back at your sleeping figure on the bed, just thankful he finally found someone who was so set on helping him learn to love himself.

~

_inspiration: http://fam-e.tumblr.com/post/107171454593/my-biggest-fear-isnt-that-youll-lie-to-me-one_


	339. Dear Paper Boy (Ashton Irwin) - Part 1

**Ashton's POV**

Another day, another early morning for paper boy Ashton. It wasn't that Ashton particularly  _minded_  having to get up 5 o'clock every single morning – truth be told, he actually  _enjoyed_  his job – but everyone closest to him knew the  _real_  reasoning about why he remained in the same old routine every day.

You had moved into a small house on Ashton's paper route a few months ago – finally out in the world, living on your own after saving up for the last 5 years. He had met you a couple times before – mostly when you were rushing to leave for work because you'd accidentally slept through your alarm – but he couldn't deny that out of all the people he delivered newspapers to, you were  _by far_  the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen. Every time you would run out of your house at the same time Ashton came down the road, you would both take a moment to smile and wave to each other before you were hopping into your car and scurrying off to work.

And that was the extent of every interaction Ashton had with the girl who lived on his paper route.

~

A few months later, it was now July and it was finally Ashton's birthday. He hadn't expected much this year – maybe a handful of cards from a few friends and relatives – but other than that, he didn't ever really do much for his birthday; Aside from his paper route, of course.

Now, Ashton knew he'd never told you when his birthday was – the boy never even spoke a  _single word_ to you, for crying out loud – so when he peddled toward to your house and saw a balloon tied to your newspaper box, he was a bit confused. As he got closer though, it became more and more apparent to him what was going on.

He saw an envelope lying inside the box and glanced up at your house. All the lights in the front were off and your car was gone, so he knew you must have put it in either before you left for work or sometime last night. He replaced the envelope with a newspaper and then carefully peeled off the random sticker you'd put on to seal it shut.

_Dear paper boy,_

_Happy birthday! I know you're probably confused as to how I know that, but long story short, a woman came into the store I work at and bought some party supplies (unless I wasn't supposed to say that... then you didn't hear it from me) and you know how cashiers make small talk? Well, I did that and ended up finding out you were her son and your birthday was today so here you are, reading this card (and I really hope I didn't ruin some sort of surprise party)_

_Oh, by the way, the balloon is for you, so feel free to take it and tie it to your handlebars or something. And thanks for delivering a paper to me every morning. You're the only reason I know what's going on in the world._

_-The girl on your paper route_

Ashton couldn't help but smile widely – lucky for you, he already knew his mother was throwing him a small party – and he thought it was incredibly sweet of you to leave him a card even though you two didn't know each other that well. He knew he had to say thank you somehow, and he had the  _perfect_  way to do it.

~

**Your POV; Eight hours later**

Upon coming home from work later that afternoon, you trudged to your newspaper box to get the paper. You'd had a pretty crappy day – constantly being yelled at by customers over the prices you had no control over was really draining – and all you wanted was to lay down on the couch with a mug of hot chocolate and read the paper.

You pulled the paper out of the box without really paying attention, startling yourself a bit when an envelope fell onto the ground at your feet. You picked it up and opened it, surprised by what you found.

_Dear girl on my paper route,_

_Thank you so much for the card and balloon! You really didn't have to do that, but it means a lot that you did. And I already knew about the party, don't worry. :)_

_I hope you know that this means I'm going to have to do some snooping of my own to figure out when your birthday is. Actually, by the time you're reading this, I'll probably have already figured it out. I hope it's not already passed or else I hope this balloon lasts until next year._

_-Your paper boy_

You let out a quiet chuckle, but you couldn't deny the grin on your face, hoping the paper boy knew just how much better he had made your day.

~

This continued for a while – writing back and forth with the paper boy. You learned that his name was Ashton – quite fitting, you thought – and that he lived on the next street over from yours. And while you were happy you and Ashton were talking more – even if you weren't actually  _talking_  – you were never able to make yourself brave enough to ask him if he wanted to hang out.

**Ashton's POV**

One morning, after Ashton's paper route, he walked back into his house, ready to read your card. He hoped you were alright – your car had still been in your driveway and you hadn't been rushing out when he got there. He plopped down on his desk chair and opened the envelope, reading what you'd messily written.

_Dear paper boy,_

_Sorry if you think it's annoying that I still call you that even though I know your name now, but I think it's cute. Not that I don't think Ashton is cute too, but you know what I mean. I hope._

_Anyway._

_I know you're probably home by now reading this, but in the off chance you've opened this outside my house, do you think you could drop my paper off in front of my door? I've been feeling really under the weather the last couple days (which is why my car is still here in case you were wondering about that) and I can't really walk much without feeling incredibly dizzy._

_It's okay if you don't want to or if you're already home, I just thought I would ask._

_And thank you for bothering to respond to these things. I look forward to reading them when I get off of work every other day._

_-Y/N (formerly known as the girl on your paper route)_

Ashton looked over at his clock and noticed it was only 6, so he decided to wait a few hours before he went back to your place.

~

**Later that morning**

Since you were sick, Ashton figured you'd sleep for a little while longer. He left his house again at around 11, hopping on his bike and riding to the local grocery store. He bought a can of chicken noodle soup and a small stuffed bear, going back outside and hanging the bag on one of his handlebars, heading to your house.

He parked his bike behind your car – it was a nice neighborhood, but he still didn't want it to get stolen. He took the soup and bear out of the bag, jogged to your newspaper box to get your paper, and nervously approached your front door.

Ashton hoped you wouldn't find this too weird – you had only told him to leave your paper at the door, not to be standing there  _with it_  – but he just wanted to make sure you were alright. He took a deep breath before knocking, hoping you were awake by now. He smiled sadly when he heard a cough on the opposite side of the door as you went to open it.

Your heart skipped a beat at seeing Ashton standing there with a now shy smile on his face, but another coughing fit interrupted any greeting you could have given him. You covered your mouth with the blanket you had wrapped around you, and Ashton waited for a few seconds until it passed.

"Sorry," you said, your voice coming out a bit scratchy, "Hi, Ashton. What are you doing here?"

"I read your card when I got home," he answered, his heart fluttering when you said his name, "But I just wanted to come by and see how you were doing and give you your paper. And I brought you some soup if you want it. And also this-" He held up the teddy bear, instantly making you smile. You took it from him, bringing it under the blanket with you.

"You didn't have to do that," you smiled with a light blush, moving out of the way and motioning for him to come in so he could set the stuff down.

"Are you still feeling dizzy?" he asked, putting the paper on your couch, "Have you eaten anything yet? I can make this soup for you if you want."

"You don't have to, Ash," you shook your head, "I'm sure you'd rather be at home than risking catching whatever I was unfortunate enough to get."

"I really don't mind," he promised you, "And if you get me sick, then you can just return the favor by making me some soup." You giggled softly, nodding your head and leading him into the kitchen. You got out a pot and put it on the stove, moving a bit slower than usual. "Come on, Y/N," he set the can down on the counter and wrapped his arm around your shoulder, taking you back out of the room, "I'll figure out everything in here, but you need to lie down and rest if you ever want to get better." He helped you back to the couch, making sure you were comfortable before heading back into the kitchen.

By the time Ashton returned 10 minutes later – bowl of soup in one hand and glass of juice in the other – he found you exactly where he left you on the couch, but you were fast asleep. He couldn't help but stare for a moment before setting the things down on your coffee table and sitting beside your hip.

As much as he didn't want to wake you up, he knew you needed to eat your soup and drink fluids, so he did what he had to.

"Y/N," he whispered, gently shaking your shoulder, "Your soup's done." You mumbled softly, turning over onto your side, your back now facing Ashton. He laughed under his breath. "I know you don't want to wake up, but you need to eat this," he said, his fingers barely stroking your exposed arm. You let out a breath, your bottom lip jutting out, making sure he  _knew_  he was the reason for your pout as you turned back onto your back. Ashton simply smiled, "As cute as that look is, you still need to get up and eat."

He helped you sit upright, putting a pillow onto your lap and then putting the bowl of soup onto that. Ashton could tell you were struggling to hold the spoon still – a result of you being unable to eat for the last couple days because you couldn't move without feeling faint – so he took your hand.

"How about I just-"

"I can do it," you said stubbornly, shaking your head, "I'll just drink it."

"Y/N," he said, obviously not believing you, "You can barely hold a  _spoon_. How are you going to pick up a bowl without  _spilling it_  on yourself?" You were silent for a moment, thinking hard about your next answer.

"Go get me a  _straw_ ," you said. Ashton instantly laughed, taking the spoon from your hand.

"If you let me feed you, I'll let you feed me when I inevitably get sick after today," he offered.

"Fine," you sighed, "But I'm not taking over your  _paper route_  too." He smiled again, dipping the spoon into the bowl and carefully taking it to your mouth. "This is  _not_  how I imagined the first time actually speaking to each other going," you informed him as he fed you another bite.

Ashton shrugged, "Neither did I, but I can't say I'm complaining."

"Not yet," you replied, "You'll be complaining about it when you get  _sick_  though."

"Can't really complain when I  _knew_  it was gonna happen if I stayed."

"Don't think I won't bring that comment back up if you start whining," you threatened.

"I look forward to it," he replied, holding the spoon to your lips again.

~

**Three hours later**

After Ashton had finished feeding you, you both started watching TV together. He'd asked a couple times if you wanted him to leave since you were falling asleep again, but you assured him that you were totally and completely awake. Ashton simply chuckled at you – you could barely keep your eyes open; he knew you weren't  _totally and completely awake_  – but he stayed anyway.

Your head had fallen onto his shoulder halfway through the third episode of the show you were watching, and Ashton started to hear soft snores coming from your mouth. He couldn't help but smile slightly, the expression only fading when his phone started buzzing in his pocket. He carefully retrieved it – not wanting to disturb you – and unlocked it to read the text he'd gotten.

_So... Is there band practice today or??_

Ashton sighed softly, having completely forgot that practice was at his house today. He sent a text back to his friend, telling him he'd be home in 10 minutes. He then put his phone back into his pocket and carefully held onto your shoulder so he could stand up. He turned back toward you and gently helped you lay down where he once was. He went to your kitchen for a moment to leave you a note before coming back to check on you. He thought you were still asleep, but when he stepped away again, he heard your voice.

"Thanks for coming over, Ashton," you said softly.

"You're welcome, Y/N," he replied just as quietly, "And I put my number on a Post-It on the counter, so if you need me, don't hesitate to give me a call." You smiled slightly and nodded. He leaned down and kissed your forehead before getting up to leave. "See you later, Y/N," he said over his shoulder as he walked out of the house.

"Bye, Ash," you murmured just before you fell back asleep.

~

_inspiration: http://ashtreeashton.tumblr.com/post/93431391986/i-hate-this-gif-and-you-wanna-know-why-because_


	340. Dear Paper Boy (Ashton Irwin) - Part 2

_Come over??_

You smiled slightly at the text Ashton had sent you and your heart racing at the photo he'd sent with it – a selfie of him pouting with a thermometer stuck in his mouth as he laid on his couch. You texted him back the emoji of the man running to let him know you were on your way before getting up from your seat on your couch, taking your laptop back to your bedroom, and putting on some shoes.

You and Ashton had been talking to each other for what felt like 24/7 for the past two weeks – minus the times you were sleeping and at work, obviously – since that day he came over when you'd been sick yourself. You never really thought being sick could be a  _beneficial_  thing, but if it brought you and Ashton together, then it couldn't really be  _that_  bad.

You were at Ashton's front door in less than 10 minutes with a can of soup in your hand. You knocked a couple times and waited for him, standing there for a few moments before he finally reached the door. Ashton smiled weakly the second he saw you, making you frown at how terrible he looked.

"How are you feeling?" you asked. He didn't even have time to answer before you were stepping into the house and pressing your palm to his forehead. " _Ash_ ," you frowned again, "You're  _burning up_."

"But I'm so  _cold_ ," he pouted, pulling his blanket tighter around him.

"I  _told you_  you were gonna get sick if you stayed over," you shook your head, smiling sympathetically as you closed the door behind you and led him to the couch.

You helped Ashton sit down before putting the can you were holding onto the coffee table and then sitting yourself, only to have him reposition himself to cuddle up to you. You instinctively raised your hand to his head, playing with his hair gently. You heard him sigh in content as he nuzzled his face in your shoulder, making you smile slightly.

"Have you eaten anything?" you asked softly.

"I tried before I texted you," he murmured, "But I couldn't keep it down."

"I'm sorry, Ash."

"Why are you sorry?" he wondered.

" _I_  was the one who got you sick..."

"Y/N, I told you I didn't  _care_ ," he reminded you, "I just wanted to help you get better." You didn't say anything in response – you simply blushed lightly and kissed the side of his forehead.

~

It wasn't until two hours later that Ashton had repositioned himself again to lie down on the couch with his head on your lap, falling asleep almost instantly. You could help but stare at him – even in his state of sickness, he was still so beautiful – but you quickly shook it off and turned your attention back to the show Ashton insisted you'd watch with him.

Half an hour had passed and you were so into the show on the TV screen that you didn't even hear the front door opening. You did, however, hear the loudly talking boys that had opened it.

" _Hey_!" you whispered, " _Shh_!" The boys froze upon hearing your voice, looking down to find Ashton sleeping soundly on your lap.

"I'm guessing practice is  _canceled_  for today then," the taller blonde chuckled softly.

"Hey, uh, no offense, but who are you?" the black-haired boy asked you.

"Y/N," you informed them, and he told you their names in return.

"Ah," the other blonde, Michael, smirked, "So  _you're_  the infamous Y/N we've been hearing about."

"What does  _that_  mean?" you let out a confused laugh.

"Ash has been talking about you  _non-stop_  for the past two weeks," Luke grinned, "Something about how pretty he thinks your face is or  _whatever_."

"Are you feeling better?" Calum asked, "We heard you were pretty sick."

"I am, thank you," you grinned, blushing at how Ashton had apparently been rambling about how pretty you were to anyone who would listen, "Can't say the same for  _this one_  though." The boys looked at Ashton again, smiling at him.

"Well, we'll let him sleep it off then," Michael said, "Tell him we stopped by and to just let one of us know when he's feeling up to band practice." You nodded and they all said their goodbyes.

"It was nice meeting you, Y/N – we hope to see you around a lot more," Luke told you before he walked out the door. You smiled slightly as he quietly closed the door behind him, turning your attention back to the television while you hand was still running through Ashton's hair.

~

When Ashton finally started stirring another hour later, you couldn't help but giggle at the grumbles coming from his mouth as he woke up.

"How long was I out?" he asked you without even opening his eyes, his gravelly voice making your stomach do flips.

"Almost four hours," you told him. He hummed in acknowledgement as you went on. "Your friends came over while you were sleeping," you informed him.

"What did they  _say_?" he whined, his eyes closing tighter as he prepared himself for embarrassment.

"Just to tell you to let one of them know when you're better enough for band practice," you shrugged. He sighed in relief, but quickly realized it was premature. "And something else about how you think my face is  _pretty_ ," you snickered when he groaned loudly, putting his hand over his face.

"I  _do_ ," he stated matter-of-factly, "And as soon as I'm not sick anymore, I'm gonna  _kiss_  that pretty face of yours." You simply laughed, but the blush on your face was undeniable.

"Okay, Ash," you nodded, "I can't wait."

It was silent for a moment, so you looked down at him to find he had removed his hand and was now looking up at you. Ashton grinned tiredly, a content expression on his face as your fingernails scratched at his scalp.

"Are you hungry?" you murmured, "I'll make you the soup I brought."

"But then you have to get up and  _leave me_ ," he pouted, "But you're  _warm_  and I'm  _too comfy_."

"Just put your blanket back on, Ash," you giggled.

"But my blanket doesn't play with my hair and hug me back."

" _Ashton_ ," you sang softly, "Are we  _whining_?"

"Well, you're making me  _sad_ ," he stuck his bottom lip out as far as it would go. The corner of your mouth twitched as your hand ceased its movements in his hair, making him whine again. " _Y/N_!" he pouted even  _more_.

"You need to eat, Ashton," you said firmly, "I promise that once you're done, I won't get up until I have to go home."

He huffed lightly, pulling his blanket up to his chin after you'd lifted his head off of your lap and helped him lie back down. You knelt down in front of him, pushing the hair that fallen in front of his eyes away.

"You  _promised_  you wouldn't whine, remember?" you grinned teasingly.

"That was  _before_  I got sick," he murmured, clearly having a difficult time keeping his eyes open. You rolled your eyes with a laugh, grabbing the can still on the coffee table and leaving the room.

You returned not long after that, placing the dishes on the table before turning back to Ashton. His eyes were closed, but he was clearly still awake.

"Ashton," you said softly anyway, kneeling back down, "Time to eat."

"I'm sleeping," he whispered, making you laugh under your breath.

"If you were on your  _deathbed_ , I wouldn't mind all this," you said, "But you're  _not_  – so the sooner you eat your soup and drink your orange juice and take your medicine, the sooner you'll get  _better_."

"But the sooner I get better, you'll stop coming over," he frowned.

"You can invite me over any time you  _want to_ , Ash," you reminded him.

"But then you'll get sick of me asking every single day."

"I don't think you'll have to worry about  _that_ , Ash," you replied, standing back up, "Now come on-" You grabbed his bicep and pulled him up, sitting down beside him so he could lean back onto you. "-I'm not gonna let you kiss my pretty face when you get better if you don't eat."

"You're  _mean_ ," he pouted, watching you reach for the bowl and bring a spoonful of soup to his mouth so he could eat it.

"I know," you mumbled, your lips hitting the outer corner of his eyebrow.


	341. Unconventional (Cody Carson) - Part 1

_05:11:06:35_   
_05:11:06:34_   
_05:11:06:33_   
_05:11:06:32_   
_05:11:06:31_

Your heart was aching at knowing you were only  _five and a half days_  away from meeting your  _soulmate_.

You had done the math nearly a month ago and realized that on the day your clock said you would meet them, you were also going to a Set It Off concert. You hoped that you would meet this mystery person at the show and not a fast food place so you at least knew you liked the same band.

This was a normal thing – the clock on your wrist constantly counting down. Everyone had them since before they were even born – since they were merely still growing inside their mother's womb. It was a soulmate clock, counting down the days until you would meet the person you were destined to fall in love and spend the rest of your life with. You had known the date you would meet your soulmate ever since you learned how to do math and you were always eagerly awaiting the date that was now only  _5 days_ away.

You didn't know what to expect, and your friends were never really any help either. A couple of them had met their soulmates already, but the only advice they ever gave you was ' _you'll just know_ ' after vocalizing your concern about meeting two people at the same time. But how would they know  _that_? They met their soulmates  _one-on-one_.

You'd made the mistake once – after realizing you'd meet your soulmate at the concert – of suggesting that maybe yours would be in a band that was playing that night. Your friends immediately shut it down, insisting that no one ever got  _that_  lucky.

They said they were just looking out for you – that they didn't want you to get your hopes up when that wasn't what happened – but you were still heartbroken by it. They didn't  _have to_  agree, but they could have  _at least_  entertained the idea for your sake.

And maybe you  _were_  going in with the realization that your soulmate wasn't necessarily going to be who you  _wanted_ , but there was always that ' _what if_ _?_ ' in the back of your mind.

~

**Five days later**

_00:00:30:38_   
_00:00:30:37_   
_00:00:30:36_   
_00:00:30:35_   
_00:00:30:34_

You had been sitting up against the concrete wall outside the venue for about 10 hours now. You were talking to the people in line around you, making new friends. You kept your clock hidden from them though, not wanting them to say what your friends had for the last few weeks.

After another half an hour, you had drunk about seven bottles of water that the venue staff had been bringing out every once in a while since it was pretty hot out that day. You were really starting to regret it though because your bladder was not having  _any of it_  anymore.

The next time the staff member came out, you asked him if you could go inside and use the bathroom. Upon hearing the desperation in your voice, he simply laughed and nodded. He told you where to go down the hallway, but you immediately found yourself lost.

_00:00:00:15_   
_00:00:00:14_   
_00:00:00:13_   
_00:00:00:12_   
_00:00:00:11_

You sighed to yourself as you continued walking, hoping to find another person you could ask for directions from.

But you'd never make it to anyone who worked there.

 _00:00:00:10_  
 _00:00:00:09_    
 _00:00:00:08_    
 _00:00:00:07_  
 _00:00:00:06_

You decided to check your soulmate clock since you hadn't all day, wanting to see just how far away you were from meeting them.

The moment you pushed your bracelets down to see, your eyes widened.

_00:00:00:05_   
_00:00:00:04_   
_00:00:00:03_   
_00:00:00:02_   
_00:00:00:01_

You were so preoccupied with the countdown that it was no surprise when you yelped quite loudly after running into someone. Your head snapped up to apologize, only to find Cody Carson smiling at you.

Before either of you could say anything, however, the clocks on  _both_  of your wrists started beeping and you both watched each other's disappear. Your eyes widened even  _more_  –  _Cody Carson was your soulmate_.

"You're my-" You unfortunately had to cut Cody off.

"Listen, we can talk about the whole soulmate thing in a minute," you rushed, "But I've been in line for 10 hours, I've had like, 7 bottles of water, and I need a bathroom  _right now_." Cody was a bit taken aback by the reaction, but chuckled anyway.

"You can use the one in our dressing room," he replied, quickly taking you down the hallway.

The rest of the band was obviously in the room, but luckily, none of them were in the bathroom when you got there. You greeted them with a small wave as Cody pointed to where you needed to go and you practically ran into the room.

When you came back into main part of the dressing room a few minutes later, Cody smiled at you again.

"Better?" he teased.

"I feel like a  _new person_ ," you sighed in relief, making everyone laugh.

"So can I hug you now?" he asked you.

You smiled shyly, walking over to him and wrapping your arms around his neck while he held your waist. You felt him let out a sigh, feeling your stomach erupt with butterflies.

"You know," he said as he reluctantly let go of you, "I never imagined myself meeting my soulmate like  _that_."

"I never imagined  _literally_  almost peeing myself when I met my soulmate," you returned, "Or  _ever_  for that matter..."

" _Wait_ ," Dan beamed, "You guys are  _soulmates_?"

"Looks like it," Cody smiled, not taking his eyes off of you. You began chewing on your inner cheek, feeling yourself turn red under his gaze.

"We should cancel the show and celebrate!" Zach said cheerfully.

" _What_?  _No_!" you frowned, "I've been waiting my  _whole life_  to see you guys live!"

" _Your_   _whole life_?" Maxx raised his eyebrows with a small smirk on his face.

"Fine," you rolled your eyes, "I've been waiting for the past... How long have you guys been a band now?"

"Eight years," Dan answered.

" _Eight years_  I've been waiting for this moment!" you announced, "And not even  _meeting my_   _soulmate_  is going to ruin it for me!"

"As your soulmate, I am deeply offended," Cody scoffed jokingly, "But as a musician, I am  _honored_." You rolled your eyes again, but you couldn't keep yourself from smiling.

"Plus, there's like, a  _huge_  line outside and I am  _not_  about to be the reason for that amount of disappointment," you shrugged.

"In our defense, since you and Cody are soulmates, I'm sure you'll be seeing a lot more of our shows," Zach chimed in, "For _free_ , I might add."

"Free Set It Off shows," you said thoughtfully, "I could get used to that." Cody looked at the time on his phone, then back up at you.

"We still have a couple hours before show time..." he rocked back and forth on his feet, "A-Are you hungry...?"

"I've been in line for 10 hours," you groaned, "I'm  _starving_."

"We could go get something... If you wanted to, I mean. You don't have to. It's totally fine." You tried to fight back another smile, but you knew it wasn't working.

"Where were you thinking?" you asked. Cody's eyes widened at the fact that you hadn't shot him down.

He nodded his head toward the door, gesturing for you to follow him. You both earned some whistles from the other three boys as you left the room, making you laugh under your breath.

"Sorry about them," he grumbled.

"It's okay," you assured him, "My friends would have done the same thing."

" _Your friends_!" he suddenly exclaimed, "They're probably looking for you!"

"Oh, I didn't come with anyone," you shook your head, "None of them actually  _like_  the band."

"I'm offended again," he frowned jokingly, making you laugh.

"Well, I could either come to Set It Off shows by myself or I could go to Justin Bieber shows with them and I think it's pretty  _obvious_  which is the better choice," you nudged him gently.

" _Better choice_ ," he scoffed, "Even  _I_  wouldn't say that. He's way more popular than we  _ever_  will be."

"Less popularity doesn't mean less talented," you said thoughtfully, "Plus, I'd rather spend time with people I don't know and meet someone like you guys than pay way too much for a seat I wouldn't be able to even  _see the stage_   _from_  with a bunch of people I know and absolutely  _no chance_  of meeting the person."

"Thanks," he murmured, bashfully accepting your compliment. Just as Cody was about to open the side door to the venue open for you, he groaned lightly. He looked at you with a shy grin, "I should probably bring my wallet."

"I can always pay, you know," you said with a smile although you knew he wasn't going to go for it.

"Absolutely not," he stated, "I'll be right back."

"I'm just gonna go back to the line really quick if that's okay," you told him, "The people I was talking to are probably starting to think I drowned in the toilet or something." Cody laughed, opening the door so you could go outside before running back to the dressing room to grab his wallet.

"Y/N!" one of the girls, Hannah, breathed as you walked over to them, "Where have you been?! We thought something happened to you!" You tilted your head, confused as to why her and those around seemed to care so much after only knowing you for a few hours.

"I got lost for a while," you shrugged, rocking back and forth on your feet. The group stared at you for a moment before the other girl gasped suddenly.

"Your thing is gone!" Abby squealed, pointing to your wrist and making everyone look.

"You met your  _soulmate_  in there?" the guy you'd been sitting next to all day, Luke, grinned, "Who is it? What's their name? Why didn't they come out with you?"

"You guys saw it?" you frowned, "Why didn't you say anything?"

"Well, it was pretty obvious you were trying to keep it covered," Hannah chuckled, "So we figured we shouldn't mention it. But now it's  _gone_  and we can't  _help it_  anymore!"

"You  _could_  say we're... _uncontainable_ ," Abby said with a huge smirk on her face. You all groaned at the pun before laughing.

"Come on, Y/N!" Luke looked up at you with puppy-dog eyes, "Who is it?!"

"It's no one, really," you insisted, "I just ran into them and they helped me find a bathroom."

"Why didn't you stay with them?" Hannah pouted, "We'd understand if you didn't come back. This is  _major_  stuff!"

"To be fair, he  _is_  my soulmate, so I'm sure I'll be seeing  _a lot_  more of him after today," you reminded them.

"Oh, but you won't be seeing more of  _us_?" Abby sighed, "You're just gonna  _ignore us_  after today?" You couldn't help but laugh at her, kicking her shoe playfully.

You then heard the door you'd just come out of opening, making you look over your shoulder. Cody motioned for you to come with him, clearly wanting to remain unseen by the other people in line.

However, he couldn't escape being seen by your new friends. Their eyes widened as they followed your gaze, all of them gasping quietly as to not alert those around you.

" _No way_!" Hannah exclaimed softly, "I thought you said it was  _no one_! That is not  _no one_!" You bit your bottom lip, smiling slightly.

"I'll tell you about it later," you replied, "I've gotta go."

"Have fun!" Abby snickered as you turned around and hurried over to where Cody was. He noticed your friends smirking at you and waved at them as you reached him, his arm then wrapping around you and taking you around the back of the building.

"So," Cody started, "Are you from this town or do we need Google maps?" You giggled lightly, leaning into him.

"Don't worry, I'm from here," you informed him, "What do you want to eat?"

"I don't know," he answered honestly, "I'll eat literally  _anything_  at this point; I'm  _so_  hungry."

"We could stick to McDonald's," you said, "There's one we can walk to."

"I'm in," he chuckled.

You and Cody spent the next hour or so getting to know everything there was to know about each other before he got a text from Dan saying they needed him back before the show started.

Cody sighed softly, putting his phone back in his pocket, really not  _wanting_  to leave yet. But upon reminding him that you'd been waiting eight years for this day, he rolled his eyes and laughed, agreeing to leave the restaurant.

As you were walking back to the venue, you felt Cody's hand nudge yours as if he was testing to see whether or not you would move your hand away. When you didn't, he took your hand in his, lacing your fingers together. You grinned slightly, your fingers curling up and holding his hand firmly.

The walk back was fairly quiet, the only sounds coming from the cars driving on the road beside the sidewalk you were on; You were both simply enjoying the fact that you'd  _finally_  found your soulmates.

"Do you want to come in or..." Cody trailed off as you approached the back door.

"As much as I want to, I think I'm gonna go back in line," you answered honestly, "I'm sure my friends will be waiting for a report on this."

He couldn't help but laugh, "Well, as long as you promise to come find me after the show, I don't think I'll have any problem with letting you go back."

"Even if you  _did_  have a problem with it, I'd still  _do it_ ," you stated with a smirk, "You're not the boss of me." Cody returned the look, letting go of your hand and wrapping his arms around your waist.

"True," he nodded, "But if you want out of  _this_ , you're gonna have to be a little  _nicer_  to me."

"And if I  _don't_  want out?" you challenged. He chuckled under his breath, letting it taper off as he looked at you.

"Would you..." he cleared his throat nervously, "Do you mind if I kiss you?"

Your heart skipped a beat at the question, but you moved your hands up to his cheeks, bringing his face to yours. He let out a sigh – much like he had earlier when you hugged him – and squeezed your waist lightly.

When you pulled away for air, you watched his eyes flutter open before his forehead met yours.

"I meant on the  _cheek_ , but you know, that works too," he said, laughing again when you slapped his cheek playfully. "I'll see you after the show?" he asked hopefully.

"Yeah," you whispered, "I'll come find you." Cody smiled brightly, knowing he'd get to see you again. He pecked your lips before finally releasing you so he could go inside and prepare for the show.

You stood there for a moment, letting out a breath as you smiled to yourself. You couldn't believe  _Cody Carson_ was your soulmate – that all of your friends had been  _wrong_  the whole time – and you couldn't  _wait_  to rub it in tomorrow.

But for now, you were completely content with heading back to the line, greeting Hannah, Abby, and Luke, and cheerfully giving them all the details of your impromptu date with your soulmate.


	342. Unconventional (Cody Carson) - Part 2

 

The idea of finally dating your favorite band member after imagining it happening for so long seems like an amazing concept –  _at the time_.

 _Now_ , however... You weren't so sure.

Cody was an  _amazing_  boyfriend – there was no doubt about that – but you didn't realize just  _how much_  of a toll him not being home often could take on you until it actually started  _happening_.

It had been almost a year and a half now since you and Cody found out you were soulmates. Two weeks after the show you met at, tour had ended, so Cody came back home and spent as much time with you as humanly possible. Eight months after that, he asked you to move into his apartment with him all while the band began going into the studio more frequently to write for their next album. And while it  _was_  hard not having him around for sometimes the entire day, you knew he was always coming home later that evening.

But after the release of the album five months ago, things started to change.

The band obviously went on tour for it – as they did with  _every_  album they released – and Cody was gone for three months, came home for nearly a week for hometown shows, and then left again.

It felt so strange to have Cody home but to see his suitcases laying around with things in them. And while he  _did_  make sure they were out of the way, hidden under the bed, you still  _knew_  they were there.

You thought things would get better when he came home again, but it didn't. Honestly, all it did was make things  _worse_ , because that was when he told you they were going back on tour for a couple more weeks for shows that had previously been cancelled and to add a few more onto the list.

And that was when you snapped.

"Doesn't it bother you that you're  _never_  here?" you asked suddenly one afternoon, taking Cody by surprise. He cocked an eyebrow, almost as if he was telling you to elaborate. "You're always on tour, you're always in the studio, you're always at Dan's place writing more songs," you sighed exasperatedly, "Do you ever  _take a break_? Do you ever think about how maybe you're going out too much when you  _are_  home?"

"You were a  _fan_  of the band before this, Y/N," Cody reminded you, "You  _know_  I'm hardly ever home."

"Yeah,  _before_!" you all but shouted back at him, "And _before_ , it didn't matter that you were never home because  _I wasn't your girlfriend_  then!"

"So because you're my girlfriend  _now_ , I should just drop everything to hang out with you?" he rolled his eyes.

"You know,  _Cody_ ," you spat, "It would be nice if you  _did_ every once in a while. It would be nice of you to think ' _I'd like to spend today with my girlfriend instead of having a half-assed conversation at the end of the day when I know I'm going to fall asleep in the middle of it and then get up to go back to the studio before she wakes up_ '! But, you know, I guess it's fine, huh? You'd rather spend time with the friends you've already spent  _eight months_  out of the year with – I guess spending  _24 hours_  with your _girlfriend_  is just asking for  _too much_  these days, isn't it?!"

After getting all of that out of your system, you started to walk to the door so you could leave the apartment, only to have Cody grab your hand and turn you back around.

"This  _isn't_  over, Y/N!" he shook his head, "You can't just  _run away_  from your problems all the time!"

"I'm not running away from  _anything_ ," you growled, yanking your hand out of his, "That's the difference between us;  _I_  know when to walk away."

"You can't  _walk away_ , Y/N; We're  _soulmates_."

"Some  _soulmate_  you are then," you grumbled, "At least I  _tried_  to make  _you_  feel important."

"Y/N-" You cut him off.

"My friends were right," you barely shook your head, wiping the tears of frustration off of your face, "I  _never_  should have done this." You immediately spun back around and hastily exited the apartment, not even giving him a chance to ask what you meant.

Cody went to run after you, but he froze in his spot when he heard a faint beeping. And as he looked down at his wrist, his heart skipped a beat.

Because where the blank space used to be after he met you, a new clock had appeared on his skin.

_98:07:12:14_   
_98:07:12:13_   
_98:07:12:12_   
_98:07:12:11_   
_98:07:12:10_

~

**_huge_ ** _thank you to my girl meghan for helping me come up with the idea for this part!!!!!_


	343. Unconventional (Cody Carson) - Part 3

**Two months later**

_36:19:06:42_   
_36:19:06:41_   
_36:19:06:40_   
_36:19:06:39_   
_36:19:06:38_

Over two months after you left, you couldn't really say you felt any better. Before now, you never knew that another soulmate clock could appear on your skin. You were raised to believe that you only had  _one_  soulmate –  _one_  person out in the world that was perfect for you. But to have a  _new_  soulmate clock after your break up with Cody?

Your friends tried to comfort you – if you could  _call_  it that – but all it ever ended up being was them passive-aggressively telling you they told you so. And Hannah, Abby, and Luke – who you kept in contact and even hung out with from time-to-time after the concert you met them at – tried helping you through it too.

But you were too far gone at this point.

You had to give them credit though – they still asked you if you wanted to go out with them every Friday and Saturday night in the hopes of lifting your spirits because, honestly, even  _you_  would have ditched yourself by now. And you did – you  _did_  go out with them – but it wasn't very fun for you, to be quite honest. You were always thinking about Cody and always staring down at the clock on your wrist.

~

**One month later**

_00:22:19:56_   
_00:22:19:55_   
_00:22:19:54_   
_00:22:19:53_   
_00:22:19:52_

"Let me get this straight," you said into your phone, "You want me to go to a show my  _ex-boyfriend_  is playing tomorrow night?"

"Yes," Hannah stated simply.

"And  _why_  exactly do you think I would do  _that_?"

"Because you're still hurting," Abby chimed in, "You're  _nowhere_  near being close to over him, and we think you owe it to both him  _and yourself_  to get some closure to the situation."

"But I-"

"You're  _done_  avoiding this, Y/N," Luke interrupted firmly, clearly over your attitude about the breakup, "I will be over at your place at 6:30 tomorrow night whether I have to drag you to the venue in your pajamas or not."

" _Lucas_ -" You were cut off again by all three of them hanging up their phones.

You stared at the ' _CALL ENDED_ ' screen for a few seconds before groaning loudly, locking your phone, and throwing it to the other end of your bed.

~

**The next evening**

_00:03:37:03_   
_00:03:37:02_   
_00:03:37:01_   
_00:03:37:00_   
_00:03:36:59_

As promised, Luke showed up at your place at 6:30 on the dot. You, knowing  _full-well_  that he was serious in his threat to take you to the concert in your pajamas, had gotten dressed half an hour before he arrived.

Before you had the chance to shut the door in his face and lock it, he grabbed your hand and pulled you out of your apartment. You squeaked lightly, thankful you already had your phone in your pocket.

Luke took you out to his car, still being a gentleman and opening doors for you, and you made your way to the venue. He parked around back – which you thought was a little strange, but just brushed it off.

You met Hannah and Abby at the back door where they handed you both backstage passes to wear around your necks so no one questioned why you were back there. You immediately knew that  _something_  was going on – you just couldn't figure out  _what_.

_00:01:02:31_   
_00:01:02:30_   
_00:01:02:29_   
_00:01:02:28_   
_00:01:02:27_

~

The show started 10 minutes later and you and your friends stood at the side of the stage. You were out of sight from Cody for the most part, but even during the times you  _weren't_ , he surprisingly never looked over at you.

_00:00:04:29_   
_00:00:04:28_   
_00:00:04:27_   
_00:00:04:26_   
_00:00:04:25_

"Thank you all for coming out tonight!" Cody grinned, "Now... This last song isn't one we usually play anymore, but I've been thinking about it a lot recently and I know it's a fan favorite, so do you mind if we sing it for you guys?" he asked. The crowd obviously cheered, making him grin slightly. "This is  _Missing You_ ," he said. And your heart skipped a beat.

_It's been a long time_   
_And I find myself wishing maybe I could connect_   
_It's been a long night_   
_And this service sucks and my message can't be sent_

_All I know I need is you_   
_Even if it's just for today_   
_Some way, you will see_   
_A letter leads me back to you_

_Dear lovely,_   
_I know it's hard to be this strong_   
_I may be gone but not for long, I swear_   
_It's not like me to argue over nothing_   
_So I apologize ahead of time_   
_For what I'll put you through_

_But I'm afraid of losing the better part of home, so can we_   
_Work it out 'cause it's not quite fair to throw it all away_   
_We carry on, we carry on, we carry on with every day_

_Dear sweetheart,_   
_I got your letter and it shows_   
_The both of us could use some room to grow_   
_And it scares me how easy it's become to fight_   
_It's not the way I want to end this night_   
_Please call me_

_'Cause I'm afraid of facing living life without you, so can we_   
_Work it out 'cause it's not quite fair to throw it all away_   
_We carry on, we carry on, we carry on_   
_Give me life 'cause you take my breath in every single way_   
_We carry on, we carry on, we carry on with every day_

_I dropped my heart and she broke its fall_   
_This ale's become ailment, I hope I didn't drop the ball_

_I dropped my heart and she broke its fall_   
_This ale's become ailment, I hope I didn't drop the ball_   
_(Call me please, my dear, we need to solve this here and now_   
_I clutch my phone, my heart pounding at the sound)_

_I dropped my heart and she broke its fall_   
_This ale's become ailment, I hope I didn't drop the ball_   
_(Call me please, my dear, we need to solve this here and now_   
_I clutch my phone, my heart pounding at the sound)_

_This is not what I intended at all_   
_How can we let this all slip away?_   
_You have to understand it's hard_   
_I need you're touch, but you're just too far_

_I thought you said you were patient_   
_I swear that I am_   
_Why do we have these fights?_   
_Because I'm scared of the end_   
_It doesn't have to 'cause we need each other_

_Work it out 'cause it's not quite fair to throw it all away_   
_We carry on, we carry on, we carry on (Whoa, oh, oh)_   
_Well, give me life 'cause you take my breath in every single way_   
_We carry on, we carry on, we carry on with every day_

_I'll be home soon_   
_But we'll carry on just like we did before_

You were standing frozen in your spot, not knowing how to react. You knew he was thinking of you when he was singing it – it was obvious in the cracks in his voice. Your friends were glancing between you and the band as they took their usual picture with the crowd and waved before heading backstage.

_00:00:00:05_   
_00:00:00:04_   
_00:00:00:03_   
_00:00:00:02_   
_00:00:00:01_

The moment right after you and Cody locked eyes, your heads snapped down to your wrists when you heard that familiar beeping. Everyone watched your clocks disappear, their eyes widening slightly. Your friends hadn't expected your clock to be for Cody again – all they wanted was to make sure you two left the venue on good terms.

The rest of the band and your friends all looked at each other, simultaneously deciding that they needed to give you and Cody a moment alone.

You were still staring at your now blank wrist, almost in tears. You didn't completely understand what was happening – no one ever told you this was  _possible_  – but you pieced together a pretty good idea of it all.

Cody was your soulmate – that was why your  _first_  clock disappeared. But your  _second_  clock disappearing... This was  _something_  telling you that – even though you and Cody had a falling out at one point –  _he was still your soulmate_ ; You were still destined to be with  _him_.

Cody had been watching you since the moment all of your friends walked away. He always knew you were  _meant_  for him – that he never wanted anyone else – although he didn't seem to show it very well. And when he noticed your bottom lip trembling as you looked at your wrist, he didn't know if you were upset or if you were glad fate led you back to him or  _what_... But he couldn't just stand there and watch you break down because of it.

"Baby, I-" Cody started before he cut himself off when you rushed forward and wrapped your arms around his neck. You were hugging him tighter than you ever had before, feeling his sigh of relief as he hugged you back just as tightly, if not  _tighter_.

" _I'm sorry_ ," you whimpered, wiping your tears on the sleeve of your sweater, "I'm sorry I got mad and I'm sorry I yelled and I'm sorry I-" Cody cut you off that time, his lips colliding with the side of your head.

"Don't be sorry," he murmured into your hair, "You were right: I wasn't treating you the way I  _should have_. You're my  _soulmate_ ; You deserve  _way better_  from me than what you were  _getting_."

"But if I just  _told you_ , you would have fixed it," letting him feel it as you shook your head, "You would have fixed  _anything_  for me..."

"I  _still_  would," he said, making you finally loosen your grip to look at him.

Cody moved one of his arms from your waist so he could take your cheek and wipe your tears with his thumb. He left his hand there, letting his thumb stroke your cheekbone gently.

"I'd give you the entire  _world_  if you asked for it – no matter  _what_  I had to do to get it for you," he smiled slightly, "I'd do  _anything_  for you, baby. And I'll do whatever I have to if it means we can try this again."

You finally smiled, reaching up and pressing your lips to his. You felt him grin as he squeezed your waist. Your hands slid to the base of his neck, one remaining where it was so you could play with his hair while the other moved to his cheek.

"Plus," he murmured into the kiss, "If that damn clock shows up for a  _third_  time, I don't want to have to wonder if it will be for  _you_  again." You couldn't help but giggle, smacking his cheek playfully as he kissed you harder.

~

_Song used: "Missing You" by Set It Off_


	344. I Choose You (Michael Clifford)

You and your friend walked into the frat house, surprised by all the people you saw. You knew there would be a lot of people there, of course – it was the most well-known frat on campus with the craziest parties – but you thought you got there  _early_.

Regardless, you looked around, both of you giggling at how silly some of the frat guys' costumes looked, making you sure that they had to have either lost a bet or agreed that every single guy in the house would wearing something embarrassing.

About half an hour passed – your friend had since left you to go find her boyfriend, so you were left to your own devices. You weren't really doing much else other than keeping your drink securely in your hand the entire time, not wanting to take any chances.

"Hey, Ash Ketchum!" you heard someone shout from behind you, making you turn since you were dressed as the character. "You know how to play beer pong?" the frat guy asked. You nodded and he motioned for you to come over. "Come be Pikachu's partner," he said.

It wasn't until then that you'd even noticed someone else was dressed in a Pokemon-related costume, but it was clear once you saw him that it was meant to be an embarrassment – there was  _no way_  anyone would  _willingly_  sport a  _child-sized costume_  at one of the  _biggest_  parties of the year.

You couldn't help but snort softly, taking the last sip of your drink and throwing it into the trashcan before going over to the table.

"Nice costume, Pikachu," you said, stopping beside the blonde boy. His eyes widened and he blushed the brightest shade of red you'd ever seen.

~

You and Pikachu ended up winning your game of beer pong, but you decided not to play another round since you had a class pretty early the next morning. You found yourself outside on the back deck, sitting on the steps and looking up at the stars.

You were out there for a good amount of time by yourself – about 20 minutes to be exact – before you heard the back door open. You looked over your shoulder and found Pikachu coming outside, his steps small as if he were scared to be walking toward you.

The boy looked at you for a moment before softly asking if he could sit down beside you. You, of course, nodded your head, and he did exactly that.

It was quiet again, neither of you saying a word, before he finally decided to speak.

"I swear I don't  _always_  dress like this," he mumbled.

"Well, that's a shame because I dress like this  _all the time_ ," you informed him, motioning toward yourself. The blonde boy finally cracked a smile, making you smile in return.

"That would have been more believable if you'd been dressed as a princess," he commented, becoming braver by the second. You looked at him despite the fact that you  _knew_  you were blushing.

"You calling me a princess?" you asked.

"Hey, if the glass slipper fits," he shrugged, lying down flat on the deck. You admired him for a moment before lying next to him, the both of you now looking up at the stars. "I'm Michael," he said randomly.

"Y/N," you recited your own name, "So, Michael. Do you actually like  _Pokemon_  or was this costume part of some bet?"

"It was part of a bet," Michael answered, "But I  _do_  like  _Pokemon_  too."

"What'd you lose?"

"It's stupid," he shook his head. You turned slightly to look at him again. He met your gaze and sighed lightly. "You're not gonna believe me," he told you. You shrugged, making him chuckle involuntarily. "My mates and I were out last week because I had to ask a the next girl that came out of the library on a date or else I had to wear a kid's Pikachu costume," he said, "And I was going to, but then I backed out."

"Why?" you wondered, "Was she not pretty?"

"No, she was the most beautiful girl I've ever seen."

"Then why wouldn't you ask her out?"

"How would  _you_  feel if you found out someone asked you out because of a bet?" he countered. You couldn't help but laugh under your breath.

"Fair enough," you nodded, "But why not just explain that to her? The bet was just that you had to  _ask her out_ , right? Not that she had to  _agree_."

"Well, it's a little too late for that advice  _now_ , don't you think?" he teased, poking your side. You giggled until he stopped, resting his arm back on his stomach. "Do you think she would have said yes?" Michael asked you randomly, "Like, if I explained to her that it was for a bet, but that I really did want to go out with her, do you think she'd still have agreed?"

"Maybe," you replied thoughtfully, "You seem like a really nice guy; I don't see why she wouldn't give you a shot." Michael was silent for a moment, making you shoot him a concerned look.

"You know the girl I mentioned?" he asked you, "The one I was supposed to ask on a date?" You nodded and he took a deep breath, looking back up at the stars so he didn't have to look at you. "It was you," he admitted, "You were the one who walked out of the library." You felt a smile pull at the corner of your mouth, blushing when you realized what he'd said earlier about that girl being the most beautiful one he'd ever seen.

"It's a shame you didn't ask me then," you commented, "As cute as you are, I don't think I would say yes to a guy in a child's Pikachu costume." You watched his eyes widen before he quickly sat up.

"Wait here," he stated, pushing himself to his feet and running toward the door.

"Where are you  _going_?!" you giggled, but did as he asked while he disappeared inside. Michael bolted up the stairs, ignoring the questions he was getting from his brothers.

Once in his room, he practically tore the costume off and grabbed the first items of clothing he could find. He hurried to put them on – not wanting to keep you waiting alone outside for too long – and then, he was running back downstairs.

"Hey, Clifford, the party isn't over!" someone shouted as he passed them, "Why'd you change?!"

"Because I'm not about to ask a girl out while wearing  _that_  costume, Turner!" Michael called over his shoulder.

He made it to the back door, stopping and straightening himself out before calmly exiting the house. He was happy to find you still there in the same spot he left you in, only you were now sitting up.

The blonde sat back down beside you, trying to maintain the illusion that he wasn't out of breath from running around for a solid three minutes. When you looked over at the new presence beside you, you immediately started giggling.

"Your shirt's backwards, Mikey," you informed him, tugging on the tag sticking up between his collarbones.

Michael let out a deep sigh, but there was no doubt he was blushing at the nickname. He'd heard people – especially  _girls_  – call him Mikey  _countless_  times before, but something about it coming out of  _your_  mouth made his heart flutter and his stomach do flips.

"Would you say yes to a guy with his shirt on backwards?" he asked shyly.

"I'll let you know if that ever happens to me," you replied, doing your best not to smile. Michael took another deep breath in, letting it out slowly.

"Do you..." he cleared his throat nervously, "Will you go on a date with me?"

"Yes," you finally allowed yourself to grin.

He let out a sigh of relief, blushing when you leaned in and kissed his cheek. You had a saddened expression on your face as you sat back upright, making Michael tilt his head.

"I have a class at 9am tomorrow," you informed him, "I should leave before it gets too late." He nodded understandingly, getting up and holding his hand down to you.

"Do you live on campus?" he asked, "I'll walk you home." You smiled and nodded, telling him your sorority as you took his hand, letting him pull you up.

Michael let go of you, only to bring his arms into his shirt and turn it around so he was wearing it the right way. His arms came back out and his hand took yours again, tangling your fingers together. You smiled subtly, walking close to him as he led you back into the house.

"This isn't how I remember  _Pokemon_  at all!" you heard one of the frat boys exclaim as you walked through the kitchen.

"Maybe you weren't paying close enough attention," you countered before Michael could respond.

The guy laughed as you exited the room and made it to the front door. Michael nudged your arm, making you look up at him, winking at you when you did. You didn't say anything more – you just laid your head on his shoulder as he walked you back to your sorority.

Once you arrived, he took you up to the door. His hands started to feel sweaty against yours, but at that point, you weren't sure if it was him that was sweating, you, or a combination of  _both_.

"So..." Michael cleared his throat again, "What... Uh... What time do your classes end tomorrow?"

"Noon," you replied.

"Would you...want to go to lunch with me?" he asked shyly, "I, um, I can meet you outside your lecture hall...if you  _want_ , I mean." It seemed like you had a permanent grin on your face when you were with Michael – even more so when he would get flustered like this.

"My class is in the library," you told him, "I'll see you tomorrow." He nodded rapidly, not even thinking before he was leaning in and kissing your cheek.

"See you tomorrow," he murmured before pulling away, letting go of your hand so he could walk back to his house.

"Hey, Mikey," you said, making him stop and turn around, "I would  _absolutely_  say yes to a guy with his shirt on backwards." He let out a quiet chuckle, chewing on his bottom lip as he watched you go into your house, waving at him slightly before you closed the door.

 


	345. Life Jacket (Calum Hood)

 

You were walking toward your cabin, wanting to make sure all of your campers were in the mess hall for dinner, when you saw one of them sitting on the steps. You thought it was a bit weird – you hadn't seen her when you left the cabin earlier – but you figured she just snuck by you.

As you got closer, you could hear her mumbling to herself with a frown on her face. You walked over to the huffing child, noticing a black Crayola marker in her hand, attempting to draw on the side of her arm.

"What are you doing, Mack?" you asked slowly, confused as to why she was drawing on herself. The brunette's head snapped up and she stared at you with wide eyes.

"I'll wash it off, honest!" she exclaimed, "I didn't-"

"Mack," you chuckled, plopping down on the step beside her, "You're not in trouble; I just wanted to know why you're drawing on yourself."

"Oh," she sighed in relief. She started chewing on her inner cheek, staring off in front of her.

You followed her gaze and noticed the 12-year-old boys' counselors, Calum, sitting at a picnic table across the lawn. You looked back down at her as she began speaking again.

"I want pictures like Cal has," she told you, "But I can't draw with my right hand." You laughed again, standing up.

"I'll be right back," you told the 10-year-old, hurrying inside the cabin. You came back out with a damp washcloth, dropping back down.

You took the marker from Mackenzie's hand and capped it, setting it on your lap before scrubbing the few markings she'd already made. She started to protest, but quickly silenced herself when you put the cloth down, picked the marker back up, and held her arm gently as you began drawing on her skin.

"What are you doing?" she asked, much like you had not even two minutes ago.

"I'm helping," you stated, concentrating on getting the lettering for Calum's ' _ALIVE_ ' tattoo just right.

"But adults are 'posed to tell you  _not_  to draw on yourself," she said.

"Most of 'em just say that because they don't enjoy  _fun_  things," you teased.

"But  _you're_  an adult."

"But  _I_  enjoy fun things," you said matter-of-factly, "That's why I spend all of my time with  _kids_." Mackenzie giggled quietly as you moved up her arm to begin drawing on the bird.

You had spent enough time around Calum throughout your years as a camp counselor to know what all of his tattooed looked like without having to look at them, so you were done with Mackenzie by the time everyone was called to gather for dinner.

"Oh, wait!" you squeaked, "One more!" You had her put her leg on your lap and you quickly scribbled Calum's lesser-seen ankle tattoos onto her skin before letting her get up. "Okay, I'm done," you said proudly. The little girl looked at her arm in amazement, surprised at how your drawings seemed to mirror the real tattoos. "You wanna show him?" you asked. She nodded quickly and you both waited until he was about to pass the cabin before she ran up to him.

"Cal!" she squealed happily, "Cal, look!" She held her arm up as Calum looked down, his eyes widening.

" _Wow, Mack_!" he said, admiring her arms, "How'd you do  _that_?"

"Y/N drew them!" she grinned, making him glance up at you. You instantly blushed, hoping it didn't show on your face  _too brightly_.

"Well, I think they look  _amazing_ ," he said, ruffling Mackenzie's hair, "You ready to eat?" She nodded rapidly, not even bothering to say bye before she ran toward the mess hall.

In the meantime, Calum approached you, a smile still plastered on his face.

"So," he said, " _You_  drew those, huh?"

"She wanted to look like you," you shrugged bashfully, having trouble maintaining eye contact with him, "And I figured I'd be able to take a shot at drawing your tattoos."

"Yeah, but ' _taking a shot_ ' doesn't usually end up with something looking  _exactly_  like the original," he reminded you, "Which makes me think you've had a bit – or  _a lot_  – of practice." He wiggled his eyebrows at you and you couldn't contain your laugh, making him smile again.

"So I  _like_  your tattoos?" you shrugged, " _Sue me_."

You took a step in the direction of the mess hall, only to have Calum grab your hand and pull you back to him. Your body collided with his, his breath mixing with yours as he spoke.

"Well, _I'd_  like to see you at the fire pit after your campers go to sleep," he said lowly.

"Any reason they're not allowed to  _tag along_ , Calum?" you whispered, a hint of a smirk on your face.

"Don't show up with any and you'll find out," he winked, releasing you.

Without so much as another glance, you turned and made your way to the mess hall, feeling Calum's gaze on you as you pulled the door open and let it close behind you.

~

**Later that night; 10:30pm**

"Alright, guys," you said, "Time to head to bed." You and your campers brushed your teeth and changed into your pajamas, climbing into your bunks.

"Why are you going to bed, Y/N?" Sydney asked, "You're not going to stay very long."

"Why's that?" you asked.

"Because you're going to meet Calum after we all go to sleep," Heidi chirped.

" _Am I_?" you cocked an eyebrow, looking around. Your eyes locked onto Mackenzie since she looked the most nervous. "And where did you hear  _that_?" you asked everyone as you looked at her.

It was silent for a moment before the 10-year-old finally cracked.

" _Okay_ , here's the thing," Mackenzie breathed, "Mitchy said that he and Chase overheard Calum talking to Ashton about meeting you after we were all asleep." The confession received a chorus of acknowledgements, signaling to you that Mackenzie had told all of her friends about what she'd heard.

"Calum said he was nervous to meet you because he thinks you're really pretty and he's worried he won't say the right things," Caroline nodded. You couldn't help the smile that tugged at the corner of your mouth, prompting the girls to gasp.

" _Do you_   _like Calum_?" Mackenzie asked excitedly. You paused, your eyes scanning the group once again, and then leaned toward their bunks.

"If you repeat  _anything_  I'm about to say to any of your friends that are  _not_  in this cabin, these last three weeks of camp are going to be the  _worst_  three weeks of your  _lives_ , understand?" you murmured. They all nodded rapidly, eager to know what you were going to say. "I've known Calum since the day this camp opened six years ago," you explained, "Last summer, Calum and I started actually talking to each other more than saying ' _hi_ ' during meals or passing each other on the way to other activities. He's very nice and funny and attractive and I like him a lot."

"Then why won't you  _tell him_  that?" Maya wondered.

"It's not that  _simple_ , May," you sighed.

"Why not?" Heidi spoke up, "You both like each other. What's the problem?"

"None of you live in the same cities, right?" you asked, earning a nod from all of them, "And you don't see each other when you're not here at camp, right?"

"No," they all said simultaneously, sad they couldn't live closer to their friends.

"Calum and I don't live near each other  _either_ ," you shook your head, your expression falling slightly, "I'm sure he'd rather have a girl he could see every day and not  _just_  for six weeks every summer."

"But my mom lets me talk to Heidi on the phone before bed," Maya said.

"And my mom lets me use her computer to Skype with Mitchy!" Mackenzie interjected.

"My dad said we're going to go visit Syd during winter break," Caroline added.

"We're still friends even though we don't live in the same places," Heidi said, "So you and Calum can still like each other too."

You smiled a bit, ultimately knowing they were right. Even if you didn't live in the same place and Calum, that didn't mean you were just going to stop having feelings for him.

"Thanks, guys," you said softly, "Now go to bed."

"You'll tell us what happened when we wake up tomorrow, won't you, Y/N?" Mackenzie asked you, burying herself under her blanket.

"Mhmm," you hummed with a nod, "And the faster you go to sleep, the faster you'll get to hear about it." They all giggled softly as you turned off the light and sat down on your bed, waiting for them to drift off.

~

40 minutes and 5 snoring girls later, you were sitting beside the unlit fire pit, waiting for Calum. It hadn't been that long since your campers fell asleep – the last one dozed off half an hour ago – leaving you sitting on a log and nervously bouncing your leg.

"Waiting for someone?" the voice behind you made you jump, your head snapping back to look at Calum. "Sorry," he chuckled, "Didn't mean to scare you." He held his hand out to you and you took it without second thought, letting him pull you to your feet. "You okay?" he asked, letting go of your hand only so he could tangle your fingers together and lead you to whatever he had planned for the night.

"I'm fine," you replied softly.

"You seem nervous," he commented. You only smiled.

"A few little  _birdies_  told me the same about  _you_ ," you informed him.

" _Really_?" he cocked an eyebrow, "And where did these ' _little birdies_ ' of yours hear  _that_?"

"Two  _other_  birdies who may or may not belong to a certain  _brown-haired boy_  I know."

"It was Mitchell and Chase, wasn't it?" he sighed, "Those two kids couldn't keep a secret if their lives  _depended_  on it. I  _knew_  I shouldn't have kept talking after I saw them hiding behind that tree." 

"You telling secrets about me?" you asked, squeezing his hand lightly.

"Well, I don't think it's any secret that you're the prettiest counselor this camp has ever had," he countered, "What  _might_  be a secret, though, is that I like you. A lot."

"I like you too, Cal," you whispered, making him look at you.

"That's good," he said, "But what am I supposed to do about my plan to woo you now?" He motioned to the picnic he had set up on the dock at the lake, a guitar lying on the blanket beside the basket. You simply shrugged, standing up on your toes to kiss his cheek.

"I could always like you  _more_ ," you said against his skin, feeling him smile before pulling away. Calum took you to the blanket and you both sat down across from each other.

~

"So why were you jumpy earlier?" Calum asked you.

You'd just finished eating the two slices of cake Calum had managed to convince the people working in the kitchen to let him have. You were sitting in his lap with his guitar in yours and he was trying to teach you how to play – although, you weren't  _quite_  catching on. You finally took your hands off of the instrument, leaning back against Calum's chest as he softly played a melody you'd never heard before.

"Thinking, I guess," you shrugged.

" _About_...?"

"Just something my campers said."

"What did they say?" he pushed.

"That we both like each other so what's the point in being nervous to admit it," you smiled slightly.

"Were you nervous I wouldn't have admitted it back?" Calum asked, making you shrug again. "Something else is bothering you, Y/N," he said, "And if it's something I can  _help_  with-"

"S' _not_ ," you swallowed.

"So what's got you so spaced out that I can't help with?"

"I  _really_  like you, Cal," you mumbled, "Maybe a little  _too much_."

"What's so bad about that?"

"Camp is over in three weeks," you shook your head, "Everyone's gonna leave here and you'll go home and I'll go home and we won't see each other until next summer and I just..."

"You think I should be with someone closer to home," he finished. You tilted your head to look at him and he smiled at you, "Looks like we confided the same things to our kids." He moved his guitar off to the side, sliding the pick into the pocket of the hoodie he'd given to you when it got a little cooler. "You know, princess-" The nickname made your heart flutter. "-for a bunch of 12-year-olds who still think girls have cooties, those boys of mine offered up some very useful advice."

"What advice was that?" you asked.

"They told me that if I had as much of an issue with the distance between us as I thought I did, I shouldn't tell you I like you," he recited what his campers had told him a couple hours ago. "I can't make that distance  _shorter_ , Y/N," he shook his head, "But I  _can_  make sure you never doubt how much I care about you even when I'm not  _right_  beside you." When Calum noticed the small smile on your face, he grinned in response. "So do you think you'd be up for giving us a chance?" he asked. You nodded, a barely audible ' _yeah_ ' coming from your mouth.

You both sat on the dock for a few more minutes until Calum randomly got up and walked to the grass.

"What are you doing?" you asked, turning around to find him pulling his shirt and sweatpants off, following it with kicking his sandals off of his feet.

"I'm going for a swim," he replied with a small smirk just before he was running back down the dock.

Calum cannonballed into the water, making sure he wasn't so close to you that you would get soaked, but just close enough to splash you. He resurfaced as you squealed.

"You coming or what?" he asked, wiping his eyes.

"Cal, it's  _freezing_!" you exclaimed quietly.

"You'll get used to it though!" he stuck his bottom lip out, " _Please_?"

"I don't go in the water without a life jacket, Calum," you shook your head, "You  _know_  I can't swim well."

" _I'll_  be your life jacket," he insisted.

"Cal..."

"Please? I promise I won't let anything happen to you." You looked at him and when you concluded that he really was going to take care of you, you stood up.

You went over to where his clothes were, peeling off your hoodie, t-shirt, and pajama shorts, leaving you in your bra and underwear. Calum wasn't exactly being subtle about staring at you as you took your flip flops off and made your way back to the edge of the dock, making you blush lightly. You stood there for a moment, prompting Calum to motion for you.

"Jump in," he told you.

"N-No," you said softly, "I don't wanna jump..."

"Then sit down," he instructed. You did and he swam over to you.

Since the dock wasn't that long, he was tall enough to stand on the lake's floor without any problem. He held his hands up to you and you put yours in them.

"Push yourself off," he said.

"Cal, I don't-"

"You're gonna be  _fine_ , princess," he assured you, "Just trust me." You watched him again for a few seconds before breathing in deeply and pushing yourself off of the dock and into the water.

Your head didn't go under but you weren't  _quite_  tall enough to reach the sand, so you started panicking. You began making whining noises, but they cut off when Calum wrapped your arms around his neck, moving his to your waist.

"You're okay, princess," he murmured, one arm wrapped around your waist and the other hand soothingly rubbing your side, "I've got you."

"It's c-c-cold," you shivered, making him smile.

"If you go under, it won't be as bad," he told you. You gave him a skeptical look, prompting him to continue. "No more than two seconds," he offered, "My feet are still on the ground, I won't let go of you, and I'll bring you back up right away." You nodded slowly and he gave you a countdown from 3.

When he hit 1, you both took a breath and went underwater, and as promised, he brought you right back up with him. You had a small coughing fit due to water getting in your nose, rubbing your eyes and looking at Calum.

"See?" he grinned, "Not so bad. We'll move on to deeper water some other time."

But Calum noticed it didn't look like you were paying the least bit attention of to what he was saying. And what  _else_  he noticed was – despite you not listening to what he said – you were glancing at his  _lips_  as he spoke.

"Princess," Calum said so lowly that you almost didn't catch it, causing you to look back at his eyes. He looked at you intently for a moment. "You're so  _beautiful_ , you know that?" he remarked. You felt your cheeks get hot, but you weren't able to get a word out as he kept going. "Can I kiss you?" he asked.

You felt your heart start pounding at the question but you sure as  _hell_  weren't about to say no. You nodded shyly and watched him lean in.

When you could feel his breath on your skin, your eyes fluttered shut and then his lips brushed yours. A small smile tugged at the corners of your mouth and when Calum felt it, he smiled as well. He then pressed his lips more firmly to yours, his hands holding your waist tightly underwater. One of your arms remained around his neck – acting as an anchor – while the other hand slid to his cheek.

You let out a small sigh just before pulling away for air, your thumb stroking his cheekbone as you both opened your eyes. He smiled widely at you, turning his head to kiss your palm.

"You have no idea  _how many_  summers I've been trying to make myself do that," he admitted, making you smile that time.

"You didn't plan for it happening  _in the_   _water_  though, did you?" you asked. He hummed confusedly in response and you giggled under your breath. "I was assuming that if you  _had_ , you would have thought to bring towels so we could dry off."

"Yeah..." he murmured, "That probably would have been a good idea..." You laughed again as Calum took you back to the dock, lifting you up onto it.

You laid down on your back after squeezing some water out of your hair, your legs still dangling over the edge, while he jumped up and sat beside you. He looked at you and then laid down as well, but he was on his side so he was facing you. His hand landed on top of your hip as he propped his head up with the other, his thumb rubbing your hipbone as he looked at you lovingly.

"You're  _so_  beautiful," he whispered. You simply smiled and lifted your hands up, putting them on his cheeks and pulling his face down to yours.

"You've said that already," you reminded him, feeling him chuckle lowly.

"I know," he said into the kiss, "Doesn't mean I can't say it again though – and again, and again, and again..." He punctuated each repetition with a kiss, making you giggle under your breath.

You and Calum stayed like that for a while – lying down on the dock and randomly kissing – until both of you were dry. Your clothes and hair obviously weren't fully dry yet, but you knew it was getting late and if you wanted a decent amount of sleep tonight, you unfortunately had to go back to your cabins. You tried to give Calum his hoodie back, but he told you to keep it, insisting it looked better on you anyway.

"I'll miss you, princess," Calum said as you approached the steps to your cabin.

"You'll see me in a few hours," you reminded him with a giggle.

"That's  _too far_   _away_ ," he pouted, letting go of your hand and wrapping his arms around your waist. Your own went around his neck as he pulled your body to his, his lips hitting your nose.

"Well, the faster you go to sleep, the faster morning will come and you'll get to see me again," you snickered.

"You tell that to your campers too?" he smirked.

"Did  _you_?" you cocked an eyebrow, a smile still on your face.

"They're excited to hear about how our date went."

"So are mine. But maybe we don't have to tell them about  _everything_..." you murmured, pressing your lips to his. You felt him laugh as he kissed you back, squeezing you lightly.

"I'll see you in the morning, princess," Calum mumbled, "And I expect the seat next to you to be empty when I get there."

"Better get there before someone  _else_  then," you challenged.

"Well, if you know what's  _good_  for you, you'll make sure it stays  _empty_."

"Is that a  _threat_  or a  _promise_?"

"I guess we'll find out in the morning," Calum grinned thoughtfully, pecking your lips again. He finally let go of you, walking backwards for a few steps. "Goodnight, princess," he said.

"Goodnight, Cal," you whispered, watching him turn around before walking up the steps of your cabin.

You quietly opened the door, softly shutting it behind you as to not wake up any of the girls. You tiptoed to the bathroom and grabbed a towel, beginning to dry your hair as best you could so you didn't soak your pillow.

After you were done, you hung the towel back on the hook behind the door and went to your bed. You looked around at the sleeping campers, then pulled the blanket up and laid down yourself. You couldn't help but smile before turning on your side facing the wall so you could go to sleep, not even noticing that every single girl you thought was asleep had smiled as well.

~

_inspiration: http://vaporofficial.tumblr.com/post/146564703038/reasons-why-michael-would-be-the-best-daddy-ever_


	346. Maybe Tonight (Luke Hemmings)

"I think I'm gonna  _throw up_ ," Luke mumbled, his hand squeezing yours.

"You're gonna  _kill it_ , Lu," you assured him, kissing his shoulder, "You  _always_  do."

"You're just  _saying_  that."

"Even if I  _were_  just saying it, it would still be  _true_ ," you stated firmly.

"Luke Hemmings!" a producer called out, making your boyfriend's breathing hitch.

You stood up, pulling him with you. He grabbed the neck of his guitar and you both followed the woman to the stage.

"You'll be  _fine_ , Lu," you whispered, holding onto him tightly, "I'll be right there cheering for you like I always do." You saw the corner of his mouth twitch as he barely smiled, making you smile as well.

"Hello, sir!" Nick Cannon chirped once you reached him, "What's your name?"

"Luke," he answered shyly.

"And who have you brought with you?"

"My girlfriend," he grinned lightly, as he always did when someone mentioned you.

"Well, Luke, get out there and show them what you've got!" Nick said.

Luke glanced at you and you reached up, kissing his cheek and telling him you loved him. He took a deep breath, put his guitar on his shoulder, and walked out onstage.

"Hello!" Howie smiled, "What's your name? Where are you from?"

"I'm Luke Hemmings," he said as confidently as he could, "I'm originally from Sydney, Australia but am currently living in Los Angeles."

"What do you do for a living, Luke?"

"Well, right now, I work in a music store."

"And I'm assuming you'll be singing since you've got a guitar with you?" Heidi asked.

"Yes, I will," he smiled bashfully.

"And what will you be singing?" Simon asked.

"I, uh... Well, I'm actually going to be singing a song I wrote for my girlfriend." You furrowed your eyebrows as you stared at him, earning a curious look from Mel.

"Is that your girlfriend right there?" she asked, pointing to you. Luke simply nodded. "It looks to me like she didn't know what you were going to be performing today."

"I never even told her I  _wrote this_ ," he replied nervously.

"Well, let's hear it!" she motioned for him to begin. Luke glanced at you before looking down and starting to play his guitar.

_Take me back to the middle of nowhere_   
_Back to the place only you and I shared_   
_Remember all the memories_   
_The fireflies and make-believe_

_Kicking back in the old school yard_   
_Singing songs on our guitars_   
_This is our reality_   
_Crazy, stupid you and me_

_We know this is the way it's supposed to be_

_So we're taking the long way home_   
_'Cause I don't wanna be wasting my time alone_   
_I wanna get lost and drive forever with you_   
_Talking about nothing, yeah, whatever, baby_   
_So we're taking the long way home_

_Hitting every red light_   
_Kissing at the stop signs, darling_   
_Green Day's on the radio_   
_And everything is alright_   
_Now we're turning off the headlights, darling_   
_We're just taking it slow_

_So we're taking the long way home_   
_'Cause I don't wanna be wasting my time alone_   
_I wanna get lost and drive forever with you_   
_Talking about nothing, yeah, whatever, baby_   
_So we're taking the long way home_

_Hitting every red light_   
_Kissing at the stop signs, darling_   
_Green Day's on the radio_   
_And everything is alright_   
_Now we're turning off the headlights, darling_   
_We're just taking it slow_

_We're taking the long way home_   
_We're taking the long way home_   
_We're taking the long way home_

As he finished playing his guitar and the audience cheered loudly, Luke looked over to you. You were in the middle of wiping your cheeks, but when you noticed him turn, you blew him a kiss. He smiled widely, knowing you liked the song, and turned back to the judges.

"Luke," Simon said, "I think that coming onto a stage like this and singing an  _original_  song can sometimes be very hit-or-miss." The blonde's heart started pounding, nervous to find out where the judge was going. "But I think – and it's clear that your girlfriend does as well – this was  _very much_  a hit," he nodded, "And I honestly don't think we need to hear from the other judges because..." He stood up and Luke's eyes widened.

You stood at the side of the stage, your hands covering your mouth as you waited for Simon to move. When he  _did_ , he leaned over in front of Heidi and slammed his hand down on the golden buzzer.

The whole audience screamed loudly as confetti flew all around Luke – and there was no doubt that both you  _and_  the boy onstage burst into tears. Luke looked over at you yet again and before anyone could even say anything, you were running out to him.

He was quick to move his guitar to rest on his back so your body could crash into his, both of you wrapping each other up in the tightest hugs you'd ever given.

"I'm so  _proud_  of you, Lu," you sobbed into his neck, feeling him smile through his tears.

"That was for  _you_ , princess," he told you, his voice shaky as he kissed your skin, "I did this for  _you_."

~

_Song used: "Long Way Home" by 5 Seconds of Summer_


	347. In An Instant (Ashton Irwin) - Part 3

 

You were being led down a hallway in the NCIS building, confused by the people smiling at you as you passed. Your sister had just left you with this man – Caleb – telling you it was okay to trust him.

But why  _would you_  trust him? You had  _no idea_  who he was,  _and_  he was leading you toward the door with ' _INTERROGATION_ ' written on it.

"Am I in trouble?" you wondered out loud. Caleb paused for a moment, looking at you in confusion.

"No, you're not in trouble," he said, "Why would you be in trouble?"

"Why would  _you_  be leading me to interrogation?" you countered.

"I'm just following orders, Y/N, and this is where I was told to take you." He opened the door for you, leading you in. He pulled out the chair for you, having you sit down.

"Agent Ryan," you spoke up as he was leaving, making him turn back around. "When can I go home?" you asked. He let out a breath, eyeing you for a moment.

"When I know, you'll know," he replied, closing the door behind him.

~

Not even 20 minutes later, you were joined again – but not by Agent Ryan. You jumped lightly when the door flung opened, your head snapping up.

You watched a brown-haired man stumble into the room with three other men not far behind him. They visibly sighed when they saw you, but it only made you  _more_  confused if anything.

" _Y/N_ ," the first man breathed.

"Yes..." you said slowly.

"Where have you  _been_?"

"Here, sir."

"Why are you calling me that?" he furrowed his eyebrows, "You've  _never_  called me that."

"I... I don't  _know you_ , sir," you answered. All four men froze, their eyes widening as they looked at each other.

Suddenly, three of them ran off, leaving you alone with the brunette.

"Am I being interrogated?" you asked as he closed the door, "Did I... Did I do something wrong?"

"Why do you think that?" he returned, looking at you curiously.

"This is an interrogation room, isn't it?" you asked, looking around, "I've seen them on TV."

" _TV_?" he shook his head, "Y/N, you've seen these rooms every day for the past  _four years_." The look of confusion you'd given him was enough to prompt him to walk over to you.

He leaned back on the table beside you, pulling something out of his pocket and putting it in front of you. You looked down at it, seeing your own face smiling back at you on an NCIS badge.

"You  _work here_ , Y/N," he informed you. You let out a confused laugh, shaking your head.

"I don't know  _what's_  going on here," you said, "But that's  _not_  mine."

"What do you  _mean_  it's not yours?"

"I don't work here, sir," you insisted, "I don't work  _anywhere_. I mean, I have a part-time job at McDonald's, but that's only because I'm trying to get through college. I literally just started school at GWU like, three months ago." The man stared at you for a moment before pulling his phone out of his pocket and scurrying out of the room.

**Luke's POV**

"Hey, Boss!" Luke said as Ashton walked into the room, "I-" The blonde cut himself off when his boss completely bypassed him and went into his office, the door loudly closing behind him. "Or not," he mumbled, slumping back in his seat.

"What'd you find, Hemmings?" Calum asked, coming over and leaning down to look at his computer.

"Well, that waitress that called about seeing Y/N Saturday night got her manager to send me the footage from the camera outside of who she was with," Luke answered, bringing up the recording, "The camera never got a clear shot of him – guy certainly knew what he was doing – but I was able to get a reflection off of a car window near the alley Y/N was found in." Calum was about to speak again, but they were interrupted.

"Hey, guys!" the men heard behind them, making them look up.

" _Matthew_?" Michael asked, "What are  _you_  doing here?"

"Ashton called," he furrowed his eyebrows, wondering why they seemed so surprised to see him, "Said something about needing me here right away. Since I was down the street getting lunch, I figured I'd run over here. It sounded pretty urgent." They looked between each other and Matthew before Calum spoke up.

"He's in his office," he told him.

Matthew nodded and jogged up the stairs, knocking on the door. After receiving the go-ahead to enter, he disappeared into the room, closing the door behind him.

**Ashton's POV**

"Two joggers found Y/N unconscious in an alley Saturday morning," Ashton explained to Matthew, letting him in on what was going on, "She had a large cut along her cheekbone – most likely from falling after she was struck on the back of the head. Hospital kept her for four days until Katie came and identified her. She called me this morning letting me know Y/N was found and that she would have her here by the time I got here. The latest memory Y/N has is from 2012 and she thinks she's still working toward her forensics degree."

"You mean she still thinks she's in  _college_?" Matthew asked in disbelief, "What  _happened_  to her?!"

"Your guess is as good as mine at this point," he sighed, putting his face in his palms and his elbows on his desk.

"Wait," he shook his head, "If she thinks she's still in college, that means..."

"The last four years of her life don't  _exist_  to her," he replied, his voice muffled slightly, "She doesn't know she works here, she doesn't know she's our forensic scientist..."

"And she doesn't know  _you_ ," Matthew finished when he trailed off, making him look up. "What can I do?"

"We know Y/N was with someone on Friday night and we know that whoever that is knows what happened to her," Ashton answered, "But we need someone working forensics. We obviously can't have Y/N do it because she thinks she's just started working toward her degree. Believe me, you're the  _last_  person I wanted to ask-" Matthew chuckled softly, nodding in agreement. "-but Y/N wouldn't trust  _anyone_  in her lab but  _you_. I am  _sincerely_  asking for your help here, Matt," Ashton swallowed, "I just want her  _back_..."

"You know I can't bring her memory back, Ashton," Matthew said softly, "But I  _will_  find the bastard that did this to her."

~

**Your POV**

Your head swayed side to side lightly as you hummed a tune in your head, doing anything to keep yourself entertained. You  _still_  had no idea why you were in an NCIS interrogation room with a badge that had your photo on it sitting in front of you.

The door finally opened again after nearly 25 minutes, making you sigh in relief. When you looked at who was standing there, your face lit up.

" _Matty_!" you cheered, jumping up from your seat as he walked over to you.

You looked behind him and noticed the brown-haired man from earlier leaning back against the wall, staring at you. You went to hug Matthew, but he grabbed your shoulders and stopped you, making you frown.

" _Matty_ ," you pouted.

"Y/N, do you know what you're doing here?" Matthew asked you.

" _No_ ," you sighed, "No one will  _tell me_."

"Do you know what year it is?"

"It's 2012," you shook your head, confused as to why he was asking you.

"No, Y/N, it's not; It's 2016," he told you. Your eyebrows furrowed again in frustration.

"I don't know what's going on, but it is  _not_  2016," you stated, "I still haven't  _graduated_! Neither have  _you_!"

"Yes, I have, Y/N," he insisted, "I graduated in 2012 –  _just like you did_."

" _No_ _,_ _I didn't_!" you said loudly, pushing his hands off of you, " _I_  didn't graduate and  _you_  didn't graduate and we're dating and-"

"We're not  _together_  anymore, Y/N!" he said, grabbing your face to make you look at him, "You broke up with me the week before graduation!"

"I-I wouldn't  _do_  that," you shook your head.

"Yes, you  _would_ ," he responded, "And you  _did_."

"No, I  _didn't_! I  _love you_!" The man standing in the hall let out a breath before quickly walking away, causing Matthew to sigh.

"Do you want to know  _why_  you broke up with me?" he asked simply.

"I didn't-"

"I cheated on you," he interrupted bluntly, making your heart skip a beat. Your eyes started to get watery, making him sigh again. "I cheated on you," he repeated softly, wiping your face, "And you found out about it and you handled it  _a lot_  more calmly than you ever  _should have_ -" He chuckled under his breath. "-I wasn't  _good_  to you, Y/N; I wasn't good  _for_  you. And I'll  _never_  understand why you put up with the way I treated you for as  _long_  as you did." He continued to wipe your face as more tears fell. "We are not together anymore," he told you, "You graduated college, got your degree, and immediately started working at NCIS. You've helped solve every single case given to you and you are the best damn forensic scientist this country has ever  _seen_. You've been working here for four years and you've been dating a man who's been  _far_  better to you than I  _ever_  could be."

"Who?" you whispered hoarsely.

"You know the man that was just standing out in the hallway?"

"I can't be dating  _him_!" you squeaked, "I don't even know his  _name_!" Matthew smiled slightly.

"His name is Special Agent Ashton Irwin."

"He  _works here_?" your eyes widened, "I'm dating a  _co-worker_?"

"There are no  _rules_  against dating a co-worker at NCIS, Y/N," he laughed.

"But that's... And he's... I wouldn't date a  _co-worker_!" you insisted.

"You would if you  _loved him_ , Y/N," he told you, "You love him more than  _anything_. And Ashton loves you  _too_. I can't make your memory  _come back_ , Y/N," he spoke firmly so you knew he was being serious, "But I'm gonna make sure you know who  _took it_  from you."

You barely nodded, "C-Can I see Ashton?" He smiled again. He grabbed your badge off the table and lifted the bottom hems of your shirt and hoodie up slightly, attaching it to the belt loop of your jeans.

"Come on," he said, putting his hand on your back, "I'll take you to his office."

**Ashton's POV**

"Come in!" Ashton called out when there was another knock on his door. He looked up as it opened, jumping to his feet when he saw who was coming in. " _Y/N_ ," he breathed. His eyes flicked to Matthew who nodded his head as he ushered you in, heading to your lab to do what was asked of him. "S-Sit down," Ashton motioned to the chair in front of his desk, waiting until you were seated before sitting back down himself.

Things were silent for a moment – you opened and closed your mouth multiple times and Ashton wasn't sure whether he should speak first or not. But he didn't have to.

"So we're dating..." you said, although it was posed more as a question.

"Yeah," Ashton said with a small smile, turning a photo of the two of you around so you could see it, "Almost been a year." You smiled slightly at his grin, knowing he must  _really_  love you.

"I'm sorry," you whispered suddenly, making him tilt his head.

"Why are you sorry?"

"Because I..." you let out a frustrated sigh, feeling like you were going to cry again, "I don't remember graduating! I don't remember working here! I don't remember  _you_!"

"Y/N," he said, quickly getting up and going around his desk. He knelt down in front of you, putting his hands on your face and wiping your cheeks with his thumbs. "That is  _not_  your fault," he promised you.

"But I can't  _remember_ ," you whimpered.

"You can't remember because someone doesn't  _want you to_ ," Luke said, entering the room. You looked up, seeing one of the men that had followed Ashton into the interrogation room earlier that day.

Ashton took his hands off your face, turning to look at the blonde.

"What does that mean, Hemmings?" he asked.

"Found out who she was with," he replied, handing him a folder. Ashton opened it as Luke kept talking. "Name's Lieutenant Marcus Rogers."

"I've seen him before," Ashton shook his head.

"Yes, you have, Boss," Luke nodded, "He's been in the navy for 5 years and was nearly dishonorably discharged two months ago after he was arrested for sexual assault, but the judge had to let him go free."

"Why?"

"You remember when our systems were hacked?"

"Yeah..." he said, finally piecing it together, "Three weeks ago..."

"Once we got everything back up, only  _Lieutenant Rogers'_  files were gone. As far as the judge was concerned-"

Ashton cut him off, "We had no evidence against him."

" _Exactly_ ," Luke nodded, "But erasing the files wasn't  _enough_  – Y/N could have  _easily_  gotten them back or redone everything. So he followed her for a couple weeks, got to know her schedule, and Friday night-"

"He made sure she couldn't remember  _anything_ ," he whispered, looking back up at you. You were just staring at him and Luke with the same confused expression that had been on your face the whole morning. "Hemmings," Ashton said.

"Yes, Boss?" Luke replied instantly.

"Bring Lieutenant Rogers in for questioning," he ordered, "I want to speak with him after lunch."

" _After_ lunch? Lunch isn't for another couple hours. What are we supposed to do before then?"

"Let him sit," he replied with a coy smile, "I'm sure Y/N's getting a little hungry."

Ashton stood up, offering his hand out to you. You looked at it for a moment before allowing yourself to smile and take his hand. He pulled you out of your chair and led you to the door.

"Uh, Boss..." Luke said.

"Clifford!" Ashton called out since he was at the door. The blonde perked up, looking up at his boss's office, getting up when he nodded for him to come over. "This is Michael," he told you as the agent approached, "He's gonna show you where the elevator is. I'll be right there, okay?" You nodded and let Michael take you away from the office. "Yes, Hemmings?" he turned back to him.

"Um... Why exactly is this waiting until  _after_  lunch?" Luke asked him. Ashton let out a soft chuckle, shrugging his shoulders.

"I can't bring her memory back, Luke," he answered, his eyes never leaving you, "But I  _can_  make sure she falls in love with me again."

" _Please_ ," Luke scoffed, earning a raised eyebrow from his boss. He simply smiled, "Even though she doesn't remember you, she still looks at you like she always does." He walked past Ashton to leave. "It's  _sickening_ , really," he commented, returning back to his desk. Ashton tried to hide the growing smile on his face at first, but once he realized it was no use, he just closed his office door and walked over to you, ready to take you to out.

~

After eating your early lunch, Ashton took you to what he said was your favorite place in  _all_  of D.C. It was a lookout point about a mile from the NCIS building along the Anacostia River.

You were sitting on a bench beside Ashton as you stared out at the water – your mind racing – when Ashton nudged your knee with his own. You looked up at him and he was looking at you with the same curious look he'd given you every time you were lost in thought throughout lunch.

"What're you thinking about?" he asked you.

"Not much to think about when the last four years of your life suddenly don't exist anymore," you replied softly.

"They still  _exist_ , Y/N," he shook his head, "Maybe you can't  _remember_  them, but they didn't just  _disappear_."

"Then how do  _I_  get them back?" you choked.

Ashton's hand latched onto your thigh and he squeezed gently. He gave you a shy laugh with another shake of his head.

"I don't know," he answered honestly, "But I promise, we're gonna do it  _together_  if you'll let me help you." You couldn't help but giggle, making Ashton smile.

"Your girlfriend doesn't even  _remember you_  and you're not even mad about it," you commented.

"Well, it's like I always tell you: I could  _never_  be mad at you, baby girl," he leaned over and kissed your cheek, making you blush and scrunch your face up happily.

Ashton smiled again when he felt yours, pulling away to look at you. But his smile faded slightly and he cleared his throat.

"I guess... Maybe I  _shouldn't_  call you that..." he said lowly, "Since you don't even remember me... The last thing I wanna do is make you uncomfortable."

"It's okay, Ashton," you murmured, wiggling your hand underneath the one on your thigh, lacing your fingers with his, "I mean, you're my  _boyfriend_. Maybe acting the way you normally would will help me remember everything again."

"Well, if we're doing everything the way we  _normally_  would..." Ashton trailed off, releasing your hand.

He grabbed your legs and pulled them over his own, then taking the hand closest to him and wrapping it around his neck. He then laid his arm closest to you on the back of the bench, finishing it off with tangling your fingers together and holding your hand in your lap. You giggled softly and, without any prompting from Ashton, laid your head on his shoulder. He pressed a kiss to the top of your head, feeling you let out a sigh of content.

"This is already  _a lot_  better than when I was with  _Matthew_ ," you mumbled, making Ashton laugh loudly and kiss your head again.  

Only a few minutes passed before Ashton's phone started ringing in his pocket. He groaned under his breath, letting go of your hand to take it out, his groan only getting louder when he saw who was calling.

"Someone better be  _dying_ , Hemmings," Ashton said, making you snort softly.

"Well... Not yet, but I think we're  _getting there_..." Luke said.

"What does  _that_  mean?"

"Lieutenant Rogers is threatening to sue if we keep making him wait."

"Well, that won't hold up in court," Ashton shook his head, "We can legally hold him for up to 48 hours without questioning him  _once_."

"Yeah, I know, but... He's already tried to hit Calum twice and I'm pretty sure if Calum and I hadn't held him back, he would have tried to snap Michael's neck, so..." Ashton closed his eyes, letting out a long sigh.

"I'll be right there," he told Luke, "Be in the observation room."

"Yes, Boss," Luke nodded, hanging up his phone.

"I'm really sorry, but we have to go back now," Ashton murmured as his lips hit your forehead. You laughed lightly, lifting your head up.

"You have a job to do, Ashton," you shrugged, "It's not gonna get done if you're just sitting here with me, now is it?" He responded by prodding at your sides gently, making you squeal and giggle loudly.

When he stopped, you took your legs off of his, letting him stand up. He took your hand and pulled you up as well, leading you to his car so he could take you back to NCIS.

~

Ashton opened the door to the observation room, letting you go in first. Luke, Michael, Calum, and Matthew were already there, all of them looking at the door when you came in.

"Hey, guys," you smiled politely, receiving a chorus of ' _Hi, Y/N_ 's in return.

"So he did it, right?" Ashton asked, taking the folder Luke was holding out to him.

"I went over all of the forensics  _three times_ ," Matthew replied, "There's no doubt in my mind he's guilty."

"Alright," he nodded before looking at you, "I'll be back in a few minutes." You nodded and he kissed your forehead again before leaving and closing the door behind him, only to enter the room you were all looking into a couple seconds later.

"Well, well, well. It's nice to see you again, Special Agent Irwin," Marcus smiled slyly, leaning back in his chair, "I heard about what happened to that forensics girl this weekend. It's a shame, really. I'm sure you'll find another one though. Maybe even a  _better_  one. You never know."

"Is there another forensic scientist here?" you asked the men around you.

"No..." Luke replied, "It's just you." Your eyebrows furrowed together as you turned back toward the glass.

"Then why is he talking about me like I'm  _dead_?"

"Because he thinks you  _are_..." Matthew trailed off in realization.

"Do you know why you're here, Lieutenant?" Ashton asked dryly.

"Well, I'm assuming it's about those files your forensics girl lost," Marcus leaned back in his chair, "Other than that, I have no clue."

"Don't you think it's a little strange that the  _only_  files taken off her computer were  _yours_? And don't you think it's a little strange that two weeks after those files were gone that someone attacked her while she was walking home? And don't you think it's a little strange that  _no one_  in your unit can provide you with an alibi for that night?"

"It's not my fault I spend most of my nights alone," he shrugged, "You'll learn to get used to it."

" _Will I_?" Ashton asked monotonously, tapping the mirror behind him, "Why's that?" Calum immediately led you out into the hallway, standing beside the door to the interrogation room. You couldn't see the men anymore, but you could still hear them.

"Well, everyone knows that you had a  _thing_  going on with that girl," Marcus replied, "And since she's gone, I'm guessing you'll be having a tough time getting used to an empty place...quiet rides to and from work...dinners for one...an empty side of the bed..." Ashton breathed in deeply, letting it out slowly.

"I don't think I'll have too much trouble," he said.

"Why do you think that?" he smirked as Calum opened the door, "She gonna come back to life?"

"You could always ask her  _yourself_ ," Ashton stated, and Marcus's head shot up to look at you. He walked to the door, nodding at Calum. "Hood," he said, motioning behind him as a signal for the agent to take Marcus out of the building.

Ashton held his arm up to lead you back out, but you found yourself crashing into him and wrapping your arms around his torso. He was understandably surprised at first, but he hugged you back regardless. You could sense his hesitation though, prompting you to tilt your head on his chest so you could look at him.

"He tried to  _kill me_?" you whispered despite the fact that you knew the lieutenant couldn't hear you.

" _No_ ," Ashton shook his head quickly, "No, he just-"

"He was talking about me like I was  _dead_ , Ashton!" you squeaked, releasing your grip on him so you could look at him properly, "He thought he  _killed me_! He  _wanted_  me to die that night! He tried to-" It was Ashton's turn to cut you off, but instead of speaking, he grabbed your face and smashed your lips against his.

And, in total movie-cliché fashion, every single memory you'd been missing rushed back to you.

But you didn't kiss him back or even give him a sign that your memory had returned. You simply pushed him off of you and ran down the hallway, leaving him as confused as he'd ever felt before.

However, you suddenly stopped abruptly and turned back around, running back to him and grabbing his face yourself, bringing it to yours.

"I love you, Ash," you murmured into his mouth before immediately leaving once again.

Ashton stood there for a moment in shock, wondering if what just happened was all in his head or not. When he realized it  _wasn't_  though, he allowed himself to smile widely and chase after you, following you to your lab.

The moment you burst into the room, Matthew, Michael, Luke, and Calum – who had just entered the room not long before – jumped, their heads snapping over to see you coming in. They had no idea what to say, but the look on Ashton's face as he appeared in the doorway said it all for them.

You went over to Matthew – who was standing at your computer – and practically shoved him out of the way. You were typing intently for not even a full minute before you were whispering to yourself.

"Come on," you bounced on your feet, "Come on, come on,  _come on_." After clicking a few buttons and opening a couple folders, you smiled, spinning around to face the men. "And  _that_  is how you get some worthless lowlife's files back!" you cheered, throwing your arms up in celebration.

"Wait..." Calum trailed off, "What's going on?"

"Are you back...?" Michael asked slowly, "Are you  _you_  again?"

"You remember at the Christmas party last year when you-" Michael cut you off by bringing you into a tight hug.

"Finish that sentence and I'll  _kill you_ ," he mumbled into your hair, but there was no doubt he was happy you were your old self again.

"Actually, I think I'm good with the encounters with death for the next few months," you replied as you hugged Calum and Luke as well, then moved onto Matthew. "And thank you for not letting me kiss you earlier," you shuddered slightly, "That is a road I do  _not_  want to go down again." He laughed loudly, kissing the top of your head before letting go of you.

"My pleasure," he told you, shaking his head. Ashton moved in front of you, giving you the signature dimpled smile you fell in love with.

"I'll go get Lieutenant Rogers back to interrogation," Calum said quickly.

"I'll call the courthouse," Luke chirped.

"I'll go home," Matthew followed them out of the room.

"I'll go do literally anything else," Michael grinned slyly, knowing what was about to happen.

The blonde made sure to close the door behind him, but it hadn't even closed all the way by the time you were lifted onto your desktop with your boyfriend's lips back on yours. You giggled into the kiss, tangling your fingers in his hair while his hands held your hips tightly.

To say Ashton was happy to have you back was a  _huge_  understatement. He had spent the  _entire_  morning wondering what it would be like if your memory was gone for a week or a month or the rest of your life, and to know that he no longer had to worry about that was a  _major_  breath of fresh air. Of course, he would have stuck by you no matter  _what_  outcome, but he'd be lying if he said he wasn't  _relieved_  that you remembered everything about the last four years again.

"I've missed you  _so much_ , baby girl," Ashton murmured.

"Why? I've been here the whole time," you smirked, feeling him kiss you harder.

" _Shut up_ ," he replied, making you giggle under your breath.

"I love you, Ashton," you told him. He instantly smiled, beyond relieved to be hearing you say those words again.

"I love  _you_ , Y/N," he whispered, squeezing your hips and pulling you closer.


	348. Ring Pops and Lifesavers (Michael Clifford)

**Age 6**

"My mum said that she and my dad are best friends and that's why they got married," the boy sitting across the table from you explained, "And you're  _my_  best friend, so does that mean  _we_  should get married too?" You tilted your head in thought before looking at him curiously.

"What do married people do?" you asked. Michael took a moment to think himself.

"I don't know," he shrugged, "I think they just have sleepovers every night and eat together and hold hands and stuff."

"Well, we do that stuff too," you mentioned.

"Then are we  _already_  married?" he asked with slightly wide eyes.

"I don't think so," you shook your head, "My mum and dad have rings they wear all the time, but  _we_  don't."

"We should get some then."

"How do we do that? Dad said it took him  _two years_  to save money for Mum's ring."

Michael began digging through his backpack, pulling out his lunchbox. He opened it, searching until he found what he was looking for. He opened the package at an angle you couldn't see, only to smile when he revealed what he was holding. He held out the cherry-flavored Ring Pop to you, a goofy grin on his face.

"Will you marry me?" he asked.

You immediately went into your own backpack, pulling out a pack of gummy Lifesavers. You dug out a bright blue one and held it out to Michael.

"Only if  _you'll_  marry  _me_ ," you said.

You both giggled and nodded to answer each other's questions. Michael put the Ring Pop on your finger and you put the Lifesaver on his as you continued your giggling fits.

"I'm happy we're married now," Michael told you, leaning forward and kissing your cheek. You smiled brightly, kissing his cheek in return.

"Me too, Mikey," you replied.

~

**Age 17**

You looked back on elementary school fondly, grateful you had a friend like Michael throughout those years. But as all the stories go, the two of you started drifting apart in middle and high school.

It had nothing to do with either of you, really; The two of you just started hanging out with different people – Michael found a small group of friends who shared his love of music, and you had friends who shared your passion for writing. You and Michael would talk in the hallway every now and then when you would see each other between classes or before and after school, but other than that, you didn't spend too much time together outside of the building.

You wouldn't be the last person to say you missed him, but what could you do? You both had other things going on and as much as you wanted to see him more, you just didn't have the time – and when you  _did_ , Michael was always busy with something. So you just gradually stopped trying. You didn't want to –  _God_ , you really didn't want to – but maybe things with Michael just weren't meant to be.

~

**Age 22**

Fate, however, seemed to have other plans for the two kids who had been partners in crime since they were in diapers.

Michael had started a band with his three best friends when they were in high school. They never really got much attention, but they would play shows at small venues and parks around Sydney.

And that was how you reconnected.

You'd decided to go to an open mic night that one of the venues was hosting, not even  _knowing_  that Michael's band would be there. You were sitting at a table off to the side, but you could still see the stage perfectly.

When the band was announced and Michael walked out with his friends, your heart started racing. His eyes immediately found yours and he smiled, his whole face lighting up when he saw that you were there. You smiled back as they began to play their first song, tapping your foot along to beat of Ashton's drumming.

It wasn't until every performer had gone that you saw Michael again.

It was nearly an hour later and you were walking out to your car to head home when you heard someone calling your name. You turned to find Michael sprinting toward you.

You both talked for a few minutes – leaving with each other's phone numbers – and he even ended up asking if he could take you on a date the next night. He seemed incredibly surprised to hear you accept, but he was happy about it nonetheless.

You'd been on countless dates before, but none of them felt as  _effortless_  as your date with Michael. You mostly talked about what you'd been doing with your lives since school – he told you about the struggles he was going through with the band and you discussed working in retail since you couldn't really find a job to do with writing.

But no matter what you talked about, you always ended up back at the same point: that you were incredibly regretful that you let your friendship fall through the cracks all those years ago.

You couldn't say it was  _all_  that terrible though; Maybe a fallout  _had to_  occur to help you both realize how much you needed each other.

~

**Age 25**

It had been three years since you and Michael reconnected. After that date you spent catching up, he asked you if you would be up for going on another date – something you immediately agreed to. And you've been dating ever since.

Michael and his band mates – Luke, Calum, and Ashton – had become some of your  _closest_  friends, having them constantly asking why you didn't hang out in high school. You would simply shrug, telling them all that mattered was that you were in each other's lives  _now_ – it wasn't like you could go back in time and  _change_  anything, right?

It was a casual autumn day – you and Michael were at the park, enjoying the sunshine while having a picnic. He'd insisted on going out that afternoon – which was quite  _unusual_  for him since he would typically rather stay  _indoors_ , but you weren't going to complain. You were always trying to coax him out of the apartment and the fact that you didn't have to beg him today was a major  _accomplishment_  in your book.

Michael had brought his childhood lunchbox and you instantly started laughing when you saw it, surprised he'd even kept it. You two mainly just reminisced about when you would do this as kids, hanging out in one of your parents' backyards and pretending you were having a picnic in the park like you would see adults do sometimes.

After you were done eating, Michael had propped himself up on his hands while you were lying back against his chest, your head tucked comfortably underneath his chin. You were sitting near the playground, giggling every time one of you saw something a kid was doing that reminded you of yourselves.

You felt Michael start moving around, and you heard him pull something out of his lunchbox. The crinkly sound was all too familiar, but you smiled regardless when a cherry-flavored Ring Pop was placed in the hands on your lap. You tilted your head up to look at Michael and he stuck his tongue out at you, making you giggle.

"You gonna  _propose_  to me again?" you teased. The blonde boy simply smiled at you, kissing your forehead before you looked back down and opened the package.

You reached in to pull out the candy, but were surprised when you didn't feel anything. You looked inside the wrapped and your heart stopped as you lost your breath.

Michael's hand took yours and he tilted the wrapper down toward his open palm. You watched the small diamond ring fall into his hand before he took the wrapper from your hand and put it down by your leg. He took your hand and had you turn to face him so he could look at you properly.

"To answer your question, princess:  _yes_ , I'm going to propose to you again," Michael told you. You looked back up at him with tears in your eyes and he just smiled lovingly at you. "I can't tell you how  _often_  I look back on the time we drifted apart and kick myself for ever letting you get away from me. I know we were only 14 when it happened, but there wasn't a day that went by over those eight years that I didn't miss you more than anything. You have no idea how happy you make me, princess, and every day, I think I fall more in love with you. The last time I did this, we were 6-years-old and didn't really know what marriage meant – and I  _still_  don't fully understand, to be honest-" He chuckled softly. "-but I know that whatever it means, I want to experience it with  _you_. So, Y/N, will you marry me?" he asked, "For  _real_  this time?" You could barely see him through the waterworks, so you wiped your eyes the best you could.

"Only if  _you'll_  marry  _me_ ," you replied softly, your voice coming out a bit shaky. Michael grinned widely, his face lighting up when he realized you were saying yes.

He took your hand and slid the ring down your finger. The moment he let go, your hands were on his face and you pulled him to you, pressing your lips together. Michael's arm wrapped around your waist while his other hand landed on your thigh, squeezing your skin through your jeans.

You pulled away only to slide your arms around his neck and bury your face into his shoulder. You felt him laugh lightly as the hand that was on your thigh moved up to meet his other around your waist, pulling you onto his lap. Your legs went around his waist, clinging onto him like a koala.

"I love you, Mikey," you sniffled, squeezing him gently. You felt him smile against your skin when his lips hit the top of your jaw.

"I love  _you_ , princess," he murmured in your ear.


	349. Back to You (Calum Hood) *

**Warning: Swearing, mental breakdowns, mention of attempted suicide**

~

"Hey, baby girl," Calum said, confusion in his voice when he answered your call, "You okay? Isn't it like,  _2:30_  back home?"

"I can't fucking  _do it_ , Cal," you stated bitterly, not even bothering to correct him on the time being  _much_ later than he thought, "I'm dropping out of school and working in fast food for the rest of my life because I  _can't fucking do this anymore_."

"Y/N, you  _know_  that's not true," he told you, "You just need to take a break from your books right now. Why don't you go take a bath to relax and just go to sleep? You'll feel better."

"No, I  _won't_ , Calum. When I wake up in the morning, this shit will  _still_  be on the desk and I'll still be too  _stupid_  to understand any of it and I'll  _fail_  the exam and-"

"Y/N," he cut you off, "You are the  _smartest_  person I know and I am  _not_  going to sit here and let you put yourself down like this. You  _are_  going to pass your exam and you're going to get the highest marks in the class –  _I know you are_."

"Oh,  _whatever_ , Mr. dropped-out-of-school-to-form-a-world-famous-band-with-my-friends-and-tour-the-entire- _fucking_ -planet," you snapped.

Calum let out a deep sigh, "What are you  _really_  upset about, baby girl?" You were silent for a moment before swallowing thickly.

"I want you to  _come home_ ," your voice broke and you felt the tears start falling, "I want you to come back to me. I miss waking up next to you and falling asleep beside you and making breakfast with your arms around my waist and arguing with you over what movie to watch and what pizza to order on date night and everything stopped smelling like you 5 months ago and I just...  _I miss you_."

"I miss you too, princess," he whispered, clearly trying not to get choked up himself, "I miss you so much, it fucking  _hurts_. I want to help you relax and pull you away from your books when you're feeling like this. I want to be there and tell you how beautiful you look after you just wake up and I want to sing you all your favorite songs when you can't sleep. I want to be able to be home more or take you on tour with me because I hate when you do this to yourself, Y/N –  _you know I do_. You know this is just as hard for me and I'm trying  _so hard_  to be strong for you and remember that I'll be home soon and I'll get to hug you and kiss you and touch you again. I'm  _always_  going to come back to you, baby girl, but you have to promise me you'll  _be there_."

"I promise, Cal," you said in a barely audible voice, but he somehow still heard it.

"Please put your books away for the night, princess," he begged, "Just turn off the light, climb into bed, and go to sleep."

"But I have to study..."

"How about if you go to bed right now, I'll sing to you?" he offered.

" _Vapor_?" you asked quietly.

"Yeah, princess," you heard him smile slightly, "I'll sing  _Vapor_  for you. Just go brush your teeth and put your PJs on and let me know when you're ready." You did as exactly he asked, getting up and setting your phone on your nightstand.

After brushing your teeth, you peeled off everything but your underwear and slipped on one of Calum's shirts before climbing under your blanket.

"Cal?" you asked, making sure he was still there.

"You ready, princess?" he asked. You hummed in response, putting the call on speaker and setting your phone on the mattress beside the pillow.

Halfway through the song, you fell asleep. Despite the fact that Calum knew this when he heard your light snoring, he finished singing the rest anyway.

He went quiet for a few minutes, just listening to the unconscious sounds you were making before he had to go to sound check.

"Goodnight, baby girl," he said even though he knew you couldn't hear him, "I love you."

~

**Calum's POV; Two weeks later**

The boys stepped into the airport in Sydney for the first time in nearly 8 months, all of them happy to be home. Calum was eager to find you, wanting nothing more than to hold you in his arms again.

You were supposed to meet Calum's sister at the gate an hour ago, but when she came into view and you weren't standing with her, he was understandably confused.

"Where's Y/N?" Calum asked, furrowing his eyebrows as they approached the blonde girl. He hugged his sister tightly before she let go to hug the other boys.

"She texted me last night and said she was going to meet me here," she told him, "But I didn't hear from her this morning. I tried texting her, but she never answered."

" _Oh, God_ ," he murmured, picking up his bags, "I've gotta get home."

"Cal, come on!" she hurried before he ran out of the building to catch a cab, "I'm taking everyone else home already anyway! What's wrong? Is she okay?"

"No," Calum sighed as the group rushed to the parking garage where Mali's car was parked, "She called a couple weeks ago and she was having a breakdown. School's been really stressful for her and she's been needing me at home but I haven't been able to find a couple days to fly back."

It was obvious he was blaming himself, thinking it was his fault for being away from you so much. Everyone else looked at each other before they all piled into the car.

"Cal, we would have been fine with rescheduling shows or finding someone to fill in for you to come back home for a while to be with Y/N," Ashton told him, putting his hand on Calum's shoulder since he was sitting in the front passenger seat.

"Yeah, Cal," Luke spoke up, "Shows and tickets are  _replaceable_ ; Your girlfriend  _isn't_." Michael finally spoke as well, looking at the girl in the driver's seat.

"You should just go straight to Cal's, Mal," he said thoughtfully, "Y/N probably needs him right now more than we do." Mali simply smiled slightly, nodding in agreement.

~

45 minutes later, Mali pulled into your apartment building's parking lot, driving right up to the door.

"Hey, Cal!" she caught his attention before he closed the door, "Tell her that if she ever needs someone when she can't get ahold of you, she has my number."

"Thank you, sis," Calum sighed gratefully, closing the door. He quickly grabbed his bags from the trunk, waving at everyone as Mali drove away and ran into the building.

It seemed like the elevator took ten times as long to reach the fifth floor that morning, but when it finally did, the doors hadn't even opened fully before Calum was bolting down the hallway. He dug his key out of his pocket, shakily unlocking the door.

He didn't know what state to expect you in or if you'd cried yourself to back sleep or if you'd even gotten up yet that morning  _at all_. He didn't have to wonder for  _too_  long though, because he could hear your soft whimpers echoing off the walls in the bathroom as soon as he entered the apartment.

Calum quietly closed the door behind him, set his bags down, and cautiously approached the room. The bathroom door was cracked slightly and when he pushed it open all the way, his heart broke. You were sitting on the floor with your back to the tub and your knees curled up to your chest.

"Oh,  _princess_ ," Calum murmured as he went over to you.

Your head snapped up at the sound of his voice and he saw how bloodshot and tired your eyes were. He snaked his arms behind your back and under your legs, easily picking you up. Your arms wound around his neck, hugging him tightly as you started crying harder.

"Y-Y-You're ho-ome," your voice cracked through your sobs. You felt Calum hold you a little closer as he flicked the bathroom light off and carried you into your bedroom.

"I told you, baby girl," he mumbled, his lips pressed to your shoulder, "I'm always coming back to you."

Calum set you back on your feet for a moment so he could climb onto the bed and pull you down so you were lying on top of him. His hands slipped under the shirt you were wearing so he could rub your back.

"I mi-missed you," you sniffled, nuzzling your face into the skin of his neck, breathing in the scent you'd been needing for the last eight months.

"I've missed you too, princess," he sighed, kissing the side of your head, "It's been killing me knowing you needed me and not being able to come home until now."

"It's n-not y-your fault, Ca-Cal," you reminded him, "Y-You're just do-doing your job."

"You come  _first_ , baby girl," he told you, "You  _always_  come first."

"What ab-about when you s-said music and the f- _fans_  were m-most important?" you furrowed your eyebrows, tilting your head to look at him. He gave you a small smile, pressing a kiss to your lips.

"I know I said that," he whispered, his lips still brushing against yours, "But do you remember the first time you broke down after I left for tour and you tried to-"

"I re-remember, Cal," you replied, really not wanting to relive it.

"It was that moment that I realized that I can always make music and fans will always be there, but there is only  _one_  of you," he hugged you tightly, "And there's  _nothing_  I won't do to keep you here with me for as long as I  _possibly_  can." You breathed in and out shakily, swallowing the lump in your throat.

"I l-love you," you choked out.

"I love you too, princess," he said, his heart breaking at the sight of what your mind had been doing to you while he was gone, "No matter what your doubts tell you, I will  _always_  love you."

~

_inspiration: http://5sossexblog.tumblr.com/post/127463516888/your-life-seems-to-be-falling-apart-and-even_


	350. Trust Fund Kids (Michael Clifford)

It was just another Wednesday night – you were tidying up the messy shelves of clothing in the store you worked at, eager for closing time. You worked nearly every night with little pay to show for it, but you loved your job and the people you worked with more than anything.

You could be living the high life – your father owned one of the biggest companies Sydney had ever  _seen_  – but you walked away from it all the moment you turned 18. Your mother was no longer in the picture, having left when you were only 7, so it had always just been you and your dad.

But now, it was just you.

Your father... Well, to be honest, he wasn't a very  _good_  one.

You often found yourself eating dinner alone, figuring out your homework for yourself, and reading yourself bedtime stories since the day your mom left. At first, you didn't understand why she did it, but as you got older, it became more and more clear. Your dad was always more concerned with work and the company than he was with you, and you finally realized the day you left why your mother had done the same.

10 minutes before the end of your shift, you found yourself sighing when you heard the bell above the door ring, signaling someone had entered. But you put on a smile and turned toward the person who came in.

"Hello!" you greeted them cheerfully, "Is there anything I can help you with this evening?"

"Yes, actually," the blonde boy nodded, coming over to you, "I have this thing I have to go to tomorrow and I need a nice shirt, but like, not one that says ' _I really want to be here right now_ ', you know?"

"Oh, absolutely," you replied, "We actually just set up that section today." The boy rolled his eyes with a smile as you led him to a shelf of shirts in the men's section of the store. "These are probably your best bet," you told him, "They're comfortable, but they're still nice enough to get away with wearing them to formal events."

"It's the pocket, isn't it?" he asked, taking a white shirt from the top of the pile and holding it in front of him.

"It's  _always_  the pocket," you shrugged.

"Do you have any of these ones in a medium?" he asked hopefully.

"We should," you nodded, leaning over and flicking through the clothing. You finally found a medium, carefully pulling it out from the pile and putting the other shirts back.

"Thank you," the boy sighed in relief, then smiled shyly, "I'm really sorry I messed this one up. I'd try to put it back, but I've never been good at folding clothes."

"It's okay," you laughed, "I just appreciate the fact that you would have  _tried_." You switched shirts with him, beginning to fold the one in your hands back up.

"Y/L/N!" you heard your manager holler. You looked over your shoulder at her. "Can you close by yourself tonight? I have dinner with my wife's family and I won't be on time if I stay any later than right now."

"Yeah, Meg!" you called back, "Have fun!"

"Thanks, Y/N," she sighed in relief, "You're a life saver. I'll see you tomorrow!" You caught the keys when she threw them to you before she hurried out the door and you got back to work.

" _Y/L/N_?" the boy beside you tilted his head, "Are you related to-" And it was in that moment that your heart dropped.

" _Yes_ ," you murmured, turning around and moving on to fold clothes on the next display.

"Hey," he frowned, "Hey, why are you ignoring me now?" You rolled your eyes and started the speech you'd been reciting for what seemed like the past 10 years.

"I'm not going to get you a job with the company," you stated monotonously, "I'm not going to get you a meeting with my dad. I'm not going to go out with you just for you to inevitably use me to get closer to my dad. I'm not-"

"People actually  _do that_  to you?" he asked softly. You stopped for a moment before looking up at him, seeing the surprised look on his face.

"You're  _not_?" you asked.

" _No_!" he exclaimed, shaking his head quickly, "I just recognized the  _name_!"

"Oh..." you trailed off, "I'm sorry, I just...am not used to people only  _asking_  about it."

"Wait, so how long has someone dated you before trying to get to your dad?" he asked curiously. You paused what you were doing to think for a moment.

"Oh, God..." you trailed off, "I think the longest I've ever dated a guy was...four months.  _Maybe_  five."

" _No way_ ," he shook his head, "You seem interesting enough for  _at least_  seven."

You looked at him and saw a silly grin on his face, making you laugh in return. You rolled your eyes and went back to work, meticulously folding the unkempt shirts in front of you.

"My name's Michael," the boy said suddenly. You glanced up at him.

"Y/N," you told him.

"Y/N," he repeated softly to himself, the small smile on his face making you blush lightly.

It was silent between the two of you for a moment before he spoke again.

"Well, I'm sure you're wanting to close before someone else comes in, so..." he trailed off, holding up the shirt in his hand.

" _Right_!" you squeaked, "I'll ring you up!"

You hurried to the register, taking the shirt from him and scanning it as he pulled his wallet out of his back pocket. You told him the price and he gave you a $20 bill. After handing him his change and bag, you have him the usual spiel of thanking him for shopping there and telling him to have a nice evening.

You wouldn't be the last to admit you were a bit confused when he took a couple steps away before stopping and turning back to you though.

"Would it be inappropriate of me to ask if you'd like to go out with me sometime?" Michael asked you.

"I guess that really just depends on  _how_  you ask it," you told him, trying to keep yourself from smiling but knowing you weren't doing well when he smiled back.

"Can I take you on a date?" he asked shyly, "Maybe Friday...? If you're not busy..."

"Yeah," you nodded, "I'd like that." He breathed a small sigh of relief, clearly worried you were going to reject him.

"Oh, here," he said, quickly pulling out his phone and coming back to you, "Put your number in. I'll call you Friday and we can decide on a time then." You happily did as he asked, creating a new contact for yourself, texting yourself so you had his number as well. "I, uh... I guess I'll see you Friday..." Michael cleared his throat as he took his phone back.

"Bye, Michael," you replied with a bashful grin of your own.

"Bye, Y/N," he returned before leaving the store, missing the deep breath you let out the moment the door closed behind him.

~

**Three weeks later**

You and Michael had gone on a couple more dates since you met and you couldn't be happier. You hadn't met a guy who cared about  _you_  in so long that it was nice to finally have it. Michael couldn't seem to care  _less_  about your name – he just cared about getting to know  _you_ , not your dad  _or_  the company.

Of course, that wasn't to say Michael didn't have his questions as to why you were so against that lifestyle.

He'd gone to your apartment to pick you up a few times before hanging out and he obviously noticed how unimpressive it looked. The walls had not photos or anything and you had the  _bare necessities_  of furniture inside. But if you were happy with it all, then Michael supposed he shouldn't question it.

But there was  _one_  question Michael could never get off his mind.

He'd driven you home from work a couple times when your car was acting up, and every time, he would stay for a while afterwards. Like clockwork, you would lead him inside the apartment building, head to the mailbox to get your mail, and take him to your home. You would unlock your door, let him come inside, and head to your kitchen to check your mail.

There would occasionally be a yellow envelope with your father's return address, a red stamp on the front indicating a check was inside. And every single time, you would sigh softly, go to your trashcan, and rip up the envelope, never even opening it to see what it was.

And Michael couldn't take not knowing  _why_  anymore.

"You know what I don't get about you, Y/N?" he asked after you'd ripped up what was probably the twentieth check since he'd known you.

"What, Mikey?" you sighed, leaning on the counter and looking over at him.

"You could have anything you want," he started, "You could have a really nice house and a really nice car and all this money, but instead, you have a beat up old hunk of metal that can barely even  _start_  on its own, your place is  _barely_  furnished, and you rip up every single check your father sends you the second you  _get them_. And I just don't understand  _why_."

"I don't  _want_  my father's money, Michael," you shook your head, "I don't want his help, I don't want his cars; I don't want  _anything_  from him. I want to  _work_  for what I have and I want to feel like I'm actually doing something  _important_  with my life. I don't want to be another  _trust fund kid_  who relies too much on their  _parents_ _'_ success."

Michael looked at you for a moment, chewing on his inner cheek. And he couldn't help but wonder: If you knew why he never invited you over to his house or introduced you to his parents, would you still feel the same way about him, or would you only see his  _father's money_?

~

A few months later – four and a half to be exact – you and Michael had made things official between you two after countless texts, phone calls, and date nights. You'd been with numerous guys before him and you could honestly say he wasn't like  _any_  of the others. He actually seemed interested in  _you_ , not giving a single shit about who your father was.

"So," you started one day as you both sat on your couch, "What is it that you do?"

"Hmm?" Michael hummed lowly, turning his gaze away from the television screen to look at you.

"What do you do?" you repeated, "Like, what's your job?"

"Oh, I... I don't have a job right now," Michael told you, clearing his throat lightly, "I used to work at, uh, Clifford Enterprises, but I left a few months ago."

"How come?" you asked.

"Wasn't really my scene," he shrugged.

"So what  _is_  your scene?"

"You know that bar downtown that does open mic nights?" You nodded and he smiled shyly, "I play there sometimes."

"What do you play?" you sat up, your intrigue in the mystery that was your blonde-haired boyfriend growing with every word that came out of his mouth, "Any instruments?"

"I play guitar," he replied, blushing lightly at how genuinely interested you seemed, "And I sing."

"You should sing me something sometime," you commented, making his blush brighter.

"Y-Yeah," he nodded, "I'll bring m-my guitar next time I come over."

"I'd like that," you smiled at him.

Michael looked at you for a moment, glancing down at your lips. You felt your heart skip a beat as he began nervously tapping on his thigh.

"Y/N..." he murmured. You hummed in response, signaling for him to keep going. "C-Can I... Can I kiss you...?" Even though you'd had a pretty good idea that that was what he was going to ask you, your heart started racing anyway.

You nodded slowly and Michael scooted closer and closer to you until his knee bumped yours. He quickly snapped it back toward his other leg, showing you just how nervous he really was. He cautiously moved his head to yours as if he was giving you an opportunity to change your mind and back out.

When he realized you weren't though, he took a deep breath and went for it, pressing his lips to yours.

You were honestly surprised at how innocent his kisses were compared to how he acted in front of other people. He looked like bad news – and most of the town acted like he  _was_  – but that was probably because they didn't know him.

The Michael everyone else saw  _wasn't_  the Michael you did. Everyone else saw the leather jacket, skinny jeans, combat boots, tattoos, and a look on his face that said he wasn't to be messed with,  _but_   _you_... You got to see the shy boy who loved to curl up with you on your couch in his sweatpants after you got home from work and watch  _Pokemon_  all day. And you absolutely  _loved_  knowing that this side of Michael was reserved  _especially_  for you.

Once you started kissing him back, Michael began to get more comfortable with the situation, but his hands still remained glued to the couch cushion on either side of his legs. He even jumped a little when you broke the kiss, swung your leg over his lap and straddled his thighs, beginning to kiss him again. Your hands were in his hair and although he was still kissing you back, you couldn't figure out why he wasn't touching you.

"Mikey," you murmured, pulling away slightly so you could look at him. You watched his eyes flutter open as he hummed in response. "You know you're allowed to touch me, right?" you asked.

"S-Sorry," he cleared his throat with a nervous chuckle, "I'm not... I'm not  _used_  to this kind of thing."

"What kind of thing?"

"Actually thinking I might be  _in love_  with a girl," he said softly. Your heart skipped a beat at the confession and you couldn't help but begin to chew on your bottom lip.

"You're in love with me?" you whispered.

"Yeah," Michael said just as quietly, "Yeah, I'm in love with you."

"That's good," you gave him a small smile, "Because I'm in love with you too." You could practically  _see_  his breathing hitch and he shakily brought his hands up, resting them on your hips. "Do you not want to do this, Mikey?" you asked seriously, "It's okay if you want to take this slow."

"No, I  _want to_  – you have  _no idea_  how badly I want to – I just... I don't...really... _know_  what I'm doing," he grumbled, looking down at his hands on your body, allowing his thumbs to start moving in circles, "I...I've never done anything with a girl I actually had feelings for and known that she was going to be there when I woke up the next morning or that she was still going to stick around after she knew all my secrets and it's... It's a weird thing to have it after only knowing something like that for my whole life..."

"I'd be glad to show you what that's like, Mikey," you mumbled, leaning your forehead on his. You took it off just a few seconds later, getting off of his lap.

Michael let out a quiet whine, only to have you grab his hands and pull him to his feet. You reached back up, your lips barely touching his. The moment Michael pushed his lips onto yours, you began backing him toward your bedroom, never breaking the kiss.

"Then show me, kitten," he whispered as you closed the door behind you and shoved him backwards so his legs hit the bed and he sat down, climbing onto his lap.

~

**Two months later**

You had just gotten home from another day at work, excited for your first full weekend off in you didn't know  _how long_. You texted Michael asking if he wanted to come over for a movie night and he immediately responded that he was on his way.

You were playing a random game on your phone as you waited, the news playing on the TV as background noise. You weren't really paying attention to it, but when you heard your father's company's name, you perked up – even though you wanted nothing to do with him, you were always curious as to why his company was on the news whenever it was.

" _Long-time rivals, Y/Dad's/N Y/L/N of Y/L/N, Inc. and Daryl Clifford of Clifford Enterprises shocked the state late last night at the annual corporate dinner, announcing that the two companies would be working together to help smaller, local businesses get a start-up, stating that they both feel it's best to be united in helping locals. The CEOs plan on_ -"

You stopped listening to what the reporter was saying when you saw a familiar blonde standing behind Daryl Clifford as he and your father posed for photos. Your eyes widened as you pieced it all together – never being invited to Michael's place, not introducing you to his parents,  _his last name_  – you couldn't believe you didn't realize it until now: Michael was Daryl Clifford's  _son_. And he never told you.

You jumped slightly when your apartment door opened and Michael came trotting in.

"Hey, kitten, I-" He cut himself off when he noticed your television screen. His eyes immediately flicked to your expression, noting the baffled look on your face.

Without another word, he backed out of the apartment, letting the door close behind him.

"Mikey!" you called after him, hopping up and rushing into the hallway, " _Michael_!" You watched him turn the corner and that was when you broke. "Mikey,  _please_  come back..." you said softly, unsure whether or not he heard you.

You stared down the empty hallway for a moment before you started feeling your cheeks getting wet. You let out a quiet whimper and turned to go back into your apartment, scared you'd just lost the most consistent thing you'd ever had.

~

Two hours had passed by this point and you still hadn't heard from Michael. After he left, you went back to your couch, turned off your TV, and just sat in silence. You didn't entirely know what to make of the situation, but it hurt you that Michael didn't trust you enough to tell you about his father.

**Michael's POV**

Michael cautiously opened the door to your apartment, unsure whether or not you would be mad at him. But when he found you asleep on the couch with tear stains on your cheeks, he knew you were more hurt than anything. And that honestly made him feel sick.

The  _last_  thing Michael ever wanted to do was hurt you – and that was exactly why he didn't tell you about his father in the first place. But to know that he did it anyway by  _not_  telling you made him feel even worse.

" _Mikey_ ," he heard you mumble.

It startled him to say the least, but when he realized you were only sleep talking, he breathed a quiet sigh of relief. His heart sunk at the contorted expression on your face – even in  _your sleep_ , you looked incredibly hurt by what he'd done. He knew he had to wake you up though; He couldn't exactly avoid his girlfriend  _forever_.

Michael silently walked over to the couch, sitting down cross-legged on the floor in front of your head. He watched you for a moment, taking in how beautiful you looked when you were sleeping.

" _Mikey_..." you whimpered, making Michael swallow thickly.

"I'm right here, kitten," he said softly, brushing back the hair that had fallen onto your cheek.

Your eyes fluttered open after a few seconds, furrowing your eyebrows at the boy sitting in front of you. You immediately sat up, but Michael didn't move.

You took a moment to collect your thoughts before speaking the only complete one you had right then.

"Why didn't you  _tell me_?" the cracking of your voice breaking Michael's heart even more, "Do you not  _trust me_?"

" _No, kitten_ ," he swallowed thickly again, shaking his head, "I trust you  _too much_ , if anything. I just... You seemed so  _against_  the idea of someone living off of their parents' money, and... I don't know... I thought you would hate me if I told you the truth..."

" _Me_ , Mikey!" you exclaimed, "I'm against the idea of  _me_  living off of my parents' money! Just because  _I_  don't want to doesn't mean I have a problem with  _other people_  doing it!"

"B-But the checks your dad sends..."

"He thinks he can  _buy me back_ , Michael!" you sighed, "He thinks that if he keeps sending me money, I'll realize how I'm barely making it on my own and move back in with him! All he is is  _lonely_! He doesn't care about  _me_ ; He only cares about having someone around to keep him  _company_! I'm nothing more than something to  _entertain_  him! That's why I  _left_!"

Michael looked down at his hands, a bit embarrassed that he thought you would ever treat him differently. He heard you sigh again, watching you scoot back in front of him, your hands landing on his cheeks and tilting his head back up so he would look at you.

" _I love you, Michael_ ," you stated softly, your thumbs stroking his cheekbones, "Not your lifestyle or your name or your money:  _You_. I could  _never_  hate you, Mikey – you  _know_  that. I love you so much,  _it hurts_. It hurts when you're not around and it hurts when you're not holding me and it hurts that you ever thought I would leave just because of your  _name_."

"I love you too, kitten," Michael let out a shaky breath, "I'm sorry."

You didn't respond – you simply leaned down and pressed your lips to his. He breathed a sigh of relief, his hands landing on your hips and pulling you gently, coaxing you to sit in his lap. You, of course, weren't going to refuse, so you got down and wrapped your legs around his waist as his own arms slipped around yours.

And maybe Michael had a long way to go before he was finally ready to introduce you to his parents, but he had you to assure him that you weren't in any hurry – that you wanted  _him_  to be okay with it first.

And you were all he'd ever need.


	351. Figure Me Out (Ashton Irwin)

**Ashton's POV**

"Look at  _this_ ," Ashton heard Calum sigh dramatically, making him look up from his laptop, "Ash is watching Y/N's newest video."

" _Shut up, Cal_ ," Ashton rolled his eyes, shoving the phone Calum was holding in front of his face away. Calum obviously didn't, continuing his teasing.

"He excused himself from dinner the moment he got the notification that she uploaded," he snickered.

"Yes, I did," Ashton stated confidently, "Now can you leave so I can  _watch it_ , please?" Calum smirked victoriously, leaving the room.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say Ash was  _in love_  with that girl," he heard his best friend say before everything went quiet once again.

Ashton sighed to himself, knowing he was about to be hit with a barrage of tweets about the video. But he simply shook it off and restarted your video, wanting to catch the parts he'd missed.

You were sitting in front of the camera, silent for a few seconds. The look on your face was anything but the cheerful YouTuber that everyone was so used to seeing. And even though Ashton didn't know you personally, he was concerned about you.

The title of your video –  _something i need to get off my chest_  – certainly didn't  _sound_  like a happy one, but you rarely ever posted something that wasn't fun or entertaining.

"Hey, guys," you forced a smile, "As I'm sure you can tell by the title, this isn't going to be a very  _happy_  video. I'm not gonna prolong anything; I'm just gonna get straight to the point. And as much as it  _sucks_  that I have to do this, I just wanted to let you all know that I'm going to be taking a break from making videos for a while. I don't want anyone to think that I'm quitting YouTube – that's not what I'm doing  _at all_  – I just need some time to work on figuring  _me_  out. I think that when you watch someone's videos, you tend to think like, their life is great and they have no problems at all, when in reality, you only see a few  _minutes_  of that person's day and it's usually  _very_  edited. And I am by  _no means_  saying that I have  _such_  big problems and that they matter so much  _more_  than everyone else's because that will  _never_  be the case, but... I've been doing this for so  _long_  now that I think it's just finally catching up with me, you know? So... Yeah. I'm sorry if this upsets you in some way, but I need to think about me for a while and do what's best for  _me_. As you all know, I'll be at the 5 Seconds of Summer concert on Friday night, so I'll vlog it and upload that video Saturday or Sunday, but I won't be posting any videos after this weekend. Please just remember that I love you all so, so, so,  _so much_  and I really do mean that. I would be  _nowhere_  without the people who watch the nonsense I post on this channel, and nothing I could  _ever_  do will be able to thank you all enough for everything you've done for me." You ended your video with your signature of blowing a kiss to the camera and then your end slate came up, leaving Ashton in silence.

He by no means thought that you had a  _perfect_  life – he knew everyone was dealing with  _something_  – but to hear you actually  _say it_  was completely different. You seemed so  _sad_  that you were taking a break, even though you were taking it for  _you_  and making  _you_  happier.

That was the moment he knew he  _had_  to meet you at the show. He had to find you and tell you how much you brightened his day when he  _couldn't_  do it for  _himself_. He needed you to know that what you were doing and the content you were putting out into the world  _wasn't_  getting lost in the mainstream or being overlooked in favor of  _bigger_  YouTubers. You needed to know that you made people  _happy_  and you made people forget about their own problems,  _even_  if it was just for four or five minutes a week.

And Ashton was  _determined_  to let you know how much you meant to people –  _especially him_.

~

**Friday afternoon**

" _Ashton_!" Luke shouted, making the drummer perk up. He was onstage just messing around on his drums when the blonde rushed out from backstage. " _There you are_!" Luke breathed, "Come on! You  _have_  to come check this out!"

"What?" Ashton asked. Luke huffed lightly, grabbing Ashton's wrist and pulling him to his feet. " _Luke_!" Ashton exclaimed as he was being dragged backstage and into the hallway, "What's going on?!" Luke didn't answer him, instead taking him toward their dressing room. Ashton could hear voices as they got closer and his heart started racing.

" _Stop filming me_!" he heard Michael whine.

_That could only mean one thing..._

Luke released his grip on Ashton the moment he walked through the door and the brown-haired boy froze upon seeing you teasing Michael with your camera.

" _C'mon, Michael_ ," you frowned when he put his hand in front of the lens, " _You_  film people all the time."

"That's  _different_ ," he stated seriously.

"How is that any different from those times you film me on Snapchat and I don't know about it until  _later_?" Luke laughed.

You and Michael looked over, finally noticing the new presence in the room. You instantly smiled at Ashton, making him swallow thickly.

"Hi!" you chirped, hopping off of the couch and putting your camera away. You trotted over to where Ashton was still standing at the door, looking at him questioningly.

Knowing what you wanted, he immediately opened his arms for a hug, allowing you to wrap your arms around his waist. He squeezed you gently before letting you go, despite the fact that he was  _sure_  he could have held you forever.

"When did you get here?" Ashton found himself asking you.

"Not too long ago," you shrugged, "I was gonna wait outside, but Calum said it would be better if I came in so I didn't...  _Cal_!" You called his name.

"Yeah, Y/N?!" he hollered back, having just got out of the shower.

"Why did you say I had to come inside again?!"

"So you don't get mobbed," he told you, entering the room.

"Because  _that's_  a thing that would happen to me  _ever_ ," you nodded, turning back to Ashton.

"Just looking out for you," Calum said, walking over to you and throwing his arm around your shoulders.

You rolled your eyes, "I appreciate that, but let's try to be  _realistic_  next time, okay?"

" _Speaking of_  realistically looking out for you..." Michael trailed off, "We should go check on the people who were working on that thing..." You all looked at him and he was just glancing at Luke and Calum.

" _Right_!" Luke nearly shouted, "We should  _absolutely_  go do that now!"

"Guys-" Ashton started, but Calum cut him off.

"See you later!" he chirped, and he and the other two boys quickly left the room, leaving you and Ashton alone. It was silent for a moment until you broke it.

"The people working on the thing, huh?" you tried hiding your smirk, but knew you weren't doing that well. Ashton chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Well, you know... People's work is never done," he said, clearing his throat.

"I get the feeling that the people in this case don't  _actually_  exist though," you commented. Ashton sighed, blushing at what his friends had done.

"I mean, I'm sure you know I watch your videos," Ashton said shyly.

"I  _do_ ," you laughed softly, "I'm really glad you enjoy them so much that you would  _excuse yourself from dinner_." Ashton sighed at the mention of Calum's Twitter video, but there was still a smile on his face.

"I just wanted to say I admire your decision to take a break from YouTube for a while," he told you, "You seem like you really love making videos and I'm sure that wasn't an easy thing for you to do."

"I'm glad  _someone_  understands it," you said lightheartedly.

Ashton looked at you for a moment before motioning to the couch, urging you to sit back down. You did and he sat beside you, both of your feet propped up on the coffee table in front of you.

"What's that mean?" he asked you.

"Oh, you know..." you shrugged, "People aren't too  _happy_  that I decided to take a break..."

" _So what_?" Ashton stated, making you look at him, "They're not  _you_ -" He shook his head. "-They don't know what's going on that would make you want to do that. I'm sure if they did, they'd understand, but it's not their place to  _force_  any sort of reasoning out of you. You deserve to take  _as much_  time as you need to make yourself happy and if it only takes two weeks or it takes two  _years_ , that's okay too. You are so much  _more_  than your videos, Y/N, and I think you owe it to yourself to do what you need to to put your own best interests first." You took a moment to really think about what he'd said before smiling slightly at him.

"Thanks, Ashton," you said, "I needed to hear that."

"And I needed to  _tell you_  that," he let out a breath along with a smile.

After talking for a while longer, Ashton went to the bathroom so you took out your camera again, pointing it in the direction of the door he was about to come out of. The moment you saw him again, his eyes went straight to the thing you were trying to hide, making him smile.

"You filming me?" Ashton smirked, walking back over to you.

"At least I didn't pull a Calum and  _follow you_ ," you shrugged, bringing your camera into view, keeping it pointed at him as he plopped down next to you. His arm instinctively landed on the back of the couch behind you as he laughed at the remark.

"That  _is_  true – I  _do_  appreciate that," he nodded. His heart even skipped a beat when you repositioned yourself to lean up against his side, his arm then falling to your shoulders as you turned the camera so you were in the shot now as well.

"Look who I found, guys," you smiled brightly, lifting your hand up and patting his opposite cheek, "Isn't he just the cutest thing you've ever  _seen_?" Ashton rolled his eyes and chuckled.

"Now she's just putting on a  _show_ ," he shook his head, talking to your camera.

And maybe, eight months later, when you were back to making videos again, Ashton was becoming a regular in them and it  _wasn't_  a show anymore.

But that was something you chose to let everyone figure out on their  _own_.


	352. Fix You (Ashton Irwin)

**April 2015**

When you heard Ashton Irwin was going to be going to Coachella, you knew you had to go. You had never been before, so when your best friend Ali – who lived about an hour and a half south of your town and went to the festival every year – asked you to go with her, as she did every year since you met her, you finally caved in.

The Thursday before the festival, she drove to your apartment, not even greeting you before asking why you all of a sudden agreed to go with her. There was no use in lying to her – she'd been your best friend for so long that, even though you'd met online and that was really the only way you talked to her, she would know whether or not you were being truthful. Obviously, being a fan of the band as well – you'd actually met because of 5 Seconds of Summer after following each other – she freaked out over you telling her that you heard Ashton would be there.

It was around noon on Friday and you were sitting on a bench beside one of the wifi spots on the fairgrounds the festival was being held on, waiting for the band Ali was seeing to finish their set. You had your headphones in – not really paying attention to anything around you – as you scrolled through Twitter.

You were minding your own business – liking a couple tweets here and there – and you weren't really fazed when you felt someone sit down beside you. You simply swiped up on the bottom of your screen to pull up your music, wanting to change the song. You tapped the next button a couple times, hearing the person next to you speak up.

"Oh, I liked that song," he said.

Your heart  _immediately_  skipped a beat – you knew that Australian accent  _anywhere_. Your head snapped up to find Ashton Irwin smiling at you.

" _Really_?" you couldn't help but grin as you tugged on the cord, causing the headphones to fall onto your lap. The song you'd just skipped was  _Don't Stop_ , so you knew he was joking.

"You're right; You got me," he laughed with a shrug, "Just trying to start a conversation."

"I think ' _Hey, my name's Ashton and I'm kind of offended you skipped my song_ ' would have worked just as well," you pointed out.

"I'll remember that for next time," he smiled again, "But I do think it's unfair that  _you_  know  _my_  name when  _I_  don't know  _yours_."

"Y/N," you said shyly.

"So, Y/N, what bands did you come to see?" Ashton asked you.

"Well, the only people I've  _heard of_  are playing Sunday," you told him, "But I don't really even  _listen_  to them. Ali just didn't want to come alone all weekend, so I figured I'd tag along."

"But there's like, a  _hundred_  bands playing today!" he exclaimed, "How have you not heard of at least  _one_  of them?!" You laughed at his outburst.

"I'm more of a Warped Tour kind of girl," you shrugged.

"I'm going to fix you, Y/N," Ashton informed you, making you roll your eyes. "Okay," he stated, his phone in his hand, "He doesn't play until 2:35, but I really think you'd like George Ezra... You know, if you'd like to join me..."

"I wouldn't want to just invite myself like that, Ash," you shook your head, "I'm sure your friends want to spend time with you."

"You aren't  _inviting yourself_ , Y/N – I'm  _asking you_  to come. Only a couple of my friends are seeing him with me because the others are seeing other bands." You looked at him for a moment.

"Are you s-"

"I'm sure," he smiled reassuringly.

"Yeah," you nodded, "Yeah, I'll see him with you." Ashton smiled brightly, turning his head as he heard his name behind him.

"Hey, Ash!" one of his friends hollered, "The Ruen Brothers are about to go on and we should head over there if we want a good spot!" He nodded and turned back to you.

"I'll meet you right here at like, 2:20, okay?" he asked. You nodded in response and he turned around, sprinting toward his friends. "See you later, Y/N!" he called over his shoulder. You felt your face get hot, knowing you were a  _few hours_  from seeing Ashton again.

You couldn't keep the smile off of your face as you pulled out your phone, texting Ali to see where she was. You got the read receipt, but before you could even wonder why she wasn't texting back, you heard her behind you.

" ** _ASHTON IRWIN_** _JUST ASKED YOU TO SEE A BAND WITH HIM_!" Ali screamed, running up to you. You spun around and she grabbed your shoulders, shaking you lightly. " _DO YOU_ ** _KNOW_** _WHAT THIS MEANS_?!"

"I'm right here, Ali," you giggled, "You don't need to yell anymore."

"Sorry," she replied, releasing you, "But did my ears deceive me or is that what  _actually_  happened?"

"Yeah," you smiled slightly, "Ashton asked me to see George Ezra with him later."

" _Be still, my heart_ ," she sighed dramatically, slapping her hand on her chest while earning an eye roll from you, "I simply  _cannot_  handle this kind of emotion."

"Stop being so  _dramatic_ , Al," you insisted, "He just invited me to see a  _musician_  with him; That doesn't mean we're  _soulmates_."

"Life  _needs_  a little drama, Y/N," she told you matter-of-factly, "And if  _you're_  not going to deliver on it,  _someone_  has to!" You rolled your eyes again, grabbing her arm and pulling her along so you could get something to eat.

~

**April 2016**

The next year, you and Ali were all ready to visit Coachella again. She'd spent the entire week at your place this year, eagerly anticipating the weekend ahead. There were quite a few more bands and artists you knew of this year, so you were pretty excited to go as well.

"Are you sure you want to come all day?" Ali asked you that Friday morning after you both got ready to leave, "I'll be fine if you want to hang out here until Ellie Goulding's set."

"I'm fine," you said, making sure your apartment door was locked before closing it, "I need to get out anyway."

"Well, she doesn't play until like, 9:20 tonight."

"Who knows?" you shrugged, "Maybe I'll find a new artist I like today."

" _That's_  the spirit!" Ali squeaked, making you smile and shake your head.

~

You and Ali were walking around the festival grounds, having a couple hours to kill since the first band she was set on seeing that day was Front Bottoms. You'd heard of them before, but hadn't really ever listened to them. Ali had you listen to a couple songs on the ride there and you thought they were pretty good, so you had decided you would go see them with her.

What you  _weren't_  expecting that morning, however, was to hear your name being called behind you by a very  _familiar_  Australian accent.

"Y/N!" You spun around to find Ashton smiling widely as he jogged up to you.

" _Ashton_!" you grinned. His arms wrapped around your waist – to your surprise – but you  _certainly_  weren't going to complain. "I thought you were on  _tour_!" you said as you hugged him back.

"We have a few days off, so I wanted to come to Coachella again," he said, letting go of you, "I can't believe you're  _here_! I mean, I was hoping you  _would be_ , but I didn't think I'd actually be able to  _find you_!"

"You  _wanted_  to see me again?" you couldn't help the light red blush on your cheeks as Ashton sported a blush of his own.

"Well,  _yeah_ ," he chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his neck, "I had a lot of fun hanging out with you last year." You suddenly heard a throat clear beside you and your head snapped over to find Ali smirking at you.

" _Oh_!" you squeaked, "Um, Ashton, I'm sure you remember Ali."

"How could I  _forget_?" he laughed, giving her a quick hug, "You looked completely  _mortified_  when she made me follow you on Twitter before Brand New's set was over last year." You shuddered at the memory as Ali giggled.

" _Speaking_  of following Y/N on Twitter, you totally could have asked her if she was coming this year," she pointed out.

"I've followed so many people since then," he teased, "And I couldn't remember her username."

"So many fans, such  _little_  memory space in his brain," you snickered. Ashton stuck his tongue out at you, a gesture you happily returned.

" _Anyway_ ," he smiled, "What are you girls doing right now?"

"We were just getting some lunch," Ali shrugged, "Front Bottoms doesn't play until 2:30, so we've got a couple hours to kill before then."

"You're  _more_  than welcome to join my friends and I again this year then," he offered, "I just got here, but they said they're waiting for me at Afters Ice Cream. I know that's not exactly  _lunch_ , but it's pretty hot out, so I think it's cool to break the whole dessert-before-dinner thing this one time." You and Ali laughed lightly, but nodded anyway – you were never one to pass up ice cream.

As you approached the stand, Ashton smiled again when he saw his friends sitting at one of the picnic tables.

"Hey, guys!" he chirped, making them look over.

" _Y/N_!  _Ali_!" one of them smiled, "You're here!"

"Hi, Brandon," you grinned – truthfully a bit  _surprised_  he remembered you – as you sat down beside him. He threw his arm over your shoulder, giving you a side hug. Ashton sat beside you while Ali sat on the opposite bench across from you.

"How have you guys been?" Brandon asked, letting his arm rest on your shoulders. You didn't notice, but Ashton was watching you carefully.

"Pretty good," Ali shrugged, "Excited for another year of music."

"Well, we're excited to see you again," he beamed before looking at you, "You know, Ashton's been talking about you  _all week_. He was hoping he'd see you today." The brunette's eyes widened, a slight red tint appearing on his cheeks. You couldn't help but grin, sporting a blush of your own.

"I heard," you said softly.

"So who are you guys going to see first?"

"Front Bottoms at 2:30," Ali answered, "We were walking around, looking for some place to eat first."

"Oh, well, we're actually heading out to see Sheer Mag right now, but we'll meet up again after their set is over if you want."

"Do you mind if I tag along?" she asked, "I checked out their stuff a few days ago and I'd  _love_  to see them live."

"Sure! The more the merrier!" he laughed, getting up and looking at you again, "You coming?"

"I'm fine, I'm just gonna get something to eat," you declined, "Ali can text me when they're done and I'll come meet you guys."

"Cool," he nodded, "How about you, Ash?" Ashton glanced at you, making Brandon snicker softly, "Don't know why I asked. We'll see you guys later!" You watched them walk toward the direction of the stage before Ashton clearing his throat made you look at him.

"So..." he rubbed the back of his neck, "Do you want some ice cream? Or we could go get something else... Or I could leave you alone if you wanted..."

"As good as ice cream sounds, I think I'd  _rather_  have a burger," you told him.

"Well, let's go find some then," he said, standing up and holding his hand out to you, "I'll buy."

"Ashton, you don't-"

"I know I don't," he cut you off, pulling you to your feet when you gave him your hand, "But I  _want to_."

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were trying to  _impress_  me," you stated knowingly.

"If I wanted to impress you, I'd ask you if you've heard of my band," he replied, "You know, 5 Seconds of Summer? We're pretty popular."

"You know, I actually  _have_  heard of them," you nodded, trying to keep a smile off your face, but you knew it wasn't working, "I'm pretty sure I met their drummer at this thing last year."

"Oh, now  _that's_  cool," Ashton sighed, "What's he  _like_?"

"He's  _alright_ ," you said thoughtfully, "He's a bit of a  _try_ _-_ _hard_  though."

" _Is he_?" he cocked an eyebrow, obviously trying not to smile himself.

"He  _is_ ," you confirmed with another nod, "Said he was hoping to find me today, offered to buy me lunch, hasn't let go of my hand yet..." Ashton chuckled, finally letting his grin show.

"Can't put too much of that on  _me_ , you know; You haven't let go of my hand  _either_ ," he said, squeezing your hand slightly.

"Wasn't  _planning_  on it," you responded bravely.

Ashton looked at you for a moment before smiling softly. He released your hand just enough so he could tangle your fingers together.

"Good," he told you, "I wasn't planning on letting go of  _yours_  either." You took your bottom lip between your teeth, laying your head on the side of Ashton's arm as you came up to another food stand.

 


	353. Where We Began (Calum Hood)

Let's get one thing straight: You didn't  _hate_  the sweater. Maybe it  _was_  a little hard on the eyes, but bless your grandmother's heart, she made that thing with  _love_.

Every year –  _every single year without fail_  – your grandmother knits you a sweater to wear for you and your mom's annual Christmas cards. You were never really bothered by it – you thought it was sweet of her to make them for you – but that was when you knew no one would ever really  _see you_  wearing it apart from the people your mom sent the cards to.

Until  _this year_ , of course. 

" _Mom_!" you whined loudly, "I can't wear this in  _public_!"

"And why not?" she asked, making sure she had her wallet and keys. You waited for her to look at you before you deadpanned and motioned toward your body.

" _Look at it_ ," you stated, drawing her attention to the cartoon cat on your chest.

"Y/N, your grandmother worked very hard on that sweater," your mother reminded you, "And I think it would be nice of you to wear it for  _more_  than 10 minutes this year."

"And if we weren't about to go to the  _mall_  right now, I would be happy to wear it longer!"

"Oh, honey, don't be so dramatic," she laughed.

"Every Christmas, people ask me ' _Y/N, when are you going to get a boyfriend?_ ' and I don't know how dating back in the  _Stone Ages_  was, but guys are not going to want to date someone who publicly wears things like  _this_ ," you informed her, pointing to the sweater again.

"At least it doesn't meow this year," she shrugged lightheartedly, clearly enjoying your misery.

" _Mom_!"

"Go put your shoes on,  _please_ ," she said, "I want to get back home before dark."

"But I-"

" _Now_ , Y/N," she shook her head. You groaned loudly, throwing your head back as you stomped down the hallway to put your shoes on.

~

At the mall, things were going pretty well. While people were  _definitely_  staring, no one had actually  _said_  anything to you – and you were thankful they made fun of you  _behind_ your back. But, because that's how your life works, it didn't stay that way for long.

"Nice sweater," you heard beside you.

"Fuck off, Calum," you mumbled, not even needing to look at him to know who it was.

"Oh, come on," he chuckled, "I've been gone for seven months and all I get is a ' _fuck off_ '?" He came up behind you, wrapping his arms around you and leaning onto you with his chin on your shoulder. "Does it  _meow_  this year?" he asked, poking at the cat's nose, "Should I start calling you  _kitten_  instead?"

" _Shut up_!" you groaned, pushing him off of you and starting to walk away. Calum only grabbed your hand and brought you back to him, hugging you tightly.

"I've missed you, princess," he murmured into your hair. You finally sighed, wrapping your arms around him as well.

"I've missed you too, Cal," you whispered into his coat.

"Some way of showing it you have then," you  _heard_  his pout, "I've texted you asking to hang out since I've gotten home so many times, I lost count."

"Not  _my_  fault you came home during Christmas break," you shrugged, "You  _know_  how busy I am this time of year."

"Christmas is about spending time with family and friends – not running around, doing errands all the time."

"Well, if you want to spend more time with  _me_ , you're gonna have to help me pick out presents," you stated, turning back to the shelf in front of you.

"Who are you shopping for now?" he wondered. You glanced back up at him, surprised he was actually willing to help.

"Twins," you said, "Both incredibly girly, both entering the stage of not wanting to share things with her sister." Calum chuckled softly, contemplating for a moment.

"Well, what do they like?"

"Makeup, clothes,  _your band_ ," you snickered. 

"Why is this so difficult then? You love  _all_  those things," he grinned, wrapping his arms around you and laying his head on your shoulder once again.

"You know what? I'll just do it myself," you huffed, trying to walk away from him but being unable to as Calum held you firmly in your spot.

"If all else fails, I can just get them tickets to a show next year," he told you, "But you have to promise you'll bring them."

"Are we  _also_  getting backstage passes?" you asked, the sly smirk on your face making him smile.

"You  _always_  do," he reminded you, moving to kiss your cheek.

~

**A few days later**

It was now a couple days before Christmas and you had just finished helping your mom clean the house. You collapsed on your bed, happy to finally have a break, when your text tone went off. You whined loudly, reaching over and grabbing it off of your nightstand.

_Wanna hang out? I've got a pizza in my kitchen that's calling your name._

You couldn't help but laugh at Calum's text, quickly sending one back to him.

**_Only if you're bringing it here. I just helped clean an entire house and someone who isn't family that could even remotely care about it should have to see it._ **

Calum immediately texted you back with the running man emoji to tell you he was on his way, making you laugh again.

When he arrived 15 minutes later, he greeted your mom after she let him inside. He offered her some pizza but she declined with a laugh, telling him it was nice seeing him again before sending him to your bedroom. Calum knocked on your door before opening it.

"I come bearing pizza!" he announced, finding you propped up against your headboard as you watched TV. He set the box on your desk. "Plates or no?" he asked. You shook your head, reaching over to grab a slice. "Nice to see you too, princess," he chuckled, shaking his head, "I'm glad you only want to see me when I have food." You smiled innocently, grabbing his arm and tugging him onto the bed beside you.

Calum took his coat off and put it on your desk chair, getting his own slice of pizza and settling in beside you. Your arms were pressed together as you both watched the show you already had on. 

As the show went into another commercial, you were thinking about Calum. You had both finished the pizza and for some reason, it reminded you of something he'd said a long time ago. You looked at him for a moment with a wondering look, but spoke before he could ask you why.

"Remember when we were 15 and you told me that if I ever needed anything, you'd do it for me?" you asked him.

"Yeah," he nodded, "Although, I'm gonna be honest, I don't really like when you  _start_  a conversation like that."

"I need you to be my boyfriend," you informed him. You noticed his eyebrows furrow, so you quickly put an explanation out there. "Just for Christmas!" you shook your head rapidly, "I'm tired of my mom's family always asking when I'm getting a boyfriend and if I have to hear it again this year, I might  _actually_  kill myself!"

"You're  _not_  gonna kill yourself," he rolled his eyes.

"But I'm really gonna  _want to_." Calum looked at you for a moment, so you stuck your bottom lip out.

" _Y/N_!" he whined – he knew  _you knew_  he couldn't say no when you did that. But to guarantee the agreement, you wrapped your arms around his waist and laid your head on his chest, tilting it up to look at him. He sighed lightly, " _Fine_." You smiled widely, burying your face in his shirt as you hugged him tightly.

"Thank you, Cal!" you squeaked, "I owe you  _big time_  for this!"

"You're just lucky I love you," he murmured, finally hugging you back as he kissed the top of your head.

You and Calum told each other you loved each other all the time – although you knew he meant it in a completely different way than  _you_  did.

~

**Christmas Day**

You texted Calum the night before to be at your house around 10 to discuss the game plan for the day. He obviously agreed and you also told him that you'd unlock the door for him so he could just come right in – not that he hadn't been doing that for the last few years anyway.

To say you were nervous about the day ahead of you was an understatement. Calum had been amazing in agreeing to help you get through the holiday without relationship questions, but what if they started asking how you met or what your first day was like or –  _heaven forbid_  – how your first  _kiss_  was? You hoped he wouldn't shy away from you and stop being friends with the reasoning that this was all just too much and he couldn't risk being asked to do it again in the future.

"So do I get to meet this  _boyfriend_  of yours before everyone else, sweetheart?" your mom asked while the two of you were doing your annual Christmas ritual of opening your gifts from each other.

"You've already  _met him_ , Mom," you rolled your eyes, having told her this numerous times already.

"No, I mean your  _real_  boyfriend," she said with a sly smile, "Not a fake one."

"He's not my  _fake_  boyfriend!" you pouted.

"Honey, I have known that boy since the day he was  _born_ ," your mom reminded you, "If you two were  _really_  dating, you would not have told me about it  _right before_  he was coming over to meet the rest of the family." You paused before turning your body to face her.

"You can't tell  _anyone_!" you exclaimed, "I am  _not_  going through another year of everyone asking why I don't have a boyfriend!"

"So what are you going to do the  _next time_  we see them?" she asked, pulling out the last present you'd put in her stocking, "Are you going to ask him to be your fake boyfriend  _again_?"

"Maybe," you stated, "Or maybe he and I will have gone through some  _tragic_  breakup the week before and I need time to heal before I even  _think_  about dating again."

"You're  _already_  planning on breaking up with me?" you heard Calum say as he walked in the door with a smile on his face. Your mom looked over at him and smiled as well, getting up to greet him.

"Merry Christmas, Cal!" she beamed, giving him a hug, "I'm sorry my daughter dragged you into this."

"Merry Christmas, Y/Mom's/N," he chuckled, hugging her back, "It's alright. I agreed to it, you know – even though she  _did_  guilt me into it." You stuck your tongue out at him – a gesture he  _happily_  returned.

~

**Two hours later**

Everyone had been at your house for about an hour now and you were in the kitchen helping your mom and aunt cook the meal. The twins – your 7-year-old cousins Eleanor and Leila – insisted he go upstairs and play with them since you still had most of your old toys. They each grabbed a hand, pulling him along with them to a spare room, making you laugh as he nearly stumbled up the steps.

When everything was finished cooking, you went to go get the three – and save Calum from  _whatever_  they were having him do. They were obviously  _huge_  fans of 5 Seconds of Summer, so you were a bit surprised you didn't hear him singing to them as you approached the door. But when you finally realized  _why_ , it was hard to hold yourself together.

"Hey, guys, it's time to-" You stopped speaking to cover your mouth when you walked into the doorway.

"Look, Y/N!" Eleanor chirped happily, "Calum's playing princess with us!"

"Oh,  _is he_?" you smirked, making him roll his eyes, "Well,  _Your Highnesses_ , lunch is ready for you downstairs." The girls hopped up, running past you so they could eat. Calum got up from his spot on the floor, taking the tiara off of his head.

"Don't you dare say  _anything_ ," he told you, walking toward you.

"Wasn't going to,  _Princess_ ," you said, turning to leave.

You heard Calum start walking faster, making you squeal and sprint downstairs. He caught you, however, the moment you stepped off of the staircase, making you squeal again as he picked you up and carried you into the kitchen.

You were giggling as everyone came into view, looking at you with smiles. Calum put you back on the ground and you innocently kissed his cheek. He rolled his eyes, wrapping his arm around your waist and pulling you into a hug, kissing your forehead.

~

As the afternoon wore down, you were gradually getting more and more tired. After helping your mom with dishes, you sat down on the living room couch to rest before everyone opened their gifts. Calum was in some other room – you had no idea which one – with three of your older cousins after they  _begged_  him to teach them how to play guitar.

It wasn't until you found yourself nearly asleep that he came wandering into the room once another cousin told him where you were.

Calum smiled the moment he saw you desperately trying to keep your eyes open. He walked over to the couch, leaning down to pick you up. You whined softly but didn't attempt to make him put you back down. Instead, he sat himself down with you now on his lap.

"Tired?" he chuckled lowly as you nuzzled your face in his neck. You shook your head no, but Calum could tell you were relaxing in his arms. "You always  _were_  a terrible liar," he teased, his fingers running through your hair lightly so he didn't accidentally pull any of it and hurt you.

He stopped briefly, hearing you whine again, as he repositioned the both of you to lie down on the couch. He was right in the middle with you halfway on top of him and halfway between his side and the back cushions.

You hummed lightly in content, your face returning to his neck as he wrapped his arms around you. One hand continued running through your hair while the other landed on your hip, his thumb rubbing circles on your denim-covered skin.

And that was what instantly put you to sleep.

Calum began hearing soft snores in his ear, smiling at the sound of them. He carefully moved so he could kiss your forehead right before returning his head to where it was.

"I love you, princess," he whispered, knowing you couldn't hear him anymore.

Things were pretty quiet in that room for a while – your mom had come to check on you after not seeing you for a while and informed everyone you were asleep. They surprisingly stayed pretty quiet to let you nap as much as you could before the kids would start yelling about wanting to open presents.

"Calum?" your 17-year-old cousin said softly as he came into the room, already knowing you were asleep and not wanting to wake you up.

"Yeah, Chase?" Calum responded as the teenager sat down on the coffee table beside him.

"Can I ask you something?" he wondered, "Like... Man-to-man...?"

"Sure," he nodded, "Anything."

"How did you know you were in love with Y/N?" Chase asked shyly, "Like... When did you to realize you wanted to be  _more_  than just friends?"

Calum was a bit surprised by the question, but as far as everyone here was concerned, you were his  _actual_  girlfriend and they'd been hearing you say ' _I love you_ ' to each other all day. And if this was the only time he'd ever get to pretend... Well, he'd just have to answer  _honestly_.

"When we were 16-years-old, one of our friends had a birthday party at the ice skating rink," Calum said, his hand never ceasing to run through your hair, "Y/N had never gone before, so she was holding onto me from the moment we got on the ice to the moment we came back off. After we got back to my house, we were watching movies and she was still pretty cold, so she laid down on my couch and pulled me with her – kind of like how she is right now – to get warm again. She fell asleep and that was it," he smiled slightly as he looked down at you, "That was when I knew I was in love with her."

"Were you in love with other people before her? Did you already know what being in love felt like?"

"How about this: Why don't you tell me how thinking about and being around your person makes you feel, and we'll go from there?" he suggested. Chase nodded slightly, taking a deep breath as he fiddled with his fingers.

"I get this really weird feeling in my chest," he explained the best he could, "Like... It's like an anxious feeling, but I know I'm not anxious about anything, you know? It just happens when he's in the room."

"What about when you two are talking?" Calum asked, "What do you feel then?"

"Like I could sit there and listen to him talk forever," he smiled to himself as he thought about it, making Calum smile as well, already having the answer, "And when he laughs at some stupid joke I made that I  _know_  wasn't funny... I just... I know I like him, but... I've never been in love before, so I don't know if it's that or if I just  _really_  like him."

"Sounds to me like you are," Calum responded, "I think you're  _very much_  in love with this guy."

"So how do I  _tell_  him that?" Chase sighed, "I don't want to spring it on him, but I don't want to watch him fall for  _someone else_..."

"It's different for everyone, you know," he shrugged, "But I think you should just come out and  _say it_. And if he's  _already_  laughing at your stupid jokes, I'm sure he'd be willing to give the idea of you being more than friends a shot."

"Thanks, Cal," Chase breathed out in relief.

"You're welcome, Chase," he smiled.

~

About 20 more minutes had passed before the kids in your family were finally starting to get impatient.

Another one of your cousins – a one-year-old second cousin, actually – waddled over to where you and Calum were, looking up at the black-haired boy. He smiled as she struggled a bit to get up onto the couch, finally helping her up. Her knees were up against Calum's side as she carefully poked your cheek. Calum couldn't help but chuckle as you mumbled into his neck.

You finally opened your eyes to find Ada on the other side of Calum with her thumb in her mouth.

" _What_?" you grumbled, briefly forgetting that toddler couldn't even talk that well yet.

"I think it's time for presents," Calum grinned, making Ada nod. You let out a deep sigh, bringing your arm up to rest on Calum's chest so you could rub your eyes.

"Fine," you whispered, prompting the little girl to slide back off of the couch and waddle back to her mother and let her know you were awake. You, however, didn't move, making Calum laugh again.

"Princess," he said, "Come on, wake up."

" _No_ ," you mumbled.

"Then let's at least get up so other people can sit here," he compromised. He then sat up, pulling you with him and bringing you back onto his lap. You curled up against him once again as everyone came into the room.

"Nice nap, honey?" your mom smiled, walking over to the tree to pass out gifts. You simply grumbled in response, the noise being lost in the business of the room to everyone but Calum. He chuckled again, pressing a kiss to your forehead as you both watched everyone open their presents.

You were particularly excited to see Eleanor and Leila's reactions after they both frowned over only receiving a very flat gift from you and your mother. You glanced up at Calum, finding him watching the two girls with a small smile on his face. You looked back at them as they ripped the wrapping paper, loud squeals immediately leaving their mouths.

" _Mommy_!" they shrieked in unison, their heads shooting up to look at her where she was sitting beside you, " _Look_!" They showed her the 5 Seconds of Summer tickets and backstage passes, making her grin.

" _Wow_! What do you say to Aunt Y/Mom's/N and Y/N?"

" _Thank you_!" they exclaimed, getting up to hug the both of you. As they both admired their gifts, your aunt leaned over.

"I thought we agreed no more than $20 on gifts," she mentioned lowly so the girls couldn't hear her.

"We  _did_ ," you smiled, "They were free. I have connections, remember?" She laughed lightly as Calum smiled cheesily.

"I hope you realize this means  _you're_  taking them then," she told you.

"She knows," Calum nodded, squeezing you lightly.

~

When the excitement of opening presents wore off, everyone remained in the living room and chatted for a while. It was going on 2:30pm and you and Calum were still sitting together on the couch.

When there was finally a moment for him to talk, he took it.

"Hey, I better be heading home before all of my family gets there," Calum said, a seemingly disappointed tone in his voice, "It was nice meeting all of you."

"Thanks for stopping by, Cal," your mom smiled, "Make sure you drive safely. Tell your parents I said hello."

"I'll have my mum call later," he told her with a nod, "I'm sure she'd love to hear from you herself." You led Calum to the door, but you were stopped as you reached for the knob.

" _Y/N_!" you heard your aunt sing your name, making you look over at her. She looked up, causing you to do the same, finally noticing the mistletoe above you and Calum. You instantly rolled your eyes.

"Can you guys be annoying  _somewhere else_?" you stated monotonously.

"It's a  _rule_ , Y/N!" Eleanor shook her head, "Whoever's under the mistletoe  _has_  to kiss!"

"Well, it's a stu-"

You were cut off by Calum suddenly grabbing your face and kissing you roughly. But if you tried to say you didn't immediately melt, you knew you'd be lying.

He pulled away a couple seconds later, watching your eyes flutter open as you let out a breath. You looked at him, surprise written all over your face, as his thumb stroked your cheekbone.

"We'll talk later," he murmured so no one else could hear him. You barely nodded as he went on, "I love you, princess," he told you.

"I love you too, Cal," you swallowed.

Calum kissed your cheek for a moment and you watched him leave the house. You stared at the door for a moment after it closed behind him, wondering if his heart was beating as fast as yours was.

When you finally turned around, your eyes instantly landed on your mother, the look on her face silently told you that she  _knew_  how you felt –  _and_  that she knew something you  _didn't_.

And maybe you didn't  _actually_  talk about it until a couple weeks later, but with the way you pulled him in and kissed him the moment the ball dropped on New Year's Eve... Well, let's just say the two of you didn't remain  _just friends_  for long.

 


	354. Moments of Weakness (Cody Carson)

**Your POV**

It was a Friday as scheduled as every other: You set up your camera and microphone, grabbed your guitar, and sat down on the floor, ready to film a brand new cover for your video tomorrow.

You had the song on your mind since the night before, having the people who followed you on Twitter vote for it. They'd first picked an album –  _Upside Down_  by Set It Off – and you then gave them four options from your favorites off of the record. They ended up choosing  _Me w/o Us_  – which didn't really surprise you; Cody wrote the song for  _you_ , after all.

You'd covered a fair amount of Set It Off songs since you started your channel four years ago, and that was actually how you and Cody met. Zach had been the one to find out about you nearly two years ago when you posted a cover of  _Duality_. The music video had just come out and you were so in love with the song that you couldn't  _not_  sing it. Zach ended up showing the rest of the band and it seemed like it was love at first sight for Cody.

Ever since then, he'd DM you on Twitter all the time before moving it to texting and phone calls. He'd asked if you were going to a show in your state and when you said yes, he instantly asked to meet up with you. You, of course, said yes without hesitation and the two of you have been together ever since.

You never would have thought of Cody being the kind of guy to risk losing something he loved – especially when it came to  _you_. Clearly though, you were  _wrong_.

It wasn't until you were finished singing the song that you looked at your phone again. You  _almost_  didn't – you wanted to review your footage and get your video edited as soon as possible so you didn't have to worry about it tomorrow – but the text on the screen caught your eye.

_Call me asap_

You cocked an eyebrow at the text from Maxx, but quickly did as he asked. And he didn't even wait for one full ring before picking up.

"I just want you to know that I swear the guys and I had  _no idea_  what was going on or else we would have tried to stop it," he said in one breath.

"Maxx," you shook your head, "What are you  _talking about_?"

"Well... We all went to this club last night after the show and..."

"Maxx, just  _tell me_!"

"Cody cheated on you," he finally said. You instantly lost your breath.

"He... _what_?" you whispered, wanting to be  _sure_  you heard him right.

"Cody went back to his hotel room with a girl," Maxx sighed, "When Dan, Zach, and I got back... Dan had to stay in me and Zach's room because we heard them... Well, you know... She was gone by the time we confronted him about it and tried to make him tell you, but he said you didn't need to know and... I couldn't keep it from you, Y/N, I'm sorry... I wanted  _Cody_  to be the one to tell you, but it's clear he's never  _going to_..."

"Why... Was he  _drunk_  or...? I don't..." you couldn't form complete sentences, too shocked to really say anything else.

"No," you heard him swallow, "He wasn't drunk... He was supposed to be our ride back to the hotel... I'm  _really_  sorry, Y/N..."

"It's okay, Maxx," you replied softly, "It wasn't your fault."

"I just didn't want you to find out on Twitter or anything," he told you, "And I know you were going to post that cover tomorrow and... I don't know, I just thought you should be the first to know about it..."

"Thank you for telling me, Maxx," you said, assuring him that you really did appreciate it.

"If you need to talk to someone, you can call me, okay? And I'll be home in a few weeks to come see how you're doing." You couldn't help but smile at how seriously he took his self-proclaimed title of being your older brother.

"Thanks, Maxx," you nodded despite the fact that he couldn't see you, "I'll see you when you get home."

"Bye, Y/N," he said before you both hung up the call.

~

**Cody's POV; The next day**

It had been over 24 hours and if Cody regretted anything he did, he certainly wasn't  _showing it_. It was almost as if he was  _proud_  he got away with it – as far as  _he knew_ , at least. He even texted you when he woke up as if nothing had ever  _happened_.

_When's your cover going up? What are you singing?_

You texted back almost instantly.

**_30 minutes. You'll see ;)_ **

Cody had no idea what " _You'll see ;)_ " meant – he'd obviously seen that everyone had voted for  _Me w/o Us_  on Twitter; Why were you being so  _vague_? So instead of asking what you meant, he anxiously awaited the notification that you'd uploaded your video.

~

The moment the notification popped onto his screen half an hour later, he'd never clicked anything so fast. He opened the YouTube app, impatiently waiting for it to load. Once it did, he tilted his head in confusion at the title.

_The Haunting- Set It Off (Cover)_

Cody furrowed his eyebrows –  _The Haunting? Why were you covering The Haunting?_

"Hey, guys!" you started with your usual, cheerful greeting, "I'm sure you're all confused by the title since the people of Twitter voted for me to sing  _Me w/o Us_. I think you'll kind of figure out what's happening as I get into the song, but I just wanted to preface this by saying that if the only thing I'm worth is being lied to... Well, I think  _I_  should be allowed to have a little fun too." You ended your intro with a smile before looking down and beginning to play the acoustic version of the song.

_"Come on in, boy," said the skeletons sitting by her closet door_   
_Dirty secrets, empty memories, and broken hearts across the floor_   
_I was knocked out, heels over head_   
_So you dragged me by my feet to a ghost town, where you buried me_   
_No wonder no one heard my screams_

_Love so alive, but it died in its sleep_   
_And now that it's dead, I live in your head_   
_And I will haunt your fucking dreams_

_No one will love you like I did, will treat you like I did_   
_So go on, wear that scarlet letter_   
_No one will love you like I did, will touch you like I did_   
_So good luck finding something better_

_Run away, boy, if you couldn't tell, baby's got a thirst for blood_   
_A subtle system, wicked melodies, craving bullets from her gun_   
_So entranced, they follow every word, little spirals in their eyes_   
_Catch a lover, turn an enemy just to watch them burn alive_

_No one will love you like I did, will treat you like I did_   
_So go on, wear that scarlet letter_   
_No one will love you like I did, will touch you like I did_   
_So good luck finding something better_

_Someday, you may find that picture perfect guy_   
_And I'll chase my words with poison_   
_Until that day arrives and swine take to the sky_   
_Fill your void with open thighs, so_

_No one will love you like I did, will treat you like I did_   
_So go on, wear that scarlet letter_   
_No one will love you like I did, will touch you like I did_   
_So good luck finding something better_

_No one will love you like I did, will treat you like I did_   
_So go on, wear that scarlet letter_   
_No one will love you like I did, will fuck you like I did_   
_So good luck finding something better_

As you played the last chords to the song, Cody could see the sly smile on your face. And he  _instantly_  knew what you'd just done.

**Your POV**

Five minutes after you'd posted your video, your phone started ringing. You took your sweet time in answering the call, already knowing who it was. You waited until the last possible ring before picking your phone up from the couch cushion beside you, hitting the green button.

"Did you like my cover?" you asked sweetly.

"Baby, I can explain," Cody said quickly.

" _Can you_?" you sighed dramatically, "I'd  _love_  to hear it."

"It was a moment of weakness! I didn't mean to-"

" _A moment of weakness, huh_?" you laughed bitterly, "So you were  _so weak_  that you couldn't even lift yourself off of her while you  _fucked her_? Was it a moment of weakness  _before or after_  you two made it to the bed? Was it before or after you were listening to  _another girl_  scream your name underneath you? Was it before or after you woke up next to her with no clothes on and realized what you'd just done? Or maybe it was only a moment of weakness because  _I found out about it_? Because, see, when  _I_  think of a moment of weakness, I think of maybe you got a little too drunk and accidentally kissed a girl who  _kind of_  looked like me in the darkness of the club, but  _this_... I don't know what part of you is  _convincing_  yourself that you deserve to be heard out because, as far as _I'm_  concerned, you're a piece of shit and I never want to see you again." You didn't even give Cody time to respond before ending the call.

As you sat there, taking in deep breaths to calm yourself down, you couldn't help but wonder... Why weren't you as mad as you felt that you  _should be_? Your boyfriend of nearly  _two years_  cheated on you with some random ass girl he'd met at a club, and you hadn't cried a  _single_  tear.

And the only thing it came down to for you was what Cody said: a moment of weakness.

You didn't  _feel_  that. You didn't feel weak; If anything, you felt  _stronger_. You felt that you shouldn't be upset over it. Sure, you were hurt by his actions – it would have been surprising if you  _weren't_  – but you weren't going to give him the satisfaction of breaking you down.

You owed the growth of your YouTube channel to Cody and the opportunities you'd been given because of it. You truly felt that you wouldn't be  _anywhere_  if it hadn't been for him singing covers with you and featuring you on his own channel.

But credit for helping to jump-start your success was all you were  _ever_  going to give him from now on.

~

_Song used: "The Haunting" by Set It Off_


	355. Diamond Girl (Maxx Danziger) - Part 1

_Note: This is a sequel to Moments of Weakness_

~

**Maxx's POV; Three weeks later**

It still baffled Maxx as to how someone he considered his best friend would do something as  _disgusting_  as he did. You were the  _last_  person who ever deserved to be cheated on and to see  _first-hand_  that Cody could do it without second thought honestly confused him. He'd known you for the same amount of time the rest of the band had, all of you instantly becoming best friends – and even  _more so_  when they moved out to LA.

You and Cody immediately hit it off, and Maxx always felt a little bad for feeling the way he did about you. He'd managed to keep it hidden from his bandmates – and most importantly,  _you_  – that he had feelings for you.

And maybe  _that_  was why he was  _furious_  with the way Cody treated you.

~

**Two weeks later**

By the time the band finally made it back to LA after tour, Maxx was  _exhausted_. He felt more jet-lagged than he'd ever been before, but he was on a  _mission_ : He had to make sure you were okay.

He obviously kept up with your YouTube videos and tweets and everything and you  _seemed_  to be doing just fine, but he knew you better than that. He knew you were asking yourself why Cody cheated and what you did to make him do it.

And he had to make sure you knew  _none_   _of it_  was your fault.

After getting home, the boys went to their bedroom to unpack. Maxx, however, simply tossed his suitcase onto his bed and spent some time with Pistol as she happily welcomed him home, then got right back up. He grabbed his keys off of his dresser, making sure he had his phone and wallet before heading back out of the room.

"Hey, guys," Maxx said, noticing Dan and Zach were in the kitchen, "I'm gonna head out for a while."

"Where are you going?" Dan looked over his shoulder as he grabbed a drink from the fridge.

"I'm just gonna make sure Y/N's doing okay." Both boys nodded understandably.

"Tell her we said hi," he told him.

"And that we love her!" Zach chimed in.

"Will do," Maxx grinned, "I don't know when I'll be back, so don't wait up."

"Later!" they called after him as he left the house.

The 10 minute drive to your apartment seemed like it took  _five hours_  that day, every possibility of what he could find when he got there running through Maxx's head. He didn't want to think the  _worst_ , but you were unpredictable – and maybe that was one of the reasons he  _liked you_  so much.

Arriving at your front door didn't offer much consolation either though since he stood there for longer than necessary knocking. He looked at the time on his phone and noticed it wasn't  _too_  late, but then again, that didn't mean you hadn't fallen asleep. He reached up to get your spare key from on top of your doorframe, unlocking the door and putting it back right where he found it.

Maxx went into your apartment – he knew the place like it was his own, so he had no trouble finding you when he saw you weren't in the living room. You were sprawled out on your bed, your hair a mess and snoring away softly. He quietly went back to lock your front door before returning, smiling at your sleeping figure.

You must have gone to bed early that evening – which was understandable now that he thought about it because he knew you always filmed on Fridays and it usually knocked you out pretty soon after.

He wanted to wake you up – he wanted to just  _hear you_  tell him you were fine and what Cody did didn't hurt you as much as he  _worried_  it did – but he couldn't bear to disturb you. So instead, he was going to just watch some TV in your living room and wait for you to wake up.

But he would never make it out of the doorway.

"Maxx?" he heard a small murmur coming from inside the dark room. Maxx turned to look at you, finding you rubbing your eye with your hand, squinting to see who was standing there.

"Hey, Y/N," he said softly, walking over to your bed.

The sleepy grin on your face made his heart race as you grabbed his hand and pulled toward you. He immediately took the hint, kicking off his shoes and climbing onto the bed next to you.

The moment he got comfortable, your arms were around his neck and you were practically lying on top of him.

"You're  _home_ ," you smiled into his neck while his own arms wrapped around your waist.

"Told you we were coming back today," he chuckled, one of his thumbs rubbing small circles on your lower back.

"I know," you replied sassily, your voice still never reaching above a whisper, "But I thought you'd be tired and wouldn't come over until tomorrow."

"Nah, I'm jet-lagged," he told you, "I just wanted to check on you; You know, make sure you're okay."

"Why wouldn't I be okay?"

" _Y/N_ ," he tried to say firmly but he couldn't hold back his smile, feeling you smile as well.

"I'm  _fine_ , Maxx," you said reassuringly, "Yeah, it sucks and maybe I'm hurt that it happened, but there's no use in crying over someone who doesn't care."

" _I_  care."

"And that's why  _you_  weren't the one who cheated on me," you laughed lightly.

" _Course not_ ," he squeezed you tightly, "I'd  _never_  do that to you."

~

"Do you think it's possible to  _best friend_  cheat on someone?" you asked randomly.

"Well, how about you explain to me what that  _means_  first and  _then_  I'll tell you?" he chuckled.

"You know, like, if you said I was your best friend in the whole world but then you also told  _Zach_  that  _he_  was, would you be cheating on me?" Maxx couldn't help but laugh again, poking at your side to make you laugh as well.

"You're  _crazy_ ," he shook his head.

" _Come on_ ," you pouted, grabbing his hand and holding it on his stomach as you began playing with his fingers, "Just answer the question."

"Well, I wouldn't tell Zach or  _anyone else_  they're my best friend in the whole world because that spot is reserved for  _you_ ," he said matter-of-factly.

"It  _is_?" you asked, tilting your head to look at him.

" _Always_ ," he replied, kissing your forehead. You smiled slightly, looking back down at his hand in yours.

Maxx was surprised at his ability to keep his heart from racing at your touch, and truthfully proud of himself as well for managing not to have the usual sweaty palms caused by the nervousness he felt whenever he was around you.

He wanted to tell you how he felt  _so badly_ , but how  _could he_? You'd  _just_  gotten out of a relationship where someone cheated on you – and someone he was still  _friends_  with as far as you were concerned. He was sure you'd never take a chance on him – especially not  _right after_  what happened with Cody.

So he sat on it.

He sat on his feelings the exact way he'd been doing so for the last  _two years_ , now just waiting for the right moment to tell you everything he needed to get off his chest.

~

_inspiration: "Diamond Girl" by Set It Off_


	356. Diamond Girl (Maxx Danziger) - Part 2

**Maxx's POV**

It hadn't been long since the silence started, but the thing about you and Maxx was that you didn't have to be talking to enjoy spending time together. He could ask to come over  _just_  to take a  _nap_  and you wouldn't even hesitate to tell him your door would be unlocked for him.

Maxx could sense that something was on your mind though, but he didn't say anything; He knew you'd talk about it when you were ready.

He just didn't expect you to say what you  _did_.

"What did I do wrong?" you whispered, more to yourself than to Maxx. He simply smiled sadly, his lips hitting your forehead once again.

"You didn't do  _anything_  wrong," he mumbled into your skin, squeezing you gently.

"I obviously did  _something_ ," your voice cracked, "He wouldn't have cheated if I was  _good enough_  for him..."

"You  _are_  good enough, Y/N," he said firmly, "You're  _too_  good for  _anyone_ , to be honest. What Cody did was disgusting and all the fault is on  _him_ ,  _not you_."

"But if I just gone on tour with yo-"

At that point, Maxx finally had enough. It hurt to know that you still weren't over what happened, but to know that you  _blamed yourself_  for it was even worse. He couldn't think of a  _single_  scenario in which Cody  _wouldn't_  have cheated – whether you'd been with them or not.

So he repositioned himself slightly, grabbed your cheek, and forced you to look at him.

" _There is nothing wrong with you_ ," Maxx stated lowly and sternly so you knew he was being serious with you, "You are beautiful and amazing and talented and  _so_  beautiful and if Cody or  _anyone else_  is too  _stupid_  to appreciate that, then that's  _their_  problem. The  _only_  thing wrong with you is that you were too  _nice_  to Cody when you dumped him. If you're still hurt over it and you want to cry, I will be here for as long as you need. But I will  _not_  sit around and listen to you  _blame_  yourself." You looked at him for a moment before speaking – although, what you had to say was the  _least_  bit important.

"You said ' _beautiful_ ' twice," you whispered. Maxx chuckled lowly, his thumb barely stroking your cheekbone.

"I know what I said," he returned just as quietly.

If there was ever a time in the two years Maxx had known you that he had to force himself not to just grab you and kiss you right then and there, this was it. Your faces were so close together at this point that you could feel the other's breath on your lips. He didn't know what was going through your head – and maybe he just imagined it, but he  _swore_  he saw you glance down at his lips.

And he was going to ask you about it – if you hadn't been interrupted by a knock on your front door.

Maxx's hand fell from your face when you perked up, propping yourself up on your elbow. You weren't expecting any visitors – especially since Maxx was already there – so you had no idea who was at your door. And you  _definitely_  weren't expecting the voice you heard next.

"Y/N!" Cody knocked again with a sigh, "Come on! I know you're home!" Maxx instantly sat up with you, anger bubbling up inside him at the sheer  _audacity_  your ex-boyfriend had to come to your apartment.

Another knock was followed by another sigh and you heard what sounded an awful lot like Cody feeling around the top of your door frame for your spare key.

Your eyes widened and your head snapped over to Maxx.

"Did you bring my key when you came in?" you whispered as if Cody was going to hear you.

"No..." he trailed off. Maxx watched your eyes widen even  _more_  and he could  _visibly_  see you starting to breathe heavier. "Y/N... Are you o-"

"I'm not home," you stated quickly, crawling out of Maxx's arms and going to your bathroom.

"Y/N!" he repeated, jumping up and hurrying after you. You closed the door before he could get to you, locking the door behind you. "Y/N," he said, putting his forehead on the door as he tried jiggling the handle, "What are you doing?"

"Nothing!" you answered – a little  _too_  quickly if you asked Maxx, "It's fine. I'm fine. Everything's fine. But I'm not home." Maxx sighed, but when he heard what sounded like your key going into the doorknob, he immediately left the room.

Before Cody could even finish unlocking the door, Maxx was pulling it open. To say he was surprised to see it wasn't you standing in front of him but his  _best friend_  instead was an understatement.

"What are you doing here?" Cody asked.

"I've been here," Maxx replied monotonously, "What are  _you_  doing here?"

"I came to see my girlfriend."

" _Ex_ -girlfriend."

"It's not  _like that_ , Maxx; We just need to talk things out. It was all a misunderstanding."

"What was a  _misunderstanding_?" Maxx replied, narrowing his eyes, "The part where you fucked a girl that wasn't Y/N and then tried to tell us not to tell her or the part where she found out and broke up with you using your  _own_  song?" Cody was silent for a moment before his eyes widened.

" _You told her_!" he exclaimed.

"Well, you sure as  _hell_  weren't going to!"

"Why would you  _do that_?!"

"Because she deserved to  _know_! Did you  _really_  think word wouldn't have gotten out anyway?! That girl was a  _fan_ that you haven't even  _spoken to_  since that night! She ended up putting it  _all over_  social media that you cheated on Y/N with her and I  _wasn't_  about to let her find out that way! You have  _no right_  to be blaming anybody but  _yourself_  for this!"

"If she'd just let me apologize, it'll all be fine!" he insisted, "We can work it out! I  _know_  she still loves me!"

"You should have thought about that  _before_  you cheated then," he said dryly.

"Since when the hell do  _you_  decide what she does?!" Cody crossed his arms, "She's not a  _child_! She can defend  _herself_!"

"And if she hadn't locked herself in the bathroom refusing to see you, she would be. But since  _she's_  not,  _I'm_  telling you to leave."

"Why are you so  _defensive_  over her all of a sudden?" he rolled his eyes, "You were never like this  _before_."

"I've  _always_  been protective of her," Maxx grumbled, " _You_  have just never had to witness it until  _now_."

" _No_ ," he shook his head, "You're not  _friend_  protective. You're...  _You're_   _jealous_!" Cody's eyes widened and he shoved Maxx's shoulder, "What the  _fuck_ , Maxx?! She's my  _ex_! You can't get with her now! That's the  _basics_  of bro code!"

"I can do whatever the  _hell_  I want," he spat, shoving him back, "You are  _nothing_  to me anymore." 

Maxx ended his rant by grabbing the key out of Cody's hand so he couldn't try to come inside again, locking the door after slamming it in his face. He took a moment to calm himself down before stepping away to check on you.

But he couldn't even turn all the way around before he felt arms around his waist, a smaller body now pressed against his back.

His arm went behind him, winding around your body. His fingers were scratching the middle of your back until he finally felt you release him enough so he could turn to face you. Of course, he wasn't even given a chance to properly look at you because as soon as he turned, your face was buried in his neck once again.

Maxx didn't say anything – he simply wrapped his arms around your shoulders and held you tightly, kissing the side of your head every few seconds until you finally spoke.

"What about the band?" you asked, your voice so muffled by his shirt that he almost didn't hear you.

"What  _about_  it?"

"Won't things be weird now?" you murmured, looking up at him.

"I may hate Cody for what he did to you, but I can still be civilized with him," Maxx said.

"But what if  _he_  can't?" you swallowed, "I don't... I can't be responsible for the band breaking up –  _I can't_. I would never  _forgive_  myself for that! And  _so many_  people would  _hate_  m-"

"If he can't be civilized, that's his  _own_  problem," he told you firmly, "If he's going to let this be the end of the band, then maybe he doesn't care about it as much as he  _says_  he does. And I  _promise_  you,  _no one_  would blame you for it. I  _know_  you see what people say on Twitter and stuff, and I know  _you know_  they still support you. If anything, they blame  _Cody_  – as well they  _should_.  _None_  of this was your fault and whatever happens because of the situation won't be  _either_. You are an  _amazing_  person, Y/N, and nothing that happens from this point on is  _ever_  going to change that."

"Thank you," you choked out, your face returning to his skin.

"Don't thank me," he mumbled, his lips hitting your temple, "I love you too much to let you think otherwise."

Maybe you thought he meant it in the way he always said it – as platonically as it could get – and that he'd never actually have a chance with you now. But you were still in his life and you were still one of his best friends.

And that was good enough for him.

~

_inspiration: "Diamond Girl" by Set It Off_


	357. Diamond Girl (Maxx Danziger) - Part 3

**Your POV; Two months later**

You'd been internally battling with yourself on whether or not to take a step back from YouTube for about a week after the breakup before finally deciding to do it. You ended up taking a break from  _all_  forms of social media – although you  _did_  pop up here and there to post photos on Instagram just so fans knew you were fine and didn't think you'd dropped off the face of the earth.

Maxx had been spending most of his free time with you these days, only really ever going home to sleep and to make sure Pistol was being taken care of – even though he knew she was, he still wanted to see her. You'd joked with him many times that he should just bring the cat with him since he practically lived with you at this point, but he would simply smile and tell you to stop being silly.

_If only he knew how serious you were being though._

It was one such day when Maxx was over at your place. You were both sitting on the floor playing video games – him resting up against the couch and you in his lap, your back on his chest and your head tucked comfortably under his chin. He would reach over and move your analog sticks every once in a while in the hopes of messing you up, but it never worked. Instead, you would giggle and pull your controller away from him, smacking his hand gently.

After a while though, you got bored of playing video games yourself and instead just decided to watch Maxx play. You repositioned yourself to lay more with your head on his shoulder as his arms hugged your waist tighter and he held his controller in your lap.

"How are you feeling today?" Maxx asked you softly while you watched his character run around on the television screen. He would ask you this every day and, although it tended to feel like a bit much, you were just happy he cared about you.

"It's a good day," you replied.

"Sure that wasn't just because I brought a pizza over?" he asked, earning himself a small laugh and a slap to the thigh.

"Maybe, but at least it was a good day," you told him to which he hummed in agreement.

It was quiet again, the only sounds being the ones coming from the game. But you couldn't keep yourself silent anymore.

"I really miss making videos," you admitted, "But I'm not ready to go back to doing it."

"It's okay to miss it," Maxx told you, "You don't have to constantly be doing something just to remind yourself that you still enjoy it."

"I know, but it's just... The reason I don't want to is because people always want me to sing Set It Off songs... And I  _want_  to, but... I don't want to hear his voice anymore," you sighed.

"I'll make sure he sings as little as possible on the next record then," Maxx said without missing a beat.

"But  _you'll_  be singing instead?" you smiled slightly.

"Whatever you want, princess," he grinned, kissing the skin right above your cheekbone.

"Thanks, Maxx," you whispered, closing your eyes and nuzzling your face in his neck, "I don't know what I'd do without you."

"You'd probably be eating twice your weight in ice cream and watching sappy romantic comedies on Netflix all day," he said matter-of-factly. He felt you laugh, the sound slightly muffled by his skin.

"Stop being so  _mean_  to me," you pouted. He simply smiled again, tightening his hold on you.

Maxx rested his head on top of yours as you both went back to watching the game on your TV, and you just laid there, hoping one day, you'd be brave enough to tell him how you felt.

~

**Maxx's POV; Six months later**

Maxx walked into your apartment early one Friday afternoon, wanting to hang out before seeing if you'd rather go out to dinner that day instead of staying in. He heard you moving around in your bedroom, but he didn't call out for you, hearing you talking to yourself.

"Hey, guys!  _I'm back_!" you sang excitedly, "I thought about what I wanted to cover today and, I'm not gonna lie, I thought about doing a comeback song. But that would have been too  _obvious_  and as we all know, I like to keep you guys wondering what's coming next." You winked before moving on. "Anyway, in case you haven't watched the video I posted before I went on break, I'll give you a little run-down. I used to date this guy, some really unfortunate things happened, I'm not dating him anymore. That's it, we're done talking about it, we'll save all that for another video on my other channel. However, for  _this week's_  video, I've been thinking about doing this for a while now and I don't know why I haven't sung this yet, but now I am so it's fine. I don't know why I'm building up suspense – you already know what it is because it's in the title-" You laughed lightly to yourself. "-but I've been thinking about this song a lot more in the past few months, so... Yeah! Let's just get into it!"

Maxx couldn't help but wonder what song you'd picked – obviously not having asked anyone since even  _he_  didn't know you were planning on filming today. And when he realized what you were singing, he couldn't stop his heart from racing.

_My hands, your hands tied up like two ships_   
_Drifting weightless, waves try to break it_   
_I'd do anything to save it_   
_Why is it so hard to say it?_

_My heart, your heart sit tight like book ends_   
_Pages between us written with no end_   
_So many words we're not saying_   
_Don't wanna wait 'til it's gone_   
_You make me strong_

_I'm sorry if I say I need you_   
_But I don't care, I'm not scared of love_   
_Cause when I'm not with you, I'm weaker_   
_Is that so wrong?_   
_Is it so wrong that you make me strong?_

_Think of how much love that's been wasted_   
_People always try to escape it_   
_Move on to stop their heart breaking_   
_But there's nothing I'm running from_   
_You make me strong_

_I'm sorry if I say I need you_   
_But I don't care, I'm not scared of love_   
_Cause when I'm not with you, I'm weaker_   
_Is that so wrong?_   
_Is it so wrong?_

_So, baby, hold on to my heart_   
_Need you to keep me from falling apart_   
_I'll always hold on_   
_Cause you make me strong_

_I'm sorry if I say I need you_   
_But I don't care, I'm not scared of love_   
_Cause when I'm not with you, I'm weaker_   
_Is that so wrong?_   
_Is it so wrong?_

_I'm sorry if I say I need you_   
_But I don't care, I'm not scared of love_   
_Cause when I'm not with you, I'm weaker_   
_Is that so wrong?_   
_Is it so wrong that you make me strong?_

_I'm sorry if I say I need you_   
_But I don't care, I'm not scared of love_   
_Cause when I'm not with you, I'm weaker_   
_Is that so wrong?_   
_Is it so wrong that you make me strong?_

"So, yeah!" you chirped once you finished playing your guitar, "That was my comeback cover! I really hope you guys liked it, and I hope you're as happy as I am that I'm finally back! I've got a super special one coming next week – not to spoil it or anything, but I  _might_  have a super special guest come in and help me out with it." You smiled brightly, leading into the typical YouTuber finishing lines. "Please don't forget to like this video if you liked it, subscribe if you want to see more, and leave a comment with songs you think I should do next! I love you guys so much and I will see you next week!"

Maxx didn't know if it was just him psyching himself out, but he couldn't help but feel like the cover choice was referencing  _him_. He quickly shook it off though as he heard you get up and put your guitar back on its stand. He didn't want to get his hopes up and mention it to you only to have you tell him you didn't like him in that way.

He listened to you take the memory card out of your camera and grab your laptop so you could head to the living room and watch TV while you edited your video. He didn't want you to know he'd been listening that whole time, so he went into your kitchen to get a drink.

"Hey!" Maxx heard your voice behind him, turning to see a smile on your face as you came out of the hallway, "When did you get here?"

"Couple minutes ago," he shrugged, "Heard you talking and figured you were closing out a video, so I thought I wouldn't bother you yet. Back to making videos again, huh? What were you singing?"

"Yeah," you nodded, "I miss it too much to keep away any longer. And I guess you'll have to wait until  _tomorrow_  to find out." You winked teasingly, turning on your heels and heading into your living room.

"Oh,  _come on_!" he laughed, following you and plopping down onto the couch beside you, "I  _promise_  I won't tweet about it!"

"If I agree to that, I'm still subjected to it being put on Instagram, Facebook, Tumblr – you could put it on  _MySpace_  for all I know!"

"Be realistic, Y/N – who uses  _MySpace_  anymore?" he joked, poking your side to make you giggle. You shoved his hand away from you, putting your laptop on the coffee table, wanting to take a small break before editing.

"I'm sure there are a handful of people who still use it!" you defended your argument, "And  _not_  just other YouTubers who only log in again to do those ' _reacting to old MySpace photos_ ' videos!" Maxx grinned again and you both sat in silence for a moment before you reached over him to get your remote.

As you were flipping through the channels to find something to watch, Maxx spoke again.

"So who's your ' _super special guest_ ' for next week you were talking about?" he asked you.

"Right!" you exclaimed, "Well, it's a duet and I was actually gonna ask you if  _you_  would sing it with me... But you don't have to! It's okay if you say no! I can redo the outro! You don't have to-"

"What song is it?"

" _Why Don't You Love Me_  by Hot Chelle Rae and Demi Lovato," you replied shyly, "I've been promising that one for the longest time now and... Well, obviously, I've had to push it off to the side now since... You know... But I really want to do that song – I just don't think it would work well if I did it by myself... But if you don't want to, that's totally cool!" you said quickly, "I'll just find someone else or I can make it work as a solo or I just won't do it at all! I don't want you to feel like you have to just because I already said it in the intro! I can refilm it so I don't mention it at a-"

"Y/N," Maxx chuckled, finally cutting off your rambling, " _Of course_  I'll sing with you."

" _Really_?" you were wide-eyed – a little surprised he'd actually agreed, to be honest.

"Yeah!" he grinned, "We sing together all the time already anyway. Why not do it for your channel?"

" _Thank you_ ," you breathed, turning your body so you could hug him. The arm closest to you went around your waist, giving you a one-armed hug in return.

"Hey, I'd do  _anything_  for you, remember?" he mentioned.

"Yeah, except bring  _Pistol_  with you," you pouted, "I miss her." He couldn't help but laugh loudly.

"How about I bring her next week when we film that cover?" he suggested.

"And you'll stay the night and we can have a sleepover?" you asked hopefully, "And we'll order pizza and watch movies and-"

"Yes," he grinned as he shook his head – your tendency to ramble was always endearing to him, "We can do all of that stuff." You finally caught your breath, moving your arms to wrap around his waist while you buried your face in his shoulder.

"Love you, Maxx," you mumbled into the fabric of his shirt. You heard him breathe in before his arm went around your shoulders and his lips hit the top of your head.

"Love you too, Y/N," he whispered into your hair.

~

_song used: "Strong" by One Direction  
inspiration: "Diamond Girl" by Set It Off_


	358. Diamond Girl (Maxx Danziger) - Part 4

"Hey, guys!" you began your video as usual, "I haven't decided whether or not I'm going to put his name in the title or not – obviously by the time you're seeing this, you'll already  _know_  if I did – but either way, I won't keep you in suspense!  _Super special guest_!  _Come here_!" Maxx came out from his spot just off camera, scooting closer to your left side until his arm was touching yours.

"Here I am!" he smiled.

"Wait, you're not  _Pistol_ ," you stated.

"She decided she didn't want to be part of this anymore," he replied without missing a beat, "Something about how  _rude_  you are or whatever." You finally giggled, making him smile as well, as you rolled your eyes.

"Introduce yourself."

"They already know who I am," he said.

" _Wow_ , and you swore you'd  _never_  let the fame change you," you shook your head.

"I'm Maxx," he chuckled, looking at your camera, "It doesn't matter what band I'm in."

"He's the 5th second of summer," you stated seriously, "They kicked him out though because the fame went to his head." Maxx laughed again, shoving your shoulder. "What are we doing today?" you urged.

"We're singing your second favorite song," he chirped.

"My  _second_  favorite?" you couldn't help but laugh, "What's my  _first_  favorite then?"

"When I sang  _Happy_ _Birthday_  to you last month," he said, "It was so beautiful. You even cried." You were quiet for a moment.

"I cried because you smashed the cupcake into my face but forgot to take the  _candle_  out first," you reminded him.

"At least it wasn't  _lit_!" he exclaimed defensively.

" _Anyway_ ," you rolled your eyes, turning back to your camera, "We hope you enjoy this cover."

_See, I can't wake up_   
_I'm living a nightmare that keeps playing over again_   
_Locked in a room so hung up on you_   
_And you're cool with just being friends_

_Left on the sidelines, stuck at a red light_   
_Waiting for my time and I can't see_

_Why don't you love me?_   
_Touch me_   
_Tell me I'm your everything_   
_The air you're breathing_

_Why don't you love me, baby?_   
_Open up your heart tonight_   
_'Cause I could be all that you need_   
_Oh, why don't you love me?_   
_Why don't you love me?_

_See, I'm just too scared to tell you the truth_   
_'Cause my heartache can't take anymore_   
_Broken and bruised, longing for you_   
_And I don't know what I'm waiting for_

_Left on the sidelines, stuck at a red light_   
_Waiting for my time, so just tell me_

_Why don't you love me?_   
_Touch me_   
_Tell me I'm your everything_   
_The air you're breathing_

_Why don't you love me, baby?_   
_Open up your heart tonight_   
_'Cause I could be all that you need_   
_Oh_

_Why don't you give me a reason?_   
_Please tell me the truth_   
_You know that I'll keep believing_   
_Till I'm with you_

_Why don't you love me?_   
_Kiss me_   
_I can feel your heart tonight_   
_It's killing me_

_So why don't you love me?_   
_Touch me_   
_Tell me I'm your everything_   
_The air you're breathing_

_Why don't you love me, baby?_   
_Open up your heart tonight_   
_'Cause I could be all that you need_   
_Oh, why don't you love me?_   
_Why don't you love me?_

_Oh, why don't you love me?_   
_Why don't you love me?_   
_Why don't you love me?_

"Thanks for watching, guys!" you chirped to begin the outro, "And thanks to my super special  _backup_  guest for taking Pistol's place." You wrapped your arms around Maxx's neck, missing him roll his eyes as you continued looking at the camera. "Maxx, tell them where they can find me," you said.

"Well, you can find Y/N on all forms of social media:  _@MaxxSIO_ , and-"

"Alright," you cut him off, putting your hand over his mouth, "No one wants to follow you." You felt him smile and press a kiss to your palm as you went on. "You can find me at all the places listed in the downbar below, as well as on this channel every single Saturday with a brand new cover! Be sure to leave requests in the comments and make sure to subscribe to be notified the moment I upload and also share this video if you liked it! Thank you so much for watching!" You then turned back to Maxx. "Can I  _trust you_  to say bye?" you asked him. He nodded and you took your hand off of his mouth, draping it on his shoulder.

"Bye, guys!" he smiled, "Be sure to follow  _@Maxx_ -"

" _Maxx_!" you laughed loudly, covering his mouth for the second time, "You are  _never_  coming on my channel again." You felt him pout against your palm, laughing again. "Bye, guys," you smiled at the camera. Maxx happily waved just before you reached over and stopped recording. "You're  _insufferable_ ," you giggled, taking your hand back so you could get your memory card.

"And yet, you  _still_  let me into your home every single day," he shrugged, getting up so he could stretch his legs. He left the room as you were gathering up your laptop and headphones to begin editing, no doubt going to end up falling asleep on the couch.

~

**20 minutes later**

As you were editing the video – Pistol curled up on the counter top beside your computer – you couldn't help but notice something. While Maxx had never been in one of your videos before, he was certainly no stranger to being in front of a camera. So when you realized that, as he sang, he was staring at  _you_ , your heart started racing.

You knew you had feelings for Maxx – and honestly, you felt incredibly  _weird_  because of it. He was one of Cody's best friends – well, not so much  _these days_ , obviously – but you still never thought he could ever have feelings for one of his exes –  _especially you_.

"Y/N," you heard Maxx's voice say, making you jump.

Your eyes snapped up from your computer screen and over the top of your laptop, finding Maxx looking at you from his curled-up position on your couch, a concerned look on his face.

"You okay?" he asked as he rubbed his eyes, moving to lay his back so he could stretch out his legs.

"I'm fine," you nodded – a little  _too quickly_  for Maxx's taste, "I've just been editing for a while and I'm starting to space out, I guess."

"Your turn for a nap then?" he asked. You couldn't help but giggle softly, shaking your head.

"I can't," you told him, "I haven't finished editing yet."

"Come on," he insisted, "I won't let you sleep that long. Besides, it's been too long since our last cuddle session."

"Our last cuddle session was  _yesterday_ ," you reminded him.

"Exactly," he nodded, "So save what you've got so far and come over here." You looked at him incredulously for a moment before saving your work – at least six times,  _just to be sure_  – and closing your laptop.

You then got up from your spot at the counter and walked over to the couch, climbing over Maxx and sandwiching yourself between his body and the back pillows. His arms wrapped around you while you snuggled into his side, your face finding its usual spot in his neck. You breathed in deeply, letting it out slowly, closing your eyes in content.

~

**The next morning**

It hadn't even been 10 minutes since the video went live that you'd started getting the most comments you'd ever seen on a single one of your videos. You weren't typically one to read comments as soon as you posted a video – they usually were only ' _FIRST!!!_ ' or those without a life telling you that you weren't even a good singer.

But on  _this day_ , the comments were everything  _but_.

_AM I CRAZY OR IS EVERYONE ELSE NOTICING THAT HE DIDN'T STOP STARING AT HER THE WHOLE VIDEO??????_

_i ship her with maxx way more than i shipped her with cody tbh_

_I WANT SOMEONE TO LOOK AT ME THE WAY MAXX LOOKS AT Y/N_

You would have read more, but when you heard Maxx start moving around in your bedroom, you knew he'd woken up. You quickly clicked out of your internet browser and closed your laptop, jumping up and going into the kitchen. You tried your best to ignore your racing heart, but it was becoming increasingly difficult.

"Morning, Y/N," Maxx said as he walked up behind you, his voice gravelly from having just woken up. He pressed a kiss to the side of your head – as he did every single time he stayed the night – and you simply smiled at him, surprised you were able to keep your composure.

"Morning, Sleeping Beauty," you snickered, making him roll his eyes, a small smile on his own face.

"So do you want to go out for breakfast?" he asked you.

"How do you know I haven't eaten yet?"

"Because I know  _you_ ," he replied, a serious expression on his face, " _And_  I know you've been reading the comments on your video."

You couldn't help but sigh lightly – you should have known he'd already seen them as well; He was probably on his phone for a good half an hour before actually getting out of bed.

"What's your point?" you murmured.

"You noticed me staring at you while you were editing," he said matter-of-factly, "That's why you were so spaced out. But you didn't think anything of it until you saw comments from people thinking the  _same thing_."

"Thinking  _what_?" you finally looked at him. Maxx didn't answer – he simply proposed another question of his own.

"That day when Cody knocked on your door... I saw you staring at me..." he trailed off, "Would you have kissed me if he hadn't shown up?"

"I don't know..." you whispered, "Probably not..."

"Why?"

"Because I... I didn't think you'd want me to... I'm your  _friend's ex_  and... You don't  _kiss_  your friend's exes..."

"But what if I  _want_  to kiss my friend's ex?"

"You must not want it that  _badly_ ," you stated bravely, making him tilt his head in curiosity, "Otherwise, you'd  _already_  be kissing her." A smile slowly pulled at the corners of his mouth and in only a split second, you  _finally_  felt his lips on yours.

You let out a sigh of relief, feeling him do the same thing not even a second later. You giggled into the kiss, putting your hands on his cheeks to keep him in place as if he was even  _thinking about_  pulling away. His hands found your hips and brought your body closer to his, letting you feel his smile as well.

When you stopped kissing each other to breathe, Maxx put his forehead on yours, his eyes still closed.

"You have  _no idea_  how long I've wanted to do that," he admitted. You didn't respond – you just smiled bashfully, your lips returning to his.

~

_song used: "Why Don't You Love Me" by Hot Chelle Rae ft. Demi Lovato  
inspiration: "Diamond Girl" by Set It Off_


	359. Still Looking Up (Ashton Irwin)

"I think  _you_  might be more nervous than  _I_  am," your boyfriend teased as you both sat in the waiting area of the venue for his  _America's Got Talent_  audition, waiting for his name to be called. Your head was on his shoulder, your fingers tangled with his, squeezing his hand every now and again.

"I just want the judges to love you as much as I do," you murmured into his shirt.

"Don't think  _anyone_  could love me  _that_  much, princess," Ashton grinned, pressing a kiss to the top of your head.

"Ashton Irwin!" a producer called out.

Ashton stood up, bringing you with him. He gave you a kiss before he was whisked off to briefly chat with Nick Cannon while you followed another producer to a seat in the audience so you could have a camera on you.

It seemed like  _forever_  before Ashton walked out on stage, but when he did and the audience clapped, you felt your heart swell up. You were  _so proud_  of him for everything he'd accomplished since you met him, and you only hoped that he would be able to add a  _successful_  audition to that list as well.

"What's your name?" Simon asked once the clapping had died down.

"My name is Ashton Irwin," he grinned, "I'm 22-years-old, originally from Sydney, Australia, but I currently live in Los Angeles."

"What will you be doing for us today?" Howie asked.

"I will be singing," he answered.

"So how did you get into that? Have you always been a singer?"

"Definitely! My mum says it was very rare to ever hear me  _not_  singing around the house growing up," he giggled.

"And have you brought anyone with you?" Heidi asked him.

"My beautiful girlfriend and number one fan, Y/N," he beamed, motioning over to you. The judges looked over as you smiled at Ashton, rolling your eyes.

"What will you be singing for us?" Mel went on.

"I'll be singing  _I Won't Give Up_ by Jason Mraz."

"Well then, the stage is yours!" Heidi chirped.

"Thank you," he grinned as he nodded.

Ashton headed around the keyboard that was set up for him, sitting down. He glanced at you, making you smile and give him a thumbs up. He smiled to himself as well before beginning the song.

_When I look into your eyes_   
_It's like watching the night sky_   
_Or a beautiful sunrise_   
_Well, there's so much they hold_

_Well, I won't give up on us_   
_Even if the skies get rough_   
_I'm giving you all my love_   
_I'm still looking up_

_'Cause even the stars they burn_   
_Some even fall to the earth_   
_We've got a lot to learn_   
_God knows we're worth it_   
_No, I won't give up_

_I don't wanna be someone who walks away so easily_   
_I'm here to stay and make the difference that I can make_   
_Our differences, they do a lot to teach us how to use_   
_The tools and gifts we got, yeah, we got a lot at stake_

_And in the end, you're still my friend, at least we did intend_   
_For us to work, we didn't break, we didn't burn_   
_We had to learn how to bend without the world caving in_   
_I had to learn what I've got, and what I'm not, and who I am_

_I won't give up on us_   
_Even if the skies get rough_   
_I'm giving you all my love_   
_I'm still looking up, I'm still looking up_

_Well, I won't give up on us_   
_God knows I'm tough enough_   
_We've got a lot to learn_   
_God knows we're worth it_

_I won't give up on us_   
_Even if the skies get rough_   
_I'm giving you all my love_   
_I'm still looking up_

At least half of the room was in tears by the time Ashton was finished, getting up from his seat so he could return back to hear what the judges had to say. He looked over at you, finding you wiping the tears from your cheeks.

When you noticed he was looking, you mouthed an ' _I love you_ ' to him, making him smile widely as he blew you a kiss.

You watched on from your seat in the crowd, anxiously awaiting the judges' opinions. The crowd finally quieted down so they could speak, Howie deciding to go first.

"You know what I  _love_  about you, Ashton?" he said, "You're clearly this very bright and bubbly and happy guy, but you're able to convey such  _emotion_  with your voice when you sing, and I think that's something that not a lot of people can  _do_."

"I think  _you_  might be my favorite performer we've seen so far," Simon shrugged. Ashton breathed out with a smile on his face, happy to hear that he was  _Simon Cowell's_  favorite thus far.

"I think my favorite thing about you is that I noticed you kept looking over at your girlfriend and, to me, it truly felt like you weren't performing in front of  _everyone_  so much as you were imagining yourself singing to  _just her_ ," Mel said, "I thought it was  _brilliant_ , honestly – an  _incredible_  performance. I definitely think you have a  _very_  good chance of making it all the way." Ashton thanked her breathlessly as the last judge took her turn to speak.

"I don't really know what to say that hasn't been said already," Heidi shook her head, "But you sing with a lot of emotion and that makes  _me_  super emotional. So you know what I'm gonna do for  _you_ , Ashton?"

You couldn't see Heidi's face, but you saw Ashton's eyes widen. Your hands covered your mouth as you stood up so you could see the table.

"I'm gonna do  _this_ ," she smiled widely, right before excitedly pushing the golden buzzer. You instantly let out a loud scream, jumping up and down, and the people in the room were cheering all over again.

The world seemed to be in slow motion as confetti was flying all around Ashton as he took a few steps backwards, his legs finally giving way. He put his microphone down on the floor beside him and his hands came up to cover his face.

You went to go onstage but you stopped yourself, thinking you weren't supposed to. Howie must have noticed you freeze out of the corner of his eye, because he turned toward you with a beaming smile, motioning for you to keep going. You, of course, happily did so, bolting up the stairs.

Confetti was still falling as you reached your boyfriend, dropping to your knees right beside him. You hugged him with your head on the small of his back before he finally pushed himself up so you could hug each other properly. His arms wrapped around your waist tightly as he stood back up, bringing you with him. He lifted you off of your feet, hearing you giggle in his ear through your sobs.

"I'm s-so  _proud_  of y-you," you said softly, your fingers threading through the hair on the back of his head as you felt him hug you tighter.

"I love you," he murmured, kissing the skin where it met the neckline of your dress, "I love you  _so much_."

~

_song used: "I Won't Give Up" by Jason Mraz_


	360. Detention (Calum Hood) - Part 1

You walked into detention, every single desk empty except for one.

You'd gotten detention for the first time in all your years of going to school – but let's be clear on one thing:  _It wasn't your fault_.

That fact, however, didn't change the fact that you were still given the order to go to detention after school that day, so you begrudgingly went in after gathering everything you needed from your locker after the final bell that day.

Calum Hood was the school's bad boy – always in  _some_  kind of trouble and  _definitely_  no stranger to being in detention – so it was no surprise to you that he was the only other person in the room with you that day.

You'd known of Calum for a couple years now – you transferred to his school halfway through 10th grade – but you never really talked to him. You never talked to  _anyone_ , actually. You were a bit of a loner – not many friends in the school, and those you  _were_  friends with, you only saw before and after classes.

You felt Calum's eyes on you as you sat down on the complete opposite side of the room as him. You leaned down after putting your backpack on the floor, reaching in and getting your math homework. You put it on your desk and opened your notebook, hearing a soft chuckle come from the other side of the room.

"You're doing  _homework_?" the boy said, breaking the silence.

"What  _else_  am I supposed to do?" you asked, not looking up from your books, "It's not gonna do  _itself_."

"You could keep me company," Calum suggested.

"I thought detention was supposed to be  _quiet_ ," you tried hinting to him but he didn't seem to get it.

" _Usually_ ," he nodded, "But that's only when there's a  _teacher_  in the room." Your curiosity got the better of you and you looked over at him. "Mr. Schuffman never shows up," he informed you, "Something about how his kids' daycare will kick them out if he's late one more time."

"But you  _still_  come to detention?" you cocked an eyebrow.

"He has the officer at the front desk watch the cameras in this hallway like a  _hawk_  until 3:45," he shrugged, "There's no escape."

You sighed softly, watching as Calum got up from his seat and sauntered toward your own. He plopped down at the desk in front of yours, leaning back against the arm of the desk and propping his feet up on the chair across from him.

"So," he said, "What are you in for?"

"Unlawful imprisonment," you murmured, looking back down at your work. Calum plucked the pencil out of your hand, twirling it around in his fingers like a drumstick as you huffed sharply.

"And that  _means_?" he egged you on.

"Someone hit me at lunch," you told him, "So I hit them back."

"And  _you're_  the one in detention because...?"

"I told you – unlawful imprisonment," you repeated, "A teacher saw  _me_  hit  _him_  but not  _him_  hit  _me_. And everyone came to  _his_  defense so  _I_  got in trouble."

"And security cameras didn't help you?"

"Would I be here if they  _did_?" you rolled your eyes, snatching your pencil back from him. But since it was clear he wasn't going to let you do your work in peace, you didn't go back to it and simply leaned back in your seat. "Why are  _you_  here?" you asked.

"I'm  _always_  here," he replied.

"I'm sure you're not here for the  _same reason_  every time," you shook your head. Calum looked at you for a moment, mentally deciding whether or not he should tell you the truth or make something up.

But in the end, he went for the  _truth_.

"I hit the kid who hit you," he shrugged.

"What did he do to  _you_?" you wondered.

"He hit you," Calum said with a serious look on his face, "And I had to make sure he knew that  _wasn't_  okay." You furrowed your eyebrows, staring at him in disbelief.

You knew Calum was someone who always let his anger control him without thinking first, but you never knew he even realized you  _existed_ , let alone that he would come to your defense.

"Shouldn't you have gotten  _suspended_  instead of getting detention?" you finally spoke, your voice coming out softly.

"Is  _that_  what we're going to focus on?" Calum asked. You sighed again, making a motion to return to doing your homework when he stopped you. "I did," he said.

"You did  _what_?"

"I  _did_  get suspended," he clarified, "For a week."

"Then why are you still here?"

"I wanted to make sure you were okay!" he said defensively, "Is that a  _crime_?"

You swallowed thickly, looking down at your papers but not making a motion to work on any of them. You heard Calum sigh under his breath.

"M'sorry," he murmured, "I didn't mean to yell at you."

"Why do you  _care_  so much?" you asked in a whisper. You didn't look at him, but you continued anyway, knowing he was going to ask what you meant. "You weren't  _there_..." you said, "You didn't see what happened... It  _could have_  been my fault... Then you would have hit him for  _nothing_."

" _Was it_  your fault?" he asked you.

"Maybe..." you shrugged, resting your elbow on the desktop and your chin in your hand, "He told me to move... I didn't listen..." You listened to Calum chuckle lightly.

"You don't believe it was your fault," he stated matter-of-factly, finally making you look up again, "If you  _did_ , you wouldn't have  _hit him back_." He made a valid point – if you really  _did_  blame yourself, you wouldn't have responded when he hit you, and  _especially_  not in the way you did. "And as for why I care so much," he went on, "I think you're a great girl, Y/N. You're incredibly quiet and you keep to yourself most of the time, but I just think you're fascinating. But you don't stand up for yourself as often as you should, so when I heard that kid hit you and  _you_  got in trouble for finally hitting someone back, I got mad. And everyone knows how I  _get_  when I'm mad." You giggled softly, making the corner of his mouth twitch. "Everyone deserves someone who's going to stand up for them, Y/N," Calum told you, " _Even_  the people who feel like no one cares." Before you could say anything, a voice coming over the intercom made you jump.

" _All those in detention are free to go home_ ," it said. You looked up at the clock, not realizing that it was 3:45 already.

Calum stood up to leave, but you quickly jumped to your feet and stopped him. You wrapped your arms around his waist, hugging him tightly. Although he was surprised, he hugged you back without hesitation.

"Thanks, Calum," you mumbled into his shirt, making him smile. You felt him press his lips to the top of your head, his thumb rubbing circles on your shoulder.

"You're welcome," he told you.

As you let go of him, you noticed he was reluctant to release you. The idea that Calum enjoyed hugging you made you blush and quickly look down to gather your things before he saw it. But he didn't leave the room right away like you thought he would.

"Do you need a ride home?" he asked you. Your eyes widened slightly – you hadn't even  _thought_  about the fact that you'd missed your bus and didn't have a way to get home. "I'll take  _that_  as a yes," Calum laughed when he saw your expression.

"You don't have to, Calum," you shook your head, putting your books into your backpack, "I'll just call my neighbor."

"Why not your parents?" he asked curiously.

"My dad doesn't get off work until 6 and I don't want to be here that long," you sassed, making him chuckle again.

"Think about all the  _homework_  you could get done though," he teased. You raised your eyebrows, making him roll his eyes. " _I'm kidding, Y/N_ ," he stated, "Come on; I'm taking you home." Calum held his arm up as you zipped up your backpack and picked it up, letting it rest on your shoulders once you reached him. "Homework is for doing at home anyway," he mentioned, "That's why it's called  _home_ work."

You laughed loudly, shoving him with your elbow gently before finding yourself gravitating toward his side. Of course, Calum noticed this, and pulled you further into him, his arm squeezing you slightly.

The ride to your house was silent for the most part – the only sound being Calum constantly messing with the radio. You would giggle silently as he mumbled about ' _all the stations playing the same ten songs over and over again_ ', but you ultimately elected to just let him continue his ranting.

It wasn't until Calum pulled into your driveway that you finally said something, your worries finally catching up with you.

"Calum-"

"Cal," he cut you off before you could say anything else. You let out a noise of confusion. "People I  _like_  call me Cal," he told you, and you blushed lightly at knowing Calum liked you enough to let you call him by his nickname.

"Cal..." you murmured, "You don't... You don't think something's gonna happen, right...?"

"What do you mean?" Calum asked.

"Like... You know... That guy's not gonna do anything because I hit him back, will he...? Or his  _friends_..."

"If they know what's  _good_   _for them_ , they'll stay as far away from you as  _possible_ ," he stated, looking right into your eyes so you knew he was being serious, "And if they bother you tomorrow or any other day before I come back, you can text me and I'll pay them a visit  _off_  of school grounds."

"Thanks, Cal, but at the rate you're going, you're more likely to end up in jail for  _murder_ ," you said lightheartedly.

Calum chuckled, "It'd be worth it though, wouldn't it?"

"I don't want to only times I ever see you now to be during  _visitation hours_."

"But you'd still come to  _see me_?" he smiled innocently, placing his hand over his heart. You rolled your eyes, making a motion to get out of the car, but you were stopped by Calum grabbing your hand. "You're gonna be  _fine_ , Y/N," he assured you, "No one is going to mess with you now that they know what will happen if they  _do_."

And for some reason, you were relieved by the notion that he was  _so willing_  to defend you.

"Thanks, Cal," you repeated, much more softly this time. He gave you the famous grin that had all the girls falling for him, bringing your hand up so he could kiss the back of it before letting go so you could leave.

"I'll see you around, princess," Calum said, officially giving you  _your_  new nickname, making you blush a bright shade of red.

"See you, Cal," you mumbled, leaning over the center console to peck his cheek before you got out of the car and hurried to your front door.

You turned around after unlocking it, giving Calum a shy wave before going inside. Calum stared at the door for a moment – a bright red blush of his  _own_  on his face.

And as he put his car in reverse to back out of your driveway, he found himself hoping – for the very first time in his  _life_  – that his suspension would go by  _quickly_  just so he could go back to school and see you  _sooner_.

~

_inspiration: https://www.wattpad.com/145075239-5sos-imagines-detention-buddies_


	361. Detention (Calum Hood) - Part 2

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

~

**One week later**

"Hey, nerd," you heard behind you. You swallowed thickly – you knew it was the kid you hit back and you hadn't seen Calum yet that morning since you'd only  _just_ arrived to school, so you could only  _imagine_  what was about to happen to you.

You ignored him at first – you didn't want him to know you heard him – but he clearly wasn't going to give up that easily. He grabbed your shoulder and spun you around, causing you to squeal loudly as your back hit the locker next to yours.

"It's not polite to ignore people when they're talking to you," he growled.

"I didn't know you were talking to me," you told him. You were surprised that you were coming off as confident as you were – you were understandably scared to death, but that didn't mean you had to let  _him_ know that.

"I made it  _perfectly clear_  I was talking to  _you_."

"No, you didn't," you challenged, "My name is  _Y/N_  –  _not_  ' _nerd_ '."

"Do you  _want_ me to hit you again,  _nerd_?" he laughed bitterly.

"I  _want_  you to leave me alone."

"Well, with  _that_ attitude, you'll be lucky if I let you walk away from me in  _one piece_."

"I'd certainly like to see you  _try_  that, Stevens," Calum's voice suddenly came from somewhere beside you. Although the bully immediately backed off, he still wasn't finished taunting you.

"Getting someone else to fight your battles for you now,  _nerd_?" Brian scoffed.

"No, she's not," Calum answered, "But since it's clear you have a problem with her fighting back and understanding her when she tells you to stop, I think it's appropriate to give her a little help."

"You call that  _fighting back_?" he laughed, "I didn't realize your standards were  _that low_ , Hood; Although, they'd  _have_ to be  _pretty_ low in order for you to hang around  _her_ , wouldn't they?"

It was like a switch went off in Calum – all his calmness flying out the window. He took a step toward Brian, but you quickly grabbed his forearm, keeping him in the spot beside you. He took a deep breath to recollect himself before speaking loudly enough for the students now fixated on your little group to hear.

"You've got a pretty  _nasty_  looking black eye there, Stevens," Calum mentioned through gritted teeth, "Should I tell everyone which one of  _us_ -" He motioned between you and himself. "-gave it to you?"

Brian narrowed his eyes at the two of you before turning around and stomping away. Calum glanced around the hallway, causing everyone to quickly return to what they'd been doing before.

"Are you okay, princess?" Calum asked softly, putting his hand on your cheek and inspecting your face to make sure Brian didn't touch you before he got there.

"I'm fine, Cal," you murmured, letting go of his arm and turning back to your locker. He moved his arms around your waist, bringing your back into his chest and hugging you tightly.

"Did I tell you how  _impressed_  I am with that black eye you gave him?" he asked. You finally cracked a smile, unable to hold back your giggle.

"You've mentioned it a  _couple_ times," you nodded. You felt his lips hit the skin covering your cheekbone, making your heart flutter.

"Seriously though: it's  _so_ bad ass," he gushed, "I've never looked at you before last week and expected you to be able to do something like  _that_."

"Are you telling me you've been judging a book by its cover this whole time?" you tilted your head up to look at him, letting him see your joking pout.

Calum couldn't help but laugh loudly, digging his fingers into your side to tickle you. You squeaked before laughing, quickly grabbing his hands to make him stop. He responded to the move by instantly tangling your fingers together, holding onto you tightly as he leaned back in to press another kiss to your cheek.

"So how was school without me last week?" he asked.

"Well, no one was punched as far as I've heard," you shrugged, giggling when he poked your stomach again.

"You  _know_  what I mean, princess," he chuckled, "Any problems with Stevens or his friends?"

You let out a forced laugh, " _Physical_? No."

"How about  _non-physical_?" he wondered, releasing you so he could lean up against the locker beside yours, watching your face.

"I don't think I need to remind you that he's very  _loud_ ," you shook your head, returning to putting your things away in your locker.

"I mean, yeah, it's his  _trademark_ ," Calum replied, "You can't be a  _douchebag_  without being  _loud_." You couldn't help but giggle again softly, making him smile.

"Don't know why he picked  _today_ to actually yell at me though," you remarked, "He  _knew_ your suspension was up and you were coming back to school."

And that got Calum thinking... You had a  _point_.

~

**Calum's POV; Four hours later**

" _Stevens_!" Calum called out, causing Brian to look over his shoulder. The bully audibly groaned, but stopped walking before he entered his 4th period classroom.

"What do you want  _now_ , Hood?" Brian stated, rolling his eyes, "I haven't gone near that  _nerd_  since this morning."

"Why  _today_?" he got straight to the point, "You've had  _all week_ to pick on Y/N without me here, so why did you decide to approach her  _today_?"

"Bad timing?" he snorted softly. Calum took a deep breath to calm himself before going on.

"As brainless and annoying as I find you, we both know you don't do things without a  _reason_ ," he reminded him, "So what's your  _reason_ for going after _Y/N_?"

"She's an easy target," Brian informed him, "She doesn't speak to anyone, she doesn't stand up for herself, she has no  _friends_  to stand up  _for her_... She's a  _nobody_  – even  _you_  know that. Only reason I can think of that you would be defending her all of a sudden would be if she's amazing in be-" The bully ­– and everyone within earshot of the two – was surprised when Calum suddenly grabbed the collar of his shirt and shoved him up against the lockers behind him, his eyes narrowed in anger.

"You're gonna stay  _away_ from my girl, understand?" Calum growled, "If you so much as  _think about her_  again, your life is going to be a  _living hell_." Brian stepped away from Calum, making him release his shirt, as he laughed.

" _Definitely_  amazing in bed," he mentioned, hearing Calum huff as he disappeared into the classroom.

~

**Your POV; After school**

You were walking back inside the school after missing your bus. It didn't happen very often, but you still dreaded having to have your mom to come pick you up either way – no matter that you knew she didn't  _really_ mind it.

As you entered a hallway on your way to the front of the school, already pulling your phone out to call your mom, you heard a voice.

"Need a ride, princess?" Calum asked, making you look up as he walked over to you. You were giving him a confused expression, making him smile. "Miss your bus again?" he questioned, laughing when you rolled your eyes.

"You make it sound like I  _always_  miss it," you shook your head. He laughed again – a bit more softly this time around.

"D'ya want a ride or not?" he asked. You looked at him for a moment.

"Sure," you agreed, "But only because I need to talk to you."

" _Jeez_ ," he gave you a nervous laugh, reaching up to scratch the back of his neck, "Don't know how I could possibly be in trouble  _already_. What'd I do?"

"Are you telling people I'm ' _your girl_ ' now?" you asked.

"Hmm?" Calum hummed, raising an eyebrow at you.

"Someone in my 5th period heard you and Brian Stevens before 4th," you informed him, "Heard you tell him to ' _stay away from my girl_ '." His Adam's apple shifted slightly as he gulped.

"Oh..." he murmured, not really knowing what else to say.

"So  _am I_?" you questioned, "Am I ' _your girl_ ' now?"

"I... I don't..." he trailed off, "Do you... _wanna_  be...?" His heart was pounding against his chest as he watched your reaction, the organ then skipping a beat when a small smile started pulling at the corners of your mouth.

"Yeah," you barely nodded, your voice not giving you anything more than a whisper, "Yeah, I do."


	362. The Way It's Supposed to Be (Ashton Irwin)

"And so begins  _another year_  of over-the-top gestures of telling someone you love them as if you shouldn't  _already_  be doing that every other  _damn_  day of the year," you grumbled as you and Ashton walked through the Valentine's Day aisle of Walmart.

"Come on, Y/N – don't be such a  _sourpuss_ ," he giggled, "Valentine's Day is fun!"

"What's so  _fun_  about it?" you laughed bitterly, "If I want to tell someone I love them, I'll just  _call_  them."

"A little something  _extra_  never hurt anybody," he commented, grabbing two boxes of chocolates for his mom and sister before moving down the aisle to find something for his brother as well.

"It's  _stupid_ ," you stated, "I don't need some social construct trying to tell me that what I'm already doing isn't  _good enough_."

"Well, you know what  _I_  think?" Ashton said thoughtfully, "I think that you just haven't had a Valentine's Day that knocked you off of your feet. I think if you had one of  _those_ , you'd feel differently."

"And I think you're  _full of shit_ ," you said dryly, making him giggle again.

"Okay, well, instead of our usual night of hanging out, I'm gonna take you out for Valentine's Day," he announced.

" _Ashton_ ," you rolled your eyes, following him as he began heading to the checkout.

"And it's going to be the  _best_  Valentine's Day of your life so far!"

~

As promised, Ashton texted you on the day of the Valentine's Day, telling you to be ready by 6 that evening. He did give you somewhat of a hint – telling you to dress casual and warm – letting you know that what you were doing wasn't  _super fancy_  – much to your appreciation.

And you were ready the moment Ashton started knocking on your door.

You chose a simple outfit – your favorite jeans, a plain grey tee, and a light cardigan since it wasn't  _too_  cold outside. You didn't think you looked all that different that you usually did, but the moment you opened your door, your best friend couldn't wipe the silly grin off of his face.

"You look beautiful," Ashton told you as you stepped out of your apartment.

"What are we doing this for, Ash?" you sighed, "I'm missing  _Making a Murderer_."

"It's not like it's  _live_ , Y/N," he chuckled, "You can watch it when you get back home."

He opened the front door of your building for you and led you out to his car, opening that door for you as well. He hurried around to the driver's side and climbed in, beginning the drive to  _wherever_  he was taking you.

"I just don't understand why we couldn't have stayed in, watched that, and stuffed our faces with pizza all night," you replied, looking out the window beside you at all the houses.

"I told you," he shook his head, "You need to get out and do something so you're not so  _anti_ -Valentine's Day."

"Maybe I  _enjoy_  being anti-Valentine's Day."

"Well,  _I don't_ ," he smiled slightly, looking both ways after stopping at a stop sign before turning left, "It really puts a  _damper_  on my mood."

"And yet, you  _still_  choose to be around me around this day every year," you replied.

"You need someone who likes today in your life," he said matter-of-factly.

"What I  _need_  is someone who accepts that I hate it and allows it to happen," you rebutted.

"Tell you what: If you don't have a good time tonight, then I'll leave you alone every Valentine's Day after," he offered. You sighed again but nodded in agreement, and Ashton began his night of plans.

It wasn't anything extravagant – as you assumed – but it was still incredibly well thought out. He took you to your favorite fast food place, accompanying the experience by insisting he could catch a fry in his mouth despite the fact that he would miss every single time.

You had to admit you were having fun trying not to laugh too loudly and disturb everyone else in the restaurant. But, to be honest, this was just like any other time you would go out to eat with Ashton; It felt no different to you.

What  _did_  feel different, however, was when he drove you to the park.

It was normal enough at first – you and Ashton went to the pond in the middle of the woods, sitting at the one picnic table by the water and watching the ducks swim around,  _just_  like you always did. It was a different feeling to be there after  _sunset_  though, no longer hearing birds chirping in the trees or ducks quacking to each other as they looked for food. You were staring up – now far away from the lights of the city, you were able to see every single star that lit up the night sky – not even realizing that Ashton was staring at  _you_.

He stayed in that position for a moment or two, not wanting to look away from you in the fear that maybe you'd disappear. Call it what you will – a spontaneous gesture or an act straight out of the cheesy romance movies you forced him to watch with you on Saturday nights – but Ashton suddenly got up, holding his hands out to you.

You cocked an eyebrow when you felt him move, but you didn't put your hands in his. It only made him smile and reach down, of course, taking your hands himself and pulling you to your feet. He brought your arms around his neck before reaching over to where his phone was still sitting on the picnic table beside where he had been moments before. When you peeked at the screen and found a playlist of all your favorite slow songs, you smiled slightly.

"What're you doing, Ash?" you asked him as he turned up the volume and set his phone back down on the table. He simply grinned, wrapping his own arms around your waist and bringing your body to his.

"I figured  _no music_  would be too much of a cliché," he said.

Without any prompting from him, you stepped forward so you were now pressed up against Ashton and laid your head on his shoulder. You breathed a sigh of content, taking in his scent as well. Ashton always smelled good – you'd catch a whiff of it every time he walked by you – but you never  _really_  took it in until now.

It hadn't even been that long since the music started – only two full songs had played as far as you were aware – before someone was speaking again.

"So," Ashton murmured, "Still think Valentine's Day is pointless?"

"I don't know," you whispered, choking on the lump in your throat, "I can't tell whether I would feel this way with anyone else or if it's just because it's  _you_."

"What do you mean?" he asked, his voice becoming louder as he put his hand on your cheek and lifted your head up so he could see you. He frowned when he realized there were tears in your eyes, having no idea why you'd be crying. "What's wrong?" he asked, wiping the wet spots on your cheeks, his voice now showing the clear concern he was feeling.

"You're just doing this to prove a  _point_ , Ashton," you shook your head, taking your arms off of his shoulder and stepping back so he was no longer touching you, "You just want me to enjoy Valentine's Day instead of hating it just so you don't feel as bad dragging me around town while you buy chocolate and flowers and gifts for everyone  _else_  who loves it the way  _you_  do." You started to walk away, needing to clear your mind for a bit, but when Ashton followed close behind you, you just kept rambling. "You're a  _really_  bright and happy person, Ash, and I really  _like that_  about you," you said softly, "But your love of a holiday revolving around love is  _too much_  for me. You're buying stuff to give to everyone, and I  _know_  you don't get me anything because you know I don't like it, but it's  _too much_  to be surrounded by people who don't even  _try_. And I know you tried to give me a  _nice_  Valentine's Day, but... After tonight, things are going to go back to the way they've  _always_  been. And I would rather have just continued living with the fact that you don't actually think of me as someone who could be a  _real_  date for Valentine's Day and not someone you're just trying to convince not to  _hate it_."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Ashton finally spoke, hurrying up to walk alongside of you. But instead of continuing to walk, he put his hand on your hip to make you stop, turned to stand in front of you, and put his other hand on your cheek so you couldn't look away. "Who ever said I  _didn't_  think of you in that way?" he asked so lowly that had you not been  _right there_ , you weren't sure you would have heard it.

"This wasn't a  _date_ , Ashton!" you whimpered, "This was you trying to convince me Valentine's Day isn't as bad as I think it is!"

"Just because we weren't explicitly  _calling it_  a date doesn't mean it couldn't be  _considered_  one," he told you, "Sure, maybe we ate dinner at a fast food place, but that's only because I know you don't like going to fancy restaurants. Y/N, we slow danced under the  _stars_ , for crying out loud – I don't know how much more of a  _date_  I can make this unless I start rambling on about how pretty you are and how you take my breath away every time I see you and you wouldn't  _believe_  how often I think about how  _kissing you_  would feel... I don't know what else to do without telling you  _I love you_." Your heart stopped for what felt like  _hours_  but was really only a couple seconds.

You knew you loved Ashton – it seemed like you'd loved him since the moment you  _met him_. You knew that his smile made your heart flutter and hugging him made you feel the safest you'd ever felt in your life. You knew that you yourself imagined what kissing him would be like, but you never would have told  _him_  that – you didn't want to lose the friendship. And you found yourself wondering more often than not how someone as sweet and funny and loving as him could go yet another year without a valentine that  _wasn't_  one of his immediate family members...

And now you  _knew_.

It was  _you_ ; It was  _always_  you.

 _You_  were the person he spent Valentine's Day with.  _You_  were the one he wanted to hang out with even though you were  _polar opposites_  when it came to the holiday.

And it was because he loved you.

And now that you knew he loved you, you couldn't hold yourself back anymore.

You stood up slightly on your toes, you lips colliding with Ashton's. He was surprised by the sudden gesture – there was certainly no doubt about that – but there was no hesitation in feeling him kiss you back.

Ashton kissed in the  _exact_  way you thought he would – diving right in, no worries of whether or not the water beneath him was too shallow, just ready to face the outcome the moment he came back up for air.

But with the way you were kissing him as well – your hands cupping his face as if you thought you could possibly break him in some way – he figured the outcome wasn't going to be  _all_  that terrible.

You pulled away to breathe a few seconds later, a blush already on your face. Ashton, on the other hand, was smiling as widely as you'd ever seen.

"If I knew  _that_  was what it felt like to kiss you, I would have done it a long time ago," he told you. You rolled your eyes before meeting his own, the look of adoration on his face suddenly making you feel shy.

You both stood there for a moment, silently taking each other in and relishing in the fact that neither of you were  _dreaming_  this time. Your thumbs were stroking his cheekbones slightly, mapping out every bump he hated but you absolutely adored.

"So," he said with the famous dimpled grin that reeled you in in the first place, "Still hate Valentine's Day?"

"I'll let you know when I have another date to compare it to," you smiled in response, pulling his face back to yours.


	363. Code Blue (Calum Hood) - Part 1 *

**Warning: Mention of self-harm, suicide**

~

**Three days earlier**

_"_ **_Code blue_ ** _!" you heard someone shout, "We have a code blue in 117!"_

_You opened your eyes and finding yourself in an unfamiliar room. Your confusion only heightened when you looked over at the commotion, finding yourself lying on a bed with people surrounding you._

_"Hey, can someone tell me what's going on?" you said, trying to get their attention. They ignored you, however, and that was when you realized something._

_You were in a hospital room, lying on the bed, and those surrounding you were doctors and nurses. Your mind was racing when you looked at the monitor you were apparently hooked up to, listening to the shrill, constant beep, paired with the flat line you were seeing._

_"_ **_Hello_ ** _!" you shouted as loudly as you could, "I'm_ **_right here_ ** _! Just_ **_turn around_ ** _!"_

_"They can't hear you, dear," you suddenly heard beside you, making you jump. Your head snapped over, finding an older woman smiling sadly at you._

_"What do you_ **_mean_ ** _they can't hear me?" you asked, "I'm_ **_right here_ ** _."_

_She sighed lightly, reaching over to take your hand, pressing it to your chest. You were silent for a moment, feeling around before it dawned on you that you couldn't feel anything at all._

**_You were dead._ **

_"What happened?" you mumbled, more to yourself than to the lady next to you._

_"You went too deep," she shook her head solemnly. You were quiet again for a moment as you stared at your body before breathing a sigh of relief._

_"_ **_Finally_ ** _," you grinned, "So what is this then?" You looked at the woman again. "Are you, like, the escort to wherever I end up now?"_

_"Something like that," she nodded, "I'm here to help you choose."_

_"Choose what?"_

_"Whether you want to remain dead, or go back," she replied, motioning to your body._

_"Why would I want to go_ **_back_ ** _?" you cocked an eyebrow, "Obviously I_ **_wanted_ ** _to die or else I wouldn't_ **_be here_ ** _."_

_"I've been through this with so many people, Y/N," she said, "And I can't even begin to tell you how many people_ **_regret_ ** _making that decision."_

_"How do you know my name...?" you asked slowly._

_"That's not important," she shook her head again, "What's important is we get going."_

_"Where are we going?" you asked._

_You suddenly felt a shock in your chest, making your hand fly up. You felt a faint beating and looked over, hearing the heart monitor you were hooked up to beep in time with it._

_"What the hell was_ **_that_ ** _?" you looked back at the woman._

_"You'll remain in a coma until you decide whether you want to cross over to the afterlife or give life another shot," she explained, "While you're in this state, we're going to visit people as if they were finding out about your death."_

_"What good is_ **_that_ ** _going to do?" you scoffed, "_ **_Anything_ ** _is going to be better than being_ **_alive_ ** _."_

_She didn't say anything on the matter – she just told you to close your eyes. You sighed, deciding to play along._

_You closed your eyes, felt a small gust of wind hit your face, and opened them again. You looked around, noticing you were still in the hospital – just in a different part of it._

_"Alright, well, I don't think whatever just happened there was necessary," you stated, "I think we could have just_ **_walked_ ** _out of the room." The woman simply motioned for you to look behind you and when you did, you found your parents sitting in the waiting room of the hospital._

"Mr. and Mrs. Y/L/N?" one of the doctors you'd just seen standing over your body approached them. They immediately stood up, hoping for good news.

They'd been the ones to find you – not  _necessarily_  the way you wanted people to find you, but you obviously weren't going to kill yourself in a  _public_  restroom.

 _God_  knows they tried to remain as calm as they could upon finding you laying in the empty bathtub in a pool of your own blood, but even your  _dad_  couldn't keep his tears in. He desperately tried to hold them back as he drove as quickly as possible to the hospital without getting pulled over.

Upon entering the emergency room, your parents watched helplessly as nurses got your lifeless body onto a gurney and wheeled you through the doors, having no idea what would happen the next time someone came out to see them.

"Is she okay?" your dad asked. The doctor pursed his lips and your mother immediately burst into tears.

"We did everything we could..." he shook his head slowly, "But your daughter just lost too much blood... We couldn't bring her back... I'm sorry..."

You swore you could  _feel_  your parents' heartache as you watched your dad pull your mom into him as she cried into his shirt. Everyone else in the waiting room watched them – tears filling their own eyes at the loss of someone they didn't even  _know_.

_"Okay," you said softly, "But that's_ **_different_ ** _. They're my_ **_parents_ ** _; Obviously, they're going to be upset. But they'll move on."_

_The woman sighed, telling you to close your eyes again. You did so, feeling the same gust of wind, and opening them once again._

_You were in a classroom – your college History class. You looked around, every seat that_ _was_ _usually filled had someone sitting in it_ –  _all_ _except for the one beside your best friend_ _:_ _the one_ ** _you_** _always sat in._

_The point in time in which the woman took you there, it had been a week since you last showed up to class._

There was no doubt that your classmates were starting to worry – you'd never been one to miss a lecture,  _even_  when you were sick. But your best friend would always tell them not to be too concerned – she'd known you since middle school and you would always have spurts of not showing up to school for a few days – but even  _she_  was worried herself. She knew about your history with self-harm and she was always on edge when you missed  _this much_  class.

Your professor walked into the room and all of your classmates looked at each other. He would always walk in with a bright and happy ' _Hello!_ ' or ' _Good morning, everybody!_ ', but today... There wasn't a glance their way or a smile of acknowledgement...

 _Nothing_.

Instead, he took a deep breath after setting his things down on his desk, finally looking up at the class. His eyes instantly landed on your best friend and you could  _feel_  her heart drop –  _knowing_  something had happened to you.

"I'm sure you've all noticed that Y/N Y/L/N hasn't been coming to class for a few days," your professor started, clearing his throat to keep his composure in front of everyone. His students all nodded their heads – apart from your best friend who just sat there, nearly in tears as she  _prayed_  he wasn't going to say what she thought he would. "I got a call from her parents yesterday afternoon," he went on, "Y/N was taken to the hospital early Friday morning due to significant blood loss... She didn't make it."

You could hear a  _pin_  drop at how quiet the room got – everyone in  _complete_  shock. Most of your classmates didn't really talk to you that much, but they still  _knew_  you. They knew you were usually such a bright person, always smiling in class and laughing loudly at all your professor's cheesy jokes about the lesson that day.

"That being said-" he went on, "-classes are cancelled for the rest of the week. If any of you need to talk, I'll be in here during my normal hours, and all the counselors will be available anytime you need them. You're all dismissed."

You watched your best friend – the single strongest girl you'd  _ever_  known – remain in her seat, all eyes now on her. No one knew quite what to do –  _should they offer their condolences? Should they hug her? Should they give her space?_

One person – a mutual friend of both yours and hers – attempted to do just that. He placed his hand on her shoulder, but they moment he touched her, she  _lost it_.

She burst into tears – much like your mother had – and screamed, slamming her hands on her desk before getting up and running out of the room, not even bothering to take her things with her. Your classmates swallowed thickly, not expecting that reaction from her, but completely understanding.

But you didn't notice.

_You'd immediately run after her, finally catching up to her in the middle of the quad. You called her name as you reached for her, only to have your hand go right through her arm. You stopped in your tracks as she kept running. You knew she'd be sad that you were gone, but you never thought she'd react like_ **_that_ ** _._

_You put your hands on your face, trying not to cry, and the next thing you knew, you were in a completely different place._

_~_

_It hadn't even been 20 minutes before you'd finally had enough. It was emotionally draining watching the reactions to your passing and you just wanted it to be over with._

_But the woman wasn't finished_ _;_ _She told you she had someone else to show you, and that was when you finally snapped._

_"We've visited my family, my best friend, people I went to school with... That's all the people I_ **_know_ ** _! How many more people could we_ **_possibly_ ** _be seeing?!" you all but shouted._

_"Just one," she said, tacking on the fact that – much like the scene with your parents – this scene was occurring around the time your heart stopped._

_You were suddenly in a room with four boys gathered around in front of a television. A blonde one was standing at a bookshelf full of DVDs – one already in his hand – while the others – another blonde, a brunette, and a black-haired one – were rolling their eyes in annoyance._

_"Who are they?" you asked, only to receive no answer, leaving you to just watch what was happening in front of you._

" _No way_ , Luke!" the blonde boy that wasn't standing groaned along with the brunette and black-haired boy, "We are not watching  _Mean Girls_   _again_! It'll have been the third time this  _week_!"

"Which means I've only made you watch it  _twice_ , Michael!" the blonde, Luke presumably, replied defensively.

"Yeah, and that's two more times than we  _wanted_  to," the other blonde, now known as Michael, rolled his eyes.

"Look, man; we love you, and you're a really great friend, but we need a break. We can't keep-" The black-haired boy cut himself off and you noticed him look down at his lap where his hands were.

"Calum..." the brunette trailed off, "You okay?" When he didn't answer, Luke followed his gaze to his hands, his eyes widening.

He immediately nudged the other boys, pointing to the ring on his best friend's finger. They all watched the bright blue line start fading, signaling to them that Calum's soulmate was dying.

" _Holy shit_ ," Michael whispered.

Calum started prodding at the black band with the idea that maybe – if he tried  _hard enough_  – he could somehow get his soulmate's heart beating again. His friends watched helplessly – their hearts heavy – as Calum desperately tried to revive her.

"Cal," the brunette murmured, putting his hand on Calum's forearm, "Calum, that's not-"

" _Yes, it is, Ashton_!" he replied stubbornly, his voice not giving him anything more than a whimper, "It  _has to_! Sh-She can't  _die_! I haven't even  _met her_  yet! She can't... She can't leave me  _already_!"

_"_ **_Who are they_ ** _?!" you asked again, looking at the woman beside you._

_"He's your soulmate," she answered simply, pointing to the black-haired boy._

_"That's_ **_ridiculous_ ** _," you stated, "I've never_ **_met him_ ** _; You can't feel that way about someone you've never_ **_met_ ** _."_

_"Whenever his heart rate speeds up, you worry about whether or not he's okay," she said matter-of-factly, "Whenever his heart rate is slow, it calms you down. You've felt his heartbeat in your finger-" She motioned to your own soulmate ring. "-since the_ **_day_ ** _you were born, and there is_ **_never_ ** _a time where you're not thinking about how you'll meet him. You've seen how your parents and best friend and everyone else in your life would react to your death, and you've been insisting that they'll just '_ **_move on_ ** _'. But this boy-" She motioned back to Calum. "-will never get to know you. He will never know which of all the scenarios he's been dreaming up of him meeting his soulmate will be the one to play out. He will live the rest of his life wishing that he could have known you for just_ **_one day_ ** _. And as much as it annoys you to admit, you_ **_want_ ** _to live a life with him; You've been_ **_dreaming_ ** _about what it would be like to fall asleep with him and find out if he's the kind of person who steals all the blankets while he's asleep. If the reactions of the people you_ **_do_ ** _know aren't enough to convince you to keep fighting, then I think you should at least spend some time with him so you can explain to him why you never wanted to know_ **_him_ ** _either."_

~

_inspiration: http://ivegotashothough.tumblr.com/post/153059909725/pulse-part-1_


	364. Code Blue (Calum Hood) - Part 2 *

**Warning: Mention of self-harm, suicide**

~

**Calum's POV; The next morning**

Calum couldn't tell you  _why_  he was walking into the hospital. For all he knew, his soulmate lived on the other side of the  _world_  – but at least he would  _know_.

He hadn't gotten  _any_  sleep since the night his soulmate's heart stopped and, to be honest, he wasn't sure he was going to  _get_  any until he  _found her_. He knew she was alive – he could feel it in his finger every time his ring beat in time with her heart – and he just hoped he wouldn't have to search for very long.

Calum took deep, slow breaths as he approached the front desk, the nurse sitting there looking at him curiously. He was clearly nervous, and she could only assume he knew someone currently admitted there.

"Hi," he smiled shyly, "This might be a weird question, but... Do you... Do you have anyone here whose heart stopped at 11:42 last night?"

The nurse gave him a confused expression at how  _oddly specific_  he was being, but when she looked down at his hands and saw him playing with his ring, she knew why he was asking. She nodded for him to follow her to the side of the desk her computer was on.

"The fourth floor had a code blue last night," she said softly, essentially letting Calum know that she  _probably_  wasn't supposed to be sharing that information with him. "They were able to bring her back, but she hasn't woken up yet."

"C-Can I... Am I allowed to see her?"

"Take the elevator up," she motioned around the corner, "And ask for Maggie; She'll let you in." Calum quickly thanked her and turned around, but as he was walking away, he heard the nurse pick up the phone. "Hey, Mag," she said when the other nurse answered, "I'm sending someone up about the code blue last night. ... No, he isn't, but just trust me; He needs to see her."

As Calum rode the elevator up to the ICU, his heart was racing. He wondered if his soulmate could still feel his heartbeat – and he wouldn't be surprised if her finger was twitching at just how  _hard_  it was beating. He could feel a faint pulse in his own finger, letting him know that she still wasn't  _completely_  there – but it was still beating, and that was good enough for him.

He hoped he had the right hospital – that his soulmate actually was here and it wasn't some  _random_  girl. But he wouldn't know for  _sure_  until he met her.

The doors opened and Calum was immediately met with a nurse – who was only a little older than him – standing beside the elevator. He jumped lightly, obviously not expecting anyone to be there.

"Are you here about the code blue?" she asked him.

He nodded slowly, "A-Are you Maggie?" She nodded, putting her hand on his back and tugging him along with her. She took him into a room and his heart skipped a beat.

Despite all the tubes that surrounded you, he could still tell you were the prettiest girl he'd ever seen. He couldn't help but stare – not at the tubes or even your sleeping body on the bed – but at your heart monitor. And his heart was racing once again as the beeping of the machine  _perfectly_  matched the beating in the ring on his finger.

"Go over there," Maggie nudged Calum toward your bed when he didn't move, "We don't know if she can hear anything, but it couldn't hurt to try talking to her."

And while  _he_  certainly didn't know if you could hear him  _either_ , he did it anyway.

He approached your side, staring at the ring on your finger,  _praying_  yours was beating in time with his own heart. He took another deep breath before carefully taking your hand.

And the  _moment_  his skin touched yours, he watched with wide eyes as the bright blue lines in both of your rings turned red, signaling to him – and Maggie as well – that you were soulmates.

The nurse couldn't help but smile, closing the door on her way out of the room – partly to give him privacy but mostly because she didn't want him to hear her excitedly tell the nurse downstairs about what had happened.

Calum just sat down in the chair beside the hospital bed, the only sound in the room being the steady beeping of your heart monitor. And although he was ecstatic that he  _finally_  found his soulmate, he was terrified that you would  _never wake up_.

"If you have to leave, that's okay," Calum whispered, his thumb rubbing your hand gently, "But I just want to know what your voice  _sounds like_  before you do...  _Please_..." He breathed in shakily when his voice broke, clearing his throat in an attempt to keep himself from crying.

But even he couldn't stop from tearing up at the thought that he'd never get to do all the things he dreamed about doing with you ever since his parents told him what soulmates were.

~

Not even 20 minutes had passed before other people entered the room. Calum's head shot up when he heard the door open, finding three people staring curiously at him. He immediately released your hand as he stood up.

"Hello..." your dad said slowly, "I don't mean to be rude, son, but  _who are you_?"

"I-I... I'm... Um..." Calum stuttered lightly before your best friend's eyes widened.

"Her ring is  _red_ ," she whispered, making your parents look down at your hand in shock.

"Are you her soulmate?" your mom asked once she'd composed herself, carefully approaching him.

"I... I felt her heart stop..." he murmured, "I just... I needed to find her..."

Your mom didn't say anything else, she just wrapped her arms around him and pulled him into a hug. He was tense at first, understandably surprised by the sudden gesture, but he did relax – if only a little.

"How are you feeling?" she asked him as she let go, "You look  _exhausted_." Calum chuckled sadly, looking back down at you.

"Haven't slept since it happened," he answered honestly.

" _God_ , I can't  _imagine_  how you must have felt," she sighed, "I mean, we've all been a  _mess_ , but you hadn't even  _met her_  yet!" Calum barely smiled as he watched your chest rise and fall, his fingers playing with his ring as he listened to and felt your heartbeat.

"So..." he said softly, "You guys are..."

" _Oh_!" your mother laughed lightly, "Silly me! We've forgotten to introduce ourselves! My name is Y/Mom's/N – I'm Y/N's mother. This is Y/Dad's/N, her father-" She pointed to him before motioning to your best friend. "-and this is Jade, her best friend." Calum smiled politely at them. "What's your name?"

"Calum," he told them just as quietly as he'd been speaking the whole time.

"Well, it's very nice to meet you, Calum," your mom said cheerfully, "We can't wait to get to know you more." He smiled again before letting it fade as he looked back down at you.

"She's gonna wake up, you know," Jade finally spoke to him, causing him to look at her, " _She is_." Although it sounded as if she was trying to convince  _herself_  more than anyone else at this point. "There's not a  _single_  day I'm with her where she's not talking about how excited she is to meet her soulmate," she informed him, "So she's  _gonna_  wake up. She would never leave without meeting you first.  _She wouldn't_."

~

_inspiration: http://ivegotashothough.tumblr.com/post/153059909725/pulse-part-1_


	365. Code Blue (Calum Hood) - Part 3 *

**Warning: Mention of self-harm, suicide**

~

**Your POV; Two days later**

You'd finally woken up not too long ago, completely surprising Maggie as she was checking up on your vitals. The doctor – the same one you had seen tell your parents you passed away – came into the room, basically just telling you how lucky you were to be alive after how much blood you lost.

Your parents had gone home to get some proper rest, unfortunately not being there when you woke up. You had told Maggie you didn't want her to call them though, not wanting the bother them while they slept. She nodded understandingly and once the doctor left, she finished up with you herself, and that was when you noticed something.

"Maggie," you murmured, making your nurse look at you as you stared down at your hand, "When did my ring turn red?"

"A boy came in a couple days ago asking if anyone's hearts had stopped at the exact time yours did," she answered, "And a nurse downstairs found him touching his ring, so she sent him up. It was a wonderful moment, really, watching both of your rings' lines change colors when he held your hand."

" _He found me_?" you whispered to yourself in shock. Maggie simply nodded, obviously having heard you, a smile pulling at the corner of her mouth. "Where is he?" you asked softly.

"We had to make him go home," she sighed, "The poor boy  _clearly_  hasn't slept since your heart stopped. But I promise, I'll call him first thing in the morning. Now get some more rest; You have a big day tomorrow."

Your heart started racing as you thought about  _finally_  meeting your soulmate –  _how_ _on earth were you supposed to rest_ ** _now_** _?_

~

**The next morning**

Your eyes fluttered open, squinting slightly to adjust to the sunlight flooding your hospital room. You went to move your hand to your eyes so you could rub them, and that was when you felt someone holding onto you. Your eyes trailed down your arm and to the hand holding yours, then went up that arm to see who it belonged to, taking note of all the tattoos along the way.

Your heart fluttered as you looked at the black-haired boy – Calum, if you remembered his name correctly – you'd seen with the woman, his head resting beside your hands and his face relaxed as he snored softly. His breath tickled your fingers and as much as you enjoyed watching him sleep, you knew you had to wake him up.

You carefully slipped your hand out of his and threaded your fingers through the hair on the back of his neck. His hair was soft between your fingers, and you found yourself smiling at the thought of him  _actually_  being your soulmate.

Calum began mumbling softly, telling you that he was about to wake up, and you felt your face get hot when you clearly heard him say your name. You didn't cease your movements though – instead continuing to scratch at his scalp gently.

His fingers closed in on themselves, wanting to hold your hand tighter, only to find out it wasn't even there anymore. He pouted slightly, making you let out a breath of amusement.

Calum finally opened his eyes, blinking a few times before yawning quietly. It was then that you heard his breathing hitch, your hand falling from his head as it snapped up, his eyes widening as he stared at you in awe.

"I was always hoping we'd meet under happier circumstances," you grinned slightly, "But I'm glad you managed to find me anyway."

He let out a breathy laugh, standing up so he could lean over and give you a hug. You couldn't help but giggle, repositioning yourself so he could wrap his arms around your waist while your hand just went back to his hair.

"You had me worried  _sick_ ," he mumbled into your skin.

"Well, if you're worried sick over someone you  _don't know_ , I can only imagine how worried you'd have been if we'd met  _before_  this," you teased, feeling him chuckle just before he let go of you. You laid your arm back on the bed, only to have Calum take your hand again as he sat back down in his chair.

"I'd rather we didn't have to find out how I'll act in that situation  _at all_ , to be honest," he told you. You smiled at him as he held your hand firmly in his own. "I'm Calum," he informed you softly.

"Y/N," you replied, squeezing his hand a bit.

As you talked with Calum, there was this guilty feeling in the pit of your stomach. He was  _such_  a sweet guy and even though he hadn't met you before all this, it was clear he really  _did_  care about you – and you knew you'd be lying if you said you didn't feel the  _same_.

You cared for him  _so much_  ever since the moment you understood what the beating in your ring was. Whenever his heart rate was faster than normal, you wished there was some sort of way to just know what he was doing so you weren't plagued with worry that it was a worst case scenario. When it was steady, you wished you could see what he was doing – whether he was sleeping or watching his favorite show.

Any moment someone brought up soulmates, you would instantly smile at the thought of him, going on about how you couldn't wait to meet him or about what you thought he was doing at that very moment just by how fast or slow your finger was twitching.

"Y/N," you heard Calum say, bringing you back to reality. You looked at him and noticed a concerned look on his face. "You okay?" he asked you, squeezing your hand a bit.

"I'm fine," you nodded unconvincingly.

"You know, we're soulmates who have finally  _met_ ," he said thoughtfully, "We're gonna have to get  _used_  to talking to each other."

You couldn't help but giggle, making him smile at knowing he caused it – and  _God_ , was he excited to listen to your laugh for the rest of his life. He watched you open and close your mouth a couple times, trying to say something but chickening out each time.

"I never thought I could care so much about someone I've  _never_  met," you swallowed, your voice nothing more than a whisper, "And then my parents explained to me what soulmates are and how that was why I had this ring and... There's never a moment where I'm  _not_  thinking about you-" You shook your head as he listened intently, "There's never a moment where I'm not imagining what you're doing when your heartbeat is fast and  _praying_  nothing is wrong. And at night, when your heartbeat slows down because you've just fallen asleep, I find myself thinking about what it would be like to be there  _with you_. And then I think about how I almost never  _got that_..." You were starting to tear up, mentally beating yourself up over what you'd done. "I never would have known what you look like or what it's like to hug you or kiss you or where you're most ticklish or what your favorite food is or if you like to be held when you're feeling sad or anything... And  _you_... You would have gone the  _rest_  of your life wondering all those things and  _then some_  and why I never gave you a chance to randomly run into me on the street and leave you asking yourself what if you tried a little  _harder_  or stayed at that party a little  _longer_  or didn't eat so  _quickly_  at a restaurant... And that wasn't fair to you  _at all_... You would have lived the rest of your life wondering why I didn't want to meet you and I don't think I'm  _ever_  going to get  _over_  that..."

There was silence in the room after your rant that you couldn't really explain. You knew Calum was still staring at you, but you couldn't make yourself look at him – you couldn't make yourself face the fact that you were completely willing to give up the chance of being with him for  _temporary problems_.

But when you felt Calum release your hand, stand up, put his hand on the bed beside your hip, and put his other hand on your cheek, you didn't feel  _anything else_. All you felt in that moment was how warm his hand was and how  _hard_  your heart was beating and how you  _finally_  felt whole the moment his lips met yours.

You let out a small sigh, leaning up further so you could kiss him back. You felt Calum smile when you started kissing him back, relieved that he didn't do it too soon. But you knew he could have kissed you the moment he realized you were awake and it  _still_  wouldn't have been soon  _enough_.

Unfortunately for both of you though, you had to pull away for air.

You opened your eyes just in time to watch his flutter open before he rested his forehead on yours. His thumb stroked your cheekbone gently as your hand moved to lie on top of the hand of his on the bed.

"We don't have to worry about those things  _now_ ," he murmured reassuringly, "You're here and I'm here and we finally found each other – and that's  _all_  that matters." You finally cracked a smile, tilting your head so you could kiss him again, really liking the way it felt.

Maybe Calum  _would_  have thought all those things if you had chosen to stay in the afterlife and maybe there  _would_  have been a part of him that blamed himself for not trying to find you sooner.

But he was right: you didn't have to dwell on what  _might have been_  – you just had to focus on  _now_ , and right  _now_ , you were  _finally_  with your soulmate.

And you sure as  _hell_  weren't about to give up the fight.

~

_inspiration: http://ivegotashothough.tumblr.com/post/153059909725/pulse-part-1_


	366. Just a Dream (Marshall Traver) - Part 1 *

**Warning: Death**

~

Your parents had explained to you on the morning of your 13th birthday – when the clock on your wrist had popped up midnight while you were asleep – that it was counting down to the moment you would meet the person you were destined to spend the rest of your life with. Ever since then, you'd been imagining about what it would be like to finally meet your soulmate.

You would catch yourself daydreaming about it almost 24/7, often getting in trouble in class for not paying attention. That never stopped you from drifting off into your own world, of course. You were constantly staring down at your wrist, watching the seconds, minutes, hours, and days get shorter. But you still had a long way to go.

Unfortunately, you would never  _actually_  meet him.

You were now 25-years-old, living on your own on the quiet side of your childhood town. You hadn't met your soulmate – it was now truthfully only a thought in the back of your mind these days.

You weren't too concerned with meeting him anymore, to be honest. You'd tried relationships with guys, but they were never what you wanted. Maybe one of you wasn't ready or maybe they didn't want to try with someone who wasn't their soulmate or maybe guys just  _didn't_  like you. But you'd given up.

You decided to focus on you and building up your education and you now had a job you absolutely loved, you lived in an apartment you absolutely loved, and you had some of the best friends you could ever ask for.

And that was what led you to this day.

It started off as a normal day; Your best friend had asked you to come to a funeral with him – you'd never met the person who passed, but you obviously agreed, knowing Dan just needed you there for moral support. You put on an outfit that you only wore to gatherings like this, and Dan arrived to pick you up shortly after you'd finished getting ready.

"How are you feeling?" you asked as he walked into your apartment, getting up from the couch to hug him tightly.

"Been better," he answered honestly, letting out a soft, forced chuckle as he hugged you back, "Thanks for agreeing to come with me."

"I'm not gonna turn you away when you need me most, Danny," you murmured, feeling him smile into your shoulder.

"Thanks," he whispered, "We better get going. I promised his parents I'd be there early." You grabbed your phone, wallet, and keys, putting them in your coat pockets before following him out of your apartment. You locked your door, and then followed him out to his car.

It was quiet for most of the ride – a comfortable silence, but you could still sense Dan was hurting. You'd never met Dan's friend before – Marshall, if you remembered his name correctly – but from what he'd told you about him, it sounded like you would have  _loved_  him.

He and Marshall were pretty close – almost as close as you two – and he always told you he'd have to set up a time when you were all available for you to meet him. You were honestly a bit disappointed you'd never have that chance now – Dan had told you so much about Marshall and his personality that there was  _no doubt_  you two would have gotten along great – but you didn't want to dwell on it too much.

Upon arriving at the funeral home, Dan led you inside and took you to Marshall's parents. They were in the main room where the service would be held, but the casket wasn't open yet – not until it actually started. He introduced all of you, his parents thanked you for being so willing to come just for Dan, and you told them you were incredibly sorry for their loss.

Dan told you when he got the news that Marshall had been in an accident at work where he fell off something and hit the back of his head on the concrete. The doctors tried desperately to save him, but he'd bled out too much on his way to the hospital and there wasn't anything they could do. You couldn't  _imagine_  losing someone like that and even though you didn't know him or the family personally, your heart still felt heavy.

~

The actual funeral service started about an hour later, at which point the minister opened the casket as other family members and friends began arriving. You hadn't gone back into the room – you were with Dan and Marshall's parents as they solemnly greeted everyone at the door. But when the last people were arriving and you went back in, the  _last_  thing you were expecting to happen  _did_.

You glanced up at the front of the room where the casket was. The boy inside looked so  _young_  – you couldn't help but feel sorrowful at how much he had left to do in his life before the accident.

But more than that, you started to hear a faint beeping. You looked over to see if anybody else was hearing it and it was clear they were, as you noticed both Dan and Marshall's father looking around.

"Do you guys hear that?" Dan asked, looking between you and his friend's parents.

"What  _is_  that?" his mother wondered, now hearing it as well.

And your eyes widened.

The last time you looked at your soulmate clock was that morning – the clock counting down your soulmate meeting to around 5 and a half hours from that point. You didn't think it would happen  _at_  the funeral – but then again, you didn't expect to be there an hour early  _either_. You'd pushed the soulmate thing to the back of your mind though, wanting Dan to have all your focus that day because he really needed you.

But you  _couldn't_  do it anymore.

Your head snapped down, pulling down the sleeve of your cardigan just in time for you, Dan, and Marshall's parents to watch the clock disappear from your wrist. And you honestly thought you were going to pass out when you realized what was going on.

"Y/N, you just met your  _soulmate_? Who did you look at?" Dan asked you. You felt like throwing up, to be honest, but you still managed to find the voice to answer him.

"Marshall..." you whispered so softly, you weren't even sure if anyone heard it. His mother gasped as she covered her mouth while his dad and Dan stared in shock.

No one knew what to say – and understandably so. You'd never met Marshall before this and to find out he was your soulmate while you were attending  _his funeral_?

Before anyone could speak, you were gasping for air. You felt like you were at the bottom of the ocean with weights tied to your ankles, desperately trying to resurface but you  _couldn't_ – not until you felt Dan shaking you. You couldn't quite hear him – his voice seemed like it was getting farther and farther away – but you could make out one sentence.

" _Y/N_!" it seemed like he was screaming at you, " _Wake up_!"

And that was when you shot up, gasping for air once again.

You were covered in sweat with tears streaming from your eyes, but you were still in your bedroom – the time on the clock reading 4:39am – and you were  _alone_  and Dan  _wasn't_  there and you were  _so confused_.

_It was a_ **_dream_ ** _?_

"What the  _fuck_?" you murmured to yourself, throwing your body back down as you wiped your face with the bottom of your pajama shirt.

You'd never experienced a dream that felt so  _real_  before, and you were honestly confused. But there was one thing you were  _absolutely certain_  of: Despite never having seen him in person, the boy Dan had yet to formally introduce you to was  _actually_  your soulmate.


	367. Just a Dream (Marshall Traver) - Part 2 *

**Warning: Death**

~

Later that morning, when you knew Dan would be awake, you decided to call him. It was like you wanted to meet Marshall as soon as you  _possibly_  could – and you were honestly prepared to  _beg_  if you had to.

You were sure your dream wouldn't come true, but you also weren't willing to take that chance. You'd heard of people dreaming about things happening before they actually  _did_  – experiencing it yourself a number of times – and you were  _determined_  not to let this be one of those dreams as well.

"Hello?" Dan answered on the fourth ring, clearly not having looked at the name that popped up.

"Hey, Danny," you murmured with a smile.

"Y/N!" he cheered, "What's up?!"

"So... You know how you've been trying to set up a day where I can meet your friend Marshall?" you asked, to which he obviously confirmed. "Well, I'll finally be free this weekend if you wanna ask him if he is too..."

" _Really_?" you heard his smile, "Yeah! I'll text him when he gets off work later! We can go to the fair on Saturday or something! It's gonna be  _so_  fun, Y/N – you're gonna  _love him_! I  _swear_ , he's the male version of you."

"Well,  _I'll_  be the judge of that," you finally cracked a smile.

~

**Four days later; Saturday morning**

You'd gotten a text the previous night that Dan would come by to pick you up at 11 and you would meet Marshall at the fair. As promised, Dan texted you that he was waiting outside of your building, making you hop up from the couch, turn off your TV, and grab everything you needed before hurrying out the door.

You smiled as you walked out of the building when you saw who was in the front seat, happily climbing into the back.

"Syd!" you squeaked.

"Y/N!" she giggled, "I feel like I haven't seen you in forever!"

"I know! Danny never brings you around when we hang out anymore!"

"Well, you guys tend to be a little  _much_  when you're together," Dan shook his head, pulling out of the parking lot.

" _We_  tend to be a little much?" Sydney cocked an eyebrow.

"Yeah," you scoffed, "Have you  _met_  you and your housemates?" Sydney laughed at the comment while Dan just rolled his eyes, reaching back and smacking your knee. You slapped his hand right back, making the three of you burst into laughter.

You continued messing around in the car – Dan turned on a Top 40 radio station and you all belted out the lyrics with your windows down, laughing at the looks you would get from people walking down the sidewalks – until you finally reached the fairgrounds.

The three of you were walking to where Dan told you Marshall said he was waiting, but you weren't paying much attention, honestly. You were staring down at your wrist, your heart rate speeding up as you watched the clock get closer and closer to zero.

You'd done the math the night before and realized you'd meet them at the fair – further fueling the idea that your soulmate  _could actually be_  Marshall.

It wasn't until somebody ran right into your right side that your head snapped up, a surprised yelp passing your lips. Dan and Sydney – who had been walking a few feet in front of you – spun around when they heard you squeal, watching as yours and the boy you'd run into's soulmate clocks disappeared.

"You guys are  _soulmates_?!" Dan asked with a wide smile on his face. You didn't notice it though – your eyes solely focused on the boy.

He looked  _exactly_  like Marshall did in your dream and just that fact  _alone_  made your heart start pounding. It was weird seeing him...well,  _not dead_...to say the least – and you'd be lying if you said you weren't getting a little emotional about it.

"This is  _so_  cool!" Dan gushed, finally making you and the boy look at him, "I thought you guys would get on well, but I didn't think you'd actually be  _soulmates_!" He and Sydney came over to you so he could properly introduce the two of you. "Y/N, this is Marshall," he informed you, "Marshall, this is Y/N."

"Well, it's nice to  _finally_  meet you, Y/N," Marshall smiled – and  _God_ , that smile was about as heart-melting as the way it sounded when he said your name. You couldn't help but blush lightly as he went on. "I know we just met, but would it be okay if I hugged you?" he asked.

You didn't even nod – you simply stepped forward and wrapped your arms around his neck, your face burying itself in his skin. You felt him chuckle softly at how eager you seemed, his own arms winding around your waist and hugging you as tightly as you were hugging him.

He pressed a few kisses to the side of your head, honestly not helping  _at all_  with your racing heart, but you didn't care; All that mattered to you in that moment was that you  _weren't_  meeting your soulmate at his funeral.

~

Throughout the next couple hours, you and Marshall were practically attached at the hip. His hand held yours no matter what you were doing, and if you were playing a game that required both hands, you would be in front of him with his arms around you, giggling as he mumbled in your ear about how rigged everything was.

It wasn't until you guys started getting hungry that he actually let go of you for the first time since meeting you, going with Dan to get you all some food. You and Sydney sat at a table under the food tent to wait for the boys, and that was when she finally decided to speak up about something that had been bothering her all morning.

"What's up with you today, Y/N?" Sydney asked you, "You've never been this quiet before – especially when you're with  _Danny_." Knowing there was no use in lying to her, you immediately told her everything.

"I... I had a dream the other night... About Marshall..." you whispered, swallowing the lump in your throat.

"I thought this was the first time you were meeting him?" she tilted her head curiously, "I mean, we all watched your clocks disappear."

"I know... But he was in my dream  _first_..."

"Well, what happened?" she asked, "It must be pretty huge if it's got you acting like  _this_."

"Dan and I went to a funeral for a friend of his..." you looked down at your fingers in your lap, "He died after falling and hitting his head and Dan asked me to go for support... And when I saw the person in the casket, my clock disappeared..."

"Who was in the casket?"

You couldn't keep your bottom lip from trembling, "M-Marshall..."

Sydney's eyes widened – she'd never heard of anyone having a dream about their soulmate  _before_  meeting them, and especially not like  _that_. She was about to speak again when she was interrupted.

The boys had come back, setting the food down on the table before looking up at you and Sydney. Their smiles instantly dropped when they saw you in the state that you were – not crying yet, but it was obvious you were  _nearly_  there. But before Dan could even  _blink_ , Marshall rushed over to you.

He crouched down beside your chair, one hand landing on the back of it and the other landing on your knee. He didn't get a word out though because the second he touched you, your body was turned and your arms were holding his neck like it was the last time you'd ever see him.

By this point, Sydney had led Dan away – no doubt to tell him about your dream – but you didn't care; All you cared about in that moment was Marshall.

The arm that had been on your knee instantly wrapped around your back and he used the chair to help him stand back up, bringing you with him before wrapping that arm around your waist as well. Your face was in his neck once again, but it was like Marshall could tell  _something_  was different about this hug.

He could feel your chest rising and falling against his, so he began running his fingers up and down your spine on your lower back in the hopes of calming you down. It was working, of course, because he felt your breathing gradually start to become softer and steadier.

"You gonna tell me what this is all about?" Marshall murmured into your ear, pressing a small kiss to it as well.

"I had a dream about you..." you whispered, your voice slightly muffled by his skin. You didn't want to prolong telling him because you knew he'd just keep asking about it until you gave in – and you thought  _he_  deserved to hear it just as much as anyone  _else_.

"Yeah?" he egged you on, "What happened? Dan's pretty concerned about you, you know; He mentioned you're always more outgoing than this."

You couldn't help but smile slightly, thinking it was sweet how he didn't ask you  _how_  you'd had a dream about him  _before_  meeting him today, and you started telling the story exactly the way you'd told Sydney.

Marshall listened intently, squeezing you when your voice wavered even a  _tiny bit_  and kissing your head when he felt your own grip tighten just to remind yourself that he was actually there  _with you_. He didn't know  _why_  you had the dream – he didn't know the science behind it by any means – but he  _did_  know that he was still alive and he'd found his soulmate and he wasn't leaving her  _anytime_  soon.

"Well, just look at the positives," Marshall shrugged, "At least that can't  _possibly_  come true now." He felt you giggle before you lifted your head back up to look at him.

A few tears had fallen down your cheeks, so Marshall brought one hand up, wiping them with his fingers. He looked at you for a moment, his hand still on your face.

"Have I told you how beautiful you are yet?" he asked.

"A few times," you nodded, blushing at the compliment.

"Have I  _really_?" he chuckled.

"Yeah," you let out a soft giggle.

"Have I asked to kiss you yet?" Your heart skipped a beat and you swallowed thickly.

"Not that I heard," you whispered.

"Can I?" he wondered, "I have to ask – I don't know how you feel about kissing someone you aren't dating."

You didn't even respond to his question, leaning in yourself and pressing your lips to his. You felt Marshall chuckle at your eagerness once again, happily kissing you back.

You'd kissed plenty of people in your lifetime, but it never felt  _quite_  like this. Kissing Marshall made you feel  _whole_  – like you'd finally found something you'd been missing, you just didn't know you were missing it; You just felt at  _home_  when you kissed him.

"This could technically be a date, you know," you finally replied to his comment when you pulled away for air, "A double date, but still a date."

"Is it a double date if Dan and Syd don't  _know_  it's a date?" he teased, poking your side playfully. You squeaked lightly, giggling breathlessly as you grabbed his hands to make him stop.

" _Everything_  with them is a date," you informed him.

"It is  _not_ ," you heard Dan say as he and Sydney came back over.

" _Yes, it is_ ," you rolled your eyes, "Every time I hang out with you two, you guys end up doing couple stuff and I'm left third-wheeling  _yet again_." Marshall snorted softly, pressing a kiss to your cheek before putting his hands on your hips and turning you around so you could sit back down at the table and eat before your food got cold.

"That is not true in the  _slightest_ ," Dan insisted, pulling a chair out for Sydney and then sitting down himself.

"It happens every time,  _Daniel_ ," you reminded him as Marshall's arm laid across the back of your chair, "I don't know  _why_  you keep inviting me on your dates." Sydney and Marshall simply watched in amusement as Dan continued arguing with you, not even noticing his girlfriend was  _completely_  agreeing with you.


	368. More Than Anything (Ashton Irwin) - Part 1

It was a typical Friday evening – you were sitting at the dinner table with your daughters, helping your 2-year-old learn to feed herself as your 5-year-old excitedly rambled on about what she did in school that day. You would ask her questions every now and then, assuring her that you were listening to her despite being occupied with her sister.

This was the normal routine: you feeding them a little earlier than usual before their father came by to pick them up.

You were almost finished feeding Sadie when you heard a knock at the door. Alexia immediately shot up to run to answer it, making you sigh.

" _Alexia_!" you scolded – she knew she wasn't allowed to answer the door by herself – as you took Sadie out of her booster seat and hurried after the 5-year-old. Alexia didn't listen, obviously, because the next thing you heard was the door opening.

" _Daddy_!" she shouted with a huge smile on her face, jumping into his arms when he held his hands out to her.

You and Ashton had known each other since you were in college – bonding over the  _alarming_  number of espresso pumps you both ordered in your drinks on Saturdays when you studied at the campus coffee shop. Over the next seven years, you fell in love, got married, and had two beautiful little girls.

But a year and a half ago, things started to go downhill.

You would argue more and more every day and it was so emotionally draining on the two of you that you just decided to get a divorce – the finalization being only  _weeks_  after your youngest daughter's first birthday. You had the girls on the weekdays and Ashton took them every Friday evening to Sunday afternoon as part of your custody agreement.

You both remained civil for the sake of your daughters though – Ashton didn't want them seeing their parents barely speaking or arguing with each other and lead them to believe that that was how  _they_  should be treated when they got older. So this was how it was – Ashton would come over, talk with you and the girls a few minutes in his old home, and then leave to spend the weekend with his daughters.

"Princess," Ashton said, his voice more firm than usual when speaking to his daughter, "Mummy has told you  _multiple_  times not to answer the door without her."

"But I knew you were coming!" she frowned – she never liked when her dad used that tone, "You  _always_  come when I'm done eating!"

"Rules are still rules, Princess," he shook his head, "I think Mummy deserves an apology, don't you?" She sighed as he put her back on her feet, sulking over to you. She wrapped her arms around your legs, hugging you tightly.

"Sorry, Mummy," she mumbled into your jeans. You smiled slightly, ruffling her hair before leaning down and kissing the top of her head.

"It's okay, Lex," you told her. You then put Sadie down, addressing the older girl again. "Take your sister and get your bags so you can go with Daddy," you told her. Alexia nodded, taking Sadie's hand and leading her down the hallway. You stood back upright, barely smiling at Ashton as you finally greeted him.

"She had a lot to talk about today," you informed him, "Good luck getting her to bed on time."

"She's  _always_  got a lot to talk about," he said, following you as you went to clean up in the dining room, "I'm starting to think she's spending  _too much_  time with Michael." You let out a breath of amusement, missing the small smile pull at the corner of his mouth.

"I think she's picked up on it from your  _mum_ ," you said, taking the dishes to the kitchen to start washing them.

"Yeah," he chuckled softly in agreement, "She would go on for  _days_  if I'd let her." You looked over your shoulder at him.

"How is she?" you asked, "I haven't talked to her in a while."

"She's doing well," he nodded, "I'll have her call you sometime. She misses you." Your expression faltered slightly but Ashton didn't have a chance to comment on it, being interrupted by a happy voice coming from behind him.

"We're ready, Daddy!" Alexia chirped, helping Sadie drag her bag down the hall as she dragged her own as well.

"Alright, you two," he nodded, "Kiss Mummy goodbye." You quickly dried your hands before kneeling down on the kitchen floor as your daughters trotted over to you.

"Bye, Mummy," Alexia hugged you tightly, "I love you."

"Love you too, Lex," you said, giving her a kiss.

"Love Mummy," Sadie said as best she could, making you smile.

"Love Sadie," you smiled, kissing her nose before giving her a proper kiss, "Be good, okay?" They both nodded, heading back to Ashton, who was already holding their bags.

"Bye, Y/N," he said, picking Sadie up before taking Alexia's hand, "See you on Sunday."

"Bye, Ash," you said softly as he left, not even sure if he heard it as you listened to the door close and then silence fill your home.

You stood there for a moment before turning back to the sink to finish the dishes, trying not to let your mind wander too much in Ashton's direction.

~

**Sunday night**

The girls had been back home with you for a few hours now, and you were starting to get them ready for bed. You'd given them their baths and dressed them in their pajamas, now reading them a bedtime story in Sadie's room. Sadie – as always – was out about halfway through the book, so you just kept reading to Alexia quietly.

When the book was finished, you and Alexia carefully got off the bed. You turned on the nightlight on her bedside table, tucked the 2-year-old in, and kissed her forehead, smiling when Alexia kissed her as well before following you out of the room and to her own.

You went through the same routine – tucking Alexia in, kissing her head, and turning on her nightlight. You left the door open a bit and went to the living room, picking up your favorite book and continuing to read it.

10 minutes later, however, you heard a door open down the hall, letting you know your oldest daughter had gotten out of bed.

"Lex, why are you up?" you asked when she trudged into the room. She didn't answer you – she just climbed up onto the couch and looked up at you with the hazel eyes that  _perfectly_  matched Ashton's.

"Why can't Daddy come live here again?" Alexia asked you. You sighed softly, having explained this what felt like a  _million_  times in the last year and a half.

"I've told you before, baby," you said, "Mummy and Daddy were fighting too much, so he decided to live in a different house."

"But me and Sadie fight all the time and  _we_  still live together."

"That's different."

"How?"

"You still love Sadie, don't you?" you asked, making her nod. "And Sadie still loves you. But sometimes, when people who don't love each other fight, they  _can't_  make up. So they have to just walk away."

"You don't love Daddy anymore?" she frowned, the pout on her lips making you sigh again. You swallowed thickly, remaining silent for a moment, before speaking again.

"It's time for you to go to bed, Lex," you murmured, "You have school tomorrow."

"But you didn't answer!" she insisted as you picked her up and walked her back to her bedroom. It was times like these when you saw more of Ashton in your daughter – her determination never ceased to remind you of him.

"I just don't think you're  _old enough_  for that conversation yet, baby," you whispered as you entered the hallway so you wouldn't risk waking up Sadie, "One day, I'll explain it to you, but right now, it's time for bed." Alexia huffed lightly as you laid her down and pulled her blanket back over her.

"Did you and Daddy at least  _try_  to make up?" she asked you.

"Yeah, Lex," you whispered, "We tried  _many_  times."

"But can't you try  _again_?"

" _Lex_ ," you sighed, just wanting to stop talking about it, but not wanting to reprimand her for simply being the curious little girl she was.

" _Please_ , Mummy?" she begged, "I miss Daddy."

" _Yes, fine_  – we'll try again," you replied just so she would stop asking. Alexia smiled widely, reaching up. You leaned down to hug her goodnight, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

"I love you, Mummy," she said, already starting to get sleepy.

"Love you too, Alexia," you said softly. You reached over to turn the nightlight on her bedside table on before walking back to the door.

You looked over your shoulder when you made it there, finding Alexia's eyes already closed and clinging onto the teddy bear Ashton's mother had brought to the hospital the day she was born. You smiled slightly, turning off her overhead light and closing the door so you could go back to the living room and sit in silence, thinking about what your daughter had said.


	369. More Than Anything (Ashton Irwin) - Part 2

**One week later**

Another Saturday, another day you were alone in your house. You thought about running errands – not having either of the girls with you would allow you to actually get only the things you needed – but you didn't end up doing that.

Instead, you ended up doing  _nothing_. Sure, you watched a couple TV shows here and there and tried to read a book, but you just couldn't make yourself stop thinking about what Alexia had asked you.

The way she looked at you when she asked why you didn't love her dad anymore understandably broke your heart, but you weren't so sure you  _didn't_ , to be honest. Ashton was their father and the first man you ever  _truly_  fell in love with – you were sure you were always going to feel some level of love for him.

Fortunately for you, your thoughts were once again interrupted.

A knock on the front door made you furrow your eyebrows – you weren't expecting anybody to come by that evening – but you quickly got up to answer it anyway. However, you were only even more confused when you saw your ex-husband standing there.

" _Ashton_?" you said curiously, "What... What are you doing here? Where are the girls?"

"My mum wanted to spend time with them, so she took them to the zoo," he informed you, "But I heard you wanted to talk to me and since I wasn't doing anything, I thought I'd just come over now."

"Who said that?" you furrowed your eyebrows.

"Alexia," he said, "She said you told her we'd talk about making up. She refused to go with my mum until I  _pinky swore_  I would come see you."

You sighed, slouching your shoulders and sluggishly moving to the couch. Ashton looked at you for a moment before following you, sitting one seat away from you, turning so he was facing you slightly.

"She just misses all of us living together and seeing you every day, Ashton," you mumbled, looking down at the hands on your lap, "She wouldn't understand why we ended things, so I just told her it was because we needed space."

"Why  _did_  we end things?" You looked over at him in surprise.

" _You_  were the one who suggested it," you reminded him, "We were fighting too much – it wasn't good for the girls."

"We weren't  _always_  fighting," he said, "And I remember the times we  _weren't_  being some of the  _best times_  of my life. And I'm just trying to figure out where it all went  _wrong_."

"You didn't love me anymore," your voice unexpectedly broke. Ashton watched as your chest very visibly rose and fell with your heavy breathing, and when he looked at your face, he could tell you were  _desperately_  trying not to cry.

"Y/N... You're the mother of my kids – I'm  _always_  going to love you," he shook his head.

"But you're not  _in love_  with me, Ashton," you replied as strongly as your voice would allow you to, "You stopped kissing me good morning and goodnight, you stopped hugging me from behind while I made dinner, you stopped asking about my day..."

"Y/N..." he trailed off, "Why didn't you just  _tell me_  you were feeling like that?"

"Because everything turned into a  _fight_ ," you whimpered, "And I didn't wanna get  _yelled at_  anymore."

It was then that Ashton came over to you, sitting down on the coffee table in front of you. He grabbed your hands and pulled you to sit up on the edge of the couch before moving his hands to your face and wiping what tears had managed to escape.

When he was done, he left his hands there, his thumbs now stroking your cheekbones.

"But you still should have  _told me_ ," he said softly, "I've never,  _ever_  wanted you to feel like there was a single moment –  _even_  when we were fighting – that I was not  _just_  as in love with you as I was the  _day_  I said those words to you for the first time when we were in  _college_. You are  _always_  going to be the love of my life, and I'm always going to be reminded of that when I look at our kids. They're so young, but they still  _carry themselves_  the way you do and whenever they smile or laugh or  _sass me_  in any way, it always reminds me of  _you_."

You let out the quietest giggle, but being so close to you, Ashton still heard it. He smiled slightly before it faded.

"I promise I'll be better at showing you I still love you if we can try this again, Y/N," he went on, "As long as  _you_  promise me that you'll tell me the  _moment_  you feel like I'm  _not_." You swallowed the lump in your throat, your eyes getting watery again as you nodded, knowing your voice wouldn't have given you much.

Ashton pulled your face to his, both of you sighing when your lips touched. You hadn't kissed each other in over a year and a half –  _long_  before the idea of a divorce was even on the table – and it still felt like the first time you kissed him when you were in  _college_.

He took things slow, wanting to rememorize every move your lips made against his and every flavor you tasted like – the coffee you drank in the morning in order to remain awake enough to keep up with two little girls, your favorite candy you'd sneak into the house after trips to the grocery store, and cherry-flavored lip balm because you insisted nothing else worked the way it did. But if it meant keeping you happy, he was willing to go along with  _whatever_  silly things you came up with.

"Does this mean Daddy's coming  _home_?!" you heard a small voice shout happily.

You and Ashton both jumped, immediately pulling away to look at the front door, never even having heard it open. You saw Ashton's mom standing there with a knowing grin on her face, Sadie on her hip and Alexia bouncing beside her legs.

Ashton let out a breathy chuckle, scooting back on the coffee table and holding his arms out. Alexia immediately ran to him, letting him pick her up and sit her on his lap, peppering her face with kisses. She obviously squealed and started giggling uncontrollably as you got up to take Sadie from Anne.

"Thanks for taking them out, Anne," you said softly. The smile simply remained on her face, her eyes flicking between you and Ashton before looking back at you.

"It was nice seeing you again, Y/N," she told you. You barely smiled as she turned to Ashton. "I'll call you when I get home, Ash," she told her son, making him nod. She said goodbye to everyone before leaving, and you took Sadie to the couch, sitting right back down where you had been before.

"Daddy!" the 2-year-old giggled, making grabby hands at her father.

Ashton grinned widely, reaching for her and holding her on his lap as well, making sure to keep Alexia from falling off of him while he peppered his other daughter's face with kisses as well. Sadie laughed loudly – just like Alexia had – putting her hands on his face to try and push him away, but he was obviously a lot stronger than she was.

When he stopped his attacks, he pressed kisses to both Sadie and Alexia's foreheads, hugging them both closely. Alexia wrapped her arms around his neck, her face buried in his shoulder as she hugged him tightly.

"Daddy," she mumbled into his shirt, "Are you gonna come live here again?"

Ashton looked at you, finding your head down and looking at your hands, trying to keep yourself from crying again in front of the girls. He didn't know why you were so emotional – you  _were_  right, after all: he  _had_  been the one to suggest divorce – but he wasn't about to ask you about it in front of your kids.

"I'll stay the night tonight and we'll all talk about it in the morning, okay?" Ashton told her, "But I think it's time for bed."

"But  _Daddy_ ," Alexia pouted, knowing the look usually worked on her dad. Unfortunately for her, this time, he only chuckled.

"Mummy and your sister look pretty tired, don't you think?" She looked at the both of you, finding Sadie already dozing off against Ashton's chest.

"Will you still be here when we wake up?" she asked softly, her expression full of worry that he wouldn't be.

"I promise," he nodded, standing up. "Kiss Mummy goodnight," he told her, leaning over.

Alexia pressed a sloppy kiss to your cheek, making you laugh quietly and kiss her back. Ashton then let you kiss Sadie's head before taking them down the hallway to get them ready for bed.

~

You waited for what seemed like  _forever_  for Ashton to come back, but it was really only about half an hour.

He found you in the same spot he left you in, smiling sadly. He walked over to you once again, grabbing your hands and pulling you to your feet.

"What's got you so quiet, huh?" he murmured, bringing your arms around his neck so he could hug your waist.

You swallowed thickly, your face instantly finding his neck as your arms tightened their hold on him. He slipped his hands under your shirt to rub your bare back, just happy he could finally feel your skin again.

"This  _isn't_  your fault, Y/N," he told you when you didn't say anything, "You didn't do  _anything_  wrong."

"I didn't  _talk to you_ ," you choked, "I could have tried to fix it too, but I  _didn't_."

" _Princess_ ," he sighed, squeezing your waist, "I was being distant – I  _knew_  I was. There's no doubt in my _mind_  that if I hadn't been, you would have  _absolutely_  come to talk to me about everything that was bothering you. But you felt like I wouldn't  _care_. And that's  _not_  your fault – that's all on  _me_." You felt yourself tear up again – and Ashton felt the tears fall down his neck – as you let out a couple sobs.

"I love you, Ash," you whispered. You felt him smile into your skin, his lips hitting the exposed skin of your shoulder.

"I love  _you_ , Y/N," he said just as quietly. But when he looked back up to kiss you, his eyes instantly found a small shadow peeking around the corner of the hallway. "And I love you  _too_ , Lex," he said loudly enough for her to hear. The shadow froze, making Ashton chuckle. "Come here, Alexia," he ordered.

You watched your oldest daughter shyly come into the room, walking over to Ashton – probably thinking she was in trouble for getting out of bed. Once she reached him, however, he picked her up and held her on his hip, kissing her cheek.

"What are you doing?" Ashton asked. She didn't answer his question – she only imposed one of her own.

"Do you guys love each other again?" she asked, the sleepiness in her voice becoming more apparent with every word.

"We  _do_ ," he nodded, "I love your Mummy  _very_  much-" He looked at you as he spoke, "-I'll never love  _anybody_  more than my three girls." You could feel yourself getting choked up again, but you managed to remain composed in front of your daughter.

"And I'll never love anybody more  _my_  three girls," you said with a sly smirk.

An evil grin started pulling at the corner of Ashton's mouth, but you didn't have time to run away before one of his arms was around your waist to pull you into him – the other still keeping a firm hold on Alexia as she was still on his hip. He started tickling your side, making you squeal softly before falling into a fit of giggles.

Alexia smiled as Ashton stopped tickling you and you laid your head on his shoulder to catch your breath. He wrapped his arm tightly around you, kissing the side of your head. He murmured another ' _I love you_ ' in your ear, feeling you smile into his neck, while Alexia just watched, happy her dad was  _finally_  coming home.


	370. Pictures of You (Luke Hemmings)

**Warning: This imagine contains a photo of fetus luke**

~

You were walking around the park with your camera when you heard music coming from your right. You looked over and nothing was there – just a hill – so you decided to investigate. Once you reached the top, you looked around and finally found what you were hearing – a blonde boy with a guitar in his lap, singing softly for the people who took the time to stop and pay him any attention. You snapped a couple shots from the hill before venturing closer to get a better listen yourself.

As he was playing and you were shooting, you couldn't help but notice the small grin on his face as he sang. It wasn't because he was being photographed – he hadn't even looked up to know you were  _there_  – he was just smiling because he was doing something he  _enjoyed_.

It suddenly dawned on you that you'd seen this boy before – Luke, if you remembered his name correctly – and this was  _always_  a look he had on his face when you saw him playing music. He usually had three of his friends with him, but today – for some reason – he was performing alone.

You'd gradually gotten closer as the afternoon wore on, but people would keep walking and standing in front of you – either not noticing your camera or not caring – but you were truthfully starting to get ticked off, so you just shut your camera off and moved over to sit on the grass and listen to him play.

He played for about 20 more minutes before deciding to stop. The crowd clapped and offered up praises of how good they thought he was before leaving. He had a smile on his face as he packed up his guitar and you finally decided to leave yourself, not wanting to seem like a creep just watching him put his stuff away.

But when you got up, you didn't even make it all the way past him before you heard a voice speak up.

"You're the person always taking photos of me when I'm here, right?" Luke said as you passed by.

You froze, turning to look at him, only to find he wasn't even looking at you –  _he_ ** _knew_** _you'd been there the whole time?_ Your fingers tightly gripped the camera hanging around your neck as he looked up and smiled.

"You take any today?" he asked. You stared at him for a moment before nodding slowly. "Can I see?" You nodded even slower, prompting him to pat the concrete next to him.

You sat down and as you were turning your camera back on, he started speaking again.

"You know, my friends tag me in the photos you put up on Facebook," Luke informed you, "You're really talented."

"Thank you," you whispered.

"I feel like I should be  _paying you_  or something."

"Oh, don't do  _that_ ," you giggled, making him smile, "Then I would be considered a  _professional_."

"What's wrong with that?"

"Professionals don't get to submit their work for amateur night at the art gallery next weekend," you shook your head.

"You gonna submit photos of me?" he nudged your arm.

"Well, I-I was gonna ask you if it was  _okay_  first," you cleared your throat.

" _Of course_  it's okay," he grinned, "But I have to see them first. Can't have you displaying photos where I don't look good, now  _can I_?"

" _Whatever_ ," you scoffed, "I'm sure  _all_  photos of you look good." The blonde smiled again, a light blush on his cheeks as you went on. "I only took a  _few_  today," you said with a small sigh, "People kept standing in front of me and I was getting annoyed."

Luke's arm went around your back so he could rest his hand on the concrete beside your thigh, leaning over to see your camera screen. You swallowed a bit, noting how his breath on your ear made your body erupt with goose bumps.

As you clicked through the photos you'd taken, the arm around your back suddenly moved up to your shoulders so Luke could grab your hand and make you stop.

"What was that one?" he asked.

"Nothing," you replied quickly, "It was nothing."

"Well, it certainly seems like  _something_ ," he retorted, pushing your thumb out of the way so he could click a button to go back to the photo.

It was silent for a moment – Luke's arm relaxing, but still lying on your shoulders. Your eyes never left the screen – not that you  _minded_ , of course: that photo was your favorite you'd taken of him so far.

"When's that one from?" he asked. You looked at him to find him smiling, silently telling you that he liked the photo as well.

"The first time you started playing here," you said softly, looking back down at your camera.

"Well, you'll have to make sure you include that it your amateur night submission," he nudged you gently, "And maybe I'll see you there." It was presented as more of a question than anything. 

"You're going to the show?" you tilted your head.

"I mean, I think the  _star_  should attend, don't you?" he said in a mock-cocky tone. You rolled your eyes, but the smile on your face told Luke that you knew he wasn't being serious. "If you don't want me to though, I won't," he added.

"You can if you  _want_ ," you whispered, "It's not like it's  _my_  event anyway; I wouldn't be able to kick you  _out_." Luke couldn't help but laugh.

"So what  _else_  do you take photos of then?" he asked you. You suddenly smiled slyly, turning off your camera and standing up, causing Luke's arm to fall back at his side.

"I guess you'll have to come to the show and find out," you told him, walking back to where your car was parked,  _very_  aware of the blue eyes that were watching you leave.

~

**One week later; Friday night**

As you were standing around your exhibit talking with people about your photos, you couldn't help but sneak a peek around the room. You were looking for any sign of Luke, but he hadn't shown up yet – if he was going to  _at all_.

You couldn't deny that you had a crush on the blonde-haired boy – you had been infatuated with him ever since the first time you saw him play at the park. You didn't know  _what_  it was about him – maybe it was the way he could keep an audience's attention for an hour or two and still leave them wishing he'd stay and sing  _longer_  – but there was  _no doubt_  you were falling for him. The only question plaguing your mind was could he  _possibly_  feel the same?

"Excuse me, dear," an older woman standing in front of your favorite photo of Luke got your attention, "Are you the photographer of this photo?"

"Yes, I am," you nodded, moving to stand beside her and look at it.

"It's very nice."

"Thank you," you smiled.

"Can you tell me about it?"

"Well, his name is Luke and he goes to the park a lot to sing," you explained, "And this is from the first time he ever did. I can't remember what made him laugh, but I'm glad I caught it. It's a personal favorite of mine."

"My best friend tripped over his shoelace as he was walking over," you heard a voice behind you as an arm wrapped around your shoulder. Your head snapped up to find Luke smiling at you.

" _You came_!" you squeaked, making him chuckle and pull you into him.

"I told you I  _would_ ," he said, kissing the top of your head.

"You two are a very cute couple," the woman grinned at you. You were about to tell her you  _weren't_  a couple, but Luke's voice interrupted you.

"Thank you," he replied with a bright smile. She walked off to another person's exhibit, making you look back up at Luke.

"Why'd you do that?" you asked.

"She gave us a compliment," he replied innocently, "It would have been  _rude_  not to thank her."

"But we're  _not_  a couple," you reminded him.

"Yeah," he sighed dramatically, moving behind you and wrapping his arms around your waist, "That's a real  _shame_ , isn't it?"

"What does  _that_  mean?" you asked, finding yourself leaning back on him while he rested his chin on your shoulder.

Luke shrugged, "I could always explain it to you over dinner."

"Are you trying to ask me out on a date?" you cocked an eyebrow, trying to conceal your grin as you moved your head to look at him.

"Depends," he said, "Am I succeeding?"

"You're getting there," you finally smiled, kissing his cheek.

"You and me, dinner tonight after the show," he offered, "What do you say?"

"I say yes," you told him, making him smile brightly again. He squeezed you before letting go, walking in front of you, and standing beside the photo of him hanging on the wall and making a silly pose.

"So I was thinking," Luke commented, "Maybe I should stand here and then people will see how much better you made me look."

You couldn't help but giggle, reaching for his hand and pulling him back to you. Your arms wrapped around his neck and his hands went to your hips, his fingers gripping you firmly.

"That picture looks  _way_  better in person," you informed him.

"Almost as beautiful as the one who  _took it_ ," Luke grinned, pressing his lips to your nose.

~

_photo credit goes to whoever took the photo. obviously. bc it sure as shit wasnt me._


	371. This Town (Jack Barakat) - Part 1

The current situation in which you'd found yourself certainly wasn't one that you had  _planned_  to be in that day. Of course, no one ever really plans to steal a loaf of bread and have the baker chase after them, do they? But that was exactly what happened to you two minutes ago. You thought the baker was distracted enough for you to sneak in and snatch the bread, but clearly, you were wrong.

As you rounded the corner – the last corner before you were convinced you could lose him – you slammed right into someone's chest. The man luckily grabbed your waist before you could fall backwards. You were breathing heavily and when you looked up to see who was holding onto you, it definitely didn't make it any better.

"Late for something, Miss?" the Prince chuckled.

"I-I-I'm sorry, Y-Your Highness," you stuttered, "I di- I didn't mean-"

"Does anyone ever  _mean_  to run into someone?" he smiled, letting you know he wasn't upset about it, "If I may ask though; Where are you off to in such a hurry?"

" _Hey_!" you heard behind you.

Jack watched your eyes widen and you broke free from his arms only to hide behind him. He felt your hand shaking as you grabbed the back of his shirt, the bread still in your other hand. He looked up and found the bakery owner turning the corner. The man's eyes widened when he saw the Prince, but narrowed the second he noticed you behind him.

" _You_ ," he growled, pointing at you, "You little  _thief_."

"Excuse me," Jack interrupted, "What's going on?"

"This lowly  _peasant girl_  stole the bread from my shop," he huffed.

"Now, sir, there's no need for name-calling."

"She is a  _thief_!"

"She's still a  _lady_ ," Jack stated authoritatively.

"She is a lady that deserves to  _rot in a jail cell_."

"Sir," he repeated, "I'm sure she has a  _very_  good reason and I think we should hear her out." The owner grumbled quietly as Jack turned to you, causing you to release his shirt. "Why didn't you buy the bread?" he asked.

"My brothers made me because we can't afford it," you whispered, looking down at your feet.

"Did you explain that to him?" You barely nodded, making the Prince look back at the baker. "And you couldn't give her one  _measly_  loaf of bread?" he raised his eyebrows.

"I have to make a living  _somehow_ , Your Highness!" he exclaimed, offended the Prince was taking  _your_  side, "Everyone else has to pay around here! She's no  _exception_!"

"How many loaves of bread do you throw out every week?" The baker didn't respond, making Jack's jaw tighten slightly. " _How many, sir_?"

He sighed, "Every week? At least seven."

" _Seven_?" his jaw nearly dropped, "You throw out  _seven_  loaves of bread  _a week_  and you can't spare  _one_  for someone who can't afford it?"

"That would be correct," he stated smugly.

" _God_ , there should be  _laws_  against that," Jack muttered under his breath.

"But there  _aren't_ , Your Highness, and I'm not about to start making exceptions  _now_ ," he said, holding his hand out to you.

You paused for a moment, only to have him narrow his eyes and growl quietly again. You swallowed thickly, slowly handing back the bread. He snatched it out of your hand, making you jump.

"Well, mark my words, sir," Jack glared at him, " _There will be_." The Prince grabbed your hand, making you squeak as he pulled you in the direction you were originally going in.

"Your Hi-"

"Please, call me Jack," he told you. He stopped pulling you, but still held your hand as he walked beside you. "What's your name?" he looked at you.

"Y/N," you said softly.

"You don't have to be nervous, Y/N," he said, making your heart flutter, "I'm not going to have you arrested."

"You're  _not_?" you asked curiously.

"Of  _course_  not!" He seemed surprised you would ask – especially after he just stood up for you. "I think you could have gone about finding a way to get food a little  _better_ ," he admitted, squeezing your hand, "But I don't believe you should be put away for just trying to  _survive_." You smiled slightly, a bit bewildered that the  _Prince_  of all people was the one who came to your rescue.

"Where are we going then?" you asked.

"Well, you're going to take me to wherever you live, we're going to get your brothers, and we're going to go back to the castle," he grinned.

"W- _What_?" you froze, making him let out a noise of surprise, not expecting you to do that.

"In all fairness, Miss Y/N, I think you heard me," he laughed lightly.

"B-But I-"

"Don't make me order you."

You saw a small smirk on his face. You let out a sigh, your bottom lip sticking out slightly as you frowned. Jack just chuckled again, tugging you to him and beginning to walk again.

~

"Y/N!" one of your brothers, Shawn, exclaimed when you opened the front door of your house, "Did you get any food?" You barely shook your head. " _Why not_?!"

"' _Why not_ ' what?" your other brother, Charlie, asked as he came into the room.

"She doesn't  _have_  anything," Shawn told him before you could say anything.

"What the  _hell_ , Y/N?!" Charlie said, making you roll your eyes.

"Can I talk now?" you asked, hearing Jack chuckle to himself.

"Only if you have a  _damn_  good excuse for coming home empty-handed."

"I, uh... I didn't exactly come home  _empty-handed_..."

"What's  _that_  supposed to mean?" Shawn cocked an eyebrow. You began chewing on your bottom lip, reaching back outside and grabbing Jack's hand, pulling him into the house.

Your brothers' jaws dropped when they saw the Prince standing behind you. Fortunately, they were so focused on the fact that it was him that they didn't notice his free hand had come to rest on your hip.

" _What did you do_?!" Charlie yelled at you.

"What do  _you_  think I did?" you rolled your eyes, "I got  _caught_."

"How the hell did you get caught?!"

"I looked suspiciously  _cute_  and the Prince fell  _head over heels_  for me," you spat back, feeling Jack let out a breathy chuckle onto the back of your neck. "How do  _you_  think?"

"I  _knew_  we shouldn't have sent you out," Shawn grumbled, "How on  _earth_  are we going to bail you out of jail when we can't even afford to  _feed_  ourselves, Y/N? Honestly. It's like you don't even think about anyone but  _your_ -"

"I'm not here to take her to jail," Jack finally spoke, making your brothers freeze.

"You're  _not_?" Charlie nearly whispered.

" _God, no_!" he exclaimed, letting go of you and walking further inside. You closed the door behind you and watched as he looked around.

"Um... If I may, Your Highness," Shawn said, "Why  _are_  you here then?"

"You can call me Jack," he responded with a shrug, "And I thought that since you have no food, I'd invite you all to have dinner with us in the castle."

"You mean..." his eyes widened.

"Dinner...with my family...in the castle," Jack said slowly with another chuckle.

" _Wow_ ," Charlie looked at you, "Looks like you finally did something  _right_  for once." You let out a small sigh, watching as they went into the bedroom to get ready.

To get your mind off of it, Jack asked you to show him around, which you were more than willing to do. The house only had a front room, a kitchen, a bathroom, and a bedroom, so it wasn't like it was going to take too long.

"Where do  _you_  sleep then?" he asked you after you referred to the bedroom as your brothers' room.

"On the couch," you murmured.

"They make you sleep on the  _couch_?" his eyes widened slightly, "Even  _I_  wouldn't make my sister sleep on the  _couch_." You couldn't help but laugh lightly.

"Well, that's because you  _care_  about her," you replied.

"You think your brothers don't care about you?"

You shook your head, "I  _know_  they don't."

"And how do you know  _that_?"

"They weren't exactly  _secretive_  about how ' _the worst thing Mom and Dad did by dying was leaving them to take care of me_ ,'" you swallowed thickly, looking down at your hands as you played with your fingers, "I wouldn't be surprised if they pulled you aside later and  _begged you_  to put me in jail."

"Well, the inmates  _do_  get regular meals," Jack pointed out, succeeding in making you laugh.

" _Don't tempt me_ ," you warned, nudging his arm lightly. He looked at you for a moment before opening his mouth to speak again, but he was interrupted by your brothers coming back into the room.

"Bathroom's yours, Y/N," Shawn said. Jack cleared his throat lightly, standing up.

"I'll just wait outside," he declared, "Take as long as you need." He exited the house, leaving you with your brothers.

You went into the bathroom, only looking at yourself in the mirror. You sighed to yourself after a couple minutes, knowing that this was as good as it was going to get.

When you came back out, you were about to walk out the front door when your brother's voice stopped you.

"Is that  _really_  what you're wearing to the  _castle_?" Charlie asked you.

"Well, it's not like I have much of a  _choice_ , do I?" you grumbled.

"Come on, Y/N," Shawn said, "You can't wear  _that_."

"You know damn well this is  _all I have_ ," you spat.

"Maybe if you got a  _job_ -"

"I would be saving up all my money to  _leave_  this town before I ever  _considered_  anything  _else_ ," you growled.

" _Excuse you_ ," Charlie said sternly, "Don't forget who works  _two jobs_  just to pay for the  _roof_  you live under. You should be  _thanking us_  you're not out on the  _street_."

"It would be better than living  _here_ ," you mumbled, storming out of the house.

You passed Jack as you stepped off the porch, earning an eyebrow raise from him as you just kept walking. Shawn and Charlie walked out and Jack looked over at them.

"She okay?" he asked. The two simply shrugged and the prince turned his attention back to you. You kept walking straight, so Jack called after you, "You're going the wrong way, you know?! The castle's that way!" He pointed to the left, but when you didn't turn around to look, he knew you weren't planning on going. "Y/N!" he said, chasing after you.

Your brothers followed him at a much slower pace, not wanting to go to the castle without the Prince since they knew they wouldn't be let in.

"Y/N," he said again once he reached you, grabbing your elbow and turning you around. When he noticed you were fighting back tears, his heart dropped. "Hey," he said softly, wiping the stray tears off of your cheeks, "What's wrong?"

"I'm leaving," you stated softly.

"Leaving? Leaving  _where_?"

" _Anywhere_ ," you choked, "I don't  _care_. I'm tired of being  _yelled at_  all the time and doing everything  _wrong_  and being blamed for things that aren't even  _my fault_  and-"

"Y/N," Jack cut you off, practically whispering, "I know I can't make you stay, but at least just have  _dinner_  first. I  _can't_  let you leave knowing you didn't  _eat_  something." You looked into his eyes and saw genuine concern – something you hadn't seen in a long time – so you caved.

"Fine," you murmured.

"Good," he smiled, "I thought I was going to have to order you to do it." You let out a small giggle, letting him take your hand and walk you back toward the castle.

Jack didn't let go, even when you made it to where your brothers were waiting; Instead, he held you tighter while he gestured with his free hand for them to follow you. You let yourself smile since you knew they couldn't see, feeling yourself gravitate more toward the Prince's side.

~

_inspiration: http://pretendtobepunkrock.tumblr.com/post/138492438675/royal-luke-finding-you-being-terrorized-by_


	372. This Town (Jack Barakat) - Part 2

**Warning: Mentions of parents' death**

~

After meeting the King, Queen, and Princess – which went a lot more smoothly than you  _thought_  it was going to, to be honest – Jack showed you around the castle. You looked around in awe – and in a bit of  _jealousy_  as well, knowing you'd never have anything like  _this_  – while your brothers immediately –  _and_   _unsurprisingly_  – were entranced by the game room.

Jack insisted that you all play at least one game before dinner, but you declined, saying you were never good at video games. Honestly though, you just wanted to be  _alone_.

Jack told you that you could explore by yourself for a while and that he'd come find you when they were done. You smiled slightly before leaving the room and doing exactly that.

Not too long later – about 30 minutes or so – you found yourself outside in the garden. It was a beautiful setup – tall hedges in the background and a path leading to the fountain in the middle of the yard. You didn't go that far, however, deciding to take in the entire scenery from the castle porch.

You sat down on the top step, just thinking about everything you'd been through recently. The loss of your parents was understandably tough on you – and to lose both of them at the  _same time_  was even  _worse_  – and you'd be lying if you said you weren't still grieving over it three years later. And to know that your own  _brothers_  didn't even want you around anymore  _because_  of it? You weren't sure it could  _get_  much worse, honestly.

All you wanted at this point was  _stability_  – a place to call your own, a job you could go to every day to keep yourself busy, and enough money to feed yourself for  _more_  than one meal a day. You wanted to leave the kingdom – maybe even the  _country_  – and start a new life. But to do that, you would need  _a lot_  of money, and you had  _no idea_  how you were going to accomplish that on your own.

"Y/N," you felt Shawn nudged you gently, making you jump, "You okay?"

Your head shot up to look at both of your brothers, who were both now standing behind you. You then sighed, looking back at the garden.

"I can't  _actually_  leave yet," you mumbled, more to yourself than to either of them.

" _Yet_?" he replied, confusion written all over both their faces.

"I'm gonna find a job," you said, "And I'm gonna save up and move out and get new clothes and then we'll all be  _happy_  again."

" _Again_?" Charlie shook his head, "Y/N, what are you-" He cut himself off when you stood up and walked off of the porch, going into the garden and sitting down on the concrete of the fountain. He looked at Shawn and the older boy shrugged, and they both shook it off as Jack came outside.

**Jack's POV**

"Where's Y/N?" the Prince asked, earning curious looks from your brothers.

They both pointed out into the garden where you were in clear view from the porch. Jack was about to go sit with you when your brother's voice stopped him.

"I know you're the Prince and all," Shawn said, "But Y/N is our sister  _first_ , and we  _will_  hurt you if you hurt her."

"How would I hurt her?" Jack asked with a small tilt of the head.

"We see the way you look at her," Charlie told him.

"Sounds like you really care about her."

"She's our  _sister_.  _Of course_  we care about her."

" _She_  seems to think  _otherwise_ ," Jack informed them.

"Why would she think  _that_?" Shawn furrowed his eyebrows.

"Something about you saying you were  _stuck_  with her after your parents' passing."

Charlie put his hands on his face and groaned softly, "I  _knew_  I shouldn't have said that."

"Then why  _did_  you?"

"I... It was right after it  _happened_  and I just... I was still hurting and I took it out on her."

"Why didn't you ever  _tell her_  you didn't mean it?"

"I never knew she thought I  _did_ ," he mumbled.

Jack didn't reply, he simply looked at your brothers and motioned toward you. They immediately walked in your direction while he leaned against the wall, watching as you looked up when the two men approached you.

**Your POV**

"Hey, Y/N..." Shawn said softly, "We need to talk." You swallowed the lump in your throat, shaking your head.

"I said I'm sorry," you whispered, "I'll get food tomorrow – I  _swear_  I will."

"It's not about what happened today, Y/N," Charlie said as the two kneeled down on the ground in front of you.

"It's  _not_?" you frowned. He reached up and wiped the tears off of your cheek.

"No," he mumbled, "It's about something I said after Mom and Dad died... Y/N, when I said Shawn and I were stuck with you... I need you to know that I  _didn't_  mean it, okay? I was still grieving and I had all this anger building up and I took it out on you in the  _worst_  way possible, and I'm  _really_  sorry. I would have told you sooner, but I didn't think you ever thought I was being  _serious_. And we  _never_  should have been acting like it was your fault for not being able to find a job when we already knew that most places around here won't even  _hire_  women."

"We don't know  _what_  we'd do without you," Shawn said, shaking his head, "We  _never_  wanted you to feel like we don't  _care_  about you. We love you  _so much_ , Y/N."

"You  _do_?" you choked.

"We'll  _always_  love you, Y/N," Charlie smiled sadly, wiping your face again, "I know we fight a lot, but you're our little sister; You're  _supposed_  to annoy the shit out of us." A breathy chuckle passed your lips and you swallowed again.

"I love you," you whimpered, your eyes getting watery again as you looked at your brothers.

Charlie got up on his knees and wrapped his arms around you, pulling you into him. Your arms immediately went around his neck as you hugged him tightly. He felt your tears start seeping through his shirt, but he kept you in place, rubbing your back lightly.

When it was obvious that you weren't going to move on to him any time soon, Shawn joined in the hug, wrapping his arms around both you and Charlie.

"We love you too, Y/N," they both muttered simultaneously, kissing your head.

"How did you know it was about what you said after Mom and Dad died?" you asked, your voice muffled by Charlie's shirt.

"The Prince told us," Shawn replied, "We wouldn't have even  _guessed_  if he hadn't said anything."

You finally lifted yourself off of your brother, causing both of them to let go of you. You looked toward the castle and found Jack sitting on the stairs, kicking rocks around with his foot.

"He was looking for you," Charlie informed you, making you look back at him.

"Why?" you whispered.

"Don't know," he shrugged, "But he never  _denied it_  when we told him we could tell he likes you." 

"That's not funny," you mumbled, "He doesn't like me."

"We're not  _trying_  to be funny, Y/N," Shawn said.

"He's a  _prince_ , Shawn," you reminded him, "He's not going to go for some girl who can't even afford a loaf of  _bread_."

You got up before either of them could say anything and began walking back to the castle. The two men sighed, simply watching you approach the steps where Jack was sitting.

"Hey!" Jack smiled, jumping up, "Is everything okay now?" You nodded silently, continuing to walk.

You missed him look back at your brothers and them taking their turn to motion for him to follow you. Jack quickly turned and jogged after you just as you entered the castle.

"Y/N," he said, "Hey, wait up." He hurried in front of you, making you stop walking. You let out a small puff of air, looking up at the Prince to find him looking at you curiously. "Where are you going?" he asked you.

"Home," you answered.

"But you  _just_  got here," he frowned, "You haven't even  _eaten_  yet."

"Not hungry anymore," you murmured.

"Y/N, you can't possibly just  _not_  be hungry anymore."

"I really appreciate you wanting to do this for us," you shook your head, "I'm sure my brothers will really enjoy having something other than bread to eat for once, but I just want to be alone."

"You can go in my room and we'll leave you alone until dinner," Jack said, practically begging you to stay.

"Thank you for everything, Your Highness," you went on, ignoring his pleas, "It was really nice of you to invite us here. I hope you all enjoy your dinner." You walked past him, leaving him frozen in his spot.

"Y/N, you're not leaving until you eat something!" he called after you, coming back to his senses and chasing you down again. He grabbed your hand, turning you back around. "That's an  _order_ , Y/N," he stated firmly, "You're  _staying_  for dinner." You looked at him in disbelief for a moment that he'd  _actually_  ordered you to stay.

But unfortunately for him, it wasn't  _enough_.

" _No, I'm not_ ," you grumbled, ripping your hand out of his and walking away again, leaving him surprised that you didn't listen to him.

~

_inspiration: http://pretendtobepunkrock.tumblr.com/post/138492438675/royal-luke-finding-you-being-terrorized-by_


	373. This Town (Jack Barakat) - Part 3

**Jack's POV; One month later**

After not hearing from or seeing you for the next five weeks, Jack took it upon  _himself_  to find out where you'd gone.

It wasn't until after dinner that he was able to leave the castle, but he figured that wouldn't be a problem – he thought you'd still be home. Your brother answered the door, truthfully a little  _surprised_  to see the Prince.

"Hey, Jack," Charlie said, motioning for him to come inside, "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see Y/N," he answered, "I need to talk to her."

"She's not here right now..."

"Do you know when she'll be back?"

"Whenever she decides to  _come back_ , I guess," he sighed.

"You mean you don't know where she  _is_?" his eyes widened.

"I don't," he shook his head, "But Shawn went out looking for her a couple hours ago. I can't imagine they'll still be gone after dark."

"But Shawn doesn't know  _for sure_  where she is either? Should I send some people to look for her? I can send my  _best_  guards to-"

"Jack," Charlie cut him off, a confused smile on his face, "She's done this  _before_ ; She'll come back before sunset. She's not even planning to leave until  _Tuesday_."

" _She's leaving_?" his eyes widened yet again, "Why is she leaving?! Where is she  _going_?!" Charlie scrunched his face up – you'd  _explicitly_  told him not to tell Jack about it. But he was too far in to stop now.

"She won't say where she's  _going_  – just that she's  _leaving_ ," he answered, "She doesn't want anyone to find her."

"And you're just going to  _let her_?!"

"Jack, we can't  _make her_  stay anymore!" he shook his head, "I'm just as worried as you are, but I trust her. If she decides she can't make it by herself, there's no doubt in my  _mind_  that she'll come back." Jack's face fell slightly, making Charlie sigh. "Look, I'm sorry you came all the way here for nothing," he said, "But she's leaving on Tuesday and I promise she'll be home all day tomorrow. Just come back by then if you can." The Prince sighed as well, nodding his head.

"Thanks, Charlie," he told him, "I'll see you around." Charlie opened the door for him, watching him walk back to the road.

Once he was about 50 feet away, he called out to him.

"Jack!" he said, making the Prince look over his shoulder, "She'll be  _fine_! Don't worry yourself  _too_  much!" Jack couldn't help but chuckle softly, waving slightly before heading back to the castle.

But, of course, he didn't get much sleep that night.

~

**The next day**

Jack woke up at around 12:30, surprised no one had woken him up for breakfast  _or_  lunch. He remained lying on his bed for a while though, thinking about how he was going to approach you before deciding that he wasn't going to do it at all.

"Taylor!" Jack shouted as he sat up. His personal guard – Michael was his first name – was in the room not even two seconds later.

"Yes, sir?" he stood at attention.

"You know where Y/N lives, correct?"

"Yes, sir," Michael confirmed.

"Good," Jack nodded, "I want you to bring her to the castle right away. I need to have a word with her."

"What am I supposed to  _say_ , sir?" he shook his head – being one of the people the Prince confided in, he already knew about the situation, "She's not just gonna  _come with me_."

"Tell her it's because she didn't listen to my orders or something –  _I don't know_!" Jack huffed, "Just bring her here!"

"Okay, sir," the guard sighed, leaving to go to your house.

~

**Your POV**

You sighed when you heard a loud banging on the front door, thinking one of your brothers forgot his key yet again.

"How many times have I  _told you_  not to-" you started, cutting yourself off when you realized it was neither Charlie nor Shawn, but a castle guard.

"Y/N Y/L/N?" the guard asked.

"Depends on why you're here," you cocked an eyebrow.

"You're under arrest for disobeying orders from the Prince," he stated, taking your arm and removing you from the house.

" _What_?!" you exclaimed.

You tried to take your arm back, but he only held on tighter. You kept trying to free yourself so you could run away, but the guard wasn't letting up on his grip.

Once you entered the castle, you were taken down to the jail cells and the guard opened the one right beside the entrance into the room. He didn't even push you inside the cell, he just let go of your arm and quickly shut and locked the door before leaving.

"Oh,  _come on_!" you shouted, grabbing one of the bars and shaking the door, "I didn't stay for  _dinner_ ; That doesn't make me  _America's Most Wanted_!"

You soon realized, however, that that wasn't going to do anything. But hey, it never hurt to  _try_ , right? You  _did_  give up after a few seconds though, going quiet.

You were surprised to notice that there was no one else there – not a single criminal or wrongdoer in the cell across from yours or even at the other end of the room. Your shoulders slumped as you sighed, going back against the wall furthest from the bars and sliding down to the floor.

It was only five minutes later that you began hearing voices again. They clearly belonged to the guard who arrested you and the Prince, making you groan softly. You leaned your head back on the wall, your knees bent slightly and your forearms resting on them.

Jack and the guard came into the room, standing in front of your cell. The guard unlocked the door and Jack just stood in front of it as if he were waiting for you to move.

"Y/N," he finally spoke when he realized you weren't going anywhere, "Come with me."

"I'd rather not, but thank you for the offer," you stated dryly.

Jack sighed, "Y/N, I  _really_  don't want to have to order you."

"Why not? You gonna have me  _arrested_  if I don't?" you smiled sarcastically. He looked at the man beside him after he unlocked the door.

"You can go, Taylor," he said, earning a nod in return.

"Yes, sir," Michael replied, turning and leaving you and Jack alone. Jack came into the cell, sitting down to face you, crossing his legs.

"I didn't have you arrested," he confessed, earning an annoyed glance from you.

"Then what the  _hell_ -" He cut you off, already knowing what you were going to say.

"I knew you wouldn't come if Michael just  _said_  I wanted to talk to you, so I told him to pretend he was arresting you," he looked down as he played with his fingers on his lap.

"You're  _unbelievable_ ," you scoffed, making a motion to get up, but Jack grabbed your arm, holding you down.

"Will you just listen to me for  _five seconds_?" he let out an exasperated sigh, "I'm not  _trying_  to upset you; I just want to talk!" You could see the desperation on his face, causing you to sigh again and lean back against the wall.

" _Talk_ ," you said simply, waiting for him to let go of your arm, but he never did – instead, he moved closer and held your hand in his lap.

"Charlie told me you're planning on leaving tomorrow," Jack said softly. You groaned softly upon hearing your brother did the  _one thing_  you told him  _not to do_ , but you replied to the comment anyway.

"If I'm here because you're going to try to stop me, it's not going to work," you shook your head, "Charlie and Shawn have been trying all month."

"I can get you a job in the castle," he told you, "There's always something that needs done around here."

"I don't-"

"You don't need to  _leave town_  to find a job, Y/N," he said firmly.

"I'm not leaving to find a  _job_ , Jack!" you replied with another sigh, making his heart race at the sound of his name, "I'm leaving because there's nothing  _here_  for me anymore! I want to experience  _so_  many things and  _none of them_ are going to happen in  _this town_!"

"What about your brothers?"

"My brothers lived over 7 years without me once; They'll be  _fine_."

"What about  _me_?" he asked, taking you by surprise.

"What  _about_  you?" you returned quietly.

"I  _know_  you know I like you, Y/N," he said, "I know your brothers  _told you_  I do. And I know that that makes you more scared than you're willing to  _admit_ , but-"

"I'm not  _scared_  of someone liking me," you cut him off, a slightly frustrated tone in your voice.

"Then why are you avoiding it?"

"I'm not avoiding  _anything_."

" _Yes, you are_!" Jack said, suddenly pushing your arm back to your own lap, "Your brothers told you I like you and you  _left_! You didn't stay for dinner and you didn't even let me  _try_  to help you!"

"I don't  _need_  any goddamn help!" you shot back loudly, "I can take care of  _myself_! I'm not 5-years-old anymore! I don't need people always looking after me!"

"What's so bad about people  _wanting_  to be there for you, Y/N?!" he asked, "What's so bad about people  _caring_  about you?!"

" _People lie, Jack_! They lie and lead you on and hurt you in ways no one teaches you how to deal with, and I'm  _sick of it_!"

"So who hurt  _you_?" he asked, drastically  _softer_  than he had been in the last couple minutes.

"I'm not having this conversation," you mumbled, getting up and leaving the cell. But you didn't even make it out into the hallway before you felt Jack grab your wrist and spin you around.

Before you could react, his other hand was on your cheek and he was pulling your face to his, pressing your lips together. You let out a breath, not bothering to push him back because you knew  _he knew_  you wanted this just as much as he did.

The hand holding your wrist brought your arm up and laid it on his shoulder before putting his hand on your waist. Your free hand just instinctively came up to rest at the base of his neck.

When he pulled away to breathe, Jack smiled slightly, putting his forehead on your own.

"You may not be scared, but you  _are_  worried," he said thoughtfully, "Your brothers said you told them you weren't good enough for me."

" _I'm_   _not_ ," you swallowed thickly, "Even if you decided to be with someone who wasn't royalty, you  _can't_  be with someone who can't afford something as stupid as  _bread_."

"You don't fall for  _wealth_ , Y/N; You fall for a  _person_ ," he smiled softly again, "And whether you like it or not, I'm falling for  _you_. I know I can't make you stay – you've made it pretty clear to me that you're not going to be following any orders of  _mine_  anytime soon-" You giggled softly as he went on. "-but just give me another month," he shook his head, "If I can't convince you that there's more in this town for you by the end of the month, then I'll... I'll let you go without begging you to stay." You took a deep breath in, letting it out slowly.

" _A month_ , Jack," you murmured.

"Well, I'll start right  _now_  then," he said thoughtfully, "Reason number one is that if you leave, you won't get to do  _this_  all the time-" He pressed his lips to yours, making you laugh into his mouth.

"Tempting..." you said, pecking his lips again before pulling your head back, "What  _else_  you got?"

~

_inspiration: http://pretendtobepunkrock.tumblr.com/post/138492438675/royal-luke-finding-you-being-terrorized-by_


	374. This Town (Jack Barakat) - Part 4

 

**Warning: Mention of car accident, parents' death**

~

**One month later**

Jack's month-long mission to convince you to stay in the kingdom had finally arrived and, to be honest, the decision was a lot more  _difficult_  than you'd originally anticipated. You knew he was going to show you the best parts of where you lived – and Jack  _certainly_  had a way with giving you  _one look_  that made you give into whatever he'd asked of you – but...

Jack had done  _so much_  for you in such a short amount of time – he had the seamstresses in the castle make new clothes for you and your brothers, he stopped by every Sunday evening to make sure the three of you had enough food to eat for the entire week, and he even let you come sit in on the Parliament meeting where they passed a new law that required bakers to give leftovers to people who needed them for free – but even  _then_...

You weren't so sure you still  _wanted_  to stay...

You and Jack were both sitting in the castle garden on the very night the deal ended, talking about the things that had happened in the last couple months as well as whatever else came to mind. The subject of the deal  _itself_  hadn't come up yet, but you knew it was going to – you knew you couldn't avoid it  _forever_  – and you weren't  _at all_  shocked that  _Jack_  was the first to mention it.

"You remember when this whole thing started?" Jack questioned after a moment of comfortable silence, looking at you intently, "Before you agreed to this and you said people hurt you in ways no one teaches you how to deal with?" You sighed with a small nod, knowing exactly where this was going. "Will I ever get to know why you said that?"

You were a bit surprised with the way he worded it. He didn't out-right ask you  _why_  you said it; He just asked if he'd ever get to  _know_. And it wasn't until  _that moment_  that you finally faced the reason  _yourself_.

"My parents," you mumbled, looking down at the hands in your lap.

" _Your parents_  hurt you?" he furrowed his eyebrows, "What did they do?"

"They left." Your voice was so small that even  _you_  could barely hear yourself, but somehow, Jack managed to hear every word.

"I thought you said they died in a car accident," he shook his head. Although you never went into  _detail_ , you  _had_  mentioned to him that your parents got into an accident one night three years ago, passing away as a result.

"They didn't  _have_ to go!" you hiccupped out a sob, "Th-They said they were going out for dinner, but they w-were really going out to buy a dress I s-s-saw in a shop one day! We didn't ha-have enough to buy it the day I saw it and they went o-out to get it for my birthday! But they... They hit black ice a-and...ran into a tree on their way h-home... They didn't eve-even make it to the hos-pital!" Your words were a jumbled mess by the time you got everything out of your system and you were crying so hard, you were bound to make yourself sick if you kept it up.

So Jack did the only thing he could at that point – he grabbed you and pulled you onto his lap, holding you close to him as you cried. Your sobs became muffled by his shirt, your arms wrapping around his waist and holding him so tightly, he almost couldn't breathe. But he didn't care; He let you hold onto him as tightly as you needed to. His heart was aching at the sight of you  _still_  being so hurt by your parents' deaths, and it hurt even more  _knowing_  you  _blamed_   _yourself_  for it.

"What happened  _wasn't_  your fault, Y/N," he mumbled into your hair when your sobs became quieter, "It was an  _accident_."

"They wouldn't have gone out if I didn't want that _stupid_ dress!" you whimpered, "They would have stayed home and they would have been okay and they would still  _be here_!"

" _Stop it_ ," Jack said firmly, moving his hands to your cheeks and pushing your head back so he could see your face. "Look at me," he stated while you were staring at the button on his shirt. You swallowed thickly and did as he asked, noting the concerned expression on his face. "Did you  _know_  that accident was going to happen?" he asked simply.

"No, but-" He cut you off.

"Did you  _put_  that black ice there, or that tree?"

"No..." you sniffled.

"Then it was  _not your fault_ , Y/N," he said softly, wiping under your eyes with his thumbs, "If they were going out to get something for one of your brothers, would you have blamed  _them_?"

"N-No," you whispered.

"Why not?"

"Because they wouldn't have known..."

" _And neither did you_ ," he reminded you, "It could have happened whether they were going to get a dress or they were actually going to dinner or they were just going for a drive, and you could not have  _possibly_  known that." One of his hands moved to brush your hair behind your ear, moving further to land on the back of your neck. Jack pulled your head forward to press his lips to your forehead, leaving them there for a few moments before pulling back. "They wouldn't want you to be doing this to yourself, Y/N," he said under his breath, his fingers scratching at your skin lightly, "Blaming yourself  _isn't_  going to bring them back;  _Nothing will_. And I know that hurts –  _believe me,_ _baby, I _know_  it does_... But you just have to keep going and know that wherever they are, they still love you and your brothers more than anything. And you can grieve  _however_  you want to for as  _long_  as you need to, but I will  _not_  let you do it by blaming yourself because you know  _just_  as well as I do that you'll  _never_  move on if you  _continue_  believing it was your fault."

Not knowing what to say, your face returned to his neck. Jack could hear you sniffling softly, but you weren't crying as hard as before, and that was good enough for him. His arms slid around you once again, his thumb rubbing circles on your spine. You would bring your hand up to wipe your cheeks every few minutes and each time, he would quickly press a kiss to your knuckles to make you giggle softly.

"You're right, Jack; My parents would want me to be  _happy_ ," you said softly, "And I'm just not happy  _here_..." You couldn't ignore the defeated expression on his face, prompting you to put your hand on his cheek. "You make me happier than I've been in my  _entire life_ ," you promised him, "And there is no one on this  _earth_  that will  _ever_  make me feel the way you do... But I want to be able to feel that way about myself  _without_  the help of other people... And this is the only way I'm going to find  _me_."

"You make  _no sense_  to me, Y/N," Jack murmured, smiling slightly when you laughed, "But you have to promise me that you won't leave until you let me say goodbye."

" _Never_ ," you grinned, pecking the tip of his nose.

~

**The next morning**

True to your word, you let Jack know that you were leaving at around noon, and he was there about 5 minutes before that time. Your brothers greeted him before returning inside the house, insisting that you two have your last moments in the kingdom alone.

"I... I brought some stuff if you want it..." Jack cleared his throat, putting two bags on the ground at your feet, "I knew you wouldn't take any money, so I thought I'd just straight-up bring you food. I don't know where you're going – and I know you don't either – but it should be enough to last about a week... Or three or four days depending on how hungry you are at any point."

"Thanks," you chuckled softly, "I really appreciate it, Jack." It was silent for a moment before he spoke again.

"I'm gonna miss you," he swallowed. You wasted no time in wrapping your arms around his neck, feeling him let out a breath as his own arms wound around your waist, hugging you tightly.

"I'm gonna miss you too," you assured him, squeezing him before you both let go. He inhaled deeply, nodding his head.

"Well... Until we meet again, princess," Jack grinned, knowing the pet name would make you blush – and  _boy_ , was he right.

"Just don't lose any sleep over it,  _Your Highness_ ," you teasingly curtsied, making him roll his eyes lovingly. You giggled at his reaction, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

You barely smiled as you moved back, allowing you to pick up the bags he brought for you. You put them in the small wagon you were taking with you before picking up the handle and holding it at your side. You couldn't stop yourself from reaching up to kiss his cheek again.

"Bye, Jack," you whispered against his skin before pulling away to look at him.

"Bye, Y/N," he murmured, returning the favor but pressing his lips to yours instead. He felt you smile again just before you pulled away, then watched you walk away to begin your journey to wherever you were going.

~

_inspiration: http://pretendtobepunkrock.tumblr.com/post/138492438675/royal-luke-finding-you-being-terrorized-by_


	375. This Town (Jack Barakat) - Part 5

_requested by youngblood199456 on tumblr_

~

**Eight months later**

You looked around, smiling to yourself, as you walked into the kingdom you called home. It had only been a few months since you left to go find yourself – and maybe you were  _still_ doing that – but it felt  _so good_  to  _finally_ be home.

Don't get me wrong – you  _enjoyed_ travelling and being independent, but you enjoyed your home much  _more_. Nothing would  _ever_ beat the place you grew up, and you came to realize that you'd always find your way back home.

You breathed in the fresh air as you stepped outside your house, just dropping your things off before you went to the castle. Your brothers were at work when you got back, so you expected them to freak out when they returned home and found your stuff there – though, you knew they knew where you'd be if they wanted to see you  _right away_.

You made your way down the bridge that led to the castle, honestly a little nervous. Nothing had changed much in the months you were gone, but you couldn't help but wonder if Jack had moved on from you or wouldn't want to see you or  _whatever_... But I guess you'd never know if you didn't  _try_.

"Hi, Michael," you smiled as you approached the knight at the front gate talking with a guard, making him look up at the sound of your voice.

"Miss Y/N!" his eyes widened in surprise with a smile on his face, "You've returned! When did you arrive home? Prince Jack didn't say you were coming back!"

"He doesn't know," you informed the guard, "Which is  _why_ I need your help sneaking inside the castle so he doesn't see me."

"You want  _me_ to sneak you inside the castle?" he cocked an eyebrow, making you giggle softly.

"His parents already know I'm here; I called them yesterday before I started making the trip back."

"How did you manage to call his parents without  _him_ finding out?"

"Now, if I say  _that_ , word might get back to him and I won't be able to do it  _again_ ," you smirked, "You in or not?"

"Sure," he shrugged with a chuckle, "He should still be at his fencing lessons, but I'll sneak you in through a side door just to be safe."

"You're  _the man_ , Michael," you smiled, making him laugh again.

~

"Your Majesties," Michael said after knocking on the throne room door, "You have a visitor."

"Can't it wait, Michael?" the Queen asked, "We're already waiting for someone."

"They're  _very_ adamant about speaking to you now, Your Highness."

"Very well," the King sighed, nodding his head, "Send them in." The knight motioned for you to enter the doorway, and you did so with a wide grin on your face.

"You know, I thought you guys would be a  _little_ happier to see me," you told them, making them perk up.

" _Sweetheart_!" the Queen smiled brightly, "It's so good to  _see you_  again!"

"Hello, Your Majesties," you beamed as well while she pulled you into a tight hug, "It's good to be  _home_."

"How was your trip?" the King wondered, hugging you as well, "Do you feel rejuvinated after being away for so long?"

"I feel a lot better – thank you for asking. I've had a lot of time to clear my head, and I think I've decided that being where my parents raised me is what's best for me."

"Oh, that's so good to  _hear_!" the Queen grinned again.

"So," you perked up, "How are things looking with Jack? He doesn't suspect anything, right?"

"If he  _does_ , he hasn't said anything to  _us_ ," the King informed you with a lighthearted laugh, "Michael is ready to go get him when you are. We've decided to have him brought here, and we'll give you two the room to yourselves. When you're done, dinner will be ready in the dining room for us."

"Thank you, Your Majesties," you smiled softly, "It really means a lot that you're helping me surprise Jack."

"Well, we know how much he cares about you, dear," the Queen said, "And he misses you more and more each day, so it's nice to know how happy he'll be to see you again."

~

"Mom?! Dad?!" you heard Jack's voice call out, making your heart skip a beat.

10 minutes had passed by this point and you'd been waiting in the throne room for Jack to finish with his fencing lessons for the day before you could see him. The wait seemed to last an  _eternity_ , but when you finally heard his voice again, you thought you  _might_ actually throw up. You hadn't heard his voice in what seemed like  _ages_ – even though you talked on the phone almost  _every day_  while you were gone – but to  _finally_ be able to hear it  _in person_  again made you want to just run to him  _right now_.

But you  _didn't_ ; You held back and waited until he was in the room.

Jack entered the dimly-lit throne room, his eyes landing on the thrones at the front of the room. He furrowed his eyebrows as he stopped for a moment, finding a figure that  _certainly_ wasn't his mother sitting in her throne.

"What are you doing in here?" Jack asked, his voice firm, "You're not  _allowed_ to sit on my mother's throne."

" _Please, Jack_ ," the familiar voice made his heart stop, "You think I'd sit on the  _Queen's_ throne without getting  _permission_ first?"

Jack's hand quickly rushed to the light switch on the wall next to him, his eyes darting back to where you were perched on the Queen's throne. You could visibly tell his breathing hitched as he was rendered speechless, trying to convince himself that he was  _really_ seeing you in front of him.

"Hi, Jack," you bit your lip shyly as you stood up, "I've missed you."

And it was as if  _that_ was what he needed to find his voice again.

" _Baby_!" Jack exclaimed, running across the room to where you were.

You only took a couple steps – just until you were at the edge of the stairs – before your arms were around his neck and his were around your waist, bringing you into him. You decided to pick your legs up and wrap them around his own waist, causing him to hold you  _even tighter_.

"What are you  _doing_ here?" he mumbled into the skin of your neck, pressing kisses to it over and over again, "When did you  _get_ here?"

"I missed you," you repeated softly, squeezing him, "I got back earlier this afternoon."

"Why didn't you  _tell me_?" he wondered. Your legs unwound themselves from his waist to return to the floor, but neither of you moved away from each other.

"I wanted to surprise you," you barely smiled, "You have no idea how  _hard_ it was either; I've known I was coming back for a couple weeks now and I had to  _force myself_  not to tell you every time you called.

"I've missed you  _so much_ , baby," Jack breathed, squeezing you as well, " _God_ , I've missed you so much."

"Hmm," you hummed, grinning a little bigger that time, "Didn't find anyone else to fill the void?"

" _Course not_ ," he couldn't help but laugh, "Love you too much to just  _replace you_."

Your heart skipped a beat at the confession, but you  _certainly_ weren't about to stand there and  _complain_. You shook your shoulder gently to get Jack to look at you, but he didn't even get the chance before your lips were on his. You felt him smile into your mouth as he kissed you back  _just_ as desperately.

"I've missed you," he mumbled against your lips, feeling you smile as well.

"Miss you  _more_ ," you whispered, pulling away to rest your foreheads together, "And Jack?" He simply hummed in response, signalling you to go on. "I love you too," you told him, earning yourself the biggest grin you'd ever seen, squealing when he tightened his hold on your waist and lifted you off of the ground to spin you around.


	376. Things Never Sent (Ashton Irwin)

You peeked around the corner, finding only one boy standing at his locker. You took a deep breath – you'd been trying to work up the courage to ask Ashton Irwin to the school dance that was coming up, but you always chickened out at the last minute.

But not  _this time_.

This time, you were  _determined_  not to back down.

Before you realized what you were doing, your legs were taking you down the hallway. There was a moment where you almost walked past him, but you stopped yourself, stopping once you were beside him.

"A-Ashton..." you stuttered, making the brunette jump.

Ashton was the school's nerd, and no one ever really approached him unless it was to make fun of him. And when he turned his head and saw you, his eyes widened slightly.

You were part of the popular crowd – you had been ever since middle school – so he was understandably shocked to see you standing there. You weren't one of the people who ever made fun of him, but you weren't someone who ever really initiated  _conversation_  either.

"Will... Will you go to the dance with me...?" you finally asked. Ashton looked at you quizzically for a moment, which obviously worried you.

Maybe he already had a date or maybe he was surprised that a  _popular girl_  was asking  _him_  or maybe he just  _didn't like you_. But the question that left his mouth in response to yours only confused you even more.

"Di-Didn't you  _already_  ask me?" he wondered.

And for a brief second, you  _actually_  thought you'd already asked him; You thought you were so nervous that you actually  _blocked out_  the first time it happened. But you  _knew_  you didn't.

You'd been so scared to ask him ever since the announcement the previous Friday that tickets were almost sold out and you  _still_  hadn't asked Ashton to go with you yet. You'd been making yourself anxious all weekend, trying to come up with a way to ask him in which he  _hopefully_  wouldn't reject you, so you knew for a  _fact_  you hadn't  _accidentally_  mentioned it at any point.

"No..." you finally told him, "I... I've been trying to make myself ask you for a couple weeks now, but I hadn't actually  _done it_  yet..." He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, prompting you to continue. "W-Why did you think I  _did_?" you asked.

"I found this in my locker the other day..." he trailed off, reaching into his backpack where he'd been keeping a folded up piece of paper. He handed it to you, allowing you to unfold it and read it for yourself.

The note – written by someone  _claiming_  to be you – asked Ashton to meet you in the middle of the dance floor at 7:30 on the night of the dance in typical teen movie fashion – but  _you_  had never been the one to write it  _or_  slip it into his locker at any point in the last week.

"I didn't write this..." you murmured.

"Y-You  _didn't_?" he whispered, swallowing thickly.

As your eyes remained trained on the words in front of you, Ashton watched your eyes widen in realization. His confusion only heightened when you suddenly gripped the piece of paper tightly and spun around, stomping away from him.

Because what Ashton didn't know was that you  _recognized_  the handwriting.

He simply put the rest of his things away and hastily walked in the direction you'd gone – towards the cafeteria.

It was peak time for lunch – everyone had gone through the line and was now at a table eating with their friends. All of your classmates watched you walk through the cafeteria, noticing the pissed off look on your face. They looked between each other for a moment before turning their attention back to you, wanting to see what it was about.

You finally made it to your destination – the table in the back of the cafeteria where all the popular people sat.

"Hey, Y/N!" one of the boys chirped when he noticed you. His smile quickly faded when he saw your expression though, having no idea why you looked  _so_  upset.

You didn't acknowledge any other person sitting at the table – only the one you were after.

"What the hell is  _this_?" you asked, stopping in front of Louise and putting the paper down on the table. She looked down, briefly skimming the words before laughing lightly.

"You asked  _Ashton Irwin_  to the dance?" she scoffed.

" _Yeah_ , I  _did_ ," you nodded, surprising the rest of the people at the table, "But I  _didn't_  ask him with  _that_."

"Why are you coming at  _me_  with it?" she asked, "Shouldn't you be finding the person  _pretending_  to be you?"

" _I did_ ," you growled, narrowing your eyes at her, "I'm not fucking  _stupid_ , Louise; I know what your  _goddamn_  handwriting looks like." Your friends' eyes widened – you rarely ever swore, but when you did, it was when you were  _really_  pissed.

She paused for a moment, but continued on acting like she didn't do anything wrong.

"I have  _no idea_  what you're talking about, Y/N," she shook her head. You'd finally had enough of the bullshit she was giving you, putting your hands on the tabletop and leaning toward her.

"Did you think I was  _kidding_  when I said I was thinking about asking Ashton to the dance?" you said lowly, but loudly enough so that everyone at the table heard you, "Did you take me being too scared to ask him as an opportunity to  _humiliate_  him? You know, a week before the dance – time's running out to ask someone to be your date. You thought I'd chicken out and avoid going  _altogether_ , giving you the perfect chance to humiliate him in front of  _everybody_. He's been the target of your sick little games since the  _moment_  he started going here. He never goes to school events, so you figured this would be the  _best_  time to make him look stupid in front of the  _whole school_. But you didn't think I'd  _actually_  ask him, did you? You didn't think I'd finally catch him in the hall and ask him before I backed out again. You didn't think he'd find out about it until the moment he was waiting for me to show up in front of everybody."

"It was gonna be  _hilarious_  too!" she spat, indirectly fessing up, "You're too much of a  _pussy_  and he's too  _stupid_  to realize that someone like  _us_  would never actually want to be seen with  _him_!"

" _I'm_  not a pussy and  _Ashton's_  not stupid!" you replied loudly, " _You're_  just a  _bitch_!" You heard a few people snort softly, desperately trying to hide the fact that they were laughing, while everyone else was just  _shocked_.

Despite the fact that you were part of the popular crowd, you weren't particularly keen on  _always_  having attention on you. And people soon came to realize that you were  _incredibly_  non-confrontational. You did everything you could to  _avoid_  arguments and  _never_  got into any business that didn't  _directly_  involve you.

So when they heard you finally stand up for yourself – and against  _Louise_ , no less – they were understandably surprised.

But  _no one_  was more surprised than the boy you were defending.

Ashton had been standing in the back doorway – the door closest to the table you usually sat at – since the moment you reached Louise. He never expected someone like  _you_  to be interested in someone like  _him_ , but hearing those words coming out of your mouth made his heart flutter.

He'd never really talked to you before – only about school when you were paired together for projects in various classes you shared together – but he never would have expected you to  _like him_  – and  _especially_  not enough to stand up to the  _one_  person in school  _everyone_  was afraid of getting on their bad side.

Ashton quickly scurried over to you – despite not wanting to be the center of attention either, he knew you were  _less than_  one wrong move away from doing something that could very well get you  _expelled_ , so he figured it was best to just remove you from the situation  _entirely_.

His hand landed on your lower back and your head snapped over to find him standing there. Your body instantly relaxed as Ashton leaned in and quietly begged you to just step away. You simply looked at him, but he somehow knew you were agreeing, so he – with his hand still on your back – began leading you out of the cafeteria.

You walked with him for a moment, only to stop yourself when Louise muttered something under her breath. You normally let her passive-aggressive comments go, but something about her saying that she ' _couldn't believe you'd go for someone as worthless as_ ** _Ashton_** ' made you snap.

You spun around,  _honestly_  ready to start hitting her, but Ashton was too quick, grabbing your waist and forcing you back out into the hallway. You fought back for a few seconds, telling him she deserved it and she's had it coming and you didn't care how long you got suspended for it, but he refused to listen.

He took you down the hallway, to a part of the school that was basically a ghost town at lunch time, until he had you backed into a corner. His hands were on your hips so you couldn't break free and run back to the cafeteria, keeping you firmly up against the wall.

"Not worth it," Ashton stated simply, shaking his head. All you did was scoff.

"I actually think it'd be  _quite_  worth it, so if you could just-" You tried to free yourself again but to no avail – if anything, it only made Ashton step  _closer_  to you. You grumbled quietly, making him chuckle under his breath.

" _She's not worth it_ ," he repeated sternly.

" _But she_ -" you exclaimed before you were cut off again.

"I  _know_  what she did," he nodded, "I heard the whole thing." You suddenly felt your heart start racing, swallowing thickly.

"You  _heard_  all that?" you whispered.

"I  _did_ ," he affirmed, "And while I appreciate the readiness to just beat the shit out of anybody that tries to make me look like an idiot, I would much rather you  _not_  get expelled because, I'm gonna be honest, I've met your parents and they don't exactly seem like the kind of people that would react to you being kicked out of school with still  _allowing you_  access to the outside world. And I'd  _really_  like to keep seeing you every day."

You were silent for a moment – he was right: your parents would ground you into the next  _century_  if you got expelled because of a fight.

"We good now?" he grinned, noticing the look on your face. You nodded slowly, causing him to release you. You found yourself frowning when his hands left your hips, kind of liking the way it felt when they held you.

You and Ashton stood in silence again, neither of you really too sure what to say. He wanted to ask you why you got so upset over Louise's attempt to humiliate him, but it was like he couldn't make himself. He didn't know why, but it seemed like all his confidence melted away the moment he realized you two were alone and you might  _actually_  like him back.

"You know..." Ashton cleared his throat nervously, "I never actually gave you an answer earlier..." You furrowed your eyebrows, prompting him to go on. "I would, you know," he told you, "I would love nothing more than to go to the dance with you."

" _You would_?" you whispered – you had gone into this  _completely_  thinking he'd reject you, so you were understandably surprised to hear he was  _accepting_.

" _Of course_  I would," he gave you a confused laugh, "Why  _wouldn't_  I?"

"Because... Well... Louise tried to... And then  _I_  almost... And  _everyone else_  heard..." you trailed off, unable to form an actual argument.

"But she  _didn't_ ," he shook his head, "And  _you_  didn't, and who  _cares_  what everyone else thinks?"

"I just... I thought you wouldn't... I didn't think you'd want to..."

"Come on, Y/N-" The sound of Ashton saying your name made your heart skip a beat. "-who  _wouldn't_  want to go to a dance with you?"

" _You_..." you murmured, "...when I imagined this happening  _much_  differently in my head." Ashton couldn't help but let out a giggle, making your heart skip again knowing  _you_  caused it.

"Well, I would  _love_  to go with you," he told you, "Or we could skip it altogether and just do something else. Who  _knows_  what Louise is planning  _now_?" He poked your stomach to make you giggle breathlessly.

You wrapped your fingers around his own so he would stop, but you didn't let go of him – you just held his hands up against your body, wanting to take in how soft and warm they were for as long as he would let you.

"You mean like a date?" you asked him.

"Yeah," he nodded, "Like a date."

"Yeah..." you trailed off in a whisper, "I would like that." Ashton smiled brightly, glancing at the clock down the hall and realizing lunch was almost over.

"You hungry?" he asked you, "I'll buy you an ice cream."

"You don't have to-" you started before he cut you off once again.

" _No time_  for arguing!" he announced, letting go of one of your hands and pulling you back toward the cafeteria, "Only time for  _ice cream_!" You found yourself smiling slightly at his antics – hyper-aware of the fact that his hand had released yours just enough to tangle his fingers with yours.

He pulled you up to walk beside him, your face shyly hidden in his upper arm as you reentered the cafeteria. You were completely aware of all the eyes on you as you stood in line for ice cream, but with the way Ashton's thumb was rubbing the back of your hand, it was hard to focus on anything other than him.

You never thought you had a chance with the shy boy from your mutual classes, but standing with him now, it was hard to imagine being anywhere  _but_ there. Guys would ask you out all the time – being one of the most popular girls in school, obviously – but none of them were ever the one you actually wanted to  _be with_. Those guys just cared about your status in the school – they didn't care about  _you_.

But  _Ashton_...

Ashton would lean over in class if you looked even  _a little_  sad and ask if you were okay. When you asked him for help on the work your teachers had given, he would make sure you knew how to do it  _perfectly_  before he would even  _think_  about starting on his  _own_. He wasn't worried about your social status – he was obviously startled whenever you would talk to him, but that was more being nervous around a girl he liked than anything else – and he just cared about  _you_  and how you were  _feeling_  and if there was anything he could do to  _help you_  in any way.

And you were  _grateful_  to have someone like that in your life.

You were brought out of your daydream when you heard Ashton thank the woman who made your ice cream. He held yours out to you before taking his own so he could still hold your hand, and you both went to a table on the complete opposite side of the cafeteria where your ' _friends_ ' were. They were still staring at you though – well, Louise was more  _glaring_  than anything else – but you barely noticed.

You and Ashton were sitting across from each other and he was telling you random jokes – he could tell you were uncomfortable with all the attention on you, so he hoped making you laugh would help you forget about it. And it did, because whenever he would deliver the punch line, he gave you a cheesy grin, and that was truthfully funnier to you than the actual jokes themselves. Every time you laughed, he smiled even bigger than the previous time, happy he could make you laugh so effortlessly.

When the bell that signaled lunch was over rang, you and Ashton got up, threw your trash away, and he started walking you back to your class. His hand found yours the moment he was beside you again, making you smile to yourself.

As you approached the classroom, you felt him squeeze your hand.

"I'll see you next period," he told you.

You smiled slightly and nodded, your heart skipping a beat when he leaned down and kissed your cheek. The corner of his mouth curled into a smile when he saw your blush, but he didn't comment on it – he simply released your hand and went to his own class.

And if it was hard to pay attention in History  _before_ , it was a hundred times  _harder_  with the feeling of Ashton's lips lingering on your skin.

 


	377. Rookie of the Year (Ryan Follese)

A three-way race for the Sprint Cup wasn't  _exactly_  the situation you thought you'd find yourself in when you became a NASCAR driver.

You were in it for the  _thrill_ , mostly – you'd grown up watching NASCAR with your dad, going to the Daytona 500 every year with him, your uncles, and your cousins. People would watch you in the crowds as your 8-year-old self would cheer on Danica Patrick, shouting in detest at anyone who got in her way.

You always insisted you'd be  _just like her_  someday – a racing legend who gave the men a run for their money. People would always attribute it to your wild imagination, none of them ever  _actually_  expecting you to make it to the big leagues.

But you  _did_.

And those years of hard work, practice, and sheer determination landed you a spot in the 2017 Daytona 500.

> _"Good morning, everybody!" one man said into a microphone as he looked into a camera, "It is a beautiful day here in Daytona Beach – perfect weather for the Daytona 500! I'm Jeff McMann-"_
> 
> _"-and I'm Derek Simmons," the man sitting beside him went on, "Yes, Jeff; The weather is amazing for today's race – the_ **_second round_ ** _, in fact."_
> 
> _"Exactly, Derek! I don't think anyone in the country_ ** _hasn't_**   _heard about this, but we'll give you a run-down just in case," Jeff said, "The fight for the Sprint Cup ended in a_ ** _tie_** _between long-time NASCAR racers David Garrison and Ryan Follese, and rookie Y/N Y/L/N."_
> 
> _"The three have been at the top of the charts all season – coming into one of the top three spots in every single race they've competed in to get them to Daytona Beach."_
> 
> _"Until now, of course," Jeff went on as Derek nodded, "The original race – as everyone knows – was held two weeks ago where it ended in a_ **_three-way tie_ ** _for first place for the first time_ **_ever_ ** _. It was decided that there would be a tie-breaker race and here we all are!"_
> 
> _"I'm personally_ **_incredibly_ ** _excited for this one, Jeff," Derek said, "Y/N Y/L/N – who was arguably a racer no one knew before – won her first qualifying race by almost an_ **_entire lap_ ** _and I honestly had_ **_no idea_ ** _who she was before I heard she made it all the way to Daytona."_
> 
> _"Not a lot of people did," the other man shook his head, "She placed first in_ **_every single race_ ** _she's been in up to this point – a rank not many other racers hold."_

You never really saw yourself as someone to look up to, but it seemed like every single day, you had fathers coming up to you before or after practices with their young daughters, asking if they could take their pictures with you. You, of course, never turned a single one down, kneeling down next to them and smiling happily, signing whatever it is they asked you to.

One father once told you that his 11-year-old daughter had never been particularly excited about going to the speedway – she couldn't care  _less_  about racing, he said – but he noticed a change in her the moment she heard about you.

She started keeping up with races you'd be in on television – though she'd refused to admit it for the longest time – but the Daytona 500 qualifying race was the one that  _really_  sparked her interest. Danica Patrick had retired long before you started racing, so she'd never seen a woman in the competition fight as hard as you did.

And from that point on, she was set on becoming a racer  _just like you_.

That was probably your  _favorite_  story – you were now to little girls what Danica Patrick was to you:  _an inspiration_.

The three-way race was just like any other – 500 laps with gas refills, tire changes, and regroups with your crew chief. But the  _real_  action didn't start until the last lap.

You were  _well ahead_  of the other two racers – Ryan Follese and David Garrison – and you were 100 feet from securing your  _very first_  Sprint Cup win.

It wasn't until you heard a loud crashing sound behind you that you glanced over at the screen on the tower in the middle of the grass.

The other two racers had just gone it into the final turn when David – so obsessed with not coming in behind Ryan  _yet again_  – rammed the front of his car into Ryan's bumper, sending the car rolling again and again on the grass near the finish line.

Everyone in the stands was in shock –  _did David_ ** _purposely_** _run into Ryan or was it just an accident?_

Either way, you immediately slammed your foot down on your brake pedal, causing your car to come to a screeching halt. David flew past you, and you could hear him shouting victoriously. The people in the stands weren't celebrating at all – not even  _his_  fans – they were all just watching you.

But you didn't notice.

You put your car in park without hesitation and then you were jumping out of the window. You took off your helmet, throwing it to the side and running over to Ryan's window. There was a lot of smoke coming out from under the hood of his car and it was in that moment that you knew you had to get him out.

By this point, Ryan had taken his helmet off – which probably wasn't the  _smartest_  thing to do in his situation, but you figured you'd let his  _crew chief_  lecture him about that later – and was working on his safety harnesses. He looked over when he heard someone running up to the car, narrowing his eyes when he realized it was you.

"I don't  _need_  any help,  _Y/L/N_ ," he said, struggling to get the last harness off.

Ryan – for  _whatever_  reason – never seemed to like you, always being either very short with you or just  _not_  talking to you altogether. You didn't know  _what_  you did – you'd barely even spoken to him outside of race-related events – but you weren't going to let that stop you from helping him. And  _especially_  not when you saw what was happening under the hood.

"Be stubborn  _some other time_ , Ryan; Your car is  _literally_  on fire!" you exclaimed, catapulting your upper body into the car, reaching across his stomach, and unbuckling his seat belt.

You then came back out, grabbed his arm, and helped him out the window. You slipped on the grass as he stumbled out when you saw the  _last_  thing you wanted to: the flames start to get  _bigger_. Ryan immediately reached for your hand, pulling you to your feet, and took you away from the car.

It seemed like the moment you reached where grass met asphalt, the flames took over Ryan's racecar. The explosion made you yelp in surprise, the ground shaking so much to the point you fell again. You were surprised to feel Ryan lay himself on your back, his arms covering your head so no debris hit you. You could feel your heart beating in your ears, but the cheers from the crowd were even  _louder_  than that.

After the initial explosion, Ryan rolled off of you and you both turned to lie on your backs. Your chest visibly rose and fell as you breathed heavily, just happy you got him out of the car in time.

Medics rushed over to check on the two of you and after determining you were alright, they insisted that you get back in your car and take second place. You were obviously about to protest, wanting to make sure Ryan was okay first, but the brunette interrupted you before you could get a word out.

"Be stubborn some other time, Y/N," he shook his head, "Go cross the finish line." You shot him a glare but he only smiled slightly, turning his attention back to the medics' questions.

You felt your heart flutter when he smiled at you, making you swallow thickly as you returned to your car. You climbed in the window and started it back up, taking your car over the finish line.

> _"In all my years of doing this, I don't think I've_ **_ever_ ** _seen the kind of sportsmanship we've seen out there today, Derek," Jeff announced._
> 
> _"Right, you are, Jeff," he added on, "Y/N Y/L/N, the rookie_ ** _no one_** _expected to win, was only_ ** _half a second_** _away from taking home the Sprint Cup when she stopped_ ** _just_** _before crossing the finish line to help a competitor out of a burning car. If she doesn't win Rookie of the Year, I don't know_ ** _what_**   _I'll do!"_
> 
> _"Now I don't know about you, Derek, but even though she's finishing second, Y/L/N_ **_won_ ** _this race in my book."_

After Ryan received the green light on continuing the day, you all were given a 15-minute break before David would officially be given the Sprint Cup. You had wandered off to Ryan's pit, wanting to check on him.

The moment Ryan saw bright blue out of the corner of his eye, he knew you were coming over. He looked over his shoulder – unable to keep himself from grinning.

"I'm  _fine_ , Y/N," he assured you as you stopped beside him.

"What do you mean?" you scoffed.

"You came over here to make sure I'm alright," he stated matter-of-factly, "And I  _am_. The medics said I'm  _completely_  fine."

"Do you think I was  _worried about you_? No. Of course not. I was just coming over here to... Uh... Well, I wanted to see if..." Ryan cocked an eyebrow, a knowing smirk on his face, making you huff sharply. " _Fine_!" you squeaked, "I was worried!  _There_! I said it! Are you happy?!"

"Well, I'm fine," he repeated, "And thank you for doing what you did. I probably wouldn't have gotten  _out_  in time if it weren't for you." Ryan leaned in and pressed a kiss to your cheek, making you swallow thickly as your stomach erupted with butterflies.

But before you could say anything else, someone came up behind you.

"Follese, Y/L/N," David sauntered toward you with a large smirk. The two of you simply stared at him with raised eyebrows, not saying anything. "Now, now – it's okay to be speechless," he sighed dramatically, "It's understandable when a  _Sprint Cup winner_  is in your presence."

"You know,  _Garrison_ ," you laughed bitterly, "You may have crossed the finish line first, but I  _promise_  you, that's  _not_  what everyone's talking about today."

"And what makes you think that,  _Rookie_?"

"Is winning  _so_  important to you that you would  _intentionally_  nearly  _kill someone_ just to win a stupid  _trophy_?"

"Is the little rookie  _upset_  because she didn't win?" David pouted teasingly. He lifted his hand to ruffle your hair and that was when your anger got the best of you.

You instantly balled up your fist and punched him square in the nose as hard as you could. You felt the bone crack under your knuckles and heard people around you gasp, but no one but Ryan did anything.

He grabbed your waist and pulled you away from the other racer as he stumbled backwards, holding his nose in pain. Derek shouted various profanities at you as the same medics who checked on Ryan sprinted over.

"What's going on here?" one of them asked.

"Karma's a  _bitch_ ," you grumbled, feeling Ryan's stomach shake against your back as he tried to keep himself from laughing. The people around you – and those in the stands who could see Ryan's pit – were less careful, however, laughing very vocally.

Ryan led you away from David, taking you to an open area where there weren't many people around.

"You know you're going to get suspended for that, right?" he mentioned, letting go of you and turning to face you.

You simply shrugged, "I live a life without regrets."

"That  _was_  pretty bad ass," he admitted, finally smiling. He took your hand in his, inspecting it to see if there was any damage.

Your knuckles were bruised and felt a little sore, but you could still move your fingers just fine. Either way though, Ryan brought your hand to his lips, pressing a kiss to your skin.

"What are you doing?" you asked, unable to suppress the confused laugh that came out of your mouth along with the question.

"I've heard kissing something makes it better," he said nonchalantly.

" _Really_?" you grinned.

"Yeah," he sighed, "And unfortunately, nothing really got hurt on  _me_ , so you don't have to return the favor."

"That  _does_  sound unfortunate," you nodded.

"Although, I  _did_  accidentally bite my lip as my car was rolling," he mentioned, "But I'm sure you wouldn't want to-"

You cut him off by taking your hand out of his, placing both on his cheeks, and pulling his face to yours. You felt him smile, his hands landing on your hips and continuing to slide around your lower back, bringing your body to his.

"Better?" you asked when you pulled away for air, but the two of you were still holding each other.

"I mean... I bit down  _pretty hard_ ," he shrugged. You only grinned, leaning in and kissing him again.

_~_

_inspiration: cars. u know. the disney movie. lmao_


	378. Old Time's Sake (Calum Hood) - Part 1

Every single moment you were awake, you were thinking about how bad of a  _person_  you were. There was never a time when you didn't feel physically ill because of the pain you put your best friend Calum through by pretending to be someone else. Though, in your defense, you always thought you'd just  _tell_  him it was you one day; you never expected him to call  ** _Catfish_**.

The episode aired four months after the crew's visit and you were no doubt  _national scum_  at that point. Calum – understandably – hadn't talked to you  _at all_  after they left.

In fact, none of his  _friends_  were speaking to you either. You thought at least  _one of them_  would understand – and maybe they  _did_ , but they still weren't  _acknowledging_   _you_  anymore.

There were no  _words_  to describe how horrible you felt. Calum was your best friend – the  _one_  person you felt like you could go to with  _any_ problem you had and know that he wouldn't see you any differently. Of course, that obviously  _changed_  after he discovered you'd been lying to him.

But that wasn't to say it wasn't  _completely_ over.

It was a normal evening: you'd just gotten home from work and were trying to relax – though relaxing was a little more  _difficult_  these days with everything that was on your conscience – when you were suddenly startled by loud knocking on your apartment door. You furrowed your eyebrows a bit; All of your friends hated you and your parents  _always_  called when they were coming to visit, so you had no idea who it could be.

You cautiously approached the door, trying to look out the peephole but letting out a frustrated sigh when whoever was there was covering it so you couldn't see them. You unlocked your deadbolt as well as the lock on the doorknob, surprised by who you saw standing in front of you.

"C- _Calum_..." you whispered in almost exactly the same fashion he had a few months ago when you finally came clean about the secret you'd been keeping from him, "W-What are  _you_  doing here...?"

"You and I both know the answers you gave Nev and Max were  _bullshit_ , Y/N," he stated, "And I think you owe it to me to tell me the  _truth_."

"Th-They  _weren't_  bullshit," you insisted, moving out of the way so he could come inside.

"Yes, they  _were_ , Y/N!" he exclaimed, "And if I don't get the answers I  _know_  you're keeping from me, you can consider this friendship  _over_." Your heart skipped a beat.

You never wanted you and Calum to  _stop_ being friends – you knew it was a  _major_ possibility when you started pretending to be someone else, but hearing him actually  _say it_  made you feel sick to your stomach. You couldn't – and didn't  _want to_  – imagine your life without Calum in it.

But you fucked up – you  _royally_  fucked up – and you were sure he'd never  _forgive you_  for it.

"It's not  _already_  over?" you asked so quietly, he barely heard it.

"Y/N," he sighed as you both sat down on your couch – you at one end and him on the other, "Our eight years together isn't going to just  _go away_. But if you don't tell me the truth... I can't keep being friends with someone I don't know if I can  _trust_  anymore." You looked down at your hands, doing everything you could to keep yourself from crying.

"You started talking to that Sierra girl you met at the mall," you murmured while he listened intently, "And you wouldn't  _stop_  talking about her and I... I got  _jealous_... So I made that Facebook for some girl named McKenna to make you forget about her. But then you started talking about  _McKenna_  all the time... But I was a little more okay with it because I knew it was  _me_... But when you started asking her to meet up with you, I-I  _panicked_... I couldn't tell you it was me because you'd  _hate_  me, but I didn't want you to start seeing other girls again because it  _hurt_  too much. I  _never_  expected you to get so caught up in this girl that you'd call  ** _Catfish_**  about her... I swear I  _never_  wanted you to get hurt, Cal, I was just... I was just being  _selfish_. And I'm  _really_  sorry I did that to you." Calum was silent for a moment before asking the only thing he could make sense of.

"Why didn't you just  _tell me_  how you were feeling instead of making that profile?"

You let out a breathy chuckle, "When I figure out for  _myself_ , I'll let you know."

"You should have  _told me_ , Y/N," he mumbled.

"I  _know_ ," your voice cracked as your eyes got watery, "But I knew it would have made things  _weird_  and I didn't want to lose you over something as stupid as my  _feelings_... But I lost you  _anyway_."

"Y/N-"

"But that's okay, I guess," you shrugged, wiping your face with the back of your hand, "Your type is smart girls and funny girls and girls who like the same music as you and girls who can cook-"

"Y/N," Calum said your name again, but you just kept talking.

"-and you like girls who look like models and girls who look as beautiful waking up as they do when they're dressed for a date and I know I'll never be any of  _those_  things. But that's okay, because as long as you're happy and you don't hate me, I'll be-"

" _Y/N_!" he finally said loudly, making you look over.

And as if your night couldn't get any  _more_  confusing, Calum's lips were suddenly on yours.

You let out a surprised breath, having not even realized that he'd been scooting closer to you during your rant. You didn't really understand what was going on, but you knew that Calum was kissing you and you knew it took your breath away and you knew it was everything you ever  _imagined_  it being and you knew you were  _in love with your best friend_.

You felt Calum smile when you finally got over the shock and started kissing him back, his hand sliding up your arm and coming to a stop on your cheek. His thumb ran along your cheekbone, making you sigh again – although no amount of soothing gestures was going to slow down your racing heart.

You finally had to pull away to breathe, your chest visibly rising and falling as you did. You watched Calum's eyes flutter open and he grinned slightly at you while he caught his breath as well.

"- _completely okay with it_ ," you whispered, finishing your sentence. Calum chuckled softly, resting his forehead on yours.

"I'm not  _happy_  about what you did," he told you, "But I guess I  _get it_. I don't think I would have done the same thing, but I wouldn't have told you how I feel either. But I  _do_  love you, Y/N, and I forgive you."

" _You do_?" you choked, your eyes getting watery again.

"I  _do_ ," he murmured, bringing his other hand up to wipe your tears, "I love you."

"I love you, Cal," you swallowed, breathing a small sigh of relief at knowing he didn't hate you – and your heart  _soaring_  at knowing he felt the same.

 


	379. Old Time's Sake (Calum Hood) - Part 2

**Two weeks later**

Only two weeks after Calum had forgiven you, he insisted that you go to the studio with him. You always tagged along to hear what the band had been working on, but that obviously changed after  _Catfish_. His bandmates made it  _painfully_  clear to you that they wanted  _nothing_  to do with you after Calum told them McKenna was  _you_  – not that you  _blamed them_ , of course.

But somehow, Calum convinced you to go to the studio.

You were doing well – you  _actually_  thought you could face the boys again – but once you were walking down the hallway toward the room, you were panicking.

"I don't wanna do this anymore," you shook your head quickly. You tried to walk back in the direction you'd come from, but Calum wouldn't let you.

"Y/N, come on," he said, "Don't-"

" _No, Cal, please_..." you choked out as you tried to pull your hand out of his, tears already streaming down your cheeks, " _Please_  don't make me... They  _hate me_ , Cal...  _Please_..."

"Okay, princess," he said softly, immediately taking your face in his hands and wiping your tears with his thumbs, "We don't have to. Just  _please_  stop crying; You  _know_  I hate it when you cry. Now come on, let me see that beautiful smile." He prodded at your sides, making you start giggling through your tears and making him smile in return. "See?" he murmured, pressing his lips to your forehead, "There's that smile I fell in love with." You blushed lightly as he wrapped his arms around you – you were sure you were  _always_  going to blush when he mentioned being in love with you.

Calum was starting to leave – you were  _almost_  in the clear – when you heard a voice behind you.

"Hey, Cal!" Ashton chirped, "Where are you going?"

By this point, you had moved to hide behind Calum, his thumb rubbing the back of your hand as your other gripped the back of his shirt tightly.

"Y/N's not feeling too well, so I was just gonna take her back home," Calum responded seamlessly. Unfortunately, Ashton could still tell he was lying.

"Y/N," he said firmly, making you start tearing up again, not wanting him to yell at you.

He repeated your name and Calum tugged on you slightly, urging you to at least peek out from behind him to see what he wanted. You reluctantly did so, surprised to see Ashton didn't even look mad.

Ashton realized you were close to crying and instantly knew why.

You and the other boys hadn't spoken a single word to each other since the  _Catfish_  crew left and it was clear to him that you were  _terrified_  they all still hated you. So when he put it all together, he simply smiled slightly.

"You know, Y/N, there's a couch in the studio if you need to lie down," Ashton told you, "We really want opinions from people who  _don't_  know what the songs are supposed to sound like yet."

You were understandably shocked at the gesture, unable to see how he could be so nice to you after everything you put Calum through. But when you looked up at Calum, he grinned softly and squeezed your hand, silently promising you that everything was going to be okay.

So you finally agreed to go in.

Your heart was still pounding as you got closer to the room – Luke, Michael, and John's voices getting louder and louder with every step you took. But you didn't back down; You desperately wanted things to be okay again, and running away every time something involved them  _wasn't_  going to help.

Upon hearing someone come back into the room, the three men looked over their shoulders. To be quite honest, you felt like you were about to have a panic attack the moment your eyes met theirs, but Calum once again reassuringly squeezed your hand, rubbing his thumb across the back of it to let you know that he was right there with you.

"Y/N's not feeling too well," Ashton informed everyone while you were shyly hiding behind Calum, "But she's still gonna try and stick around to listen to what we've got so far."

"Cool," Luke grinned at you, "Well, I was about to hop into the booth anyway, so we'll just get started then."

As he did that, Calum took you over to the couch where Michael was. He sat beside the armrest before tugging you to sit down beside him. You obviously did, but you were practically sitting on top of him, too nervous to sit  _right_  next to Michael. You heard the blonde chuckle under his breath, but you figured it was just something he was looking at on his phone.

As you listened to Luke recording his vocals for one of the songs, your head was on Calum's shoulder and his arms were around you. He would press a small kiss to your forehead every now and then, making you smile ever-so-slightly.

But the moment Luke came out of the recording booth and Calum had to go in was when you started panicking yet again.

"Hey," Calum said softly, making you look up at him, "You'll be  _fine_. Even if they  _were_  still mad at you, they wouldn't do anything with me  _still_  in the room." You reluctantly lifted your body off of his, letting him get up. He kissed the top of your head before walking into the booth, leaving you with Michael on the couch and Luke and Ashton standing around.

"Remember when you used to come here all the time-" Michael said randomly. You looked over out of curiosity, finding him smiling at you. "-and you would always sit on the couch right beside me and beg me to cuddle with you until Cal came back out of the booth?" he went on, "It's been a while since we've done that, you know. I kinda  _miss it_ , if I'm honest. You're a  _way_  better cuddle buddy than Luke."

"I'm  _right here_!" Luke whined, finally looking away from his phone.

"Hey, we've all cuddled with her before," Michael returned, "Am I  _wrong_?" Luke huffed quietly, crossing his arms over his chest.

" _No_ ," he mumbled in defeat. You accidentally let out a soft giggle, quickly cutting yourself off – but it was too late; They'd already heard it.

Michael held his arm up as he looked at you, "For old time's sake?"

And you didn't for the  _life of you_  know  _why_ , but you  _did it_.

You stared at him for a moment – part of you thinking this was some sort of  _trap_  – but you slowly scooted over to him anyway, stopping when your knee hit his. His arm came down onto your shoulders as he moved back in his seat, bringing you with him. You leaned into his side with your head on his shoulder, still a little tense – but hey:  _baby steps_.

Feeling how apprehensive you were made Michael sigh, but at least you'd made it  _this_  far.

"I know you think we hate you," he murmured, squeezing your shoulders slightly. You tilted your head to look up at him and he smiled softly. "And maybe we  _did_  at first, but we're over it  _now_ ," he assured you, "We still think what you did was really  _shitty_ , but Calum's  _obviously_  forgiven you for it and he clearly loves you a lot, so there's no use in the  _rest of us_  holding grudges. It's clear that you regret what you did, but you've apologized to the  _only_  person you needed to. And if  _he_  can forgive you, then the rest of us do  _too_."

You swallowed the lump in your throat, quickly burying your face into his shirt before any of them noticed you were crying. Your arms snaked their way around his waist and squeezed him tightly, letting you feel his grin as his face was pressed to your shoulder.

And sure, maybe you had a long way to go before all four boys trusted you the way they  _used to_ , but at least you were given a chance to redeem yourself – and you would  _always_  be thankful for that.


	380. What You Lost (Calum Hood) - Part 1

**Warning: House fire**

~

It was a call as routine as any other – someone called 911 about a house fire and the crew was now on the way to put it out. Calum was the station's go-to paramedic – even though no  _serious_  injuries were reported, he was always right alongside his coworkers just in case – so he quickly grabbed the keys to the ambulance and followed the firetruck to the scene.

The firehouse dog – a black lab named Rusty – was sitting shotgun in the ambulance. He was there as a form of comfort to victims of car accidents and fires, and while he was mainly taken in by the department to help kids feel better, adults were also comforted by the canine as well.

Calum pulled up to the curb and got out of his ambulance, taking Rusty's leash and letting him jump out of the vehicle as well. But as he was standing there, getting his bag from the back, the dog immediately took off, causing Calum to drop the leash.

" _Rusty_!" he called, spinning around. His eyes immediately found the lab as he trotted up to a (h/c)-haired girl sitting on the ground in front of the burning house.

Calum watched his dog approach you, nudging your arm with his nose so you would look up. You did so, wiping your face with your sleeve, staring at the dog beside you. Rusty nudged the hand resting on your lap, signaling for you to pet him. You couldn't help but smile, sniffling quietly as you stroked the dog's head. The dog then laid down on the ground, his head resting comfortably on your calf. Calum couldn't help but smile at the exchange as he came over.

"His name's Rusty," Calum said, making you look up. He heart skipped a beat, noticing that – while you were obviously pretty from where his ambulance was parked – you were absolutely breathtaking up close.

"He's cute," you whispered so softly that Calum barely heard it. He smiled at you, sitting on the ground beside you.

"I'm Calum," he told you.

"Y/N," you said when you noticed he was giving you a look as if to tell him your name as well.

"Well, Y/N-" Your heart fluttered. "-I'm here to make sure you're fine and that you don't have any cuts or anything, okay?"

"I don't," you shook your head.

"You sure?" he smiled at you, "Because I'm seeing a little red mark on your forehead."

You furrowed your eyebrows, moving your hand to feel around. Calum immediately grabbed it though, putting it back down on your lap.

"Trust me, it's there," he grinned again.

He opened his medical bag and pulled out his alcohol pads, ripping a package open. He carefully held your hair out of the way with one hand and brought the pad to your forehead with the other.

"This might sting a little," he said before putting it to your skin. You jumped at the pain, whining softly as you felt your eyes get watery again.

Calum apologized lowly before you felt Rusty lick the back of your hand in the hopes of making you feel better. You couldn't help but smile down at the dog as you began petting him again, missing the way Calum smiled at you.

"Can you tell me what happened?" he asked you.

"I was making dinner and I wa- I wasn't watching it..." you sniffled, wiping your face with your free hand, "I walked away from the stove for two seconds and it just..." You trailed off as you motioned toward your house, not even able to force yourself to look at what you'd just lost.

"Hey," he said softly so you would look up at him, "I know the guys inside there and they're gonna make sure they save  _every single thing_  they can. They're gonna take care of you, okay?"

And you didn't know what exactly it was – maybe it was the uniform or the way he looked at you when he said it – but you knew you could trust him.

~

**One week later**

Calum had called your parents' house and asked if they could tell you he wanted you to come down to the fire station that Friday. You had no idea why he would ask for you, but you decided to go anyway.

The firefighters managed to save a very good portion of your things – and some of them even helped you move it all into your parents' garage while you were trying to get back on your feet – and you never really got to thank them, so you figured you could get two birds with one stone.

You walked up to the station, seeing all the doors open, a table set up in front of one of the fire trucks, and a sign about the annual spaghetti dinner the firefighters hosted. The two men sitting at the table looked up at you and smiled as you approached.

" _Hood_!" one of them called out over his shoulder, " _Your girlfriend's here_!"

Your eyes widened slightly and you knew you were blushing as they snickered to each other. You were sure they were just teasing Calum, but the idea of you being his girlfriend made your entire body erupt with butterflies.

"Very funny, guys," Calum said and he hurried over to you with Rusty trotting alongside him, "Sorry about them. They don't know when to keep their mouths shut."

You looked down when you felt a lick on your fingers, finding Rusty looking up at you. You smiled and pet him for a few seconds before turning your attention back to Calum.

"So, uh..." you cleared your throat, "My dad said you called and wanted to see me."

" _Right_!" he exclaimed, "Well, I actually told him to ask you if you wanted to come to our spaghetti dinner tonight, but I guess the message didn't  _exactly_  get through..."

"I mean... I'm  _already_  here... And I  _really_  like spaghetti, so..."

Calum couldn't help but laugh, "Cool! How about I, uh, show you around?"

"Calum, can I ask you something first?" you murmured. He nodded and you went on, motioning toward the table, "Why does one of those things have my name on it?"

"Well, while I was talking to your dad, he mentioned that you were trying to save up enough money to move back out of your parents' house," Calum told you, "So the other firefighters and I decided to set this up." He put his arm around your shoulders and took you to the table. "This one's for you-" He pointed to an empty coffee container with your name on it and then to the other few right beside it. "-and that one is for other people in the city who have lost their belongings in house fires." You stared at your name for a moment before looking back up at Calum.

You immediately turned toward him and wrapped your arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. His own arms wound around your waist without hesitation.

"Thank you," you murmured, desperately trying to hold back your tears. Calum didn't respond verbally – he simply squeezed you lightly, letting you hug him as long as you needed to.

Since you were no longer facing the firefighters at the table, you obviously missed the way they were silently teasing Calum. He flipped them off, making them chuckle softly as you finally released him.

~

During the dinner, the firehouse was packed with people who'd come to enjoy the food as well as support those in need. You were sitting beside Calum – Rusty lying down underneath the table at your feet – laughing as the firefighters around you told you stories of when Calum first started working there.

He would roll his eyes every now and then, leaning back in his chair while his arm was resting across the back of your own, but if reliving his embarrassing moments meant you kept laughing... Well, he was willing to listen to them for the rest of his  _life_.

Not long after everyone finished eating, the fire chief – Walt – stood up and went to the front of the room. He grabbed the group's attention, waiting for the room to quiet down before speaking.

"I'd like to thank you all for coming out to support our  _amazing_  firefighters," he smiled at everyone, "And also, thank you to Geoff, Darren, and Cal for coming in to cook all the wonderful food we had tonight." Everyone started clapping and you looked up at Calum, finding him smiling – as were the other two men.

When he felt your gaze, he looked at you and winked. You simply smiled and rolled your eyes, but the blush on your cheeks was undeniable.

Once the clapping died down, Walt spoke again.

"I'm sure you all noticed the coffee cans on the table outside as you came in," he said, "Well, thanks to all of your help, we managed to raise over $4,000 for victims of fires in the area." Everyone clapped again, happy with the donation turnout considering there weren't  _that many_  people at the dinner. "We actually have someone here tonight whose name you might  _recognize_  – Y/N Y/L/N was on one of the donation jars – and, Y/N-" He looked at you with a smile. "-we know that no amount of money can replace the things you lost, but – on behalf of all the firefighters – we  _were_  able to raise almost $3,000 to at least get you  _one step_  closer to getting you back on your feet." Your heart skipped a beat as everyone cheered even  _louder_  than before, your hands finding your face so no one saw you crying.

Calum moved his arm up from on top of your chair to around your shoulders. He pulled you into a side hug and you felt his lips hit the hairline along your temple.

~

As the events of the night died down, Calum could tell you were starting to get tired. As much as he didn't want you to leave yet, he knew you should get home before your parents started to worry.

"Hey," Calum murmured, squeezing your knee gently to get you to look at him, "You ready to go? I'll walk you home." You smiled tiredly at him, barely nodding your head. He stood up, taking your hand and pulling you to your feet as well.

You made a quick stop to briefly talk to Walt, hugging and thanking him for everything the firehouse was doing for you. He smiled, telling you it was no problem and to call if you needed help moving in once you bought your new place. You simply smiled and nodded before Calum led you toward the door.

The walk home was quiet for the most part, the only sounds being the few cars driving past you and the crickets in people's yards. You felt Calum brushing his hand up against yours, but – to your disappointment – he never actually took it.

But once you were walking up the steps of your mom and dad's porch, he finally spoke again.

"So, Y/N..." Calum cleared his throat shyly, "Maybe... When you get back on your feet... Do you think you'd want to...possibly...go on a date with me...?"

He seemed so confident around his fellow firefighters, but now that it was just you and him, it was obvious that you made him more nervous than he was willing to admit. You couldn't help but blush at the question, surprised that someone as kind and  _attractive_  as Calum would want to take  _you_  out.

You nodded bashfully, unsure if you would be able to find the voice to speak. Calum's eyes widened – he  _fully_  expected you to reject him, thinking there was  _no way_  a girl as beautiful as  _you_  would say yes to  _him_. He sighed in relief as he smiled widely at your acceptance.

"Thanks for inviting me tonight, Cal," you murmured, "I had a lot of fun. And thanks for raising all that money for me. I really appreciate it."

"You're welcome, Y/N," he replied softly.

"But it's still gonna take a while longer to get enough for another place, so... I mean... You already know I'm living here right now... Maybe we don't  _have to_  wait until then..." His eyes widened again and he stumbled over his words.

"We-Well, I... I'm not on call tomorrow if you wanna... O-Or we could do  _next_  weekend if that's too soon... Or even maybe-"

"I'll see you tomorrow, Cal," you smiled shyly, chewing on your bottom lip.

" _Tomorrow_..." he whispered to himself, "Yeah, I'll see you then."

You put your hands on his shoulders – your forearms resting against his chest – so you could reach up and press your lips to his cheek. You swore you felt his cheek getting warmer the longer your lips were on his skin.

You pulled away and smiled again.

"Night, Cal," you whispered.

"Night, Y/N," he mumbled as you turned around and went into your parents' house.

Calum knew that the stupid grin he wore on his face as he walked back to the firehouse was going to make the other firefighters tease him like there was no tomorrow, but he didn't care. He had a date with – as far as he was concerned – the prettiest girl in the city.

And he wasn't going to let  _anything_  bring him down.

~

_inspiration: http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/144682266288/ok-but-the-firehouse-getting-a-new-dalmatian-to-be_

 


	381. What You Lost (Calum Hood) - Part 2

**Two years later**

It was never unusual for Calum to be running a little late in coming home – depending on how long a certain fire took to be put out, obviously – but what  _was_  unusual was when he was over  _two hours_  late and hadn't called. You tried not to let it worry you too much – you knew the risks in being a firefighter and you didn't want to be  _that_  clingy – but you weren't going to lie and say it didn't scare you whenever he wasn't home on time.

You hadn't been in the bedroom for long – just wanting to lie down and  _try_  to go to sleep – when you  _finally_  heard the front door open. Your heart skipped a beat as you sprung up from the bed, hastily heading down the hallway.

You were first greeted by Rusty happily wagging his tail as he nudged your hand, and he trotted off to another part of the house after he was satisfied with being pet after not seeing you since he and Calum left for work. You then walked a few more steps to the hallway entrance, letting out a deep sigh of relief and swiping the backs of your hands across your cheeks before hurrying to Calum and throwing yourself into his arms.

"Hey, princess," he huffed in surprise, holding you as tightly as you were holding him, "What's wrong? Why are you crying?"

"Y-You didn't  _call_ ," you choked, "I thought s-something  _happened_  to you."

Calum always knew that the  _one thing_  that terrified you most was the thought of him leaving for work one morning and never coming home, so he wasn't  _entirely_  surprised to be seeing this reaction to him walking through the door. And, to be honest, he'd be lying if he said it didn't terrify  _him_  too.

He knew that at any given moment on the job, something could happen to him – it was a thought in the back of his mind every single time the station got a call – but he never  _really_  paid any mind to it until  _now_.

Now that he wasn't coming back to an  _empty_  house, it was as if he felt there was  _more_  at stake than  _just_  Rusty. Calum knew that if anything were to ever happen to him, Rusty would be given a new home with one of the other firefighters and he would be fine.

 _But you_...

Sure, Rusty loved him, but at the same time, the dog loved  _everyone_  he came into contact with. You, on the other hand, were a person that was weary of other people for a  _long time_  before they earned your trust – but it seemed like Calum earned it the moment he  _met you_. And he knew that it may have had  _something_  to do with the uniform he put on nearly every single day, but seeing you around other people and then thinking about the way you were with  _him_...

It  _actually_  made his heart ache at the thought of you having to start all over again with someone  _new_. Calum was  _so_  in love with you that – and it may be a bit  _selfish_ , but he truthfully didn't  _care_  – he didn't want to imagine you being the way you were with  _any other person_  but him.

"I'm  _fine_ , princess," Calum finally spoke after coming back to reality, one of his hands rubbing your back to help you calm down, "I meant to have someone let you know my phone died, but I forgot until I was already on the way home. I'm  _really_  sorry I made you worry so much, but you know I'm  _always_  going to come back home to you."

"N-No, I  _don't_ , C-Cal," your voice broke, "I n- _never_  know if y-you're gonna co-come  _home_  or n-not..." You felt his lips hit your upper jaw, his arms squeezing you gently.

"I'm home  _now_ , so you don't have to worry anymore, okay?" he murmured into your ear as he kissed it, "C'mon, baby girl; Let's go to bed – you look  _exhausted_."

One of Calum's arms loosened so his fingers could tap lightly on your lower back. He felt you smile slightly into his skin as you jumped up, wrapping your legs around his waist so he could carry you to the bedroom.

Having heard Calum walking down the hallway, Rusty immediately found his way to his side so he could take his spot at the end of the bed by your legs. He jumped up as Calum set you down, only to have you hug him tighter when he tried to let go of you.

"Baby girl," he chuckled, "As much as I don't want to let you go yet either, I'm not about to try and sleep in this uniform."

"Why not?" you whispered, kissing the skin on his neck where it met his collar, "You look good." The statement only made him laugh again.

"You telling me you prefer me with my clothes  _on_?" he smirked, "Because that's not what I've been hearing  _lately_."

You immediately released your hold on him, letting him see you roll your eyes as you pushed him away from you. He winked teasingly at you before stripping down to his boxers and tossing his uniform into the hamper to be washed tomorrow.

He came back to the bed, plopping down as you were kissing the top of Rusty's head, earning yourself a lick to the hand that was rubbing his paw. You felt Calum reach over and pet the dog as well before grabbing your hand and pulling you to lie down with him. You cuddled up to Calum as close as you possibly could, feeling him wrap his arms around you as you made yourself comfortable.

By the time you finally settled down, you were halfway lying on top of him with your arm resting on his chest so your fingers could trace over the feather tattoo on his collarbone. His breathing steadied in content – your touch always seemed to have that effect on him – and he squeezed you ever-so-slightly, pressing a kiss to your forehead.

"I love you, princess," you heard him whisper, his voice muffled slightly by your skin.

"I love you too, Cal," you replied just as softly, kissing the skin closest to your lips.

~

_inspiration: http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/144683636833/submitted-by-calvmhqqd-firefightercalum-always_


	382. Same Mistakes (Maxx Danziger) - Part 1 *

**Warning: Emotional and physical abuse**

~

> _When he says those words that hurt you_   
>  _Do you read the ones I wrote you?_

Maxx always thought about what he would do if the roles were reversed – what he would do about another man treating you the way his new girlfriend treated him. It wasn't a difficult choice; He would obviously do whatever he could to get you out of the relationship and somewhere safer – whether that was with him or not.

You'd broken up with him ten months ago – up and left with a mere ' _see you later, sorry I can't be with you anymore_ '. He saw you around town every once in a while. You seemed fine enough from what he could tell – he never had any reason to suspect that the breakup affected you as much as it did him.

He tried to move on –  _God_   _knows he tried_  – but there was always a part of him that clung onto you. He couldn't get you out of his head no matter  _how_  badly he wanted to. He had letters you'd written for him to read when he was still in a band and he was on the road, missing home. He would read them a lot – at least one letter every day, to be honest.

Maybe that was why he ended up where he was now.

Brittany was alright – not usually his type but, at this point, he was just trying to  _forget you_. She was nice enough, but that was only when  _other people_  were around.

It was your  _typical_  emotionally abusive relationship – Brittany would make some passive-aggressive comment about his hair or outfit or ' _you're wearing your_ ** _glasses_** _today?_ ', and Maxx would sit there and take it. He didn't understand  _why_  she hated his glasses so much, but he rarely ever wore them anymore because of it. He remembered wearing his glasses  _every day_  when he was with  _you_  – you  _loved_  the way he looked with them on. But he didn't have you anymore, and he had to let it go.

Brittany rarely ever hit him.  _Rarely_.

She'd done it a few times though, telling Maxx that if he would just do as he was told, she wouldn't  _have to_  hit him. But even when he knew it was wrong – even when he knew she had no  _real_  reason to get physical with him – Maxx  _never_  hit her back. No matter what she did to him, he refused to touch her, and she used every bit of that to her advantage.

He went out one afternoon because... Well, because Brittany wasn't home – something about going to visit her mother – and Maxx desperately needed to just get out of the house. Luckily for him, her mom lived two hours away, so he knew he'd have at least six hours to himself.

Brittany had left a pretty nasty bruise on his right cheekbone four days before and it seemed like it was only getting darker. It hadn't even been his fault – she was just mad that she couldn't find any batteries for the remote, so she hit him. She told him that if he'd remembered to buy them in the  _first place_ , she wouldn't have had to do it. Then again, when did she ever  _have to_  hit him?

Maxx dug through the drawers in the bathroom, looking for Brittany's makeup bag. When he finally found it, he pulled out her concealer and powder, getting to work on covering the purple mark.

He'd learned the trick from you – you laughed as you explained what you were doing, covering the bruise on your nose after running into a door right before your sister's wedding started. He was amazed when you were finished – it looked like nothing had happened at all. And that was how he covered up what was happening to him.

Everything was going well so far. No one who looked at him seemed to notice anything wrong with his face, so he smiled to himself at how well he did in covering up his bruise. But if there was one person he couldn't hide  _anything_  from, it was the  _last_  person he ever expected to start a conversation with him.

He was walking down the street, checking out everything in the windows of the local shops, when he ran into someone who wasn't paying attention either. They both let out surprised noises before looking at each other and freezing.

You still looked as beautiful as he remembered, but there was something about your eyes that he couldn't get past. Your eyes were his favorite color – he was sure they always would be – and they seemed to shine no matter how the light hit them or how dark it was.

But as he looked at them now... The shine wasn't as  _bright_  as it used to be. You truthfully looked like you hadn't slept properly in months and he felt bad for hoping it was because you  _missed him_.

"Hi, Maxx," you breathed softly, surprising him. You'd never been one to initiate conversation with someone – especially an  _ex_  – and his heart skipped a beat to finally hear your voice again.

"Hi, Y/N," he whispered, "H-How have you been?"

"Good..." you nodded slowly, "You?"

"Good too," he replied.

He noticed your eyebrow raise a little and he knew you knew he was lying to you. Your gaze went down to his cheekbone and your head tilted slightly. Maxx swallowed thickly, praying you wouldn't say anything. To his relief, you didn't – you simply carried on.

"I guess it's a good thing that I ran into you though... _literally_ ," you said. Maxx couldn't help but smile at the comment, then looked at you curiously.

"Why?" he asked.

"I found some of your stuff at my place that I thought you might want back," you told him.

"Oh..." he murmured.

"So is it cool if I stop by tomorrow sometime and drop it off?"

" _No_!" he exclaimed, startling you a bit, "I mean... I'll come get it... I don't want you to have to come all the way to my place."

"I used to come over  _all the time_ , Maxx," you stated, obviously not believing him.

"I just... I... I live with my girlfriend!" he informed you.

"Oh," you whispered, feeling your heart drop, "Okay then. You can come over whenever you have time." He nodded rapidly. "Well, I... Uh... I should be going..." you said, "It was nice seeing you again, Maxx."

"You too, Y/N," he replied softly. You forcibly smiled at him before quickly walking away.

And Maxx would be lying to himself if he said he thought you didn't look sad when he mentioned having a girlfriend.

Maxx had lucked out in getting home a mere half an hour before Brittany did – having plenty of time to wash up the makeup off his cheek – and everything carried on as normal.

~

**The next day**

He'd been trying to work up the courage to excuse himself from the apartment, but he couldn't think of anything good enough that wouldn't make her insist to come with him. He didn't want her to know that he was going to see you – the girl knew he was still in love with you and she'd be  _damned_  if she ever let him near you again.

So the day dragged on – the seconds turned to minutes and the minutes turned to hours and suddenly, it was 9pm and there was a knock on the door. Brittany made Maxx get up to get it – as usual – and his heart  _stopped_  when he opened it.

"Y/N," he whispered with wide eyes.

" _Holy shit, Maxx_ , what happened to your face?" you asked, just as shocked as he was to see you.

" _What are you doing here_?"

"You didn't come over," you stated at your normal volume, "Don't want to keep this stuff  _forever_."

"Y/N, I-" Maxx was cut off by Brittany's voice.

"Who's at the door, babe?" she asked.

Maxx hated when she called him babe because she only did around  _other girls_. The girl appeared beside him, her arm wrapped around his waist as she looked at you.

"Who's your friend, baby?" she asked, never taking her eyes off of you.

"Hi!" you chirped, smiling at her, "You must be Maxx's girlfriend!"

"I am," she nodded, "Who are you?"

"I'm Y/N," you replied, "Just an old friend." Brittany cocked her eyebrow, immediately recognizing the name and sensing how nervous Maxx was. "Well, I just came by to drop off some stuff I found at my place," you cleared your throat, "My apartment's pretty small and I don't have room for this, but I didn't wanna throw it away because I'm sure you've been looking for some of this-" You looked at Maxx. "-so yeah. I just thought I'd swing by since I was out anyway."

"Yeah, Y/N, thank you," Maxx said softly, "Come in. You can just put it on the counter." You followed him to the kitchen with his girlfriend close behind you. You set the box down and sighed.

"Thanks," you told him, "It was getting kinda heavy."

"Well, it was nice meeting you, Y/N," Brittany said, clearly trying to get you to leave.

"You too," you nodded, turning back to Maxx, "And, uh, make sure you keep ice on whatever  _that_ -" You pointed to your cheek, referring to his bruise. "-is."

He nodded, "Bye, Y/N."

"Later!" you chirped, walking back out of the apartment. You jumped slightly when the door closed loudly behind you.

"What the hell was  _that_  about?" Brittany asked lowly.

"I didn't know she was gonna come over!" Maxx said defensively, "I haven't seen her in  _months_!"

"You didn't have to  _invite her in_!"

"What was I  _supposed_  to do?!"

"You could have just taken the box from her!" she spat back, "You're such an  _idiot_!" Brittany stomped back to the living room, plopping down on the couch and continuing to watch TV.

~

_inspiration: "Amnesia" by 5 Seconds of Summer_


	383. Same Mistakes (Maxx Danziger) - Part 2 *

**Warning: Emotional and physical abuse**

~

**Your POV** **;** **One week later**

You woke up to quiet knocking on your front door, making you furrow your eyebrows. You looked at the clock on your nightstand –  _2:06am_  – and wondered why anyone would be waking you up this late.

Either way, the knocking continued, so you dragged yourself out of bed and trudged out of your room, surprised at what you found waiting for you outside your door.

" _Maxx_?" you asked, rubbing your eyes, "What are you  _doing_  here? It's  _2 in the morning_."

"I-I know," he said softly, "I'm s-sorry."

"What's wrong? Why are you crying?" You turned on your hallway light, your eyes going as wide as they could possibly get when you saw him. "Maxx, what  _happened_  to you?!" you asked frantically, grabbing his hand and pulling him into the apartment, shutting the door behind him.

The bruise on his cheek had started to fade, but that wasn't what had you worried. There was a cut above his eyebrow – just a small little nick in his skin – but that got you thinking.

The bruises, the nerves, the way Brittany was quick to make you leave the apartment...

You had your suspicions when you saw him on the street – you were the one who  _taught him_  the makeup trick; you  _knew_  what it looked like – and the way he was so  _adamant_  about you not coming over in the first place. But it wasn't until  _now_  that you were piecing it all together.

"Does she  _hit you_?" you asked bluntly, making Maxx freeze.

"W-Why would you ask me that?" he breathed.

"Just answer the question."

"I... I have to go," he said, spinning on his heels to leave.

You, however, weren't letting him get away that easily. You grabbed his elbow, turning him back around.

" _Maxx_ ," you said firmly, " _Does your girlfriend hit you_?" His breathing was shallow and his heart was racing as he kept his gaze on anything other than you.

"No," he whispered.

You huffed lightly, releasing his arm, only to grab his chin. You forced his face back up to look at you.

"Look me in the eyes and tell me that," you demanded.

"Y/N..."

" _Tell me_  she doesn't hit you," you were practically begging at this point.

"I  _can't_..." he swallowed thickly, his bottom lip trembling.

Your expression fell and you couldn't believe what you were hearing. You never imagined  _Maxx_  as being the type of person who couldn't defend himself or would put up with abuse, but the reality was that  _he was_.

"Why didn't you tell me  _sooner_?"

"Be-Because we broke up and I..."

"That doesn't mean I  _stopped caring about you_ , Maxx!" you exclaimed softly, "And I sure as  _hell_  wouldn't have sat around letting  _this_  happen to you!"

"There's nothing you can  _do_ , Y/N," he shook his head, "If you get involved, you're just gonna get  _hurt_. I can  _handle_  it happening to me – I really  _can_  – but I'm  _not_  going to let it start happening to  _you_  too." He made the motion to leave, but you held onto him as if you were anchoring him down in your living room.

"You are  _not_  going back there, Maxx," you told him.

"I-I  _have to_!" he yelled in a whisper, "If I don't, she's gonna-"

"She's gonna hit you  _again_ ," you stated, "And she's gonna  _keep_  doing it as long as you  _stay_  with her."

"What am I supposed to  _do_?"

" _You hit her back_!" you replied as if it were the most obvious answer in the world, "When she  _starts_  hitting you, you hit her back  _as hard as you can_!"

"I-I  _can't_... I can't  _hit her_... That... That wouldn't be  _right_!"

"She's not a  _child_ , Maxx! She knows right from wrong and no matter  _what_  her reasoning behind it was, she has  _no right_  to hit you!"

"B-But I... I  _deserved_  it... I-I talked back... I didn't..." he whimpered and your heart broke.

For as long as you'd known him, Maxx had  _always_  been the strong one. He was your rock – your shoulder to cry on when you needed one – and he never let you see him at his breaking point.

 _But_   _now_...

Now, here you were, standing in your apartment with your ex-boyfriend because he'd come to you for help. And you were going to  _give it_  to him.

You led Maxx to your couch, sitting down with him. You wrapped your arms around his shoulders and he immediately pressed his face to your neck. You ran your fingers through his hair like he used to do for you, smiling slightly when you felt him let out a contented breath.

"What happened, Maxx?" you asked softly.

"Y/N..." he trailed off. He knew you, and he knew that you were going to get mad.

"Maxx, you woke me up at 2am; I think I should at least get to know  _why_." He sighed, knowing that if the roles were reversed, he would have made  _you_  tell  _him_.

"I was watching TV," he murmured, scooting closer to you so he could wind his arms around your waist. You repositioned yourself so that he could comfortably do so. "She said she wanted to watch a different show when she was done with her shower, but I... I said that what I was watching wouldn't be  _over_  by the time she got out and sh-she didn't  _like_  that answer too much..."

"What did she do?" you asked sternly, feeling him sigh again.

"Sh-She slapped me," he admitted, "I tried to duck, but her ring hit my forehead and cut me. She said that she was taking the TV whether I liked it or not and went to the bathroom. I heard the shower come on, so I... I  _ran_. I grabbed my keys and left."

"Why did you come  _here_?" you asked, beginning to draw circles on his upper arm, "Why didn't you go to one of your friends' houses?"

"I haven't seen them since Brittany came into the picture," he swallowed thickly, "She doesn't let me go out. She doesn't let anyone come over. She goes through my phone every night. I don't even think my friends think I  _care_  anymore because I'm always saying I can't hang out. No matter what I do, I can't get  _away_  from her..."

"You  _have_  to leave, Maxx," you said, your voice muffled when you kissed the top of his head, "You  _can't_  live like this anymore."

"I don't have a  _choice_ ," he choked, "I have nowhere to  _go_."

"Yeah, you do," you countered.

" _Where then_?" he asked, sitting up so he could look at you, "Where am I supposed to stay?"

"Here," you stated with the most serious expression on your face.

"You don't have to-"

"I  _know_  that," you told him, "I don't  _have to_  do anything for you, I don't  _have to_  care;  _But I do_. I shouldn't have broken up with you-" Maxx stared at you in shock, never having thought you would say that. "-I've been miserable for the last  _year_  because of it. And the shitty thing is... I don't know  _why_  I did it. I've tried dating  _so_  many times, but I've never felt the same as I did when I was with  _you_. And if I hadn't broken up with you, then you wouldn't-"

" _Don't_ ," he grumbled, "Don't you  _dare_  blame yourself for what's happening to me."

"But if I hadn't  _left_ , you would have never met  _her_  and you'd be  _okay_ ," your voice cracked. Your eyes started to get watery, so Maxx put his hands on your cheeks to wipe the tears before they fell.

" _None of this_  is your fault, do you understand me?" he murmured, " _None_."

"If it's not my fault, then it's not  _yours_  either," you whispered. And for the first time in nearly a year, Maxx  _genuinely_  smiled.

He caught you glancing down at his lips, but as he was leaning in, there was a sudden knock on the door.

The loudness of it made both of you jump, Maxx's hands falling to your waist as your head snapped over. You heard his breathing pick up as the person at the door started jiggling the handle and you just  _knew_  it was Brittany.

~

_inspiration: "Amnesia" by 5 Seconds of Summer_


	384. Same Mistakes (Maxx Danziger) - Part 3 *

**Warning: Emotional and physical abuse**

~

You instantly jumped up from the couch, grabbed Maxx's hand, and pulled him into your bedroom. You took him to the corner of the room beside the bed and made him sit down on the floor so he wasn't within view of the door.

"Stay here," you ordered, going to get up. However, Maxx's hold on you tightened as he pulled you back.

"No, Y/N, she's gonna-"

"That bitch is not going to do  _shit_  to me," you said lowly, squeezing his hand, "And I'll be  _damned_  if I'm ever going to let her get to you ever again. You are going to stay in this spot until I come back, understand?" He nodded slowly and you moved to get up, but he pulled you back down yet again. "Maxx, I-"

You were cut off as you turned your head to look at him, his lips hitting yours. You let out a deep sigh, but you certainly weren't mad that he'd kissed you.

"I... I lo-" he choked once he pulled away, "I-I love you..."

He was clearly nervous – despite the fact that you'd kissed him back, he wasn't  _really_  sure if you still felt the way you used to about him. You squeezed his hand again before letting go and placing it on the cheek that wasn't bruised.

"I love you too," you whispered, pecking his lips, " _Please_  don't come out of this room until I come get you." He nodded again, finally letting you get up to leave.

You flipped the lock on the door, making sure it was closed and definitely locked before walking away from it, but what you didn't notice was Maxx getting up and retrieving your phone from the nightstand.

You sucked in a deep breath right before approaching the front door to your apartment and pulling it open.

" _Where is he_?" Brittany growled the moment she saw you.

" _He_..." you trailed off, "I'm sorry, I don't know anyone by the name of ' _He'_. I think you have the wrong apartment." You went to close the door, but she placed her hand on it and pushed it back open.

"You know who the  _fuck_  I'm talking about," she narrowed her eyes, " _Where's Maxx_?"

"Maxx... Maxx... Max Schneider... Max Joseph... Max and Ruby...  _Mad Max_..."

"I don't have time for this," Brittany stated monotonously, walking toward you. Your arm shot out to grab the door frame, however, preventing her from getting past you.

" _Whoa, whoa, whoa_ ," you laughed, "I did  _not_  invite you in here."

"You came into my-"

" _Maxx let me in_ ," you reminded her.

"Listen,  _bitch_ ," she spat, "I know he's here and I'm going to  _leave_  with him, so if you know what's good for you, you'll stay out of  _our business_."

"The only way you'll be leaving here with him is over my  _dead body_ ," you threatened.

"I can arrange that if you'd like."

Brittany pushed past your arm, but only made it as far as the middle of your entryway before you were pulling her back. You grabbed the back collar of her shirt and yanked her back out into the hallway. Her back hit the wall across from your apartment so hard, you heard the picture frames on the wall in that apartment shake.

You knew your neighbors would  _for sure_  wake up to that, but you didn't care; All you cared about was not letting Brittany get to Maxx.

"You are seriously fucking  _delusional_  if you think I'm going to let you come inside this apartment," you growled, "Maxx may not hit you back because you're a girl, but believe me,  _I'll_  have no problem with it. He doesn't deserve to be treated as something lower than a person who thinks it's  _okay_  to abuse him. You are the  _lowest_  form of dirt and no matter what you said or did to make him feel worthless is going to change the fact that he's  _not_."

"Well, maybe you should have thought about that before you left him," she grumbled, "If  _you_  hadn't left, this wouldn't have  _happened_  to him."

You went to close the door, but Brittany pushed it back open once again. Having enough of what she was trying to do, you put your hands on her shoulders and pushed her back into the wall for a second time.

"What's going on here?" someone asked as they came down the hallway.

You and Brittany looked over, a bit confused as to why there were two police officers walking toward you. By this time, your neighbors had started peeking out of their apartment doors to see what all the commotion was about, so you figured one of them called 911.

"Officers, you need to arrest this girl!" Brittany said sweetly, "She's refusing to let me see my boyfriend! I'm afraid she might try to hurt him!" You instantly rolled your eyes.

"The only person hurting him is  _you_ ," you shot back, "At least  _I_  don't hit him when I don't get what I want."

"Why don't we all go inside and talk about this like civilized adults?" one of the officers suggested. Brittany stepped toward you again, only to have your hand return to the door frame.

"I don't care  _how many_  times you try getting in here!" you shouted, " _You're not coming in_!"

"Okay," the other officer said, "I will go in with you, Officer James will stay with her, and we'll all try to figure this out." You moved your arm to let the man inside, closing the door behind him so Brittany couldn't get in.

You led him to the kitchen and had him sit down at the table. You offered him a drink but he politely declined, saying he'd rather just talk.

"Is the woman outside's boyfriend here?" he asked.

"Yes, sir," you nodded.

"Would you mind going to get him?" You shook your head and stood up, hurrying off to the bedroom.

You knocked on the door, but your fist only hit the wood once before it was being pulled open.

"Are the cops here?" Maxx whispered frantically. You stared at him for a moment before a smile started pulling at the corner of your mouth.

" _You_  called them," you stated matter-of-factly.

Maxx didn't say anything, he just wrapped his arms around your waist and held you tightly. You played with the hair at the top of his neck for a moment,  _praying_  this would all be over soon and Brittany wouldn't get what she wanted and leave with him.

"The officer wants to talk to you," you murmured.

He let go of you and nodded, letting you take his hand and pull him out to the kitchen. The officer's eyes widened slightly upon looking at the damage done to Maxx's face as you had him sit down across from him.

You went to where you kept your first aid kit, taking it out and placing it on the table in front of him. While you were getting a wet cloth, the officer started asking questions.

"What happened here, son?" he asked, obviously referring to the bruise and cut.

"My ex-girlfriend," Maxx replied softly, flinching a bit when you pressed the cloth to his cut.

"Who is your ex-girlfriend?"

"Sorry," you murmured to Maxx, continuing as you addressed the officer, "The girl in the hallway."

"Didn't she say he was her  _boyfriend_ – as in  _currently_  dating?"

"She's  _delusional_ ," you shrugged, retrieving a bandaid from the kit and tearing it open.

After placing the bandaid on his skin, you went to put the first aid kit back and then returned to the table. Maxx's arm wrapped around your waist, pulling you into him, as you stood beside the chair.

"Okay," he replied, "Take me back to the beginning then. When did this start happening?"

And Maxx told him about it  _all_.

He told him about everything from the comments she made about his appearance and going through his phone to the throwing things and hitting him when he did something ' _wrong_ '. He told him about the times she would visit her mom and how it was the only time he felt like he was free to  _leave_  his own apartment. He told him about the times she would hit him hard enough to bruise and how he had to cover it up before he went somewhere as mundane as going to get the mail  _just in case_  anyone else saw him.

As he talked about what happened, you could feel him gradually squeeze your waist more and more. You had your elbow resting on the back of the chair, your hand on his head as you absentmindedly ran your fingers through his hair.

You knew it hurt to talk about – that he really was  _terrified_  he would have to leave with Brittany – but you meant what you told him; You made a mistake in letting him go once, but you weren't going to make the same mistake again.

Once the officer was done asking questions, he announced that he was going to talk with his partner to get Brittany's side of the story before they decided what to do next.

You got up to show him out – Maxx following behind you like a lost puppy – and opened the door to find Brittany and the other officer still there. You stepped out of the way to let the officer out and the woman looked over at you and Maxx.

"Oh,  _honey_ ," she suddenly said, "There is  _no way_  you got that bruise falling down the  _stairs_." Maxx tilted his head in confusion while you just looked at Brittany with a baffled expression.

" _Falling down the stairs_?" you squeaked, "He lives on the  _first floor_! What stairs could he have  _possibly_  fallen down?!"

Maxx's hand wrapped around you, landing on the hip opposite of him. He thought he kept it out of Brittany's view, but clearly, he thought wrong. Her eyes immediately went down to your waist, finding Maxx holding onto you tightly.

"What the  _fuck_  do you think you're doing?" she asked, glaring at him. He moved behind you, his other hand finding your other hip, hoping you'd protect him.

She stepped forward, but so did you. She reached her arm out to grab Maxx, but your hand shot up and grabbed her wrist.

"Don't think that just because there are two cops here doesn't mean I won't beat the shit out of you if you  _ever_  touch him again," you growled, tightening your hold on her.

"I am taking him home,  _bitch_ ," she snarled, not backing down either, "And I don't care  _who_  gets in my way." You didn't verbally respond to her – you just squeezed her wrist as hard as you could before shoving her away from you.

The look on your face was menacing – having Maxx feel like you were one more move of her reaching toward him away from all  _hell_  breaking loose. And it made him feel  _good_ , honestly. He finally felt like someone  _genuinely_  cared about him again, and to have that person be  _you_  made him feel  _that much_  better.

"Ladies," Officer James interrupted, looking at Brittany, "Until we get everything settled, he is going to stay wherever he feels is safest for  _him_ -" She then looked at Maxx. "-and I'm assuming that will be  _here_?" Maxx looked at you and when you nodded, he turned back to the officer and nodded as well. "That being said-" She looked at Brittany once again. "-if you try to contact him or return to this building before we see you again, either of these two-" She motioned to you and Maxx. "-have every right to take  _whatever actions_  they have to in order to protect themselves. Do you understand?" Brittany's eyes never left yours, still glaring at you.

"Yes, Ma'am," she replied through gritted teeth.

"We'll walk you out then," Officer James said and then looked at you, "You two sleep well." You smiled at the officers, thanking them before they left with Brittany.

As soon as you closed the door and turned both the lock on the handle as well as the deadbolt, Maxx's arms were wrapped tightly around your waist. Your hands were on his, rubbing his knuckles for a moment, before having him loosen his grip enough for you to turn around and face him. Once you did so, your own arms wound around his neck and his face was buried in yours. You moved one hand to his head so you could run your fingers through his hair again, feeling him breathe in and out deeply.

No words were being said, but then again, none needed to be; You were just happy that Maxx was safe, and Maxx was happy that he was with you again.

~

_inspiration: "Amnesia" by 5 Seconds of Summer_


	385. A Night to Remember (Cody Carson)

It was another late Friday night as you finished up studying for a Psychology test you had that Monday. You knew you didn't have to worry about it too much – it was your favorite subject and you actually took in all the lessons pretty easily – but you just wanted to make sure you got the  _best_  grade you could. Plus, you knew you'd be busy all day tomorrow getting ready for prom.

It was nearing 1:30am when you finally decided to turn in for the night. Your phone was resting on your nightstand as it was charging when you heard it start ringing. You turned your head, looking over and seeing your boyfriend's picture on the screen.

Cody rarely ever called you  _this_  late unless he couldn't sleep, but you knew for a fact that he'd gone to bed almost four hours ago since he'd been on the phone with you until the moment you heard him start snoring – though, he did usually call you whenever he woke up from a nightmare and needed help calming down.

"Hey, babe!" you chirped as soon as you accepted the call, taking the phone off of the charger and turning on your lamp as well.

"It's not Cody, dear," you heard your boyfriend's mother say on the other line, which only confused you even  _more_.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Stephanie," you said, "Is everything okay?"

She sighed softly, "I'm afraid not."

"What's wrong?" you immediately began panicking, sitting up in bed, "Is Cody okay? What's going on?"

"Cody's fine, sweetheart," she said reassuringly, "He's just in the hospital."

" _He's in the hospital_?!" you exclaimed softly, not wanting to wake your parents up, "How can he be  _fine_  if he's in the  _hospital_?!"

"I can see why he didn't want me to call you now," she laughed lightly.

" _Stephanie_!" you squeaked.

"Honey, you  _know_  I would tell you if something were seriously wrong," she reminded you, "He just woke up about an hour ago with some stomach pains that he said didn't feel right, so we came here just to be safe. The doctor said tests should be coming back within the next hour."

"Will he be well enough before tomorrow night?" you asked worriedly.

"I'm not sure, dear," she sighed, and you could just see her shaking her head, "But I'll call you as soon as we find out what's wrong."

"Okay," you said softly, "Call me before then if it gets bad."

"I will, dear," she said, "Just get some sleep. I'll talk to you later."

"Bye," you said, hanging up the phone.

You stared at the dark screen for a moment before throwing yourself back onto the mattress with a sigh, hoping your boyfriend would be okay.

~

**The next day**

You woke up at 11 that morning, immediately looking at your phone. You had one missed call from Cody – or more than likely his mom – that you had received an hour before you woke up. So, obviously, you  _immediately_  called back.

"Hey, princess," Cody said hoarsely when he answered your call.

"Why do you sound like that?" you asked in a rush, "What's wrong?"

"Y/N," you could hear his smile.

"Sorry," you whispered, "But what's going on? Why did you go to the hospital?"

"I thought my mom told you," he said, the confusion in his voice obvious.

"She was going to, but I fell asleep," you replied shyly.

"Oh, well, it was nothing major; I just need to have my appendix taken out."

"Cody-"

"It's nothing these doctors haven't seen before, princess," he assured you, "I'll be in and out of surgery in an hour."

"But you're not going to prom," you murmured.

"I'm sorry, princess," he sighed, "But that doesn't mean you won't have an amazing time."

"Cody, I am  _not_  going to prom without you," you said firmly.

"Y/N, can you just  _not_  be stubborn for once?" he asked, a bit of a frustrated tone in his voice, "You know just as well as I do that you've been looking forward to this night for  _months_ , and I'll be damned if  _I'm_  going to be the person to ruin that."

~

**Eight hours later**

Like  _hell_  you were going to go to prom without your boyfriend.

You spent the afternoon going to your hair appointment and getting your makeup done as planned before heading back home. It was about 6:30, so you just lounged around for an hour until you had to put your dress on.

When it was time to do that, your mother helped you and insisted on taking photos of you in the outfit. You humored her for a few minutes while she did so and she grabbed her keys when she was finished so she could drive you.

Instead of driving you to the school, however, you both went to the hospital.

The receptionist at the front desk tilted her head as you and your mom walked through the door, but gladly told you Cody's room number when you asked, even telling you that you looked beautiful, making you smile slightly. You thanked her before you led your mom to the elevator.

You went to the third floor and quietly searched for Cody's room. When you finally found it, your mom went in first while you waited outside.

She knocked on the door and you heard Stephanie call for her to come in. She did so, leaving the door open a bit so you could still hear what was going on.

"Y/M/N?" Cody said, furrowing his eyebrows, "What are you doing here?"

"Heard you were in the hospital and not going to prom," she shrugged with a sly grin, "But I figured you'd still like to see your girlfriend in her dress." She pulled out her phone and showed Cody the pictures of you.

He instinctively smiled, staring at your photo. Cody knew you were going to look beautiful – even if you  _had_  refused to let him see it before he came to pick you up on prom night. He wasn't going to say he wasn't disappointed that he couldn't see you in person, but he knew you were having fun with your friends and that was all that mattered to him.

"She looks  _beautiful_ ," Cody said softly.

"Thank you," you said as you pushed the door open and came into the room.

Since Cody was hooked up to a heart monitor, everyone heard his heart skip a beat. You giggled softly, walking over to his bed.

He carefully sat up as you reached him, wrapping his arms around your waist. Your fingers ran through his hair lightly as you hugged him back, kissing the exposed skin of his shoulder from where the hospital gown had slid off.

"I  _thought_  I told you to go to prom," Cody mumbled into your neck.

"I thought I told you I wasn't going  _without you_ ," you returned.

"I thought I told  _you_  not to be so  _stubborn_."

"And I don't know why you're ever surprised that I  _am_ ," you replied, feeling him smile.

"You look beautiful, princess," he repeated.

"Thank you," you told him, "How are you feeling?"

"Better," he shrugged, finally letting go so he could look at you. He took your hands, his thumbs rubbing the back of them as he looked at you from head to toe. "So  _this_ is the dress you've been refusing to let me see," he grinned, making you giggle softly.

"Well, I thought someone would be able to get your reaction on camera, but  _hearing_   _it_  was much better," you teased, kissing his cheek. You felt his smile fade, making you pull away to look at him again.

"I'm sorry I ruined your night," Cody murmured before you could say anything. You could sense Stephanie about to say something, but you beat her to it.

"Are you alive?" you asked him, your fingers running through his hair.

He nodded, not  _too_  sure where you were going with this. You smiled softly, letting your hand slide down to his cheek.

"Then don't worry about not going to prom," you whispered, making him smile again as you leaned down to kiss his lips.

~

_inspiration: http://kp00h.tumblr.com/post/23432983950/this-my-older-sister-chloe-and-her-boyfriend-ryan_


	386. Muggle Born (Michael Clifford)

 

**Warning: Brief moment of sexual harassment**

~

"Look at this  _Muggle_ ," Michael snickered to his friends from where he was sitting across and down the table from you, "Reading her Potions book as if that will change the fact that she's not got a  _single drop_  of magical blood in her body."

"You know, Clifford," you stated, not even looking up from your book, "Some of the greatest wizards were Muggle-born – which you would know if you  _bothered_  to open up a History book once in a while."

"I don't need a History book,  _Muggle_ ," he shot back, "If I want to know about things that have happened, I'll just ask my grandparents seeing as how they were friends with  _Harry Potter_." You couldn't help but roll your eyes – Michael's nickname for you was never anything short of rude and distasteful.

"Then I'm assuming you know that Hermione and even Harry's mother were  _also_  Muggle-borns?" you finally looked up, "But this isn't even about  _recent_  history.  _Professor Dumbledore's_  mother was a Muggle-born witch as well and a  _bloody good one_  at that. But I wouldn't expect you to know that considering you probably have other people read  _for you_  and don't actually know how to  _yourself_." You stood up, placing your wand back into your boot, smiling at the people around the table staring at you in shock as they hadn't even noticed you flick your wrist toward the blonde boy. "And I hope you've brought an umbrella along with you today, Michael," you said, "Forecasts are calling for rain in about...3 seconds." You lifted your bag over your shoulder, walking away from the table.

Three seconds later, you heard Michael begin shouting as the rain cloud you'd created over him started pouring water. You couldn't help but smile to yourself as you heard people ask those around them how you did that without ever even muttering a spell in the middle of your speech.

But after you'd turned the corner, you heard someone coming up behind you.

You felt a hand grab your upper arm tightly, spinning you around. Michael had the most enraged expression you'd ever seen, his blonde hair sticking to his face in the aftermath of the small rainstorm you'd cast.

"What the  _hell_  was that?" Michael grumbled, his face dangerously close to yours so he could whisper and still be heard  _loud and clear_.

"An unfortunate time a shower?" you shrugged, not at all fazed by his clear attempt at trying to scare you.

"Are you  _trying_  to make me look like an idiot?"

"Not actively, but if I do, it's an added bonus."

"You  _don't_  want to play this game with me, Muggle," he growled. You had a small smirk on your face as you leaned toward him.

"Don't threaten me with a good time, Clifford," you said softly, hearing him swallow thickly and feeling his shaky breath on your lips as they ghosted over his. "And for the record," you whispered, your tongue swiping across your bottom lip as you looked into Michael's eyes, "You're  _really hot_  when you're angry." Michael was rendered speechless as you took your arm out of his hand and backed away.

You made sure to spend an extra second staring at him, your eyes traveling up and down his body. When your eyes met his again, you smirked, then turned around and started heading back to the castle so you could study in the peace and quiet of your dorm room.

~

**Two hours later**

"Hey, Y/N!" your roommate, Emily, chirped as she walked in.

"Hey, Em," you grinned, "How was your study date with  _Ashton_?" You winked jokingly, making her sigh dramatically as she waltzed over to your bed.

" _Pointless_ ," she replied, throwing herself onto the mattress beside you, "I don't know why I thought I could  _actually_  do this. I  _suck_  at Transfiguration and it doesn't help that I get distracted and can't  _think_  whenever I see Ashton."

"Just  _tell him_  you like him!" you giggled, finally closing your Potions book.

"Easy for  _you_  to say," she pouted, "At least you like someone in the same  _house_. The other Slytherins would have a field day if they knew I liked a  _Gryffindor_."

"What are you talking about?"

" _Please_ ," she smirked, sitting up, "Everyone else may be oblivious, but  _I'm_  not; I  _know_  you like Michael."

" _Michael_?" your eyes widened, "You think I  _like_   _Michael_?"

"Deny it all you want, babe," she grinned, "But I know you do."

You rolled your eyes, opening your book again. You weren't actually reading the words on the page though and Emily knew that.

"I heard about what you did to him today," she said casually, smirking again when you immediately shut your book and looked up at her.

" _How_?" you asked, "That was two hours ago and you were with Ashton all morning."

"You know Ashton's roommate is Michael's best friend," she reminded you, "And apparently, Michael went to Calum right after it happened and was complaining about it as he dried off – nice work, by the way; I heard you didn't say a single spell-" You smiled proudly at the comment while she went on. "-and Calum told Ashton and I that Michael told him he didn't know why he couldn't bring himself to get you back."

"He couldn't  _bring himself to_?" you furrowed your eyebrows, "What does  _that_  mean?"

"Maybe he'd feel bad," she shrugged.

"Michael Clifford is  _incapable_  of feeling remorse," you stated seriously, "If he  _wasn't_ , he wouldn't make fun of me at all."

"Then maybe he couldn't do it because he likes you." You instantly started laughing.

" _Yeah, right_ ," you scoffed, "Like  _that_  would ever happen."

"Why? You  _wishing_  he did?" she cocked an eyebrow, a smirk spread across her face.

You were silent for a moment before closing your book for the second time, leaning over and placing it on your desk.

"I'm gonna go to Hogsmaede," you stated, making her smirk grow even  _more_  at your avoidance of her question, "Do you want anything?"

"Yes, please," she said sweetly, reaching into her pocket and pulling out some money, "However many Peppermint Toads from Honeydukes this will get me. And if you see Ash, give him one because I know those are his favorite." You nodded and took it from her, putting it in your pocket before grabbing your coat and slipping your arms into the sleeves.

"I'll be back before curfew," you informed her, placing your wand inside your boot where you always kept it – just in case.

~

"Hey, Y/N!" you heard a voice say cheerfully as footsteps approached you.

You were browsing Tomes and Scrolls after leaving Honeydukes, a bit surprised to hear someone greet you. You looked up from the book you were looking at and over your shoulder, finding Ashton as he stopped beside you.

"Hey, Ash," you grinned, "What's up?"

"Nothing really," he shrugged, "I heard what happened with Michael earlier. Is it true that you didn't say any spells to create that storm?" He seemed so amazed by the fact, making you laugh lightly.

"I've practiced wizardry  _a lot_  since I got my letter," you told him.

"You've  _gotta_  teach me how to do that," he sighed, "That's  _so_  bad ass." You couldn't help but laugh again as he went on. "Well, I'm meeting up with some friends, so I better get going; I just wanted to say hi since I saw you walk in here."

"Thanks, Ash," you smiled, "It was nice seeing you." He went to walk away, but you suddenly remembered what Emily told you. " _Oh, Ashton_!" you squeaked, making him stop and look at you. He watched you reach into your bag, digging out a sweet. "I was told to give you this if I saw you," you said, holding the Peppermint Toad out to him.

"Who told you that?" he asked with a chuckle, taking it from your hand.

"Emily. She said she wanted me to bring some back for her and mentioned they're your favorite, so she wanted me to give you one."

"Well, tell her I said thank you," he smiled bashfully, a light blush on his face. You nodded and waved as he left, unable to keep yourself from grinning at how flustered he'd gotten hearing your best friend's name.

~

You sat yourself down at a table outside of Honeydukes to eat one of your sweets before returning to the castle. You were pretty isolated from the business of the shops, so you sighed to yourself as you heard loud chatter coming from around the corner.

You got up to leave again, but one of the voices made you stop.

"I don't know, man; She's just _...weird_ ," Michael told whoever he was with – and you just  _knew_  he was talking about you. "First, she made me look like an  _idiot_  in front of everyone," he went on, "And then, she acted like she was gonna  _kiss me_."

"I'm not seeing the problem," his best friend – and a fellow Slytherin – spoke, "You  _always_  look like an idiot."

" _Shut up, Luke_!" Michael groaned as you snorted quietly at the comment.

"I don't get it," you heard Calum's voice next, "It's not like you would have been mad if she  _actually_  kissed you." Your heart skipped a beat –  _did you_ ** _hear_** _that right?_

"What is  _that_  supposed to mean?" he scoffed, almost in  _exactly_  the same fashion you had when  _Emily_  mentioned  _your_  crush on  _him_.

"Don't act like you don't fancy her," Luke snickered.

"You're  _bloody mental_ , Hemmings!" he exclaimed softly.

"Maybe I am," the blonde shrugged, "But you're  _still_  not denying it."

"I don't understand why you don't just  _tell each other_  you like each other," Calum mentioned, "I'm sick of watching you look at her like a lost puppy."

"She doesn't like me, Calum," Michael rolled his eyes, "She makes it perfectly clear she's annoyed by me."

"Well, I have sources that say  _otherwise_ ," he smirked. You narrowed your eyes, instantly knowing that Emily had told Ashton who then told Calum, making a mental note to give her a piece of your mind about it when you got back to your room.

" _What sources_?" Michael asked before you couldn't hear them anymore – already on your way back to the castle.

As you were heading back to where you were sure Emily still was in your room, you were suddenly being yanked behind Dogweed and Deathcap. You let out a loud squeak in surprise, the sound cutting itself off when your back hit the concrete wall. Two hands were tightly gripping your forearms, forcing you to remain in your spot.

Jacob Morrison was a Slytherin who had been pining for your attention for whatever reason the day you both started fifth year. You'd declined his date offers every single time he asked, but he was incredibly persistent in trying to convince you to go out with him. So much so, in fact, that he thought  _this_  would be a better solution.

"What are you  _doing_?!" you asked loudly, desperately trying to free yourself from his grip but he was too strong.

"I'm  _tired_  of being rejected by you, Y/N," Jacob spat, squeezing your arms.

"I'm allowed to not want to go out with you,  _Jacob_ ," you returned, "Now  _let go_!"

"We'll see how you feel after  _this_ ," he stated.

Before you had the chance to ask what he meant, his lips were on yours. He took your surprised gasp as an apparent go-ahead to stick his tongue in your mouth as well. Your attempts at getting away had become much more desperate at this point, but lucky for you, someone heard your noises of distress.

" _Baubillious_!" you heard a voice shout off to the side.

The bolt of lightning coming out of whoever's wand it belonged to struck an area of the wall above you, causing it to break off. A piece of concrete – and a very  _large one_  at that – fell to the ground about three feet away from you, exploding into smaller pieces.

Jacob released you in surprise as he jumped, allowing you to run away. But as soon as you turned the corner and heard the voice again, you stopped and peeked around to see who saved you.

" _Morrison_!" Michael spat, the green in his eyes much  _darker_  than usual. Your own eyes widened slightly – Michael was the  _last_  person you expected to come to your rescue.

" _Clifford_!" Jacob glared, "What the hell is  _wrong_  with you?! That spell could have  _killed me_!" Michael responded by grabbing the boy's collar and shoving him  _hard_  against the wall.

"You touch a girl like that  _ever_  again and I promise you,  _I'll make sure it does_ ," he growled – the grip on Jacob's collar was so tight, his knuckles were turning white.

"What do  _you_  care?" Jacob scoffed, "It's just  _Y/N_ ; You don't even  _like her_. What's it to you if someone else has a little  _fun_  with her?"

"Whether I like her or not  _isn't_  the concern," Michael said lowly, "I'd still respect her enough to  _listen_  if she told me to  _stop_  doing something to her." He shoved Jacob harder into the wall for good measure. "If I  _ever_  see you touching Y/N or any other girl like that without their permission again, you better pray to  _whatever you believe in_  that you live through what I'll do to you, understand?" Jacob didn't respond, only making Michael madder. " _Do you understand me, Morrison_?" he grumbled. The boy glared at him before nodding, and he finally released him. Jacob quickly walked away and Michael waited until he was out of sight before leaving his spot.

The blonde broke into a run in the direction you'd gone in, hoping you hadn't gotten too far and he'd be able to find you. He lucked out when he saw you sitting on the ground against the side of The Three Broomsticks – your chest visibly rising and falling as you tried to catch your breath. He hurried over to you, dropping to his knees in front of you.

"Y/N," he said, making you look up. He then took your face in his hands, inspecting it to see if Jacob had done anything before he got there. "Are you okay?" he asked you, "Did he hurt you?"

"I'm fine, Michael," you mumbled, hoping your blush due to him touching you wasn't showing  _too much_.

"Did he hurt you?" he repeated upon noticing you had yet to answer that question.

"Michael..." you trailed off.

" _Y/N, did he hurt you_?" he said firmly. You looked down at your lap, turning his attention to the bruises on your forearms from when Jacob refused to let up on his grip.

Michael looked at your arms with a solemn expression on his face, mad at himself that he didn't pay attention to your cries until  _after_  the bruises were inflicted. He released your face and you watched him take his wand out of his boot, scooting back slightly.

"Hold your arms out," he told you. You did, but he didn't do anything, clearly thinking about  _something_.

"Episkey," you said softly, making him look at you, "Any other healing spell might make it worse."

Michael sighed – truthfully feeling a bit guilty that he ever made fun of you for simply  _enjoying_  learning about the magical world – and recited the spell with a flick of his wrist toward your arms. You both watched your bruises disappear.

You then gave Michael a small smile, making his heart skip a beat. He didn't get the chance to really take it in though, because the next thing he knew, you were on your knees and wrapping your arms around his neck. He shoved his wand back into his boot so he could hug you back just as tightly as you were holding him, bringing you with him as he stood back up.

"Thank you for saving me," you said into his neck, feeling him squeeze your waist, "You didn't have to do that."

"You're  _my_  person to mess with –  _not anybody else's_ ," he mumbled in return.

"Thanks, Michael," you whispered again, craning your neck so you could kiss his cheek.

You pulled away and started to turn around, but he wasn't done with you  _just yet_. Michael put his hand on your cheek, turning you back to face him. His lips hit yours and you honestly felt like your entire body was on fire.

You always pegged Michael as a rougher person when it came to kissing, but he wasn't – not during the  _first kiss_ , at least. He took it slow – of course, maybe that was just because Jacob had practically just shoved his  _own_  tongue into your mouth – but you appreciated the sensitivity Michael was approaching you with. You felt Michael sigh in relief once you started kissing him back, happy to know you felt the same way about him as he did about you.

When you pulled away for air, Michael's forehead fell onto yours. His hands moved back around your waist, resting against your lower back as he pulled you into him. One of your arms wrapped around his neck while the other was resting against his chest so you could play with the ends of his messy blonde hair. He tried to be discrete about it, but you could see the smile pulling at the corner of his mouth at the feeling of you messing with his hair.

"Can you teach me how to cast spells without saying anything?" Michael asked you randomly, making you start giggling.

"Only if  _you_  promise to stop calling me Muggle," you whispered.

"I'll stop calling you Muggle _..._ " he trailed off thoughtfully, "But you have to let me start calling you  _Kitten_  instead."

"Deal," you grinned, just before his lips were back on yours.


	387. Marshmallow (Marshall Traver)

Everyone's heard about those rom-com high school love stories where the bad boy starts dating the shy nerd and then everyone just gradually starts accepting her into his crowd, right?

Well, what about when life  _isn't_  like a rom-com cliché?

You and Marshall had been dating for over a year now, getting together near the beginning of your junior year. It was an unlikely pairing to say the least, but you were both happier than you'd ever been in a relationship.

The way everyone _else_  felt, however, was a different story.

It was in your last class of the day that this whole mess started. Scott Morris was never fond of you  _before_  you started seeing Marshall, and he certainly didn't warm up to you  _after the fact_  either. He always made fun of you during class – sometimes even disrupting the  _lesson_  just to do so.

Scott followed you down the hallway to your locker after the final bell and to your dismay, Marshall wasn't waiting for you there like he usually was. And because of that, the bully only  _worsened_  his vocal blows. You ignored it as best you could, but he decided he was going to make sure you heard him  _loud and clear_  today.

It wasn't a  _hard_  punch – to be honest, you'd been hit harder  _before_  – but it was still enough to  _immediately_  leave a nasty looking bruise on your left eye. You let out a loud yelp while everyone else in the hallway didn't even bat an eye – it didn't surprise you, of course; you knew nobody was going to come to your defense.

So instead, you picked your backpack up and ran toward the doors to the student parking lot before Scott could hit you again.

It was pretty clear outside – the buses had already left and there were only a few students waiting for their rides – so it didn't take you long to find the person you were looking for. Marshall was leaning up against the passenger side of his car, waiting for you to come out so he could drive you home. But when he saw that you were keeping your head down as you ran toward him, he was understandably confused.

The moment you reached him, your arms were around his waist and you were holding onto him like your life depended on it.

"Y/N, what happened?" Marshall asked you, hugging you back as tightly as you were hugging him. He didn't know  _why_  you were clinging to him – sure, you were  _always_  that way with each other, but it definitely wasn't accompanied by feeling your tears seep into his shirt very often.

It was at that point that he decided to  _really_  take a look at you – noticing you were careful to hide your face as you approached him. But when he released you and put his hand on your cheek in an attempt to look, you only squeezed him tighter.

"Princess, let me see your face," he told you. You simply shook your head, forcing him to use a tone he hated using with you. " _Y/N_ ," he said firmly. He heard you whine softly. "Please, princess," he practically begged, " _Please_  just let me see it." You swallowed thickly but did as he asked anyway, knowing you couldn't exactly hide it from him forever.

The moment you moved away enough for him to see your face, his eyes widened. His hands were on your cheeks, carefully moving your head around to look at the bruise around your eye.

"Princess, what  _happened_  to you?!" Marshall exclaimed.

"Nothing," you murmured, "I went to tie my shoe in the locker room and forgot I left my door open." But Marshall knew you were lying – he  _always_  did.

" _Y/N_ ," he cocked an eyebrow, letting you know he knew you weren't telling him the truth. Your eyes only started getting watery, him gently wiping the tears before they fell.

"Scott Morris was making fun of me during fifth period," you whispered, "And the bell rang and I left class but he didn't  _stop_  and I got my stuff from my locker and tried to come out here, but he... He decided he wasn't  _done_  yet..."

" _Did he hit you_?" Marshall asked angrily – not at you,  _obviously_ , but at the sheer  _balls_  someone had to have for picking  _his_  girlfriend as target practice. You didn't give him an answer – mostly because you knew he already  _had it_.

You couldn't say you were  _surprised_  that Marshall immediately let go of you and started to march back toward the building, no doubt to give Scott a piece of his mind. Unfortunately though, you knew that it would end in a  _fight_ , and you instantly started panicking.

"Marshall,  _no_!" you said quickly, grabbing his arm and trying to force him him to stop walking to no avail.

"Y/N, he's not gonna get  _away_  with that shit!" Marshall exclaimed, "And especially not when it's  _you_!"

"Marshall,  _please_!" you whimpered, continuing to pull on him as he dragged you closer and closer to the doors. Your cheeks were starting to get wet and you couldn't stop crying. "You're gonna get  _expelled_!" you choked out, "And then I'll be  _alone_  and everything's just gonna get  _worse_!"

Marshall finally stopped walking, knowing you were right. He knew that if he was suspended for even a  _day_ , the torture you already endured when he wasn't around would be a hundred times  _more_  unbearable.

And he felt  _terrible_.

The enemies he'd made throughout the last four years became  _yours_  as well the moment you agreed to that first date with him. No matter  _what_  he did, nothing made the bullying stop.

You were never bullied like  _this_  before you started seeing him. Sure, people would make passive-aggressive remarks about you even though you were simply minding your own business, but that all  _changed_  when Marshall started talking to you.

You'd been weary of him at first – the school's resident bad boy talking to the bookworm everyone was sure was mute or  _something_  because she never talked to  _anybody_  was enough to make anyone take a second glance just to make sure they were  _actually_  seeing the two of you standing together – but once you got to  _know him_ , you fell for him.

You fell for his smile and his laugh, how his eyes shined when the light hit them just right, the way he would lean on his car as he waited for you in the parking lot to take you home... And no matter  _how much_  he hated to admit it, Marshall wasn't really as rough and tough as he led everyone to  _believe_.

When he took you home, he would always stay for a couple hours, sticking around and spending time with you and your mom when she got home from work before he had to leave for dinner – though he  _did_  stay once in a while for dinner with your  _own_  family. He loved curling up on the couch and watching cartoons –  _Spongebob Squarepants_  seemed to be the usual – with you lying on top of him, your face in his neck and constantly insisting that you  _weren't_  about to fall asleep even though he knew you were.

Your parents loved him and the way he treated you like a princess and his parents absolutely  _adored_  you and how much  _less_  trouble their son seemed to get in when he started seeing you. When you would have dinner with everyone together, you knew there was bound to be plenty of childhood stories in the hopes of embarrassing the two lovebirds – and of course, they did, but you and Marshall would still practically be in hysterics at all the things your parents seemed to remember from when you were growing up.

As you looked up at your boyfriend, you could tell he was lost in thought. You didn't know what was bothering him, but you could tell the anger was still bubbling inside him at the idea of someone hurting you without him there to protect you.

"Mar-" you started before you were cut off.

"I'm taking you home," he stated dryly, taking your hand and pulling you back to his car.

"Mar, you're doing it again," you sighed.

"Doing what?"

"That thing where you bottle up how you're feeling and start being distant with me," you reminded him. He didn't say anything, but you could see his expression soften – and that would just have to do for now.

Upon arriving home, you found neither of your parents' cars in the driveway – something you were incredibly  _happy_  about. You didn't want them hounding you about what happened when Marshall still clearly needed to talk to you about how he felt first. Though, to be honest, you weren't exactly sure you were going to tell them what  _really_  happened anyway.

But you didn't have to think about that right now.

Marshall let you unlock your front door before taking you to your bathroom. He lifted you up onto the counter and grabbed a washcloth, running it under the water for a moment. He then began cleaning your cheek, making sure not to press down too hard on your bruise, just to make certain there were no cuts that required a first aid kit.

You noticed that something was still bothering Marshall, making you lift your hand up to rest on the back of his head so you could play with his hair. He glanced at you for a moment and you saw the rest of his body relax as he continued working on you.

When you noticed he was finishing up, you spoke again.

"You gonna talk to me yet?" you asked softly, your hand falling back onto your lap as Marshall draped the washcloth over the side of the bathtub to let it dry.

You thought he wasn't going to answer you – you truthfully thought he was just going to leave the room – but when he came back to stand between your legs, you knew he was going to talk.

"I should have  _been there_ ," he murmured, looking down at his hands as they gripped your thighs, "You wouldn't have gotten hurt if I'd waited at your locker like I  _always_  do. I should have-"

"But you  _weren't_ , Marshall," you shook your head, moving your hands to his cheeks to make him look at you, "And there's nothing you can do to change it, so let's just  _move on_. Even if you  _had_  been there, Scott would have just waited until some  _other_  time to hit me, and  _you know that_. Hitting him back is just going to make everything worse, so  _please_  just promise me you won't do anything."

"But he-"

"Mar,  _please_ ," you begged. You heard Marshall sigh softly, before barely nodding his head.

"I promise," he told you.

You knew he wasn't  _thrilled_  – you knew  _all_  he wanted to do was return the favor – but you  _also_  knew that when he promised you something, he was going to stick to it no matter  _how_  unhappy he was about it. You then pulled his face to yours, feeling him relax as you kissed him.

"I love you, Marshmallow," you told him.

"Why do you  _keep_  calling me that?" he whined jokingly, "You  _know_  I don't like that nickname."

"Because you haven't told me  _not to_ ," you grinned, pecking his lips again. Marshall rolled his eyes – you knew you were the only one he  _let_  give him nicknames like that.

You squealed as he suddenly put one arm around your back and the other under your knees, lifting you off of the bathroom counter. You giggled when he stopped at the light switch to have you turn it off before continuing toward whichever room he was taking you to.

You ended up in the living room where Marshall set you down before lying on the couch and pulling your hand so you laid with him. You situated yourself right on top of him with your face in his neck. He wrapped his arms around you, his forearms resting on your lower back.

It didn't take long for him to feel your breathing even out, signaling to him that you were almost – if not  _already_  – asleep. He then kissed your forehead, grabbing the remote so he could find something to watch on TV.

~

10 minutes later, just as the episode of  _Spongebob_  had gone to a commercial, Marshall heard the front door open. He looked over to see your mom coming into the house, smiling when she saw him there.

"Hey, sweetheart!" your mother beamed quietly.

"Hi, Mrs. Y/L/N," he grinned, his hand never ceasing to run through your hair. She went to put her things on the counter in the kitchen before returning to the living room.

"Long day?" she asked as she glanced at your sleeping figure on top of your boyfriend.

"I guess you could say that," he shrugged lightly – and it was then that your mom really took a look at you.

"Oh my God," her eyes widened, "What  _happened_  to her?" She got close enough to inspect your cheek, but not close enough that it could possibly wake you up.

"She hit herself on her gym locker as she went to tie her shoes before class," he answered seamlessly. Your mother just sighed and shook her head.

"I'm not surprised," she mentioned, "She gets her clumsiness from  _me_." Marshall simply chuckled as she continued, "Are you staying for dinner?"

"If you want," he told her, "Or we could go out with my parents. They've been talking about wanting to have dinner again sometime soon."

"Absolutely!" she smiled, "I'll call your mom right now and we'll figure out what we want to do! It was nice seeing you again."

"You too," he grinned as she left the room. When he heard your mother go into her bedroom down the hall, he felt a small kiss get pressed to his collarbone.

"Thank you," you whispered.

"Your mother would probably have had a  _heart attack_  if she knew what really happened," Marshall replied softly, kissing your forehead and leaving his lips there. You just let out a breath of amusement, knowing he was right. "I love you, princess," he murmured, the sound being muffled by your skin.

"I love you too, Marshmallow," you returned with a smile, tilting your head so you could press your lips to his.


	388. Almost Ordinary (Cody Carson) - Part 1

It was another ordinary day.

Well...  _Almost_ another ordinary day.

Everybody was buzzing about the news that a foreign exchange student – some kid your age named Cody Carson – would be transferring there until the end of the school year. You didn't know much about him – all you knew was that he was the prince of some country on the other side of the world that you'd never  _heard of_.

You walked into the building that day, hearing  _literally_  every single student you passed, chatting with their friends about how they ' _couldn't believe a_ ** _prince_** _was at our school_ '.

But you simply ignored all of it and continued walking.

You dropped your backpack off at your locker before heading to the cafeteria to meet your best friend Sam at your usual table for breakfast. You both laughed and talked about what you did over the weekend – as if you  _hadn't_  come to school with her  _or_  spent  _most_  of that time together anyway since she  _was_  your neighbor, after all – and once the warning bell rang, you both hurried back to your lockers to get your things for your first period class.

You had just closed your locker door, ready to meet Sam again in your classroom, but you didn't even make it to the middle of the hallway.

The moment you turned around, you were met by a firm chest. You squeaked loudly, your books falling out of your grasp as you tumbled to the floor. You pushed your hair off of your face and looked at who had run into you, finding the boy your classmates had been talking about.

You didn't believe them when they said he looked like ' _a total prince_ ' – everyone obviously knew he was, but they hadn't expected him to dress like he was going to a  _royal ball_  or something – but looking at him now, you found they were  _right_.

Truth be told, you were hoping to  _avoid him_  throughout his stay. You already had to deal with the  _popular kids_  in school thinking they were kings and queens – you really didn't want to deal with an  _actual royal_  too.

But, because  _this_  is how your life works, you weren't  _allowed_  that luxury.

"Aren't you going to  _apologize_?" Cody huffed, straightening out his shirt. He hadn't fallen down – only been  _mildly inconvenienced_  by the run-in – but he was certainly acting like it was  _much_  bigger than it was.

"Why would  _I_  apologize?" you cocked an eyebrow, " _You_  ran into  _me_."

"Because  _I_  am a  _prince_ ," he stated. You realized he wasn't going to even offer to help you up, so got back on your feet and dusted off your jeans.

" _Okay_?" you shook your head, "I'd ask if you wanted a fucking medal, but it looks like you've already got  _several_." You didn't know what came over you, but you were snapping back at him in a way you'd never done before.

You were usually a pretty quiet student – never really got into anyone else's business and  _especially_  didn't cause trouble with anyone. But you'd had a rough enough day as is already and you didn't need  _Prince Cody_  making it worse.

" _Excuse you_!" he said, clearly surprised by your defiance, "You can't speak to a member of the  _royal family_  that way!"

"Well, those might be the rules in  _your_  country, but they don't mean  _shit_  here," you stated, "People weren't created  _solely_  to meet your every demand, so you might as well  _get used to it_."

**Cody's POV**

Cody watched you as you picked your things up off the floor and walked away. He didn't know what it was – when people talked back to him at home, he immediately reprimanded them and sometimes even fired them on the spot – but _you_...

You were something else. There was this mysterious vibe about you that he couldn't seem to shake off.

And although it was clear to him that you wanted nothing to do with him, he was determined to have  _everything_  to do with  _you_.

**Your POV**

"How much longer is that  _prince_  here?" you asked your best friend as you sat down next to her after entering your World History class.

"A few months," Sam replied with a small laugh, "Why? You meet him already?"

"I can't  _stand_  him," you grumbled, slouching in your chair.

"Good thing you're  _sitting_  then..." she trailed off.

You looked at her and when you noticed she was looking toward the door, you turned your head, following her gaze – just in time to see Cody walk into the room. You groaned softly, leaning back in your chair again and looking up at the ceiling.

"Why  _me_?" you said out loud, "Was I not nice enough to my sisters growing up? Do I not pray as often as I should? Are you avenging all the ants I've accidentally stepped on throughout my life?"

" _Stop it_!" Sam whispered, slapping your arm as she giggled.

"Y/N," your teacher, Mr. Karzen, said, "Raise your hand."

"Do I  _have to_?" you asked, not turning to look at him. You heard him chuckle, but his voice was stern.

"Yes, you  _have to_ ," he told you. You whined under your breath, your hand going up in the air. "Take the seat next to her," he told Cody.

"Yeah, take it and  _go somewhere else_ ," you mumbled, making Sam snort softly.

~

As the end of class was approaching, you breathed a sigh of relief. You'd felt Cody's eyes on you throughout practically the entire period and you were happy that it was almost over – assuming he wasn't in any of your  _other_  classes, of course...

"Alright, guys," Mr. Karzen wrapped up his lesson for the day, "I'm going to assign a project now." Everyone groaned, making him laugh as he went on. "It's not that hard, I promise," he shook his head, "Since our lesson today was about South America, I just want you all to pick a partner and prepare a short presentation about everything you research about your country that you find interesting or something you think other people would be surprised to find out. You have until Tuesday to finish your projects and this  _isn't_  something that can be put off until Monday to do in class, which means you'll have to get together over the weekend." You and Sam immediately looked at each other, but your teacher had other plans. "Y/N," he said as everyone else was finding partners, making your head snap forward to look at him, "I'd like you to work with Cody on this one."

"That's not exactly letting me  _pick my partner_ , Mr. K," you told him, feeling Sam slap your arm again. He tried to give you a stern expression, but he couldn't keep himself from smiling.

"You and Sam  _always_  work together," Mr. Karzen reminded you.

"Because we're  _neighbors_  and it's easier to meet up!" you said defensively.

"I'll make you a deal then..."

"Nothing good has  _ever_ come out of anyone saying things like  _that_!" you whined.

"You and Sam can be partners," he offered, "But  _only_  if Cody works with you as well." You opened your mouth to protest, but he cut you off. "You can either work with him yourself or you can all work in a group," he said, "You two are my hardest working students."

"Remember when I was your  _favorite_  too?" you sighed, slouching in your seat once again.

"You still  _could be_ ," he chuckled, heading back to his desk just before the bell rang.

You grumbled quietly as you ripped a sheet of paper from your notebook and wrote Sam's address down on it. You put it on Cody's desk and looked at him.

"Be at Sam's house by noon tomorrow or we're starting without you," you stated dryly, gathering your books and walking out of the classroom with Sam giggling beside you.


	389. Almost Ordinary (Cody Carson) - Part 2

**The next day**

The knock at the door made you groan loudly, causing Sam to kick you under your dining room table. You glared at her, to which she only reminded you to be nice, as her mom got up from the couch in the living room to answer the door.

"Hi!" you could hear her smile, "You must be Cody! Come in! The girls are in the other room!" You listened to their footsteps get closer and closer until her mom appeared in the doorway. "Hey, girls," she smiled, ushering Cody in, "Don't forget to take breaks, okay? We can order some pizza later if you want. I'll try not to bother you too much."

"Thank you," you and Sam said in unison, not looking up from your books. Cody sat down at the table across from you, sitting quietly for a few moments before speaking.

"So..." he said slowly, "What country are we researching?"

You remained silent, flipping a page in the maps section of your textbook. Sam rolled her eyes, looking at him since it was obvious you were going to speak to him as little as humanly possible.

"We haven't decided yet," she informed him, "We were thinking about Chile but that might just be because Y/N is hungry." You heard Cody laugh softly, making you mentally reprimanded your heart for skipping a beat at the sound of it.

"I'm fine with that," he said, "I haven't been there yet though, so I don't know how much help I'll be."

"That's why you look it up in your textbook,  _genius_ ," you scoffed lightly, ignoring when you felt him look at you.

Sam kicked you underneath the table again, making you glare at her. She didn't say anything – she just raised her eyebrows – causing you to grumble under your breath and look back down at your book.

The afternoon continued on like that – Sam and Cody making mindless small talk in the midst of your research, which rubbed you the wrong way for whatever reason. Maybe it was jealousy that he was a royal and he went to all these different places or maybe it was anger that he seemed to actually make a difference in the world while you were just trying to get by without getting picked on every day.

Though, it wasn't until just before dinner that the rolled eyes and not-so-subtle grumbles made Cody speak up.

Sam had just gone into the living room – despite your silent protest – to talk to her mom about what you were all going to eat, and Cody decided to use the opportunity alone with you to his advantage.

"Y/N," Cody said, making you murmur a ' _What?_ ' in response. He sighed, "What have I done to you? What did I do to make you hate me?"

"Our first run-in wasn't exactly the most  _pleasant_  first impression you could have given someone," you replied, trying to stay focused but knowing he was going to continue.

"How's that?" You instantly looked up at him with raised eyebrows, a dumbfounded expression on your face.

"You tried to get  _me_  to apologize for something  _you_  did," you reminded him.

"But I told you-"

"You told me to apologize because  _you're a prince_ ," you stated, your voice raising slightly but not enough so that Sam or her mother would be able to hear, "And as soon as you go back  _home_ , you can continue  _being_  a prince and riding on your high horse and acting like you're the single most important thing on the whole  _goddamn_  planet and that everyone should just stop what they're doing and pay attention to you. But while you're  _here_ , you don't  _get_  that kind of treatment." You then abruptly stood up, grabbed your books, shoved them into your backpack, and walked out of the dining room.

**Cody's POV**

Cody listened to you tell Sam and her mom that your dad wanted you home for dinner instead of you staying and while they said goodbye to you, he could tell Sam didn't  _quite_  believe it. And his assumption was proved correct as she came back into the room.

"Everything okay?" she asked him as she sat down – even though she knew it wasn't.

"It's fine," he grumbled, looking back down at his book.

"I don't know if you're ever one to talk about what's bothering you, but I do know that talking  _helps_ ," she offered, "And if you wanna talk about it, I'd be  _more_  than happy to help –  _even_  if you only want me to  _listen_." Cody was silent for a moment before taking a deep breath and looking back up at her.

"Why doesn't she like me?" he asked, "I... I thought I was being nice, but she just seems to  _hate me_  more and more..."

"Well... I think trying to suggest she should apologize for something she didn't do  _kind of_  ticked her off," Sam replied, leaning back in her chair, "So maybe you should try saying you're sorry."

"How am I supposed to do  _that_?"

"You just  _say it_ ," she shook her head, "But you have to  _mean it_  too. You can't just say it for the sake of getting her off your back; It has to be a  _genuine_  apology."

"What if it  _is_  genuine and she  _still_  doesn't believe it?" he sighed, putting his elbow on the table and his chin in his hand. Sam was quiet for a moment before letting out a forced chuckle.

"I don't know  _what_  to tell you," she answered honestly, "But I'm sure she'll come around  _eventually_."

And while Cody wasn't  _totally_  satisfied with that answer, he took it anyway; All he had to do now was figure out how to apologize and hope Sam was right.

~

**Your POV;** **One week later**

It wasn't until only a few days after that conversation with Sam that Cody finally decided he was just going to accept that he didn't have a  _real_  plan and just apologize the moment he saw you after lunch.

You were standing at your locker, making sure you had everything you needed for your next class. Cody figured it was now or never seeing as Sam wasn't with you this time, so he swallowed thickly and made it way over.

"Hey, Y/N..." he said. He noticed you sigh to yourself but you didn't  _exactly_  turn him away, so he went on. "I just wanted to say I'm sorry for how I spoke to you when we first met," he said, making you look at him as you cocked an eyebrow. He didn't know whether the expression was good or bad, but he knew was in too deep to back out now. "It was really rude of me to try and force you to apologize for me not paying attention," he shook his head, "So... I'm sorry..."

"I forgive you," you replied right away.

" _Really_?" his eyes widened slightly –  _that was easier than he thought it was going to be._

"If it ends this conversation  _faster_ , sure," you replied.

You closed your locker door and went to walk away, but Cody had finally had enough of your attitude toward him. He grabbed your wrist, spinning you around, and pulled you into him so your faces were only centimeters apart. You were about to yell at him, but he didn't give you the chance.

"You  _wanted_  an apology and I  _gave_  you one, Y/N," he said lowly so no other students strewn about the hallway could hear him, "Whether you choose to believe I actually mean it or not is your  _own_  decision, but I've  _had it_  with you treating me the way you do. When you decide you want to tell me the  _real_  reason you despise me so much,  _then_  we can talk. But until then, I'll just give you what you  _clearly_  want and stop bothering you." Cody ended his speech by releasing your wrist and walking away, not even giving you a chance to say anything.

And he kept his word – not speaking to you throughout the remainder of the day.


	390. Almost Ordinary (Cody Carson) - Part 3

**Two weeks later**

It had been a couple weeks now since Cody confronted you after lunch. You'd been thinking a lot about it – beginning to feel a little  _bad_  about the way you'd been acting around him.

But apologizing for something as serious as  _this_? That wasn't exactly something you were  _good at_. But you knew you  _had_  to do it.

And you were  _going to_...

But after you'd finally worked up the courage to go up to him, someone  _else_  beat you to it.

You'd pep-talked yourself up  _all_  morning, telling yourself that as  _soon_  as you got to school, you'd go to Cody's locker and apologize to him. But just as you were approaching him, you watched one of the most popular girls in the school, Jasmine Richardson, walk over and turn around so her back was leaning up against the locker next to his. You listened to her ask him to the winter formal and while you couldn't hear his response, you knew he was going to say yes –  _everyone_  said yes to  _Jasmine Richardson_.

"Hey, Y/N!" you heard Sam chirp as she skipped over to you, surprised you didn't meet her at your locker before you two headed to the cafeteria for breakfast like you did every morning. Your head snapped over, not even noticing that Cody's head did as well the moment he heard your name. "You ready to eat?" she asked. But when she finally took a good look at you, she knew something was wrong. "Are you  _okay_?" she asked frantically, putting her hands on your shoulders, "Why are you crying? What  _happened_?"

But you didn't verbally answer her.

All you did was swallow the lump in your throat, shake your head, and walk in the direction of the cafeteria.

Sam watched you for a moment before looking around, trying to figure out what could have made you start crying in the middle of the hallway. It was then that her eyes met Cody's, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. She then spotted Jasmine – who had been glaring in your direction since the moment Cody looked over – and she rolled her eyes,  _knowing_  what was going on. She turned around and quickly followed you, wanting to make sure you were okay.

Sam didn't find you right away, so she decided to go through the lunch line so she could at least eat breakfast while she continued her search. But the moment she came out into the cafeteria, she found you.

You were sitting at your regular lunch table, timidly eating the Poptart in front of you. You were clearly spaced out – not paying attention to anything going on around you – as she walked over and sat down across from you.

"You wanna tell me what's wrong?" Sam asked you, earning herself a shrug. "Well, how about I  _guess_  then?" she suggested, "I know it had  _something_  to do with Cody and Jasmine talking at his locker because you  _never_  go down that hallway. So I'm guessing you were going to apologize to him?" You barely nodded, breaking off a piece of your Poptart and putting it in your mouth. "What happened during that time that made you  _not_  apologize then?"

"She asked him to the dance," you whispered after you swallowed your food.

"Why would  _that_  make you start crying? I thought you weren't  _going_ ," she shook her head. You shrugged again, finishing off your Poptart. "Were you going to ask him to go with you?" her eyes widened a bit. You just shrugged for a third time, crumpling your wrapper as you stood up.

"Doesn't  _matter_  anymore," you mumbled, walking to the trashcan and then leaving Sam in the cafeteria.

You made your way to Mr. Karzen's room, mentally preparing yourself for the class period ahead of you. He wasn't in the room when you walked in, so you just sat at your desk, patiently waiting for class to start despite the fact that there were nearly 20 minutes until the bell rang. You were sitting with your cheek in your palm and your elbow on the desktop, reading the book you'd brought with you to school that day.

"Good morning, Y/N," Mr. Karzen said as he walked into his classroom, the surprise in his voice very evident, "You're in here awfully early. Everything okay?" You shrugged, not looking up from your book.

You listened to your teacher sigh, putting his things down on his desk. With his coffee cup in his hand, he walked to the row of desks in front of yours, pulling out a chair and sitting right in front of your desk.

"You wanna talk about it?" he asked you.

"Talk about what?" you asked, your voice barely even coming out.

"Whatever's bothering you."

" _Nothing's_  bothering me."

"You and I  _both_  know that's not true, Y/N," he said firmly, but gently at the same time, "If you don't want to talk about it, I won't make you, but just remember that I'm always here if you need someone." You were silent for a moment before looking up at him.

"How do you say you're sorry when it's really hard for you to do?" you asked softly. He sat in thought, wanting to give you the best advice he could.

"I think you just have to  _say it_ ," he told you, "Apologizing is never easy, but the sooner you do it, the sooner you'll feel better."

"Thank you," you nodded slightly, making him smile.

"You're a good kid, Y/N," he reminded you, "You'll know exactly how to apologize when the time comes." He got up, going to his desk to sort out his papers for the day.

~

Throughout class, you felt Cody and Sam glance at you every once in a while. And although you were beginning to feel uncomfortable, your face showed no sign that you even noticed; You just remained silent the whole class period.

Mr. Karzen luckily understood that you didn't really want to participate in class discussions that day, so whenever he called on you, he would only ask yes or no questions so you only had to either nod or shake your head. And that was something you would always be grateful for him for. 

By the time class ended, you honestly felt like you were going to be  _sick_. While Sam knew what was up with you, she was still concerned as to why you were so quiet – sure, you had days where you wanted to interact with other people as little as possible, but you were never  _this_  quiet. And it definitely didn't  _help_  that you were pretty sure Cody hadn't looked at anything but you the  _entire period_  and, to be honest, that fact  _alone_  made you want to start crying again.

But you  _made it_ ; You made it through the class without so much as  _hinting_  that you were on the verge of tears. And when the bell rang to signal class being over, you breathed an abrupt sigh of relief, causing the two people next to you to look at you in confusion.

"Hey, Y/N, are you-" Sam cut herself off when you immediately got up from your seat, grabbed your books, and left the room. "- _okay_?" she sighed softly as she finished her question, her gaze flicking over to Cody as he eyeballed her curiously. She simply shrugged, gathering up her own things and heading out of the room with everyone else.

 


	391. Almost Ordinary (Cody Carson) - Part 4

**The next day; After school**

"Can you even  _believe_  her?" you heard someone say as you putting your things in your backpack to go home, "I mean, who does that  _nobody_  think she is trying to act like Cody would fall for someone like  _her_?"

And your heart  _immediately_  stopped.

Sam had told you that Cody and Jasmine saw you watching them and you knew that Jasmine must have gone whining to her friends about it, which obviously finally spread throughout the  _rest_  of the school. You knew things were only going to get  _worse_  now – you knew everyone was going to turn on you if they thought that  _you_  were trying to steal someone away from  _Jasmine Richardson_.

All you wanted to do at this point was get to your car as quickly and safely as possible. You didn't want anyone stopping you to ask questions and you didn't want the people talking about you around the corner to know you'd been listening.

But you should have learned by now that you were never  _that_  lucky.

You were almost done at your locker – almost  _two seconds_  away from freedom – when you heard a voice behind you.

"What's this I hear about  _you_  trying to get with  _Jasmine's_  new target?" some kid whose name you didn't even know said, "Did you  _really_  think no one was going to find out about such a  _pathetic_  girl's attempt at something like that? Must be  _humiliating_  knowing you don't have a chance with that prince though, huh?" he laughed dryly, "I mean, he's a  _prince_ , so  _of course_  you don't have a chance with him, but I still think it's  _hilarious_  that you thought you  _did_. You're not good enough for any of the people in this school; What made you think you'd be good enough for someone like  _him_?"

You knew he was purposely trying to get a reaction, so you didn't give him the satisfaction; All you did was shut your locker door, swing your backpack onto your shoulder, and walk away. To your relief, he didn't follow you – allowing you the one breath of fresh air in that he had better things to do – but you  _did_  hear someone hurry up behind you as you got outside.

You were about to step off the sidewalk to go to your car, but you never made it.

"Y/N!" Cody chirped as he ran after you, grabbing your elbow and turning you around. He was a little out of breath and he looked incredibly concerned. "I know I said I'd stop bothering you, but I-" You cut Cody off, swallowing the lump in your throat and managing to get your voice out without too much hint that all you wanted to do right now was cry.

"I-I'm sorry about all those things I said before," you whispered, "I shouldn't... I shouldn't have treated you like that – especially after you apologized."

"Thank you," he nodded, "And I forgive you.

You breathed out, nodding as well and turning to walk away. However, you were surprised to feel Cody grab your hand and turn you back around.

"Will you go to the dance with me?" he asked abruptly, making your eyes widen.

"B-But you're going with Jasmine Richardson..." your breathing hitched as he rubbed the back of your hand with his thumb.

" _Am I_?" he smiled slightly, "I don't  _remember_  saying yes to her."

"But...  _No one_  says no to her..."

"They do when they don't want to say yes," he said, "And I didn't."

"Why  _wouldn't_  you want to say yes?"

"Because I want to go with  _you_." You instantly lost your breath, shocked to hear the words come out of his mouth.

You never expected that someone like  _Cody_  – a guy who was only 18-years-old and had been to more royal balls than you would ever go to in your  _lifetime_  – would want to go to some meaningless high school dance with you,  _but he did_.

"I heard what that guy said to you before you came out here," Cody said softly. Your eyes dropped to look at the collar of his shirt as he continued. "And I think he's got it all wrong," he said, "I think you've got all the chances in the  _world_." Your heart skipped a beat, your eyes snapping back up to meet his. "You're talented and smart and  _so beautiful_  and while you  _do_  let people get into your head, you don't  _show it_ ," he shook his head, "But I know that pretending to be confident can only get you  _so far_ , and I don't think you should have to hold it in all the time. It's  _okay_  to be hurt by things people say, you know. But it's  _not_  okay to always keep it  _bottled up_."

Cody watched your eyes get watery, making him smile sadly before wrapping his arms around your shoulders and pulling you into him. He felt your body shake as you cried softly, your face in his neck and your arms holding his waist for dear life. The fingers of one hand were tangled in your hair while the others were drawing lines up and down the middle of your back.

When he'd finally calmed you down to the point you were only sniffling every so often, he spoke again.

"So will you go to the dance with me?" Cody asked you. You released him so you could look at him, a bit surprised to see such a hopeful expression.

"This isn't gonna be like the dances you're  _used to_ , you know," you informed him, a small smile on your face, "We're lucky we can afford someone to come click some buttons on a computer to play  _music_  at these things. And we're not gonna  _look like_  people at those dances either; I'm sure I'll barely even have enough to buy a  _dress_."

"If worst comes to worst, I'll buy you a dress  _myself_ ," he shrugged, wrapping his arms around your waist. Your own arms wound around his neck as you rolled your eyes.

"You are  _not_  buying me a dress, Cody," you stated firmly, feeling his breathing hitch when you said his name, "I'm only gonna wear it  _one time_  and then I probably won't ever  _look at it_  again."

"Then just find a dress you can wear on  _any_  occasion," he grinned.

"I know you're from a  _different_  country and all, but that's not how we  _do things_  around here," you smirked lightly, squealing when he started poking at your side.

"So you and me?" he smiled at the sound of your laugh, "Winter ball, or whatever it's called."

"Yeah," you giggled at his name for it, "I'll be your date." Cody grinned wider than he had since you met him at hearing you  _actually_  wanted to be his date.

"I'll see you tomorrow," he said when he noticed his car pulling into the parking lot.

You nodded slightly and he pressed a kiss to your cheek before hurrying toward the vehicle. You blushed a bright shade of red as you watched someone get out of the front passenger side, bow as Cody walked up to him, and open the back door for him.

You didn't understand at all why Cody would be interested in you over  _literally_  anyone else, but as he looked over his shoulder and smiled at you, you didn't want to feel your heart skip a beat because of  _anyone else_.

~

**One month later; Winter formal**

You were at Sam's house getting ready for the dance and to say you were nervous was an  _understatement_.

Word had obviously gotten out that Cody asked you to the dance not long after  _Jasmine_  asked him and she was  _not_  happy about. You liked to think she wasn't going to do anything at the dance, but you knew her better than that – she'd actually have an  _audience_  for it.

"Girls!" you heard Sam's mom call, bringing you out of your daydream, "Your dates are here!" You stared at yourself in the mirror – you'd found a dress you absolutely  _loved_  and were even  _more_  excited when you realized you could actually  _afford it_.

"You look  _amazing_ , Y/N," Sam said, putting her hands on your shoulders, "Stop worrying so much."

"Thanks," you whispered, taking your bag when she handed it to you. You both walked down the stairs, causing all your parents to look up at you.

"Oh,  _girls_!" her mom gushed, "You look  _incredible_!"

"Thanks, Mom," Sam smiled, hugging her mom and dad before going over to her date.

"My little girl's all grown up," your dad sighed dramatically, pulling you into him.

" _Dad_ ," you rolled your eyes, hugging him back. He laughed softly and then released you so you could finally greet your date as well.

" _God_ , you look beautiful," he said without thinking as you were walking up to him. You blushed lightly and thanked him, grinning when he kissed your cheek.

Sam's mom insisted on taking pictures before you all left, so you humored her for a few minutes until Sam insisted that she didn't want to be late. You and Sam quickly hugged your parents goodbye before you were all out the door.

Upon arriving at the school and entering the gym, you admired the decorations for a moment. There wasn't really any sort of theme, so there were just fairy lights hanging from the ceiling as well as a canopy over what you assumed was the dance floor.

Trey, Sam's date, had already pulled her over to refreshments, stating that if he didn't something to eat now, he wouldn't be able to dance properly later. You laughed as Sam rolled her eyes but went with him anyway. Cody pouted for you to dance with him when the first slow song of the night came on, so – since you couldn't say no to that face no matter  _how_  hard you tried – you made your way to the dance floor, ignoring every single person glaring at you throughout the whole night.

~

When it was time to announce the dance's Prince and Princess, the Principal walked onto the stage beside the dance floor. When he announced that Cody had won the title of Prince, you teasingly told him it wasn't fair since he already  _was_  one. This, of course, only earned you a few pokes to the side before he had to go onstage. Someone put the plastic crown on his head while the Principal was announcing the Princess.

"Your Winter Princess is..." he trailed off as if to build suspense, " _Jasmine Richardson_!"

Cody looked at you in a panic – but he was only confused when he saw you laughing –  _was_ ** _this_** _her plan to humiliate you?_

Jasmine was crowned as well and the Principal announced that the Prince and Princess would share a dance. You could tell Cody wasn't pleased, but he did it anyway.

You had no idea what the two were saying or what was going on, but you watched them with furrowed eyebrows as you noticed Cody's hands were on her hips and  _clearly_  holding her so she wasn't standing right up against him. He didn't hold  _you_  like that when he danced with  _you_  – he actually kept trying to pull you  _closer_  to him – and it made your heart flutter knowing that he really  _did_  want you over her.

After what Cody considered an  _eternity_ , the song was finally over and he quickly let go of Jasmine and came back to you. Another slow song started playing, so he pulled you back to the dance floor. He wrapped his arms around your waist as yours went around his neck, but unlike the previous times you danced together, his face was buried in your shoulder.

"So is being the Prince of a high school dance  _better_ or _worse_  than being the Prince of an entire  _country_?" you asked, your fingers playing with the hair at the top of his neck.

"Well, I have less  _responsibilities_  here," he chuckled, his voice muffled by your skin, "And the  _crown_  is a lot lighter." You laughed loudly and then both of you were quiet for a few seconds. "I really like you..." Cody said randomly, "You know that, right?" You didn't even get to answer before he was speaking again. "Because Jasmine keeps trying to convince me you're not good enough even though you're  _way_  too good for me and I just wish she would stop but she-" You finally cut him off, squeezing him gently.

"She's just mad she  _lost_ , Cody," you sighed, "She  _always_  acts like this when she doesn't get her way. Sure, I'm a  _nobody_  and she's decided that you shouldn't like me because of it, but she'd be acting this way even if you were into one of her own  _friends_  instead." You felt him left out a breath against your neck right as a small kiss was being pressed to it.

"I  _really_  like you," he mumbled again, making you smile.

"I know," you nodded, kissing the side of his head, "I really like you  _too_." Cody lifted himself off of you and you both stared at each other for a moment before you spoke again. "So... Are you allowed to kiss someone who  _isn't_  a princess?" you asked lowly, your bottom lip caught securely between your teeth.

"You're a princess as far as  _I'm_  concerned," he grinned, tilting your head so your lips were on his.

 


	392. See You Again (Ashton Irwin)

"Our final guest is an adorable little girl who took Facebook by storm when her mom posted a photo of her drawing of her favorite superheroes," Ellen smiled at the camera, "Please welcome 5-year-old Sydney and her mom Y/N."

The chorus of  _Don't Stop_  by 5 Seconds of Summer started playing as you and your daughter walked out onto the stage. You were smiling as Ellen got up to meet you at the side of the couch you'd be sitting on, smiling even bigger when Sydney let go of your hand to run to her. She'd always been a huge fan of Ellen's – insisting on watching the show every day after school after you'd told her that she was the voice of Dory in  _Finding Nemo_.

When she let go of Sydney, Ellen leaned back up to hug you before you all sat down. She waited to speak again until the audience stopped clapping.

"Well, you are just the cutest little kindergartner I've ever met!" Ellen gushed, poking your daughter's knee.

"Thank you!" Sydney giggled, making you smile.

"You're very welcome! Do you wanna tell everyone why you're here today?" Sydney was quiet for a moment, making Ellen grin as she urged her on, "Who's your favorite band? Is it 5 Seconds of Summer?"

"Yeah!" she grinned widely, bouncing in her seat.

"And you drew a picture of them once in your class at school, didn't you?" she asked.

The audience awed as the picture she'd drawn came up on the screen behind you. It was a picture of the four boys she'd labeled ' _Luke_ ', ' _Mikey_ ', ' _Cal_ ', and ' _Ash_ ' – Michael's hair had been pink at the time, so she'd scribbled a head of pink hair on the guitarist – along with a woman in a red dress labeled ' _Mommy_ '.

"You drew that, huh?"

"I drew that picture!" she squealed happily.

"Now, Y/N, I know you already explained it in the Facebook post," Ellen looked up at you, "But why don't you tell everyone what the assignment was? What was she supposed to draw?"

"She was  _supposed_  to draw her favorite superhero," you nodded with a smile, "And I guess her favorite superheroes are me and the band."

"That is so sweet of you to do that, Sydney," she told the 5-year-old, "Who did you draw  _first_?"

"Mommy," she giggled, hiding her face in your arm. You grinned slightly, leaning down and kissing the top of her head.

"Do you draw the band a lot? Or was this your first time?"

"I draw them a lot!" Sydney replied cutely, "I draw them again every time Mikey's hair is a different color!"

"Oh, wow, you really must  _have to_  draw them a lotthen," Ellen replied teasingly, making everyone laugh. "I like your shirt, by the way, Sydney. What's written on it?"

"It says ' _5 Seconds of Summer_ '!" she answered, pointing to each word on the area above her heart.

"And what's on the back?" she asked, "Do you know what that says?"

"Do you want to show everybody?" you asked her.

You held your hands out and she reached up, allowing you to help her stand up on the couch and turn around, moving her hair out of the way so she could show everybody the ' _IRWIN 94_ ' on the back of her shirt. The audience let out a mixture of awes and laughs as Sydney sat back down beside you.

"You have Ashton's name on the back of your shirt?" Ellen smiled, "Why's that?"

"'Cause he's our  _favorite_ , huh?" you smiled down at your daughter, "We want to be a drummer  _just_  like him."

"Oh, I imagine that's a  _real_  fun time for you," she laughed.

"It's not that bad, I guess," you chuckled, "She doesn't have an actual drum set, she only has these pencils that look like drumsticks that she got from the book fair at school, so it's not as loud as it would be."

"That's smart thinking," she nodded, making you laugh again, "So, Sydney, you like Ashton?" She smiled shyly, nodding her head. "What do you like  _most_  about him?"

"I like, um..." she trailed off – as most 5-year-olds do, "I like when...when he sings in songs."

"You do? What's your  _favorite_  song he sings in?" She was quiet again, so you spoke for her.

"Do you like when he sings ' _Call me lucky 'cause in the end_...'?" you sang softly, helping her since she wasn't good with the actual song titles. Sydney nodded rapidly, looking back up at Ellen.

" _End Up Here_? Is that your favorite song?" Ellen asked her.

"Uh-huh!" she nodded again, "Me and Mommy always dance to it when we're in the car!"

"Well, I have a present for you, okay, Sydney?" she mentioned, standing up, "Come with me; I think you're  _really_  gonna love this." Sydney took Ellen's hand as she led you both off the main stage.

But the moment you stepped off the stairs, the doors on the side stage opened and your heart skipped a beat.

Your hands flew to your mouth in shock as the audience cheered, seeing Ashton in front of them. They couldn't help but awe as the smile on Sydney's face grew wider than you'd ever seen it before, letting go of Ellen's hand and running to him. You smiled at her actions – she wasn't a very  _shy_  girl, so this was no surprise to you – and watched her jump up into his open arms.

Ashton easily lifted her up to rest on his hip, hugging her just as closely as she was hugging him. He had a big smile on his face, his eyes closed and his face scrunched up, happy she wasn't at all nervous.

After a couple moments of hugging Sydney, Ashton made his way to you, taking one arm off of your daughter to wrap around your shoulders. You obviously hugged him back before he let go to hug Ellen and you all went back to the couches.

You sat back down in your spot while Ashton sat in the seat Sydney was previously in. He tried to sit her by herself at first, but she instantly climbed onto his lap. He giggled lightly, repositioning her so she could sit comfortably.

"Hi, Ellen!" he smiled at the host as the audience's cheers died down.

"Hi!" she grinned back and then looked at Sydney, "Look at that, Sydney! Who's your surprise?!"

"Ashton!" Sydney giggled, laying her head on his shoulder.

"So, Ashton, thanks for coming today – I know you're usually busy, so I was worried you wouldn't be able to make it."

"I'll  _always_  make room in my schedule for you, Ellen," he laughed.

"And it looks like  _Sydney_  is very excited to see you as well."

"Well, I saw that clip of the little girl who met Adam Levine and I'm really happy she didn't react that way with me," Ashton laughed, looking down at her and grinning – the audience awing once again as she looked up at him and smiled herself.

"So, Ashton, I know you have somewhere to be soon, so we don't want to keep you for  _too_  long, but you have a surprise for Sydney, right?"

"I  _do_!" he grinned, poking the leg of the little girl on his lap, "When Mummy decides you're ready for a real drum set, I'm gonna buy you one, okay?" You covered your mouth, feeling your eyes well up with tears.

You'd truthfully been wanting to buy her one for  _so long_ , but you just couldn't afford to and things that were more important would always come up. But to know that you didn't have to worry anymore about whether or not you'd be able to get her the drum set she'd been begging you for since the  _day_  she decided she wanted to learn how to play was honestly a weight lifted off of your shoulders.

" _Thank you_!" Sydney squealed happily, hugging Ashton tightly. He hugged her back and then looked over at you, seeing you getting emotional.

He smiled slightly, lifting his arm up and sliding it across your shoulders, pulling you into him. You couldn't hug him properly, but you did lay your head on his shoulder.

"Alright," Ellen smiled, "Well, I'm being told that we have to wrap up the show now, but we do have  _one more_  surprise for you, Y/N." You lifted yourself back up off of Ashton and looked at the talk show host quizzically. "We know being a single mom can be tough, so our friends at Walmart want to help make life a little easier by giving you free groceries for the next year." Your hands were on your face and your elbows were on your knees as the audience clapped.

As you heard Ellen start closing out the show, you felt Sydney lean over and put her hand on top of your head, patting you gently.

"Mommy,  _happy_  crying?" she asked.

You couldn't help but smile, wiping your face before lifting yourself back up just enough to grab her cheeks and begin peppering her face with kisses. Sydney squealed and started giggling, squirming around on Ashton's lap, neither of you noticing the way he was grinning at you.

"...and be kind to one another," Ellen closed out the show, waiting a moment for Andy to give her the signal that cameras were done rolling. She then thanked the audience for coming and as they were leaving the room, she turned to you, Ashton, and Sydney. "Thank you guys so much for being on the show," she smiled.

You all stood up so you could hug her – Sydney allowing Ashton to put her down on the ground so he could hug the host as well. Ellen kneeled down to hug Sydney before going over to Andy to talk with him for a moment.

You looked down when Sydney squealed happily, watching her dart over to where Jeannie had just entered the room. You had waited with Jeannie before coming onto the stage and it was obvious Sydney really liked her – of course, who  _didn't_  like Jeannie?

"She really  _does_  love you, you know," you mentioned to Ashton as you watched your daughter giggle with Jeannie, "I sometimes think she loves  _you_  more than she loves  _me_."

"I'm sure that's not true," Ashton laughed, "She's a beautiful little girl though – looks exactly like you."

"You calling me beautiful?" you grinned.

"Certainly sounds like it," he smiled back, making you chuckle softly as he continued, "So, it's actually okay with you, right? If I buy her a drum set?"

"If you  _want_  to," you nodded, your voice lowering slightly, "She's always wanted one, but I just couldn't do it-" Your smile faltered a bit. "-You know, house payments and getting food on the table is always more important."

"Well, if you don't want one right away – until she learns how to play, I mean – I know you guys live not too far away from here _..._  And the band and I are on a break for the next few months, so... You know... If you don't mind the drive every once in a while, I'd be happy to teach her..."

"You would do that?" you looked up at him. Ashton smiled bashfully, barely shrugging his shoulders.

"If you're okay with it," he said. You couldn't help but smile.

"I think you just want to see  _Syd_  again," you teased, "I think you like her."

"Her... You... It's all the same thing," he replied without hesitating.

When he'd realized he'd said it out loud, however, his cheeks turned a light shade of red. You blushed as well, beginning to chew on your bottom lip.

"Don't think we can have you liking the  _both_  of us," you mentioned, making him look at you curiously, "Someone might get  _jealous_."

"Oh well, I can  _handle_  feeling a little jealous," he told you, nipping at his own lip.

"I'm sure you  _can_ ," you nodded, "But  _you're_  not the one I'm worried about getting jealous."

"Listen, just because she loves me  _more_ -"

" _Whatever_!" you cut Ashton off, laughing loudly as you shoved his arm. He grinned widely, grabbing your shoulders and pulling you into him.

"It's not my fault, okay? I'm sorry!" he said dramatically, holding you against his chest. Your arms automatically wound around his waist, your head resting on his shoulder once again. "So, I have to get going, but... I'll see you guys soon...?" you heard him ask. You tilted your head to look at him and saw him smiling shyly.

"Yeah, Ash," you nodded, your voice not giving you anything above a murmur, "We'll see you soon."

"Do you think...maybe...I could get your number? You know, so we can arrange a time for you to come by when I'm free...?" You nodded again and he let go of you to take his phone out, unlocking it and opening a new contact.

"So does it  _just_  have to be to talk about Syd's drum lessons?" you asked bravely, texting yourself so you had his number as well before handing the phone back to him.

"N-Not if you don't  _want it_  to be..." Ashton stumbled over his words a bit, "I-I can call you later if you want..."

"I look forward to it," you blushed lightly. You and Ashton hugged one more time before you looked over at your daughter. "Syd!" you called out, making her perk up as she and Jeannie looked at you, "You wanna come tell Ashton bye? He has to leave."

You heard Sydney tell Jeannie she'd be back – which made both you and her laugh as she nodded – before the 5-year-old was running over to you. Ashton immediately scooped her up once again, letting her hug his neck as he hugged her back.

"I'm  _so_  happy I got to meet you, Sydney," he told her as she pushed herself back up to look at him, "You make sure to be good for Mummy so you can get that drum set as  _soon_  as possible, okay?" She nodded quickly and he smiled, "Can I give you a kiss on the cheek before I go?"

Sydney obviously wasn't going to turn him down, so she nodded again and he leaned in, quickly kissing her cheek. She giggled softly before leaning in herself and whispering something in his ear. You couldn't hear what she was saying, but it made Ashton blush.

You stood there confused for a moment before your face turned what you could only assume was the  _brightest_  shade of red as he stepped toward you to kiss your own cheek upon your daughter's request.

"I'm happy I got to meet  _you_  too, Y/N," he mumbled in your ear before pulling away just in time to see you swallow thickly.

You couldn't help the smile on your face as Ashton passed Sydney to you, telling you both that he was sorry he couldn't stay longer. As he walked away, Sydney spoke again.

"Mommy," she said as her small hand grasped your shirt, "Are we ever gonna see Ashton again?"

"Yeah, baby," you grinned, biting your bottom lip as you watched the drummer disappear around the corner, "We'll see him again real soon."

~

_adam levine video mentioned: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3aAl92_VDE_


	393. Heaven Sent (Ryan Follese)

"Why is everything so  _stupid_?!" you shouted, slamming your apartment door behind you, too upset to care about your neighbors. Your boyfriend came out of the kitchen with a smile on his face, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall beside him.

"Bad day?" he asked, only earning himself an eye roll from you before you threw yourself onto the couch with your face in one of the pillows.

Ryan pushed himself off of the wall and walked over to you, grabbed the shoulders of your coat, and took it off of you without you moving so much as a centimeter. After hanging up the coat in the closet by the front door, he returned to you, climbing on top of you and sitting himself on your thighs.

" _Ryan_ ," you groaned at the sudden weight before you cut yourself off when you felt his hands back on your shoulders and his thumbs working at the knots in your back. You sighed in content, hearing Ryan chuckle when he felt you relax for what he was sure was the first time that day.

"You wanna talk about it?" he asked you, "Might make you feel better." You let out a sharp breath, but you knew he was right.

"Today was great – until I got out of  _bed_ ," you said, hearing him laugh again, "Then, on my way to work, I hit a  _poor_  little squirrel when it ran out into the road! I couldn't even come back to pay my respects because the road was closed on the way home and I had to go the  _long_  way!" Ryan bent down to kiss the top of your ear as you rambled on. "Then this girl came in at 7 and ordered like,  _10 things_  and it was obvious she was an intern but who  _does that_?! What kind of  _egotistical dirtbag_  makes their intern get coffee for everyone and not even force someone else to tag along and help her out?! And  _then_  my manager had the  _nerve_  to yell at me for leaving the building during my shift  _even though_  I was helping the girl get all her  _shit_  to her car! And then lunch comes around and there's a difference between ordering something for the first time and  _deliberately_  trying to make your barista's life a fucking  _shit show_! And then the part of the machine that makes the coffee frothy decided to kick the bucket for two hours and it was like this  _bitch_  thought the  _entire_ staff was out to  _ruin her day_  all because she didn't have any  _tasteless foam_  floating at the top of her  _stupid drink_! And  _then_  these two people who clearly met on Tinder came in before my shift ended and this  _piece of shit_  spent the  _whole time_  talking about himself and when she  _did_  speak, he was on his phone not even paying  _attention_  to her! Why would you go out with someone if you were just going to  _ignore them_?! Like, how far up your own ass do you have to  _be_?! He's lucky  _I_  wasn't on that date with him because, I swear to  _God_ , I would have ripped him a  _new one_." You finally ended your rant with a deep exhale, and Ryan waited a moment to make sure you were actually done before speaking again.

"I think you need more than a  _neck massage_  to wind you down from  _that_  kind of day, princess," he commented.

"Like  _what_?" you whined when he took his hands off of your neck.

"I made your favorite for dinner," he mentioned, noticing your face move a bit as you smiled.

Ryan got off of you to let you turn onto your back so he could grab your hand and pull you to your feet. He brought you into him and kissed your forehead, hugging you for a moment before releasing you to lead you into the kitchen.

Dinner was already set up on the table, your favorite drink being served in wine glasses making you giggle. You heard Ryan smile at the sound of it as he pulled your chair out for you. You reached up to kiss his cheek before sitting down, feeling his smile get wider. He then sat down at the table across from you and you toasted your glasses with another giggle as he started telling you about his day as you ate.

~

When dinner was finished, Ryan insisted you stay put while he did the dishes. You didn't, of course, standing behind him as he was at the sink with your arms around his waist and your head lying on his upper back.

It wasn't until he was done with the dishes that he spoke again.

"I got you something while I was out today," Ryan mentioned.

"Mhmm?" you hummed, "And what might that  _something_  be?"

He had you take your arms off of him so he could take your hand and bring you into the bathroom. He handed you the gift bag that was on the counter top, watching you as you pulled out the tissue paper.

"You went into Lush  _by_   _yourself_?" you giggled, pulling out the familiar crinkly packaging and opening it so you could smell the bath bomb.

"I picked out a new one I thought you would like," he said shyly. You grinned again, leaning in to press a kiss to his cheek. "I think you should use it now," he mentioned, "Might help you relax even more after that day at work."

You smiled again with a nod, prompting Ryan to go to the tub and start filling it for you. You grabbed a hair tie and put your hair up on the top of your head, not wanting it to get wet. You excitedly opened the bag and plopped the bath bomb into the water when the tub was finally filled, mesmerized by the colors now floating around.

You felt your boyfriend come up behind you, his hands grabbing the bottom hem of your shirt and pulling it over your head, your pants following it to the floor not long after.

"You're so beautiful," he said softly, making you blush. Ryan always complimented you –  _especially_  when you were wearing little to no clothing – but it never failed to make your cheeks red and your stomach fill with butterflies.

He helped you take off your bra and underwear as well, letting you hear him chuckle as you let out a relieved sigh when the bra was off – he'd always found you  _willingly_ wearing uncomfortable bras to be somewhat amusing. He gave you one last peck to the head before helping you into the tub, watching you sink down until everything below your collarbones was underwater and close your eyes in content. He went to leave, but stopped when he heard your voice.

"Ry," you murmured, making him turn around, "Stay?"

You stuck your bottom lip out for good measure, but you knew he would have anyway – he never passed up the opportunity to take a bath with you. So Ryan simply smiled before stripping himself and climbing into the tub behind you. You grinned again, waiting until he got comfortable to scoot backwards while his arms wrapped around your bare waist.

"Happy birthday, princess," he murmured, kissing the side of your head as you laid your head on his shoulder with another peaceful sigh.


	394. Change of Heart (Calum Hood)

**Calum's POV**

Calum strolled down the long hallway on his way to class, smiling coyly at anyone who made eye contact with him. He was a sixth-year Slytherin – though you didn't need to know him for two minutes without knowing he was a member of the house.

He was your stereotypical tough guy, he was the best on the Quidditch team, and he  _hated_  the idea of breathing the same air as  _muggle-borns_. Maybe it was the way he was raised, but Calum had never been fond of those who weren't  _born_  magical – the thought of someone  _randomly_  discovering they were a wizard rubbed him the wrong way.

But all that seemed to change the day he met  _you_.

He walked into his Potions class – half of his classmates were already there – and cocked an eyebrow the moment his eyes landed on the girl sitting in his seat. He marched over, ready to give her a piece of his mind – everyone else was watching with a mix of horror and excitement as they had no idea what he was going to do.

But nothing happened.

As he approached the girl, he noticed her struggling to tie her necktie to complete her uniform before class started. He couldn't tell you  _why_ , but he felt a pang of guilt in his chest, truthfully feeling bad for her.

He'd heard of this girl before – it seemed like the  _whole school_  was talking about the 17-year-old who only  _just recently_  found out she was a witch. She had already been sorted – Hufflepuff, Calum heard – and had been at Hogwarts for a couple days to get a tour and find out where her classes were. She hadn't met anyone yet – though she  _had_  heard about those with certain...reputations – so this was technically her first time  _meeting_  another student.

So instead of telling her off like he originally planned, he sat himself down on the desktop in front of her.

**Your POV**

You jumped at the sudden presence, your head snapping up. Your eyes met his and your breathing hitched – why was such a good-looking guy sitting on  _your desk_?

It was silent for a moment –  _eerily silent_ , in your opinion – and you caught other students watching you and the boy with his gaze set on you. You turned your attention back to him, a bit of bashfulness at how he  _still_  hadn't stopped staring at you, until you finally couldn't take it anymore and had to say something.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" you asked him.

"Well, you  _are_  in my seat," he mentioned. Your eyes widened again.

"S-Sorry, I'm sorry," you rushed, starting to get up before you were stopped.

"Didn't say I was  _upset_  about it," Calum told you, putting his hands on your shoulders and gently pushing you back down. He then plopped down in the seat beside you, his eyes never leaving your face. "So," he said, his arm falling onto the back of your chair, resting against your upper back, "What's your name?"

"Y/N..." you replied cautiously. You didn't need to ask for his name – you  _already_  knew it.

The seventh year who had given you your tour of the school told you to be weary of him – not because he hated new kids, but because you were a muggle-born. You didn't understand why he didn't like people he'd never bothered to try to get to know, and you  _certainly_  didn't understand why the one muggle-born he  _did_  was apparently  _you_.

"Nice to meet ya," he chirped, "The name's Calum – though I'm sure you already knew that by the way you're looking at me."

"Knew that you hate anyone who isn't a  _pureblood_?" you countered, "And I'm sure you've already heard about  _me_. So what's with the sudden change of heart?"

"Can't a guy be nice to the new girl?" he shrugged.

You simply rolled your eyes, turning to face the front of the classroom in the hopes he would get the hint and stop talking to you. He didn't, of course – continuing on anyway.

"So, you're a Hufflepuff, huh?" Calum said thoughtfully, "I would have pegged you as more of a  _Gryffindor_  with how  _brave_  you are talking back to people like that."

"Not all Hufflepuffs are shy and submissive," you shot back without hesitation, "Just like I'm sure not all  _Slytherins_  are judgmental  _pricks_." You heard a few people around you snort softly, causing Calum to shoot them a glare.

"Go find a  _different_  seat, new girl," he grumbled, earning himself a smile from you.

"Sure thing,  _Your Highness_ ," you replied, gathering your things and getting up.

After scooting into his usual seat, Calum looked over his shoulder at you. He watched a Ravenclaw from across the room nod her head at you, signaling for you to next to her and pointing to her own tie, letting him know that she was going to help you with yours.

"That girl is gonna be the  _death_  of you," Calum heard someone say. He turned back to find his best friend – and fellow Slytherin – Ashton sitting down in the seat beside him.

" _Shut up_ ," Calum mumbled, crossing his arms over his chest.

"You're only upset because you know I'm  _right_ ," Ashton replied with a shake of his head.

"I couldn't care  _less_  about her," he growled back.

"You're only saying that because you don't like when people challenge you," he stated matter-of-factly, "It's the same way  _we_  met."

~

**Three months later**

Calum was strolling past the Potions classroom when he heard a squeak and then something fall onto the floor. He went over to the door and peeked inside, finding you standing by the cauldron. You sighed deeply, picking up your mortar and pestle off of the ground and put it back on the table loudly.

"Five Doxy eggs are  _too much_ , four Doxy eggs  _aren't enough_ ," you grumbled to yourself, " _Four and a half_  it is then."

"Half a Doxy egg doesn't work," Calum said, making you jump and spin around, "I've tried."

" _Great_ ," you grumbled again, turning back to your work station.

"You add two and stir until the potion changes color, then add two and stir until it changes color again," he informed you, "And if it doesn't work  _then_ , one of your  _other_  ingredients is off."

"Then why doesn't the book  _say that_?!" you exclaimed, more to yourself than to Calum, as you threw your hands up in defeat, "How am I supposed to do it  _right_  if the recipe doesn't tell me  _what to do_?!"

"Recipes are always open to change," he replied thoughtfully, "Maybe it worked that way when it was  _written_ , but something about the ingredients may have changed along the way." You sighed again, looking at him when he handed the spoon you'd been stirring with back to you. "I know it's real rich coming from  _me_ , but just trust me," he shook his head. You stared at him for a moment before slowly taking the spoon back and trying again.

You did exactly as Calum said – putting two Doxy eggs in, stirring, then adding two more and stirring again – and you were surprised to find he was  _right_. The potion instantly turned the color the recipe said it would, making you sigh in relief and lean onto the table, finally letting your body relax.

You could see Calum smiling out of the corner of your eye, and you looked at him again. He was about to ask you what was wrong – because he could tell  _something_  was – but you beat him to speaking.

"Why me?" you swallowed thickly.

"Why am I being nice to you?" Calum asked.

"That too," you laughed dryly, "But not what I meant."

"Then what  _did_  you mean?"

"Why  _me_?" you repeated with a sigh, looking back up at him, "Not a single person in my family has ever been magical – so  _why me_? I can't do something as simple as  _making a Girding Potion_ ; I don't even know how to tie this  _stupid tie_  properly!" You motioned to the messily tied fabric around your neck. "I'll  _never_  be a good wizard – I don't even think I'll make a slightly below  _average_ one! So what the hell am I  _doing_  here?! It's obvious I don't  _belong_  here! What kind of person finds out they're a wizard at  _17_?!"

" _You do_ ," he said, making you furrow your eyebrows. " _You_  find out you're a wizard at 17," he went on, "Maybe there are better wizards than you  _right now_ , but that's only because you haven't  _practiced_  enough yet. None of us learned to control our magic until we came here – that's why we're not allowed to use magic outside of the classroom until we leave the school. Maybe you're not the greatest potion maker or broomstick flyer or spell caster  _now_ , but you  _will be_. And I think it'd be a shame to throw all that away just because you're not a professional straight after picking up a wand."

You stared at him for a moment in a slight state of shock – this was someone who  _hated_  non-purebloods and hated  _you_  even  _more_  because you weren't afraid to talk back to him. So why wasn't he acting that way  _now_?

"Why are you being nice to me?" you whispered, "I'm not a pureblood... I'm not a Slytherin... I'm not even someone who keeps their mouth shut and doesn't talk back..."

Calum laughed with a shrug, "Maybe that's  _why_  I like you." Your heart skipped a beat.

"Y-You  _like me_?"

"I like picking at you because you always have some snarky response without having to think about it," he said, "I like that you break the stereotype of being this shy and quiet Hufflepuff by not being afraid to yell at someone when they're being a prick to you or someone else. I like that you don't try to be anybody else – I just like that you're  _you_." He smiled again when he noticed the corner of your mouth twitch upwards and a light pink blush on your cheeks. "And if it makes you feel any better," he added on, "I'm still pretty shit at tying ties too."

"Looks better than  _mine_ ," you let out a soft chuckle.

"You just need more practice," he told you, moving to stand beside you, "I'm not the  _best_  teacher, but I'll try."

He untied his tie, prompting you to do the same. You watched intently as he went through the steps of how he did it himself before leaving his dorm, trying to copy it yourself but it just wasn't happening.

"Do you think anyone will notice if I just buy a  _clip-on_?" you grumbled, trying to convince your hands to do what you needed them to. Calum finished retying his tie, laughing loudly at the comment.

"I tried that first year," he said, "They'll notice."

" _Of course_  you did," you rolled your eyes teasingly before throwing your arms up again and letting out another frustrated sigh, " _I give up_! It's never gonna  _happen_  with this thing!"

"Not too easy to learn when you're getting upset – we'll just try again later." Calum then returned to his previous spot in front of you, retying your tie for you.

As he finished, he pulled it up to your collarbones and stopped. You raised an eyebrow when he didn't take his hands away – he just stared at you with this look you'd never really gotten before. But before you could ask him what it was about, he was pulling on the fabric and yanking you toward him.

His lips hit yours, making you squeak in surprise, but you certainly weren't going to act like you  _hadn't_  been wanting to kiss him since the moment you met him. You didn't even pause to process that this was actually happening – instead grabbing his cheeks and holding him in place as if you thought he was going to realize what he was doing and run away. But when his hands moved down the sides of your body and came to a rest on your hips to pull you as close to him as you could get, you knew he wasn't.

When you pulled away to breathe, you watched Calum's eyes flutter open as he rested his forehead on yours. You both stood in silence for a minute, just enjoying each other's company, when he spoke again.

"Sorry..." he whispered, the breath he let out with his nervous chuckle hitting your lips and making you smile, "I don't know what came over me there..." You leaned forward to peck his lips again, feeling him smile as well before you moved back.

"S'okay," you replied just as quietly, your thumb lightly stroking his cheekbone.

"Will you go on a date with me?" he asked bluntly, knowing that if he didn't do it now, he probably never will.

"Yeah," you hummed, your bottom lip caught between your teeth.

"A-Are you free  _now_?" he murmured, truthfully not expecting you to accept, "W-We can go to Madam Puddifoot's or Honeydukes or-"

"Calum," you cut him off with a giggle, smacking his cheek playfully, "You're rambling."

"Sorry..." he blushed with a smile, chewing on his own bottom lip now.

"We can do whatever," you told him, "As long as it  _doesn't_  involve potions or learning how to tie something." Calum smiled widely, making you squeal and giggle uncontrollably when he started poking at your sides.

You grabbed his hands to make him stop, causing him to hold onto you tightly. You grinned again when he brought your hands up and pressed kisses to the backs of both of them. He let you go long enough so you could both clean up your workstation before he took your hand again, tangling your fingers together as you left the classroom.

The students strewn about the hall looked up and rolled their eyes upon noticing you and Calum holding hands, knowing his flirting with you would only become  _more_  obnoxious now that you knew he liked you.


	395. Princess (Luke Hemmings)

"Hey, princess."

You instinctively rolled your eyes, knowing the comment coming from down the hallway was for you. You ignored it, however, and continued to gather your books for your third period class. The boots striding along the tiled floor of the hall got louder and louder until the clink of a zipper hitting the locker next to yours rang in the air around you.

"You know, it's not polite to ignore people when they're talking to you, princess," Luke shook his head, eliciting another eye roll from you.

Luke Hemmings was the school's resident bad boy slash soccer team captain, causing trouble everywhere he went. You weren't as popular – most of your classmates didn't even know your  _name_  – but for  _some reason_ , you were the person Luke chose to pine for.

" _You_  know it's not polite to ignore people when they tell you they don't want you to call them princess,  _Hemmings_ ," you shot back, still not looking at him.

"When have you ever said you don't want me calling you princess?"

"Ah, let's see..." you pretended to think about it, " _Every time_  you call me princess?"

"Huh, weird," he hummed, shrugging, " _Anyway_ , I've got a proposition for you."

"Oh, boy; I can't wait to hear it," you said monotonously, shoving your pencil into the spiral of your notebook.

"During lunch, how about you and I ditch the cafeteria food and go to the mall?" he suggested. You instantly started laughing.

"Why don't you take one of your  _groupies_  instead?" you replied, shutting your locker door and finally looking up at him, "I'm sure they'd  _kill_  to have lunch with you."

"They're not as interesting as  _you_  are," he pouted. You rolled your eyes for a third time, simply turning and heading to class. "I'll meet you at the doors in the art hallway, princess!" he called after you.

"Not a  _chance_ , Hemmings!" you shouted back, disappearing around the corner.

~

**Later that day**

The rest of your classes went on without incident. Unfortunately, the same couldn't be said for after fifth period.

You were at your locker, mentally checking off what homework you had as you put it in your backpack, when you heard the familiar combat boots stomping closer. You sighed to yourself – you  _really_  didn't want to deal with this right now – but you didn't have a  _choice_.

"Where were you earlier?" Luke asked as he came to a halt beside you, his voice was drastically lower than you'd ever heard before, causing you to cock an eyebrow.

"Well, I went to third period... Had lunch... Went to fourth period... Went to fifth period... And now, I'm going home," you replied casually, putting your homework into your backpack.

"You  _know_  what I meant, Y/N," he growled, "Why'd you bail on me?" You were a truthfully a bit taken aback by the use of your  _actual_  name.

"I didn't  _bail_  on you," you looked up at him, " _Bailing_  would insinuate that I said I was going to go and then didn't show up; But I straight-up  _told you_  no, so  _technically_ , I didn't bail on anything because we didn't have an  _agreement_  to meet."

"I  _told you_  to meet me," he stated.

"And  _I_  said I wasn't going to," you replied harshly, not backing down. You knew he wanted you to cower and give into him, but you weren't about to go down without a fight. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to leave; I have a brother and sister waiting to be picked up from daycare," you spat, swinging your backpack over your shoulder and slamming your locker door, pushing past Luke and heading toward the back of the school where your car was parked.

~

**Luke's POV**

"I don't  _get it_ , man," Luke sighed, throwing himself back against the couch cushion. He and his best friends – Michael and Calum – had been at his house for a while now, eating and playing video games.

"What isn't there to  _get_?" Calum raised his eyebrow, "Y/N's  _obviously_  not interested in giving you the time of day."

"But  _why_?"

"I don't know – maybe because you're a  _dick_?" Michael suggested, tossing a piece of popcorn into the air and letting it land in his mouth. Luke shoved his leg with his foot as Michael was sitting on the floor, causing the blonde to look up, finding his friend with a look of disbelief on his face. " _What_?" he asked, "It's not like she makes it any  _secret_  that she doesn't like the way you treat her."

"How do I  _treat her_?"

"Well, would you like to  _start_  or  _end_  with the whole ' _princess_ ' thing?" he countered.

"That's not even an  _issue_!" Luke said defensively.

"Yes, it  _is_!" Calum rolled his eyes, "She's told you  _so many_  times not to call her that, but you  _keep_  doing it! It's pretty obvious she's not going to do anything with you when you  _blatantly ignore her_  like that!"

"What am I supposed to  _do_  then?" he sighed, slumping his shoulders, "It's not like she's going to all of a sudden show interest the moment I don't call her princess when I see her."

"You could try being  _friends_  with her first," he shrugged.

"Good luck with  _that one_ ," Michael scoffed, his eyes staring intently at the television screen in front of him, "It's gonna take a lot more than  _not calling her princess_  to convince her you're a decent person."

" _God_ , you guys are no help!" Luke groaned, getting up to get another drink.

"Just being realistic, Luke!" he called after him, "She's not gonna fall in love with you overnight with  _your_  track record!"

"What exactly  _is_  my ' _track record_ '?" he asked, coming back into the room and returning to his seat.

"Didn't you literally just stand Stephanie up like,  _last weekend_?" Calum mentioned.

"And you were supposed to take Tiffany to lunch on Sunday, but you just  _never went_ ," Michael nodded, "And when she asked about it, you told her you didn't feel like leaving the house."

"I'm allowed to change my mind!" he defended.

"You can change your mind," Calum stated, "But you don't have to be an  _asshole_  about it. Steph and Tiffany still deserved  _actual_  explanations and heads-ups that you weren't gonna show instead waiting around, wondering where you were."

"Y/N's a nice girl," Michael continued, "If she  _is_  willing enough to give you a chance, she doesn't deserve to have her heart broken  _because of it_." Luke simply leaned back with a sigh, trying to figure out what he could do to convince you he was serious about you.

~

**Your POV; Two weeks later**

You were in the library one Friday morning, truthfully trying not to fall back asleep. You'd gone to bed pretty late the night before due to studying for a test you had that day, but you wanted to come into school early and get all the extra study time in that you could.

To keep yourself awake, you'd gotten up to get another book, but of course, the one you needed was too high. You tried reaching for it a couple times before grumbling to yourself and deciding to just scrap the book altogether, not seeing anyone else tall enough to help you.

You went back to the table you'd been at, rubbing your eyes. When you brought your hands back down, you furrowed your eyebrows upon noticing the book you'd been trying to reach on the table in front of you.

You stared at it for a moment, dumbfounded as to  _how_  it got there, before looking around the room. No one was there, obviously, so you just slowly reached for the book and slid it in front of you, figuring you were just more tired than you thought you were and had managed to reach it anyway.

But you didn't even notice the blonde boy walking out of the library, smiling slightly at how confused you looked.

~

**Lunch time**

"Y/N..." you heard someone say, "Can I talk to you...?" You looked up from your food, a bit surprised to see Luke standing across from you.

You hadn't heard anyone approach – and you always heard  _Luke_  coming – so you were understandably confused. But what confused you even  _more_  was the look on his face.

Luke was never the type of person to be shy about anything –  _especially_  when it came to girls – but he had this expression that... Well... It was an expression that  _you_  only ever seemed to have.

He was scared – about  _what_ , you didn't know, but he was still scared nonetheless. He was chewing on his bottom lip, the lip ring being flicked back and forth by the tip of his tongue. Maybe it was your curiosity that got the better of you, but you nodded slowly as a signal for him to sit down, making him sigh in relief before he did so.

It was silent for a moment – the only other sounds being from those around you still eating their lunches and talking to their friends, none of them paying any mind to you and Luke. You opened your mouth to speak – to ask him why he was there – but he beat you to it.

"I, um... I just wanted to say... I'm sorry for the way I've been acting around you..." he managed to get out, "I, uh... I know it annoys you, and I'm sorry I haven't been respecting you telling me to stop... It was really shit of me to ignore you and..." he trailed off with a deep sigh, "I'm just sorry, okay? For all of it, really." He was becoming increasingly more nervous the longer you stared at him blankly, and when you finally did say something, his nerves didn't exactly let up.

"Why are you apologizing?" you asked, "What's with all this happening  _now_? You haven't spoken to me in two weeks;  _Why_?"

"Honestly?" You obviously nodded, making him sigh again, "I know that if I don't stop  _now_ , I may never have a  _chance_  with you..." Luke could  _see_  your breathing hitch, causing him to start chewing on his lip again. "I... I know I haven't exactly been very good at  _showing it_ , but I... I  _really_  like you... I understand if everything I've ever done or said to you makes you not want to go out with me, but I just had to get that off my chest." Luke watched again in nervousness as your mouth opened and closed, trying to find the words to say.

"You... You wanna... _date me_...?" you finally asked. Luke forced a small chuckle, lifting his arm to scratch the back of his head.

"Yeah..." he practically whispered. His eyes were trained on the hands hovering above your lunch, so he didn't even see the smile pulling at the corners of your mouth.

"Luke... I..." you trailed off, causing the blonde to prepare himself for the worst – but it never came. "Tomorrow night...?" you asked, smiling bashfully when his head snapped up, his eyes as wide as you'd ever seen.

"Y-You're saying  _yes_?" he asked in shock, "You'll... You'll go out with me?"

"Yeah, Luke," you could feel your cheeks getting warm, "I'll go out with you." For the first time since the day you met him, you saw  _Luke Hemmings_  blush with the brightest smile on his face.

"Yeah! Okay! Cool! Awesome!" he rambled, "I'll find you after school and we'll figure everything out!"

Luke got up and scurried away without so much as a ' _see you later_ ', but you  _did_  hear him excitedly telling Michael and Calum that you'd accepted as he walked over to their table. You were looking down, so you didn't notice the boys look back over at you, finding you trying to hold back your smile as you finished eating your lunch.


	396. Next to Nothing (Michael Clifford)

It wasn't supposed to end up like this.

Your best friend Luke had invited you over to spend some time with him since you hadn't seen each other in a couple weeks due to his busy schedule. You obviously told him you'd be right over – you'd never pass up an opportunity to catch Luke when he wasn't busy – and you were there in no time, but Luke seemed to miss out on giving you  _one_  little detail.

Michael – Luke's roommate – had never liked you. You didn't know  _what_  you did, but since the moment he met you, he couldn't seem to  _stand_  you.

Luke had told you Michael was a chill guy – loved  _Pokemon_  and video games almost as much as he loved music – and even  _he_  couldn't tell you why he didn't like you. He'd tried to ask Michael about it before, but he would only receive annoyed grunts or rolled eyes, so he eventually just stopped bothering him about it.

But apparently, on this night, Luke had finally had enough.

It started out pretty normal – you were ticked off that Luke hadn't told you Michael would be there, but you all sat around the living room watching TV together nonetheless. The boys only had one couch, and it didn't help the fact that you were already annoyed with him when Luke took the opposite end as Michael, forcing you to sit in the middle. You and Michael both grumbled lowly but you sat down anyway, making sure not to touch the blonde at all.

Unfortunately, however, you weren't aware of Luke's  _real_  intentions of inviting you over until it was too late.

The credits for the show on the television had just started rolling and Luke got up, stating that he wanted another drink. As he was coming back, neither you nor Michael had time to react before you felt something cold on your wrists and clicking noises. Your heads snapped down to find Luke leaning over the back of the couch and securing a set of handcuffs on both of you.

" _Lucas_!" you and Michael shouted simultaneously as he continued, "What the  _fuck_ , man?!"

"I'm sick and tired of listening to you two bitch and moan every time you're in the same room as each other," Luke stated, "So I'm gonna go out for a while, and you guys are gonna fix your shit before I get back."

Before you could say anything else, Luke was closing the apartment door behind him, leaving you and Michael sitting side-by-side with your arms pressed together.

Five minutes passed before either of you said anything, and – of course – it was  _Michael_  who threw the first blow. It was nothing you hadn't heard before with him – he always knew exactly what to say to get under your skin – and you had learned very quickly how to keep it from showing.

But he  _just wouldn't stop_.

He went on and on for the  _entire_  25 minutes Luke was gone, only stopping when he heard the front door open once again.

"Y/N! Michael!" Luke called out, "I'm back! Are we all good now?!"

"Take them off," you demanded the moment he stepped into the room, not even bothering to greet him as you stood up and spun around, your arm now crossed in front of you since Michael was still sitting.

"Did you guys settle everything?" Luke asked hopefully.

" _Take them off, Luke_ ," you muttered, your voice dangerously low.

"Not until you answer me," he challenged, "Did you guys-"

" _No, we didn't, Lucas_!" you shouted, causing both boys' eyes to widen, "We didn't settle  _anything_  and we  _never will_ , so you can either uncuff me from this asshole  _right now_  or you can give me the fucking key and let  _me_  do it!"

Without another word, Luke hurried off into the kitchen. Not wanting to be alone with Michael for another second, you followed the blonde-haired boy, yanking the other blonde to his feel and bringing him along with you. Luke stumbled slightly upon getting the key out of the drawer –  _the key had still_ been there _this whole time?_  – and you were growing impatient.

You snatched the key from his hand and quickly unlocked the cuff around your wrist. You then grabbed Michael's other arm and secured the cuff to his wrist.

" _What the fuck, Y/N_?!" Michael shouted. He looked at you and froze at seeing the angry tears welling up in your eyes.

Since you were close to the sink, you tossed the key into it, listening as it fell down the drain.

"Good luck,  _asshole_ ," you muttered, wiping your face as you shoved him out of the way, grabbed your own keys off of the counter, and slammed the door shut on your way out of the apartment.

~

**Michael's POV**

"What the  _hell_  did you do?" Luke asked the second the walls stopped shaking due to the door slam.

"Nothing I haven't  _always_  been doing already!" Michael replied defensively.

"Well, you must have done  _something_  differently!" he exclaimed, motioning toward the handcuffs.

"Can we just focus on getting this key back,  _please_?!" he whined.

" _Yes_! And I have the perfect idea on how to  _do it_!" Luke said, making sure to over-exaggerate his sarcasm, "Why don't  _I_  figure out how to get the key from the drain, while  _you_  go apologize to Y/N for whatever the hell you did to her?!"

"How am I supposed to  _apologize_?! I don't even know  _what_  I did!"

"Then go  _find out_!" Luke replied, shoving him toward the door, "She'll be at the treehouse in the middle of the woods; That's where she  _always_  goes after you piss her off."

And Michael had no choice but to go.

~

To no one's surprise, you were exactly where Luke said you would be. But what  _did_  surprise Michael was that as he got closer, he could hear you crying softly. He honestly still had  _no idea_  what he said; All he knew was that if he knew it would get  _this_  kind of reaction from you, he never would have said it  _at all_.

Michael reached the ladder to the treehouse, frowning upon realizing there was no way he'd be able to get up there with the handcuffs on. He sighed under his breath.

"Y/N,  _please_  come down from there," he begged slightly, hearing you gasp in surprise, "I'd come up there myself, but my hands are kind of  _useless_  at the moment."

" _Go away, Michael_ ," you ordered, your voice coming out strained and broken.

"Not until you come down here and tell me what I did wrong," he said firmly.

"Doesn't matter," you mumbled, wiping your face again.

"You know I can  _see you_ , right?" he said, scooting back so you could see him clearly as well, "So I can tell that whatever it was definitely  _matters_."

Michael let out a quiet sigh of relief when you finally moved to come down from the treehouse, but the hopes of you talking to him were quickly ruined when you pushed past him for the second time that night.

"I didn't tell  _Luke_  about it and I'm sure as hell not going to tell  _you_  either," you stated dryly.

Michael huffed, jogging after you. He suddenly lifted his arms over your head, his cuffed wrists landing on your stomach as you were startled back against his chest.

" _Michael_!" you practically screamed, elbowing and punching every part of his body you could reach. Michael, of course, only pulled you closer to him, his chin meeting your shoulder and his lips brushing against the skin of your neck as he spoke lowly in your ear.

"You can hit me all you want – that's fine; I deserve it – but you are  _not_  leaving here until you tell me what I did wrong so I can apologize and make sure I  _never_  do it again," he told you.

You did gradually stop trying to hurt him, but your gaze remained trained on the ground in front of you, tears threatening to spill over once again. The blonde boy lifted his arms up the best he could without loosening his grip so he could wipe the tears away for you.

You swallowed thickly when he touched your skin; You'd never seen Michael show this kind of affection to  _anyone_  before and you were honestly thinking it was some kind of trick – that maybe he was only  _pretending_  to care just so you would open up to him and then he would have  _more_  things to use against you.

"Please tell me, Y/N," he whispered, " _Please_... I can't say I'm sorry unless I know what I'm saying it  _for_."

"It's nothing," you said,  _drastically_  quieter than the tone of Michael's voice.

" _Stop_  saying it's nothing, Y/N!" he sighed, "I know it's not  _nothing_! You wouldn't have gone off on me or Luke or been crying in a treehouse in the middle of the woods at 11pm if it was  _really_  nothing!"

"It's nothing..." you repeated just as softly as before. Michael let out a loud groan, lifting his arms back up to release you.

"If you don't want to tell me,  _fine_ ," he stated, "I'll be at home when you finally decide you want to stop being so goddamn  _stubborn_." You found yourself sinking to the ground beside the tree trunk, a soft whimper escaping your mouth.

You didn't even notice that Michael heard it, sighing to himself and stopping. He lifted his hands so one of them could run through his hair before he turned around. His heart sank and finding you with your legs up against your chest, your arms hugging them as your face was buried in your knees.

He looked up at the night sky for a moment before he sighed again, making his way back to you. He sat cross-legged on the ground in front of you, putting his hands on your forearms.

"Y/N," he said soothingly, " _Please_  just tell me what's wrong." To say Michael was surprised by what you did  _instead_ of that was an understatement.

You didn't respond – you just wiped your face, crawled onto his lap, and brought his arms back over your head so they were wrapped around you. You then wrapped your legs around his waist and your own arms around his neck, pressing your face to his shoulder as you started crying softly again.

Due to the handcuffs, Michael couldn't  _exactly_  hug you back, so he had to make do with what he had. And sure, maybe he couldn't hold you as  _tightly_  as he wanted to in that moment, but he could still rub your back, kiss the top of your jaw, and whisper reassurances that you were okay in your ear.

And that was oddly comforting for you.

"Garrett and I broke up," you murmured, finally admitting to someone why you'd been acting the way you had lately.

" _That's it_?" Michael wondered, "Why wouldn't you tell Luke then? And what did I do that made you so mad?"

"You said Garrett was probably just  _pretending_  to be interested – that he only kept me around because I was a  _good fuck_..."

"Is  _that_  why you broke up?" he asked, his voice portraying the anger bubbling up inside his chest.

"No," you sniffled, "But it  _did_  have something to do with the girl moaning his name while his head was between her legs when I got home last weekend." You felt Michael lose his breath.

"Y/N..." he mumbled, unsure of what to say; He only said that because he knew it would annoy you – he never thought it could actually be  _true_. "I'm sorry..."

"You didn't know, Michael," you swallowed, lifting your head up to wipe your face and look at him, "You  _couldn't_  have known."

"But I didn't have to be an  _asshole_!" he shook his head, "I've never  _had to_  be an asshole to you. I just... You're Luke's best friend and you're  _so_  beautiful and  _way_  out of my league but you had a boyfriend and I didn't think you'd ever want  _m_ -" You cut him off by grabbing his cheeks and pulling his face to yours.

The moment your lips met his, Michael sighed for what was probably the tenth time that day. He never thought this would be happening and now that it finally was, he was  _really_  getting annoyed with  _those stupid handcuffs_.

"Y/N, we've  _gotta_  get back and find that  _damn_  key," he practically begged, his lips still firmly against yours, "I  _need_  to touch you." You instantly pulled away, looking at him guiltily.

"Sorry..." you said, chewing on your inner cheek, but you were definitely blushing at the comment.

" _Don't be_ ," he told you, "I deserved it; I deserved way  _worse_ , to be honest." You looked at him with a small, shy smile.

"I still feel bad though," you replied, "I didn't  _need_  to throw the key into the sink."

"Yeah, that part  _was_  a bit excessive," he agreed, making you giggle. He grinned at the sound of it as he went on, "But if you  _really_  want to make it up to me, I think I know a way we can  _both_  apologize to each other."

"How?" you tilted your head.

"Well, as soon as these handcuffs are off, I'll show you," he said in a gravelly tone, "My bedroom hasn't seen a girl as beautiful as you in  _much_  too long."

"How does that include  _me_  apologizing to  _you_?"

"Believe me, kitten: seeing you underneath me, screaming my name for reasons where you  _aren't_  mad at me will be enough of an apology for me  _any day_ ," he said, his lips returning yours so he could feel your smile.

But when he felt it fade and you gradually stopped kissing back, he pulled away again. He was unable to get another word out though.

"You  _do_  actually like me, right?" you asked softly, "You're not just... You don't  _really_  think someone would only keep me around because I'm a good fuck,  _do you_?"

"Y/N," he sighed, his thumb gently rubbing the bottom of your spine, "I  _only_  said that because I knew it would make you mad. I  _never_  would have said it if I knew what had happened before. But if we're being completely honest, I'm  _glad_  you two broke up. Any person who would  _willingly_  risk their relationship with you isn't someone who  _deserves you_. And maybe  _I_  don't either – maybe I'm the  _last_  person who deserves someone like  _you_  – but I promise that if you and I ever break up, it'll only be because you found someone  _better_."

"How are we gonna break up?" you smiled slightly, "We're not even  _dating_."

"We will be when I take you out on Friday night," he grinned, pecking your nose.

"Wish you said all that  _before_  I started dating him," you murmured, "He was a  _dick_."

"Well, you don't have to worry about that anymore," Michael assured you, "You're  _my_ princess now and it's about time you started being  _treated_  like one."

~

_inspiration: http://0kbutmichaelclifford.tumblr.com/post/144310609640/cuffs-mikey_


	397. The Last Dance (Marshall Traver) - Part 1

It wasn't that you didn't  _want_  to be at the party, it was just...

_Okay, you didn't want to be at the party._

You were 18-years-old, just graduated high school, and were looking forward to the summer vacation before you started college. But all the plans you  _had_  changed in a  _second_.

The week after graduation, you were visited by your grandparents on your mother's side. You hadn't really spoken to them – your mom and dad divorced when you were a baby – but they did send you gifts every birthday and Christmas. Of course, that didn't change the fact that they never so much as  _called_  you to see how their granddaughter was doing.

And when they visited you and hit you with the news that you were next in line for the throne of their country, you honestly thought it was some sort of sick joke. They had never told you they were royals, and you even resented  _your dad_  for a while for not telling you as well.

But after the shock sort of wore off and you had time to think about whether or not you wanted to go to college as planned or move to the country you were apparently set to be queen of when your grandparents stepped down, you chose the latter.

The King and Queen of Raylea – a country a few hours away by plane – had invited you and three other princesses to their castle for a few months just to get away from your own countries for a while and relax. Your grandparents insisted you accept the invitation as they weren't really able to help you in ways they would like. Your grandmother did assure you that she knew the Queen very well and she knew you'd be in good hands with her, her husband, and her son.

You found it strange that you had been in the country for nearly four hours now – and in the palace for  _most_  of that time – but hadn't met  _any_  member of the royal family or the other princesses yet –  _officially_ , at least. You would see the princesses in passing when you were all given tours of the castle by the maids assigned to tend to you throughout your stay, and it would always confuse you when they would give you dirty looks or make snide remarks to each other under their breaths.

Needless to say, you didn't exactly spend a fair amount of time with them.

So now, here you were, standing in some random room in a palace after sneaking out of the ballroom.

There was a welcome party being thrown for the visiting princesses, but honestly, it was a little too overwhelming for you on your  _first night_  there. You hadn't even been to a ball in your  _own country_  – you didn't know why you thought you could handle attending  _this one_. Not to mention the dress you were put into before the party started was  _really_  starting to get on your nerves.

**Marshall's POV**

Marshall chuckled softly upon watching you in the corner of the room, roughly pulling at your corset with an annoyed look on your face. Though he hadn't officially met you yet, there was no denying you were the most beautiful girl he'd ever meet – he wasn't  _blind_ , obviously. He could tell you were uncomfortable – not  _just_  with your dress, but  _also_  with the whole idea of attending a royal ball.

He remained in his spot for a few more minutes, his eyes focused solely on your face, before he was interrupted.

" _There you are_ , Marshall!" his best friend Cody – the Prince from a neighboring kingdom – sighed, "You've gotta stop hiding, man. Princess Naomi has been asking  _everyone_  where you are."

When Cody didn't receive a reply, however, he finally looked at him, following his gaze and finding you. He then nudged his arm, causing Marshall to jump slightly, his head snapping over.

"Why don't you go talk to her?" Cody said, "It's obvious she's hiding out too. You could hide together."

"No..." Marshall muttered, glancing back at you, "She probably wouldn't want to talk to me..."

"Well, you'll never know unless you go over there," he shrugged, walking away to inevitably tell Princess Naomi that he had no idea where Prince Marshall was.

Marshall looked at you again, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly.

_He can do this. He's a prince – he's not scared of anything._

Suddenly, his feet were taking him toward you and his mouth was open before he knew it.

**Your POV**

"You uncomfortable there, Princess?" you heard someone behind you ask, making you jump. Your hands immediately stopped moving, thankful you were finished sorting your dress out – as sorted out as you could get it anyway.

"How did you find me?" you asked.

"It's  _my castle_ , Your Highness," Marshall smiled, "I know where  _all_  the hiding spots are."

"So  _you're_  the Prince Marshall I've been hearing about," you nodded.

"Where have you been hearing about me?"

"I walked by a room earlier where the other Princesses were while they were getting ready for the ball," you murmured, "They were all talking about you."

"' _Walked by_ '?" he asked, "You weren't in there  _with them_?"

"No," you whispered, looking down at the floor, "They don't like me very much."

"Why's that?" he asked, walking over to you and taking your chin, lifting your head up so you would look at him.

"When I find out, I'll let you know," you swallowed. But before he could respond to that statement, you kept going. "Listen... I know this is inappropriate of me to ask, but could you just...loosen this ribbon a bit...?" you asked shyly, motioning toward your back, "I've had it up to here with not being able to breathe and move around in this thing."

"It'll only be inappropriate if you don't tell me your name first," he said thoughtfully.

"Y/N," you said shyly. Marshall chuckled under his breath at your nervousness, moving behind you.

You held up your hair, breathing a big sigh of relief when you felt the corset loosen. The Prince smiled again, retying the ribbon. His hands lingered near your waist for a moment, causing you to blush.

"You look beautiful," he murmured, finally taking his hands back – although you found yourself wishing he didn't have to.

"Thank you," you whispered, swallowing thickly.

"So why are you hiding out?" Marshall asked you as you both leaned back against the wall.

"Not really used to the whole ' _royal ball_ ' thing yet," you laughed under your breath.

"You know, you're not going to get used to them by not being in there," he said.

"I'm in the castle," you shrugged, admiring the architecture of the room, "That's close enough. I'm not too big of a fan anyway."

"Is anyone  _really_  a fan of these things?" he countered, nudging your arm. You laughed, looking at him.

"The other Princesses," you returned with a small smirk.

"Fair enough," he chuckled.

"So," you went on, "Why are  _you_  hiding out?"

"You know who Princess Naomi is?" he asked. You shook your head. Marshall then held his hand up, signaling for you to take it.

When you did, he pulled you back toward the ball room. He had you peek around the corner, standing incredibly close behind you – and you'd be lying if you said that didn't make you nervous.

"See the girl in the bright pink dress?" he whispered in your ear, "The one that looks like she's trying to find someone?"

You nodded, doing your best not to shudder at the feeling of his breath on your skin. He took your hand and took you away from the door so he could speak at a normal volume again without risking anyone in the ball room hearing.

"That's Naomi," he informed you, "She's the Princess of Adeann, a kingdom a few hours away from here. I only really ever see her at events like this, and she's always trying to get my attention. I've told her I wasn't interested so many times, but she just won't take no for an answer."

"Seems to me like she  _does_  have your attention," you shrugged, "Just not in the way she  _wants it_."

"I just don't know how to get her to  _stop_ ," he sighed, shaking his head.

"Well, you know, you're not going to get anywhere by avoiding her," you replied, using his own words against him. Marshall rolled his eyes as you took a deep breath. "I'll go in there if you will," you offered, surprising him a bit.

"Are you  _sure_?" he asked firmly, wanting to know you were  _absolutely positive_  about this. You nodded bravely and he eyed you skeptically for a moment. "I'll go in there on one condition," he stated. You cocked an eyebrow as he smiled, "You have to save the last dance for me." You couldn't help but giggle softly, nodding your head again.

He held his hand up and you took it without hesitation. He laced your fingers together and squeezed reassuringly before leading you into the ballroom.


	398. The Last Dance (Marshall Traver) - Part 2

Upon entering the room, it seemed like  _everyone_  immediately looked over. Your heart felt like it was going to come right out of your chest.

Marshall, of course, could sense your discomfort, pulling you closer to him and rubbing the back of your hand with his thumb. He felt you relax – if only a little – and smiled as he approached his parents.

"Mom, Dad," he said, "This is Princess Y/N of..." He trailed off, realizing he didn't even know where you were  _from_. Luckily, his  _mother_  already seemed to know.

"Well, don't you look  _beautiful_?" the Queen gushed, making your face turn a light shade of red. "You're Queen Lillian's granddaughter, right?"

"Yes, Your Majesty," you replied softly.

" _My_ , that woman could go on about you for  _hours_  if she had the time," she laughed, shaking her head, "But, unfortunately for her, our monthly meetings over tea don't  _last_  that long."

"Marshall," the King suddenly said, "Why don't you and I go talk with King Jacob while the Princess and your mother get acquainted?"

Marshall looked at you, seemingly worried about leaving you alone, but you just shrugged, letting go of his hand and gently nudging him toward his father. He nodded as he walked away, leaving you to watch him until his mother spoke up again.

"Why don't you have a seat, Y/N?" she suggested, patting the chair beside her. You shyly did so, smoothing out the back of your dress before sitting down. "How are you enjoying the party so far?"

"It's nice," you said, looking around at all the people, "Different than any  _other_  party I've been to –  _that's for sure_." The Queen couldn't help but laugh at the comment.

"Your grandmother told me about how you've been thrown into this whole thing. Well, if you ever need anything while you're here, don't hesitate to find my husband or I – or even my  _son_ , as it seems he's taken  _quite_  the interest in you."

"I-I don't... He's not... He's not interested in  _me_..." you stuttered out.

"Well, the way he was looking at you earlier certainly fooled  _me_ ," she grinned. You couldn't help the blush from rising to your cheeks yet again, but you hoped it wasn't  _too_  noticeable as you looked over and saw the King and Marshall returning.

"Come on, dear," the King said, holding his hand down to his wife, "It's almost time for the last dance and you've not moved from that spot yet."

"I wasn't  _planning_  on it either," she said coyly, making him chuckle. He reached down and took her hand himself, pulling her to her feet.

"You promised me at least one dance tonight and your time is up," he kissed her forehead, leading her out to the dance floor. You looked at Marshall, a knowing expression on your face that made him shrug.

"Hey, I had to have gotten it from  _somewhere_ ," he smiled, holding his hands out to you.

Unlike the Queen, however, you took his hands immediately, letting him take you to the dance floor as well. You were both near the edge – not really wanting to be the center of attention.

"What if I mess up?" you asked nervously.

Marshall turned to face you, bringing one of your hands to his shoulder and holding the other one up to his chest while his arm went around your waist. He held onto you tightly as you both began swaying to the music.

"As long as you don't mind that there might be a possibility I step on your feet  _at least_  once, then I don't think I have room to judge, do you?" he replied. You barely smiled, sliding your hand to the back of his neck so you could toy with his hair.

But not even 30 seconds later, you were interrupted. You both looked to the side when you heard a pair of heels clicking on the hardwood floor, finding another Princess walking over.

"Hello, Prince Marshall," the girl said sweetly, shooting you a sly glare that made you furrow your eyebrows.

"Hi, Princess Rosa," Marshall replied, clearly unamused by her presence.

"Shouldn't you be dancing with Naomi?"

"And why  _should_  I be doing that?"

"You know, she's been looking for you  _all night_. You two  _always_  dance together for the last dance."

"Well, I wanted to dance with someone  _else_  tonight," he stated monotonously.

"Well,  _I_  – and the other Princesses – just think you should be dancing with a  _real Princess_ ," she said bluntly, looking right at you, "Not someone who thinks she can just parade around acting like she's all that just because she inherited a kingdom from her  _dead mother_." Your heart honestly dropped so hard, you thought you were going to be sick.

You could handle the Princesses making fun of you for not knowing what you were doing when it came to this kind of stuff, but you drew the line at bringing your  _mother_  into it. She had nothing to do with anything and her death was due to  _a car accident_  – and the Princesses had  _no right_  to act like they didn't  _already_  know that.

"You know what,  _Rosa_? Why don't you just-" Marshall started angrily before he was cut off.

You didn't say anything, you just let go of him and removed yourself from his arms, walking toward the door as quickly as you could. You saw out of the corner of your eye that Naomi and the other Princesses had been watching the whole thing happen, but you didn't give them the satisfaction of letting them  _see_  your tears.

You rushed out of the ballroom and down the hallway, heading for the stairs. You went up to the room you had gotten ready in, locking the door behind you. You wiped what tears had escaped already off of your face, only to have them come back when you were struggling to get your corset off.

You finally just gave up, falling face down on the bed, kicking your shoes off of your feet as your tears soaked the pillow.

There was a knock on the door, but you ignored it. What you  _couldn't_  ignore, however, was the sound that followed – noting that it sounded a lot like someone was picking the lock. It was, of course, because the next thing you heard was the door opening.

"Y/N," Marshall said softly, closing the door and relocking it behind him, "Are you okay?"

"How did you get in here?" you asked, your voice incredibly muffled by the pillow since you didn't bother moving. But somehow, he understood you anyway.

"My castle, Princess," he reminded you, "I know how to pick the locks too."

You simply sighed, feeling the bed dip beside your elbow and then Marshall's hand land on your back, his fingers scratching at the sides of where the ribbon was.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked.

" _No_ , I want to get out of this dress and cry myself to sleep and wake up in the morning and pretend nothing ever  _happened_  until I leave and  _never_  see them again," you answered honestly.

"Come on then, Princess," he replied softly, rubbing your back, "I'll help you."

You swallowed lightly, finally turning on your back so you could look at him. Marshall reached up, putting his hands on your face and wiping your tears with his thumbs.

"I won't look if you don't want me to," he promised, "And I'll leave as soon as you can get out of this thing by yourself."

You sniffled quietly, nodding your head. He took your hands and pulled you up so you were sitting beside him.

Marshall untied the first bow with no problem, but as he moved up, it was clear the pattern was stumping him. You heard him mumbling to himself as he tried to figure it all out, and you couldn't help the light giggle that passed your lips.

"Hey, don't  _laugh_  at me," he huffed, his voice coming out in a whiny tone, "This is really  _hard_  to do."

"It's okay, Marshall," you said softly, "I think it's loose enough to get over my head now anyway."

"Okay," he nodded, "I, uh... I guess I'll see you at breakfast then." He got up and started walking to the door, but your voice stopped him halfway there.

"Y-You don't  _have_  to go..." you whispered, making him look at you.

"Are you sure?" he asked lowly.

You nodded slightly, "Just... Don't look..."

Marshall nodded and turned away from you, allowing you a little bit of privacy to take off the corset and skirt. He heard you sigh deeply the moment the corset was off, making him smile to himself.

A few more seconds passed before he heard your voice again.

"Okay, I'm done," you murmured.

Marshall turned around to find you putting your dress on top of the chest at the foot of the bed. He then looked at you – unable to keep his gaze from lingering at how incredible you still looked despite the fact that you were now only in a t-shirt and sweatpants.

"Oh, now how is  _that_  fair?" he shook his head. You simply furrowed your eyebrows as he went on, "I look like an absolute  _mess_ when I put on my sweats, but you still look like a  _goddess_?"

"No, I  _don't_ , Marshall," you whispered, although you couldn't deny that you were definitely as red as a tomato by now.

It was silent, the only thing happening being Marshall looking at you in complete awe.

"Would you like to dance?" he asked randomly, earning a sound of confusion from you. "Would you like to dance?" he repeated, "You can still hear the music out in the hall. And I'd like nothing more than to finish what we  _started_  downstairs." You barely smiled, nodding shyly.

He offered his hand to you once again and you happily took it, following him out into the hallway. His arm wound around your waist and yours wrapped around his neck, both of your elbows bending as he pulled you into him – exactly like how you'd been dancing together before.

"So how does a girl like you end up in  _this_  scene?" Marshall asked you.

"A girl like  _me_?" you murmured, closing your eyes as you laid your head on his shoulder.

"You've made it pretty obvious that you have no idea what you're doing here," he chuckled, "So that tells me you weren't  _raised_  to be royalty. I'm just curious as to how you're a princess." He felt you let out a breath as you barely laughed.

"You ever seen  _The Princess Diaries_?"

"Y/N, if you tell me that's what happened to you, I'm not so sure I'll  _believe it_ ," he said honestly.

"Believe me,  _I_  was as shocked as you are," you sighed.

"So you've recently met with your long-lost grandmother and she's teaching you how to be a queen so you can take over?" he asked.

"So you  _have_  seen it," you smiled.

"I have a surprising amount of free time," he replied, but you could hear his smile as he squeezed you lightly.

"It's not so much a long-lost grandmother as it is my grandparents want to retire their thrones, and I'm apparently the  _only_  heir the country has after my mom died."

"So it's basically  _exactly_  like the movie?" he teased, poking your sides to make you giggle.

"Except for the fact that no one likes me, I guess it is," you mumbled.

"Well, if it makes any difference at all,  _I_  like you," Marshall told you, moving his head to kiss your forehead, "And if you ever need any help with the whole royalty thing, I've got a whole  _22 years_  of experience."

"Thanks, Marshall," you smiled slightly.

When the song downstairs had ended, neither you nor Marshall moved away from each other. It was like both of you were waiting for the other to signal that they wanted to let go.

But if he was waiting for  _you_... Well, he'd have to stay in this spot for the rest of his  _life_.

" _Marshall_!" you heard a girl exclaim, " _There_  you are! I've been looking for you!" You felt Marshall let out a sigh, smiling when he subtly kissed your fabric-covered shoulder before finally being forced to release you.

"Well, you  _found me_ , Princess," he replied, but she wasn't even paying attention to him anymore; Her gaze was now trained on you.

"What are  _you_  doing here?" Naomi narrowed her eyes, "Princesses should not be seen in  _street clothing_  by  _anyone_ , much less a  _prince_." Luckily for you, however, you were with Marshall and he knew she was only trying to make things harder for you.

"Those might be the rules in  _your_  kingdom, Princess, but they're not the rules  _here_. Y/N can wear whatever she pleases and it's not  _your_  place to tell her  _otherwise_ ," he stated.

"Well,  _I_  would never be caught dead in  _those_  things," she scoffed, pointing to your legs.

You looked down at your sweatpants, chewing on your bottom lip and shying behind Marshall. He moved his hand behind his back, opening it for you to take so he could rub your skin soothingly.

"And that's your decision," he nodded, "But Y/N still looks like a princess to me, so unless you have something of  _actual_  importance to say in regards to helping her get used to the royal life, I think it would be best if you went back to the party." Naomi shot you one more glare before huffing and spinning around, walking away.

You waited until you couldn't hear her heels anymore before letting out a huge sigh of relief. Your forehead fell onto Marshall's shoulder, but it didn't stay there for long. He turned around – still holding onto you – and cupped your cheek with his other hand.

"Don't listen to her, okay?" he murmured, "No one  _actually_  cares whether or not you're wearing fancy dresses or street clothes. She's just upset because you look beautiful no matter  _what_  you have on."

"I'm sure she does  _too_ ," you swallowed, trying not to think about the fact that you were  _definitely_  blushing again at this point.

"We're not talking about  _her_  right now, we're talking about  _you_ ," he said. Your breathing hitched when he leaned forward and you could feel his breath on your face. "You're  _so_  beautiful, Y/N, I hope you know that," he went on.

"Marshall," you found yourself choking out as your eyes fluttered shut.

"Hmm?" he hummed.

" _Shut up_ ," you demanded, moving in the rest of the way and pressing your lips to his.

You felt him smile and he brought your arm up to his neck, prompting you to wrap your other one around him as well, before placing his hand on your hip. His thumb pushed the waistband of your sweatpants down just enough so that he could rub your hipbone without the fabric getting in the way.

When you needed to breathe again, you pulled back just enough that you could but your lips were also still ghosting over his.

"It's nice to finally  _meet you_ , by the way," Marshall let out a soft chuckle, "I was busy when you arrived here." You couldn't help but giggle.

"How many  _other_  girls have you said that to?" you teased, twirling a piece of his hair on your fingertips.

"You would be the  _first_ ," he informed you, pecking your nose to make you scrunch it up happily, "Well... I'll let you go now..." His arms released your waist and you found yourself wishing time would just stop so he could hold you longer. "I'll see you in the morning, princess," he grinned, making you blush, somehow knowing that he wasn't using your  _title_  that time.

Marshall pressed a kiss to your cheek before walking away. You simply just took your bottom between your teeth as you smiled, heading back into your room to get some sleep – although, with how fast your heart was beating, you were sure you wouldn't be getting any of  _that_  anytime soon.


	399. The Last Dance (Marshall Traver) - Part 3

**The next morning**

The maid assigned to tend to you throughout your stay in the castle, Steph, had just woken you up and was now leading you to the dining hall where the King, Queen, Marshall, and the other princesses were already waiting. The Princesses all glared at you while the other three royals smiled – Marshall's obviously being the biggest. Steph took you to the open seat on the corner, letting you sit between Marshall and his mother.

You thanked her softly as she left, hearing the Princesses scoff in return. You didn't understand why they did it – all you did was  _thank someone_  who did something for you – but you just brushed it off. You meant what you told Marshall – you were going to face the girls that day like nothing ever happened.

"Morning, beautiful," Marshall murmured when he leaned over and kissed your cheek. You blushed lightly, missing the way the Queen smiled knowingly at you and her son.

"Well, now that we're all here,  _let's eat_!" the King announced.

Throughout breakfast, you tried to remember everything your grandmother taught you about eating ' _like a princess_ '. You were doing pretty well considering you'd only had a few lessons and a couple  _actual_  meals to practice during, but you could still tell that the other princesses were silently judging you.

Naomi and Rosa – who were sat directly across from you and Marshall – kept their glaring eyes on you the entire time. You didn't let it bother you though –  _they_  weren't the ones with Marshall's hand on their thigh underneath the table.

"Y/N," the Queen whispered after leaning toward you. You looked up at her and she smiled, "Honey, you can just eat the way you normally would. Don't  _worry_  about what anyone else thinks."

You let out a small, relieved sigh and slouched your shoulders, scooting forward in your chair so you were practically sitting up against the table. The Princesses' expressions, of course, suggested that they couldn't have been  _more_  disgusted with you at this point, but you didn't care – you were finally eating comfortably.

~

After breakfast, you went back to your room to get ready for the day. You were standing in front of the closet door, trying to decide what to wear, when you heard someone knock on your bedroom door. You gave them the okay to come in, hearing the door open and close but no one said anything. You were about to turn around when you felt them come up behind you and wrap their arms wound around your waist

"What's on the Princess agenda for today?" Marshall asked you. You smiled slightly when you felt him kiss the top of your jaw.

"Nothing since that party was yesterday," you informed him, "I was just going to stay in and relax."

"Well, I know of a better way to relax that I'm sure you'll love  _just_  as much," he said.

"And what might  _that_  be?"

"Meet me in the garden in 10 and you'll find out," he grinned, kissing behind your ear just before pulling away.

You looked over your shoulder just in time to have him wink at you as he disappeared from the doorway. You couldn't help but smile, reaching into the closet and grabbing an outfit.

~

Upon walking outside onto the castle porch, you didn't see anyone around. You were a couple minutes early though, so you just decided to talk a walk by yourself through the hedge maze – you had always loved corn mazes as a kid, so you were excited to see if you could make it through this one as well.

About halfway through – or, at least, what you  _thought_  to be halfway – you started hearing voices. As you got closer, you could finally make them out to be Marshall and Naomi. Your heart sank lightly –  _why did Marshall ask_ ** _you_** _to meet him in the garden if he was already with_ ** _Naomi_** _?_

" _Come on_ , Marshall," you heard Naomi say.

"No, Naomi," he replied, "I  _told you_  I'll be with Y/N today."

"She's not that special, and you  _know it_ , Marshall," she stated monotonously.

"How would  _you_  know? You refuse to talk to her unless it's to  _ridicule_  or  _humiliate_  her."

"She is not a  _real_  princess, Marshall!" she whispered, "You don't just wake up one day and find out your  _dead mother_  was a future queen! It's just some  _sob story_  to get you to fall for her!"

"I can't stop you from talking about Y/N the way you do, Naomi, but I will  _not_  stand here and allow you to talk about her  _mother_  in the same way," he spat back, "Whatever your opinion on her is, it's not an open invitation to disrespect the  _loss_  of her mother. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a date with  _Princess_  Y/N." Your eyes widened slightly, not wanting either Royal to know you were listening.

You scurried further into the hedge maze – in the opposite direction of where you heard Marshall going – until you reached a dead end. You turned your back to the hedges, taking a moment to breathe in and out slowly. But when you heard a twig snap behind you, you jumped.

You would have screamed if it hadn't been for the hand that immediately covered your mouth, the lips pressed to your ear instantly calming you back down.

"It's just me, princess," Marshall said softly, not wanting Naomi hearing him to be a possibility.

You let out a deep sigh of relief as he took his hand back. He put his hands on your hips to turn you around so you were facing him.

"How much of that did you hear?" he asked you.

"I don't know what you're talking about," you swallowed, making him sigh.

"Y/N," he put his hands on your cheeks so you couldn't look away from him, "How much did you hear?" You stared at him for a moment before feeling him wipe the tear away from your eye as it fell.

" _Enough_ ," you managed to get out.

He smiled sadly, wiping the remaining tears and then moving his arms to wrap around your waist. You, of course, hugged him right back, the tightness of your hold on him telling him how thankful you were that he defended not just you, but your mother as well.

"I'm sorry she's being so  _awful_  to you," he sighed again after a couple minutes of silence, kissing your temple.

"It's not your fault, Mar," you murmured.

"I wanted to give you  _nice_  picnic without worrying about the other Princesses, but that's  _obviously_  changed," he shook his head, a bit of anger in his voice as well, "I don't know if Naomi will come back, so how about you and I just go walk around town? It's Sunday, so the baker goes into his shop to try out new recipes and I always go to help taste test."

"Are you bribing me with food?" you asked, a smile pulling at the corner of your mouth.

"Does bribing with food  _work_  on you?" he smirked.

"It hasn't failed  _yet_ ," you shrugged, making him grin widely.

"Then let's go," he said, tangling your fingers together and leading you back out of the maze so you could head to the bakery.


	400. The Last Dance (Marshall Traver) - Part 4

**Three months later**

It was the last full day you would be spending in Raylea with Marshall and his family – and although you were sad to be leaving Marshall, you  _definitely_  weren't upset about never having to see the other Princesses again.

Ever since Marshall took you to the bakery, the Princesses were even  _ruder_  to you – which you didn't think was  _possible_ , to be honest – and they weren't as careful when talking amongst each other about how they didn't like you, clearly wanting you to  _know_  about it as if you didn't  _already_.

But you tried your best to remain positive – you and Marshall were still going strong and it seemed like you were getting closer with him each day you spent together.  _Surely_  he would still want to be with you even though you lived over four hours away...  _Right_...?

~

"Now," the King started his usual speech after you all finished eating breakfast, "You ladies have been busy throughout your entire stay, so I think it's only reasonable that you all take the last day in our kingdom to yourselves to do whatever you please. The Prince and I have some meetings to attend later this afternoon, but we'll be finished with them before your flights depart to say goodbye." Your head snapped over when you realized Marshall wasn't going to be around all day, really not wanting to spend time  _alone_  with the Princesses.

You felt a hand squeeze your thigh tightly, turning your attention away from the King and Queen as they exited the dining hall and back to the Prince who was sitting right beside you.

Marshall smiled softly before releasing you and standing up, offering his hand out to you. You obviously took it without hesitation, doing your best to ignore the scowl you were receiving from Princess Naomi as you were led onto the castle porch.

"I don't  _want_  to be alone with them..." you swallowed the moment you were outside, making Marshall look at you.

"It'll only be for a  _couple hours_ ," he tried to reassure you, "I'll be back before you know it."

"Why didn't you  _tell me_?"

"I didn't find out about it  _myself_  until before you came in for breakfast," he sighed, "I tried to get out of it, but my dad said it's important that I attend as many meetings with him as I can before I take over the kingdom."

And while you  _did_  understand the benefits of Marshall going with his father to the meetings, it really  _sucked_  that he wasn't able to spend your last few hours in the kingdom with you.

"Hey," he murmured, moving in front of you and taking your chin in his hand so you would look at him, "I don't have to leave for another three hours; I'm  _all yours_  until then." You finally smiled, feeling your cheeks get warmer and warmer. Marshall pressed a quick kiss to your lips before letting go of you and continuing to walk to the...

"Where are we going?" you asked, feeling him start to rub the back of your hand with his thumb.

"Dunno," he shrugged with a grin, "Anywhere you are is where I'd rather be."

"Alright,  _Romeo_  – settle down," you giggled, grinning even wider when his lips hit the side of your forehead.

~

**Four hours later**

You'd been roaming around the kingdom by yourself for about an hour now, happy you hadn't run into any of the Princesses. While you enjoyed spending time with Marshall, it was kinda nice to just walk around at your own free will and explore wherever your curiosity decided to take you.

You went into a few shops here and there but didn't buy anything, not finding anything in particular that you wanted. Of course, that wasn't until you went into the music shop.

Marshall had taken you there on your ' _date_ ' when you were supposed to meet him in the garden until Naomi ruined it, and you'd found quite a few things each time you visited. You greeted the shop owner as you walked in, making a bit of small talk before he went back to work and let you browse in peace.

By the time you left 20 minutes later, you'd found a few albums from bands you wanted to check out as well as a couple vinyls that you knew your grandparents would love.

But,  _as_  was your life, the good mood didn't last for  _long_.

"Hello, Y/N," you heard someone say as you were walking down the sidewalk away from the music shop.

You looked over your shoulder and found another Princess – Caroline – coming up to you. You weren't fearful about her presence at all – she hadn't caused you as much trouble as Naomi or Rosa – and you were relieved that neither of the other Princesses were  _with her_.

"Hey, Caroline," you smiled politely, slowing your walking speed to allow her to catch up to you.

"Do you know where Naomi and Rosa are?" she asked you, "They told me they'd meet me at the fountain a few minutes ago, but I can't find them. I was hoping maybe you'd passed by them at some point."

"No, I haven't seen them," you shook your head, "But I can help you look if you want."

"You really wouldn't mind?"

"Of  _course_  not!" you chirped, "Did they tell you where they were going?"

"They said they wanted to go to the seamstress about some dresses or something, but I went by already and couldn't find them," she sighed exasperatedly.

"Maybe they went to another store," you suggested, "I think there's a jewelry shop across the street – they could be there."

"There's a  _jewelry_  shop?" she seemed surprised.

"Yeah," you giggled softly, "It doesn't really look like one though – looks more like a  _bookstore_  to me – so I don't blame you for not noticing it. Marshall showed it to me a while back, but I didn't really like anything in there."

"Yeah..." she trailed off.

"Are you okay?" you furrowed your eyebrows at her as you led her across the street toward the shop.

"Yeah, I just..." Caroline was chewing on her bottom lip, understandably starting to worry you – but she didn't continue until you were just about to go inside with her. "You know Marshall and Naomi are engaged, right?" she said suddenly, making your heart skip a beat as you stopped dead in your tracks.

"I... W- _What_?" you swallowed, looking at her.

"Yeah..." she barely nodded, "She has to marry before she can take over her kingdom and her parents chose Marshall."

"N-No, they  _didn't_... He... He would have  _told me_..."

"I mean, he's not too  _happy_  about being forced into marriage, but he  _did_ agree to it," she said solemnly, "But I just thought you should know. I can tell you really like him and I don't want you to be heartbroken when he doesn't keep in contact after you return home." You were silent for a moment, just trying to take everything in slowly.

"Y-You're  _sure_  about that?" you murmured. Caroline didn't get to speak because the door to the jewelry shop opened and Naomi and Rosa came sauntering outside.

"Oh," Naomi grumbled, "Hello,  _Princess_." You help back the tears that were desperately trying to escape, looking at Caroline once again.

" _I'm sorry_ ," she mouthed – the expression on her face telling you how bad she felt for you.

So, instead of continuing to stand there for any longer, you simply smiled politely at the Princesses before turning around and heading back to the castle as quickly as you could.

~

**Three hours later**

You were in your room packing up the last of your belongings. Steph had gone to check on the status of your flight after you assured her that you just wanted to be alone for a while – though, she  _did_  insist that you ' _really shouldn't be doing a maid's work_ ' for a good three minutes before finally agreeing to give you your space.

Your sadness had since been replaced with anger, unable to believe that someone who  _seemed_  to care so much about you had actually been  _lying_  this whole time. And while you  _were_  still pretty tearful about the whole thing, you honestly felt like the upset was more overpowering.

But hearing his voice only broke your heart that much more.

You looked up when you heard Marshall call out a greeting to someone who said his name as he passed a hallway. When he turned his gaze back to your bedroom, he smiled at you – the gesture faltering slightly when he didn't receive the same response. But he didn't even get to ask you about it.

"Are you engaged to Naomi?" you asked the moment Marshall stepped through the door frame, taking him off guard.

"I'm sorry?" he furrowed his eyebrows, his smile now completely gone.

"You heard me, Marshall," you rolled your eyes, "Just answer the question."

"What are you  _talking about_ , Y/N?" he shook his head, "Where did you even  _hear_  that?"

"Caroline told me," you replied monotonously, "She said you agreed to marry Naomi so she could take over her kingdom."

"Y/N, I-"

"I can't  _believe_  you didn't  _tell me_!" you exclaimed softly, "All those times she was rude to me and you made me feel better... Were you just trying to make  _her_  look like the bad guy while  _you_  played  _hero_?"

"Y/N, she's  _lying_!" he insisted, "I'm not engaged to  _anybody_  –  _especially_  not  _Naomi_!" He tried to take your face in his hands, but you stepped away before he could touch you.

" _Don't_ ," you choked out.

"Y/N..." he said softly, "I-I  _swear_  I'm telling the truth... I... I would  _never_  do that to you..."

"Princess Y/N," Steph said, poking her head into the room. You looked at her, doing your best to keep the tears from falling down your cheeks. "Your plane has arrived," she informed you. You nodded and turned back to Marshall.

"It was nice meeting you, Your Highness," you said coldly, picking up your bag, "Goodbye."

"Y/N,  _wait_ ," he pleaded, "You  _can't_  just-"

But you were already running down the hallway, leaving Marshall alone in the deafening silence.

**Marshall's POV**

Without even taking a moment to  _fully_  process what just happened, Marshall was stomping down the hallway toward the room Naomi was staying in. She was finishing up her packing as well as she spoke with the King and Queen, all of them jumping slightly when the Prince stormed in.

"What the  _hell_  is your problem, Naomi?!" Marshall shouted, not even caring that his parents were there.

" _Marshall Douglas_!" the Queen said threateningly, "I will  _not_  allow you to speak to our guests in such a tone!" But Marshall didn't even acknowledge her statement – he just continued walking until he was right in front of the Princess.

" _Well_?!" he narrowed his eyes at her.

"I surely have  _no idea_  what you're talking about, Prince Marshall," she shook her head.

"You know  _exactly_  what I'm talking about! Why did you tell Caroline to tell Y/N I'm  _engaged_  to you?!"

"Prince, I assure you, if Princess Caroline said that to Princess Y/N, I had  _no_  idea," she replied innocently, but Marshall saw right through her – he  _always_  did.

"You know what,  _Princess_? I know you don't like Y/N or the way she dresses or acts or the fact that she may not have the  _slightest clue_  about what it  _takes_  to be a princess yet," he stated through gritted teeth, "But she is  _much_  more of a princess than you  _ever_  will be. She's kind and gentle and maybe she  _is_  a little rough around the edges on this whole royalty thing, but she is a hundred times  _better_  than someone who thinks it's okay to lie and manipulate people to get what they want. If you're treating her like this simply because I'm in love with  _her_  and not  _you_ , then that's your  _own_  damn problem. Because if you  _honestly_  thought that this was going to make me give up on her, then  _maybe_  you're not as smart as you  _think_  you are."

Before anyone could respond, Marshall stomped back out of the room, leaving Naomi to explain to the King and Queen what  _exactly_  just happened.


	401. The Last Dance (Marshall Traver) - Part 5

**Your POV; Ten hours later**

You had gotten home a few hours ago, not really taking the time to  _truly_  think about the trip until you were back in your own room. You found yourself sitting on the window seat, staring out at the passing clouds, birds, and occasional airplanes.

You couldn't  _believe_  Marshall would do that to you – especially since he really had  _nothing_  to gain. He was still going to marry Naomi, so why did he have to drag  _you_  into it? He could have just ignored you – maybe he  _was_  ticked about an arranged marriage, but  _so what_? He could have chosen a girl who actually  _lived_  in the kingdom – he didn't have to go with someone who was only staying for a couple  _months_.

But maybe that was  _why_  he picked you.

Maybe he saw how you weren't interacting with the other Princesses – especially not his  _soon-to-be_ wife – and decided that you were the  _perfect_  target.

Screwing around with someone who lived nowhere near his kingdom was  _perfect_ ; He wouldn't have to risk ever seeing you around, he would never have to call you because – let's be real – you  _certainly_  weren't going to go on another four hour plane ride just to see what the hell was up, and you would be none the wiser.

In the midst of your internal monologue, you heard your bedroom door open. You looked over as your ladies maid came in with your suitcase. She seemed a bit startled to see you.

"I'm so sorry, Princess," Scarlet quickly curtsied, "I was told you were taking a nap. I'll just come back later." She went to leave, but you stopped her.

"It's okay, Scar," you murmured, "Some company would be nice anyway."

"May I ask what's wrong then?" she replied, lifting your suitcase onto the chest at the end of your bed so she could begin putting your clothes away.

"It's nothing – just thinking about how much I miss home."

"You know, Princess, as your ladies maid, I'm not really allowed to talk back to you," Scarlet said thoughtfully, "But you and I are  _also_  friends, so as your  _friend_ , it's my duty to call you out on your  _bullshit_." You couldn't help but smile slightly, happy not  _everyone_  in the castle treated you as if you were something fragile.

"Don't know why I  _ever_  try to lie to you," you whispered.

"Yet you  _keep_  doing it," she sighed dramatically, briefly stopping her work to look at you, "Seriously though: what's wrong?"

"I thought someone liked me..." you shrugged, "But he just ended up  _using me_  instead."

"Guys do that sometimes," she nodded.

"I know, but... Why do they have to be so  _convincing_?"

"That's how they reel you in," she shook her head solemnly, "If they're not convincing, you're not gonna take the bait."

"I just want  _something_  to be real... I don't want to keep meeting guys who only pretend to want me just because I'm a  _princess_... At least no one back  _home_  acted like they cared about me..."

"Maybe you should take a  _break_  from guys for a while then," she suggested, "Go out to new cities where no one knows your name."

"I would if I didn't have  _Princess lessons_  all the time," you finally  _genuinely_  laughed.

"I'd rather take Princess lessons than scrub dirty floors all day," she smiled, happy she could lift your mood.

"Wanna switch places –  _Parent Trap_  style?"

"If I thought we could actually  _pull it off_ , definitely," she giggled, "But it would never work due to my bright red hair."

"Hair dye  _exists_  for this kind of thing though!" you announced, making her laugh again.

"One day, we'll try it out and see if we could actually do it," she teased.

You grinned at her, "Thanks, Scar."

"You're welcome, Princess," she returned the gesture, "Now if you'll excuse me-" She returned your suitcase to its spot under your bed before springing back upright. "-I have floors to scrub." You rolled your eyes with a smile on your face as she left.

You looked back out the window one last time before getting up, heading down to the kitchen to see if you could sneak a snack before dinner.

~

**Two hours later**

As you were eating dinner with your grandparents in the smaller dining room off of the kitchen, you were interrupted by one of the servants.

"I'm terribly sorry to disturb your meal, Your Highnesses," Jonah bowed respectfully then turned to you, "But there's a visitor here insisting he see you, Princess."

"For  _me_?" you furrowed your eyebrows, " _Who_?"

"He says he's the Prince of Raylea."

Your heart skipped a beat. Your grandparents looked at you – you'd obviously told them everything that happened with him – with a surprised look on their faces.

"Well," you cleared your throat, "Tell him that I'm sorry he wasted his time in coming all the way here, but it would be best if he went back home."

"Yes, Princess," he bowed again before leaving the room. You went back to eating, happy your grandparents understood that you didn't want to talk about it.

~

As you were finishing up eating your meal half an hour later, Scarlet came into the room.

"Princess," she curtsied to you all, "You have a call waiting for you."

"Well, aren't I  _popular_  tonight?" you mumbled, making your grandparents laugh softly, "Who is it?"

"She wouldn't say," she shook her head, "But she was  _very_  adamant that it was important she speak to you as soon as possible."

You sighed lightly, wiping your hands on your napkin and putting it on your empty plate. You excused yourself from the table, standing up as Scarlet continued.

"She's on hold in your room," she informed you. You thanked her, leaving the room so you could talk to  _whoever_  had called you.

When you finally got to your room, you found the phone on your nightstand off of the receiver, lying on the table. You sat down on your bed, situating yourself before picking up the phone.

"Hello?" you said, wondering if the person was still on the other line.

"Princess Y/N?" a girl's voice asked.

"Yes..."

"It's Princess Naomi," she said. Your heart dropped and you let out a deep sigh.

"What do  _you_  want?" you asked, sounding harsher than you truthfully intended.

"Look, I know I'm one of the  _last_  people you want to talk to right now, but I  _need_  to tell you something."

"And what might  _that_  be?"

"Marshall didn't know," she sighed, "About  _anything_... We didn't conspire against you or whatever... He didn't even know what Caroline and I  _did_  until you  _said something_  to him... And she didn't  _really_  want to, but I knew you wouldn't believe Rosa or I if  _we_  told you... So... I just wanted to say that I'm sorry... For  _everything_ , really... I know I was really rude to you the last couple months... And that was only because I was jealous he was giving  _you_  all of his attention and paying none to  _me_... But Marshall  _really_  likes you and I don't want you to hate  _him_  because of something  _I_  selfishly did. He and I aren't engaged – even if it  _was_  arranged, he  _never_  would have married  _me_  anyway. I just wanted to say that... I know he's on his way to you right now and... Marshall's a  _really_  great guy and I just don't want you to miss out on it..." You were silent for a moment, your heart racing.

"He  _didn't_  use me?" you whispered, more to yourself than to Naomi.

" _God, no_ ," she swallowed, "He's not capable of doing  _anything_  like that. He'd never  _intentionally_  break  _anyone's_  heart, let alone  _yours_." You sat in thought again before speaking.

"Thanks for calling, Naomi," you murmured.

"I'm sorry for everything-" You could just see her shaking her head. "-I really hope things work out with you guys."

You both hung up and your mind was racing – but the only thing you could think about was how you hoped Marshall was still  _somewhere_  near the castle.

~

**Marshall's POV; Five minutes earlier**

Marshall had found himself in the garden, sitting on the ground against the fountain. It had been nearly an hour since Jonah had informed him of you telling him to leave, but for  _some reason_ , he  _couldn't_  make himself get back on the plane. He didn't know what it was, but something in his gut was telling him to stay just a little bit longer.

So that was what he did.

He was hiding behind the fountain after sneaking past the guards to get there. He didn't want to go out into the town square just in case you came outside before bed.

But as time dragged on, his hope was running low. And he called the only person he trusted enough to help.

"Cody, she  _hates_  me," Marshall said the moment Cody answered his phone, "She won't even let me _see her_."

"Well, have you tried the whole throwing rocks at her window thing?" Cody replied, "It works in all the movies."

"She's not stupid, man; She'd  _know_  it was me," he rolled his eyes, "I don't even know which window is  _hers_  anyway."

"How long has it been since she got home?"

"It's been a  _while_ ," he sighed, "I probably would have been a lot  _earlier_  if my parents hadn't stopped me from getting on the plane to yell at me for two hours for the way I spoke to Naomi."

"Maybe she just needs time away from you to cool off then," Cody suggested, "I mean, you've only known her for a couple months, but it's pretty obvious the girl is head over heels for you. I'm sure she'll hear you out  _eventually_."

"So what am I supposed to  _do_ , come back home and  _wait_  for her to call?"

"As much as that idea kills you, I think you might  _have to_."

"Cody, I don't think I can wait much longer..." he swallowed, "I  _really_  love this girl..."

"I know you do, man," Cody sighed, "Which is exactly  _why_  you'll end up waiting for her."

Marshall sighed again as the two said goodbye. He stuffed his phone back into his pocket, laying his head back against the fountain.

He stared up at the stars, jumping slightly when he heard someone running down the path behind him. They stopped suddenly and he just  _knew_  he got caught.

"You're still here, huh?" the soft voice of the girl he honestly thought would never speak to him again made his heart skip a beat and his head snap up. You gave him a shy grin, sitting cross-legged on the concrete beside his head. "You must  _really_  like this girl if you're flying all the way to her kingdom just to see if she'll  _talk_  to you," you said thoughtfully.

Marshall scrambled slightly to face you, but he was still sitting on the ground. His hands were gripping the edge of the concrete in front of you, sure that, even though you were talking to him, you wouldn't want him to touch you.

"I  _do_ ," he whispered, "I think I might even be  _in love_  with her." Your own heart skipped a beat that time, playing with your fingers in your lap – a few inches away from where his hands were. "Y/N, I'm  _really_  s-"

"Don't be," you mumbled, putting your hand on his cheek.

Marshall closed his eyes in content, moving to sit up on his knees so he could hold your thighs. Your other hand moved up to his face as well as you went on.

"Naomi just called," you told him, "Explained everything."

" _She did_?" he furrowed his eyebrows – he never expected  _her_  to be one to  _ever_  admit she was wrong.

"She said she made Caroline tell me you were engaged because she knew I wouldn't  _believe_  her or Rosa," you whispered guiltily.

"It's not your fault for believing her, Y/N," he insisted, "It's  _her_  fault for lying to you."

"But still... You hadn't given me any  _reason_  not to trust you... I shouldn't have left without letting you explain..."

"I don't blame you," he shook his head, "I would have believed it too, you know. We've only known each other for three months, Y/N – it's not your fault for not completely trusting me yet. But you  _have_  to know that I would  _never_  do that to you." His tone was almost desperate – as if he thought he  _still_  had to convince you Naomi was lying. "I love you  _so much_ ," he shook his head, "I can't even  _imagine_  ever hurting y-" Marshall was cut off by you bringing his face to yours, your lips colliding with his.

He lost his breath instantaneously, his fingers squeezing your thighs tightly as he kissed you back. Your heart was fluttering at the feeling of kissing him again – even though it really hadn't even been a full  _day_  since you last did so.

"You talk too much," you mumbled into his mouth, making him laugh and pull away. He put his forehead on yours and stared at you lovingly. "I love you too," you whispered so softly that had he not been  _right there_ , he definitely wouldn't have heard you.

Marshall's smile only grew, pecking your lips over and over again, murmuring how much he loved you in between each one.

"You should come inside," you said when he stopped kissing you to take a proper breath, "It's getting late... I'm sure you're tired..."

"Tell me, Princess," Marshall said, holding you tightly once again, "How would the castle staff feel if they found you sleeping in your bed with someone?"

"I feel like I'm about to  _find out_ ," you chewed on your bottom lip, trying to hide your smile.

He obviously saw right through it though, letting his hands snake around your lower back and bringing both of you to your feet before pulling you into him. One of your hands remained on his cheek while the other slid to the back of his neck, your fingers threading themselves through his hair.

"I love you," you said under your breath.

"I love you too," Marshall whispered with a smile, his lips finding yours once again.


	402. Touch (Ashton Irwin) *

**Warning: Kidnapping, mention of abuse, needles**

~

_Flashback_

Maybe he should have taken you home. Maybe he should have asked you to stay the night. Maybe he should have just not asked you to go out at all. Maybe he should have...

A lot of ' _Maybe I should have_ 's ran through Ashton's mind the morning he found out you went missing, and they never ceased plaguing him for the six months you were gone.

_Where were you? Who took you? What were they doing to you?_

Ashton didn't know.

But what he  _did_ know was that he couldn't force himself to face your family. He knew they didn't blame him – God, they loved him so much, they treated him as their own – but... He just couldn't do it.

When he looked at your mother, he saw you. When he heard your dad speak, it was like listening to the jokes you always seemed to come up with on the spot. When he looked at your older brother, he saw the strong-willed woman he fell in love with...

And that was just it; Everything about your family reminded him too much of you. And he just couldn't bear to see them and know that  _you_  weren't there.

So your family went on with life with both you  _and_   _Ashton_  no longer around. Sure, it was hard, but they couldn't help but feel for him. They knew  _they_  were all messes no knowing where you were or what was happening to you, but they also knew that Ashton probably felt like they were somehow mad at him for being the last person you were with. He loved you more than anyone else and having not seen him in the last six months, they knew he was taking it hard.

That is... Until five days ago...

Someone called local police nearly a week ago with a possible sighting of ' _a missing girl he'd seen on Facebook_ '. They obviously checked it out and the hellish half a year you'd been enduring was finally over.

Your kidnappers' mistake? Making  _you_  go outside to get the mail every day.

From the moment you reached the hospital, you freaked out when anyone made an attempt to touch you. To you, everyone was going to hurt you. And you were  _not_  about to go through six more months of that.

Your nurse decided to wait until you had been asleep for a couple hours before putting your IV in, hoping you were a heavy enough sleeper to get it done without waking you up. She did, of course, and then did the rest of her duties before going back out to the nurse's station.

When your parents and brother arrived at the hospital 40 minutes later, your mother quite honestly about burst into tears when the nurse told her you had a serious case of amnesia. The officers that had found you told them about your experience – how you could remember every single detail of what your kidnappers had done to you but not remember something as simple as how old you were or how many siblings you had. And as much as they wanted to take away the pain, they were just happy you were  _alive_.

_End flashback_

Your brother had gone home to get you your favorite pair of fuzzy socks that afternoon – ones Ashton had bought for you on your first Christmas together, actually – because he knew how much you hated the feeling of hospital socks.

He jumped when he heard your phone vibrate on your nightstand, still where you'd left it plugged into the charger six months ago after forgetting to take it with you the day you were taken. He went over, figuring you'd want it when you woke up – hoping it would somehow jog your memory to see the photos you had – only to find a  _bunch_  of notifications when he took it off the charger – a few from social media but mainly all messages from the same person:  _Ashton_. 

Braeden scrolled up the text thread – which took longer than he expected – finding the first message Ashton sent dating back to  _the morning after_  you went missing. And when he finally realized that Ashton was blaming himself for your disappearance, he knew he had to text him back.

_Ash, it's Braeden_   
_They found her_   
_She's at St. Vincent's_   
_She's gonna be okay_

Braeden got the read receipt almost immediately but no response. So he put the phone in his pocket, quickly grabbed your socks, and was back out the door, wanting to get back to the hospital before Ashton got there.

~

**20 minutes later**

Braeden was walking up to the hospital doors and he could see Ashton in the waiting room talking to the receptionist. His hair was a mess and it was obvious he'd been pulling at it. The doors opened and he heard Ashton begging the woman to let him see you. She looked like she was about to tell him no, so Braeden stepped up to the counter beside your boyfriend.

"Hey, Nancy," he said, making Ashton's head snap over, "He's with me."

"Is he family?" she asked him.

"Practically."

"Brae, you  _know_  only family's allowed up there right now."

" _Come on, Nanc_ ," Braeden smiled, "He's her  _boyfriend_." He batted his eyelashes at her for good measure, making her sigh.

" _Go_ ," she waved the two men off.

"Thank you!" your brother grinned, putting his hand on Ashton's shoulder and leading him down the hallway to the elevator.

The ride up to the ICU was quiet – the only sound being Ashton's heavy breathing as he anxiously awaited  _finally_  seeing you again after six months.

The elevator doors opened and Ashton immediately stepped out, but Braeden grabbed his arm, keeping him from going any further.

"Ash, there are things you need to know before you go into that room," your brother said.

"What things?" Ashton's voice cracked from crying so much since you were taken.

"The people who kidnapped her... They weren't  _gentle_  with her, Ashton. They hurt her  _really_  bad to the point where not even the  _nurses_  can touch her when she's awake... She was beaten pretty badly for six months and..."

"And?" Ashton swallowed, tearing up again at the thought of not being there to protect you.

"She doesn't remember  _anything_  about her past," he sighed, shaking his head, "She only remembers the hell she endured for the last six months – she doesn't remember me or our parents or her friends or-"

" _Me_..."

"Ash, I know this is a lot to take in, but I just... I don't want you to be offended or get upset if she doesn't let you touch her, okay? She's got a long road of recovery ahead of her and the best we can do for her right now is encourage her from the sidelines."

Ashton's heart sank at hearing he couldn't touch you when  _all he wanted_  was to have you in his arms again. But he  _did_  understand. The  _last_  thing he wanted to do was traumatize you even more and if that meant he had to keep his distance for a while, that was what he was going to do.

"Okay," he whispered, nodding his head slightly so Braeden knew he understood. Your brother nodded as well, finally taking Ashton to the room you were staying in.

The moment they entered the room, Ashton felt sick to his stomach at how many machines you were hooked up to. But your heart monitor was steadily beating, and that offered him some comfort and reminded him that you were  _there_  and you were  _alive_.

Your mom and dad looked over from their spots a few feet away from your bed, smiling when they saw Ashton was there.

" _Ash_ ," your mom breathed, getting up from her chair and walking over to him, "How are you? I'm  _so_  sorry you're going through this."

"Why are  _you_  sorry?" he murmured as he hugged her back, "She's  _your_ daughter."

"We all love her the same," she grinned softly before releasing him, "How have you been holding up?"

"Barely," he answered honestly, his voice low and broken. Ashton turned to look at your sleeping figure, finally getting a good look at you.

Your arms and face were covered in cuts and bruises and he felt anger bubble up in his chest at the thought of someone touching you like that. But he took a deep breath, reminding himself that you were safe now and he was  _never_  going to let this happen to you again.

~

**45 minutes later**

Ashton, Braeden, and your parents were sitting around, chatting softly as they waited for you to wake up again. Your nurse came in to check on you every so often and update them on your condition and answering any questions your family had. Ashton wasn't speaking much though, simply adding to the conversation when he was asked a direct question, but other than that, his eyes were always on you.

"What do you think she's dreaming about?" Ashton asked randomly, making everyone stop and look at him.

"What do you mean?" your mom asked.

"She's smiling," he said, causing them to look over and finally notice the grin on your face.

"Maybe she's dreaming about that time you came with her to our cousin's birthday party and she made you wear one of her little plastic tiaras the whole day," Braeden chuckled.

"Or that time you guys came to Thanksgiving and ate until you made yourselves sick because you'd already gone to see your family that morning," your mom added with a smile.

"What about that time she made him come on our trip to the zoo last summer?" your dad laughed lightly.

" _Oh, right_!" Braeden grinned widely, "She made Ash carry her on his back the  _whole_  time!"

"I was sore for  _weeks_  after that," Ashton couldn't help but smile as well. Everyone continued reminiscing until they heard a small whimper off to the side.

" _Ash_..." The sound of your voice made their heads snap up, looking between each other before looking at you. Your eyes were still closed, but there was now a pout on your lips.

"Did she just..." your dad trailed off quietly.

"She just said ' _Ash_ '..." your mom whispered in surprise.

They then watched your eyes flutter open and you blinked a few times, getting used to the light coming in through the window. You didn't look at them right away, probably thinking you were still dreaming, but when your eyes shifted and they met Ashton's, they widened.

"Ashton..." you whispered softly as if you were trying to convince yourself you were actually seeing him. Braeden nudged him gently, motioning toward you, prompting him to swallow thickly.

"Y/N...?" he said your name, unsure whether or not you could actually hear it.

" _Ashton_ ," you repeated, your eyes starting to water. You could barely move your arm, but your hand was open on the bed beside your thigh, reaching out for him to take.

Ashton was in such shock that he couldn't move, causing Braeden to nudge him again and urge him to go to you. He stopped beside the bed, his heart racing. He didn't understand why you seemed to remember  _him_  and not your parents or brother, but when he finally put his hand in yours and you held onto him tighter than you ever had before, relief just  _flooded_  through him.

"You remember me?" he whispered as if your family wouldn't still hear him.

"You're  _alive_?" you ignored his question, making everyone furrow their eyebrows.

" _Of course_  I'm alive," he shook his head in confusion, "Why wouldn't I be alive?"

"Th-They said they ki..." your eyes welled up with tears at the memory, "They... They kept sh-showing me photo o-of us... They s-said even if I m-made it out ali-alive, I'd never s- _see you_  aga-again..."

"I'm  _fine_ , princess," he assured you, "No one's done  _anything_  to me." Ashton then squeezed your hand before letting go of it, instead leaning down so his forearm was resting on the pillow above your head and his other hand now barely touching your cheek. "I'm  _so_  sorry, princess," he choked, letting his forehead rest on yours, "If I had just taken you home  _myself_  instead of letting you  _walk_ -"

"It's not your fault, Ash," you mumbled, your hand raising up and landing on the back of his head, making him sigh as your fingernails scratched his scalp.

It was then that you heard shoes squeak on the linoleum floor. You took a quick glance at the nurse standing in the doorway, her eyes wide and jaw hanging open slightly.

Since the moment you woke up five days ago, she hadn't seen a  _single person_  you allowed to touch you. So when she saw you letting  _Ashton_  hold you the way he was, she was understandably shocked.

She looked over at your parents and brother and nodded for them to come outside the room. They did, and you heard her say that since you're letting someone touch you, they should probably give you two a few minutes alone – to which your family obviously happily obliged.

But you were brought back to what was happening in your room when you heard your boyfriend sniffle.

"Ash..." you said softly, but it only made the sniffling louder.

"I love you," he whimpered, "I love you  _so much_ , princess."

"I love you too, Ashton," you murmured, tilting your head so you could press your lips to his. You felt Ashton let out a deep sigh, kissing you back roughly to make up for every kiss he'd missed in the last six months.

"I love you," he swallowed thickly again, feeling you smile. You didn't respond though – you just kept kissing him.

~

**Two hours later**

After informing your nurse that you had a headache – your  _eleventh one_  since you were admitted into the hospital – she told you that it would be best to perform a spinal tap just to make sure you had no bleeding around your brain. Part of you regretted opening your mouth, but the other part was relieved – you certainly didn't want any bleeding around your brain,  _especially_  if it meant it got you discharged from the hospital faster.

Ashton was sitting on the chair beside your bed, your hand in his as he rubbing your knuckles – your parents and brother had gone to the cafeteria to get something to eat half an hour ago. The nurse told you to lay on your side, but the moment she touched your hospital gown to move it off of your lower back, you started panicking again.

You knew at this point that no one was going to hurt you now, but that didn't make it any easier. You whined softly, closing your eyes tightly. You expected her to just continue, but she didn't – the only thing you felt next was Ashton's lips hitting your forehead.

"You're fine, princess," Ashton murmured into your skin reassuringly, "She's here to help you; You're fine."

You were still tense though, and the nurse couldn't do her job well enough to get the needle in the first time until you were completely relaxed, so she did something Ashton knew she probably wasn't supposed to do. She quietly caught his attention, motioning for him to get on the bed next to you to see if it would help calm you down. He instantly looked back at you.

"Would you feel better if I laid with you?" he asked, to which you obviously instantly nodded.

Ashton then took his shoes off and carefully climbed onto the hospital bed. He bent his elbow so your head could rest on his arm instead of the pillow, his legs tangled with yours, and his other hand landed on the middle of your cheek. The arm you had been lying on came up to his collarbones so you could run your fingers along them to distract yourself as best you could while your other hand gripped his side, his shirt balled up in your hands as you closed your eyes tightly, and the rest of your body finally relaxed enough to let the nurse do her job.

The moment you felt the needle go into your skin, you whined softly and felt your eyes get watery. Ashton's thumb began stroking your cheekbone, his lips pecking your hairline, then the space between your eyes, and then the tip of your nose before landing on your lips.

"You're doing  _so_  well, princess – I'm so  _proud_  of you," he whispered between every kiss. He felt a faint smile on your lips, making him smile himself. "It's almost over," he assured you, "And then, you'll be  _that_  much closer to going home and I'm gonna make sure you  _never_  have to go through this again, okay? Nothing and no one is  _ever_  gonna hurt you again."

Ashton felt you let out a small sigh before you buried your face in his neck. He moved the hand on your cheek to the back of your head so he could play with your hair while you simply just took in his scent. Every time you breathed out, he would feel a small kiss get pressed to his skin, making him grin softly and kiss the top of your head in return.

Maybe Ashton should've done a lot of things in his life, but taking you for granted was never one of them.

~

_inspiration: https://cliffovevo.tumblr.com/post/111640959074/you-were-kidnapped-and-ashton-texts-you-about-hire_


	403. Nothing Less (Michael Clifford)

Your 11-year-old brother had been practicing for this day since the moment the announcement came out that  _America's Got Talent_  would be holding auditions in your state's capital. You two always watched the show with your parents whenever new episodes aired, and to think that your brother could be a contestant made your heart ache. Shane was an incredibly good magician – especially for being so young – so you had no doubt that he would wow everyone who watched him perform.

However, it wasn't until Shane was moved to a separate room with other performers who were about to go on that you got distracted. You'd kept your eyes a boy sitting up against the wall underneath a window on the other side of the room since the moment you sat down, and you didn't know what it was about him, but you just wouldn't be able to forgive yourself if you didn't check on him.

You told your mom this as one of the crew members for the show was leading your family into the other room, and she promised she would come get you when it was your brother's turn on stage. She hurried after everyone while you took a deep breath and walked over to the boy.

"Hey... Are you okay?" you asked softly. You weren't sure if he heard it due to the business of the room, but when he jumped and his head snapped up to look at you, it was obvious he did.

"Huh?" he asked thickly, having heard your voice but not what you actually said.

"Um... I noticed you earlier and you look... Well, you look like you're about to have a panic attack, to be honest, and I just wanted to make sure you were okay..." you said shyly, thinking he probably thought you were weird.

"You noticed?" he all but whispered.

"Well, you certainly don't look like the most  _comfortable_  person in the room," you pointed out. The blonde boy couldn't help but chuckle dryly, looking back down at his lap.

"M'fine," he replied.

"You're also  _lying_ ," you stated bluntly, plopping down on the floor beside him. "What's your name?" you asked. He looked back up skeptically.

"M-Michael," he murmured.

"Michael," you repeated, making his heart flutter, "I'm Y/N. I know I may not have panic attacks myself, but I have  _friends_  who do, so I know what they look like before they start. And I know that everyone is different and some people don't like having someone near them when they're going through one, but I couldn't just walk right by without knowing if you needed help."

"I-I'm not one of those people who likes t-to be alone, b-but..." he trailed off.

" _But_...?" you coaxed.

"S'embarrassing," he sighed.

"Michael, if it's going to help you-"

"It helps whe-when people hold my hand..." he mumbled, "Makes me feel better..."

Without hesitating, you held your hand up – and without any second thoughts, Michael grabbed it, holding it tightly. Your fingers laced with his and you squeezed him as hard as he was squeezing you. You listened to him take deep, slow breaths, trying to calm his racing heart.

It took a few minutes, but he finally seemed to go back to normal – neither of you released your grips though.

"Thank you," he said softly. You smiled at him, deciding that you didn't want to leave him just yet.

"So," you chirped, "What are you gonna be doing for the show?"

"Singing, I hope," he chuckled lightheartedly, "If I even make it to the stage that is. What about you?"

"My brother is auditioning," you informed him, "He's a magician."

"Oh, that's cool. I wish I could be a magician, but I'm too clumsy." You couldn't help but giggle, making him blush lightly, knowing he was the reason for it.

"Me too," you said, "My brother tried to teach me that rabbit-in-a-hat trick once, but the rabbit was heavier than I expected, so I lost my balance and fell and cut my arm. That's what this is from-" You showed him a scar on your forearm. "I usually tell people I got it from teaching myself how to sword fight, but they never believe me for some reason." Michael laughed lightly.

"I would have believed you," he said.

"Would you  _really_?" you laughed as well.

"Maybe," he shrugged, "You seem like a daredevil."

"I'm definitely not a  _daredevil_ ," you shook your head, "The most daring thing I've done is go up to a complete stranger and hold their hand for 10 minutes." Michael blushed when he saw the look you were giving him.

"Thanks," he repeated, more softly than the first time.

"Y/N!" you suddenly heard across the room. You and Michael looked up to find your mom looking at you. "Shane's on next!" she hollered.

"I'll come find you when my brother is done, okay?" you told Michael, squeezing his hand, "You know... If you  _want_  me to..."

The blonde nodded quickly – though he reluctantly released your hand – allowing you to get up. Michael watched you jog to your mother and look over your shoulder, giving him a reassuring smile before you disappeared.

And if his heart hadn't already been racing due to his nerves, that smile  _definitely_  would have done it.

~

About 30 minutes later, you, your parents, and a few other family members were tearfully congratulating your brother when he'd come offstage after receiving four yeses. Of course, you were  _ecstatic_  for your brother – he'd been working on his magic for  _so long_  and it was  _finally_  starting to pay off for him – but you just  _couldn't_  stop thinking about Michael. You'd been away from him for nearly half an hour and you could only hope at this point that he hadn't had another panic attack while you were gone.

"How about we go out to eat and celebrate?" your aunt suggested. Everyone obviously agreed on a restaurant, but you couldn't leave without at least checking on Michael again.

"I'll meet you guys there," you informed them, "I just have something I have to do first."

"This wouldn't have anything to do with that boy you were with in the waiting area, would it?" your mom asked, clearly already knowing it was.

"What boy?" your brother asked, "Since when do  _you_  talk to boys?"

" _Shane_ ," you rolled your eyes.

"Why are you going to see some boy?" your dad cocked an eyebrow. You sighed to yourself.

"He was having a panic attack earlier because he's nervous to audition and I just want to make sure he's still okay," you replied.

"Who is he? What's he doing?" your uncle chimed in.

"His name is Michael and he's a singer. I'll just meet you there, okay?!" you called over your shoulder as you hurried back toward the waiting area before they could ask any more questions. 

As you walked out into the main room, you looked over to where you'd last left Michael, frowning upon seeing he wasn't there. You hoped he didn't get too nervous and left before his audition – to be quite honest, you were really hoping to see him again. But upon further inspection, you noticed his guitar leaning up against the wall where you'd previously been sitting, so you walked over.

You picked up the instrument and sat down where it was, putting it on your lap. Your fingers were in random places on the neck as you plucked at a few strings with your fingers. The sound that came from the guitar wasn't necessarily a pleasant one, causing you to scrunch your face up.

"I'm guessing guitars aren't exactly a source of talent for you either," you heard, making your head snap up. Michael was smiling at you as he sat back down, happy to see you'd kept your word and came back to him.

"You're still here," you grinned back.

"Yeah, I just had to go to the bathroom," he nodded, "But I think it would help if your fingers weren't in the wrong place up here-" His arm slid across your shoulders and he moved the fingers on the neck of the guitar where they needed to go. You could feel his breath on your ear as your heart raced at his touch, but you did your best to ignore it.

"You  _really_  think you can teach me how to play this thing?" you asked.

"Maybe," he shrugged, still moving your fingers, "Or at least just help you play  _part_  of a song."

"What song?"

"Any song you want," he said. You thought for a moment.

"Your audition song," you told him, feeling him chuckle in your ear.

"If you can guess what song it is, I won't make you pay for this lesson," he said, making you roll your eyes.

~

**45 minutes later**

" _Contestants #1439275 to #1439280, you're on deck_!" the same crew member from before called out. You looked down at the sticker Michael placed on the thigh of his pant leg, leaning onto his arm with a small smile on your face when you noticed he was #1439276.

"I think that's you, Michael," you whispered, making his eyes widen.

"M-Maybe if I leave, they w-won't notice I'm g-gone," he mumbled, "A-And then I c-can go home and p-pretend this ne-never happened."

"Michael," you said softly, standing up and offering your hand to him. Gripping the neck of his guitar tightly, he took your hand and let you pull him to his feet. "You're gonna be  _fine_ ," you assured him, "I'll meet you in the lobby when your audition is over, okay?" He took a deep breath and nodded, only to blush when you reached up and kissed his cheek for good luck before nudging him toward the area he was supposed to go in to wait.

It wasn't until he was around the corner that you walked over to the television in the room, standing nervously as you waited for his audition. You didn't know why you were so nervous – maybe it was his anxiousness rubbing off on you – but you  _really_  hoped he'd make it through.

After another 5 minutes, it was time for Michael audition. Your leg was bouncing in anticipation, your heart skipping a beat when he finally walked onto the stage. He was clearly still so nervous, but he was still smiling as he came to a stop on the large ' _X_ ' on the stage.

The judges went through the usual introduction and asked him what he was going to be doing for them, and then they gave him the floor to perform for them. You noticed how badly his hands were shaking right before he started strumming his guitar and you knew he was still nervous, but it was hard to believe that only an hour after his panic attack, he was on stage performing for a full house. He looked so at peace as he sang, and you found yourself falling for him even  _more_.

As the song came to an end, everyone was cheering for him and he was letting out a small sigh of relief. He listened to the judge's critics and praises before they decided to vote.

He got a resounding ' _yes_ ' from Howie and Heidi, but your heart dropped when Simon gave him a ' _no_ '. Mel ended up giving him a ' _yes_ ' as well to send him through, telling him that she really did think he could make it far, but as he walked off the stage, you could still see the hurt expression on his face.

You hurried out into the lobby to meet Michael while he was talking to the host of the show, not wanting him to think you'd left already.

**Michael's POV**

5 minutes later, Michael wandered out into the lobby of the building, hoping you were still around – you told him you would be waiting there for him, but he'd been telling himself that didn't  _really_  mean you would. But when he turned the corner and immediately saw your face, his heart skipped a beat – and the smile you gave him when you looked at him was enough to make his head spin.

"You were  _amazing_ , Mikey!" you squeaked as you hurried up to him, your arms wrapping around his neck. Though he was surprised by the gesture, Michael's heart skipped a beat at the nickname as his own arms wound tightly around your waist, not wanting to let you go.

"I got a ' _no_ '," he whispered, swallowing the lump in his throat. You immediately lifted yourself back up and, with one arm still around his neck, you grabbed his chin so he couldn't look away from you.

"You got a ' _no_ ' because Simon Cowell only likes people who have a sob story or guys who look like boy band members and will convince millions of little girls to spend their parents' money on them," you stated without missing a beat, "That ' _no_ ' does not mean you're any less talented or worth anything less than you were when you walked out onto that stage."

"You mean that?" Michael murmured, trying to ignore  _just_  how close your lips were to his.

"Every word," you assured him, returning your arm to his neck so you could hug him again.

"A-Are you d-doing anything...?" he trailed off as you pulled back, "D-Do you want t-to go out with m-me...?"

"My family is going out to eat to celebrate my brother making it through his audition," you said, making Michael nod solemnly. "But you can join us if you want," you added quickly, chewing on your inner cheek, "And if you don't, then we can go out – just the two of us."

"B-But your brother..."

"I've eaten dinner with him since the day he was  _born_  – missing  _one_  won't kill him," you shrugged, "And if it  _does_ , then that's one less person you have to worry about in the competition." Michael couldn't help but laugh at the comment, making your heart skip a beat. "So... Where do you want to go?"

"A-Are you s-"

"I'm sure," you stated, confidently grabbing his hand and tangling your fingers together.

"I-I... Um... I..." he stuttered, blushing lightly, "I-I drove past this di-diner on the way h-here that w-we can walk to i-if you w-wanna go there..."

"That sounds perfect," you assured him, letting him walk you to his car so he could put his guitar away, not wanting to carry it around anymore, while you texted your mom and told her you were going out with Michael instead.

You both made mindless small talk as Michael led you toward the diner, both of you silently thanking God that you would get to see each other again throughout the competition.

 


	404. Better Late Than Never (Trevor Collins)

_some swearing, 100% by michael lmao_

~

It was a day like every other – the Let's Play crew was down two members and needed you for a couple videos they had to record that day. You happily agreed, and that's where you were now: taking a break from your own work to help with theirs.

"Y/N," Gavin said after everyone had synced their game capture and audio recordings, "What are we doing today?"

"I don't know – no one would tell me," you stated, making the group chuckle collectively.

"We're racing, Y/N!" you could hear his smile, "Rockstar added a bunch of new maps and so we're gonna play them!" You breathed a small sigh of relief –  _GTA V_  wasn't a game you were all that great at normally, but you  _were_  incredibly good at the races.

It wasn't until the last map you were playing that day before breaking for lunch that others started to pay attention to where you were constantly. You'd won every map so far and you were determined to make it a perfect game this time.

You didn't know how it happened, but even with everyone so set on you not winning, you managed to sneak your way into first place at the halfway point in the last lap. Unfortunately for you, however, someone noticed almost right away.

"Y/N... Where are you?" Jeremy asked. You saw him peek over to where you were sitting at Geoff's desk.

"I, uh... You know... Don't worry about it, Jeremy," you stated.

"Guys, I think Y/N's in  _first_!" he told the group.

"When have  _I_  ever been in first?" you shook your head.

"Uh...  _Every single time_  we've raced with you  _ever_?" Michael suggested.

" _Oh, no_!" Trevor shouted after looking at his map, "She  _is_  in first! She's gonna win!"

" _Shut up, Trevor_! This is why no one  _likes you_!" you shot back.

" _Ouch_ ," he laughed, but you missed him look past Ryan from his seat at Jack's desk and smile at the smirk on your face.

" _Come on_!" Gavin squealed as the race was coming to an end.

He and Trevor had passed you at the last moment, but you still had one more trick up your sleeve. You activated the boost you'd picked up at the beginning of the second lap, sending yourself flying toward the two men fighting for first.

" _Who won_?!" Gavin shouted when the screen displaying his finishing place didn't come up right away, letting him – as well as everyone else – know there was too close of a tie to decide right away. You all waited for the other three people to finish the race, anxious to see which one of you came in first.

The moment Ryan crossed the finish line in an  _undoubtable_  sixth place – obviously because he'd been spending the whole time trying to screw everyone else over in  _classic_  Ryan fashion – your finishing place screens came up.

" _What_?!" Gavin and Trevor screeched, staring at their respective third and second place victories in shock.

"That's what I'm talking about,  _baby_!" you smiled brightly, dropping your controller onto the desktop and throwing your arms into the air at your own first place victory, "I am  _unstoppable_!"

"You fucking won  _again_?!" Michael exclaimed, hitting his desk with the palm of his hand, " _God damn it_! Why can't we  _beat her_?!"

"I'm telling you guys!" Jeremy chimed in, "We need to stop playing these kinds of things with her! She  _always_  wins!"

"Me and Treyco  _passed_  her!" Gavin said, "She wasn't anywhere near us and then she just came out of  _nowhere_!"

"I don't  _understand_!" Trevor shook his head, "Y/N, how do you  _do it_?!"

"I can't reveal  _all_  my secrets, Trevor," you smirked again, leaning back in Geoff's chair.

"Well, any day Gav  _doesn't_  win is a good day for me," Ryan said, looking over at you and making you giggle when he held his fist up so you would fist bump him.

" _Ryan_!" Gavin pouted, " _Team Love and Stuff_!" Ryan simply laughed while Jeremy looked over at the door when it opened.

"Pizza's here!" he said happily, making everyone cheer.

"Let's stop!" you giggled into your mic, signaling for the editor that that was going to be the end of the video.

You all saved everything that needed to be saved before shutting off the Xboxes at your desks. But before you could get up and get some food, you felt a hand on your upper back.

"How many you want?" Trevor asked you as you looked up at him.

"Two for now," you told him.

"Anything to drink?"

"Coke if we have any."

"Coming right up!" he announced, trotting to the mini fridge behind Jeremy.

He grabbed a can of Coke and turned back to you, tossing you the can. You caught it, setting it on the desk to let it settle so it didn't go everywhere when you opened it.

"How  _cute_ ," you heard Ryan snicker, making you look at him, "Getting your food for you and everything."

"Shut up, Ry," you laughed, shoving his arm as he got up to get his own pizza.

"Just saying," he shrugged, leaning down so no one else heard him, "If one of you doesn't ask the other out soon, I might have to set it up  _myself_." Before you could respond, Ryan hurried away, making you roll your eyes.

Ever since you started working for Rooster Teeth a year and a half ago, you and Trevor seemed to click  _instantly_. You two were inseparable from the moment you met – if Trevor was in a Let's Play and they needed someone else, you were always the first one they recruited.

Everyone could tell that the mood was different if one of you hadn't come into work that day be it you were sick or what have you – though they noticed it seemed a lot more apparent with  _Trevor_  than with  _you_. He was always loud and outgoing when he was with the Let's Play crew, but it was as if you brought it out of him  _that much_  more.

But you didn't want to get your hopes up. You were so quiet and reserved and kept to yourself when you weren't in the Let's Plays; You really didn't think you meshed well with Trevor outside of videos seeing as how you two were  _polar opposites_  to each other. You always figured he would rather be with a girl who was as outgoing as he was – not someone who rarely spoke to her coworkers unless  _they_  stroke up the conversation first.

And the  _flirting..._

Every single employee at Rooster Teeth had come up to you on separate occasions to tease you about Trevor flirting with you in whatever Let's Play or podcast you'd recorded together that day, but you never really paid any mind to it. You just kept telling yourself that was just his personality – that he always sounded like he was flirting. But then again, it never sounded like flirting when he was talking to Mica or Barbara in videos...

" _Y/N_ ," you heard someone sing your name, pulling you out of your daydream.

You looked to your right and found that Trevor had moved Jack's chair over to the side of your desk, moving Geoff's keyboard and putting your plate down in front of you.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Fine," you nodded, "Thanks for getting my pizza." You picked up a slice and took a bite. "Especially after I just kicked your ass in that race," you added.

" _Alright_!" he leaned back, taking a bite of his own pizza, "After every video we do where you win, you rub it in for like,  _a week_!"

"Yes, and it's one of my  _many_  endearing qualities!"

"Is ' _endearing_ ' what they're calling it now?"

"Oh, don't even  _try_  to tell me that  _you_  don't rub it in when you win either!" you laughed, finally opening your Coke and taking a drink.

"I don't," he shrugged.

"Well,  _now_  I have to get in on this conversation," Michael said, walking over and standing beside the part where the back of Geoff's desk met the back of Jeremy's. "That's a load of bullshit and you  _know it_ , Treyco," he went on with a laugh.

"Okay, maybe I brag a  _little_ , but it's not as bad as  _Y/N_!" he defended.

"Trevor, you bought alphabet macaroni just so you could spell out ' _loser_ ' on my desk  _four days later_  for me to find when I came into work," you reminded him.

"Well, I really wanted to dump powdered Smarties on your desk like Gav did to me and write it in that, but Ryan wouldn't  _let me_ ," he frowned.

"Because I knew she would  _actually_  never speak to you again," Ryan pointed out, coming back to sit at his desk, "And if you're miserable when she's just  _not here_ , I don't want to see you when she's refusing to  _talk to you_." You noticed Trevor's cheeks turn a light red out of the corner of your eye, so you quickly grabbed your Coke in the hopes that taking a drink would hide your smile.

~

**Six hours later**

The rest of the day went by smoothly: you recorded a couple more videos before going back to your own desk to continue editing the videos you needed to turn in by the end of the week. You really enjoyed spending time in the Achievement Hunter office – especially when Trevor was in the same videos – so you certainly weren't going to complain about losing time with your own work.

By the time 5pm rolled around, you'd finished everything you needed to and emailed it to the person who would upload it when it was time. You decided on the spot that you would take Ryan's advice and ask Trevor out yourself if you saw him before you left the building. Truthfully, you were hoping you wouldn't run into him, but you did –  _literally_.

You were coming out of the room your desk was in when you turned the corner after passing through the door frame and smacking right into Trevor. He smiled at you, making your heart melt.

"Hello to you too," he said.

"Sorry," you breathed out, stepping back.

"No need for that," he assured you, "I was looking for you, actually."

"You  _were_?" you furrowed your eyebrows.

"Yeah," he nodded, "I know you take the bus because you hate driving in the city, so I just thought I'd ask if you wanted a ride home."

"You don't have to-"

"But I  _want to_ ," he cut you off. You finally let yourself smile slightly, breathing a sigh of relief – you  _really_  hated taking the bus, especially  _by yourself_.

"Thanks, Trevor," you murmured, making him smile again.

However, you only made it a few steps away from the door before you decided that if you didn't fess up now, you probably never would.

"What are you doing for dinner?" you asked, surprised your voice gave you the volume for him to hear it.

"I don't know," he shrugged, seemingly unfazed by the sudden question, "I was probably going to order takeout or something. Why?" You noticed him look at you, making you nervous.

"I... Um... I was gonna ask if... Maybe if you weren't... You know... If you weren't busy... Maybe we could get something... Like...  _Together_..." you said softly.

"Like a  _date_?" he asked, stopping in his tracks.

It was at that point that you wished you hadn't said anything, the surprised look on his face enough to convince you that you made a mistake.

"Never mind," you mumbled, turning around before he could see how embarrassed you were, heading the other way so you could get to the bus stop in time.

You didn't know  _why_  you listened to Ryan – you should have either just waited for Trevor or kept your mouth shut. You knew he didn't like you in that way – that he was only just being  _nice_  to you – and you couldn't believe you just  _ruined it_  by asking him out.

But as you were leaving, you felt a hand grab yours, causing you to spin around once again. You squeaked softly as you came to a stop right up against Trevor's chest, your heartbeat quickening as he smiled at you again.

"Where do you want to go?" he asked.

You swallowed thickly, "Y-You  _want_  to go out with me?"

"Of course I do!" he laughed shyly, "I've only been flirting with you since the moment you started  _working here_! I just didn't think you felt the  _same_  – you don't really respond when I flirt."

"You  _know_  I don't know how to handle affection of any capacity, Trevor," you reminded him, making him laugh loudly.

"Well, better late than never, as they say!" he grinned at you, finally letting go of you so you could start walking with him again. You randomly looked over at him, your eyebrow raised in curiosity.

"You  _do_  realize that because  _I_  was the one who asked  _you_  out, it means  _I'm_  buying, right?" you mentioned.

" _Absolutely not_ ," he said firmly.

"Yes, it  _does_ , Trevor!" you insisted, "I've told you about this  _before_! I've always believed that the  _asker_  should have to buy!"

"Well, not when you're with  _me_!" he announced, "It's the only way I ever feel like a  _man_."

"So being smart and handsome and talented doesn't  _cut it_  anymore?"

" _Oh, Y/N_ , you think I'm  _handsome_?" he sighed teasingly, nudging your arm. You simply giggled, pushing him right back.

You felt his hand brush yours, trying to fight back your grin as you brushed it right back. He took it as a go-ahead, grabbing your hand and tangling your fingers together. He pulled you right up to his side, squeezing you gently as you continued heading outside so he could take you to dinner.

But not before you were both met with knowing smiles and obnoxious whistles from every co-worker you passed along the way.

~

_inspiration: https://treycoffcentral.tumblr.com/post/156327224375/if-youre-taking-requests-could-you-do-a-prompt_


	405. Taking Chances (Ashton Irwin)

"Hey, Ash!" you called when you heard the front door to your apartment open, "How'd you do?!"

"I won," your roommate shrugged, coming into the kitchen where you washing the dishes.

"Well,  _yeah_ ," you rolled your eyes, "You  _always_  win; I meant about those sponsorships you were so worried about getting before you left."

You and Ashton had known each other for a couple years now – meeting when he needed a roommate in the city and you happened to be looking for someone to split the bills with. He wasn't exactly the most  _open_  person – he rarely talked to you about his life  _at all_  unless it was about boxing.

He was the best in the country – the championship trophies littering just about every room in the apartment proof of that. You never went to any of his matches – but he knew you didn't particularly  _enjoy_  watching people beat the shit out of each other, so he was never offended by it.

"Not sure yet," he informed you, "They wanna see another match before they decide whether or not I'm a safe option."

"And your  _track record_  isn't enough?" you cocked an eyebrow despite the fact that you weren't facing him. You heard him chuckle softly though, making you smile to yourself.

"Guess they need one more," he said.

It was at this point that you finally finished the dishes, hanging your towel back on the oven's handle and turning to face him.

"Ashton, what  _happened_  to you?!" you shrieked, hurrying over to him to get a better look.

You had a tendency to do this whenever he came home with an injury, but this was the  _worst one_  you'd seen yet. There was a dark purple bruise surrounding the outer half of his eye as well as most of his upper cheek, paired along with a decent-sized cut along his cheekbone.

"You really need to that checked out, Ash," you told him, "I don't think a simple bandaid is gonna do anything this time."

"I'll be fine," he mumbled, going to the fridge and grabbing a bottle of water.

"Then you should at least clean and cover it so it doesn't get infected," you shook your head.

"I said I'm fine, Y/N – just drop it." You swallowed thickly at the increasing volume of his voice, but you didn't stop.

"Well, if it gets infected before the next match, then you won't be able to  _fight_ ," you reminded him, "And then you won't get your spons-"

"Jesus Christ, Y/N,  _shut the fuck up_!" Ashton finally shouted, slamming his water bottle down on the counter and turning to face you as he threw his arm up, "I said I'm  _fine_! What part of that are you  _not understanding_?!"

" _Sorry_!" you squeaked, your voice breaking as you flinched slightly.

Ashton looked at you with a glare, only to have it disappear the moment he realized you actually thought he would  _ever_  be mad enough to  _hit you_.

"I'm sorry," you whispered at a barely audible volume – but he still heard it... He heard it  _loud and clear_.

You didn't even notice the way Ashton was looking at you because you'd already spun around on your heels, hurrying back to your bedroom before you started  _full-on_  crying in front of him. But it was too late; A broken sob left your mouth right before you shut and locked the door, leaving Ashton alone in the deafening silence of the kitchen.

~

**One hour later**

After Ashton had figured you both had enough time to calm down, he got up from the couch and shuffled out of the living room to your bedroom down the hall. He knocked a few times but didn't get any answers. He finally sighed and laid his forehead on the door frame.

"Y/N?" Ashton said as he knocked on your door for the fifth time, "Y/N,  _please_  come out of there. I need to talk to you."

He didn't receive an answer once again – to be honest, it seemed  _eerily_  quiet inside your room – so he made a decision he knew would probably make things  _worse_ , but he didn't care; He just needed to know you were still alive.

He went back into his room, grabbing a paperclip from the desk drawer in hopes of being able to pick the lock. He was successful in doing so, though what he was  _hoping_  to find wasn't what he  _did_. In fact, he didn't find anything  _at all_  – you had just _...disappeared_  – but your window  _was_  wide open, so he knew you'd left via the fire escape.

Ashton pulled his phone out of his pocket and tried to call you, but the moment he heard your ringtone playing as your phone lit up on your bed, he'd be lying if he said he wasn't starting to panic a little.

" _God damn it, Y/N_ ," he grumbled to himself, tossing the paperclip onto the kitchen counter once he reached it and grabbing his keys instead, leaving the house to go out looking for you.

~

It wasn't too long before Ashton found you – he had only been walking for about 15 minutes, actually – at the local playground, sitting under the same tree where Ashton had first met you before becoming roommates three years ago. And he knew you didn't want to talk – especially not with  _him_  – but that didn't stop him from walking over to you anyway.

"Y/N," he said softly, making your head snap up. He noticed you swallow thickly, your breathing picking up the closer he got. "I know I'm the  _last_  person you want to see right now, but if  _you_  get to finish your arguments before I storm off and ignore you for two days, then  _I_  should be allowed to apologize while you sit there and  _listen_ ," he told you.

You simply looked back down at your lap, silently letting Ashton know that you knew he was right and giving him permission to continue. He sat down in front of you – he knew you weren't going to look at him, but you were still letting him talk to you, so that was good enough for him.

"I  _know_  I'm a fuck up," he shook his head with a small sigh, "And I know that I'm a hardhead and I'm too prideful for my own good and I know you  _hate that_  about me... But I also know that you just want me to be safe and happy and loved and... I know you only do what you do because you care about me – and  _God_ , do I know that you care about me  _far more_  than I  _deserve_ -" He forced a laugh. "-I know you're only trying to  _help_ , Y/N... And I'm sorry that I can't just  _let you_... I'm sorry that I blow up at you... I'm sorry that I upset you so much when all you want is to make sure I'm okay and I'm not hurt and nothing ever gets infected... I'm just... I'm  _sorry_ , okay...? For  _everything_..." You didn't say anything right away, making Ashton swallow the lump in his throat and start to get up to leave you alone again.

But your voice stopped him.

"You're  _not_  a fuck up, Ashton," you said so softly that he almost didn't hear it.

"Y/N," he let out a breath, returning to his previous position, "You don't  _deserve_  being around someone who constantly makes you feel like  _shit_."

"I know I don't," you told him honestly, finally looking up to meet his eyes, "But that's not the  _only_  way you make me feel..."

"How-" Ashton cleared his throat lightly. "-How else do I make you feel?"

"Safe..." you murmured, "Happy, cared for,  _loved_... I like how easily you make me laugh when I'm sad, how  _hard_  it is for you to say no to me-" The small giggle that escaped made Ashton's heart skip a beat. "-I like how safe I feel when I'm with you, knowing that no one's gonna hurt me as long as you're around," you said softly, "And yeah, you're a hardhead and when you yell at me, it's hard to get myself to stop crying, but... I think I'd rather cry for three hours after you yell me than try to live life without you there at all because... Well... I don't know..."

You tried to get up to leave, but Ashton grabbed your bicep, pulling you back down onto his lap. You let out a surprised squeak, but there was no denying that your heart skipped a beat when you felt his other hand grab your hip to hold you down so you couldn't go anywhere.

"I think you  _do_  know," Ashton murmured, his thumb rubbing your hipbone gently, "I think you know  _exactly_  why you want me around-" He elected to ignore the glance you gave his lips. "-and I'd bet my  _career_  that it's the exact same reason I want  _you_  around as well." He saw your breathing hitch at the confession and instantly knew he was right. "I'll do better," Ashton promised you, "I won't lose my temper and I'll sit there and  _take it_  when you clean the blood off of me and I'll listen when you tell me to go to a doctor...  _I will_... I'll do whatever it takes for you to take a chance on me."

You eyed him carefully for a moment, trying to find any sign that told you he was lying, but you  _couldn't_. Though, that didn't stop you from raising an eyebrow at him.

"You really think you're going to just  _stop_  losing your temper?" you asked softly, making him chuckle.

"I'll bottle up the anger until I'm in the  _ring_ ," he offered. You felt a small smile pull at the corner of your mouth, and Ashton's eyes lit up with hope.

"Okay," you whispered. The grin on his face widened, but you didn't even get a second to enjoy it before his lips where on yours.

You let out a surprised breath but eagerly kissed him back, your one hand moved to this side of his face that wasn't bruised and held him there as if you were scared he was going to back out and leave or yell at you for kissing him even though  _he_  was the one who kissed you first. You felt Ashton's arms wrap around your waist, hugging you as close to his body as you could get.

You responded by giggling briefly, causing you to break the kiss. Ashton's eyes fluttered open, smiling at you before he let it fade.

"Y/N..." he trailed off, causing you to tilt your head, "Earlier... When I yelled at you... I saw you flinch before you went to your room... Y/N, I need you to know that I... No matter  _how_  upset I get, I would  _never_  hit you."

"I know, Ash," you replied, your voice barely above a whisper, as your thumb stroked his cheekbone, "But you should still go to the ER."

" _Y/N_ ," he pouted – something you never really saw him do before but you could definitely get used to Ashton allowing himself to give you this side of him.

"I can't take care of this one, Ash," you shook your head, "And if it gets infected, you won't be able to  _compete_  next weekend."

"I know," he sighed, looking down at the legs wrapped around him. You slid your hand to his chin, tilting his head back up and forcing him to look at you.

"Remember that promise you just made me?" you grinned slightly, "The one about going to the doctor when I told you to?"

"But you know I  _hate_  doctors!" he argued.

"You hate not being able to compete  _more_ ," you reminded him. You heard him let out the softest sigh.

" _Fine_ ," he murmured, "But you have to buy ice cream when we leave the hospital." You smiled victoriously as you climbed off of him, holding your hands down to him so you could pull him to his feet as well.

"I wonder how your opponents would feel if they knew you were a whiny little baby," you said thoughtfully, only to squeal loudly when Ashton responded by grabbing your hips again, this time to throw you over his shoulder as he took you back home.

~

_inspiration: https://ever-since-kiwi.tumblr.com/post/162844764131/the-boxer_

_another (better) boxer au u could read: https://5sos-imaginezzzz.tumblr.com/post/137497924729/part-8-finale-boxerbadboyluke-au-series_


	406. Break My Heart (Ashton Irwin) - Part 1

 

You found yourself at another Friday night frat party on campus, sitting on the couch and just watching everyone hang out. You were talking every now and then, but you weren't adding much to the conversation, getting lost inside your own little world. There were a fair amount of people in the living room, all of them sitting wherever they could find room – girls sitting on their boyfriends' laps, people sitting on the floor, and everywhere in between.

Your best friend had invited you and since your entire sorority was going anyway, you decided to go as well so you weren't just home alone. Ashton was sitting across the room – he would have sat with you, but there was no available space to do so since another close friend – Calum, who was also a member of the frat – was sitting on the armrest and one of your sisters were sitting on the other side of you.

At some point in the night, someone suggested everyone play truth or dare. You simply just stayed where you were, not really paying any mind to the game. Until you were dragged into it.

" _Y/N_!" you heard one of the boys exclaim, bringing you out of your daydream. You cocked an eyebrow as he went on, "Truth or dare?"

"I'm not  _playing_ , Nicky," you reminded him, a bit confused as to why he was dragging you into this when he  _knew_  you had said you didn't want to be part of it.

"You're in the room," he stated obnoxiously, "So you have to play at least one round!" When you didn't speak again, someone else did.

"Give her a truth," Calum shrugged, "A safety question."

"Alright," Nick tapped on his chin, making you roll your eyes, "There are a lot of guys living here and since you visit so much, you're statically bound to be secretly in love with  _one of us_... So who is it?"

"I bet it's me!" another boy piped up.

"I've had your cooking, Grey," you replied without hesitation, "It's not you."

"Y/N!" Greyson pouted, placing his hand over his heart and making you laugh.

"It  _has_  to be me then!" Hunter smirked, "I'm an  _amazing_  cook!"

"You're lucky you know how to make a bowl of  _cereal_ ," you said, "You're not Gordon Ramsay."

"Y/N," he pouted as well, "Why must you bruise my ego like this?"

"You guys wanted the truth," you reminded them with a giggle.

"Well... You spend a lot of time with  _Ashton_ when you're here..." Greyson mentioned, "Is it him?" When you paused, their eyes widened in delight.

" _It is_?!" they shouted in unison before Hunter went on, "It's  _Ash_ , isn't it?! You're in love with Ash, aren't you?!"

You looked at Ashton in a panic, but he wasn't even glancing in your direction. You didn't know why he wasn't trying to get them to stop, but you knew you had to leave before the teasing got any worse.

"I'm going outside," you mumbled so lowly that you knew they couldn't hear you over their excited shouts.

Of course, they were right; You'd been in love with Ashton since what you could only conclude was the moment you met him – as cliché as that was, it was true. You shared an Economics class freshman year and you had been best friends ever since the day he noticed you looked  _incredibly_  tired, so the next morning, he bought an extra coffee for you on his way to class. You could never pinpoint the  _exact_  moment you fell in love with him – all you knew was that you'd never tell a  _soul_.

Ashton was the kind of person who never wanted to be in a relationship – he would much rather spend his time doing the stereotypical frat boy things and sleeping with anyone who would let him. So it certainly wasn't like you were quiet about your feelings for  _no reason_ ; You knew Ashton wouldn't reciprocate those feelings and you weren't about to  _willingly_  break your own heart by confessing.

And you'd always  _kept_  that promise you'd made to yourself. Until  _now_ , obviously.

It wasn't even a full minute until someone came outside after you, sitting down on the front step beside you. You didn't need to look at him to know who it was – though  _some_  part of you was hoping it would be  _Ashton_.

"I was doing so  _well_..." you sniffled before Calum even had the chance to ask you if you were alright, "He never would have known how I  _felt_  if I hadn't frozen..."

"What's so bad about him knowing how you feel?" he shook his head.

"You've seen the girls he hangs out with at these parties," you mumbled, wiping your cheeks with the hems of your sleeves, "And he always brags about how  _many_  of them he sleeps with. I don't wanna be another  _number_  to him."

"Y/N," he sighed, wrapping his arm around your shoulders and pulling you into him, "You're not just another number – you're his  _best friend_. Ashton has never and  _would never_  treat you like that. Those girls don't mean anything; Why do you think he never calls them again? You're the only girl he ever  _really_  looks forward to seeing and you should  _see_  the smile on his face when his phone lights up with your name. I know he's not exactly the best at showing it, but he cares about you so much  _more_  than you realize."

"But he would never  _go for me_ , Calum," you whimpered, "Not when all those  _other girls_  want him. Why would he pick  _me_  when he could have  _them_?"

Calum just sighed; He knew nothing he could say in that moment was going to change your mind and he knew it wasn't  _his_  place to tell you how Ashton felt about you. So all he did was hold you – allowing your tears to soak into his shirt.

"Come on, Y/N," he whispered into your hair after you'd been crying for a couple minutes, "Let me go get your stuff and I'll walk you back home."

You sniffled again but picked your head up so he could do exactly that. Before he got up though, he pressed a kiss to your forehead and wiped your tear-stained cheeks, making you smile slightly.

When he went back into the house, you were left alone on the steps with nothing but the stars in the sky and the thoughts in your head.

You didn't know what this meant for you and Ashton – you were sure he wasn't exactly going to  _ignore_  the fact that practically the  _whole student body_  knew about your feelings for him now. You hoped it wouldn't change anything in the long run, but knowing Ashton's reputation with girls and how against being tied down by a relationship he was, you couldn't imagine this having the ending you  _wanted_  it to.

But that didn't necessarily mean it  _wouldn't_.

After only a few minutes alone, you heard the door behind you open again. You looked over your shoulder, your heart skipping a beat when you noticed it wasn't Calum that time – it was  _Ashton_. He seemed a little more cautious around you than usual – which you weren't  _completely_  surprised by – the boy just found out you were  _in love with him_ , for Christ sake.

"I think we need to talk, princess," Ashton said softly.

_Well... He's still using your nickname... That's a good sign..._ **_Right_ ** _...?_

You nodded slowly and he sat down in the spot Calum had previously occupied. He wasn't sitting right up against you like he normally did when you sat beside each other – he was giving you a little space – but you tried not to read  _too much_  into it, knowing it would just make your heart ache even  _more_  at the reality that he was about to tell you he only liked you as a  _friend_.

"I'm really sorry about tonight, princess," Ashton sighed, "I didn't mean to embarrass you or anything. I should have known they would try and pull something like that – I just didn't think it would be on  _you_ , and I'm sorry for not warning you."

" _You_  embarrassed  _me_?" you gave him a confused laugh, "Ash, if anything,  _you_  should be the embarrassed one. It's kind of a lot to find out your best friend likes you during a game of  _truth or dare_."

"It's not that I don't  _like you_ , Y/N, I just... I don't like you like  _that_..."

"Ashton,  _it's okay_ ," you assured him despite feeling your heart ache in your chest, "You don't have to feel bad about it – I should have just lied or something."

"You can't  _lie_  when you pick  _truth_ , Y/N," he replied, making you giggle softly before it faded out.

"Just promise this won't change anything," you whispered, "I really  _am_  fine that you don't feel the same and I just don't want things to get  _weird_  now."

"Promise," he nodded, holding his hand up with his pinky sticking out.

You smiled, linking your pinky with his. Just before Ashton released your pinky, you felt him press a kiss to the side of your forehead, making you smile again.

"Do you still want to go home?" he asked shyly, "I'll totally understand." You were silent for a moment before speaking.

"You won't mind?" you asked, your bottom lip stuck between your teeth. You didn't  _want_  to leave, but you also  _really_  didn't want to face everyone else in the house after what had happened either.

"Of  _course_  not!" he exclaimed, "You're not mad at me for not feeling the same way – the  _least_  I can do is let you go home."

"You shouldn't have to feel like someone will get mad if you don't like them back, Ashton," you reminded him as he helped you to your feet.

"Yeah..." he replied softly. You knew he'd had problems with girls in the past who found out he didn't feel the same, so he was grateful you weren't reacting the same way they did. "I'll go get your stuff," he told you before sprinting into the house, coming back out only a few seconds later, ready to walk you back home.

The walk was pretty normal – Ashton's arm was around you and your bag was resting on his opposite shoulder. You approached the door to your on-campus house, taking your bag from Ashton as you thanked him for walking you home.

He gave you a kiss on the cheek – as he  _always_  did – and gave you the usual ' _goodnight, princess_ ', waiting until you were inside the house and the door had shut behind you before heading back to his own place. Everything was  _so normal_ , in fact, that you had  _no reason_  to suspect that anything had changed between you two.

So why was it, the very next day, he wouldn't even  _look at you_  in class...?


	407. Break My Heart (Ashton Irwin) - Part 2

**Three weeks later**

You were sitting outside in the common area, under the tree you always sat at when you needed a relaxing place to do homework. Even though it was Saturday, there weren't many people around – they were all either out shopping or visiting relatives who lived close by or cooped up in their rooms doing their own homework.

It had been nearly a month since you'd last spoken to Ashton, but that didn't mean you weren't  _trying_. You texted him a few times asking him if you could come over to talk, but he would never answer – he  _did_  have his read receipts on, so you  _knew_  he was seeing them and choosing to ignore you.

You  _tried_  not to get mad at him – you tried to give him the benefit of the doubt in maybe he was just still  _processing_  the entire situation, but honestly...? You didn't know how much more time you could  _give him_.

"Hey, Y/N," you heard someone say, making you look up from the books spread out in front of you.

"Hi, Cal," you smiled slightly as he sat down on the blanket beside you.

"Why are you alone?" he asked curiously, "I thought you and Ash always came here to work together."

"I'm  _not_  alone," you reminded him softly, looking back down, " _You're_  here."

"C'mon, Y/N," he nudged you softly, "You  _know_  what I mean."

"I don't  _know_  why I'm alone... Ashton won't talk to me anymore..."

"What do you  _mean_  he won't talk to you?" he furrowed his eyebrows.

"I mean he won't talk to me anymore," you breathed out shakily, "He hasn't since that party."

"But he's your bes-" Calum started before you cut him off, finally being unable to keep everything bottled up anymore.

"He doesn't even  _sit beside me_  in class anymore, Calum!" you exclaimed, looking back up at him, "He promised nothing was going to change, but  _everything has_! He doesn't pout for me to cuddle with him when we watch TV, he doesn't come over in the morning and insist on giving me a piggy back ride to the lecture hall, he doesn't see me standing alone at parties and whine for me to dance with him – he doesn't even  _hug me_  when he sees me anymore! It's like the thought of  _touching me_  grosses him out now! I can  _handle_  being told he doesn't like me as anything more than his best friend, Calum –  _I can_  – but I  _can't_  bear knowing that me being in love with him makes him not want to  _be around me_  anymore!"

"Wait..." Calum trailed off after a moment of silence, seemingly in shock, "Ash told you he  _doesn't_  like you as more than a friend?"

"What does  _that_  mean?" you sighed softly, your voice not giving you any more than that.

And at that point, Calum didn't  _care_  whether or not it was his place to tell you.

"That boy has been in love with you since the moment he  _met you_!" Calum threw his arms up, "He can't go  _five minutes_  without talking about how cute you looked when you were yawning in class or how good you looked in a new shirt you just bought or how nice you smelled when you were sitting beside him and how much it distracted him from the lecture! I can't even  _say 'hi' to him_  without him immediately telling me about something funny or cute you did or said when we see each other in Psych! You should  _see_  how jealous he gets when I mention we were hanging out or had lunch together or  _anything_  where he  _wasn't_  there; He gets upset that I didn't say anything earlier like I have to  _have_   _his_   _permission_  to be with you  _without him_! I don't know why he'd ever tell you he  _didn't_  like you because that kid is  _so in love_  with you, it  _actually hurts_  the rest of us seeing you and knowing you're not  _together_!"

"Y-You're lying..." you choked out, your chest visibly rising and falling as you shook your head, "He... He doesn't... H-He would have told me  _himself_..."

"Why would I  _lie_ about something like that, Y/N?" he asked almost desperately, "I would  _never_  do that to you – especially not like  _this_."

"Bec-cause... He wouldn't...  _You_  wouldn't lie if you...if you found out someone felt the  _same_..."

"Y/N,  _please_ ," Calum sighed, "I  _swear_  I'm not bullshitting you on this. I have  _no idea_  why he lied, but...  _But_   _Ashton is in love with you too_."

~

**One week later**

It took you a week to do it, but you  _finally_  worked up the courage to confront Ashton with what Calum had told you. You'd been considering the possibility that maybe Calum could be fucking with you, but then again...  _Why would he_? Calum was  _just_  as much your best friend as Ashton was –  _all_  the boys in their frat were – so what would he have to gain from coming up with a lie like that? What did he have to gain from giving you  _such_  false hope?

You finally caught Ashton outside of one of the lecture halls – morning classes were ending and this was usually the time everyone headed off-campus for lunch – but, to be honest, you were starting to psych yourself out. He was standing around and talking with a couple of his frat brothers, and you didn't  _really_  want to call him out in front of them, but you  _knew_  you'd chicken out of confronting him if you didn't do it  _right now_  and you didn't know  _how_  long it would take to get the courage back.

So you sucked in a deep breath and went for it.

"Ashton..." you murmured as you stopped beside him, "We need to talk..."

"Can't it wait a minute?" he furrowed his eyebrows at you, "I'm in the middle of something right now."

"No, it can't..."

"Seems really important, Ash," one of his friends shrugged, "We can pick this up later back at the house."

"But we're already talking about it  _now_ ," Ashton shook his head, "I don't want to resche-" And that was when you finally had enough of him avoiding you.

"Are you in love with me?" you cut him off, making everyone go silent. The other boys stared at you in shock while Ashton's breathing visibly hitched.

"We've  _had_  this discussion already, Y/N..." he trailed off.

"I know we did," you replied, "But I don't want you to bullshit me this time; I want the  _truth_."

"That  _was_  the-"

"Calum told me how you get when you find out I was with him," you stated, "He said you get upset with him for not telling you as if anyone has to have your  _permission_  to hang out with me." Ashton was silent for a moment before swallowing thickly.

"Well... I don't know why he  _said that_ , but it's  _not true_ ," he shook his head.

"Why would Calum  _lie to me_  about that?!" you shouted.

" _I don't know_!" he didn't bother holding back either, "Maybe he's jealous you don't want  _him_  because you're still hung up on someone who _doesn't want you_!"

Your chest tightened up and you desperately wanted to cry, but you held it in. None of you – you  _or_  his friends – could believe Ashton had  _actually_  said that. You knew he didn't want to pursue a relationship with you, but you didn't think he'd ever just come out and say  _he didn't want you_.

"Get rid of my number, Ashton," you grumbled lowly, trying to mask the shakiness of your voice. Ashton's heart sank while his brothers just stood there uncomfortably.

"Y/N, don't-"

"Delete all the photos of us, and burn everything I ever gave you because  _I don't want it back_ ," you replied with the most stoic expression on your face, "Whatever  _this_ -" You motioned between him and yourself. "-became after you found out I love you is  _over_."

"Y/N!" he called after you as you walked away.

But you didn't listen.

For the first time since you met him, you  _weren't_  going to let him coax you back into  _whatever_   _relationship_  you had with him.


	408. Break My Heart (Ashton Irwin) - Part 3

**Five weeks later**

It had been over a month since you had last spoken to Ashton. He would try to stop you after class, but you refused to even  _glance_  at him. It hurt you more than anything to ignore him, but then again, it was the exact same thing he'd done to you before you confronted him.

You'd been keeping your mind off of it though – Calum had been an angel in helping you do that, insisting that he take you out to do something fun every weekend, and that's what you were getting ready for tonight.

Calum had informed you that he was going to take you bowling, so you were in your bathroom finishing getting ready. You had a tendency to underestimate how much time it would take you to shower and do your hair, so, as per usual, you were still getting ready when you heard a knock on your bedroom door.

"Come in, Cal!" you called out of your bathroom, "I'm almost ready!" But the voice that responded  _wasn't_  the voice you expected to hear.

"It's not Cal, Y/N," Ashton replied lowly after coming into your room and closing the door behind him, making you freeze.

You quickly finished curling the last piece of your hair before turning your curling iron off. You looked at yourself in the mirror for a moment – not ready to face Ashton, but not really having a  _choice_  either.

Ashton's heart was racing as he heard you turn off your bathroom light and open the door. He didn't know where you and Calum had planned on going before convincing him that he needed to talk to you instead – all he knew was that the way you looked right now took his breath away.

But his heart sank the moment you spoke.

"You need to leave, Ashton," you said firmly despite how shaky your voice was.

"I need to talk to you," he replied just as confidently.

" _Really_?" you cocked an eyebrow, crossing your arms over your stomach, "So  _you're_  allowed to come over here unannounced when  _you_  need to talk, but  _I'm_  not allowed to text you asking to meet up with me so I can say what  _I_  need to?"

"Y/N, just let me-"

" _No, Ashton_!" you exclaimed, his heart sinking again at how hurt you were, "Why should I let  _you_  talk when you wouldn't let  _me_?!  _That's not fair_! You promised me  _nothing_  would change, and then you just started  _ignoring me_! After  _everything_  I've ever done for you, you couldn't find  _two minutes_  to let me say what I needed to?! What kind of friend  _does that_?! If  _Calum_  did that to  _you_ , you'd have been over here whining about how you wanted  _him_  to apologize instead of just sucking it up and going to him  _first_!"

"I'm  _trying to_ , Y/N!" Ashton finally interrupted your rant, "I'm  _trying_  to suck it up and apologize! I don't have a good reason for doing what I did and I know that was a real  _dick_  move, but I didn't know what else to  _do_! I've never known what it was like to have my best friend tell me they love me before! And I know I handled it in the  _stupidest_  way possible, but I  _panicked_! And I'm  _sorry_! I'm  _sorry_  for how I've been treating you since that night, okay?! I don't know  _why_  I thought that was the best idea, but I've  _had time_  to think about how much of an  _asshole_  I've been to you! And I understand if this changes the way things used to be for us now, but I  _can't lose you_!" Ashton's own rant ended with a break in his voice and you felt like you couldn't catch your breath.

And maybe you shouldn't have – maybe you should have kicked him out and continued to ignore him – but you  _couldn't_  anymore. You couldn't keep yourself away from him because you missed him too much. It had only been a few weeks since you stopped talking to him; You weren't going to  _get over him_  in that amount of time – if you ever got over him  _at all_.

But you didn't necessarily  _want to_  either.

You  _desperately_  wanted Ashton to stay in your life because, no matter  _how_  much it hurt that he didn't feel the same, he was still your best friend and you knew you could never just  _abandon_  that. So, as you felt the tears well up in your eyes, you rushed forward and threw your arms around his waist.

Ashton let out a deep sigh, his arms winding around your shoulders and holding you just as tightly as you were holding him. One of his hands was on the back of your head, his fingertips lightly scratching your scalp as he felt you shake due to your crying.

"Princess,  _please_  don't cry," he murmured into your ear.

"I mi- _miss you_ ," you whimpered, squeezing him a bit.

"I miss you  _too_ ," he assured you, "And I know you don't want to talk right now, so can you just promise me you'll  _listen_?" You, curious as to what he meant, nodded your head so he would go on. "About the night I said I wanted to be  _just_   _friends..._ I was  _lying_... I've  _always_  been in love with you, Y/N; I was just  _scared_... I think I was scared that I loved you  _too much_..." he finally admitted to someone other than himself, "But nothing has  _ever_  scared me more than the thought of  _losing you_. I'm  _so_  sorry I lied to you  _both times_  you asked me if I felt the same... I don't know why I ever thought I could  _realistically_  live my life without you in it; I guess I just never really considered it being a  _real possibility_  until now... If you still feel the same about me, I would love  _nothing more_  than to give us a chance... But if you  _don't_ , that's okay too. I'll do whatever you want as long as it means you don't leave me again." You moved back to look at him for a moment.

"Whatever I want?" you asked softly.

" _Whatever you want_ ," he affirmed, cocking an eyebrow in confusion until he realized you were blatantly staring at his lips. He finally cracked a smile – though it was a small one – and rested his forehead on yours. "You want me to kiss you?" he asked, making sure you  _actually_  did before he did it. He felt you nod and smiled a little bigger, but you didn't get to really enjoy it since he immediately tilted his head and pressed his lips to yours.

You couldn't help but sigh in content – you'd obviously been in love with Ashton for  _so long_  that it felt nice to  _finally_  be kissing him. His lips were slightly chapped, but they were soft and it felt like they were made for yours – like they were two puzzle pieces  _finally_  coming together.

When you finally needed to breathe, you pulled away, watching Ashton's eyes flutter open with a blissful expression on his face. He looked at you for a moment before pressing a soft kiss to your forehead, leaving his lips there for a few moments before pulling away.

"This doesn't mean everything is gonna be okay again right away, Ash," you reminded him lowly.

"I know," he murmured, putting his forehead back on yours and just breathing in the scent of the perfume he loved so much, "But I promise I'm never gonna do  _anything_  like that to you again."

"It's gonna take a lot more than a promise to  _prove it_ , Ashton," you informed him, feeling him sigh deeply.

"How many ice cream cones am I gonna have to buy for you?" he asked seriously, "Because if I need to start an ice cream fund, I wanna start saving  _now_." You tried not to smile and it only made Ashton smirk. "I know  _exactly_  what I have to do when you're upset," he reminded you, "You want an ice cream cone from McDonald's  _every time_. So how many is the  _nightmare_  I put you through going to cost me?" You were silent before nodding.

" _All of them_ ," you replied.

Ashton instantly started prodding at your sides to make you laugh while he kissed you again. You were finally able to grab his hands and keep him from tickling you anymore, feeling him smile into the kiss as well before his forehead was on yours once again.

"I really  _am_  sorry, princess," he said softly.

"I know, Ash," you replied just as quietly, moving your head so you could kiss his cheek.

 


	409. Chasing After You (Michael Clifford) - Part 1

_this series is based on the 2015 remake of Cinderella!!!!!!!! i hope you all like it as much as i do!!!!!_

~

If someone had told you five years ago that you'd be living the life you are now, you probably would have laughed and told them they were crazy. You had a nice home, you lived in a nice kingdom, and you had the most loving parents anyone could have ever asked for.

However, that all changed when your mother got sick.

She had become suddenly weak one night after she and your dad had tucked you into bed. A doctor was called early the next morning, but his diagnosis wasn't what your parents were hoping to hear. He gave your mother only six months to live, and in those six months, she spent as  _much_  time with you as she possibly could.

She taught you everything you held so dear to you today – treat everyone with kindness, don't be afraid to stand up for what's right, and  _never_  stop dreaming.

But hey, two out of three ain't bad.

Your dad remarried six years after your mother's death – surprisingly due to  _your_  persuasion. You could see how much he loved your step-mother – despite her many... _many_...questionable qualities – and all you wanted was for him to be happy.

Clara was nice enough – she treated you the same as she treated your two step-sisters – although she  _would_  let a few passive-aggressive comments about you slip here and there. You dealt with it though – if your father was happy, that was all you cared about.

But, because this was your life, you didn't get the ' _happily ever after_ ' you were hoping for.

Your father went away a lot for work, always coming back a few weeks later with stories of his trip and gifts for you and your step-family. But one day, he didn't come back. He was supposed to return on Thursday, but that day had come and gone with no sign of him.

It wasn't until Friday evening that you heard a knock on the door. You immediately jumped up from the living room couch to answer it, disappointed at not seeing your dad, but smiling at the man who had accompanied him on the trip.

"Hello, Randall!" you chirped. He didn't smile back, and that was when you  _knew_  something was off. "Randall..." your smile faltered, "Is everything okay? Where's my father?" By this point, Clara, Kathryn, and Abigail had gathered behind you, curious as to what was going on.

"I'm so sorry, Y/N..." Randall swallowed, "Your father... He got sick while we were on the road..." You felt your chest tighten and your throat close up, making it hard to breathe. "He didn't make it..."

"What about my  _dress_?!" Abigail stomped her foot.

"And  _my_  pearl necklace?!" Kathryn screeched, both of them upset your father wouldn't be bringing the gifts he'd promised to return with. They both angrily left the room, your step-mother following, as you just stared at Randall in shock.

"Thank you, Randall," you whispered brokenly. You tried not to get upset at your step-sisters for only being concerned about their  _gifts_ , giving them the benefit of the doubt and hoping  _this_  was just the way they were choosing to cope right now.

"He wanted me to give you this," Randall said softly, holding out a rose to you, "He insisted we stop to get it off the side of the road, saying it reminded him of you and he knew you'd love it." Your smile came back – if only a little – as you took it from him.

"I  _do_  love it, Randall," you nodded slightly, "Thank you."

"I'm sorry, Y/N... I wish I could have-"

"It wasn't your fault," you shook your head, "It's okay." You said goodbye before closing the door, finally allowing your tears to fall as you sunk down to the floor, holding the rose as close to you as you could without squishing it.

~

**Four years later**

Ever since the passing of your father, your step-mother had changed  _everything_  about your childhood home. Furniture that you would remember you and your mother cuddling up on as she read to you was being thrown out, decorations your father brought back from other places were being sold, the staff hired to help out around the house that you had grown up with were now being fired and forced to move out without warning. The dream home your parents had worked  _so hard on_  was dismantled a mere  _month_  after your father's death, and the only things you had left of it were  _memories_.

Clara's true colors shone  _brightly_  after that day, forcing you to do all the cooking, cleaning – everything you previously  _enjoyed_  doing for fun were now tasks you dreaded  _waking up_  for. Your bedroom had been moved to the attic – much to your displeasure – but you still bore it. Sure, you could move out and make a living on your own, but you felt it was a duty to your parents to at least maintain the  _integrity_  of the house – to always have someone there who never forgot the memories it once held.

But even  _you_  needed to get out every once in a while.

You would take one of the horses your father purchased when she was just a newborn pony, and ride into the woods not far from your home. It was a nice getaway from your responsibilities every once in a while and you enjoyed talking to the animals since  _they_  couldn't give you orders. 

It was a normal ride into the woods – a day just like any other – until you started hearing shouting and gunshots. You looked around to see where they were coming from, but you found nothing. Instead, you squeaked in surprise when a deer – a young doe, to be more precise – bolted into the area of the forest that you were in. It stopped upon seeing you and when you heard the shouting of men get louder, your eyes widened.

"Don't just stand here!" you told the deer, " _Run_!" You took your horse's reins and had her chase the deer in the opposite direction that the shouting was coming from.

She ran as fast as you'd ever seen a deer run before and you kept a close eye on her until you thought she was safe. Your horse was still running, but she slowed down when you began hearing shouting right behind you.

"Miss!" you heard a man exclaim, " _Whoa_! Hold up!"

You turned your head as his own horse galloped up alongside yours. He reached out and grabbed the headstall on your horse's bridal, right beside her ear. He had her stop before making his horse stop as well and then addressing you.

"Are you alright?" he asked, "Are you hurt? Did you get hit? We didn't think anyone else was out here."

"What did that poor deer ever do to  _you_?!" you exclaimed, not acknowledging his questions.

"We're  _hunting_!" he grinned, a bit perplexed as to why you were so protective of a measly deer.

"So why does  _her_  life have any less value than  _yours_?!"

"It's just a  _deer_!"

"So was Bambi's  _mother_!" you crossed your arms in detest. The boy raised his eyebrows in amusement.

"You're comparing this to a  _fictional story_?" he questioned.

"What if that deer has a fawn that needs her?" you returned, "It won't  _survive_  on its own! It will wonder why its mother isn't coming back!"

"Deer don't die from a broken heart," he tried reasoning with you, "They don't have feelings."

"How do  _you_  know?" you asked defensively, "Maybe they think  _you_  don't have feelings because you can hunt them without a second thought!" The boy simply raised his hands up in surrender.

"Alright, alright," he was still smiling, "I'll leave the deer alone. So-" He was looking at you curiously. "-what do your forest friends call you?" You finally allowed yourself to grin back at him.

"They don't call me  _anything_ ," you replied, "They can't  _talk_."

"Well, surely their heroine has a  _name_ , at least. What do those who  _can_  talk call you?"

"It doesn't  _matter_  what they call me," you shook your head, "What do they call  _you_?"

He let out a confused chuckle, "You don't know who I am?"

"Should I?" you asked shyly, figuring it was someone from your childhood you didn't recognize anymore.

"I'd  _like_  you to," he smirked.

"So what's your name?"

"Most call me Michael," he told you, "Friends call me Mikey. My father calls me Mike when he's in a good mood." You giggled lightly, making him smile widely at knowing he caused it.

"Well, Michael," you said, making his heart skip a beat, "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Pleased to meet you too, Miss No Name," he replied, taking your hand and pressing a kiss to the back of it, making you blush a bright shade of pink. "Do you live around here?" You nodded in response.

"Where do you live?" you asked him.

"At the palace," he answered, "My father is teaching me his trade."

"You're an  _apprentice_  then?" you smiled, making him grin as well.

"I guess you could call it that," he nodded.

"Is it nice living there?" you were beyond curious, "Do they treat you well?"

"Better than I  _deserve_ , I'm sure," he answered, "Do they treat you well... _wherever you live_?"

"They treat me as well as they  _can_ ," your smile faltered slightly, but you quickly brushed it off, "I'm sure others have it  _much_  worse than  _I_  do." Michael was clearly about to comment, but you were both startled by a whistle, making you look over to find another man on a horse.

"We should be heading back now, Your Hi-" Michael cut him off before he could finish his sentence.

" _Of course_!" he exclaimed rather loudly, "I'll be right there!" The man simply smiled and shook his head, having his horse take him to the opening of the forest. Michael then turned back to you, "Sorry I didn't have more time. Perhaps we'll run into each other again soon?"

"I look forward to it," you grinned. He kissed your hand again before letting go, taking his horse's reins, and heading to the other man.

You found yourself chewing on your bottom lip as your smile grew, not even noticing that Michael had turned his head and seen it as you turned your own horse around and went in the opposite direction.

~

_inspiration: Cinderella (2015)_


	410. Chasing After You (Michael Clifford) - Part 2

**Michael's POV**

"You're acting as though you'd never seen a  _pretty girl_  before, Your Highness," the Captain of the guard said, walking with Michael down the hallway on his way to see his dad.

"She wasn't  _just_  a pretty girl, Captain," Michael shook his head, "She was  _different_  – like she had more of a  _story_  to tell. She was  _extraordinary_. I didn't want her to  _stop talking_. I wanted to find out everything about her and her life and what she does and-"

"But you've only met her  _once_ ," he cut off the Prince's rambling.

" _I know_!" he sighed, "So I have no idea why I'm so hung up on her  _already_!"

"Hung up on  _who_ , Mike?" the King asked as his son and the Captain entered the room.

"No one, Dad," he answered.

"The Prince met a girl in the woods while we were hunting, Your Majesty," the Captain ratted Michael out, only making the blonde sigh again.

"Well, why not tell me about her?" the King insisted, "I  _do_  enjoy listening to stories of princesses you fancy if they could come to rule this kingdom one day."

"But she's  _not_  a princess," Michael stated, "So you  _wouldn't_  be interested in hearing about her."

"Son, I'll still listen-"

"But you'll just tell me nothing could ever  _happen_  with her, Dad, and that's  _not_  what I want to hear," he said, giving his father the most serious expression, "You want me to fall in love with a princess and I respect your wishes, but I want the freedom to  _choose_  my future queen –  _previously royal or not_."

"You  _know_  that's not how the laws work, Michael," the King sighed – he knew how much his son hated the idea of someone else deciding who he should fall in love with.

"Because you refuse to even  _attempt_  to change them," Michael reminded him.

"Mike, I would have to have a 2/3 vote from Parliament and they're not exactly as  _open-minded_  as you are about these kinds of things."

"I  _know_  – I've  _met_  them," he grumbled, "But it would be nice if my father would at least  _try_." Michael didn't give his father a chance to respond, leaving him sighing once again as his son left the room.

~

**Three hours later**

As the dishes from lunch were being cleared from the table around them, Michael and his father were sitting there talking. Well... His _father_  was talking – Michael was just  _listening_. He couldn't get the girl he met in the woods out of his head no matter how hard he tried, and he didn't want to keep wondering when he was going to see her again –  _if_  he ever saw her again  _at all_.

"You have to meet the Princesses as they arrive," the King rambled on, "And then you'll be required to dance with each of them and pick who you would like to take as your bride."

"On one condition," Michael finally spoke. The King motioned for him to go on. "Let the invitations go to  _everyone_  in the kingdom – not  _just_  nobility from around the country." He cocked an eyebrow before shrugging.

"Very well," he said, "Invitations will go to everyone." Michael smiled as he went on. "I want you to go meet with Bethany so she can get started on your outfit for the ball," he said, "I will be working with Andy on the invitations." Michael got up from his seat, heading toward the seamstress's room, when he was joined by someone else.

"You want your mystery girl to attend," the Captain smiled knowingly, "That's why you're wanting everyone to be invited."

"If my father just  _meets her_ , I  _know_  he'll like her!" Michael exclaimed softly, "It's worth a  _shot_!"

"And what if he  _doesn't_ , Your Highness?" Michael sighed for a moment before throwing his arms up.

"Then I'll run away with her!" he concluded, "And we'll start a new life together free of rules and royal regulations!"

"Sure, you will," he chuckled.

~

**Your POV**

"I don't understand why you stay with them," your best friend said as you two were walking around the town square.

"I've  _told you_  already, Luke," you sighed, "My parents built a house they loved so I could grow up in it; I can't just  _abandon_  it."

"I would hardy call it  _your parents' house_ anymore," he shook his head, "The only thing Clara  _didn't_  change about it was the structure itself. If I hadn't known what it looked like before your parents passed, I would think you were  _certifiably_  insane."

"You  _still_  think I'm certifiably insane," you snickered, shoving him with your elbow.

"And  _speaking_  of thinking you're certifiably insane, would you mind telling me about this little  _encounter_  you had this morning again, please?"

" _Luke_ ," you groaned.

"I'm just trying to understand your logic here!" he defended, "Because if  _I_  were to meet some stranger in the woods at 8:30 in the morning, I wouldn't  _automatically_  assume he was my  _soulmate_."

"I did  _not_  say he was my soulmate!" you squeaked, shoving him again.

"But you  _do_  think he's the  _dreamiest boy you've ever laid your eyes on_ ," he sighed dramatically, placing his hand over his heart.

" _This_  is why I don't tell you anything," you remarked.

"Come on, Y/N," Luke shook his head, "He lives at the  _palace_ ; How do you think you're ever going to  _see him_  again?" You were silent for a moment – you hadn't thought about seeing him again would happen – but luckily, you didn't have to think for long.

" _Attention_!" someone called out, making everyone look over at where the voice was coming from. You didn't know who it was, but with the way he was dressed, he was  _definitely_  from the palace. "If I could have your attention, please!" he said again, waiting until everyone was done whispering amongst each other to continue. "There will be a royal ball held at the palace this Saturday night!" he informed everyone, "Upon request of the young Prince Michael,  _everyone_  in the kingdom – be they noble or commoner – will be invited to attend!"

Your heart skipped a beat at the announcement but also...  _Prince_  Michael? That  _couldn't_  be who you met in the woods that morning...  _Could it_?

"Huh," Luke said, bringing you back to reality, "I guess you could see your mystery soulmate again  _after all_." The four men who came along with the announcer began handing out envelopes with the invitations and as soon as you got yours, you knew you had to go home to begin searching for a dress.

"I'll see you later, Lu!" you said, not even giving him a chance to say goodbye before you running in the direction of your house, leaving him shaking his head with a chuckle and continuing about his day.

As you approached your home, you thought about not telling your step-family but, in the end, you knew you had to. After the ball was over, you would still have to live with them, and you really did  _not_  want your life to get any worse than it already was by making them angry.

"Hello?!" you called out as you opened the door, "Where is everybody?!"

"What is it, Y/N?" Clara rolled her eyes, coming into the room with your step-sisters.

"I just thought you'd like to read this invitation from the palace," you said. The moment you mentioned it was from the palace, Kathryn and Abigail practically fought each other to take it from your hand before Clara plucked it out of all three of your grasps.

"A royal ball..." Clara murmured, then looked at her... _biological..._ daughters, "A royal ball! Girls! Go get ready! We must buy you new dresses  _immediately_!" The girls were only just stepping onto the staircase when they froze as you spoke up.

"What about me?" you asked softly, making everyone look at you.

"What  _about_  you?" Clara asked.

"Mother!" Abigail laughed, "Does she  _actually_  think she's going to the ball?"

"What a  _laughable_  concept!" Kathryn chimed in, " _Y/N_ going to a  _royal ball_!"

"It says  _everyone_  in the kingdom is invited," you reminded them, "And I  _am_  in the kingdom."

"Of course," Clara said with a crooked grin, "You may go."

" _Mother_!" the girls exclaimed, only to stop when Clara held her hand up to shush them.

"You may go to the ball," she continued, "But  _only_  if you can find a dress on time." You smiled brightly, hurrying past the girls to go to your room in the attic to get ready.

"Mother, you  _can't_  be serious!" Abigail whined when you were out of earshot.

" _Get ready_!" Clara whispered roughly, " _Hurry up_!" Abigail and Kathryn looked at each other before the corners of their mouths started curling up into an evil grin, now knowing what their mother was trying to do.

It hadn't even been two minutes before you were coming back down the stairs, hearing the front door slam shut. Your eyes widened, running the rest of the way and opening the door just as your step-family was getting into the carriage, laughing as they were taken toward town without you.

You watched in shock for a moment – not really in disbelief because you should have known they weren't actually going to allow you to go with them – before you reentered your house. You closed the door and began walking back up the stairs in determination – if you weren't going to be allowed to  _buy_  a new dress for the ball, you were going to do everything in your power to  _make your own_.

~

_inspiration: Cinderella (2015)_


	411. Chasing After You (Michael Clifford) - Part 3

**Saturday evening**

You were looking at yourself in the mirror of the dress you'd created using some of your mother's old clothing that you kept in a chest in your room. It wasn't an extravagant ball gown like your step-sisters', but it was still something you were proud of – and you knew your mother would have  _loved_  it.

"Girls!" you heard your step-mother call out for her daughters, "We must be leaving now! We don't want to be late!" You knew she wasn't planning on taking you, clearly just assuming that you hadn't gotten a dress on time, so you hurried out of your room and down the  _many_  staircases until she would hear you speak.

"Wait!" you squeaked, making everyone look at you, "I'm ready!" 

"And  _where_  are you going?" Clara cocked an eyebrow when you reached the bottom of the staircase.

"You said I could go to the ball if I found a dress on time," you reminded her firmly, "And I  _did_."

"Of course, dear, but  _look at you_ ," she smiled mischievously as she returned to the stairs, "Do you  _really_  think they're going to let you into the  _palace_  looking like  _this_?"

"Yeah, Y/N," Kathryn snickered, "It looks like it could just..." She trailed her sentence off as she came to the steps, reaching up and grabbing the sleeve of your dress, ripping it at the shoulder seam.

" _Hey_!" you shouted.

"Right?" Abigail added, coming up to you as well, "And this  _belt_..." She grabbed the fabric around your waist and ripped it as well.

" _Stop it_!" you exclaimed, shoving their hands off of you and stepping up a couple steps to get away from them.

"Now, girls," Clara said in a mock-stern voice, "I  _won't_  allow this behavior. Go get in the carriage." The girls giggled as they left the house and your step-mother turned to you once again. "I'm  _terribly_  sorry, Y/N," she shook her head, sighing dramatically, "Maybe you'll be able to attend the  _next_  ball." Your eyes were narrowed as she sauntered away, waiting until the door was closed before you allowed yourself to cry – you  _refused_  to give them the satisfaction of letting them see your tears.

You hopped off the staircase and ran to the back of the house, going outside into your garden. The garden had been the  _one thing_  your step-mother didn't touch when changing the house – she claimed it was beyond help and it was so far back in the yard that it didn't even  _matter_  if it was removed or not – so it became your safe place after your father died. Your parents weren't buried there, of course –  _how creepy would_ ** _that_** _be?_ – but you did spend your time in garden talking to the sky and imagining they were looking down on you.

And you did exactly that on  _this_  night – on the night when all you wanted was to see Michael again – you asked your parents what you should do.

But on this night,  _someone answered back_.

"Well, you should go to the ball, of course!" a voice chirped behind you.

You obviously let out a short scream in surprise before you slapped your hand over your mouth and spun around. Your arm came back down, your eyebrows furrowed together as you looked around, unable to find where the voice came from.

"Oh, silly me!" the voice said again, making you jump, "I forgot you can't see me!"

Your eyes widened as you watched a woman seemingly come out of thin air. She was wearing a big, poufy dress and was holding a wand as she smiled at you.

"That's better!" she said, "Now what seems to be the problem, sweetheart?"

" _Who are you_...?" you asked slowly.

"Well," she chuckled, "I would think you'd  _know_  a fairy godmother when you see one!"

"A... A  _fairy godmother_?" you stuttered out, "They're  _real_?"

"Of course! You said you believed in them as well!"

"When I was a  _kid_!" you shook your head, "I didn't think it was actually  _true_!"

"Well then, how about I work a little magic then?" she smiled, "Do you have anything around here that can be turned into a carriage? A watermelon, perhaps!"

"No..." you said softly, "We don't have any of those..."

"A very large tomato?" she asked.

"None of those either..." you said before perking up, "We have  _pumpkins_  though."

" _Ah_! A pumpkin!" she said excitedly, "That will do  _perfectly_!" You led her to the part of your garden that you were growing pumpkins in. "You might want to stand back," she informed you with a shy grin, "It's been a while since I've done this; I might be a bit rusty." You took a large step away from the edge of the garden, watching in awe as the fairy godmother waved her wand at the pumpkin.

It was hard to believe what you were seeing – and understandably so – but the pumpkin began growing and growing until it was three times as big as you were before magically exploding to reveal a golden carriage.

" _Whoa_ ," you murmured to yourself.

"Pretty  _cool_ , huh?" the fairy godmother smiled brightly, "Now, do you have any small animals running around here? Some mice, maybe?"

"I think so... There might be some in the shed," you informed her.

You then led her to the run-down looking wooden building beside your garden. You pulled the door open and, sure enough, four mice came scurrying out – but they weren't able to get away before the fairy godmother waved her wand at them. You watched again as the four tiny mice turned into four white horses.

" _Oh_!" she suddenly exclaimed, "We'll need that too!" You looked over as she was waving her wand at a small lizard, watching him turn into a person. "Well, I think that does it..." she said, "We have a horse-drawn carriage and someone to drive it... I think you're all ready to go, dear!"

"Um, Fairy Godmother..." you said, making her look at you. You didn't say anything else – you just motioned toward your torn dress.

" _Oh my_! We can't let you go in  _that_!" she exclaimed.

You laughed as she waved her wand at you this time, watching your dress turn into a beautiful blue ball gown fit for a princess. She then waved her wand at your feet, and you felt yourself grow a little taller. You moved the dress out of the way to see the shoes, looking back up at her.

" _Glass_?" you questioned.

"You'll find they're  _quite_  comfortable," she chirped, making you smile as she took you over to the awaiting carriage.

"Wait," you said with a worried look on your face before she helped you in, "What about my step-mother and step-sisters? They'll  _surely_  recognize me, won't they?"

"No worries!" she assured you, waving her wand again.

You were sprinkled with a little glitter so you weren't entirely sure what that would do, but you trusted your fairy godmother in that she knew what she was doing. She then helped you inside of the carriage before closing the door.

The horses, however, hadn't even made it 50 feet before you heard your fairy godmother's voice again.

"Y/N, Y/N!" she called, hurrying after you as the carriage stopped abruptly, "I forgot the  _most_  important thing: At the last stroke of midnight, the spell will be broken and all will return to the way it once was. You  _must_  be back before then."

"Midnight?" you asked.

" _Midnight_ ," she clarified with a nod.

"Well, that's  _more_  than enough time!" you smiled happily, making her grin as well. She stepped back as the carriage took off again, waving as you looked out the window and thanked her.

~

_inspiration: Cinderella (2015)_


	412. Chasing After You (Michael Clifford) - Part 4

Upon arriving to the castle, no one was outside except for the guards stationed at the front gate and your best friend. You smiled widely as your driver – the, uh... _lizard_... – opened your door for you.

"What's going on  _here_?" Luke asked, holding his hand out to you and helping you out of the carriage.

"I don't think you're gonna  _believe_ me," you breathed.

" _Try me_ ," he insisted. You took in a deep breath before letting it out.

"I... I have a fairy godmother," you told him softly, not wanting the guards to hear. He stared at you for a moment with a blank expression.

"You're right," he nodded, "I  _don't_  believe you."

"Listen," your driver interrupted, "I'm a lizard driving a carriage;  _Anything_  is possible." You couldn't help but snort as Luke's gaze flicked between the two of you.

"I'm sorry," he said, "It sounded like he just said he was a lizard driving a carriage."

"Yeah..." you smiled shyly, "And the carriage is a pumpkin and the horses are mice."

"You are  _actually_  certifiably insane!" he exclaimed in a whisper. You smiled politely at the guards as they let you through, having no idea what you and Luke were saying to each other.

You waited until they were out of hearing range to speak at your normal volume as you walked toward the front entrance of the castle.

"Lu, I  _know_  I sound crazy, but you're just gonna have to  _trust me_  on this!" you told him, "I mean,  _honestly_ : Do you think Clara  _bought_  me this dress? Or  _allowed_  me to come here in my  _own_  carriage? I'm not supposed to be here  _at all_!"

"You have a point..." he murmured, "But... A  _fairy godmother_ , Y/N?"

" _I_  was as surprised as  _you_  are," you laughed nervously, "Listen, Lu... I have until midnight to enjoy all of this."

"What happens at midnight?"

"This all goes away," you sighed, "The carriage will turn back into a pumpkin, the horses and driver will turn back into mice and a lizard, and this dress will be gone forever... And I don't know if I'll meet Michael again tonight or if anything will change about the reality I live in every day... But I just want  _one night_  to pretend I'm a princess and that I don't have to put up with my  _awful_  step-mother and step-sisters." Luke sighed at the pleading look on your face.

"You more than  _anyone_  deserve a night to forget what you're living with right now," he told you as you walked into the castle, "So I'll find you and then meet you right here at 11:45."

" _Thank you_ , Lu!" you squealed, throwing your arms around his neck.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," he chuckled, hugging you back, "You're lucky I put up with you." You smiled again, kissing his cheek before rushing toward the ballroom. " _Glass_?" you heard Luke say, " _Really_?"

"They're  _quite_  comfortable," you winked over your shoulder, hearing him laugh as you turned the corner.

The party in the ballroom got louder as you got closer. Your steps were more cautious, nervous at knowing that everyone would stare at you since you were arriving so late. But as the guards stood at the doors opened them for you and you were at the top of the staircase, it was like none of that  _mattered_  anymore.

Sure, everyone still stared at you, but they weren't looking on in disgust that you were late; They seemed like they were in  _awe_. You stood there for a moment, admiring how beautiful the ballroom looked, before beginning to descend the stairs.

It wasn't until halfway down that you found the person you were hoping to see – though you weren't expecting to see a  _crown_  on top of his head. Michael was descending the staircase on the opposite side of the room, finding himself unable to believe that you'd  _actually_  shown up. The two of you caught each other's gazes and smiled as you continued walking until you met in the middle of the dance floor.

"Hello again, Miss No Name," Michael said softly.

"Hello again, Mr. Michael," you grinned, making him chuckle.

"It would give me the greatest pleasure if you would allow me to lead you in the first..." he trailed off as he stared into your eyes. You knew you were blushing, but you couldn't help but smile again.

" _Dance_?" you whispered, making him laugh a little louder this time.

" _Yes_ ," he nodded, " _Dance_."

"I would  _love_  to," you confirmed.

Michael took a step back so he could bow, and you curtsied respectfully as well. He then took your hand when you gave it to him, placed it on his shoulder, and wrapped his arm around your waist. He took your other hand and brought it up, both of your elbows bending as he held it against his chest and you started dancing while everyone watched.

This was all such a  _surreal_  experience for you, to be honest – you found out you had a fairy godmother and that the mysterious boy you'd met in the woods was the  _Prince_  of your kingdom, and your step-family had  _no idea_  it was  _you_  dancing with him right now. And considering where you were now, you  _really_  didn't want this night to end.

The song ended and everyone else was invited to dance as well, but Michael apparently had other plans. While the rest of the party guests were flooding the dance floor, the Prince was pulling you outside. He led you out of the castle, taking you to the garden.

You ended up at the fountain, standing there and admiring how beautiful it looked. But you didn't even notice that Michael  _only_  had his eyes on  _you_. He watched you in awe for a moment before clearing his throat, making you look at him.

"So..." he trailed off, "You're not upset with me or anything, are you?"

"Why would I be  _upset_?" you furrowed your eyebrows, unsure of what he was referring to.

"Well... I didn't tell you I was the  _Prince_..." he answered shyly, "I kinda figured you'd be a little  _ticked_  when you found out."

"I'm sure you're tired of all the formalities and people bowing whenever they see you and being proper all the time – I'm sure you just want to be treated like  _Michael_ ," you shrugged, "Can't really be mad about  _that_." You weren't looking at him again, but he was staring at you in adoration.

Michael had never met another person who  _really_  understood what he was feeling and now that you were standing in front of him, he never wanted to let you go.

"Would you like to dance?" he asked randomly.

"Didn't we  _just_  do that?" you giggled as you turned back to him.

"A little more dancing never hurt anybody," he grinned at the sound of your laugh.

"There's no  _music_ ," you reminded him.

Michael simply held his hand out to you and you took it again, letting him pull you into him. He held you  _exactly_  like you'd been dancing in the ballroom – only this time, you were alone.

"You know," he started as you began swaying, "In my spare time – when I'm not busy with things I don't  _actually_  want to be doing-" You giggled again, making him smile. "-I like to write songs."

"You write songs?" you asked in surprise – you never would have pegged the  _Prince_  to be a  _songwriter_.

"I  _do_ ," he nodded, "And I'd like to sing you one if that's okay with you."

"Are you a good singer?" you asked, a teasing grin on your face.

"Well, if I'm  _not_ , you can always tell me to stop," he chuckled.

You smiled again, stepping closer so your body was against his, laying your head on his shoulder. You didn't exactly answer him, but Michael took that as a go-ahead anyway.

_I'll take what you got, got, got_   
_I know it's not a lot, lot, lot_   
_'Cause I just need another hit_   
_You're the thing that I can't quit_

_You got what I want, want, want_   
_Here and then you're gone, gone, gone_   
_If you told me that we were through_   
_You know that I would break the truth_

_I want to breathe you in like a vapor_   
_I want to be the one you remember_   
_I want to feel your love like the weather_   
_All over me, all over me_

_I want to print our hands in the pavement_   
_Savor your words, I won't ever waste them_   
_Look in your eyes and know just what you meant_   
_So lie to me, just lie to me_

_So talk, talk, talk_   
_Well, tell me what I want, want, want_   
_If I don't look into your eyes_   
_It's almost like a perfect lie_

_So don't stop, stop, stop_   
_We'll take another shot, shot, shot_   
_'Cause you know you got perfect aim_   
_I wanna feel you in my veins_

_I want to breathe you in like a vapor_   
_I want to be the one you remember_   
_I want to feel your love like the weather_   
_All over me, all over me_

_I want to print our hands in the pavement_   
_Savor your words, I won't ever waste them_   
_Look in your eyes and know just what you meant_   
_So lie to me, just lie to me_

_Make it sound so sweet_   
_When you lie to me_   
_Make it sound so sweet_   
_When you lie to me_

_I want to breathe you in like a vapor_   
_I want to be the one you remember_   
_I want to feel your love like the weather_   
_All over me, all over me_

_I want to print our hands in the pavement_   
_Savor your words, I won't ever waste them_   
_Look in your eyes and know just what you meant_   
_So lie to me, just lie to me_

_Make it sound so sweet_   
_When you lie to me_   
_Make it sound so sweet_   
_When you lie to me_

You waited for a few moments, wanting to make sure he was finished singing. You picked your head up slightly, just enough so that you could reach his cheek, and pressed a kiss to it.

"That was  _beautiful_ , Michael," you told him before pulling away.

" _You're_  beautiful," he murmured, making you blush.

Your heart skipped a beat when you realized he was leaning toward you, but – much to your dismay – he didn't make it all the way. You both jumped when you heard Luke's voice calling out to you as he ran down the castle porch so Michael never saw him, but he  _did_  watch your eyes widen.

"Are you o-" Michael started before you cut him off.

"I'm sorry," you whispered, removing yourself from his arms and running back toward the castle. 

" _Wait_!" he called after you, "Where are you  _going_?!" You stopped once you reached the steps, turned around, and let out a breath.

"I had a  _really_  amazing night, Michael," you promised him, "But I have to go."

Michael smiled in disbelief as you started running again. He finally realized that you were  _actually_  serious, however, and knew he had to go after you, fearing that he would never see you again if he didn't.

~

_song used: "Vapor" by 5 Seconds of Summer_

_inspiration: Cinderella (2015)_


	413. Chasing After You (Michael Clifford) - Part 5

You ran back through the castle, politely passing by the couples on the dance floor. Michael entered the room just as you reached the top of the first set of stairs, running after you. You had just reached the doorway to the ballroom when you nearly ran into somebody.

" _Your Majesty_ ," your eyes widened when you realized you almost collided with the King, "This was a lovely party and I'm terribly sorry I wasn't able to stay longer." He smiled in confusion as you took a couple more steps and stopped again to look at him. "You have a  _very_  wonderful son, Your Highness," you told him, "He's going to make a  _fine_  King someday." You smiled politely, curtsying quickly before continuing to run toward the front entrance.

"Thank you!" you heard the King call after you, making you grin to yourself before rounding another corner.

You found Luke mindlessly wandering around the front entrance, breathing a sigh of relief. When he saw you coming, his eyes widened. You grabbed his hand as you reached him, pulling him along with you.

"I thought you were gonna be  _late_!" he exclaimed, managing to keep up with you.

"Just go get the  _carriage_ , Lu!" you exclaimed, pushing him ahead as you kept running. He bolted down the castle steps, rushing the carriage driver –  _lizard_  – to meet you at the front entrance.

You were halfway down the steps when you managed to step out of your shoe –  _just your luck_. You turned around to retrieve it, but you heard the  _last_  thing you wanted to hear in that moment.

" _Wait_!" your head snapped up at the sound of Michael's voice, finding him at the top of the stairs.

Your eyes widened again, and you knew you had to ditch the shoe. You quickly took off your other shoe so you could run properly, and Luke met you right outside the gates. He hastily helped you into the carriage before climbing in behind you and closing the door, shouting for the driver to go.

" _It's Michael_!" you breathed, making Luke look at you, a bit out of breath himself.

"What?" he furrowed his eyebrows, "Michael  _who_?"

"The guy I met in the woods!" you swallowed, "It's  _Michael Clifford_! It's the  _Prince_!"

" _Whoa_ ," Luke whispered, "Didn't see  _that one_  coming. What did he say when he found out it was you?" You let out a high-pitched sigh, making him look at you. " _Y/N_ ," he said with the most serious expression you'd ever seen on his face, "Don't tell me he  _didn't_  find out it was you."

"I... You  _called_  for me..." you shrugged, a shy smile on your face.

" _Y/N_!" Luke whined, "Why didn't you  _tell him_?!"

"I  _panicked_ , Luke!" you squeaked, "We were dancing and he said I was beautiful and he leaned it to kiss me and I just... Lu, if Clara finds out I was there, I am  _dead_! And then we can kiss me ever telling him  _myself_  goodbye!"

~

**Michael's POV**

Michael went to run after you, but stopped halfway down the staircase when he noticed something shining in the moonlight out of the corner of his eye. He looked down and found your shoe, picking it up. He went to continue running, but he was stopped.

"Your Highness!" Michael looked over his shoulder and found the Captain of the guard and the Grand Duke rushing to him.

"Ah, good! You're here!" Michael chirped, "One of you, go get me my horse!"

"No, Prince!" the Grand Duke said, "It's too risky! We'll go after her!" He immediately hurried the rest of the way down the stairs while the Captain slinked behind for a moment.

"You  _had_  to choose the one with the curfew," the Captain said jokingly before hurrying to get his horse, making Michael smile widely as both men hopped on their horses and raced after your carriage.

**Your POV**

Your head snapped over to look out the back window of the carriage, groaning when you saw the royal guard coming after you.

"Why can't he just  _let it go_?" you asked no one in particular.

"Would  _you_  let  _him_  go that easily?" Luke countered, a knowing smirk on his face. You responded by putting your hand on his cheek, pushing him as he laughed.

Just as the horses raced around the corner, you felt the carriage go over what you originally thought to be a large bump in the road until you looked around and noticed the skeleton of the vehicle was getting smaller. You didn't even have time to mutter out the ' _uh-oh_ ' you were thinking when the horses started shrinking as well.

Before you knew it, the horses and driver and carriage and your dress were gone and you and Luke were tumbling along the road with the mice and lizard and what remained of the pumpkin. You didn't have time to recuperate, however, because you heard the sounds of horses barreling toward the direction your carriage had turned.

You immediately grabbed Luke's hand, pulling him toward the bushes and diving into them to hide. You watched the horses gallop over the pumpkin pieces – not even realizing they were  _there_  – and waited until they were  _long_  gone before coming back out.

"Well," Luke started, brushing the dirt off of his clothes, "That was enough excitement for one night; I think I'm going to go home."

"Thanks, Lu," you grinned, pressing a kiss to his cheek, "I wouldn't have gotten out in time if it weren't for you."

"Yes," he nodded, "And I will be contacting you about your repayment very soon." You laughed loudly, nudging him once again.

"Goodnight, Lu," you rolled your eyes.

"Night,  _Princess_ ," he teased, sloppily kissing your cheek in return before you both went your separate ways. You looked at the ground, unable to believe the events of that night  _actually_  happened to you, when you noticed something sparkling out of the corner of your eye.

You gasped quietly when you looked over and realized it was your glass shoe, hurrying to pick it up before anything happened to it. You brushed it off gently with what remained of the pink dress you'd made, and then noticed all the mice and the lizard scurrying around, obviously having been frightened by the stampede of horses that had just passed.

"Well," you sighed, "I guess we should get home." You leaned down, lowering your forearm close to the ground. "Everybody on," you instructed, "Unless you want to walk home  _yourselves_ , of course." The animals instantly jumped onto your arm, climbing up your dress until they were spread out amongst both your shoulders as you stood back upright and walked the rest of the way home.

~

**Michael's POV**

20 minutes had passed before the royal guard returned – and much to Michael's dismay, it  _wasn't_  the news he was hoping for.

"We're sorry, Your Highness," the Captain said solemnly, "We couldn't find her anywhere."

"What do you  _mean_  you couldn't find her? She was in a  _giant golden carriage_!" he exclaimed, standing up from his throne.

"I know, Your Majesty, but once we turned a corner, it was as if she just... _disappeared_..."

"A girl doesn't just  _vanish_  into thin air, Captain," Michael insisted.

"Not unless she  _really_  doesn't want to be found."

"Why wouldn't she  _want_  to be found?" he sighed, plopping back down in his seat, "We were having such a nice time and then she just... She just  _left..._ "

"Maybe she snuck out to come to the ball," the Captain shrugged, hoping to offer some sort of consolation to the Prince, "And she had to return home before her parents noticed."

"Why wouldn't she  _tell me_  then? Why would she just  _run away_?"

"Perhaps she didn't want you to try and convince her to stay any longer?" he suggested.

"Well, I still have  _this_ -" He looked at the shoe still in his hands. "-and I am going to find who it belongs to," Michael stated firmly, standing again, "Even if I have to visit every household in this kingdom  _myself_."

And that was  _exactly_  what he did.

~

_inspiration: Cinderella (2015)_


	414. Chasing After You (Michael Clifford) - Part 6

> _"I am going to find who this belongs to," Michael stated firmly, standing up, "Even if I have to visit every household in this kingdom myself."_

The next day, Michael woke up bright and early to begin scouring the kingdom for his runaway mystery girl. The kingdom made an announcement that every maiden in the kingdom try on the glass slipper you'd left behind – and though Michael knew he didn't need someone to try on a  _shoe_  to know when he found her, he went along with it.

But, after nearly  _12 hours_  of searching, as Michael approached the final house –  _your house_  – he was starting to think this whole thing was  _hopeless_. Maybe his princess didn't live in the kingdom, maybe she wasn't home at the time he went there, maybe she just  _didn't_  want to see him again...

But he had to  _know_. He could deal with a refusal to be with him, but he couldn't handle not knowing  _why_.

The Captain of the guard approached the front door of your home, knocking and stepping back as he waited for it to be opened. Clara smiled as she revealed herself, obviously already knowing why they were there – and she'd made sure to lock you in your room, of course, so you didn't even have a  _chance_  at being who the Prince was looking for.

"Hello," she curtsied, "Please, come in." She moved out of the way as she ushered for him to come inside. "Kathryn! Abigail!" she called over her shoulder, "Come in here!" Your step-sisters gracefully entered the foyer.

"Yes, Mother?" Kathryn smiled.

"Girls," Clara said, "This gentleman is from the royal palace. He would like to have a word with you."

"Of course, Mother," Abigail said as she and Kathryn curtsied to him.

The Captain came into the house and your step-mother led him and the girls to the living room. Your step-sisters both sat on the ottoman – the Captain kneeling down in front of Kathryn first. She tried desperately to force her foot into the shoe, but it just wouldn't happen.

" _It fits_! I  _swear_  it!" Kathryn insisted.

"Oh,  _give it up_ , Kathryn," Abigail rolled her eyes, shoving her sister onto the floor and scooting over with a smile.

The Captain let out a small breath as she tried the same thing – trying to push her foot into the shoe to no avail.

"Are you sure it hasn't  _shrunk_?" she asked through gritted teeth.

"I'm sure," the Captain replied monotonously, taking the shoe back and returning to his feet. "I'm terribly sorry for any inconvenience, Madam," he told Clara, "We will be off now." She nodded, leading him back to the front door and opening it so he could leave.

**Your POV**

Having no idea what was going on downstairs – you had only woken up to Clara locking the attic door, and given  _no reason_  why she did it – you sighed as you looked out the window. You sat there for a moment before you started humming to yourself.

You didn't quite know  _how_  the song was stuck in your head seeing as you only heard it  _once_ , but you couldn't help but get up from the window seat, somehow remembering  _every single word_.

" _I'll take what you got, got, got. I know it's not a lot, lot, lot. 'Cause I just need another hit. You're the thing that I can't quit_ ," you sang to yourself as you danced around the attic, recounting the same dance you had with the Prince as he sang the words to you, " _You got what I want, want, want, here and then you're gone, gone, gone. If you told me that we were through, you know that I would break the truth_."

**Michael's POV**

As the Captain was stepping off of the front steps, everyone froze when they heard faint singing. They looked around, noticing it wasn't any of them. Clara listened in shock, not realizing that anyone would have been able to  _hear you_  from all the way on the ground floor.

As the chorus was sung, Michael's heart skipped a beat. There were only  _two_  people he'd ever sung that song to – the Captain, when he'd overheard him in his bedroom singing it to himself one day, and his mystery girl.

So he immediately took his cloak off, making Clara's eyes widen.

" _Your Majesty..._ " she swallowed thickly, slowly falling to the floor in shock.

"That is a  _lovely_  song, Madam," Michael said, "Sounds an  _awful_  lot like something I've written  _myself_."

"Are you sure there are no  _other_  maidens in your house, ma'am?" the Captain asked.

"O-Of  _course_  not," Clara shook her head.

"Then has your  _cat_  learned to sing?" She was frozen once again, not sure what to say.

"Captain," Michael smiled, "I do believe you should go investigate."

" _With pleasure_ , Your Majesty," he grinned, turning back to Clara. He gave her a stern look and she had no choice but to let him back into the house.

The Captain walked with Clara up every single flight of stairs until they finally reached the attic.

**Your POV**

You jumped when you heard the door open, making you stop singing. Your eyes widened as you saw your step-mother with the Captain of the Guard, having no idea that anyone from the castle was even  _at_  the house. You instantly curtsied respectfully as he spoke.

"Miss," he said, "Your Royal Highness Prince Michael is requesting to see you downstairs." Your heart skipped a beat –  _Michael is here_?

The Captain held his hand out to you, prompting you to step forward slowly. As you reached up to place your hand in his, your step-mother grabbed your wrist.

" _What_  do you think you're doing?" she grumbled.

"She is obeying direct orders given to her by an officer of the  _King_ ," the Captain answered for you, obviously hearing her, "And I'm ordering  _you_  to release her and let her come with me  _this instant_. Who are  _you_  to order her to disregard orders given by a  _Royal_?"

"I am her  _mother_ ," Clara growled, never looking away from you.

"You havenever _been_ , and never  _will be_  my mother," you replied firmly. Clara glared at you as she let go of your wrist – you knew that even  _she_  would never disobey a Royal's orders – and you finally placed your hand in the Captain's, letting him lead you out of the room.

As he took you down the second flight of stairs, he leaned over and whispered to you.

"I have no  _doubt_  you're who the Prince is searching for, Miss," he said, making you grin widely, "But even if you weren't, I wouldn't let you stay with that woman for one more  _minute_."

"Thank you," you choked lightly. You felt him squeeze your hand a bit as you reached the bottom of the final staircase.

Your breathing picked up when he led you to the front room, letting go of your hand and ushering you toward the doorway. You stopped just before you reached it, took one last deep breath, and entered the room.

Michael spun around the moment he heard someone come in and his face lit up, not even needing to put the shoe on you to know that you were his mystery girl. He still did, however – holding his hand out to you and taking you to the chair in front of the fireplace. You sat down and he took the shoe out from behind his back, kneeling down on one knee.

"I heard you singing my song," he informed you, making you blush as you obviously didn't think anyone would be able to since you were all the way in the  _attic_ , "And I know very well that this shoe belongs to you, but I suppose we should do the whole thing anyway."

"Since we're already  _here_..." you said softly, the smile on your face causing him to grin as well.

You slipped your foot out of the ballet flat you were wearing and he took your ankle, helping you slide your foot into the glass slipper, revealing the perfect fit. You both smiled at each other again while he stood back upright, taking your hands and bringing you with him.

"You have no  _idea_  how long I've been searching for you," Michael murmured, bringing you close to him.

"Well, it looks like your search is over, Your Highness," you informed him, making him chuckle.

"Does this mean I finally get to know your name?"

"Y/N," you told him, your voice barely even coming out due to the nervousness of how close his lips had gotten to yours.

"Y/N," he repeated under his breath, your face heating up, "That's  _beautiful_." You would have thanked him, but his lips were on yours right after the comment.

You both let out sighs of relief – his for finally finding you and yours for knowing you were finally  _free_  from your horrible step-mother and step-sisters. Michael moved his hands to your hips, allowing you to place yours on his cheeks, your thumbs stroking his cheekbones slightly. Neither of you noticed the Captain, your step-mother, or your step-sisters standing in the doorway – not that you would have  _cared_  anyway.

Because –  _finally_  – you got your happily ever after.

~

_song mentioned: "Vapor" by 5 Seconds of Summer_

_inspiration: Cinderella (2015)_


	415. Right Now (Calum Hood)

**Warning: Mentions of depression, panic attacks**

~

**_Calum..._ **   
**_I think... Maybe... We should see other people..._ **

You hit send before you  _really_  thought about what you were telling your boyfriend.

It was 4:19am and you'd spent the better part of the last four hours in another depressive episode. You were beating yourself up over it, no doubt – you'd been doing  _so well_  for the past six months since Calum had left for tour, but it was back and it was hitting you harder than  _ever_.

Calum was usually the one to help you pull yourself out of it – he would always insist on running a bath for you with your favorite bubble bath while he spent that time in the kitchen making your favorite food. Calum knew that you hated when people had to take care of you – watching you closely to make sure you didn't do anything to yourself – but he also knew he loved you too much to lose you, especially like  _that_.

You weren't expecting Calum to answer, to be honest. You couldn't remember exactly  _where_  in the world he was, but you figured at past 4 in the morning... There was no  _way_  he'd be awake or not busy enough to stop and check his phone.

But he  _did_. And you  _immediately_  felt guilty when you read his reply.

_You're not breaking up with me with a text, Y/N_   
_You know very well that I'm not going to let you do that_   
_Just tell me what's wrong and I'll fix it_

**_You can't fix it this time, Calum_ **

_Not if you don't tell me_

You sighed – you knew Calum wouldn't  _like_  that you'd told him you wanted to break up, but you didn't think he'd fight you  _this hard_  about it.

**_You're not home_ **   
**_You're never home_ **

_I don't control our tour schedule, Y/N. You know that_

**_But you're not home when I need you_ **

_Why do you need me?_   
_Why can't you call me?_

**_You know I don't like people hearing me cry_ **

_Why are you crying?_

You didn't answer for a couple minutes, still trying to calm yourself down, so Calum started typing again.

_Please talk to me, princess_

You didn't respond right away again, but it was like you not answering him was what Calum needed to realize what was happening.

_It's one of the bad days, isn't it?_

You couldn't help but laugh dryly at the message – you should have known he would figure it out. You wiped your face before typing a simple response.

**_The worst..._ **

_I'm booking a flight right now_   
_I'm coming home_

Your heart skipped a beat when you read the messages. You hadn't expected Calum to just drop everything and leave in the middle of a tour just to help you through your depression coming back, but he was.

**_You don't have to do this_ **   
**_I'll be fine by myself_ **

_Princess, I'm not about to sit here and let you keep feeling like this_   
_Not when I know you need me there_   
_You wouldn't have sent me a breakup text if you didn't need me_

**_Calum, please_ **

_I already bought my ticket, princess_   
_But you have to promise me you're going to be the first person I see when I get off that plane_

You stared at your screen for a moment; Part of you was wondering whether or not he was actually  _serious_ , but you knew him well enough to know that he  _was_. And you had no choice but to give him the only response he would have accepted.

**_I promise_ **

_I love you so much, Y/N_   
_I'll see you tomorrow_

~

**24 hours later**

It was 3:30am and Calum's flight had just been announced as having arrived over the intercom. You knew for a fact that he wouldn't have a suitcase, so you just made your way to the gate he was supposed to be coming out of.

A few more minutes passed and the passengers from the flight were just starting to file out. Your throat felt dry from your nerves, your hands were stuffed into the pocket of the hoodie you'd refused to let Calum take on tour with him so you could wear it instead, and you were rocking back and forth on your feet.

The moment Calum came into view – he wasn't difficult to spot; the boy towered over nearly every single person coming down the hallway – he let out a visible sigh of relief when he saw you standing there waiting for him. Truthfully, he had expected you not to show up despite you promising him, but when he saw you, he nearly burst into tears right then and there.

You removed your hands from the hoodie's pocket when Calum broke free from the crowd and ran over to you. He wrapped his arms around your waist tighter than he ever had before while yours went around his neck, holding him as closely as you possibly could. Your hand was in his hair and he was kissing the exposed skin of your neck. You could feel your skin as well as the edge of the hoodie becoming damp, letting you know that Calum was crying.

You honestly felt  _terrible_  for worrying him so much, but you couldn't keep in your feelings anymore; You had to tell him what was going through your mind. And as much as it hurt him to know that you felt like you couldn't  _handle_  him being away anymore, you knew he appreciated you  _telling him_  rather than him coming home to an apartment with you no longer  _in it_.

"I love you  _so much_ , princess," Calum murmured, his voice breaking slightly.

"I love you too, Cal," you whispered, feeling your own eyes get watery, "I'm sorry I made you come home."

"You didn't  _make me_  come home, baby girl," he told you, lifting his head up, "I'd do  _anything_  for you – you  _know_  that." He brought his hands up, wiping your face with his thumbs before swiping his fingers across his own. "Look at us, crying in the middle of an airport," he chuckled lightly, returning his hands to your face. You allowed yourself to smile, leaning into his touch. "Come on, baby girl," he kissed your forehead, "Let's go home and go to bed."

"But we have to  _talk_ , Cal..." you reminded him.

"I know we do," he nodded, "But that can wait until morning. We both need some sleep."

Calum took his hands off of your face, only to reach down and grab your hand, tangling your fingers together. He squeezed and pulled you into him, and you laid your head on his shoulder as you walked to your car.

~

**Six hours later**

"Morning, princess," Calum said groggily. You quickly propped yourself up on your elbow so you could look at his face, your eyes widening slightly.

"You're actually  _here_?" you whispered, placing your hand on his stomach, "I'm  _not_  dreaming this time?" He smiled sadly at you, taking your hand and bringing it to his lips, pressing a kiss to your knuckles.

You sighed in relief knowing he was  _actually_  real, lying back down with your face in his neck. Calum put your hand back on his stomach, his fingers playing with yours as his other hand ran through your hair gently.

"I think you should come on tour with me, princess," Calum stated bluntly, causing you to prop yourself back up. Before you could even say a word, he continued rambling. "I know you said you didn't want to go because of all the flying and business, but it's obvious that being here alone for the last six months has been tearing you apart. We started dating during such a  _long_  break and you're still so  _new_  to the whole me being away thing, but I can't... I don't want to come home one day just to find out you're  _no longer here_ , princess; I can't  _do_  that. You have  _no idea_  how much it kills me to think about that. I love you  _so much_ , Y/N, and you know I would do  _anything_  to make you happy, but as much as I want to do that, I just... I can't do it when you're always so  _far away_. So please...  _Please_  come on the rest of the tour with me."

"Cal..." you said softly, shaking your head, "What about the  _next_  tour, or the one after that? I won't be able to go on  _every_  tour with you..."

"I know you won't," he replied, "But that's something we can work out  _later_. I have to leave again tonight and I know that I won't have  _time_  to fix how you're feeling right now, and the best I can do is to just bring you  _with me_."

" _Tonight_?" you cocked an eyebrow, sitting up, "Cal, if I'm supposed to be coming on the rest of the tour with you for three months, I need to start packing  _yesterday_."

"You only need to pack  _half_  of what you think you'll need, baby girl," he smirked, "You know you always end up stealing  _my_  shirts anyway."

"You cannot prove that  _I'm_  the one taking your shirts," you stated matter-of-factly, "My shirts are always hidden beneath your hoodies."

"You finally gonna let me take this then?" he asked, tugging at the bottom of his hoodie you  _still_  hadn't taken off.

"The  _only_  reason you'll be wearing it again is because it doesn't  _smell like you_  anymore," you informed him. Calum smiled at you, wrapping his arms around your waist and pulling you down to lay on top of him.

"I'll take what I can get," he replied before tilting his head up so his lips met yours.

You let out a deep sigh, happy to finally be in your boyfriend's arms again. Calum, of course, felt this, and squeezed you tighter.

"I've missed you so much, princess," he mumbled, "I love you."

"I love you too, Cal," you whispered, pulling away and putting your face back in his neck, staying there until you absolutely  _had to_  begin packing.

~

**36 hours later**

After the long plane ride back to the city Calum had left the previous afternoon, you were finally on solid ground.

You let out a sigh of relief as the plane landed, hearing Calum chuckle lowly beside you. You'd always hated flying – one of the main reasons you said no to going on tour with him when he asked before it had started – but it wasn't  _all_  that bad, especially not when you had Calum to help distract you the whole flight.

Before the plane took off, Calum had texted their bus driver what time you would be arriving so he would be at the airport when you landed. You looked around for him after exiting the gate, instantly smiling when you saw three tall boys dressed completely in black instead.

" _Y/N_!" the band cheered when they saw you, running over to you.

You hugged Luke first since he was the first to reach you and then Ashton. When you hugged Michael, he squeezed you a little tighter than the other two had.

"Are you feeling okay?" he murmured into your hair, letting you know that Calum had already told them everything when he informed them he was going home.

"I  _will_ ," you promised him, releasing him only to be pulled back into Calum's side.

"I know what will make you feel better!" Ashton chirped as you all made your way to baggage claim so you could get your suitcase, "We were gonna wait to give this to you until we got home, but since you're here  _now_... When we went to France, we found this really pretty necklace that we knew you would  _love_. I know you hate when we spend money on you, but we all thought of you the moment we saw it and knew we  _had_  to get it for you."

"Ash, I-"

"It's too late to return it, Y/N; You  _have_  to take it!" he insisted, pulling a small box out of his pocket. He handed it to you, urging you to open it right then and there.

The other boys were nodding their heads rapidly, so you sighed and opened the box. You immediately smiled at the present – the small rose gold Eiffel Tower hanging off a matching chain nearly bringing tears to your eyes.

When you first met the boys, you used to go on and  _on_  about how much you loved France and how you always wanted to go to Paris when you were younger. You were never able to save the money and make yourself take the trip, however – your fear of flying obviously constantly getting in the way of it. But to know that they were still thinking of you when you weren't around made you get a little emotional.

"Do you like it?" Michael asked worriedly when he saw your eyes getting watery. You laughed softly, nodding your head and pulling him into another hug.

"I  _love it_ ," you murmured into his shoulder, "Thank you." The other boys wrapped their arms around you and Michael, giving you a group hug as you giggled.

Calum let go first, quickly moving to grab your bag when he saw your bright blue suitcase on the carousel. He looked back up at the group to find Luke helping you put the necklace on, smiling slightly to himself as he made his way back over.

~

_inspiration: http://badluckcharmer.tumblr.com/post/138611381939/you-try-to-break-up-with-ashton-while-hes-on-tour_


	416. Sanity Break (Trevor Collins)

"Knock it off, Trevor," you mumbled, keeping your eyes on the computer screen in front of you.

"But you're not paying  _attention_  to anything I'm saying!" he whined, throwing another tiny wad of paper at you.

"Because I'm  _working_ ," you reminded him, "Maybe  _you_  should be working  _too_."

"But I've already  _finished_  editing all my videos!" he insisted, "And there's no point in starting another 5 minutes before I  _leave_  for the day!"

"Then go pester someone  _else_ ," you growled. You quickly saved all your files before transferring them over to your USB stick, already knowing what was coming next.

Trevor was never one to take a hint, so he continued ripping up little pieces of paper, crumpling them up, and tossing them at your desk. His aim was usually pretty terrible, but he did  _occasionally_  hit what he intended to – and in  _this_  case, his intended target happened to be  _your head_.

The moment he hit your ear, you abruptly stood up, yanking your USB out of your computer, and turned off your system. You knew all eyes were on you – surprised the usually quiet person was making so much noise – as you shoved your chair under your desk.

" _Someone_  please tell me Geoff is still in this building!" you exclaimed, grabbing your bag and jacket as you turned to face everyone.

"Uh... Yeah..." Matt nodded, "I'm pretty sure he's still in the Achievement Hunter office..."

"Thank you," you smiled sweetly at the group, "I'll see you all later." You hurried out of the room before anyone could ask any questions.

You entered the AH office, happy to find that Geoff was the only one in the room. You knocked on the door frame since the door was already open, causing him to look over his computer monitor as you walked in.

"We need to talk," you stated, making him chuckle and look back at the screen in front of him while you came to a stop beside his desk.

"I'm guessing this isn't a ' _Have a great rest of your day, Boss; I'll see you on Monday_ _!_ ' kind of visit?" he asked.

"Not this time," you couldn't help but smile, "I'm taking next week off." Geoff's hands froze in the middle of typing something as he looked back up at you.

"Okay..." he trailed off, " _Why_...?"

"I need a sanity break," you responded simply.

"And your videos?"

"Will still be edited – just at  _home_ ," you assured him, "I need to work on my content in the peace and quiet of my  _own_  place for a while." A smile started appearing on Geoff's face as he returned to his work.

"I  _told you_  you wouldn't be able to handle being next to Trevor," he mentioned.

"Then we can talk about  _station reassignment_  when I come back," you said without missing a beat, making him laugh loudly.

"Enjoy your break from this building," he told you, "Call me later if you need more time."

"You're a  _life saver_ , Geoffrey," you sighed, turning around and leaving as you called another few words over your shoulder. "Have a great rest of your day, Boss; I'll see you  _next_  Monday!" you chirped, obviously making him laugh again.

~

**Trevor's POV; Thursday afternoon**

"Hey, has anyone seen Y/N today?" Trevor asked as they were cleaning up after filming an AHWU, "Or  _at all_ this week...?"

"Didn't she tell you?" Jeremy looked up at him so he could see the confused expression on his face, "She took the week off."

"She took the  _whole week_  off? Why'd she take the  _week_  off?"

"Geoff said she called it a ' _sanity break_ ' or whatever," Michael replied casually as he passed by to put a box on Ryan's desk of things he'd gotten in the mail, "Something about you annoying the shit out of her."

"Did... Did she  _say that_...?" his expression dropped slightly.

" _No_ ," Jack assured him, rolling his eyes at the phrasing Michael had used, "She just said she wanted to work in the peace and quiet of her own home."

"So it  _was_  because I annoy the shit out of her?" he sighed, tossing another empty box into the recycling cart.

"I'm  _sure_  that's not it, Treyco," Jeremy said, "I'm sure she was just overwhelmed with how hectic the office can get sometimes and needed some time alone."

"You mean how hectic  _our_  office can get and needed time alone because of  _me_ ," Trevor corrected, making him sigh.

"If you feel  _that_  bad about it, why don't you buy her flowers or something on Monday and leave 'em on her desk?" he suggested.

"You can write ' _Sorry I'm an annoying prick_ ' on the card," Michael chimed in.

" _You are not helping_!" Trevor groaned.

"He's still upset about the restaurant getting his order wrong three times at lunch," Jack shook his head, "Just get her some flowers; She'll love them."

"Are you sure she's a  _flower_  person?" he asked worriedly.

"Bring her some food too then," Jeremy said, "That girl's  _always_  eating."

"Yeah..." he nodded slowly, mostly to himself. The group finished cleaning up in silence, periodically looking up at Trevor and noticing he was still in his own little world.

By the time they were done, he finally spoke again.

"Do you guys know where Geoff is?" he asked softly.

"Last I heard, he was in a meeting," Jack said. Trevor let out a defeated breath, prompting him to speak up again, knowing he didn't want to wait until you came back into work. "But we'll let him know you went home sick and will try to be better by tomorrow," he told him, making him look up at him.

"Thanks," he smiled slightly, hurrying out of the room so he could get his stuff and leave.

~

**Your POV; 30 minutes later**

You were in the middle of watching a rerun of your favorite show when you heard a knock on your apartment door. You sighed to yourself, not  _particularly_  thrilled about having to unravel yourself from your blanket burrito to answer it. You did anyway, of course – not expecting to find who you did when you opened it.

"Shouldn't you still be at  _work_...?" you asked after looking at your clock, trailing off when you noticed the bouquet of different types of flowers in one of Trevor's hands and a box of your favorite cookies in the other.

"I don't  _mean_  to be so annoying," he started rambling, looking down at his feet, "I just... You're really funny and pretty and smart and I like talking to you and hearing you talk, but... But I don't like knowing I annoy you enough to not want to  _come to work_ , so... I brought you the cookies that I'm pretty sure are your favorite because you're always eating them while you edit and also flowers... I, uh... I didn't know what your favorite flower was, so I just got one of  _each_... I know you shouldn't forgive me because you've been telling to leave you alone for like... _ever_...and I haven't been  _listening_ , but... I'm  _really_  sorry, Y/N."

By the time Trevor's speech was over, you honestly thought you were going to start crying. Sure, people had apologized for upsetting you before, but no one had ever gone to  _this much_  trouble just to make you happy. And truth be told, you weren't exactly sure how to  _process it_  – but you figured you knew a good place to  _start_.

"Do you want to come in?" you asked softly, making him sigh.

"Yes, please – I'm really cold," he pouted, making you giggle as he shuffled past you to let you close the door.

Once you turned back to face him, he shyly handed you the flowers and cookies, his heart racing at the smile on your face as he followed you into the kitchen. He watched you fill a glass with water – no one had ever bought you flowers before, so you didn't own any vases – and admire the unusual bouquet before returning back to him.

"They're beautiful, Trevor," you said softly, reaching up to press a kiss to the middle of his cheek, "Thank you."

"Well, you know..." he blushed lightly, "Beautiful flowers for a beautiful girl..." It was  _your_  turn to blush that time.

"You trying to sweet talk your way around this?" you asked.

"Is it working?" he returned bashfully.

"Maybe," you began chewing on your bottom lip. You brushed the feelings off though, shaking your head. "You should sit down," you told him, leading him back to the couch in your living room, "Warm up while I make some hot chocolate."

"Y/N, you don't have to-"

"Are you saying you  _don't_  want hot chocolate?" you cocked an eyebrow.

Trevor was silent before he went around the corner – letting you listen to him take off his coat and sit himself down on your couch. You smiled victoriously, quickly making two mugs of hot chocolate – making sure to put extra marshmallows – and taking it into the living room.

"Thank you," he murmured, groaning in satisfaction the moment the hot mug met his cold hands.

You giggled again under your breath, both of you remaining silent and watching what was already on your TV screen as you finished your drinks.

"You picked a good week not to come in, you know," Trevor told you randomly, shivering as he rubbing his arms in an attempt to warm himself up, "It's been really cold since like, Sunday."

"Here, Trev," you whispered, holding your blanket out to him, "You look like  _you_  need this more than  _I_  do."

"I agree," he snatched it from you, smiling when you giggled. He wrapped it around himself before looking at you for a moment and then lifting his arm up. "Doesn't mean we can't  _both_  still use it though," he mentioned. You, finding yourself growing a little chilly without your blanket, happily obliged to the offer.

You repositioned yourself slightly, scooting as close to him as you could get – both of you allowing the blanket and  _each other_  to keep you warm. Trevor's arm came back down once you got comfortable, holding you securely against him. You sighed happily and Trevor felt you relax, your head now lying on his chest – and  _you_  felt him press his lips to the top of your head.

"I really  _am_  sorry," he murmured into your hair.

"It's okay," you whispered again, wrapping your arms around his waist and closing your eyes in content.

Maybe the co-worker at the desk neighboring yours  _was_  annoying... But you wouldn't trade him for  _anyone else_.

~

_inspiration: https://5lbsofsmarties.tumblr.com/post/161875486695/the-final-straw-sam-mitchell_


	417. Somewhere in Neverland (Ashton Irwin)

Having never been to Disneyland before, to say you were excited was a bit of an understatement. You and your two best friends wanted to spend time together since you never really got to anymore with them going to different colleges across the country, so you were obviously the first to agree to the mini vacation.

They'd been the ones to suggest going to Disney – they knew you'd always wanted to go – and now, here you were: you, Leah, and Kara walking around the park in search of all your favorite characters.

You'd met every character you'd grown up on and even the ones that were newer to the Disney family.

Well... All but  _one_.

Near the end of the day, you were starting to get discouraged about your search. You hadn't seen Peter Pan all day and he was the one character you were  _really_  excited to meet.

Your friends could sense your mood change and insisted you all go get some ice cream to make you feel better. You did – you could never go wrong with ice cream – and while you were sitting at a table, Leah and Kara had gone to the bathroom.

As they were coming back, you saw their eyes widen and a huge smile form on their faces as you got up. You raised an eyebrow as you made your way over to them.

Once you were fairly close, you opened your mouth to ask them what was up when you felt a tap on your shoulder. You turned and your heart skipped a beat, instantly smiling at Peter Pan.

"Oh," he frowned, "You're not  _Wendy_. Do you know you look a lot like her from the back?"

"I do  _now_ ," you giggled.

"Well, if you see her, could you tell her I'm looking for her? And if Captain Hook's got her, tell him I won't be afraid to send him back to the crocodiles."

You grinned again, "I'll be sure to pass on the message."

"It was nice meeting you, Not Wendy!" he chirped, turning to walk away.

"Oh, Peter!" you squeaked, making him look back at you, "Can we take a picture? I've been trying to find you all day."

"You  _have_?" he tilted his head, "Where have I been?"

"Nowhere near  _me_ ," you commented, pulling your phone out of your pocket. You went to give it to Leah so she could take a photo, but Peter immediately grabbed it from you.

"What's  _this_  thing?" he asked, inspecting the phone closely, looking at it as if he'd never seen one before.

"It's my phone," you laughed.

"What do you  _do_  with it?"

"Talk to people."

"Well, how'd you fit them all  _in there_?!"

"I shrunk 'em down first," you said teasingly, snatching the phone back and handing it to your friend. She took a few photos – both posed and candids – before giving you the device back.

"So," Peter chirped, "What can you do with that thing beside talk to people and take pictures?"

"What do  _you_  think you can do with it?" you returned.

"Can you fight Captain Hook?" he asked, "Or save a Lost Boy from a hungry crocodile? Can Tink use her pixie dust with it?"

"Not yet," you giggled, "But I'm sure if they hired  _you_  to come up with ideas, they'd make one that could in  _no time_."

"They should! I'm a great inventor!" he insisted, looking around. He perked up when he noticed a little girl wearing a Wendy costume before turning back to you. "You know, if you meet me in front of Sleeping Beauty's castle later, I can show you the  _best_  place to watch the fireworks tonight," Peter informed you, "Well, actually, it's the  _second best_. The best place is Neverland, but I don't  _know you_  that well yet."

"I'll see you there," you returned with a small smile. You both waved as he trotted toward a little girl.

~

An hour later, you and your friends were making your way to Sleeping Beauty's castle. You didn't know if Peter was actually serious about what he said, but you figured you'd go since you were all planning on staying for the fireworks anyway.

As you approached, you found a boy looking at his phone and then around him. The moment he saw you, his face lit up and you knew that was Peter.

He didn't look much different without the costume on – he was just wearing different clothes and no longer had the wig and hat on his head – and you weren't going to be the last to admit you thought he was  _incredibly_  cute.

"Hey,  _Not Wendy_ ," he teased, making you roll your eyes, "I didn't think you'd  _actually_  show up."

"Peter Pan could ask her to jump out of a space shuttle with  _no helmet_  and she'd  _still_  do it," Leah snickered. You glared at her, only to have her snicker a bit quieter. "We're gonna go out to Main Street," she stated to which Kara immediately agreed, "Later!" Your two friends walked away, leaving you and Peter alone.

The boy cleared his throat so you would look at him again, finding him shyly rubbing the back of his neck.

"I actually  _do_  know a really good place to watch the show," he commented, "Unless you, you know, wanna watch with your friends."

"I'm still  _here_ , aren't I?" you replied, swearing you saw him blush. He motioned for you to follow him and you did, making small talk along the way. "So do you have a name or did they hire you because it actually  _is_  Peter Pan?" you asked. He laughed loudly, shaking his head.

"No, I just  _look_  like Peter," he smiled, "My name's Ashton."

"Ashton," you said to yourself, liking the way it sounded but completely missing the blush on cheeks that time. "I'm Y/N," you told him.

"That makes sense," he nodded, "A pretty name for a pretty girl." You rolled your eyes at the cheesiness, but you certainly weren't going to say it didn't make you blush as well. "Well, Y/N," he said, holding out his hand, "Show starts in 5 minutes and we have to hurry if you're going to catch the beginning." You put your hand in his without hesitation, jogging with him to wherever he was leading you.

You ended up on the roof of some random building almost directly across from Sleeping Beauty's castle. There was a thought in your mind that  _maybe_  you weren't allowed to be up there, but you  _were_  with someone who  _worked there_ , so you figured you couldn't get into  _too much_  trouble.

With a couple minutes to spare before the show started, you and Ashton got to know each other. You discovered that his three best friends were also cast members at the park – Luke played Kristoff, Calum played Prince Naveen, and Michael played Flynn Rider. You told him you'd met all of them that day and you were really impressed with how well they played their characters. He smiled bashfully and thanked you for the compliment.

"So who's your favorite Disney character?" Ashton asked you.

"Peter Pan," you grinned, "He's always been my favorite."

"So  _that's_  why you'd been looking for me  _all day_ ," he chuckled.

"You think I wanted to find you just for the  _hell_  of it?" you teased, nudging him lightly, "I  _will_  say though; You look a lot better without the costume on."

"Oh, I was going to say you'd look better  _with_  it on," he smirked. You rolled your eyes but smiled at the comment anyway.

"Maybe I could borrow it then," you said with a joking tone, "I was thinking about being Peter for Halloween this year."

"Now,  _that's_  something I'd pay to see," he said thoughtfully, "But  _I'd_  much rather be Peter Pan if  _you_  would be my Wendy."

"Don't think I won't take you up on that offer, Peter Pan," you grinned.

"I'm hoping you do, Not Wendy," he replied, bumping your arm with his.

~

Once the show started, Ashton found himself paying less attention to the fireworks themselves and more so the way they made your eyes sparkle as they lit up and disappeared from the sky. He didn't know what it was about you, but he was definitely beginning to develop a crush on the cute girl who loved Peter Pan so much.

When  _I See the Light_  came on as part of the show, Ashton heard you gasp lightly and start singing to yourself as you swayed in your spot. He couldn't resist himself, tapping your shoulder.

When you looked at him, he had his hand held out and he was smiling shyly. Again, without hesitating, you took it, letting him pull you closer.

His other hand landed on your hip and yours went to his shoulder, your elbows bent as you remained holding each other's hands. Flynn's part started and Ashton began singing along, making you giggle under your breath and lay your head on his shoulder, sighing in content. You continued singing softly with him until the end of the song.

Neither of you let go of each other right away, both of you seeing just how long the other was willing to stay there. The moment  _Let It Go_  came on, Ashton discovered, was the moment that made you pull away, excitedly singing along with Elsa. He couldn't help but smile though, clearly seeing how much you loved Disney about as much as he did, if not  _way more_.

10 minutes later, the last song – the opening song from  _The Princess and the Frog_  – came on. When a firework shot up during ' _The evening star is shining bright, so make a wish and hold on tight_ ', you closed your eyes and did exactly that.

Ashton did the same, but he didn't close his eyes; He just looked at you, admiring the small smile and peaceful look on your face, and made a wish that  _something_  worked out so that he would see you again one day. ' _There's magic in the air tonight, and anything can happen_ ' played and Ashton chuckled softly at the message.

When you opened your eyes again, your grin grew wider as you turned back to Ashton. You found him holding his hand out to you again so he could lead you back to the ground, but you would be lying to yourself if you said you didn't think he was doing it just for the sake of holding your hand.

"Thanks for bringing me up here, Ashton," you said as you placed your hand in his and started walking, "I'll bet I got the  _best_  view."

"I don't know about  _that_ ," he murmured, and you looked up at him to find him smiling at you. You quickly looked away before he could see your face turn a bright red, subsequently missing the grin that suggested he noticed anyway.

Maybe all the work to find Peter Pan wasn't so bad after all.

~

_inspiration (kinda): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6pZnrih9Vw_


	418. Lost in Reality (Luke Hemmings)

 

"This is gonna be  _the one_ , guys," you stated as the lights dimmed while the last contestant of the day was coming onstage, "I can feel it." The three other men looked at you and chuckled as the music started.

You all listened intently, wanting to be sure you wanted the girl on your team – and she'd picked such a  _demanding_  song that you wanted to hear her get through a  _few_  more notes before you made your own decision. And when she hit the note that brought everyone to their feet, you immediately hit your button. The girl's voice wavered slightly in shock but she kept going, happy she'd made it onto the show.

However, you noticed out of the corner of your eye that Luke's arm had moved slightly, making your head snap over.

" _Don't you do it, Hemmings_!" you threatened. Luke simply laughed, leaning back in his chair.

You turned back to the stage, putting your elbow on the front of your chair and resting your chin in it. You couldn't see Luke, so when the song came to an end, you thought  _for sure_  you had this performer on your team.

Unfortunately, you heard a chair turn at the last second, making your head snap up as the girl onstage  _honestly_  looked like she was going to pass out.

" _No_!" you screamed at Luke, jumping up from your seat, " _You can't do that_!"

"I think I  _can_  though," he smirked, not looking at you, "Because I  _did_."

You plopped back down in your seat, groaning. No one could hear the noises you were making, but as the cheering died down, it became more clear.

"Y/N, what is  _wrong_  with you?" Adam laughed.

"I have no  _chance_ ," you sighed, placing your elbow on the front of your chair and your chin in your hand, "The moment Luke turned, she nearly  _passed out_. Just  _look_  at her!" You pointed at the girl onstage, "If Luke wasn't  _already_  the girl version of himself,  _she_  would be! It's  _over_! I'm  _done for_! Just let me down  _easy_ , please!" Luke chuckled under his breath as Blake grabbed the singer's attention.

"What's your name?" he asked her. She let out a deep sigh, smiling widely.

"I'm Hailey," she said.

"I told you to let me down  _easy_ , not tell me your name is  _in a 5SOS song_!" you threw your arms up before letting them cross over your stomach.

"Hi, Hailey," Luke smiled at her, finally speaking.

" _Hi, Luke_ ," she nearly squealed.

"You're such an amazing vocalist," he said, "I love you a lot."

"I'm gonna be  _sick_ ," you grumbled, making everyone laugh.

"Just out of curiosity: what made you pick that song?"

"Oh," she giggled slightly, "There wasn't any specific reason, to be honest; I just really love the lyrics. I told myself I would sing it if I ever came on the show, so..." She ended with a little shrug.

"Listen to me, Hailey," you stated, standing up in your chair, "Don't look at  _him_ -" You gestured toward the man sitting to your left. "-right now, okay? Whatever is going to come out of his mouth after I'm done talking isn't going to be helpful to you in  _any_  way. Yeah, he's totally dreamy, he's in a famous band, and he can talk a good game, but  _that's_  not gonna get you anywhere in this competition." Luke shook his head, laughing at you. "Lucas is gonna tell you that you were perfect and flawless and while I  _agree_  that you're an amazing singer, I  _did_ hear things that could be improved upon. I want to be the one to coach you and get you to the point where you'll be playing sold out shows at MSG and Staples Center and I am so  _desperate_  to have you on my team, I will do literally  _anything_ for you to pick me."

" _Wow_ ," Adam said once you ended your speech, " _I'm_  convinced. Can  _I_  be on your team?"

"Are you two done over there?" Luke asked, leaning forward to look at you, "Can I tell her why she's gonna pick me now?"

"We already  _know_  why she's gonna pick you,  _Hemmings_ ," you huffed, plopping back down in your seat.

" _Someone's_  gonna be sleeping on the  _couch_  tonight," Blake snickered.

"I'm not saying that there aren't improvements to be made," Luke told Hailey, ignoring the other coaches, "What I  _am_ saying is that they're easily fixable and I'm not worried about how I'm going to help you get better. There's a connection between us, Hailey," he nodded as he motioned between the two of them, " _I_  can feel it,  _you_  can feel it, everyone in this  _room_  can feel it."

"I'm feeling that chicken sandwich I had for lunch coming back up," you commented, making everyone laugh yet again.

"This is so  _beautiful_ ," Adam sighed in content, "I knew when you two were signed onto the show that this was gonna happen, but it's  _so_  much better than I ever imagined."

"Okay, Hailey," Blake interrupted, "As much as I would love to watch these two lovebirds bicker at each other all night, which one do you pick as your coach?"

"Oh my gosh," she breathed. You were silently begging her to pick you, your hand folded together on the front of your chair.

"Come on, Hailey!" Luke exclaimed, "Come home!"

The corner of her mouth twitched and you laid your head down on your forearms, already accepting defeat. Luke had this cocky grin on his face – one that would have made you get up and slap him if you'd seen it.

"I pick..." she trailed off – having to make this decision was obviously incredibly difficult for  _her_  as well. She took in a deep breath, letting it out along with her words, "I pick Y/N." The second you heard her say your name, you couldn't stop yourself from screaming.

You didn't bother poking fun at the shocked look on Luke's face before jumping up and running across the stage, throwing your arms around Hailey. She eagerly hugged you back and you both wondered if the other could feel how hard your hearts were beating. You put your hand on her shoulders and pushed her back to look at her.

"You're being  _for real_  though?" you asked with a serious look on your face, "Like, you're  _actually_  picking me?"

"Yes," Hailey giggled lightly, only to be pulled into another hug.

When you let go of her, the other coaches got up and walked over to you two. Adam and Blake gave her quick hugs and then all eyes were on Luke. He was pouting slightly, his arms crossed over his chest.

Hailey smiled a bit guiltily, making Luke break his character and laugh. He opened his arms for her and she wasted no time in returning a tight hug.

"You're in good hands with Y/N," he told her, "I  _can't wait_  to see what you two do together."

"Thank you," she replied, her voice muffled slightly by his shirt.

Once she let go, she bounced off of the stage so she could return to where her family was waiting for her. You began sauntering back to your chair, smirking at Luke as you passed him. He rolled his eyes, but he couldn't stop himself from smiling.

" _Yeah, yeah, yeah_ ," Luke said, hopping back onto his seat, "We get it; You won her over."

"Is Mr. Rockstar upset because the 5SOS fan  _didn't_  pick him?" you cooed, sticking your bottom lip out at him.

"I'll just steal her from you when you're stupid enough to let her go during battles," he shrugged, "It's whatever."

"She's  _mine_  and she's gonna  _stay_   _mine_  until she  _wins_  this thing," you told him, "You've gotta learn you can't  _always_  get the girl, Hemmings."

"I got  _you_ , didn't I?" he gave you a goofy grin, "That's all I'll ever need."

"Whoa there!" Blake said, "You guys promised you were on strict a  _no flirting_  policy!"

"To be fair, you and Adam kinda agreed to that  _for us_ ," Luke reminded him, "Y/N and I never  _actually_  signed off on it."

While the boys discussed – as Adam put it –  _the fine print_  of yours and Luke's contracts, you decided to slip away and briefly visit with Hailey and her family. As you walked toward the room, you could hear Carson as Hailey what made her choose you when she seemed so set on going with Luke if he turned around.

"I came  _very_  close to picking Luke," she admitted, "But I was thinking about all that stuff that Y/N had said about wanting to help me improve and I felt like I would be better suited for her team. And she didn't  _sugarcoat_  anything, you know? She just told me that I wasn't as prepared for the music business as I could be and I hope I'll be able to grow as an artist under her wing. I just wanna make her proud."

"I'm sure it won't be  _that_  hard," you grinned as you opened the door. Hailey smiled widely and you both hugged each other again. "I'm  _already_  pretty proud of you," you squeezed her lightly before letting go.

" _Really_?" she sighed lightly while her mom, dad, sister, and two brothers hugged you as well.

" _Yeah_!" you squeaked, "I mean, your range is absolutely  _insane_! Especially for someone as  _young_  as you! You have  _no idea_  how honored I am that you picked me! Besides, being on  _my_  team is way better than being on one of those smelly  _boys_ ' teams any day."

~

_i just wrote this bc i wanted to make that "hey hey hailey"_ _reference_ _tbh_


	419. Lucky Enough (Michael Clifford)

**Michael's POV**

Michael came back into BuzzFeed for a follow-up interview after the video he'd shot the previous day. Miranda, the person who had organized the video, had him sit down in front of the camera, beginning with questions like ' _How did you feel after yesterday?_ ' and things of that nature before they got to the  _real_  reason he was brought back.

"We have something to show you, Michael," Miranda informed him. He simply nodded, letting her continue. "The mirror you were standing in front of was actually a two-way mirror and we had a few strangers tell us what they saw when they looked at you." Michael's heart skipped a beat, instantly preparing himself for the worst.

Miranda put a laptop on his lap and hit play. He listened intently to all the nice things the people were saying with a small smile and light blush.

" _Y/N_ ," the sound of Miranda's voice played back through the speakers, " _Are you going to say anything?_ "

" _Hmm?_ " you hummed, " _Oh-_ " You blushed lightly, realizing you'd been staring at the boy on the other side of the mirror.  _"-I guess the first thing I notice is that it's pretty obvious he doesn't like the way he looks. He's very critical and hard on himself when he doesn't need to be at all._ " There was a small pause and he noticed you furrow your eyebrows. " _I don't see why he's holding his stomach like that,_ " you frowned, " _He's got a really great figure. His eyes are really pretty too. Even as far away as we are, they're the most mesmerizing things I've ever seen, to be honest. Whoever gets to wake up next to him every day..._ " you trailed off, nodding your head slowly, " _They're definitely lucky._ "

Michael's heart was racing as he watched you, 95% sure he was already developing a crush on you. He had listened to  _everything_  you said – which felt impossible next to the pounding of his heart – but the thing that stuck out the most wasn't the way you were looking at him, it was the  _last comment_  you made.

_"Whoever gets to wake up next to him every day... They're definitely lucky."_

Never in his  _life_  did Michael think anyone would consider themselves or someone else to be  _lucky enough_  to wake up next to him; He never felt like he  _deserved_  anyone that would feel that way about him. But the way you were looking at him...

He had his doubts as he listened to the  _other_  people talk about him – thinking there was  _no way_  this wasn't some sort of staged thing – but the look you had was one he  _knew_  someone couldn't fake. You  _genuinely_  thought all of things you were saying and that made Michael that much  _more_  nervous. He didn't know whether or not he should ask if there was a way to contact you after this, and even if there  _was_ , he didn't know if he'd be brave enough to  _follow_   _through_  with it.

After a few more questions, filming was finally over and Michael was given the okay to leave. He lingered in the chair for a moment, staring at his hands.

As everyone else was cleaning up, Miranda approached him.

"Hey, Michael," she said carefully, "Are you okay?"

"They  _really_  couldn't hear what I was saying about myself?" he asked her, looking up.

"No," she smiled slightly, "I told you, Michael – they had no idea."

"What about that Y/N girl?"

"What  _about_  her?"

"Am I... Am I allowed to know anything about her? L-Like a number or  _something_?" She smiled again.

"I'm really sorry, but I can't give you her number," she said, "Tell you what though: I'll call her and see if she's available and if she is, I'll tell her to go to the café down the street so you can meet her there, okay?" Michael's eyes widened. "But I don't think I'm allowed to be doing this  _either_ , so you can't tell anyone."

Michael nodded furiously, watching her leave the room. Miranda came back only a couple minutes later.

"She'll be there in 10 minutes," she grinned, making Michael's heart start pounding again. "Don't worry so much," Miranda said reassuringly, "You already know what she thinks of you and you seem like a really great guy. I'm sure you two will hit it off." He took a deep breath and made his way back out of the building.

As Michael was walking down the street, he kept mentally telling himself that everything was going to be okay. He thought over and over about what he was going to tell you, hoping he would  _actually_  be able to say it.

Michael entered the café and immediately found a booth to sit in while waited for you. He didn't get a drink yet – hoping you would want to stay long enough to have something with him – so he had nothing else to distract himself. He was staring at his phone, subconsciously glancing at the time every 10 seconds.

But he was so wrapped up in his own mind that he didn't even notice when you walked through the door.

**Your POV**

You walked into the café,  _beyond_  nervous. Miranda had only told you that someone named Michael from the video you shot yesterday wanted to see you, but wouldn't tell you which person he was or why he wanted to.

The moment the café door closed behind you and you glanced around, your heart skipped a beat when you noticed that the only person from the shoot that was there was the blonde-haired boy who made your knees weak.

Your best friend Izzy was the barista working that day, and she cleared her throat softly enough so that you heard it, but the blonde wouldn't. When you looked over at her, she pointed at the boy with a raised eyebrow. You simply swallowed lightly and somehow convinced your legs to carry you over to him.

"M-Michael?" you said softly once you reached the table.

The blonde jumped lightly, his head shooting up. He visibly gulped upon seeing you next to him, his eyes widening with every passing second.

"Y-You know my name?" he stuttered.

"Well, Miranda called me and said someone named Michael from the BuzzFeed shoot yesterday wanted to meet me here, so I thought... U-Unless it's a  _different_  Michael..."

" _No_!" he nearly shouted, "I-I mean... I did want to meet you... A-Actually, I asked her f-for your number, but sh-she said she wasn't allowed to tell me, so... Well, she s-said she doesn't know if she's allowed to do  _this_  either, but..."

"You  _wanted_  to meet me?" you whispered. He swallowed again, chewing on his bottom lip. "Can I..." you trailed off, motioning to the seat next to your thigh. He nodded as quickly as he'd ever nodded before, watching you slide to the middle of the seat so you were directly across from him.

"C-Can I buy you a drink?" Michael asked you so quietly that you barely  _heard it_.

"You don't have to do that," you shook your head, not wanting him to spend money on you.

"I-I-I  _want_  to," he assured you, "I'm kinda thirsty..." You couldn't help but giggle under your breath, making him blush at the sound.

"Hot chocolate is fine," you told him, "I don't really like coffee that much."

"Me neither," he commented, getting up to order the drinks.

 _Doesn't like coffee_ , he thought to himself,  _There's_ ** _one_** _thing in common already._

Michael reached the counter, but didn't even say anything before two cups were abruptly placed in front of him.

"They're on the house," Izzy told him cheerfully.

" _Isabella_ ," you said sternly, looking over your shoulder so you could narrow your eyes at her.

She had a wide grin on her face, "I don't know  _what_  you're talking about, Y/N." She pushed the cups further toward Michael's hands until he was forced to grab them so they wouldn't spill all over him.

Once he had a hold of them, Izzy quickly let go and scurried off into the kitchen, leaving Michael to go with the only option: take the cups back to your booth.

"So she's..." Michael trailed off, sitting back down and sliding one of the cups to you.

"My best friend," you answered.

"Does she do that a lot then?"

"No, she only did it because it's  _you_ ," you said before you realized what was leaving your mouth. Your eyes widened as he tilted his head.

"What do you mean?" he asked you.

"We live together," you heard Izzy's voice as she came back out of the kitchen.

" _Izzy_!" you shouted, your head snapping up as she trotted over to the end of the counter nearest to you.

"She came home from the shoot yesterday-" Izzy went on, not fazed by your death stare in the slightest. "-and she kept going on and on about this ' _cute blonde boy with the prettiest eyes she's ever seen_ ,'" she sighed, poorly imitating your voice, "When I saw you walk in here, I just  _knew_  you were the boy she described and I was obviously going to catch you before you left to set you two up, but then she walked in and everything just kinda worked out on its  _own_."

By this time, your hands were already covering your face and you knew it  _had to be_  as red as a tomato with how hot it felt. You gave your face just enough time to cool off before removing your hands. You barely noticed the blush on Michael's face as you got up.

"It's getting kind of stuffy in here," you said quickly, "I'm gonna go outside for a minute." You hurried out the door, letting the cool air engulf you as your back hit the brick beside the closing door with a sigh.

The door opened about 10 seconds later and Michael still had a prominent blush on his cheeks.

"If it makes you feel any better-" Michael spoke softly, holding your cup of hot chocolate out to you as you looked up at him. "-my friends aren't gonna hear the end of it about  _you_  either." You had to admit you felt a little more relaxed at the statement.

"Really?" you asked lowly, taking your cup back. Your hand brushed Michael's and you both pulled away quickly, small smiles on your faces.

"Yeah," he started chewing on his lip again, "I thought the stuff you said about me was really nice and I felt like I was gonna  _throw up_  when I saw how you looked at me... B-but in a  _good_  way!" You giggled again and Michael worked up the courage to say, "You have a really cute laugh."

"No, I  _don't_ ," you frowned.

"Yeah, you do."

"No," you shook your head, "It's really annoying."

"Well,  _I_  think it sounds nice," he said thoughtfully.

"Thanks," you whispered, not really sure what else to say.

You felt Michael's gaze on you for a few moments before he said anything else.

"Do you want to go see a movie with me?" he blurted out. You looked up at him and he quickly retreated back to the shy boy he seemed like he always was. "O-Or we could go back inside. Or w-we could go get something to eat. Or we could just go our own ways. W-W-Whatever you want." You bit your bottom lip lightly.

"I  _am_  kinda hungry," you told him. Michael looked at you with wide eyes,  _honestly_  surprised you hadn't shot him down.

You gigged softly, finishing the rest of your drink before throwing the empty cup away. You grabbed his hand and started pulling him toward the local restaurants.

"Where were you thinking?" you asked him.

"I-I-I don't know," he answered truthfully, "I d-didn't think I'd  _get_  this far." You smiled again, briefly releasing his hand so you could comfortably tangle your fingers with his.

"We could always try that new burger place a couple blocks away," you suggested, not even noticing the brightening blush on his cheeks. You furrowed your eyebrows and looking up at him, "Unless you're like, a  _vegetarian_  or something." Michael couldn't help but laugh.

"I'm not," he told you, "I think you would have  _known_  by now if I were." You let out a loud laugh, nodding in agreement.

As you were walking down the sidewalk, another wave of confidence struck Michael, and he leaned down to press a quick kiss to your cheek. You looked at him again as he pretended not to notice, but he couldn't hide his face turning red.

But that was okay; Your blush was  _just_  as noticeable as his.

~

_inspiration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jg-O7f_1Ngc_


	420. Who to Love (Marshall Traver)

You didn't understand  _why_  the world was so against you. You'd done everything  _right_  – you went through school, got a decent job, bought a nice apartment...

But something, as with all the  _other_  winning streaks in your life, just  _had_ to go wrong.

And you must have  _totally_  fucked up this time – you must have cursed every single god known to man a  _thousand_  times over – because this was the worst thing that  _possibly_  could have happened.

Okay, maybe it wasn't the  _worst_  thing that could happen and maybe you  _were_  being a bit dramatic. But it might as well be the end of the world  _now_.

Everyone was born with this tattoo – a unique symbol that perfectly matched only  _one_  other person's in the entire  _world_. You were as excited as ever when you finally found your person after 24 years...

Until you actually got to  _know_  him.

It wasn't that Tyler wasn't a good guy, he just... _wasn't_  who you imagined your soulmate would  _be_. You always pictured someone strong and adventurous and not afraid of anything life had to throw at him.

_But Tyler..._

Tyler was the kind of guy that movies made  _fun of_. And sure, maybe he had his own apartment, but don't let that fool you – his  _parents_  were paying for it.

Now, there was nothing wrong with getting a little help every now and then when you could barely make rent, but to have your parents be your  _sole_  source of income at the age of 27 because he didn't have a job and was never searching for one? He might as well still be  _living_  with them – you know, be a decent person and save them a few hundred bucks a month.

Your only solace in this whole situation – your one source of laughter when you were having a bad day – was your best friend.

You and Marshall had known each other for a while – he would come into the coffee shop you worked at every now and then, becoming a regular once you both started talking. He was your comedic relief for  _everything_  in life, really. No matter what mood you were in, Marshall always seemed to make it a hundred times better.

You learned very early on into the friendship that Marshall had never had a soulmate tattoo. You'd heard about it happening before – people being born without one – but you'd never actually met anyone who didn't have one until him. You never went too much into it though, knowing it made Marshall uncomfortable and even  _sad_  at times to think about not having a soulmate for himself.

But that didn't mean you never talked about yours with him. And that also didn't mean he was never willing to listen.

It was one such night – you were at Marshall's apartment watching movies as you two did every Saturday night. It was your turn to pick the movie, but you hadn't been paying attention to any of it, finding yourself lost in your thoughts. But by the time he noticed and went to ask you, you could already see him watching you out of the corner of your eye. So you started speaking.

"Maybe I'm not meant to have that ' _lifetime of happiness_ ' everyone keeps  _whining_  about," you sighed, more to yourself than to Marshall.

"Why don't you just end it then?" he asked, muting the television to give you his undivided attention.

"Ty's my  _soulmate_ ," you shook your head, "I'm supposed to be with  _him_."

"But you don't  _love him_ , Y/N," he told you.

"You don't even  _have_  a soulmate," you murmured, "You wouldn't  _understand_."

"No, I understand," he said firmly, "I understand that you don't love him and you don't look forward to spending time with him anymore and you don't want to leave because you're ' _meant to be with him_ ' or whatever. But not everything in life was  _meant_  to be easy – not everything is going to  _make_   _sense_. And, to be honest, it's kind of stupid that you're throwing away your potential of finding someone you're  _truly_  happy with all because one little mark on your body is trying to tell you who to love."

~

**One week later**

Marshall's speech had really been eating away at you for the last six days. You knew he was right – you'd known for a  _long time_  that he was right – but for whatever reason, you just couldn't make yourself break up with Tyler.

Until one day,  _you did_.

It was the Thursday after movie night that you found yourself at Tyler's apartment with the intent on breaking up with him. He refused to acknowledge what you were saying at first, giving you the soulmate excuse, but you pushed through and ended things anyway.

But that  _wasn't_  why you were storming into Marshall's own apartment the following morning.

"This is such  _bullshit_!" you exclaimed, making Marshall raise an eyebrow as you came into the kitchen with him.

" _What_  is?" he asked when you walked over to where he was standing at the counter waiting for his coffee to finish brewing.

"I broke up with Tyler last night, right?" you huffed, sitting yourself down on the counter top, "And he started whining about the whole soulmate thing and how ' _we're_   _supposed to be together forever_ ', but I still  _did it_  anyway! And when I left his apartment, my tattoo was gone! And it was nice to know that I wasn't destined to be with Tyler, but can you guess what I found when I  _woke up_  this morning?! Just  _guess_ , Marshall! You know what?! Don't even worry about it! I'll tell you right now! It was a new fucking tattoo  _right_  where the other one was!"

You angrily pulled the sleeve of your jacket down to show Marshall the brand new tattoo on your wrist. You didn't even notice his eyes widen as you continued on your rant.

"Maybe I won't ever  _meet_  this new person," you said, leaning back against the cabinet, "Maybe I'll just barricade myself in my apartment for the rest of my life and have one of those subscription boxes of international foods be my meals and sign up for one of those sites that pays you for having opinions be my source of income. Soulmates are  _bullshit_  and so is this  _damn_  tattoo. I  _never_  want to meet this person." Marshall didn't say anything for a moment, but when he finally did, to say you were shocked was an  _understatement_.

"What if you've already met him?" he asked simply.

"How could I have  _already_  met him?" you rolled your eyes, "You're the  _only_  person I've seen since it  _showed up_."

Marshall didn't say anything – he just put his forearm down on the counter beside your thigh, his wrist up so you could see the brand new tattoo that  _perfectly_  matched yours. Your heart skipped a beat and you had to force yourself to look away and back up at him.

"When did you get that...?" you whispered.

"This morning," he said lowly, his thumb running over it, "I tried washing it off in the shower, but it wouldn't budge. Didn't even  _realize_  it was a soulmate tattoo until I saw  _yours_." He then looked at you once again, "Guess that means we're soulmates then, huh?"

"What happened to that ' _one little mark can't tell you who to love_ ' speech?" you asked, a small smile pulling at the corner of your mouth. Marshall simply grinned brightly at you.

"I've loved you  _long_  before this thing this ever showed up," he said, making your heart skip a beat, "I guess it was just what I needed to finally be brave enough to  _tell you_."

"Yeah?" you murmured, "So what do we do  _now_?"

"Well, I can tell you what I'd  _like_  to do," he replied, smirking slightly.

"Maybe just  _showing me_  would be easier though," you suggested.

Marshall let out a soft chuckle before moving to stand between your legs. His hands landed on your hips while his forearms rested on top of your thighs. Your own hands automatically went to his cheeks as both of you just stared at each other for a moment.

"I really  _do_  love you, Y/N," he swallowed thickly, almost as if he was nervous you wouldn't say it back.

"I love you too, Marshall," you whispered, pulling his face to yours and kissing him like this was all a dream you'd wake up from at any moment.

~

_inspiration: http://my-imagines-moonlight53.tumblr.com/post/147261517857/i-can-make-you-happier-bucky-barnes-x-reader_


	421. Through It All (Luke Hemmings) - Part 1

It wasn't an unusual sight for the people in Straus Hall to see you walking through the dormitory's hallways. What  _was_  unusual, though, was the fact that now, you had an  _anything_  but pleased look on your face.

It was Saturday afternoon and you were supposed to have lunch with your best friend that day. But when he didn't show up, you knew exactly where he was – the only place he  _ever_  was these days: in his dorm room studying until he inevitably caused himself to have a panic attack.

You stopped at Luke's door, instantly pounding your fist on the wood. You waited for a couple seconds before knocking again, just as loudly as the first time. People in the halls watched on nervously from afar – they could tell you were pissed and they knew Luke was in  _big_  trouble.

You finally growled lowly, realizing Luke wasn't going to answer his door, and went to the room next door. You knocked for a moment before it was being pulled open and you were met with a very confused Ashton.

"What are  _you_  doing here?" he asked you, "I thought you and Luke were-"

"Give me his room key," you grumbled, making Ashton's eyes widen, instantly knowing Luke had forgotten about his plans that day.

He quickly got the spare key to Luke's dorm from his desk drawer, following you out into the hallway after he handed it to you. He remained at his dorm room, however, as you unlocked the door and turned back to him. You tossed the key back to him, not even bothering to mutter a ' _thank you_ ' as you opened the door and let it shut behind you – though, Ashton  _did_  say a short prayer that his best friend would make it through  _whatever_  was about to happen to him.

You found Luke sitting on top of his bed – his textbooks and notes spread out in front of him with headphones in his ears, explaining why he hadn't heard you knocking. But you were still – understandably – ticked off.

You marched over to him, the act of grabbing the cord of his headphones and yanking them out of his ears making the blonde jump. His head snapped up as you spoke, his eyes widening at the look on your face.

"Would you care to explain to me why I waited at McDonald's for you for  _an hour and a half_  only to realize you weren't going to show up  _at all_?" you asked rhetorically.

"I forgot about our lunch date, didn't I?" he began chewing on his lip nervously.

" _You think_?" you scoffed, rolling your eyes.

"Y/N, I'm  _really_  sorry," he frowned, "I've just been studying  _all_  morning and I lost track of time. I  _promise_  I'll make it up to you tomorrow."

" _No_ , you're gonna make it up to me  _now_ ," you stated.

" _What are you doing_?!" he all but shouted at you, watching in disbelief as you closed all his books and put them on his desk.

"You're taking a break," you said calmly, but firmly at the same time so he knew you were being serious.

"No, I'm  _not_ , Y/N! I  _need_  to study!"

"If your  _other friends_  are fine with you blowing off plans just to stress yourself out even more, that's fine by me," you stated, "But when you try blowing off plans with  _me_ , it's not gonna slide."

"You're not my  _mother_ , Y/N," he spat, "You can't tell me what to do."

"I  _know_  I'm not your mother, Lucas!" you finally snapped, "You would actually fucking  _listen to her_!"

Luke froze, staring at you in shock. You rarely ever swore  _at_  him unless you were  _extremely_  pissed, so to hear you do it now was somewhat of a wakeup call.

But if there was one thing about Luke, it was that he was  _just_  as stubborn as you.

"We'll hang out another time," he told you, getting off of his bed and going to his desk to reclaim his books, "I'm sorry I forgot to meet up with you earlier, but we're just going to have to reschedule."

You instantly slammed your hand down on top of his books as he picked them up, causing them to hit the desk again with a loud thud. The glare you were giving him was one Luke had never seen before, and he'd be lying if he said it didn't terrify him.

"If I walk out of this dorm without you, Lucas, know that you will never see me in here again," you said so lowly, he actually thought it was the voice of someone  _completely different_.

"Y/N, you're being ridiculous," he shook his head, "It's just  _one day_."

"So were the last  _ten fucking times_  you blew me off!" you exclaimed, "The only difference is  _this time_ , you can pick a  _different_  fucking friend to pick up the pieces of your stress-induced panic attack!"

With that, you stomped out of the room, slamming the door behind you.

And Luke didn't follow you.

~

**Three weeks later**

It had been nearly a month since you last saw – or even  _heard from_  – Luke. It didn't shock you at all, to be honest – you knew he'd always been the type to put off apologizing as long as he could – but you weren't going to sit around and pretend it didn't  _hurt_.

You'd known Luke since you were in high school – bonding over the silly fact that you were both excited for the pizza that would be served at lunch on the first day of the second semester; And you'd been best friends ever since. People around school or town would  _never_  see one person without the other – you and Luke were inseparable.

But things  _changed_  when you got to college.

You were both so ecstatic when you learned you got accepted into the same school, going on and on about how fun it was going to be and how lucky you were that you wouldn't be separated by thousands of miles. Of course, you knew lectures and schoolwork were going to take up a good portion of your time, but you and Luke swore to each other that you would leave the weekends school-free and just hang out together like old times.

You would always try –  _God knows_  you tried as hard as you could – but Luke just gradually stopped spending time with you. He seemed to favor his books over you most days, not even bothering to answer texts or calls about where he was when he was supposed to meet you somewhere.

And it all just became too much; The day you blew up at Luke was the day you'd finally had enough.

~

Luke's roommate – Michael – would always volunteer his time to spend with you when Luke refused, and that was where you were now. It was another Saturday evening – you and Michael were sitting on your bed watching a movie on your computer as he continued insisting he could catch every single piece of popcorn he threw up into the air – and, in classic Michael fashion, he missed every time.

"Mikey,  _stop_ ," you giggled, finally taking the bag of popcorn away from him, "You know just as well as I do that you're  _not_  gonna clean this up."

"That's not true!" he pouted, "I  _always_  clean it up!"

"No, you don't," you reminded him, "You fall asleep in the middle of the movie and when I wake you up, you say you have to go home and go  _back_  to sleep."

" _One more_?" he smiled at you, innocently batting his eyelashes.

You rolled your eyes, moving the bag back to him so he could get another piece of popcorn. He tossed it up – almost hitting your ceiling – and it smacked his nose before bouncing onto your laptop keyboard.

You couldn't help but laugh at the frown on his face, deciding to take your own swing at it. When you tossed up the popcorn and caught it in your mouth, you grinned slyly at Michael, making him roll his eyes.

" _Show off_ ," he muttered. You giggled softly, leaning onto his arm to watch the rest of the movie.

~

When the movie was over, you threw the now empty bag away and put your laptop back on your desk while Michael cleaned up his mess of failed popcorn catches. He threw the food into your trashcan before hopping back up onto the bed beside you.

"So," Michael chirped, "You and Luke make up yet?"

"You  _know_  we haven't, Mikey," you rolled your eyes – no matter  _how_  many times you told him to stop asking, your hangouts with him  _always_  came to this.

"Come on, Y/N," he sighed, "Just give him another shot."

"I've already  _given_  him too many shots, Michael," you grumbled, "He doesn't  _deserve_  any more."

"But he misses you."

"He should have thought about that  _before_  he kept fucking blowing me off then," you spat.

"Y/N-"

"I think you should leave, Mikey," you said, drastically softer than you had been talking. Michael opened his mouth to speak, but you didn't let him. "All you ever do when you come over is try to convince me to talk to Luke again and I'm sick of it," you shook your head, "If he misses me as much as you  _say_  he does, then  _he_  should be the one over here trying to fix things –  _not you_." Michael sighed, knowing you were right.

The day you left Luke's dorm room, he'd called Michael – who obviously wasn't home at the time – in a panic and he could barely understand his best friend as he explained what had just happened with you. He tried to tell Luke  _so many times_  to just swallow his pride and apologize, but he would always refuse with the same lame excuse – you wouldn't want to listen to him.

And as Michael left your dorm, kissing your forehead on his way out, he vowed to himself that he would get Luke to say he was sorry – no matter  _what_  he had to do.

~

_inspiration: http://foreverstuckwritingandimagining.tumblr.com/post/152797987999/early-mornings-engineers-and-extra-special_


	422. Through It All (Luke Hemmings) - Part 2

**Luke's POV; One week later**

The night you made Michael leave your dorm, he practically lectured Luke when he got back to his own about how shitty it was that  _he_  was acting as the middle man when  _Luke_  was the one who screwed up. And Michael made  _sure_  Luke understood that if he wanted to fix things with his best friend,  _he_  needed to be the one to do it. Luke knew he was right, obviously – he knew he was taking the  _easy_  way out of apologizing to you.

You'd been there for him through it all – all his breakups and panic attacks, all his highs and lows... You were the one he trusted with every little detail about him... And he  _fucked up_.

Luke didn't want you to never come around again – he knew he cared about you  _far_  too much to ever lose you  _for good_  – but the only thing he could think of to say he was sorry... Well, he didn't know if it would be  _enough_  this time.

But that didn't mean he wasn't going to  _try_. So, five weeks after you blew up at Luke, his plan was put into action.

~

**Your POV**

It was Saturday morning – 10:48, to be exact – and the sun was shining right down on your face, making you groan softly as you finally started waking up. You stretched your legs, a soft sigh passing your lips.

You didn't want to be up this early – it  _was_  Saturday, after all – but you decided to get up anyway; You didn't want to waste the day or risk going to bed  _too_  late that night. You didn't have any plans that day, so you just figured you'd do your laundry and some cleaning.

But you couldn't help but feel like  _something_  was off.

When you sat up in bed, your eyes immediately landed on the laundry basket sitting on the chair beside your closet – all your clothes cleaned and folded neatly inside. You knew it wasn't your roommate – she'd left the day before to stay with her parents in their hotel while they were visiting for the weekend. Your confusion wasn't lessened when you saw a sticky note on top of the clothes either, but you got up anyway to read it.

_Campus quad_   
_11:30_

You, of course, knew the messy handwriting to be Luke's. To be honest, you were debating on whether or not to actually go – sure, maybe he was the one who wrote it, but that didn't mean he wouldn't show up. But in the end, you decided to get ready anyway, wanting to see what he had in store for you.

~

Half an hour later, with your hands stuffed in the pockets of your jacket, you walked out of your dorm building and made your way to the quad. There were quite a few people out today even though it was a little chillier, but you had yet to find a sign of the blonde boy you were supposed to meet. You could feel the disappointment rising, but before it had filled up all the way, you noticed him out of the corner of your eye.

You looked over at one of the larger trees in the quad, finding Luke sitting on a blanket beside the trunk. You watched him for a moment – he was talking to someone on his phone as he roughly pulled at his hair, clearly nervous about  _something_.

When he looked up, his eyes immediately found yours and he visibly lost his breath. He truthfully hadn't expected you to show up, but to see you standing across the quad from where he was, he thought he was going to throw up because he was so scared his plan wouldn't work.

He quickly said something to the person he was talking to when he saw you begin walking toward him. He scrambled to get up as you approached, allowing you to see the picnic basket that had been on the other side of him.

"You  _came_ ," Luke said softly when you were close enough to hear him.

"What are you  _doing_ , Luke?" you asked, making him swallow thickly at the sound of his name.

"I... I know you're mad that I haven't been a good friend lately, s-so I wanted to make it up to you..." he replied nervously, "I-I got your favorites-" He motioned toward the picnic basket beside his foot. "-I was gonna actually try to  _cook_  something, but I didn't wanna burn the dorms down..." You couldn't help but giggle under your breath, making Luke swallow again – he'd always loved your laugh, especially when  _he_ was the one who caused it.

You both sat down on the blanket, beginning to have lunch together. The thing about you and Luke was that no matter how mad one of you was with the other, you would always find yourselves still laughing and talking as if nothing ever happened before an apology was ever made.

After you were finished eating, you both stood up and Luke packed everything back into the picnic basket before leading you elsewhere. It didn't take you that long to realize where he was taking you – you always went to the pond on campus when you wanted to talk without people around. And lucky for him, no one was there that afternoon.

You sat back down on the ground after he put the blanket down once again, both of you sitting side-by-side facing the water. You could hear Luke breathe in deeply every now and then before letting it out, signaling that he wanted to speak but he couldn't work up the courage yet.

But a few moments later, he finally did.

"You know..." Luke said softly, "We met five years ago last Thursday..."

"We  _did_ , huh?" you murmured. You weren't going to pretend that you forgot – you spent the whole time you weren't in class just trying not to cry at the thought of ever losing Luke's friendship.

"We did," he nodded, glancing at you before turning his attention back to the water, "You were behind me in the lunch line and you laughed when you heard me groan at the pizza." You couldn't help but smile before allowing yourself to giggle again at the memory.

"And you heard me laugh and told me it was pizza day and I immediately understood why you did it," you recalled.

"Things were so much easier when we were in high school," he said, swallowing thickly. You looked at him, curious as to why that seemed to have such an effect on him. "I know I haven't been the greatest friend, Y/N – especially these last few months..." he said softly, shaking his head, "But I... I still care about you more than anything... I still  _love you_  more than anything... You're my  _best friend_  – we've been through  _everything_  together. You were there when my very first girlfriend cheated on me and when Cal, Mike, and I won the talent show senior year and when I got accepted into my dream school and when I started having panic attacks over exams... You've been there through it  _all_ , Y/N, and there's no way I'll ever be able to thank you  _enough_  for that... But always blowing you off was  _wrong_  of me and I'll understand if you never forgive me because it was a really  _shitty_  thing for me to do – especially to someone who's done  _so much_  for me – but I really  _am_  sorry... If you don't want to give me another chance, I won't blame you... But if you do, I  _swear_  I'll do better... I love you  _so much_ , Y/N... I don't know where I'd  _be_  if I didn't have you..."

"I love you too, Lu," you whispered, wrapping your arms around his neck.

You felt Luke let out a sharp breath, the arm closest to you winding around your waist and tugging on you. You immediately took the hint, crawling onto his lap and letting him hold you just as tightly as you were holding onto him.

"I swear I'll do better," he choked out, feeling you squeeze him, "I don't wanna lose you..."

"I know, Lu," you replied just as quietly, kissing the top of his jawline and running your fingers through his hair.

~

_inspiration: http://foreverstuckwritingandimagining.tumblr.com/post/152797987999/early-mornings-engineers-and-extra-special_


	423. There For You (Ashton Irwin)

You could handle finding out ' _Ryder_ ' wasn't who he said he was. You could handle finding out he'd been doing this to countless other girls. You could even handle finding out he'd never felt a  _thing_  for you.

But what you  _couldn't_  handle was the way Bradley – Ryder's  _real name_  – said you were ' _just another nobody online he was using to improve his skills at talking to girls_ ', and you  _certainly_   _couldn't_  handle hearing him say that the only reason he was coming clean to  _you_  was because he ' _would have felt worse if he admitted his real identity to one of the cute girls_ '.

Two years ago, you'd met this boy named Ryder in a chatroom and instantly hit it off with him. He would always ask about your day and offered up advice whenever you needed it. Overall, he seemed like a really great guy who was really into you.

But you'd always had your suspicions.

Whenever you asked him to call you, he would always have some excuse as to why he couldn't. It didn't bother you at first – you understood that some people were just not somewhere they could speak on the phone and texting was easier and quieter – but as time went on, you were starting to feel like he wasn't being  _entirely_  honest with you.

And that was why you contacted  _Catfish_ , putting you in the position you were in now.

You were finally face-to-face with the man you'd known as Ryder and he was spewing out all this  _shit_  that was  _really_  hurting you. You'd never met someone who you thought to be so into you, only to find out that they'd been faking it the  _whole time_.

And it was honestly starting to get the better of you.

**Ashton's POV**

You and Ashton had met when the crew showed up at your house on the first day of filming. He was one of the cameramen for the show and after finding out that Ryder wasn't who he said he was, Ashton became someone who was more than willing to offer you words of encouragement when everyone took breaks from filming.

Ashton was understandably growing more and more agitated as he listened to the things Bradley was saying about your appearance and how you meant nothing because he knew you really thought you were  _in love_  with this guy... But even  _he_  was a little surprised when he noticed your jaw was tightening slowly and your fists were clenched at your sides.

And he knew he had to intervene before you did something stupid.

"Can you hold this for a minute?" Ashton asked the producer next to him softly, referring to the camera he was holding.

"Why?" she cocked an eyebrow.

" _Please_ ," he grumbled. She brushed off his sudden attitude change and finally took it from him, watching him step in front of the cameras.

Before anyone could ask what he was doing, he quickly ran up to you and grabbed your hand just as you were reaching up to hit Bradley, making everyone freeze in surprise. No one had even  _realized_  that you were getting so worked up about what Bradley was saying – especially not enough to  _hit him_  – except for Ashton.

Ashton wrapped his arm around your back so his free hand could hold your hip and led you back across the street to get you away from the situation. He stopped when he reached behind where the car you'd come in was parked, turning to face you with every intention of asking if you were okay – he knew you had every right to be as upset as you were – but when he saw the tears falling down your cheeks, his heart felt a little heavier.

He took his hands off of you so he could open his arms, offering you a hug. He was a little surprised when you immediately ran into him, your arms wrapped tightly around his waist as you cried into his shirt, but that didn't stop him from hugging you back  _just_  as tightly.

"You're gonna be okay, Y/N," Ashton murmured, rubbing your back in the hopes of calming you down, "You have  _so_  many people who will be willing to help you with  _anything_  you need to get through this, okay? Nev and Max are here for you, the crew is here for you..."

He trailed off after the last sentence a bit, making you sniffle and release him so you could look at him. You swallowed thickly when he brought his hands up and put them on your cheeks, wiping away your tears with his thumbs.

" _I'm_  here for you," he said so softly, you barely heard him. You started tearing up again, returning your face to his chest.

He wondered if you could feel how his heart raced as you held him, and he wondered if he himself would ever get over how much it ached for you.

Throughout the whole process of filming, Ashton felt so incredibly  _guilty_  for hoping it wouldn't work out with Ryder because he  _knew_  he was developing a crush on you. And he knew it would take time for you to get over what happened and everything Bradley said – you  _had_  thought you were in love with him, after all – but he also knew he'd be right there waiting when you were.

Your own heart skipped a beat when you felt Ashton's lips hit the side of your head as he held you firmly against him. Something about the way he was acting with you made you feel weak.

Sure, the things Bradley used to say made you feel that way, but it was  _different_  with Ashton. You were hurt that Bradley led you on for so long, but it was like you felt Ashton was being more  _sincere_  about how sorry he was that you had to go through this than when Bradley ' _apologized_ ' – you  _knew_  Ashton actually  _meant it_  when he said you were going to be okay.

~

**Five months later**

"Y/N!" Nev cheered when you popped up on the screen for your update for the show.

"Hi, guys!" you smiled widely, "How are you?"

"We're really good, thank you!" Max grinned, "How about you? How have things been going since we left?"

"They've been going really well," you nodded, "I'm over Ryder and I've moved on – definitely don't plan on talking to someone else online for a  _while_."

"Why's  _that_?" Nev wiggled his eyebrows, "You meet someone  _new_?"

"I  _did_ ," you giggled, "I, uh... I met him while  _filming_ , actually."

"Wait..." Max said while their eyes widened along with their smiles, "Are  _you_  the person our camera guy has been going on about?!"

"If that camera guy is  _Ashton_ , yes," you laughed.

" _Really_?!" Nev smiled, "You guys are a  _thing_?!"

"I guess so," you responded shyly, "He comes to visit when you guys aren't filming and we've been on a few dates, so... Yeah... I guess we're a thing..."

"That's so  _cool_!" he sighed dramatically, causing Max to roll his eyes as he smiled.

"Well, we're really happy to hear you've been doing so well," Max told you, "Ash talks about you all the time and it's really nice to know that you've finally met someone who clearly cares so much about you."

"Thank you," you blushed at the comment about Ashton. You all said goodbye before closing the Skype call and shutting your laptop.

"Well, I guess my secret's out then, huh?" Ashton mentioned as he came back into the room. He'd left so you could talk with the  _Catfish_  hosts privately, but he'd clearly still been listening in.

"What secret might  _that_  be?" you smiled, your eyes following him as he walked back to the couch and plopped down beside you.

"That I'm incredibly annoying when it comes to talking about someone I've been seeing," he winked, taking your hand and tugging on it gently.

You giggled under your breath as you both repositioned yourselves to lie down on the couch, your head resting on Ashton's chest as he absentmindedly ran his fingers up and down your lower back.

The two of you laid there for a few moments in a comfortable silence, listening to Ashton's heartbeat, before he spoke again.

"Am I an ass for being happy you and that guy didn't work out?" Ashton asked softly.

"Are you asking if you're more of an ass than  _him_?" you returned. He felt your smile on his chest.

"No, I  _know_  I'm not more of an ass than him," he chuckled, letting it fade out, "I mean... Does it make me a bad person for being  _happy_  about something that made you feel like  _shit_?"

"Maybe," you shrugged, looking up and seeing his expression fall.

You moved your arm up to rest on his chest so you could put your hand on his cheek. He looked at you curiously when you smiled slightly.

"But if the person who felt like shit doesn't regret it, then how much of an ass can you  _really_  be?" you murmured.

"Why don't you regret it?" he furrowed his eyebrows, "He lied to you for  _two years_."

"He was still decent enough to bring me  _you_ ," you answered honestly.

Ashton couldn't help the grin on his face, but you weren't given an opportunity to see his blush. He craned his neck until his face met yours, pressing a kiss to your lips and feeling your own smile.

When you stopped kissing each other to breathe, your head returned to his chest with your face buried in his shirt. You let out a sigh of content, now proposing a question of your own.

"Do you think we ever would have met if none of this happened?" you asked curiously.

"I don't know," Ashton replied, "But I like to think we would. I like to imagine that maybe I was out filming a different episode of the show and we just randomly ran into each other while on late night snack adventures."

You giggled into his shirt before looking up at him, "Then what would have happened?"

"Well... I would be too nervous to talk to you at first," he said matter-of-factly, "But then I would have turned to go in the candy aisle and seen you already looking for what you wanted, so I would take it as a sign to be brave and introduce myself. You would probably think I was a little weird at first for trying to strike up a conversation in the candy aisle at midnight-" You smiled slightly, nuzzling back up to him and closing your eyes. "-but something inside you might have talked to me anyway... Like something was telling you we were  _meant_  to be together. Well... I  _hope_  it would tell you we were meant to be together...  _I_  think we are..."

When you didn't say anything that time, Ashton's heart felt heavy –  _did you not feel the same?_

But his worries were soon gone the moment he looked down at you and realized you  _weren't_  ignoring him – you had just fallen asleep. He couldn't keep his eyes off of you as he moved his hand up to play with your hair, finding himself wondering  _how_  he got so lucky to cross paths with someone like you.

~

_inspiration: Catfish, episode "Jen & Skylar" (season 2, episode 6)_

_also this tweet lol: https://twitter.com/bananadanziger/statuses/362403707041742848_


	424. Get It Right (Michael Clifford)

 

 

You rolled your eyes at the message – the boy knew how to push your buttons and  _God_ , did he use it to his advantage sometimes. But before you could even respond, another text was popping up on your screen.

The words on your screen made you swallow thickly, your thumbs typing again before you thought about what you were doing.

You shook your head, breathed in deeply, and deleted the text before typing out a new one.

You immediately turned your phone off, not in the mood for whatever snarky comeback he might have.

You angrily wiped the tears off of your face, annoyed with yourself for letting it get to you  _yet again_. Michael had been coming home late every night for the last few months – sometimes even coming home when your alarm went off at 6:30am – so you really shouldn't have been surprised.

What you  _were_  surprised about, however, was how he just  _nonchalantly_  stated that he was going to be spending the night at  _Marissa's_  place. Michael  _knew_  how much you hated her, and he could have said he was staying with one of the boys, yet he  _still_  chose to bring her name up.

You and Marissa had been enemies since senior year – the same year you started dating Michael. Everyone knew she was pining after the guitar player, and everyone also knew  _he_  had no interest in  _her_. It seemed like the moment Michael started showing an interest in the quiet girl from his English class, Marissa was  _that_   _much_  more determined to win him over. Of course, she had no success throughout the last three years, but that certainly didn't detour her from  _trying_.

And even though you were all out of high school and you hadn't seen her in over three years, you were  _terrified_  she'd finally  _won_.

~

The next morning, you woke up with your face pressed against something soft and warm. You breathed in Michael's scent for a moment before every memory of last night came flooding back.

You let out a shaky breath and went to get out of bed, but the arms around your waist only tightened.

"Let go, Michael," you demanded.

"No," he murmured, kissing the back of your neck. You mumbled incoherently, struggling to get out of his grasp, but he wouldn't loosen his hold – if anything, he just held on tighter.

In the midst of your desperate attempts to get away from him, you were becoming so increasingly frustrated that you felt your eyes starting to water until you finally couldn't hold it in anymore.

" _Michael_!" you shouted with a broken sob, " _Let go of me_!"

"I'm not letting go, kitten," he said drastically quieter than you, his heart honestly breaking.

"Don't call me that," you growled, "Don't call me that  _ever_  again."

"You don't  _mean_  that," he called your bluff.

"Don't tell me what I do and do not mean," you spat. You attempted to escape his hold again, not being even a little successful. " _For fuck's sake, Michael_!" you shouted again, your voice breaking.

"Kitten, I-"

" _Stop it_!" you unwillingly started crying, finally collapsing and burying your face in your pillow, " _Stop_!" Your tears were already soaking the pillowcase and you heard Michael take in a shaky breath of his own.

He pulled you back against his chest, his left arm reaching for your right hand. He tangled your fingers together, honestly a bit surprised when you responded by holding his hand tightly, bringing it up to your face. You didn't quite understand why, but you always felt at ease when Michael's hands were on your face and even though you were mad at him, now was no different.

As you were holding his hand, Michael's lips were pressed to your ear and he was whispering about how much he loved you.

It took you a few minutes, but you finally calmed down to the point where you were only sniffling softly every now and then. Michael still had his lips on your skin, kissing the top of your jaw. He started rubbing your hand with his thumb and sighed.

"I'm  _really_  sorry, kitten," he whispered, "I shouldn't have gotten mad at you when I know I would have been  _ten times_  as worried if  _you_  hadn't come home on time  _either_. And about what I said about staying the night at Marissa's... I  _only_  said that because I knew would make you mad and that was  _wrong_  of me and I'm sorry." You swallowed thickly, turning your head to look at him.

"You  _didn't_  stay with her?" you asked, your voice barely giving you any sound.

" _God, no_ ," he shook his head with another sigh, "I tried calling you after I sent it to tell you, but your phone was off, so I came straight home and found you asleep. I love you  _so much_ , kitten – I would  _never_  do that to you."

"I love you, Mikey," you whimpered, feeling yourself start to tear up again.

Michael let go of your hand, only to put it on your cheek. He stared at you for a moment as his thumb ran back and forth on your cheekbone before he leaned down and kissed you slowly.

You breathed a shaky sigh of relief, kissing him back eagerly, even whining lightly when he pulled away, making him blush a bright shade of pink.

"Why haven't you been coming home on time?" you asked softly.

"Y/N..." he trailed off, not really wanting to answer.

"You can't even  _tell me_?" you swallowed, shaking your head, "If it's not cheating, why can't you tell me?"

"Because I wanted to do it  _right_ ," he murmured.

"Do  _what_  right?" your voice was almost desperate at this point.

"I've been working late to get paid for overtime because... Because I wanted to... I want to marry you."

Your heart skipped a beat and you felt your breath get caught in your throat. You didn't know what you expected him to say, but  _that_  certainly wasn't it.

"You want to... _marry me_?" you whispered in shock. He gave you a confused smile.

"Of  _course_  I do," he replied, "I've wanted to marry you since the moment I  _met you_. I've been working late because I want to buy you a nice ring... And then you asked me why I kept coming home late and I... I didn't want to tell you the  _truth_  because then you would have known I was going to  _propose_ , but it turned into a fight so  _quickly_... And I said what I did about Marissa because I know how much you don't like her and I knew you would get mad, but the moment I sent it, I felt  _terrible_... And I didn't want to lose you so I dropped everything at work and came home to apologize but you were already asleep... I could tell you'd been crying... I just didn't want ever not marrying you to even be a  _possibility_... I love you  _so much_... I don't want to  _be_  with anybody else..."

You didn't say anything for a moment – you just quickly wrapped your arms around his neck and turned your body toward him so you were practically lying on top of him. His arms immediately wound around your waist, holding you tightly against him as if he thought you were going to try and leave again.

"Of course I wanna marry you, Mikey," you whispered into his ear, feeling his arms squeeze you even tighter.

"I'm still not telling you  _when_  it's gonna happen," he stated, his voice muffled slightly as he pressed kisses to your neck, " _Something_  should still be a surprise." Michael felt your body shake a bit as you laughed before you moved your head back and happily kissed him again.

~

_inspiration: http://5saucesonmyburger.tumblr.com/post/141373858220/anon-michael-always-coming-home-late-yen_


	425. Because I Knew You (Marshall Traver)

Your microphone was gripped tightly in your hands as you walked onto the  _America's Got Talent_  stage. This was your first time singing in front of this many people and you honestly felt like you were going to throw up. Despite the feeling though, you decided to audition for the show anyway, not wanting to be held back by your stage fright for the rest of your life.

The audience cheered as you walked out, making you smile to yourself as you stopped on the large, red ' _X_ ' in the middle of the stage. The judges smiled at you, clearly taking note of how they could see you visibly shaking, and waited for the crowd's cheers to die down before greeting you.

"Hello!" Heidi chirped, "What is your name? Where are you from?"

"My name is Y/N Y/L/N and I'm from (city, state)," you answered softly.

"And who have you brought with you today, Y/N?" Simon asked.

"No one," you smiled shyly.

"Does anyone know you're here?" Mel tilted her head curiously.

"No..."

" _Why not_?!" she exclaimed in surprise.

"I figured if no one knew I was coming, I wouldn't have to  _tell them_  if I did badly," you laughed nervously, making her smile sadly.

"What will you be doing for us today?" Howie asked you.

"Singing."

"And what will you be singing?"

" _For Good_  from the musical  _Wicked_ ," you swallowed.

"You don't seem very  _confident_  in yourself," Simon said monotonously, "And you decided to pick such a  _demanding_  song?"

"Y-Yes, sir," you said.

"Don't listen to him," Heidi insisted, shoving Simon's arm, "You start whenever you're ready." You swallowed again, nodding lightly, your hands  _still_  physically shaking as you nodded for the person off to the side to start the track.

_I've heard it said that people come into our lives_   
_For a reason, bringing something we must learn_   
_And we are led to those who help us most to grow_   
_If we let them, and we help them in return_

~

**Marshall's POV; 3 minutes earlier**

Marshall practically broke through the door to the venue, looking around for the first person who looked like they worked for the show he could find. He didn't have to search very hard, however, because as he was about to go into the door to the concert hall, he was stopped.

"Sir, you can't go in there!" the man said quickly, holding his arm out before Marshall could open the door.

"Listen, buddy," he grumbled, annoyed that he was stopped, "My girlfriend is onstage right now and I am  _going_  to go watch her perform."

"You know the girl onstage?" he asked with wide eyes, obviously having heard no one supposedly knew you were even there.

"I just  _said that_!" he sighed exasperatedly.

The man looked at him for a moment before looking behind Marshall. He waved for someone to come over, telling them to stand in for him for a moment. When the girl nodded in confirmation, the man looked back at Marshall.

"Follow me," he said, quickly leading your boyfriend toward the door that would take them backstage. "Nick!" he said lowly as he approached, waving for him to come over. They were stood out of view so even if you  _had_  looked over at some point, you wouldn't have seen anybody.

"What's up, man?" Nick asked, glancing curiously at Marshall.

"This is the girl on stage's boyfriend," he said. Nick was speechless for a moment before nodding, causing the man to leave the two alone.

"So you're Y/N's boyfriend?" Nick questioned.

"Yes, sir," Marshall breathed heavily from running.

"Did she  _really_  not tell anyone she was doing this?"

"No, sir. I got a text from someone earlier saying they thought they saw her here," he explained, "And they sent a photo and I knew it was her, so I got here as quick as I could."

"Why do you think she didn't tell you?"

"She's afraid of failing," he replied solemnly, "I think she thought that if she told people and she didn't make it, they'd be disappointed in her."

"Well, how about we come over here and have a listen because these people  _definitely_  aren't," Nick said, ushering Marshall to the side of the stage.

_Well, I don't know if I believe that's true_   
_But I know I'm who I am today because I knew you_

_Like a comet pulled from orbit as it passes the sun_   
_Like a stream that meets a boulder halfway through the wood_   
_Who can say if I've been changed for the better?_   
_But because I knew you, I have been changed for good_

Marshall smiled slightly –  _Wicked_  had always been one of your favorite musicals and he would always sing that song to you, so he knew you were thinking about him as you sang.

_And just to clear the air, I ask forgiveness_   
_For the things I've done you blame me for_   
_But then I guess we know there's blame to share_   
_And none of it seems to matter anymore_

_Like a comet pulled from orbit as it passes the sun_   
_Like a stream that meets a boulder halfway through the wood_   
_Who can say if I've been changed for the better?_   
_I do believe I have been changed for the better_

_And because I knew you, because I knew you_   
_Because I knew you, I have been changed for good_

The moment you stopped singing, people were on their feet, clapping wildly – even the judges. You smiled slightly, hardly able to believe that they liked your performance  _that_  much.

You noticed the judges' eyes widen and their smiles get bigger as you saw someone moving out of the corner of your eye, worrying you all over again. But when you looked over as Nick and your boyfriend rushed down the stairs on the stage, you were both shocked and confused –  _how did Marshall know you were_ ** _there_** _?_

But when they jumped up to the judge's table, not wasting a second in hitting the golden buzzer together,  _how_  he was there didn't  _matter_  anymore.

You couldn't help but scream, the whole room cheering  _even louder_  as you cried into your hands, your entire body shaking. Nick pushed Marshall toward the stage and he instantly ran back up the stairs, his arms wrapping around your waist and lifting you off the ground the moment he reached you. You moved your hands so you could wrap your arms around him as well, your face burying itself in his neck as you cried even harder.

"I'm so  _proud_  of you, princess," Marshall murmured into your ear, feeling you squeeze him tighter.

~

_Song used: "For Good" from Wicked_

_inspiration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IChJ6eO3k48_


	426. When It Rains (Cody Carson)

**Warning: Panic attack**

~

You and Cody had known each other for about six months when he found out about your fear of thunderstorms. You'd moved into his apartment near the beginning of fall – finally finding a roommate after looking for what felt like forever so you could live closer to your job – so it was understandable that he didn't know about it until living together for that long.

Though,  _how_  he found out was what embarrassed you the most.

It wasn't supposed to storm that night, but one had started developing a little after 4am a few miles away. You remained asleep for the beginning of it – the light thunder and subtle flashes of lightning not disrupting you at all – until it started to get worse.

The sudden downpour of rain had been what woke you up, but you didn't think anything of it – rain was always welcomed in your book. But after opening your eyes for a brief moment to look at the clock on your nightstand, you saw a bright flash out of the corner of your eye.

And  _that_  was what made your heart start racing.

Your parents knew how you got during storms, so if it had woken one of them up in the middle of the night, they would always come into your room and distract you until it was over. But now, you lived across town and that wasn't an  _option_  anymore. And as much as you trusted that Cody wouldn't judge you for being scared, you couldn't make yourself get up and sit with him.

However, that  _wasn't_  to say that he wouldn't help you out anyway.

Being that Cody was an insomniac and already awake, he grew concerned when he passed by your bedroom on his way to get a drink from the kitchen, hearing your small squeaks after every rumble of thunder no matter how loud or soft it was. He quietly knocked on your door, but he didn't bother waiting for a response before opening it.

He found you sitting up against the headboard of your bed, your knees pulled up to your chest, your eyes closed tightly, and your hands covering your ears as you desperately tried to keep your breathing steady. He didn't know what came over him in that moment – all he knew was that his heart ached seeing you like that and he wanted nothing more than for the crying to stop.

Cody closed your door behind him after stepping into the room, carefully making his way to your nightstand to turn on your lamp. You could hear the click of the lamp turning on, making you jump and open your eyes to find your roommate standing beside your bed. You would have asked him why he was there, but you could already tell he knew by the sympathetic smile on his face.

He climbed onto the bed beside you, opening his arms for you come onto his lap – and you  _certainly_  weren't going to pass up the offer. You and Cody had become incredibly close in your six months of living together, so it wasn't anything new to be cuddled up to him – although, it  _was_  a bit different when you were staining his shirt with your tears. He kept one arm wrapped securely around your lower back while the other hand was in your hair, running his fingers through it as he kissed the side of your forehead over and over again. He would feel you jump every time it thundered, but having him holding you managed to suppress the noises you'd been making before he came into the room.

By the time the storm had passed, you were completely calm again, which was a major feat for you considering you were usually still bawling for a  _while_  after it was over. You obviously apologized for ruining his shirt, but Cody assured you it was okay – ' _a little water never hurt anybody_ ' he told you.

You smiled slightly at the comment, climbing off of him and returning to where you'd been before. You said a low ' _thank you_ ' to which he replied with a ' _you're welcome_ ' as well as telling you that you shouldn't have to be embarrassed to ask him to help you the next time it stormed.

And you never hesitated in seeking him out during a thunderstorm again.

~

_inspiration: https://bribe-the-door.tumblr.com/post/160898641189/here-now_

_another similar imagine u could read: http://foreverstuckwritingandimagining.tumblr.com/post/153401078209/southern-gem-part-2-marshall-traver_


	427. In An Instant (Ashton Irwin) - Part 4

**Warnings: Death, mentions of blood**

~

**Your POV; 5:37am**

" _I hear you, I hear you_ ," you said out loud to yourself, hurrying out of the bathroom so you could get your breakfast from the beeping microwave. "You're so  _impatient_  sometimes," you told the appliance.

You grabbed your plate of leftovers, taking the paper towel off of the top of them. You went to the trashcan and sighed, realizing you'd forgotten to take the already nearly overflowing bin to the dumpster before you went to work the previous morning.

"I'll be back," you told your food, placing it on the counter so you could take out the trash.

It was a trek and normal as every other time you'd done this – going down the stairs and outside, walking around the building to throw the trash into the dumpster around back.

"Why can't we have a  _back door_?" you grumbled, making your way back, "Or maybe even a garbage chute? Or just throw it out the window and let someone  _else_ -"

You cut your rant short when you noticed something out of the corner of your eye. You tilted your head in confusion –  _why the hell was someone laying in the bushes?_

You cautiously approached, unsure of  _what_  was going on, but as you got closer, you realized three things: 1) it was definitely  _not_  someone who dropped something and was now looking for it, 2) it was definitely  _not_  normal for someone's leg to be bent in the way this one was, and 3) there was  _definitely_  a person crouched in the bushes beside it.

So you immediately panicked, quickly reverting back toward the building so you could race to your landlord and call the police.

~

**Ashton's POV; Two hours later**

The NCIS team had been called the moment police discovered it was the body of a Navy captain. And, of course, when they realized  _where_  the body had been found and  _who_  discovered it, they threw their days off out the window and came over to your apartment complex as fast as they could.

"Chris," Ashton said as all the men got out of their cars, "I want you getting the body to autopsy as soon as possible, Michael: take photos of every single  _inch_  of this crime scene, Calum: interview every person who could have seen something, Luke: help Chris and do whatever he tells you to do." He then immediately jogged into the building, looking for you.

"So do our  _jobs_ , basically?" Michael said, making the other men chuckle as they all got to work.

The moment Ashton entered the lobby and saw you talking to police, he breathed a sigh of relief. He knew you were alright, but he couldn't  _imagine_  how you felt right now being the person who  _actually_  found the body.

"Y/N," he said as he walked over, making your head snap up. He could see that your eyes were bloodshot from crying and your hair was a mess from playing with it the way you always did when you were upset or stressed or scared.

You jumped up from your seat when he reached you, wrapping your arms tightly around his waist. One arm wrapped around you while his other hand went to the back of your head.

"You're fine – I'm here now," he murmured into your ear. He felt you let out a relieved breath, your arms squeezing him tighter. "This is  _nothing_  you can't handle, you know," he told you, "You see crime scene photos of this stuff  _every_  single day."

"I'm not the person that  _finds_  the body, Ashton," you reminded him, "It's  _different_  when you  _find_  the body." He responded by kissing the side of your head.

"Why don't you take the next couple days off?" he suggested, "We'll call someone else in to work forensics."

"Someone else won't get here for another 24 hours," you shook your head, "And Matthew can't come in because he's out of the country on a business trip."

"It's fine, Y/N," Ashton assured you, "I just think you should  _relax_  before coming back to the office."

"I'll relax  _after_  we find our killer," you stated, getting up and sprinting up the stairs so you could get dressed and ready to go into work.

Ashton sighed quietly, watching you until you disappeared from the first set of stairs. He then turned to your landlord.

"Thanks for staying with her, Mack," he said, making him chuckle.

"Good luck, Ashton," he offered as the agent went outside to get a briefing from crime scene investigators.

"What have we got?" Ashton asked, showing his ID as he ducked under the crime scene tape and approached the men surrounding the body.

"Navy Captain Jeffrey Steiner," Luke announced after pulling the fingerprint up on his handheld scanner, "Captain of the USS San Antonio. Married, no kids – we're still trying to find his wife. He was on leave, scheduled to return to port in two days."

"And the members of his crew?"

"Contacting them now, Boss!" Michael chirped from a few feet away, his phone pressed to his ear.

"You can do that in the car, Clifford," Ashton said, "You guys get back to the office. I'll drive Y/N."

"She's coming into work today?" Luke cocked an eyebrow, helping Christian put the body into a body bag. Ashton gave him a look, causing the men to nod.

"Right," they said in unison, hurrying to finish up their duties so they could get back to the NCIS building and start working on finding the killer.

~

**Your POV; Four hours later**

You had been working non-stop for the last four hours and yielding no results. So far, you only had a name – Captain Jeffrey Steiner of the USS Arizona. You didn't know  _why_  you couldn't get any farther than that, but before you sent your head into a wall due to frustration, you decided you needed a break.

You found yourself with Luke, Calum, and Michael, pulling Luke's chair out into the middle of the desks since he wasn't currently using it, and just listening to them talk about the case. You didn't know where Ashton was, but you just assumed he was in his office working on the case in peace. He wasn't though, because when you heard the elevator door open across the room, you looked up and found Ashton coming out.

" _There_  you are!" he sighed, clearly having been looking for you, "What are you doing up here? I thought you were in your lab."

"I  _was_ ," you nodded, "But I needed a break."

"Well, I need to ask you some questions," he stated, not even waiting for a go-ahead before asking them, "What did you hear just before you found the body?"

"I already told you  _and_  the officer who took the witness statement that I didn't hear  _anything_ ," you frowned, "I walked around to take my trash out and the next thing I know, I'm coming back to find  _legs_  sticking out of a  _bush_."

"You have to remember  _something_ , Y/N," he shook his head.

"I don't know what to  _tell you_ , Ash; That's all I've  _got_."

"Boss..." Luke murmured.

"You have to give me something I can  _work with_ ," Ashton said, ignoring him, "Just tell me something about the guy you saw  _hiding_!"

"Boss," he said a little louder.

"I can't  _remember_  anything else, Ashton!" you squeaked, feeling your eyes start to get watery.

" _Come on, Y/N_  – this is  _important_!"

" _Irwin_!" Luke finally shouted.

Your eyes widened as you all looked at him, having never heard him yell like that before – and especially not at  _Ashton_. His boss gave him a slight glare, but it didn't seem to faze him.

"Can I talk to you?" Luke asked lowly, " _Now_." Ashton cocked an eyebrow but rose to his feet anyway, following Luke across the room where you wouldn't be able to hear them.

**Ashton's POV**

"You want to explain what just happened there, Hemmings?" Ashton asked monotonously.

"Don't you think you're being a  _little_  harsh on her?" Luke responded, not bothering to address the question, "I want answers just as much as  _you_  do, but you're not going to get them by trying to  _force_  them out of her.  _Look at her_!"

Ashton's gaze went to you, seeing Michael and Calum desperately trying to comfort you as you cried. He swallowed thickly – he'd been so intent on getting what had happened out of you that he didn't even realize he was making things  _worse_.

"I get it, Boss; You want to solve the case," Luke sighed, "But you're not going to get anywhere by  _yelling at her_  for answers. You're supposed to be making her feel  _better_  – not just as a co-worker, but as her  _boyfriend_. The girl literally stumbled across a  _dead body_  this morning – the  _least_  you can do is not make her feel like she's being  _useless_." Luke walked away without another word, heading back to you to see if there was anything he could do to help you calm down again.

Ashton stood there for a moment, still watching you with the men. You looked up as Luke approached you and followed him as he knelt down in front of you. His hands were on your knees and Ashton couldn't tell what he said, but you smiled at whatever it was. You wiped your face and shook your head at the blonde. Luke said something else, instantly making you giggle and push his shoulder – telling him right then that it was one of his stupid jokes.

Ashton then made his way back to the group, causing the men to look up. You noticed them all look behind you, so you followed their stares, your heart skipping when you saw Ashton.

"We're gonna take lunch now," he murmured. They all nodded and he turned to you. "You hungry?" he asked, holding his hand out to you. You looked at it before shaking your head.

"You're mad at me," you whispered.

Ashton began chewing on his inner cheek, taking your hand and pulling you up and into him. He kissed the side of your head and you could hear the crack in his voice as he spoke.

"I'm not  _mad_  at you, princess," he told you, sighing in relief when he felt you hug him back, "I could never be  _mad_  at you."

"But you-"

"Have poor judgment and a short temper," he interrupted, "But that doesn't mean it's your fault." You didn't say anything else, you just squeezed him tighter until finally letting go. "So, lunch?" he asked, "I'll take you to that new place downtown you've been wanting to try."

"Are you bribing me?" you asked, earning a soft chuckle from the men sitting at their desks.

"Is it working?"

"It might be," you shrugged. Ashton smiled, kissing your head again, taking your hand and tangling your fingers together.

"We'll be back in a couple hours," he told Michael, Calum, and Luke, "I don't care what you find in the meantime – just let me know about it when we get back." They nodded and you and Ashton made your way to the elevator.

~

An hour later, you and Ashton were on the way back to NCIS.

Or... That's where you  _thought_  you were going.

You looked at Ashton in confusion when you realized you were pulling onto the street that led to your apartment building – the feeling only heightening when you pulled up to the curb right beside the bush Captain Steiner's body was found in.

"Ash," you said, "What are we doing here?"

Ashton didn't answer; He simply got out of the driver's seat and made his way around to your side of the car. He opened the door, but you didn't make a move to get out.

"Why are we  _here_ , Ashton?" you asked firmly.

Ashton reached down and took your hand, pulling you up. He closed the door once you were out of the way, taking you around to the spot the Captain's body had been 12 hours prior.

"I want you to pretend I'm the body," Ashton stated, letting go of your hand before sitting down in the grass.

"Ashton..." you said slowly, your heart beginning to pound in your chest.

"Y/N, if there's a chance it's going to help you remember anything, we  _have_  to try it," he shook his head.

You closed your eyes for a moment, taking in a few deep breaths through your nose and letting them back out slowly through your mouth. You opened your eyes again and found Ashton lying down, looking up at you through the branches.

"What do you see?" Ashton asked you. You couldn't stop your heart rate from speeding up again, tears in your eyes.

"I see my boyfriend lying motionless in a bush in front of me and  _I can't do this_!" you let out a short sob, trying to walk away but feeling Ashton grab your hand and bring you back.

"Princess," he said softly, rubbing the back of your hand with his thumb, "I'm  _fine_. When you leave this place, I am going to be coming  _with you_  and we're going to go back to the office and I'm going to be  _fine_. But I need you to play along until then, okay? Just tell me what you can remember."

You closed your eyes again, not allowing yourself to look back down at Ashton on the ground. He remained sitting up, continuing to rub your hand to give you a sense of comfort that he was still alive.

"I went outside to take out the trash..." you started, your eyebrows furrowing together as you tried to recall what happened, "It was darker than usual because the streetlamp right in front of my apartment had been out for a week and no one was coming to fix it. I went around back to the dumpster and saw something sticking out from under one of the bushes that lined sidewalk on the way back. I couldn't tell what it was, so I walked closer and then I..."

"Then what, princess?" Ashton murmured, holding onto your hand tightly.

"I realized it was a leg..." your voice shook and you could feel your cheeks getting wet.

"And what happened after that?"

"I ran back inside... B-But I saw someone... A guy... He was... He was hiding in the bushes near the leg... B-But I didn't want him to know I knew he was there because I th-thought he would try t-to hurt me too..."

"Focus on that guy, Y/N," Ashton told you, "Tell me everything you can remember about what he looked like."

"He had a hat on," you answered, "There was a picture of a truck that I've seen before on it... A towing company logo, I think... His hair was dark... Almost to his shoulders, but not quite there... I couldn't tell what color his eyes were..."

"Anything else?" You were silent for a moment before letting out a breath.

"I don't... I don't  _remember_..." you whimpered.

You opened your eyes again when you felt Ashton stand up in front of you. He let go of your hand to put his on your cheeks, wiping your tears.

"You did  _so well_ , baby girl," he praised you, pressing his lips to your forehead, "I promise I won't  _ever_  make you do that again." Your arms went around his waist, your head lying on his chest so you could listen to his heartbeat.

He held you until you let go of him first, then taking your hand and lacing your fingers together so you could head back to NCIS.

~

"Hemmings," Ashton said as you both exited the elevator, "Bring up the towing companies within five miles of the crime scene." Luke immediately began typing, then his computer screen popped up on the plasma in front of you. "Can you show only companies with a truck as their logo?"

"Sure, Boss," Luke nodded, bringing them up.

"That one," you said the second the logos came up, pointing to one of them, "That's the one on the guy's hat."

"Clifford, Hood," Ashton said.

"Yeah, Boss?" they replied simultaneously.

"I want you two to go there and talk to everyone who works there or the immediate relatives of anyone who  _does_ ," he ordered, "Bring back anyone who seems even  _remotely_  suspicious."

And it was like that for the rest of the day – following up on leads, running any new forensics that came your way... Everyone was just doing work as usual until you all went home for the night to get some much needed sleep before getting right back at it in the morning.

~

**The next day**

It was around 12:30pm and you'd gone back to your bedroom after eating lunch. You didn't go into work that day – despite your protests, Ashton practically  _forced you_  to take the day off, telling you that you could use the extra time to pack your things to move into his place. It was something you'd been discussing for a few months now – moving in with Ashton – and this whole situation seemed to be the thing that convinced both of you it was the right time.

Ashton, being as protective of you as he was, had always been worried about you living alone across town from him. He was the kind of person who just wanted to make sure you were safe at all times, and what better way to do that than by living  _together_?

You both entertained the idea of him moving into your place for a while, but it was just too  _small_  to accommodate two people with as much stuff as you both had. So the only obvious solution was to move into Ashton's house. You certainly hadn't  _missed_  the process of packing up and moving from when you moved out of your parents' house before starting college, but you were excited to move onto another chapter in live in living with Ashton.

As you were going through your closet and putting things in the box beside you every so often, you couldn't help but feel like something was... _off_. It started as what you thought were just stomach cramps from eating too quickly, but it slowly turned into a heaviness in your chest – like you were having an anxiety attack. You'd had plenty of gut feelings in your lifetime, and the feeling of having one  _now_  was no different.

And you realized it was  _right_  when you heard the knob on your front door start jiggling.

Your heart was racing, having  _no idea_  who was outside your apartment – Ashton had a key, the other boys would have knocked, your parents would have called before coming over, and as far as everyone  _else_  knew, you'd gone to work that day.

Your eyes widened the moment you heard the lock click, knowing that whoever had picked it was now free to enter your apartment. You quickly hid behind the door, able to see through the crack that it was the  _last_  person you  _ever_  wanted to see  _again_ : the man crouched down beside the body you'd found.

He went into your kitchen – probably checking the place to see if you were there – and you knew you only had a few  _seconds_  before he'd come into the bedroom. Your hands were shaking as you grabbed the baseball bat in your closet, knowing walking across the room to the gun you kept in your nightstand would be too risky and you didn't know  _what_  weapon – because you knew he  _had_  to have one – the man had with him.

You were back behind the door – your arms up and ready to swing when he came into the room. You couldn't hear anything but your heartbeat at this point and you honestly felt like you were going to throw up because you were so scared.

But the moment he entered the room, his back was to you and you took your chance.

You swung the bat as hard as you could and hit him right on the back of the head. The man fell to the ground, but you didn't even check to see if you'd knocked him out before you squeaked and dropped the bat, bolting out of the room. You only had time to grab your keys as you flew by your kitchen counter, wanting to get out as quickly as possible.

In hindsight, you probably should have called the police – and you  _definitely_  shouldn't have been driving in your condition – but you weren't thinking clearly; All you were thinking about in that moment was getting to NCIS and finding Ashton.

~

When you arrived 20 minutes later, the only intelligible words you could manage to tell the person at the gate when he asked you what was wrong were ' _Need Ashton_ '. He obviously immediately let you through and you quickly went to your parking spot before getting out of the car, not stopping running until the moment you were in the elevator to go to the third floor.

When the doors opened, you saw Luke sitting at his desk with the other three men looking at the monitor beside him. But he suddenly stopped in the middle of his sentence and happened to look over the top of his computer when he saw someone rushing over out of his peripheral vision.

" _Y/N_?" the blonde furrowed his eyebrows, surprised to see you there.

"I  _thought_  I told you to stay away from work today," Ashton said before turning to look at you, only to become confused when he did. " _That's_  where my sweatshirt went!" he exclaimed, his eyes then going to your face. "Why are you crying?" he asked, rushing over to you and putting his hands on your face. Luke, Calum, and Michael came over as well to make sure you were okay.

Your chest was visibly rising and falling – which would have made sense since you'd been running since you were in the parking lot – but that wasn't the reason. You couldn't catch your breath and the tears were still falling, making Michael's eyes widen.

"She's having a panic attack," he said, grabbing his chair and rolling it out to you. He pulled you away from Ashton to have you sit down, kneeling down so you didn't have to strain your neck to look up at him as he spoke. "I want you to do what I do, okay?" he said, making you nod.

Michael took your hand and put it on his chest so you could feel the steady beating of his heart. He started breathing in and out slowly, motioning for you to do the same. You copied every breath, finally feeling relief after a couple minutes.

"Better?" he asked. You nodded again, wrapping your arms around his neck and hugging him.

Ashton didn't even have the chance to ask you why you were having a panic attack before he got the answer.

"S-S-Someone broke i-into m-my apart-apartment," you sniffled, wiping the remaining tears off of your face.

" _Who_?" Ashton asked.

"Th-The guy besi-beside the bo-body," you said, making the men's eyes widen. They all grabbed their gear and started heading for the elevator, when you made a small noise of detest.

Ashton looked back at you and motioned for the other to go ahead, telling them he would meet them outside. He came back, kneeling down in front of you with his hands holding your thighs firmly.

"You're  _safe_  here, baby girl," he reminded you, "Nothing's going to happen to you."

"But  _they're_  already going," you mumbled, referring to his team, "Why do  _you_  need to go  _too_?"

"You don't want to be alone," Ashton nodded understandingly.

"Would  _you_?"

Ashton smiled slightly, squeezing your skin before standing up. He held his hand out to you, pulling you up from the chair and returning it to Michael's desk.

"Go downstairs," he told you, "Chris will keep you company."

"Ash, the  _last_  thing I want right now is to be surrounded by dead bodies," you sighed.

"Just go," he kissed your forehead, "I'll have him send you back up as soon as we get back." He pressed another kiss to your lips, making you sigh again as he pulled away.

He grabbed his backpack and jogged to the elevator, pulling his phone out to make a call. You watched the doors open and Ashton go in, blowing you a kiss just before they shut.

You sighed for a third time before giving in and heading to the elevator near the stairs, hitting the button for the basement. You walked into autopsy as Christian was coming out of the door.

"Oh, Y/N, you're already here," he said, "Ashton called and told me what happened." You barely smiled – you should have  _known_  he'd make sure Christian already knew. He smiled slightly as well, "You just can't catch a  _break_  lately, can you?" You finally laughed as he hugged you, hugging him back. You looked behind him, noticing the body on the table.

"That Captain Steiner?" you asked softly. Christian looked over his shoulder and then back to you.

"Let's not worry about that," he shook his head. He tried to usher you out, but you spun around to get past him, walking over to it. "Y/N, I don't think Ashton would-"

"Chris, if Ashton didn't want me asking questions, he shouldn't have sent me  _down here_ ," you replied. Christian simply nodded.

"Yes, that's Captain Jeffrey Steiner," he told you, "Head of the USS Arizona." You weren't paying too much attention to the second part, your eyes trained on the left hand.

"Where's his wedding ring?" you asked.

" _Wedding ring_?" he furrowed his eyebrows, "He wasn't  _wearing_  one."

"Are you  _sure_?" you looked back at him.

"Well, if he  _was_  wearing one, he didn't have it when  _I_  got to him. Why do you ask?"

"My neighbor Jessica..." you shook your head, "She lives across the hall from me. I'm pretty sure her last name is Steiner. And I've been racking my brain since the  _moment_  I got an ID on him... I  _swear_  I've seen him coming from her apartment before. He was always wearing a wedding ring."

"Maybe she's his sister."

"But he  _lives there_ ," you shook your head, "Why would he live with his  _sister_  if he was  _married_."

"Marital problems?" Christian suggested.

"Maybe..." you trailed off, "But not what you're thinking."

"What are you thinking?"

"Jessica's talked about a Jeffrey before," you told him, "I'm pretty sure she referred to him as her husband. Every time I saw him, he had a wedding ring on his finger – except right  _now_."

"So you're saying that he was coming back from somewhere he  _wouldn't_  be wearing his ring for the night he was  _killed_?" he asked.

"I'm saying... What if she  _knew_? What if she found out he was cheating on her?"

"So  _she_  killed him?"

" _No_ ," you shook your head again with a small sigh, "Jeffrey was twice her size; There was  _no way_  she could have done it."

"Unless..."

"She  _hired_  someone to do it  _for her_!" you exclaimed, "The guy I saw hiding in the bushes – he works at this towing company downtown – Jessica has a  _brother_  that works there! There's no way that guy could have known which apartment I live in unless someone  _told him_!"

"She got her  _brother_  to kill her husband?" Christian furrowed his eyebrows, "And then had him try to go after  _you_  when you got too close?" Your eyes widened and you ran to his desk, dialing Ashton's cell number and hitting the speaker button.

"Special Agent Irwin," Ashton answered after the second ring.

" _It's her brother_!" you all but shouted.

" _Y/N_? Who are you talking about?"

"Captain Steiner's wife!"

"Chris, did you-"

"Well, what was I  _supposed_  to do?!" he said defensively, " _You're_  the one who sent her down here!"

"I didn't mean-"

"Do you want a lead or  _not_ , Ashton?!" you interrupted.

"Yes, Y/N," he nodded, "Yes, give us a lead."

"Okay," you took a deep breath, "Captain Steiner and his wife Jessica have lived across the hall from me for as long as I've lived in that building."

"Wait, he's  _married_?" you heard Michael ask, letting you know you were on speaker.

"Hush, Clifford, I'm getting to that. Anyway, he'd been leaving his apartment more frequently and when I saw him leave the building a couple times before, he would be messing with his ring – I think he was taking it  _off_! Jessica must have found out about it and-"

"So his  _wife_  killed him?" Calum interjected.

"Well, I'm  _getting_  to that part but if you keep interrupting me-"

"Y/N, just keep talking," Ashton said.

"The guy with the towing company's hat on – the one I saw in the bushes – he's Jessica's older brother. She had to have found out her husband was cheating on her and then got her brother to kill him. When he realized I'd seen something, he told her and she got him into the building so he could get into my apartment. He was probably going to hide out until I got home."

"But she didn't know you didn't come into work today," Luke said, "So you were able to get away from him."

"What's his name?" Ashton asked you.

"Shawn," you replied, "Shawn Ahler. I think Jessica said he's a truck driver for the company. He probably won't be there though; He has to assume you're looking for him now since I got away from him."

"Thank you, Y/N," your boyfriend said, "Call me if you think of anything else."

"Uh-huh," you nodded even though he couldn't see you, "Be careful."

~

**Ashton's POV; 45 minutes later**

After unsuccessfully locating Shawn Ahler, the agents made their way back to the NCIS building to regroup and see if they could find him. However, the guard at the gate stopped them.

"Can't come in yet, guys," Andre said, "Sorry."

"What's going on?" Calum asked.

"Building's on lockdown."

" _Why_?" Michael furrowed his eyebrows.

"I don't know," he shrugged, "I was just told not to let anyone in until the area is secure."

"Do you know how much longer it will be?" Ashton asked.

"Could be a  _while_. Lockdown was only initiated a couple minutes ago."

"What is  _happening_  in there?" Luke mumbled.

Just then, Ashton's phone went off, letting him know he had a text. It was a simple one – sent from Christian's cell phone.

_He's here_

And Ashton's heart  _immediately_  dropped. He shoved his phone back into his pocket, got out of the car, pulled out his gun, and bolted toward the building.

" _Irwin_!" Andre shouted, " _You can't_ -" He cut himself off, knowing Ashton wouldn't have listened to him anyway. The three other men looked at each other as if they were wondering if they should follow him. The man sighed, "You're gonna go in there with him, aren't you?" The agents looked at him and nodded before getting out and running as fast as they could, pulling their guns out of their holsters as well, having no idea what they were looking for when they got inside. "Just make sure someone comes back to move this  _car_  later!" he shouted after them.

Ashton carefully went around every corner of the office, his gun ready to fire at any moment. He took the stairs down to autopsy, finding Christian in the room with the doors locked. He knocked, making Christian jump, his head snapping up to find Ashton at the door.

"Where is she?" he breathed out the moment it opened.

"I don't know," he shook his head frantically, "She was leaving the room and then all of a sudden, she was hitting the emergency lockdown button and yelling for me to tell you ' _He's here_ ' as she ran down the hall."

And that was when the men heard an agonizing yell followed by a gunshot in the direction of your lab.

**Your POV; 60 seconds earlier**

Your only luck in this situation was that Shawn didn't have a gun – he had a knife – which meant he would need to get  _close_  to you in order to use it. And you weren't about to  _give him_  that chance.

Your lab was on the completely opposite side of the building as autopsy, but it was luckily on the same floor. You knew it was only a matter of time before Shawn caught up to you, so you did what you hoped you would never have to do.

You heard Shawn closing in on you as you raced around the last corner, the door to your lab in sight. You went into a dead sprint, running faster than you'd ever run in your  _entire life_  – even more so than the  _first_  time you'd run from Shawn.

You tried to shut the door behind you, but you couldn't do it in time. And even though he wasn't close enough to actually stab you – or  _whatever_  he was planning on doing with the knife when he caught you – Shawn managed to reach out and put a pretty decent-sized gash in the middle of your upper left arm. You let out a sharp scream, holding your arm to keep it from bleeding as little as possible, but you  _still_  kept going, knowing you were  _literally_  fighting for your life at this point.

You made it through the main and secondary labs until you ended up in the ballistics lab and that was when you collapsed. But just before Shawn reached you, you grabbed a gun from an evidence box you  _knew_  still had bullets in it, loaded it, flipped onto your back, and squeezed the trigger. The knife fell onto the floor as well as Shawn while you just released the gun and grabbed your arm again, crying out in pain.

" _Y/N_!" you heard Ashton yell as he rounded the corner into your lab – you'd never heard his voice more panicked than it was in that moment.

His eyes were wide as he came into the room, kicking the knife away from Shawn's hand –  _just in case_. He reached down to check for a pulse, unable to find one. He quickly holstered his weapon and ran over to you.

"Baby girl," he said, dropping to the floor to move your hair off of your face, "Are you alright?"

"I  _told you_  not to leave!" you sobbed, squeezing your arm, "They would have been fine  _without you_!" Ashton's eyes widened at seeing the blood pooling around your arm, knowing you'd gotten hurt.

"I know, princess," he choked, "I'm sorry." He then got up on his knees and picked you up bridal style, taking you back to autopsy so Christian could look at your wound.

~

**30 minutes later**

"Hey, Y/N," Luke said softly as he entered the autopsy room, "How are you doing?" Ashton and Christian looked over to find the three members of Ashton's team coming in.

Ashton was sitting on one of the tables with you on his lap, your legs around his waist and your head on his shoulder as Christian was working on your arm. Your eyes were closed as Ashton ran his fingers up and down your spine, but the men knew you weren't asleep – you were just still trying to calm down. Even then, Christian answered for you.

"She'll be fine," he informed them, finished wrapping up the wound, "She wasn't cut deep enough for surgery – she just needs to let this arm rest easy for a few weeks." They all nodded.

"Well, FBI is almost finished in her lab, so they should be gone within the next half an hour," Calum said.

"Thank you," Ashton muttered. They turned around to leave, but not before Michael spoke up.

"Oh, Boss," he said, "Jessica Steiner is waiting in interrogation. Just let us know when you're ready to talk to her." Ashton nodded and Michael jogged to the elevator before the doors closed.

It was quiet for a moment, the only sounds being Christian moving around.

"How are you on pain, Y/N?" he asked. You held up five fingers and then three, telling him you were at an eight. "I'll go get you something for it then," he nodded, putting all of his stuff away and leaving the room as quiet as the bodies that came into it. You could hear Ashton swallow thickly, making you finally open your eyes and tilt your head on his shoulder to look at him.

"I'm sorry, princess," he choked out, finally letting his emotions take over. You reached up with your good arm, wiping the tears off of his cheeks with the pads of your fingers.

"It wasn't your fault, Ash," you murmured, stroking his cheekbone.

"But you were  _right_ ," he shook his head, "All  _four_  of us didn't need to leave – I should have stayed here with you. This wouldn't have  _happened_  if I had just  _listened_  to you. You were scared and instead of stepping up and being  _your boyfriend_ , I... I chose  _my job_  over  _you_... And maybe this means we should-"

"Don't you  _dare_  try breaking up with me," you said firmly, sitting up so you could look at him properly. There were more tears pooling in the corners of his eyes as he shook his head.

"Y/N,  _I chose my job over you_!" he repeated, "You  _can't_  tell me you're not  _upset_  about that!"

"So what if I  _am_ , Ashton?!" you exclaimed, "You think  _one_  shitty decision outweighs everything  _else_?! Don't you think that if I blamed you, I'd be on the other side of the room right now refusing to even  _look_  at you?!" Ashton was silent, his heart aching when he saw tears in your own eyes. "If you're really gonna leave, I know I can't stop you," you choked, "But you can't do it until  _after_  you put Jeffrey's wife away for murder.  _For me_." Your bottom lip trembled and you did absolutely nothing to stop the tears from falling freely as you climbed off of Ashton's lap to stand between his legs. "And please just don't forget that I love you more than  _anything_ , Ashton," you said as confidently as you could, "No matter  _what_  consequences your decisions have on me, I'll  _always_  love you more than anything."

You then walked away from him and toward the door, leaving the room without even looking back at him – but knowing his eyes were on you the entire time.

~

**Ashton's POV; One hour later**

After spending a good amount of time alone in his office, Ashton had finally recomposed himself enough to conduct Jessica's interrogation. He informed his team that he was ready and they said they'd meet him in the observation room.

They did exactly that, but Ashton didn't say a word as he took the folder from Calum's hand and went back out of the room. The three men looked at each other in confusion before turning toward the window as Ashton entered the interrogation room.

" _Finally_ ," Jessica rolled her eyes, "Do you know how long I've been  _waiting_  in here?"

"About an hour," Ashton said monotonously as he sat down across from her, making it incredibly obvious to her that he didn't care, "I had more important things to do."

"What could  _possibly_  be more impor-"

Ashton cut her off by opening the folder in front of him and taking out the photos of the FBI's crime scene – the ones of Shawn in your lab – and laid them down in front of her. Her eyes instantly widened as she slapped her hand over her mouth.

" _Shawn_..." she whispered to herself before looking back up at the agent across from her, "What happened to him?"

"Do you know how many people I see sitting across from me every month, Mrs. Steiner?" Ashton returned. Jessica cocked an eyebrow, not sure why that was  _relevant_. "Hundreds," he answered his own question, "I see  _hundreds_  of victims, witnesses, and suspects every month, and that was  _the_  single fakest response I have  _ever_  heard."

" _Excuse me_ , but I-"

"Would you care to explain to me why your brother tried to  _murder_  my forensic scientist today?"

"Why would  _I_  know anything about that?"

"Oh, I just assumed you did because we found your fingerprints on the handle of the knife he used as well," he shook his head. Jessica froze for a moment before regaining her composure.

"Shawn borrows my stuff all the time," she said, "I'm not possibly going to notice something like a  _kitchen knife_  being missing."

"Then I'm assuming you  _also_  have no idea that your brother used that same knife to kill your husband three days ago?"

" _Shawn_  murdered my husband?" she asked softly, clearly trying to maintain innocence.

"Only because you asked him to," he stated.

"I'm sorry?"

"You knew your husband was cheating on you," Ashton replied, clearly tired of playing around, "You knew that when he  _said_  he was called into work at midnight almost every weekend, he was really meeting another woman; You could smell the perfume on him when he came home. But you didn't want to  _believe it_ , did you? You didn't want to believe that your husband would ever leave you for someone else – so you got rid of him before he  _could_. But you knew couldn't do it  _by yourself_  – you knew you didn't stand a  _chance_  at taking out someone twice your size, so you convinced your  _brother_  to do it for you. You know what your mistake was though?" he said. Jessica glared at him as he went on, "You live across from a forensic scientist who notices  _every little thing_. Is that why you tried to have her killed too? Because your brother told you someone saw him and you realized it was her, so you told him to take her out too because you knew what she does for a living? You knew she was gonna figure it out  _eventually_  – she'd seen Captain Steiner enough times to know he was your husband. So you gave your brother one more job: break into Y/N's apartment to hide out until she got home. The problem with that was she was already  _there_  – she wasn't supposed to come into work today. She heard him pick the lock and sneak in while she was in her bedroom. Unfortunately for him, however, she's got a baseball bat from high school and quite an impressive arm. Must've  _hurt_ , huh? I certainly wouldn't have wanted to be your brother when  _she_  got to him." Jessica was silent for a moment before speaking again.

"I want my lawyer," she grumbled.

"That's a good idea," Ashton nodded, standing up, "I'll come back when they get here and then we'll keep talking." He gathered up his papers and made his way to the door before turning back to the woman sitting at the table. "By the way, if you ever get out of jail and so much as  _think about_  coming after my girlfriend again, you're going to  _wish_  the judge gave you the death penalty," he growled just before letting the door shut loudly behind him, leaving her alone once again.

~

**Your POV; Three hours later**

After gathering all of your things and putting them in your bag, you were ready to go home for the night. Luke had come down to your lab a couple hours ago to let you know that Jessica confessed to everything. And while that gave you  _some_  form of relief, you knew it was only a matter of time before Ashton came down to tell you he was breaking up with you.

You found yourself sitting at your desk – your bag sitting at your feet – as you just stared at the photos you had framed on the desktop. They were all of you and Ashton, of course – all of them silly poses and smiling faces – but all of them relaying the same thing: that you and Ashton were in love.

But none of those photos were more proof of that than the one where you were sitting on a park bench reading a book during your lunch break and Ashton was sitting beside you, looking at you with a small smile on his face. That was your favorite photo of the two of you – for obvious reasons – and you couldn't help but smile every time you looked at it.

The quietness of your lab, however, was interrupted by the elevator outside the door opening. You looked over and found Ashton coming into the room, his hands stuffed in the pockets of his coat. He had the same solemn look on his face that he did in the autopsy room earlier that day.

"You ready?" he asked, his voice barely even coming out.

You simply nodded slightly, turned off your desk lamp, and grabbed your bag, standing up. Ashton led you back to the elevator, neither of you saying a single word.

In fact, neither you nor Ashton spoke until he pulled into his driveway 20 minutes later.

"This isn't my place, Ashton," you whispered, finding it strange that he'd turned the engine off without having taken you home yet.

"Yeah, it  _is_ , Y/N," he replied, giving you as much volume as he could muster, "It's  _ours_ ; We live here  _together_  now."

"Ash-" you started before being cut off.

"I know I'm stubborn and I get too into my work and I take the job a little too seriously sometimes," he started rambling, finally looking at you, "But I love you and I love how carefree you are and I love that you love me even though we're nothing alike. And maybe I speak before I think most of the time because if I'd thought about it first, I  _never_  would have entertained the thought for even a  _second_  that I could  _possibly_  live my life without you in it. You keep me grounded and alert and  _sane_  in a job where I would otherwise lose my mind nearly every single day if I didn't know you were an elevator ride or phone call away and I... I'm not in any place to be begging you to forgive me for all the stupid things I've said or done that have caused you to get hurt in some way, but I  _am_... I... I'm  _nothing_  without you, baby girl, and I'll never be able to say I'm sorry enough for making you feel like I've ever  _really_  wanted to live a life where I'm  _not_  waking up and falling asleep with you."

You didn't know whether or not he was actually finished with his speech, but you didn't  _care_. You moved your good arm toward the back of his head, threading your fingers through his hair and pulling him to you.

The moment your lips met, you felt him let out a deep, relieved sigh. His arm slid around your back, carefully pulling you over the center console until you were straddling his lap. You couldn't do much with your right arm since it was starting to hurt again, so you simply pushed through the pain to wrap it around Ashton's neck and let it rest on his shoulders. His hands moved to your hips, firmly holding you in place – as if you were even  _able_  to go anywhere.

"I love you, princess," Ashton choked out when you pulled away for air. You barely smiled, letting your hand slide from the back of his head to his cheek so you could stroke his cheekbone.

"I love you too, Ashton," you whispered, leaning back in for another kiss.


	428. Teammates (Maxx Danziger)

" _Oh, boy_..." you heard one of the boys mumble to the others around him as you stormed into the locker room and headed toward the soccer coach's office – and truth be told, had you not been  _so_  pissed off, you probably would have  _smiled_  at the comment.

"Do you  _honestly_  think this is any way to treat your team?!" you all but shouted, making the Coach jump as you slammed his office door behind you.

"What are you talking about, young lady?" he asked, sitting up in his seat. He motioned toward the chair in front of his desk but you ignored it.

"At what point are you going to pull your head out of your ass  _long enough_  to start paying attention to the things you're doing to this team?" you spat back.

Coach Lee cocked an eyebrow at the language you were using with him. Any other time, you  _never_  would have said something like that to a  _teacher_  – but then again, this wasn't  _any other time_.

"I'm sorry?" he said. You knew it was rhetorical – that he didn't  _actually_  want you to explain your actions – but you did anyway.

" _Every single night_  after practice, I am bandaging every injury in the book all because  _you_  refuse to take the health and safety of your players  _seriously_ ," you replied, "And I am quite frankly  _sick and tired_  of waiting around wondering whether or not the next injury my boyfriend comes home with is going to be  _more serious_  than the  _last_."

"Now you listen here, young lady," Coach Lee said firmly as if he was trying to get you to back down, "Just because you don't understand the game-" Your response that time was to put your palms on the desktop and lean toward him.

"I have played soccer since I was 7-years-old and I understand the game  _perfectly_ ," you growled, not scared of him in the slightest, "But anyone with a  _brain_  knows  _damn well_  that it does  _not_  involve working your players to the point of passing out from  _exhaustion_  or being unable to  _walk_  the next day because they cannot  _physically_  move their legs anymore. I don't give a  _fuck_  what kind of  _scare tactics_  you try to pull on me, but I'm not going to stop until your  _sorry ass_  is out of a job and unable to  _ever_  find a new one."

You ended your rant by leaving before he had the chance to respond, knowing he was going to go to the Dean and tell him what you'd done, but you didn't care – all you cared about was making sure he never had the chance to treat any other soccer player the way he treats your boyfriend – or his teammates – again.

~

**Maxx's POV**

" _Dude_!" Dan exclaimed when he saw his best friend walking into the locker room a few minutes later.

"What's up?" he replied. His eyebrows furrowed slightly in confusion when he noticed all of his teammates gathered around his locker.

"Since when did your girlfriend become such a  _badass_?!" Cody asked, only heightening Maxx's confusion.

"What are you talking about?" he laughed nervously.

"She was just in here ripping Coach a new one!" Zach all but shouted, "It was the coolest thing I've ever  _seen_!"

"She told him to pull his head out of his ass and stop working us so hard!" Josh added, "She said she was tired of bandaging people up and wondering what injury you'd come home with next and then she said she was gonna make sure he got fired and  _oh my God_ , it was  _amazing_!" Maxx was silent for a moment, but there was a smile pulling at the corner of his mouth.

"Where is she?" he asked.

"We don't know," Cody shook his head, "After she left, Coach said he'd be right back, so he's probably talking to Dean Wheaton right now."

"But knowing him, he probably made sure  _Y/N_  went too," Dan shook his head.

Maxx's eyes immediately widened, not even saying anything before spinning around on his heels and running faster than he ever had before out of the locker room. His teammates didn't even hesitate in following him – they knew Maxx was going to do everything he could to keep Dean Wheaton from expelling you, and if the whole team was there, they knew they'd have a better shot at helping your case.

Upon coming up to the main office, the boys could hear Coach Lee telling Dean Wheaton exactly what you'd said. As Maxx listened, he couldn't help but feel grateful that he had someone like you in his life willing to  _literally_  risk being expelled in the hopes of keeping him from getting hurt even  _one more_  time.

There was a pause in the Dean's office, but when he finally spoke, the boys could hear how taken aback he was.

"Did you  _actually_  say that?" Dean Wheaton asked you.

"Yes, I did," you replied without hesitation.

" _Why_?"

"Because it's  _true_." The boys snorted softly, not wanting anyone to know they were there quite yet.

"Okay..." the Dean said slowly, "How about we do this then: Coach, why don't you go get your team and we'll settle it right now? I think I'd like to hear  _their_  side of the story as well."

"I don't think that's nece-" Coach Lee started before he was cut off.

"We're already here, Mr. Wheaton," Maxx announced as he and his teammates piled into the room. He noticed a smile begin pulling at the corner of your mouth, knowing that no matter what happened in that office from that point on, the team was going to fight right alongside you.

"Good afternoon, boys," Dean Wheaton smiled politely, taking note of how Coach Lee was now glaring at all of them, "We'll get right into it since I'm sure you've all been eavesdropping-" You couldn't help but giggle under your breath – those boys couldn't keep their noses out of a conversation that wasn't with them if their lives depended on it. "-Have any of you ever received any sort of injury  _directly_  due to Coach Lee?" he asked.

The boys kicked off their shoes and rolled down their socks, revealing their swollen ankles and bruised knees as well as showing him their cut up forearms and lifting their shirts to show him the bruising on their ribs.

Maxx watched your expression fall, your eyes filling up with tears. Sure, you knew exactly what kind of damage was being done to their bodies, but that didn't mean it was any  _easier_  to see. He put his hand on the back of your neck so he could play with your hair, seeing you look up at him and relax under his touch.

Dean Wheaton's eyes were as wide as you'd ever seen them as he looked at the team, "The Coach directly caused  _that_?"

"Yes, sir," the boys replied simultaneously.

" _How_?"

"He says it will make us better – a lot stronger," Austin shook his head, "But it works our muscles  _too hard_  sometimes."

"We try to tell him," David chimed in, "It's always ignored."

" _If we're not in pain, we're not working hard enough_ ," Dan quoted his coach.

"I've bandaged up more injuries than I  _ever_  thought I'd have to," you said softly, making everyone look at you, "But I do it because I  _care_  about them – because I want to help them in  _any_  way I can. And if I can't help them by getting Coach Lee to stop, then I can help them by fixing the bruises and cuts and swollen ankles and whatever else may happen to them on the field."

"I know for a  _fact_  that Y/N is the only reason I haven't  _quit_ ," Cody stated confidently, making you look at him, "I love the game and I love being a part of this team, but I  _don't_  love the toll it takes on my body. She just makes it a little more bearable." The others immediately agreed and a small smile pulled at the corners of your mouth, causing them all to smile back at you widely.

Dean Wheaton didn't even take a moment to think about his decision before speaking.

"Coach, I think it's pretty obvious where this is going to go now," he turned to the man standing up off to the side, "Your two weeks will be put in tomorrow – you have that time to pack up your belongings from your office and leave. However, during that time, you will not be allowed in the locker room while the team is there and you will not be attending any practices or future games. Are we understood?" Coach Lee didn't even respond, angrily leaving the office and storming out of the building.

It was silent for a moment before he continued.

"Maxx," Dean Wheaton said, "You realize being team captain means you're the acting coach until we can hire a replacement for Coach Lee, correct?"

"Yes, sir," he grinned.

"And Y/N-" He turned to you. "-I don't want you bandaging any more players."

"But what if they get hurt?!" you squeaked. The boys smiled slightly at how much you cared, and Maxx spoke up before the Dean could respond.

"They're not gonna get hurt," he assured Dean Wheaton. The Dean smiled, shaking his head.

"Why don't you all go home?" he said, "No more practices until you're all back to feeling 100%."

"Yes, sir," the team beamed, beginning to head out of the room. Maxx grabbed your hand and pulled you out of your chair, lifting it up and kissing the back of it as he walked out with you.

The moment you were out of the main office and in the hallway, you squealed loudly when the boys immediately pulled you into a group hug.

"You're our  _hero_ , Y/N," Zach sighed dramatically as the team released you – but Maxx's arms were obviously still around your waist.

"I'm starting to think we should have a jersey made for  _you_  since you're basically on the team as a nurse anyway," Dan laughed.

"How am I supposed to wear  _Maxx's_  jersey if I've got my  _own_?" you replied without hesitation, catching your boyfriend blush out of the corner of your eye just before he pressed a sloppy kiss to your cheek.

~

_inspiration: http://sgfgluke.tumblr.com/post/150896065548/soccercalum_


	429. Ways to Say I Love You (Calum Hood)

> **_"Take my seat."_ **

It wasn't like you  _planned_  on buying so many groceries; you just didn't expect them to be so heavy. Usually, you did shopping like this in trips – knowing you had to take the bus to and from the store. But you'd been allowing yourself to slack off for a couple weeks, subsequently leading you to this moment.

You'd finished your shopping and gotten onto the bus, sighing to yourself when you noticed there were no seats open.

"I'll just wait for the next one, Kev," you said softly.

"Next bus won't come by for another hour and a half, Y/N," the bus driver reminded you.

You paused for a moment – you didn't  _really_  want to wait, but you honestly didn't think you could stand on a  _moving bus_  for the next 20 minutes without dropping everything and you  _obviously_  couldn't walk what would be a 30-minute bus ride. But before you could shrug and get back off, someone spoke up.

" **You can take my seat** ," one of the men in first couple rows said, standing up so you knew who was talking.

"You don't have to-"

"The longer we stand here and bicker, the more people are going to be annoyed," he said with a smile.

Your cheeks immediately turned red in embarrassment, not even glancing at the people around. You quickly swiped your metro card and shyly approached the man.

"Thanks," you whispered, not noticing his smile as you sat down where he'd previously been. You set your bags on your lap, letting out a soft sigh of relief at knowing you could give your arms a 30-minute break.

"So do you always buy the whole store before you get on the bus?" the man who'd given you his seat asked. You looked up at him, finding a grin on his face. You just rolled your eyes.

"I didn't plan on getting so much," you informed him.

"I can see that," he chuckled as he nodded, "I think you would have been better prepared." You rolled your eyes again, but you couldn't help but smile as you glanced out the window. "I'm Calum," you heard beside you, making you look up at the man who had given you his seat.

"Huh?" you asked, having not actually heard what he said.

"That's my name," he smiled, "Calum."

"Y/N," you replied softly in return.

"Y/N," you heard Calum mumble to himself, still wearing the same smile he had been since the moment he started talking to you.

You blushed lightly at the sound of it and things between you two were silent for the next 25 minutes.

~

When Kevin pulled up to your bus stop, you were surprised to find Calum getting off at the same time. He'd gotten off the bus first, not even realizing you were as well until he heard your bags moving around as you stepped onto the sidewalk. He turned his head before his entire body followed suit and he was facing you.

"You don't need help getting those to your place, do you?" he asked.

"You could be an axe murderer," you mentioned, setting the bags down to give yourself a break before you had to pick them up again.

"Some axe murderer  _I_   _am_  then," he scoffed, "I forgot my axe at  _home_  this morning." You couldn't help but laugh loudly, making him grin as he went on, "Seriously though; Do you need help?"

"Nah," you told him, "I've been carrying them for this long – couple more minutes won't kill me." 

"Are you s-"

"Calum," you laughed lightly, not noticing the way his breathing hitched, "I'll be fine; I promise."

"Well... You should at least take my number then..." he trailed off, "You know... In case you change your mind or you need help in the future or..."

You looked at him for a moment, then pulled out your phone and held it out to him. Calum stared at you, seemingly in surprise, before taking it and putting his number in as well as texting himself so he had your number as well.

As he handed it back to you, you spoke again.

"Does taking it mean it's  _only_  available for talking to you about groceries?" you asked bravely. He raised his hand to rub the back of his neck shyly.

"Not if you don't  _want it_  to be," he said.

"Good to know," you tried hiding your grin, "I'll see you around, Calum."

"See you, Y/N," he said softly, watching you pick up your bags again and walk in the opposite direction for a moment before heading back home himself.

~

> **_"Take my jacket. It's cold outside."_ **

**Two months later**

"Hey, Y/N," you heard a voice behind you. You turned your head, your gaze following Calum as he stopped beside you.

"Hey, Calum," you smiled slightly, shivering a bit.

"Cold?" he asked despite clearly already having the answer, "Why didn't you wear a coat?"

"Didn't expect the bus to be late," you murmured, hearing him chuckle softly.

"Here," he said, " **Take my jacket**  then."

"Calum, I-" you started before he cut you off, already laying the jacket on your shoulders. He had a silly smile on his face, making you grin lightly as well. "Thanks," you whispered, pulling on the fabric a bit so it sit more comfortably on you.

You and Calum had grown incredibly close within the last couple months, always texting each other and talking on the phone when you weren't at work or already together on the bus. It seemed like there was an unspoken rule between the other bus riders because, no matter  _what_  time of day it was or  _how full_  the bus was, there was  _always_  an unoccupied seat for you and Calum to sit together. You couldn't pinpoint  _exactly_  what drew you to each other – all you knew was that you were grateful for  _whatever_  it was.

Calum was one of – if not  _the_  – sweetest person you'd ever met. Whether it be letting you take the window seat because he knew you preferred it or helping you carry your groceries even when it was only  _one bag_ , it seemed like that boy couldn't relax until he  _knew_  you were comfortable and content.

But you certainly weren't going to be caught complaining about it.

~

> **_"Come here. Let me fix it."_ **

Another day on the bus on the way back from work, another moment spent with Calum. Of course, you didn't  _always_  speak to each other – especially in the afternoon because you were both exhausted after your long days – but you were still inseparable nonetheless.

Calum could usually be found with one earbud in as he listened to music on his phone but could still listen to the world around him, while you had your nose buried in whatever book you were working on finishing that week. This bus ride was no different – though, you couldn't help but smile softly when you looked over at Calum at one point and found him in a lounging position, his head resting back on the seat while his eyes were closed. But his relaxed state didn't remain that way for the entire ride.

" _Fuck_!" you hissed softly when the paper sliced your finger as you were turning the page. Calum's eyes snapped open and his head shot up as you dropped your book onto your lap, finding you gripping your fingertip tightly.

"What happened?" he asked, quickly sitting upright, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Cal," you murmured, "It's just a paper cut."

"Gimme your hand," he said, " **Let me fix it**."

Calum grabbed your hand, pulling it to him. He started peppering kisses all over your finger, making you giggle. You tried taking your hand back, but he wouldn't let you have it, only making you laugh louder. The people around you looked over at the commotion but simply smiled to themselves before going about their own business.

" _Calum_!" you squeaked between laughs, "Cal, I'm  _fine_! Give me my hand back!" Calum finally released your hand, grinning at you.

"But it helped, didn't it?" he asked. You couldn't help but smile at the silly look on his face.

"You're such a  _weirdo_ ," you giggled, pushing his shoulder lightly.

He watched you pick up your book again, turn back to the page you were on, and go back to reading – his heart skipping a beat when he felt you reposition yourself so your arm was leaning on his.

~

> **_"I thought I lost you."_ **

**Five months later**

After a few months, Calum had told you that he finally fixed his car so he wouldn't have to take the bus around anymore. He offered time and time again to give you rides, but you assured him that it was okay – you actually  _enjoyed_  taking the bus – though, you  _were_  a bit sad to hear that you wouldn't see him as often anymore despite spending almost every weekend at each other's places.

But if he hadn't been insisting to give you rides  _before_ , he  _definitely_  would have after you ended up in the hospital to get stitches.

It wasn't anything to worry about, honestly – just a minor accident. You were patiently waiting for the bus to take you home from work, sitting in your seat and minding your own business, when you suddenly heard tires screeching and metal hitting metal. A tire on a semi driving alongside the bus had blown out, causing the driver to lose control and hit the side of the bus you weren't even on.

But you still got hurt.

The jolt from the crash caused your face to collide with the edge of the window beside you. You yelped in surprise, not realizing how bad it actually was until your head shot up to check on the other passengers.

"Is everyone okay?" Kevin asked, earning himself nods from the few people left onboard.

The girl sitting in the seat in front of you glanced around as well, her eyes finally landing on your cheek. Her eyes widened as she stood up and put her knee on the seat to lean over to you.

"Are you okay?" she asked frantically.

Kevin looked over and noticed the cut along your cheekbone, immediately getting on the radio and letting dispatch know about both the accident and the fact that they would  _definitely_  be needing an ambulance.

"I'm fine," you said reassuringly, not sure why she looked so terrified.

Kevin put the bus in park on the shoulder with his hazard lights on before unbuckling his seat belt and grabbing the first aid kit behind his seat. He then came over and sat beside you, making your heart drop.

"Did someone get hurt?" you asked.

"Just don't worry," he shook his head, grabbing a couple alcohol wipes, "An ambulance is on its way."

" _Why_? For  _who_?"

" _You_."

"But I'm  _fine_!" you insisted.

"Y/N," he said, opening the pack of wipes, "Have you ever needed stitches before?"

"Once when I was little," you furrowed your eyebrows, "But I don't really remember it."

Without another word, Kevin pressed the wipe to your cheek and you yelped loudly.

" _Ow_!" you nearly shouted, your hand shooting up to your face.

" _No, no, no_!" he exclaimed, grabbing your wrist before you could touch anything, "I know it hurts, but I have to clean it. Did you hit something when the semi hit us?"

"The window..." you nodded slowly, still not sure why he was asking.

You hissed again when he continued wiping. As he took his hand back, you saw the red stains on the wipes and instantly knew you actually  _had_  gotten hurt in the accident.

You started hearing sirens and Kevin sighed in relief. He knew he wasn't trained in medical needs as serious as this, so he was relieved to know that the ambulance had finally arrived for you.

He put away his first aid kit, coming back over to you and taking your hand, helping you out of the bus. He briefly explained what happened and that you were in shock and couldn't feel anything before letting the paramedics help you into the back of the ambulance so they could take you to the hospital.

~

You had been in the emergency room for all of 15 minutes before you heard footsteps running down the hallway toward your room. Calum appeared in the doorway, his shoes squeaking on the linoleum floor as he came to an abrupt stop. It didn't surprise you that Calum was there – he  _was_  your emergency contact, after all – but what  _did_  surprise you was the look of complete horror on his face that disappeared the  _moment_  he saw you.

You were sitting up on the hospital bed as the doctor was finishing up your stitches. He looked over at the door for a brief moment before turning back to you.

"You must be Calum," he said.

"Yeah," he breathed, coming over to the bed and instantly taking your hand, "What happened?"

"A semi's tire blew out and ran into the bus she was on," the doctor answered for you. Calum looked up at him and he shook his head. "I'm sorry," he chuckled lightly, "I know you were asking her, but it's easier to do this if she's not talking."

"Will she be okay? How long until the stitches come out?" Calum asked. The doctor laughed again when you rolled your eyes.

"She'll be fine," he said, "The stitches won't have to stay in for more than a week. She'll just have to come back sometime next week to get them removed." The doctor made a couple more stitches and then smiled. "You're all done, Y/N," he informed you, "Try not to sleep on your right side for the next week and I'll see you when you come back." You nodded and he walked out to get the nurse.

"How are you feeling?" Calum asked you the second the door closed behind the doctor.

"I'm fine, Cal," you assured him as he squeezed your hand.

"The woman who called me said you were in an accident but she wouldn't tell me how bad it was or anything. I was so worried;  **I thought I lost you** ," he said without taking a breath.

"I'm fine, Cal," you repeated softly, leaning forward and pressing a kiss to his cheek.

Calum breathed in deeply, putting his hand on the cheek that didn't have stitches. He pulled you back to him, kissing your forehead.

"I don't know what I'd do without you," he mumbled into your skin, making your heart skip a beat.

~

> **_"I love you."_ **

**Two weeks later**

You were back at Calum's place after he'd taken you to the hospital to get your stitches out. He wanted to take you out for ice cream, but you promised him you'd rather just stay in and watch Netflix like you did every Friday night – though, he  _did_ make a pit stop at Dairy Queen before taking you back to his apartment.

It wasn't until you were both finished with your ice cream and Netflix's ' _Are you still watching?_ ' prompt came up on the TV that Calum really  _spoke_  since leaving the hospital aside from ordering at the restaurant – and even then, it wasn't directed toward  _you_. Regardless, you were distracted by your phone, thinking Calum was going to look for something else to watch, when he decided he couldn't keep his racing thoughts to himself anymore.

"You know how, in movies, when the main character's love interest is in like, some horrible accident?" he asked you, making you furrow your eyebrows in confusion but you still didn't look at him.

"And they go to the hospital and wait for them to wake up from their coma so they can tell them they've been in love with them the whole time but were too afraid to say anything until they were faced with the idea of never being able to say it  _at all_?" you wondered, making him nod.

"I think your accident was my moment," he said softly.

Calum noticed your fingers stop moving and your chest start rising and falling a little faster. And it took you a moment, but you finally looked over at him.

He honestly looked like he was going to cry –  _exactly_  like he did the day the accident actually  _happened_. He opened and closed his mouth a couple times but no sound came out, almost as if he was afraid to speak again.

But when he finally  _did_ , your heart  _stopped_.

"Y/N..." he said slowly, swallowing the lump in his throat, "I think **I love you**... I... I think I'm in love with you..."

Calum noticed you swallow thickly as well, but he couldn't ignore the way your eyes flicked between his own and his lips for a brief moment. He was never incredibly brave when it came to girls – especially ones he  _liked_  – so it surprised him when he found himself starting to lean toward you. But what surprised him even  _more_  than that was you noticing him getting closer and closing the gap much  _sooner_  than he had expected.

He could  _feel_  his heart pounding in  _every inch_  of his body, wondering if you were experiencing the same thing – you  _were_ , of course. He knew  _very_  early into the friendship that he was going to develop feelings for you at  _some point_ , he just never imagined that they would be  _reciprocated_.

When you finally pulled away for air, neither of you said anything right away, still trying to process what just happened. You were the first to smile sheepishly, leaning back in your seat and looking at the television screen.

"Sorry..." you whispered, not sure what else to say since he had such a blank look on his face.

It was then that Calum snapped himself out of his trance, suddenly wrapping the arm closest to you around your back and pulling you toward him. You squeaked lightly as your own hands grasped the couch so you didn't fall before allowing him to take you, one of your legs moving over him so you were straddling his thighs. Calum put his hands on your hips and leaned up, your lips meeting his for another kiss.

He was the first to pull away that time – not because he was out of breath, but because he was starting to smile. The smile only widened when you finally came out of your state of shock, wrapping your arms around his neck in a futile attempt to steady yourself.

"M' _not_  sorry," he murmured, grinning again when you giggled.

"Cal," you said so quietly that he barely heard it.

"Hmm?" he hummed, closing his eyes in content when your fingers started playing the hair at the top of his neck.

" **I love you too** ," you admitted the secret you'd been keeping from him for a few months now. Calum briefly opened his eyes as he smiled at the shy expression on your face before letting his lips find yours again, both of you smiling into it.

~

_inspiration: http://p0ck3tf0x.tumblr.com/post/98502010026/one-hundred-ways-to-say-i-love-you_


	430. Broken Boy Meets Broken Girl (Luke Hemmings) - Part 1 *

**Warnings: Mentions of depression, attempted suicide**

~

The  _last_  place anyone expected Luke Hemmings to end up was a  _rehab center_. The band was in the middle of a tour when news broke that the singer was being admitted into a treatment facility as a result of depression and random spouts of rage. No one even realized anything was  _wrong_  until he lashed out at his bandmates, his tour manager ultimately deciding that the best thing at that point was to cancel the rest of the shows and send him home to get help.

He'd been there for a couple months now – attending group therapy every Tuesday as well as seeing the therapist one-on-one every Monday and Thursday. And that was how he met you.

You'd been there for longer than he had – finding yourself in rehab six months ago for what? Luke didn't know; All Luke knew was that you annoyed him beyond the point he thought his patience could  _go_.

You would sit quietly in the Tuesday evening group sessions, only really talking when someone asked you a direct question. When Jessa, everybody in the group's therapist, asked you how you were feeling, you would answer with the same response every single time: a small, barely even audible ' _I'm good_ '.

And it  _ticked_  Luke off to ends of the earth.

~

It was yet another Tuesday in the hellhole that was group therapy sessions. Everybody was already there by the time Luke sauntered into the room, making Jessa perk up in her chair.

"Everyone's here!" she smiled as he sat down in his usual chair across the circle from you, "Let's get started, shall we?"

She did her usual spiel – thanking everybody for coming and reminding them that they were free to get up and get snacks and drinks from the table off to the side as they pleased – before she got into the routine of asking how everyone was. She did this every week – picking person after person to ask about their feelings. Some people's answers depended on the day they'd had leading up to the meeting, but one person's answer always remained the same:  _yours_.

"How are you today, Y/N?" Jessa asked, looking to where you were sitting a couple people away from her.

"I'm good," you said softly, your eyes never leaving the toe of your shoe.

"Just good?"

"Just good," you barely nodded.

"Okay," she sighed – she never quite understood why you were so talkative in your one-on-one sessions with her and not in group ones – but she pressed on anyway. "How about you, Luke?" she asked the blonde across the circle.

"I'm good," he copied your response.

You didn't look at him, but he did notice your throat move slightly as you swallowed. You silently got up, walking toward the door.

"Where are you going, Y/N?" Jessa asked when she noticed you get up from your seat.

"Bathroom," you murmured, quickly turning the corner. Luke got up as well, causing Jessa to sigh again.

"Where are  _you_  going, Luke?"

" _Same_ ," he answered harshly, hearing her sigh a little louder that time but allowing him to leave the room anyway.

Luke walked out of the room and went in the direction you'd gone in. He caught a glimpse of you rounding the last corner, but you hadn't turned toward where the bathrooms were. He cocked an eyebrow as he followed you quietly, waiting until you were about to close a door behind you before running to it so he could catch it before you locked it.

He heard you squeak in surprise as he slipped through the opening right before the door closed. You tried to leave the room, but Luke pressed his palm to the wood and forced it shut.

"This doesn't  _look_  like the bathroom," he stated as you huffed.

"What was your  _first_  clue?" you grumbled, looking up at him and narrowing your eyes.

"What are you doing in here?" he ignored the question.

"I enjoy being  _alone_ ," you replied, "Is that a  _crime_?"

"You can only tell people you've gone to  _group therapy_  if you stay  _in the group_."

"Why would I  _tell people_  I've gone to group therapy?"

"Why  _not_?"

"You know what? Maybe it's just because you're famous and you'd rather tell people than have them find you coming out of this building, but  _some of us_  would rather try to  _forget_  we have to come here," you spat back.

"And why do  _you_  have to come here?" Luke returned, "Every single time Jessa asks you how you're doing, you say you're ' _good_ '. Well, if you're so fucking  _good_ , why do you have to  _be here_?"

"It's real  _rich_  that you think I'm gonna spill my guts to a person who openly  _mocks me_  every week instead of a  _therapist_ ," you let out a dry laugh, "That's  _pure gold_  right there; You should consider becoming a  _comedian_."

"' _Good_ ' people don't need  _therapy_ , Y/N," he reminded you, taking his hand off of the door, "So why don't you either start talking about how you're feeling or stop wasting everyone's time by showing up to these things with the same fucking ' _I'm good_ ' speech every fucking week?"

"Why don't  _you_  fuck off?" you suggested, shoving him away from the door so you could open it and leave.

You ran out into the hallway – Luke immediately following. You were too fast that time, however, because when he turned the corner you'd taken, you were nowhere to be found.

~

_inspiration: https://ever-since-kiwi.tumblr.com/post/162240885176/the-train-part-three_


	431. Broken Boy Meets Broken Girl (Luke Hemmings) - Part 2 *

**Warnings: Mentions of depression, attempted suicide**

~

**Five weeks later**

It wasn't like he didn't notice you hadn't been coming to group therapy ever since that day;  _Everyone_  noticed you hadn't been coming. They would all ask Jessa about you – wondering if you were okay – and she would always assure them that you were fine, though she wouldn't go into any more detail than that.

After one such question – the question that started every group session for the past five weeks – Jessa got up to get something she'd forgotten in her office, leaving the group to talk amongst themselves for a couple moments. Of course, the group only voiced their concerns to each other for you, hoping that you were okay even though Jessa constantly assured them you were – you still went to  _one-on-one_  therapy with her, after all.

"Yeah," one of the members sighed, "It's not  _like_  Y/N to not come – even though she doesn't really say much, I like having her here." Everyone in the group agreed.

"What's her  _deal_  anyway?" Luke grumbled.

"Who, Y/N? She's tried to off herself a few times," the girl beside him responded despite the fact that he was clearly talking to himself.

"' _Off herself_ '?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

"You know," she said, "Commit suicide. Kill herself. End her life."

" _I got it_ ," he murmured as Jessa quickly walked back into the room upon hearing the girl's chatter.

"Michelle," she said firmly, "What are you talking about?"

"He asked about Y/N," she shrugged.

"You know you're not supposed to be  _gossiping_  about other people –  _especially_  not other patients," she stated.

"Well, he  _asked_!" she said defensively.

" _I don't care_ ," Jessa raised her voice slightly, " _Y/N_  doesn't go around telling everyone about why  _you're_  here,  _does she_?" Michelle didn't answer – she simply rolled her eyes – and she turned to Luke.

Jessa didn't say anything – she just looked at him for a moment before returning to her chair – but he knew what she was thinking; He knew  _she knew_  he was the reason you hadn't been coming to group therapy.

And as much as it  _annoyed_   _him_  to admit he was wrong, he knew he had to  _fix it_.

~

**Saturday evening**

It wasn't until four days after finding out why you were in rehab that Luke went to your apartment. It was pretty difficult to find – Jessa obviously couldn't tell him your address, so he managed to convince someone in the group that had been to your place before to give it to him.

Luke stood in front of your door for a moment, just staring at the number. His mind was racing with things he wanted to say and how he wanted to say them. But he knew he'd eventually psych himself out if he didn't do it now, so he went for it.

He knocked on your door a few times, waiting for a moment before hearing you walking toward it. He could feel his heartbeat in his throat as you opened the door, the butterflies in his stomach going crazy at the surprised look on your face.

"Wha-What are you doing here?" you asked as confidently as you could but your voice was still small.

"I, uh..." Luke cleared his throat nervously, "I just wanted to come by and...apologize for what happened the other day... It was uncalled for of me to treat you like that..." You were silent for a few seconds, and Luke watched you gulp lightly.

"It's fine," you mumbled, shifting uncomfortably on your feet.

"It's not  _fine_ , Y/N," Luke sighed, "I shouldn't have pushed you and I... I'm... _sorry_...I said what I did." You were silent for a moment but when you  _did_  speak again, it apparently wasn't what Luke wanted to hear.

"It's fine," you whispered again, making him sigh harshly.

" _Stop_  saying it's fine!" he exclaimed, throwing his arms up, "God, this is like your ' _good_ ' feelings all over again! I'm  _trying_  to apologize here!"

You didn't know what it was – maybe it was the volume of his voice or the contortions of his face or the fact that you knew he just  _didn't like you_  – but the whole situation just pushed you over the edge.

Luke froze the moment he saw the first tear fall down your cheek, but he didn't see any more because you whipped around and hurried out of the room. He mentally kicked himself for doing exactly what he promised himself he wouldn't ever do again – what he was trying to learn to  _control_  in therapy – and quickly followed behind you.

Before you closed your bathroom door, he slipped inside and sandwiched himself between you and the piece of wood. When you realized you couldn't go anywhere, you made a move for your medicine cabinet and Luke's heart  _dropped_.

He immediately grabbed your bicep, bringing you back to him, and putting his other hand on your other shoulder. You fought back as hard as you could, but he kept a firm hold on you, not letting you anywhere  _near_  the cabinet.

He had you switch places with him – you now against the door and him pinning you there. More tears streamed down your face as you continued desperately trying to get away from him.

"Y/N," Luke finally spoke, "Y/N,  _stop_." You obviously didn't, making him huff lightly. "If it will make you feel better,  _hit me_ ," he told you, "But you are  _not_  getting to those pills."

And, well... He  _did_  give you permission...

You instantly began hitting his chest with your fists – not as  _hard_  as you could, but he knew there were still going to be bruises later. You continued hitting him until your arms  _physically_  ached and you just  _couldn't_  find the energy to do it anymore.

"Y/N," Luke murmured when you finally stopped hitting him. You didn't look up at him and he repeated your name, receiving no response once again. "Come on, Y/N – just  _look at me_ ," he begged.

When you didn't for a third time, he sighed sharply. He then released your shoulders, moving his hands to your cheeks and  _forcing you_  to face him, but your eyes were closed. And he  _honestly_  didn't think he could take much more of this.

"Y/N,  _please_ ," his voice broke, his thumbs wiping your tear-stained cheeks, and it was  _finally_  enough to get him what he wanted.

You opened your eyes to find Luke's pleading ones. He honestly looked like he  _himself_  was going to start crying, and your body finally relaxed at the vulnerability he was showing you.

Since the day Luke started group therapy, he was almost as closed-off as you were. Sure, he would honestly answer the ' _How are you feeling?_ ' questions, but he never went into much detail. He rarely displayed any emotion that wasn't annoyance toward you, so to see his watery eyes desperately seeking yours was understandably surprising.

" _I'm sorry_ ," he choked out, holding your face firmly, "I  _know_  I have a bad temper and I'm  _working on it_ , okay? I try not to snap at people, but you know just as well as I do that sometimes, the demons in our heads are hard to control."

"It's f-" you quickly cut yourself off, not wanting to make him mad again.

"I'm sorry," he repeated for the fourth time. He pulled you in, pressing a kiss to your forehead.

When he moved you back, he noticed how bloodshot your eyes were, as well as the fact that you were blinking  _hard_  in order to try and stay awake.

"You should take a nap," Luke said softly, already leading you to your couch so you didn't have the opportunity to object.

He helped you lie down before grabbing the blanket you kept on one of the armrests. He brought it back over to you, unfolding it and draping it on top of your body. You could barely keep your eyes open at this point, but when Luke went to walk away, your voice made his heart race.

"Luke," you mumbled, "Don't go." Luke turned to find a pout on your face, making him chuckle softly – but he obviously wasn't going to say no to it.

He came back to the couch, carefully lifting your head up so he could sit down. When he was comfortable, he let you put your head down on his lap.

He played with your hair for a while, watching your chest rise and fall with the steady breaths you were taking, before you finally fell asleep. He couldn't help but stare for a moment – this was the most peaceful he'd ever seen you – before he carefully reached over to grab your TV remote so he wasn't sitting in silence.

~

A couple hours later, Luke had just started watching another movie on Netflix when there was a knock on your front door. He obviously didn't want to wake you up, so he cautiously lifted your head off of his lap, making sure you at least  _looked_  comfortable before heading for the door.

" _Luke_?" Jessa furrowed her eyebrows the moment she saw him, "What are  _you_  doing here?" Luke opened and closed his mouth a couple times but he couldn't find the words, so she just went on. "Where's Y/N?" she asked. He nodded off to the side, stepping out of the way so she could enter your apartment. "She's  _sleeping_?" she asked with wide eyes.

"You seem  _surprised_ ," Luke mentioned lowly.

"Before you started coming to the group sessions, she told us she hasn't been sleeping..." Jessa admitted, "We've suggested everything to help her out – I've even tried  _medication_  – but nothing's ever  _worked_... How did you do it?"

"I don't know..." he answered honestly, "I just told her she needed to take a nap and had her lay down... Played with her hair for a little bit..." He noticed the smile pull at the corner of her mouth.

"So everything is okay between you now?" she asked.

"I hope so..." he said softly, not taking his eyes off of you.

"Well, that's good to hear," she nodded, "If you're still here when she wakes up, tell her I'll see her on Friday. Have a nice night, Luke." He thanked her before she left, telling him she'd see him on Thursday.

And he was left alone with you once again.

~

_inspiration: https://ever-since-kiwi.tumblr.com/post/162240885176/the-train-part-three_


	432. Broken Boy Meets Broken Girl (Luke Hemmings) - Part 3 *

**Warnings: Mentions of depression, attempted suicide**

~

**One week later**

Another Tuesday, another group therapy session.

Everyone was telling you how happy they were that you'd come back – hugging you tightly and saying how much they'd missed you. You smiled slightly – you never realized they cared  _that much_  about you – before walking to your chair and waiting for the session to start.

Luke, as per usual, was the last to arrive, taking his seat across from you. Despite the fact that the two of you were clearly on better terms, neither of you made the leap to sit beside each other just yet.

"Alright, guys," Jessa said, "How about we just jump right into it today, huh?"

She asked a few people about their days before reaching you.

"How are you feeling, Y/N?" she asked.

You caught a glimpse of Luke – his posture slouching as a sharp exhale left his nose. You knew what he  _expected_  you to say – he expected you to say what you  _always_  said – but you didn't say it that week. For the first time since you started group therapy seven months ago, you told everyone the  _truth_.

"I'm..." you trailed off, looking at your lap but noticing Luke slowly sit up when he realized you weren't going to say what he thought you were. "I'm...scared," you whispered.

Everyone was understandably surprised – they never knew you to ever say anything but ' _good_ ' – as Jessa raised her eyebrows, obviously surprised as well.

"What are you scared of?" she asked cautiously, not sure what was going on in your head.

"Everything... I guess..." you admitted, "But mostly... I'm probably scared of...n-not being  _good enough_..." You cleared your throat softly when your voice cracked, bringing your hand up to quickly wipe your eyes before any tears fell – of course, that didn't mean no one could tell you were crying.

"Who's making you feel that way?"

"Everybody, really..." you answered, your cheeks heating up slightly at knowing all eyes were on you, "My parents... My friends..." Your eyes briefly met Luke's concerned gaze as he was now sitting on the front edge of his seat. "Guys..." you finished the thought softly, looking back down at your fingers – and Luke knew you meant  _him_. "No one wants a  _broken_  girl," you continued, mainly to yourself at this point, "I'm too much of a burden and I can barely take  _care_  of myself... Guys don't  _want_  someone with as much baggage as I have... No one wants someone so closed-off that they can't even ask them how they  _are_  without getting an  _honest_  answer. Everybody romanticizes this idea of finding someone broken and wanting to be able to fix them, but when they realize they're  _too_  broken, they don't  _want them_  anymore; They throw them to the curb and move on to the next  _less broken_  person they can find... That's what my  _parents_  say, anyway..."

"Why do they say that?" Jessa asked softly, everyone feeling the change of energy in the room.

"Because it's  _true_ , I guess," you barely shrugged, "They wouldn't say it if it  _wasn't_... They... They  _love me_... They wouldn't  _lie_..." You swallowed again, desperately trying not to fall apart in front of everybody.

"Y/N," Jessa whispered, making you look up at her, "Do you need to go to the bathroom?" You knew what she was hinting at – she knew you were moments away from a breakdown and that you  _hated_  when other people saw you cry – so you gratefully got up and hastily left the room.

But you missed the way she looked at Luke when you were out the door, nodding for him to go with you.

The blonde immediately got up and followed you to the same room you'd gone in a few weeks before. He slipped through the door just before you closed it once again.

"N-No," you whimpered, "I-I-I don't... G-Go-"

"I don't care," Luke cut you off, putting his hand on the back of your head and bringing you into a tight hug. His other arm wrapped around your shoulders the moment your own wound around his waist. "I don't care," he whispered into your skin as he kissed the side of your head repeatedly while his fingers scratched at your scalp.

It took you a few minutes, but you'd finally calmed down to the point where your sobs weren't filling Luke's ears anymore. He wanted nothing more than to take your pain away – transfer your depression to his own brain somehow – but the best he could do at this point was just hold you and give you a shoulder to cry on.

When you pulled away to wipe your face, though, Luke beat you to it. He took his arms off of you, only to put his hands on your cheeks and wipe all your tears away. Your gaze was cast toward the necklace pendant in the middle of his chest, but you could feel his eyes on you.

"Y/N-" Luke said softly before you cut him off.

"Our depression is  _different_ , Luke," you whispered, still not looking at him, "You and I aren't dealing with the same demons, so please don't start trying to relate to me."

"I'm not trying to  _relate_  to you, Y/N," he promised, "I know I can't even  _imagine_  what's going on in your head... I was just gonna say... I know being in therapy can be rough or whatever with other people there, and... If you ever need someone to talk to when Jessa isn't available... I'm here for you... I'll  _always_  be here for you..."

"B-But you  _hate_ me," you sniffled, the confusion obvious on your face as your eyes finally met his again.

"I've never  _hated you_ ," he said softly, "Maybe I was annoyed by you at first, but that's only because you were always so  _smiley_  with everyone and you never talked about your feelings even though the  _rest of us_ did and... I told you: I'm working on controlling my anger... But even if I  _didn't_ , I wouldn't take it out on you the way everyone else does... I could  _never_  take it out on you the way they do..."

"No one  _takes anything out_  on me..."

"Y/N, people telling you that no one wants a girl with so much baggage  _is_  taking it out on you," Luke insisted, "People telling you that you're a burden and you're only good for being thrown to the curb  _is_  taking it out on you. You  _may_  be broken, but you're  _worth_  every bit of effort it'll take to try and fix it. You will never be  _completely_  repaired – you will have days where the depression comes back and hits you harder than it  _ever_  has before – but you're still here for a  _reason_. And I just think you should stick around to find out what that reason  _is_."

"Broken people can't change the world, Luke," you mumbled, "Especially not  _me_."

" _Plenty_  of broken people have changed the world, Y/N," he replied softly, "And you've already changed  _mine_." Your heart skipped a beat, your breath hitching when Luke rested his forehead on yours. "Saying this isn't going to make our depression disappear – nothing ever  _will_  – but being around you has given me this sense of  _peace_  that I haven't felt in  _years_. Being in the public eye has me going a million miles an hour 24/7, but I look at you and I feel... _calm_... I'm still depressed as hell with the temper of a swarm of  _wasps_ , but I feel calm." The analogy made you giggle through your tears, making Luke smile slightly as he wiped your cheeks again. "I know you and I are completely different and we probably don't seem like a good match and you might be a bit hesitant because of the way I've been acting around you," he breathed, "But  _please_  just take a chance on me..." You opened and closed your mouth a few times before finally finding the words you wanted.

"Y-You don't want m- _me_..." you whispered, shaking your head, "You're... You're t-too  _famous_  and I-I'm too... I'm too  _broken_..."

Luke responded by tilting his head suddenly, surprising you when his lips hit yours. Your breath left your body in one go, but your eyes still fluttered shut and you still kissed him back.

When he pulled away to breathe, you watched his eyes open as his forehead came back to yours.

"Don't tell me what I want," he murmured. You opened your mouth to protest, but Luke cut you off again. "Is there like, a certain number of times I have to kiss you in order for you to accept the fact that nothing you say to try and prevent me from liking you is going to work?" he asked, "Because, I'm gonna be honest, I'm prepared to deliver  _no matter_  the amount." You barely smiled but didn't answer, causing Luke to start peppering your face with kisses.

You laughed a little louder, finally moving your hands from your sides to Luke's chest, pushing him so he stopped. He leaned back in and quickly pressed another kiss to your lips before fully pulling away.

He wiped your face one more time, making sure there were absolutely no more tear stains, before taking his hands off of your face and holding his right hand out to you. There was no hesitation in you placing your hand in his, feeling Luke tangle your fingers together as he led you back out into the hallway.

The moment you walked back into the main room where group therapy was still taking place, everyone stopped and looked over. You noticed someone in your seat – the one beside Luke's now vacant – and you knew it wasn't a coincidence that the two chairs were closer together than they'd been  _before_.

Luke squeezed your hand and led you over, letting you sit down before he himself did. The arm you'd previously been attached to was now draped on the back of your chair, his fingers playing with the hem of your sleeve on the opposite shoulder. Your hands were back on your lap and you were playing with your fingers once again, but you couldn't ignore the fact that you could tell everyone was smiling at you and Luke.

"So, I didn't get to ask you before, Luke," Jessa tried to hide her own grin but she wasn't very good at it, "How are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling  _great_ ," he replied with a smile, taking his arm off of your chair and grabbing your hand. You looked up at him as your fingers were laced back up with his. "Don't think I've been this happy in a  _long time_ ," he said, his eyes never leaving yours.

And for the first time in a  _long_ time, your mind was as calm as it had ever been.

~

_inspiration: https://ever-since-kiwi.tumblr.com/post/162240885176/the-train-part-three_


	433. New Year, Same Love (Ashton Irwin)

Ever since the day you met Ashton's family, you had sort of taken the role of being Lauren and Harry's older sister. Anything they felt like they couldn't go to their mother or brother with, they would call you – and no matter what time it was, you would always answer.

When news of the breakup got around to them, they were understandably heartbroken. Lauren had called you the moment she found out,  _begging_  you to tell her it wasn't true. You couldn't, of course, but you promised her that nothing would change about spending time with her and Harry – and she knew that when you promised her something, you were going to see it through no matter what.

And that was probably what landed you in this  _mess_  in the first place.

It was a normal New Year's Eve. You found yourself unable to stress that fact enough: it was  _normal_.

Anne had insisted that you come over for the party – you'd done so since you and Ashton met nearly four years ago, and you didn't want to – as she put it –  _ruin the tradition_. She didn't tell either Lauren or Harry that you were coming – she wanted them to be surprised – and you couldn't help but laugh as the two tackled you the moment you walked in the door. Anne told you when she invited you that Ashton wouldn't be there – he wanted to stay in LA and party with their friends – and that was one of the  _main_  reasons you agreed.

So why was it, half an hour before midnight, the boys decided to show up?

You had been in the bathroom at the time they arrived, but it wasn't hard to piece together what was happening when you heard people shouting about how they ' _could have sworn your mum told us you weren't coming!_ '. Your heart started pounding and you felt like you couldn't breathe when you realized that Ashton was there and he would see you were still spending time with his family after he ended things and you didn't know what he was going to say – if he said anything  _at all_. You knew you had every right to continue seeing them – he couldn't force you not to – but the thought of him being upset made you feel all clammy because you  _hated_  when you made Ashton upset.

After coming out of the bathroom, you quickly retreated to the guest bedroom, not wanting to face Ashton just yet. You had no idea if he knew you were there – all you knew was that you had no idea how to avoid him anymore.

" _You can do this_ ," you whispered to yourself as you paced the room, taking deep breaths, " _You can do this_...  _Just go down there and...and_..." You sighed, putting your face in your hands. " _What are you gonna do, Y/N?_ "

"Yeah, what  _are_  you gonna do?" the voice behind you made you jump. You spun around, finding Luke standing in the doorway, leaning against the frame.

You and Luke had been closest in the group that was made up of you and the band – not as close as you and  _Ashton_ , obviously, but he was practically like a brother to you. When Ashton was unavailable for whatever reason, you would go to Luke for comfort when you were upset or sad or  _whatever_. There was no doubt that you missed him – as well as Michael and Calum – but after the breakup, you just avoided every one of the boys.

"Heard you were here," Luke told you, smiling softly at you. You didn't say anything, prompting him to go on. "Also heard you're only here because you were told Ash  _wouldn't be_ ," he said.

"Anne told me he wouldn't," you whispered.

"She didn't know," he assured you, knowing you thought you were tricked into coming, "We didn't even  _plan_  on it either; We just decided last minute that we'd rather be home with our families. Plus, we didn't want to miss out on all the food Anne makes for these things." You couldn't help but giggle under your breath, making him smile again. "I was gonna come by your place tomorrow," he said, "I didn't think you'd be here and I wanted to see you... So... Think I could get a hug now?"

You didn't even hesitate before walking over to him, wrapping your arms around his waist. His own arms wound around your shoulders and you felt him press his lips to the side of your forehead.

"I've missed you," Luke murmured into your skin, "You've been pushing me away since what happened with Ashton – Calum and Michael too. We know you were upset, but we didn't think you'd cut the  _rest_  of us off – especially since you still talk to Anne, Lauren, and Harry."

"I'm sorry..." you whispered into his shirt, not really sure what you were  _supposed_  to say.

"I'm not trying to make you feel bad, princess," he said, "I just wish you would have  _told us_  you needed time to move on rather than drop off the face of the earth."

"H-How much more time do you think it's gonna  _take_?" you asked.

"It's okay that you're still hurting, you know. No one expects you to move on  _that_  quickly from someone you were  _that_  in love with."

"Guess he never really loved me then, did he?" you swallowed thickly. Luke opened his mouth to speak, but you just kept going. "There's a difference between having one-night-stands to cope and having one-night-stands because you're finally free of a relationship," you mumbled, more to yourself than to Luke, "It just would have been easier to move on myself if all of his business wasn't something I saw every time I got on Twitter..."

Luke didn't know what to say, so he just settled with squeezing you tightly. You felt him press another kiss to your head before his grip on you loosened. He grabbed your cheeks so he could move you back and look at you.

"I know you don't want to, but will you  _at least_  come back downstairs before the ball drops?" he asked you, "You don't have to talk to Ashton, but can you just spend  _10 minutes_  in the same room with him to ring in the new year with us? Anne invited you and Lauren and Harry love you to  _death_ , so at least do it for  _them_." You sighed softly, making him grin.

"I'll give you  _5_ ," you replied.

"Don't think I won't drag you down there if I don't see you at 11:55," he kissed your forehead. You finally allowed yourself to smile as he let go and made his way back out to the party.

You closed your eyes for a moment before walking out of the guest room. You didn't immediately go downstairs though – instead deciding to make a pit stop in another bedroom.

Ashton's room hadn't changed much since the last time you'd been in there – when you were still  _together_ , obviously. You couldn't remember exactly how many times he'd been home since the breakup, but you knew it was less than five. So why was it, when you looked over at the nightstand beside his bed, that you saw a photo of the two of you?

You cautiously walked inside, going over to the side of the bed the nightstand was on. You sat down just enough so that you weren't entirely on the bed but you wouldn't slide off either, and took the picture frame. You held it in your lap as you looked down at it, trying not to get emotional.

The picture had been taken at 5SOS's appearance on  _Ellen_  in 2014 – you only going because Ashton had  _begged you_  to – and you were with the band in their dressing room. You were sitting on the couch with Ashton while he was waiting for Luke to finish getting his makeup for the show done so he could take his turn.

He had insisted on you sitting on his lap despite the fact that the couch had more than enough room for you to have your own seat with him, Calum, and Michael all sitting there as well. You agreed nonetheless, getting comfortable before laying your head on his shoulder.

You couldn't remember  _who_  took the photo – all you knew was that it was a member of Ellen's staff – but they had taken it right after Ashton said your name, causing you to tilt your head to look at him before he kissed your nose and made you smile.

You'd looked back on those moments a lot since the breakup, wishing you could just erase them from your memory  _for good_. You didn't  _want_  to still be hung up on Ashton – all you wanted was to move on just like  _he_  had – but something just refused to let you go a single  _moment_  without thinking about him.

And honestly, it was starting to take its toll on you.

You didn't know exactly how long you'd been looking at the picture, but when you randomly looked at the clock on the nightstand and saw it was 11:55, you sighed to yourself. You heard someone walking down the hallway as they approached the bedroom, but instead of the voice you expected to hear – Luke's – you heard the one you desperately wanted to  _forget_.

"That's my favorite photo," Ashton said from the doorway, making you jump again. You looked over your shoulder, your heart rate picking up as you both looked at each other for the first time since he broke up with you. "Maybe I shouldn't still have it," he shrugged, "But I can't make myself throw it away." You didn't say anything as he made his way over, sitting about a foot away from you before looking at you again. "You look beautiful," he commented, "That always was my favorite dress on you."

"I should go," your voice was barely coming out but you kept talking, "Luke wants me to come downstairs."

You put the picture back, got up, and walked past Ashton, but he didn't let you get very far. He grabbed your wrist before you got out of arms-reach, pulling you back to him so you were standing between his legs.

"Luke already knows I'm up here," he told you, " _Everyone_  already knows I'm up here; I told them we needed to talk alone."

"There's nothing to talk  _about_ ," you shook your head.

"Then why are you crying?"

"I'm fine," you whispered, making him smile sadly.

"Breaking up doesn't mean I know you any  _less_ ," Ashton said, lifting his free hand up to wipe the tears that had managed to fall down your cheeks.

"Doesn't mean I have to talk to you  _either_ ," you murmured, trying to leave again, only to be pulled back to Ashton.

"It does when Lauren told me you haven't been the same after we stopped seeing each other," he stated.

"It's been  _eight months_ ; We were together for almost  _four years_ ," you reminded him, "Not gonna get over that  _overnight_."

"Y/N-" The sound of Ashton saying your name made your heart skip a beat. "-the sooner you stop closing yourself off from me, the sooner you can leave this room. I know you're mad at me for things I've done since the breakup and all I'm trying to say is that I'm  _sorry_."

"You don't have to be sorry – you can do whatever you want; We're not together anymore."

You tried to leave for a third time, but you heard Ashton huff sharply as he stood up. He released your wrist so both of his hands could grab your cheeks, forcing you to look at him.

You didn't know what it was, but the way he was looking at you made you stop trying to get away from him. He looked hurt – not  _just_  that you wouldn't listen to him, but it was almost as if  _he_  were still struggling with the breakup as well.

Ashton noticed your change in demeanor, so his thumbs started running back and forth along your cheekbones as he looked at you.

"I know I don't deserve a chance to explain myself," he said lowly, "And certainly not after ending things for something as stupid as  _distance_ , but... Those photos that get posted by paps when the boys and I leave clubs and bars and restaurants... I never slept with  _any_  of those girls... I don't even know any of their  _names_..."

"But everyone said..." you trailed off.

"Everyone's looking for  _drama_ ," he swallowed thickly, "Come on, Y/N; You  _know_  I'd never sleep around just to  _hurt someone_  – especially not  _you_. I haven't touched  _anyone_  since I was with you."

"You  _haven't_?" you asked, your voice barely coming out again.

"I know you have  _every_  right not to believe me," he sighed, "I know you have every right to tell me to fuck off and never speak to you again. But that's not going to change how much I  _hate myself_  for letting you go... It's not going to change how much I miss waking up next to you and falling asleep beside you... It's not going to change how much I  _love you_. And I'll understand if you don't want to give me a second chance because, honestly, I don't know if  _I_  would give me one if I were you... I just need to  _hear you_  say you forgive me for breaking up with you for the dumbest reason..." You opened your mouth to speak, but no words came out.

Just then, you heard everyone downstairs start counting down from 10. You and Ashton didn't move, maintaining eye contact for the entire time they were counting as the ball dropped on the television in the living room.

However, when you heard everyone shout ' _Happy New Year!_ ', you couldn't stop yourself.

Ashton's hands remained on your face as you reached up, letting your lips crash into his. You felt him let out a deep breath and, although he was  _surprised_ by the gesture, he certainly didn't hesitate in kissing you back.

He then decided to move his hands down the sides of your body until they landed on your hips, pulling you as close to him as you could get. This allowed you to put your own hands on his cheeks, happy to finally be touching him again after so long.

Unfortunately though, your moment was interrupted.

"Well, Happy New Year to  _you guys_  too," you heard someone say, making you both jump and stop kissing to look at the door. You found Luke leaning against the door frame with a smirk on his face. "You know, we're all a little disappointed that neither of you wanted to ring in the new year with us, but I guess I can see  _why_  now: I wouldn't want to make out in front of  _my_  family either."

"Luke, do you think you could maybe..." Ashton trailed off, nodding for him to leave.

"Fine," he sighed dramatically, "Just remember that we're all still here and we  _will_  hear you if you get too loud." You blushed as he walked away, slightly embarrassed that he'd seen you and Ashton kissing.

"He has a  _point_ ," Ashton murmured, bringing your attention back to him, "We'd have to be really quiet and you never  _were_  good at that."

" _Ashton_!" you slapped his chest lightly, your blush only getting brighter.

He laughed as his arms wrapped around your lower back, bringing your body to his. Your own arms wound around his neck, relishing in the feeling of being able to hold him again.

"I'm sorry for everything," he whispered, kissing the side of your head every now and then.

"I know," you replied just as quietly, "I forgive you."

"I love you, kitten," he said, the tone in his voice suggesting he was worried that you wouldn't say it back.

You responded by pressing your lips to the top of his jaw, leaving them there as you whispered into his skin, "I love you too, Ash."

~

_inspiration: https://trustfulhaz.tumblr.com/post/155468017098/back-for-you_


	434. The Way Things Were (Marshall Traver) - Part 1

It wasn't like you ever  _pictured_  yourself being in a room with your ex-boyfriend after  _four years_  of not having seen him, and it  _certainly_  wasn't like you ever pictured being  _filmed_  during it either. But you knew what you were getting into when you agreed to be part of the video.

A friend who worked for BuzzFeed asked you to be in a video with your ex, and since you were so close with her, you couldn't  _not_  agree. And that was how you ended up here: sitting three feet away from Marshall with a bowl of questions on folded-up slips of paper on a small table between you.

You and Marshall hadn't spoken to or seen each other since the day you broke up four years ago after your six-year-long relationship. It was understandably hard to look at him – after all, the breakup certainly wasn't a  _mutual_  decision by any means – but you were willing to do it for your friend.

The questions were harmless enough in the beginning: ' _What do you miss about the relationship?_ ', ' _What do you wish you'd done differently?_ ', ' _What was your favorite thing about the other person?_ ' – questions like that.

But  _nothing_  could have prepared you for the question your friend had put in – and the question you'd been asking  _yourself_  for the last four years.

You read the words on the paper to yourself multiple times, your heart skipping a beat each time you did so. Marshall noticed your change in demeanor and stared at you curiously, but waited until you finally swallowed the lump in your throat and read the question out loud to know why you were acting that way.

" _Why did you cheat on me?_ " you choked out.

"I didn't," he answered immediately, no hesitation in his voice. You looked at him for a moment, letting him see the  _utterly baffled_  expression on your face.

"Then why did you say you  _did_?"

"I  _didn't_."

"Brandy  _told me_  you did," you reminded him, your voice still firm despite how shaky it was, "And when I told you what she said, you did absolutely  _nothing_  about it. So why did you  _pretend_  you cheated on me?"

"I was selfish," he replied honestly, "You didn't know what you wanted and  _I_   _did_  and I was annoyed and thought I wanted out as quickly as possible."

"And  _talking to me_  couldn't have gotten you out?" you furrowed your eyebrows, feeling the tears well up, "You had to make me believe that something was wrong with  _me_  this whole time? You're the  _reason_  I have the trust issues I do now, Marshall!"

"You can't blame me for  _all_  of that, Y/N," he shook his head.

" _Yeah, I can_!" you exclaimed, leaning forward slightly, "Because it's  _your fault_! All of these stupid problems I have are because of  _you_! And it's all because you're a fucking  _prick_  who hates facing his problems head-on!"

"Well, I'm not like that  _anymore_ ," he grumbled.

"Then you could have fucking  _explained it_  to me," you said dryly.

"We haven't spoken in  _four years_ , Y/N," he reminded you, "I figured you wouldn't  _want_  an explanation anymore."

"And never know the  _real_  reason the only person I could see myself marrying broke up with me?" you laughed bitterly.

"W- _What_?" Marshall stuttered.

" _You heard me_ ," you growled, " _Pick another question_."

And he had no choice but to move on, knowing you weren't going to give him any answers he wanted in front of the camera and all these people.

~

45 minutes later, you were finally finished filming. Marshall left first while you stuck around to talk to the crew for a moment – though, you'd be lying if you said you weren't just  _stalling_  so you didn't run into Marshall again.

When you were done talking a few minutes later, you asked your friend if there was a way out of the building other than the front where Marshall had gone. She chuckled under her breath, knowing why you were asking, and directed you to the back exit. You thanked her and started heading that way.

"I knew you'd leave through the back," you heard the moment you stepped outside, making you jump. Your head snapped over to find Marshall leaning against the wall a couple feet away from the door.

You immediately tried to go back inside, but he quickly grabbed your wrist and pulled you to him, letting the door close behind you so you couldn't get back in. You huffed lightly, trying to free yourself, but Marshall only gripped you tighter and put you in between his body and the wall, preventing you from trying to get away again.

Marshall noticed your jaw tighten as you closed your eyes and started taking deep breaths. This was your telltale sign that you were trying to keep yourself calm when all you wanted to do was scream, but he didn't move; He needed answers.

"Would you  _really_  have married me if I hadn't screwed up?" Marshall asked you. Despite your eyes being closed, he could still tell you rolled your eyes.

You didn't say anything for a few seconds before finally looking at him.

"Unlike  _some_ people, I don't say things I don't mean,  _Marshall_ ," you spat – but he couldn't deny that hearing you say his name made his heart race the way it used to when you were together.

"That  _wasn't_  what I asked, _Y/N_ ," he replied just as snappily.

"If you're asking if I was just saying what I did for the cameras, the answer is  _no_ ," you replied monotonously, "You heard me loud and clear and I don't need to stand around coddling you or helping you clear your conscience because  _you don't deserve it_." You then forcibly shoved Marshall away from you, finally freeing yourself from him so you could leave.

"I'm just trying to make it  _right_  again, Y/N!" he sighed exasperatedly, following closely behind you.

"Then you should have thought about that  _before_  you went and threw it all away," you returned, not looking back at him.

"Well, I can't exactly go back in time and  _fix_  everything," he rolled his eyes.

"That's a real  _shame_  too, isn't it?" you laughed bitterly, "I'd love to go back to a time where I  _didn't_  hate you, but we can't always get what we want,  _can we_?"

"Why not?" Marshall asked, hurrying in front of you and spinning around to make you stop. He grabbed your cheeks before you could try and leave again, forcing you to look at him. "Why  _can't we_  go back to the way things used to be?" he shook his head, "You  _want_  to try again, Y/N – I  _know_  you do. There's a part of you that misses what we had and misses our late-night talks and misses how you used to lie on top of me when we watched TV and misses  _me_... And I  _know_  you want that again... I know you want to  _feel_  the way we did about each other again... So why can't we  _try again_?"

"If what we had meant  _that much_  to you, you wouldn't have left in the  _first place_  – and  _especially_  not in the way you did," you reminded him, but there was no hiding the pained expression on your face, "You wouldn't have wanted out  _so badly_  that you felt like you had to  _lie about cheating on me_  to do it."

"But you  _want to_ , Y/N," he repeated softly, "You still love me."

" _Still loving you_  doesn't mean I'm going to put myself through that again," you said as confidently as you could, "You promised me when we started dating that you would  _never_  do that to me – I told you I've been cheated on before and you  _promised_  you'd never do it – and just because you didn't  _actually_  cheat doesn't mean  _shit_ ; It doesn't mean you won't lie again when you already broke  _that_  promise."

"Y/N,  _please_ ," he was practically  _begging_  at this point, "I know you have  _every right_  not to believe  _anything_  I say anymore, but this has been killing me for  _four years_..."

"Then why didn't you  _say anything_?!" you exclaimed, whimpering lightly. Marshall quietly wiped your cheeks before speaking.

"Would you have  _listened_?" he murmured. You only sighed softly, knowing he was right.

Had it not been for the video you'd filmed today, you probably never would have given Marshall the chance to explain himself  _at all_  – let alone allowing him to even get as  _close to you_  as he was now.

" _I love you, Y/N_ ," he swallowed, "And if completely starting over means that I have another shot to treat you the way I should have the  _first time_ , then I'll do it... I'll do  _anything_..."

Your silence as you looked up at him understandably worried him, but he felt as though he could finally breathe again the moment you started barely nodding your head in confirmation that you'd give him a second chance. He started leaning down to press his lips to yours, but when your index finger quickly rose up before he reached your lips, he furrowed his eyebrows.

"If we're completely starting over, then we're  _completely_  starting over," you stated simply, "And I don't kiss people when I don't know their  _names_." He smiled against your finger, pressing a kiss to it as he spoke.

"I'm Marshall," he whispered.

"Y/N," you smiled back slightly.

"It's nice to meet you, beautiful; What would you say to going out with me this weekend?"

"I'd say I look forward to it," you said just as softly.

Before you could react, one of Marshall's hand came off of your cheek and moved to the hand near his mouth, moving it out of the way just enough so that he could pull your face to his. You let out a surprised squeak but quickly eased into it, feeling him sigh in relief that you hadn't pushed him away.

The hand holding yours moved slightly so he could lace your fingers together while his other hand moved from your cheek to your hip. He slid his hand around your waist, coming to a rest on your lower back so he could pull your body to his.

And sure, maybe this didn't mean things would go back to  _exactly_ how they were four years ago before Marshall ended them in the  _worst way_ , but at least he was on his way back to what he  _used_  to have.

~

_inspiration_ _: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfdlIMlPmuA_


	435. The Way Things Were (Marshall Traver) - Part 2

"I did  _not_  let you win!" Marshall insisted, walking you up the stairs to your apartment.

"Marshall, when have I  _ever_  beaten you at bowling?" you laughed.

" _Fine_ ," he huffed, "I let you win."

"You can't try to convince me I won on my own when  _both_  of us know how  _bad_  I am at it," you teased, pulling out your key and unlocking your door.

"Y/N," Marshall said, making you look at him. His hand was on the back of his neck and he was rubbing it nervously. "Can I..." he trailed off, but you knew what he was wanting to ask.

"I don't kiss on the first date," you shook your head, "You  _know_  that."

"But you kissed me when I asked you  _out_!" he pouted.

"I wasn't really given much of a  _choice_ ," you reminded him. His pout only became more prominent, making you laugh again. "We're  _starting over_ , remember?" you murmured, moving one of your hands to his cheek.

"I  _know_ ," he sighed, "Can I at least  _hug you_?"

You smiled at him, your hand sliding off of his face so you could wrap your arms around his neck. He held your waist tightly – the way he would when you were together the first time around and all he wanted to do was know you were there – and you felt him kiss your ear.

"I had fun tonight," he said softly, feeling you squeeze him a bit.

"Me too," you whispered, "Thanks for taking me out."

"Anytime," he chuckled, both of you letting go at the same time, "I'll call you."

"When you get home?" you wondered.

"Yes, I will let you know I got there safe," he grinned. You mirrored the gesture, leaning in and pressing your lips to his cheekbone.

"Bye, Marshall," you murmured into his skin. Once you pulled away, he put his hand on your jaw and brought you back to him so he could kiss your forehead.

"Bye, Y/N," he returned, and you then watched him head back to the stairwell so he could head home before going into your own.

~

**Three months later**

You and Marshall had been dating for a couple months now and you could honestly say you were happier than you'd been in a  _while_. Despite already knowing everything about each other, there was this sense of something  _new_  in the relationship that wasn't  _there_  before. You didn't have the slightest clue as to  _what_  that something  _was_ , but it was definitely a  _refreshing_  feeling nonetheless.

You were over at your sister's house one afternoon, lazily lounging around. You'd been spending time with her and her six-month-old baby, but since she was now down for a nap, the two of you were just watching television in the living room. There wasn't much conversation happening – you both were  _pretty_  into the show you were watching – but when it went to commercial, your sister decided something was bothering her.

"Hey, Y/N," Sierra said, making you look over at her, "You okay?"

" _Yes_..." you trailed off, the confusion in your voice incredibly obvious.

"Hmm," she hummed, shrugging to herself, "Something about you seems a bit  _off_  lately."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know," she answered honestly, "I just feel like something's bothering you." You were silent for a moment, causing Sierra to perk up slightly. " _Is_  something bothering you?" she asked.

"It's nothing," you insisted, not wanting her to worry about it – it really wasn't  _that_  important, to be honest.

"C'mon, Y/N," she urged, "You're my sister; Nothing's going to  _stop me_  from worrying about you." She smiled when you let out a breathy laugh – she could always tell  _why_  you hesitated to talk to her. The smiles faded when you sighed lightly.

"I just want everything to go back to how it  _used_  to be," you mumbled, "You know, with Marshall."

"I thought you wanted to start over?" Sierra furrowed her eyebrows.

"I  _do_ ," you confirmed, "I want him to prove he  _deserves_  my trust again... But I miss sleeping in the same bed and telling him I love him and kissing him for no reason and hearing him say my name in his sleep..."

"Then why don't you just  _do it_?"

"Would  _you_  do all that with someone you've only been seeing for  _three months_?"

"No," she smiled again slightly, "But this is  _different_. You and Marshall aren't  _strangers_  who met on a trip to the store anymore. I get that he fucked up and you're both starting over, but this is a  _different thing_  now, Y/N. You were fine with going slow when you first  _met_  him, but you and Marshall have already gone  _through_  the beginning phase. You both know each other inside and out and I know that circumstances are different  _mentally_ , but there's nothing wrong with wanting the  _physical_  parts back  _right now_. If you want to kiss him, then kiss him. If you want to sleep in the same bed again, ask him to spend the night. If you want to tell him you love him,  _tell him you love him_. The only person stopping you from doing the things you want to is  _yourself_." You stared at the hands in your lap for a moment, really taking in everything she said.

She was right; You  _knew_  she was right. You and Marshall had already done that awkward phase of small talk and getting to know each other – you'd been over it for  _quite_  some time now. And maybe you  _didn't_  know whether or not  _he_  was ready to do the things you used to again, but that was only because you hadn't actually  _talked to him_  about it.

"I  _hate_  when you're right," you grumbled, making Sierra laugh – not  _too_  loudly so it didn't wake the baby, but just a little louder than she'd been laughing previously.

"I feel the same when  _you_  are," she returned, making you chuckle that time.

"I should be heading home..."

"Tell Marshall I said hi," she smirked.

You rolled your eyes, " _Goodbye, Sierra_." She grinned, getting up and walking with you to the door. "Give David a hug for me," you told her, putting your jacket on. She nodded as you continued, "And I'm serious, okay? Whenever you two need a night to yourselves, I'll watch Britt."

"Thanks," she smiled gratefully, "I'll let you know." You gave your sister a hug before walking out of the house and heading to your car to go home.

~

**Three hours later**

Upon arriving back at your place, you sat around, mentally debating with yourself again for a  _good_  couple hours before finally deciding to take your sister's advice.

She was right; Maybe Marshall  _had_  screwed up, but it was really saying something that he was so  _committed_  to fixing his relationship with you that he was willing to  _completely_  start over just to prove to you that you  _could_  have what you used to with him again.

So you swallowed the lump in your throat and texted Marshall, asking him if he wanted to spend the night with you.

He immediately texted back asking if he should bring popcorn, making you laugh. When you were together the first time around, he would – for  _some_  reason – always show up to your apartment with a bag of popcorn to share as you watched movies to lull you asleep. You replied with a cheeky ' _What do you think?_ ' to which he only responded with the popcorn emoji, and you knew he was on his way.

~

The moment Marshall walked through your front door – he didn't bother knocking anymore unless it was locked – you happily sprung up from your seat on the couch and trotted over to him. You grabbed the popcorn box from his hand and continued on into the kitchen, hearing him laugh as took his jacket and shoes off.

"I'm starting to think you only invited me over because you're out of popcorn," he mentioned, following you into the room and leaning back on the counter.

"Maybe I  _did_ ," you shrugged, putting a pack in the microwave and turning it on. The two of you made small talk – asking about the other's day and whatnot – until the beeping cut you off. "Oh, before I forget: Sierra says hi," you relayed your sister's message, pulling the bag out of the microwave.

"Hi, Sierra," he chuckled softly, "How is she? I heard she had a baby not too long ago."

"Six months ago," you nodded, pouring the popcorn into a bowl, "She's good; They don't get much sleep right now, but they're good."

"David still working graveyard shift?"

"No, he got promoted to assistant manager last month," you smiled to yourself, remembering how proud you were of him when they told you and the family at dinner one night. You then turned to Marshall, "Did you just come over because you want to talk about my  _sister_?" you pouted jokingly. He simply laughed again, coming over to you.

" _Maybe I did_ ," he pressed a kiss to your forehead, taking the bowl and heading back to the living room while you got drinks from the fridge.

~

**Four hours later**

The end of the second movie you'd been watching started to roll its credits, but you'd been fast asleep  _long_  before – Marshall just didn't have the heart to wake you up, taking advantage of you subconsciously curling yourself into him every time you got cold. But, wanting you to be comfortable as you slept, he decided to take you to your bedroom before looking for another movie.

So he carefully got up, turned back to pick you up, and carried you to your bed. As careful as he  _was_  though, you still started stirring when he laid you down, mumbling softly as you opened your eyes.

"Go back to sleep, princess," Marshall said, leaning down to kiss your forehead. He tried to walk away, but you grabbed his hand and refused to let him go.

"Where are you  _going_?" you whined lowly, making him chuckle.

"I was just gonna watch one more movie and sleep on the couch," he told you.

" _No_ ," you pouted, pulling him back toward the bed, causing his legs to hit the side of your mattress.

"You wanna sleep  _together_?" he asked, earning a happy hum from you, "Well, can I at least go turn off the TV?" You huffed in annoyance but let him go anyway, hearing him laugh to himself as he left the room.

Marshall came back not even a minute later, making sure your front door was locked along the way. He was surprised that you wanted to sleep in the same bed with him since you  _were_  ' _starting over_ ' and he knew you wouldn't have someone stay the night only three months in, but he  _certainly_  wasn't going to complain.

He returned to you lying off to the side of your mattress, signaling to him that you were giving him the open spot. When he laid down under your blanket and made himself comfortable beside you, you immediately scooted to him. You put your head on his chest, your arm was lying on his stomach so you could hold his shirt, and your legs were tangled with his as you got comfortable yourself. Without hesitation – as it had been something he did  _every single time_  you laid together – one of his hands went to the back of your head while the other came to a rest at the bottom of your waist.

"You must trust me quite a bit if we're already like  _this_ ," he mentioned softly, his fingers playing with your hair.

Marshall felt you let out a shaky breath, which understandably worried him. He knew the shaky breaths and tightening fingers on his shirt were signs that you were moments away from crying – and when he moved his hand from your hip to your cheek to make you tilt your head up so he could see it, his heart sank at the sight of the tears already welling up.

"Y/N," he frowned, wiping your tears away from both eyes the best he could with one hand, "Why are you crying? Are you  _that_  tired?"

You responded by using your elbow to push yourself up so you could bury your face in Marshall's neck, snaking your arm under his neck and holding him tightly. His arms wound around your waist, pulling you on top of him and hugging you just as closely as you were hugging him.

"I don't  _like_  going slow," you whispered between your quiet, broken sobs, "I don't  _like_  not sleeping with you and not waking up beside you and not kissing you and not listening to you sing while you write songs and not coming into the room when you catch me eavesdropping so you can sing to me what you just wrote... I don't like not  _loving you_... I just want to  _love you_..."

"I just want to love you  _too_ , princess," Marshall murmured, pressing his lips to your ear.

"I  _miss you_ ," you whimpered. You heard Marshall take in a deep breath, no doubt to keep  _himself_  from crying as well.

"I miss you too," he promised, his grip on you only tightening.

"Am I allowed to say I love you again?"

" _Do you_  love me again?"

"Yeah..." you whispered, feeling him smile.

"Then yes," he told you.

You propped yourself up on your forearm with the intent of wiping your face, but Marshall beat you to it. He brought his arm up, getting rid of the tears the best he could with one hand, and then left his hand on your cheek. Your own hand – the one that had been holding his shirt – moved to rest beside his neck so you could play with his hair.

You were about to open your mouth, but he beat you to speaking.

"I love you, princess," he swallowed thickly, almost as if he were nervous you wouldn't say it back even though you'd just practically admitted it not even 20 seconds ago. The corner of your mouth twitched slightly and you felt his body relax underneath you.

"I love  _you_ , Mar," you whispered, taking the initiative yourself to lean down and press your lips to his.

Marshall sighed in relief and kissed you back roughly, happy that – for the first time in over four years – he  _wasn't_  dreaming anymore.

~

_inspiration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfdlIMlPmuA_


	436. Nurse in Training (Michael Clifford)

On a regular day off of school, most of the popular kids could be found at the mall or a local restaurant or getting ready for another big house party they were throwing that weekend. None of them would ever be seen without  _at least_  five other popular kids with them – sometimes  _ten_  depending on the person.

But  _one_  member of the popular clique stood out.

Michael Clifford was the star of the soccer team and one of the smartest students at the school.  _Everyone_  knew who he was and everyone wanted to either  _be_  him or be  _with_  him. Teen movies were always pretty cliché about the life of a popular kid, but they had you feeling like they'd contacted Michael  _directly_  to find out what his life was like so they could replicate it  _perfectly_  in every film.

You, on the other hand,  _weren't_  so lucky.

Teen movies usually depict the less popular –  _the_   _nobodies_  – as constantly being pushed into walls and stuffed into lockers and suspended from flagpoles by their underwear. But that thankfully wasn't the case for you. For you, your high school life was about as mundane as it  _gets_.

Of course, that wasn't to say you  _never_  had any run-ins with bullies.

**Michael's POV; Friday evening**

A Friday off of school for Michael usually looked like the inside of a hospital – not without  _reason_ , obviously. Michael was taking classes that would help him become a registered nurse and prepare him for medical school after graduation, and one of the courses offered  _actual_  work experience in the field. He interned at the local hospital down the road from the school and one look at him when he was with patients was enough to prove that he really was perfect for the career.

"Michael!" a voice caught the blonde's attention. Michael looked over his shoulder – he'd been sweeping the floors since there wasn't really much else to do – and watched Dr. Helm walking up to him. "I have a patient for you in Room 159," he said, "This one's pretty standard, so I'm just gonna let you handle it on your own since I have more critical patients to visit. But if you need anything, Sherri will be right out here, so just holler for her." Michael nodded lightly and watched the Doctor walk away before disappearing around the corner.

Michael took a deep breath as he stood outside the door. Although he was nervous for his first  _completely solo_  patient, he was excited at knowing the staff trusted him enough to do it on his own – even if it  _was_  ' _pretty standard_ '.

But before backing out from nervousness completely, Michael knocked on the door and entered the room, surprised by what he found.

**Your POV**

Your head snapped up when the door opened, your eyes widening slightly. Michael was in your English class so you obviously knew who he  _was_ , but you'd never  _really_  talked to him before. And you sure were glad you didn't have to be hooked up to a heart monitor because you could feel it beating a mile a minute as you looked at him.

"H-Hi, Michael," you whispered when he didn't say anything, feeling yourself wanting to crawl into a hole the longer the blonde stared at you.

" _Y/N_?" he furrowed his eyebrows. Your heart skipped a beat because you truthfully had no idea he even noticed you around school, let alone knew  _your name_. "What  _happened_  to you?" he hurried over to the bed you were sitting on the edge of. He seemed so  _genuinely_  worried that it honestly confused you.

You didn't think your injuries were  _that_  bad – obviously, you knew they were bad enough to warrant a  _hospital visit_  – but you didn't understand why he was so concerned. You had a few small cuts around your eye as well as a pretty decent-sized gash spanning the length of your cheekbone. But you  _definitely_  didn't think he'd care enough to want to know what happened.

You continuously opened and closed your mouth for a good 30 seconds before sighing deeply.

"I'm trying to come up with a convincing lie, but I've got nothing," you admitted.

"Why would you want to  _lie_?" he asked, coming over to you and wheeling his tray of tools along with him.

"Truth is probably  _worse_..."

"Do... Do your parents..."

" _No_!" you furiously shook your head, "My parents didn't do this to me!"

"Then why lie about it?" he asked, beginning to work on cleaning your smaller cuts on your forehead.

"Because..." you hissed lightly at the pain, "It's  _weird_  having a kid from school be the nurse who treats you at the hospital..."

"Don't speak to the kid you know from school then," he shook his head, "Speak to the nurse who just wants to help you." You looked at him for a moment before turning your gaze back to the fingers on your lap.

"There was this note from the guy I like in my locker after school yesterday," you said softly, "It said to meet him at the park by the trail to the lake at four today since we had the day off."

"Y/N, did  _he_  do this to you?" Michael's jaw tightened and your eyes snapped back up.

" _No_!" you squeaked, "He would  _never_  do that!"

"Then what  _happened_  to you?"

"A bunch of the popular kids..." you choked, "I should have  _known_  it was a setup; I should have realized it wasn't even  _his_  handwriting."

"Who, uh..." Michael trailed off, "Who did they say it was from?"

"Does it  _matter_?" you returned, not sure why he was so curious, "They probably could have said it was from  _Leonardo DiCaprio_  and my stupid ass  _still_  would have gone."

"You're  _not_  stupid, Y/N," he murmured, beginning to clean the biggest cut underneath your eye.

"How would  _you_  feel if you were me? How would  _you_  feel if you fell for a note in your locker that said someone  _20 million miles_  out of your league actually  _wanted_  to meet up with you outside of school and you  _believed it_?" The breath Michael let out along with his chuckle made your heart skip a beat as you felt it on your skin with him so close to you.

"Fair enough," he responded.

It was quiet for a moment as he continued to fix you up. But something inside of him just couldn't seem to let who the note was from go.

"So the note..." he trailed off, making you cock an eyebrow.

"Why are you so hung up on it?" you asked him, "Why does it matter  _who_  it was from? It wasn't  _actually_  him; It's not like  _he_  did this to me."

"Just curious, I guess," he mumbled shyly.

"You're gonna laugh at me," you whispered. Michael finished up cleaning your wounds so he could start applying the bandages he needed to.

"No, I won't," he insisted, his eyebrows furrowing when you laughed lowly.

"Forgive me for not  _entirely_  believing that," you said. He opened his mouth again, but you didn't let him speak. "It was you," you blurted out, your eyes widening slightly.

"Th-They said the note was from  _me_?" he stuttered, "Who-Who wrote it? Who put it in your locker?"

"I don't know," you answered honestly, "I don't know  _which one of them_  did it."

"Well, who showed up at the  _park_?"

"Michael..."

"Y/N,  _who hurt you_?" he asked sternly.

"The soccer team..." you swallowed. Michael's hands paused for a moment as he looked at you again.

"My  _teammates_  did this to you?" he whispered in shock, putting the last bandaid on.

"Michael, it's fi-"

"It's not  _fine_ , Y/N!" he cut you off, "They had  _no right_  to do that to you!"

"It's not like I'm  _dead_ , Michael," you tried to reassure him, "It's just the price that comes with being a  _nerd_  having a crush on a  _popular_  guy."

You couldn't read Michael's facial expression as he finished putting his things away, but you knew you were all finished being looked at so you carefully hopped off the bed. But you didn't get a chance to even step toward the door because Michael's voice stopped you.

"What are you doing later?" he asked.

"Trying to explain to my parents what happened to me today, probably..." you answered slowly, " _Why_...?"

"I-" He cleared his throat nervously. "-I get off in a couple hours and... I want to take you out...for ice cream or something..."

"You don't have to do this, Michael," you mumbled, "Can't you just feel sorry for me and move on?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"You just feel  _bad_  for me," you sighed, "You don't  _actually_  want to date me – you just want to clear your conscience for what your teammates did."

"Y/N, I-"

"I really appreciate the offer, Michael," you said softly, "But I don't want to give them any more reasons to make fun of me than they already  _have_."

You grabbed your coat from the chair, pausing for a moment before turning back to face Michael again. He had a blank look on his face and if you didn't know any better, you'd say he looked like he was about to  _cry_.

"Thanks for fixing me up, Michael," you motioned to your face, "You're gonna make a great RN someday."

Since he was still only a couple feet away from you, you quickly walked back to him. You pressed a kiss to his cheek, barely smiling as you pulled away.

"I'll see you on Monday," you whispered, putting your head down while you left the room and leaving Michael alone once again.

~

**Three days later; Monday morning**

" _Holy shit, Y/N_!" Libby exclaimed the moment she saw your face, "What the hell  _happened_  to you?!"

"Morning, Lib," you chuckled under your breath.

" _Tell me_!" she shoved your shoulder, making you flinch. Of course, when she realized this, her eyes only widened, "Your  _arm_  too?!"

"It's  _nothing_!" you squeaked, "I just fell while I was helping my parents with yard work!"

That  _obviously_  didn't work though – Libby  _always_  knew when you were lying. She gave you a stern expression, making you sigh.

"You know that note I got in my locker on Friday?" you asked, to which she obviously nodded, "Well... It wasn't actually  _from_   _Michael_..."

"Then who  _was it_  from?" she asked. You made a small, high-pitched humming noise, causing Libby to huff harshly. " _Y/N_!" she said.

"The soccer team..."

" _The entire soccer team_?" her eyes widened.

"Well, all of them  _except_  for Michael," you nodded.

"Are you  _serious_?  _Oh my God_ , when I'm through with them, they're gonna wish they  _never_  had that idea in the  _first place_!" She started stomping toward the place the team always hung out before school, but you stopped her.

" _Libby_ ," you warned, grabbing her arm and pulling her back to you, "As much as I love you and believe in your skills, you cannot take on the  _entire_  soccer team  _by yourself_."

" _Why not_?! Just let me have  _one_  go! The rest will run away  _crying_  after what I do to that  _chauvinist pig_  of a captain!"

"I'm sure they will," you giggled, "But you're not going to get  _expelled_  for it."

" _God_ , and I'm sure  _they're_  not going to get expelled for what they did to  _you_  either?"

"Of  _course_  not," you shook your head, "Sports are the pride and joy of this school – why would they risk tainting that reputation over a girl no one will even  _remember_? Plus, like,  _half_  the team is made up of seniors; The administration is  _definitely_  not going to risk their chances of them not getting  _scholarships_. I'm still alive – it's whatever."

"They should still  _pay_  for what they did, Y/N!" she insisted, motioning toward the cuts and bruises on your face, "This is  _not_  okay!"

"It's not  _that_  bad!" you promised, "But I  _do_  have something to tell you." She tilted her head at the smile on your face, waiting for you to continue. "Well, obviously, I had to go to the hospital after it happened, and you know how Michael is interning for college credits when we graduate?" Her eyes widened again and the smile on her face was as big as you'd ever seen it.

" _Michael Clifford_  was the one who took care of you?!" she squealed lowly so no one around would hear. You nodded and she went on dramatically. "That means he spent time with you and you talked to him and he  _touched you_ ," she sighed.

"He asked me out," you said suddenly.

" _He asked you out_?!" she squealed again, " _What did you say_?!"

"Lib," you laughed lightly, "I need you to breathe for me, okay? Calm down." She stopped for a moment, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath in before letting it out slowly. "Nothing happened," you answered her question.

" _What_?" she frowned, " _Why_?"

"He only asked me out after I told him his  _teammates_  were the ones who did this to me," you shook your head with a sigh, "He doesn't  _actually_  like me – he just  _felt bad_."

"How do you  _know_  that though? Maybe he  _does_  like you and you admitting your crush on him gave him the courage to finally ask you out!"

"Can you  _imagine_  what the team would do if they found out I was dating  _Michael Clifford_?" you reminded her, "And they'd probably kick  _him_  off the team for it! And then they'd find a way to blame  _me_  and everything will just get  _worse_!" Libby sighed, seeing your point.

"Would they  _really_  risk losing the last few games of the season though?" she asked, "Michael  _is_  their best player."

"If he's their best player, why isn't  _he_  captain?" you teased.

"We all  _know_  why he isn't the captain, Y/N," she giggled, "A sizable donation to the athletic department goes a  _long_  way in a school that only cares about  _sports_."

"Let's just go get breakfast," you shoved her playfully, shutting your locker door and linking your arm with hers as you both headed to the cafeteria.

~

The morning went by as normal – people would ask about your face but you would just shrug and tell them you fell, which they luckily believed. It wasn't until lunchtime that anything different really happened.

Usually, you ate by yourself at one of the tables near the back door of the cafeteria since you and Libby didn't have the same lunch. You would eat your food and then go out into the hallway to do some work from the classes you'd already been to since it was quieter.

But this time was different – this time, someone approached your table a couple minutes after you sat down.

"Hi, Y/N," the boy said nervously as you looked up to see who had pulled out the chair across from you.

"Hi, Michael..." you trailed off in confusion.

"I just... Um... I just wanted to make sure you were okay... You know... And that your face is still looking good and stuff... Well, I mean, your face  _always_  looks good, but I... I meant... Your  _cuts_..."

"I'm doing well, thank you," you nodded with a light blush, "And my cuts are fine – they're annoying to try and  _sleep with_ , but they're fine." Michael chuckled softly, making your heart beat faster knowing  _you_  caused it.

"Have you been changing the bandages once in a while?" he asked, "Because, you know, you kinda left before I could tell you how to make sure they don't get infected."

"I'm no  _stranger_  to dealing with stuff like this, Michael," you assured him, motioning to your cheek. Michael's expression fell slightly, confusing you again –  _what was his deal?_

"Well... If you have any questions..."

"I know where to find you," you finished his sentence. He smiled slightly, pushing his chair out as he stood back up.

"I'll see you in English," he whispered, waiting for you to nod in acknowledgement before he walked away.

And you didn't notice, but as you smiled to yourself, Michael looked over his shoulder and saw it.

~

**After school**

The final bell had rung and you were standing at your locker, mentally checking off the books you needed to take home as you put them into your backpack. The hallways were mostly empty – a scene you purposely put yourself in since you didn't want to run into any member of the soccer team. But  _one_  player always seemed to find his way to you.

"Hey, Y/N," you heard behind you, making you look over your shoulder.

"Coming to check on me  _again_?" you wondered as Michael stopped beside you, leaning onto the locker next to yours.

"As a matter of fact, I  _am_ ," he grinned slightly, "You know, it's only the job of a nurse to check on their patients."

"Right," you nodded, "Wouldn't want you getting  _fired_  or anything."

"Can I really be  _fired_  if I'm not being  _paid_?" he countered.

"Maybe," you shrugged, "But I'm not sure they'd be so eager to give up  _free labor_."

" _Very funny_ ," he rolled his eyes, but you knew he was teasing.

"Well, I'm fine, Michael," you promised him, "Just as I have been  _every time_  you've asked me today."

"That's very good to know, but that's actually not the  _only_  reason why I came over here this time," he informed you. You cocked an eyebrow, causing him to continue. "I came over here to tell you that I quit the team," he stated, instantly take you by surprise.

"I'm sorry?" you questioned, honestly thinking you hadn't heard him right.

_But you did._

"I quit the team," he repeated with a shrug, "Just came here straight from the locker room." Your eyes understandably widened – you may not talk to him, but  _everyone_  knew how much soccer meant to him.

" _You quit_?" you shook your head, "But you  _love_  being on the team!"

"Well, I love  _you_  more," he stated, making you freeze.

"Y-You  _love me_?"

"Yeah..." he said, drastically softer than his previous outburst, "Have for a  _while_  now... I wanted to tell you, but... I didn't think you'd  _believe me_ , to be honest... And I know how my  _teammates_  are, so I never told  _them_ , but I guess they found out somehow and tricked you into... _you_ _know_..." He shyly motioned to your face. "I know I can't  _really_  make you believe me if you don't want to, but I... I  _swear_  I didn't ask you out just because I felt bad about what they did. I mean, I did  _kind of_ , but I also did it because... Well, that was the moment I found out you like me  _too_  and I was just really  _excited_  to hear you felt the same and I just... I should have waited; I knew you'd think I was just doing it to clear my conscience, but once I started talking, I couldn't make myself  _stop_... I know you thought I was making fun of you or something, but... I couldn't  _stop_..." he repeated in a soft whisper.

You stared at him carefully for a moment, trying to find any sort of fabrication in anything he'd just said. You knew you weren't going to find any, of course – the look on his face enough to convince you he meant everything he said. His eyes were big and he had this small pout on his lips, almost as if he was  _desperate_  to convince you that what he was saying was true. Though, at this point, you didn't  _need_  more convincing.

Without warning, you stood up on your toes and pressed your lips to his. Michael let out a surprised breath through his nose, but there was definitely no hesitation in feeling him kiss you back.

It wasn't until he felt you step forward so your body was against his that he finally gained enough courage to put his hands on you. One rested on the top of your hip while the other moved to your cheek – but unfortunately, you hissed and pulled away when his thumb landed on a bruise. His eyes shot back open at the sound, and finding your face scrunched up in pain made his eyes widen.

"I-I'm  _sorry_!" he exclaimed softly, "I didn't-"

"It's okay, Michael," you assured him despite the fact that it really did hurt, "It's not life-threatening."

He responded by taking your face back in his hands – much more  _carefully_  this time – and moving it around slightly as he inspected it.

"How long do you think it'll take before it's all healed?" he asked you.

" _You're_  the nurse-in-training, Mikey –  _not me_ ," you giggled out the reminder, making him blush at the nickname.

"Well, you know, everyone's body handles trauma  _differently_ ," he sighed dramatically, "Some people brush it off like it never happened, some people act like the world is ending and they can't possibly continue on with life, and some people just want to be taken care of until it's better."

"Is that so?" you replied, trying not to smile but knowing you weren't concealing it well when he grinned back.

"And I'm just curious as to which type of person  _you_ are," he mentioned, moving his hands from your face to your hips.

"Well..." you trailed off for effect as your own arms wound around his neck, "I  _did_  come to school today, but I've been to the nurse  _three times_  for painkillers, so... Maybe I'm the third one?"

"You didn't come to me at all," he smiled a little wider.

"Unfortunately, during school hours, you're just another student who isn't  _authorized_  to be giving out medicine," you shook your head.

"But you would have come to me if I  _was_?" he winked teasingly, making you laugh.

"Unless, of course, you think you couldn't  _handle_  me," you informed him, "I get  _much_  clingier than normal when I'm in pain."

"Believe me, princess – I'm the  _last_  person who would be bothered by taking care of a clingy patient as beautiful as you," he stated, leaning down to kiss you again, feeling you smile against his lips.


	437. Scars and All (Luke Hemmings) *

**Warning: Mentions of abuse, scars**

~

"Okay,  _seriously_ ," Michael huffed suddenly beside you, "Why do you wear those things all the time?" He nudged your glove-covered hands, pulling your attention away from the conversation you'd previously been having with Luke.

"I've told you a  _million_  times, Mikey," you shook your head, "I don't wanna rush into things."

"Yeah, but... How are you supposed to meet your soulmate if you always wear them?" he insisted, "Like... Do you at least take them off when you're  _alone_?" You simply laughed while Ashton interrupted.

"Come on, Mike," he chuckled softly at the sound of your laugh, "There's nothing wrong with wanting to make sure the attraction you feel toward someone is genuine and not just because you know they're your soulmate."

" _Thank you_!" you squeaked, happy someone understood your reasoning for the gloves.

"I'm not so sure you even  _have_  hands at this point," Michael huffed.

"Obviously, I  _have_  hands, Mikey!" you laughed, "It'd be kind of hard to wear gloves if I  _didn't_!"

"You could have put gloves on mannequin hands and duct taped them to your wrists," Luke pointed out.

"You guys are a  _little_  too obsessed with this," you informed them with another shake of your head.

"But you could have  _met_  your soulmate already and you don't know because you never take those  _gloves_  off!" Calum insisted.

"He's got a point, Y/N," Ashton sighed dramatically, "What if one of  _us_  is your soulmate?" You simply made a face, making every single one of them frown.

"Is the idea of being soulmates with any of us  _really_  that bad?" Michael stuck his bottom lip out.

"Only because I've  _known you_  for four years," you smiled sweetly, reaching over and patting the top of his head.

The next few moments happened so fast, you weren't even given the chance to  _properly_  react to it all.

In one swift motion, Michael's hand shot up and grabbed your wrist right at the edge of your glove. You didn't have a second to pull away before he gripped the tip of the glove's middle finger and pulled the fabric off. Your fingers twitched at the sudden rush of cold air and it was that feeling that brought you back to reality.

" _Michael_!" you shrieked, forcibly ripped your wrist out of his grasp and bringing your hand to your lap to cover it with your still-gloved one. The other boys were rendered speechless, not expecting Michael to do what he did.

"What the  _hell_ , Mike?!" Luke exclaimed in your defense – as he always seemed to do when Michael's teasing went a little  _too_  far. He snatched the glove back from him, crawling over to where you were sitting. "Here, Y/N," he said softly, waiting for you to take the accessory back but you never did. Instead, the boys watched curiously as you stared down at your hands.

"You guys know how everyone has their soulmate's fingerprint on what will be their favorite place to touch?" you murmured, making them look at each other with concerned expression as they had no idea what you were leading up to.

"Yeah," they nodded simultaneously while Ashton continued, "And when your soulmate touches that spot, the tattoo turns red so you know you've found them."

"Right," you nodded, "When I was 19, I met this guy... I... I  _thought_  I loved him, but when we moved in together... He started getting... _weirdly possessive_... I'm finally starting to move on and I don't want to relive all of it, so I'll just skip to the  _point_ -" You forced out a laugh. "-He would constantly make me touch the spot where his tattoo was and he would touch mine, but they never turned red... And I guess that he decided since  _he_  wasn't my soulmate, I shouldn't be allowed to find them  _at all_..."

The boys watched as you were careful not to show them your palm as you reached for your other glove, their hearts racing when they realizing you were going to take it off. When you did, you just stared down at the tops of your hands for a moment before taking a deep breath and turning them palm-side up.

They  _audibly_  lost their breaths when they saw the scars that littered your skin as well as realizing that you didn't have any fingerprints  _at all_. They'd never heard of anyone  _not having fingerprints_  – and you knew that, so you weren't offended they were looking at you like deer in headlights.

"I fought back  _hard_ ," you laughed again dryly, looking down at your defensive scars, "The only  _decent_  thing he ever did for me was get so fed up with the fighting that he knocked me out so I couldn't feel it anymore."

"Y/N," Michael mumbled under his breath, putting his hand on your leg and squeezing you gently as you looked at him, "You didn't have to tell us all this."

"I know you've wanted to know," you replied just as softly.

"Everyone's  _curious_ ," he shook his head, "But that doesn't mean you  _owe_  anyone an explanation. I know we ask about it a lot –  _me_  more than the others, obviously – but you shouldn't feel like you  _have_  to tell us anything. And I'm sorry for just taking your glove off; That was a real  _dick_  move."

You didn't know why the statement made you laugh, but it did. Michael grinned slightly as you leaned onto his arm and whispered out an ' _S'okay_ ' to him.

"You shouldn't have to be embarrassed of what happened either," Ashton mentioned.

"I don't wear the gloves because I'm  _embarrassed_ ," you sighed, "I didn't for a few months, but then I got tired of  _strangers_  acting like they had the  _right_  to know the story and then giving me a  _pity party_  if I told them." The boys chuckled softly when you rolled your eyes, making you smile as well.

"How about we go get something to eat?" Luke suggested, clearly wanting to get everyone's moods back up.

"Ice cream?" you asked hopefully.

"I was thinking something that would actually be  _filling_ , Y/N."

"But I want ice cream," you pouted. He laughed as he held his hand down to you so he could pull you up.

Without hesitating, your bare hands took his while the other boys stood up as well. Luke froze after pulling you to your feet and it was  _then_  that you realized what you'd done.

"I-It feels weird because of the  _scars_ ," you said quickly, "I-I can put the glo-"

You cut yourself off when you went to reach for the gloves still on the floor but felt Luke's fingers wrap around yours instead, leading your left hand to the back of his neck. You didn't understand what he was doing at first, but you instantly jumped and pulled away when you felt your fingertip warm up.

And knowing what was going on from the stories you heard while growing up, your eyes widened.

You'd never seen the boys' soulmate tattoos – not that you  _expected_  to – so you never knew that Luke's was simply covered by the hair he'd been growing out. Then again, you also never suspected  _you_  were his soulmate.

You were close with all the boys, but you always felt like Luke didn't  _care_  for you all that much. He was generally quiet when you were around – a feat that confused the others as they've each told you on separate occasions that Luke was usually more outgoing when they would hang out without you there.

But then again... Maybe he felt something you didn't necessarily  _notice_  before...

You immediately moved to his side so you could push his hair out of the way, watching in shock as the tattoo on his skin turned red. But what surprised you  _more_  than that was the fact that the ink looked  _exactly_  like your finger – smoothness, scars, and all.

When your eyes met Luke's again, he was already watching you, wanting to see how you'd react. But of all the responses he'd come up with you giving him in his mind, none of them were what he  _got_.

Instead, you shakily reached up and took his left wrist in your left hand while your right hand was pushing the top of your jeans down past your right hipbone.

When he realized what you were doing, Luke brought his hand the rest of the way himself, causing you to release his wrist and watch him nudge your other hand out of the way with his fingers. He then pushed the fabric down the rest of the way, revealing the thumbprint right on top of your hipbone.

Luke looked at you, noticing your chest rising and falling quickly with anticipation. He took a deep breath of his own before lining his thumb up with the tattoo on your skin and putting them together.

Every one of you watched the ink on your skin turn red after Luke took his thumb away, signaling that you two were soulmates. You couldn't stop yourself from tearing up, understandably worrying Luke.

_Were you disappointed that_ **_he_ ** _was your soulmate? Did you wish it was one of the_ **_other_ ** _boys? Were you going to run out of the apartment and pretend tonight never even_ **_happened_ ** _?_

But all his worries were silenced the moment your hand was back on his neck and you were pulling his face to yours. Luke let out a breath of surprise when his lips hit yours, but his own hand returned to your hip while his other landed on your cheek. He felt you smile into the kiss, making him smile as well until both of you were smiling so big, you had to pull away.

Luke put his forehead on yours while he started rubbing your hipbone, feeling your fingers dig into his neck gently. Both of you were breathing heavily and smiling at each other when another moment of realization hit Ashton.

"Wait..." he said with wide eyes, "I was  _right_? Your soulmate  _is_  one of us?"

"There's a first time for  _everything_ ," Michael shrugged, earning a shove to the shoulder from Ashton.

"Come on, you two," Calum chuckled under his breath as he ushered his friends toward the doorway, "We should give the  _soulmates_  a moment alone."

As the boys were leaving the room, Luke surprised you by wrapping his arms around your waist and lifting you off of your feet. Your arms wound around his neck to steady yourself, giggling in his ear when he spun you around. He mumbled for you to pick your legs up and wrap them around his waist, sitting down on the front edge of the couch when you did so.

When he moved back slightly, you did as well, looking at each other once again. Your arms remained around his neck while his hands moved to your cheeks, holding you firmly as he began speaking so you knew he was being serious with you.

"Nothing like that is  _ever_  going to happen to you again, do you understand me?" he said softly, "That bastard will never be able to touch you again; I won't  _let him_."

"I know," you whispered, barely smiling at him. Luke tilted your head downward so he could press a kiss to your forehead, leaving his lips there for a moment before pulling away.

"I love you," he swallowed thickly, "I know we  _just_  found out we're soulmates, but we've known each other for four years and... I have been so  _hopelessly_  in love with you since the moment I  _met you_... And I don't want to keep it a  _secret_  anymore... I want you and my friends and every single person on this entire  _planet_  to know that I am in love with the most  _beautiful_  thing I have ever laid my eyes on – scars and all." You were glad Luke's hands were covering your cheeks because you  _knew_  you were blushing like crazy.

You moved your left hand back to his neck while your right hand slid down until your forearm was resting on his stomach and the fingers of your right hand started playing with the area of his shirt over his heart. He felt your nails scratching through the fabric on his chest, making him smile as he moved his left hand down to your hip, his right hand remaining where it was on your cheek.

"I love you, Lu," you whispered, part of you worried he wouldn't say it back even though he'd  _just_  confessed his feelings for you. The smile on Luke's face was undeniable as he leaned forward, letting his lips meet yours again.

"And I love  _you_ , baby girl," he murmured into the kiss, feeling you kiss him  _harder_.

~

_inspiration: http://aplaceforrtprompts.tumblr.com/post/156023962244/could-i-mayyybe-get-a-treyco-x-reader-soulmate-au_


	438. Reasons I Love You (Ashton Irwin) - Part 1

Gunnar wasn't the  _greatest_  boyfriend in the world – he would constantly forget dates, make  _you_  pay for  _everything_  when you  _did_  go out, and ditch Saturday plans with you to hang out with his friends – but he was still  _yours_  and you cared about him more than  _anything_.

So it was no surprise that you  _immediately_  ran into the bathroom crying when you got to school and found him making out with another girl at his locker.

You had actually been  _excited_  to go to school that day – it was the one-year anniversary of when you and Gunnar officially became boyfriend and girlfriend, so you got him a nice gift in honor of it. It was just a simple little book of ' _Reasons I Love You_ ' that you'd made yourself – it admittedly wasn't as nice as you  _wanted_  to get him since you didn't exactly have your  _own_  source of income – but it was as nice as you could get with the money your parents allowed you to have to buy the things to make it.

You held it tightly in your hands after pulling it out of your backpack, closing your locker door and making your way to where Gunnar's locker was to give it to him. You were nervous about whether or not he would like it – he wasn't a particularly  _sentimental_  kind of guy – but you were sure it'd still make him smile.

But the moment you turned the corner and his locker came into view, your heart  _dropped_.

There he was, your boyfriend of one year, making out with some girl you'd never even  _seen_  before.

You didn't know what to  _do_  at first – you just stood there frozen – but when you came out of it and realized people were staring at you, you quickly went in the opposite direction toward the bathrooms. There were already a few girls in there – all of them standing at the mirror – so you kept your head down as you passed them.

You dropped Gunnar's present in the trash can before locking yourself in the last stall, your palm pressed to your mouth as you sat yourself down on the toilet seat so they didn't know you were crying.

You knew  _Gunnar_  didn't care about  _you_  the way  _you_  cared about  _him_  – God knows you were the only one actually  _trying_  – but it wasn't like any other guys were  _pining_  for your attention. You were a  _nobody_  in the eyes of everyone else and you may not be bullied every single day of your life, but you knew your place and you knew that it was as an  _unmemorable_  part of the student body.

Your plan at that point was to just wait out the crowded hallways – and if that meant arriving to class a couple minutes late,  _so be it_  – but you were  _definitely_  not leaving that bathroom stall any time  _soon_.

You began hearing gasps outside, but you didn't leave the bathroom, your curiosity being undermined by the fact that  _all_  you wanted to do in that moment was cry.

Unfortunately, your plan didn't  _exactly_  pan out the way you'd hoped.

You heard the squeaks of shoes on the linoleum floor get louder as whoever was running got closer to the bathroom. You didn't think much of it at first – maybe someone just  _really_  had to go – but you jumped lightly when people started speaking.

"What are  _you_  doing in here?!" one of the girls shrieked from where she stood at the mirror with her friends.

" _Out_ ," a male voice said roughly, making the girls quickly gather up their things and scurry out of the restroom. You held your breath, your mind racing at all the possible reasons a  _guy_  would be in the  _girl's_  bathroom.

Once all the girls were out, the guy came further into the room. You heard the distinct sound of the buckles on a leather jacket clinking against each other as he walked, looking at the bottoms of the stall doors as he searched for feet.

And your heart started racing; You only knew  _one person_  who wore leather jackets to school.

"Y/N?" Ashton murmured when he found your feet in the last stall, "Are you okay?" You let out a short hum, but he could tell you weren't being honest with him. "Can you come out?" he asked, "Please?" You were silent, making him sigh. "Y/N, I  _will_  crawl under this door," he threatened.

You frowned, but when you didn't make a sound  _again_ , you heard Ashton huff sharply. He stepped toward the door and you could see his shadow get lower, making you jump up from the toilet seat.

" _Fine_!" you squeaked softly as you unlocked the door and pulled it open, " _I'm out_!" Ashton stood back upright, smiling gently at you.

You closed your eyes and took a deep breath when he reached up and wiped the tears off of your cheeks, swallowing thickly as you exhaled. Sure, you had a crush on him, but then again...  _Everyone did_.

Ashton Irwin  _certainly_  wasn't in the same social class as you, so it was obvious that people gravitated toward him. He was the school's troublemaker, but everyone  _loved him_. The only people with a bad thing to say about Ashton were the ones who had the misfortune of suffering his wrath when they pissed him off and those who were simply just  _jealous_.

You never thought that Ashton  _noticed you_  around school, let alone would come to see if you were okay after something like catching your boyfriend cheating on you.

"Are you okay?" Ashton asked again lowly once he'd gotten rid of all your tears. And you didn't know why, but you couldn't force yourself to lie to him.

"No," you whispered, "But I'll probably live."

" _Probably_?" he cocked an eyebrow, earning himself a small shrug.

"Wouldn't be the  _first_  time I've cried in a school bathroom and I'm sure it won't be the  _last_ ," you replied. You were understandably confused by the brief look of sadness on his face, but since he'd brushed it off so quickly, you decided not to mention it.

"Let me walk you to class," he said.

"Ashton, you don't ha-"

"I  _want to_ ," he insisted. You looked at him for a moment before caving.

"Okay," you said so quietly that he almost didn't hear it.

Without warning, Ashton grabbed your hand and started pulling you out of the bathroom. You struggled to keep up at first, but he slowed to a pace that allowed you to walk beside him, tangling your fingers together as you found yourself approaching Gunnar's locker.

All eyes were on you at this point, but you thought you'd be able to get by your boyfriend – err...  _ex-boyfriend_...? – without him saying anything.

But, of course, you were  _wrong_.

"What the hell is  _this_?" Gunnar asked, making Ashton stop dead in his tracks.

You yelped softly as you were yanked back since his hand was still holding yours. Ashton pulled you behind him slightly, his hand still keeping a firm grip on your own, as he narrowed his eyes at the boy in front of him.

"What the hell does it  _look like_?" Ashton returned – and it was then that you noticed the bruise underneath Gunnar's left eye.

You had no idea why he was defending you – you'd never even  _talked_  to him before today – but you weren't going to lie and say you weren't incredibly curious as to where this confrontation was going.

"It  _looks like_  I'm just finding out my girlfriend is cheating on me with a Hot Topic model reject," he shot back. You furrowed your eyebrows at the insult – if you could even  _call it_  that – as Ashton immediately fired back.

"I don't think I need to remind anybody that she's not the type of  _disgusting excuse of a person_  that would cheat on someone –  _unlike you_ ," he grumbled, "And as far as  _I'm_  concerned, I would start getting used to calling her your  _ex-girlfriend_  because if I  _ever_  catch you trying talk to her again, I'm gonna do a lot worse to you than  _that_ -" He nodded his head to his black eye, inadvertently letting you know that  _Ashton_  had been the one to inflict the bruise.

"I'm sorry; I was unaware that my relationship with my  _girlfriend_  included  _you_  now," Gunnar laughed bitterly, clearly taunting him, "And I would  _hardly_  consider what you did  _justified_  seeing as you had  _no reason_ to do it."

"Ashton doesn't  _hit people_  without a  _reason_ , Gunnar," you reminded him softly, finally speaking.

"I was talking to Ashton,  _babe_  – not you," he said shortly, and you knew he was only giving you a pet name – something he  _never_  did – because  _Ashton_  was there.

You felt Ashton squeeze your hand and in the split second that his opposite arm was coming up, your free hand shot across his stomach in front of him to grab his wrist. His hand was balled up into a fist, but it quickly relaxed when you slid your own hand down and laced your fingers together in order to keep him from doing something stupid.

" _Don't talk to her again_ ," you heard Ashton growl as you pulled him away from the situation.

When you got him what you considered to be far enough away, you released one of his hands so you could continue pulling him along more comfortably. You took him to a hallway you knew was low-traffic in the morning, happy to find it was a ghost town when you turned the corner. You let out a soft breath, releasing Ashton's hand and leaning up again some random person's locker.

Your eyes were closed as you took a moment to process everything that had just happened. But it wasn't long after letting go that you felt hands return to your cheeks. You opened your eyes again to find Ashton looking at you intently.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"You've asked me that like,  _three_ times already," you said softly, the corner of your mouth twitching slightly.

"I know," he nodded, barely smiling back at you, "I just want to make  _sure_."

"I'm fine, Ashton," you sighed.

"No, you're  _not_ ," he called your bluff, making you laugh under your breath.

"I  _will be_ ," you assured him, "Eventually." You noticed Ashton glance at the clock at the other end of the hallway, seeing there were only a few minutes before class started.

"I'll walk you to class," he said, just as he'd done earlier, and you didn't bother trying to protest that time.

You pushed yourself off of the locker as Ashton's hand found yours again, taking you the long way around so you wouldn't have to go back past Gunnar. He held you close to him, ignoring the second glances the two of you got as people were making sure they really  _were_  seeing the two of you together.

After getting your books from your locker, Ashton walked you down the hallway to your first class of the day. His voice stopped you from going inside though.

"If you need anything, my locker's right beside Mrs. Scranton's room," he told you. You gave him a genuine smile, surprising him when you reached up and pressed your lips to the middle of his cheek.

"Thanks, Ashton," you said softly as you pulled back. He looked at you with a blank stare for a moment before he shyly leaned down, kissing your cheekbone as well.

"See you at lunch," he murmured against your skin, scurrying away before you noticed the blush on his cheeks – you  _did_ , of course.

And you didn't realize it, but Ashton looked over his shoulder as you entered the classroom, allowing him to see your bottom lip caught between your teeth and the bright pink tint on your cheeks.

~

_inspiration: https://imaginescake.tumblr.com/post/165606281937/luke-hemmings_


	439. Reasons I Love You (Ashton Irwin) - Part 2

_requested by perfectcuddlesize on tumblr_

~

**Three days later; After school**

Three days of personal pep talks and promising yourself you wouldn't back out led to this moment.

It was a rainy Friday afternoon – everyone was packing up to go home for the weekend, but you were going in the completely opposite direction of your locker. You weren't exactly sure how you were going to do it, but you knew you were going to – officially – break up with Gunnar. You hadn't spoken to each other since you caught him cheating – much to Ashton's pleasure – but you knew you'd  _have to_  if you ever wanted to break up with him.

The closer you got to his locker, the more you felt your heart beating in your throat. You were understandably nervous – he had a lot of friends and he wasn't going to leave them even if you asked. But as you rounded the corner and found him with his usual group as well as the girl you'd seen him kissing only a couple days ago, you felt a little better – it suddenly felt a little easier breaking up with someone who had no  _remorse_  for hurting you.

"Gunnar," you said softly, making him look at you as you cleared your throat, "We need to talk."

"I agree," he nodded, "You've been avoiding me."

"What?" you furrowed your eyebrows. You were growing a little self-conscious of all the eyes on you, but it was like the confusion drowned it all out.

"Whenever I see you, you just keep walking – don't even say hi anymore," he stated, "I'm just wondering why."

" _You_  could say hi to  _me_  too," you reminded him, "You don't have to  _wait for me_  to acknowledge you."

"I'll remember that for next time," he said. You only sighed – you knew he wasn't going to take it to heart. "What did-" Gunnar was cut off by someone walking up behind you, but you didn't need to look at them to know who it was – the sound of his leather jacket gave it away.

"What did I tell you about talking to her?" Ashton asked through gritted teeth. You felt him put his hand on the side of your waist.

" _She_  came over  _here_ ," Gunnar spat back, "So why don't you just skip back over to your friends and leave us alone, Irwin? Oh, wait – I forgot; You don't  _have any_." He let out a dry laugh and then turned back to you. "What did you need me for,  _babe_?" he asked. You sighed again softly – you really didn't want there to be a scene, but you didn't really have a  _choice_  now.

"I..." you swallowed thickly, "I wanna break up." Gunnar's jaw dropped slightly while the corner of Ashton's mouth curled into a smirk as you felt him squeeze you gently.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" he shook off the expression and let out another dry laugh, "It sounded like you just said something stupid." You knew he heard you the first time, but you repeated yourself anyway.

"I said I wanna break up," you said more confidently despite the fact that your voice was shaking. The smile disappeared from Gunnar's mouth and he narrowed his eyes.

"You're a pathetic little  _nobody_  without me, Y/N," he shot at you with a menacing tone, " _No one_  in this school is going to give you the attention  _I did_." Ashton opened his mouth to defend you, but your voice made him stay quiet.

" _What attention_?" you shook your head, "The attention you gave me by canceling every plan I tried to make? The attention you gave me by ignoring my calls and texts when I'm just asking how you're  _doing_? The attention you give me by not putting  _any_  effort into our relationship for the past  _year_? I  _hope_  no one gives me that kind of attention! Being single for the rest of my ' _pathetic_ ' life would be  _much_  better than being  _stuck_  with someone like  _you_!" You ended your rant by walking away, leaving everyone surprised by what you'd said. You'd never particularly been the kind of person to stand up for themselves, so they were understandably surprised.

The smirk on Ashton's face only grew  _bigger_  the longer Gunnar stood in shock. But as much as he wanted to stay and enjoy the show, he wanted to go after you  _more_. For good measure, though, he  _did_  shove your ex-boyfriend up against his locker, his knuckles turning white from how tight the fist holding the top of his shirt was.

"You better hope I  _never_  hear you talking about her like that again," he threatened, shoving him one more time before spinning around on his heels and jogging in the direction you'd gone in.

Ashton found you at your locker, your forehead rested on the metal as your hand gripped the padlock. He could tell your fingers weren't putting in the combination though, and your back was visibly rising and falling as you tried to catch your breath. He didn't know why you hadn't gone to the bathroom like you'd done three days prior – the day you found out Gunnar had been cheating on you – but he was glad he didn't have to kick any girls out of the restroom again.

He came up behind you and wrapped his arms around your waist, feeling you jump. But when he started speaking into your ear, he couldn't ignore the fact that you relaxed  _instantly_.

"M'proud of you, you know," Ashton told you, resting his chin on your shoulder with his cheek pressed to your neck.

"For what?" you asked softly, not moving your forehead from your locker.

"Finally standing up to that selfish prick." He felt you breathe out sharply as you barely smiled.

"Thanks," you whispered.

You finally lifted your head up and turned around in Ashton's arms, wiggling your own around his waist and forcing his to move up to your shoulders. You buried your face in his shirt, smiling again when you felt his lips on the side of your forehead.

"You okay?" he asked lowly, both of you ignoring the questioning looks the other students strewn about the hallway were giving you.

"Jus' need a hug," you murmured so quietly that he almost didn't catch it – but you knew he did when you felt his grip tighten.

"You need a ride home?" Ashton mumbled after a few moments.

"No," you whispered, but he clearly wasn't having it.

"Y/N, I know you walk to school," he insisted, "Any other time, I'd accept your answer, but it's been pouring rain  _all day_."

"Maybe I  _like_  walking home in the pouring rain," you couldn't help but smile, smiling bigger when you felt him squeeze you again.

"Do you  _really_  wanna walk home in the pouring rain?" he asked. He felt you chuckle softly and give him a soft ' _no_ ' as you released your hold on him, his arms falling back to his sides as you turned to get your things from your locker.

When you turned back to face him a couple minutes later, he had a small smirk on his face, knowing he'd won. You rolled your eyes, shoving his shoulder so he turned in the direction of where the student parking lot was so he could drive you home.

~

**Ashton's POV; A few days later**

Ashton couldn't tell you why, but something about your relationship with Gunnar was really bugging him. Your ex-boyfriend clearly didn't care about you – as was evident by the way he blatantly cheated on you in front of everyone – but no... There was something  _else_... And it was really starting to get on his nerves that he  _couldn't_  figure it out.

One day after school – after he had already walked you outside so you could go home – Ashton decided to confront your ex. Neither of you had talked to him since the day you broke up with him, but Ashton was sure that if he didn't get answers  _soon_ , he was going to  _lose it_. So that was what he did.

"Hutchins," Ashton barked as he approached the boy standing outside with his group of friends before they all went home.

"What  _now_ , Irwin?" Gunnar rolled his eyes.

"You and I need to have a chat about Y/N," he stated.

"I haven't spoken to her since last week," he replied, understandably thinking that's why Ashton was confronting him.

"That's not what this is about," Ashton grumbled, "Why the hell did you ask her out  _at all_? You didn't even  _want her_."

"Because  _you did_ ," he smirked, "Everyone  _knows_  you like her and to be able to be the person  _preventing you_ from  _having her_? It feels  _so good_  – almost as good as when she was underneath me, moa-"

Ashton suddenly grabbed the collar of Gunnar's shirt, holding it tightly against his neck so it was a little harder for him to breathe. People's heads snapped over when he shoved your ex-boyfriend  _hard_  against the wall, their eyes widening as they clearly heard him gasp for air every now and then.

" _This is the last time I'm gonna tell you, Hutchins_ ," Ashton growled lowly so only Gunnar heard it, "I've had no problem sending someone to the hospital before, and I can  _promise_  you, I  _won't_  regret doing the same to  _you_. You're  _done_  with Y/N, do you understand me? You're not going to talk to her, you're not going to look at her, you're not going to think about her, and you're sure as  _hell_  never going to  _touch her_  again, got it? If she tells me you're giving her any problems again, this picture-" He pushed his fist up against Gunnar's neck, making him gasp again. "-won't end with you  _walking away_ , are we clear?" In a fit of stubbornness – or  _stupidity_ , depending on who you asked – Gunnar refused to speak, making Ashton grin mischievously. "I'm sorry," he shook his head, "You're gonna have to speak up;  _I can't hear you_." He pushed on his throat again, finally causing him to cave.

" _Fine_!" Gunnar choked out as best he could, " _We're clear_!" Ashton finally released his grip and Gunnar's hand flew up to his neck as he coughed. He looked up as Ashton gave him an innocent looking smile.

"It was nice talking to you," he said sweetly before walking away, leaving everyone in shock while your ex caught his breath.

~

**Your POV; Three months later**

You were sitting on the couch in Ashton's living room one Saturday evening, watching a show he  _insisted_  you would love. You two had been hanging out a lot since what happened with your ex and you could honestly say it was a nice change.

Ashton was  _much_  more considerate than Gunnar – he would always text you to let you know if he couldn't make it when you planned on hanging out, he went out of his way to take you to places, events, and restaurants he knew you liked or  _thought_  you would like, and he wasn't afraid of people hearing his nicknames for you at school.

You couldn't remember  _exactly_  when it started, but Ashton had started giving you nicknames not long after you broke up with your ex. It began with the playful nicknames of ' _loser_ ' and ' _nerd_ ' but quickly turned into ' _princess_ ' and ' _baby girl_ ' – not that you  _minded_ , of course. It honestly made getting over your ex a lot easier having someone like Ashton – someone who  _actually_  cared about you – there for you.

"How was that episode, princess?" Ashton asked you. You scrunched your face up, letting out a long, high-pitched sigh. " _Come on_!" he frowned, "That was the best episode in the whole  _series_!"

"It wasn't  _bad_ , Ash," you tried reassuring him, "I just... _didn't_   _like it_  that much..."

"But we're like, two seasons in – why do you keep watching it if you don't like it?"

"'Cause  _you_  like it," you said softly, looking down at your lap shyly. You felt his eyes on you and even though you weren't looking at him, you could still tell he was blushing.

It was silent for a moment until he finally spoke again.

"I'll give you attention..." Ashton murmured randomly, "I'll give you all the attention you never got with that douche and  _more_  if you want it... When you're  _ready_ , I mean..."

"Ash..." you said softly as you finally met his eyes again. He furrowed his eyebrows at the smile on your face. "I'm ready when you are," you assured him.

And he didn't hold himself back anymore.

He put one hand on your cheek, pulling your face to his. He felt your lips curl into a smile as you giggled into his mouth, but he felt absolutely no hesitation in you kissing him back.

You started out beside him, your hand on his opposite thigh to stabilize yourself, but Ashton apparently didn't think that was good enough. You felt his other hand latch onto the fabric of your shirt covering your hip, holding it tightly in his fist and he pulled you onto his lap.

Ashton felt you giggle again, pecking his lips right after pulling away to breathe.

"You're so  _desperate_ ," you teased him.

"I've waited a  _long time_  for this moment, baby girl," he informed you without hesitation.

" _Really_?" you smirked, letting your forearms rest on his shoulders so you could play with his hair, " _How long_?"

"Long  _enough_ ," he stated, leaning forward to kiss you again.

~

_inspiration: https://imaginescake.tumblr.com/post/165606281937/luke-hemmings_

_inspiration for that one part in the middle: http://calumsbagel.tumblr.com/post/152630119868/prompt-list-challenge-10-shes-mine-ch_


	440. Reasons I Love You (Ashton Irwin) - Part 3

**Four months later; Winter break**

You came to learn that Ashton was an incredibly affectionate person and he kissed you every chance he got, but you soon pieced together that he was going  _out of his way_  to make sure he kissed you when  _Gunnar_  was around. You never knew Gunnar to be the jealous type – even when it came to dating you – but you'd be lying if you said Ashton's antics getting a rise out of your ex-boyfriend didn't amuse you. Though, you would still giggle into Ashton's mouth and playfully remind him that it was starting to look like  _he_  was more jealous than your  _ex_ , but Ashton would lovingly roll his eyes and poke your sides and kiss you again before walking you to your next class – even throwing you over his shoulder if you were heading to the cafeteria for lunch.

~

It was winter break and you had just arrived at Ashton's house. It wasn't  _completely_  unannounced – you'd told him you'd be stopping by, you just didn't tell him what time – so he grinned brightly when he opened the front door and found you standing there with your hands behind your back. You were shivering lightly due to the cool weather mixed with the fact that it was raining, causing him to quickly usher you inside.

You immediately took off your shoes – something Anne always insisted you didn't need to do but hey: why wear shoes when you didn't have to? You went to hug Ashton, but he chuckled instead.

"Aren't you gonna take off your coat?" he asked, pulling at the fabric on your shoulder.

"I'm cold," you pouted, making him laugh again.

"I'll keep you warm," he winked. You rolled your eyes but let him take off the coat anyway – careful not to let him see what was behind your back – watching him hang it up before he took your hand and led you to where he'd been sitting and watching TV.

"Where is everybody?" you asked, sitting down on the front edge of the couch while Ashton plopped down beside you.

"They went out," he shrugged, leaning back against the cushion, "Mum said something about needing a cake and I guess Lauren and Harry decided to go with her."

"What's the cake for?" you asked, trying hard to keep a straight face but knowing you were failing when Ashton smiled.

"Princess," he raised his eyebrows.

"Okay, so I know what the cake's for," you shrugged, making him laugh again, "And speaking of which, I know you said not to get you anything, but I couldn't  _not_  do something."

" _Princess_ ," he repeated with a sigh – he'd been  _adamant_  about the fact that he didn't want presents this year from  _anyone_.

"It's your  _birthday_ , Ash!" you pouted, "You would do the  _same thing_  if it were  _mine_!" He sighed in response, knowing you were right. "I didn't buy anything," you promised, "Well, I did  _kinda_ , but that's just because I didn't have everything to make it."

"You  _made_  me something?" he asked curiously.

" _Spoilers_!" you gasped obnoxiously.

Ashton watched you finally pull up what you'd kept hidden behind you since you got there: a medium-sized gift bag. You put it on the couch next to you as Ashton sat up. He smiled at the excited grin on your face, eagerly waiting for him to open it.

He pulled the tissue paper off of the top and reached in, pulling out a photo album. It had a picture of you and Ashton in the display window on the front that Lauren had taken while you were over one night a couple months ago. He smiled slightly, looking back up at you.

"What's this?" he asked.

"I can't  _tell you_! It'll ruin it!" you insisted. He chuckled once more, looking back down and opening the book.

It was just a collection of pictures of you and Ashton throughout your relationship so far – the ones that made him laugh  _most_  were the ones where you'd poorly drawn moments you didn't have pictures for. Underneath each photo was a simple caption – one read ' _I love your smile in this one_ ' and ' _I love the way the light looks on your face_ ' was with another. But Ashton didn't  _fully_  understand the captions until he got to the last page that was done.

It was a picture of the two of you at the fair and you'd asked some random person to take the photo for you – the sun was just starting to set and the Ferris wheel was in the background and Ashton's arm was wrapped securely around your waist while your arms were around his neck and you were kissing his cheek. But the thing that caught Ashton's eye was the caption along with it: ' _I love you_ '.

Ashton felt his heart skip a beat when he read the words, his eyes flicking back up to you. You were chewing on your bottom lip nervously, your eyes watching him carefully to gauge his reaction.

"You love me...?" he asked softly. But he figured that must not have been the reaction you were hoping for when he heard you let out a sharp breath.

"It's too soon, isn't it?" you swallowed, shaking your head, "I  _knew_  you weren't gonna like it. I shouldn't have made it. It was a stupid ide-"

Ashton cut you off by grabbing your chin and pulling your face to his, smashing your lips together. He felt you lose your breath, but you still kissed him back. He put the photo album down and reached for your hand, tugging you onto his lap.

"I love you too," Ashton murmured against your mouth, causing you to pull away after you wrapped your legs around his waist to be more comfortable.

"You do?" you choked out, completely convincing yourself you hadn't heard him right.

"Why  _wouldn't_  I?" he smiled softly, squeezing your hand and sliding his other to your cheek.

"'Cause... I don't know... It's only been four months..."

"But we've  _known each other_  for nearly a year now," he reminded you, "And if we're being  _totally_  honest, I've had a thing for you since we first had a class together." You thought back to that day in freshman year, trying to remember what happened that would make him develop a crush on you without even knowing you yet – and when you  _did_ , your eyes widened.

"You mean when you transferred to my Biology class the same day we had to dissect a frog and I passed out and spent the rest of class in the nurse's office?" you asked,  _hoping_  you were wrong despite knowing you weren't.

"Kind of," Ashton chuckled, moving his hand off of your face and releasing your hand so he could wind his arms around your waist.

"' _Kind of_ '?" you questioned, giggling when he pulled your body against his, wrapping your own arms around his neck so your forearms were resting on his shoulders and your fingers could play with the ends of his hair. He pecked your nose, making you grin slightly.

"It wasn't the actual  _moment_  you passed out that I knew I was in trouble," he told you, his fingers messing with the back hem of your shirt, "Mrs. Phillips asked me to carry you to the nurse's office and, honestly, I didn't think I could do it at first because I was so worried about you, I was  _shaking_ -" He let out a breathy giggle. "-but I  _did_ , and your head was on my shoulder and your hair smelled really good and it just felt nice to hold you and I realized as I was walking back to class that it made me seem really creepy to think all that about someone whose name I only knew because everyone in class started panicking about you collapsing and trying to wake you up, but –  _God, Y/N_  – I  _knew_  in that moment that I was going to fall in love with you someday."

You felt a smile start pulling at the corner of your mouth, sliding one of your arms down so your forearm was now resting on his chest and your hand was on his cheek, your thumb running back and forth on his cheekbone. Ashton leaned into your touch, smiling himself when your lips hit his once again.

"So, I noticed there are some blank pages after that last one," Ashton mentioned, after you both pulled away for a proper breath, "Does that mean you're going to finish out the album as we take more pictures or are you going to make  _me_  do it?"

You giggled softly, "We can do it  _together_." He hummed in content, happy with the answer, as you went on, "But maybe for the next round of photos, you can list all the reasons  _you_  love  _me_  under them." The smirk on your face made his own mischievous grin grow, his hands instantly coming up to your sides to start tickling you.

"How about I start right now then?" he said in the midst of your squeals and squirming, "I love how you try to get away when I tickle you even though you know it's not going to happen." He continued tickling you. "I love when I make you laugh so hard you stop making actual sounds." He finally stopped, holding your waist for a moment as you calmed down, only to bring his hands up to your cheeks so his thumbs could wipe away your tears. "I love that the only tears I see from you anymore are  _because_  you're laughing so hard," he said, his voice softer than it had been previously. You smiled again, but he didn't really take it in before pulling your face back to his. "I love you, princess," he told you, his voice muffled slightly against your lips.

"I love  _you_ , Ash," you returned.


	441. Breakdown (Cody Carson)

_requested by my boi alycia_  

~

You were driving home after visiting one of your friends in a nearby town when you saw a car's hazard lights flashing up ahead. It was nearing 5am when your headlights illuminated the boy sitting on the ground against the driver's side door.

When he saw your headlights out of the corner of his eye, he immediately jumped up and began waving for you to pull over.

You thought about leaving him there – picking up a stranger in the middle of the night was something your parents always warned you  _not_  to do – but you knew you would have felt guilty if you  _didn't_. There were no other cars on the road at this time and you knew he must have been waiting for at least an hour or two. You looked at him up and down and he didn't  _look_  like a threat, so you decided to stop and help him.

When you pulled off to the side behind his car you could visibly see him let out a huge sigh of relief.

"Are you okay?" you asked after rolling down your window and leaning out slightly, not wanting to get out of the car just in case. The boy could sense your caution, so he stayed where he was, not wanting to scare you off.

"My car broke down," he sighed, "And I was going to call my friend, but my phone is dead."

"You are just  _not_  having a good night, are you?"

He laughed, "No, it's the  _best_." You looked at him for a moment before nodding your head toward your passenger seat.

"Come on," you told him, "I've got a charger you can use."

"Really?" he seemed surprised.

You nodded and he hurried over to the door while you were getting your charger out of your glove box. He sat down, waiting for you to hook everything up. Once you did, you handed him the cord and as he was plugging it into his phone, you finally looked up and got a good look at him, honestly a bit surprised by what you saw.

" _Cody_?" you asked. He shot you a confused glance.

" _Yes_..." he replied, "Do we know each other?" Your eyes widened, realizing how creepy that must have sounded.

" _No_!  _Sorry_!" you squeaked, "I'm a fan!"

" _You are_? Okay," he sighed again, "I feel a little less weird about this whole thing now."

"Same," you giggled, "Now I know you're not some crazy serial killer."

"Hey, I still could be," he grinned.

"What are you doing here?" you asked, "Isn't the band's show tonight in (a city 3 hours away from you lmao)?" When he nodded, you furrowed your eyebrows at him. "You know you're like,  _three hours_  away, right?"

"I  _am_?" Cody groaned softly.

"What are you doing all the way out  _here_?"

"There was traffic on the interstate," he frowned.

" _Cody_ ," you shook your head.

"I  _know_!" he whined, "I know I shouldn't have gotten off, but I was lost and I thought if I found a McDonald's, I could use their wifi and get directions. But my phone died right as I got on the exit and I couldn't exactly go  _back_ , so I just kept driving and ended up getting even  _more_  lost and then my rental broke down and I've been stuck here for like, two and a half hours."

"You guys got a rental car?"

" _I_  did," he replied softly, "I just wanted to drive around for a while and get away from everything."

"Well, you certainly succeeded in  _getting away_ ," you commented, making him laugh loudly in agreement. "You got everything you brought with you out of the car?" you asked him. He nodded and you pulled your phone out of your pocket, holding it out to him. He gave you another confused expression. "I'm sure your bandmates are worried, so you can call or text them while your phone is charging," you explained, "And when the rental place opens, you can call them and tell them the situation so they can have it towed back."

"But how am  _I_  supposed to get back?" he cocked an eyebrow, taking your phone from you.

"How would you feel about going on a road trip with someone you just met 10 minutes ago?" you proposed.

" _You're_  going to drive me three hours back to the venue?" he asked, clearly not believing you.

You simply shrugged, pulling back onto the road, "I've got tickets for the show tonight anyway. I'll just hang around the city all day."

"You're  _actually_  serious?"

"Well, why not? I just have to stop for gas and go home and take a shower if that's cool." Cody sighed yet again, letting his bottom lip jut out slightly.

" _Thank you_ ," he said.

"Consider it my thanks to you and the band for everything," you told him.

You drove back to your place, taking a quick shower and blow-drying your hair as Cody watched TV in your living room. Once you were out and dressed in the outfit you'd planned on wearing to the show that night, you got everything you needed and told Cody you were ready to go.

You both hopped back into the car and headed to the gas station not far from your apartment building, ready to tackle the three hour drive ahead of you. You pulled up to the gas pump, reaching for your wallet since you always kept it in the center console when you were driving, but Cody grabbed your wrist to stop you.

"I'm buying," he stated, pulling his own wallet out of his pocket.

"Cody, I-"

"You don't have to drive me back, Y/N," he said, "But you  _are_  and I just want to say thank you for it."

"You already  _said_  thank you," you reminded him.

"And let me say it  _again_ ," he insisted. You stared at each other for a moment before you finally caved.

"Fine," you said, making him smile brightly, "But we're stopping at Starbucks before we get on the highway and you're going to let me pay,  _no buts_."

"Deal," he replied, letting go of you and getting out of the car so he could fill your tank.

~

After an hour on the road, you started realizing that your coffee wasn't doing its job. Cody looked over at you when you sighed softly, finding you clearly trying to force yourself to stay awake. He reached over and tapped your arm, making you hum since you couldn't exactly look at him.

"Let me drive," he stated simply.

"Cody-"

"You're fighting to stay awake, Y/N," he reminded you, "And your phone already has the directions on it from when we were at Starbucks. I'll be fine." You were silent for a moment before nodding slowly.

"Okay," you said softly, pulling onto the shoulder so you and Cody could switch seats.

Once you were back on the road, you were instantly asleep. Cody chuckled to himself, deciding to turn on the radio for something to pass the time until either you woke up or he made it to the venue.

~

**Two hours later**

Cody pulled into the venue parking lot, driving to the back where the bus was parked. He looked over to nudge you awake, but he stopped himself just before he touched your leg. He couldn't keep the small smile from pulling at the corners of his mouth as he looked at you – not that he would have  _wanted_  to, anyway.

Your legs were crossed on the seat, your left arm was limply lying in your lap, your right elbow was resting up against the window, and your cheek was in your palm as you snored softly.

He didn't know what it was about you – maybe it was the fact that you'd gone out of your way to make sure he made it to the venue in time for the show that night or the way the sunrise illuminating your face made you look like an  _actual_  angel – but Cody knew he was developing a crush on you. And as much as he didn't  _want_  to, he knew he had to wake you up.

"Y/N," he said softly, carefully pushing on your denim-covered thigh. You mumbled out a whine, making him smile again. "I know you're tired, but we're at the venue now and I have to go in. If you want, you can sleep for a little while longer in my bunk on the bus, but I didn't want to leave you out here alone."

"How comfortable would you say your bunk is?" you murmured, never opening your eyes.

"Compared to sleeping where you are now?" he grinned, "I'd say at least 85% more comfortable depending on how you are with tight spaces."

You sighed under your breath, lifting your head up. Your eyes fluttered open to find Cody still smiling at you.

"Come on," he said, finally cutting the engine and holding your keys out to you, "I'll show you where my bunk is."

You lazily took the keys and put them in your bag as you two got out of the car. Cody led you to the bus, climbing on first. You closed the door behind you as he was immediately met with the relieved shouts from his band mates, who were all surprisingly already awake.

" _There you are_!" Dan exclaimed, "Where the hell have you  _been_?! We've been worried  _sick_!" The boys froze when the realized you were shyly standing behind Cody – although your eyes were wide at being  _this_  close to your favorite band.

"Hi..." Zach was the first to speak to you, making you smile slightly.

"Guys, this is Y/N," Cody explained, "My rental broke down in her town last night, so she was nice enough to offer me a ride back."

"Well, thank you," Maxx said gratefully, "We were worried we'd have to cancel the show tonight. It's kinda hard to go onstage without our  _singer_." You giggled softly as Cody rolled his eyes.

" _Anyway_ ," he went on, "She's still kinda tired from the drive, so I thought we could all go inside the venue so she can sleep for a little while. Is that cool?"

"Sure, yeah!" Dan said, "It's getting kinda boring in here anyway." The boys got up, each of them giving you a hug and thanking you for bringing Cody back. The singer then led you to the small hallway.

"Here's my bunk," he said, opening one of the curtains, "Or you can sleep in one of the others if you want. I know mine's not the  _tidiest_  it could be, but at least it's better than sleeping in the cramped front seat of a car."

You smiled tiredly, "This is fine, Cody, thank you."

"You're welcome," he grinned, "Oh, and before I forget..." He went to one of the drawers in the kitchen area, pulling out a lanyard. "If you wake up and want to come into the venue, you'll need this," he said, handing you a backstage pass, "I'll try to tell everyone you're clear to be back there, but in case I don't, just show them this and you'll be good."

"Thanks," you said softly, your eyelids beginning to feel heavy again.

"Well, I, uh... I'll let you go back to sleep now," he said shyly, "See you later." He looked at you for a moment before bravely pressing a quick kiss to your cheek and hurrying outside with the other boys.

Your face started to feel hot as you stared at the door before climbing into Cody's bunk, still trying to comprehend that all of this actually  _was_  happening to you.

~

_there'll be a part two eventually_


	442. Lemonade Mouth (Calum Hood) - Part 1

 

**_DETENTION_ **

This is where it all started.

It was a Tuesday afternoon and you had been given detention for the first time in your life. It was an unlawful punishment for your  _only_  infraction of skipping first period to hide out in the supply closet and practice for the presentation you had to give later that day. But then again, the  _Principal_  was the one who found you, so... You couldn't say you were  _surprised_.

You were the first person in the detention room – the music room – and sat at the desk right in front of the teacher's. You smiled slightly when she looked up at you, but quickly pulled your homework so you didn't have to make eye contact with anybody.

Another solid two minutes passed before the next two people unlucky enough to receive detention strolled into the room. One of them sat at the desk behind you while the other went to the one two away from you. Another person came in not long after – maybe 15 seconds later – and took the seat next to you. And then, the exact moment the clock was turning to 3:30, the last student came in.

"Good afternoon, my fellow classmates," the boy announced, smiling at the teacher, "Mrs. Hughes."

"Always a pleasure, Calum," she replied with a small smile on her face.

"Hello to you too, Michael... Luke... Ashton..." he grinned at each of them as well. He paused in front of your desk, causing you to look up at him. "Girl whose name I don't know," he greeted you. You rolled your eyes and sighed lightly, looking back down at your papers while he simply plopped down in the seat beside the boy behind you.

"We got that out of our system?" Mrs. Hughes asked Calum.

"Yes, ma'am," he nodded.

"Excellent," she stood up from her seat, "Seeing as there are a couple new faces in here, I'll go over the rules. There will be no talking, no texting, no sleeping, no eating, no drinking. You break any of these rules, I add another day of detention. Are we clear? Good."

You were all startled by a strange sound coming from whatever room was above the one you were in – a restroom, if you weren't mistaken – making all of you look up. The noise happened again, and it was apparently the final straw for the music teacher.

"You know what?" Mrs. Hughes huffed, "I am going to go give Bernstein a piece of my mind! If this administration cared  _half_ as much about the  _arts_  as they do  _sports_..." Her voice trailed off as she stomped out of the room. You cocked an eyebrow at the door slamming shut before shrugging it off and getting back to your work.

"Guys," Michael stated, "This school sucks." You all looked at him for a moment – you simply remaining quiet while the other boys decided to start having a conversation.

"You must have been a  _genius_  at your old school," Calum commented, making the other two boys snicker softly.

" _Whatever_ ," he rolled his eyes, "It still sucks."

"Can you guys just be quiet before Mrs. Hughes comes back?" you murmured, directing all eyes to you, "I don't need  _more_  detention."

"Who even  _are you_?" Calum asked, still not having placed where he'd seen you before. You sighed sharply, looking over your shoulder at him.

"We have Biology together," you told him, "I  _just saw you_  in fifth period."

"Are you  _sure_?"

"Am I sure whether or not the tall guy with the blonde streaks in his hair wearing a leather jacket in the middle of September is in my Biology class?" you grumbled, turning back to your homework, "You know, now that you mention it, I  _might_  be thinking of someone else." The three boys laughed a little louder while Calum let out a small, amused breath out of his nose, crossing his arms and leaning back in his seat.

The room was quiet for a few moments until Ashton started tapping his fingers on his desktop. You tried not to let it bother you – you tried to block it out – but when the other boys got up from their desks, the distraction became too much. You looked up and watched them smile as they walked to the other side of the room – Calum going to the piano, Michael grabbing a guitar, Luke finding a cello, and Ashton made his way to the drum set.

"What are you guys doing?" you asked as they started playing, "We're gonna get in trouble."

"She didn't say we couldn't  _play music_ ," Michael reminded you.

You looked back down at your papers, subconsciously beginning to tap your foot along to the beat of Ashton's drumming. You missed Michael smile at the other three and nod toward you, all of them smiling when they noticed your foot – and you even surprised them when you started  _singing_.

_Na na na na na, na na_

_Take a look around; who would have thought we'd all be here?_  
_So let's mess around, 'cause the future is unclear_  
_We got nothing better to do; we're just trying to get through_  
_Can you hear me? Can you hear me? Yeah_

You got up from your seat, walking over to the other side of the room with the boys.

 _Let the music groove you_  
_Let the melody move you_  
_Feel the beat and just let go_  
_Get the rhythm into your soul_

 _Let the music take you anywhere it wants to_  
_When we're stuck and can't get free_  
_No matter what, we'll still be singing_

 _Come on, come on, turn up the music_  
_It's all we got; we're gonna use it_  
_Come on, come on, turn up the music_  
_Yeah_

 _All we have is now_  
_Let's make the most of this_  
_Come on, break it out_  
_So everyone can hear it_

 _They don't have to understand_  
_But we'll make 'em if we can_  
_Do you hear me? Are you with me?_  
_Yeah_

 _Let the music groove you_  
_Let the melody move you_  
_Feel the beat and just let go_  
_Get the rhythm into your soul_

 _Let the music take you anywhere it wants to_  
_When we're stuck and can't get free_  
_No matter what, we'll still be singing_

 _Come on, come on, turn up the music_  
_It's all we got, we're gonna use it_  
_Come on, come on, turn up the music_  
_Yeah_

 _Come on, come on, turn up the music_  
_It's all we got, we're gonna use it_  
_Come on, come on, turn up the music_  
_Turn up the music_

 _Let the music groove you_  
_Let the melody move you_  
_Feel the beat and just let go_  
_Get the rhythm into your soul_

 _Let the music take you anywhere it wants to_  
_When we're stuck and can't get free_  
_No matter what, we'll still be singing_

 _Come on, come on, turn up the music_  
_It's all we got, we're gonna use it_  
_Feel the beat and just let go_  
_Get the rhythm into your soul_

 _Let the music take you anywhere it wants to_  
_Come on, come on, turn up the music_  
_Yeah_

You were all grinning as the music stopped, but the smiles were immediately wiped off your face when you turned your heads and realized Mrs. Hughes had returned. Your eyes widened and you were the first person to squeak softly and hurry back to your seat.

"We were just-" Luke started before being cut off.

" _Quiet_ ," the teacher shook her head, holding her hand up, "I need to think..."

"We-"

" _Shh_!" she demanded.

The boys looked amongst each other before going back to their desks. Mrs. Hughes turned around to look at the group, the wheels in her head clearly turning.

" _You_ ," she stated, hurrying over to you, "Y/N-" She put her hands on your desk, making you jump lightly as your head snapped up to look at her. "-you have a  _beautiful_  voice!" she shrieked with a wide smile. You raised your eyebrows – that  _certainly_  wasn't the reaction you were expecting. "Your band is  _incredible_!" she said, looking at all of you.

"We're not a  _band_ ," Michael shook his head.

"We hardly even  _know each other_ ," Ashton added.

"But you were  _meant_  to play together!" she insisted, "People – they... They need to  _hear you_! That would show  _Bernstein_!" She gasped suddenly, her eyes widening in realization. "That would show Bernstein..." she said slowly before shrieking again. " _That's it_!" she exclaimed, " _Rising Star_!"

"Rising  _what_?" Michael asked, looking at you when you started speaking.

"Rising Star," you breathed, "It's a talent competition."

"Winner gets a record deal," Luke informed him.

"The bands in this school play it every year, but none of them have ever  _won_ ," Ashton said.

"Well, if none of them have ever won, there's no use in  _playing it_ , right?" Michael mentioned.

"Plus, Midnight Blackout is playing this year," you shook your head, relaying the name of your boyfriend Kyle's band, "They're  _amazing_."

"They're not  _that_  amazing," Calum mumbled under his breath.

"If they're so ' _amazing_ ', then there's no point in trying to  _beat_ them," Michael went on, "Why enter a competition we  _know_  we won't win?"

"Because you said it yourself," Mrs. Hughes smiled, " _You deserve to be heard_."

~

**The next day**

You'd received a text from Michael the  _moment_  the bell rang at the end of fifth period telling you to meet him at the local pizzeria to talk. As you were looking at your phone – your eyebrows furrowing in confusion at the text – you felt someone come up behind you.

"Think it's about the band?" Calum asked, making you jump.

Your head snapped up to look at him as he put his forearm on the tabletop beside you, leaning down. He turned his phone to you so you could see that he got the exact same message you did.

"I thought we decided there  _was_  no band," you said softly, nervous at how close he was to you.

"Don't know why else he would want  _all_  of us," he shrugged, "Ashton and Luke got the text  _before_  fifth period started. So you going?"

"Do I have a  _choice_?" you sighed, making him grin brightly as he stood back upright and began walking to the door.

"Meet me by the back doors!" he called over his shoulder, "I'll give you a ride!" You sighed again, closing you books and getting up from your chair, heading to your locker.

~

"Hey, guys!" Michael smiled widely as you and Calum entered the pizzeria, waving for you to sit with him, Ashton, and Luke. You took a seat between Luke and Ashton while Calum sat between Ashton and Michael. "Here," the blonde said, giving you both paper plates and then gesturing to the pizza in the middle of the table, "Grab a slice."

"What's this  _about_ , Michael?" you asked, wanting to get right to the point. You didn't pass up on the pizza though, taking a piece off the pan and beginning to eat it.

"Just wanted to let you guys know I signed us up for Rising Star," the blonde smiled, causing the four of you to nearly choke on your food.

" _I'm sorry_?" you questioned.

"We're not  _experienced_  enough!" Ashton reminded him.

"Which is  _also_  why I signed us up for the Halloween Bash," he nodded.

"Midnight Blackout is already playing the Halloween Bash," you shook your head.

"I know," Michael chirped, "And  _we're_  opening for them."

"How'd you pull  _that_  off?" Calum asked, taking another bite of his pizza slice.

"It's amazing what a principal will agree to if he thinks his new ' _problem student_ ' is channeling his energy into something more... _productive_."

"Messing around in  _detention_  doesn't make us a  _band_ , Mike," Luke stated.

"So we'll  _practice_!" he replied, "We can meet every day after school and use the music room!"

"Alright," you humored him, "Then what are we supposed to  _play_?"

"We could write our songs," Calum said.

" _We_?" you cocked an eyebrow, "You write music?" He simply shrugged in response.

"I don't know..." Luke said slowly, making Michael sigh.

"I don't know about you guys, but I don't wanna be some  _random face_  in a yearbook," Michael insisted, "I want people to listen to what I have to say; I wanna be  _heard_  for the first time in my life. Don't  _you guys_  want that too?" You all looked at each other for a moment.

 _Of course_  you wanted to be heard – you just didn't know how to do it – and now, Michael was presenting you with that option... And you were absolutely  _terrified_.

"Okay," Ashton stated, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a quarter, "Heads, we do it... Tails, we don't..."

The group nodded in agreement and he flicked the coin into the air, all of you watching it fall onto the table. The five of you leaned over it to see what it was.

 _Heads_.

~

_inspiration: Lemonade Mouth_

_song used: "Turn Up the Music" by Lemonade Mouth_


	443. Lemonade Mouth (Calum Hood) - Part 2

**One month later; Halloween Bash**

"I can't find her  _anywhere_ ," Calum breathed deeply from having been running throughout the school looking for any sign of you. He sat down beside Michael as he groaned.

"How are we supposed to go onstage without a  _singer_?!" he exclaimed.

"Who, Y/N?" one of the tech people for the show asked, looking over his shoulder, "She went that way-" He pointed to a hallway. "-a few minutes ago; Looked like she was gonna  _hurl_."

The boys looked at each other before jumping up and running to the bathroom. Upon reaching the entrance to the girls' restroom, the band walked through the doorway, but not into the room itself.

"Y/N?" Michael called out, "You in there?" They heard water running but as they listened closer, they could hear heavy breathing as well; And they knew you were there.

"Y/N!" Calum let out a sigh, "I'm coming in!"

" _Calum_!" the other boys hissed under their breaths, unable to stop him before he was entering the bathroom.

"Hey, Elyse," Calum smiled at the girl washing her hands. She simply sighed, drying her hands.

"I don't wanna know," she shook her head as she passed him, leaving him alone with you. He leaned down to look underneath all the stall doors, springing back upright when he found your feet and quickly going to the door.

"Hey, Y/N," he said softly, knocking on the stall door, "How are you feeling?"

"Like I... Like I'm gonna  _throw up_..." you choked out. Calum swallowed thickly at hearing the obvious strain in your voice – a telltale signal to him that you'd been crying. "I just... I-I think it would b-be best if I- if I didn't go out there beca-because Kyle...and I-I  _can't_..." you trailed off. His jaw tightened slightly at the mention of your now  _ex_ -boyfriend – he'd broken up with you when he found out  _you_  were in the band cutting his set in half at the dance – but it loosened before he started talking to you again.

"Come on, Y/N..." he murmured, "I know you're scared, but we've rehearsed these songs  _non-stop_  for the last month; We  _know_  them. And the boys and I will be  _right_   _out there_  with you. We  _believe_  in you...  _I_  believe in you..."

The room was silent for a moment before Calum heard the lock on the door squeak, signaling that you were coming out. You opened the stall door slowly, allowing him to finally see you. He took your face in his hands and wiped your tears, smiling at you when he was done.

"We gonna do this?" he asked softly.

"We... We should go out there before- before I change my mind..." you breathed, making him chuckle lowly.

He pressed a kiss to your forehead before releasing your face and taking your hand, pulling you out of the bathroom. The other boys cheered when they noticed Calum pulling you along with him, happy that you'd agreed to perform.

The business of the gym died down the  _moment_  you all walked onto the stage. You jumped when a spotlight suddenly came on, causing you to squint at the brightness of it. People started whispering amongst each other so you couldn't understand what they were saying, but you  _did_  understand  _one_  of them.

"Nice costumes,  _losers_!" Kyle hollered with a snicker, "Did  _Mommy_  help you get dressed?!"

You found yourself looking over your shoulder to where Calum was stood on the stage by Ashton's drums. He smiled reassuringly as he started playing the keyboard, and you took in a shaky breath as you turned back to the microphone in front of you.

**_[Y/N]_ **

_Trying hard to fight these tears, I'm crazy worried_   
_Messing with my head, this fear, I'm so sorry_   
_You know you gotta get it out, I can't take it_   
_That's what being friends about_

The room was quiet again, everyone looking around – and you noticed Kyle let out an obnoxious yawn – but you didn't dwell on it too much as Ashton, Michael, and Luke joined in with their instruments.

_I, I wanna cry, I can't deny_   
_Tonight, I wanna up and hide and get inside_   
_It isn't right; I gotta live in my life_

_I know I, I know I, I know I gotta do it_   
_I know I, I know I_

**_[All]_ **

_I know I gotta do it!_

**_[Y/N]_ **

_Gotta turn the world into your dance floor_   
_Determinate, d-determinate_   
_Push until you can't and then demand more_   
_Determinate, d-determinate_   
_You and me together, we can make it better_   
_Gotta turn the world into your dance floor_   
_Determinate, d-determinate_

You couldn't help but smile as the students – aside from Kyle's group, obviously – were starting to get into it, dancing along to the song.

_Hate to feel this way and waste a day_   
_I gotta get myself on stage_   
_I shouldn't wait or be afraid_   
_The chips will fall where they may_

_I know I, I know I, I know I gotta do it_   
_I know I, I know I_

**_[All]_ **

_I know I gotta do it!_

**_[Y/N]_ **

_Gotta turn the world into your dance floor_   
_Determinate, d-determinate_   
_Push until you can't and then demand more_   
_Determinate, d-determinate_   
_You and me together, we can make it better_   
_Gotta turn the world into your dance floor_   
_Determinate, d-determinate_

Calum came out from behind his keyboard and snatched your microphone from your hand, making you laugh as he sang his part.

**_[Calum]_ **

_It's Cal and I'm heaven-sent, music like a veteran_   
_Renegade, lemonade, use it in my medicine_   
_Go ahead and try to name a band we ain't better than_   
_Reason why the whole world's picking us instead of them_   
_People need a breather 'cause they're feeling that adrenaline_

_Stop! Now hurry up and let us in_   
_Knock! 'Cause we're coming to your house and_   
_People keep on smiling like the lemons in their mouths_   
_I'm the real deal, you know how I feel_   
_When they're in it for a bill, I'm just in it for the thrill_   
_Get down now, I ain't playin' around_   
_Get your feet up on the ground and just make that sound like_

You took your mic back so he could return to his spot and you could start singing again.

**_[Luke]_ **

_Yeah, yeah, yeah!_

**_[Y/N]_ **

_Gotta turn the world into your dance floor_   
_Determinate, d-determinate_   
_Push until you can't and then demand more_   
_Determinate, d-determinate_   
_You and me together, we can make it better_   
_Gotta turn the world into your dance floor_   
_Determinate, d-determinate_

_Come on and come on and come on and get it going_   
_Come on and, come on and come on and get it going_   
_On the dance floor, on the dance floor, d-d-dance floor_

_Determinate_

You, Calum, Ashton, Michael, and Luke took a moment to listen to the sounds of your classmates cheering when the song was over, looking at each other with small smiles on your faces. None of you were saying anything, but it was clear you were all thinking the same thing:  _you were finally being heard_.

~

_i deeply apologize for the bridge but nO ONE WOULD HELP DECIDE WHAT TO PUT INSTEAD OF "WEN"_

_inspiration: Lemonade Mouth_

_song used: "Determinate" by Lemonade Mouth_


	444. Lemonade Mouth (Calum Hood) - Part 3

**Calum's POV; Two months later**

One Friday after school – the day winter break  _officially_  began – Calum was at his locker before he was supposed to meet you all outside. The band was playing a show at the pizzeria that day and you all wanted to get there and rehearse a bit before most people started showing up. He looked over when he heard someone coming toward him, scowling when he saw your ex-boyfriend.

"You know, Hood," Kyle mentioned, "I've been noticing you looking at my girl a little too long these last few weeks."

"I can assure you – Kyra's not my type," Calum stated.

"You  _know_  who I'm talking about,  _Hood_ ," he spat through gritted teeth, "Just because Y/N's in a  _band_  with you now doesn't give you the right to-"

" _First of all_ , Y/N is  _not_  ' _your girl_ ' anymore," Calum growled, "Second, you can't  _stop me_  from  _looking at her_ when she's talking to me. And I  _may be_  in a band with her, but I  _know_  I don't have the ' _right_ ' to do anything and  _neither do you_. If  _she_  doesn't mind that I look at her, then there is not  _shit_  you can do to stop me from  _doing it_."

"Hey, I'm just trying to  _help you_ ," Kyle insisted, throwing his hands up in surrender, "Y/N's a  _good girl_  – a girl that would rather study on a Saturday night than go out to a party – and you're... Well...  _Not_. No hard feelings, man, but you're not exactly her  _type_."

"So what  _is_  her type then?" he narrowed his eyes, "Guys who guilt her into being with him only to break up because she's found something she enjoys doing that  _doesn't_  involve you and then try to prevent anyone else from getting close to her because you're a  _selfish prick_  who can't stand the thought that  _maybe_  she's better off without you?" Kyle's jaw tightened as did the fist at his side, but Calum never got to know how he'd respond when they heard a voice saying his name.

**Your POV**

"Cal!" you called out, making both boys look over to where you were at the end of the hallway. You had your eyebrows raised, curious as to why your bandmate and your ex-boyfriend were clearly getting heated about  _something_. "Did you forget about the show?" you asked when neither boy said anything after a few moments, "We're waiting for you!"

"I didn't forget, Y/N!" he finally replied, his eyes never leaving Kyle's as he closed his locker door, "I'm coming!" Calum glared at your ex one last time before turning and jogging down the hall until he reached you.

He slowed to his normal walking pace as he came up to you, putting his arm around your waist and turning you around so he could lead you outside. Calum would always find an excuse to touch you, so this was nothing  _new_  to you – though you  _did_  know he was doing it now just to make  _Kyle_  mad. But after everything your ex put you through, you certainly weren't going to do anything to  _stop him_.

"Why'd you ever date that  _asshole_?" Calum murmured when he was  _sure_  Kyle wasn't in earshot anymore.

"He's not  _that_  bad, Cal," you tried convincing him, but he wasn't having any of it.

"Y/N, he broke up with you just because you were in the band that opened for his at a stupid  _school dance_ ," he reminded you, his hand sliding to your hip and squeezing it lightly, "And from what I've heard  _and_   _seen_  when you were around him, he didn't care about you  _one bit_."

"He  _cared_!" you squeaked.

"Name  _one thing_  he ever did for you that  _didn't_  end up benefiting  _himself_ ," he challenged.

You were silent for a moment, desperately racking your brain for any memory that sounded even remotely like what he was asking for. But you couldn't find one.

" _See_?" he nodded, " _He didn't care_." Calum looked down at you, noticing your expression had fallen and you were swallowing thickly. "Y/N," he said, "I didn't mean to-"

"We have to go," you whispered, your voice breaking slightly as you pushed the back door to the school open. Calum sighed to himself before following you outside, mentally kicking himself for making you upset.

"Hey, guys!" Michael chirped, picking himself up from leaning on Ashton's car, "Ready to go?" You and Calum simply nodded, but you really  _weren't_  looking forward to the ride.

The other three boys had started making it a habit to ride together, leaving you and Calum to go in his car. And today was no different. Though, to ensure that you  _did_  actually go with him and didn't sneak your way to Ashton's car, Calum's arm wound around your waist once again and he tugged you to his passenger side door. He opened it for you and you simply sat down, knowing he wasn't going to let you leave with the others.

"We'll see you there!" Luke called out before climbing into Ashton's backseat, earning himself a wave from you and Calum before he closed your door and hurried around to the driver's seat.

It wasn't until you'd been on the road for a couple minutes that anything was said. You looked away from the window when you heard Calum rest his forearm on the center console and felt his hand hit your leg between your thigh and your knee. His eyes were obviously still on the road, but you could tell he was thinking hard about something.

"I really didn't  _mean_  to upset you," he murmured, "I just don't like how he  _treated_  you."

"I know," you whispered, "S'okay."

"No, it's  _not_ ," he sighed, stopping at a red light and leaning back, covering his face with his other hand, "You're still trying to get over it and you don't need  _me_  to be-"

"He cheated on me," you blurted out. Calum dropped his hand and looked at you in shock – and you found yourself thankful you hadn't said it  _while_  he was driving.

" _What_?" he asked, his voice barely coming out.

"I found out the week before the Halloween Bash..." you swallowed, "I caught him with- Green light-" You cut yourself off in the middle of your sentence so Calum would turn his attention back to the road as you went on. "-I caught him with one of the girls on the dance team before band practice..."

"Why didn't you break up with him  _then_?" he shook his head, clearly confused.

"Because... He..." you trailed off, swallowing thickly.

" _Y/N_ ," Calum said firmly, "Has he ever-" You cut him off, furiously shaking your head.

" _No_! I just... He  _scares_  me..." you admitted, "You were right; He wasn't the  _greatest_  boyfriend, but I... I thought if I broke up with him, he would have turned everyone against me or said  _I_  was the one who cheated or..."

You trailed off, truthfully a bit embarrassed that you were spilling yourself out to Calum. And since you already  _were_... Well...  _One more_  confession couldn't hurt.

"I'm glad I have people who  _care_  about me now," you said so softly that you really didn't think he'd heard it because he didn't reply for a moment. Though, when you felt his hand move from your thigh to grab yours and bring it up to his lips to press a kiss to the back of it, you knew he  _did_.

You felt him smile against your skin, making you smile as well, as he pulled into the pizzeria parking lot. He brought your hand back to your lap, looking at you affectionately after he parked his car.

"We'll  _always_  care about you," he promised you. You barely smiled again as he released you so you could get out and meet the other boys inside the building.

You listened to the chatter among the restaurant-goers – most of them fellow students who didn't have anything else to do before the show – as the boys were setting up. You couldn't make anything out, but it was just nice to hear something other than your own thoughts in that moment.

"Y/N," Luke nudged you, snapping you out of your trance to find your bandmates looking at you with concern, "You okay?" And you knew it was no use lying to them.

"Do you think Kyle's gonna show up...?" you asked softly, chewing on your inner cheek.

"Probably," Michael shrugged, plugging his guitar into the amp, "We all know he shows up halfway through just to spy on us and see how we're doing."

" _Why_?" Calum looked at you with a small grin, "You have a song you'd like to perform halfway through?"

" _Maybe_ ," you smirked, grabbing your microphone and addressing the people at their tables, "Hey, guys! We're just gonna run through a song or two before our show starts, is that cool?" A few people put their food down to clap while others cheered, making you laugh as you turned back to the boys. "Let's do it," you told them.

_Insecure in her skin_   
_Like a puppet – a girl on a string_   
_Broke away, learned to fly_   
_If you want her back, gotta let her shine_

_So it looks like the joke's on you_   
_'Cause the girl that you thought you knew_

_She's so gone, that's so over now_   
_She's so gone, you won't find her around_   
_You can look, but you won't see the girl I used to be_   
_'Cause she, she's so gone_

_Here I am; this is me_   
_And I'm stronger than you ever thought I'd be_   
_Are you shocked? Are you mad_   
_That you're missing out on who I really am?_

_Now it looks like the joke's on you_   
_'Cause the girl that you thought you knew_

_She's so gone, that's so over now_   
_She's so gone, you won't find her around_   
_You can look, but you won't see the girl I used to be_   
_'Cause she, she's so gone away like history_   
_She's so gone, baby, this is me, yeah_

_She's so gone, that's so over now_   
_She's so gone, you won't find her around_   
_You can look, but you won't see the girl I used to be_   
_'Cause she, she's so gone, she's so gone_   
_You can look, but you won't see the girl I used to be_   
_'Cause she, she's so gone_

_So long; she's so gone_   
_Gone, gone, gone_

And although it wasn't the  _actual_  performance, the crowd still  _cheered_ like it was.

~

**Three months later; One week before Rising Star**

"Are you sure we're  _ready_?" Calum asked you nervously.

You both went to the smoothie stand at the mall after school since there was no practice that day. You'd been spending a lot of alone time with him recently – he would always come over to your house to write songs, but this was  _different_ ; You weren't writing songs – you were just  _hanging out_.

"Why wouldn't we be  _ready_?" you asked curiously, sipping your drink, "It seems like we rehearse every time we're  _not_  in class."

"Then maybe I'm just nervous," he sighed, taking a drink himself.

"About what?"

"My step-mum keeps talking about coming to the show..." he told you, "I just want one thing to  _myself_ , you know? She's already wormed her way into my  _house_ ; I don't need worming her way into the  _band_  too."

"She's not ' _worming her way in_ ', Cal," you shook your head, "She just wants to  _support you_  doing something you enjoy."

"Why are you  _defending her_?" he scoffed, surprising you, "You're  _my_  friend; You're supposed to take  _my_  side."

"Not when I don't believe you're  _right_ , Calum," you said confidently.

"How am I  _not right_?!" he exclaimed, "She's not my  _mum_! I don't  _have_  to like her!"

And you couldn't handle it anymore. Calum always complained about his step-mother and up until now, you've always sat through it and been the person he needed to vent to. But something in you finally snapped.

"I'm so  _sick_  of you always feeling  _sorry for yourself_!" you let out an exasperated sigh, "There are people  _dying_  every single day and you're whining about having a  _step-mom_?!"

"Well, I'm sorry that it upsets you,  _princess_ , but  _other people's_  problems aren't going to make  _mine_  disappear!" he shot back.

"You should just be happy you  _have_  a step-mom!" you shook your head again, "I would give  _anything_  to have a mom again or a dad that would even just  _pretend_  to care! But  _I don't_! And knowing you don't appreciate  _either_ of your parents is incredibly  _infuriating_!" You huffed angrily as you stood up and gathered your things together, shoving them into your backpack. "You know what? Maybe we're  _not_  ready for Rising Star. We should just call this  _whole thing_  off," you murmured to yourself, walking away from the table, "Didn't  _wanna_  do it anyway."

"If you didn't  _want_  to join the band, then  _why did you_?!" he threw his arms up as he rose to his feet, not caring that people were starting to stare.

" _For you_!" you screamed as you spun around to face him again, the tears falling down your cheeks making him freeze, "You said I could  _do it_! You said you  _believed_  in me! I did it for  _you_! I wanted to make  _you_  happy!" Your voice suddenly went quiet after breaking in the middle of your rant. "-I'd do  _anything_  to make you happy..."

You quickly wiped your face with the pads of your four fingers before grabbing your backpack, flinging it across your shoulder, and running outside to where your bike was parked, leaving Calum watching in shock as you left.

~

_inspiration: Lemonade Mouth_

_song used: "She's So Gone" by Lemonade Mouth_


	445. Lemonade Mouth (Calum Hood) - Part 4

**One week later; Rising Star**

You showed up at the place the competition was being held, nervously looking for any of your bandmates and  _praying_  the first one you found wouldn't be Calum. You hadn't spoken to him  _at all_  since your fight, not even glancing at him when you felt him staring at you in class or at band practice. You obviously didn't mean what you said about not doing Rising Star – you  _were_  there, after all – but you  _really_  hoped you could push your thoughts of Calum  _far_  back into your mind and just perform the way you normally did.

" _Y/N_!" Michael cheered when you appeared backstage, finding three of your bandmates standing around and waiting to go on.

"Hey, guys," you smiled at them, happily hugging them back when they hugged you.

"We thought you were gonna get nervous and not show up," Ashton teased.

"Hey, I'm getting  _better_!" you pouted, earning yourself a laugh from them, "I  _am_  gonna go to the bathroom though. Do you guys know where it is?"

"Yeah!" Michael chirped, "I'll show you!"

You spent a few minutes in the bathroom – actually  _using it_  this time and not just  _hiding out_  – before coming back out. You started heading back to where the boys were, but you never got that far – you only made it to the end of the hallway.

"Y/N," you heard behind you, causing you to stop and look over your shoulder. You found Calum eyeing you bashfully, his fingers in front of his stomach as he played with them. "Do you have a minute?" he asked – his voice low and timid.

"I have a show to get ready for," you answered dryly, "Maybe later." You turned back and started walking again, but you heard Calum huff sharply in response to your statement.

" _I'm sorry_!" he said abruptly, making you freeze. You were  _completely_  convinced you hadn't heard him right, but while you were standing still, Calum quickly took action.

You heard him let out another breath and then his footsteps come up from behind. He was in front of you in the next second, holding your cheeks so you couldn't look away from him.

"I'm sorry..." he repeated, a little softer this time, "I  _know_  I'm a hard-head and I spend too much time whining about things I  _should_ be thankful for and I don't think about how it makes the people  _around me_ feel...  _I know_ , okay? And I'm  _sorry_. I'm  _sorry_  I complain about  _me_  too much and never realizing that you have your  _own_  problems and... I'm sorry I've been so focused on  _myself_  that I haven't been there for  _you_ , Y/N –  _I am_... And I don't want...  _I can't lose you_..."

You stared up at Calum for a moment – the school's big, bad, leather-clad royalty that everyone was  _terrified_  of, was standing in front of  _you_ , holding you as if you were some expensive piece of  _fine art_ , and telling you that he couldn't  _bear_  the thought of living a life without you  _in it_.

And it made your heart  _race_.

But if Calum was expecting you to simply  _accept_  the apology and go back to the way things  _used_  to be, he was certainly surprised to get what he  _got_  instead.

Without warning, you grabbed the edges of his leather jacket just below his collarbones and pulled his body to yours, your lips crashing into his. You felt him let out a deep breath, his hands sliding off of your face and down your sides until they came to a stop on your hips, bringing you  _even_  closer.

"Hey, guys," you heard Michael's voice off to the side – you figured he must have come to look for you since you'd been gone for so long, "Whenever you two are done  _making out_ , the competition is starting." He walked away as you and Calum pulled back, both of you smiling shyly at each other.

"Um... I... Uh..." he trailed off, making you smile and peck his lips again, releasing him so you could scurry to the side of the stage where the rest of the band was waiting.

You could tell by the smiles on Luke and Ashton's faces that Michael had already told them what he saw, and their expressions only  _widened_  when Calum came up behind you and wrapped his arms around your waist, resting his chin on your shoulder. They didn't say anything though – not that they  _needed_   _to_  for you to know that they were happy for you.

You turned your attention toward the stage when your ex-boyfriend's band was called up, the crowd welcoming them to the stage after the announcer said their name. They got right into the song; the incredibly  _braggy_  lyrics making you scrunch your face up.

"They really  _aren't_  all that good, are they...?" you mumbled, more to yourself than to the boys.

It still made them laugh though, covering their mouths so they didn't disrupt the performance onstage. You felt Calum move his head slightly before his lips hit the top of your cheekbone right beside your ear.

" _Tried_  to tell you," he murmured, chuckling when you jokingly elbows him in the ribs.

The song finally ended – not soon  _enough_  as far as you and the boys were concerned – and Kyle and his band walked toward you. He noticed Calum's arms around you as you leaned back on his chest, making him tighten his jaw and narrow his eyes.

"Beat that,  _losers_ ," your ex-boyfriend spat, addressing everyone but looking at you. Before any of the boys could respond, you simply smirked at him.

"We will," you promised him, walking out onstage when the announcer introduced your band. You all got into your spots as the crowd cheered wildly, ready to give the best performance you had so far.

**_[Y/N]_ **

_Ooh, yeah_   
_Mhmm_   
_Breakthrough_

_Up, down, spinnin' all around_   
_Fly high, fallin' to the ground_   
_Sometimes, dreams can feel so far away_

_Time keeps skippin' out a beat_   
_Left, right, trippin' on your feet_   
_Life is like a string of cloudy days_

**_[Michael]_ **

_Sometimes, it's raisin' your voice_   
_Sometimes, it's makin' some noise_   
_Sometimes, it's provin' to the world it was wrong_

**_[Luke]_ **

_Whenever you can't see the light_   
_Whenever there's no end in sight_   
_Keep on, keep on moving on_   
_Keep on moving on_

**_[Y/N, Michael, Luke]_ **

_Here comes a breakthrough, here comes a day_   
_Here comes a moment that you gotta go for it_   
_So don't let it get away_

_It's all about a breakthrough, just turn the page_   
_'Cause every day, you're getting closer_   
_Life is just a rollercoaster_

**_[Luke]_ **

_Shake it, 'til you make it, 'til you break it all through_   
_Don't stop till you break it all through_   
_Shake it, 'til you make it, 'til you break it all through_   
_Don't stop 'til you break it all through_

**_[Y/N]_ **

_Stop, still, take another breath_   
_Road block, move it to the left_   
_Get around whatever's in your way_

_Heartbreak, pick up all the pieces_   
_Don't stop dancin' in the bleachers_   
_It's gonna be your turn to play_   
_Gonna be your turn to play_

**_[Michael]_ **

_Sometimes, it's raisin' your voice_   
_Sometimes, it's makin' some noise_   
_Sometimes, it's provin' to the world it was wrong_

**_[Luke]_ **

_Whenever you can't see the light_   
_Whenever there's no end in sight_   
_Keep on, keep on movin' on_   
_Keep on movin' on_

**_[Y/N, Michael, Luke]_ **

_Here comes a breakthrough, here comes a day_   
_Here comes a moment that you gotta go for it_   
_So don't let it get away_

_It's all about a breakthrough, just turn the page_   
_'Cause every day, you're getting closer_   
_Life is just a rollercoaster_

**_[Calum]_ **

_I can see it in the blind sight, movin' through the limelight_   
_Groovin' to the music, I'ma use it when the time's right_   
_Hoping I can do it through the shadows, I can shine bright_   
_Usually in life, there's one shot and it's on_

_Listen to the rhythm we givin', it'll make you_   
_Start pushin' the barriers, it'll take you_   
_Wherever that you wanna go, never too late to_   
_Keep pushin' 'til you breakthrough_

**_[Michael]_ **

_Sometimes, it's raisin' your voice_   
_Sometimes, it's makin' some noise_   
_Sometimes, it's provin' to the world it was wrong_

**_[Y/N]_ **

_World it was wrong_

**_[Michael]_ **

_Whenever you can't see the light_

**_[Y/N]_ **

_Can't see the light_

**_[Michael]_ **

_Whenever there's no end in sight_

**_[Y/N]_ **

_No end in sight_

**_[Michael]_ **

_Keep on, keep on movin' on_

**_[Y/N, Michael, Luke]_ **

_Keep on movin' on_

**_[Y/N, Luke]_ **

_Here comes a breakthrough, here comes a day_

**_[Michael]_ **

_Yeah, yeah!_

**_[Y/N, Luke]_ **

_Here comes a moment that you gotta go for it_   
_So don't let it get away_

**_[Y/N, Michael, Luke]_ **

_It's all about a breakthrough, just turn the page_   
_'Cause every day, I'm getting closer_   
_Life is just a rollercoaster_

**_[Luke]_ **

_Shake it, 'til you make it, 'til you break it all through_   
_Don't stop 'til you break it all through_   
_Shake it, 'til you make it, 'til you break it all through_   
_Don't stop 'til you break it all through_   
_Shake it, 'til you make it, 'til you break it all through_

**_[Y/N]_ **

_Don't stop, don't stop, don't stop, no_

**_[Luke]_ **

_Don't stop 'til you break it all through_   
_Shake it, 'til you make it, 'til you break it all through_   
_Don't stop_

**_[All]_ **

_Here comes a breakthrough_

You found yourself glancing over to side stage where Kyle was still standing, finding an angered look on his face as the crowd cheered for you,  _visibly_  upset that they were louder than they had been when  _he_  was performing.

_"Beat that, losers."_

_"We will."_

And you  _did_.

~

_inspiration: Lemonade Mouth_

_song used: "Breakthrough" by Lemonade Mouth_


	446. Alone Together (Michael Clifford)

Sitting in the stairwell at the office Christmas party wasn't  _exactly_  how you'd planned on tonight going, though you couldn't  _really_  say you were surprised.

You were a bit of a loner when it came to work events – either sitting by yourself at a table, standing near the refreshments, or just not going altogether. You wanted to be more social – you wanted to make  _some friends_ , at least – but you just couldn't make yourself be the first to approach people.

Your co-workers would come up to you as they arrived to say the usual hello and ask how you were, but it never lasted for more than two minutes. They would go off and talk to other people or their own friends, leaving you by yourself once again. You weren't hated around the office by  _any_  means – people were just always  _better_  friends with somebody else.

You were listening to the echoes of the music – a Christmas song you recognized but couldn't  _quite_  place who the artist was – when your moment of solitary was interrupted. You jumped slightly when the door swung open, your head snapping up to watch one of your co-workers enter the stairwell.

Michael was fairly new to the office, settling into his place at the desk a couple cubicles down from yours. You would catch him staring at you a lot, but every time you smiled at him, he would put his head down and get back to work. He would speak to you at the copy machine or in the break room if you ever happened to be there at the same time, but it was never anything more than asking how your day had been going and telling you to have a nice one before he returned back to his desk in a rush.

"Sorry, Y/N," Michael mumbled, "I didn't think anyone else would be in here."

"It's okay, Michael," you said softly, watching him as he sat down next to you – a feat that confused you since he usually  _avoided_  all possibilities where you two were alone, "What are you doing?"

"None of my friends could be my plus one tonight since they're at their  _own_  Christmas parties," he explained with a sigh, "I thought I'd come anyway just to be polite since I was  _invited_ , but I haven't really made friends with people here, so... I thought I could just hide out here until the party was over." It was quiet until looked at you curiously. "Why are  _you_  out here?" he asked.

"Same reason," you whispered, looking down at your lap, "I don't know why I even came  _at all_ , to be honest-" You forced out a laugh. "-I'm always by  _myself_  anyway. I try to talk to people, but... Everybody's always better friends with somebody  _else_."

"Well, you know... You and I are  _both_  alone at this thing... Maybe we could be alone  _together_..."

You looked back up at Michael, finding him smiling shyly. He could tell you were surprised by the offer – he even surprised  _himself_  too – but the appreciative expression on your face was one that made his heart flutter.

You gave him a genuine smile, "Doesn't it defeat the purpose of being  _alone_  if you're  _with_  somebody?"

"Maybe," he shrugged, a slightly bigger smile on his face now, "But I think we  _both_  deserve to have some fun at  _one_  of these ridiculous office parties." Michael stood up, holding his hand out to you.

You looked at it for a moment before taking it, letting him pull you to your feet. You wandered back into the room where everyone was, all of them so occupied with their conversations that they hadn't even  _noticed_  you and Michael had been gone.

"Do you want a drink?" he asked you, not knowing what was going on in your head but knowing it was enough to make you space out for a moment.

"Thank you," you murmured with a smile. He grinned as well, leading you over to a table and having you sit down before he went to get drinks for the both of you.

You talked for a while as you sipped on your drinks, and you were surprised to find that having a conversation with Michael just seemed so  _second-nature_  to you. Whenever you'd talk to someone else in the office you didn't know too well, it was just... _awkward_. But with  _Michael_ , it felt  _easy_  – like you could tell him  _anything_  and he would  _still_  stick around.

You weren't sure how long into the conversation you were, but you heard the beginning notes of your favorite slow song start playing through the speakers. You instantly smiled slightly, barely swaying to the music.

"I  _love_  this song," you sighed to yourself, not even realizing you'd said it out loud until Michael smiled at you.

"Me too," he said, holding his hand out again, "Dance?" You barely grinned, taking his hand and letting him pull you over to the dance floor where your other co-workers were dancing with their own partners or friends.

You started out with your forearms resting on his shoulders and his hands on your hips, but as the song went on, you got closer to each other. By the start of the second verse, your arms were wrapped completely around his neck with your head on his shoulder and his arms were around your waist, holding your body close to his.

"Thank you for tonight, Michael," you murmured, "I'd probably still be alone in the stairwell if it weren't for you." You felt him move his head just before his lips were planted on your temple.

"You shouldn't feel like you have to come to office parties just to keep from being alone, Y/N," Michael told you, squeezing you affectionately, "And  _no one_  deserves to be alone on Christmas."

And as you tightened your hold on him, it got you thinking... Maybe working there wouldn't be so bad after all.

~

_inspiration: http://thebestofaudioposts.tumblr.com/post/154153226492/arroz-inmilkwood-rosehaw-this-makes-me_


	447. Teardrops on My Guitar (Michael Clifford) - Part 1

"She's just  _amazing_ ," your best friend gushed about some girl he'd recently started seeing.

"Do you even know her  _name_?" you rolled your eyes.

"We've been on like,  _three_  dates!  _Of course_  I know her name! It's Julianna!"

"I'm just making  _sure_ , Mikey," you shook your head, "You tend to fall in love with girls without knowing anything about them."

"That's not true," he scoffed.

"The pizza delivery girl two weekends ago, the girl across the cafeteria, the girl with her mother at the mall, the gi-"

"Okay, so I fall for a pretty face more often than the  _next_  person," he rolled his own eyes that time, "But I'm  _serious_  about Julianna; I think she could be the one."

"I believe you, Mikey," you told him, nodding your head as you took your backpack off of its hook and flung it onto your back. You and Michael started walking out to the back of the school where your bike was parked.

"Oh, before I forget," Michael suddenly said as you were unlocking the chain, "I won't be able to make it to your open mic night next month."

"What?" you frowned, "Why not?"

"Mum and Dad want to take a trip during break or something," he shrugged.

"Oh, do they not trust you at home by yourself?" you pouted teasingly, making him laugh as she shoved your arm.

"I'm not  _that_  bad at taking care of myself!" he defended. You simply shrugged in response, putting your chain into your bag and pulling your bike out of its parking spot. "I'm sure you'll do great though," he chirped, "You'll have to tell me how it went."

"Mhmm," you hummed.

"Hey, before you go, are you free this weekend?" Michael wondered.

"Don't know yet," you answered, "Why?"

"I want you to meet Julianna!" he smiled, "I think you two will get on really well!"

"Sure, Mikey," you murmured, "I'll let you know in the morning."

"Sweet," he beamed, "See you later!"

You watched Michael trot into the parking lot and toward his car while you just stood there. You finally knocked yourself out of your daydream, letting out a shaky breath and climbing onto your bike to go home.

~

**One month later**

As promised, you'd met Michael's new girlfriend – well, she wasn't  _technically_  his girlfriend as they had  _yet_  to make it official even after being on  _at least_  10 dates already – last month and to say it was hard on you was an  _understatement_. The two were incredibly clingy with each other and – while that didn't  _surprise you_  at all – you couldn't help but feel like a  _third wheel_. They weren't  _ignoring_  you or anything – in fact, Julianna  _really_  seemed to enjoy talking to you – you just felt incredibly  _awkward_.

Michael asked you what you thought of her as he walked you back outside when you had to head home. You told him the truth: that you thought she was a nice girl and you were happy he'd finally found someone he fit with so well – you weren't going to  _lie_  and say you didn't like her just because you were  _jealous_.

Nothing with Michael ever changed – he never blew off plans with you to hang out with Julianna, he never randomly invited her to spend the day with you two without asking you if it was okay first... But that didn't mean you weren't still  _hurt_.

~

The time of the monthly open mic night at the local music venue had arrived and you were... Well, you were  _scared_. There were a lot of regulars there – people who knew and liked when you performed – but you were planning on switching it up a bit this month.

"I know I usually do covers, but I... Um... I've been working on my songwriting and I'd really like to perform one of those instead..." you trailed off. There was no doubt you were nervous – terrified everyone would  _hate_  it – but since this was the one show Michael wasn't able to attend, you figured it would be best to do it now.

You smiled slightly when the audience clapped, seemingly excited to hear something you'd actually written  _yourself_. You took a deep breath and started playing your song.

_Drew looks at me, I fake a smile so he won't see_   
_That I want and I'm needing everything that we should be_   
_I'll bet she's beautiful – that girl he talks about_   
_And she's got everything that I have to live without_

_Drew talks to me, I laugh 'cause it's just so funny_   
_That I can't even see anyone when he's with me_   
_He says he's so in love; he's finally got it right_   
_I wonder if he knows he's all I think about at night_

_He's the reason for the teardrops on my guitar_   
_The only thing that keeps me wishing on a wishing star_   
_He's the song in the car I keep singing, don't know why I do_

_Drew walks by me – can he tell that I can't breathe?_   
_And there he goes, so perfectly; the kind of flawless I wish I could be_   
_She better hold him tight, give him all her love_   
_Look in those beautiful eyes, and know she's lucky 'cause_

_He's the reason for the teardrops on my guitar_   
_The only thing that keeps me wishing on a wishing star_   
_He's the song in the car I keep singing, don't know why I do_

_So I drive home alone_   
_As I turn out the light_   
_I'll put his picture down_   
_And maybe get some sleep tonight_

_'Cause he's the reason for the teardrops on my guitar_   
_The only one who's got enough of me to break my heart_   
_He's the song in the car I keep singing, don't know why I do_

_He's the time taken up, but there's never enough_   
_And he's all that I need to fall into_

_Drew looks at me, I fake a smile so he won't see_

~

**Two days later; Monday**

It wasn't until after school that you saw Michael for the first time since he left on vacation. You knew he'd come into school late that day – no doubt from oversleeping – so you didn't see him that morning, and you didn't have any classes or lunch with him, so it didn't surprise you that you hadn't seen him yet.

"Hey, Y/N," you heard a soft voice as you were putting all of your homework into your backpack. You looked over your shoulder, surprised to see Michael next to you – he wasn't as chipper as he usually was.

"Hey, Mikey," you returned with a small smile, "How was your vacation?"

"Good," he nodded, "Pretty uneventful though, to be honest." You let out a breathy chuckle. "How was open mic night?" he wondered.

"It was good," you shrugged, "Same as always: listened to people sing, sang a song, listened to  _more_  people sing, went home."

"Sounds fun..." he trailed off.

"Mikey, are you okay?" you raised an eyebrow, "You seem...out of it."

"I, um... I've been thinking for a couple days now..." he cleared his throat nervous before mumbling, "That song was about  _me_ , wasn't it?" Your body instantly felt cold at the question.

"Wha- _What_  song?" you murmured, despite knowing  _damn well_  what he was talking about.

"The one you sang this weekend... The one  _you_   _wrote_..."

"How do you know about that?" you asked, your eyes widening slightly.

"Some friends were there..." he mentioned, "They recorded it... Sent it to me when I got back home yesterday..." You were silent, prompting him to continue. "It  _was_  about me, wasn't it?" he repeated, noticing how  _desperate_  you were to avoid the subject.

Michael then saw you glance behind him and swallow the lump in your throat. There were tears welling up in your eyes, but he didn't even need to turn around to know who was coming.

"Mikey!" Julianna chirped, "I've been looking for you!" She came up to him and kissed his cheek, her eyes brightening when she saw you. "Hi, Y/N!" she beamed, "I saw you at the open mic night this weekend! I didn't know you were into writing songs! That's  _so_  cool! And it was  _really_  good as well!"

"Thank you," you gave her a small smile, "I hate to cut this short, but I should be going home... Got a lot of homework..."

You lifted your backpack onto your shoulder and closed your locker door. You went to walk away, but Michael grabbed for your wrist and turned you back to him.

"Y/N, wai-" You cut him off with a shake of your head.

"Just forget it, Michael," you said as confidently as you could with the break in your voice, "It doesn't matter." You took your arm back and hurried away before he could say anything else, leaving him and Julianna confused as they watched you leave.

**Michael's POV**

Michael was left staring at the entrance to the hallway, but finding himself unable to force his legs to move and go after you. His mind was racing –  _how long had you felt that way? Why didn't you ever tell him? What does this mean for your friendship now?_

"Did something happen between you two?" Julianna asked curiously when her Michael didn't speak for a few moments, knocking him out of his thoughts.

"No," he insisted, "I just got here-"

"Not just  _then_ , Mikey," she shook her head, "I mean...  _Ever_. Like, did you guys ever have a thing?"

" _No_!" he exclaimed lowly, "We... We're just  _friends_! She's my  _best friend_!" The blonde girl was silent for a moment before speaking again.

"I know the song she wrote is about you," she said softly.

"Jules, I-"

"Come on, Mikey," she chuckled under her breath, "I was sitting with your friends at the show; I know they sent it to you. You can't even  _try_  to deny it. Think about it: she wrote a song about how her friend keeps blabbering on about a girl and how jealous she is, she performed it on the  _one night_  you couldn't be there to hear her sing it probably because she didn't think you'd ever  _find out_  about it... I mean, you saw the video from your friends and you  _heard_  her voice crack in nearly  _every line_... I don't know  _when_  it happened or  _what_  led up to it, but that girl is in love with you whether you choose to see it or not."

~

_inspiration/song used: "Teardrops on My Guitar" by Taylor Swift_


	448. Teardrops on My Guitar (Michael Clifford) - Part 2

**Your POV; One month later**

Michael would try to ask you about that day at school or about the song, but you never humored him. All you wanted was to pretend it never happened and that he didn't know you liked him and everything was exactly how it used to be – for Christ's sake, you never thought the song would even  _find its way_  to him in the first place.

Michael gave up a few days after the show, which you were thankful for, but he was starting to act weird. Whenever you tried to ask him to hang out or schedule a study date for a test, he would reject it, saying he was too busy. You knew your best friend, and you knew he was never ' _too busy_ ' for you.

~

The day of that month's open mic night, Michael asked you to go with him. He told you he wanted to try it out for the first time and, since you'd always loved hearing him sing, you couldn't say no. And although a bit heartbroken, you weren't  _at all_  surprised to see Julianna waiting outside the door when Michael pulled into the venue's parking lot.

"Hey, guys!" she chirped happily when the two of you walked up. She didn't kiss Michael's cheek – something she  _always_  did when greeting him – but you elected not to say anything. He opened the door for both of you and you walked inside.

The evening started out normal – you sat down at a table near the stage but still off to the side, happily listening to those who had signed up to perform that night. You hadn't felt like it yourself, so it was nice to just be able to enjoy the other singers without worrying about your  _own_  performance for once.

When Michael's name was finally called for his turn, he hopped up from his seat and grabbed the guitar he'd leaned up against the empty chair beside him at your table. Once he was onstage and sitting in the chair behind the microphone, he smiled and started speaking.

"This is my first time doing something like this and I'm kind of nervous, so I'm sorry if I mess up at some point," Michael announced with a chuckle, adjusting the guitar on his lap so he was more comfortable, "I have this song that I've been working on for a little over a month now that I wrote for someone incredibly important to me and I hope you all like it." He grinned to end his speech, making those in the crowd clap as he began strumming his instrument. Julianna looked at you with a big grin on her face which understandably confused you –  _why was she looking at_ ** _you_** _and not_ ** _Michael_** _?_

_Don't talk; let me think it over_   
_How we gonna fix this?_   
_How we gonna undo all the pain?_   
_Tell me, is it even worth it?_   
_Looking through a straight line_   
_Taking back the time we can't replace_

_All the crossed wires, just making us tired_   
_Is it too late to bring us back to life?_

_When I close my eyes and try to sleep_   
_I fall apart – I'm fighting hard to breathe_   
_You're the reason, the only reason_   
_Even though my dizzy head is numb_   
_I swear my heart is never giving up_   
_You're the reason, the only reason_

_I feel you burning under my skin_   
_I swear I see you shining_   
_Brighter than the flame inside your eyes_

_Bitter words spoken; everything broken_   
_It's never too late to bring us back to life_

_When I close my eyes and try to sleep_   
_I fall apart – I'm fighting hard to breathe_   
_You're the reason, the only reason_   
_Even though my dizzy head is numb_   
_I swear my heart is never giving up_   
_You're the reason, the only reason_

_Don't talk; let me think it over_   
_How we gonna fix this?_   
_How we gonna undo all the pain?_

_When I close my eyes and try to sleep_   
_I fall apart – I'm fighting hard to breathe_   
_You're the reason, the only reason_   
_Even though my dizzy head is numb_   
_I swear my heart is never giving up_   
_You're the reason, the only reason_

_When I close my eyes and try to sleep_   
_I fall apart – I'm fighting hard to breathe_   
_You're the reason, the only reason_   
_Even though my dizzy head is numb_   
_I swear my heart is never giving up_   
_You're the reason, the only reason_

Michael glanced over as he finished playing the instrumental part, but he wasn't looking at Julianna; He was looking at  _you_. You looked at the girl beside you in shock, only to find that she was still smiling at you – she hadn't looked away from you since Michael went on stage.

And that made your heart  _race_.

Michael walked off of the stage, but before he reached you and Julianna, he was stopped by the group at the table in front of yours. He politely talked with them for a moment, thanking them when they told him how good they thought the song was, but when he looked back up at where you'd previously been, both you and Julianna were gone.

You had run off to an empty dressing room, trying to calm down your racing thoughts. You were sitting at the vanity in the room, your elbows on the table and your face in your hands, not even realizing anyone had followed you until you heard their voice.

"Hey, Y/N," Julianna said gently, sitting in the chair beside you, "You okay?"

"He just... I don't... You two are..." you couldn't form a complete thought, making her smile slightly.

"We stopped seeing each other last month," she said, "Something about how he finally realized his heart belonged to someone else."

You finally looked up at her, "But... But you were so-"

"We went out on a  _few_  dates, Y/N; I wasn't  _head-over-heels_  in  _love_  with him," she assured you, "Besides, just because  _he_  was oblivious before that song doesn't mean  _I_  was." She giggled when you looked at her with a confused expression on your face. "I could tell from the moment I  _met you_  that you loved Michael and  _God_ , do I hope someone looks at  _me_  someday the way you look at  _him_ ," she sighed longingly, "I know we didn't  _really_  know each other at the last open mic night, but the way you were singing that song... I just  _knew_  it was about Michael. I had a lot of time to think from that night up until Michael came home from vacation that Sunday about what I should do... And, honestly, I don't think I'd be happy with myself  _or_  my relationship if I continued seeing him knowing how much it was  _clearly_  hurting you."

"I would have... I would have gotten over it..."

"Y/N,  _dealing with it_  and  _getting over it_  are two  _different_  things," she insisted, "You may have gone the rest of your life without ever telling anyone the  _truth_ , but that would never change how much it would  _hurt_  to watch him be with other people."

" _No_..." you whispered, shaking your head, "You don't... You don't have to stop seeing him just because of  _me_... He really  _likes you_... I can't take that away from him..."

"You know, Michael may  _like_  me, but he  _loves_  you," she grinned again, nudging your knee with her own.

"N-No, he doesn't..."

"Why do you think that?"

"I'm his ' _best friend_ '," you said softly, repeating the title Michael would recite to every single girl he ever introduced you to, "That's all I've  _ever_  been..."

"But that doesn't mean that's all you'll ever  _be_ ," she shook her own head, "If I could take you back to the moment he told me about you for the first time, I think you'd be surprised just how  _highly_  he thinks of you. I probably should have been jealous or upset – that boy could have gone on about you for  _hours_  if I'd let him – but I think I was more in  _awe_  than anything. And sure, maybe I'm a little sad that things between Michael and I aren't going any further, but it's not fair to  _either_  of us to continue anything knowing  _you're_  the one his heart belongs to – I think you're  _always_  going to be the one to have his heart." Julianna smiled at you again, patting your arm as she hopped off of her chair. "We're all still gonna be friends though," she informed you, "You're not getting rid of me  _that_  easily." You couldn't help but laugh, looking down as she walked away. "She's all yours," you heard her say before she left the room, somehow already knowing someone was standing in the hallway. You looked over, swallowing thickly as you watched your best friend enter the room.

Michael closed the door behind him as well as locking it so no one could barge in before shyly approaching you. He motioned for you to stand up and put his hands on your hips when you did so, lifting you up onto the vanity's countertop so you were perfectly eye-level with him. The shakiness of your breath was inevitable as you felt his thumbs rub your hipbones.

"Did you like the song?" he asked you. You stared at him in silence, unsure of what to say – of what he  _wanted_  you to say. "Wrote it for  _you_ , you know," he mentioned, "Couldn't think of a better way to tell you how I felt than to write a song."

"You don't have to do this, Michael..." you swallowed thickly again, "You can still be with Julianna – you don't have to pretend-"

"I'm not  _pretending_  about anything," he said firmly, "You are smart and talented and  _such_  an amazing and beautiful person – I would have to be  _certifiably insane_  to let you get away."

You breathed out sharply, tears welling up at the confession, but Michael didn't have the chance to move his hand from your hips to wipe them away as you leaned forward to put your foreheads together. Michael grinned, pulling you forward until your body was up against his, wanting you close to him.

"I'm sorry it took making you feel like shit to realize I'm in love with you," he said, barely smiling when you let out a small laugh.

"S'okay," you whispered, putting your hands on his cheeks and tilting your head until your lips were on his.

~

_inspiration: "Teardrops on My Guitar" by Taylor Swift_

_song used: "The Only Reason" by 5 Seconds of Summer_


	449. Say Something (Calum Hood)

" _Michael, Michael, Michael_ ," you sighed dramatically as you walked up to one of your best friends.

"You  _know_ I hate when you greet me like that, Y/N," he chuckled, looking over his shoulder as you stopped beside him.

"What?" you pouted, "I'm not allowed to tell my best friend in the  _whole_  world goodbye before we leave school?"

" _Y/N_ ," he laughed again.

"Fine; I have a proposition for you," you stated, leaning onto the locker next to his.

"And what proposition might  _that_  be?" Michael cocked an eyebrow, ceasing his movements for a moment before continuing to get his books into his backpack.

"I heard from a mutual friend that you're in the market to take someone to the Valentine's Day dance next weekend to make Leigh Hagerman jealous."

"And your point  _is_...?"

" _My point is_  I am  _also_  in the market for making someone jealous," you informed him, "And I think we can help each other out."

"This someone wouldn't happen to be someone I know very well,  _would it_?" Michael smirked, slinging his backpack onto his shoulder and closing his locker door before turning to fully face you.

"Agree to my proposal and I'll tell you," you grinned mischievously despite the fact that you were  _100%_  certain he already knew who it was.

"Well..." he sighed dramatically, "We would both be doing each other a favor which means repayment would already be done and over with... I'm in. Now who are you trying to make jealous?"

"The one and only Calum Hood," you said.

" _I knew it_!" he exclaimed lowly as to not alert the few students still strewn about the hall, "I  _knew_  something was going on between you two!"

"Nothing's going on between us," you shook your head, "He asked Lillian Hobbs to the dance."

"He asked  _Lillian_?" Michael's eyes widened, clearly surprised to hear it, "He told me and Luke he was going to ask  _you_!"

"That's what Luke told me in PE this morning," you nodded, "But then I overheard Calum asking Lillian to go with him in third period. So there I was – without a date to the dance – until about 10 seconds ago when my knight in a rusty, white pick-up agreed to be my date."

"Are you done?" he asked, desperately fighting back a smile. You responded by grabbing his cheeks and pulling his face to yours, kissing both of his cheekbones sloppily.

"You're a  _beautiful man_ , Michael Clifford," you patted his left cheek before releasing him, making him laugh loudly.

"Pick you up at 7?" he offered.

"I'll be waiting for you," you placed your hand over your heart, backing away for a few steps before turning around to head to your own locker to get your stuff. You heard Michael laugh again as he went in the opposite direction.

~

**One week later** **; Valentine's Day**

You went on about your daily life – wake up, go to school, do homework, go to sleep, repeat – as normal, and Calum seemingly had no idea. You didn't know whether or not he knew you were going to the dance with Michael, but you figured he didn't because he hadn't asked you about it yet. You didn't know why he still hadn't told  _you_  he was going with Lillian – maybe he figured you already knew – but it still caused a little ping of jealousy whenever you saw them talking before third period when you walked into the classroom.

**Calum's POV**

That night at the dance, Calum was standing with Lillian at the refreshments table. They were making mindless small talk, but he kept distractingly looking toward the door, waiting for you to arrive. He knew you were coming to the dance, he just didn't know who your date was.

And when you finally got there as he was getting another drink, he was  _more_  than shocked to find out.

"Is Y/N here with Michael Clifford?" Lillian asked, making Calum's head snap over to watch the two of you enter the gym.

"No..." he said softly, "She doesn't even  _like him_  like that... There's  _no way_..."

" _You_  don't like  _me_  like that, but you asked me to make her jealous," she reminded him, taking a sip of her punch, "How's she supposed to  _know_  you like her if you don't  _tell her_? And Michael's pretty cute – I don't  _blame her_  for asking him."

" _She_  asked  _him_?" Calum murmured as he turned back to face her, allowing Lillian to see his shocked expression.

"That's what I heard," she shrugged, "Guess your plan backfired." He started chewing on his inner cheek, making her sigh. "Come on, Cal," she put her hand on his shoulder, "You  _know_  she would have gone with you if you'd asked her." Calum was about to speak when he was interrupted by you and Michael coming over.

"Well, it is a  _good thing_  I did not buy that dress when I saw it," you mentioned, smiling at Lillian. Calum looked over at you and noticed your arm linked with Michael's.

"One of us would have had to  _change_ ," she giggled.

"Hey,  _I_  live farther away than  _you_  do," you teased.

"You know, the  _mall_  is right down the road," she winked, making you laugh.

"You wore that dress better than I  _ever_  could anyway," you sighed.

"Hey, you  _both_  look beautiful," Michael chuckled, kissing your cheek – and you  _almost_  didn't notice the way Calum's jaw tightened at the gesture.

"He has a point," you grinned, "We  _do_ look great."

Lillian giggled again, "Anyone up for dancing?"

"I'm in!" you chirped, letting go of Michael's arm and Lillian came over to you.

"You guys coming?" she asked Michael and Calum. They looked at you both incredulously for a moment before you and Lillian rolled your eyes, grabbing each of your date's hands and pulling them to the dance floor.

~

After a few songs, you really wanted to slow dance, so you went up to the DJ and asked if you could request a song. When he asked what you wanted to hear, you gave him the name of your favorite slow song and he told you he'd play it when the one currently playing was done. You smiled brightly, thanked him, and headed back to your group.

"I'm gonna get a drink before my song, okay?" you mentioned, earning a nod from your date before walking away.

"Me too," Calum mumbled, following not far behind you. Michael and Lillian looked at each other with smiles – both of them clearly sharing the same thought: that they each knew the other was only asked to make you and Calum jealous.

"Why'd you come with Michael?" Calum murmured, making you look at him briefly.

"Because Michael agreed to be my date," you said, taking a sip of fruit punch.

"We could have gone  _together_."

"You'd  _already_  asked Lillian by the time I'd asked Michael," you informed him.

"You could have asked me  _before_  I asked Lillian!" he exclaimed softly, not wanting to draw the attention of anyone around.

"How the hell was  _I_  supposed to know?!" you shouted in a whisper, "If you wanted to be my date, Calum, then you should have asked  _me_  instead of  _her_!"

"But  _Michael_ , Y/N?!" he shook his head, speaking just as lowly as you.

"What's  _wrong_  with Michael?" you scoffed.

" _You don't like him_!"

" _Yes, I do_!" you shot back, "But what about  _you_?! We tell each other  _everything_ , but you've never  _once_  mentioned being interested in  _Lillian_! And I don't understand it  _at all_! She's a great girl – I don't know  _why_  you thought you couldn't tell me!" Calum opened his mouth to speak but he was interrupted.

"Y/N!" Michael called out, making you and Calum look over at him as he continued, "Your song's coming up!" You turned back to Calum, waiting until he was looking at you before speaking again.

"I should get back to my  _date_ ," you stated dryly, "It would be  _rude_  of me not to." You tossed your empty cup into the trashcan and walked away without letting him respond, approaching Michael as the current song came to an end.

When the song you'd asked the DJ to play started, Michael wrapped his arms around your waist while you hugged his neck. He could tell you were upset, so he squeezed you lightly.

"Everything okay?" he asked.

"Are you sure you weren't  _wrong_?" you swallowed, "You know, about Calum wanting to ask me... He hadn't left Lillian  _once_  until he came over to lecture me about ' _coming here with someone I wasn't interested in_ '."

"You're not  _interested_  in me?" he pouted jokingly, making you giggle lightly. You tightened your hold on him, smacking the back of his head playfully. "He really  _was_  going to ask you, Y/N," Michael assured you, "I don't know why he ended up asking Lillian instead, but I  _swear_ , he told me and Luke he wanted to come with  _you_."

"What elseam I supposed to  _do_ then?" you sighed softly to yourself, resting your forehead on Michael's.

" _That's it_ ," you heard Calum's voice growl, followed by Michael's chuckle.

"This might be a  _start_ ," he commented, but you were unable to ask him what he meant.

You felt someone grab your bicep, pull you off of Michael, and spin you around to face them. Calum's free hand came up behind your neck, pulling you in until your lips hit his. Your eyes widened before fluttering shut, not even hesitating in kissing him back.

The moment he felt you relax, Calum's hands slid down to your waist, his arms wrapping around you before coming to a rest on your lower back. Your own hands moved to his cheeks, holding him in place as if you thought he was going to realize what he was doing and run away.

Michael had since smirked and walked away – finding his way to where Leigh Hagerman was sitting by herself so he could ask her to finish the dance with him – while everyone else was still dancing but looking at you and Calum in shock. It seemed like  _everyone_  in the school knew about your feelings for each other  _except_  for the two of you, but they never expected the place you would both  _admit_  those feelings to be in  _the_   _middle of the dance floor_.

When you and Calum pulled away for air, you were both breathing heavily as his forehead fell onto yours. Neither of you spoke as you swayed to the song – your arms since winding around his neck and your face buried in his shoulder – ending it in silence as you tried to catch your breath and process what happened.

When the music faded out and a faster song started playing, you squeaked when you felt Calum lift you off of your feet and take you over to the tables. You couldn't help but giggle into his neck, hearing him smile in return. He put you back on the ground so he could sit in a chair before tugging you toward him. You sat down on his lap, your arms back around his neck and his around your waist so you didn't slide off of him.

"So..." you murmured, finally breaking the silence between the two of you, "You  _don't_  like Lillian...?"

"No," he shook his head, speaking just as softly, "Not like  _that_ , anyway."

"Then why did you ask her to the dance?"

"Honestly?" he sighed. You obviously nodded, your head tilted curiously. "I... I asked her to try and make you jealous..." he admitted, "And then you showed up with Michael and I was starting to think I should have just asked you to  _begin_  with..."

"Luke told me you were gonna ask me," you started chewing on your inner cheek, looking down at Calum's tie so you didn't have to look him in the eyes, "He told me in PE the day I overheard you ask Lillian... So, after school, I asked Michael because I thought that, maybe, it would make you regret not asking me instead..."

"If it makes you feel better, it  _worked_ ," Calum offered, smiling when you giggled lightly before letting it fade as he bit his bottom lip, "You don't think Michael's mad at me for...you know...taking you away from him during that dance, do you...?"

"I think he's fine," you grinned, looking over your shoulder. Calum followed your gaze, his eyes landing on where Michael was dancing with Leigh with a smile on his face. "Leigh came with one of the guys on the baseball team," you shrugged, "I heard Michael wanted to make her jealous, so we decided to help each other out. But I guess the guy ditched her at some point. She looks fine to me now though."

"You wanted to make me  _jealous_?" Calum pouted, looking back at you.

"You  _started_  it!" you reminded him, "I went that  _whole_ morning thinking you were going to ask me, but then you asked  _Lillian_!"

"You would have said yes?"

"I thought about  _how_  I would say it that whole morning," you admitted, "Like, whether or not I would say yes right away or if I would make you  _think_  I was gonna say no or if I would make you work a little  _harder_  for it... But then I heard you and Lillian talking in third period and it didn't  _matter_  anymore..."

" _God_ , I knew I should have asked you anyway," Calum groaned, causing you to let out a breathy laugh.

"You know... If Michael had said no to this whole thing... I probably wouldn't have  _come_ , to be honest..."

"What?" he furrowed his eyebrows, "You've been talking about this dance for like,  _three months_!"

"I know... I just..." you swallowed thickly, looking down again, "I didn't want to come alone and have to watch you with Lillian... I don't think I could have  _handled_  that very much..."

One of Calum's arms moved away from your waist so he could put his hand on your cheek, tilting your head up to look at him. He smiled slightly at you before pulling you in, kissing you softly.

"I love you," he mumbled into your mouth, feeling you smile as your heart skipped a beat at the confession.

"I love you too," you whispered, kissing him harder.

~

_inspiration: http://honeymoonmuke.tumblr.com/post/146680280067/dance-calum-imagine_

_that one part at the dance (kind of i guess): the Yule Ball scene in "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" https://youtu.be/Xbtoz0bSuI4?t=2m7s_


	450. Always (Trevor Collins)

_requested by my boi alycia_

~

"Hello, everyone!" Barbara announced, opening the show as she usually did, "Welcome to  _Always Open_! On this week's episode, we'll be talking about first jobs, memories from high school, and a question about moving on from a relationship! I'm your host Barbara Dunkelman and joining me today  _is_..."

"The artist formally known as Lindsay Tuggey," Lindsay snickered, making everyone laugh lightly.

"Your friendly neighborhood Y/N Y/L/N," you sarcastically winked and pointed finger guns at the camera on you, making them laugh as well.

"And it's a-me, Mariel!" Mariel grinned as you threw your head back, laughing loudly.

"I don't know which introduction was my  _favorite_ ," Barbara shook her head.

"They were  _all_  pretty great if you ask me," you chuckled.

You got into the show, taking about the set topics as well as venturing off a little here and there, until about 45 minutes later when the last topic was introduced.

"This question comes from a fan named Ashley," Barbara started, "And she says ' _Hey, guys! I just went through a breakup recently and it wasn't exactly the cleanest thing. It was what I consider my first serious relationship and I'm just wondering if you guys have any advice on how to get over someone who didn't really care about you_ '."

You felt your heart get heavier, swallowing thickly as Mariel glanced at you. You felt her knee bump yours under the table, giving you a look when you made eye contact. You gave her a weak smile as Lindsay started speaking.

You listened to each of hers and Barbara's pieces of advice, nodding in agreement every now and then, before you were given to floor to offer up your own words of wisdom.

"I think it's much  _harder_  to get over someone who didn't care about you more than just a relationship that didn't work out," you began, to which the other women agreed, "I think you're still so new to the world of dating that maybe you're not really  _sure_  what you want yet, so once you figure out  _you_  and your needs and wants in a  _partner_ , it'll be much  _easier_  to pick out the ones who maybe won't necessarily  _care_  as much. But I guess my best advice would be to just work on  _yourself_  first. You have so much to give to people you choose to let into your life and I think you should really find out who  _you_  are before you offer parts of yourself to  _others_. The ones who  _really_  appreciate you are the ones who will prove that they deserve to be given  _all_  of you from the moment you meet them."

"I don't even think I can  _follow up_  on that," Mariel shook her head, "That was too deep. My advice would be a tiny spec in the universe compared to that." You laughed as you leaned on her arm, listening to Barbara end the show.

"Well, on that note," she smiled, "Thanks to everyone for watching! Stay tuned for the post show for more!"

~

**30 minutes later**

After the post show, you said goodbye to everyone before you went back to work. You returned to your desk and edited a Let's Play for about 20 minutes when your name was being called.

"Hey, Y/N?" someone asked as they entered the room. You obviously couldn't hear it with your headphones on, so they came up to you, nudging your shoulder.

You turned your head to find Jack being followed by Matt holding his phone. You slid your headphones off so they were hanging on your neck, giving the duo a confused grin.

"Hey, guys," you greeted them, "What's up?"

"We were wondering if you happened to know where the Thor hammer is," Jack replied innocently.

"Yeah," you nodded, turning back to your computer to quickly save your work – it was close enough to your shoot time that you decided to wrap up editing instead of coming back and risking losing track of time completely – and shut down the system before putting your headphones beside your keyboard and getting up, leading Jack and Matt to the prop room.

"I swear she has a  _file_  in her brain about where  _everything_  in this building is," you heard Jack say to the camera, making you chuckle under your breath. The smile was  _quickly_  wiped from your face though.

As you entered the prop room, you looked at the one person already there and froze briefly before regaining your composure enough to retrieve what the two men following you were looking for.

You and Trevor had dated for almost two years before breaking up a few months ago. You hadn't spoken to each other since then – you both avoided each other at all costs at work – but when you  _did_  have to be around each other, you remained professional. Well... If ' _professional_ ' meant you just did your best to pretend he wasn't even  _there_...

"Here you go!" you chirped, picking up the hammer and handing it to Jack.

"You're a  _lifesaver_ , Y/N," he told you, taking it.

"Just be careful," you laughed softly. The two men walked away and you quickly followed as to not be alone with Trevor, but the feeling of ' _maybe he didn't notice I was there_ ' didn't last long.

"Saw you on  _Always Open_ ," you heard Trevor say. You stopped walking just before you reached the door, your eyes closed tightly as he continued, "I guess the way I loved you was never  _quite_  good enough, huh?"

"Don't do this at  _work_ , Trevor," you begged softly, not looking back at him but feeling his eyes on you, "We said we'd be  _civil_."

"We said we'd be civil  _in front of everyone_  – we didn't say we had to be when we were  _alone_."

"Then need I remind you that  _you_  broke up with  _me_  –  _not_  the other way around," you stated.

" _I'm_  not the one talking shit on podcasts," he spat.

" _And neither am I_ ," you fired back, spinning around to face him for the first time since the breakup, "I  _never_  said that advice on  _Always Open_  was about  _you_  – which, for the record,  _it wasn't_. And  _I'm_  not the one talking shit to everyone in the office that will listen to me trying to paint  _you_  as the bad guy."

"I'm not-" You cut him off angrily; If he wanted to have a fight about it, you were going to  _give him one_.

"Mica overheard you  _bitching_  to Jeremy about how  _awful_  being with me was," you choked, feeling your eyes start to get watery but you held it in, "And I don't know why she would ever  _lie_  to me about something like that. So the next time you want to try to make yourself look like less of an  _asshole_ , make sure no one else is around to  _hear it_  first. And don't you  _dare_  start acting like  _you_  loving  _me_  wasn't good enough when  _I_  wasn't good enough for  _you_." You ended your rant by pushing past Trevor, hurrying out of the prop room before you started crying in front of him.

~

**10 minutes later**

You arrived on the set of  _Off Topic_  after cleaning yourself up in the bathroom. You, Jeremy, and Ryan were on the show with Michael that day, and to be honest, you weren't  _really_  looking forward to it. You knew Trevor had complained about you to them  _numerous_  times simply because he spent more time with the Achievement Hunter crew than you did, but you still agreed to be on the podcast – you couldn't for the life of you figure out  _why_  you agreed, but you did.

"Hey, Y/N!" you heard Ryan say as you walked into the room. You looked over at the set and smiled slightly as he and Michael waved at you while Jeremy just scoffed lightly.

Ryan and Michael were more welcoming of your presence since the breakup – they'd actually  _listened_  to your side of the story and determined that you deserved a chance just as much as  _Trevor_  did with  _your_  friends. But for  _some reason_ , Jeremy just  _couldn't_  seem to let the past go.

You trotted over to the open chair between Michael and Ryan, sitting down and straightening your jacket out so you weren't sitting on the bottom hem. Jeremy was keeping his eyes locked onto his phone, but you could tell he wasn't  _actually_  reading anything on the screen – he was just trying to avoid looking at you – while the other two men greeted you.

"How are you doing?" Ryan asked, patting your back gently – he knew you were still having a hard time getting over the breakup.

"I heard she's doing  _great_ ," you heard Jeremy mumble to himself. You breathed in deeply, but chose to ignore the comment.

"I'm fine," you said softly, "Happy to have work as a distraction."

"Unfortunately, it was too distracting to keep  _Trevor_  around."

" _Jeremy_ ," Michael warned.

"That's just what I  _hear_ ," he said defensively, finally putting his phone in his pocket and looking up at you with narrowed eyes.

And you couldn't keep quiet anymore.

"I can't stop people from picking sides no matter how  _unjustified_  I think they are, Jeremy," you stated calmly, "But if  _Trevor and I_  can remain civil around each other, then I think the passive-aggressive commentary from people who were not  _part_  of that relationship can be left at the door as well. You knew when you signed off on this episode of the podcast that I was going to be here, and I don't know if you agreed to it simply because you wanted to vent your feelings about me after hearing a  _one-sided_   _version_  of the breakup that you feel you have a  _right_  to unload on me, but as someone who knows  _every single detail_  of what happened with Trevor and I and not just ' _what I was told_ ', I am  _not_  going to sit here and take it. And if you ever want to let me know what I  _did_  to make Trevor break up with me, I'd appreciate it because I  _still_  don't have any answers." Michael and Ryan quickly lifted their drinks up to hide their grins, proud of you for finally standing up for yourself.

"You know what?" Jeremy grumbled, "I just remembered I'm needed for something else. Sorry, guys. Maybe I'll be on the next podcast." You rolled your eyes as he got up and left the room, putting your elbows on the table and resting your face in your hands.

"Well..." Michael said slowly, "I guess we should get started now."

"With  _three_  people?" you cocked an eyebrow, moving your hands so your forearms could rest on the tabletop.

"Why not?" he shrugged, "You really only need  _two_  for a podcast."

"Well, I guess I'll leave then if you only need  _two people_!" you shouted obnoxiously, both men laughing at the sarcastic tone in your voice.

"We ready to go, guys?" the director asked after making sure everyone was in frame.

"Yeah, Michael, we're ready," Ryan affirmed and the podcast began shortly after.

~

An hour into the show, you and Ryan were listening to one of Michael's stories about his new neighbors. It wasn't a  _crazy_  one – unlike his  _usual_  neighbor stories – but you still frowned when he cut himself off in the middle of his sentence.

"Enter Gavin Free,  _apparently_ ," Michael announced. You looked over at the door and smiled widely at the Brit walking toward the set.

"Hello, hello, hello!" Gavin chirped.

"What are  _you_  doing here?" Ryan asked.

"Flight left earlier than expected," he shrugged, "Decided to come by and see if anyone needed my help today. And I heard my favorite person was on  _Off Topic_  today and wanted to say hi." He came around the table behind you, wrapping his arms around your shoulders.

" _Favorite person_?" you mentioned, tilting your head back on his shoulder to look at him, "You  _do_  remember Meg left the company a  _while ago_ , right?"

"Ha ha ha, very funny," he said monotonously, making you giggle.

"Hi, Gav," you smiled at him, earning yourself a light squeeze.

"Hi, Y/N," he chuckled, "How are you? I never seem to see you anymore."

"I'm good," you nodded, "How are you and Meg?"

"We're great," he replied, "She wanted me to tell you to call her later – she's been wanting to have another ' _girls night_ ' with you and Lindsay or whatever." You couldn't help but laugh.

"Yeah!" you nodded happily, "Let her know I'll call when I get off work!"

" _Top_!" he grinned, "I'll see you guys later – text me if you need anything before I leave." He gave you one last squeeze before letting go, waving to the close-up camera on you and saying bye to the live audience as well.

"Later, Gav!" you, Ryan, and Michael told him simultaneously before getting back to what you'd been talking about before he came in.

~

**Two hours later**

When the podcast and post show ended, you were on your way back to your desk to resume editing. You were actually feeling a little better – much better than you had  _before_  you started filming – thanks to Michael and Ryan – and Gavin, of course. But with no more scheduled appearances for you that afternoon, you were looking forward to being left alone to do your own thing until it was time to clock out and go home.

On your way to your desk, you passed by the prop room, squeaking when an arm shot out of the room and grabbed your wrist, pulling you inside. The hand let go of you and closed the door, moving in front of it so you wouldn't be able to escape. And considering the person who pulled you in, it was a smart decision if he wanted to  _keep you there_.

"We need to talk," Trevor mumbled.

"Because that went  _so well_  three hours ago," you snorted softly.

"What's going on with you and Gavin?" he got straight to his point.

"I don't know," you answered dryly, "What  _is_  going on between me and Gavin?"

"Saw  _Off Topic_... Seemed like you two were getting... _close_..."

"You watching every show I'm on now to make sure I don't talk shit?" you fired back, "And I don't think I need to remind  _you_  that Gav has been like my  _brother_  since I started working here – not to mention the fact that  _he has a girlfriend_. But I assure that you didn't stop me  _purely_  to ask questions you already  _know_  the answers to, so why don't you either tell me the  _real_  reason I'm here,  _or_  get out of my way because I have more  _important_  things to be doing." Trevor was silent for a moment before breathing in deeply.

"I know you were crying before  _Off Topic_  earlier," he mentioned. You briefly froze – you really didn't think anyone would be able to  _tell_.

"Congratulations on being able to identify a display of human emotion," you grumbled, "You should try conveying one  _yourself_  sometime."

You tried to leave the room, but after you put your hand on Trevor to attempt to shove him out of the way, he grabbed your bicep and turned you around, switching places with you so that you were now against the door. Your faces were so close together that you could feel the shakiness of his breath on your face, making you swallow thickly.

You didn't know why he was suddenly talking to you again, but you were truthfully getting tired of it only being for reprimanding the things you're doing – things that didn't even  _involve him_. But instead of getting that  _this_  time around, you were  _genuinely surprised_  by what he had to say.

"I broke up with you because you were so strong-willed right out of the gate and it intimidated and  _terrified_  me," he told you, "You were quiet and timid when you started working here and when we started dating that I wasn't expecting that change to happen in you what seemed like overnight." Your heart felt heavy again – just as it had earlier that day – and you stared at him with a blank expression before asking the only question you could formulate in your brain.

"Why are you telling me this?" you asked softly, making him sigh.

"Jeremy told me you went off on him before the podcast," he replied, "And he said that you mentioned you never got answers... I know you never  _believed me_  when I said it wasn't you –  _I_  wouldn't have believed it  _either_  – but it  _really_  wasn't, Y/N... I didn't appreciate you the way I  _should have_  and the way you  _deserve_... You were never ' _not good enough for me_ ' – if anything, you were  _too good_ ; I just never took a moment to think about how  _lucky_  I was that you chose  _me_."

You looked at him for a moment, your eyes searching his for any sign that he was lying – but you couldn't find  _any_. And it made your heart skip a beat. You stood up on your toes, pressing your lips to his cheek.

"I'll  _always_  choose you, Trevor," you whispered before pulling back, finding a hopeful look on his face.

"You  _will_?" he asked, just wanting to be  _absolutely sure_  he heard you right.

"Things I've heard you've said really  _hurt_ -" You cleared your throat when your voice cracked. "-but yeah... I will..."

"I know..." he pursed his lips together, "I'm sorry... But I- I'm gonna make it up to you... If you  _let me_ , I mean... I... I wanna try again..."

"Trevor..." you murmured.

"I will get on my knees and  _beg you_ , Y/N," he said seriously. You paused and he made the motion to kneel down.

"Trevor,  _stop_ ," you breathed out a small laugh, grabbing his forearms and forcing him to stay on his feet. He quickly pulled his arms away and replaced them with his hands, squeezing your own as his thumbs rubbed the back of them.

" _Please_?" he gave you a shy smile – the kind of smile he gave you when you were dating that showed how  _nervous_  he was when he was around you. You looked down at your hands in his and you couldn't deny that you missed the feeling of how soft and warm they were and how much  _safer_  you felt when he was holding you...

When you looked back up at him and saw how truthfully  _scared_  he was that you would reject him, something inside of you started  _screaming_  at you that he really  _did_  mean everything he said... And you wouldn't have been able to make yourself say no even if you  _wanted_  to.

"Okay," you said so softly that he  _almost_  didn't hear it.

" _Okay_?" he repeated, his eyes widening and his thumbs ceasing their movements, "Y-You're saying  _okay_?"

"Yeah," you replied with a small nod of confirmation, "I wanna try again too." Trevor breathed out abruptly, making you giggle softly as it hit your face.

"Well, I... Are you doing anything right now? We can go to-"

"We're still at  _work_ , Trevor," you reminded him with a smile, "I still have a  _video_  to finish editing..." He looked around the room for a moment, almost as if he'd forgotten you two were in the prop room.

" _Right_..." he trailed off, "We can do it this weekend...or something... I need time to think about where I'm gonna  _take you_."

"You do that," you laughed softly again.

"Well, I, uh... I'll let you get back to work..." he began chewing on his bottom lip. His hold on your hands tightened just before he released them.

You went to leave the room, but after you opened the door, you heard Trevor say your name. You turned to look at him, surprised when he leaned down and pressed a kiss to your cheek. You could  _feel_  your face getting hot, but that didn't stop you from returning the favor, standing up on your toes and kissing his cheek as well.

Neither of you said anything – though you could each tell the other was blushing – as you finally left the prop room, feeling  _much_  better than when you went in.

~

_inspiration: https://treycoffcentral.tumblr.com/post/156644315560/could-you-do-number-84-with-a-bit-of-angst_


	451. Demons (Michael Clifford) - Part 1 *

**Warning: Mentions of depression, suicide attempts**

~

It was alarming how quickly you went from having a good day – being in a great mood – to being so worried that you  _physically_  started feeling ill.

Your lunch bell had just rung and you were trotting to the cafeteria, having been looking forward to pizza day  _all week_. You had the last lunchtime and to say you were hungry was an understatement.

But you ended up  _skipping_  the pizza – freezing in your spot when you noticed a familiar blonde sneaking toward the door to the school's roof.

Michael Clifford was in your Chemistry class and the  _complete opposite_  to you. You were popular and had tons of friends; he was a nerd everyone picked on and, as far as you could tell, didn't hang out with anybody. You were fine with getting average passing grades; he was one of the top three smartest students in school. He was a pretty shy and quiet kid – never really speaking in class unless the teacher called on him – but you never expected him to be the kind of person who wanted to end their life.

And although you couldn't say with  _100% certainty_  that that's what he intended to do once he made it up to the roof, but you weren't about to sit around  _wondering_.

You hurried down the hallway after Michael and, before the door to the roof closed all the way behind him, you slipped through. You waited for a few moments – you didn't know if he would still be near the opening to the roof, but you decided to hang back so he wouldn't hear you right away.

When you tiptoed up the rest of the stairs, you peeked over the railing and found Michael standing at the edge of the roof. You wanted to wait – you wanted to see if he would try anything,  _hoping_  you were wrong – but you weren't given the chance. You hadn't been watching where you were going, going to step up another stair but missing it completely instead.

You let out a sharp gasp as you hit the ground, hearing Michael spin around to see what the sound was. You closed your eyes tightly, hoping he would just think it was his imagination, but he didn't.

"H-Hello?" he asked shakily, "Wh-Who's over there?"

You knew you could easily get away without him ever knowing you were there, but you also knew you absolutely  _hate yourself_  for leaving him alone later. So you sucked in a deep breath, put your hand on the concrete beside your hip, and pushed yourself up. You could practically  _hear_  Michael's breathing hitch when he saw you but you weren't surprised – the blonde tended to freeze around you, sometimes even treating you as though you weren't even  _there_.

"Y/N..." he stuttered – though he was clearly nervous, you were happy he was at least  _acknowledging you_ this time.

"Hi, Michael..." you whispered, lucky your voice was even giving you  _that_.

"What... What a-are you do-doing up here?"

"Following you..." you trailed off, "Seemed like something was wrong..."

"N-Nothing's wrong... I'm... I'm fine..."

"I know the signs, Michael... I see how you've been acting in class..." you said softly, "The distancing yourself... The losing your train of thought when it never used to happen  _before_... I like to  _tell_  myself that you'd never actually attempt anything, but when I saw you go toward the door leading up here... I knew it wasn't to enjoy the  _scenery_..."

"How do you know the signs?" he asked, watching you as you slowly approached him. You were quiet until you were standing beside him, looking at him carefully before speaking.

"I knew this girl at my old school... We talked in class, but we never really spoke unless we were paired up for something... She hadn't come to school for a few days when we found out she tried to...you know... A teacher caught her sneaking up to the roof and grabbed her just before she jumped... I knew something was wrong  _months_  before it happened... I could tell she was starting to act different... We weren't super close, but she started talking less and less during projects... I didn't think she'd actually  _do anything_ , but... I should have said something... I should have told someone... I shouldn't have igno-"

"It wasn't your fault, Y/N," Michael told you, cutting off your rambling, "You couldn't have known."

"I  _knew_  something was wrong with her, Michael, and I didn't  _say anything_ ," your jaw tightened, "And I'm not gonna  _sit around_  and wait to hear about how  _you_ -" You cut yourself off when your voice broke, looking away from him.

"Why do you care?" he whispered.

"Because I'm a decent human being," you answered without hesitating, "And not that it would  _change_  whether or not I came up here, but I like you... _a lot_..." Michael's breathing  _audibly_  hitched at the confession.

"Y-You like  _me_?" he asked, completely convinced he'd heard you wrong.

"Yeah..." you admitted shyly, "I've been wanting to tell you for a while, but... Whenever I try to talk to you, you ignore me, so... I just thought you hated me or something..."

"I don't hate you," he murmured.

"You  _don't_?" you looked back at him, finding a shy smile and bright blush on his face.

"I'm the furthest thing from  _hating you_ ," he admitted, "I just... You're really popular and I... People only know my name because I'm  _made fun of_  so much... I didn't... I never thought someone like  _you_  would just want to  _talk_  to me..."

"You think I'm like everyone else?" you swallowed thickly, the hurt expression on your face making Michael's heart sink.

" _No_ , I just..." he sighed, putting his face in his hands and talking into his palms, "Girls like you don't  _go_  for guys like me... You should be with someone as popular as you – not the  _loser_  everyone makes fun of... All those guys asking you out every day would be much better for you than me... I'm nothing special – I'm just  _Michael..._ "

"I  _like_  ' _just Michael_ '," you grumbled, making him look up at you, "You're nice even though everyone else  _sucks_  and you're a hundred times smarter than  _any_  of the guys keep asking me out."

"That's not really saying  _much_ ," he scoffed, but you could hear in his tone that was teasing you, "I could be  _failing_  and I'd  _still_  be a hundred times smarter." You couldn't help but laugh at the comment, making Michael blush at knowing  _he_  finally caused his favorite sound in the world.

But when your smile faded, he felt his heart sink as well.

" _Please_  come back downstairs, Michael," you begged him, "You don't have to tell anyone else what happened, just... Please just talk to a counselor or me or  _someone_..."

"Y/N..." he said reluctantly.

" _Please_ ,  _Michael_ ," you swallowed, " _Please_?  _For me_?"

Michael put his hands back on his face for a moment before dragging them back down until they were returned to his lap.

"Okay," he sighed, " _For_   _you_." You smiled brightly and, without even really thinking about it, leaned in and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

You quickly pulled away but before you could apologize, Michael's arm wrapped around your shoulders and he brought you into him. You leaned onto him, feeling him kiss your temple, causing you to smile into his shirt.

"This means you're gonna stop ignoring me in class, right?" you asked, tilting your head up to look at him. Michael shrugged with a small, mischievous grin pulling at the corner of his mouth.

"If you're lucky," he mentioned, chuckling when he felt you shove his ribs with your forearm.

Michael's thumb rubbed your upper arm for a moment before you heard his voice again – he knew if he didn't ask  _now_ , he probably never would.

"Will you go out with me?" he asked so softly that you almost didn't catch it despite being  _right there_.

You tilted your head up again, finding a terrified look on his face. He was absolutely  _sure_  you'd say no to him, but he had to ask anyway.

"Yes," you whispered.

"It's okay," he nodded solemnly, "I understand."  You couldn't help but smile.

"Michael, you heard what I said, right?"

"You said yes," he murmured. Your smile only got bigger when his eyes widened. "Y-You said  _yes_?" he asked you, his eyes quickly meeting your again.

You only giggled under your breath, "I would love to go out with you, Michael."

~

**Two months later**

_Two months_ ; That was how long you and Michael lasted.

It started out as a normal Friday – as they  _all_  do – and it wasn't until after school that the breakup you didn't see coming happened. Michael had been acting jumpy all day – more so than  _usual_  – but he would always insist that he was fine when you asked him about it.

You brushed it off until the end of the day when you found him standing at your locker, waiting for you. You gathered up all your things to go home all while Michael just stood there, looking upset about something you couldn't  _quite_  pinpoint.

Until he started speaking, of course.

"Y/N..." he murmured, his eyes locked onto his shoes, "I've been thinking a lot lately and, um... Well... I think... Maybe... We shouldn't... _be together_  anymore..."

When you didn't say anything, he finally looked at you, his breathing hitching when he saw the tears in your eyes. But the response that came out of your mouth both confused him  _and_  broke his heart.

"Fine," you whispered hoarsely, your voice not giving you much more than that.

"F- _Fine_?" he asked, wanting to make sure he heard you right, "You're not... You're not even going to  _try_  to fight...?"

"Why should I try to keep you from leaving when you're ready to  _give up_  at the first sign of someone talking shit about us?" your stare was cold despite the tears still running down your face, "Do you think it's going to get  _better_  and that everyone is just going to  _accept it_  the next time they see us together? Because it  _won't_ , Michael. And  _they_  won't. This isn't some sappy teen rom-com where the popular girl starts dating the nerdy guy from her math class and everyone learns to accept him as part of the group because ' _if she likes him, he must not be_ ** _that_** _bad_ '. My friends aren't  _like that_ ; They are shallow, self-centered assholes who belittle anyone  _slightly_  less popular than them. I would tell you that this isn't going to have a fairytale ending whether you like it or not so you can either choose between taking me despite the consequences or leaving and continuing to wallow in self-pity in your safe little bubble for the rest of high school. But you know what?  _Fuck you, Michael_. Why should  _I_  have to fight for  _you_  when  _you're_  not going to fight for  _me_? I  _really_  thought you wouldn't  _be_  like everyone else. I guess I was  _wrong_."

Michael couldn't do anything except just watch in shock as you turned around and walked away at the end of your rant. He realized as soon as the first point left your mouth that he was an idiot for thinking everything was going to go perfectly – he just didn't expect the ending to be you saying ' _fuck you_ ' to him.

~

_inspirations:  
http://imaginethesedorks.tumblr.com/post/105813976066/dance-dance-nerdy-ashton-imagine  
_ _https://ever-since-kiwi.tumblr.com/post/162258248496/the-train-part-three_


	452. Demons (Michael Clifford) - Part 2 *

**Warning: Mentions of depression, suicide attempts**

~

**One week later**

After you hadn't come to school for the entire  _week_  after the breakup, Michael was understandably worried about you. He wasn't sure whether or not you'd be home since it was an early Saturday afternoon – and he knew you might not want to  _see him_  anyway – but he wouldn't forgive himself if he didn't at least  _try_  to reach out.

Now, Michael had picked you up from your house before when you went on dates and such, but he hadn't actually met your parents yet. He talked about his mom and dad a lot – you'd even met them a few times – but he quickly figured out that you'd much rather listen about  _his_  parents than talk about your  _own_ _._ And it was about  _two seconds_  into your mother answering his knock on the front door that he understood  _why_.

"Hello, Mrs. Y/L/N," Michael smiled politely, "Is Y/N home?"

"Haven't seen her," she answered starkly, looking down at her watch, "I have to go. Lock the door on your way out if you don't find her." Your mom left the door open as she hurried past him. 

Michael looked over his shoulder, watching her get into her car and drive off, before finally entering the house.

He'd never been inside your house before, so he took a moment to look around at just how  _big_  it was. His home was  _nothing_  like yours – he lived in a simple two-story house in a simple neighborhood – but you... If your home didn't look expensive from the  _outside_ , it  _definitely_  did  _inside_. He didn't dwell on it too much though – you certainly never  _acted like_  you were rich beyond all reason – so he just continued about his journey to find you.

He obviously wasn't  _exactly_  sure where to go first seeing as he had  _so much_ ground to cover, but he figured the safest option was to start upstairs to see if he could find your bedroom.

Michael knocked on every single door before entering a room, having no luck in finding you in  _any_  of them. He felt the disappointment in his chest grow more and more with every step he took, but he wasn't leaving until he checked every room in the house.

And when he reached the door at the end of the hallway, his stubbornness  _finally_  paid off. He knocked lightly again, completely expecting not to find you – but he  _did_.

And it made his heart start  _pounding_.

You had just finished climbing over the railing of your balcony, looking down at the concrete patio below. You weren't sure whether or not the height would be enough to give you the final result you wanted, but at this point, you were willing to try  _anything_.

But you weren't given the chance to find out.

Just before you pushed yourself off the edge of the balcony, you felt arms wrap themselves around your waist. You squealed in surprise – you  _specifically_  waited until  _now_  because you  _knew_  everyone was out of the house. But you already knew who it was – you knew those bracelet-covered wrists  _anywhere_.

" _Let go, Michael_!" you practically screamed, trying desperately to free yourself from Michael's grasp.

"I know what's gonna happen if I  _do_ , Y/N, and I'm  _not_  going to let you do that," he stated, only moving one arm off of you so he could hook his elbow under your knees and bring you back onto the balcony.

"That's  _not_  your choice!" you wiggled around.

"It wasn't  _your_  choice at school either, but that didn't stop you from following  _me_ , did it?" he countered.

He felt your body immediately relax as you stopped fighting him – you knew he was right – but that didn't mean he was going to let go of you just yet. He dropped to the floor and held you tightly against him.

"I know I haven't been the greatest at showing it, but I really  _do_  like you," he shook his head, "And I like you  _far_  too much to let you do something you'd regret halfway to the ground."

"I didn't regret it the  _first time_ ; I'm not gonna regret it  _now_ ," you growled, but you didn't try to escape anymore.

It was silent for a moment before you could feel Michael let out a breath, realization finally hitting him.

"That girl you were talking about..." he trailed off, "The one you said tried to jump at your old school... That was  _you_ , wasn't it...? You were talking about  _yourself_...?" You let out a soft, dry laugh, Michael's arms falling from your waist as you crawled away from him to sit back against the balcony's railing.

"I guess we've  _all_  got our  _demons_ , don't we?" you said, not looking over at him but knowing he was looking at you.

"Y/N... I-"

"I don't want  _sympathy_ , Michael," you told him, "I don't want pity, and I  _certainly_  don't want that ' _it gets better_ '  _bullshit_."

"I wasn't gonna say that..." he whispered. You finally turned your head toward him, the look on your face prompting him to continue. "I was gonna say... Why choose  _me_?" he asked shyly, "Why tell  _me_  about your demons?"

"I don't know," you answered honestly, looking at the clouds in the sky, "Maybe because you're the only person who would believe that I  _have them_."

"What do you mean?"

"People who aren't victims of their own mind don't  _get it_ ," you stated, "They don't see how someone so ' _pretty and popular and rich_ '-" You rolled your eyes. "-can have the kinds of  _secrets_  I do. They think my life is  _perfect_  – that I have everything I could  _ever_  want – so I  _must_  be happy. But the only thing being  _rich_  gets me is weekly therapy sessions that aren't even  _working_  anymore; Can't choose not to go when they're the ' _doctor's orders_ ' though."

"Why'd the doctor order therapy?" he murmured.

"I tried to kill myself on school grounds in the middle of the day, Michael," you replied monotonously, "Why do  _you_  think?"

"Maybe you just need a different therapist," he suggested.

"My parents have an  _image_  to uphold," you said softly, "If they sent their kid to a therapist that wasn't ' _the best damn one in town_ ', they're convinced it'll  _ruin_  that image. They already think it's  _bad enough_  everyone knows I'm suicidal; They're not gonna risk people finding out I'm not going to a ' _good therapist_ '."

"You've  _tried_  to switch already..."

" _Of course I have_!" you let out a broken sob, "I don't  _enjoy_  feeling the way I do all the time! What good is paying for  _therapy_  doing when it's not  _working_  anymore?! It's the same  _shit_  every time: go to the appointment, ask about how I'm feeling,  _talk about_  how I'm feeling to someone I know  _damn well_  isn't  _really_  listening, suggest new medications,  _deny_  new medication, end session, go home,  _continue_   _feeling like_   _shit_! I don't need some stupid ' _best therapist in town_ ' bullshit; I need someone who  _listens_  and  _cares_  and stops brushing me off as someone who won't even  _make it_  to their 20's!"

By the time you finished ranting, you were  _full-on_  crying. You did your best to cover it up – you tried to slyly wipe your face – but Michael could still tell; He could hear it in your ragged breathing and broken whimpers.

And although he didn't know what to say, he figured he could give you  _some_  of what you wanted; He figured he could  _care_.

Michael put his hand on the back of your head, pulling you so your face was pressed to his neck. He scratched at your scalp as you – without any prompting from him – climbed onto his lap and wrapped your legs around his waist. His other arm wound around your back while you clung onto him for dear life. As much as you  _hated_  when people saw this side of you, you wouldn't be the last to admit you were starting to feel a  _little_  better when you felt Michael's lips hit the side of your head and stay there.

But while you knew this wouldn't  _magically cure_  your depression, maybe you'd finally found something you never thought you'd have:  _a happy place_.

And maybe your happy place was the nerd from your Chemistry class.

~

_inspirations:  
http://imaginethesedorks.tumblr.com/post/105813976066/dance-dance-nerdy-ashton-imagine  
_ _https://ever-since-kiwi.tumblr.com/post/162258248496/the-train-part-three_


	453. Mine (Ashton Irwin) - Part 1

_Flashback; Three years ago_

Ashton was there for the moment you found out you were pregnant, the moment your morning sickness started, and the moments you were begging him to go to the store at 2:30am to relieve your weird food cravings. He was there for every single doctor visit and insisted on taking pictures ever week to document your ever-growing baby bump. He shared the moment you heard your baby's heartbeat for the first time.

He was there to help you come up with how you'd tell your family and friends the news of their future family member and he was there the moment you told them, wanting to capture it on film. He practically  _forced you_  to take what seemed like a  _million_  of his shirts and every bottom that fit you so you didn't have to buy yourself an entirely new wardrobe of maternity clothes since his clothes were  _basically_  the same fit on your body anyway.

He was with you at the doctor visit you found out you were having a girl. He was there when you were excitedly crying about your baby kicking for the first time, pressing his hand to your stomach as you laughed because she absolutely  _refused_  to kick when he wanted to feel it. He was there to bounce names off of each other before you finally picked the  _perfect_  one – and he was even there when you  _changed it_  two weeks later, insisting that you would know what to name her the  _moment_  you saw her.

He was there when your water broke. He was there when you felt your first contraction. He was there in the delivery room, holding your hand as you pushed and pushed until she was  _finally_  born.

Ashton was there for  _everything_.

The only problem was Gemma wasn't  _his_.

Gemma's father wasn't in the picture anymore – he hadn't been since the day you told him you were pregnant. It wasn't like you were  _surprised_  that he didn't stick around, but that didn't mean it didn't still  _hurt_.

You'd gone to your best friend an absolute  _mess_  when your ex left, crying about how you didn't want your baby to grow up without a dad. Ashton comforted you as best as he could – rubbing your back as you clung to him, your tears soaking the shoulder of his shirt – but all he wanted was to find your ex and give him a piece of his mind. He promised you that he'd be with you throughout everything, and he  _was_.

The first few weeks were the hardest – you barely slept and Gemma's crying gave you what felt like a  _permanent_  headache. Ashton, seeing how much you were struggling on your own, insisted you move in with him, assuring you that he really  _did_  want you and Gemma in his life. It took a while but you finally gave in, moving into Ashton's apartment within a few days.

You'd seen Ashton with his cousins and your friends' relatives, and even your own younger family members, but you never realized just how good he was with kids until your first night living with him.

You'd woken up in the middle of the night to Gemma's soft cries, shifting in the bed to tend to her. But you were stopped by a hand on your shoulder gently pushing you back down.

"Go back to sleep," Ashton told you, your baby girl slowly falling back to sleep in his arms, "I've got her."

And the next thing you remember was waking up the next morning, feeling more rested than you had since she was born.

_End flashback_

~

"I've been thinking," Ashton told you as you walked into the kitchen where he was making dinner.

"That's a  _dangerous_  sentence coming from Ashton, huh?" you asked the toddler in your arms, smiling when Gemma giggled tiredly as you poked her tummy. You just woke her up from her nap, not wanting her to sleep too long and not go to bed that night.

"Very funny," he replied monotonously as he rolled his eyes, but it was obvious he was trying not to smile at the sound of her laugh.

"What were you thinking, Ash?" you grinned, stopping beside him as he stood at the stove, kissing his cheek playfully. Ashton responded by kissing your forehead as well as sloppily kissing Gemma's cheek, turning back to the stove as she giggled loudly and laid her head on your shoulder.

"You know her birthday is coming up next weekend," he said.

"Don't  _remind me_ ," you sighed dramatically, hugging her tightly to make her laugh again.

" _Mommy_!" she exclaimed. You kissed her head before releasing your hug.

"Well, I was thinking," he continued, "Your parents won't be able to come to visit until Sunday, so what if we took her somewhere on Saturday?"

"Such as?" you questioned.

"How about Disneyland?"

"Ashton-" You were cut off by Gemma's excited squeals.

" _Disney_!" she yelled happily, bouncing on your hip.

"Ashton," you continued with a sigh, "I don't know..."

" _Pwease_ , Mommy!" Gemma said, "Wanna see a pwincess!"

"I don't know if we can  _do that_  this year, baby," you swallowed, not wanting her to get upset at you – but you  _genuinely_  didn't know yet if you could find the money for it.

" _Pwease_ ,  _Mommy_?" she pouted.

"I'll think about it after bedtime," you sighed, hoping it would get her off your case.

And luckily, it did.

~

**Four hours later**

After putting Gemma to bed – and her reminder that you promised you'd think about Disneyland – you plopped down on the living room sofa. Your hands were on your face and your feet were tucked underneath your thighs.

You  _desperately_  wanted your daughter to wake up to a confirmation that you would take her to Disneyland, but with your only source of income right now being your weekend job at the local library, you didn't know if you could shell out the money it would take for everything you  _knew_  she'd want to do or get.

"Hey, Y/N," you heard Ashton say as he sat down beside you, making you look up at him. He had this worried expression on his face, clearly concerned as to why you seemed so distraught. "You okay?" he asked you. And you didn't bother lying to him.

"You  _know_  I don't like when you mention taking her places or buying her things right  _in front_  of her, Ashton," you said softly, "It makes me feel like  _shit_  if I have to say no when she's already excited about it."

"I know," he murmured, looking down at his hands, "I'm sorry... I just want her to have a good birthday..."

"I know, Ash," you whispered, scooting over to sit beside him and laying your head on his shoulder, "But it's  _so_  expensive just to get  _into_  the park... And, you know, you have a  _habit_  of buying her  _everything_  she asks for when I'm not around because she  _knows_  I'm not there to tell her no."

"I don't buy her  _everything_  she asks for," he scoffed, causing you to lift your head up. You cocked an eyebrow at him and he shook his head. " _I don't_!" he said defensively, but you just kept staring at him. " _Fine_ ," he grumbled, "I buy her everything she wants." You smiled slightly, wrapping your arms around his neck and pressing your lips to his cheek before your head returned to his shoulder.

"Thanks for being there even though she's not yours," you whispered again. You then felt Ashton's arm snake around your waist, pulling you onto his lap. You repositioned yourself to comfortably lay on him, feeling his own lips hit your forehead and stay there.

"You're  _both_  mine," he replied lowly, his grip on you tightening as he brought you closer.

~

_inspiration: https://pendantstyles.tumblr.com/post/166881737610/center-snot-very-nice-for-you-to-sleep-on-me_


	454. Mine (Ashton Irwin) - Part 2

Over the next couple days, Ashton would subtly ask you about your thoughts on taking Gemma to Disneyland for her birthday; The only problem was he would  _still_  ask about it right  _in front_  of her. Ashton wasn't normally the type to  _continue_  doing something after you told him to  _stop_ , so it understandably confused you as to why he  _kept_  doing it.

And the confusion finally became too much.

After you put Gemma to bed and waited a bit so you were  _sure_  she was asleep, you decided to confront Ashton. You hoped it wouldn't turn into an argument – God knows you  _hated_  fighting with Ashton – but you knew you had to bring it up  _eventually_  if you ever wanted it to stop.

"Ash," you whispered as you walked into the living room where he was sitting, not wanting to risk Gemma waking up to hear it, "We need to talk."

"About what?" he asked, putting the book he was holding down so you had his undivided attention. You took a deep breath in before just  _saying it_.

"Can you maybe... _stop_  talking about Disney in front of Gemma...?" you asked with a small sigh.

"Well, when  _else_  am I supposed to bring it up?" he scoffed, "She's  _always_  with you." Your heart skipped slightly – you really hadn't expected the conversation to go south  _that_  quickly.

"When she's _sleeping_ ," you grumbled – you figured it wasn't  _that_  difficult to figure out.

"I don't get why you're so upset," he insisted, "It's just a  _weekend_ -long vacation – it's not like we're moving into  _Sleeping Beauty's castle_."

"Quit being  _ridiculous_ ," you stated with a deadpan expression.

"I'm just trying to  _help_!" he exclaimed softly as to not disturb the sleeping toddler down the hallway, "You know, like I  _said_  I would when you moved in?"

"She's still  _my_  daughter, Ashton!" you shook your head, " _I_  should be the one making decisions about  _what_  she gets and  _where_  she goes and  _when_  she does it and  _who_  she does it with until she's old enough to make those decisions on her  _own_!"

"Well, I'm sorry I just want her to be  _happy_ ," he scoffed, crossing his arms.

"And you think  _I_   _don't_?!" you whispered, shaking your head.

"You certainly don't  _act like it_!" he rolled his eyes, "You're always telling her she can't have something or she can't go somewhere! How is she supposed to be happy if you're  _always_  telling her no?"

"She doesn't need  _material things_  to be  _happy_ , Ashton!" you reminded him, "You  _keep_  getting her everything she wants and then  _I_  look like the asshole when I can't buy her a goddamn  _candy bar_!"

"I make my  _own_  money, Y/N," he stated, "I can decide  _who_  and  _what_  I spend it on."

" _God_ ," you let out an exasperated breath, " _This_  is why I'm saving to move out."

"Well, I'm sorry I  _care_  about your daughter!"

"Well, if you  _care_  about her so much, why don't  _you_  take her?!" you spat back.

Ashton's heart started pounding against his chest as you grabbed your keys and wallet, heading to the front door. He grabbed your hand before you could slip through the opening, following you out into the hallway, only to have you turn and grin sarcastically at him.

"You should really get back inside, Ashton," you told him, "It would be pretty irresponsible to leave your  _daughter_  home alone."

You ripped your hand out of his and walked down the hallway to the elevator to leave the apartment building, leaving Ashton not knowing where to go from here.

~

 **Ashton's POV;** **The next morning**

Ashton hadn't slept at all that night, staying on the couch in the hopes that you'd walk through the front door at any moment. But you never did. He tried calling and texting you, but you never answered.

He knew it maybe wasn't necessarily the  _right_  thing to do when he didn't ask  _you_  before doing things for Gemma – you  _were_  right after all; she was  _your_  daughter and all final decisions should go through  _you_  before getting to  _her_  – but he  _really_  couldn't help it. He loved that little girl  _so much_  and he just wanted to give her  _everything_  she wanted.

"Where Mommy?" Ashton was suddenly startled out of his daydream, his head snapping up as Gemma shuffled into the living room after waking up.

It was a rare sight for her to be awake this early unless you got her up yourself, and to be honest, Ashton didn't know what to say. He didn't want to worry her and tell her that you left and he didn't know where you were, but he didn't want to lie either. So he just... _stretched the truth_  a little.

"Mummy went out for a while," Ashton told her.

"But she think about Disney?" she asked.

He pursed his lips together for a moment before reaching out to her. Gemma immediately waddled up to him, letting him lift her up onto his lap.

"I think you and I need to talk, Gem," Ashton swallowed, "I think we should wait until  _next year_  to go to Disney."

" _Why_?" she pouted, her bottom lip sticking out as far as it could go.

Ashton breathed out slowly, "You know Mummy loves you more than anything in the  _whole_  world, right?" Gemma obviously nodded. "Well, Mummy and I didn't talk about it first, so she didn't even  _know_  about Disney. And  _she's_  your Mummy, so I think we should both respect that and wait until  _she_  says we should go."

"Mommy not want to go?" she frowned.

"I'm sure Mummy  _does_  want to go, Gem, but I don't think  _now_  is the right time," he said.

Gemma sighed softly before sliding off of Ashton's lap and going to the bookshelf where all the movies were. He watched her stand up on her toes as far as she could, grab a DVD case, and bring it back to the couch.

"We still  _watch_  Disney, right?" she asked, looking up at him with big brown eyes as she held the  _Moana_  DVD out to him – and Ashton couldn't help but chuckle.

"Yeah, Gem," he grinned, kissing the top of her head, "We can still watch Disney."

~

**Your POV**

You returned to the apartment with a Walmart bag on your wrist, your wallet and phone in one hand, and your keys in the other so you could unlock the front door. You had a lot of time to think about the entire situation and after coming to your conclusion, you hoped it would leave  _everyone_  feeling better.

After unlocking the door to your apartment, you walked in quietly. It was still a bit early, so you were sure Gemma – and possibly  _Ashton_  – were still asleep and didn't want to disturb them. But the caution ended up being pointless.

" _Mommy home_!" Gemma cheered the moment you walked through the door.

You jumped lightly when she latched onto your leg, surprised to get this reaction, especially since you saw  _Moana_  playing on the television – and she rarely let  _anything_  disturb her when she was watching her favorite movie.

"Hey, baby," you said, putting your things down so you could pick her up, "What are you doing up so early?" You noticed Ashton looking at you from his spot on the couch, but you elected to ignore him for the time being.

"Mommy," she said with as serious of an expression that she could muster, "We not go to Disney." You cocked an eyebrow, your own expression turning into one of confusion.

"You  _don't_  want to go to Disney?" you asked, wanting to make sure you heard her right.

"No," she shook her head, "You no want to go, but I still love you."

Gemma leaned forward and kissed your cheek, making you chuckle softly. You put her down on the floor before sitting down yourself and reaching for the bag you'd brought in with you.

"Well... If we're not going to Disney anymore, what am I supposed to do with  _this_?" you asked, pulling out a Moana costume. You noticed out of the corner of your eye that Ashton finally perked up, standing up and moving to the edge of the couch to see what was going on.

" _Mommy_!" Gemma gasped, her eyes widening at the outfit, " _We go to Disney_?!"

"Yeah, baby," you grinned at her reaction, "I think we can make it work." She squealed loudly, throwing her arms around your neck and hugging you tightly.

" _Thank you, Mommy_!" she squeezed you as you squeezed her right back.

Gemma then let go of you, grabbed the costume from your hand, and dragged it alongside her toward her room. You smiled to yourself, preparing to hear her shout for you to help her put the outfit on.

You finally stood back up, standing still for a moment as you gathered the courage to face Ashton since that fight. But you didn't really have time to think about what you'd say to him because the moment you turned your body to go to where he was in the living room, you were a bit startled to find he was already next to you.

"So," he cleared his throat, "We're going to Disney then, huh?" You looked at him for a few seconds before saying the only thing you could think to say to him.

"M'sorry about last night," you murmured, hoping he'd forgive you.

"Me too," he let out a sharp breath, wrapping his arms around your waist. You sighed in relief, hugging his neck tightly.

~

_inspiration: https://pendantstyles.tumblr.com/post/166881737610/center-snot-very-nice-for-you-to-sleep-on-me_


	455. Mine (Ashton Irwin) - Part 3

_requested by youngblood199456 on tumblr_

~

" _God_ , I thought we'd  _never_  get here," Ashton sighed happily as you opened your hotel room door.

" _Please_ , Ash," you giggled, "You slept the  _whole_ flight here."

"In an uncomfortable plane chair!" he insisted, only making you grin and roll your eyes.

"I like riding in planes," Gemma chirped, holding onto your hand as you led her and Ashton into the room, "Everything looks like little ants." You couldn't help but chuckle at your daughter, not even noticing the way Ashton was smiling at you. "Where's  _my_  bed, Mommy?" she asked, looking up at you, "These are  _big person_  beds."

"Well, me and you are gonna share a bed," you told her, "And Ash is gonna have his own."

"But  _I_ wanna sleep with  _Ash_ ," Gemma pouted. Ashton snorted softly at the frown on your face as he set your bags down at the foot of the bed.

"Since when do you  _not_  want to sleep with me?" you asked the little girl.

"Ash is a good cuddler," she said matter-of-factly.

"What am  _I_ then?!" you scoffed, "Are my cuddles  _that_  bad now?"

"No," she insisted, "But Ash's are  _better_."

You took one look at the shit-eating grin on Ashton's face, mumbling to yourself in agreement with Gemma as you snatched your bag from the floor and hoisted it up onto the bed. Ashton chuckled, lifting Gemma onto his own bed before coming over to you.

"Sorry, princess," he murmured into your ear so Gemma couldn't hear him, pressing a sloppy kiss to your cheek.

" _Sure, you are_ ," you rolled your eyes, finally smiling as you shoved him away from you.

"Alright, birthday girl," Ashton turned to the  _now_  4-year-old, "What do you want to do first?"

"Wanna meet Moana!" she beamed without even needing to  _think_  about it.

"Hmm, didn't see  _that one_ coming, did you?" you whispered into his ear as you passed behind him on your way to the bathroom, hearing him laugh as he addressed the toddler again.

"How about we put your outfit on then?" he asked, earning a cheer as she eagerly went to her bag to grab her Moana costume.

~

**Eight hours later**

The events of the first day of your Disneyland trip were coming to an end, and Gemma – as well as you and Ashton – were  _understandably_ exhausted. You surprised the birthday girl with a party and  _all_ of her favorite princesses were in attendance. They brought out a cute cake just for her with four purple candles in it, and she was absolutely  _bursting_ with excitement when everyone sang ' _Happy Birthday_ ' to her.

You knew she was getting tired just by the way she was walking more slowly than she had been all day, but she  _insisted_ that the three of you stay for the fireworks show. To be honest, you didn't know if she'd  _make it_  through the entire thing, but you humored her – it  _was_ still her birthday, after all – and made sure to get a decent spot in front of Sleeping Beauty's castle.

As soon as the show started, Gemma was watching in awe – not paying the least bit of attention to you or Ashton anymore. You watched yourself for a few minutes before getting the feeling that someone was watching you, and when you turned to find Ashton's eyes on you, you couldn't help but smile shyly.

"What?" you asked him.

"Nothing," he shook his head, his eyes seeming to memorize every part of your face as if he was scared he'd forget what you looked like, "Jus' happy is all."

"Disneyland does that to people," you nodded, earning a soft chuckle from the man beside you. You looked at him for a moment before speaking again. "Thanks for this, Ash," you whispered, "Means a lot that you've stuck around these last few years."

"D'do  _anything_ for you two, Y/N – you know that."

"Yeah..." you trailed off.

Ashton wasn't going to pretend that he didn't notice your gaze flick to his lips before you seemingly shook it off and turned back to face the castle. His heart started racing at the thought of you  _wanting_ to kiss him – he never thought you saw him that way, but then again, a girl had never looked at him the way you did in that moment before.

And if this was going to be his only chance... Well, he might as well just  _take it_.

"Y/N..." Ashton mumbled, unsure it was even loud enough for you to hear until you looked back up at him. He bravely leaned down and pressed a kiss to the corner of your mouth, not  _actually_ kissing you but making sure you knew that he really did want to.

And when he pulled away and you  _immediately_ put your hand on his cheek and pulled him back so your lips were on his, he couldn't keep the smile off of his face.

"Hmm," you hummed into the kiss before pulling away to breathe, "Guess Disney  _wasn't_ kidding when they said dreams come true."

Ashton let out a soft laugh before grabbing your waist and pulling you into him. You looked at each other for a moment before he leaned down to peck your nose. Your face scrunched up as you giggled, not even noticing the little girl watching you until she piped up.

"My wish  _worked_?!" Gemma shouted happily, making you and Ashton glance at each other before looking down at her.

"What wish?" Ashton asked her, letting go of you so he could reach down at pick her up.

"When I blowed out my birthday candles, I wished that you and Mommy would live happily ever after like all the princesses in the movies!" she beamed, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"You  _wanted_ me and Ashton to end up together?" you questioned.

" _Yeah_!" she chirped, "You look at each other like the princes and princesses do all the time, and they always need help before they fall in love, so I wanted to help you!" Ashton's eyes landed on you, chuckling when he noticed the  _impressed_ look on your face that your  _4-year-old_  seemed to know about your feelings for Ashton before even  _you_ did.

The fireworks show came to an end, and you, Ashton, and Gemma dispersed with the rest of the crowd. You took the shuttle back to your hotel, and even though Gemma was already falling asleep on Ashton's lap, you had to wake her up to get her ready for bed.

You took her into the bathroom to help her brush her teeth and put on her pajamas, doing the same for yourself before leaving. When you came back into the main room, you found Ashton already lying in his bed fast asleep. You found yourself looking over and him, unable to keep the smile off of your face, while Gemma trotted over to your bed and climbed onto it.

"I thought you wanted to sleep with Ashton," you whispered as to not disturb him, crossing your arms as you stood in the middle of the two beds, your thighs leaning up against yours.

"I wanna have a big bed  _all_ for me!" Gemma stated, sprawling out right in the middle of the mattress.

"Then where am  _I_ supposed to sleep?"

She then looked at you innocently, " _You_ can sleep with Ash instead."

"Gem, I don't think Ash would  _want_ me to-" You were cut off by a gravelly voice behind you.

"S'not nice to talk about people right in front of them, you know," Ashton said, making you look over your shoulder to find him already looking at you with a small grin, "And for your information, I wouldn't mind it  _at all_. Now put her to bed and get your cute butt over here."

You fought back a grin as you turned away from him – but with the way his smile grew, you knew he could still tell – and found your daughter already pulling back the blankets and getting under them. You reached over to turn on her little nightlight before tucking her in, leaning over to kiss her goodnight.

"Don't think I don't know what you're doing," you murmured before fully pulling away, making her giggle. You heard Ashton chuckle as well, letting you know he'd heard you.

"I love you, Mommy," Gemma said softly, already falling asleep.

"I love  _you_ , Gem," you returned, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

"Love you, Ash," she whispered, grabbing her teddy bear and holding it closely.

"Love you too, princess," he smiled despite hearing her quiet snores and knowing she was officially out.

Ashton propped himself up on his elbow and wrapped his other arm around your waist, pulling you backwards. You squeaked softly as you plopped onto the bed, shooting him a playful glare as he tugged you to lie down. You quickly reached over to turn off the lamp before doing just that, laying your head on the pillow so you were facing Ashton while he turned so he was facing you as well.

"So," Ashton whispered, his hand landing on the middle of your hip, "Happy you took this trip after all?"

"I'm starting to think  _this_ was her plan all along," you replied thoughtfully, your voice just as soft.

"Well, she  _is_ pretty smart," he reminded you, "Probably gets it from spending all her time with me."

"If you were  _really_ that smart, you would have done this yourself  _without_ Disney's help," you fired back.

Ashton responded by moving his hand up and tickling your sides, causing you to curl into him and bury your face in his neck so your laughter was muffled by his skin and didn't wake Gemma up. When he stopped tickling you and let you catch your breath, you felt him move just enough to press his lips to your forehead.

"We  _all_ need a little help sometimes," he mentioned, feeling you smile as well as you pushed yourself closer to him.

The motion caused him to return to how he'd been lying before – on his back – allowing you to rest your head on his shoulder. His own arm wrapped around you, squeezing you gently as he kissed your head again.

"G'night, baby girl," he murmured into your hair.

"Night, Ash," you returned softly, your own kiss hitting the middle of his collarbone.

~

_inspiration: https://pendantstyles.tumblr.com/post/166881737610/center-snot-very-nice-for-you-to-sleep-on-me_


	456. Too Good to Be True (Zach DeWall) - Part 1

**Warning: Mentions of abuse**

~

**Zach's POV**

Since the moment you were born, all Zach had ever felt was the faint feeling of being hugged and pat on the back and kissed wherever you'd gotten hurt when you were playing. He felt when you had your first kiss and he knew about every time you'd faked it in bed because  _you just wanted it to end already_. He felt every stubbed toe and when you broke your finger after falling on the playground... He felt it  _all_.

And he wondered if you yourself could feel the nights he worried himself so much that he got  _sick_  when he started to notice that he felt like he got punched on  _some part of his body_  nearly every single day. 

**Your POV**

You knew from the moment you met Jonah that he wasn't your soulmate. He had this  _too-good-to-be-true_ vibeabout him the second the first word came out of his mouth, and you quickly realized your gut was right.

It started out as light shoves – a seemingly  _nothing_  gesture when you'd honestly forgotten something – but it quickly turned into fists on your face just because he was  _bored_. You asked yourself constantly  _why_  you stayed with him – you never understood how people could  _stay_  in relationships where they were being  _abused_  – but when you started experiencing it yourself, you finally had the answer.

You were  _scared_.

Jonah, up until you were brave enough to leave him,  _terrified_  you. Honestly, sometimes, he  _still_  terrified you. You were always worried about the ' _what if_ 's.

_What if he finds out where I'm living and shows up at my door? What if he asks someone where I am and hurts them when they don't tell him? What if he already knows where I am and is on his way right now?_

You hated living in  _fear_  more than you hated actually living  _with Jonah_  – really, you did – because at least living with Jonah meant you  _knew_  you were going to be abused. But  _not_  living with Jonah meant you were damn near having a panic attack  _each and every time_  someone knocked on your apartment door.

**Zach's POV**

After Zach hadn't felt anything for a few weeks, he was understandably starting to worry. As terrible as it made him think he was, at least when he felt like he was being hit, he knew his soulmate was  _alive_. But now that he hadn't felt anything, he was almost  _constantly_  sick to his stomach with paranoia.

Deep down, no matter how much he didn't want to believe it was the case, he knew his soulmate was being abused – by  _who_? He didn't know – and he  _hated_  himself for not knowing  _who or where_  she was so he could get her out of it.

~

To get his mind off of everything – or at least  _try to_  – Zach walked into the barren Starbucks, smiling at the barista as he approached the counter.

"Hey, Zach!" he chirped, "Usual?"

"Yes, please," he nodded, getting his wallet out as the barista began making his drink, "How's life?"

"Not great, honestly," he chuckled lightheartedly, "My girlfriend just up and left me the other day."

" _What_?" Zach furrowed his eyebrows, "Why would she do that?"

"I don't know! I just came home to a half-empty place!"

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, that girl's stupid," he shook his head, "Doesn't know what she's missing out on."

"Thanks," the barista laughed. He brought the drink up to the cash register and took Zach's money, giving him change before sliding the cup to him. "Maybe I'll run into her again someday and be able to ask what happened," he shrugged.

"Hey, just don't lose any sleep over it," he said, "I gotta go. Don't let the boss work you too hard."

The barista laughed again, "Later, Zach!"

"See ya, Jonah!" Zach called over his shoulder before leaving the store.

~

**One month later**

The public library was never somewhere Zach usually went, but for  _some reason_ , it felt like  _something_  was telling him to go. It was a cool October day, so he put on his jacket and headed out of his apartment, unsure of what awaited him.

There were a few people in the library – one girl looking very into the book she was reading as she sat by herself at one of the desks in the middle of the room, a group of college students quietly discussing their research papers, a business-looking man and who appeared to be his daughter searching for a book about princesses, and the librarian working on her computer at the front desk. Zach decided to grab the first book that caught his eye – he was already  _there_ ; he might as well read something – and sat at the table diagonal from the girl who hadn't looked up since the moment she sat down.

Things were quiet aside from the discussions between the students and the little girl and her dad for a while. To be quite honest, Zach was starting to think that this ' _feeling_ ' he had meant nothing and he was about to just get up and go back home.

But a sudden, small gasp stopped him.

" _Son of a_ -" he heard someone hiss as he felt a stinging in his left pointer finger. He jumped lightly – he hadn't felt any pain in  _so long_  that it honestly shocked him when he felt  _that_.

Zach's head instantly shot up to look in the direction he'd heard the voice in, his eyes immediately landing on you. You were holding the top half of your left index finger with a contorted expression on your face, and his heart started  _racing_  at the thought of someone as  _beautiful_  as you being  _his_  soulmate.

He genuinely didn't know what to do at that point – he didn't feel confident enough to just plop down across from you and say ' _Hey, I think I'm your soulmate!_ ', but he didn't want to not introduce himself  _at all_  because he didn't know when –  _or_   _if_  – he'd ever see you again.

So he just got up from his seat and did the first thing that came to mind.

"Need a bandaid?" Zach asked, making you look up at him as he sat down in the seat across from you.

"Hmm?" you hummed in response, your eyebrows furrowed in confusion. You watched him reach into his back pocket, pulling out his wallet and opening it, taking out a bandaid.

"Paper cut?" he asked, nodding to the hand still clenching your finger. You couldn't help but chuckle softly, making him smile as you took the bandaid he was holding out to you.

"Thanks," you whispered, ripping it open and wrapping it around your fingertip. You could feel yourself becoming more embarrassed the longer he stared at you – not  _just_  because he had this weird look on his face, but because you really didn't think you were  _that_  loud when you cut yourself.

"I'm Zach," the person across from you said, now clearly waiting for you.

"Y/N," you returned so softly, you were surprised he didn't ask you to repeat it.

"Y/N," Zach said to himself, making you blush, "It's nice to meet you." You smiled shyly, looking down at the hands in your lap. "So," he cleared his throat lightly, "I'm sure this is the  _last_  thing you wanted today – and if you want to say no, that's cool; I get it – but... Can I... I'd love to take you on a date sometime..."

You hadn't met another guy since you left Jonah, but you really didn't want to let yourself get attached with the concern that Zach was going to end up just like him. He seemed incredibly sweet – God knows he's already treating you  _better_  than Jonah did – but your fears were  _screaming_  at you not to risk it.

But your  _heart_  was begging you to agree.

"Sure," you said softly, making Zach let out a sharp breath.

" _Seriously_?" he asked. You barely nodded and he breathed out again. "The  _public library_  is the  _last place_  I ever expected to pick up a girl," he murmured, more to himself than to you but it still made you laugh. He smiled at the sound as he went on, "So... This weekend? Or whenever is best for you – I'm not picky."

"This weekend," you nodded in confirmation, making him grin again.


	457. Too Good to Be True (Zach DeWall) - Part 2 *

**Warning: Mentions of abuse**

~

**Two months later**

You and Zach had been dating for almost two months now and he still hadn't brought up how he thought you were his soulmate. He made sure you never noticed him jump when you got hurt, and he would occasionally prick his finger on purpose when you weren't looking at him, keeping his eyes on you to see if you reacted – you  _did_ , of course, always rubbing the spot he'd tested on. He didn't know  _why_  he couldn't bring himself to admit his theory directly to you, but as long as you were in his life, he was more than okay with taking things slow.

One afternoon, when you and Zach were both free, he'd texted you asking if you wanted to hang out. You obviously weren't going to turn him down, so he arrived at your place not long after. You walked around the city for a bit, neither of you really sure what you wanted to do but knowing you wanted to be together.

You eventually decided to get drinks at a coffee shop, but it wasn't until you were approaching it that you  _realized_  where Zach was taking you. Your eyes widened and your heart started racing involuntarily – you really didn't want him to find out about your past this way, but you also sure as  _hell_  weren't about to let your ex-boyfriend see you.

Zach yelped surprised when he was yanked back by you stopping dead in your tracks right before you were outside the Starbucks window. He huffed lightly, not understanding what you were doing, but when he turned to look at you, his heart dropped. You truthfully looked like the most terrified he'd ever seen someone and he immediately became panicked.

"Y/N, what's wrong?" he asked, moving in front of you and squeezing your hand.

"I'm- I'm not... I can't go-go in there," you shook your head rapidly, backing up so you were further away from the window.

"What? Why not?" he furrowed his eyebrows, looking into the store to see who might have caught your eye but he only saw his friend behind the counter.

"My... My ex works there and I'm not... I can't... No... I... I left without...without telling him and he's really mad and I don't... I don't wanna get hi-" You immediately cut yourself off, but it was too late; Zach already knew what you were going to say.

"He  _hit you_?" Zach shook his head slowly, "No... Jonah wouldn't do that..."

"Yes, he  _would_!" you choked out, "He  _did_! He did it  _all the time_!"

"But he's so  _nice_..."

"That doesn't mean he never  _hit me_!" your voice cracked. You noticed out of the corner of your eye that people were looking at you, making you swallow thickly. "I'm going home," you mumbled loud enough for Zach to hear before taking your hand out of his and turning around.

"Y/N!" Zach called after you, sighing when you only started walking faster.

~

**One week later**

Zach had been trying to contact you for the last  _week_  to no avail. You wouldn't answer any of his texts, all of his calls went to voicemail... He knew he shouldn't have said what he did – that saying ' _But he's so nice!_ ' isn't the  _best_  thing to say to abuse victim – but in that moment, he wasn't  _thinking_. He  _did_  feel incredibly guilty though – so much so that he knew the only solution was to cut ties with Jonah before anything else.

And that's what he did.

Zach walked down the sidewalk with his hands stuffed in the pocket of his hoodie, mentally preparing himself for confronting his soon-to-be ex-friend. He wasn't entirely sure what he was going to say, but he didn't really think about it either – he figured the words would just come to him in the moment.

"Hey, man!" Jonah smiled when Zach entered the coffee shop, "Missed you these last few days! Why haven't you been coming in?"

"Haven't felt like it much," Zach replied, "Hey, what does your ex look like – the one that up and left a couple months ago?"

Jonah was confused by the question but answered it anyway, describing everything from your eye and hair colors, how tall you were, what color you always painted your nails...  _Everything_.

And it made Zach's heart  _drop_.

"Well..." he trailed off, "I think I found her..."

" _No way_ ," Jonah's eyes widened, "How'd you find her? Where is she?"

"See, I'm not gonna  _tell you_  that," Zach stifled out a laugh.

"Why not?" he frowned.

"You told me about her in what, January of last year?"

"Something like that," Jonah replied, not seeing how this was relevant.

"Right," he nodded, leaning onto the counter, "Well, that was also about the time I started feeling like I was being hit constantly-" Zach looked Jonah right in the eyes with a deadpanned expression. "-and, I'm gonna be honest, Jonah – I don't appreciate the fact that  _you've_  been the one abusing  _my soulmate_." The barista just looked at him in shock, unsure of what to say – not that Zach would have  _given him_  the floor to defend himself anyway. "I'm only going to say this  _once_  and I'm making it  _perfectly_  clear," he mumbled under his breath, "You  _ever_  touch her again, I  _swear_  I'll kill you."

Having made his point, Zach pushed himself off of the counter and left the shop, leaving a speechless barista behind.

~

**One week later**

After another few days of you ignoring all of Zach's attempts to communicate, he finally decided enough was enough. He knew you were upset with him – well, maybe not  _upset_ , but you felt  _enough_  to avoid him at all costs – but he knew the longer he waited to apologize, the less likely you would be to forgive him.

After knocking on your apartment door, Zach took a step back and waited for you to open it. He thought about covering the peephole so you would be forced to answer and not just leave him there when you saw him, but he figured you were already mad at him – he didn't want to make it  _worse_.

He jumped slightly in surprise when he heard the doorknob jiggle, truthfully expecting you not to confront him. But you did, opening your front door and letting him see you for the first time in two weeks.

" _What_?" you murmured, your gaze on his shoulder so you didn't have to look right at him.

"I'm sorry," Zach blurted out, not wanting to ramble only to have you slam the door in his face before he could get the apology out.

"That's nice," you replied dryly, "Thanks." You went to close the door, but Zach put his hand on it, forcing it to stay open. He came inside and closed the door behind him, standing with you in the small entryway.

"There's no excuse, Y/N," he sighed as you glared up at him, "I messed up, and now I'm just trying to make up for it."

"Well, maybe next time, you should just  _accept it_  when someone says they don't want to do something instead of trying to force them," you spat back. Zach opened his mouth to speak but you continued ranting. "And, you know, people like  _you_  are the reason people don't speak up!" you exclaimed, "' _He's so nice_ ', huh? Okay-" You scoffed. "-well, tell that to all the  _bruises_  he's given me! I'm sure they'll believe it coming from someone who didn't have to  _deal with it_!" He could see your eyes getting watery, feeling his heart ache at knowing you were crying. "' _He's so nice_ '?" you repeated, "That's the  _worst_   _thing_  you can  _say_  to someone!"

"I  _know_  it is," Zach swallowed, wiping the tears from your cheeks, "I should have thought about what I was saying, but I  _didn't_. And I'm  _sorry_. If I could go back and redo it, I would, but I  _can't_ , so I'm trying to fix it  _now_." You stared at him as you sniffled softly. "But you know what though?" he went on, "You  _never_  have to worry about that again, okay? He's never going to touch you again – I'll make  _sure_  of it."

"You  _will_?" you murmured.

" _Of course_  I will," he shook his head, pulling you forward so he could kiss your forehead. He moved you back to look at your face again, but you didn't give him the chance.

When you felt his lips leave your skin, you wrapped your arms around him and hugged him tightly. He breathed out harshly, wrapping you in a hug as well, happy you had silently forgiven him.

~

**Three months later**

Zach was sprawled out on your living room couch while you were sitting on the loveseat adjacent to it. He was watching some random movie and you were reading your favorite book.

When the movie went to a commercial halfway through, you could feel Zach's gaze turn toward you.

"Haven't you read that book like, _ten times_  already?" he asked, smiling when you chuckled softly.

"Seven," you corrected him, not looking up from the page.

"Still," he went on, "How many times do you need to read that  _one_ book?"

"How many times do  _you_ need to watch this  _one_ movie?" you fired back, a small smirk on your face.

"You know what? You don't need to be  _rude_ ," he pouted.

"You  _started_  it," you grinned, glancing up to wink at him before looking back down.

You heard him let out an amused breath, but he didn't turn back to the television screen when the movie came back on. Instead, he stared at you for longer. Zach had a tendency to space off when he looked at you, so this was nothing new.

And what certainly wasn't new was the little pinches you felt on your forearm as he did so. He would do this a lot – pinch or prod at his skin when you weren't watching him – but you always did your best to prevent your body from visibly reacting to it.

Unfortunately though, you couldn't keep quiet anymore; He'd pinched himself so hard that it  _actually_  made you jump, so you had  _no choice_  but to address it.

" _Zachary_ ," you growled as your eyes snapped up to meet the ones already on you, making them widen at the tone, "Would you  _stop_  doing that?"

"Doing what?" he asked.

"Purposely  _hurting_ yourself!" you squeaked, putting your book down so you could rub your arm, "It doesn't  _feel good_!" He looked at you with a shocked expression for a moment before finally saying the only thing he could make sense of.

"How long have you known?" he said so softly that you almost didn't hear him. You sighed lightly, sinking down in your seat and averting your eyes away from him.

"I've had my suspicions since the day we met," you murmured, beginning to play with your fingers in your lap, "I saw you jump when I cut my finger before you came over..."

"Why didn't you say anything?" he wondered, pushing himself to a sitting position.

"Didn't wanna get my hopes up, I guess..." you whispered with a small shrug, "Scared it was gonna end up like Jonah..."

"Well... If it makes you feel any better, it won't happen this time," he said reassuringly.

You forced out a dry laugh, "Isn't that what they  _all_  say?"

"Maybe," he shrugged, causing you to look at him.

Zach got up from the couch and came over to the loveseat, crawling up beside you. He wrapped his arms around your waist and leaned on you, forcing you to lie down with him. You let out a genuine laugh that time as he situated himself on top of you.

"But I'm your  _soulmate_ ," he sighed dramatically right into your ear as he peppered it with sloppy kisses, "The universe  _wouldn't_  put you with someone who treated you like  _shit_."

"Unfortunately, I got stuck with the  _annoying_  someone," you giggled, wiping your ear on the armrest.

"But I'm  _your_  annoying someone," he reminded you.

" _Unfortunately_ ," you hummed, pecking his cheek.


	458. Home For the Holidays (Luke Hemmings)

"How should we tell them?" Luke asked you as he drove to his parents' house.

"I think you should go in first," you said, laying your head back on the headrest as you looked at your one-month-old, "They're gonna be all excited to see you and I think Morgan should have her own moment."

You managed to keep your pregnancy – and the birth – a secret from everyone. It wasn't  _that_  difficult with both you and Luke living a couple hours away from your parents and the fact that the band had been on break for about a year now. But you were obviously incredibly excited to  _officially_  introduce the newest Hemmings to everyone.

"How do you want me to get you in the house?"

"Just tell them I'm getting something from the car and I'll be in in a minute," you shrugged, "That shouldn't give anything away, right?" As Luke turned onto the street, you piped up again. "How mad do you think your mom will be?"

" _Actually_  mad or  _pretending to be_  mad?" he chuckled.

"Both," you giggled.

"Pretending to be, 110%; Actually, -600%" he teased, "She could never get mad at  _you_  – you're her  _favorite_." You simply rolled your eyes, smiling at him when he winked at you in the rearview mirror.

Luke pulled into your in-laws' driveway, killing the car's engine. He then turned his upper body so he could look at you.

"How long are you gonna wait?" he asked.

"I'm not gonna start getting her out until the door closes behind you," you informed him. Luke nodded in response and you saw his bottom lip jut out slightly. You rolled your eyes again, knowing what he wanted.

You unbuckled your seatbelt and leaned forward, kissing him. You felt him smile just before you pulled back.

**Luke's POV**

Luke finally got out of the car, feeling your eyes on him as he trotted up to his parents' front door. He stood there for a couple moments after knocking before the door opened – and Liz's scream was almost  _deafening_. Andy immediately rushed into the room, his jaw dropping and a smile on his face as Liz brought him inside.

"What are you  _doing_  here?!" he exclaimed, hugging his son when his wife finally let go.

"We wanted to visit for Christmas!" Luke laughed.

"Oh, is Y/N here  _too_?!" Liz asked hopefully. He had always felt so lucky that his parents loved you so much – and he knew they'd love their newest granddaughter  _that much more_.

"Yeah, she's outside," the blonde nodded, "She had to get something from the backseat, but she'll be here any minute."

**Your POV**

You couldn't help but laugh as you saw Liz grab her son roughly and pull him in for a hug. You didn't get to see Andy's reaction, because Luke was brought into the house, as you began your phase of the plan.

Morgan fussed around a bit as you unbuckled her seatbelt and lifted her out of the car seat, but she quickly calmed back down when she was situated comfortably in your arms. You scooted over to the door, grabbed Morgan's diaper bag, and carefully got out of the car.

You went to the front door and just walked in – as quietly as you possibly could – knowing Luke had led Andy and Liz to the kitchen by now. And the moment they saw you, they gave you the  _exact_  reaction you thought they would.

"Hey, guys!" you chirped as you rounded the corner, dropping the diaper bag at the entrance so you didn't have to hold it anymore.

Luke was leaning up against the countertop while his parents were sitting on the barstools facing away from you. They turned their heads and it was like you could visibly see the air get knocked out of them.

"You're  _joking_ ," Andy insisted.

"Are you  _serious_?" Liz's eyes were as wide as you'd ever seen them, "Whose baby is that?"

"Ours," Luke smiled widely.

" _No way_ ," she shook her head, " _No_."

"I was in labor for 14 hours," you grinned, "I  _promise_  she's ours."

"It's a  _girl_?" Andy honestly looked like he was about to burst into tears – his wife  _already_  crying.

Liz finally got up, her hand covering her mouth as she hurried over to you. She put her hand on the top of Morgan's head, brushing her hair with her thumb gently.

"When did this  _happen_?" she asked.

"Last month," you told her, truthfully tearing up yourself, "November 20th."

"Oh,  _Mikey's birthday_!" she smiled, "Does he know?"

"Nope!" Luke said, "You guys are the first to see her!"

" _We are_?" Andy beamed, getting up and coming over to you as well so he could kiss the top of the baby's head, "What's her name?" You glanced at Luke and he nodded with a smile, wanting you to tell them.

"Morgan Elizabeth," you answered.

" _Seriously_?" Liz looked back up at you.

"Anything else would have felt  _wrong_ ," you giggled, wrapping an arm around her as she hugged you.

" _Stop it_! You're gonna make me start crying again!" You couldn't help but laugh, shifting Morgan slightly.

"I don't know why  _I'm_  the one still holding this baby," you teased – and, of course, Liz  _immediately_  took her from you.

"Have you guys placed bets on what color you think her eyes will be?" Andy chuckled, his arm around Liz as he gaped down at the baby in her arms.

"No," you laughed, "But she looks almost exactly like I did when  _I_  was born, so I'm hoping she ends up with the  _second_ set of blue eyes I'll ever fell in love with."

You watched a smile pull at the corners of Luke's mouth as he pushed himself off of the counter and walked over to you. He wrapped his arms around your waist and pulled you in, kissing you for a few seconds before pulling back and moving behind you, resting his chin your shoulder as he watched his parents admire their granddaughter.


	459. Security Blanket (Michael Clifford)

"What do you  _mean_  I can't wear it?" your boyfriend looked at you with a dumbfounded expression.

"You cannot wear a leather jacket to  _prom_ , Michael," you repeated yourself for what felt like the hundredth time.

" _Why_?!"

"You have to look  _nice_!" you rolled your eyes, "Do you think I'm gonna show up wearing jeans and your hoodie?  _Of course not_!"

"This jacket is who I  _am_!" he tugged at the front of it where it was unzipped.

"You know," you laughed bitterly, "I personally find it hilarious that  _you_  of all people need to be wrapped up in a  _security blanket_  to feel  _good_  about yourself."

"I don't  _need_  to be," he grumbled.

"Then don't wear it to prom."

" _I'm wearing it to prom, Y/N_ ," he stated firmly, letting you know he wasn't going to budge.

"Fine," you shrugged, "Then don't go at all." You got up from your seat, causing Michael's arm to fall off your shoulders.

"Y/N," he sighed, getting up and following you to the front door where you were putting your shoes on to go home, "You've been talking about this since school  _started_ ; You can't just  _not_  go to prom."

"Didn't  _say_  I wasn't going," you reminded him, making him cock an eyebrow.

"You're going to prom  _without me_?"

"If that's what it comes  _down_  to," you replied, standing back upright once both shoes were on before you grabbed your jacket. "I don't care if I have a date or not," you said, looking him right in the eyes so he knew you were being serious with him, "I only get  _one_  senior prom, and  _you_  are not going to be the one to ruin that for me." Before Michael could respond, you were already out the door to go home.

~

**One week later; Prom night**

Unsurprisingly, you arrived at the local college's venue – the place prom was held every year – without your boyfriend. You weren't necessarily  _upset_  about it – you  _knew_  he wasn't going to show – but that didn't mean it didn't  _hurt_.

You  _rarely_  ever saw your boyfriend without the item of clothing on – something that always worried you when he'd wear it in the middle of summer – but you stopped pleading with him to ditch it a long time ago. Michael was incredibly stubborn and all hell broke loose when he didn't get what he wanted. But a line had to be drawn  _somewhere_ , and that line for you was prom.

 _All_  you wanted was a romantic night with your boyfriend – him showing up at your house, taking all the photos your mother would insist you'd thank her for later, exchanging the corsage and boutonniere, and then just having fun with all your friends as you ended your high school days.

 _But no_.

Being the girlfriend of the school's resident bad boy meant you  _rarely_  got to do sappy couple things. Michael was adamant about how being sappy would tarnish his reputation and he couldn't have people talking about him like that – which, to be honest, upset you a bit; since when did  _Michael_  care what people were saying about him?

But you stayed with him; You stayed because you loved him.

Michael was no doubt a sap when he was alone with you – he loved to cuddle up on the couch and watch cartoons with you on Saturday nights no matter how much he'd deny it to his friends, he loved writing songs and singing them to you when he thought they were  _perfect_... Though Michael was never one to be very  _vocal_  about it, you knew he loved you too.

" _Finally_ ," you heard someone say beside you the moment you walked into the main room of the venue, "Someone easy on the  _eyes_  shows up." You looked over your shoulder and smiled widely.

"He  _sounds_  like Luke Hemmings, but he looks  _way_  too dressed up to be him," you teased, making him chuckle.

"Hey, Y/N," he said, pecking your cheek, "You look beautiful."

"Thank you," you grinned, "I'm glad I know what you look like when you're actually  _trying_."

"Ha, ha, ha," he rolled his eyes, but he was obviously trying not to smile as well.

"Hey, you still look handsome," you told him.

"Thanks," he laughed, "So, Mike not come with you?"

"I told him he couldn't wear the jacket, Lu," you let out a breathy laugh, "What do  _you_  think?"

"Don't you wish he  _was_  though?" Luke asked you.

"Of  _course_  I do," you sighed, "But I meant what I told him; If he wanted to act like a child about not getting his way, I wasn't going to skip prom just to  _baby_  him about it."

Luke simply chuckled softly – he'd never known anyone to  _challenge_  Michael until he met you. You were  _such_  a good match for him – you kept him grounded and he pushed you out of your comfort zone – and Luke couldn't have even  _invented_  a person more perfect for his best friend.

"Well, princess," he smiled, "How about you and I head to the dance floor?"

"Yes, please!" you chirped – happy you didn't have to beg him to dance with you that night. He laughed as you grabbed his hand, dragging him to the sidelines of where everyone else was dancing.

~

**Michael's POV**

"Hey, bro," Michael answered his phone when he got a call, "What's up?"

"Hey, Mike," Henry greeted his friend, "You not come tonight?" Michael could hear the songs playing in the background as Henry had only walked out into the hallway to call and check in on him.

"Nah," he replied, "You know dances aren't really my scene."

"I know, but Y/N seemed really excited – it's weird seeing her without you," he said. Michael sighed so softly that Henry didn't hear it as he continued. "Sorry to hear about you two, man," he mentioned, making Michael furrow his eyebrows.

"What are you talking about?" he asked.

"Well, you guys didn't come to prom together..." he trailed off, "And she's been with Luke all night... I just figured...you know...something happened between you two."

" _Luke_  went to prom?" As far as Michael knew, Luke hadn't planned on attending the event either, so he was understandably confused to hear that he was there.

"Yeah," Henry replied with a shrug despite knowing Michael couldn't see him, "They obviously aren't the other's date or anything, but they haven't left each other's side since she got here."

"Well, we're fine," Michael stated gruffly, hoping Henry wouldn't notice the change in demeanor.

"That's good; I've always thought you were good together," he said, "Well, I just wanted to check up on you and say we all miss you here."

"Thanks, man," he replied.

"See you on Monday, Mike!" Henry chirped before hanging up the call and getting back to the party.

But Michael couldn't shake the image of you and Luke from his mind.

~

**Your POV; 30 minutes later**

Michael had shown up to prom unannounced – leather jacket and all – and just randomly started chewing you out for spending the night with Luke. You simply balled the edge of his jacket in your fist and dragged him outside of the building so none of your classmates would hear you yell at him.

You'd reminded him that Luke was  _just_  as much  _your_   _friend_  as he was  _his_ , and it wasn't a  _crime_  to hang out with him when he wasn't around. Michael wasn't your  _mother_  – he couldn't tell you what to do, and you sure as  _hell_  weren't going to allow him to suggest he could control who you were  _friends with_  either. You reminded him that if he'd just swallowed his pride and left his ego at the door for a few hours, this argument wouldn't even have happened. You didn't know why he was there or why he thought it was appropriate to treat you the way he was, but you were very firm in the fact that you  _weren't_  going to stand there and take it.

The fight ended with Michael rolling his eyes and storming off – something he usually did after an argument. You huffed lightly as he turned the corner and plopped down on the concrete stairs, not realizing he'd stopped when he heard another voice.

Luke had hurried along a few feet behind you when he noticed you pulling Michael out of the room – and he knew it was wrong to eavesdrop, but he couldn't help it. But no matter the method, he'd still heard the entire thing, and he wasn't about to let you sit on the steps and cry by yourself. 

"Y/N," Luke said softly, sitting down beside you and putting his hand on your back, "You okay?"

"He  _had_  to find a way to  _ruin_ my night anyway!" you exclaimed, roughly wiping the angry tears from your cheeks, "I was having a  _good_  time and then he just decided to show up and  _fuck everything up_! It's like I'm not allowed to do anything fun  _without him_  anymore!"

"That's not true, Y/N," Luke sighed, rubbing the skin not covered by your dress gently, "You know he cares about you."

"No, he  _doesn't_! Everything's always about  _him_! It doesn't matter  _how_  important it is to  _me_  – if  _Michael_  doesn't want to do it,  _that's it_!" you sniffled, "I wanted  _four hours_  without that  _stupid_  jacket and he  _couldn't_  give it to me! I've cancelled weekend shopping trips with friends, I've skipped evenings I needed to study to go see movies, I've not gone to birthday parties just because he  _thinks_  my family doesn't like him – I've done  _everything_  for him! And he can't do  _one thing_  for me?!"

Luke simply sighed again, wrapping his arm the rest of the way around your shoulders and pulling you into him. You laid your head on his chest, your own arms winding around his torso and hugging him tightly. Neither of you spoke, but you weren't going to deny that the gesture made you feel better.

"Sorry," you whispered, lifting yourself back up and letting your arms fall back onto your lap, "This is the only time I'll ever see you in a suit and I'm crying all over it."

"It's okay," he laughed, bringing his hand up to wipe the remaining tears from your face, "I'll wear it again someday if you ask me to."

"Even if I want you to wear it to  _school_?" you asked curiously.

" _Only_  if it's your birthday," he replied without missing a beat, making you smile again. "Do you wanna go home? I can take you." You breathed out for a second as you thought about your answer. "Or we can go back inside and try to redeem the rest of your night," he shrugged. You let out a breathy chuckle.

"My night'll only be redeemed if they play (favorite song)," you said softly.

"Well then, I guess we better go tell them to put it on the list!" he announced dramatically, hopping up from his seat and holding his arm down to you.

Luke pulled you up when you gave him your hand, making you giggle a little louder as he tugged you back toward the gym, neither of you noticing the blonde that had heard your entire conversation.

~

**Two weeks later**

It was the Saturday before graduation and you were spending your time very productively – which meant you were spending the entire day binging your favorite show on Netflix. You'd gotten up to get snacks and go to the bathroom a couple times, but nothing really  _seemed_  out of the ordinary.

Until your mom knocked on your door at about 9:30 later that night, that is.

"Hey, Y/N," your mom said as she opened the door, "Michael's here for you."

" _Cool_ ," you grumbled, turning your gaze back to the television. You and Michael hadn't spoken much since the incident and prom – you were still  _together_ , but you were in a bit of a weird place at the moment as you thought about where to go from there.

"Honey," you heard your mom let out a breathy laugh, making you look at her again, "You should come see him." You sighed deeply, pausing your show and pushing your blanket off of your legs. "Put on some shoes!" your mom called over her shoulder as she walked away from your room.

You cocked an eyebrow in confusion but did it anyway, slipping on the first pair of shoes your eyes landed on. You walked down the stairs, looking around for Michael but not seeing him. You stepped into the living room where your mom had returned to her spot on the couch.

"He's out back," she informed you when she felt your presence, prompting you to go into the kitchen.

The blinds on the door were shut since it was already dark out but you didn't bother peeking through them before opening the door and stepping onto the back porch. You nearly lost your breath as you slowly pulled the door closed behind you, not entirely sure of what was going on.

There was an iHome set up on the table, a slow song quietly playing from the speakers. Your eyes followed the fairy lights strung along the railing, and when you reached the end of them was when your eyes landed on Michael.

He was leaning against the railing with a shy expression on his face, but that wasn't what you noticed. What you noticed was the fact that his regular attire of skinny jeans and leather jacket had now been replaced by an  _actual_  suit – the one he  _refused_  to wear for prom.

"I know this would have meant a lot more to you at prom," Michael swallowed thickly, "But I'm sorry for being a prick to you." You stared at him for a moment, worrying him slightly, before finally allowing yourself to  _barely_  smile at him.

"I hardly think it's fair that now  _you're_  the one dressed up and  _I'm not_ ," you whispered, making him grin in relief.

Michael came over to you, putting his hands on your waist and pulling you into him. Your forearms moved up to his shoulders and your fingers interlocked behind his neck, and you both began swaying to the song playing on his phone.

"You still look just as beautiful," he assured you, kissing your nose. You smiled slightly before letting it fade away.

"Where's your jacket?" you mumbled.

"Left it at home," he squeezed you gently, "Figured I've already made you angry enough over it – didn't wanna bring it now and make it  _worse_..." He relaxed when your smile returned.

"Thank you," you whispered, kissing his cheek.

"I love you, Y/N," Michael's voice broke slightly, causing him to clear his throat in response, "I know I'm not very good at showing it, but I  _swear_  I'll do better... You make me happier than I've been in a  _long_  time and I... I don't wanna  _lose you_." One of your hands slid off of his neck and to his cheek, your thumb running back and forth on his cheekbone.

"I love  _you_ , Mikey," you promised him.

Michael leaned in to kiss your nose, but you responded by putting your lips on his instead. He let out a breathy chuckle but happily kissed you back until you pulled away to lay your head on his shoulder.

"I wish you would show people this side of you," you murmured into his suit jacket as your hand returned to the back of his neck to play with his hair, feeling him squeeze you again.

"Only person who deserves this side of me is  _you_ , kitten," he replied, pressing his lips to the side of your head.

~

_inspiration: http:/_ _/_ _honeymoonmuke.tumblr.com/post/167497942831/leather-jackets-belong-at-prom-badboymichael_


	460. Close As Strangers (Calum Hood)

"Okay, baby," you told the little girl on your lap, "Say goodnight to Daddy." You looked down at her, subsequently chuckling under your breath. "Or not," you mentioned, making your husband laugh softly from  _wherever_  he was in the world that day. "I'm gonna put her to bed," you whispered, shifting her carefully so you didn't wake her up, "I'll be right back." Calum nodded, watching as you disappeared from his screen.

You returned not even two minutes later, seeing Calum before he saw you. He had a nervous look on his face and you'd known him long enough to know that he was lost in his thoughts again.

"Cal," you said as you sat back down and brought your computer onto your lap, grabbing his attention, "Babe, what's wrong?"

"I come home in two weeks," he murmured. You cocked an eyebrow, unsure of why that would have him feeling so uneasy. "What if she doesn't remember me?"

"She'll remember you, Cal," you tried to reassure him, but even  _you_  had thought about it a few times.

"You don't  _know_  that though," he sighed.

"It'll be  _fine_ , babe," you smiled softly, "I'm  _sure_  of it." He looked at you for a moment.

"I love you," he said quietly.

"I love you too, Cal," you grinned.

~

**Two weeks later**

You bounced up and down in the airport terminal – partly because the one-year-old in your arms was getting fussy, but mostly because you were excited to see Calum after him being on tour for so long.

You were pulled from your thoughts when you heard Calum's flight being announced over the intercom as just arriving and you couldn't help but squeal lightly. Your daughter looked at you curiously and you simply smiled at her.

" _Daddy's_   _home_ , baby," you poked her stomach, making her giggle before laying her head on your shoulder.

The moment Calum came out of the gate and you locked eyes, your smile got even bigger. He rushed over, dropping his carry-on bag at your feet and wrapping his arms around you – one at your waist, the other lightly draped on the arm that was holding your daughter. He pulled you closer, pressing his lips to yours.

"I've missed you  _so_  much, baby girl," he mumbled against your mouth.

"I've missed you too, Cal," you beamed as he pulled away.

When you heard the small whine coming from your daughter, both you and Calum looked at her. She was staring at him with wide eyes, not really sure what to make of the situation.

Calum attempted to reach for her, but she instantly started crying, burying her face back into your neck. The look on your husband's face broke your heart – every fear he had about his daughter forgetting him coming true.

"Don't cry, baby," you cooed, rocking the little girl gently, "That's Daddy."

She still wasn't budging though, so Calum did the only thing he could think of that might work. He knew you had burned a CD of all his song demos and played them for her as she was being put to bed, so he immediately started singing to her, not caring if anyone around heard him.

Within the first three lines of her favorite song –  _Close as Strangers_  – you felt the grip on you start to loosen and the cries turned into quiet whimpers. You smiled at Calum and he breathed a sigh of relief at the fact that it was actually  _working_.

As Calum got closer to the chorus, you urged your daughter to look at him so she knew he was  _actually_  singing to her and she wasn't listening to a CD in her bedroom. She did, turning her head so she could see him. You carefully wiped her tear-stained cheeks as she sniffled, staring at her father.

Calum moved back toward you slowly as he didn't want to scare her again, his hand coming to rest on your hip. The chorus started and her eyes widened again, making you and Calum freeze, thinking she was going to start crying again.

But she looked at you and said very clearly, "Daddy?" Your own eyes widened at hearing her say her very first word.

"Daddy," you nodded, trying to keep yourself from crying.

"Daddy?" she asked again, a little louder, now looking at Calum.

"I love you, princess," he smiled, wiping the tear that had fallen down his cheek.

" _Daddy_!" she repeated, bouncing on your hip slightly before suddenly leaning toward him with her arms open.

Calum caught her, holding her closely as she kept saying ' _Daddy!_ ' over and over again. He pressed quick kisses all over her face, beyond relieved that she finally remembered him. She sat back up on his hip and looked at him.

"Daddy," she said for what was probably the fifteenth time, holding his face in her small hands.

"Princess," Calum copied with a smile, kissing her nose.

"Daddy, s-s-song," she told him, successfully getting her second word out.

"Sing it again?" he asked, making her nod quickly. "When we get to the car, I'll sing it again, princess," he promised her, kissing her again.

~

_inspiration: http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/133021226383/you-and-calum-had-thought-youd-planned-it-out-so_


	461. Liar, Liar (Ashton Irwin)

_requested by Madeinmymom on wattpad_

~

"What ever happened with you and Serena?" you asked your best friend as you both were sat on a park bench, resting a bit before the run back home.

"What do you mean?" Ashton returned, sighing in relief after taking a big gulp of water.

"I mean you two went on a date like, two weekends ago and I haven't heard anything about it since," you shook your head, drinking from your own water bottle, "I just thought I would have since you seemed really into her before you guys went out."

"Dunno," he shrugged lightly, his voice small, "Just wasn't any spark with her."

You looked at him for a moment, trying to read his expression. He was looking down at his lap, his fingers playing with the bottom hem of his basketball shorts. Ashton was never one to be closed-off when it came to dating, so you were understandably a bit confused by his demeanor now.

"What's up with you, Ash?" you asked.

"What do you mean?" he mumbled, looking up at you.

"You've been acting really weird lately," you pointed out, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

"That's a lie," you stated bluntly, "But it's cool if you don't want to talk about it, I guess. So, anyway, I met this girl at the store and she's a really big fan of the band," you told him, "Her name's Felicity and she seems really sweet and I think you guys would-" Ashton cut off your rambling, blurting out the last thing you expected to hear.

"I'm gay," he said. Your eyes widened as well as his and you were honestly speechless for a minute.

" _Wow_ ," you whispered. After a few seconds, you repeated the word, making Ashton nervous.

" _Please_  say something else," he begged.

"I don't know what else  _to_   _say_ , Ash," you answered truthfully, "I mean... You're... That's a lot to take in... How long have you known?" He sighed, throwing his head back.

"A long time," he answered softly.

"Why haven't you told me?"

"I don't know... Nerves..."

"Well, you know this doesn't change anything, right?" you assured him, "You're still my best friend."

"Yeah..." Ashton whispered, "And you're still mine..." His heart skipped a beat when you smiled at him and put your hand on his thigh, patting it lightly.

"I'd better be getting home," you chirped, "You coming with?"

"Nah," he murmured, "I'm gonna rest for a few more minutes."

"Alright," you nodded, "I'll see you later then." You leaned over to kiss his cheek before getting up and beginning the jog back to your apartment complex while Ashton watched you until you were out of sight.

~

**Ashton's POV**

Later that afternoon, when Ashton finally returned back to his own place, his heart felt heavier than it usually did after a run – but it wasn't like he didn't know  _why_. He had never lied to you before – especially not to  _this_  magnitude – and the guilt was  _already_  eating him alive.

He made his way to the bathroom to take a quick shower before going into the living room where his housemates were playing video games. They were all sat on the larger couch in front of the TV, controllers in their hands and furiously pressing the buttons.

" _Fuck, Luke_!" Michael shouted, "Stop shooting  _me_! I'm on your  _team_!"

" _I'm_   _sorry_!" Luke yelped in response, "Everyone looks the  _same_!"

"Hey, Ash!" Calum chirped as Ashton walked into the room, taking a seat on the other couch, "How was your run with Y/N?"

"Good," he replied softly, "Went a little farther this time."

"Running distance isn't the  _only thing_  you'd like to take farther with Y/N," Michael snickered.

" _Michael_!" Calum scolded with a laugh.

"Well, he's not  _wrong_ ," Luke chimed in as the game came to an end.

" _Yes_!" Michael yelled out again when the victory screen came up for them.

"We wouldn't have won if I hadn't kept accidentally shooting you," the other blonde said matter-of-factly.

" _Shut up, Luke_!" he rolled his eyes.

"Hey, Ash," Calum said randomly, looking at his best friend, "What's wrong?" It was at this point that the other two boys looked at him as well, surprised by the look on his face.

"You look like you've seen a ghost or something," Luke mentioned.

"I did a really bad thing," Ashton whispered, "Like, really,  _really_  bad."

"What did you do, steal the Declaration of Independence the last time we were in America?" Michael chuckled, earning himself an eye roll. " _What_?!" he pouted, "I'm just saying – if you didn't do  _that_ , it can't be  _that bad_!"

"So what did you do?" Luke asked him.

"I-" Ashton cleared his throat, "I... Um... I told Y/N I'm gay..."

" _You what_?!" they yelled in unison, making Ashton sink down in his chair as Calum continued, "Why in  _God's name_  would you do  _that_?!"

"She wanted to set me up on a blind date again and I couldn't tell her the truth!"

"So you  _lied to her_?!" Michael groaned, "I always knew you were an idiot, Ash, but this a  _whole_   _new level_!"

"What are you gonna do then?" Luke reached over and slapped his arm, "Pretend to be into  _guys_  for the rest of your life?"

"I have no idea," Ashton sighed, putting his face in his hands.

"Well, you're gonna have to come up with  _something_!" Calum insisted, " _I'm_  sure as hell not fake dating you to be more convincing!"

"Count me out for that one too," Michael stated to which Luke nodded quickly in agreement.

"I'm not gonna fake date  _anybody_ ," Ashton rolled his eyes again.

"Then what  _are_  you gonna do?" Luke repeated.

" _I don't know_!" he groaned, throwing his head back against the couch cushion, "I'll figure it out!"

" _God_ , you're such an  _idiot_ ," Michael shook his head, getting up from his seat to get some food from the kitchen.

"Tell me something I  _don't_  know," Ashton grumbled.

~

**Your POV; Three months later**

"So, Ash," you nudged his arm gently, briefly turning your attention away from the TV to look at the boy beside you, "When are you gonna find yourself a boyfriend?"

You were at the boys' house one Friday evening, hanging out with them and watching them play video games as you did almost every weekend – when Ashton wasn't out on a date, of course. But you hadn't heard about Ashton's dating life in a couple months and you were understandably curious what was happening in your best friend's life.

"I don't know," Ashton answered shyly.

"Probably when hell  _freezes over_ ," Michael grumbled, not looking away from the television screen.

"Oh, come on, Mikey," you giggled, pushing his head playfully since he was sitting on the floor in front of you, "Don't be such a meanie."

"Not being mean when it's the  _truth_."

"Michael..." Ashton muttered in a warning tone.

Luke and Calum just sat on the other couch, nervously playing with their fingers in their laps – their characters in the game had died a couple minutes ago. You could sense the tension between all four boys, making you even more confused.

"Is there something you guys aren't telling me?" you asked them.

"Yeah, Y/N, there is," Michael paused the game and put his controller down, turning to look at you, "Ashton's been lying to you."

" _Michael_ ," Ashton repeated a bit more sternly.

"Don't ' _Michael_ ' me, Ashton!" he exclaimed, "If you had just grown a pair and told her the truth from the beginning, we wouldn't be  _in_  this goddamn mess!" You looked at the two quietest members of the group, taking note of the horrified looks on their faces, knowing this must have been a pretty big lie and they were  _all_  a part of it.

"What's he talking about, Ash?" you asked softly.

"Oh, you know..." he trailed off, "Just Michael being Michael..." He looked at the clock and got up. "Come on," he said, taking your hand, "It's getting late. I should take you home." Ashton pulled you up from the couch but just before you reached the door, Michael groaned loudly.

"Ashton's not gay!" he shouted, standing up and facing the two of you.

" _Michael_!" Ashton shouted back, unable to believe he just did that.

"That's not something people  _lie_  about, Mikey," you reminded him.

"Ashton has been in love with you since high school and when you started trying to set him up with other girls, he chickened out of telling you he'd rather be with  _you_  and told you he liked  _guys_  instead! He made us go along with it, but I'm  _tired_  of playing this fucking game!" he threw his arms up, looking at Ashton, "I'm  _really_  sorry, Ashton, but I can't  _do it_  anymore! You're my best friend, man, and I love you, but I can't keep lying to her just because you're  _too damn scared_  to tell her how you feel! This is seriously the  _shittiest_  thing you've ever done!" The room was deafeningly quiet for a moment before your voice broke it.

"Ash..." you whispered, your gaze flicking to the boy standing beside you, "Is that  _true_?" Ashton began chewing on his lip, unable to make eye contact. "Ashton," your voice cracked, " _Please_  tell me he's lying." When he didn't say anything again, you knew Michael was telling the truth.

You felt like you were going to be sick, to be quite honest. You couldn't believe Ashton would lie to you – especially not like  _that_. You and Ashton always told each other  _everything_  and it hurt to know that you weren't worth the  _one_  thing that was most important to you:  _the truth_.

Your chest visibly rose and fell as you tried to catch your breath. You sniffled slightly, and it was like that was enough to finally make Ashton look at you – but you didn't notice. You quickly wiped your cheek with the pads of your four fingers as you pulled the door open and left without another word.

~

**Four weeks later**

It had been a little over a month since you last saw Ashton. You were overwhelmed with anger, hurt, betrayal – basically any emotion that  _wasn't_  positive. You couldn't believe that  _Ashton_  of all people would lie to you – and especially like  _that_.

But as much as you hated him for  _lying_ , you hated  _yourself_  for not actually hating him  _at all_. As much as you wanted to, you could never  _truly_  hate Ashton. He was your best friend – the one person you trusted with your  _life_.

One afternoon, while you were sulking around as you cleaned your apartment, there was a knock on your door. It was a frantic knock, but it wasn't so loud that it was annoying to listen to. That being said, you took your  _sweet time_  to get there, not looking forward to having any visitors today.

And when you opened the door, you certainly weren't looking forward to  _this_  one.

"What do  _you_  want?" you grumbled, glaring at Ashton.

"We need to talk," he said softly, playing with his fingers.

"There's nothing to talk  _about_ ," you stated dryly.

"Yeah, there is, and I'm not leaving until we talk about it." You rolled your eyes, walking away from the door, but leaving it open as a signal for Ashton to come in. He closed the door behind him nervously, "Y/N, listen... I  _know_  you're mad, but-"

" _Mad_?" you froze, turning around to face him as you cocked an eyebrow, "You think I'm  _mad_? I'm not  _mad_ , Ashton; I'm  _angry_. I'm  _furious_. I'm  _livid_. Instead of telling me the truth,  _you lied to me_ , and you did it in one of the  _sickest_  ways imaginable! What kind of person  _lies_  about being gay? Am I really not worth the  _truth_  anymore? Did I do something  _so bad_  that you had to make up some  _ridiculous_  lie for revenge? Is that what you  _wanted_? You wanted to make me look  _stupid_  or something by tricking me into thinking you were gay while everyone else knew you  _weren't_? You are such a piece of  _shit_ , Ashton, you know that? You're so-"

Ashton finally had enough of your ranting, grabbing your face and pushing his lips onto yours. Your body was understandably tense at first, but he sighed in relief when he felt you gradually start to relax and kiss back.

When he pulled away to breathe, your noses were still touching and your breaths were mixing together in the small space between your mouths.

"You're still a piece of  _shit_ ," you whispered, earning a barely audible chuckle from Ashton.

"I know," he agreed, his thumbs stroking your cheekbones gently.

"And I'm still  _mad_  at you."

"I know," he nodded again, "But can I at least explain myself now?" You nodded slightly in response. "When you asked me about Serena and then suggested another blind date, I panicked," he began, keeping his gaze trained on the necklace you were wearing, "I couldn't just  _say_  that the only girl I'd ever wanted to be with was you, so I  _didn't_  – I shouldn't have said I was gay, but... You know... Can't really take it back  _now_..." You giggled softly, making Ashton relax a bit.

"It really  _hurt_ , you know?" you admitted randomly, "Thinking that I never really  _would_  have a chance."

"What do you mean?" he asked, laying his forehead on yours.

"I wanted to be happy that you'd discovered something like that about yourself – even if it wasn't the  _truth_ ," you explained, "But it made me feel like I was being selfish because the only thing I kept thinking about was how I lost my chance with you – that I would never get to hear you tell me you love me as anything more than your best friend or you would ask me about guys and I would have to pretend that I wasn't beating myself up over never having told you how I felt. And I know that telling you wouldn't have made you  _straight_  again or whatever, but... I don't know... It's been  _exhausting_  to keep living with a secret like that and thinking that nothing could ever happen."

"Well, you don't have to worry about that  _now_ ," he said reassuringly, kissing your nose, "And I understand if it takes a while to trust me again, but I'm glad I don't have to hide how I feel about you anymore."

"How  _do_ you feel about me?" you asked, despite the fact that you already knew.

"I think Mike already outed me on  _that one_ ," he smiled slightly, "I love you, Y/N." You found yourself grinning as well.

"I love you too, Ash," you told him.

Ashton tilted his head and pressed his lips to yours again slowly, his hands slipping under the shirt you were wearing so he could touch your skin. He gripped your skin tightly, making you moan involuntarily, which only made Ashton squeeze harder.

When you pulled away for a breath that time around, your lips were still touching his.

" _Definitely_  not gay," you mumbled to yourself, making Ashton laugh loudly.


	462. Morning Company (Zack Merrick)

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

~

It was yet another below-freezing day in winter, a fresh blanket of snow covering everything outside. You had woken up early that morning – much to your dismay since it was your day off work – and were now just sitting on the living room couch, reading a book your friend recommended and sipping on your coffee every couple page turns. You didn't have any plans that day – luckily for you, as you weren't  _particularly_  keen on the idea of stepping outside in these temperatures.

You heard a door open at the end of the hallway, letting you know that your fiancé had finally gotten out of bed. He groaned softly, making you smile to yourself, as he rubbed his eyes and allowed them to adjust to the light.

He immediately went into the kitchen, grabbing a mug from the cabinet and pouring his own cup of coffee before shuffling back into the direction of the living room. You didn't look up when you heard him enter, instead turning the page of your book as he sat down on the couch beside you.

"Morning, beautiful," Zack murmured, pressing a kiss to your exposed shoulder before laying his head on it. You smiled again, turning away from your book long enough to return the greeting by kissing the top of his head.

It was silent for a while after that aside from the occasional page turn or sip of coffee – neither you nor Zack speaking as you just simply enjoyed each other's company. However, your mornings weren't as quiet as they  _usually_  were with Zack's bandmate and his wife staying with you while the heating at their  _own_  place was being fixed, but you  _did_  still enjoy being with them – no matter  _how much_  Alex teased you two.

"Look how  _cute_ ," Alex sighed dramatically, making you laugh as you and Zack looked over at him. He was holding two cups of coffee, clearly making a pit stop on his way back down the hallway.

"The same could be said about you and Lisa  _too_ , you know," you poked fun right back at him, "Bringing coffee  _to her_  this morning, are we?" Alex responded by flipping you off as best as he could with a mug in his hand, making you laugh again. "You  _started it_ , Lex!" you reminded him.

"And I'll  _finish it_  while you two just lie around being  _disgustingly adorable_  too," he stated with a smile.

" _Go away, Alex_ ," Zack told his best friend, "You have  _your_  wife to be sappy with and I have  _mine_."

" _You're not_   _married_!" Alex reminded him, sauntering back toward the guest room.

" _Yet_ ," your fiancé grumbled to himself into your shoulder, making you giggle again.


	463. Crazy About You (Trevor Collins)

Your heart felt like it was beating in every single inch of your body as you walked down the hallway after getting off your plane. You were sure you were either going to pass out or throw up from nervousness – and at this point, you weren't sure  _which_ _one_  it was going to be.

You lived a pretty normal life – you had great friends, supportive family, and the most amazing boyfriend you could have ever asked for. But something that could be considered out of the ordinary was the fact that you'd never  _met him_.

You'd been a fan of Rooster Teeth for quite some time, so it was a bit surreal to be able to say that Trevor Collins was your boyfriend. You didn't know  _how_  it happened exactly – all you knew was that all the texts and phone calls and Skype sessions eventually turned into flirting and makeshift movie nights and dates through a computer screen.

And when RTX 2017 rolled around, you decided you wanted to take it a step  _further_.

As far as Trevor knew, you weren't coming. He'd talked about how  _cool_  it would be if you were able to fly to Austin for the convention, but up until the moment you bought your plane ticket, you honestly didn't think it was going to  _happen_.

And that was when you knew you wanted to surprise him.

Meg had helped you with all of the planning – she was the only person you told about surprising Trevor because you  _knew_  she wouldn't tell anybody else and risk word getting back to him before the day came to finally see him in person – and agreed to sneak out of the convention center long enough to pick you up from the airport so you didn't have to take an Uber.

You were thankful for Meg in many aspects, but mainly because she was someone you always went to for advice about your relationship with Trevor. It was understandably hard on you – and  _him_  as well – to be so far apart, and since she and Gavin had done long-distance before she moved to Austin, she really helped you cope with not being able to  _physically_  be with Trevor.

~

"I think m'gonna be  _sick_ ," you murmured as you and Meg both got out of her car.

"It's gonna be  _fine_ , Y/N," Meg said, joining you on the sidewalk and wrapping her arm around your shoulders as she led you inside the convention center, "I felt the  _same_  way before Gav and I met in person."

"You  _did_?"

" _Of course_! It's always nerve-racking to meet someone for the first time!" she assured you, "But Trevor's  _crazy_  about you – he hasn't shut up about you since the  _day_  you two started talking."

"I know," you couldn't help but laugh, "They make fun of him in the Let's Plays sometimes."

"So you  _know_  he'll be excited to see you," she smiled, "So there's  _nothing_  to worry about."

" _When_  will he get to see me again?" you asked softly.

"Probably in about 10 minutes," she answered, "He's on the main stage right now discussing the plan for the live Let's Play, but they were almost done when I left to get you. Or we can go crash it  _now_  if you want." You looked at her and she smiled again. "That's what I was thinking too," she said, making you giggle as she took you to the main stage.

As you approached the doors, she told you to wait for her cue. You nodded and she went to stand in the doorway, hollering so the men onstage would hear her from the back of the room.

"Hey, guys!" Meg said, making them look at her, "You still need Trevor for anything?"

"Nah, we're all done here!" Jack answered.

"Why do you need me?" Trevor asked as he hopped off of the stage, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Something just came for you," she said and you knew that was your cue.

"How is that possible? I'm not expecting any-" He cut himself off the moment he noticed someone pop out from around the corner, stopping dead in his tracks about halfway down the aisle the moment he realized it was  _you_.

"Hi, Trevor," you said softly, your voice not giving you any more than that.

The other men, who had looked up to see what was going on when they heard Trevor stop in the middle of his sentence, were all smiling widely when they themselves realized what was going on.

"Well, are you two just gonna stand there looking at each other like  _bloody idiots_  the whole day?!" Gavin exclaimed. Meg put her hands on your back, nudging you toward your boyfriend.

When you took your first step without her hands on you, Trevor rushed the rest of the way up the aisle. You let out a sigh of relief the moment his arms were around your waist and your own were around his neck, both of you hugging each other tightly.

" _Baby girl_ ," Trevor mumbled into the skin of your neck, "What are you  _doing here_?" Your heart skipped a beat at the pet name – hearing it in person was  _so much better_  than reading it in texts or hearing it through a speaker – as your fingers ran through the hair on the back of his head.

"I wanted to surprise you," you whispered.

"Well, you  _definitely_  did!" he laughed, making you smile, "I thought you said you weren't  _coming_!"

"I didn't think I  _was_... But I finally saved up enough to buy a plane ticket... And it was so close to RTX that I just decided to surprise you  _instead_..."

You felt him squeeze you gently before his grip released. You didn't have a chance to ask him what he was doing though before he grabbed your cheeks and pulled your face to his.

Everyone started whistling obnoxiously, making the two of you laugh just before you pulled apart. You looked at each other for a moment – your bottom lip between your teeth as he smiled at you – before he took your hand and brought you back to the stage, wanting to introduce you to the group.

"Hey, guys!" Trevor beamed, "This is my girlfriend Y/N! Y/N, I'm pretty sure you already know everyone."

"Wow," Michael shook his head as you, Trevor, and Meg climbed up onstage, "You're actually  _real_. You know, we've been trying to convince Treyco here to email the dudes on  _Catfish_  or something so he'd stop  _complaining_  about not being able to meet you in person." You giggled softly when you looked up at Trevor and noticed he was rolling his eyes.

" _Catfish_  is for people who suspect the person they're talking to  _isn't_  who they say they are," he reminded the group, "But we've been Skyping the whole time we've known each other, so I  _knew_  she was who she says she was."

"Hey, you could have been catfished by my friend and I was just helping them out," you shrugged, making everyone laugh.

You squeaked lightly when Trevor started poking at your sides, grabbing his hands to make him stop. He pressed a kiss to the side of your forehead before wrapping his arms around your waist, pulling you back against his chest and resting his chin on your shoulder while the conversation continued.

"Since Trevor's told us you're a fan, I think it's time for the  _real_  question..." Gavin paused for dramatic effect, "Who's your favorite member of Achievement Hunter?"

"Ray," you answered without hesitation, making everyone laugh.

"But he doesn't even  _work here_  anymore!"

"You didn't say it had to be a  _current_  member," you reminded him with a giggle.

"Fine," he said, "Who's your favorite  _current_  member of Achievement Hunter?"

"Lindsay," you answered immediately again, making him roll his eyes.

"I think the point is that it's  _not you_ , Gav," Meg laughed, "You're just going to have to accept it."

"I'm  _your_  favorite though, right?" he pouted jokingly.

"Well, since none of the kids are  _technically_  members..." she trailed off. Gavin's pout only got bigger, making her laugh. Meg moved over to stand with him, kissing his cheek and wrapping her arms around his left one.

"So," Trevor cleared his throat lightly, "We've got some time to kill before everything starts up, right?"

"Yeah," Ryan nodded, "We've got a couple hours." The others were already smiling, knowing why Trevor was asking.

"One of us will text you when you need to come back," Jack assured him.

" _Excellent_!" Trevor chirped, "I need to take my lady on a  _proper date_!" He suddenly released his grip on your waist, only to lean down so he could throw you over his shoulder. You obviously shrieked in surprise as everyone else laughed.

" _Trevor_!"


	464. Tie You Down (Luke Hemmings)

Any moment your boyfriend was at home with you was a moment you wish time would just  _stop_. Luke had been gone for the better part of a year on tour, but he was finally home and you couldn't be happier. The second he walked through the front door, his arms were around you and he refused to let go.

It was no secret that you missed each other when he was away, but you always noticed that leaving seemed to be  _way_  harder for Luke. You couldn't pinpoint  _when_  exactly it started – all you knew was that he'd grown  _much_  clingier since the last time you saw him in person. Not that you were  _complaining_ , of course.

You'd been sitting on the living room couch in silence for a good half an hour now – your right bicep resting on his shoulders while your hand played with his hair. You hadn't bothered to turn the television on or anything, truthfully not feeling like moving to get the remote since Luke was too desperate at that point for you to just hold him.

"When did you get that?" you heard him whisper after a while.

You looked at him and found him staring down at your lap. You followed his gaze, your eyes landing on the tiny ' _L_ ' tattooed on the top of your left ring finger.

"Had it for a  _while_ ," you murmured, "Ever since you left for Japan."

"Why didn't you tell me you got it?"

"Dunno," you shrugged, "Wanted to show you in person instead of a picture, I guess."

"But I don't have a tattoo for  _you_ ," he frowned.

"You don't need to get a tattoo for me, Lu," you told him, "You don't even  _want_  tattoos."

"I want one for  _you_ ," he insisted, the arms around your waist tightening, "A little ( _first initial_ ) right here-" He poked his initial with his own left ring finger, making you smile. "-So little, you can't see it under a ring." Your heart skipped a beat and your stomach erupted with butterflies.

"You saying we're gonna get married?" you asked softly, though you already knew the answer.

"Gotta tie you down someday," he mumbled, "Wanna make sure you're still mine when I come home."

"I'm  _always_  yours, Lu," you promised him, putting your hand on his cheek and lifting his head up so you could kiss him, feeling him smile.

~

_inspiration: https://pendantstyles.tumblr.com/post/164935903435/best-missed-you-so-fucking-much-harry_


	465. Saved For Last (Trevor Collins)

 

**Setup**

"We all in?" Gavin asked, earning a hum of confirmation from everyone in the room. "Alright! Let's play!" he chirped to officially start the video, "Geoffrey, what are we playing?!"

"We're playing  _Geoff is Not the Killer_ ," he answered, making everyone laugh.

" _No_!" he smiled, "We're playing another round of  _Murder_  except this time, we have Treyco instead of Jack and Y/N instead of Michael!"

" _Ah_ , the two  _lovebirds_ ," Ryan sighed dramatically, "I love games where a relationship might be  _ruined_  by the end of them."

"We can't break up," Trevor said as the game started, "I need her too much."

"If we break up, he'll have to go back to living on microwavable dinners and ice cream sandwiches," you shook your head, beginning your search for clues. The group laughed, but Trevor spoke up again.

"You guys think she's joking but she's  _not_ ," he stated with a serious expression despite the fact that no one was looking at him, "She's trying to teach me how to cook but it's  _not_  been going well."

"How bad could it  _possibly_  be?" Geoff asked, "Cooking isn't  _that_  hard."

"The spaghetti noodles  _actually_  caught on fire," you deadpanned.

"Dude, are you fucking  _serious_?" Jeremy laughed, "Spaghetti is like, the  _easiest_  thing to make!"

" _I know_!" he exclaimed, " _I'm not proud of myself_!"

"The boy knows how to work a fire extinguisher though," you giggled, "Almost as if he learned how to before he learned to  _walk_."

"Well, if you're going to be a shitty cook, you kind of  _have_ to know how to work a fire extinguisher," Ryan pointed out, making you snort softly.

~

**Round One**

"Wait," you suddenly said, "How do I know if I already have a gun?" Everyone chuckled, but Jeremy was the only one who aided your confusion.

"Spin your mouse wheel," he told you.

" _O_ _o_ _h_!" you squeaked before giggling in amusement, " _Cool_! How do I shoot it?"

"Well, we know of at least  _one person_  who isn't the murderer," Gavin laughed.

"You just right click, Y/N," Jeremy chuckled as well, "But don't get trigger happy."

"This is America,  _bitch_!" you announced obnoxiously, "It's my  _constitutional right_  to get trigger happy!"

"This  _is_  Texas, you know," Geoff shrugged.

"She's not even  _from_  Texas!" Trevor laughed.

"Stay out of this, Trevor!" you exclaimed, "This is about  _me and America_!"

"Treyco, why are you  _with_  her?" Jeremy tried to ask seriously but it was obvious he was holding back another laugh.

"She's  _hot_ ," Trevor answered without hesitation, peeking over the top of the computers to see you smile.

"So where are all the clues around here?" Ryan asked, bringing everyone's attention back to the game.

"They're just  _around_ , Ryan!" Gavin scoffed, "Haven't you ever  _played_  this before?!"

"You know what – when I get a gun, I'm gonna shoot you first."

"But I'm not the killer!"

"I don't care," Ryan stated, making you snort softly at the pout on Gavin's face.

"How do I get up to the second floor?" you wondered out loud.

"You have to go through the house, don't you?" Geoff asked, earning confirmation grunts from the rest of the men.

You started your journey toward the house, entering and making your way up the stairs and to where you thought the balcony you'd been looking at previously was. Unfortunately though, when you hit a dead end and turned around to go a different way, you found someone had been following you.

"Hey, who's Green Vic-  _Bleh_!" you choked out obnoxiously, signaling that you'd been murdered in the game.

"Y/N...?" Gavin said, "Y/N, are you dead?" When you simply looked over at him with a smile, he started squealing, "The murderer got Y/N!"

" _Y/N_?!" Trevor shouted, " _No_!  _I must avenge her_!" You moved away from your microphone to laugh loudly, your face being in your hands muffling it even more.

"Well, we know it's not any of us  _and_  we know it's Green Victor!" Jeremy reminded them.

"What if they've changed?!" Gavin panicked.

"Yeah, Gavin," Geoff snickered, "What if I've changed?"

"It's Geoff!" he squealed.

" _Of course_  it's Geoff!" Jeremy laughed, "Ryan and Y/N are dead and it wasn't any of us!"

"Wait,  _Ryan's dead_?!"

"He hasn't been talking since he said he was gonna  _kill you_ , Gav!"

"Where are you, Geoffrey?" Trevor asked, "I need to have a talk with you."

"I'm  _around_ ," he replied cryptically.

Gavin suddenly screamed, " _There he is_! He's where the bike is!"

"Don't panic, guys!" Jeremy reasoned, "If we all stay together and don't separate, he can't kill  _all_  of us!"

"But you're the only one with a  _gun_!" Gavin reminded him.

"I just need  _one_  more clue to get one!" Trevor said.

"Then we'll go find one more clue for Treyco and then go looking for Geoff," Jeremy said.

The team of three then went on a journey to find Trevor a clue, but unfortunately, Geoff was standing in between it and them.

"God damn it, Geoff!" Jeremy laughed, "Go away!"

" _Jeremy_!" Trevor shouted, " _Cover me_!" Before he could react, Trevor was running toward Geoff.

"Trevor, you  _idiot_!" he sighed, having no choice but to follow behind him.

Even though he was ambushed, Geoff still managed to kill everyone without getting hurt himself. After Trevor charged him, he – obviously – stabbed him, then Jeremy as he was screaming about somehow missing his shot at him, then killing Gavin because he hadn't been able to retrieve Jeremy's dropped gun.

" _Yay_ , I won!" Geoff cheered as everyone laughed at the antics that had just occurred.

"Yeah, Trev, you avenged me  _real good_ ," you snorted as another round began.

"I  _tried_ ," he pouted, making you peek around the screen to smile at him.

~

**Round Two**

"Alright, who's Purple Lima?" Jeremy asked.

"Me!" Geoff chirped, "I'm not the killer!"

"Sounds like something the  _killer_  would say," Gavin pointed out.

" _I'm not the killer_!" he said louder, a bit of a whining tone in his voice.

"Oh, a  _clue_!" Trevor said happily.

"So, Trevor, you're Green Oscar?" Ryan asked.

"Yes," he nodded, turning his character to look at Ryan's.

"Okay," he said, "Let's stay together."

"How do I know you're not the killer?"

"Because I would have killed you instead of asking who you were," Ryan reminded him – an answer that was apparently good enough for Trevor as he stayed with him after exiting the house.

"Yay!" Trevor beamed as he quickly found his fifth clue, "Your boy got a gun!"

You were moseying around, still looking for clues, when you found where Geoff and Jeremy were. You were about to greet them when you saw the only other lone person – Gavin – come up behind them and quickly murder them both, causing them to let out noises before going silent.

"What happened?!" Ryan asked, "Who died?!"

It was then that Gavin turned to see if anyone witness the murders, looking right at you. And you instantly started screaming as he came toward you.

"No, no, no, no, no, no!" you squealed, frantically running away from the character, "Gavin's the killer! He's gonna kill me! Somebody help me! I'm gonna die!"

"Wait,  _Gavin's_  the killer?" Ryan asked.

"No, I'm  _not_!" Gavin pouted, still following you.

"I saw him! I saw it happen! He whipped out a knife and murdered Geoff and Jeremy in cold blood! I can't defend myself! I don't have a gun! Somebody help me! He's chasing me!" you got out all in one breath.

"Y/N, where  _are_  you?!" Ryan asked.

" _Oohhh, she just came out of the alley_ ," Geoff said, pretending to be a ghost, " _She's heading for the fruit stand!_ "

"Ghost Geoff with the assist," Trevor laughed, immediately heading in that direction along with Ryan.

"Oh, bloody hell, Geoff!" Gavin frowned, "You're supposed to be  _dead_!" Trevor and Ryan came into the area with the fruit stand, finding you and Gavin coming down the alleyway across from them.

"Which one are you, Y/N?!" Trevor asked, pointing his gun in your direction.

"I'm the one being chased by the maniac with a knife!" you shot back, "Shoot the one that's  _holding something_!"

"Well,  _move_  out of the way so I can shoot him!" You did exactly as Trevor said, but the moment you heard him take the shot, your screen went black and you knew he'd shot you.

"Why did you shoot  _Y/N_?!" Ryan shouted, running to pick up the gun before Gavin could kill the paralyzed character. Trevor couldn't speak, too busy squeaking to answer. "I want a zoom-in on her face cam because she is absolutely  _losing her shit_  right now!" he laughed as he noticed you were bouncing in your chair with the collar of your shirt stuff in your mouth since you had to pretend to be dead. The round ended when Ryan shot Gavin, finally allowing you to speak.

" _Trevor_!" you screamed, hitting your palms on the desk with every syllable, " _What the fuck_?!"

"Okay... Listen..." he said between the breaths he was taking to calm himself down, "I was aiming for Gav, right? And then as I was taking the shot, he ran  _right_  behind you and it hit  _you_  instead." You leaned to your right to glare at him, making him smile shyly at you, "At least we won the round!"

"Have you ever imagined what a crossover between  _Friday the 13th_ ,  _Saw_ , and  _Scream_  would be like?" you asked with an emotionless expression.

"No..."

"Well, you better  _start_ , motherfucker, because it's about to be your  _life_." You turned back to your computer as everyone started laughing once again.

" _Jesus, Y/N_ ," Geoff wheezed, "Could you try to be a little  _less_  creepy?"

"I don't like how she said that with such a  _straight face_ ," Ryan shook his head, "And, you know, that's really saying something coming from  _me_."

~

**Round Three**

The next round started with everyone announcing their character names – which was pretty stupid on Trevor's part considering you immediately found out he was the killer. You walked around a corner and found him messing with his mouse wheel, putting away a peculiar looking object.

"Did you just put away a knife?" you asked, making Trevor turn to look at you.

"Who,  _me_?" he replied innocently.

"Fucking- Trevor, we  _just_  told everyone who we were.  _Of course_  I'm talking to you." He was silent for a moment before you saw his character take the knife out again.

"Give me one good reason I shouldn't kill you right now," Trevor stated.

"Well, after that  _last_  round, if you want to continue  _sleeping with me_ , you'd better move on and find someone  _else_ ," you deadpanned, making everyone else start laughing. He went quiet again and you noticed him nod out of the corner of your eye.

"Fair enough," he said, walking in the opposite direction, "I will save you for last then." You didn't notice him look at you as you smiled, continuing about your hunt for clues.

One by one, Trevor killed all the characters apart from you and Ryan. Ryan had started the game off with a gun and since Trevor left you alone in the beginning, it allowed you to find enough clues to acquire one as well.

Gathering location whereabouts from Ryan and Trevor arguing about a meeting spot, you met both men in the alley just before you reached the fruit stand – though you didn't come around the corner  _just yet_.

While the two were standing about 10 feet apart facing each other – both of them talking about how they should duel – you popped around the corner behind Trevor and shot his character in the back of his head. As soon as the ' _Bystanders win_ ' screen came up, everyone started laughing hysterically.

"Dude, she  _executed_  you!" Ryan exclaimed.

"That was the greatest thing I've ever  _seen_!" Geoff shouted.

"I'm just proud of myself for not missing," you remarked, " _That_  would have been embarrassing."

"Why?" Trevor finally spoke, "Why would you do that to  _me_ , your own boyfriend? The love of your life?"

"You said you'd save me for last," you grinned, "You never said  _I_  couldn't kill  _you_."

"You're  _mean_ ," he pouted, but you knew he was joking.

"I don't think we can  _play_  another round!" Gavin said, "I think we have to end the video on that! That was  _absolutely top_!" You looked over at him as you laughed, finding him holding his hand up. You reached over for a high five before leaning back upright.

"Let's stop!" Jeremy smiled, officially ending the video.

You all saved your game captures and audio recordings before shutting down your consoles to take a break until you had to record your next video. Once everything of yours was saved and shut down, you got out of your chair and walked around the group of desks to where Trevor was sitting.

You started out standing behind him with your arms around his neck and chin on his shoulder, but after he took his headphones off and set them on the desk, he decided he wanted you closer to him. He grabbed your hands and pried you off of him, only to bring you around the chair so you could sit on his lap. Your arms returned to his neck while his wrapped around your waist to keep you from sliding off of him, and he pressed a kiss to your cheek.

"That was really good," he admitted softly, "I'm impressed."

"Thank you," you grinned slyly, "Maybe after cooking lessons, I can teach you how to be better at  _video games_  too."

"You know what?" he tried not to smile, one of his hands moving to your side so he could tickle you. You squealed loudly, trying to wiggle out of his grasp to no avail.

You finally decided to just grab his cheeks and kiss him, knowing that always got him to stop whatever he was doing. He did, of course, letting you feel his grin as he kissed you back.

"Aw, look at that," you heard Jeremy sigh dramatically, "It's so nice to see he's not holding that round against her."

You finally pulled away from your boyfriend, looking over and finding everyone looking at you as Gavin had his phone up. You couldn't keep the smile from pulling at the corners of your mouth, letting your hands slide off of Trevor's cheeks so your arms could wrap around his neck.

"I'm sure I'll be able to see this at the end of the video when it comes out then?" you mentioned while Trevor just grinned and buried his face in your neck, pressing kisses to your skin every now and then.

"We have to let everyone know he doesn't  _hate you_ , Y/N," Jeremy insisted.

"You think he'd give  _this_  up over a game?" you smirked, "I am the  _best thing_  that's  _ever_  gonna happen to him." You squealed when he started tickling you again, wiggling around on his lap since he refused to let you get up.


	466. Any Day (Calum Hood)

**Warning: Mentions of anxiety, panic attacks**

~

"You can  _still_  go, Cal," you told him, "Just because  _I'm not_  doesn't mean  _you_   _shouldn't_." Calum had been  _really trying_  to convince you to come to a house party one of his friends was having with him, but in all honesty, you'd rather stay home.

"But it would be more fun with  _you_ ," he pouted, making you giggle.

"Somehow, I doubt that," you teased, pecking his cheek, "But you should go! Hang out with your friends!"

"I love hanging out with you  _more_."

"Well, I'm flattered that you would choose me over your friends," you stuck your tongue out, letting it poke his nose.

"You  _wouldn't_  choose me over your best friend?" he cocked an eyebrow, a small smirk on his face.

"Nope," you chirped, "Mikey  _always_  comes first."

"I feel like I'm  _supposed_  to be jealous, but I think you're more  _loyal_  than anything," he chuckled.

"Maybe you're just biased because Mikey's the one who introduced us."

"A very reasonable possibility," Calum nodded, leaning in and kissing you. You giggled again at the sloppiness of it, putting your hands on his cheeks and pushing him back so he would stop.

"Come on, Cal," you insisted, "Go have fun. If you need a ride home, you know my number."

"I don't wanna wake you up," he stuck his bottom lip out for what felt like the hundredth time since he stepped into your apartment over an hour ago.

"I don't want  _you_  driving drunk," you fired back.

"I would let  _Michael Clifford_ , the man who  _hit_  another vehicle a  _week_  into have his license, behind the wheel of my car before I would  _ever_  drive drunk," he replied seriously, only smiling when you laughed.

"And I'm  _proud_  of you for that," you kissed his nose, "So promise you'll call?"

"Yes," he rolled his eyes fondly, "I'll call you." You smiled brightly again.

"Have fun," you told him, "Tell everyone I said hello." Calum nodded, giving you a series of kisses between repeated ' _I love you_ 's before finally pulling away, leaving you to go back to what you'd been doing before he'd arrived.

~

**Calum's POV; Three hours later**

"So why isn't Y/N here?" Ashton asked after Calum came back to their small group with his refilled solo cup.

"I don't know, man," Calum sighed, sipping his beer, "She just never wants to come out with me."

"You ever ask her  _why_?" Luke wondered, shifting to lean against the wall.

"Sometimes," he shrugged, "But she usually avoids it."

"Why not just like, push it a little or something?" Ashton added.

"Yeah? How well does ' _pushing it_ ' work with your sister?" Calum returned, causing the brunette to roll his eyes while he and Luke just chuckled.

"Hey, guys!" Michael chirped, trotting toward them with a drink of his own and leaning on the wall beside Luke, "What'd I miss?" He'd left for a few minutes to wait with another friend outside until their ride got there so he wasn't alone.

"Nothing really," Ashton mentioned, "Some girl started doing all the moves to a Little Mix song though."

" _Damn it_!" he sighed, "It was Arielle, wasn't it?"

" _Of course_!" Luke laughed.

"I wish Y/N was here to see that," Michael chuckled, "She would've  _loved it_."

"I'm surprised you haven't even asked where she  _is_ , to be honest," Calum commented.

"I know she's at home," Michael shrugged, "I wouldn't come to these things either is my anxiety was as bad as  _hers_."

" _What_?" he furrowed his eyebrows.

"These kinds of parties give her  _horrible_  panic attacks..." he trailed off.

"So  _that's_  why she never comes with me?"

"Yeah... I thought you  _knew_ ," Michael shook his head.

"How would I have known that? She's never  _told me_."

"You remember the party I brought her to that you met her at and I disappeared for like, half an hour?" Michael said, earning a nod from Calum, "Well, a lot more people showed up than I thought and she started freaking out, so I took her home." Calum was silent for a moment with a blank expression on his face. Michael raised his eyebrows, pushing himself off of the wall, "You didn't get mad at her for not coming,  _did you_?"

" _No_!" Calum exclaimed, " _God, no_ ; I wouldn't do that. I just don't get why she's never told me  _that's_  why she doesn't come..."

Michael shrugged again, "Probably doesn't want you to think she's weird or something; I don't know." Calum glanced down at his phone and saw it was already 1:30.

"I think I'm gonna call it a night," he said softly.

"Later, Cal," the three boys grinned simultaneously, knowing  _exactly_  where he was going.

~

When Calum returned to your apartment – he called an Uber, of course – he unlocked the door with the key you'd given him and went inside. Despite his hopefulness, the place was dark, and he knew you'd already gone to bed. He decided to sleep on the couch though, not wanting to call another Uber to take him home and knowing you wouldn't mind.

However, after locking the door behind him and going into the living room, he found you already passed out on it. He chuckled softly, coming to the conclusion that you'd been too lazy to get up after you turned off the TV.

Calum slipped his shoes and jacket off before walking to you. He carefully picked you up and took you into the bedroom.

"Calum?" you murmured as you were being laid on your bed, "What are you doing here?"

"Sorry, princess," he said with a guilty tone, "I didn't mean to wake you up. I was just going to sleep on the couch so I didn't have to call another Uber tonight." Before he could walk away, you sleepily grabbed his hand.

"Stay," you said in a barely audible whisper, but since the room was so quiet, Calum heard it anyway. He blushed lightly – you two had spent the night with each other numerous times, but it always made him flustered when you wanted to share the bed.

Either way though, he stripped down to his boxers and climbed onto the bed. Before he could even lie flat on his back, you were cuddled up to him with your head on his chest. He wrapped his arms around you and played with your hair until the both of you drifted off to sleep.

~

The next morning, Calum woke up before you but didn't move for the solid  _hour_  you were still asleep. Instead, he admired everything about you – the way your bottom lip jutted out slightly as if something you were dreaming about made you pouty, your eyelashes fanning along the very top of your cheekbones, how the corner of your mouth would twitch into a small smile as you dreamed.

But what Calum loved the most about sleeping next to you was the way he would hear you mumble his name softly every once in a while, ensuring him that you were dreaming about him.

Every time you said his name though, Calum would kiss your forehead, making you unconsciously push yourself against him. He grinned, tightening his hold on your hip a bit more each time until you finally started waking up. You yawned quietly, your breath fanning out on Calum's bare chest.

"Morning, princess," Calum said softly, kissing your head again.

"Oh, I thought you staying the night was a  _dream_ ," you tilted your head to look up at him. He chuckled under his breath.

"Sorry to disappoint," he winked.

"Who said I was  _disappointed_?" you grinned sleepily, pecking his lips before returning your head to his chest. "So why did you come over last night?" you asked, "I thought you were going home after that party."

"I was, but..." he trailed off, making you furrow your eyebrows.

You moved so you could lay on your own back so you could stretch, turning your head to look at him. Calum turned onto his side and looked at you intently, not saying anything else.

" _But_...?" you raised an eyebrow at him.

"Mike told me about your panic attacks," he admitted. You let out a deep sigh, looking up at the ceiling. "Why didn't  _you_  tell me?" he asked softly, laying his arm across your stomach and bringing you back against him.

"Because I don't want to go with you only to have you get annoyed by me holding onto your  _arm_  all night," you murmured, "You should be able to hang out with your friends without having to constantly worry about whether or not  _I'm_  fine. I don't want to be that girl your friends end up hating because she always makes you  _leave_  early or she never lets them have you to  _themselves_  for a few minutes."

"They'd  _understand_ , princess," Calum promised you, "They may not all have panic attacks, but they'd get that crowds make you uncomfortable. You shouldn't have to feel like they would hate you if you never left my side. They love you just as much as  _I_  do."

"They  _do_?" you whispered, looking at him again.

"They ask about you all the time," he smiled slightly, "And even if you don't want to go to parties, they wouldn't mind doing something  _else_."

"What about  _you_?"

"I'd choose you over a party  _any day_ ," Calum mumbled, leaning over and pressing a light kiss to the skin over your collarbone.

You blushed lightly, moving onto your own side so you could face him. Calum's hold on your waist only tightened after slipping his hand under your shirt, his fingers gently tracing the bumps in your spine.

"Love you, princess," he mumbled again, smiling softly when the kiss he pressed to your nose made you scrunch your face up.

"Love  _you_ , Cal," you whispered, kissing his nose in return.

~

_inspiration: http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/143875745583/he-had-promised-to-hold-your-hand-and-be-by-your_


	467. My Idiot (Luke Hemmings)

You jolted awake due to the shrill sound of your ringtone. You looked at the clock on your nightstand – it read 2:30am – before looking at the caller ID. You'd be lying to yourself if you said your heart didn't instantly drop to your stomach when you saw your best friend's name on the screen – he  _never_  called after a time when he knew you'd be sleeping.

And the second the dial tone cut out, he was speaking.

" _Princess_ ," Luke drug out before you could even say hello, " _Where did you go_?" You could hear the loud music and drunken shouting from people at the party he had gone to that night.

"Luke, what are you  _talking about_?" you whined, not particularly pleased with being woken up at this hour for something that now clearly  _wasn't_  an emergency.

"I've been looking for you  _all over_  this house and I  _can't find you_ ," you could  _hear_  his pout. And even though you were annoyed with him for waking you up, you couldn't help but smile.

"Lu," you said gently, "How much have you had to drink?"

"Not  _that_  much," he insisted.

"But just enough to forget that I  _didn't_  go to that party with you?" you grinned, the expression only getting bigger when he let out a soft ' _oh_ ' of realization.

"Why didn't you  _come_?" he frowned, "We would've had  _fun_."

"I'm not a partier, Lu – you  _know_  that."

"But you can still come  _hang out_  with us!" he begged, "Me and Ash and Mike and Cal wanna  _see you_!"

"You see me  _all the time_ , Lu," you reminded him, shaking your head even though he couldn't see it, " _One_  weekend without me won't kill you."

"But I  _miss you_."

"Then I'll come over tomorrow."

"But I wanna see you  _now_!" he pouted again.

"Then you're gonna have to come over  _here_ ," you bargained.

"Will you come  _get me_?" he asked sweetly.

"You don't wanna go home with any of the girls  _there_  for once?" you cooed teasingly, "That's a  _shock_."

" _Y/N_ ," he whined, " _I want you_."

You knew he only meant that he wanted you to inevitably take care of him so his hangover wasn't so bad in the morning, but the statement still made your heart race.

" _Fine_ ," you caved, turning on your lamp and sitting up, "Where are you?" You heard Luke grumble to himself for a minute before you suddenly yanked your phone away from your ear when he unintentionally yelled into his own.

" _Ashton_!" he called out. There was a moment of silence from Luke as Ashton came over.

"Luke," he greeted his best friend, obviously  _significantly_  more sober than him.

"Where are we?" the blonde asked, earning himself a sigh.

"Just give me the phone," Ashton stated, holding his hand out. When Luke handed it over, he held it up to his ear. "Hi, Y/N," he smiled, making you let out a breathy laugh.

"Hi, Ash," you returned, "Would you mind telling me where my  _idiot_  is?"

"He making you come get him?"

" _Am not, Ashton_!" Luke whined, sloppily shoving his shoulder, " _She invited me over_!"

"He  _begged_ ," you laughed again.

"You know the new subdivision by the golf course?" Ashton asked you as he pushed Luke off of him.

"Mhmm," you hummed in response so he knew you were following.

"We're at the very first house on the left," he said, "But it's hard to miss with all the  _drunk people_  stumbling around the front yard."

"Thanks," you laughed again, "Hey, tell Lu to get the first wave of nausea over with before I get there so I don't have to stop on the side of the road and kick him out of my car," you told him, hearing him chuckle.

"I know the drill," he replied, "We'll be outside."

"Thanks, Ash," you grinned before hanging up the call and climbing out of bed.

~

The moment you pulled up to the curb in front of the house party, you noticed Luke look over and his face lit up. He jumped up and would have fallen flat on his face had it not been for Ashton grabbing his arm and leading him to the passenger side of your car.

"Hi, Y/N," Ashton smiled, repeating the same greeting he'd given you on the phone, as he helped Luke into your car, "You look beautiful."

"I  _feel_  beautiful," you laughed, tugging at the thigh of your sweatpants.

"You're  _always_  beautiful," Luke slurred lightly, his head back on the headrest as Ashton buckled his seatbelt. You simply chuckled and shook your head.

"Have fun," the brown-haired boy told you, causing you to laugh a little louder. He leaned over Luke to kiss your cheek before pushing himself back outside.

"Bye, Ash," you grinned, waving at him as he closed the car door and returned to the party while you drove away.

You heard Luke huff, glancing over at him to find a prominent pout on his face and his arms crossed on his chest.

"What's got you in such a sour mood, Lu?" you asked him, turning your attention back to the road, "20 minutes, you seemed like you would have been  _very_  excited to see me."

" _You kissed Ashton_ ," Luke grumbled.

"He kissed my  _cheek_ ," you corrected him, "And we do it all the time." He huffed again, making you giggle under your breath. "You  _jealous_?" you teased.

" _No_ ," he scoffed, "Why would I be jealous?"

"Dunno," you shrugged, "But you  _shouldn't_  be. Don't think I'd get out of bed at 3am to come to get just  _anyone_  from a party."

" _I love you_ ," he sighed dramatically. You ignored the ache in your chest.

"Love you  _too_ , Lu," you told him.

~

When you arrived back at your place, you helped Luke inside, taking him to your bedroom. You helped him change into the clothes he kept in your drawer for impromptu sleepovers as best as you could with him unable to stand for very long without holding onto you, but you finally managed to get him into everything and have him lie down on your bed. You grabbed your small wastebasket and put it on the floor beside him, reminding him to use it if he didn't think he could make it to the bathroom. You went to the kitchen to get a glass of water and some painkillers to put on the nightstand for him to take in the morning.

You went back to your room to find him already curled up under your blanket, snuggling into your pillow. You couldn't help but smile fondly – drunk, cuddly Luke was arguably your  _favorite_  Luke – and put the things in your hands on the nightstand. You went to leave, just deciding to sleep on the couch, but you were startled when you felt Luke grab your hand.

He didn't say anything – he just wrapped his fingers around yours and tugged you toward the bed until your legs hit it and you suddenly plopped down with a soft squeak of surprise. He pulled on you again and you knew what he wanted, but it never failed to make your heart race every time.

You finally gave in, pulling the blanket off of him just enough to slip underneath and lay it back down. Your head rested on his chest as his arms wrapped around you, bringing your body as close to him as he could get it. You heard him sigh in content, feeling his breath move the hair on top of your head.

Once you were both comfortable, it was silent for a moment – you honestly thought he'd fallen asleep until you heard his voice again.

"Can I tell you a secret?" he mumbled sloppily.

"Sure, Lu," you giggled under your breath.

"I really, really, really,  _really_ like this girl..." he trailed off. You ignored  _another_  ache in your chest.

"Yeah?" you hummed, "What's stopping you from asking her out then?"

"She-" He hiccupped. "-She's too  _pretty_  for- for  _me_."

"I'm sure she's the  _perfect amount_  of pretty for you, Lu," you assured him.

"But she... She doesn't like me like  _that_..."

"How do you know?"

You felt kind of  _weird_  talking about a girl Luke liked while you were cuddled up like this, but hey: if this was your last chance to do this before he started seeing her, you'd take what you could  _get_.

"Becau- Because I  _know_ ," he insisted, sniffling lightly.

And you knew he must feel  _really_  strongly about this girl if he was getting sad over the  _idea_  of her not feeling the same.

"Go to sleep, Lu," you whispered, moving your arm to rest on his stomach, putting your hand on his forearm and rubbing it gently, "We can talk about it later." You then felt his lips hit your forehead, staying there for a good 10 seconds.

You were starting to wonder why he wasn't pulling away, but your unspoken question was soon answered when you heard him snoring. You smiled to yourself, shifting your head slightly – just enough so that you were comfortable, but not enough that his lips left your skin.

And you finally drifted back to sleep.

~

**The next day**

You woke up – before Luke, unsurprisingly – at around 8am. You carefully got out of bed, happy you managed not to wake him up, and decided to go about your morning as normal and wait for him to wake up and – hopefully – remember the previous night's before-bed conversation.

It wasn't until almost 1pm when you heard shuffling coming from your bedroom – because  _damn_ , that boy could  _sleep_  when he was hungover. Luke came out into your living room where you were, wearing the clothes he'd worn to the party the night before.

"Morning, Sleeping Beauty," you snickered as he rubbed his eyes before rolling them.

"Thanks for the painkillers," he mumbled, his voice scratchy from not having spoken yet.

"Anything for my favorite idiot," you smirked, earning yourself another eye roll.

"Even a ride home?" he asked, to which you shook your head.

"Ash and Cal brought your car over this morning," you informed him, "It's in your usual spot."

"Well, I should be heading home," he said softly, "Thanks again."

"Hey, Lu!" you said just before he reached the door. You heard him stop as you got up from your seat and scurried to where he was standing. "Do you remember anything from last night?" you asked curiously. He simply stared at you, his bottom lip caught between his teeth. "I'll take that as a  _yes_ ," you giggled softly, making him barely smile at the sound of it. "I was serious, you know," you shook your head, "You should ask her out."

"I  _should_?" he wondered.

"Well, why  _not_?" you shrugged.

"I guess so..." he looked at you with a worrisome expression, "So wait, what was the plan?"

"We never came up with a plan," you said, "But you're gonna go straight to her house, knock on her door, and ask her on a date."

"Right... Okay..." he nodded, "What do I do if she says  _no_?"

"She's  _not_  gonna say no."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because any girl would be  _stupid_  to turn you down," you promised him, " _Now go_. And don't forget to tell me what she said later."

"Okay," he took a deep breath, "I can do this." Luke left your apartment, closing the door behind him.

Sure, you felt as though you could  _literally_  feel your heart breaking, but if being with this other girl meant Luke was  _happy_ , then that was all you cared about.

You jumped slightly when you heard a knock at your door, your eyebrows furrowing as you reached down to open it. And when you did, you couldn't help but sigh.

" _Luke_ , what are you-" you started before he cut you off.

"Will you go out with me?" he asked quickly, making you freeze.

Luke was understandably  _terrified_  that you were going to reject him – and the feeling only  _worsened_  when you just stared blankly at him. But he powered through the anxiety and remained in his spot. And when you finally came to your senses, he honestly thought his heart was going to beat out of his chest right then and there.

"Yes," you said so softly that he  _almost_  didn't catch it. But he  _did_ , and when he realized you  _weren't_  rejecting him, he couldn't contain himself anymore.

Luke grabbed your hips and pulled your body to his – much like he'd done before falling asleep last night, but now, it was a  _little_  different. He smashed his lips against yours, making you  _instantly_  lose the air in your lungs.

And you remained in that exact spot until the moment you needed that air  _back_.

"I don't remember telling you to  _kiss her_ ," you breathed out after pulling away, making him laugh as he blushed lightly.

"Sorry," he whispered.

"Didn't tell you  _not to_  either," you murmured, making him smile when you put your hands on his cheeks and brought his lips back to yours.

~

_inspiration: http://groupieluke.tumblr.com/post/141620218407/drunk-luke-would-be-really-cocky-and-loud-which-is_


	468. Come Back to Me (Calum Hood) *

**Warning: Mentions of car accident, suggesting suicide**

~

This was  _not_  how you wanted to reconnect with your childhood best friend.

You and Calum were closer than anyone else you knew growing up – your moms were friends and that, in turn, created a friendship between their kids as well. You were an only child, so having Calum and his sister made you feel like you had these two older siblings you'd always wanted – even if you  _were_  only a few months younger than Calum. You were in the same classes for most of elementary and middle school, but when you entered your freshman year of high school, things started changing.

The most notable change was Calum's attitude toward you.

You would try to say hi to him in the halls, but he would always ignore you. He never even gave you so much as a second glance when he heard you sigh and continue walking. And that only increased when he gained popularity and started hanging out with his current friends.

They weren't  _all_  bad – most of them were actually incredibly sweet – but the ones that  _weren't_  were, of course, the ones he hung out with the  _most_. And they didn't even acknowledge your existence every day. But when they  _did_ , they were  _relentless_.

You could  _handle_  the name-calling and the laughter and the whispers and the snide remarks about  _whatever_  they decided to pick on you about that day –  _you really could_. But what you  _couldn't_  handle was the fact that Calum would just stand there and  _watch it_  happen.

So when Calum got into a car accident and ended up in a coma, you decided to take the opportunity to finally talk to him when he couldn't ignore you or just straight-up  _walk away_.

You were the only one in the hospital room with him – much to your relief – but that was probably only because hospital visiting hours for non-family ended in a few minutes. You promised the woman at the front desk that you'd only need  _half_  that time though. She let you go to his room – it was still  _technically_  visiting hours, so she couldn't  _exactly_  turn you away – and you had a mini reunion with Calum's mom before she stepped out to give you some time alone with him.

You sat down on the chair beside his bed, looking at him for a moment. No matter  _how much_  you resented him  _now_ , it was still hard to see someone you used to care about  _so much_  in this state. You couldn't stop yourself from reaching over, carefully pushing the stray hairs off of his face.

"Hi, Cal..." you started softly, "I'm sorry I don't have a lot of time to spend here, but I... I guess I just wanted to come see how you're doing... I hear you're improving every day though-" You smiled slightly, chewing on your bottom lip. "-so that's good... Definitely wish I could say the same for  _me_..." you murmured, taking in a deep breath, "I don't know how much more of this I can  _take_ , Calum... And,  _God_ , I  _know_  it's shitty of me to finally be admitting all of this to you when you can't hear me or answer back, but..." You let out a small, humorless laugh as you wiped the tears from your cheeks. "I know I'd never have told you any of this if you weren't here right now... And I sure as  _hell_  know I won't talk to you when you pull through... 'Cause you and me, Calum... We're not the  _same_  anymore... We don't live the same lives, and we  _certainly_  wouldn't get along with each other's friends. I don't know if that's just how life  _works_  or if I did something  _terrible_  to one of them, but your friends... They're not  _nice_  to me, Calum. And I just... It really  _hurts_  to know you watch it happen and don't  _do anything_  about it... So, you know, I hope they don't get too bored without me around to pick on, and I'm  _so sorry_  to the next person they choose to fill the void, but... I can't  _do it_  anymore, Calum-" Your voice broke as you wiped more tears away. "-I'm sorry I never told you this while you could hear me... And I really hope you don't blame yourself for this... But if I'll be able to feel anything after all is said and done, I'm really gonna miss you, Cal."

You wiped your face again before leaning in and pressing a kiss to Calum's cheek, careful not to bump any tubes. You then got up and left the room, part of you wishing he would wake up right then and there and beg you to come back to him.

But he  _didn't_.

And you knew he  _wouldn't_.

~

**Calum's POV; Three months later**

Eighty-seven days after the accident, Calum finally returned to school. He walked slower than normal, but he knew he was lucky that he was able to walk  _at all_.

People he passed in the hall would tell him hello and that they were happy he was okay, but Calum only smiled politely at them in response. He was on a mission – a mission he was sure wouldn't end the way he  _wanted_  it to, but he was  _on it_  nonetheless.

The moment your locker came into view, Calum could feel his heart beating in his throat. Though he hadn't been  _awake_  when you were at the hospital with him, he could still hear every word you said. All he wanted to do was apologize to you – for the way his friends acted, for never doing anything about it...  _Everything_.

But the  _one_  statement that haunted him since the  _moment_  you said it was ' _If I'll be able to feel anything after all is said and done, I'm really gonna miss you, Cal._ '

Calum had  _no idea_  what you meant by it, but he knew that whatever it was  _wasn't good_. God knows he tried to brush it off –  _there was no way you meant you wanted to take your own life_  – but then again, it really  _did_  sound like you were saying  _goodbye_  to him.

And all he wanted to do was make sure you were okay.

But there was no trace of you as he approached your locker – not a sign that you'd even come into school  _at all_  that morning.

"Hey, Cal!" he heard beside him, jumping as a fist hit his shoulder. Calum's face scrunched up in pain, but his friend didn't seem to notice – and if he  _did_ , he didn't  _care_. "Good to have you back, buddy!" Robbie said, leaning on the wall Calum was resting back against, "What're you doing over here?"

Calum didn't respond – he just kept his eyes trained on your locker,  _hoping_  you'd randomly show up at some point. Robbie followed his friend's gaze, scoffing when he realized what was happening.

"What are you doing  _here_?" he asked, shoving Calum again, "Since when do you wait around that  _nerd's_  locker?"

"Has she been coming to school?" Calum responded, ignoring the questions he'd been asked.

"How would  _I_  know?" Robbie laughed, "I don't care about the loser."

"Yeah, well,  _I do_ ," he fired back angrily, "And I don't appreciate that you've been treating her like  _shit_."

"Whoa, man," he cocked an eyebrow, "Since when do  _you_  defend the worth-"

"Finish that sentence and  _you'll_  be the next person in a coma," Calum growled.

"Hey, I'm just wondering why you  _care_  about her all of a sudden. It's not like  _anyone else_  does."

In the time it took Robbie to finish bashing you, Calum's right fist had already made it to his left eye. Fellow classmates looked on with wide eyes and dropped jaws, trying to convince themselves they  _actually_  just witnessed what they did.

But Calum didn't notice. As Robbie was falling backwards, he was already walking away.

"Hey, Calum," the school nurse smiled as he entered her office, "How are you feeling?"

"Alright," he mumbled, "I wanna excuse myself from school today."

"Any reason?" she asked, clear concern on her face.

"I have stuff I have to do and it can't wait until the end of the day," he stated.

"Anything you need help with?"

"No," he shook his head, "I need to do it alone."

"Okay," she shrugged with a sigh, "Just don't work yourself too hard; We don't need you  _back_  in a coma." Calum couldn't help but smile.

"Thanks," he said softly before heading back out of the nurse's office and toward the door to the student parking lot.

~

Calum took a deep breath before knocking on the door he was standing in front of. He didn't know if anyone was home – cars in the driveway never meant anything – but he had to at least make  _sure_. To his luck, he heard someone approaching from the other side – it just unfortunately wasn't  _you_.

"Hello," your mom gave Calum a confused look, but smiled at him nonetheless, "Can I help you?" She didn't look any different than he remembered, but he couldn't say he blamed her for not remembering  _him_  – he'd certainly grown up quite a bit since the two of you were 12.

"Yes..." Calum cleared his throat nervously, "Um... I was wondering... I just came by to... Is... Is Y/N here...?"

"No, she's been gone since last weekend," your mom shook her head.

"Do you know where she  _is_...?"

"Is everything okay?" she asked, not answering his question.

"I don't know," Calum answered honestly, forcing out a small laugh, "I just... She came to visit me when I was in the hospital and I just wanted to let her know I'm okay..."

" _Calum Hood_?" she tilted her head, finally recognizing him, "Is that  _really_  you?"

"Yes, ma'am..." he murmured. He noticed her eyes widen slightly, only making him even  _more_  worried than he was before.

"Come in," she said before stepping away from the door and quickly walking away.

Calum had no choice but to enter the house, closing the door behind him and following your mom before he lost her. When he came into the kitchen, he found her writing something down on a sticky note.

"You know, I've heard a lot about you lately, Calum," your mom mentioned, "A lot about how your friends treat Y/N." Calum looked down at his shoes, unable to force himself to look at her. "But I know my daughter, and I know how much she misses you and how she feels about you," she continued, "So when you see her again, I want you to be  _honest_  with her if you don't feel the same."

Calum's head snapped back up as she held the sticky note out to him – directions written on it. His heart skipped a beat before he took the paper, then immediately rushed back to the front door. But not before stopping again, coming back to the entrance to the kitchen, and looking at your mom.

"Thank you," he told her, making her smile as she heard the front door close loudly behind him.

~

**Your POV**

You'd been at your family's cabin about an hour and a half away from home for a couple weeks now. You tried pushing through the  _torment_  of everyday life at school for a good two and a half months before that day you finally visited Calum in the hospital, but you  _just_  couldn't take it anymore.

You talked to your mom before anyone else, and you felt incredibly lucky that she understood and  _allowed you_  to stay at the cabin so far away from her when all she wanted to do was help. But she knew you needed to be alone and you'd talk to her about everything you were feeling when you were ready.

You honestly didn't expect anyone to come knocking on your door that Thursday morning – and especially not after 10am when people were in school – so you approached the door with caution. You peeked out the small window beside the door, understandably losing your breath when you saw who was standing there.

When you opened the door, you found Calum rocking back and forth lightly on his feet, his hands stuffed in his pockets. He was looking down at the ground, but his head snapped up the moment he heard the doorknob turn, finally coming face-to-face with the girl he  _honestly_  thought he'd never see again.

" _Y/N_ ," he breathed in relief, happy his voice wasn't coming out as broken as he felt.

"Calum..." you whispered, your eyes widened slightly, "What are you... How did you know I was  _here_?"

"Your mum told me..." he answered just as quietly, "I needed to see you..."

"What are your  _friends_  going to think when they find out you're here?" you mumbled.

" _God, Y/N_ ," he let out a deep breath, "I don't  _care_  what they think; If I  _did_ , I wouldn't  _be here_." You looked at him for a moment before moving away from the door slightly, signaling for him to come inside.

Calum happily entered the cabin, sighing at how warm it was compared to the frigid temperature outside. You asked him if he wanted a drink, to which he graciously accepted, and took off his coat as you went to the kitchen. When you came back into the room, you led Calum to the couch, sitting beside each other.

You were both silent for a moment, the only sounds being the sipping of your drinks and the crackling wood in the fireplace, before you finally found your voice.

"Why are you here, Calum?" you asked softly. You looked at him when he breathed in deeply, awaiting his answer.

"I've been  _so worried_  about you, Y/N," Calum admitted, shaking his head as he stared into the cup in his hands, "Ever since you came to the hospital and everything you said and I didn't see you when I got to school this morning... I had to find you... I had to know you were okay... I know my friends treat you like shit and I know I'm  _just_  as bad because I don't tell them to  _stop_ , but I... I care about you  _so much_  and I don't... I don't want to  _not_  have you in my life anymore..."

"You heard what I said...?" you asked softly.

"The thing about being in a coma is that you may not be awake and alert, but you can still hear everything that's going on around you," he murmured, "And Y/N... I know you and I aren't incredibly close –  _certainly_  not as close as we were  _growing up_  – but... Why wouldn't you  _tell me_  you were feeling that way?"

"You wouldn't have  _cared_..." you whispered shakily, swallowing the lump in your throat, "You don't care enough to stop anyone from doing anything when it's  _right in front of you_... Why would you care if I  _said anything_  about it...?"

"Because I care about  _you_ ," he answered without hesitating, finally making eye contact with you, "We may have gone our separate ways at the beginning of high school, but that doesn't mean I ever  _stopped_  caring about you."

"You don't  _let_  people treat someone you care about the way people treat  _me_ , Calum," you reminded him. Calum sighed, putting his cup on the coffee table and leaning back on the couch with his palms covering his face.

"I know," he replied, sliding his hands down until they were resting on his stomach. His eyes were closed for a moment before he opened them and looked at you again. "I fucked up, Y/N," he acknowledged, "I'm just trying to make it up to you before it's too late." The corner of your mouth barely twitched into a grin, making Calum smile as well before it faded. "When are you coming back?" he asked lowly, an almost desperate tone in his voice. You let out a small breath, opening your mouth to speak but nothing was coming out. "Are you coming back  _at all_?" he whispered.

"I don't know, Cal," you shook your head slowly. He sighed lightly, moving around a bit as he started speaking again.

"Do I still get to  _talk to you_  at least?" he asked, holding something out to you. You looked down at his phone, giggling under your breath. You took it from his hand to put your number in.

"Yeah," you nodded, handing the phone back to him. Calum smiled again, putting it back into his pocket, and looked at you for a moment.

You were about to ask what he was thinking, but you looked down when you felt his hand reach over and brush yours. When you didn't move your hand away, he wrapped his fingers around your own and tugged lightly. He didn't need to vocalize anything for you to know what he wanted, putting your cup down on the table beside his and repositioning yourself to lie against him.

Your head was on his chest and one of his arms was around your shoulders while his other remained at his side. You felt him rest his cheek on the top of your head, his thumb rubbing your skin where it met the hem of your t-shirt sleeve.

It was silent for a moment – aside the crackling from the fireplace – until Calum randomly decided to speak again.

"I like to tell people I don't regret any of things I've done..." he mumbled, "But that's not true... I  _do_  regret  _one thing_..." You tilted your head to look up at him when he paused, finding him already looking at you. "I regret letting  _you_  get away," he told you, blindly reaching for your hand and tangling your fingers together as he brought it onto his stomach, "I  _hate_  who I became when we entered high school because no one wants to be friends with me for  _me_ ; they just want to be around me for the  _attention_... But I hate it  _more_  because it cost me the  _one person_  I care about more than  _anyone else_..." Your heart skipped a beat before you felt it start pounding in every inch of your body.

It didn't take a  _genius_  to figure out he was talking about you, but why would he admit all of this  _now_? It had been almost  _four years_ since Calum ditched you... Who's to say that he wouldn't see you in the hallways back at school and revert back to the way he'd been acting since freshman year started?

"I don't know what the sudden change of heart is all about, Calum," you said softly, shaking your head as you sat up, taking your hand back so he wasn't holding it anymore, "But this isn't  _funny_... This isn't... This isn't some  _game_ ; My  _feelings_  aren't some game... And I don't- I  _can't_  let you back in if you're just going to pretend this never  _happened_  when you see me while you're with your friends..." Calum barely smiled, looking down at the hands in his lap.

"I know you don't have any reason to believe me," he said, "And I'll  _understand_  if you don't either... But I... I promise that, when and  _if_  you come back, it won't  _be_  like that anymore... I promise I'll be better about telling my friends to back off and I won't be  _afraid_  of standing up for you anymore... I just... I don't want to  _lose you_  again..."

Your eyes remained trained on his face for a moment, trying to find any sort of falsehood in what he was saying. And although he wasn't looking at you, you knew he was telling the  _truth_.

You felt Calum jump when you moved back to him, your head returning to his chest and your arms wrapped around his waist. He was a little tense up until the point you spoke again.

"I'm really glad you're okay, Cal," you whispered into his shirt, squeezing him slightly, "I was so worried about you."

His breath tickled your forehead as he sighed in relief, his body immediately relaxing as his own around wound around you as well. His lips hit your forehead but he didn't say anything else; You both just enjoyed this moment between you, happy you were back in the other's life.

~

**One week later**

You'd gone back to school that Monday morning after Calum's visit, and he was  _more_  than ecstatic to see you when you walked through the door. You'd texted him when you woke up that you were coming back and, although he hadn't answered, you knew he'd seen it when he was standing right in front of the office as you walked in.

He spent the whole day with you – when he  _wasn't_  in class, of course – showing up at your locker to walk you to your next class, eating with you at lunch like you were back in elementary and middle school, and insisting you were right up against his side the whole time. It was admittedly a nice change of pace from the past four years, and your heart fluttered every time you thought about you and Calum being back together again.

There was just  _one thing_  left standing in the way of that.

"Hey,  _loser_!" you heard Robbie's voice bellow out, your heart picking up speed at how  _angry_  he sounded, "You wanna explain  _this_?"

You looked at him as he stopped beside where you were waiting by the back doors for Calum so you could go home, your eyes widening at his black eye – though, you  _were_  understandably confused as to why he wanted an explanation from  _you_  considering you hadn't  _been_  at school to know how it even  _happened_  to him.

"Explain  _what_?" you asked, your voice coming out much more confident than you felt in that moment, "I didn't do it."

"I know you didn't do it,  _dumbass_ ," he rolled his eyes.

"Then why do  _I_  need to explain it?"

"I don't know who the  _fuck_  you think you are, but you  _stay away_  from Calum, understand?" he snarled, "He  _thinks_  he cares, but he needs to realize that he's too good for someone as  _worthless_  as you." Although his words hurt, you knew he was just trying to get a reaction out of you.

And you weren't going to give him one.

" _No_ ," you stated bravely, shocking the students who had stopped what they were doing to watch on. The expression on Robbie's face normally would have  _terrified_  you, but you were so  _over_  the way he treated you at that point that it didn't even  _faze you_  anymore. "You don't care about  _Calum_ ," you shook your head, "You care about the  _attention_  you get for being  _seen_  with him. You've never been his  _friend_  – you're just someone who follows him like a lost puppy because you know how  _insignificant_  you are without him around." Robbie started balling his fist up at his side, but before he could even  _think_  about raising it, he was interrupted.

"You know, Robbie," Calum said as he put himself in between you and your bully, "She has a point."

"What the  _hell_ , Calum?" Robbie scoffed, "Since when do you hang out with people like  _her_?"

"Since ' _people like her_ ' actually  _want_  to be around me for more than  _name recognition_ ," he fired back without hesitation.

"You think  _she's_  any different?" he laughed loudly, "You think she  _doesn't_  want to be one of us?"

"There  _is_  no ' _us_ ', Robbie," Calum said firmly, "There's  _me_  and  _Y/N_  and people who are actually  _worth_  our time, and if you have a  _problem_  with that, you can take it up with all the friends you  _don't_  have because you're a narcissistic  _prick_  who thinks  _intimidation_  is the best way to get people to flock around you."

Robbie narrowed his eyes and took a step forward but you immediately grabbed Calum's waist and pulled him closer to you. It was obvious that the bully was about to turn his attention back to  _you_ , but Calum stepped in again.

"You better hope I  _never_  hear about you coming near her again," he growled, "A black eye will be the  _least_  of your worries if you do."

Calum didn't wait for a response that time; He just turned to you, put his arm around your waist, and walked you outside. Neither of you spoke until you reached his car, but when he unlocked it and went to open the passenger door for you, your hand came up and pushed it back closed. He looked at you in confusion, but he didn't get a chance to ask you what you were doing.

"When I said I wanted you to tell your friends to back off, I didn't mean by  _threatening_  them," you looked up at him.

The smile you were trying to keep from pulling at the corners of your mouth made Calum grin. His arms wrapped around your waist as he pulled you into him, your own winding around his neck and hugging him back as tightly as he was hugging you.

"I told you I'd do better," he murmured into your neck, feeling you giggle softly.

"I guess you did," you whispered, moving your head to press a kiss to the top of his jaw, "Thank you, Cal."

You felt him smile before he kissed your own skin and lifted his head up to look at you. He stared for a moment, noticing you start to blush under his gaze the longer he did so.

"I've missed you," he murmured, swallowing thickly. You simply smiled in return.

"I've missed you  _more_ ," you told him, reaching up and letting your lips hit the corner of his mouth.


	469. White Horse (Trevor Collins) - Part 1

_a soulmate au in which u can hear what songs ur soulmate hears_

~

**Trevor's POV**

"She's been listening to that song again..."

" _Again_?" Jeremy furrowed his eyebrows, looking up at the man sitting on the other side of the restaurant table, "It's been like,  _three months_."

"I only ever hear that song anymore," Trevor sighed, "I tell myself it's just because she likes it, but I don't know... I like sad songs too, but I don't listen to them  _that_  often..."

"Maybe she goes to really depressing parties where they only listen to that  _one_  song the whole time," Jeremy said, trying to make his friend feel better.

And it worked – if only a  _little_.

"Yeah, I'm sure that's it," he chuckled softly.

"Well, when you meet her, then you can bring her here and we'll make sure she listens to  _happy_  songs."

" _If_  I meet her..."

"You're  _gonna_  meet her, Treyco," Jeremy assured him, "The universe wouldn't make your soulmate someone you were  _never_  going to meet."

~

**Six weeks later; Saturday night**

To get Trevor's mind off of everything that was always worrying him about his soulmate, Jeremy insisted he join him and Kat on their trip to a local bar that was having an open mic night. Trevor, despite simply wanting to stay in and stuff his face with pizza and junk food, agreed. He knew they were just trying to help, and he figured he should show his appreciation by tagging along.

And he  _was_  enjoying himself, but he kept thinking about his soulmate and one really  _weird_  coincidence.

" _Trevor_!" Jeremy said, waving his hand in front of his friend's face and knocking him out of his trance, "You okay?"

"I... I think she's here..." Trevor trailed off, making the couple's eyes widen.

"Your soulmate is  _here_?" Kat said softly, not wanting to alert anyone who could be listening, "How do you know?"

"I  _don't_ ; I just... I keep hearing the same songs that are being played tonight and when I went out to get my jacket, I could still hear them..."

"Dude, that's  _awesome_!" Jeremy said, patting Trevor's shoulder, "You have to find her!"

" _How_?" Trevor sighed, putting his chin in his hand and his elbow on the table, "I can't just go up to  _every girl here_  and ask if she's found her soulmate yet."

"Well, why not?" he shrugged. Trevor simply rolled his eyes.

"How about this," Kat started, "Just look around while the next person is performing and see if anyone else is looking around as well." He nodded in response – though he didn't really think he had many other options.

So as the next person came onto the stage, he took Kat's advice, scanning the audience. Well... Until the moment the girl on stage started  _singing_ , that is.

**Your POV**

"Hello," you said shyly into the microphone as you sat down on the stool behind it, not really used to having all this attention on you, "Uh... I'm Y/N and I've been working on this song for about four months now, so I really hope it doesn't suck." Everyone laughed lightly, watching as you began playing the guitar on your lap.

_Say you're sorry that face of an angel_   
_Comes out just when you need it to_   
_As I pace back and forth all this time_   
_'Cause I honestly believed in you_

_Holding on, the days drag on_   
_Stupid girl – I should have known, I should have known_

_That I'm not a princess, this ain't a fairy tale_   
_I'm not the one you'll sweep off her feet, lead her up the stairwell_   
_This ain't Hollywood; this is a small town_   
_I was a dreamer before you went and let me down_   
_Now it's too late for you and your white horse to come around_

_Maybe I was naïve, got lost in your eyes_   
_I never really had a chance_   
_My mistake – I didn't know to be in love_   
_You had to fight to have the upper hand_

_I had so many dreams about you and me, happy endings_   
_Now I know_

_That I'm not a princess, this ain't a fairy tale_   
_I'm not the one you'll sweep off her feet, lead her up the stairwell_   
_This ain't Hollywood; this is a small town_   
_I was a dreamer before you went and let me down_   
_Now it's too late for you and your white horse to come around_

_And there you are on your knees_   
_Begging for forgiveness – begging for me_   
_Just like I always wanted, but I'm so sorry_

_'Cause I'm not your princess, this ain't a fairytale_   
_I'm gonna find someone someday who might actually treat me well_   
_This is a big world that was a small town_   
_There in my rearview mirror disappearing now_   
_And it's too late for you and your white horse_   
_Now it's too late for you and your white horse to catch me now_

_Oh, whoa, whoa, whoa, oh_   
_Try and catch me now, oh_   
_It's too late to catch me now_

**Trevor's POV**

"It's her..." Trevor whispered, the sound almost being drowned out by the applause in the room for your performance.

"Huh?" Jeremy and Kat said at the same time, not quite catching what he'd said.

"That's the song I kept hearing..."

"Well,  _go_   _talk to her_!" Kat urged him.

"What do I  _say_?" Trevor's eyes widened.

"Just say whatever feels  _right_ ," Jeremy insisted, "But you can't leave without  _trying_."

**Your POV**

You stepped off of the stage, clearing your throat softly as you wiped your cheeks to get rid of the tears that were building up.

"Good job, Y/N; Drive safe," the bar owner told you, patting your back before heading up to introduce the next performer.

You smiled to yourself, walking over to where your guitar case was and putting it in before closing it, picking it up, and heading for the door. You unfortunately didn't have the energy to stick around for the rest of the night, so you'd decided before going onstage to head home right after you were done.

But you were stopped by someone coming up behind you.

"H-Hey," the guy stuttered out, making you turn around, "I... Um... I just... I just wanted to... That was a really nice song..."

"Thank you," you replied with a light blush, "I'm glad people enjoyed it; I didn't think anyone would..."

"Why wouldn't people enjoy it?" he asked curiously.

"You know... Another sad song about a breakup... Figured everyone was tired of the same thing all the time..."

"Well, you shouldn't feel that way," he shook his head, "Especially about something so well-written."

"Thanks," you said again, turning a brighter shade of red at his compliments. He looked at you for a moment, making you shift uncomfortably before he spoke again.

"I'm Trevor," he told you. You looked back up at him and swallowed lightly.

"Y/N," you practically whispered.

"Y/N..." he said to himself. You tried not to let your heart skip a beat at the sound of him saying your name, but it did anyway. "Are you... Are you leaving already?" he asked you.

"Yeah... I... You know... There's just a lot of people here..." you began chewing on your bottom lip.

"Oh..." he seemed disappointed, "Well... Here, let me carry that out for you!"

"You could be a serial killer just trying to lure me outside," you pointed out with a small smile, making Trevor laugh.

"I think if I were, I probably would have done something already," he said, taking your guitar case when you let him, opening the door for you and walking you outside.

"Maybe you're trying to earn my trust first."

"Hmm," he hummed in agreement, "Step one complete then." You looked around for a moment, realizing you'd already gone outside with him.

"You're good," you told him, leading him to your car.

"What kind of serial killer would I be if I wasn't good at tricking my victims?" he grinned. You unlocked your car and popped open your trunk.

"Well, just so you know, if you try to stuff me in my trunk and kidnap me, I've got this-" You motioned to the handle that opened the door from the inside. "-so I'll still get away."

"I'll have to drive my own car next time I come here then," he shrugged, putting your guitar into your trunk and closing the door. You both looked at each other, amused that the other was playing along, before you spoke again.

"Thanks for the help, Trevor," you said, making his heart flutter slightly.

"Anytime, Y/N," he replied, "Well... I'll let you go then... It was nice meeting you. I hope to see you around again sometime." In a sudden burst of courage, before Trevor left to go back in, you stopped him.

"You don't have to  _hope_ , you know..." you said shyly, "I could always just give you my number..."

"You sure?" he asked, surprised you were the one to take initiative.

You nodded eagerly, noticing him try not to smile to himself as he reached into his pocket for his phone. He let you put your number in, both of you blushing as your hands brushed when you handed it back to him.

"I'll text you later..." he trailed off, almost in a questioning tone.

"Yeah," you nodded, your voice barely coming out, "I'd like that."

"Bye," he told you, starting to head back to the door. You went to get in your driver's seat when hearing your name stopped you. "Hey, Y/N," Trevor said, making you look over at him, "I don't mean to be  _that guy_  – and at a  _bar_ , no less – but, for the record, any guy who would let someone as pretty as  _you_  get away is a  _complete moron_."

"Well, you know what they say," you smiled at him, "One door closes, another one opens."

~

_song used: "White Horse" by Taylor Swift_

_inspiration: http://aplaceforrtprompts.tumblr.com/post/165714695529/its-gonna-be-me_


	470. White Horse (Trevor Collins) - Part 2

_probably should have waited to post this since i literally posted a different trevor thing today but i was really into the idea of a part 2 for this but now that it's done i just want it out of my documents lmao_

~

**Trevor's POV; Six months later**

"She's listening to different songs again," Trevor mentioned to his friends. The Let's Play crew had just finished filming a  _Friday the 13th_  video and were now just taking a break before they wanted to film an AHWU.

" _Happier_  ones?" Geoff wondered, earning a nod.

"That's good news, Trevor!" Jeremy smiled, "When are you going to tell her you're her soulmate?"

"You haven't  _told her_  yet?" Jack asked, surprised written all over his face, "I thought you told her like,  _three months ago_!"

"No," Trevor sighed, leaning back in his seat, "I just can't find the right moment."

"You're  _never_  going to find the ' _right moment_ ' if you keep  _waiting around_  for it!" Ryan insisted.

"He's right, you know," Michael nodded, "I don't think I'd have  _ever_  had the courage to ask Lindsay out if we hadn't been at lunch where a radio was on and she asked me what I was listening to that morning."

"That's different," Trevor shook his head.

"How's that  _different_?!" Jeremy asked.

"Michael and Lindsay  _already_  liked each other!"

"So now you can hear the songs Y/N hears  _and_  read her mind," Gavin rolled his eyes.

"I can't  _read her mind_ , Gavin," he rolled his eyes as well.

"Then  _how_  do you know she doesn't like you?!"

"Because sometimes you just  _know_ ," he swallowed, "And I know that she deserves way  _better_  than whatever she'd get with  _me_."

"Trevor, you're being  _ridiculous_ ," Jeremy insisted, "The universe wouldn't have  _put_  you with her if you weren't  _perfect_  for her!"

" _Enough_  about the universe!" Trevor sighed exasperatedly, "That's all I ever  _hear_  anymore! ' _The universe wouldn't do_ ** _this_** _, the universe wouldn't do_ ** _that_** '. Well,  _maybe_  the universe doesn't know what it's  _doing_  sometimes! Maybe the universe fucks up! Maybe the universe is  _wrong_  about me and Y/N!"

Not wanting to hear any more lectures, Trevor immediately got up after his rant and left the room. The rest of the men looked at each other as the door shut, silently agreeing that they needed to hatch a plan to get Trevor and his soulmate together.

~

**Your POV; The next day**

You walked into the Rooster Teeth office, looking around for the first person you could find to ask them where to go. You jumped lightly when a door opened and a blonde woman came out and walked behind the front desk. It wasn't until she sat down that she noticed you.

"Hi!" she smiled, "Welcome to Rooster Teeth! How can I help you?"

"I, um..." you trailed off, walking up to the desk, "I'm not sure..." She gave you a confused look as you went on. "I... I was told to come in today to meet someone," you said.

"Well, okay," she nodded with a small laugh, "Who are you here to meet?" Before you could answer, however, you were interrupted.

"Y/N?" Trevor's voice made your head snap over.

"Trevor!" you squeaked.

" _Y/N_?" the woman behind the desk smirked at him.

" _Kara_ ," he warned, only heightening your confusion. She threw her hands up in surrender.

"I'm leaving, I'm leaving," she sighed dramatically. She got up from her chair, smiling at you. "It's nice to finally meet you," she said before scurrying away, making you let out a small laugh as you turned back to Trevor.

"What are you doing here?" he asked you.

"I got a message from someone yesterday saying that they knew you and wanted to talk," you murmured, realizing how  _odd_  it sounded now that you actually thought about it.

"And you just showed up without question?" he cocked an eyebrow, "You said I could be a  _serial killer_ when you met me." You giggled softly, making the corner of his mouth twitch.

"Well, they said that they were with you the night we met and heard me sing and that ' _your Trevor and our Trevor_ ' talks about me a lot, so I figured they couldn't be  _all_  that bad," you informed him.

"I'm  _your_  Trevor now?" he cocked his eyebrow again – this time with a small smirk.

"I guess so," you smiled shyly, "At least, according to whoever Jeremy is."

" _Jeremy_  messaged you?" he asked. You nodded, causing him to sigh, " _Of course_  he did."

"I-I can go back home..." you swallowed, "If-If you don't want me here, I'll just-"

"No, Y/N, I  _want_  you here," he assured you, "I just would have liked for Jeremy to have  _mentioned_  it to me  _first_."

You didn't know why, but Trevor saying he wanted you there made you blush lightly. And he must have noticed it because he smiled at you.

"Do you... I could give you a tour before you meet everyone if you want," he suggested. You nodded shyly, shuddering lightly when Trevor put his hand on your back and began to lead you out of the lobby area – and although he felt the motion, he didn't take his hand off of you when he felt you gravitating into him.

The tour ended not long after it started with Trevor leading you to the only room you hadn't seen so far. There was a lock on the door, and he took his hand off of you as he approached it. He used one hand to cover the keypad and the other to punch in the numbers.

"Sorry – no peeking," he told you. You snorted under your breath as the door unlocked and he led you in. "And our last stop: the Achievement Hunter office," he announced.

There were seven people already in the room, all of them looking up when they heard Trevor's voice. You heard a small gasp and then a whisper – you hadn't heard exactly what it was, but Jeremy had said ' _that's her!_ ' to the group. They all immediately smiled, getting up from their seats to come over to where you were in front of the couch.

You shyly hid behind Trevor's arm, wrapping your own arms around it. In response, Trevor lifted his arm up slightly so your hand slipped into his, squeezing you comfortingly.

"Guys, this is Y/N," Trevor introduced them to you, then started pointing to people as he said their names, "Y/N, this is Gavin, Lindsay, Michael, Jeremy, Geoff, Ryan, and Jack." They all greeted you with happy grins and small waves, making you smile as well. "I was just giving Y/N a tour," he informed the group, "This is our last stop."

"Well, we'd be  _happy_  to help you finish the tour, Trevor!" Jeremy chirped, "This is our door-" He motioned to the door you just came in from. "-We use it to get in and out of the room."

"I was  _wondering_  what that thing was," you hummed, making everyone chuckle.

"This is our couch," Gavin chimed in, motioning to it as well, "We use it mainly as support for when we want to ziptie Trevor to the wall." You let out a tiny, confused laugh as you looked up at Trevor. He only let out a breath.

"We can talk about it over lunch later," he shook his head.

" _It actually happened_?" your eyes widened, earning more laughs from the group.

"There's a  _video_  of it if you wanna see it," Gavin snickered.

"I don't think we have time right now," Trevor insisted.

"He's right," you nodded, "I'll just have to watch it when I get home and he  _can't_  keep me away from a computer."

"I'll send you the link," Jeremy told you. Trevor sighed while you just laughed under your breath.

"Let's move on to something else!" he exclaimed. The group dispersed as he brought you over to the end of the desk Jeremy had been sitting at when you came in. "This is from when we opened a package of glitter bombs seven months ago," Trevor informed you, pointing to a sparkling part of the floor where the glitter had refused to come up when it was vacuumed.

" _We_?" Jeremy laughed, "I seem to remember Lindsay, Jack, and I yelling at you to stop as  _you_  continued to open those things claiming they were posters even though you  _knew_  they were  _all_  glitter bombs."

" _Eh_ ," Trevor shrugged, "Tomayto, tomahto." He glanced at you with a small smile when you giggled, causing the others to look at each other with knowing grins as well before the tour continued.

"This is our fridge," Ryan informed you, pointing to the mini fridge beside the couch.

"It's used mainly to fuel Ryan's Diet Coke addiction," Jack said.

"It's not an  _addiction_!" he insisted, "I could stop any time I want to!"

"Then why don't you stop?"

"Because I don't want to."

You smiled as the group went on, naming seemingly every single piece of furniture and item in the room, giving it some ridiculous reasoning for its purpose of being there; You just went along with it all.

Once the tour ended, you were standing in front of the whiteboard, reading the various notes written on it, when you were addressed again.

"So, Y/N," Jack said, making you turn to look at him, "We have to film something we call the Achievement Hunter Weekly Update right now. Would you wanna sit in and watch it happen?"

You simply shrugged with a nod, "Sure."

"I'm assuming you wouldn't want to be on camera also?" he wondered, making you laugh as you shook your head. He chuckled as well, "We won't have you sit on the couch then."

"You can sit at my desk," Geoff told you, pulling his chair out for you.

"You go sit," Trevor insisted, "I have to set up the camera." You let go of his hand, trotting over and taking a seat, watching on in silence as the madness of filming began to unfold in front of you.

You laughed along with everyone as they messed around and listened to the happenings around the company and before you knew it, they were finished filming. You moved back across the room to sit on the couch since Geoff needed his desk chair back to work. Trevor sat beside you and you all talked about various things while the six Achievement Hunters started setting up to film a  _Minecraft_  Let's Play.

Everyone turned their Xboxes on and loaded the game, but only one produced a  _loud_  sound. The men didn't even look up as they groaned Gavin's name, prompting him to quickly apologize as he turned the volume down and plugged in his headphones so the room was quiet again.

But in the time all that was happening, your heart had practically  _stopped_.

You hadn't heard any music in your head that morning until the moment Gavin's computer started playing the music on the  _Minecraft_  starting screen. You looked around the room to see if anyone else was thinking the same thing, but it didn't seem like it – until you looked over at  _Jeremy_ , of course.

His eyes were already on you and it seemed like the moment you looked at him, he knew what you were thinking. He didn't say anything – he just nodded to the man sitting beside you.

You instantly turned your head to find Trevor already watching you carefully, having been watching you since the moment the  _Minecraft_  music started playing. You opened your mouth to speak, but he quickly shook his head.

"Hey, guys," Trevor said, making everyone look over at him, "I'm gonna show Y/N where the bathroom is. We'll be right back." They gave him confused glances but nodded anyway, watching him stand up, grab your hand, and pull you up and to the door.

"What was that about?" Jack wondered.

"She knows," you heard Jeremy respond just before the door closed behind you.

Trevor –  _obviously_  – wasn't taking you to the bathroom, but instead leading you outside the building. He took you to a picnic table sitting under the shade of a large tree, both of you climbing up to sit on the table top. You looked at him curiously as he watched a different tree's leave swaying slightly in the wind, considering being the first to speak but being beat to it.

"You heard it too?" he questioned, finding himself unable to muster up the courage to look at you.

"Yeah..." you whispered, "So are we..."

"That night we met... I'd heard  _nothing_  but that song for the  _entire_  four months you told everyone you'd been working on it..."

"Is that why you came over to talk to me when I got off stage?" you asked softly.

"Yeah..." he trailed off.

"Why... Why didn't you  _say_  anything...?"

"Because I just... I thought you wouldn't... You know... That song... You were clearly still hurt by  _whatever_  that guy did to you... I didn't think... I didn't want to just  _come at you_  with soulmate stuff..." he admitted, "And there are so many people better than  _me_... You don't... You deserve someone be-" Trevor cut himself off when you suddenly turned your body toward him, climbing onto his lap as your arms wrapped tightly around his neck.

The two of you had hugged each other before, but this one felt  _different_. This hug felt needy and overdue and safe and  _whole_ ; This hug felt like the hug that soulmates  _talk about_  – the one shared right after they  _both_  realized they'd  _finally_  found their other half.

"You should have  _told me_ ," you murmured into his shirt, feeling him squeeze you slightly.

"I know; I just... I thought you wouldn't be ready... I thought you'd be upset..."

"But you should have told me  _anyway_ ," you shook your head, finally lifting it up to look at him.

"I know," he sighed, "I'm sorry..."

You barely smiled at him, "Don't let it happen again." Trevor simply chuckled.

"I won't," he promised.

~

_inspirations:  
"White Horse" by Taylor Swift  
_ _http://aplaceforrtprompts.tumblr.com/post/165714695529/its-gonna-be-me_


	471. Public (Calum Hood)

_Flashback_

"You  _know_  I love you, Cal," you reminded him softly.

"It's pretty comical to say you love someone  _while_  you're breaking up with them," Calum grumbled.

"Don't make this harder than it  _needs_  to be, Cal," you begged, swallowing the lump in your throat.

"If it's so  _hard_ , then why are you  _doing it_?"

"I  _need affection_ , Calum!" you told him, "I need  _validation_  that you still  _want_  to be in a relationship with me!"

"I'm  _not_  an affection-giving person, Y/N," he reminded you, "You  _know that_."

" _I know_!" you exclaimed, allowing the tears welling up in your eyes to fall down your cheeks, "But I just...  _Fuck, Calum_  – I need to know that you  _care_! I need someone who isn't afraid of holding my hand in public and hugging me after walking me to class and wrapping his arms around my waist and kissing me in front of his friends! I need someone who insists on parading around like he just won the lottery being with me!  _I need affection_! And I don't get  _any of that_  with you!  _I love you, Calum_ , and I  _want_  to be with you... But I  _can't_  keep going to bed every night asking myself whether or not  _you_  want the same! You're so worried about your reputation and what your friends think all the time that it's...  _God_... It's  _like_  you forget that  _they_  aren't the ones  _dating you_! And I just... I can't keep giving  _so much_  of myself to someone who  _can't_  give any of it  _back_..."

_End flashback_

~

**Two weeks later**

It was the night of the school's annual talent showcase – not a talent show because there were no prizes to be won; it was more of just people performing for the hell of it – and you were walking into the school. You didn't plan on  _going_ , to be honest, but you received an influx of texts and Facebook messages from friends of yours and Calum's  _insisting_  you show up. You didn't know what it was about – everyone  _refused_  to tell you – but if anyone knew one thing about you, it was that you would go just out of sheer curiosity as to why they were asking.

When you arrived, you were surprised to find Luke and Michael – two of Calum's best friends – standing there waiting for you. Their faces lit up as they smiled upon seeing you, hurrying over and beginning to walk with you to the auditorium.

"Hi, Y/N!" they beamed in unison.

"What's going on?" you sighed, "You guys are being weird."

"We're not being  _weird_ ," Michael pouted, "Are we not allowed to be happy to see you?"

"Not when  _both of you_  texted me to come tonight without telling me  _why_."

"Well, we're not still telling," Luke shrugged, "So you're just gonna have to trust us." They led you into the auditorium, taking you right to the front row.

"I don't want to sit in  _front_!" you whined, huffing when they forced you to stay in your seat.

"Just trust us!" Luke repeated as he and Michael scurried back to the doors.

"I hate you!" you called after them, hearing them laugh.

"Love you too!" Michael shouted over his shoulder just before the door closed behind him.

~

**Calum's POV**

"She's  _front and center_ , Cal!" Luke chirped as he walked into the band room where Calum was practicing.

"I'm being  _serious_ , guys," Calum rolled his eyes, "I'm not going to do this if she's not coming; There's no point."

"But she  _is_!" Michael insisted, "We took her to her seat and everything!"

"If she's not where you  _say_  she is, I'm not going out there," he grumbled, refusing to just  _believe_  his two friends.

"Fine; If she's not there, you don't have to do it," Luke rolled his eyes.

"But she  _is_ , so you  _do_ ," Michael interjected, ushering the other blonde out of the room before Calum could respond.

~

**Your POV**

Luke and Michael returned to your side right before the show started, sitting on either side of you. You watched every performer, still having  _no clue_  why you were there. You were getting a bit irritated as the final performance was nearing – none of the others had made you think it had something to do with why everyone wanted you to come so badly.

"Can I go  _home_  now?" you asked in between the performance that just ended and the final one that was getting ready to be announced.

"There's only  _one more_ ," Luke shook his head, "You've already made it  _this_  far."

"And  _still_  without answers," you grumbled, only making the two boys chuckle lightly.

"We hope you've all enjoyed your night so far," the student that had been introducing everyone smiled, "Please enjoy our last performer and drive home safely!"

Everyone clapped as the lights dimmed, allowing her to get backstage, before turning off completely. You didn't understand why she hadn't said the performer's name – she had done so with every other one that night – but it didn't take too long for you to figure out who it was.

_I might never be your knight in shining armor_   
_I might never be the one you take home to mother_   
_And I might never be the one who brings you flowers_   
_But I can be the one, be the one tonight_

You obviously knew Calum's voice anywhere, so you stared up at him in shock when the spotlight faded back on. He couldn't see you due to the light in his eyes, but he looked right at you – right where Michael and Luke told him you'd be.

_When I first saw you from across the room_   
_I could tell that you were curious, oh yeah_   
_Girl, I hope you're sure what you're looking for_   
_'_ _Cause I'm not good at making promises_

_But if you like causing trouble up in hotel rooms_   
_And if you like having secret little rendezvous_   
_If you like to do the things you know that we shouldn't do_   
_Then baby, I'm perfect – baby, I'm perfect for you_

_And if you like midnight driving with the windows down_   
_And if you like going places we can't even pronounce_   
_If you like to do whatever you've been dreaming about_   
_Then baby, you're perfect – baby, you're perfect_   
_So let's start right now_

_I might never be the hands you put your heart in_   
_Or the arms that hold you any time you want them_   
_But that don't mean that we can't live here in the moment_   
_'_ _Cause I can be the one you love from time to time_

_When I first saw you from across the room_   
_I could tell that you were curious, oh yeah_   
_Girl, I hope you're sure what you're looking for_   
_'_ _Cause I'm not good at making promises_

_But if you like causing trouble up in hotel rooms_   
_And if you like having secret little rendezvous_   
_If you like to do the things you know that we shouldn't do_   
_Then baby, I'm perfect – baby, I'm perfect for you_

_And if you like midnight driving with the windows down_   
_And if you like going places we can't even pronounce_   
_If you like to do whatever you've been dreaming about_   
_Then baby, you're perfect – baby, you're perfect_   
_So let's start right now_

_And if you like cameras flashing every time we go out, oh yeah_   
_And if you're looking for someone to write your break-up songs about_   
_Baby, I'm perfect – baby, we're perfect_

_If you like causing trouble up in hotel rooms_   
_And if you like having secret little rendezvous_   
_If you like to do the things you know that we shouldn't do_   
_Then baby, I'm perfect – baby, I'm perfect for you_

_And if you like midnight driving with the windows down_   
_And if you like going places we can't even pronounce_   
_If you like to do whatever you've been dreaming about_   
_Then baby, you're perfect – baby, you're perfect_   
_So let's start right now_

Everyone cheered wildly – your classmates knew Calum could sing, but he never did it for  _this_   _many_  people – as Calum backed away from the microphone, giving you one last glance, before walking offstage.

As the house lights came back on and the attendees began getting up and leaving the auditorium, you were still sitting frozen in your chair. Luke and Michael looked at you, smiling at each other for a moment.

"So," Michael grinned cockily, "What'd you think? What's the official Y/N review? How many stars would you give it?"

"Where is he?" you whispered, your eyes remaining trained on the mic stand.

"According to my calculations and the given fact that he just walked offstage, I would say he's in the band room," Luke announced. You immediately got up and left the auditorium, missing the high five the two boys gave each other for Calum's plan actually  _working_.

You hurried toward the music hall, surprised to find Calum already coming out into the main hallway. Your shoes squeaked softly on the floor as you came to an abrupt stop, making your ex's head shoot up. You looked at each other for a moment before you finally found any words.

" _Calum Hood_ ," you tried to keep a straight face but you knew you were smiling, "Did you sing a  _One Direction_ song in front of the  _whole school_  just for  _me_?"

"Guess I  _did_ , huh?" he murmured.

"For someone who  _hates_  public affection, that was  _pretty public_."

"Yeah, but I  _love you_..." he said, making your heart race.

"You  _do_?" you began chewing on your bottom lip.

"I know I'm not good at  _showing it_ ," he looked down at his feet, "But... You deserve to get all the things you want... And I'm selfish and I want you to myself and I don't want you to find someone else because I...  _I love you_... And I... I  _promise_  I'll do better if  _you_  promise to give me another chance..."

Your silence made him look back up, afraid you'd be upset with him, but you weren't; In fact, you were the exact  _opposite_.

"I promise," you said so softly, you paired it with a nod just in case he hadn't heard you.

Calum's chest fell suddenly as he rushed up to you, wrapping his arms around your waist. Your own arms wound around his neck as he lifted you off of your feet, taking a few more steps before stopping again and putting you back down.

"I love you, baby girl," he said repeatedly into your skin – not  _too_  loudly but loud  _enough_  for the classmates still strewn about the hallway waiting for rides to hear – causing you to smile slightly and hug him tighter.

"I love you  _more_ ," you teased, giggling when he lifted his head up and forcefully planted his lips on yours.

" _Not possible_ ," he mumbled, finally grinning when he felt your own.

~

_inspiration/song used: "Perfect" by One Direction_


	472. Into the Spotlight (Calum Hood)

_requested by ballet-bm and anonymous on tumblr_

~

"Y/N!" you heard someone shout your name.

"Yeah, Luke?!" you called back, looking over your shoulder and finding him on the second level of the venue from where you were at your merch table.

"Do you know where Zoe is?! We have to run through  _Waste the Night_  and I can't find her!"

"Check the bus lounge! I'm pretty sure she and Mikey are at each other's throats again playing video games!"

"Thank you!" he smiled, trotting away to find her.

"It's really fun to watch those two play together, you know," you heard another voice. You spun around to find Calum smiling at you. "You should have been there when they were playing  _Call of Duty_ ," he sighed dramatically, "I  _actually_  thought she was gonna kill him."

"He keep killing her?" you chuckled softly, finishing putting the shirts on the wall.

"He did it the moment the missions  _started_!" he laughed loudly, "I don't blame her for getting mad!"

"You'd think he'd learn."

"Come on, Y/N – this is  _Michael Clifford_  we're talking about; He  _never_  learns."

"He stopped grenading her in  _Rainbow Six_  though!"

"That's because she threatened to release Southy into the woods behind our house while he was sleeping when you guys were visiting LA," he reminded you, "I'm pretty sure  _anyone_  would have stopped grenading her."

"To be fair though, Southy is a smart dog; He'd find his way back home in under an hour."

"I think he was more concerned with the  _coyotes_  getting to him first."

"Are you suggesting that Southy couldn't take them down?" you cocked an eyebrow.

"No," he smiled again, "I  _know_  he could take 'em down. I don't think Mike would  _appreciate_  him being put in the situation of  _having to_  though."

"That's because he is a caring father who loves his son very much," you sighed dramatically, making Calum laugh again.

" _Anyway_ ," he teased, "Take a break from merch duties for a while – I'm hungry."

"You're  _always_  hungry," you stated seriously, "Why don't you go with someone less busy?"

"Luke and Zoe are soundchecking, Mike will play Xbox with Nick when Zoe leaves, Ashton and Melody are Skyping their girlfriends, and I'm lonely," he pouted.

"We've had this discussion  _before_ , Cal," you said, "I can't drop everything just because you're  _bored_. Venue will let fans inside in a couple hours and I want to be set up."

"You're practically set up  _already_  though!" he whined as you were putting up the last shirt. You were about to protest again when Calum came around the table and wrapped his arms around your waist from behind.

" _Calum Thomas_ ," you warned with a roll of your eyes.

" _Please_ ," he pouted again, his chin on your shoulder, "We'll be back in an hour." He pressed a kiss to your cheek, making you sigh. You felt him smile and he knew he had won.

"You're helping me finish when we get back," you said sternly.

"Always," he beamed, releasing you so he could grab your hand and pull you toward the exit.

~

**Two hours later**

After Calum had gone back to the bus after helping you finish with merch setup, you wanted to take a quick nap before the show that night. You got on the bus and headed to the back lounge where you could hear Calum and Nick talking as they played video games, wanting to ask them to wake you up before they went back inside. But you didn't get that far.

"Dude, just _tell her_ ," you heard Nick groan, making you stop just before you reached the door.

"If  _you_  were in my shoes, you wouldn't tell her  _either_ , so  _I don't wanna hear it_ ," Calum barked back. The drummer groaned again in response, a little louder this time.

"You're being ridiculous, Cal!" he insisted, "This isn't like the movies! Even if she  _doesn't_  feel the same, she's not gonna  _ignore you_  for the rest of her life!"

"So you're a  _psychic_  now?" he scoffed.

"I'm just saying," Nick rolled his eyes, "It's getting embarrassing to watch you stare at her whenever you're in the same room."

Not wanting to hear any more of whoever Calum had a crush on, you quietly tiptoed back to the bus door, opening and shutting it as loudly as you could with it still sounding normal. You didn't want to raise suspicion that you'd heard their conversation, so you decided to pretend you'd just gotten there instead.

"Nick?! Cal?!" you called out, "You guys still on?"

"In the back, Y/N!" Nick returned, knowing your voice. You made your way back to the lounge, opening the door as Nick and Calum looked over at you. "Hey, beautiful," he greeted you, chuckling when you rolled your eyes, "What's up?"

"I'm gonna take a nap before doors open and I was wondering if one of you would wake me up before you go back inside," you mentioned.

"Sure," he nodded, "Need me to sing you to sleep too?"

"There's a reason you're the drummer, Nicholas," you replied without hesitation, making Calum snort softly as he desperately tried to keep himself from smiling. You grinned innocently when Nick glared at you, but you could tell he was playing with you about actually being mad. " _I love you, Nicky_ ," you sang.

"Uh-huh," he grunted jokingly, "You'll be lucky if I wake you up now." You stuck out your bottom lip, now looking at Calum. He let out another breath as the corner of his mouth twitched upward.

"I'll wake you up," Calum assured you.

"Thank you," you grinned back before closing the door and climbing into your bunk, hoping you could calm your racing heart due to Calum smiling at you enough to fall asleep  _at all_.

~

**An hour and a half later**

"Y/N," you woke up to someone's hand on your shoulder, shaking you gently, "Time to wake up." You grumbled in response, hearing the person chuckle under their breath. "Come on, Y/N," Calum said, "Doors open soon; You asked me to do this, remember?"

"Yeah, well, now I want you to go away," you murmured, hearing him laugh again.

"If you get up now, I'll give you a ride," he bargained, finally prompting you to turn onto your back so you could look at him. He had a smile on his face, the expression getting even bigger when you made a motion to get out of your bunk. He knew you never said no to a piggy back ride, and he definitely used that to his advantage almost every single day.

You grabbed your phone and put it in your pocket, shoving it as far down as you could so it wouldn't fall out on the way inside, before hopping on Calum's back. Your arms wound around his neck and he made sure he had a secure hold on your thighs before he started walking. You leaned down to open the bus door for him, and he kicked it closed when you were outside. You laid your head on his shoulder after doing the same with venue door on his way to your merch table, but you yelped softly when you felt Calum bounce you.

"Not falling back asleep, are we?" he asked you.

"Not when you give me a  _heart attack_ ," you frowned, making him chuckle again.

"Hey, you would have yelled at me if I hadn't woken you up and  _you know it_." You simply sighed, knowing he was right.

When Calum reached your merch table, you were reluctant to hop off of his back. You enjoyed time spent with Calum without everyone else around and it seemed like you never got alone time as long as right now. So when you returned to your feet and he went to leave, you kept him there for just  _a little bit longer_.

"I heard you have a crush on someone," you mentioned casually as you started some last minute straightening of the CDs and accessories on the table. Calum froze in his spot, turning back to face you.

"Where-" he cleared his throat, "Where did you hear that?"

"Heard you a Nick talking on the bus earlier." Calum apparently decided to ignore the fact that you'd called out as soon as you got on – as far as  _he_  knew, anyway.

"Did you... Uh... Did you hear  _who_?"

"No," you shook your head, finally making eye contact with him, "But I think I figured it out."

"Who do  _you_  think it is then?" he swallowed nervously.

"Well... It can't be Melody because she has a girlfriend," you thought out loud, "It's not Zoe because she's very vocal about not wanting a relationship while on tour... Everyone else in our crews are either dating or engaged to someone... The only person it  _could be_  is Janelle."

"Your  _tour manager_?" Calum raised an eyebrow, "What about  _you_?"

"What  _about_  me?" you asked.

"You're not dating or engaged to anybody, you always say you'd like a relationship... Why didn't you list yourself?"

"We're just friends, Cal – it would be weird to date," you shook your head, "What if we broke up on tour together or something? Then it would be really awkward. Plus, I don't date friends – you know that."

"You're still an eligible bachelorette," he shrugged, making you laugh loudly.

"Maybe I should go on TV looking for love then," you teased.

"Hey, if you wanna be another divorce statistic, go for it," Calum mentioned as he playfully pushed your shoulder before walking away, hearing you giggle again just before the door to where the buses were closed behind him.

~

**Calum's POV**

"Hey, Cal!" Ashton chirped once the bassist entered his dressing room, "What's with the sour face, man?" He was silent for a moment, looking at all his friends – both bands were hanging out in the same room before the show – before plopping down on the couch beside Zoe.

"She said we're ' _just_   _friends_ '," Calum sighed.

"You finally told Y/N how you feel?!" Melody grinned widely.

"No," he grumbled, only making the smiles on his friends' faces disappear, "She said she overheard Nick and I talking about me liking someone and she named people it couldn't be and ended it with her..."

" _What_?" Nick shook his head, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"She said ' _it has to be Janelle_ ' and I asked why she didn't include herself as someone it could be and she said we're just friends and it would be weird," he swallowed, chewing on his inner cheek.

" _Janelle_?" Melody scrunched her face up, "Since when do you like  _Janelle_?"

" _I don't_!" he groaned, throwing his head back against the cushion, "But  _she_  thinks I  _do_!"

"So why not just  _tell her_?" Luke finally chimed in.

"Were you not listening to  _anything_  I just said?" Calum rolled his eyes, "She's said she  _wouldn't date me_  because she doesn't date people who are  _already_  her  _friends_."

"Then she's  _lying_ ," Zoe stated with a shrug, making everyone look at her.

" _Zoe_..." Nick trailed off with a warning tone, making her huff.

"I know I shouldn't say anything because it's not my business, but I'm so  _sick_  of her whining about being single!" Zoe insisted before turning back to Calum, "She's liked you since the moment she started listening to your band and she talks about how cute and talented and sweet you are whenever you're not around!"

"Then why would she say she didn't want to date him?" Ashton furrowed his eyebrows while Calum just stared at Zoe in shock. The other girl sighed that time – since your secret was out, she might as well comment on it too.

"Isn't it  _obvious_?" Melody asked, " _She's scared_."

"Scared of  _what_?" Michael wondered.

"I don't think I need to remind  _you_  that when one of you guys starts dating someone, fans can get a little... _intense_..." she said.

"You're telling me," Luke grumbled, more to himself than to everyone else.

"Clearly, she doesn't want to be thrown into the spotlight like that," Melody went on, "She's just a merch girl – she's not part of the band. She feels weird when people even ask to take pictures with her after buying a shirt or something."

"But she still  _does it_ ," Calum reminded them.

"She's not gonna tell them no, Calum!" Zoe rolled her eyes, "You of all people should know that!"

"What's  _that_  supposed to mean?" he scoffed.

"When's the last time she's said no to you?" she went on. Calum was silent for a moment, causing Zoe to exclaim, " _Exactly_!"

"It's like she's  _physically_  incapable," Melody rolled her eyes, "You could ask her to jump off a cliff with shallow water and sharp rocks at the bottom and there's no doubt in my mind that she'd do it."

"I'm sure she wouldn't do  _that_ ," Ashton insisted.

"You don't know her like  _we do_  then," Nick shook his head, finally interjecting.

"Just go talk to her," Zoe stated, putting her arms on Calum's back and pushing him to his feet, "And don't be surprised when we say we told you so."

~

**Your POV**

"Y/N..." you heard someone say, making you look up.

"Hi, Cal," you smiled softly, your eyes following him as he stopped beside you. You were still standing at your merch table, but you'd just finished straightening everything right before Calum came over to you. "You okay?" you asked, noticing he seemed a little off since the last time you saw him.

"I just...have been thinking for the past few minutes..." he trailed off, "Thinking about how you said it would be weird to date because we're friends..."

"Okay...?" you cocked an eyebrow.

"Well... I, um... I don't think it would be, really... I mean... We already  _act_  like a couple... I don't think it would hurt to try it out..."

"I don't want to be in the spotlight, Calum – you know that," you reminded him.

"Well, it's a little too late for  _that_ , Y/N," he grumbled, "You're already  _all over_  our Instagrams and Twitters."

"That's different," you insisted.

"How is that  _different_?!" he exclaimed, finally sick of you brushing off the idea of dating him.

"I'm not  _dating_  any of you!" you threw your arms up, "We're  _just friends_!"

"Then tell me you don't like me and I'll drop it," he demanded.

"I'm not doing this," you mumbled to yourself, going to walk away but you were stopped before you even reached the door.

" _No_!" Calum stated loudly, coming up behind you. He grabbed your arm and turned you back around, his other hand gripping your chin so you couldn't look away. "Look me in the eyes and tell me you don't want me!" he said firmly.

"This is  _childish_ , Calum!" you huffed sharply, "You're being ri-"

" _Tell me, Y/N_!" You finally swallowed the lump in your throat, looking him right in the eyes.

"I don't  _want you_!" you practically shouted, desperately trying to ignore the fact that your voice cracked.

"You don't mean that," he called your bluff, his voice much lower now, "You  _do_  – I  _know_  you do."

"You wanted me to tell you, Calum, and  _I did_ ," you said, "Now  _let me go_."

"Like  _hell_  I will," he growled, pulling your face to his. Your squeak of surprise was immediately muffled by the kiss, but you weren't about to push him away.

You'd obviously been  _dreaming_  about this moment and you knew that it would be pointless to try and take yourself out of that situation. And, since Calum clearly knew about the feelings you'd been repressing, he wasn't about to let you leave either. So, despite all the fears you had and all the nightmare scenarios you'd created in your mind, you finally listened to what your heart was telling you and kissed him back.

When he felt you ease into him and knew you weren't going to run away, he moved his hands from your arm and chin to your cheeks. You felt him smile when your own hands moved to his sides, just under his ribs, and pulled him against you. The smile grew until he had to pull away, sucking in a deep breath and letting it out slowly. His forehead landed on yours as he watched your eyes flutter open, your chest rising and falling against his as you breathed heavily.

"I know you're scared," Calum mumbled, his thumbs stroking your cheekbones, "I know you don't want to be thrown into the spotlight – especially  _mine_ -" He swallowed thickly. "-but no one has to know about us... We're already been acting like a couple for so long... No one will know the difference as long as we're not kissing each other in public... We don't have to make anything official until  _you're_  ready..."

"I know," you whispered just as softly, your own thumbs rubbing his ribs through his shirt.

"So you'll do it?" he asked hopefully, "You'll give me a chance?"

"Yeah," you replied so softly, you nodded as well just in case he hadn't heard you. You squeaked again when he brought your lips back, finally grinning into the kiss.

"So..." Calum trailed off cheekily as you pulled away for air, "I hear I've been your favorite member since you became a fan..." You furrowed your eyebrows, confused as to what he was talking about, before your eyes widened in realization. You suddenly pushed yourself away from Calum, stomping toward the door.

" _Zoe Mariah Christiansen_!" you shouted as you entered the hallway leading to the dressing room with Calum following giddily behind you, excited to see what was in store for Zoe for spilling your secret. 


	473. Stuck With You (Jamie Follese)

"You  _do_  realize she's using you, right?" Jamie's best friend said after catching him staring across the hallway while you were at your locker.

"No, she's not, Aiden," he rolled his eyes, having heard this hundreds of times before. He turned his attention back to his locker, pulling out the books he needed for 5th period, while Aiden went on.

"There is only  _one_  reason girls that popular date guys like us," he shook his head.

"And what might  _that_  be?"

"To make a fool out of you!" he said as if it was the most obvious answer in the world, "She's going to publically humiliate you at a football game or something! And then  _you're_  gonna be heartbroken and  _I'm_  gonna have to restrain myself from saying I told you so!"

"Aiden, just because  _you're_  upset someone like Y/N doesn't want to be with someone like  _you_  doesn't mean she's out for blood," Jamie replied monotonously, "And, quite frankly, I'm tired of you treating Y/N like garbage just because you expect her to act a certain way simply because she's part of the popular crowd." He closed his locker door after grabbing his books, looking at his best friend one more time. "Don't bother waiting up for me after school," he stated, a deadpan look on his face, "My  _girlfriend_  and I have plans." He walked away before Aiden could respond, sighing to himself.

Jamie knew Aiden didn't like you – how could he  _not_? He talked down about you  _all the time_  – but he also knew that you  _weren't_  what Aiden  _thought_  you were. Sure, you were popular, but that didn't really  _mean anything_. To Jamie, you were just another girl – you just had  _a little more_  friends than he did.

And, to your credit, the bullying he used to go through went down  _drastically_  after you started dating him. Everyone in the school  _knew_  how mad you got when you found out about it and  _desperately_  wanted to stay on your  _good side_  because, while you  _were_  sweet, you were  _terrifying_  when it came to dealing with those who picked on your boyfriend.

"Where do you think you're going,  _nerd_?" Jamie heard, yelping slightly when someone grabbed his arm and yanked him over to them. He came out of his daydream, finding you grinning at him. 

"Thought people weren't allowed to call me that anymore," he smiled back, leaning up against the locker next to yours.

"They aren't," you shrugged, "But  _I_  made that rule, so  _I'm_  allowed to break it." Jamie chuckled softly.

"It's nice to see you too, princess," he said, leaning in to kiss your cheek.

"I'm sure it is," you pouted, "You were just gonna walk  _right by_  without saying hi or  _anything_. Is that any way to treat your girlfriend?"

"Sorry, baby," he giggled, kissing your cheek over and over again, "I promise it won't happen again."

"Better not," you smiled, pushing him away so you could grab your notebook and close your locker, "Now walk me to class." You situated all of your books in your arm before reaching down and tangling your fingers with Jamie's.

"We have the same class, princess," he reminded you with another laugh.

"Yeah, which is why I don't understand why you were going to just walk by me," you sassed, feeling him squeeze your hand.

"Just distracted today," he shook his head, "M'sorry."

"Are you okay?" you looked up at him.

"I'm fine, princess," he said reassuringly.

"Jamie," you raised an eyebrow.

" _I'm fine_ ," he repeated, his voice firmer this time, "If it's still bothering me later, we can talk when we get to your place." You nodded, satisfied with the answer he'd given you.

~

**After school**

Once you and Jamie walked through your front door, you let out a big sigh of relief knowing it was  _finally_  the weekend. Jamie simply laughed under his breath as both of you slipped your shoes off and dropped your backpacks by the door, eagerly moving to the couch. You made it there first and laid down, only to have Jamie nudge you back against the pillows so he could lay beside you. When he got comfortable, he held his arm up as a signal for you to move into him, laying it back down across your shoulders once you did so. You sighed again happily, cuddling into your boyfriend.

It was quiet for a moment – neither of you made a reach for the TV remote, obviously just wanting to enjoy the silence after another busy week at school – before you could feel Jamie's chest fall as he breathed out deeply. You were about to ask him what was wrong, but he beat you to speaking.

"Aiden caught me staring at you again," Jamie informed you. You couldn't help but blush – no matter the fact that you two were in a relationship, you always felt butterflies when hearing he couldn't keep his eyes off of you at any point.

"He  _really_  doesn't like me, does he?" you forced out a soft laugh, "You'd think after two years, he'd finally warm up to me."

"But  _I_  like you," Jamie mumbled.

"I like you too, Jamie," you whispered, tilting your head to press a kiss to the highest point on his jaw that you could reach.

"Just wish it was  _enough_  for him..." he squeezed you lightly.

"If his opinion mattered that much to you, we probably wouldn't have started dating in the first place," you reminded him, making him look at you. "And, I hate to break it to you, but since we're clearly still together, that basically means you're stuck with me," you grinned, and he chuckled under his breath.

"Wouldn't wanna be stuck with anybody else, princess," Jamie murmured, putting his hand on your cheek and bringing your face to his, feeling you smile as you kissed him.

~

_inspiration (calum's): http://bananashemmo.tumblr.com/post/93724385424/61-end-up-here-5-seconds-of-summer-high_


	474. Ways to Say I Love You (Luke Hemmings)

> **_"Do you need help with that?"_ **

You tried  _everything_.

You tried hitting it against the table top, you tried your shirt, you tried using the random rubber back you found in your pocket, but nothing worked.

You just couldn't get that  _damn_  jar open.

You were in the middle of grumbling a string of curse words to yourself when you felt a new presence sit in the seat across from you. You looked up to find a blonde-haired boy who looked to be about your age looking at you with a small smile on his face.

" **Do you need help with that?** " he asked. You just stared at him, causing him to elaborate. "You've been struggling with that jar for like, 10 minutes," he shrugged, "It's starting to hurt to watch if I'm honest."

And since you were sick of trying yourself, you huffed in annoyance at yourself for being unable to do it on your own and put the jar on the table, sliding it to him. It seemed like the moment his hand was on the lid, it popped off. You growled again softly at how effortless it was for him as he pushed the jar back across the table.

"You loosened it quite a bit," he said, obviously trying to make you feel better. You finally giggled under your breath, making him smile again.

"I'm weak – you can say it," you told him.

"Hey, I would never talk down about someone I don't know," he informed you.

"Thanks," you whispered, letting out another soft breath of amusement.

"No problem," he smiled, "Glad I could help. And if you ever need any help again, just ask for Luke." It was then that you actually noticed he was wearing a nametag, silently letting you know that he worked there.

"Luke," you nodded in confirmation. He smiled again before getting up and heading back behind the counter.

~

> **_"Stay there. I'm coming to get you."_ **

Obviously, you and Luke started talking a lot more after your first meeting. You wondered how you never noticed him before when you spent a fair amount of time in the diner, but he informed you that he'd only been working there for a few weeks and he'd somehow never seem you before either.

Luke was almost a picture perfect version of you in that you both liked the same music, your style was fairly similar, and you both knew just what to say to make the other laugh in situations where it wasn't  _exactly_  appropriate. Essentially, you couldn't have  _created_  a friend better than him even if you  _tried_.

It was another Friday night – Luke was at home and you were sitting outside of one of the fancier restaurants in town. You'd had a date that night and Luke had insisted you called him afterwards to make sure you got home safe as well as to talk about how it went. But as you were sitting on the bench, watching the cars go by, you  _dreaded_  the moment you hit ' _call_ '.

"Hey, Y/N!" you heard Luke's usual cheerful tone after he answered his phone, "How'd your date go?"

"There  _wasn't_  any date," you mumbled.

"What do you mean?" You could just see his eyebrows furrow in confusion.

"The date didn't happen; He never showed up," you sniffled softly, wiping the stray tears from your cheek. Luke was silent for a moment, but you heard him moving around and what sounded like him grabbing his keys.

"Are you still at the restaurant?" he asked as a door closed.

"Yeah," you whispered.

" **Stay there, okay? I'm coming to get you**."

"Luke, you don't have to-"

The line went dead, signaling that he'd hung up on you. You sighed, slumping your shoulders – having no choice but to remain in your seat.

The next 15 minutes were filled with your thoughts and the sounds of cars passing by. You jumped lightly when a car door shut right in front of you, looking up as Luke stepped onto the sidewalk. You stood up and were immediately engulfed in a hug, giving you a bit of comfort. You hugged him back tightly, neither of you saying anything for a moment.

"Are you okay?" Luke finally asked, his hand rubbing your lower back.

"I'm fine," you replied lowly.

"But you have to be hungry," he murmured, "I know you; You never eat before a date – especially if you're going out to dinner. So how about you and I go inside and get something to eat, huh?"

"Can we go to McDonald's instead?" you mumbled, tilting your head to look up at him. He chuckled lightly, pressing a kiss to your forehead.

"Anything for you, princess," he said, letting go of you and leading you to his car.

~

> **_"I'll still be here when you're ready."_ **

It was starting to become a staple in your relationship with Luke of ending bad date nights or relationships with each other. When you had a bad date – or were stood up again – Luke would be over at your place within 10 minutes, half a pint of your favorite ice cream in his hand. When Luke got his heart broken, you were at his place to sit with him and listen to him pour his heart out to you.

And that's where you were now.

Luke had been seeing this girl he met at the diner for a few months before she suddenly ended things earlier that day. You could tell from the moment he texted you asking you to come over that he was incredibly hurt – not that you  _blamed_  him, of course. He was so in love with her that you would have been surprised if he  _wasn't_  heartbroken.

Things were a little different this time around though.

You were sitting on Luke's bed, propped up against the wall, while he was lying down. He would usually turn off the television when you got there so he could talk out his feelings, but he didn't do that this time. You were both watching the TV, but you could tell he wasn't  _really_  paying attention to the show.

"Luke," you said softly, making him look up at you. Your heart sank at the tears in his eyes. "Don't you wanna talk about it?" you asked. He simply shrugged, his gaze flicking back to the TV screen. You sighed softly, sitting straight up and grabbing your phone – there was no point in you being there if he wasn't going to talk, right? "You don't have to talk to me  _right now_ , Lu," you told him, shaking your head, " **But**   **I'll be there when you're _ready_  to**." You scooted to the edge of the bed and got up to leave the room when Luke's voice stopped you at the door.

"Y/N..." he choked out, making you turn back to look at him, "Will you... Can you just...let me hold you for a while...?"

You didn't respond – you just climbed back onto the bed. Luke waited until you were lying comfortably on your back beside him before cuddling up to you, his face pressed to your neck the way he had done so many times before – the only place he really ever felt the safest.

The room was silent apart from the small sounds of your nails scratching Luke's scalp and his short sniffles, but you didn't bother asking if he was okay. You knew he just needed to get out all the pent up emotions out first – and you were willing to wait as long as it took for him to do that.

"Do you think everyone has a happily ever after?" Luke asked suddenly. You furrowed your eyebrows, moving your head so you could look at him.

"' _Happily ever after_ '?" you questioned.

"You know – a soulmate: that one person out there who's  _perfect_  for you."

"I think everyone has several," you told him, "I think  _multiple_  people are going to help you discover what you want, and then you're going to find the one person who gives you  _all of it_."

"So you don't think Nadia was it for me?" he looked up at you through his messy blonde curls.

"Maybe she is, maybe she isn't," you shrugged, moving the hair out of the way so he could see properly, "Maybe one day, you two will find your way back to each other. Maybe  _right now_  just wasn't the right time for you guys."

"How do  _I_  know that though?"

You chuckled softly, "That's not something  _other people_  can tell you, Lu; You'll just know when the time comes." Luke tilted his head to look up at you, staring for a moment before leaning forward. He kissed the middle of your cheek before moving his face back to your neck.

"Thank you," he whispered. You smiled slightly, tightening your hold on him and pressing a kiss of your own to the top of his head.

"You're welcome, Lu," you murmured into his hair, listening to his breathing even out as he drifted off to sleep.

~

> **_"Stay over."_ **

One week after that, you and Luke decided to make the Saturday nights you weren't both busy movie nights. The past six months were filled with movies – you soon came to the conclusion that you'd much rather spend the evening with Luke rather than go on dates that would just end in failure, and he must have thought the same thing.

You – much like  _every_  movie viewing with him these days – ended up sprawled out on Luke's couch, him on his back and you sandwiched between his side and the back pillows while you hand was in his hair. Whenever you tried to get up, Luke would let out a small whine and hold you tighter – and the only time he actually  _let go_  was when you had to go to the bathroom.

" _Luke_ ," you huffed under your breath, "I have to go home at  _some_  point."

"It's too late to be out though," he mumbled, hugging you closer to him, " **Just**   **stay the night**."

"You know this is an unfair fight, right?" you whispered, your fingernails scratching his scalp, "You're not going to let go of me until I agree." Luke didn't respond, but you  _did_  feel him smile into your neck. You sighed softly, ceasing your scalp massaging and making him whine. "Can we at least move to an  _actual_   _bed_?" you asked.

"Only if you promise to keep doing what you have been," he said.

"Fine," you shook your head, laughing softly when he instantly got up, pulling you along with him.

Luke turned off the TV, made sure his front door was locked, and turned off all the lights before tugging you to his bedroom. He went to his dresser and grabbed a shirt, tossing it to you so you could get changed. The shirt purposely covered most of your thighs so you wouldn't feel weird about not wearing your jeans while sharing the bed with him.

The moment you came out of the bathroom and climbed into bed next to Luke, his arms were around you and he was holding you against him – much like you'd been lying on the couch previously. His face was back in the crook of your neck and your hand immediately found his head, scratching his head once again. He sighed in content, and you could hear his breathing start to become more and more steady.

"Goodnight, Lu," you whispered, kissing right where his hairline started on his forehead.

"Goodnight, princess," he mumbled as coherently as he could right before falling asleep.

~

> **_"I love you."_ **

"Luke?!" you called out after walking into his apartment.

"In the kitchen!" he returned while you were taking off your jacket, hanging it on the coatrack next to the door. You made your way to the kitchen, finding Luke looking over his shoulder.

"Hey, stranger," he smiled, turning back to finish drying dishes, "How'd it go?"

"I like to tell myself it went well," you shrugged, sitting yourself down on one of the barstools at the counter, "The manager really seemed to like me, so I'm pretty sure I got it."

"Congratulations!" he said proudly, making you grin slightly, "What should we do to celebrate?"

"I didn't get the job  _yet_ , Lu," you giggled, watching him hang the dish towel back on the oven handle before he came over to where you were.

"Doesn't mean we can't celebrate," he replied, leaning on the countertop across from you, "How about pizza and a Disney movie?"

"Extra breadsticks?" you smiled hopefully, making him chuckle. He took out his phone to find the number to your favorite pizza place in his contacts.

"And all the cheese cups your heart desires," he replied dramatically.

" ** _God_ ,**  **I love you** ," you sighed without thinking, your eyes instantly widening once you'd realized what you just told him. Luke froze, taking a moment before looking up at you again.

"Did you..." he trailed off, "Did you just say  _you love me_?"

"What?" you swallowed, "Am I not allowed to love my best friend?" You thought you passed it off pretty well, but if there was  _one thing_  Luke knew  _best_ , it was how to tell when you were lying.

"That's not how you  _meant it_."

"How do  _you_  know?" you asked a bit more harshly than he was expecting, "How do  _you_  know how someone  _else_  meant something?"

"Because I know  _you_ , Y/N," he stated, seemingly not fazed by your tone at all.

"Well, clearly, you don't know me  _that well_ ," you scoffed, getting up.

You made your way to the front door so you could leave, but as you were reaching for your jacket, Luke's hand came into view and grabbed your wrist. He turned you around, taking your chin in his other hand so you couldn't look away from him.

"I think I do," he said lowly, "And I think that makes you nervous. I think you're scared because you  _know_  I can read you like a book."

"No, you ca-"

"Then tell me I'm wrong," he cut you off, "Look me in the eyes and tell me I'm wrong." You stared at him for a moment, opening your mouth and closing it several times in an attempt to do as he asked.

But you couldn't do it. And he  _knew_  you couldn't do it.

You'd always been a terrible liar and Luke definitely used that to his advantage every chance he got. And the way his lips curled up into a smile told you he knew – Luke  _always_  knew.

"Are you going to tell me, Y/N?" he asked. It was becoming harder and harder to concentrate due to the close proximity of your faces – and the fact that his breath was hitting your lips definitely  _wasn't_  helping. "Am I wrong?" he murmured when you didn't say anything.

"N-No," you stuttered out. Luke smiled, but you didn't get a chance to really see it. His lips were on yours within the next second, both of you letting out a sigh of content.

He released your chin to move his hands to your hips, pulling your body as close to his as he could get it. Your own hands moved up his arms and neck until they landed on his cheeks, holding him in place as if you thought he'd realize what he was doing and run away.

" **I love you too** , princess," he whispered between kisses, making you finally pull away so you could look at him.

Luke could see it in the way your eyebrows were furrowed but how big your eyes still were that there was a part of you that was somehow convincing yourself that he was lying, so he simply smiled at you.

"I love how easily I make you laugh because it means I get to hear it over and over again," he said, pressing a kiss to your jaw, "I love how you blush every time I call you princess-" He kissed the middle of your cheekbone. "I love how, no matter how many times I look at them, I could still get lost in your eyes forever-" He kissed the corner of your eye. "I love how smart you are, and how you always have some witty comeback to anything I say-" He kissed your forehead. "I love how your nose scrunches up when I tell you how beautiful you look-" He kissed the tip of your nose. "And I especially love  _you_ ," he finished, returning his lips to yours, finally feeling you smile into it.

"I love you  _more_ ," you whispered. Luke chuckled softly, squeezing your hips gently.

"I love you  _most_ ," he quoted  _Tangled_ , knowing it would make you giggle.

And it did.

~

_inspiration: http://p0ck3tf0x.tumblr.com/post/98502010026/one-hundred-ways-to-say-i-love-you_


	475. A Love Like This (Maxx Danziger) - Part 1

_requested by ifyousayyouloveme on tumblr_

_an au where you have a streak of your soulmate's hair color in your own hair_

~

You remembered the day you met your soulmate like it had just happened five minutes ago; That moment replayed  _over and over_  again in your head from the second you woke up to the second you fell asleep – though, it  _did_  occasionally come up in your  _dreams_  as well.

You'd been in line at a music venue waiting to be let in to watch your favorite band perform. This wasn't the first time Set It Off had come to your city, but it  _was_  the first time since you started listening to their music. You were  _beyond_  excited to go – you honestly didn't think you'd be able to take the day off work. Your best friend Amira jumped at the chance to go to the concert with you – she started listening to Set It Off because of you – and the two of you were excited to spend the day together listening to your favorite band.

You weren't expecting to meet any of them, but you went outside before their set anyway to at least see them  _in person_  for a few seconds before the show. But you understandably thought you were dreaming when you actually got to  _talk_  to them.

Amira stayed to speak with Cody after you'd both taken your pictures with him while you trotted off to meet the rest of the band. You talked with Zach for a little bit after getting a picture as you did with Dan, honestly feeling like this was all a  _dream_. But when you met Maxx, you found yourself actually wishing it  _was_.

You didn't really look at Maxx as you got your selfie, feeling rushed by the fans still waiting to meet him. But after he signed your copy of  _Upside Down_ , your eyes  _finally_  met his, and you both watched the colored streaks in each other's hair disappear. You lost your breath the moment you realized what was happening: You had just met your  _soulmate_.

And then your heart  _broke_.

Growing up, when you were told about what having a soulmate meant, your takeaway was that  _no matter what_ , the pair would be together for the rest of their lives. And in a world where all you wanted was to find your other half, you'd spent the last 23 years dreaming about how you would meet them and what you would say... But you never imagined a situation in which your soulmate was already seeing someone.

You knew Maxx had a girlfriend and while you'd always been a little jealous that it wasn't you, you'd be lying if you said you didn't think they were cute together. So if you were him, you weren't sure it would be  _that_  easy to leave your partner either –  _even_  for your soulmate – but despite  _years_  of telling yourself nothing would ever happen with your favorite member of the band, now knowing that was actually a  _reality_  made you want to cry.

**Maxx's POV**

Maxx watched you force a small smile, thanking him for the autograph and picture, before going back to Amira as Cody moved to talk to someone else. But you didn't realize that the drummer could still hear you.

" _Y/N_!" Amira gasped softly, "Your hair is one color! You met your soulmate?!" You nodded and Amira went on. "Who is it?!" she smiled, "How did I not see it happen?! Why aren't you excited?!"

"It's Maxx..." you trailed off in a whisper. He heard your friend's shoes come to an abrupt stop in the gravel as she looked at you in shock, her smile now completely gone.

" _Maxx_  is your soulmate...? But... Doesn't he have a...?" she trailed off.

"Yeah..."

"What are you gonna do...?" she asked, putting her hand on your arm and rubbing it in an effort to comfort you.

"I... I'm gonna let him go..." you choked out. Amira immediately pulled you into a tight hug, making you smile slightly, before she led you back to the line in the hopes that your new friends could keep you distracted – at least for the rest of the day.

But while  _your_  spirits were being lifted,  _Maxx_  felt his heart sink at the sight of you trying to keep yourself together.

**Your POV**

But that wasn't to say that the whole situation stopped you from having the best night of your life.

After calming down and being let into the venue, you and Amira found yourselves in the front row right between Cody and Zach, dancing and singing along to every single song. You would see Maxx looking at you whenever he wasn't drumming – and even sometimes when he  _was_. You didn't know  _why_  he kept staring at you – maybe it was because you were his soulmate – but you did your best to block it out; He had a girlfriend whom he was  _very much_  in love with and you didn't like to dwell on the ' _never-going-to-happen_ 's in life.

So you didn't. You just enjoyed the show your favorite band was putting on and you forgot all about the soulmate situation – if only for a few hours.

~

**Maxx's POV; Two hours later**

The entire ride home to the venue, the boys could tell something was up with their friend, but they didn't say anything; They could see the (your hair color) stripe in his hair was gone. They would glance at each other as Maxx stared blankly out the van window. They could tell he was lost in thought, and as much as they wanted to comfort him, they knew nothing would work; They knew how much he loved his girlfriend and nothing they could say in the moment would make him feel better about any of it.

The band pulled up to the house not long after leaving the venue. Maxx went to help unload everything from the trailer, but everyone refused to accept the gesture; They just insisted he go inside and find Maggie. So that was what he did.

The moment he saw his girlfriend lying on their bed watching TV with Pistol lying by her feet, he felt his heart get heavier. There was no hiding the fact that his hair was now one color. Sure, he could  _try_ , but there was no use in it – Maggie would know something was up right away. But he could never lie to her anyway. So the moment her eyes looked over at the new presence in the room right before flicking to the top of his head, he honestly thought he was going to throw up. Maggie smiled sadly, immediately realizing what was going on, he couldn't hold himself together anymore.

He rushed to her, climbing on top of her before getting situated with his legs overlapping hers and his arms around her waist, careful not to kick Pistol in the process. He felt her hand immediately land on the back of his head, her fingers running through his hair soothingly.

"Maxx," she said softly, "We knew going into this that we weren't soulmates – we knew this was going to happen eventually."

"But now it's finally  _happening_ ," he mumbled into her neck. He felt her smile as she kissed his hairline.

"You know I love you more than anything," she reminded him, "And I always hoped neither of us would ever have to make the decision between each other or our soulmate... But that's not how the world works, Maxx; And if the world says we're not soulmates, then there's no point in arguing with it."

"But she's not  _you_ ; I'm in love with  _you_ ," he insisted, shaking his head as he tilted it to look at her, only to have her press her lips to his.

"I'm in love with you too," she murmured into his mouth before pulling away to continue speaking, "But what would you do if the roles were reversed and she was the one already in a relationship?"

"I don't know..." he swallowed, making her smile again.

"Well,  _I do_ ," she said, "You would want her to stop seeing them so she could be with  _you_. You would want her to choose you over  _anyone else_. You would want her to be with her  _soulmate_."

"Mag-"

" _Please_  don't think this isn't upsetting me, Maxx," she squeezed him, "Letting you go will be the  _hardest_  thing I'll ever have to do. But if it means you and your soulmate get to be together, then I'll _do it_.  _Nothing_  on this planet will ever make me as happy as knowing you're with the one person you were made perfect for –  _even_  if that person  _isn't me_." He swallowed another lump in his throat.

"I love you," he mumbled into her skin, hearing her smile.

"I love you too," she assured him, "But can you just promise me something?"

"What?" he replied hoarsely, tilting his head to look up at her.

"Promise me that you won't hold this against her," she said, "That you'll never compare her to me and that you'll love her even when you miss me." Maxx barely nodded, earning himself a kiss to the forehead.

And maybe everything would change tomorrow as they figured out where to go from here, but he was guaranteed this spot in his girlfriend's arms for at least one more night, and he was going to appreciate while he could.


	476. A Love Like This (Maxx Danziger) - Part 2

_requested by ifyousayyouloveme on tumblr_

~

**Your POV; Two weeks later**

It had been two weeks since the show and you were quite honestly just proud of yourself for making it this long. Sure, you would have your moments where you'd cry over not getting the ' _happily ever after_ ' with your soulmate that everyone moaned on and on about, but you knew he was happy with Maggie and that was truthfully all you ever really wanted for your soulmate: for them to be happy.

You were at the mall with Amira one Friday afternoon, just browsing the selections in your favorite stores. Neither of you were really there with the intent on buying anything, but she insisted you get out of your house. She knew how much you'd been thinking about Maxx, so she just wanted to get your mind off of it if only for three hours.

You were walking from one store to another when you heard someone come up behind you. You didn't think anything of it – you thought you were just walking too slowly for their liking and they'd simply pass you, but they didn't. They tapped on your shoulder lightly, causing you to turn around and lose your breath.

"H-Hi," Maxx cleared his throat lightly, "You're Y/N, right? You... We met at a show on the 19th?" You stared at him for a moment before nodding slowly. He let out a soft sigh of relief, happy he hadn't mistaken you for someone who just  _looked_  like you. "I, um... Are you up for... Is there somewhere we can..." he breathed out again – he'd never had  _this_  much trouble talking to someone before, "Can we talk...?" You were silent, causing Amira to nudge you so you'd look at her. She gave you a look, urging you to go with Maxx.

"I'll meet you at the food court when you're done," she told you, taking the bag out of your hand. You nodded before turning back to Maxx as she walked away.

"We-" Your voice broke slightly. "We can go outside," you told him. He exhaled once again, following you as you led him out the nearest door. You both sat down on a random ledge on the building, and things were awkwardly quiet for a moment.

"So..." Maxx cleared his throat again, "How are you...?"

"Why did you want to talk, Maxx?" you asked, not up for beating around the bush. His heart skipped a beat when you said his name.

"I think you know, Y/N," he shook his head, "We have to talk about it  _eventually_."

"We don't  _have to_ ," you corrected, making him cock an eyebrow at you, "Soulmates don't  _have to_  end up together."

"Don't... Don't you  _want_  to be with your soulmate though?"

"I've been dreaming about it since I was a  _kid_ ," you sighed, "But it's not something I need to  _survive_." Maxx was unsure how to respond; He'd never met someone who was apparently so willing to let their  _soulmate_  go that easily. "It's not the end of the world, really," you shook your head when he didn't say anything, "I'm sure I'll find someone else so that way, you can stay with your girlfriend."

"I... I don't  _have_  a girlfriend..." he murmured. He could sense the confusion in your voice when you spoke again.

"You and Maggie... _broke up_?" you whispered.

"Yeah... You... You're my  _soulmate_..."

"That didn't mean you had to break up with your girlfriend!" you exclaimed, hopping off the ledge and onto your feet, "You didn't have to break up with her just because of  _me_!"

The fact that you were suddenly so  _defiant_  honestly surprised Maxx. He thought you'd be  _happy_  – you seemed  _so_   _heartbroken_  when you found out he was your soulmate and knowing he was already  _with someone_  – so he was  _sure_  you'd be  _ecstatic_  to know that you would  _finally_  get to be with him.

But you  _weren't_. In fact, it seemed like you were the exact  _opposite_.

"I didn't..." he said softly.

"But you  _just_  said-"

" _She_  broke up with  _me_ ," he informed you, noticing your chest fall abruptly as you lost your breath again.

"Why... Why would she break up with you...?" you swallowed.

"Because  _you're_  my soulmate..." he said carefully, jumping onto the ground as well, "She wants me to be with  _you_..."

"When did she..." you trailed off, but he knew what you were asking.

"Two weeks ago... The night I came home from that concert..."

"No... No, no, no... You can't be... You are  _not_  asking me out right now..."

"Why not?" he furrowed his eyebrows, a hint of a pained expression on his face, "We're sou-"

"You  _just_  broke up with your girlfriend!" you exclaimed, "You were  _so_  in love with her – you can't just... You can't move on in  _two weeks_!"

"But we're-"

" _I know we are_!" you practically shouted, throwing your arms in the air, "I haven't  _thought_  about anything else since I  _found out_! But you and Maggie were  _in love_  and that feeling's not going to go away  _that quickly_! You  _can't_  jump into a new relationship with anyone right after a love like  _that_! Because no matter  _what_  I do, I will  _always_  be compared to her! I will always be compared to the way she  _hugged you_  when you came home from tour and the way she  _held you_  when you were sad and the way she  _kissed you_  just because she wanted to! And I will  _never_  be that! I will never be able to do things  _exactly_  the way she did to make you fall in love with her!  _I will never be her_!"

Maxx watched you quickly look away, but he could still tell you were wiping tears from your eyes. He knew he was jumping into this, asking you out so  _soon_  after his breakup, but he didn't think it would affect you  _this much_ ; He didn't think your mind had been doing  _this much_  to you over your soulmate already having a girlfriend.

But it  _had_. And he couldn't help but feel guilty.

"Y/N..." Maxx said softly, coming up to you and putting his hands on your cheeks, turning your head so you would look at him again. You both stared at each other as he gently wiped the rest of the tears off of your face, his voice still low as he spoke again. "If you want to wait to do anything until I've moved on, that's fine," he assured you, "I just need to know that you'll wait for me no matter  _how long_  it takes."

"I'll always wait for you," you whispered brokenly. Maxx smiled lovingly, bringing you in so he could kiss your forehead.

And that was exactly what you did. 


	477. A Love Like This (Maxx Danziger) - Part 3

_requested by ifyousayyouloveme and anonymous on tumblr_

~

**Two months later**

"Maggie wants to meet you before she leaves," Maxx told you randomly while you were sitting with him on your couch. He could hear your breathing hitch as you stared blankly at the TV in front of you.

"Won't... Won't that be...you know... _weird_...?" you murmured, "Ex-girlfriend meeting the  _reason_ you broke up..."

"Only if you  _let it_  be weird," he shrugged, making you look up at him. He smiled gently at you, reaching for your hand and holding it in his lap. "I promise she doesn't hate you," he assured you, "She was the one who suggested all this. She just wanted to meet you before she goes back to Florida."

"She's not even staying in the  _state_ anymore?" you whined. Maxx simply chuckled softly, squeezing your hand.

"Hey, if you want to ask her about all that, that's fine," he said, "But she just really wants the chance to talk to you before she moves out. And I'd love for you to meet my friends since you're gonna be seeing a lot of them."

"Then don't say it like it's a  _bad_ thing," you grumbled, making Maxx laugh loudly. He brought your hand up, kissing the back of it.

"So will you meet her?" he asked hopefully.

"I guess..." you chewed on your inner cheek, "If she  _wants_ to meet me, then I should go so she doesn't hate me  _more_..." Maxx let go of your hand, wrapping his arm around your shoulders and pulling you into him.

" _She doesn't hate you_ ," he repeated.

"Maybe she's just trying to convince you so that when I get there, she can just  _tear me apart_!" you insisted.

"I think  _you're_ the only one tearing yourself apart over this," he shook his head, pressing another kiss to your temple.

~

The next day, you were  _physically_ shaking as Maxx led you to the front door of the house he shared with his bandmates. The entire  _idea_ of being in the same house as the girl Maxx was in love with – the same house she was now being forced to move  _out of_ – honestly made you want to throw up.  _You_ were the reason this was happening;  _You_ were the reason they were no longer together. And all you wanted to do was be at home and crawl under your covers and cry, angry at yourself for ruining a relationship.

Maxx could hear you taking deep breaths as he reached the front step, causing him to look over his shoulder at you before turning to fully face you. You closed your eyes, continuing to breathe, as he put his hands on your cheeks and held you firmly.

"You're gonna be  _fine_ , Y/N," Maxx assured you, "She's not mad at you  _at all_."

"You can keep telling me that, but it's not gonna make me feel any better," you shook your head.

"Can you just promise me that if you're gonna puke, you'll try to make it to a trashcan first?" he asked. You couldn't help but laugh softly, finally opening your eyes to find him smiling at you.

"Yeah," you whispered with a slight nod.

Maxx swiped his thumbs across your cheeks, getting rid of the tears. He then pulled you forward, pressing a kiss to your forehead, and released your face, only to take your hand. He held onto it tightly as he turned back to the door and took you inside.

The moment the door opened, you heard voices coming from somewhere in the house. When Maxx closed the door, the voices stopped and you heard someone call out.

"We're in the kitchen!" Cody hollered, prompting Maxx to lead you in that direction. The group gave you enthusiastic greetings as you and Maxx entered the room, making you smile bashfully as you shyly hid behind your soulmate's arm.

"I'm sure you already know everybody," Maxx told you, "But this is Cody, Shay, Dan, Sydney, and Zach. Guys, this is Y/N."

"It's nice to  _officially_ meet you!" Cody grinned, "Especially since we were kinda rushing before that show a while ago." You barely giggled in return, but didn't say anything. The group must have noticed how nervous you were.

"Hey, Maxx," Sydney chirped, "Why don't you show Y/N around the house first, and then we can talk more over dinner or something."

"Yeah!" Shay nodded, "You'd stick around for dinner, wouldn't you?" You only moved away from Maxx's arm just enough so that your voice wasn't muffled.

"If food's involved, I'm there," you informed them, making everyone laugh loudly.

"C'mon," Maxx squeezed your hand, "I'll show you around."

Maxx took you around the entire downstairs before he took you back to the front of the house to go upstairs. Once you were about halfway up the staircase, you heard a door open at the other end of the hall and footsteps come toward the stairs. You both looked up as Maggie began trotting downstairs, only to stop when she noticed there were people already coming up.

" _Oh_!" she squeaked, instantly smiling, "You must be Y/N!"

Maxx nodded for you, "Y/N, this is Maggie." You opened your mouth,  _trying_ to greet her as well, but nothing was coming out – you were suddenly frozen.

"Is this the grand tour?" she asked, making him nod again. "Well, why don't you take a break and I'll show her around up here?" she smiled slyly.

"Maggie..." Maxx trailed off, watching her come down to where you were, taking your other hand. His grip on you released as Maggie pulled you the rest of the way upstairs. "Maggie," he repeated slowly, "Mag, what are you doing?"

"I told you," she replied, "I'm just giving her a tour of the upstairs."

"You never ' _just_ ' do anything," he shook his head, "Now what are you doing?" Maggie simply huffed lightly.

"She has to know what she's getting into with you, Maxx," she insisted.

"Maggie!" he shouted after the two of you with wide eyes, "She'll figure it out on her  _own_!"

"I'm sorry, Maxx! I'm having trouble hearing you! I'm going through a tunnel!"

" _Maggie_!" he whined, "We're in the  _same house_! There  _are_ no tunnels! This is a  _staircase_! I can still  _see you_!"

"I'll have to call you back, Maxx!" she said, ushering you into the room at the end of the hall – Maxx's room – and quickly closing the door behind her as you laughed. "I would suggest trying to maintain a normal tone of voice when you lie to him," she told you, having you sit down on the edge of Maxx's bed, "Otherwise, he'll be able to tell right away." You let out another breathy chuckle, nodding slightly. You watched her move over to the side of the TV stand where a familiar white cat was sitting. "I know you're a fan of the band, so I'm sure you're already following Maxx and he's flooded your feed with pictures of her, but this is Pistol," Maggie giggled, making you smile slightly as well.

You watched her lean down and nudge the cat gently toward the bed so she'd jump up. You didn't expect Pistol to approach you since she'd never met you before but she  _did_ , rubbing up against your hand so you'd pet her – which you happily did. When she was satisfied, Pistol walked to the end of the bed and laid down for what was probably her sixth nap of the day.

"I think it's safe to say she likes you already," Maggie laughed again, "It took her a couple  _weeks_ to warm up to  _me_." The corner of your mouth twitched but didn't quite make it to actual smile.

The room was silent for a moment as you looked around, noticing the boxes of Maggie's things that she'd been gradually packing up since deciding to move out. She watched you curiously, her gaze following yours to the open boxes on the ground beside the desk that still had to have things put in them.

"Y/N-" Maggie started before you cut her off.

"I'm really sorry," you said softly.

"It's not your fault," she told you, but you only shook your head.

"I wasn't even going to  _go_ to that show... You guys would still be  _together_ if it weren't for  _me_..." your voice broke. You heard her sigh as she took a seat beside you.

"Maxx told me about what you said to him the other day – about how scared you are that he'll always compare you to me..." she said lowly, "Y/N, I can't promise that he won't ever do that – whether it's intentional or not – because I  _know him_ , and I know he'll find himself thinking about what  _would have been_  if were still together five years from now or whatever, but... I know it may not  _seem_ like it, but Maxx and I... We weren't  _perfect_ for each other; That's why we aren't  _soulmates_. But  _you are_. And I know you can easily say that I wouldn't know because I haven't  _met_ my soulmate yet, but I grew up listening to my mom and dad talk about what meeting each other was like... I'm  _so_ excited to be able to feel that  _same feeling_  one day, and I don't think it's my place to prevent  _you and Maxx_  from feeling it too – no matter _how much_  I love him."

You were silent for a moment before speaking again, "What do I say when he wishes I were you...?"

"You  _tell him_ ," she said firmly, causing you to finally look up at her, "You remind him it's  _not fair_  for him to do that to you." You stared at her for a few seconds before slowly nodding your head.

"Okay," you whispered so quietly that she almost didn't even hear you. But she smiled softly, letting you know that she did.

"Come on," she said, standing up, "I should probably  _actually_ give you a tour before we go back downstairs." You only giggled slightly, not saying anything as you followed her out of the bedroom.

~

A couple hours later, after dinner was finished, you were starting to feel more comfortable around the group – if only a  _little_. You even insisted on helping wash dishes and clean up, but they assured you that it was fine.

You all somehow ended up outside in front of the house. They all told you how nice it was to meet you and how they hoped you'd come around more often, only earning small smiles and nods from you in return.

You felt yourself slowly receding back into the mindset you'd been in since before Maxx even came to pick you up. You knew very well that this would probably be the last time you would ever see  _Maggie_ at the house ­­– if you ever saw her again  _at all_  – and you couldn't help but start to feel guilty again.

"Well... Thanks for having me over for dinner... It was really fun meeting you guys... But I'm gonna..." you trailed off, motioning in the other direction.

"Are you sure you wanna go  _already_?" Shay frowned.

"Mhmm..." you hummed, swallowing lightly, "Bye..." You received a chorus of disappointed goodbyes – the group genuinely  _did_ enjoy your company – as you started walking away.

Your pace was quicker than your normal walking speed – despite your talk with Maggie and understanding that she really didn't blame  _you_ for anything that was happening in hers and Maxx's personal lives, you still just wanted to go home and honestly just cry for a while.

You completely missed the way Maxx was watching you, as well as missing the way Maggie nudged him. He looked at her, prompting her to motion after you, telling him about your talk with her and that you just needed to hear  _him_ tell you those things too.

And Maxx immediately chased after you.

"Y/N!" you heard Maxx said, making you look over your shoulder as he came up beside you, "At least let me walk you home."

"I'm fine," you said softly, but he saw right through you.

"Y/N," he sighed, reaching for your hand and tangling your fingers together, "I've told you before, and I know Maggie's told you as well ­–  _none_ of what's happening is  _your fault_. If Maggie and I were  _meant_ to be together,  _we_ would be soulmates, but we're  _not_ ;  _You and I are_. I know you want  _someone_ to blame you for us breaking up, but no matter  _how badly_  you want that to happen is going to change the fact that we  _don't_.  _We_ don't decide who our soulmate is ­– the  _universe_ does. And I hate to break it to you, but the universe chose to put  _us_ together whether  _you_ like it or not." You looked up at him, making him smile gently at you. "I  _know_ it's going to take a while for you to accept that," he acknowledged, "But  _please_ just know that the  _only one_ blaming you for anything is  _yourself_." You didn't say anything else, but he could tell you were genuinely considering what he was telling you.

Maxx barely smiled again, leaning in and pressing a kiss to your cheek. And even though he knew he was right – that it  _would_ take a while for you to be  _completely_ okay about the situation – he figured the smile he felt pull at the corner of your mouth as he kissed you was a good place to  _start_.

~

_shout out to my dude jess for helping me come up with an ending_


	478. Whatever It Takes (Ashton Irwin)

**Warning: Brief mentions of death, kidnapping**

~

 _God knows_  you didn't want everything to end up like this, but when your father is  _this_ delusional, what can you do?

Your dad wasn't  _always_  like this; He wasn't  _always_  a  _certified sociopath_. In fact, up until about a year and a half ago, he was a pretty  _normal_  guy. But that all changed when his brother was killed.

You  _understood_  why it happened – your uncle escaped prison while serving a murder sentence and pulled a stolen gun on the cops. To be quite honest, you would have been surprised if he  _hadn't_  been shot. What you  _could_  say you were surprised with was the way your father reacted.

When your father had heard the news about your uncle's death, something inside him snapped. The man was  _set_  on getting revenge on the officer who had killed him. And apparently, that plan revolved heavily on  _you_.

You didn't agree with it by any means, but you forced yourself to play along in his sick little game. Your father scared you, and you just wanted to make it to the next day without experiencing what you  _knew_  he'd do to you if you said no.

So that was how you met Ashton.

Ashton had been with the police department for a few years now, and an actual  _officer_  for about four. Although he knew his actions were  _justified_  in what happened with your uncle, he'd be lying if he said it made dealing with the fact that he'd taken someone else's life any easier.

You met Ashton after your father had gathered up enough intel – which basically meant he'd been stalking him for four weeks – to decipher that the officer always went to the same restaurant with his partner after work every Wednesday evening. He sent you in ' _to get his attention_ ' because, apparently, his plan of revenge lied heavily on you and Ashton starting to date. And, since you knew better than to disobey him, you forced yourself to go along with it.

You couldn't remember  _exactly_  how it happened, but you figured your best bet at that point was to find a way to ' _accidentally_ ' bump into him. So that was what you did, and the next thing you knew, you and Ashton had a date planned for that Saturday night.

And you lived with the guilt up until the day your father revealed his plans nearly one year into your relationship with Ashton.

Your father posed as a kidnapper holding you hostage in a warehouse downtown, calling Ashton's phone from your own. He demanded that the officer come alone without his weapon, and you felt your heart sink when Ashton agreed. And you were forced to wait the 20 agonizing minutes for him to arrive, only to have your whole world come crashing down in front of you when he did.

~

20 minutes later, you heard a car pull up outside. You  _honestly_  felt like you were going to throw up as the door opened and Ashton poked his head inside.

"Y/N!" he breathed a sigh of relief, hurrying over to where you were sitting in the middle of the empty room, "Are you okay?" He took your hands and pulled you to your feet, surprised he didn't find you tied up or anything. He looked at your face, finding your eyes welling up with tears. "C'mon, baby girl," he said, wiping your cheeks with his thumbs, "We have to get out of here." Ashton took your hand again and went to go back to the door, but you didn't move. "Baby-" he was cut off by your voice.

"I'm sorry, Ashton..." you whispered, kissing his cheek one last time before taking your hand out of his and backing up slowly. And it was  _then_  that your father decided to come out from the shadows.

"Well, well, well," your dad sighed dramatically, "Wasn't that adorable? Unfortunately though, all good things must come to an end, don't you agree, Officer Irwin?"

"If by that, you mean this conversation, sure," Ashton replied stoically, "But I'm  _going_  to here leave with her."

"I would actually rather be the one taking my daughter home, but thanks for the offer," he snapped back, " _You_ , however, are going to be a much different story." Ashton glanced at you but noticed you were almost  _desperately_ trying not to look at him. "I could stand here and tell you all about my plans to have your remains be unrecognizable by anyone who knows you or tell you how my daughter knew about all of it all along-" Ashton looked at you again but you had your head down, unable to face how hurt you knew he was. "-but I think I'm just going to let her tell you herself. Go on, princess," your dad nudged you, making you jump lightly – you  _hated_  when he called you that, "Tell him everything." When you didn't make a motion to do so, he nudged you again –  _harder_  this time. " _Tell him, Y/N_ ," he said firmly, and you knew you had to before you got into even worse trouble.

You took a deep breath, swallowing thickly and finally looking up. Ashton's face showed about the same amount of pain as you expected it to, and your voice shook as you tried to remain convincing.

"I've been pretending to be interested in you so my father could find out things about you that would get your guard down," you said softly, keeping your eyes on Ashton's feet so you didn't actually have to look at him, "It didn't me-" You choked lightly, doing your best to keep from crying in front of your father. "-It didn't mean anything," you finished softly.

"I can't believe you  _fell for it_  too," your father laughed humorlessly, "I mean,  _really_ : Are you that stupid? Someone like her  _actually_  falling for someone like  _you_?" He wiped the non-existent tears of laughter from his cheek. "Well, since you has nothing to do with this anymore, princess, you can go home," he told you, "Your little boyfriend and I are going to get to know each other a little bit." You made a small noise of protest, but it only resulted in your father grabbing your arm roughly and leading you to the large metal door behind you – the one used for semi shipment drop-off – himself.

When he hit the button to open it, he was surprised to find that Ashton hadn't actually come alone. The door began coming up, and your father was immediately met with a group of six police officers with their guns pointed at him. You breathed the smallest sigh of relief, thankful all of this was  _finally_  over.

"It's nice to meet you, Mr. Y/L/N," Calum, Ashton's partner, smiled, "I wish we could say we've heard a lot about you, but Y/N's never really mentioned you before. But I guess I can see  _why_  though."

In a futile attempt at getting away, he shoved you toward the officers and tried to run. He didn't get very far, of course, because while Calum caught you before you fell, the other five other officers were chasing and tackling him to the ground before putting him in handcuffs. With his arm still around your waist, Calum quickly holstered his weapon and put his now free hand on your cheek.

"Are you okay? Did you get hurt?" he asked frantically, inspecting your face.

" _Physically_?" you swallowed, your voice breaking as you felt your eyes start to water.

Calum smiled sadly, leading you out to where you found an ambulance parked on the street corner, insisting that paramedics check you out. All you did was sigh, going along with it anyway just to ease his state of mind. But, to be honest, the only thing you wanted to do at this point was cry, unsure what this whole thing now meant for you and Ashton.

~

5 minutes later, you were still sitting on the back of the ambulance. Paramedics had already cleared you of any injuries, but for  _some reason_ , you couldn't make yourself leave. You didn't know  _why_ , but a part of you just wanted to wait and make sure Ashton was okay as well. You didn't want  _him_  to come to you, but you hoped Calum or someone else would let you know. Although... You knew how the law worked pretty well, so you were sure you'd be taken into the station at some point for aiding and abetting or at least not  _telling_  the police about your father.

So you waited another couple minutes before someone looked over and realized you were still there.

"Hey, Y/N," the officer smiled softly as you watched him approach the ambulance, "What are you still doing here? I thought you would have gone home after you were looked at."

"I know the law," you mumbled, "I know it's a felony to harbor a criminal."

"We're not going to arrest you for  _anything_ , Y/N," Phil told you, making your eyes widen.

"You're not?" you asked quietly.

"Of course not!" he let out a confused chuckle, "No one got killed and you were just trying to keep  _yourself_  from getting hurt."

"B-But I helped," you shook your head, "And I-I lured Ash here a-and-"

" _To keep yourself from getting hurt_ ," he reminded you, "Ash is  _fine_ , Y/N. You know him – he wasn't going to come here without backup. And none of  _us_  are upset with you, so you shouldn't be either."

"It's still a  _crime_ , Phil!" you replied, "I... I still broke the law!"

"The only place we're taking you is  _home_ , Y/N," he said reassuringly, "We could take you back to the station, but I guarantee you that every single person there would just tell you to go home anyway."

~

**Ashton's POV**

10 minutes after his fellow officers were finish processing the scene and making sure everything was alright, Ashton found himself outside of the warehouse. He was about 100 feet from the ambulance, simply watching you and Phil. He couldn't tell what the two of you were saying to each other, but he could clearly see that whatever it was was confusing you.

"She wasn't pretending to have feelings for you, you know," his partner came up behind him, stopping at his side.

"I know," Ashton nodded.

" _You know_?" Calum cocked an eyebrow, " _How_?"

"Well, I didn't know about the plan her dad had, obviously," he clarified, "But I knew she wasn't faking anything just to get closer to me. You can't  _fake_  what we have."

" _Have_?" he grinned slightly. Ashton simply smiled as well.

"I'm gonna go..." he trailed off, nodding in your direction. Calum's smile only got bigger as he watched Ashton head over to you.

"I'll find someone to take you home, okay?" he heard Phil tell you, making him speak up.

"Hey, Phil," he said as he approached. Your breathing visibly hitched as the officer looked over his shoulder. "I'll give her a ride," he told his colleague.

The officer nodded and walked away, leaving Ashton alone with you. He watched you carefully for a moment, noticing how desperate you were not to look directly at him.

"You not gonna look at me?" he asked gently – not an ounce of blame in his voice. You just shook your head. "Why's that?" he egged you on.

"You hate me," you mumbled.

"I don't remember ever saying that," he told you, "Who told you I didn't forgive you?" It was then that he got you to look at him, your head snapping up so your eyes met his.

"You're not supposed to  _forgive me_ , Ashton!" you insisted with tears in your eyes, "You're supposed to be  _mad_  and  _yell_  and  _hate me_!  _Why don't you hate me_?!"

Ashton simply smiled, "Because I love you." You instantly froze.

"Y-You  _what_?"

" _I love you_ ," he repeated firmly, taking your face in his hands so you couldn't look away again, " _I love you so much_."

" _Why_?" you whimpered.

"Your life was being threatened, Y/N, and you did everything you could to keep that man from  _taking it_ ," he reminded you, "I would have done whatever it took too."

"But I didn't have to  _hurt you_ ," you shook your head.

"Was I hurt that he said you never felt anything? Absolutely," he nodded, "That hurt more than anything else in the  _world_. But when I looked at you as  _you_  told me it didn't mean anything, I knew he was  _making you_  do it. People who manipulate others in the way you did have no remorse, Y/N – and I  _know_  you know that. They don't feel  _sorry_  for what they put someone through; They don't feel the way you do right now. You did what you had to do to keep yourself  _alive_  – there's no reasonable way I can  _blame_  you for that."

"But I-"

"How much of what you've ever told me were lies?" Ashton asked simply.

" _All of it_ ," your bottom lip trembled, tears forming again, "I didn't tell you my uncle was that guy you were forced to shoot two years ago, I didn't tell you my dad was planning to do  _God knows what_  to you because of it, I didn't tell you  _not_  to go to that warehouse because it was a trap, I didn't-"

"Were you lying when you and I stayed up until 3am talking about the universe?" he cut you off again, his thumbs now stroking your cheekbones, "Were you lying when we were on your couch watching movies and you were falling asleep on top of me? Were you lying when I asked you to be my girlfriend and you said yes without even hesitating? Were you lying when you told me you thought you were falling for me and you were scared because of it?"

"N-No..." you whispered, beginning to see where he was going with this.

"Y/N, I get it, okay?" he grinned softly, "You were scared – and you're  _still_  scared, but you're scared for  _different_   _reasons_  now. I know you think I should hate you and I should never want to see you again, but that's not the case – that will never  _be_  the case. You have to understand that no matter how much you think I  _should_  hate you is going to change the fact that I  _don't_  – I could  _never_  hate you. You were just trying to keep yourself  _alive_ , Y/N – you didn't expect all of this to come from it." Ashton carefully wiped your tears away, looking at you the way he always did – with a loving grin on his face. "If you want us to go our separate ways now, then I'll do it," he told you, his smile fading at the thought of actually losing you, "But please just know that no matter what you decide to do, I'll  _always_  love you; Nothing will ever make me  _stop_  loving you."

You were silent for a moment, but the small movements in your jaw – the movements that suggested you were  _trying_  to make yourself say something but  _couldn't_  – made Ashton stay and wait for you to say  _something_. And when you finally did, his heart  _soared_.

"I love you too, Ashton," you choked out. Ashton grinned widely, but you weren't given the chance to properly see it because his lips were already on yours.

He kissed you the way he always did – full of love and never lacking every ounce of passion he felt when he was around you. You were relieved that he didn't blame you, but at the same time, you still felt incredibly guilty for it all. You couldn't stop your tears from falling, causing Ashton to pull away when he felt the skin on his cheeks get wet. He pulled away, his eyes widening when he saw you crying, but he didn't get a chance to wipe the tears  _or_  ask you what was wrong before your arms were around him and your face was pressed to his neck.

"I'm s-sorry," you cried, your voice muffle by his skin, "I'm sorry I li-lied to you abou-about my d-dad."

"Baby girl," Ashton cooed softly, his own arms sliding around your waist and hugging you tightly, "You didn't  _lie_  about anything."

"But I di- I didn't  _tell you_!"

"I know there's a part of you that desperately wants someone to hold you accountable for all the things you did and didn't do because your father," he murmured, pressing kisses to your own neck, "And I know there's a part of you that wants  _me_  to hate you for them too... But Y/N, you  _have to_  understand that none of this is your fault. I don't know if we ever would have ended up together had it not been for him forcing you to. I don't know if I would have ever just randomly seen you at the store or the park or walking down the street and decided I just  _had_  to talk to you. But, no matter the means in which we met, you are still the most important person in my life. You are still the one I want to come visit after a long day at work, you are still the one I want to spend my days off with, you are still the one I want to shower with hugs and kisses and tickles when you've had a rough day." Ashton started poking your sides, making you squeal sharply and squirm around in his arms until he stopped. You felt him smile into your skin, kissing it again as he squeezed your waist. "You are still the one I fell in love with, Y/N," he promised you, "And who your father is is  _never_  going to change that." He felt your arms squeeze him back as you whispered out another ' _I love you_ ' to him, making him grin again. "I love  _you_ , baby girl," he whispered back.

~

Ashton, true to his word, led you around the corner to where his car was parked so he could take you home. The ride was silent albeit for the sounds of the radio playing softly on your favorite station. Ashton would glance over at you every once in a while, finding your head bobbing slightly to the songs. He would simply smile and return his eyes to the road.

But Ashton  _didn't_  take you to the home you were expecting.

"This is  _your_  place, Ash," you mumbled, seeing him smile slightly just before he got out of the car. He came around to your side to open the door for you, but you didn't get up. "You said you were taking me  _home_ , Ashton," you reminded him, your tone a little more firm this time.

"No," he shook his head, reaching for your hand and pulling you out of the passenger seat himself, "I said I was giving you a  _ride_."

"Ashton-" you sighed before you were cut off.

"Do you  _really_  want to go back, Y/N?" he asked you, "Because if you would rather go back to the house with all those pictures of me that your dad was using to get my schedule and plan out how he was going to get me to that warehouse, then I'll take you there."

Ashton breathed out when he saw the tears in your eyes once again, mentally scolding himself for making you think about the situation all over again. He put his hands on your cheeks, pulling your head to him so he could kiss your forehead, moving you back to look at you.

"Your father will be in prison for the rest of his life, Y/N, and he will never be able to get to you or me or anyone ever again," he promised you, "And if you choose to continue living in that house, I just want to make sure that the station had enough time to clean out all of his belongings before you do so none of it ever has to reminded of the things he made you do."

"How do  _I_  stop reminding  _myself_  then?" you whimpered, "I can't  _sleep_  without dreaming about it, I can't think about  _you_  without hearing him tell me what I have to do, I can't look in a  _mirror_  without replaying everything in my head... I can't do  _anything_... No matter how many different ways I imagine that house looking when everything is gone changes that I only see his notes and your photos and... I just want the memories to  _go away_..."

"Then move in with me," he stated, making your heart skip a beat.

"What?" you said so softly that had he not been  _right there_ , he wouldn't have heard you.

"Nothing is going to make those images go away, Y/N," he sighed, stroking your cheekbones lovingly, "And as much as I want to, I can't make them disappear either... But if trying to picture that house in all these different ways isn't working, then maybe you shouldn't be going back there  _at all_... And I'm not about to let you live on the streets or at a shelter when I have plenty of room. And if you're not comfortable with sharing a bed, I'll take the couch until you are."

"We've slept together before, Ashton – sharing a bed is nothing new," you murmured, making him laugh lightly.

"Then it's settled; You're moving in starting tomorrow," he announced.

Before you could say anything else, Ashton released you and bent down do he could throw you over his shoulder. You squealed as he took you toward the house, unlocked the front door, and went inside, not putting you down until the door was closed behind you. You pushed the hair off of your face, noticing Ashton smile at the grin you were sporting.

"You're insufferable," you commented, making his smile even wider.

"Yet somehow, you still stick around," he shook his head, moving forward to wrap his arms around your waist – yours automatically winding around his neck.

"Not until you realize you're too good for me," you replied, placing your forehead on his.

"If you're waiting for that day, you're gonna be waiting a  _while_ , baby girl," he informed you, tilting his head so his lips hit yours.


	479. In the Neighborhood (Luke Hemmings)

"What's wrong?" you frowned the moment your boyfriend answered your call.

"All I did was say hello," Luke chuckled with a sigh, "How do you know something's wrong?"

"Because I am your girlfriend and you can't hide anything from me," you stated matter-of-factly. He only laughed again, prompting you to continue. "Now tell me what's wrong, Hemmings, or I will be forced to not tell you why I called." Luke sighed again, remaining silent for a moment before finally answering.

"The boys were giving me shit at soundcheck because I couldn't stay focused," he mumbled.

"And why couldn't you stay focused?"

"Because I was thinking about you and how you're coming to visit next week..."

"Aw, does my little Lukey miss me?" you teased.

"Baby, this is serious!" he exclaimed, but you could still hear his smile, "Michael yelled at me!"

"Michael  _always_  yells at you," you reminded him.

"Yeah, but he  _meant it_  this time! Like, he wasn't laughing or  _anything_!"

"Well, when I see him again, I'll yell at him for you," you compromised.

"Deal," he laughed lightly, "So  _now_  can I know why  _you_  were the one who called  _me_  today?"

"Yes," you nodded, "Do you think...maybe...you could tell me where your dressing room is?"

" _Why_...?" Luke asked slowly, shooting up in his seat. You sighed, knowing you had to cave if you ever wanted to be found.

"Well, about next week... I just  _said_ that's when I was coming because I wanted to surprise you today at soundcheck, but then my flight was delayed a couple hours and Cal couldn't pick me up like we originally planned and now I'm lost in the venue and I can't find anyone in the crew and I'd just rather  _you_ find me before  _security_ does and throws me out."

" _You're here_?!" Luke shouted.

"Somewhere," you replied sheepishly. You then heard a door swing open and Ashton's voice.

"We heard yelling!" he exclaimed, "What's wrong?!" You couldn't help but laugh as Luke responded with a very enthusiastic ' _She's here!_ ' and immediately ended the call so he could find you.

Not even five seconds after Luke hung up, the situation you were hoping wouldn't happen happened. You unfortunately happened to pass by a hallway that a security guard was walking down, making him jump slightly, not expecting anyone to be there.

"Hey!" he called after you, making you freeze, "How'd you get back here?"

"Uh... The door..." you replied.

"Why are you here?"

"Well, I was  _hoping_  to find my boyfriend, but that didn't really happen."

"Your boyfriend?" he cocked an eyebrow.

"You might have heard of him," you nodded, "Luke Hemmings: tall, blonde, bright blue eyes; You really can't miss him."

"Very funny," he rolled his eyes, "Get back outside with the other fans."

"I would actually really rather find my boyfriend, but I appreciate the offer."

"Yeah, no, let's go," he said monotonously, putting his hand on your back and leading you in what you assumed to be the direction of the nearest exit. Lucky for you though, your boyfriend had impeccable timing and happened to be turning the corner.

" _Princess_!" he shouted happily as he ran down the hallway, making the guard's arm fall back to his side as you spun around.

" _Lukey_!" you squealed, running toward him and meeting him halfway.

You jumped onto him, your arms flying around his neck and your legs around his waist while his arms wound tightly around your own. You moved your hand to the back of his head, tugging on his hair lightly, as you pushed your lips onto his. You felt him smile into the kiss and kiss you harder, not even caring that the security officer was still there.

"I've missed you  _so much_ , baby girl," Luke mumbled into your mouth before pulling away and burying his face in your neck. Your one arm squeezed him while your fingernails scratched at his scalp.

"I've missed you too, Lukey," you sighed, kissing the top of his jaw before your face found his neck as well. You could feel him smile as he moved to kiss your shoulder and then look up.

"I want every single person working in this venue to know  _my girlfriend_  is approved to be back here," Luke stated, a deadpan expression on his face as he stared down the security guard who tried to force you outside. You giggled into his neck, squeaking in surprise when he started walking back down the hallway to the dressing room.

When he returned, he opened the door which made the boys look over. Michael and Ashton's eyes widened at seeing you, having no idea you and Calum planned to surprise Luke.

" _Y/N_!" they cheered, making you giggle as you hopped off of Luke and landed on your feet.

"What are you  _doing here_?!" Michael continued, hugging you tightly before letting you go to hug Ashton and Calum.

"I was in the neighborhood," you snickered, "Thought I'd drop by and say hello."

"Sorry I couldn't pick you up," Calum said, kissing the side of your head before releasing you.

"It's okay, Cal," you assured him, "Cancelled flights happen."

"Wait," Ashton perked up, looking at Calum, "You knew she was coming?" Calum shrugged while you simply smiled. "You guys are the  _worst_!" he laughed, shoving both your shoulders playfully.

"You've known this for  _at least_  two years, Ash; Don't act so surprised  _now_ ," you winked at him before turning your attention to Michael. "Now what's this I hear about you yelling at my poor, sweet Lukey?" you asked him with an obnoxious pout, making Luke roll his eyes while Ashton and Calum just snickered.

"I was just  _joking_!" Michael whined.

"With  _no_   _smiles_?" you repeated what Luke had told you. The blonde then huffed lightly.

"He's been complaining about missing you since the moment we  _left home_ , Y/N!" he said defensively with a pout on his face, "It was getting annoying! I couldn't  _take it_  anymore!"

"Like  _you're_  any better about missing  _your_  girlfriend," Luke frowned, coming up behind you and wrapping his arms around your waist.

"That's different," Michael insisted.

"How is that  _different_?!" Ashton laughed.

"I'm not  _annoying_ about it."

"You keep telling yourself that, Mike," Calum snorted softly. You giggled under your breath at the frown on Michael's face before deciding to put him out of his misery.

"Have you guys finished soundcheck?" you asked.

"No, we were just taking a break," Ashton told you, "Why?"

"I wanna hear the new instruments you guys were so excited about!"

"Oh, right!" Michael chirped, "You haven't seen them yet!"

"Well, I've  _seen_  them," you said, "Just not  _in person_."

"If you play your cards right, we might even let you  _touch 'em_ ," Luke snickered.

"Ooh," Calum snickered, "Luke's never offered to let someone  _touch_  his new guitar before."

" _Lucky me_ ," you rolled your eyes, only to squeal when your boyfriend suddenly released you so he could throw you over his shoulder. " _Lucas_!" you shrieked in surprise, only making the four boys laughed as they walked back to the stage to finish soundcheck.

~

_inspiration: 5sos-imaginezzzz.tumblr.com/post/148457182319/luke-text-you-surprise-him-on-tour-yn-pov-i_


	480. Slip of the Tongue (Trevor Collins)

_i only wrote this to make a daddy joke tbh and it escalated very quickly_

~

**Trevor's POV**

"Hey, Trevor!"

Trevor turned look over his shoulder to find one of the newer Rooster Teeth employees – Derek, who started working there about two months ago – jogging up to him. He stopped walking, allowing him to catch up, curious as to what he had to say.

"What's up?" he asked.

"Nothing much – I just have a question," Derek said. Trevor simply motioned for him to continue. "You and Y/N work in the same office, right?"

"She sits at the desk beside mine, yeah," he nodded.

"Does she ever...mention me...or anything?" he wondered. Trevor cocked an eyebrow – of  _all_  the things Derek could have wanted to ask him about, why did it have to be  _you_?

"What do you mean?"

"I mean... I try to talk to her, but she doesn't really seem... _into it_ , I guess you could say," he told him.

"It takes a while for her to warm up to people," Trevor mentioned, "She's not really the extroverted type until she's known you for a few months."

"Ah, okay – good to know she doesn't just hate me," Derek nodded, "So does that mean she's not seeing anyone?"

"Huh?"

"Y/N," he said, "Is she single?"

"She doesn't really talk about her dating life with me," Trevor lied.

"How long have you known her then?" Derek wondered, "Not long?"

"What does that matter?"

"Well, you say she doesn't warm up to people right away," he shrugged, "I would assume that means you haven't known her long since she doesn't talk to you."

"She just doesn't talk about her dating life in general," he replied, his jaw tightening slightly, "Has nothing to do with how long we've known each other."

"Well, if you've known her for a while, maybe try putting in a good word for me?" he suggested, "I'd love to take her out if she's not seeing anyone."

"Sure," Trevor grumbled – though he knew  _damn well_  he wasn't going to talk to you about someone who  _clearly_  wanted to date you.

"Trev," the two men suddenly heard a timid voice down the hall. Trevor's head snapped over at the sound of his nickname – only  _one_  person called him that – and he found you standing in the doorway of the Achievement Hunter office.

You were normally very shy and reserved when it came to being by yourself or around people you didn't know well, but when it came to Trevor, you could become quite rowdy and loud. And while he wished you would come out of your shell more, it caused butterflies in his stomach knowing you were  _that_  comfortable around him.

"Hey, Y/N," he said, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," you said softly, your gaze flicking between him and Derek as you spoke, "You're not busy, are you?"

"No," he assured you, "Do you need something?"

"Will you be in the Play Pals video with me?"

"Yeah!" he chirped, "I'll be right there!" You smiled slightly, making his heart skip, as you disappeared back into the office. "Duty calls," Trevor told Derek, "See you later."

"Don't forget to mention me!" Derek called after him. Trevor simply waved his hand without turning to look at him, going into the office and wiping the annoyed look off his face before you saw it.

"Ready?" Trevor asked, making you look up at him. You hummed in response, clicking record on the webcam so you could get started.

"We're not starting off with a song," you shook your head, "I'm sorry."

"And everyone has  _immediately_  clicked out of the video," Trevor commented, scooting Gavin's chair over to where you were sat at Michael's desk.

"They still have to have time to comment about how upset they are because ' _Play Pals is supposed to be Michael and Gavin!_ '-" You put on a funny voice. "-even though Michael and Gavin are  _clearly_  not in the thumbnail."

"You are just roasting  _everyone_  today, aren't you?" he chuckled lightly, "You really  _went for it_  during Minecraft earlier."

"It's a direct result of not receiving enough affection."

"I give you affection all the time though!"

"I meant affection from someone I  _care about_ ," you replied without missing a beat.

"You know what? You're fired," Trevor stated, though he was clearly trying not to smile.

"You're not gonna fire me," you rolled your eyes, "You like  _looking at me_  too much." You didn't notice him nod to himself as you went on, looking back at the webcam. "Hi, everyone that's made it this far," you smiled sweetly, "As you can obviously tell, Michael and Gav aren't here – they died doing what they love-"

"Each other," Trevor interjected.

"Right," you nodded, "But I heard they'll be coming back to life next week, or whenever their vacation time is up – I don't remember which one. So, instead, you guys get me and Treyco for this week's Play Pals."

"The dream team –  _better_  than Michael and Gavin, even!" he sighed dramatically, making you roll your eyes and laugh.

"We're not doing any new games or any games that people have been asking to be in a Play Pals because we know everyone asks with the intent on Michael and Gavin playing them, so we're just gonna play a few games that they've already done and see if we're any better at them," you shrugged, "What do you wanna start with, Trev?"

"Anything?" he asked you.

"Whatever you want," you nodded.

"I mean, I really liked the  _Slender_  video from like, 6 years ago that they did."

"As long as you promise not to end up on my lap when you get scared," you smirked.

Trevor simply pouted, "Maybe we  _shouldn't_  play it then." You snorted softly.

"If you get scared, you can hold my hand," you told him, not realizing the comment had made him smile at you. "You want mouse or keyboard?" you asked.

"Mouse," he replied instantly, scooting up to the desk even further, "I wanna  _master_ the art of picking up pages."

"Okay, Trev," you giggled under your breath, "You do that."

You opened up the folder you'd created on Michael's desktop of potential games beforehand just to make things easier on you. You would have done the video at your actual desk, but since Michael already had the games, you decided this would be easier – and you texted Michael and he gave you permission to use his system anyway.  _Slender_  loaded up and you and Trevor began playing.

As predicted, the moment Slenderman popped up on the background after Trevor had turned around, he nearly jumped out of his seat. You were laughing as he turned back in the direction you were originally going to you could run away, making him frown.

"Don't laugh at me!" he whined, "It's scary!"

"We don't  _have_  to play this, Trev," you snickered as the static screen finally faded away and returned to normal so you could continue about your search, "We can move on to something more tame." You paused for a moment. "Like  _Five Nights at Freddy's_ ," you told him, hearing him sigh.

"Now you're just  _mocking me_ ," he stated as you giggled again.

~

After you and Trevor decided you were done with that game – after being caught by Slenderman every single time and never making it to the fifth page – you moved on to another. It was one of the more classic games Gavin and Michael played together:  _QWOP_.

That, however, was almost immediately abandoned because you were both getting upset and you didn't want to break anything on Michael's desk – although, you knew as soon as Michael heard why you'd broken something, he would have understood; you just didn't want to risk it.

~

"Move to Gav's computer so we can play this next game," you told Trevor, "I already loaded it and turned on the mic and webcam and stuff."

" _I get it_ ," he pouted, "You don't  _wanna_ be beside me anymore."

"I can only handle your cologne for so long, Trev," you smiled, watching him kick his chair back to Gavin's desk.

" _You_  bought it for me!" he reminded you, laughing himself.

"And it smells  _great_  until I have to breathe it in for more than  _ten minutes_  at a time," you teased, "Okay, are you ready to refresh?"

"Ready!" Trevor announced.

"I named our game ' _Best Baby_ '," you informed him, making him laugh again, "And...  _Go_!" Trevor refreshed his page and immediately clicked ' _join_ ' on the game.

"Did I get it?" he asked.

"I guess we'll see," you shrugged. Both of you waited for the screen to fade in. " _Oh_ ," you sang, " _I'm a baby_!"

"And I'm a dad; This looks promising," Trevor mentioned, "How do I know this baby is you?"

"I'll knock over my crib in a fit of baby rage because you haven't given me my bottle yet," you informed him. You did exactly that as Trevor laughed again at your reasoning.

"Looks like I'm your daddy, Y/N," he snickered upon discovering you were both, in fact, in the same game.

"Always," you smirked, looking over to blow him a kiss.

~

You played a couple rounds each of you and Trevor switching between the role of the daddy and the baby before moving on to play one final game for the video.

"What should we play now?" Trevor asked.

"Uh..." you trailed off, looking through your list of games, "What about  _Catch a Lover_?"

"Isn't that a four-player?"

"I'm sure it won't be that difficult to find two more people to join for a few rounds," you shrugged.

Trevor instantly got up, leaving the office to recruit the first two people he found. Unfortunately, he wasn't particularly excited about the selection.

"Hey, guys!" he called, causing Ryan and Derek to look over, "You wanna play a game with Y/N and I for a few minutes?"

"Sure," Ryan shrugged as he and Derek came toward him. And Trevor would be lying if he said the smile on Derek's face didn't make him want to punch him.

"What are we playing?" Derek asked, making you look up as the three men walked through the door. Trevor noticed you gulp slightly, though he couldn't decipher what  _exactly_  the motion translated to.

" _Catch a Lover_ ," you said softly.

"Nice!" Ryan chuckled, "Treyco, you using Gav's computer?" Trevor simply nodded. "Alright, we'll have Derek sit at Jack's." Trevor noticed you sigh softly –  _relief?_  – as Ryan led Derek around the group of desks so everyone could set up their webcams and get the game loaded.

"I'm gonna be the wife!" you announced, clicking on the character before anyone else could.

"I call the dog!" Ryan exclaimed, clicking the character as well.

"I'll be the  _lover_ ," Derek snickered, peeking over Jack's computer monitor to wink at you. Trevor glanced at you to find you smiling slightly, a light pink tint on your cheeks.

"I guess that makes me the husband," he said as normally as he could.

"So what am I supposed to do?" Derek asked.

"You have to find all your clothes without being caught by the husband," Ryan explained, "If my memory serves me correctly, it's just shirt and pants."

"Sounds easy enough," he shrugged.

The four of you were having fun messing around in the game as Derek hunted for the clothing. Trevor noticed him look at you quite a bit, smiling at how rowdy you were getting – a nice change from your  _normal_  demeanor around him, in his opinion. He wanted nothing more than to hit Derek – although he knew that was a little much, he didn't care – so the only way he could get out at least some of his frustration, he knew he had to find him in the game.

"Honey, who's  _this_?!" Trevor gasped obnoxiously, "There's an  _intruder_  in our house!"

"No one's here, darling!" you continued your act as well, "What are you talking about?"

"Bark, bark!" Ryan's character ran into the room, making you laugh.

"I saw a man with no clothes on!" he ran around the corner and through another door, gasping again, " _Who are you_?!"

"No one!" Derek replied, scurrying around the kitchen table to go back out the door he came in, "Just a simple gardener here to tend to all your garden needs!"

"We don't  _have_  a garden!" Trevor insisted.

"Of course we do, dear!" you followed the two around, "I hired him to help me get started on it! I told you I want to start growing some tomatoes!"

"Why is he in his underwear?"

"Uh... It's his company's uniform!" you replied. Trevor finally caught up to Derek, making a small grunting sound with each punch his character threw. "Honey,  _please_!" you pretended to cry, "Don't do this! He's just a simple gardener trying to do his job!" You all laughed when the final punch was thrown and ' _Congratulations! You win!_ ' was on Trevor's screen.

"Oh my  _God_!" Derek laughed loudly, "You  _murdered_  me!"

"That's what you get for sleeping with my wife!" Trevor replied.

"I must not have been very into it if  _my_  clothes were still on," you commented with a giggle.

"Maybe your husband came home before you could take them off," Ryan mentioned.

"It's only cheating if he puts his dick in me," you said casually, making everyone laugh.

"You wouldn't  _actually_  cheat on me, would you, honey?" Trevor pouted, looking over at you.

" _Never_ , dear," you assured him with another giggle, reaching over and patting his arm before you started another round.

~

An hour and a half later, you were back at your desk editing the video before its scheduled upload date. You'd edited everything but  _Catch a Lover_  so far, deciding to just power through the rest of the process before rewarding yourself with a snack. But as you were editing, you noticed something peculiar.

You obviously weren't watching Trevor as you were playing the game, so it wasn't until now that you noticed  _just_  how he was reacting to having other people in the room with you. Well... You quickly came to realize it wasn't so much  _Ryan's_  presence as it was  _Derek's_. Trevor would become quiet or snippy whenever he walked into a room and you and Derek were already standing there talking, and it wasn't until  _now_  that it clicked in your head as to  _why_.

"Hey, Trev," you said, making him look up from his phone in the middle of his break from editing the Minecraft Let's Play you'd filmed with him earlier that day, as you slid your headphones to lie on your neck. You had your elbow on your desk and your chin in your hand as you looked over your shoulder at him. He cocked an eyebrow at the smile on your face, but he wasn't able to speak before you were. "Has anyone ever told you how cute you look when you're jealous?" you asked him.

"No..." he trailed off, "Why  _would they_?"

"'Cause you  _are_ ," you grinned, putting your headphones back on and turning back to your computer.

"What are you talking about?" he asked, scooting his chair over to you so he could see your screen. Your headphones were plugged in so he couldn't hear anything as you continued editing, but he could  _visibly_  tell his facecam showed his jealousy during the Play Pals more than he originally anticipated.

Trevor's gaze returned to you, finding a small smile on your face. You knew he was watching you but you still tried to conceal your grin – though you knew you weren't doing a very good job. Since it was a quiet moment in the recording, you could hear Trevor let out a small huff.

" _Wasn't jealous_ ," he murmured to himself, scooting back to his own desk. You moved your hand to your cheek so you could smile a little bigger without him seeing it, and things in the office were quiet again for the next 20 or so minutes.

When you finally finished editing the  _Catch a Lover_  portion of the video, you added it to the rest of the video and saved your work. You decided to go to the kitchen to get something to eat before you watched the whole thing through before sending it to the person who would ultimately upload it to YouTube, just wanting to make sure you liked it and didn't leave out anything you thought the viewers would find funny.

Before leaving though, you looked over at Trevor, finding him chewing on his cheek as he stared at his own computer screen whilst editing his own video. You watched him for a moment before taking your headphones off, setting them on your desk, and leaning back in your chair.

"Trev," you said. He didn't look over, telling you that his volume was too loud for him to hear anything else. But you didn't feel like waiting for him to finish.

Trevor jumped slightly when he felt your hand grab the arm of his chair, looking over when you pulled yourself to him. He knew that meant you wanted to talk, so he slowly slid his headphones down to lie on his neck, looking over at you.

"I don't have to keep that game in the video if you don't want," you told him.

"Why would I care if you put it in?" he asked.

"I dunno," you shrugged, "I'm just saying... If  _I_  noticed, so will other people. I'm sure you weren't  _actually_  jealous – it just  _looked it_. I won't put it in though; Don't worry."

You rolled your chair back to your desk before getting up to head to the kitchen in search of a snack. You pushed your chair in and stepped away, but you were surprised to feel a hand wrap around your wrist. Trevor turned you around and pulled you back to him, looking up at you after putting his headphone down beside his keyboard.

"And what if I  _was_?" he asked. You furrowed your eyebrows in confusion, causing him to go on. "What if I  _was_  actually jealous?" he clarified, " _Then what_?" You opened your mouth to speak, but nothing was coming out. "Why do you seem to think you're no one to get jealous over?" he asked when you didn't say anything, "Guys flirt with you all the time, right? Why  _wouldn't_  I get jealous about that?" And with that confession, you suddenly became  _indescribably_  nervous.

"Because we're just... You've never... I'm not..." you stuttered out, making him chuckle softly. Your stomach erupted in butterflies when Trevor slid his hand off of your wrist and down to your hand, starting to rub circles on the back of it with his thumb.

"You're a  _perfect_  candidate to get jealous over, Y/N," he shook his head, making you swallow thickly.

"Trevor..." you grumbled, "What... What are you saying...?"

" _I'm saying_  I'd like to take you out," he told you, his voice coming out as nervously as he felt, "If that's something you'd like too, I mean..." He couldn't ignore the sound of your breath hitching and the sight of you beginning to chew on your bottom lip.

"I  _would_  like that," you whispered, causing him to let out a deep sigh.

" _You would_?" he asked, "You're not just say-"

"No," you assured him, your voice still small, "I'd like it a lot." His eyes widened and he looked back at his computer screen.

"We're taking lunch now," he announced, quickly saving his work and closing all the windows on his desktop. He hopped up from his seat, still holding your hand, and began pulling you toward the door.

"Trevor!" you squeaked with a giggle, "My jacket!"

"You can have mine," he insisted, already unzipping it. He only let go of your hand to take off the jacket and put it on you, but your fingers were laced together once your hand popped out of the sleeve. You couldn't help but start biting your lip again, trying to repress the smile you felt pulling at the corners of your mouth.

"' _Wasn't jealous_ ', huh?" you asked. Trevor only responded by squeezing your hand, pulling you right up against him, and letting his lips hit the side of your forehead.

"Slip of the tongue," he shrugged, smiling when you snorted softly.

"Sure, it was."

~

_in case u want to watch one of the videos mentioned:_   
_Slender: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvYrA9rCjy4_   
_QWOP: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_MpazrXAlY_   
_Who's Your Daddy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XapGFDSO2nQ_   
_Catch a Lover (it's not a play pals but i had to ok): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sDBPj_7lyl8_

_if you also wanna watch the five nights video, i highly recommend it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFWEoCf2PKI_


	481. Baby Boy (Maxx Danziger)

_requested by ifyousayyouloveme on tumblr_

~

"So, Y/N," Zach's evil grin was on full display, "What's Maxx like in bed?"

You weren't at all surprised to find yourself in this situation. You were in the band's dressing room before a show and one of the ways they would kill time beforehand was by embarrassing the absolute  _crap_  out of each other. You were never really part of the ritual – you just sat next to Maxx on the couch and listened in – but you  _would_  laugh along for a while until you decided to leave and find a spot in the crowd like you always did. So when you heard your name, you were a bit surprised.

But what you  _weren't_  surprised with was the  _question_.

"We really don't need to talk about it," Maxx insisted before you could respond, but you didn't give anyone else a chance to challenge him.

"So you're saying I  _shouldn't_  mention your daddy kink?" you asked him.

" _Y/N_!" Maxx shouted while the rest of the band's jaws dropped, shock written all over their faces.

"I'm sorry – do you  _not_  like it when I talk about our sex life in front of your friends?" you smirked, "I just thought you  _did_  considering you've been telling them  _all about_  what  _I'm_  into." Your boyfriend shrunk down in his seat slightly.

"How'd you find out about that?" he mumbled.

"Maxx, did you  _honestly_  think they  _weren't_  going to make fun of me for apparently ' _liking it when you bang me harder than your drums_ '?" you rolled your eyes.

" _I didn't say that_!" he exclaimed, shooting back up in his seat.

"It was implied when you said she liked it rough after concerts when you're still sweaty," Zach snickered. You shot another glare at Maxx while he just avoided eye contact.

"Wait," Cody grinned mischievously, "Does Maxx  _actually_  have a daddy kink?"

"No," you replied, making him look at you again as you stood up.

"Are you saying that because he  _doesn't_  or because he's  _here_?" Dan wondered.

"Because he doesn't," you shook your head while walking backwards in the direction of the door. You stopped at the doorframe though, leaning up against it. "He  _does_  like it when I call him ' _baby boy_ ' though," you stated truthfully, hearing Maxx let out a soft groan as he covered his face with his hands – he should have  _known_  he wasn't getting off  _that_  easy.

" _Does he_   _now_?" the boys smirked simultaneously, their gazes flicking back to an embarrassed looking Maxx while you simply giggled.

"Have a good show, guys!" you chirped, causing them all to look back at you.

"Thanks, Y/N!" your three friends said in unison before Cody continued, "Have fun out in the crowd! Be careful!" You nodded in response with a smile, allowing that smile to turn into a smirk when your eyes met your boyfriend's.

"I'll see you after the show,  _baby boy_ ," you winked at Maxx, hearing his friends  _already_  making fun of him before you closed the door behind you.

And sure, maybe you knew you were  _in for it_  when the time came to be with Maxx again once the fans filed out of the venue, the band's instruments were all packed up, and you were all back at home.

But you'd be lying if you said you weren't more excited for it than you'd  _ever_  been before.


	482. Even If It's Just Pretend (Luke Hemmings)

You'd read a lot of stories about actors who  _hated_  their on-screen love interest, but you were happy to say that you and your co-star got on as well  _off-screen_  as you did when cameras were  _rolling_. You and Luke had never met before filming started, but it was  _obvious_  the two of you had chemistry at the table read of the script. You hadn't really dated much since your big break in Hollywood, but you could  _honestly_  see yourself dating him. Unfortunately,  _he_  didn't view  _you_  in the same way.

It was actually at the movie's premiere that you found out he was already seeing someone, your heart dropping as you watched the girl hang all over Luke.

You knew it was just a movie, but... The time spent filming with Luke felt  _real_ ; You really  _did_  feel like he had  _real_  feelings for you. And what really solidified those thoughts was the way he  _kissed you_. The kissing scenes were the ones you were always looking forward to the most, but... But he was just  _acting_. What  _you_  felt was genuine and you felt fireworks and weak knees and racing hearts... But it didn't mean  _anything_  to him.

Throughout the red carpet portion of the premiere – the part where paparazzi were shouting and there were camera flashes coming from every direction – you and Luke posed for pictures. You were incredibly impressed by how well you faked your smiles and lovey poses with him because no one seemed to notice anything different.

The girl Luke  _came with_ , however, was a different story.

It seemed like she could tell from the  _moment_  you stepped out of your car that you had feelings for her boyfriend or publicity stunt or fuck buddy or  _whoever he was_  to her. Her eyes were trained on you the entire time you and Luke were taking photos, a small smirk on her face. You managed to ignore her though, never so much as giving her a direct glance when you knew she was looking at you.

Actually  _watching_  the film was a little more difficult with the girl's snide remarks during scenes where you and Luke were touching – and it was  _especially_  bad every time you  _kissed_. But you powered through, and you went home that night just as you'd done every night before:  _alone_.

~

**Three weeks later; Friday morning**

You woke up the morning with a small sigh of relief, happy you didn't have to see Luke anymore. Last weekend marked the last days of promo for the movie, which meant you'd been free to do whatever you wanted  _without_   _Luke_  for the past week.

You started that morning as you always did – checking your notifications and scrolling through Twitter mentions, laughing at and liking the ones that made you smile – before you decided to get up, get dressed, and go to your favorite local coffee shop for breakfast.

You took pictures with fans and happily signed everything they asked you to – both on the way  _to_  the shop and on the way  _out_. You finally broke away from the business of the city and walked to a park so you could walk around, finishing the rest of your drink before you'd head home and try to decide what else to do that day.

Unfortunately, though, you weren't alone for long.

"Y/N!" you heard behind you, making you look over your shoulder. You let out a subtle breath, your heart racing, as your co-star jogged toward you in his workout gear. "Hey!" he smiled, "I heard you were here! Thought I'd run through the park instead today!"

"Now that production is over, you have to  _stalk me_  to see what I'm up to?" you asked with a small smirk on your face, taking the last sip of your drink before tossing it into a trashcan as you passed it.

"Well, how  _else_  am I supposed to find out?" he pouted jokingly.

" _Text me_ ," you chuckled.

"Where's the fun in  _that_?" he scoffed, making you laugh softly again. "Anyway," he chirped, grinning at the sound of your laugh, "I was wondering if you're doing anything later?"

"Not sure," you shrugged, "Haven't decided yet."

"Well, if you're up for it, I'd love to take you out to dinner." You looked at him and he seemed incredibly shy, a side of Luke you weren't  _too_  familiar with seeing.

" _For_...?" you trailed off, your eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"You know..." he scratched the back of his neck, "It's been a bit since we last saw each other... Thought we could catch up or something... I don't wanna  _not_  see you anymore just because filming is done..."

"I'd be more careful about the  _wording_  next time then," you mentioned, "It was starting to sound like you were asking me on a date."

Luke was silent for a moment before you heard his small voice, "I  _am_..."

"You are  _what_?" you asked.

"I  _am_  asking you on a date..." he said. You immediately stopped walking, causing Luke to stop as well.

"Does your  _girlfriend_  know you're asking other people on dates?" you wondered out loud.

" _My girlfriend_?" he furrowed his own eyebrows in confusion.

"You know," you insisted, "The girl you took to the movie premiere whose name I don't know nor  _care_  to learn."

"She's not my girlfriend," he shook his head.

"That's a  _good one_ ," you snorted softly, "Almost had me there for a second." You started walking again, speaking when you heard Luke start walking as well. "It was really nice seeing you again, Luke, but I'm gonna go home now," you said, "Tell your girlfriend I said hello." Luke huffed out again, just wanting you to  _listen to him_.

"Holly's  _not_  my girlfriend!" Luke exclaimed.

You couldn't keep yourself from freezing again, causing him to almost run into you. You stared at him in disbelief – how could she  _not_  be his girlfriend with the way she was  _hanging all over him_  in front of you like that? When he noticed you were speechless, he took it as an opportunity to continue speaking.

"She was  _just_  for publicity!" he shook his head.

" _Publicity_  is having the two  _movie stars_  date, Luke," you reminded him, "Not bringing in someone  _totally different_."

"She doesn't  _mean_  anything to me!" he said defensively.

"With the way she was holding onto you on the red carpet?" you laughed bitterly, " _I don't think so_."

"Why are you so upset about it anyway?" he asked you, "It was a  _movie_ , Y/N! We were  _acting_!"

"Maybe  _you were_ , but  _I wasn't_ ," you swallowed thickly, finally letting your emotions take control, "Maybe you didn't feel a  _goddamn_  thing for me during filming, but I felt  _everything_  for you. But you know what? That's _fine_. I'm  _glad_  this whole thing is over and I  _never_  have to see you again."

"Y/N..." Luke said softly as you started walking away again. You didn't stop this time though, not wanting to be pulled back in just to get your heart  _re_ -broken.

Luke, however, wasn't about to let you slip away from him. He marched up behind you, grabbed your elbow, and spun you back around before planting his lips firmly on yours.

As much as you wanted to hate him, you knew you couldn't. You knew you couldn't stop yourself from melting whenever he touched you or stop the butterflies in your stomach when he kissed you. Your feelings for Luke weren't going to just disappear overnight – otherwise, they would have been  _gone_  already. And as much as you didn't  _want_  to kiss him back,  _you did_.

When Luke felt you start kissing him, his hands moved to your hips and pulled your body into his. Your own hands slid up his torso and to his cheeks, holding him in place as if he was even thinking about moving any time soon.

You finally had to pull away for air, but there wasn't a moment to process anything.

"How did that feel?" Luke murmured as his forehead dropped to yours, his thumbs rubbing your hipbones. Unsure of what he was leading up to, you didn't answer – you just let him continue. "Did that feel like it did when we were filming our scenes for the movie?" he asked, to which you barely nodded. "But there are no cameras around and we don't have a script anymore, do we?" You swallowed again, now knowing what he was doing. "As much as you want to convince yourself I don't feel anything for you, you know just as well as I do that you're not going to kiss someone you're not in love with like  _that_  –  _even_  if you're acting." Your heart skipped a beat as you stared at him.

"You're  _in love_  with me?" you whispered. Luke smiled slightly, leaning in and kissing you quickly.

"I  _am_ ," he confirmed, "I've been in countless movies and had hundreds of on-screen kisses, but I've  _never_  had one that was as  _convincing_  as the ones we did – because I've never  _felt_  the way I feel about you about  _anyone else_. You make my heart race every time you look at me and I'm surprised nobody ever noticed just how  _nervous_  I was on set with you."

"You never got nervous around me," you insisted.

"First day of shooting, I was waiting for the table read to start because you'd been running late from shooting a commercial earlier that morning," he said, "My manager  _refused_  to tell me who got the co-lead and I knew why the  _moment_  you stepped into the room. I swear I fell in love with you the moment I saw your first movie the day it came out in theaters."

" _No_!" you whined, "That movie was so  _bad_!" Luke laughed, sliding his hands off your hips so he could wrap his arms around your waist and squeeze lightly.

"But  _you_  were so  _good_ ," he teased, "I've wanted to do a movie with you for  _so long_ ; Honestly, I should have known  _you_  were co-star when my manager told me it was a surprise – he'd never  _not_  told me before. But you came into table read, telling everyone you were sorry for being late, and do you remember what happened when you introduced yourself to me?" You were silent for a moment before you started giggling.

"You couldn't remember your name," you told him.

" _My own name_ , Y/N!" he brought you  _even_  closer to him with a smile, "The name I've had since the day I was  _born_! I  _couldn't_  remember it! I was so smitten that I  _forgot my name_!"

"You've gotten  _better_  though!" you insisted, only to squeal lightly when he started poking your sides. He wouldn't let up, so you decided the only way to get him to stop was by kissing him, so that was what you did.

You felt Luke let out a breath as he smiled against your lips, taking the hint and ceasing the tickling. One of your arms was draped over his shoulders while your hand held your wrist, loosely hugging him. His arms were wound  _tightly_  around  _you_  though, just wanting to remind himself that this  _was_  happening and it  _wasn't_  a dream this time.

"So, dinner tonight?" Luke murmured when you both pulled away for air, "You and me? Wherever you want?" You felt your cheeks getting warmer as you nodded shyly.

"Yeah, Luke," you confirmed, "I'd love to." He smiled brightly, pecking your lips again before letting go of you.

"I'll pick you up at 7?" he wondered, making you nod again. "Yeah," he nodded as well, more to himself than to you, "I'll see you tonight!" He went to leave, but your voice stopped him.

"Luke..." you said softly, unsure he'd even heard it until he stopped and turned around. You opened and closed your mouth a few times before finally forcing the words out. "I think... I'm in love with you too..."

You weren't even given a moment to process your own words before Luke hurried back up to you, grabbed your cheeks, and let his lips come crashing back to yours. You gripped the sides of his shirt in your fists, not expecting the kiss but not mad about it either. Luke was the first to pull away, chuckling softly to himself.

"If I don't stop kissing you  _now_ , I don't think I  _ever will_ ," he mentioned, earning a soft snort from you.

"You say that like it's a  _bad thing_ ," you pointed out, making him laugh again.

"I'll see you tonight," he told you, pressing a kiss to your forehead. You nodded, pressing your own kiss to his nose, making him scrunch it up before you finally allowed the other to walk away, each of you already planning your outfits for your date.

~

_inspiration: "Wildest Dreams" by Taylor Swift_

_a better wildest dreams inspired imagine u could read: http://daniellesimagines.tumblr.com/post/144872508247/wildest-dreams-ryan-folles%C3%A9-imagine_


	483. In An Instant (Ashton Irwin) - Part 5

_requested by rimirox25 and anonymous on tumblr_

**Warning: Kidnapping**

~

"Our best option at this point is to contact him through Commander Adams' email, set up a meeting point, and nab Jakoby when he gets there," Michael stated, "Then we bring him back here and interrogate him until he tells us where the girl is."

The team was standing in the middle of their desks, trying to come up with a strategy to save the kidnapped 14-year-old daughter of a Navy Commander who was being blackmailed for  _supposed_  embezzlement. The Commander was completely innocent, but it seemed like someone had a personal vendetta against him and had kidnapped his daughter, now holding her for ransom. The men knew they had to think of a way to get Alina back without putting Commander Adams at risk...

They just didn't know  _how_  yet.

"He's outsmarted us and managed to stay one step ahead ever since we found his license plate and figured out who he is," Calum pointed out, "What makes you think this time will be any  _different_?"

"He can't get away from  _four_  of us," he insisted.

"Who's to say that he won't notice you guys just standing in the same area and looking around for him?" you asked, walking back into the room after your bathroom break, "No offense, but you guys don't exactly  _blend in_  towering over a crowd."

"We don't  _tower_ ," Michael rolled his eyes again. You simply shrugged, perching yourself on the side edge of Luke's desk.

"Well, what other options do we  _have_?" Ashton asked, "We can't raise suspicions or we'll never get Alina back and who  _knows_  what Jakoby will do to her?"

"She's just  _leverage_ ," Calum reminded him, "If he does anything to her, he knows he won't get what he wants. He needs  _her_  to get the Commander's  _money_."

"Then let's just  _give it_  to him," Luke spoke up.

"Quick question, Hemmings," Michael cocked an eyebrow, "Are you  _actually_  insane?"

" _No_ ," Luke rolled his own eyes that time, "I'm just saying maybe if we give him the money, he'll tell us where Alina is."

"And who  _exactly_  is he going to tell?" Calum wondered, "He's sure as hell not gonna tell any of  _us_."

"We could send Y/N to go undercover," he said, earning glances from his team.

"I'm sorry," you started laughing, "It sounded like you just used ' _Y/N_ ' and ' _send undercover_ ' in the same sentence." He looked at you for a moment and your smile dropped as your heart skipped a beat. "Luke, I am a  _forensic scientist_ , not a  _field agent_!" you exclaimed, "I can't go  _undercover_!"

"Absolutely not," Ashton agreed monotonously, causing the blonde to sigh abruptly.

"Listen, I know it's an  _unusual_  approach to send Y/N, but I really think it's the best shot we  _have_  right now!" he defended, "All she has to do is deliver the money and have him tell her where Alina is!"

"Then send one of  _us_  to do it!" his boss replied.

"Remember how we got a call saying he knows we visited Commander Adams' office? That means he's already  _seen_  us! If  _we_  show up, he's going to  _know_  something is up! I would have suggested Annalise, but..."

"He's got a point," you murmured, making the men look at you, "Annalise isn't exactly  _grace under pressure_."

"To be fair, neither are you..." Michael pointed out, "Remember when Katie was kid-"

"I  _found_  out who did it,  _didn't I_?" you glared at him – he immediately backed off.

"Y/N," Luke sighed, coming over to you and putting his hands on your shoulders, "I know you're not a field agent, but I  _know_  you can do this. It's not like we're sending you to meet him some dark alley in a bad part of D.C. You'll have a wire and it'll be a public place with so many witnesses that, even if he  _was_  planning on doing anything to you after he got the money, he wouldn't be able to get away with it without  _everyone_  knowing what he looks like.  _All_  you have to do is hand over a backpack and tell us the moment he leaves after he tells you where Alina is." You looked at Luke for a moment before nodding.

"I'll do it," you confirmed.

"Y/N-" Ashton started before your head snapped over to look at him.

" _I can do it_ ,  _Ashton_ ," you told him.

~

**Two hours later**

"I think I'm gonna  _throw up_ ," you grumbled as you sat on a park bench, looking around at all the people.

The kidnapper had gotten the message from Commander Adams – written by the team, obviously – that his assistant would meet him at the park at 1pm to deliver the ransom. He obviously took the bait and you were now playing the waiting game. You'd been there for about 10 minutes now, looking for anyone that could possibly be coming toward you with the intent of sitting next to you. Luke and Ashton were in MTAC so they could listen in on your conversation with the kidnapper.

"You're gonna be fine, Y/N," you heard Luke assure you, "He told us he wouldn't try anything except for getting the money and giving you Alina's whereabouts."

"He's a  _criminal_ , Luke – forgive me for not believing he's a man of his word." Luke went to speak again, but you cut him off. "Incoming," you informed softly, keeping your head forward as a man approached the bench. He sat down next to you – a few inches away – and looked around as he spoke.

"You Commander Adams' assistant?" he asked lowly.

"You who I'm supposed to meeting?" you returned.

"You bring what I asked for?"

"Every penny," you told him, picking up the backpack from the ground between your legs and holding it up for him to take. "Where's the Commander's daughter?" you asked him as he took the backpack from you. He unzipped the backpack to check and make sure that the money was in it before reaching into his coat pocket and handing you a flip phone.

"Wait here," he said under his breath, zipping the backpack back up, "You'll receive a call when I'm out of sight – then I'll tell you where the girl is." You nodded again, watching as he stood up, slung the backpack onto his shoulder, and jogged off into a crowd of people.

"He's leaving the park..." you informed the men on the other end of your wire, "...I lost sight of him."

"Get ready to track the number," Ashton told the people at the computers along the left wall, causing them to give him a thumbs-up in confirmation.

You took that time to flip the phone open, a bit confused when it didn't light up. You pushed a couple buttons and then your breathing hitched. You turned the phone over and popped the back cover off, finding there was no battery inside the phone.

" _Oh, boy_..." you whispered, forgetting anyone was listening until you heard Ashton speak.

"What, Y/N?" he asked, "What's happening?" You didn't respond – you just took off your earwig out and put it in your pocket.

**Ashton's POV**

The sound of your earwig rubbing against the fabric made a sharp sound in Ashton and Luke's earpieces, causing them to quickly take them off.

"What was that?" Ashton asked.

"I don't think she can hear us anymore, Boss..." Luke responded.

"Why not?!" he exclaimed.

"She took out the earwig..." he said sheepishly.

" _God damn it, Y/N_ ," Ashton mumbled, tossing his earpiece onto the sound board and storming out of the room. He grabbed his phone from his pocket and dialed your number, but he only heard one ring before it cut off – signaling to him that you'd ignored the call.

**Your POV**

"Okay..." you whispered to yourself after shoving your phone back into your pocket, "He gains  _nothing_  from killing Alina... He can't use the same van to take her anywhere because he knows the police are looking for it... But he knows if she isn't found  _soon_ , an AMBER Alert will go out and he'll  _never_  get away... So what does he do?" You looked around, trying to find some sort of clue, when you caught a break.

A tow truck was on the road along the park, about to pick up a dark blue van. As you looked closer, you could see the bottom of the passenger side door was chipping, revealing white paint.

Your eyes widened, "He paints the van."

You immediately ran across the mulch of the playground area, toward the van. As the tow truck driver got out and cocked an eyebrow at you, you pulled your NCIS badge out of your inner coat pocket and showed it to him without a word, stuffing it back inside so you could open the van door. You heard crying as soon as the door slid open – Alina understandably thinking it was the person who kidnapped her – but her body relaxed the moment she saw  _you_  instead.

" _Alina_ ," you breathed, climbing into the van, "I'm Y/N; I work at NCIS. Are you okay?" She nodded rapidly as you took the duct tape off of her mouth and took out your pocket knife to cut the tape around her wrists and ankles. The moment she was free, the 14-year-old threw her arms around your neck and hugged you tightly, knowing she was safe now – and you squeezed her right back.

~

10 minutes later, Alina was riding piggy back on you as the elevator doors opened to let you onto the third floor of the NCIS building. As you walked out, you turned the corner and were immediately met with Alina's father anxiously waiting with Ashton, Luke, Michael, and Calum in the middle of their desks.

" _Daddy_!" Alina squeaked, hopping off your back and running to him.

" _Princess_ ," he breathed, and his arms were around her the moment she reached him.

You smiled slightly as everyone in the office started clapping, reaching Michael's desk and putting your coat on his chair, not wanting to wear it anymore but also not wanting to go all the way back down to your lab just yet. You heard a throat clear behind you, looking up as Ashton nodded for you to go to him. He was at Luke's desk, stapling some papers together, as he spoke to you.

"You ever take out your earwig or ignore my calls again, I'm gonna use this stapler on you," he threatened.

" _Are you_?" you replied without hesitation. Ashton looked up at you for a moment before letting out a breath, standing up. He grabbed your hand and pulled you into him, letting go once he wrapped your arm around his waist and winding his own arms around your shoulders.

"Don't do it again," he ordered, feeling you smile into his chest.

"Understood,  _Boss_ ," you snickered. You then felt his lips hit the side of your head.

"I'm proud of you, baby girl," he murmured into your hair, "You did a good job."

"Thanks, Ash," you whispered, hugging him a little tighter.

"Are you okay, princess?" Commander Adams asked his daughter, releasing her so he could look at her, "Did he hurt you?"

"No, Dad," she assured him, "I'm fine."

"So  _now_  what?" Michael asked.

"Yeah," Calum nodded, "Jakoby still got away."

"Well... Not  _exactly_ ," Alina mentioned, looking at everyone as you all looked at her with confused expressions.

"What do you mean, princess?" her dad asked.

"I know it's easy to track a phone if it's on," she shrugged, "So I put mine on silent and slipped it in his coat pocket before he put me in his van." You instantly slipped past Ashton to sit at Luke's desk and started typing away while the men looked at Alina with impressed grins on their faces.

"Have you ever considered working here when you're older?" Michael asked her, making everyone laugh.

"Got him!" you chirped, causing the four agents to spin around as you were bringing up Luke's computer screen onto the TV monitor beside you. "He's at the gas station about a mile away from here!" you told them. 

The team immediately grabbed their weapons and coats, thanking Alina as they passed her and ran to the elevator. After the doors closed, you leaned back in your chair and looked at the 14-year-old.

"You know, the forensics lab could always use an extra set of hands," you told her. You held your hand up as she giggled, giving you a high-five.

~

_inspiration: NCIS episode "Devil's Triad" (season 11, episode 10)_


	484. Pudding Shirt (Trevor Collins)

 

"All I'm saying is I'd just like  _one day_  where my neighbors aren't  _fucking pricks_ ," you shrugged.

"I think you're just going to have to move to a secluded island in the middle of the Atlantic," Burnie commented, making the other people on the podcast hum in agreement.

"I  _do_  agree they're pricks though," Blaine nodded.

"Are they new neighbors?" Barbara asked, "Because you moved into Trevor's place and I've never heard him complain about them before."

"I mean, to be fair, one of their bedrooms could be on fire while he was in the room right next to it and he wouldn't notice it until someone pointed it out," Burnie said.

Gavin chuckled, "I like imagining Trevor just lying on the couch watching TV, smoke alarm  _blaring_ , and not realizing anything was wrong until you come home like ' _Hey, um... Trevor... Why's your_ flippin' _bed on fire?_ '"

"He really  _wouldn't_ ," Barbara couldn't help but laugh. When they realized you hadn't made a sound in a while, they looked over at you, finding you staring off to the side in shock.

"Y/N," Burnie said slowly, "You okay?"

"Hey, guys," Trevor's voice came from the direction you were looking, "Have any of you seen my keys? I can't seem to find 'em anywhere." The group looked over at him, their own jaws dropping as he stepped in front of the camera.

"What the  _fuck_?" Barbara choked on her drink slightly.

"Dude, what  _is_  that?!" Burnie gaped.

"That's my boss!" Gavin announced, "That's my boss right there!"

"So no stray sets of keys?" Trevor wondered, not addressing what was happening at all, "Okay, thanks." As he went back to the door with Jeremy and Alfredo, you found yourself finally able to speak.

"I'm moving out," was the first thing that came from your mouth since Trevor entered the room, making everyone laugh.

"You can stay with me until you find a place," Barbara offered.

"Thanks," you giggled softly, "What the  _fuck_  just happened?"

"So you guys know how I was a little late to this shoot earlier?" Gavin snickered, "That's what I was doing."

" _What is it_?!" Burnie asked again, realizing he hadn't gotten an answer the first time around.

"It's pudding!" he chirped.

"Gav, that is  _disgusting_!"

"What?!"

"What's wrong with you?!" you, Barbara, and Blaine exclaimed at the same time.

"We had a giant can of expired pudding in the fridge that we never ate or used or whatever," Gavin shrugged, "Decided to see what we could do with it, and we came up with a pudding shirt!"

"And  _throwing it out_  wasn't option number  _one_?!" Burnie asked.

"Why waste a  _perfectly_  good video opportunity?!" Gavin squeaked.

" _Because that's disgusting_!" you repeated in a squeak.

"How long did that  _take_ you guys?" Barbara asked.

"Not that long," he shrugged, "I'll tell you what though: most of the time we spent on it was just trying to decide  _how_  we wanted to go about putting it on him."

"What did you do, have him lie down and just  _pour it_  on him?" you mentioned.

"You know what? Next time we do something like that, we'll come to you for application ideas."

"I'm gonna give that one a  _hard_  pass, Gav," you shook your head, making everyone laugh.

~

About 20 minutes later, Burnie was in the middle of reading a sponsor message when the door opened again. The rest of you looked up, but waited until Burnie was finished talking to speak yourselves.

"Trevor, you've got a  _real shirt_  on this time!" Barbara cheered as he walked into the room once again.

"Come sit!" Blaine said, "We need to talk about what the fuck happened earlier."

"Oh, well, okay," Trevor shrugged, coming onto the set.

It wasn't until he stepped in front of Gavin that you realized what he was doing. He moved your mic out of the way, but before he could sit himself down on your lap, you squeaked in protest.

" _No_!" you said, your hands finding his lower back and keeping him at bay, "You do this every time, Trevor! You're too heavy!"

"Fine," he pouted, turning to face you, " _You_  get up then."

Before you could react that time, he grabbed your hand, pulled you to your feet, and then sat down in your spot. You were about to protest again, but he brought you to him, pulling you until your calves hit the couch and you involuntarily plopped down on his lap.

"Why do we  _always_  end up like this?" you sighed, making yourself comfortable on top of him and moving your mic back so you could both talk into it.

"Because there are no seats left and you won't let me sit on you," Trevor replied without hesitating, his arms wrapping around your waist to keep you from sliding off of him.

"I let you sit on me  _once_ ," you reminded him, "I couldn't feel my legs for a week."

"Are you calling me fat?" he pouted.

"I'm calling you  _obnoxious_ ," you rolled your eyes, making everyone laugh.

"Alright, well, I have a question for you, Treyco," Blaine mentioned, making him look over, "Did you  _volunteer_ yourself for that or did Gavin _make you_  do it?"

"I volunteered," Trevor chuckled as Gavin rolled his eyes.

"Great," you mumbled, "My roommate is a psychopath."

"I'm not as bad as  _Ryan_ ," he insisted.

"Ryan knows when to turn it  _off_ ," you shot back.

" _I_  know when to turn it off!" he frowned.

"You were laughing every time someone died in the movie we were watching last night."

"It was a  _Syfy movie_!" he squeaked in detest, "The CGI in those is  _terrible_!"

"People  _died_ , Trevor," you shook your head.

"It's a  _movie_ , Y/N!" you felt him squeeze you slightly as he smiled at you.

"Are you guys  _sure_  you're not a couple?" Barbara interrupted with a laugh, "Because you seem to have these kinds of arguments  _a lot_."

"He does things like  _pudding shirt_ ," you rolled your eyes, " _I'm sure_."

" _Hey_!" he pouted, and you felt him squeeze you again, "I may do stuff like this, but my skin has  _never_ felt softer!" Trevor pulled up his sleeve and stuck his arm out in front of you. "Feel me, Y/N!" he said loudly. You rolled your eyes again but felt his skin anyway.

"I've felt softer," you shrugged, and everyone chuckled as you squealed when Trevor started poking your side. You grabbed his arm in retaliation, holding it out. "Have a little stroke, Gav," you told the Brit beside you. Gavin simply chuckled and shook his head, but still obeyed your request.

"Feels pretty soft to me," he determined, then felt your own arm for comparison, "Oh, sorry, Treyco; Y/N's is softer."

" _Ha_!" you beamed, dropping Trevor's arm so it was lying in your lap, "And  _I_  don't moisturize with  _expired pudding_!"

"Geez,  _brag about it_ , why don't you?" Trevor replied dramatically, "I guess I'll just have to start using whatever you do."

"You stay away from my stuff, Collins," you threatened, "I know where you sleep."

~

**Six hours later**

Upon arriving home after work, you and Trevor went your separate ways – him to the bathroom and you to your bedroom. You changed into a pair of leggings and a light sweater while he went to take a shower, wanting to  _really_  clean himself more than he was able to back at the office. You checked your social media accounts and replied to some emails before heading back into the main living area, standing at the kitchen counter and separating your mail from Trevor's, when you heard his bedroom door open.

"You're not  _really_  moving out, are you?" you heard Trevor's voice as he walked into the room. You looked over your shoulder and found him in a pair of sweatpants with a towel around his neck as he rubbed it on his head.

"Over the pudding thing? No," you assured him.

"But you  _are_  moving out?" he asked timidly. You were quiet for a moment before sighing.

"I don't know," you answered honestly.

"But you  _just_  moved in!" he frowned, "You haven't even lived here for six months!"

"I know, but your neighbors  _suck_ , Trevor."

"Then find a new place with better neighbors and I'll move with you," he stated.

" _Trevor_ ," you rolled your eyes, "Why would you move  _with me_? You actually  _like_ living here."

"I like living with  _you_  more," he grumbled.

"You like that I  _clean up after you_ ," you shook your head.

" _No_ ," he replied, looking you in the eyes so you knew he was being serious, " _I like you_."

"So cleaning up after you has  _nothing_  to do with it?" you rolled your eyes again, clearly not taking him as seriously as he  _wanted_  you to.

You walked away from the counter, stopping at the fridge to look for something to make for dinner. You heard Trevor follow you but didn't think anything of it – that is, until he came up behind you. You jumped lightly when one of his arms wrapped around your waist while the other came up, letting his hand rest on top of yours as he closed the fridge. He brought your arm back down, resting on top of his own as he hugged your waist.

"Maybe you're not  _hearing me_ ," Trevor said lowly, hearing your breathing hitch as he put his lips on your ear, "I don't like you because you clean up after me or because you do things I hate like grocery shopping or even because you make sure I've set my alarm after I've gone to sleep."

He squeezed your hand before releasing it, then turned you around in his arms so you could look at each other.

"I like you because you're smart and you're funny and you're not afraid to call people out on their bullshit," he told you, "I like when you're in videos I edit because I get to listen to your laugh and all the stupid jokes you make. I like when you've had a hard day at work because it means getting to cuddle up with you on the couch to watch your favorite movie until you fall asleep on me. I like when I'm driving to and from work and you're sitting in the passenger seat, singing along to the radio no matter how many stares you get from people outside.  _I like you, Y/N_ , and if leaving the apartment I've lived in since I moved to Austin means I still get to live with  _you_ , then I'll do it."

Trevor wasn't going to pretend that he didn't notice your gaze flick to his lips – and  _especially_  not since it happened  _twice_. You felt his fingers just barely slip under the hem of your sweater, digging into the skin at the waistline of your leggings. He watched you swallow thickly as he leaned in, but your voice stopped him once you felt his breath on your face.

"Do we really want to give  _Barbara Dunkelman_  the right to say ' _I told you so_ '?" you murmured, making him chuckle softly.

"Maybe just this  _once_ ," he shrugged, only to smile and tighten his hold on you when you immediately closed the gap between your lips and his.

~

_inspiration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMYVFAlGbIg_


	485. My Perfect Person (Ashton Irwin)

"What's their story?" you asked randomly as you were sitting underneath a tree at the park with your best friend.

" _Whose_  story?" Ashton asked, looking up at you as he raised an eyebrow. He found you sitting so you were facing the tree – which didn't help his confusion  _much_  before you spoke again.

"Theirs!" you chirped, causing him to look at where you were pointing to a carving in the bark just above your heads, "You're not gonna carve into a tree without a story! So what do you think..." You trailed off, leaning closer to see the letters. "What do you think ' _R+E_ 's story is?" you asked.

"Well..." he started, repositioning himself to face the tree as well, putting his hands on the ground behind him and leaning back, "I'll bet they met in kindergarten, and lost touch after one of them moved away when they were 12. But they always promised each other that they'd find their way back."

You giggled softly, "Do you think they were  _always_  in love with each other? Or did one of them come back and ask themselves how they were  _just now_  starting to feel that way?"

"I think they were always in love with each other," he said, his eyes not leaving your face as you stared at the etching in the bark, "And I think  _now_  was finally the right time for them."

"Do you think you'll have a story important enough for a tree carving someday?" you asked curiously.

"I like to think so," he nodded, "I think everyone will."

"Everyone but  _me_ ," you laughed light-heartedly, causing Ashton to shift so he could look at you better.

"What about Luca?" he asked you.

"I told you I broke up with him like, three months ago," you raised your eyebrows, surprised he'd forgotten, "Remember? He told me to stop hanging out with you?"

"You broke up with him because of me?" his expression fell.

"Ash, I wasn't  _in love_  with the guy," you shook your head, "It wasn't because of  _you_  – it was because he was trying to tell me who to talk to. You're my best friend; I would choose you over some stupid guy that clearly doesn't trust me  _any_  day."

"You never carved a heart into a tree with him, did you?" he asked. You laughed loudly, throwing your head back as Ashton smiled slightly.

"No, we never did that," you told him, "I'm not gonna carve a heart into a tree unless I'm 100% sure about the person first, and I  _definitely_  wasn't 100% sure about Luca."

"Why not?"

"Aside from the  _obvious_  in trying to control who I see?" you raised an eyebrow, "I guess the point where he started suggesting I can't be loyal to him if my best friend is another guy was the point I knew it wasn't going to work."

"He thought you would cheat on him with  _me_?" Ashton asked.

"He was probably intimidated by your good looks and muscles," you snickered, only laughing harder when you felt him shove you playfully as he rolled his eyes.

"Come on, Y/N," he insisted, "Everybody knows you wouldn't cheat on anyone – especially not with  _me_."

"Why wouldn't I cheat on someone with you?"

"Why _would you_?" he shook his head, "You're the most loyal person I know –  _especially_  when you're dating someone."

"But if I wasn't, I could see myself cheating with someone like you," you shrugged. Ashton's expression looked like that of shock mixed with confusion – but you didn't notice as you weren't even looking at him. "Whoever ' _R+E_ ' are probably dated  _tons_  of people before meeting again," you shook your head, tilting your head to look at the carving above you again, "Maybe they even almost gave up trying to find their perfect person. I bet it was really  _magical_ , don't you?" The smile on your face made Ashton's heart flutter. "Can you imagine how  _excited_  they must have felt finally seeing each other after so long apart? And then realizing that everything they wanted and everything they'd been looking for had been with them the  _whole time_?"

"I think I have a  _pretty_  good idea," Ashton mumbled softly. You turned your head and your eyes met his again, finding him already staring at you. "Do you think  _everyone_  has a ' _perfect person_ '?" he asked you, still speaking lowly. You simply nodded.

And it was in that  _exact_  moment – the  _exact_  moment you noticed Ashton gulp slightly as he chewed on his inner cheek – that you realized  _just_  how similar you and Ashton and ' _R+E_ '  _really_  were. So much so that, much like the couple whose initials were carved into the tree, you didn't even need Ashton to speak to know what he was thinking.

"I think  _you're_  my perfect person too, Ash," you whispered. A small smile pulled at the corners of your mouth as Ashton blushed in response. Your smile instantly got bigger as you perked up. "You know what this means?" you asked, earning a cocked eyebrow from Ashton.

"What?" he asked.

" _This_  was ' _R+E_ 's perfect tree," you announced, hopping up to your feet, "Now we have to go find our  _own_!"

"I thought you said you wouldn't carve a tree unless you were  _100% sure_  about it," he shook his head. You bent down, grabbing Ashton's hands and pulling him up with you.

"I know what I said," you smiled, standing on your toes and making him blush again as you kissed his cheek.


	486. Can't Help Falling in Love (Calum Hood) - Part 1

**Calum's POV**

Calum's eyes landed on you the moment you opened the door to the school, rubbing your eyes with your sweater sleeve as you yawned. He thought it was cute that no matter  _how_  many times you woke up at 6:30am, you'd never get used to it. You still smiled when you saw your friends waiting beside your locker though, all of you greeting each other happily.

Once you put away all of your things, you closed your locker door and started walking with your friends toward the cafeteria for breakfast. Calum opened his mouth as you approached – ' _hi_ ', ' _good morning_ '...anything – but you just walked right by him, not even noticing him in the slightest.

That fact didn't  _surprise_  him – he knew he was invisible to everyone in the school – but that obviously didn't mean it didn't still  _hurt_. Though, Calum  _did_  focus on the positives in living seemingly off the radar.

He was essentially a fly on the wall – he knew about all the drama happening and why friends were upset with each other. He listened to talk of fights and parties and even heard one kid brag about how he'd broken into his parents' liquor cabinet – though, that one wasn't brag-worthy as far as he was concerned.

The only downside was that girls didn't notice him – well...  _You_  didn't notice him.

Calum had a crush on you ever since you were in your shared History class one day and perfectly answered your teacher's complex question about the subject, only being asked because she'd accused you of not paying attention. You were smart and funny and kind and considerate and you didn't take shit from  _anybody_  –  _not even_   _the teachers_  – and he was sure that he didn't have a chance in the world with you.

But that didn't mean he wouldn't  _try_  to get your attention.

~

**Your POV; The next morning**

You walked into school as you always did, meeting your friends at your locker before going to get breakfast. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary – just  _another_  Wednesday – as you ate and talked and laughed with your friends. When you all finished eating, you all went your separate ways to prepare for your first period classes. You didn't even notice the boy watching you from a little ways down the hall, continuing to your locker. And that was when you spotted the difference.

The cassette tape and player were taped to your locker right at eye-level, making you tilt your head. You read the short note on the tape – the scribbly words that simply read ' _From Calum_ ' – as you slowly reached up and took it off your locker. You looked at it for a moment before looking up, trying to see if anyone was around that was watching you, but no one was there – Calum could tell you were looking at him but you weren't  _seeing him_ , though his heart  _did_  skip a beat when you smiled slightly, turning back to your locker and immediately taking the cassette player off as well so you could listen to the tape.

~

**Three months later**

Throughout the next four weeks, you would receive more cassette tapes and listen to them the moment you found them. The last one you'd gotten was probably your favorite – and one that made your heart race the most when you'd first heard it. It was a cover of Elvis Presley's  _Can't Help Falling in Love_  by Haley Reinhart, and it was probably one of your favorite covers  _ever_.

' _Calum_ ' had been making tapes with songs he thought you'd love, and each tape usually had a theme – songs to dance to, songs to cry to, songs to sing along to in the car – but the one with that cover on it was the  _only_ song on there. To be honest, it made your heart ache that ' _Calum_ ' hadn't come forward – especially since you were now moving and would probably never know who he was  _at all_  – but you certainly  _did_  enjoy these  _unconventional_  interactions with him. And you enjoyed them so much that you finally decided to return the favor.

**Calum's POV** **; After school**

Calum walked down the long hallway on his way out of school, his head down and his hands in his pockets. He hadn't seen you since History and it had him feeling rather down. He didn't know  _why_  he felt so strongly about you having never actually  _spoken_  to you before – all he knew was that he  _did_.

As he was approaching where your locker was, Calum looked up, only to stop dead in his tracks in the middle of the hallway. His heart skipped a beat as he stared at the cassette tape on your locker in the same spot he'd left so many before, a neatly printed ' _From Y/N_ ' written on it. Calum smiled in awe as he walked over to the wall, grabbing the tape and pulling it off. He held it for a moment, looking at your name, before flipping the tape around. And his heart sank at the ' _Goodbye, Calum_ ' message you'd left for him.

Calum's head shot up, looking to his right and then his left before finally spotting you – he must have just walked right past you without realizing since his head was down. He was curious as to why you were holding a box as you smiled with your friends. They were all saying they were going to miss you and to have you message them when you got to your new house so they knew you made it safely. You waved to them before walking with two of your other friends to the staircase, heading downstairs.

Calum quickly put the cassette in his pocket and hurried to the edge of the staircase, looking down as you were halfway down the second set. And that was when he noticed that the box seemed to contain all of your locker's contents, silently telling him that you were moving.

He leaned his forehead on the wall, thinking about all the moments he'd watch you smile when you saw the newest cassette taped to your locker and the way you'd yawn as you walked into school every morning and how you always had  _something_  to add to a class discussion.

And he didn't want to be unnoticed anymore.

So he bolted down the stairs and ran after you.

~

**Your POV**

You sighed as you got into your dad's car after saying your final goodbyes to your friends. Your dad assured you that you'd adjust to the move but, although you  _knew_  that, that didn't make leaving any easier.

To avoid the inevitable ' _you're going to love it there; you'll make a ton of new friends_ ' spiel, you simply took your cassette player out of your backpack and put your headphones on. You were listening to the  _Can't Help Falling in Love_  cover when something – you didn't know  _what_  – told you to look in the side mirror on your door.

And that was when you –  _finally_  – noticed him.

"Stop," you said suddenly, pausing the tape.

Your dad glanced over, "Why-"

"Dad, just  _stop_!" you insisted. He did so with a small sigh, figuring you'd just forgotten to say goodbye to one of your friends. He turned to fully look at you as you unbuckled your seatbelt, threw the door open, and got out, spinning around.

You and the boy now standing in the middle of the road stared at each other for a solid  _ten seconds_  before you found the words you wanted to say. You slowly took your headphones off, swallowing the lump in your throat.

"Calum...?" you asked softly – so softly that you were almost  _sure_  he hadn't heard it. But he barely nodded, causing you to toss your cassette player onto the seat before you hurried toward him.

Your arms flew around his neck as you crashed into him so you could hug him tightly, and his own wound around your waist, keeping you  _just_  as close. You could both hear your classmates whispering to each other, asking their friends and the people around them  _what_  was happening and  _who_ Calum was and  _why_  you were hugging him... But neither of you  _cared_  – all that mattered in that moment was  _each_   _other_.

~

_inspiration: "The Boy Nobody Could See" by Centrepoint https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1BFxz78hUpY_

_song mentioned: "Can't Help Falling In Love" cover by Haley Reinhart https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=npwHNcGqueE_


	487. Can't Help Falling in Love (Calum Hood) - Part 2

_requested by youngblood199456 on tumblr_

~

**Three months later**

"Hey, baby girl," Calum's voice finally filled your ears, "How are you?"

"I _hate it_  here, Cal," you breathed out shakily as you wiped your face, dropping your backpack by your bed and face-planting into your pillow, "I miss my friends and I miss my house and I miss you and, as crazy as it sounds, I even miss  _Mr. Lewis_." You heard Calum chuckle softly, feeling your body relax at the sound of it.

"C'mon, princess," you could just see him shaking his head, "It can't be  _that_ bad."

"People are already making fun of me..."

"What could they  _possibly_ have to make fun of you about? You've only been there for  _two weeks_!" he exclaimed. You finally giggled, your body relaxing a little more.

"Apparently, the kids here aren't as  _welcoming_ when you're not new as a  _freshman_ ," you sniffled lightly, "I just wish I never had to leave school and my friends and  _you_..."

"You  _know_ I wish you were still here too, princess," Calum sighed, "But you  _also_ know that you would have felt  _terrible_ if your dad turned down his job offer  _just_ so you could stay here one more year."

"Can't you just agree with me this  _one time_?" you sighed as well, knowing he was right.

"Only when I  _actually_ agree with you, baby girl," you heard his smile, "Just look at the bright side: tomorrow's Friday and you won't have to deal with anyone from school for the  _whole_ weekend."

"Is it too late to make the weekend  _more_ than two days?" you asked, earning yourself a laugh.

"Think so, princess," he nodded, "But just  _try_ to be positive, okay? Things might turn around."

~

**The next day**

You trudged into your house after school, honestly ready to just call it a day right then and go to bed. Though you  _had_ gone into the day trying to be positive like Calum told you to, your new fellow classmates were ruthless yet again.

"Hey, sweetheart," your dad said when the front door closed behind you, making you look at the couch where he was sitting, "How was your day?" You simply stared back at him and he exhaled sharply. " _That bad_ , huh?" he said. You simply sighed, slumping your shoulders – you just wanted to go lay down for a while. "Well, something came for you today; It's on your bed," he informed you.

"I didn't  _order_ anything," you furrowed your eyebrows as you shook your head.

"I know," he replied, "But I know the move's been hard on you, and wanted to get you something to make it easier."

"You're trying to  _buy_ my happiness and I don't appreciate it," you stated, hearing him laugh as you stalked down the hallway to your bedroom, and the next thing your dad heard was your scream – but he didn't jump up to check on you.

The moment you entered your room, you found your boyfriend sitting on your bed, flipping through your junior year yearbook. He looked up when he heard someone at the door, grinning from ear to ear when he saw you. 

And he wasn't _at all_  surprised by your reaction to seeing him.

" _Cal_!" you cried loudly, throwing your backpack down on your floor and running to your bed. Your knee found the mattress right beside his thigh, pushing yourself up and falling against Calum.

You could feel him smile into the skin of your neck as your arms held him tightly, his own winding around your waist as he fell back, his head hitting the pillow. He pulled you all the way on top of him so you were both comfortable.

"W-What are you  _doing_ h-here?" you choked out, feeling him squeeze you gently.

"Missed you," he murmured, kissing the skin where the hem of your shirt collar ended, "And after that call yesterday, sounded like you really needed a hug."

"Only y- _your_ hugs," you mumbled, making him smile again.

"S'what I'm here for," he promised you.

"W-When did you  _get_ here?"

"'Bout half an hour ago," he shrugged, "Almost worried I wasn't gonna make it before you got home 'cause the traffic was so bad."

"Guess you're lucky I stayed after school to get help from my math teacher then," you teased, giggling into his ear when he poked your sides playfully. He stopped, rubbing your back again in silence for a moment.

"I've missed you," Calum said, his voice muffling when he kissed the skin beneath your ear.

"Missed you  _more_ ," you returned, squeezing him tightly.

It got quiet again, both of you just enjoying being in each other's arms. Calum had since slipped his hand under your shirt and was drawing circles on your lower back while you were playing with his hair.

"What're you looking at the  _yearbook_ for?" you muttered into Calum's neck after a few more minutes.

You finally climbed off of him, the two of you sitting up and scooting back against the headboard next to each other. You crossed your legs and pulled the book to the empty space in front of you, finding Calum was about halfway through it already.

"Just wanted to look at it," he chuckled, "Never realized  _how many_  pictures of me in this thing there were." He looked over at you when you breathed out sharply.

"Well... I  _was_ on yearbook committee, you know," you murmured shyly, "I...  _I_ took all of those..."

"You took  _pictures_ of me?" he asked, placing his hand on your thigh and letting his thumb begin to rub circles into the fabric covering it.

"I mean... You know... You were always alone and I never saw you smile, but you were still  _part_ of the school and I thought there should  _still_ be pictures of you in the yearbook... And I was going to ask your name after every picture but I just... I couldn't make myself be brave enough to  _do it_... And then, I started getting those playlists on my locker and I was distracted by  _that_ and I... I never seemed to see you around as much anymore... And I know it's really  _weird_ to take photos of people without them knowing, but I... You photograph really well and I thought you'd  _like_ seeing yourself in the yearbook so much because I know you thought people didn't  _notice you_  and I wanted you to know that  _someone did_  and I'm  _really_ sorry I never-"

Your rambling was cut off when Calum put his hand on your cheek, turned your head toward him, and smashed his lips against yours. You breathed out a small sigh, feeling him smile slightly when you crawled onto his lap and started kissing him back.

This wasn't your  _first_ kiss with Calum, but it  _felt like it_  every single time. He treated you so delicately – like he was afraid he was going to break you somehow – and you absolutely  _loved_ that about him. You'd never been with someone who cared as much about you as  _Calum_ clearly did, and every time you thought about it, you felt your chest swell up with happiness.

When you finally pulled away to breathe, you rested your forehead on his. You opened your eyes to find Calum already smiling blissfully at you, his arms moving to securely wrap around your waist. One of your own arms wound around his neck while the other found his chest and your fingers brushed his hair out of his eyes.

"Thanks for coming, Cal," you whispered. Calum only smiled in response, pressing a loving kiss to your nose.


	488. Trust (Luke Hemmings)

**Chrissy's POV**

"Chris!"

The blonde-haired teenager looked over, instantly smiling when she saw her friends.

"How is our  _beautiful_  best friend Chrissy Hemmings doing on this  _fine_  Friday afternoon?" Tucker sighed dramatically, coming to a stop with the other two in the group beside her locker.

"What do you guys want?" she rolled her eyes with a laugh as she grabbed her backpack from the hook and closed her locker door.

"Will you come to Marcie's party with us tonight?" Shannon asked.

"I don't know, Shan... I'd have to ask my dad when I get home..."

"So it's a no," her friends laughed simultaneously.

Chrissy could feel her cheeks get red with embarrassment. She chewed on her bottom lip for a moment before opening her mouth to speak again.

"I'll be there," she stated confidently.

"We  _all_  know your dad's gonna say no, Chrissy," Tucker shook his head, "He  _always_  does."

" _I'll be there_ ," she repeated. The three friends looked at the blonde for a moment before shrugging.

"Okay, Chris," Aubrey said, "We're all gonna meet at my house at 6 and then go to the party." Chrissy nodded, telling her friends she'd see them then before turning around and sprinting toward the back door of the school before she missed her bus.

~

Chrissy could feel her heart  _pounding_  in her throat as she walked in the front door of her house. She could hear her father talking on the phone – with his girlfriend, most likely – and she really didn't want to interrupt, but she knew that if she didn't ask  _now_ , she probably wouldn't  _at all_.

She entered the kitchen to find her dad with his phone in one hand pressed to his ear, and a coffee cup in the other, periodically sipping as he looked out the window over the sink. He could hear footsteps, so he looked over, smiling at his daughter.

"Hey, I'm gonna call you back, okay?" Luke said, "Chris just got home."

"Hi, Chrissy!" the teenager could hear coming from the other end, making her laugh softly.

"Hi, Y/N!" she called back, loud enough for you to hear her.

"I'll talk to you later, Y/N," Luke laughed at the two of you, "Love you." She couldn't hear what you'd said, but it was clear you told him you loved him too – Luke  _always_  blushed when you told him you loved him no matter  _how_  many times you'd said it. "Hey, princess!" Luke beamed at his daughter, walking over to where she was and kissing her forehead, "How was school?"

"It was school," she shrugged, "Didn't really do anything because it's Friday or whatever."

"Hmm," he hummed with a nod, taking another sip of coffee, "Wish it was like that when  _I_  was in school."

"Dad," Chrissy groaned, "Not  _again_."

"Sorry," he laughed, "But then again, I didn't have  _you_  when I was in school either, so I guess you win some and lose some." She rolled her eyes, only causing him to chuckle again.

"Uh... Speaking of school..." Chrissy cleared her throat lightly, "Aubrey, Shan, and Tucker are going to a friend's party tonight..." She looked at her dad's facial expression to gauge his reaction, but she wasn't getting anything different. "And they asked if I would go with them..." she went on. Luke took in a deep breath, moving away from her and back into the kitchen.

"You  _know_  how I feel about parties, Chrissy," he shook his head, opening the trashcan and tossing hiss empty cup into it.

"That doesn't mean that's how _I_  feel about parties..." she mumbled.

"You're  _17-years-old_ ; You don't need to be-"

"So why can't you just let me be a  _normal_  one?!" she exclaimed.

" _Normal_  17-year-olds aren't going to parties  _every weekend_ ," he cocked an eyebrow at her, surprised by the sudden change in her attitude.

"How is this any different from letting me stay the weekend at Shan's place when there were other people there?!"

"Her  _parents_  were home," Luke reminded her, "And they have enough sense not to give their children access to the liquor cabinet."

"How do  _you_  know there's going to be alcohol there?" she rolled her eyes, "It's not like you were ever  _cool enough_  to get invited to parties."

"You're  _not_  going, Chrissy," Luke stated firmly, "That's  _final_."

" _God_!  _I hate you_!" Chrissy shouted as she spun around and stomped up the stairs, not even noticing the sigh of defeat her dad let out.

~

**Your POV; 11pm**

" _Please_  tell me you've heard from Chrissy," your boyfriend said the moment you answered his phone call.

"Was I  _supposed to_?" you asked, not  _really_  answering his question as you put the call on speaker since you knew  _exactly_  where his daughter was.

Chrissy had shown up at your front door only  _ten_  minutes before Luke's frantic call,  _begging_   _you_  not to call him like you'd originally wanted to. You obviously asked her  _why_  she didn't want her dad to know she was there, but she'd only told you she'd gotten into a fight with him after she got home from school. What she'd been  _doing_  in between then and the point she arrived at your place, you didn't know – all you knew was that Luke would have to notice she was gone  _eventually_. And  _now_  was apparently that time.

" _God_ , I should have checked on her  _sooner_ ," Luke continued to grumble to himself, and you could just tell he was pulling roughly on his hair, "I should have checked on her when she didn't come down for dinner, and when I hadn't heard anything for  _six hours_ , and-"

"Luke," you interrupted his panicked monologue, "Baby, I need you to breathe for me, okay?" You listened to him breathe in shakily and let out a deep breath, doing the same thing a couple more times. It was silent for a moment before Luke spoke again.

"I'm a terrible father," he murmured, more to himself than to you.

"Lu-"

"She said she  _hates me_ , Y/N!" he exclaimed, his voice breaking, "She wouldn't hate me if I was a  _good_  father!"

"You're right," you shrugged despite the fact that he couldn't see you. You could still tell that his hand dropped from his hair and onto his lap as he furrowed his eyebrows in confusion though.

"Y/N, what... How could you... You can't just... How  _dare you_ -"

"No, I mean, you're right, you know?" you replied, "You were there the day she was born and the day her mom left. You spent  _countless_  nights without sleep just trying to get her to stop crying for  _five minutes_. You fed her and clothed her and kept a roof over her head and taught her how to do everything she knows. Her  _first word_  was even ' _Daddy_ '. I can  _totally_  understand why she hates you; You're the worst dad  _ever_." Luke was silent for a moment before you heard him breathe out sharply.

"I hate when you use reverse psychology on me," he grumbled, making you smile.

"You feel better now though, don't you?" you questioned.

He let out a small chuckle as he whispered, "Yeah. Thank you."

"I'll come by tomorrow, okay?"

"Yes, please," he acknowledged, "If you hear from Chris, please tell her to come home."

"Please at least  _try_  to get some sleep tonight," you said with a reassuring tone, "Bye, Lu."

"Y/N..." he said, making you stop, "I... I love you..."

"I love you, Luke," you promised before you both hung up.

After putting your phone down on the couch beside you, you looked over at the 17-year-old sitting on the adjacent one. She was looking down at her hands, but you could tell she was holding back tears.

"You have anything to say?" you asked her, crossing your arms over your stomach. It was silent for another few seconds before she spoke.

"Do I have to go back tonight?" she asked, clearly trying to maintain the façade that she was upset with her dad.

"No," you shook your head, making her look up at you in surprise that you weren't forcing her out to your car, "But you  _are_  going to think about what you wanna say to your dad when I take you back first thing in the morning."

Not giving her a chance to protest, you got up from your seat, made sure the front door was locked, and disappeared into the hallway to your bedroom, leaving Chrissy alone in silence.

~

**Chrissy's POV; The next morning**

As promised, the moment Chrissy woke up at 11, you were having her get her things to go back home. The car ride was silent – Chrissy clearly didn't want to talk and you had already made your point the previous night, so you didn't say anything either. Upon pulling up to the curb in front of her house, you looked over at her as she was pulling her keys out of her bag.

"I'll be back in an hour to make sure your dad didn't kill you," you told her. Chrissy didn't respond with a smile or a laugh or even a breath out of her nose – she just opened the door and walked up the lawn, listening to you drive away.

The 17-year-old stood at the door for a moment before finally shoving her key in the lock and going inside. The moment he heard the key turning, Luke's head snapped up, watching his daughter walk through the door from his seat on the living room couch.

" _Chrissy_ ," he breathed, making her look up, forcing her to take in just how worried he'd been.

"Dad..." she said softly, chewing on her inner cheek, "You're not a bad father..." Luke looked confused for a moment before his eyes widened slightly, suddenly realizing what she was referring to.

"How do you know about that?" he asked her. Chrissy swallowed thickly, taking in a breath before attempting to speak.

"Y/N had you on speaker..." she told him, her voice as small as she felt in that moment. He let out a sudden breath.

"I should have  _known_  you went to her place," he mumbled to himself.

"I don't-" Chrissy looked down at her feet when her voice cracked, feeling herself starting to cry and not wanting him to see it, "I don't hate you..." Luke instantly got up from his seat, hurrying to his daughter. He put his hands on her cheeks and lifted her face up, barely smiling at her.

"I know," he assured her, wiping away her tears.

"No, you don't!" she shook her head, hiccupping softly as the tears kept coming, "You called Y/N and told her you thought you were a terrible father because of  _what I said_! You think you're a terrible dad because of  _me_! If you think you're a bad dad, you're gonna leave! I  _already_  don't have a  _mom_! I don't wanna not have a  _dad_  too!"

"Not having your mother around is  _not_  your fault, Chris," Luke stated firmly so she knew he was being serious – of course, that didn't mean she wasn't going to argue about it.

"She didn't  _want me_!" Chrissy shook her head, "She wouldn't have left if I was  _good enough_!"

"Your biological mother was not  _fit_  to raise a child," he told her, "And you and I can spend an entire day  _some other time_  where we  _only_  talk about why she left and  _whatever_ , but right now, we're gonna talk about someone we  _do_  have that  _nobody else_  does."

" _Who_?" she furrowed her eyebrows, unsure of what he meant.

"We have a(n)  _Y/N_ ," Luke said with a small smile, "And do you think anyone _else_  would have let you stay with them all night without telling me you were with them  _just_  because you didn't want me to know? Do you think  _Grandma_  would have done that?"

Chrissy sighed lightly, " _No_..."

"Chris, I've raised you on my own for  _17 years_ ," he continued, "And there have always been nights where I've asked myself whether or not I've been doing the right things when it came to you. And yeah, I can loosen up a bit when it comes to letting you go to parties because I  _trust_ you and I trust  _myself_ enough to  _let you_  make those decisions on your own-" He brought her in for another kiss to the forehead, only to push her back and give her a stern look. "-but if you  _ever_  run away again, I'm warning you right now: I  _will_  bury you in the backyard beside the cat."

Chrissy simply sighed, "At least it's better than flushing me down the toilet like my  _fish_." Luke couldn't help but laugh, wrapping his arms around her shoulders and hugging her tightly.

"I love you, Chris," he murmured into her hair.

"I love you too, Dad," she whispered, finally allowing herself to smile as she hugged his waist  _just_  as tightly.

~

An hour later, there was a knock at the front door. Chrissy hopped up from the couch to answer it, not at all surprised to find you on the other side.

"Oh, thank God, you're still alive," you said dramatically as soon as you saw the teen, "Where's your dad?" She laughed as she rolled her eyes, moving out of the way so you could come in.

"Hi, Y/N," she said, "He's making lunch."

Luke, having heard your voice, was already making his way out of the kitchen. You were only about halfway to the entrance when he came into the room, but before you could greet him, his hands were on your face and he was holding you firmly.

"Don't you ever  _not_  tell me when she's with you again," Luke mumbled as your own hands moved up to hold his wrists.

"Hmm," you hummed with a small grin, "Haven't listened to you for the last 3 years; Not about to start  _now_ , Hemmings." He finally smiled, pulling you in for a kiss.

And as Chrissy watched you and her dad from where she was still standing by the front door, it got her thinking...

Maybe she  _did_  have a mom after all.

~

_inspiration: http://5secondsofpureperfection.tumblr.com/post/99847891451/preference-52-single-dad-part-2_


	489. The Sprunkening (Trevor Collins)

"Y/N," you heard someone say as they stopped beside your desk, making you look up.

"Hey, Trevor," you barely grinned.

You were still fairly new to the company – you started working there about eight months ago – and didn't really know anyone too well yet. You spent most of your time editing the game show Let's Plays or making coffee runs for those who worked in the same room as you.

"Hi," he smiled back at you, "I know you prefer  _editing videos_  rather than being  _in them_ , but would you mind joining us for some Cunning Stunts races? We're down a man and we need someone to fill in."

"Isn't there someone  _else_  that can be in it?" you murmured.

"Everyone else is busy or just  _not here_ ," he replied shyly, "I wouldn't have asked you if I could  _find_  anyone else." You chewed on your cheek for a moment in contemplation. You knew they could easily do the races with just five people, but you really did enjoy watching them yourself and they looked like a lot of fun.

"Will you buy me ice cream after?" you asked.

Trevor chuckled again, "I'll give you a ride home and we can make a pit stop, sure."

"Okay," you finally agreed, getting up from your chair and following him out into the hallway.

Once you arrived at the AH office, Trevor put the code in to get into the room, opening the door for you. This caused the men who were in the room – Gavin, Michael, Jeremy, and Ryan – to look over, smiling at you.

"Y/N!" they cheered in unison while Gavin continued, "You're gonna do some races with us?"

"I was promised ice cream if I did," you replied softly, shrugging your shoulders.

"So it  _wasn't_  Trevor's charm or good looks?" Michael snickered.

"Has it  _ever_  been?" you grinned when you heard Trevor scoff behind you. He put his hand on the middle of your back, leading you over to the side of desks Ryan was on. He pulled Geoff's chair out for you, waiting until you sat down to move to Jack's station.

"So, Y/N," Jeremy said as you were putting on Geoff's headphones, "Did Treyco tell you what we're doing?"

"Cunning Stunts," you nodded.

"Yeah!" he grinned, "Have you ever played before?"

"I'm an  _editor_ , not a  _player_ ," you reminded him, barely chuckling.

"Right," he breathed in amusement, "Well, I think that, since you don't really play and stuff, we'll just do the regular Cunning Stunts maps where we don't transform or anything."

"I'm gonna lose either way, but I appreciate the  _effort_ ," you said, making everyone grin as you all readied up in the game so you could get started. The men talked you through the controls briefly as the countdown popped up on the screen.

"I have full confidence in your abilities," Ryan told you as the race began, "Especially since  _Gavin_  is here today."

"Hey!" Gavin frowned.

"Gavin,  _shut up_!" Michael exclaimed, "Every time my screen cuts to yours after I finish, you're either at the airport or flying into the ocean!"

"I finish  _sometimes_!" he defended.

"Not enough for us to have any  _faith_  in you," Jeremy said, hearing your small laugh at the desk across from of his.

The race continued and ended with Trevor, Ryan, Michael, and Jeremy coming in first, second, third, and fourth respectively, and you and Gavin ended with DNFs.

"You know, Gav," Jeremy said, "If you want to try and tell us you finish, you should try finishing at some point."

"It's like you're  _shocked_  by this," Michael shook his head. You simply sighed as the screen with the details for the next race come up.

"I really did  _try_  too," you grumbled, "I'm just useless."

"You're not  _useless_ , Y/N," Ryan glanced over at you.

"You know what would really be helpful?" Michael mentioned, "If you kept Trevor  _out_  of first."

" _Hey_ , it was  _one_  time!" Trevor pouted as you finally cracked a smile, laughing softly but not saying anything as the next race started.

After the first quarter of the first lap, you realized you were going to beat any of them – except for maybe  _Gavin_  – but you decided to take Michael's advice. Trevor had somehow found himself in 5th place with you in 6th, so upon noticing you were catching up, you thought you'd have a little fun.

You casually picked up speed until you reached him, making him squeak in surprise when you showed up on his screen.

"Y/N, what are you doing?" Trevor asked you.

"I'm racing!" you told him, coming up on his right side and starting to veer slightly to the left.

"Y/N!" Trevor shouted as you pushed him closer to the edge of the track, "Don't you-  _Y/N_!" he screeched when he fell into the ocean that was below you while you stayed on the track, taking 5th from him.

"What is  _happening_  over there?" Michael laughed, prompting Ryan to look to either side of him. Trevor was still yelling at you while you desperately tried not to laugh.

"I don't know," Ryan informed the men on the other side of the desks, "But it's sent Y/N into a giggle fest."

"Y/N, what did you  _do_?!" Gavin asked, allowing you to hear his smile.

"Michael told me to keep Trevor out of first," you replied once you'd taken a breath to calm yourself.

"I'm in  _5th_!" Trevor exclaimed.

"Now you're in 6th,  _bitch_ ," you snickered, making everyone else laugh.

"What did I ever do to you?!"

You blew raspberries for a moment before answering, "How long do you want this video to be?"

"Well,  _now_  I'm curious," Michael stated, "Y/N, what  _did_  Trevor do to you?"

"I didn't do  _anything_!" he defended.

"Well..." you trailed off.

"You can just tell Trevor to suck a dick, Y/N; It's fine," Jeremy said, making you chuckle to yourself.

"I guess the first thing that really comes to mind is one time, we decided to send someone out to get lunch when I first started working here," you said, heading into lap 2, "Trevor told everyone he was gonna go while we finished up our work and when he came back, he had everyone's food  _but_  mine, so Lindsay shared hers since we wanted the same thing."

"Oh,  _right_! I  _remember_  that!" Ryan chirped.

"It was an  _honest_  mistake!" Trevor pouted.

"You know, I  _do_  remember Y/N offering to go with you and make sure you got everything," Jeremy chimed in.

"Okay, well, it was  _one time_!" he insisted, "I haven't forgotten her food  _since_!"

"That's because she goes  _with you_  now!" Michael laughed.

"How am I supposed to learn from my mistakes if she doesn't give me a chance to redeem myself?!"

"Fine, Trevor," you giggled, "The next time we eat out for lunch, I'll give you your chance at redemption."

~

**Lunch time**

After playing the rest of the Cunning Stunts maps in the playlist, the crew apparently decided to put Trevor to the test that very day, telling him they wanted food from a local barbecue place. You snorted softly as they told him what they wanted before he moved on to you.

"Same as always?" Trevor asked.

"What  _is_  my ' _same as always_ '?" you cocked an eyebrow, leaning back in your chair. He recited the same order you told the cashier every time you went with him to the restaurant, earning himself a smile. "Just making sure," you told him, making the group laugh while Trevor rolled his eyes and walked out of the room.

~

20 minutes passed before the Achievement Hunter office door was opening again, revealing Trevor carrying in two bags with to-go boxes in them. He kicked the door shut behind him before setting the bags on the couch and beginning to pull them out, opening it and announcing whose it was so the person would come get it. Your name wasn't called until last.

You got up and made your way to him, standing in front of him while the other four men watched. He pulled another to-go box out of the bag, opening it and showing you exactly what you wanted.

" _Princess_ ," Trevor said sarcastically, handing you the box. You laughed along with the men, taking it and stepped toward him.

"Thank you," you murmured as you kissed his cheek, not even noticing the redness on his cheeks as you turned and made your way back to Geoff's desk.

~

_inspiration: https://youtu.be/DqWq183hvxU?t=22m42s_


	490. Love Me Like You (Luke Hemmings)

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

~

_Flashback_

Little Mix had been one of your favorite bands since the days they each separately auditioned for the X-Factor. You remember screaming in excitement during the season finale when they were announced the winners. You never thought you'd have the chance to ever meet them, let alone become  _best_  friends, but you worked incredibly hard for  _so long_ , and your dreams finally came true when you got a call saying the girls' choreographer had seen one of your videos online of you dancing to  _Wings_.

Honestly, you'd completely forgotten about it because, by that point, the video was nearly four years old. You didn't think anyone even cared about the video, but it turned out that one of the most important people  _did_. Their choreographer had been so impressed with your moves – the moves you came up with all on your own – and asked if you'd be willing to let them fly you out and join in on a rehearsal, see how well you picked up the moves, and, if all went well, be a backup dancer for them.

And you –  _obviously_  – said yes.

It had been nearly two years since you were officially accepted to be a dancer, and there wasn't a single day that went by that you weren't incredibly grateful for all the opportunities you'd gotten because of it. You were able to move to London, you and the girls became closer than you ever  _dreamed_ , and you even met your boyfriend when your first tour with them had a couple shows in LA.

_End flashback_

You were in the UK, backstage with the other dancers as you all rushed around. You were due back onstage for  _Love Me Like You_  any moment now, so you had to quickly finish getting changed out of your outfit from the previous song you'd been part of.

"Alright, girls!" the choreographer announced as she came into the room, "Let's go!" The girls helping you quickly finished with your outfit and makeup touchups before allowing you to head to the door. You thanked them as you followed Elizabeth down the hallway toward the stage where she helped everyone get into place.

The curtains were down so Little Mix could quickly take off the jackets they'd had on during  _Move_  and  _Weird People_. The girls hurried to get drinks of water and touchups on their makeup, coming back to center stage with smiles as they said their greetings to the dancers. The song started and you heard cheers fill the arena once fans realized what song it was as the curtains opened once again.

The performance started off normally – you and the other backup dancers moved in sync with the girls just as you always did – but as you were dancing this time, you heard cheers get even louder during the second chorus. You figured it was just because the girls did something added to the routine that you didn't know about. And they  _had_ , just not in a way you expected.

You came to your usual spot beside Jesy – as you always did during this song as the bridge approached – but when you went to continue dancing, she stopped you. She quickly wrapped her arm around you, bringing you into her side. The other dancers as well as the girls stopped too, clearly having planned  _something_  without you knowing.

"I know we don't normally interrupt a song like this, but we just wanted everyone to know about this  _extraordinary_  girl right here," Jesy grinned. You gave her a confused smile as she went on. "Y/N has been one of our dancers for almost two years today," she said, making the crowd cheer, "She's been so dedicated to performing with us and we thought it was only fitting for you all to help us thank her for all the work she's put into making the rest of us look like we don't know what we're doing out here." You rolled your eyes but there was no doubt you were nearly in tears at how sweet these girls have been to you since you started working with them. "So we thought that – since this is her favorite song to perform with us – we would give her a little surprise right in the middle!"

"You guys ready?!" Perrie squeaked happily, earning a cheer in response. "Okay, on three, we want you to go as crazy as you  _possibly_  can for our lovely Y/N!  _One_!"

" _Two_!" Jade chirped.

" _Three_!" Leigh-Anne chimed in from the side of the stage. You looked over, wondering why she was so far away and that was when you realized why they were doing this.

With both you  _and_  your boyfriend on tour, it had been hard to find time to Skype or even have down time at the same time to just  _text_  each other. So when you found Leigh-Anne coming toward you with him, you immediately started crying. Your hands found your face and Jesy's arm fell off of your shoulders as you sunk to the floor, staying on your feet but unable to continue standing as the girls and the rest of the dancers moved back and continued on with the song, going into the bridge.

Luke had the biggest grin on his face as he walked across the stage, happy word of the surprise didn't find its way to you. He stopped beside you, leaning over. The moment his hand touched your back, you were back on your feet, jumping into his arms. You felt him chuckle as your arms wrapped around his neck and your legs around his waist, burying your face in his neck as his own arms wrapped around your waist.

"Hey, baby girl," Luke murmured for only you to hear – not that anyone else would have  _heard it_  over the screaming crowd anyway – as he kissed the side of your head over and over, "I've missed you." You tried to speak but the only sounds that were coming out of your mouth were breathy sobs. You felt him squeeze your waist tightly and smile into your skin as he continued kissing it.

The song came to an end and the girls and dancers watched you and Luke with smiles for a moment.

"That was so much better than I thought it was going to be!" Jesy exclaimed, clapping her hands lightly.

"I can't believe she had no idea as well!" Jade added, "Perrie's  _quite_  the blabbermouth, isn't she?"

"I  _told you_  I could keep this secret!" Perrie stuck her tongue out at her best friends, making them laugh. The girls came over to you as Luke put you back down on your feet, pulling away to look at you. He kissed your lips gently before looking over at the band. They all smiled and gave each other hugs before looking at you.

"Oh,  _honey_ ," Leigh-Anne smiled sadly, using her fingers to wipe your cheeks as best as she could, "Happy tears?" You couldn't help but laugh as you nodded, wrapping your arms around her for a hug. The other three girls instantly joined in and it wasn't long until Luke and the dancers came into the group hug as well. You were all laughing as you pulled away, you only to be pulled back into Luke.

"You're shaking  _so bad_!" Perrie chuckled, rubbing your upper arm.

"Yeah!" Jade said, "How about you go sit with Luke backstage and you can just come back for the next song?" You nodded in agreement and Luke led you off of the stage, sitting with you on a random trunk so you could still watch the show.

"Thank you guys so much for helping out with that!" Jesy told the crowd, making them cheer.

"What did you guys think of Y/N's surprise? Looked  _properly shocked_ , didn't she?" Jade giggled, earning cheers again.

While the girls continued talking with the crowd about the next song, your head was on Luke's right shoulder. The arm closest to you was wrapped around your waist, his hand on your lower thigh so his thumb could rub your skin. He took your left hand and brought it up, kissing the back of it.

"You really are shaking pretty bad, baby girl," he said lowly so none of the stagehands heard him, "Are you sure you're okay? Do you need water or something?" He heard you chuckle under your breath before you lifted your arm to wipe your cheeks again. You then picked your head up so you could rest your chin on his shoulder instead.

"I missed you," you whispered, making him smile.

"I missed you too, princess," Luke assured you just before kissing you again.


	491. No Matter What (Michael Clifford) *

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

**Warning: Eating disorder**

~

"What's up with Y/N lately?" you heard Ashton ask from the living room. The boys were over playing a new video Michael insisted they check out.

"Yeah," Calum agreed, "She doesn't look as... _thin_...anymore." Your heart sank slightly and you felt sick as you looked down at your stomach, then at the bag of cookies you'd gone into the kitchen to retrieve and already started eating.

You'd dealt with eating disorders your  _whole life_ , and you thought you were  _finally_  starting to get better – you were eating more and not caring what you were eating and not weighing yourself every ten minutes. You thought nobody could even  _tell_  you were putting on weight. But you were wrong.

"She's been gaining weight these last few weeks," you heard your boyfriend hum – but you hadn't heard all of them agree that they were proud of you for looking healthier.

You felt your head spin as you replayed the words over and over again. If the  _boys_  – people who didn't notice  _anything_  unless you explicitly pointed it out to them – then what did people who saw you buying your  _groceries_  think of you? And  _Michael_... He was the only one of them who  _knew_  about your struggles with food... Was he  _grossed out_  by the newly gained weight and just didn't have the heart to  _tell you_?

This prompted you to immediately close the bag and put it back in the cabinet, now walking like you were on a  _mission_  to the bathroom. But Michael's voice stopped you just before you were out of sight of the living room.

"Hey, princess," he smiled, making you stop and backtrack a couple steps. All the boys were grinning at you, giving you various greetings. All you did was barely grin back at them. "You okay?" he asked, "Feels like we haven't seen you all day."

"Mhmm," you nodded, "Just took a break from studying to get a snack but there's nothing I want."

"You wanna order something? We could have pizza or takeout or fast food – whatever you feel like." You quickly shook your head with a small noise of detest.

"Not hungry," you said.

"But you just said yo-" 

Michael cut himself off when you hurried down the hallway, the sound of the bedroom door closing echoing loudly throughout the small apartment. He sighed softly, excusing himself before getting up and making his way to your shared bedroom. He was happy to discover it wasn't locked, but his heart dropped at the sounds coming from the behind the bathroom door.

Before Michael found out about your eating disorder, he would hear you go into what sounded like a coughing fit. He didn't think anything of it at first, but he started to notice that it would only happen when you were in the bathroom, then he noticed it would only happen after you'd eaten dinner with him, then he noticed it would happen after every single time you ate something no matter how small it was.

He didn't want to believe it at first – he wanted to believe it was just his  _imagination_  – but after confronting you and having you admit that you were doing it to yourself – that you were purposely making yourself throw up – he was determined to help you get to the point where you could eat and not hate yourself for it. And he really thought you were finally there until now.

"Y/N," Michael said as he approached the bathroom door, "What are you doing?"

"N-Nothing," you choked out. He reached for the door knob – breathing a sigh of relief when he pulled it all the way down – and opened it, finding you kneeling in front of the toilet.

"You need to get out of the bathroom," Michael told you, coming over to you. He didn't even bother to look before flushing the toilet – he knew you'd already thrown up at least once – and scooped you up in his arms, taking you back to the door. But he'd have been stupid to think it was going to be that simple.

" _No, Michael_!" you fought back as hard as you could, wiggling around and grabbing onto whatever you thought would make him release you, "Th-The  _cookies_... I... I _have to_!"

" _No,_ you  _don't_ , Y/N!" Michael exclaimed, ignoring your desperate attempts to free yourself as he took you to the bed.

" _Yes, I do_!" you insisted, "People  _notice_! You wouldn't  _understand_!"

"No, I understand, Y/N," he stated, setting you down and kneeling in front of you. He put his hands on your hips with his forearms on the sides of your thighs so you couldn't escape. "I understand that you hate your body and you hate feeling full and you hate when people try to get you to eat," Michael shook his head, "But I also understand that you shouldn't  _have_ to feel that way."

"Yes, I do! If  _you guys_  can tell I'm gaining weight then so can  _everyone else_!"

"Princess,  _what_  are you talking about?" he shook his head.

"Calum said I don't look thin anymore," you swallowed the lump in your throat, bringing your hands up to wipe the tears from your face, "And you said I'm gaining weight."

"Did you hear us say how  _proud_  we are of you for it?" he asked, making you freeze.

" _What_?" you managed to force yourself to say, letting your hand drop back onto your lap.

"You're not  _sickeningly_  thin anymore, Y/N –  _that's_  what Cal was saying," he sighed, squeezing your hips lightly, "There's no doubt in my mind that he would have included that if he knew you could hear us. And you're beautiful no matter  _what_  your size is, but you and I both know that  _purposely_  making yourself throw up after  _every little thing_  you eat is  _not_  the way to get to where you want to be.  _This could kill you, princess_. If  _you_  are not happy with your size and want to change it until you  _are_ , that's fine, and I will support you in whatever you decide to do, but I will  _not_  support you starving yourself or throwing up after you eat in order to  _get there_. There are way better,  _healthier_  ways to lose weight, princess, and I just want you to do it  _safely_. And if it will make it easier for you, I'll do it with you," he offered.

"You  _will_?" you whispered, swallowing the lump in your throat.

" _Of course_  I will," he said, leaning forward and kissing your nose, "I'll do  _anything_  to make you happier. But you know what that means, right?" You looked at him in confusion, prompting him to continue. "It means that our diets are going to be the same, okay? So whatever you eat, I eat," he told you, "And that  _includes_  when you don't eat at all."

"Mikey, you can't  _not_  eat."

" _And neither can you_ ," he said firmly, "So what do you say, princess? You up for it?" You swallowed another lump before nodding your head slightly.

"Thank you, Mikey," you choked out. He smiled at you, leaning in and pressing his lips to yours.

"I love you, princess," he murmured into the kiss, "No matter what." After pulling away, your stomach started growling. You made a small noise of detest, prompting Michael to open his mouth, but you spoke before he could.

"Can we get pizza?" you asked softly. Michael could help but laugh, pressing a kiss to your forehead.

"Just the two of us?" he asked, rising to his feet.

"Pizza party?" you looked up at him, "And  _Mario Kart_?"

"Don't you remember what happened  _last time_  you and Luke played  _Mario Kart_  together?" he said, grabbing your hands and pulling you up so he could lead you out of the room.

"Well, he shouldn't have kept  _blue-shelling_  me," you scoffed, realizing Luke had heard it when you heard his voice coming from the living room.

"You were in  _first_ , Y/N!" he reminded you, looking over as you and Michael came into the room, "The blue shell goes to whoever is in  _first_! I couldn't help that it was  _you_  every time!"

" _Fine_ , but don't be surprised when every green shell hits  _you_ ," you fired back, earning an eye roll from Luke and quiet snickers from everyone else.

~

_inspiration: http://calumsbtich.tumblr.com/post/153103773813/please-ch_


	492. Guts (Ashton Irwin)

" _Flower delivery_!"

Everyone in the classroom looked up to find the student council president – your best friend Selena – standing in the doorway as another member of the student council followed behind her with a box. You smiled slightly when she looked at you, but were left confused when she only winked in response.

"Hurry up," you teacher chuckled, shaking his head, "I'm trying to teach."

"And you're doing a  _fine_  job, Mr. K," Selena told him, making him laugh again as he rolled his eyes, "I only have 5 for this class." He nodded, letting her have the floor to call out names. You sighed to yourself, putting your elbow on your desk and your cheek in your hand, looking back down at your book.

Every week leading up to Valentine's Day, the student council would have a table out at lunch where people could buy other students roses for a dollar – and every Valentine's Day, you wouldn't get a single one. It wasn't that you ever  _expected_  to get one – Lord knows you knew  _just_  how invisible you were to everyone  _but_  your small friend group – it was just that your friends would always get five or  _more_ , and to be honest, you were kind of tired of them giving you one of theirs out of  _pity_.

" _Y/N_ ," you heard Selena sing, making you look up again, "Come get your  _flower_ , my dear."

You stared at her incredulously for a moment as she held up the pale pink rose, motioning for you to get up and go to her. You were already starting to blush at the attention on you, so you timidly got up from your seat and went to get it so your classmates would all just  _stop staring_.

"Later, Mr. K!" Selena chirped over her shoulder as you walked back to your seat, "See you next period!"

"Thank you, Miss Catalani," your teacher chuckled, returning back to the lesson.

You tried to remain focused for the rest of the class –  _you really did_  – but you couldn't keep yourself from glancing at the flower lying on your desk. You were racking your brain trying to think of who could have possibly bought it for you, but you really only had  _one_  strong suspect.

The bell signaling the end of first period finally rang, so you gathered up all your books as well as your flower and filed out of the classroom with everyone else. You walked down the hallway on the way to your locker, listening to people thank their boyfriends and girlfriends for buying them a flower, while you were just chewing on your inner cheek. You didn't know  _why_  you were getting so emotional over this – you were 95% certain who had bought yours – and you couldn't help but get upset with yourself.

" _It was just Selena_ ," you grumbled to yourself, pulling your locker door open, " _Stop crying_." You quickly pulled your sweater sleeve down your hand as you lifted it up, wiping your cheeks as you shoved the stem of the flower into the front pocket of your backpack. You then grabbed all the books you needed for your next class and closed your locker door. But you jumped when you went to walk away and nearly ran into somebody.

"Sorry," the brown-haired boy in front of you smiled shyly, pushing his glasses up, "I didn't mean to scare you."

"It's fine," you murmured. You thought he was going to walk away, but he didn't. Instead, he kept talking to you.

"I, um... I heard you talking to yourself as I was walking by..." he trailed off, "I... Are you okay?" It was then that you were really getting a good look at him, realizing that you recognized him.

"M'fine, Ashton," you replied softly. He seemed surprised by your statement.

"You...know my name?" he wondered.

"Yeah..." you said with a questioning tone, "We have Geography together fourth period, right...? You sit in front of me two rows over...?"

"Yeah!" he nodded, clearing his throat lightly, "Just...didn't think you  _noticed_ , I guess..."

"Well... I noticed..." you said slowly.

You weren't  _super_   _close_  to him by any means, but you  _did_  work together on occasion when you had group projects. Though you never really addressed him with it, you figured he knew you at least knew his name. But apparently not.

"Well, I just...wanted to see if you were okay, so..." Ashton told you. You watched his eyes glance over your face for a moment. "I like the flower," he mentioned, letting you know he'd seen it before you closed your locker door, "Who gave it to you?"

"A friend," you replied, confused as to why he was still talking to you. He was about to speak again, but you beat him to it. "You have next period with Selena Catalani, right?" you asked, to which Ashton nodded, "Can you tell her I said thanks for the flower?" He opened his mouth but apparently decided against speaking, and simply nodded again instead. "Thanks, Ashton," you told him, "Don't wanna be late." He watched you move past him and start jogging down the hallway in the hopes of beating the tardy bell.

~

**Lunch time**

When the bell for lunch  _finally_  rang two and a half hours later, you made your way to the cafeteria, went through the line, and went to sit at your usual table to wait for your three friends to join you as they always did. You looked over when you heard one of their voices, finding all of them walking to the table together. They sat down in their usual spots – Selena across from you, Charlotte beside her, and Sam beside you – and greeted you.

"So, Y/N," Selena started, "Is there any reason  _Ashton Irwin_  was thanking me for buying you a flower today?"

"Because you did," you replied, obviously knowing she was trying to play it off still.

"Well, I didn't," she said, opening up her carton of milk.

"You can stop, Sel," you rolled your eyes, "I already know."

"I  _didn't_  buy you a flower!" Selena insisted, shoving a handful of fries into her mouth. You looked at your other friends, and they immediately threw their hands up in surrender.

"Don't look at  _me_!" they told you simultaneously.

"Why is it  _so hard_  for you to believe that someone would want to give you a flower for Valentine's Day?" Selena asked.

"I don't know if you guys have noticed, but there isn't exactly a line of boys just  _fighting_  for my attention," you rolled your eyes, leaning back in your chair as you ate a fry.

"That doesn't mean  _no one_  likes you!" Charlotte said.

"We've been going to this school with the  _same_  seniors the past  _four years_ ," you shook your head, reaching up to grab your chocolate milk and take a drink, "Why start the stupid flower thing  _now_?"

"Maybe they finally worked up the guts to do it," Sam shrugged, taking his own drink.

"How much gut could it possibly take to  _anonymously_  buy someone a flower?" you grumbled.

You were looking down as you continued eating, subsequently missing Selena looking at the table across the aisle from you. She shrugged at Ashton as he looked at her, making him sigh as they each returned to their table's conversation.

~

After lunch and the rest of third period, you went back to your locker to grab your books for Geography. You avoided looking at your flower each time you opened your locker door – pretending it simply  _wasn't there_  was easier. You pulled your notebook out and closed the door, heading toward your fourth period class. But as you were about to turn the corner into the hallway the classroom was in, you heard your best friend's voice say your name.

"Y/N's not gonna budge, you know," Selena said, "I think you're just gonna have to tell her."

"You really think she'll  _believe me_?" Ashton's voice came next, "I'm pretty sure she left lunch still convinced it was one of  _you_  that gave her the flower."

"That's why you have to tell her it was  _you_!" she exclaimed softly, making your heart skip a beat.

 _Ashton_  was the one who bought the flower for you? He  _couldn't_  have been... He's never shown any interest in you  _before_  – why would he start  _now_?

No... They definitely knew you were listening... They  _had to_...

You decided not to find out though – instead, turning around and just taking the long way to class so you didn't have to pass Selena and Ashton. You didn't know  _why_  she was  _so_   _determined_  to convince you that she didn't buy you that  _stupid_  flower out of pity that she decided to drag  _Ashton_  into it as well. Though, what you didn't understand  _more_  was why Ashton was just  _going along with it_.

Throughout class – and the rest of the day each time you saw him – you could feel Ashton watching you. You never glanced directly at him for more than a second so he didn't know you knew he was staring – you were just in your own head, trying to figure out  _why_  he and Selena were teamed up against you.

~

The end of the school day finally rolled around, leaving you to let out a sigh of relief when the final bell rang. You'd never been more eager to go home in your  _life_ , so you darted out of your fifth period class and quickly gathered up all your homework so you could leave.

As you were walking – well, more like  _jogging_  – out to your car in the student parking lot, you heard someone call your name. You looked over your shoulder and found Ashton stepping off the curb, coming toward you. You groaned to yourself –  _all_  you wanted was to just go home – turning back to continue going to your car. You changed your pace to a slow walk so Ashton could catch up, however, still not wanting to be rude and ignore him.

"This fell out of your backpack," Ashton told you once he reached you, holding the pink rose up for you to take.

"Thanks," you murmured, taking it from his hand –  _why could he have just left it alone?_

"It's really pretty," he mentioned, "I just thought you'd want to take it home and put it in a glass or something." You  _audibly_  sighed as you came to a stop at the driver's side of your car, making him blink at you curiously.

"You don't have to  _keep_  pretending, Ashton," you looked at him, finally having enough of the small talk.

"Pretending about  _what_?" he asked.

"I know you know I heard you and Selena talking before fourth period," you shook your head, "She knows how much I don't like when she gives me a pity flower at the end of Valentine's Day every year, so she decided to rope you into it too. Look, I'm sorry she's dragging  _you_ into now, but she  _just_  wants me to feel less bad about never-"

Your speech was cut off when Ashton finally had enough  _himself_ , suddenly grabbing your cheeks and pulling your face to his. You felt your heart start  _pounding_  against your chest as you lost your breath.

At first, you were just trying to convince yourself you were  _dreaming_  – that you were really just at home in bed and would wake up any moment – but you soon realized that this was real life and that  _Ashton Irwin_  was  _really_  kissing you. You soon allowed yourself to ease into it, your hands coming up and gripping the sides of his shirt as you stepped forward so you were  _right_  up against him and kissed him back. You felt the corner of his mouth twitch up as he smiled, happy you hadn't flat-out shoved him away from you but pulled him  _closer_  instead.

"What if we  _didn't_  know you could hear us? What if I really  _was_  the one who bought you a flower?" he asked lowly as he pulled away for air, resting his forehead on yours while his thumbs stroked your cheekbones, " _Then_ what?"

You were breathing heavily as you opened your mouth, trying to force  _any_  words to come out but nothing was happening. You finally took in one deep breath, just hoping it was enough to allow you to speak. And it  _was_.

"Then I..." you swallowed, "I would probably just tell you to do that again." Ashton couldn't help the grin that spread across his face, doing exactly as you said and pulling you back in for another kiss.


	493. Safety Net (Calum Hood) - Part 1 *

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

_for the sake of things not getting weird later, let's all just pretend you're in your early 20s_

**Warning: Mentions of abuse**

~

You bounced into the 5SOS meet and greet,  _beyond_  excited to finally meet your favorite band. You hoped you wouldn't freeze up and be too nervous to tell them all the things you wanted to, but you suppose you'd only know once you were actually in front of them.

Once you were being led into the room where the band was, you could feel your heart start  _pounding_. You'd only ever seen them in  _photos_  up to this point and, honestly, it didn't  _at all_  surprise you that you lost your breath when you realized you were  _now_  able to say you  _physically_  met the four people who helped you through  _so much_  in the time you'd been a fan. And all four of them smiled upon seeing your wide-eyed expression as you shyly walked toward them.

"Hi!" they all said in unison while Ashton continued, "How are you?" You breathed out as he opened his arms for a hug, hugging him back tightly.

"I'm  _good_ ," you managed to squeak out, making them chuckle.

"What's your name?" Calum asked as you went to hug Michael.

"Uh..." you trailed off, " _Y/N_!  _It's Y/N_!"

"You don't have to be nervous," Michael laughed, squeezing you before letting go so you could hug the next boy – which happened to be Luke.

"If anything,  _we're_  nervous to meet  _you_ ," Luke grinned.

" _Come on_ ," you mumbled into his shirt since he was hugging you so close, "You guys meet like,  _hundreds_  of people every  _day_."

"That's a bit of an exaggeration," Calum commented with a smile as well as you moved on to him. You wrapped your arms around his waist and his own wound around your shoulders, hugging you tighter than the three boys before him had.

"And that doesn't mean we don't get nervous meeting people," Ashton pointed out, "Opinions can change after you meet a fan in person."

"Not unless you're a  _dick_  to them," you mentioned, pulling away from Calum.

"Fair enough," Luke laughed again.

"So do you have anything you want us to sign?" Michael questioned.

"I'd ask if you were famous, but I bought a poster with you guys on it for the sole purpose of having you sign it, so," you shrugged, unfolding the poster in your hand and holding it out to them. Ashton was the first to take it, putting it on the table beside him to sign it nicely for you, while they all laughed again. "Okay," you suddenly let out a sharp breath, "I need to say this before I get too scared and chicken out." The last boy signed the poster, but still held it as you continued talking. "I just wanted to say thank you for... _everything_ , really..." you told them, "Listening to your music and watching videos where you're just messing around has been my source of happiness for the past like, ( _however many years you've been a fan lmao_ ) years now, and I know you get told stuff like that all the time, but I don't think you guys'll ever  _really_  understand how much you've helped me." You voice broke as you were speaking, making you swallow thickly.

" _Oh, no_!" Michael whined with a sad smile on his face, " _Don't cry_! You're gonna make  _me_  cry!" He quickly came up to you, pulling you back into him for another hug. You obviously wasted no time in hugging him back, burying your face in his shirt.

But, as you moved away from Michael to hug the rest of them before you left the room, it was at  _that_  point that Calum noticed something that made his heart drop.

**Calum's POV**

"I liked her," Luke mentioned after you'd walked out, preparing for the next fans to come into the room.

"Yeah, she was really cute," Michael grinned.

"It'd be nice if we could listen to  _everyone's_  stories like this," Ashton nodded, earning hums of agreement from the others. The three boys looked over at Calum, noticing he was getting a bottle of water but  _not_  noticing he was talking to the security guard beside the cooler.

"How much longer do we have meet and greet?" he asked. The guard peeked out the door.

"Looks like five more groups," he answered.

"You know that girl that just left?" Calum wondered, earning himself a nod. "Her name's Y/N," he said, "Take her to the dressing room across from ours and have her wait there; I wanna talk to her some more when we're done here." The man shrugged, nodding his head. He got the attention of the other security guard in the room, letting him know he needed to leave for a few minutes before exiting the room to find you.

**Your POV**

"Y/N?" you heard your name behind you, making you turn to look over your shoulder. You recognized the man as the security guard from the meet and greet, making you furrow your eyebrows in confusion.

"Yes..." you said slowly, stopping so he could catch up.

"I've been asked to take you to one of our dressing rooms," he informed you, only heightening your confusion that much more.

" _For_...?"

"I don't know," he answered honestly with a light chuckle, "Calum just asked me to have you wait for him there." You didn't know what to say –  _Calum_  wanted to see you again? – so you didn't say anything at all. All you did was nod your head, allowing the guard to lead you a different way than you'd originally been going.

He took you down a long hallway, opening the door across from the one labeled as the band's dressing room. He flipped on the light and had you sit on the couch, telling you that Calum would be there as soon as meet and greet was over, before he left to go back there himself. You just looked around as the door closed behind him, understandably wondering what the  _hell_  was going on.

~

**15 minutes later**

The knock on the dressing room door startled you a bit, making you look up from your phone as it opened. Calum shyly entered the room, closing the door behind him.

"Hi," he said lowly, coming over to the couch.

"Hello again," you gave him a confused grin as he sat down beside you.

"I'm sure you're wondering why I had you brought here."

"You know, as shocking as it sounds, I  _was_  actually curious about that," you nodded.

"Well... I just wanna talk some more about something you said earlier..." he mentioned. You gave him a look, prompting him to continue. "I wanna talk about when you told us how much we've helped you," he said, "Or... I guess how we don't  _realize_  how much we've helped you."

"I'm sure you guys hear that all the time," you shook your head, repeating what you'd said earlier, "What's so different about me that you wanted a  _one-on-one_?" Calum let out a breathy laugh, pausing to really think about what he was going to say next.

"I don't know how to say this without upsetting or offending you," he said slowly, "But when you were hugging us before you left the room, I... I noticed some bruises under your sleeves and on your shoulders..." He could sense your body stiffen, but he went on. "Even if it's nothing and you  _willingly_  let them happen, I had to ask," he told you, "I wouldn't have been able to sleep tonight without knowing if you're okay – and I didn't want to ask in front of everybody no matter what the answer is."

"It's nothing – I just fell off the ladder helping my dad clean out the gutters and landed in some bushes," you tried to say as reassuringly as possible. But Calum didn't even believe it for a  _second_.

"I'm not going to force you to tell me anything you don't want to tell me," he shook his own head, "But I just want you to know that I  _know_  you're lying to me." He noticed you gulp slightly – probably thinking he  _wouldn't_  – and sighed again. "Y/N," he said gently, making you look up at him, "I can't help you if you don't tell me what's wrong."

"You can't help me  _at all_ ," you whispered.

"Not if you don't  _let me_ ," he insisted. You were silent again, prompting him to continue, "Y/N,  _who_  hurt you?" You didn't know whether it was because of  _who he was_  or because he really  _did_  seem to care, but for the first time since it started happening, you  _finally_  told someone what went on behind closed doors.

"M-My dad..." you said as softly as you could with Calum still being able to hear it.

" _Your dad_  did this to you?" he seemed  _genuinely_  surprised – like he'd never heard of someone being hurt by their parent before, "How long has he been...?" You looked back down at your hands in your lap as you played with your fingers.

"Nine years..." you murmured, "Right after my mom died... Before he married my step-mom..."

"And she  _lets him_?"

You let out a dry laugh, "She couldn't care  _less_  about me – she  _knows_  I don't like her."

"Why don't you like her?"

"He had an affair with her while my mom was in the hospital," you sighed, "She was the nurse who took care of my mom  _every morning_." You scowled at the memory. "My dad told me he was marrying her a week after my mom died," you laughed dryly again, "We hadn't even had the  _funeral_  yet and he was telling me he was marrying the woman he cheated with. He asked my opinion on her, I told her I didn't like her – that I thought she was only with him for Mom's insurance money... Apparently, he didn't  _like_  that answer very much... It wasn't  _always_  physical-" You shook your head. "-It started out with my looks and my outfits and my hairstyles... Then it turned into bumps as I passed him and shoves as I walked away and now it's..." You trailed off, motioning to your visible bruises, but not daring to move your shirt down so he could see  _just_  how much damage had been done the previous day.

"Y/N, you  _can't_  go home tonight," he told you as if you were  _choosing_  to remain trapped in the  _prison_  that was your house.

"Calum, I don't know if you know how stuff like this  _works_ , but if I  _don't_  go home after this show, it's going to get  _worse_ ," you choked, mentally kicking yourself for tearing up, "He doesn't even know I'm  _here_  – he thinks I'm at a  _friend's_   _house_  today – and I don't want to find out what will happen to me if he finds out I  _lied_..."

"I may not know from personal experience, but that doesn't mean I can't  _help you_." The desperation in his tone truthfully took you by surprise. "Whether he finds out you lied or not is going to change the fact that it's going to  _keep happening_ ," he reminded you, "You  _have_  a chance to get out of this, Y/N, and this might be the  _only one_  you get for a  _long time_. You don't  _deserve_  to be living like this –  _no one does_  – and if I can get you out of it somehow, then I'll do whatever it  _takes_  to make sure you're not living in fear of how far he's going to go  _next time_."

"What am I  _supposed_  to do then, Calum?" you breathed out harshly, leaning back against the couch cushion, "Don't you think that if I  _had_  any other options, I'd be  _there_  instead of where I am  _now_? I don't have any family members that would take me in, I can't leave the city and start over somewhere new because I have no money, my dad won't  _allow_  me to get a job because he  _knows_  I'll leave the  _moment_  I have the  _chance_  to... What am I supposed to  _do_?" Your voice broke again, causing you to bring your hands up to your face. He paused for a moment before it was like a light bulb went off over his head.

"Come on the road with us," he said. Your hands immediately fell back onto your lap as you stared at him.

"I'm sor-" your laugh was laced with confusion, "-You're not  _seri_ -  _What_?"

"You could come on the road with us," he repeated.

"Calum," you sighed, "What about things clothes and toiletries and-"

"We'll buy you all that," he shook his head. He could tell you were about to protest, so he beat you to speaking. "And if that's not something you're comfortable with, then we can find you a job with us – something  _always_  needs done while we're on tour," he insisted, "This isn't about you not having anything right now, Y/N; This is about wanting to get you out of living with a  _monster_  no matter what we have to do."

You  _genuinely_  didn't know what to say at that point. You'd never met someone so  _set_  on helping you in such a  _massive_  way that it honestly rendered you  _speechless_. The only thing you could really think to do to thank him – though nothing would ever be  _enough_  – for being  _so_  concerned about your well-being was to just  _hug him_. So that was what you did.

You put your phone on the coffee table before scooting toward Calum, throwing your arms around his neck. You felt him breathe a sigh of relief that you were  _actually_  agreeing to this, wrapping his own arms around your waist and hugging you as tightly as you were hugging him – much like you'd done during the meet and greet.

And, you know, maybe your dad  _would_  find you somehow and your life would be even more of an  _unbearable hell_  than it already was... But for  _right now_ , you were as safe as you'd  _ever_  felt before. 

~

 _inspiration: http://letmeletmetrashyourlove.tumblr.com/post/168666714013/breaking-things_   


	494. Safety Net (Calum Hood) - Part 2 *

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

**Warning: Mention of abuse, blood**

~

**Calum's POV**

"What do I tell everyone else?" you asked randomly. You and Calum had been in a comfortable silence for the last few minutes – him on his phone replying to messages and tweets and you on your own playing a game.

You were now in the band's dressing room, sitting with Calum on the couch. You'd already told the rest of the boys and their tour manager what was going on – and they obviously had no issues with you joining them on the road – but you were still worried about the way the other people in the crew would react.

"Whatever you want to tell them," he answered, "You don't  _owe_  anyone an explanation." You laid your head back on the couch cushion behind you, going quiet again for a moment as you thought about what Calum said.

"I guess so," you agreed, "I do wanna go home for a minute though." Calum opened his mouth to speak, but you didn't even notice. "What time is it?" you asked out loud despite looking at your phone yourself, "Yeah-" You nodded to yourself. "-my dad is still at work. I should have enough time to get everything I need and then get out."

"Y/N, I don't think that's a good idea..."

"I'll be fine, Cal," you promised him, " _Please_? I won't bring anything we can get at a Walmart or something – I just want my own clothes and my laptop." Calum looked at you for a moment before sighing.

"Fine," he caved, plucking your phone out of your hand, "But I want you to text me if you need help." When he gave you your phone back, you found he'd given you his number. You looked back up at him, smiling.

"Thanks, Cal," you said. You leaned in and kissed his cheek, not even noticing his blush as you pulled away. "I'll be back in like, 45 minutes," you assured him, "And if I'm not, you can – I don't know – call SEAL Team 6 or whatever." Calum rolled his eyes as you left the room, unable to shake the sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach that he shouldn't have agreed to let you go alone.

~

**Your POV; One hour later**

You looked at yourself in your rearview mirror, scowling softly at your fresh wounds. You grabbed the box of tissues you kept in the backseat, doing your best to wipe the blood off of your face before you went back inside the venue. But no matter how much blood you were able to get rid of was going to hide the large cuts above your left eyebrow and on your left cheek or the bruising scattered across the entire left side of your face.

You thought about texting Calum to come outside, not wanting to face the entire band at once, but you also didn't want to deal with his ' _I told you so_ ' right away either. But you knew you couldn't avoid them forever – they were expecting you back any minute now, after all – so you just grabbed your backpack from the passenger seat and got out of your car, heading inside.

You managed to avoid the random people scattered throughout backstage, only hearing voices as crew members and venue employees spoke to each other. You breathed a soft sigh of relief when you reached the dressing room door, hearing Ashton, Luke, and Michael talking and messing around.

"Hey, guys," you said as you walked into the room, "I'm back."

"Hey, Y/N!" they chirped in unison. Luckily, none of them looked over at you since they were raiding their clothing trunks trying to decide what to wear for the show that night.

"Where's Cal?" you asked.

"Pretty sure he went to talk to Jeff about getting you a permanent backstage pass," Luke mentioned, making you smile slightly.

"Well, I have good news and bad news," you said as normally as you could.

"What's the good news?" Ashton wondered.

"My dad kicked me out."

"That's the  _good_  news?" Michael chuckled, "Then what's the  _bad_?"

You forced out a laugh of your own, "Everything that happened  _before that_." The band finally turned their heads, all of their eyes widening.

" _Holy shit, Y/N_!" Michael exclaimed as all three of them jumped up, rushing over to you, "What happened?!" Ashton was the first to reach you, carefully taking your chin in his hand and moving your head toward the light so he could see your face better.

"I just finished packing and I was heading out the door when my dad came home..." you murmured, "He was drunk... Drunk at  _1:30 in the afternoon_ -" You forced out another laugh. "-I tried to play it off... I told him I'd forgotten some stuff and was just going back to my friend's house... But I never know what answer is the  _right one_  anymore..."

"So he did this  _just because_?" Michael asked, a hint of anger in his voice. You couldn't find it in you to give him an answer – not that  _had one_  at all – so you just shrugged.

"C'mere, Y/N," Ashton said lowly, "We have a first aid kit in the bathroom." He took his hand off of your chin, taking your hand and leading you into the attached bathroom.

Ashton had you hop up onto the counter while he went into the cabinet beside the sink, coming back to you with a washcloth and the first aid kit. He turned on the water, letting it warm up a bit before putting the washcloth under it and turning it off again.

"How are you feeling?" he asked you, watching you close your eyes and your face contort slightly as he began wiping the dried blood from your face.

"Will any answer I could give you right now make you feel any better?" you returned, making him chuckle.

"Probably not," he answered honestly. You barely smiled at him as you opened your eyes. "Does anywhere hurt more than another?" he wondered.

"It hurts as much as getting punched repeatedly usually does," you shrugged.

"I'm not gonna lie, Y/N – you're a lot braver than I am," Ashton admitted, "I'd be crying like a baby if I were you right now." He smiled when you giggled at the comment, but you didn't say anything else – things just remained silent until you heard a voice out in the main room.

"Hey, guys," you heard Calum greet Michael and Luke as he walked into the dressing room, "Where's Y/N? Is she back yet?"

"She and Ash are in the bathroom," Luke said, making him cock an eyebrow.

"Why?" You could hear his footsteps getting closer, making your heart start racing.

"He's not gonna be happy, is he?" you whispered, making Ashton let out a soft chuckle as he continued to wipe your cuts.

"I think you already know the answer to that, Y/N," he said just as softly.

"Uh, Cal," Michael said nervously, "You might not wanna-" But he cut himself off the moment you looked over and found Calum with a deer-in-the-headlights expression on his face.

"Hi, Cal," you smiled shyly, only replacing the expression on his face with one of annoyance.

"I  _told you_  not to go alone, Y/N," he said angrily, "You  _knew_  I wasn't comfortable with-" As Calum continued ranting, you were chewing on your inner cheek and swallowing the lump in your throat. Your gaze averted back to Ashton, allowing him to see how close you were to tears.

" _Calum_ ," Ashton cut his best friend off, a firm tone in his voice, "Probably  _not_  the best time, mate." It was then that Calum finally stopped to take in your own expression, his heart dropping knowing it was because of  _him_. The room returned to silence for a moment before Calum spoke again.

"Are you done in here?" he asked Ashton, his voice seemingly straining to come out.

"No," he replied, your eyes following him as he stopped what he was doing and walked over to the door, "But I'm sure you can handle the rest." Calum took the washrag Ashton was holding up, closing the door behind him as the other three boys went to continue their outfit searches.

Calum walked over to where you were still sitting on the bathroom counter. He murmured an ' _I'm sorry_ ' to you, his body relaxing when he noticed a small smile pull at the corner of your mouth.

"Y/N, what happened to you?" he asked gently, finishing what Ashton had started with cleaning your face up.

"What  _always_  happens to me," you shrugged. Calum opened his mouth but you didn't notice as you started talking again. "You wanna know what's  _really_  funny though?" you laughed dryly, feeling your skin getting wet as you  _actually_  started crying that time, "He didn't even know I  _lied_ ; He just did it because he was  _drunk_." Not knowing what to say right away, Calum just leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to your forehead, remaining there for a few seconds.

"I'd wipe your tears but I don't wanna touch your bruises," he mumbled into your skin. You barely smiled as he pulled back.

"I've had a high pain tolerance since I was 14; I can take it," you informed him lightheartedly. He didn't even grin at the comment, he just stared at you. "It's fine, Cal," you shook your head, "I'm used to it."

"You shouldn't  _have_  to be used to it, Y/N," he reminded you, " _No one_  should have to be  _used_   _to_  that."

You found yourself looking down as Calum finished cleaning you up. He carefully rubbed some Neosporin on a couple bandaids – he didn't want to just put it directly on the cuts because he  _knew_  it would hurt if he did – before putting them on your skin, careful not to press too hard or get it to close to your hairline.

When he was done, he rinsed the washrag out and flung it over the shower rod to dry. When he came back to you, your head was still down as you played with your fingers.

"Y/N-" he started before you cut him off.

"I'm sorry I didn't let you come with me," you whispered, your eyes never leaving the hands in your lap.

"Hey, hey, hey," Calum murmured, putting his hand on your jaw – seemingly the only part of your face that  _wasn't_  bruised or cut-up – and lifted your head back up so you would look at him. "What happened  _wasn't_  your fault," he stated firmly, " _Nothing_  your father has done was your fault."

"Then why does it feel like it  _is_?" your voice cracked.

"I don't know," he answered honestly with a sad chuckle, "But I  _do_  know that nothing you could say  _or_  do would  _change_  the way he treats you. And I  _know_  you're scared that he'll find out about this and show up in some city we're in one day, but you  _have_  to believe me when I tell you that me and the band and  _everyone else_  aren't going to let  _anything_  happen to you."

~

_inspiration: http://letmeletmetrashyourlove.tumblr.com/post/168666714013/breaking-things_


	495. Safety Net (Calum Hood) - Part 3 *

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

**Warning: Mentions of abuse, like _one_  swear**

~

**Six months later**

It was a normal day on tour with 5 Seconds of Summer. The boys were in the middle of soundcheck while you were sitting on the couch in their dressing room, editing that week's tour diary. After a couple weeks of getting settled into the routine they had on tour, you decided that you would take on the role of filming the band's antics throughout tour because, from a fan's perspective, you always loved watching the tour diaries and thought it would be cool to follow them throughout the week and upload a video every Sunday morning.

The boys, despite your protests, bought you a camera you could use for filming as well as take photos if you wanted to. They were smart in the sense that they'd had their manager purchase a camera a month before giving it to you – the exact amount of time that the return policy was no longer available – so that you were forced to either use it, or let it collect dust in a drawer on the bus. And you  _certainly_  weren't going to sentence it to darkness.

You were almost finished editing your footage when the dressing room door opened. You looked up, smiling at the band member you'd been calling your boyfriend for the last five months.

"Hi, Cal," you greeted him, earning a sly wink in response.

"Hey, princess," he replied, leaning against the door frame.

"How was soundcheck?"

"Not much to report," he shrugged, "Same old songs we've been playing on this tour."

"You could always add some older ones," you suggested, making him laugh.

"In your  _dreams_ , maybe," he returned, "Anyway, since soundcheck is done and we have some time to kill before meet and greet, I thought you and I could go get some lunch."

"Sure," you nodded, "I'm almost done here; I just have to finish editing this tour diary."

"That doesn't have to be done until tomorrow," he insisted, "I wanna go  _now_."

"Tomorrow  _morning_ ," you corrected, "And I don't want to stay up all night trying to get it done just because-"

"Just because  _what_ , Y/N?" he snapped, "Just because your boyfriend wants to spend time with you?"

"Cal," you sighed, "That's not-"

"That's not what you meant? Then what  _did_  you mean?" he asked, taking you by surprise – you didn't expect it to turn into a full-fledged fight.

You knew it was a rhetorical question – you knew he didn't  _care_  for an answer – but you still gave him one anyway. Well... You  _tried_.

"I  _meant_  I can't just drop everything because someone wants to go out and do something!" you insisted, "You guys brought me along to film your tour diaries and I still have to edit and post them – that's what I'm being  _paid for_!"

"That's not why we brought you along."

" _Really_? Then why  _did you_  bring me along, Calum?"

"You  _know_  why, Y/N," he rolled his eyes.

"I seem to remember me not wanting to come, and then you offering me a  _job_ ," you stated, "But if I'm wrong,  _please_  let me know."

"Did you  _want_  to stay with your father?!" he suddenly raised his voice again – and you'd be lying if you said your heart rate wasn't starting to pick up at the tone, "Because if you'd rather go back to being hit every single day for absolutely no reason, I'd be happy to buy you a plane ticket back!"

"Cal..." you managed to squeak out, "I don't-"

" _You don't want to_?!" he threw his arm up, not even noticing the way it made you flinch, "Clearly, you  _do_ , Y/N! I must be doing  _something_  wrong or not giving you enough  _attention_  if you want to go back to that  _monster_!"

You couldn't find it in yourself to respond verbally – you could only grab your camera and laptop and hurry out of the room. Your body tensed up as you passed him, afraid he was going to grab you and pull you back just like when your father would when you tried to get away from him. But to your relief, he didn't – Calum just let you go, but not before you heard him groan loudly and slam the door behind you.

~

**One hour later**

It had been about an hour since the fight with your boyfriend and you were – unsurprisingly – still shaken up by it. Calum had  _never_  raised his voice like that to you before – to  _anyone_  before, really – and you  _honestly_  couldn't get it out of your head no matter  _how_  hard you tried. You were doing your best to finish editing your video, but you could barely even  _see_  your computer screen through your tears. 

You didn't know  _why_  Calum would bring up your dad like that – the scars and bruises were  _finally_  starting to fade – all you knew was that he did. And as much as you cared for him – as much as you  _loved him_  – you knew it was going to take a while for things to go back to normal with him.

You jumped lightly when the door to the room you'd retreated to opened, making your head snap up to see who it was. You breathed a small sigh of relief when you saw it was just Ashton – happy it wasn't Calum coming back to finish the fight he started.

"Oh, sorry, Y/N," Ashton smiled shyly, "I thought Luke was in here. You know where he is?" You simply shook your head quickly, looking back down at your computer.

You knew that if you tried to talk, it would give away the fact that you'd been crying and you really didn't want to have that conversation. But if you'd learned anything about these boys in the time you'd gotten close to them while on tour, it was that they  _always_  knew when you weren't yourself.

"Y/N," Ashton said gently, closing the door behind him and slowly coming over to the couch you were sitting on, taking a seat beside you, "You should know by now that you can't  _lie_  to any of us." He noticed your bottom lip tremble slightly and how hard you were trying not to look at him, only making his tone a little more desperate. "Y/N,  _please_  just tell me what's wrong," he pleaded, "I can't help you if you don't tell me what's wrong." And since you knew there was no getting out of this, you forced yourself to speak.

"Calum was gonna  _hit me_..." you whispered, making Ashton's eyes widen.

"Y/N, what are you  _talking about_?" he shook his head, "Cal would  _never_  do that –  _especially_  not to  _you_."

"He  _was_!" you insisted, "He got mad 'cause I wanted to finish my video and I wouldn't go out with him and he started yelling at me and he was-" You balled your hand up into a fist and swung it around in front of you slightly, mimicking the way Calum had been talking with his hands. "-and he  _wouldn't stop_  and he said he was gonna buy my ticket back to my dad and he was gonna...  _He was gonna hit me_! And if I... If I just did what he  _wanted_ , he wouldn't have  _done that_! It never would've  _started_  if I just did what he wanted! If I just  _said_  I liked Nicole,  _he wouldn't have started hitting me_..."

Your rant ended with a whimpered sob, causing Ashton to immediately wrap his arms around your shoulders and pull you into him. His hand was in your hair and your face was in his neck, allowing him to feel the tears falling from your eyes as they dropped and slid down his own skin.

This wasn't about  _Calum_ ; Ashton  _knew_  it wasn't. Maybe the onset of emotions you were feeling were  _caused_  by him, but he knew that, whatever Calum did during your argument, all you saw was your father.

It hurt him to see you like this – so scared of even the  _idea_  of your father being able to get back to you somehow even though he knew  _every single person_  on that crew would go to  _hell_   _and back_  to keep you safe from him – and it hurt him even  _more_  to know that the  _one person_  who would  _never_  do the things your dad did to you caused  _this_  kind of reaction.

So after Ashton had calmed you down, making sure you were  _100%_  okay again, he got back up and began the search for a  _different_  member of the band.

~

**Calum's POV**

"Hey, Mar!" Calum heard Ashton's voice coming from somewhere in the hallway.

"Hey, Ash!" Martina chirped, letting him hear her smile, "What's up?"

"Have you seen Calum anywhere?" he asked, making the bassist furrow his eyebrows.  _Why was Ashton looking for him?_

"Pretty sure he's in the dressing room," she replied, "Saw him go in a little bit ago but I haven't heard anything in there since."

"Thank you!" the drummer called over his shoulder, and Calum heard the doorknob turn not even a second later.

Calum couldn't read the expression on his best friend's face, but it was clear that this visit was anything but casual.

"What happened between you and Y/N?" Ashton asked, jumping right into it.

"It was  _nothing_ ," Calum sighed, "We got into a stupid fight and now, she just refuses to talk to me."

And it was at  _that_  point that Ashton realized he didn't understand the  _severity_  of the situation.

"She thought you were gonna hit her," he stated bluntly, taking Calum by surprise. His chest fell as he lost his breath, his legs giving out from underneath him so he dropped onto the couch.

" _She what_?" he whispered, more to himself than to Ashton.

"She thought you were gonna hit her," he repeated despite knowing he'd heard him  _loud and clear_.

"N-No, she... She  _knows_  I wouldn't... You're ly-"

"Why would I  _lie_  about that, Calum?" Ashton returned, and Calum could tell it wasn't just some sick prank.

"How do you... Why would she... I wasn't... I  _wouldn't_..."

"I'm not going to act as a referee in all your arguments with your girlfriend, Calum, because I know you're gonna have a lot  _more_ than this with how much of a  _hard-head_  you are and how  _stubborn_ she is," Ashton shook his head, his voice gradually getting louder, "But to tell her you were going to  _send her back to her dad_?! What the fuck is  _wrong_  with you?! You had her come with us so she could get  _away_  from him, and now you're threatening to send her  _back_  just because she wants to  _do her job_?!"

"I didn't mean... I wasn't gonna..."

" _Then why would you say it_?!" he all but shouted, "What did you  _think_  she was going to do, suddenly apologize and drop everything for you?! Do you know how  _manipulative_  it is to say something like that to someone who's been through the things Y/N has?! You've calmed her down when she wakes up from nightmares and from the panic attacks she has when someone  _accidentally_  bumps into her on the street! Why would you think she wouldn't see her dad when you started yelling at her?!"

Calum was silent, staring at the floor in front of him, but Ashton could see it in his face that everything he'd said was running through his mind. But when he got up, muttering the question of where you were, he put his hand on his shoulder and forced him to sit back down.

" _No_ , you need to give her time to calm down before you go anywhere  _near_  her," Ashton said sternly, "And take some time to  _really_  think about what you're gonna say to  _fix_  this."

~

After what felt like an eternity to Calum – it was really only about 20 or so minutes – he was finally ready to go and find you. Ashton had never told him where you were, so he just left the room and started walking, hoping he'd run into you at some point.

Calum caught a break when he started hearing the sound of your laughter the moment he turned the corner into the hallway adjacent to the band's dressing room. He could also hear a song – he wasn't exactly sure what it was right away, but he definitely knew it was Bon Jovi – as well his bandmates' voices singing obnoxiously along to the song.

He opened the random dressing room door, finding Ashton, Michael, and Luke pretending to perform the song while you were sitting on the couch, doubled over in laughter. He noticed your camera sitting on the back edge of the couch, signaling to him that you were filming them and had to put it down simply because your silent, squeaky laughs would have made the footage too shaky to actually use in a tour diary – you were never one to make it obvious you were in the videos despite everyone knowing who you were  _and_  that you were dating Calum.

The song came to an end and your laughs died down to breathy giggles as you reached for your camera, turning it off. No one had noticed Calum yet – or if they  _did_ , they were  _ignoring him_.

"I think we should change our sound," Luke stated, making you laugh again, "Just be a Bon Jovi cover band instead."

"I don't think you guys have the  _hair_  for it," you shook your head.

"So what?" Michael interjected, "We'll just blow dry it all the time to make it poof up."

"You can't just blow dry it and expect it to do what you want," you giggled, "80's hair is an  _art_ , Mikey."

" _I'm_  art!" he scoffed.

"You're certainly  _something_ , Mike," Ashton chuckled. He glanced up at the door, finally noticing Calum was there. "Boys and I are gonna go on a coffee run," he said, looking back at you, "You want anything?"

"Hmm," you hummed, "Does Starbucks sell a sense of purpose yet?"

"It's on the  _secret_  menu," Michael snorted.

"I'll take one of those and the usual drink..." you paused for a moment before looking up at the boys with a small pout, "And a cookie?"

"Sure thing,  _princess_ ," Luke laughed along, ruffling your hair a bit as they passed the couch on their way out of the room. You let out another small giggle in response, turning your head to watch them leave. And it was  _then_  that you finally noticed Calum's presence as well.

Calum couldn't ignore the way your breathing visibly hitched when you saw him, making him swallow thickly. The boys patted his shoulder as they walked by him, Ashton closing the door behind him since he was the last one out. The two of you looked at each other for a moment before he made a move.

You weren't even given time to  _react_  before your boyfriend was coming up behind the couch. His hand was on the back of your head and he leaned over, pressing his lips to yours  _hard_. He felt you let a surprised breath out of your nose, honestly feeling like he was going to  _cry_  when he felt you kiss him back.

Since you were sitting beside the armrest, Calum had no problem moving around the couch without breaking the kiss so he could sit beside you. His other hand landed on the middle of your thigh, squeezing your skin. He felt you put your own hand on top of his, causing him to release your thigh and grab your hand instead, tangling your fingers together.

"I would never, ever,  _ever_  hit you," Calum stated the second his lips were off of yours when you pulled away to breathe.

You furrowed your eyebrows, "How did you-"

"You  _have_  to tell me you know that."

"Cal, I-"

" _Princess,_   _please_ ," his voice cracked, his hand sliding from the back of your head to your cheek, " _Please tell me you know_."

"I know, Cal," you replied softly with a nod, "I know you wouldn't."

"No matter what you say or do or think and no matter how annoyed or upset or angry I get..." he whispered, letting his thumb barely stroke the cheekbone that still sported a fading reminder of the last time you saw your father, "I would  _never_  hit you..."

"I know, Cal," you repeated just as quietly as the first time, squeezing his hand.

" _I'll never be your dad_..."

"Cal,  _stop_ ," you swallowed, unable to handle just how emotional he was over this.

"I love you..." he said shakily, taking you by surprise.

This wasn't the  _first_  time Calum had told you he loved you, but it  _was_  the first time he'd told you when you were  _awake_. He didn't know it, but the first time he said it – when you'd woken up in the middle of the night from a nightmare about your dad and he helped you go back to sleep – you hadn't  _actually_  been asleep yet; You'd  _heard him_  say ' _I love you_ ' under his breath as he kissed your forehead and played with your hair before falling back to sleep himself. You didn't know why you could never fess up that you'd heard the confession, but it wasn't necessarily something you deemed relevant  _now_.

"I love you too, Calum," you whispered back, feeling his sharp exhale of relief fan out across your face. The small giggle you let out made him grin as he watched you fondly.

"M' _really_  sorry, baby girl," he shook his head lightly.

"S'okay, Cal," you assured him, but he only shook his head again.

"S'not  _okay_ , princess," he insisted, "It was the  _worst_  thing I could've done... That's not an ' _okay_ ' thing..."

"Then what do  _you_  think I should say?" you offered.

"That... You forgive me... And you'll promise to stop me if I start making you feel like that ever again... And it's not really part of it, but I just wanna hear you say you love me again..." You smiled at him.

"I forgive you, and I promise," you nodded, "And I love you more than  _anything_ , Cal." Calum breathed out again, pulling you forward to kiss your forehead for a moment before pushing you back.

"You know, Ash  _really_  let me have it over what I said," he chuckled bashfully, making you laugh as well.

"I heard," you replied softly. He looked at you curiously, so you went on. "Mikey said he and Luke heard Ash yelling at you," you informed him, "That they'd never heard him sound so mad."

"Because he's never  _been_  that mad," he shook his head, "And I  _definitely_  deserved it."

"You telling me that pouting thing you use on me  _didn't_  work with Ashton?" you wondered, only earning yourself a few quick pokes to the stomach. You squealed loudly, grabbing his hands to make him stop. He held your hands tightly on top of your thigh, his thumbs rubbing the backs of them gently.

"You're not just  _my_  girl, you know," Calum told you, "You're  _all of ours_  – and we'd do  _anything_  to keep you from getting hurt the way he hurt you again." You couldn't help the smile that pulled at the corner of your mouth as he quickly added onto the statement. "I'm the only one allowed to  _kiss you_  though," he insisted.

"Then get over here and kiss me, Rockstar," you giggled, laughing louder when he immediately leaned in and pressed his lips to yours.

~

_inspiration: http://letmeletmetrashyourlove.tumblr.com/post/168666714013/breaking-things_


	496. Safety Net (Calum Hood) - Part 4 *

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

**Warning: Mentions of abuse, swearing, blood**

~

**Third person POV; Two years later**

Okay, so maybe a  _public_  relationship when you're trying to escape someone wasn't the  _greatest_  idea...

Your father may be abusive and manipulative and one of the  _worst_  human beings on the  _planet_ , but he  _certainly_  wasn't  _stupid_. It didn't take a  _genius_  for him to discover you were with the band when  _everyone_  seemed to be talking about your relationship. But while  _they_  were talking about how cute of a couple you were and that they'd noticed how much happier Calum was now that he had you,  _your dad_  was looking up where their next show would be.

And unfortunately for you, it wasn't far enough away.

~

**Your POV**

Nothing was out of the ordinary when you went into the boys' dressing room to use the bathroom. That changed, however, when you came back  _out_.

"Well, look at this," his voice made you stop dead in your tracks. "Isn't this nice?" he wondered sarcastically as your blood ran cold –  _how did your father get backstage?_

You finally turned to face him and a horrified feeling bubbled up in the pit of your stomach. Your dad was leaning up against the vanity along the wall, your camera – the  _one_  material thing you loved since the day the band gave it to you – in his hands, haphazardly swinging it around.

"Tell me, Y/N: do you think I'm  _stupid_?" your dad asked, "Did you think I  _wouldn't_  find you?" You couldn't find the voice to answer – not that he  _wanted_  you to give him one anyway. "This is a nice camera, you know," he mentioned, holding it up to look at it, "Who bought it for you, that band you were stupid enough to think you could get away from me with? Bet it was  _expensive_. Wouldn't want to accidentally  _drop it_  or anything, I'm sure." Your heart skipped a beat and you immediately lunged toward your dad.

" _No_!" you squeaked, quickly pulling your camera out of his hands before he even had the chance to toss it on the ground.

" _What did you just say to me_?" your father growled. And that was when all hell broke loose.

Your eyes widened, knowing what was about to happen – what you'd been  _terrified_  of happening since the day you ran away. You knew if you didn't scream now, there wouldn't be a chance of it once he got to you, so you did it.

You didn't know why – you knew he wouldn't be able to hear you – but you screamed Calum's name as loudly as you could right before the first punch was thrown. As you were falling backwards and landing on the ground with a thud, you  _swore_  you heard a crew member – you couldn't tell  _which one_  – shout something along the lines of ' _Go get Calum while I call the cops!_ '.

**Calum's POV**

He was sure he'd never run so fast in his  _life_.

Of course, that was  _before_  he was pulled from meet and greet and told his girlfriend's father had found her. And the speed only  _increased_  as he approached the dressing room and heard your muffled crying through the door.

Calum burst into the room just as you'd gotten hit and shoved back to the ground after getting up for what felt like the tenth time, your camera still clutched to your chest in an attempt to protect it.

"What the  _fuck_  do you think you're doing?" your boyfriend grumbled, his fists already clenched together at his sides. Your dad didn't pay any attention to him – which was probably a bad idea considering he didn't notice him coming over.

As your dad was lining up his foot to kick you in the stomach, Calum's leg shot out and hit his shin, preventing his shoe from getting to you. But he wasn't able to respond before Calum's fist made direct contact to his nose. He felt the bone crack under his knuckles, but he couldn't stop himself from going further.

Once your dad was on the ground, shouting in pain, Calum couldn't stop himself from getting on top of him and continuing to hit him, wanting him to know  _just_  how it felt when he did it to you.

"Is  _this_  what you wanted to happen today?!" Calum shouted in your dad's face, "You wanted someone to get the  _shit_  beat out of them?! Well, how does it feel, huh?! Does it fucking feel good when it's happening to  _you_?!" During that time, you were being pulled up from the floor and out of the room while Calum continued hitting your dad until someone had to  _forcefully_  pull him off of him.

" _Cal_!" Ashton said loudly, putting himself in between the two, "Calum! I think he gets it!" The anger in Calum's expression faded, but was soon replaced with worry as he looked around the room, unable to find you.

"Where's Y/N?" he asked frantically, spinning around on his heels and beginning to run out of the room.

"Mike and Luke took her down the hall!" Ashton called after him. He turned back to look at the unconscious man lying on the ground with blood covering his face – and he wasn't going to lie, he was pretty impressed with the damage Calum had done.

**Your POV**

Tears were still streaming down your face as Michael and Luke helped you lie down on the random dressing room's couch. Luke went to take the camera you were still gripping tightly, but you only held it tighter.

"Y/N, it's just me," Luke assured you gently, "You know I'm not gonna do anything to it – I'm just gonna put it on the table." He motioned to the coffee table in front of the couch, only taking the camera when you held it out to him yourself.

"Y/N?!" you heard your boyfriend's panicked voice as his heavy footsteps echoed throughout the hall.

"In here, Cal!" Michael called out, and Calum was in the doorway in the next second. Your chest was visibly rising and falling as you tried to catch your breath and you were still – understandably – crying, but he still let himself relax when he saw you were okay.

Michael and Luke each pressed a quick kiss to your forehead before walking out of the room, allowing you and your boyfriend to have a moment alone. Calum came over to the couch, sitting down beside your upper thigh.

"I'm so sorry, baby girl," he shook his head rapidly, pushing your hair off of your face, "I know you hate when I yell and when I get mad and I know hitting your father probably didn't help you with being any less scared and I'm so-" Calum cut himself off when you suddenly propped yourself up on your elbows, moving up until your lips crashed into his.

You felt him breathe out sharply, but there was absolutely no hesitation in feeling him kiss you back. His hand moved to the side of your neck so he didn't touch any of your bruises, his thumb running back and forth along your jaw. His other hand landed on your hip, holding you firmly as a reminder to himself that you were safe now.

When you pulled away, Calum opened his mouth to speak again, but you beat him to it.

"That was  _really_  hot," you told him breathlessly, earning yourself a confused laugh.

"Certainly  _not_  what I was expecting to hear," he chuckled shyly, unable to keep himself from blushing.

You didn't give him a chance to see your smile as you wrapped your arms around his neck and buried your face in his shoulder. His own arms wound tightly around your waist, holding you close to him. You were both breathing heavily, just happy the other was okay.

"Thank you," you whispered, your voice muffled slightly by his shirt.

"Don't thank me," he stated, squeezing you gently, "I'd do anything for you – you know that."

"I love you..." you swallowed, feeling him smile against your skin.

"I love you  _more_ , baby girl," he promised you, kissing your neck.

~

_inspiration: http://letmeletmetrashyourlove.tumblr.com/post/168666714013/breaking-things_


	497. Side Effects May Include... (Trevor Collins) *

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

**Warning: This _entire_  thing centers around depression.**

~

"Y/N," Michael sang, reaching up and waving his hand in front of your face. You jumped lightly as your eyes glanced around at everyone around the  _Off Topic_  table, finding them looking at you with concerned expressions. "You okay?" he continued when he knew he had your attention, resting his forearm back on the table.

"Yeah," you nodded, putting your hands on your face and rubbing your eyes with the pads of your fingers, "I'm just tired – didn't get a lot of sleep last night."

"What were you doing?" Ryan asked.

"More like  _who_  was she doing?  _Aye_!" Geoff interjected, making everyone laugh.

"Really, Geoff?" Jack chuckled, "Cheering yourself on there?"

"Well, no one else ever does!" he stated matter-of-factly while Jack simply rolled his eyes.

"I understand though," Michael shrugged, "Isn't insomnia a side effect of anti-depressants?"

Confused noises came from the other men as they looked at Michael and then at you, noticing your body had tensed up. You slowly moved your hands away from your face – just enough to look at the man across from you.

"How did you know about that?" you asked lowly, desperately hoping you'd just heard him wrong.

But you  _didn't_  – and you  _knew_  you didn't because Michael's face immediately contorted in submission. He was letting out a small, constant sigh, as if he didn't want to tell you how he knew.

" _Michael_ ," you stated firmly, causing him to let out a breath – everyone else was still watching in confusion.

"Trevor mentioned it the other day," he admitted, "He was leaving work early and I asked him why and he said he had to pick up your medication and I asked what was wrong and he told me they were your anti-depressants." You were sure your surprise was showing – not at Michael randomly bringing it up on a  _live_  podcast, but at hearing  _Trevor_  had told someone the  _one thing_  he  _swore_  he wouldn't after you'd told him yourself; You were surprised that  _your boyfriend_  of all people was the one to break a promise to you.

~

Trevor was lucky that the both of you were scheduled for podcasts and Let's Plays at different times because, honestly, it gave you time to cool down before you saw him again. You knew word had spread throughout the office – mostly people just talking about how much  _trouble_  Trevor was in – but you were relieved that no one brought it up to  _you_.

It wasn't until everyone went home for the day that you saw your boyfriend since arriving to work, already waiting for you in his car. The ride was silent – you knew he'd heard what people were saying, but it wasn't until he pulled into your apartment building's parking lot that you finally cracked.

"I'd love to hear  _your_  side of the story," you mentioned, hearing the man in the driver's seat sigh.

"I didn't mean to," Trevor said as you looked at him, pulling up to the curb at the front door of the building, "I wasn't thinking."

"That seems to be the theme with  _everything_  you forget you promised me," you murmured, more to yourself than to him, "But I  _still_  trusted you not to tell anyone, and you  _did_."

"I didn't  _mean_  to, Y/N," he repeated defensively.

"But you still  _did it_ , Trevor!" you shook your head, "That's not something that  _comes up_  in every day conversation!

"Michael asked what I was getting for you! It just slipped out!"

"You don't just  _accidentally_  say ' _Oh, yeah, I'm just going to the pharmacy to pick up my girlfriend's anti-depressants, be back later_ '! You could have just told him I felt like I was getting a  _cold_  or something!"

"I'm  _sorry_ , Y/N!" he insisted, "It was a  _mistake_!"

"Yeah? Well, so was  _trusting you_ ," you grumbled before getting out of the car. You reached back to grab your bag, not even looking at Trevor as you spoke again. "Don't bother stopping by tomorrow," you told him, "I'll find a different ride." Before he had the chance to say anything else, you slammed the door shut and walked into your building.

~

**One week later**

It had been about a week since the  _Off Topic_  where  _everyone_  found out about your depression, and you were about to go live on the podcast – this time, with Michael, Lindsay, Jeremy, and Ryan – once again. You weren't originally scheduled to be on, but you'd asked if they had room for one more at the podcast table that morning when you got into work – and, of course, they were happy to have you back on.

You hadn't really spoken to Trevor much – not unless you  _had to_ , anyway. You would feel him watching you every time you were in the same room together, but you never even glanced in his direction. You didn't know if you were being too harsh on him – people  _do_  make mistakes – but you didn't want to talk to him while you were still so hurt by what he'd done.

The podcast started off as it normally did before Michael – as you had expected him to – brought up your rather unannounced appearance. Immediately after introducing everyone and reading the sponsors, he motioned to you.

"Let's get a close-up on that pretty little thing," Michael said, making you laugh. You put your hands under your chin and smiled sweetly to the camera on you while he continued. "So, Y/N, you actually  _asked_  to be on today," he said, "Why do you  _insist_  on subjecting yourself to this even after being on last week?"

"Nothing better to do?" you shrugged, making the group laugh under their breaths, "Uh, no-" You giggled softly. "-I just have some stuff I wanna talk about – and you can decide when if you want – about last week's episode."

"We can talk about it  _now_  if you want," he shook his head, taking a drink. You looked at everyone else and they nodded, letting you know they were alright with it too.

"I've noticed a lot of people pointing out in the comments and on Twitter and stuff that I, uh, I wasn't the  _happiest_  they'd ever seen me," you mentioned.

"I mean, to be fair, that was  _my_  fault," Michael smiled shyly, "I probably should have talked to you before we went live."

"It's out there now; No hard feelings," you assured him, "But I've also had people asking me how I'm feeling and if the medication helps because their doctors are recommending it and they can't decide if they should start." You paused to quickly take a sip of your water. "I just thought this would be easier and I guess more personal than like, a thread of  _tweets_."

"Absolutely!" the group agreed simultaneously while Ryan continued, "How  _are_  you feeling, by the way?"

"You sound like my  _therapist_ ," you couldn't help but laugh.

"You should honestly start paying me," he mentioned, patting your arm gently.

"I'm doing well today," you nodded, "I don't want this to last  _too_  long, so I won't  _bore_  everyone with how my week has been, but I wanted to let the people watching that I have seen the questions and everything and I just wanted to answer some of them as best as I could."

"Well, the questions I've seen have mostly just been about how you're doing, but you've already kind of answered that," Michael said, "But I've noticed a bunch asking if medication even works too."

"Yeah," you nodded, smiling slightly again, "I mean, all medicines  _work_ ; I think most people asking are worried about side effects and stuff like that."

"Well, I can understand why; The commercials really lay it on you," Jeremy shook his head.

"Well, the anti-depressant commercials are always like ' _Side effects may include: nausea, weight gain, irritability, drowsiness, thoughts of suicide_ ' – you know, the  _already-existing_  side effects of depression," you laughed softly again, "So I think that's where most people are turned off by wanting to try medication."

"So what's  _your_  experience then?" Ryan asked, "Do you feel better since you started taking them?"

"The  _CliffNotes_  version is yes, I've found that I  _do_  feel better," you nodded, "But reading-the-actual-book version is, uh... You know, I was in the same place in the beginning with constantly being like ' _should I start medication? should I_ not _start medication?_ ' before I finally decided after a couple years of dealing with it on my own – with the help of my therapist and my family – that I would try it out: see how I like it. And clearly, it's been working for me because I've been on it ever since. But my  _best_  advice for people in the curiosity stage is to just  _try it out_ ," you shrugged, "If you don't like the way it makes you feel or if you find it doesn't work, you can always just talk to your doctor about  _stopping_  taking it or finding alternatives to medication. To me, mental illness is all about troubleshooting and trial and error and finding what works for  _you_  because, you know, what works for  _me_  isn't necessarily going to work for  _everyone else_."

"You know, you should really go around like, high schools and stuff to talk about this too," Lindsay mentioned, "I think some students could really benefit from hearing something like that."

"Hey, if any local schools want to email me, I'd be more than happy to!" you laughed, "I  _even_  promise not to swear in my speeches." You gave the camera on you a wink, making everyone laugh before the subject changed.

~

**Lunch time**

When your lunch break finally arrived, you breathed a sigh of relief, never feeling more hungry in your life. You saved all your work on the videos you'd been editing after  _Off Topic_  before turning off your computer. You leaned back in your chair, thinking about what you wanted to eat that day. You didn't really want to leave the office, so you just got up and made your way to the kitchen to see if there was anything for you there.

You were looking into the pantry when you heard someone else come into the room. Their shoes squeaked on the floor as they stopped, making you look to the side, finding Trevor with a deer-in-the-headlights look on his face.

"Hi..." he said in the softest voice you'd ever heard from him.

"Hi," you replied shortly, turning your attention back to the food in front of you. You thought he was just going to avoid an awkward silence and leave, but he didn't – he just kept talking.

"I, uh..." he cleared his throat, "I'm sorry for...you know...not keeping my mouth shut..." You could hear in his voice how upset with himself he was, making you sigh to yourself.

"You know... It's really helped a lot of people knowing they're not alone..." you murmured, "Maybe I overreacted..."

"No, you  _didn't_  overreact," Trevor said firmly, making you look up at him, "I  _knew_  you didn't want anyone to know and I told someone  _anyway_. That was a fucked up thing for me to do and you had every right to be as mad as you were." You eyed him for a moment before closing the pantry door and quickly walking over to him.

Your arms wrapped around his neck while his own wound tightly around your waist. You felt him breathe out slightly, relieved you weren't mad at him anymore. You knew your voice was going to be muffled by his skin but that didn't stop you from talking anyway, not caring whether or not he understood what you were telling him.

"Trusting you isn't a mistake, Trevor," you said, only to bury your face further into his neck when your voice cracked.

"I know, baby girl," he assured you just as softly, squeezing you, "You were upset; I probably would have said something I'd regret later too."

"Love you," you mumbled, feeling him smile into your own skin.

"Love you  _more_ ," he told you, making you shake your head. You only heard him chuckle softly in response, but nothing more was said until someone else came into the kitchen.

"You guys good again, I take it?" you heard at the door. You moved your head to lay on his shoulder so you could see who was there while Trevor only had to avert his gaze, finding Michael standing there smiling at you.

"Nah, she still can't stand me," Trevor told him, making you giggle under your breath as his lips hit the side of your head. Michael rolled his eyes, still grinning.

"Well, I'm glad to see you two together again," he mentioned, "The Let's Plays are getting kind of boring without you yelling at each other, to be honest."


	498. Rain Delay (Michael Clifford)

"Looks like we've got a bit of a rain delay, guys," the Coach said as the men in the dugout looked up at the dark grey sky, feeling a chill in the air as it started to rain lightly.

"You know how long for, Coach?" Ashton asked.

"Depends on how long the rain lasts," he answered, "But I'm thinking at least half an hour."

"Well, we might as well make the most of it," Calum shrugged, "I'm sure the crowd would enjoy some entertainment rather than sitting around waiting for the game to start."

"What did you have in mind?" Luke wondered.

"You know, I've seen videos of players playing bowling and horse racing," Taylor chuckled, "That was pretty entertaining."

"I say we bring Mike's girlfriend out here and pretend to marry them," Luke snickered. 

Michael simply laughed loudly, "Hey, if she's down for it, I'll marry her."

"Go get her then!" Ashton nudged him, prompting him to get up.

Michael exited the dugout and trotted over to the seats behind home plate where you were sitting. You were talking to your parents when you heard Michael's voice from below you.

"Y/N!" he called so you would look at him.

"Hi, Mikey," you grinned.

"Hey, princess," he smiled back, "The team wants to give the crowd a little entertainment while we wait for the rain delay to pass and suggested a fake wedding for us." You giggled, making him smile again as he went on, "So do you wanna fake marry me?"

"Sure," you laughed.

"Get your cute butt down here then," he winked. You rolled your eyes fondly, telling your parents you'd be back in a few minutes. They simply chuckled and nodded as you got up.

Michael followed you until the area behind home plate where there wasn't a net where he told you to just climb over the railing and jump onto the field instead of taking the long way around. You did exactly that, climbing over and sitting for a moment while Michael got under you. You pushed yourself off, landing bridal-style in his arms.

"Hi, beautiful," your boyfriend grinned. You smiled brightly, kissing his cheek. He put you back on your feet, his arm still wrapped around your waist as he took you to where the team was already getting into their spots for the 'wedding'.

Luke was standing in front of everyone, acting as the minister. Calum was standing to his right, informing you as you approached that he was your maid of honor – which obviously made you laugh loudly. Ashton was standing behind the rest of the team – who were acting as the wedding guests, their knees bent as if they were sitting in chairs – silently letting you know that he was walking you down the aisle. You could hear people in the crowd laughing at the stunt as you and Michael went to stand with Ashton.

The mock wedding started not long after that with Michael walking down the aisle, fist-bumping and high-fiving his teammates on the inner part. You laughed as you watched him reach Luke, noticing the blonde hand him something but not thinking anything of it as he put it in his pocket. The wedding guests then stood up before you linked arms with Ashton, walking down the aisle as if it were a real wedding, sitting down again once you reached the front.

"Who gives this woman away?" Luke asked, smiling slightly at the fact that you hadn't stopped giggling since you stepped onto the field.

"Her mother and I do," Ashton said in a deep voice, clearly pretending to imitate your own father. Michael then took your hand, bringing you in front of him and allowing Ashton to move behind him as if he were also the best man.

"Do you, Michael, take Y/N to be your wife?" Luke said, "For rich or for poor, in sickness and in health, and all that other stuff I'm supposed to say as long as you both shall live?"

You couldn't help but laugh again as Michael smiled, "I do."

"Do you, Y/N, promise to do all that stuff with Michael too?"

You snorted softly with a nod, "I do."

"I now pronounce you married," Luke announced, "You may kiss the bride!" You and your boyfriend grinned as he leaned in to peck your lips while everyone else – including the crowd – clapped. The team was about to disperse to do something else to entertain the crowd when a voice stopped them.

"Wait," Michael said suddenly, making everyone look at him, "Something not right here..." You watched curiously as he perked up. "I know what it is!" he chirped, "We forgot to exchange rings!" Michael let go of your hands and your eyes immediately widened as he reached into his pocket.

"Michael,  _no_..." you trailed off, noticing his teammates smiling widely out of the corner of your eye.

The moment his hand reemerged from his pocket and there was a small diamond ring in between his thumb and index finger, your hands flew up to your face and you were in tears. Michael got down on one knee and you could hear the crowd gasp in surprise and cheer loudly once they realized what was happening. You turned around and took a step away, only to have Calum wrap his arms around you, keeping you there. His hands slid to your shoulders, turning you back around to face your boyfriend, who was still beaming up at you.

"Y/N," he said, making you move your hands so they were covering your mouth so you could look at him, "Will you marry me?"

You opened your mouth to speak but no words were coming out, so you just settled for nodding your head. Michael's grin only got bigger when he realized you were saying yes, reaching up and grabbing your left hand to bring it down and slide the ring onto your finger.

The cheers coming from the crowd were almost  _deafening_  as Michael stood up, wrapping his arms around your waist and lifting you off of the ground. Your own arms wound tightly around his neck, your face burying itself in his shoulder as you cried. You picked your legs up, wrapping them around his waist.

"You know, it's really  _your_  fault for not seeing that coming," he murmured into your skin, pressing little kisses to it every now and then.

" _Shut up_ ," you grumbled, smacking him lightly on the back of the head.

He chuckled again, squeezing your waist, "I love you, princess."

"I love  _you_ , Mikey," you whispered back.

~

_inspiration: https://youtu.be/-tmqsI0OrTA?t=7m2s_


	499. Teddy Bear (Jack Barakat)

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

~

Jack woke up at 3:30am to the sound of the bedroom door opening and closed quietly. He looked over, finding a tiny shadow figure with his thumb stuck in his mouth, holding the teddy bear you'd gotten him close to his body. The toddler shuffled to the foot of the bed and Jack automatically sighed. Your boyfriend knew how much you hated being woken up in the middle of the night and since Jordan wasn't exactly the most  _careful_  when it came to climbing into Jack's bed with him, he knew you weren't going to be amused – no matter  _how much_  you loved his little boy.

Jack expected Jordan to crawl over to him like he always did, but instead, the toddler came to a stop up against your back. Although it was dark, he could still hear you murmuring as you moved around from your slumber being disturbed.

Jack held his breath as he listened to you scoot away to lie on your back. The moonlight shining through the window lit your face up just enough to allow him to see the lazy smile on your face as you and Jordan looked at each other.

"Any reason you're lying against me and not Daddy, Jor?" you whispered, understandably believing Jack was still asleep. Jordan didn't reply; He simply scooted into the side of your body, allowing you to feel his cheeks were wet when his face hit your shirt. "Close," you stated. He closed his eyes and you took the bottom hem of the shirt, wiping his eyes and cheeks. "Bad dream?" you asked. The toddler barely nodded and you went on. "You know how to keep bad dreams from coming back, right?" he shook his head no that time. "Well, if I lie on my side and bring my legs up," you said as you did exactly that, "And you scoot as close to me as you can-" Jordan obviously obliged. "-then the bad dreams can't get you because bad dreams don't like grown-ups."

"Does that mean I can sleep with you all the time?" he asked tiredly. You laughed softly.

"No," you said, "But when you wake up in the morning, I'll show you how to sleep in your own bed so the bad dreams won't get you, okay?" Jordan barely nodded again, holding his teddy bear in his arm and his thumb in his mouth while his other hand was holding onto your shirt.

He was out within the next two minutes – of course, you rubbing his back certainly sped up that process. You were almost back to sleep yourself when Jack finally let you know he was awake, carefully scooting over to you and pressing his lips to your forehead.

"Thank you," he whispered, his hand landing on your thigh so he didn't disturb his sleeping son.

"Did I wake you up?" you asked guiltily.

"No," he assured you, "I wake up every time he opens the door. So, what's the way to keep the bad dreams away when he sleeping in his bed?"

"Guess you'll have to wake up when he does and find out," you smirked, pressing your lips to his before you both drifted back to sleep.

~

**Five hours later**

Jack woke up later that morning, noting how cold his back felt. He rolled onto it and rubbed his eyes, looking over and noticing you and Jordan weren't there. It wasn't like he didn't know where you were though – he could hear your voice coming from two rooms over. He pulled himself out of bed, putting on a pair of sweatpants before heading out of the room. He stopped at the door of Jordan's room, finding you on your knees beside the bed while he stood next to you, a pile of all of his stuffed animals on the mattress.

"My mom taught me this when I was little because I was really scared of monsters, but I promise this works exactly the same for bad dreams," you informed the toddler. Jordan nodded, eager to find out what you had to tell him. "Bad dreams and monsters are scared of grown-ups which is why, when you sleep with Daddy after bad dreams, they don't come back," you reminded him, "But did you know they're  _also_  afraid of stuffed animals?"

"Why are they afraid of stuffed animals?" he asked.

"Daddy makes you feel  _real_  safe, doesn't he?" The toddler obviously nodded. "And you carry around your teddy bear all the time because he makes you feel safe  _too_ , right?" He nodded again. "Well, sometimes, you might let go of your teddy bear in the middle of the night and that's why the bad dreams come – because he's not right beside you anymore. But if you have a  _bunch_  of stuffed animals on your bed with you, then the bad dreams are too scared to come get you because they know your animals are here protecting you," you informed him. Jordan watched you as you set every single stuffed animal up around his pillow, at the foot of his bed, and around the side rails that were there so he didn't fall off. "Now do you think some silly little bad dream can get through all of  _this_?" you asked, poking his stomach and making him giggle.

"No," he shook his head, the bright smile on his face having Jack thinking about how lucky he was to have you there.

"I don't know about you, Jor," you sighed dramatically, "But all this chasing away bad dreams made me  _hungry_."

"Can you make waffles with chocolate chips in them?" he asked excitedly, bouncing on his feet, "Daddy doesn't make 'em as good as you do."

"I beg to differ," Jack finally spoke, making you and Jordan look at the door as he walked into the room, "I make  _excellent_  waffles with chocolate chips in them."

"But not as good as  _Y/N's_ ," Jordan stated. Jack scooped his son up in his arms and tickled him, causing the little boy to squeal and squirm around. When he stopped, he put Jordan back down. 

"Why don't you see if we even have chocolate chips first?" he said. Jordan hurried out of the room and Jack held his hands down to you. The moment he pulled you up to your feet, his lips were on yours. "Morning, beautiful," he murmured, feeling you smile before you pulled away.

"You know, I just saw a whole bag of chocolate chips in the cabinet yesterday," you pointed out, wrapping your arms around his neck.

"I know," he smirked, putting his hands on your hips and pulling your body to his.

"Are you starting to make a habit of  _lying_  now?" you asked, a small grin on your face.

"I didn't  _lie_ ," he replied dramatically, "I just told him to go look for them."

"It's a gateway comment," you shook your head, "That's all it takes."

Jack didn't say anything else, but he  _did_  slide his hands to your sides, prodding at them roughly. You squealed loudly in response, only able to break free for a  _second_  before he was pulling you back against his chest, one of his arms winding around your waist so you couldn't escape again.

" _Daddy_!" you heard Jordan call out from the kitchen, his voice getting closer with every word, " _I found them_!"

Jack stopped tickling you, but left his arms around you. As he nuzzled his face in your neck and pressed kisses to your skin, the toddler appeared in the doorway, teddy bear in one arm and a bag of chocolate chips in the other.

"We make waffles now?" Jordan asked, looking up at you and his father.

"Let go, Barakat," you giggled, turning your head and pressing a sloppy kiss to his cheek, "We have to feed the boy!"

You felt him let out a breath against your skin as he chuckled softly in your ear, finally releasing his hold on you. The moment you were free, you walked to the door, scooping Jordan up on your way out as Jack followed behind you.

~

_inspiration: http://anarchyaustralia.tumblr.com/post/150473992328/imagine-baby-hood-walking-into-his-fathers-room_


	500. A Daydream Away (Trevor Collins)

You watched the couple in the middle of the room slow dance, a small smile on your face. Nothing made you happier than watching two people who were so in love with each other. You didn't know the couple personally, but your friend had asked you to be his plus one and you  _obviously_  weren't going to say no.

The wedding ceremony was absolutely beautiful – more beautiful than any other wedding you'd been to in your opinion – and the venue's courtyard where the reception was looked incredible too. The fairy lights wrapped around the poles used to distinguish the dance floor from everything else had been on the whole time, but now that the sun was starting to set, they were shining more prominently.

As you were watching the couple, you were sitting at one of the tables closest to the dance floor. You were swaying slightly to the music, but you stopped when you heard a throat clear beside you. You looked over to find your friend already looking at you.

"Thanks for being my date to this thing," Trevor told you, speaking lowly so no one around you heard the conversation.

"It was really no problem," you assured him with a small smile, "I love weddings."

"I know," he murmured, "I just didn't think you'd say yes..."

"Why  _wouldn't_  I?" you furrowed your eyebrows.

"I dunno..." he looked over at the couple dancing in the middle of the room, "Weddings can kinda be downers for single people sometimes..."

"Right," you nodded, "But you  _know_  I love weddings whether I'm single or not."

"I'm sure there are a lot better dates than  _me_ ," he said, more to himself than to you.

You opened your mouth to speak, but you were distracted by movement out of the corner of your eye. You looked over to find people getting up and moving to the dance floor, realizing the couple's first dance was over and another slow song was starting.

You promptly stood up and held your hand down in front of Trevor. He looked up at you without doing anything at first, but once you smiled at him, he lifted his hand up and put it in yours. You pulled him up from his chair and brought him to the dance floor. You grabbed his other hand and wrapped them around your waist before wrapping your own around his neck, letting your forearms rest on his shoulder.

"You know, I think you're a pretty good date," you told him, the same small grin still on your face, "Everyone else I've ever gone to a wedding with has refused to dance with me."

" _Come on_ ," he rolled his eyes, "That  _can't_  be true."

"It  _is_!" you insisted, "And it really sucks because the dancing is my favorite part!"

"What's your  _favorite_  song to dance to then?" he asked, seemingly trying to maintain conversation. You let out a breath as you thought for a moment.

"Well, I've never  _actually_  danced to it, but I've always thought All Time Low's  _A Daydream Away_  would be nice to slow dance to," you shrugged.

"Aren't you playing that when I come over sometimes?"

"I wouldn't be surprised," you giggled softly, "I listen to it  _a lot_."

"You know, you could just ask  _me_ ," he pouted, "You don't have to turn it off when I'm there." He smiled at you when you laughed again.

"I'll remember that for next time," you replied.

~

After dancing to a couple songs, you and Trevor decided to take a break. You got a drink from the refreshment table and sat down in the spot you'd been in before while Trevor trotted off somewhere else. You didn't know where he'd gone as he hadn't told you, but you caught sight of him a couple minutes after he'd left your side. He was talking to the DJ and they both gave each other a quick hug, so you figured he was just visiting a friend.

But as Trevor walked away from the DJ and made his way back to you, you could hear the beginning of  _A Daydream Away_  start playing from the speakers. Once he stopped in front of you, he held his hand out with a cheesy grin. You couldn't help but smile as well, taking his hand and letting him pull you up and to the dance floor, exactly like you'd done with him. This time, however – after he wrapped your arms around his neck – he held your waist a little tighter.

"I'm retracting my statement about you being a ' _pretty good date_ '," you informed him as the first verse was being sung. Trevor furrowed his eyebrows, but didn't get a chance to ask what you meant. "You're  _easily_  the best date I've ever had," you said, "Are you free for the  _next_  wedding I'm invited to?" He chuckled softly.

"I'll let you know," Trevor told you, pressing a kiss to your temple before you laid you head on his shoulder.

~

_song mentioned: "A Daydream Away" by All Time Low_

 


	501. Nothing Else Matters (Ashton Irwin) *

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

**Warning: idk what to technically label this but she gets drugged at a bar basically**

~

If you knew you'd find yourself in a situation of  _literally_  fearing for your life, you  _never_  would have walked out of your apartment. It was a stupid fight – one you knew wouldn't  _matter_  tomorrow – but you left anyway, leaving your boyfriend alone in your shared home.

You ended up walking to a small, local bar within walking distance of your apartment complex, just wanting to loosen up and let off some steam. You entered the bar, noticing there were only a few people scattered throughout the main room including the bouncers and bartender. You took a seat at the counter, ordering a small drink. It obviously didn't take you long to finish it, so you ordered another.

"Hey, Dax," you said, earning a hum from the man making your drink, "Have you guys gotten any new songs on that jukebox yet?"

"Should," he nodded, "Pretty sure your incessant interrogating got Bill to add that band you like."

You laughed loudly, hopping up from your seat and heading to where the jukebox was near the front door. As you were typing in the band's name, you heard your name behind you.

"Y/N!" Dax called out. You turned your head to look over your shoulder, finding him holding your drink up before putting it in front of your seat. You quickly turned back to the jukebox, pressed on the song you wanted to hear, and hurried back to your seat. You noticed a man at the end of the bar watching you, but didn't think anything of it – you came to this bar a lot with Ashton and people watched you all the time.

You took a big gulp of your drink, scrunching your face up as you swallowed it. It didn't take you long to know what was going on – you'd only had one drink previous to this so you obviously weren't  _too_   _drunk to function_  – and when you realized you tasted salt, you started panicking to yourself. You heard Dax ask if you were okay as you sprung up from your seat and practically bolted to the bathroom, locking yourself inside the single room. You then pulled out your phone and dialed the number you'd come to know by heart.

" _Y/N_!" your boyfriend breathed the second he accepted the call, "What on  _earth_  do you think you're doing?! Where are you?! This isn't  _funny_! Come home  _now_!"

"A-Ash..." you managed to choke out.

"What's wrong?" the tone of your voice sent him into panic mode.

"I-I came to get- to get a drink, bu-but I think s-someone spiked i-it," you sobbed softly, not wanting anyone who could possibly be outside the bathroom – especially the person who  _did this_  to you – to hear, "I don't- It's salt- I'm not- I don't know wha-what to do, A-Ashton; Tell- Tell m-me what to do-do. I'm sc- I'm scared..." You covered your mouth with the palm of your hand so your cries weren't as loud.

"Listen to me, baby," Ashton said as you heard the sound of him picking up his keys off the kitchen counter and closing the front door behind him as he jogged out of the apartment, "You're going to be  _fine_ , do you understand me? Just tell me where you are, okay? I'm coming to get you."

"I-I'm in the-the bar," you moved your hand so he could understand what you were saying, "I-In the bath-bathroom." You heard a car door shut and an engine start, then the sound of Ashton's phone dropping into the cup holder in the center console, letting you know he'd put you on speaker so he could start driving.

"I need you to stay on the phone with me, okay?" he said, earning an uneven hum from your end, "How are you feeling? Do you feel dizzy or sick at all?"

"A-A little," you admitted softly, "Bu-But I don't- I don't know if- if it's becau-because of th-the drugs o-or because I-I know it's com-coming."

"Princess-" Ashton was cut off by the sound of someone  _pounding_  on the bathroom door, causing you to squeak loudly and start crying harder.

Without really thinking – since he was already pulling into a parking spot in front of the bar – he hung up the call and raced inside. He stormed into the building, making Dax look up. But he didn't have time to smile and greet him before he was speaking.

"I just thought you'd like to know that there's a man trying to force his way into the women's room," Ashton informed the bartender.

Since Dax already knew Ashton and knew he wouldn't joke around like that, he immediately shouted for the bouncer closet to the bathrooms to remove the problem, prompting the bouncer to disappear around the corner. He reemerged only a couple seconds later, shoving the man who had drugged you toward the door.

"You might want to keep him here and just have police pick him up," Ashton mentioned loudly enough for all three of them to hear, "I'm sure it wouldn't look too good on the bar's end if they let a  _rapist_  go free."

Before anyone could say anything, Ashton was rushing back to where the bathrooms were. He knocked on the women's room door, calling your name as well.

"Y/N?" he tried opening the door but it was locked, "Baby, I need you to open the door for me!" The moment you'd heard ' _baby_ ', you knew it was Ashton.

You jumped up from your curled-up position on the floor and shakily unlocked the door, throwing it open. You didn't even look at Ashton before your arms were around his neck and your face was buried in his shoulder, allowing yourself to cry  _even_   _more_.

"You're okay, baby girl," Ashton murmured into your ear over and over again as he hugged you back, kissing the side of your head repeatedly as well, "I'm here; I've got you."

"I d-don't- I don't f-feel good," you whimpered, feeling him squeeze you again.

"I know, princess," he replied, "Let's get you home before it gets worse, yeah?"

One of Ashton's arms released you so that he could hook his elbow under your knees, picking you up and carrying you back out into the main room. The bouncer was standing beside the man who drugged you as he sat at the counter, both of them as well as Dax looking over. Dax was on the phone with someone, but pulled it away from his ear and covered the speaker.

"Should I give the cops your number?" he asked. Your boyfriend simply nodded, hollering a ' _thank you!_ ' back to him as he returned to his call.

Ashton turned his back to the door to push it open,  _glaring_  at the man sitting at the counter before turning again and letting the door shut behind him. He carefully opened the passenger door, setting you down and buckling your seatbelt. He then ran around to the driver's side so he could make the three-minute drive home.

Upon pulling into the apartment complex's parking lot, Ashton parked in his usual spot and got out, coming back around to your side. He opened the door and hit the lock before picking you up again and closing the door. He carried you all the way back to your apartment, effortlessly getting you inside without breaking a sweat. He then took you to the bedroom, putting you down on the bed. He asked if you wanted to change into your pajamas and when you nodded, he helped you with that as well.

You watched him change into his own sleepwear before he came back to the bed, lying down beside you. You felt your eyes begin to get droopy but you powered through it, looking at your boyfriend.

"I'm sorry for earlier," you sniffled.

Ashton barely smiled at you, snaking his arm under your neck and bringing you into him. He kissed your forehead as you laid on his chest, murmuring an ' _it's okay_ ' to you. You didn't know what came over you, but the statement made you start crying again.

"No, it's not!" you squeaked, tears streaming down your face as you tilted your head upwards to look at him again, "If I didn't walk out, this wouldn't have  _happened_!"

"Hey, hey, hey," Ashton cooed gently, bringing his hand up and wiping your cheeks, "It's not your fault. If you want to apologize about the argument, that's fine, but what happened at the bar had  _nothing_  to do with something you said  _here_."

You made a small noise of detest, only making him chuckle as he held you closer. He kissed your head again, pulling away to find you struggling to keep your eyes open.

"Is it kicking in now, princess?" he asked softly. You nodded as best as you could but you didn't know whether or not he'd even felt it until he spoke again. "You can go to sleep," he said reassuringly, "You're safe now, baby girl; I'm not going to let anything happen to you."

"I love you, Ashton," you whispered just before passing out, making him smile slightly as his lips returned to your forehead.

"I love you  _more_ ," he murmured into your skin even though he knew you couldn't hear him.


	502. Here (Ashton Irwin)

_alright since i don't feel like writing the backstory to this, basically you and ashton met in some random chatroom but went to colleges across the country or whatever but you haven't talked much in a few months bc you were busy with the process of transferring schools and getting used to everything new that was happening and here we go_

~

It was a warm spring day and you found yourself sitting underneath a tree in the campus quad doing your school work. You had your headphones in, listening to music so you weren't distracted by the happenings around you, when you noticed someone sit down a couple feet away from you out of the corner of your eye.

You'd never seen the cute brown-haired boy around before, so you were understandably curious as to why he was sitting next to you now. He had a backpack with him, setting it beside him after he'd sat down, but he hadn't made any motion to reach inside and pull out any books.

You pulled your headphones out of your ears, letting them fall into your lap before you pulled them away altogether, putting them in your own backpack. The boy, noticing that you'd finally be able to hear him, started talking.

"Hi..." he said nervously, "I, um... I didn't mean to freak you out or anything by just randomly sitting with you, I just... Something about you seems familiar..."

"It's okay," you assured him with a smile, "As long as you're not going to follow me back to my dorm later and axe me to death in my sleep."

"I'm not," he couldn't help but laugh, "I don't even  _own_  an axe." The two of you sat together in a comfortable silence for a moment before he continued. "Hey, um... I don't wanna be  _that guy_  who tries to start a conversation with every pretty girl he sees, but... Why haven't I seen you around here before?" he asked curiously. You couldn't help but blush at the compliment.

"I just transferred a few months ago," you replied.

"Oh, where from?"

"(Your state)."

"What made you want to come here instead of keep going to school there?" he tilted his head. You began chewing on your inner cheek and the boy immediately backed off. "Sorry," he shook his head, "It's none of my business."

"No, that's not it," you assured him, "It's just..." You sighed softly, looking back down at your books. "...I met this guy in some random chatroom and he said he goes to school here... And my major has really good programs here, but... I guess I was hoping I'd find him along the way..."

"Well, do you know what he looks like? I might have seen him around."

"No," you laughed nervously, "Which just  _screams_  ' _fake_ ', doesn't it?"

"What about his major?" he suggested, "I might have classes with him or can ask around."

"He said he majors in Computer Science and minors in Photography." You weren't looking at him, but the boy's breathing hitched.

"Are you a Psychology major minoring in Criminal Justice?" he swallowed. You froze before slowly turning your head back to him.

"How did you know that?" you asked. The boy didn't answer – he just posed another question of his own.

"The guy you're looking for... Is his name Ashton?" he asked. He noticed your chest start rising and falling slowly, and he knew your heart was beating about as fast as his was. "And your name's Y/N?" he wondered, "Isn't it?"

"Ashton...?" you whispered.

"Y/N," he said just as quietly. He watched you drop your pen onto your books, taking them off of your lap and tossing them onto the ground in front of you.

" _Ashton_ ," you breathed, completely turning your body so you could move into his lap, your legs straddling him as your arms wound around his neck tightly. You felt him breathe out deeply, his arms wrapping around your waist as he buried his face in your shoulder.

"You're here," he murmured into your skin, "I can't believe you're here. Why didn't you tell me you were transferring?"

"Because I just... I don't know... I thought I'd seem desperate..." you sniffled, "And I... I wanted to surprise you first to see if you were excited to see me and then I thought...you know...if you weren't, I'd just transfer back or something..."

"Why  _wouldn't_  I be excited to see you?" he returned softly, moving back and taking one of his arms off of your waist to wipe your cheeks.

"I don't know..." you mumbled, "You've seemed upset when I couldn't talk..."

"Not  _upset_ , Y/N," he assured you, "Just jealous something that  _wasn't me_  was getting all your attention." You couldn't help but giggle, making him smile. He moved his hands to your hips, holding you tightly. " _You're here_ ," he repeated with a big grin.

"I'm here, Ash," you said softly, a small smile on your own face.

" _God_ , you're so beautiful," he whispered, more to himself than to you. You felt your cheeks getting hotter with every passing second. You moved one of your arms off of his shoulder, letting it rest against his chest as you held his cheek.

"So are you," you said so softly that you would have been sure he didn't hear it had he not immediately blushed as well.

"Listen," he started, "I know education is super important and I would never try to take away from that, but if you don't stop studying to go on a date with me  _right now_ , I might  _actually_  die." You couldn't help but giggle, making him grin.

"That's a little dramatic," you shook your head, "Even for  _you_."

"What's  _that_  supposed to mean?" he gasped dramatically, feigning offense.

"You know  _exactly_  what it means," you reminded him with another giggle, "I'm not the one who messaged the other at 2:30 in the morning wanting to talk about ' _what the human race did to deserve something as pure as dogs_ '."

"It was a completely  _valid_  question!" he pouted.

"I'm not saying it isn't," you said, "I'm just saying save it for a time that  _isn't_  2:30am."

"Well, you still  _replied_  at 2:30am," he stuck his tongue out at you.

"Hmm," you hummed, "Guess that just means I like you." Ashton blushed again, but you didn't get a chance to really appreciate it as he was already burying his face back into your neck and hugging you close.

"I'm really happy you're here," you heard him murmur into your skin.

"Me too, Ash," you whispered, hugging him back just as tightly.

~

_inspiration: https://www.facebook.com/TouchingHeartsByGenmice/videos/459288561136729/_


	503. Not As Planned (Maxx Danziger)

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

~

You'd met baby Danziger before, so it wasn't like you had no idea Maxx had a kid – you just didn't imagine the one-year-old coming along on the date when Maxx asked you out. But it certainly did make for an interesting evening.

This was your third date with Maxx, and a night you were really looking forward to. Although you hadn't  _expected_  the attendance of one-year-old Ashton, you were the one who suggested he tag along after Maxx texted you to tell you that he had to cancel because he couldn't find a babysitter. You insisted he bring the baby, assuring him that it didn't matter if Ashton was there or not – that you just wanted to spend the evening with him.

And that was what you did.

After you hopped into Maxx's car, kissing him on the cheek before buckling your seatbelt, you both decided to skip the movie you'd planned on seeing, not wanting to disturb other people in case Ashton got fussy. You walked into the restaurant, one of Maxx's hands on your back while his son was in his other arm, and sat down. You sat down at a booth while Maxx pulled a highchair over, putting Ashton in before sitting down across from you.

The waitress brought your menus to you as well as a coloring page and crayons for Ashton, which kept him occupied while you decided what to order. After she came back, got your orders, and took the menus back, you and Maxx were left to wait.

"I'm really sorry I had to bring him," Maxx murmured, opening the small box of crayons and dumping them onto the highchair's tray for Ashton.

"I think you're forgetting that I  _told you_  to bring him," you reminded him with a small smile as you watched the baby scribble all over the paper, not caring about the actual photo itself, "I knew what I was getting into."

"I know, but..." he sighed, "I don't know; I wanted tonight to be just  _us_..."

"But it's  _not_ , Maxx," you turned your gaze to him, smiling a little bigger, "Just enjoy it anyway."

"I know," he shook his head, finally grinning slightly as well, "I'm sorry."

"And stop saying you're sorry."

"I'm s-" he cut himself off when you playfully glared at him. He smiled innocently, finally making you crack a grin as well.

"Don't make me come over there," you teased, earning yourself a cocky smirk.

"Is that a  _challenge_?" he returned, laughing when you reached across the table and shoved his shoulder.

~

**15 minutes later**

When your food came out, Maxx got Ashton's situated before the two of you started eating. About halfway through the meal, you were in the middle of a conversation when a small whimper caught your attention. You both looked over, finding Ashton staring at his empty plate. Figuring he was just upset he'd eaten all his food, Maxx took some of his own and put it on his son's plate.

But that apparently wasn't what he wanted.

The one-year-old's eyes quickly filled with tears and before you knew it, there was a crying baby beside you – and for once, it wasn't Maxx.

You could tell Maxx was beginning to feel a little embarrassed as people looked over to see what was going on, so he got up, murmuring something about taking him outside for a few moments until he calmed down. You simply nodded but as he started to reach for the baby to take him out of the highchair, he only cried louder and reached for  _you_.

Maxx didn't even have time to react to the motion before you were picking Ashton up, bringing him to you. You started with him on your side, but the baby slid to your lap, sitting down facing the table. He reached for the crayons Maxx had put off to the side when the food came out, so you instantly slid your plate out of the way, bringing both the crayons and paper in front of you instead.

Maxx watched in slight awe, hearing you whisper a soft ' _If you're gonna be here, you've gotta stop crying_ ' to Ashton, to which he happily complied – he was still  _sniffling_ , of course, but he wasn't  _screaming_.

You and Maxx continued what you'd been doing before Ashton's outburst – you just ate a little more carefully so you didn't accidently drop anything on him. You finished before your date, allowing you finally take the crayon the one-year-old had been insisting you take for the last five minutes and color with him.

"You know," Maxx said, making you glance up to find him smiling at you as he pushed his plate to the side to signal he was finally finished eating, "I've never seen a purple dog before." You simply smiled as well, returning to coloring the animal.

"Doesn't mean they don't exist," you returned, hearing him chuckle in response.

After another few minutes, you heard Maxx sigh softly. You looked up at him again as you put the crayons back into their box, putting them in the diaper bag sitting on the table against the wall.

"It's getting late..." he mumbled, "I should probably start getting Ash ready for bed..." You hummed in acknowledgement, letting Maxx toss a tip onto the table and grab the diaper bag before you both slid out of the booth. 

You repositioned the baby to sit on your hip, making silly faces and cooing at him as you walked back out to the car. You put Ashton in his car seat, kissing his forehead after buckling him in – he was already dozing off and you didn't want to risk waking him up later.

The short ride back to your place was silent for the most part, you and Maxx  _barely_  whispering when you  _did_  want to say something. His forearm was resting on the center console, his hand holding yours on top of your left thigh. When Maxx pulled up to the curb in front of the door, he put the car in park before looking over at you.

"Thanks for going out with me –  _and Ash_  – tonight," he said.

"Anytime," you giggled under your breath.

"I'd walk you to the door, but..." he trailed off, nodding toward the baby sleeping in the backseat.

"Being a responsible father and not leaving your child alone in the car, even for 30 seconds?" you scoffed dramatically, " _Absolutely disgusting_. I  _never_  wanna see you again." Maxx rolled his eyes fondly, smiling as you went on. "I had a lot of fun, Maxx," you grinned back at him, "Even if it  _wasn't_  what we planned."

"Me too," he murmured. He leaned over the console between you to give you a kiss on the cheek, feeling you smile in return. "I'll call you after Ashton's in bed," he informed you, earning an eager nod. You leaned over and pecked his cheek as well, making him turn a light shade of red.

"Bye, Maxx," you murmured after pulling away, getting out of the car and closing the door as quietly as you could before turning and walking up the sidewalk. Maxx's eyes followed you the whole time, waiting until he knew you were safely in the building before smiling to himself again and pulling back out onto the road.


	504. Free Parking (Michael Clifford) - Part 1

_requested by amethystpanda6 on tumblr_

_prompt i used: "You're the bastard who keeps parking right in front of my house so I retaliated by keying your car and you caught me"_

~

 _Thirteen_.

This was the  _thirteenth_ time this  _month_  that your neighbor's  _damn friend_  kept parking in  _your_ spot.

You liked to think you were a pretty chill person when it came to things like this.

The first time it happened, you were a little ticked off, but you just had to remind yourself that it was a car you didn't recognize so they clearly didn't know it was your spot. The second time, you felt that little bubble of annoyance in your chest, but you simply left a note under the windshield wiper – a  _nice one_ , mind you – but that clearly wasn't enough either. The third time, you happened to pull onto your street just as the driver was pulling out of the spot, also noticing that someone was waving to them from the sidewalk.

You and Calum weren't super close by any means, but you still considered him to be a friend. So you had no problem rolling your window down as you pulled up to the curb and shouting his name. He stopped walking to look over his shoulder, finding you getting out of your car. You briefly greeted each other before you asked him to tell his friend – Michael, you learned his name was – to stop parking in your spot if he was going to coming over so much. He promised you he would, also apologizing for any problems it may have caused you. You knew Calum was a trustworthy person, so you knew that, when you saw Michael's car in your spot two days later, you knew the war had officially begun.

It started off with passive-aggressive notes on the windshield – much more... _colorful language_...this time around – which obviously yielded no results. It then escalated to  _threatening him_  that you would call the cops if he didn't knock it off and give your spot back. But now, what kind of story would it be if he just  _gave up_?

The thirteenth time Michael had parked his car in your spot was the final straw. You parked your car on the next street over – just like you'd been forced to do for nearly three weeks now – and walked back to your building. You didn't go inside though – you simply walked to Michael's car, sat yourself down on the blacktopped street beside the driver's side door, pulled out your keys, and got to work.

You were only a few scratches in when you heard a door close on the other side of the car, but you didn't stop; You knew who it was going to be just by the sounds of the buckles on the leather jacket he was always wearing.

"Um... What are you doing?" you suddenly heard behind you. You looked over your shoulder, finding the car's owner – the  _current_  bane of your existence – watching you with wide eyes.

"I'm making art," you stated, turning back to the car door and continuing to run your key all over it, "And I decided that this will be my canvas."

"This is  _my car_!" Michael exclaimed.

"Annoying  _and_  obvious," you smiled to yourself, "I like it."

"Why are you  _keying my car_?!"

"You're in my spot," you replied dryly.

"No, I'm  _not_!"

"You see the number right underneath the front bumper?" you asked, turning his attention to the white ' _274_ ' painted on the pavement, " _My spot_." The blonde looked back at you, the same wide-eyed look on his face.

"This is a little  _much_ , don't you think?!" he shook his head.

"I've left notes on your car and told Calum to tell you to stop parking here," you reminded him, "If you chose to continue ignoring it, that's not my problem."

"This is a destruction of property!" he insisted.

You were silent for a moment, your head tilted as you looked at the car. You then suddenly brought your arm back up,  _really_  digging your key into the door this time. The blonde sucked in a breath before letting it out with a soft groan as you stood back up.

"Usually, I make people  _pay_  for my art, but I'll let you have that one for  _free_ ," you smiled at him, brushing the dirt off of the back of your jeans, "Maybe you'll think twice before parking in my spot next time."

"There are no other spots  _open_  when I come here!" he told you, "I'd have to park on the next street over!"

"Oh my god, I'm  _so_  sorry," you put your hand over your heart, "Did I give you the impression that I  _care_? I really didn't mean to." Michael narrowed his eyes at you as you went on. "Maybe you should ask Calum to start paying for another parking spot for you," you suggested.

"Why would he do  _that_?"

"To prevent this from happening again," you shook your head, "There are some crazy people out there, you know; I'd hate for it to happen to you  _twice_." You started walking away, only to have him call after you.

"The only crazy person around here is  _you_!" he shouted, and you could hear the anger in his voice.

"It was nice meeting you!" you called back over your shoulder, "Drive safe!" Before he could respond again, you were already inside your building, closing the door behind you.

~

**Two weeks later**

It had been two weeks since the keying incident with your neighbor's friend, but you'd have been naïve to think that it was all  _over_.

You arrived home from work with a friend who was staying over the weekend while his own place was being fumigated. Since you didn't have two spots, your friend got a ride with you when you picked him up outside his place on your way home. You'd ranted to him about the incident when it first started happening, so he already knew the back story when you pulled up to your building and found Michael's car parked as close to your space as he could without  _actually_  being in it while Calum's car was in its usual spot behind yours.

Your jaw tightened as you felt your anger bubbling up, but instead of repeating your previous actions of keying his car, you decided to fight fire with fire.

"Get out and tell me where I'm going," you told the boy in the passenger seat.

"Y/N, you are not  _seriously_  about to  _parallel park_  this thing," he insisted, "You'll  _never_   _fit_!"

" _Ryan_ ," you grumbled, making him sigh. He rolled down the window before getting out and closing the door, hopping up onto the sidewalk.

You pulled forward and put your car in reverse, careful to make sure you didn't hit either of the boys' cars. Ryan helped you parallel park and after about 10 minutes, you were perfectly wedged between the two with your bumpers  _barely_  touching the ones on the other cars.

"He is gonna be  _so pissed_ ," Ryan snickered after you closed your windows, grabbed his backpack from the back seat, and locked your car. You smiled victoriously as you led him up the walkway and into your building.

~

**Michael's POV; An hour later**

"Which apartment does your neighbor live in?" Michael asked through gritted teeth, storming back into his best friend's place. He had just gone outside to leave, only to discover he was now trapped and couldn't go anywhere.

"What did she do  _now_?" Calum sighed.

"Look at it!" Michael pointed to the window. Calum got up, peeking through the blinds to look at the ground below.

" _Holy shit_ ," he couldn't keep himself from speaking, "How did she manage  _that_?"

" _Calum_!"

"I mean, it's better than keying another door,  _right_?" he smiled shyly.

" _Where does she live_?" the blonde grumbled.

"27B," Calum sighed, but Michael didn't hear it as he was already out the door.

**Your POV**

You were in the middle of watching a Netflix show Ryan recommended when you were startled by pounding on your apartment door. He grabbed the remote to pause the TV while you got up.

" _Someone just looked outside_ ," Ryan sang teasingly, making you smirk to yourself but you wiped it off your face before you opened the door.

"Hello," you smiled politely upon seeing a seething blonde standing in the hallway, "To what do I owe the pleasure of another meeting?"

" _Move your car_ ," he spat.

"No," you answered simply, "Goodnight." You went to close the door, but Michael put his hand on it and forced it back open. It was at this point that Ryan got up and moved closer – still out of view of the doorway –  _just in case_  things got ugly.

" _Maybe you didn't hear me_ ," he grumbled lowly, " _Move. Your. Car_."

"I heard you the first time," you replied confidently, not scared of him in the slightest, "But my car is still  _very much_  in the spot I'm  _paying for_ , so I don't  _have_ to move it."

" _Y/N_ ," he growled again.

"Michael," you smiled sweetly. When he realized you weren't going to back down, he turned on his heels and walked away, muttering a few choice swear words under his breath. "Night, Michael!" you called after him before shutting your door and turning back to your guest.

"Remind me not to get on your bad side," Ryan chuckled, making you laugh as well as you both returned to the couch to finish watching the show.

~

**One week later**

Another week passed without any trouble from Michael, but you knew better than to get complacent. Unfortunately for  _him_ , however, he picked the  _wrong week_  to pick the antics back up again.

You remained eerily calm, taking in deep breaths, as you pulled into the parking spot in front of yours. You parked your car but didn't kill the engine, taking out your phone instead.

" _Where is he_?" you growled before Calum even had the chance to say ' _hello_ ' after answering.

"What?" the confusion was obvious in his tone but you weren't in the mood.

"You tell him that if he's not out here in the next 10 seconds, I'm taking a bat to the fucking windshield." You hung up before he could say anything, now counting down in your head.

Michael's window of opportunity soon passed, prompting you to pull into the spot in front of yours, park your car, and reach into the backseat, bringing a metal baseball bat with you as you sat back up. You got out of the car and gripped the handle tightly. But you never even got to  _think about_  where you'd swing first.

"Y/N, don't you  _dare_!" you heard Michael's voice shout as he ran out of the apartment building, quickly reaching where you were standing beside the front right tire and putting himself between you and the car.

" _Move it_ ," you glared at him.

"And if I  _don't_?" he challenged.

But the smirk on his face only made you  _angrier_. You lifted your arm up and swung, but your bat didn't get to make contact with Michael's car because he'd grabbed your wrist just in time.

"What the  _actual_  fuck is your problem?!" he shouted.

" _Move it, Michael_ ," your voice wavered as you glared at him again.

Michael could tell that you were forcing back tears, making him freeze. He didn't know why you'd be crying; Sure, he knew you were  _annoyed_  by what he'd been doing – all the more reason to  _continue_   _it_ , as far as he was concerned – but he'd never known you to be one to  _cry_  over it. And something about your reaction this time made him give up without a fight.

Your grip on the bat's handle relaxed when Michael released your wrist to dig his keys out of his pocket. He quickly got into his car and pulled out of his spot, glancing in his side mirror and noticing you getting into your own. But when he returned from parking his car on the next street over, your own was in its designated spot and you were already inside the building.

~

_inspiration: https://amethystpanda6.tumblr.com/post/170215881721/tokiosunset-people-should-do-more-meet-ugly_


	505. Free Parking (Michael Clifford) - Part 2

_requested by amethystpanda6 and coffeeashawn on tumblr_

~

**Three weeks later**

It had been almost a month since Michael had given you any more trouble – and you weren't going to play dumb as to  _why_. You knew it was because you almost had a breakdown in front of him – you could see it in his face every time he'd glance in your direction when you passed him as he was leaving the building and you were going in – but he never said anything. Not until  _now_ , that is.

**Michael's POV**

Michael was walking up the sidewalk that led to the building when he suddenly heard your voice. The sound made him look over to the tree you were sitting under, only a few feet away from the front door.

"Calum's not home," you informed him softly.

"Oh..." he said, "Well... Do you know when he'll be  _back_?"

You shook your head, and that was when he realized you hadn't looked up at him. He walked over to you, sitting on the bench a about a foot away, wondering why you weren't there in the first place.

"You okay?" Michael asked you.

"Yeah," you whispered again. You could tell – even though you weren't looking at him – that he was about to call you out, so you spoke again, "Thanks for the flowers the other day."

"You're welcome," he replied just as quietly, "I would have gotten you real ones, but Cal said you can't keep them alive so I thought you'd appreciate fake ones more." You couldn't help but laugh under your breath as you nodded, but you didn't say anything else. So Michael continued. "Seriously, Y/N, are you okay?" he asked carefully, not sure exactly how to approach the subject.

"I'm fine," you whispered, but Michael could still see right through you.

"Listen..." he sighed, moving from the bench to sit on the ground next to you, "I'm sure I'm the  _last_  person you'd want to talk to about the things that are bothering you – hell, I'm sure  _Calum_  has a better shot than  _me_  – but I... I've never seen you cry over some dick move I've made when it came to that parking spot, so whatever made you do that the other night isn't  _nothing_." You remained silent, causing him to sigh again, "Look, Y/N, either you can tell me what's wrong or I can awkwardly hug you until you're not angry with me anymore." You tried not to let yourself laugh at the comment, but it was no use. You brought your hand up, wiping your cheeks with the sleeve of your sweater.

"It's stupid," you whispered.

"It's not stupid if it almost got my windshield smashed," Michael shook his head, "Which – unlike the key scratches on the door – I  _definitely_  would have made you pay to get fixed." You smiled again, sniffling slightly. You didn't say anything for a few moments, but something told him that you were  _going to_ , so he waited. And his patience finally paid off.

"There's this girl at work... Raquel..." you started softly, "She comes in all the time... But all she does is walk around and point out everything I'm doing wrong. She doesn't do it to anybody else and none of the people I work with have a problem with her when I'm not there... I just don't know what I  _did_... I'd never even  _met her_  before she started doing it..." You wiped your face again and took a deep, shaky breath in while Michael watched and listened to you intently. "I went into work that day when...you know...only to find out that I'd been ' _let go_ ' – or so they told me," you sighed again, "I guess that girl is the guy who owns the place's daughter... She made up some story about how I'm the worst waitress she's ever had because I was making rude comments about the things she ordered every time she came in and I was purposely bringing her the wrong things and ignoring her when she tried fixing it even though none of it is true and she can't prove any of the things she said I did to her..."

"Then why were you fired?" Michael asked lowly. You let out a breathy, humorless laugh.

"Because I can't  _disprove_  it either," you shook your head, "The guy's not gonna believe  _some waitress_   _he's_   _never met_  over his own  _daughter_." He opened his mouth, but you didn't notice. "I'm really sorry about what happened..." you mumbled just loudly enough for him to hear it.

"It's okay," he assured you. He could tell something else was on your mind and, he didn't know why, but he just had to ask you about it. "Y/N," he said, making you look up at him, "What's bothering you?" You opened and closed your mouth a couple times before finally finding your voice.

"Can I just..." you trailed off, the sound barely even coming out  _at all_ , "Never mind."

"What, Y/N?" Michael questioned.

"It's too much," you shook your head, "You've already listened to me complain for too long; I should just-" You went to get up but felt Michael grab your hand instead, pulling you back down. Your other hand landed on his calf in surprise, but neither of you really noticed as he spoke.

Michael looked you right in the eyes with a firm but soft tone, "Do you need a hug?" You could feel the tears well up again as you choked out an almost inaudible ' _yes_ '.

The blonde instantly pulled you onto his lap, letting you wrap your legs around him before releasing your hand to hold your waist tightly. You wrapped your own arms around his neck, burying your face in his shoulder. He could feel your tears soaking his shirt, but as much as he wanted to push you back and wipe them away, he just let you cry.

It didn't take long for you to calm back down – only a few minutes – but for some reason, he just couldn't make himself let go of you yet.

"Do you feel better?" Michael asked when your sobs had turned into sniffles, rubbing your lower back gently.

"No," you answered honestly with a bashful laugh, "But I don't want to fall asleep on you – especially not out  _here_..."

"We could always go inside," he shrugged, "It'll probably be easier to get you into your apartment if you're  _not_  sleeping." You couldn't help but giggle, making him smile slightly.

"You're really sweet, Michael," you whispered into his shoulder, "I like you better when you're not being an ass." He hummed under his breath.

"I like you better when I'm not being an ass too," he replied.

~

**A few hours later**

Michael had left your apartment only an hour and a half later once Calum had gotten back. You – much like you'd predicted – had fallen asleep on his shoulder as the two of you watched a movie. He carried you to bed without disturbing you, went back out to turn off your TV, wrote you a note on a Post-It with his number on it – ' _in case you need someone again in the future_ ' – and made sure to lock your front door before leaving and heading to Calum's apartment.

The sun had already set long before the time Michael decided to go home for the night. But he just had one more thing to do before he did.

"Hey, Cal?" Michael said randomly while putting on his jacket to leave.

"Yeah?" Calum returned, coming back from the kitchen.

"Do you know where Y/N works?" he asked, earning himself a cocked eyebrow.

"Mike, you  _know_  I've never agreed with your little  _feud_  over the parking spot outside this building; I'm  _not_  letting you bother her at  _work_  too," he stated firmly.

"It's not  _for_  that, Calum," Michael sighed, "I just have some business to take care of..."

"Michael, if this ends in you getting arrested-"

"It  _won't_!" he rolled his eyes. Calum looked at him skeptically for a moment before caving.

"I'm pretty sure she works in the diner on 11th."

~

**The next day**

Michael walked into the diner that evening, simply ordering a donut. He didn't know whether or not the owner's daughter would be there since she'd gotten what she'd wanted with you being fired, but it was worth a shot. And it paid off not long after he sat down.

He was scrolling through his phone, taking periodic bites of his food, when the bell above the door dinged. He didn't pay any mind to it, but he did look up when he felt a new presence sliding into the seat across from him.

"Hello," the girl smiled flirtatiously, "Why haven't I seen you around here before?"

"Not very observant?" Michael suggested, looking back down at his screen as she giggled.

"I think I'd notice someone as handsome as  _you_ ," she insisted, "What's your name?"

"Michael."

" _Michael_ ," she bit her bottom lip, clearly trying to be sexy but failing, "It's nice to meet you. I'm Raquel."

And it was then  _that_  it clicked in Michael's brain:  _this_  was the girl that got you fired.

"Cute name," he immediately turned on the charm, putting his phone away to give her his undivided attention, "Though I'd expect nothing else."

"Oh,  _stop_ ," she giggled again, "So how often do you come here?"

"Not very often," he said, "But I was actually hoping to find someone."

"Wouldn't happen to be  _me_ , would it?"

"Not unless your name's  _also_  Y/N," he said – and he  _instantly_  noticed her body tense up.

"Y/N?" she still tried playing it cool, "Not sure I know her." Michael couldn't help but notice the two other waitresses, cook, and dish washer start whispering to each other upon hearing your name.

"She's a waitress here," he replied smoothly, "Decided to finally work up the nerve to ask her out."

"Well, I haven't seen a name tag reading ' _Y/N_ ' before," she mentioned, going back into her flirty façade, "So maybe you and  _I_  could go out instead."

"Hmm," he hummed, "Rather have Y/N."

"Why's that?" she pouted.

"I'd say it was nothing against you, but that'd be a lie," Michael shrugged, finishing off his donut and leaning back in his seat.

"What's that mean?" Raquel asked, furrowing her eyebrows in confusion.

"I wasn't really being  _totally_  honest earlier," he informed her, "You  _are_  actually who I'm here to see."

She let out a sharp breath, "What are you  _talking_  about?"

"I know about what you did – how you got Y/N fired just because you don't like her," Michael stated, making her tense up for a second time, "So  _this_  is the kind of business Daddy's running, huh? Believing the word of a 23-year-old woman who lives off of  _his_  money and has no idea that people like Y/N can't  _live_  without their jobs? Do you have  _any_  idea how much it is to rent a place to live or keep yourself fed when all you're living on is a measly  _minimum-wage_   _paycheck_   _and_   _shitty_   _tips_  from a place like this? You know, Y/N may not be the type of person who fights people like you, but believe me, I have  _no problem_  with it."

"What are you proposing?" Raquel grumbled, not wanting any attention on her anymore. Michael sat back upright, putting his forearms on the tabletop and leaning in toward her.

"Give Y/N her job back-" He stared her down. "-and  _maybe_  I'll keep quiet about what you did to her."

~

**Your POV; Two days later**

"Does anyone want to explain to me why I got a call from corporate this morning saying there was a mix-up in the system and I didn't lose my job after all?" you asked the moment you walked in the front door of the diner. The three co-workers who were working that day stopped what they were doing to glance at each other, making you cock an eyebrow. "Alright, well, now I  _definitely_  know you know something," you stated.

"A guy came in on Thursday and we saw him and Raquel talking," Carl, the cook, said from his window looking out of the kitchen, "Hey, Barb-" He leaned out to look to his right where the other waitress was standing at the cash register, "What did that kid tell Raquel his name was?"

"Uh..." she trailed off, "Marshall? No, Myles!"

"Wasn't it Mitchell?" the dish washer, Joey, chimed in. You were silent for a moment before your eyes widened slightly.

" _Michael_?" you asked, your gaze flicking between the three as they all perked up.

"Yeah! Michael!" they exclaimed simultaneously while Carl continued, "Kid really  _gave it to her_  too – saying she had no idea how hard it was to live on the money you get from here and how messed up it was of her to do what she did since she's still living on ' _Daddy's money_ '." You were listening to his words but you just couldn't wrap your head around the situation.

" _Michael_?" you repeated with a shake of your head, "Blonde hair, kinda tall, tattoos on his right elbow?"

"Yes, honey!" Barb laughed, "Michael!" They could clearly see the confused expression on your face, but chose not to push it since you'd gone to the back to change into your uniform, clearly not wanting to talk about it anymore.

~

**Two hours later**

You were wiping down the table used by a couple who had just left. There wasn't anyone else in the diner except for you, Barb, and Carl, so you were all just listening to the music coming from the speakers and the sounds of Joey washing the dishes.

The bell above the door rung and you heard Barb greet someone with an enthusiastic ' _Hi, sweetheart!_ ', but you didn't think anything of it – she greeted people she knew like that when they came in all the time – until they started  _speaking_ , that is.

"I'm looking for Y/N," you heard a familiar voice say, "Anybody seen her?" And you knew that voice  _anywhere_. You dropped your washrag on the table and spun around just as Michael stopped beside you. "Heard you got your job back," he mentioned with a grin. You didn't waste any time in stepping forward, throwing your arms around his neck and hugging him tightly. You felt him chuckle softly as he hugged you back, neither of you paying any mind to the co-workers watching you with small smiles on their faces.

"Thank you," you whispered, your voice slightly muffled by the fabric your face was pressed to.

"Well, I figured after all the shit I put you through at home, it was the  _least_  I could do," he squeezed you.

"There's gotta be  _something_  I could do to repay you though," you shook your head, pulling away.

"You could repay me with a free donut," he shrugged. You couldn't keep yourself from smiling at him.

"Which one do you want?" you asked, making your way behind the counter as he took a seat on the barstool in front of the donut case.

"Which one's  _your_  favorite?" he returned. You leaned back against the counter to look in the case before pushing yourself up and grabbing a piece of parchment paper to get the donut.

You and Michael talked for a couple minutes while he ate before more customers – three truckers just passing through town and wanting lunch – came in and you were needed to serve them. Michael finished his donut while you were in the middle of taking the truckers' orders, but he stayed in his seat until you were done. You came back around the counter, gave the orders to Carl, and turned back to Michael while you waited for the food.

"I should get going," Michael told you, "Just wanted to wait until you were finished with them to say bye."

"Bye, Michael," you chuckled lowly, "Thanks again."

"Anytime," he smiled back. He pulled out his wallet and grabbed a 20 dollar bill. He leaned over the counter, putting the money in the pocket of the apron you were wearing. "Excellent service," he told you, "Will definitely be coming back again."

"Michael-" You started to take it back out, but he stopped you.

"Keep it," he insisted, "You deserve it after putting up with  _Daddy's little girl_  for so long." You couldn't help but laugh softly.

"You're ridiculous," you shook your head, earning yourself a bright smile. Michael got up from his seat, but he only walked about two chairs away before turning back around.

"Oh, and before I forget: I just thought of something  _else_  you could do to repay me," he mentioned, making you look up at him, "What are you doing after you get off work?"

"Nothing," you replied, not really thinking anything of it.

"Great," Michael grinned slyly, "Then I'll pick you up at 8." He winked at you before walking out the door, leaving you with a confused smile on your face before you blushed at the realization that he'd indirectly just asked you on a date.

~

_inspiration: https://amethystpanda6.tumblr.com/post/170215881721/tokiosunset-people-should-do-more-meet-ugly_


	506. Free Parking (Michael Clifford) - Part 3

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

~

You knew Michael could be a gentleman when he wanted to be, but you honestly didn't expect him to treat you like a  _princess_.

Michael picked you up right on time, waltzing back into the diner the  _second_  your shift ended. He walked you out to your car and followed you in his own to your apartment building. You both went inside – he went to visit with Calum while you got changed out of your uniform – and met back up in the hallway a few minutes later.

He opened every door for you both in the building, at the car, and at the restaurant he took you to. To be quite honest, if someone had told you that Michael was this sweet when you'd first met him, you really didn't think you would have  _believed_  them.

He decided to take you to the park after dinner, both of you sitting next to each other on a picnic table beside the small pond. He asked about your day and you asked about his before letting a comfortable silence fall over the two of you.

But apparently, he was feeling particularly fidgety that night because he randomly got up and walked over to the pond's edge. He bent down and grabbed a handful of something, returning to the table and allowing you to see that he was now holding a bunch of rocks. He held his hand out to you, but you just looking at him quizzically.

"What are you doing?" you asked him.

"Let's skip some rocks," he suggested.

"I don't know  _how_ , Michael," you shook your head.

"Come on," he laughed under his breath, "It's not that hard." You eyed him carefully for a moment before plucking a rock out of his hand and standing up, going over to the edge of the water with him.

You both flung your rocks toward the pond, but his was the only one that skipped across the water, nearly making it to the other side before sinking to the bottom. You huffed lightly, taking a few more rocks from his hand and flinging those as well. But none of them skipped. You found yourself sighing softly once you'd run out of rocks.

"You know how some people are just  _not meant_  to be able to do something?" you mentioned, "Maybe this is one of my somethings."

"You probably only need more practice," Michael laughed, picking up a few more flat rocks and walking back to you, "Just do what I do."

He tossed another rock at the water, both of you watching it skip several times before he turned back to you and handed you your own rock. You replayed the motions his arm had done in your head before throwing the rock as well, the flick of your wrist doing absolutely nothing to prevent the plopping down the rock made into the lake.

Michael couldn't keep himself from laughing as you grumbled to yourself in frustration. He put all the rocks down on the picnic table except for one, holding it out to you and informing you he was going to help you. He moved behind you after you took it, his chest almost touching your back, as he took the hand holding the rock in his own. But neither of you made any motion to throw it.

"You know..." he murmured, making you look at him, "If this were a romance movie, this would probably be the part where we kissed..."

"If this rock skips across that water, I'll let you kiss me," you stated confidently, your eyes never leaving his.

"No pressure," he chuckled, making you giggle as he looked back at the water. "I don't know how well this is gonna work since I'm not used to throwing it through another hand," he mentioned, earning himself a playful elbow to the ribs.

"Excuses, excuses," you shook your head as he chuckled in your ear.

"You ready?" he asked. You nodded and he pulled your arm back slightly, then quickly flicked your wrist toward the pond.

You released the rock, watching it do what it had done every other time before, landing in the water with a deep plop. Since this was no surprise to you, you simply stepped away from Michael, causing him to let go of you, and threw your arms into the air.

"I'm beyond help at this point!" you groaned.

"In more ways than one," Michael snickered. You rolled your eyes at the comment, watching him as he reached over to grab another rock and skip it across the water.

" _Show off_ ," you mumbled, hearing him laugh once again. He turned to look at you, finding your eyes already on him.

It was silent for a moment before you surprised him by going up to him, grabbing his cheeks, and pulling his face to yours. Though he was taken aback by the sudden gesture, there was absolutely no hesitation in feeling him kiss you back. His hands found your hips almost instantly, letting them slide around your waist so he could hug your lower back and bring your body right up against his.

When you both pulled away to breath, your chests were visibly rising and falling. Michael's forehead fell onto yours, his eyes still closed in content.

"It didn't skip across the water..." he reminded you in a mumble.

" _I_  kissed  _you_ ," you replied simply, making him smile.

"Can you do it again?" he asked. You giggled under your breath, reaching up so your lips were back on his. "Maybe I should've started parking in your spot sooner," he said, only earning him a slap to the back of the head as you kissed him harder.


	507. Home, Sweet Home (Maxx Danziger)

It was just another Tuesday; Another day your boyfriend was on tour and you were at home by yourself. Now normally, this wouldn't bother you – you were used to being alone while Maxx was away. But this time was different. This time, you had moved with him to LA – now living with the whole band as well as their girlfriends.

It wasn't that bad at first – you actually thought the other girls  _liked you_  when you all first moved in together. But you quickly found out that they were just putting on a show for the boys.

It seemed like the moment the band left for their first six-month tour a couple weeks after moving in – and every tour after that –the girls wanted nothing to do with you. And you being you, you would never initiate conversation or make plans – if they didn't tell you they were going out, you didn't go. You didn't know  _why_  they didn't like you, you just knew they  _didn't_. They would glare at you whenever you walked into a room, whisper amongst each other about you when you left, and made sure you never knew what their plans were.

But above all of that, by far the worst thing you had to deal with was how inconsiderate they were toward you.

They didn't care what you had to do the next day or what time you had to wake up, they made  _sure_  they were  _as loud as possible_  when they  _knew_  you were trying to sleep. But if you  _accidentally_  dropped something in the morning and it woke one of  _them_  up, the gates of hell may as well have just opened up and swallowed you whole right then and there because they made damn sure they told you how  _rude_  and  _selfish_  and  _inconsiderate_  you were toward them.

You couldn't say you were  _completely_  alone though – you  _did_  have Pistol with you to keep you company and she was the best substitute cuddle buddy when Maxx was gone. But at the same time, she couldn't hug you back or kiss you or tell you everything was okay or that she loved you more than anything...

As much as you loved her, Pistol just  _wasn't_  your boyfriend.

~

Only two weeks after your boyfriend had left for his five-month-long tour this time around – and a year and a half after moving into the Set It Off house – you finally found an apartment so you could move out. You hadn't told any of the other girls – quite honestly because you knew they wouldn't  _care_ – but you hadn't even told  _Maxx_ either. You didn't know why, but you were just scared that he'd be upset with you.

You didn't have much that  _solely_  belonged to you, so you made sure to get a place that was furnished and ready to move into so you could leave as soon as possible. And that was what you did. 

While the girls were out shopping one day, you packed up all your things, loaded them as well as Pistol into your car, and didn't look back as you drove away.

~

After bringing the last box into your new apartment and setting it on the kitchen counter, you looked around the main room and breathed a small sigh of relief. It was just the beginning of what you were sure was going to be a stressful journey of living on your own, but to be honest, anything was better than the absolute hell those three girls had put you through when the band wasn't around.

Once you knew you wouldn't be coming in and out of the apartment anymore, you went over to where you'd put Pistol's carrier. She immediately darted out when you opened the door – she  _hated_  being in a carrier because she knew it  _usually_  meant a trip to the vet – and began exploring her new surroundings. She jumped up onto the back of the couch, giving herself a bird's eye view of the room.

"You don't think I'm being unreasonable, do you?" you asked softly, looking at where Pistol was sat watching you. Her ears perked up and she tilted her head as if she were listening to you. "And you don't think Maxx will hate me?" you began chewing on your inner cheek, "I mean, we moved to LA so the band could live in the same house close to their friends and the recording studio, but... I don't know. I just  _couldn't_ keep living there with those girls... And I know you hate your carrier and I'm sorry I put you through that, but I just  _don't_ trust them to take good care of you." You sighed lightly, finally plopping down on the couch on the opposite side that Pistol was sitting on, taking a small break before you started unpacking. "But you forgive me, right?" you asked her.

The cat meowed, jumping down onto the couch and walking onto your lap. She bumped the top of her head on your chin and you couldn't help but laugh, petting her and scratching behind her ears.

"Love you too, Pistol," you murmured, leading down to kiss the top of her head before petting her some more.

~

**Maxx's POV; Four and a half months later**

" _Home, sweet home_ ," Zach sighed obnoxiously, making the boys chuckle as they all got out of the car. They grabbed their bags from the trunk and lugged them to the front door, all of them happy to see their girlfriends _in person_  after months of Facetimes and phone calls. 

" _Hello_?!" Cody sang as he opened the front door, " _Special delivery_!" 

" _Baby_!" Kayla squealed as she rushed into the room, throwing her arms around her boyfriend's neck. Zach and Dan's girlfriends were close behind, hugging their boyfriends as well. But that left one member of the band without a welcome-home.

"Where's Y/N?" Maxx asked when you didn't come out to greet the band.

"She moved out," Meredith shrugged nonchalantly.

" _Moved out_?" Maxx cocked an eyebrow, "What do you mean she  _moved out_? Why would she do that?" The other boys curiously watched on, clearly as concerned about you as your boyfriend was.

"We don't know," Eleanor replied innocently, "We were out one day and when we came back that night, her and Pistol were just gone."

"Well, do you know where they  _are_?" The girls shrugged, making Maxx sigh. He didn't say anything more – he just went upstairs to his bedroom and pulled out his phone to call you. He couldn't deny that the uncomfortable emptiness of his bedroom made him feel nauseous, fearing the worst.

The moment the ringing on your end stopped, Maxx was speaking.

"Y/N,  _where are you_?" he asked, "I thought I'd be coming home and finally be able to kiss my girlfriend again only to find out that she, my cat, and  _all of her stuff_  are no longer  _here_?"

"I'm sorry, Maxx..." you murmured.

"Princess,  _please_  just tell me where you are," he practically begged. So you did.

~

**Your POV; 20 minutes later**

It wasn't like you were  _shocked_ to hear a knock on your apartment door after your phone call with Maxx – although, you  _were_  still nervous. He didn't  _seem_  annoyed or upset on the phone, but you still didn't know what his reaction would be.

You got up to open the door, Pistol looking up for a brief moment only to lie back down and close her eyes again. The moment Maxx saw you, he breathed out and came into the apartment, his arms wrapped tightly around your waist. You pushed the door closed behind him before wrapping your own arms around his neck, hugging him just as closely.

"I've missed you, princess," he murmured into your neck, feeling you smile slightly into his own skin.

"Missed you  _more_ ," you returned, giggling when he huffed in protest.

You both released each other after a few more moments of happily being back in each other's arms. You led him over to the couch so you could sit down – by this point, Pistol had realized Maxx had returned and was sitting up in the spot she'd previously been laying in, purring when he reached down as he was sitting to scratch her head. Once Maxx was sat down, Pistol lied back down right up against his thigh while you took the seat beside him, your legs overlapping his and your head resting on the back cushion of the couch so you were looking at him. He put his hand on your own thigh and squeezed lightly.

"What are you  _doing_  here?" Maxx shook his head, turning away from Pistol to look at you, "Why'd you just up and  _leave_? And you didn't  _tell_   _anyone_? That's not  _like you_ , princess."

"Because... I just..." you trailed off, not really knowing what to say.

"Is this... Are you breaking up with me...?" he asked, his voice barely even coming out.

" _No_!" you nearly shouted, your own voice cracking at the thought of ever  _not_  being with Maxx.

"Then why did you move out?" he asked with an almost desperate tone.

"None of those girls  _like me_ , Maxx," you sighed, sinking down in your seat and looking down at your hands, "I'm sick of being treated like shit and ignored and like it's  _my_  responsibility to clean and cook for  _everybody_  when they don't even  _ask_  if I need help and-"

"How long have they been treating you like that?" Maxx cut you off.

"Since the day you introduced me to everyone," you swallowed, staring down at your hands, "But it's only bad when you're on tour."

"Princess," he sighed as well, "Why didn't you  _tell me_?"

"What could you have  _possibly_  done?" you asked, the question coming out harsher than you intended, "What could you have done from  _thousands_  of miles away?"

"I could have come  _here_  first instead of worrying about where my girlfriend was and why she wouldn't tell me she was leaving," he answered without missing a beat. You finally looked back up at him.

"You're not mad?" you whispered.

"Why would I be  _mad_?" he wondered, snaking his arm around your shoulders and pulling you into him. You repositioned yourself so you could lay your head on his shoulder and snuggle closer to his side.

"Because that's why we  _moved_  to LA..." you replied, "So you could live with the band..."

"We did, but I asked you to come with us so  _we_  could live together. We're only 20 minutes away from the house now, Y/N. It's not like it's that big of a deal."

"You're gonna move in here?" you asked, truthfully a little surprised.

"Well,  _yeah_ ," he laughed, "I mean, why else would you bring Pistol with you?"

"I don't trust those girls with her," you replied with a serious expression, "Their  _own_  pets are lucky they look after them – I don't think a pet that spends most of her time with  _me_  would be as fortunate." Maxx chuckled again, pressing a kiss to your forehead.

"I'm not mad, princess," he answered your question from before, "Just make sure that if you ever move while I'm on tour again, please tell me so I don't worry about you." You nodded in response as you tilted your head on his shoulder to look at him. He leaned down to peck your lips, "Love you."

"Love you too, Maxx," you murmured, feeling him smile. Your kiss was cut short, however, when you felt Pistol get up again and walk onto yours and Maxx's laps, lying down on your thighs.

"Love you too, Pistol," Maxx laughed, both of you beginning to pet her as she purred happily.


	508. Food Poisoning (Luke Hemmings)

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

_just wanna say a little heads up yall: if the mention of vomiting makes you feel like you're going to as well (i feel u man, i really do), maybe skip this one_

~

"Lu..." you trailed off, breathing in and out of your nose, "Can we maybe...cancel the party...? Or... Or reschedule it or something...?"

"What?" your boyfriend frowned, looking up from where he was putting the drinks out on the kitchen counter, "We can't reschedule your  _birthday_!"

"Not rescheduling my  _birthday_ , Lu," you said softly, "Just the  _party_... I... I don't feel good..."

"You're just nervous because you don't like parties," Luke shook his head, coming over to you and putting his hands on your cheeks, "But I promise I didn't invite anyone you don't already know. It's just a small get together here at the house."

"Lu..."

"You'll be fine, princess," he assured you, pressing a kiss to your forehead, "People are already on their way – I don't wanna have to cancel  _now_."

You started chewing on your inner cheek – he had a point; you didn't want to have people show up just to turn them away. They were coming to celebrate  _your_  birthday and you didn't want to upset anyone by cancelling  _so_  last minute.

So you simply sucked it up and nodded your head, pushing the nauseous feeling to the back of your mind and hurrying back upstairs to make yourself look at least  _decently_  presentable before the party guests started arriving.

~

**Luke's POV; 30 minutes later**

Once the party was in full swing, Luke left you in the kitchen for a moment to go talk to someone in the living room. He talked with a couple of guys from another frat about a charity event coming up before he made his way back to the kitchen.

But as Luke looked around the room, his eyebrows furrowed when he wasn't able to find you. He went around the corner to where the fridge was, figuring maybe you'd just gotten thirsty and needed to refill your water, but you were nowhere to be found  _there_  either. He hummed to himself in confusion, walking back out.

As he entered the hallway, he found one of his brothers coming down the stairs. He was about to greet him, but he was beat to it.

"Hey, I was just coming down to find you!" Michael chirped, stopping at the bottom step, "You should probably head up to your bathroom, man."

"What for?" Luke asked.

"Your girlfriend's not having the  _greatest_  time," he laughed shyly, "I tried to help her out, but she just keeps crying for you."

"Alright," he nodded, "Thanks." He patted the blonde on the back as he passed him, hurrying up the stairs. His bedroom door was closed, but he could  _clearly_  hear you throwing up in the bathroom.

Luke couldn't help the guilty feeling from creeping up on him. You  _told him_  you weren't feeling well – he should have just listened to you and cancelled the party. But he didn't. And he felt  _terrible_.

"Princess?" he murmured as he opened the door.

The bathroom door was already open, so he immediately found you hunched over the toilet. Your arm was resting on the outer edge and your head was resting on your bicep, your eyes closed and taking deep breaths as your body had  _finally_  given a break from puking. You had already put your hair into a ponytail before the party started –  _just in case_  – so he was relieved to know that it hadn't gotten in your hair. Though, the sight itself was still enough to make Luke's heart drop, but what  _really_  did it for him were the tears streaming down your face.

" _Princess_ ," he sighed, closing the bedroom door behind him and coming into the bathroom. He knelt down beside you, putting his hand on the small of your back and rubbing his thumb back and forth across your spine. "I'm sorry," he mumbled again, pressing a kiss to your ear. You barely smiled in response although you were unable to force yourself to open your eyes and look at him.

"S'okay," you whispered hoarsely, your throat raw from throwing up for the last five minutes.

"No – I should have listened to you," he shook his head, "You wouldn't have told me to cancel if you really thought you were fine enough to handle it."

"But everyone's already  _here_ ," you whined, a small pout on your lips.

"They'll  _understand_ , princess," he reminded you, "Especially if you might be contagious."

"M'not contagious, Lu," you murmured, "It's just food poisoning."

"I  _told you_  that gas station sushi  _wasn't_  a good idea," he shook his head, smiling slightly when you giggled.

"But it was good at the  _time_!" you pouted again. Luke chuckled under his breath, leaning down to kiss your head again.

"Do you feel like you're going to throw up again?" he asked you.

"Not yet," you mumbled, finally able to open your eyes to look at him.

"C'mon, princess," he said, standing up, "Let's get you in bed."

"Hmm," you hummed, "Not really  _in the mood_  right now." Luke laughed a little more loudly, making you grin as well.

He put his arms around your back and under your knees, lifting you off of the ground. He brought his foot up to push the toilet handle down as well as leaning down to grab the trash can. He then took you out of the bathroom and to his bed, laying you down.

"Where's your water?" Luke asked you. You grumbled for a moment, trying to remember what you did with it, only making him laugh again.

"I'll just get you a new one, princess," he said, putting his hand on top of your head and smoothing down your hair as your eyes started drooping shut. He pressed his lips to your forehead, leaving them there for a moment. "I'll be back once everyone's gone, okay?" he said, "And I'll make sure none of the other guys come bother you." You barely laughed, nodding your head.

"Will you tell everyone I'm sorry?" you asked, your voice coming out quieter with every word as you started falling asleep.

"Will you feel better if I do?" he returned. You hummed in response. "Then I'll tell everyone you're sorry," he promised you, kissing your head again. "I love you, princess," he murmured into your skin. You mumbled incoherently as he stood back upright and walked back to the door, but he knew you'd told him you loved him too.


	509. Set Up (Ashton Irwin)

"How's Psych?"

You were leaning against the table set up in the front yard of the Alpha Sigma fraternity house, talking to the frat's president. Some boys were selling shirts, some were fixing things for people, and some were even running a kissing booth for charity – as they did quite frequently – and you could always be found with your best friend.

"Kicking my ass," you groaned, making Ashton chuckle, "If Hoffman goes over the same lecture for the fourth time,  _I'll_  be the one people read about in their Psych books when I have a mental breakdown."

"Oh, come on, princess," he laughed a little louder that time, "I'm sure it can't be  _that_  bad."

"I wanna die every day," you replied with a dramatic whine, "I can't  _take_  much more of this! And  _exams_  are coming up and I'm just not ready  _at all_."

"Well, you know you've always got a study partner right here," he smiled, patting his chest. You grinned back at him as another frat member was coming up to the table.

"Y/N," Luke shook his head, stopping a couple feet away from Ashton, "You know I love you, but Ash has a job to do and it's not getting done with you distracting him."

"She's not  _distracting me_ , Luke," Ashton rolled his eyes while you simply giggled.

"Sorry, Hemmo," you apologized, "I'll go."

"You don't have to go, princess," he insisted before Luke stepped back in.

"How many shirts have you sold since she got here?" the blonde addressed him. Ashton rolled his eyes again and Luke deadpanned, " _Exactly_. So either she's going to leave until you're done here or we're going to start auctioning her off." Before Ashton could even protest, you were chirping up again.

"I'm down for that," you announced, hopping up onto the table where there was an empty space in front of the lockbox.

" _What_?" Ashton's head snapped over to you.

"You can auction me off," you nodded.

"You'd  _seriously_  do it?" Luke cocked an eyebrow.

"Why not?" you shrugged, "It's for charity, right? Plus, I think it'd be kinda fun!"

"You're  _sure_  about this?" he stressed, wanting to make absolutely certain you weren't going to back out.

"Luke!" you laughed, "I'm sure!"

"Sweet!" he grinned, "I'll go make a sign real quick!" After Luke scampered into the house to grab a poster board and a Sharpie, Ashton spoke lowly so no one around would hear him.

" _What_  are you doing?" he asked you.

"I'm helping the cause," you replied, pulling out your phone to check your notifications, not paying attention to the tightening jaw of the boy behind you.

"But like  _this_ , Y/N?"

"What's so wrong with this?" you furrowed your eyebrows, putting your phone away and looking over your shoulder at him, "It's not like I'm gonna  _marry_  whoever wins the bidding; I'm,  _at most_ , going on  _one date_  with them. And I think it's great idea! This could really bring in  _a lot_  of money for your charity if anyone's interested in me!"

"Plenty of people are  _going_  to be interested in you," Ashton grumbled.

"I don't understand what the big deal is, Ash," you shook your head, "Don't you  _want_  to raise money?"

He sighed softly, " _Of course_  I do."

"Then why do you seem like you're trying to talk me out of it?"

"I'm not," he tried to convince you, "I just...want to make sure  _you're_  sure about it."

" _Sure, you are_ ," you rolled your eyes, but he didn't get a chance to speak as Luke was coming back out.

"So, I was thinking while I was getting the stuff," the blonde mentioned as he set the poster board on the tabletop, fiddling with the marker in his fingers, "What time should we do this? Because we obviously have to do it today, but I still want the word to get out so people actually show up." You clicked the home button on your phone to check the time, seeing it was only nearing 1.

"What about at like, 3?" you suggested, "Or should we give it more than two hours?" Luke thought for a moment before nodding.

"No, I think 3 is good," he affirmed, uncapping the marker and beginning to make the sign, "That way, you could go on the date tonight too." You simply giggled in response. You heard Ashton scoff behind you, but elected to just ignore it, excitedly watching Luke write.

~

**Three hours later**

The auction ended about twenty minutes ago and, as Ashton had expected, the turnout was  _massive_. You really hadn't expected  _that_  many people to show up – most of them being guys from other frats on campus – and you were incredibly surprised when the winning bid ended up being  _over_  $10,000. Of course, you'd known the winner since you were kindergarten and you knew he came from a very wealthy family who would have no problem giving it to charity anyway – you just didn't expect him to donate it because of  _you_.

Greyson was planning on picking you up for your date in a couple hours, so you said goodbye to Ashton and Luke and everyone before trotting back to your house so you could get ready.

**Luke's POV**

After you left and the festivities of the day died down and the boys had packed up and put everything away, they all returned to their typical Saturday evenings of lounging around the frat house. Luke was in his bedroom working on a paper when a knock on his door interrupted him. He hollered a ' _come in!_ ' to the person on the other side, watching the door open to reveal Greyson.

"Sup, Grey?" he nodded, curious as to why he'd closed the door behind him.

"Well, you know how Y/N's expecting that date in a couple hours, right?" Greyson wondered.

"Yeah," he nodded, "About that, by the way... I thought you weren't  _into_  her like that."

"I'm not," he replied, "Which is why I need your help."

" _With_...?" Luke raised an eyebrow, obviously curious as to why Greyson would want to win an auction to date a girl he wasn't interested in – and for  _so much_  money as well.

"I wanna set her up with Ashton," he smiled. Luke was silent for a moment before groaning.

"Why didn't  _I_  think of that?!" he exclaimed, more to himself than to Greyson but it made him laugh nonetheless.  _Everyone_  in the frat house knew Ashton had a thing for you – they could just never get him to tell  _you_  that.

"I don't know if it's going to work," Greyson breathed, "But do you think you could convince Ash to get ready for a  _super_  last minute blind date without telling him it's Y/N?" Luke looked over at the clock, chuckling nervously.

"In an hour and a half?" he questioned.

"I know," he replied shyly, "But I only thought of the idea to get them together like, in the middle of the auction thing."

"You know, I think I  _might_  be able to get him to agree," Luke nodded.

" _Yes_!" Greyson cheered, "Thank you!"

"Grey, if this works, you're a  _genius_ ," he laughed, "But you're absolutely  _insane_  for going over 10K."

"Hey, it was for a good cause!" he defended, "Thanks again, man! I hope Ash goes for it!" Greyson left the room, leaving Luke to come up with a quick plan to get Ashton ready in less than two hours.

~

**Your POV; 8pm**

"Y/N!" one of your sisters called from the end of the hallway, "Grey's here!"

You quickly put the finishing touches on your outfit, grabbing your bag and hurrying out of your bedroom. You walked down the stairs, smiling brightly at the boy standing at the door.

"Hi, Grey!" you chirped, making him smile as well.

"Hey, beautiful," he winked, making you roll your eyes fondly, "You ready?" You hummed in response as you nodded your head.

"So where are we going?" you asked him, stepping off the staircase and moving until you were right in front of him.

"I have a confession to make, actually," he told you dramatically, "You're not a date for  _me_."

" _C'mon_ , Grey," you pouted, "I didn't  _mean_  to push you off the slide when we were 7! I said I was sorry!" Greyson laughed loudly, putting his hand on your cheek and patting it teasingly.

"You and I would be the death of each other if we ever dated," he reminded you, making you laugh as well, nodding in agreement.

"So who  _did_  you generously pay  _that much_  money for me to go on a date with then?" you wondered.

"You'll see," he grinned widely, taking your hand and pulling you out of the house.

~

**Ashton's POV**

"Ash!" Luke called, hitting his fist against his best friend's bathroom door, "Come on! Your date's on her way here!"

Luke had obviously convinced Ashton to go on the date, using the excuse that ' _she's already really excited to meet you, Ash_ ' to get him to agree. It worked, of course, but now Ashton was frantically running around his bedroom as he finished getting ready.

"You're sure this isn't too much?" Ashton asked, opening the door and looking at him worriedly.

"I'm  _sure_ , Ashton."

"You're right," he breathed out, "It's not enough. I need to change." He started heading to his closet when Luke grabbed his bicep and pulled him back.

"We don't have  _time_  for that, Ash! You look  _fine_! Stop worrying! You're turning into your sister!" Luke grabbed Ashton's leather jacket from his desk chair and handed it to him. "Actually, that's not fair," he mentioned, leading him out of the room, "Lauren would never act like this." Ashton huffed lightly to himself, putting the jacket on. He followed the blonde down the stairs, making the boys playing video games in the living room look up.

" _There_  you are, Ash!" Michael snickered, "We thought you were trying to drown yourself in the shower." Ashton simply rolled his eyes again.

"Don't worry; You're gonna love him," the boys heard as the front door opened, "Oh! Here he is!" They looked over and found Greyson grinning stupidly, bringing you into the house.

"Your date's here, Ash," Luke tried to suppress his own smirk at the shocked expression on Ashton's face, putting his hand on his shoulder and ushering him over to you. You were simply giggling softly, rocking back and forth on your feet.

"What are you talking about?" Ashton asked, not even attempting to hide the fact that he was looking you up and down.

"Told you we set you up on a date," Luke replied.

"With  _Y/N_?" he cocked an eyebrow, glancing at Luke.

You huffed lightly, " _I'd_  date me."

"Me too!" you heard Calum chirp.

"I'll take you out if Ash won't!" Michael chimed in, both boys smiling when they heard you laugh.

" _I'm taking her out_ ," Ashton grumbled, causing Luke to nudge him toward you.

"Then go!" he insisted, "It's Saturday night; Forget about your curfew!" Ashton swallowed thickly when you giggled again.

"Oh, here!" Greyson suddenly exclaimed, "Dinner's on me!" He pulled out his wallet, handing Ashton a 50 dollar bill.

"Grey, I don't-" Ashton started before he was cut off.

"Have fun, kids!" he beamed, putting his hands on both yours and Ashton's backs and pushing you gently out the door before closing it behind you so you had no choice but to take the money.

"So..." Ashton cleared his throat nervously, struggling to maintain eye contact with you, "Where do you wanna go?"

"Our usual?" you suggested. He finally cracked a grin, nodding his head.

"Usual, it is," he said, putting his hand on your lower back and leading you to his car.

~

**Two hours later**

It was nearly 10:30pm by the time you and Ashton returned to his house, but with the way he asked if you wanted to come inside, you could tell he wasn't quite ready for the night to end. You, of course, happily accepted – it wasn't abnormal for you to spend your weekend nights with him anyway – and greeted everyone as you walked by the living room and kitchen.

"How'd your  _date_  go?" Michael snickered from his spot still perched in front of the TV with Calum and a few other boys.

"It wasn't a  _date_ ," Ashton stated, "We were just hanging out."

"Is  _that_  what they're calling it now?" Owen snorted. Ashton began mumbling under his breath, hearing you laugh softly beside him.

"Be nice," you scolded the boys teasingly, "We'll be upstairs if you need us."

"Hey, Y/N, are you staying the night?" Tyler asked you.

"Dunno yet," you shrugged, "Probably."

"Well, I have my grandma's birthday lunch tomorrow and my mom wants me to dress nice – can you help me?"

"Sure, Ty," you chuckled.

"You're an angel," he sighed, raising the cup in his hand as if he were toasting you. You rolled your eyes and smiled just before Ashton suddenly took your hand and pulled you toward the staircase.

Once you two were in his room, you took your shoes off while Ashton went to his dresser. He opened a drawer and pulled out the shorts you kept there as well as one of his shirts, tossing them to you before going into his bathroom. You quickly changed, putting your clothes in a pile on his desk chair, and hopped onto his bed. You decided to load up  _Mario Kart_  and just waited for Ashton to come back so you could play.

When he finally returned, he was wearing his own pajamas. He threw the clothes he'd been wearing into his laundry basket, climbing onto the bed beside you and finally noticing what was on the TV screen.

"Y/N, you  _know_  how you get during this game," Ashton reminded you with a sly grin.

"Like  _you're_  any better!" you scoffed, "You gave me the silent treatment for a  _week_  one time!"

"That was after  _Monopoly_ , first of all," he told you, "And you  _totally_  cheated."

"How do you  _cheat_  at  _Monopoly_?" you rolled your eyes.

"I'm still trying to figure that out, but I  _know_  you did."

~

On the second map you played, things were starting to get heated. You and Ashton were arguing every time the other did something to their character on the track, but it didn't get loud until you picked up the blue shell, specifically waiting until he was in first to throw it.

"Did you  _actually_  just blue shell me on our date?!" Ashton shouted in disbelief.

You glanced at him for a moment before turning back to the television and continuing the race – you'd both agreed on the way to the restaurant that it wasn't really a ' _date_ '. Well...  _Ashton_  deduced that it wasn't really a date since you did this together almost every weekend anyway; You would have been  _more_  than fine with calling it one. But it was clear that the premise of saying he was ' _on a date with his best friend_ ' made him uncomfortable, so you didn't fight it.

Though, you couldn't help but have a little fun with him.

"This a date now?" you smirked, noticing him freeze out of the corner of your eye.

"What?" he cleared his throat, "No... This isn't... This isn't a date."

"Weird," you hummed, "Could've  _sworn_  I just heard you call it one."

"I... I didn't..."

"You can call it a date now if you  _want to_ , Ash," you shook your head, "I won't be mad."

"I don't wanna make you uncomfortable..." he admitted.

"Nothing you do makes me uncomfortable, Ashton."

"Not even if I asked to kiss you?" he asked softly. You paused the game to completely look over at him that time, finding him looking down at the fingers on top of his controller.

"Not if you do it right now," you whispered, causing his head to shoot up to look at you.

Ashton's eyes were wide as he stared at you, searching your face to make absolute  _certain_  he'd heard you correctly. And when your own eyes darted between his and his lips, he knew he had. His breathing was shaky and his chest was visibly moving up and down, so you could definitely tell he was nervous.

When you realized he wasn't going to be the one to take action, you put your controller down and turned so you were facing him, your knees touching his outer thigh. You could  _hear_  his breathing hitch when you touched him, his eyes still widened slightly.

And although you were nervous yourself, this was still your best friend and you still loved teasing him.

"Is Alpha Sig president Ashton Irwin  _scared_  of something?" you murmured, a small smirk on your face. The shocked look on his face was immediately replaced with an eye roll.

"M'not scared of  _anything_ ," he scoffed.

"I was just asking," you shrugged casually, "I mean, I've never known you to be the kind of person who  _hesitates_  after a girl tells you to kiss her; You've usually got your lips on hers before she can even finish  _asking_. Just thought you were sca-"

You were cut off by Ashton's hand coming up and gripping the back of your neck, suddenly pulling your face to his. You giggled into his mouth, feeling him smile when you started kissing him back. You surprised him by repositioning yourself to straddle his lap, your forearms resting against his chest as your hands held his cheeks.

"Jealous, princess?" Ashton murmured before you both pulled away to breathe.

"Maybe," you grumbled, chewing on your inner cheek, "A little." He simply smiled again, laying his forehead on yours.

"M'glad Grey set us up," he told you, grinning when you let out a short, breathy laugh through your nose.

"Me too, Ash," you whispered, tilting your head so your lips were back on his.

~

_inspiration: http://hoodthekiwi.tumblr.com/post/167984926804/outerspayne-president-of-his-frat_


	510. Misread (Michael Clifford)

**Warning: Attempted kidnapping, knife**

~

" _Michael Gordon_!" you shouted out into the apartment, "If you do not come get your phone within the next three seconds, it's going in the dishwasher!"

" _Jesus, Y/N_ ," Michael said as he rushed into the kitchen, "Sorry, I was in the bathroom. No need for the threats."

"Maybe you should get a less annoying ringtone then," you smiled sweetly, loading the last bit of dishes into the dishwasher before turning it on.

As you stood back upright and dried your hands, you heard Michael groan. You looked over your shoulder at him to find him staring at his phone. You cleared your throat so he would look up at you, cocking an eyebrow when he did.

"Amanda," he murmured, causing you to sigh.

"I don't understand why you don't just block her number," you stated, "You never reply to her anyway."

"You know she'd find a new way to contact me then," he shook his head, turning his phone onto silent and putting it in his pocket.

"Well then, maybe you just need to date better girls," you suggested.

"She was fine when we were dating. The whole breaking up thing was what set her off."

"No, she was still horrible when you were dating," you informed him, "You just refused to believe me when I told you."

"She wasn't  _horrible_ ," he countered.

"Mikey, the  _day_  you introduced me to her, she told me she'd slit my throat in my sleep if I tried anything with you," you said monotonously, "Forgive me for thinking that girl was the conductor of the one-stop train into Psychoville."

"She's not psy-"

" _She threatened to kill me_ ," you deadpanned, " _Multiple times_."

" _Alright_ , so she's a little obsessive," he breathed harshly, "I'm just trying to forget I ever saw something in her, okay?"

"Then start by blocking her number or changing yours," you shook your head, turning back to finish the last of the dishes, "'Cause she's not gonna stop until you say  _or_  do something about it."

~

And, to your credit, that advice  _did_  work...for a few days... Michael hadn't received any sort of message from Amanda – text or email or Facebook – since the day he finally blocked her on  _all_  platforms she could possibly reach him on.

But that little bubble of safety and calmness was popped the day she showed up at your apartment.

It was a normal Friday – you and Michael had been home for about an hour and a half when you both got off work. You hadn't been into your weekly movie night for very long – probably only 10 or so minutes – when you heard someone storm into the apartment. The two of you jumped, your heads snapping up and your eyes widening in horror as you both stared in shock at Michael's ex-girlfriend.

" _What the fuck_?" Amanda seethed, looking right at you, "What did I tell you about trying anything?"

"That was when you were  _together_!" you squeaked, "What the  _hell_  are you doing here?!"

"I'm taking back what's  _mine_ ," she narrowed her eyes at you, before turning her attention to her ex, "Let's go, Clifford."

"Uh..." Michael cocked an eyebrow, " _No_...?" She laughed bitterly, making your eyes widen again when she pulled a fairly large knife out from behind her back.

"Maybe you didn't hear me," she growled. She came over to the couch, grabbing the collar of Michael's shirt and forcing him to get up. " _Let's go, Clifford_ ," she repeated.

You were hopping up the moment she started pulling him away, chasing after them. But as you reached for Michael's hand, Amanda tightened her fist around the knife handle and shoved you with her forearm  _hard_. You stumbled backwards, almost hitting the wall but catching yourself before you did. Michael tried to reach for you, but Amanda yanked him with her again and you didn't know what else to do.

"M-Mikey..." you trailed off, your voice breaking.

"Oh,  _shut up_ , Y/N!" she shouted over her shoulder, "I told you I came here to get what I want and I'm going to  _leave_   _with him_! I'm  _sick_  of your  _incessant_   _pouting_  just to get what you want! It's  _almost_  as disgusting as  _you_!"

" _Hey_!" Michael yelled at her, " _Don't talk to her like that_!"

You felt your heart drop and your chest started to tighten. Your eyes began welling up with tears as your heart beat got faster and faster. Michael was desperately trying to break free from Amanda's grip, but he couldn't.

And you  _couldn't_   _take it_   _anymore_.

" _Me_!" you exclaimed, "Take me instead!" She stopped at the door as both she and Michael turned around – Michael moving a little faster than her – and they stared at you for a moment.

" _You_?" Amanda finally scoffed, " _You_  would take his place?"

"Yes," you answered without hesitation, "But you have to let him go." There were tears in Michael's eyes.

"Y/N," he choked, " _Please_  don't-"

"You have to let him go," you repeated sternly, never taking your eyes off of Amanda as you wiped the tears from your cheeks.

"You  _honestly_ think I'd take  _you_  over  _him_?" she smirked.

"You can have me for him," you said bravely, narrowing your eyes, "Or you can leave this building in an ambulance."

"You're pretty funny, Y/N," she laughed, turning and beginning to walk away again, "Stupid, but funny."

Michael stumbled along with her since he was still looking at you, watching as you quietly followed them. You took a deep breath, quickly bringing your leg up and kicking the knife out of Amanda's hand.

She shrieked loudly, unintentionally releasing Michael's shirt and allowing him to rush over to where the knife was and pick it up before she could get to it again. He then ran down the hallway to get his phone and call the police.

Amanda spun around toward you, swinging her arm. You ducked just in time, throwing a punch of your own as you were coming back up and instantly sending her to the ground. When she looked up at you, there was blood streaming from her nose and the skin on her cheek was already starting to bruise.

As Amanda got back up, she swung at you again. However, you grabbed both of her wrists with one hand, your other forearm resting right along her collarbones, forcefully shoving her backwards and pinning her to the wall.

" _No one-_ " you breathed heavily, "-is taking Michael away from me. If I  _ever_  see you around him again, I swear to God, this will be  _nothing_  compared to what I will do to you, do you understand me?" She glared back at you, but didn't answer, so you pushed on her neck – not enough to hurt her, but just enough to scare her. " _Do you understand me_?" you growled slowly. Amanda's jaw tightened, but she finally nodded. Moments later, you heard sirens outside and then a knock on your door a few moments later.

Michael came running out of the hallway, put the knife on the kitchen table, and hurried past you and Amanda to open the door. The officer had his hand on his gun – the 911 operator had told him what Michael did: that Amanda no longer had possession of the knife – but he was just being precautious, and entered the apartment. You shoved Amanda toward the door with a huff of air, backing away from her.

"You Amanda?" the officer asked you carefully. You shook your head, pointing to the girl rubbing her neck. "What happened?" Michael exasperatedly explained the situation and the officer put handcuffs on Amanda, leading her out of the house while another officer came in and got yours and Michael's statements.

"I'm assuming you'll be pressing charges then?" she asked after you finished.

You both immediately nodded and she informed you that you would be called in for paperwork within a couple days. Michael thanked her as he showed her out. Once the officer was out of sight, he turned to look at you.

"I  _told you_  she was a psycho," you murmured. Michael let out a small laugh, throwing the door shut and running over to you, wrapping his arms tightly around your waist.

"I know," he whispered into your neck.

"Believe me when I tell you a girl isn't good enough for you next time, okay?" you joked. He lifted his head up, staring into your eyes.

"I plan to," he replied, pulling you as close to him as he could get you and roughly pressing his lips to yours. You let out a breath of surprise, but your eyes still fluttered shut and you still kissed him back.

You'd always known that you had feelings for Michael since what seemed like the day you two moved in together. He was messy and unorganized and you had to beg him to do the dishes every once in a while, but as annoying as those traits were, you still liked him.

He would always buy the both of you coffee before he dropped you off at work and he'd even have a donut from your favorite local shop when he came to pick you up on his way home from his own job. He would leave random sticky notes with silly sayings on them for you on the bathroom mirror when you went to brush your teeth before bed if he could tell you'd had a particularly rough day.

As unkempt as his belongings and brain was, he was still incredibly thoughtful and kind and funny and you wouldn't trade him for anything.

"Michael..." you mumbled as you both pulled away to breathe, your eyes fluttering back open to find him already looking at you.

"Are  _you_  good enough for me?" he asked simply. You slowly shook your head.

" _No one's_  good enough for you, Mikey," you told him, making him hug you tighter.

"Well, that's too bad," he smiled, kissing your nose, "Because I really, really like you."

"You  _do_?"

"Mhmm," he rested his forehead on yours, "Would've said something before, but I didn't think you'd take it well... But everything you said to Amanda... Guess I misread you, huh?"

"Wouldn't be the  _first_  time you've misread someone, would it?" you snorted, only giggling louder when your sides started being poked. Your head fell onto his shoulder as he smiled, stopping to let you catch your breath.

"Wish I told you sooner," he murmured, pressing kissed to the side of your head, "Maybe I never would've met Amanda." You simply hummed in response, picking your head back up.

"You got there," you told him, feeling him smile when your lips were back on his.


	511. Love You Most (Michael Clifford)

 

You'd been so excited for your family reunion since the day your mother told you when it was three months ago. Your parents were hosting it at their house this year, and your mom – and you as well – were happy when your boyfriend agreed to tag along to officially meet the family. Michael had only met your parents and older sister – as well as a couple extended family members you'd both gone to high school with before you started dating – and the rest of the family was excited to finally meet the man you'd been talking about ever since he'd asked you on that first date nearly three years ago.

But, as the day progressed, you were starting to think it wasn't going to happen anymore.

Michael had been gone for a week on a camping trip with some old friends,  _assuring you_  before he left that he would be back  _hours_  before the reunion started. But he wasn't. And you tried texting him and asking where he was, but he never answered. So you were forced to show up alone.

Everyone was already at your parents' house by the time you arrived – you couldn't wait for Michael  _forever_  – and they obviously asked you where your boyfriend was. You made up an excuse – that he'd been called into the studio that morning and would be a little late – and luckily, they believed it. But you knew you couldn't stall for him forever.

You spent the first hour after arriving stealing glances at your phone, waiting for Michael to text you back, before you finally decided to just call him. But you were surprised when you went to unlock your phone and it started ringing, your boyfriend's name coming up on the screen. You excused yourself from the group, heading upstairs where it was quiet so you could answer.

"Why aren't you home?" Michael asked before you could even say hello, "I come back after a week-long trip wanting to see my girlfriend and you're not even here." You could hear his pout, but you were  _far_  from being in the mood for it.

"You know  _damn well_  where I am," you snapped back. And he instantly got defensive.

"If I  _knew_  where you were, I wouldn't have  _asked_ , Y/N," he said your name, only making you  _more_  upset with him.

Michael  _never_  used your name – he hadn't used it since you  _officially_  started dating – so to hear him calling you anything other than the nicknames you'd grown so used to hearing, it sent you over the edge,  _beyond_  over whatever excuses he had for not showing up.

"If you want to play dumb about something I've been reminding you of for the last three months, then by all means, go ahead," you stated dryly, "But when you finally come to terms with how  _annoying_  your forgetfulness can be, you can come here and apologize to everyone."

You didn't give Michael a chance to respond, hanging up the phone and taking a deep breath. You wiped off the tears of frustration from your face, not wanting anyone to know you'd just had a fight with the person they were  _supposedly_  still going to meet today.

~

Another two hours passed and, after playing with your younger cousins for a while, you found yourself in the living room. Some random sporting game was on the TV but, to be honest, you were willing to use whatever distraction you could. Until someone else came into the room, obviously.

"He's not coming, is he?" you heard a soft voice beside you. You looked up at your sister as she sat down on the couch next to you, not wanting your relatives to hear the conversation.

"Of course he is," you shook your head – though, it was obvious you were trying to convince  _yourself_  more than  _her_  at this point.

"C'mon, bug," Audra smiled sadly, relaying the nickname you'd had ever since you were a baby, "Do you  _really_  believe that?" You were silent for a moment before swallowing thickly and looking down at your hands.

"No..." you whispered.

"What happened then? Did you guys have a fight or something?"

"I guess you could say that," you forced out a laugh, "He called two hours ago asking why I wasn't home when he got back from his trip... Clearly didn't  _remember_  that the reunion was today... Told him his forgetfulness was annoying... Don't think he'd show up even if he  _does_  figure it out..."

"If it's so annoying, why don't you just break up with him?" Audra shrugged, making you freeze.

"What?" you asked.

"I mean, this is a  _constant_  thing, Y/N," she sighed, "Every time we talk, you mention  _something_  Michael forgot whether it was a meeting or where he put his keys or a birthday... You always seem so upset about it too... I just don't get why you're staying with him if it annoys you  _this_  much."

And, to be fair, she  _did_  have a point...

**Sam's POV (cousin, in case ur wondering)**

You and Audra hadn't noticed, but someone  _had_  actually been listening to your conversation from the start. Sam was one of the few family members that already knew Michael – they'd had a few classes together in high school – and they were pretty good friends. So when he noticed your hesitation – that you were  _really_  considering what Audra had said – he couldn't just sit around; He  _had_  leave the room to call Michael.

"Hey, Sam," Michael greeted him after the second ring, the small sigh he let out as he said it had Sam feeling like he'd hoped it was going to be  _you_.

"I don't know if you've figured out why Y/N's mad at you yet, but I'm not gonna sit here and watch her think about breaking up with you over it," Sam told him, not even bothering to return a ' _hello_ '. He could  _hear_  the air leave Michael's lungs.

"She... She's thinking about breaking up with me...?" he whispered.

"She's  _really_  upset you forgot about the reunion today, Mike," Sam sighed, "It just  _hurts_  to watch her go from excitedly telling everyone they were going to love you to sitting quietly on the couch, sad that you're not here. She and Audra were talking and Audra suggested a breakup if you forgetting so much really made her  _that_  upset, and I didn't want to get involved in her business, but it looks to me like she's  _really_  considering it. I know how  _happy_  you make her and I don't want her to make this decision right now – not when she's still upset – so you need to come down to her parents' house before she  _does_."

Michael didn't even say anything before the line went dead, telling Sam that he'd hung up. He knew he was on his way though – he just hoped it wouldn't be too late.

~

**Michael's POV; 25 minutes later**

Your mom got up to answer the knock at the front door, opening it to find Michael. She cocked an eyebrow – the usual smile she had when seeing him no longer there – and he smiled shyly.

"I'm gonna be getting that look a lot today, aren't I?" he murmured. She finally barely grinned at him.

"Oh, yeah," she nodded, moving to let him inside the house.

Everyone looked over when the new presence was sensed. Audra and your dad scoffed lightly while those who didn't know who he was just looked on curiously. Michael's eyes immediately met Sam's before he motioned toward the staircase, letting him know you were somewhere upstairs.

Michael quickly went up the stairs, but he didn't really need to search for you. He went directly to your old bedroom, knocking on the door. He didn't get an answer at first, so he went to knock again a little louder, but he stopped himself when he heard a soft voice on the other side.

"Come in," you barely got out, making Michael's heart sink how hoarse your voice was, the image of you crying playing in his head. He opened the door, finding you sitting on your bed, looking at old notebooks you'd found in your desk. You lifted your head up, and he noticed your breathing hitch. "Nice of you to finally  _show up_ ," you grumbled, looking back down and turning a page. Michael swallowed thickly, closing your door behind him and cautiously coming over to the bed.

**Your POV**

"Please don't break up with me..." Michael's voice broke. Your head snapped back up to look at him, seeing his eyes get watery as he stopped at the foot of your bed.

"What are yo-" you started before he cut you off.

"I know I forget things a lot and I know it's annoying, but  _please_  don't leave," he begged, "You make me  _so_  happy and feel so loved even though I  _don't_  deserve it and I love you more than anything else in the  _world_  and I don't know  _what_  I'd do if I didn't have you anymore."

"Mikey..." you whispered, closing your notebook and tossing it to the side. And at that point, it didn't matter that you were still upset with him; What mattered was that he felt bad. You reached over and grabbed his hand, pulling him to you so he'd sit down in front of you. "What are you  _talking about_?" you asked him.

"I know Audra told you to break up with me because you're mad at me-" he hiccupped lowly, wiping his wet face with his sweater sleeve while the hand in yours squeezed you tightly to remind himself you were there. "-'cause Sam called and said that you were  _actually_  thinking about doing it... And I  _want_  to be able to tell you that I remembered about today on my own, kitten, but I  _didn't_  and I know how  _frustrating_  it is for you to have to deal with me forgetting  _all the time_  and I know I'm the  _worst boyfriend ever_  because of it, but I...  _I love you_... I don't want you to  _leave me_..."

"I'm not gonna leave you, Mikey," you said softly, trying to keep  _yourself_  from choking up.

"You're  _not_?" he sniffled, leaning into your touch when you put your free hand on his face to wipe the rest of the tears.

"I'm not going to lie to you and tell you I didn't  _think_ about it when Audra mentioned it," you admitted.

Michael shifted his gaze back downward, only meeting yours again when you got up on your knees to crawl to him and sit on his lap, your legs around his waist. You held his hand between the two of you, moving them so your fingers were tangled with his, while you other remained on his cheek, your thumb running back and forth on his skin.

"She does have a  _point_ , you know," you mentioned, "Why would I  _let_   _myself_  continue to put up with the one thing that annoys me most about my boyfriend?" Michael's eyebrows furrowed, confused as to where this was going – especially since you'd told him you  _weren't_  leaving. "My life would probably be more stress free if I didn't have to remind you so much of things you should remember on your own," you shook your head, "But it would be so  _boring_ as well, wouldn't it? You keep me on my toes, Mikey; You helped me figure out how to keep forgetting things  _myself_."

"Why don't you teach  _me_  the stuff you do to remember everything then?" he murmured.

"I've  _tried_ ," you smiled slightly, "You always fall asleep in the middle of it. And I don't know if you know this, but you're  _very_  hard to wake up." Michael frowned with a light blush on his face, making you giggle. "I love you, Mikey," you told him, ceasing your thumbs movements on his cheek but keeping your hand there, "There's never been  _anyone else_  I'd rather be with."

"I love you  _more_ , kitten," he said softly, reaching forward to kiss you.

"I love you  _most_ ," you replied.

" _Not possible_ ," he murmured into your mouth, feeling you smile before you pulled away. He cleared his throat and lifted his free arm up to wipe the cheek your hand wasn't on. "I've probably ruined any chance I had at your family liking me, haven't I?" he mumbled.

"Maybe  _Audra's_ opinion has changed," you teased with another small laugh, "But I didn't tell anybody else I didn't think you were going to show."

"Not even your parents?"

"No, but they're my  _parents_ ," you shook your head, "They probably already  _knew_  I was thinking that." Michael groaned softly, only making you giggle again. "C'mon, Rockstar!" you chirped, "The rest of them are still excited to meet you!"

You hopped up from your bed, holding your hand out to your boyfriend. He took it and you pulled him up, beginning to walk out of the room. But Michael only pulled you back to him. He spun you around until your body hit his and his lips were back on yours. You rolled your eyes as you smiled, letting them flutter shut as he smiled too.

"Love you, kitten," he whispered.

"Love you  _more_ , Mikey," you returned.

"Love you  _most_ ," he smirked victoriously, making you laugh and shove him away so you could take him back downstairs where your relatives were waiting to finally meet the person they'd been hearing so much about.

~

_inspiration: https://caffeinatedcalum.tumblr.com/post/168803125217/baby-can-u-do-a-blurb-based-on-angel-by-the_


	512. The Way You Lie (Harry Styles)

You never considered yourself to be a particularly lucky person – if anything, you attracted  _bad luck_  more than  _good_  – but  _something_  must have been on your side the day you met the person that had been catfishing you.

You were never really one to let something like being lied to affect you –  _why should you waste tears on someone who clearly doesn't think you're worth the truth?_ – but something about this entire situation made you feel like you wanted to cry with every breath you took.

It had only been two days since the  _Catfish_  crew came into your life, wanting to help you  _finally_  meet the person you  _honestly_  thought you were in love with. The whole thing was a  _textbook_  catfishing when you looked back on it: the refusing to FaceTime, the avoiding mentions of meeting in person, the changing of subjects when you tried to push him to agree... To be honest, you felt incredibly stupid for allowing it to go on for so long when you  _knew_  it was too good to be true.

You were sitting in your hotel room with Nev, Max, and a couple other members of the crew, waiting for Harry – or  _whatever_  his name was – to show up. You thought it was weird that he insisted on meeting in your room, but at this point, you were too nervous about finally seeing him face-to-face to  _care_  about where you were.

You jumped when you heard a knock on the door, causing Nev and Max to look at you. They could tell that you were breathing in and out slowly, just trying to maintain what little composure you had left.

"I, uh... I guess I'll get it," Nev said, getting up from his seat.

You remained sat on the edge of the bed, your knuckles white from how tightly you were gripping the sheets beside your thighs and you were starting to taste blood from how harshly you were chewing on your cheek. Max was sitting on the chair that belonged at the desk, scooting over to the bed and putting his hand on your shoulder as a form of comfort, which you really appreciated.

You were still breathing deeply, your heart rate picking up when you heard Nev open the door. The next thing you heard was  _everyone_  in the room lose their breath, making your own head snap up to see what was happening.

"What the  _fuck_...?" you trailed off in a whisper when you saw  _Harry Styles_  at the door. You were obviously a big fan of his and, to be honest, you were starting to think you were actually starring in an episode of  _Punk'd_  instead of  _Catfish_.

"Harry...?" Nev asked, despite knowing  _100%_  that that  _was_  his name.

"Hello," Harry smiled shyly, shaking his hand when he extended it to him.

"Um... Well, come on in," he insisted, stepping out of the way to let him pass. "This is Max-" Nev introduced the two as the man beside you got up from his seat. The two shook hands, but Harry's eyes were still on you, understandably not surprised by the shocked expression still on your face. "-and I'm sure you already know Y/N," he finished.

"Yeah," Harry murmured, "I know her well." He didn't know whether or not you'd go for it, but he held his hand out to you anyway.

You finally tore your eyes away from his to look at the hand extended to you, surprising yourself when you managed to raise your own arm and put your hand in his. You felt your cheeks get hot when he lifted it up and kissed your knuckles.

"It may be a lot to ask right now," he said, looking at you, "But would it be okay if I hugged you?"

And you knew that if this were  _any other person_ , you would have said no. But because it was  _him_ and because you were purely just still in  _shock_ , you quickly stood up and wrapped your arms around his waist.

"Take that as a ' _yes_ ' then," he chuckled lowly in your ear as he hugged you back tightly, feeling you squeeze him slightly in response.

"Well, Harry," Nev said, making you let go of him, "Sit down; Let's talk!"

And that was what you did.

~

**Two hours later**

After Harry left the room, Nev and Max talked to you for a bit about how you were feeling and what was going through your head before they left as well, leaving you alone. You were still just trying to process everything, and you must have been in your own head for a while because you jumped when you heard a knock at the door.

You looked over at the clock, discovering it had been about half an hour since the crew left your room. You didn't know who was at the door – you couldn't see anything that they could have possibly forgotten – so you just got up to answer it. You looked through the peephole and your heart started racing again.

"Hi," Harry breathed, thankful you'd opened the door for him, "Can I... Can we talk...?"

"O-Okay," you whispered, moving out of the way so he could come back into the room.

"I'm sure this is all overwhelming for you," he said as you sat down on the desk chair while Harry sat on the edge of the bed, "But I just wanted to talk to you a little more... Explain my side of the story... I guess..."

"You already did that..." you replied, the confused tone obvious in your voice, "You already said why you did it."

"I mean, yeah, but that was... I was pretty careful about what I wanted to say for the show... I didn't want to say everything  _on camera_  though..."

"What are you  _talking_  about?" you shook your head, furrowing your eyebrows.

"I said I wanted to keep my real identity a secret, but that was only  _part_  of it." The confused expression on your face was starting to make Harry nervous, but he didn't stop – he needed to tell you the  _whole_ truth behind the catfishing. "I just... It's really hard to find someone who doesn't want to be with you  _just_  because you're famous or you have money and stuff... I thought if I hid who I was, people would actually  _get to know me_  for once..." he admitted, "I was only looking for friends, but then I met  _you_... Talking to you just felt like the calm in the middle of a storm – like, I could be having the busiest tour or studio day and getting a text from you, no matter what it said, made me feel like I'd done  _something_  right even though it  _started_  for the wrong reasons... I never thought it would go  _this far_  and I... I didn't want you to hate me for lying... I didn't want to  _lose you_..."

"Were you  _ever_  gonna tell me?" you asked the only question your mind could process at that point, "What if I wanted to meet in person on my own? How long were you going to say no or avoid it or just  _not show up_  altogether?" Harry opened his mouth, but the widening of your eyes suddenly stopped him. "And  _God_ , I used to ramble about you all the time! I  _never_  would have gone  _on_  about  _Harry Styles_  if I knew I was talking to the  _real thing_!" you exclaimed, your cheeks bright red, "That's so  _embarrassing_! Now you think I'm some kind of  _creep_  for never shutting up and all the things I said and-"

"I was quite  _flattered_  by all the things you said," Harry mumbled. He couldn't help but smile softly when you let out a short, quiet laugh under your breath. He watched you fondly for a moment before speaking again. "If I were just a regular guy or you weren't a fan or you'd never even heard of me or whatever, would you be mad?" he asked curiously.

You laughed lightly again, " _Furious_."

"You don't have to hold back on me, you know," he said, "You can yell at me if you want. It was really wrong of me to lie to you like that..."

"I mean, I don't  _like_  that you lied to me," you told him, "But I get it."

" _You_   _do_?"

"I can't  _imagine_  how difficult it must be to find someone when you're in the position you are, H," you shook your head as you looked out the window, not even noticing the blush on his face when you said his nickname, "So I understand  _why_  you'd want to use different pictures." You paused for a moment, glancing at him before turning your gaze to the hands on your lap. "I just wish I didn't have to find out like  _this_ ," you admitted softly, "I just wish I hadn't rambled on about  _Harry Styles_  so much that you trusted me enough to tell me on your own."

"I trus-"

"If I'd never mentioned you, how long would it have taken for you to come clean?"

" _Honestly_?" he sighed, "I don't know that I ever  _would have_..."

"You were never even going to  _tell me_?" you swallowed, looking over at him. When Harry noticed the tears in your eyes, he wanted nothing more than to reach over and wipe them away.

But he didn't.

"Y/N... Kitten..." he breathed in slowly, swallowing thickly as well, "I didn't mean it like-" And even though your  _own_  nickname coming from  _his_  mouth made your heart start  _pounding_ , you ignored it.

"How could you have  _possibly_  meant it  _differently_?!" you squeaked, swiping your sleeves across both of your cheeks, "You  _just_  told me you didn't know that you ever would have come clean  _at all_! I think it's pretty clear you were planning on not talking to me anymore someday!"

"That's not..." He huffed to himself, putting his hands on his face. "I've  _never_   _once_  considered just cutting off all ties with you, Y/N; I just...  _God_... I just needed time to see how someone who's clearly so  _into_  the work I put out would react, and I don't think I could have come to that conclusion very  _easily_."

"Well, sorry for being  _too into_  your music,  _Harry_ ," you grumbled, sniffling lightly as you stood up.

You went to walk to the door – wanting to go outside and get some fresh air – but heard Harry spring up from his seat only a couple  _milliseconds_  later. He came up behind you, grabbing your forearm and turning you back around. You tried to pull yourself out of his grip, but you couldn't – he was too strong.

" _Harry_ ," you growled lowly, " _Let go_." He obviously didn't – he just threw his own question out there.

"Do you know  _why_  I agreed to this whole  _Catfish_  thing?" Harry asked you, his free arm moved to securely hold your waist as his hand released yours, only to move it to your cheek and force you to look him in the eyes.

"I don't know, to try and make me look like an idiot on  _national television_?" you grumbled again.

" _No_ ," he said firmly, "I did this because I knew this might be the  _only way_  I'd ever meet you in person without bodyguards watching my every move or the restrictions of a radio station meet and greet or the crowds of a sold-out concert, and I didn't want the first time I told you ' _I love you_ ' to be in front of other people." Harry felt your body tense up and your breathing hitch.

"Y-You  _love me_?" you whispered.

"I love you more than you'll  _ever_  know, kitten," he sighed, "And I know you don't lie to people you love the way I lied to you, but... I didn't want to come clean to you without meeting you in person because... I just thought if I told you over the phone or through text or Facebook or whatever, you'd get mad and I'd never speak to you again, and I...  _I can't do that, Y/N_. I  _know_  it'll take a while for you to trust me to the same extent again, but... I love you  _so much_ , kitten... I'd wait for you  _forever_  if you told me to..." His heart was pounding against his chest as he anxiously waited for a response.

"Forever is a  _really_  long time..." you said softly. Harry only chuckled under his breath.

"That it is," he nodded slightly, bringing his other hand up to rest on your cheek, "But you're worth  _every single second_."


	513. Lucky People (Awsten Knight) - Part 1

_requested by all the tumblr anons who wanted me to start writing for waterparks_  

~

It was mentally draining, honestly, to be the one who handed out soulmates to people. Although, you would have rather just been told the soulmate agency couldn't find your file rather than be given the job.

Let me explain.

After a person turns 18, they're able to – when they're ready – come into the agency and find out who their soulmate is. When a person who doesn't  _have_  a soulmate walks into the office of Soulmate Inc. – such a  _boring_  name for something so  _life-changing_  – that person is given the job of the person who was supposed to give you your soulmate, allowing that person to retire. And it honestly almost seemed like a  _slap in the face_  to be given such a job.

_You don't have a soulmate, so we're going to force you to help other people find theirs._

So you –  _understandably_  – found yourself wishing you'd never even walked into that  _damn_  building.

~

**Tuesday; 3:38am**

You were awoken from your sleep by your phone  _blaring_  your ringtone from its spot on your nightstand. You squinted as you looked at the bright screen to see who it was, your eyebrows only furrowing at the name staring back you.

"Hello?" you answered the call after the third ring.

"Hi, Y/N," the Soulmate Inc. nighttime security guard greeted you, "I'm sorry to call you at this hour, but I need you to come into the office."

"What for?" you asked, understandably thinking something  _tragic_  had happened to warrant a  _3:30am_  phone call.

"I've got a gentleman here asking for his folder," he informed you. You let out a sharp sigh.

"I'm on my way," you said before hanging up the call. You whined to yourself as you got out of bed, unhappy with  _whoever_  was forcing you to wake up at  _this_  hour. You put on your sweatpants and some random t-shirt before grabbing your phone and car keys, hurrying out the door.

~

10 minutes later, you pulled up to the curb right in front of the office building's doors. You looked in the windows and found a boy with purple hair talking to the security guard who had called you. You weren't going to tell yourself that you didn't think he was attractive, but you had to remember that he was here to find out who his soulmate was and you knew it wasn't going to be you.

Both guys' heads turned to look at the door when it opened. The purple-haired boy just eyed you while the guard smiled.

"Thanks for coming in, Y/N," he said.

"Did I really have a  _choice_ , Ken?" you rubbed your eyes lightly, "Why can't they give you access to these  _stupid_  folders?"

"Because I have a soulmate," he replied playfully.

"No one likes a  _bragger_ ," you grumbled, going behind the counter.

Ken simply chuckled, offering you a goodbye before going back to the security office, leaving you and the boy alone.

"Name," you said, knocking him out of his daydream.

"Uh, Awsten Knight," he answered, clearing his throat lightly. You asked him to spell his name, which he did, and then went to the file room to get his folder. You flipped the folder open to the first page as you walked back out.

"Full name: Awsten Constantine Knight; Birthdate: January 17, 1992; Birthplace: Houston, Texas?" you asked.

"That's me," he nodded.

You pushed the file door closed with your hip, walking back over to him. You handed him the folder with a small yawn, making him smile shyly.

"Sorry," he said, but you just waved your hand.

"Happy soulmate hunting," you told him. He offered you another small smile, turning around and exiting the building while you simply breathed in relief that you were able to go back home and get back in bed so you could get a couple more hours of sleep before you had to go to work.

~

**Awsten's POV; Two days later**

"I thought you were ready for the whole soulmate thing," Geoff mentioned, his gaze flicking to the manila folder still sitting on Awsten's coffee table, "You haven't touched it since you put it there."

"I thought I was too..." he admitted, mindlessly strumming the guitar on his lap, "But... I don't know... For some reason, I  _can't_  make myself open it..."

"You know, you've been talking about wanting to finally meet your soulmate for so long," Otto chimed in, "I would have thought you'd want to find 'em the moment you got the folder."

"Yeah..." he murmured, more to himself than to his friends. The others didn't comment further on the matter – it was clear Awsten didn't really want to continue talking about it – so they just went about their writing session until they decided to head home.

It had only been about half an hour since Geoff and Otto left that Awsten felt this weird sensation in his chest. He'd been sitting on the couch watching TV, his eyes glancing at the folder every now and then. Something inside him was telling him to open it – he didn't know what that something  _was_ , but he couldn't ignore it anymore.

He leaned forward, reaching for the folder and putting it on his lap. He looked at the plain beige front for a moment before taking a deep breath and opening it. He read his own information, just trying to pluck up the courage to turn the page and finally find out who his soulmate was.

And when he  _did_ , his heart skipped a beat as he looked at the picture attached to the paper:  _yours_.

~

**The next morning**

The  _moment_  Awsten woke up the morning after discovering who his soulmate was, he hurriedly got ready and made his way back to Soulmate Inc. He was determined to find you – to tell you that you were  _somehow_  his soulmate – but he'd never get to.

He walked into the office much like he'd done three days ago, marching right up to the desk. No one else but him and the boy sitting at the computer was there.

"Welcome to Soulmate Inc.," the boy recited the line he said to every person who came in, "What can I do for you?"

"Uh..." he forced himself to say, "Where... Where's the girl that was working here the other day?"

"Y/N?" he wondered, earning himself a nod, "She doesn't work here anymore – handed me my empty folder last night." He gave Awsten a solemn shrug, letting him know that he didn't have a soulmate.

"D-Do you know where she  _is_...?"

"No, I'm sorry," he shook his head, "She left after she trained me this morning – said she was leaving town but didn't say where to." Awsten froze for a moment, prompting the boy to continue. "Would you like to leave a message for her?" he asked.

"What? Uh, no... That's fine..." he shook his head, "Thank you..." Awsten walked back out of the building while the boy behind the desk watched him, making a mental note to get ahold of you when you got back.

~

_inspiration: http://inkskinned.com/post/168756887749/writing-prompt-s-at-18-everyone-receive-a_


	514. Lucky People (Awsten Knight) - Part 2

**Your POV; One month later**

You had only been back in your apartment for all of  _20 minutes_  when your phone started ringing. You looked away from the television to where you phone was sitting on the seat beside you, your eyebrows rising at the name on the screen.

"Hello?" you answered.

"Uh... Y/N...?" the voice on the other end of the phone trailed off.

"Casey..." you replied in the same tone, "Do you need something?"

"Um..." he cleared his throat, "You might wanna come to the office..."

"Why?" you asked. Casey didn't say anything – he was just making various noises as if he were  _trying_  to speak but  _couldn't_  for some reason. "Casey," you repeated, "Seriously. What's wrong?"

"Just... Just come here... Please?"

"Okay," you sighed, already getting up from your spot on the couch, "I'll be there in 10."

~

You walked through the front door 10 minutes later as promised. Casey's head snapped up the moment he heard you walk in. You were  _already_  worried as you entered the building – Casey had never sounded the way he had on the phone before – and your worry only  _increased_  when you saw the look on his face.

"Case, are you okay?" you furrowed your eyebrows, "You look like you've seen a ghost."

"I was grabbing someone's folder for them and I found something," he explained, "I think you need to see it."

"Why would I need to see their folder?" you asked, following him to the back room.

Casey stopped in front of one of the filing cabinets and unlocked it. He opened the drawer, immediately pulling out the one he'd put in the very front before closing the drawer again and turning to face you.

"Not  _their_  folder, Y/N," he shook his head, " _Yours_."

"I don't  _have_  a folder, Case," you sighed, "I don't have a  _soulmate_."

"Y/N..." he said softly, making your heart drop. He held the manila folder out to you, and you slowly took it. You looked at him for a moment before looking down and opening the flap.

And your heart started  _pounding_  in your chest.

There it was right on the paper – your full name, your birthdate, your birthplace, your eye color, your hair color...  _Everything_.  _Every identifying factor_  to make sure the proper person got their proper folder was there.

"You're jo... This isn't... Where did you..." you trailed off, looking back up at Casey.

"I was getting someone else's folder for them," he told you, "And I realized a few of them were a little higher up than the rest in the drawer... I reached underneath them all to see what it was and pulled out another folder...  _That one_...  _Yours_..."

"I...  _I have a soulmate_...?" you whispered, "I... I  _can't_... The last woman... She... She said I didn't  _have_  a folder... She told me... She said she couldn't  _find it_..."

"I don't know how it fell or how it got there, Y/N, but it's  _definitely_   _yours_ ," he shook his head again. You looked back down at the folder in your hand.

"What do I do...?" you asked, more to yourself than to Casey.

"I can put it back if you're not ready," he told you, "You can come back later if you want." You were silent again for a few moments.

"I can't do it," you stated, holding the folder out to him, "You look."

"Y/N, I can't-"

"You  _can_ ," you nodded, "You're  _allowed to_. You can look at  _anyone's_  file if you wanted."

"Did you ever look?" he asked curiously.

"No..." you forced a small laugh, "I was always too bitter  _I_  didn't have a soulmate... I didn't care about  _other people's_..." Casey carefully took the folder out of your hands, his eyes never leaving your face.

"Y/N," he said so you'd look at him again, "Are you sure you want me to do this?"

"I  _wanna_  know..." you admitted, "I just... I don't wanna do it  _myself_..." He nodded lightly, looking down at the papers and moving the front one out of the way so he could see the photo of your soulmate. Your eyes were closed as you waited for him to tell you a name, but he never did.

" _I know him_!" he exclaimed in surprise, making your eyes shoot open.

" _What_?" you furrowed your eyebrows.

"He came in here last month – the  _day_  I started working here!" You immediately moved so you could look at the person's picture, your heart skipped a beat.

"I gave him his folder..." you whispered.

"He was looking for you," Casey informed you, "He came in asking where you were and I told him you didn't work here anymore and that you left town and he asked where he could find you."

"Is... Am  _I_  his soulmate...?" you wondered.

"I think so," he replied softly, "I mean... I don't know why else he would be coming in here if he'd  _already_  gotten his folder."

"Did he say... I mean... Where do I... How am I supposed to..." you couldn't form a complete thought, your mind hitting a million different things at once.

"I asked him if he wanted to leave a message for you when he was here, but he said no," Casey told you solemnly, "I'm sorry, Y/N..."

"S'not your fault, Case," you let out a breath.

"Everything'll work out, Y/N," he promised you, "Your soulmate wouldn't be someone you're never going to see again."

~

**Awsten's POV; Two months later**

Awsten had been searching for his soulmate for what felt like ten years, but was obviously only a little more than three months. He didn't realize it would be this difficult to find you – especially since you'd worked at the soulmate agency and clearly lived in the city.

But for  _some reason_ , he  _still_  couldn't find you.

Wanting to take their friend's mind off of the soulmate thing for as long as they could, Geoff and Otto decided that, instead of band practice, they would take Awsten out to eat. It was only to McDonald's, but it seemed to be working nonetheless. Awsten was  _actually_  laughing – something the people in his life hadn't seen in a  _while_  – and they were happy he wasn't feeling down – if only for right now.

But the boys were startled when Awsten suddenly gasped and started choking on his drink.

" _Dude_ , what the hell?" Geoff breathed out.

"Are you  _okay_?" Otto asked frantically.

"That's her," he informed them in the middle of his coughing fit.

Both of their heads shot over to look at the window Awsten was facing, finding you sitting on the cement block in the empty parking space in front of the door. They looked at each other for a moment before turning back to Awsten, seeing he was still watching you.

"What are you waiting for?!" Geoff exclaimed, shoving Awsten's shoulder to get his attention, "Go out there and talk to her!"

"I don't..." he trailed off, "What if she doesn't-"

"Man, you've been looking for this girl  _non-stop_  for the last  _three months_!" Otto reminded him, "Do you  _really_  want to go through all that  _again_  just because you're worried she won't want to be with you?"

Awsten stared down at his half-eaten sandwich before quickly grabbing a napkin, wiping his hands, and standing up. Geoff and Otto simply watched him walk out the door with smiles on their faces, knowing he was  _finally_  going to meet his soulmate.

~

**Your POV**

"H-Hey..." you heard someone clear their throat as they slowly approached you, "Are you okay...?" You didn't even bother looking up, knowing you were the only one around he could possibly be talking to.

"M'fine," you replied softly.

"Then why are you sitting alone in a parking lot looking incredibly sad?" he returned, causing you to let out breath of amusement through your nose.

"Do you have a soulmate?" you asked the boy, beginning to play with your fingers on your lap.

"Yeah," he nodded even though you weren't looking at him, "Don't you?"

You forced out a small laugh, "I guess."

"You  _guess_?" he cocked an eyebrow.

"I was told three years ago that I didn't have one," you shrugged, "And last month, I found out I  _do_ , but I... I can't find him..." You had no idea why you were spilling your heart out to this  _random stranger_  in a  _McDonald's parking lot_ , but you'd be lying if you said it wasn't a bit therapeutic.

"I'm sure he can't be  _that_  hard to find," he shook his head, finally taking a seat on the parking block a few inches away from you.

"Did you search for your soulmate online?" you wondered, still staring at your hands.

"Didn't need to," he answered, not looking away from your face, "Already knew who she was."

" _Lucky_ ," you whispered with another laugh, "Well,  _I did_  – you know, tried to find his Facebook or something... Find out where his favorite places to go were so I could try to look for him there..." You sighed to yourself again. "But he's in a  _band_  – travels the  _world_. Definitely wouldn't be able to just pack up and go  _find him_."

"He has to come home  _eventually_  though, doesn't he?" the boy said, "Maybe he's a lot closer now than you think."

You thought the statement was a little weird, so you finally looked over and your heart  _stopped_. Your hands immediately found your face and you were overcome with emotion, unable to stop yourself from crying softly into your palms. Awsten scooted over to you until your thighs were touching, his hand landing on your upper back.

"I hope you know how  _hard_  it was to find you," he mentioned, his thumb rubbing your skin through your shirt, "But I guess it  _would_  be harder to find someone always travelling across the  _world_." He smiled slightly when you giggled at the comment.

You took your hands away from your face and turned your body toward Awsten's, throwing your arms around his neck. He responded by wrapping his own arms around your waist, tugging you so you'd move to his lap. You obviously weren't going to object, burying your face in his neck when you got comfortable. You felt him let out a small breath of relief as he squeezed you tightly.

"You have  _no idea_  how happy I am right now," he murmured into your hair, pressing a kiss to the side of your head.

"Think I have a  _pretty_  good one," you whispered back, squeezing him as well.

~

_inspiration: http://inkskinned.com/post/168756887749/writing-prompt-s-at-18-everyone-receive-a_


	515. Goodnight Moon (Calum Hood) *

**Warning: Mention of cancer, death of a pet**

~

You were sitting in the vet's office, trying not to cry, but it didn't work. It never worked around Luna. She always knew when you were sad.

Luna had been the family pet since the summer before you were went into high school – your parents had adopted her as a puppy from the shelter as a surprise since you were so nervous about going to a new school. When you officially moved out after college, they insisted on you taking the dog with you, telling you they'd feel better about you living on your own if you had Luna there to keep you safe.

Luna was a purebred pit bull, but while she  _looked_  intimidating, she was anything but. No matter who was at the door, she would bark once and then go sit in front of it until you answered, ready to happily greet whoever it was. The more frequent visitors – such as your close friends and family members – would never fail to bring a treat or two for her, creating the running joke you had about how they only ever came around to see her.

And to know that they would never be holding treats as they came through the door anymore reminded you just how real this was.

Everyone that looked at the dog could tell she was nearing the end. She couldn't take as long of walks as she used to, she needed help getting onto your bed at night... She was just getting too old.

When you noticed her limping on her front left leg, you started to get worried. Luna recently started doing everything she could to just avoid using it at all. And that was when you found out about the cancer.

It was a regular vet checkup for Luna, but you'd told the doctor about her leg and he said he would do some x-rays on it. He had you wait while he took the dog back and when he returned, you could tell by the look on his face that it wasn't good news.

He said that they could remove her leg and begin treatments to get rid of the cancer, but she was in such a late stage of it that it had spread past the point where amputating would get rid of it completely. Your only other options at that point were to either continue as you normally would – but that would only cause her more pain in the long-run – or have her put down.

The doctor told you to go home and think about it for a couple days, but you already knew what you had to do. You called your parents the second you got home and told them what was going on, and they made the drive to stay with you for a couple weeks so they could be with Luna one last time.

And now, here you all were – sitting in the vet's waiting room. Your mom and dad were on chairs while you were on the floor with Luna, her head on your lap as you scratched her head the way she always liked.

But she could tell when you were upset or sad.

When she knew, she would stand up on your lap and lick your face until you smiled again. And that was exactly what she did.

She slowly got up, hobbling up to you, putting her paws on your calves, and licking the tears off of your cheeks. Your parents smiled through their own tears as you finally smiled for what felt like the first time in two weeks. You wiped the dog's slobber off of your face with the sleeves of your sweater before kissing the top of her head and petting her again.

"Y/N," you heard off to the side. You looked up and found the veterinary assistant, Calum, smiling slightly at you. He motioned for you to follow him, wordlessly letting you know that it was time.

You looked back at your parents and they each had a brief moment with Luna, kissing her head and telling her they loved her, telling you that they would wait so you could be with her until she was gone. Calum walked over to you, holding his hands out for you to take. He pulled you up from the floor and greeted your parents softly before leading you back.

You'd met Calum during the last few checkups Luna had since he was training to be a veterinarian himself. You even went on a few dates with him, but you hadn't labeled yourselves just yet.

You felt him squeeze your hand every once in a while as his thumb rubbed the back of your hand. He knew how much Luna meant to you and he knew this wasn't going to be easy by any means, so he just offered silent comfort, letting you know he was there for you.

Calum led you into the room where the vet was already waiting, smiling sympathetically at you. He greeted you – he didn't bother to ask how you were because it was already written all over your face. Luna happily accepted the head rub and ear scratch he gave her before limping around in a circle for a moment to comfortably lie down beside your feet.

"I'll be back later, okay?" Calum told you, his voice gentle. You simply nodded, barely even able to smile when he put his hand on your upper back and rubbed it lightly before leaving the room.

"Hi, Y/N," Dr. Hadden said lowly once the door closed behind Calum. You couldn't even force yourself to return a greeting, but you did manage to look up at him as he sat down on the chair at the small desk. "I know you're feeling a great deal of things right now, but you  _know_  that this was the only option that was best for Luna, right?" Your nod was  _hardly_  visible – you knew deep down that Dr. Hadden wouldn't be doing this if he  _could_  do anything else for her pain, but that didn't mean you had to  _like it_  – but he still saw it, and he nodded as well, continuing on. "So what we'll do – what we always do in these situations – is after I give her the injection, I'm going to leave and no one will come back in here until either enough time has passed and the shot has taken effect or you come out on your own, okay?" You just nodded again. "You're more than welcome to sit on the floor with her, but I'm ready to go when you are."

"Okay," you whispered, clearing your throat lightly when your voice cracked. You, of course, immediately dropped down to the floor beside Luna, beginning to scratch her head again. She appeared to smile, licking your knee and making you involuntarily laugh softly.

"Are you ready?" Dr. Hadden asked. All you did was nod, not looking away from Luna.

The doctor leaned down, pet Luna's side a couple times, and then stuck her leg with the needle he'd already had prepared. He pet her again before getting up without a word – knowing you didn't want to speak – and quietly left the room, allowing you to have your final moments alone with Luna.

It seemed like the second the door closed behind Dr. Hadden, the tears just started flowing. Your hand never stopped petting her and the tears never stopped when she started breathing more slowly and when her eyes started dropping and when her body finally stopped moving up and down. You cried as softly as you could – though you knew no one else in the office would have  _minded_ if you were loud – for nearly 10 minutes before you just simply ran out of tears and  _couldn't_  cry anymore.

Once you let out all the tears you thought you had in you, you took in a shaky breath, kissed Luna one last time, and stood up. You were wiping your face just as Calum was coming back into the room. He took one look at you and knew that Luna had finally passed.

"Is there anything else I do for you, Y/N?" he asked quietly. It was then that you realized you had more tears to spare when you felt them start falling down your cheeks again.

"I just want to hug something that can hug me  _back_ ," you cried softly. Calum immediately held his arms up and you rushed over to him, hugging his waist tightly.

You felt one arm around your shoulders while he walked you back into the room, just enough to close the door behind him, not wanting other people to walk by and give you that look of pity he knew you didn't like. His other hand moved your head as he kissed the side of your forehead, but it was silent for the most part, neither of you saying a word. The fingers running through your hair and the small kisses on your hairline managed to calm you back down to the point where you were only sniffling every once in a while, but even then, you refused to let go of Calum and – to your relief – he refused to let go of you as well.

"You know Luna loved you more than anything, right?" he murmured, "And you know  _she knew_  you loved her just as much?" You had a feeling the questions were rhetorical, but you still barely nodded in response anyway. "And I know you're hurting and I know it'll be hard to get used to not having her there, but you have to remember that she was in pain  _every day_  and now she's  _not_  anymore," he kissed your head again, "You knew you  _couldn't_  keep putting her through that even though you still wanted her with you, and she knew that everything you've ever done for her, you did  _because_  you love her." He felt you start crying again a little harder as you squeezed him a little tighter. His lips returned to your skin, and you stayed there for a few more minutes.

When you'd run out of tears for a third time, you felt Calum stop kissing you.

"Why don't we go back out with your parents, huh?" he said gently, "And I'll have Dr. Hadden talk to you all together about what you wanna do with her next, okay?" He felt you nod into his shirt before you finally lifted yourself up. He let go of you, only to put his hands on your cheeks and wipe the tear stains with his thumbs. "Everything's gonna be okay," he assured you, "You know that, right?" You gave him a small, genuine smile that time.

"Thank you, Cal," you whispered, making him grin lightly as well. He brought your head forward to kiss your forehead, but he didn't say anything – he just let go of your face and took your hand, tangling your fingers together and taking you out of the room.

~

 

_sorry for the new wave of tears when u make that connection between the title and name of the dog_


	516. Looking Out (Luke Hemmings)

**Warning: Creepy dude??? i guess**

~

"Hey, baby girl!" someone said rather loudly, making you look toward the door since you recognized the voice. You smiled slightly at your lab partner, Luke, as he came up to you.

You and Luke were pretty good friends, but you never really talked much outside of school unless one of you needed help with your Chemistry homework. You were more of an outsider – not so much a loner as you had a few close friends – while Luke was the school's resident bad boy. He didn't take shit from anyone and everyone would stop what they were doing as he walked by, not wanting to say the wrong thing around him. And even though he was tough, he still had a soft spot for very few people – one of those people being  _you_  – but you were still understandably a bit puzzled when you realized he'd given you the pet name he usually only reserved for girls he was dating.

"Hey, Lu," you said, letting out a confused laugh as he stood behind you and wrapped his arms around your waist.

"Please just act like this is normal," he mumbled in your ear, "I saw some guy has been following you around for the last 20 minutes and I don't know what his deal is, but I don't want him to try anything."

"Someone's been following me?" you whispered, looking up at him with obvious worry on your face.

"Don't worry," he shook his head, "I'm here; You're safe now. Did you come to the mall alone?"

"No," you swallowed, "But Annie had to leave an hour ago, so I was just gonna call my sister when I was ready to go home..."

"Well, I'm just gonna stick around until she comes to get you if that's alright with you," he said.

"But this is  _outside of school_ , Lu," you shook your head, "We  _never_  talk outside of school." Luke rolled his eyes, smiling at you.

"We're talking  _now_ , aren't we?" he countered, poking at your side to make you laugh.

"Well, can we talk in the food court?" you asked, leaning your head back on his shoulder to look at him, "That ice cream stand calls my name every time I pass it."

"Sure," he nodded, "But I'm buying."

"Luke-"

"No buts!" he said, "It's what boyfriends do!"

"You're  _not_  my boyfriend though," you reminded him softly as you still didn't know  _who_  had apparently been following you or  _where_  in the store they were.

"Just let me pretend," he pouted, making you smile slightly as you rolled your eyes at his antics.

You led Luke to the cashier so you, much to Luke's dismay, could buy the items you'd picked out. You then took him to the food court, holding his hand upon his request – you  _were_  supposedly dating, after all.

~

The two of you talked for  _well over_  an hour and a half while you ate your ice cream, actually losing track of time.

You already knew a fair amount about each other due to Luke quickly getting bored during Chemistry and wanting to get to know everything there was to know about his cute and quiet lab partner. But you always noticed that conversation with him was never boring. He never allowed even a  _second_  of awkward silence to sneak in – he always made sure you were smiling, and if you'd been having a bad day leading up to class, he refused to help you do any work until you were laughing again.

When you looked at your phone and realized what time it was, you reluctantly informed Luke that you should be getting home before you're late for dinner. You were about to text your sister to ask if she could come get you, but Luke insisted on just giving you a ride himself since he was about to head home too.

The ride was as conversation-filled as the last two hours were, both of you singing along obnoxiously to the Top 40 radio station Luke had turned on. He turned the radio down as he pulled into your driveway, leaving his engine running as he walked you to your front door.

"Thanks for looking out for me, Lu," you told him with a small smile after putting your bags down at your feet, "I had a lot of fun."

"M' _always_  looking out for you," he grinned back, "And, you know... Maybe we can start hanging out  _outside_  of school now...?" He seemed nervous – like you were going to say no – but he was relieved that that wasn't the case.

"Yeah," you nodded, your voice soft, "I'd like that."

You both looked at each other for a moment before you surprised him by putting your hand on his cheek and leading his face to yours. Luke – although taken aback by the gesture – didn't hesitate for  _one second_  in kissing you back, his hands finding your hips almost immediately. You both felt each other smile ever-so-slightly as you pulled away.

"What was  _that_  for?" Luke chuckled breathlessly.

"You know," you shrugged, a light blush on your cheeks at your sudden burst of courage, "We're supposed to be boyfriend and girlfriend."

"I haven't seen that guy since we got our ice cream."

"Doesn't mean he wasn't still watching and followed us here," you pointed out.

"Hmm," Luke hummed with a nod, "Then I think we'd better do it again – you know, just to be safe." You giggled softly but happily complied, bringing his lips back to yours. 


	517. Anywhere With You (Harry Styles) - Part 1

"Why is it that whenever I can't find you, you're  _always_  out here?" you heard someone ask, their shoes moving the gravel beneath them. You tilted your head back on your forearms to watch the Prince you worked for coming toward you.

"Probably because you haven't learned to check here  _first_ ," you mentioned as he laid down on the grass beside you.

"Fair enough," he chuckled.

You and Harry had known each other for practically your entire lives. You were about the same age – he was just a few months older – and you grew up in the castle together. Your mother got a job at the castle as a Candler a few months after you were born as a way to be able to provide for you after your dad left, and you would often – once you were old enough – help her make the candles as well as walk around the castle when she needed to light or blow them out.

Harry didn't have many friends outside the castle – sure, there were the servants and his older sister, but he didn't really have anyone  _his age_  until you. You were told that your only ' _duty_ ' – so to speak – in the castle was to simply be Harry's friend. And you happily obeyed until the two of you got older.

You were still Harry's friend, of course, but you were now acting as his servant as well. Though your work was mainly attributed to making sure Harry's needs were met and he made it to whatever he had to do that day on time, you did also continue to help out with candle making. The castle hired a new Candler after your mother had passed – although you knew how to do it, the Queen insisted that you only needed to be with Harry, so that was what you did.

But things changed with him not long after that...

You were both in your 20s now and, while you were still as close as you were when you were kids, you couldn't deny the fact that you had feelings for him. You'd had a crush on Harry since you were 6-years-old, but the fact that you  _still_  felt the same nearly  _20 years_  later...? You didn't know  _what_  to do.

Though, the day he told you he was engaged to be married kind of made that decision  _for you_.

Princess Eloise was a nice and respectful girl... _around other people_. But to Harry – and especially to  _you_  – she was  _the worst_. She was incredibly rude and threw a tantrum in the same way a toddler would when she didn't get what she wanted. She demanded that Harry spend less time around you and when he told her that wasn't an option, she immediately began insisting on firing you.

And that was what led you to where you were now – lying on the grass in the garden and looking up at the stars.

You weren't exactly sure how long you were outside before Harry came out, but you knew it hadn't been too long because the moon was still in the same spot. You heard him sigh as he copied your position and put his arms behind his head so it wasn't directly on the ground. It was silent between you two – a  _comfortable_  one – for a few moments until it was broken.

"I'm sorry she's so awful to you," Harry murmured.

"I'm sorry  _you_  have to  _marry her_ ," you scoffed jokingly, making him laugh again. You heard him take a deep breath once his laughter had calmed down.

"Have you ever thought about running away?" he asked you randomly, making you turn your gaze away from the stars and onto the side of his face.

" _Running away_?" you wondered where the question had come from.

"Yeah," he replied, still staring up at the sky, "You know, just leaving this life and making a new one."

"You mean one where I  _don't_  have to wait on you hand-and-foot every single day?" you smirked.

"Y/N," he couldn't help but smile, knowing you weren't being serious.

"I guess so," you shrugged, looking back at the sky.

"What would you be doing if you weren't working here?"

"I'd be a photographer," you answered without hesitation.

"You sound very sure of that," Harry pointed out, looking at you now.

"I tried to find a job in that field last summer, you know," you said, "But when that fell through, I kinda just decided to stay here. And this job pays better than anything I've seen so far and it gives me a place to stay and food to eat every day, so..."

"Oh, I get it," he sighed, "This was your  _last choice_."

"You've always been my first choice, H," you giggled, looking at him again.

" _Always_?" he repeated.

"Always," you barely nodded, your voice coming out as a whisper.

"Hypothetically speaking then," he murmured, never taking his eyes off of you, "Does that mean if I asked you to run away with me, you'd say yes?"

"Harry..." you said slowly, propping yourself up on your forearms.

"Would you?" he asked simply.

"In a heartbeat," you replied without hesitation, making Harry smile. He turned his attention back to the sky, making you huff softly. "No follow-up?" you asked, "Just cryptic silence?"

Harry suddenly turned his body toward you and grabbed your sides, starting to tickle you. You squealed loudly, desperately trying to escape as you involuntarily laughed, but it was no use – Harry had obviously always been a lot stronger than you.

When he finally stopped, his arms wrapped around your waist, bringing you into him. He pressed his lips to your forehead, leaving them there for a good 30 seconds before speaking.

"Thanks for choosing me," he murmured into your skin. You responded by winding your own arms around his neck, hugging him tightly.

"Always," you whispered back.

~

**Two weeks later**

"Hey, Y/N," Harry suddenly broke the silence that had been floating around his bedroom for the last few minutes.

You'd woken him up for the day and he was now getting dressed while your back was turned to him. You hummed in response as you pulled his blanket up to his pillow before grabbing that and fixing the pillowcase.

"Do you remember when I asked what you would say if I asked you to run away with me?" he asked you.

"' _In a heartbeat_ '," you replied with your answer, seemingly not even fazed by the question.

"It's time," he said.

"For...?" you asked, leaning back upright and grabbing his crown from its spot on his dresser where as you put it every single night before he went to bed.

"We're leaving."

It was  _then_  that you  _really_  started to pay attention. Your body froze up for a moment before you slowly turned toward him. And the serious expression on his face as he gazed back at you certainly  _wasn't_  helping your racing heart.

"H... What are you talking about...?" you asked so lowly that he barely even heard you.

"We're leaving," Harry repeated, "We're running away tonight."

"W- _We_?" you swallowed lightly.

"Yes, Y/N.  _We_.  _You and me_.  _Us_.  _Together_."

" _Why_?"

"You said you'd run away with me if I asked," he reminded you.

"I didn't think you actually  _meant it_!" you squeaked softly so no one passing by would hear, "What if they catch us before we're even outside? What if they come looking for us? I'm gonna get in  _so much_ -"

"Y/N," Harry cut you off, grabbing your shoulders to make you stop moving around. He then took your chin in his hand and tilted your head up so you would look at him. "You're  _not_  going to get in trouble," he assured you, "I've thought about doing this for so long; I just needed to make sure I was  _really_  ready and could actually live life in the ' _real world_ '. And if you're by my side, I know I can do it." You blushed a bright shade of pink at the comment, making him smile slightly.

"But what if-"

"Y/N, as your  _Prince_ , I am  _ordering you_  to run away with me," he said firmly. You finally cracked a grin – well... Harry  _did_  give you direct orders... And you were simply  _obeying them_.

Harry smiled yet again when he noticed you were, releasing your chin as you leaned forward. You buried your face in his neck as you hugged him, making him wrap his arms around your waist and hug you just as tightly.

"You really  _do_  want to go, right?" Harry mumbled into your hair, "I don't want to make you leave if-"

"I'd go anywhere with you, H," you whispered, causing him to blush brightly.

~

_inspiration: http://my-imagines-moonlight53.tumblr.com/post/100896310462/prince-ashton-part-1_

 


	518. Anywhere With You (Harry Styles) - Part 2

_requested by youngbouquettragedy & pxrrishly on tumblr_

~

**Six months later**

You always knew the risks in running away with Harry. 

You knew that someone from the castle could pop up at any time, forcibly take Harry back, and maybe even arrest you for whatever charge they wanted in leaving with him. You knew that people around the kingdom would see him and know who he was, and that was why you got as far away as you possibly could.

The only thing Harry had known his whole life was his kingdom, and you weren't  _at all_  surprised to wake up in the middle of the night some nights to find him sitting by the window of the dingy motel you'd been staying at, looking out into that kingdom. You didn't doubt that he missed his home – you found  _yourself_ missing it on occasion – but he constantly assured you that he was  _happy_ where he was now with you, and you believed him.

So when someone from the castle showed up at your motel room door, your heart sank.

You were standing behind Harry when he answered the knock ­– he insisted  _he_ be the one to answer it because no one  _ever_ knocked on your door and he didn't want anything happening to you. Both of you lost your breath upon seeing the Captain of the Guard standing there, him breathing his  _own_ sigh of relief.

" _Your Highness_ ," the Captain said, "The entire kingdom has been looking  _everywhere_ for you."

"Martin..." Harry trailed off in shock, "How... How did you  _find me_?" He stepped outside with the intent of you staying behind, but you  _didn't_ – the moment he was crossing the threshold, so were you. You closed the door behind you, still standing behind Harry, but you and Martin could still see each other as well.

"Princess Eloise has men  _scouring_ the kingdom and those surrounding it looking for you," Martin explained, "One of them returned to the castle late last night and said that he thought he found you. The Queen sent me to follow up on it. I've been ordered to bring you back," he informed him. You let out the softest sob that you immediately cut off, but it was too late: Harry already heard it.

"Y/N, don't-" Harry started before he stopped himself as you stepped away, back toward the door. He quickly grabbed your hand, however, keeping you from actually going inside. "Can I at least say goodbye to her?" Harry asked the Captain.

Martin opened his mouth, but didn't even get a word out as Harry was already pulling you into him for a tight hug. The Captain sighed, stepping away and going back to the car while you and Harry had what was quite possibly going to be your last moment together.

It was silent between you two for a few seconds as Harry just looked at you. He was trying to come up with something –  _anything_ – to say to you that would make the heartbreaking look on your face disappear, but he knew nothing would be  _enough_. You breathed in shakily, a small, forced smile on your face.

"Always knew they'd find you," you said softly.

Harry exhaled sharply, bringing his hands up to your cheeks. Your own hands came up and gripped his wrists tightly, knowing that this may very well be the _last time_  you'd ever get to touch him.

"I'm sorry," he shook his head, swallowing thickly, "I should have planned on them finding me... I should have prepared better..."

"S'not your fault," you reminded him. You were interrupted by Martin coming back over.

"Your Highness-" he started before he was cut off.

"I'm not  _done yet_ , Martin," Harry said sternly, and something about his tone made your eyes start to water.

"I love you, H..." you choked, making Harry smile sadly.

" _Hey_ ," he said, his thumb stroking your cheekbone, "You're gonna be fine. You know I'll  _always_ find my way back to you."

"Your-" Martin was cut off again.

"Martin,  _please_ ," Harry sighed. But the Captain was done being interrupted.

"I was just going to say that you guys should probably leave to somewhere farther away," Martin told the two of you. You were understandably confused by the statement, both of your expressions showing that as you looked at him.

" _What_?" Harry furrowed his eyebrows.

"Well, I can't imagine the Princess will just  _accept_ me saying that the man her men saw  _wasn't you_  after all and knowing her, she'll probably come looking for you  _herself_ ," he shrugged, "So I think it would be best if you two got as far away as possible." Martin then pulled something out of his pocket. "Here," he said, handing Harry an envelope, "I figured you might need this." He released his hold on you to open it, finding it stuffed full with twenty dollar bills. You couldn't keep yourself from smiling slightly in realization as you looked back up at him.

"You weren't  _actually_ going to take him back, were you?" you asked.

"I said I was  _ordered to_ ; I didn't say I was  _going to_ ," Martin laughed loudly, "I hate that girl as much as  _you_ do."

"Then why can't you guys just kick her out or something?" Harry asked.

"Have you  _met_ your mother?" you and the Captain asked in unison, laughing when you both finished your sentences. Harry simply smiled, shaking his head.

"I'll do everything I can to get her out," Martin sighed, "And if I do, I'll find a way back to wherever you two end up someday. But until then, I just want you to be happy as far away from all this and Princess Eloise as you can  _get_."

You both looked at him for a moment before you threw your arms around his waist and hugging him tightly. You felt him chuckle softly, wrapping his arms around you as well.

"And quite frankly, you two are  _idiots_ for not taking any money with you," he added, making you and Harry laugh again.

"We took what I had  _on me_!" Harry defended with a chuckle, "We had to leave  _fast_!"

"And now, you have to leave fast  _again_ ," Martin reminded you, "Stay safe, you two. I hope to see you again with  _good_ news."

"Thank you, Martin," Harry grinned. The Captain smiled and nodded before getting back into his car and heading back to the castle. He took a slow, sharp breath in, turning back to you. "Guess we better pack... _again_ ," he sighed, remembering how annoying it was the  _first_ time around. You barely giggled, allowing Harry to take your hand and lead you back inside your house.

~

**Two hours later**

After finishing packing your stuff, you went into the living room to sit down and rest while Harry finished his own packing. You were no doubt exhausted, but you were incredibly grateful that Martin hadn't followed his orders and forced Harry to go back to the castle with him.

Harry came into the room not long after you'd sat down, leaning against the wall at the end of the hallway. He just watched you for a moment – you didn't even know he was  _there_ – and he couldn't help but feel his heart swell up as he thought about the fact that you were  _actually_ here with him. He cleared his throat after a couple more seconds, making you jump slightly and look over at him.

"So..." Harry trailed off cheekily, and you knew what was coming next, "You _love me_ , huh?" You didn't say anything – just looked back down at your lap shyly and played with your fingers.

Harry smiled to himself, coming over to you. He knelt down on the floor in front of you and put his hands on your cheeks, forcing you to look up at him.

"That's good, y'know," he murmured as you looked at him curiously, "'Cause I've loved you for a  _pretty_ long time too." Due to how close he was, he could hear your breathing hitch, making him smile again. "Y/N," he said softly, his thumbs stroking your cheekbones, "Can I kiss you?" But you didn't even give him an answer, quickly leaning in yourself and pressing your lips to his.

You felt him smile into the kiss as he sat more upright on his knees, leaning forward onto the couch. His hands slid off your cheeks and down your neck and arms until they stopped on your hips. Your own hands moved to his hair, your fingers running through it while also keeping him in place.

"I love you," he murmured into your mouth, "M'glad you agreed to run away with me." You let him feel you smile just before pulling away, still winding his curls around your fingers gently.

"I'd go anywhere with you, H," you reminded him of what you'd said the very first time he brought up the idea of leaving royalty behind. Harry grinned brightly, pecking your lips again. "And speaking of going  _anywhere_..." you said in a teasing tone, "Where to now,  _Your Highness_?"

"Doesn't matter  _where_ we go as long as I'm with  _you_ ," Harry replied cheesily.

~

_inspiration: http://my-imagines-moonlight53.tumblr.com/post/100896310462/prince-ashton-part-1_


	519. Ghost of You (Luke Hemmings)

> _Here I am waking up, still can't sleep on your side_  
>  There's your coffee cup – the lipstick stain fades with time  
> If I can dream long enough, you'd tell me I'd be just fine  
> I'll be just fine

Luke didn't  _know_  why he couldn't get rid of it, pick it up and wash it out and shove it in the back of the cupboard – something... _anything_... It was  _mocking him_ , honestly, the mug she always used  _still_  sitting in the same spot she left it on the kitchen counter, her now faded lipstick stain still staring back at him every time his eyes happened to glance in that direction.

Even though it had been over a year, the day she left still replayed in his mind when he was awake and plagued his  _dreams_  when he  _wasn't_. He should have  _known_  something was wrong – she  _never_  left dirty dishes just sitting out like that, and he knew it annoyed her when  _he_  did it too. And to see her mug sitting there with her nowhere in sight... He'd be lying if he said it didn't immediately make his heart stop.

She had done this before – run off with no  _warning_  that she was leaving – but she never left her mug out on the counter before... And more importantly, she  _always_  came back the next day.

But when the next day came and went with no sign of her return, he started to worry. And the next week came and went... And so did the next month, and the month after that, and the month...

He tried calling her twice every day for the first month – God knows she would never go  _anywhere_  without her phone – but she never answered. It wasn't  _like her_  not to answer. Until 29 days after her disappearance.

It had been after that 58th call that he finally heard from her again. She had let the call ring out, making Luke sigh, but the buzzing of his phone made him stop before he could put it on the nightstand beside him and try to sleep another night without her. He froze when he saw the name attached to the message – hers – and his heart only became heavier when he read the two texts along with it.

_I love you, Lu  
But please stop calling me_

And even though it was a text and not her voice, he still knew –  _somehow_  – that it really was her. And he made the heartbreaking decision to do just that.

> _So I drown it out like I always do_  
>  Dancing through our house with the ghost of you  
> And I chase it down with a shot of truth  
> Dancing through our house with the ghost of you

Did Luke regret the decision to leave her alone? To be quite honest, he wasn't sure. But he knew that, whatever she was dealing with, she was happy he wasn't calling her anymore. And somehow, that was what he had to tell himself to keep going.

> _Cleaning up today, found that old Zepplin shirt_  
>  You wore when you ran away, and no one could feel your hurt  
> We're too young, too dumb, to know things like love  
> But I know better now, better now

Though, that obviously didn't mean he didn't still have his bad days of just wanting her to come back to him. Much like the coffee cup on the kitchen counter, Luke couldn't bear to move any of her things.

Her toothbrush still resided in the bathroom next to his. Her pillowcase remained unwashed because it still somehow smelled like her. The playlist of all the love songs she made on Luke's phone because they reminded her of him still sat there, unlisted to and undeleted. The shirts she always wore of his remained stuffed in the back of his closet, unable to think about anyone but her wearing them.

> _So I drown it out like I always do_  
>  Dancing through our house with the ghost of you  
> And I chase it down with a shot of truth  
> Dancing through our house with the ghost of you

It was hard to imagine life with her. It was hard to continue on with every day knowing she wasn't coming  _home_. Luke didn't know how he managed to do it, but he did.

He kept himself busy with writing music and spending time with friends and family. But he knew  _they knew_  he was still hurting – it was obvious every time they looked at him.

They didn't hear him giggling about something she'd said while they were in the other room. They didn't hear  _her_  giggling when Luke tickled her in response to her not laughing at his lame jokes. They didn't walk into wherever they'd snuck off to at gatherings, finding them slow dancing to Luke's soft humming as he held her close to him.

He just wasn't as happy and carefree and fearless as he was when he had her.

> _Too young, too dumb  
>  To know things like love  
> Too young, too dumb_

People who didn't know them used to tell them that they wouldn't last – that they were just two reckless kids who didn't know what love was or what they wanted yet. But Luke knew they were wrong. Luke knew the only reason he was reckless was because she managed to bring that side of him out. Luke knew he was in love and he knew what he wanted...

Luke knew what he wanted was  _her_.

> _So I drown it out like I always do_  
>  Dancing through our house with the ghost of you  
> And I chase it down with a shot of truth  
> That my feet don't dance like they did with you

~

_Song used: "Ghost of You" by 5 Seconds of Summer_


	520. I Do (Cody Carson)

"I don't know why Han's making me do this – she knows how bad I was at presentations in high school," you said into the microphone you were holding, making the wedding guests laugh, "Guess it comes with being maid of honor." Hannah raised her glass a bit, finally convincing you to relax as you gave the rest of your speech. "The day I met Chase, I didn't like him," you informed everyone, making Hannah and her now husband laugh, "There was nothing about him that said ' _I promise I will never hurt your best friend and I promise I will always love her with everything I have_ ' even though he could  _never_  love her as much as I do." Hannah laughed softly again, wiping the tear off her cheek. "But the first time Hannah forced me into a double date with the two of them only after my own boyfriend threw me over his shoulder and carried me out of our house," you went on, "I knew he was perfect for her." You felt yourself getting choked up, which only made your best friend cry even more, as you looked at the groom. "The way you looked at her when she was obnoxiously celebrating her first and only hole-in-one at the mini golf course that night, I knew that everything I thought about you before then was wrong. You, Chase, are the only man that has ever made my Hannah feel whole and despite all the plans that were cancelled because she would rather hang out with you than the girl who spent  _hours_  consoling her at 2am after every failed relationship before yours-" You rolled your eyes, making Hannah roll her own as Chase laughed again. "-I know I could never give her everything she deserves in life," you shook your head, "I couldn't give her everything the way I know you  _will_. You two are my best friends and I'm so thankful you found each other." Chase immediately stood up, walking up to you and hugging you tightly while the rest of the guests smiled on – even Hannah's  _mother_  was tearing up.

"Love you, loser," he murmured into your shoulder.

"Love you,  _nerd_ ," you smiled, and you both squeezed each other before letting go so you could hug Hannah before the best man gave his speech.

~

Half an hour later, Hannah and Chase were ushered to the dance floor for their first dance. You watched with a small smile on your face – you remembered spending at least three hours with her trying to pick what song she wanted – and felt arms wrap around your waist, your back colliding with someone's chest.

"That's gonna be us someday," your boyfriend said softly, kissing your neck.

You hummed lightly, "I think you're going to have to ask me to marry you first." You turned your head to kiss Cody's cheek, but he quickly turned his own so your lips landed on his. You smiled into the kiss, completely expecting him to do it.

"Only if you promise to say yes."

"I will," you smiled slyly, "If you're lucky." Cody immediately started tickling you, hard enough to make you giggle and lean against him but not enough to take attention away from the bride and groom – until their dance was  _over_ , of course.

~

**Four hours later**

When you and Cody got home later that night, you were both beyond tired. Cody was practically falling asleep on you as you unlocked the front door, but he stopped you just before you could lead him inside. He took your hand and pulled you back to him, then let go and slid his arm around your waist while the other went behind your knees, lifting you off of the ground.

"Cody!" you squeaked, not expecting him to pick you up.

"Gotta practice," he smiled sleepily, "I'll be doing this after our wedding, you know."

"Still haven't changed your mind about that?" you teased as he stepped into the house and kicked the door shut behind him.

"Nope," he said, setting you back down, "I'll never change my mind about wanting to marry you." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring, making your heart skip a beat. Cody smiled again at your reaction, your eyes flicking between his and the ring between his thumb and index finger. "I didn't want to ask earlier because it would be inconsiderate to take Hannah and Chase's spotlight," he explained, "And I've been trying to come up with the perfect proposal – and maybe I'll do this again later – but I don't want to wait anymore. I want to be able to call you my fiancée when people ask about you and I want people to know how much I love you just by looking at this ring." He took your hands in his and got down on one knee, not even letting you wipe the tears off of your cheeks. "So, princess," he grinned up at you, "Will you marry me?"

You didn't give him the chance to think that you were going to say no – you just instantly took your hands out of his, grabbed his face, and kissed him roughly. You felt him smile against your lips, his hands landing on your hips.

"Yes," you whispered the second your lips were off of his, "Yes, yes, yes." Cody pecked your lips before taking your hand and sliding the ring down your finger. You didn't even take a second to admire it before you were pulling him back to his feet, kissing him again.

You suddenly pushed Cody away, making him frown and furrow his eyebrows. But he didn't get the chance to say anything.

" _I have to go call Hannah_!" you exclaimed, making your  _fiancé_  smile fondly as you ran to another room.


	521. Lost in Translation (Ashton Irwin)

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

~

" _Hey_!" you shouted, instantly taking off against the person who has snatched your backpack off of your shoulder.

You were walking home from school alone – that seemed to be the  _routine_  now that your best friend had found himself a  _different_  girl to walk with – when you'd heard the heavy footstep behind you. You didn't think anything of it at first – you just thought they had somewhere to be and that they'd pass you – and while they  _did_  pass you on the sidewalk, they also decided to take your  _backpack_  with them.

You ran around the corner in pursuit of the thief, only to find they were nowhere to be found. Now, you knew you couldn't have just  _lost_  them that easily because you were  _right_  behind them, but you had  _no idea_  what happened to them.

You huffed lightly – and started  _panicking_  a bit as well as everything such as your phone and wallet and house key and homework were in that bag – as you tried to come up with  _how_  you were going to find them. But luckily, they – well... _your_   _backpack_  – ended up finding  _you_.

"I don't think that backpack  _belongs_  to you," you heard a voice, making you furrow your eyebrows. You heard a strained grown next and then what sounded like something falling to the ground before your eyes widened at the person who walked out of the alleyway a few feet in front of you.

You'd obviously heard of New York City's Spider-Man before, but you'd never seen him, much less in person. The superhero was  _famous_  as far as you were concerned, and you never thought he'd pay any mind to something as  _small_  as a petty thief stealing a backpack from a student.

"I believe this is yours," Spider-Man approached you, holding your backpack out for you.

"Thanks..." you said softly, taking it from him carefully, "I don't mean to sound rude, but don't you have better things to be doing? Like... Worse criminals to be catching?" The superhero chuckled lightly.

"Maybe," he shrugged, "But I was just flying over and saw what happened, so I dropped in to help." You couldn't help but smile.

"Thanks," you said again, "Saves me from figuring out what to do next."

"Don't thank me – just doin' my job," he assured you, "Would you like me to walk you home – you know, just in case?"

"I'm sure I'll be fine," you insisted, "I don't wanna waste any more of your time."

"It's no problem, really," he promised you, "Just wanna make sure you get home safe." And since you didn't  _really_  feel 100% safe now that you were almost  _robbed_ , you decided to take Spider-Man up on the offer and let him finish walking you home.

~

**Two months later**

Ever since that afternoon, you and Spider-Man had actually become pretty good friends. You hadn't gotten into any trouble since the incident where you first met him, but he would drop by your house – well, he would drop by your window, more specifically – for a few minutes after a night of fighting crime just to see how you were doing.

It was during one particular visit that you told him you were fine, but he could see right through you. He climbed in the open window and leaning back against the window sill with his arms crossed over his chest.

"You don't  _look_  fine to me," Spider-Man called your bluff.

"It's nothing," you shook your head, tapping your pencil on the spiral of the notebook in your lap, "Just... Stupid high school drama... You've got bigger things to worry about, I'm sure."

"Don't make your problems any less important," he said, making you look up at him, "So what's wrong?" You were silent for a moment before sighing and looking back down at your homework.

"My best friend has been ditching me the last few weeks," you admitted, "It's like he doesn't... It's like he doesn't want to make time for me anymore."

"Have you told him that?" Spider-Man asked you, causing you to let out a forced chuckle.

"He knows..." you swallowed lightly, "Ash knows how I'm feeling." You could feel his gaze on you, but you couldn't force yourself to look at him.

"Are you sure abandonment is the  _only thing_  you're feeling?" he challenged, "Because it seems like you've got a lot more on your mind than just being upset this ' _Ash_ ' person isn't spending time with you."

You held your arms up in a shrugging motion but didn't move your shoulders, your mouth open and closing for a moment. You were trying to find the words you wanted to say, but you  _couldn't_. Spiderman watched you curiously –  _possibly_...? You couldn't really tell through the mask – as you exhaled sharply, letting your arms fall back down to your lap, your palms slapping against your thighs.

"I'm in love with him," you said before sighing again and whispering it again to yourself, "I'm in love with him..." You weren't looking at him, so you didn't notice Spider-Man tense up.

"Isn't that a  _good_  thing?" he asked when he composed himself, "Wouldn't you  _want_  to be in love?"

"I  _guess_ ," you forced out another soft laugh, "I'd just prefer being in love with someone who loved me  _back_."

"You think he doesn't love you back?"

"What are you, a superhero  _and_  a therapist now?" you finally gave him a genuine grin as you looked up at him.

"Sometimes it helps to talk about your problems with someone not  _close_  to the situation," you heard him smile.

"Fair enough," you let a breath out of your nose, looking back down at your hands, "Can't talk to my parents, my sister would blab  _to him_ , and I  _definitely_  can't tell  _Ash_  about it..."

"You  _could_  tell him," he said, making you look at him with an unamused expression, making him throw his hands up in surrender. "Just a  _suggestion_ ," he shrugged, "Since you can't talk to any of  _those_  people, why not me?" You shot him a cautious glance, prompting him to speak up again. "Come on," he urged, hopping up to sit on your bed with his legs crossed, facing you, "Lay it on me."

And, since you had nothing to lose and since Spider-Man had  _no idea_  who Ashton even  _was_ , you did.

"We've known each other since we were kids," you explained while Spider-Man listened intently, "I never really started seeing him in a... I don't know, a  _romantic_  way, until... Well, I guess until he started seeing someone else, to be honest..."

"And that ' _someone else_ '  _is_...?"

"Her name's Evelyn," you mumbled, "She just moved here from some country in South America and Ash  _loves her_  because she ' _has the cutest accent he's ever heard_ '. He's with her  _all the time_. I hardly ever  _see him_  anymore and when I  _do_ , he won't  _shut up_  about her..." Spider-Man was about to speak again, but you just continued rambling. "He's been avoiding me," you whispered more to yourself than to him, "He thinks I haven't noticed, but I can tell when he's ignoring my texts... I thought it was just because he was hanging out with Evelyn at first, but now I don't think it is... But I don't think he knows I like him and is avoiding me because of it either... I just don't know what I did  _wrong_... I don't know why I'm not  _enough_  for him anymore..."

"I'm  _sure_  you're enough for him, Y/N," Spider-Man shook his head, "But how's he supposed to  _know_  how you're feeling and that all this is hurting you if you're not  _telling him_?" You sighed to yourself, putting your elbow on the side of your knee and resting your chin in your hand – he  _had_  a point, after all.

"Take a lot of courage to admit something like that to someone though," you said, your voice slightly muffled by your palm.

"Well, If you ever need a pep talk or anything, I'll be there," Spider-Man told you.

"How will you  _know_  when I need you?" you asked, hopping up from your bed. He sat on the window sill looking at you again – and although you couldn't see it, something inside you told you he was smiling at you.

"They aren't called ' _Spidey senses_ ' for nothing," he returned just before climbing out your window, hearing you laugh as he shot a web out and started swinging away.

~

**Three weeks later**

It had been nearly a month since you confessed your feelings for your best friend to Spider-Man, but you still hadn't worked up the courage to tell him yet. Spider-Man would urge you to once in a while, but he wouldn't bug you with it – he knew you needed to be ready on your own – which you really appreciated. So you decided, one Saturday afternoon, that you would ask Ashton to hang out at the mall and  _finally_  tell him how you felt.

Or so you  _thought_.

You and Ashton hadn't even been at the mall for  _five minutes_  when you ran into Evelyn. You mentally groaned – obviously, because this was  _your_  life, you should have  _known_  she'd be there. 

You  _did_  feel incredibly guilty about the hate you harbored toward her though. You knew it wasn't  _Evelyn's_  fault that you were mad – she was actually a really sweet girl – and it was no fault of her own that she didn't know you had feelings for the boy constantly flirting with her. But that didn't make the pain of rejection you felt any easier to deal with.

Upon third-wheeling Ashton and Evelyn for what felt like  _years_  – it was only an  _hour_  – you excused yourself to go to the bathroom. Of course, that was only an excuse for you to  _leave the mall_  – although, you did actually end up in the bathroom just to pull yourself back together after crying for a couple minutes.

When you finally recollected yourself, you peeked around the corner to make sure that Ashton and Evelyn weren't around before hastily making your way to the exit so you could call someone to take you home, figuring you'd just tell Ashton you got sick and had to leave later. Unfortunately, you were never even able to call anyone  _at all_.

You pushed the door open to go outside, only to freeze in your tracks when you heard voices coming from around the corner. You quickly ducked behind the side of the building before you were seen.

" _Crap_ ," you grumbled to yourself as you pulled your phone out and opened your message thread with Ashton, typing away.

 _We've got a bit of a situation_  
If you could find your way to the doors by the food court, that would be great  
Evie can be without you for a few minutes  
I'm serious, Ashton  
I can't get out of here without Bailey and Graham seeing me  
So whenever you're ready, I'd appreciate some help

You had just hit send on the last message when your luck ran out. You heard footsteps coming toward you and you knew you wouldn't be able to run around the other side of the building without getting caught. Your heart started  _pounding_  in your chest, knowing what was coming, as your head snapped back down to your phone to type one last message.

_Ashton please help me_

"Well, well, well," Graham's voice made your head snap up again, finding your school's two resident gang members smirking at you, "Look who we have here." Your body instinctively tensed up as you backed away from them, only to hit the wall behind you.

"Ah, come on, princess," Bailey chuckled darkly, "No need to be scared."

Your gaze shifted to his hand when his hand moving caught your attention out of the corner of your eye, feeling short of breath when you saw the pocket knife he was messing around with. You  _knew_  he was trying to scare you, but you'd be lying if you said it wasn't working.

"Where's your little  _friend_  at?" he wondered, both boys stopping only a few inches away from you, "Thought you nerds stuck together. But he's nowhere to be seen  _now_ , is he?"

"Shame you're alone, really," Graham continued dramatically, shaking his head, "But you know, we've always wondered what you're like without  _him_  around."

Your breath got caught in your throat when they stepped toward you and you heard Bailey flick the pocket knife so the blade popped out. The sound made you flinch slightly, but they still noticed it.

"Don't worry, princess," Bailey smirked coldly, "The quieter you are, the quicker it'll be over."

But you never got to find out what  _exactly_  that meant.

All three of you jumped when a web shot out from above you, knocking the knife out of Bailey's hand. The two boys looked up and around, but they were unable to find anything. But they were startled again when someone hopped down beside your group.

"Hasn't anyone ever told you two not to bring a knife to a web fight?" Spider-Man asked the boys.

"This doesn't  _concern_  you,  _Spider-boy_ ," Bailey growled, "This is between  _us_  and  _her_ , and we were just leaving." He went to reach for you, but Spider-Man instantly grabbed your hand and pulled you behind him, placing himself between you and them.

"I don't think so," he shook his head, giving them a humorless laugh, "It's getting dark and I really do think the lady should be heading home."

"We were going to take her," Graham shrugged casually, but Spider-Man obviously didn't buy it for a single second.

" _Her_  home," he stated, "And since I'm sure that's  _not_  where you were planning on taking her, I think I've got it from here. So you two gentleman can leave now."

"We don't need this getting  _ugly_ , Spider-boy," Bailey stated through gritted teeth.

"Y/N," the superhero grabbed your attention, "Would you mind waiting for me around the corner for a moment?" You were still in such a state of shock that you just did what was asked of you, sliding against the wall so the boys were no longer in view.

You didn't know what was going on, but you started immediately hearing fists being thrown. You peeked around the corner when you heard two thuds followed by groaning, finding Spider-Man brushing himself off in front of the two boys now lying on the ground, tied back-to-back in a web.

"Lovely chatting with you both," Spiderman told them, taking a step away before stopping. He bent down, picking up Bailey's pocket knife. "I'll be taking this with me," he informed them, closing it so it didn't stab him, "Have a good night, gentleman." He turned away from them and came over to you, finding you already watching him. "How about I take you home now, huh?" he asked you. You simply nodded slowly, not sure your voice would give you anything. "Well, first then, we go up!" he announced.

" _Up_?" you managed to whisper, furrowing your eyebrows in confusion.

"Mhmm," he hummed in response with a nod.

He held out his hand and you put yours in it without hesitation. He pulled your arm up to wrap around his shoulders, telling you to do the same with your other arm. You did so, and that arm then wrapped around your waist, holding you tightly, before he shot a web up onto the roof of the mall, sending you both flying up. You squeaked in surprise as you tightened your own grip on him, hearing him chuckle under his breath as his feet landed back on the ground. He let go of your waist just long enough to toss the knife into a vent so Bailey would  _definitely_  not be getting it back – at least not any time  _soon_.

"You ready?" Spiderman asked you, his arm returning to your waist. You simply nodded again, and off you went.

When you returned home not even two minutes later, Spider-Man took you to the fire escape outside your bedroom before you released each other so you could climb through your window. You didn't even bother asking why he was staying when you heard him come in after you, just plopping down face-first onto your bed.

"Y/N, you okay?" he asked softly, sitting himself on the edge of your bed beside your knee. You turned to lie on your back, not answering until you pulled out your phone and checked yours and Ashton's message thread, finding a read receipt with  _no_  new texts.

"At least  _someone's_  looking out for me," you muttered, locking your phone and tossing it carefully onto your nightstand.

"What do you mean by that?" Spider-Man wondered.

"He was too busy with Evie again," you choked slightly, feeling your eyes well up with tears, "I knew they were gonna find me... I texted Ashton... He didn't come... He doesn't care anymore..."

"I'm sure that's not-"

"I told him I needed  _help_  – I needed  _him_!" your voice cracked as you wiped the tears from your cheeks, "And he didn't come! He  _read_  my texts and he  _didn't come_!" You heard Spider-Man take in a deep breath before letting it out slowly.

"Yeah, he did, Y/N," he said so softly that you almost didn't catch it. The statement confused you –  _what on earth did he_ mean _Ashton came to help you?_

" _No, he_ -"

You were cut off by Spider-Man bringing his hand up, grabbing his mask at the bottom of his neck. You watched him pull it over his head, but you were not  _at all_  prepared for what you saw.

" _Ashton_...?" you breathed out in shock – you didn't know who you  _expected_  to see underneath the mask, but your best friend  _certainly_  wasn't it.

Ashton was looking down at the fabric in his hands, unable to force himself to look at you. He knew you were hurt and confused and scared, and he couldn't  _bear_  to come face-to-face with that just yet.

Your mouth opened and closed as you tried to speak, but nothing was coming out. You had  _no idea_  what to feel in this moment, and apparently, it was all  _too much_  for Ashton to handle.

Ashton rose to his feet and headed to the window, much to  _your_  dismay.

"Ashton," you forced yourself to whisper, "Don't-" You were cut off by hearing a web being shot out of his wrist, causing you to fling yourself off of the bed and rush to the window as well. "Ashton," you said out into the quiet night, but he was nowhere to be found. You felt your eyes get watery again, unable to keep the soft sob in your mouth. "Ash,  _please_ ," you choked out in a whimper, backing up until your legs hit the edge of your bed and forced you to plop down on the mattress.

You didn't hear anything for a few moments, so you were about to get up to close your window when something stopped you. Footsteps echoed on the grates of the fire escape, and you watched Ashton come back into view. He hadn't put his mask back on, signaling to you that he hadn't even planned on leaving you  _at all_  – not  _right away_ , at least.

Ashton climbed back through the window and stepped back inside your room. It was though it was tough to see him through your tears, but you still watched him. He gripped his mask tightly for a moment before his feet were bringing him back to your bed. He set his mask down on the mattress, his eyes remained looking downward, before he finally forced himself to pick his head up and look back at you.

"You know I don't like it when you cry, Y/N," Ashton murmured, bringing his hands up to your cheeks and gently wiping them with his thumbs. Once all the tears were gone, he kept his hands there, allowing himself to just hold you. "And I  _really_  don't like when you cry because of  _me_ ," he finished softly.

"How did you..." you stared at him, "When did... Since when were  _you_..."

"I mean, you know when Spider-Man started popping up around the city," he reminded you with a small sigh, "And you know that was the same time I started working for Tony Stark downtown... That's my job... My job is being Spider-Man..."

"So... All those nights you ditched me...  _That's_  what you were doing...? You were... You were  _being Spider-Man_...?"

"Yeah..." he nodded solemnly, "And I know you're mad about that still, but I... I  _couldn't_  tell you what I was really doing. I can  _handle_  the bad guys and getting hurt, but I can't have those people knowing about my personal life and the people in it because I  _can't_  be the reason you get hurt, Y/N –  _I can't_."

"What about  _Evelyn_?" you grumbled, "Can't have  _her_  getting hurt either." The scowl you let out along with her name caused him to sigh again.

"I've just been tutoring her in English," Ashton mumbled with a shake of his head, "You know this isn't her first language and she's having trouble understanding it, so Mrs. Bertram asked me to help her. It's  _nothing_  more than that, Y/N – you  _know_  I would tell you if I were seeing someone." Your expression softened a bit as he continued. "Y/N, you should have  _told me_  you felt like I didn't care about you anymore," he said lowly but firmly at the same time, "You should have told me you  _needed_  me around more, and you  _definitely_  should have told me you were  _in love_  with me."

"That's not  _fair_ ," you huffed abruptly.

"What's not?" he cocked an eyebrow.

"I told that to Spider-Man in  _confidence_ ," you pouted.

Ashton smiled at you, "Okay then." He let go of you and you watched him reach down and grab his mask, putting it on so he was  _completely_  Spider-Man again. "I've been doing some research on this ' _Ashton_ ' person you mentioned before," he said, heading back to the window and leaning on the frame.

"Yeah?" you giggled slightly at his antics, "What'd you find?"

"Well, I found him hanging out with his friends last weekend at the bowling alley," he informed you, "And I had to leave early because he  _would not_  shut up about you the  _entire time_." You couldn't keep yourself from smiling, listening as he went on. "Also dropped in on a study session with Evie and apparently, while he's helping her with English, she's been giving him advice on how to convince you to go on a date with him."

" _Really_?" you grinned again, feeling your cheeks get warm as you blushed.

"I ran into him earlier today at the mall," he nodded, "Asked him to talk, but he said he was busy with something super important – something about how his best friend needed him and he had to go help her." You let out a soft breath, feeling your eyes get watery once again. "He cares about you, you know," he shook his head, "I think he's scared he cares about you  _too much_. And I don't know if it'll change your opinion of him now, but there's no doubt in my mind that he's just as in love with you as you are with him." You bit down on your lip so a sob didn't escape, swallowing the lump in your throat. You breathed in deeply to recollect yourself before braving speaking.

"If you're not busy after you leave here, can you tell him to come over so we can talk?" you asked softly.

He didn't respond – he just grabbed the bottom of the mask again and pulled it back over his head. He put it back on the window sill before turning to you.

"Spider-Man said you needed to talk to me about something?" Ashton mentioned.

But you didn't  _exactly_  have anything to  _say_.

You quickly stepped toward him, your hands on his face the moment you reached him to pull it to your own. Ashton let out a breath of surprise when your lips hit his, but his hands wasted no time in finding your waist. He held your hips firmly as he pulled your body right up to his, both of you sighing in content – both of you happy to  _finally_  be kissing each other after imagining it for  _so long_.

When you needed to breathe, you pulled your head away from Ashton's, but your body remained where it was against his. His eyes were still closed for a moment as his forehead fell onto yours, taking everything in before opening his eyes.

"Spider-Man told me you wanted to  _talk_ ," he said, his thumb rubbing your hipbone gently. You breathed out in amusement, letting your thumbs stroke his cheekbones lightly.

"Guess he heard wrong," you whispered, earning yourself a smile before his lips were back on yours.

~

_inspired a little by this: http://eversweet-imagines.tumblr.com/post/163225787278/mine-a-peter-parker-spiderman-imagine_

_but mostly inspired by this: https://wtfholland.tumblr.com/post/171228998403/hi-could-i-get-like-a-protective-peter-or-tom_


	522. Nothing After Midnight (Michael Clifford) *

**Warnings: Abuse, swearing**

~

You were hoping for a quiet day of studying at the park near your college – just a couple hours outside so you could get out of your dorm room. And it was going pretty well for a while. That was, until a brunette and whom you could only assume was her boyfriend showed up.

It seemed innocent enough – like the two just wanted to come to the park to enjoy the fresh air just like everyone else. But it started becoming more and more apparent that it wasn't the case.

You could hear the couple arguing – well, it wasn't so much  _arguing_  as it was her yelling at him for  _something_  – but you chose to ignore it for the first 10 minutes. You didn't want to get involved in other peoples' business, especially when you didn't know either of them.

But the moment she hit him was the moment you couldn't stay quiet anymore.

Everyone within earshot of the two heard the slap, turning to look in shock as the boy's own hand flew to his face in pain. You didn't know what prompted it – all you knew was that he hadn't done a  _single thing_  to warrant it. It was clear to you by the way he was just  _letting_  her reprimand him – and in  _public_ , no less – that he was too shy or maybe even too  _scared_  of her to defend himself.

And you couldn't just sit there and watch it happen.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" you exclaimed as you jumped up from your seat and hurried over, grabbing the girl's hand just before she hit him again, "What do you think you're doing?"

"None of your business,  _bitch_ ," she growled, tearing her wrist out of your grasp, "This is between  _me_  and  _my_  boyfriend."

"You screaming at him and abusing him in public  _makes_  it my business," you stood your ground, refusing to allow her to intimidate  _you_ too.

"I wasn't abu-"

" _Yes, you were_!" you exclaimed, "He hasn't said or done a  _single thing_ since you two got here and  _all_  you've been doing is yelling at him! If  _he_  was the one doing that to  _you_ , it would automatically be abuse!"

"Well then, maybe he should learn to man up and fucking  _defend himself_ ," she narrowed her eyes at him, making him swallow thickly.

"What, and make things worse for himself  _later_?" you scoffed, "If he stood up for himself, you would have hit him  _harder_  and  _you know it_. I don't know  _what_  you're yelling at him for, but  _nothing_  he could be doing to make you upset warrants you  _hitting him_  for it." The girl only laughed bitterly.

"He's  _your_  problem now then," she hissed, "I'm sick of his  _useless ass_  anyway." She immediately got up and walked away, leaving everyone in shock.

The few people that were around were clearly happy she was gone. They watched the boy as he got up, their eyebrows furrowing when they realized he was following her. But you didn't let him. 

"Hey," you said worriedly, taking his hand and tugging him back to you, "Are you okay?"

"Th-Thank you for d-doing that..." the boy said shyly, looking down at his hands as he played with a bracelet on his wrist, "That w-was really n-nice of you..."

"Don't thank me for being a decent person. Are you okay?" you repeated when you realized he hadn't answered the question.

"I'm f-f-fine..."

You took his chin gently anyway, lifting his head up so you could get a good look at him. Your face instantly scrunched up when you noticed blood trickling down his cheek where a ring his girlfriend –  _ex-girlfriend?_  – was wearing made contact when she hit him. You knew a simple bandaid you had in your backpack wasn't going to be enough, so you spoke without second thought.

"Is it okay if I take you back to my apartment?" you asked him, "Or at least to a store or something?"

"Why?" he furrowed his eyebrows.

"I don't want to alarm you, but you're kinda... You're bleeding," you smiled shyly at your willingness to let this stranger into your home.

His eyes then widened, "I am?"

"It's not that bad!" you assured him with a quick shake of your head, "I just don't have any Neosporin on me and it would really  _suck_  if that cut gets infected."

"I-It's okay. I'm sure m-my friend has some at h-his house."

"Well... Can I walk there with you? No offense, but I don't trust that you won't go back to wherever that girl went instead." The boy couldn't help but laugh as you quickly took him over to the picnic table you'd been at to gather up your things.

"I think she made it pretty clear I'm not  _welcome_ back home anymore," he said lightheartedly.

"You  _live_ with her?" you furrowed your eyebrows, "You have a place to go though, right? I don't want you to-"

"I do," he assured you.

"Okay," you sighed in relief, nodding slightly. You started walking with him down the road toward the entrance of the park, letting him lead the way. "Oh, I'm Y/N, by the way," you said suddenly, realizing you didn't even know each other's names, "What's your name?"

"M-Michael," he whispered shyly.

"It's nice to meet you, Michael," you smiled, "But I guess the circumstances in which it happened were kind of a bummer though, huh?" You heard him laugh under his breath again, but missed the way he blushed when you said his name.

~

Five minutes later, Michael was leading you toward an apartment building. He'd told you that was where his friends Ashton and Calum lived, but only Ashton would be home since Calum had been called into work that day. He told you all about how they – as well as their other friend Luke – used to be incredibly close and even started a band before his girlfriend – Kassidy – came into the picture.

You listened to him talk about how they would write songs and play them at Luke's house since he still lived with his parents and was the only one of them with a basement that wouldn't disturb neighbors  _too_  badly. You couldn't help but smile as he talked – he seemed really passionate and it broke your heart to know that someone who was supposed to support him ended up taking away something he clearly loved so much.

Upon entering the building, Michael took you to the elevator and hit the number 2. It was a comfortable silence between you two as the elevator went up and the doors opened again, allowing Michael to lead you down the hallway. He came up to a door and knocked softly, seemingly now nervous to be there. And his breathing only picked up when you heard the movement of the doorknob.

"Mike?" the brown-haired boy at the door tilted his head, glancing at you briefly, "What are you doing here?" He was understandably confused – from what Michael told you, it had been at least  _seven months_  since he'd seen any of his friends, so this reaction didn't come as a shock to you.

"I, um... I-I..." Michael suddenly couldn't come up with the words, so you helped him along. Once you caught the boy's gaze again, you pointed to your cheek. He turned back to Michael, his eyes instantly widening.

"Mike, what  _happened_  to you?!" Ashton exclaimed, grabbing the blonde's wrist and pulling him inside, waving for you to come in as well.

You quickly shut the door behind you, dropping your backpack by the door before following the two so you didn't lose them. Ashton took his friend to the bathroom, having him sit down on the toilet seat as he rummaged through the medicine cabinet.

"Michael, what happened?" he asked again when he didn't receive a response. Michael just stared down at his hands again, making you sigh as you leaned against the door frame.

"He and his girlfriend came to the park while I was studying," you explained, making Ashton look at you, "And she was yelling at him for a while before she hit him." His eyes widened once again, his head snapping back to Michael.

" _Kassidy hit you_?!" he asked loudly. Michael began chewing on his bottom lip, too afraid to look up at his friend. "Is that why you haven't been coming around?!" he ranted, "How long has she been doing this?! Why wouldn't you-"

You finally cleared your throat, causing Ashton to cut himself off and look back over his shoulder. You nodded your head as you left the doorway, signaling to the boy that you wanted him to come with you. You heard him sigh, but he did end up coming out of the room.

"Just let me clean him up," you whispered so Michael didn't hear, "I think you need to cool down."

"But he-"

"I know you're mad that he didn't tell you what was going on, but yelling at him for it isn't going to change anything or make it better," you reminded him. Ashton sighed again, this time in agreement.

"You're right," he nodded, "I'll be fine before you're done. Just make sure he's okay." You nodded as well, going back into the bathroom.

Michael had tilted his head back up, clearly trying to listening to what you and his friend were saying. He frowned upon being able to make out nothing, looking back down as you grabbed the cloth the other boy had already gotten, getting it wet and putting some soap on it. You carefully took his chin and lifted his head up once again, but he avoided your gaze. You started wiping the dried-up blood on his cheek before moving to the actual wound itself, making him hiss when the cloth came into contact with it.

"Sorry," you whispered, continuing to clean his skin.

When you were satisfied with your work, you rinsed the cloth out and draped it over the edge of the bathtub. You then grabbed the Neosporin tube from the countertop and squeezed the smallest amount you could onto your finger, putting the lid back on. Since you didn't know where it went in the cabinet, you just put it back where you got it. You took his chin again, carefully wiping the medicine onto the cut. You noticed him swallow thickly, but just brushed it off as being irritated due to having someone touch the wound. You opened the right side of the medicine cabinet to look for a bandaid when Michael finally spoke again.

"Left side," he murmured, making you glance at him before closing the right door and moving to the left, your eyes instantly landing on the box of bandaids.

Luckily, Ashton was the kind of person who bought the box of different sized bandaids. You fished around for the smallest one in the box, pulling one out before returning the box to its spot on the shelf. You tore open the wrapper and threw it away before meticulously placing the bandage over Michael's cut and making sure it was securely on his skin.

"You know, you never answered your friend," you said softly, "Are you okay?"

"M'fine," he mumbled, but you gave him a look as you took your hands back. He simply sighed in response to the expression. "M'fine," he repeated in a whisper, "Just...scared...I guess..."

"Scared of what?"

"What she'll do when she finds out where I am..." he admitted.

"Does she know where your friend lives?" you asked, "Or whoever you said you could stay with since she kicked you out?"

"Yeah..." he said so softly, you barely heard it.

"You can stay with me then," you said without really thinking about it, causing him to look at you with a surprised expression.

"W-With  _you_?" he swallowed lightly.

"She doesn't know where I live," you shrugged with a shy chuckle, rubbing the back of your neck at how unusually forward you were being with this  _stranger_ , "I don't have an extra bedroom, but I have a pull-out couch that's pretty comfy with the right amount of blankets. And, I mean, it's not like you'd be staying with me  _forever_ – just until you can get your own place – so I don't see the problem with it. Well, other than the fact that we don't know each other and one of us could be an axe murderer. But I don't have an axe and even if I  _did_ , I wouldn't have anywhere in my apartment to hide it from you, so I-" You cut yourself off when you noticed the small smile pulling at the corner of Michael's mouth, making you breathe out sharply. "I'm rambling, aren't I...?" you began chewing on your bottom lip.

"Kind of," he grinned, "But I like it." You let out a soft chuckle.

"First time I've ever heard someone say  _that_ ," you murmured, more to yourself than to him. It was silent for a moment before Michael spoke again.

"You... You're sure you don't mind...?" he asked tentatively.

" _Yeah_!" you squeaked, "I don't have a lot of room, but I mean, we won't be in each other's way."

"You could live in a cardboard box behind a  _Wendy's_  and I'd still appreciate it," he smiled again, grinning a little bigger when it made you laugh.

"It's probably  _about_  as charming, to be honest."

 


	523. Any Other Reason (Calum Hood) *

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

**Warning: Smoking, asthma attack**

~

"You're gonna kill yourself one of these days," you mentioned, hearing the footsteps stop moving abruptly before they padded into the living room where you were sitting on the couch.

"Helps me relax," Calum said, a cigarette already in between his lips with his lighter in his hand, "You know that."

"Just saying there are healthier ways to relax," you shrugged, not looking up from your book.

"L'be fine," he told you, heading back to the back door to smoke on the deck, "M'a big boy -- make my own choices." You simply sighed and shook your head, returning to the words in front of you.

~

**Saturday evening**

You just returned home from a day out with your mother and grandmother. You enjoyed spending time with them, but you were happy to finally get off your feet for the rest of the evening. Unfortunately, though, you weren't coming home to a necessarily clean environment.

You walked into your house and everything was as normal as it always was -- you kicked off your shoes by the door and dropped your bag onto the closest seat of the couch before heading into the kitchen to get a drink. And it was then that you started to smell the smoke. 

At first, you thought something was burning, but the moment you entered the kitchen, you realized that wasn't the case. Calum was sitting at the counter, lit cigarette in one hand and his phone in the other as he scrolled through his Instagram. 

"Calum, why are you smoking  _inside_?" you demanded, a small frown on your face. His head snapped up, instantly looking at you like a deer in headlights.

"You're home earlier than I thought you'd be..." he trailed off.

"How often do you do this?" you tilted your head.

"Um..." He clearly looked like he was trying to decide whether or not to lie to you before choosing the option that would get him in  _less_ trouble. "Whenever you leave for more than two hours," he confessed. 

" _Calum_ , why would you-" you breathed in deeply before  _instantly_ regretting it.

Since the room was thick with smoke despite the windows being open, the act of breathing in the fumes triggered something you hadn't actually  _told_ Calum about yet. His eyes widened the moment the first cough left your mouth, immediately shoving his half-smoked cigarette into the ash tray beside his forearm. He hopped off the barstool he was sitting on and rushed to your side.

"Y/N, what's wrong?" he asked frantically, taking your face in his hands. You couldn't really speak through your coughing fit, so he tugged you over to the seat he'd been sitting in. "Do you need something?" he shook his head, "A drink? Do you need water? I can get you water!" He let go of you to go to the fridge, but your tiny voice stopped him.

"C-Cal," you struggled through your wheezing, making him spin around, "B-B-Bag."

"Your bag? You need your bag? Where is it? Where'd you put it?"

"C-Couch," you coughed again, your hand pressed to your chest in some sort of futile attempt to relieve yourself. 

Calum instantly ran into the living room, grabbed your bag from the spot you put it, and hurried back. The moment it was on the counter in front of you, you were reaching into the spot you kept your inhaler, pulling it out and breathing in the medication. He watched you close your eyes and focus on breathing normally again, your chest gradually rising and falling more slowly than it had been in the middle of your attack. But it wasn't until you let your hands fall onto your lap and opened your eyes that he spoke again.

"Y/N..." Calum murmured, coming back to you and carefully putting his hands on your hips, "What was  _that_...? Are you... Do you have asthma...?"

"Just a little," you pursed your lips together.

"That wasn't ' _just a little_ ', Y/N," he insisted, "Is  _that_ why you've been bugging me to quit smoking? Because you have asthma?" You took a deep breath in.

"Yeah..." you whispered, looking down at his arms as they rested on your thighs.

"I'm so sorry, baby girl," he swallowed thickly.

"S'okay, Cal," you promised him, "You didn't know."

"Why... Why didn't you  _tell me_?"

"Didn't think you needed any other reason... Thought knowing it could kill you would've been enough..."

"I knew what I was getting into when I started, princess," he shook his head, "But knowing it could kill  _you_ would have pushed me to actually  _try_."

"So you'll stop?" you looked back up at him hopefully, making him lean forward and kiss your forehead.

"I can't promise I'll  _never_ smoke again," he admitted, barely smiling when you laughed in response, "Just won't do it  _as much_."

"I know," you assured him, "As long as you don't do it around  _me_."


	524. Losing Myself (Ashton Irwin) *

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

**Warning: Mention of self-harm**

~

You had just flown into the city your boyfriend's band was playing the next night after a frantic call from Luke. He'd only called you the previous afternoon to inform you what was happening with Ashton, but he wasn't at all surprised to hear you say you were on your way there right before you hung up – he knew how much you worried about Ashton when he was on tour, and he would have been shocked if you said you  _weren't_  coming to see him, to be honest.

You honestly felt like you were going to throw up from worry as you hurried down the long hotel hallway. Ashton had a tendency to bottle up his emotions until he just couldn't hold them in anymore, and more often than not, he would take it out on  _himself_. You really thought he was getting better – he seemed so much happier in the recent months – but apparently, you were wrong.

The moment you reached the room Luke told you they were staying in, it felt like an eternity before someone finally opened the door. Calum looked at you with a sad smile, knowing exactly why you were there.

" _Where is he_?!" you practically shouted, pushing past him and walking into the room.

"Y/N?" you heard behind you, "What are you doing here?" 

You spun around to face Ashton as he came out of the bathroom. Letting out a shaky sigh of relief, you ran the five feet to him, wrapping your arms tightly around his waist and laying your head on his chest.

"Luke called yesterday," you mumbled, feeling his arms snake around you as well.

"He told you what happened?" he muttered. You could tell he looked at the boy sitting on the bed behind you.

"We should give you guys some privacy," Michael spoke up, ushering Calum and Luke out of the room as well. Calum immediately headed out the door while Luke got up and walked over.

"She had the right to know, Ash," he stated simply, "And I'm sorry I told her without your knowledge, but you could see the scars during meet and greet and I wasn't going to let her find out from people on Twitter." He left with the other two boys, leaving you alone with your boyfriend.

You were already in tears, mentally kicking yourself for it as you swore to yourself on the way there that you weren't going to cry. Ashton could feel his shirt getting wet and instantly felt even worse than before.

"Baby-" You cut him off.

"Why do you always do this when I'm thousands of miles away?" You were full-on sobbing now and you couldn't make yourself stop. "Why can't you ever just  _call me_  when you're feeling that bad? Why can't you talk to the boys or I before turning to a razor?"

"You really wanna know why?" he asked, his voice muffled as he kissed the top of your head. You barely nodded, so he took a deep breath and let it out. "Because I know you guys will  _stop me_ ," he told you honestly, "I know that you'll convince me not to do it. I hate that you all feel like you have to watch me 24/7. And I hate that I do it too, Y/N – believe me – but it's really hard  _not to_  sometimes..." he trailed off.

You heard him sniffle, making you move your head back so you could look at him. He removed one of his arms from you, bringing his hand up to wipe his face before letting go of you altogether. Ashton trudged to the bed, climbing up and propping himself up against the headboard. You just stood there, unsure of what to do.

"Everyone always tells me I'm the glue that holds the band together," he continued in a quiet tone, his eyes avoiding yours, "And it makes me feel  _weak_  to talk about how worthless and broken I'm feeling all the time." You shifted uncomfortably on your feet, staring at him in a bit of shock.

"Ash," you said in a barely audible whisper, but he must have heard it because he finally looked up at you. You shook your head slowly, "No one expects you to  _always_ hold it together. We keep an eye on you because we love you. We're constantly worried about you, Ashton, and until you understand that that's not going to change, we're always going to nag you about how you're feeling. We never want you to feel like you have to carry the burdens of whatever you're feeling alone."

The sob he let out was a quick and silent one, but it made you hurry to the bed and sit next to him, cuddling as close to him as you could get. He laid his head on your chest and let everything he'd been holding in out while you just rubbed his back and pressed long kisses to his temple along with whispered confessions of every single thing you loved about him.


	525. Stroke of Luck (Calum Hood) - Part 1

All those chain letters you didn't send to 10 friends in middle school were  _really_ coming back to haunt you.

At least, that's the only explanation you could come up with as to why your luck – particularly pertaining to your love life – was really starting to  _suck_ recently.

You never considered yourself to be very  _forward_ with guys, but you  _had_ had a few boyfriends in the past that just never worked out to no fault of either party – life just got in the way and you had to break up. But  _this_... This was a whole new  _level_ of bad luck.

It was a  _regular_ Saturday where you were at home, lounging on your bed as you scrolled through Netflix and snacked on the leftovers of last night's dinner.

You were supposed to hang out with your best friend that day, but Victoria had told you her aunt was in the hospital and she couldn't. You understood –  _of course_  – and offered your get well wishes, which Victoria said she would be sure to pass along to her aunt when she visited her that afternoon.

But as the evening progressed and you were starting to get ready for bed, something felt  _off_. You didn't what it was, but you had this ache in your chest that something  _bad_ was about to happen. You ignored it at first – maybe your body was just having one of those days – but you  _couldn't_ ignore it anymore when you heard your phone ding with a message.

You picked the device up from its spot beside your thigh, your eyebrows furrowing in confusion when you noticed it was a Facebook message from a girl you  _knew_ but didn't really  _talk to_. And the message preview only made your gut feeling that much  _worse_.

_Winnie Dressler: Are you available to talk for a minute?_

You quickly swiped across the message to answer it, waiting for Facebook Messenger to load before responding.

_**Yeah, what's up?** _

You anxiously waited for a response, watching the three little dots dance around as Winnie typed out her reply.

_I'm sure it's weird that I'm messaging you, but Victoria mentioned earlier that she'd already told you she couldn't hang out today because her aunt was sick. Well, I'd asked her if she wanted to do something too (that's when she told me about how you'd asked too) and she said no. But I was at the mall with my brother earlier today, and she and Calum Hood were sitting at a table in the food court making out??_

Your heart stopped as soon as you read the last sentence – there was no way.

_**Are you sure it was her and Calum?** _

_I'm sure... I thought I was just seeing things too, but they stopped right after I got there and I watched them get up and go outside... Did you know anything? I know you're friends with both of them, but I never thought Victoria liked him like THAT. So I thought maybe she'd mentioned it to you at some point?_

You were suddenly beginning to feel thankful that Winnie had messaged you and that this wasn't a video call or something she told you in person because you could feel yourself tearing up.

_**No, I don't think she has... But are you sure that her aunt isn't actually in the hospital?** _

_In the hospital? Victoria told me she was just sick._

_**Oh... Well... Thanks for letting me know, Winnie. I'll see you at school.** _

_No problem, Y/N. If you need anything, let me know._

And you were starting to feel  _incredibly_ lucky that it was a three-day weekend and you didn't have school on Monday.

~

**Tuesday morning**

It was finally Tuesday – the day back to school after your weekend away – and you  _definitely_ weren't looking forward to it. You had two classes with Calum and Victoria – separately, thank God – but lunch and homeroom with them both. You didn't know  _how_ you were going to manage to keep a straight face, and you hadn't even decided if you were going to confront them that day  _at all_ , to be honest.

But apparently, that choice was made  _for you_.

"Y/N!" you heard behind you as you stood at your locker. You looked over your shoulder, your heart skipping a beat when you found Calum trotting up to you. "Hey!" he smiled, "How was your weekend?"

"It was okay, I guess..." you murmured, "Didn't really do anything though..."

"You should have texted me!" he frowned, "We could have gotten together!"

"Yeah... So..." you cleared your throat lightly, "When did you and Victoria become a thing?"

" _Oh, yeah_! Just over the weekend," he shrugged, "We were just hanging out on Saturday and one thing led to another... Ended back up at her place... You know how it is."

"I... I  _don't_ know how it is..." you swallowed, "But I, uh... You seem really excited about her, so I'm happy for you..."

"Thank you," he smiled, clearly not noticing your change in demeanor, "I never knew she saw me in that way, but I'm  _really_ happy with her. Feels like I finally did something  _right_ for once."

"Yeah..." you whispered, "Well, I... I should get to class... Bye, Cal..."

"See you 2nd period!" he chirped, and both of you went your separate ways for the morning.

~

**Seven hours later**

You walked into homeroom at the end of the day, gagging softly to yourself when you noticed Victoria and Calum sitting with their desks pulled up next to each other, holding hands on the tabletop. You'd gone the  _whole day_  without crying and you weren't about to start  _now_ – not with only  _five minutes_  of school left.

Though, that  _didn't_ mean you were going to keep your cool.

You could see Michael and Luke watching curiously as you approached the two lovebirds – they'd noticed you hadn't spoken to  _either of them_  at lunch – but you didn't really pay any mind to them.

You were on a mission; You were tired of being treated like an idiot.

"Hey, V," you said casually, leaning back against the wall beside the window where their desks were, "How's your aunt doing? Is she out of the hospital yet?"

"Your aunt's in the  _hospital_?" Calum looked at his girlfriend, "Why haven't you  _said_ anything? What happened to her? Is she okay?" Victoria's eyes widened, knowing there was no way she could lie to  _both of you_. But you didn't give her the chance to speak anyway.

"That's because she never  _was_ in the hospital,  _was she_?" you stuck your bottom lip out sarcastically.

By this time, the rest of the class had started listening in to what was happening. They knew you were typically a quiet person, so your next question  _understandably_ caught them all off guard.

"Just out if curiosity, Victoria: Do you  _have_ to be a cunt all the time now, or do you just  _get off_  on making me feel like  _shit_?" you asked bluntly, making everyone's jaw drop.

" _Miss Y/L/N_!" your teacher exclaimed while everyone else remained staring in shock.

"It's a completely  _valid_ question!" you defended, never taking your eyes off of Victoria, "And one I'd  _really_ like to know the answer to!"

"Hey," Calum interjected, "You don't have to-"

" _I'm not finished with her yet_ ," you spat at him, " _You can wait your turn_." Victoria was still staring at you with wide eyes – her eyes only getting wider when your attention turned back to her. "Why is it that I had to hear about  _this_ -" You motioned between her and Calum. "-from  _Winnie Dressler_  when she saw you two  _sucking face_  in the food court at the mall on Saturday? Why didn't my  _best friend_  since _first grade_  feel like she could  _tell me_? Does she think I'm  _stupid_? Did she think I  _wouldn't_ find out? Or maybe she feels  _guilty_ for some reason? I don't know why she  _would_ ; It's not like she's a  _backstabbing slut_  or anything."

" _Alright_ , Miss Y/L/N; That's  _enough_ ," your teacher stepped in.

You looked up when she ripped a piece of paper of a notepad, holding it out to you – the infamous pink slip signaling that she was giving you detention. You pushed yourself off the wall, all eyes following you as you confidently sauntered back to her desk, taking the paper from her.

The final bell of the day rang throughout the school, but no one made a motion to get up – they all just remained in their seats, watching you walk back to the front of the room. You moved back to Calum and Victoria's desks, grabbing your books from the desk in front of theirs.

"Hope you got what you wanted,  _bitch_ ," you stated dryly, not looking at Victoria, before walking out of the room.

The rest of the students looked around at each other before they all slowly got up and filed out of the room as well. You could feel them look over as they passed you on the way to their own lockers, but you didn't turn away from your own. As you were putting your books away though, you heard someone coming up to you. You looked over your shoulder, not at all surprised to see who it was.

"That was... _different_ ," Michael mentioned, "Well, I expect a full report of what the  _hell_ just happened back there later tonight."

You couldn't even  _force_ a smile, making him grin sadly. He brought his hands up to your cheeks, wiping the tears you didn't even notice had fallen.

"I'll wait around until detention is over to take you home," he said, finally getting you to speak.

"No," you insisted softly, "Don't worry about me; I'll find another way home."

"Are you trying to get rid of me?" he pouted, earning a smile – albeit a  _small_ one – from you. "See?" he grinned, "There's my girl." You smiled again when he pulled your head forward, pressing a kiss to your forehead. "Now go get to detention before you're late and get into  _more_ trouble," he said, "I'll see you later." You let out a breathy laugh, watching him walk away until you started heading for detention.

~

**30 minutes later**

When you were finally freed from the confines of detention, you made your way to the closest door to go outside. You'd pulled your phone out of your backpack to call your mom, but you never had the chance to dial her number. The moment you opened the door, you had an unamused expression on your face.

"I  _told you_  not to wait up," you stated seriously upon finding Michael's car parked at the curb, the blonde leaning back against the passenger side door.

"Nothing else to do," he shrugged, laughing when you rolled your eyes, "I'm already here; You might as well let me give you a ride." You sighed, putting your phone back in your backpack and getting into the car when he opened the door for you.

You'd only been on the road for two minutes when Michael started talking again.

"So," he said, making you roll your eyes again, "The curiosity is eating me alive."

"It was nothing," you tried to say convincingly – but, of course, he wasn't having it.

"You don't just call someone what you did for  _no reason_ , Y/N," he reminded you, "I don't think you've ever called anyone that  _at all_."

"Because no one was ever  _being_ a cunt before," you grumbled, crossing your arms over your stomach.

"C'mon, Y/N," he sighed, "Vic's your  _best friend_."

" _Was_ my best friend," you spat back, surprising him a bit.

"What did she do that was  _so bad_ , it warranted calling her the  _worst thing_  you could call someone?"

"She lied to me," you mumbled, looking out the window beside you, "She went behind my back."

"And did  _what_?" he asked, almost desperately at this point.

"Started dating Calum," you said so lowly that he almost didn't hear it.

"Yeah, when the hell did  _that_ happen, by the way?" Michael asked, "Cal didn't tell us  _anything_. Luke and I found out when someone told us they were holding hands in first period."

"Winnie told me Saturday night," you whispered, "Victoria said she couldn't hang out with me because her aunt was in the hospital, but she was really hooking up with  _Calum_." Michael glanced over at you when your voice cracked, finding you looking down at your hands as you played with your fingers to distract yourself.

"Y/N..." he said softly, "I'm  _sure_ she didn't-"

"I told her  _that Friday_  that I liked him!" you squeaked, letting the tears run freely that time, "I told her  _the day before_  she went and screwed around with him! She  _knows_ how I feel! She  _knew_ I liked him! And she went and  _fucked him_  anyway!" Michael was silent for a moment before sighing. You looked at him when he reached over and grabbed your hand, holding it tightly on your lap.

"Nothing I say is going to make you feel better," he shook his head, squeezing your hand comfortingly, "But Friday after school, you, me, and Luke are gonna go to the arcade and you can beat your frustrations out on Whac-A-Mole." He smiled when you giggled softly, bringing your other arm up to wipe your cheeks.

"Thanks, Mikey," you whispered, making him squeeze your hand again, neither of you releasing your grips until he turned onto your street 10 minutes later.

He pulled into his regular parking spot in his driveway, squeezing your hand one more time before letting go to get out of the car.

"Thanks for the ride," you murmured, grabbing your backpack and slinging it back onto your shoulder.

You went to walk across the street to your own house, but Michael stopped you. He said your name as you reached the end of the driveway, making you look over at him. He had dropped his backpack beside the back wheel of the car, jogging over to you to envelope you in a tight hug. You happily accepted the gesture, wrapping your arms around him just as tightly.

"If you need anything, text me," he mumbled into your hair, feeling you nod in response. You smiled when he pressed a kiss to your forehead as he let go of you, both of you saying goodbye before you went across the street and walked inside your house.

~

_based on another dream i had (https://twitter.com/jamiesbirdshirt/status/996172201840832514)_


	526. Stroke of Luck (Calum Hood) - Part 2

_requested by 1-800-LET-ME-SLEEP on wattpad, and anonymous, lunalove25, cxddlyash, love-youu-softly, 5sos-ficssmut, nicole13letson, llcalumllhoodll, sunflowergif, yuki01, lilcurlygirl, and wannabeactress on tumblr_

~

**One month later**

It had been over a month since you last spoke to – or even  _looked at_  – Calum or Victoria. 

Calum would try to talk to you in homeroom or at lunch, but you ignored him, pretending he wasn't even there. Victoria had stopped sitting with you and the boys at lunchtime and seemingly just avoided being around you altogether – and when she couldn't, like in homeroom, she would sit on the opposite side of the room and pretend to be busy.

You'd heard people – mainly Michael and Luke – mention that Calum and Victoria had broken up not long after you went off on them, but you stopped listening to the conversation after that. You didn't  _care_ what either of them did anymore, to be honest.

Until Calum  _made you_  listen, of course.

It was just another Friday after school – you had finished getting all of your things into your backpack and started walking toward the student parking lot to wait at Michael's car for him. You'd been in a pretty good mood all day – finally starting to feel like  _yourself_ again after what happened with your  _ex_ -best friends – but you should have  _known_ it wouldn't last  _forever_.

You were suddenly surprised when you passed by someone at their locker, not realizing that someone was Calum until he slammed his locker door closed quickly and starting following you.

"Y/N, we need to talk," he said, earning an audible sigh from you so he knew you were annoyed by his presence.

"I'll pass," you stated, " _There_ – we talked. Have a nice weekend,  _Calum_."

"Y/N, I..." Calum sighed, "If I had known Victoria only got with me to make you mad, I never would have-"

"Doesn't matter anymore," you waved him off, "It's done."

"Y/N,  _please_ just let me-"

"You don't  _need_ to explain yourself," you shook your head, still not turning to look at him, " _You_ have Victoria, and  _I'll_ get over it." Having enough of you avoiding him, Calum grabbed your elbow and spun you around, pinning you up against the closest locker to you. " _Calum Hood_ , if you don't let go of me in the next two seconds,  _so help me God_ ," you growled.

"I  _know_ you know Victoria and I aren't together anymore," he told you just as lowly, "I  _know_ you know we broke up after Mike told me what happened." You grumbled again, but you should have  _known_ Michael would tell him why you'd gone off of him and his now ex-girlfriend. "But I didn't  _want her_ ," he said seriously, having no real way to ease into what he had to tell you, "I wanted  _you_."

"You wanted  _me_ , so you slept with my  _best friend_?!" you exclaimed softly as to not alert anyone around, ripping your arm out of his hand and  _shoving him_  away from you.

"We weren't at the mall  _together_! I didn't even know she was  _there_ until she approached me!" he said defensively, " _She_ came onto  _me_! What was I  _supposed_ to do?!"

" _Tell her no_!  _Push her away_!  _Make her leave_!" you shook your head again, "Not  _sleep with her_!"

"I didn't  _mean_ to-"

"Don't start that  _bullshit_ with me, Calum!" you demanded, "You don't just  _accidentally_ sleep with someone!"

"Y/N-"

" _Fuck you, Calum_ ," you hissed, pushing past him so you could continue where you were going before he'd stopped you. 

But he didn't let you leave.

The moment he caught himself from stumbling over when you shoved him, he wrapped his arms around your waist and pulled you back to him.

" _Calum_ ," you mumbled, still not wanting attention on you, " _Let go of me right now_."

"Not until you hear me out," he stated, to no avail. He felt you breathe in deeply – and he knew you well enough to know that was your way of telling him you were trying to remain calm.

"I want Michael..." you said under your breath, feeling Calum's body tense up, "Let go... I want Michael..."

"M- _Michael_?" he whispered,  _praying_ he hadn't heard you right. You tried to walk away from him again, but he wouldn't let go.

And you  _lost it_.

" _Let go, Calum_!  _I want Michael_!" you all but screamed, the break in your voice ringing loudly in his ears. The few students still scattered throughout the hallway look over to find you struggling to get away from Calum.

"Mike!" one of the kids at the end of the hallway hollered.

You couldn't see Michael, but you did see the kid motion toward you just before the blonde popped out from around the corner. And the expression on his face  _immediately_ turned sour when he saw you with Calum.

Upon noticing an  _angry_ -looking Michael now walking toward you, Calum had no choice but to release you. He watched as you hurried away from him, meeting Michael halfway down the hall.

The moment you were with him, your face was buried in his neck and his arms were around you, hugging you tightly. He saw Michael's mouth move to what appeared to be the words ' _Are you okay?_ ' as he rubbed your spine with his thumb, followed by your  _barely_ noticeable shake of the head.

Michael glanced back up, only to shoot a glare at Calum before turning back to you and murmuring something in your ear. When you lifted yourself off of him, he wrapped an arm around your waist and took you in the opposite direction, away from where Calum was still standing and watching you.


	527. Stroke of Luck (Calum Hood) - Part 3

_requested by anonymous, calumhoodslays, youngblood199456, i-opened-the-chamber-of-secrets, and art-ri-music on tumblr_ **  
**

~

**Two weeks later**

It had been two weeks since then and you'd spent a lot of that time in your own head. Calum hadn't come around much since you ran to Michael and, much like Victoria, didn't talk to you unless he  _absolutely had to_.

And as much as you  _hated him_  for what he put you through, you found yourself  _missing him_  more than you initially thought you would. Calum had been one of your best friends since freshman year, and you knew all of that wasn't going to just disappear when you stopped talking to him.

But you also had to remind yourself that Calum had  _no idea_  you had feelings for him before  _Michael_  told him why you were so hurt by him and Victoria being together. And it was  _that_  fact, combined with missing him, that made you want to  _finally_  talk to him again.

It was a late Saturday afternoon when you decided to face Calum again. You saw his sister drop him off at the house across the street, and had been trying to convince yourself to go over there for the last few  _hours_. And somewhere in the midst of it all, you finally forced your feet to take you there.

You knocked on the front door of Michael's house, bouncing slightly as you waited for someone to answer. Your heart felt like it was in your throat when you heard footsteps approaching the door.

"Hi, Y/N," Michael tilted his head, "What are you doing here? I thought I told you I was busy." He had told you he couldn't hang out that day, so he didn't expect to see you until tomorrow.

"I-I know..." you forced yourself to speak, "I just... I..." You sighed softly, deciding to just get straight to the point. "Where's Cal?" you murmured.

"Who?" Michael hummed.

" _Michael_ ," you rolled your eyes, "I know he's here."

" _How_?" he frowned.

"I saw Mali drop him off earlier..." you whispered, "And I know his cologne..." You looked down at your feet when your voice cracked – you didn't know  _why_ you were getting so emotional about his  _stupid smell_. Michael looked at you for a moment before he moved out of the way to let you inside.

"He's in my room," he informed you, "You can talk in there."

"Thanks, Mikey," you mumbled, smiling when he kissed the side of your head before you made your way to his bedroom.

Your heart was pounding in your chest as you got closer to the room and heard Calum rustling around on the other side of the wall. The door was open, so he must have heard someone approaching because he started speaking.

"Hey, Mike," Calum said, "Where's your clamp? I can't fi-" He cut himself short when he looked up, finding it wasn't  _Michael_  but  _you_ instead. " _Y/N_..." he swallowed thickly.

"Hi, Cal..." you whispered, your gaze averting to the guitar in his hand so you didn't have to look him in the eyes.

"Back to ' _Cal_ ' again? Not ' _Calum_ '?" he murmured, "Are we gonna talk now?" You barely nodded, but he could still tell what you were doing. "Y/N," Calum said to get you to look up, only continuing his statement when your eyes met his, "Come sit." He put his guitar on the floor propped up against Michael's desk, sitting beside you on the bed after you did. He looked at you and it was clear that he was waiting for you to speak first.

"I don't really know what to say," you admitted, looking down at your fingers as you played with them in your lap, "Didn't think I'd be brave enough to  _make it_  this far..."

"I'll start then," he said just as softly, "M'sorry about what happened at school the other day... I knew you'd come to me when you were  _ready_ , and I shouldn't have tried to  _force you_  to – especially not in front of  _everyone_... I guess I just wanted answers and it seemed like that was the only way I'd  _get them_..."

And since all he wanted was  _answers_ , you figured you could at least  _give them to him_.

"The day before you and Victoria...you know..." you trailed off, "I told her... I told her I liked you... I knew Michael and Luke would tell you and I... I didn't want  _you_  to find out, so... And I knew she could keep a secret – I just... I didn't think she'd do  _that_..."

"Why didn't you want me to know?" he asked timidly.

"Because we were just  _friends_ ," you let out a quiet whimper, "I was the one you went to when you wanted to talk about a girl and ask if I thought you should ask her out – not the girl you  _talked about_."

"I  _talk about you_ ," he admitted, making you look up at him, "I talk about you  _all the time_... My  _sister_  is just the one who has to  _hear it_..." He barely smiled when you chuckled under your breath. You looked down so he wouldn't see the tears welling up in your eyes, but he still noticed.

Calum slowly brought his hands up, not wanting to scare you. He looked at you with a fond expression as he put his hands on your face, tilted your head back up, and wiped the tears from your cheekbones. You sat in silence for a moment, just looking at each other, before he gained the courage to speak again.

"Y/N..." Calum murmured, "Can I...kiss you...?"

" _Please_..." you breathed out.

So he  _did_.

Calum's lips hit yours and you felt your  _entire_ body heat up. You let out a small sigh, feeling him smile as you kissed him back.

You didn't  _want_ to pull away, but you desperately needed to breathe. You could still feel his warm breath on your lips as his forehead rested on yours, both of you trying to process that it  _wasn't_ a dream this time.

"Y/N..." he said softly, earning a light hum in response. "I really didn't  _mean_  for all this to happen..." he shook his head, his thumbs now stroking your cheekbones, "You  _have to_  believe me when I tell you that I  _never_  would have gotten with Victoria if I  _knew_  how you felt... When Mike told me what you said to him, I asked her if it was true... And I broke up with her when she said it  _was_ – when I found out she was just  _using me_... I don't know  _why_  she did what she did, but I... I  _promise_  I'd never  _intentionally_ hurt you like that..."

You exhaled sharply and swallowed the lump in your throat before moving your head back to look at him properly. His hands fell from your face and onto your lap, where he then moved his forearms to rest on your thighs so they could hold your hips. Your own hand came up as well, your fingers barely pushing his hair out of his eyes before letting it slide to his cheek, stroking his own cheekbone like he'd done with yours.

"I know, Cal," you assured him, earning yourself a bright smile that you weren't even given the chance to admire before his lips were back on yours. You let out a muffled giggle, feeling him squeeze your sides.

But your moment was soon interrupted.

" _Alright_!" Michael suddenly came into the room, making you and Calum jump as your heads snapped over to look at him in the doorway, "I'll let you use my room to  _make up_ , but I  _draw the line_ at using it to  _make out_!" You couldn't help but giggle again, hearing Calum smile as his arms wrapped around your waist and his chin found a resting place on your shoulder.

"Sorry, Mikey," you smiled shyly.

"Yeah," Calum chuckled, "Sorry, Mike." There was a small smile on his face as he watched the two of you, happy his best friends had  _finally_  made up.

"You know," Michael said, "I just remembered I have to... Uh... I have to do cleaning, so... I think we're gonna have to reschedule today, Cal."

"You have to ' _do cleaning_ '?" Calum chuckled again with an eye roll.

"The  _last time_  someone lied to me, it  _didn't go well_ , Michael," you reminded him.

" _Fine_ ," he rolled his own eyes, "I'm just going to stay home and play video games in my underwear for the rest of the day, but  _you two_  are going out on a date tonight."

" _Are we_?" Calum smirked, glancing at you. You sighed dramatically.

"I mean, I  _guess_  I could try to find some time in my schedule for it," you shook your head, squealing when you felt Calum start poking at your stomach. He didn't say anything as he finally stopped, but he did get up, lean back down to you, and pick you up to throw you over his shoulder. " _Cal_!" you exclaimed, only receiving laughs from both boys in response. Calum reached over to grab his guitar with one hand and made sure his grip on you was firm with the other so you didn't fall.

"Later, Mike," he said as he passed him and walked into the hallway.

"Bye, Mikey!" you called out, hearing him laugh as Calum turned the corner to leave the house.

 


	528. Stroke of Luck (Calum Hood) - Part 3: Alternate Ending

_requested by 1-800-LET-ME-SLEEP and bandshirthoarder on wattpad, and calumhoodslays and anonymous on tumblr_

~

**Three months later; Saturday afternoon**

" _Michael Clifford_!" you squealed loudly, " _Don't you dare_!"

You jumped up off of your bed and tried to run away from him, but Michael caught your waist before you were out of arms reach. One of his arms wrapped around you and pulled you back onto the mattress so you were resting against on his chest while the other hand landed on your stomach, tickling you relentlessly.

" _Mikey_!" you began laughing involuntarily.

"Yes, Y/N?" Michael smirked.

"S-St- _Stop_!"

"Stop  _what_?" he continued on, smiling at the sound of your laughter, "I'm not sure I know what you're talking about."

" _Michael_!" you begged, " _Please_!"

"Fine," he chuckled, ceasing his hand's movement on your stomach but not releasing his grip on your waist, "But only because you're so cute."

" _Whatever_ ," you giggled, wiping the laughter-induced tears from your cheeks, "You're not so bad-looking yourself."

"You're right; I'm the hottest guy this world has ever  _seen_."

"You're certainly  _something_ , Mikey," you snorted softly.

Michael watched you intently – which wasn't  _new_ , but it always had you wondering what was going on his head. You usually kept quiet during one of his trances, but something about this one – something about the way the wheels in his head were clearly turning – made you speak up.

" _Mikey_ ," you sang softly, reaching up and poked his cheek. He shook his head slightly, coming back to reality to find your eyebrows raised as you moved back to sit beside him and look at him properly. "You okay?" you asked.

"Mhmm," he hummed with a nod – though you obviously did  _believe him_ , "So... Are you going to that senior dance?"

"I dunno," you shrugged, "Been thinking about it."

"Well... Do you... If you want to... We could...go together..."

"We go to  _all_  the dances together," you reminded him, your confusion about his behavior only growing when he let out a sharp sigh.

"That's... That's not what I meant..." he cleared his throat, "I mean... Are you... Do you... Would you want to...be...my... _date_..?"

"I thought only people with boyfriends and girlfriends went to dances with dates," you couldn't help but snort again softly. Michael forced out a laugh.

"Yeah..." he whispered, "I guess they do... Well... I'll see you on Monday..." Michael got up to leave your house, but your voice stopped him.

"So I guess you better decide where you're taking me on our first date!" you called after him. You heard him stop abruptly before timid footsteps came back toward your bedroom door.

"W- _What_?" he asked so lowly that you almost didn't hear it. You could  _see_  his breathing hitch when you smiled at him.

"I said you better decide where you're taking me on our first date," you repeated, feeling just as confident the second time around.

"Y-You  _want_  to go out with me?" he swallowed.

You patted the spot beside you on the bed, urging Michael to come sit back down. He –  _sheepishly_  – did so, and put his hands in his lap playing with his fingers. You watched him for a few seconds, admiring the light blush on his cheeks.

"Mikey," you said gently, making him look up at you so you'd continue, "Why  _wouldn't_  I want to go out with you?"

"Because I... You and Calum..." he mumbled, "I didn't think you would wanna..."

"Well, I  _do_  wanna," you shook your head.

"But I... I thought you weren't over him yet... A-And they broke up and he knows you like him now and you said he told you he wished Victoria was you and... He's gonna ask you out finally and you're gonna say yes and then I'm gonna... M'gonna look like an  _idiot_  when you pick him over me 'cause you've liked him for  _so long_  and he was the one who introduced us and you were friends  _way_  before  _I_  came along and-"

"I  _liked_  him," you interrupted softly. Michael looked at you as he swallowed the lump in his throat but didn't say anything, so you continued talking. "Maybe I  _am_  still upset over it," you shook your head again with another shrug, "But Calum's had a million chances with me since the moment he started feeling that way, and he  _didn't take them_. And that's no one's fault but his own. I got over Calum –  _just_  like I said I would. And I'd be  _crazy_  not to give the guy who listened to me cry over him at 2am or came over and forced me out of bed to have cartoon marathons on the weekends to distract me or bought me ice cream when I saw something that reminded me of him and starting feeling sad about it a chance. You helped put me back together when I thought I was too broken to be fixed, and I can't thank you  _enough_  for that, Michael."

"I  _did_?" he asked lowly after staring at you in awe for a solid 20 seconds.

"You  _did_ ," you confirmed.

"A-Are you sure you're not still-"

"I  _could_ go with Calum instead if you want me to," you stated, only to squeak in surprise when Michael's arm came up, wrapped around your shoulders, and pulled you closer to him. His lips landed on your forehead while you moved to wrap your own arms around his waist and holding him tightly.

" _Don't_  want you to," he muttered into your skin, letting you feel him smile when you laughed.

You laid your head on his shoulder, tilting it so you were looking up at him. You admired him briefly before surprising him by reaching up and kissing the corner of his mouth.

"Thank you, Mikey," you whispered, earning yourself another smile.

"Don't thank me," he responded by kissing your nose, "D'do  _anything_ for you."

~

**Monday morning**

You were sitting with Michael and Luke at your usual table in the cafeteria during breakfast – Luke sitting across from you and Michael obviously beside you. Things were, of course, a little different now with Calum and Victoria no longer spending much time with the three of you anymore. You weren't going to say you didn't miss them but, even though it had been three months and like you'd told Michael, you were still in the process of moving on.

But that didn't mean you were still hung up on Calum.

The warning bell for homeroom sounded throughout the school, and the students still in the cafeteria started getting up to leave. You threw your trash from breakfast away, and your small group began making your way to homeroom. You were in the middle of Michael and Luke, walking down the long hallway, when you felt something hit your right hand.

You were talking to Luke at the time, but you felt yourself trying not to smile when Michael's fingers nudged you again. In a random burst of courage, you moved your arm behind his and laced your fingers together without deviating from your conversation with the boy on your left. You noticed Michael smile softly out of the corner of your eye, making you squeeze his hand in response to let him know you saw it.

And you weren't shy about holding his hand in homeroom either.

You were both sitting at your usual desks, Michael and Luke beside each other while you sat in front of Michael. Your hand was on top of his desk, his hand in yours while he played with the hair tie on your wrist with his other hand.

Luke was unfazed by yours and Michael's sudden affection toward each other – those boys couldn't keep a secret from each other if their lives depended on it, so you weren't at all surprised to find out that Michael had told Luke about the two of you when he was over at his house the previous day.

Who  _did_ seem surprised by the affection, however, was the boy watching you from his desk across the room.

Much like Victoria, Calum had stopped sitting with you in homeroom as well – though he certainly wasn't sitting with  _her_ after finding out she only got with him to make you mad. His face was clearly showing how hurt he was – Michael  _knew_ how he felt about you and  _so did you_ , so he  _never_ thought the two of you would get  _together_.

But, to be honest, you didn't care what  _Calum_ thought anymore.

Because, by some miracle or divine intervention or  _stroke of luck_ , you were into Michael and Michael was into you – and you were  _finally_ happier than you'd ever been.


	529. A Christmas Miracle (Calum Hood)

"Your phone is all charged up, right, Mummy?" your 7-year-old son asked you from the backseat.

"Yes, baby," you laughed lightly, flipping on your turn signal before making a right turn, "And it will  _still_ be charged no matter  _how many_  times you ask me on the way to school."

"I just don't want it to die in the middle of the  _play_!" Kaiden insisted.

Being in the military, Calum was obviously unable to attend the music programs and school plays that your son had been in since he started school two years ago. This year, he'd been given the lead role in the Christmas program and he was  _intent_ on not letting his father miss it, asking you film the  _entire thing_  on your phone so you could email it to Calum.

However, there was  _one_ little detail you hadn't mentioned to him.

Calum had been given a 30-day leave from duty to spend the second week of December through the first week of January with his family for the holidays. You knew you wanted to surprise your son the moment he told you, and since Calum had found out after Thanksgiving, you – and Kaiden's teacher – hatched a plan.

You knew your son was going to ask you to film his program – as he did  _every single time_  – and since he was playing the part of a soldier coming home for Christmas, it was the perfect time to surprise him. You – with the help of Kaiden's teacher – were able to find a uniform for him online that would customize the name tag on the jacket as well as add any medals onto it. Of course, you made it look like an  _exact replica_  of Calum's, and the moment Kaiden saw it, he started crying. You knew how hard it was on him not having his dad around as often as he wanted, and even though Calum would only be there for a month, you knew this would mean the  _world_ to him.

The moment you got to the school, you and Kaiden got out of the car and you fixed his uniform before going inside. It wasn't until you were putting the hat on his head that you realized just how much he looked like his father, making you smile softly as he took your hand and pulled you toward the doors, not stopping until you reached the cafeteria.

" _Gramma_!" Kaiden beamed, releasing your hand and running over to Calum's parents.

"Oh, honey,  _look at you_!" Joy smiled, happily wrapping her arms around him as he hugged her waist, "Is  _this_ that outfit you didn't want us to see until today?"

"I look like  _Daddy_!" he giggled, grasping onto David's shirt when he lifted him up.

"You sure do, bud!" he grinned, "Bet Daddy'll  _melt_ seeing you in this."

"Uh-huh!" Kaiden chirped, "Mummy's gonna film the  _whole play_  and Daddy's gonna get to watch it!"

"That's great, honey," Joy ruffled the 7-year-old's hair after David put him back on his feet.

"C'mon, Kai," you said, holding your hand out to him, "You've gotta get to the music room so you can get ready and so Mummy,  Gramma, and Grampa can find our seats." 

The little boy took your hand and let you take him out of the cafeteria and down the hallway to the music room. He kissed you goodbye and you told him to have fun before making your way back to the cafeteria to meet with David and Joy again.

"So he doesn't know?" David asked you as you all sat down at a table near the middle of the room.

"No idea," you grinned, happy you were able to keep the surprise from Kaiden.

~

An hour later, the play was over and you watched on proudly as all the kids were getting applause from their parents. Kaiden's teacher – Mr. Moore – came up onstage to  _finally_ reveal your surprise.

"Great job, kids," Mr. Moore smiled, looking back at the kids for a brief moment before turning back to the crowd of people, "I'd like to start off by thanking all of you for coming and for taking the time to allow your kids to stay after school to prepare for this play. We do have one more quick thing to share with you all, but I'm gonna need a special kid to come help me with it." He turned back to the kids behind him, looking right at your son. "C'mere, Kai," Mr. Moore motioned for him to join him in front of everyone. Kaiden trotted up to his side, leaning into him when he wrapped his arm around his shoulders. "As I'm sure most of you know, Kaiden's father Calum was unable to be here because of his  _own_ duty in the army," Mr. Moore told the group of parents and other family members, "We were really happy to give him the role of the soldier in today's program, and we know it was important to both him  _and_ his dad. We're incredibly grateful for the sacrifices he makes every single day as well as the ones his family make here at home without him. While we  _usually_ aren't able to work miracles at this school, we thought that the only  _appropriate_ way to close today's program was to welcome Army Master Sergeant Calum Hood home." Kaiden's eyes widened as he looked up at his teacher, but they quickly snapped back over to the entrance as Calum walked into the room with a smile on his face.

" _Daddy_!" Kaiden shouted as everyone began clapping, running over to the side of the stage and allowing Calum to reach up and bring him down to him. His arms and legs were wrapped tightly around him, making you smile as you continued recording. 

You couldn't help but tear up along with some of the other audience members – both at Kaiden's reaction  _and_ the fact that you were  _finally_ seeing your husband in person after over a year. David then reached over, taking your phone from your hand and using his other to nudge you out of your seat. You laughed lightly, sniffling and wiping your face with your sleeve, as you got up and hurried toward the front of the room.

Calum noticed movement out of the corner of his eye, making him look over. He smiled widely as you came up to them, one arm releasing Kaiden so he could wrap it around your waist.

"Hey, baby girl," he murmured with a grin, pressing his lips to yours, " _God_ , I've missed being able to do this." Your own arm moved up to rest on his shoulder, your hand gripping the back of his neck and lightly tugging on his hair.

"Got  _a lot_  to make up for this month then," you whispered back, letting him feel your smile.

"I plan to," he returned, squeezing both you  _and_ your son.


	530. Sing to Me (Trevor Collins)

"Y/N Y/L/N," someone came up to you, "You're up." Your eyes widened at the sight of the  _America's Got Talent_  crew member, your legs seemingly refusing to carry you anywhere.

You heard a small chuckle beside you and then felt them take your hand. You looked over to find your best friend grinning at you.

"You're gonna be  _fine_ ," Trevor assured you, "And if you  _don't_ make it through – even though I know you  _will_ – there's nothing to worry about. I'll still be proud of you no matter what." You let out the breath you were holding as your body finally relaxed, squeezing Trevor's hand as you followed the crew member to the stage.

You talked with Tyra for a few seconds before she handed you a microphone given to her by a different crew member and sent you out onstage. You took another deep breath, letting it out slowly. Your legs managed to work that time, allowing you to walk to your spot where you'd introduce yourself to the judges.

"Hello," Simon greeted you when the cheers behind him died down, "What's your name? Where are you from?"

"My name's Y/N Y/L/N and I'm from (your city, state)," you answered, surprised your voice was even still  _working_. You laughed lightly when a few people in the audience cheered again.

"And who have you brought with you today, Y/N?" Heidi asked, "Anyone here to watch your audition?"

"My best friend Trevor," you smiled, looking over at him. He stuck his tongue out at you, succeeding in making you laugh, as you turned back to the judges.

"What are you planning on doing for us today?" Mel questioned.

"I'll be singing," you informed everyone.

"And what will you be singing?"

" _Can't Help Falling in Love_  by Elvis Presley," you said confidently.

" _Ooh_ ," Heidi grinned, "Are you singing it for someone... _special_?" You noticed her gaze flick between you and the man standing side-stage with Tyra.

"No," you laughed lightly, "It's just one of my favorite songs."

"Well, go for it!" Howie ushered you to begin your performance. You smiled again, moving back to the microphone stand.

You put the mic in its holder, taking a deep breath as a hush fell over the room. Your fingers wrapped around the pole of the stand, gripping it tightly. You looked over at Trevor one more time. He gave you a nod and a small smile – like he was assuring you that you'd be okay – so you took a deep breath and  _went for it_.

 _Wise men say only fools rush in_  
But I can't help falling in love with you  
Shall I stay? Would it be a sin  
If I can't help falling in love with you?

 _Like a river flows surely to the sea_  
Darling, so it goes  
Some things are meant to be  
Take my hand, take my whole life too  
For I can't help falling in love with you  
For I can't help falling in love with you

~

**Two hours later**

"I feel like I'm gonna  _throw up_!" you threw yourself onto your hotel room bed.

"Just make sure you reach a trashcan or a toilet or  _something_ first," Trevor mentioned, "I am  _not_ cleaning  _that_ mess up – even if you  _did_ get four yeses."

" _Whatever_ ," you rolled your eyes fondly, shoving his thigh with the back of your hand when he sat down beside your hip.

"You wanna order room service?" he asked, scooting back on the bed so he was leaning up against the headboard, "Or we could go out and eat."

"Room service is too  _expensive_ here," you sighed, pushing yourself up so you could sit beside him, "And I don't  _really_ wanna go out."

"Compromise then," he grinned at you, "How about a pizza?"

" _Now_ you're speaking my language," you giggled.

"Usual place?" he asked, "Same toppings?" You nodded your head slightly, laying it back on the headboard behind you so you could watch him. 

You listened to him order the pizza, never taking your eyes off of his face. When he was finished with the call, he spoke before looking at you.

"They'll be here in about 15 minutes," he informed you. He finally turned his head, finding you staring at him intently. "Why're you lookin' at me like that?" he chuckled shyly, "Something on my face?" You barely smiled at him.

"Thanks for bringing me here, Trev," you said softly.

"Come on, Y/N – it was no problem," he put his hand on your thigh, patting it gently before putting it back on his own lap, "I'm glad I got to experience it with you  _firsthand_ instead of watching it on  _TV_. And speaking of which: you never  _did_ tell me why you picked that song."

"I just like it," you shrugged, your voice still low, "Wanted to sing it." It was then that Trevor cleared his throat lightly, hesitating for a moment before looking back up at you.

"You know... When Heidi asked if you were ' _singing for someone special_ ', I saw her look at me..." he told you, "Kinda said no pretty  _fast_ , didn't you?"

"We're just  _friends_ , Trev," you reminded him, swallowing lightly.

"Yeah... We  _are_..." he seemed so lost in thought, "Still wish you  _were_ singing it for me though..." Your heart skipped a beat, and you'd be surprised if he couldn't hear how hard it was pounding against your chest.

"Trevor..." you whispered, "What... What are you saying...?"

"I don't know  _what_ I'm saying," he admitted, breathing out sharply, "I guess... Having Heidi ask if you were singing for someone and then seeing you perform as if you  _were_ thinking about someone... I don't know... I was thinking that whoever you were imagining was incredibly  _lucky_ to have you feel that way about them but I was also... I guess I felt kinda  _jealous_ that you weren't thinking about  _me_ and-"

You were still for a moment but when finally regained your composure, you bravely leaned toward him to cut off his rambling. Your lips hit the corner of his mouth – instantly making him stop talking – but you were already pulling away before he could respond. You looked back down at your lap, nervously awaiting for what he'd say or do.

And, if you were being  _totally honest_  with yourself, you weren't  _that_ surprised by his reaction.

Trevor's hand came into your view, landing on the cheek opposite of him. He then turned your head to face him again, his lips immediately meeting yours. You couldn't help your natural reaction to the kiss: sighing softly and wasting no time in kissing him back.

You felt a small smile pull at the corner of his mouth as his other hand landed on the bed right beside your upper thigh. Your own hand found his almost instantly, starting out by laying on top of it but Trevor quickly laced your fingers together and squeezed you gently, feeling your own grin in return.

When he finally pulled away to breathe, his forehead landing on yours. Neither of you spoke for a few seconds, both of you just taking in the moment.

" _Were you_  singing it for me?" Trevor mumbled softly, earning himself a shy nod from you. "Why'd you say ' _no_ ' then?" he wondered, opening his eyes to look at you, "Why'd you tell everyone it was just because you like the song?"

"'Cause I..." you swallowed thickly, "If I said that, I thought you'd only say the same just because there were a bunch of people and cameras there and you felt like you  _had to_... And if you  _didn't_ feel the same, then I would have looked like an  _idiot_ and I-" Trevor cut you off by tilting his head and letting his lips hit yours again.

"You  _always_ look like an idiot," he told you.

" _Trevor_ ," you whined, making him laugh.

"Doesn't mean my feelings changed," he stated seriously, feeling you sigh in relief as he kissed you again.

However, you were interrupted again by sudden knock at the door that made Trevor sigh deeply.

"Forgot about that," he grumbled into your mouth, listening to you giggle as he pulled away, already taking his wallet out to pay the pizza delivery girl.

~

_song used: "Can't Help Falling in Love" by Elvis Presley_


	531. Try Hard (Harry Styles)

"I can't go out there and sing one of  _his_ songs!" you covered your face with your hands. You were preparing yourself to go onstage for the last taping before the live shows and you'd been internally arguing with yourself all day over whether or not you could  _actually_ do it now.

"Y/N, you've been practicing this song since  _before_ you found out he was the guest judge!" your sister reminded you, "And what are you supposed to do anyway, just go out and sing a  _different_ song?"

"They'll think I'm  _trying too hard_!" you insisted, looking up at her. She sighed softly when she noticed the tears in your eyes.

"Maybe they  _will_ ," she shook her head, "But that'll  _change_ once you start singing."

"Y/N Y/L/N," a producer came up to you, "You're up next." You and your sister stood up, both of you grabbing for the other's hand at the same time. You squeezed her as you followed the producer to the stage to wait for your turn.

When it was finally your turn to go onstage, your sister hugged you tightly, reminding you that everything would be okay, before she was whisked away to the seat in the crowd where she'd have a camera on her. You nodded, took a deep breath, took the microphone a stagehand was holding out to you, and  _went for it_.

The crowd cheered, making you smile shyly as you went to your designated spot on the stage in front of the judges. You felt like your heart was going to beat out of your chest when you looked at the table and  _Harry Styles_  smiled at you.

"Hello, Y/N!" Heidi chirped, "It's good to see you again!"

"Hello," you swallowed, earning curious looks from the judges.

"You seem nervous," Howie pointed out.

"A little," you admitted.

"Are you alright?" Mel wondered, "I don't remember you being this nervous at your first audition."

"It's  _me_ , isn't it?" Harry pouted, making you giggle and relax – if only a  _little_.

"Kinda," you replied, deciding not to lie to him.

"Maybe you'll feel better when you start singing," Heidi said, "What will you be doing for us today?" You took another deep breath, letting it out sharply.

" _Where Do Broken Hearts Go_  by One Direction," you informed everyone. You could see Harry cock an eyebrow, making you grip your microphone tightly.

"How long have you been preparing for this audition?" Simon asked.

"Um... Since my last one  _ended_..."

"So  _before_ Harry got here," Mel said, earning a small nod.

"Yes, ma'am," you replied softly.

"Well, show off for us, Y/N," Howie gave you the floor. You laughed under your breath, waiting for the track to start before you let yourself go.

 _Counted all my mistakes and there's only one_  
Standing out from the list of the things I've done  
All the rest of my crimes don't come close  
To the look on your face when I let you go

 _So I built you a house from a broken home_  
And I wrote you a song with the words you spoke  
It took me some time, but I figured out  
How to fix up a heart that I let down

 _Now I'm searching every lonely place_  
Every corner, calling out your name  
Try to find you, but I just don't know  
Where do broken hearts go  
Where do broken hearts go

 _Yeah, the taste of your lips on the tip of my tongue_  
Is at the top of the list of the things I want  
Mind is running in circles of you and me  
Anyone in between is the enemy

 _Shadows come with the pain that you're running from_  
Love was something you never heard enough  
It took me some time, but I figured out  
How to fix up a heart that I let down

 _Now I'm searching every lonely place_  
Every corner, calling out your name  
Try to find you, but I just don't know  
Where do broken hearts go

 _Are you sleeping, baby, by yourself?_  
Or are you giving it to someone else?  
Try to find you, but I just don't know  
Where do broken hearts go  
Where do broken hearts go

 _Tell me now, tell me now_  
Tell me where you go when you feel afraid?  
Tell me now, tell me now  
Tell me will you ever love me again, love me again?

 _Now I'm searching every lonely place_  
Every corner, calling out your name  
Try to find you, but I just don't know  
Where do broken hearts go

 _Are you sleeping, baby, by yourself_  
Or are you giving it to someone else?  
Try to find you, but I just don't know  
Where do broken hearts go

 _Tell me where you're hiding now_  
Where do broken hearts go?  
Come on, baby, 'cause I need you now  
Where do broken hearts go?  
Tell me, 'cause I'm ten feet down  
Where do broken hearts go?

 _Come on, baby, come and get me out_  
Come on, baby, come and get me out  
Come on, baby, 'cause I need you now

 _Where do broken hearts go?_  
Where do broken hearts go?  
Where do broken hearts go?  
Where do broken hearts go?

The crowd cheered wildly as the song ended, making you grin. Your chest was visibly rising and falling as you eyed the judges carefully, trying to see if you could sense the direction this would go.

"You amaze me  _every time_  you open your mouth," Heidi gushed, causing you to smile again.

"You have this  _control_  over your voice and I think that's not something that can be  _learned_ ," Mel shook her head, "I think you just have to  _have it_ , and you  _definitely_ have it."

"Thank you," you breathed out, now anxiously waiting for the men to speak.

"You're just  _so_ incredible," Howie told you. You simply laughed again, wiping the stray tears you felt rolling down your cheek at the fact that someone actually enjoyed your performance  _that_ much.

"I really  _do_ look forward to hearing you sing," Simon nodded, "I can't wait to hear what you do next if you make it to the next round."

"Harry," Mel looked over at him, "What did you think of that performance?"

"It's difficult hearing other people do your songs sometimes-" His words made your heart drop slightly –  _did he not like it?_  "-because we worked  _incredibly hard_ on that song, and you came out and made it sound so  _effortless_  to do," he went on, "And there are really no ' _if_ 's in my mind about whether or not you're  _making it_  to the live shows." Harry smiled at you and your heart skipped a beat, watching him waste no time in putting his hand in front of him and hitting the golden buzzer.

You obviously let out a short scream, jumping up and down a couple times before your legs gave out on you. You dropped to the floor, putting your face in your palms as the confetti fell down around you. The room was full of cheers and applause while the judges watched you with smiles on their faces.

Your sister screamed from her own seat, not even wasting a moment before she was running to the stage. She was on her knees the moment she reached you, wrapping her arms around your neck and hugging you as tightly as she ever had before. You didn't hug her back, but you  _did_  lean into her so she knew you appreciated the gesture. But you were soon interrupted by feeling another hand land on your upper back.

"Come on," you heard Harry's smile, "I want a hug too."

He helped you to your feet, chuckling when you instantly wrapped your arms around his torso, holding onto him for dear life, and he hugged you back just as tightly.

"You were  _incredible_ ," he told you, "And m' _not_  just saying that because it's  _my_  song." He grinned when he felt you laugh softly, each of you squeezing each other before letting go.

"Thank you," you breathed, wiping the tears off of your face while Harry gave your sister a quick hug too.

"You're welcome," he turned back to you with a smile still plastered on his face, "I can't wait to follow the show and see what  _more_ you can do."

~

_Song used: "Where Do Broken Hearts Go" by One Direction_

_inspiration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GONQMhvUO1s_


	532. Sweet Revenge (Trevor Collins)

"Hey, Y/N!" you heard a muffled British accent behind you as someone poked your shoulder to get your attention. You looked over and found three of the Achievement Hunters standing there, looking at you.

"What are you guys doing...?" you asked slowly, taking off your headphones and letting them lay around your neck. You knew it was never a good sign when Gavin and Michael were being followed by a cameraman – in this case, Ryan – so whatever was about to happen wasn't going to end well for  _whoever_ their victim was.

"Nothin'," Gavin smiled innocently, but you saw right through it.

"I've been working here long enough to know that that's bullshit," you reminded him, "So what are you doing?" The comment made the three men chuckle as Ryan spoke up.

"Where's Trevor?" he asked, not really answering your question – but at least you had a  _pretty good idea_  of who their target was now.

"In a meeting, I think."

"Do you know when he'll be back?"

"Well... He left like, 20 minutes ago, so... I don't know," you shrugged, "Half an hour, maybe."

Ryan then looked at Michael and Gavin, "We've got time."

"Time  _for_...?" you cocked an eyebrow.

"You remember when Trevor put crushed up Smarties on my desk?" Gavin asked to which you nodded, "Well, I thought it was time to repay him." You leaned closer to them so you could see in the bucket he was holding, your eyes widening slightly.

"How long did that  _take you_?" you wondered.

"A  _while_ ," Michael answered.

"Okay... Well..." you trailed off, "Just don't get any of it on my stuff." They laughed again, nodding in confirmation before getting to work.

~

**45 minutes later**

By the time Trevor came back into the office, the AH crew was long gone.

Well...  _Sort of_.

Gavin was hiding behind one of the desks facing the doorway, his phone out of immediate sight in order to get Trevor's reaction to the prank on camera. And the moment he walked into the room, everyone held their breaths as he turned the corner. As soon as he saw his desk, everyone burst out laughing at the shocked and confused grin on his face.

" _What_?" he asked no one in particular.

He looked around the room to find the smiles of awe on everyone's faces while you were just staring at his desk,  _still_ trying to figure out how they managed to contain it to only Trevor's space and not get a  _single spec_  of Smarties dust on your own belongings. It was when he looked at you that he noticed something suspicious out of the corner of his eye, finally looking over to where Gavin was hiding.

" _Gavin_!" he exclaimed with another small laugh.

"Do you like your present, Trevor?" Gavin asked cheekily, standing up and walking over to him.

"I should have  _known_ it was you!" he shook his head.

"Consider it a ' _thank you_ ' for that time  _you_ left Smarties on  _my_ desk."

"You mean the time I left an  _unopened_ pack of Smarties on top of your keyboard?" Trevor smiled as he cocked an eyebrow. Gavin paused for a moment.

"Is  _that_ what you did?" he furrowed his own eyebrows, making everyone in the room laugh.

~

**30 minutes later**

Trevor, Gavin, and a few others screwed around a little bit before leaving to get back to work. Trevor obviously had to clean up his desk before he could do anything, apparently deciding to make small talk while he did so.

"Surprised nothing got on your desk, Y/N," he mentioned, but you hadn't heard him completely since you'd gone back to editing a while ago. You  _did_ hear your name though, so you turned your head to find Trevor glancing at you.

"Hmm?" you hummed, pulling your headphones down to your neck again.

"Said I'm surprised none of this got on your desk too," he repeated, pushing the Smarties powder into the trashcan he was holding below the edge of the desk.

"Made  _sure_ they didn't get any of it on my stuff," you shrugged.

"Wait, so you were  _here_ when they did it?" Trevor asked you, "And you  _let it_  happen?" His tone wasn't accusatory, but he was  _definitely_ acting like you had a  _final say_  on whether or not Gavin should have pranked him.

"What  _else_ was I supposed to do?" you returned defensively.

" _Stop them_!"

"I wasn't hired to keep people from fucking with you, Trevor," you reminded him, rolling your eyes.

Everyone around snorted softly as you turned back to your desk. You started saving the work you'd finished so far,  _knowing_ Trevor wasn't going to drop it and you just  _didn't_ want to hear it anymore.

"Then what  _were_ you hired for?" he scoffed.

"Apparently, to be  _bitched at_  by you all day for never doing anything  _right_ ," you shot back without hesitation, making him cock an eyebrow. You then grabbed your laptop and got up, pushing your chair up to your desk and leaving the room to finish editing somewhere else.

~

**Two hours later**

You were still sitting outside underneath a tree on the on the other side of the parking lot from the building. You had your headphones on as you edited, so you understandably didn't notice when someone came outside and started making their way to you. It wasn't until they stopped in just the right place that a shadow was cast in your peripheral vision, making you look up.

Trevor had his hands in his pockets with his head down, but he didn't look at you just yet. It wasn't until he removed his hands from the pockets, placing them in his lap as he sat down diagonal from you, that he met your gaze. His eyes flicked between yours and your headphones and you knew what he wanted. You sighed to yourself – though he still heard it – and pulled them down to hang from your neck.

"Hi, Y/N," Trevor murmured.

"Hi," you returned, an unamused tone in your voice due to  _him_ of all people being the one to ruin your peace and quiet.

"I, um..." he trailed off before clearing his throat and continuing, "Do I really bitch at you  _that_ often...?" You returned your gaze back down, looking at the fingers on your keyboard for a moment before barely nodding.

"Yeah..." you whispered back, hoping your voice wasn't coming out as shaky as it sounded to you.

"I'm sorry," he replied softly, making you look back up at him, "I don't mean to... I didn't realize I was... I wasn't inten-"

"Trevor," you said, making him stop and look at you. You gave him a soft smile, seeing his chest fall as he breathed out. "S'fine," you told him.

"If it was  _fine_ , you wouldn't have gotten  _mad_ ," he pointed out.

You let out a breathy laugh, "Got me there."

"You... You know you're my favorite person, right?" he admitted softly, "I don't  _wanna_ be the reason you're mad."

"I  _am_?" you whispered, breathing out shakily.

"Well,  _yeah_ ," he chuckled nervously, reaching up to scratch the back of his neck, "You're the only one who understands my ' _nerdy_ ' jokes  _and_ you're the only one who can come up with something even  _nerdier_ to say back. I know we don't really talk much outside of work, but I... I really  _like_ being around you..."

You didn't know what to say for a moment, truthfully taken aback by Trevor's statement. But when you  _did_ finally speak again, it made his heart skip a beat.

"I like being around you  _too_ , Trevor," you admitted in a shy whisper.

It seemed like the sentiment caught him off guard when he just stared at you for a moment before saying the only thing that could come to his mind.

"M'sorry..." he said for a second time.

"It's okay," you assured him.

"S'not  _okay_ ," he insisted, "Just want you to  _forgive me_."

"I  _do_ ," you barely nodded, earning yourself a smile. The mood around you shifted to a happier one as Trevor perked up.

"Have I taught you how to edit those singing sequences in  _Minecraft_ yet?" he asked, making you shake your head, a confused smile on your face as you wondered where he was going with this. "Well, come over here and  _strap on in_!" he announced, spreading his legs out in front of him while still keeping them crossed.

You giggled softly, moving to sit on in the space in front of him. You put your laptop on your lap while he unplugged your headphones so you could both hear the footage, and he then wrapped his arms around your waist, letting his forearms rest on your thighs so he could get started with the lesson.

And you didn't know what changes were in store for the two of you, but as he rested his chin on your shoulder and you leaned back against his chest, you figured it wasn't going to be  _too bad_.

~

_inspiration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDdXHNy-tjA_


	533. Proud (Ashton Irwin)

**Samantha's POV; Friday evening**

" _Sammi_ ," the brunette's best friend sang, waving her hand in front of her face, " _Earth to Sammi_." Samantha shook her head as if she were shaking herself out of her daydream, her eyes meeting the concerned ones of the girl sitting on the bed next to her. "You okay?" Janelle asked.

"Fine," she nodded, "Just... Thinking about school..."

" _Samantha_ ," Janelle rolled her eyes, "We've been friends since we were in our mum's  _wombs_ ; You should know by now that you _can't_  lie to me."

Samantha rolled her eyes playfully, "Sometimes I wish our dads  _weren't_ in that band together."

"Yeah, but that was a  _million_ years ago anyway," she shrugged, earning herself a laugh, "Seriously though – what's wrong?" Samantha sighed softly, remaining silent for a moment.

"Just the  _usual_ stuff, I guess," she murmured, "Dad was too busy with  _whatever_ to even say ' _bye_ ' before I came over today."

"Your dad's got a lot on his mind – especially since the band's trying to make a comeback," Janelle tried to be comforting, "He probably said ' _bye_ ', but you just didn't hear it."

"It's not just  _that_... He's too busy with  _everything_ to pay attention to  _me_... But with my  _siblings_ , it seems like nothing's  _changed_... When Amaya graduated college in May, he was there," Samantha sighed, "When Connor had that ' _bring your parent to school_ ' day in September, he went with him. When  _I_ got my license last month, I got  _nothing_ – not a hug or a kiss or a ' _congrats, kid, I'm proud of you_ '..."

"Come on, Sammi," Janelle said, "He was just busy with your mum's birthday. I'm sure he's still proud of you."

"It's not  _my_ fault my driver's test was the day of the party," she rolled her eyes, "And my dad  _knew_ I was taking that test when he started  _planning_ it anyway. And then he yelled at  _me_ for being late even though  _Amaya_ was late too because she had to  _take me_  to the DMV!"

"He was stressed – that's all," she shook her head.

"I got  _straight A's_  last semester at school. Did he care?  _No_. I got a _B-_  on our Chem test last week and you would have thought it was the  _end of the fucking world_. I was grounded that weekend and couldn't even go to your  _birthday party_! I don't get a hug when I get home from school like Connor does or when Amaya comes back from uni on the weekends, but I  _do_ get immediately handed a list of chores while Dad sits with  _them_ to watch TV and excitedly talk about everything going on in  _their_ lives."

"Your brother's a very tired and stressed out kid, you know," Janelle said, "Being a kindergartner is  _tough_ these days." Samantha breathed out in amusement while her best friend sighed. "I guess I get your point now," she nodded, "But don't you think you should talk to your  _dad_ about it instead of  _me_?"

"He  _knows_ what he's doing," she replied softly, "And  _I_ know he doesn't love me anymore."

~

**Your POV; Saturday afternoon**

Samantha had been home for a couple hours by the time Ashton returned from taking care of an emergency at work. You'd been waiting for him to come home ever since Michael called you and informed you that his daughter told him about her and Samantha's talk at their sleepover the night before. And to say you were upset was an  _understatement_.

You always knew Samantha had trouble connecting with her father – especially since the birth of her little brother. She often felt overlooked now being the middle child, and while  _you_ made sure she knew she was still just as loved and cared for,  _your husband_  had a little more of a problem with it.

You  _knew_ he loved her, but you couldn't ignore that you were beginning to notice that he was starting a  _trend_ of treating her differently. And now that Michael had told you what Janelle told him, you couldn't sit by anymore and hope he'd realize his actions and fix it  _himself_.

"What the  _hell_ is your problem?" you seethed the moment Ashton walked through the door, taking him by surprise.

"I  _just_ got home!" he frowned, dropping his coat on the back of the couch, "What could I have  _possibly_ done?"

"Mike called and told me about something Sam told Janelle yesterday," you informed him, speaking quietly so none of the kids –  _especially her_  – heard you.

"What did she do  _now_?" Ashton groaned, making you narrow your eyes at him.

" _She_ didn't do  _anything_ ," you returned lowly, " _You're_ the one who fucked up."

" _I_ didn't do anything!" he said defensively.

"Oh, you  _didn't_?" your tone was sarcastic, "Then why is it that Sam is talking to Janelle about all the things you do for her  _siblings_ and not for  _her_?"

"I  _do things_ for her."

"Like  _what_?"

"I keep a roof over her head," he stated, "I put food on her plate every single day. I work to make the money that lets her buy new clothes."

"You do that for  _all_ the kids," you reminded him, "When is the last time you did something for  _Sammi_ –  _not_ something you've done for Amaya and Connor too  _or_ because it benefited you in some way, but because you  _just_ wanted to make her  _happy_?" Ashton was silent for a moment, desperately wracking his brain for an answer. You laughed dryly, "That's what I  _thought_."

"She's still  _happy_ ," he tried insisting, though his voice was quiet, "I can't do something  _just_ for her all the time, but that doesn't mean she's not  _happy_."

"Michael said Sam told Janelle that she knows you don't love her," you said bluntly, watching him lose his breath.

"W-What does she  _mean_ I don't  _love her_?" he shook his head, " _Of course_  I love her."

"Then maybe you should start  _showing it_."

"I  _do_ show it!"

"Do you remember when we got a message from her principal asking us to come in and meet him last Friday?" you asked, earning yourself a small nod, "You grounded her because you assumed she'd done something wrong and he needed to talk to us about it. Well, I went in while you were at work-" Your eyes were narrowed slightly and Ashton would be lying if he said he wasn't about to feel  _awful_. "-You know that art show you didn't go to last month because ' _Samantha, I've been working my ass off all week; I can't go_ '? Sammi got a scholarship to UCLA for her work in that show. And she  _wanted_ to be proud of herself and  _excited_ she's going to her  _dream school_ , but she  _can't_ because she  _just_ wanted her dad to be there with her and support her in doing something she loves,  _and he wasn't_." You could see Ashton's chest rising and falling as he tried to catch his breath.

"She... When did she find out she got it...?"

"Last Friday," you confirmed, "Her principal told us together."

"Why... She didn't tell me when she got home..."

"Because she thinks you don't  _care_ , Ashton!" you shook your head, throwing your arm up, "You've never showed  _any_ interest in her life unless it was to reprimand her for  _whatever_ reason! Why would you start  _now_?!"

"Y/N, I... I'm s-"

" _No, Ashton_ ," you laughed, a slightly bitter undertone in your voice, " _I'm_ not the one you should be apologizing to." He opened his mouth again, but you didn't let him speak. "Sammi's upstairs," you informed him, "I don't know  _what_ you're going to do for making up for all the  _shit_ you've made her feel, but you better make it  _good_." You walked away before he could respond, leaving him to figure everything out on his own.

~

**Samantha's POV; Two hours later**

"Sammi!" she heard her dad call up the stairs, making her hear start  _pounding_. She couldn't exactly read his tone, but she'd grown so  _used_ to her father only yelling for her when she was about to get in trouble that she could only assume that whatever it was wouldn't end well.

As she reluctantly got out of bed and left her room. She made it to the top of the stairs before stopping abruptly, finding Ashton looking up at her.

"Get ready," he told her, "We're gonna go to the mall." She stared at him in confusion for a moment.

" _Why_...?" she asked slowly.

"Why  _not_?" he shrugged. Samantha was so stunned that the only thing she could do was go back into her room and get ready like her father requested.

When she came downstairs a few minutes later, Ashton ushered her toward the door.

"We'll be back before dinner," Ashton informed you, making you look up from where you were sitting on the couch, watching a movie with your son.

"'Kay," you nodded, "Have fun. Drive safe. Love you."

"Bye, Daddy!" Connor waved with a little giggle, "Bye, Sammi!"

"Bye, buddy," Ashton chuckled while Samantha just barely grinned at you and her brother before Ashton opened the door for her and took her outside.

The 20-minute car ride to the mall was mostly silent, neither father nor daughter really  _too sure_  what to say. The radio was on, which subsided  _most_ of the awkwardness, but Samantha was still unsure what all this was about. Ashton never really wanted to spend  _alone time_  with his middle child, so this was new territory for her and she was  _honestly_ a bit uncomfortable.

Upon finding a parking spot in front of the mall and walking with Samantha to the door, it was  _then_ that she decided she couldn't handle the uncertainty of Ashton's actions anymore. It was  _then_ that she decided to  _talk_.

"Why are we here?" Samantha asked suddenly, still convincing herself that this was all some kind of ruse and Ashton would be yelling at her for  _something_ at any moment.

"Why  _shouldn't_ we be?" he returned, opening the door for her. But she didn't go inside – she just stood there.

" _You_ don't come to the mall; Mum or Amaya or Janelle always go with me."

"Aren't I allowed to spend time with my daughter?" Ashton wondered, letting the door close, making Samantha cock an eyebrow.

"What's going on?" she demanded, "Because if this is some kind of thing where you buy something for me just to take it away-"

"S' _not_ , Sammi," he said – and she  _almost_ didn't notice the way he swallowed thickly.

"Then why are we  _here_?" she furrowed her eyebrows, her tone almost  _desperate_ at this point. Samantha and her father looked at each other for a moment before he exhaled shakily.

"Why didn't you tell me you got a scholarship to UCLA?" he asked her, and she breathed in sharply.

"Who told you that?" she whispered.

"Sammi, did you honestly think your mum  _wasn't_ going to tell me?" he shook his head, "But why didn't  _you_? I mean – you got a  _scholarship_ , Sammi! You should be  _proud_ of that! And you walked inside the house after school Friday like nothing even  _happened_!" Samantha stared at him for a moment, and he felt his heart drop when he noticed her eyes get watery.

"Already got in trouble for Mr. M calling and wanting you and Mum to come in," she swallowed thickly, "Didn't think it  _mattered_ that it wasn't  _bad_."

"Sammi," Ashton murmured, stepping toward his daughter and putting his hands on her cheeks, wiping them with his thumbs, "You should  _still_ be proud of yourself; You should still be as proud as  _I am_  of you."

"You're  _proud of me_?" she asked softly, her voice breaking slightly.

" _Of course I am_ ," he shook his head again, "You got a scholarship to an  _incredible_ school  _and_ you're a  _straight-A_  student; Why  _wouldn't_ I be proud of you?"

"You noticed I got straight  _A_ 's?' she grumbled, unsure she'd even  _heard him_  correctly.

"Baby girl-" Ashton noticed Samantha lean into his palm at the nickname. "-your achievements  _haven't_ gone unnoticed," he couldn't keep himself from sighing, "And I know  _nothing_ I can say or do is going to  _change_ how I've been making you feel like they  _have_ , and I know I should say it  _more_ , but I am  _so_ proud of you and everything you've  _done_ and everything you  _will do_. You've worked  _so hard_ to get where you are, and I'm  _so sorry_ I haven't been there for you through it all. I will  _never_ be able to make all that up to you or make up for the times that I  _should have_  been there but  _wasn't_ , but you've been doing  _so much_  for  _so long_ , and I think you deserve to just  _take a break_ , okay? So whatever you want to get or do or talk about or  _eat_ while we're here, we're gonna do it  _together_."

Samantha looked at him again for a moment before his hands slid off of her face as she hurried forward, throwing her arms around his waist and hugging him tightly. Ashton let out a breath, wrapping one arm tightly around her shoulders and letting the other hand rest on her head, his fingertips scratching gently on her scalp. He could feel his shirt getting a little wet, making his heart sink lightly.

"I love you, baby girl," he promised her, kissing the top of her head.

"I love you too, Dad," she whispered back, her voice muffled by the fabric her face was pressed against.

~

_inspiration:  
https://pendantstyles.tumblr.com/post/175222029556/the-blurb-about-harrys-daughter-saying-shes-the (part 1)  
_ _https://pendantstyles.tumblr.com/post/175223051466/that-recent-blurb-you-posted-i-felt-that-that (part 2)_


	534. The Only Exception (Luke Hemmings)

"Hey, loser," Luke heard behind him as arms wrapped around his neck. He instantly smiled, already knowing who it was.

"Hi, Y/N," he murmured softly.

The two of you were an unlikely duo – only meeting because you were failing math in high school junior year and needed a tutor – but the moment you met, you'd become inseparable. And even though that were both in college now, none of that had changed. You were Luke's first  _real friend_  and, although he now had more friends because of you, you were the  _only one_  of them he trusted with his life.

"So," you chirped, releasing your hold on him to walk beside him, "For movie night this weekend, I was thinking-"

"I can't make it this weekend," he cut you off. You stopped in your tracks, causing Luke to stop walking as well.

"What?" you frowned, "Why not?"

"Going to a party at Sigma Nu..."

"My shy, nerdy little Hemmo is going to a  _college frat party_?" you gasped obnoxiously as Luke rolled his eyes.

"Are you done?" he asked.

"For now," you shrugged, "But seriously; Why are you all of a sudden going to parties?"

"Cal really wants me to come..." he mumbled. It was obvious he didn't  _really_ want to go, but because he and Calum were close, he agreed to it.

"He invited  _you_ and not  _me_?" you pouted.

"Probably because he knows you're going to come anyway now that movie night isn't happening," he reminded you, "But you could always not show up just to spite him."

"And miss your first frat party?" you snorted, "I don't think so, Hemmo."

"Do you  _have_ to call me that?"

"Been calling you Hemmo since  _high school_ ," you shrugged, "If you really minded, you would have told me to stop by now. Anyway, don't wanna be late to class." You repositioned your backpack to rest more comfortably on your shoulder, gripping the strap tightly so it didn't fall off as you started sprinting. "Later, Hemmo!" you called over your shoulder, "See you at lunch!"

~

**Saturday night**

"Y/N!" Calum hugged you the second you walked into the Sigma Nu frat house.

"Cal," you giggled, "Almost seems like you were waiting for me to show up."

"And what if I  _was_?" he smirked, "Is it a crime to enjoy seeing the life of every party she goes to?"

"I don't suppose it is," you winked, "Especially with a save like that." Calum laughed loudly.

"Do you want a drink?" he asked, "I'll get you something."

"Nah," you shook your head, "I'm good for now. I  _do_ have a question though."

"And the answer to that question is in the kitchen," he chirped, grabbing your hand and pulling you along with him into the other room. Your eyes immediately landed on Luke's awkward stance as he talked to two other mutual friends – Michael and Ashton – and you couldn't help but smile at him.

"How'd you know the question was about Luke?" you asked, loud enough for  _Calum_ to hear but not loud enough for  _Luke_ to.

"Isn't it  _always_?" he sighed dramatically, earning himself an eye roll.

"How's he been doing?"

"Better than I  _thought_ he would," he admitted, "Of course, I thought he'd refuse to come  _at all_."

"Had any drinks? Maybe he needs to loosen up."

"He's had a couple so far – pretty sure the one he's got now is his fourth," Calum informed you, "Definitely a lot less of a lightweight than he  _looks_." You couldn't keep yourself from laughing, not realizing it was even that audible until the three boys looked over at the entryway to the kitchen.

The moment Luke's eyes met yours, he breathed a  _visible_ sigh of relief. You knew that even the  _idea_ of frat parties overwhelmed him, so he was happy to see  _you_ were finally there.

"Hey, Lu!" you grinned as you and Calum walked up to the little group, "Enjoying your first frat party?"

"It's... _something_..." he mumbled, glancing over at a group of  _already_ -drunk people playing beer pong.

"At least he's not shying away from drinking, right?" Michael punched his bicep playfully.

"Probably just trying to forget how  _awkward_ he is," Ashton chuckled.

"Come on, guys – be  _nice_ ," you reprimanded them with a smile, "You remember  _your_ first times at a party, don't you?"

"Been trying to block it out, but thanks for reminding me," Michael laughed.

"Hey, it could have happened to  _anyone_ ," Calum clapped his shoulder.

"Yeah, but it happened to  _me_ ," the blonde said, "And everyone  _still_ talks about it whenever they play that song."

"What?" Luke furrowed his eyebrows.

"I'll tell you later," you snorted softly.

You all talked for a few more minutes before you heard someone shout over the music.

"This party is getting  _boring_! Let's play 7 minutes in heaven!" the person suggested, and you couldn't keep the smart-ass comment to yourself.

"What are we,  _14_?" you rolled your eyes.

"You know what? Just for that, you're going  _first_ ," Mitchell put his hands on your shoulders and moved behind you, "So who's going in with this  _pretty little thing_?"

" _Shut up_ , Mitchy," you laughed, elbowing him in the ribs. A few of the boys started whispering among each other – some of them even audibly volunteering either themselves or their friends – but Mitchell ignored all of them and picked someone himself.

"How about you?" he pointed to Luke.

"I-I don't-" Luke was cut off by Calum, Michael, and Ashton  _shoving him_  forward, forcing him to catch himself before he ran into you.

"Alright!" Mitchell cheered obnoxiously, "Off to the closet!"

"We can't even use a bedroom?!" you squeaked.

"Calm down, Y/N – you only get  _7 minutes_ ," he snickered.

" _Mitchell_ ," you narrowed your eyes.

"It's the only closet downstairs," he insisted, opening the door and pushing you in and then Luke. He closed the door behind the both of you, "7 minutes starts now! Use your time wisely, kids!" 

You sighed, leaning up against the wall behind you as you pulled out your phone. You turned the flashlight on for a little bit of light in the cramped space, but at least you could see again.

"So what do you want to do for the next 7 minutes?" you asked.

"Don't we have to..." he trailed off.

" _Nah_ ," you shook your head, "How are they gonna prove we  _didn't_ kiss anyway? Besides, I don't want your first kiss to be because someone else  _made you_ do it. You should kiss someone when  _you're_ ready to."

"I-I  _am_..." he swallowed bravely, making your heart skip a beat –  _was he saying what you thought he was saying?_ "B-But... What if I'm bad at it?"

"Doesn't matter," you replied just as softly, unable to take your eyes off of his, "It's my first kiss too; I wouldn't know the difference."

"There's  _no way_ ," Luke stated in disbelief, making you let out a breathy chuckle.

"I hardly think that's important  _right now_ ," you reminded him.

"But you-"

"Do you wanna kiss me or not, Lu?" you murmured.

"I'm gonna be  _bad_ at it," he grumbled nervously.

"So am I," you assured him, taking the initiative and leaning in, pressing your lips to his.

You felt Luke's breathing hitch, but he kissed you back  _right_ away. You couldn't help but smile as you pushed yourself off the wall and stepped closer to him, your hands finding his cheeks almost instantaneously. He moved his hands to your hips, pulling your body up against his as he smiled as well, until you both had to pull away for air.

"I'm really sorry..." he trailed off, his eyes scanning your face as if he thought he'd forget what you looked like once you let go of each other.

"Come on, Lu," you shook your head, "You weren't  _that_ bad." You barely grinned when he chuckled softly.

"Not  _that_ ," he murmured, "I mean... M'sorry you had to have your first kiss with  _me_ in some gross, frat house _storage closet_..."

"I'll admit a storage closet wasn't  _exactly_ where I pictured it happening," you smiled a little bigger at him, moving your hand so your fingers could push his hair away from his eyes before wrapping your arms around his neck, "But I'm  _glad_ it was with  _you_."

"You  _are_?" he furrowed his eyebrows.

"I'd rather it be with an inexperienced nerd I  _trust_ than some douchey frat guy who's only interested in getting  _laid_ ," you informed him, "There's  _no one else_  I'd rather have my first kiss with." Luke cleared his throat nervously.

"W-What about your  _second_ one?" he stuttered out. You smiled again before leaning up until your lips were back on his.

"You can have my second," you murmured, "And my third, and my fourth, and my fifth, and-"

You punctuated every number with another kiss until you felt Luke smile. His hands then moved from your sides to your cheeks to hold you firmly in place so you would just kiss him continuously instead of small pecks.

"You know," you whispered once you pulled away to breathe again, "This really goes against my number one rule for dating."

"Mhmm?" he hummed, his eyes still closed as his forehead found yours, "And what's that?"

"That a guy has to take me out on a date before I even  _think about_  letting him kiss me," you grinned as Luke chuckled.

"Are you as over this party as  _I am_?" he asked you, "Because I'll take you on a date  _right now_ if you want."

"Rule number two is don't go on a date right when he asks," you informed him. He opened his eyes, finding you still smiling up at him. "But I guess you're becoming the exception, aren't you?" you teased.

Luke laughed under his breath again, "I guess so."


	535. Airplanes (Ashton Irwin)

"Next person!" Ellen said, and you stepped down onto the main floor. 

You were one of the few who was allowed to come in before the actual taping of Ellen's show to meet the band – and the fact that you only got to do so for  _5 seconds_  didn't mean a thing, because you were just happy to get to meet them  _at all_.

"Alright, guys!" you called out loudly enough for them to hear from the doors they were behind, "I've only got 5 seconds, so we're gonna have a really nice group hug, okay?!" You heard them giggle to each other. 

"Okay!" Michael replied. 

The second the doors opened, your arms went around the two boys closest to you – Ashton and Calum – and you all squeezed each other, desperately trying to hold in your laughter at how silly you must have looked. 

"Time's up!" Ellen laughed, hurrying to usher you away before the doors closed on you. 

"Thank you!" you hollered over your shoulder as you were led off stage. 

"You're welcome!" they called back in unison. 

~

**30 minutes later**

You were sitting outside on the curb in front of a side door of the studio, needing a breather away from everyone before taping started. It was no secret that crowds overwhelmed you, but – even though there were a bunch of people around – you didn't think anyone even noticed you slip outside.

"Hey," you heard a voice behind you, making you look up. "You're the group hug girl?" Ashton said with a questioning tone. You nodded, a bit taken aback that he came out to talk to you, let alone remembered who you were. "Do you think it would be breaking the 5-second rule if I sat down?"

"Well, no one said anything about once we were offstage, so I think it's okay," you smiled shyly. He chuckled quietly, stepping down off the curb to sit next to you. 

"What are you doing out here?" he asked curiously. 

"Just needed to get some air, I guess," you replied softly, "What are  _you_ doing out here?"

"Saw you come out," he began playing with the ring on his pinky, "Wanted to make sure you were alright."

"Thanks, Ashton."

"You're welcome..." he trailed off. 

"Y/N," you told him.

"Y/N," he smiled slightly as if he were seeing how it sounded when he said it – and he decided he enjoyed it. "That's a pretty name; It suits you." You blushed a bright red, quickly looking down at your lap. "So," he cleared his throat, "You excited for the show?"

"I've only ever  _dreamed_ about being able to come to a taping of  _Ellen_ ," you laughed under your breath, "And the fact that one of my  _favorite_ bands is the guest today?  _Of course_  I'm excited." Ashton giggled quietly, making you smile at  _finally_ being able to hear it in person – and it was  _that much_  better knowing  _you_ caused it. 

"You know, we're gonna be performing too," he reminded you, "What are you hoping we play?"

" _Hoping for_  or being  _realistic_?" you grinned, looking at him.

"Both."

" _Don't Stop_ ," you teased. Ashton rolled his eyes, obviously trying not to smile. You laughed and went on, "Hoping for  _Airplanes_ , but being realistic, I know it's probably going to be either  _Jet Black Heart_  or  _Hey Everybody_."

"I wish we could play  _Airplanes_ too," Ashton said thoughtfully, "But management always wants to play a  _single_ for televised things."

"Well, hey, as long as you play it at either of your Illinois dates, that'll be good enough for me."

"You going to one of those shows?"

"Both, hopefully," you sighed, "As long as my ride doesn't back out on me again."

"' _Again_ '?"

"I was supposed to go to  _Rock Out With Your Socks Out_ , but things came up and I ended up not being able to," you shrugged, "But if all else fails, I'll just  _walk_ to the venue."

"Alright, well, make sure you bring lots of water for the hike and don't take rides from strange men in pickup trucks," Ashton snickered, earning himself a shove to the arm. He was about to say something else when a voice behind you startled you both.

" _Ashton_!" you heard Calum call from the door, "I've been looking  _everywhere_ for you! Come on! We have to run through this song before the taping!" He then realized that Ashton wasn't alone, smiling brightly when he saw you, " _Hey_!  _Group hug girl_!"

"Is  _that_ my legacy?" you pouted, "Is that what I will go down as in 5SOS history?"

"What? It was a nice hug!" Calum frowned defensively.

"And that was a nice  _save_ ," you giggled.

"Sorry I don't have more time," Ashton said, bringing your attention back to him as he got up, "I'll try to find you later though!" He trotted over to Calum as you worked up the courage to call after him.

"Hey, Ashton, do you have time for a-" You cut yourself off as you turned around, finding they were already gone. "-photo," you finished with a small sigh, but still smiled at having been able to have an  _actual_ conversation with him.

**Ashton's POV**

"Boys!" Calum announced the moment he and Ashton walked on stage and Michael and Luke came into view, "Ashton is in love with group hug girl!"

"Wait, what?" Luke furrowed his eyebrows.

"I'm not  _in love_  with  _anybody_ , Calum," Ashton rolled his eyes, taking a seat behind his drum kit.

"Alright, maybe not  _yet_ , but you're  _going to be_ ," Calum stated matter-of-factly, "I can tell."

"Because you're such an  _expert_ on being in love," Michael snickered. The bassist rolled his eyes, grabbing his instrument and lifting it onto his shoulder.

"Okay, so I know  _nothing_ about being in love, but I  _do_ know a whole lot about  _Ashton_ ," he corrected, "And I know when there's something in the air."

"What's in the air?" a voice made the boys look up, finding Ellen coming toward them.

" _Love_ ," Calum sighed dramatically before Ashton could say anything, "You know the girl who asked for a group hug during the 5-second thing? Ash is in love with her."

" _Stop_ saying I'm in love with her!" Ashton exclaimed, "I talked to her for  _5 minutes_!"

"But you  _do_ think she's cute," Michael snickered, "You're literally  _blushing_."

" _You saw her_ ," he mumbled, " _Of course_  I think she's cute."

"So love is  _already_ in the air!" Calum insisted, "And I think it'd be a shame to let it slip away!"

"You're  _ridiculous_ , Hood," Ashton rolled his eyes yet again, ready to just  _start rehearsals_ and try to forget that everything Calum was saying  _made sense_.

~

**Your POV; 20 minutes later**

"You're still here!" someone said excitedly behind you. You looked up as Ashton sat back down next to you. 

"Hi, Ash," you smiled shyly, "I didn't think you'd  _actually_ come back out."

"Hey, I  _said_ I would, didn't I?" he grinned, "What are you still doing here? They're gonna let people into the studio soon."

"Eh, it's assigned seating anyway – it's not like I'm fighting for barricade at a concert," you teased. Ashton shoved you playfully before things got quiet. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence though, which was a relief, but you could still hear your heartbeat in your ears at just how  _close_ he was sitting to you.

"So, you still want that photo?" he asked suddenly. You gave him a questioning look, prompting him to go on. "I heard you ask for a photo as I was going inside, but Calum wouldn't let me come back," he frowned, "So I thought I'd ask if you still wanted to take one."

"You don't have to, Ash," you shook your head, "An actual conversation with one of you is all I've ever really wanted."

"Ah,  _come on_!" he smiled, "Preserve the memory  _forever_ , Y/N!" You rolled your eyes at how silly he was being, but there was still a smile on your face.

"You have to make a funny face though," you bargained, taking your phone out of your pocket.

" _Done_!" he chirped, scooting  _even closer_  to you – which, to be honest, you didn't think that was  _possible_.

You held up your phone, both of you making funny faces for the camera. The shutter sounded and Ashton suddenly exclaimed again.

"No, wait!" he said, "I've got a  _better_ one!" And you certainly weren't going to pass up the opportunity for multiple photos with him, so you went along with it.

Ashton made another funny face, but just as you were taking the photo, he turned his head and stuck his tongue out so it poked your cheek. Your face scrunched up as you laughed loudly, the shutter sounding telling you it captured that moment.

" _Ashton_!" you squeaked, wiping your cheek on your shoulder before looking at him.

"Sorry," he giggled, "I had to. Okay, serious photo this time."

"Don't try anything funny, mister," you said in a mock-threatening tone.

"Yes, ma'am," he grinned. You help up your phone again and, as promised, Ashton simply smiled as you took it.

"I'm glad I have proof of that though," you commented as you put your phone away, "I don't think anyone would  _believe me_  if I just  _said_ Ashton Irwin licked my face."

He giggled again, "I'm glad I won't have to tell people you taste bad."

"And what, ruin my  _non-existent_  dating life?" you joked.

"Well, I was  _hoping_ to ruin your  _already_ -existing, but I guess I already beat me to it," he teased you back. You rolled your eyes fondly while shoving his ribs with your elbow.

"What's your  _master plan_  then?"

"Depends," he said.

"On what?"

"On whether or not you make it to the Illinois shows."

You looked at him curiously – _he wasn't **technically** asking you out, and you didn't want to get your hopes up, but then again... It really sounded like he  **was**..._ It was like he could  _see_ the wheels turning in your head, prompting him to speak again.

"I think you're really nice, you know," Ashton informed you, shyly scratching the back of his neck at how  _forward_ he was being, "So if you go to either show... I could get you a backstage pass or something... If you  _want it_ , I mean..."

"Ash... You don't have to-"

"I  _want_ to," he shook his head, "This is really nice... Just  _having a conversation_  with someone... And you're good company and I'd like to hang out again, so..." You were silent for a moment before speaking again.

"Are you  _sure_...?" you asked softly.

" _Yeah_!" he nodded rapidly, "And the boys would really like you and I'm sure we'd all get along really well and-" You cut off his nervous rambling – much to his gratefulness.

"Thanks, Ash," you whispered, your voice not giving you any more than that. Ashton breathed out abruptly, blushing at his own outbursts, and wrapped an arm around your shoulders, bringing you in for a side hug.

~

**Two hours later**

"...and be kind to one another," Ellen told the camera. The audience clapped for a few seconds before a producer officially ended the taping, and Ellen came up to address everyone sitting in the seats. "Thank you guys so much for coming out to the show!" she smiled, making you all clap again as she went on, "As a special treat, we thought we'd have 5 Seconds of Summer play one more song for you all. How does that sound?" Everyone obviously cheered in response and she looked back at the boys already re-taking their spots at their instruments. "Take it away, boys," she smiled, going over to talk with Andy.

"Is there anything you guys want to hear?" Ashton asked. The group started naming off various songs from both the albums and EPs, but the drummer simply chuckled, "Well, that's too bad because we're gonna play  _Airplanes_."

You stared at Ashton with a small smile on your face, knowing they were doing it for  _you_. The brown-haired boy caught your gaze and winked at you slyly, only making your smile get bigger as your cheeks turned a light shade of red.

"Did you  _see that_?" the girl next to you whispered to her friend, "Ashton just  _winked_ at me!"

But, as you and Ashton smiled at each other, you just decided to let her have that moment.


	536. Admit It (Michael Clifford)

" _Great_ ," you groaned to yourself softly.

You leaned down to pick up everything that fell off of your desk onto the floor beside it, not even realizing anyone stayed behind to help until another arm came into view and grabbed your pencil case. You looked up as you sat back upright, finding the boy who sat across the aisle from you holding the bag out to you.

"Thanks, Michael," you smiled at him, not even noticing the way his Adam's apple moved as he swallowed thickly.

"You're welcome, Y/N," he said so softly that you almost didn't even  _hear it_. You both walked to the door and exited the classroom, and you decided to strike up a conversation since you were both headed in the same direction.

"Hey... Are you doing anything after school?" you asked him.

"N-No," he cleared his throat, seemingly surprised you were asking, "W-Why?"

"I'm sure you know by now that I'm  _shit_ at Chemistry," you chuckled, smiling when it made him laugh softly as well, "I just... My counselor is suggesting she set me up with a tutor, but... I don't know; I guess I'd rather get help from someone I  _know_ than some  _random person_  I might not even  _get along with_... I was just wondering if you'd be interested. You don't have to though-" You shook your head. "-I'm sure it'll be fi-"

"I-" Michael cleared his throat again. "-I can tutor you..."

" _Really_?" you asked, giving him a hopeful grin.

"Yeah..." he nodded shyly, "I... I can meet you in the library after school... If you want..."

" _Thank you_ ," you breathed, "I don't know  _what_ I'd have done if you said no."

"Failed Chemistry, probably," he mumbled, blushing lightly when you accidentally let out a loud laugh.

"Thanks again, Michael," you smiled at him again, "See you after school." You came to the end of the hallway, heading left toward your locker, not even noticing that Michael had just stopped and was now watching you.

**Michael's POV**

"Hey, pretty girl," a blonde boy said as he approached you, winking at you when you looked over to see who it was.

"Hey, rockstar," you giggled in return, going back to putting your books away and grabbing new ones, "What brings you here?"

"When the beautiful girls call me, I must answer them," Luke replied dramatically.

"I didn't call you," you shook your head.

" _Wow_ ," he scoffed jokingly, " _Narcissistic much_?"

You rolled your eyes fondly, "What do you want, Lu?"

"How do you know I  _want_ something?" he asked, placing his hand over his heart.

"Because you  _always_ want something when you call me pretty," you grinned.

"Fine; I want something," he sighed, "What are you doing tomorrow?"

"Probably writing my Econ paper," you groaned at the thought of it.

"Well, you won't be working on it _all day_ ," Luke insisted, "So I was thinking – since there's that carnival thing at my niece's school tomorrow night – that maybe you could tag along so I won't be alone?" You looked up at him and noticed he was giving you a shy smile.

"I guess," you chuckled softly, "But you have to buy dinner after."

"Anything for you, princess," he leaned in, pressing a grateful kiss to your cheekbone, "Thank you."

Michael didn't know what came over him, but he could feel his chest getting a bit tight. He  _knew_ he was getting jealous over you and Luke – he'd had a crush on you for the  _longest_ time; he could just never find it in himself to  _admit it_  to you. He caught himself before he got  _too_ worked up, though – reminding himself that you weren't  _his_ to get jealous over.

So he forced himself to turn around and head to his own locker despite the fact that  _all_ he wanted to do was march up and stop Luke from flirting with you.

~

**Your POV; The next day**

Luke's niece's school carnival was in full swing, and you were leaning up against the wall with Luke as you watched her play the various games set up in the gym. She was  _ecstatic_ to see you walk into the school with Luke – that little girl absolutely  _adored_ you, and you adored her right back – and she would occasionally pop over to the two of you to excitedly show you the little prizes she kept winning, while you and Luke were talking.

"So you and that guy that's helping you with Chem now...  _Michael_..." Luke trailed off, making you tear your gaze away from the child to cock an eyebrow at him.

"What  _about_ him?" you wondered.

"Is there something going on that my  _dear_ best friend isn't telling me?" he asked dramatically, "Is my main squeeze keeping a  _secret_ from little old me?"

"What are you  _talking about_ , Lu?" you rolled your eyes at the show he was putting on.

"I mean, you and Michael?  _Come on_! I don't know  _why_ you wouldn't  _tell me_  about that!"

"Tell you  _what_ about me and Michael?"

"That there's something  _going on_!" he said as if it were obvious.

"There's  _nothing_ going on," you shook your head, your eyebrows now furrowed in confusion.

"Now,  _that's_ a lie," he laughed, " _No one_  looks at someone the way he looks at you and expects people to assume  _nothing's going on_." You stopped for a moment before looking up at him slowly.

"How does he look at me...?" you asked softly, prompting Luke to give you the same confused look you were giving him.

"You  _really_ don't know?" he questioned.

"Would I be asking if I  _did_?" you fired back.

"Oh,  _sweetheart_ ," he suddenly snickered, "You  _poor_ ,  _naive_ child."

" _Luke_!" you whined, earning yourself a chuckle.

"I saw him watching you yesterday while we were talking. Couldn't quite put a name to the feeling, but  _almost_ looked jealous," he shrugged.

"Why would  _Michael_ be jealous?" you rolled your eyes again with a soft sigh, "He'd barely  _spoken_ to me before I asked him to tutor me."

"Maybe you make him  _nervous_ ," he poked your sides playfully. You squeaked sharply, shoving his hands off of you. "I'm just saying, Y/N," he said, "Maybe it wouldn't hurt to make the first move."

"And what if he doesn't see me like that?" you countered, "Then it'll be too weird and I'll have to find a  _new_ tutor."

"Y/N," he laughed, "Michael likes you, but he's too scared to be the first to admit it. Just trust me."

~

**Tuesday evening**

You'd gone to Michael's house after school to work on your Chemistry homework. He was sitting at his desk while you were sitting on his bed, trying to focus on your work but you were too distracted.

"Y/N," Michael waved his hand in front of your face, making you jump. Your eyes met his, finding a concerned expression on his face. "You okay?" he wondered.

"Yeah," you nodded rapidly, "Just...thinking..." He opened his mouth to speak again, but you beat him to it. "So, um... What are you doing Saturday night?" you asked quickly before you chickened out.

"Studying," he replied softly, looking back down at his books.

"On a  _Saturday_?" you wondered, only earning yourself a small shrug in response. "Well, I... Would you...wanna do something  _else_...?" The shakiness of your voice made him pick his head back up, his eyes landing on yours again.

"Like  _what_?" he asked, his voice quiet.

"Like... Um..." you cleared your throat, "Like... Go see a movie... Or go bowling... Or check out that new arcade on 7th that just opened... Or just hang out at the mall... Or something..."

"Don't you need  _friends_ to do that stuff?" he mumbled. You felt a little pang in your heart at hearing him suggest he didn't  _have_ any friends – that he didn't consider  _you_ his friend.

"I guess..." you whispered, swallowing thickly. You noticed Michael open his mouth to say something else, but you didn't give him the chance. "I should be heading home," you murmured, putting your books in your backpack, "Curfew."

"It's  _4 o'clock_ ," he said after looking at the time on his phone.

"Don't wanna be late," you powered through the break in your voice, "Bye, Michael."

"Y/N, I-" he started before cutting himself off as you just hurried away, sighing as he leaned back in his chair, wondering what had gotten into you.

~

**Friday; Lunchtime**

You ate lunch with Luke – mostly in silence, and just listened to the conversations around you. You should have known you couldn't get away with that for long – Luke always knew when something was on your mind.

"So," he finally spoke, and you knew what was coming, "You ask Michael out yet?"

"No," you grumbled, earning yourself a curious head tilt.

"Why not?" he furrowed his eyebrows, "I thought you said you were going to on Tuesday?"

" _Was_ ," you replied softly, " _Didn't_."

" _Why not_?!" he repeated, throwing his arm up.

"He doesn't even consider us  _friends_ , Luke," you shook your head, "What's the  _point_?"

"Y/N-" he sighed before you cut him off.

"You know, some things just  _aren't_ meant to be," you shook your head, "And if the universe says Michael and I aren't meant to be, then why bother  _trying_?"

"Because, sometimes, the universe is  _wrong_."

~

**Saturday afternoon**

"You sure you wanna go alone?" your dad asked after stopping at the curb in front of the arcade, "I wouldn't mind having a little fun."

" _Dad_ ," you groaned.

"Alright, I get it," he sighed, "Don't wanna spend a Saturday with your old man – worried he might embarrass you in front of your friends."

"Dad," you rolled your eyes with a smile this time, "Just...need a little  _me_ time."

"Okay, princess," he nodded, "Call me when you wanna come home then." You nodded as well, getting out of the car and listening to him drive off as you walked inside the building.

~

An hour later, you were taking a break from playing games. You were sitting on a bench off to the side of the room where parents could sit as they watched their kids, when your alone-time was interrupted by someone coming up to you.

"Hi, Y/N," you heard your name before looking up, finding Michael rocking back and forth on his feet shyly.

"I thought you didn't  _have_ friends," you grumbled.

"I don't..." he said, a bit confused that that was the first thing you said to him.

"Then why are you  _here_? Thought you said you needed  _friends_ to come here."

"Cousins wanted to come and my uncle's working late, so he asked me to bring 'em," Michael replied. You hummed lightly but didn't say anything else, prompting him to go on. "What are you doing here? Did you get roped into bringing a family member too?" he asked.

"I'm alone," you informed him, "Wanted to come anyway."

"Oh..." he nodded, "Well... I'll be around if you decide you don't wanna be alone anymore." Michael went to step away, but a voice made him stop.

"Mikey!" you heard beside you, making you look over to find two little girls staring curiously at you and Michael. "We're hungry!" Michael cleared his throat, finally tearing his gaze away from you to his cousins.

"What do you want?" he asked them.

" _McDonald's_!" they cheered, causing him to sigh.

"You guys  _know_ your mum doesn't like when you eat fast food," he reminded them. They pouted lightly and he sighed. "So you  _better not_  tell her I let you have it," he finished his sentence.

The girls smiled widely, each of them hugging one of his legs. You couldn't help but laugh under your breath, ignoring the way it made Michael look back up at you.

"I'll see you on Monday," he told you softly. You barely nodded as he pried the kids off of him, taking their hands and stepping away from you before he was stopped.

"Can't your friend come with us, Mikey?" one of the girls stuck out her bottom lip.

"Yeah, Mikey!" the other insisted, " _Please_!"

"I... Uh..." Michael stuttered out as he looked at you, "If she  _wants_... I guess..."

"I... I really should be heading home..." you chewed on your inner cheek.

" _Please_?" they both frowned – _and how were you supposed to say no to **that**?_

"Okay..." you caved, making them yell happily again.

"I guess I'll... Did you drive here...?" Michael murmured.

"My dad dropped me off..." you answered.

"You can come with  _us_!" the taller girl said before Michael could respond, letting go of him to trot over to you.

She grabbed your hand and pulled you to your feet, tugging you back to Michael. You squeaked in surprise, but quickly caught yourself and started walking as fast as she was to keep up with her. One she reached her cousin, she slowed her pace, walking alongside you while still holding your hand as you all made your way outside.

"What's your name?" she asked.

"Y/N," you answered softly.

"That's pretty," she said casually, making you smile, "I'm Scarlet and that's-" She pointed to the girl holding onto Michael's hand. "-my little sister Aimee."

Scarlet and Aimee did most of the talking on the ride to McDonald's, excitedly telling you all about the games they played at the arcade and what they were going to eat when you got to the restaurant. You sat in the front passenger seat, smiling as they spoke while looking out the window, not even noticing Michael would glance at you at every red light and stop sign.

Upon arriving at McDonald's and going up to the cashier, you and Michael were quietly arguing over who was paying for your food. The two girls and Michael ordered before he motioned for you to go. You shook your head, but you should have  _known_ he wasn't going to take no for an answer. And, unfortunately for you, you had told the girls what you were thinking about getting when they asked you, so Michael just ordered it  _for you_.

" _Michael_!" you smacked the back of his shoulder lightly.

The cashier smiled as she gave Michael his total – God knows she'd had a long day thus far and needed  _something_ to brighten it. He payed her and she gave him his change and all of your cups so you could get your drinks while waiting for your food.

~

**An hour later**

"I should probably get you two home," Michael said while you were all finishing up eating. The girls across from you – because they insisted that ' _Mikey should sit next to his friend_ ' – instantly frowned.

"But we're having  _fun_!" Scarlet told him, making him chuckle softly.

"I know, but we can't stay here  _forever_ ," he reminded them, "And your mum told me to get you home before dark."

"Can't we stay a little  _longer_?" Aimee pouted, "We  _like_  Y/N!" You just smiled at them.

"How about this: you can stay with Y/N for as long as it takes me in the bathroom," he offered, "But then, we have to go home."

" _Fine_ ," Scarlet huffed. You laughed softly again as Michael got up, throwing the trash away on his way to the bathrooms.

"So," you started, looking at the two girls, "Do we have any secrets we need to talk about before Michael comes back?"

" _Yes_!" Scarlet informed you, "Are you the same Y/N in Mikey's Chemistry class?"

"I don't know how that's a  _secret_ , but yes," you laughed lightly, your eyes flicking between each of them as they tilted their heads, "How do you know that?"

"'Cause he talks about you," she shrugged, taking you by surprise.

"He  _does_?" you asked softly.

"Yeah!" Aimee chirped with a grin, "He says he's helping you with it!"

"Oh..." you nodded, realizing they meant he'd only mentioned he was tutoring you, "Yeah, he is."

"Are you better at it now?" Scarlet wondered, "'Cause Mikey's  _really_ smart and he's really good at all  _sorts_ of things!"

"I'm  _getting there_ ," you chuckled at the little girl's antics.

"You're really pretty," Aimee said randomly, "But we already knew  _that_ too."

"Yeah? How's that?"

"'Cause Mikey said so," she shrugged as well, making your heart skip a beat.

"Michael said I'm pretty?" you questioned, and both girls nodded rapidly.

"He didn't say she was  _pretty_ , Aimee," Scarlet shook her head.

"Yeah, he did!"

" _No_ ," she insisted, "He said she was  _beautiful_." Your heart skipped a beat as the smaller girl rolled her eyes.

" _Same thing_!" Aimee replied. But you couldn't respond because you noticed Michael making his way back over.

"Alright, you two," he said, stopping at the edge of the table, "Time to head out." The girls frowned again but did as he said, scooting out of the booth and onto their feet.

You all walked outside and got into the car, and you were honestly ready to head home yourself. You couldn't keep yourself from yawning, making Michael look at you as he started the engine.

"Tired already?" he asked with a small chuckle, "It's only 8:30."

" _Shut up,_ " you said softly, laughing as well and rubbing your eyes.

"Well, I'll take you home first then," he said, "My aunt likes to visit and  _who knows_  how long that'll take." He grinned softly when you laughed again.

~

"Thanks for bringing me home, Michael," you said softly as he pulled into your driveway, knowing Aimee had already fallen asleep behind you.

"No problem," he replied with a small smile.

"Drive safe," you told him, missing him smile again as you got out of the car.

" _Mikey_!" Scarlet hissed one the door shut behind you, "Walk her to her door!"

"What are you-"

"Be a gentleman!"

"Scar, I  _can't_ leave you two here by yourselves," he insisted, "Your sister is  _asleep_."

" _Mikey_!" she exclaimed softly.

" _Fine_!" he squeaked out, watching you look over your shoulder when you heard his car door open.

"What are you doing?" you asked.

"Being a gentleman, I guess..." he murmured, coming up to you. 

You looked into the car and noticed Scarlet watching the two of you. You chuckled softly, looking down at your feet as you and Michael made your way up the walkway leading up the front porch.

"Thanks for the food," you whispered, your voice not giving you more than that, "You really didn't have to buy mine for me."

"I  _wanted_ to," he insisted in a tone almost as low as yours.

"Thanks," you repeated, not sure what else to say.

"Well, I, uh... I'll see you on Monday..." he cleared his throat lightly. You nodded and he went to step away from you, only to have the motion interrupted.

"Mikey!" Scarlet called from where she was now hanging out the car window, "Kiss her goodnight!"

"Scar,  _stop it_!" Michael's eyes widened.

"What?! That's what the people in the  _movies_ do!"

" _Scarlet_!"

" _Michael_!" she challenged, making him huff lightly.

"I am  _so_ sorry about her," he breathed, turning back to you, "I don't know  _why_ she's-"

Michael cut himself off when you suddenly leaned in and pressed your lips to the middle of his cheekbone. He stared at you in shock as you pulled back, a bright blush on your cheeks and a shy smile pulling at the corners of your mouth.

"W-What about you and- and Luke...?" he murmured.

"Me and Luke?" you tilted your head curiously.

"You guys are... You guys are together, aren't you...?"

" _No_!" you shook your head rapidly, "He's my  _best friend_!"

"But I... I saw you at your locker the day you asked me to tutor you... He... He kissed you... Called you ' _princess_ '..."

"He's  _always_ done that," you told him seriously, "Our parents knew each other in college – we grew up together. We don't like each other like that... And he knows I already like someone else..."

"Oh..." he said softly, looking down at his shoes as his curiosity got the better of him, "Who...?"

"The guy tutoring me in Chemistry," you  _finally_ admitted, making his head snap back up.

"M- _Me_?" he whispered, his voice unexpectedly breaking.

"The other day... When I asked if you wanted to do something other than study tonight... I... I was hoping you'd say yes so we could do something  _together_... But you said you needed  _friends_ to go out and I... It was obvious you don't consider  _us_ friends, so... I didn't end up asking you to come to the arcade with me  _at all_... I thought you'd say no..."

"I'd  _never_ say no to you..." Michael confessed, blushing a bit himself when you giggled lightly. You looked at each other for a moment before he spoke again. "D-Do you want to go out with m-me tomorrow?" he asked so softly that you almost didn't hear it, "W- _Without_ my cousins?"

"I would love to, Mikey," you accepted, making him blush even brighter at the sound of  _his_ nickname coming from  _your_ mouth.

"We-Well, I... I'll see you t-tomorrow then..." he said bashfully.

You grinned again, only to turn a bright red when he bravely pressed a kiss to your cheek just as you'd done to him earlier. He didn't even take a moment to gauge your response – he just scurried off of your porch and back to his car where his cousins were waiting to be taken home.

"Bye, Y/N!" Scarlet called out the window that was still open.

You laughed in response, waving at her before catching Michael's gaze again. He smiled at you and you smiled back, offering him a small wave as well as he pulled out of your driveway and went home, both of your hearts racing with anticipation of what the next day would bring.


	537. Better Off (Calum Hood) - Part 1

_"He's not gonna show," Calum stated dryly._

_"What?" you furrowed your eyebrows._

_"He's not gonna show," he repeated, "He never does."_

_"People change, Calum," you insisted._

_"Not people like him."_

~

Alright,  _maybe_ you should have listened to him – maybe, deep down, you  _knew_ he was right. 

But that didn't mean you were going to  _admit it_.

"Y/N, how long have you been sitting there?" you heard your best friend's voice, prompting you to look onto the street in front of the bench you were sat on.

Calum was sitting in his car right in front of you, impatiently tapping his fingers on the top of his steering wheel. You looked over at the bank's sign across the street, noticing it was two hours after your date with Landon was scheduled to begin.

"He'll  _be here_ , Calum," you insisted.

"Y/N," he rolled his eyes, "Get in the car; I'm taking you home."

" _He's coming_ ," you grumbled. You heard Calum let out a sharp sigh as he put his car in park. He then got out, coming over to where you were sitting.

"Get in the car, Y/N," he repeated sternly, but you  _still_ wouldn't budge.

"He's gonna be here  _any minute_ ," you said, giving him no other choice.

Calum grabbed your wrist and forcibly pulled you to your feet, dragging you to the passenger door of his car. You tried to take your arm back, but he refused to loosen his grip.

" _Calum_!" you all but shouted, earning curious glances from those around you. He knew people were staring – he just didn't  _care_. Calum stopped dead in his tracks, bringing you close to him so no one would hear what he was saying to you.

" _Get in the car_ ," he said for a third time through gritted teeth, his eyes narrowed in frustration as he stared you down, " _Now_."

You froze in your spot for a moment – Calum had  _never_ used that tone with you before. You knew your stubbornness annoyed him to  _no end_ , but the reaction you were getting now was completely  _new_ to you. And, in your state of shock, you just did what he said.

The car ride home was a  _thousand_ times more awkward than you expected. Neither of you were speaking to each other, and Calum hadn't even turned on the radio or  _anything_ to lessen the tension. You had  _no idea_  what had gotten into Calum, but you weren't about to force yourself to be the one to speak because you  _knew_ you wouldn't be able to find your voice.

Since the moment Calum started driving, you had been trapped in your own thoughts.

You didn't know  _why_ Landon would stand you up – you  _really_  thought he liked you. You seemed to hit it off with him when you met him at one of his frat house's parties – the same frat  _Calum_ was in, in fact – and he seemed like such an  _honest_ person as well –  _certainly_ not someone who would just leave someone hanging the way he left  _you_.

The sound of a sniffle as you finally pulled up to the curb outside your sorority made Calum's head snap over, finding you taking deep breaths in order to keep yourself calm. You tried to be subtle about the way you wiped the cheek opposite of him, but Calum still knew – Calum always knew.

"Y/N-" he started, but you cut him off.

" _M'fine_ ," you stated, ignoring the break in your voice, before getting out of the car and immediately walking into your house without looking back at the man who had driven you home.

~

**Monday morning**

It was 11am, and you were relieved to be walking out of your first class of the day. You'd been so hard on yourself over the weekend that you thought going back to classes would be a good distraction. And while it did help to  _some_ degree, you  _definitely_ didn't miss how much  _work_ your professor saddled you with.

You were walking back to your sorority to drop off your things, happy you had the time to go out for lunch that day. You didn't indulge on fast food very often, but you figured you  _deserved it_  after such a tough weekend.

However, you were stopped upon walking back out of your house.

"Y/N!" you heard a voice behind you. You looked over your shoulder and your heart skipped a beat when you noticed Landon jogging toward you. "Hey!" he breathed out, stopping in front of you, "What happened Friday night? I waited for you for like,  _three hours_."

"What are you  _talking about_?" you furrowed your eyebrows, " _I_ was the one waiting for  _you_."

"No, you weren't," he shook his head, a confused look on his face, "I looked around the entire restaurant four times – you weren't there and you never showed."

"I was waiting outside!" you squeaked, "I texted you like,  _three times_  asking where you were!"

"No, you didn't. I didn't get  _anything_ from you."

"Are you  _sure_?" you wondered.

"Yeah!" he nodded, pulling his phone out of his pocket. He unlocked it and went into his messages, opening up your thread and letting you see that he had, indeed, not gotten any of the texts you sent him Friday night.

"Well, I  _definitely_ messaged you," you said, retrieving your own phone to show him that you'd sent them.

"So our  _phones_ are just out to ruin everything," he breathed a sigh of relief, "I thought you hated me." You finally allowed yourself to smile for the first time in three days. "I wanna make it up to you, Y/N," he insisted, "I wanna try this again – and I'll pick you up from your  _house_ this time." You looked at him for a moment before barely nodding.

"Okay," you answered softly, making him smile brightly.

"We'll just pretend this past weekend never happened," he told you, "So I'll pick you up Friday at 7?" You nodded again, blushing when he leaned in and pressed a kiss to your cheek. "Thank you," he beamed, "See you then!" He jogged away, not wanting to be late to his class, while you let out the breath you didn't know you'd been holding.

" _Seriously_?" you heard behind you again, making you jump lightly. You spun around to find Calum coming around the corner and leaning up against the wall. "Did you learn nothing the  _first time_?" he questioned.

"It was a  _misunderstanding_ , Cal," you shook your head, "That  _happens_ sometimes."

"He  _stood you up_ , Y/N! He  _ignored your texts_! There was no ' _misunderstanding_ ' about it!"

"He showed me his messages," you informed him, "He didn't get  _anything_ from me that night."

"You can delete  _other people's_  messages, you know," he rolled his eyes, "And he's gonna do it  _this weekend_  too. Don't tell me you're  _stupid enough_  to fall for it all over again."

"I  _know_ you're mad that I wasted two hours sitting around in front of the restaurant, Calum, but that  _doesn't_ give you the right to  _talk to me_  like that," you reminded him, your tone firm, "Landon is a good guy, and what happened Friday  _wasn't_ his fault, so he deserves a second chance. And whether you like it or not, I'm going to give him one." You ended your lecture by sauntering away, making your way to the college's food court, all while listening to Calum groan and stomp the other way.

~

**One week later; Friday night**

You had just finished putting on the finishing touches of your outfit for your date with Landon. You were just as – if not  _more_ – nervous this time around, wanting everything to go absolutely  _perfect_. Last weekend was a  _nightmare_ and  _all_ you wanted was a nice date with a boy you were  _really_ into.

Your heart skipped a beat when your ringtone started playing from your bed. You hurried over to grab your phone, thinking Landon was calling to tell you he was outside, but you frowned upon reading the name on the screen.

" _What_ , Cal?" you sighed.

You and Calum hadn't spoken much in the last week since his little outburst on you, so – while you were surprised to see he'd called – you weren't exactly  _thrilled_ to be talking to him, especially since Landon was due to stop by any moment.

But you didn't receive a response. There was no returned greeting, no warnings not to go on the date, no  _nothing_.

"Calum?" you questioned, only earning the sounds of fabric as he shoved his phone into his pocket. But you did  _finally_ hear his voice after that.

**Calum's POV**

"Thought you had a date with Y/N," Calum mentioned to the boy sitting on the living room couch playing video games.

"Supposed to," Landon replied shortly.

"Shouldn't you be picking her up then?"

"Probably," he shrugged, "But that would only be if I planned on going in the  _first place_." Your heart started pounding in your chest and you felt like you couldn't breathe.

"You aren't  _planning_ on going?" Calum cocked an eyebrow.

"It's kind of entertaining to watch her get excited and then just  _not show_ ," he snickered lightly, "Didn't think it'd  _work_ a second time, honestly."

"Isn't that what you did to  _Shelby_ a couple weeks ago?"

"Had to quit with her – she caught on too quick."

"Hmm," Calum hummed, "Guess you and I have different definitions of ' _entertainment_ ' then." He got up from the couch, waiting until his bedroom door was closed behind him before pulling his phone out of his pocket. "Do you believe me  _now_?" he asked you. You were silent for a moment before speaking.

"Yeah..." your voice cracked. Calum said your name, but you'd already hung up.

He knew you were hurt, but he also didn't want you to spend the entire night waiting for Landon when he  _knew_ he wasn't going to show up. He didn't want you to cry for the rest of the night though ­– at least not  _alone_ – so he immediately grabbed his jacket and headed back downstairs.

"Hey, man," Landon said when he heard Calum's keys jingle as he pulled them out of his pocket, "What are you doing? Thought you said you weren't going out tonight."

"Doing what  _you're_ too much of a  _prick_ to," Calum stated dryly, not even giving Landon a chance to respond before he was out the door.

~

30 minutes later, Calum was knocking on the front door of your sorority with a box of your favorite cookies in one hand and a single (favorite flower) in the other. One of your sisters opened the door, cocking an eyebrow.

"You are  _not_ who I thought you were gonna be," Kassie said. He knew all the girls thought Landon was going to be there any minute now.

"Sorry, s'just me," he smiled, "Is Y/N home?"

"Yeah," she nodded, "Is there something wrong? Because I tried to get her to come down to wait for Landon, but she's locked herself in her room and is  _refusing_ to come out." Calum simply offered her a forced smile, to which she raised her eyebrows again but stepped out of the way to let him inside anyway. "Maybe  _you'll_ have more luck with her," she mentioned.

"Thanks, Kass!" he said over his shoulder, already jogging up the staircase and heading for your bedroom.

**Your POV**

The first time there was a knock at your door, you ignored it. The second time, you ignored that one too. But with the third, much  _louder_ one, you huffed to yourself. 

You slinked off of your bed from where you'd been lying face-down in your pillow for the last half hour, trudging to your bedroom door, unlocking it, and pulling it open.

"M' _not_  in the mood, Calum," you grumbled when you found him standing in the hallway.

"Not in the mood for  _what_?" he asked, knowing  _damn well_  what you were referring to.

"For you to say ' _I told you so_ '," you shook your head, moving away from the door and heading back to your bed, "So I'll save you the trouble:  _You_ were right,  _I_ was wrong, and  _Landon_ is a dick. I should have listened to you from the beginning and I  _didn't_ and now I'm spending my Saturday night crying into a bag of popcorn and watching  _stupid_ romance movies in spite of knowing I'll  _never_ have anything like that happen to me because I'm not worth  _anything_ more than-" You cut yourself off when Calum stomped over to you, closed the door loudly behind him, tossed the flower and cookies on your bed, and grabbed your chin, forcing you to look at him.

" _Stop it_ ," he stated with a firm tone, "If you want to be angry at yourself for believing everything he said, that's  _fine_. But I'm  _not_ going to stand here and listen to you talk about yourself like that. So what if  _one douchebag_  stood you up?!" He threw his free arm up a bit as he spoke. "That doesn't mean everyone  _else_ you try to date is going to do the  _same_! And it  _definitely_ doesn't mean you're worthless! The only worthless person here is  _Landon_ for doing this to you!"

You stared at Calum for a moment as you thought about what he said before you felt your eyes start to get watery. He would have wiped the tears from your cheeks, but you didn't give him the chance to – you just threw your arms around his torso and held onto him. You felt Calum let out a breath as you cried into his shirt, his arm wrapping around your shoulders while the hand that had been on your chin moved to the back of your head.

"I know, baby girl," he murmured into your hair, running his fingers through it as he kissed your temple, "I know."

It made his heart  _ache_ to see you like this –  _especially_ over a guy who never even cared about you to  _begin with_  – but he was happy that  _he_ was the one holding you right now and not  _anyone else_.


	538. Better Off (Calum Hood) - Part 2 *

_requested by bandshirthoarder on wattpad_

**Warning: Mentions of rape**

~

Rumors were something expected in such a public setting – especially a  _school_. Though, the rumors you'd heard in your last three years on campus were nothing more than ' _did you hear who's dating who?_ ' and ' _I heard she's is taking her to winter formal_ '.

But this time... Well, it wasn't a  _rumor_ so much as a  _100% fact_.

You didn't  _believe it_  at first – sure, Landon was a dick, but  _surely_ he'd never do something so  _sick_ – but when Calum told you  _himself_ , you knew it wasn't just another bit of campus  _gossip_.

It had started as just another game of beer pong at Calum's frat's party. You hadn't gone, insisting that you needed to stay in your room and finish writing the paper that was  _almost_ perfect. Things were going as they normally did at a college party: drunk people stumbling around the house, couples making out during games of spin the bottle, shouting over one another as a few people played video games together.

But the party took a turn when Calum found Landon  _literally dragging_  a passed-out girl up the stairs.

He asked what he was doing –  _obviously_ – and why he didn't just  _carry her_  if she needed to lie down. Landon ignored him, not even giving him a brief glance to acknowledge that he'd been spoken to. 

And Calum would be lying if he said he wasn't getting a  _bad_ feeling in the pit of his stomach.

Calum called after him again, racing up the stairs after him and the girl. But as soon as he reached Landon's bedroom door, it was being slammed in his face and he heard the lock click right after.

He started  _banging_ on the door, telling Landon that if he did anything to that girl, he'd have  _hell_ to pay for it. He did  _everything_ he could to get inside – trying to pick the lock, trying to break the handle, and even trying to kick it down  _himself_ – but  _nothing_ was working.

And that was when he ran downstairs, ordered everyone out, and called the cops.

~

**Two months later**

You were sitting in the courtroom beside Calum, anxiously waiting for Landon's trial to start. He'd been charged with the rape of Michelle Carver, and you could only  _pray_ at that point that he wouldn't go free.

Calum's leg was bouncing up and down, his hands clasped in his lap tightly. He was really the  _only_ key witness for Michelle's defense, and he'd  _immediately_ agreed to testify against Landon on her behalf when her lawyer asked him to. Though, that didn't mean he wasn't  _nervous_ about it.

"Cal," you said softly, putting your hand on his knee to make it stop moving. He looked over at you, and you gave him the best reassuring smile you could muster. "It's gonna be  _fine_ ," you shook your head, "You  _know_ what happened; You  _know_ what Landon did. There's  _no way_  the jury would let him go free."

"You don't  _know that_ ," Calum whispered, "Landon's got  _a lot_  of money... His parents hired the best lawyer in the  _world_ for him for this case... Even if he  _does_ go to jail, he wouldn't be there for as long as he  _deserves_..."

"I know, Cal," you sighed, your thumb rubbing his knee gently, "But Michelle's lawyer is good  _too_. He's gonna fight for her,  _just_ like I know you will."

~

Not long after arriving at the courthouse, Michelle and her lawyer as well as Landon and his were escorted into the room, taking their respective seats in front of the judge's chair. The bailiff announced for everyone to stand as the judge came into the room. You all sat down and the people at the tables were sworn in before the trail officially started.

"Mr. Rowse," Judge Hannigan addressed Landon as she read the paper in front of her, "You're here for the alleged rape of Miss Carver, correct?"

"Yes, Your Honor," Landon nodded.

"And you're pleading not guilty, is that right?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Miss Carver," she then turned to Michelle, "You're here because you're claiming to have been raped by Mr. Rowse?"

"Y-Yes, Your Honor," she answered quietly.

"Alright," the judge nodded, "Mr. Lucas, do you have any witnesses for Miss Carver's defense? A..." She looked back at the paper. "-Mr. Hood?"

"Yes, Your Honor," he confirmed.

"Then let's have him take the stand," she nodded, "Mr. Leung-" She looked at Landon's attorney, "You will begin the questioning."

Calum took a deep breath beside you, making you look at him. You squeezed his knee before he stood up and made his way to the stand. He was put under oath and allowed to take a seat.

"Mr. Hood," Mr. Leung started, the jury's eyes now on him, "How long have you known Mr. Rowse?"

"About three years," Calum answered.

"And describe for me his attitude toward girls in that time."

"I guess I'd say it's... _appalling_ , at the very least," he replied, shaking his head, "He doesn't respect them – he treats them like some kind of pawn in these games he likes play with them."

"What kinds of games?"

"He asks girls out knowing he's not to show up for the date. He leaves them sitting somewhere for hours while he just sits at home, watching some movie. He promises them he'll call after a party, but he never does."

"Well, I think we can all agree that he's certainly no  _gentleman_ , Mr. Hood, but he's never tried to rape any of them before, has he?"

"No, sir," he stated, "This was the first time I'm aware of."

"But you didn't try to  _stop him_ , Mr. Hood?"

"I  _called the cops_ ," Calum replied, a dumbfounded tone in his voice, "He'd  _already_ raped her before they  _got there_."

"But you didn't try to pull him off of Miss Carver?"

"He locked his bedroom door," he shook his head, "What was I  _supposed_ to do? I tried  _dozens_ of times to get that door open, but  _nothing_ worked. If I  _could have_  gotten Michelle out of that situation, I  _would have_."

You had to admit that you were  _impressed_ with how calm Calum was acting because, if it were  _you_ , you weren't so sure  _you'd_ have been able to keep your cool. And you  _especially_ wouldn't have been able to keep your cool with the direction Landon's lawyer took next.

"Have you ever experienced Mr. Rowse's treatment of girls firsthand, Mr. Hood?" he asked, "Maybe a... _close friend_...that had previously been involved with him?" Calum's eyes met yours for a brief moment and you looked back at him with a surprised look on your face –  _how did Landon's lawyer know about you?_

"Yes, sir," Calum answered cautiously, "My best friend was stood up by him twice."

"And the fact that she's your best friend didn't make you  _angry_ with him?"

"It certainly didn't  _help_ that she's my best friend, but he shouldn't be treating  _any_ woman like that –  _regardless_ of whether I know them or not," he cocked an eyebrow, unsure of where this was  _going_.

"What would you have done if  _Miss Y/L/N_  was the victim here?" the attorney asked. Calum opened his mouth for a moment as he glanced up at the judge before looking back in front of him.

"I... But Y/N  _wasn't_ the victim," he said, "I don't understand how this is  _relevant_."

"I don't either, Mr. Leung," Judge Hannigan stated dryly, her eyes never leaving the lawyer. But while  _her_ eyes never left  _him_ ,  _his_ eyes were trained on  _Calum_.

"Must be  _hard_ to think about her being the victim, isn't it?" Mr. Leung shook his head, pacing a bit, "Although, I think it would be hard for  _anyone_ to imagine the person they're in love with in a situation like  _that_."

It was like you could  _see_ Calum's breathing hitch while your own heart skipped a beat. His eyes  _immediately_ landed on yours again and you could see how panicked he looked, but you could also tell that the lawyer wasn't making it up  _just_ to get a rise out of Calum.

"I... I'm not sure I-"

"It's a simple theory, Mr. Hood," the lawyer shook his head, "The idea of Mr. Rowse hurting Miss Y/L/N the way he hurt Miss Carver made you angry, and the only way to get back at him for the way he treated her was to allow him to rape Miss Carver so the law would take care of him."

"I already told you,  _Mr. Leung_ ," Calum grumbled, "If I  _could have_  gotten her out, I  _would have_."

"But you're not  _denying_ that you're in love with Miss Y/L/N?"

"My feelings for Y/N  _aren't_ what we're here for," he reminded everybody, "We're here because a girl was raped, and I don't  _appreciate_ the insinuation that I  _allowed_ it to happen just because it  _could have been_  the girl I'm in love with." Your heart –  _understandably_ – skipped another beat at the confession.

" _Mr. Leung_ ," Judge Hannigan finally put an end to the lawyer's off-topic rant, "As Mr. Hood has  _clearly_ stated, we are here for  _Miss Carver_. Unless you have any more  _relevant_ questions for our witness, I'm going to allow Mr. Lucas to talk with him."

"That's all, Your Honor," Mr. Leung smirked, returning to his seat as Michelle's attorney took the floor.

~

After what seemed like an eternity, the trial was over and the jury had been released to discuss Landon's fate. They came back in record time – after only an  _hour_ of deliberation, in fact – with their verdict. The sigh of relief that washed over the people there to support Michelle when Landon was found guilty was something so  _surreal_. 

After the bailiff had escorted Landon out of the room, you hurried over to Michelle. You threw your arms around her and she hugged you back just as tightly.

"I know hearing he's going to jail for what he did to you is never going to change what happened," you murmured in her ear, "If you ever need someone to talk to, I'll be here for you." You felt her let out a soft sigh.

"Thank you," she replied gratefully, squeezing you before you both let go.

You and Calum walked out of the courtroom together, somewhat of an awkward silence lingering in the air. You obviously hadn't stopped thinking about what he'd said on the stand, and although you  _still_ didn't really know what to say, you couldn't just say  _nothing_.

"Cal-" You cleared your throat lightly as you were walking through an empty hallway, "Calum, wait..." You took his arm and you both stopped moving. "Are you... Are you  _really_ in love with me...?" you whispered, your chest visibly rising and falling, "Did you really  _mean that_...?"

"Was under oath," Calum murmured in response, "Not  _allowed_ to lie under oath."

"Cal... I-"

"You don't have to tell me, Y/N – I already know," he cut you off, "And it's okay that you don't feel the same. I'm sorry I've made you uncomfortable; I just hope this doesn't change anything between us and we can still be friends."

Calum walked away from you and out of the courthouse, leaving you standing there by yourself, unsure of where to go from there.


	539. Better Off (Calum Hood) - Part 3

_requested by bandshirthoarder on wattpad, and art-ri-music and calumhoodslays on tumblr_ **  
**

**Warning: Brief mention of rape**

~

**Two weeks later**

"Y/N?!" Kassie called as she knocked on your bedroom door, "Y/N, come on! This is the  _second time_  you've locked yourself in there! We're all worried about you!" Truthfully, she didn't think she'd get a response, but amazingly, she heard your lock retract as you opened your door.

It had been two weeks since Landon's trial – two weeks since you found out your best friend was in love with you. He hadn't spoken to you at all in that time – not a text, not a call, not a glance when you walked into your shared classes...  _Nothing_.

You were understandably hurt by the decision Calum had made. He didn't want anything to  _change_ with his confession, but  _he_ was the one allowing it to  _happen_.

You figured all he needed was some space the first couple days, but after a while, you just started feeling  _hurt_. He seemed like he wanted nothing to do with you anymore, and being so used to spending nearly every day with him, you honestly didn't know what to do other than  _cry_.

"Y/N..." Kassie said gently when she noticed the solemn look on your face. She stepped into your room, leading you to your bed to sit down. "What's wrong?" she asked, her voice clearly showing her concern, "It's not  _like you_  to just shut everyone out like this." You were silent for a moment before finally finding the nerve to speak.

"Calum is in love with me..." you swallowed thickly, your voice so soft that Kassie almost hadn't heard it, "He... Landon's lawyer asked if he was... And he said yes..."

"Are you an  _idiot_?  _Of course_  he is!" she exclaimed, making you furrow your eyebrows as you looked up at her.

" _What_?" you asked.

" _Come on, Y/N_! That boy looks at you like you put every single star in the  _sky_! It's  _so obvious_  he's head over heels for you!" You were silent for a moment before speaking again.

"Then why won't he  _look at me_  anymore?" you whimpered, "He hasn't  _spoken_ to me since the trail and I... I must have done  _something_ wrong, but I can't figure out what it  _is_..."

"He's  _overwhelmed_ , Y/N," she sighed, "I mean, imagine having to testify on a rape case  _and_ have your best friend find out your feelings for them  _all at once_. I'm sure he just needs some  _time_. He'll come back to you; He always  _does_."

~

**One week later**

Another week passed, and  _still_ without any word from Calum. You'd be lying if you said you were feeling any better, but you were  _getting by_  – and that was good enough for you.

Honestly, focusing on your last class of the day was a lot easier paired with the fact that Calum hadn't shown up. You were a bit concerned – Calum  _never_ missed his classes no matter  _what_ was going on – but you decided to worry about that later and just focus on  _yourself_ for the time being.

Later that night, while you were in the midst of yet another study session, you heard a knock on your bedroom door. You bookmarked your place in your textbook, dropped your pencil onto your desk, and hurried to see who needed you.

You opened the door, your heart skipping a beat when you found Calum standing there. He was holding a bouquet of your favorite flowers and he had a timid expression on his face.

"I'm sorry," he said before you could slam the door in his face, "I... I  _know_ I fucked up... I never wanted you to find out how I feel like  _that_ , but I could've handled it  _a lot_  better... And I  _shouldn't_ have ignored you for the last month, but I... I've been trying to come up with something to make it up to you... But all I could think of was buying you flowers because I don't even know if you  _feel_ the same way, and that's  _all my fault_. I  _never_ should have just walked away from you that day without letting  _you_ say what  _you_ needed to and I'm  _so_ -"

You couldn't keep yourself from acting, surprising Calum by just grabbing his cheeks and pulling his face to yours. He almost dropped your flowers but quickly caught himself, setting them on your dresser before moving his hands to grip your hips tightly. He brought your body right up against his, allowing you to feel his stomach move as breathed you in.

"Y/N..." he murmured as you pulled away for air.

You sucked in sharply, barely smiling when his forehead landed on yours as he opened his eyes. You found yourself staring in awe of each other while your thumbs stroked his cheekbones and his rubbed your hips.

"Y' _know_  I don't like when you walk away before you let me talk," you reminded him in a whisper. Calum chuckled softly.

"I know," he acknowledged.

"Think we could have  _avoided_ this whole mess if y'just let me tell you I love you too."

He breathed out abruptly, swallowing the lump in his throat, "Y' _do_?" You looked at him lovingly as you moved one hand off of his cheek to push back a piece of hair that had fallen over his eye.

"I love you, Cal," you breathed, smiling again when his lips were back on yours.

"I love  _you_ , baby girl."


	540. Secret Weapon (Achievement Hunter)

_this is definitely the dumbest thing i've ever written and i love it so much_

~

"We ready?" you asked after the office door closed behind Michael.

"Ready as we'll  _ever_ be," Gavin nodded.

"Excellent! I like the confidence!" you chirped, making the group laugh. "Okay, guys: Much like Michael's heist, this one is almost  _painfully_ specially planned to keep  _every single person_  alive," you began.

"Even  _me_?" he spoke up again.

" _Especially_ you, Gav," you nodded, "You are  _going_ to live even if we have to change things up so you stay by my side the  _entire_ time."

"You make me feel so  _safe_ , Y/N," he told you, earning himself a smile.

"Now, we're going to have four teams of two," you informed everyone, "I've decided that the best route to go on this is to pair up everyone who works best together; That means Team OG, Team Crazy Mad, and Boston Tea Party are in  _full effect_  today."

" _Aw_ , I wanted to be with Michael," Gavin frowned.

"Alright, well, fuck you too, Gavin," Jeremy scoffed.

"Guys, come on! Think back to  _Criminal Masterminds_!" you insisted, "Remember how  _well_ you all worked together?! That was  _beautiful_! I wanna see it  _again_!"

"She has a point," Michael nodded, "I wanna kill Gavin every time he fucks up; Jeremy's a lot more patient with him."

" _But Michael_!" Gavin pouted.

"Suck it up, Free!" you barked, "This is the plan and I'm not diverting from it! The only way to keep you alive is by putting you with the person most likely to put up with your bullshit!" Michael, Jeremy, and Ryan chuckled at the even  _bigger_ frown now adorning Gavin's face, while Jack and Geoff were too busy laughing hysterically to say anything on the matter.

"Okay, so... When Jeremy finally snaps and murders Gavin, what's plan B?" Geoff asked after calming himself down.

"There  _is_ no plan B," you shook your head, "We don't need one; That's not gonna happen."

"This confidence is  _definitely_ going to get someone killed later," Jeremy commented.

"Keep that attitude up and I'm gonna have to put you down  _myself_ ," you stated, and Ryan let out an amused grunt.

"Wait," Michael piped up, "So who are  _you_ going to be paired with then?"

"I'm bringing in my secret weapon," you smirked slightly, making everyone cock their eyebrows.

"And who  _is_ your ' _secret weapon_ ' exactly?" Jack wondered.

"You'll see," you replied with coy grin.

"Question!" Gavin chirped, throwing his hand in the air, "Is it Lindsay?"

"I  _thought about_  making it Lindsay," you replied, "But after the whole  _boat fiasco_  in Michael's heist, I'm not risking it." Michael laughed loudly in agreement while the other men simply snorted softly. "You'll all see who it is later," you assured them, "So are we ready to hear the plan?"

" _Bring it on_!" Jeremy cheered.

~

"...so after we all get to the airport, Jack will cargobob us all out, Michael will call off all of our wanted levels, and we'll head to the Vinewood sign to split the cash in style," you ended your presentation, "Any questions?"

"Yes," Jack nodded, "What are we driving before we're in the cargobob?"

"Whichever member of your team has an armored vehicle would be  _ideal_ ," you answered, "But if  _neither of you_  do, then the next best bet would be whatever car is going to help you outrun cops and get you to the airport the  _fastest_. The point is, anything that  _isn't_ a motorcycle, I'm cool with; We've had bad experiences with motorcycles – we're not doing it this time."

"You're telling me," he chuckled.

"Anything else we need to go over?"

"I think we're good," Geoff looked around the room. Everyone nodded in response.

" _Oh_!  _Michael_!" you said, making him perk up, "I'm going to say this right now in front of him so he can't say he didn't hear me: If you feel like Ryan is going to turn on you when you're alone with him or the rest of us after we meet back up at the airport, you have my permission to put him down."

" _What_?!" Ryan exclaimed with a frown while Michael grinned cockily and leaned back in his chair.

"You heard me," you narrowed your eyes at him, "It happened with Geoff, it happened with Ray – it's  _not_ gonna happen with  _me_."

"What if Michael kills me shouting  _self-defense_?!"

"He won't."

"How do you  _know_?!"

" _Because he's not you_!" everyone said simultaneously, making Ryan frown again.

" _Fine_ ," he grumbled.

"Ry, you  _know_ I love you," you grinned, "I just don't  _trust you_." The group simply hummed in agreement.

" _Wait_!" Gavin suddenly exclaimed, "What about code names?!"

" _Right_!" you gasped, grabbing your notebook from the table and flipping a couple pages, "Code names are as follows: Geoff, you are Reoff Gamsey-" Everyone immediately started laughing. "-Gavin, you are Favin Gree; Jeremy, you are-"

"Wait," Jeremy cut you off, "Are you just switching our first letters?"

"Yes," you nodded, "Jeremy, you are Deremy Jooley; Ryan, you are Hyan Raywood; Jack, you are Pack Jattillo-"

"I  _love_ it!" Jack laughed.

"-And Michael, you are Jichael Mones – don't think too much about it," you finished while he just shook his head in amusement.

"What's  _your_ code name?" Gavin asked.

"My code name is Super Awesome Mega Alpha Extreme."

"What the  _fuck_?" Michael laughed.

" _Jesus Christ_ ," Geoff put his head in his hands, clearly wondering why he hired you in the first place.

"Does your ' _secret weapon_ ' also have a code name?" Jack wondered.

"Of course!" you chirped, "They will be referred to as Zebras In Popular Tees Insist Eastland."

" _Yeah_ , I'm gonna remember  _that_ ," Jeremy shook his head.

"Well, I'm not changing it!" you chirped, "Alright! Let's  _crush this_!"

~

"Are we all finished with setup then?" Ryan asked everyone, "Is it time to go?"

"I think so, Hyan," you said, hearing him snort softly at his code name, "Let me call my secret weapon and we can start heisting!" They thought you were going to pull out your phone, but you still had a couple surprises up your sleeve. "Zebras In Popular Tees Insist Eastland, this is Super Awesome Mega Alpha Extreme, over," you said, making everyone look over at you when they heard a staticy noise coming from your desk, "You're needed in the FAC Warehouse STAT, copy?"

"Where did you get a  _walkie talkie_?!" Geoff exclaimed.

"Affirmative, Super Awesome Mega Alpha Extreme," your ' _secret weapon_ ' returned, speaking in a little lower tone so no one could tell who he was just yet, "I have visual on the building; I will be arriving shortly, over."

"Copy that," you nodded despite the fact that he couldn't see you, "Over and out." You turned the walkie talkie off and looked over, finding everyone staring at you.

"What is  _happening_?" Jeremy asked no one in particular.

"I feel sorry for the poor bastard that has to try to  _top_ this heist so far," Ryan shook his head.

"I'll take that as a compliment," you nodded at him with a smile on your face. Before anyone else could speak up, the door to the Achievement Hunter office opened.

"Trevor!" Gavin shouted, "Get out! We're busy!"

"Hey, I was  _summoned_!" Trevor responded, closing the door behind him and walking past the couch.

"Wait..." Jeremy said, watching him walk by, "You're Y/N's..."

" _Secret weapon_!" you cheered while Trevor plopped down at the desk beside yours.

" _Trevor_?" Gavin cocked an eyebrow, " _He's_ your ' _secret weapon_ '?"

"Why do you say it like  _that_ , Gavin?" he pouted

"I mean, I  _told you_  who it was before we started this," you shrugged.

"No, you  _didn't_!" Geoff insisted.

"I  _did_!" you replied, "I told you his code name!"

"That didn't tell us  _anything_!" Ryan said.

"The acronym is  _ZIPTIE_!"

" _God damn it_!" Michael groaned.

"What a  _lame joke_ ," Gavin shook his head.

" _You're_ a lame joke," you scoffed, "Now are we ready to start this thing or not?"

"Sure,  _boss_ ," Jack laughed, turning back to his computer.

"I can  _already_ see the endless amount of fanfics about Fake AH Trevor and Y/N," Jeremy commented.

"Sounds like you're gonna be  _writing 'em_ ," Ryan chuckled.

"Well, you don't know what I do at home,  _Ryan_ ," he returned, hearing you giggle softly.

~

**One hour later**

" _Go, go, go, go, go_!" Geoff shouted as he was the last to climb into the cargobob.

"Take us toward Vinewood, Jack!" you ordered the pilot, and he immediately headed in that direction, "Michael-"

"Already calling Lester!" he cut you off. You all held your breath, waiting for your wanted levels to disappear. " _Done_!" Michael announced.

"Are everyone's levels gone?" you asked, earning a chorus of affirmations. You instantly broke out into a wide grin, looking around the room. "Guys..." you grabbed their attention as Jack landed the cargobob near the Vinewood sign, "I think we did it..."

"We  _actually_ pulled it off?!" Gavin's eyes widened, "And  _everyone's_ alive?!" You looked around at all of your friends' characters before cheering.

" _We did it_!" you beamed. The group started hollering as well.

"I can't  _believe it_!" Geoff exclaimed.

"First  _100% successful_  heist in the bag!" Michael added.

"A job well done, gentlemen!" you praised them, "And now, for your rewards!" You opened the menu and evenly split the payout between everyone.

" _Jesus_ ," Jeremy breathed, " _How much_  did we get away with?"

"Maybe the bank should be more  _careful_ about who they let into their vaults next time," you snickered, making everyone laugh.

"Well, I'm just glad that's over and done with," Gavin shook his head, "I was waiting for something  _rubbish_ to happen that whole time."

"I told you, Gav: trust the plan!" you squeaked.

"Alright!" Jack clapped his hands together, "I don't know about you guys, but I'm ready for  _pizza_!"

" _Shocking_ , Jack," Jeremy laughed. Everyone got up to retrieve some of the food that had arrived just before you finished the heist.

"Hey, Y/N," Trevor said. You looked over at him as you took your headphones off and set them by your keyboard. "I'd love to recreate those future fanfics  _for real_  sometime if you're down," he winked at you. You simply rolled your eyes with a smile on your face, getting up and shoving his shoulder as you passed him to get your pizza.

~

_inspiration: all the heists i made my own playlist of bc i couldnt find one lmao https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLl_e5O1FmH7OisPyb1SlP1roURCg6brhF_


	541. Baby's First Word (Luke Hemmings)

You were sitting on the couch in your living room, your feet propped up on the coffee table and your 8-month-old baby girl laying in your lap. You were talking to her, making cooing noises to make her show off her toothless grin, when she started making noises of her own.

You listened to your baby's babbles for a couple minutes before you decided to try to coerce her into saying her first word. You took out your phone and started recording, hoping you could capture it. When she paused for a moment, you started speaking again.

"What are you trying to say?" you asked, making her giggle which, in turn, made you smile at her, "What are you saying, huh? Mama?" She made the ' _mmm_ ' sound, but she wasn't actually saying the word. "Mama," you repeated to her. She babbled some more. "Mama," you made a silly face, making her laugh again. "Okay," you chuckled, "I'll let  _you_ pick then." She blew little raspberries as you grinned down at her. "What do  _you_ want your first word to be?" you asked her. She babbled again for a moment before clearly saying something that made your heart skip.

"Lulu," she said, giggling when your eyes widened.

"You said Lulu?" you asked her, making her clap her hands.

"Lulu!" she repeated happily.

"Are you saying  _Luke_?" you wondered. Her face lit up when you said your best friend's name.

" _Lulu_!" she squealed, and you  _knew_ she was saying Luke's name. You immediately stopped the video and opened your messages.

You went to yours and Luke's thread, sending him the video without any context, wanting him to watch it before he knew what it was. You received the ' _read_ ' notification almost instantly, your heart racing as you knew he was watching it now.

You counted the number of seconds in your head for how long the video was and as soon as you reached that number, the three little dots that let you know Luke was typing popped up on the screen.

 _Are you serious????_  
Y/N, you're not serious  
Stop messing with me  
That was NOT her first word  
You're joking  
What the hell???  
I'm coming over

You knew there was no point in texting back since he wasn't going to believe you until he heard it for  _himself_ , so you just hit the lock button and put your phone back on the couch cushion beside you while you anxiously waited for him to get there.

~

10 minutes later, Luke didn't even knock on your front door before opening it. You were still sitting on your couch with Emmi on your lap, looking over as you heard his voice first.

"Y/N," Luke stated in a firm tone, "If you're lying to me,  _I swear to G_ -"

Emmi's own head turned when he started talking, making her shoot a toothless grin toward the blonde as he came into view.

" _Lulu_!" she clapped again, making him freeze in the middle of the room.

"Y/N..." he said again, softly this time, "There's  _no way_..." The look on his face rendered you speechless – the only thing you were able to offer him was a shake of your head and a smile.

"Lulu!" Emmi repeated, her little hands reaching for him. And if there weren't already tears in his eyes, that certainly would have gotten him.

Luke immediately wiped his face, coming over the couch. He moved your phone to the coffee table and sat down beside you. Emmi was still reaching for him, so there was no hesitation in taking her from your lap and holding her on his own the same way you had been.

"Lulu," she cooed again happily, her fingers wrapping around his own index ones when he held them up to her.

"Y/N..." he murmured, breaking gaze with the baby on his lap to look at you. You smiled, wiping your own face as you shook your head for a second time.

"I  _wasn't_ joking, Lu," you promised him.

"That really  _was_ her first word...?" he whispered, " _My name_  was her first word...?"

"I wouldn't make that up, Lu," you whispered back, unsure your voice would give you any more volume than that. He let out another breath, turning back to Emmi.

"Why... Why would she say  _my_ name...?"

"She's used to seeing you, Luke; She's used to having you around," you told him, "Honestly, at this point, you're more of a father to her than her real one  _ever_ will be."

"Y'think?" he murmured.

"I  _know_ ," you promised, "Wyatt hasn't called  _once_ to ask about his daughter. I knew he was going to be a  _deadbeat dad_ , but..."

"You thought he'd at least  _care about her_ ," Luke finished your sentence for you, looking at you with a solemn expression.

You sighed, leaning back against the couch, "Yeah..."

"Well, if it's any consolation, you've always got  _me_ ," he grinned down at your daughter, leaning in and pressing a kiss to her little nose that made her laugh. You watched the two for a moment before reaching over and pressing a kiss to Luke's cheek.

"Thanks, Lu."


	542. Prompt Blurb #1: Calum Hood (Part 1)

> prompt: "i used your pics to catfish someone, and since they bought me a laptop... you have a date with them tomorrow."

~

The text you'd received from your cousin – ' _Please call me right now!! It's an emergency!!_ " – wasn't one you were  _expecting_ , to be honest. You and Maisie were incredibly close all throughout growing up, and you didn't really get to see each other as often as you'd like to these days. So when you got that message, you understandably thought something terrible had happened.

"What's wrong?" you asked the moment her phone stopped ringing once she'd answered your call, "Is everyone okay? Did something happen?"

"No, we're all fine," Maisie assured you, causing you to sigh in relief.

"Then what's with the 911?" you shook your head despite the fact that she couldn't see you.

"Well... You know that guy I've been talking to? The one I met on Twitter?"

"Calum?" you asked.

"Yeah, him," she confirmed, "Uh... He wants to Skype with me..."

"Okay..." you trailed off, "Well, you've been talking to him for like, six months – it's only natural that he'd wanna see you."

"Yeah... There's a bit of a problem with that though..."

"Like...?"

"Well... The first time he asked me to Skype with him, I told him that I didn't have a webcam – which wasn't  _entirely_ untrue because mine  _was_ broken – but um... He... He bought me a new laptop..."

" _Whoa, whoa, whoa_ ," you breathed out in surprise, "He did  _what_?"

"Yeah..." you could hear her shy smile, "I told him not to, but he insisted... Bought it for me anyway... I just got it in the mail this morning..." 

" _Whoa_ ," you repeated, otherwise speechless.

"But  _that's_ not the problem..."

"What do you mean?"

"I haven't exactly been honest with him..."

"Maisie,  _what_ are you-"

"I've been using  _your_ pictures instead of  _mine_..." she admitted, " **And since I used _yours_  to catfish someone, and since he bought me a laptop... You have a date with him tomorrow...**"

" _Absolutely not_ ," you stated dryly, causing Maisie to whine.

"Y/N,  _please_?!" she pouted into her phone, "I  _need_ your help!"

"Why would you use  _my_ photos?!" you exclaimed, "Didn't you  _think_ he was going to want to Skype at  _some point_?!"

"Yeah, I just... I thought I'd confess by now or I'd just stop talking to him..." she started chewing on her inner cheek.

"So confess  _now_!"

"But then he'll hate me forever!"

"Well, that's your  _own_ fault, Mais!" you shook your head, "Once he Skypes this  _one time_ , he's going to want to do it  _more_ , and I won't  _always_ be able to cover for you!"

"I know!" she whined again, "But I'll just tell him I'm busy!

"Maisie-"

" _Please_ , Y/N?!" she begged, "I  _really_ like him!" You let out a deep sigh, putting your free hand on your face for a moment.

" _Fine_ , I'll do it," you caved, "But you owe me  _big time_  for this."

" _Thank you_!" she squealed happily, "I promise I'll do whatever you ask me to! You're a  _lifesaver_!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," you grumbled, unable to shake the feeling that you were going to regret this.

~

The next day, you sat in front of your computer – Maisie's Skype log-in information all ready so you were on her account – and bounced your leg in anticipation. Maisie had given you the run-down on who Calum was – how old he was, what day his birthday was, that she always calls him ' _Cal_ ' instead of ' _Calum_ ', what his likes and dislikes were, what he liked to talk about, what topics to avoid, his sister's and parents' names, where he lived;  _everything_ – so you weren't going in blind.

Your heart  _honestly_ ached for this man though.

Calum thought he was going to be talking to someone who already knew all of these things about him and who he shared all his secrets with, but you had no idea  _who_ he was or even something as simple as his  _middle name_  before Maisie told you. From hearing her talk about him during phone calls with her, Calum seemed like  _such_ a sweet guy, and it made you feel  _physically_ ill that Maisie could just  _lie to him_  like this.

Your heart felt like it was going to leap out from your throat when the Skype ringtone started playing, Calum's username popping up on the screen. You took a deep breath, letting it ring a couple more times before finally accepting the call.

"Mais!" Calum beamed, "You look even more stunning on Skype than you do in pictures!"

"Still look like me though," you chuckled shyly, "Hi, Cal. How are you?"

"Had a bit of a rough day," he admitted, "But I'm better now that I get to actually  _see_ you." You let out a soft breath. "How are you?" he returned the question.

"I'm good," you nodded, "Happy to finally be able to do this – even though I  _told you_ not to buy me a laptop for it."

"Come on – I told you it was no problem," he grinned, "But I hope we get to see each other  _in person_  soon."

You gave him a weaker smile, "Me too, Cal."

~

_prompt used from this list: http://memesandthings.tumblr.com/post/150074519132/text-message-starters-send-one-of-the-prompts_

 


	543. Prompt Blurb #1: Calum Hood (Part 2)

> prompt: "I know you love me, but I'm sick of lying when I say it back."

~

**Two months later**

"I don't think it's a good idea for me to keep doing this, Maisie..." you told your cousin softly after her cheerful ' _Hello?_ ' in answering your phone call.

"But it's going so  _well_!" she insisted, "He doesn't suspect a  _thing_!"

"I know – that's  _what_ I have a problem with... I don't  _like_ having to lie to him... And he keeps asking when we're gonna meet in person, but I... I  _can't_ do that knowing  _I'm_ not the one he's in love with... I  _really_ think you need to tell him the truth..."

"Come on, Y/N," she pouted, "Just a few more weeks! I was planning on breaking up with him anyway."

"Mais, he's a  _really_ sweet guy," you shook your head, "He doesn't  _deserve_ that."

"I'm just getting  _bored_ , you know?"

"Are you going to come clean when you  _do it_  at least?"

"Nah," she replied, "Think I'm just gonna end it and leave it at that."

"Don't you think he deserves to know the  _truth_?" you asked.

You heard her make a sound of indifference, envisioning her shrugging along with the noise. So you took a deep breath in and forced yourself to say what you'd been trying to for the last two months.

"Maisie, you  _have_ to tell him the truth," you said as bravely as you could, "If  _you_ don't,  _I_ will."

"Okay, okay," she said, "I'll think about it."

"Promise?" 

"Pinky," she nodded. The two of you said your goodbyes, but you couldn't shake the sinking feeling that she was lying to  _you_ now as well.

~

A few days later, you were sitting with your laptop on your bed – scrolling through Twitter – when a notification that Calum was calling you on Skype popped up on your screen. You were confused for a moment – Calum didn't have  _your_ Skype name – before realizing that you must have forgotten to log out of Maisie's account.

Either way though,  _something_ – you didn't know  _what_ – was telling you to answer. So you did.

You couldn't keep the small smile from pulling at the corner of your mouth when he came up on the screen – you did that whenever you thought about him now, it seemed like – and Calum's grin only widened when he saw you.

"Mais!" he said, "Hi! I've missed seeing your pretty face!" And it was  _then_ that you realized Maisie hadn't meant what she told you.

"Hi, Cal," your smile faltered slightly, "What's up?"

"Nothin' really," he pouted, making you let out a little breath of amusement, "Just wanted someone to talk to."

"Is everything okay?"

"Yeah!" he assured you, "I just wanted to talk to my favorite girl!" You mentally reprimanded yourself for blushing at the comment –  _he thinks you're Maisie, Y/N, stop it; You can't fall for him_  – before you and Calum started talking.

You talked for about half an hour about your days and what you did, but the longer your listened to his voice, the more you hated  _yourself_ for what you were doing to him. You waited for a moment to try to work in the confession you desperately wanted to give him into the conversation, but nothing ever felt right... Until the call was almost over.

"Well... I have errands to run, so I should go..." Calum told you, "But trust me, I'd much rather stay here and talk to you."

"I don't blame you, Cal," you giggled softly, "I'm pretty great."

"Yeah, you are," he smiled, "Well, bye, Mais. I love you."

"Calum... Wait..." you said, wondering if he could hear how shaky your voice was through his computer speakers.

Calum watched you breathe in and let it out slowly, understandably worrying him. But he didn't get a chance to ask what was wrong.

"Cal, I...  **I know you love me, but I'm sick of lying when I say it back** ," you swallowed thickly.

" _What_?" his face fell and the smile was no longer there, "What do you mean?" You forced out a laugh – wiping the tear your felt fall down your cheek.

"I...  _I'm_ not the one you've been talking to..." you admitted, "My cousin Maisie... She's been using my pictures instead of her own... She... She's been catfishing you..."

"No... No, she hasn't – no,  _you_ haven't!" he furrowed his eyebrows, "Maisie – she...  _You_ wouldn't lie to me like that!"

" _I'm not_ ," you shook your head, "But  _she is_..."

"No... She... _promised_ she'd never lie to me..." You breathed out shakily as you began typing in the Skype chat to send him two links.

"My name isn't Maisie – it's Y/N... These are our  _real_ Twitter accounts," you said lowly, unable to force yourself to look at him, "The one you met her on was created to talk to people pretending to be me... Calum, I... I know I can't make you believe me... I know you think I'm making it up... But the girl you've been talking to... It's not  _me_... And I'm sorry I ever went along with her and pretended it  _was_..." Calum went to speak again, but you immediately ended the Skype call and logged off of Maisie's account.

You honestly felt like you were going to throw up – you knew it was wrong to spill the secret Maisie  _should have_  come clean about herself, but you felt so incredibly guilty every time Calum looked at you with a smile, thinking  _you_ were the one he'd fallen in love with. And while you knew your relationship with Maisie would never be the same, you truly felt like a weight had been lifted off of you as you got up from your bed and stepped away from your computer.

~

Not even two hours later, your ringtone began filling the otherwise quiet room. You'd been watching Netflix, but the sound was low, just needing something to distract you from the events of earlier that day. Unfortunately, you knew you'd have to face them again at some point. And apparently, that some point was  _now_.

You picked up your phone from its spot beside your thigh, not even needing to look at the caller ID to know who it was. You answered it, but were unable to get a word out as the girl on the other line immediately went off on you.

" _You told him_?!" Maisie screamed into her phone, "How could you  _do that_  to me?!"

"I gave you the chance to tell him yourself, and you didn't take it," you replied calmly, though your heart was  _pounding_ , "Whether you like it or not, Calum had the right to know."

"You're  _fucked up_ , Y/N! You had  _no right_  to do that!"

"I told you to tell him or  _I would_ , Maisie," you shook your head, "And you  _didn't_."

"That  _wasn't_ your choice!"

"Well..." you trailed off with a light shrug, "Maybe you'll think twice about using my pictures to catfish someone next time."

" _Fuck you_ ," you could just see her rolling her eyes, " _I hate you_." Maisie hung up, causing you to sigh as you stared at the screen for a moment.

You were about to lock your phone and turn back to your show when you were surprised by a notification popping up on your screen – a Twitter DM from Calum, sent to your  _own_ account. You tapped it and waited for it to load – and when it  _did_ , your heart skipped a beat.

_I still want to meet you if you're up for it_

~

_prompt used from this list: https://prompt-bank.tumblr.com/post/158088084598/angsty-otp-prompts_


	544. Prompt Blurb #1: Calum Hood (Part 3)

> prompt: "You can share my jacket with me, since you're shivering."

~

**Two weeks later**

If there was ever a moment in your life where you'd experienced a full-fledged I-need-to-throw-up-right-now moment, this was it.

You and Calum had finally decided to meet up at a comedy club about a 45-minute drive from where you lived – a lot of people were going to be there and if the meeting was awkward, at least you wouldn't have to talk to him the  _entire time_ , right?

You were nervous – understandably – but you were also weirdly excited. You obviously hadn't spoken to Maisie at all since she found out you told Calum what she did, but you and the man himself had grown closer. It was nice to speak to him as  _you_ and not as your cousin, and honestly, you didn't feel all that bad for having feelings for him anymore.

You stared down at your phone in anticipation – Calum had texted you that he was almost to the club about 5 minutes ago. You were standing outside the door waiting for him, anxiously watching for the three little dots that told you he was typing to let you know he was there.

But he  _didn't_.

"Y/N?" you heard a voice say your name, causing your head to snap up.

Calum was just as good-looking in person as he was through the grainy pixels of your Skype calls and that smile made the butterflies in your stomach go crazy. It honestly made your heart stop for a moment before it started beating so hard against your chest, you were  _sure_ he'd be able to see it.

"C-Calum," you finally forced yourself to say, making him smile a little bigger.

"Hi," he greeted you, "You look stunning, as usual."

You could feel your face getting hot as you blushed, contrasting with how cold the rest of your body felt due to having stood outside for the last 15 minutes. He didn't acknowledge the blush though – he only grinned again.

"You ready to go in?" he asked, "You look absolutely  _freezing_. How long have you been out here?"

"Not that long," you murmured, letting him put his hand on the middle of your back to lead you inside, "Just got tired of sitting in my car, I guess."

"Could've at least waited inside the lobby," he motioned to the room you were now in, "M'sure I would've found you eventually."

"Decided to go easy on you the first time around," you shrugged, "Next time, you won't be so lucky."

"But there  _will_ be a next time?" he smirked, making you roll your eyes fondly.

"If you're lucky," you told him.

~

While sitting in the seats, waiting for the comedy show to begin, you and Calum got to talking. You were amazed with how the conversation held up just as well in person as it did online – you were so used to talking to guys who had no idea how to carry on a conversation and this was  _such_ a nice change. You never brought up Maisie or how the two of you really met and neither did Calum – and you were okay with that.

You found yourself rubbing your arms through your sweater lightly, annoyed with yourself for not dressing a  _little_ warmer. And at some point, Calum must have noticed.

"You know,  **you can share my jacket with me since you're still shivering** ," Calum told you, "If you  _want_ to, I mean."

"How am I supposed to share  _with_ you?" you giggled lightly.

"Well-" He smiled again. "-if I take this arm  _out_ -" His left arm slid out of his jacket sleeve. "-and you put your arm  _in_ , then we can share."

"I  _still_ don't think we'll both fit, Cal," you grinned, but went along with him anyway.

You reached around your left shoulder with your right arm, grabbing the collar of the jacket. You slipped your left arm into the sleeve Calum's arm was previously in, squeaking when you accidentally pulled Calum closer to you in the process. You were about to apologize, but Calum surprised you by winding his arm around your waist within the jacket, pulling you  _even closer_  so he could grab the edges and zip the jacket up.

You couldn't keep yourself from laughing at how  _ridiculous_ the two of you must have looked, but Calum certainly succeeded in stopping your shivering.

"See?" he smiled victoriously, "Told you we'd both fit."

"At the cost of looking  _normal_ , sure," you snorted, leaning into his side.

"If you wanna look normal, you'd better rethink being seen with me," Calum responded, causing you to laugh softly. You looked up at him for a moment while he looked at you, but when he opened his mouth, you were already speaking.

"M'glad you don't totally hate me," you said softly, making him chuckle under his breath.

"We'll talk about  _that_ later," he teased, squeezing you gently.

~

_prompt used from this list: http://smollmikey.tumblr.com/post/131446369233/friends-or-more-sentence-starters_


	545. Prompt Blurb #1: Calum Hood (Part 4)

> prompt: "Are you implying that you want to kiss me?"

~

**Three months later**

"Don't  _I_ get an invite too?"

You looked over your shoulder from your spot on the couch to find Calum – now your  _boyfriend_ – pouting, holding the Christmas invitation you'd gotten from your aunt in his hand. 

"No," you quickly shook your head, looking back down at your book.

"Yeah?" he hummed, putting the card down and coming over to you, plopping down beside you, "And why's that, princess?"

"Didn't think you'd  _want_ to..." you swallowed, staring blankly at your fingers fiddling with the edge of the page, "Thought I'd save you the trouble of saying no..."

"Why would I say no?" Calum nudged you gently in an attempt to get you to look at him, but you didn't.

"Maisie's gonna be there..." you whispered.

"Yeah," he nodded, "She  _is_ your cousin – it's a  _family_ thing. D'be surprised if she wasn't there."

And  _that_ finally got your attention.

"You still want to go?" you looked up at him.

" _Of course_  I do," he assured you, putting his hand on your thigh and squeezing gently, "I  _love_ being around your family."

"But...  _Maisie_..." you murmured.

"If Maisie is going to have a problem with me being there, she never should have lied to me in the  _first place_ ," Calum told you, his voice firmer than it usually was when he spoke to you, "I  _love_ your family, Y/N, and I  _want_ to spend Christmas with you guys this year if you'll have me."

~

**One month later**

You and Calum walked up to your aunt's front porch, your hand firmly held in his. You'd obviously convinced yourself that everything was going to be fine – that there was no way Maisie would started anything in front of everyone – so you happily let your boyfriend tag along to the family festivities.

" _Y/N_!" one of your aunts cheered as you walked in the door. You couldn't help but laugh as she hugged you tightly – you never really got to see most of your extended family, so it was nice to be able to spend a day – especially Christmas – with them. "How are you?!" she beamed, " _Who's this_?" Calum huffed with a laugh of his own as your aunt pulled him into a hug as well.

"This is my boyfriend Calum," you introduced them, "Cal, this is my Aunt Sandy."

"It's nice to finally meet you," Calum greeted her, "I thought I'd met most of Y/N's family already, but I guess there's more to see."

"Oh, honey," your aunt laughed, "You have  _no idea_ – the girls in this family are making babies like rabbits in mating season."

"Thank you, Aunt Sandy," you rolled your eyes, "We really appreciate that visual." Calum chuckled again, returning to your side and taking your hand back in his, while your aunt just waved you off.

"Sweetheart, you grew up around all of us – you know how we are," she reminded you, "So how did you two meet?" Your heart skipped a beat and Calum felt you tense up slightly.

"Maisie set us up," he responded smoothly, causing you to look at him. He didn't look away from your aunt – he just squeezed your hand in acknowledgement, rubbing the back of it with his thumb to get you to relax.

Calum and your aunt spoke for a couple more minutes before she walked away, excitedly greeting her sister when she and her kids walked through the door. He led you to kitchen, but you stopped him before you actually went through the doorway.

"Why'd you tell her Maisie set us up?" you asked.

"Because it's  _technically_ true," he reminded you. You were rendered speechless for a moment, making Calum chuckle. "Princess," he released your hand to hold your shoulders, "It's  _Christmas_ – loosen up a little. You're not going to enjoy the day if you're so worried that something's gonna happen the whole time." You closed your eyes for a moment and let out a deep breath, nodding your head.

"Okay," you grumbled. Calum smiled again, kissing your forehead lightly before he started to head back toward the kitchen, only to stop again.

"Huh," he suddenly hummed, "Would you look at that?" You followed his gaze to where he was looking above you, finding you were standing under a mistletoe.

"Cal,  **are you implying that you want to kiss me?** " you asked, trying to keep yourself from smiling but knowing you weren't doing a great job when Calum smiled himself.

"Just saying," he shrugged, "The mistletoe has chosen us."

"I think you might have  _helped it_ ," you giggled, reaching up and pressing a kiss to his lips. Unfortunately, the person who interrupted the two of you was the person you were hoping to  _avoid_ for as long as possible.

"Well, well, well," Maisie scoffed, causing you and Calum to pull away to look at her, "Didn't expect you to bring  _him_ with you." You remained silent, though you  _did_ swallow thickly. "Didn't expect you to show up  _at all_ , to be honest," she scowled, "Thought you'd would be out ruining  _another person's_  life today. But I guess a homewrecker's job is  _never_ really done, is it?" Maisie walked away, leaving you and Calum alone again. He went to speak, but didn't get a chance.

"I have to go to the bathroom," you whispered. You walked away from Calum, but when he noticed you going to the bathroom upstairs, he knew you weren't  _really_ going to use it.

He hurried after you, reaching the bathroom door just before you closed it, allowing him to slip inside. He took one look at your face and noted how close you were to tears, making him smile sadly. He took you to the sink and lifted you up onto the counter so you were eye-level with him.

"I don't  _care_ what Maisie says about you or me or _anyone else_ ," Calum shook his head, his hands holding your hips tightly, "I'm in love with  _you_ –  _not her_." Your heart started racing.

"Y-You  _are_?" you choked out, surprised your voice even gave you  _that_ much – neither of you had  _said_ ' _I love you_ ' yet.

"Yes, Maisie hurt me by doing what she did," he nodded, "And even though you  _started out_  helping her, you clearly regret it and you  _still_ helped put me back  _together_. And I love you more than I've ever loved  _anyone else_  in the  _whole world_ for that."

"Even your mom?" you mumbled, "And Mali?"

"Okay, maybe not more than  _them_ ," he admitted with a chuckle, "But I love you more than anyone I've ever loved  _romantically_."

"Good," you whispered, "'Cause I  _definitely_ would have told on you." Calum responded by grinning stupidly, pulling your body forward so it was  _right_ up against his.

"I love you, baby girl," he murmured, letting his lips barely touch yours.

"I love  _you_ , Cal," you replied, putting your hands on his cheeks and closing the gap between you.

~

_prompt used from this list: http://smollmikey.tumblr.com/post/131446369233/friends-or-more-sentence-starters_


	546. Prompt Blurb #1: Calum Hood (Part 5)

> prompt: "i don't want anything to do with you anymore."

~

**One week later**

" _HAPPY NEW YEAR_!" Michael shouted as Calum pulled you inside whoever's house you were at to ring in 2019.

"That's not for another couple house, mate," your boyfriend chuckled softly before turning to you, "I'm gonna go get us some drinks." You nodded and watched him walk off while Michael continued on.

" _Luke_!" he called out, "Guess... Guess who... Guess who's  _here_!" The blonde slinked his way around the corner, his grin becoming wider when he saw you.

" _Y/N_!" he cheered, giggling when he nearly dropped the cup in his hand, "I'm so-" He hiccuped. "-so  _happy_ you're  _here_!"

" _Guys_ ," you shook your head, an amused smile on your face, "It's only  _9:30_. How much could you have possibly drank  _already_?"

"It's the- It's the  _new year_!" Michael giggled as well, "We... We're hav-having  _fun_!"

"I am surrounded by  _idiots_ ," you rolled your eyes, still grinning.

" _You love us_!" Luke pouted obnoxiously, "Becau-Because  _we_ -" He took a moment to giggle again at nothing. "-love you  _so much_!"

You scrunched your face up when Luke grabbed the sides of your head and pressed the sloppiest kiss you'd ever gotten in your  _life_ to your cheek before giggling  _again_ and trotting away with Michael to you-didn't- _know_ -where. You groaned as you wiped your cheek on the shoulder of your shirt, hearing a soft chuckle beside you.

" _Told you_  they were affectionate drunks," Calum mentioned as you looked at him. You sighed lightly, thanking him when he handed you your drink.

"I  _do_ love 'em though," you admitted, making him laugh again.

"How about we go find Ash? I'm sure he's pacing himself and will actually be able to hold a decent conversation." He smiled when you laughed at the comment, happily tagging along on his quest to find his best friend.

~

**Two hours later; 11:55pm**

You walked out of the bathroom, trotting back downstairs to find Calum before the New Year's countdown started. You just reached the entryway to the living room when you heard an obnoxious scoff coming from the kitchen.

"Thought this house was big enough that I wouldn't run into you," the voice behind you said. You immediately froze in place, taking a subtle deep breath before turning around to face the person talking to you.

"Hello, Maisie," you greeted her politely, "How are you?"

" _How am I_?" she laughed bitterly, " _Well_ , I've had to listen to everyone ask me ' _what ever happened to that boy you wouldn't stop talking about before Christmas?_ ' all month. You know, the boy  _you_ stole from me?" She glared at you – seemingly trying to scare you, but you didn't give her the satisfaction.

"Maisie, if you want to be mad at me for dating Calum after you, that's fine," you stated confidently, "But  _I'm_ not the one who ruined your relationship with him – that's all on  _you_. If you liked him as much as you  _said_ you did, you wouldn't have  _lied to him_  about who you were, and  _definitely_ not for as  _long_ as you did. Cal moved on from you whether you like it or not, and you're in no place to try and tell him what to do. I love you, and I'll always be grateful for the memories I have with you, but after everything you did to Cal and after everything you've said to  _me_ because of it,  **I don't want anything to do with you anymore**."

Maisie stood in a stunned silence as you walked away, your heart feeling like it was beating in your throat. You'd never stood up for yourself like that before, and honestly? It felt  _really_ good.

"There you are, princess," Calum smiled as you approached him, "Thought I was gonna have to send out a search team."

You didn't respond with the usual laugh you gave him with one of his jokes – you just went to him, wrapped your arms around his torso, and buried your face in his chest. You could sense his confusion when it took him a moment to hug you back.

"You okay, baby girl?" he asked you, his thumb rubbing your shoulder comfortingly. You barely nodded.

"Didn't know Maisie was gonna be here," you said, your voice muffled slightly by his shirt.

" _Maisie's_ here?" Calum's eyes widened, "What happened?"

"Nothing," you sighed, "She just started blaming me for  _us_ happening again, and I told her I didn't want anything to do with her anymore if she was gonna keep doing it."

"You  _did_?" you could hear his smile – he obviously knew you weren't one for confrontation either, "M'proud of you, princess."

"Y' _are_?" you asked softly, tilting your head up to look at him.

"I know how close you two were before everything and how hard it must have been to cut her off, but I'm  _so_ proud of you for finally telling her that you weren't gonna allow her to treat you like that anymore," he beamed, leaning in and pressing a kiss to your nose, chuckling when you scrunched it up in response.

"Felt  _good_ ," you admitted, "Like I can finally stop worrying about whether or not m'gonna run into her, just 'cause I don't  _care_ if I do anymore."

"And y'know that's all I've ever really wanted for you," Calum said, kissing your forehead that time.

Your conversation was interrupted by the sea of party-goers gathered around you happily shouting out along with the countdown on the television at the front of the room.

" _10... 9... 8..._ "

You looked around at everyone, smiling to yourself at how happy they all were.

" _7... 6... 5..._ "

You laughed at Michael and Luke, who were holding onto each other's shoulders as they swayed to what you were sure was a different song playing in each of their heads, and Ashton standing near them to make sure they didn't fall over and break anything.

" _4... 3... 2... 1! Happy New Year!_ "

The group cheered loudly, laughing along with each other as a few people pulled out party poppers and sent confetti flying everywhere and noise makers that filled the room with obnoxious buzzing. Those with dates turned to them and pecked their lips to ring in the new year, making you smile at how happy they all were.

You felt two fingers find their way under your chin and a thumb land on top, turning your head and tilting it up. You giggled when your boyfriend's lips landed on yours, feeling him smile as well.

"Happy New Year, baby girl," he murmured into the kiss, causing your grin to grow even bigger. You brought your hands up to his cheeks, holding him in place as if he was even thinking about going anywhere.

"Happy New Year, Cal."

~

_prompt used from this list: http://memesandthings.tumblr.com/post/150074519132/text-message-starters-send-one-of-the-prompts_


	547. Prompt Blurb #2: Calum Hood *

> prompt: "This level of damage takes such hard work and dedication."

**Warning: Mentions of depression/anxiety**

~

"Hey, baby girl!" your boyfriend smiled when he heard the front door to your shared apartment open. You didn't respond until you were in the same room as him, plopping yourself down on the couch opposite of where he was.

"Turns out  **this level of _damage_ takes such hard work and dedication**, so at least I've committed to  _something_ , I guess," you sighed, sinking down in your seat.

Calum immediately hit the start button on his Xbox controller and looked away from the TV screen. He was silent for a few seconds before letting out a nervous chuckle.

"Are you okay...?" he asked cautiously.

"Thought therapy was supposed to help me feel  _better_  – not  _worse_ ," you grumbled, "All she's wanted me to talk about for the last  _three months_  has been how I've managed to fuck everything up or how I'm not following the goals she had me set for myself the first week I started seeing her. I wanna feel  _okay_ with myself again; I don't wanna keep reliving every moment I've been trying to  _forget_."

Calum got up from his seat and came over to where you were to sit beside you. He wrapped his arm around your shoulders and pulled you into him. You settled your body against his, wrapping your own arms around his torso and laid your head on his shoulder, finally allowing yourself to relax.

"Well, you know, princess, she has to know  _why_ you're feeling the way you are  _before_ she can help you figure out how to help you," he reminded you, pressing a comforting kiss to your forehead.

"I don't need to tell her the  _same_ stories  _six_ times,  _Calum_ ," you replied, a bit of a snippy tone in your voice.

He didn't fire anything back at you – he knew you were just frustrated and you didn't realize  _how_ you were coming off in that moment; all he did was squeeze you, letting you know you were okay and he was there for you.

"Remember the moment you decided it was time to get some help?" Calum asked, rubbing your shoulder lightly, "You told me it was because you never felt anything but that ache in your chest and like you were on the verge of breaking down all the time." You tilted your head to look at him, finding him already looking at you. "You've always been the kind of person to want to start seeing results  _right away_ , but results like  _this_ aren't going to come  _at all_  if you're so focused on  _forcing_ them to. I know you're  _used_ to feeling the way you had been before you started therapy, but I promise you  _have_ changed a lot. You're much more willing to try out new things that used to  _terrify_ you before, and you're so much  _happier_ than you used to be. Just because you're not seeing the results you  _want_ yet doesn't mean you're  _not_ getting better, princess-" He pecked your nose lovingly. "-and I think it's a shame you don't want to  _slow down_  and take a second to be proud of yourself for just how  _far_ you've come."

~

_prompt used from this list: https://hellyeahrpmemes.tumblr.com/post/167539853447/more-jenna-marbles-sentence-starters-sentences_


	548. Moving Along (Michael Clifford)

"Why did he pick  _this_ time of year to move," your best friend groaned, trying to warm her freezing hands against her car's vents.

You'd been recruited – along with a group of others – to help your best friend Michael move from his house to an apartment a few miles away. It was the nearing the end of fall, and the weather was cold –  _less_ than ideal conditions to be moving someone's  _entire_ life. But hey: at least it wasn't snowing in the middle of  _winter_.

"You know him," you shrugged, "Always has to pick the  _least_ convenient circumstances."

"Fair point," Kara laughed loudly, "But I thought he  _liked_ living with the boys."

"He  _does_ ," you murmured, "But they all moved out to live with their girlfriends and I guess he and  _his_ girlfriend don't want to pay the bills for the entire place  _alone_."

"That makes sense," she nodded, "But I could've  _sworn_ I heard they broke up a  _while_ ago."

"No," you murmured, "He just doesn't bring her around anymore."

"Why not? Does he know you don't like her?"

"What do you mean?" you looked over at her, "I don't  _not_ like Savannah."

" _Y/N_ ," she rolled her eyes.

"I  _don't_!" you defended.

"Alright," she shook her head, "Whatever you say."

~

"Hey, guys!" Ashton chirped when he opened the door, "Thanks for helping out today!"

"Like we could get  _out_ of it," you snickered.

"Well, maybe  _Kara_ could have," he chuckled, "Well, most everyone's already at the new place working on setting up all of the big stuff, so all that's left here to do is just put stuff in boxes for the cars. Pretty sure Mike's working on his clothes right now, and I've got the stuff in the kitchen, so whatever you guys wanna help with, go for it!"

"I'll take the kitchen," Kara look at you with a questioning tone, " _Someone's_ gotta make sure Ash doesn't break anything." You laughed in response as you nodded, but Ashton shyly spoke up.

"I  _have_ already broken two plates and a coffee cup..." he admitted, making the both of you laugh that time.

"You're a chaotic good if I've ever seen one, Ash!" you said over your shoulder as you made your way down the hall toward Michael's bedroom.

As you approached the door, it was open so you could hear Michael mumbling to himself. You couldn't  _quite_ make out what he was saying, but he didn't  _seem_ to be in a bad mood, so you greeted him the way you normally would.

"Hey, Mikey!" you chirped, knocking on the door's frame as you entered. He grunted in response, not even looking up at you. "Kara's helping Ash in the kitchen, so I thought I'd come see what you still needed to do," you informed him, brushing past his unusual greeting.

Michael didn't respond again – he just pointed behind him. Your gaze followed his finger, finding an empty box sitting in front of his dresser. You had a pretty good idea of what task he was giving you, so you sighed.

"Dresser it is then," you murmured under your breath, moving the box to the side and getting started on packing up the clothes.

~

About 10 minutes later, you'd finished your work on the dresser – packing both the clothing in the drawers and the random items scattered on top – and took that box to Kara's car. You came back in and stopped in the kitchen when Ashton called your name, asking what you thought they should do with the food in the fridge. You helped them out for a few minutes– sorting through expired things and whatnot – before deciding to see if there was anything else Michael needed assistance with in his room.

You returned to where the blonde was still sitting in front of his open closet, taking the last of his clothes off their hangers and haphazardly folding them to toss them into the box. You then watched him start taking his shoes and putting them on top of the pile.

"Why didn't you put your shoes on the bottom?" you asked him.

"Tried that," he answered shortly, "Box broke."

"Okay..." you trailed off, wondering what was up with his attitude, "Well, I'll go get some bags or something instead."

"Y/N, I don't  _need_ bags. The shoes are  _fine_."

"They're still  _dirty_ , Mikey," you reminded him, "You don't want to have to wash all your clothes  _again_."

"Jes-  _Fucking fine_!" he suddenly exclaimed, shooting back upright, " _You_ can do it then! I'll be at the new place until you decide you want to bother me  _there_ too!"

"Michael, I'm just trying to-" You cut yourself off when he stomped away without a word.

You then heard the front door slam shut, leaving you in silence. You heard more footsteps coming down the hall next, revealing Kara as she hurried through the bedroom door.

"What happened?" she rushed, "I heard a door slam."

"Nothing," you sighed again, "Michael just left to make sure everything at the apartment was okay."

Your gaze then flicked back into the closet where a blob of yellow was lying on the floor by the back wall. You instantly recognized the plushie's black-tipped ears, making you let out a straggled breath.

"Y/N," Kara said gently, "You okay?"

"Fine," you swallowed thickly.

"Y/N-"

"Why wouldn't he take it?" you whispered, grabbing the stuffed Pikachu you'd given him for his birthday the first year you'd known him, "He was really happy when I gave it to him... Does he not like it anymore...? Do I not  _mean anything_  to him now...?"

"Y/N, you're reading too much into this," she sighed, "I'm sure he was going to come back for it, or he knew you'd take  _special care_  of it while packing."

"It was shoved in the  _back of his closet_ , Kara!" you whimpered, "Why would he  _do that_?!"

"I dunno, Y/N," she sighed again. She put her hand on your shoulder, rubbing it soothingly for a moment. "C'mon," she said, "Let's go drop off this round of stuff to his new place and then just go home. I think you need a little time  _away_ from Mike right now."

And you didn't argue with her – you simply held Pikachu close and followed her out of the house.

~

You'd been in Michael's new apartment for all of  _two minutes_  when he came up to you. You weren't  _really_ doing anything, but honestly,  _he_ didn't need to know that.

"Hey," Michael murmured, "Can we talk?"

"M'busy," you answered, walking away from him – but knowing Michael and knowing how he wasn't one to let something go so easily, you couldn't say you were surprised when he started following you.

"Yeah?" he taunted, "What are you doing then? You just got here."

"M'seeing who needs help."

" _I_ need help."

"Tried that," you stated – much like  _he'd_ done to  _you_ earlier, "You didn't  _want it_."

You were coming up to every room, peeking in to see if –  _and praying_  – they needed help. Much to your dismay, nothing looked like it needed to be done for the time being.

"You're running out of excuses," Michael said as you reached the last couple doorways. "Y/N," he sighed, "I  _know_ you're not busy. Why can't you just  _talk_ to me? You haven't even been here for 5 minutes, but I can  _still_ tell you're mad at me. What did I  _do_?"

"Nothing," you answered softly.

"It's not nothing if you won't even  _look at me_ , princess." You winced at the nickname, swallowing the lump in your throat.

You turned around abruptly, causing Michael to nearly run into you. His expression fell at the look on your face. He had  _no idea_  why you were acting the way you were, and the fact that you wouldn't tell him when you were usually so  _upfront_ about how you were feeling made his heart ache that he couldn't  _help you_.

"Princess-" You cut Michael off.

"Kara and I have to go," you whispered, still not matching his gaze.

" _What_?  _Why_?" he asked as you brushed past him, "You  _just_ got here; We're still not finished  _moving_." You didn't respond, and that was when he had enough.

Michael huffed lightly, grabbing your bicep and forcing you into the bathroom – the only room  _without_ someone currently unpacking. You squeaked when his hand left your arm and landed on the middle of your back, shoving you into the room. He locked the door behind him so you weren't disturbed and then stood in front of it so you couldn't try to walk away again.

"What's going on, Y/N?" he asked bluntly, "Because it's not  _like you_  to ignore me for  _no reason_."

"M'not  _ignoring_ you," you whispered, but you should have known better than to lie to Michael.

"You're not acting like  _yourself_ , Y/N," he reminded you, "And since you're ignoring  _me_ and not anyone  _else_ , I know it was something  _I_ did. And the sooner you tell me what it  _is_ , the sooner I can apologize and we can move past it." You were silent for a moment before finally caving.

"You were gonna leave Pikachu," you nearly choked out, doing your best not to start crying, "He was in the back of your closet... You were gonna leave him... You don't care about him anymore..."

"He's a  _stuffed animal_ , Y/N," Michael sighed –  ** _this_** _was what you were upset with him about?_

"He's a stuffed animal  _I_ gave to you for your birthday!" You mentally kicked yourself when you felt the tears start falling. "Just because he's not your  _girlfriend_ doesn't mean he's not  _important_ anymore!" Michael froze for a moment – he should have realized this wasn't about the  _toy_.

"Y/N..." he said softly, carefully approaching you.

He was truthfully a bit surprised when you  _let him_ , but he brought his hands up to your face and wiped your tears with his thumbs anyway. He left his hands there, stroking your cheekbones lovingly.

"You're  _always_ going to be important to me whether I have a girlfriend or  _not_ ," he promised you.

" _No, I'm not_!" you whimpered, "You always cancel plans for her and you're never around anymore and you never even  _try_ to make time for  _me_! And when you  _do_ , she comes in and wants to hang out and you tell me at the  _last minute_  and it  _hurts_ because you  _promised_ when you started dating her that you  _wouldn't_ let that happen!"

"Princess..." his heart  _broke_ at seeing you like this because of something  _he_ did, "Why didn't you  _tell me_  you were feeling like this? You  _know_ I'd never  _intentionally_ hurt you... Why didn't you just  _talk to me_?"

"I  _tried_..." you sniffled, "But she  _always_ knows... She always  _calls you_  when we're together and you  _answer it_  and she wants you to  _come home_  and you  _do_..."

"Princess..." he repeated, "I'm s-"

"Don't apologize, Michael," you mumbled, "She's your  _girlfriend_... I'd want to come first  _too_."

"No, she's not," he said. Your eyes finally met his, allowing him to see the confused look on your face.

" _What_?" you furrowed your eyebrows.

"We broke up a few months ago," he informed you.

"You... _broke up_...?" you shook your head, "Why didn't you  _tell me_?"

"Could never find the  _time_..." he admitted, "Felt like you've been  _avoiding me_  lately... Didn't really know  _how_ to bring it up..."

"Why did you..."

"We weren't working out," he sighed, "She was getting  _too_ jealous  _so_ often and I didn't want to deal with it anymore."

"What was she getting  _jealous_ over?" you grumbled, "S'not like you weren't putting  _her_ first anyway."

"She was jealous over  _you_."

"M- _Me_?" you cocked an eyebrow, "Why would she be jealous over  _me_? You  _stopped_ hanging out with me  _just_ like she wanted." Michael opened his mouth, but quickly closed it again.

"I don't  _know_ why," he finally spoke. He furrowed his eyebrows when you scoffed.

"You're lying," you called him out.

"Y/N-"

" _I'm_ not allowed to lie to you but  _you_ can't extend the same courtesy," you rolled your eyes, "That seems  _fair_."

"I'm not ly-"

"If you want to keep  _telling yourself_  that, go ahead," you shook your head, " _I'm going home_."

In a desperate attempt to keep you where you were and keep you from shoving your way past him so you could leave the bathroom, Michael grabbed your hips and lifted you up onto the counter. You were about to yell at him, but any sound  _immediately_ died in your throat when your best friend's lips landed on yours.

He was tense up until the point your hands flew up to his cheeks, holding him in place. He relaxed upon feeling you kiss him back, even feeling  _surprised_ when he felt your legs wrap around his waist and bring his body  _right_ up against yours.

When you pulled away to breathe, the blissful expression on Michael's face matched yours as his foreheard found your own. You were both breathing heavily, his thumbs rubbing your hipbones and one of your hands sliding to the back of his head to play with his hair.

"If this wasn't why Savannah was jealous, m'gonna be  _really_ confused," you mumbled, feeling Michael's stomach shake lightly when he chuckled.

"I never told her how I feel about you," he shook his head, "But I think she just  _knew_ ; That's why she always called when I was with you... She would threaten to break up with me if I didn't come home right then..." His expression was solemn and you could tell he felt incredibly  _guilty_ about the things he did to you  _because_ of Savannah. "I  _never_ should have let it get to the point where you started feeling like I didn't  _care_ anymore, but... I know it's a  _shitty_ excuse, but I think I was too scared that you'd find out somehow or she'd tell you and you'd never speak to me again or-"

You cut Michael off by pulling his head back to you, your lips smashing against his again. He let out a breath as he smiled – and while he  _usually_ hated being interrupted, he  _definitely_ wasn't complaining this time.

"It  _is_ a shitty excuse," you acknowledged as you pulled away, "But I forgive you, Mikey." He smiled brightly wrapping his arms around your waist and burying his face in your neck as he hugged you tightly.

You two held each other for a few moments before you kissed the side of his head as he pulled away to speak again.

"So where  _is_ Pikachu?" Michael asked you, "I didn't see you bring him in." You started chewing on your inner cheek, your gaze moving to the strings on his hoodie so you didn't have to look him in the eyes.

"Was jus' gonna take him home..." you swallowed, "Didn't think you'd notice he was  _gone_..."

"Princess," he said softly in the hopes you would pick your head back up. When you didn't, he slid his hands back to your hips and squeezed. "C'mon, princess," he nearly begged, "Look at me." Hearing the tone in his voice made you do just that, letting your eyes meet his. "M'sorry," he shook his head slightly, "V'been stressed about the breakup and knowing I'd have to move and  _actually moving_ , and m'sorry I took it out on you. I know how much that Pikachu means to you, and  _you_ know how it means to  _me_ , even if I don't always make it  _obvious_. Savannah made me put it the closet because she didn't like knowing that something  _you_ gave me made me so  _happy_ , and I've been running around since the whole getting-a-new-place process started that I completely forgot how seeing it stuffed in the closet would make it  _look_ to you." You huffed lightly, crossing your arms over your stomach.

" _Really_ didn't like her," you mumbled. Michael laughed loudly in response.

"I know," he nodded, kissing your forehead, "So will y'keep helping move now?" You scrunched your nose up slightly, making him chuckle. "Y'know, the sooner we get unpacked, the sooner everyone leaves, and the sooner  _we_ can be  _alone_ ," he reminded you.

"And the sooner we can get  _pizza_?" you asked hopefully. Michael let out another loud laugh at the question, leaning back in and kissing you again.

"Had something a little  _different_ in mind, princess, but m'sure we can make time for pizza  _later_ ," he mumbled against your lips, making you blush.


	549. Moon Ball (Trevor Collins)

_here's a lil thing inspired by gavin hitting lindsay in the face with a moon ball_

**Warning (just in case): Bloody nose**

~

"This is Y/N syncing," you said into the mic in front of your mouth, "One, two, three, one, two, three."

The chorus of syncs could be heard throughout the Achievement Hunter office as you all prepared yourselves for another  _Minecraft_  Let's Play. Only Geoff and Gavin knew what you all were doing – as per usual – and after the past three weeks of playing the third  _Shopping List_  competitions, you were  _praying_  it was something more laid-back.

The only people in the video were going to be you, Geoff, Gavin, Alfredo, Jack, and Ryan. The others in the room – Jeremy, Trevor, and Michael – were cleaning up from the AHWU that had been filmed prior to you starting your recordings.

"Oh, boy," Trevor said to himself – obviously no one heard it – as he found a small, round object on the floor when he picked up an empty box. He tossed the cardboard into the cart beside him, bending back down to retrieve the ball. " _Moon ball_!" he announced, lobbing it at the wall across the room.

You already had your headphones on, so you didn't hear or see anything – all you knew was that one minute, you were preparing for the video and the next, you were being hit in the face by something ricocheting off of the wall in front of you.

" _Fuck_!" you immediately yelped out in pain, causing everyone to stop what they were doing and look at you.

"Y/N, are you okay?" Jack asked from behind you. You were leaning forward on your desk, holding your nose. You froze for a moment before speaking.

"Uh, we might have to hold off on the Let's Play for a  _few_ more minutes," you said.

" _Why_?" Geoff wondered, "I thought we were ready."

"I have to go take care of something – it won't take long," you promised, grabbing a tissue from the box on your desk. You got up, hoping no one would see you transfer the tissue to your now bloody nose, but unfortunately, someone did.

" _Holy shit, Y/N_!" Alfredo's eyes widened, "What happened?! Why are you bleeding?!"

"You're  _bleeding_?!" everyone exclaimed simultaneously, rushing over to your desk.

"What  _happened_?" Jeremy asked in the same way Alfredo had, his voice full of concern.

"I don't know," you sighed – you  _really_  didn't want to alarm everyone, "I saw something hit the wall above my head, and then I just got  _nailed_  in the face." No one noticed it, but Trevor's eyes immediately widened as Ryan looked over onto your desk.

"Who threw the  _moon ball_?!" he asked, grabbing it from where it came to rest nearly hidden behind one of your monitors, "You're supposed to call that shit  _out_!"

"I  _did_..." Trevor said softly. Everyone looked at him, but his eyes remained on you. When you looked at him after grabbing another tissue, you could see how  _horrible_  he felt.

" _Trevor_!" the group yelled in unison.

"Guys," you interrupted, bringing their attention back to you, "He didn't  _mean_  to; It's fine. I'm just gonna go wash my face real quick and then we can start the Let's Play." You hurried out of the room, not wanting your newest tissue to get soaked before you made it to the sink.

You'd only been in the bathroom for two minutes, using paper towels to catch the rest of the blood before you wiped your face, when you heard the door open. You looked into the mirror in front of you to find Trevor shyly poking his head in.

"S'anyone else in here?" he asked softly. When you shook your head, he came all the way inside. "M'sorry," he murmured, chewing on his inner cheek, "I didn't think I threw it  _that_ hard..." You threw away the paper towel, the bleeding finally stopping, and grabbed a new one, running it under the water.

"Trev, it's  _not_  your fault," you said, assuring him that you really didn't blame him, "Accidents  _happen_."

"Don't like when  _my_  accidents hurt  _you_..." he whispered.

You only smiled slightly at him, "What will make you feel  _better_  then, cleaning up the blood  _yourself_?"

Trevor didn't respond – he just came over, put his hand on your shoulder, turned you around, grabbed your hips, and lifted you up onto the counter so you were eye-level with him. He took the wet paper towel from your hand before taking your cheek in his other hand, wiping your nose, upper lip, and everywhere else he saw dried blood.

"I was  _kidding_ , Trevor," you giggled, finally succeeding in making him smile.

"S'the  _only_  way I'll feel better," he told you, making you laugh again.

"Sure, it is," you replied, scrunching up your nose when he unintentionally tickled it.

It only took a couple more minutes to get your face all cleaned up and looking like you'd never even had a bloody nose at all. Trevor tossed the towel into the trashcan and you went to hop off of the counter, but he stopped you.

"M'sorry I made your nose bleed," he returned to his spot in front of you.

"Trev, I already told you it  _wasn't_ your fault," you shook your head, taking his hand and squeezing it as you held it on your lap, "You didn't  _know_  it was gonna hit anyone."

"But it  _did_ ," he frowned, "N'it's  _worse_ 'cause it hit  _you_..."

"Then what do you  _want_  me to do?"

"Forgive me?" he gave you his  _best_  puppy-dog eyes, just to  _ensure_  that you would. You instantly laughed loudly, making him smile as well.

"I forgive you, Trevor," you nodded.

"And a kiss?"

"I don't know if you deserve  _that_ ," you smiled mischievously.

Trevor exhaled sharply, his bottom lip sticking out with the breath he released. You giggled again, leaning forward and pecking his lips.

"So  _demanding_ ," you mentioned, squeaking when he used the hand that wasn't holding yours to playfully poke your sides. He quickly kissed you again before finally letting you jump back to the ground. "C'mon,  _lover boy_!" you chirped, "I've got a video to get back to!"

"Yeah," he chuckled under his breath, "You'd all better re-sync for the video since I can't use the first one."

"What? Why can't you use that one?" you furrowed your eyebrows, looking at him after he opened the bathroom door for you. Trevor gave you a quizzical look as he took your hand again, tangling your fingers together.

"Why  _would_  I?" he asked.

" _Because_!" you exclaimed, bouncing slightly on your feet, "I mean, you don't have to include  _after_  it, but you  _definitely_ have to show me getting  _creamed_ with the moon ball! It was  _hilarious_!"

"You know, one of these days, you're gonna get hurt around here and you're  _not_ gonna find it funny," he shook his head, laughing softly.

"But  _today_  is not that day, my boy!" you announced, throwing your free arm up dramatically while Trevor just rolled his eyes fondly.

~

_inspiration: https://youtu.be/nhSdz9TbUNc?t=19_


	550. Lost in Cologne (Michael Clifford)

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

~

Looking back, maybe you were being selfish. Maybe you shouldn't have expected Michael to skip the last 10 minutes of soundcheck just to take you to see a movie. Maybe you were asking too much of him – especially when you knew he was right to get upset with you over it. Maybe you were being over-dramatic and bratty about not getting your way.

But you  _definitely_ shouldn't have stormed off the bus when you had  _no idea_  where you were.

The  _Meet You There Tour_  had arrived to its second date in Germany – Cologne – and you were getting antsy just sitting around on the tour bus. Michael had come back to check on you in the middle of soundcheck – you'd been taking a nap and he just wanted to make sure you were still comfortable.

And that was when the fight started.

You wanted him to take you to see a movie that had just come out in theaters, but he told you it would have to wait until after he was done inside the venue. Michael knew it was going to end up in an argument the moment you crossed your arms over your chest, and he knew that simply walking away would only make the fight worse. So he just stood there, waiting until you were done ranting at him before calmly telling you that he was going back inside and would continue with you later.

But when he did exactly that – returning to the bus 20 minutes later – you weren't there.

Michael sighed – he should have  _known_ you weren't going to make this  _easy_ for him – and pulled out his phone to call you. He started hearing your ringtone right away, following the sound to the bunk he shared with you. When he opened the curtain, your phone was lit up with his name and photo, but  _you_ were nowhere to be found.

And he'd be lying if he said he wasn't starting to panic.

He went to Luke's contact and called him – his bandmate had just left with Ashton to go on a run – but the call was declined after only two rings. Luke  _never_ rejected Michael's calls – Michael only really  _called_ anyone when he either wanted to talk to  _you_ or it was an  _emergency_ – and he was only  _more_ confused when the blonde walked onto the bus.

"Hey, Mike!" Luke chirped, making Michael spin around to face him, "Have you seen my phone?"

"You  _have it_...?" he cocked an eyebrow, "You  _just_ ignored my call...?"

"No..." Luke trailed off, "I can't  _find it_... Why were you calling me? Are you okay?"

"No, I-" Michael breathed shakily, "Y/N's gone and she doesn't have her phone and I don't know where she is and-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa –  _slow down_ , Michael," he shook his head, "What do you mean she's  _gone_?"

"We... We got into a fight about not being able to...to take her out until after soundcheck, and I... I came back when we were finished, but she wasn't  _here_... I-I tried calling her, but her phone was in the bunk and I-I don't know  _where she is!_ " he shook his head frantically, "Sh-She could be lost or hurt or scared or-"

"Mike, I'm sure she's  _fine_ ," Luke tried to reassure him, but he'd be lying if he said he wasn't worried too, "You stay here and see if she comes back; Ash, Cal, and I will go out and see if we can find her."

~

**Your POV; Two hours later**

You'd been exploring the city – well... Actually, you'd gotten  _lost_ – for the last couple hours with the underlying intention of trying to retrace your steps back to the venue. It wasn't boding well for you so far, but hey: Cologne was absolutely  _beautiful_.

"Y/N...?" you heard a timid voice behind you.

You turned to find a little girl and a girl who looked to be about your age or a couple years younger cautiously approaching. The smaller one was wearing a 5SOS shirt – the ' _CLIFFORD_ ' baseball tee to your amusement – and it instantly made you smile.

"Hi," you greeted her, "I like your shirt." The child couldn't help but giggle while who you assumed was her older sister chuckled softly.

"Sorry to bother you," she said, "My sister is just a  _really_ big fan of the band and  _had_ to come say hi." You smiled at her before kneeling down to the little girl's height.

"I'm a big fan  _too_ ," you told her, making her giggle again, "What's your favorite album?"

"Um..." she trailed off, "I like...the second one!"

"You like  _Sounds Good Feels Good_? What's your favorite song? Mine's  _Jet Black Heart_  'cause it's Mikey's song."

" _I_ like Mikey's song  _too_!" she squeaked.

" _Really_?" you beamed, "Well, I'll be sure to tell him that! Are you coming to the show tonight?"

"Oh, no," the older one smiled sadly as you stood back up, "I was at work when tickets went live and they sold out too fast."

"Do you  _wanna_ go?" you asked, reaching into your bag, "How many do you need?" You pulled out a tiny stack of tickets, making the girls' eyes widen.

"No, we  _can't_ -"

"Mimi,  _please_?!" her little sister bounced on her feet, tugging at her sister's arm, "Please, please,  _please_!"

"Char, we..." she trailed off, then looking back at you, "Are you  _sure_...?"

"Yeah!" you chirped, "I always carry extra tickets in case I meet fans who couldn't get any! I mean, no pressure or anything, but they're just gonna go to  _waste_ if you don't take 'em." The girl's gaze flicked between the two tickets you were holding out to her and to the girl still pulling on her arm before finally caving and taking them from you.

" _Yay_!" her sister shouted happily, " _Thank you_!" She rushed up and threw her arms around your thighs since she wasn't tall enough to properly hug you. You laughed, wrapping your own arms around her shoulders and squeezing her just before she let go.

"I'll look out for you guys tonight," you told them, "I hope to see you again!" The older girl looked at you for a moment before hugged you as well, holding you tightly.

"Thank you," she murmured so her sister didn't hear her, "You have  _no idea_  how happy this'll make Charlotte." You squeezed her as well, letting go and going your separate ways as you returned to your search for the venue.

~

Half an hour later, you finally made it back to something you recognized. You saw ' _5 SECONDS OF SUMMER_ ' on the marquee for the venue, breathing a sigh of relief at knowing you'd found your way back. You walked around to the back where the buses were parked, happy to be able to just lie down after your impromptu German adventure.

But your plans soon changed.

You'd barely even closed the door behind you when you were attacked. Michael ran up to you, grabbed your face and started kissing all over. You squealed in surprise, instinctively moving to pull away but quickly relaxing when you realized it was only your boyfriend.

"Where have you been? Do you have any idea how worried I've been about you? What were you thinking?" he let out all in one go, sucking in a deep breath when he was finished.

"I was exploring the city," you replied lowly – but he  _always_ knew when you were lying.

"You got  _lost_ ," Michael murmured in between kisses, calling your bluff, "You're an  _idiot_ , you know that? Why would you  _leave_ without your  _phone_ in a city you've  _never_ been in?"

"I  _didn't_!" you squeaked, holding the phone in your hand up, "I brought it with me!"

"That's not  _yours_ ; It's  _Luke's_."

"I think I  _know_ what my phone looks like, Michael," you grumbled. Michael then grabbed the phone from his bunk and hit the home button, showing you the lock screen: the candid photo of the two of you that Ashton had taken a few weeks prior.

"I find it hard to believe that Luke would make  _this_ his background," he stated. You stared at the phone until the screen went dark again before hitting the home button on the one in your own hand, the photo of Petunia looking back at you.

"Oh..." you trailed off so softly that Michael almost didn't hear it, "I should probably stop stealing Lu's phone cases..."

The blonde couldn't help but chuckle softly, his body finally relaxing for the first time since he found you missing. He grabbed the back of your neck and pulled you back to him, pressing a kiss to your forehead.

"Why do you steal them in the  _first place_?" he asked.

"They're  _pretty_!" you pouted as he looked at you again, "The boy has  _good taste_!" He hummed in amusement, resting his forehead on yours.

"M'just happy you're  _okay_ ," he murmured.

"M'sorry 'bout earlier, Mikey," you whispered.

"S'okay, princess," he assured you.

"No, s' _not_ ," you began chewing on your inner cheek, "S'your  _job_ and it's not okay to try and make you choose between  _it_ and  _me_..."

"D'still  _choose you_ ," he shook his head, "D'choose you no matter  _what_."

"Even if you had to choose between saving either me or a big box of kittens?" you asked sweetly. 

Michael only laughed, "Why don't we just cross that bridge when we  _come to it_ , huh?"

 


	551. Reputation (Luke Hemmings) - Part 1 *

**Warning: Mentions of murder/death, super brief moment of harassment**

~

"I'm sure all of you have heard the news about the newest case the police department is working on," your criminal justice teacher, Professor Cortell, announced, "They've been kind enough to allow us to work alongside them, which means this will be the subject of your end-of-term papers. You all have the next four weeks to take notes on everything you've learned from the Luke Hemmings case, and compile it into a four-page paper. Here is a rubric of everything I expect from you, as well as all the components I'd like to see in your papers. We'll meet for our next class on Monday downtown at the police station so they can get us up to speed. Until then, enjoy your weekend."

_Ah, the Luke Hemmings case._

Luke Hemmings had a reputation around campus for being... Well, an  _asshole_. He looked like bad news and everyone acted like he  _was_. But if you thought everyone talked bad about him  _before_ the police started talking to him, you were dead wrong.

Luke was the last person to see the cashier at a local gas station – Adrien Torres, if you remembered his name from the news coverage correctly – alive. Luke was seen at the gas station around the time Adrien was killed, but even then, you had your doubts about when it came to definitively saying  _he_ did it. From what was said on the news, you were inclined to believe that no one actually  _saw_ the murderer  _at all_.

~

**Week One**

On that chilly Monday morning, you walked into the police station with your backpack, ready to get to work on Luke's case. You told the woman at the receptionist's desk you were there for class, and she directed you to the first conference room down the hall.

You entered the room to find Professor Cortell sitting on a chair off to the side while your classmates sat around a round table. You were apparently the last one to arrive, so your teacher immediately got started after you took your seat.

"Alright, everyone, listen up for a moment," the Professor stood up, "This is Officer Reede-" He motioned to the man in uniform beside him. "-and he'll be overseeing all of the work you do with the department. I'll also be here if you have any questions pertaining to your papers, but for the most part, you'll be working on this on your own with Officer Reede, alright?" You all nodded and he turned to the Officer. "Let's get started then," he went back to his chair as the man stood up.

Officer Reede introduced himself again, telling you what he did for the department and what you'd all be doing as well. He informed you of what was more sensitive evidence that you wouldn't be allowed to know – such as seeing security footage of the murder or the shell casings found at the crime scene – but other than that, he said he'd answer any questions you had about the case.

Your classmates asked a few questions here and there – what witness statements were, how they described the suspect, and if anyone noticed what he was driving – before you finally gained the courage to speak up yourself. You raised your hand shyly, prompting the Officer to acknowledge you.

"You have a question?" Officer Reede asked.

"Yeah..." you chewed on your inner cheek, "Was anyone there  _right when_  the victim was shot? Like... Did anyone actually  _see it_  happen?"

"I don't believe so," he answered, "The closest time anyone could give us was..." He trailed off, looking down at the case file. "...20 minutes before," he continued, looking back up at you, "One witness said they saw the suspect walking out at 1:49am."

"That seems like a really  _specific_ time..." you pointed out, "How do they know it really  _was_ Luke if he'd already left?"

"He could have come  _back_ ," Reagan said.

"She has a point, Y/N; You can't seriously be  _defending_ him," Spencer cocked an eyebrow at you.

" _Yeah_ ," Maya scoffed, "Never pegged you as the kind of person who sided with a  _criminal_."

"Just because he's being  _investigated_ doesn't mean he's  _guilty_ ," you reminded them, your voice soft.

"There are witnesses, Y/N."

"There are  _accusations_ ," you corrected, "There are people  _saying_ they saw him there around the time of the murder – not the exact moment it  _happened_."

Lydia snorted loudly, "Sounds  _guilty_ to me."

"I don't think I need to remind anyone here that Luke's got a  _laundry list_  of enemies," Spencer shook his head.

"And maybe he finally decided to get  _rid_ of one of them," Reagan said.

"Or someone's  _framing him_  because they know he'd be easy to  _accuse_ ," you shrugged, leaning back in your chair.

~

**Week Two**

Another week,  _more_ time you were spending working on Luke's case. You had the day off of the criminal justice class that day, but that didn't mean you weren't still working on it. You didn't believe for a  _second_ that Luke could have murdered Adrien, and the fact that everyone else  _did_ made you  _that much_ more determined to prove his innocence.

You were minding your own business, sitting on one of the concrete benches in the campus quad, rereading the case file for what seemed like the hundredth time. Luke had sauntered outside his class in the library and sat a few feet away from you on the other end of the bench a couple minutes ago, and you heard him hum in content when you just  _sat there_.

Ever since the police came in to question him, the blonde hadn't had much interaction with his fellow classmates. They all seemed to avoid him like the  _plague_ these days – all of them  _except you_. Although you weren't jumping at the chance to speak to him, you weren't going out of your way to avoid being in his presence  _either_ – and that was something Luke  _really_ appreciated.

"Hey, cutie," you heard someone say as they sat down on your right side.

You looked up – you were the only one there besides Luke, so you knew they were talking to  _you_ – and found a brunette you'd never seen before smirking at you. You didn't know where he came from or why he was talking to you – all you knew was that his gaze and how close he was to you was making you uncomfortable.

"How are you?" he asked you. You tried to subtly scoot away from him while also being polite.

"I'm good..." you murmured, slowly closing Luke's case file and gripping it tightly on your lap.

"What's a pretty girl like you doing out here  _all alone_?" he went on, not taking the hint and moving even closer to you.

"I..." you trailed off, but you had some unlikely backup.

"She's  _not_ alone, actually," Luke said, sliding over to you and wrapping his arm around your shoulders, letting it rest there casually, "So  _beat it_ , yeah?"

"What are you gonna do if I  _don't_ , Hemmings?" the creep laughed, "Kill me like you did that  _other_ guy?"

"Something tells me you  _already_ know the answer to that," he replied dryly.

The guy simply rolled his eyes, getting up and heading back down the stairs. You exhaled sharply, not even realizing you'd been holding your breath.

"Thanks," you whispered so quietly that Luke almost didn't even hear it.

"No problem," he shrugged, bringing his arm back to his own side. "So, you're Y/N, right?" he continued as he leaned against the backrest behind him, making you nod shyly, "You're the only person around here actually  _defending_ me in this  _shit show_?"

"Am I  _wrong_ to?" you returned.

"Yup," he popped the ' _p_ '. He winked at you and you rolled your eyes, knowing he was lying. "So what's it about, huh?"

"What's  _what_ about?" you furrowed your eyebrows in confusion.

"The whole ' _being the only person who doesn't believe I killed anyone_ ' thing," he said.

"I know you've heard the criminal justice students are working on your case," you shook your head, "It's just  _free labor_  for the police department as far as  _I'm_ concerned." Luke chuckled under his breath as you went on. "I've read all the witness statements and seen the evidence I'm  _allowed to see_  – even if you  _did_ murder him, there's no  _solid proof_  to pin it on you."

Luke laughed again, "Thanks for the vote of confidence." He looked down at the manila folder on your lap. "That my file?" he asked you.

"What if it  _is_?"

"Can I see it?"

"Even if I  _were_ allowed to show it to other people, I'm sure you  _wouldn't_ be on that list," you finally giggled softly. Luke watched you for a moment with a small smile on his face.

"M'glad  _someone_ is on my side, at least," he mentioned, "If anyone's gonna clear my name, m'happy it's gonna be  _you_."

~

_inspiration: Legally Blonde_


	552. Reputation (Luke Hemmings) - Part 2 *

**Warnings: Mentions of murder/death**

~

**Week Three**

**Luke's POV**

Luke found himself sitting alone at a table in the library – not that he wasn't  _used to it_  by now – as he tapped his pen on the tabletop. He was working on an essay for his Psychology class and... Well, he was  _trying to_  anyway.

He couldn't seem to focus on anything more than his future these days. He had a  _spotless_ criminal record up until this point – not even something as small as stealing a candy bar when he was a kid – but now... Now, he was worried that if he  _was_ – wrongly – convicted of something like  _murder_...? What would  _that_ do to his future and all the plans he had and everything he still wanted to do in his lifetime?

"Luke?"

The blonde jumped lightly at the voice beside him, looking up to find your classmates standing there. They were looking at him the way they  _always_ did now – that same condescending expression that made his blood boil.

" _What_?" Luke grumbled, just wanting the conversation to be over with as soon as possible.

"Well..." Spencer trailed off, "We're from the criminal justice class working on your case, and the police department wants us to as you a few questions."

"What could they want  _you_ to ask me that they have already asked  _themselves_?"

"They said we need to get used to talking to people... _around_ a case..." Reagan said.

" _Suspects_ ," Luke stated, no hint of a question in his tone – he knew that's what they were there for. He took a look at the group again, taking note of one  _key_ member that was missing. "Where's Y/N?" he asked.

"Who  _cares_?" Maya rolled her eyes, "She's  _biased_ anyway."

"So are  _you guys_."

"How are  _we_ biased?" Spencer scoffed.

"You've all already  _decided_ I'm guilty," the blonde said matter-of-factly.

" _So what_?" Lydia said, " _Y/N's_  already decided you're  _innocent_."

"Y/N's not one to let her feelings  _sway_ her decisions," Luke reminded them, "If the facts were to change and it ended up being that I really  _did_ commit a crime, Y/N wouldn't  _maintain_ the idea that I was still innocent – she would  _accept_ that she was wrong."

"So you're saying she  _is_ wrong?" Reagan cocked an eyebrow.

" _I'm saying_  that if you want a story or  _whatever_ you're trying to get out of me, I want to talk to the only person who cares about the  _facts_ ," he deadpanned, " _I want to talk to Y/N_."

~

**Your POV; Three hours later**

"Hi! Come in!" you chirped after opening your dorm room door, ushering Luke inside, "You can sit on the bed if you want. Sorry I don't have much room in here."

The blonde hummed with a soft chuckle, taking a seat on your bed and scooting back against the wall behind him so his legs dangled off of the side. He watched you grab the notebook you were using for your notes on the case and come over to your bed.

"So," you said as you hopped up to sit next to him, "I must really be  _something else_  if you're demanding  _I_ be the one to talk to you."

"They only want the opportunity to interview a  _murder suspect_ ," he grumbled, "Rather talk to someone who cares about my  _well-being_  more than a  _story_." You looked at him for a moment as he stared down at the hands on his lap.

"Luke," you said softly, waiting until his eyes met yours to continue speaking, "You don't  _have_ to do this, you know. We've already  _got_ the statements you gave police."

"I  _want_ to," he assured you with a sigh, "I... I  _trust you_." You smiled gently at him, not noticing the way it made him gulp slightly since you'd turned your attention back to the notebook on your lap.

You opened the book to a mostly blank page, feeling Luke look over your shoulder. The only writing on it was four evenly spaced sentences – four questions the department wanted you to ask him.

"Remember you don't have to answer  _any_ question you don't want to, okay?" you reminded him, "Just say you wanna skip it and I'll think of something else." Luke nodded and you began your questioning.

~

An hour passed by before you knew it, and if you were being honest, you didn't really think you were anywhere closer to something you weren't already told by police than  _before_. You could sense the stiffness of Luke's body beside you, and you couldn't help but feel for him. You had  _no idea_  what he must be going through – to know that all but  _one_ person believed he was some ruthless killer – but you were  _determined_ to make sure he knew he was safe with you.

"I think y'need to loosen up, Luke," you told him, hooking your pen in the notebook spiral so you didn't lose it.

"Everyone thinks I'm a  _murderer_ ," Luke chuckled dryly, "Don't think I'll be  _able_ to loosen up until after they find the guy who  _really_ did it."

"Well, we still need to take a break," you said.

You got up, sitting your notebook on your desk before coming back to your spot on the bed beside Luke. You grabbed your remote and turned the TV on, then reached for your Xbox controller and turned the console on as well. You opened the  _iHeartRadio_ app and clicked on a Top 40 station, letting the pop music fill the otherwise quiet room.

"We can listen to this until you're ready to keep going," you said, "I have my paper to work on, but I'll stop when you need me to." You put your laptop on your lap and the two of you listened to the music for a while.

10 minutes and 3 songs later, you began to hear soft humming coming from the man sitting beside you as he occupied himself with his phone. You would smile to yourself every once in a while, but other than that, you and Luke didn't speak much.

Until the  _fourth_ song came on, of course.

You heard the beginning off  _Perfect_ by Ed Sheeran start playing. You didn't notice, but it made you start swaying slightly. Luke was watching you when he felt your arm bump into his, grinning a bit.

"I think I know how to loosen up now," Luke said, making you stop and look at him. You didn't say anything, prompting him to continue. "Dance?" he asked, a shy smile on his face. You chuckled softly, the act of you putting your laptop off to the side making him get up.

Luke held his hand out to you, pulling you to your feet. He took your other hand and wrapped your arms around his neck before moving his own to your waist. You laid your head on his shoulder when he brought you closer, now slow dancing with you to the music.

You closed your eyes and hummed in content when you felt Luke slip his hand under your shirt and start running his fingers along your lower back, drawing shapes into your skin. He barely grinned at the sounds you were making, but you could still feel it where his face was pressed to your neck.

By the time the second verse started, it seemed like the plan to loosen him up was working when you heard him start singing softly under his breath. He wasn't going to pretend he couldn't feel your smile with your face on his shoulder, but he hoped you couldn't feel his heart skip a beat because of it.

When the song ended, you both seemed to drown out the faster tempo of the succeeding song. You still held onto each other, still slow dancing in the middle of the small dorm room. You didn't know if this was wrong – if you were taking advantage of Luke's vulnerable state of mind – so you were the first to pull away.

"We should-" you cleared your throat lightly as his arms fell back down to his sides when you stepped back toward the bed, "We should get back to work..."

~

Another hour passed before you and Luke finally decided to call it a night. It had actually been quite a successful chat – or  _interrogation_ , for lack of a better word. Luke told you all about his day and what he'd done and where he went and who he was with, finding out some things that the police hadn't even told you.

The sun had set a while ago, leaving you and Luke in the harsh florescent lighting of your dorm. It was silent for a moment – neither of you really too sure what to say – before you finally gained the courage to break it.

"Thanks for doing this, Luke," you told him, "It must be difficult to have everyone asking you questions all the time."

"S'never difficult with  _you_ ," he said so lowly that you  _almost_ didn't hear it. But you didn't get a chance to respond. "I should be heading home," he said, "M'sure you've got more work to do." He grabbed his jacket and walked to the door. You opened and closed your mouth a couple times before finally finding the volume to speak.

"Luke..." you said suddenly, making him turn around. You opened your mouth again, but no words were coming out.

You  _wanted_ to ask him to spend the night there – to spend the night  _with you_  – but you just couldn't make yourself  _say it_. You were afraid you'd ruin everything – you and Luke were starting to become friends and you desperately didn't want to say the wrong things to him that would make him leave.

"Drive safe," you finally whispered, swallowing the lump in your throat and ignoring at the voice in your head that was screaming at you.

You could have  _sworn_ you saw Luke's face fall slightly –  _was he hoping you'd ask him to stay?_

"Goodnight, Y/N," he replied just as quietly, leaving your dorm. You sighed sharply, throwing yourself back onto your bed.

~

_inspiration: Legally Blonde_


	553. Reputation (Luke Hemmings) - Part 3 *

**Warning: Mentions of murder/death**

~

Not even 10 minutes later, you looked up from your laptop screen when you heard knocking on your door. You stared at it for a moment – you weren't expecting any more visitors – before finally getting up to answer it. You didn't know  _who_ you thought you'd see, but the blonde who had just left  _wasn't_ it.

"Luke...?" you trailed off. He only smiled shyly.

"I... M'sorry for bothering you again, but... My car won't start..." he told you.

"Oh," you nodded, "Well... Do you need to call someone...?"

"I called AAA, but they won't be here until morning..."

"I-" You cleared your throat as your heart skipped a beat, forcing yourself to say what you'd been  _too scared_   _to_ 10 minutes prior. "You can stay  _here_...if you want..."

"I... I don't wanna be a bother," he told you.

"You  _never_ bother me, Lu," you assured him – and if you didn't know any better, you'd say the nickname made him  _blush_.

Luke didn't say anything – not that his voice would have  _let_ him – and he just smiled bashfully again, following you  _back_ into your dorm room. You gave him free reign over your Netflix account – it wasn't like you were watching anything at the moment anyway – and you both returned to how you'd been sitting on your bed 20 minutes ago.

After finding a show he wanted to watch, he sat quietly for a couple minutes before turning to you. He stared at you as you typed away on your keyboard, seemingly mesmerized by how  _into_ your paper you were.

"Are you ever  _not_ doing schoolwork?" Luke asked you, making you stop and look up at him.

"Only when I don't have schoolwork to  _do_ ," you giggled.

"C'mon, Y/N," he rolled his eyes, "You've barely been able to keep your eyes  _open_ since I came back here."

"But I'm  _so close_  to getting this part done," you pouted.

"Then just rest your eyes for a  _few_ minutes." He seemed genuinely concerned about you, so you finally caved.

You saved your work thus far, missing Luke's smile when he realized you were listening to him. You then closed your laptop and put it at the end of your bed so you could lie back against your pillows.

"Y' _promise_  you won't let me fall asleep?" you asked.

"Mhmm," Luke nodded.

But you should have  _known_ he was lying.

~

**Luke's POV**

Nearly two hours later, Luke finally decided he was tired enough to call it a night as well. He turned off your Xbox and TV, carefully leaned over you to flick off the lamp on your windowsill behind the bed, and went to move to your floor so he could go to sleep himself, but he was surprised when he felt you grab his hand. He looked at you and saw your eyes were still closed but he knew you were at least  _semi_ -awake when you spoke.

"Where're you  _going_?" you mumbled.

"The floor?" he chuckled.

" _Why_?"

"'Cause I'm gonna go to sleep."

"Y'can have my bed," you told him, "L'take the floor."

"You're  _not_ sleeping on the floor in your  _own room_ , Y/N," he stated firmly.

"Then y're gonna have to  _share_ 'cause y're not sleeping on the floor  _either_." Luke would be lying if he said his heart didn't skip a beat at the idea of sharing the bed with you.

"Y' _sure_?" he asked, his voice as soft as you made him feel whenever you looked at him.

You didn't verbally respond – you just scooted over toward the wall beside you, signalling to him that you were making space for him. You turned around so you were facing the wall, making his heart sink a bit –  _should've known you were just being nice and you weren't actually suggesting cuddling up to each other._

But Luke did it anyway. He took off his shoes and pushed himself up so his head was on your pillow, getting comfortable. Your bed wasn't  _big_ , but it was big  _enough_ to comfortably fit two people if you tried hard enough – though that didn't mean he'd had no trouble falling asleep.

But that wasn't to say he wouldn't sleep  _at all_.

You'd been asleep for about hour while Luke just laid there, staring up at the ceiling and listening to the unconscious noises you were making. He wasn't terribly upset that he couldn't seem to sleep – not when he got to listen to  _you_. You would move around slightly every once in a while, but it was never any change too drastic to the way you'd been when you first fell asleep.

Until now, obviously.

Luke turned his head when he felt a bigger movement than he'd been feeling previously, his heart skipping when he saw you'd turned over to face him – and that feeling in his chest only grew when your body subconsciously scooted closer to the warmth of his own. He knew it was only because he was warmer than you were – the small shivers raking your body every now and then being proof of that – but that didn't mean it still didn't make his heart feel like it was beating in his throat.

The blonde always knew he had a crush on you – despite not really speaking before your criminal justice class took on his case, he'd see you around campus while you were rushing to get to your next lecture on time and he honestly thought he'd never  _seen_ anyone so beautiful. The crush only  _intensified_ that day he first officially spoke to you – whether that was because you were the only person who believed his side of the story about the murder or because the sound of your voice reminded him of the melodies of his favorite songs? He didn't know.

But what he  _did_ know was that he was falling for you, and he was falling  _fast_.

And it was taking everything in him to remind himself that you  _didn't_ feel the same.

~

**Your POV; The next morning**

You woke up to the sun shining in through your window, hitting you right on your face. You groaned softly to yourself, feeling something underneath you shake as you heard a low chuckle. You tilted your head up slightly, only realizing you were laying on Luke's chest when you did so.

"Sorry," you said quickly, feeling your face get hot, "I didn't mean to sleep on you like that... I-" You cut yourself off when you went to pull away but Luke didn't let you. His arm was around your shoulders, the fingers carefully running up and down your bicep causing your skin to erupt in goosebumps.

"S'okay," he murmured, his eyes never leaving yours. You could sense something was off with him, prompting you to bravely reposition yourself to lay more comfortably against him.

"How are you feeling, Luke?" you asked, "About the whole case thing, I mean." He hummed softly, forcing out another chuckle along with it.

"About how you'd  _expect_ , I guess," he admitted, "S'harder when only  _one_ person believes you're innocent."

"I'm sure I'm not the  _only_ person," you shook your head, "What about your parents?"

"Haven't even  _told them_  what's going on," he swallowed.

" _What_?" you furrowed your eyebrows, " _Why not_?"

"We were never all that close... They were so used to hearing about the trouble  _around me_  when I was growing up – how they always thought it was  _my fault_  when it  _wasn't_... They think I'm just a lost cause – a reject who isn't  _going anywhere_  in life... Knew they wouldn't  _care_ to hear my side of the story, so I just  _didn't_ tell them..."

"Lu..." you whispered so softly that he almost didn't hear it. He looked at you when he felt you take the hand on his stomach, rubbing your thumb on his knuckles. "M'gonna find a way to get you out of this," you promised. Luke barely smiled, moving his hand so you'd release it and he could tangle your fingers together instead.

"Thanks," he replied, squeezing your hand and pressing a grateful kiss to your forehead, "I know it's not easy... Not when everyone in your class is against you too... But it means a lot that you're not letting them scare you away from me..."

" _Nothing's_ gonna scare me away from you, Lu," you told him, "Unless you're like, secretly a  _clown_ or something." He laughed a little louder that time.

"Would I tell you if I  _were_?" he countered. He felt your smile as you laughed into his shirt.

"Maybe wait to share those details until  _after_ this is all over," you shook your head, feeling him squeeze your shoulders that time.

Things were silent between you for a couple minutes – the only thing happening being his thumb continuing to rub your arm and your fingers playing with his on top of his stomach.

"Y/N..." Luke murmured randomly, earning a small hum in response to go on, "If I ask you something about the case, are you allowed to answer it?"

"Depends on what it  _is_ ," you replied.

"Well, I've been thinking... Can't the  _security cameras_  help me out any?"

"I don't know, Lu; I haven't seen them," you informed him.

"You  _haven't_? Why not?" he seemed genuinely surprised.

"The police department won't _let us_  – some shit about not  _actually_ being detectives yet and we wouldn't be able to  _handle_ seeing the guy get shot or  _whatever_ ," you rolled your eyes, making him chuckle softly, "But I managed to convince them to let us have the camera  _outside's_ footage, and we're gonna have our class at the station today to look at it."

"S'you really  _do_ believe me?" Luke whispered. You tilted your head up to look at him, finding a nervous expression on his face.

"I've  _told you_  already, Lu," you shook your head, squeezing his hand firmly, "You've got a  _reputation_ but that doesn't make you a  _murderer_." Luke stared at you for what seemed like hours, seemingly trying to decode your intentions and whether or not they were  _really_ good.

"My car isn't broken," he said randomly.

You furrowed your eyebrows in response, "Huh?"

"I-I  _lied_..." he confessed, "My car  _started_ last night; I just... I didn't...want to  _leave_... I... I wanted to spend more time with you..." Luke didn't know what he expected your response to be, but what he got never even  _crossed his mind_.

"I was going to ask you to  _stay_..." you whispered shakily, "When you were walking out and I stopped you... I wasn't going to tell you to ' _drive safe_ '... I-I was going to ask you to stay the night with me..."

"Why  _didn't_ you?" he swallowed thickly.

"Because I... Everyone  _already_ think I'm ignoring facts by defending you..." you swallowed thickly, "I-I can't..."

" _Hey_ ," he cooed gently, his lips returning to your forehead, "I  _get it_ , you know? I  _know_ what it's like to feel like no one's on your side. But I  _also_ know that even having just  _one person_  stand up for you is enough to make you  _keep fighting_. And if  _you_ can be that person for  _me_ , then  _I'll_ be that person for  _you_ – no matter  _what_ happens."

~

_inspiration: Legally Blonde_


	554. Reputation (Luke Hemmings) - Part 4 *

**Warning: Mentions of murder/death**

~

"As you all know, during today's meeting, we're going to be focusing on security footage," Professor Cortell said.

" _Seriously_?" Reagan cocked an eyebrow, "We're  _finally_ allowed to look at it?"

"Yeah, what's with the sudden change of heart from the police here?" Lydia wondered, "Do they finally trust us?"

"We'll only be looking at the cameras outside," he went on, "Despite the fact that you'll all see something like this one day in person, the department and I can't come to an agreement when it comes to the  _actual footage_  of the crime. But Miss Y/L/N managed to convince them to allow us to see at least  _some_ of the things caught on camera."

" _Of course_ ," Maya snorted softly, "Anything to protect her  _boyfriend_."

"He's  _not_ my boyfriend," you grumbled in response, only earning eye rolls from your fellow classmates.

"In any case, this is an  _incredible_ opportunity," the Professor interrupted, "And I've assured Officer Reede that it  _won't_ go to waste, are we clear?" The class murmured soft affirmations, eager to get started.

"So this is..." Reagan trailed off as Officer Reede went up to the computer to play the video on the projector for you.

"This is the time Mr. Hemmings walked into the gas station," he answered. He started the tape at 1:17am, letting it fast-forward to 1:24am: the exact time Luke came into frame. "Mr. Hemmings walks in at 1:24, buys a coffee and a candy bar, and leaves at 1:29."

"He bought a  _coffee_ at 1:30 in the morning?" Spencer raised his eyebrows.

"Yes," the Officer nodded, "He says he was working on a Psychology paper and needed to keep himself awake, so he walked to the closest place that had coffee."

"Hmm," the boy sitting across from you snorted, "Not gonna talk him out of  _that one_ , Y/N?"

"I told you guys I'd focus on  _facts_ ," you stated, tapping your pen on your notebook, "And the facts are that Luke  _was_ there the night Torres was killed. I'm not gonna sit here and say I don't see him on the tape."

" _But_...?" Maya rolled her eyes.

" _But_ he left 20 minutes  _before_ the cashier was killed – those security cameras  _prove it_."

"So what you're saying is he left the gas station and then  _came back_  20 minutes later with a mask on," Reagan said.

You pinched the bridge of your nose as you exhaled slowly, doing your best to maintain your composure. You then got up without another word, and Officer Reede stepped away so you could get to the computer. You pulled up the footage from both the 1:24am and the 1:44am timestamps, putting them side-by-side so everyone could see it better.

"This is Luke Hemmings walking into the gas station at 1:24," you informed the group, pausing the video on the left as Luke walked through the door, " _This_ -" You pointed to the video on the right. "-is 20 minutes later, when the murder takes place at 1:44."

" _Okay_ ," Spencer crossed his arms and leaned back in his seat, "Why are you showing us Hemmings  _murdering_ Torres again?"

" _I'm showing you_  both men walking through that doorway," you glared at him, "I'm showing you the top of  _Luke's_ head nearly touching the  _top_ of the door frame while the  _other man's_  head lines up with the  _middle_ of the top glass panel. In case you need  _another_ breakdown of that,  _here you go_ : Standard doorways are 6'8''. Luke Hemmings stands at 6'4" tall, making the man who robbed the gas station and murdered Adrian Torres  _roughly_ 5'7". So unless Luke  _chopped off his own legs_  from the upper calf down  _just_ to make sure no one would realize it was him, I'm finding it  _incredibly_ unlikely that  _he_ was the murderer."

" _Or_ he could have had someone  _else_ do it  _for him_ ," Maya spoke.

"Yeah, Y/N," Reagan chimed in, "You said it yourself: Luke Hemmings isn't  _stupid_. He's smart enough to know that a height difference would clear his name."

You took in another deep breath, closing your eyes for a moment before going back to the table to get your bag. You looked at Professor Cortell after lifting the bag's strap over your head and letting it rest on your shoulder.

"I'm going home; I have a report to work on," you stated, leaving before anyone could say anything else.

~

**The next evening**

You'd been working tirelessly since coming back to your dorm the previous day, doing everything you could to clear Luke's name. As you were reading up on Adrien Torres's background, there was a knock on your dorm room door. You huffed lightly – you were really immersed in your reading – and you got up to answer the door.

" _What_?" you stated dryly as you pulled it open.

"I see you've forgotten you invited me over," Luke chuckled, "You look busy though; I'll just come back some other time."

"Sorry, no, it's fine," you sighed, moving out of the way and ushering him to come in, "Maybe the company would  _benefit_ me."

"What are you working on?"

"What am I  _always_ working on?" you giggled as you both sat beside each other on your bed. Luke rolled his eyes with a smile.

"You sure you wanna work on a case with the  _prime suspect_  in the room?" he wiggled his eyebrows.

"Nah," you grinned as well, "I trust him not to poke around in places he knows he shouldn't."

"Well, lucky for you, I brought my  _own_ homework to keep me busy so I'm not tempted to take a peek at  _yours_ ," he winked, "Didn't feel like sitting alone in my place and I decided to bother you instead." You shoved him playfully, and he leaned over to kiss your temple, before the two of you settled into your work.

~

**One hour later**

You were still sitting with Luke, some random radio station playing softly on your Xbox so the room wasn't completely silent. You'd both maneuvered yourselves to sit so he was leaning back up against the wall and you were resting against your headboard. Your legs were on his lap and he was using your thighs as a desk. You were reading Adrien's background that the police had put in their report again, barely even noticing the way Luke would look at you every once in a while – he knew you were set on proving his innocence, but he didn't want you to overwork yourself because of it.

But you  _finally_ hit a breakthrough that got you thinking.

Adrien Torres worked at the gas station managed by Phillip Redford –  _where had you heard that name before...?_  Phillip Redford hired Adrien from a recommendation that he was given by his daughter, who was dating Adrien at the time. The daughter, Katie Redford, and Adrien broke up after two years of dating, leaving her heartbroken, which made Katie's older brother  _incredibly_ upset.

And the older brother – the common denominator in all of this? –  _Spencer Redford_ : the  _same_ Spencer Redford in your criminal justice class.

The moment you read Spencer's name, you gasped lightly. You'd been in the middle of taking a drink of water at the time, so you immediately began coughing. The sudden sound made Luke's head snap up, finding your hand covering your mouth.

"Y/N, are you alright?" he asked frantically, squeezing the thigh on his lap, "What happened?"

"I gotta-" you coughed again, "I'll be back." Luke barely had time to grab his computer from your lap as you got up from your bed. You grabbed your laptop and notebook, shoving them in your backpack to bring them with you.

"Where are you  _going_?" Luke shook his head.

"I have-" Another cough. "-to talk to Professor-" Cough. "-Cortell!" you called over your shoulder,  _running_ out of the room and leaving Luke to watch you in confusion.

~

"What's the emergency, Miss Y/L/N?" Professor Cortell raised an eyebrow as you sprinted into the police station.

You quickly texted him asking him if he could meet you there, and you were happy when he responded telling you he  _already was_. You  _knew_ they were going to think you were crazy – that you were just  _desperately_ looking for an out for Luke – but you sure as hell weren't going to go down without a  _fight_.

"I need to talk to you," you stated, your gaze flicking between both him and Officer Reede so they knew you meant both of them. The two men looked at each other for a moment.

"Okay..." Officer Reede trailed off, "We can use the conference room."

Your small group entered the room you'd grown so accustomed to the last couple weeks. The Professor and Officer sat next to each other while you remained standing, too jittery to sit down.

"What do you need to talk about, Y/N?" Professor Cortell asked, using your first name since he could tell you were on edge.

"I was reading the case file on Adrien Torres to see if I could maybe find someone from his past that would want him dead instead of it being some random robbery," you said, pulling out the folder and opening it, setting it on the table in front of them.

"And judging by the urgency of this meeting, I'm assuming you  _did_?" Officer Reede questioned.

"Yes," you nodded, taking a deep breath, "I think Spencer did it."

" _Mr. Redford_?" Professor Cortell looked at you skeptically.

"You understand how  _serious_ of an accusation this is, don't you, young lady?" the Officer said monotonously. You huffed lightly, reaching over and turning the page in the folder to Adrien's bio.

"Phillip Redford owns the gas station and hired Adrien Torres to work the graveyard shift. Katie Redford, Phillip's daughter, was the one who put Adrien on her father's radar because she was dating him at the time. Last month, Adrien broke up with Katie and left her heartbroken. Katie, being as close with her older brother as she is, goes to him to vent, and he decides to take it into his own hands because he  _so_ upset that someone hurt her. I don't know  _how_ premeditated it was, but I  _do_ know that if you go to the trouble of putting on a ski mask and taking a gun to a gas station, you're not there to buy a bag of  _chips_. I mean, don't either of you think it's a  _little_ suspicious that Spencer's never  _once_ mentioned that his  _sister_ dated Adrien?" you shook your head. The two sat in a stunned silence – they couldn't really argue with you there. "As much as everyone  _wants_ to pin it on Luke, they  _can't_ ," you reminded them, "So I don't think it would  _hurt anyone_  to look into the idea that  _maybe he's being set up_."

And to your surprise, they  _agreed_ with you.

~

_inspiration: Legally Blonde_


	555. Reputation (Luke Hemmings) - Part 5 *

**Warning: Mentions of murder/death**

~

**Week Four**

It took four days for the department to build up a solid case against Spencer, but you swore to  _God_ it felt like an eternity. You still had classes, however, and it was incredibly hard to maintain the facade that you didn't suspect Spencer at all.

But you  _did it_.

And the day he was finally called in for questioning was the day you finally felt like you could  _breathe_ again.

Your class was in the conference room once again. Professor Cortell had told everyone you were meeting for one last run-through of all the evidence before you had to finish your reports, but the  _real_ reason was so that Spencer  _wouldn't_ be able to avoid interrogation.

" _Still_ trying to bail out your boyfriend, Y/N?" Spencer smirked. Now that you knew he was most likely the actual culprit, the way he looked at you when he mentioned Luke made you feel sick to your stomach.

"I'll defend him until the  _day I die_ , Redford," you told him, not looking up from your laptop, "But something tells me it's not going to take that long."

"Yeah?" he snorted, "And what makes you think  _that_?"

As if he were answering the question for you, Officer Reede knocked on the door and came into the room. Your classmates' eyebrows furrowed at the look you shared with him.

"Spencer Redford," the Officer said, "We'd like to have a word with you in interrogation."

Spencer cocked an eyebrow, "What for?"

"The Chief and I would just like to talk." The tension in the room was almost  _unbearable_ as Spencer started getting the gist of what was happening.

"Am I going to need my  _lawyer_?" he asked through gritted teeth.

"That's for you to decide," Officer Reede said, escorting Spencer out of the room.

You couldn't help but let out a soft breath, putting your elbows on the table and letting your hands cover your face. Those around you looked at you with confused expressions again, no one speaking for a moment.

"What's going on?" Lydia finally asked when the door closed behind the two men.

"Miss Y/L/N," Professor Cortell grabbed your attention. He motioned to the group, signalling for you to tell them your theory. But, to be honest, you weren't so sure you  _wanted_ to.

Your classmates had been so  _convinced_ that Luke was guilty since the moment they heard the details of the case, and they jumped at every chance to make fun of you for  _questioning it_ as well. No matter how  _probable_ the idea of Spencer being the real killer was, you knew they wouldn't  _believe you_  when you told them you were sure Luke didn't do it.

"I think... I think I solved it," you said softly, your voice shy and timid.

" _Really_?" Reagan cocked an eyebrow, "You finally accept that Luke is guilty?"

"No... I think...Spencer did it..."

" _Spencer_?" they all said in unison.

"Y/N, none of us have agreed with you on  _anything_ thus far, but to accuse Spencer of  _murder_ is just  _grasping at straws_ ," Lydia rolled her eyes. You looked to Professor Cortell for help but he only motioned for you to go on.

You breathed in shakily before telling them what you'd read about Adrien Torres's past and why you thought Spencer was a more likely suspect than Luke. To your surprise, your classmates actually listened to your argument – and they seemed like they were  _genuinely_ changing their opinions as well.

" _Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait_ ," Maya shook her head, "So Spencer is the  _son_ of the guy who  _owns_ the gas station, and the cashier dated his  _sister_?" You simply nodded. "Then why didn't the police interview him  _before_?!" she threw her arms up.

"Spencer and his dad haven't talked in  _years_ ," you informed them, "As far as Spencer's concerned, Phillip isn't even his  _father_ anymore."

" _Damn_ ," Reagan breathed out, leaning back in her chair.

"But aren't Phillip and his  _daughter_ still close?" Lydia questioned, "Wouldn't he know she and Spencer still talk?"

"Well, Katie never mentioned her brother in her police interview," you furrowed your eyebrows, wondering the same thing.

"Maybe she suspected him all along but she didn't want to come out and  _say it_ ," Reagan offered, "Maybe she thought it'd ruin her relationship with him if he found out she thought he murdered her ex."

"Isn't that still withholding information from law enforcement?" Maya asked.

"Katie didn't outright  _accuse_ her brother of the crime," you shook your head, "So they can't really  _prove_ that she ever suspected him in the first place."

"Makes sense," Reagan shrugged, "She's not exactly going to come forward saying ' _I knew it_ ' if he confesses." Everyone hummed in agreement.

"What if he  _didn't_ do it?" Lydia asked nervously, "Won't he be mad we think he  _did_?" The group looked around at each other before all of their eyes landed on you when you started talking.

"I don't know..." you admitted softly, "But I know  _Luke_... And I  _know_ he's innocent..."

~

**Two hours later**

Two  _agonizing_ hours passed as you all sat around in the conference room, your minds racing at what the verdict was going to be. You had no doubt in your mind that Spencer was guilty – that he was trying to frame Luke because he knew he was an easy target, and you  _weren't_ going to let that happen.

You looked at the door when it opened, finding Officer Reede and the Chief of Police walking in with Luke. Your eyes met his and he had to keep himself from smiling at you as Professor Cortell broke the silence.

"Any updates, Officers?" he asked, and you swore you felt like you were going to throw up.

"Well... It turns out Miss Y/L/N's suspisions were correct," the Officer stated. Everyone's eyes widened –  _did that mean...?_  "Mr. Redford confessed to the murder," he informed you.

Your classmates' jaws dropped while you breathed out deeply, falling back against your chair. You always knew Luke was innocent, but you never would have  _dreamed_ that the real killer was so  _close_ to you the  _whole time_.

" _Wow_..." Maya muttered.

"Didn't see  _that one_  coming," Reagan shook her head.

"It was  _Spencer_...?" Lydia whispered, more to herself than to anyone else.

"Miss Y/L/N," Chief Kalman said, bringing your attention back to him, "That was some  _fine_ police work for an undergrad. I don't know what department you'll decide to work for after you get your degree, but I think I speak for all of us here at the department when I say I hope it's alongside  _us_." He held his hand out to you and you breathed out again, finally smiling as you shook his hand.

"Now we don't mean to kick anyone out, but this is our only conference room and the Chief and I need to talk to Mr. Hemmings," Officer Reede said.

You all got up and made your way out of the room. As you approached Luke, he subtly held his hand up, prompting you to put your own in it. He squeezed you briefly before letting go, smiling to himself when he noticed you fighting back a grin.

As you and your classmates were walking through the building to get to the front door, there was a new air around you all. Going into this investigation, you knew none of them believed you when it came to Luke's innocence. But now, it was like that awkward tension was lifted off of you – like maybe they had a newfound  _respect_ for you.

"I have to admit, Y/N – that was some nice work," Maya shook her head, " _Definitely_ didn't expect it to be  _Spencer_."

"I don't think  _any of us_  did," you laughed under your breath.

"It kinda makes sense now though," Reagan added, "I mean, we all thought Luke was guilty, but Spencer seemed so  _adamant_ about it... Now we know it was because he was trying to keep  _himself_ safe."

"Well, he certainly wasn't going to stand up in the middle of class and say ' _it was me, guys! I did it! I'm framing Luke!_ '," Lydia shrugged, making everyone laugh in response.

You all walked out of the police station, but you stopped on the steps. Your classmates stopped as well when they realized you weren't still following them, looking at each other for a moment before turning back to you.

"Hey, Y/N," Reagan said, "We're gonna go out for pizza before we have to finish our reports on the case. Do you wanna come?" And truthfully, you really  _did_ , but you had something  _else_ on your mind.

"I think I'm gonna..." you trailed off, nodding your head slightly to the door behind you.

"Mhmm," Maya hummed while all of smiled knowingly, "Give Luke our apologies."

"If that boy didn't like you  _before_ , he sure does  _now_ ," Lydia snickered, trotting away with Maya and Reagan and leaving your heart racing at the statement.

~

**20 minutes later**

It seemed like  _forever_ that you were waiting outside for Luke. You were sitting on one of the middle steps off to the side of the stairs, your leg bouncing up and down as you anxiously awaited to see him again.

You were  _elated_ that you were able to help Luke prove his innocence, but you were  _terrified_ at the same time. You and Luke never talked  _before_ this mess started, and now that he was  _officially_ free and everyone knew the  _truth_ , who's to say that he'd  _still_ want to be seen with you – that he wouldn't ditch you because he finally got what he  _wanted_ out of you.

You jumped when the door beside you opened, knocking you out of your daydream. Your heart skipped when Luke came out into the cold December air, only to start  _pounding_ the moment he looked at you. He was  _already_ wearing a grin from being cleared of any murder charges, but he was  _beaming_ when he saw you there waiting for him.

You quickly rose to your feet before Luke rushed to you, his arms flying around your waist and lifting you off of the ground. Your own arms wrapped around his neck, hugging him tightly, knowing this might be the  _last time_  you'd ever get to.

" _Thank you_ ," he breathed into your neck as he returned you to your feet, making you shiver slightly, "For believing me when no one else did, for standing up for me, for not giving up on me...  _Everything_..." He felt one of your arms loosen and your hand move to the back of his neck, your fingers beginning to play with his hair.

"What kind of future detective would I be if I  _gave up_  on a client so  _easily_?" you murmured with a smile.

"Good thing I wasn't an  _actual client_  though," he grinned as he pulled away, making you look at him in confusion, "Pretty sure there are  _rules_ about not taking someone you've hired on a  _date_." Your heart started racing again.

"Y-You  _want_ to take me on a date?" you whispered, your voice not  _giving you_  any more than that.

"Why  _wouldn't_ I?" he chuckled confusedly.

"Because I... You cleared your name..." you looked down at your feet.

" _You_ cleared my name," he corrected you.

"Yeah... Jus' means y'don't  _need me_ anymore..."

"Y/N..." Luke sighed softly, reaching up and taking your face in his hands. He lifted your head back up so you would look at him. "I'm  _always_ gonna need you," he promised, "M'always gonna  _want_ you."

"You  _are_?" you mumbled, happy he was covering your cheeks so he couldn't see your blush. He didn't respond right away – he just leaned in and pressed his lips to your nose, chuckling when he felt you scrunch it up.

"I wasn't  _just saying it_  that night I told you I trust you," he stroked your cheekbones lovingly, "I didn't want to admit it for  _so long_ , but... I already knew I liked you  _before_ then, but that night... That night, I think I fell in love with you... You were the only one who cared about  _me_ and not my reputation and didn't listen to what other people said about me and you  _believed me_  when I told you my side of the story and you questioned everyone – your Professor and your classmates and all of the  _police officers_  – knowing it would make  _you_ an outcast  _too_ , and you stuck up for me when  _no one else_  would and you  _fought for me_  when you didn't  _have to_ – you did it because you had  _faith in me_... And nothing I could  _ever_ do for you is going to be enough to  _thank you_  for all that..." You didn't know if he was done rambling, but you couldn't wait anymore.

You eyed him for a moment before he felt your hands come up to his ribs, balling up the fabric of his shirt in your fists, and quickly closing the gap between your faces to smash your lips against his. Luke couldn't keep himself from sighing in relief – he'd thought about kissing you for  _so long_  that he was so happy to finally be _doing it_.

When you pulled away for air, Luke's forehead fell onto yours. His eyes were still closed, his breathing slow so he could really take you in. You tilted your head to peck his lips gently, finally making him open his eyes when you pulled back for the second time.

"Think a date is a good place to  _start_ ," you told him, earning yourself another beaming smile.

~

_inspiration: Legally Blonde_


	556. Prompt Blurb #3: Ashton Irwin

> prompt: "If I did anything right in my life, it was falling in love with you."

~

You were always excited to go to Ashton's family Christmas party – mainly because it was  _much_ less chaotic and crowded than yours with your  _huge_ family. You would usually get to Anne's house early in the morning to spend time with her, Lauren, and Harry before the rest of the family arrived. The reasoning behind your excitement over the gathering had  _changed_ a little this year, however.

After-lunch tradition with Ashton's family had always been a game of charades, and this year was no different. You and Ashton were a team, Lauren and Harry paired up, Anne decided to go with her mother, and so on. You were particularly excited for the subject you'd picked for your last round of the game this year, having been planning it for the last four months.

"Alright, babe!" Ashton chirped, "Let's  _crush_ 'em!"

"We're in  _last_ , Ash," you giggled, standing up and turning to face everyone, "I don't think there's any  _hope_ for us."

"Well, not with  _that_ attitude," he pouted. Ashton obviously already knew what the subject was, but he assured you he was going to make his guesses interesting in the hopes that everyone else would figure it out before you actually told them.

"You ready, Ash?" you asked him, earning a bright smile and a cheerful nod. "Okay," you breathed out. You first held up two fingers, and Ashton quickly spoke up.

"Two words!" he chirped. You smiled, continuing on. You held up your index finger. "First word..." You pulled on your earlobe. "Sounds like..." You nodded again, beginning to mime as if you were in a box. "Okay, you're in a box," Ashton said. You motioned for him to elaborate. "It doesn't have to  _do_ with the box?" he questioned, making you shake your head and shrug lightly. "The box is irrelevant, everyone!" he announced, "Never mind!" The group laughed as you began a different motion. You started pulling on an invisible rope and pretending to walk down a flight of stairs and Ashton immediately gasped. " _Mime_!" he shouted, "You're a  _mime_!" Your eyes widened and you nodded rapidly, pulling on your ear again. "Okay," he breathed, "Sounds like ' _mime_ '... Time... Lime... Chime... Rhyme..." You pointed to yourself. "You're..." You scrunched your face up as you pulled your ear again, reminding him that it sounded like ' _mime_ '. " _Oh_!" he perked up, " _I'm_!" You smiled brightly with another rapid nod.

"This is harder than I  _thought_ it was gonna be," you blew little raspberries.

" _Hey_ , you're not supposed to be  _talking_!" Ashton pouted teasingly.

" _God_ , you're lucky you're  _cute_ ," you breathed a heavy sigh of relief, making everyone laugh again as you went on. You held up two fingers again.

"Second word now," Ashton said, earning another nod. You then held your arm up and tapped it with the same two fingers. "Two syllables," he gathered. You brought your arms up as if you were rocking a baby, hearing Ashton snort softly. "You're a baby, we know," he said, laughing as you rolled your eyes, "Okay, so it's a baby." You nodded but motioned for him to elaborate again. "I don't know what more I can do with that," Ashton shook his head. You looked around the room and it seemed like everyone was catching on to what you were trying to say, so you decided to end the round yourself.

You held your finger up, signalling for Ashton to stop talking. You then grabbed the bottom hem of the flannel of his you were wearing since it was two sizes too big for you and concealed your stomach. You lifted the fabric up and stood sideways, allowing everyone to see your new baby bump.

And everyone  _immediately_ started shouting.

"Are you  _serious_?!" Lauren squealed, jumping up from her seat.

" _No, you're not_!" Anne put her hands on the couch beside her thighs, " _Ashton_!  _No, she's not_!"

"I didn't grow this stomach for the  _hell_ of it," you told everyone with a smile.

Ashton's sister let out another short scream, jumping up and throwing her arms around your neck, and everyone else followed suit. Anne was the last to get up and hug you, finally finding the strength in her legs to stand up. She was  _already_ in tears by the time her arms were around you, making you smile again.

"Ash," you said as you hugged her back, "You owe me  _10 bucks_."

"What?" Harry laughed, looking at his older brother when he groaned loudly, "Why do you owe her money?"

"She bet me Mum was going to cry and I said she  _wouldn't_ ," Ashton answered.

"Come  _on_ , Ash!" Lauren laughed as well, "It's  _Mum_! She cries at  _everything_!"

"I do  _not_ ," Anne chuckled, pulling away from you and wiping her face, "Just  _most_ things."

~

A few hours later, when the party was over and everyone had gone home, you were standing in front of the back door of the house, looking at the houses' Christmas lights on the next street over. You grinned softly when you felt your husband come up behind you and wrap his arms around your waist, pressing a kiss to where your upper jaw met your neck.

"I'd say that went well," you smiled, turning in Ashton's arms and wrapping yours around his torso. His own arms wound around your shoulders instead, bringing you into him.

"About how I expected it to," he chuckled, kissing your forehead.

"Can't believe you thought your mom  _wasn't_ going to cry," you giggled.

"Been wrong about a lot of things, you know," he shook his head, moving one of his hands to cover your baby bump, " **But if I've done anything** _ **right**_ **in my life, I'm glad it was falling in love with** ** _you_** -" He pressed a kiss to your lips before kneeling down. "- _ **and you**_ ," he murmured, the skin over your belly button muffling the words he whispered to your unborn baby.

~

_prompt used from this list:_ _https://cloecox.tumblr.com/post/158361786195/promt-list_


	557. How to Save a Life (Ashton Irwin) *

**Warning: Mention of break-in, gunshot wound**

~

Working in one of the busiest hospitals in the city kept emergency room doctors like Ashton grounded every single minute he was on the job. He'd seen people die with loved ones at their side and with no one in sight. He'd delivered numerous babies that  _just couldn't wait_  for the OB/GYN to get there. He'd treated family members and friends who absolutely  _refused_  to trust anybody  _but him_.

And he was fine with all of it. He was fine with it because that was his job and it was incredibly challenging and rewarding and time-consuming,  _and he loved it_.

But if there was  _one thing_  Ashton loved  _more_  than the job, it was  _you_.

You two met when he was just starting working toward his medical license. His best friend Calum was your college roommate Mali's brother, so you and Ashton had grown quite accustomed with each other when the siblings invited you to their place for holidays and birthdays. You and Ashton went your separate ways after graduating from your respective schools, but you always made sure to stay in touch. So when he heard you were moving back to Sydney after a few years of being away and were looking for a roommate, he immediately offered you a room in his apartment.

Ashton lived in a relatively safe neighborhood – the worst crime that had ever happened there was once a few years ago when a dollar store was robbed after closing – so you felt confident in agreeing to live with him. It was close enough to your work so that you'd be able to walk – you  _hated_  driving in Sydney – and there was always  _something_  to do on the weekends. Living there made you feel  _at home_ ; It made you feel  _safe_...

Until one night, while Ashton was at work, it  _didn't_ anymore.

It was 1:48am – not even  _two hours_  into his shift – when Ashton's pager went off with an incoming patient. The message on the pager read ' _26YO F, GUNSHOT, CHEST_ ', and the doctor sprung up from his chair. He tossed his half-eaten sandwich into the trashcan as he bolted out of the room, opting for the stairs instead of the elevator, as he ran up to the trauma ward. He got there just in time to see the patient get wheeled in, not  _at all_  ready for  _who_ was lying on the gurney – not at all ready for  _you_ to be the one the page was about.

Ashton's shoes squeaked on the linoleum floor, his hand flying up to grab the door frame beside him in an attempt to keep himself from collapsing right then and there. Only one person looked away from you and toward the door, stepping toward Ashton.

"Ashton, go," Calum ordered, "Get out of here."

" _No_!" he practically shouted, shoving his best friend away from him, " _I need to_ -"

"You  _need_ to  _leave_ , Ashton," he shook his head, "You're not in the right  _mindset_  and if Y/N's gonna pull through this, she needs someone on their A-game, and that's  _not you_  right now." Ashton opened his mouth to protest again, but Calum ignored the motion. "Sara!" he called out, grabbing the attention of one of the paramedics who had brought you in before she left the room, "Take Ash to the break room!"

She immediately did as she was asked, putting her hand on Ashton's back and leading the disoriented doctor out of the trauma ward. No words were said between the two as they walked away from the chaos, but Sara knew words weren't  _coming_  to Ashton right now.

She sat Ashton down at the small table in the break room, grabbing him a bottle of water from the fridge. She almost had to  _forcibly_  give it to him  _herself_ , but he eventually took it – albeit with shaky hands – and took a sip on his own.

"Ash," the paramedic said gently, sitting in the chair across from him and putting her hand on his forearm so he'd look at her, "She's gonna be  _fine_ ; Calum's  _not_  gonna give up on her."

"What-" Ashton cleared his throat, but his words still came out strained. "-What happened to her?" Sara simply sighed softly. She was sure Calum wouldn't want him to know  _just yet_  – at least not until you were  _stable_  – but she  _also_  knew Ashton  _wasn't_ going to let her leave that room  _without answers_.

"She called 911 at 1:30 saying someone broke into your place," she replied honestly, "She did  _everything_ right – she stayed quiet and found a hiding spot and gave as much information as she could – but... Dispatch told us he heard three gunshots and that Y/N wasn't answering him after that..."

"Th- _Three_...?" he breathed out.

"It's not gonna make you feel any better, but we only found  _one_ entry wound on her," Sara shook her head, "I saw the other two in the wall behind her while we were putting her on the stretcher."

"Where...?" he cleared his throat in a desperate attempt to keep himself from breaking down in front of someone.

"Ashton, I don't think-"

" _Where'd she get shot, Sara_?" his voice cracked.

"Left lung," she answered truthfully, "Right next to her heart."

Ashton didn't say anything after that – he just put his elbows on the table and laid his face in his palms. Sara sat there with him in silence for a moment before sighing, figuring she should leave him alone. She stood up from her seat, patting Ashton on the shoulder just before walking out of the break room. 

And when the door closed behind her, Ashton finally let go.

~

**Your POV; Four days later**

You squinted your eyes as you blinked rapidly to get used to the light. You were confused for a moment as you looked around the room, wondering why you were in the hospital, before you remembered what happened. You tilted your head down toward your chest, looking at the bandage peeking out from underneath your gown, and finally noticing the hand holding yours beside your hip. Your eyes then met Ashton's as he breathed a deep sigh of relief.

"Hey, pretty girl," Ashton choked out, bringing your hand up to his mouth and kissing it, "How are you feeling?" You barely smiled at the nickname – you felt  _anything_  but pretty right now – and loosely held his hand.

"Tired," you whispered hoarsely, "And sore."

"I'll have Calum give you more pain meds," he promised you. He sighed slightly, moving his free hand to your face, pushing your hair out of your eyes. "You have no idea how scared I've been," he swallowed thickly, "I thought you were gonna die..."

"C'mon, Ash," you grinned again, "If I die, who's going to  _annoy you_  for the rest of your life?" Ashton couldn't help but chuckle no matter  _how_  badly he  _didn't want to_.

"You got  _shot_ , princess," he reminded you, "Think I'm  _allowed_  to be worried this  _one time_." You squeezed his hand affectionately.

"They catch the guy?" you asked.

"Yeah," he kissed your knuckles again, "They caught him hiding in someone's shed while you were in surgery."

"You didn't have to..."

"Even if I  _wanted_ to, they wouldn't have  _let me_ ," he admitted with another soft laugh, "Calum took over when he realized it was  _you_... Knew I wouldn't have been able to  _handle it_  if I couldn't sa-" Ashton cleared his throat again when his voice cracked, unable to finish his sentence.

You looked at him with a fond expression, moving your other hand up toward him. Your palm rested on his skin, your thumb running back and forth along his cheekbone. He leaned into your touch, happy you were still with him.

"You save me  _every day_ , Ash," you whispered, feeling him smile into your hand.

~

_inspiration: https://achoaticmess.tumblr.com/post/180891308985/fuck-maybe-for-the-hospital-au-dr-hood-getting_


	558. Prompt Blurb #4: Luke Hemmings

> prompt: "Are you impressed or what?"

~

"I don't remember ordering that," you mentioned as you sat down at your wedding reception, your  _husband_ sitting right beside you after pushing in your chair.

There were large curtains hanging from the ceiling in a box formation near the dance floor – something you  _definitely_ knew you didn't approve of while planning the wedding. Everything had gone off without a hitch so far, so this unknown change understandably worried you.

"I'm sure it's just the boys," Luke comforted you, "You know how they are."

"I  _do_ know how they are, which makes me even  _more_ worried," you snorted softly, only making him laugh.

"Well, hopefully we'll find out what it is soon enough."

~

After the speeches from Luke's best men, your maid of honor, and yours and his parents, you were finally let it on what the curtains were all about. The three men sitting on Luke's side stood up, making you look at them when you heard their chairs squeak on the hardwood floor.

"Hey, guys," Michael trotted over to you and your husband, "Come with me." He held his hand out to you as Luke stood up, pulling you up when you slowly gave him your hand.

"What are you up to, Clifford?" you cocked an eyebrow. Michael simply smiled at you, leading you and Luke to the dance floor in front of the curtains.

"It's time for your first dance,  _Mrs. Hemmings_ ," he chirped – and your heart fluttered at your new last name.

You stood there for a moment, the confusion on your face more obvious the longer you were there. You had no idea what was happening, but you also had no idea that Luke and his best men  _did_.

You watched Michael, Ashton, and Calum go behind the curtain and then you heard the beginning of  _Remembering Sunday_  by All Time Low – the song you and Luke had picked as your first dance – and you thought it was sweet that the boys were going to play it for you live instead of using the actual track like you'd originally planned.

You were swaying to the instrumental intro slightly as you held Luke's hand. You were understandably a bit confused as to why there was a curtain if the boys were singing, but you shrugged it off, figuring they were planning something silly before  _actually_ letting you and Luke have the first dance.

But  _boy_ , were you wrong.

The moment a voice that wasn't any of the three boys came through a microphone, the curtain dropped, along with your jaw. Your eyes widened as you stared at All Time Low, your hands flying up to cover your face. You turned into Luke – who had the  _biggest_ smile on his face – and he kissed the side of your forehead.

Luke took your hands away from your face and brought them over to wrap around his neck. He then moved his own hand to your hips, squeezing them lovingly before sliding them around your back. Your forehead immediately found his shoulder, burying your face into it as you were tearing up.

" **Are you impressed or _what_?**" Luke beamed even though he  _clearly_ already had the answer.

"Can't you ever just do a  _small_ surprise?" you sniffled, making him chuckle under his breath. He shook his shoulder gently to make you look up at him, pressing his lips to yours for a quick kiss.

"It's a big day," he shook his head, "Can't do  _small_ surprises on a  _big_ day." You smiled as he brought one of his arms up to wipe your tears.

"You're the  _worst_ ," you told him, "I love you."

~

_inspiration:_ _https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=09R8_2nJtjg_ _  
_

_have i written that christmas imagine yet??? of course not. have yall fuckin met me, hi my name is danielle and i'm the actual worst_

_prompt used from this list:_ _https://hellyeahrpmemes.tumblr.com/post/167539853447/more-jenna-marbles-sentence-starters-sentences_


	559. Holiday Cheer (Calum Hood) - Part 1

_i'm posting this now so maybe it will motivate me to finish the rest of it lmao_

~

" _Honey_ , I'm  _home_!" you called out as you opened the front door, lugging your bag with you.

" _Sweetheart_!" your mom barreled out of the kitchen, nearly tackling you to the ground with a hug.

"I've missed you too, Mom," you laughed as you caught your footing. You pulled your suitcase through the door and closed it, shivering slightly. "Don't know why I chose to get here in the  _morning_ ," you mentioned as your mom finally released you.

"Well, it's not supposed to  _get_ much warmer today," she chuckled, "Might as well rip the bandaid off."

"Right," you smiled, rolling your eyes and shaking your head fondly, "So is Dyl up yet?"

"Present and accounted for," your younger brother trotted down the stairs, "Been awake for 10 minutes." You looked at the clock and sucked in a breath.

"Ooh, on  _Christmas break_  and everything," you said, "Who are you and what have you done with my  _real_ brother?"

"I kidnapped him in the night and locked him in a dark, desolate dungeon where you'll  _never_ find him!" he announced dramatically. You both finally broke character and laughed loudly.

"Good to see you, kid," you wrapped your arms around him while he hugged you back.

"Glad you  _finally_ made time for come home for the holidays," Dylan replied, "Feels like you never stop by anymore."

"If I could make the drive from NYC, I'd be here every weekend," you assured him.

"I  _suppose_ that will have to suffice then," he shook his head, both of you laughing again along with your mom.

"It's so good to have  _both_ of my kids in the same house for Christmas again!" she sighed giddily, "It feels like  _forever_ since we all got to enjoy the town's festivities as a  _whole_ family!"

"Well, I'm excited to be back!" you beamed, "I can't  _wait_ for the snowman-building competition! Dyl and I are gonna  _crush it_  this year! Right, kid?"

"Um..." Dylan furrowed his eyebrows, "I kind of...already...promised someone  _else_ I'd be their partner..."

" _What_?" you frowned, "But we  _always_ do it together when I'm here!"

"I know... But Avery's cousin will be out of town for Christmas this year and she asked me to be her partner..."

"Is this the  _same_ Avery I seem to recall hearing you invited to  _Thanksgiving_ last month?" you cocked an eyebrow, a knowing smirk on your face.

" _Mom_!" he whined – signalling to you that he apparently  _didn't_ want you to know.

"I didn't know it was a  _secret_!" your mom threw her hands up in defense.

You talked with your family for a little while before a knock at the door interrupted you. Your mom hummed at the sound, making you look at her, finding she seemed surprised.

"I wasn't expecting anyone else today," she mentioned.

"I'll get it!" you insisted, "Maybe it's Holly! I told her what time I'd be getting here!"

"Oh, I'll make some more hot chocolate then!" your mom smiled, "I have to ask her how finding a publisher is coming along!"

"She finally finish her book?" you asked.

"Oh, yes! It's so good, dear! I'll give you the rough copy she gave me and you can read it!" she chirped, heading back into the kitchen with your brother to get started on the drinks.

Meanwhile, you trotted to the front door. You expected to see your childhood best friend on the other side, but that definitely wasn't the case.

" _Mr. Hood_?" your eyes widened at the sight of your boss, "What... What are  _you_ doing here?"

"Freezing my  _ass_ off, apparently," Calum rolled his eyes.

"Right..." you cleared your throat, moving out of the way, "Uh... Come in..." Calum walked past you, and you noticed he was carrying a decently-sized box with him. "I don't mean to be rude, Mr. Hood, but... Why are you  _here_...?" you asked.

"It only occurred to me after you'd left the office yesterday evening that I have some manuscripts I need you to look at before you return in the new year," he informed you, setting the box down behind the living room couch. You leaned down to open the box, yours eyes widening again at how  _full_ it was.

"You're giving me  _two weeks_  to read all of these?" you cocked an eyebrow, "And this falls onto me  _because_...?"

"You're our newest employee," he replied, "Everyone has to start somewhere."

"And  _I'm_ starting in  _Paper Cut City_ ," you grumbled to yourself.

"Now that that's out of the way-" Calum brushed off his hands. "-does this... _town_...have any nice hotels I would be able to stay at?" He looked at you quizzically when you snorted.

"Define ' _nice_ '," you said, making him raise an eyebrow.

"5 stars."

"You'll be lucky if you can find a  _2-star_  one around here," you snorted again, "Why do you need a  _hotel_?"

"The  _ungodly_ temperatures have caused my  _helicopter_ to overheat and the engine blew," he laughed dryly, "I won't be leaving until my pilot is able to find a new engine."

"Well... We don't have any 5-star places around here, but... Uh... You can stay  _here_...if you need to..." you trailed off. You had  _no idea_  why you were offering to let your boss – a man who was arguably a  _classic Scrooge_  this time of year – stay with you.

" _Here_?" he asked, skeptically around the inside of your home.

"You could stay with Mrs. Hanson across the street, but I can't promise that would be any  _more_ of a pleasant experience," you mentioned.

"Why's that?"

"She's not exactly going around, spreading around holiday cheer," you quirked an eyebrow, "She doesn't like to join the town in our Christmas traditions even though she'd lived here her whole life."

"Someone who keeps to themselves, doesn't meddle in other people's business, and stays away from ' _holiday cheer_ '?" Calum questioned, "What are you talking about? She sounds  _lovely_."

" _Come on_!" you rolled your eyes, " _Everyone_ enjoys a little holiday cheer! Especially even just having  _some_ kind of tradition!"

"I wouldn't go  _that_ far, Miss Y/L/N," he deadpanned.

"You don't have  _anything_ you do for the holidays?" you raised your eyebrows, the shock in your tone obvious.

"No," he rolled his own eyes that time. You stared at him for a moment before a small smile pulled at the corner of your mouth.

"Well, you do  _now_!" you chirped.

"I'm sorry?" he cocked an eyebrow.

"I'm gonna make you a deal," you stated, "I'll read all these-" You motioned to the box beside you. "-by the new year, but  _you_ have to join the town in our holiday festivities!"

"Miss Y/L/N, I don't-"

"It'll be fun! I  _know_ you'll love it!" Calum looked at you for a moment before sighing.

"Very well," he caved, "If it will get these manuscripts read, fine." You clapped happily.

"You're gonna have the best Christmas  _ever_!" you assured him, "Now come on! I should probably show you around and introduce you to my mom and brother!"

~

**Later that evening**

"Come in!" you called out after the knock on your front door. You, Calum, your mom, and Dylan looked over to see who was there. " _Holly_!" you squealed loudly, springing up from your seat to rush to her and bring her into a hug.

"Y/N! Welcome home!" she hugged you back, smiling about as widely as you were, "I've missed seeing your beautiful face around here!"

"I seem to remember all the boys in high school going after  _your_ beautiful face instead of  _mine_ ," you laughed, releasing her and ushering her into the living room where everyone was. "Holl, this is my boss Calum Hood and his pilot Charles," you introduced them, leading Holly over to sit beside you on the couch, "Their helicopter broke down and they're spending Christmas with us until it can be fixed."

"It's nice to meet you both!" Holly smiled politely, "I hope you're excited for all the fun things we have going on this year!"

"Oh, I  _definitely_ am!" Charles grinned back, "I haven't been to a  _proper_ Christmas celebration since I was in  _college_!" Calum simply grumbled into his mug of hot chocolate, not addressing Holly directly.

"I'm glad you could come over, Holl. I know how busy you are this time of year."

"A teacher's job is never done," she chuckled, "Especially when the kids and I have a Christmas program to get ready for."

"You still have the program on the school lawn? When is it?"

"Yes! It's tomorrow!" she grinned excitedly, "You're coming, aren't you?"

"I wouldn't  _miss it_!" you assured her.

"Awesome! The kids will be  _so_ happy to see you!" she said, "Cindy and Jack haven't stopped asking about you since they heard your mom tell their parents you were coming home for Christmas." Holly looked down at the watch on her wrist, sucking in a sharp breath. "And speaking of the program, I still have some last-minute stuff to do," she mentioned, "It was really nice to see you all again, and to meet you both-" She looked at Calum and Charles. "-I'm sorry I wasn't able to stay longer."

"It's okay, Holl," you promised, "Do you want some hot chocolate for the walk home?"

"That sounds perfect, thank you," she smiled, and you got up with her to grab her one of the to-go cups your mom used.

After Holly left, you all continued talking for a while before your mom, Dylan, and Charles decided to head to bed. Charles took your brother's room while he took yours, Calum would stay in the guest, and you would just sleep in your mom's bed with her. But while those three were going to sleep, you and your boss were working on getting through some manuscripts before turning in for the night yourselves.

At some point, your mother must have slipped the manuscript for Holly's book onto the pile while you weren't looking because, when you looked at the box, you noticed a new set of papers on top. You went to grab the manuscript, but Calum beat you to it.

"Holly Wright," he read the name on the front cover, "Is this your friend that visited this evening?"

"Yes..." you trailed off, unsure of where this was going.

"And I'm assuming you're going to be trying to convince me to  _publish it_?"

"I haven't even  _read it_  yet," you cocked an eyebrow.

"I should read it first then. And I'll consider listening to your biased opinion  _later_."

"My opinion isn't  _biased_ ," you rolled your eyes, " _Friends_ are perfectly capable of writing something I don't like  _too_."

"We'll see about that, Miss Y/L/N," he stated, informing you he was done talking about the subject.

~

About an hour later, Calum stood up from the couch. You looked up from the manuscript you'd been working on, watching him as he came over to you.

"You finished it  _already_?" you asked in surprise.

"It's all yours," he said, not  _really_ answered the question.

"What did you think of it? Is it good?"

"Goodnight, Miss Y/L/N," he shrugged you off. You huffed to yourself when you heard the guest room door close. 

You marked your place in the manuscript on your lap before shutting it and replacing it with Holly's. You yawned slightly but powered through the sleepiness, wanting to read the book before you saw her at the kids' Christmas program.

And even though it took you  _three times_  as long to finish it than it had Calum, and even though you fell asleep right there on the couch when you were done, you  _really_ loved it.

All you had to do now was convince  _Calum_ to agree.

~

_i don't want to talk about the title_

_inspiration: "Home For the Holidays" on the Choices app_


	560. Holiday Cheer (Calum Hood) - Part 2

**Four hours later**

"Sweetheart," you woke up to your mom's voice as she shook you gently, "Wake up. I made breakfast." You grumbled sleepily, rubbing your eyes before opening them, finally realizing you were still in the living room. "You must have been  _pretty_ into your reading, dear," your mom chuckled, "You  _never_ fall asleep on the couch."

You gave her a lighthearted laugh, "Yeah, I guess so..."

"Come eat," she patted your leg before standing up, "We've got to leave for the school's program in an hour."

~

After breakfast, you got yourself dressed and ready to head out with everyone to the elementary school. As you were walking, you noticed Calum was trailing behind everyone. You decided to fall back as well, slowing down for him to catch up and then walking alongside him.

"Beautiful day, isn't it?" you attempted to start a conversation, but Calum only huffed lightly.

"If by ' _beautiful_ ', you mean ' _freezing_ ', I suppose," he said, his hands shoved into his coat pockets.

"It would still be cold back in  _New York_ , Mr. Hood," you reminded him.

"Y/N, I'm sleeping in your  _childhood bedroom_  for the next week," he shook his head, "I think we're  _past_ the pleasantries at this point."

"Right..." you nodded, " _Calum_ then... Aren't you  _used_ to the cold weather by now?"

"I fly to Bali for winter break," he told you, "I prefer  _not_ to be somewhere cold."

"So you've never had a white Christmas?" you frowned.

"I don't celebrate Christmas  _at all_."

" _What_?!" you squeaked, " _Why not_?!"

"It's a fruitless endeavor," he rolled his eyes, "I mean, doing things like going to see a  _school_ program when no one in your family is  _in_ school? What's the  _point_?"

"The kids do it for the whole town," you insisted, "They want people to get into the Christmas spirit!"

"Seems like  _overkill_ to me."

"Fine –  _don't_ enjoy it," you sighed, "But if a kid comes up to you and tells you ' _Merry Christmas_ ', you'd better pretend you're having the  _best_ time of your life."

~

Once you arrived at the school, you immediately spotted Holly making sure the makeshift stage's decorations looked perfect. She was alone, so you figured it would be the perfect opportunity to talk to her about her book.

"Holly!" you chirped, making her look up.

"Y/N! I'm glad you could come!" she gave you a quick hug before returning to what she was doing.

"I  _told you_  I would," you laughed, "But I just wanted to talk to you about something."

"Hit me with it," she said.

"Well, I read the manuscript for your book last night-"

"Oh, no," she cut you off with wide eyes, "Did you like it? You  _didn't_ , did you? You're here to tell me I don't have a chance?"

" _Holly_!" you laughed loudly, putting your hands on her shoulders so she'd stop and look at you, "I  _love_ it!"

" _You do_?" she breathed out, "You're not just  _saying that_ , are you?"

" _No way_!" you promised, "I couldn't put it  _down_! I fell asleep on the  _couch_ when I was done reading it! It's so  _incredibly_ well-written; You'll get it published in  _no time_!"

"Really? You mean that?"

"Of  _course_ I do, Holl," you nodded, "You'll be a world-renowned author before people even know what hit them!"

"Well, I don't know about  _that_ ," she giggled, "But thank you. It means a lot coming from  _you_."

"How about you talk to my boss about it?" you suggested, "He read it before I did. I'm sure he wants to publish it as soon as possible!"

"Are... Are you  _sure_...?" she began chewing on her inner cheek, "I don't want to bother him..."

"Yes! Now  _come on_!" you insisted.

You grabbed Holly's hand and brought her over to where Calum was sulking by himself, looking around the school property. When he heard footsteps approaching him, he turned around. He cocked an eyebrow at the two of you, but you didn't think anything of it.

"Hey, Calum," you stopped in front of him, "You remember Holly, right? She came to visit yesterday."

"Your childhood friend, yes?" he wondered.

"Yup! We actually wanted to talk to you about her book."

"This is the same Holly who wrote that manuscript you were reading after I went to bed?"

"Yeah," you confirmed, "She's hoping to find a publisher to work with, and was wondering what you thought of it." Holly stood there, nervously rocking back and forth on her feet, as Calum looked at her skeptically.

"I thought it was passable for a  _fan fiction_  of a book," Calum stated his honest opinion. She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion while you just stood there stunned – you were  _not_ expecting that.

"What...?" Holly asked slowly, not  _exactly_ sure what he meant.

"Miss Wright, if I  _wanted_ to read  _yet another_  Nicholas Sparks novel, I'd go to a bookstore and pick one of the many  _shelves_ of sappy and poorly-executed story lines  _myself_."

"Poorly..." she trailed off, "You think my story is  _poorly-executed_...?"

"Calum,  _what_ are you  _doing_?" you glared at him.

"I'm offering constructive criticism," he told you, "If Miss Wright can't handle  _one_ person critiquing her work, how is she supposed to survive in the  _industry_? After skimming through the first chapter-"

"You didn't even  _read it_?" you huffed.

Upon hearing that Calum had only ever  _glanced over_  the first few pages of the book and not given it a  _proper_ chance, Holly let out a sharp breath. Your head snapped over to her just in time for her to excuse herself and hurry off into the school where the kids were preparing for the program. And you were sure you'd never been so disgusted with someone in your  _life_.

"What's your  _problem_?" you narrowed your eyes at Calum. He looked at you in surprise.

"Y/N, I-" You cut him off.

"You promised you'd  _try_ to have fun! Just because  _you're_ miserable doesn't mean everyone  _else_ has to be!" you spat before chasing after your friend.

You followed the sounds of the elementary-school kids' chatter, finding them all in the gym. They were all excitedly bouncing up and down, eager to show their parents and everyone else in the town what they'd been working on for the last two months.

" _Y/N_!" you heard two voices squeal.

You braced yourself just in time to be tackled by Cindy – a girl you babysat from the day she was born up until the day you left for New York City – while her younger brother Jack wasn't far behind. The two kids each grabbed one of your legs, hugging it tightly.

"Hey, guys!" you laughed at their antics, ruffling their hair playfully, "How are you? Are you excited for the program?"

"Even  _more_ excited 'cause  _you're_ finally home to watch it!" Jack beamed, "Miss Jacobs picked  _me_ to be Rudolph this year!"

"And  _I_ get to be Santa!" Cindy giggled – she'd always wanted to dress up with that fake beard and now she was  _finally_ getting to do it.

"Wow, I'm so  _proud_ of you two!" you smiled, "You should get back to Miss Jacobs; I'm sure you have some more to do before the program."

"Bye, Y/N!" they chirped in unison before skipping away, leaving you to return to your hunt for Holly.

When you finally found her, she was standing over by the costumes. She was rifling through them, but you could tell she wasn't really  _looking_ at anything. You could hear her sniffling as you timidly approached her.

"Holl..." you murmured, "You okay...?"

"Hmm?" she cleared her throat, turning around to look at you, "Oh, yes, I'm fine! Just got a lot to do before we go outside!"

"Holly," you sighed, "When are you gonna stop lying to me?"

"When I think it won't work  _first_ ," she mumbled.

"It's okay to be upset," you assured her, "He's being an  _asshole_."

"It's okay, really," she sighed herself, "He's right; I should be able to handle critics."

"Critics are people who actually give your book a  _fair shot_  – not money-hungry  _douchebags_ who are only concerned with beating the sales of  _The New York Times'_  Best Sellers."

"I just... I thought this could be my  _big break_ , you know...? I thought... When you told me your boss read my book, I thought I'd finally get it  _published_... But he doesn't even want to give it a  _chance_..."

" _Screw him then_!" you squeaked, earning a look of surprise from Holly, "We don't need  _him_ to publish your book! I started working for a publisher because I want to sign people I believe in, and I'll publish your book  _by myself_  if I have to!"

Holly finally laughed softly, "Thanks, Y/N." She hugged you tightly. She pulled away and chuckled again, "I really  _do_ have a lot to do before the program though."

"Need help?" you offered.

"Nah – it's nothing I can't do on my own," she promised, "You go back outside and visit with everyone you haven't seen since you got home."

"Alright," you shrugged, "Good luck!"

~

**Three hours later**

You and Calum were the only ones in your house – Charles went with your mom to help her do some grocery shopping and Dylan was at a friend's house – and you, to be honest, were anything but thrilled. Since what happened with Holly before the kids' performance, you obviously hadn't spoken to – or even  _looked at_  – him unless you absolutely  _had_ to. The air around you was thick with tension as you both sat in the living room reading, but it didn't remain that way for long.

"Miss Y/L/N," Calum said, grabbing your attention from the manuscript on your lap, "I took some time to think about your outburst regarding Miss Wright, and I accept your apology." You looked at him incredulously for a moment before rolling your eyes.

"What a  _kind_ response to a sentiment you  _aren't_ getting," you deadpanned.

" _What_?" he furrowed his eyebrows.

"I  _didn't_ apologize,  _Mr. Hood_ ," you reminded him, "And I don't  _intend to_  either."

"And why, exactly, is  _that_?" he returned. The question was clearly rhetorical – you knew he didn't  _actually_ care why you weren't apologizing – but you gave him an answer anyway.

"I don't say things I don't believe to be  _true_ ," you challenged him, "And whether you like it or not, I'm not the  _only_ one who thinks you're projecting your own  _sad life_  onto others. The fact of the matter is we had a  _deal_ , and if you're not going to keep up your end of it, then you can sit around here by yourself for the next two weeks and wallow in your self pity while I actually  _enjoy_ spending time with people I care about whether that  _includes you_  or not." You then got up and strode out of the room, signaling to Calum that the conversation was over.

~

_inspiration: "Home For the Holidays" on the Choices app_


	561. Holiday Cheer (Calum Hood) - Part 3

**The next day**

It had been nearly 24 hours since you'd last spoken to – or even  _looked at_  – your boss. You were still incredibly upset with him – not  _just_ for what he'd done to Holly but for the fact that he was so convinced  _you_ should apologize to  _him_ for being mad about it.

But you still kept your word about the deal.

You were sitting in the living room – you on the couch and Calum on an adjacent chair. You were both reading your manuscripts, the only sounds being when one of you would occasionally sip the hot chocolates your mom insisted she make for you.

"I wasn't  _always_ like this, you know," you heard Calum murmur. You looked up from the manuscript on your lap, cocking an eyebrow at him. "I wasn't  _always_ like this," he repeated despite not having looked up himself, feeling you stare at him, "I actually used to  _enjoy_ Christmas."

" _You enjoyed Christmas_?" you asked, "Then what  _changed_?"

"My ex-wife left me two years ago," he replied just as quietly, "Packed her stuff and left before I woke up Christmas morning." You were speechless for a moment, prompting him to meet your gaze.

"That still doesn't give you the right to treat everyone else like  _shit_ ," you shook your head, surprising him, "We've all dealt with terrible people, but you don't see  _me_ walking around telling everyone their holiday traditions and the things that make them happy are  _pointless_."

"I don't think they're  _pointless_..."

"No, you just think they're a  _waste of time_ ," you stated, "You think we do  _too much_  around here just for it to all  _taken down and forgotten about_  after New Year's Day."

"Y/N, I  _never_ said-"

"I  _meant_ what I said last night about you staying here while I enjoy my holidays at home," you reminded him, "And maybe our deal was that I would read all these-" You motioned to the manuscript you were holding. "-by the time I came back to work if you actually tried to enjoy being here. I'll still hold up to my end of the deal, but I don't care if  _you_ do anymore; I don't  _care_ if you participate." Calum stared blankly at you for a moment before narrowing his eyes.

"Do you understand that I could-"

" _Fire me_? Go ahead," you challenged, "But that doesn't change the fact that you  _know_ I'm right."

~

**Later that night**

"Honey!" your mom called down the hallway, "We're going to be late if you don't hurry!"

"I'm coming, I'm coming," you insisted, walking out of your bedroom as you pulled a beanie onto your head.

"Dear," she then addressed Calum, who looked up at her from where he was still sitting on the chair in the living room, "Are you  _sure_ you don't want me to make you something to eat while we're out?"

"I'll be fine, Ms. Y/L/N," he nodded reassuringly.

"Well... Alright," she caved, "But if you need anything, you have Y/N's number." Calum noticed you roll your eyes before walking to the door and heading outside with your mom, brother, and Charles following not far behind, audibly sighing to himself when the door closed behind them.

~

" _Y/N_!" Cindy cheered when she saw your family approaching the town square, "Come here! You  _have_ to see this!" She grabbed your hand and started pulling on you, making you laugh.

"What am I seeing, Cindy?" you asked, letting her lead you to wherever she was going.

"Me and Jack built the best snow-thing  _ever_!"

"Snow- _thing_?" you wondered.

" _Yes_!" Jack announced when you made it to him, "We present to you...  _Snow Cat_!" He moved to the side, allowing you to see the animal they'd created out of snow.

"Impressive," you nodded, "How long did this take?"

"Longer than it  _should have_ ," Cindy huffed, "There were some... _creative differences_. Jack didn't want to add  _any_ of the things I did!"

"Because all of them were  _dumb_!" Jack stuck his tongue out at her.

"It looks  _great_ either way, Cindy," you promised her, "And you know brothers are  _supposed_ to be annoying."

" _Hey_!" Jack pouted while Cindy laughed loudly. You teasingly ruffled his hair.

"Come on, you two," you told them, "Let's get back to the tree before they light it up without us." The siblings raced back to the square while you simply walked.

When you turned the corner and everyone came into view, you were surprised to see Calum now standing with your family. You stopped just short of them, causing them to look up when your boots crunched the snow underneath them.

"Hey, sweetheart," your mom smiled, "What did the kids want to show you?"

"Their snow-cat," you replied, glancing back at Calum.

" _Snow-cat_?" Charles questioned.

"It's actually pretty cute," you shrugged, "I'll have them show it to you before we head back home later if you want."

"We'll go see it right now!" your mom said, her own gaze flicking between you and your boss, "You were only gone a couple minutes, and the tree-lighting doesn't start for another 5! Come on, boys!" She quickly put both of her hands on Charles and Dylan's backs and led them away to find Jack and Cindy, leaving you with Calum.

You found yourself sighing, not even realizing Calum had heard it. He shifted uncomfortably on his feet before finally gaining to courage to speak.

"I'm sorry for...you know..." he cleared his throat – apologizing was something Calum  _didn't_ like to do, "I shouldn't treat  _others_ poorly due to  _my_ bad experiences, and... I'm sorry..." You opened and closed your mouth a couple times, not immediately too sure what to say.

"What are you doing here?" you decided to ask him softly.

"Apologizing, mostly," he admitted, "But... Though I'm not too keen on Christmas, I really  _do_ enjoy looking at all the lights back in the city... Figured I'd see if they're any  _better_ in a small town."

"They're  _way_ better," you informed him. Calum was about to respond, but the Mayor speaking made him stop, simply smiling at you instead.

"Are we all ready for the tree-lighting ceremony?" Mayor Santos asked, obviously earning a resounding 'yes' from everyone. "Excellent!" he smiled, "The kids have prepared a special song that they're going to sing to get us in the spirit!"

The kids did exactly that – singing  _The 12 Days of Christmas_  – before Mayor Santos spoke again. He gave a small speech, and then everyone began counting down. You bounced on your feet as you joined them – the town's tree-lighting was always your favorite growing up, and you were  _more_ than happy that you were finally back home to be part of it again.

When the crowd shouted out ' _3... 2... 1!_ ', the giant tree's lights lit up the night around you. You clapped giddily along with those cheering and the kids yelling, not even noticing the man beside you wasn't even looking at the  _tree_ anymore.

Calum  _tried_ to focus on the town's excitement –  _really, he did_  – but he kept getting distracted. The way the Christmas lights shined in your eyes as you stared at them in awe... He wasn't sure any one person could  _get_ more beautiful.

"Isn't it  _gorgeous_?" you whispered, more to yourself than to him.

"Yeah," he mumbled in response anyway, "Yeah, it is."

~

_inspiration: “Home For the Holidays” on the Choices app_


	562. Holiday Cheer (Calum Hood) - Part 4

**The next morning**

"Good morning, everyone!" Calum chirped as he walked into the kitchen. Everyone was already gathered at the table for breakfast, just waiting for him.

"Oh my God, he's smiling," you said, your eyes wide as he sat down in the chair beside yours, "Everyone else is seeing this, right? Tell me I'm not dreaming." The group chuckled while Calum rolled his eyes.

"You know, I  _do_ actually smile from time to time," he reminded you, trying to keep himself from grinning at your antics.

"This is the greatest day of my young life," you placed your hand over your heart.

"And the day's only just  _started_ ," Dylan shook his head, "It's a new record."

~

After breakfast, you and Calum broke away from the group to get some manuscripts read. It was quiet for the most part – other than the occasional ' _have you read this one yet?_ ' or ' _do you want something to drink?_ ', neither of you spoke.

You could sense Calum glancing up from his reading every once in a while to look at you, but you didn't respond. You didn't know what was up with him, but if he had something on his mind, you figured you'd just let him come to you rather than trying to pry it out of him.

And apparently, deciding to take a step back  _worked_ with him.

"You haven't mentioned Miss Wright's book in a few days," Calum said randomly, surprising you a bit –  _ **that's** what's been on his mind all morning?_

"No use in suggesting ideas I  _know_ are going to get shot down, is there?" you shrugged, not even looking at him.

"I've never  _shot down_  your suggestions," he shook his head.

"No, you just read one paragraph and call it a day."

"Y/N, come on," he sighed, "I said I was sorry."

"You tell  _Holly_ you were sorry?"

"I haven't  _seen_ Holly since that day."

"Maybe you should make the effort to  _look for her_  then."

~

**Later that evening**

After sunset, you decided to take a walk around the neighborhood to see all the Christmas lights. Your mom offered to go with you, but you assured her that you'd be fine alone. 

Though, you weren't even alone for that long. You'd been out of your house for all of 5 minutes when a voice coming from behind you made you turn to look over your shoulder.

"Hey, Y/N!" Holly hurried to you, slowing her pace to match yours when she finally caught up.

"Hey, Holl!" you greeted her with a smile, "What's up?"

"Have you been talking to your boss about me?" she asked.

"Here and there," you admitted with a shrug, "Why?"

"I was at Stacey's when he came in today," she informed you, "Said he saw me sitting by the window and came into the diner to talk to me." You furrowed your eyebrows, allowing her to see the confused look on your face. "You know, I'll be honest, I didn't expect  _him_ to be the kind of person to  _apologize_ ," she said, "But he said he came in to tell me he was sorry for the way he treated me and my book."

"Wow..." you trailed off, not really too sure what else to say.

"So... Does this mean he's giving the book a chance...?" she asked shyly. You chewed on your bottom lip for a moment.

"I don't think he's even picked it up since the day all that went down," you answered honestly, "He just knows I'm mad at him for how shitty he was to you."

"Well, I'll admit it's a little disappointing to hear that," she nodded, "But thank you. It means a lot that you still care that much about my feelings after all these years."

"I'll always care about you  _and_ your feelings, Holl," you grinned, wrapping your arm around her waist for a side hug.

"Thanks," she laughed. You and Holly talked for a while longer before she had to head back home, leaving you alone again.

You spent the next 10 or so minutes admiring your neighborhood's decorations when you were approached again. This time, however, it was by someone you hadn't necessarily  _expected_ to see.

"In the mood for someone to join you?" Calum asked as he came up beside you. You cocked an eyebrow as you looked at him.

"Are you  _offering_ to do something Christmas related with me?" you returned, "Who  _are you_  anymore?"

Calum simply smiled at you, "It was either this, or go around singing Christmas carols with your mother."

"Fair enough," you nodded, "Even  _I'm_ not too big a fan of caroling."

" _You_?" he gasped obnoxiously, "The  _Queen_ of Christmas?" You rolled your eyes but didn't say anything, deciding to change the subject instead.

"I ran into Holly a little while ago," you told him, "She said you apologized."

"Figured I should," he put his hands in his coat pockets and looked down at the sidewalk in front of him, "As terrible as it sounds, apologizing to her hadn't even crossed my mind until you brought it up."

"Might be terrible," you shrugged, "But at least you  _did it_." Calum hummed in response, and it was silent between the two of you for a moment.

"You know, all these decorations are kinda  _nice_ ," he said.

"Haven't you ever decorated for Christmas before?" you asked.

"Not since I was a  _kid_ ," he shrugged himself, "After I moved to the city, I never lived anywhere that really went all out for the holidays the way everyone here does."

"Not even when you were...you know... _married_?" you replied carefully.

"She was never much of a decorator," he told you, "And I never really cared for decorations much  _myself_ anyway, so we never did. But the ones around here are nice."

"Are you saying all this ' _holiday cheer_ ' is finally rubbing off on you?" you cocked an eyebrow, a small smirk on your face.

"Well, I don't know about  _that_ ," Calum shook his head.

"Nope! I think I've finally worn you down," you smiled, not even noticing that it made him do the same.

~

_inspiration: "Home For the Holidays" on the Choices app_


	563. Holiday Cheer (Calum Hood) - Part 5

_this part is really long im sorry_

~

**Two days later; Christmas Day**

" _Merry Christmas_!" your mom shouted happily, her arms thrown into the air as she strode into the living room. Calum and Charles chuckled softly while you and your brother rolled your eyes.

"Merry Christmas, Mom," Dylan laughed. She walked over to him, leaning down and hugging him tightly.

"I just  _love_ Christmas!"

" _We know_ , Mom," you shook your head, a small smile on your face when she moved to hug you as well.

The group exchanged Christmas gifts – you, Dylan, and your mom giving each other the gifts you'd gotten, and she and Charles had even gotten each other something as well. While they were in the midst of their gift exchange, Calum had gotten up to refill his coffee mug. And you figured it was the perfect opportunity to give him the gift you'd gotten him.

"Hey, Cal," you said softly, making him look over his shoulder, "I, um... I got you something..."

"You  _did_?" he furrowed his eyebrows. You pulled the wrapped gift out from behind your back, holding it out to him.

He stared at you before slowly taking it to unwrap. You noticed his eyes widen slightly when he saw what you'd gotten him – it was a simple leather-bound notebook that you'd happened to see while walking by a store one day, and you knew you  _had_ to get it for him. Calum was always carrying around a small notebook, and while you didn't know what he ever wrote in it, you figured he was  _close to_  or either  _already had_  filled it by now.

"Wow, I..." Calum trailed off, "I feel bad I didn't get  _you_ anything..."

"It's okay, Cal," you shook your head, "I didn't get you something to be given anything in return; I got you something because it made me think of you and I thought you'd like it."

"I  _do_ ," he admitted, running his thumb along the edges of the cover, "It's a beautiful gift. Thank you."

He surprised you by leaning in and pressing his lips to your cheek, pulling away just as quickly. He had a shy smile on his face – like he was even surprised with  _himself_ that he'd kissed you – but he wasn't going to pretend he didn't notice your blush.

"You're welcome..." you managed to force yourself to whisper. Calum watched you while you stared down at your feet before finally looking back up. "Well, I... I should..." you trailed off, quickly turning on your heels and shuffling back to the living room. He smiled again to himself, admiring the new notebook in his hands.

~

**Later that evening**

"Mom?" you called out, a nervous tone in your voice, "You're  _sure_ this isn't too much?"

The sound of your heels on the hardwood made the group fall silent. You emerged from the hallway where everyone was standing around the front door, waiting to head out to the town's annual Christmas party.

You were wearing a dark red gown with a slit on the right side that went up to your mid-thigh. The front had a deep V that met in the middle of your chest, and the back was almost completely open aside from the straps that crisscrossed each other to help keep everything in place. You paired it with black velvet heels and wore your hair down in loose curls. You wouldn't be the last to admit that you looked good – you were just worried it was a bit over-the-top for the small town gathering.

"Of course not, honey!" your mom beamed, "You look incredible!"

"If I didn't already have such a beautiful date, I'd have taken you  _myself_ ," Charles said, glancing at your mom with a smile. The blush on her cheeks made you grin as well.

"Trying to show all those guys from school what they're missing out on or what?" Dylan asked.

"No, but if I do, it's a bonus," you teased, then admired his navy blue suit, "How about you, kid? You clean up nice. Dressing up for someone  _special_?"

"As a matter of fact, I  _am_ ," he said confidently, "I finally worked up the courage to ask Avery to be my date."

"Impressive," you nodded, "I really didn't think you were gonna do it." You reached over to ruffle his hair playfully, but fixed it for him right after. "She's a lucky girl, kid," you told him, making him smile.

"Thanks, sis," he replied.

You then found yourself looking at Calum, who hadn't stopped staring at you since the moment you walked into the room. He wasn't being shy about letting his eyes scan up and down your body. He must have realized he was staring, though, because he suddenly snapped himself out of it.

"I-" Calum cleared his throat, "You look gorgeous..." You felt your face get hot almost immediately.

"Thank you," you said softly, shyly looking down at the floor.

"Are we all ready to go?" your mom smiled at the two of you. The group nodded and you were all heading out the door.

~

When you arrived at the elementary school, the Christmas party was in full-swing. The gymnasium was decorated so beautifully that if you didn't know it was a school gym, you would assume it was the ballroom of some fancy, upscale hotel.

Though it was a Christmas party, the decor didn't outright  _scream it_. The refreshment table was decorated with a red tablecloth, and the other tables sported centerpieces of red roses and green leaves with gold confetti scattered around them. There were strings of white Christmas lights across the makeshift dance floor as well sparkly green, red, and gold balloons spread around the ceiling.

"They really went  _all-out_  this year, didn't they?" your mom mentioned.

"Definitely don't remember the decorations looking quite like this while we were growing up," you said, to which your brother agreed.

"Isn't it lovely, though?" you heard beside you. You looked up to find the town mayor coming up to your group.

"It's  _gorgeous_ , Mayor Santos," you assured him, "Did you do all this yourself?"

"As much as I'd like to take all the credit, I can't," he laughed, "My daughter did most of the planning – I was just here to string lights and hang things she couldn't get to."

"Well, the lights look beautiful – you did a great job," you smiled.

"Thank you, Y/N," he let out another loud laugh. He then turned to look at Calum and Charles. "Ah!" he said, "You must be the visitors I've been hearing so much about this season!"

"Oh, yes!" you chirped, "Mayor, this is my boss Calum and his pilot Charles-" You motioned to the two men beside you. "Guys, this is the town mayor Noel Santos."

"It's nice to meet you, sir," Charles said politely, shaking his hand, "You have a wonderful town here."

"Thank  _you_ , young man," Mayor Santos smiled, "We hope you two come around the  _next time_  our Y/N drops in for a visit."

"Oh, I don't thi-" you started before you were cut off.

"Only if she'll  _let us_ , sir," Calum smiled warmly, shaking his hand as well. Your head snapped up to look at him, confused by the statement.

Sure, he was a lot more open-minded than when he first arrived, but this man had been so  _adamant_ about hating your small town and being annoyed with its ' _overkill of festive activities_ ' –  _why was he saying he wanted to come **back**?_

While Mayor Santos was talking to Calum and Charles, you found yourself looking around the room. You admired the decor again for a couple minutes before someone entering the gym caught your eye.

"Holly!" you grinned widely, bouncing over to her, "You look  _beautiful_!"

"Look who's talking,  _Miss America_ ," she laughed, "Where have you been hiding  _this_ dress?"

"You know, I was going to wear this to our senior prom," you informed her, "But my mom made some alterations so it would fit me to wear  _tonight_ instead."

"I'm still sad you didn't go," she pouted, "Prom wasn't the same without you."

"We can pretend  _this_ is prom then," you giggled.

"Well, in that case, I'd better go see if we've got some  _party songs_  on this playlist," Holly smirked, wrapping her arm around your own and tugging you off to the DJ's table.

~

**20 minutes later**

You took a break from dancing to grab yourself a snack. You popped a small cookie into your mouth, taking another from the plate before turning around to people-watch before you headed back out. You looked up when you heard a small huff off to the side.

"That Mayor Santos sure is a  _talker_ ," Calum said, stopping beside you and grabbing a cookie as well.

"My bad," you giggled softly, "Forgot to give you the heads up."

"Gonna have a hard time forgiving you for that one," he nudged you, making you laugh again and playfully shove him back. "So, I  _did_ overhear something you told Miss Wright before you were whisked away," he mentioned.

"Yeah? What's that?"

"Did you  _really_ not go to your prom?" he asked. You gave him a quizzical glance.

"It's not that big a deal," you shrugged, "Sure, I was upset I couldn't go  _at the_   _time_ , but it doesn't matter  _now_."

"Why couldn't you go?"

"It was nothing," you tried to say convincingly, but the look he was giving you told you he wasn't having it. You simply sighed to yourself. "My date bailed last minute and I was too embarrassed to show up  _alone_ ," you admitted.

"Why'd he bail?" he wondered, a cautious tone in his voice.

"I don't know," you shrugged again, "Someone  _better_ came along, I guess." You heard a slow song start playing from the speakers, prompting Calum to speak again.

"You know, I can't give you that awkward high-school-slow-dance feeling," he told you, "But if you're really going to pretend this is prom, I think you should slow dance at least  _once_ tonight." Calum held his hand out to you and you looked at it for a moment before finally allowing yourself to smile.

You placed your hand in his and he led you out to the dance floor. You saw your mom and Charles as well as Dylan and Avery already dancing together, making you smile again. You then turned back to Calum as he took your other hand and brought your arms up to rest on his shoulders, letting his own arms hug your waist loosely but still bringing you close to him.

"You  _were_ right," you said softly so only Calum heard you, "I'm definitely missing the element of high-school-awkwardness." His stomach shook against yours as he chuckled.

"Maybe I should have worn my  _glasses_ then," he grinned.

"Hey, you berate the way you look in those, but I think they make you look handsome," you said confidently. Calum didn't respond, but you did feel him squeeze you lightly as he smiled shyly at the compliment.

When the song was over, you and Calum reluctantly released each other. You headed back over to the refreshment table, only to be interrupted as you were reaching for another cookie.

"Oh,  _look_!" your mom's voice rang in your ears, "Who's that under the  _mistletoe_?" You looked over, finding she was  _already_ looking at you. Your head snapped up to find you and Calum were,  _indeed_ , the ones standing underneath the mistletoe.

" _Mom_ ," you said with a warning tone.

"What, dear?" she tried not to smile, "It's not like  _I_ put it there! Well, I better go find Charles!" Your jaw tightened a bit as she scurried away, leaving you and Calum alone again.

"Why do I not  _entirely_ believe her?" he mentioned, though you could hear his own smile.

"Because you're  _smart_?" you offered with a sigh, turning back to him.

"We don't  _have to_ , you know," he chuckled, "It's not like the  _cops_ are gonna come for us."

"It's not that – I just..." you trailed off, "I don't know... Maybe I'm just stalling in the hopes that something will interrupt and keep me from facing my feelings."

"Sounds to me like your feelings are running out of time," he replied lowly, taking a step closer.

You swallowed thickly as Calum brought his hand up, resting it on your hip for a moment before sliding it around to your lower back. He smiled at your breath hitching when his fingers brushed up against your bare skin. You could feel your heart pounding in your chest and, honestly, you'd be surprised if he couldn't hear it as well.

"You can tell me to stop, Y/N," he reminded you, his voice still soft.

"I think you know just as well as I do that I'm  _not_ going to do that, Calum," you stated bravely. He leaned in to kiss you, but the harsh sound of a ringtone ruined the moment.

You felt Calum's breath on your face as he exhaled in disappointment, his forehead landing on yours. Your eyes were closed – just trying to take in this moment with him while you still could – as he pulled his phone out of his pocket. His forehead shifted on yours when he looked down at the screen, and his own breath hitched immediately after.

"Shit, it's Nancy," his eyes widened, pushing himself off of you, "I have to take this." He answered the call as he hurried out of the room. You couldn't help the soft sigh that came out of your mouth.

"Hey, Y/N," Holly said as she came up to you, "You okay?"

" _So close_ ," you whispered, more to yourself than to her, "But work always comes  _first_."

"That's still not  _fair_ , Y/N," she shook her head, "You're trying to give him his first decent Christmas in who- _knows_ -how-long; The least he can do is take a minute to  _appreciate it_."

"Yeah..." you trailed off, "I should go see if everything's okay..."

"Well... Alright," Holly caved, "Holler if you need anything." You offered her a thankful half-smile, hurrying outside after your boss.

"Are you  _serious_?" you heard him say, rounding the corner to find him pulling slightly at his hair, "Yes, but I- ... I  _know_ this is huge, but- ... Alright-" He sighed. "-I'll be there as soon as I can." Calum ended the call with a soft groan.

"Everything okay out here?" you asked timidly, startling him. He spun around, clearing his throat.

"Yes, yes," he nodded – though you didn't believe him. He perked up when he looked behind you. "Charles!" he said, making you look over your shoulder to find the pilot, your mom, your brother, and Holly walking toward you.

"Yes, boss?" Charles cocked an eyebrow.

"It's time to go," Calum stated, "We have to get back to New York tonight."

" _Tonight_?" your expression fell slightly.

"Greg Marshall just finished a manuscript and no one has the rights to it yet," he shook his head, "I have to get back and convince him to publish with  _us_."

"But... I thought you  _liked it_  here..."

"Y/N, don't you understand what a  _big deal_  this is?" he insisted, "If we can get  _Greg Marshall_  to publish with our company, our sales will go  _through the roof_!"

"I just... He writes the  _same_ stories  _over and over_  again... Small-town damsel in distress meets a big-city tycoon and spends the whole book falling in love... Why don't we publish something  _new and different_  for once...?"

"Because that's not what  _sells_ , Y/N!" he raised his voice slightly.

"Hey, you don't need to ye-" Holly started before your soft voice cut her off.

"I thought you  _liked it_  here..." you repeated, swallowing thickly, "I thought our small-town traditions were  _growing_ on you..."

"Isn't this what you  _wanted_ , Y/N?" he threw his arms up, "Didn't you  _want_ to spend the holidays  _away_ from your boss?" You felt your heart pounding in your chest, your bottom lip  _barely_ wobbling.

"I  _did_..." you said softly, "But things change... Decided I wanted you  _more_..." Calum froze in shock, but you didn't let him get a word in as you continued. "You're not the same man you were when you got here, Cal..." you swallowed the lump in your throat, "Whether you admit it or not, I  _know_ you enjoyed being here and being part of our holiday traditions... And maybe I'm naive to think that you enjoyed it because of  _me_ – to think that I  _somehow_ broke down the wall you put up around yourself and convinced you to loosen up about Christmas... But I guess I was  _wrong_."

"Y/N..." Calum trailed off, only causing you to shake your head.

"Guess some people  _never_ change," you let out a shaky breath, your jaw tightening in an attempt to keep yourself from losing the tears you were desperately trying to hold back, "Good luck with Marshall; Hope you get that deal or  _whatever_."

"Y/N-" He cut himself off when you turned away from him. " _Y/N_!" you heard him call after you, but you didn't stop.

You just kept walking, wiping your face when you knew he couldn't see you anymore.

~

_have we met the mayor yet??? i literally dont remember lmao_

_christmas party dress: https://cdn-1.jjshouse.com/upimg/jjshouse/s1140/2e/f1/c5854ba529d7928fa7151c76ca2b2ef1.jpg_

_inspiration: "Home For the Holidays" on the Choices app_


	564. Holiday Cheer (Calum Hood) - Part 6

**One week later; New Year's Eve**

You groggily walked down the hallway and into the kitchen where your mom and brother were already sitting at the counter. Your feet padded onto the hardwood floor, making the two look over at the entry to see you.

"Hi, sweetheart," your mom said soothingly, "How are you feeling?" She'd asked you this every day since Calum left, and while you appreciated the concern, the question was getting a little old.

"Been better," you answered honestly, your voice raspy from that being the first time you'd spoken that day.

"Well, I say  _good riddance_ ," Dylan mumbled.

" _Dylan_ ," your mother warned.

"It's true!" he insisted, "He was a jerk this whole time even though Y/N  _tried_ to make him feel welcome! I'm not surprised he took off like a coward!"

"Yeah..." you whispered, more to yourself than to either of your family members.

"How about we change the subject, huh?" your mom suggested, "Who's excited for tonight's New Year's Eve party?" You finally cracked a smile.

"Definitely me," your expression brightened up a bit, "If there's one thing this town knows how to do, it's throw a party."

"Got that right," Dylan toasted his glass of orange juice, making you all laugh.

"Well, we still have a little bit before then," your mom said, "Do you want some breakfast, honey?"

"No, thank you," you shook your head, "Holly texted me saying she wanted to meet me at Stacey's, so I'm just gonna eat something there." You looked over at the clock on the microwave. "Oh, and I better get going," you said, "She'll be there any minute."

"Bye, sweetheart! Have fun!" she called after you as you hurried out the door.

~

You breathed in the scent of freshly brewed coffee and maple syrup as you entered the diner, smiling slightly to yourself. Since you didn't see Holly anywhere, you plopped down on a barstool at the counter and ordered yourself a donut and hot chocolate while you waited.

About halfway through your breakfast, the door to the diner opened. You then heard a sharp squeal of excitement, but before you could look over your shoulder to see what was going on, a pair of arms were thrown around your neck from behind.

"Thank you, thank you,  _thank you_!" you heard Holly's voice in your ear.

"You're welcome!" you laughed lightly before letting it fade as she released you. You tilted your head in confusion, "What did I do again?"

"You convinced your boss to publish my book!" she replied giddily, sitting on the stool beside you. You looked at her in shock for a moment before shaking it off.

"Yes...  _Yes_!" you exclaimed, " _Right_! I  _did_ do that!"

"You're my  _hero_ , Y/N!" she breathed sharply, "I  _promise_ , you're gonna get the  _first_ copy when they're finally printed! Well... I mean...  _I'll_ be getting the first copy, but then I'm gonna give it to  _you_!"

"Only if you  _autograph it_  first," you grinned at her.

"Only if  _you_ promise not to sell it on eBay," she shoved your arm playfully.

" _Never_ ," you giggled, throwing your arms around her for another hug.

"Thank you," she sighed, squeezing you, "I  _couldn't_ have done it without your help."

"When did you find out?"

"Right before I texted you this morning! Calum called me and said he wanted me to publish with you guys!"

"Wow..." you trailed off, another smile on your face, "I'm  _so_ proud of you, Holl."

"Thanks," she repeated with a chuckle, "I was so  _worried_ about how we were going to do this on our own but now that we don't have to, I feel like I can finally  _breathe_ again."

"We would have figured it out anyway, but it's a sigh of relief we don't have to," you agreed, "You deserve this more than anyone; The book is  _incredible_." Holly thanked you again with another tight hug, and the two of you talked for a while before going your separate ways to prepare for the evening festivities ahead of you.

~

**Later that night**

You smoothed down the front of your dress as you walked into the elementary school where the New Year's Eve party was being held. It was a simple dress – a silver sequined bodycon dress with sleeves that hit right below your elbows – that you paired with the same black velvet heels you'd worn to the Christmas party. You had to admit you looked incredible, but there was a small part of you that wished Calum was there to see it – to see what he was missing out on.

Mayor Santos had wheeled in a television set from one of the classrooms so that people could still watch the New Year's Eve special – and so that you'd all know when it was almost midnight. The kids, of course, were gathered around it, happily watching the performers while sipping their hot chocolates, while the adults were mingling and drinking champagne.

"Hello, ladies," you heard a voice beside you while you were talking to your mom and Holly.

" _Charles_!" your mom gasped, "What are you doing here?!"

"Parties in New York City aren't  _nearly_ as fun as the ones here," he insisted, "I decided to ring in the new year with all my new friends!" Your mom gave him a beaming smile – as well a slight blush – as she led him over to the refreshment table to pour him a glass of champagne.

"It's about time those two got together," Holly mentioned, earning a quiet snicker from you.

"You're telling  _me_ ," you nodded, "I don't think there's anyone out there more perfect for each other." Holly hummed in agreement. "I'm gonna go get a refill," you told her, "You want anything?"

"Nah, I'm good for now," she held up her glass to show you it was still half-full.

You began walking over to the drinks when something grey caught your attention out of the corner of your eye. There was a man in the doorway wearing black dress pants, black shoes, and a light grey button up, and your heart stopped when you fully turned to see who it was and realized it was  _your boss_.

Your heart skipped as Calum made eye contact with you, his face falling slightly at your expression. Holly apparently noticed as well, because when she looked at you, she followed your gaze. Her eyes widened and she hastily approached you.

"You don't have to talk to him, you know," she put her hand on your back and rubbed it comfortingly.

"I can't exactly avoid him  _forever_..." you murmured, "I still have to go to  _work_ on Tuesday..."

"Well, if you want some backup, I can go with you."

"It's okay," you barely smiled at her, "I'm sure it'll be quick; He's probably just here to yell at me about not finishing those  _manuscripts_ fast enough."

"If I hear yelling, I'm coming out there," she said in a threatening tone, smiling when you laughed under your breath.

"Thanks, Holl," you said before taking a deep breath and walking toward the ballroom's entry way.

Calum had his hand stuffed in his pockets, wordlessly following you as you passed him without so much as  _glancing_ in his direction. You both ended up in the hallway, walking down a bit so it was a little quieter, and that was when you finally spoke to him.

"What are  _you_ doing here?" you looked him with a deadpan expression, "Think of something  _else_ you forgot to yell at me for the  _first time_ around?"

"No..." he said softly –  _far_ softer than you'd ever heard him speak before, "I just... I needed to apologize..." You were a bit taken aback, but let him continue on. "I... I shouldn't have said what I did... And I  _definitely_ shouldn't have just  _left_ the way I did... I can't take any of it back, but I  _would_... If I could do it over again, I'd make sure I  _never_ put you through that in the  _first place_... You were right about this place changing my outlook on the holidays... I never said it throughout my time here, but thank you... It's... It's meant a lot to me that you were so determined to give me a good Christmas, and I'm truly sorry for the way I acted..."

You watched him carefully for a moment as if you were trying to determine whether he was lying or not. And as much as it annoyed you to admit it, you didn't think he was.

"Why are you publishing Holly's book?" you asked so lowly that he  _almost_ hadn't heard you, "What's with the sudden change of heart?" You knew it was  _hardly_ important in that moment, but it was the only question your brain could really make  _sense_ of.

"I had a lot of time to think on the helicopter ride back to New York last week..." he informed you, "I don't even know  _why_ I took it with me, but I remembered that I had the manuscript in my briefcase... I couldn't stop thinking about you and how much I hated myself for just leaving you like that, so I... I figured the only  _decent_ thing I could do for you in that moment was to give the book another chance... And I really,  _really_ liked it," he admitted, "I cancelled my meeting with Greg Marshall the moment I finished reading it... It may not sell in a world of readers so obsessed with  _Twilight_ or  _Harry Potter_  or  _Fifty Shades of Grey_ , but... I guess being here helped me realize that I would rather publish books  _I'd_ like to read rather than what everyone  _else_ would... Miss Wright notified me as we spoke over the phone this morning that you told her you'd publish the book  _yourself_ if you had to... And I came to the conclusion that – while this isn't  _enough_ of an apology for what I did – the  _least_ I could do was make sure you didn't have to jump through the hoops of publishing  _alone_..." You swallowed thickly.

" _Really_?" you whispered.

"Yeah," he exhaled shakily with a shy grin on his face, "I think the book has  _a lot_  of potential, and I'm  _truly_ sorry I almost passed it off as just another boring love story." You swallowed again, but surprised Calum with your response.

You rushed forward, your arms wrapping around his torso tightly. You felt him tense up in shock, but it didn't last more than a couple seconds before his arms were around you as well. He hugged you just as tightly as you were holding him, his thumb aimlessly rubbing your shoulder through your dress.

"It is gonna take a lot  _more_ than publishing Holly's book to make up for what you did," you admitted, your voice muffled slightly by his shirt, "But it means a lot that you're going to  _try_."

"I know," he breathed, squeezing you. You both released each other, and his heart skipped at the small grin on your face.

"Do you..." you began chewing on your bottom lip, "Would you like to join the party...?"

"Are you sure?" Calum asked reluctantly, "I don't want an  _angry mob_  to form."

You couldn't help but giggle at the statement, but you didn't verbally answer him. You simply responded by wrapping your fingers around his elbow and tugging him along with you.

As you made your way back to the ballroom, Calum matched your pace to walk beside you, allowing you to slip your arm through his rather than grip it in your hand. He brought his arm close to his side, which ended up causing you to be pressed against him. You didn't look at him, but Calum looked over to find you fighting back a smile.

"You look absolutely  _stunning_ , by the way," he told you after leaning in toward your ear. You felt your cheeks get hot, prompting him to smirk slightly to himself.

The moment you walked back into the gym with Calum, it seemed like everyone was already looking at the door. Some people were glaring and some rolled their eyes, but it was as if they all agreed on one thing: if you brought him back, you must have forgiven him – and they suppose they could find it in themselves to do the  _same_.

~

As it was getting closer to midnight, you and Calum were mingling were everyone. He hadn't left your side – probably nervous something would happen when you weren't around – but he had relaxed some, laughing with those around you two at some silly  _dad joke_  Mayor Santos had said.

One of the adults had interrupted and insisted that everyone refill their champagne since the ball was about to drop, so that was what you did. Calum poured both his and yours and teasingly clinked your glasses together, both of you giggling as you took a sip. He then looked around for a moment, and you were about to ask him if he was okay but you didn't get the chance.

"I'd like to propose a toast – if that's alright with everyone," Calum announced, making all eyes land on him. He moved to the front of the room, turning back to face the group. "I know that when I first arrived, all of you were probably ready for me to  _leave_ ," he said, earning a few chuckles of agreement, "But after the time I've spent here and all the holiday activities you so graciously allowed me to participate in despite my not being a  _resident_... Growing up, I never lived in a small town or a community as close as everyone around here is, and it's given me a new perspective on what ' _holiday cheer_ ' truly means. You've all welcomed me with open arms and have given  _plenty_ of candy canes to last me until next Christmas," he smiled when people laughed at the comment, "Sometimes, all it takes is one person-" Calum's eyes met yours and you felt your heart skip a beat. "-to change you for the better, and I just wanted to say thank you for being that change for me." He held your gaze for a moment before raising his glass. "To all of you!" he nodded.

Everyone cheered and held their own drinks up – the kids giggling as they lifted their mugs of hot chocolate into the air – and toasted with those around them. After taking a sip of his drink, Calum stepped out of the spotlight as one of the kids suddenly squealed.

" _It's starting_!" Jack pointed to the TV.

" _Ooh_ , turn it up, please!" Cindy bounced in her spot. The person closest to the remote picked it up and turned up the volume while the people on TV were counting down.

"10... 9... 8... 7... 6..." You all joined in as well. "5... 4... 3... 2... 1!  _Happy New Year_!" the party-goers shouted happily before all of the adults turned to their significant others to kiss them.

Your mom wasted no time in grabbing the collar of Charles's shirt and pulling him in, causing you to laugh at the surprised noise he made. Dylan and Avery shyly looked at each other before Dylan quickly pressed a kiss to her cheek, blushing as he pulled away. Cindy pressed a sloppy kiss to her little brother's own cheek, making him holler out.

" _Cindy_!  _Gross_!" Jack gagged as you smiled at them.

"Y/N," you heard your name coming from beside you.

You looked up just in time to see Calum, but you didn't get a word out before his lips were on yours. You squeaked in surprise but quickly eased into the kiss, putting your free hand on his cheek. Calum smiled as his own hand landed on your lower back, his fingers mindlessly playing with the bottom of your dress's zipper.

When he pulled away to breathe, his forehead landed on yours. The party around you seemed to disappear as your eyes fluttered open and you found Calum already looking at you.

"Happy New Year," he said softly so only you heard it. You didn't say it back – you just smiled and pulled his lips back to yours.

~

_did this series need to be this long??? no. no it didnt._

_new year's party dress: https://www.lulus.com/images/product/xlarge/2102832_372582.jpg_

_inspiration: "Home For the Holidays" on the Choices app_


	565. Prompt Blurb #5: Ashton Irwin

prompt: "I changed the cat's name to Olivia Meowton-John"

 _this is written in ashton's pov ^-^_   

~

_Flashback_

You and Ashton enjoyed going over to your parents' house on the weekends just to hang out. He made it no secret that he loved them – not more than his  _own mother_ , of course – and he was happy to visit whenever you suggested it. They made a big deal of it as well, insisting to make yours or Ashton's favorite meal each time. Ashton would always tell them not to – that he really didn't mind what they made for dinner – but if he'd learned anything since meeting them, it was that you definitely got your stubbornness from  _both_ of them.

It was one such Saturday – last weekend by this point – and your mom and dad had insisted on making Ashton's favorite this time. He would always tell them not to – that he really didn't mind what they made for dinner – but if he'd learned anything since meeting them, it was that you definitely got your stubbornness from  _both_ of them.

Your dad was outside on the back deck, cooking chicken on the grill. Your mom was at the stove heating up a can of your favorite vegetable while you were leaning back on the counter.

"Can you make sure this doesn't burn, dear?" your mom asked you. "I'd better go see if your dad needs any help."

"I'll do it!" Ashton chirped, hearing you and your mom laugh as he was already jogging out of the house. He closed the door behind him, making your dad look over. "Do you need any help, sir?"

"Ash, I've told you multiple times to call me Y/Dad's/N," your dad chuckled, "Did my wife send you out here?"

"No, I offered," he smiled shyly, "I just... Can I ask you something?"

"Sure, son, what is it?"

"Well, you know my father hasn't really been part of my life, and I... I was wondering... How did you know you wanted to marry Y/Mom's/N?"

Your dad looked at Ashton again to find him nervously playing with his fingers. He smiled slightly, knowing there was only one reason he would be asking him that question.

"You gonna marry my daughter?" he asked.

"If she'll let me," Ashton let out a breathy laugh.

"My wife and I could tell the moment Y/N brought you out to meet us that she'd be more than happy to spend the rest of her life with you, Ash," he assured him, "But to be fair, I think you already  _know_ you want to marry her."

"I know, but... I don't want to end up like my father."

"Ashton, you are  _nothing_ like your father," your dad said firmly, "Every single moment you're staying with Y/N is a moment you could have walked away, but you're still there for her. Yeah, there have been nights where she'd call her mom crying after a fight or she'd come over when she doesn't want to be alone while you're away, but none of that has ever affected how much she loves you. You always go back to each other and I don't think you really understand how thankful her mother and I are that she met you when she did. You're everything she's ever needed and everything a father hopes his daughter will find." Ashton smiled shyly before looking back up at him.

"How do I ask her to marry me?" he asked, "I know she doesn't like really extravagant things, but I can't just do  _nothing_."

"I asked Y/Mom's/N to marry me the moment she woke up one morning," your dad shrugged, "Her hair was a mess and she still had some drool on the side of her mouth-" Your dad chuckled at the memory. "-but she was still the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen and I knew in that exact moment that I had to ask her to marry me – so I did. She insists to this very day that I should have waited until she at least wiped her face, but she still said yes; She still cried and kissed me and told me she loved me a hundred times. My point is you'll know when the moment is right," he told Ashton, "But don't worry yourself with the possibility that she'll say no; She won't. She loves you too much."

_End flashback_

~

It had now been a week since then, and Ashton was  _still_ trying to find the right moment to ask you to marry him. He knew it was a big question and it was going to be nerve-wracking to ask; He just didn't think he would chicken out so many times.

You and Ashton were in bed one night before going to sleep. You were both sitting up against the headboard – you were on your computer playing  _The Sims 4_  while Ashton was on his phone. It was silent for the most part – the only sounds being your clicking and Ashton's occasional yawn – before you finally disturbed the silence.

"Ash, look at this!" you said. Ashton leaned over, letting his chin rest on your shoulder, as you pointed to your screen, your mouse hovered over your cat in the game. " **I changed the cat's name to Olivia _Meowton_ -John**!" you giggled. You felt him smile into where his cheek was pressed to your neck.

"You're a goof," he giggled as well as he sat back upright, " _Marry me_."

You simply smiled as Ashton shifted slightly, reaching into the drawer on his nightstand. You didn't look over, however, until he cleared his throat, obviously trying to get your attention.

When you did, your heart stopped and your breath got caught in your throat. Your eyes flicked between Ashton's face and the shiny diamond ring he was holding between his fingers. He grinned softly at the look of shock on your face.

"Wasn't just  _sayin'_  it," he practically whispered, feeling his heart beating throughout every inch of his body, "Will you marry me?"

Before Ashton could even think that you were going to reject him, you had already carefully tossed your computer off to the side and threw the blanket off of your legs. You turned to Ashton, climbing onto his lap so you were straddling his thighs and throwing your arms around his neck. He breathed out sharply as he hugged you back, sighing when he felt your hand on the back of his head so you could tangle your fingers in his hair.

"S'a yes, right?" he murmured into your skin, pressing kiss after kiss to your shoulder and neck.

"Y- _Yes_ ," you choked out a sob, squeezing him tightly.

~

_inspiration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w36S6ncDGqM_

_prompt used from this list:_ _http://marshmallowtraver.tumblr.com/post/179751444014/prompt-list-of-things-my-best-friend-has_


	566. Prompt Blurb #6: Calum Hood

prompt: "Well, what can I say? I'm a badass." 

~

You knew going into the hospital that things were going to be painful. You knew that it was going to hurt and that you were  _definitely_ going to cry. You knew from hearing others' experiences that it wasn't going to be a pleasant journey.

But 14  _agonizing_ hours later, as you watched your twin babies sleep peacefully in yours and your husband's arms, it was all  _more than_  worth it.

The baby boy in your arms would coo quietly every now and then, earning himself a small smile from you, while your daughter was quiet as she rested on Calum's chest. The room was mostly silent though apart from the steady beeping of your heart monitor and the soft sounds of Calum typing on his phone.

"My parents are on their way up," he informed you. You couldn't help but grin.

"She's gonna  _flip_ ," you said. 

Everyone obviously knew you and Calum were expecting – they didn't know you were expecting  _twins_. The moment you found out at a regular ultrasound appointment that there were  _two_ babies growing inside you, you knew you weren't going to tell anyone and let it be a surprise when they visited you at the hospital.

Calum chuckled warmly, "Yes, she is."

Not even two minutes later, there was a knock on your hospital room door. Calum had already placed his baby girl in her bed, so he bounced over to greet his mom and dad.

"Hi, honey!" Joy beamed, hugging her son before looking at you. She  _already_ looked like she was on the verge of bursting into happy tears, so it was no surprise to you when she placed her hand over her heart and the other over her mouth. "Oh, it's a  _boy_!" she said with the biggest smile on her face as you hadn't told anyone the gender of your baby either. She and David came up to your bed facing away from Calum, giving him the perfect opportunity to pick up the little girl while they were distracted.

"How are you feeling, sweetheart?" David asked you as the baby grabbed onto the finger he held out to him, "What's the little guy's name?"

"I'm feeling great for being in labor for 14 hours," you giggled, and then smiled up at him, "We decided to name him Ryan David."

" _Really_?" he asked, tearing up slightly. You simply nodded and he leaned down to kiss your forehead. You looked behind them and Calum gave you a nod, letting you know he'd situated the other baby.

"And his  _sister's_ name isRiley Morgan," you said, instantly making them freeze.

" _What_?" Joy's eyes widened, taking a step back. You grinned, nodding toward Calum and making them turn around.

"Surprise!" Calum beamed as the two gaped at their granddaughter.

"Are you  _kidding_?" David asked.

"I promise I gave birth to  _both_ of these kids," you giggled.

"No, you  _didn't_..." your mother-in-law shook her head slowly, "You're lying... Whose baby is that,  _really_...?"

"I'm not lying!" you smiled as you wiped a tear from your own cheek, "These are our twins!"

"Oh my  _God_ ," she sniffled, going over to her son to see Riley. She, of course, took her from his arms, breathing deeply to calm herself down. "You two are the  _worst_!" she exclaimed softly as to not disturb the sleeping newborn, "How could you keep this a secret?!"

"Wasn't  _easy_ ," Calum chuckled, "You have no idea how many times I almost accidentally told you whenever you called or came to visit."

"I  _really_ thought he was going to break," you admitted as David took Ryan from your own arms to hold, "You know the night you came over for dinner and Cal mentioned that I was eating for  _more_ than one?"

"He meant more than one  _baby_?!" David asked, "I thought that was just about  _you_!" 

"It slipped out!" Calum pouted, "She made me sleep on the couch that night."

"I did  _not_ ," you laughed, rolling your eyes fondly when he winked at you.

~

After a little while of just hanging out, Calum's parents were getting ready to leave so they'd get home before dark. They handed the babies back to you and Calum, kissing the tops of their heads.

"Oh, before you guys go, can you take a family picture?" Calum asked, holding out his phone, "Everyone's been  _begging_ to see the twins since I tweeted that Y/N went into labor this morning."

"I think the exact tweet was ' _OH MY GOD I'M ABOUT TO BE A DAD OH MY GOD SOMEONE PLEASE HELP ME I'M GONNA THROW UP_ '," you snorted, earning an affectionate eye roll from your husband. 

His parents laughed along and Joy happily took her son's phone, taking a few candid photos as Calum gently placed Ryan in your right arm. You scooted over to make room for Calum to sit next to you, Riley nestled comfortably in his left arm. You took a couple photos – your favorite ending up being the one where you were looking down at the babies and Calum was kissing your temple – before saying goodbye to your in-laws. You then sighed softly, leaning back against the bed.

"You okay, princess?" Calum wondered.

"Yeah," you barely smiled, "Just a little tired."

"Go to sleep," he kissed your temple again, "You were in labor for  _over_ half a day; I think it's safe to say you deserve it."

" **Well, what can I say? I'm a badass** ," you smirked, making Calum laugh.

"Yeah, you are," he leaned in to kiss your forehead before doing the same with the twins.

~

_prompt used from this list: http://eternalmikaelson.tumblr.com/post/165989551390/prompt-list-of-sarcasm_

_inspiration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bo8i90ItVhM_


	567. After All This Time (Awsten Knight) - Part 1

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

~

You were a common sight to see in the local coffee shop, your nose always stuck in whatever book you were reading that week. You would be in your own little world – your mind creating a movie along with the words on the pages in front of you. You rarely ever noticed anything going on around you, the business of the lives around you not pulling you away from your stories.

Until one day, it  _did_.

You felt a presence brush by you, not really thinking anything of it at first – they probably just misjudged the distance between the two tables. But after a few seconds, the feeling lingered – like they were still standing there – so you looked up.

You couldn't help but jump lightly, your head tilted as you blinked curiously at the purple-haired boy standing behind the chair across from you. He smiled shyly – he really had thought you heard him – and began talking to you.

"Sorry," he said, "I didn't mean to scare you; I just wanted to say that you're very pretty."

He noticed you eyeing his lips intently, making him cock an eyebrow. He then watched you scramble to pull a small notebook and a pen out of your bag, quickly writing something down before turning it so he could see it.

 ** _I'm sorry for staring_** , he read what you'd written,  ** _Could you maybe write down what you just said? I'm deaf and try to lip read, but I'm not very good at it._**

You saw the boy smile again and his chest shook as he laughed lightly. You couldn't help but wonder what laughter sounded like, especially when it came from someone as good-looking as him.

" _I'm assuming you do sign language then?_ " he signed to you.

Your eyes widened and your heart skipped a beat at the gesture – you'd never met anyone that actually knew sign language before apart from your doctors and the family members and friends that bothered to learn for you.

" _You know sign language?_ " you finally replied.

" _Yeah!_ " he grinned, " _My older sister had this best friend who's deaf when she was in middle school and we all learned for her so she could come over to our house more._ " You smiled slightly, finding it sweet that the entire family learned sign language for his sister's friend. " _Anyway, what I said was I didn't mean to scare you, but I just wanted to tell you that you're very pretty_ ," he said. You felt your cheeks get hot and the boy smiled widely at your blush.

" _Thank you_ ," you managed to sign back shyly.

" _I'm Awsten_ ," he told you.

" _Y/N_ ," you replied.

" _May I?_ " he asked, motioning to the seat across from you. You nodded so rapidly that you almost hurt your neck, watching him sit down. " _Hey, you're single, right?_ " he furrowed his eyebrows, " _I don't want to sit here and try to flirt with you if you're already seeing someone._ " You couldn't help but giggle silently.

" _No, I'm as single as they come,_ " you shrugged, " _A surprising amount of people actually don't want to date a deaf person. 'Inconvenient' is the word I get most often_."

" _Inconvenient?_ " he furrowed his eyebrows, " _You're a person, not traffic on the highway_." 

You giggled again, " _Well, I'm glad someone sees it that way_."

You and Awsten spent the next couple hours getting to know each other. He would slip in the occasional compliment just to make you smile, and you would do the same. You never really considered yourself to be much of a flirt, but with Awsten, it seemed like it just came naturally.

The barista eventually came over, poking your shoulder playfully. You looked up at her and smiled – you'd known her since the day you started regularly coming into the shop, so she'd grown to be like a sister to you. She wrote down in your notebook asking if you were okay – Awsten had been in the bathroom at the time, so you were sitting alone – saying that she'd never known you to stay for so long. You assured her that you were – that you had just met someone – and she grinned happily before getting back to work, and that was when Awsten returned.

" _I should be heading home_ ," Awsten pouted – he really didn't want to leave yet, " _It's my sister's night to cook dinner and she gets annoyed when I'm late_."

" _It's okay_ ," you let out a small laugh, " _I've probably been here long enough anyway_."

" _Did you drive here?_ " he asked.

" _No, I walked_ ," you shook your head. You looked away to gather up your things and stand up.

Awsten waited until you were looking at him again, " _Can I give you a ride?_ "

" _I only live a few minutes down the road_ ," you replied, but he shrugged. You barely smiled. " _Sure_ ," you accepted the offer, " _I'd love a ride_."

Awsten led you out to his car, opening the door for you before hurrying over to the driver's side and starting the engine. You were looking out the window, so he tapped your leg to get your attention.

" _Do you mind if I listen to the radio since we won't be having a conversation?_ " he asked you.

" _Doesn't matter to me; I can't hear it_ ," you snickered. Awsten then shoved your leg playfully as he rolled his eyes, turning on the radio and then driving out of the parking lot.

He pulled into your apartment complex a couple minutes later upon you pointing to it as a signal for him to turn, and he drove up to the front door. You took off your seatbelt and brought your bag up to your lap, setting it there for a moment.

" _Thanks for the ride, Awsten_ ," you told him with a small grin.

" _You're welcome, Y/N_ ," he smiled shyly, " _I hope we see each other again sometime_..." He seemed so nervous, so you simply gave him a little push.

" _I could always give you my number_ ," you shrugged, " _I mean, if you want it_."

You didn't even have the chance to assume he didn't because his phone was already out of his pocket and in his hand, being held out to you. You bit back your amused smile, entering your number in his phone and texting yourself so you had his number as well. After handing his phone back to him, you began chewing on your bottom lip.

" _So, I... I'll talk to you later...?_ " you asked shyly. You couldn't hear it, but Awsten cleared his throat as he nodded rapidly.

" _I'll text you tonight_ ," he said. His heart skipped a beat when you smiled at him again with a small nod.

" _It was nice meeting you, Awsten_."

" _You too, Y/N_ ," he swallowed, watching you get out of his car and waiting until you were inside to drive himself home.

~

_this title's gonna make more sense in part 2 ok im sorry just let it happen_


	568. Prompt Blurb #7: Awsten Knight

prompt: "a phonebook doesn't leave bruises"

_an au where you were catfished by someone using awsten's pictures and he wants to meet you for real after filming is over_

_all of these prompt blurbs are turning out to be much longer than a blurb lmao_ _  
_

~

"Y/N?" you heard your name being said, making your head snap up. 

Your heart was beating in your  _throat_ at that point, and the moment you saw who was there, you were sure it was just going to pop out onto the table you were sitting at. You'd been on-edge all morning – even before arriving 20 minutes  _early_  to the local café – especially since this was the day you were meeting someone you  _thought_ you'd been in a relationship with for the past seven months.

Last year – almost to the  _day_ – you met a boy on Twitter named Cameron. He'd randomly followed you one night, and you thought he was cute and you liked his personality from what he posted, so you followed him back. It took a couple days, but he eventually sent you a DM, saying hello and asking how you were.

The conversation went from small talk to getting to know each other to giving him your number over the next few days, and you found yourself actually falling for this guy you'd  _never even met_. And you felt like you were on top of the world when he told you he felt the same and you started giving each other pet names and flirting more publicly and saying you were dating despite the fact that you had yet to even see this boy in anything  _other_ than pictures.

And maybe that was what made you contact the people on  _Catfish_.

You were surprised when they actually answered your e-mail – some part of you was hoping they wouldn't so you could keep pretending none of this was too good to be true. But when they did and they came to your house and they told you Cameron  _wasn't_ who he said he was, you honestly couldn't say you were surprised; Sure, you were heartbroken, but you weren't  _surprised_.

But once the events of the show were over – after you'd met the  _real_  Cameron – you were overwhelmed by a  _new_  set of emotions; Emotions brought on by the man in the pictures – who turned out to be in a  _band_ and whose real name was  _Awsten_ – when he messaged you on Twitter himself, asking to meet you.

And now, here you were: sitting at a table outside a café, finally staring back at this ' _Awsten_ 'person whose you'd seen for the last year but now realized you actually had no idea who he was.

"Aw-" you cleared your throat nervously, your cup of coffee gripped tightly in your hands on the tabletop, "Awsten...?" 

"Hi," he breathed, giving you a small smile, "Can I..." 

He was looking at the chair across from you as he trailed off the question, earning himself a rapid nod of approval. He sat down and things between you were silent for a moment before he spoke again.

"I'm Awsten," he told you, furrowing his eyebrows, "But you...already knew that..."

"Yeah..." you smiled shyly, "I guess this is pretty weird for the both of us, huh...?"

"More weird for  _you_ , I'm assuming..." he said, "I certainly haven't gone through what you have, and now you're meeting the  _actual person_..."

"You're right; I  _do_ have it worse," you acknowledged, earning yourself a chuckle from the man across from you.

"So..." he cleared his throat, clearly just trying to make conversation to avoid an awkward silence, "I guess you haven't listened to the band then..." You couldn't help but laugh, noticing his body relax out of the corner of your eye.

"I was going to," you admitted softly, "But I guess I still resent the guy in the pictures that I haven't forced myself to yet..."

" _Hey_ ," he frowned, "Don't blame my  _band_ for what my  _pictures_  did." You giggled once more, finding him grinning lightly at you when you looked back up at him.

Awsten watched you fondly for a moment before he spoke again.

"You're really pretty," he said, his eyes immediately widening. "I-I didn't mean... W-Well... I did  _mean it_ ; I-I just... I didn't m-mean to say it o- _out loud_..." In the midst of his rambling, you'd been blushing a bright red.

"You're really pretty too," you whispered, making  _him_ blush that time. "I mean,  _obviously_ ," you scratched the back of your neck, "Or else I wouldn't have ' _dated you_ '..."

" _Oh_ , so you're one of those girls who falls for  _pictures_ and not  _personality_ ," he sighed dramatically, " _Okay, I get it_."

" _Hey_ , I fell for  _personality_!" you reached across the table and shoved his shoulder, "Not  _my_  fault I found out the guy using your face only did it to improve his skills with girls."

"Did he  _really_?" he murmured, earning a small shrug, "Wait, he just  _used you_? What kind of person  _does that_?!" You let out a sharp breath of amusement.

"Thought  _I_ was the one supposed to upset about it," you mentioned. Awsten stopped ranting and took in a deep breath.

"Sorry," he murmured – he really didn't know what came over him there.

"Don't be; It's nice to know that  _someone_ cares," you admitted, "Especially since  _he_ clearly didn't..."

"You know what we could do?" he started, earning a curious glance from you.

"What?" you asked.

"We could go over to his place and beat him with a phonebook," he said, " **A phonebook doesn't leave bruises.** "

You didn't know what you were  _expecting_ him to say, but that  _definitely_ wasn't it. You instantly threw your head back and burst out laughing, missing the way he smiled at you.

"Don't tempt me," you told him as you caught your breath, finally meeting his gaze.

Awsten was giving you such a loving look, you really didn't know how to react. Sure, you'd been looked at that way before, but not since you were in  _high school_. He seemed like a shy person, but he was still confident enough within himself – knowing what he wanted and not stopping until he  _got it_.

But he was a  _shyly confident_  with  _you_.

"I know this is really weird for you..." Awsten trailed off, "And if you want to say no, I'll totally get it... But I was just... I was wondering if you'd want to go out with me...? Like... On a date..." You were rendered speechless for a moment –  _did he really want to go out with you?_

You could tell that your stunned silence was starting to worry him – that he was worried he'd gone too  _far_ , too  _fast_. But you quickly eased his racing thoughts.

"You're not pretending to be someone  _else_ , are you?" you asked lightheartedly, earning yourself a smile.

"I'll be whoever you  _want_ me to be if it means you'll say yes," he told you.

"I just want you to be  _yourself_ ," you laughed under your breath.

"Then  _that's_  who I'll be," he nodded.

You smiled back at him, "Then I would  _love_ to go out with you."

~

_i kinda hate this actually_

_prompt used from this list: http://marshmallowtraver.tumblr.com/post/182186217519/prompt-list-of-john-mulaney-quotes-to-be-added_


	569. Down with the Ship (Michael Clifford) - Part 1

_picture this right: something like the titanic but everyone survives (spoiler alert jesus)_

_aka an au where you're the captain of a cruise ship, you send out an sos, and coast guard husband michael is part of the rescue mission_

~

You'd always heard stories of the Captains of sinking cruise ships waiting too long to report it and abandoning ship and not owning up to any other mistakes they may have made that led up to the disaster. You were always determined not to be like them – not to leave your ship _no matter what_  – but you never imagined that you'd ever have to actually  _make_ the decision.

Until it  _happened_ , of course.

The collision hadn't been your fault – it was a result of the bottom of the ship scraping up against a small but sharp land mass that hadn't been on your map. You tried to avoid it – you tried to steer around it the moment you saw you were approaching it – but it wasn't enough; You still sideswiped it.

You thought you were in the clear – the feeling of the contact jolted the ship slightly, but you figured it was only a minor scrape. You quickly had to come to terms with the fact that it wasn't, however, when the boat started to lean ever so slightly and didn't correct itself.

You quickly went to your radio and called the Coast Guard – they were about 4 hours out from where you were and you wanted as  _little_ collateral damage as possible – to send out the SOS and explain the situation, then went over the ship's intercom to tell passengers to begin the emergency drill they'd learned after boarding. You knew that it was inevitable that there would be panicking people aboard, but you also knew that your crew knew what they were doing and would be able to effectively get everyone where they needed to be.

Once you put your radio back, it was eerily silent in the room. You could hear the commotion begin on on the deck outside as everyone hurried to their lifeboat stations on deck 4. You knew you'd done the right thing in alerting everyone right away, but there was still that feeling of  _dread_ that came over you – the feeling that there was a possibility not  _everyone_ would make it off the ship  _alive_.

You were so lost in thought that the sudden ringing of the cell phone in your pocket made you jump. You looked at the caller ID and smiled slightly to yourself – you'd have been  _crazy_ to think you could radio in an SOS to Coast Guard and  _not_ have it get around to your husband.

"Hi, Mikey," you answered softly.

"What's with the  _SOS_ , Y/N?" he didn't even greet you back, "Why didn't you call  _me_?"

"Kind of a dick move for a captain to make  _personal calls_  when their ship is sinking," you replied lightheartedly, "Not just  _me_ on this thing, you know; Got 1,516  _other_ people to worry about before  _myself_." Michael let out a small huff, making you smile again – you knew  _he knew_  you were right and he was  _not_ happy about it.

"I want the specifics," he informed you.

"They not tell you yet?" you exhaled sharply.

" _Y/N_."

"I wasn't really worried about anything happening – it's the  _middle of the ocean_ ; there's no land around for  _miles_ ," you sighed, "Didn't see the rocks until it was too late... Steered out of the way as best as I could, but made contact anyway... I waited a little bit to say anything – thought maybe it was a minor, cosmetic scrape or something and it would be fine... Called it in after 15 minutes when the ship's lean wasn't correcting  _on its own_... Passengers are already doing the emergency drill and crew is already going to check the damage, and that's all I know right now..."

You felt your throat start to close slightly, so you cleared it – you  _really_ didn't want to cry;  _not now_. Michael began to speak again, but you cut him off.

"I love you, Michael," you breathed out, your jaw tight as you tried not to cry  _too hard_.

"I love  _you_ , Y/N," he returned, "And I'm gonna tell you that  _over and over again_  when you get off that ship."

You forced out a laugh, letting your tears fall freely now, "I don't think I'm making it off this ship, Mikey."

" _Yes, you are, Y/N_ ," he said firmly, "Do you understand me? I'm going to go in there  _myself_ and get you if I have to, but you're going to be  _fine_ , and I'm gonna tell you ' _I told you so_ ' when you  _do_." You heard him smile when you involuntarily laughed.

"Sure, Mikey," you murmured, "You can tell me that."

"I love you, baby girl," he said again, "I'll see you in a few hours." Michael hung up, leaving you in the silence once again.

And all you could do at that point was  _wait_.

~

**Michael's POV**

The moment the call ended, Michael was practically  _running_ to where his fellow officers were already being briefed about the situation. As soon as he opened the door to the outside, the group gathered at the helipad turned to look at him. They then looked at each other – honestly a bit  _speechless_ – then the officer in charge of the rescue when he started talking.

"Michael, I think you should sit this one out," he said.

"Obviously, I'm  _going_ with you guys," Michael stated.

"Mike, I just want you to  _think_ about it, okay?" the officer sighed, "Things may not turn out the way you want it to, and I don't want  _you_ to be the one to find your wife if she doesn't-"

"She's  _gonna_ make it, Chris."

"See?  _This_ is what I'm talking about."

"I promised her the day we got married that I was going to be the one to protect her no matter  _what_ I had to do," Michael said firmly, though his voice was wavering slightly, "And I'm  _not_ about to back down just because something  _could_ happen to her; Some giant hunk of  _metal_ isn't going to  _stop me_  from getting to her."

Everyone looked at each other again and shrugged. Upon realizing that Michael wasn't going to back down, Chris sighed deeply. He knew that he would have  _snuck_ onto the helicopter if he had to, so it would be easier to just let him come on the mission anyway.

"I'm assuming you've already called her?" he asked, "And she's told you what happened?"

"Wasn't gonna  _not_ call her," Michael replied.

"Then you know what we have to do," Chris nodded, "Let's get going then. Got 1,517 people to rescue and 4 hours to get to them."

~

_inspiration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5SaaBLhW2p4_


	570. Down with the Ship (Michael Clifford) - Part 2

_this one's pretty long so sorry if thats not ur thing i guess_

~

**Your POV**

You were rushing down the hallways, doing your best to make sure that no one else was still in their cabins and that all passengers made it to the lifeboat deck. You were opening all the doors to check the rooms, your heart dropping when you opened one and a stuffed elephant came rolling out due to the tilt of the ship.

You walked to where it hit the wall across the hallway, picking it up. You knew the likelihood of finding the owner of the animal before they abandoned ship wasn't  _great_ , but you were determined to  _find them_  nonetheless.

You continued opening doors along your way to the lifeboat deck though, still checking every room you could. Once you reached the end of the hall and found nothing and no one else, you started making your way to the lifeboats. You had just reached the stairs going down to the next deck when a voice to the side stopped you.

"Captain!" you looked over to find one of the crew members you'd sent down to assess the damage hurrying down the adjacent hallway.

"Elena!" you chirped, "What's going on?"

"It's  _bad_ , Captain," she smiled nervously, "Two of the compartments on the lower decks have already taken on water and the engine room has started flooding now as well. We tried to come up with a way to fix it, but the gash is too big – we're already sinking."

"What side is the damage on?"

"Port," she answered.

"Okay," you breathed, going downstairs while she followed you, "We'll start evacuations on that side first. It'll be easier to get them out before the tilt is too bad to do it safely."

"Of course," Elena nodded, "What do you want me to do?"

"Go update everyone on the port side and get them ready for evacuation," you ordered, "I want them as calm as possible to avoid any pushing to be the first onto a boat."

"Yes, ma'am," she nodded again, and both of you went your separate ways.

Upon arriving to the starboard side of deck 4, you carefully made your way through the crowd of people in order to get to the door they were all waiting to exit from. A few members of the crew helped clear a path so you could step up in front of the door and address everyone. People were – understandably – still panicking, so you stuck your thumb and index finger in your mouth, a piercing whistle echoing throughout the ship deck. Once the passengers' attention was on you, you started speaking.

"I know that this is a scary situation to be in," you acknowledged, "But in order to get  _everyone_ off the ship safely, we all need to remain as  _calm_  as possible. There are crew members here to help you get into lifeboats quickly, so we ask that you don't push and shove as the evacuation procedure starts. As long as everyone remains on the same page, we'll  _all_ make it off the boat."

As soon as you stepped down to the floor, evacuation began. You helped a few people get into a lifeboat before you had to move on, still determined to find the owner of the animal in your hand. At first, you didn't notice anyone seeming to be missing it, but as you made your way down the hallway on your way to the other side of deck 4 to address those passengers, you finally heard it. 

" _I want Alfie_!" a toddler cried, making you look over.

"We'll get a new one when we get home, okay?" his mom  _tried_ consoling him, but it only seemed to make it  _worse_.

"I want  _my_ Alfie!" he screeched. You timidly approached the mother and son, holding the stuffed animal tightly at your side.

"Hi," you smiled at the woman. She looked at you wearily as she rubbed the boy's back, still smiling politely. "I couldn't help but overhear you lost something..." you told her, "Alfie wouldn't happen to be an elephant, would he?" You held up the animal, and you figured you must have been right because the woman  _immediately_ breathed out a shaky sigh of relief.

"Mitchy," she said gently, "Look what the nice Captain found."

The toddler only turned his head just enough to open his eyes, but when he did, he started crying  _harder_. He took the little elephant from you and hugged it as tightly as he could, burying his face back into his mother's neck.

"Thank you," she told you, her voice breaking slightly. You didn't say anything – you just smiled again, patting her shoulder comfortingly before continuing on your mission.

~

**Michael's POV; 4 hours later**

" _Wow_..." the men in the helicopter let out collective gasps of amazement the moment the sinking ship came into view.

Michael wasn't usually one to get motion sickness – obviously with him working for the  _Navy_  – but he'd be lying if he said he wasn't feeling it  _today_. He'd spent the entire ride just focusing on  _not_  throwing up, but he had to admit it was difficult knowing the situation his wife was in.

And, to be honest, it didn't  _help_  when he finally saw the ship. 

The cruise liner was  _already_ at a 45-degree angle and it wasn't looking  _great_. He could see passengers still stranded on-board for whatever reason, so he pushed his worry over you to the back of his mind as best as he could; He had a  _job_ to do, and he was going to get it  _done_.

Michael and a couple other men were lowered onto the starboard side of the ship – the side that was tilting toward the sky. There was already a small group gathered around them as their feet landed on the deck.

"You guys take care of them; I'm going inside," he stated, walking through the doorway before they could say anything. It was pretty difficult to navigate on such a steep slope, but he managed to make his way down the hallway to the stairs.

If the choice was up to Michael, he would have gone to the Captain's quarters  _first_. If it was up to him, you would have been the  _first person_  he rescued from that sinking ship.

But he knew it  _wasn't_ ; He knew that you were already  _set_ on going down with the ship if it came to it, and you would have had his  _head_ if he didn't help any of the passengers and crew before he even  _attempted_ to locate you.

So that was what he did.

He was checking every cabin along deck 5, making sure that absolutely  _no one_  was left behind. All of the doors were open – you'd left them open after checking yourself – except one at the end of the hall on port side. The floor was already covered in a thin layer of water, so he knew had to go fast. 

He cautiously approached the closed door, hearing sniffling on the other side. The moment he opened it, he heard the person's breathing hitch, surprised that someone was there. And his heart sank a bit at seeing the little girl in front of him.

"Hi, sweetheart," he said gently, kneeling down as best he could so he was eye-level with her, "What's your name?" The 6-year-old looked at him through teary eyes, glancing down at the life jacket that said ' _COAST GUARD_ ' on it and then back up at him.

"Hal-Hallie," she spoke softly, wiping her eyes as she held a stuffed dog in her arm.

"Hi, Hallie. I'm Michael," he smiled at her, "What are you doing here all alone?"

"M-My daddy was ta-taking me to the b-boats, b-b-but a lady pu-pushed us a-and he let g-go of me an-and I ca-can't f-fi-find him and he-he said to co-come back t-to our room i-if we get sep-separated so he c-can come ge-get me b-but he has-hasn't come ba-back yet," she cried.

"Well, I'm here to help you get off the boat," he told her, pointing to the words across his chest before grabbing her own life jacket, "So let's get this on you and I'll help you find Daddy, okay?" Hallie barely nodded, allowing him to help her put the item on. 

Michael stood back upright, holding his hand out and waiting for her to take it before leading her back out of the room. He made sure she was careful not to fall over as they made their way back to the stairs and back outside to deck 4. 

"C'mere, Hallie," Michael said, "I'm gonna put you up here-" He pat his shoulder with his free hand. "-and we're gonna see if you can see Daddy, okay?" The little girl nodded, letting him pick her up and sit her on his shoulders. "Do you see him?" he asked.

"N-No," she started sniffling again. 

"Hey, that's okay," he assured her, patting her leg, "Let's walk down a little more and maybe we'll find him, huh?" Michael carefully made his way further down the deck, also being on the lookout for anyone that seemed to be looking for their daughter. But Hallie found him first.

" _Daddy_!" she immediately started crying again. Michael watched a man's head snap up from where he was standing with one of the other Navy officers, trying to see if his daughter was already on a helicopter.

" _Hal_!" he let out a sharp breath, hurrying over to them as quickly as he could. 

Not wanting Hallie to get hurt running to her father, he waited until he was there to put her back on her feet. The man lifted her back up, both of them hugging each other like it was the last time they'd ever get to. Michael stepped away to go rescue more people, but not before hearing him take in a deep, shaky breath.

"Thank you," he said, making Michael smile as the father and daughter were being prepped to go up in the helicopter.

~

**30 minutes later**

Michael had just been lowered back down onto the ship, ready to help more people. But it seemed like the only other people on board the ship were his co-workers. He furrowed his eyebrows – they  _couldn't_ have rescued everyone already...  _Could they_...?

"Michael!" the officers heard behind them, making them turn around. Elena was being led toward the helicopter by Chris, both of them smiling –  _why were they **smiling**?_

"Hi, Elena," he responded, not really too sure what else to say.

"How's Y/N?" she asked.

"I don't- I haven't seen her yet..."

"Really?" she tilted her head, "I would have thought she'd be the  _first_ person you went to look for."

"Do you think  _she_ would have been okay with that?" a co-worker laughed.

"Fair enough," she chuckled, "But she doesn't really have a choice  _now_." She grinned at him yet again, and he finally started putting the pieces together.

"You mean..." Michael trailed off.

"Everyone's been accounted for," Chris affirmed, "Only person left is the Captain. Figured we'd save  _that_ rescue for  _you_."

" _Everyone_?" the other officers gaped. 

But Michael didn't seem to notice; He was already racing for the staircase, barely even hearing the ' _meet you back in the chopper!_ ' that was called after him.

Michael felt his heart  _pounding_ in his head and a wave of nausea coursing through his body as he entered the hallway leading to the bridge. He felt like he couldn't catch his breath. 

He would never admit that he worried about you every time you set sail on another cruise, but he  _did_. Nothing scared him more than you being in the  _exact situation_  you were right now – alone on a sinking ship and not knowing whether or not you were okay.

He didn't want to assume the  _worst_ , but with the way your back was to him as he entered the navigation room... He was starting to have his doubts. 

You were sitting in your chair, your foot planted firmly on the floor against the tilt of the ship as you were seemingly slumped over the wheel. But it wasn't until he saw your back move up and down as you breathed that he allowed  _himself_ to do the  _same_.

Michael let out a deep sigh of relief, making your head snap up. Your eyes met his and started to fill with tears; You felt an overwhelming sense of  _safety_ now that your husband was there.

" _Told you_  I was gonna get you off this ship," he swallowed, barely smiling at you as you rushed to him. His back hit the wall behind him when you crashed into him. You threw your arms around his neck as his own wound around your waist, both of you hugging each other tightly. 

"Has everyone else been rescued?" you murmured into his skin where your face was pressed against it.

"All 1,516," he assured you, "And now it's  _your turn_ , baby girl." He shook his shoulder so you would look back up at him, pressing your lips together when you did. "Let's get you out of here, yeah?" he murmured. You barely smiled, kissing him again before letting him pick you up and take you out to where the Navy helicopter was waiting above the deck.

He set you back on your feet to hook his vest up to the line and make sure you were hooked in as well – though, with the way you were still holding onto him, he knew you weren't going anywhere anytime  _soon_. The men in the helicopter starting pulling you both up, not stopping until you were completely in the aircraft.

Michael unhooked the two of you as the helicopter started flying back to land, his arms around your waist again the moment he was finished. He pulled you onto his lap and you wrapped your legs around him, hugging him like a koala.

You could hear the other Navy officers and Elena talking to each other about how they couldn't believe  _every single person_ on the ship survived, but you tuned it out – all you wanted to focus on in that moment was  _Michael_. He was kissing the side of your head with what seemed like every breath he took, only occasionally adding a soft ' _I love you_ ' into your skin. He felt your own small grin against his neck, your fingers mindlessly running through his hair.

You were in awe of Michael every single day – sometimes going out to rescue people stranded at sea or sometimes just staying at the office doing paperwork – but something about  _today_ was different. You'd always respected the job – obviously – and you'd always loved the way your husband put everything he  _had_ into everything he was  _doing_. You loved hearing his stories when he got home or when he called if you were still at sea, because it seemed like it was a  _different_ story every time. 

And now, it was like you  _lived_ one of his stories  _with him_. 

He would have been  _so proud_ to tell you that everyone was able to be rescued. You could just imagine him  _bursting_ with excitement, ready to tell you all about it the  _moment_ he walked into your home. It was always nice to listen to his ramblings because, honestly, it was one of the only things that helped you remain grounded in the days before another otherwise stressful cruise.

Maybe he didn't know it, but those stories saved you every day.

And Michael did too.

~

_wish it ended better lmao_

_inspiration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5SaaBLhW2p4_


	571. After All This Time (Awsten Knight) - Part 2

_requested by anonymous on tumblr_

_its been a hot minute since we last saw each other hasnt it_

~

**Two weeks later**

" _Sorry I'm making you come to my house already_ ," Awsten told you after parking his car in the driveway, " _This is actually kind of embarrassing_."

" _All you did was forget a wallet_ ," you smiled, " _At least you didn't realize you forgot it while in line at McDonald's_."

" _Fair point_ ," he chuckled before you both got out of the car.

" _Even though I wouldn't mind paying for you_ ," you continued. He simply rolled his eyes, making you grin to yourself again – you knew he wouldn't have gone for it.

Awsten led you to the front door of his house, bringing you inside. You hadn't expected to run into anyone, but someone just happened to walking out from the hallway into the direction of the kitchen when they stopped.

"What are you doing here?" a brunette asked Awsten, her confused gaze flicking between the two of them. You could only barely make out what she said, but the look on her face gave you enough of a hint that she was surprised that he was there.

"I forgot my wallet," he laughed shyly, "But uh... This is Y/N..." The girl watched Awsten nudge you since you were looking around the room. " _This is my sister Gracie_ ," he signed to you.

The moment you looked at her, it was like the both of you knew what the other was thinking. You were starting to put the pieces together as was she, but she was the first to do anything.

" _Y/N?_ " Gracie tilted her head. Your eyes widened – both at the fact that she was signing,  _and_ that she'd used the name sign your best friend in middle school came up with. 

To figure out whether or not it really was her, you returned the name sign you'd given to her. When her eyes widened in recognition as well, you both couldn't help but grin so widely, your cheeks started hurting almost instantly. 

Gracie ran over to you, throwing her arms around your neck as your own went around her waist. You missed Awsten ask what was going on, but felt Gracie's throat vibrate against your cheek when she answered.

"You remember the friend that we all learned sign language for?" she said. Awsten obviously nodded. "This is her!" Gracie smiled brightly, letting go of you so she could sign to you again. " _I thought you moved in high school?_ " she questioned.

" _I came back a few months ago_ ," you answered, " _Houston can never get rid of me_." You had a small smirk on your face, making Gracie laugh.

" _I can't believe you didn't text me!_ "

" _I tried, but the person texted back saying I had the wrong number,_ " you teased her, " _How was I supposed to reach you then?_ " She laughed again as you went on. " _I guess I should have known though_ ," you pouted, " _How many other people have I met that spell their name the way your brother does?_ " Awsten shoved you playfully, earning himself an innocent smile.

" _Do you wanna hang out here instead?_ " he asked you, " _I'm sure you and Gracie wanna catch up_."

" _We do!_ " Gracie answered for you, making you laugh as she took your hand and tugged you into the living room.

~

A couple hours later, you all found yourselves lounging around – you and Gracie were sprawled out obnoxiously on the floor while Awsten was leaning up against the footrest of the couch. You weren't talking about anything particularly important, so she decided to change the subject in an effort to embarrass her brother.

" _You know, Y/N, Awsten used to have the biggest crush on you_ ," Gracie informed you, " _I'll bet he still does._ "

" _ **Gracie**_!" Awsten whined, signing her name so you were still part of the conversation. You giggled softly –  _silently_ , as far as you knew – making him look at you as you signed to her.

" _Is it weird that I kind of still have a crush on your brother?_ " you replied. Awsten's eyes widened – sure, you'd been flirting back and forth for the last couple weeks, but even after finding out he was your childhood best friend's  _brother_... You  _still_ had a crush on him?

" _Still?_ " she cocked an eyebrow, a small smirk on her face. You simply shrugged, a light pink blush on your cheeks as Awsten remained silent. " _I just remembered_ ," Gracie said suddenly, " _I have to go do something in another room on the complete opposite side of the house. You two will be fine alone for a while, won't you?_ " She got up and trotted out of the room, not even giving you enough time to process the question.

You and Awsten sat there for a moment – each time you made eye contact, you would both look away shyly – until he finally gathered up enough courage to nudge your knee and make you look at him.

" _I really would like to take you out sometime_ ," he said.

" _Are you sure?_ " you asked, taking him aback.

" _Why wouldn't I be sure?_ "

" _I will never be able to hear you, Awsten_ ," you shook your head, your expression falling a bit, " _And I don't want you going into this thinking that some miracle is going to happen and I'll wake up one morning being able to hear. My deafness is untreatable; No surgery will be able to fix me_."

He looked at you intently for a moment before slowly holding his hand out to you. He was giving you such a loving look – the kind of look you hadn't seen from a guy in a  _long_ time – so you didn't even hesitate to take it. He gently pulled you into his lap, letting you sit with your legs wrapped around his waist. He bravely pressed his lips to your nose, making you scrunch your face up happily. A giggle escaped your mouth and although it sounded a bit weird since you couldn't hear yourself, Awsten thought it was the cutest sound in the world.

" _I don't know what other guys have done to you because you can't hear, Y/N, but I promise I won't be like them,_ " Awsten told you with a firm expression so you knew he was being serious, " _You are not broken or defined by your inability to hear. I've liked you for so long and would love to be the person who shows you that not everyone is going to leave when things get too hard_." You smiled bashfully and nodded your head. " _Good_ ," he sighed, " _I didn't want to have to guilt trip you by bringing up that time I learned sign language for you_."

You giggled again, your head finding a resting place on Awsten shoulder as you cuddled up to him. His arms snaked around you, rubbing your back as he kissed the side of your head every now and then. 

And you didn't hear it, but Gracie came back into the room not long after.

"You know," she said, making her brother look over, "I always had my suspicions growing up that she only ever liked hanging out at our house because she liked  _you_." 

She walked away before he could respond, and Awsten couldn't keep the small smile from pulling at his mouth as he squeezed you again, feeling you smile as well.

~

_hi im not dead_ _but i did forget how to write decent shit_ _lmao_


	572. Found (Ryan Follese)

_my boi meghan's birthday is today and she wanted a lil blurb so this is what i came up with!!!!!_

~

"Thank you so much!" you told the person on the other end of your phone call before hanging up. You then grabbed the pen from the spiral of your notebook to scribble the time and place for your job interview later that day on the back of your hand before rushing to your next class, not wanting to be late.

It was the chance of a lifetime to receive a call back from your dream job, not to mention it was coming at  _just_ the right time.

You were in your last semester of college and, just like every other senior you knew, you were unsure of where your life was going from there. You knew you wanted a job that went with your degree – you just didn't know if anyone would be willing to  _hire_ someone who was still a student. So when you found out the only place in the city you really wanted to work for was hiring, you jumped at the chance to apply. And it was probably the idea that you could  _actually_ work for them what made your callback  _even more_  nerve-racking.

But it was definitely a nice break from thinking about if you'd ever find your soulmate.

~

**Ryan's POV**

"I think I'm gonna be sick," Ryan grumbled, more to himself than to his siblings. He was staring at the writing on his hand – the writing you'd put on your  _own_.

"Why?" Anna asked, "You've been wanting to meet your soulmate for  _forever_."

"Yeah," Jamie chimed in, "Why not meet them there? You already know where they'll be."

"What if it's a different day?" he shook his head, "What if I get the place wrong? What if they're just not  _ready_ to meet me?"

"Ryan, you're psyching yourself out," his sister sighed.

"There's never really the  _perfect_ time to meet someone like your  _soulmate_ anyway," Jamie added.

" _That_ makes me feel better," Ryan rolled his eyes. 

"Just quit your worrying and just take the chance! I know you, and I know you're going to regret it if you  _don't_."

~

**Six hours later**

Ryan breathed in and out deeply as he entered the building you'd written on your hand. He still felt like he was going to throw up, but he knew his siblings were right; He knew he'd regret not trying to meet his soulmate when he now knew  _for sure_  where they'd be.

"Hi!" the receptionist at the front desk smiled, grabbing Ryan's attention, "Do you have an appointment?"

"Uh... No..." he cleared his throat, "I... This is gonna sound crazy, but... Writing showed up on my hand this morning... My soulmate has an appointment today, and I guess... I was hoping for the chance to meet them..." The girl's eyes widened slightly before nodding.

"I'm not usually allowed to let people just hang around, but my boss can make an exception this one time," she assured him, "You can have a seat over there-" She motioned to the little waiting room in front of them. "-and see if anyone comes in around that time." He gave her a grateful smile, breathing out a sigh of relief that she was letting him stay.

"Thank you," he told her, making her smile as well as he went to sit down.

The wait for his soulmate – or  _anyone_ to come into the building, actually – seemed to take forever, but it finally paid off. The front door opened and Ryan's head snapped up, finding you walking in. You looked just as nervous as he was, but he had to tell himself that it wasn't anything to do with his soulmate situation. Though, he couldn't ignore the fact that, as he looked at the clock, it was almost the exact time his soulmate had written on their hand earlier that morning.

"Hello!" the receptionist's voice rang in Ryan's ears again as you approached her desk, "How can I help you?"

"I have an appointment at 4:15," you told her, your leg bouncing nervously.

"Alright! I'll let them know you're here!" You thanked her softly, walking over to the chairs to sit before your legs gave out underneath you.

Ryan couldn't keep himself from watching you as you sat directly across the room from him, looking for the little picture he'd doodled on his left bicep before leaving his house so he'd know who his soulmate was – and his heart started  _pounding_ once he saw that  _same_ picture peeking out from under the sleeve of your t-shirt.

You weren't looking up – your eyes locked onto your hands as you nervously awaited for your interview – so Ryan frantically searched for a pen or a Sharpie or  _something_ , mentally kicking himself for not thinking to bring one with him in the first place. When he lucked out in finding a pen on the table beside him with the magazines, he wrote a simple message for you on his wrist. 

_Found you_

He watched the fingers you were playing with freeze when you noticed the ink show up, turning your wrist up to look at it. Your head then snapped up, your eyes meeting the boy sitting across from you the moment you did. Your heart skipped when he smiled, turning his own wrist toward you so you knew it was  _really_ him.

You didn't even hesitate before you were back out of your seat and hurrying across the waiting room. You were going to sit in the chair beside him at first, but right before you reached him, he stood up and wrapped his arms around your waist, so yours went around his neck. You both breathed a deep sigh of relief, happy to  _finally_ be hugging your  _soulmate_.

"Sorry I just showed up like this," Ryan admitted, "But I didn't know if I'd ever have this chance again..." He felt you shake slightly as you laughed under your breath.

"It's okay," you promised him, squeezing him gently.

"I'm Ryan."

"I'm Y/N," you returned softly, feeling him smile as he pressed a kiss to the side of your head.

It was silent between you two for a moment before you spoke again.

"Ryan," you murmured. He simply hummed in response, prompting you to continue. "Do you think you can wipe off that picture on my arm?" you asked, "I kind of have an interview in 5 minutes."

~

_what a title am i right lmao_

_inspiration: http://princess-tuna.tumblr.com/post/140598950943/let-gavin-free-soulmate-au-where-when-you-write_


	573. High Noon (Maxx Danziger) - Part 1

> _high noon (n.) - an event or confrontation which is likely to decide the final outcome of a situation_

 

"Is it just me or have we been driving  _forever_?"

When you received no answer to your question, you glanced over to the passenger seat. Your potted cactus was securely buckled in, staring straight ahead at the dashboard in front of it.

"You're right, Spike," you nodded, your eyes returning to the road, "We'll be in California soon enough – just a few more hours. I still think it's unfair you're making  _me_ do all of the driving though."

But another hour in – because this was your life and nothing could ever go according to  _plan_ – your car engine started making a noise you'd never heard before. Your eyes widened when it started smoking, immediately pulling off to the side of the road. You knew the basic red flags to look for when it came to cars smoking, so you knew you didn't need to abandon ship and get as far away as possible; You just didn't know what  _exactly_ had happened.

The inside of the car was silent for a moment. You looked over at Spike, hoping he'd offer some wisdom on the situation. After another few seconds, you nodded.

"You're right," you told the cactus, "I should see if it's something I can handle before I get worked up about it."

With that, you put the gear shift in park and hit the button for the hood so you could inspect the damage. You got out of the car and propped it open, immediately sending a puff of smoke toward your face. You coughed as you waved it away and were finally able to get a good look.

"Oh, Spike... I don't know if I can fix this one..." you grumbled to yourself upon seeing the actual engine itself was the one that had been blown out. "Cross-country was a lot to ask of you, huh, Leonardo?" you sighed, closing the hood and patting it, "Hopefully, we'll have you fixed in no time and you'll be good as new." You reached back into your car to grab your phone. "Excuse me, Spike," you carefully reached across the cactus, "Thanks for keeping me off this thing while I was driving."

You stood back upright outside of the car and unlocked your phone. And much to your dismay, you had absolutely  _no service_. You looked around and sawthere were nothing but open fields in either direction, and not another car in sight.

You groaned loudly, shoving your car door closed and practically throwing yourself onto your back in the grass in front of you. You covered your face with your hands and closed your eyes, trying to come up with your next plan of action.

But luckily, that plan of action would find  _you_ less than 10 minutes later.

"You ain't  _dead_ down there, are ya?" the sudden voice above you made you jump.

You pulled your hands down and looked over to find a man in a red flannel, blue jeans, cowboy boots, and a cowboy hat sitting on top of a horse, both of them watching you curiously. You snapped up to a sitting position, sucking in a breath.

"Hi!" you squeaked out, hurrying to get back on your feet.

"Hey there," he tipped his hat, "You alright out here?"

"You wouldn't happen to know anything about cars, would you?" you asked hopefully, "Or even have a spare engine lying around somewhere?"

" _Naw_ ," the man laughed, "My preferred transportation is right here-" He pat the horse's side, causing the animal to let out a pleased neigh.

"Well, do you know anyone who  _does_?" you frowned, "I was going to call someone, but I can't."

"Yeah, ain't much reception out here unless y'know where to look," he informed you, "Sure you've noticed by now, but you ain't exactly in the big city."

"May surprise you, but that's the  _first_ thing I noticed," you grumbled, blushing when it made him laugh loudly.

"I got a phone on up the road at my house if y'wanna use it," he offered, "Got the number for Larry the mechanic too."

"You're a  _lifesaver_ ," you breathed gratefully, "Uh..." You trailed off with furrowed eyebrows, but he must have just  _known_ what you were thinking.

"Name's Maxx," he told you with a bright smile, "And you?"

"Y/N," you replied shyly.

"Well, Y/N-" The sound of him saying your name made your head spin and your stomach do flips. "-hop on up here," he reached his hand down to you, "I'll take ya to the house."

"I hope you're not a  _serial killer_ ," you mentioned as you put your hand in his, making him laugh again. Maxx pulled you up so you were sitting behind him on the horse's back.

"Reckon I woulda done something to ya insteada askin' if you were okay," he mentioned. You let out a breath of amusement.

"Fair enough," you said, making him smile to himself before gently kicking the horse's sides. You squeaked softly as the horse went into a trot, your arms unintentionally flying around Maxx's waist to steady yourself.

"Gettin' comfortable back there?" you  _heard_ his smirk.

" _Warn a girl_  next time!" you insisted, loosening your grip but not letting go of him.

"Sorry," he chuckled, "Though I have to admit, I'm enjoyin' this."

"Don't get your hopes up, cowboy," you finally grinned, "You haven't seen me at my  _worst_ yet."

"Sure your worst ain't any less attractive, darlin'," he mentioned casually – and you were happy you were  _behind him_  so he couldn't see your blush.

Not even a minute later, you saw a two-story house come into view. It was a cute white house with a wrap-around porch and dark wood to accent it. 

"Is that your house?" you asked Maxx, to which he simply hummed in acknowledgement, "It's pretty."

"Thanks," he grinned, "My grandfather and old man built it when my sister and I were kids."

"Wouldn't have guessed that; It looks like it was just finished yesterday."

"They're very proud of it," he told you.

"As they should be," you nodded as Maxx came to a stop at the walkway to the porch.

"I gotta put Dolly here up in her stall; You can head on inside if ya want."

"Dolly?" you cocked an eyebrow.

"Give me a break; I was 5 when we got her!" he threw his hands up in surrender. You found yourself smiling as you shook your head.

"Thanks for the ride, Dolly," you told the horse, making her neigh happily again, before looking back at the cowboy, "See you inside." Maxx tipped his hat again and led the horse to the barn while you made your way up the path. 

However, you didn't even make it to the steps.

Once you were about halfway to the house, the front screen door flew open, revealing a man who appeared to be in his early or mid-60's, holding a shotgun that was pointing right at you.

"You better not be from the bank!" he hollered. You let out a short yelp, taking a step back, not answering. "You  _deaf_?!" he glared at you, "Are ya from the bank or not?!" You looked at him incredulously for a moment. 

" _No_...?" you finally answered.

"Sounds like somethin' someone from the  _bank_ would say!"

"I'm not from any bank!" you exclaimed, "My car broke down and Maxx said I could use the phone!"

" _Dad_!" you heard Maxx's voice behind you right before he was placing himself between you and the man you were arguing with, "What have I told ya about pointin' that  _damn_ gun at people?!"

"She's  _trespassin'_  on my property, boy!"

"I  _brought her_ here!" he insisted, "Y/N, this is my old man Cliff. Pop, this is Y/N. Her car broke down outside the ranch and she needs to use the phone." He just grumbled under his breath, still eyeing you carefully.

"I'm goin' down to the lake to yell at the fish," Cliff announced casually, setting the butt of the shotgun on the porch and leaning it up against the house before stomping away. You waited until he was out of earshot before speaking again.

"Did he say he was going to  _yell at fish_?" you asked, looking up at Maxx with furrowed eyebrows.

"As ya can see, he's pretty much harmless," Maxx told you, "That ol' thing is full of beanbags anyway-" He motioned to the weapon. "-Hurts like a bitch, but ain't gonna permanently damage ya."

"You know, that actually  _doesn't_ make me feel better at staring down the barrel of a gun," you said monotonously. He just chuckled again.

"C'mon," he waved his hand and began walking inside, "Phone's this way."

~

_im so excited for this series!!!!!!_

_i love maxx, i love cowboys, and i love the idea of cowboy maxx with that cute ass accent calling me darling and if iM GOING DOWN IM TAKING YOU ALL DOWN WITH ME_ _  
_

_inspiration: "Big Sky Country" on the Choices app_


	574. High Noon (Maxx Danziger) - Part 2

**One hour later**

After you had called Larry, he told you he'd be there as soon as he was finished with a current customer at his shop to take a look at your car. You headed back down the property – Maxx offered you another ride with Dolly, but you could use a relaxing walk after the morning you'd been through – and gathered up all your stuff while you waited.

Within the next 30 minutes, the mechanic finally arrived and gave you the news you were expecting – a blown engine. And you threw your head back and groaned when he told you that it would take a couple weeks for it to be fixed since he obviously didn't have an engine lying around that could go to your car and he had to order a new one. He said he'd call back with cost estimates later that evening, and you thanked him with a sigh before he left, towing the car with him.

You grabbed your suitcase and Spike and trudged back up the dirt road. Your shoulders were slumped as you went back inside the farmhouse, leaving your things at the door. You quickly found Maxx with the rest of his family in the kitchen, seeing him perk up when he noticed your presence.

"So what's the diagnosis, darlin'?" Maxx asked you, though he could tell it wasn't what you'd wanted to hear.

"Larry said the  _entire engine_ needs replaced and my car won't be fixed for at least another  _three weeks_ , so I guess I'm sticking around for a  _while_ ," you sighed, "Do you guys have any hotels or something around here?"

" _Naw_ ," Maxx's dad said, "They're all in the  _big_ city – 'bout an hour drive away."

"I'll drive ya if you want, Y/N," Jazzy, Maxx's sister whom you'd met upon entering the house the first time around, offered.

"Y'all, quit bein' ridiculous!" Maxx exclaimed, "She can stay with  _us_!"

"I don't want to overstep," you shook your head.

"Well, I wouldn't mind that," Cliff spoke up with a shrug, "Just got one rule: if you're gonna  _sleep here_ , you're gonna  _work here_."

"I can do that!" you nodded rapidly, "I don't know how much help I'll really be being from a city, but I'm a pretty fast learner. Thank you for letting me stay here." 

"Ready for your first lesson then?" Maxx asked, "I gotta go pick some apples from the orchard if ya wanna join me."

"My first lesson is  _picking apples_?" you laughed, "I  _think_ I can handle that."

"Follow me then, darlin'," he smiled at you, leading you back out of the house.

As you were walking with Maxx down the dirt road, you were looking around at the property. There was the house you'd just come out of on one side of the road, and a run-down looking red barn about 100 yards away on the other. Cows were roaming around a fenced-in area, horses were trotting around wherever they pleased, and a few chickens popped out from inside the barn.

When he noticed you being rather quiet, Maxx looked over his shoulder to find your eyes on the barn. He watched you for a moment – he thought it was kind of cute that you appeared to be experiencing all of this for the first time in your life – before he spoke.

"That over there's a pretty old lookin' thing, huh?" he asked, making you turn your head to look at him, "Older than my big sis and I, but still good at gettin' the job done."

"No, it's cute," you shook your head, "I like the worn-down look." Maxx couldn't hold back his chuckle.

"You and my pops have that in common then," he informed you, "He's sayin' there ain't no use in fixin' it up when it's already doin' just fine."

"Seems like a smart man," you nodded, "I don't like spending money where I don't have to either."

"Well, I think y'all are gonna get along in your stay then," he smiled again. You walked over a hill and were immediately met with a sea of brown, green, and red.

" _Wow_..." you trailed off, "You didn't tell me there was  _this much_..."

"Ya didn't  _ask_ ," he replied, laughing when you shoved his arm, "We like our apples 'round here."

You snorted softly, "I can tell."

"Aw, I swear it ain't that bad, darlin'," he said, "Only gotta pick enough for tonight's dessert."

"Let me guess:  _apple pie_."

"Y're catchin' on already," he winked, making you roll your eyes, "Y'ready to get started?"

"I'm certainly not a  _quitter_ ," you announced, marching over to one of the trees and reaching for an apple.

You picked the first few with no problem, but you quickly ran out of ones that were low enough for your reach. You stood up on your toes a couple times in an attempt to get them – even jumping for them as well – but nothing was working. And the amused noises coming from behind you weren't aiding in your efforts either.

"What are you doing?" you asked with a huff, crossing your arms as you turned toward Maxx, "Why aren't you helping?"

"I'm busy enjoyin' the show," he shrugged.

" _Maxx_!" you whined, making him laugh loudly.

"C'mon then, darlin'," he finally came over to you, "I'll give ya a lift."

Maxx stopped near the trunk of the tree, placing his hand on it for support as he knelt down. It was obvious what he was planning, so you climbed up on top of his shoulders before he stood back upright. You started wobbling lightly, prompting Maxx to hold his hand up for you to take. Once you steadied yourself, you were able to effortlessly pick the rest of the apples on the tree with your free hand.

"That's enough, darlin'," Maxx told you after you'd cleared the tree.

"That's all for one pie?" you furrowed your eyebrows, allowing him to see the look once he helped you back to the ground.

"Should be good for two," he nodded to himself as he picked the basket up, "I'm plannin' on takin' one to my friends tonight. Y're welcome to join me if ya want."

"Might as well meet people while I'm here," you sighed as you made your way back to the house.

"Aw, y're gonna have a great time, darlin'," he assured you, "Might not even wanna leave." He succeeded in getting a smile out of you as he opened the screen door, letting you inside first. "What do ya say to helpin' me out with these?" he asked, "Get your mind off'a everything."

"You want me to help you  _bake_?" you snorted, "I'm about as good at baking as I am picking places to break down in."

"Then I reckon y're gonna do just fine."

~

_inspiration: "Big Sky Country" on the Choices app_


	575. High Noon (Maxx Danziger) - Part 3

**Later that night**

"Howdy, y'all!" Maxx chirped, making the group you were approaching look over.

"Hey, Maxx!" they replied simultaneously with wide grins.

"Hope y'all don't mind, but I've brought my new friend Y/N with me tonight."

"'Course not!" the only girl in the group chirped, "Sure beats bein' the only one 'round you  _boys_ all the time!" She winked jokingly at you and you laughed, "C'mon over, Y/N! Join me on the girl's seat!" She patted the empty space on the log next to her, to which you happily obliged.

"Yet ya  _still_ choose to join us here every week," one of the boys shook his head, earning himself an eye roll. 

"Y/N, these are my friends-" Maxx interrupted the two as he sat down on a log by himself. "-Juliette, Dallas, and Curly," he motioned to each so you knew who was who, "Y'all, this is Y/N. Her car broke down outside the ranch and won't be fixed 'til next month, so she's gonna stick around for a while."

"Awesome!" Juliette cheered before tilting her head, "About ya stayin', not about your car."

"Much appreciated," you grinned.

"Not to take away from our new best friend, but is that  _food_ I see, Maxx?" Curly peeked over to the pie in Maxx's lap.

"Curly here's very food-driven," Dallas told you, "Ain't ever met a single soul that can get somethin' past him."

"He'd be very good in an apocalypse situation then," you shrugged, "Though, Maxx made me help bake it, so I can't promise it'll be  _edible_." The group laughed loudly. 

"Can't be anythin' worse than what he _normally_ gives us," Juliette replied.

"Ya better watch that mouth'a yours, Mendoza," Maxx said, but it was obvious he was trying not to smile, "Might not go so easy on ya in the pie bakin' contest this year."

"Oh, is  _that_ what you've been doin'?" she smirked, "Y'all Danzigers have been  _lettin'_  us win first prize?" You couldn't help but giggle again, making the cowboy look at you.

"What's so funny over there, darlin'?" he asked, "Better watch it if ya still want a place to stay."

"She stayin' with you while she's here?"

"Bad enough her car broke down, and now y're  _torturin'_ her?" Dallas mentioned, only making you laugh louder. 

"He's the first person I met out here," you told the group, "Wouldn't have agreed to the offer so soon if I knew there were  _better_ people around."

"Oh, is  _that_ how it's gonna be, darlin'?" Maxx returned, finally grinning when you shrugged innocently.

"Ya can stay at my house!" Juliette said, "'Course I think  _any of us_  would be better than ol' Maxx Danziger."

"Ya know, I really though y'all and I were friends," he pouted, glancing back at you when you giggled again.

"Thanks for the offers," you said, "But I think ' _ol' Maxx Danziger_ ' is pretty sweet and I'm gonna stick with him."

"Makin' it pretty obvious ya haven't known him that long there, Y/N," Curly joked, none of you noticing the light redness Maxx's cheeks were now sporting.

~

**Two hours later**

It was now just after 1am and you and Maxx were heading back to his house. You didn't want the night to end – you were honestly having the most fun you'd had in what felt like  _years_ – but it was obvious that you were all starting to get tired. You all said your goodbyes and that you'd see each other again later, and went off to your respective homes. There was a comfortable silence between you and Maxx as you listened to crickets chirp and fireflies light up around you, but it was broken once the farmhouse came into view.

"C'mere, darlin'," Maxx said, suddenly taking your elbow and leading you the opposite direction, "I wanna show ya somethin'."

" _But Maxx_ ," you whined, "I'm tired!"

"I know," he grinned slightly, "But I promise ya it'll be worth it."

Not even 10 seconds later, Maxx came to a stop on top of a hill. You looked around and saw the house, the barn, and the pastures, but you still didn't know why you were here –  _hadn't you seen all this stuff earlier that day?_

"Okay... Why did you want to show me the top of a  _hill_?" you asked. Maxx simply smiled, but didn't say anything – he just pointed up.

The moment you followed where his finger was pointing, you lost your breath. You'd never seen the sky as clear as it was,  _nor_ had you seen so many stars in your entire life. 

"Wow..." you murmured, more to yourself than to Maxx.

"Well?" he asked, "Worth not goin' to bed for jus' yet, darlin'?" You let out a soft laugh.

"I suppose," you admitted, "Definitely don't get to see stars like this back home."

"Maybe ya need to get away from the big city once in a while then."

"Yeah... Maybe I do..." you trailed off, not even noticing the way Maxx was looking at you as you continued staring up at the clear night sky above you.

A few minutes – and many  _yawns_ – later, you were back inside Maxx's house. You had to be quiet since Cliff and Jazzy were obviously already sleeping, but once you got to the attic bedroom you'd been staying in, you could speak freely.

"Thanks for letting me meet your friends, Maxx," you told him, "I had a lot of fun."

"I'm glad y'all get along," he smiled, "Y're prob'ly gonna be seein' a lot more of each other this month."

"Well, I can honestly say I look forward to it," you grinned as well. You noticed Maxx glance down at the suitcases on the floor, but he spoke before you could say anything.

"Need any help puttin' y'r stuff away, darlin'?"

"You don't have to do that, Maxx," you assured him, "I was planning on keeping it all in my suitcases anyway."

"If ya were stayin' overnight, I reckon I'd accept that," he nodded, "But y're gonna be here for a few weeks; Don't need to be livin' out of a suitcase the whole time."

"I don't have that much either way. It really won't take more than a couple minutes to put it all up."

"Sooner ya get it done, sooner ya can go to sleep." You gave him a tired grin as he effortlessly hoisted both suitcases onto the bed.

"Is that how this month is going to go?" you asked him, earning yourself a playful nudge.

"Only if ya keep fightin' me on it, darlin'," he told you.

"Well, I'll just put my clothes away then, and you can do that bag?" you said with a questioning tone. The cowboy simply nodded, unzipping the suitcase in front of him while you picked the other up and went over to the dresser. "Just be careful; Spike is in that one," you warned him.

Almost 10 seconds later, you heard a deep yelp coming from Maxx. You perked up, looking over yet again to find him holding his index finger in his other hand.

"Told you to be careful," you giggled, realizing what had happened. Since you were done putting your clothes away, you brought the suitcase back to the bed, pushed it underneath to get it out of the way, and reached over to pull your potted cactus out of the box you'd put it in to keep it and your other belongings safe.

"Spike is a  _cactus_?" Maxx cocked an eyebrow at you, "Ya  _named_ y'r cactus?"

"So what?  _You_ named your  _horse_."

"Dolly's an  _animal_ , darlin'; Y're cactus is a  _plant_."

"Animals grow just the same as plants do," you shrugged again, "Why are they less deserving of a name?"

"You are  _one_ strange thing, ya know that?" he mentioned, "And I'm countin' all the  _other folk_ I've met from the big cities." You gently slapped his chest with the back of your hand, heading over to the window sill to put Spike in his new month-long home.

"You leave Spike alone," you replied with a teasing tone in your voice, "He's the only man that's never wronged me."

"Only man that's never wronged ya  _so far_ ," Maxx grinned. 

~

_inspiration: "Big Sky Country" on the Choices app_


	576. High Noon (Maxx Danziger) - Part 4

**Three weeks later**

" _Alright_!" you exclaimed with a huff, " _Where are my keys_?!"

Larry the mechanic had finished replacing the engine in your car and – after a pretty hefty bill that caused you to nearly pass out – you were finally ready to get back on the road... Well, if only you could find your  _stupid keys_  first.

"Oh," you heard Maxx say behind you, "You mean  _these_ ol' things?" You spun around to find the cowboy dangling the keychain on the tip of his index finger, a small smirk on his face.

" _Maxx_ ," you narrowed your eyes at him, " _Give them back_."

"Not 'til ya agree to wait to leave 'til  _tomorrow_ instead."

"If you don't want me to go, you can just say so," you shook your head, "You don't have to be  _dramatic_ about it."

"I just think ya should experience a  _proper_ country fair before headin' off to the beach and layin' in the sand all day," he said.

"Palm Springs is two hours away from any beach," you rolled your eyes, "And I'm gonna be swamped with grading papers anyway; I'm not gonna have  _time_ to lay on a beach all day. And what's there to do at a fair  _anyway_?"

"Y'never even been to a  _fair_?" Maxx's eyes widened slightly.

"Not since I was a  _kid_ ," you replied, "It's not that fun as an  _adult_."

"Well, it  _sure is_ still fun as an adult 'round  _here_!" he chirped, "Rides, games, food, rodeos..."

" _Rodeos_?" you cocked an eyebrow.

"Y'ain't in the big city anymore, y'know," he grinned, "Y're in the country now."

"Do you do that then?" you wondered, "Are you in the rodeos?"

"I been thinkin' about saddlin' back up for this one," he shrugged, "Might be a bit rusty though."

"Why's that?"

"Been a few years since I last done it."

"Why? Do you not like it?"

"Naw, I  _love_ it," he shook his head, "But between helpin' my pop on the ranch and doin' stuff for people 'round town, I haven't had time for much of anythin' else."

"There's nothing wrong with taking time for yourself once in a while."

"I know," he chuckled, "But I like helpin' out too. So what d'ya say, darlin'? Care to join me?" 

"Well, since you're not going to give my keys back until I agree, I don't really think I have much of a choice, do I?" you rolled your eyes, earning a bright smile.

"Naw, y'don't!" 

~

**Two hours later**

Upon arriving at the fairgrounds, Maxx gave you a quick tour of the place so you knew what there was to do before asking what caught your eye. You were overwhelmed by just how many things were going on the you froze for a moment. Maxx watched you with a small smile on his face before speaking.

"How 'bout ya start out with somethin' as  _country_ as ya can get?" he suggested.

"What's that?" you asked.

"Square dancin'!" 

"You square dance at the fair?" you cocked an eyebrow.

"I reckon Boston's got their traditions too," he shrugged, "So how 'bout it?"

"Maxx, I don't even know  _how_ to square dance," you shook your head.

"It's  _real_ easy," he promised, "C'mon, I'll show ya." 

Maxx grabbed your hand and brought you over to the tent where the music was playing. He stopped along the edge so little attention would be on the two of you and started your lesson.

He spent a little while teaching you the basic moves before you just jumped into a group. You got the hang of it fairly quickly, so you and Maxx found a group and started dancing with them. You were surprisingly having a lot of fun and, before you knew it, you were worn out.

Maxx took you out of the tent and brought you to a random picnic table for you to rest. He had you sit down, but didn't sit with you. You were breathing heavily, and it must have worried him.

"I'll go get ya a drink, darlin'," he said, "What d'ya want?"

"Just water is fine," you barely smiled, "Thanks, Maxx." He tipped his hat to you and jogged to a nearby food stand, disappearing from your line of sight. 

You sighed in content – as much as you loved spending time with Maxx, you still enjoyed your alone time. Unfortunately though, it didn't last for more than 10 seconds.

"Who are  _you_?" a girl sneered, making you raise your eyebrows as you looked up to see that she, indeed, was talking to you.

"I'm Y/N," you smiled politely. You held your hand out for her to shake, but she just stared at it with a disgusted look on her face.

"So y're the  _harlot_ I been hearin' 'bout," she rolled her eyes. You were taken aback by the statement this  _stranger_ made to you.

" _Excuse me_?" you asked, only earning another eye roll.

"I don't know who ya think ya are, but I  _know_ ya ain't comin' into  _my_ town and stealin'  _my_ future husband."

"I- Are you talking about  _Maxx_?"

"He's  _mine_ , ya hear me?" she growled, "Y'just  _stay away_  from him."

"I'm not stealing  _anyone's_ ' _future husband_ '," you snorted, "Maxx wanted me to square dance, I said I didn't know how, he offered to teach me – that's all." The girl opened her mouth again, but you quickly cut her off. "It was lovely meeting you, but I have to go  _literally anywhere else_  now. Enjoy the fair!" you smiled sweetly before getting up and hastily walking away. 

You went in the direction you saw Maxx walk, happy when you turned a corner and found him already making his way back to where you were supposed to be. He seemed surprised to see you, but smiled anyway.

"Hey, darlin'," he greeted you, handing you a bottle of water, "What're ya doin' up?"

"Got tired of sitting; Needed to stretch my legs," you shrugged off the encounter, "Thanks for the drink."

"No problem, darlin'," he assured you, "So what d'ya wanna do now? I could show ya the rodeo arena if ya want."

"That sounds good," you nodded, and he began leading you that way. "So what is it with small towns and rodeos?" you asked him.

"Reckon it's just the  _thrill_ of it," Maxx shrugged his shoulders, "Not many people are made for ridin' wild animals."

"They're  _wild animals_?" you wondered, "Isn't that...you know... _dangerous_?"

"Only if ya don't know what y're doin'," Maxx replied, "Why, darlin'? Worried about me?" He had a small smirk on his face, making you roll your eyes.

"Said yourself you're a little  _rusty_ ," you fired back without hesitation, "Wouldn't want you  _embarrassing yourself_ in front of everyone –  _especially_  all these pretty girls."

"Soundin' to me like y're  _jealous_."

You put your hands up in surrender and shook your head, "Hey, I'm completely fine with knowing a city girl like me has no business trying to come in between a country girl and her future husband  _or whatever_."

"Someone callin' me their  _future husband_?" Maxx cocked an eyebrow, " _Who_?"

"Don't know her name," you shrugged, "Not my place to come into someone else's territory and start asking questions."

"Well, what's she look like?"

"I didn't exactly stick around to memorize any identifying characteristics," you deadpanned, "I wasn't about to spend more time around her than I  _had to._ "

"Then what was she  _wearin'_?"

You cocked an eyebrow, "You'd know who it was by what they were  _wearing_?"

"Lotta people don't really care too much about ' _fashion_ ' or whatever," he shrugged himself, "Not really a point in carin' when it's gonna be gettin' dirty anyway. Most people just wear the same pairs of jeans and boots, and the same shirt in different colors."

"Uh... Pink plaid shirt, shorts that looked like she bleached them herself, pink cowboy boots," you said, immediately earning a small groan from Maxx.

" _Kayleigh_ ," he grumbled, more to himself than to you.

"Huh?" you furrowed your eyebrows, not having heard him.

"Kayleigh Olsen," he sighed, "She had a thing for me in high school and still hasn't accepted that I ain't interested. Been seven years and she's  _still_ tryin' to ruin my life." The loud laugh you let out took Maxx by surprise.

"Is that one of the tropes of small-town life then?" you wondered, "'Cause I can't imagine being so hung up on a guy I had a crush on  _eight years ago_  when he already made it clear he didn't want me that I would go  _out of my way_  to make sure no other girls got too close to him – and  _especially_  not someone who wouldn't even be around long enough to really  _start_  a relationship."

"Well, you're a rational thinkin' person, darlin'," he chuckled at your outburst, " _She ain't_."

"You know, I only talked to her for 5 minutes, but I don't doubt that for a  _second_." 

~

**An hour later**

You and Maxx played some of the games for a while – neither of you won anything – and met up with Dallas, Juliette, and Curly to get something to eat before going your separate ways again. You decided to get an ice cream cone after a few minutes of walking around again. As you were finishing up your desserts and throwing them away, someone approached you.

"Maxx!" a voice behind you called out, making you both turn around to see who it was.

You'd already met Asha a few times before when you went with Jazzy to pick up some things from the general store in town, and you weren't at all surprised to find that she was carrying a clipboard and wearing a headset, running things at the county fair too.

"Howdy, Asha!" Maxx chirped, "What can I do for ya?"

"The team that was supposed to set up the tent for the pie contest never showed," she exhaled sharply, clearly stressed out, "It startin' in an hour, and I was hopin' ya could help out."

"Well, I would love to, but I'm showin' Y/N around," he said, "I don't wanna leave-"

"It's okay, Maxx," you interrupted him, "I'll just walk around some more."

"Ya don't wanna come with? Y' _sure_  you'll be alright then?"

" _Yes_! Now go!" you laughed, nudging him, "Where else is she gonna find a  _big, strong man_  to help her?"

"Ha, ha, ha, very funny, darlin'," he rolled his eyes, only earning an innocent smile as he turned and went with Asha.

Not long later, you found yourself watching people playing at the ring toss booth. You'd just gotten off the merry-go-round – you were never too old for it in your opinion – and were killing more time before you went to go find Maxx again. After one of the kids excitedly picked out their prize for winning ring toss, you turned to walk away, only to nearly run right into someone.

"What's a pretty girl like you doin' all by y'rself?" the man asked.

The look he was giving you gave you the creeps, and you were left a bit speechless. He stepped forward but you stepped back, not wanting him any closer than he already was. Unfortunately, he didn't take the hint.

"Don't think I've seen ya 'round here before," he said, "What brings ya to Montana?"

"Car troubles..." you finally found your voice – you still didn't want to be  _rude_.

"Car break down  _right_ outside the county fair?" he chuckled, "Well, I don't know much 'bout cars, but I can get you a discount as pretty as  _you_ with the local mechanic if ya want."

"In exchange for  _what_?" you asked, knowing that's what this was leading up to anyway.

"I'll take you out after I win the rodeo tonight," he winked. He stepped toward you again, prompting you to move back and bump right into someone.

"Who says y're  _goin'_ to win, Mulligan?" you let out a soft sigh of relief when you heard the familiar voice.

Taking note of your body language and how visibly uncomfortable you looked, Maxx took your arm and moved you behind him, placing himself between you and the man who had been flirting with you for the last two minutes. He felt you grip the bottom of his shirt, pressing your front to his back shyly, while you felt his fingers find the skin beneath the bottom hem of your shorts to rub comfortingly.

"You two know each other?" the man cocked an eyebrow – though, it didn't sound like a  _question_ as much as a  _statement_.

"Y/N, this is Dick Mulligan," Maxx said, not even bothering to answer him, " _Son_ of a 10-time rodeo winner, and resident  _pain in my ass_."

"Never knew ya thought so  _highly_ of me, Danziger," he sighed obnoxiously, placing his hand over his heart.

"Don't  _flatter_ yourself, Mulligan," he growled.

"Well, I best be restin' up so I can prepare for my  _big win_ ," Dick turned his gaze back to you. The way he was looking at you made you feel queasy, subconsciously pushing yourself closer to Maxx to feel better. "I'll come find you and give you a ride to the after party, pretty girl," he winked before strutting in the opposite direction.

"I don't like him..." you murmured when the cowboy was out of earshot.

"You and me  _both_ , darlin'," he grumbled as well, "Thinks he's a hotshot 'cause'a who his  _daddy_ is and goes 'round flirtin' with anythin' that  _breathes_." You looked up at him for a moment, the corner of your mouth twitching upward slightly.

"Are you  _jealous_?" you couldn't help but smirk in the way  _he_ had earlier.

"Ain't nothin' to gain from pretendin' I  _wasn't_ ," he replied. He then chuckled softly at the surprised look on your face – you didn't know what you  _expected_ him to say, but that  _wasn't_ it. "Say, darlin' – how are ya with heights?" he asked randomly.

" _Why_?" you furrowed your eyebrows.

"I still got some time to kill before the rodeo," he shrugged, "So I was thinkin' you and me could go on the Ferris wheel." You had a weary look on your face, making him grin gently. "Wouldn't be mad if ya needed to hold my hand," he mentioned, "So what d'ya say, darlin'?"

"Why do I not find that  _entirely_ surprising?" you scoffed, making Maxx smiled at you before grabbing your hand and pulling you toward the Ferris wheel.

~

_inspiration: "Big Sky Country" on the Choices app_


	577. High Noon (Maxx Danziger) - Part 5

**Two hours later**

After you and Maxx went on all the rides you'd wanted to and played most of the rigged carnival games, you made your way to the rodeo arena. Maxx seemed to walk with a confident swagger – you, on the other hand,  _not so much_. You didn't know  _why_ you were so nervous – you'd never seen Maxx ride, let alone ever even  _been_ to a rodeo before – but your steps were timid and nervous.

"Y'know, I'm gonna be fine, darlin'," Maxx squeezed your hand –  _when did he even grab your hand again?_  – and smiled at you, "Been doin' this since I was old enough to get on on'a these things by myself. 'Sides, I got my good luck charm with me today."

"What's your good luck charm?" you asked him.

" _You_ ," he smiled a little bigger. You felt your face get hot as he led you to the stands.

Maxx had you sit right up front, sitting with you for a few minutes until his dad, sister, and a couple of his friends showed up. You all talked for a bit until Maxx had to head to the stables to get ready for the competition.

Without really even thinking, he pressed a brief kiss to your temple before trotting off, honestly leaving you breathless. His sister looked at you with a knowing grin on her face, but if anyone else noticed, they didn't said anything about it.

~

**20 minutes later**

"Ain't no surprise _Dick's_  goin' first," Dallas mentioned as you all watched the cowboy climb on top of the already irritated horse. You grumbled softly, not even realizing anyone heard it until you heard Jazzy laugh.

"You meet Dick today?" she asked.

"Briefly," you replied softly, "He's a... _character_. That's for sure."

"Ya ain't wrong on that one," Juliette snickered.

"So, uh... This may come as a surprise to all of you, but I have  _no idea_  what's going on," you shook your head, earning a laugh from everybody.

"Well, riders're scored based on how well they hold onto the horses and how high'a score the horse itself gets," Dallas explained.

"The  _horses_ are scored too? On  _what_?"

"How tough they are to ride. The harder they kick, the higher their score."

"How long does Maxx have to stay on?"

"8 seconds!" Juliette chimed in.

"That doesn't seem  _that_ bad..." you trailed off.

"Feels like a lot longer when y're actually _ridin'_  one of them things," Cliff added.

"Has he ever fallen off?"

" _'Course_  he has," he nodded, "Ain't that good'a horse if they ain't throwin' ya off of 'em. But he's always gettin' back up and doin' it again." Though, to be honest, you weren't sure that made you feel any  _better_.

You turned your attention back to the arena when a loud buzzer went off. The gate flew open and the horse ran out, doing everything it could to get Dick off of its back. 

The cowboy held on for the entire 8 seconds until the buzzer sounded again. He jumped off and hurried to the sidelines, his eyes trained on the scoreboard until it flashed with an ' _89_ '.

"An 89 is  _good_ , isn't it?" you asked softly in the midst of Dick's obnoxious cheers,  _hoping_ you were wrong but  _knowing_ you weren't.

" _Too_ good," Cliff huffed.

"Puts him in first," Jazzy said nervously. No one else added anything as you noticed Dick coming over to where you were seated.

"Hey, pretty girl," he winked at you, "Looks like  _I'm_ in first."

"Only because ya were the first to  _ride_ ," Juliette mentioned. He rolled his eyes but didn't acknowledge her with a glance, instead keeping his gaze on you.

"I won't keep ya from watchin' your first rodeo, so how about I wait for ya outside the front gates later and I can take ya home with me to celebrate?"

"Only going home with  _one_ cowboy tonight and he has yet to go out there and kick your ass," you stated dryly, hearing the group snort softly in amusement.

"I'd like to see him  _try_ ," Dick laughed loudly.

"Good thing he's up next then," Jazzy said, directing all of your attention back to the arena.

Maxx was seated on top of a dark grey horse, holding on as it was getting more and more upset. He looked over and noticed Dick standing in front of you, cocking an eyebrow. But when his eyes met yours and you gave him a small nod, he winked back at you. You bit back a smile as the buzzer sounded and the gate opened.

"Is this horse tough?" you asked, the question more aimed toward Dallas than anyone else.

"Ain't been named Hurricane for  _nothin',_ " he confirmed.

The horse was bucking and kicking and thrashing – anything to get Maxx off of it. Unfortunately for the horse, however, he held on tightly until the buzzer sounded again.

The horse was still fighting wildly as Maxx jumped back onto the ground. He hurried to get to the sidelines, but you noticed him stumble slightly. He didn't seem bothered though, so you shook it off and simply awaited his score.

Your leg was bouncing up and down and the group held their breaths in anticipation. It seemed like it took ages for the judges to decide, but when they did, you nearly screamed: _90_.

" _What_?!" Dick shouted in disbelief. You squealed happily while everyone else cheered.

" _Hell yeah_!" Juliette hollered.

" _That's my boy_!" Cliff yelled proudly, throwing his fist into the air in celebration. Dallas and Jazzy simply clapped with bright smiles on their faces.

You then watched Maxx hop over the fence and hurry toward the group. You didn't know what prompted you to stand up, but you did just before he reached you.

The moment you were on your feet and Maxx was in front of you, his arms were around your waist. He lifted you off of the ground slightly, hugging you as tightly as he could without hurting you. Your own arms were around his neck, your face pressed to his skin to let him feel just how big your smile was.

"I'm so  _proud_ of you!" you told him, feeling him smile into your shoulder as well.

"This is  _rigged_!" Dick exclaimed angrily, "There  _ain't no way_..." He trailed off as he stomped away, making Maxx chuckle.

"Better luck  _next year_ , Mulligan!" he called after him, his voice slightly muffled by your shirt.

"This calls for a celebration!" Cliff announced.

"I didn't win  _yet_ , Pop," Maxx chuckled, finally returning you to the ground, "Still got a few riders to go."

"Ya beat  _Mr. Show-off_ ," Juliette shook her head, "That's enough'a cause for celebration in  _my_ book."

"I reckon I'm with Juliette on this one," Dallas agreed.

"Me too!" Jazzy chirped.

"I'm always down for a party," you shrugged.

"It's settled then!" Cliff beamed.

~

After the rodeo was over, you and your new friends went out to celebrate. Maxx ended up winning the whole thing – no one else even came  _close_ to getting a 90 – and he was obviously  _over the moon_. You didn't know if this was his first win ever, but after getting to know everyone over the past couple weeks, you honestly wouldn't be surprised if it was the  _hundredth_ either.

The celebration came to an end and you, Maxx, Jazzy, and their father said goodbye to Dallas and Juliette before going back to the ranch. You went upstairs to change into sweatpants and a t-shirt, getting into something more comfy to wind down from the eventful day you'd had. You went back downstairs to find the family beginning to cook dinner, so you helped out where you could.

After dinner, you all sat around the table talking when Maxx suddenly decided to excuse himself. He headed out the front door, and you couldn't shake the feeling that something was up with him, so you excused yourself as well. You followed him to find him sitting on the porch steps, looking up at the stars in the sky.

"Hey, Maxx," you said softly, closing the door behind you. Maxx jumped lightly, jerking his hand away from his stomach as if he didn't want you to see what he'd been doing.

"Hey, darlin'," he looked up at you, trying to ignore the suspicious look on your face.

"What are you doing?"

"Jus' lookin' at the sky; Sure is pretty night tonight, ain't it?" he said reassuringly – it just wasn't reassuring  _enough_.

"Why were you holding your stomach like that just now?" you questioned.

"Hmm?" he hummed, "Ah, nothin' – jus' had a big dinner." Unfortunately for him though, you knew he was lying.

You grabbed Maxx's arm and pulled it away from his body, lifting up his shirt before he had a chance to object. Your eyes widened at the giant purple bruise on his side, spanning from his hip to the lower part of his rib cage.

"Maxx, you're  _hurt_!" you squeaked, "You got  _kicked_ by that horse,  _didn't you_?!"

"Nothin' I ain't used to," he tried to reassure you – but you weren't having  _any of it_.

"What is  _wrong_ with you?" you glared at him before dropping his shirt and readjusting your grip on his arm so you could pull him back inside the house, "You can't just  _leave that_  without taking care of it!"

"Didn't know y'cared  _that much_ , darlin'," he chuckled.

Upon reaching his bedroom, you ordered Maxx to sit on his bed while you retrieved the first aid kit from the bathroom down the hall. When you came back, you put the first aid kit on the nightstand and opened it.

"Take your shirt off," you stated, grabbing the alcohol wipes and a wrap-around bandage.

"Y'know, there are  _less painful_  ways'a gettin' me outta my clothes," Maxx snickered, not even earning a little twitch from you. "Aw, come on, darlin'," he said, taking off the item of clothing anyway, "That usually woulda gotten a  _little_ smile out'a ya."

"Would've if I weren't  _mad_ at you," you grumbled.

"Y'know I didn't  _not_ tell ya just to make ya upset, darlin'," he assured you, "Woulda if I knew ya cared so much."

"Why wouldn't I have  _cared_?" you glanced at him briefly before getting to work.

"I dunno," he shrugged, shivering slightly when you put the cold alcohol wipe on his skin, "Haven't known me too long, I s'pose."

"Known you long enough to  _care about you_ ," you mumbled, unable to ignore the smile on Maxx's face as you tossed the wipe in the trash and began wrapping the bandage around his torso. When you were done, you tore a piece of tape and looked back at him. "S'not too tight, is it?" you asked softly. Maxx simply shook his head and you taped the bandage in place.

"Thanks, darlin'," he said, throwing himself back onto his mattress, "Feelin' like a new man already." You couldn't help but giggle softly, but let it fade out.

"Are you  _sure_ you're okay?" you asked him skeptically. Maxx took your hand in his and squeezed it.

"Positive, darlin'," he replied, "But if y'don't believe me, y'could always stay with me 'til I fall asleep."

"Making excuses to spend more time with me now?" you teased, making him grin affectionately.

"Only if it's  _workin'_ ," he told you. You smiled softly as well, running your thumb back and forth on his knuckles.

"It  _might_ be," you informed him.

"Not gonna have ya just  _standin' there_  then," he insisted, patting the open space on the bed beside him.

Without ever letting go of his hand, you climbed over him and made yourself comfortable up against the headboard. Maxx made a move to sit up with you, but you put your free hand on his shoulder, forcing him to stay put.

"How are you supposed to sleep if you're sitting up?" you reminded him, earning another soft chuckle.

"Gonna hurt my neck tryin' to look up at ya," he said, "Maybe y'should jus' lay down instead." You found yourself fighting back a smile.

"Wouldn't want you hurting your neck," you hummed. You slid down until your head was on the pillow beside his, your outer arms pressed together. "Better?" you asked him, giving him a knowing grin.

" _Much_ better, darlin'," he smiled back, squeezing the hand still holding his.

The two of you talked for a while before Maxx noticed your eyes start fighting to stay open. He didn't  _want_ you to leave, but he could tell the events of the day had finally caught up to you and you were exhausted.

"Hey, darlin'," Maxx murmured to get your attention. When you looked at him, he slid his arm under your neck and brought you into him so he could hug you. "Y'should be gettin' to bed," he told you. Your head found his chest as you got comfortable again.

"Do I  _have_ to?" you asked, your voice barely coming out. The bluntness of the question surprised him.

"S'pose ya don't  _have to_  if ya don't  _want to_ , darlin'," he replied softly, his heart skipping a beat when he felt you smile against his skin.

" _Don't_ ," you whispered, pushing yourself closer to him. Maxx hummed in content.

"Then I guess y're sleepin' here tonight," he tightened his hold on you – and if he didn't know any better, he could have  _sworn_ you pressed a kiss to his collarbone.

~

_inspiration: "Big Sky Country" on the Choices app_


	578. Shot of Truth (Ashton Irwin)

_happy annual birthday imagine!!!!!! i will accept gifts in the form of liking/commenting and sharing it with ur ashton stan friends!!!!!!!_

_u cant tell but im posting this at 7:12 bc thats the time i was born and im extra as hell lmao_

~

"Hey, uh... Y/N...?" 

The voice behind you made you freeze, and you  _really_ didn't want to turn around – you knew who that voice belonged to. You slowly finished pushing the book in your hand onto the shelf, giving yourself a mental pep talk while doing so. You then took a subtle, deep breath and turned to face the man wanting your attention.

"Hi, Ashton," you managed to get out without tripping over your words – something you were grateful for considering this was your  _ex-boyfriend_.

"I noticed you work here now... Been meaning to stop in..." he said, "Wanted to...talk..."

"Oh..." you trailed off, "About what...?"

"Well..." he cleared his throat, "I know you remember my... _reputation_...around town..."

"Hard to forget a rep like  _yours_ , Ashton," you reminded him as you went back to re-shelving books, making him let out a breathy chuckle.

"Yeah... Well, I've been thinking for a while... And I've only had the time to come in and ask about it  _now_ , but... You know you've got two years worth of dirt on me..."

"Okay..." you furrowed your eyebrows, "What do you mean?"

"Well, I would have thought you'd parade around town, telling everyone all the embarrassing stuff about me, I guess," Ashton mentioned.

"Why would I do that?" you returned, glancing up at him briefly.

"To ruin my reputation?" he said with a questioning tone as if you should already know.

"What do  _I_  gain from that?" you wondered.

"Knowing no one would ever take me seriously again?"

"Doesn't sound like much of a  _gain_ to me," you shrugged. Ashton simply stared at you in awe.

You had all this information on him – all these secrets that could be used to absolutely  _ruin him_  and cause him to be the laughing stock of the  _whole city_  – but you  _weren't_ using it against him; You weren't telling everyone he liked watching  _Spongebob_ while eating cereal in the mornings or that he enjoyed playing  _Pokemon_ while lying in bed or that he whined to go out for ice cream after he'd just been to the doctor or that he blushed whenever you complimented him in some way...

No, you weren't doing  _any_ of that... You were just living your life the way you had been before he came into it, going through each day with the same amount of reckless optimism you always had.

And he didn't understand it  _at all_.

He didn't understand how you could be so  _positive_ in life. He didn't understand how you were always smiling and laughing and in such a good mood whenever he passed the store. And he  _certainly_ didn't understand how you could be so content without him when  _all he did_  was think about you.

"Well, I... Uh..." Ashton cleared his throat lightly, "Thanks for...you know... _not doing that to me_  or whatever..."

You nodded in response, moving on to the next stack of books that needed to be put in their spots. He looked at you for a moment before sighing and walking back out of the store.

"I miss you too, Y/N," he grumbled to himself, not even realizing you'd  _heard it_  and looked over your shoulder to watch him leave.

~

**Three months later**

Ashton started coming into the shop more regularly after that. Sometimes he would browse through the shelves and sometimes he could be found at one of the tables reading, but one thing always remained the same: the two of you would never speak. Ashton would nod at you whenever he came through the door and left the shop, but he would never speak to you.

That wasn't to say he didn't  _want to_  though.

You would catch him open and close his mouth several times as you walked by him, but he never gained enough courage to actually say anything. You never knew  _Ashton_ to be one to be scared of saying what was on his mind, so whenever he acted like this, it understandably confused you.

Although, when he came in with one of his friends one day, you finally put the pieces together.

You were sure he hadn't meant for you to overhear his conversation, but you  _did_. Ashton and his friend were looking at the CD section and you happened to be stocking a shelf nearby. You hadn't really been listening, to be honest, but you started to when you heard your name.

Ashton told his friend that he missed you and, even if it didn't lead back to something serious, he just wanted to at least be  _friends_ with you again. He said he just didn't know how to ask since you seemed so  _happy_ without him. You blanked out from their conversation after that, quickly finishing with your job before going somewhere else so they wouldn't know you'd heard. 

Of all the scenarios in your head that had played out about Ashton, you never imagined that he'd want to get back together – especially since  _he'd_ been the one to break up with  _you_. And you didn't understand how it seemed like he thought you were happy  _either_. You felt like you were always sulking around the store, and even  _more so_  after he started coming into the store  _regularly_ , just because it reminded you of what  _used to be_  with him. But now that you knew he missed you and all you'd been doing was thinking about him, you knew you had to come up with something to prove him wrong.

You had to come up with something to show him you still cared.

~

**One week later**

After a week of brainstorming, you finally came up with the perfect solution.

You were never good with talking about your feelings, and to be honest, neither was Ashton. You obviously knew he loved music more than  _almost everything else_  in his life, so you decided you'd communicate your thoughts to him via songs. You spent the entire previous night going through your music library to find songs that reminded you of how you currently felt about Ashton, then narrowed it down to six and burned them onto a blank CD.

The next morning, you made sure the CD was in your bag – you checked about  _50 times_  before walking out the door – and just waited,  _hoping and_   _praying_ , Ashton would come in that day. And he did.

He stayed at the store for his usual time of an hour. This time, he decided to actually buy a book though, and that was when you decided to execute your plan.

As Ashton made his way to the checkout counter, you quickly scurried to the back room. You came back out with a CD and a piece of masking tape, sneaking to the front door and taping it above the handle so Ashton would see it as he was leaving.

By the time Ashton was finished checking out, you had already disappeared to some other part of the store. His expression fell slightly when he couldn't find you, and he sluggishly walked toward the exit.

He obviously immediately noticed the CD case, but didn't think much of it at first. What finally caught his eye about it, however, was the fact that the piece of paper stuck in where the booklet was meant to go was in  _your handwriting_  and he knew by what was written on it that it was meant for  _him_.

_This is everything I didn't say_

Ashton looked over his shoulder for you again, but didn't find you. He hummed to himself as he took the CD off of the glass and exited the store, heading home.

The second he closed his front door behind him, Ashton was hurrying into his bedroom and grabbing his old CD player from the back of his closet. You hadn't left a list of songs, so he didn't know what to expect as he hit the play button. Though, he wasn't sure he would have expected  _these songs_  at all.

 _Thunder- Boys Like Girls_  
_Back to December- Taylor Swift_  
_Into Your Arms- The Maine_  
_Medicate- Gabbie Hanna_  
_A Little Too Not Over You- David Archuleta_

As the outro of the 5th song played, Ashton realized he was struggling to hold himself together, but the last song –  _his song_...  _That_ was what broke him.

_Ghost of You- 5 Seconds of Summer_


	579. High Noon (Maxx Danziger) - Part 6

**The next morning**

"Mornin', pretty girl," you heard Maxx's gravely voice as soon as you woke up, making you smile. 

"Like when you call me ' _darling_ ' better," you hummed tiredly. Maxx chuckled softly, his fingers running through your hair. 

"Think I can manage that, darlin'," he said, pressing a kiss to your forehead. He could feel you falling back asleep and, as much as he didn't want to, he knew he had to make sure you stayed awake. "Don't be goin' back to sleep, darlin'," he murmured gently, "S'almost 10."

"Too  _early_ ," you pouted, making him laugh again.

"Days normally start at  _sunrise_  here on the farm," he reminded you of your past month's stay, "Y'should be considerin' y'rself  _lucky_  Pop let us sleep in this mornin'."

"Thought he was just being nice since you won the rodeo last night."

"Maybe," he breathed out in amusement, "S'pose I better enjoy it while I can."

"But it's probably getting me ready to wake up early for school."

"Yeah..." Maxx trailed off, "Y'should be gettin' ready to hit the road again then, huh...?" You felt your heart sink at now remembering this was just an  _unplanned stop_  on the way to California.

"I guess so..." you whispered.

"Y'know... Y'don't  _have_ to leave..." You tilted your head to look at him as he cleared his throat. "Been nice havin' someone else 'round..." he admitted, "Gets kinda repetitive with it jus' bein' my old man and my sister... Guess ya bein' here made things more excitin'... N'schools 'round here're  _always_ lookin' for more teachers..." You smiled sadly, reaching up and pushing his hair away from his eyes. The gesture made him sigh and swallow thickly. "But I know ya can't," he said, "I know y're needed there."

"If you ever find yourself in California, I wouldn't mind sharing a bed with you again," you told him, making him laugh. The arm that was around your shoulders squeezed you gently as he pressed a kiss to your forehead.

"Wouldn't mind that either, darlin'," he assured you.

~

**Maxx's POV; Eight hours later**

The family had just sat down for dinner, a somber feeling in the air. You'd only left eight hours ago, but it felt like an eternity without you for Maxx. He went about his daily chores without the same spring in his step he usually did, and by the time dinner rolled around, he wasn't much chipper either. 

"Alright, you kids!" Cliff announced as he sat down with Maxx and Jazzy at the dinner table, "It's 'bout time to fill up those stomachs! Y'all had a rough day, and this is just the thing to turn those moods right 'round!"

"Thanks for tryin', Dad," Jazzy chuckled, "But the only thing that's turnin' my mood 'round is dessert."

"Well, I reckon ya got somethin' to look forward to then, don't ya?" he grinned, making her do the same.

The two looked at Maxx when they noticed he hadn't said a single word yet, finding him staring into the living room. They looked at each other in confusion, but she was the only one to speak.

"Y'okay there, Maxx?" Jazzy asked her brother. She followed his gaze, but she couldn't quite tell what he was looking at. "Maxx!" she said a little louder, finally startling him out of his trance, "Are ya okay?"

"Ain't that..." he trailed off in thought, "Ain't that Y/N's car?" Both Jazzy and Cliff's expressions dropped.

"Don't be gettin' our hopes up, Maxx," Jazzy warned.

"We know y're upset 'bout her leavin', boy, but ya gotta move on eventually," his dad reminded him, "We all miss her, but we knew she wasn't stayin' forever." Maxx sighed softly, turning back to his plate. But he wasn't even able to take a bite of his food before a knock on the door made his heart skip a beat. 

Without even excusing himself from the table, Maxx hopped up from his chair and bolted toward the front door. He hoped it really  _would_ be you standing on the other side, but he wasn't  _at all_  prepared for who it was.

"Hi, Maxx," you barely smiled, rocking back and forth on your feet. He stared at you for a moment before finally coming back to his senses.

"What..." Maxx cleared his throat, "What're ya doin' here...?"

" _I don't know_..." you admitted with a shy laugh, "I guess... I made it about three hours away before I had to stop at a gas station and I got to thinking... I called the school in Palm Springs and told them I couldn't make it after all... I realized I never really wanted to leave in the first place, so I... After I cancelled with the school, I turned around and came back... I went to a school around here like you mentioned this morning and applied for a teaching position... They said no one else has even shown  _interest_ , so I'm pretty much  _guaranteed_ to get the job by the time school's back in session..." you murmured. Maxx sucked in a breath.

"So y're... Y'ain't leavin' after all...?" he asked you.

"Guess Sweetridge is still stuck with me..." you shrugged with another shy grin, "And I... I missed you..."

You were surprised when Maxx suddenly rushed forward, wrapping his arms around your waist. He lifted you off the ground as he hugged you tightly – much like he'd done when he won the rodeo. 

You'd spent the entire previous eight hours terrified that Maxx wouldn't react happily to hearing you were considering staying there permanently, especially since you'd already told him you were going to California anyway. You were worried he would be upset with you for whatever reason, and that he'd tell you to just go to the other job anyway and not come back. But he  _wasn't_ ; Instead, he was  _ecstatic_ you were staying.

Your body finally relaxed as you returned the hug, melting into Maxx the way it always did when he touched you. You breathed in deeply for a few moments, just wanting to take him in and appreciate that you were back with him. Your face was buried in his neck so he could feel your breath against his skin, and it must have worried him.

"Y'okay, darlin'?" Maxx murmured.

"Just missed you," you whispered, feeling his stomach shake lightly as he chuckled.

"Y'were only gone for eight hours," he reminded you.

"You're a hard person not to miss," you replied, and a kiss was pressed to the side of your forehead.

"So are you, darlin'," he squeezed you, happy you were back in his arms.

~

_inspiration: "Big Sky Country" on the Choices app_


	580. High Noon (Maxx Danziger) - Part 7

**Two months later**

"Y'sure y'don't wanna come with, darlin'?" Maxx asked you. He was about to head out to help Asha at the general store with stocking the shelves since her nephew was out of town.

"Help you work in a small store with the one girl in Sweetridge who literally can't stand my guts and would probably try to murder me with a box cutter if I were alone with her?" you hummed, "Gonna give that one a  _hard_ pass."

"Bein' a little dramatic, aren't ya, darlin'?" he laughed, "Kayleigh's a lotta things, but she ain't a murderer."

"They still don't know who the Zodiac killer is," you shrugged, making him smile and shake his head as you went on, "I've got stuff around here to do anyway. Your dad needs me to gather up the eggs from the chicken coop before I start the  _laundry list_  of work I have to do to prep for school starting next week."

"Really don't know why ya want to go  _back_ to school," he mentioned, "Glad I'm done with all that nonsense."

"I guess some people just weren't  _made_ for hard work," you teased, squealing when Maxx grabbed your sides and started tickling them. You quickly took his hands to stop him, earning yourself a kiss to the forehead.

"I'll see ya in a few hours, darlin'," he told you, "Try not t'a overwork y'rself."

"I won't, Maxx," you promised him, making him squeeze the hands still holding his.

"I'll miss ya," he said, smiling when you laughed.

"I'll miss you too," you assured him, "Now go! Don't wanna keep Asha waiting!" 

You released his hands and nudged him toward his truck so he would leave. He rolled his eyes fondly, sneaking another forehead kiss before doing just that, tipping his hat to you as he backed out of the driveway and headed into town.

~

**Maxx's POV; Seven hours later**

"I'm headin' out, Asha!" Maxx called into the backroom, seeing her head pop out from behind a stack of empty boxes.

"Thanks for all y'r help today, Maxx! Couldn't have done it without ya!" she said, "Say hi to everyone for me!"

"Will do! Later!"

After a short drive, Maxx returned home. He was incredibly tired from the past few hours of work and heavy-lifting, so he was excited to just lounge around with you for the rest of the day. He pulled into his driveway, smiling when he noticed you sitting on the front porch steps.

"Howdy, darlin'!" the cowboy chirped as he got out of the truck, "Everyone missed ya today; Asha says hi – even sent me home with y'r favorites for ya to make up a snack drawer at school." He headed to the passenger side and opened that door, peering into the box on the seat. "Ain't too sure what all'a this is," he said, "But Asha said it's all stuff ya get when ya go into the store, so-" 

Maxx cut himself off when he finally looked over his shoulder at, freezing in his tracks when he saw the tears in your eyes –  _what **happened** while he was gone?_

"Hey, darlin'..." he said, leaving the box and tentatively approaching you, "You okay...?" 

Once he got to the porch, he sat beside you. He put his hand on your knee, only to have you jerk it away from him and scoot so he was as far as he could be. His heart sunk at the action – you were never in the same place as him and  _not_ wanting him to touch you. 

"I thought you  _liked_  me," you whispered, staring down at your hands as you ignored the drops of tears falling onto them, "I thought you  _wanted_ to be with me."

"I  _do_ ," Maxx shook his head in confusion, "Ya  _know_ I do, darlin'."

"People who like you don't stand you up," you swallowed, "They don't leave you waiting for them for  _two hours_."

"What're ya-"

"If I'm too ' _city_ ' for you, you can tell me," you sniffled, swiping the back of your hand across your cheeks, "You don't have to be a  _jerk_ – just  _tell me_  you want me to go California after all instead of staying here."

" _Whoa there, darlin'_ , why would ya think I want ya  _leavin' here_?" His heart  _ached_ at not being able to wipe your tears himself, but if you didn't want him touching you in that moment, he wasn't going to. "Darlin',  _please_ – what did I  _do_?" he practically  _begged_. 

"You said you were gonna meet me at the lake," you breathed out shakily, "Said we were gonna have a picnic by the water."

"I didn't say  _any_ of that," he furrowed his eyebrows, "Been helpin' out Asha at the store all day – ya know that."

" _No, you weren't_!" you whimpered pathetically as you finally looked up at him, making Maxx suck in a sharp breath, "You said you got done  _early_ and you wanted to take me on a  _date_!"

"Darlin', I-" 

Maxx cut himself off when you sprung up and ran inside the house. He sighed to himself, putting his face in his hands for a moment before getting up and chasing after you. 

"Y/N!" he called out as the front door closed behind him. He hurried up the stairs and made it to your bedroom door, but he didn't knock when he heard his sister's voice coming from the other side.

"Y/N..." Jazzy said gently, rubbing your back as you laid face-down on your bed, "What happened? I never  _seen ya_  like this." 

Maxx's heart felt like it was going to beat out of his chest as he listened to you tell her about the previous three hours of your life. But he only grew more  _confused_  if anything else – he hadn't done  _any_ of the things you said he had. You told her about how you'd gotten a text from Maxx about wanting to go on a date – your  _first_ date together, how you spent an hour getting ready and headed for the lake, and how you sat there for two hours, only to realize he wasn't going to show up.

"Aw, Y/N... Why don't ya take a nap then, huh?" she soothed, "Ya need to take a break and jus'  _forget_ for a couple hours. Scout's honor I won't let ya sleep past dinner." You let out a genuine laugh, and though it was small, she still heard it and smiled as well. 

"Thanks, Jazzy," you whispered hoarsely, "Not really that tired though."

"Well, how 'bout you, me, and Juliette have a girls day then?" she suggested, "I reckon all of us could use one after workin' on our ranches with all them  _boys_ for so long."

"That sounds  _perfect_ ," you admitted with a soft grin.

"I'll go call Juliette, and you can wash y're face," she rubbed your back again, "No more cryin' over stupid boys tonight!"

"Agreed," you giggled, pushing yourself off of the bed and going into the attached bathroom while Jazzy headed to the door.

Maxx's eyes widened as his sister's footsteps got closer, but he wasn't able to find a place to hide in time. The moment she was out of the bedroom and noticed him standing there, Jazzy was grabbing Maxx's shirt collar and dragging him along with her. He huffed in surprise, stumbling down the stairs and outside where she could speak freely without alerting you.

"What is  _wrong_ with you?!" Jazzy scolded, finally letting go of the fabric.

"I didn't do anythin'!" Maxx insisted, straightening his shirt back out.

"I know ya were eavesdroppin', Maxx!" she stated, "I can't  _believe_ ya'd do somethin' like that! And to  _Y/N_ of all people!"

"I  _didn't_! I don't know why she's _thinkin'_  I did, but I didn't do  _anythin'_! Ya  _know_ how much I like her! Why  _would I_  do anythin' like thatto her?!"

"She  _showed me_  her messages, Maxx! And she  _ain't_ the person who would change y'r name in their phone jus' to make up  _some_   _lie_!"

"I was with Asha  _all day_! Y'can  _ask her_! Haven't even  _looked_ at my phone yet!"

"Then why did Y/N get a message from ya askin' to meet ya at the lake for a date?" she narrowed her eyes, clearly not believing her brother's story. 

"I don't know! My phone was on the front counter the entire time I was at the store! I don't know why anyone woulda taken-" Maxx suddenly cut himself off, his eyes narrowing at the thoughts in his head. " _Kayleigh_ ," he grumbled. 

" _Kayleigh_?" Jazzy cocked an eyebrow, "As in y'r  _ex from_   _high school_  Kayleigh?"

"I never  _dated_ her! Never even  _wanted_ to date her!"

"Well,  _she's_ seemin' to think ya  _do_ , Maxx!" He went to speak again, but his sister clearly wasn't in the mood. "It's gonna take a lot more than jus' _tellin'_  Y/N what happened to make up for it, Maxx," she informed him, "I don't know what it's gonna be, but ya better think  _real_ hard 'bout it. I never seen her  _that_ upset before, so I know she really likes ya  _too_. I jus' think ya should sort everythin' out with Kayleigh first, 'cause I don't know if Y/N's gonna want anythin' to do with ya if  _she's_ still around." Jazzy didn't let her brother get another word it – she just turned and went back into the house to call Juliette and get started on the girl's day she promised you. 

But Maxx already knew she was right – he knew what he had to do to win you back.

~

**The next day**

After finishing up with all his chores, Maxx hopped in his truck and headed straight for the Olsen ranch. His mind was still racing and the sound of you crying yourself to sleep the previous night was the only thing he kept hearing. He knew Kayleigh had some sick obsession with him – though he didn't understand it – but he never realized  _just_ how far she was willing to go to make sure no one else got close to him. He truly didn't get how she thought he'd ever want her when he figured out what she was doing, so he had to make sure she heard it from the source. 

He pulled up to Kayleigh's house and walked up to the door, taking in a few deep breaths to calm himself down – he knew one of her parents would open it and he didn't want to alert them that something was wrong. He knocked on the front door and, sure enough, the girl he was there to see wasn't the one who opened it.

"Maxx Danziger!" her mom gasped, "Is that really you?!"

"Howdy, Mrs. Olsen," he offered her a small grin.

"My, y've gotten taller since I last seen ya!"

"Reckon I haven't grown much since then," he chuckled, "Is Kayleigh home?"

"'Course she is, dear! Is everythin' alright?"

"Yes, ma'am," he nodded, "Jus' needin' to talk to her."

"She's out with the horses; You 'member where it is, don't ya?"

"Sure do, ma'am," he tipped his hat, "It was good seein' ya again." 

"You too, sweetheart," she smiled, closing the door as he stepped off the porch and made his way to the stables. 

Maxx tried to remain calm – really, he did – but he couldn't stop the image of how sad and upset you were from popping back into his head. It hurt him to see you like that, and even  _more so_  that it was over something you thought was  _his_ fault. As that scene replayed in his mind, it was no wonder he'd gotten himself worked up again by the time he got to the stable.

"What the  _hell_ is y'r problem, Kayleigh?" Maxx seethed, causing the barn door to hit an empty stall's gate when he burst in.

"Good mornin' to you too, Maxx," Kayleigh greeted him, continuing to brush the mane of the horse in front of her.

" _Answer me, Olsen_ ," he grumbled, "Why'd ya tell Y/N to go to the lake pretendin' to be me yesterday?"

"City girl needs to know her  _place_ 'round here," she shrugged, not  _really_ answering the question but also signaling to Maxx that he was right and it  _had_ been her that did it. 

"And what  _is_ her place 'round here?" he growled. 

"She don't  _have one_ ," she put the brush down and looked at him, "She don't  _belong_ here; She got no business bein' here. And she  _definitely_ got no business takin' what's  _mine_."

"That ain't  _your_ decision to make, Olsen," Maxx reminded her, "I ain't  _yours_ ; Never  _have been_. Jus' 'cause y're mad at  _me_ for not wantin' ya don't mean ya can go 'round ruinin'  _other people's_  lives!"

"Y're throwin' away everythin' for some city-livin'  _whor_ -"

"Don't you  _dare_  finish that sentence, Olsen," he growled dangerously, "If y're mad at someone not wantin' to be with ya, maybe y'should ask y'relf  _why_  they don't  _first_. It'd prob'ly help ya to learn not to be such a controllin'  _bitch_  anymore."

Maxx didn't wait for a response – he just stomped away, leaving Kayleigh standing in shock. The cowboy had never been one to be so blunt, even to people he didn't like, so she was in utter disbelief that he was so outright in calling her what he did. 

But now that confronting Kayleigh was out of the way, Maxx only have one thing left to do: making it up to you.

~

_inspiration: "Big Sky Country" on the Choices app_


	581. High Noon (Maxx Danziger) - Part 8

_i hope u all liked this series as much as i enjoyed writing it!!!!!_

~

**Your POV; Later that night**

You leaned back in your desk chair, happy to finally be done with  _all_  of your school work prep. The clock on your nightstand read 10pm, and while it was fun while it lasted, you knew you'd spend the next hour or so lying in bed, staring at the ceiling, and wondering why Maxx had done what he did. It didn't make any sense to you – you thought you finally found someone who was  _genuinely_ interested in you – and you couldn't help but let it keep you up the night before, and no doubt this night either. 

You turned off your desk lamp and got up to get changed into your pajamas, but a knock on the door stopped you. You thought it was weird – you could have sworn everyone went to bed already – and hurried over to answer it. And of the three other people in the house, it was the only one you  _didn't_ want to see.

"Before ya go slammin' the door on me,  _please_ come with me," Maxx begging, holding his hand up for you to take, "I know y're still mad at me, but I  _promise_ it'll be worth y'r while."

You eyed him skeptically for a moment before slowly placing your hand in his. He smiled brightly – happy you hadn't rejected him – and tugged you along to his surprise. 

Once you were out of the house, you quickly came to realize that you were taking the same path you had already – the same path to the lake where Maxx stood you up. But before you could tear your hand out of his and go back home, you noticed a setup that hadn't been there before. 

There was a blanket near the lake's edge, two sandwiches in bags and a small bowl of grapes already laid out and waiting for you. You looked over at Maxx and noticed him already watching you, nervously waiting for your reaction.

"What are you doing, Maxx?" you asked softly. He simply smiled.

"Wanted a picnic by the water, didn't ya?" he asked, though he obviously already knew the answer.

"You texted me at  _noon_  yesterday..."

"Lake looks prettier at night," he said, leading you to the blanket, "Unless ya  _wanna_ wait 'til tomorrow."

"And have you  _stand me up_  again?" you grumbled. Maxx's expression fell a bit but he quickly shook it off, having you sit down. 

He handed you one of the sandwiches, both of you taking them out of the bags at the same time. He held up his and looked at you, causing you to let out a hum of amusement as you toasted the sandwich and started eating. It was pretty quiet – neither of you really too sure what to say – until you were finished eating. You brushed the crumbs off of your hands while Maxx reached in for a piece of fruit.

You watched him toss a grape into the air and try to catch it in his mouth, but it missed and bounced off his cheek and rolled off into the grass beside the blanket instead. You quickly looked away so he didn't see your growing smile, but he noticed anyway.

"Think that's  _funny_ , darlin'?" he asked with a serious tone but you could still hear the playfulness, "I reckon I'd like to see  _you_ do any  _better_."

You looked back up as Maxx reached for another grape. He tossed it up in the air in your direction, rolling his eyes when you followed it so it landed right in your mouth.

"Alright, darlin'," he said, obviously trying to hold back a grin, "No one likes a  _show off_."

"Says the person who spends 8 seconds holding onto a wild animal  _for fun_ ," you retorted, raising your eyebrows quizzically.

"Well, I been practicin' my  _whole life_  to be in rodeos."

"And maybe  _I've_ been practicing  _my_ whole life to be able to catch a grape in my mouth," you stuck your tongue out at him. He laughed in response while you looked up at the stars above you. 

Maxx couldn't help but admire you – though you were still upset with him, he was just thankful that you agreed to come with him, even if you didn't know what he had planned. You were so different from the other people he'd known his whole life, and even though that wasn't necessarily a  _bad_ thing, it was an incredibly nice change from his  _usual_ interactions.

As he was watching you, he noticed your expression falter slightly. Normally, it would have worried him, but he'd come to realize that it just meant you were thinking about something, and that you'd talk about it when you were ready. And while he typically had to wait a bit for that to happen, he was surprised when this time around, it only took a few minutes.

"This was a nice date, Maxx," you admitted, your voice barely even coming out, "Thanks for doing this for me."

"Don't have to end it jus' yet, darlin'," he told you. You furrowed your eyebrows, your gaze following him as he stood up. "What do y'say to some dancin'?" he asked.

"There's no  _music_ ," you shook your head. Maxx simply smiled, reaching down and grabbing your hands to pull you up with him.

"Don't  _need_  music, darlin'," he insisted.

Maxx brought your arms around his neck before moving his own to your waist. He hugged you close to him, honestly a bit  _surprised_ when you wrapped your arms around his neck the rest of the way and laid your head on his shoulder – but he  _certainly_ wasn't complaining. He could feel a faint heartbeat where your chests were pressed together, and he felt a sense of calmness rush through him at feeling your breaths hitting the side of his neck as you both swayed to the sounds of the wilderness around you.

"Jus' need  _you_ ," he murmured.

"You're such a  _sap_ , Danziger," you whispered. You felt Maxx's stomach shake as he chuckled softly.

"Only for you, darlin'," he pressed a loving kiss to the side of your head.

You slow danced to the sounds of the crickets chirping and leaves rustling in the wind for a while. It was nice to just  _be_ with Maxx, even if you  _were_ still hurt by his actions from the previous day. You didn't know why he would do what he did only to make up for it the very next evening, but you'd be lying if you said you weren't enjoying yourself. Though, you didn't have to wait much longer for an explanation.

"I never asked ya to meet me here yesterday," Maxx mumbled randomly, making you furrow your eyebrows and lift your head to look at him.

"But you-"

"Kayleigh took my phone while I was helpin' Asha in the back room... I  _really_ didn't ask ya to meet me,  _honest_... Could  _never_ do that to ya..." You were silent – you should have  _known_ it was her – so he went on. "Y'know, darlin'... Bein' here seems to be givin' ya more trouble than it's  _worth_ ," he said softly, "Don't think I'd  _blame ya_  if ya changed y'r mind and went to California after all - 'specially with Kayleigh still 'round _ruinin'_ everything..."

" _You're_ worth the trouble..." you whispered, squeezing him slightly.

Maxx had been looking down, but his head snapped back up when you spoke. He stared at you in surprise as you continued, not even noticing the expression since you refused to meet his gaze, your own eyes now on the collar of his shirt.

"Guess I've learned to accept that I'd do  _anything_ for you now..." you swallowed, "Don't really  _have_ guys like you in Boston; Can't imagine guys like you are in California... Pretty sure there are no guys like you  _anywhere_... Never met someone who  _cared_ so much – about the little things, about family, about neighbors, about animals, about  _me_... Think I'd be  _stupid_ to let that go over some grown woman still hung up on  _high school_..." The only sounds for a moment were that of the crickets and trees, but Maxx quickly snapped out of his speechless state.

"Hey, darlin'..." he trailed off.

You finally looked at him, but it didn't last for long. The second your head was tilted toward him, his lips were pressed to yours. Your eyes fluttered shut and you breathed out a deep sigh of relief.

You'd honestly been imagining kissing Maxx for  _so long_  that it felt like a  _dream_ you were finally doing it. You never felt the way he made you feel before, and you were sure you'd never feel that way  _without him_. 

Maxx was like your calm in the middle of a thunderstorm, and your safe place when everything else felt like too much to handle. There was never a moment you were with him that you felt like you didn't belong or that you weren't good enough. He was incredible at making sure you knew you were safe and cared for and that you could talk to him about anything that was on your mind. You never really believed in fate or destiny or any of that, but you definitely believed your car was  _meant_ to break down in this little Montana town.

You were pulled out of your thoughts when you realized your lungs were running out of air. You quickly broke the kiss and inhaled sharply, watching the content expression grow on Maxx's face as he opened his eyes to look at you fondly.

"Think y'd be stupid to let me go  _too_ , darlin'," he mentioned, a smile pulling at the corners of his mouth when you rolled your eyes and shoved his shoulder playfully before kissing him again.

~

_anyway i'd like to fall in love with a cowboy now pls and thank u_

_inspiration: "Big Sky Country" on the Choices app_


	582. Broken Love (Ashton Irwin)

_inspired by a convo me and my friend catelyn had!!!!!!_

_and since the convo was about ashton i decided to keep it about ashton lmao_

**Warning: Some swears**

~

You always thought the day you met your soulmate would be the best day of your life – that no other day could  _possibly_ beat it. You wondered if you'd run into them at school or work or while on vacation and if you'd know it was your soulmate even  _before_ your tattoo burned to signify it. You wondered what their little quirks were and hoped they'd love all of yours. You wondered if you'd live up to the image of yourself they'd been building up in their own head or if they'd be disappointed that your hair wasn't the color they'd been picturing.

But none of that  _happened_. 

None of that happened because your soulmate was already taken; Your soulmate was already  _marrying_ theirs.

You'd never been so close to getting sick in public in your entire adult life. You were a friend of the bride after meeting her through your sister being her college roommate, and the first couple years you'd known her, she didn't have a soulmate. So when a name finally came up on her wrist, the two of you bonded how both your soulmate's names were Ashton. 

The day she told you and Sienna that her soulmate proposed, you were  _so_ excited for her, and were eager to help her plan the wedding. You thought it was strange that you had never  _met_ Ashton in the three years before they got engaged, but you were a sucker for stories where soulmates lived happily ever after, so you decided not to question it.

What  _did_ get you questioning it, however, was the day you  _finally_ saw him.

You and your sister were sitting in the ballroom of the wedding venue, waiting for the ceremony to begin. There were a few last-minute things going on – finishing touches on the flowers laid across the alter, curling the ends of the ribbon draped on the backs of the chairs – and you were content with just watching it all happen. But when you noticed movement out of the corner of your eye and looked over, you felt like your heart stopped beating.

The wedding planner brought the groom out to show him where to stand, and you were watching him nod while you just sat there in amazement –  _how had Tara failed to mention that her soulmate was **Ashton Irwin**? _You picked up your elbow to nudge your sister, but while she was looking at you, Ashton finally looked out at the chairs in front of him. 

Both yours and his eyes met and you honestly felt like you were going to throw up. Your wrist started feeling hotter and hotter until it reached the equivalent of an almost  _unbearable_ searing burn. You didn't even wait to gauge his  _own_ reaction – you just abruptly stood up and rushed out of the room.

"Hey, where are you-" Sienna spoke up, only cutting herself off when she realized you were already gone.

She looked over to see what you'd been looking at, only finding Ashton's eyes still on you. She furrowed her eyebrows – _why did looking at him make you leave?_  – and got up, quickly following after you.

**Ashton's POV**

Ashton  _honestly_  felt like he was on some sort of prank show or  _something_. He had no idea what was going on, but the sharp, stabbing pain he felt around the tattoo on his wrist gave him a  _pretty good idea_. 

Before she was out of sight, he ran after the two women. He turned the corner just as the black-haired girl went into a room, following her to it. He didn't go in though – he just quietly approached the door and listened from the hallway, not wanting to alert either of you.

"What's wrong?" he heard Sienna ask, "Why'd you run off?"

"It's... He's... That's..." you were unable to form complete thoughts, too busy sobbing to do so.

"Hey, you're okay; Just breathe." You did exactly that – taking a few deep breaths before trying to speak again.

"He's my soulmate..." you choked out, "Ashton is my soulmate..."

" _Dude_!" Sienna exclaimed with wide eyes, "You have to tell him!"

"I can't  _tell him_ , Sie," you sniffled, "He's about to get  _married_ to Tara." Ashton felt his heart start  _pounding_ in his throat –  _Tara...?_

"But he's your  _soulmate_ , Y/N!" she frowned.

And as soon as he heard  _your_ name, he thought he was going to be sick.

"They're obviously  _already_  soulmates," you grumbled, "What's even the point of telling him? I'd just  _embarrass_ myself."

"He still deserves to  _know_ ," she shook her head, "Wouldn't  _you_ want to know someone was your soulmate?"

"Would I still want to know if I was already marrying  _one_ that I had  _two_? Would I still want to know he would always be hurt that I never picked him just because I met the other  _first_? Would I still want to know he spends the rest of his life wondering why he wasn't  _good enough_?"

"Ashton not knowing isn't going to  _change_ the fact that you feel that way, Y/N," she said gently.

"And I  _can't_ let him live with knowing it's happening, Sienna," you told her, "I  _can't_ be the reason he'll lie in bed at night worrying about the soulmate he never chose." She sighed softly to herself.

"I guess I see your point now," she nodded, "I wouldn't want to burden someone with that  _either_." She put her hand on your back, rubbing it comfortingly, "Are you still going to stay for the ceremony?"

"Would  _you_?" you forced out a laugh, wiping you cheeks again.

"I guess not," she barely laughed, "But we should still say bye to everyone."

"No, Sie, you  _have_ to stay – it's your  _best friend's_  wedding," you insisted, "I'll get an Uber home."

And Ashton knew he had to work  _fast_ in order to catch you before you left.

He quickly – but quietly – hurried away from the room, hoping he'd be able to catch all of his groomsmen in the same place. He peeked into the room the ceremony was supposed to be held in, happy they weren't there so he wouldn't have to cause a scene in front of anyone already in their seats. He then made his way to the room they'd all gotten ready in, sighing in relief when they were the only ones there.

" _Ash_!" Calum breathed the moment Ashton came into the room, " _There_ you are!"

"Why'd you just run off like that?" Luke wondered.

"Tara's not my soulmate," Ashton blurted out, unable to come up with anything else to say.

" _Who_?" the boys asked in unison.

"Tara... She's not my soulmate..."

"Who the fuck is  _Tara_?!" Michael threw his arms up in frustration, "What's going on?!"

"She... She's the girl  _pretending_  to be my soulmate... She's pretending to be  _Y/N_..."

"What do you  _mean_?" Calum shook his head, trying to understand, "How do you  _know_ that?"

"I... My tattoo finally burned..." Ashton whispered, "I finally met my soulmate... My  _real_ Y/N..."

"Wait, it never burned with..." Luke trailed off. He let out an almost pathetic laugh.

"Guess I'm not broken  _after all_ , huh?" he swallowed thickly.

"You thought you were  _broken_?" Calum ushered Ashton over to the couch, sitting beside his best friend and patting his shoulder comfortingly.

"Mate, why didn't you  _tell us_?" Luke asked.

"You and Mike always talked about how it felt when you met your soulmates... If you found out I  _didn't_ feel it, you'd think something was  _wrong_ with me or something..."

"We'd  _never_ do that to you, Ash," Michael shook his head, "You  _know_ that." Ashton was silent, so Calum spoke again.

"Have you talked to Y/N... Or... _Tara_...yet?" he asked.

"And say  _what_?" he wondered, "I wouldn't even know where to  _start_."

"Just confront her," Luke suggested.

"Or at least tell her that the wedding is postponed until you figure out what the hell is going on," Michael added. 

"Right..." he nodded, standing up from his seat, "I need to talk to her."

"Good luck, Ash!" the boys called simultaneously as he left the room.

It seemed like as soon as he left that room, he was already approaching the door the bride was behind. He hadn't really prepared what to say, but he knew it was either now or never – and he  _really_ didn't like the idea of marrying someone who had been lying to him just to make everyone  _else_ happy. 

Ashton got closer to the door, but he was startled when it opened. He quickly darted into a hiding spot, listening to Tara's mom tell her that she was going to the bathroom, effectively leaving her alone for the next few minutes. He took this as the only opportunity he'd have to speak with her, so after her mom turned another corner, he made his move.

He didn't even bother knocking before he walked in, not caring what state she was in when he did so. She was already in her dress, so she  _was_ decent – and honestly, if he hadn't already known she'd been lying to him, he'd be  _thrilled_ to be marrying her.

" _Ashton_!" Tara squealed when she looked over at the now closing door, "You're not supposed to see me until I walk down the aisle!"

"What's your name?" he asked lowly, trying to keep himself calm.

"What are you talking about?" she gave him a confused laugh, "Are you alright, Ash?"

" _What's your name_?" he repeated more firmly this time, "Because I  _know_ it's not Y/N."

"What?" she asked, but there was no denying that she was starting to get nervous, " _Of course_  it is! It's on your wrist! We're soulmates!"

"What were you planning on saying to everyone when Ryan said  _Y/N_  instead of  _Tara_?" He saw her breathing hitch when he used her  _real name_.

"How did you find out?" she practically whispered, silently admitting to what Ashton had feared.  

"I heard Y/N say I was marrying ' _Tara_ '," he narrowed his eyes at her, "I heard her say it when she told someone her tattoo burned, because  _mine did too_."

"You mean..."

"I finally met my  _soulmate_ ," he deadpanned, "And  _you've_ got a lot of explaining to do." And giving him the only amount of decency she ever did, Tara did just that, spending the next few minutes explaining everything to Ashton. 

She'd been a fan for about two years before randomly running into him when the band had a tour stop in the city she was going to college in. She was sitting in a Starbucks working on a paper her Sociology professor assigned when Ashton walked in after a run. She didn't expected to ever meet him, and to this day, she couldn't say what compelled her to do what she did, but everyone obviously knew that the tattoo on Ashton's wrist said ' _Y/N_ ' since he'd never really tried to hide it. In that moment, she decided to begin the most elaborate lie she'd ever told – she decided to pretend to be Ashton's soulmate. Maybe it stemmed from the fact that she didn't have a soulmate herself, but she quickly scribbled Ashton's name on her wrist while he was ordering his coffee, anxiously awaited for him to turn around, and when he did, the last three years became part of their history.

"So... So you  _pretended_ your name was Y/N just so you could be with me...?" Ashton asked, not knowing whether or not her story was over but not really  _caring_ either, "You... You  _lied to me_  for three years?! All because you wanted to be with  _Ashton from 5 Seconds of Summer_?!"

"Ash, I-" Tara swallowed, "I  _do_ love you, Ash, I  _swear_..."

"You didn't answer my question," he glared at her, "Did you lie and pretend your name was Y/N  _just_ so you could date me?"

"Yes..." she whispered, making his heart sink. Of course, Ashton already knew it was true – that she had faked it to get closer to him – but that didn't mean actually  _hearing it_  from her made it any easier to deal with.

Ashton suddenly spun around on his heels, making a bee-line for the door. Tara's head shot up, desperately not wanting him to leave.

"Ash!" she called after him, "Ash, wait!"

"The wedding is off," he stated, not looking back as he just kept walking, "You can keep the ring, sell it, throw it away – do whatever;  _I don't want it_."

"Ash, we can't just cancel so last minute! What about all the  _guests_ outside?!" she called after him.

" _You're_ the one who fucked up," he spat, " _You_ figure it out."

And with that, he slammed the door behind him.

~

**Your POV**

You had just called your Uber and Sienna was walking with you out to the front of the venue. The two of you were silent – your mind was racing and your sister knew nothing she could say would make it stop, so she just didn't say anything at all. 

As the car was pulling up, however, she did hug you tightly and remind you that she was always there if you needed to talk. You squeezed her back, thanking her, and opened the door to get in and go home when someone stopped you.

"Y/N!" you heard behind you, "Wait!"

You and Sienna both looked over your shoulders to find  _the groom_ running toward you. You froze in your tracks, your breath hitching as well.

He looked more disheveled this time around – his hair was a mess, he was no longer wearing a tie, and the dress shoes he'd been wearing when he was standing at the alter had been replaced with a worn-down looking pair of Converse. Truthfully, he looked like he'd been through a lot in the last 10 minutes and not at all how you expected someone to look on the most important day of their life.

"We... I need to talk to you," he breathed out heavily from running. You made a small noise, not really sure what to do. "I know this is weird," he laughed nervously, scratching the back of his neck, "I just... Give me  _10 minutes_..."

"I... Okay..." you agreed. Ashton sighed in relief, quickly grabbing something from his pocket. He pulled out his wallet and gave the Uber driver some money, apologizing that he came all the way there just to pick up no one, and led you and your sister back inside. 

He took you to some random room that no one was using, opening the door for you and letting you go in first. You then heard him talking to your sister quietly – you couldn't hear what he was saying, but he was essentially giving her a very brief summary of what was happening and that there wouldn't be a wedding after all. Sienna walked away while Ashton came into the room, closing the door behind him to give you privacy. You both sat down on the only couch there, a bit of an awkward silence lingering in the air.

"So, I..." Ashton cleared his throat, shifting uncomfortably, "I know you're probably confused... But I... I just had to tell you that I heard you with your friend earlier... I know your tattoo burned... I followed you both to that room because...  _My_ tattoo burned  _too_..." Your eyes immediately widened – you obviously didn't know anyone, let alone  _him_ , had followed you and Sienna.

"It  _did_...?" you whispered, "I'm really sorry-" You started rambling, "-I never knew someone could have  _two_ soulmates... I didn't want you to have to feel like you had to make a choice between-"

"I  _don't_  have two soulmates..." he cut you off, "It never burned with her..."

"What?" you furrowed your eyebrows, not understanding at first.

"When I met... _whoever this girl is_...my tattoo never burned or anything..." he admitted, "Her's  _did_ though... Well... She  _said_ it did... Guess I always just thought I was  _broken_ – that something was wrong with  _me_... But then I looked at  _you_ and you looked at  _me_ , and I just... It finally  _burned_... It finally did the things that everyone  _says_ it does when you meet your soulmate..." He noticed you swallow thickly, opening and closing your mouth for a moment before finally speaking.

"I- _I'm_ your soulmate...?" you barely whispered.

"Sorry to say, but I think so," he gave you a shy grin, the gesture becoming more genuine when you laughed.

"It's not a  _bad_ thing," you assured him, your voice still small, "I'm just... _surprised_...I guess... This is gonna be  _really embarrassing_ to admit, but... I'm a really big fan... Like... ' _Ever since you lived in **London** and were working on the  **self-titled**  album_' big..."

"You've been a fan for that long and we  _still_ haven't scared you away?" 

"Unfortunately, you guys make good music and I can't bring myself to leave," you teased.

"I guess we'll have to make a  _country_ album next," he laughed.

"You're joking, but the sad thing is I'd  _still_ buy it and listen to it every day," you shook your head, making him laugh again. He let it fade out to a few moments of comfortable silence before speaking again.

"So... Since you're a fan, I'm sure you know  _my_ story with Tara," he mentioned, "I think it's only fair that I know  _yours._ "

"Mine's not really that  _exciting_ , to be honest," you shrugged, "My sister Sienna was Tara's roommate in college and we instantly became friends... Or we  _were_ friends... I guess I don't even really know who she  _is_ anymore..."

"You and me  _both_ ," Ashton grumbled, smiling when you unintentionally giggled at the statement.

"I almost didn't come," you admitted, "Tara and my sister were always closer than  _I_ was with her... But Sie wanted me to be her plus one..."

"I'm glad you  _did_ ," Ashton said, making you look at him, "I almost just married someone who's been  _lying to me_  for three years." You couldn't help but chuckle at the statement.

"You're right; You  _do_ have it worse," you said.

Ashton grinned brightly at you, and if you hadn't  _already_ been in love with his dimples, seeing them now  _definitely_ would have reeled you in. You eyed him for a moment – really taking in how much more handsome he was  _in person_  – before finding the courage to speak again.

"Sorry you have to do this all over again, Ashton," you murmured. The sound of you saying his name made the butterflies  _already_ in his chest go  _even crazier_.

"It's okay, Y/N," he promised, leaning in and kissing your cheek.

~

_this was a lot longer than i thought it was going to be  
_

_sorry fam, i hope u made it through it_


	583. Make It Out (Zach DeWall)

_requested by anonymous and palayeeeroyale on tumblr  
_

_it's basically just another version of maxx's apocalypse au lmao_

~

The post-apocalyptic world you found yourself now living in was always full of scares. Whether it be from the constant threat of the undead roaming around or the militiamen who had apparently decided  _they_ were the ones in charge now, it felt like danger was around every corner. And honestly, the anxiety over it  _wasn't irrational_.

You and your four best friends had survived the entirety of the apocalypse – about six months so far – just by sticking together and being able to predict each other's moves. But there was one move you  _never_ saw coming.

It was a regular day of searching for food and supplies – Cody and Dan went on the food run while you, Zach, and Maxx needed to find basic medical stuff like bandages and pain killers. You insisted that you could cover more ground if you and the two boys split up, but Zach immediately shot the idea down. He'd been like your brother since the day you met him – granted, all the boys had been, but you and Zach had always been the closest in the group – and, even though he knew you could hold your own, he didn't want you going  _anywhere_ by yourself.

On your way back to the house your group was hunkering down in after a successful mission of getting supplies, the boys decided to take a shortcut through a forest. You didn't think it would be too risky – who's going to be just wandering through a forest for no reason? – so you went along with it despite feeling a little uneasy. 

And honestly, you should have just trusted your gut.

" _Hey, you there_!" the sudden voice made you jump, spinning around to see what was happening.

A militiaman was coming toward the three of you, but before you could react in any way, Zach already was. He knew he'd been the only one spotted so far, and he  _wasn't_ about to let that happen to you or Maxx. He shoved you away from him before the officer saw you, sending you stumbling toward Maxx's hiding spot in some dense bushes. 

The moment you regained your balance, you were spinning around to find Zach being grabbed roughly. You opened your mouth to scream but Maxx immediately grabbed you, pulled you out of sight, and put his hand over it, not wanting  _all three_  of you to get taken either. With his arm around your waist and hand on your mouth, you could only struggle to break free as you watched your best friend being taken  _God knows where_.

When Zach and the militiaman were out of hearing range, Maxx simply took the hand over your mouth back before throwing you over his shoulder and walking in the direction leading back to the house. You were hitting his lower back as you cried, pleading with him to put you down and let you go after Zach.

He didn't listen, obviously, because the next thing you knew, you were back inside your shelter. But if you thought you could just run when he put you down, you were wrong. The second he put you back on your feet, he was spinning around and his hands were on your face so you were forced to look at how serious he was being with you.

"Zach pushed you away from him for a  _reason_ , Y/N," Maxx said firmly, "And that's because he  _didn't_ want you to get taken too. I know you're mad at me for making you leave him behind, but if we have any chance of getting him back, we need the one person who can help us do it  _quickly_ and  _safely_ – and that person is  _you_. You have always been this group's planner and we need you  _now_ more than  _ever_ , okay?"

You remained silent for a moment before nodding slowly, knowing he was right. You knew for a fact that you would pushed Zach out of sight if the roles were reversed and he would have turned the  _entire world_ upside down in order to get you back. Maxx wiped the tears from your cheeks before pulling you into a hug.

You instantly started crying again, and Maxx just held you as you let it all out. He'd known you long enough to know that all you really needed when you were crying was someone hugging you – and since Zach wasn't there to do it like he always was, he stepped up to be that person for you until you got him back.

When you were finally finished crying a few minutes later, Maxx noticed an immediate switch in you. You pushed yourself off of him, hastily wiped the tears off of your face with your forearm, and grabbed Maxx's hand, dragging him to the living room so you could begin coming up with a plan – a plan you'd let Cody and Dan in on as soon as they returned from finding food.

"There's my girl," Maxx grinned when he saw the look of determination on your face as you sat down. You shoved him, smiling slightly as you grabbed a notebook and Sharpie to map everything out.

~

**45 minutes later**

"Y/N, I'm  _not_ letting you go out  _alone_ ," Maxx said firmly, "Just wait until Cody and Dan get back and-"

"I can't sit around  _waiting_ , Maxx," you insisted, "Zach might not  _have_ that long." 

"Then at least let me go  _with you_."

"No, you need to stay here and fill the others in."

"Zach's gonna  _kill me_  if he finds out I went along with this," he shook his head.

"Then I guess we just won't tell him," you shrugged.

"I want you to know I'm  _not happy_ ," he sighed.

"I know," you acknowledged. 

Maxx followed you to the door, watching you take your gun out of your backpack and place it in the makeshift holster you'd sewn onto your shorts for it. You took out your map as well, holding it tightly in your fist as you stood back upright.

"If I'm not back in two hours, I'm probably dead," you said monotonously.

"That's not  _funny_ , Y/N," Maxx grumbled.

"Not  _trying_ to be," you replied quietly, "See you in two hours."

~

**Two hours later**

As promised, Maxx heard your secret knock on the front door almost exactly two hours after you'd left. Cody and Dan had obviously since returned and learned what happened to Zach, so they all bolted up from their spots on the couch, nearly trampling each other just to get there first. Cody was the one who threw the door open, finding you smiling at them.

"Who's ready to go kick some  _tyrannical ass_?!" you chirped, coming into the house.

"You are  _oddly_ happy and I'm scared," Dan admitted, "What's going on?"

"I have a plan! The  _best_ plan, even! So good, in fact, it'll leave militiamen  _crying_ over their bruised egos!"

"Well now, who are  _you_ starting to sound like?" Maxx hummed, earning an eye roll from you.

"We don't talk about him, remember?" you replied.

"Voldemort?" Cody asked.

"Cody,  _please_!" you gasped obnoxiously, "He might  _hear you_!" The boys snorted softly, picking up their backpacks upon your instructions and following you as made your way into the kitchen. 

You all started loading up on food and water, taking as much as you could fit into your bags without it weighing you down too much. You were absentmindedly taking things out to make more room before putting them back in, methodically organizing your bag. It wasn't until you happened to take out what you'd made on campus that the boys started taking notice.

"Uh... Y/N..." Cody trailed off, "What is  _that_?"

"What is  _what_?" you returned, not looking at him as you put some food into your backpack.

"You  _know what_ , Y/N," Dan stated. You looked up at them, finding them staring at your hand. You looked over and finally realized what you were holding.

"Oh, this?" you asked, holding up the stun grenade before putting it into the side compartment.

" _Y/N_!" the boys exclaimed in unison.

" _Calm down_ ," you rolled your eyes again, "It's why I left earlier. A few people in the science department at FSU owed me a favor."

"What  _kind_ of favor?!" Maxx asked.

"You remember they won the science fair senior year," you said, to which all three boys obviously nodded, "Who did you think that was  _thanks to_?"

"They didn't even  _credit you_  for it?" Dan scoffed.

"That's why they owed me a favor," you informed them, "One of them got a job in the school's lab after graduation and said if I ever needed anything, he could get me in."

Cody sighed softly, "I really don't know why we're ever  _surprised_  by the things you manage to do anymore." The other two boys quickly agreed, making you laugh.

"Alright!" you chirped, springing back up to your feet, "You ready for the plan?"

"Yes, we  _would_ like to know how we're going to get Zach back at  _some point_ ," Dan affirmed.

"Step number one: we need to commandeer a vehicle."

"So... Steal a car," Maxx cocked an eyebrow.

"Basically," you shrugged, "Preferably a truck with an open bed; It'll be easier to just jump in and get away that way."

"Makes sense," Cody spoke, "What's step two?"

"Step two is search for the place Zach was taken, get  _into_ that place, then get him  _out_."

"So we'll need a  _quiet_ truck," Dan said.

"Yes," you nodded, "Hopefully, there'll be a vent I can climb into, then I'll find the room Zach's in, throw the grenade, and we'll run back to the truck and get away before everyone comes to."

"Sounds simple enough," he replied, "Let's do it."

~

**An hour and a half later**

It took nearly two hours, but you managed to retrace your steps back to the place in the forest where Zach was taken, then stumble upon some random building. You were surprised you hadn't seen it in the first place, but you were 100% certain this was where Zach was being kept.

Dan had parked the truck near the beginning of the path, so you had to do a bit of walking to get to where you needed. Once you knew where you were going, you hurried back to the truck to tell the boys what needed to be done.

"You  _sure_ you can do this, Y/N?" Dan asked you.

You let out a long sigh, "Just be ready to go when Maxx tells you."

"What if someone sees us?" Cody wondered.

" _Leave_ ," you stated as if it were obvious.

" _Without_ you guys?" Dan said, a clear worried tone in his voice.

"Not much of a  _choice_ , Danny," you reminded him, grabbing your grenade out of your backpack and put in in your pocket, "We'll make it out."

They watched you make your way back into the forest and, at that point, all they could do was trust you.

Once you were approaching the building once again, you weren't at all shocked to find that not a single officer was guarding the outside – the people who came into power after the apocalypse weren't exactly the  _smartest_. You easily made your way around the structure, happy to find a vent near the ground that you could just climb into without any trouble.

Upon entering the building, you immediately heard voices, deciding to follow them in the hopes they'd lead you to Zach. At the end of the vent system, you came up to a large room where it seemed like everyone was congregated. Zach was sitting on a chair untied from what you could see – apparently, the militiamen figured he wouldn't try to escape the people with  _guns_. No one was watching him at that moment though, otherwise they probably would have known he'd seen something.

The moment you looked at his face, you found Zach's wide eyes already on you. You quietly retrieved the grenade from your pocket and signaled for him to close his eyes and cover his ears on three. When he nodded lightly, you counted to three on your fingers. The moment you hit three, you pulled the pin on the grenade in your hand and threw it out of the vent.

The next 10 seconds after the grenade detonated seemed to last  _less than one_  as you immediately kicked out the vent cover and jumped out. All the men were shouting and holding their ears in pain as you ran over to Zach, grabbed his hand, and began pulling him out of the room.

"Where did you  _get_ that thing?!" Zach exclaimed.

"I made it!" you breathed heavily as you ran down the hall.

" _You made it_?!" he cocked an eyebrow, "Since when do you  _make bombs_?!"

"It's not a bomb; it's a stun grenade!" you replied, "I wasn't a science major for  _nothing_ , you know!"

The moment you were back outside, you and Zach bolted to where the others were anxiously waiting for your return.

" _They're coming_!" you heard Maxx tell Dan as a signal for him to get ready to step on it.

You were jumping into the back of the truck within the next five seconds and as soon as you were in, Dan slammed his foot down on the gas pedal. The tires squealed on the pavement as he sped away from the building. You and Zach were sprawled out in the bed of the truck, Maxx and Cody sitting up against the back window.

"Okay," you said, finally able to catch your breath, "That was the  _coolest_  thing I've ever done, but I  _never_ want to do it again." The boys couldn't help but laugh at the comment while Zach simply grabbed you and pulled you on top of him.

"I  _knew_ you were gonna come get me," he said, burying his face in your neck, "I  _knew_ you weren't gonna just leave me behind." You could feel his chest rising and falling against yours as he was still trying to catch his breath.

"And have you get killed just so you could haunt me as a ghost if I  _didn't_?" you sassed, everyone laughing again as you snaked your arms around his neck and hugged him like it was last time you would ever get to. No one spoke or even told Zach they were happy he was okay – they just let the two of you have that moment to yourselves.

~

_we love a platonic storyline!!!!!!_

_also shout out to catelyn for helping me with this!!!!!!_


	584. Meet You There (Calum Hood)

_"At birth, everyone has the date they will die tattooed on their arm. I was supposed to die yesterday."_

~

_24 years. 364 days. 14 hours. 41 minutes._

The clock on your wrist had been there since the moment you were born, letting you – and everyone around you – know that you were going to die the day before your 25th birthday.

It was a blessing and a curse, really – knowing the date of your death down to the  _last minute_. You weren't particularly thrilled to know that you were only going to live to be  _almost_ 25, but on the bright side, it eased your anxiety – if only a little – that you knew  _when_ it was coming.

You were prepared for it – as prepared as you  _could be_  anyway – as the day got closer and closer, making sure you called your parents at least once a day and telling your friends every single thing you loved about them and the memories you made together. And sure, maybe it did get  _painfully sappy_ , but you couldn't just  _die_ without telling everyone what you needed to beforehand.

Of course, it didn't go  _exactly_ the way you expected.

To be quite honest, you'd  _totally_ forgotten about the clock when you woke up on your last day – your ' _death day_ ' as it was so lovingly titled – and you just went about your day as you normally would: going to work, enjoying a dinner date with three of your closest friends, and then going home. It wasn't until you made it home and took off your jacket that you realized something felt off... You quickly snapped your wrist face-up so you could see it, your eyes widening at what you saw.

 _Nothing_.

There was nothing on your wrist – no freckles, no scratches, no bruises...  _No clock_.

You had no idea who to go to for help, so you turned to the only place that could give you answers:  _Google_. You stared at the homepage for a solid 5 minutes, unsure of what exactly to search for. You were sure that this had never happened to anyone before, and even if it had, were you  _really_ sure you wanted to know why it happened to  _you_...?

You took a deep breath before hitting the enter key, your eyes closed tightly as the results popped up onscreen. You forced yourself to work up the courage to open your eyes, and the first thing you saw was an article title: " _Man's Death Clock Disappears – But He's Still Alive!_ "

And you knew in that moment you  _had_ to find him.

~

**Five days later**

If anyone passing you had asked you if you were alright, you'd swear you could  _feel_ every bone in your body shaking. You were so  _beyond_ the state of nervousness, there wasn't even a  _word_ for it anymore.

The exact moment you read who the man from the article was –  _Calum_ was his name – you managed to find his Facebook and sent him a message. You truthfully didn't think he'd ever  _see it_  – and if he did, he'd probably think it was a  _joke_ – but he  _did_ , and he  _didn't_. 

Calum was the one who suggested meeting in person, saying he thought this wasn't really something to discuss through social media. You immediately agreed, and discovered he was only living a couple hours away from you.

You understandably didn't get much sleep that night – not that you had been since your clock disappeared, constantly afraid you'd just  _never wake up_. And honestly, when you woke up the day of the meeting, you didn't feel much better.

Calum offered to make the two-hour drive to your town, so you sent him the address of your favorite park to meet at, as well as directions to where you'd be once he got there. 

You were sitting on a bench in an area of the park you knew not many people went so you and Calum could talk in private. You'd arrived half an hour early, incredibly nervous and not knowing what the day would bring. Your leg was bouncing in anticipation, only to stop when you jumped at the voice behind you.

"Y/N?" Your head snapped over to find the man you'd been anxiously waiting to meet for the last four days.

"Ca-" you cleared your throat, "Calum...?"

"Hi," he breathed with a small smile, sitting down on the bench next to you, "It's nice to meet you. Though, I do wish the circumstances were different." You finally relaxed for the first time in nearly a week, letting yourself laugh softly.

"Sorry..." you murmured, "I'm not usually this  _out of it_..."

"I understand," he nodded, "I'm sure you have a lot of questions. My clock only disappeared a couple weeks ago, but I'm hoping I'm able to help you." 

And that was exactly what he did.

~

**Three hours later**

By the time you and Calum finished talking about your clocks and getting to know each other, the sun was starting to set in front of you. You hadn't even realized you'd been talking that long until a comfortable silence fell over you and you finally heard the crickets chirping around you. You sat quietly for a couple minutes, admiring the orange and pink sky, before Calum spoke again.

"Hey, Y/N..." he trailed off.

"Yeah?" you replied just as softly.

"How crazy does something have to sound before you start to feel like it  _might_ not be realistic?" he asked you.

"I don't know," you shrugged, "Pretty  _damn_  crazy, I guess.  _Why_?"

"Ever since you first messaged me, I've been thinking..." he murmured, making you look at him while he just kept staring at the sky, "Do you think that...maybe our clocks disappeared because we were  _meant_ to find each other...?"

"You mean, you think we're..."

" _Soulmates_ ," he swallowed, finally turning his head to look at you.

"I'd like to think that," you whispered, never taking your eyes off of his, "And if that's not the case, then I don't want to know."

Calum barely grinned, his eyes glancing down at your lips before leaning forward. He seemed to be testing the waters – not sure whether or not you actually wanted to kiss him – but when you immediately closed the gap and your lips came crashing into his, neither of you could keep yourselves from smiling.

There was something oddly freeing about not knowing when you would die.

~

_inspiration: https://rememberstilinski.tumblr.com/post/156601126175/this-sucks-isaac-lahey_


	585. Who Do You Love? (Ashton Irwin)

_i decided to finish this to post today since it's my best friend's birthday and if she doesn't like it i'm gonna be :))))) pissed!!!!!!!!_

~

It was a typical Saturday night – you had a few of your close friends over for a small get-together, though you were sure the only thing that convinced them to come over was the promise that you'd provide the alcohol for them. Either way, they all came over and you had an eventful night of drinking and dancing in your living room, and it was honestly the most fun you'd had in a  _while_.

At around midnight, you had to help Sierra and Crystal drag their boyfriends out to their Ubers, hugging them both and wishing them luck in dealing with the hangovers the boys were sure to have brought upon themselves. You went back into your apartment, grabbed a bottle of water from your fridge so your own hangover wasn't so bad, and sat yourself back down on the couch to relax.

You thought Calum and Ashton had passed out in your bedroom and the guest room, but apparently not. You were surprised when Calum came stumbling into the room, barely able to walk on his own as he was grabbing anything he could find for support on his way to you. 

" _Calum_!" you groaned as soon as the six-foot-tall man decided it would be a good idea to plop down and sprawl out across your lap.

" _Hi, Y/N_ ," he slurred from all the drinking he'd been doing the past couple hours. You let out a soft grunt as he settled himself on top of you, finally smiling when he grabbed your hand and moved it to his head so you'd start playing with his hair.

"Hi, Cal," you rolled your eyes fondly, taking a sip of water, "What're you doing? Thought you were asleep."

"Wanted to  _cuddle_ ," he pouted, earning himself a small snort.

"Yeah?" you teased, "Was Ash not available?"

"Wanted to cuddle with  _you_!" he whined.

"Okay, Cal," you patted his head with the hand in his hair, "I'm honored you chose me instead of him."

"You wanna know who I  _love_?" Calum asked you. 

"Let's see..." you replied, "Your parents? Your sister? Your bandmates? Duke? Your-"

"They're so  _good to me_ , Y/N!" he sniffled, "I don't deserve them!"

"Of course you do, Cal," you assured him, "They're lucky to have you." Calum then gasped so suddenly, it startled you.

" _You_ know who  _I_ love!" he slurred again, "That's not  _fair_! Now  _you_ have to tell  _me_! Who do  _you_ love?" He giggled at his unintentional song reference, making you smile again softly.

And since he was drunk, you answered  _honestly_.

"Ashton," you replied right away. Calum gasped and hiccuped at the same time, making you chuckle as you continued. "You know the way he carries himself has always impressed me. He's so thoughtful in your interviews and really particular about the things he says. He's such a sweet and caring person and I don't  _know_ what I did to be lucky enough to have him in my life, but I'm glad I  _did it_. And he's  _so talented_  as well, isn't he? Been trying to get him to teach me how to play something, but he's always so  _busy_ ," you sighed to yourself, "But I'd never want him to take himself away from his work just for  _me_. Just wish he'd  _pretend_ I'm still important, I guess..."

"You  _are_ important!" he drunkenly insisted, "You let me eat all your food and you take care of Duke when I'm away!" You breathed out in amusement before the small smile on your face faded.

"I wanna feel important to  _him_ , Cal," you sighed, "I want him to make time for me without me having to  _ask_... I wanna know that he hasn't  _forgotten_ about me yet..."

"Y- _Yet_?" he hiccuped again.

"He will eventually..." you whispered, more to yourself than to Calum, "They all do..." He looked up at you, but you didn't return the gesture – you were too busy staring at the hair your fingers were playing with to even notice his eyes were on you now.

"I'll-  _I'll_ pay attention to you!" Calum announced, "I'll pay so much- so much attention that you-you'll wish you ne- _ever_  said that!" You finally cracked a grin, making him scrunch his face up happily.

"Don't think I won't hold you up to that, Cal," you told him.

~

**One week later**

Ever since the night you told Calum that Ashton hadn't been paying attention to you, it seemed like the drummer became  _ten times_ more needy and was always attached to your hip. You had _no idea_  what was going on – you knew Calum was  _way too drunk_  to even remember  _half_ of what you'd told him, so he obviously hadn't told on you – so you really couldn't figure out why Ashton was acting the way he was. And although you definitely weren't  _complaining,_ you  _were_ a little curious as to what was going on with him.

"Hey, Ash..." you trailed off, making him look up from the guitar he was tuning in preparation to teach you to play.

"Yeah?" he replied.

"Not that I don't appreciate it or anything, but... What's with all the affection lately?" you wondered, "Is everything okay?" He stared blankly at you for a moment, and it was like you could  _see_ the wheels in his head turning.

"I... I heard what you said to Calum the other night..." he admitted, making your eyes widen slightly – you didn't realize he'd been around or even  _awake_  at the time. Ashton swallowed thickly as if he was holding back tears. "I've  _never_ wanted you to feel like you're not important to me," he shook his head, "You're one of the  _most_  important people in my life; I care about you  _too much_  to lose you..." You didn't know if he was done with his speech, but you acted anyway.

You hurried over to him, wrapping your arms around his neck. You felt him let out a breath, leaning the guitar on the wall beside him and letting his own arms wind tightly around your waist. He pulled you onto his lap and kissed the side of your head a few times before resting his cheek on it, his thumb rubbing your skin through the hoodie you'd stolen from him.

"You should have  _told me_  you were feeling like that," he murmured, squeezing you gently.

"Didn't want you to hate me for being clingy," you whispered, your voice coming out a bit muffled due to your face being pressed to his chest.

"Could  _never_ hate you, princess – you  _know_ that," he kissed your head again, "And you know I don't mind your clingy moods  _either_. If we're being honest here, I  _love it_  when you don't wanna leave me."

"You  _do_?" you asked, tilting your head slightly to look at him.

"I think I've come to appreciate it more when you join us on tour or you get to come to a show and just be backstage with us," he said, "You just... You feel like  _home_... You  _are_ my home..." You could feel yourself getting choked up, but decided to speak anyway.

"You're my home  _too_ , Ashton."

~

_haha sike the only thing catelyn's not gonna like after making it this far is me beech!!!!!!!!_


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